Lord of Azure Flame Chapter 3: A peaceful respite?

[Inactive Account]

Kelas shifted her weight back out of her battle-stance, standing rooted next to her horse now that there was no reason to flee. "I am Kelas of the Adai tribe. What other proof do you require me to give?" She put her free hand on her hip, pointedly jingling the coin bag she held: Come on, take the bribe, and don't ask me about my "brother," she thought at the man.

[Snowy_One]

"Don't you worry about that right now. Just come on... Trust us..." said the smaller guard. He approached Kelas, a leering look in his eye. Slowly, his hand reached out, as if to take the bag of coin, before rubbing softly against her hip in a ever so gentle way before taking the bag. "What is a nomad doing with coin anyways?"

[Inactive Account]

"I do honest work. Killing bandits," Kelas snarled, jerking away from the man's hand. "Heba. Den," she whispered to her horse. The mare looked round to the guard, ears pinned back, teeth slightly bared. The guard's hand snaked once more toward the mare's reins, but Kelas growled, "I repeat. I would not touch this horse if I were you. I also repeat: What information do you need from me?"

The bribe had failed. Kelas tried to keep her temper from rising; it would not do to start a fight...

Edited April 29, 2010 by _____

[Snowy_One]

"Miss. You WILL keep your horse under control or else I will bring it up on her interview." he said, pointing to Aiya. "Now... Dismount all of you and come inside with us! Leave any weapons outside as well."

OOC: Okay. You have my permission to figure out their intent. But not to kill/harm them.

[Inactive Account]

"She is entirely under my control, Guardsman. Mine, and no other."

At the order to disarm, Kelas did so, slinging her quiver over her saddle on the packhorse. This, at least, she had expected; disarming was a normal part of border checks, and if this went differently... well, there was a reason for the tiny knives stored down the sides of her boots. Hopefully she would have no need for them. As she secured her bow, she whispered to Chase, "If you run off with this horse, I will hunt you down. Get him out of here, and once you're all out work out a place to meet us."

"Den, Amari," she said, and the mare planted her hooves firmly on the ground. If the guards tried to move the horse... well, she'd like to watch the show, because it would be greatly amusing. Kelas nodded to the others, willing them to go on ahead, that the questioning be over as quickly as possible.

She strode over to stand by Esphyr, Aiya, and Tessa. The swordswomen looked rightfully infuriated; the cleric looked frightened. "I'll back you up," she whispered to the girl. "I will not see them dishonor a cleric."

[Phoenix]

Lev and Ivan turned to Morgan to try and answer her question.

Ivan: What does Isotov look like? Oh there's no need to think about him. We will find him soon, and besides, he is not nearly as handsome as me, Miss Shaman B)

Before Morgan could respond, Lev slammed his elbow into Ivan's stomach! The impact knocked the wind out of him, and he stood there with a stupified() look on his face!

Lev: Little Iso? We haven't seen him in ten years, but we do know this. His skin was always a bit tan, his hair was red as blood, and his eyes are bold, and piercing. Not much to go on, but it's a start.

Irina put her hands over her chest and thought back to the last time she saw her brother. She was positive that she could identify him if she saw him again.

Irina: I can do it. I'd recognize my brother even after a century.

Lev: That's nice, but let's try to find him today, shall we?

Ivan: Why did you hit me, Levski?

Lev: Because you were being a dog again. Just be glad Ivanko wasn't here.

Irina: Should we split up, once we're in the city?

Lev: If we do, Ivan's going with you, cause this frat crap has to stop <_<

[Snowy_One]

Esphyr gave a nod at the guards request, then removed her sword and placed it beside Kelas's bow and arrows. "Aye. They're up to something for sure. Listen, if they try anything, go for the spear and apply pressure to one end alone to get it out of control. I have my Crimson, but the rest of you may be in danger."

"Hey! What are you to talking about?" asked the bigger of the two guardsmen, stomping over. His hands came down firmly upon both ladies, gripping their shoulders heavily. He twisted them about someone harshly. "I better not catch you two talking behind my back. Or else you're spies! Understand? You know what we do with spies..." he grinned greedily before pulling away, pushing the two girls closer together lightly as he backed away, snickering to himself.

Esphyr looked up at him, guessing his intention perfectly well. "I suppose you don't feed them cakes and let them be on their way?" she asked rhetorically. The guard simply raised his eyebrow before taking both by the arm and leading them inside the border fortress offices.

[-Cynthia-]

Morgan nodded. "Splitting up allows us to cover more ground, and I imagine the city is quite large. We do not all need to know his appearance regardless, if he's holding the Crimson Fire Tome he should be easily identifiable."

"Let's not travel alone however, there may be muggers or other unpleasant things that supposedly happen in unfamiliar cities.

[Inactive Account]

Kelas stood in the office, back to the wall, arms crossed in front of her. The place stank of damp and drink. Litter was everywhere; apart from a stack of weapons by one wall and the painted "wanted" posters lining the walls, it would be impossible to tell that the room was in use. Silent and glaring, she waited for the questions to begin.

---------------------------------------

Elsewhere, a dark-haired boy pelted down a city street, pursued by an angry shopkeeper. "Damn thieving street rat!" the large woman bellowed, keeping up surprisingly fast for her bulk.

"I told you, the theft's not my doing, and you'd do better to investigate the clerk," the boy protested, vaulting a bench and continuing to run. Passerby looked on, mildly amused. The boy was nearing his target: a closed bin, used for holding animal feed. He jumped on top of it, and then for the window directly above. As he scrambled in, the onlookers cheered.

The woman was not finished; she stomped up to the door of the inn the boy had entered. At the door she was greeted by the old, wizened innkeeper. "Leave Arrin alone, Missus Anders, y'know he's a good boy. He be leavin' town soon anyway," the man drawled.

The woman spluttered, then gave up, turning on her heel and bustling off down the street again. The innkeeper turned back into his building, and shouted up the stairs, "All right, boy, you said you're leaving, now get out of here."

Arrin appeared, now wearing a traveling cloak and carrying a pack. "Yes, sir. Thank you for getting her to leave, and for letting me stay here for all this time." He bowed to the man, who muttered something about "jes' doin' what any decent citzin would," and shoved him out the door.

Arrin set off down the street. He hadn't found the evidence he needed, and was unlikely to do so by now... it was time to find his family again.

OOC: Depending on chapter length, Arrin will find the group either towards the end of this one, or somewhere through the next.

[Snowy_One]

"Alright... Let's begin." said the guard. He didn't even wait for his companion to enter the guardhouse himself with his two lady friends, so eager was he to slack his lust. He stood a short distance away from the pair, looking over them lustfully as he rubbed his hands together. "Where did you get the money nomad?" he asked simply; yet he didn't even give her a chance to answer the question. "Nomads don't value money. Nomads don't value having a common language. The only reason you would have picked up either was if you had intentions to slip in and find information on our land. The only reason you would do that is because you are either a spy or a plant!"

"Bravo. Brilliant deduction... except for the part about nomads not valuing money... or being a spy.... or pretty much anything else you just said." replied Esphyr sarcastically and clearly irritated.

"Shut up! You assaulted a guard in broad daylight! Only a spy would so openly revolt against us. I'm afraid you will both have to remove your armor to allow me to check for tracer runes or else be jailed indefinitely for treason!"

"TREASON?! We're not even citizens!"

"Two months jailtime..." he said with a giddy grin. Esphyr quickly leaned in close to Kelas. "Please tell me you brought a hidden bow." she whispered into her ear.

[Inactive Account]

"If you knew the first thing about nomads, you'd know that their main living comes from herding and trading," Kelas retorted levelly. "Some of us are also mercenaries." She casually leaned a foot against the wall, making as if to fix the ties of her boot. "In the latter two professions, it pays to learn Common," she continued, discreetly catching hold of the tiny knife. "And it also pays to go where the targets are. I heard that your lot had been having a bit of a bandit problem, so here I am." The last bit was a lie, but plausible. The knife was wedged into her glove, now. She pulled at her braid, transferring the knife into the tie at the end: it was now properly hidden again, but more accessible. "As far as I know, the extermination of bandit scum is the opposite of treason."

At Esphyr's whispered query, she shook her head slightly, mouthing "Wait. Better plan." while the guards looked pointedly at the swordswoman's armor.

[Snowy_One]

Esphyr gave a odd look to Kelas, slightly confused at first, but seemingly clearing up when she caught sight of the knife. She quietly touched her hand, trying to inform her that she thought she understood, before returning her attention to the guard.

"My armor? For tracer runes?" she asked, her voice a hesitant scowl. The guard wasted no time at all reasserting his position. "Yes. Tracer runes." Esphyr quickly rolled her eyes before she slowly reached around to the sides of her armor where the leather straps that kept her breastplate attached lay. Her fingers came to rest upon the straps, their strength causing the leather to bend slightly as she quickly undid them. First on one side, then on the other, until both sides were freed from the restraint. She caught the armor as it came free, holding it up for a moment before slowly pulling it off, revealing the white shirt she wore under the armor.

"There... Am I done now?"

The guard drew close to Esphyr, his face coming in close to hers. He slowly moved about close to her, lowering his face down to her chest at such a close level as to run his nose against the cotton of her shirt. The hairs on Esphyr's head shot up on end, startled by the unwanting invasion of personal space disguised as a inspection.

"You too... Armor off as well." said the guard, clearly distracted as he lifted up Esphyr's arm, admiring her side profile during his 'investigation'.

[Inactive Account]

OOC: Not sure whether he's addressing Aiya or Kelas. Oh well.

"What armor?" Kelas retorted. She pulled off her archer's arm-guards, holding them out impudently. "There. All the armor I have."

The guard's hand tugged at her belt. "You keep doing things you really don't want to be doing," Kelas commented, swatting his hand away. "I imagine you're hoping to get my tunic off next, is that it? We're not fools, we see what you're 'searching' for, and it's not weaponry or spymarks. I'm relatively sure that shoulder-to-knee burn scars are not what you're looking to see. Yes, burn scars. Why'd you think I'm so wrapped up in killing bandits, otherwise?" Out of the corner of her eye she saw the cleric's eyes widen a bit. The man looked slightly repulsed, and went to "check" the others. Kelas glanced at the other three, mouthed "distract 'em, I've got an idea," and hoped that they understood.

She hoped that the others would not be too far away when they got out of here.

OOC: Conveniently, after Kelas mentioned the scars and got the guard to ignore her for a minute, _____ fell asleep. Also, given that lip-reading is hard, I don't expect all three others to understand what Kelas was trying to tell them.

[Phoenix]

Irina looked back toward the office and hoped that Esphyr and Kelas were alright. Lev walked up to the front of the group.

Lev: Alright, here's the plan. We'll split into two teams, and since Ivan and I are stuck together enough as it is, he'll be going with the second team.

Ivan: *whew* Free from Ivanko's agent of evil.

Lev: Can it. You people can pick who you go with. Me, or Ivan and Irina.

Ivan: Oh! Miss Morgan! You should definitely come with us!

Lev: Except for her. You're coming with me. Safer for you, and healthier for him <_<

Ivan: I hate you so much right now

Lev: Alright, let's get to searching ....

Lev grabbed his wyvern's leash and started heading into the city. Irina and Ivan too got their wyverns and quickly headed down a different way, the others followed who they would.

[Ether]

Aiya removed her armor relucnantly, and the man began to 'inspect' her.

"i would stop if I were you." She told the bulky man,but he didn't listen. His hand reached for her backside...

It was quick, a second boot to the groin,an elbow to the jaw, and Aiya grabbed his sword.

"Pervert" She spat at him.

[Inactive Account]

As Aiya got the man's sword, Kelas saw the opportunity. "Now!" she said, grabbing her other boot knife in one hand and the cleric's arm in the other and running for the door. "Get on your horse, start running, we'll catch up," she told the cleric, then ran back to retrieve the others. Aiya and Esphyr were fighting the other guard as the one Aiya had kicked rolled on the floor. Kelas stepped around back and hit the guard over the head; he was merely dazed, but it bought a few seconds. "Start running!" Kelas told the swordswomen, tripping the man as he tried to grab Esphyr.

Kelas edged into the doorway, blocking the guards while Esphyr and Aiya ran for the gate, carrying their armor with them. As soon as they were out, she was running for her horse. One guard stumbled along behind her; the other ran straight for the gate. She had an arm over the horse's back, a leg... it was enough, she had to get out before the gate closed: "Go go go!" she told the horse, and she was flying, clinging to the horse's side...

The big guard was standing right in the middle of the gate now, determined not to let her pass. "Charge," she told the horse, but it looked like she might not make it, as the guard stood and leveled his spear at the charging horse.

From behind the guard came Aiya's leg, hooking his feet out from under him at the last minute. He tripped and fell. Kelas felt Amari shorten her stride, then they were soaring over the fallen guard. They were out. Kelas got a proper seat and slowed the mare down, circling back to face the others.

"All right, let's get out of here and find the others," she said.

OOC: Regarding trick riding: Don't try this at home kids!

Edited April 29, 2010 by _____

[Snowy_One]

OOC: No. It's perfectly fine. I sent Esphyr along simply cause she can't be truly 'disarmed' and could end it quickly if it ended up taking too long.

IC: "Agreed" said Esphyr, refitting her armor and grabbing her sword once again. She quickly slung the blade over her backside before kicking the larger of the two guards between the legs once again. A delightful squeal of pain came from him, mixing with his confused look. He was SURE she had been disarmed when she had entered inside. He had even seen her put the blade down outside the doorway. Yet the moment Aiya had assaulted his friend, Esphyr had been upon him as well; a red blade in her hand. The 'battle' had lasted less than a second as she had cooly sliced through his lance then tripped him up with her blade. The only reason he was even still alive at this point was a sheer act of mercy on Esphyr's part. However, her wrath was not yet saited.

"Don't." she kicked him firmly between the legs with her steel boot. "Leech. Off. Women. Ever. Again!" she said, her foot driving into his groin with every word to punctuate it. She turned to head over to Kelas before suddenly turning about. "Or. Else. I'll. Come. Back. Here. To. Kick. You. In. The. Groin. Understand?" she added, once again kicking with each word. When she had finished, the man was a quivering, whimpering, pile of sobbing pain crying ever so deliciously about the amount of abuse he had just received. Esphyr turned about at last, but before she left, she swiftly kicked him one last time with the back of her heel. "And one for good luck."

With that done, she slowly made her way to Kelas. "They said they were trying to find that mage guy; right? Maybe we should try as well?"

---

Inside the local mages guild

"I'm sorry miss, but you're apprentices... they're just not here." A distraught sigh came from Katie as the greeter spoke those words. That had been her last hope for finding her missing apprentices. This mages guild had been the last place any of them had done any official work that had not been directly supervised by her. It had been a small thing, using the records there to deduce the bloodlines of several of the more potent magi, but it was the last recorded place that they had been at under that had anything to do with magic. If Helenos had assaulted them, this place, a place where magic was abundant and she felt certain the rot-queen would be easily able to sense, would have been the perfect ambush place. It would also be the place easiest for anyone to find some sort of spell to disrupt her dolls as well. Yet... they were not here.

Katie turned about and stomped out of the guild. She would have to accept reality at this point. They were dead. Until evidence to the contrary could be found... they were dead.

[Inactive Account]

"Right," Kelas said. "I'm looking for... someone else, but the last I heard from him, he was in one of the border towns, so it looks like we're headed the same way still."

She held out a hand, motioning for Aiya to climb on behind her and for Esphyr to double with Tessa. "I don't like to tax the horses too much, but it'll be faster if we ride. Besides, it's not that far."

They set off at a comfortable pace. As they rode, Kelas asked, "So. I still don't really know what this group is after. You also seem to be capable of pulling weapons out of nowhere. Care to explain?"

OOC: No need for an infodump, I just want it to be established that Kelas knows what's going on. "<Character> explained such-and-such" is probably fine.

[Snowy_One]

"It's a cursed blade, my crimson weapon. Not much too it that you need to know besides the fact that it is a weapon I can summon up at will. I even used it against the meshes and it is what caused that bought of azure flame. Though... How I did that; I don't have a clue. As for what we're after... One of our members, Daiman, is trying to gather them up to use them against the Lord of Azure Flame. I'm in it because he promised that, if I do this, he'll find a way to separate me from the blade. As for the others, I don't know. I think Morgan is in it to study the weapons, but I don't know about the others."

OOC: Even a nomad knows about the Lord of Azure Flame, though she might not know about the Crimson Weapons.

Edited April 29, 2010 by Snowy_One

[Inactive Account]

The explanation was far more than Kelas had imagined. "You're fighting the Dark Presence?" she asked, awed. "I would join you... but there's someone I must find. Until I do, though, I'll do what I can to help."

They were nearing town. "Once we find the others, we should probably check into an inn," she noted. "We can leave our things there, and then look for the person the others mentioned." And the one I'm looking for, too, she thought, looking over the town.

[riariadne]

Chase continued along following Morgan, Helios, the three wyvern knights and the soldier, the packhorse going along with him. He asked Morgan, "Why don't you like anima magic? What makes you dislike it so much when you use magic yourself? Are dark and anima magic really so different?"

Edited April 29, 2010 by Lightning

[Inactive Account]

OOC: Clarification: Lightning, Chase went free; he moved off with the rest of the group while the girls were detained. He's got the packhorse. Kelas and her horse (and Aiya, Esphyr, and Tessa) are way behind him and the others.

Current groups:

Main group (in city, about to look for Isotov):

Morgan

Helios

Chase (Kelas' packhorse)

Irina

Ivan and Lev

Damian

Detainees (catching up):

Esphyr

Aiya

Tessa

Kelas

Anyone I've forgotten is in the first group.

Edited April 29, 2010 by _____

[riariadne]

OC: Oh... oops.

I'll fix that.

[Ether]

Aiya was riding along with the others,and began talking to Kelas after Esphyr had explained the crimson weapons.

"The nomadic tribes are also known for their swordsmanship, have you practiced it?" Aiya asked her. She didn't carry a sword,but she may have in the past.

*************

Damian had stayed behind to wait for the detainees.Once they met up,the group were to find lodging for the night. Damian then saw them approaching and called out.

[Inactive Account]

"I never got a chance," Kelas replied ruefully. "I do want to learn at some point."

She saw Damian up ahead. Good, they'd be able to find the others.

---------------------------------------------

Elsewhere...

Arrin got to his feet, dusted himself off, and groaned. For some reason these border cities were more hostile than the one where he'd grown up, and innkeepers took one look at him and threw him out in the street, usually with a mutter of "nomad mutt" or similar slurs. He'd tried all over town...

One more, and he'd give up, he decided. He was surprised to see the next innkeeper merely grumble and rummage for a key. Success!

Once he was settled into the room, he pulled out his map. He'd want to head for the plains via Halton... he'd been hearing reports of monsters. Well, he'd been taught well enough how to handle those.

He noticed a sort of grumbling coming from the presence at the back of his mind. Curst book... was it reacting to the thought of monsters?

He looked out his window to distract himself. A group of people had just entered town... nothing unusual, though there weren't as many mages as he'd expect. Was the party coming from Halton, maybe?

His stomach grumbled. Time to find some dinner, he thought.