Story from the Archmage boards. We're going to start working on it again. Link to be added when we do.
Inbi Infusco (Katz) as herself
Black9 (Black9) as Lotus
Tamaranis (Tamaranis) as Tamaranis (yeah, you heard me)
Venefyxatu (n/a) as Gunther
page 1...
Inbi
The wood creaks slightly as Inbi ascends the dark staircase. Furtively, she glances around and then slows her pace. She knows that she could use her magic to get the job done much more efficiently, but she isn't one to condone pointless use of energy. Besides, it was always possible that the ice she would create to slide her up the stairs would lower the temperature in the house enough that its occupants would wake. She had plenty of experience theifing without her magic; she did not need to rely on it now.
The young woman reaches the summit of the staircase and stealthily opened a door. With quick but quiet movements, she relieves the room of many the most expensive of its decorations. Leaving only the bulkiest items, she exits, heading for the next room. As she opens the door, however, she almost gasps in surprise. Instead, trained in not letting her emotions come across as sound, she silently curses her luck. There is a figure in the bed. She had watched this house just enough to know that there shouldn't be. Some random event that would not otherwise have concerned her had caused this room to be occupied on this night.
About to leave, she catches sight of a glowing amulet beside the bed. In the faint light it emits, Inbi can see its delicate carvings and can easily guess at the money that could be made from this type of jewelry. Cautiously, she steps towards the thing, her eyes barely moving from its pendant. She reaches down, her fingers clasping the chain, and lifts it just off of its place.
In that moment, the person in the bed awakes, and looks at Inbi. The woman, no longer caring for silence, rushes towards the window where, she knows, grows a large tree. Hastily moving the pane out of the way, she leaps at the tree. Not quite making it, she curses, this time aloud. She uses her magic to create a block of ice, growing from the ground up, to catch her fall. She lands, barely pausing before leaping off of her creation, and runs off, using the back of her mind for the task of creating the heat required to melt the block.
She knows that there will still be water to indicate her presence, and she hates leaving any sign for her victims. Grateful for the fact that her carelessness has not cost her her freedom, however, she does not think any more of it.
Black
With the whistling of the wind and the light thump of the dirty rocky ground...the showdowy figure landed. He had been running for some time and was hard of breath, but when the time came to run...he had to do so. Lotus looked cautiously from side to side, ever wary of the danger that could come at any moment. It was then seen above him...a burning red figure that stared down at the assassin and laughed.
burning figure- "You can run, little Lotus...but you can't hide!"
With nothing else said and without hesitation, both men were off once more. The ground was hard as they were gaining in altitude and the feeling of impending doom came over Lotus as he leapt off the seemingly large cliff that was before him. All at once and before you could say 'stop', three large vines came bursting through the rock wall and caught Lotus in the nick of time.
When the assassin hit the ground, he gave one last look at the cliff's peak. There, at the top, was seen standing the burning figure. Most of his features were too dark to notice, but his gaze was that of amusement. He seemed to enjoy the chase...get thrills from the the challenge and have an ever gloating attitude about the fact that he was the better.
Lotus could feel the strength leaving him. He had never had to run from any foe and it angered him that he did so now. They had been running for miles and they both felt the fatique of the experience. By this time, it way clear that nothing would come of this fruitless endeaver...so the burning figure left with a laugh.
With a sigh of relief, Lotus collapsed upon the unforgiving terrain. Dust filled the air as he lay upon the cliffside and he knew that he was in no shape to move on any further. Quite fast and sudden, the assassin fell asleep upon that very spot and hoped that he would awaken.
Tam
Darker deads than theft and dueling were happening that night. In a city that had once been part of a land called Continicium stood a building of which children told tales, saying it was filled with demons and spirits. On Terra such tales were to be heeded.
A year of service to a guild of demon worshipers had afforded a sort of a vampire a chance to negotiate with powers much darker than himself for a few hours. A glowing plane of energy hovered horizontally at waist height. Strange symbols flowed across its surface.
Other than the plane of energy, the vampire was the only object of note in the room. The demon worshippers had been terrified of the calm defiance the vampire had displayed towards the beings he was dealing with and had left him to his doom.
An ordinary being, or even a person with moderate training in the ways of magic would have found the contract to be gibberish. What was written couldn't have been translated into any spoken language. A mage of moderate skill would either find it immensly confusing or have gone made trying to understand, depeding on the mage. An archmage would find it a needlessly complicated piece of magic which existed more for the sake of its own complexity than any other purpose, and not worth their own time to decipher. A particularly knowledgable archmage might, just might, be able to learn exactly what it was and what it would do in the few hours they had available.
Tamaranis almost fell into the last catagory. He had the benefit of over two thousand years of magical study and of using that magic at a very high level. He still possessed all the knowledge of a very powerful archmage, so that he no longer had the strength to use magic as he once had didn't diminish his understanding, much.
Tamaranis' mind worked rapidly, but not frantically, as it strove to fully understand the increasingly compicated contract.
"Do you accept?" The voice that echoed through the room was not loud, but it would have drowned out any other sound in the room had there been any. It fully absorbed the attention of all who heard it.
"Cease your distractions, I am reviewing your terms," Tamaranis replied.
The flow of symbols reversed for a second, "These are unacceptable," Tamaranis said as symbols began to alter, apparently in response to a wave of his arm.
"You sought us," The voice was slightly louder this time, and had a terrifying angry edge to it, "The terms are not yours to decide."
It was just this sort of thing that made Tamaranis dislike working with any being more powerful than himself, especially demons. They had a tendancy to try to control the other partner in the bargain. While demons often used a subtle manipulation and appeared to be servile, this one was not making any effort at such and illusion.
Tamaranis ignored the demon's anger, as likely as not it was feigned. Still, these negotiations were becoming more and more dangerous. Tamaranis had spotted several places in the contract that involved a magic that would put a being with a stadard soul into the direct control of hell. Some he had removed, much to the demon's anger, others he pretended not to notice, as the structure of what took the place of his soul was quite unique. However he could not be certain if those parts of the magic were what had been designed to enstare him, or if they were just decoys to distract him from the real trap.
The symbols Tamaranis had altered changed again, this time manipulated by the demon on the other end. Now they resembled neither what Tamaranis had created nor the original configuration.
Striving to take into account the changes, Tamaranis continued his study of the contract...
Black
Hours later, Lotus awoke and found that nothing had changed. This is excepting the fact that he was ok and rested up. One thing was bothering him, though, and it bothered him a lot. Why...oh why did the assassin not kill him? He was weak and unable to defend himself. Wait...that was the reason all along. The burning figure did not want an easy kill. What he wanted was a workout and a kill that meant something.
Shrugging this topic to the side, Lotus got to his feet and took a good look around. He was alone...or so it seemed. It was then that hunger hit. He had not eaten for some time. His last meal was in home base and that was two or three days ago. During the chase, he had no time to eat...he had no time to hunt...he had no time to think.
Without a second thought, Lotus dashed off to the nearest town and before too long, he was there. Once inside, he noticed his outfit was that of an assassin...he would have to change. Entering the shop next to him, he took a look around and was relieved to see that he was the only customer. The shopkeeper looked at Lotus with a stare of dislike. The assassin could feel the shop keeper's glare itching at him, but went on with his business.
Taking a shoulder pack and a set of clothing , he walked into the changing room. When he came out...he was dressed as that of an average shopkeeper. His daggers hung from the belt and assassins outfit was placed in the shoulder pack. The shop keeper's eye had not left him as he threw some gold on the table and left the shop.
Venefyxatu
The innkeeper wanted to go to bed. Most of the patrons in the room realized this by now and had left already, but there were still two left.
Drunken Laman, as usually, and a stranger who had fallen asleep on his table, his drink barely touched. Leander, the innkeeper, decided to get Laman out first. He'd done this countless times before, it wouldn't be a problem.
Then he went to the stranger and watched him for a moment. He appeared to be a man in his early thirties, with thin brown hair cut off just above his shoulders. His dark-red robes were definitely not new, and he looked as if he could use a hearty meal. There was a gnarled piece of wood that was probably supposed to be a staff leaning against the wall next to him. Leander felt uneasy looking at it.
He shook the guy, waking him up.
"I'd like to go to bed, sir. Would you want a room for the night?"
"Ahh, yes... Yes, I'll have a room, please."
"Very well. I'd like to ask you to pay immediately, though, as there have been more and more dishonest types over the past few weeks. Taking a room for the night and then somehow leaving without paying. I don't know how they do it, because my dogs put up a good guard. I ask one goldpiece a night, breakfast included."
The guy paid and, picking up his staff with a routine gesture, went up to his room. Leander locked up his inn and went to bed also. When he passed the stranger's room, he felt uneasy, just like when he'd looked at that staff. He wondered if he should go in and see if everything was all right, but decided not to. The guy was probably a wizard with a magical staff.
"The guy", who was called Gunther, meanwhile, was lying on his bed, sleeping soundly. He'd walked the entire day to get to this city before nightfall, and now he was tired. As long as he had his staff, he didn't mind sleeping along the road, but a bed in an inn was so much more comfortable...
Inbi
That night, Inbi is sleeping lightly, her training as a thief enabling her to wake immediately to changes in her surroundings. This time, however, she doesn't detect the gradual shift for quite some time.
She wakes slowly, drifting out of sleep in a manner that defies acknowledgement. After a time of lying in deceived wakefullness, she realizes that she is awake. Without moving, her mind begins to work out the possible reasons for this. She is not aware of any immediate danger, and she is loathe to admit that someone could have snuck up on her in so effective a manner. Not taking any chances on her ego, however, she rolls quickly away from the sheets that make up her bed. Grabbing her crowbar and getting herself into a standing position before looking even to see who might be there, she finds herself in a fighting stance before empty air.
She shrugs, not feeling ashamed to have not taken the chance. She then looks around, observing her surroundings and ascertaining, finally, the reason for her premature arisal.
The amulet she had stolen the day before is glowing, steadily increasing its low but efficient light.
Realizing that the pendant must have magical and possibly dangerous properties, she takes it from where it lies on the ground. Weighing her choice of actions, she finally decides that this is a power she should harness if she can, not throw away in a possibly vain attempt to escape whatever danger might ensue. She lifts it up and lets it slip around her neck, hiding it under her shirt.
Casting away any thoughts that this amulet might have only the ability to glow, she whirls around to face the monsters that now surround her. No time to experiment with removing the jewel, she ducks an attack and once again lifts her crowbar into her hands.
Black
Finally...after a grand meal, Lotus thought back to a job or two he was on. As an assassin, he made a vow. He vowed that wherever he may be, or trouble he may face, no job will go unfinished. With this in mind, he felt something. It was an odd feeling and he was not sure what it meant.
Following that feeling, it quickly led him to a forest. The forest was filled with monsters and one lone person in the middle. Monsters? He remembered a case that was brought to him not too long ago. It had something to do with monsters...but the rest was fuzzy. The fact that a life was in danger worried him not...for in this life,he was not that nice a guy. That is...unless they were friends of his.
Why would one put their life on the line for a stranger...for a person that could probably care less about you? It was a rule of thumb. For if one could not defend him or herself in life...why seek others help to do so? With wonder of what was happening, Lotus pulled out a pair of dark sunglasses and put them on in a very sly manner. Taking a stance of 'Joe Cool', he watch for the sequence of the events to come.
Inbi
Kraw looks at the thief with disgust. She has to be a thief, or else she could not be holding the Amulet that belonged to his Master. He was very angry, as he had been looking for the Amulet all night. It was magic, and he knew very well that he wasn't smart enough to understand such things, but he knew that his Master owned the Amulet and that only he had earned the right to wield it and command the creatures within it. Kraw and his gang belonged to the Amulet. When it was not in use, everything around them became intangible, and the people invisible. When they strayed from it, they became weak. He had woken from slumber beside the bed of his Master to discover that the Amulet was not in its place, and the other creatures of the Amulet were growing restless. They could feel their power waning. Feeling that they could best protect their Master by finding and retrieving the Amulet, they set off towards the direction of its power.
Now they had found and surrounded the thief and she was about to put it on. The moment she does so, Kraw lets his anger take him away and he lunges for her. She rolls, grabbing a weapon from the ground, and readies it. Kraw growls, and turns to face the woman once more. He sees that the others are closing in. Falling into line, he advances with them, approaching the woman. One of the beasts becomes impatient and swings his arm towards her. She easily avoids the slow but powerful movement, coming into the creature with her weapon and knocking him back a little. He grows angrier, and another beast jumps forward, preparing an attack. The human slams her metal bar backwards into his stomach and pulls it out, bloody, to use against the first monster. Kraw charges forward, deciding that she doesn't deserve the patient advance that would have taken place.
They would have circled closer until she could not struggle, and then they would have held her and brought her back to the Master to deal with. She had earned a beating, though. They could not kill her, because then the Amulet would become intangible to them again. They had to capture her alive if they could, but the magic allowed that she be brutally beaten and taken unconscious to the Master. So Kraw, seeing his friend's blood, chooses to spill some of her own. He rushes forward as she is connecting the weapon with the skull of the first monster. It growls and holds it head, and she turns. Obviously unused to fighting groups, however, she is too slow, and he grabs the bar from her hands, attempting to turn it on her. He finds it to be burning, though, and his strong grip keeps the metal strip in his claws for too long, searing his skin and causing great pain. He howls, advancing again. She rushes to meet an attack in another direction, but fails to counter one to her side. Clutching a gaping wound with her left hand, she throws the weapon into the beast and Kraw smiles at her silly action. Barely dazing the creature, it and another advance upon the weaponless woman. Kraw joins them, swinging his burned fists for her head.
She panics, and runs towards Kraw. Expecting an attack, he tries to parry, but there is none. Instead, she clambers up his moving form, freezing his skin where she touches. The ice causes an unexpected sensation, and where it freezes he finds his realm of motion limited. He whirls, but she is already gone. She has reached his broad shoulders and used them to mount a large tree behind him. Just out of his reach, he falls back to allow a larger creature the pleasure of her downfall. Having trapped herself so effectively, the largest of the beasts move forward to knock to her out.
Suddenly flame moves out from the trunk and burns the first row of creatures. Howling in pain, many of them dying from the blast, they strike out but reach only burning braches. Kraw sees the thief - she has somehow found a column of ice leading down from her tree to the ground behind them. She is sliding down it, and despite his injuries he goes after her, growling to alert the others. He is met with a fiery blast, singeing his face and chest, and ironically, melting the ice. The heat combine with the freezing water and give Kraw an extremely unpleasant pain. He still moves forward, but only to see the woman running as fast as she can, while he struggles against the flames. She reaches what she must deem a safe distance away, and then pauses to remove the Amulet. Kraw cries in anguish. She can't hear him any longer, however, and hardly comforted by the fact that the fire no longer can add burns to his skin, he turns in his rage to one of the dying beasts behind him, ravaging it with his red and smouldering paws.
He looks around, seeing that the death toll of the fight could only be four or five. May more are in great pain, but ten or fifteen stand healthy in the blazing forest. Without a word, those who can move head forward towards the Amulet, stalking its thief with an intensity that could not bode well for her if she were to choose to don it once again.
Black
A laugh was heard from the top of a tree branch. Lotus sat on the branch with a cool look. His Shopkeeper outfit played in the wind as the smirk came to his face. Lotus had always enjoyed being overly dramatic and this was the way he tried to look.
Lotus-"Your very amusing, friend? Oh, wait, I don't even know you...so how can you be my friend?" Lotus got to his feet with a skilled back roll along the length of the thick branch and with amazing speed, leapt to the branch beside it.
Lotus-"You're in a real pickle. Myself...I like pickles...they have a good taste to them." With a wave of his hand, a flower came flying up and with one swift movement...Lotus caught it. He pulled the petals off saying...
Lotus-"Help...don't help...help...don't help." Ending on help, Lotus gave a wicked looking smirk at the sight. Leaping off the branch...he landed on a vine that came from the ground below. It was then that he gave his speech.
Lotus-"I am the keeper of Terra...the willer of its powers and the seeker of its ways! Let all who come before me, be trapped in its sheer might!" Even an assassin of Lotus's stature was not going to take on these odds. Not that he couldn't do some real damage...but that he felt it not a smart move to make. The next second, large thick vines came from the ground in front of the monsters and formed a wall around them. The wall then grew in size...and before long had surrounded them. Sounds were then heard as the monsters started to break their way through and Lotus knew that it would not hold for long. Turning to the stranger, Lotus spoke.
Lotus-"You'd better get out of here...not that I care either way."
Black
If there was one thing that was self evident...it was that she was not running. Maybe her wounds were too much, or was it something else? If he didn't know better...he would have to say she didn't see the danger. The fool had no idea what she was messing with...then again...neither did Lotus. The assassin turned back around to see that the wall had been torn apart and angry eyes stared back at him. Lotus stared back with a mocking glare of his own and unsheathed his daggers from his side.
Lotus-"You want to play...let's play!"
With a dazzling act of sheer speed and skill, Lotus leapt off the vine with a vengance toward the monter onslaught. The monsters took a defensive position and waited for the assassin to come. Just when Lotus thought it was all over...that the days of the monsters were dead and gone...it happened. He passed right through them without even a scratch. This caught him off guard and made him stumble into a roll upon landing.
Lotus-"What the...what was that?"
Turning back around, he gave another leaping strike the monsters' way...but ended up the same outcome. Lotus had never seen such trickery...such...he didn't know. Calmly getting to his feet...he walked over to one of the monsters, sheathed his daggers and gave it a punch. Just as he thought. His hand went straight through it. Falling to the ground, Lotus gave a hearty laugh.
Lotus-"Ah, yes! This is amusing."
Tam
Both Tamaranis and the demon were aware of it. Somewhere nearby something was changing its state of being, and becoming a part of Terra. A minute or so later whatever it was changed back to whatever it had been. While such an event might normally interest either party, the matter at hand was more pressing.
"Surely we both wish to investigate the cause of that disturbance, if you would finish we would both be free to do so," The demon, of course, feigned a greater interest in an effort to hide something of the contract.
"I can think of several likely and unimportant causes for such a thing. These negotiations concern me more," Tamaranis said.
"Cease these games! You have read the contract! Accept it!" The demon's 'voice' again filled the room, drawing all attention towards its sound.
Tamaranis struggled to bring his attention back to the flowing symbols, "Patience, neither of are susceptible to the killing power of time," He calmly said.
Again the demon's impatience would seem to be only a ploy. Its demands seemed to have been an effort to prevent Tamaranis from noticing something. Not directly, but by drawing his scrutiny to the area he'd been examining when the demon spoke.
Tamaranis found something that indicated that the portions which would turn a normal being to a puppet were indeed a ruse. A part of the contract made it impossible for him to turn the connection to hell he would gain against hell itself. He hadn't considered doing so, and that in itself didn't concern him. What did concern him was that the failsafe took into account the unnatural structure of his 'soul', the demon was aware of it.
Not for one second did Tamaranis consider the possibility that the demon had no intention of turning him into a puppet. It wasn't their way to be honest. Seeing that the demon understood his nature, things had become too dangerous.
"Regretfully, I must decline." Tamaranis said as he made for the exit, not wanting to stick around and learn exactly how much influence this particular demon had on the material world.
"You are a lesser being who's purpose is servitude to Hell!" This time Tamaranis suspected the anger in the demon's voice was real. As the demon finished its statement the contract shattered, filling the room with blinding light. Quite fortunately it was unlike that light which originated from the sun, otherwise it might have caused problems.
Tamaranis had already assessed possible escape routes from the room should the negotiations go bad. Because he was some distance below the actual headquarters of the demon's worshippers going through the ceiling, floor, and walls were all out of the question. The door was the only way out, and an ill boding scraping sound was coming from behind the door.
Forgetting the semblance of order and civility with which the negotiations had been taking places Tamaranis covered the distance to the door as quickly as possible, and found it would not open. Whatever direct influence this demon had on the mortal world, it certainly could accomplish things through its followers.
A single time Tamaranis drove his fist into the door, hoping to simply reach through it. When his hand struck a few splinters of wood came away, revealing metal beneath. The metal door had been excelently crafted to seem a wooden one, and it was distinctly possible that the demon worshipers had sent him here to be destroyed.
Calling on the darkness, and fighting to overcome its reluctance to obey him, Tamaranis caused a large, clawed hand to form from the shadow around him. This hand also struck at the door. While there was a terrific ringing produced by the attack, and several dents and thin lines appeared in the door, nothing else happened.
Turning to look at the place where the contract had been, Tamaranis saw it was now replaced with an intense red glow. The glow was unique in that his eyes could not see to its center, despite the fact that they were independant of light.
Turning back to the door, Tamaranis chanted, summoning magic, forming it into pure force, and then hurling it at the door blocking his escape. It shook furiously, and bent, but remained in place. Tamaranis repeated the process, further damaging it. It would probably be impossible to open the door from the other side by now, so ruined was its shape, but it seemed a reasonable application of force from this side would bring it down.
If whatever this demon was doing was limited to this room, then the demon's worshipers would have a price to pay for this.
Venefyxatu
The next morning, Gunther had breakfast in the inn, and then set out in search of his original goal.
He knew Drake, an alchemist in this city, but he'd never visited the man, so he wasn't sure whether he'd find the shop today.
But he got lucky... he saw a shop that matched the description he'd gotten when he met Drake, so he went in. There was very little light in the small room, barely enough to see.
The walls were full of shelves, which, in their turn, were full of bottles and books. Behind a counter, there was a man who appeared to be at least 5 thousand years old.
"Good afternoon sir. Is Drake here?"
The man came from behind his counter and stood before Gunther, studying him for a few moments.
"Drake? No... he's not around right now. He did tell me you'd probably drop by, and left you something. Do follow me."
Without so much as another glance, the man turned and went through a curtain hiding a door opening. Gunther, of course, followed, assuming that Drake had left him the reagent he was searching for.
After a few stairs and hallways, they came to a small storage room, filled with more shelves and dried herbs. The scent of the herbs masked something else... a bad smell of rotting, faint, but there.
The man went to one of the shelves, and started searching something on it. As soon as Gunther entered the room though, the door closed behind him and the man turned around, shifting to match Drake's looks, but with a snake-like body.
When it spoke, it was in a smooth voice.
"Ahh... Venefyxatu..." He seemed to taste the name on his tongue while pronouncing it. It confused Gunther; why would anyone mistake him with an archmage, great, but all but forgotten?
Seeing his confusion, the Drake-thing smiled, and pretended innocence.
"What? You didn't expect that nice Drake to be... this? Of course you didn't. When we met, I was still blind. But I have learned, and gained in power. And now, I'm going to use that power. Finally I'll be complete!"
With those words, the thing made it's only mistake; it threw itself bodily on Gunther and, as soon as there was contact, started draining his life-force, turning into something even more repulsing.
Gunther stood rooted for a moment, then tried fending the thing off, not even realizing that he was still holding his staff.
As soon as it touched the Drake-thing, smoke arose, and it stumbled back, a burnmark on the place where the staff had touched it, an expression of utter amazement on it's face.
It started screaming at a stunned Gunther.
"No... NO! You, .. you... It can't be! It shouldn't have been... AAARRGGHHHHHHHHHH!!"
It was starting to fade away already, and Gunther realised that anyone with even the slightest bit of magic ability would have felt this. He had to get out, because he didn't feel like being around to see who... or what would come investigate this. He turned around, somehow managed to get the door open, and ran as fast as he could, which wasn't very fast, after the draining he'd gone through.
Wheezing, he reached the shop and, seeing that nobody had arrived yet, quickly walked out, heading for the city gates. That... thing... had left stains on him that'd probably attract lots of bad things. Or worse - good things with good intentions, mistaking him for a bad thing...
Knowing that he wouldn't be able to run, he decided to at be alone when whatever was going to come for him would.
When he found an empty field, he took a few moments to catch his breath, then sat down, his staff over his knees, his eyes closed, all of his senses, both natural and magical, stretched out in all directions. At least he wouldn't be surprised...
Inbi
Inbi removed the Amulet, and the monsters vanished. She wondered whether they had ever been real to begin with, or were simply a hallucination of sorts to distract any thiefs, or wear them out from fighting.
She looked around, and saw that the forest was still burning, that at least had actually transferred over to the real world. She also saw something she had been too busy to notice before: a sly looking man in dark sunglasses. He called out, "I am the keeper of Terra...the willer of its powers and the seeker of its ways! Let all who come before me, be trapped in its sheer might!"
A large wall grew up, and Inbi looked in wonderment. What its purpose was meant to be, she could not discern. Then the man told her to get out of there. Perhaps he had seen the scene of her fighting the monsters that must have been, to him, invisible. He must think she was crazy - but then what was the wall for? The young woman stayed where she was.
She saw the man lunge towards nothing, roll and come flying at it again. Then she saw him put away his weapons and take a swing at thin air. But she also saw how behind him, the wall had been ripped partially apart and was being further ripped as the shadow fight took place. It didn't last long, though, for the man laughed suddenly, and said, "Ah, yes! This is amusing."
Forgetting any rash ideas about putting the Amulet back on and helping the man to finish the fight - he must still see the monsters? - she instead approached him. She needed to find out what he thought he was doing, and what he thought she had been doing. In short, did he see the monsters she saw, or was there some other reason for his behaviour? It probably wasn't wise for one to admit to a stranger that one hallucinated, but the forest was burning and the wall was torn to shreds all round. Besides, Inbi hated to dodge matters for niceties.
"Can you see the monsters," Inbi demanded of him, "and do you know what they are?"
Black
Lotus slowly turned a glance Inbi's way. His laughter was starting to subside and strength beginning to return.
Lotus-"Monsters? Oh...you mean the ghosts I was playing with just now. They are quite amusing. As for the second question...no...I know nothing of these beasts."
Lotus had never had a problem with saying what's on his mind. His life was an open book to any who wanted to hear...but you could never be sure what was true or a lie. Ever since he became an assassin, he took up the habit of lying. His philosophy was simple. Never tell the truth when a lie will do. After all, if no one knows what is true or false...then they can't rat you out. The only ones who knew this, however, were his comrades back at home base.
Lotus-"Hi, the name's Lotus...just Lotus. I am a weapons salesman from a neighboring town...or I was. It's a long story. Who might you be?"
Inbi
Inbi, on the other hand, wasn't quite used to lying. She had lived a lonely life, avoiding people for most of it. Being a theif, she was pretty sure she shouldn't be telling strangers all about herself, but she wasn't good at thinking up stories that would do better. She also had no cause to doubt Lotus yet. She ended up, after a pause, by saying simply, "My name is Inbi. My home is just over there. Er.. did you see the whole fight then?
Black
Lotus-"Inbi, is it? Well, it's nice to meet you, Inbi. Would it be too much if I troubled you for a meal? I can pay you of course."
Lotus reached back and took a rather large bag of gold from his pocket. Placing it back in...he thought about the request for a second and spoke again.
Lotus-"Yes, I saw the entire battle. I would be happy to tell you what I know...or anything else you may ask over a meal. Don't worry, if I was some kind of killer...you'd have never seen me coming."
Inbi
"Oh, I wasn't worried about that," said Inbi. "I'd love to join you for a meal. First, though, we should do something about this fire... I didn't want to use my magic if there was still a chance of keeping it secret." The woman shrugged. "Seeing as how you already know about it, though, it's the best way to do this."
She turned to face the area of trees that had been central to the fight, and were still smouldering. She reached out her hands and ice flew from them. Almost as the ice came out, though, it melted, and the result was a jet of cold water that effectively put out the fire on the trees.
"Not too much damage done, after all," she stated. Only a few trees had been burned down, although many others were permanently charred.
Inbi led Lotus to the trees near her sheets. She reached into one of them, and pulled out frozen rabbit meat, already skinned and ready. "It serves me as a fridge," she laughed, proceeding to melt and cook the animal. As she did so, she spoke. "Since you seem to be willing to help me, I'll tell you what I know. It isn't much. I found this amulet. It started to glow. I could tell that it was magic. I figured it was better to keep it than throw it away, so I put it on. As soon as I did so, the monsters appeared. As you saw, I fought them, and when I took the amulet off, they disappeared - although I gather you can still see them?"
Lotus nodded his assent and Inbi finished fixing the meal. She said, "Can you help me find a weapon better than this crowbar? It's all I have right now, but I think perhaps I should be carrying a dagger or something now."
Black
Lotus flinched somewhere inside himself. Where it was true that he knew a good weapon from a bad one...he knew very little else on the subject. When in doubt...make up a tragedy.
Lotus-"Ordinarily, I would make you a weapon of top grade...if it weren't for that unfortunate incident. It was years ago...I was trying to make a weapon of unmatched power. This weapon would blow any other man-made weapon away. Those who couldn't use magic would gain the ability to do so. Mana would be a thing of the past." Lotus went on as they began their meal. It had a great taste to it.
Lotus-"I must have tried fifty times. Using fifty different mixtures of steel and magic in combination with each other. I must have mixed the wrong ones...for it exploded in my face. I was later saved by the villagers who lived near by. The very villagers who called me mad for acting so reckless. My shop was in ashes...yet in the very spot of my forge were two daggers. I insisted they were magic, but the villagers would have nothing to do with me. Soon after...I left and never returned."
Lotus took off his shades and looked into Inbi's eyes. She reminded him of himself...of himself when he was but a youth. So often people judge those by what they do in life and not even consider the way they were brought up.
flashback
-------------
Lotus had just gotten home from a trip to the store. He was but a boy and family meant everything to him. The door was open and this started to worry the lad.
Lotus-"Mom...Dad...I'm home."
Entering, he found his parents dead on the floor and a mean looking man standing over them. The man looked up with an indescribable stare on his face. Lotus fell to the floor in shock. The man started to approach the lad, when out of nowhere...a burning figure slew that man.
burning figure-"Are you ok?"
------------------------
Inbi-"Are you ok?" Lotus awoke from a short daze and slid his shades back on.
Lotus-"Yes, yes I'm fine. Old memories is all. I'll tell you what. Since I can't make you one, I'll treat you to the finest blade in town. Refuse and I'll consider it an insult."
Tam
Running from a deomn's limited incarnation, dealing with its worshippers on equal terms, trying to disappear into the populous of a city he used to own. Tamaranis had killed a few demon worshippers in his escpae, but he shouldn't have escaped at all, he should have crushed them... But he couldn't.
Tamaranis' detachment from emotion had just come, a result of touching the void. He'd never practiced pushing things like frustration and anger away. Outwardly, he remained as calm as always, but he was angry now, and he wasn't sure how to treat that. Mortals would lash out at what was around them. Tamaranis still had enough magic left to lash out and to kill, but that would draw attention to himself, attention he didn't want.
He came to the conclusion that the only thing to do was keep on trying to find a way to restore what he had lost. During the day something had appeared, something dark. He could still feel it, just a little ways outside the city, it was as good a place to look as any, better than most actually.
Of course, containing dark energy didn't automatically make a being Tamaranis' ally. He would wait until nightfall to approach whatever it was. It wouldn't do to be trapped into combat outdoors during the daylight hours.
Venefyxatu
Gunther sat there for quite some time, without anything happening. Then there was whispering. At first it was so soft that, had he not extended all of his senses to the utmost, he wouldn't have noticed it. Then it started to become louder, coming from behind him, even though all his other senses told him there was nothing there.
"So sweet, blood so sweet, soft flesh to rend, bones to crack, come, join us, jooooiiiinn, darkness so dark, calming, ..."
They went on and on like this, threatening to devour him, begging him to join them in the darkness and become more powerful than he could have ever dreamed.
And they were closing in, too. Gunther could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, but resisted the urge to turn around. He knew it was nothing more than his imagination, but somehow could not force them away completely. He could barely mute them, as they became stronger and stronger. He could feel them now, something dark inside him, trying to spread, trying to taint his sould. He'd rather die than let them, but as long as he could hold them back, there would be no need for that.
The touch of that.. thing must have left something inside him. He hated it already, as it divided his attention between finding the best way to contain it, and keeping his senses extended.
Slowly, the sun continued its traject in the sky, coming closer and closer to the horizon...
Inbi
Inbi wasn't sure what to say; something was obviously bothering the man. "I don't need much, just something to defend myself with. If you insist on the finest there is, I won't hinder you - just keep in mind I am unskilled with weapons and the quality may go wasted on me... Whatever you decide, I don't think this meal will suffice as ample trade. Is there anything more I can do for you?"
Tam
Tamaranis knew that the demon worshipers knew he would wait until night to try and leave the city. The would hunt for him now, while he was exposed and moving, their master would have told them to do so. Of course, they didn't take into account that their master cared not for their lives, and that at night Tamaranis would be far more dangerous.
Tamaranis didn't draw attention to himself. He walked along the street like anyone else might. He didn't pull the darkness around himself in defence, a walking pool of blackness was suspicious, and it would respond to him in seconds anyway. He kept alert, looking across rooftops, into buildings, down alleys, with something that was just a little better than vision. He saw where living things were, regardless of illumination and to a certain degree, obstacles to line of sight. He reached out with his mind, searching for anything with the tangible hatred of hellspawn in addition to holy things, which he was always alert for.
Perhaps they simply didn't have the magic needed to located him unless he used magic of his own for them to try and locate. Or maybe the other dark force, which seemed to be getting easier to detect, was overshadowing him.
No, they had the skills. It would seem there were at least a few legitimate mages among their number. Tamaranis felt a faint cord of blue magic gently brush against him, then seem to snap tight and disappear. Some one had definately located him.
The detection spell had been very weak, Tamaranis hadn't felt it being cast. It had probably been used from nearby, within a few hundred yards. But there was still no indication of hostile magic, so Tamaranis maintained his pace and kept doing as he had been.
Then he felt another brush with blue magic, and a moment later, yet another one. It would seem that several persons were closing in on him. Perhaps the demon worshippers had secured the help of another group of magic users, either that or they were rather adept at conventional magic for what they were.
Feeling the blue magic twice more, Tamaranis decided that his position was obviously well known to his hunters, and gave up on not drawing their attention, it was obviously already on him. Pulling the darkness to himself he flew straight up until it was impossible that he'd be siloutted by any lights on the ground or in buidings. A black dot in the night sky, even with detection spells reaching for him it would take the searchers a moment to spot him.
Inside the protection of darkness a flame formed, not a pure flame, but one much like what the demon worshippers would be familiar with. It was almost alive, it was filled with a mixture of hatred and hunger. It existed both as a physical flame and as an undead spirit. Inside the darkness it danced furiously, reaching downwards rather than up as a normal fire would, trying to get at the life below and destroy it. But Tamaranis had forged the flame, given it the power it had, and it was within his control.
Another cord of blue magic touched him, and Tamaranis released the flame, overcoming its will and forcing it into the trail of magic before it could disappear. The flame met the cord of magic, and it became the path of least resistance. Seemed almost to scream as it flew, it followed the magic back to the caster, moving faster than the cord could retract. An archmage would have some sort of false trail, and would be protected, but Tamaranis doubted he was up against quite that calibre of magic.
Now that he'd cast the flame he'd be visible, so he moved quickly, flying not quite towards his objective. A bright flash below indicated his spell had found its target, or at least a target.
There was another flash, as lightning moved through the spot Tamaranis had been. It had signifigant power behind it, but seemed it wouldn't have been overly dangerous as Tamaranis wasn't concerned about what an electric current would do to his unbeating heart.
Dropping back to the street a signifigant distance from where he'd cast the nether fire spell he waited, felt magic, and moved forward, then stopped. He sensed something much similar to the nether fire, a demon had been pulled into the city. Tamarnis assumed that since he could feel the demon's hatred, it could feel his void, and would be reaching him shortly.
Hoping to avoid extended combat with a demon, Tamaranis began moving in a semi circle around the area he'd felt the demon appear, intending to attack its summoner before the demon attacked him. Unfortunately because the demon seemed not only to sense his presence but also to possess at least moderate intelligence it intercepted him.
The demon, appearing blurred, came through a wall without damaging it. Tamaranis' had came up and black lightning jumped from his fingers to the demon in a spell that was quick and almost reflexive. The lightning passed through the demon without effect and struck the wall it had come through, spreading cold rather than heat and not igniting it.
The demon attack, it was too blurred to say exactly with what, but it met the unnatural shadows surrounding Tamaranis as if they were solid, paused for a moment as if puzzled by this, and then heartily tore into them.
Tamaranis responded by rapidly varying the shape of his protective darkness, sometimes forming large claws from it to strike back, but the demon seemed stronger, and the shadow-armour began to break up. Momentarily forgetting about trying to overcome the demon, Tamaranis focussed on retreat, and flew to the spot where it had appeared.
It was quite a surprise to the patrons of a local pub the demon worshiper was hiding in when what appeared to be a ball of shadows with rapidly changing and shifting borders and a vaguely visible haze entered, apparently engaged in combat of some sort.
The ball of shadows made a direct line for the summoner, who in a panicked defence wove his hands in the air, begining to produce a white light. Immediately the demon lost all interest in Tamaranis and lunged at the summoner. Utterly without faith, the demon worshipper's ascendant magic collapsed the instant the demon contacted it, the worshipper opened his mouth, probably to beg forgiveness for contacting ascendant powers, but the haze seemed to flow into him, somehow gutting him as a part of the process.
The guard was doubtlessly already aware of the magical battle going on, and soon the main forces of the archmage controlling the area would be as well, if they were not already. Being in a public place and obviously one of the combatents could have been a problem, but a far larger one presented itself.
Tamaranis felt something immensely powerful pull at his mind and body, he recognized it, as he had been on the other end of this type of magic before. Some one was attempting to summon him, and thus gain control. Tamaranis threw his mind fully against the attack, but deliberately distanced himself from that particular point in space, allowing the transportation effect of the magic to work more easily. The problem of people knowing his location was solved as he faded from view and the lighting inside the pub returned to normal.
Black
Lotus laughed. He'd come on a bit strong yet again. This has been a problem for him for a long while and undoubtably, would be for the rest of his life.
Lotus-"The truth is...you remind me of someone...someone who I wanted a better life for. Feel free to use whatever weapon you like. Besides, I make more than enough to last me."
The truth then hit Lotus...an ugly truth! If Blaze,(the burning figure), were to recognize him, then he might make Lotus's lie be known. Lotus was a practiced liar, but when faced with the truth...who would win?
Lotus-"I seek only happiness and amusement and it seems my travels have led me here. There is one thing you should know, though. I am being hunted by an insane assassin that goes by the name of Blaze. He thinks I have done something, but I know not what. If you meet up with him...I'd advise you to run, for even I lack the skills to defeat him in combat."
Black
The bar was packed with the worst of the worst and just plain drunks. The one thing that was hard not to notice, though, was the man that sat alone. He sat at the table in the far corner and had a mean look to him. Blaze was what you might call and older, less sly looking Lotus. His ninja-like tunic was fire red and told those that knew him of his element.
The barkeep looked cautiously over from time to time. The look on the assassin's face was that of an irritated man. Blaze came to this town in search of Lotus...but he had yet to find him. Blaze glared at a stranger as he came over to his table and the toothpick that the assassin had been playing with fell to the floor.
Blaze-"Go away! This is my table!"
stranger-"It's a free country...buddy!"
Blaze-"More or less. I will give you to the count of three to leave my sight!"
The glare that Blaze gave the stranger was now worse than ever and the stranger knew that this man meant business. Blaze reached for his dagger as the man went for the seat. Blaze laughed at this sight. To think that this stranger would stand a chance against the likes of him! It took only seconds for Blaze to slay the stranger.
The moment the barkeep saw this, he went for his sword...but was met with a glare from Blaze that could kill. The bar had hushed from this sudden action and all those inside were staring the assassin's way. Blaze saw this and took to his feet. He had not the time to take on these men and women...there was only time for Lotus!
Tam
"It was so simple, it's amazing you surivived this long," Said a human necromancer as Tamaranis' shadows filled the room.
Crushing waves of magical energy came pouring into Tamaranis' mind, and broke like waves on rocks. There was discipline there, incredible discipline, discipline enough to repel the effects of the summon.
"Still some fight in you I see," The necromancer said.
Tamaranis didn't answer, he was focused on the inward battle. The magic asailing him was becoming stronger. The waves becames tsunamis, they struck again and again, dozens of times a second. The rocks began to wear away. He would have to calm the ocean.
Casting a spell would be too much of a risk, divert too much attention. Tamaranis stabbed straight out with his sword, aiming at the necromancer's heart. The blade of enchanted drow steel moved forward with all of the vampire's unnatural strength behind it. And it came to a dead stop half a foot from the necromancer's chest, embedded in a magical barrier.
"Really, do you take me for a novice?" The necromancer asked, "One takes precations when summoning a new and potentially hostile slave."
Tamaranis still didn't answer. He dropped the sword and took a step forward, placing his hand on the barrier. Instantly the magic responded to contact with the void. It was well woven and insulated against all form of attack, including and attempt to drain it. Still, this wasn't a spell designed to disable magic by siphoning away its energy, this was contanct with something emptier than a vacuum. The shield began to break apart, its component subspells simply ceasing to be.
"Stop him!" The necromancer commanded. Four zombies stepped in to intervene. Under the force of the mental assult, Tamaranis hadn't noticed them until now.
Risking a weak-spot in his defence, Tamaranis diverted a small part of his attention to the darkness that protected him. It became solid in a dozen diffent places, all hard edges and points. It began to whirl, cutting at zombie flesh, tearing pieces away. The zombies ignored it of course, but as they reached for their target their limbs were torn and shredded. Some of the animating magic went with the flesh that was cut away, and the limbs lost some of their strength.
Tamaranis only had to keep contact with the barrier for a few seconds more, then he could reach his master... no not his master. There, the barrier failed, he stepped forward again, this time pressing his hand against the necromancer's chest.
Instantly the mind warping effects began to fade. Mana began to dissipate, turning to nothing as soon as Tamaranis touched the necromancer. At the same time, the power of the void was increased, and Tamaranis was strengthened. The necromancer was insulated against this sort of attack, but so had been his barrier.
As the manna failed vital energies began to be destroyed in its place. The necromancer screamed as he experienced an incredible cold moving through his body. It wasn't an actuall change in temperature, but rather a misinterpretation of what was happening by the human nervous system.
The necromancer kept his head enough to realize that a black magic based attack would be useless, and so tried to wield red. Flames formed about his hands, but his manna was too depleted and and his time too short.
"Stop, I command you!" He said in a last desperate attempt to survive the encounter.
"I beg you..." He switched tactics.
Tamaranis said nothing
The necromancer died with a suddeness not common with this sort of attack, perishing before he hit the ground.
The zombies continued to follow their last instruction, "Stop him" And so simply held onto Tamaranis, holding him in place. For several minutes he ignored them, fully recovering his thoughts. Then he recovered his sword and systematically destroyed them. After wiping their already rotting blood from his weapon, he sheathed it and began to feel out with magic, finding where he'd been teleported to.
Already the alternate sort of non-energy he'd gained from his attack on the necromancer was disappearing, it was beyond his capacity to contain even that much any longer.
Discovering that he'd only been moved a short distance, Tamaranis resumed his trek towards the dark power he'd been sensing.
Venefyxatu
As he sat there, Gunther didn't really see things, it was just that he was more... aware of them. He could feel some things that were happening in the city. A lot of magic, centered on one... being. Although he couldn't quite tell why, describing it as a human would be wrong, somehow.
Whatever it was, it was being chased. Gunther was even aware of the presence of a demon, although that vanished again. As soon as that vanished, the other presence teleported to a location where it was immediately overshadowed by a familiar magical presence.
Then that vanished, too, and the other started to become stronger, probably because he/it was closing in. Whatever it was, it was still chased, although with a bit more prudence now.
And through all this, the dark presence inside himself kept beckoning, begging, trying to threaten him into joining it, becoming one with it. The constant whisper became an almost soothing background noise, but for its vile nature. The only good thing was that it seemed to be becoming easier to resist... or was that just a trick?
Tam
Whatever it was that Gunther had been sensing, it was very close now. In visual range, in fact. A man walked towards him. His appearance would have been unnotable if not for the fact that the night seemed darker around him. Even without that to tip him off, Gunther could sense a magic very like the taint of undeath about him.
"Archmage... You are experiencing a conflict?" Tamaranis asked.
Venefyxatu
Venefyxatu saw the person walk towards him, but didn't move. He was aware of him, he didn't need to move.
Even though the night seemed to be darker around him, and the taint of undeath was very strong, he didn't feel threatened. Was it because of his chosen magic type, Nether magic, or was it the taint he could feel inside himself, he didn't know.
When the figure spoke, Gunther answered without looking up.
"Yes. I don't know what is going on, but I can feel there's something afoot. It appears to be after you, and I'm sure that it's after me too. But there might still be time to do something about it..."
Tam
"I don't know their exact motivation or origin, but a group of mages has just tried to destroy me." Tamaranis affirmed. "I killed at least two of them. I believe they will hold back for now, at least until daylight. I should like to find a place where the sun cannot reach me, so as to minimize the advantage they will gain with dawn. But that is not the conflict I was inquiring of."
Venefyxatu didn't respond, so Tamaranis continued, "There is something dwelling inside you which normally does not occur in the living. If you are in conflict with that force I may be able to aid both of us."
Inbi
"An assassin named Blaze... alright then, I certainly don't feel I need to get myself killed in the battle of some insane man I've never met. If I see him, I'll take your advice. However, I have a proposition. The two of us are stronger together than either of us is alone. Why don't we stick together for a little longer? Perhaps we can solve the mystery of those monsters and this amulet, and if we see this Blaze, perhaps together we might overcome him. Who knows, maybe Fate sent you here, and the two are related somehow."
Inbi grinned. She didn't really believe in fate. She believed in logic, though, and it made every sort of sense to try to gain an ally against this magic she had pitched a fight with. She didn't know anything about his past, but it didn't really matter whose side one chose to be on, so long as one wa
