The Chronicles of Dorgnad's Creek

[Atraea]

Halyth was shaken from her thoughts at the the booming voice. "Huh? Wha--oh. A story?" She rose from her place by the window and made her way to the crowd surrounding th old dwarf. She saw that all the seats were taken already, so she just stood toward the back. She couldn't see due to her height, but she figured that if the dwarf had a voice loud enough, it wouldn't matter whether she could see him or not.

I can always enjoy a good story. This will take my mind off of him for the time being. She shifted around some, and finally decided to go back and get her chair by the window to sit in. She didn't want her legs getting tired.

[killerkitty]

Aena's muscles tensed instinctively tensed slightly when the inkeeper's voice boomed out. Then the woman she had been talking to turned back to her and whispered, 'You're in luck, we've got one room open. But in the meantime, why don't you listen to one of old Thor's tales?'

Aena sighed. She glanced around and spotted the dwarf. They had interesting enough stories and a chance to hear one of them did not come by often. 'Alright, then,' she said. She handed the woman some coins from the pouch on her belt and took the key. She then silently moved to a dark corner as the dwarf began his tale.

[Maeve]

Old Thor cleaned his throat one last time, gathering his thought. He hadn't told that tale for quite a while, but tonight seemed like a good night. "This is the storyof a meeting, between a young dwarf and a strange fellow," he started, his deep voice filling the room, "a crazy creature known as the Mad Jester. Some say he is human, although I strongly doubt it. After all, what human could live for more than 500 years? Yep, that's right, not many. The Mad Jester has lived in the Isrenite mountains for as long as I can remember and, mind you, that's a pretty long time. He inhabits a twisted tower near the pass between Mt. Yeron and Mt. Norome, where he does strange experiments on the few folks who are stupid enough to approach his tower. No one really knows where he came from, although my grandfather - may he rests in peace - used to say that the tower appeared from nowhere one day at dusk.
On a nice morning of spring, when the moss on the mountains was still glittering from the morning dew, a young dwarf called Gord was on it's way to the Yeron mine. He had been travelling the mountains for all his life, and knew every rock, tree and pass like the bottom of his pocket. He had been sent recently to the bottom of the mountains to meet with a group of merchants and guide them to the main dwarf settlement, half-way up Mt. Norome. And now, he was returning to his normal job at the mine of the other side of the mountains, just pass the treacherous pass of Mt. Yeron.
Gord was a joyful fellow and, like all dwarfs, he enjoyed alcohol. That morning, he could have sworn he had drunken too much when he reached the border of the pass. Turning a corner to enter the main accessible road, a large tower appeared right in front of his nose, one that he had never seen before. Little Gord rubbed his eyes a few time, wondering what it was. Passed the initial shock, he decided to take a better look at the building.
It was almost 5 stories high, with a strange, purple-shaded exterior that looked a bit like dried mud, all bumpy and cracked. About half-way up, a smaller tower emerged from the side and went up as high as the main one. Both were top with bronze cone-shaped roof. No window or door could been seen, and only a small smoking chimney let thought that someone - or something - could be living in there. Getting a better look at the surface, Gord noticed a strangely shaped engraving on one side of the tower. It was small a rectangular shape, about the size of a hand, with symbols engraved in the middle. Gord didn't recognize any of them, but he guessed that was a lock of some sort, enabling the inhabitant of the tower to get in..." His story was suddenly interrupted by a young waitress who had just approached him.

While most people were captivated by the old dwarf and the others were busy chatting between themselves or eating, a villager had entered the inn, apparently quite worried. He had talked to the innkeeper, who had answered something, the worried look appearing on his face too. He had then made a small sign of the hand to a nearby waitress and had given her a few words that she had transmitted to the old Thor, too low for anyone to hear. The old dwarf paused for a few seconds, passing a hand through his beard, apparently annoyed by something. He then pursued his chatting with the rest of the inn, his powerful voice resonating through the room.

"My friends, a bad news has just reached my old ears. Three of the local boys, including the son of our beloved lord Silverkin, have gone missing. A small group of guards had been sent to retrieve them earlier, but one of them had just returned, his body wounded by some monstrous creature. The poor fellow fainted before he could explain anything, but judging by his state, his teammates are probably, well, dying, if not worst." He took a small pause, gathering his thoughts. "The weather seems to be calming down a little, and it might be our only chance to retrieve all of them alive. I know this is a lot to ask, but would some of you explorers be kind enough to go retrieve the kids and guards? I'd have done it myself, but my old legs won't support me long in this weather." He took a look at the gathered crowd. There were mostly mercenaries in there, and the old dwarf was sure some of them could do the job well. Noticing the hesitation in there face, he added: "I'm personally offering a 100 gold pieces reward for anyone who would accept!"

[killerkitty]

Aena glanced around. She saw many hesitant faces in the crowd. She frowned when he mentioned the money, seeing some faces lighting up.

'I will do it,' she said, heading towards the door. 'But not for the gold. I do not wish to see such young spirits leave the face of this world so soon. I will see what I can do, but I guarantee nothing. Farewell.'

She walked out. The air was still freezing cold, but it was not howling at her, attempting to knock her over like it had been before. Small snowflakes drifted down, gently covering up any footprints that might have helped her in her search. She walked out of the gate to town, stringing her bow.

[Maeve]

((Mind waiting for us, please? =) ))

Briel stood up when the dwarf asked for people to go search. She knew the woods well and, even with the weather, she could most likely find her way around and managed to find traces of the boys and guards. Although, she preferred getting some extra information first... Before she could say anything though, an elf got up and claimed she was going to see what she could do, exiting the inn in a fraction of seconds. Briel grabbed her bag laying at her side and made her way to the door as quickly as she could in the dense crowd, before yelling outside: "Eh, do you mind waiting for others?" She hoped the other had understood... Or Mercane will catch you.

With that, she walked back closer to the counter, where the villager was still standing. "Anyone else wants to come?" she asked to the crowd, before turning her attention to the villager and recognizing Kyle, a local farmer. She didn't know him much, but she had met him before, when he requested the help of some druids for his beasts. She knew he had two young boys, 10 years old or so, and guessed at least one of them went missing. "So, when do the boys were supposed to be?" she asked, checking her bags and weapon to make sure she was ready.

"Near the ruin, ma'am. They always play there with the little Silverkin," the man said, visibly annoyed and nervous.

"Fine. Don't worry, I'll find them," she said, trying to comfort him a bit. "So, anyone else is coming?" she said, looking one last time at the crowd. Most of the mercenaries were apparently not interested by the offer, even with the gold reward, but she hoped a few would still decide to come. If it would only have been lost boys, she would have handle it by herself, but whatever could knock out the guards wasn't something she would happily opposed to. She readjusted her fur coat and waited for an answer.

Somewhere on the edge of the woods, near the eastern road, a pile of snow suddenly moved. A large grey wolf bounced up, sending the snow that was covering her into the air. The she-wolf ears perked as she heard some noise in the distance. Even with the wind, she could clearly recognized her master's voice. Master. Nervous. Yelling. The words crossed the beast's mind as she started to move, walking slowly at first, then accelerating to a quick jog. She knew her master didn't like when she approached the buildings, but she was worried by the vibes she was receiving. A few seconds later, she spotted someone walking away from the building where she believed her master was, close to the gate.

Elf. Female. Sharp flying thing. With very little thoughts, the wolf approached the elven woman, sniffing the air in hope to get some information. She just moved close enough to forbid the elf from passing the gate and sat down. Whoever that was, the wolf was sure her master yell was directed towards her. Mercane looked at the woman, the few lights coming from the village reflecting on the medal on her upper neck, or at least on the part that wasn't covered with fur. She would just wait here until her master showed up or called her.

[KoyiTar]

((Sorry I just noticed the posts heh))

"I'll go to, I am treated enough like a child that I will not see a child harmed. Also I could care less about the gold for it when kids are involved." Nurell chimed in looking at the shocked expressions on several human faces. "You all act as if you've never seen a hafling before." She said offhandedly following the elf and human woman out the door.

"Hoy good elf, and good human wait up a bit I am fast but my legs aren't quite built for keeping up with your longer strides" She said getting to the human girl first. She could tell this girl was from the forest and probably dealt with haflings all the time since most still dwelled in forests most of the time. "I hope you don't mind a hafling along for this venture." She said to the girl a smile on her childlike face. "I may not look that useful but I can be." She continued on the smile starting to fade some as she looked out into the storm. She was thinking about the poor children possibly out there in this weather. "Poor little ones." She muttered fumbling with the gold ring on her finger. She still hadn't figured out what it was for quite yet but it always served to calm her thoughts when she rubbed on it.

[Tsemara]

Peter had been getting into the story. It wasn't one he had heard before. So, he was a bit miffed when the waitress interrupted the old dwarf. However, a mission of this sort was an acceptible reason. Children in danger were more important than fireside tales. He stood up as three other adventurers to be were heading out. "If you ladies give me half a moment to gather my gear, I will join you."

The tall half elf squeezed through the crowded room to get to the stairs. He nearly sprinted up the steps and through the hall to get to his room. His weapons and other traveling gear were safely tucked about the sparsely decorated room. For good measure, he threw a heavy fur lined cloak over his shoulders. Peter strapped he large weapons to his back and tucked various items into his tool belt. With that, he returned to the common room. He shot a friendly grin at Old Thor as she walked around the clutter of people. "I plan to hear the rest of the story when I return," he said.

Peter looked at the two companions that still remained in the room. Humans he had worked with before. But halflings were new to him. Sure, he had seen them around, and sometimes interacted with. But he had never traveleld with one in his party before. "Peter Grey, at your service. I am ready to travel, whenever you ladies are." He gave his new companions a polite bow. "Have you had any other takers?"

[Keylaleigh]

Jinks looked up at the mentioning of a rescue mission. Maybe, she thought, she should come along. She almost changed into a humanoid at that point, but she remembered the most important piece of advice that her parents had given her.

"Now Jinks, when traveling outside the house, make sure you keep your feline and your humanoid form seperate. It makes traveling much easier. If you have to change, make sure you do it away from any prying eyes, and nobody should suspect that you were the sweet little kitten they saw a moment ago. If you let people know that you have a two-legged identity, they may start asking you to pay for your food, rooms, and any other things that come free to cats."

After pondering for a moment, Jinks figured out exactly how to pull this off. She slinked down to the cellar and shifted form. Walking over to the corner, she grabbed her sack and slung it over her shoulder. She figured she could actually help if she was in a form with opposable thumbs as opposed to her feline guise.

She slipped out of the Wyvern's Sting without being noticed. The benefits of being smaller, y'know. Slowly, Jinks made her way out the door. Upon exiting, she then entered again. Had to look like that she hadn't already been inside already.

"I got word of some missing children as I was walking into town. Is this where the search party is meeting?"

[Atraea]

The moment she had heard "children" and "missing," Halyth had gone upstairs to change. She was a bit slow in getting her things together, for by the time she was outside, there were a few others already standing out there. She smiled under her hood, and caught up to them just in time to hear the man introduce himself.

"It is good to see the people of this village rallying together for the children. I was a bit worried at first, for I thought I might be the only one. I am glad to have been proven wrong." She slowed down to catch her breath, and continued. "I am Halyth Daechel. I--oh!" She stopped abruptly, hearing another voice from below her, and it wasn't the halfling. She lowered her gaze to what appeared to be a young, green-eyed girl with a messy head of hair near as white as the snow she was standing in.

"Hm? Oh, yes, I believe it is. Who might you be?"

[killerkitty]

((heehee, Aena can do rash things sometimes. especially when she hasn't been in a forest for a while and gets tense and nervous. I should add that to her profile))

Aena stopped dead when she saw the wolf. My ears must be blocked with snow or something, I did not hear you come, she thought, reaching out her mind to the animal. It did not seem to want to harm her, so she doubted it was the one who was responsible for all this.

She looked back when she saw the others coming. It was good to see that several people had taken interest in this, but she hoped they wouldn't delay her in any way.

Then her head snapped towards the girl with the green eyes. Sending out your thoughts to something leaves your mind vulnerable to attacks, but also it spreads out slightly to feel all other minds near. There was something not quite human about this girl. She forced her curiosity back and tried not to reach out her mind to her to probe more into this. She turned back to the wolf. She gently reached out a hand to the wolf, allowing it to waver in the air for it to smell, to give it more confidence.

[Maeve]

"I'm Briel Mirdnt, please to meet you all," Briel said as a few people gathered around her. She bowed slightly, before pursuing. "And yes, this is where the search party is meeting" she said, looking at the strange humanoid that had just showed up. "I'm taking it you all want to help, so let's get moving before the storm starts once more." They would have enough time to share their names and stories later. For now she just wanted to get going and find traces before the snow covered them.

With that, the woman exited the inn and started walking along the road and toward the eastern gate. The ruins were normally around an hour walk from the village, but with the weather, the druid knew it would take longer. Fortunately though, the thick pines and firs that composed most of the forest would probably have caught most of the snow, so there was a chance they would find some traces. Briel lifted a hand as the group approached the gate, directed to the elf and wolf standing there. "Hey there, glad you waited for us," she said to the woman, a smile on her face. "And sorry to have left you outside," she added for the wolf.

Mercane lifted her head from the hand she was sniffing. Apparently the elf woman could be trusted, but the wolf had a habit of keeping a watchful eye on anyone. She made a small sound when her master spoke, something that could be taken as a happy greeting. Coming from a large grey wolf though, it could be slightly frightening.

"Everybody, this is Mercane, my wolf companion," Briel said, looking at the group and then at the wolf. She usually introduced her furry friend as quickly as possible, to prevent people from trying to hurt the wolf. She then turned her attention back to the group. "From what Kyle, the villager you've seen earlier, has said, his kids often play in the ruins. I'm guessing that if they were there when the storm started, they probably stayed there and tried to find a refuge somewhere." That doesn't explain the wounded guards, but meh, she thought with a shrug.

"I'd have suggested we follow the main road, but it's cover in snow and will just slow us down. I can however lead us through the woods. It will be a bit more hazardous, but we should be fine. Just wait a sec," she said, reaching into her bag and grabbing a torch. She then casted a quick spell, her hand starting to glow from a orange light, and she lighted the torch with it. "Now, we'll see better that way. Anyone else has a torch with them?" she asked. In the darkness of the wood, some more light would be welcome.

[Keylaleigh]

The Tibbit looked up at the Elf-like woman. "I'm Jinks." She smiled. They didn't need to know any more than that. She noticed that a few people seemed a tad suspicious at her sudden appearance. Did she rush her reveal? Should she have waited a little longer to come in and help? She had never done anything like this before. In fact, this was her first time taking humanoid form in front of others in a long time.

Jinks thought for a moment. I think I have a spell that may be useful in a situation like this... Then she nodded. Concentrating on the power that was passed down from Tibbit to Tibbit, she snapped her fingers. After a few seconds, ghostly orbs of light appeared around her. "Will this be good?" She grinned. She wasn't the best spellcaster, but she managed to get a handle on a light spell for easier traveling.

[KoyiTar]

Rell looked at the odd looking girl she could easily pass for a hafling but Rell knew she wasn't there was something different about her. "Hmm there was probably a time I could have made a guess as to what your race was dear Jinks but there's not enough time now." She said heading after Briel in order to catch up. "Oh names Nurell Hodgekins by the way. Most just call me Rell for short though." She said quickly taking note of the wolf and what Briel had said about it.

"I had a torch but it looks like Jinks little trick proves more effective than a lost torch." She said, now Rell definitely knew this girl couldn't be a hafling there were of course haflings mage's and priests but she had never seen a light spell quite like that from any of them. She looked off into the woods. "I hope those kids are alright its to cold out for them to be out here this long." She said pulling her fur lined cloak a little closer, she had almost forgot the stupid thing if it hadn't been for someone tossing it at her she would have likely already froze.

[Atraea]

She jumped slightly at the sight of the wolf. Despite being in forest areas for many of her kills, she was still very much a city girl, and wasn't too keen on wildlife of any kind. "M-Mercane? Ah...all right. Uhm...hello." She waved awkwardly and shifted behind Jinks. As they approached the ruins, she heard Briel mention something about going through the woods.

As everyone started lighting up in various ways, Halyth mentally kicked herself for not learning a few rudimentary spells when she had the chance.

Oh well. It is too late now.

The darkness wouldn't be too much of an issue though, even if she was just a half-elf, elven vision of any kind was conducive to darker areas. "I haven't a torch, but I should be fine."

[Maeve]

"Just try not to stumble on some roots," Briel said with a smile. "And that will be great," she added for Jinks. I should learn one of those light spells one day, the druid thought, looking at the small orbs. She then shrugged and returned to the matter. The forest would be an easy road, or at least she thought so. Most of the plants who would usually slow their progression had died for winter, and the trees... well, they were easy enough to see. It let some roots and branches, and maybe small animal burrows, but they should be fine.

"Let's go then," the druid said to the group. She made sure her furcoat was right before she started to walk into the forest, Mercane following by her side. The first few trees were far enough from each other, making it easy to see where one was going, but as they moved farther into the woods, the trees started getting closer and closer. The druid didn't mind it however, she was used to the region anyway. A small layer of snow was covering the sound of their steps as they moved forward. "You can keep talking if you want," she said after a few steps. "If the kids hear us, maybe they will try to make a sign or something." She paused, before adding: "And whatever attacked the guards, if they hear a good amount of noises coming, they will probably run away."

Or jump on us, she added for herself. In the back of her mind, she was pretty sure the poor guys had stumbled on some animals and startled them. It wouldn't be the first time. Although, the guards were supposed to be good enough to kill simple animals... The druid woman shrugged and concentrated on leading the way among the pines and firs.