A Race Against Time (closed)

[dryfter]

(Sorry all, this thread is closed for myself, VampiricTouch, and Dark_Empress)

Steven Connors

1/2 Elven, Rogue in more ways than one.
Dark hair and a dashing smile, his piercing blue eyes catch most everything, even the heart of occasional buxum bar wenches.

Occupation - Relic Hunter for hire!

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Silence......the first rays of dawn yet to illuminate the twilight beyond the window of the inn room he had rented. Well....perhaps that was best......for her.

Glancing to his left, the rogue smiled down at the form of the sleeping elf priestess beside him. She had been desperate.....and that was the way Steven happened to like his women. Desperate enough to give herself to a half breed, desperate enough to beg him for his help, desperate enough to shame herself by accepting his thick seed as he shot it deep into her fertility before collapsing into an exhausted heap and allowing slumber to claim them both......

Was this idol really worth it? Personally, he had his doubts, doubts that seemed to disappate somewhat as he realized just who and what he had been dealing with. The fact that a dark elf would have submitted to him for anything spoke volumes......the poor woman would probably be put to death by her own people once they found out how she had allowed herself to be tainted.

Grunting, he could feel her stir, her eyes full of hatred and loathing......and helplessness? Who could argue with his past successes? Not to mention who else would be suicidal enough to travel the subterranean caverns needed to be traversed just to reach the shattered temple of the drow that dwarves had found and demolished just a mere decade ago along with their elven allies?

"Mornin, love?"

She scowled up at him, hating everything about him, everything he had done to her.....watching as he swung his lanky, fine chiseled form out of the bed and reached for his undergarments. For some reason, the half-breed's accent was especially annoying today.....

"Should ye be gettin dressed and bein off, then? Last I checked, pretty drow like you dunnae like the sun too much."

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A stone tablet.....heavy, yet only palmsized......a fragment, a half of the puzzle. This was all he had to go on. He really was crazy, taking on a client with only half a map.....

The priestess had been clear about one thing. Her people weren't the only ones looking for the temple reliquary hidden deep in the bowels of the earth.....so he could expect a little resistance. Sighing, Steven threw on his leather vest, long ago having decided that he rather enjoyed the feel of the air on his bare chest, the garments front only loosely closed by errant cords. Strapping a pair of long knives to his outer thighs, the rogue jerked them suddenly from their sheaths to make sure the oil coating them keep them pulling smooth and wouldn't catch on anything when he needed them most.....

He was pretty sure he was gonna need them. It was well chronicled just how jealous and territorial the followers of drow dieties were. And well.....if one had the chance to crush the throat of another religion......they'd do so in a heartbeat, with fanatical fervor.

Bootlaces snapped tight, a scowl rivalling the priestess' own drawing his lips tight. For his part, he completely ignored her, her use over....she didn't recieve another glance, certainly not from a rogue with his mind on business.

"Get outta 'ere. And just so ye know.....ye send yer friends to keep watch.....well I won't be as gentle with em as I were with you."

The door was the easy way out. They both chose the window. Twin shadows moving to blend with those stirred by the gentle kiss of dawnlight.

First thing's first......time to do some looking around for the other half of that map.

[VampiricTouch]

The scorch of fire withered the ground around her... along with the men that had thought her easy prey. The crimson flame as brilliant as the curls of red that framed her face dimmed to embers leaving a blackened perimeter around her. The dim gleam of enchanted boots parted the scandalous cut of her robes as she took a step towards the charred remains of a no longer identifiable man. Leaning forth she blew him a kiss, the simple act in itself enough for the body to crumble to ash.

The turn of her heel swept the outer edge of her robes in a wide arc. The trimmed line of it's soft weave drifted in the wake of her destruction, parting to the steps of her boots and came together in silver clasps that sat suggestively high on her upper thighs. The white robes stood in sharp contrast to her skin, like the dark clouds of a stormy night, as it's laced front left the inner margins of her breasts on display. The sway of her hips unfortunately went unseen as the remaining bandits chose to flee instead of confront the mage that had so decimated their number.

She kicked open the door of the Inn, the slam of wood on wood jarring the frame as the innkeeper rushed to attend to her. The few customers gave her a wide berth as the innkeeper fidgeted uneasily... the lot of them obviously had seen the flare of fire surrounding the drow in her moment of whimsical wrath.

The haunch of meat, warm bread and generous slices of cheese were delivered to her room. She lounged on the bed with her back to the door and the robes comfortably unclasped to lay loosely over her. The servant couldn't help but stare at the lithe form backlit by the setting sun, dallying in the room until the cook hollered for the distracted boy.

She knew her back blocked the servant's view of the fragment she fingered in her hand. She'd touched the etched obsidian so many times she knew the markings by heart... The family that raised her told her that it was from her mother.

She always knew there was something in that trinket... and took the time to learn the esoteric writing of Lolth... deciphering enough to know the fragment spoke of a forgotten temple somewhere within the underground civilizations of her own kind.

She wondered how well they'd receive one of their own that was houseless, especially one that didn't quite agree with their traditions and culture... but regardless, it would be an interesting quest... having to find the remnants of this fragment and where it would lead. The inn stood at the border just before entering the underground Drow community and it was about time to return...

[DarkEmpress]

Jade … everyone has just always known her as Jade. She was a blood elf priestess and was often ensconced in the shadows and within her dark blue cape that seemed to swirl with shadow magic. Her shimmering green eyes were attentive to every detail and her dark hair spiraled around her features in wild disarray. She was a creature of magic and healing … both powerful and fragile. She knew how to stand her ground, but often chose to meld into the shadows, avoiding the need to use her power.

Jade’s dagger glowed in an ominous white sheen, sheathed at her side as she quietly moved with poised grace through the streets of the city. Her hand smoothed over the stone piece safely hidden in her pocket … her fingertips tracing across the strange inscriptions on it. She had been sent from across the world to find the pieces that would make it whole once more … to find an ancient temple. She was not even sure if any of the folklore was true, but she felt herself drawn to this place … to this time. Something powerful and magical was calling to her darker cravings for light energy that her soul seemed to thrive on.

Jade shuddered, trying to push the sudden dull and aching need to the back of her mind. She halted for a moment, closing her brilliant emerald eyes as she took a deep breath, trying to level out her senses. Her eyes snapped open and she continued on her path to the Inn at the end of the lane. She was sure to find some information there or at the very least a direction to start looking in.

She shuffled through the crowd and walked up to the bar counter. A burly man was standing behind it eyeing Jade with inquisitive eyes. “And what can I get ‘ya little Miss,” he asked grinning at her with a few teeth missing. It was entirely too early in the morning to be drinking anything out of the norm.

“A cup of coffee?” she asked sweetly.
“Coming right up,” he said in a cheery voice as he happily went about his task. Jade turned and leaned against the counter, scoping out the place. It was still relatively early, not allot of patrons about, yet … although she was certain it was an entire different scenario at night.

“Here you go Miss,” he said, pushing a steaming cup across to her.
“Say … you wouldn’t by any chance know anything about a legend of an ancient temple, would you?” Jade asked surreptitiously.

The man looked at her as if she had just spoken of the greatest heresy known to mankind. “I am sorry, I did not mean to offend,” she added quickly.
“’Round here Miss, it would be unwise to speak of such things,” he said with a wink.

“Thank you,” she said as a soft frown played across her brow. She took her mug and chose a corner where she could sit and enjoy the warm offering.

[dryfter]

He had learned everything he needed to know......in as obscure of fashion as possible of course.

Steven sighed softly, alas, such was to be expected when one's informant was a completely inebriated dwarf. It had been easy to bait the man of the earth, to challenge the fortitude that the little men seemed to pride themselves on so much. And to his credit......the hairy little creature had consumed over twelve times the alcohol that the rogue ever could.

And then the rambling started, lips loosening. A temple yes. Dwarven brethren calling in the aid of the elves to beat back a suddenly furious wave of darkness. Magic, dragons.....just how much of this was to believed?!

Location. The stodgy little man blanched, glancing up through watery eyes that even in their drunken stupor seemed to question his sanity. After all....who in their right mind would want to go there? But in the end, he had talked.....and in the end......the rogue ended up knowing little more than what he already knew.

His piece of etched obsidian, it seemed, held the location of the temple. Too bad he hadn't been able to actually READ it. Elvish wasn't his strong point, and the drow dialects were damn near impossible. But still.....the etchings coincided far to coincidentally with the dwarves' drunken ramblings.....

So what could the other half....or was there more?......

Standing up with a sigh, thin fingers raked across his dark caramel colored hair.....silently turning and leaving the old codger in a puddle of his own stupified drool. He could use a drink himself.....but damned if he was touching any of that swill......

To the tavern it was then. Maybe he could find some more information there......

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"Mornin Steven."

The normally cheerful innkeep's tone had a slight catch in it.....enough to make a slight hesitation in his step as the rogue was pulled from his thoughts and back into reality to survey his surroundings.

"Mornin, Jim......McGrady's drunk already, don't think he'll be stoppin by till tonight."

A soft frown and a nod from the man as he went back to polishing the beat up surface of his bar.

"Breakfast for ya then?"

Another famous flash of teeth, "You know it, a stack o' flapjacks and a cold glass o' milk'd do me wonders, Jim. Ya mind hookin me up? Seems I gotta be headin on another job soon."

"Anything to do with that drow bitch you were banging last night?"

And just like that his good humor was gone. Right about the time he realized that was the uncomfortable center of everyone's attention......unwelcome attention.

"Sorry Steven.....but we don't tolerate drow lovers here. I think you'd best be taking your leave now instead of later."

A look to his left......then to his right.......each from the very edges of his peripheral vision. Farmers.....guardsmen.....and common folk. This could get very bloody.....on both sides......

And a cloaked figure no less.....a question mark, a variable. Long flowing hair marked her as female, though he had yet to get a good look at her actual face......this just kept getting worse and worse......

"My things?"

A backpack jangled slightly as it struck him in the chest, driving him back a step. For a second......he almost lost his temper......for just a second before that annoyingly cocky grin spread across his handsome face once more.

"O' course, ye realize that you'll definately nae be seein me once I strike it big, Jim? I'll be rememberin this lil ouster o' yers."

"GET OUT!"

He was already moving, though at his own speed, caring little for the scraping of chair legs on the wooden floor nor the patrons sullenly rising from those same seats.

"Fair nuff, Jim.....I gots me a treasure ta find."

[DarkEmpress]

Jade was busy plotting out a plan of action in her mind of where to go next, what to look for. Truth be told … she had no clue where to even start. All she had was a fragment of a map and folklore to guide her in a town that she knew nothing about, much less the people occupying it.

She took an absent sip of her coffee as she stared off in space, when a voice from the bar caught managed to pull her from her reverie. She watched as the initial raising of a voice turned into a hostile interchange between the bar owner and what appeared to be a rogue. He was dressed in a leather vest and donned two knives that were strapped to his thighs in addition to what appeared to be a bad attitude.

Jade groaned indignantly as she tried to ignore them, silently cursing the intrusion of her quiet morning. It was however fast becoming a dangerous situation as some of the patrons moved their chairs back, legs scraping across the stone floor to assist the host of the establishment if need be.

She was going to ignore him, but his final words caught her attention, "Fair nuff, Jim.....I gots me a treasure ta find."

Quirking an eyebrow, Jade quickly drained her mug. Leaving it on the table, she slowly pushed herself up from her seat and moved a little closer to him, in order to get in earshot of what he was saying. Quite a few people were snorting with indignation around him as if he had done something unforgivable. Jade slowly circled around him, her emerald eyes roaming across him curiously … if he was in search of a treasure … it could very well be that he was in search of the same one.

She kept her distance, listening carefully to what he said and what he asked. There was no way that she was going to walk up to him and say … so, do you by any chance have a fragment of a map?

[VampiricTouch]

The ruckus beneath her roused her from her slumber. Between the words drow lovers and treasure to find, she was up in a heart beat as she pulled the robes on and glanced out the window at the swagger of quite the well built frame. She settled onto the windowsill with a leg propped against the frame where the open cut of her dress displayed a sordid amount of flesh and the disheveled tumble of red fell in wisps about her face.

Lifting her hand to blow him a kiss, she watched the tiny gust of icy wind to kiss his cheeks, and twine through the cords of his vest as it grazed his chest. It spiraled downward to tease the cuff of his pants, finding an opening to dance up his legs... the last of it's life vanishing as it chilled his groin.

Steven paused, not yet even a full dozen steps from the front of the seedy tavern, a sudden and pronounced chill creeping slowly up one thigh the chill the heat that was normally such a constant......

"You'll have to forgive a woman's curiosity for gossip... Drow lovers mm? Which poor woman had the fortune to share your bed? Last I checked they don't appreciate such going ons..." Her lilting voice carried across the gap to the man in question. She took in the partial point of his ears along with the fluid grace in the way he held himself.... a half elf...

Daring a glance over one shoulder, he took care to not move quickly. Whomever his inquirant was, she had caught him off-guard.....and no doubt defenseless. And that chill.....coincidence? For some reason the rogue couldn't bring himself to buy that thought.

The cocky grin he gave her was returned in kind as he leered at her display. "Jealous, are ye? As fer bein appreciated, well that's nae part o' any bargain I struck, lass. The "lady" in question dinnae have coin ta pay fer my services, so she offered payment in another manner." His grin widened as his eyes lingered just that much longer. "She was beautiful, and she was skilled. So what if 'er skin tone were darker'n most?"

"Jealous? Hardly... I just thought that most Drow had slightly different preferences in their men."

"Aye, they prolly do, they prolly do indeed. Hard ta see yerself layin with a half breed bastard? You want somethin bad enough that you'll do most anythin fer it, and those pretty little legs o' yers will open sure nuff."

"That must be one helluva service to set those... preferences aside mm?"

He nodded smugly "My services aren't cheap by any means. Most likely, the priestess will be put ta death should others find out the coin she paid me with. But when it comes to finding things that be lost, ain't no one better than me."

"Priestess... just what is it that you're looking for?" Her brow arched, for one of those to place their pride down and bed a.... half elf? This arrogant kid was hounding something serious...

The rogue simply laughed. It went against every policy he'd ever known to tell anyone else what he was seeking. But in this case.....well.....a little bluff couldn't hurt. "Were that I knew, miss....were that I knew. And if I told ye, ye'd prolly have me dead in a heartbeat, not that yer not already plannin ta kill me. Fat lot o' good it'll do ye though. Even if ye were ta kill me, ye'd still hafta come up with the other pieces o' the puzzle this chunk o' obsidian matches. Ye wanna know what I'm after? Well fer right now, I'd settle fer those. And then? Then I'll be goin after whatever they're hidin."

Her eyes widened at the puzzle piece he held in his hand and wondered which god it was that had blessed her.... and wondered even more how likely she'd be able to kill him for that piece in his hands.... Would she be able to? For a priestess to pay so dearly for his service, there had to be much more to him than roguish appearances... no she'd not risk attacking now.

"Sounds like an adventure to be had..." She schooled her face back into the calm it was before, "I needed something to distract myself... You wouldn't mind the companion would you? I was going to visit the Drow cities for the first time.... Though I'm not particularly keen on meeting the lot of them especially without a house." She shrugged as she tried to cover and explain, "Anything to postpone that chore..."

First time? No house? Just what kind of drow had stumbled upon him? For a moment, the young half elf paused in his thoughts. It could be a bluff.....and she could be after the shard as well as his life.......but as an arcane user, if indeed that was what she was......couldn't she do that right now?

He shrugged, the roll of his shoulders as he agreed made her smile, "Yer eyes be better than mine where we're goin. Keep yer magics ta yerself, and I'll nae complain. Yer certainly good on the eyes, and that might be just what I need ta take my mind off'n a long road trip"

_______________________________
OOC- Done with lots of help from Dryfter

[DarkEmpress]

Jade was masterful at melding into shadows, as if she was not there … inconspicuous in her movements and completely out of mind. She regularly had people walk into her because they simply did not ‘see’ her.

Carefully staying within earshot, Jade’s emerald eyes studied the half-breed elf and the Drow. Her insatiable need for magic immediately drew her attention to the Drow, her arcane magic calling out to some base need that swirled in Jade’s mind. She took a deep and steadying breath, desperately fighting the overpowering need that had the ability to drug her senses.

The mention of an obsidian piece snapped Jade out of her fixation as the elf’s words garnered her full attention. Something in the way the Drow’s eyes lit up made Jade think she knew something about the obsidian piece … or had at the very least, heard of it. Quirking an eyebrow with interest, Jade followed them as they headed for the Drow cities. The elf’s accent was driving her insane … and he constantly chattered. She finally switched off and just followed them wordlessly.

They had reached the outskirts of the city and were heading through quite a scenic mountain range. Her reliance on buildings and drones of people to ‘disappear’ into all but gone … the fact that she was following them would become apparent almost instantly.

Lifting her chin determinedly, Jade pulled her cloak tightly around herself, hiding her features as she walked up to them. “Excuse me … would you mind if I walk with you?” she asked in a demure little voice. She suppressed all her powers not wanting them to know what she was.

Her words were barely spoken when a group of menacing teenage Drows stepped out into the path seemingly from nowhere. Jade looked from the elf to the Drow apprehensively … whether they liked it or not, the three of them were in this together.

“We heard a mention of a treasure,” the leader said as if he was discussing some trivial piece of information over his afternoon tea.
“Did you now?” one of his friends drawled.
“Something about some no-good half-breed elf that was cashing it in … and fraternising with Drow priestesses,” he said in an ominous voice.
“Oh, dear me!” The buddy exclaimed in mock horror.
“Do you think we should teach him a lesson?” the leader asked his four gang-members in a menacing tone as his eyes snapped to Steven.
“Yes,” the answer came.

[dryfter]

“We heard a mention of a treasure.”

“Did you now?”

“Something about some no-good half-breed elf that was cashing it in … and fraternising with Drow priestesses,”

“Oh, dear me!”

“Do you think we should teach him a lesson?”

“Yes,”

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If he had been overly flirtatious towards his new companion as they travelled in what would have otherwise been silence, it was only due to an innate need to keep her off guard and suspecting. Especially now seeing the caverns of the underworld yawning before them like a ravenous maw that no amount of devouring could sate......

Glancing back at his dark elven companion, Steven did his best to keep from admiring the very feminine curves she displayed almost shamelessly with her slitted, form fitting robes. None of that could hide the truth that he knew very little about her. And yet....keeping a potential enemy close to the vest was a lot safer than waiting for their ambush.

Glancing to over his other shoulder brought him no better view, trust wise. Was it coincidence that they had bumped into yet another strange elf so soon after leaving civilization? For their part, it seemed that neither of them were willing to press him for more information about his piece of the obsidian map. At least....perhaps he could be thankful for that.

He kept his travels cordial for now.....all flirting ceasing when night fell, though the elven blood that ran through them all made sleep a nuisance only seldom needed. And until he could be sure he would wake up again and not end up with a second bloody smile across his neck.....he would have to sleep alone.

Swallowing hard, the rogue tore his glance from his lovely companions, turning back instead to the darkness that lay beyond. He had spoken true before.....that as only a half elf, his vision could likely betray him in such a place......

Gritting his teeth he stepped forward......just as the shadows themselves stepped in kind to greet them.......

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Teeth ground hard enough to hurt, his face set in a nasty grimace as lazy fingertips traced the pommel of his knives. They were young for Drow, young and stupid, but they also had advantage of numbers. An advantage they no doubt increased even more with the presence of a dark elf in his own party. There was little doubt he'd be on his own......if he was lucky, maybe Jade would lend a hand, but right now Steven could only guess that this whole thing had been a set up from the start. After all.....only two people knew that he had bedded a priestess......

And the cavern filled with the soft hiss of steel on leather.......

Cold, calculating eyes scanned the four as they fanned out, wary of what he and his comrades might do in response. Sword.......daggers......a mace.......that one was most likely their caster.......and a nasty looking pike.......lovely.

It didn't take a brain surgeon to know they would all move as one to attack, though Steven was duly impressed by a lack of battlecry when they did come, his head rocking back just fast enough to recieve a nick across the bridge of his nose from a dagger that had obviously meant to blind him even as his own forced aside the tip of the polearm meant to disembowel him and leave his roguish guts spilling across the cavern floor.

This wasn't going to be easy.

Dropping to his knees, the swordsman attacking him cursed loudly, in a language he didn't know and didn't care too. He could understand its meaning quite well when daggerpoint pierced the man's leather shoe and scored soft, vulnerable, sensitive flesh.

Staggering back, the stricken man retreated promptly without so much as a whimper. Admirable.....

Yet if he had been expecting a heal, such hopes ended promptly in a sudden concussive burst of flame and sulfur, the mace wielding drow arching instantly in agony as flesh sizzled and bubbled away beneath the heat. Sadly, Steven didn't even have the time to figure out which one of the lovely ladies decided to intervene on his behalf.......

That left him in a melee with three very pissed off drow, the swordsman quickly recovering from the shock of seeing his own kinsman deepfried before his very eyes, limping back into the battle with vengeance very much on his mind.

For now, it was all he could do to keep himself from a very messy death on the dagger wielding elf's blades. Another frantic parry as the pointed head of the pike drove in at a supposed opening, and a backwards kick with a hard soled boot caught the surprised rogue dead in the chest, sending him tumbling for now......

Turning with a snarl, the wielder of the polearm flinched at the obvious murderous intent in the half-elf's eyes. While the man's weapon was larger, and could no doubt deliver much more forceful strikes.......the idiot should have realized that it was no good in close combat.....a fact made painfully clear as Steven stepped in close as his opponent drew back for another savage lunge......

And again, he dropped to the ground, a wicked grin on his face as he felt the spray of blood and gore spatter his cloak and leathered shoulders. It wasn't instinct this time. The only way a man could get by with weilding such a weapon in a place like this was if his comrades protected him.....and until he had vanished beneath what the swordsman must have thought was a killing blow.....he had been doing just that.

Rising like smoke, he struck with a viper's deadly bite, twin knives sinking deep beneath the lowest edge of the man's leather vest to ravage and shear the flesh beneath........

And then there was one. The polearmed drow crumpling to the ground in a gurgling mess of his own intestines.......the pair of gut wounds a nice compliment to the bloody swath across his chest his own friend had given him......

Wait.....one?

Again, another flash of brilliance......this one painful enough that it made his eyes burn with its brightness. He knew better though.....had seen enough battles to know that he had to suffer through it......he dared not close his eyes if he could possibly help it......

And in that, he found his advantage. The split second the swordsman flinched, grimacing beneath the arcane barrage and shielding his face with a hand. When his hand finally lowered.......his own death was all he saw.........

Turning finally, as the last of the assailants fell lifeless to the ground, Steven grunted softly....turning his nose from the smell of charred flesh. Lightning. Great. Every hair on the rogue's body still stood erect......but there had been little doubt of what he had been trying to do. And to think.....Steven had almost counted him out of the fight......

"Thank ye....."

It was low spoken.....and a little shaky, his lithe body shuddering softly as exertion made itself known. It seems.....more than a few questions had been answered.....yet not as many as had arisen from this combat......

[DarkEmpress]

Jade’s eyes were glistening green pools of light as the energy shimmered around her, the target of that energy lying lifeless on the floor … her hand still warm with the tendrils of fire. She fought the urge to siphon the energy radiating from Aryana from her being, Jade’s primal and insatiable need for power calling out to her soul, the sweet and intoxicating flare of it numbing her senses.

She slowly expelled a shuddering breath and closed her eyes. Bringing her hands down to her side she took a step forward, her eyes fluttering open again as she levelled her gaze on Steven, focusing her attention on his injuries to distract her from the arcane power that was pulsating from Aryana. Her eyes had returned to their normal emerald colour.

She took another step towards Steven and watched as he took a reflexive step backwards. “I will not harm you,” she said softly as her hands started glowing. She lifted them and gently smoothed her fingers across the bridge of his nose … her expression epitomising perfect concentration. A tingling sensation filled his senses, and once her fingertips had passed the cut … it had vanished from his flesh … completely healed.

"So mote it be," Aryana murmured as she ended the spell. She felt the burden lift as magic no longer drained into her reserves. She made a beeline towards the dead, and began to rifle through their clothes. "Sarghress," she murmured as she pulled out a token of their allegiance and read the engraved words.

"You think the priestess was the one who sent these idiots after you? Or... have you been bragging to others about your ... exploits?" Aryana asked.

Jade abruptly took a step closer to Steven … placing her hands on his chest. For a moment she kept his eyes captive before smoothing her hands across his skin, pushing his leather vest across his shoulders and letting it fall to the floor. With the trained eye of a healer, she inspected his body, her hands roaming across him as she searched for injuries … his reaction to her touch, not eluding her.

Aryana turned as Jade stripped him down. The few bruises across his torso and body not hiding any of the wiry strength he had. Chiselled lines of ragged muscle flinched as she watched Jade's fingers pass and the flower of a blossoming bruise wilt and vanish. She hid a smile from the pair. It was always nice to undress someone with one's eyes ... but it was that much more … intriguing, to watch it transpire.

Fabric whispered across his skin as his trousers fell to the floor, coming to rest at his feet. Jade's hands smoothed across his legs ... slowly ... meticulously, addressing every cause of pain he might have. Once her hands circled around his ankles they continued their slow and meandering route up the length of his legs. She was kneeling before him as her flitting touches neared his crotch. She lifted her eyes to him, a teasing light glinting in their emerald depths. Just before she reached the centre of his male being, she slowly licked her lips, and then dropped her hands to her side.

“I do believe, you will live Steven,” she said regrettably.

Aryana had drifted closer ... close enough to hear the priestess' words and grin. "Pity," she whispered … as her breath washed over his neck and back, tickling the stray hairs in the nape of his neck, before she tossed him the marked token she had taken from the dead.

“Look familiar? Or did we just run into a pack of stray Drow that suddenly took a bit too much interest in you?" Aryana asked, pointedly.

(OOC: VT and I had a great deal of fun writing this post )

[dryfter]

For all that he'd just been through, and all that he hadn't, the rogue was still a little on the skittish side. And so....when one of his lovely elven companions stepped forward, out of instinct he retreated a pace in kind....his eyes still narrowed and wary of possible dangers. He had only barely met this woman.....hell....both of them.......

“I will not harm you.”

Steven flinched as Jade's hands began to glow with eldritch light, yet it was that very same light and its familiarity that stilled his swiftly pounding heart. Or perhaps it was the aura radiating from it.....peace....serenity.....a complete lack of any semblence of hostility......

And just like that, the ragged nick across his nose disappeared.....

It tingled......bordering on almost arousing before fading away to nothingness.....just like it always did. It wasn't the first time he'd had to be healed....though perhaps it was the first time a priestess had bothered with wounds so minor. It was almost touching in a way.....or it would have been if it hadn't occured to him that where they were going they would all need to be at their peak.

Grunting softly, he tried to ignore the fingers at his vest.....loosening the cords holding it in place until it easily slipped over his raised arms, allowing Jade to address the bruises beneath as he watched Aryana sift through the bodies for anything worth keeping.

"Anything good?"

Again the tingling sensation as magic swept through him, the aches and pains of his many close calls vanishing in an instant, not just bruises....but muscles he hadn't even realized he'd strained yet, dodging so many would-be lethal blows. For a second, he wondered what Jade's reaction would be seeing his scarring......the remnants of an arrow taken below his left shoulder years ago......it had missed his heart by scant inches......and a deeper, much uglier thing half hidden by his leggings where it scarred his hip on the opposite side.....

Thankfully, Aryana's question distracted him enough that he didn't blush too badly as the priestess continued her inspection.....slowly undoing his pants, glancing up almost in askance, and yet he knew she wasn't going to take no for an answer......

"Far as I know, only three people know I banged that priestess, love. You, cause I thought you were spoilin fer a fight when I first met ye anyway, the barkeep no doubt saw 'er go up ta my room, and the priestess herself. I don't talk about shit like that less I think either myself or the person I'm talkin to.....is about ta die. And considering yer a caster.....well.....let's just say it was a parting shot."

Steven grimaced as he finally felt his leggings drop stiffly to his ankles.....the return of the healing magic having much more of a profound effect this time.....

"So if'n yer tellin me you didn't send em.....well then.....I highly doubt that barkeep would be keepin truck with these sorts, aye?"

He flashed his cocky grin at her sudden pause.

"And nay, I don't think ye sent em. Why go to all that trouble only ta fry em yerself? Were that the case, ye'd have surely left me ta die here."

Unless you weren't counting on having another elf join up with us.

And dammit....why did Jade have to get so close to his cock? It was becoming more and more difficult to keep his mind on the matters at hand, and he'd given up long ago trying to hide his arousal. Hell, why should he? Its not like he was ashamed of what he'd been gifted with.....

As Jade looked up at him, he could almost swear he was being teased......

Well she obviously wasn't ashamed of her ability to turn him on either then. And that was just fine with him.

“I do believe, you will live Steven,”

The regret in her tone of voice....mocking him teasingly.....he couldn't resist.....

"Not if ye keep causin all my blood to rush down there, I won't."

It was his turn to toss a smile as he bent and reached for his leggings, acutely aware of Aryana's appraising look as well, turning to meet her gaze and letting her know she'd been caught looking, not as if he thought she cared but still.....

But she was no longer there.....that is.....until he felt a warm rush of breath across the nape of his neck.....Pity? Had she wanted him to die after all?!

“Look familiar? Or did we just run into a pack of stray Drow that suddenly took a bit too much interest in you?"

Steven reached for the odd shaped piece of obsidian.....scowling at the question he'd already answered. Aryana knew damn well these were no stray drow.....young, yes......and that was probably what had made them expendable.

"Never seen it before. Probably a house sign. Wouldn't surprise me if yon preistess were already dead, and the rest of em want a peice o' my hide as recompense. Honestly, I'm surprised you don't recognize it."

While he had the opportunity to lie.....the rogue was telling the truth this time. If it had perhaps been the holy symbol of the late priestess.......but.....it wasn't......

"At any rate. We know now we'd best be on our guard, someone knows we're down here, and they not be likin me too terrible much. Oh.....and I never thanked you two ladies....."

His vest slid over his lithe frame as he turned, deft fingers retightening the cords that fastened the garment firmly to his chest.

"I'm.....not used ta havin company on jobs such as these.....but fer once, I'm glad I had the two o' ye here. I'm afraid it would have ended quite differently if you hadn't been. I thank ye both."

A soft, punctuated bow.....and a slow turning towards the gloomy path ahead of them.....

"I'd like ta know if either o' ye need rest to regain magics or the like before we begin anew. I'm not sure when we'll get a better chance than this."

[VampiricTouch]

The damned blood elf... Things would have gone according to plan if only that woman hadn't joined the group...

Aryana had scouted forward the day before. Having tailed a small group out of the city limits, she'd watched them run into the same pack of thugs who seemed to prey upon passing travelers with very little provocation. They would've been easy to clean off, but having so extravagantly disposed of the bandits that had attempted to assault her... she wasn't sure she'd have the firepower to blow these out of the water as well.

No matter... She could take her time. It had paid off as well... taking her time. Otherwise she'd have missed this... Steven.

During their languid walk out the city, she'd paused to haggle with a merchant. She took her time and waited till half elf was no longer attentive before she dispatched a man to head down the same road, purposely tucking a scrawled note of Steven Conner's exploits into the same bag of coin she'd given him as a bribe. The fool no doubt was laying dead somewhere and as she'd hoped, these boys had picked up the note along with her coins.

She doubted they'd be able to kill him. But at least they would force him to show his skills and whittle down enough of his stamina so that she could fry him with ease.

Pity.

If only that blood elf had not joined them. She'd been a curve ball outside of Aryana's expectations... This Jade. Aryana had seen the furtive glances from the woman... the glimpses of hunger that came with their kind... There was probably an ulterior motive for tagging along, but Aryana wasn't about to test whether the elf was going to turn on her the moment she tried to burn Steven to a crisp.

At least no one noticed the flare of fire as the note turned to ash and she retrieved her coins, with interest, from them. She wondered if he suspected... wondered if the firebolt she'd expended been enough to ease any doubt he might have...

They'd rested and moved on. The flirtatious banter as they trekked forward passed the time quickly and dispersed the tension of traveling in the underground roads of obviously Drow territory. It was a place she too was uncomfortable with and her sharp eyes as they darted from shadow to shadow was evidence of it despite the loose farce of smiles she'd kept up.

"Seems we're being watched." Her voice dropped dangerously low but she maintained the facade of unsuspecting mirth. "I think we've been watched since we went underground."

[dryfter]

"Seems we're being watched. I think we've been watched since we went underground.

Steven sighed....already beginning to tire of this. He'd much prefer it if their pursuers just challenged them and got it over with. But nooooo.....

It was obvious that if what Aryana spoke was true.....the younglings had just been a test of strength......

"So much fer takin a breather then. On we go....least as far as we know.....then we wing it from there I guess."

At least after the excitement, there was little thought of sleep. Not with every nerve in his body tingling, the rogue half expecting another....less brazen attack. An ambush would be all too easy to pull off down here. And to make matters worse, the deeper then went, the more his eyes dialated to catch the barest of lighting......and the more shadowed everything around him seemed......

Glancing over his shoulder at his elven companions, he was comforted somewhat to see that with their pure blood, they seemed to be having a better time of it at least. Scowling he trudged forward a little more flat footed than he would have been normally, unwilling to tip his hand just yet by letting a loose rock or uneven ground trip him up.......

How long they had travelled, he wasn't sure. It was all Steven could to to read the traces and runes cut into the small stone in his palm. The soles of his feet ached through the hardened leather boots he wore, and instinctively he reached for a waterskin to slake the thirst that dust and fatigue combined to create......

"I'd say we're bout a third o' the way there, maybe a lil less. Still plenty o' time for our watchers ta make themselves felt. How ye holdin up, ladies?"