The Last Son of the Bladed Moon

[Shadow of the Fallen]

OOC: This is just giving you a setting and allowing you to intorduce your characters.. I really haven't embedded any story elements yet, and you won't have to worry about it.. Just bring your characters into the setting.

 

A chill spring wind drifted across the valley basin in which sat Everend. Birds rang out their melodious calls over the bustle of the port city below. Set into sudden motion by the arrival of an Imperial division, sent to aid some warriors up in the northern region.

 

Fangrim usually held it's frost this early in the season, though it was too far south here for such a climate to be held that long. Grey clouds could be caught hanging over the ridge of mountains in the north, casting below them shadows of that same grey. Snow clouds, many knew.. They would yet be plauging the areas farther north.

 

Plauge was not so good a word to use in these times though. For a few years past a real plauge had caught spread up into the northern areas of the Impeiral Province, especially near the Ash Wastes, where poison clouds weakend the immune systems. The plauge was said to be awful, and easily spread while the victim was unaware that they were even sick.. Such grave news had kept the whole city in a cold sweat for the winter... Now it was summer, and the heat they feared.. Conditions never seemed right in this harsh land..

 

About the town, though, things were rather merry and joyful, the new arrivals always ment hope for Imperial citizens, who knew that their homes were that much better protected from all harms.. In such a city as this, there were many bars and inns, for all the new guests with no place for the night after the ardurous trip from whence they came.

 

Here, in this unsuspecting city, several travelers - as ignorant of their purpose as the city that harbored them - were about to clash into what could mean the beginning or the end of this world.. An ancient decree was about to be filled.

 

OOC: Enter, Characters.

[Chunky_Moose]

Waking up from his hard military bed in the barracks of Fort Ganmok, Julius Haterius Caecilius set about the laborious task of getting his uniform on. Pulling out his key and opening his heavy military-grade chest, he pulls out his gleaming set of Imperial Duke's Guard Silver, polished so highly that they could be used as mirrors. He also pulls out his ornately decorated Imperial shield and from a small chest above his bed - closer to hand than his armour - he pulls out his Imperial Broadsword. He starts to out the various pieces of armour on.

 

He had only arrived in Ganmok a week previously and had immediately been assigned to the personal guard of the Duke of Ganmok, Duke Salvius of Septim. Apart from being the governer of this distant Imperial province, he is also the cousin of the Emperor, Uriel Septim VII, making the job of guarding one of the most honoured duties in the Imperial Legion. Only through hard years of campaigning and toil did Julius manage to get to this esteemed duty and his scarred face, like that of all Duke's Guards, showed those who saw it that he was a veteran soldier.

 

Finally, he straps the last part of his armour on, and walks - with a clinking of metal - to the mess where he would be fed before he began his shift. He realises how hot it is and his metal armour does not help. Reaching the mess, steaming and sweating, he sits at a table with a fellow Duke's Guard and discusses the latest rumours passing around of the Duke receiving a mysterious visitor the day before, who had the left Duke somewhat distressed and had ordered that nobody, not even his guards, were to disturb him unless he personally ordered them in.

 

Finished with his breakfast, Julius and the other Guard, named Quintus Gnaeus Augustus, walked to their posts by the doors to the Duke's private chambers, performed the elaborate changing of the guard, and stood like statues at their posts.

[Shadow of the Fallen]

OOC: Forgot to add this, Chunky Moose and I have worked it out so that he can have his disaster in the beggining of the plot, and thus fit better with the rest of the party. :D Not telling what it is...

 

His quest will be run seperatly until he meets up with you all.

 

I must make note however, that this is not the same Imperium as in Morrowind.. And Uriel Septium of any number has never existed as far as I'm concerned.. Please remember that Chunky and don't add in names and stuff like that.. Everyone esle, asume it just says "the emporer" and be done with it..

 

IC:

Julius

After the changing of the guard, everything sets into stone still silence. Much as you do not move, niether does anything else for a hundred meters of the govenors chambers. The silence is completely unnatural, and it begins to make you worry.

 

Time passes and yet nothing happens.

[MDRud216]

A blizzard had set in, visibility was reduced to around 25 feet out here in the frozen wilderness. Jaun was walking quickly, without looking back at the strange orange glow veiled by the snowfall. Fear filled his mind and he barely noticed the stinging he felt on his forhead, where his exposed skin was being pelted with snow. He replayed the events in his head, every time he was exposed, he tried to count, but could not. Just a day before he had came across a tribal village, hlaf of them were dead, and the other half packing up to leave. jaun had felt it his responsibility to stop this action, as it would undoubtedly spread the plague that they carried with them. All of them were dead jow, by his hand and their corpses burned in a large pile behind him, forming that orange glow. After ten minutes of walking he threw himself to the frozen ground and unwrapped the tightly bound furs around hisface. he had barely been able to breeth, hopefully they would have sheilded him from the disease.

 

Suddenly Jaun twitched, and sat up quickly, throwing his quilted blankets down past his waist. He rubbed his eyes, recovering from the vivid dream he had experienced. few things scared jaun, but the plauge was one of them, his experiance had happened over a month earlier, surely the signs of the plague would have showed themselves by now, but the inviading fear did not lisson to his own logic.

 

Jaun walks into the main room of the inn, quite confortable in his loose cloth garments. He walks to the nearby bar, signaling the keeper for a jug of ale.

[Chunky_Moose]

OOC: Sorry, another Morrowind slip-up.

 

IC:

 

The eerie silence was starting to get to Julius, it had been like this for two or three hours already. Normally, the noise of life in the fortress could be heard all around but today everything was still. No clerks were scurrying around with piles of papers and no guards were chatting noisily in the corridors. Everything was too silent. He decides to move from his statue-like pose and gazes around the corridors, opposite him, Quintus was disturbed by the unnatural absence of noise as well. They both glanced at each other and shrugged.

 

Suddenly, a piercing scream resonated down the corridors. Julius and Quintus drew their swords and raised their shields simultaneously and by instinct readied themselves for a fight, but no attacker came but the scream sounded again. Julius looked at Quintus,

"Go" he said, "Find out who's screamng and why, i'll stay here, call me if you need me". Quintus nodded and ran off noisily down the corridor in the direction of the screams.

 

Julius was left alone and he was expecting for the Duke to burst out from his door and demand to know what all the commotion was about but that did not happen. Julius had been ordered not to enter the Duke's room and he obeyed that order. Another half hour at least passed since the screams and the departure of Quintus and Julius was starting to worry again. The eerie silence had returned Quintus was nowhere to be seen. As suddenly as the screams, the Duke came out from his room with an ornate scroll in his hand. He looked pale and sickly and he stepped up to Julius.

"Take this scroll" he said, "Guard it with your life. It MUST, i stress MUST, be delivered to my cousin - the Emperor. Now i'm not ordering you to deliver it personally but give to someone you can trust and make sure that the courier has guards. There are many dangerous people about." With that he turned around and started walking towards his room when he suddenly turned again ans asked, "Where's Quintus?"

"He's gone off to investigate some strange noises we heard, sir" replied Julius.

"Go off after him please, he'd make a good courier for that scroll"

"Yes, sir" With that, Julius started walking in the direction that Quintus had gone over half an hour ago and over his shoulder he saw the Duke return into his room and heard all seven of the heavy, complex locks locking. He knew that those locks were protected by powerful magical and mechanical traps and he felt confident that the Duke would be safe without his personal guarding.

 

He had gone not 200 yards when, to his horror, he found Quintus. Quintus was sprawled on the floor in a pool of blood, a stiletto was lodged in the back of his neck. Julius, with difficulty, pulled the blade out and examined it. He had seen blades of this design before, they came from lands far across the sea to the east and were always coated in deadly poison. Julius, spent s amoment to pay his respects to Quintus, and continued along the corridor with his sword and shield raised and constantly looking over his shoulder for enemies. He found the source of the screams a bit further along the corridor, one of the many maids that worked in the fortress had a huge gash across her stomach and another slitting her throat. She too, has been killed by a poisoned stiletto as the weapon, with its layer of poison used, was useless to an assasin and had been discarded by the corpse.

 

Julius, suddenly realising that he must inform the Duke that there were enemies in the fortress, sprinted back down the corridor in the direction of the Duke's chambers. He arrived and collapsed to his knees in horror. The huge door, with its many locks and traps had been blown to splinters by some sort of alchemy or spell. The Duke's head was impaled upon one of the larger splinters of wood and gorily displayed by his massive door. His body, sitting at his desk. More horrifying still however was that written in blood on one of the walls was JULIUS HATERIUS CAECILIUS

[Shadow of the Fallen]

OOC: Don't think I could have done it better had I done it myself, Chunky. You are now a criminal :) (And there is no magicin this game, do you read the rules when they are posted in sign up forums?? No matter however, alchemy is as real as nuclar fision in real life, hence plastic, so I won't bother having you mess with it)Enjoy!

 

IC:

Juan

Candlelight illuminates the walls of the tavern, reflecting off mirrors set in places so that they shed more light into the room. The building, as was much else out in the city, was made of wood. Oak walls gave the room a pleasent, homey feel, while polished mahogany tables and chairs added depth and glamor to the scene. The over all effect makes the tavern seem much more respectable then its nature would have it.

 

The tavern was not packed, or even busy as most others were, but there was always someone else who wanted a drink. When he had the opportunity next, the bartender steps over to you, drawing up a glass as he asks, "What'll it be, chum?" without pause he continues with a converstion effort, "You look a bit tired, just get up?"

[MDRud216]

jaun looks up from his downward glaring postion to meet the barkeeps eyes. "yes, is it late?"

[Shadow of the Fallen]

"It is near dark son," the barkeep replies with a hearty laugh, "The place will be filling up soon, best to get a mug now while there's yet some to be had!" The barkeep seems to be a jolly fellow, a bit crude in his joking maybe. It is clearly evident, though, that he means no ill will toward his patrons. "Would you be wanting a drink, then?"

[MDRud216]

"Of course," jaun says with some renued vigour, "Ale". As the barkeep turns to prepare the drink Jaun says, "you know of any good archery ranges in town?"

 

ooc: sorry for the one liners, it won't be like this when i am not in conversation

[Shadow of the Fallen]

OOC: No problem, I do the same thing.. It isn't always how many words, its the words chosen.. And then sometiems it really doesn't matter.

 

The barkeep puzzles over this as he fetches a bottle of ale. As he pours it into the mug he was holding a moment ago, he thinks out loud, "I don't know about ranges.. Perhaps in the Imperial Garrison, but not around.." He slides the mug over to Juan, "you could always head into the more northern areas of this basin, you don't have to go far before you get to the forests. I'd say it was a days trip to head out that way and back, if you're up to it take some food with you and some extra clothing, the weather is unpredictable this time of year."

 

The man kindly tells you that he will ask around and see if anyone else knows of a good place to launch a few arrows off. He busies himself down the line of bar patrons, grabbing drinks of all kinds and pouring them into mugs or shot glasses. After a while he returns to you, "Nothing, thats about the best you can get around here is up by the woods.