Khaelieth
Citizen of Cove
Covian Legend
Karma: +61/-82
Posts: 4381
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« on: October 03, 2006, 01:08:06 am » |
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The dark-skinned warrior sat directly in front of Khaelieth, his feet resting on the table, ankles crossed. He was flicking a dagger between his hands, reversing, twirling and spinning. Khaelieth looked at it somewhat bored.
"You know there's no practical reason to be able to do that."
Shrugging, the warrior looked out of the cave, into the moonlit forest.
"It doesn't impress the girls."
The warrior continued spinning the sleek blade between his fingers, casually throwing it into the air to catch the pommel with his other hand, point vertical.
"Saer'tarah should be back by now."
The warrior shrugged again, squinting at the bright light.
Sighing, Khaelieth strode outside into the moonlight. His gray and forest camouflaged cloak made him almost invisible at night. Looking around, he could barely make out Saer'tarah scrambling up the rocks towards the cave. A bit further down the slope Khaelieth spotted three crude creatures stumbling their way up after Saer'tarah. Spinning, Khaelieth signaled with his hands to the warrior to come out. The warrior crept out of the cave, looking at the point Khaelieth was pointing at. Khaelieth hunched and began to move silently towards Saer'tarah. Saer'tarah was slowing down, the crude creatures slowly beginning to overtake him.
As one they struck. Saer'tarah turned, hand-crossbow and poisoned quarrel trained at the first, whilst the warrior stabbed at the one at the back with a poisoned longsword. Khaelieth fired off a spell of paralysing, freezing the one in the middle. The last one's neck was only grazed by Saer'tarah's bolt, but suddenly his eyes rolled up and he collapsed.
Saratras was cleaning his blade on the humanoid's coat. Saer'tarah was sitting hunched over the unconscious one. Khaelieth sat on a rock a bit above, silently gazing into the forest.
"Better hide the corpses. The creatures seem to be quite close-knit here."
Nodding, Saer'tarah looked at Saratras. Saratras grabbed one of the corpses and began dragging him up the rocky slope. Lifting a second one up with an arcane incantation, Khaelieth made the body levitate behind him. Saer'tarah hoisted the last over his shoulder, maneuvering him up the steep hill.
When at last the bodies were dumped down the shaft, Saratras turned on his brother.
"You failed." His voice was controlled, but his tone was full of dismay.
"You weren't supposed to be seen. Some women will be missing their husbands tomorrow, and it won't be difficult to track them here," Khaelieth continued.
"He's right. You were simply to scout the area, figure out their numbers and report."
Nodding his acquiescence, Saer'tarah looked down in dismay.
"Since this is your first mistake and that your young, it'll be only ten lashes. But since you bring shame on me by being my brother, it's another five. These fifteen are to be monitored by Frimaz'deuss as soon we get back. I assumed you've got all the information?" Saer'tarah nodded and let out a sigh of relief, it could have been much worse.
"Now, pack!"
Saer'tarah quickly began packing his equipment, Khaelieth quickly disintegrated the rough table they'd created over the last summer, dumped the coals down the abandoned mine shaft and he was ready. Saratras sat waiting outside, backpack on his right.
The figures ghosted down the rocky slope and into the forest, winding their way deeper into the forest. The outpost had to be compromised, but the mission as a whole was succesful. The creatures in the valley would know fear soon enough.
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