Beneath the Shadows Prologue: With a Single Step

[scorri]

100 years has passed since the last Great War. Few remain who remember why it started. But those who do are wary. The elves have discovered a mysterious dark artifact they call The Shadowed Star and have given it into the hands of the Royal Family of Antar for safe keeping. They trust the mages of Antar to take the precautions required when dealing with such an artifact for if handled poorly, the entire continent could become twisted by dark magic. The elves and dwarves remember. And they wait.

And in a small town in Celisa, fate turns its eye on a small band of mercenaries. Clearly professionals, they lounge about the local inn, waiting for their boss to return. He had left to meet with the mayor and a visitor to the town, hopefully to find them more work. Two months had passed since they had last had a job and they were starting to grow restless. More importantly, they were starting to run out of money and as such wear out the welcome of the village. If Andre didn't return with a job today, they would have to leave and find work elsewhere.

Adari scowled over her tankard at the nervous young man in front of her. Though he was less than a decade her junior, it was clear that he didn't have anywhere near the experience aging him that she did. Slamming down the tankard, she sighed. “Fine. Yer hired. Sign here. Remember, even split of the loot after boss and I get our share. Ya come ta me ta get paid at the end of the job and not a second before. And if there's any fighting within the ranks I don't mind joinin inta a brawl. And ya don't want that, I can promise that. There are a couple a others round here. Iffin ya want, ya can talk to em or you can just sit round like a good little boy waitin for the boss ta get back.” Grabbing the paper in front of her, she glanced it up and down and then nodded. “Yer dismissed.”

Rayil let out a slight sigh of relief as he turned away from the second-in-command of his new “family.” He hadn't quite imagined quite how intense she would be. If he was completely honest with himself, he hadn't really expected her to be a girl either. He'd really been hoping to meet the boss before he signed up for good, but... ah well. Glancing around him, he gulped slightly and sat down at an empty table instead of joining one of the groups around him. With a sigh, he closed his eyes, hoping for a few seconds of peace and quiet before the boss returned.

At another table, a rough looking man with a deep red beard slammed some cards down on the table. “Ha! I win. Pay up Jacob.” Grinning, he took a swig out of his tankard and held out a hand. At the next table, a black haired elf glanced over at the duo and raised an eyebrow slightly. “Do not bother paying him. He uses marked cards. In the future do not play with him unless you are using your own deck. It will never end well for you otherwise.”

Adari sighed. “Oi, Toqua, whadid I tell ya about cheatin the newcomers? Now stoppit before I come over there.” Toqua cursed and glared at the elf. “Mind your own buisness Sayina. He agreed to use mah deck, I should be able to use it. If he can't learn, that's his own fault.” Adari shot him a pointed glance and he subsided into quiet under his breath mutterings. Rolling her eyes slightly, she pulled out a new contract, placed it in front of her, and gestured towards the next potential recruit. “Yer up.”

[spoiler=Setting the Stage]King Theodore Kaino stared darkly at the jet black stone sitting in front of him. It wasn't anything especially impressive. The size of his fist, the only remarkable feature it had was the etching of a star done in red on one side. And yet to think... Looking at his wife, he frowned. “Are they sure? Have they any other theories at all?” Queen Joanne shook her head. “My kinsmen are certain. It is clearly an artifact from the war one hundred years ago. And not one of ours. It is dark magic indeed, and one that few could use safely.”

“Then why have the given it to us? Why not keep it in the woods where they found it? The elves can be trusted to not meddle with dark magic.”

“Because they desire that its true properties be known. And they trust only our kingdom to do that without falling prey to the temptations to use it. You know they do what they think is best. They trust us.”

“Oh, I trust us. I just don't want it anywhere near us...”

A small knock at the door caused them both to turn around quickly. “Yes, yes, come in.” The king quickly tossed a cloth over the stone as the door opened. “Oh, it's you my son. Why have you come?”

“Because I know that the elves came. And that they brought something with them. Father, I'm almost 20. I could be king soon. You cannot hide things from me like you used to. Please, show me what you're hiding.”

The king sighed and then grinned. “Ah, you're right. I just wanted to keep you safe from the influences of dark magic, but you're a man now. I should remember that. Here, this is the Shadowed Star. It's from the war of our past. And no one knows quite what it is or what its uses are, but the elves trust us to figure it out.”

“Well, we cannot let them down. After all, they are our kin. Right mother?” He smiled at his mother while his hand moved on its own to self-consciously rub his slightly pointed ear. Though they were not as sharply pointed as a full-blooded elf's would be, they spoke clearly of the heritage he had. Suddenly aware of what he was doing, he dropped his hand quickly, and cleared his throat. “So, are you going to give it to our mages then? Can I come along when they start to study it? You know that I've been making progress in my magic studies.”

The king smiled. “Of course you can. I wouldn't dream--” He cut his sentence short as a royal messenger burst through the door, clearly winded. “Your news had better be important to burst into the Royal Chambers like this!” He thundered at the man.

“Ah, uh, ye- -yes sire. Uh, sire, Senia. They... They've attacked. They've taken the border towns and are marching through Antar on their way here. Sire, their army is larger than we could have ever known. I don't know how but... we don't know if we can stop them.”

The king stared at the messenger for a few seconds and then shook his head. “My lady wife, my son. You know what must happen.” The prince nodded and ran out of the room, heading for his own chambers. The queen, however, shook her head. “I will not leave you. The Shadowed Star must be kept safe. I must be near it to make sure of that. And we both know that we cannot have that influence near our son. It could take over him. And I will not leave you my love. You know that.” The king started to object and then sighed. “I will not argue with you for I know that I will not win. We must set our hopes on our son then. Send word to those who must go with him. They need to hurry.”

[Ether]

It seems Adari was finished chewing out the new hopeful, who at the very least had managed to hold his bowels long enough to get himself hired, but soon after skulked over to an empty table and promptly began to rest his head with a sigh. If he grew tired so quickly, he would likely not last long, but it was not her business to judge. A ways off, the gambling, and cheating, of Toqua commenced... or rather, concluded, once again. Making her way over, Aina brought herself down in the seat next to the newly appointed sucker, taking a swig of ale as she did so.

"You'll get used to 'im eventually... best advice I can give is don't play, he always finds some way or another to cheat ya." The woman advised Jacob, making a mental note of the volume of newcomers they seemed to be getting... hopefully boss would be coming back with a pretty big one.

"So, whaddya think so far, huh?" She asked, her one good eye scanning back over the more recent newbie... if he was just gonna hang on his own, he'd be the first left behind if shit went down... if both are an ally, you'll save a friend before a stranger if you need pick only one.

[Snowy_One]

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Edited July 29, 2013 by Snowy_One

[Oersted]

Ernce looked around the inn at the other mercenaries as he stood in line as the only person who had managed to beat him to the inn was chewed by the apparent second-in-command. They seemed professional enough for him, although he hadn't expected the second-in-command to be a woman or for her to be so fierce. He let out a sigh; he'd hoped that working as a mercenary would've given him superiors that wouldn't chew him out as much as they had in the military. That's what he got for joining up with the first mercenary band he managed to catch up with.

Ernce snapped out of his thoughts when the second-in-command called out after placing a new contract on the table. Well, last he checked he was second in line although some girl clad in white robes somehow managed to sneak past him. Oh well, he could use a few moments to gather his thoughts. He glanced behind him and he was immediately glad he'd gotten to the inn as early as he had. Just what were they planning to do by hiring so many recruits? Not that he cared so long as he got in.

Edited July 25, 2013 by Oersted

[Snike]

"Damn, I should've known," Jacob said, frowning, after the ruse was called out. Even as Adari was chewing Toqua out, the recruit rummaged through his belongings until he found his gold pouch.

"Thanks for the advice, Sayina, but a deal's a deal," the Celisan said, before counting out the gold due and pushing it over towards the veteran mercenary. "I walked right into that one. It'll be a good lesson for the future, though."

Of course, then the girl with one eye came over and gave him some advice, before asking him how being with the band was so far. To be honest, she intimidated the merchant's son more than anyone else in the band, even the boss. But he wasn't about to let that show. Looks like that poker face he learned from helping the family out would come to use, after all.

"It's not bad," Jacob responding, careful to avoid staring at his fellow mercenary's eyepatch. "I'd like to see an actual job though, eventually. Both for the experience, and so my purse gets a little heavier."

A few tables away, a burly man with black hair sat alongside his taller and thinner comrade, eying the newcomers. At his feet was a well-worn axe.

"Geez, d' we recruit half the village, or soumthin', Charlie?" the axeman asked, taking a pull from his tankard. When there was no response, he turned his head to see that the monk for hire had his head bowed, praying. "Really?"

"There is no better time for prayer than the now, Brader," Charlie responded, lifting his head. "Only the Lord of Light knows what might lie ahead tomorrow. May as well be in His good graces."

[Toogee]

Chandra had been with the mercenaries for about a month, and her ability to keep the innkeeper in good spirits meant that they had a place to stay for that period of time. As a cook, she was able to assist in providing meals to the residents as well as the mercs. Speaking of which, the smell of fresh bread wafted through the lounge as Chandra entered with a big tray of wheat loaves. Each loaf was a single serving, making it very easy for hungry warriors to grab a couple. Of course, Chandra was not having any of it.

“Take one please!” she shouted, slapping someone’s greedy hand. “You can have another when everyone has had one.”

[Psych]

"Oi so when are we getting out of here?" Leon had little to do and after losing a hand or two to Toqua he figured out something was up. He had joined the group about a week ago, and he was itching to get his paycheck soon. Maybe a nice lady around town could keep him company. He leaned back in his chair, balancing with his staff. He avoided the ale like the dickens. It all just tasted like dirty water and he preferred snickering at the drunks anyway. Leon started humming a tune, while overlooking the on-going amusements.

Edited July 25, 2013 by Psych

[Lyunn]

Mira sat on a wooden crate in a rather unpopulated corner of the room, her expression one of pure concentration as she fiddled around with something in her hand. The sound of jangling metal barely audible in the inn where Adari was interviewing new recruits, and bored mercenaries were trying to ease their boredom with social banter, drinks and petty gambling.

It wasn’t that Mira was uninterested in the mercenaries she’d signed up with only a day ago, she was sure they were all interesting people and all, but for the time being she was busy with a crucial mission. A task only she could accomplish. A job given to her not by her new employer, but her father who she was starting to miss already.

Her hopes for grand adventure (and a worthy amount of gold) crushed as they all lounged in the inn like rotten garbage. She’d heard that this band of mercenaries were rather reputable, but she was beginning to doubt if she’d made the right choice.

Deciding not to think too deeply, she returned her attention to her mission. Three oddly shaped rings that were entangled together. Her father had given them to her as a parting gift and told her that each successive ring she freed would make her smarter, so she assumed they were some sort of magical artifact used to enhance learning…. Or something. To be honest she wasn’t all too fond of the idea of relying on magic, but she couldn’t exactly toss away something so valuable. And the boost in intelligence might very well save her life seeing as how she was diving head first into a world unknown.

Hearing a sudden clatter, Mira realized that her attention had once again drifted. Biting her lip she glanced back down to notice how she was now only holding two rings…. The third dull ring glinting at her from between her feet, it took her a few seconds to realize that she’d finally taken her first step towards enlightenment.

“I did it!” she shouted happily. Jumping off the crate and running to the closest person and shoving the rings infront of their face. Pride swelling in her head, she didn’t feel like she’d gotten smarter, but she figured the magic was just taking its time.

[eclipse]

Raelyn eyed the new recruits, one by one. She'd signed up a few days prior, and inwardly grinned as each and everyone one of them was chewed out by Adari. It had taken just about everything to keep up her airheaded, pushy facade. She was confident that the second-in-command had bought her routine. She carefully observed the newcomers, one by one. Her facade would change, depending on what she needed from them, and she'd have no room for error. She'd have more than enough time to talk to them later. Right now, she had to take notes, and not be noticed.

[scorri]

Adari raised an eyebrow at the cloaked woman who came in and seemed to be attempting to speak in mine. "Are ya mute? If not, speak up. We ain't in the business of taking along mysterious recruits either, so yer gonna have ta take that hood off so I can see the face of the person I'm assuming wants me ta hire them. I can see yer a healer, but whadda ya want with a group like us? Wouldn't ya be better served finding some little town that needs their healers? Ya can live a cushy life that way I hear."

Meanwhile, Toqua grinned and swept the money towards himself. "Ah! Now there's an honorable lad. You know? I'm feelin mighty generous right now, so I'm going to buy you a drink. With the money you just gave me of course. Not going to buy anything for you two though," he scowled at his elf friend and the one-eyed girl who'd also commented on his cheating habits. "You don't deserve anything after tryin to ruin my fun."

[Snowy_One]

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Edited July 29, 2013 by Snowy_One

[Ether]

"Well, if boss is off to see the mayor, he's either got us a job, or we're getting kicked outta town... considerin' all the people we're recruiting, my guess is we got work." Aina replied, before turning back to Toqua, who had began his chiding.

"I ain't gonna be the one ruinin' your fun when Adari gets fed up and jams her boot up yer ass for not listenin' to her." The one-eyes woman retorted with a chortle, before taking down some more ale. Normally this kind of banter would last a little while, but it was interrupted by the sound of metal hitting the ground, the source of which had the new dwarf girl staring at the floor before jumping off of her seat in a fit of joy and shoving the two interlocked metal rings she was carrying into people's faces, her own painted with utmost glee.

"Not that I'm one to complain, but mind tellin' me why you're flashin' these things at me and prancin' about like a street wench taken to dinner with the King?" Aina asked, looking at the dwarf... Mira, was it, with some scepticism.

[Rothene]

So this must be the place, thought Caslan viewing the inn from the outside. He spotted it after noticing a few young people entering it. Humans who looked older than him anyway. Still wrapped in sandy coloured desert clothing and a turban to match, the elf took a deep nervous breath before entering the infrastructure. I should be

very used to human establishments by now.

As soon as he entered the place and saw the environment, Caslan felt his stomach knot in a hundred ways and maybe a dozen more as he wrinkled his nose wondering why in the world did he travel from the opposite end of the continent to this place. No, I have not grown accustomed to human communities.

Forcing his objective into his mind, Caslan took a daring step forward and bellowed as loudly as he can, hoping to keep the nervousness out of his voice, "I WANT TO JOIN THE MERCENARY BAND OF ANDRE HARROP!"

He failed.

[scorri]

"Our... owies? Look, missie. Ya may not quite understand what we're doin here, but we're fightin ta earn money and stay alive. We ain't gettin no owies. We're getting tough wounds and maybe even dyin. Ya come in here, with that sorta attitude, yer gonna be the first one gone on the battlefield. We're fightin for our lives out there. We take this seriously. If yer not ready for that, if yer just lookin for an easy way home, ya best start lookin for a stranger with a wagon, cause that's yer best bet ta get home. If ya really want to join this band, ya need to be serious about this. Ya need to be ready to fight. Ya need to be ready to die." Just then, another desert dweller walked in the door and yelled about how he wanted to join the band. Adari rolled her eyes and yelled back, "WELL THEN GET IN LINE YA LITTLE BUGGER!" More quietly, she continued. "Yer not the only one that wants ta join us and we ain't hirin everyone. There's a line here, and assumin this lady makes up her mind one way or another, yer still not up. So siddown, get a drink, and wait yer turn."

Toqua shrugged. "Still's worth it."

[eclipse]

This one ought to be interesting when drunk Raelyn thought to herself as the newest prospective recruit announced his intention to the entire inn. Alas, it isn't in my best interest to get him to that state. Yet. Edited July 25, 2013 by eclipse

[Rothene]

Line, right, get in line, Caslan thought panicking. He had looked stupid, but maybe he can still sell his services. With that in mind, the elf took care to clutch onto his tome to indicate the expertise he expects to bring into the band as he stood in line, every fiber in his body ready to surge forward as soon as his turn came up.

In his mind, Caslan started reciting the spellcraft theories he knew off in case he was questioned about it. He had no idea what was expected of a mage in a mercenary band.

[Snowy_One]

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Edited July 29, 2013 by Snowy_One

[Snike]

"Thanks for the offer, but I've had enough for the time being," Jacob said, to Toqua. The one-eyed girl then mentioned how Adari would essentially kick the half-dwarves' ass for cheating the newbies, before talking to the dwarven woman. As if in cue, an elf nervously yelled that he wanted to sign up for the mercenaries, and was rewarded with the recruiter yelling at him to get in line. Scary.

"Yeah, remind me not to get on her bad side," the man said quietly, after the outburst. "That would suck."

Brader covered his face with one hand, after the elf in desertwear walked in and was shouted down. "Yep. Half the village."

[Lyunn]

Shoving the two entangled rings in the faces of everyone she could get to, Mira was too excited to notice that most of the people she approached immediately looked away in disinterest, or simply gave her an annoyed look. Mira however, too busy to show as many people as she possibly could didn’t notice the unwelcome vibes until she approached someone she thought would be one of the ones less likely to take note, nevermind actually inquire as to what the rings were.

“Street… Wrench?” she asked, tipping her head to the side in confusion. She’d made a few wrenches back at the forge in the past few years but she’d never really heard of a Street Wrench, maybe it was like a crudely fashioned wrench? Something amateurs could make out of simple materials? But then again why would a wrench be prancing, and why would it be going to dinner with a king? Staring at Aina likely she was the one that had a few screws loose, Mira decided to shrug it off, not realizing she’d misheard the one eyed woman. Mira’s father had sort of shielded her from the streets and the vulgar language Aina seemed so fond of.

Shaking her head to clear her mind she shoved the rings infront of Aina with renewed vigor. “I entangled one!” she exclaimed gleefully, trying to find the dislodged ring only to finally realize she’d left it back by the crate. “Papa said that every time I remove a ring I get smarter” she added proudly, acting as if her father was the leading authority in the field.

Suddenly bumped from another patron of the inn though, Mira was shoved forward suddenly, the rings flying out of her hand, powered by Murphy’s almighty power the rings slid swiftly into the mug of ale Aina had been drinking with a pleasant little ‘plop.’

[scorri]

Adari looked the elf woman up and down once more and then sighed. "Andre would strangle me if I let a healer slip by. Yer signed up. But just hanging back ain't gonna keep ya safe. Ya need to be prepared for hurt. Also, I dunno where ya came from, but we ain't plannin on headin to the desert any time soon. But, iffen yer sure, sign here. Pay's even split of tha loot after me and Andre've grabbed our shares. Next!" She yelled, gesturing to the lancer whod' been waiting for a while now.

Toqua grinned. "More for me then! And please. Adari ain't that bad. You just need to get used to her. And also get used to dodgin her kicks. Not that I'd know anything about that." Sayina burst out laughing. "Well, you sure don't know anything about dodging her kicks, that's for sure. Now getting hit by them, that's a whole other story." The elf nudged Jacob gently with his elbow. "So, want to play cards with me now? I don't cheat, I can promise you that."

[Ether]

"I guess if you mess around with it enough to get the things off, you'll be thinkin' about it which might do somethin', but I don't think it'd do all that much." Aina replied, not even bothering to correct the dwarf on the miscommunication... something told her it wasn't worth the trouble. Of course, avoiding the trouble would be too lucky, and as the excited girl hurtled forward after being bumped by another customer, dingy rings landing themselves directly in Aina's drink. Looking up at the girl with an aggravated glare from her one good eye, Aina began to speak in a low lone.

"Hope it made you smart enough to replace that."

[Vestige]

Shit. Shit. Shit. This is not good dude, this is NOT good. Zeff had a gut wrenching feeling that he was going to be late for the employment session. He ran through the streets trying to navigate the way, until he finally came upon what looked to be the place. He hadn't slowed down enough and when he got to the door, his forward momentum cause him to push the door open a little harder than he had intended and created a loud *thud*, loud enough that it caused his heart to skip a beat.

Frantically he looked around, until he saw a table where a woman was seated, speaking to people in line and holding some papers. Oh god, am I late? No. No I don't think so. There aren't many people in line. Unless...they already got hired. Which would mean I AM late. Oh god damn it, I knew I should have gotten up earlier. His heart was still racing not only from the prolonged sprint he had done, but the thought of losing the job as well. His panting increased the more he thought about it, and he couldn't stand up any longer. His hand slipped down to his knees and he started taking great gasps of air.

When he righted himself again, he was still gasping for air, but he felt slightly better. He heard the woman call out "next" and looked onward and realized that he still hadn't made it to the line. He walked forward, and thought about putting his coat on but decided against it. Definitely don't want my coat getting dirty right now, plus I don't want anyone to see it right now. He looked at his jacket, or rather, what it was wrapped around. I should have gotten a black coat instead he mused to himself as his heart had finally started to slow down it's beating and his head had cleared some.

Edited July 25, 2013 by Vestige

[Snowy_One]

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Edited July 29, 2013 by Snowy_One

[Lyunn]

“Heheheh….” Mira laughed weakly, her eyes darting around to see if anyone would help her out, or if anyone could be pulled in to take the blame. Technically speaking it was the patrons fault for bumping into her, but whoever the man was, he’d already headed towards the exit and disappeared behind the lined up wannabe mercenaries.

Fortunately Aina didn’t look too pissed off…. There was nothing freaky about a lone eye staring at her… nope, nothing scary at all. The low tone of voice was just her slurring from too much alcohol and….. and….

"Mine!" she shouted, suddenly making a pounce, she tried to grab the mug out of Aina’s hand, not wanting to part with the rings even if they’d been soaked in smelly booze. For starters she hadn’t finished with them yet, but more importantly, tossing them aside like scrap was a waste and disrespectful to her pa.

That said, Mira wasn’t about to part ways with the precious gold her father had spared her. It was already bad enough that she had to waste a bit to get here, and a bit more for last nights lodgings. With mug or without mug in hand she quickly made her retreat, shuffling past a few people and towards the exit in hopes that she could outrun the angry one eyed dragon lady.

Edited July 25, 2013 by Lyunn

[Oersted]

Ernce snapped to attention when he heard the second-in-command shout "Next!". He'd be damned if anyone managed to take his turn again; he probably already lost some favor by letting that elf girl slip by him. However it wouldn't do if he ran like a mad man to the table; he'd make a fool of himself and one of the few things he had left was his pride. Just as he started walking to the table the entrance door slammed open. Oh hell no! Not again! Ernce thought as his footsteps picked up slightly just to make sure he made it before anyone else could. Once he got to the table he calmly sat down and looked the second-in-command dead in the eyes.

The only problem was is that he had no idea what to say; the closest thing to this was when he had to say his name and rank to his commander. Think, Think! Ernce thought furiously. Oh, introduce myself, what I'm good for! Yeah, that'll work. Even with that revelation Ernce knew he had to choose his words carefully; mercenaries generally didn't hire starry-eyed idealists who hoped to get in on their hopes in dreams. Then again there was that probably more than starry-eyed dwarf and she got in. But still, he'd keep it short and simple.

"Ma'am." Ernce saluted. "I'm skilled with the lance and I can take a few blows without fallin' over dead or runnin' like some coward." Maybe that was a little too simple...