Order of the Dark Flame: The Adventures Continue (no spam-story)

[dragon wench]

Conscious of her gaze upon him, he turned to her; irresistibly drawn, she began to lose herself in his eyes once more, the kitchen and everyone in it faded from their shared awareness. Suddenly, she heard a throat being cleared, and then she felt Yshania gently nudge her. When she looked up, she noticed, much to her embarrassment, that nearly everyone in the kitchen was attempting to suppress a smirk. Then, just as suddenly, she found that she didn’t care.

Casually, she stood up, and strolled to the door; Jerren, with equal nonchalance, followed her.
“I think that we could both use a shower,” she whispered.

“They didn’t have showers where I was," Jerren grinned. It’s been a long time...”

She reached out, and touched his arm, then nudged him down the passageway and towards the shower room.

Once there, Jerren began stripping off his clothes and remarked, "You could have warned me that you were hanging out with the most beautiful fighters and mages in all of Faerun. I would have a least shaved. Still, they seemed friendly enough. And Nippy was great -- can't wait to talk to him more about..." He turned round to find Dragon Wench fully dressed and staring at him in the strangest way. "Is it something I said?" asked Jerren with concern. She looked away, slightly embarrassed. "No... Jerren. It's just that this is a little awkward for me..."

She felt slightly self-conscious at her sudden sense of discomfort. Yet, taking a shower together like this recalled to her mind that first tentative time, so long ago. As she closed her eyes at the memory, it occurred to Dragon Wench that after a seeming eternity apart, this was more than a simple reunion. Despite their shared history, the many confidences and intimacies that they had shared, they were, in some ways, recreating their relationship.

Comprehending, Jerren smiled at her, “Time ceases to hold meaning when you die. When I was trapped in that void, everything stopped for me. I could only drift, and remember what I had lost, the present was not mine to contemplate, and a future was unimaginable.” He paused, “But for you, so much has happened”… his voice trailed.

Dragon Wench nodded. Ironically, with a swiftness that startled her, his instinctive understanding of what she was feeling erased the ten years that had separated them. It was this ability, this unspoken communication between them……and so much more that had caused the ache and longing, the pain that would not heal. She met his gaze, the language of her eyes conveying to him all she was experiencing.

With sudden ease, Dragon Wench pulled off her clothing, grateful to be finally free of their clammy constraints.

[Harry2052]

Harry's spirit was floating in a black void, exhausted from the prolonged battle with the Shadow Master for control of his body, which was in Trademeet discussing with a group of Red Wizards from Thay a attack on the Dark Flames either at the keep or out in the wilderness.
This had Harry screaming silently in denial as a small emtionless part of his mind noted that the Shadow Master deliberately left out any mention of the Simbul, gathering his strength Harry made a last ditch attempt to overcome the Shadow Master but was deflected with ease by a wave of intense pain that sent him spinning out of control.
Sometime later he became aware of a presence nearby and a being of light approaching him. A wave of calmness and peace washed over him as the newcomer started speaking. "You must regain control of your body, the prophesy must be fulfilled."
Struggling to understand Harry stammered "Wh... What prophesy?". "The ones from Amaunator to his worshippers. I, Hermanes and the other seers recorded them faithfully for Rai'ya until the cleric of Moander showed up and destroyed all we worked so hard to build." exclaimed the man.
"I see" replied Harry "and this has what to do with me?". "It was forseen that you were destined to be one of the allies of the decendants of the original Order of Dark Flames."
As his hopes and strength grew a question formed on Harry's lips and Hermanes answered before it was voiced "Seek out the descendant of Circe d’Perth, only she can help free you."

(OOC over to you Viv or someone else if RL is overwhleming her , i've had too much time on my hands recently and have been re-reading the older chapters in the story )

[ 11-28-2001: Message edited by: Harry2052 ]

[thantor3]

After breakfast broke up, Simbul went over to Vivien and asked, "Have you seen Dragon Wench? I was hoping that we could get started on some training as quickly as possible."

Vivien hestitated a moment before answering. She did not like Simbul at all because she was insensitive to other people and manipulative. Worse than that, she was mean and had upset Gwally very much. She decided the best course of action would be to be polite and try to get away from Simbul as soon as possible. "I haven't seen her, your Majesty," Vivien said rather formally. To her surprise, instead of storming off in a huff as she expected, Simbul sat down next to her. "You don't like me very much, do you?" she asked. Caught off-guard and feeling very uncomfortable, Vivien wasn't sure what to say.

"I thought as much," Simbul murmured. "I have never been very socially graceful -- I'm too impatient and social conventions bore me. But perhaps a different approach is indicated here." She paused for a moment. "You seem like a nice person. Perhaps you could help me."

"Help you?" Vivien asked suspiciously, not sure what Simbul was up to. She had known people who pretended to be nice, but five minutes later were yelling at you. They were the worst.

"Yes. If I appear to be out of line, perhaps you could let me know. Unless you think I am beyond hope?" Simbul asked. Jennabard, who had come over to ask about the training, was finding the whole conversation rather surreal. The most powerful mage in Faerun, concerned with social graces?

"No... well, um...," Vivien stammered, "well you could say something nice to people once and awhile." Simbul pursed her lips, considered this for a moment, then said, "I like your robe -- it is quite flattering on you. Is it new?" Vivien smiled in spite of herself. "In a way," she answered. Remembering her manners, she added, "Thank you for noticing. You did that quite well."

"Thank you," Simbul responded with a wry smile, "it was less painful than I would have thought. Will you join Jennabard and I in some training?" Vivien nodded and the three mages went outside to work on spells.

[Gwalchmai]

Gwalchmai felt slightly disappointed. The prospect of going out and wreaking havoc on an Abomination or two sounded like a good way to spend the rest of the day. But, he understood the need to properly prepare for the battle, and so occupied his time with cleaning up the vegetable garden while considering the battle to come. The air was crisp, though the sunshine was bright. Late autumn was such a peaceful time of year. The peace was only broken by the mages who practiced spell combinations on the other side of the keep. Occasionally, the crack of lightening could be heard, and great gouts of flame would brighten the sky. Occasional wisps of purplish smoke would drift near the vegetable garden, and once Gwalchmai thought he saw the head of a conjured ancient dragon peek out above the keep’s wall. More than once, Gwalchmai had to dodge a stray meteor.

As Gwalchmai bundled up some garlic for drying in the kitchen, he spied Thantor walking along the keep’s outer wall. Thantor seemed agitated, gesturing and talking to himself. Gwalchmai pitied him, since Thantor probably didn’t have the required charisma to make it as a Druid, and had obviously opted for the second-rate career as a Ranger/Cleric. He wondered if being dual-classed ever manifested itself in a split personality.

“What’s up, Thantor?” Gwalchmai said, touching Thantor on the shoulder.

“Georgi, no! Don’t hurt me!” Thantor screamed, putting his arms up over his face. “Oh, its only you, Gwally. Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“Sorry. Trouble on the home front?”

“Uh, no, no. Nothing I can’t work out. I’m just a little stressed these days, what with the Drow War and the Abomination and all.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask you about that,” Gwalchmai said, sitting on a low rock wall. “As near as I understand, the Abomination is essentially a great big heap of decaying vegetable and biotic matter, like so much compost. Except that it contains great quantities of people and parts of people that have been killed in the most vile of ways. Also, this mass of dead things is somehow alive and inherently evil.”

Thantor seemed distracted and only grunted his response. Gwalchmai continued, “So the Shadow Master intends to build up this Abomination until it becomes so abominable that it somehow resurrects the dead god Moander. Our job is to kill the Abomination before this happens. So my question is, how can you kill something whose constituent parts are already dead or dying?” Gwalchmai waited for Thantor’s answer.

[dragon wench]

As the intensity of her mood subsided somewhat, Dragon Wench found herself relaxing under Jerren’s ministrations to her back. Half dreamily, she watched the clouds of steam swirl upwards.

“Mmmm…..that feels good,” she said quietly.

“It’s good to know I haven’t lost my touch,” replied Jerren, grinning.

She turned, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Seductively, she reached out her hand towards him, he looked at her, a roguish smile lighting his face. Casually, she laid her hand on his chest, as he moved to respond, Dragon Wench slipped her hand to his arm, and slid it upwards….tickling him…..

With a surprised yell, Jerren dropped the soap and cloth. Recovering his balance, he grabbed Dragon Wench and tried to tickle her beneath the arm, but still slippery from the suds, she squirmed out of his grasp and lightly stepped to one side, laughing happily.

At the sound of her laughing, Jerren gazed at her, his expression more serious, “ I so missed hearing you laugh.”

Dragon Wench, returned his look, and drank in his wet, tousled appearance. As his words resonated in her mind, the tight knot returned to her chest. Stepping towards him, she pulled him near. Lightly tracing his shoulder blade, she looked up, “I missed you being there to hear me.”

Jerren’s arms encircled her waist, and she felt his hand resting in the small of her back. Leaning into him, Dragon Wench allowed the emotions surging within to wash over her. She cuddled against him, content to feel him near, and so very real.

[thantor3]

Thantor came upon Gwally, apparently daydreaming as he sat on a low rock wall. "Gwally?" Thantor prodded. "Gwally, are you ok?" Roused suddenly from his fantasies of druidic superiority, Gwally bolted upright, lost his balance and fell off the rock wall onto his head. "Thantor... um... hi," he said as he arose, rubbing his head. "I was just thinking about you, actually."

Slightly embarrassed, Thantor tried to make light of the situation. "Funny... you didn't look like you were that distressed. What were you thinking about?" Looking up at Thantor towering over him, the very essence of manhood, Gwally decided not to tell him about the whole scene he imagined between him and Georgi, but simply repeated his question.

"Excellent question. Let me give you a little background on the Abomination so that my answers will make more sense. According to my intel, the cultist are constructing the Abomination as a receptacle for Moander. I believe that Loth is involved as well, probably to revive his essence from the Astral Plane. In order for Moander to possess this avatar form, the mound of rotting material has to be at least 30 feet in diameter. Once animated, it is a juggernaut of destruction. It has large and small tendrils each of which ends in a lipless, many fanged maw that can speak as well as bite, rend flesh, and entangle opponents. The tendrils can also enter any body orifice and possess the person's mind and body. These tendril also have the ability to disgorge a *seed of Moander* within the victims body and then withdraw. Eventually, the seed bursts, releasing spores." Gwally swayed slightly, deathly pale, but he was buoyed by the thought that composting was taking place somewhere on Faerun.

Thantor continued. "The Abomination, unfortunately, has a very high armor class and is capable of overrunning, swallowing, or crushing its victims. Twice per day, the Abomination can vomit forth a shambling mound and once every three days a gibbering mouther, which will do its bidding. While it can cast no spells itself, once it possesses a being, it can have them cast any spell they know, its intelligence and wisdom rising to match that of any of its currently possessed minions." He made a mental note to ask Simbul if there was any way the Abomination could be poisoned, maybe in a "trojan horse" fashion.

"There are two ways it can be killed. One of its favorite attacks is to swell up with swamp gas and attack with a giant maw. However, in this form it is very susceptible to fire. It also requires massive amount of compost. If it doesn't receive what it needs, after two days it will collapse into dust and putrid slime." He smiled. "Shouldn't be much of a problem, eh Gwally?"

"Right... no problem at all, Thantor. Um... thanks a lot for the information." And Gwally quickly departed, walking backwards, covering the front of his pants with a large pumpkin. ( )

[Aleldar]

Bone tired and wet, Aleldar let his horse quietly, lead the way home. Quietly listening for other travelers or out of place sounds. Aleldar dozed in the saddle, fully trusting his horse. He couldn’t wait to get home, to some peaceful rest and wounds to heal. Between Sheveresh and Rillifane, Aleldar hasn’t been home in three years. Not that he had family there, most of them were dead or didn’t seem to care, where he was. Which was fine with him, he liked being alone. It kept his mind uncluttered with useless thoughts.
Aleldar felt that he was being watched. He ran his fingers through his long copper colored hair. He noticed that the horse sensed something also. As he stopped the horse, a cloaked figure, walked out on the trail in from of him.
“Took you long enough, where are you going?” the figure asked.
Aleldar looked at the figure, with piercing blue eyes. Recognizing the clothing, he frowned.
“I’m going home, Sheveresh. I need some rest and I need to heal properly. Between you and Rillifane, I haven’t had the chance to do that. So I’m taking a vacation, I heading to Cormyr for some much needed rest.”
Sheveresh laughed, “My dear fellow, where I’m sending you. You will get some much needed rest, and possibly some make friends.” Sheveresh handed Aleldar a map. “This is where you are going. I want you to, meet up with Darius. He will tell you where to go next. He will probably want you to go to Evereska, the Eldreth Veluuthra have been on the loose in that part of the land. It needs to be stopped, we thought it would be wise if you looked into it.”
“Why me? You are the god here. Can’t you and the others, take care of the problem? I ask for help one time, and next thing I know………. Um never mind I’ll head to Tris.”
“Oh yes, one more thing.” Sheveresh looked at Aleldar, with a tilted head and funny grin. “Simbul is there also. You did finish that job for her, didn’t you???” He disappeared with a laugh.

Aleldar, stared at the trees. He motioned his horse forward, looking at the map. “well at least it’s down the over this rise.” He said to his horse. Making his way to the keep, Aleldar, kept an eye out for Simbul’s soldiers. Carefully, he made his way to the stables, but then changed his mind. Aleldar unsaddled the horse and let it roam free. All he needed to do was whistle to call it back. He walked inside the keep and called out. “Hello, anyone here??”

[Nippy]

Nippy was still in the kitchen when he heard a shout in the hall. He didn't recognise the voice and crashed through the kitchen door taking it off it's hinges.

"Damn! Not another one!"

He turned to look at the newcomer and saw another Elf, they seemed to be quite prolific at the moment, yet he felt no evil in this man and shouted a welcome.

"Hail friend! Can I ask your purpose in the Keep of the Dark Flames?"

OOC: @ Aldedar, over to you....

[dragon wench]

For a time they stood, fiercely holding one another, while the water poured over them, almost offering absolution from the surrounding forces of chaos and dark. Too soon, Dragon Wench reluctantly stepped back. “We should probably vacate the shower…there are spells to be practiced, and before we can do that, we will need to rest for a few hours.”

“This battle...” Jerren began, looking directly into her eyes, “you don’t want to go, do you?”
Dragon Wench lowered her eyes. “For ten years I have rushed into battle, and fought as though there would be no tomorrow…because I didn’t care whether or not I saw it….” She swallowed, “It’s not that I want a different life than the one I lead…it’s only that…just now…” Unable to finish her sentence, she looked away.

"Drina.... Drina, look at me." Grudgingly, she complied. "What is it you do not want me to see? That you fear for us?" He put his hands on her shoulders. "Do you think our coming together was a caprice... a random stroke of luck? I don't believe so. What has happened to us does not happen everyday. I believe there is a larger force at work here. I have always felt that... with you."

"Romantic," she whispered softly. A small smile, then he said, "Besides, where could you go? Anywhere you went, I would follow you."

"Promise?"

"Yes... I promise." She reached up and kissed him fully on the mouth, melting into him.... feeling his immediate response. For a moment, forgetting the danger awaiting them, she began to dissolve, long-buried emotions emerged from the depths of her soul. Acutely conscious of her every current, his hand brushed against the nape of her neck... the gesture familiar and yet novel. Just as her hands began to move through his hair, a loud explosion ricocheted outside, and a brilliant flash of blue light illuminated the window.

"Spells?" Jerren asked.

Dragon Wench nodded.

"I don't think that the magic outside could compare to the fireworks in here," he whispered.

Her eyes lingered in his. Unwillingly, as another deafening discharge erupted nearby, she considered the dangers they would soon face, and the need for them to be prepared. Finally, she replied, "I don't think they are going to help in fighting the Abomination."

"Pragmatic," he nodded, "I like that in someone who will be covering my back."

Unwillingly, she stepped out of the shower and towards the towels. An enigmatic expression on her face, she passed one to Jerren. They toweled off quickly and gathered up their clothes to leave. As they opened the door to exit, Jennabard was standing there, looking both sad and apprehensive.

[Yshania]

Yshania ceased pushing the cold eggs around her plate, she gave up - not hungry at all. She smiled at Nippy and thanked him anyway as she moved to pour herself a mug of cocoa. She could hear the mages practising down in the courtyard, then worried a little at the task ahead. Vivien had seemed sadly preoccupied, Yshania wondered what she knew of Simbul, though apparently straight speaking she was sometimes impatient and overcritical. Simbul had made a cynical effort to be nice, but would this be enough? Is this how Simbul rallied support? by patronising people? Yshania was not comfortable with her, did not trust her seeming selfishness and dismissiveness. Maybe she was missing something...her friends here seemed content to follow her...maybe she would speak with Vivien later...

Georgi had also appeared a little sad and distracted, though Yshania guessed she may already be aware of the powers that were at work right now. Gwalchmai had stepped forward, at Simbul's request and offered his services. Yshania had remained seated, just observing the goings on.

As the kitchen began to empty she had grabbed some breakfast, only to find she couldn't stomach it. Smiling at Nippy, she said

'Good to see you back, Nippy!' she blushed remembering again how she had deserted the group on the way to the Templar camp, when Hunter's Moon had sensed the drow attack on Darkpoet. She sighed sadly, wondering what had happened to Darkpoet and T'Lainya...

Yshania was considering going down to the courtyard to observe the mages in practice...fireworks had always fascinated her in their dangerous beauty. At that point there was a shout from the hall...in his hurry to answer, Nippy knocked the kitchen door from it's hinges...Yshania laughed and stood to greet whoever had arrived...

An elf entered the kitchen, Nippy shaking his hand. Yshania was struck by his hair, long and wild, a life of it's own. And his eyes, dark and full of experience, but not unkind.

'Hi' she smiled 'I am Yshania - welcome!' The elf politely returned the greetings...

'Aleldar' he said.

He looked weary. Nippy invited him to sit at the table whilst Yshania poured him a large mug of cocoa...

[ 12-02-2001: Message edited by: Yshania ]

[Nippy]

Nippy gave a full plate of food to Aldedar and returned to his breakfast, he was really annoyed. That was twice his breakfast has been disturbed and it was cold. He finished it off quickly and picked up the last remaining eggs and sausages and wolfed them down finishing it off with a nice healthy orange juice.

"So where are you from Aldedar?"

[Aleldar]

Aleldar between mouthfuls of food, that he was from a small village in Cormanthor, near Myth Drannor. Aleldar carefully watched Yshania and Nippy, reading their facial expressions. Looking for diplays of distrust, with him being here.
"I heard that Simbul, might be here. I have a package for her. Thank you for the food, it's been awhile since I have had a good meal. So what do the two of you do?" Aleldar asked.

[Vivien]

Out in the sun while they cast spells, Viv felt herself relaxing, almost accepting of Simbul. The strange woman actually reminded Viv of an old friend, such a headstrong, passionate friend, always saying the wrong things. Without thought L’issa would insult a King, and if the cause was for the good, happily charge into a camp of Goblins unaided. But L’issa was gone, and maybe she shouldn’t assume Simbul was truly like anyone she had ever met…

A chill wind blew through the trees around them, only slightly sheltered by the turn of the stone walls nearby, and Viv rested tiredly against her bench as she waited for the next command. She had especially liked playing with the higher level spells, weaving the magic just right. With Simbul watching over them she had felt excitement and a rise to the challenge to prove herself. She thought she had detected some sign of positive reinforcement, as she had been told that her spell speed was ‘very good for someone of her level’. She still felt a slight blush at that, and forced herself to focuse on the ground as Jenna began her next trigger under Simbul’s watchful eye.

*BAM*

Viv jumped as leaves cascaded over her, and leaned away from the now shaking tree. There was a slight scorch mark on the branch above her head, and small tendrils of smoke wafted upward.
“Girl! I know you are distracted, but there is not reason for this! Do you think to hurt a comrade during battle because of a slightly distracted mind?!”

Jennabard turned red, her mouth opening and closing slowly, and Viv almost went to her, but Simbul was there before her. With an odd look on her face, the woman lead Jenna away to talk in quiet voices, a hand resting on the young bards shoulders. With a sigh, Viv leaned back against the tree and began running through her spell triggers again.

[ 12-03-2001: Message edited by: Vivien ]

[Gwalchmai]

What an odd experience that was! Thantor seemed decidedly agitated as he spoke with Gwalchmai. Gwalchmai could tell that Thantor desperately wanted to pretend that he hadn’t cried out in fear thinking that Georgi was approaching. He even felt a passive psionic ‘push’ at the front of his mind. It seemed that a part of Thantor was trying to ignore the reality of his own fears, and was trying to convince Gwalchmai that Thantor’s momentary weakness had never happened. Thantor seemed so unsure of his own self-value and manhood, that he had unconsciously clambered upon a stone in order to appear to ‘tower’ over Gwalchmai. However, making these small efforts to present a more self-assured image to Gwalchmai seemed to satisfy Thantor, and Gwalchmai was sure that this erratic behavior did not portend more serious problems with Thantor’s psyche. Let Thantor believe his version of events if it makes him feel better. Thantor was just worried about the upcoming battle with the Abomination, and Georgi’s recent ire as well as Simbul’s prediction of death didn’t help matters. Nevertheless, Gwalchmai played it safe and ended the conversation with Thantor as quickly as possible, backing away in case Thantor lost it for some odd reason, and carrying a large pumpkin with which to bean him if he got out of hand. ( )

[dragon wench]

[Yshania]

Looking at Aleldar, and considering his questions, Yshania suddenly felt completely hopeless, and useless. She had never accomplished anything, she had only ever run...she glanced at Nippy and, embarrassed, had apologised and pushing her mug aside had left the kitchen...

Intent on returning to the stables, and perhaps going for a run, she had come across the mages, that she forgotten briefly...

As she strode, single mindedly, across the courtyard, she caught sight of Vivien. Her friend seemed even more lost and uncertain than she had initially envisaged...she seemed reluctantly accepting...though Yshania sensed that Vivien was papering over the cracks of her trust with Simbul...

Yshania could think of nothing else that she could do to enlighten the situation. She walked over to her friend and wrapped her arms around her, she wanted to cry, she worried for her friend's apparent vulnerability...she knew instinctively her friend did not trust Simbul, but she knew that she would follow Vivien where-ever she chose...

[Vivien]

With a smile Vivien realized Yshania had joined her on the bench. The sun seemed somehow brighter when the Avenger was near, or maybe Viv just felt more cheerful with her friend around.

“What…” Ysh said as she carefully fit her back into the tree truck, pausing in her question as her eyes searched Viv’s.

“What do you think of Simbul, Viv?”

Viv swallowed and averted her eyes for minutes while trying to think. Maybe Yshania would have a different perspective, after all, she had likely seen more of the world, had more wisdom than a flighty mage like herself.

“I don’t know… She reminds me of… But many people can remind you of others , you can seem to know people and judge them when you shouldn’t. I think that she may be okay, but I do know that she insults you or Gwally again I will talk to her.” Viv laughed and looked at the sunlight through the scorched leaves above.

“Who am I kidding? I will avoid her, for fear of hurting her feelings!! How do you have the strength to stand up to others?”

Yshania seemed inwardly focused for a minute before she looked at Viv again, and Viv say that strength she had admired the first day.

“Sometimes you have to hurt others to make it less painful for both parties. You can’t let fear of being hurt…” The avenger’s voice slowly faded, and Viv laid a hand on her arm, seeing the pain there.

“Well then, I see only one option! We shall worry for each other, and not worry about the mean people! Or the leaves that have new designs not necessarily chosen by nature!”

With a start Ysh followed Viv’s gaze upwards and let her head rest on the trunk as she laughed. They spent a good twenty minutes discussing what the different designs meant in the greater scheme of life, seeing castles in one leaf, and unicorns in others.

The sun beating down warmed the cooling air, and the happy feelings of a good person nearby wafted through Viv. With a sigh she let her eyelids droop, the companiable silence almost music to her ears, and with the next sigh she began to dream.

It started as a normal dream, walking down a road at dusk, but the further she walked, the further the road seemed to stretch, and the darker it became. She soon found herself walking in complete darkness, not sure of her direction, trying to see with no light to guide her. It was the sound of rattling, a sound she didn’t understand, that drew her to wander from the road. It grew louder and louder, encompassing the air around her, and she wondered what could be in this desolate darkness.

A man stood, head bowed, seemingly bored by his very posture. It was only when her hesitant steps took her nearer that she realized it was Harry. Harry chained across chest and legs and arms. His bored posture was caused by the thick chains seemingly too heavy for anyone to bear, and he seemed to strain, muscles standing from neck and arms in his struggle. His eyes met hers, and she saw the grimace of pain across his contorted figures, saw the pain and she screamed, it echoing through the darkness, through her head, through the air.

“Are you alright?” Ysh said sounding worried as Viv tried to accustom her eyes to the new light.

Ooc: Let me know if this doesn’t work!

[ 12-03-2001: Message edited by: Vivien ]

[thantor3]

@Gwally: ROFL!!


"I am so sorry," Jennabard said almost in a whisper... "I... I will try harder."

"An apology is not what I need from you Jennabard," Simbul replied in a not unkind voice. "I need the truth." Jennabard struggled to find the words, but none came. "Perhaps this isn't a good idea, you coming with us," Simbul said pointedly. "After all, you were once the Shadow Master's minion. Perhaps it would --"

"No!" Jennabard exclaimed, angry now. "I need this... more than any one of the Dark Flames. I need to do this, Simbul. You cannot stop me!"

"I can and I will, child," Simbul retorted imperiously, their eyes locking in an intense battle of wills. Neither of them spoke for a moment, then Simbul said quietly. "Tell me the truth, Jenna. I want to know why you are so distracted." Jennabard dropped her eyes. "It's Jerren."

"Jerren?" That was unexpected. "Mmmm. He does seem to be creating quite a stir..."

"Not like that," Jennabard said heavily. "It was me, Simbul. I was the one who killed him."

Intriguing. "Go on," she encouraged. Jennabard told Simbul the whole story of her seduction and manipulation by the Shadow Master, how it led to Jerren's death, and how Dragon Wench had hunted her for years, only to later reconcile with her within the Dark Flames. "A complex story," Simbul said as Jennabard fell silent. "Painful to all involved. Has Jerren said anything to you?"

"No," answered Jennabard. "He acknowledged me with a nod when we were introduced -- I don't think he knows that I was the one who murdered him."

"Well then you need to go and tell him," Simbul directed.

"What?! You mean just waltz up to him and tell him...?"

"Yes," Simbul said simply. "You are certainly no use to me here." Jennabard felt as if she had been slapped, and turn away sharply to leave. She heard Simbul call her name. "I am.... please excuse me, Jennabard. That was insensitive. I am not used to..." she paused, then continued. "You need to find out the truth of this situation, not only for yourself, but for your comrades. Whatever Jerren will think of you, you will be able to handle it far better than the uncertainty you live with now." Jenna did not respond at first, then nodded slowly. "I will go find him."

"Good. I will tell Vivien that we will resume practice later. In the meantime, I will see if I can find Dragon Wench." She noted the look of apprehension on Jennabard's face and added, "I you want to experience something really frightful, join me a little later. I'm having lunch with Thantor." The two women smiled at each other, then Jennabard headed back to the keep.

****************************************************
Walking up the garden path after talking to Vivien, Simbul was almost run over by Gwalchmai, moving rapidly backwards, still holding a gigantic pumpkin in front of him. "Sorry," Gwalchmai mumbled as he continued down the path. "You most certainly are," Simbul huffed. Rounding the turn, she came upon Thantor, who was bent over examining pieces of a broken pumpkin. "Foraging for lunch?" Simbul inquired sweetly. Thantor smiled. "Not really. Just following a hunch."

"In a pumpkin patch? Sounds like a regular Cinderella story."

"It's just that Gwally has been acting strangely lately. First blowing up at you, then the bizarre incident that just happened here. It was as if he was floridly hallucinating right in front of me. At first I thought it might be a fulminating heterogenous Oedipal complex, but I would have to be at least 150 years old to even resemble his father. Then I remembered that he had been out here earlier in the pumpkin patch. Apparently he had swatted few of them, exposing the raw innards. Here, look at this." Simbul bent down closer. Thantor pointed to the viney stem of an intact pumpkin. "See how this stem is square and bristled and how the pumpkin has a mottled appearance? This isn't the garden variety Cucurbita pepo. This is Cucurbita gwallisillius."

"The mad cow pumpkin?"

"Exactly. Probably Gwally got some of the psychotropic components of the core splashed onto his mucous membranes."

"Will he be able to go on the mission?" Simbul asked, concerned.

"He should be fine in a couple of hours. I'd better stay away from him until then, though. I wouldn't want to re-stimulate him. How are things with you?"

"Fair. I was impressed with Vivien's skill: she has a good deal of potential. Jennabard was a bit distracted, but she is addressing it. Have you seen Dragon Wench? I would like to ask her if she will join us for afternoon practice." Thantor arched an eyebrow. "As long as it is late afternoon, I would wager that she will be happy to join you. She has spoken to me about wanting to improve her mage skills. Why don't we have lunch early?"

"Fine with me," said Simbul. And they headed up to the kitchen.

[ 12-03-2001: Message edited by: thantor3 ]