The Alraeican Tavern, Part V
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...and Slayer believes he is still somewhere in a corner, sleeping (since part III).
I was going to make a new topic once the story actually started (eg. all the necessary characters were on the mountain). I honestly didn't expect it to take this long, I was thinking more like six or seven posts. But then again, I'm dealing with cache here.
I think I'll hold off on the new topic for another few posts, as the journey to the cave should not take very long, so it'll depart soon enough.
However, if its really that bad, we could transfer the posts as cache requested and delete them here, making it back to the carefree bar from Parts I and II.
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"I'm a controversial figure. My friends either dislike me or hate me." -
Flynn glanced back repeatedly as he rode, keeping a careful watch on Lemenath's progress. To his practiced eye, the elf was still finding the going difficult.
"Let's stop for lunch," he called out, and dismounted. Lemenath slid gratefully from his horse. Flynn noted to his credit that he groomed it without prompting; after which he gave Flynn a wry smile, and commenced pacing.
Flynn walked up to Moonshadow, and spoke to her in a low voice. "I don't think Lemenath can cope with any more today. There's no particular hurry, why don't we make camp here?"
Moonshadow looked at the pacing elf, and nodded. "All right; actually, I could use the time."
"Fine; but don't get too comfortable," Flynn replied with a wink.
"Oh?" Monshadow queried, raising one eyebrow. Flynn made no answer, instead beginning to prepare lunch. With a little prompting from Moonshadow, Ranari reluctantly started to help.
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Flynn finished eating, stood up and walked over to the gear that had been unloaded from the packhorse. He extracted two long poles, one of which appeared to be made of crystal, and made his way back to the others.
Moonshadow saw what he was carrying, and quickly rose. "Oh, so that's what you meant!"
Flynn nodded. "No time like the present. Let's move over to that clear area." He strode over to the area indicated, as Moonshadow began to follow.
Ranari grasped her arm, holding her back. "What are you doing?" she hissed.
"Oh, just some combat training. Flynn learned a really interesting quarterstaff technique from Kwon, and he said he'd teach it to me." She shook free of Ranari's grasp, and went to join Flynn.
"Catch," Flynn called as she approached. He tossed over the diamond staff.
"But this is your staff!" she exclaimed in surprise.
Flynn shrugged, smiling. "And now it's yours."
"Oh! Thankyou!" she replied, eyes glowing, as she inspected the staff's clean lines.
"It was useful while I was masquerading as Lochinvar," he continued, "but I have no need of it now. Besides, it suits you." He spent a few moments explaining how to activate the staff's electrical discharge. "Needless to say, you shouldn't use it while we're sparring. Right, ready to start?" Moonshadow nodded. Flynn started with instruction in the basic moves, then moved on to the more unique aspects of Kwon's technique.
Possessing an inherant, natural grace, Moonshadow quickly grasped what Flynn was showing her, much to their combined delight. After less than two hours instruction, they suddenly broke into an impromptu series of mirrored movements, a flurry of graceful spins, thrusts and parries. The resultant display almost appeared as if they were dancing.
When they were done, standing in their final positions, gazing into each other's eyes and catching their breath. Ranari looked at Flynn and glared.
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The only substitute for good manners, is fast reflexes.(This message has been edited by Flynn (edited 12-31-2001).)
(This message has been edited by Avatara (edited 12-31-2001).)
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Lemenath had vanished during the quarterstaff show, thinking somehow he wasn't supposed to watch it. Pacing back and forth slowly he had the feeling he was holding the group back. With a sigh he turned and faced the horse. With another sigh, a glance over his shoulder confirming that nobody followed him, he mounted the horse. After another quick glance, and a brief moment to remember what Ranari had tried to explain to him at the tavern, he nudged the horse off, in a trot.
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Later that night, the three remaining travellers looked up from their dinner to see Lemenath come back on his horse.
"I think....I finally got the hang of it." he gasped between breaths as he slid off the horse and collapsed into an uneasy sleep of exhaustion.
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"Travel with an alert eye and a drawn sword." -
"Well... whatever he did that for, I doubt we'll get far tomorrow." Flynn remarked.
"He does seem to have understood, though." Ranari commented, seeming content with herself. "So... do you think we can spare him tomorrow?"
Moonshadow nodded, smiling. "I guess."
"Spare him?" Flynn asked. "We won't make any progress that way..."
"You don't understand." Ranari said simply.
Moonshadow shot her a warning glance, which Ranari shrugged off nonchalantly. She wouldn't give in that easily. "Now, if you don't mind..."
Moonshadow nodded again and walked over to Lemenath. She kneeled down beside him, closing her eyes in concentration. Then she touched his forehead, releasing the energy she had gathered. After that she returned to where Flynn and Ranari were sitting. "That should solve his problems, at least tomorrow. Should be a relief." She sat down, cross-legged,and pulled the silver ring off her finger and put it on her open palm. "now to get this straight..." She began another incantation, watching as the ring began to glow. When the glow subsided, she finished the spell and put the ring back on. "He won't be going anywhere tonight, so we can take our shifts alone."
Ranari frowned, annoyed about their mistrusts. "and you're expecting me to trust Flynn..." she muttered inaudibly, and added, aloud, "I'll take the first shift. I'll wake you when it's your turn, Madaya."
Moonshadow nodded and lay down to sleep. Flynn shrugged and also went to sleep.------------------
As l lay in my bed staring at the sky I asked myself:
Where the hell did the roof go? -
"We've arrived," Flynn stated simply, dismounting from his horse. Lemenath let out a sigh of relief. They had been able to ride for the whole day, even Moonshadow was impressed that Lemenath hadn't had any further problems with his horse. The group quickly dismounted in a clearing.
"Whatever you plan to do, better make it fast. The light of day is fading rapidly." Lemenath told Flynn, while grooming his beast.
"That reminds me..." Flynn sighed, "Lemenath, I'd like to ask you to stay here while Moonshadow and I...and Ranari go...somewhere private." he corrected himself at a glare from Ranari and a nod from Moonshadow. Personally he wasn't sure if he could prevent Ranari from not coming anyway. "I hope you uh...understand. We'll be right back."
"I understand, I was expecting this. I don't mind...as long as you return." Lemenath emphasized the ending. The two elves and the Ronin vanished into the forest.
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"Travel with an alert eye and a drawn sword." -
*** OoC ***
Wow, that jumped over a lot; I guess Avatara's really in a hurry!There was one more thing that was supposed to happen on the way; but it could occur anytime really, so no harm there. It was looking as though Moonshadow had yet another idea she was about to work in, though; I hope nothing's been derailed there.
*** BiC ***Leaving Lemenath in the clearing, Flynn, Moonshadow and Ranari made their way to the base of the volcano. Flynn was getting quite familiar with the area by now, and had lead them very close to the correct point; they found the cave almost before they knew it.
"I'm afraid you'll have to wait here Ranari, while we go inside" Flynn said apologetically.
"Forget it, human ," she retorted angrily. "I'm not letting you separate me from Madaya now!"
"Ranari! You forget yourself!" Moonshadow was just as angry as Ranari. "He didn't mean it like that, anyway. There's a barrier on the entrance; we only know of three people that can pass through it, and we're two of them. There was a fourth, a troll; but it's dead now." Moonshadow flinched at the memory.
"But you're welcome to try," Flynn offered. He remembered how Moonshadow felt about what she'd had to do to the troll, and he was almost desperate to take her mind off it.
Ranari approached the cave entrance hesitantly. "It won't hurt, will it?"
"No," Moonshadow replied. "It'll just feel like there's a wall in the way."
Ranari's outstretched hand suddenly came in contact with a solid, invisible obstruction. Try as she might, she couldn't force her way through.
"Looks like it's just Flynn and me, then," Moonshadow shrugged, as she started toward the entrance.
"Wait! Don't go in there with without me!" Ranari exclaimed.
"But I've never had a chance to have a good look around in there; do you think I'd come all this way and waste the opportunity?" She pushed past Ranari, and disappeared into the cave.
(edit)
*** OoC ***
The more I read this next bit, the less right it feels. Moonshadow seems to agree, although she said not to change it; so instead, I'll post an alternative scene. Maybe later I'll take votes
*** BiC ***First version:
Flynn carefully didn't look in Ranari's direction, fearful of aggravating the situation even further. He began to move past her toward the entrance, when she grabbed his arm."I swear," she hissed, "if you hurt her in there -"
"Take your hand off me, child! " Flynn's voice was icy cold; he'd taken a lot of abuse without flinching, but she'd just pushed him too far. "Moonshadow is my friend; take the time to learn what the word means, sometime! I wouldn't harm a hair on her head, nor allow anyone else to harm her either, if I could prevent it!"
Ranari dropped her hand to her side, stunned; not so much by the rebuke, as by the fact that a mere human had dared to deliver it.
Flynn bent down and entered the cave.
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Second version:
Flynn carefully didn't look in Ranari's direction, fearful of aggravating the situation even further. He began to move past her toward the entrance; Ranari just stared after Moonshadow, with a worried expression on her face.
Flynn hurriedly bent down and entered the cave, before she could think to say anything to him.
(/edit)
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As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he saw Moonshadow pick up an item and stumble. He knew the feeling; that sudden explosion of new knowledge in your mind took some getting used to.
There was nothing new he wanted to collect this trip, so he went straight to the back of the cave, and retrieved the cloth wrapped bundle that contained his swords.
He spent some time studying the passage that led from the back of the cave into the heart of the mountain. It must have been dug by the troll, and was probably how it entered the cave in the first place; that explained how it had come into possession of the diamond sword and dragon shield. It was also how Desert Fox had come to be able to enter the cave; he'd originally entered through the tunnel, and passed out through the barrier from the inside. After that, Temrel's barrier would allow him to pass freely in either direction.
Flynn was about to use Earth magic to collapse the tunnel, when he suddenly thought of the other Ronin. It might be handy for them to have access to this place. He made a note to discuss it with Moonshadow later.
He made his way back to the main chamber. Moonshadow was still moving from item to item, picking each one up and putting it down again, a look of serious concentration on her face.
"That Temrel was a genius," she commented, without turning around.
"Yes," Flynn agreed. "He was certainly ahead of his time; even Wolmark can't fully understand the things we've seen so far." A small item caught his eye; he picked it up, and felt the now familiar sensation of instant knowledge. "You never know, it might be useful," he thought, and dropped it into his pocket.
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The only substitute for good manners, is fast reflexes.(This message has been edited by Flynn (edited 01-01-2002).)
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Quote
Originally posted by Flynn:
***** OoC ***
Wow, that jumped over a lot; I guess Avatara's really in a hurry!There was one more thing that was supposed to happen on the way; but it could occur anytime really, so no harm there. It was looking as though Moonshadow had yet another idea she was about to work in, though; I hope nothing's been derailed there.
*** BiC ***
**Well, she's getting impatient as well. Also, we don't have to publicly say every little thing that she does or has to, we can simply imply it or refer back to it later. That, and neither of us had any clue as to what you wanted her to do.
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"I'm a controversial figure. My friends either dislike me or hate me." -
Quote
Originally posted by Avatara:
**... we don't have to publicly say every little thing that she does or has to, we can simply imply it or refer back to it later. That, and neither of us had any clue as to what you wanted her to do.
**Hmm, maybe you should start logging your IRC sessions, Moonshadow, to refer back to later; we discussed it a fair bit a couple of days back.
This event can't just be implied, Avatara; it has to happen explicitly, since it's a setup for something that's used in a chronicle.
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Kobayashi Maru! -
Logging IRC sessions? Sorry, don't even know how to do that :redface:... and I would be too lazy to read them, anyway, so it doesn't matter. Besides, I still have you to remind me, haven't I, cache?
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As l lay in my bed staring at the sky I asked myself:
Where the hell did the roof go? -
Kwon stepped out of the portal near Land's End Volcano, the sun just peeking above the treetops and mountains to the east. Taking a quick moment to concentrate, he tried to see if he could sense Flynn or Moonshadow nearby. Instead, he opened his eyes in a hurry.
"Phinril and Xenar are near." Kwon spoke to the assembled group, Wolmark, Leandra, and Sideline. "Flynn is not."
"Should we wait and see if he'll show up?" Wolmark asked.
"What if he was already here? He could be on his way back by now?" Leandra put in.
"If we wait, Katze could get in worse danger than she already is in." Sideline added.
"Too many possibilities. One certanty." Kwon replied.
"I guess we chase Hergat's companions, hopefully they might tell us something." Sideline sighed.
"They are off to the east, and heading that direction." Kwon pointed. The three Ronin and Sideline started off at a rapid pace, chasing Phinril and Xenar.
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"Well, isn't this just interesting?" Phinril remarked to Xenar ahead of him.
"What now?" Xenar stopped and turned back.
"Four life forms have appeared and are now pursuing us." Phinril studied the device in his hand. "We're going to have company rather shortly."
"Its probably the Ronin, Hergat did something. Quick! Lets get to the mountain! We've got a base there..." Xenar trailed off, implying the ending, as both broke out into a run towards the southernmost peak in the distance.
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"Travel with an alert eye and a drawn sword."(This message has been edited by Lemenath (edited 01-02-2002).)
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Moonshadow went through various items, taking her time to determine their use, but didn't keep any. The only item she picked up in the end was a plain amulet which might turn out to be useful for Ranari. She put it into a pocket and turned to Flynn. "Ready to go?"
Flynn nodded. "Yes." He looked at the entrance. "Ranari probably has enough of not knowing what's going on..."
Moonshadow grimaced. "What makes you sure she doesn't know?" She asked as she passed by him.
"What do you mean?" Flynn asked, following her.
"Ah, well... she's surely watching... aren't you, dear?" There was no immediate reaction, but Moonshadow smiled nonetheless.
When they left the cave, Ranari was sitting on a nearby rock, watching the entrance. "I was just making sure..." She said, smiling. She stretched extensively, then got up and turned to them. "Now, what about going back?"
"To the camp, right. We don't want to keep Lemenath waiting." Moonshadow replied.
Ranari frowned, but didn't say any more. Instead, she floowed them back to the camp silently.------------------
As l lay in my bed staring at the sky I asked myself:
Where the hell did the roof go? -
Back in the tavern, Talos continues to glance at the near-empty abandoned tavern.
Note- Yes, this is a veiled notice to hurry up and finish your story or move to an independent thread. Hurry! ^_^
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Bronze: the other gold metal. | | And so the space toaster hardened the outer layers of the doughy, ooey-gooey ancient Earth...
Bacchus Publishing: (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiasw.com/cgi-bin/vftp/show.pl?product=evo &category;=guides&display;=date&file;=ChroniclesByJake101.sit.hqx")Chronicles by Jake101: the unposted chapters(/url). -
Lemenath stood up, upon seeing his three travelling companions enter the clearing.
"There you are!" he exclaimed, slinging his pack over his shoulder and walking towards Flynn, "I expected you back some time ago! There's been an emergency!"
Flynn started to say something, then thought better of it and asked, "What sort of emergency?"
"Katze has been kidnapped!" Lemenath burst out as if it was all plain as day.
"How would you know?" Flynn frowned as he replied.
"Don't ask how, the fact of the matter is she is in danger! And I know precisely where she's going!" Lemenath said, "Now, if you value her life I'd suggust you hurry and follow me!"
"I still don't see how..."
"Never mind the how! The fact of the matter is that she is in trouble, and we're wasting time arguing here! Now, will you follow me or not? I don't think you want to chance the fact that I'm bluffing!" Lemenath yelled at Flynn and then turned and mounted his horse.
"Its a trap." Moonshadow whispered to Flynn.
"I know, but I think he's telling the truth. Katze is in danger, and we can't abandon her." Flynn whispered back, "We'll follow him."
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The group rode hard and fast, and to their amazement, before long they emerged from the trees and faced a tall mountain, the sea to their right. Amazingly, they had travelled at a fairly rapid pace, with no obstacles or hinderances to slow them down. They continued the rapid pace, riding up the rocky slope of the mountain with all due haste.
The dying rays of the sun were at their back as they ascended to the summit, and found a few plastic green domes over on the southern end. A pole appeared to hold the dome up, and revealed an enterance. Next to the domes were three grey boxes and some equipment the likes of which nobody, save Lemenath, had seen before. A stack of what looked like metal beer kegs were at the opposite end, built to be a hastily crafted wall. A small contraption that looked big enough to carry five people sat across the slope from them.
An icy grey covered the nearly-flat summit, some hundred and fifty across at the widest point, and irregularly oval-shaped. Nobody was in sight first, but then Wolmark emerged from one of the two domes, followed by Leandra.
"Flynn!" Leandra remarked as she ran across the snow, but stopped short when she saw Lemenath. "YOU!"
"Leandra, what is going on?" Flynn asked.
"What did you do with her? You and your good-for-nothing friends!" she remarked angrily.
"Leandra, calm down, that's not like you." Wolmark stepped forward.
"Leandra, Wolmark, what is going..." Flynn began.
"Where is she?" Leandra asked again, taking a step closer to Lemenath.
"Leandra..." Wolmark added, dropping his voice a notch and taking a few steps closer to her.
"Will somebody explain what is going on?" Moonshadow interrupted, coming up and glancing at Lemenath, then Leandra.
"He stole Katze." Sideline said, coming out of the other dome, followed by Kwon.
"Now just wait a minute..." Phinril stood up behind a few metal barrels holding a device that reminded Sideline of the strange people that attacked the tavern. Ranari privately scorned them all, humans are so arrogant and stupid sometimes.
"You took Katze?" Flynn frowned, "But how..."
"No! I took Katze!" A gruff voice bellowed, as Hergat appeared on the northern edge, leading Katze in front with a knife to her throat, and her hands stuck together with some yellow glowing substance. She looked tired to the brink of exhaustion and in pain, but there were no visible signs of harm on her otherwise, aside from a slight bit of blood from underneath where the cold blade pressed against her neck. "Now, you all should really calm down, you're making this more difficult than it needs to be. Flynn, I don't care what the motives are, but Kulnäk wants you dead. He must really want you dead, offering me more riches than I've seen in my lifetime. Nothing personal, its just business."
Leandra spun to face Hergat, and a dagger whizzed by him, barely missing him as he sidestepped to the left. A bolt of red shot out from the other end of the barrels and a chunk of rock in front of Leandra exploded, sending everyone diving for cover. Lemenath grabbed Ranari and hid her back behind an outcropping of rock just below the summit. Ranari struggled against him and tried to reach Moonshadow who was following Flynn and a few ronin behind the crates, but a few blasts nearby, sending debris in the air, convinced her that it would be futile. Phinril was openly standing, blasting away with his beam rifle at the Ronin, who couldn't do much but lob an occasional spell at the barrels. Hergat moved behind and joined Xenar on the opposite side, who was giving the occasional cover fire.
Phinril turned a bit, took quick aim, and fired, striking Moonshadow's calf after blowing a corner off a crate. She cried out in pain, and Flynn pulled her out of view. Ranari tried again futilely to reach Moonshadow, Lemenath being all that prevented her from dashing out on the battlefield. Forcibly hugging Ranari close with his arm and using his free hand, Lemenath drew a small metal device that had been hanging at his side, but had gone unnoticed until now. Lemenath stood up and raised it, feeling as if he was watching his body do actions without consulting him first, and fired at Phinril, causing him to take cover as the barrel next to him exploded in a shower of sparks.
"What the hell are you doing Lemenath?" Phinril cried as Xenar directed his aim at the elf, who scrambled down for cover from the hail of fire. Lemenath rested below the rock, trying to bring order to the confusion racing through his mind. Ranari momentarily stopped her struggle under the shower of debris and hot rocks. A yellow bright light suddenly enveloped the top of the mountain, causing people to shield their eyes, and bringing a temporary halt to the battle.
"This is the Galactic Defense Squadron Alpha-Delta-594, drop your weapons and surrender now, or we will be forced to use force!" A voice boomed across the icy rock. The three behind the barrels directed their laser fire toward a large metal object that enveloped the nearby sky. The beams however failed to get close at all, but instead struck a blue energy field a few meters away from the metal plating. In reply, lights all over the bottom lit up and a blue halo started forming around the people on the summit. Lemenath let his hold of Ranari down, and she ran into the blue field, probably to be with Moonshadow right now.
Fighting back the confusion and conflicts in his head, he struggled with his options. The laser fire from his previous friends had ceased, they knew it was futile. Lemenath was barely able to determine he wasn't in the blue glow, and dove in without knowing why just as it flared brilliantly, and to an outsider watching, the ship and the people fighting on it (url="http://"http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/webboard/Forum5/HTML/001019.html")vanished(/url).
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"Travel with an alert eye and a drawn sword."(This message has been edited by Lemenath (edited 01-02-2002).)
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The Scribe gazed around at the now almost empty tavern, and shrugged. He pulled a book, quill and inkpot out of his pack, set them on the table, ordered another wine, and began to write.
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I came, I saw, I wrote the travelguide! -
A tall, friendly-looking man entered the almost-empty tavern. He glanced around, walked up to the counter and ordered a drink. Then he sat down next to The Scribe, who was still busy writing in his notebook.
The man waited until The Scribe finished a page and looked up at the new arrival.
"Hello, I'm Indigo, and I'm new to Cademia. Who're you?"
"I'm known around here as the Scribe. I collect stories and tales from people all around, and I recently came here with my granddaughter Brianna. She's off on adventure somewhere." He waved his hand as if to say, "Young people! They're always off doing things."
Indigo smiled. "Well, I think I can provide you with some stories..."
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Need a name??? Need a character??? I GOT LOTS!!!
Email me or visit my site at (url="http://"http://www.danicsoft.com/kat")http://www.danicsoft.com/kat(/url) -
The Scribe blotted his quill dry, capped his inkwell, and pushed his book to one side. "I'm always interested to hear tales of people's adventures, young man; it lets me relive some of the exciting times I had as a youth. Oh, but don't let my rambling distract you; please, share one of your tales!"
He leaned forward, eagerly waiting for Indigo to begin.
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I came, I saw, I wrote the travelguide! -
Indigo smiled again and took a sip of his drink before starting his tale.
"There is a small community on Cythera called Riam. Not many people around here know about it, but that's where I was born. Riam is one of the oldest cities on the island. The records say that it was originally an outpost for human soldiers during the War of the Leaders, then when the war finished it became a village. It was named after Riam, son of King Philo and Queen Shaila..."
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Need a name??? Need a character??? I GOT LOTS!!!
Email me or visit my site at (url="http://"http://www.danicsoft.com/kat")http://www.danicsoft.com/kat(/url) -
The Scribe nodded. He encouraged Indigo to continue, all the while filing away names, places and facts in his encylopaedic memory, for later reference.
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I came, I saw, I wrote the travelguide! -
Indigo continued on with his tale, only stopping to get a glass of water every now and then. It was quite a long (but interesting) story, so before he was halfway through there was a group of about six or seven other people gathered around to listen. Of course, nobody in Cademia had heard it before, because the people of Riam are not known for exploring great distances. Indigo was one of the few who liked travelling.
He couldn't help but notice that there were very few people in the room, considering that the Alraeican Tavern was supposed to be a very popular place. He made a mental note to ask somebody about it later, but didn't worry too much. Most likely they were just off on quests.
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Need a name??? Need a character??? I GOT LOTS!!!
Email me or visit my site at (url="http://"http://www.danicsoft.com/kat")http://www.danicsoft.com/kat(/url) -
Suddenly, a cross looking man barged into the Tavern, shattering the unusual peace.
With no regard for manners or protocol, he made an inquiry of the sparse patrons of the establishment.
"Has anyone here seen a man by the Name of Talm, who claims to be a scientist?"
He waited impatiently for a response.------------------
I'd have done it to, if it wasn't for those meddeling adventurers and their Wolflizard!
