by
Rraik Shadowheart
Soon, very soon... The Empire will rise from it's ashes and the dread glories of Cazic Thule will blanket Norrath. But for now, dealings with these lesser beings must be tolertated. Rraik laughs to himself as he thinks of all the fools fighting the so-called menace of the Sarnaks at the Lake of Ill Omen. Only the strongest shall survive and be able to enter Cabilis, and the sacrificial knives are already sharpened and in wait for them.
"Show me what you have elf", he growls.
"Ah my dear lizard friend, I have something I think your elders will find most interesting..."
The dark elf was young, not more than a hundred years old, but she carried herself like someone who had been around and knew how to survive. The other two elves watched Rraik with one eye and their surroundings with the other, not believing he would come to the meeting alone. The male was clearly a Warrior, the scars on his arms and face, many and clearly visible, he wore them as badges of honor. The other female... he was not sure, but judging by her weaponry and armor, he would say she was a cleric of some importance. The shield she carried looked to be enchanted. Maybe after this deal he can interest her in another one...that is if this doesn't become...interesting.
"I will judge what they may or may not find interesting, Milana. The price has been set for your goods and agreed upon, so they must have some idea of what you posess and it's value. Show me and let it be done!" he barks.
"Very well."
Milana N'toth turns to the warrior, who reaches into his pack and brings forth two small jars. She takes them and opens one, shaking out the contents.
Rraik's eyes widen slightly as he realizes what it is he is looking at. If the other holds more of the same, then these two jars are more than worth the King's ransom being paid for them.
Milana must have sensed his astonishment, she quickly thinks of a way to increase her take.
"There was some trouble getting these. It cost me some very good warriors. As compensation and a way for me to recoup my losses, the price has been doubled", she says.
"What!?" Rraik cries, "Are you mad? The price has been set! Here, take these and be gone, before I find a reason to hurt you!" He throws the pouch to Milana, she catches it and looks inside.
"You will bring twice this amount to the giant statue in the Overthere in two days, or these scrolls will disappear forever!", she snarls.
"No," Rraik hisses, as he slides his two hander from it's sheath. "I think not! I believe it is time you learned why I was chosen for this task."
In seconds everyone is armed, except Milana, who wisely steps out of the reach of his sword. The cleric begins to cast a spell and the warrior steps forward to cover her. Having fought clerics of varying gods before, Rraik knows if they cannot see, they cannot cast. He casts Clinging Darkness on her then moves to confront the warrior. The spell he cast won't last long, (especially against a cleric), so he must finish the warrior quickly.
The dark elven warrior confirms his suspicions of him when he closes with Rraik and performs a blurring routine with his halberd and slices deep into Rraik's leg. Using the snake-like speed inherant to his race, Rraik moves out of the way enough to avoid losing the leg, he then feints to the left and with a combination taught to him by the weaponmaster at a very young age, manages a backhanded swipe at the warrior aimed at the legs. When the warrior jumps back to avoid the
strike, Rraik's return blow strikes not at the fighter, but at his weapon! The blade slices cleanly through the shaft and the resulting weight shift of the weapon throws the warrior off balance for a moment. But that is all the time needed for Rraik to lift his head from his shoulders with one swing.
Agony rips through his mind. The cleric is recovered and readying her next spell, before she completes the casting, he steps in close and uses the most feared ability of the Shadowknight, Harm Touch, the gift of the Faceless One himself. Touching the cleric lightly on the arm as he passes, the cleric screams in pain and crumples to the ground, nearly dead.
Turning to fac Milana he finds that she has fled, taking the gems and the scrolls with her. He turns to the cleric and casts Lifespike, healing himself and finishing the cleric. Bending down, he takes the sheild from the body, it is Cracked Darkwood and fairly tingles with power. He can feel the strength flowing into him.
Taking an enchanted bone from his pouch, he throws it towards where Milana last stood. It stops short of the ground and points like a compass in the direction of the dark one's walled city. Two days, he muses, that is how long I have to find her and retrieve the scrolls before she reaches the safety of the city.
He smiles.
The elders told him to never trust a dark elf. Hers should have told her to never betray the Iksar....
To be continued....