Kidnapped! (Playground), RP Playground Options

[Uleni Athram]

Evil never dies. It simply evolves into another form of monstrosity. It's like a never ending tapeworm with one million faces that could transform into another million shapes, a repugnant and persistent predator that never stopped finding cracks to manifest itself. He always questioned himself how it could be done. How evil could finally be vanquished. The sheen of the wine glass, its shape made beautiful by the whispers of candlelight, gave him no answers for that, only a burning and shadowed reflection. He dug his eyes there, drinking deeply for visions as much as he did for relief an hour ago.

He let his eyes droop, and his calloused fingers massaged his wrinkling temple.

Times like these make him question whether he had the energy to lead. He was weary to the bone, and his world had no color anymore, only a distressing sepia of what ifs, could'ves and should'ves. When you run a marathon, and you see yourself run, run, run, there comes a time when you make a certain amount of distance.... when you make it further than you realized, you ask yourself if you could get a little bit of a breather. A little bit of a break.

He deserved it, didn't he? He survived the Crisis, didn't he? He fought against the baying hordes of Dagon and came out the triumphant one, didn't he?

The last thought broke all of his inhibitions and he roared a primal roar that bespoke of unending grief, inescapable confusion and unquenchable rage. With pitiable desperation he reached for the whole bottle instead of the glass, and gulped it all down, savoring the burning trail it made on his throat and chest.

He just turned 20 this morning and he already knew why men twice his age drank.

Damn the Crisis, damn the Daedra, damn the Dawn! Damn them all to a black, ancient void bereft of anything resembling hope! Damn them all!

With a surge of inner hatred and borrowed determination from the bottle, Aenius Gratian rose from his chair and stormed out of his tent-office hybrid, a gleam in his young but hardened eyes.
**

The Rebuilding of Kvatch, as was usual with anything associated with Imperial bureaucracy (particularly after a massive Crisis that left the Empire a bloody mess), was slow as a testudo formation on thin ice. The veterans, foremost among them the indomitable Savlian Matius, was busy in the Imperial City petitioning the Elder Council for real assistance, not promises that gets crucified the moment it leaves lips. The ones that were left for Kvatch's protection was mish-mash of hardened guardsmen and green horn recruits.

And they simply weren't enough to go around.

Thirty eight guardsmen tasked in the protection of several hundreds. It was head-bursting as much as it was laughable. It was fortunate that all of them were linked in this tragedy's aftermath and went beyond themselves to help each other; if it weren't, the guardsmen would simply be crushed under the pressure of protecting people several times their number. To help the beleaguered Watch, the civilians established an enclave of sorts, basing their headquarters in the collection of tents on the foot of Kvatch's hill. From his vantage point on the surrounding hills, the sun behind him, Acilius could see that there were several proper buildings erected there now, too. Probably halls of some kind where everyone would meet and gather around in.

Acilius memorized every detail and made notes.

He then joined the mass of humanity gathered there, on the lookout for the young Captain that was hiring mercenaries.

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OOC: Its been a while since I RP'ed, or wrote for that matter, and it shows. UGH! But anyway, let's do this!

[Uleni Athram]

Aenius hmm-ed as Buffy told him of her skills. He wasn't surprised to know that she was versed as a scout; a majority of the Wood elves were, after all. But he was glad to know, and thanked the Divines, that not only could she loose arrows as an archer, she was an experienced user of the arcane too. Against the Dawn, magic was of great help. One never knew what kind of devilry they were in possession of, and it was comforting to know that Buffy could have the potential to dispel it before it got the better of them. She showed interest, even proclaiming her past work for the Legion.

Aenius held an apologetic hand.

"The pay would be 300 gold and the heartfelt thanks of victimized Kvatch. That's all we can offer, sadly; with the Rebuilding well underway, all finances, no matter how meagre, must go there. In fact," here he gave a grimace, "the bounty reward comes from my own meager salary. That should tell enough how dire the situation here is; and with the damned Mythic Dawn kidnapping people left and right, its enough to drive a man mad!"

He coughed. He didn't know the reason why he suddenly opened up on a total stranger. But there was something about Buffy that told him she understood.

"The task is honorable, yes. We're rescuing a young child from a remnant of the Mythic Dawn. I have reason to believe that this sect of the Dawn could very well be the last." He scratched his beard, a gleam in his young eyes. "If its true, then we may very well end the bastards that put us through so much pain. I can finally avenge..."

He coughed again.

"If you're interested, then please stop by my office later in the evening. There would be a briefing there, and more details would be informed to you; hopefully you won't be the only mercenary present."

He gave her a salute, signalling the end of the conversation, and went towards the potion kiosk.


****

Gunnar clenched his teeth and fists. Battlemage. One of the most promising mercenaries for this operation and he was a damned battlemage. He didn't like any warrior who got all fancy with placebo tricks; to his suspicious eyes, it was like borrowing power from devils and other sinister forces. Why take that route when a simple warhammer to the face could suffice?

The Nord handed the Battlemage the bounty poster.

"There would be a briefing in the evening; place would be the Captain's office, right down there, near Batul's blacksmithy. If you find yourself done with your business with the wizards, come over there and join us. Pay's not bad, and the risk's not too high if you keep your head down."