First Contact: Finally, a Lead

[Anonymous]

(Sorry it's taken me so long to come back to this...No real excuses, since most of the problems I've had were all at one time or another, and I've had free time out the...Well, you get the idea...So, anyway, sorry for the delay, here I go!)


I'm not sure how long I was walking, but I had apparently left Zarathos behind. He was probably just finishing his monologue and realizing that I had already left by that time. I had picked up a large, sturdy tree branch, and I currently used it as a walking stick. As I came to an open area in the path, I heard a disturbance directly in front of me. If it was a monster, I was nearly helpless; with my only defense being two broken swords and perhaps the walking stick, I would be at the beast's mercy. Still, as the shrubs at the other end of the clearing shuddered, I shouted an ultimatum, ready to take on the enemy if necessary.

"Who's there...? Show yourself!"

To my surprise and overwhelming relief, the thing creating the noise was another person, a couple inches taller than me and with much shorter hair. He bent back a branch of the bush as he emerged, cutting himself on it. He tore off a piece of his sleeve and wrapped it around the wound, tying it tightly to add pressure to help stop the bleeding. When finished with this, he looked back up at me and smiled.

"Don't suppose ya know how ta get ta the mainland through this valley, do ya?"

I shook my head in dissent.

"Sorry, but I'm just as lost as you are."

The other man chuckled. I was confused as to what was so funny, but I soon forgot it. I was too depressed. I let out a sigh, which caught the newcomer's attention.

"Say, what's up with you, huh? What's with the poutin' an' such?"

"I think you'd be in a bad mood, too..."

I removed the broken hafts of my swords from my satchel for him to see.

"...if you broke your only ties to your family."

He took a moment to carefully study the swords. Then he smiled at me, at which I became curious.

"I bet you wanna repair these ASAP, right?"

"Yes, but...Do you have something in mind?"

"Do I? Oh, you'll see...Heh heh heh..."


(OOC: Zarathos needs to catch up with them now, or I won't be able to continue. We're going to go into Reajh soon, for a change of scenery, and to continue the plot. Bear with me; I know the people are mage-haters, but that WILL be used to our advantage. Just catch up with me for now; all will be revealed in due time.)

[Anonymous]

Zarathos burst through the bushes, the overweight mage huffing and puffing.

"What's wrong with you, hmm? You're on a quest! You can't just going running off without me to protect you!"

the false wizard eyed the newcomer suspiciously- "And who's this, hmm? Trying to replace me are you? Do you not know the consequences of angering a mage?"

Zarathos finally caught his breath and stood up straight. With his fiery orange robes and hat he almost made an imposing figure.

"Explain yourself warrior!"

((OOC: Ugh, sorry. Bad post.))

[Anonymous]

I stood back as Zarathos confronted the stranger. The newcomer chuckled and gave him a smile.

"Explain m'self, eh? What about you, traipsin' around in bright colors like them? Where's the rest o' the circus, eh?"

He got a chuckle out of this, but I didn't really enjoy making fun of others, so I stayed silent.

"Ah, nevermind...I'm jes' lookin' fer some adventure, tha's all. Come from Reajh, I do...Nearest civilized town hereabouts. I can take ya there, but I'll warn ya, the people don' like mages...They'll have ya publicly executed if ya run aroun' in robes like tha'. I'll sneak ya in an' get ya some proper threads, an' then we'll see about fixin' yon hoodlum's swords."

I took offense at being called a "hoodlum", but I didn't want to start any more trouble today. The destruction of my family ties was too intense for me; I had to sit down and take things in for now, so I simply nodded assent and started wakling in the general direction of Reajh, the city he had been talking about.

"The young man's got the righ' idea; there be monsters about. We'd best be goin' quick; he won't las' long with only two broken blades...By the way, name's Faren. Who're you, then?"

[Anonymous]

"The circus? Hmph, I left them a long time ago. The great mage Zarathos has no need of employers who don't know how to properly use his talents."

At the mention of Reajh, Zarathos became visibly upset, quickly becoming pale and glancing about himself.

"Reajh?" the mage was whispering at this point. "W-why would we want to go there? I didn't think we were so close... no, our quest cannot possibly lead there!"

Suddenly, sheer ego won through, and Zarathos straightened himself up. "I'll have you know that a mage wears whatever he likes. Simple clothing is for simple people, I will not belittle myself! Especially not to go... There..."

[Anonymous]

"Well, unfortunately fer you, this be the only town fer about three days' walkin' distance...If ya want food an' a place ta sleep, ya got no say in it, really...Now, let's get goin', don't wanna be out 'ere when it's dark..."

I heard these words as they echoed off the mountains on either side of me. I also caught what Zarathos had said about Reajh, but I didn't care. All I wanted was someplace to sit down and think things through. Without those two swords, I had no real direction; I had to find some purpose to keep moving on, and Reajh was the nearest safe place to do that.

Faren came bounding down the hill after me, a bit winded but otherwise fine.

"Now then, young mage...Let's be seein' yer swords there..."

I stopped walking and removed Chyaka's hilt from my satchel, handing it to Faren. He studied it carefully, giving a "Hmm" every so often in a curious manner. Finally, he straightened up and held up the hilt.

"A fine blade, it was...That much I can see from the craftsmanship of the hilt...But I know a good man what'll fix up yer pretty little knives in no time flat! Jes' come wi' me ta Reajh, an' I'll talk 'im into it...'e owes me one."

After another hour of walking, we finally came within sight of Reajh. It was a fine loking city, and I was eager to get some food in my stomach.

"Now, jes one second there, young man...I gotta warn ya about Reajh...People there're gonna be a tad bit suspicious of ya, seein' as yer wi' me. Don't give 'em any reason AT ALL ta believe that yer a spellcaster, or they'll lock ya up an' have ya hangin' from the gallows by midday tomorrow. An' another thing: NO MAGIC. You do that, an' someone's bound ta notice, get me? Ya gotta stay in cognito fer now, till we clear ya at the Office. Once we get in, we're goin' straight ta my place, an' I'll bring up some food. Then we'll see about gettin' them swords fixed up..."

He glanced over at Zarathos and then whispered, "(An' try ta get yer friend outta them robes an' inta proper clothes...It'll draw attention, which we don' need.)"

Finally, we started off toward Reajh, prepared for the worst.

(OOC: If you want, you can add a little something in here, but this will basically be the end of the thread here.)