A demise..?

[Octiovus]

A demise…?

The night seemed usual, Sir Hugo sat in the dim light of the candle kneeling, uttering a prayer to his Lord. The light shining through the stain glass window gave the church a strange glow. Sir Hugo began to feel somewhat uneasy. The candles flickered. He heard footsteps. A dull patter of boots getting closer and closer towards the thick oak doors of the church. He stood, slowly glancing around and grabbing the heavy iron war hammer from the table near by. He gripped the hilt tightly in his gauntleted hands. The footsteps got louder, until he saw a silhouette walk past the stain glass window at the front of the church…

The heavy oak door began to creak as it was slowly opened, further and further it opened until in the gloom the figure stood there. Hugo called out to him “Declare thyself!” The figure took no heed but advanced slowly, with what Hugo could make out to be in the darkness a smile, until the figure came into focus, and then he saw who his supposed enemy was. There, in full dress and armour, stood the Baron. He chortled. “Ah! Sir Hugo. Now now, no need to be so jumpy, mm?” Hugo glared. It was unusual for the Baron to be roaming this late at night, and he knew that no good would come of this. The door creaked loudly, still left open; a few leaves blew in from the windy dank night outside.

“Why is late the hour you choose to appear, my liege..?”

“Ah, yes…. Well, it would not ‘usually’ be so, of course. But I had… Matters to discuss.  It would seem certain accusations have come to light, Hugo.”

“Indeed..?”

One of the candles flickered, and went out. The light dimmed. The book of the scriptures fell off the altar. Hugo lent down and picked it up, meeting the Barons gaze. He spoke once more…

“Yes, indeed, Hugo. Quite nasty accusations, really. Apparently you made certain remarks, am I the faithless ruler now? Turned from Avatar, have I? Such a shame. I found it hard to tolerate your activities at the best of times. You were always, a rogue. A necessary evil, one could say. While your order was strong, you were … bearable. But now, where is your order? Where are your brethren? Dead? Lost? They lost faith in you. The Avatarian faith is a mere shadow. A bother. And with these remarks, well… I suppose ‘twas the last straw. No matter.”

Hugo made an attempt to speak, but the Baron shook his hand.

“Tut, tut. Too late for that. You’ve spoken for far too long… You’re old. Cove needs your kind not anymore. Have a ‘pleasant’ evening.”

The Baron turned, his cloak flowing in the wind. He marched swiftly back towards the door laughing slightly as he went, and before Hugo could take stock of the situation the door was shut. And a loud “clunk” indicated the door was locked from the outside. Sir Hugo glanced around he could hear many voices from outside, some he recognized as guards of Cove. Grenadiers perhaps, he thought, though his thinking time was cut short as suddenly the room was filled with the sound of crashing, shards of glass flew everywhere. Explosions rained down. The curtains behind the altar ignited. The holy scriptures were blown into a million tiny pieces of parchment and a thick black smoke filled the room. Sir Hugo was thrown down to the floor, his armour denting in numerous places, the hammer slid across the stone floor, it’s ancient seal breaking into a mere red pulp on the dark stone floor.  Darkness began to fill his eyes, the flickering of the fires all around him faded… The room span around, then slowly it stopped and there was nothing… Nothing but darkness…

[Octiovus]

A stroll too far…

Jarvis staggered out of the tavern into the chilly night air. Trees swayed in the wind, casting dark shadows. Jarvis began to regret his decision to stay late in the tavern gambling and drinking, but he worked hard, he rationalized, a man needs some rest. He pulled his cloak tight about him as he began to walk towards Cove, the rain drops seemed to be conspiring against him. He hated rain; every drop seemed to hit him in the eyes. He staggered and tripped over a stone onto the wet grass. He grumbled darkly wiping his muddied hands on his trousers. As he pulled himself up, something caught his eye in the distance…

A bright light, what looked to be fire, coming from the church? Without thinking, he rushed to investigate, his footsteps echoing through the night. He ran for what seemed like an age, the church gradually coming closer into view. He saw now the entire building was engulfed in flames and dark figures were around it jeering and heckling. He could hear their chants of victory and triumph in the wind. They assembled in front of a cloaked figure. Jarvis rubbed his nose with the back of his glove. He was no hero, he just lived here. The guards would take care of the situation, he thought to himself. That’s what they were paid for, after all, he quickly decided. But he saw the figures began to get closer, moving away from the church and heading in his direction, he gulped, they’d seen him! He could hear their shouts on the wind. “Halt! Halt!” they cried. He wasn’t going to stick around, he turned and ran.

Jarvis glanced back, now sprinting as fast as his legs would carrying, occasionally slipping on the wet grass, his lead on the figures was slowly being lost. Suddenly, there was a whizzing noise. Something flew past Jarvis’ ear and embedded itself in a near by tree. He glanced at it, still running, if it could be called that as he now staggered on, panting heavily. It was a crossbow bolt! The severity of the situation dawned on Jarvis. This wasn’t just going to be another night in the cells for a petty bar brawl; this would be the death of him if he didn’t think of something fast. He leapt behind a near-by boulder, his hat falling off as he did so; the figures were still some distance away. He would be safe, he thought. The figures footsteps were heavier, getting closer and closer, they were only a few yards away from him now, he reckoned. He could see their torch light illuminating the night. He could hear them shout… “We know you’re around here somewhere! Give it up!” Jarvis sat still. The foot steps got closer. The light was now directly behind him. The light faded slightly, Jarvis breathed a sigh of relief, the men were going, he thought. This was not the case… He peered over the rock ever so cautiously, and to his dismay he saw one of the men leaning over, examining Jarvis’ hat.  The man turned, and Jarvis caught his gaze. “YOU!” the guard cried, advancing towards Jarvis.

Jarvis fumbled in his belt. He was no fighter, and a weapon was not the first thing to hand. He grabbed a chisel, in the few seconds he had to think it seemed like a reasonable idea. The man was now in front of Jarvis, weapon drawn and raised, Jarvis lashed out at the man, cutting into his armour sending a squirt of deep red blood into the sky. The man staggered back. Jarvis took the confusion as a fresh chance to make his gate away….

[John Dell]

[OOC]Oh my god, no more Hugo? No more savings from big bad Ogre lord generals in britain at night? Ack, I shall miss his clear hatred of tramps and thugs. Ack where has the world gone too? My memory must be bad, who's Jarvis, a pety thug?[/OOC]

[Ben Radau]

A bulky figure appears out of the shadows of Cove´s city walls and quietly strolls towards the barracks. Ben is tired and exhausted of defending his fathers mines, and is only looking for a short beer and to give a sign of live to his supperiors.
Suddenly he stops and watches the still smoking ruins of the church. "BY REORXX! WHAT?!" He sends his mind through the remains, but can´t find any hints of life. "Phoo, at least noone got hurt. But NOBODY SHOULD TREAT A HOLY BUILDING LIKE THAT!!!" He shakes his head and continues his way towards the barracks. "I think there are some ass to kick for that behaviour." Still mumbling he vanishes in the dark.

[OOC: Though Benny secretly still believes to his dwarven gods, he loathes such actions!! Wait till in 1 1/2 weeks, when I am able to continue to play!!]