Conference
Posted by: Curufea Aug 19 2005, 09:06 AM«
Gideon sighs and looks around for the dog's master.
Posted by: erichenry Aug 19 2005, 07:45 PM«
Arenea dashes into the room looking fairly dishevelled, with her cloak missing and her long platinum blonde hair in disarray. She holds a small dagger in her right hand, held ready to throw. She looks at Gideon and says GÇ£Are you alright? We heard a noise from your room, but then were attacked before we could investigateGÇ¥.
Posted by: doychi Aug 20 2005, 06:15 AM«
As Arenea enters the room the wolfdog, now the size of a large dog, backs up a little and sits again and looks between Arenea and Gideon with a quizzical look.
Posted by: Curufea Aug 22 2005, 08:30 AM«
No, I'm not, Gideon answers Arenea in a belligerent tone.“ You weren't the only ones attacked. How about from now on, we stay together?
Posted by: erichenry Aug 22 2005, 05:27 PM«
Arenea brushes her fine platinum blonde hair back from her forehead and winces slightly at Gideon's tone. She cringes and mumbles Sorry”.“
Posted by: theseus Aug 23 2005, 05:06 AM«
The deep gash on GideonGÇÖs leg is angled away from the door, but Arenea, can now see it is bleeding from where the tendon was cut. Reyn enters the room, followed by Anna and Yeesha.
Posted by: Reyn Aug 23 2005, 11:34 AM«
As Reyn enters it's obvious that he's continuing a conversation started out of earshot of the room. … You say that as if it was a bad thing. Don't let yourself be affected by the connotations that others put on the word - it's just a word. Demons are a sentient race, just like any other. Don't hate them because they're different.” Looking down at Gideon's dishevelled appearance and around at the rest of the destruction in the room Reyn sighs. Instead, hold your malice for the ones that send them against us as footsoldiers. We've obviously been pinged here, I say we get what we need from this shadow as soon as possible and depart.
Posted by: erichenry Aug 23 2005, 05:27 PM«
Arenea's eyes widen in surprise and realisation. Gideon“ she asks urgently, “did the demon that attacked you manifest in this room?”
Posted by: Curufea Aug 24 2005, 08:12 AM«
Manifest, says Gideon. “That's one way of putting it.” He's still irritated in tone as he continues. Are we safe nowhere? But I am being impolite - the demon didn't. It burst in through the door. However, it 'manifested' away through the floor just a few seconds ago.
Posted by: erichenry Aug 24 2005, 10:23 AM«
Arenea's face falls slightly. Oh” she mutters disappointedly. “That means both demons appeared in the corridor. That doesn't help us much in working out which of us has been pinged.”
Posted by: theseus Aug 24 2005, 11:29 AM«
GÇ£Maybe not,GÇ¥ Anna says. GÇ£But IGÇÖm sure these demons are the same ones that were chasing Gideon earlier. It would be a reasonable assumption that they were after him.GÇ¥
Posted by: Curufea Aug 25 2005, 11:42 AM«
Entirely reasonable, says Gideon. “I am quite definitely feeling justifiably paranoid. The questions I want answered are 'why', and more importantly 'how'.” And if 'how', then how to stop it.
Posted by: erichenry Aug 25 2005, 05:21 PM«
You or one of your possessions have been tagged with a magical effect says Arenea hesitantly, “which is acting as a homing beacon for these demons allowing them to track you across shadow. You must have seriously irritated someone for them to invest this much effort and magical power in attempting to remove you.”
Posted by: Reyn Aug 29 2005, 02:26 PM«
Great. Reyn's comment has ominous overtones as he steps into the room completely and closes the door to the corridor behind him. GÇ£Listen, I hate to be the one to say this, but weGÇÖre supposedly doing something here that will protect the entire multiverse from some nameless catastrophe. IGÇÖm not sure we can afford to have one amongst us who is the target of demonic assassination. The way I see it, we have to get you back to the Courts and into the safekeeping of one of our Houses as soon as possible.GÇ¥ ReynGÇÖs features soften a little and he tries to explain. GÇ£If they are after you for some other reason youGÇÖre unwittingly putting our entire mission in danger and anyway youGÇÖd be safer and better protected in the Courts. If however theyGÇÖve tagged you simply as a way to get to us then removing you to the Courts frustrates their efforts and still places you in better protection. Either way the mission has a better chance of succeeding and you have a better chance of survival.GÇ¥ GÇ£Unless of course we can find out the who and the why of whatever is behind sending these guys to kill you off.GÇ¥
Posted by: Sim Aug 30 2005, 01:53 AM«
Yeesha lifts her gaze from Gideon and wraps her arms even tighter around her body. She quickly looks at the disheveled state of each person in the room before addressing Reyn. We can't leave yet, we need to find the ring. She shifts her weight from one foot to the other as she continues. Would it be possible to just restrain a demon next time… maybe we can get some answers from it?
Posted by: doychi Aug 30 2005, 09:46 AM«
The wolfdog still in the corner, lies down looking a little bored.
Posted by: erichenry Aug 30 2005, 03:33 PM«
Arenea's eyes go wide in horror at Yeesha's suggestion. Restrain it?!“ she repeats in a breathless whisper. “It took three of us hitting it as hard as possible to take the last one down and even then none of us escaped unscathed.”
Posted by: theseus Aug 31 2005, 01:34 PM«
GÇ£We still have the dead body in the other room,GÇ¥ Anna says. GÇ£Could we learn anything from it?GÇ¥
Posted by: Reyn Aug 31 2005, 03:27 PM«
Reyn shakes his head vigorously, Err, I wouldn't go anywhere near that body for quite a while if ever. To anyone with shapeshifting abilities like you and me Anna that yellow stuff is deadly. Get any of it on you and you're history.” I don't even want to go back in to that room, never mind even thinking about touching the body.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 1 2005, 12:15 PM«
Arenea shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot. The yellow death oil does break down and lose its toxicity eventually“ she mumbles apologetically, “and it seemed like the only effective method for dealing the demon I had at my disposal.” But unless one of us is a forensic sorcerer, I'm not sure we're going to be able to get anything from the body unless its actually got a piece of paper hidden somewhere saying who sent it. After a moment's pause, she adds Seeing as I'm the one who poisoned it, I suppose I should be the one to search the body.”
Posted by: Curufea Sep 5 2005, 02:21 PM«
Theoretically, says Gideon.“ And I mean theoretically because I have little understanding of magic. But I do have some amateur knowledge of surveillance. Doesn't a monitoring or tracking 'thing' imply that there is someone at the other end paying attention to it? The demons tracking me are the same as the demons that attacked you guys. I've been singled out for special treatment, and there is a direct link to me. I doubt it is to a possession of mine, as all I brought with me was a bottle of perfume which has been left in the Cleft. Can this link be exploited?
Posted by: Sim Sep 6 2005, 07:27 AM«
Yeesha nibbles gently on her lower lip before responding. We don't know what they are, where they are from, how they got here or who they are working for… But do you think that whoever this is will be as careful in removing all evidence of this attack as they did along the path we travelled to the city on? She shifts her gaze to Arenea Have you got a particular substance that is perhaps as contagious, but slower acting? We could hit the next one with it and link out, leaving it unable to follow. It would presumably return to its master?”
Posted by: erichenry Sep 6 2005, 05:20 PM«
Arenea shakes her head. Sorry“ she apologises. “These are poisons, not diseases. It is very difficult to poison a shape-shifting creature. 'Yellow death' works by rapidly overwhelming a creature's system and locking it in position. Anything slower acting and the demon's ability to shape-shift will overcome the poison before it had chance to report back to its master.” She pauses as she finishes, turning something over in her mind. If I had time and enough subjects to experiment on, I might be able to concoct something” she says slowly before shaking her head. “But I would also need access to a laboratory equivalent to one in House Dis.” She stops and blushes as she realises everyone is looking at her.“ Sorry she mumbles, looking at her feet. “That wasn't very useful, was it?”
Posted by: Sim Sep 7 2005, 01:32 AM«
Yeesha studies Arenea's face carefully, Just because it wasn't an easy solution, does not make it useless or irrelevant. I'm throwing ideas into the ring because I have no idea what anybodies capabilities are.” She looks at the others in turn.
Posted by: Reyn Sep 8 2005, 02:00 PM«
Reyn shrugs, As I've said, my knowledge of magic is rudimentary and non-functional. My only suggestion, if taking Gideon back to Chaos is out of the question, is that he removes every stitch of clothing, every item he has, and I'd probably vote for shaving him bald as well, burn every particle of it and move on. Even that may not be enough though. Of course, we could be wrong about Gideon being the target as well, and nothing we do to him will help.“ Reyn slumps into a chair, looking slightly dejected. I'm a bodyguard by trade. I'm used to knowing who I have to protect, and running the battle to my rules, forcing the enemy to play on my turf. I don't like having those tables turned on me. The question is - How do we regain the upper hand?”
Posted by: doychi Sep 8 2005, 02:24 PM«
The dog near the door shifts slightly, opens one eye to see what's going on, and falls asleep again.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 8 2005, 10:51 PM«
Arenea coughs softly to get people's attention. Well, I think I should go and actually examine the demon's body“ she says. “I may need to…” Her voices trails off as she looks over at the wolfdog.” Wait a minute, she asks, “where did that dog come from?”
Posted by: doychi Sep 9 2005, 09:45 AM«
Suddenly aware that he is being talked about the wolfdog opens one eye and looks around. As interest grows in him he raises his head and looks directly at Arenea, with a questioning look, as if to say me?“.”
Posted by: theseus Sep 9 2005, 12:19 PM«
Anna laughs. GÇ£ThatGÇÖs our friend, TuGÇÖTak,GÇ¥ she says.
Posted by: theseus Sep 9 2005, 12:24 PM«
Suddenly the group hears a commotion from the corridor; the sound of marching feet and raised voices. A group of perhaps half a dozen soldiers appear. They are commanded by a sergeant who bows. Behind him are two soldiers holding a tarp. Another group arrives consisting of four women carrying plates of steaming food. They are led by a grey haired man who bows and then walks into the room. GÇ£Your pardon, honoured lords and ladies, I have been sent by Captain BGÇÖrayth to provide refreshment. The soldiers are here to take away the body. Captain BGÇÖrayth also asked me to inform you that he is currently in council with Lord JGÇÖlef but will rejoin you when he is able.
Posted by: Reyn Sep 13 2005, 12:17 PM«
Reyn sighs, pausing to rub his forehead in a frustrated manner. Arenea, if you want to search the body it looks like you'll have to do it now. I imagine these people don't like the idea of leaving it whole for very long. I'd bet that the pyre to destroy the body is being built as we speak.“
Posted by: erichenry Sep 13 2005, 05:38 PM«
Arenea nods. Yes, Lord R'hayn” she mutters demurely, remembering to give Reyn's name the pronunciation B'rayth had. With a bow to Reyn, Gideon and Yeesha, she leaves this guestroom to return to the room assigned to the women.“ Once there, she picks up her pack and carries it over to the side of the corpse. Kneeling down, she carefully checks her gloves for any rents or tears before starting to examine the demon's body.
Posted by: Sim Sep 14 2005, 11:23 AM«
Yeesha follows her from the room and keeps (what Yeesha considers to be) a respectful distance while she watches Arenea as she makes her preparations.
Posted by: theseus Sep 15 2005, 08:33 AM«
The sergeant motions to the women, and they place the food on a table inside GideonGÇÖs room. The women depart quickly, while the men remain behind, waiting nervously.
Posted by: theseus Sep 15 2005, 08:35 AM«
In death, the demon has reverted to its most natural form. It is still large, black and humanoid, with white claws. However, it has lost the set of horns on its forehead. Cold radiates from the body as it decomposes in small wisps of smoky blackness, as if the body was made from material that did not usually inhabit this plane of reality.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 15 2005, 05:26 PM«
Arenea reaches into her pack and pulls out a cloth bundle. Unrolling this on the floor beside her reveals a wide variety of knives. She selects one with a long thin blade like a filleting knife and starts making a series of incisions into the corpse. She starts checking the areas typically used by demons to hold items internally.
Posted by: theseus Sep 18 2005, 02:01 AM«
As Arenea cuts the demon with the knife, the areas the blade touches decompose into mist more quickly. After trying several places without finding anything, Arenea cuts into the demonGÇÖs forehead. She uncovers a strange black and red disc, about two inches in length. There is a black dot in the center, surrounded with a red border. In the border are strange runes, probably Sanskrit, written in black. They are reminiscent of the writing on the partially standing archway and tablet in the forest clearing.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 18 2005, 11:07 AM«
Arenea frowns. Using the blade of the knife she carefully prises the disc out of the demon's forehead. Laying the knife down next to her, she reaches into the pouch that contains her poisons and extracts a vial of clear liquid. She uses this fluid to rinse of the disc. She holds the disc up in front of her face and peers at it. Her lips move silently as she tries to sound out the runes around the edge. A look of bewilderment crosses her face and she stares back down at the smoking demon. This can't be right” she mumbles to herself.“
Posted by: Sim Sep 18 2005, 10:42 PM«
Yeesha, has been openly staring, unable to tear her gaze away from the dissection. She frowns at the extracted disc, moving in a little closer for a better look. She startles slightly as Arenea speaks, but recovers quickly. What is it? She asks, her brow screwed into a wrinkle of puzzlement.” Her eyes widen, and she turns to look Arenea in the eye. Is it dangerous?“
Posted by: erichenry Sep 19 2005, 01:07 PM«
Arenea starts slightly, having forgotten anyone was watching her. Recovering, she shakes her head. No, it's not dangerous as far as I can tell,” she answers, “just puzzling.” She wraps the disc in a scrap of silk, then walks to the door and sticks her head out. To the soldiers she says Thank you. You can dispose of the body now. Be very careful how you handle it.“ As the soldiers move into the room, she leaves, gesturing for Yeesha to follow her. As she heads back to the room where the others are, she says to Yeesha I think this will be easier if I explain my findings to everyone at the same time.”
Posted by: Sim Sep 21 2005, 12:27 AM«
Yeesha just nods and follows silently.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 21 2005, 05:53 PM«
Coming back into the boys' room, Arenea sticks her head back out into the corridor to make sure the soldiers are busy with the body before closing the door. She unwraps the piece of silk containing the disc and lays it down upon a table. She adopts the level tone of voice she uses for giving reports and starts speaking. I found this disc embedded in the forehead of the demon under the skin. My Sanskrit is rusty but as best as I can translate it, the runes say 'To be as one'. This may be some kind of control device, or some means of linking this demon to his brothers, or something else entirely. Conjuration is not my strong suit. My bigger concern is the nature of the demon itself. The demon was forged from the depths of the Abyss itself, something only the most powerful sorcerers are capable of. Most sorcerers I am aware of with the level of power capable of doing this would have imbued the demon with Logrus energy to keep the body from dissolving in shadow. Since the outer skin of the demon could effectively hide the Logrus, there was no reason not to do this. Instead, whoever created this demon relied on the demon expending effort to maintain a shape-shifted form that wouldnGÇÖt dissolve in shadow. This indicates that the sorcerer who created the demons has not assayed the Logrus; something unheard of in the Courts of Chaos. This indicates that the demons come from some power outside the usual confines of the Courts or Shadow. Possibly even the Abyss itself. And I don't know of any power which exists within the Abyss, save the Serpent herself. As she finishes, the others can hear an edge of fear creeping into her quiet voice.“
Posted by: Reyn Sep 23 2005, 11:17 AM«
Reyn visibly shivers at the thought that the Serpent herself might be involved with all of this and absent-mindedly raises his right hand to rub at an imaginary bruising or tension in his right shoulder. Brightness returns to his features however as a thought occurs. But it can't be her, as you've said that it seems to have been done by someone who hasn't assayed the Logrus. She is the Logrus after all, anything created by her would be dripping in the stuff. Metaphorically speaking of course.”
Posted by: erichenry Sep 26 2005, 03:29 PM«
Well, maybe Arenea replies, sounding a little mollified but not much. “I think the main point is we can assume that whoever sent these things does not come from the Courts of Chaos. And I am not sure I am comfortable with the idea of a shadow-dweller wielding this much power.” She chews nervously on her bottom lip as she finishes speaking.“
Posted by: theseus Sep 29 2005, 11:06 AM«
While listening to the conversation, Anna has been serving out plates of steaming hot food. She places a good selection of hot meat in front of TuGÇÖTak on the floor, and then hands everyone else a plate and cutlery as well. She leaves enough for BGÇÖrayth, in case he returns. GÇ£I donGÇÖt think we can resolve any more of this tonight,GÇ¥ Anna says. GÇ£I suggest, we eat, sleep, and see where we are tomorrow.GÇ¥ She glances at Gideon slyly, and then distracts herself by eating her own meal with great enthusiasm.
Posted by: doychi Sep 29 2005, 01:16 PM«
As soon as Anna turns away from Tu'Tak sniffs his food and decides it's too hot for now.
Posted by: erichenry Sep 30 2005, 09:31 AM«
Arenea picks the disc up and wraps it again in the scrap of silk. As she holds it in her hand, she hefts it slightly as if gauging its weight and her brow furrows in thought. With a look of puzzlement she glances from the disc to Gideon and then back to the disc.
Posted by: erichenry Oct 5 2005, 10:16 PM«
Shaking her head slightly and chewing her bottom lip, Arenea tucks the wrapped disc into one of her belt pouches and heads over to Reyn. Do you think we could talk privately for a few minutes?” she whispers to him.“
Posted by: theseus Oct 8 2005, 05:55 AM«
In the back of Tu'Tak's mind are the stirrings of a trump contact.
Posted by: doychi Oct 8 2005, 06:02 AM«
Cautiously Tu'Tak answers the trump contact, hoping one of the demons or their master hasn't found him.
Posted by: theseus Oct 8 2005, 06:11 AM«
Tu'tak's story is continued in 016 Trump Conversation… http://s4.invisionfree.com/First_Light/index.php?showtopic=88&st=0
Posted by: Reyn Oct 8 2005, 12:36 PM«
Reyn nods to Arenea and moves towards the side of the room she indicated. In reaching out to touch her hand he opens his mind to her thoughts. *Is there something about the demons you want to keep from the others?* Reyn and Arenea continued in private e-mail, now posted in 016 Private Conversation. http://s4.invisionfree.com/First_Light/index.php?showtopic=89
Posted by: theseus Oct 10 2005, 10:26 AM«
TuGÇÖTak and Yeesha are staring off into space, and Reyn and Arenea are deep in mental conversation. Anna finishes her meal, stands up, and stretches. She casts a seductive glance towards Gideon, stretches provocatively, and then walks over and sits next to him playfully. GÇ£So what do you make of all this? If youGÇÖre interested, I was thinking about going for a walk and looking at some of the castleGÇÖsGǪ treasures.GÇ¥
Posted by: Reyn Oct 13 2005, 09:06 AM«
That, Reyn punctuates his remark by turning to Gideon and Anna and projecting his voice to ensure their attention, ”…as it turns out, would be a very bad idea.“ Gideon, we need to keep you with us at all times. You, it seems, have gained some very powerful, resourceful and determined enemies. Arenea has discovered evidence that these second set of demons, the ones that attacked us here in the castle, were after you specifically. Reyn takes a step to the side to allow Arenea an open floor to deliver her findings.