[Game Thread] Finding one's Place

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight "I thank you for your help than. My people will not be easy to find I fear, nor will you find them quickly. And you can even go by Marali, to fullfill your duty. However, there will be one thing you need, if you want to be able to talk to them at all." The ghost seemed saddened for a moment. "Most of my kin are now in hiding behind the elven crags, or in the wall of trees, as far as I have been able to put together the different rumours from passers by. They have not been seen by humans at all, and that means that they probably started to treat strangers very violently. I can not blame them, with the experience they have had. There is a badge that will help you, though, which was given to friends of the elves of old. It should still be on the body of one of our greatest allies, close to here. I remember him fondly, and he died back to back with my commanders, from what I have seen. Will you follow me?" The ghost had somehow got to his feet at this point, although closer inspection reveiled he was still a few inches above ground.

[Pojo]

"..." Victor looks back again at the sleeping Tom, then shrugs. "Well, I came this far. Lead on."

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight The shimmering silhuette started moving eerily quickly and silently in a north-westly direction, and Victor came close to running when following. The ghostly radiation from the dead elven warrior was the only lightsource Victor had, and it illuminated only the most close surroundings. They soon came through another group of trees and Heyonil halted just at the edge of a slight depression in the plains. He motioned to Victor. "This is were I also died, coming back to see my slain comrades. There still is some foul necromancy in this place, sadly. Are you still willing to help me?"

OOC Spot and Initiative checks please.

[Pojo]

"Only if you stop asking me that." Victor says grumpily, still rueing his acceptance of a nighttime watch. He squints in the darkness.

[Finch]

OOC lost my post this morning, very nagging.

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight Victors eyes scan the plain, and the moonlight suffices to see that there is plenty of evidence of an ancient battlefield. In places, rotten bones and skulls are set apart from the ground in places where no grass grows. Some seem oddly preserved, and indeed Victor can identify at least two entire, unrotten skeletons lying above ground. In other places, a bit of unrusted metal glints in the moonlight. Close to another group of trees there is another grassless patch, it almost looks burned. There is a giant humanoid skull half buried in the ground, with two giant horns protruding from the front. Heyonil sighs a bit and points to it. "Kurare was his name. He was an incredible warrior, and also kind. He came to us an outcast, and proved to be one of the greatest friends of the elves of all times. I have tried to keep things at least a bit in order and tidy around here, but my effect on these physical things is limited. I think you will have to go yourself to get the Medallion. It should still be around his neck, they usually stay unnoticed from enemy eyes."

[Pojo]

"Well, that's a great story for the old one. And what about the new ones?" Victor says, gesturing, his sword and flask suddenly back in his hands. "Did you know their names?" His tone has grown even more friendly and conversational, but he moves in such a fashion as to keep everything of a deceased variety, ghost or otherwise, to his front. He carefully picks his way through the field, first moving to investigate the metallic object in the light before sidling around to the horned skull.

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight Heyonil seems to effectively ponder and take to heart Victors comment about the new friends of the elves, and answers in a low voice. "I don't know if there still exists such a thing as an official friend of the elves." He shakes his head slightly sadly, and seems to think on for a while, until with a slight start, he looks up. "Try to stay back!" It is quickly reveiled that the metallic object Victor went to investigate was a rusty rapier, and it now rose off the ground in the hands of a small skeleton. To Victors right, between him and the horned skull, two other skeletons of the same stature rose, each one wearing a rapier in one hand.

[Pojo]

"The dead coming to life! Why, such a thing has never happened before in my recent memory. Do you think these ones have unfinished business as well?" Victor smashes the flask over the head of the skeleton crawling up from the ground in front of him and skitters backwards to a safer distance. "Sorry!" he shouts jovially. "Precautionary measure. Tell you what, if you want me to do something for you, just clap your hands together." He pauses for a moment. "Wait, do you get sarcasm? If you get sarcasm, you should nod your heads. No? Oh, let me guess, you're a joyless killing machine. If you're joyless killing machines, just keep advancing on me with your swords. Yes, that's what I thought."

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight The two skeletons that were off to the right of Victors were lumbering closer to him almost getting within striking distance. Heyonil interposed himself between the skeletons and Victor, and put his ghostly hands to the skeletons chest, which tried a stab with its rapier that seemed to pass through the ghost. Bright light flared, and the skeletons bones started to blacken and burn, until most of the skeletons chest cage was gone. Victor himself smashed a bottle on top of the skeleton, and the droplets fumed like acid where they touched, burning deep holes into the skull and shoulders. Even as he retreats he keeps taunting the skeleton, with the only effect being a slightly irritated look from Heyonil. The skeleton that rose from the ground before Victor seems by now to have fully assembled, because it launched itself into a stumbling charge at Victor, trying to stab him and failing miserably as Victor simply takes a step back. The other two skeletons now also moved towards Victor, slow but determined, trying to get at him from his back and right side. Heyonil had again floated closer to the unmarred skeleton that was trying to get at Victors right side, and layed his ghostly hands to the skull and back of the creature. This time the whole skeleton was involved in a pyre of bright light, and when Heyonil let go, only charred bones crumbled to the ground.

[Pojo]

"Oh sure, give em the old "strong and silent" routine. I'm undead, I'm not afraid of anything!"

Victor flashes his rapier about defensively as he continues to mock the skeletons, ducking his other hand behind his armor to twiddle a small silver coin. "But it's all perception. This walking dead routine is just as much an act as the next. You may think you don't know anything but you do.

Something changes in his voice, pitch heightening, a serene hint of pleasure behind a now deadly serious tone.

You're standing and walking and talking because something in you wants to be alive. But you're dead only because you're afraid of truly living."

He tosses the coin, catches it, and gestures, thin light forming in his palm. "Here. See. See the truth in the lie behind the truth. See it right for once, for all the wrong reasons."

Wisps of light spray gently from his fingertips, reflection glinting in his eye and from the backs of soulless skulls.

"And stay in the ground next time."

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight At Victors first words, both skeletons had frozen in their tracks. Some kind of power was apparently keeping them at bay. They were watching, or at least so it seemed, intently, unable to move. Then slowly, as if in fear of what was to come, they backed up a step. While Victors last words still resounded on the old killing field, the skeletons turned and started to run in an eery, loping gait. The constant and wonderous light from Victors palm illuminated the back of the skeletons skulls and vertebrae, the ground around all of them and most of all, a content or humorous expression on Victors face. Heyonil seized the opportunity of the chest-less skeleton passing close by and stretched out his hand once more. The pyre of light was even higher and brighter this time, bright enough that Victor had to avert his eyes. When he looked back, only slight dust remained in the air, falling around the illuminated and outstretched hand of the ghost. Heyonil started to float toward Victor, no longer bothering to even imitate a walk. "We'd better get what we came for, and fast. I can not keep this up forever. However, I am impressed by your abilites, and your timeliness in using them." Heyonil was mustering Victor again, as if assessing him anew. "You are more than you seem. I am confident I chose correctly."

[Pojo]

"I'm exactly what I seem," Victor says, still glowing - if not literally - from the aftereffects of his quiet outburst. "It's just a matter of who is looking." He moves quickly over to the minotaur and begins digging for the medallion.

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight Victor dug directly where the skull was half buried in the grass and earth. He had to dig only a few handwiths directly beneath the skull to find a very strong chain that must have once been made of silver, but was completely blackened by now. He pulled on it and quickly unearthed the whole chain, which bore a tiny oak leaf on one end, wrought in gold. Although earth and grassroots caked the whole chain, the gold leaf shed the dirt easily when Victor scratched it. It was still untarnished. Heyonil had observed the process silently and now reminded Victor: "Wear it openly, it will hide itself from enemy eyes. You might want to change the chain though, because it might draw attention. If you want to rest now, I will take over the watch for you. You should be well rested for tomorrow. Once you have discharged your obligations in Marali, please look for my people. You might want to start with the wall of trees. It has traditionally marked the boundary of our land. From there, journey to the crags. But try to make contact at the wall of trees, otherwise you might be hard-pressed to answer for yourself, even with the medallion."

[Pojo]

"Sleep. Yes. I do like sleep." Victor says, removing a tangled mass of various symbols and figurines from beneath his armor and discarding one at random before deftly rethreading the medallion onto it. He tucks the remainder away, leaving the medallion open. "Keeps you pretty. Time to get back, make sure Tom doesn't make off with my horses. I assume I won't be seeing you again, but well met, and I'll be sure to find your people as quick as I can. If you see a man with a shiny mace pass by, looks like he had a giant stick shoved up into him, tell him he dresses like a ponce. In fact, if you could just haunt him for as long as he's passing through, that would be fantastic. I'd really probably owe you one."

[Finch]

18th Day of the Red Moon, Year 627, Close to the Ruins of Aborek, After Midnight Heyonil obviously approved of Victors positioning of the amulet. They started walking toward the clearing they had come from, and Heyonil nodded a thanks when he promised to move to find the elves as quick as possible. His eyes narrowed slightly when the mention was made of haunting someone. "And what has that man done to deserve such a fate? What is he to you?"