The Ghostfence rp: Playground 2 Options

[Olen]

Rothan

"He'd probably be okay with it once he realises you know your stuff," Rothan replied, "The attack before the ruin really shook him up though." He had no idea how Eno had fared after the main attack and felt guilty for not finding out. There was the pilgrim too, he had said he would lead him in prayer.

"Have either of you seen the pilgrim?"

[Dantrag]

Dralas

"The wound looks to be an old one," Dralas said, still speaking of the instrument maker, "I don't know if healing magicka would do much good."

"The pilgrim? The silent one, you mean? I haven't seen him since just after the daedra attack. It's easy to get lost with so many people around, though. I'll bet he's just trying to get settled in like the rest of us."

He took his first bite of the stew and held back a grimace. It was sustenance though, and he'd had worse.

"So Rothan," he asked after a particularly tough chew, "Do have any specific assignment here?"

[Olen]

Rothan

The question caught him off guard, he'd thought it was obvious, but then the obvious was untrue. He didn't buy either ashlanders' reason for being there either. There's all too much hidden here, he thought.

"I'm here as a chaplain," he said, "To help with the faith and minds of the workers and perform any duties required as a priest, but also just to see the site." Another half-truth, but should he reveal more? The ashlanders had no love of the temple, that included him, but equally it might meant they had no alliances in the camp. Probably. Yet.

The silence dragged, "I'm also," he said and paused again, "Keeping an eye out for the unusual. Things are chaotic, they shouldn't be. If you see anything out of place tell me, not anyone else, come to me first," was he being paranoid? Possibly but he hadn't liked the disorder in the temple, if there was a power struggle he wanted to report it before they had time to cover anything, "Now why are you here?"

[Dantrag]

Dralas

"I'm partly here for the work," he answered, choosing his next words carefully, "Partly here to take back what's mine."

He trusted us with a secret, so I may as well do the same. With his connections, I may actually find what I'm looking for...

There was still some danger to telling, though. Rothan was still in the employ of the Temple, and could likely have him locked up for trying to steal Temple property. Dralas took a breath, and gave Rianne a quick glance for support.

He finally began, "It is a known fact that the Tribunal are relying on the power of the ancestors to keep Red Mountain caged in. My family's tomb was raided, and generations were taken from their resting place, all in the name of this wall. Religious differences aside, I think you can see why I want my forefathers excluded."

[jack cloudy]

Haz

The work had been done, Haz Andrethi was no more. Or rather, he had never existed. Has-no-tail stomped together the ash that now covered his former belongings. More ash would blow in to cover that soon enough and by morning at its latest, it would be as if no one had ever been to this place.

"Now then, it is time for the second part of the operation. To infiltrate this acursed place and tear it down, one way or another." He spoke softly to himself as he turned on back to the camp just beyond the hills. He was not going to pass by the shrine again, nor use the main gate. Instead, he hoped to slip in among the other slaves when they returned from their torment, exhausted by the brutality of the environment and the cruelty of their captors. The Argonian's hands yearned for a Dark Elven throat to crush as he looked upon the alien structure looming up from the ash.
"All built by us. All of it. By us who didn't want to. Us who had to. What 'right' do they claim to abuse others?" He growled.

But the hatred he felt at the moment was not like the one he usually felt, the burning coals that threatened to consume him in a raging fire. No, it was tempered somehow by a feeling of awe. He wanted to destroy that structure but at the same time, it was massive, ascending so high that its top disapeared within the deep gray clouds. It seemed more like the work of a god than a group of workers and an even larger group of slaves.
"Just what do they want with this? Is this all just a temple for the worship of their false gods? No temple of the Imperials is this...great. Not even the forts of the Legion compares."

[Olen]

Rothan

Dralas' words troubled Rothan. The mer had as good as said he was there to steal temple goods, but equally was he wrong to? Rothan paused, "I can guess where such things are kept," he said, "And unlike you I am in a position to confirm that guess without arousing much suspicion. But it's heresy and I won't. I should have you locked up, but neither will I do that. I suspect things may get interesting if the power struggle continues, I may need allies."

He took another mouthful of stew. He didn't notice the vile taste this time.

[Dantrag]

Dralas

Dralas did well to keep a level head. What did this priest know of heresy? Had the House dunmer forgotten so much about their heritage? Being made into a ghostfence was no laughing matter. As an act of sacrifice, one might ask that his relatives use a bone or two to power a fence after his death, but rarely the entire body. That was generally a fate reserved for those who were dishonorable in life.

But the priest wasn't going to put him away, and admitted to needing allies. Dralas knew from previous experience with Rothan that he had a good heart and a solid head on his shoulders, despite being a priest of the Tribunal Temple. Besides, he had saved Rianne's life back at the ruin, and that wasn't something Dralas would soon forget.

"Allies aren't free," he said, taking a moment to scrape up the last of his stew, "But friends are. I can tell that you are reluctant to help me, and I respect your reasons, just as I can see that you respect mine. Maybe in time, friend, we will better understand each other."

This post has been edited by Dantrag: Jan 22 2010, 09:35 PM

[minque]

Rianne

Rianne listened to the conversation between Dralas and Rothan without interfering. She was a bit stunned that Dralas revealed his reasons to be here to the priest, she didn't think he would do such a thing.

She gave Dralas a sign by very lightly touch his shoulder, so he would know she was supporting him whatever would happen.

This stew really taste awful!!

"My reason to be here...really...is because my brother is here already and I'd like to be of some assistance to him. Besides I guess this place needs a healer.."

She smiled faintly and finished the last of her food with a shrug.

Then she took out some hackle-lo and rolled it thoroughly.

"Here!" she offered both Dralas and Rothan, before she lit her own

[Colonel Mustard]

Erna

"Name."

"Holshin Verath," Erna lied, using the name shown on the form held by his murdered victim.

"You got your supplies?" the clerk asked. He sounded bored; clearly he'd gone through this routine dozens of times today.

"Right here," Erna said, tapping the sack strapped on his guar's back with a smile.

"Good, put them in the pile," the clerk said. "Says here you're assigned to construction, Serjo Verath. Your work number's 4045, alright?"

"Got you," Erna said. He did as he was told, removing the sack strapped to the back of his guar and placing it on the pile and taking the papers that the clerk handed back to him.

He took his guar outside, and decided on a course of action. First of all, destroy the papers he had for his murdered alias before word got from here to Balmora and use the ones he'd forged, and then he'd take a look around here. No point toppling a pillar if it wouldn't bring the building down, as one of those amateurs in the Mythic Dawn had once said.

And he had a damn big building to bring down.

[Olen]

Rothan

Rothan nodded to Dralas, "Perhaps we will. I am glad you call me friend, I think we will all be glad to have as many as we can."

He put aside his spoon closed his eyes and drank the rancid stew straight from the bowl as quickly as he could. When he'd recovered he turned to Rianne, "Your brother?", he inclined his head questioningly.

[minque]

Rianne

Rianne looked at Rothan, trying to decide whether she would tell the truth or not. He just might find it odd that she had a brother among the buoyant Armigers...Even if it only was a foster-brother

"Well, yes, my brother, that is my foster brother is Salyn Sarethi, if he's known to you"

There! Ok, it was out....

He must wonder....

[canis216]

Dranas Heleran

It wasn't until nightfall that Dranas was finally able to settle in. There was the typical bureaucratic strife, of course--lines to be stood in, construction equipment to be checked in, bribes to be paid--and then there was work--setting up camp, feeding his guar, picking pockets, and most important of all, finding buyers.

That final process started when Dranas noticed one fellow struggling to light his hackle-lo. Closer inspection revealed the usual symptoms--bags under the eyes, a case of the shakes--and Dranas, of course, had the cure.

"You look like you've been working hard on this here project, serjo."

The mer jerked erect, startled, eyes darting about. But he essayed a shaky smile before replying, "Working us like slaves, they are. And the real slaves got it even worse. I'm alright though, just taking the edge off."

Dranas came closer, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, "Aye, the hackle-lo is good for that. But sometimes it isn't enough, know what I mean?" He emphasized the point with a soft elbow to the ribs, then opened the palm of his hand to reveal a small brown vial. "You do know what I mean, right?"

The mer smiled, this time broadly. "Precisely, friend. Precisely."

It hadn't taken much longer to conclude that business, and drum up a little more. The Ghostgate was looking to be a profitable venture, Dranas thought as he made his way toward a group of diners. As he grew closer, he saw some familiar faces.

[Olen]

Rothan

Rothan hadn't heard of anyone by the name of Salyn Sarethi, but that alone told him Rianne's brother was not a priest or associated hanger on of the temple. He frowned, the name sounded Redoran, though of course might not have been, that, and that he had an ashlander sister excluded the Ordinators. A worker then? Or an Armiger. Rianne was a puzzle, that much was certain but he doubted it was one he would solve, and she seemed genuine, or at least not outright dangerous.

"If I can help let me know," he said.

He glanced over and saw Dranas looking carefully at the diners from the shadows beyond the fire and waved.

This post has been edited by Olen: Jan 31 2010, 07:46 PM

[canis216]

Dranas Heleran

Dranas saw the priest wave, and finally decided to amble up to the fire. Now that business was concluded he remembered that he was hungry and pulled a hunk of scrib jerky out of his satchel. He bit off a hunk and then sat down.

"Rothan, was it? What do you think of our camp here? Seems a touch chaotic." He neglected to add the rest of his thought to conversation. A little bit of chaos wasn't bad for his business, but the priest and the ashlanders didn't need to know that.

This post has been edited by canis216: Jan 30 2010, 09:14 PM

[jack cloudy]

Haz

The Argonian had found temporary relief behind the very structure he had come to destroy. At the moment, all stray thoughts of wonder had been erased from his mind, leaving only the cold heart of a saboteur. Fortunately for him, instead of building a new section of wall, the work for today was apparantly the covering of the internal structure on a piece of wall whose framework had already been finished. If he leaned out beyond the edge of the wall, he could see the group of slaves at one or two stonesthrows away.

The slaves were made up of both both Argonians and Khajiit, along with a two or three of Orcish blood. Or at least he thought they were Orcish. They could have been unusually large and tailless Argonians. It was hard to make out the details in the encroaching darkness of the setting sun.
"But what Argonian would cut off his tail? One like me would do it, but I know that I am the only one of the pact that came here. Must be Orcs. If I could manipulate their temper towards the guards." He thought to himself as he directed his eyes to the guards that stood watch over the slaves.

They looked like Ordinators, judging by the armour, but they were not as well equiped as he'd expected. They wore a simple scarf instead of their helmets, and there were no shields either.
"Then again, they do spend all day watching unarmed slaves. Comfort is a bigger priority than being prepared for a hostile and fictional army. All day watching. I'll have to slip in when the slaves are between two groups of observers. These here will be able to know something is wrong as soon as they count one head too many."

As he continued his silent observation, he noticed that the guards were discussing amongst themselves, along with pointing at the crimson glow over the horizon. Realizing that they were preparing to finish up, Haz prepared to move. Just then, he senses movement from the direction of the main camp. Another group of guards were marching towards the one he'd had his eyes on. These at least were wearing their helmets, as well as freshly lit torches.
"They're going to make the slaves work till deep in the night?" Haz whispered to himself, feeling his anger rise. But at the same time, he realized this was an opportunity. The first group of guards would pay no attention to the slaves as soon as they were relieved. The new group did not know the numbers and even if they did, they were sooner to see it as an administrative error than a threat. If anything, he bet they would be happy with one slave more.

When both groups of guards were facing each other, going through whatever ritual they had for the changing of the guards, Haz dashed in from the shadows and got in among the slaves. He could feel a few eyes on him, but he hushed all comments with a quick gesture of his hand. He did not know if he'd been understood or if they simply didn't dare talk with the guards near, but not a word was said.
"Infiltration complete. Now let's see. I need to grab this shell, trail glue around its edges and press it against the wall? That's what everyone else is doing. I'd better do the same."

[Olen]

Rothan

"Yes," replied Rothan, "Things aren't as organised as they should be, I couldn't even report in. I'll give it a couple of days for things to calm down. How was registering for you?"

He paused to watch a pair of pilgrims pass on the main track through the camp, "And have you seen anything of the pilgrim whose guar died? I've not spoken to him since the ruin."

[canis216]

Dranas Heleran

"Registering wasn't too bad, I suppose," Dranas said, "but then I've seen about the worst that bureaucracy has to offer, trading all over mundus like I have."

He paused to bite off another hunk of jerky.

"Funny you should mention that pilgrim. I dropped off some of that Temple gear he'd been hauling"--Dranas neglected to mention that he only did so after pilfering some material away, blaming the loss on one 'Haz Andrethi'--"but never did see him in line. 'Course, I'll admit to being busy. 'Always be closing', as they say on the Gold Coast. So maybe he ended up at the back of the line and I just didn't see him. He's probably around here somewhere."

[Olen]

Rothan

With his belly filled, even if it was with awful stew, Rothan realised how tired he was. He could probably have taken a bed in the temple's own housing, had he registered, but he hadn't. The night was clear enough and there wasn't enough wind to stir the ash much so he decided he'd sleep under the stars. He nodded goodnight to the others at the fire and wandered briefly through the ramshackle dwellings until he found a sheltered corner by a shed full of construction materials and lay down on his bedroll. In moments he was asleep.

The sun was late in breasting the tops of the mountains which flanked the foyada and it wasn't until it's rays touched his face that Rothan woke. He stood and stretched the knots from his muscles and looked around the camp. Many labourers were already finishing their breakfasts and heading off but others were also just waking. Must be whatever shift system they have, he thought, I must find out about it.

He had a quick wash then headed back to where he'd eaten the night before, though not to the same stall, and got himself some kwama eggs which had seen better days but weren't too foul. He stood and ate and thought about what he should do that day.

[Dantrag]

Dralas

Dralas began his typical morning routine with the burning of hackle-lo. He sat a good distance from the camp, watching people mill around. There were hundreds of bedrolls scattered around the food stalls, all from the same caravan, no doubt. Dralas figured he wasn't the only one without bedding until two more days passed and he reported to the workers' barracks. The caravan had three days of rest, sure, just no real place to sleep.

Luckily, Dralas had a lifetime of wilderness experience, and was no foreigner to sleeping outside. He had found a small nook between two boulders outside of the camp, and it provided just enough cover for a few hours of rest. Unfortunately, the night had plagued him with strange dreams, and he didn't feel very rested. Dralas had always been very sensitive to the presence of spirits, and they refused to let him be while sleeping. He ran his hand through his matted hair until he found one particular bead that was woven in. He carefully pulled it out and examined it.

It was his father's knuckle, fashioned into a bead and given to him by his mother as a charm. Just by holding it in his hand, he could tell that it was at least partly responsible for his dreams.

I guess I won't rest until you do. Well be patient, spirits, because there is a lot of work left for me to do.

[jack cloudy]

Eno Arval

Eno was still sore all over when he woke up next morning. Still, he had to admit to himself that he felt more rested and healthier than he had been for days. He was somewhat surprised at that.
"Well but then again, this is the first time in a while that I don't need to run along with a bunch of able-legged youngsters. It makes sense if I look at things from this perspective." He muttered to himself while he attached the feeding-bag to his Guar's mouth. As he joined the beast in breakfast, he let his eyes wander over the camp. The qeue at the administrative complex was shorter now, and more relaxed.

"I should be able to register in a bit. Then I'm finally done with this whole endeavour. I'll take the first caravan home as soon as it leaves. Shouldn't take too long now that there are more people. Someone needs to be kept informed in the big cities after all. I should so look into procuring some locally cooked meals. Aside from the fact that hard traveller's rations get rather tiresome, I will run out of them far too fast if I restrict my diet to them."

This post has been edited by jack cloudy: Feb 11 2010, 10:47 PM