To Heir is Human II- Playground 9, That time again.... Options

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

Seeing what Karn wrote made Patholos think. Patholos shrugged and laid all the bodies together. The unconscious Nord was starting to come to, so Patholos struck him again, then using pieces of cloth from the clothing of the assailants, he tied the Nord to all the bodies. Patholos turned to Karn, and a feeling of belonging struck him. Here in front of Patholos was another Dunmer, whose heritage they both share. Also, this man was a visionary, as well as a formidable force. Patholos said, "My Brother, there comes a time when one must stop to gather himself, survey his surroundings, and make intelligent choices. I believe now is not one of those times.." Patholos made an elaborate gesture as if he was trying to hear something very faint. Yelling and cursing echoed down the sewer. Patholos smiled a wry smile, then he said, "There is way that would lead outside into the mountains through an old Mythic Dawn cultist's house. Once she died, it became an extremely valuable place. If you would just come this way...." Patholos smile again, and motioning down deeper into the sewer, Patholos took off.

[Dantrag]

Flint Ironwood, Chorrol (totally forgot about him. Dang.)

Flint paced back and forth in front of the throne. He'd thought that merely dropping Ian's name would be enough. Now he had to give out a detailed report?
,,And I pretty much forgot everything. Man, I'm really getting old."

He scratched his beard, still pacing.
,,Ok, so I'm a bit mentally disabled at my age, so I kinda forgot the chronological order." He mumbled incoherently.

,,The Imperial City has been evacuated completely, the navy has been sunk, Leyawiin has been burned down to the ground. Cheydinhall has come under attack and likely fallen. Sathyana was kidnapped but has been saved by now. Then, someone who I think I might know blew up a large portion of the Valus mountain, taking a large portion of the original army with him. Somewhere around that time, the Silhouette disappeared, only to return later at the head of thousands of Akaviri snakes. And I know how to count, thank you very much."

He took a deep breath before continuing.
,,Ian is now a vampire but otherwise seems to be fine. Serene from Vvardenfell joined up as well, which should be a clue to how serious the whole situation is. Rann is getting on everyone's bad side, Sathyana has hooked up with Issac. We're running low on supplies but other than that, I think we can hold out for a while longer and monitor any movements. But we can't do this on our own."

He stopped pacing and faced the countess.
,,Ah, screw this! I'm not good at this thing so just tell me what exactly you want to know!"

The Countess

It was hard for the countess to keep from being angry at Flint's less-than-perfect report, but got enough information to realize that things were serious and no more time could be wasted.

"I'm sending you back with fifty soldiers; half my force here in Chorrol. When you meet back with everyone else, I want the most battle-experienced in the group to lead."

There was a moment of silence. "Go!"

Ian

He turned as Green-Root fell to the ground with a thud. Ian realized that the argonian was very much in danger of perishing.

Thinking quickly, Ian tore the rest of Root's shirt off and made the best torniquite (sp.) he could given the circumstances. Well, at least it can slow down the bleeding. I can only do so much with first aid. Ian popped open the plug of his last healing potion.

His spirits plummeted when he noticed the vial was crudly made. At best it would help close the wound and hopefully help clot the Argonian's blood. He fed Root the weak potion, hoping that if anything, the argonian wouldn't die before Serene got Kirana out of her plight.

Aerona

Aerona had almost finished making a healing potion for Rann when Serene healed him from quite a distance. She sat in awe at Serene's powers for a short moment before regathering her wits and focusing on the current situation. She noticed that their enemies were defeated and Green-Root was in dire need of help.

She hastily finished the potion that had originally been intended for Rann and hurried to Green-Root's side to give it to him.

"This should be of a bit more quality." she said without a hint of pride as she handed the concoction to Ian to administer.

Rann

Rann stood, having apparently been healed of two poisons and an injury. Unfortunately for him, Serene had healed his arm while the whip was still imbedded in it.

Not wanting to tear it out at this moment, he wrapped the whip around his arm and tied it so that it was out of his way and looked around at his companions.

Everyone was exhausted. The fight with the vampires had been useless, except for the gain of Aerona's healing magick, and Karn roamed free once more. Worst of all, though, they had waited too long to attack the Silhouette. His army was on the move.

"We should rest a day or two," he said to anyone who would listen, "The army should leave enough tracks to follow after we've rested. Then we'll go after the Silhouette with no more delay."

It was by no means an order; it was what he planned to do no matter what the others decided on. He sat down and began to sharpen his sword, glad for the small amount of peace.

[Lord Revan]

Ian

At Rann's words, Ian blurred and dissappeared. A few moments later he appeared on top of a boulder some distance away. He watched as the Silhouete's army move through the narrow pass. Well, this all turned out real nice....

The rag-tag army of bandits and beasts marched at point, with the Akaviri snakemen coming up behind. Ian spotted the Silhouete, the sight of floating robes with only purple eyes beneath them caused him to reel backwards.

A pebble nearby slipped and began tumbling down the rock. Before it went too far and revealed his presense, Ian retreated back to the camp. Wearied in the face of everything that had happened of late, he slumped against a tree trunk.

I hope Flint has made some progress, otherwise the SIlhouete's armor will be free from these mountains in a matter of days.

Karn

He wordlessly followed Patholos, trusting in his companion's sense of direction.

[jack cloudy]

Flint Ironwood. (Green-Root will remain unconscious for now.)

,,Geez, no rest for the good guys." Flint thought as he walked away. Fortunately he did not need to give out any orders. By the time he left the castle, there were already fifty men waiting for him, and fifty-one horses.
,,Hmm, cavalry. I never knew we had one of those. Twelve Archers, two battlemages and the rest are heavy knights."

He said nothing as he got on his horse. He just nodded and off they went.
,,I should've waited at least long enough to have a meal." With that thought, he dozed off."

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

Emerging from behind a closed door, Patholos came into the abandoned house. Looking back for Karn, Patholos went to the door and opened it. There waiting for them were two horses. The note attached to one of the saddles said,

"Here are two horses. Return to Vile Lair, Base camp set up, provisions low, lost ten percent of the Dark Brotherhood."
-Calitus

Patholos turned back to see Karn, and told him the news. Then he said, "It will take two hours of hard riding to get to the Vile Lair. We need to hurry, the other Guilds are on the hunt." As if to emphasize the last words from Patholos, he heard shouts and they saw torches in the night. "Come my brother, now we ride."

[Lord Revan]

Karn

Before mounting his horse, Karn grabbed a fresh lantern. Turning he shattered the glass and threw it in the direction of the nearby foliage that lay between them and their foes. "Alright, let's get out of here before they find a way through that fire."

As Karn mounted the black horse, the flames were beginning to spread through the meadow.

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

Encouraged by the willingness and respect that Karn had shown him, Patholos spurred his horse on. Riding off towards the Vile Lair, Patholos started to think as the clod wind bit his face. The very foundation of where Patholos was from had been shaken, and the new man Karn had shown him that there is much more than just worshiping the Dread Father. The Dread Father was nothing for him now, he was his own man. His eye sockets hurt even more now, but he could deal with that. "I release myself from the bonds of Sithis!" Patholos yelled at the red planet. He turned back to Karn as they were riding and said, "Now that we no longer call ourselves, Dark Brotherhood employees," Patholos smiled at the word, "We must still use the remains of the Dark Brotherhood until we can confirm that the others are with us....

[Lord Revan]

Karn, riding

"I concur, change can't always be swift." He replied as they rode.

Then he realized he'd forgottwn something. Reaching into his pocket, Karn felt the shape of the amulet.

"It can wait....." He muttured under his breath.

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

"Yes, it can wait," Patholos said cautiously, noticing Karn feel into his pocket. "Say, Brother, how did you survive on your own for so long? With survival skills of that nature, you could really go places!" Patholos laughed to ease the tension he had inside him. The ruins of Bruma were just visible over the next hill.

Mannimarco

Another sleepless night, yet rest is for no one, even the dead wake at my call.

Mannimarco roused himself from his stupor, and called his favorite "addition" over to his side. The "addition" had been a rich merchant in Bruma before it was sacked by the Silhouette. Mannimarco poured over the mans' past experiences, and he stole all he emotion from the mans' memory. A faint noise like steam escaping from a kettle pulled Mannimarco from his "addition's" memories. A small creature appeared before Mannimarco. "Good, Report." The creature began conversing in the Necromancers' own language. Mannimarco grinned. "Good, return to your slumber." Mannimarco waived his hand and the creature disapaited. A young Necromancer walked into Mannimarco's study. Mannimarco turned to the new arrival and said, "They have found the remains of Reman Cyrodill. Go to the tomb and take my staff. Take his memories and his thoughts and feelings. Do NOT fail me, or you will never taste immortality with the gods!"

[Lord Revan]

Karn

"Well," He shrugged. "How I was taught, my family was a part of a clan along the Cyrodiilic/Morrowind border. I was one of the children that strove be independant...... I could hardly work together if it killed me."

He smiled slightly, both because of the momories of his insolent childhood and laughing with Patholos did ease the stress of the situation. I'll wait until we arrive at this "Vile Lair" to contact Veric.

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

"Not far now, my Brother" Patholos said as they rounded the Topal Bay towards the eastern side of the inlet. Patholos pointed to a small trapdoor located on the edge of the shore. "There, we go down there to confront our destiny." Patholos walked over and opened the trap door. As he began this motion, he saw with his eyes that saw neither light nor dark, but a faint half-light, the movement of other Dark Brotherhood agents around the bay. Some came out of the water, some came down from trees, others came out of holes in the ground. There seemed to be at least a fourth of the guild there. Patholos nodded in acceptance of the stealthy attitude of his Guild. As Patholos opened the trapdoor, a Dark Brotherhood member asked from the bottom, "Patholos, and your acquaintance, you are needed below." With that, Patholos descended into the Vile Lair. Before descending however, Patholos whispered to Karn, "Be wary, they may have followed us..."

[Lord Revan]

Karn

As Patholso descended, Karn eyed the dozens of black shapes that moved from shadow to shadow around the bay. Well, they certainly want to make an impression.... Patholos' warning seemed somewhat vague, but Karn simply assumed he meant the guilds that were activelly hunting them at the moment.

When Patholos dissappeared, Karn silently followed him down the ladder. Whoever made this place had a very good grasp of hiding it. I wouldn't have recognized that trapdoor until I stepped on it.....

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

As Patholos came into the main chamber of the Vile Lair, he noticed something. Every agent from the field was pulled into this lair and they circled a dais near the tree. A man was siting there and he looked very faint, almost as if smoke was trapped in glass. "What is the meaning of this?" Patholos asked. "Why are all our agents in from the field?" No one replied. Patholos loosed his small dagger and readied his throwing knives. After a tense pause, the figure near the tree in a haunting voice said, "Sithis is aware of your betrayal, and I was sent to deal with you." The figure stopped talking and red orbs of fire appeared in the place where eyes should have been. "Do you see my brothers? Do you see this lack of care for your lives?" Patholos responded, as the figure slowly rose and walked towards Patholos and Karn, a fiery katana in its hand. "Witness now the power of true Brothers, bound by no god, but only our strength!" Patholos cried, and then, turning to Karn, he said, "This is the Judgement of Sithis, this means all the Dread Father's strength will be put into stopping us. It has killed many in our order over the centuries, and there is no known weakness. Fight hard my brother, and we will taster victory!" And without looking back at the figure who was nearly upon them, Patholos hurled one of his knives at the figure and charged forward, yelling, "Narza'Tai!"

OOC: Hope I didn't spoil anything by having Patholos yell the new guild name. Judgement of Sithis, maybe the same as normal Daedra, but stronger.

[Lord Revan]

Karn

Glaring at the vile apparition known as the Judgement of Sithis, Karn made a diagnal slashing motion with his right arm and a bound shortsword appearing between his fingers. He said smoothly, "Come now, abomination, let's see if you truly are the feared agent of retribution or just another deluded soul among others."

Crouching, Karn blurred and reappeared just to the ghost's right flank. Gripping the blade with both hands, he prepared to slash the apparition to pieces.

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

Encouraged by Karn's immediate immersion into battle, Patholos roared his defiance. Dodging the flaming blade, Patholos attempted to set Karn up for the killing blow. Hopefully, the strike would land across the apparition's neck. But, as Patholos went to dodge, he noticed in his twilight vision, armor underneath the shroud of black. "Armor, strike lo--" But Patholos was cut off as the flaming blade licked across his thigh. Screaming in agony, Patholos fell off to the side, useless in the battle. Patholos cast Haste on Karn just before he fell unconcious.

OOC: Haste makes all judgements faster, there is no physical affect, and what could lo- have meant?

Mannimarco

The King of Worms laughed as he fondled the skull of Reman Cyrodill. He wondered what secrets the Emperor had for him to discover. He had been dead for far too long. As Mannimarco set up the complex spell matrix to open the memories, he stopped. There was love in the remains, love for his people. Mannimarco could do nothing to open the secrets now. Enraged, Mannimarco sent physical waves of energy about his study. Rock fragments and papers flew everywhere. Damn Reman Cyrodill, Damn them All.

[Lord Revan]

Karn

As karn's blade made contact withthe ghost's essense it met resistance. But not the resistance Karn had expected. His blade only entered a few millimeters into the apparition's "body." Before it could turn to face him, Karn got over the shock and leapt backward.

The other asassins watched silently, to disbelieving of the situation or unsure of who was tellingt the truth to take part. Karn backed away as the apparition advanced, he moved into a nearby tunnel. His mind was shooting about trying to find a way to strike down this foul spirit.
Patholos' half-spoken message ran through his head several times as Karn tried to piece together exactly what he'd been trying to tell him. Well, I'll just have to guess!

He allowed for the wraith to get within striking distance, then as it swung it katana Karn rolled. Rather than roll in the opposite direction Karn came to a stop at the end of the ghost's swing. Switching his sword to his off-hand, Karn grabbed the hilt of the spirit's katana.

The blade waved a bout in the air as Dunmer and ghost grappled for control. The air became noticably hotter, and sweat ran down Karn's face. Aiming as best he could, the ninja thrust his bound weapon into the spirit's chest.
The blow did not vanquish the abomination, but the apparition did loosen its grip on the blade. Ripping the katana from the spirit's transparent hand, Karn discarded his other weapon. Hoping that he had interpretted his comrade's advise correctly, Karn cleaved a wide gash through the wraith's lower torso.

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

As the blade Karn thrust sunk deep into the apparition, ichorous blue fluid gurgled out of the wound. The spirit reeled in agony as the gash began to tear the spirit asunder. The aparition's hold on Mundus was weakening, and the red orbs that were the eyes began to shimmer as a half-color, not necessarily entirely visible. The ghost grew out of proportion and imploded, sending the blue liquid all over the room. The Judgement of Sithis was defeated, Man and Mer could stand against Gods....

OOC: Don't forget about Patholos on the floor....

[Lord Revan]

Karn

Silence riegned within the chamber, before the throng of assassins Karn thrust the katana to the pommel into the floor.

Flames erupted from the blade and filled the tunnel, yet no one was harmed by the fire. The blue ichor however, dissappeared. Karn let go of the blade and struggled to rise from his kneeling position.

A breton assassin disengaged from the throng of of her fellows. Before she could reach him though, Karn shook his hed and indicated Patholos.
"I've only got a few burns, his injuries are more serious." The part-time healer went to help Patholos, and Karn pulled a standard healing potion and drank it in a few gulps.

Kirana

The dark veil over her sight still remained, but slowly she became aware of her own labored breathing. Next, Kirana recognized the acrid smell of fresh blood and the breathing of others around her. Her eyes fluttered open, then she jammed them shut as the light from the rising sun assailed them.

Kirana skakily manuevered into a more comfortable position, and sat up. She opened her eyes again with more success. Kirana noticed Serene beside her and surmised that the healer had tended to her after that lightning blast.
The memory of electricity coursing through her body caused an involuntary shudder. Some of her muscles were still twitchy.

Once she got herself reasonably stable Kirana muttered a strained thanks to Serene. Her throat throbbed from the effort of producing sound.

Ian

After getting over the aftershock of the last few days, weeks even, Ian got to his feet. Gathering his wits, he felt foriegn instincts take hold.... not as foriegn as they felt. Turning in the direction he assumed the Silhouete's army was now, Ian had an odd look in his eyes.

Suddenly, he fought against the reckless impulse to seek out the demon and exact proper payment for all the chaos it had achieved. "Will this disease forever plague my mind?" He asked mournfully. No one asnwered, and he felt alone for the moment.

"I have to move on..." He whispered. Ian reflected on how his vampirism had yet to be of tangible aid to the group. I can do more on my own, where my curse can be of use and I don't have to fight it so often....
With that conclusion, he blurred out of sight and vanished.

This post has been edited by Lord Revan: Apr 25 2007, 10:30 PM

[Priest of Sithis]

Patholos

Patholos cautiously sat up, after the healer from the Brotherhood approached him. He was in good condition after the healing spells were cast, he felt a little tired. Noticing what took place and remarking again at the strength of Karn, Patholos walked over to his friend. "Thank you, my Brother, I owe you my life many times over..." Patholos smiled to accentuate the phrase and he strode over to the tree. He stood in front of the Gathering and he started to speak.

"My Brethren, who are we to challenge Gods?" (A long pause, not a sound) "Who are we to decide who lives or dies?" (Again a long pause, no sound) "My Brothers and Sisters, were are scum, we are nothing, we are,....,individuals, bound by these Tenants to weaken and cripple to virtuous act of taking life. Can not a simple man take life, NAY!" (A cough in the group, Patholos looked directly at Karn with his eyeless head) "Our Dread Father grants us gifts, no?" (Patholos removed his covering, to show his empty sockets) "This was bestowed by our god as a reward! Are you prepared to accept such a gift?" (Muffled gasps throughout the crowd, Patholos moved his gaze along the audience, finally coming again to rest on Karn) "It is now, My Brothers, that we cast down these chains of treachery, we hold fast the values of life and death, and we become more powerful than any has ever SEEN!" (A cry arose from the Brotherhood) "Rise now, Narza'Tai, Rise and become truly bound by Brotherhood! NARZA'TAI! NARZA'TAI!" (Patholos was screaming this chant and the whole Brotherhood carried it on)

Patholos quietly walked over to Karn, the rest of the Brotherhood fell quiet. "Behold, my Brethren, a Man worthy of respect and bound by honor, a Man to which I owe my life. This Man, You will now call Leader and Sensei." Patholos bowed before Karn, and the rest of the Brotherhood bowed as well. "You may lead us, Brother..." Patholos whispered.

[Lord Revan]

Karn, sensei

He didn't need to hide the surprise of Patholos' faith in his leadership, because frankly, Karn was getting used to it. It was contagious, made even the Karn of old believe he could lead these men and women to a higher level in existance.

He took his place before the tree. Karn spoke, "Brothers and Sisters, for millenia our ansestors have been used as pawns in a struggle between gods for gods." He paced in front of the assembly, meeting the assassins' gazes.

"How many have given their lives in the name of their benevolent dieties? How many millions have had their lives ruined by zealots, crusaders, and cultists in the name of one of the almighty?" No one answered and he continued.

"The gods created everything, they have a place in our lives, these facts cannot be ignored. But as individuels and as people of free will, we have a right to live our lives as we wish them to be. Are we in debt for eternity to them for our creation?"

"No, our forerunners paid that debt for us, gave their lives to offer us a chance at a better existance than they could have enjoyed. The Dark Brotherhood was a perversion, Sithis, the Void, the Dread Father, sentenced any who strayed from his will to death." Karn stopped pacing and ran his gaze over the crowd, hand clapsed behind his back.

"Tell me, what father murders his children simply for disobeying him? We are mortals, we are imperfect, but then perhaps the gods are as well, so absorbed in their status that they have forgotten the meaning of their own pacts and covenants." Karn's voice rang with conviction.

"Let all future generations remember this era, the Fourth Era of civilization, as the age when mortals stood tall and proud regardless of the Gods and their teachings. Let the Narza'Tai be the first to rise as one to forge a future for mortals by mortals! Let all who challenge this new beginning quake in fear of even the smallest shadows as we sieze destiny!" Karn raised his arms in an all-encompasing gesture as if attempting to sieze the very fabric of reality. The Narza'Tai assassins roared their approval.

As messangers were sent to seek out the other scattered groups of Dark Brotherhood assassins with news of the regime change, Karn turned to Patholos and spoke wearily. "My friend, this appears to be a magnificent start, however change can never come quickly enough. So many things must be done before the Narza'Tai become a true force that we all hope for in our hearts."

This post has been edited by Lord Revan: Apr 26 2007, 02:25 AM