Danger is a lasting adventure

by **Derain Roas** on January 20th, 2015, 5:56 am

Winter 25th, 514 AV

It was as quiet as the bloodhills always were other then the abomination and failed experiments that haunted its grounds. The same experiments that the Wardens were tasked to eliminate and control. A task fitting of the Pulsers that were shunned on the island. A slight sigh escaped the young mans lips as he pulled on his leather armor. The outer layer of skin that protected him from the wild land creatures that ran about. He walked the cave that they lived in once his armor had been put on. Lorelei said that she would return before to long, she had something to attend to back at the citadel. A task she did not want to fill him in on, nor one that he truly cared about. She had her own plans as did he, he wanted to explore some of the surrounding caves. Nothing to serious just a little poking around to allow them to make sure there was nothing inside that they may need to take care of.

Though something may be hidden deeper beneath the surface then he was willing to travel with just the two of them. They had their magic but he was still learning his. He had yet to dive into the depths with both forms of his magic, he wanted to know how they worked. What it was that one could do with them and maybe even find a use for them that others had not found. The very loose knowledge of animation that he held would be a factor in it. Combining the two magics with the golems that he would one day create. But that was all in the days to come. Derain walked outside of the cave and glanced into the sky as the light of Syna rose steadily. "She's been gone for a while now." he groaned to himself. He wanted to get out there and start roaming the caves.

A feeling between his feet as his furry feline friend snaked between his legs. "Liam why is she taking so long, does she not know that we need to get this done as soon as possible?" he said leaning down to rub the cats head. "Of course the great Lorelei had to venture off for some magical quest that does not fit one of my stature! An explore! A scientist!" he said throwing his hands in the air as a sign of great sarcastic displeasure with the situation that he found himself in. Waiting for the girl that he studied and trained with to become something only one of them would become. But it was a mission that he had been so drawn into. The honey coated words that the beautiful blond had used to describe the Warden position pulled Derain into the trap that she was setting. Though it was not a major problem, if he did not become the Bloodhills warden, then he could go back to the Citadel and continue his studies into animation, or maybe even to continue to grow as an initiate under Lorelei's wing. If it ever came to that. He sighed and walked back into the cave to sit upon his hammock until she returned.

by **Noven** on January 21st, 2015, 3:13 am

"Uh...you lost or something?"

Noven stifled a yawn as he rubbed at one eye groggily. He wasn't particularly tall for a man his age, but his frame filled up most of the plain, wooden doorway, barring entrance to the stunning blond before him.

Rolling her eyes, Lorelei merely responded, "If I had a copper for every time I've heard that line..."

Then she folded her arms and leaned on one edge of the door frame, thereby successfully redirecting Nov's attention to somewhere other than the honeyed tip of her head, which he had so pointedly been trying to focus on. Groggy as he may have been, he wasn't stupid. This wasn't the first time some pretty face dragged him out of bed at the crack of dawn. And, unfortunately, wouldn't be the last.

"Do I look like I'm lost?"

Nov grinned. "If I had a copper for every time I heard that line."

The Bloodhills Initiate shifted a little closer. It was only an inch or so, but it felt like miles to the bleary-eyed mercenary.

"So the Scar has a sense of humor after all. Well, good to know. Because my partner and I need some extra muscle on our rounds today. You seemed to handle yourself alright back in the Gug Andjak. What do you say, fighter boy. Think you could survive tagging along?"

Nov wasn't so much hearing her words as he was feeling them slide right over his head. It was petching early and he'd been fast asleep. And what could he say, Lorelei was a gorgeous woman, and he a mortal after all. Despite his most stalwart efforts, he couldn't help noticing the warmth radiating off of her skin, the golden gleam of her delicate curls, and the perfect shape of her--

"If you're quite done," Lorelei interjected, her voice as calm and cool as still water, "I'd like an answer. Sometime this year, preferably."

Feeling his neck and ears heat in embarrassment, the man growled, "Fine. And give me a tick, will ya? I was happily asleep two chimes ago. At least let me piss and find my trousers. Women, always such slave drivers..."

He muttered this last bit to himself as he turned to throw on his clothes and pack. Fortunately, Lorelei was decent enough to wait further down the hall, though that didn't stop a sly smile from stretching her lips. It wasn't everyday that Noven had to endure morning harassment with no trousers on. His discomfort was probably infinitely amusing to the blond. Blonds are always trouble, he noted resolutely to himself as he shrugged on his coat and buckled his belt, not a trouble-free one out of the lot of them.

But, gods above, they could be worth the eyeful sometimes.

And so it was that Nov found himself walking alongside the lithe young woman, silently berating himself for agreeing so easily to be out and about this early in the morning. At least she wasn't a chatterbox. It wasn't exactly socially encouraging, being led to who knew what kind of danger beyond the Citadel's walls.

Nevertheless, Nov felt a trill of excitement. He'd been cooped up inside cold, grey stones and humorless Nuits for far too long. The last eventful incident had been his reckless drinking of mystery brew with Keene, the memories of which came flooding back as mercenary and Bloodhill Initiate passed through the Vestibule. They encountered TAR at some point, stated their identities and business, and were quickly on their way again. Lorelei seemed to be in a bit of a rush, Noven realized. Made sense. They were meeting up with her partner after all, and there was no telling how long the fellow had been waiting.

"Should I even bother asking where we're going?" the merc finally cracked, unable to reign in his curiosity any longer.

Lorelei glanced at him with another enigmatic smile and responded, "To all manner of danger you've never even dreamed of before. All lurking in the depths of dark, eerie caves from which many have never returned. Still game?"

Nov held onto his stoic mask before it, too, cracked, and he found himself grinning just a little. "Suppose I am."

It wasn't too long before they arrived at what very obviously appeared to be a cave. He followed Lorelei with no small amount of apprehension, though he did his best to hide it. Wouldn't do to look like one was afraid of the dark around a pretty lady.

"Hope we didn't keep you waiting too long, dearest partner of mine," the blond said in way of announcing their arrival, a chipper lilt in her tone.

"Hey, Derain," Nov greeted simply with nod. "Your partner here said you guys might need an extra hand in...whatever it is that you're doing. Hope you don't mind if I join in on the fun."

by **Derain Roas** on January 21st, 2015, 4:48 pm

The young wizard rocked in his hammock as Liam chased a lizard around the cave. The honey coated voice that belonged to the lovely blond partner echoed through out the openness of the cave. He turned to look up at Noven and Lorelei as they entered the room. "Was this your monumental quest? To bring back the brawler?" he teased at his partner before rolling himself out of the hammock. He walked over to Noven and extended a hand to shake it.

"I do not mind at all, you were worthy of traveling with during the lock down. I am sure you will be of use here. Just be careful, nothing is as in order as it is at the citadel." He stepped back looked over at Lorelei as Liam moved to inspect Noven. "Will you be ready to set out soon?" he asked. She gave him a simple nod and said "I will be in a second just let me grab a few things." Before moving off to her things. "How have you liked your stay within the Citadel? Plenty of walking dead and bookworms? I had my fill of them when I first arrived. Before Lorelei pulled me out into these hills. Though its a bit more complicated to study other forms of magics. There is a plethora of other skills that you can gain out here" he shrugged. It was true for one that without a doubt wanted to dive into the very essence of magic then the Citadel was the correct place.

But for those with a more adventurous approach to their learning could also find that among the training grounds as a Warden. Mopping up the failed experiments was great practice and a way to test out new approaches to the various magics that the Wardens held. The Nuits did not care what happened to their failed experimentation, they only wished for them to not cause any problems with their new experiments. Derain looked Noven over and smiled, "Have you ever been hiking before? Actually walked through mountainous terrain? It can be very taxing you have to be prepared." He wondered if his partner had mentioned anything of what they were doing today, if Noven knew what he was getting himself into following them. It was useful to be good with ones hands but if one wasn't good with their feet as well then the chances were lest likely that they would live.

He knew very little of the place that the Scars hailed from. Other then Zeltiva and the island he now occupied he had done no traveling in his life. The landscapes of other cities were unknown to him. "Where did you say you came from again? What dangers does it hold?" he asked as he made sure that his bootstraps were tight and looked back over to his partner as she gathered anything extra they might need. Derain pulled his bag over his shoulder and looked at Noven with an excited grin.

by **Noven** on January 24th, 2015, 8:13 pm

Nov found himself grinning at Derain's greeting, accepting his gesture with a firm grip. Being called a brawler was much more preferable than swordsman. And the warning was taken with an unusual dose of humility. He'd seen some of the strange nightmares this island harbored when they'd first met...there was no reason to believe the Bloodhill Initiate was exaggerating.

At his feet, Derain's peculiar feline was sniffing and investigating this new presence. It didn't seem particularly afraid of him. Unsure of what to do about this strange attention, Noven merely stood still and waited for the cat to be done. Fortunately, there were other things to focus on, like a steady stream of questions now rolling forth in his direction.

The lad was a few fingers taller than him and bursting with curiosity. To be young again... Nov thought tiredly to himself. Not that he could have been much older. But the jadedness had started to seep into his bones nonetheless like some sort of slow acting plague. Likely another reason he chose to follow Lorelei in the end. Being around so many Nuit only made him even wearier of death, and it was both a literal and figurative breath of fresh air to be out here amongst the vibrantly living, even in the face of sure danger.

"Aye...walking dead and bookworms sounds about right," Nov sighed, doing his best to keep up with his younger companion. "I wouldn't use the word like. But I sleep well. Which I don't do back home. Haven't quite figured that one out yet."

It felt strange to be having such genial conversation. When he wasn't surrounded by Nuits and Pulsers with their noses buried either in books or their own arses, he was with the Warden Initiate, Keene. Suffice it to say, their latest misadventures didn't exactly spark much civilized conversation. They had been too busy running from one source of trouble to the next. Though, it was far from boring, Nov had to give their circumstances that much.

As the petite blonde busied herself with preparing her gear, Derain beamed the entirety of his good-natured interest at Noven. Had he ever hiked before? Where did he come from? Was it a dangerous place? The merc shrugged his shoulders at the first and furrowed his brow at the second and third. Few people had ever bothered to ask him that before, since he'd never set foot outside of the Berth until this trip with the Scars.

"I'm from the city of Sunberth," he answered straightforwardly. "Or The Berth, as we sometimes like to call it. And it holds plenty of dangers, though nothing quite like the kind you've got here."

Nov readjusted the strap of his pack a little, feeling just a twinge of homesickness. "But we've got all manner of cutthroats, thieves, gangs, and scheming whores." Thinking for a moment, he added, "Do you even have, er, paid companions here? I've been here for eight days and not a brothel or tavern in sight. Plenty of those in the Berth though. Too many, if you ask me."

Of course, by too many he only meant the sort of vermin and trouble those kinds of establishments attracted. Booze and bed warmers he had few qualms with, so long as neither led to his purse being stolen or throat being slit.

Krysus, maybe that was why he slept so well in the Citadel

"What about you? Been here your whole life?" Nov asked in an attempt to return some of Derain's friendly energy. And, quite honestly, to fill some of his own gaps of knowledge. It was frustrating sometimes how little he knew of the things that thrived on this island. "And what of magic to you folk study?"

by **Derain Roas** on February 6th, 2015, 9:11 pm

The young mage cracked a smile. Out of all the thing that happened on this island, all the things that were there, the brawler didn't seem to care or maybe he didn't know exactly what was on the island. Liam rubbed against Novens leg before trotting back to Lorelei. Derain watched before turning his head back to face Noven. "They aren't that bad... The walking corpses. They are hungry for knowledge and they do experiments that could prove useful to us. By us I mean those who are smart enough to use it." he said with a shrug.

"Of course it also produces the work of getting rid of the living experiments that failed and the like. But such is the way of science." He raised an eyebrow at his mentioning of not being able to sleep at home. "You sleep in a prison of the undead better then you do in your own city? Now isn't that interesting. I'm sure one of the corpses would love to poke inside your head. " he said with a chuckle. He wondered how much of the island that the outsider had explored or even knew about. The testing grounds themselves were full of secrets and dangers.

He nodded as Noven spoke about his home city. "Sunberth... I can't say I have ever really heard about it. Do you like danger and excitement? " he asked. He learned that quiet a few outsiders enjoyed danger. Many of the ones who came to the island looked for it's secrets and dangers in some unguided hope of making a name for themselves. He looked Noven over and tilted his head. "No I can't say we have a need for paid companions. I don't know if you've met Keene, but he does not seem to be the type to socialize in that way and the others don't seem to mind. Though I can't say I really go out of my way to talk to them about it." he glanced over his shoulder at Lorelei and smiled before turning to face Noven again.

"Do you visit those places often? Do you have need for... paid companions as you said? No lady friend of your own back in Sunberth? Or maybe a male. Not really my place to care" he said. When Lorelei stood by his side again he nodded at her.

"Are you ready to go? Not that you really have a choice. I mean you could stay here I guess. But that would be rather boring." he turned to walk out of the cave. Lorelei following behind him. She felt no need to join in the conversations between the two. "No. I lived in Zeltiva most of my life actually. I only came here recently. I have to say I like it better here. More progress and more fun. Though less truly alive people" he shrugged.

by **Noven** on February 13th, 2015, 3:46 am

He looked down at the cat one more time before it scampered away. Oddly enough, the merc found he didn't mind the creatures so much. They were quiet, clean, and kept to themselves. Which couldn't be said of half the things in this world.

As Derain spoke, Nov decided he could understand a little of the Nuits' slave driving acquisition of knowledge. They had precious else to live for if you really thought about it. But at the mention of having his head poked, the merc only scowled. He didn't trust sorcerers and their black magic, whatever forms they may come in, and he certainly didn't like the thought of having his mind tampered with. For some reason the practice alone invoked a deep seated anger in him that he could not explain. He knew now that Brega herself was a hypnotist. Perhaps that was where his agitation stemmed from.

"Like it?" Nov snorted and shook his head in response to the Initiate's question. "Can't say I do, but I'm cursed with both until the day finally comes when I'm one step too slow."

It was a morbid thing to say, but honest. The same of which could be said of their next topic: the Warden Initiate Keene. He wasn't surprised they knew of each other, but the recent misadventures he and Keene had endured two days ago were still vividly imprinted in his head. After that whole debacle, Noven was pretty sure Keene knew absolutely shyke about women, let alone the inner workings of a proper brothel.

He caught the smile aimed at Lorelei though and wondered for the dozenth time if there was something between the two of them. Hard to tell, but the merc wouldn't come close to blaming Derain for at the very least trying. The blond was literally the prettiest thing on this whole godsforsaken island.

The Bloodhill Initiate's next question caught Nov off guard. Back in the Berth, everyone just took it for granted that most people visited the whorehouses. He thought of Isme, with her cascade of dark hair and long, caramel legs and sighed inwardly a little, doing his best not to think of anyone else with a similar description. Plus, Lorelei was still about, which made him less inclined to divulge the entirety of his more intimate details. "No," was his simple reply. "I've got no luck with lady friends."

It was interesting to know Derain was no native. It made sense, given the unlikelihood of anyone wanted to raise children in the Citadel. How did something like that even work on an island ruled by the dead?

Another question for another time. It felt strange, yet good, he had to admit, talking this much to someone who wasn't either a corpse or tight lipped enough to make him feel like a chatterbox. But there was trouble to find and things with which to endanger himself.

"Aye, I'm ready," Nov nodded and looked to both Initiates. "Lead the way."