Darkness Falls, Two Wizards About Town
Subject: Exodus; Darkness Falls
Melani wakes from sleep at Rennik's touch, and sits up. It is too dark to be morning. At first, she thinks Rennik has woken her early, that there must be trouble, and her hand goes automatically to her knife. But Rennik shakes his head. "The clouds that came in last night never burned off." Melani looks around her. Visibility is only a few hundred yards under the thick cloud cover. It isn't fog. It's almost as if the very air is dim. Rennik says, "Garyth will be getting the town ready to move out in less than an hour. We should get back."
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Exodus; Darkness Falls
Melani grumbles a bit to herself but quickly gathers up her belongings.
She dislikes being out on the plains. No place to hide, really. She almost liked the human city better. It stank like a latrine but at least it had places to hide. Out here in this open space she felt naked. What she really wanted was to be back in her forest. There she could be with in yards of her prey and they would not know she was there for days. Well the faster she got the humans to the forest, the faster she would be home.
She nods at Rennik that she is ready to go.
Mark
From: Ty
Subject: Exodus; Darkness Falls
The camp is waking up noisily. Garyth stands talking to Osred about the days travel plans when Melani and Rennik return. Garyth and Rennik exchange a glance that speaks volumes. Of the original group that entered Kor Garesh's lair, they are the only two here. While the townsfolk and the Falcon's probably believe the darkness is some strange affect of the heavy cloud cover, they know differently. It is the demon, exerting his influence over the island. Who knows how many innocent farm families were used as fuel for this latest trick.
Rennik takes Garyth aside and quietly says, "The town is gone. We could see it burning last night."
Garyth nods, "Then the lighthouse is gone. All the approaches to the Bay of Nesalin are extremely treacherous. The lighthouse is what made trade possible. There is a reason the city kept fifty men guarding it."
"Then we are cut off. The demon chases the army back behind its walls, then brings this darkness and burns the lighthouse." The Halfling twists the haft of his halberd in his hands while he speaks.
Garyth looks at the town, finishing its preparations for marching. "They won't be chasing us. Why chase us? The black army will just pick off the people of this island a little at a time. Why risk open war and large battles when the only real army is hiding in Nesalin? Strip the island outside those walls at your leisure, then starve the city out."
From: Ty
Subject: Two Wizards about town; Darkness Falls
Farron looks at himself in his silvered mirror, noting the red eyes faintly greenish complexion. Splashing more water on his face helps cool the pounding headache, but when he looks again, he still looks like a man who spent the night drinking too much wine. "It was the second skin. I knew we should not have opened the second skin."
Behind him, Sa'id sits on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands. "Think of it as penance, for not slogging though the mud with our friends."
Farron towels off his wet face and hair, and moves to the window to draw back the heavy drapes, inwardly flinching at the expectation of sudden blinding pain when the daylight streams in. Except that the daylight does not stream in. In fact, opening the drapes barely changes the level of light in the room. He feels a sudden panic at the thought that he and Sa'id might have slept completely through the day, and missed their meeting with the Sunmaster.
Looking up though, he sees the heavy storm clouds that cover the city. "A storm is coming. It's as dark as dusk out there."
Sa'id shambles over to stand next to him. "It does not smell like rain is coming. The air is very dry."
Something about the look of the clouds, and the dim dry air, is very disconcerting. "Let's get to the Sunmaster quickly." Sa'id just nods, a distant look on his face.
Outside, the atmosphere is very subdued. Even though it is mid morning, most of the shops have not opened. Very few people are in the streets, and the people the wizards do see are all moving in the same direction: toward the city's main gate. Sa'id stops a young man hurrying past and asks, "Where is everyone going?"
"To see the soldiers," is his reply. When pressed for details, the boy says, "The soldiers are coming back a few at a time. My uncle serves with the 2nd Billmen. My mother has asked me to see if he made it back." His voice drops low, "They are saying that less than half of them survived the battle. It is said that a demon was seen striding the fields, and slew many men."
Sa'id lets the boy go, and exchanges a frightened look with Farron. They are both thinking the same thing. Where are their friends?
From: Raja
Subject: Re: Two Wizards about town; Darkness Falls
"We should go to the gate and see if they have come," Sa'id says quietly. "If they are back, we can bring them with us to see the Sunmaster. If not..." he trails off.
Heavy casualties. Demon on the field. The Devourer's might had clearly grown, even though Promise had been wrested from his grasp. And there were only three people on the entire island who knew what needed to be done. Sa'id closes his eyes for a moment, hoping to dull the throbbing in his head. He does not allow himself to think about what may have happened to Overlook and their friends.
From: Mark
Subject: Re: Two Wizards about town; Darkness Falls
OOC: oh nothing that a hot meal, a skin of wine and a soft bed would not fix. And the mages wonder why the fighters distrust them. :)
Mark