Vengeance of the Heart

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Fri Jan 31, 2003 6:36 am

Act 1

“Soon… soon It will be done. Heh, those fools thought they got rid me. Bah, they mean nothing now.”

These vile words came from a beautiful young woman, dressed totally in black. She had a pretty face and a slim figure, there was something about her though. A grim aura surrounded her, something evil that even her bright blue eyes could not hide. Psychological dramas had scared her; dramas so intense that she had buried them deep in the darkest place of her memory. Though mostly driven from her conscious memory, these memories made her persistent to accomplish her dark goal.

She scavenged through the remains of a long destroyed temple, it was once known as the Temple of Light. Now, it was no more then a dangerous place where only adventurers venture into; looking for valuables or challenges.

She searched the ruins for days, looking for the one thing she needed for her plan; a long forgotten item of power. Deeper and deeper into the dungeons she went, ignoring all danger until she finally found what she was after.

“Finally it is mine! After all this time I shall have my vengeance!” After hiding the item underneath her cape she rushed up the dusted stairs, making her way out of the temple. “Soon, so soon! Who’s laughing now?!”

Act 2

“No more ale for you young’n, drunks tend to be lousy payers!” The barkeep grabbed the empty grog from the drunk. “It’s time to pay for all those gallons ale you’ve had so far.”
“Aaagh, come on keep! jjjust one more… please?”

“No, now pay up!”
Unexpectedly, the drunk started laughing madly. “Haha, keep! I aint gots no money!”

Knowing this, the barkeep came out of his counter and grabbed the drunk by his neck. “So, no money aye? Here at Umar Hill we got a nice little prison for the likes of you.”
Dragging the fellow over the floor and out the door, the inn got filled with laughter. “Come on Harnan!” “I hope he’s not going to kick us out next!” Men slammed their grogs on the table and laughed loudly. “Nah, not as long as we keep paying our bills!”

Outside, the laughter could be heard.
Even though it wasn’t very crowded, the Umar Inn was a friendly and merrily bar.
Open for all, as long as you pay your bills that is.

Rudar Dimble · Post by **Rudar Dimble** » Sun Feb 02, 2003 9:54 am

Gurdio Quilk felt this was a good time to start his ‘show’. He walked to the stage, raised his hand and all were quiet. He started to tell some of his new jokes about the human race and although they had the usual clues (humans that desire power and money) most jokes were appreciated. Even by the humans.

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Mon Feb 03, 2003 4:41 am

Finishing his ale and laughing about recent events, Gurney was in a good mood. He was ready to start his act when suddenly a small gnome stepped up the stage.
The little follow did pretty well and Gurney was impressed.

‘Some of those jokes about humans could get him in trouble, but he’s got the crowd hanging to his lips…’

He grabbed his ballist and played a few notes to make sure it wasn’t out of tune, one in a while he glanced at the small gnome and laughed about his jokes. Then he climbed on the table, getting ready for an old fashion performance showdown.

He waited for a moment of silence before interfering with the show. Then he played the following:

"I’ve been from here to there,
Never found anything that could compare to you, my lady so fair.

Waiting for tomorrow
But it’s still the same

I’m frozen in time, for you’ll never be mine
So I’ll keep walking, looking for that sun to shine

Everything is empty
Everything is grey

Still waiting for that day
When you’ll say…

I love you."

After finishing his song, he looked up at the gnome across the room and smiled.

Rudar Dimble · Post by **Rudar Dimble** » Tue Feb 04, 2003 10:20 am

Ending his show with a riddle, that stunned most of the guests, Gurdio left the stage and walked towards the singer that had interfered with his show. He was impressed by the song and wanted to learn more about this fellow.

He reached out his hand towards the bard: “Gurdio Quilk. Can I offer you a drink?”

“Sure”
“Two beer!”, shouted Gurdio to the barkeep that had just reinstalled himself behind the bar. He was still trying to catch his breath. Dragging out the unwilling customer was a bit tougher as he thought.

Within seconds two nice pints of beer were sliding over the bar towards Gurdio and the bard. Gurdio grabbed both and offered one to his ‘companion’

“Thanks”
“No problem. Please tell me, where do you come from? I have wandered around the Sword Coast for some time, paid visit to every bar known to gnomes and humans, talked to even more barkeepers, but I have needed seen you or even heard about you. So please tell me, who are you?”

Magus · Post by **Magus** » Tue Feb 04, 2003 6:32 pm

Sitting in a corner, Magus sat sipping his wine as the music came to an end. Not bad, he thought, regarding both. The Umar Inn’s atmosphere was boisterous but controlled, which suited his tastes at the moment just fine. A successful traveling wizard, he had money enough to stay where he wished, but he rather enjoyed the energy and activity of the less luxurious spots in town. Besides, where the spirits flowed freely, the tongues wagged in unison. One could find all sorts of rumors in taverns; the trick was sorting the ones with the ring of truth from the fabrications and everyday nonsense. In the past, he had found links to many jobs and adventures in places just like this.

But today he was just here to relax. His last job had been quite lucrative, especially considering the effort it took to unravel the item’s simple curse. An exquisite thing it had been: a gold ring speckled with expensive jewels. Able to remove it at last, the noble was all too happy to give it over as payment. Good riddance, as far as he cared. With the curse removed, Magus had made a small fortune off its sell, enough to live comfortably for the rest of his extended life. Instead, he’d had tailored the robes he was wearing now: a fine blue-violet garment (his favorite color), enchanted to turn away minor blows and as light as silk. But most of all he prided himself on the enchantment he himself had crafted into it, a useful little cantrip that repelled dirt and moisture. Quite handy, really. Now if he could just figure a way to adapt it to living skin…heh, but he wasn’t going to toy with that again anytime soon. Last time he’d tried THAT, he’d been in bed for a week, itching relentlessly until the effect finally wore off. My, but wouldn’t that be quite the offensive spell! Magus’s Irresistable Itching! Too bad the target would need to have the vitality of a leper for it to actually work…and even then it’d be a bit redundant.

“What’s so funny?” a small unmuffled voice asked from within his robes, sensing his smile.

Magus briefly shook his head, hiding his surprise. “Nothing really. Just the meandering of a tired mind.” Could his newly-acquired familiar already sense his feelings?

His hand drifted idly to the pixie’s favorite pocket. Empty. His eyes widened. He glanced around the room, slowly and cautiously. How could he have let her out of his sight again?

He finally spotted her drifting unseen toward a table where the two performers from before were engaged in casual conversation. As surrepetiously as possible, he rose from his table and followed, intending to rein her in before she started any mischief. He had almost reached her hiding spot near their table when he noticed the two gentleman staring at him. “My pardon,” he apologized, feeling a little foolish. Seeing his discomfort, perhaps, the two invited him to sit down—before he knew it he was snagged into some sort of friendly debate, and they were merrily appealing to him to decide once and for all who had given the better performance.

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Wed Feb 05, 2003 5:08 am

While the new guy sat down, a bit reluctantly though, Gurney ordered him a wine with a snap of his fingers and a gesture.

After the proper introduction, Gurney found his mind drifting for a while.
‘I wonder what he was doing.’ He wondered. ‘Ah well, as long as he wasn’t picking my pockets then its fine by me.’ He smiled about his own train of thoughts but then found his new found friends looking at him funny. Not understanding what was so funny.

“Euh, never mind. So, like I was saying; I travelled just about everywhere… especially the last couple of months. My last stop was Naskell; nice place by the way, good tippers. Then I made my way up the Cloudpeak Mountains and ended up here.”

He got interrupted by the barkeep who placed a glass of wine in front of Magus.

“So Gurdio, I hope you didn’t mind me interrupting you act? It was all for good fun. Magus here seemed to like it, as did just about everyone in here.”

Rudar Dimble · Post by **Rudar Dimble** » Wed Feb 05, 2003 6:43 am

“I don’t mind”, answered the gnome. “And the crowd DID seem to like the song as much as I liked it”.
Gurdio looked around, he seemed to search for something. Suddenly he leaped up from his crutch and he was clearly avoiding someone. On the other side of the Inn was a group of barbarians, that had just entered, pointing towards the small gnome. Making their way through the crowd, they shouted:
“Get out of the way, we kill the gnome! Kill the gnome!”
Gurdio realized sneaking out was not an option; two barbarians blocked the way to the door. Both were wearing red shirts, tarred up, probably from a previous fight. One of them had an eye patch over his left eye, giving him the typical pirate’s look.

Gurdio turned towards the three men that were coming his way and in a split second he grabbed his quarterstaff. He raised his hands, murmured some strange gnomish word and then pointed his staff to his enemies. A dark blue light appeared around the barbarians. Within the blink of an eye, four dire hounds were attacking the men, but they didn’t seem to do any harm.

“It’s just an illusion, don’t believe it!” shouted the men in the center, who seemed to be the leader. He was the smallest of all, and probably the most ugly one too, including the ‘pirate’. His long brown hair was surrounding his strange-shaped head, while his nose and his mouth showed signs of several fights. A big scar on his cheek completed the whole thing.

Not believing the illusion, the men were closing in on Gurdio...

CM · Post by CM » Wed Feb 05, 2003 1:51 pm

Mursalin had walked in earlier that night, taking his usual seat in the back. This was his first assignment outside of the city and his first real chance to do some good. He had just pasted his last test as it were and had finally achieved the status of a Paladin.

The Umar hills had always been a quiet place where a new Paladin was sent to learn for a good year or more about settling domestic disputes, making sure the people were safe and that the peace was intact. He had been coming here for a good 3 months now, with little to show for real work. There had been wolves that had been attacking livestock, that was quickly settled after a few were killed when they attacked at night, and the rest were taken care off by a ranger that Mursalin had hired to deal with the animals without harming them.

Other than that there were domestic disputes of simple matters that were dealt with in a swift and just manner. The manner of Tyr. Mursalin had been sitting in the inn for a good 2 hours, and applauded when finally the gnome took the floor for his show, which was amusing even with the biting remarks against humans. Mursalin was caught by surprise, when a bard started singing on top of a table and then the gnome and bard sat down for a drink. What was even more surprising was an elf joined and sat with them.

Drinking his cup of water, due to his aliment Mursalin drank no alcohol, he decided to keep an eye on the highly unlikely trio. But he decided that his stomach was more important at the time and ordered his usual meal with the bar wench. Closing his eyes to get a bit of rest, Mursalin was jolted when hear heard

“Get out of the way, we kill the gnome! Kill the gnome!”

Rising from his chair quickly, he grabbed his long sword, and as an ever vigilant Paladin he was wearing his families armor. Saying a quick prayer to Tyr for protection, Mursalin crossed the room quickly to what looked like the cause of the trouble. A couple of barbarians were circling a lonesome gone. Mursalin slashed his sword infront of the barbarians, causing them to jump back, and took a position between the gnome and the barbarians.

"Good evening gentlemen, how are things tonight?" Mursalin said with a disarming smile.

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Wed Feb 05, 2003 2:37 pm

Unsure what this was all about; Gurney also stepped in front of Gurdio. His rapier silently slid out of the sheath; and his hand on the hilt of his dagger which dangled on the back of his belt.

“Five big guys like you against a small gnome? That hardly seams fair, now doesn’t it?
Why don’t you tell us why you are after him…”

Normally Gurney wouldn’t easily interfere, but this time it was just too unfair for him to just sit by.

Tybaltus · Post by **Tybaltus** » Wed Feb 05, 2003 7:26 pm

Earlier that night, before the ruckus had started at the inn, a young but prominent man, dressed in a green cloak, with a spear in hand and a dog by his side stepped into the inn. The large barkeep stepped up to him and said, “Aye! There be no dogs allowed in this establishment, especially as mangy as yur fella be lookin’.”

Acolytus replied, “Aw, don’t worry about Greppun here, he won’t do any harm aslong as Im arround.”

The Barkeep answered, “Nay! I said yur gonna get that mut out of here, and I mean it! Get him out or Ill throw the likes of both of ye out!”

“Fine,” Acolytus reluctantly replied. “These last few days have been rough for me…I desperately need some ale.”

Acolytus then motions for Gruppen to leave.

Greppun then, reluctantly and slowly started to walk away with his tail trailing him, in a very sad and helpless feeling.

But as soon as Greppun started to walk away, three large barbarians stepped into the tavern.

“Get out of the way, we kill the gnome! Kill the gnome!”

Acolytus immediately could tell this would lead to big trouble…“Silly city dwellers. Does everything have to be in conflict?” Acolytus mumbled.

Greppun then looked to his master in a hopeful look, with beady eyes, but eyes that were ready for battle.

“That’s right, my friend. I will not deny you the pleasure of doing battle. TO ARMS!”, Acolytus said with glory in his eyes.

Acolytus took his spear out from his green cloak and stepped behind the well-armed paladin, Mursalin.

“I see we’ve got the look of a scuffle here,” Acolytus says to the paladin, with a grin on his face.

Acolytus then mumbles to himself, “The sooner this is over with, the sooner I can get away from this so-called civilization…the trouble man causes…sigh”

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Thu Feb 06, 2003 5:20 am

“Only 3 of you and a midget, 5 of us strong man! You die! You die with the midget!” The leader of the barbarians seemed confident enough; they did outnumber the small group who got put together by twisted fate.

‘Magus does wear a wizards robe. Perhaps he can and more importantly, will help too.’ Gurney thought. ‘I’m not going to count on it though…’

Barbarians aren’t known for their patience, and this time is no exception. Without warning; they commenced their attack. Their clubs raised high above their heads and bloodlust in their eyes.

Mursalin, Acolytus and Gurney were about to take on the first three barbarians while the other two were making their way towards the group.

Rudar Dimble · Post by **Rudar Dimble** » Thu Feb 06, 2003 5:28 am

Being confident that the group of three was taken care of, Gurdio turned around, ready to cast another spell. With his left foot he stepped back, while raising his right fight inches above the ground. He stood there for a second or two, before smashing his right foot back on the floor and poiting both his arms to the two barbarians at the door. From the top his staff a glowing red missle made his way to his target.
The magic missle stroke one of the barbarians on his chest, what was enough for the ‘pirate’ to leave the fight.

Tybaltus · Post by **Tybaltus** » Thu Feb 06, 2003 9:58 am

Acolytus clinched his spear with anger coursing through his veins.

“I’ve dealt with creatures such as yourself,” Acolytus hollered. “For the balance!”

Greppun heard the cry of his master and charged immediately at one of the barbarians.

“Wolf? Yeah….right…youre another fake done by gnome!”, one barbarian said with relaxation in his voice.

As he said this, Greppun leapt up and took a large bite out of unwary barbarian’s neck.

“NO! But how….couldn’t be….”, the barbarian said with pain, while blood rushed from his throat.

The remaining barbarians looked at this incident with shock, as they see one of their comrades on the floor, bleeding to death.

“MURRGGHHH!” Cried a barbarian as he started to charge at Greppun.

Greppun, chewing away at his enemy, quickly looked up to the on-coming barbarian.

Suddenly, Gurdio’s magic missile penetrated one of the other barbarians. The leading barbarian quickly jerked his head to see what has happened to another one of his companions.

Quickly this barbarian averted his attention back to the dire wolf eating away at his fallen compadre, only to see a spear head at point zero range.

“HACK!” Cried Acolytus, as his spear dug deep into the barbarian’s jaw.

“HURK!“ shouted the barbarian, as the shot was enough for him to fall to the ground.

1 barbarian, lay dead on the tavern floor from Greppun's onslaught, one lay on the floor with great pain and blood flowing from his mouth, while the third looked on in disbelief, noticing he was outnumbered, but he still had his axe drawn and was ready to fight…

CM · Post by CM » Thu Feb 06, 2003 11:21 am

With 1 dead, another on getting their slowly, Mursalin decided to end this quickly. Speaking to the one with the drawn axe "Do you really want to fight now? Look at what this man and his wolf did to your friends. And what the Gnome did to your friend back there. Why die? Is it really worth it? Why dont you just throw down your axe and we can get you a nice bed and breakfast in Athkatla. Its far better than being 6 feet under."

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Thu Feb 06, 2003 11:53 am

As three of the five barbarians lay on the floor dead, the other two looked around in despair. Only the opponents of Mursalin and Gurney were still left standing.
While Mursalin tried talking down one of the scared barbarians, the other had different plannes. In a last, all or nothing rage attack, he swung his axe aimed at Gurney’s head.

Surprised by his speed, Gurney had to step back. The barbarian kept swinging his axe madly; forcing him even further back, further until he could not back away any more. As Gurney leaned against the table behind him he appeared to be bested.

“I got’s you now! You die!!” The barbarian raised his axe high above his head, both of his hands holding on tightly for the final slash.
However, a grin appeared on Gurney’s face. Quickly he drew the dagger which still dangled on the back of his belt. With it, he caught the axe on its way down; while thrusting the blade of his sword deep into the stomach of his foe.

The eyes of the barbarian nearly popped out if his head and a gargling sound come from his moth. The dead torso collapsed onto the table as Gurney dodged away.
“Ow yeah, you got me now big guy.” He whipped the sweat from his face and spat on the floor. “Scum.”

After this last display of power, the only barbarian left standing dropped his weapon in terror and backed away slowly. “You… you… No please… don’t”
Barely able to stand still, he turned around quickly and ran for the door. In pure despair he clumsily bumped into a chair and fell. Without looking back, he crawled out the door crying like an infant.

CM · Post by CM » Thu Feb 06, 2003 12:03 pm

"Oh no you dont" Running after the Barbarian, Mursalin caught up with him at the door and yelled for some rope. Pushing the whimpering man to the wall, Mursalin tied him up with the rope the inn keep brought. The man sat still has he was being tied up and had stopped crying. Seeing that the man was secured and could do no harm to anybody, Mursalin told Vaudal a farmer to watch over the barbarian, while Mursalin went back in and hoisted a body over his shoulder with a word to the men he fought with, he walked back out.

Tybaltus · Post by **Tybaltus** » Thu Feb 06, 2003 2:23 pm

Acolytus, noticing the battle was well over, motioned for Greppun to come to him.

“Well I can plainly see this little skirmish is out of the way. Was this really worth an ale? You silly city dwellers,” Acolytus says while shaking his head. “Can anything you people do, end in peaceful matters?”

Acolytus quickly and angrily attaches the spear into its slot on his leather belt. He then picks up his cloak and dusts it off.

“Well you city dwellers can continue your brawls and hoo-haws…or whatever you call it. But know this, you people have great strength. Don’t abuse it, friends.” Acolytus slowly makes his way to the door with Greppun closely following. “I guess that ale will have to wait.”

Rob-hin · Post by **Rob-hin** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 1:13 pm

Leaning over to his beaten foe, Gurney went through the dead man’s pockets. A few golden coins were his mere spoils of battle.

The Inn was a mess, but with only a couple of broken tables and chairs; the damage was less then one would expect. The smell of blood will be noticeable for months though, and the stains on the wooden floor will remain visible until it will be replaced or covered up.
A couple of broken windows caused a draft, but the fresh air was welcomed by most people, not including the innkeeper Harnan though; since he had to get the place fixed up..

When both Harnan and the mysterious fighter who came to their aid, started cleaning up, Gurney decided to help them out. He has partially responsible after all.

Dragging a body behind him, Gurney made his way towards the door when suddenly the man with his wolf indicated that he was leaving. “I guess that ale will have to wait.”

“If it’s an ale you want… how about an ale to celebrate our victory? Gurdio here is buying. He owes us that much!”

When the last body was removed from the Inn and the barbarian got taken care of, Gurney picked up a chair and sat down next to Magus.
“You’re a quiet one ain’t ya?” He laughed and gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. “I see you haven’t even finished your wine yet! I’ll join you. Harnan, give me an ale!”

Aegis · Post by **Aegis** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 2:02 pm

Ae'siir leapt off the boulder that was on the side of the path. HE climbed up initially to see what was ahead, if it was anything more then just woods. He took a couple steps forward, towards another elf who was slowly striding towards him.

The forest was alive with sound. Birds and other animals went about their business as if nothing was wrong with the lands, and as if existence was perfect. It was odd, Ae'siir thought grimly to himself, that the creatures conflict affects directly, were none the wiser of the danger in everything. His thoughts were ripped back to reality as he heard the quiet shuffling noise of Lilth stopping a few feet in fron of him. He glanced back.

"We are no more than a days walk..." He glanced behind him, and towards the trail, then back to Lilth. "We will be in Umar by nights fall, I would imagine."

Lilth shrugged, and flashed a small smile towards Ae'siir, then continued her stride forward. As she walked, she purposly swayed her hips, and allowed her body to flow in a graceful manner, even though only Ae'siir was about to witness it. As she passed the elven man, she ran her hand along the edge of his chin, and across his neck, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. As she passed him by, her hand dropped back to her side. Ae'siir let her gain a few paces lead on him, grinning to himself as he watched her walk.

He shook his head, then turned around, and went to catch up with the smaller elven woman. The two walked for a bit longer, before something stuck Ae'siir's attention. The tip of his ear twicthed somewhat, and he turned his head sharply towards the side of the trail, and to the bushes that littered the edge. He raised his hand, and placed it gently on Lilth's shoulder, stopping her slowly. He motioned with his head towards the bushes as he dropped his hands to his waist. He deftly unlatched the leather straps keeping his twin, deadly, Kukri's sheathed, and began a steady walked towards the bushes. Lilth seemed unconcerned, and she dropped her hands in front of her, holding each one casually, staring into the sky above.

As Ae'siir neared the bushes, something new caught his attention. It was the sound of a dull grunt, and a sharp intake of breath, followed by the shuffling of loose dirt. He spun sharply around, and grimaced at the sight. A man had sprung from the other side of the road, and grabbed a hold of the complacent Lilth. He held a sharp dirk to the base of her throat, and occasionally tugged her backwards, as if showing he was serious about the threat. Ae'siir quirked his brow, looking at the man casually, and to Lilth, who in all her peril, remained calm. Behind Ae'siir, he could hear two more men come out of the bushes.

"Ye done good this time, Callik..." The first man said, as he licked his lips, while looking lustfully at Lilth's slender form. "Reall good... I'm gonna be wantin' her at some point..." He smiled, and chuckled. Lilth quirked her own brow at the man.

"Well, yer gonna have to wait..." Callik leaned his head toward Lilth's cheek, and licked it with his rough tongue. Lilth grimaced at the feeling, and made a small flicking motion with her wrist. Ae'siir grinned. "She'll be min-" Callik's words were cut short, and replaced by a low gurgling. His hand suddenly went limp, and the dirk fell the to the ground, and he stumbled backwards, a small throwing blade dug fiercling into his gut. As Callik took another step back, a flash of metal shot through the air, and another dart found it's place into Callik's forehead.

Before the two men behind Ae'siir could react to what had befallen their comrade, the elf had turned, and flashed his Kukri's swiftly into his hands, tracing a thin line of blood across both men's chests, crossing each other. Before either even began to slump, Ae'siir forced the blades back across, cutting another line of blood across their throats. The two men hit the ground before the blood even began to flow from their bodies.

Ae'siir spun the blades in hands, catching the hilts at the tips faced back towards his sheathe, and replaced them in their cases, staring girmly at their would be assailants. Fom behind him, Lilth cropted herself up on his shoulders, and drapped her arms over and across his chest, and playfully nibbled Ae'siir's ear. Ae'siir smiled, and glanced towards her briefly, before turning her around, and continuing on. Lilth followed almost instantly...

Tybaltus · Post by **Tybaltus** » Fri Feb 07, 2003 9:49 pm

“If it’s an ale you want… how about an ale to celebrate our victory? Gurdio here is buying. He owes us that much!”

Acolytus, though hesitant at first, realizes that Gurney is appreciative towards the actions in battle and should at the very least share a few moments of thought and ale.

Acolytus gives a sigh. “Oh very well.” Acolytus makes his way to the table that the small group has gathered around and pulls out a chair and sits. “Truly, you people are skilled in battle. These may have been but simple thugs, but we dealt with them with such haste and voluminous might. Certainly you city dwellers have some fighting background and are disciplined in certain fields. I only wish my grove had such abilities when we went under siege.”

Acolytus stares at table at which they sit at, with his head looking straight down at it. Acolytus brings his hand up towards his forhead while looking down. He brings his hand back through his thick brown hair, as if struggling with memories. Promptly, he bangs with a fist the table in pain. He then stares into space. People around him could tell he was seeing something beyond the visible nothingness, rather a memory was that which was brought Acolytus’ eyes….a painful memory. Acolytus quickly brings his hand back to his forehead. “Where’s that ale?”