| Welcome to Imythess, the border between dreams and reality. We hope you enjoy your visit. Imythess is a creative writing board where you narrate the story of a character in the medieval land of Imythess, on the planet Chaon. Each topic is an opportunity for your character to interact with the world and its peoples by cooperatively writing pieces of a story with other members, one post at a time. We call this role-playing, because you assume the identity of your character as if it were your own. In order to play, you must register an account for each character you would like to write about, and begin their tale by filling out their basic profile information: Race (human, elf, demon, etc.), class (warrior, mage, etc.), physical appearance, and any other personal details you would like to describe. You are also encouraged to come up with some background history information for what your character's life has been like up to the point at which their story in Imythess begins. There is no approval process or application required to join, so long as you follow the rules then you are free to write whatever character details you choose. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Create a character now! If you're already a member, you can log into your account below: |
| Unpleasant Find; [P]Sword, Nireza | |
|---|---|
| Topic Started: Wed Aug 12, 2009 2:02 am (578 Views) | |
| swordhunter | Wed Aug 12, 2009 2:02 am Post #1 |
 
|
A light breeze gently stirred the low plain of grass as Aiden pulled his cloak tighter to his body. This "no man's land" between the ruined city of Taras to the south and the refugee camp to the north was eerily silent. It certainly lives up the name, the elf thought as made his way north along the dirt trail. He had heard rumors of a horrible occurrence along these abandoned paths, including tales of blatant robbery and even slave trading. Aiden likely would have come to investigate even if the elders in Norwood hadn't assigned him to the mission. The ranger eventually stopped and put his hand to his eyes, squinting as the sun began to set to the west. It can't be that much farther to the camp. I must be a few miles or so off at the moment. Looking around, Aiden realized that he probably wouldn't make it to the camp before nightfall. And this certainly wasn't a place that anyone wanted to roam alone. He broke into a quick jog, hoping to make up at least a portion of the remaining distance. "Stop!" someone shouted, the sound carrying across the silent plain. The elf's jog slowed to a walk as he looked around for the source of the shout. He soon spotted a pair of imposing figures clad in leather armor, worn green cloaks, and evil looking sneers. "Afternoon, gentlemen," Aiden said politely, coming to a full stop and facing the two men squarely. The elf was a bit perturbed at the fact that he hadn't even heard the two men approach beforehand. I should pay more attention, he thought quickly as the bandits began to talk. "Gentlemen, he says," the man on the left replied, "He called us gentlemen!" "Looks like elfie here doesn't know who he's dealin' with," the man on the right spat. He drew a wicked looking blade from a black scabbard at his hip, waving it threateningly as he took a few steps forward. "If yah know what's good for yah, you'll drop whatcha got and leave before you get hurt." Aiden's temper flared at the word 'elfie,' resenting the term that some leveled at his kinfolk. "No can do," he said simply, turning on his heel and proceeding down the dirt path. He knew that his action would confound the two bandits since very few victims would downright ignore them so blatantly. Aiden only smiled as he heard the sound of an angry yelp over his shoulder. "Good monkey," he laughed, drawing his own blade and easily parrying the attacking bandit's wild swing. "Bad form though. You'll have to do better than that if you plan on fighting everyone who passes through here." "Die elf!" the bandit said as he withdrew his blade and prepared to make another strike. But before he could do so, Aiden surged forward, bringing up the tip of his blade and driving it through the weakest portion of the bandit's leather armor. His opponent's eyes widened as Aiden's blade sank into his chest, stealing his breath and sapping his energy. "Don't worry," Aiden cooed as he withdrew his sword with the the sickening sound of blood, "Your friend will be joining you soon enough..." ****** Aiden sat at the top of a gently rolling hill on the plain as the sun continued to set. He had given up on reaching the camp by sunset, knowing full well that his 'detour' had eaten up precious time. He wiped his blade down with a worn rag, removing the stains of blood from the sword as best he could before sheathing it. "This isn't good," he muttered, "If they would attack an armed traveler so brazenly...I wonder what else they've been up to?" |
 |
 
|
| Nireza | Thu Aug 13, 2009 1:32 am Post #2 |
|
Nireza was headed down the path, toward the refugee camp. She had helped out here a few times before, and she wanted to see it anything was going on. As she approached, she thought she could hear the sounds of combat in the distance, in the direction she was already travelling. She increased her speed to a light jog in case her assistance was needed, but the battle ended long before she could get there. She maintained her speed, knowing that she could continue at that pace for some time. Just then, she noticed movement nearby. She took a closer look and noticed that a group of five bandits was heading toward her. The were similarly armed and clad as the first ones. Expecting a fight, she focused in on her connection with the wind and began gathering a powerful static charge. When the bandits got close, the leader said, "Stay there and you don't have to get hurt." Nireza replied, "What are you planning with me." "You look like a good slave. I think we all agree that would be better than leaving--" At the mention of slavery, any qualms Nireza would have had about killing these men disappeared. She extended her arm toward the leader and unleashed the charge on him before he could finish what he was saying. The electrical charge arced from him to the rest of the group in turn. The first two were quite clearly dead. Only the last person to be hit remained standing, but even he was dazed and in no condition to fight. She would decide what to do about him in a moment. Her eyes had shifted to a golden color, a sign of hidden celestial blood. She intended to do something about these bandits, but she decided that this was best not done alone. Aiden would most likely have heard the lightning, if nothing else, depending on how close he was to Nireza's location. |
|
|
| swordhunter | Thu Aug 13, 2009 7:56 pm Post #3 |
|
Aiden sighed as he stood up, straightening his cloak and brushing bits of grass off of the worn cloth. A soft and steady breeze blew in from the west, making the sea of grass wave lazily as dusk approached. "Who would think there would be so much chaos in such a nice place?" the elf said softly as he took a few steps down the hill towards the trail north. His detour had cost him a bit of time, but Aiden had no intention on stopping for the night until he reached the refugee camp. The bandit attack had worried him to no end, especially considering how overstretched the Taras guard was to begin with. There was no way that they could both ensure the camp's security and eliminate a bandit threat on their doorstep. Hopefully I've come in time to help out a bit, Aiden thought as he walked. While he was confident in his abilities, he knew that his help alone would be more than insufficient to tackle the problem. More warriors would be needed before even a preliminary plan could be drawn up. Suddenly, Aiden's thoughts were disturbed by the sound of a loud crack splitting through the air. Almost immediately, Aiden had his sword drawn and prepared for another attack. But to his surprise, he saw and heard nothing afterwards. That sounded like lightning, he thought, noting the fact that the sky was virtually cloudless. Deciding to investigate, Aiden jogged back in the direction he had come, climbing the hill and jogging back down the other side to note a peculiar sight just a handful of meters away. Standing before him was a seemingly young woman, calmly looking over five bandits in front of her. Aiden noted the charred smell lingering in the air and guessed that his lightning assumption had been correct. But he hadn't assumed that it had actually been a spell fired off by this woman. Aiden warily glanced around before cautiously moving forward into full view. "From the looks of things, I don't have to ask if things are alright, I suppose," he said with a slight chuckle. . . |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Fri Aug 14, 2009 4:36 am Post #4 |
|
Nireza had been busy figuring out what to do with these and any other bandits to notice the wood-elf's approach. She was a bit surprised to hear him speaking, but she knew enough to hide it. She replied to him, with noticeable (although not obvious) anger in her voice, "If you consider things to be alright when bandits are roaming the area, then I suppose things are alright. I happen to think otherwise. Especially not when those bandits are also slavers. But no, I don't need help here at the moment. Nothing like a little lightning to deal with these types. I think taking out their base would be in order, although maybe not right now. The first step to doing that would be finding the base. One of those bandits is still alive, but he looks dazed. I think I'll try getting the information out of him, in exchange for letting him live." Nireza walked up to the man and slapped him across the face to pull him back into reality. He said, still seeming a bit dazed, "...um, what?" Nireza replied, "You were just trying to kidnap me. Tell me where your base is, and I'll let you live." His reply was unintelligible. She called on her reserve of holy energy and touched the man, healing the worst of his wounds, enough to break him out of the daze. His face showed surprise and confusion. He asked, "Who are you, and where am I?" "You're in the middle of nowhere, and you're going to answer my questions if you want to live." He reached for his sword. Even though his sword wasn't there, Nireza brought her celestial dagger to his throat before he could realize such. "Don't even try that. Tell me where your base is and I'll let you live. I might even finish healing you. If you refuse, I will kill you." After a little more convincing, the bandit told them where the base was. Nireza said, "You're coming with us. If the information's correct, I'll let you go. Otherwise, you'll die." Nireza turned to the wood-elf and said, "I guess we got that problem dealt with. I'm Nireza. Who would you be?" Nireza's eyes gradually reverted to their typical green color. OOC: I didn't think we wanted to spend ages getting the information. However, feel free to play the bandit as having lied if you wish. |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Tue Aug 18, 2009 1:03 pm Post #5 |
|
OOC: SORRY! I kinda got...distracted a lot lol. I should be back on track now. And it's ok that you went ahead and got the info, no prob  "If you consider things to be alright when bandits are roaming the area, then I suppose things are alright. I happen to think otherwise. Aiden lifted an eyebrow, both at the somewhat concealed frustration and the information relayed. Slavers? he thought, his unease deepening as he realized just how close they were to the refugee camp. Anyone who continued to move north along these paths was in danger of falling into the hands of these deviants. Well, this is certainly more sinister than I thought. Perhaps these bandits should be taken out now rather than when we have adequate numbers. We'll just have to be a bit more...sneaky about it. The elf said nothing as the seemingly young and lithe woman he had run into moved over towards the dazed bandit to 'ask' for information. Aiden could only hide a smile as she treated their prisoner a bit roughly, but was satisfied with her eventual success. "You're coming with us. If the information's correct, I'll let you go. Otherwise, you'll die." Aiden frowned a bit at this, sorely wishing to kill the bandit there and then. They would need to be quiet as they approached the camp, something that their prisoner might be more than willing to impede. Nonetheless, the elf figured they really didn't have a choice after all--if the information proved false, there wouldn't be a need for silence. "I guess we got that problem dealt with. I'm Nireza. Who would you be? Aiden extended his hand for a friendly handshake and replied, "My name is Aiden. I was heading to the refugee camp just north of here, but I think I'll follow you, if you don't mind. This is a rather disturbing problem that takes priority at the moment. . ." |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Wed Aug 19, 2009 3:38 am Post #6 |
|
Nireza had been intending to go to the refugee camp to get assistance, but if this guy was any good, she realized that they might be able to attack the camp themselves, although it might not be easy, depending on how skilled the bandits were. She decided that it was doable if Aiden was any good with the sword he was wearing. If the combat she had heard had involved him, he most likely was strong enough to pull this off with her. A bit more thought and she decided to go for it. It would take too long to go to the refugee camp and attempt to recruit more people, and they didn't even know if anyone would come, and who knew what the bandits would do while they were gone. Nireza shook Aiden's hand and said, "Until you showed up, I was going to go to the refugee camp and try to recruit some assistance, but I think the two of us might just be able to deal with the problem ourselves, although it might take a few dirty tricks. We don't want to give these slavers more time to capture people." Nireza turned to the captured bandit. "If you try anything to hinder us, I won't hesitate to kill you." To show that she meant her threat, she drew her celestial fire dagger from its sheath on her belt. |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Wed Aug 19, 2009 6:23 pm Post #7 |
|
"Until you showed up, I was going to go to the refugee camp and try to recruit some assistance, but I think the two of us might just be able to deal with the problem ourselves, although it might take a few dirty tricks. We don't want to give these slavers more time to capture people." Aiden nodded his agreement and straightened his cloak around his shoulders. "I specialize in dirty tricks," he said with a smirk, "I'm sure that we'll be able to work something out." However, despite his words, the elf still felt a bit of apprehension. He looked towards the west as the last few rays of the sun sank below the far horizon. The night would give the pair a good chance of surprising their enemies, but not much else. If this guy can't find his way in the dark, it might prove more of a hindrance than a help. Nonetheless, Aiden decided to trust such things to fate. Either way, he hoped that by the end of the night, travelers would be able to walk these paths in relative safety. Aiden rested his hand on the hilt of his sword as he waited for Nireza and her prisoner to lead the way. . . |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Wed Aug 19, 2009 10:52 pm Post #8 |
|
Nireza smiled at Aiden's reply. "I guess that makes two of us. I've never been bad in the dirty trick department either. My telekinetic ability is particularly useful in that area." To demonstrate, she pulled the bandit's dagger from his belt from about ten feet away and pulled it to her free hand and caught it. She then mentally flung the weapon upward and away from the area. "Now he can't stab us in the back when we're about to attack." Nireza's expression turned more serious. "It's time we got moving. We don't want to give these bandits any more time than we have to." Nireza turned to the bandit prisoner and said, "You're leading us to your camp. One wrong move and you're dead." With no hesitation, the prisoner began walking, and Nireza followed close behind. After a few minutes, Nireza heard the sounds of combat not far away along the path. "These bandits must be active tonight. I guess we have more trouble to deal with." After a couple minutes, she walked over a ridge and saw what was happening. A group of five bandits had attacked another small group. A single warrior was holding them off, although it appeared that he wouldn't last too much longer. The rest were women and children, incapable of defending themselves. Nireza saw the scene and began running toward the battle. |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Sat Aug 22, 2009 3:10 am Post #9 |
|
"I guess that makes two of us. I've never been bad in the dirty trick department either. My telekinetic ability is particularly useful in that area." Aiden watched with mild interest as Nireza plucked the dagger from the bandit's belt, showing her telekinetic ability. The elf was more worried about the fact that the bandit had still been armed at all--he hadn't noticed the dagger at his belt the entire time. He mentally kicked himself for missing such an obvious detail, but there was little time to dwell on the mistake. The trio set off at a rather quick pace, covering a surprising amount of ground in a relatively short period of time. They crossed two or three well worn paths, all of which Aiden assumed led to the refugee camps or to the ruins of Taras. He could only imagine how many innocent travelers had been waylaid by the bandits in recent months. He only shook his head, able to contain his emotions, but not his frustration--how could so many miss such a glaring problem? Either way, it seemed that in Nireza, he had found a dedicated, if a bit zealous, companion. Suddenly, they stopped, listening earnestly as the sounds of battle drifted over the quiet plains. The elf grimaced as he pieced together the likely situation. "These bandits must be active tonight. I guess we have more trouble to deal with." Aiden agreed and jogged after Nireza, hauling their captive a bit roughly along the way. "Wait!" he said as he looked over the ridge and observed the situation. He could only look on as Nireza charged down the ridge, already attempting to offering her help. "Great," Aiden groaned, unsure of what to do with their current prisoner in light of what was occuring now. At an impasse, Aiden made a quick decision...and smashed his fist into the bandit's stomach. The captive slumped to the ground, unconscious before he hit the ground as the elf scampered down the ridge after Nireza. . . |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Sat Aug 22, 2009 8:21 am Post #10 |
|
Nireza continued running for a bit until she was near enough to the fight to target the enemies with her spells. Her rage against the cowardly bandits was such that she failed to notice her companion's attempt to get her to stop. She hated anyone who would attack someone weaker than himself with no good reason, especially if they intended to sell them into slavery. Robbing such people was bad enough, but to Nireza, slavery was the ultimate evil, to be eliminated by whatever means necessary. She decided that she didn't have enough time to prepare her lightning spell this time, especially if someone tried to attack her as she was casting. She pulled out her wand and cast a bolt of holy magic at one of the bandits. The bolt struck him in the chest, flinging him backward. He landed on the ground, and although he wasn't dead, he was wounded enough that he would be down for the rest of the battle unless he was healed. The spell was enough to get the attention of the other bandits. The group leader ordered two of his men to stop attacking the warrior and attack Nireza. The remaining bandit on the warrior was enough to keep him occupied in his fatigued state. Nireza was able to blast a second white bolt into another bandit's head, leaving him dead on the ground. She then drew her rapier, ready to fight the other two. |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Sun Aug 23, 2009 3:23 pm Post #11 |
|
Aiden approached the situation carefully, calmly noting the positions of the five bandits before moving into the fray. He noted with relative indifference that Nireza seemed intent on fighting the first four all by herself. From what the elf had seen, she would be fine. Hopefully, she's not brash enough to not ask for help, he thought with a smirk as he drew his sword and moved towards the remaining bandit. His move seemed to be just in time as the fatigued warrior seemed to be fighting on his last legs. Aiden surged forward, shouting as he charged in an attempt to draw the bandit's attention towards him. However, he could do nothing as the bandit lashed out with a vicious punch, knocking the warrior to the ground just seconds before Aiden arrived. Then, the bandit turned on his heel, his own blade already on the defensive. Impressive, Aiden thought, noting this bandit's apparent skill. He absently thought that this might be the leader of the small band as their blades clashed in midair, both of them pushing against the other in an attempt to gain the advantage. "Nice night for a stroll I suppose," the elf said through clenched teeth as he pushed forward. "Nice night to kill, you mean," the bandit said, smiling evilly as he suddenly flung himself back, towards the defenseless women and children cowering nearby. "Oh no you don't," Aiden said, quickly giving chase and preparing a spell. However, he instantly realized just why firing a spell would be so dangerous. In his retreat, the bandit had placed himself close enough to the group of women and children that any mistake in aim would leave an innocent injured, if not worse. "Damn," the elf muttered, racing to catch up to the bandit and take him down the old fashioned way. Luckily, he didn't have to go very far thanks to an unlikely ally--the wounded warrior from earlier. He had managed to gather enough strength to stick a long leg out, catching the unaware bandit across the ankles and sending him roughly to the ground with a thud. Before the bandit could get back to his feet, Aiden was standing above him, sword poised to strike. "No more killing for you," the elf said, a hard look in his eyes. "Any last words?" "You can't get all of us," the bandit said matter-of-factly, "So it doesn't matter how much you struggle. This place is ours." "I disagree," Aiden replied, driving his blade into the side of the downed bandit. The steel plunged past the thin, leather armor and stole the life from the man. . . |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Mon Aug 24, 2009 9:47 am Post #12 |
|
The two bandits quickly closed the distance between themselves and Nireza. She knocked aside their initial blows and was able to take the offensive somewhat. This continued for a couple minutes. Nireza had noticed that Aiden had engaged the last bandit, but she didn't notice the warrior's fall. She decided to take a chance and attempt to blast these bandits away. She gathered energy from her connection with the wind, allowing an electrical charge to build up within herself. This required a moderate level of concentration, enough to take away from her fighting ability. She was quite aware of the risk she was taking. She was unable to take the offensive, but she was able to hold a decent defense. Fortunately for her, the bandits thought she was beginning to tire, so they decided to allow her to wear herself out before pressing the attack. An observer would also be likely to come to the same conclusion since there were no obvious outward signs of what was happening. Careful inspection would reveal that the normal signs of her wind heritage were a bit stronger than usual, primarily the wind blowing through her hair and clothing that was a bit strong for the current wind conditions, not to mention in the wrong direction. Nireza was able to prepare the lightning without taking serious injury, although a she did take some minor cuts. She rolled backwards and was quickly on her feet in a crouched position a few feet from the bandits. With a few arcane words, she pointed her left hand at the nearer bandit and released the spell just as he was about to strike her again. The lightning blew him backward and arced to the other bandit. Both were dead before they hit the ground. Nireza looked at her surroundings. Aiden had killed the last bandit, but the first one Nireza had brought down had just come to and was walking toward her, blade in hand. She pulled out her wand and placed a bolt of holy energy in the bandit's face, killing him before he could reach her. She also saw the warrior on the ground, although he didn't look dead. She walked toward him, drawing on her reserves of holy energy. She knelt next to him, taking note of his injuries and allowing the positive energy to work its healing. He was critically wounded, but not dead, and the initial healing spell healed the worst of his injuries. After a few more minutes, he was fully healed aside from a few minor cuts, but was still unconscious. Nireza stood up and walked over to Aiden. She said, "This group of bandits is taken care of. Is there anything more that needs to be done or shall we get going? We have a bandit camp to take out, so I don't think we have time for whatever thanks this group has for us." |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Tue Aug 25, 2009 3:54 am Post #13 |
|
Aiden quietly administered to a wounded woman amongst the traveling group, doing what he could for her wounds, but going out of the way not to use much magic in the process. Considering how many bandits they had already faced that night, there was no telling what kind of resistance would be waiting for them once they entered the camp proper. For the moment, there was little to be done but binding the somewhat elderly woman's wounds with bits of torn cloth, keeping them as tight as possible to stem any blood loss. "Where are you heading?" she asked, grimacing in pain as Aiden tightened the cloth. "To the bandit's camp, hopefully," the elf replied absently, keeping his concentration on the task at hand. "You're walking right into them?!" the woman asked incredulously, her eyes widening in surprise. "You're either a lot stronger than you look or a fool. Either way, I pity you just the same." Aiden replied with a calm smile and soft words, "I'd go with the first choice if I were you. We happen to be quite proficient at what we do, you know?" Despite the soothing words, however, the elf still felt a bit of unease at the rather large task ahead of them. By now, their future opponents would have had some inkling that something was out of place; that someone was putting up resistance along the worn dirt paths of the plain. Thanks to that, they had most likely lost the element of surprise, meaning that their options were rather reduced to more of a frontal assault than originally planned. Secretly, Aiden wondered if his companion would be able to stay focused on what they had to do rather than letting emotion get the best of her. From what Aiden had witnessed so far, Nireza had some rather strong feelings towards the bandits they were facing as well as their practices. The elf silently prayed that she'd be able to stay levelheaded and not rush so rashly into situations like the one they had just found themselves in. He suddenly looked up, realizing that his healing job was finally done. "There you go," he said with a smile. The woman nodded in thanks as she stood slowly, flexing her arm a bit to test the strength of the binding before walking towards the rest of the group of women and children she was accompanying. "Thank you, ranger," she said, the thanks evident in her voice. "I do hope that you manage to stay alive this night. You'll need the power of heaven on your side to face all of those bandits alone." Aiden simply nodded and waved absently as he walked towards Nireza, who was apparently ready to go. "This group of bandits is taken care of. Is there anything more that needs to be done or shall we get going? We have a bandit camp to take out, so I don't think we have time for whatever things this group has for us." The elf replied with a frown and said, "Nonetheless, we should still remain cautious. Perhaps we'll get lucky and still have the element of surprise on our side. . ." |
|
|
|
| Nireza | Wed Aug 26, 2009 5:15 am Post #14 |
|
Nireza noticed that Aiden was also busy healing, and that he was making more effort to conserve his magic than she was. She hadn't thought of conserving magic as she hadn't had any problems with with running out of energy before and didn't expect to suddenly have them now. However, she decided not to abuse her abilities in case there was a limit she wasn't aware of. It wasn't hard for Nireza to guess that Aiden didn't exactly appreciate the way she had rushed into battle. She hadn't even prepared a spell first. She normally wasn't this impulsive, even when it came to fighting bandits, but most bandits were after people's money and valuables, which she didn't consider to be inherently evil. She replied to Aiden, "I'll try to be a bit more cautious in the future. I guess I ran in there right away because it looked like these people needed help. It also didn't help that I hate slavery to a fault. I just can't stand anyone who would make someone work for them unwillingly like that. At any rate, it's time to get moving. We have a bandit camp to find." |
|
|
|
| swordhunter | Thu Aug 27, 2009 2:28 am Post #15 |
|
"I'll try to be a bit more cautious in the future. I guess I ran in there right away because it looked like these people needed help. It also didn't help that I hate slavery to a fault. I just can't stand anyone who would make someone work for them unwillingly like that. Aiden struggled to conceal another frown, certain now that he was right about Nireza being controlled by her emotions. This won't be good if we see something truly horrific, the elf thought as they prepared to leave. There are many things which are worse than slaving. I wonder what will happen should we encounter something like that? Despite the elf's misgivings about the situation, he remained confident that she would be able to control herself in the event of such an occurrence. "At any rate, it's time to get moving. We have a bandit camp to find." Smiling at his companion's enthusiasm, Aiden looked around and noted the two unconscious bandits nearby. "And what exactly do you propose we do with them? They don't look like they'll be waking up anytime soon." Personally, the elf wouldn't have minded if they killed the bandits then and there. At this rate, they would need relatively little help in locating the bandits' hideout, not if they continued to appear in small groups nearby. One less variable to worry about, the elf thought as he waited for Nireza's reply. . . |
|
|
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| Go to Next Page | |
| « Previous Topic · The Ruins of Taras · Next Topic » |
5:43 PM May 23
