The Chase

[Ambrosious]

The Tuuklak were a hard people and Davron was one of the hardest. Equipped with two water skins, assorted knives, throwing skivs, and just enough hardtack to survive here for a week. It would not take him a week to find her. Looking around the barren plain, Davron could not see her or any sign that she had been here. Placing the gauze around his eyes once more, he set out in the only direction that made sense to him, east to the city of Bakrun.

The girl that Davron was searching for was dangerous. The women’s council had discovered that she had the Talent just one day ago. He heard that she stood accused of channeling and would stand trial. That was no concern of his though. Such things were better left to the women’s council. His job was to track her and bring her to justice. The hard truth was that she had left no trace to track her by. Preposterous, of course, Davron just had to find the signs he knew would be there. If he could not, life would not be easy for him. What good was a Tracker without a village to track for. The sun beat upon his broad back as he bent to examine the sand.

While he examined the area for any sign of the girl or game that might be brought down, Davron’s mind wandered. He thought back to spring and the festival of Darkness. He had consumed his share of wine and ale and had won much prestige through the contest that were held yearly. He had given the money he had won to the Sisterhood, for he had no need that the village did not provide gladly. That would surely change if he failed to bring in the Channeler. Davron thought of the girls that had shamelessly thrown themselves at him, and he thought of the girls that did not. Of the two, he was much more intrigued by the second class of women. It had made them challenging, like tracking.

Davron looked up and almost missed the sign. A broken stalk of beer grass was all that he needed to know that she had been here. It was broken at the ground. The wind would never break grass even with the ground. Something had trod here. The color of the grass indicated that it had not been broken long, for it had not turned color. He bent to look closer to the ground in the area around the grass. He saw a faint outline of a foot. Long and slender, it had to belong to her. How she trod the sand so lightly was intriguing, but Davron put that down to her abilities. No wonder he had trouble finding her tracks, she left none. The footprint indicated that she was indeed heading toward the city. He would have to increase his pace if he was to catch her. If she made it to the city, some Lord would gladly offer her a place in his house, just for the prestige of having one who could channel in his house, not to mention the fact that once she learned control of her abilities, she would help her Lord rise in power and wealth.

Davron straightened his back, took a long draught from the water skin and gazed into the hazy horizon. He did not see her in the distance. Setting his mind to the task and reshouldering the water skin, he set out to find her. He set out to bring back the young woman. It was past time she be put to service.

 

[ShyGoddess]

The man was good. He had not missed the girl's track. Most trackers would have missed it. Even the best of the best had trouble following someone who could channel. Even though the girl's powers were new and untrained, it was difficult to follow her.

Sacha sat on a rise, her blond hair glinting in the early sunlight. Her blue eyes took in everything around her, she reached out with her mind, trying to contact the girl, but to no avail. The girl didn't understand the extent of her powers yet. But Sacha did. It wasn't to long ago that she had been exactly where this girl was. Had it only been five short years ago? Eighteen, alone, and scared, because she had received a gift she didn't understand. She hadn't know what to do.

And then she had met Kendra and discovered the Order of Zion, and her whole life had changed. The Order had taken her in, and taught her how to control her powers. Her powers had grown ten fold that first year, and they had gotten stronger each year. And now she was to repay everything she had received from the order. She had to teach this girl, protect her. But first Sacha had to find her, and she had to do it before the man did. He would take her back to the Sisterhood and the girl would never survive. They feared the gift because they didn't possess it and couldn't understand it.

Sacha urged her palamino forward. "We have to find her, Timber. She won't have a prayer otherwise."

 

[Cryo]

A young man tested the air with his fingers. Something was amiss, though he couldn't put his finger on it. The air was gritty and dry, beneth his sencitive fingers. A hint of unnatural moisture invaded the inner feel however, a presance usually not felt with this kind of air.
It has been several years since the man had been sent here. And for several years, no trace of the special ones could be found. Suddenly, without warning, a taste of the ones wafed in through the window, thus enlightening the young person to their existance.
The man was meditating when it came. A small draft made his red, spiky hair quiver ever so slightly. Though the taste was faint, it was definitely real. The time came to find the ones. Where and what he would go and do was still a question lost in time. But that never stopped him before. Silently, he grabbed his longsword, sheathed in a multicolored shaft, tied by a white strap of cloth. Though time was meaningless to him, he still felt it was time to plunge into his new destiny.

 

[ranajja]

Easy now, she thought, don’t get careless. Easy enough, to smooth over the sand behind her, to erase her footsteps, to make the sand look untouched. Too easy, and the mind tends to wander…

She’d managed to keep her abilities hidden for a while, practicing in secret, planning the very thing she was now doing…leaving the village, headed for fame and fortune. She had no intention of obeying the orders of the women’s council. Her life was her own, she thought with a smile, and she was going to start living!

She knew she probably needed help with her “talent”, but she already knew a lot, and was discovering more and more every day. In the city, someone will know what to do with someone like me, she thought, as she began walking faster…

 

[ShyGoddess]

"I can open the door." Sacha smiled. She had finally broken through. The girls power grew stronger everyday. She was finally able to communicate.

 

[Cryo]

The spiky haired man made it to the desert. the taste in the air was getting stronger, so he knew he was travelling in the right direction. Ahead of him was a cottage sorrounded by sporatic trees, sorounded still by an endless desert. This reminded him strongly of fiona, and could almost see his friend dilligently plowing the ground. But that was a long time ago, so he made his way past the random place towared his true destination.

 

[Ambrosious]

Davron quickened his pace when he saw the shimmer on the horizon. A shimmer that meant another sole traversing the Wastelands. Unshouldering the waterskin, Davron pushed the gauze covering his face aside for a quick swallow. He had been following the girl for too long. He needed to find her and search for game or his supplies would run out soon. It was good to know that his goal was at hand. If she was smart, she would come back to face the Women's council and the Justice. She was still headed for Bakrun. If she made it...

For the hundredth time since his journey had begun, Davron checked his weapons. A blade could easily lose it's edge here in the intense heat. Once he was satisfied that everything was satisfactory, he settled into a long stride that would eat up leagues fast enough. He estimated the shimmer ahead to be 8-10 leagues ahead. That would take him about 3 or 4 turnings to reach it. With renewed vigor the water gave him, Davron prayed that the shimmer was the one that he looked for and not a Fade. Fade's were deadly, and they didn't like humans intruding in the Wastelands without permission. And they especially despised Trackers. Trackers were the ones responsible for bringing rogue Fades to justice. It was a case of the hunter becoming the hunted.

A snap of grass and a grind of sand to his left made Davron start. A Talented One was appearing out of thin air to his left side. The air swirled and eddies in the sand were being formed in the general area. Davron quickly unsheathed his throwing skivs and prepared for the worst. He took a moment to reflect on the 7 Arts of Combat while he waited...

 

[Ambrosious]

Meanwhile...

Lord Kurd turned over in his mind the events of the last few days. The tournament he had hosted had been extremly profitable, netting him two new alliances, one with a southern Lord that had many connections. He called out for his scribe, and while waiting for the scribe to appear, he mentally composed a message to Lord Horun.

The scribe entered the ornate sitting room bowing.

"Yes, my Lord" said the scribe, "you have needs of my talents?"

"Start at the top with all the usual flowerly salutations to Lord Horun. Let's see. Oh, yes. Begin the letter with an inquiry about his well being and that of his family, continue that with a report on our state here. Include my wife's new facination with the wild creature she recently acquired for her collection. Now for the meat of the letter. Inquire as to whether Lord Horun has or if he knows anyone who has a Talented One to spare. Losing ours puts us at a dissadvantage. Make sure to tell him I will pay top dollar" Lord Kurd thought for a moment to see if there was any thing else to say to Lord Horun. "Yeah, that'll do nicely, wrap that up with an invitation for him and his family to come see my wife's collection."

The scribe scribbled furiously for a few minutes more while Lord Kurd stroked his mustache absentmindedly. The scribe left the room and Kurd turned to the windows in his sitting room. His rooms were at a height that allowed him to see above the city walls and out into the wastelands. Peering into the bright sun, he thought he could make out a figure approaching the city at a leisurely pace. Giving himself a few minutes to make sure it was not a trick of the brutal sun, Kurd sent for his guard. The captain on duty arrived in short order and kurd ordered him and one division into the Wasteland. The captains face betrayed his true feelings, if only for a short time and he turned out to carry out his orders.

 

[Always]

Efreet (Fire Genie)

I swept across the desert, noting a man and shimmers next to him. He held weapons, so I sent my wind tunnel down and appeared next to the creautres.

"Who dares intrude upon my desert?" I demanded. Most travelers across my land fear the Fades. Ah, yes... My minions. I was the most powerful efreet in the known multiverse, and here I had a few issues to take care of. My voluptuos form was barely hidden by my fiery garments, and my flickering hair - from red to orange to yellow - swirled about my waist.

"I do not like trespassers!" I thundered...

 

[Cryo]

The wind blew, causing his hair to wave. Inlain with the wind was the taste of a powerfull being, one he hasn't senced since times past. This was not the one, but it merrited investigation. Turning to the west, he practically flew over the sand towared the source of the fiery taste...


In the distance, he could see them. An efreet, a level 6 inferno creature he hasn't seen since his champaign in erathia was floating in the distance, occupied with several creatures and a human. the red haired man wished to overhear the conversation without being seen.

Slash

Slash

Two slash techniques were used, sending a linear shockwave in two different directions. Climing sand dunes, the waved turned and eventually collided, silently sending sand into the air, as if a natural sandstorm. Cover created, he moved in...

 

[Ambrosious]

Davron threw himself to the sand and prostrated before the fade as a Talented One took form beside him. It was worse than he could have imagine. Davron was facing a Fade, a nightmare made real in itself, and a Talented One. He didn't know which was the worst of two. Facing one or the other was bad enough, but both? Blight! It was unfair.

The Talented One assumed an air of superiority, even in the face of a Fade and when he spoke his voice was dripping with evil.

"Begone from here, Soulless One, this one serves my purpose and I grant him easement through your Wasteland." The Talented One turned his back on the Fade and faced Davron, as Davron looked up from his position in the sand with amazement on his face. "You're a Tracker? Good, I need you to come with me immediatly. Forget about the one you are following, you have failed that assignment, as she has reached Bakrun."

The disappointment was evident on Davron's face as the Talented One continued and the Fade slowly stirred the winds in anger. "Come with me and do my bidding or return to your village as a failure. Choose now as I am wilting in this sun."

"I will follow you," was all Davron said.

The Talented One turned to the Fade. "It is time to deal with you. Shall we duel, or will you let us pass unmolested?"

 

[ShyGoddess]

"The girl is safe. She has reached the city. You on the other hand are now in danger. Return to The Order at once."

Sacha opened her mind to the voice. "What is wrong?"

"A Talented One is roaming the land. You are not safe with one so strong around, and he has the tracker now. You could be in great danger."

Sacha nodded and turned her mount north. "Come Timber we must make haste."

 

[Cryo]

The red haired man crept closed under the cover of the artificial sandstorm. He quickly learned that the Efreet Sultan (the higher form of the efreet) claimed ownership to the sands, and wished to dispose of the human. Now the red haired man didn't know the human, but he did knew efreets, and decided it was in his best interest to help the man.

Lightning!

yellow sparks flew out of the red haured human, and into the air. Suddenly, a powerfull bolt of lightning struck the fiery Genie, startling him.

Spincut

THe man leaps high into the air, above the sandstorm, and came down ontop of the Efreet with a vibrating slash, effectively cutting it into two (or so we thought.) The the halves turned to fires and died saying; "I'll be back... next time you won't be so lucky..."

Cyclone

THe man started spining very fast with his sword outstretched, spinning in a large circle as well as on his axis. The startled fades were quickly diced and fell to the sands unmoving. The battle won, the red haired man sheethed his colorfull sword and flexed his bycep in victory.

"T-thank you" the human said. "But who are you?" the red haired man gave him a friendly sideward glance, and said nothing.


OOC; this character doesn't talk. He's not mute though. Just try to make it so he talks without saying anything...(like people say things just before he could, and in yes or no dicisions, simply nods or shakes his head.)

 

[ranajja]

Ah, there it was—the city, the fabled Bakrun. She had made it, and a good thing too. She was exhausted, using all of her strength and budding talents to keep her protective aura around her simply to survive this trek. But now, finally, she was here.

She smiled weakly, dreaming of the reception she would have. All she had to do was find a rich lord in need of her “talents”. Perhaps he would be young, and handsome, of course, and would greet her with open arms….

Draining the last of the water from her water skin, she straightened her shoulders, smoothed her somewhat bedraggled skirts, and headed proudly for the gates of the city.

OOC: (I hate OOC’s, BTW, and try never to use them, but….) First of all, I apologize for the length of time between my posts. Second, um, with the mention of level-this and level-that, I’ve never played anything D&D-ish, and if this story is based on something like that, well, if you’d rather have someone take over this character that knows what they’re doing, you will not hurt my feelings, and I will most humbly bow out...)

 

[Cryo]

OOC; (sorry) I'm not talking about skill level or experience. In the game Heroes of might and magic three, Efreets (and their evolved form Efreet Sultans) were the second most powerfull creatures in a range of seven types of creatures. Being the sixth creature unlockable, I referred to him as a level 6 creature. No AD&D refferances were intended.

 

[ShyGoddess]

She headed toward the center of the Orders power. The city of Bakrun had been founded around the order, but soon the Council had destroyed what was left, or so they thought. The lair was hard to find if a person didn't know what to look for. She knew the girl was there, and she had foolish dreams about being excepted. People with her gift were feared not excepted. She would soon learn the hard truth of the matter.

 

[ranajja]

Getting past the gate was almost too easy, she thought as she made her way through the first streets of this city. It was a lot…dirtier than she had imagined, but, no matter, she was here. The first part of her trip to her destiny was done.

But, she was tired, and hungry, and in desperate need of a bath. She would stop at the first decent-looking inn, she promised herself.

The city was bustling, full of new sights and smells, especially the smells. She wrinkled her nose as she caught a whiff of something, well, she’d rather not know what it was.

There, she thought, there’s an amiable looking place. The sign outside said simply “The Grand”. At this point, she hardly cared what it was called. A hot meal, a bath, a good night’s rest, that’s what she needed.

Suddenly, she sensed…something…

 

[Always]

I laughed as I reformed back at home. Silly human. Maybe I'd teach him something when I was done with my business...

They were out fo my desert, and so I was happy. For the time being...

 

[Cryo]

They made it to the oasis town, the spikey haired human and the other human (any idea who this is? or is it just some random character that can be killed off?)

"Hey. thanks again" the human said. "so where do we go now?"
the taste in the air was very powerfull. The spikyhaired human looked to the center of the city where a building effectively glowed. "Gods, what is that!?" the other human asked. "we'd better chech it out!" without a word, they both turned to check it out. Before they could get far, some more fades appeared and attacked. The slikey haired person took care of them quickly with a few slashes, but the other guy was wounded. It didn't appear to be bad, so the wound was bound and they continued.

 

[Lord Drago Belmonte]

I'll be the "other human" if you wish

Thank you again for saving me. My name is Lord Drago Belmonte I come for the land of Valaria to the north. I was on my way to see the city of Bakrun as I had a message for their king but that message was destroyed along with my guards. Anyway if I can get this armor repaired and trhis sword fixed i should be able to assist you. But as for now my friend I need to rest I drained my limited magic keeping a protection spell up. As you can tell it didnt work to well. (ha ha ha).

 

[Cryo]

The spikey haired man nodded in agreement. His armor and weapon needed no repairs, despite the punishment he gave it. They went to a nearby blacksmith, who was "convinced" to repair drago's equipment right away. The taste was very strong in the air, and the man wanted more than anything to find it's source. However, he learned in past adventures that it's allways good to have help, no matter how week they seem at first.
When drago's equipment was fixed, they set off towared the center of town (again) towared the building that reaked of the strange power (in the man's nose at least).

 

[Lord Drago Belmonte]

As Drago and the spikey haired man headed towards the center of town Drago asked the spikey haired man "why is it that you talk so little" getting no reply he assumed the man was just had a quiet nature. As they approach the tower Drago had a strange feeling in his gut like something terrible was about to happen. He unsheaths his broadsword which he has named Dragonsfire and looks around as his partner the spikey haired man is just about to be attacked by an unknown assaliant. So Drago pushes the spikey haired man out of the way and jumps out at the unknown attacker slashing at the mans arm. As he slashes the mans arm Drago is hit by a dart in his shoulder. The unknown attacker laughs evily and runs off. THe next thing Drago knows the spikey haired man is standing over him shaking him trying to wake him up. The spikey haired man points at the dart and makes a gesture that it was poisoned but that it had been neutrilized. And again the two men head towards the middle of town.

OOC: Sorry about typing your char. cryo But I was on a roll And I still got hurt. LoL

 

[Lord Drago Belmonte]

Drago asks the spikey haired man "do you have a name or should i just call you the spikey haired man"

 

[Ambrosious]

Davron followed the Talented One out of the Wasteland and into the city of Bakrun. They walked right through the city gates without a challenge, which surprised Davron. The Talented One stopped a few paces from the city walls and seemed to "smell" the air.

"A few new players have entered the game," the Talented One said and set off once again.

Davron thought for a moment but couldn't come up with a logical response to the Talented One's comment. He decided to remain quiet. Besides, Davron was busy thinking about the easy life he had just given up. There was no turning back now. He had thrown his fate in with that of the Talented One's and would play it out to the end.

The unusual couple turned down a street and the Talented One stopped abruptly in front of a run down inn. The front of the inn looked as if it had not seen the working end of a paint brush in many years. A big black dog lay on the porch of the inn and the shutters were cracked and listing.

The Talented One started up the stairs and opened the door to the inn with a push. The smell of spilled mead and rotting flesh assaulted their noses. The Talented One stepped into the commen room and looked around. He seemed to be looking for something, or someone.

 

[Cryo]

OOC; as I explained earlier, he is not mute, nore quiet. Simply stating, circumstances leads to his silence. (friends supply comments before he can talk, something happens to draw attention, etc...) Also, "spikey haired man" was just used to identify who was who, as neither characters had known names until recently.

IC; "Chrono...that's an inte...rest...ing.....na....." Drago slumped foward, the dart still clutched in his fingers. Chrono cursed himself for not tasting the assailent. Soneone else was in the air, their taste strong, and powerfull. Chrono tied a scarf around his neck, then effortlessly picked up his new friend and took him to a nearby church. So many problems, and the chosen one so close by.
"Oh gods! that man is hurt!" a cleric shouted, as chrono burst into the door. "What happened?"
"It's a mock-tot poison dart" supplied an alcolyte, hurrying to see the commotion. "Bring him into the back, I can concoct a remidy" Suprisingly versityle and commanding for one of such low status. Chrono complied, and left his friend in capable hands.