I'm just assuming it's free game for others to take a stab at one of these...(want to add that this is done on my phone, will edit on my laptop tomorrow
Dragnyr, often the quiet front man of the squad, stepped into the small tunnel. His silence was vocal, not a description of his agility. This was not a stealth mission, the inquisition had tried that, the RSF (royal special forces) were deployed to a scene when subtlety was not an option. Two inquisition agents had gone down this tunnel in search of a group called the sparrows, bandits who had made an attempt on the Kings' life. The agents had not returned, it was now the turn of the RSF.
Dragnyr made his way down the small passage, closely followed by his three squad members, which eventually opened up to an open door at the other end. Scorch marks around the door indicated that a trap had been tripped not long ago. Stepping into the chamber which the door led to, two particular aspects caught the attention of the squad, the entire room seemed to be completely carved out in one go, the two statues in the center, the altar against the opposite wall, the bowl holding water between the statues, all were carved of the same stone unit as the floor and walls, and second was the the walls, roof and floor appeared to ooze a faint blue light as there was no source to the light.
Dragnyr immediately took to inspecting the statues, while Fae, the an elen wizard, found her attention drawn to the opposite wall. In it were words carved in a languish she did not understand and she could speak all currently used languages and knew many old ones. Her eyes lit and her hands glowed as she waved her hands over the lettering, she whispered in elvish "Show your meaning". The letters danced before her, fluidly forming a sentence she could interpret.
Chaos sings to the soul. Lift up disorder, and release the mind Her curious study of the words was abruptly interrupted as the sound of crashing could be heard behind her. She spun around to see Dragnyr, sword in hand, the two statues lying shattered on the ground. "Demons," the growl was all he offered as an explanation to his actions.
"Guys this water never runs out!" The two turned to the voice. Samuk, the halfling 'story-teller', was trying to splash water out of the trough in the center of the room but it never seemed to empty. Fae let out a soft thoughtful hum, "I believe this to be an ancient place of worship. This does not match what we'd expect from our targets."
A roar was heard from the other end of the room, immediately setting them all into battle stance. They were all familiar with the sound. Aok, nick named misery by his squad, was a half-orc summoner who had the ability to summon a manticor to merge with his body. That roar was the sound of the transformation.
Misery now stood tall in full manticor form staring through a door, a small piece of spear sticking out his thigh. He charged into the room, which seemed to be some for kf ritual bathing room at some point, and grabbed the cloak of the individual who had thrown the spear at him and tossed him across the room like a rag doll. The black cloaked, hooded man didn't seem to hold much of a chance against such strength and crumpled on impact. The rest of the squad moved into the room with practiced co-ordination and like it were a planned dance, noticed two more cloaked individuals emerging from hiding, read the inexperience in their foe, and took them out without lethal blows.
I'm just assuming it's free game for others to take a stab at one of these...(want to add that this is done on my phone, will edit on my laptop tomorrow
Dragnyr, often the quiet front man of the squad, stepped into the small tunnel. His silence was vocal, not a description of his agility. This was not a stealth mission, the inquisition had tried that, the RSF (royal special forces) were deployed to a scene when subtlety was not an option. Two inquisition agents had gone down this tunnel in search of a group called the sparrows, bandits who had made an attempt on the Kings' life. The agents had not returned, it was now the turn of the RSF.
Dragnyr made his way down the small passage, closely followed by his three squad members, which eventually opened up to an open door at the other end. Scorch marks around the door indicated that a trap had been tripped not long ago. Stepping into the chamber which the door led to, two particular aspects caught the attention of the squad, the entire room seemed to be completely carved out in one go, the two statues in the center, the altar against the opposite wall, the bowl holding water between the statues, all were carved of the same stone unit as the floor and walls, and second was the the walls, roof and floor appeared to ooze a faint blue light as there was no source to the light.
Dragnyr immediately took to inspecting the statues, while Fae, the an elen wizard, found her attention drawn to the opposite wall. In it were words carved in a languish she did not understand and she could speak all currently used languages and knew many old ones. Her eyes lit and her hands glowed as she waved her hands over the lettering, she whispered in elvish "Show your meaning". The letters danced before her, fluidly forming a sentence she could interpret.
Chaos sings to the soul. Lift up disorder, and release the mind Her curious study of the words was abruptly interrupted as the sound of crashing could be heard behind her. She spun around to see Dragnyr, sword in hand, the two statues lying shattered on the ground. "Demons," the growl was all he offered as an explanation to his actions.
"Guys this water never runs out!" The two turned to the voice. Samuk, the halfling 'story-teller', was trying to splash water out of the trough in the center of the room but it never seemed to empty. Fae let out a soft thoughtful hum, "I believe this to be an ancient place of worship. This does not match what we'd expect from our targets."
A roar was heard from the other end of the room, immediately setting them all into battle stance. They were all familiar with the sound. Aok, nick named misery by his squad, was a half-orc summoner who had the ability to summon a manticor to merge with his body. That roar was the sound of the transformation.
Misery now stood tall in full manticor form staring through a door, a small piece of spear sticking out his thigh. He charged into the room, which seemed to be some for kf ritual bathing room at some point, and grabbed the cloak of the individual who had thrown the spear at him and tossed him across the room like a rag doll. The black cloaked, hooded man didn't seem to hold much of a chance against such strength and crumpled on impact. The rest of the squad moved into the room with practiced co-ordination and like it were a planned dance, noticed two more cloaked individuals emerging from hiding, read the inexperience in their foe, and took them out without lethal blows.
The squad felt their first sense of unease since they had entered this place as soon as they unhooded their targets. "These are just kids!" The grinding voice of a manticor seemed to trip over some of the words used in common. They were standing looking at three human boys no older than 14. Aok reach into his belt pouch, "we need to find out what's going on." He pulled out one of the mad Alchemists concoctions and poured it into the mouth of the oldest of the two still alive. He shook his head, clearly still shaken from the beating. Then his eyes shot wide open at the site of Aok. He was clearly shaken.
Fae stepped forward, "Tell men young one, who are you and what is this place.?"
He looked at her, his defiance not completely chased away, "W..We are the sparrows, although we may not succeed here, others will in our place. Our cause will be known, , the king will die!" A haunting smile spread over his lips as white foam started to slip out his mouth. Dragnyr knelt by the body, "Suicide pill". They searched the other unconscious boy and found a similar pill embedded in his tooth. With forceful pull Dragnyr clenched the tooth out. The boys eyes shot open with a scream.
Similar to his friend, the squad began to question him. Being younger his voice shook with fear. "We're the last, the last of the sparrows. It was madness, they all went mad, we're all that's left." He looked around and spotted his friends and began to cry and rock on the spot. "I am all that's left, I am all that's left."
There's more, but I must now sleep. I will continue in the morning if you like it so far.
Not sure if anyone actually is reading this but I'll continue non the less, sorry it took me so long to continue.
Even as professionals the squad was a little unsettled by what had unfolded in front of them, these were just boys. What kind of a mission had they been sent on? They agreed to send Fae back with the boy, get him into the custody of the inquisition. The others pressed on down the passage the sparrows bad appeared from. The passages twisted and turned, veered and split. It took a lot for the squad to keep their bearings. They arrived at the top of a staircase but decided to make sure they had explores the top level first to avoid an ambush from behind.
Taking one of the passage off shoots, they came to a dead end, an area clearly once used as a prayer alter. Upon the floor lay a skeleton, dried and aged with what they could only guess was thousands of years of decay, next to it however lay the fresh body of another sparrow, a knife covered in blood in one hand and the only evident wound, a deep gash in his leg. Upon the wall, in blood were the words, "Who are you?"
Doubling back, the squad found another passage that lead them to a wooden door. Upon listening at the door, Dragnyr heard the feint sounds of breathing. Aok threw magic energy at the door to blast it off it's hinges, and offset any trap that might be in place. The door shattered and the bits flew backward into the room, kicking up dust that must have sat for centuries.
Once the dust settled they were finally able to make out the shapes of four individuals similarly clad to the boys they had previously encountered, sitting in a square facing each other, motionless. The room itself appeared to be lined with devices that could only have been torture devices back in the day. "What the..." Aok's curse froze midway, for it was as if being noticed were a prompt the four boys had been waiting for, and in response they rose in unison and turned to face the three soldiers. There was no expression of emotion on the face of one of the boys, who's soft voice echoed as he let out a whisper, "Mom says we shouldn't play after bedtime, is it bedtime?" One of those to his right had a crooked grin on his face, his teeth seeming to be trying to escape his lips. He squealed, "Hey kitty, want to play fetch?" At that, without a hint of drawing a weapons that hung from his belt, he charged, bare hands, nails seemingly worn down to the quick, his flailing arms illustrated an attempted strike. The bard, able to think quickly, let out a theatrical shout, it's enchantment designed to confuse an enemy. Instead of confusion however, the kid's eyes seemed to fill with clarity and then fear. As if his fear lifted him from the ground, he made a dash for the door on the other side of the room. As he passed through it, he found himself flung to the floor, as if diving back into the room from the door at which the squad now stood. Realising there may be a magical trap on the room they retreated back down the passage.
They sat at the ready waiting for the attack to come. It did not. Just as they felt they'd need to investigate, their blood was chilled by the shrill scream if one of the boy in the room. They charged, weapons ready, only to see that the boy who had tried to run had been clawed. The other three now sat staring at each other in a triangle.
I'm just assuming it's free game for others to take a stab at one of these...(want to add that this is done on my phone, will edit on my laptop tomorrow
Dragnyr, often the quiet front man of the squad, stepped into the small tunnel. His silence was vocal, not a description of his agility. This was not a stealth mission, the inquisition had tried that, the RSF (royal special forces) were deployed to a scene when subtlety was not an option. Two inquisition agents had gone down this tunnel in search of a group called the sparrows, bandits who had made an attempt on the Kings' life. The agents had not returned, it was now the turn of the RSF.
Dragnyr made his way down the small passage, closely followed by his three squad members, which eventually opened up to an open door at the other end. Scorch marks around the door indicated that a trap had been tripped not long ago. Stepping into the chamber which the door led to, two particular aspects caught the attention of the squad, the entire room seemed to be completely carved out in one go, the two statues in the center, the altar against the opposite wall, the bowl holding water between the statues, all were carved of the same stone unit as the floor and walls, and second was the the walls, roof and floor appeared to ooze a faint blue light as there was no source to the light.
Dragnyr immediately took to inspecting the statues, while Fae, the an elen wizard, found her attention drawn to the opposite wall. In it were words carved in a languish she did not understand and she could speak all currently used languages and knew many old ones. Her eyes lit and her hands glowed as she waved her hands over the lettering, she whispered in elvish "Show your meaning". The letters danced before her, fluidly forming a sentence she could interpret.
Chaos sings to the soul. Lift up disorder, and release the mind Her curious study of the words was abruptly interrupted as the sound of crashing could be heard behind her. She spun around to see Dragnyr, sword in hand, the two statues lying shattered on the ground. "Demons," the growl was all he offered as an explanation to his actions.
"Guys this water never runs out!" The two turned to the voice. Samuk, the halfling 'story-teller', was trying to splash water out of the trough in the center of the room but it never seemed to empty. Fae let out a soft thoughtful hum, "I believe this to be an ancient place of worship. This does not match what we'd expect from our targets."
A roar was heard from the other end of the room, immediately setting them all into battle stance. They were all familiar with the sound. Aok, nick named misery by his squad, was a half-orc summoner who had the ability to summon a manticor to merge with his body. That roar was the sound of the transformation.
Misery now stood tall in full manticor form staring through a door, a small piece of spear sticking out his thigh. He charged into the room, which seemed to be some for kf ritual bathing room at some point, and grabbed the cloak of the individual who had thrown the spear at him and tossed him across the room like a rag doll. The black cloaked, hooded man didn't seem to hold much of a chance against such strength and crumpled on impact. The rest of the squad moved into the room with practiced co-ordination and like it were a planned dance, noticed two more cloaked individuals emerging from hiding, read the inexperience in their foe, and took them out without lethal blows.
...
... Read FullNot sure if anyone actually is reading this but I'll continue non the less, sorry it took me so long to continue.
Even as professionals the squad was a little unsettled by what had unfolded in front of them, these were just boys. What kind of a mission had they been sent on? They agreed to send Fae back with the boy, get him into the custody of the inquisition. The others pressed on down the passage the sparrows bad appeared from. The passages twisted and turned, veered and split. It took a lot for the squad to keep their bearings. They arrived at the top of a staircase but decided to make sure they had explores the top level first to avoid an ambush from behind.
Taking one of the passage off shoots, they came to a dead end, an area clearly once used as a prayer alter. Upon the floor lay a skeleton, dried and aged with what they could only guess was thousands of years of decay, next to it however lay the fresh body of another sparrow, a knife covered in blood in one hand and the only evident wound, a deep gash in his leg. Upon the wall, in blood were the words, "Who are you?"
Doubling back, the squad found another passage that lead them to a wooden door. Upon listening at the door, Dragnyr heard the feint sounds of breathing. Aok threw magic energy at the door to blast it off it's hinges, and offset any trap that might be in place. The door shattered and the bits flew backward into the room, kicking up dust that must have sat for centuries.
Once the dust settled they were finally able to make out the shapes of four individuals similarly clad to the boys they had previously encountered, sitting in a square facing each other, motionless. The room itself appeared to be lined with devices that could only have been torture devices back in the day. "What the..." Aok's curse froze midway, for it was as if being noticed were a prompt the four boys had been waiting for, and in response they rose in unison and turned to face the three soldiers. There was no expression of emotion on the face of one of the boys, who's soft voice echoed as he let out a whisper, "Mom says we shouldn't play after bedtime, is it bedtime?" One of those to his right had a crooked grin on his face, his teeth seeming to be trying to escape his lips. He squealed, "Hey kitty, want to play fetch?" At that, without a hint of drawing a weapons that hung from his belt, he charged, bare hands, nails seemingly worn down to the quick, his flailing arms illustrated an attempted strike. The bard, able to think quickly, let out a theatrical shout, it's enchantment designed to confuse an enemy. Instead of confusion however, the kid's eyes seemed to fill with clarity and then fear. As if his fear lifted him from the ground, he made a dash for the door on the other side of the room. As he passed through it, he found himself flung to the floor, as if diving back into the room from the door at which the squad now stood. Realising there may be a magical trap on the room they retreated back down the passage.
They sat at the ready waiting for the attack to come. It did not. Just as they felt they'd need to investigate, their blood was chilled by the shrill scream if one of the boy in the room. They charged, weapons ready, only to see that the boy who had tried to run had been clawed. The other three now sat staring at each other in a triangle.