Shadow over Gerelden IC

[DormantEvil]

So this woman was not initially intended for this journey, yet perhaps destiny had led her into it. The voice who had possibly conjured the teleportation was powerful, would he let this woman remain with them? Was it on purpose that he put the Knight and traveling bard on the same path to meet.

"I can sympathise with the Knights thoughts on getting captured. We...or at least those of us who had been in the tavern would have been executed on the spot if we had not been whisked away. By healing him of his blindness he truly does owe you his life. Perhaps through your acts we also owe you our lives, if he so saves us from death in the future. You make an impact young one, whether intended or not. A simple traveling bard you no longer are."

Turning away from the fire for a moment, Yurioni pondered their current group. Her mind slipping away to what the others could be checking out. But if there was a battle, it would wait...at least until the rain passed. It seemed to effect those sent on this path, just as much as this woman who had stumbled into it. The rain wasn't very selective.

"Do you carry feelings for this Knight?" Yurioni asked quietly, watching Angel's reactions when intimacy and the man was brought up. As a human, as her past had shown her, he was more likely to succumb in battle. Perhaps having a healer with him, would prove a useful asset.

 

[AngelLightheart]

Angel Blackwing

Angel smiled and glanced back to Yurioni.

So it would seem that she did make an impact after all. If Grimlock did, in fact, save on of them, she would be the catalyst of it.

"I just did what was right." she murmured.

She glanced over to Grimlock and then back to Yurioni, then to the fire again.

She chose her words carefully. Very carefully.

"I...harbor some feelings for the knight..." she said softly.

She paused and looked back to Grimlock. Braving the cold to guard them.

"I don't think he feels the same of me. I won't bother him."

She glanced to Yurioni again before turning to the fire. She wondered where The Dark Ones had gone. Truly lived up to their reputation of disappearing without notice.

 

[Jedi_Khan]

After a few minutes of playing the haunting melody on his flute, Jager became aware of a slight change in his surroundings; judging by the feel of the air, someone who shouldn’t be walking had joined Jager among the ruins. He kept playing as he opened his eyes to see a man with a drawn bow and a wolf by his side standing in the entrance to the ruins. A second look at the pair caused Jager to stop playing and lower the flute from his lips.

The wolf at the man’s side was no ordinary wolf: it was a Direwolf, an exceptionally rare species in the world, and rumored to be impossible to tame. Only one man had ever been able to tame a Direwolf, but that was more than four hundred years ago; both man and wolf should have died long ago. But if the vibe in the air was any indication, then…

“The years have not been kind to you, Ranger Zelthuros,” said Jager to the man, tucking the flute away in his cloak, and then placing his hands in plain sight on his lap.

If the old stories were true and no one else currently alive had ever accomplished the impossible like this man seems to have done, then there was only one possible explanation: Zelthuros the Ranger, and his Direwolf Shadow, had been raised from the dead and now stood before Jager among the ruins of a place that once stood proudly at the same time that Zelthuros had been alive, both ghosts of the past.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Kelt

Something was wrong, Grimlock never went away for so long unless he came to say good bye. He started to feel nervous, Grimlock was in trouble and he needed to be there for him. Snorting he started to bash against the stall door with his shoulder, soon Donald, the stable hand came rushing over.

"Kelt! What are you doing?"

He just continued to bash his shoulder against the door, Donald opened the door and Kelt snorted, stamping his front hoof impatiently, shaking his mane. Donald understood that actions, he acted like that if he wanted to go for a ride when Grimlock was away.

"But you just came back not too long ago."

Kelt stamped his hoof harder,

"Alright, alright. Heavens."

Kelt stepped outside, waiting patiently for Donald to bring the saddle and reigns. Acting a little feisty he gently shouldered Donald as he tried to fit the bit and the saddle, acting more like a horse half his age, when everything was in place, Donald reached for the reigns, but Kelt pulled them out of reach, side-stepped the clumsy attempt to gain them and within seconds he galloped out of the gate, a cry of alarm going up behind him. When he came within sight of the main gates, the guards moved to stop him, but he easily switched to the rolling gate of a charge. No soldier stood in the way of a war horse when it was on a charge and the guards dove out of his way. Nickering, Kelt ran through the open gate and into the streets, following the pull that he always followed when he looked for Grimlock. There was other horses following, but when the rain came pouring down they gave up, but Kelt never gave up as Grimlock was not his master, but the only friend he ever had and the kindest thing on no hooves. The tug pulled him towards some kind of building that he had heard people refer to as ruins and it was clear that Grimlock was in this ruins. With rain pouring down on him, rain that felt...wrong he slowly approached the ruins.

 

[LeoHawk35]

Zelthuros

Zelthuros inclined his head slightly at the man. He was sure he had never met this man before, and yet he knew his name. And his title. Heard of the Legends, he supposed.

"Odd. I believe they have." he responded simply in his usual cold voice.

Zelthuros had often preferred this life to the one he had before. Much more interesting. And it gave him the time to do what he and Shadow wanted to do. Explore, hunt, fight.

And their favorite past time: Espionage.

Shadow glanced up at the sound of his master's voice before turning his gaze back to the door at the sound of a horse's hooves clicking on stone. A horse entered through the door, and appeared wary of Shadow. The horse skirted away slightly.

The horse seemed vaguely familiar. He had seen it before.

Ah yes, that was Grimlock's horse, if memory served.

Zelthuros blinked and turned back to the man. He wasn't human, regardless of what he looked like, that much was certain. Perhaps he would have an easier time with the horse, considering it didn't like himself or Shadow all that much.

"The rest of my party is in the next ruin over. The larger one."

Zelthuros gestured at the horse, indicating for him to lead it. Zelthuros and Shadow would follow behind.

 

[Jedi_Khan]

"Odd. I believe they have."

Jager shrugged in response. Who was he to argue such a point? Even if he had wanted to argue the point, he was interrupted by the sounds of hooves clicking on the stones outside the room he was in, shortly followed by the arrival of a large horse through the entryway. The large animal was soaking wet and obviously a little skittish with the Direwolf being so close by, but it appeared the horse had been very well trained and simply gave the predator a wide berth rather than bolting.

"The rest of my party is in the next ruin over. The larger one."

Zelthuros had barely glanced at the horse before speaking and gesturing for Jager to take the lead with the animal, which was understandable given the nature of Zelthuros and his wolf companion. Jager got up from his sitting position and moved over to the horse, moving in an unthreatening manner for the animal’s comfort. He stopped a few feet short of the animal and extended his hand out, his palm up. It was never a good idea to get too close to any animal that was skittish, so Jager instead waited patiently for the horse to come up to Jager and investigate his hand.

Once the horse was comfortable enough, Jager grabbed hold of the reins with one hand and ran his other down the side of the horse’s head in a gentle manner, further relaxing the creature. Still holding the reins, Jager moved to the horse’s side, running his other hand down the animal’s flank, taking note of the rather expensive looking saddle and the brand on the horse’s side that did a lot to explain the horse’s training and the saddle; the horse bore the brand of the King’s stable.

Jager finally went back to the horse’s head and lead him back towards the entry way where Zelthuros and his companion still stood. Before he stepped out into the rain to head towards the next set of ruins, Jager paused next to Zelthuros, with himself between the horse and the wolf.

“You feel like the grave,” said Jager simply before moving on, not giving Zelthuros a chance to respond. If he didn’t want to discuss his current situation, then Jager wasn’t about to press him. He just wanted Zelthuros to know that Jager knew. That was all.

Through the thick rain, Jager spotted the light off what appeared to be a fire, so he headed towards it, the horse in tow. As the source of light got closer, Jager could see that it was an entrance to another section of ruins and a large figure was silhouetted in the entry way. The horse must’ve recognized the silhouette, because he whinnied and took off in a jog, forcing Jager to pull an interesting maneuver. With one hand having a tight grip on the side of the bridle, the other firmly gripping the mane, Jager kicked his feet up, resting one foot in the stirrup, the other on top of the foot in the stirrup.

Jager held on tight as the horse jogged over to the figure and came to a stop with a happy whinny, standing in such a way that Jager was hidden from the view of the figure on the opposite side of the horse. Jager tried to extract himself quietly from his position, but it seemed that somewhere during the journey, his foot had gotten stuck in the stirrup, causing the saddle to rattle a little as he tried to free his foot.

He sighed quietly, then waited to be noticed so he could ask for a little assistance with what little dignity he had left in this situation.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Grimlock

The approach of a horse had him worried, but it could not have been the guard as it was just one horse. When the shadow loomed up and the whinny that emitted from it brought a huge smile to his face,

"Kelt!"

He quickly walked over and embraced the big horse,

"You old rascal, what did you do to get away all saddled? Trick a stable boy into believing you want to go for a ride?"

Kelt snorted and stamped a hoof on the wet ground, Grimlock grinned, gave the horse a friendly cuff on the nose and started to walk around the horse to inspect him,

"You're getting too old for this nonsense..."

He stopped when he saw Jager, he arched an eyebrow,

"Ah the drunk from the tavern, I hope you retrieved your wine before the place went up in flames."

He also noticed that the man's foot was stuck and reached out to steady him with one hand and to loosen his foot with the other,

"And just how did you meet Kelt if I may ask? He doesn't trust just anybody."

 

[LeoHawk35]

Zelthuros

Zelthuros watched carefully as the man stood and walked to the horse. He calmed the animal and walked it towards the door, stopping to comment on Zelthuros' nature before stepping out into the rain. Zelthuros and Shadow exchanged a glance before following behind. The continued to walk even after the horse began its jog, supposedly to Grimlock, who received him gratefully.

The pair stepped into the ruins, out of the rain. Zelthuros turned his gaze to the area outside, leaning against the wall of the entrance opposite Kelt, Jager, and Grimlock, keeping his vigil at the door while the others conversed. Shadow sat by his side after shaking his coat clear of water. For the most part anyway.

Idly, Zelthuros felt his gaze pulled back to where the fire is. To Yurioni, to be precise. A glance was all he allowed himself before turning back to the area outside.

He wasn't quite sure what it was about her that kept drawing him in. He brushed the thoughts aside. He could think on things later. Perhaps when they stop at a tavern in the next town.

It had been awhile since he and Shadow had stayed in a tavern, he realized vaguely. The usually just camped in the wilderness, far from towns. They disliked civilization. No reason to be around them when they can be of more use away from them, acting in the dark.

Of course, they weren't called The Dark Ones for nothing.

Zelthuros looked down and patted Shadow on the head.

Zelthuros looked down at the water running off of him, and shrugged mentally.

 

[DormantEvil]

A small smirk spread across Yurioni's face after speaking with Angel. Harbor usually wasn't used in a positive light, but for this situation she suspected that the healer and bard shared no ill feelings with the Knight. The opposite feelings could apply as a matter of fact. Placing her hand on the other womans arm, she patted it a couple of times.

"Hide it, and it will manifest. Such matters always do. Speak openly and he may run. They are the worst that might happen. But what is worse? Having him turn away now, before you invest your heart too deeply...or having your interest manifest until you are too involved, and having him deny you when you can no longer take keeping your feelings to yourself."

Standing up as the Dark Ones, a war horse and a stranger showed up, Yurioni started to walk away from Angel. Pausing to turn, she smiled, "On the other hand, I am no professional in these matters."

Watching as the new aquaintences entered the ruins, Yurioni wondered how they were feeling after exposure to the rain. But she stood silently, glancing at Zelthuros for the blink of an eye before observing the going-ons of the growing group.

 

[AngelLightheart]

Angel Blackwing

Angel blinked.

She was right, it seemed. Should she just go out and tell him, or not bother?

Why were things always so hard...

She followed along behind Yurioni and took note of the two new arrivals. One was Kelt, Grimlock's warhorse. And the other...

Angel sighed.

It was a Mori Elf.

They always have that one specific look to them that identifies them for what they are. That's just the thing, really. Elves can't hide from eachother.

She blinked again and stayed quiet about it, choosing simply to watch events unfold.

 

[Jedi_Khan]

"Ah the drunk from the tavern, I hope you retrieved your wine before the place went up in flames. And just how did you meet Kelt if I may ask? He doesn't trust just anybody."

“He found me in the next set of ruins over,” replied Jager, nodding his head in thanks for the help in freeing his trapped foot. Looking up into the man’s hooded face, nearly a head taller than Jager himself, he could see the glint of light off metal, indicating that this giant of a human wore armor underneath his cloak.

Stepping around the man, Jager approached the fire so as to get out of the rain and looked over to the other two people who were present. Both were women, but while one was obviously an elf, the other was seemingly human, yet not. Jager could feel heat radiating off the human-looking woman nearly as intensely as he could feel the heat of the fire. In fact, Jager could feel so much heat radiating off her that he was forced to keep a few feet distance between him and her, while he made the near unconscious choice to keep his distance from the elf woman. Jager may be an elf himself, but he and his people didn’t get along too well with the other elven races, which should make traveling with the woman slightly unpleasant. Supposedly.

“Direwolves are supposedly untamable,” stated Jager, letting the fire dry his cloak a bit, while obviously directing the comment towards Zelthuros, the only person there with a wolf by his side. Jager figured that with that statement hanging in the air, one of the others might eventually pick up on the fact that Zelthuros’ companion was not a normal wolf and would decide the ask the obvious questions of how and why.

Granted, Jager was curious himself, having wondered about it since he had first heard the stories many years ago, but he knew the value of information, and if Zelthuros decided the information not worth sharing, then so be it. So, Jager stood by the fire and waited.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Grimlock

He lead Kelt out of the rain, gently scolding the big horse, he removed the saddle and hung the blanket over a rock close to the fire, without bothering the other people...beings...ah whatever, to him they were people. Shedding his cloak, he stood in front of them all, the sign of the oppressors, the plate armor, the sword, the human. Using the outside of his cloak he started to rub down Kelt, who of course stood still, surveying the other people,

"For such an old horse, you really should be more careful, if you catch a cold I'll have to boil you into glue."

Kelt snorted and gently shouldered him, he smiled and finished rubbing down Kelt, then he spread the cloak over Kelt, partly to protect him from the setting in cold and to let the water run from the cloak. At times like these he was glad that he invested in the waterproof cloak, the outside absorbed water, but never got through to the inside, he didn't know how it worked, all that he knew was that it worked.

"A direwolf?"

He looked at the cloaked figure and the wolf at his side,

"But didn't they die out years ago...wait a minute...legends and tales said that one man did tame a direwolf."

He thought for a second,

"Ranger Zelthuros, but you can't be him unless you've been resurrected along with what was his name again? Shadow?"

He placed a hand on Kelt's shoulder and smiled at the big horse,

"Just think of that Kelt, we have the Dark Ones with us, legends coming to life, strange happenings between the Church and King...that speaks of rather big things soon to happen."

He frowned,

"Why does this feel like some sort of prophecy coming into being?"

 

[LeoHawk35]

Zelthuros

Zelthuros blinked and glanced over at the newcomer. He had correctly guessed about Shadow. He was in fact a Direwolf. He then looked over to Grimlock, his eyes passing over Yurioni on their way, and nodded.

He saw no real need to answer an unasked question, so he simply decided to confirm his identity.

"I am the Ranger Zelthuros, and this is Shadow, the Dragonheart. We are the ones from the legends, The Dark Ones."

Ah yes, the Ranger title. Few Rangers are truly ever named officially, and he was one of them.

Quite the honor, he understood.

All he knew was that it meant he had a certain amount of skill in the ways of the Rangers of old. He didn't take the glory, and didn't quite understand the point of all the titles. Though he did admit that some titles really were earned. Like their's. His and Shadow's.

With that out of the way, he glanced back down to Shadow and patted him on the snout.

Without so much as moving on the outside, he had shifted his focus to include Grimlock. While he had no reason to distrust the man, considering he was now a fugitive with them, he was still a human.

Better to be cautious than openly friendly. It had kept himself and Shadow alive for these four hundred years.

He went back to being silent, but did put some thought into the prophecy ordeal. It did sound eerily similar to the prophecies of old. The ones in the stories.

How curious.

 

[DormantEvil]

Sitting down on a rock beside the fire, Yurioni listened to the conversations. The names meant little to her, as names were seldom to last the ages. Although from the looks of it, these names held great weight in this area. Among these people. But still, Yurioni knew nothing of them. But it would explain the calmness she felt from the Ranger Zelthuros. More so than a normal person would give off.

"Tell me, what names and story is this that you speak of? Are they important? I have yet to come across the names before."

Looking over to Zelthuros, she smiled, wondering if this truly was a prophecy, if such important figures stood among them. Maybe she would die a death worth taking the chance of true enlightenment back to her elemental form. Maybe here she could get her release. She didn't really mind who answered her questions, as long as someone could tell the tale.

And if he was undead, maybe there were more important services he could withstand. Where humans and elves failed.

 

[LeoHawk35]

Zelthuros

Zelthuros glanced over to Yurioni at her question.

"You wish to know more about us? Very well."

He turned slightly to look at her and leaned back against the wall, gathering his thoughts.

"Might as well start from the beginning. I came to these lands from the Far Reaches, which happens to be behind a fairly large wall to block out all the monsters that roam there and occasionally try to attack the kingdom."

He waved his hand dismissively, indicating that wasn't important.

"The Legends start at, oh, the age of sixteen. Roughly four years after I came along. I tried to leave. I made it past the guards without killing a single one of them, and was actually beyond the wall. I was free."

He shook his head.

"That was when I found Shadow here. He was under attack by a manticore. We killed it, eventually, and Shadow has been my companion since. I'm not exactly sure how the Legends include that particular part, considering we were well beyond the wall, but apparently someone was there to see it. Thus we earned that title. The Dark Ones. The pair that killed a manticore at such a young age."

He looked down and patted Shadow's snout.

"The next part occurs some years later, at the age of twenty. A group of dragons had broken past the wall, and were on their way to Detrol, intending to slay the king."

Dragons. Dragons were the smarter of the beasts beyond the wall.

"There were six of them. Now, Legend states that Shadow and I slew all six in a matter of seconds, but really, it was only three. The city guard and a few bands of mercenaries had taken down two, and a few mages had taken down a third."

Zelthuros looked out to the rain, and then back to where Yurioni was sitting.

"Shadow and I had been in Detrol, summoned by the king on matters I'm still not at liberty to name, and were in the courtyard when the final three dragons broke through. I fired arrow after arrow into the beasts, ducking behind towers and walls to avoid the fire and dodging the tails and claws and teeth."

He paused.

"The first was felled because Shadow had distracted the beast long enough for me to slip a blade through its scales and into its heart. The next was crushed by a tower set off balance by a ballista that I fired into it a couple times. And the final..."

He trailed off, but then continued.

"The third one was a bit stronger. He made a feign at me, but then went for Shadow. He devoured him. Swallowed him whole, to be exact. I pelted him with a few more arrows, but I hadn't been carrying many on me, so I soon ran out. I saw him rear back, saw the smoke coming from his mouth..."

Something flickered in Zelthuros' eyes.

"I felt the fire envelope me. But honestly? I didn't feel the heat. It was there, yes, but it didn't hurt. My clothes caught fire somewhat, considering the dragon breathing fire on me, but it wasn't so bad. After I put it out. And then the fire stopped abruptly. The dragon roared into the air in pain, and then Shadow burst from the beast's chest, with the dragon's heart in his mouth."

He tilted his head.

"Speaking of, you never told me how you managed that." He said with a look at Shadow.

Zelthuros reached into a pouch at his side and pulled out a stone heart. The muscles were evidently strong. Much stronger than any other beast but a dragon. And the stone? A dragon's heart turns to stone when it dies.

He handed it down to Shadow, who took it and laid down. He started to gnaw on it. His favorite chew toy.

"At any rate, with the dragons felled, the king called an emergency council. We were summoned again. It was there that he granted us our individual titles. I was named Ranger of the Far Reaches, and Shadow was named Dragonheart. I'm sure you can guess why. I was the fifth Ranger to be named, and the youngest at that."

He lifted his bow, showing it to the group.

"I had this bow, and these two shortswords made of dragonbone. And this cloak, as well as the bracers, are of dragonscales. Just a few keepsakes from the battle. They've served me well. But not well enough, apparently. A year later Shadow and I were killed. Pushing back another assault from the Far Reaches. A harpy threw us from the wall. The fall didn't kill us. In fact, we were still fighting after we hit the ground, surrounded by the enemy."

He remembered every stroke of his blades. Every flash as it knocked aside a blade or claw.

He blinked, and his voice took on a more sorrow-filled tone.

"I knew we would die. But we were doing good, as far as not dying. We were killed at the same time. I had moved to deflect an arrow off one of my bracers when the bloody manticore got me in the heart."

A brief flinch as he remembered the pain.

"Shadow was tackled by a giant spider. Three, honestly. It takes quite a lot of strength to over-power a Direwolf. The larger of the three put its fangs into Shadow's heart."

Shadow flinched.

"But we had given the wall enough time. They rallied and pushed the attack back. And then they found us, surrounded by the dead. We were given a funeral fit for a king."

He paused, reflective.

"We woke a year later. All of my equipment was still with me, and Shadow was there with me. I still don't understand how or why we came back."

Zelthuros looked to Yurioni, and then around at the rest of the group.

"I suppose we were fairly important figures. Important names. People had looked up to us. I'm not sure that anyone has had more recognized names than us in these four hundred years."

He stopped, returning to his quiet state. Shadow continued to gnaw on the stone heart, content.

 

[AngelLightheart]

Angel Blackwing

Angel listened quietly to the story. While her outside appearance showed no emotion, her inner mind was reeling.

She had never truly believed all of the legends about them, but hearing them from his own voice seemed to make them believable. Those two had slain three dragons? Three?

That was...amazing.

Her eyes looked downwards at Shadow, chewing on the stone heart. That had always been something that interested her. Their hearts turn to stone when they die. Was there really a point to it?

What was that flicker in his eyes?

And had he said the fire hadn't hurt him? That explained how he could be with this...Yurioni, who was obliviously more than just a human.

She noted the sadness that seemed to enter his voice as he spoke of them dying. She glanced over to Yurioni to see what she would do.

How they had come back was something that intrigued her, as well. She had heard of the Undead, but they were very few and far in-between. And none she had heard of had the background these two have.

Nor the control.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Grimlock

During Zelthuros' narration of what happened to him, Grimlock had moved closer to the fire to regain a semblance of heat in the metal armor. He found that he stood close to Angel Blackwing again, he had to admit, despite the fact that her beauty was from being an elf, he still thought of her as pretty and he also found that he liked being close to her. Though not sure if it was because of what she did for him, or if there was something more. He gave a slight shrug and looked over at Jager,

"Since you came along with Kelt, I am curious, so would it be too intrusive to ask who you are and what you do?"

 

[DormantEvil]

"So that is the story of how you came to be. I will admit I am partially filled with envy at the legacy you have. Personally I cannot hope to be remembered in such a way. A masterful existence you have led, and only just beginning if our coming together has anything to say about it."

Yurioni hid her obvious interest in this man's ability to not only withstand Dragons fire when he was alive, but also when he was dead, which was of less surprise. The Undead were good at many things. But this was of close interest to her own heart.

Standing up, she smiled, and urged the fire to rekindle itself as Grimlock approached. Her concentration having lapsed during the story telling enough for the heat to diminish to a small flame.

"Yes, indeed," Yurioni said, turning to Jager. "And to know about you Grimlock, a human Knight...who would be better hunting us for whatever crime we supposedly committed this time. Not that I'm saying you are like all humans, for you are here, with us. So you cannot be. Your story would be interesting no doubt though."

 

[Jedi_Khan]

Jager remembered the dragon attack on Detrol all those years ago. He had actually slit the throat of one of the great beasts while it was distracted during that fight. Even dragons were tough kills for the Mori Hunters and were never to be taken down alone. For Zelthuros and Shadow to have killed three on their own as they claim would be impossible, but Jager had witnessed the fight himself. He was convinced that they had some secret magical help that they hadn’t been aware of to protect them from the dragon’s fire and to endure all that they had, but since they had done most of the work, it was as if they had killed the dragons themselves.

Shortly after the Great Dragon Raid, as it had come to be known, the king at the time had secretly hired Jager and some of his kinsmen to go into the Far Reaches and do some “population control” on the dragons. Because of the efforts of Jager and his people, the dragons had been too preoccupied in hunting the elves to participate in the planning and subsequent attack on the wall later that year during which Zelthuros and Shadow had meet their ends. Had dragons been present, then the wall would have surely fallen. While not hunted to extinction, the dragons have yet to recover from that hunt nearly four hundred years ago.

The king at the time had paid handsomely for each dragon heart brought back to the castle; in fact, Jager thought he still had a few gold coins left from way back when. However, to Jager specifically, the king had given an additional reward as prescribed by a Seer, one that he has held onto and will probably find of great use in the near future: documents sealed with the royal crest.

As Jager shifted through his old memories that were brought back by Zelthuros’ story, he watched Shadow gnaw on the old stone dragon heart. However, his ruminations were cut short by a question from the large human.

"Since you came along with Kelt, I am curious, so would it be too intrusive to ask who you are and what you do?"

“Jager. I’m a hunter,” was all Jager said in reply, turning his attention to making sure his cloak was drying in the mysteriously renewed fire. If Jager’s hunch was right, then the human-looking woman had direct control over the fire, and had added energy to it after letting her concentration lapse during Zelthuros’ story. Must be magic, thought Jager, semi-consciously taking a step away from the woman. He didn’t like magic users any more than he liked other elves.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Grimlock

He nodded at this, it made sense, but he had a suspicion that Jager was more than just a hunter, so he threw all his cards on the table,

"I am Cascius Grimlock, I was born a farmer's son, being the youngest I did not have a future on the farm and went to offer my sword arm to the local lord's war band, of course my mom did not think it was the best decision. But I took to the lifestyle like a duck to water, at the age of 15 I saw my first battle...horrendous what humans would do to each other, at the age of 19 I was already carrying the favor of many regents. My prowess caught the attention of the High King and soon I found myself in training to become a knight. This of course brought prestige to my family, my father and brothers was happy, my mom still feared for my life. I have been serving the High King for eight years now and in that eight years I have guarded a secret that only two know of."

He looked at Kelt,

"Kelt and me, during my training I have met an old human wizard and he taught me how to open myself to magic. I learned how to do healing, but the old man said that I might learn more. I was in that tavern as Zelthuros pricked Kelt's curiosity and through that I had to find out more about him."

He frowned,

"What does puzzle me is that how easily the City Guard found the tavern, they have been searching for years and never found it. I am very sure that I was not followed and the people only spoke to me because they knew me and know that I have a secret to with hold from the crown."

 

[DormantEvil]

Yurioni smiled, Jager was a quiet one. But he was smart in hiding himself, unlike the others if there was a traitor in the group, he could disappear without fear for those around him knowing where or who he might go to. Then again, where would any of them go. The Knight might visit the family he spoke of, and Angel might visit her people or just go to the next town. The Dark Ones were anyone's guess, perhaps they would simply disappear for another few hundred years. Yurioni, she had no idea where she would wander off to.

But at least Jager only gave them two pieces of information to follow. That he was a Hunter. That he was called Jager.

The fire burned nicely, just enough to make the ruins comfortable, but not so much that it would alert someone out on the road...unless they happened across the entry to the small building they were in.

Listening to Grimlock, Yurioni couldn't help but correct his grammar. Finding the simple error beyond her control not to point out. "Kelt and I." Her smile showed that she was only speaking lightly, and meant nothing of it.

"But we have plenty enough enemies, a rat is not unlikely. I just hope whoever brought us together had enough insight not to drag a traitor along as well. "

Standing up, she moved over to look out at the rain. The closeness to the water as it splashed up off the ground caused her arms to prickle again. There was some bad mojo in it...more than anything man could produce to stain the clouds...at least non-magically.

"I want to know where this rain is coming from. And when it will stop. Where are the tunnels? How quick could we get there? I sense someone doesn't want us moving about, and I'm inclined to find someway to disappoint them."

((I can't remember if we mentioned tunnels before, lets assume someone did. XD))

 

[LeoHawk35]

Zelthuros

Zelthuros remained silent through the remainder of the talk. Where Jager spoke in a fairly simple explanation of who he was, Grimlock was rather open about it.

Zelthuros wasn't sure if he liked that or not. Probably not. But then again, it was in his nature to be cautious of others.

He glanced over to Yurioni as she mentioned the tunnels. He nodded over to a wall where a torch would normally be. That was how you opened the tunnel's entrance. He walked over to it calmly, and Shadow followed with the dragon heart in his jaws.

Zelthuros looked at the ground but didn't see the torch anywhere around. He drew one of his blades and stuck the end inside the slot for the torch. He pulled it towards him and the wall made a strange screeching noise before sliding open slightly. He re-sheathed his blade and fit his fingers into the now cracked wall, pulling it open. It slid surprisingly easily for how long it has been unused.

A stairwell revealed itself, descending into unending darkness. As good as his eyes were, he couldn't pierce the darkness to see what lay beyond. He knew the way though. The pair had used the paths many times.

He glanced back at the group and waved them forward. It was time for them to move. They had lingered long enough, but he had noticed that neither Yurioni nor Angel had explained themselves. He knew the simple things about them: Yurioni was a fire elemental trapped inside a human body, and Angel was an elven mage of some sort. He was still curious as to what brought them here.

"Come. Yurioni and Angel can talk while we move."

He turned back to the stairs. He assumed Yurioni could conjure a flame so they could see where they were going.

Stumbling on this path would be...unwise.

 

[DormantEvil]

Taking the lead down the stairs, as soon as the light no longer lit the area, Yurioni's hands burst into small orbs of fire. It warmed the roof of the enclosure, and she knew that they would suck all the oxygen from the air if she tried to light too much at one time. So they simply flickered enough light to see where they were going. Still, it would be nice to see more than five meters ahead of them. As she went down the stairs, she told them her own story.

"I was born out of another's misfortune, of her own causing. I was not born in this world as you were, but existed, not here but on another plain. It was late one night in the Mage Academy of Alzara (distant kingdom) when I was ripped from my home and transported into this one. Summoned for service. But the magic used had been weak enough to fight, and although I couldn't return by breaking the spell I was able to fight for control over the caster. I took her body that night, in return for her trying to control me as a pet. A devoted servant. Now she serves me, but we are both trapped here, unable to part and unable to return to our previous existence."

Turning a corner, Yurioni paused. The fire in her hand lept towards the stone carved walls, and quickly a torch ignited. It continued on down the corridor, until it was all lit so people could see where their feet were stepping, and how high the roof was so they didn't knock their heads.

"I was pure energy, an Elemental spirit. To maintained balance for the universe. That was all. I understood little of the world, of the insignificant day to day troubles, or pleasures. Now I wander until I find a glorious death. Or a way to return home. There is no other reason I survive. I have not found enough of a death worth dying for, or a way home. So I continue in this form. By now most reasons you all would have to live for have proven boring to me. Its only the most exciting or fearful situations that I thirst for. As such, my primal urges are how I live."

Walking off down the hallway, she whispered one last thing before remaining silent.

"Three hundred years in this world will do that to anything."

 

[AngelLightheart]

Angel Blackwing

Angel followed down the stairs, sticking to the middle of the group so she could lend her abilities wherever they might be needed.

She listened quietly to Yurioni as she told her story. The way she explained how she got her body reminded her eerily of how a demon possesses someone. Odd, to say the least.

But the thing that really got her attention was the last thing she whispered. So low she almost didn't catch it.

A brief glance over to Zelthuros. As far as she knew, he was the only other one who had been around that long. How did he feel about it? His body language revealed nothing, as always. He always seemed to wear a permanent cloak of calm certainty.

She blinked. Her turn, she supposed.

"I was born in the forests of the Elves, far from human lands. My childhood was a normal one: I had schooling and was taught in the art of magic."

She wasn't going to get very deep into her backstory. It didn't seem very important to her at the moment.

"I left for...certain reasons. From there I came to these lands as a Bard in hopes of seeing what the world is like."

She shrugged.

"That's about it."

Angel continued her walk, not saying anything more. Her eyes slid over Grimlock before they went back forward.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Grimlock

He walked in the back, Kelt behind him, he noticed that Angel looked at him and gave her a smile, interesting woman this elf.

"We have a strange gathering indeed, a hunter, a Ranger, a fire elemental, a bard and a knight."

His mind was working over-time as he tried to figure out the skill sets available and for what it would be used, he lapsed into silence, following the lead of the non-humans in front of him.