Tales of Faerun

[AurianaValoria1]

Rhaine's eyes, after adjusting to the lighting, were immediately drawn the casket in the middle of the set of three. It was painted white and bore floral inlays that looped around the sides and front as if on a vine. She gently knocked on the surface...it was sturdy and, judging from the scent that wafted from where she had touched it, it was made of cedar wood.

 

She nodded to herself, "I think this is the one."

[GrueMaster]

Tak'we shuffled down the stairs, his head pounding in time with his steps. I'm never drinking that stuff again! he swore to himself as he winced. As he came to the bottom step, he heard a commotion and saw Weyland and Amendale running after Rhaine as she hurried out the door. What's going on? he wondered, and shuffled after them.

 

The thri'kreen followed them to a tree by the river and saw Rhaine and an old softskin standing by a figure laying on the ground. "Who'ss that?," he murmured to no one in particular, then froze when he heard the Doomguide saying that she will be needing a gravedigger to the old lady, who quickly left leading the way with Rhain in tow. Oh no...

 

Tak'we walked past Weyland and Amendale and looked at the prone figure and let out a cry of despair when he saw who it was. Aricia! He leaned on his gythka heavily, silently lamenting his dead clutchmate. First Mahira, now Aricia... he wept inwardly. Then he straightened up a bit and took off after Rhaine. He'd missed Mahira's burial already. I'm not going to miss this one!

 

He walked into the shop the old lady led them into and walked over to the winged pointy-ear. He heard Rhaine choosing a particular wooded box, finely carved and decorated. "Rhaine," he spoke up, sorrow tinting his voice, "thiss one iss sorry. Poor Aricia..." he shuddered.

 

Tak'we handed his staff to the priestess and went over to the coffin and, not caring if it might give him away, picked it up and heaved it onto his back, making him stoop even further. "Please... let thiss old one carry thiss. This one did not see Mahira at her burial. Let this one carry the burden this time." And so he begun leaving the shop, looking like an old man doing his penitence.

[Flipout6]

Weyland, upon being ordered to guard the body, quickly swallowed his (extremely delicious) bacon and confirmed that he would. Amendale didn't even make any indication of hearing Rhaine, but complied, standing over by the old woman's body and leaning against the tree. Weyland kept a sharp lookout, but wasn't really expecting much. As far as he knew the group's biggest enemy had been killed before he and Amendale had joined up. And if any cannibals or other body snatchers did show up, Weyland would likely dispose of them quite easily.

 

Amendale didn't do or think much, mostly just enjoying the sunrise or looking around. He was a bit worried that later down the road, both literally and figuratively, he'd have to break up a fight between Weyland and Lokii. Those two were constantly at each other's throats, and Amendale didn't understand Weyland's hatred of the Githyanki. Sure, he had made some mistakes, but Lokii seemed a good enough man today. Amendale sighed inwardly. Humans and their prejudices.

 

Tak'We's rapid arrival and departure left little time for Weyland or Amendale to say anything, only feel deep sympathy for him at his despairing wail. Amendale considered accompanying him to make sure he was okay, but then he remembered he had a body to guard. He didn't move from the tree. Weyland winced at the old man's pain, but stayed by Aricia's corpse for the same reasons as Amendale.

[AurianaValoria1]

Rhaine could do naught but watch as Tak'we shouldered the casket and left the small shop with it. Depositing an appropriate amount of gold on the counter, she motioned for one of the apprentices to follow. He silently nodded and followed them back to the oak tree where Aricia still lay. There, the Doomguide thanked Weyland and Amendale for keeping watch. Then, with the help of the apprentice, she gently lifted the Archfey's body and lowered her into the casket. Rhaine straightened the elf's limbs and garb, crossing her arms atop her chest and straightening her long white hair beneath her. Finally, the apprentice took the coffin lid and began hammering it into place. The Doomguide felt tears in her eyes each time his mallet struck the nails - she remembered how Aricia had healed her after that terrible battle...how sad she had looked when she realized that her youth was drained from her forever. It had been the cause of her death, even so long after the fight was over. Ravenna seemed able to strike at them from the Hells themselves.

 

Together, she and the apprentice carried the casket towards the newly dug grave on the edge of the cemetery, near a gorgeous blossom tree. With the help of the gravedigger, Aricia was then lowered into the grave, whereupon Rhaine gave a small service. She recited the Passing, adjusting the wording to make it appropriate for a priestess of Ilmater. At last, the gravedigger and the apprentice began filling in the grave, and it was then that the Doomguide spoke to what companions had gathered, "Make sure that everyone is ready to leave within the hour. Meet me at the eastern gates so that we may join Bilron's caravan."

 

With that, she made her way to the stables and retrieved her horse, mounting up and trotting to where the blacksmith had set up his wagons. To her surprise, Bilron had a wife and child with him, to which he introduced her. His wife, Maeve, was just as stout and stocky as he, but his daughter Sori was a thin wisp of a thing. Both females had a thick crop of platinum hair, contrasting greatly with the smith's dark coloration. The family had prepared two covered wagons with six oxen each...one carried Bilron's unsold stock and barrels of water, the other supplies and tools. Bilron would drive the former and Maeve the latter.

 

Rhaine and Maeve both made small talk while waiting for the rest of the group to catch up. Sori was excited to no end about seeing the desert, and the Doomguide herself was quite curious as well. She only hoped that they would not come to regret traversing this way.

[GrueMaster]

Tak'we stood silent as he watched his clutchmate be slowly buried by the gravedigger. Good-bye, Aricia. May Mother Moon light your path to paradise. He heard Rhaine tell them to be ready within an hour and meet by the eastern gates. "Thosse who live must continue living, to honor the dead," he recited almost silently, an old proverb his mother once told him.

 

Gazing upon Aricia's grave one last time, the thri'kreen left and returned to his room at the inn and gathered up his pack. Tak'we adjusted his cloak one last time, then shuffled out the door. He arrived at the gates, seeing Rhaine talking to a softskin. He nodded to her and leaned against one of the wagons. "Thiss old one iss ready."

[tokyobiohazard]

(Sorry again, I have left the parts that might be considered a little too much enclosed in spoiler boxes.)

 

Sana wiped her mouth with the back of a hand, a charming smile on her bloody lips. "I'm full now."

 

 

The hands of the child, she'd gobbled until the only things left of them were a few bloody strips of flesh which dangled amusingly limply from the stump that was once a wrist, like the limbs of an invertebrate sea creature pulled above the surface of the water. Of course, she'd only seen that once, when staying with a wealthy human man who was particularly curious about her race, when he served her raw squid. She hadn't liked it, and spit it out, deciding to eat him instead. So why had she compared such a delicious morsel to something so slimy and repulsive?

She pushed one of her braids back behind a shoulder and let her eyes wander over the spawn of the caravan woman again. She brushed his hair away from his face, smearing blood across his pallid forehead like a vivid stroke of red paint across a bare canvas.

 

"You were delicious," she cooed to him, kissing his lips once. Her hand on his ribcage,

which had been forced open so that she could reach his liver and heart without the pesky shell in the way as it would have been if she'd sliced open his belly,

she gently laid him on the ground and sighed. "But you're just a gutless husk now. I'm ready to leave, Mistress."

Edited January 28, 2013 by tokyobleach

[Flipout6]

Weyland and Amendale watched Aricia's burial quietly, not saying much out of respect. They never really knew her, but paid their respects anyway. When the time came to prepare to leave, Weyland and Amendale were right there with Rhaine, all their gear in the packs upon their backs.

 

"Well, the others may not walk around town with everything on their back, but I'm ready to go any time." Weyland informed Rhaine.

 

"So am I." Amendale added.

 

Weyland sat down by a cart's wheel, and found his thoughts once again going back to his past, specifically Sana. He wondered where it was she could be now, perhaps rounding up more slaves to serve her, or killing people, or perhaps she was dead. If so, it would be a bittersweet thing for Weyland. She'd caused him pain and he wanted to kill her himself, but she would also be dead, which in and of itself would be a big plus. He shifted uncomfortably.

[mythicdawnmaster]

Little Old Monica thanked Rhaine for the coin she deposited, and made sure they reached the grave okay. She stood with her husband, The Gravedigger once the ceremony was complete, saying there goodbye to the group- And offering fresh flowers be placed on the grave each year.

 

After hearing the news, Xallistine stood in attendance at the funeral, his heart heavy, full of sadness. He had become friends with Aricia in her final days, and such a loss was terrible. Once again, Ravenna had blown a crushing blow to the group. He followed Rhaine slowly to the stables, mounting Fatty without a word. he rode up to the group as they prepared to leave.

[Ithildin]

With a little cooperation from White-Nose, Echo got all of her gear situated and was getting ready to ride out after Rhaine when the stable hand asked her to hold up for a minute. Apparently he had heard about her stint in Loudwater Prison and her treatment at the hands of one of the guardsmen, and he apologized for everything she had endured last time she was in town.

 

"Sir, it isn't your fault," Echo protested. "You're the one resident of Loudwater I know I can rely on. I trusted you with my mare last night, and the results are plain to see: she's happy, fed and watered ... and I can tell she's been groomed, which I certainly did not expect. There's no need to apologize - quite the contrary. Thank you for everything you've done." She reached into her purse, pulled out the claw-mount skydrop pendant, and leaned over in her saddle to hand it to him. He took it automatically before he knew what it was, and turned it over in his hands while the halfling continued. "My companions and I had the good fortune to take what we wanted from a banshee's hoard, and that's one of the trinkets I picked up. As kind as you are, I'd wager you have someone dear to you - wife or sweetheart - who'd love to wear it. If not, please take it anyway, with my compliments, and sell or trade it for whatever you need."

 

"Miss, I can't accept this," he said, and tried to hand the pendant back. Echo gripped her reins firmly with both hands and shook her head. "But - but don't you realize what it's worth?!" he sputtered. "I have an inkling: more than I'd earn in a dozen tendays. It's too much!"

 

"It's yours," Echo insisted, and with a wink, she shook the reins and rode out looking for Rhaine and company. It wasn't long before she found a town guardsman who was able to relate that one of her companions had passed away that morning. She was visibly shocked. "D-do you know who it was?" she stammered, bracing herself for his reply.

 

"I know she was female," he said, "but I'm afraid I don't know her name, miss. There was a service for her in Loudwater Cemetery." He provided detailed directions; she thanked him distractedly, and urged her mare into a canter. It wasn't difficult to find the gravesite; the gravedigger and his apprentice stood next to it beneath a flowering tree, deep in conversation. She clumsily dismounted in front of them, and practically shouted, "Who was she?"

 

The apprentice unsuccessfully tried to stifle a moue of disgust at the rude interruption. "Her name was Aricia; were you among her friends? Did you know her?"

 

Tears stung the halfling's eyes, and her chin quivered as she spoke. "N-not well enough ... oh no," she murmured, moving toward the edge of the mound of earth that covered Aricia's casket. "How many more friends are we going to lose?" Her question came out in a whisper, barely audible, but both men heard.

 

"So ... Aricia was not the first?" the apprentice asked. Echo turned to look at him, and shook her head. For a moment, he studied her face, and there was sympathy in his eyes. He recited, "'Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower, we will grieve not, rather find strength in what remains behind.' I'm not certain of the philosopher's name, but it is a comfort, one I've kept in mind whenever the gods have chosen to end someone's time in this realm."

 

The halfling turned away again, and then said, "Thank you. If only I had known her better ... she was a formidable ally." At that moment, it occurred to her that Ravenna was responsible for Lady Aricia's death as well as Mahira's, and she felt as if her heart had turned to ice.

 

The two men politely left Echo alone with her thoughts; she remained standing near Aricia's grave only a few minutes more, and then walked her mare toward the main road. Along the way, she saw a white-haired gentleman visiting an ornately carved headstone with a bouquet of lilies in his hands, and when she asked whether he happened to have seen a woman with scarlet hair and sable wings somewhere in town, he smiled and nodded. "Large group of travelers gathering near the east gate," he said. "They'd be hard to miss."

 

"Thank you, sir," Echo replied, and went to catch up with her companions.

[josh900]

Eventually Tannin found the group near the gates. The brown horse he had acquired on his way there right behind him. "Morning everyone, don't ask about the horse, he was a gift and don't ask why." He said as he approached the group. While it wasn't a lie it wasn't exactly the truth either. Though he wasn't fond of using it the Dominate person spell this was something of a necessity, and it wasn't like he took the man's best horse. Just the second best.

 

As he drew closer he quickly picked up on the gloomy feeling of the group. And the look in their eyes told him all he needed to know. "Oooh dear we've lost a member." He said. "My apologies for not being around for it. I had no idea something that serious was happening." He said hoping he wouldn't catch too much scorn over it.

Edited January 28, 2013 by josh900