And Death Walked the Earth [PLOT- OPEN!]

[Emma]

Deserts were nasty places under any circumstances. The Hadarac, however, had to suck the hardest.

I’d never actually been in here before. But, like everyone else, I’d heard the stories. The center of the desert was poetically known as the Ocean of Fire- a pretty name for something that was an unending sea of shifting sands, deathless rock, and scorching sunlight that made even elves wither away and die. There were no landmarks except for the ruins of ancient cities that were occasionally uncovered by a blast of wind. Even then, another gust would cover them again. Apparently, nomads had made this place their home. I didn’t know how or why anyone would ever choose to live in such a place. No civilization, no water, just heat and thirst that made me want to claw my own throat out. And I wasn’t even at the Ocean of Fire yet. I was a fair bit east of the Plains now, but still pretty close to Du Weldenvarden. If I got to higher ground I could still see the edge of the forest to the north. One would think that breezes, water, anything would waft down to here, but no. The landscape was an ugly mixture of rock, cacti, weird low-growing shrubbery and unpleasant animals. I’d seen snakes, scorpions, big poisonous lizards; and two buzzards followed me around until I tossed up a fireball, singeing their wings. Occasionally, splitting canyons opened up in the ground, and I could walk in the relative shade. Here, there was water, but it was stagnant and it would probably kill me faster than the heat. But the worst part was probably the solitude. Days of walking with nobody to confer with but myself made me edgy and bad-tempered. Bringing someone else would have been suspicious, however, and I probably couldn’t have dragged Anck with me if I’d tried.

The solitude also made me paranoid. I was still too far north to run into any nomads, but the entire reason I was here was the Urgals. On the one hand, I felt like I was chasing a legend. To foreigners and much of Alagaësia, the Urgals were just a bedtime story. For years, the Riders had been the ones to drive back their occasional invasions from the Hadarac and the Spine, and it was one of the few things they were actually good at. Dellanir had apparently forgotten that fact when she’d torn Ilirea apart. Thanks to her insane doctrine, now Urgals were being spotted with increasing frequency in the Spine. The situation in the Hadarac was worse, however. The nomadic tribes had sent word north that they were being driven east towards the Beors because of Urgal attacks. Then, sightings of entire platoons were seen leaving the Ocean of Fire, heading north. Over the past few weeks, they had been inching closer and closer to Du Weldenvarden’s southern borders. Very few people were aware of this, naturally. If this became public news, I could only assume just how badly the public would react. Supposedly only the elite of Du Weldenvarden were aware, but Nayeli’s spies had intercepted enough messages to give a few people in Broddring a clear idea of what the situation was. A silent alert had been set up, but so far the Urgals seemed to have no intention of going anywhere near Broddring- not even their hated rival Ilirea. So, they didn’t care. I was here on other business myself.

The canyon I’d been wandering through suddenly yawned wide open, and the broken bones of some massive building stretched out in front of me. I stopped, looking at it. A layer of white limestone had been laid over the stones of the building, so it was glaringly white in the sunshine. I couldn’t tell what it had been- maybe a dead king’s palace or the temple of some ancient religion. I’d heard about some Ilirean scholar who’d claimed that the Hadarac had once been full of rich green grass and lakes. He’d been laughed out of the Citadel. But why would someone build something so extravagant and expensive in the middle of a pain-in-the-ass desert? I walked forward carefully. The Urgals were apparently making their bases in places like this, and I’d been looking for ruins for several days now. I kept to the shadows and smelled the dry air, but couldn’t catch any unusual scents. The wind was down, so that wasn’t helping. Eventually, I started to feel like I was still alone, and began to let my guard down.

Then an Urgal literally popped up in front of me. I barely cut off a curse and immediately backed up, shrinking into a crouch and positioning myself behind some chipped rocks. An ancient arch hung over me, hiding me in shadow. I stared at the Urgal. It had heard something, and a deep, low growl rumbled in its throat. It lowered its head so I could get a good look at its face. One of the worst insults in Broddring was being compared physically to an Urgal, and I could see why. The skin was pockmarked and scarred from a lifetime of fighting, its eyes tiny and sickly yellow in colour. Enormous horns grew out of its massive head, although it was only about my height. To make up for it, though, it was about twice my width, with arms and legs like tree trunks. It held a spiked club in one hand, and an assorted array of worn leather and rusted metal armour covered its body. It moved slowly, peering around itself. I held my breath as it stalked closer, peering between the rocks I’d hidden behind. After a moment, it turned around slowly, and then immediately whipped its head around again. I stayed frozen as it glared. Stepping backwards, it raised its head and gave a massive bellow.

Something exploded out of a fallen tower and rammed the Urgal like a tank. The force was so great that the monster was flung into a half-fallen wall. There was an enormous crack, and it was covered in a layer of dust and debris as it slid to the ground. The thing had barely realized what was happening when the figure suddenly snatched at one of its horns, thrusting its head back to bare its throat. A thin, exotic sort of sword was in the person’s other hand. The Urgal roared, but had lost its club, and the figure didn’t hesitate for a second in plunging the sword deep into its throat, literally sheathing it in his torso. Over the scream of pain and rage of the dying Urgal, I heard two other roars answer it. The person ripped its sword out and turned, allowing me to finally get a good look. Based on the height and the walk, it was a woman, but that was all I could tell. She wore a closed helmet embellished with a blue feather that hid everything but her chin and lips. Her body was locked up in a massive suit of armour made of steel and scale tinted ivory and blue- the colours of the royal house of Du Weldenvarden. A blue cape lined with silver flowed over her shoulders to the ground, rippling in the wake of her steps when she walked. Holding her blood-soaked sword in front of her, the woman took off and disappeared.

I weighted my options. On the one hand, I could hide here and avoid being killed. That was usually the route I took, but I could hear the sounds of weapons smashing against armour and the crack of more stone being destroyed. Curiosity and excitement won out over caution. It wasn’t often that I got to watch a pack of Urgals trying to slaughter an elf. I squeezed my way out of the crevice and made my way through rows of fallen masonry towards the sound of fighting. Once I was there, I peered around a lopsided column. The soldier was taking on two other Urgals at once. She had just snatched a spear and forced it into one’s gut, flipping the entire thing over her head right on top of the other creature. While the speared one squealed like a pig, the soldier rammed her foot directly underneath its chin, cracking the jaw. By now, the other monster had rolled to its feet and moved forwards with an axe, but the soldier snatched his arm and used his momentum to force him headfirst into a column. Then, picking up the fallen axe, she chopped right at the injured one’s throat, ending the shrieking and nearly beheading it. Leaving the axe where it was, she turned back to the one remaining Urgal. He had armed himself with a huge mace, which he swung with surprising speed.

The soldier was forced to weave from side to side to avoid the mace while trying to score a hit, but only managed to glance off his side. Eventually, the mace cracked into her sword, making the soldier lose her balance and nearly fall. As she struggled to regain herself, she raised her sword as protection. The mace struck it again, and this time she fell, but managed to roll and spring back up on both feet. The Urgal raised his mace a third time, but the soldier managed to slash across his chest. The Urgal howled and lunged at the soldier, striking her in the upper arm. She backed off as blood spurted from the wound, and raised her sword with both hands. Again the two weapons connected, and the soldier fell to her knees. This time, however, she slashed at the leg, just below the knee. It was almost disconnected entirely, and the Urgal screamed and fell to its knees as blood pooled beneath it. The soldier rose to her feet and forced her sword into the back of its neck, snapping the spinal cord. As the beast fell face-first into the sand, I heard a shriek from behind. Both the soldier and I turned around to see a boy, maybe eleven or twelve, staring at the carnage. His skin was grey, and his eyes were small and yellow like an Urgal’s, but there were no horns on his head. The boy glanced between us, then turned and ran, his feet sending up small plumes of sand behind him.

I turned around, expecting the soldier to go after him. Instead, she went for me.

I was grabbed and slammed down onto the hard ground. I felt small, sharp pebbles cut into my skin. Then I was picked up by the back of the collar and forced into the column I’d been hiding behind. By some miracle, my spine didn’t snap in half. I grunted from the pain as the soldier held me there. Then, she raised one gauntleted hand and stuck it in my mouth, holding it wide open. She peered into it, touching the rows of fangs I had instead of teeth. She made a noise of pure disgust, but then paused. I squinted, and thought I could make out the faint outline of a face through the slits in her helmet.

“Hey, you’re that General Kolbjorn I met at the Gala! Nice to meet you. And bravo. That was one hell of a show.” She was only holding my throat, so I started clapping. “Way to sell it to the cheap seats!”
In answer, she pressed on my throat, forcing my head up. “What is vampire doing in Hadarac?” she asked in common tongue, sporting a thick accent. “Is that bitch Malandra working vith bloodsuckers now?”
“Uh, no. Malandra and I aren’t friends. More like mortal enemies.”
“Then you are spy.”
“No! I’m here for the same reason as you. Ever hear of a little someone called Nayeli Richards? I work for her! You could call me a ‘procurer of rare items’.”
I didn’t remember until after the words had left my mouth that Broddring and Du Weldenvarden were about to go to war with each other. Before I could try and fix the damage, the General lifted me above her head and did the flip thing again, making me end up on my back next to a dead Urgal. As she approached menacingly, I jumped up and held out a hand. Using one of the quickest spells I knew, I set my hand aflame and held it out threateningly. Kolbjorn paused and reached for her sword again.
“Hey!” I snapped. “Wait, look, Nayeli didn’t send me here.”
“You are liar.”
“No, it’s ‘you are A liar’. If you’re going to threaten me, use proper grammar, for fuck’s sake. We can talk in the Ancient Language, if that makes it easier for you.”
She paused, and I thought I saw just a flicker of embarrassment in her body language. Then she spoke again, in flawless Ancient. “Why are you here, then, if Nayeli didn’t send you?”
“Personal business.” She gave a warning growl. “No, seriously. Why would Nayeli want to help the elves? You guys are her most dangerous enemies, and getting in between blood feuds like the elves and the Urgals got going is a bad idea anyway. And before you ask, I used to be an elf, so I have every right to be here.”
“And I should trust you,” she responded flatly. The helmet made her voice tinny.
“No. That is a terrible idea. I need you, because as awesome as I am, I can’t take down an Urgal alone. And not that you aren’t very intimidating, but all it took was three to give you that busted arm. Please tell me Malandra didn’t send you all by yourself.”
She glanced off to the side. “No. She told me to meet the others at these ruins. But none have come.”
“Maybe they were waiting for these freaks of nature to leave.”
I felt the General’s wary gaze from beneath her helmet. Her fingers still squeezed the hilt of her sword, but she didn’t move towards me or snarl gutturally.
“You can stay and help. But only as long as you make yourself useful. You are to stay in my sight at all times, or you can join these creatures in the afterlife.”
“Hey, no need to get hostile.”
“If I was hostile, you would be dead. Now come here and help me burn them.”
I sighed and put out the flames that had been licking at my hand. Striding up to the pile of bodies, I glanced down at them as Kolbjorn went back around the column to fetch the first corpse. I peered down at the one that had smashed her upper arm, lying motionless in the sand.
“This guy really knew what he was doing, huh?” I asked as Kolbjorn appeared by the column again, dragging the body towards the others.
“She was the sergeant commanding this squad.”
“… This was a girl?” I gawked at the body.
“Yes. Are you going to burn the damn corpses or not?”

Words; 2506
Characters Used;; Tox Venali with Myaja Kolbjorn
Muse;; ... shifty? Better near the end.
Thoughts;; IT'S BEEN A REALLY LONG TIME SINCE I WROTE A FIGHT SCENE. Sorry. Anyway, post as you will! =D

[Nayeli]

’introducing
{njord floros*}
featuring--! senka floros! ---! ---!
Another mission, the powers have called me away
Another time to carry the colors again
My motivation, an oath I’ve sworn to defend
To win the honor of coming back home again
No explanation will matter after we begin
Unlock the dark destroyer that’s buried within
My true vocation and now my unfortunate friend
You will discover a war you’re unable to win

”You are to go to the desert and help the general with some pest, do you understand me.” Being loyal to the royals was a pain enough, though I did enjoy it… Having no other choice to be loyal to a human bitch… Well, that was another story all together… I hated it! Though my sister had arrived days earlier as requested as well, she did not seemed bothered by it. My sister had her own thoughts on that whore and it mostly dealt with how she looked beautiful and how the queen must have had her reason. What reason? What reasons would be worth giving the kingdom to some human whore from the Broddering Kingdom? The questions still ran around my head even into the days we prepared to travel. The young king stood back, merely backing up the decision of the puppetmaster. When would the young king realize he was being played a fool and she had control. The woman held no right, yet here she was giving me an order? I was too pissed to care that my sister was trying to make sure I looked good for this little adventure. I actually was too pissed about everything, that her annoying bantering and nagging, as well as constant mental link did not annoy me as much.

As we reached the edge of the forest that I called home, my sister and I left our horses with another elven family, paying them enough to care for them for a year if we were unable to return for the creatures. I was sure this would take only a few weeks, maybe a month. The pest the whore had spoken about was a stupid creature known as urgals. The disgusting creatures were not at all smart, though they did like to war a lot, they were pathetic and stupid. Finally, the journey began with going into the desert and through many days of constant walking. After the first day, my sister and I choice to do something much different… Pitching out small tents during the day and hiding them with dead plants, we managed to rest during the day and journey in the evening. It was better than traveling constantly heat which caused our throat to become dry and hurt. My sister had finally gone from nagging at me for my lack of social needs and lack to show off who I was to complaining constantly about nothing more than the stupid heat. Believe me, I knew all about the heat and instead of complaining solely over the mental link, she had to complain verbally too. As we finally made it to some canyons, we managed to sleep some during our evening and walk during the day, using the shade of the walls to help us. Coming across still water, we used our abilities to make the dirty water clean, though it took more injury then we should have used and I found myself pulling some from one of the gems in a blade I held. Luckily, it was not the blade that was recently returned to me by another… It was just one of my own that I had had made before going to Illrea for my lessons.

”Njord? You look tired?”

[/color]
”I used more energy then I wanted… You are more versed of magic, my sister, I have lacked in my training.”[/color] The thought of this made her smile at me while we put the water into our sheep-skinned containers and then continued to the end of the canyon. It would be another few days before we even got there, but it felt like we were not alone. With our minds stretched throughout the land around us, I constantly felt the presents of bugs and reptiles, but something else… Maybe there was another part of this canyon running with our own and others were traveling? It was possible…

After a few more days of walking the canyon, we found the end, which opened to another dark desert but I could see what looked like buildings in the moonlight. I did not see or smell anything off, but I knew better then to move across the desert at dark. It would have been walking into a readymade ambush so we made camp at the mouth of the canyon, hiding it with rocks and dead shrubs again. As we drifted into our sleep, I barely remember thinking of much. Everything was peaceful and quiet… Finally, we seemed to have made it to our place and we could rest before we met with the group the next day…

The sound of a bellow stirred me from my sleep and I looked to my sister’s side of the tent to see her up in a position like she was a feline. In her hand, a dagger that was up against her arm ready to slash anything that she could. Looking to me, I pulled my blade from my sheath and moved the opening away and before my eyes, the sight of another fighting was what caught my attention. It was amazing, seeing the elven race work their way around the land before finally ending the match and allowing one of the young to run off into the desert. I would have killed the creature… One less to worry about growing up, but I did not do anything.

”It seems we need to move my sister.”[/color]
”Agreed.”[/color] My sister however seemed to misunderstand as she began to slightly spot bath herself and put on another outfit… One of the four she brought and cleaned nightly. This time, it was a dark green color that was made of tough metal in the shape of dragon scales and form fitted to her body. The sleeves went down to her wrist where she put on hand guards that were of the same color and metal. Underneath the skirt part she wore tight black pants and the dress was split up both sides to her hips to allow for easy movement. I did not understand the dress feature, but she said it was good protection and that she understood it. I did not arguing… Throwing on my armor and tying my sword to my belt, I left the tent and figured I would keep it up… With us being so close to the desert city, it would be a good place to sleep at night unless we had to move. As I stood beside the tent, my sister came out, dagger and sword on her hip as well as bow around her shoulders and arrows in a pouch on her back.

Moving towards the now flaming remains of those slain, I looked up at the elven before me and realize that it was the general. As I greeting the woman, my words flowed naturally towards her to give the elven greeting most of us grew up with. ”May good fortune rule over you, Elda-Kolbjorn.”[/color] Glancing to the other, something about the being was very off and I chose not to spoke. My sister held less informal way of speaking.
”Hello! Wow, that was very good, General Kolbjorn…”[/color]
”The King’s advisor sent us to aid… We thought we had arrived early and made camp at the mouth of the canyon over there.”[/color][/blockquote][/blockquote]

I’ll have you know, that I’ve become
Indestructible
Determination that is incorruptible
From the other side, a terror to behold
Annihilation will be unavoidable

’word count 1,214
’tagged Tox Venali, Myaja Kolbjorn
’song Indestructible--! Disturbed
’post status done
’template creator nayeli

[/size]

[Amur]

Compared to the climate that Baldur had experienced during his time spent on The Isle of Origin, the climate of this desert was actually relatively pleasant. Of course, that was likely because the desert was actually capable of sustaining at least some kind of life whereas The Isle of Origin was not. The land that had once been gripped by famine, and disease had very rapidly died out, leaving little more than a barren wasteland with an oppressive air that got way hotter than it should have done during the summer, and way colder than it should have done during the winter. Of course, that was not to say that the heat here was not affecting Baldur at all. Of course it was, however, he had been trained during his seventy year tutelage on how to deal with extreme climates. So whatever effect this desert would have had on the average soldier was lost on Baldur, the heir to a now-dead Warlord bloodline.

As for what Baldur was doing here? Well, that by itself was quite the story. Starting, ironically enough with a contact arriving late to a meeting with a number of armed people chasing him. Not the best way a meeting with one of his contacts had ever gone, and after dispatching his contact's aggressors Baldur was about to chew the man out. Of course that had been before he had heard the information his contact had for him.

---

Running everything that he had just heard through his mind for what felt like the umpteenth time, Baldur simply remained silent. This man had never once given Baldur a cause to doubt his information, but this all just sounded to be way too far-fetched. And if, in the very likely event what he had just heard was true, then that meant that Ace was in danger. Baldur looked back up at his contact, narrowing his eyes slowly, allowing none of the concern he now felt for his younger brother to filter through into his demeanour.

"And you're sure?"
Baldur asked outright. The man nodded, spreading his hands in a submissive gesture.

"I ain't ever given you a reason to doubt me, have I Boss?"
The man spoke the truth, which only caused Baldur's concern to grow. Ace was still studying under Josk, and depending on how far this little situation managed to spread, Baldur's younger brother was in danger. Of course, Baldur already knew that Ace was no push-over as a combatant, his Pyromancy, and his hand-to-hand skills had been progressing rapidly. But against these kinds of odds, and this kind of scale? Ace would be so thoroughly outclassed, and the likelihood would be that he wouldn't realise it until it was far too late. Baldur nodded his appreciation to the man and threw a small bag of coins to him, the usual payment for services rendered. The man nodded his own appreciation in return and took off in another direction, leaving Baldur alone with his thoughts, all of them currently revolving around his younger brother, Ace.

"... Ace."

---

Had had done most of his research while travelling, this time. He had never actually met one of these "Urgals" in person, and for the most part the stories he had been told, and had read sounded far too exaggerated to be true. Not in the sense that the stories themselves sounded to be completely untrue, but, he recalled hearing very similarly told tales about The Hunters during his youth back in Empire Nirvana. Stories so shrouded with myth and so twisted by hatred that whatever truth they held was mostly lost. So, it had been difficult for him to build any kind of profile or general tactic against them with so little knowledge about them readily at hand. It was not a position he liked being in, but he would cope.

He had various little bits and pieces of intelligence on the situation, already. He knew that he wasn't the only one heading in this direction, but other than that he had no idea what else to expect. And that was what Baldur hated most about this expedition of his, the lack of hard information, the fact that he was going into this task as close to blind as he had ever been. The uncertainty did enough to make him edgier than he usually was, but he was far from paranoid. His eyesight was his sharpest sense, the likelihood of anyone -or anything- managing to sneak up on him was virtually nonexistent, but he knew better than to get careless.

Much of Baldur's journey had passed uneventfully, between spending time mentally preparing himself for what may, or may-not lie ahead and resting more than he usually did while travelling -under the assumption that he would need to keep his strength up- things had passed or him at a much slower pace than he was used to.

However, he stopped willing once he reached what looked like the remnants of an ancient building. Placing the sheathed tip of Findinokhind on the ground and his hands on the pommel, Baldur simply stood gazing at it intently for a long moment. The history behind those ruins was likely fascinating, but such history was also likely unobtainable, just judging by the state the building in general had fallen to and the location. Unfortunate, to say the least, the kinds of things that one could learn from such history...

He was jolted from his thoughts by the sound of a bellow. He blinked, what was that? Adjusting his position he returned to his usual stance and ran in the direction of the ruins, did that brutish vocalisation belong to one of those creatures?

He stopped when he reached what he had assumed to be the source of the sound just in time to watch quite the scene unfold before his eyes. The combat was impressive, that much he would admit -well, apart from the fact that the armoured individual had allowed herself to get put into a defensive position for too long- and he followed very move the armoured combatant made carefully. He made no effort to move from his spot when she seemed to begin interrogating another individual, however, the moment they started burning corpses was the moment he decided to move forwards. What exactly was the thought process behind that? If there were any further enemies lingering around the general area they had just been given a beacon to follow.

He took note of the two new arrivals along with the woman he had just watched kill several of those brutish-looking creatures, and the young man she had accosted moments earlier, and kept a somewhat respectful distance from them, once more placing the sheathed tip of Findinokhind on the ground and his hands upon its pommel. The one thing that he had noticed about the congregation gathering so far, is that they all seemed to be Elves, and while Baldur wasn't human, he wasn't an Elf either. He didn't want them mistaking him to be some kind of enemy, after all, he still remember the term Josk had used when they had first met... "humanoid".

"I'm curious as to what the thought-process is behind burning the corpses, should there be further enemies lingering in the vicinity, you've just given them a beacon to our exact location."
He stated flatly, not yet bothering to introduce himself, nor explain his reasons for being here... Well, his real reasons would remain secret, he wasn't exactly about to give Ace's presence in Elven lands away. He moved one of his hands, adjusting his cravat slightly.

"I personally cannot see an advantage to giving our position away."

[Lisenet]

Linweylan

I was on the verge of disobeying a direct order from the king’s advisor when Malandra ‘asked’ me to attend the expedition to turn back the Urgals. Urgals were nasty, brutish things. And chances were there would be blood and fighting involved. I really didn’t care for either. My father called me a pacifist, my mother as well, and never in any uncertain terms to express their disapproval. We lived in a time of uncertainty, as though the world shook beneath us, and we had to both watch every step and—my parents said—be ready to shove the weaker beings out of the way if it began to collapse.

That was not, however, my philosophy. I didn’t want to live a life of domination. It was either domination or dominion, according to most of my people, but I did not agree.

Hence my absolute reluctance to engage myself in what was likely to become a battle, regardless of Evander’s advisor’s desire that we not initiate a war. I could see already that this was not going to be a holiday, but a trial, and not the sort that was likely to produce anything meaningful or useful in the end.

I felt somewhat less horrified when I heard that Njord would be attending as well, though less pleased to hear that his sister was coming too. Njord seemed the dependable, capable type. His sister….made me anxious. But Malandra had ordered me to ‘oversee’ the expedition, and I feared the repercussions of denying her rule more than I feared skirting around the band of Urgals making our trees nervous. If there was fighting, chances were I could avoid it if I didn’t engage. Surely the Urgals wouldn’t attack someone who visibly wasn’t interested in joining the fight.

The journey to the edge of the forest was relatively pleasant. If I was the sort to chatter I might have been unhappy, but since I am perfectly happy with silence I didn’t mind. It was the fact that I was the youngest out of all of these people and I was supposed to be supervising their actions that made me vastly uncomfortable. This was a job for my father. I was not suited to this task. I was neither ready for it nor had I earned it. These people didn’t have the regard for me that they did for him, and I would consider them foolish if they did. Respecting me for my birth was as ridiculous as respecting me for being born female. It wasn’t something I could control, and therefore wasn’t something I should be commended for.
*
I was hardly paying attention to our surroundings—only missing my familiar plant life—when I heard the roar, a sound nothing like those I had heard before, completely foreign to me. I came upon the fight and immediately took a place behind a rough outcropping of rock to force myself to watch and hope that I would not be seen in turn.

When Njord and his sister stepped forward to commend the general I closed my eyes with momentary shame, knowing that I should have been the one to speak to her first. I waited a moment to emerge, giving myself the flimsiest of excuses to explain the fact that I hadn’t. We elves were not the only ones in attendance, but I preferred to wait and hear their reasons for meeting us here before accusing them of treachery, as our general was more inclined to do.

As I approached, all of the greetings were made, and I forced myself not to dip my head with the anxiety I felt in the presence of these smoking carcasses. They had been people once, too. What did that make them now? Offal? A macabe addition to the miserable scenery? ”How long must they burn?” I inquired, sighing at the crackling flesh that had once lived and breathed just as I did. I hated and feared Urgals from a distance, but standing over their empty shells gave me only pity. Only one of our people slaughtered them. They were so sorely outmatched. Was it even fair to kill them with such a discrepancy? We might as well be reaching down and pinching ladybugs off of the ground just because we were bigger than they were. ”How likely is it that there are more?” And how long must we stay?

[Emma]

After the vampire set the bodies aflame, I stood there peering at their corpses for another minute. The fire licked at the armour and ate away the flesh. The smell was overpoweringly vile, something that I had never quite gotten used to. This had been a scout squad- but one unlike any that I had seen before. The two males lacked tattoos or any other markings showing off their prestige. They were very low-ranking. And the one that I’d allowed to run away, the fourth, had only been a boy. He probably hadn’t even undertaken the trial of earning his horns. The dam, however, had been an experienced warrior. I had seen her tattoos before the flames had engulfed her, marked them in my memory. The squad had arrived here two days before, but had not proceeded any further north than these ruins. They hadn’t wandered far from the settlement, and had been content to sit and occasionally spar with one another. From my paltry knowledge of the Urgal tongue, I’d been able to discern that they were waiting for something- but not more troops. After two days had passed, they had become increasingly agitated and irritable. Once that moronic vampire had made his appearance, the ram that had discovered him had become elated- that roar had been the call to march forward. They were too close for comfort as it was, although I did regret not letting them kill the vampire first.

I watched him kneel down and run his finger through some of the cooling dam’s blood, peering at it curiously. I snorted with disgust, but if he could curb his palate with Urgal blood instead of elven, that was fine by me. He reminded me of someone, but I couldn’t place the exact features. From afar, he looked like any normal elf- he had long, thick black hair that was pulled away from his face into a high knot. His skin was lightly tanned, and he was tall, nearly a foot taller than I was. His body was long and lean, and he was clothed entirely in black. His boots and trousers were finely made, probably from Broddring’s court, but his upper body was armoured in something I’d never seen before- it was rough-textured, but had about the same flexibility as leather. Clawed finger armour adorned his hands, but I saw no weapons on his person. I assumed magic was his main offensive tactic. But aside from the physical features, his eyes were an unusual shade of violet, and extremely feral. The fangs in his mouth were obvious anytime he smiled or spoke, and I could smell a trace of old blood on him. He certainly didn’t fit the romantic ideal of vampires, so I was going to keep one eye on him.

And apparently, he had been right. As soon as the flames had really taken to the Urgal corpses, the three elves I had been expecting appeared near the ruins, moving towards me. Two were female, one male. I recognized all three of them- Njord and Senka Floros, and Linweylan. Malandra had refused my request to bring my soldiers with me. She wanted to avoid war at any costs, apparently- like we hadn’t been at war with them since before we’d left Alalea. Instead she had sent nobles to deal with Urgals, trained in diplomacy and negotiations. The irony was that Urgals knew nothing of negotiations. They communicated strictly through fighting. The Floros siblings, from what I understood, had fought in the Blue Divide- but they hadn’t really been in the army and progressed up the ranks. Linweylan was related to the royal family, and had absolutely no combat experience whatsoever. She was the overseer of our operations, and was supposed to report directly back to Ramakrishna. Now that I saw the three of them here in the desert, I knew what my designation was. I was a bodyguard, and nothing more.

“May good fortune rule over you, Elda-Kolbjorn.” The first speaker was Njord. He was armoured and wore a sword at his belt, and seemed tired. He stared at the vampire levelly. The vampire, who’d been eyeing the spot of blood, looked up and rose to his feet as the new arrivals appeared.
“Hello!” came the squeak of Njord’s sister, Senka. She was wearing the most bizarre thing I’d ever seen- an armoured dress. At least it was split at the sides so she wouldn’t trip over it. “Wow, that was very good, General Kolbjorn…”
I looked down at the Urgal corpses, and then at my injured arm. It felt like it was broken. No, that hadn’t been any good. I was weak from my stay in Ilirea. I hadn’t seen real battle in months.
”The King’s advisor sent us to aid,” explained Njord. “We thought we had arrived early and made camp at the mouth of the canyon over there.”
I looked to where he pointed. “Good that the Urgals didn’t see you,” I said coldly. “They’ve been here for two days.”
“How long must they burn?” came the voice of Linweylan, the youngest of our group. I turned to regard her as she stared at the burning bodies, looking for all the world like a private at his first battle. I half-expected her to throw up right there and then. Why had Malandra sent her? “How likely is it that there are more?”
“We leave the fire until it burns itself out, Linweylan Svit-Kona. As for how many more are there,” I said sharply, “Malandra wouldn’t have sent us here if there weren’t at least one hundred nearing the borders. No one is certain of the real number.”
“I'm curious as to what the thought-process is behind burning the corpses.”
I turned around as another unexpected arrival appeared- and I wasn’t sure what this one was. He had long black hair and unusual yellowish-gold eyes, with expensive-looking robes, black trousers, and black boots. He looked more like he was here for a party than to kill Urgals. I turned around and glared at the vampire, but he had tilted his head slightly and seemed just as confused as I was. And this newcomer didn’t have vampire fangs. Still, two people in one place had to be more than a coincidence.
“Should there be further enemies lingering in the vicinity, you've just given them a beacon to our exact location. I personally cannot see an advantage to giving our position away.”
I felt a cold smile stretching across my face. At least this newcomer had part of a brain.
“You’re right. Burning the corpses would be an idiotic idea if we were trying to stay hidden. But we’re trying to find the Urgals, not hide from them.” I pointed at my left arm, still hanging mostly useless at my side. “The Herndall that gave me this was a marked dam. The three red hands on her left arm represented three elves killed hand to hand. The red circle on her forehead was one killed on horseback. The white lines along her left wrist were times that she had counted coup. She was a true Herndall, and her presence will be missed in the Urgal ranks.” I stopped and looked back at the vampire. “And now that makes two individuals that have no right to be here.”
The vampire rolled his head, a smirk crawling across his face. “Come on, think about it, General. Chasing bloodthirsty Urgals in a hot as hell desert- who could stay away?”
I narrowed my eyes and turned back to the small crowd. “Now, why did Malandra send each of you? And what do you want here?” I directed the last question at the man in the cravat.

Words; 1289
Characters Used;; Myaja Kolbjorn with Tox Venali
Muse;; Good! Just kinda didn't know what to do at the end. XD
Thoughts;; Feel free to have your characters... make up stuff and find things to do. I made up everything with the war tattoos, after all. XD

[Nayeli]

’introducing
{senka floros*}
featuring--! --! ---! ---!
How come I end up where I started? How come I end up where I went wrong?
Won't take my eyes off the ball again you reel me out then you cut the string
How come I end up where I started? How come I end up where I went wrong?
I won't take my eyes off the ball again first you reel me out and then you cut the string

As the General looked towards myself and my brother as well as another female that came with us… Linweylan? I vaguely remembered her because her father was the former-Queen’s brother. Yes, I remembered her much better. The elven woman took on the role that her father performed while he was away from the great city of the King. Well, Njord didn’t think it was so great any more… I wondered what kind of fashion that Malandra was into? My thought ran wild as I remember seeing her for the first time. The woman was beautiful for a human… Maybe she enough magic to keep her looking… ”Would you shut your stupid mind! I don’t want to hear about that worthless-scum now or anytime during this trip from you. The whore is nothing more than an ugly bag of flesh.”

[/color] Glancing to my brother, I gave the man a scolding look, but he never changed his expression at all. Calm and content as ever… No anger on his face showed, nothing… How did he do that? ”Years of practice… If you had taken your head out of the clouds of fashion and those winged rats, you would have been able to learn.”[/color] Rolling my eyes at my brother, I looked to the general again.

As I looked to the other, a strange looking man who seemed to look normal, but something was very much off with him. My brother merely looked at him and I found it disgusting that he would touch the blood of the filthy creatures. Of course, I didn’t like urgal. All my life, they were stories, told to us in horror stories. As I glanced back at the woman, I noticed her arm that was broken and I gasped. ”Oh my! General!”[/color] I quickly bounded over towards the woman and before she could object, her armor in the area was moved and I worked my words with the ancient language. ”Waíse heill!”[/color][/b] Holding my hand over the injury, the brightness of the magic performed shown and my concentration never wavered. The one thing my brother could not say was that I was bad at magic. My knowledge of magic was beyond that of my years as I had forced myself to study it more than anything else. I was not going to allow the general to suffer in pain while we stood here watching. As my brother went on about why we were here, I focused on my task that I had set myself too.

”Good that the Urgals didn’t see you… They’ve been here for two days.”

”It was why we did not start a fire and we did not speak when we got there… As well as hid our camp… I thought a smelt filth in the area.”[/color]

“How long must they burn?” Finally, I was finished with my healing of the general and looked up. Had she never burnt a body? You did not stop, you finished it till it was ash. I remember seeing them burnt during the war. It had been a disgusting matter, but it removed the filth. ”How likely is it that there are more?”

“We leave the fire until it burns itself out, Linweylan Svit-Kona. As for how many more are there, Malandra wouldn’t have sent us here if there weren’t at least one hundred nearing the borders. No one is certain of the real number.” My brother was easily heard with a chuckle. I knew it was because he felt the woman wanted to get rid of anyone he could that was a threat to the power she was beginning to hold. I merely glanced over at him and shook my head.

“I'm curious as to what the thought-process is behind burning the corpses.” Another came and I looked to him as well. What was this being? Rejoining my brother for a moment, I looked at my brother whom didn’t look at me. ”Should there be further enemies lingering in the vicinity, you've just given them a beacon to our exact location. I personally cannot see an advantage to giving our position away.”

“You’re right. Burning the corpses would be an idiotic idea if we were trying to stay hidden. But we’re trying to find the Urgals, not hide from them. The Herndall that gave me this was a marked dam. The three red hands on her left arm represented three elves killed hand to hand. The red circle on her forehead was one killed on horseback. The white lines along her left wrist were times that she had counted coup. She was a true Herndall, and her presence will be missed in the Urgal ranks.” Well, that was a good thing, right? ”And now that makes two individuals that have no right to be here.” Looking between the others for a moment, I wondered as well. Two were not elves, I could feel it in my own bones. Why were non-elves here?

”Come on, think about it, General. Chasing bloodthirsty Urgals in a hot as hell desert- who could stay away?”

“Now, why did Malandra send each of you? And what do you want here?” My eyes landed back on the general and I looked to my brother for a moment.

”I basically volunteered… I don’t like sitting on my ass doing nothing but waiting for that whore to destroy my homeland… I asked my sister to come as well… She is a skilled archer and I am a skilled fighter. I might not have been a part of the army, but that does not mean I suck. I was trained well and I am to stop those useless bags of flesh from messing with my home. I have fought them before a few years back in a forest edge city.”[/color] Well, since my brother basically said everything, I merely waited for the others.
[/blockquote][/blockquote]

You used to be alright, what happened?
Did the cat get your tongue? Did your string come undone?
One by one, One by one. It comes to us all. It's as soft as your pillow
You used to be alright, what happened
Et cetera, et cetera. Facts for whatever. Fifteen steps
Then a sheer drop

’word count nine. seven. six.
’tagged Myaja Kolbjorn with Tox Venali, Baldur Vauxx, Linweylan
’song 15 Steps--! Radiohead
’post status done
’template creator nayeli

[/size]

[Amur]

The reactions that his presence here got were both fascinating and somewhat disconcerting to Baldur, he had met a number of Elves at this point and not one of them had come off as foolhardy as The General here just had. Of course, there had always been a sense of elitism about them in some way, that much had become painfully obvious to Baldur shortly after meeting Josk, and then Niko. While the Riders had been in a league of their own , still; the elitism wasn't something Baldur could comment on without sounding hypocritical, since such personality traits came with being the son of a Warlord. The foolhardy, and very clearly reckless attitude of this General, however, was something that Baldur could comment on. Was she really reckless enough to face a potential horde with so little thought or planning? And he had called Niko foolish for underestimating Master Hunter Latro, it seemed to Baldur that the natives of this land had a penchant for recklessness bordering on utter stupidity, how had any of them lived even this long?

He arched an eyebrow quizzically in response to The General's reaction to his statement, taking a long moment to best consider how to answer her. He wasn't here on the behalf of anyone official, his reasons for being here completely personal; so he would speak his mind as simply as possible since he didn't need to take any potential political ramifications into consideration for the simple act of speaking.

"So, you would rather charge a horde with little planning or thought? Tell me, does every General among your species act with such a reprehensible disregard for even the simple side of the technical aspect of battle? If so, I'm admittedly very shocked that whatever military your species possesses hasn't been utterly decimated for simply relying on their racial superiority and nothing else."
He stated flatly. He then paused, well, that statement was hardly going to earn him any friends here right now. Not that it mattered, Baldur wasn't here to befriend these people; he was here to ensure the safety of his younger brother, and if that meant insulting the mental cognitively of this, and other Elven Generals then so be it. This one in particular had so far done absolutely nothing to earn his respect. Nevertheless, he was not here simply to stand idle and insult people, not even after being told that he no right to be here.

(Though, even Baldur had to admit what The General had told him about the specific Urgals that she had killed did offer something of a fascinating insight into their culture. So far, he was beginning to draw an image of them being a large culture of tribal warriors, perhaps not too far removed from the Warlord culture he had been raised within. Though, they were clearly quite a bit less civilised.)

He arched an eyebrow again at hearing that but didn't raise any kind of protest, he wanted to make his presence here seem like it was out of a casual interest. She had even somehow managed to make her question on his presence here seem like a demand, perhaps that was down to a long militaristic stint in her life, who knew? Nevertheless, Baldur allowed several other people to speak before he even considered answering her question, and when he did answer, he spoke in a measured tone at a very deliberate pace.

"I imagine I'm here for the same reason that you are."
He replied dismissively, motioning his head in the direction of the burning corpses.

"Though, I'm here more out of a sense of curiosity than out of a desire to protect a land I have no affiliation with."
He stated, pausing for a short while, wondering on whether or not he should really elaborate further on that. Eventually deciding that he would leave his explanation as it was, the simpler a fabricated tale was, the fewer holes there were to pick in it.

"The chance to face what is, to me; an unknown enemy is quite simply a fascinating experience."
He concluded flatly, finally removing his hands from the pommel of Findinokhind and picking it up by its sheathed blade. He took a moment to adjust his cravat before he strolled forward, and towards the assembled group and a relatively measured pace. Having attempted to establish his presence here as an opportunity to learn new things, he saw no reason to keep his distance. Though, he wasn't about to simply walk up to them and start acting as though he was friends with them. It was simply easier to talk when he wasn't keeping his distance from them, and even after he stopped walking, he still kept himself at a several-pace distance, he wasn't entirely sure he liked the way that one of the male elves was looking at him.

He took several long moments to gage everyone around him, considering the numbers he had seen and comparing them to the numbers that they had, things were not looking good so far, especially not after the reckless arrogance The General demonstrated to him upon answering his initial query. Nevertheless, he nodded lightly, they were clearly all here for the same reason, the only difference was that Baldur was not here under orders. It would be better for everyone involved if they could all get along at least for a little while, the numbers they were facing, while not overwhelming would be noticeable if they approached this situation recklessly.

"I'm Baldur of the bloodline Vauxx; respected Warlord heritage of Empire Nirvana."
He introduced himself flatly, keeping his introduction short-hand. He highly doubted everyone here had the time for him to fully introduce himself be reciting all of his ascendants.

"I've briefly seen what we're up against, and it would be in the best interest of everyone involved if we could at least co-operate on a temporary basis."

[Lisenet]

A tiny smile flickered hidden at the corner of Linweylan’s lips, despite their coarse surroundings, at Njord’s explanation. Linweylan cared little for the king’s new, unappointed, advisor, but she could never express herself with such brass, she was always too afraid of causing offense. As her parents had taught her, the higher the status of a person meant the more carefully they must walk—an offense caused by her words would be taken much worse than an offense caused by another below her station, not that she considered anybody above or below her.

The General didn’t seem to mind how she spoke, but Linweylan welcomed it; far too many people treated her like glass because they were afraid of offending her as well. Far from it, the queen’s niece wished more people would be less guarded in her presence. And she would feel just as slighted if the acting regent had sent such an ill-equipped person as herself to a place where she would only be a hindrance, not an asset. The man insulting the General didn’t seem to care for subtlety either, and she wondered just who he was, since clearly he wasn’t an elf. And who was the one so interested in the burning bodies? She agreed with his explanation, however—the bold one, not the body one—they would all be more efficient if they spent more time working toward a common goal than bickering.

Finally, though, it was her turn to speak. Linweylan was fascinated to find that, out here, with no silks, no thrones, and no trees, a new hierarchy had been set, with the oldest and most confident and capable at the head of it. Blood had no place here until it was being spilled. She had no authority, which was freeing in itself, and rather enjoyable. Her spine had felt brittle under the glare of the renowned General. Now it loosened into something more malleable. ”I’m Linweylan, niece of Dellanir, sent by the king’s advisor to oversee the undertaking of our defenses against the Urgals. Hopefully we are all aware by now—“ Even the two humans could see it, she was certain. ”—that I have no experience with this sort of situation and therefore am of little use here unless you have need of someone to carry your hat for you, in which case I would be glad to be of any use at all.” She firmly, coolly met General Kolbjorn’s irritated gaze. Linweylan knew her presence was a disservice to every able person here; if there was anything she could do to lessen that burden, she wanted the intimidating woman to know it. However, despite her love of how blunt all of these odd people were, she did not care for being accused of bringing herself only to be a deterrent to efficiency. If there was any way Linweylan could have avoided Malandra’s order, she would have. But when Evandar asked her to go, there was no way she could tell him she wouldn’t. Besides, she didn’t know any of these people well, for those she did know; she trusted herself best for the relaying of a description of what and who had happened here. Others’ opinions might be skewed; hers rarely were.

Turning to the man not far from her, who had introduced himself as Baldur, she extended a slim hand. ”I am glad you are willing to work with us, or at least with them,” she said of the warriors, ”considering I am in no fit state to do so.” The thought of fighting was about as appealing as pulling a moose down with her bare hands and gutting it. She would rather not. And the moose was still likely to win.

[Only 624, sorry loves. And for the wait.]

[Emma]

So. It was obvious that everyone here was some kind of big shot. We had the General herself, three nobles, this new guy looked like he was rolling in dough, and me. Not that being the son of a foreign Duke actually meant anything here, but I’d gotten used to that. Although I got curious stares from everyone present- it didn’t take a genius to see I wasn’t a normal elf- everyone fawned over Kolbjorn. I eyed the armoured woman, who hadn’t even taken off that damn ugly helmet. Her voice was frigid, and it was impossible to see her expression. But from what I could tell, it looked like she was at least listening to what everyone here had to say. I was only a little insulted that she hadn’t tackled the new guy like she had me. Actually, I was sort of flattered. Not a lot of people looked at me and immediately thought of me as an actual threat.

First, one of the guys spoke up, some nobleman who looked and acted like someone had rammed a spear up his ass. He announced that he had fighting skills, and called Malandra a whore right in front of the General- ooh, scary. But then again, Myaja wasn’t exactly getting along famously with the new regent. The fact that nobody stepped up in Malandra’s favour just went to show how disliked she was. Once the Floros guy stopped speaking, Myaja turned her head to the girl that had showed up with him. She waited for her to speak, but the noblewoman was quiet for the first time. She liked to talk, but she was hot even for an elf girl. My thing for brunettes helped too. I expected the General to say something, but instead she just turned her head to the next speaker- Linweylan, a cute blonde that was the niece of the Queen. Despite her impressive breeding, she was the only one here lacking in muscle. But she definitely had a way with words and diplomacy- something that might come in handy. She looked right at the General when she talked, too. Myaja was again silent- I figured she didn’t like to talk unless it was necessary. That only left the new guy, who-

“So, you would rather charge a horde with little planning or thought? Tell me, does every General among your species act with such a reprehensible disregard for even the simple side of the technical aspect of battle? If so, I’m admittedly very shocked that whatever military your species possesses hasn’t been utterly decimated for simply relying on their racial superiority and nothing else.”
There was an awkward silence. I looked at the General, but again I couldn’t see her reaction through that scary-ass helmet.
“I imagine I’m here for the same reason that you are. Though, I’m here more out of a sense of curiosity than out of a desire to protect a land I have no affiliation with.”
This guy just did not give a shit. He went on to introduce himself as Baldur, son of a warlord from an Empire Nirvana I vaguely remembered having to learn about as a child. Still, I silently applauded his balls for challenging a military general.
“I’ve briefly seen what we're up against, and it would be in the best interest of everyone involved if we could at least co-operate on a temporary basis.”
“I am glad you are willing to work with us, or at least with them, considering I am in no fit state to do so,” came the soft voice of Linweylan. Either she was being incredibly sarcastic or she was the humblest elf I’d ever met. Myaja waited another moment to see if anyone else had something to say. I felt her gaze on me, but I was going to keep to myself until this little drama was over. Then she finally spoke, her tone quiet but nonetheless firm.
“Senka and Njord Floros, I am aware that you fought in the Blue Divide. As for your ability in battle, I’ll make that judgment when I see it for myself. Lady Linweylan… I don’t see why Malandra sent you, but you will have something to do while you are with us. Everyone will pull their weight. And Baldur…” Here Myaja lifted her hands and finally pulled off her helmet, placing it under her arm. She had surprisingly long hair for a soldier. It tossed slightly in the hot breeze. After a moment of appraisal, I decided I might find her attractive- but that personality, and those eyes. Icy blue, and they bored right into you. She looked directly at Baldur.
“You have only briefly seen what we’re up against. Tell me, does every warlord of Nirvana preach matters they know nothing about? To win the respect of an Urgal, you must kill one of their own. Their response won’t be to form into a vengeful horde and charge. When this Herndall died, a seat was freed on her tribe’s war council. Maybe a solitary family member would seek revenge, but not the entire race. A team will be dispatched in a matter of hours, at the most, to investigate the corpse.” Suddenly, a smirk played at the edge of her mouth. “If anything, they’ll thank me for disposing of the competition. Urgals have a different moral compass than we do. Just remember that.” After a moment the General gave a scoff, closing her eyes. “I suppose I’ll have to teach you people the mannerisms of the Urgals…”

Okay, now I was getting irritated. I could only tolerate being ignored for so long.

“Helllooooo? Priorities, babes?” I waited a moment while everyone turned their attention to me, then gave my most charming grin. “I’m formerly the Lord of Coldharbour, but you beauties can just call me Tox. How ya doin’? Like this snappily dressed guy here, I’m doing this for my own personal interests. Anyway! From what I’ve heard, rather than, y’know, just killing the Urgals, sticking their heads on pikes, proving our racial supremacy, yada yada, we’re supposed to, like, find out why they’re even so close to the borders, am I right? Global warming, war in the south, somebody farted? While you folks were discussing each other, I found something a little bit interesting. Lookie here.”
I held out my hand, now dark with Urgal blood. My finger armour glinted dully in the sunlight.
“General, is Urgal blood markedly different than elves’?”
Myaja frowned, not understanding. “They have more iron than we do.”
“Right. But that’s probably not the cause of this.”
The General took my hand and leaned in a little closer. In the Urgal blood were tiny little chunks of some unidentifiable substance. I considered myself something of an expert on blood, and I had never seen little pieces like this. Myaja apparently hadn’t either, judging by her frown.
“And you think this might have something to do with their behaviour?”
“Could be. Or one of the previous scenarios I mentioned.”
Myaja lowered her eyes, then grunted and dropped my hand. She turned back to the assembled group.
“The Urgals won’t arrive for a little while. They were looking for some kind of object in this fortress, so we’re going to find it. I suggest you all get to know each other in the meantime. We’re going to be together for at least a couple of days.”

Words; 1238
Characters Used;; Tox Venali with Myaja Kolbjorn
Muse;; Crap >.>
Thoughts;; I didn't really know how to move it forward without jumping too far ahead... so the characters should mingle, because there's zero interaction going on besides Baldur and Myaja.