Fall of the 9th tower: Dark Empire

[Zeritia]

Ben

His boots planted into the muck of the sewers, his smile becoming strained at the smell. He made a quick assessment of how much space he had available to swing Old Reliable and effectively fight...especially with some goofy girl following him around. These were poor and terrible conditions...oh well a contract was made so it has to be done. "As I said Liliana, remain close but not too close. I need some room to fight properly." With his statement made he tread through the filth towards the sounds of conflict. Old Reliable's golden spear point being radiant even in the dark. 

[Dragonseluna]

Luna


Grabbing onto Galen tightly, she managed to speak in a whisper, "It's n-n-not just p-poison... It's my m-m-magic. I'm n-naturally f-f-freezing to the t-t-touch." She blinked rapidly as she tried to tighten her grasp even harder. The poison was definitely there, but she couldn't get the right help if she didn't tell him how naturally cold she was. 

When they hit the ground all Luna could think to do was to hold on with all her might. She closed her eyes as she felt Galen charge with a burst of speed. "D-don't st-stop for a-a-anyone..." She barely got that last sentence out.

[Lady Ruliya]

Zaphia bowed her head as she took her leave, guards ran past her as she left, and she heard them talking to the old warrior about some people they were hunting. 'It's always something with these humans,' she thought to herself as she exited the courtyard gates and made her way across the large, ornate marble and stone bridge the was constructed over a great river that wound it's way through the city. She kept to herself as she wandered quickly back to Kelaith's leather working shop. When she arrived Kelaith was outside her shop, drying the leather and fixing the fur accents.

"Asha'Naral," Kelaith said as she spotted her friend walking over.

"Asha'Naral," Zaphia resonded warmly.

"How did it go?" Kelaith asked a little worried, " you were gone longer than I expected.

Zaphia paused in her step as she shook her head, "It appears the Prince Garett has requested my presence at the castle a bit later. He would like to hire me."

A Raven cawed overhead and flew down to perch atop a sign next to the shop, Kelaith studied it absent mindedly as she spoke, "Oh that sounds wonderful, I'm sure it'll be a high paying job. What does he wish you to hunt?"

Zaphia walked closer to her friend and spoke quietly, "The Shadow King."

Kelaith quickly swivelled her head round and stood up, following her friend inside, "What?" was about all she could manage.

"Look, I can't say too much yet, because I don't know all the specifics," she spoke in hushed tones still whilst gathering her weapons and old cloak, it was a muddy brown and dark green, perfect to hide in the woodlands, but it didn't matter right now.

"It must be important then," Kelaith said as she went behind a counter and rummaged through it looking for something.

"If I take the job though, it'll likely mean I'll be gone for a long while," Zaphia said warmly, her eyes sorrowful.

Kelaith was quiet for a moment as she found what she was looking for, "Take this," she said rising back up and placing a small wooden box on the counter, sliding it over.

Zaphia picked up the box and studied it. It had a golden inlay insignia. It was the crest of their Clan; a ravens claw grasping a Ferel Oak tree branch, "It's beautiful, but I don't understand..."

"Open it," Kelaith said with a smile.

As she did, Zaphia saw a large, lustrous garnet, "I still don't understand," she said confused looking to her Elven sister.

"It's a Viulian Tsar Gem," Kelaith said with a massive smile on her face.

Zaphia looked up in shock, "But, there are said to be less than five of these left in the world. It would be worth..." she was cut off before she could finish.

"I know," Kelaith kept smiling, "but if you're going against the Shadow King, I have a feeling you'll be needing it."

Zaphia tucked the box into her pouch at her belt, "Tra'leuth Sha'la Sindrel," she said with respect as she bowed low. Kelaith's warm smile broadened at her words and she simply bowed gently back.

Zaphia then turned, having everything she needed right now and headed out back into Lebrith. The only place she could possibly go now was back to the castle, and so she weaved her way into the crowd and walked off.

[shadowknight]

Galen

Galen's breath came to him hard as he let go a few rungs before the bottom, shoving off to gain momentum. He hit the floor at a full tilt sprint, every muscle in his body screamed. Running in full armor was hard enough but now he added the weight of a full grown woman with gear of her own weighing him down. The goblins were on them by his second step, the ones that weren't feeding on the dead that is. One had nearly blocked their path ;however, Galen was moving to quickly for it to react. He slammed into it shoulder first, smashing through as it bounced off the wall.

'Must go faster,' he screamed at himself as an arrow zipped by his head. He could practically feel the hot stink of their breath on his back through the mages chill. 'Come on....faster!' Pure adrenaline carried him now as he reached the end of the corridor and spun right, plunging into the muck. The sewer water would slow him down but it would also slow persuit. There was no plan at this point, all his attention was on survival. Left turn, right turn, left turn, feel the tingle and narrowly dodge the arrow, right turn. He was lost, to much commotion, no time to her his barrings. He made another left turn, the creatures bellowing behind him, nearly colliding with a spear tip as he jolted to the side but never slowed. His mind had barely registered the two new arrivals as he and barreled headlong into the darkness with the fugitive mage on his back.

[draco]

Liliana couldn't help but clap her hands together excitedly just before she jumped in.  Oh goodness this was going to be great, this man was so humble and he was allowing her to come along to witness such greatness!  It took all of her effort to not squeal with joy even as the smell of the sewers assailed her nostrils.  Quickly she pulled a strip of cloth from her pack and tied it so that it covered her mouth and nose and took a leap down into the place causing a splash of who knows what as she landed on her boots safely.

"Dank, Dark, the sweet music of conflict just down the way, this is going to be great I'm sure!" she stated, keeping her favorite instrument and her backpack out of the filth as much as she could.  She couldn't bear to have these things get filthy, her boots and pants? sure! but these were special.  Oh, and her hat of course!  Double checking to make sure her tall hat was placed tightly around her head she started the trek forward with him, giving him at least three arm-length's of space as she marched with each step causing a bit of splashing with her confidant stroll.  "Don't worry, Sir Ben, I shall not get in the way of your wonderful spear! You wont even see or hear me, promise you that!"

See her? maybe not, but hear? She already was itching to play a little song about his trek into the darkness to face against the odds of what seemed to be goblins and two fugitives.  That, and she had far too many questions for him now about his wonderful golden spear that seemed to shimmer even in the darkness.  "tell me, that wonderful artifact of yours, did you get it from a dragons hoard? Slay a grand beast to acquire it? delve into dungeons deep as we are about to?"

As the noise started to get closer though, the sounds of feral screeching and gnashing teeth along with quick singular footsteps made her go on guard suddenly.  This was the real thing, she had to put on her serious face... she loosened the ties that were holding her blades at her side, gulping down any sign of hesitation she suddenly had and bringing her lute to the ready.  If she had to use Spellsong she would, but she wanted to see this hero in action too and not take away all the fu- combat... its real combat...

Then, out of the blue and in a blur of motion a large, powerful man in heavy looking armor blasted past them both without a care in the world.  It took a moment for even Liliana to register the shock as she looked back at the fleeing individuals and then she glanced back to Ben as she jutted her thumb back to the man carrying a woman on his back.

"Those didn't happen to be who you're looking for, right?"

Another brief moment passed, and quickly she realized the sounds of feral screaming was a lot closer than she had initially thought, usually she was pretty good at judging distance by sound but as she glanced back the entire sewer seemed to be flooding in a sea of green skin from top to bottom.  Eyes as dark as the night, teeth like daggers, wielding small scraps of weapons and armor.  Each one hungry, each one looking to tear apart whatever happened to be in their way...

...Liliana had never run so fast in her life.  Nearly losing her hat from the initial burst of speed she quickly followed the heavily armored man, only looking back to make sure that she was being followed by Ben.  A nervous laughter escaped from her smiling lips as she looked back where they were going.

"E-E-Exciting! Truly! Th-This will be the best story!" she giggled nervously

[Zeritia]

Ben

Ben prepared to take an opening thrust at the individual that was running towards them, but as they closed the distance he saw it was the armored assailant with the girl on his back judging by how cold it was getting as they got closer. The assailant sped past them without even giving the duo a glance and Ben saw why. "Goblins, lots of them too...eh if we were top side I'd feel a lot better about fighting goblins." He followed after Liliana since she was following the armored individual. Goblin arrows and squeals echoed in the darkness . "Ah Liliana, don't get too excited or else ya might trip. After all Goblins are voracious eaters and if you stop for one second your dead." She couldn't see it but he had a lop-sided smile as they ran for their lives. 

[draco]

Liliana focused on what was straight ahead, the back of an injured woman riding on the back of this heavily armored solider type as she tried her best not to lose her footing amongst the muck and foul.  She wanted to turn back to quip at Ben a bit, but she was doing her best to keep up at the moment.

"Of course!" She laughed, her nervous laughter echoing throughout the sewers, "I am perfectly able to not trip, good sir!  I-I know enough about goblins! But I must thank you for your kindness and valor, truly any old c-coward would have run past! t-truly a magnificent hero!!" the lady exclaimed her words as her feet became a blur, kicking up muck and gunk and who knows what with every wide stride.  She didn't have time to think about how dirty things were being though with the horde at their backside.  "and a good hero knows when to run!"

There were a few ways she could have calmed her nerves down, but she knew she had to do something or else the horde might catch up to them, they were much better equipped to run and chase down in their home turf so she needed to do something to stall them perhaps.  Fumbling with her lute, she brought it to her chest and took in a deep breath as she felt Spellsong coursing through her fingertips and she started with a single, powerful strum that echoed out.  The magic of song flowed through the air, and she briefly glanced behind her to get a look at what she was dealing with...  Objects that a few of the front goblins were wearing would have to do.

Then she began to play, a fast and quick tune to help everyone pick up the pace.  A few goblins suddenly found the uncontrollable urge to dance, specifically the dirty boots of a few greenskins in the front that caused other behind them to crash into them and causing brief pileups that would keep them from catching up for now.  Never had she seen magic like her own, in fact it was hard to tell since her magic didn't have much for visual splendor.  Many a time had she passed herself using spellsong as sleight of hand or strange occurrences of luck and while she liked to keep it to herself as much as possible... she wanted to make sure those goblins didn't catch up.

Seeing her brief success she let out a cry of joy, nearly tripping over her own feet in the process and slowing down immensely before she could recover and keep herself going.  Continuing to play to help calm her nerves in quick, fast strokes of her instrument.  "Sorry! I like to play when I'm nervous!!" she yelled out, "I'll have a new song at the end of this though, by golly I will!"

[Zeritia]

Ben

Ben's smile evened out as he saw the goblins begin to pile up among themselves. "Hehe how fortunate for us." His smile became playful at the irony of the situation. He was hired to chase the armored figure down and make sure the girl didn't kill anyone too important, yet here they all were running from a horde of goblins...in the sewers. He would have chuckled if not for another sound, a sound of running water. "We're getting close to an exit from the sewers so best brace your self Liliana Capri!" It appears this little escapade was nearly over, one way or another. 

[Knukails]

Vokun

The prince leaned back in his chair, stroking his beard absentmindedly watching Vokun snore unceremoniously on his couch. Watching the boy started to heavy his own eye lids. Unfortunately, just before he could fall away, one of his personal aides walked into the room. "Oh, Maelrom". The prince said as he wiped the tiredness from his eyes. "Apologies my prince did i wake you"? Maelrom inquired. Prince Garrett waves the mans concerns away. "Not at all, though i recommend not watching the boy sleep". He laughed quietly. "His slumber is quite infectious". "Now, whats going on"? He pours the aide a cup of spirits before gesturing for him to sit.


"It appears that all of the pieces have arrived to the board Garrett". The aide said as he took a sip. "While im no man to argue against fate i can't help but think...".
"Come on Mael". The prince leads. "Right sorry sire, well we have War Advisor Wassa whose experience is an incredible boon". "The boy is a bit of an unknown but if the late Graff's advertisements are correct...". "The elf you spoke to earlier appears to be a close associate to the leather worker & you know how picky she is about people". The prince nods at his aids statements. "Ive yet to see anything wrong". He says satisfied. "Well sire, the others you wish to meet...they're quite...odd".

"The mercenary with the long spear is known to be a bit of a drunk & a leaning towards poor fortune". "The Sylvaire, Lady Luna, isn't all that strong but with her connections i can see the interest". "The Raven, Galen i think, is a bit of an unknown". "From reports he is strong & quick of wit but is heard to carry burdens".

The prince finishes his spiced spirit with a grin. "You must think beyond the surface my friend". "Wassa aside, they all have considerable potential & even more importantly they all have a grievance". "Combined with how varied their skillset & backgrounds are this Company may be a force to be reckoned with". "Do let me know when they arrive at the gates". The aide rises & bows. "As you wish".

[Dragonseluna]

Luna

She barely caught a glimpse of two other individuals as Galen ran through the maze of corridors trying to find a way out. It was in that second they passed those two individuals her heart sank much further. From just seeing a flash of gold she knew it wasn't an ordinary guard. 'It must've been a mercenary specifically hired by Alex.' She was about to attempt casting magic again, but she could feel her power was just sapped from the pain, the poison, and extended use. However, she heard a lute being played which caught her attention. As she turned her head behind her ever so slightly she saw the hoard of goblins begin to collapse ever so briefly only to pick back up again shortly after. She took a brief sigh of relief until she heard it. She could care less about the people after her and the goblins. She could care less about the lute being played at an extremely fast pace with a woman screaming about being nervous. She could hear it over the chaos. The rush of water was faint but it was becoming increasingly louder. She was about to make a complaint but decided to keep it to herself. As long as it was clean water, she could use a bath.

[shadowknight]

Galen

'Is that,' Galen noticed the outlines of the tunnel walls starting to form, "its getting brighter." The sounds of rushing water reached his ears over the chaos behind them. With each step the darkness began to peel away until he saw it. Light, actual light coming from around the corner.

"We're almost out Luna," he said through ragged breaths, "just hang on." As he barreled around the last corner he was bathed in dim sunlight pouring in through a wide opening. 'A drain?' He shook his head. 'Is there enough water to catch us below?' The sounds behind him carried him on, only now did he notice the music. With only feet away there was no time to wonder, no time to plan.

"Hold on tight Luna!" One more step "Now!" He screamed using his momentum to launch himself forward. For a brief moment he felt weightless, the world felt as if it slowed around him as he watched the river below rush to embrace them. His last thought before they hit the water was, 'hope she can swim.'

[Zeritia]

Ben

Ben saw the light illuminate the outline of the two individuals and they both fell, possibly into the river. At this point Ben began to exert himself faster and made tremendous effort to lift her onto his shoulder as he prepared to use Old Reliable as a means to launch himself and the girl. Chances were if he didn't the two of them and his targets would end up a tangled mess drowning all together.  

[draco]

Liliana saw the two ahead of her suddenly seem to drop off the face of the world, disappearing into the light like they would be seen in the afterlife she would shortly join. She yelped, skidding to a halt just before the edge of the jump, sending muck and garbage skittering back down into the depths of the flowing river beneath. She let out a sigh of relief and before anything could happen she felt a sudden force on her lifting her up. The impact of shoulder against Ben nearly took the air out of her in a heaving whoosh and quickly picked up over his shoulder while trying to catch her breath. She was heavier than she seemed with her backpack and instruments.

And soon she suddenly found herself feeling weightless, watching as the edge of the pipe was left behind, goblins stopping at the edge with a few slipping off into the drink, and she quickly realized that she was going through the air. With whatever breath she had left she let out a cry... whether of fear or of joy she couldn't tell but the world seemed to be slowed to a crawl... her hat flying off her head from the force.

[Dragonseluna]

Luna


To the world, it was just a few seconds but to the four people who jumped out of the sewers and into that river they were weightless, drifting through the air for what felt like forever. She had her eyes closed for most of the jump, however, it was when they began to descend that Luna had weakly opened her eyes. She and Galen dropped almost like a pile of rocks, hitting the water hard. Her breath held and eyes closed Luna felt as if she was out of control of her body, practically sinking. She opened her eyes and almost took in a massive breath of water, stopping herself just in time. She painfully swam to the surface, the pain killing her shoulder and she could tell that whatever strength she had gained back from that short amount of rest was about to be expended. She gasped reaching the surface and swam slowly to Galen's side. Grabbing him tightly by his left arm she twirled her hand through the water and whispered in a quiet weak voice. "Hsulf." The two would begin spinning for a short amount of time as if the water had a mind of its own. It then shot Galen and Luna toward the nearest bank, launching Galen onto his feet if he was quick enough and gently placing Luna on her back. It was at this point she could tell that she really needed help. She didn't have the ingredients on her to cure a minor poison such as this and although weak, the grass around her was turning white as snow but it didn't reach far. Luna tried to stay awake as best she could, even trying to force herself to stand. "M-must.... reach... p-p-palace." That's when she collapsed, hard into the ground. The poison wouldn't kill her, but she was out for the count for a while.

[Lady Ruliya]

It hadn't taken Zaphia long to wade herself through the throng and back to the bridge. As she began to walk across of the right hand side however, she heard what she thought to be a scream coming from down below. The voice was that of a young woman most certainly. Human. It wasn't loud enough to be heard above the hustle and bustle of the city streets however, so she quickly manoeuvred herself to the edge of the bridge. The side walls only came up to her waist, giving her a great advantage of the river and plain below. After a few moments of watching, she noticed what appeared to be water magically placing two people, an armoured male, and a lightly clothed girl in robes. Whether she was the one who had screamed or not, she was uncertain, however she looked deathly pale and perhaps on deaths door. She couldn't be certain from up here, but she could make out the injury to her shoulder, from an arrow by the looks. If it was from a Goblins arrow, which she had been told infest the cities sewer systems, it would likely have a poison on it. Fortunately for the girl below, goblins made terrible poisons.

Zaphia, while constantly watching below, made her way back to the city side of the bridge and down some steps along the cliffside. The stone steps wound themselves down to the bottom of the bridge, but for now she positioned herself at a good vantage point and placed her bow in her arms, but left it undrawn, for now she would simple watch, and wait.