Songs echoing [tavern tales (tails?)]

[steuben]

steuben walks into the tavern. his sword is carried high on his back. it is almost as though the sword is being carried so that it can see the surroundings, rather then being worn for use. he walks up to the bar and orders his usual mulled rum. turning around he sees lyistra and the youth. he walks over to the corner table.

he bows slightly. \"greetings, mistress wordsmith.\" he turns towards the young enki. \"and this is the young wolfling cub that i\'ve heard about.\" he smiles brightly with his lips closed. \"you\'re pretty lucky. given what i\'ve seen to date you\'ll never lack for a good song or story.\"

the smell of the mulled rum slowly fills space. the smells of cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and citrus waft from the mug. he takes a pull from his mug.

\"mistress, you have take on a great risk to help this little one. if you need any help, of any skill that i poccess, please let me know.\"

he pulls up a chair sideways to the table and sit down. \"some of us have been lucky enough to have blessed by the gods. i have perhaps been forturnate that mine hasn\'t been visible.\" he gestures to the young enki\'s hands. \"perhaps, if you are willing i could tell you the story of the first that received, a gift such as mine.\"

[lyistra]

Lyistra nods. \"Risks I take for my own reasons.\" She says softly, a note of warning in her voice, unusual for her, till she hears it, and slumps a touch. \"There are reasons I do this.\" She whispers. \"Reasons... for everything.\" she closes her eyes.

She smiles a little wryly, looking at the other Enki, then over at Steuben.

\"My apologies for being so.. uncouth.  I have a lot on my mind.\" she says quietly.  And smiles a little bit. \"I\'m going to call you Ehmaahre, after my twin, who was gone so long ago.\" she smiles, gently, and her tail flicks. \"I had no choice but to help.  She can\'t even speak.  I don\'t know if she ever has.\" She whispers. \"She can understand.. but...\" She shrugs, and smiles, a little, sadly, and touches the other Enki\'s cheek, who shies back, like fearing a blow.  SHe simply indicates the scars at her throat.

\"I couldn\'t stand by.  Angry soldiers, inability to explain.. and that much fear and a head injury, coupled with the power she has in those glyphs in her paws.. is a recipe for disaster, served up with quite a side-dish of catastrophe, and without a mug of ale in sight.\" she grins wryly.

\"Would I even knew who wrought them so, they must have had great mastery of the glyphs.\"  She shrugs. \"it\'s as though they were made to slay diaboli, and ynnwyn.\" SHe pets the other\'s paw, gently, eyes tender on the other one. \"it\'s like when I...\" She blushes, and bites her lip.

[steuben]

steuben hears the note of warning in her voice. he waves his right hand palm down a inch or so over the table. it is a gesture of dismassal, of understanding circumstances. \"yes, your reasons are your own. and it is your choice when and to who you name them. but, for some things the reasons do not matter.\"

he pauses, seeing the scars for perhaps the first time. memories come back to him. memories of what he has done in the past, has seen done. he shakes his head, clearing the red tinged memories.

\"an injustice has been done to her,\" he continues. \"you wish to right that, or at the least attempt to heal her body, mind, and soul. but, you do not have to bear such a burden alone. if by blade, body, or soul i may aid don\'t hesitate to ask.\"

he looks at lyistra. \"i offer, my reason though. it is the right thing to do.\"

he stands up and puts the chair back. \"perhaps, another time for the tale. and remember that you need not be alone, either of you.\"

he bows slightly to lyistra. \"mistress.\" he bows slightly to ehmaahre. \"ehmaahre.\" he returns to the crowd in the tavern.

[lyistra]

Lyistra nods to Ehmaahre, and pats her paw, gently, her musings private for the nonce, at least in her own mind.  The days pass, the day of judgement approaching as she looks around at the world she may have forefieted, to help another.  Emaarhe seems far calmer, as her wounds heal, and she gains back some of the health that was lost in her madness.

Lyistra considers the enki lass as she sleeps, her eyes gentle, and nods once, then, gently, wakes her. \"Emaarhe?\" she whispers, softly, the other\'s claws grasp her arm, and she winces, touches her cheek gently. \"emaarhe?\" She smiles, softly, biting her lip, as she wakens... and just leads her down to one of the founts in the city, having checked both blades and her plated leather. (three layers of leather, with two layers of internal overlapping steal plates, flexible leather, and relatively quiet, though heavy)  She sits down, checking the shadows, a moment, then dismisses them. \"I wanted to tell you.. why.\" She whispers.  Her eyes close. \"You... remind me too much of my twin.\" She whispers, ever so quietly.  \"And too much of myself, when I was young... I was a wild one.\" She smiles, softly.  She looks at the other Enki, quietly, with a soft purr. \"Yes, I know.  I hardly look it now.\" she grins wryly. \"I lived in a small town on the second level.\" She smiles. \"Would that you could tell me what you know.  Or what has returned.\" She whispers. \"The charm I worked to see it I can\'t afford again.\" SHe smiles softly.

She considers a moment, seeing the other Enki looking at her strangely, just ponders. \"I nearly killed someone.  He\'d made an attempt for advances, because my colours were unusual.  Then got... belligerent when they were refused, and attempted to force them.   I didn\'t know he was fairly well-born.  The truthsayers finally sorted things out.  My solicitor told me of the law, and how it might be applied, but I was unwilling to use magic for it.\" She smiles, gently. \"They made it so I can\'t harm another truly intelligent being, save to rescue another.\" She whispers, and pulls back her leather, a bit, showing a glyph, right over her heart. \"It was... an experience.\" She whispers.

She shakes her head a moment, as she hears something in the shadows, shrugs, and smiles, deciding it\'s not important, covering herself with her leather, fastening it again. \"So I.. keep going.  Every day.\" She whispers. \"And I help as many as I can. Quite the difference from who I was.\" She takes the other Enki\'s paw, and just looks at the glyphs of platinum worked into them. \"I don\'t know who did this to you.  But... you are a mystery all in all.\" She smiles.  and then returns to the tavern.

The next day, the clerk arrives.. leading three vegisimi.  She simply nods in greetings to them... a small tremble in her paws as she performs the greeting, then says. \"What is the judgement of the council?\"

The clerk confers with the other two.  And they speak back, then turn and say... \"The laws speak of one punishment for the slaughter of a guard.  Death.\" The Klyros looks sad at that, her eyes gentle as she looks upon Lyistra. The Enkidukai male says \"This is our law.\" the Diaboli says, \"I would personally rather see such tools of slaughter put away forever.  They are an abomination to my people.  There is an alternative to death.  The flesh offering must be observed.   We debated over this quite a bit.  We brought in scholars from across the lands, spoke with two of the Otarches themselves.  The laws in this case are specific.\"

Emaarhe tenses, there is a click, that of several compound crossbows.  Lyistra waves her back, her fear, for once, gone.

\"I will do what needs doing.  But your laws need revision.\" she whsipers. \"My right to have the laws reviewed, after punishment is passed.  There must be room for mercy and circumstance under the law.  To put  one of my people in the state that she was in requires a great deal of pain, and emotional heartache.  A head wound easily could have sent her over the edge, if something else had happened.\" She says, her voice ringing.

She simply submits... and shakes her head to the other.  The Vegisimi confer a moment, nod, quietly.  They speak again, and speak to the clerk, who takes out an obviously prepared scroll, and a glyph.

\"Lyistra Mentana.  The council of Twenty, in accordance and with the blessing of the Council of the eight, pass judgement.\" he reads. \"The rule of law must be obeyed.  But the council is not without mercy.  A partial pardon has been implemented, and the sentence commuted, to a single count of manslaughter, with extenuating circumstances.  Thus.. sentence shall be carried out, on this day.\" he says, softly. \"Your right to cha-paarh is over, in her case.  I\'d advise, in the future, to be cautious.\" he says softly. \"Our truthsayers say that your intentions are good and honourable.  And that the other knows naught of what happened, at this time...  nor can she speak of it if she could...\" he ohs, returns to his scroll at the prompting of one of the others.

\"At this time, the representatives of the council offer to you the sentence you have been given, earned or not.  In defense of another you have offered your own life.  It is not in the interest of the council to punish this, but an example must be made to prevent others from escaping justice, in the way you prevent injustice.  Your sentence is a glyph of Binding.  It shall be added to your body, and can never be covered nor hidden.  A marking, and a warning.\"

He nods to another, who entered in bearing a silver box, a glyph of the crystal way within.  \"You have been punished once by the rule of law.  This punishment was unjust, even by those who witnessed.  This punishment is also, in the minds of the Council, unjust, but required by law.  It is the rule of law that keeps our land together.\" he says.

\"Many witnesses were gathered from the land, deliberating this action.  Many people testified about you.\" he nods to the others.  \"It is from this, we give ou this glyph.  The punishment must fit the... crime.\" he whispers. \"Apply it.\" His voice is quiet.

The glyph is applied right over her forehead...as it is pulled away, it glows, there.. like a third eye, a glyph of selflessness. A glyph to help others, to heal wounds, to right wrongs.  A glyph of concience, usually only given to those who have none.. a very subtle difference is there, however.

\"And now we carry out the other half of the law you invoked.\" he says, gently.  The guard approaches her, she nods. \"Emaarhe?  Turn around a moment.\" She says, gently.

The other Enki does, but is visibly crying.  Lyistra nods.. and as the other guard attempts to cover her eyes, she shakes her head. \"no.\" She whispers.  And nods to the first.. a hiss of a knife, a flash of steel, a gentle hum, incongrous, of a spell being woven, a sound of steel and flesh... and an inch of her tail lies in the other\'s hand, the part still attached stiffening, the glyph removing the wound...

\"The flesh offering is appeased.\" They turn, and the diaboli turns back a moment later... as the others exit. \"I am sorry to be the instrument of pain for you.  But the rule of law has no exceptions, even in exceptional cases.\" he shakes his head.  \"We added the glyph for honor within the glyph of compassion... an indication of why... this was done.  it is marked as a badge of honour, rather than a compulsion to it. As is the glyph of compassion.\" he nods, and leaves a scroll, as Lyistra goes over and hugs the other enki female, and nods. \"It will be ok.\" She whispers. \"it\'s done.\" She smiles, gently.. then looks to her friends. \"I\'ll need some help for a few days.\" She says softly.  \"I.. will likely need some time alone to think.\"

[steuben]

steuben stands watching the proceedings darkly. his sword is worn on his hip. ocastionaly, but repeatedly, his hand drops to his sword, and draws it an inch from its sheath, and quickly returns it.  the sound, if it could be heard over the proceeding, has the note of a chained beast wishing to be unleashed. he is torn between the desire to stop them, and his oath which won\'t allow it.

after the clerks leave, steuben begins to pace. \"justice,\" he snarls. the anger and frustration evident in his voice. \"they have the gall to talk about justice.\" steuben bristles, or at least as well as a human can copy the feline responce. he jabs his finger angrily in the direction the other left in. \"they decry its injustice. but yet, they hide behind the law. they should have done their jobs.\"

steuben turns as if to drive a fist through the wall. however, early in the the movement he stops violently. it is as if his own muscles clamped down against the motion. he stands not frozen, but unmoving. it is like a battle of the wills is occuring. after a moment steuben subsides, like a puppet whose strings have been cut but still held up. he straughtens, and turns towards lyistra and emaarhe.

\"no, they weren\'t doing their jobs.\" the anger and frustation in his voice, if not as intense, better masked. \"their job is to uphold justice, not follow the law. it doesn\'t matter what modifications they made to the glyph.\" the anger and frustration continue to disappear from his voice, but still appear in his eyes. \"it is still an unjust act.\"

he takes a pull from the mug of mulled rum which till then had sat unheaded and cooling. he stares into it as if trying to devine an answer to some great question. or perhaps seeing images of his own past and possible futures.

\"i could have stopped them,\" he says queitly, but still audible, and into his mug. fear and shame appear in his voice. \"so many different ways. so many different times. they wouldn\'t have been able to stop me. i stood so close to the edge. i was prepared to step off the edge into that abyss. only my oath held me back. it shouldn\'t be that way should it? if it ever failed, i\'d be like ... him.\"

he takes another pull at his mug. he looks up again. \"but, what ever help i can provide i will.\"

[lyistra]

Lyistra looks sad. \"Their job is to do what they feel is right.  Unfortunately those three have forgotten the law was set down to part right from wrong, not to legalize wrong.\" She whispers. \"I am sorry if I seem.. disjointed.  I am.. oh gods, that was a bad play on words.\" she laughs, and settles back, looks at her tail, and shakes her head. \"Someone\'s going to pay for that.\" She seems more irritated by the tailtip than anything else that went wrong.

\"Anyway.  I think we can assume for now that we\'re more or less safe, though I\'ve no idea what all that was really about.\" She seems a bit grumpy, but gets a little bit of milk, and tries to relax, buying one for Emaarhe as well, and then says softly. \"I think part of the problem is they\'ve lost sight of the fact the job of the law is to serve, and have gotten to the point where the purpose of the law is its own end.  In other words.. where the law is inflexible, and unable to adapt, but you must follow it anyway.\" She whispers.  Shee sems very drained.

[steuben]

steuben nods, not so much agreeing but, acknowledging that he has heard the words. he hears echoes of his own thoughts in lyistra\'s words. \"if you\'re still able to laugh at horrid puns, then you\'ll be alright. besides we all carry the scars of our choices. perhaps someday i can show you mine.\"

he pulls out a small earthenware vial, and places it on the table.  

\"this may help take the edge off the day. it doesn\'t contain anything you won\'t find in any good ale. it does have a side effect though. just have some water nearby in the morning. but, go get some rest. the way forward will look clearer come the morn.\"

he leans forward to emaarhe. \"and make sure that she does get some rest,\" he says queitly to her. \"that stuff will do the trick, if i\'ve judged her tolerences correctly.\"

he straightens up. \"i have a matter i must... persue. mistress.  emaarhe.\" he bows slightly before turning and leaving.

outside the tavern he follows the track of some voices he heard after the conclusion of events. he pauses over a manhole cover. its surface covering of dirt disturbed by the hands that had moved it. he crouches down. the tip of his scabard taps against the pavement. he looks through the grating, but not at what lies beyond it. he knows the dangers of chasing even a harried prey through such tight spaces as the sewers. the words he heard run through his mind.

\"Did she take the bait?\" one voice had asked.

\"bait? what did she mean?\" steuben thinks. a thought occurs to him. he turns his head towards the tavern. \"she couldn\'t be involved...\" the scars, the fear, were too real. but there could be other reasons. \"and down that road lies paranoia,\" he hears himself think, not really sure if it was him or his oath.

\"They\'ll never find us in the Oubliette.\" the last voice had said.

\"never is such a long time, my friend\" he says. \"and the world is very small, especially when it has a name.\" the look of ice in his eyes could possibly chill even the azure sun. his smile, a smile in form only, would give pause to many a blood thirsty predator.

[Under the moon]

Deep in the wild, a figure sits shadowed high in the crook of an ancient tree.  The clouds pass and the man?s features are slowly revealed, the shadows giving way reluctantly.  He appears to be a Ylian of nearly thirty years of age with shoulder length brown hair.  He opens his brown eyes and looks up as the light of the Azure Sun falls on his face.  The unmoving sun.  They narrow in an angry glare.

?Damn you Lyistra,? he growls, ?Why did you have to remind me??  He tilts his head to the side, as if listening.  Anger grows on his face before suddenly fading.  ?No, the fault is not hers.  She had no idea.  Your sly words can not turn my will against her.  She will need me soon.  I feel it.?  

He again listens, but this time the anger twists his face into a snarl.  His right hand clenches into a fist.  ?SILENCE!  You will never speak of Lyistra in that manner again.?  His voice lowers threateningly as he speaks.  ?Sabrene is still out there, and in here.? He places his hand over his heart.  ?No one will ever take her place.?

He shakes his head as the apparent conversation continues. ?You never give up, do you?  Ten years makes little difference to me; I will wait forever.  I don?t care how beautiful she is, the cat Songstress will receive my help and my friendship, nothing more.  Now be still, something approaches.?  He gazes into the thick forest, searching for the source of the noise.  His hand goes to the cloth covering his left arm, ready to pull it loose, if need be.

Abruptly, a klyros comes running through the forest, bouncing off trees, seeming in a full panic... he bounces off several trees, the crack of breaking bones and tree limbs heard as the poor creature runs, its neck cracking as it runs headlong into the tree the man sits in. The poor creature is still, save for some slight after-death twitching, a scrap of paper in its hand... A glowing glyph sits on the paper itself, likely the cause of the poor creature\'s panic, as the paper has melded itself to his hand.  

The man descends the tree quickly, seeming quite at home in its branches.  He reaches the ground as the body stops twitching, but only goes near enough to try to read the paper.  The words are smudged and barely legible, but a few stand out.

....Tavern.....the Enk....Lyistra.........Emaahre is........taken the bait.... Your servent.....  The signature seems to be lost somewhere where the paper attaches to the person\'s hand, the wax seal seems to be crawling down and consuming the creature\'s hand, and the paper itself.   Another black glyph reveals itself in the wax.  The man backs away slowly, keeping his left arm behind his back.  The glyph is a rather cruel dark way means of warding, mixed with the brown way, a fungus held dormant until the wrong person opens the paper... then consumes them with great agony, and rapidly following madness    

?Yes, I see it,?  he says then leaps back as the glyph on the paper catches fire, and the body itself burns with a white-hot flame from within, not even smoke coming up as the heat leaves a small pool of glass and moltend metal from the person\'s possessions, not a trace of who or what he was left.

?She is in danger,? he looks in the direction of the city, more than half a day?s run away.  He sighs. ?For once I agree, horses would have been nice in this moon forsaken land.?  As he begins to run, he answers another unheard question.  ?I don?t know.  She gave me her name first.  She needed to call me something, and Fen was the first thing to come to mind.  Would you rather she call me Yamuel?? He asks sarcastically and barks a laugh. ?I thought not.  No mortal should take the name of a God.?  The last word oozes contempt as he disappears into the trees.

[OOC] Dark blue writen by Lyistra.
Yes, this is my character from Chain of Souls.  There may be a few spoilers contained here.

[lyistra]

Lyistra sleeps that night, soundly, the draught of lseep having blessed her with no dreams, for most of the night.. she wakens to Emaahre shaking her, and pointing to the window, earflicks, nods, and looks out... a small flash is seen between two buildings, a shadow crossing the darkened alley.  She nods again, and slips up to the revealed rafters in her loft, after placing a few logs from the fire artfully on the bed.  She shrugs, and whispers \"can\'t be too careful.\" Then slips up into the rafters to sleep the rest of the night.  She hands Emaarhe a small dagger, as well, and they both perch there, Lyistra now and again napping.

She earflicks as a soft sound is heard, a slight gurgle, then the door which normally squeaks badly opens.  The being slips over to the bed, quietly, watching...  He doesn\'t move much, just works a slight charm, then looks at the bed, hmms, and pokes at it, shrugs, and wanders back out.

Unseen in the rafters Lyistra went stiff a moment, her eyes a little blank, then as the man left, sat still, for just a moment.  Emaarhe turns and pats her paw a moment, then indicates the floor... as the man slips out, the door closes.

Lyistra blinks. \"Where did he go?\" she whispers, still looking at the bed. \"Stuff must have been stronger than I thought.\" SHe shakes her head once, then wakens again.


She takes the tree trunks from the bed, then sits on the cvers. \"i sleep above them anyway.\" She winks, then starts to drift off again.


The next morning has crashes of thunder, the seasonal rains falling from beneath the crystal sky.  A light drizzle turning to a pounding rainstorm  rolls off the tavern roof, and Lyistra nods, once, then looks out.  The few bedraggled people about seem mostly subdued with the rain and thunder, and she starts to play bright tunes, for a bit, her eyes closing...


For the crystal sky does burn,
as the seasons swiftly turn..
dancing quiet, with auld delight,
where can I find you, in the night?
I reach out, you\'re by my side,
touching me, holding me, my love\'s guide.
Echoes calling as stars cease,
How are you so my surcease?

As day turns to dusk and night comes along,
how then, are you there, and hearing my song?
How then can you see me, how can you laugh
here you are, you are my path.
Reaching, teaching, the dusk turns to night
Softly beseeching for your delight,
and as the shadows softly call,
ou are still there, my love and my all.


She blushes, takes the smattering of coins that she recievs, and pays for her room, and offers Emaarhe a few coins , who looks at them like she doesn\'t understand.  She smiles, shrugs, and Lyistra buys her a fish breakfast, with a touch of fresh meat.

Lyistra thinks a moment, then shrugs.  \"I\'ve forgotten something.\" She whispers, then shrugs aigain, the memory of the night gone from her. \"Slept well last night.  Let me see that head wound.\" She checks it carfully, then nods, gently changing the dressing then stops.  she shakes her head a moment, then shrugs. \"Couldn\'t be.\" She traces around a spot, shaped in an unusual pattern, then nods. \"Just coincidence.\" She smiles, a little sadly, then just stretches, and repacks the wound with healing salve.


She suddenly stiffens again as a man near the door guestures, and seems to pivot, as though controlled like a puppet on strings.. a ghastly caricature of her normal grace.

Emaarhe looks sad, and tears well in her eyes, then she gets up too.. her movemnts aren\'t as jerky, but it seems to be fear that moves her.  Fear of punishment perhaps.

She turns towards the other even as Lyistra lurches towards him, then knocks a mug of ale from the table, into the lap of a dwarf, who leaps up and curses.  The hammerwielder looks at her a moment, then backs away as she continues to lurch past like a ghastly flesh puppet.

The man nods, then simply activates a glyph, and vanishes, even as she collapses, a silence over the tavern for a moment.. then the glyph on her forehead glows, and people go back to what they were doing, the dwarf cursing at his own clumsiness at knocking the drink over.  She blinks, looking about, and Emaarhe pats her shoulder, nods, to the chair, and smiles a little, sadly, looks at her claws, and then shrugs.  

(ooc:  Ohters may private message if they wish to this thread.)

[Under the moon]

Fen (as Lyistra knows him) crouches on the roof of the building adjacent to the tavern.  The pounding rain had delayed him though the previous day and night, so he had arrived only moments before.  He scans the tavern and grunts.

?Yes, a Glyph was used here last night, but can you tell what kind?? He asks to the empty morning.  After a moment he speaks again, ?A pity, I would have liked to know what I am up against.?  He begins to side off the roof, but freezes suddenly.  The cloth on his arm shudders, almost as if it contains something living.  He hisses under his breath.  His eyes narrow in anger.  ?A Compulsion Glyph!  I felt it being used.  Those filthy things never should have been created.? He shakes his head and his teeth grind together. ?If you ever suggest touching one again, you will regret it.?

He leaps to the street, careful to keep his arm covered, and heads for the door.  Halfway across the street the cloth shudders again, but this time Fen only grins grimly.  ?A nice cover for an escape indeed,? he says, ?but the Mind Mist Glyph has its flaws... such as not working on me.  Although, very few of them do.?  He hesitates at the door.  There doesn?t seem to be any commotion coming from inside.  ?There is still a powerful Glyph in there, or more than one... we must be ready.?  he pushes open the door, his left arm held behind his back. A man stands in the door way.  He offers a breif greeting and attempts to pass.   Fen glances at the man\'s hand and a dark look passes over his face.  He reaches out to stop the man, but suddenly stops, slight confusion in his eyes.  He drops his arm and lets the man pass.

\"That hasn\'t happened in nearly ten years,\" he says to himself, \"Why now?\" Few people overhear him in the growing commotion, and none pay him any heed.  He looks to the stairs, appearently waiting for something.

[lyistra]

Lyistra looks about, her tail flicking, sensing something amiss, but unable to tell at all what occured.  She looks over at Emaahre, and smiles gently, and tilts her head at the sad look in the other\'s eyes.  She pats her paw, and smiles. \"Things will be ok.\" She whispers, unaware of what goes on out in the street outside.  Her tail flicks to and fro, as she starts to sing, softly, an eerie song, her eyes closed, her voice floating out from the core of her being, unaware of anything, but the song, perhaps not even aware of that.

The voice has an unusual timbre for her.. in fact, it almost seems as if there\'s others behind her singing, or perhaps something else lies hidden in the notes, sounds of anguish or agony... her song is in ancient words, timeless words, perhaps, lost within the echoes of what is real, what is not, almost like the web that is woven across her mind... A taverngoer sobs, another glances up, startled... the voice grows to a near tangible thing, the air stirring and thicker even as she sings, growing in mass as the power grows, as the energy draws itself up, her being seeming to loose substantiality even as the other\'s substance grows.

As the notes fade into near silence, the other being, transparent, grows stronger, echoing more into shimmering reality, a sending or drawing brought forth perhaps from some nether planes, shifting and changing as it flows from one point to another, not stepping, exuding a tendril of itself then simply.. being there... it wanders through the room, as though searching.. ever searching, then floats through the wall itself, through a small knot, disappearing into the dusk, barely tangible at all in the mist that rises around the tavern... the others look at Lyistra, then a chorus of arguments springs up, her unaware at all of the sounds, breathing shallowly, even as Emaahre picks her up and cradles her.

A soft chuckle sounds by the door, as the being who puppeteered her earlier releases the glyph of sight blinding, then slips out the door, even as Fen approaches it. He seems startled to meet Fen, the commotion in the tavern rising even as he recovers himself, does a greeting, then attempts to go on.

[steuben]

ooc: sorry it took so long to get this out. it has been busy at work today. let me know if the graphic nature of the violence is a problem.
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steuben runs down the tunnel. he isn\'t sure how he got there, but that has occured before. he knows the smell is bad, but he really doesn\'t smell it. this wasn\'t unusual, it had happened before. he is following the mewling sound down the tunnel. he feels the pull of the water and sludge on his feet slowing him down.
 
he sees some forms down the tunnel. he knows that they have heard him and will try to stop him. he reaches for his sword but it isn\'t there. he reaches for the nearest head with his left hand. he feels his fingers slide into the skull. he squeezes slightly and pulls. he reaches out with his right hand for a neck. he squeezes, feeling the bones and cartilege shatter. it was odd, but he had done similar before, hadn\'t he?

he catches the falling sword of the first form in his left hand. he thrusts it into a third form and draws it up. the body opens spectacularly. the blade lodges in the collar bone. he releases the handle as the body falls backwards. he had seen others die like that, so it wasn\'t unusual. it felt unreal, but other times it had been like that.

he steps past the bodies and starts to run again. again following the mewling sound. he comes to a door, and looks through the barred window. inside the small stone room he sees two small kittens in the pool of light from the window. he tries the door to find it locked. taps the door in a couple of places finding whre the door pins and the lock are. he takes a couple of steps back and slams shoulder first into the door. the door doesn\'t shift. he felt the impact of the door, but no pain. it had happened before, he would feel the pain later. he slams into the door, a second time. a third time and the door splinters apart. the debris fly around the two kittens. the kittens stop mewling when steuben steps into the doorway.

he steps into the doorway. he feels hand grab him. they pull him away from the door. they turn him around, away from the kittens. they pass him hand to hand down the tunnel. along the walls of the tunnel faces form in the darkness. the faces of those that he has killed. at the end of the tunnel a face forms. it defies description. the hands start pass him towards the face. some of the hands try to pull him back. he feels a large hand trying to pull him back. but, he still is moving forward. he feels kittens\' paws trying to pull him back. the hands place him down infront of the face. the large hand has stopped pulling, but he still feels the kittens\' paws on him pulling him back.

he feels his sword at his side. he pulls the sword out. the blade blazes in the darkness. the face shirks back from it. it opens it mouth in an attempt to try and swallow both steuben and the blade. he brings the blade back into a ready position. he runs for the face a yell of defience on his lips. he leaps and brings the blade down through where the bridge of the nose would have been if the face was human. he strikes and passes through. he falls in the the abyss beyond.

steuben bolts upright in his bed. a cold sweat on his skin. he stares for a moment at the stuffed sacking on his walls. he had out them there so that he wouldn\'t disturb his neighbours. after the second night his landlady had agreed. the sound of the failing rain begins to reach him. he relaxes as reality forms around him again. he untangles himself from his bedding and swings his legs over the side.

he walks over to the window and looks out. the mist and rain have enshrouded the city. he considers the dream for a moment and then shrugs.

he walks away from the window and gets dressed. he puts on a cloak and slings the sword high on his shoulder. he walks out of his room into the day.

he walks up to the tavern. hearing the commotion inside, he breaks into a run. his cloak billows out behind him like the wings of an angel. the look on his face would suit an avenging angel.

he arrives at the tavern. he runs through the door and sees fen inside the door. he sees emaarhe and lyistra in one corner, emaarhe cradling lyistra.

\"follow me surface-worlder,\" he says to fen. his voice brokers no arguement.

he bulls he way through the growing tavern brawl. fen follows in his wake. with little grace steuben merely knocks the obstacles out of their way, both being and object. he takes a few blows but continues on his way to both emaarhe and lyistra.

arriving he places a hand on emaarhe\'s shoulder. the first time he has touched her. she jolts in fear and surprise.

\"guide me to your room,\" he says to her over the sounds of the brawl. \"carry her\", he says to fen. \"i\'ll clear the way.\"

he picks up a table and uses it as both shield and plow. they make their way to the stairwell. after the others had gone up he drops it, blocking the stairs enough to prevent the brawl from spreading up.

inside the room steuben closes the door and leans against it.

\"brute force gets the job done. finesse merely impresses the boss. emaarhe, if she didn\'t use that vial i gave you last night, could you pass it over? i think i could use some of it.\" he says breathing heavily from the exertion.

[lyistra]

Lyistra sleeps deeply, drooling a bit, as her head lolls.. the few times she wakes, she mewls quietly, quite like a kitten, then sleeps again.  Whatever happened to her seems to have drawn away much of her mind, barely reacting to even the snap of a fingers, or the clap of hands in front of her face... around the city, something stirs... the rats fleeing before it as it wanders through the sewers, crunching them now and again like some treat, leaving them behind... it seems to draw no disticntion between rats unable to run away fast enoguh, and a cripple who hid in the sewers to get out of the rain, and prepare for another day\'s begging... it grows stronger the whole while, the fell thing chasing something, that seems elusive.


After a time... as though a tufelsang on a hunt, it turns, and starts to run, loping through the city, now and again phasing through the brickwork as it finds some small channel... seeking, seeking, ever seeking... a pause, a nod, and it fades away into a large stone, in the middle of an empty chamber.

Lyistra seems to not change at all for several days, Emaahre starts to cry a bit, sometimes, then seems to draw her own strength, seeing to it the cheetah is fed.  She looks out at the park, as though looking for something herself.. something she doesn\'t even know anymore.. or maybe, looking inward as much as out.

She picks up a pen, one day, to try to write something for Steuben, and the pen falls apart, frustrated, she pulls a charcoal-laden stick from the fire, and tries again for both him and Fen.  The stick catches flame, and she drops it, stomping it out, looking more frustrated every moment.  Finally, she picks up a knife and starts to carve a message in a piece of wood.  The message says \'danger\' in one glyph, and \'difficult\' in another, then the tip of the well-made knife breaks off in the wood.  She growls, and tosses it at the wall, the blade itself now like glass, shattering, and then uses her own claws to carve the message.

\"Lyistra.  Taken.  Forbidden to write.\" her fur around her fingers starts to smoke a little as she writes more. \"Hurt me when I do.  They took her spirit.  They took mine before.\"

Her fingers are smoking more, and she takes a mug of water, and quenches them, with an audible hiss, the water takes the fur that burned off, the fingers healing again rapidly... glyphs for fire, for harm, for weakness for enemies, for control, worked in platinum in each of her claws.  She looks sad, defeated, and points at a sewer enterance, then sits down.

[steuben]

ooc: taking place between the brawl and emaahre leaving the message

-----------------------

after the sounds of the brawl have finished. steuben knowing that there is little that he can do here makes to head back down. he walks over to fen.

\"when you\'re ready meet me downstairs. i\'ll tell you what i know so far,\" he says.

he leans against the bar waiting for fen. a mug of beer sits infront of him. he thinks about things so far. but lyistra concerns him. he has seen many injured people but now like that. it is like she isn\'t even there.

fen comes down and stands next to steuben. steuben tells him of emaarhe, and the judgement. he rather strongly gives his opinion of the clerks. he finally speaks of his suspicions of emaarhe being an unwilling part of this somehow.

[lyistra]

Emaarhe taps the table between the two of them, and then nods, jerkily.  Each movement seems to be painful for her.  She looks up the hallway, as though seeing Lyistra\'s room, her eyes filled with tears, even as she bites her lip.

She turns, and goes outside, tugging up the sewer grate, and the sound of the opening cover rings across the stones.  She simply slips down the hole, and disappears, waiting down inside for the others.