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Post by Wulfang on Jul 9, 2013 21:40:21 GMT
Year 2475
Hillside District, Holy City
With a final push, Dan at last managed to stuff all his important belongings into his overflowing backpack. He gave himself a moment to stretch his back and look at his now much emptier room. I'm gonna miss this place so much, he realized, before putting on backpack, walking out of his childhood home and facing the sun outside.
He slowly walked up and down the steep, narrow streets and stairways of Hillside, getting a last good look at this place for what might be years. Grandad used to tell him that, in its frenzied expansion outward, the Holy City couldn't afford to pay any mind to any natural obstacles in its way, so it had grown over them. Hillside had come to be when the City met a particularly mountainous region, resulting in a labyrinthine web of houses built upon houses, tunnels connecting streets at different elevations and at some places even long stone bridges over small valleys below. Dan loved Hillside and its twisted maze of buildings. It was home.
As he reached the top of the main street, he found Grandad just where he had expected to, sitting with the other old-timers outside Berdo's tavern, continuing their long tradition of spending hours upon hours discussing either "the good old days" or the random passers-by. It brought a small smile to his face as he approached and greeted them. Grandad's eyes lit up as he saw him coming, a light which quickly faded away when he noticed the backpack he was carrying.
"So the day's come, eh Danny?", he said, with a hint of sadness in his voice.
"Yeah. I'm going to the Sanctum now, get settled in. The training starts tomorrow", was all he could muster as a reply. He didn't want to make this farewell even harder than it had to be by prolonging it.
Leaning on his cane, Grandad got up from his chair and embraced him in as tight a hug as his waning strength would let him. Dan hugged him back and, after a few moments in silence, kissed his forehead and stepped back.
"Goodbye Grandad."
"Goodbye kiddo. Make me proud. And I want you to come show me that fancy cloak as soon as the Arbiter wraps it around your shoulders."
"I will Grandad. I promise."
And after a few short farewells and well-wishes from the other seniors around him, Dan turned his back and hurried up down the street. A dozen steps later, he wiped his eyes with his forearm and then raised them to look at the horizon. The Sanctum's dome rose in the distance, visible from all throughout the Holy City.
And as a chapter of his life ended, Danton Redwind breathed deep and smiled. A new, far more exciting chapter was just beginning.
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 11, 2013 16:52:19 GMT
Year 2477
The Sanctum, Holy City
Dan tilted his head back and let his eyes slowly wander the enormity of the Hall of Judgement. He'd been living in the Sanctum for two years and though he'd grown accustomed to its impressive scale and architecture, he figured he would never stop being awed by this one room. It stood at the exact center of the complex, directly below the iconic blue dome so familiar to any who'd ever set foot in the City, with the Arbiter's Chamber seemingly floating a hundred meters above the ground, the two thin arched bridges leading up to it being its only apparent support. The dome itself was made of intricately intertwined panes of either stained glass or crystal, he was not entirely sure what, the light filtering through them bathing the hall in otherworldly blue tones.
Along the walls, in little alcoves, stood dozens of regal marble statues, representing the great Wardens of the past. Many more alcoves were instead empty, waiting for the great Wardens yet to come. Dan couldn't help but smirk as he mused how a statue of him would look like up there. He looked at each of their faces, recognizing a handful from his lessons, but he knew none of their stories as well as Justiciar Gyleon's, who held the place of highest honor right across the hall from the entrance. He was depicted with an expression of unmeasurable pain, cradling in his arms the body of the son he had been forced to slay to save the Holy City from the Mockinglord. Gyleon's tale had been Dan's favorite growing up, Grandad having told and retold it so often Dan had memorized the words. It had humbled and inspired him like nothing ever could, and now, after so many years, he finally stood under Gyleon's gaze ready to take up the cloak of the Wardens.
All around him, his brothers and sisters in arms stood in formation. Two years ago, when their training began, they had been over a hundred. The harshness of their training had whittled them down to less than thirty, the rest having given up or broken down at some point along the way. They had to learn how to fight, how to work together, how to even think. One year into the training, the greatest obstacle had presented itself when they had to learn magic and the Arbiter had blessed them with his power. Some, like Shamalan and his eerie bird, had come to the Sanctum as vessels already, but most of them had to learn in a matter of months an art it took most vessels several years to perfect. They had been confined to the Sanctum's halls and inner yards for those two years, shut off distractions from outside except the odd letter and forcing them to focus and depend on each other. The training was brutal, but none of those who had endured it to the bitter end would ever say it wasn't effective.
An echo of a metallic step drew Dan's attention back to the front of the hall, where his instructors stood waiting. The room now fell into utter silence as everybody expectantly focused on the growing din of the incoming footsteps. After a few long moments, a metallic hand emerged from beyond the great archway and pulled its silken curtains aside, revealing the Arbiter in his austere splendor. In his resplendent silver armor, he walked up to his new Wardens and stood a couple meters in front of them, legs parted at shoulder width and hands behind his back, like standing at attention.
This is why he draws such loyalty, Dan realized. The Arbiter would rather stand at the same level as his followers rather than sit in a throne high above them.
After briefly inspecting the assembled initiates with his inscrutable mask of tears, the Arbiter turned his head to look at the instructors and signaled them with a curt nod. Custodian Volio walked up to stand by his side and, one by one, he called names from a list. Dan's was the third he called.
His heart racing in his chest, Dan marched up to the Arbiter and went down to one knee before him. The Archon extended his hands in a fluid motion and a wave of magic coursed through the air, coalescing into the shape of a dark blue cloak with a single silver rune emblazoned upon it. The Arbiter draped the cloak around Dan's shoulders and then stood tall once more, the metallic ringing of his voice permeating the hall.
"Rise Danton Redwind, my Warden."
Dan rose, bowed his head to the Arbiter and Custodian Volio, spun on his heels and returned to his spot. His brothers and sisters smiled at him as he walked past, clasping his cloak into place.
He'd done it.
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 13, 2013 0:29:15 GMT
A couple hours later, the great gates of the Sanctum parted before them and, for the first time in two years, Dan and his companions stepped out into the outside world. The Glass Plain extended before them, shimmering in the bright sunlight, making the City off in the distance seem little more than a mirage. Shamalan's familiar took to the skies with glee, finally able to spread its wings beyond the Sanctum's limits.
While the gaggle of newly minted Wardens made their way across the plain, joyfully discussing their joining and their plans for the future, Dan's mind was elsewhere. He looked across the Glass Plains, at the cracks that now crisscrossed its once perfectly circular expanse, and wondered how it had looked the day it had been created. The Glass Plain had once been the very heart of the Holy City, the first district to form up immediately around the Arbiter's Sanctum. People's obsession with living at the center of the city and a lack of urban planning had soon turned the area into a degraded, hard to traverse slum that allowed the City's seedy side ample opportunity to grow and fester. The situation worsened and worsened until the Mockinglord himself openly took over the area, at which point the Arbiter was forced to intervene directly. He ordered the evacuation and relocation of the slum's inhabitants and the Wardens patrolled its alleys night and day, but the brunt of the Mockinglord's followers still eluded them. As the story goes, one night the Arbiter ascended to the top of the Sanctum's dome and, after a few minutes glowing with power, there was a burst so bright it seemed night had become day. The entire Holy City was shaken to its foundations by the blast and once the dust settled all that was left of the inner slums was an enormous circle of glassed ground.
He'd have kept ruminating on those events if an enormous arm hadn't suddenly come out of nowhere, locked his head in a grip and pulled him backwards. He didn't even have time to be surprised when another enormous hand shot up and started viciously mussing up his hair.
"Will you stop staring into the distance and just unwind with your friends for once?!", Elger roared in his ear.
"Alright, alright! Just drop me, you lunk!"
Elger did so, followed by a pat in the back that nearly threw Dan off his feet. Dan turned around, making a feeble attempt to adjust his cloak with some dignity while Elger just laughed thunderously.
"Come on, can't a man have some time for his thoughts every once in a while?", he asked, feigning outrage.
"Not when you've just spent two fucking years locked in a place where staring at things is the national past time."
Dan chuckled, only now realizing that he was already walking on cobblestones. The main group was already entering the City proper, with some smaller groups splitting off and going on their way into the streets. From what they'd been saying back at the Sanctum, Dan guessed they were headed off to see their families or, in most of the cases, rushing to a tavern or a whorehouse. He then nticed a group of five people lookng expectantly at the two of them and realized they were waiting for them.
"Where are you guys going?" he asked his friend.
"What do you mean 'you guys'? I'm taking us to this pub in Butcher's Row that serves a killer mead. I have a bet going with Idun that I can get Shamalan to throw up all over himself in two pints. You want in?"
"Maybe later, I have to go somewhere first."
He turned to leave, but found Elger's hand grabbing his shoulder.
"You've been silent as a corpse since the joining ended, and now you're going off on your own. What's wrong?"
"Nothing", he lied. "I have some stuff to deal with first. Don't worry."
His friend shrugged and then shook his head, walking back to rejoin the group. Dan sighed, stuffed his hands down his pockets and went on his way.
As for so many other things, the Holy City couldn't spare any room for the dead. Its inhabitants soon realized that having large sprawling graveyards was robbing the living of space they could be using for actually living, so those had to go. For a while, the poor had to settle for burning their dead relatives, until the rich and their taste for fancy mausoleums came up with a solution for the problem in the form of the Necropolis. It was a thin black tower that jutted out of the ground in the middle of the Temple District, almost as if it had fallen from the sky and buried itself there. It stretched high into the sky, but even further underground, expanding ever downward as more and more tombs needed digging.
Dan hesitantly entered the tower and approached one of the clerks. He told him the reason for his visit and the clerk led him to a side room with so many stacked bookshelves it looked like a library. Those, the clerk explained, were the ledgers where they kept the records of the dead. A name and a silver coin later, Dan found himself descending the stairs with a candle in hand. He went down for what seemed like an eternity and once he found the proper floor he walked amidst the tombs for an even more eternal stretch. Once he found the one he was looking for, he simply stood in front of it in silence, alone with his thoughts.
"Here lies Allard Redwind", the inscription read.
Grandad.
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 13, 2013 1:53:59 GMT
Year 2480
Outskirts of Kutanda City, Kutanda
Alongside twenty of his fellow Wardens, Dan had been riding for ten days straight at this point. He had never been so far away from the Holy City, much less used to sitting atop a horse for hours on end. He could barely wait for this trip to be over and the real job to begin.
As they crested one final hill, their destination finally came into view. Before them a great green prairie stretched as far as the eye could see, with a plethora of dirt roads flowing through it like veins. The smaller roads merged into each other and became wider and wider, ending in the four large roads that convened on the great city in the center of the prairie.
"You have no idea how much I've missed this place", Shamalan piped up as his horse caught up to Dan's. "Isn't it grand?"
Dan laughed and then shot Shamalan a smug smile. "I'm sorry, but I grew up in the Holy City. Any other city in the world is gonna have a hard time trying to impress me."
Though if there was a word Dan would use to describe Kutanda City, it would be orderly. Built out of reddish stone, the city was limited by four impressively straight walls, surrounding low, square houses displayed across a neat grid. The houses kept getting higher and higher the more into the city he looked, culminating in a pitch black fortress that dwarfed the rest of the city by its side. The Crucible, he'd learned it was called. The palace of the Burning Man.
"Danton! Idun! To me!", a gruff voice called from the front of the collumn. Dan broke off from the group and spurred his horse to catch up with Paladin Bearnaud, the senior Warden in charge of the mission. Idun joined them moments later. Like him, she had also been promoted to Attendant little over a year ago and she likewise felt the pressure this mission presented as the first time the both of them were leading soldiers into the provinces.
Bearnaud acknowledge their presence with a nod and pointed to the city ahead of them.
"We'll reach the city by nightfall. We'll be leaving our horses at a stable outside the city walls, the enter through the west gate and go to a house that has been prepared for us. Have the men set up and rest tonight, while I go inform the Archon of our arrival."
"Yes sir", they responded in unison.
He spent the rest of the ride talking to the men, most of them gathered around Shamalan as he excitedly told stories about his homeland. In the few moments of silence, the Arbiter's orders came to him clear as the moment they'd been uttered.
"Find out the truth of this new insurrection, its causes, and breach the wounds. Bring peace to Kutanda."
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Post by Timeon on Jul 13, 2013 10:44:25 GMT
They entered the city through the western gates by nightfall, having left their horses outside. The guards immediately let them through upon realising who they were. There was no law above Common Law, and no authority or judgement higher than that of the Arbiter. Once inside, Dan found that unlike the Holy City, Kutanda was quiet by night. Small crowds of people moved through torch and lantern lit streets, yes, but there were no masses of people moving between taverns and late-night businesses.
"This is barely a city at all. It's how I imagined a town to be."
Dan's comment triggered amused snickers from many of the other Wardens.
"A Holy City boy is what you are through and through." Elger rasped. "This is actually one of the busiest cities I've seen by night. You should see the other Dominion capitals. Completely deserted as soon as it gets dark. Everyone indoors."
Once they reached their headquarters, they were not disappointed in their assumptions that it would be a run-down refuse pile. It was a mansion that looked like it had been abandoned for a century, with holes through the ceiling and chattering rats warning them that they were not sharing the rooms alone.
As the two Attendants in charge, Dan and Idun got the men and women unpacked and set up as comfortably as possible in the mansion. Afterwards, they met in the entrance room for dinner, which was whatever they had left from the journey. In the morning, they could resupply, and hope that Kutandan cuisine was to their liking.
After a long night, Dan awoke to the sound of someone barging through the front door. Surely enough, it was the commanding-officer, Paladin Bearnaud. He saw Dan blinking at him tiredly at him, and waved for him to come over. With a yawn of despair, Dan forced himself out of his sleeping bag and shuffled over to Bearnaud, trying to look serious.
"Brother." Dan said respectfully.
"I've returned from the Crucible." Bearnaud said, and for the first time, Dan noticed the rings of tiredness under the Paladin's eyes. He had not gotten any sleep. Dan suddenly felt guilty, and stood rigidly and respectfully. "How are you liking your new accommodations, Dan?"
"Reminds me of home, brother."
Bearnaud smiled - although he was from Otticia, a realm famous for its wealth, he had still come from a poor background.
"Dan, I was given an audience by the Burning Man himself." Bearnauld's smile faded. "He suspects there's more to this insurrection than meets the eye. They're not just disgruntled thieves and assassins this time. And the Burning Man knows all. For the Burning Man to share this knowledge with me, as little as it is... well. I'm worried, Attendant."
"Worried, brother?" Dan pressed.
Bearnaud's eyes narrowed.
"The Burning Man was sending me a message, Dan. He is a master at what he does. By seeing me in person, and telling me what he did, as vague as it was - well. I think he was sending us a warning."
"A threat, you think?" Dan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No. Just a warning, Dan. Something big is going to happen. Soon. And if we can help it, we have to stop it."
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An hour later, Idun and Dan organized a group to buy supplies from the town. Shamalan went with them, his knowledge of Kutanda helping them avoid bad deals, shady folk and other troubles. They returned with enough food to keep them for the rest of the week. The next few days were spent on orientation. They learned that the rebels, the 'Librarians', had their base of operations in the Poor District.
"Nobody was being subtle when they marked that place on the map." Idun observed, a map of the city sprawled on the table in their hideout.
Eventually, Paladin Bearnaud called for Idun and Dan to meet him in private.
"I've had a Librarian get in touch with me. His name is Anan."
"A traitor?" Dan baulked, though he realised the immeasurable value of an inside man.
"Anan suspects his organization has gone rotten." Bearnaud explained. "He's worried about the friends they're making. As a patriot, he'd rather turn to us Wardens than to his own High Librarian. He thinks the greater good is what we represent."
"And he's right." Idun added sharply.
"I've arranged a meeting with him in three days time, which will be your responsibility to see to, Dan. Until then, keep headquarters organized. Idun, I'll need you to come with me. We're going to begin investigating the leads about these Librarians we've found so far."
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The following day, word reached that Shamalan was dead. Something small and subtle broke in Dan that day. It was a precedent. Perhaps it was what the Burning Man had been warning them about. Paladin Bearnaud called a mass meeting in the headquarters to discuss it.
"It was the Librarians, yes." Paladin Bearnaud said, arms folded behind his back. "I know because I was told. Told by the High Librarian himself. He sent his apologies, and told us that the assassin would be in the Trade Quarter at midnight today, ambushing a decoy caravan he arranged. He is telling us that we can have our revenge on her, if in exchange, we forgive the breach of the peace against us."
"They'd turn in their own man?" Idun spat, disgusted. "And that Anan fellow, just as willing to stab his superiors in the back as they are willing to stab this Goka girl. Don't these Librarians have any honour?"
"And that Anan fellow." Dan stated, barely able to concentrate on the meeting because of the shock of Shamalan's death. "I don't trust him."
"He's right. That traitor, Anan, will turn on us as quickly as we turn on him." Idun said.
"Oh please." Elger grunted. "You're too paranoid, both of you. But especially you, Danton."
"He'll give us a list of names. And then we'll see." Bearnaud stated, raising his hands. Anan was really willing to compromise his organization, unless it was a list of false names.
"Hey." one of the youngest Wardens exclaimed, turning towards the window. "There's... a presence. We're being watched!"
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"I hear you were investigating your friend's death, he disrupted a mission and got in the way. I killed Shamalan. Due to the nature of my mission I was suspicious of him and to avoid capture he had to die, do what you must."
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 17, 2013 1:05:20 GMT
Dan's heart skipped a beat. Everything around him seemed to freeze in place for a moment, the strange woman's words ringing in their ears.
"I killed Shamalan."
All it took was one move from one of the rookies and the room was flooded with the sound of metal scraping on wood as everyone drew their weapons and surrounded the killer.
"You will die for this!", Elger rasped as he brandished his broadsword.
Dan's saber was already halfway drawn when his thoughts caught up to his body. She killed Shamalan, but she turned herself in. His anger was building up, telling him to avenge his slain friend, but this one thought had bottled it. No matter how much it pained him, he had to hear what she had to say and understand what had happened. He was a Warden, he had to be fair.
"Sheathe your weapons!" he commanded, moving to stand between the woman and his brothers, his hands raised in a calming gesture. "She came to us willingly, she will be heard."
He received a wave of grumbles, hissed insults and even a couple of people spitting at the ground as his reply. But he had commanded, so they obeyed. As swords returned to their scabbards and the circle around them widened, Dan locked eyes with the woman and spoke.
"Come with me, we'll go to a another room and I'll interrogate you myself. Quieter and less spit flying around."
"And more chance of a sly knife. I'm against it."
Dan's anger flared again, and he closed his fists to control himself.
"We're Wardens. We don't murder suspects who turned themselves in peacefully."
"Good point, but I'll stay armed."
"Heh, you're probably packing so many hidden daggers it'd be a waste of time to have you disarm. Follow me."
The assembled Wardens made way for them, heavy scowls on their faces. As he walked past them, Dan glanced at Paladin Bearnaud and received an approving nod from him. He led the assassin through the corridors to the other end of the mansion, where he picked a dusty, cobweb filled office for his interrogation. It didn't make for such a good show, but it did have two chairs and a table. Once the door was closed and they were sitting at opposite ends of the table, Dan rubbed his forehead to collect his thoughts and then began.
"Let's start with the basics. Who are you?"
"I am Goka Khaan, a member of the Librarians."
"Suspected as much. Now tell me about this mission of yours and how it led to you killing Shamalan."
"So Warden, don't you know of the Burned Page or are you playing dumb?" she spat, but immediately seemed to regret her words. "Sorry, you ask the questions. The Burned Page are the Burning Man's police force, as you should well know Warden, but what the Dominion doesn't know is that almost all of the Burned Page are routinely murdering, civilians, secret scholars and increasingly Librarians. We do not take kindly to death in the family and so I was sent after a high up in the Burned Page, I do not know his name but I know that he sat with the Burning Man every fifth week, and now he is breathing dirt."
"I assure you, I'm not playing dumb. If the Burning Man really is murdering his subjects left and right, we will end this behavior. If need be, the Arbiter himself will remove the Burning Man from power. But before that, I must know more. Tell me how Shamalan got in your way."
"The Burned Page had a man up by the throat with one hand ablaze ready to kill the man. I resolved my contract and asked the man why he was going to be killed, he said he knew nothing, he walked halfway down the alley before attempting to arrest me, so I ran and hid in an abandoned house. Shamalan found me and there were a few words spoken and I killed his bird and then him."
Dan was taken aback at the nonchalance with which she had just described her three murders. She killed Shamalan. He closed his eyes and exhaled deeply, trying to rein his emotions and only barely managing to.
"He was born here, you know? He was so excited about coming home after so many years. I can't speak for him, but I think he might just have tried to bring you here to safety once he realized you were a Librarian agent. I would thank you for saving him from his would be killer, but how can I do that when you ended up killing him anyway?" His voice quivered as he said those last words. He shook his head and waved away the question. "What did your superiors have to say about you killing a Warden?"
"They put me up to ambush a caravan, assassins never get given ambushes, they wish me dead or captured, that's why I'm here, I want to cut a deal."
"Heh, good instinct. Your High Librarian contacted my superior about this decoy caravan. He was gonna hand you over to us as an amend for you killing one of our own. But since you came of your own accord, I'm open to deals. What do you propose?"
"I wish to work for you, not as a Warden but as an... informant. The Librarians wish me gone but I still know their ways, for a pardon and a bit of coin I could create a guild of people like me, informants for hire, totally above board of course, but method will not be questioned. How does that sound?"
She killed Shamalan and now wants to be rewarded for it. He put those thoughts away and tried to judge her proposal unbiasedly.
"The idea has merit, but I'm not sure if you do. Looking at it from the Librarians' point of view, you're a wild card agent who went overboard and killed a Warden. How can I know they're not in the right and you're just a cutthroat trying to save her own neck? How can I know you won't stab me in the back when our association stops working for you?"
"How do you know I'm not going to stab you in the front now, you must have heard what happened to his familiar? Between the eyes at 10ft, I'd say we're about 3? But this is trivial any way, why should anyone trust anyone, why do you trust your traitor? Hmmm? You must realise I did not come into this blind, although Sal would like to say he had no clue what I was doing and reserves the right to silence."
As she said so, a small lizard peaked out of one of her pockets and climbed up to rest on her shoulder. A pacter, of course. This gave him an idea.
"I'm sorry if I seem distrustful of the woman who murdered my friend. I'd like to take my time with this decision, but if people are already getting killed in the street I don't have that luxury. So, I'm putting you on probation. You work with us and help us get to the bottom of this conflict and I'll intercede on your behalf with the Arbiter. However, I'm gonna need a guarantee. As long as this mission lasts, your little lizard stays with me."
Her eyes shot wide and she jumped to her feet, slamming her hands down on the table. For a moment, Dan thought she was gonna kill him just like she had done to Shamalan, but that moment flew past as quickly as it came.
"He is my source of magic, he's how I jump and climb and fight, you might as well take my legs, you touch Sal and you die, and all your Warden friends die and the arbiter dies, he's my companion... inseparable... we can't..."
Her outburst over, she sat back on her chair and looked down, her little lizard running from her shoulder to her hands and rubbing his head against her fingers.
"Calm down, I know how this works. If he stays with me and I stay within a couple kilometers of your location, your connection shouldn't be affected. You'll have your powers just the same and I won't harm him if you behave. Consider this both your trial and your punishment for what you did to Shamalan."
He'd won, and they both knew it. She stared at him with badly concealed hatred as she mulled over his words. The little lizard looked at her, probably having a mental discussion about their options. When she finally answered, she sounded resigned.
"Then you get me new armor, and Sal stays in my old pocket."
"I'll see what I can do."
He got up and extended his hand and she did likewise. As he shook her hand, a small triumphant smile crept on his face, but it died down as soon as he remembered. She killed Shamalan.
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Post by Timeon on Jul 20, 2013 18:32:48 GMT
Once Goka Khaan had left the building, Dan was left with his chest heaving, all the rage and disappointment in him surging to the surface. Yes, he had done what Paladin Bearnaud had commanded. He had done his duty. Yet the whole time, it would have been all too easy to draw steel on the bitch who had murdered his friend. Shamalan had been the most good natured of them all, and the most eager, finally returning to Kutanda. His homecoming had been short-lived, much like himself.
Dan realised that he had his face in his hands when the door to the room opened some time later, and in stepped Bearnaud.
"I'm sorry, Dan."
Dan nodded professionally, rising to his feet.
"What are we doing with the girl?"
"We're sending her to the ambush tonight. Attendant Idun will be in charge there. It's a feint, of course. The High Librarian must think Goka still loyal to him."
"Of course, brother." Dan said. "What are your orders for me? The meeting with Librarian Anan is still in two days time, do you want me to remain in command of the detachment here?"
"Yes, nothing has changed." Bearnaud said, adjusting his belt, a dark look to him. "We've got enemies and supposed friends on all sides, Dan. That is what it means to be a Warden. Fear and respect. Which is why a member of the Burned Page has asked to speak with me in private. He's arranged to find me in the market up the street. I will only be gone a short while, Dan. Keep things together in my absence."
Danton Redwind kept morale together in the headquarters, though nervous men and women itched to put the salamander familiar of Shamalan's killer to the sword. Dan kept things as cool as he was able, leaving the salamander in Goka's coat pocket in the back room, as they awaited Bearnaud's return.
One hour turned into two, and two into three. The sun was going down. Still, there was no sign of Paladin Bearnaud.
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 21, 2013 1:54:03 GMT
Paladin Bearnaud's delay filled Dan's mind with dark thoughts. Is this city gonna rob us of our commander too? One Warden had already died, and one had already been too much. He wasn't gonna let it happen again.
"Elger, get your sword and shield. We're going out." he said simply, getting up and fastening his cloak.
"Aye." was Elger's reply. They'd known each other for so long that no more words needed to be said for him to understand. Going out in full force would draw too much unwanted attention and going out alone might land him in the same situation as Shamalan. If he was to take a companion, there was no one he trusted more than Elger. Standing almost two meters tall and clad in his plate armor, his appearance alone was enough to make most street thugs think twice about jumping him. The son of a couple of mercenaries from Bhakhtar, Elger had known more about swordfighting the day he entered the Sanctum than most of the initiates when they received their cloaks. In fact, Dan reckoned he owed his martial skill as much to his friend as he did to the instructors.
Not a minute later, they were walking out the door. Before leaving, Dan turned to his brothers and sisters and gave them their orders.
"Stay put here. If we do not return by sunrise, inform the Sanctum and await instructions. Is that clear?"
"Yes sir", they replied in unison.
They closed the door behind themselves and hurried up the street to the market. Elger was quick to break the silence.
"Did you have to be so grim?"
"Hard to be jolly when a second Warden might have died."
"Bearnaud can handle himself, there's a reason he was made a Paladin."
He had a point, but it didn't to much to soothe Dan's worries. Before long, they strode into the market square and found that, even this late, a couple dozen people still walked around browsing the stalls. No sign of Bearnaud, though.
"How do you wanna do this, split up and search for leads?", his friend asked.
"No, if something bad did happen to him, we better stick together. Let's make a quick sweep of the square and nearby alleys, and if that yields nothing we talk to the merchants."
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Post by Timeon on Jul 21, 2013 10:28:58 GMT
It took a while, but it was getting the merchants to talk that finally yielded results. An Ottician Paladin like Bearnaud stuck out in Kutanda. One merchant had seen Bearnaud heading east. That stirred Dan's memory, taking him back to the map of Kutanda that the Wardens had in their headquarters. On that map, landmarks and notable locations had been marked. Thanks to Librarian Anan, the main safehouses of the Librarians were also known to the Wardens. "Bearnaud was supposedly meeting a member of the Burned Page." Elger mused grimly. "North-east there's a guard barracks. Due east, a safehouse and an inn." Dan stared down the eastern streets, contemplative. There was not much to go on, aside from a direction. Hoping they would find some sort of clue along the way, they set off down one of the narrower eastern side-streets. At this time in the evening, the merchants were packing up to leave, and there were not many people walking around. For that reason, it was immediately apparent to Dan and Elger that they were being followed by a robed and otherwise unassuming man. He had picked up their movements in the market, but was keeping his distance. "If we alarm them, they could get word out and move Bearnaud. Destroy evidence wherever we try to go." Elger breathed, trying to avoid looking at the man shadowing them. |
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 25, 2013 15:38:45 GMT
"Follow me." Dan whispered and then abruptly turned left. Elger did as commanded and they both hurried down the new street before taking a sharp turn again into a smaller, shady alley. With the clanking Elger's armor made, their pursuer would have to be deaf to lose their trail, so instead they opted to confront him. Moments later the robed man walked by at a quick pace, just short of a run, and stopped dead in his tracks as he noticed the two Wardens standing in wait.
The man looked from Dan to Elger and back to Dan again, both staring him down with their best reproachful looks. After a tense moment of silence, Dan stepped forward and spoke, his hand resting on the pommel of his saber as a very thinly veiled threat.
"Would you care to explain why you were following two Wardens?" His voice sounded surprisingly calm and stern and the man seemed surprised at the turn of events. He furrowed his brow, apparently in deep thought, letting another silent moment fly by. When he finally moved, it was to draw a dagger from his robes with lightning speed and throw it at Dan. Luckily, he managed to dodge it in time by twisting his torso and jumping to the right but at such close range he couldn't completely clear it and the whirling dagger still grazed his arm, making a small cut. He looked at their assailant, now reaching for another dagger, and drew upon his magic. He felt the energy flow through him, reached his hand out in a familiar fluid motion and a silvery thread shot out and pierced the man's leg. He looked down in surprise, confused at the spell's apparent lack of effect, until Dan closed his hand and the ethereal thread solidified into a very real metallic chain, a couple links now embedded in his leg.
As the robed man tried and failed to muffle his scream of pain, Dan tugged on the chain and the man's leg gave up under him and he collapsed to the ground. Taking the opportunity, Elger ran and launched himself upon him in an attempt to restrain him, but not fast enough to stop him from jamming the dagger into his own neck. A metallic clangor echoed through the alley as Elger fell upon him, forcing the suicidal man to drop the dagger. Still, the damage was done and their attacker was now bleeding profusely onto the cobblestones. Cursing, Dan dispelled his chain and approached them, kicking the fallen dagger away and kneeling on the man's right arm to stop him from doing anything even more stupid.
"Quick, help me heal this!" he shouted, pressing both his hands to the horrid neck wound and unloading his magic into it. Elger did likewise, sporting a look of pained concentration. Burst healing was complicated, dangerous and truth be told neither of them was experienced enough to comfortably deal with such a sensitive injury. Gurgling and choking, the man soon went limp and passed out from pain and blood loss. After a couple minutes of intensive healing, they had managed to close the wound as best as they could, leaving him breathing raggedly and coughing from the blood that had surely entered his lungs.
"Well, fuck." was the most appropriate comment Dan could muster when he finally stood up.
"If you wanna interrogate him, we should take him back to headquarters and get one of the better healers to treat him."
"We do that and we lose the opportunity to find Bearnaud. This will have to do for now."
Elger nodded and carefully pulled the unconscious man deeper into the alley, laying him on his side against a wall. While Elger took the time to search him, Dan placed his hands on the puddle of blood left on the floor and once again channeled his magic into it, shaping it into a pair of manacles. When he returned to Elger's side, his friend had three more daggers in his hand and was pulling the man's robes to show Dan his chest.
"Recognise this?" he said, with a dark chuckle. It was the symbol of the Burned Page, tattooed right over his heart.
"How great, they call Bearnaud to a meeting, he disappears and then they send someone to kill us when we go after him", Dan said with a heavy sigh.
Elger just scratched his chin. "I'm starting to wonder if the city itself is against us." He took the manacles from Dan and used them to cuff the Burned Page's wrists behind his back. They both picked up some nearby barrels and used them to hide the body before hastily continuing down the street.
"What now, Attendant?" Elger inquired, sounding far more amused by the whole situation than he rightfully should have been.
"Now we do a circular sweep. We keep east, check the Librarian safehouse, then the inn. After that we peek at the Barracks and make sure civilians are around so they can't go crazy on us again. If no results, we come back here, pick up the schmuck and take him back to HQ."
Not ten minutes later they were approaching the safehouse, easily identifying it thanks to Anan's info. The door was slightly ajar so, exchanging a look, they just walked in to find a room showing clear signs of recent use, along with blood on the floor.
"Well, fuck."
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Post by Timeon on Jul 26, 2013 12:08:41 GMT
As soon as Dan and Elger realised that they had a blood trail to follow, they wasted no more time. They were out of the safehouse, following it north. It was obviously still fresh. Dan suspected it would lead to the guard headquarters, where the Burned Page was based, but it instead wound north into the Poor District.
"Brother, I'm not surprised that a blood trail from a Librarian safehouse is taking us to the Poor District." Elger grunted.
"This could be an unrelated Librarian conflict. You're right, Elger." Danton remarked, scanning the darkness of the shanty town ahead. The blood trail had finally petered out. Elger scratched the back of his neck nervously, which was unlike him. In the distance, they could spy a couple of men walking with torches. As they got closer it became clear they were guards.
"What would the Burned Page want with Bearnaud, Dan? I don't get it." Elger was staring towards the guards as they drew nearer. "Bearnaud already met the Burning Man. If they wanted him dead-"
Dan felt sympathy for his friend. This was their first major assignment, and it was already promising to prove horribly grim.
"The Burned Page might be conspiring against the Burning Man, then. Or maybe this is just a misunderstanding."
Elger said no more, staring into the night, leaving the tough decisions up to Dan. Dan motioned for Elger to follow and they headed towards the guards, who were alarmed at first, and weary. After Dan explained who he was, the guards asked if he was from the Warden outpost north of Kutanda, but Dan answered he had come directly from the Sanctum. The guards complained how unsafe Kutanda had become, clearly happy to see servitors of the Common Law. In turn, Dan said that a very important person had gone missing, and that they followed his blood trail this far.
The guards had no clues to offer, however. Instead they warned Dan that their guard duty was ceremonial, because the Poor District was Librarian territory. After discussing the blood trail briefly, Elger huffs and puffs.
"We should report this lead to headquarters, brother."
"I'm thinking."
One of the guards placed an arm on Dan's shoulder.
"Sir, if we stay too long in one place we'll attract attention from the Librarians."
With a nod, Dan sent the guards on their way, telling them to get out of the District. He then headed to recover the injured Burned Page agent they had tied up. Elger slung the unconscious man over his shoulder and alongside Dan, reported back to headquarters. Attendant Idunn was gone, having taken a couple of men to go set up the fake ambush for Goka Khaan. A young Havsgardian by the name of Ragnvald had been left in charge.
"Get this healed up!" Dan said, offering up the Burned Page agent. He then explained the blood trail, and what their options were. Arguments erupted, but Dan silenced them by banging his scabbard on the table and announcing his intentions. "We have to sweep the Poor District. I know we're talking about a very extensive area, but it might be our only shot. We'll spread out from the point where the trail ended, and we'll knock on any door that has light behind it if we must. The Librarians will surely come to us, and they'll have to show us their true colours when they do. Fear and respect is what we're putting back into them tonight."
He quoted Bearnaud, honouring the man he was determined to rescue. The room erupted into cheers. Dan assigned the healer and two men to stay with the unconscious Burned Page member, and keep guard over Sal.
Ragnvald volunteered to go to the main guard barracks, but Dan told him to wait until after the sweep.
"Just remember, brother, the Librarians might have nothing to do with this after all."
"Noted, brother."
With that, Ragnvald saluted professionally.
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Fifteen Wardens thus headed to the Poor District, beginning from the end of the blood trail. Doors were knocked on, and investigations conducted. In one household, an old man called Suuhuu told Dan how the Librarians liked to conduct murders and blame them on the Burned Page. Suuhuu said this after hearing the Wardens wonder aloud if the miserable conditions in the Poor District were a result of the Librarians.
"Suuhuu." Elger murmured. "That's an old guy name... like Arselina."
"Brother!" A Warden said, hiking up to Dan and Elger, out of breath. "We've found a body!"
The body was in an alley, and there was no blood trail associated with it. It seemed to be a Librarian, carrying hidden daggers, with a neck snapped as if he had been pushed from a roof. Dan checked his heart area, and surely enough, found a tattoo of the Burned Page.
"A member of the Burned Page, dressed as a Librarian, pushed to his death." Dan wondered aloud. "Maybe he was trying to infiltrate the Librarians. But then again, who sends an infiltrator with a tattoo of his true colours?"
It did not make sense.
"Well, brother." Ragnvald said, hand on the hilt of his sword. "Either someone who was meant to be found. Or somebody infiltrating the Burned Page."
Wheels within wheels within wheels.
"We are going onto the roof from where this man was pushed." Dan decided.
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When they arrived on the rooftop, they found a hooded figure, who seemed to be waiting for them. The man's only movement was a slight impatient tapping of his foot. He then began to walk towards Dan at his own pace. Elger drew his weapon, poised to strike.
"I'd recommend you stay put if you don't want to get a first hand experience of what being cut in half feels like."
As a result of Dan's warning, the hooded man paused.
"Talk."
"I already have." the hooded man said. "With Bearnaud. I believe you're looking for him?"
"Are you another Burned Page?" Dan asked, trying to see if he could identify anything about the stranger.
In answer to the comment, the man glanced over his shoulder, towards the street with the corpse.
"No. Attendant, a private word if you please. And quickly. We have very little time."
After a moment's pause, Dan told Elger to wait and he approached the stranger. Upon getting closer, Dan could guess that the man was in his thirties, with long hair tucked under his hood, and bearing a calm face.
"I'm Librarian Anan."
So, this was the traitor Librarian who Bearnaud had spoken with.
"I was wondering when you'd show up."
He shrugged, and looked askew, eyes wrinkling with pain.
"They're turning on their own. We're almost on the brink of it, Attendant. Before you ask, I don't know what 'it' is. But they've got agents inside the Crucible. Elements of the Burned Page. Working with the Librarians. For someone else. You made a serious mistake alerting them by bringing your full-force in. They'll have moved Bearnaud by now."
Dan gripped the pommel of his sabre so tight his fingers went numb.
"The man who attacked me by the market, was he one of these rogue elements?"
"Yes. And that man who I just killed was about to take one of your Wardens out, Attendant. I'm afraid now that the rogues are so close to their goal, they're losing their subtlety." He smiled and blinked, as if remembering himself. "They kidnapped Bearnaud. He was in the safehouse by the Park. I wager he is gone by now."
"Gone where? To another safehouse?"
"I don't know. That may not matter any more. We have one chance to end this, Attendant. We have to strike at them, all at once. Everywhere. We can't warn the Burned Page because they have been compromised. I have Librarians with me, loyal ones, who will help us. But it has to be tonight."
After a minute in silence, wondering if he was about to cause a diplomatic incident, Dan nodded.
"The Librarians have given us ample proof they're corrupted. The time for talking is over. Me and my Wardens are with you."
Anan shook Dan's hand.
"By the way. Your boy Shamalan. He was meeting with one of our inside agents in the Burned Page. I think the Librarians silenced him before he could betray the plot. I'll meet you at your headquarters in two hours. I will inform my people. We will have to hit them everyone at once, Attendant, or they will scatter and reform."
"Agreed."
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Post by Wulfang on Jul 27, 2013 16:36:30 GMT
Half an hour later, the Wardens were walking back into their headquarters, confused and frustrated. He’d told Elger and Ragnvald the gist of what he’d learned on that roof, but the rest had barely gotten an explanation for why the search had been called off. As everyone was settling back, Dan assured them that he was only waiting for Attendant Idun to arrive so he could explain his plan, telling them to prepare their weapons and replenish energies in the meanwhile. No one protested, easing his worries.
A little after midnight, Dan remembered to check on Goka Khaan’s familiar and found it gone. He grimaced, but couldn’t say he hadn’t expected it. As if to confirm his suspicions, Idun returned shortly after, angry and sporting burn wounds which she blamed on Goka Khaan. She remained calm when Dan told her of the familiar’s escape, but her eyes narrowed.
"Look, go get yourself healed and I'll talk to everyone in ten minutes. There were serious developments and we have to mobilize in an hour.” Dan told her, trying to focus on the bigger picture.
She raised an eyebrow in disbelief, then pointed at the half-dead man laying on a table.
“So, who died?”
“I’ll tell you in ten minutes. Go.”
She nodded and did as she was told. Ten minutes later, the remaining eighteen Wardens had assembled in the main room, silently awaiting Dan’s speech. There was no point in being flowery now, so he cut directly to the chase.
"For those who weren't present, we found a lead that Bearnaud might be in the Poor District. Since time was of the essence and we'd been attacked, I brought all the Wardens there to search for him. We did not find him, but Librarian Anan found me."
"The story is this: the Librarians are the ones behind the murders in Kutanda and have infiltrated even the Burned Page. They have Paladin Bearnaud. They are gearing up for something big and tonight is our chance to stop them. In less than an hour, Anan and his cohorts will meet us here and we'll strike out at their remaining safehouses and take them out in one fell swoop."
When he finished talking, his brothers and sisters quickly made their voices heard. They wanted to find Bearnaud and make the Librarians pay for their crimes. They were with him. As the crowd thinned out to continue their preparations, Idun approached Dan in private.
"Attendant. Assuming this Anan did not lie to us - we have to see how to divide our forces, if that's how it's going to be. Where to send them, Anan may be able to help with that. Agreed?"
"Of course. Once Anan gets here he can tell us the most used safehouses so we can concentrate the brunt of our forces there.” he replied. Suddenly, it struck him that he’d taken command of the operation without even asking her and he became painfully aware of how insulting that might be. “Look, I hope I'm not stepping on your toes with this, you're in charge as much as I am."
She smiled and gave him a pat in the back. "You were there, Attendant. I wasn't. We're all playing the parts assigned to us."
At the agreed time, there was a knock on the door. Dan opened it and found Anan and five other Librarians standing outside.
“Can we come in?” Anan asked rhetorically.
Dan opened the door wide and signalled for them to enter, introducing him to the rest of the Wardens. A few nodded respectfully, others glared, but most remained stone-faced and unreadable.
"All the Wardens are up to date on what's transpired. Now it's your turn to give us more information to work with.", Dan told him.
Anan nodded and approached the nearby table, where a map of the city was stretched. Noting the marked locations of the safehouses he’d told them about, the Librarian then pointed at a small house in the park, overlooking the pond.
"And there.” he said, tapping the map. “Is the High Librarian's house."
“Such a scenic location.” Dan sarcastically noted.
"The main safehouses are both in the east. North and south. I'm afraid we won't catch half the Librarians in a raid like this. But we can disrupt their operations, search for evidence, take prisoners, and enforce law and order over the city afterwards. It's our best bet to stop whatever they're planning."
"We'll disrupt their plot, but it won't stop them from returning in the future."
"If we can find evidence of their plot, we can turn many Librarians over to our side, and restore the peace. Which is why I want to go to the High Librarian's house, and take him alive if I can."
Dan mulled over the map, thinking about how to coordinate the strike. Looking at the High Librarian’s house, his second problem came to mind again.
"What about Goka Khaan? Where does she stand in all this?"
A red-haired Librarian, a woman going by the name of Shari, was the one to reply.
"I saw her earlier, I threw her off course. She's loyal to the High Librarian for all we know. How do you know her?"
Dan sighed and explained the convoluted series of events that had thrown Goka Khaan into their path.
"If we find Goka, we'll make her pick a side. But she's just one of many who we are going to have to deal with." Anan said, shrugging. "Attendant, divide your forces. We have five targets. I'll be heading to the High Librarian's house."
After a few minutes of deliberation, Dan assembled the Wardens into five teams. Elger and Ragnvald would be in charge of the two teams striking into the Poor District, while Anan himself was leading the attack on the High Librarian’s house. Dan and Idun each commanded a larger team, meant to deal with the main safehouses. The half-dozen Librarians distributed themselves across the five groups, to ensure all of them could count on their experience with the locations and people involved.
His Wardens had long been ready, so it wasn’t long before they all departed the building and headed towards their destinations. Dan, accompanied by Shari and other four Wardens, went due east towards the southern safehouse. Being closest to the Crucible, he was convinced that one was their staging ground for whatever they planned to do.
As they set foot through the city of Kutanda, it all seemed quieter than usual. He wasn’t sure if it was the tension in his soul or the city itself holding its breath. They passed through the Trade District and out of its back gate, intending to take the safehouse from the backdoor.
The southern safehouse was a giant boarded up building, looking fittingly nondescript and abandoned. Shari signalled for them to wait as somebody passed by the house. A sentry. She looked at Dan for permission to attack, and he gave it with a nod. Her steps barely making a single noise, the Librarian easily snuck up on him and slit his throat. As the Wardens moved in, Shari whispered that there would probably be more sentries and suggested torching the building and surrounding it. Dan inspected the surroundings, making sure the fire wouldn’t spread to the nearby houses, and agreed with her plan.
His people surrounded the building and set it aflame with torches and magic. Another sentry came across them in the process and was easily cut down. As the flames climbed over the walls, cries from inside could be heard followed by a long pause. After waiting for a while, several arrows flew out of the windows. One barely missed Dan, and he heard a body go down not far away from him, though the stream of cursing that followed told him he was just injured.
“Raise shields! Take cover! Keep the building surrounded!” Dan barked into the night. Just then, a new volley of arrows flew at them and one hit the nearest Warden in the neck before he could follow through, killing him. Dan cursed himself as he carefully cut the palm of his left hand with his saber. As the blood welled up, he channeled his magic into it and projected a small round shield on his left forearm.
Feverish moans came from inside the house as the flames spread to the roof. One of the Wardens still standing broke formation and charged under the window so he couldn’t be fired down upon. The other one knelt down to shield his injured friend and heal him. Out of the corner of his eye, Dan saw Shari run to the house and leap through the doorway. A muffled scream of pain soon followed.
Gritting his teeth, Dan unclasped his cloak and let it fall to the ground. Shouting for his brothers to stay put, he ran into the burning house as well, being buffeted by the oppressing heat. An otherworldly scream came from upstairs, followed by heavy footsteps. Shari came sprinting down the stairs, looking pale even under the orange light.
“What happened?”
“CHIMERA!” she warned, running out of the building.
A hoof smashed into the steps, drawing Dan’s attention. A horned creature came lumbering down the stairs, a mass of muscle and sinew. The symbol of the Burned Page was tattooed over its heart and it sported a collar around its neck. A very well-groomed man in flowery attire followed the beast, holding its leash in one hand and a runed blade in the other.
"They were right. You've finally decided to act." the man said, letting go of the leash. The chimera charged clumsily at Dan and he easily dodged its charge, letting it smash into the back wall. On a hunch, he cast his chain spell and grabbed the collar with it. When the chimera looked at him again it just stood still, waiting for a command.
The man on the stairs looked impressed. He smiled, a blast of flame appearing above his hand. Before he could do anything with it, Dan pulled the chain and sicced the chimera on him. He effortlessly moved out of the way, but some Librarians who came rushing down the stairs weren’t so lucky. The strange man ignored the chimera as it tore into them and instead approached him with his runed blade.
Dan tried a probing strike to check how fast his opponent was, but the man just avoided him, seeming to know what he was trying to do. Suddenly, a huge heaving sound ripped through the building, signalling that the beams were starting to collapse. The man looked at Dan with a quizzical look, as if asking if they were really going to fight anyway.
“Where is Paladin Bearnaud?”
"Bearnaud is dead." the man spat, eyeing the door. "Killed him myself. And soon you'll all be dead."
The sort of calm only made possible by great anger engulfed Dan, who resolved to kill this man here and now. Behind the murderer, the chimera wa thrashing, the Librarians screaming as they died beneath its hooves and claws.
Dan lunged, his blade meeting the bastard’s, and glancing off to cut the enemy in the arm. Dan himself was hit in the side by the runed blade, though it did not bite deep, despite the pain. Dan swung at the man again, drawing blood, but the was then tripped in response using the force of his own swing. The stranger fled over Dan, bolting for the door. Dan threw his beam of light, to solidify it into a magical chain like he had done with the Burned Page - but the stranger simply swatted the spell aside as he ran. Dan had never seen somebody do that before.
Just then, the chimera finished munching on the final victim, and returned its affections to Dan with a feverish growl. First Dan stared it down, but then remembered his priorities and sped after the murderer. The ground gave way behind him, and he heard the chimera roar as it fell into the building’s foundations.
Outside, the stranger only made it so far before Shari tripped him, and drove a knife into his shoulder. Dan arrived in time to pin the man down with his boot, and put his sabre to his throat.
Dan looked to Shari.
“Who is he?”
“Never seen him before in my life.”
One of the Wardens picked up the runed blade, looking over it. Within a minute it became clear that nobody could read the runes. Dan raised his boot, and brought it down on the dagger sticking in the man’s shoulder. The man screamed in a foreign tongue.
“Still not talking?”
In response, the prisoner arched his head backwards, to look towards the Crucible.
“Wait for it.”
Making up his mind, Dan set to work weaving a series of spells to bind the man and cut off his access to magic for the time being. His willpower went up against the prisoner’s, and even though the prisoner was not resisting much, it was still tough work. Whoever this guy was, he was good. - incredibly good. Dan could not help but be slightly impressed with this monster.
Afterwards, Dan checked on the injured Warden. He was limping, but fine. One of them had not survived the day. With an arrow in his neck, Olus lay dead beside the burning building. Olus - he had been from Varantium, a friend of Elger since their training. Dan remembered him as both a thinker and a drinker, good with the sword, but better with the bow. His parents were proud of him, despite his bad sense of humour. Dan took Olus’ cloak and draped it over his body in respect.
The remaining Wardens gathered around and saluted their fallen brother, as the flaming building began to collapse in on itself.
“We will return for his body later, but right now, we have a job to do.”
Dan fetched his cloak and draped it back around his shoulders. He touched the wound in his side, using his magic to accelerate its healing, and then reached for the bloodstone in his pocket and drained it, restoring some of his magical energy. That bloodstone had served him well, he’d normally recharge it in the Holy City in a bucket of pig’s blood in Butcher’s Row. Now there was too much blood around, but the bloodstone would be on its cooldown period for the next couple of hours.
“Bring the prisoner. We’re going to the Crucible.”
They headed west, towards the Crucible, which was surrounded by walls of obsidian. Beyond them lay a ruined fortress, gutted by some ancient fire. The whole thing stood out from the city incredibly. Several gates offered entrance past the obsidian walls, mostly facing northwards. A pair of guards of the Burned Page stood watch over the first set.
“I am Attendant Danton Redwind. In the name of the Arbiter, I demand an immediate audience with the Burning Man.”
The guards did not look surprised.
“We've been ordered not to let anyone pass. There is chaos in the city. The Crucible is shut.”
“Common Law takes precedence. Open the gates.”
The guards tensed up.
“The Master of the Page himself has ordered that these gates remain barred.”
Dan heard a distant cry of distress from the Crucible, and grew grimmer.
“If the Master of the Page wants to face the Arbiter in trial, so be it. If you don't want to suffer the same fate, you will open them now.”
In response, one of the guards tried to run into the city. The other grabbed a horn and blew it. Shari threw a knife, downing the fleeing guard. Dan turned to the one with the horn.
“For your well being, I seriously hope that was the signal to open the gate.”
In answer, the guard tried to charge at the prisoner with his weapon. The prisoner headbutted the man before he could stab him, dropping him to he ground.
“If I remain silent, it won't because I'm dead.” the prisoner said, spitting on the fallen guard.
Once again, Dan was impressed by the man. And just then, another cry went up from the Crucible. Something was seriously wrong. Dan forced open the gates, and the first thing that the party noticed was that the guardhouses on either side were stacked with corpses.
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Post by Timeon on Jul 27, 2013 16:39:11 GMT
They hurried onwards, into the Crucible. Now they could hear the sound of fighting, and Dan asked Shari if she knew the layout of the fortress, but she did not. The Crucible was confusing, with many bits opening up to the sky because of the ancient damage, and staircases ending suddenly. Eventually, they found several heavy gates like giant blocks, covered in runes, but opened, and a trail of blood and corpses. The sound of fighting grew louder.
Suddenly, the ground rumbled, and a chasm opened up. One of the Wardens fell, just as a wave of energy threw the rest of them to the ground. The energy passed through Danton like adrenaline, throwing him into temporary shock, stretching time itself. Dan landed with a smack, his head hitting the tiles, but it did not break him. Rising to his feet again, he looked into the hole that had opened up, seeing the fallen Warden nursing a leg that was surely broken.
“Go, damn you!” the Warden cried, applying burst healing to his leg. “Piss on you, I said go!”
Dan and the remainder of the party continued on, finally coming to a giant room that had earlier been the site of a huge battle. Bodies, weapons and entrails filled the entire room, and only two people were left standing - they both had runed swords. As Dan was about to charge them, a blast of heat hit him, forcing him to stagger back. A column of fire flew out from one of the hallways, incinerating the two men with the runed swords. Seconds later, a party of warriors of the Burned Page jogged into the room. They turned towards Dan aggressively.
“Hold, we’re Wardens!”
Their leader was a man in a red robe, half his face bearing old scorch marks, and one eye whitened from damage.
“Welcome, Wardens. I am Adjumot, a hand of the Burning Man. Welcome to the Crucible.” he said with irony in his voice.
“Where is the Burning Man?” Dan asked, aware of the carnage.
“Safe.” Adjumot replied. “Though the traitors have caused enough harm, and many have escaped. The Master of the Page has fled with them. We should have known."
Dan was shocked that the infiltration had gone so deep. He pulled the prisoner forward.
"We caught this man in one of their safehouses. He carried one of those runed blades."
Adjumot's face was unreadable.
"We will interrogate him jointly. But now is not the time. We must rally survivors, and pursue the criminals. Where are your brothers and sisters, Attendant?"
"We spread out to strike at all the Librarian safehouses simultaneously. We suspected they were up to something after they kidnapped our Paladin. They will gather up in the square outside the Crucible once they are done."
Adjumot nodded.
“Come with me. He wants to speak with you.”
They began to ascend the Crucible together. Amidst the flickering torches and fires of unknown origin, it was like a theatre of shadows, words burned into the rock that Dan could not understand. They passed several series of warded gates, all of which had been splintered open. At the last gate, Adjumot bid that only Dan follow him.
They entered a chamber carved into ornate shapes, stretching far in either direction - Dan soon realised that what looked like tombstones were actually records. In the middle of the chamber there was a pit with burning coals.
Adjumot stopped in front of it, took Dan’s hand, a strange warmth filling him, then he bid Dan to kneel on the coals. Adjumot remained at his side, the heat hurting neither of them. After some time, Dan began to feel a great heat behind him, but did not dare to turn around. That heat became a presence, and Dan knew he was in the company of the Burning Man.
“Shut your eyes, keep them closed, lest you damage your vision.” Adjumot advised, before falling silent.
Danton had heard that the Burning Man could not speak, but it seemed he did not need to - telepathically, a mighty voice soared through his consciousness.
“Attendant Danton Redwind.” the Burning Man said. “Tell me what you have seen.”
"The Librarians have infiltrated the Burned Page. They are being helped by men carrying strange runed blades.” Dan shared, trying to send the Burning Man all that he knew. “Wherever I have followed them I have found chaos and slaughter."
Dan could feel sweat dripping across his whole body, drenching him. And yet the warmth felt like the warmth of the sun, comforting, nurturing. The Burning Man drew closer.
"The Godslayers have carved a trail across the Dominion. And they have done so for centuries. We thought we could predict them, stop them. We underestimated them. And now all is in peril.” The Burning Man grew contemplative, his presence dancing like sparks from a flame in Dan’s mind. “Tell me, Danton Redwind, what do you think the Crucible holds? Why have they struck here, now?"
"The Crucible holds forbidden knowledge. And an Archon."
The Burning Man radiated with the slightest tinge of amusement.
"Yes. Had it merely been me they had come for, then the Dominion might yet be safe.” He grew silent, giving Dan some time to think, then he spoke yet again. "An hour ago, an old friend walked into the Crucible, promising peace. He was the High Librarian. I awoke from my meditations, feeling hope."
Images appeared in Dan’s mind, drifting like smoke, of an old man walking past the Crucible’s wards and defences, unchallenged, and then the entire fortress descending into chaos. Sometimes, the High Librarian’s features shifting, showing faces of different men and women. For a short time, he even transformed into Goka Khaan.
"But I was betrayed. Too long have I been blind. I have spent decades, Danton Redwind, in isolation with my knowledge. Do you know why?"
Dan took time to think, and finally said.
“Because this knowledge would be dangerous in the wrong hands?”
The Burning Man betrayed a hint of just how much he knew, by showing Danton an image of the stairs leading to Custodian Volio’s office in the Sanctum, back in the Holy City.
“Under those stairs lies a board, upon which are engraved the three rules of magic. What is the third?"
“The third rule of magic is that there is always an exception.” Dan answered wearily, not yet understanding what the implications were.
"The world is predictable, Danton Redwind. It is ordered, and magic can only do so much harm, for there are rules and there are limits. But to each rule there is always an exception. And those exceptions hold the potential to shatter everything that we have strived for, and sunder mountains. For decades, I have been blind to all outside the Crucible, for in my meditations I sought to protect knowledge - by forcing myself to forget it."
So was this why Kutanda had fallen into strife, and why the Poor District was a disgrace? Had the Burning Man cut himself off from all that went on outside the Crucible for so long? To forget - to forget knowledge which could do great evil.
“Was that why the library was burned?” Dan asked.
The subject must have struck deep, for the Burning Man grew restless, flickering like a fire in the wind. He seemed to dodge Danton’s question.
"In what many call the Massacre of the Flames, I destroyed my enemies and opened the gates to Kutanda. As they died, their lives were made known to me. Their flesh burned, and I knew them, and became them."
An image flashed in Dan’s mind of the prisoner he had captured.
"Though I am tempted to sear his mind, and put a stop to these Godslayers with his knowledge, I fear the price would be too much. Not with what I might become."
What he might become - a homonculus? A spirit with the personalities of the victims it consumes. If the Burning Man became mad, the implications could be terrifying, and Danton understood his restraint.
"They have taken what they needed, Danton Redwind. Knowledge of a great weapon, strong enough to destroy the Dominion tenfold, and all that we hold dear."
Dan recalled the first rule of magic - that blood is power, and noticed that the Burning Man felt pain, for he had been injured in battle.
“What sort of weapon? What sort of exception?”
"May you never find out, Danton Redwind." the Burning Man answered, withdrawing from Dan’s mind slightly. He seemed to have reached a decision.
Dan was sweating as much from nerves as he was from the heat. Too much was at stake.
"I'm sorry, but I must insist. I can't defend the Dominion if I remain ignorant. I must know so I can prepare."
The Burning Man was sombre.
"Your innocence is endearing, Danton Redwind. It is all that keeps you human. Remember this. Do not be too hasty to throw it away, as they have done. You will serve in ignorance, as a knight under my blessing. Pursue the Godslayers, for they ride south, for Senusa. They will share this wretched knowledge with the world if we let them. And then... And then... all will be ash."
At last, the Burning Man withdrew, leaving Danton alone with Adjumot. Adjumot flashed Dan a toothy smile.
“Looks like we’ll be going to Senusa, Redwind.”
Outside the Crucible, Dan saw the other parties of Wardens converging and drawing near. They had lost Olus and Bearnaud, and maybe more. Elger arrived first, reporting he had lost Warden Tahori, a girl the Sanctum had accepted from Dominion-controlled Samar. When Ragnvar arrived, he informed Dan that he had also lost a Warden - the Chakazian, Dara.
They had killed at least a quarter of the Wardens. Dan felt sick and outraged, hands quivering.
Finally, Warden Idun’s party returned from the north safehouse. Dan prayed that there would be no more casualties.
Idun stopped in front of him outside the Crucible and saluted.
“Brother, we found Paladin Bearnaud.”
A tense pause.
“He’s alive.”
Dan felt everything come to a stand-still. Between two of Idun’s Wardens stood an old man wrapped in a blanket. Without a second to spare, Dan hailed the Paladin emotionally.
“I’m glad you’re alive, sir.” he said, breaking his personal record for understatements.
Bearnaud looked distressed, though not in a broken fashion. It took Dan only a moment to remember that Bearnaud was not just some old mna, he was a Paladin. Bearnaud’s next words were clear enough of a reminder.
“Where’s Olus?”
“He... he died, brother. He was hit by an arrow when we attacked the southern safehouse."
Bearnaud nodded ever so slightly - not the reaction Dan expected. It was hard to tell the source of his emotional pain after he's been through so much. It did not take long before Bearnaud was rallying the Wardens, assuming command again. A weight was lifted from Dan’s shoulders, to no longer be acting-Paladin, which was a strange feeling, though also a relief. Just as he was ready to accept fading into obscurity, Elger grabbed him by the shoulder.
“Three cheers for Danton!”
The Wardens raised the cry.
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Post by Timeon on Jul 31, 2013 15:51:43 GMT
Spring 2480 AS
April
Just north of Senusa
The months following the attack on the Crucible were frantic, and harsh. The Kutandan army began its march southwards, towards Senusa. Meanwhile, the Godslayers were very likely trying to hand over the knowledge of the weapon to an agent by the coast. The only question was, what route would the Godslayers take?
Paladin Bearnaud and Majordomo Adjumot decided to take no chances. The Librarians were put down, and the order was reforged under Anan, who became new High Librarian. As three united factions, they dedicated their resources to tracking the Godslayers. A team under Ragnvald and Elger was left with the marching army, to make sure no Godslayers were hiding in its ranks. If the army was going to Senusa anyway, the Godslayers might try to hide knowledge of the weapon amidst the soldiers.
Another team under Attendant Idun rode for the coastal city of Celia, just in case the Godslayers were travelling to Senusa along the coast. And the final team, under Paladin Bearnaud, Attendant Danton, Majordomo Adjumot and Librarian Shari went straight to the mountains of Abissus and the city there, just north of Senusa. It was, after all, most likely that the Godslayers would go directly to Senusa.
-
Dan found it extremely difficult to adapt to the mountains of Abissus. They were jagged, unseemly things. And for the first time in his life, Dan experienced snow. It was not like what he had imagined it would be like. Dan had always imagined that snow would be like a solid version of the clouds, but instead it was more like white sand. And of course, it was a lot colder than anything he could have ever imagined in the Holy City.
The city of Abissus itself was a series of domed buildings, built around a series of mines. The governor bid them all welcome in the name of the Radiant Lord, suspicious to see such a diverse gathering in his holdings. He offered to put them up in his residence, but Bearnaud refused.
They spent a week searching for leads, before word arrived that Ragnvald had found and killed a Godslayer amidst the army marching from Kutanda.
Bearnaud suspected that the schematics for the weapon were with the army after all, hidden amongst ten thousand men. Why would they do that, Shari had asked? Adjumot was the one to answer that question.
"If transporting the information is too burdensome for a horse, or too risky to chance beyond crowds of people, then it's probably easy to disguise amidst army supplies."
"We'll make preparations for the army's arrival, and establish ourselves in Abissus, just in case the Godslayers try to slip past us." Bearnaud decided.
-
By the beginning of April, the first legs of the Kutandan army were beginning to trickle into the mountain passes of Abissus. It also heralded the start of attacks from the Falorans. In his life, Dan had never met a spirit-hating Republican before, not until Abissus. Parties of assassins and saboteurs often tried to hit at Dominion outposts in the mountains, and often tried to bring landslides down in the passes. When they did so, it was often burdensome to clear the passes again, but with the help of spirits and magic, it was possible.
With the arrival of the army, the Falorans hit all the harder.
At last, Ragnvald and Elger returned to the side of Dan and Bearnaud, saluting, and apologizing for failing to find more Godslayers. They were excused, and the investigation continued in earnest.
There were no leads, not until the night before the grand assault on Senusa. For that night, a large party of warriors with runed swords tried to cross the plain between the mountain passes and the city. Standing watch on one of the ridges overlooking the city, beside Shari and Ragnvald, Danton caught wind of what was happening. Crossing the plain in a large group was a deathwish, because of the Faloran guns. And the guns were not firing on the Godslayers.
"We can't let them do this so easily." Ragnvald swore, staring out across the plain by the light of the moon, torches and starlight. "Not if it heralds the end of life as we know it."
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Post by Wulfang on Aug 10, 2013 17:13:50 GMT
Dan watched impotently as the Godslayers rode across the plain, his jaw clenched so hard he feared it might get stuck that way forever. Ragnvald's words weighted heavily in his mind, for he knew more than most what this meant. If those men reached Senusa and gave the Falorans the schematics for the dreaded weapon it would tip the scales severely against the Dominion.
Deciding what to do, however, was far more complicated. The Godslayers had a considerable head start, so their chances of catching up to them were slim even if they mounted their horses and charged out the gates. Seeing as the Faloran guns were holding their fire, Senusa had clearly been warned of this expedition and would likewise have been warned about further troops giving purchase. Dan desperately wanted to do something, but he couldn't lead troops on such a suicidal mission. But if they did nothing, then this was the end. The fear he had felt in the Burning Man's mind returned to him, gripping his mind and body. And, paradoxically, it was this fear that made him act, overpowering and drowning his reason.
He turned from the ridge and ran back towards the outpost, giving no mind to the looks and questions his companions showered him with. He rushed across the uneven ground and down the precarious stairs carved into the rock, jumping three steps with each stride. He ran and ran, into the building and across halls and corridors, until he finally found Majordomo Adjumot.
The man impassively waited as Dan struggled to catch his breath, his heart pumping in his chest from a mix of anxiety and exhaustion. He took as much time as he could to calm down, not wanting his voice to break in the middle of what he wanted to say.
“Majordomo”, he began, his mouth dry as a desert. “The Godslayers are galloping to Senusa. The Falorans aren’t firing.”
Adjumot’s good eye visibly darkened. “What shall we do about this, Redwind?”
“There’s nothing we can do. But I am going after them.” he shoot a meaningful look at the scabbard hanging from the Majordomo’s belt. “I need the runed sword.”
Adjumot clicked his tongue, mulling over his request. The urge in Dan's voice must have carried his message across, for the man did not question him further nor ask him for his plan. He knew there was no time to waste and so he wordlessly removed his sword belt and handed it over.
"Good luck, Attendant. And may the world remain ignorant."
Dan saluted him and nonchalantly left, heading for the stables. He removed his cloak and his saber's belt and replaced it with the runed sword's. It was wider a blade than he was used to, but it was short and light so it would make do if he was forced into a fight. He darkly chuckled when he realized what that would mean. They'll riddle me full of holes with their guns before I even have a chance to draw it. He was saddling a light chestnut horse when Ragnvald walked into the stables.
"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, incredulous.
"I'm riding to Senusa's west gate. Maybe I can use the sword to pass as a Godslayer and they'll let me in."
"And what if that doesn't work?"
He finished tightening the saddle and mounted. "Then I die."
Ragnvald moved to stand in front of his horse, blocking his path. "I can't let you do this, Elger would never forgive me!"
Dan sighed and adjusted in his saddle. "I can't just sit here and do nothing, but I can't send you all to your deaths either. This is the best I can do. Now move, brother. That's an order."
He waited, hesitant, but eventually did as he was told. Dan saluted him and spurred his steed forward, galloping out of the outpost and down the mountain road. Before long he was riding across the plain, Senusa's walls growing ever larger in the horizon. He saw the throng of Godslayers to his left, almost at the gates, and hurried his horse to catch up to them. If he arrived at the west gate around the same time they reached the central gate, his ruse might work. He kept riding, his mind hard at work thinking about anything else than how much he feared he might hear the sound of a gun firing at any moment.
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