RuneScape Forum Archive | ^+^ The Age of Nhur ^+^

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

Chapter2
<><>
Rajh walked down the alley towards his destination, his sorrow evident to anyone who took the time to look at him. Luckily for him nobody seemed to care that much because he was just another Rakshasa roaming the streets, and anyone who wasn’t a member of the race generally couldn’t tell them apart from one another if they shared similar fur colors and markings anyway.

Turning a few corners, he found himself in the area known as The Den, one of the seedier parts of Ukrosha, which was home to many bars where any deal could be done without anyone asking questions, not to mention the odd street gang or two that also made their home there for reasons that were beyond Rajh’s understanding.

Picking up his pace, he made his way through the streets littered with drunks, and other unsavory types that came out at night, until he reached a building that looked like it had seen better days, as the shadows which were shaped into the stone and woodwork for support had apparently faded away long ago, leaving it more or less caved in near the back of the building.

After looking around to make sure he wasn’t being watched, Rajh slipped into the building through a broken down wall, taking care to land quietly. He surveyed the interior, which looked just as bad, if not worse, as the exterior. He noticed a few wooden chairs with broken legs littering parts of the floor, and in the center a bar which was horribly cracked down the middle had apparently collapsed on top of….something. The Rakshasa couldn’t tell what was hidden underneath the debris, but then again he didn't really care at this point.

He glimpsed a small iron handle poking out of the rubble in a corner near the former doorway. Heading towards it, he reached down and grasped the handle before pulling it up to reveal a trap door that led downwards into a dark tunnel.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:15:14 - Last edited on 23-Oct-2010 04:35:55 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

Deciding he had nothing to lose at this point, he dropped down, landing on his feet just as quietly as he did when he first entered the building. As the door closed above him with a click, Rajh immediately noticed his vision turning gray, which in turn made the tunnel seem brighter than it really was. He quickly ran into the tunnel, which was nondescript as far as he had seen, and eventually came across a symbol drawn on a wall that depicted a broken sword buried into a crown. He realized that was the symbol that his employers used to mark their territory, and touched it as he said the command word he was taught upon being hired.

His vision shifted around him as he lurched forward, causing his stomach to turn as the teleport took effect. He let out a yelp as it came to a sudden stop, and he found himself in a well lit room with an arched doorway that led into a larger den. A voice sounded behind him. “Hey, you’re late. Kaz said she was waiting for you, so I guess you should go find her before she starts without you.”

Rajh turned to see who addressed him, and was surprised to find that he came face to face with a floating orb. The orb looked just like any other uncharged and ordinary orb at a glance, but closer inspection revealed a swirling face which looked like it had belonged to a female during life….if the face had ever been alive at all, that is. “Alright,” he said. “Vhere is she zhen?”

The orb seemed to brighten up a bit at his response before answering, “I was told she was in the debriefing room near the study. I’m heading that way myself, so would you mind if I accompanied you?”

“Ummm….Sure, vhy not. I don’t know zis place vell anyvay.”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:15:42

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Alright then,” it replied. “Follow me. It shouldn’t take long”. The orb floated towards then den, and Rajh followed. He realized that the den was a lot bigger than he first thought, and instead of shadows accompanying the wooden walls for support, he was surprised to find that there were no shadows present in the architecture at all, save for the ones which were cast because of the lighting provided by floating fairie fires dotting the walls every few feet.

He was led through the den and into a hall, which had many doors on both sides. It was then he realized that he made the smart move, because he couldn’t tell the doors apart from each other once he walked long enough. Keeping pace, he asked his floating companion, “Sooo…..if you don’t mind me asking. Vhat are you anyvay?”

The orb made a sound that sounded like a giggle, faint, yet girlish in a creepy sort of way. “If you mean which race I belong to, I was a Shade like anyone else. If you mean why I’m floating in this orb, well…..tell me, how well do you understand magic?”

“Not vell,” Rajh answered. “All young Rakshasa are taught enough to cast a few minor spells to help us hunt and defend ourselves if necessary, but as for ze understanding of how it vorks, only our shamans know zat stuff. Most find it…not needed.”

“Ah, then I guess an explanation would most likely confuse you if I went into details. Let’s just say that some magic allows living beings to separate our souls from our bodies so we can achieve immortality. Or, at the very least, a way to escape some dangerous situations until a more accommodating one presents itself.”

“Ssooo….zen vhat are you? Alive or dead?” Rajh was getting more and more confused as he thought about it.

“Neither. I was set upon by some Ordinators a while back, and my escape made me end up here in this orb since my body was destroyed thanks to their blades. Ah, we’re here, so we’ll have to continue this later.”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:15:53 - Last edited on 23-Oct-2010 04:37:21 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

They stopped at a door that stood out from the rest. Unlike the others, which were nondescript, this one had silver trimmings on it, which wound themselves into various shapes and symbols, some of which Rajh guessed were probably wards against trespassers. Turning to the orb he said, “Vell, it vas nice talking to you, I zink. I must go now, I guess.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll be filled in during the briefing.” Was the orb’s reply. Now even more confused, Rajh turned to open the door. After feeling a slight tingle run through his body, it opened up to reveal a medium sized room with various maps of Ukrosha on the wall, and a glass table in the center of the room. Kaz, Joran, and few others that Rajh didn't recognize, a balding fat man being one of them, were sitting around the table, and turned to look at him as he entered with the orb floating right behind him.

“Alright, looks like everyone’s here,” Kaz said. She waved her hand, causing the door to slam shut behind Rajh. Taking the only seat he could find, Kaz addressed the room. “As you all know, we went through with the attack last night as planned. Thing is, we didn't expect the shot to be released as soon as it did, let alone end up in a four-on-one duel with Nhur.”

“Vhat ze hell?! You didn't tell me vhat ze damn signal vas supposed to be!” Rajh protested.

“Calm down Rajh, it’s not entirely your fault,” Kaz replied. “There wasn’t a clear shot, so I had to make room for one. Unfortunately, it also alerted Nhur, and in doing so caused him to prepare a spell shield.”

The big, bald man sitting next to Rajh coughed. Looking over, he noticed that the shade in question had shadows lining the wrinkles along his face, along with a long, white beard, which made him appear older than he actually sounded. “Lukil,” Kaz said, addressing the heavy set man, “do you have anything you would like to add?”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:16:11 - Last edited on 23-Oct-2010 04:37:50 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Actually, yes, I do.” Lukil responded. “It appears to me that the entire reason the plan failed was because of poor planning. I mean, while we were planning how to put a bolt through the emperor’s head, we didn't plan on any back up plans, let alone research what he's exactly capable of.”

“Fair enough,” Kaz replied, “But you must understand, we were under pressure at the time. We all know that anyone who’s becoming the new emperor can only ascend on a night which has a full moon in the sky so the ascension ritual could be properly powered by the Chantry mages present.”

“Yes, we’re all aware of that, but what good does it do if we lose our leader in the process!?" Lukil retorted.

Kaz brushed a strand of black hair out of her face, and then shot back, “It doesn’t, but in the meantime we just bought ourselves some time. When I got back, I immediately scried the palace, and saw no lights in the ritual chamber. The very fact that I managed to do that and not get any magical backlash leads me to believe that Nhur missed the deadline, and now needs to wait until the next full moon for the ritual.”

Joran cleared his throat before speaking. “Sorry to interrupt, Kaz, but just how do we know that he’s not playing us? I mean, in case you hadn’t noticed back there, he fried us both pretty badly without trying.”

The orb answered, "I don’t mean to answer for Kaz, but I was in the group that put the counterspells up on the palace. Only once someone ascends to the throne completely will the magic activate and repel any invasion of privacy.”

“So that means we could just storm the place in force and not have to worry about any real defenses, right?” Joran asked.

“Not really, because then we’d still have to deal with the Ordinators, along with anything else they keep in there for ‘security purposes’. Not to mention that doing so would probably not be in our best interest at this point,” the orb replied.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:16:24 - Last edited on 15-Sep-2010 01:59:36 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Azi’s right,” Kaz said, nodding towards the floating orb. “We have no reason to do that anyway, because we have a full month before the next full moon. In the meantime, our main priority should be getting Arial out of this mess we got him into.”

Lukil and Rajh looked confused. “That’s a noble mission to be sure,” Lukil replied, “But, do we know where he is? There are a few dozen prisons around Ukrosha, and he could be in any one of them at this point.”

“Actually,” Azi said, “I was scrying the encounter as it was happening, and I have reason to believe that he’s being held at Skyvern Keep.” Lukil didn't seem to recognize the name. “You might know it as ‘The Keep’ for short. I heard Nhur mention it to his guards when he ordered them to arrest Arial.”

“Wait, you mean to tell me that we’re going to get him out of a prison that’s rumored to be inescapable?” Lukil asked.

“Yes,” Kaz said. “And since you seem too eager to criticize our ‘poor planning’, you’ll be working with Rajh and Azi to determine the best course of action in this endeavor.”

“Oh, great,” Rajh growled. “I vas hired to put bolts through enemy heads, not break anyone out of jail.”

“Hey,” Joran said, “I’ll talk to Arial if-when- he gets back, and we’ll see about a rematch with Nhur. We’ll even talk about doubling your pay if you agree to see this to the end.”

“Ze brute seems to understand the Rakshasa ways,” Rajh answered. “I’ll tell you vhat: I stay for ze normal pay I vas promised, out of respect for ze Koshir, but I vant to be ze one who puts my bolt through ze creature’s head.”

“Well, it looks like we have our planners,” Kaz said happily. “You may want to get started as soon as possible. Time is of the essence now."

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:16:38 - Last edited on 20-Oct-2010 04:21:50 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

Addressing the remaining members at the table, Kaz added, “Everyone else, go prepare your respective forces. We’ll need them when the time comes. You’re dismissed in the meantime.”

~^+^~

Rajh, Azi, and Lukil waited until everyone else finished filing out of the room before approaching Kaz. “I hate to say it, Kaz,” Lukil said, “But what you’re asking is too much. Attacking and killing Nhur was reasonable since anything can die in time, but this is The Keep we’re talking about here! Nobody in the entire history of the empire- nobody- has managed to break out of there, let alone break in.”

“Look,” she retorted, “I’m well aware of what I’m asking. In case you did*’t notice, we didn't think it was possible to survive a fight with a Mahjarrat, but we did it anyway. Besides, what I didn't say when everyone was here was that ‘as soon as possible’ means you’ll need to wait until tomorrow to start planning.”

“Oh,” Rajh said, “Vhy is zhat?”

“Well, for starters, if everything works out, by the end of the afternoon I might have something that could get you in.”

Lukil seemed to think it over for a bit. He knew that Kaz was no slouch in the magic and knowledge department, so anything she could create, magical or not, would be a big help. At the same time, he knew The Keep would likely be warded against magical intrusion, thus ruling out any magical means of breaking in. Trusting his instincts, he only nodded and accepted her judgment before leaving the room with Rajh and Azi in tow.

If she was right, then their chances of success just drastically improved before the plan even began to form...if only just slightly

^+^ The End of Chapter2 ^+^

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:16:49 - Last edited on 23-Oct-2010 04:38:28 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

Chapter3
<><>
Arial woke up in complete darkness. Looking around, he noticed that his eyes weren’t naturally adjusting to the darkness, and began to worry a bit. A low, rumbling voice whispered out of nowhere. “Don’t try lookin’ around, stranger. I’m thinkin’ the guards will lift the blindness spell they put on you when they’re good an’ ready.”

“Thanks, I guess,” he replied. “At the very least, can I ask where the hell am I?”

“Oh, sure. That ain’t no secret. They called this here place ‘The Keep’. I dunno if it means anything to ya, but it sure as hell means nothing to me, that’s for sure!”

Arial’s heart began racing, though he wasn’t surprised. In fact, he expected that Nhur would decide to lock him up if he wasn’t killed outright. Knowing the Mahjarrat’s arrogance, he would most likely make sure Arial’s punishment was very public, and very brutal at that.

One step at a time, he told himself. Taking deep breaths to calm himself, Arial sorted through what knowledge he knew of The Keep. For starters, he knew that the actual prison itself was located on a bluff that overlooked Ukrosha’s eastern walls. He also knew from his time in Ix’s service that the only way to get to the bluff itself was by aerial means-there was one complex counterspell blocking any magical means of reaching the bluff, and a roaming Rakshasa tribe had destroyed the only bridge leading to it from the ground a few years back- and on top of that, he knew that even if anyone could reach the bluff, it was heavily guarded by Ordinators around the clock.

Arial also remembered that the cells within the prison were next to inescapable. The doors were warded with various nasty spells that would kill anyone who attempted to pick the locks, and on top of that, they were lined with Mithril and Adamantite, making any attempts to force them open pointless pretty damn quickly.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:19:26

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“So,” the voice interrupted. “What are ya in for?”

Wincing, Arial recalled the battle with Nhur. He figured that since he had nothing to lose at this point, he might as well tell whoever was asking the questions what happened. After all, it’s not like the owner of the voice was a guard, or else he would have already known, since all guards stationed at The Keep kept tabs on anyone that was brought in.

“I was involved with…..attempted murder.”

“Oh, really? Who’d ya try to kill? What happened? Details, man, details! A guy gets bored after so long here!”

Arial felt annoyed at the owner of the voice, but managed to restrain himself from letting it show. He couldn’t blame the poor soul, after all, because he knew it spoke the truth, especially if it’s been there for quite a while. “I tried to kill the emperor himself. I’m part of the rebellion that was organized after Ix died.”

A short while passed before the voice spoke again. “Damn, no wonder why they decided to put you here. Now that you mention it, what the guards said makes a lot more sense.”

“Oh? What did they say?*

"That you were to be put to death, for starters. I heard them talking about some general, and since you were the only new guy that admitted to being part of that rebellion, I’m assumin’ it’s you.”

Go figure, he thought. So far his fate seemed pretty much sealed. “Yeah, I’m the general alright. Well, ex-general anyway. The name’s Arial.”

“Grim, in case you’re wonderin’ my name too. If you don’t mind me askin’, what’s the deal with the whole rebellion thing anyway? Seems like a whole lotta trouble for nothin’.”

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:19:47 - Last edited on 14-Sep-2010 20:28:35 by A Mad Hatter

Dec

2005

A Mad Hatter

Forum Moderator Posts: 9,861 Rune Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile

“Well,” Arial started. “It all began a while back….” He proceeded to explain what happened, starting with how Nhur came into Ukrosha looking disheveled, beaten, and near death. He claimed it was a Rakshasa horde that did it to him, and begged Ix to send some royal aid to his village in the east. The Ordinators, led by Arial at the time, found the horde and defeated them, and returned to find Ix missing, as well as Nhur proclaimed as the heir to the throne. Under Ix’s own orders, of course.

He went on to explain how he and Joran, his second in command at the time, did some investigating, and accidentally stumbled upon Nhur as he revealed himself to be a Mahjarrat by shapeshifting while courting Kaz, who was serving Ix as his court mage by orders of the Chantry itself. After that it became apparent that Nhur was trying to gain control of the throne, but why was unclear to him, though he knew that whenever the Mahjarrat race was involved with something, it was never good. Arial ended his tale at the encounter with Nhur, which led to his current predicament.

“Huh,” Grim said. “I heard some crazy stuff before, but this takes the cake.”

“I don’t blame you,” Arial replied. “I was just as surprised as anyone else at finding Nhur reveal his true nature.”

A new voice interrupted. “Alright, you two.” Arial’s vision suddenly cleared, and he found himself looking at what looked like a rock in the shape of a hulking man. The creature’s body showed many bumps on its skin, with blue eyes which conveyed an intelligence that belied its looks. Arial turned towards the sound of the new voice, and found a guard looking at them. Pointing to the Grim, he said “Get away from the door, creature! Get! You,” he addressed Arial as Grim backed away. “Hands behind your back. You’re coming with me.”

Resigned to his fate, Arial complied as the guard opened the door. “Where ya takin’ him?” Grim asked.

^+^ Antediluvian of the Draculesti Bloodline ^+^

^+^ If the Gods see fit to curse us with the Blood, then we shall raise ourselves above them ^+^

01-Apr-2010 04:20:05

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^+^ The Age of Nhur ^+^