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.

*********************************

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

[Acadian]

* Buffy *

“That’s disappointing to hear,” replied Buffy to the insights Cardius provided about the Mythic Dawn’s ongoing activities. “I had so hoped that Emperor Martin’s sacrifice had not only banished Mehrunes Dagon, but broken the will of his followers as well.”

Changing the subject somewhat, she then said, “From what I’ve seen of the Vigilants, their passion for eradicating all things Daedric rather exceeds their compassion.” Buffy smiled to soften her words and quickly added, “That’s why I’m pleased and encouraged by your concern for the victim. I can imagine that a Vigilant’s priority here is to destroy this nest of Mythic Dawn, whereas mine is to rescue the hostage.”

She paused a moment and levelly met the intense gaze of those pale eyes. “If luck is with us, hopefully both objectives can be satisfied. I do have some experience with hostage rescue operations and, certainly, my preferred tactic is to silently kill all kidnappers during ingress to ensure the victim’s safety during egress.” The elf was speaking a little more quickly now, her small breasts rising and falling slightly as her rate of breathing similarly picked up. “I’m used to working alone but, hopefully, our numbers will allow for the posting of a small contingent outside the cave’s entrance to preclude the escape of any cultists who attempt it.” Buffy suddenly became acutely aware that she was smiling while describing her grim tactics. She lowered her eyes a bit demurely as a mildly warm flush of embarrassment rose through her face to the tips of her long ears.

The elf’s mouth didn’t stay closed for long however. “Forgive me. I know I can be not only a chatterbox, but also guilty of wearing too much emotion on my sleeves.” She lifted her gaze to meet his again and tilted her head. “But I do enjoy my work.” The smile that returned to her face was a bit crooked and uncertain. “Does my thinking make sense when applied to a group? I’m afraid I have little skill as a leader, or at coordinating the efforts of others. When part of a team, I generally do best either stealthily scouting out in front, or in the rear supporting with bow and spells.”