The Furry Forums
Creative Arts and Media => Roleplay => Serious RP => Topic started by: Sarrus on January 19, 2015, 12:36:11 AM
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(Now closed for new entries.)
Let’s be honest, when you came to the city of Torus you didn’t expect to be viewing it from the window of a cell. You expected to be zipping along the catenaries and seeing the sites. From your mining car you could have seen the huge doughnut shaped cavern with its stone structures. You could have looked up and seen the cavern of the city’s legendary ruler – the feral dragoness, Nieran. You could have gone deep into the network of tunnels running throughout the mountain in which the city resides and watched as its natural harvest was claimed.
Instead your hopes of seeing the sites or making a life for yourself have been dashed and now you find yourself incarcerated. Perhaps you could have perceived this, something didn’t seem right. It wasn’t the unnatural feel of the artificial daylight of the city. It wasn’t the misfit bunch that make up the citizens. It wasn’t even the smell. It was nothing more and nothing less than dread. An infectious foreboding that everyone feels but no one talks about. Something was definitely very wrong. Perhaps that is why the Gardaí where not in the mood for reasoning with you.
Having been there for a few days now, you know the footsteps of all the guards. You and all your new companions therefore know right away that someone new is approaching your cells.
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Angder sits against the plain wall of his cell, the lock is not one he can pick, and the guards are smart enough not to fall for the usual tricks. Sighing, he gazes over to his 'Bed', little more than a low wooden table with an uncomfortable pair of blankets on it.
The thought of spending the rest of his life here scares him.
Hearing footsteps outside, Angder gets up and limps to the door. two days ago he tried to knockout a guard in order to escape, they denied him yesterdays food over that stunt, and now he was too hungry to even walk properly.
Angder peers through the bars on the door, trying to catch a glimpse of who was approaching.
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The figure appears to be dressed for digression, he has a set of long grey robes and a hood pulled over his head, the tip of a black reptilian snout can be seen poking out from under his hood.
Spotting Angder looking at him he smiles, perhaps it was intended to look warm but it seems slightly worrying. Turning he steps up to the barred door of the cave and extends a clawed hand. For a moment it looks as if it might have been to open the door but instead he puts it through the bars and offers it to be shaken.
“Sarrus” He says politely. “The guards have been telling me all sorts of stories about your escape attempts… They did not seem particularly amused but I must admit I was impressed… how would you like to be able to walk out of here and give them a smile as you do?”
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Angder narrows his eyes, and looks at the hooded figure, "And I suppose your doing this out of the goodness of your heart..." Angder looks over his shoulder at the cell behind him, and then turns back. "whats the catch?"
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Sarrus chuckles before answering "Good question, I assume you have spent enough time in this city to know that nothing is without a catch." He pauses for a moment before raising his voice to address all the occupants of the cell. "The more perceptive of you might have noticed this already but something is very wrong outside the walls of the city. The college of arcane arts has appointed me to investigate the darkness but I cannot do it alone." He pauses with a sigh "I have tried but have had little luck convincing any of the Gardaí to accompany me. In any case, they are defenders at heart and this is a job that will require stealth and perception above all else."
He looks around at each prisoner in turn. "Nieran has granted me permission to free anyone who will agree to accompany me."
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Remained sitting silently listening, her emerald eyes closed as as smirk spread over her face. Her small form tensed up underneath the dark clothing she was wearing before her voice echoed around the room. "Of course they wouldn't help, as if weak minded fools like them would be able to do anything." She giggled softly before moving her hands over the metal bracers covering her wrists the markings inscribed in them preventing her from using magic. "It took 10 of them to bring me down." she boasted before standing up "Get these bracers off of me and get me my staff and I will join you."
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Sarrus looks at Jade and her expression is reflected in his face. "Is that so? Well I will be more than happy to, once we get outside..." He pauses for a moment before returning to addressing the group "Any more interest in my little offer?"
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Karthus was standing in a corner of the cell. his forelegs were latched together, and then latched to his body. His legs were chained together with just enough gain for him to slowly walk if he needed to. a large leather guard was wrapped around his face, almost like a dog's bite guard. He looked more chained up than somebody in a mental hospital.
When the man approached, Karthus rose his head slowly and eerily watched him, his blood red eyes gleaming at him, without making a sound.
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"Ah..." The dragon says, meeting the gaze of the mantis. "I can see that talking might be an issue with you, friend. I will have to assume that's a yes."
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Karthus slowly nodded, reinforcing the man's assumptions.
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Angder peers out at the figure, and taps the door eagerly "Just open this cell up and I will go where you point me." Angder then turns away to try to hide his grin. His legs are still weak, but with the door open freedom will only be a short sprint away, he knows the layout of the prison, and most of the guard patrols in his area of the prison. As soon as the door is open he will be down the corridor, and round the corner.
No catch, no investigating darkness, just a short run, and a quick exit from Torus...
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Thaese chuckles from the darkness of his cell. He stands up and walks forward, gripping around the bar of the cell door with his paw, "I wouldn't be so eager following this wizard on his little errand, Neiran isn't the kind of ruler to allow the likes of us such an easy freedom. Knowing her, this will most likely result in your deaths, and for what? To safe guard this rotting husk of a city?" He spits on the ground in disgust, "And who's to say we won't be thrown straight back in here if we do survive?"
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Sarrus looks from Angder to Thaese with a smile. "Well... it depends on how well you think you will do in here really... You are all welcome to rot in a cell if you like, I wont try and stop you." He looks back at Angder "I wouldn't be too excited either... there is one more little catch."
The dragon holds out both of his hands in front of him and mutters something under his breath, the light between them seems to warp away until hovering silently between his talons are four bands, black as shadow with runes around them, they look just large enough to fit over the heads of each of the prisoners. "These are something of my own design, you choose to put them on, but once you do, you cant take them off again." He holds them out through the bars of the door. "Its just a small formality but you must be wearing one to be eligible for our little deal, Nieran's orders."
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Angder sighed, he was smart enough to know what this meant. "Kill switch, enslavement, or do they simply keeps us in a certain area" he asked, as he took his band, and begins to put it on.
Still, some chance was better than no chance. not taking this opportunity would be significantly worse than taking it, right?
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As Angder puts the band on it shrinks around his neck, the strange material does not seem solid and sinks into his skin, leaving a band of runes around his neck.
"Its not a kill switch... its sort of a combination of the other two." Sarrus shakes the bands. "Anyone else?"
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Karthus shambled over to the bars of the cell and looked the dragon dead in his eyes. His antennae twitched a bit, apparently trying to figure out weather the man was trustworthy. Eventually, though, he slowly nodded.
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Sarrus meets the mantis' gaze as he is sized up. After receiving the nod he carefully lifts up one of the bands and lowers it over the insect's head. Once again it shrinks and leaves behind a pattern of runes around his neck.
"How about you?" He says, looking over at the remaining two.
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Thaese growls in irritation, "I suppose dying with a weapon in my hand will be more honourable than than kneeling for the headman's axe..." He glares at the dragon, "You'd better not betray us when this is over," he holds out a paw to take the band.
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"Trust me" Sarrus says with a smile "when you all return to this city as free men, I will buy you each a drink." He passes the collar to Thaese. Once the wolf has put it on he runs his palm over the lock on the cell door which clicks and opens, curtly he holds it to let the prisoners out, once they have all left the cell he motions towards the exit and begins to walk speaking as he does.
"When you come outside with me you will see just why we need your help."
Slowly he leads the party through a corridor, out of the jail. The chosen passageway emerges on the outside of the main gate to the city. As the group pass it they can see the city through the bars, standing by the gates and glaring at the group are several members of the gardaí watching solemnly as they are passed.
While it might have been initially expected that they would glare, only a few do, the rest look surprisingly sullen and seem to look on almost blankly.
"Afternoon." Sarrus says politely to them though they hardly seem to notice, continuing to stand stock still in their long navy-blue great coats.
Turning, the dragon then leads the group up the vast staircase to the outside world.
As they emerge into the pitch black outside, Sarrus draws a golden pocket watch from his pocket and opens it, looking at the hands in front of him.
"Given that you have all been in a cell since before our 'issue' began, can anyone guess what is wrong?" He almost seems amused by his own question.
While waiting for a reply, the dragon steps up to Karthus and undoes his chains.
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Angder scratches at his neck with his claws, He could feel the collar, he knows it is not physically there, but he could feel it, He remembers what Sarrus had said, "Not a kill switch". Angder keeps scratching, he still needed that thing out of him! He glances around the group, he had managed to slip to the back. If he got away now, there was no way Sarrus would be able to find him! the world was vast, and he knew how to vanish when he needed to. The fact it appeared to be night helped immensely (Which was odd, Angder could have sworn it was mid-day in Torus, he guessed the hunger had effected him worse than he thought).
Just one quick sprint.
Angder gestured wildly at the empty air behind Sarrus, "BEHIND YOU" he yells, and then sprints away from the group at full speed, trying to get as far as possible in the couple of seconds had won himself.
Time to find out what these collars actually did, and if he could outrun it...
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"Ah, good" Sarrus says curtly "I was hoping someone would do that" He lifts his hand up as if holding a rope and tugs. Angder's legs come out from under him as his lower body keeps moving and his neck stops as if yanked backwards.
"Sorry, but I myself would end up in that cell if I let you just run away."
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Karthus stretched widely, yawning once the chains were removed. "It feels good to finally have those things off. I felt like a dog in them." He looks at Thaese and Angder. "No offence..." Karthus' voice was raspy and gruff. Not exactly something to impress anybody, but it reflected his outer self well.
He walked up to Sarrus and nodded. "Thank you."
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Thaese watches Angder's failed escape attempt with a harsh bark of laughter before turning back to Sarrus, "I'd recommend keeping that one on a short leash or he'll be gone in the blink of an eye." He turns and looks up at the sky, "So, it's midday but it's dark as midnight? There's clearly some form of magic at work here and I am no mage, I fail to see how I might help in this little investigation of yours," he turns back to the dragon with a suspicious glare, "Why isn't the arcane college dealing with this themselves?"
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Sarrus nods at Cho'garth then turns to Thaese. "You have probably seen my fellows." He smiles "dusty old men who know magic but rarely put it to good use. It was no surprise to me how unhelpful they have been, still, i am something of an 'unofficial official' in the city when it comes to actually implementing magic." He turns to the group. "You are far more useful than some mangy old wizards."
"Our mission today is the first offensive step the city has taken towards resolving this. Just before this started happening we lost communication with Argorn, the nearest town. I believe that if there is something useful to be found, it will be there."
"Nieran was clear that she didn't want you armed but, there is a good chance you will need weapons so i have taken the liberty of smuggling some weapons out for you, i hope they are to your tastes." As he says this, he walks over to one of the coniferous trees nearby, next to it is a small mound of snow, a common enough thing to form in the harsh mountainous climate. The dragon waves a hand over it and with a lilac shimmer of heat the snow melts, underneath is a long chest which he opens and motions inside. It should be clear which ones are for you.
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Angder Yelps as he falls flat on his back, and lies there for about 30 seconds, clutching at his neck, He had been so close! he could taste freedom only a few feet away.
Eventually, Angder climbs back to his feet, "So that's what the collars do" he said quietly.
Angder returns to the group (Its not like he has much choice) and heads over to the tree, reaching into the chest, he pulls out two of his weapons, a pair of daggers "...Really" He says flatly "You want me to wield a pair of knives like a common Mugger?" Angder throws the daggers haphazardly behind him. and pulls out his third weapon, a small crossbow, and a small pouch of sharp bolts for it.
Angder smiles, glances at Sarrus, and then looks down at his crossbow. He then shakes his head, No way Sarrus would be that stupid.
He places the crossbow across his back; It was a good secondary weapon, but his primary weapon was still his claws, and he did not need to be given those...
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Sarrus chuckles as he watches the idea cross Angder's face but remains silent, motioning for the rest of the group to help themselves from the chest.
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Karthus takes a moment to peer inside the chest and chuckle softly at it's contents. He moves aside and stands under the shade of the tree and begins cleaning his forelegs, running them through his mandibles and picking off any stray piece of dirt or stuck food that may remain there.
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Thaese steps forward and peers into the chest, bends down and pulls out a one handed war hammer and spins it in his paw, testing the weight. The head is blunt on one side with a long spiked protrusion sticking out of the other, the haft is long with a leather bound grip and spiked pommel at its base.
He stares down at the weapon in his paw with a curious look before turning and glancing at Sarrus, wondering if the dragon would still be able to keep up that cocky smile with a broken jaw and a cracked skull. But his mind is drawn to the runic collar around his neck and thinks better of it, not liking the look the dragon is giving him, almost daring him to give it a go.
Thaese huffs and rests his hammer on his shoulder, looking around at the party, "I assume we are setting off immediately?"
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Sarrus nods, then turns and begins walking along the path, away from the entrance to the underground city.
The route he takes the group on begins with the main path leading out of torus, very quickly they move away from the lighting coils iluminating the archway and into the darkness, thick and consuming it brings with it an unpleasant feeling of foreboding. No stars are visible in the sky and there is no wind whatsoever, strange for a mountain area.
Sarrus flicks the fingers on his right hand open and ignites a small lilac fireball to iluminate the way. "I wouldnt normaly do this but there really is no other light. We wont be able to find the way otherwise so will just have to accept the risk of giving away our position." The fireball casts an eerie light that seems to illuminate the outlines of things and reflects dimly on the thin layer of snow covering the path.
To the group, their softest footsteps sound like loud trudges in the snow, the only sound to be heard in the darkness. There is no echo, and in the still air it feels that the sounds are travelling far.
The group travel a good distance without seeing or hearing anything. Sarrus silently leads them up a turn off the main road signposted 'Argorn'.
The darkness and the silence seem to penetrate in a strange way, impossible to ignore.
Not wishing to make his fire too bright, the group can only see a few meters around.
Suddenly, Sarrus stops dead.
Standing in the road in front of the group is a figure, it could easily be missed, only just caught around the edges by the fire. Unmoving it simply stands there, its back to everyone.
Slowly and quietly, Sarrus draws his sword, holding it in his left hand and waiting for the group to respond.
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Angder draws his crossbow and loads it, he then takes a few steps back.
"Hey you there!" he says, as loudly as he dares.
Something told him that was a really bad idea...
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The figure seems to twitch slightly, then suddenly spins round to face them. It appears to be a mink with brightly glowing green eyes. as soon as it meets the group's gaze it lets out an ear-splitting scream which sounds like nothing anyone has heard before. As it screams it charges, straight for Angder. Raising its claws above its head it makes to slash at him, it seems to have grown a pair of unnaturally large fangs.
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Karthus notices the figure charge at Angder and charges into action, his instinct snapping to attention. He sprints forward and knocks Angder over and out of the way as he lunges his forelegs at the figure, attempting to defend himself.
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The mink seems completely undeterred by its forced change of target. It looks up into Karthus' eyes with its glowing green ones, instantly the mantis can feel his energy being drained. Weakness fills his body as the creature absorbs the light from him. As he begins to loose balance, the creature makes a dart for his neck, his fangs bared.
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Thaese lunges forward with a growl, jabbing the mink in the side of the head with the heavy steel tip of his hammer, knocking it sideways and breaking its eye contact with Karthus, before swinging his weapon, spike side first at the mink.
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The creature tumbles to the ground with an angry screech. When the second blow hits there is a gut wrenching cracking sound and then silence for a moment broken when the creature lets out a sort of sighing sound and the light fades from its eyes.
Sarrus steps up to it, pointing the tip of his sword at it and carefully waves his hand over it. "I don't know what that was but, its gone now..."
He sheaths his sword and rolls the creature onto its back, carefully he begins examining the body, occasionally stopping to utter experimental incantations. Trying to work out what it was. Slowly he gets back to his feet and steps back towards the group.
"Is everyone ok?" He asks.
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Jade had been quiet for most of the first part of the adventure not saying a word as she slipped to collar around her neck and felt the magic embed into her skin. She knew something was wrong but couldn't really place her finer on what it was and the darkness seemed darker than usual. She watched the escape attempt with mild enjoyment only to keep listening to Sarrus. When he presented the chest she quite quickly grabbed the short metal rod that was there, it seemed he did keep his word. Spinning it around in her palm for a moment she slipped it into a small holster on her hips before continuing on with the group.
As the ventured further into the darkness it became more apparent that it wasnt natural ever her steps sounded loud in the silence around her. "Something is wrong." she whispered only to gaze at the form in front of her during the attack she didn't move or react knowing that any action would possibly just cause more confusion as they all tried to go for the same target. As the creature got put down she walked over to Sarrus and looked at him examining the body "Can I help?" she asked "I know magic to but probably not to the same level as you."
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"There's certainly no helping this one." Sarrus says, looking down at the body. "Can you bring up the rear of the group? It would be good if you could create some light and keep watch behind us, in case anything tries to sneak up."
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Jade nodded before drawing out the metal rod from its holster once more spinning it in her hand she exhaled softly as the metal started to glow slightly as she sent small pulses of her magic through it exciting the atoms in the metal to allow it to glow. "Not as effective as flame but it works, I will keep an eye on the rear." she stated with a nod before heading to the rear of the party.
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"Thanks" Sarrus smiles before walking over to Angder and helping him to his feet. "Anything broken?"
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Angder gets to his feet with Sarrus's help, he had fired his crossbow at the thing, but his aim was knocked by Karthus slamming into him, and the bolt had completely missed
Angder reloads the crossbow, suddenly he was glad his escape attempt had failed. "I think I'm OK actually..." Angder says quietly, he had grazed his elbow, but it will heal. He turns to Karthus "Can you warn me before knocking me flat next time, I feel like I'm spending more time on my back than on my feet." he turns back to Sarrus, "How much further do we need to go?"
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"We are nearly there now. Perhaps another 20 minuets or so to go, shall we?"
Sarrus begins to walk along the path once again. It is not long before the eerie silence begins to once again fill the minds of the group.
After a short while, they approach what looks like the entrance to the town, as they get near, Sarrus draws his sword and crouches down low, spinning it to point out the back of his grip and holding it out in front, as he flips it a good portion of the blade vanishes and it shortens into a sharp looking dagger. Slowly he steps up towards the city itself. Past the city walls there is some degree of illumination in that same eerie green light. Giving just enough visibility, Sarrus extinguishes his fireball and motions to Jade to do the same. Quietly he leads the group up to the archway leading inside.
"We need to split up and look around" he whispers as quietly as he can "You can pair up if you like but no more than two together. look for anything out of the ordinary."
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Karthus nods at the motion of splitting up into pairs and looks around. He could either pair up with the thief, the sorceress, the guard dog, or Sarrus. Sarrus, had granted him his freedom, even if at a price, and he respected him for that, but he knew not of the others. Him putting his life on the line for the thief had been nothing but pure instinct lashing out. Or, so he told himself.
After a quick survey of his options, he turned around and marched into the town alone. He could use some quiet time anyway.
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Thaese watches the mantis leave before turning back to the group and surveying his options. He looks over the dragon with distaste, being constantly reminded of the power he has over the group as he becomes aware of the runes around his neck, feeling them burning into his skin.
He looks over the iguana, glancing at the staff in her hand, the thought of magic making his fur stand on end. His views on the arrogance and self righteousness of mages making him disregard their usefulness in a combat situation.
Finally his eyes fall upon the thief and he sighs, he had no love of criminals having spent many years in the city watch dealing with their likes but out of his options he felt Angder was the only one he could rely on to some extent, besides, they both had thoughts of escape in mind.
Thaese steps forward and places a firm paw on Angder's shoulder, "If you try any funny business, know that I won't hesitate to embed this in your skull," he brandishes his war hammer at him with a threatening look, "Let's go."
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Angder Nods slowly, and starts to follow Thaese.
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The route Karthus chooses leads down an alleyway to the center of the town, outlined by the eery green light he can see tall terraced buildings on either side.
The route Thaese and Angder choose takes them around the edge of the city, going clockwise inside the city wall.
The route Sarrus and Jade choose is the same but goes anticlockwise.
The city is barren, there are the clear signs of where life once bustled through the streets but now the whole place seems empty. Some of the buildings have their doors unlocked or left open.
As Karthus travels through the center of the city he can occasionally see the possessions of the inhabitants dropped in the street, mislaid in the rush. Some of them look quite valuable. As he continues he spots two figures in the street in-front of him, both of them are standing with their backs to the buildings on either side of the street. They aren't leaning but are instead standing, almost touching the walls. Like the mink before they are completely unmoving, staring blankly at each other. He can see the green glow in their eyes.
As Thaese and Angder travel around the town they see little until they come upon signs of a struggle. A trail of blood can be seen on the floor leading off the street and down a narrow alleyway going deeper into the town, the blood is smeared on the ground as if by a body that has been dragged away.
As Sarrus and Jade travel the opposite way around the town they are both aware of the dark presence surrounding them, the two lizards sensitized to such things by their training. Jade, also having an extra awareness towards metal, suddenly feels a large metal disk shift down an alleyway that they have just passed. Something disturbed in an otherwise still world.
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Thaese stops to examine the smear on the ground before him and Angder, he crouches down and sniffs the air curiously, "It looks like someone had a rough encounter here recently," his ears swivel, listening for sudden noises as his eyes follow the trail into the darkness of the alleyway.
He turns to Angder, "This has the looks of a trap if ever I've seen one but I suppose the mage would want us to snoop around. You think you can handle yourself if things go tits-up?"
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Angder Peers down the alleyway, and nods uncertainly.
"I would survive..." Angder brings his crossbow out. he then ducks to the side just inside the alleyway. pressing himself against the wall as if to hide.
"So how do you plan to do it? Sarrus I mean, not the dark." Angder glances back at Thaese, "You must have a dozen plans on how to escape him right?"
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Karthus notices the two people and recognizes their behavior and appearance to be similar to the Minx they met before. He tried to avoid startling them as he quietly moves into one of the deserted looking buildings, hoping to find a way around them.
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Thaese follows Angder into the alley far less tactfully, making sure to avoid standing in the blood stain on the floor, not wanting to carry the scent around with him through the city.
"Honestly, I don't have a plan. I don't see how we're going to be able to get rid of these collars he's given us," he scratches at his neck irritably.
"The only way I can see us getting away is to kill him and I'm very tempted to try but I have a feeling doing so will have a very adverse effect on my health.
I'd say we should wait until an opportune moment to strike, if he's weakened or distracted perhaps but until then the bloody lizard has us by the balls."
Thaese peers into the darkness of the alley, sniffing the air, "Do you see anything?"
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"Nothing yet, I am going to head further in, watch my back..." Angder begins to inch his way down the alleyway, keeping his back to the wall. He had not actually expected a plan from Thease, but hearing him say he hadn't got one was still crushing. Still, they had one advantage, Sarrus was arrogant, he thought nothing could touch him, he let the two people most likely to betray him work together.
Angder knew how dangerous arrogance was, now he just needed to find a way to use that arrogance against him...
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The building Karthus' enters looks like it has been left in a hurry, drawers are open, clothes are scattered all over the floor and, of course, the door was left unlocked. The house looks like it was owned by quite a wealthy family, there are oil paintings on the walls of the vast room the mantis has entered, which looks to be a large entrance hall. There is a large staircase leading upstairs and a set of 3 doors, one to the left, one to the right and one straight ahead.
As the two wolves follow the trail on the floor they are lead down an alleyway and turn a corner, there, on the other side is the corpse of a tiger, lying on the ground at the end of the trail. It looks to have been dead for some time. On the ground next to it is a young black cat with a large red bow on top of his head, he is in a foetal position and shaking rhythmically, he looks up as the pair approach and they can see the fear in his young eyes.
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Thaese' eyes widen at the sight and he swears under his breath. He glances at Angder's crossbow before taking a step forward, paw on the weapon at his side as his eyes dart between every shadow.
"What's your name, little one?"
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The cat looks up at Thaese "S.. Saul" he says quietly.
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Angder leaves the kid to Thaese, and keeps watch on the entrances to the alley, looking for any sign of movement. He is twitchy and restless, it feels like the Omnipresent shadow is... watching him somehow. and to think he usually he likes the dark...
"We should keep moving, can't afford to stay still", he whispers, just loud enough for Thaese to hear.
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Thaese turns his head slightly to address Angder, "Just give me a minute, we can't leave Saul here and he might not be in a fit state to leave yet."
He takes another step forward, approaching the cat, "Okay, Saul, my name's Thaese and this is Angder. We're going to get you out of here... to safety. Do you understand?" he takes another step towards the feline, not making any sudden movements that might upset or frighten him.
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The little cat nods. "T..thank you Mr Thaese" He slowly gets to his feet. He looks very shaky but manages to stay upright. He steps towards Thaese and keeps close to him.
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Thaese smiles at Saul, "Look, we can't stay here, it isn't safe. Just stay close to me or Angder and we'll look after you."
He turns motions the cat to stand between him and Angder, "Let's get out of this damn alley, it's giving me the creeps."
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"Thankyou, brave wolves... your.. my heroes." He looks up at the pair with tears forming in his little eyes. "Did you come here to save us?"
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Angder took a few steps back, and leans round the corner, back the way they came, making sure the way was still clear.
He glances back at Thaese, and opens his mouth as if to say "hurry up" but then stops himself, now was not the time.
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Karthus looks around at the vast house. Obviously this was no poor town. He locks the door behind him just in case the two outside heard anything, then continues upstairs.
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Thaese motions him forward to walk with Angder as he follows at the rear, keeping an eye on their flank. His ears flick slightly at her question, "Us? Are there more survivors?"
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Karthus can see that there are a few porcelain pots around the house, despite the wealthy nature of the house, the plants look like they have been dead for years, shrivelled and lifeless. At the top of the stairs there is a landing which overlooks the entrance hall, all of the doors on the landing are closed except for one at the far end. A pair of double doors leading into the master bedroom. Despite the cold climate, high in the mountains, another set of doors leading onto a balcony overlooking the street can be seen, they have been left wide open, making the house feel as cold as the outside.
Saul continues to walk as close to the wolves as he can without being too invasive, hesitantly looking round every corner. "I.. I hope so.." he whimpers. Just before they return to the street running next to the city wall, all three become aware of the sound of footsteps, slowly walking along the circular path.
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Angder ducks to the side (or, perhaps more accurately, presses himself into the wall), and raises his crossbow gesturing at Thaese and Saul to move back.
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Thaese grips Saul's arm firmly and brings a finger up to his mouth, indicating for him to stay silent before pulling him back, giving Angder a clear shot of the path ahead.
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The figure of a Doberman with glowing green eyes steps round in front of them. She is wearing a long brown leather apron and holding a hammer in one hand. For a moment she simply stands there, head cocked on one side before suddenly letting out a piercing screech and lunging forwards, hammer raised.
-
Angder forces his aim up, his instinct is to go for the legs, but here a disabling shot is not enough. Angder fires the crossbow at the Dobermans chest, where his heart should be.
-
She clutches the wound with a howl of pain and tries to lunge again, her free hand grasping the bolt embedded in her chest. She doesn't quite make it to her targets though and topples forward onto the ground.
Saul stands stock still before kneeling down next to her with a quiet sob. "I knew her... she was the blacksmith... " He turns to Thaese. "Please get me out of here... I cant bare to see any more of the horror he has created..."
-
Angder shudders, he just killed someone. that was HIS bolt in her.
"I... I think we should make our way back right now..." he said, with a slightly distant look on his face.
-
Thaese lowers his weapon seeing Angder make quick work of the... thing. He grabs Saul and pulls him back from the body, not wanting to take any risks with these creatures, before kneeling down and trying to calm him, "We'll get you out of here, don't worry."
He looks at Angder, "I agree, I'm sure Saul has some useful information the rest might like to hear," he looks back down at the cat with a comforting smile, "We'll be meeting up with the rest of our group soon and then we'll discuss getting you to safety,."
Thaese stands up and turns back the way they came, "I suppose waiting at the city entrance for the rest would be the best plan," he glances back at Angder and the look on his face, "Whats the matter?"
-
Angder appears to snap out of it. he looks at Thaese, and tries to smile
"Nothing... Nothing at all, lets get the hell out of here"
-
Thay looks over Angder's shoulder at the body then back at him uncertainly but nods, "Okay. Let's get moving."
-
The three now walk back around the city wall, returning to the entrance, suddenly, stepping out of an alleyway a tall tabby cat with the same green eyes blocks their way and stares at them for a moment.
"Dan!" Saul yells. "No! Th... that's my brother!" As he says this the tabby screams and charges at them with that same ferocity.
-
Karthus looks at the dead plants and general disarray and misery of the house. "If walls could talk" he mumbles to himself before moving down the hallway and entering the bedroom through the open door.
-
Angder raises the crossbow, he appears to be shaking, he fires anyway, but the shot goes wide...
"I... I can't..." He stammers quietly. he then just stands there, as the thing charges at him.
-
The room Karthus enters is in just as much disarray as the rest of the house. Suddenly, a thud can be heard below the balcony and the sound of someone whimpering.
-
Thay pushes Saul to the side, out of harms way and dives forward, tackling the cat to the ground. He scrambles on the floor with it, trying to pin it's flailing body, "You said -Argh!- That you could... handle yourself!" he pants heavily as he tries his best to avoid the cats teeth and claws.
-
Angder blinks.
"I... I thought I... He's.... He's a god-damn kid though..." Angder backs away, his shaking hands trying to reload his crossbow.
-
The cat lashes out viciously, trying to claw at Thaese as best as he can but the wolf is considerably stronger than he is and Thaese succeeds in restraining him.
Shaking, Saul walks around to face the cat and leans in. "Dan its me" he sobs "I'm your brother, remember?" lightly he strokes the top of the tabby's head, for a moment, it looks like Saul has made the thrashing get worse, then slowly, the tabby calms down and goes still, the green light fading slightly from his eyes. He begins to shudder, as if undergoing some kind of internal struggle. Saul looks up at Thaese "He.. He remembers, look!"
-
Thay growls as he holds the cat down, "Find some rope or something! Something to restrain him!" He looks up at Saul, "And don't get to close!"
-
Angder ducks into a side alley and comes out with some rope.
"I... I am sorry I froze I just..." Angder looks at his feet "I just could not bring myself to kill a second time..."
-
Karthus hears the thud and freezes. Slowly he exits the room and heads down the hallway to the balcony. He peers over it to see what demon made that thud.
-
Thay grabs the rope from him and starts tying up the cat's limbs, "You didn't have to shoot him but... don't just stand there."
He finishes with the rope and slumps off him, panting heavily as he inspects the cat.
-
The tabby seems much more subdued, now simply staring at Saul. "W...what are you going to do with him?" the black cat asks.
Over the balcony, Karthus can see a large horse is now lying on the floor. Standing over him is a white mouse with glowing green eyes. The horse rolls onto his back and tries to scramble franticly to his feet. The mouse begins to chant something in a strange language and the horse suddenly grasps his head, whining as if his mind is filled with some horrible sound. After a moment he stops struggling, opening his eyes to show that they have begun to glow, just like the mouse's. He blinks slowly and gets to his feet. For a moment, he stares blankly at the mouse, almost as if communicating. The mouse starts, almost as if having noticed something. He steps up to the door and trys the handle, when he finds it locked he steps out of the way and the horse charges at it, trying to break it down though he fails on the first attempt.
-
"only one thing we can do, we take him to Sarrus" Angder states bleakly.
-
Thaese stands up with a wince and looks down at the tied up cat, "You seem to have calmed him down somewhat..." he turns and rubs his face, "Maybe they can be saved, to Sarrus it is then."
He sighs before bending down and hoisting the cat over his shoulder with an uncomfortable grunt, "Keep your eyes on him, Saul, and keep him calm. Lead the way Angder."
-
Angder continues along the route, keeping his crossbow loaded, trying not to run ahead of the others, but naturally finding himself slightly further ahead than is necessarily wise.
-
Saul walks behind Thaese and talks softly to the tabby, who seems to stay calm OK. Eventually they make it back to the archway that they entered the city through and into the clearing outside. They appear to be the first group to return.
-
Karthus leans back over the rail and waits for the horse to bust down the door. Once he does Karthus plans to leap off the balcony and catch the mouse by surprise. Hopefully he can catch him and run off as the mouse is likely of high value.
-
The horse rams into the house with a loud crash, the mouse is caught off guard by Karthus who drops down on top of him, pinning him to the ground. The mouse struggles franticly to escape, slashing out at the mantis as the horse turns round to see what the noise is.
-
"This is so stupid" Karthus says softly to himself as he locks the mouse in a vice grip with his spiked forelegs. He runs towards one of the smaller buildings and unfolds the wings on his back. While his species cannot fly. They can use their wings to jump much higher than normally able. He jumps, using the aid of his wings, onto the roof of the building. He lands and begins running along the rooftops back toward the rally point.
-
Karthus quickly makes it back to the group with little further struggle. He returns to see Thaese and Angder along with a young black cat he does not recognise. Sarrus and Jade have yet to return.
-
Thaese starts as he hears Karthus approach, quickly raising his weapon to defend the group if necessary but calms down when the mantis comes into view, "Oh, it's just you... and I see you brought a friend," he slides his weapon back into his belt, "did you find anything interesting?"
-
Karthus struggles to keep the cat within his grip. His forelegs have been scratched up, with a few even breaking through his exoskeleton and bright green blood oozing through. "My friend here was caught turning somebody into one of the demons. Like that minx." He looks at the small tabby. "Whose kid?"
-
Thay turns back to the group, rubbing his head with a yawn, "This is Saul. Saul, this is Karthus. Karthus, try not to eat him," he sits down on a low wall, "We found him in the city. His brothers tied up over there, he's got the infection or... whatever it is."
-
The mouse held by Karthus continues to struggle.
Saul looks up at Karthus but looks away quickly when he sees the huge insect, averting his eyes he looks down at the mouse. "That is... was... the mayor. Oh gods I must be the only one who has escaped his grasp..." He starts to sob quietly once again.
-
Angder sits away from the rest of the group, leaning against a wall. He watches Karthus nervously, as if trying to judge what he is thinking.
of course more immediate concerns are starting to resurface as well, Angder is still starving, and the energy gained from mortal danger would not last much longer...
"I don't suppose Sarrus left anything for us to eat?" he asks.
-
Thay rubs his eyes with a paw, "Maybe if you hadn't tried to escape so many times the jailor might actually have fed you," he sighs and looks down the path to the town, "We can't move until the dragon gets back, do you think you can last that long?"
-
Angder nods, "If I have to" he says uncertainly
-
It is not much longer before Sarrus, returns. Alone. He looks somewhat dishevelled, his robes torn in places. When he gets back to the group he quietly opens his mouth to talk but is interrupted by a shriek from Saul. "ITS HIM!" He cries in dismay, pointing at the dragon with a look of terror in his eyes. "He's the one who unleashed this terror upon us!"
Sarrus looks surprised for a moment, then looks down at the cat and an expression of angry recognition sweeps across his face.
Saul topples over backwards and tries to shuffle away as Sarrus approaches him looking fearsome.
"Stop him!" Saul yells.
"You!" Sarrus roars, drawing his sword.
"You have to kill him, before he consumes all of us!" The little cat sequels fearfully. The two captured cursed suddenly break free of their bonds and lunge forward.
As the dragon approaches, the group realise they have a single instant to react.
-
Angder grabs his crossbow, it is not loaded, cursing he drops it and instead lunges at Sarrus with his claws, some part of him had wanted to do this from the start, he swipes at Sarrus's leg with one paw, while jabbing the other into his stomach, aiming to knock him over.
-
The dragon topples to the ground with a grunt of pain. "NO!" he yells, "Let me go! Its him!"
Saul squeaks. "Its him! He's lying, kill him quickly before he consumes us all! That's why he lead you here!"
Angder can feel his collar tug violently, trying to pull him off.
-
Karthus looks confused at the situation, before the pieces snap together in his head. He quickly headbutts the cat he is carrying, knocking him out and tossing him to the side, no point in letting him escape. He then sprints forward and grabs the small tabby around his throat with one foreleg and grabs Angder with the other, pulling him off of Sarus. "You would attack the man who gave you your freedom because a small 'child' you just met screamed out against him? Use your brain for once thief, why would Sarrus drag us all the way out here just to kill us? We were dead anyway." He turns his attention to the tabby and hisses in his face, small strands of spittle landing on him. "I don't trust this little one."
-
Thay jumps to his paws, weapon in hand, and turns just in time to life his weapon to block the oncoming attack from the possessed cat.
The feline claws at Thay, gouging deeply into his forearms as he struggles to protect his face from the barrage of fangs and claws, concentrating more on keeping his footing.
He suddenly sees an opening and brings the butt of his hammer's handle up and catching the cat under the chin with as much force as he can. There's a sickening crunch as the tabby's jaws smash together and he falls backwards to the floor, unmoving.
Thaese pants heavily and turns back to the group, wide eyed as he sees Sarrus on the floor with Karthus restraining Saul and Angder. He sprints forward and stamps his paw down on Sarrus' chest to stop him getting up, holding his weapon out at his face, his blood dripping down the shaft and onto Sarrus' chest, "You don't get up until we know what the hell is happening!" he snarls to emphasize his point, "Now, would someone care to explain?"
-
Saul blurts out "He cursed our town! He did this to my friends! My family!" he lets out a little sob "He... ruined my life."
Sarrus snarls at him and struggles to get up "Your lying! Your not even from here!" he looks up at Thaese. "He was one of my students at the college but he was banished!"
"Its not true!" Saul squeals "I've lived here all my life! Please, you have to kill him, all the cursed will be on their way over here now. Its the only way to stop them!"
"If you choose him over me" Sarrus yells "he will claim you all! You have to trust me!"
-
Angder kicks Karthus's leg, "How the **** does a child do this much? And where is Jade? its obvious Sarrus is the bad-guy here." Angder glances down at Sarrus, and only now notices the state of his robes, he had been in a fight.
"Of course, I could be wrong I guess..." Angder states, uncertainly...
-
"He's not a child!" Sarrus yells in frustration "He just acts like one! and jade is... well he is to blame for her not being here!"
"you... your not actually considering believing him?" Saul asks, still sounding scared.
-
Karthus squeezes his foreleg around the boy's throat, suffocating him. "I'm doing a lot more than considering it."
-
Saul starts making choking noises and flailing helplessly as his air is cut off. Sarrus tries to get up but continues to be held down by Thaese.
-
Thay pushes the dragon back down with a glare, "You're not going anywhere."
He turns his head to Karthus with an furious look, "You're going to kill a kid on a whim? What's wrong with you?"
His eyes meet the cat's in the Mantis' grip, seeing the fear and pain on the feline's face. He quickly turns back to the dragon under his paw with a wild expression and raises his hammer above his head but freezes as he desperately tries to think.
Thay struggles with himself for a moment before slowly lowering his weapon, stone faced, "Karthus is right... it doesn't make any sense," his ears droop as realization dawns on him and he takes his paw off the dragon.
-
Sarrus gets to his feet quickly and draws his sword "It didn't work Riley" he holds it up to the cat's neck. "Break the spell or I WILL kill you" For a moment the cat continues to struggle helplessly.
Then, he stops, his body going limp for a moment before he looks up into the dragon's eyes with a grin, showing his teeth. As he does so a sort of black, tar like substance issues from around his neck and runs up Karthus' pincers a few inches. It does not change the way he feels, as if the substance had been protecting him all along. "Poor little Saul, trapped in this horrible place..." His voice still has a feminine ring to it but sounds far more seductive and confident than before. He groans and flexes his neck uncomfortably, then he holds up a hand and flexes his fingers, for a moment a circle of glowing green glyphs appear around it, then with a flick, he dispels them.
A sort of ethereal cry comes from within the city, something that could not be of this world. The strange cry seems to convey damage and as it does, damage also begins to appear in the darkness.
At first it begins as a circle high up in the sky, then the light spreads, tearing through the shadows like paper. All the while the horrific cries continue to emanate.
Then, as the last of the shadows fade, the cries choke and fade. To everyone, the daylight is so sudden and bright that it seems to blanket the vision. for a few seconds, the only thing that can be seen is the silhouette of something unreal in the centre of the city. A mass of writhing black tentacles which thrashes about then suddenly bursts open, finally torn apart by the light.
As vision returns it is only now that the group can see the beauty of the city. Empty and silent the great structures have a poetic look to them. The wind begins to blow once again and for a moment everything seems peaceful.
Perhaps this sudden peace was the opportunity the black cat was looking for. Becoming more of this strange black substance he seems to melt out of Karthus' grip, sliding across the floor and reforming a few meters away. Seeing this, Sarrus forms a fireball in one hand and wields it threateningly.
"You made me kill my pet... Do you have any idea how hard it is to bind a demon that size?" Anger seems to boil within him, then he calms himself, reaching up to straighten the large red bow on his head. "Its OK though... I'm sure all of you will make it up to me..." He grins evily.
-
Angder looked at Saul "You know you are outnumbered 4 to 1 right? OK only 3 to 1 if Karthus does not drop me, but you still can't exactly win, can you?" Angder tapped the foreleg pressed to his neck "Speaking of which, Karth, can you put me down now? Can't exactly fight like this can I?"
-
Karthus nodded. "Yup, sorry." He releases Angder.
-
The cat licks his lips "your a feisty one aren't you, doggie? I think i will break you first." As he says this he steps close to Angder until he is almost touching him. "I want the old lizard to watch as i make every breath a burden to you, as the very memory of the sanity you once had fades into the void..." If someone who couldn't speak Tertheyan was listening they could have sworn that Riley was trying to seduce him. The cat giggles again and stands there, waiting for someone to make a move.
-
Thay steps up behind the cat with a growl, "If you touch him the loss of your little pet will be the least of your problems, you little runt," he grips his hammer in his paw tightly as his lips curl up to reveal his fangs.
-
Riley grins as he hears Thaese behind him. "Oooh a tough guy, you had better wait your turn. Dont worry, this runt will break you too... In time..." He grins and reaches behind him and flicks him in the chest, with a flash of green light, Thaese is sent flying backwards a few meters and lands on his back. Riley then lazily brings his hand forward and places his finger against Angder's chest. "Now" he says "where were we?"
-
Angder stares, wide-eyed at the finger, his fur stands on end. He tries to back away, heading towards where he dropped his crossbow.
"what... what are you going to do to me?" he stammers.
-
Riley steps forward so that his finger remains connected to Angder's chest, grinning at him, suddenly the wolf feels something grip his leg and he looks down to see a horrible black tentacle wrapped around his leg. It feels cold to the touch and seems to have grown out of the cat's shadow. Already, more of the smooth black tendrils seem to be reaching out from the silhouette on the ground.
-
Karthus charges at Riley. "Oh no you don't!" he yells with a grunt as he smashes into Riley, and attempts to pierce him with his two pointy forelegs.
-
"Really?" Riley looks down at himself, the mantis' two forelegs now embedded in his chest, the same black substance surrounding them, it seems to writhe and twist and begin to move up Karthus' arms.
-
Thaese hits the floor with a whine as he pants for breath after being winded. He rolls over, slowly getting to his feet, watching the scene play out before him.
He staggers forward, still wheezing, mustering up as much strength as he can, and swings his hammer to the side of the cat's head from behind.
-
The hammer embeds itself into the side of Riley's head with a loud splatter sound, where it hits his face deforms with the same black substance. Like tar, the hammer gets stuck and the little cat giggles. "Silly doggy, that tickled!"
"Thats enough Riley!" Sarrus yells angrily and steps up to the cat.
"Enough is it?" he asks. Holding out a hand it deforms and sharpens into a point which he holds to Angder's neck.
"Fine!" Sarrus continues to yell "Have it your way" The dragon quickly says an incantation, the strange words sounding unearthly and musical, then he punches the cat in the chest, embedding his right fist into the black substance that forms around it. Riley looks down at the fist in surprise as the substance seems to solidify as if frozen around it and taking on an appearance like obsidian. Riley draws his spiked appendage back as if to delve it into the dragon but is not quick enough and it hardens.
"Its too bad you got yourself kicked out of my class! Your shadowform is good but you haven't quite perfected it yet have you? Far too material. You cant freeze a true shadow. I think my friends here will find you quite brittle now..."
Just as his face hardens with the rest of him, Riley gives the dragon an enigmatic grin.
Sarrus turns to the group and nods. "do it."
-
"bloody idiot" Angder smirks "If he had just got on with it we wouldn't have stood a chance"
Angder relaxes as Riley solidifies, and then he Kicks him with his free leg, aiming for his stomach.
-
The kick leaves a large crack in the substance and is enough to knock Karthus' front legs loose, freeing him.
-
Karthus spreads his forelegs apart and grunts, crumbling the cat at his waist. He steps back one step and looks down at the crumbled remains of Riley. He spits down on him. "Disgusting..."
-
Besides the shards on the floor, the only part of Riley that still remains is attached to Thaese' hammer, the enigmatic grin still on the face of his now severed head.
-
Thaese steps back, looking down in disgust at the cats head, lodged on the end of his hammer. He stares at the smug grin on his face for a moment before swinging it over his head and smashing it onto the floor.
-
Sarrus looks down at the shattered remains of the Cat, now covering the floor and lets out a long sigh.
"I would say that is problem solved wouldn't you? Now, a deal is a deal." The dragon twirls his fingers around a spiralling set of runes that form before dispelling them, as he does all of the collars embedded into the group members dispel, the runes flying off in different directions.
"I told you I would join you all for a drink when you return as free men. There is a tavern in Torus called the Dancing Dragon, I will be waiting there to see who shows up!" He grins and starts walking away down the path back to the underground city, his reptilian tail swaying behind him.
--
A few hours later, Sarrus is sitting in the tavern by the fire, taking a sip of his wine as he watches the door to see who comes in.
-
Angder walks into the tavern, he admits he is not quite sure why, Guess I need some closure to the whole incident. He smiles at Sarrus as he enters, and approaches the dragon.
"You said something about a free drink, may I sit down?"
Not waiting for a response, Angder sits opposite Sarrus.
-
"So you came back?" The dragon chuckles "I assume you are full of questions, but first lets see who else turns up..."
-
Karthus steps inside the pub, looking around he spots the two and slanders over and nods at the two. "Decided I would stop by before splitting town, I have some things that need closure." He nods at Sarrus. "Thank you, again. You've given me my Freedom when nobody else would, and I am eternally grateful. If you ever require yourself in need of some muscle, I would be honored to help."
-
"Thank You" Sarrus says "I appreciate that, now we have just one more to wait for..."
-
Eventually Thaese steps into the bar and looks around, one of his eyes is swollen shut and blood is dripping from his lips.
He spots the party, pads over and slumps into a chair, "Sorry, I'm late. I had a run in with some of my old co-workers in the watch," he sways slightly in his seat and struggles to focus on Sarrus, "Where's that drink you owe me?"
-
Sarrus smiles at Thaese. "How about a napkin first" He passes the wolf one from the table then gets up to fetch a round of drinks, returning a few minuets later with a tray of glasses and sets them down.
"First off, let me thank you all for coming with me. Where this a brighter city you would be thanked officially as well. The people of Torus sleep safe tonight because of you. I understand that you must have some questions for me so please do ask ahead."
The dragon sits down in his chair with a smile.
-
Karthus looks down at the round glass container and squints. He carefully picks it up with his forelegs and brings it up to his mouth, downing the whole drink in a couple large gulps. He carefully goes to set the glass down on the table, but watches in horror as it slips from his grasp at the last moment. It tumbles in the air before crashing to the floor. He droops his antennae, "Dammit..."
-
Thay takes his drink from the tray, takes a swig and presses the cool glass against his swollen eye before throwing the napkin to the mantis to mop up his mess.
He turns to the dragon and yawns, "So... can you explain what that cat was?"
-
"Indeed" The dragon nods "Riley was once one of my students. He showed promise beyond any other, his abilities where like nothing I had seen before. Like me, he bears the mark of someone who has looked into the face of Ka and returned, someone who has returned from the dead. I never found out that story though, in fact I know nothing of where he came from, it is not something he ever shared.
The college has very strong views on what are the 'proper' types of magic to teach. The ones Riley lusted after did not fit into those groups and so were not taught. It didn't take him long to work out that I had probably dabbled in these forbidden arts and so exploited my weakness to get as much information as he could.
It was only when I discovered his intentions and attempted to bring him to rights did I find out the extent of his own knowledge. Riley's power had grown so strong that he could perform feats that I myself believed impossible. Even so, you saw that his technique was quite unpolished and that seems to have been his undoing." Sarrus takes another sip from his drink.
-
"We beat him, that's all that matters to me." Angder states
-
Karthus nods. "Indeed, but what exactly were those Demons. When we first met one it almost looked like it wanted to suck Angder's blood."
-
"I believe they where not demons themselves but thralls of whatever he had summoned in the centre of the city. I think that Riley had bound a creature from the nether to himself, a true demon. One that fed off souls and turned the empty husks into creatures with the express purpose of feeding its hunger, causing it to grow even more. Dread was its primary weapon and the darkness that permeated the land was a sort of trap, used to weaken the resolve of people near it.
As is often the case with demons, I think there was some reward in it for Riley, perhaps he received a portion of the creature's power, I noticed that he had some influence over the thralls walking the city. I imagine the creature was fairly mindless, perhaps even some kind of demonic plant and so it was probably easy for the cat to control it."
-
Thay gently prods at his swollen eye and winces before giving the party a sombre look, "Could we have... saved them? I mean, we didn't just kill a handful of innocent civilians, did we?"
-
Sarrus sighs quietly "No, their souls where lost. When the demon dispelled their bodies died. If it makes you feel any better I found some survivors down in the sewers."
-
Angder glances into his glass, it was empty already.
"Sounds like a clean victory" He says. "I have a question about the collars you put on us, If I had shot you with my crossbow, what would have happened?" Angder pauses for a second, and pulls the crossbow off his back. "Also I can keep this right?"
-
Sarrus chuckles "What normally happens when you shoot someone with a crossbow? As long as I didn't tell you exactly what the collars did, I thought it unlikely you would try." The dragon takes another sip of his drink.
-
Thay takes a swig from his pint and gives the dragon an almost impressed look, "That was a risky game you were playing, I sure as hell wouldn't arm a bunch of convicts without any protection."
He drains his glass and winces slightly as he puts it down on the table and looks up at the group, "... so, where does everyone go from here?"
-
Sarrus looks round. "Personally, I'm going back to the college, I still haven't cracked the enchantments Riley was using and I would like to have a good go at them. As for the rest of you, well, you are free now. I will say this, though, if I ever need help again, I would be honoured to have you join me."
"We have done this city a huge favour and whether we are appreciated for it or not, these people are safe now because of us."
Fin.