She bolted out the door without another word and on two feet. Kiko did not have near the strength of limbs the wolf could call, nevertheless she remained in human form during the race through town. She caused quite the commotion, too. The prosperity seemed to have installed a sense of complacency in the citizens of Wistvale. Either that, or they had forgotten how enjoyable stretching one's legs could be with the advent of hired carriages, buggies, and the like.
Laughed aloud as he bolted for the door, then wheeled about at the last moment. He called to the barkeep.
Jim! Marlena! New in town, her rooms on me!
He laughed again as he winked and then sprinted from the doorway and onto the cobblestone road, no longer tearing up the dirt that used to be the street. He leaped, carefree, over whatever stack of nonsense crowded the corner of the building and made a beeline for his Chosen.
Kiko used every shortcut she knew and some she did not. And, as mentioned earlier she had great instincts. The town had grown just as wildly as the population with new homes thrown up in a very haphazard way. Still, she managed to avoid every dead end and was within site of the gate when she heard footsteps behind her.
She did not dare look back, though, not with the crowd of late evening people littering the main thoroughfare. She did, however, shoot between a pair of men trying to control a team of horses. He probably wouldn't follow her but it was worth a shot if they spooked as she went past.
Eternity
“Put some clothes on, you weird, yellow-eyed, table-dancing, werewolf-training, cryptic, stare-me-right-in-the-eyes-and-don't-even-blink wench.”
They still brought murmurs and strange looks wherever they went, the escort of Veronica Howle. Clad in silver and black caped, they looked almost like the royalty they guarded. Three of them, the men, wore swords at their sides, the black sheath engraved in gold with the sigil of the wolf. The only woman of the group, didn't seem to have a weapon.
"So how do you find this place, Rodan?" asked the woman in silver armor.
"Well enough I suppose, lady Veronica seems fond of it." replied a rather serious looking soldier with short brown hair. There was an air about him that suggested he led the other three fellows.
The Howle escort brushed through the doors of the tavern, a place Margrett assured to Serenity hadn't changed all that much. The silver clad house guards stood at the entrance a moment to evaluate it, then with a quick smirk from Rodan, he and his black caped companions proceeded to the bar.
"Seems homely enough, not at all that different from the pubs back home." said a young man with black hair hanging down the back of his neck. He had a playful grin about him and curious eyes as he explored every corned of the room.
"You're from the butt-crack of Highever, Glen, of course you'd like the swill they serve here." said 4th of the guard, a man with tied black hair and a restless smile. He didn't seem to care to openly joke about the Wistvale tavern.
"Didn't you run down the same crack, Richard?" replied Glen.
"Aye, but I was so pretty the ladies had to invite me up to where they served the good ale."
They all sat at the bar, Rodan and the woman not looking amused by their two gleeful companions.
"Settle down you fools, don't embarrass us while we're here." said the lady warrior.
"Oh who's going to care, Donna? We're out in the middle of nowhere, I doubt anyone even knows of Highever to report our misconduct." Richard said with a chuckle.
"You forget that lady Veronica lived here for a time."
"You worry to much! Here," Richard said raising his hand, "How about some drinks on me, eh?"
As Richard ordered got the bartender's attention to order drinks, Donna looked to Rodan,
"You seem troubled, Commander." she said almost in a whisper.
"I don't like the winds here, Banshee," he remained silent for a moment, "I can't explain it, but I can feel something sinister about this place."
"Is it any different from back home?" Donna asked slightly bemused.
"In Highever, it is easy to see your enemy across the table. I know my city and it's people. I don't know this town."
Donna placed a hand on the Commander's shoulder, "Our lady is in good hands, she said so herself. Did you see how quickly she trusted the Captain? Besides, Commander, we all know who the strongest Howle is."
He chuckled, "You never seen Victor Howle raise his hand."
Last Edit: Jun 10, 2012 1:27:29 GMT -5 by Serenity
Dominic [M:123:1420:][D3v:http://rpgmenagerie.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=cs&thread=382&page=1#14144][b]Let me tell you a story...[/b][0:No encore today][1:You have my attention]
The bard put his hands up to forestall all the questions from the little dear. "Whoa whoa Nikole...one thing at a time..." he leans in a little conspiratorially.
"The unicorns only come when called by someone pure. So I had to stay really really still. They told me it was pure white, and glowed. It came close to me, and it was a girl unicorn they said. It lowered its head and they told me to reach out slowly and then I felt the horn. It was warm and spiralling and it felt like a little bit of sunshine moved into me."
He looks wistful and lets out a little chuckle at the memory. "They said it was good luck, that it would help me be all I could be." He shrugs, grinning "Or it could've been an old nag with a plaster horn stuck on it."
Love, like Hope, has too few letters for a word so powerful.
The soldiers of Wistvale noticed the Highever guards, pointing to them and joking among themselves. There was a few hushed words exchanged, some jostling of elbows, until one of them was chosen by the others and stepped away from his fellows. It was the one in the hat, the senior of the group. He'd had a bit to drink, but it hadn't seemed to effect him very much as he approached the big city folk, leaning on the bar and giving a lazy salute.
Afternoon, folks. You all, uh...you're from Highever, right? Big magic city up north?
Nikole listened, wide-eyed, and then sat back down in the chair as if exhausted by listening to hard.
Wow. A unicorn... As she pondered that, Chaz gave a small, bittersweet laugh.
Dom, I...did want to ask you something. It's good that you're back, but...I'd like to ask you to take another trip. With me. Nikole looked at Chaz suspiciously, and he tussled her hair.
Go see if Jim has any cookies, hun. I want to have a grownup talk with uncle Dominic. She nodded, but didn't stop watching them out of the corner of her eye. After she left, Chaz's voice dropped to a nearly pained half-whisper.
Things are clearing up...you know, up there in the Overwood. Anri still can't come back, the politics are too sticky. But from what she's told the others, her daughter has been studying abroad, living among other cultures. Not a, uh...popular thing in Drow culture, but it's a cover story. Thing is...she's about to return home. He paused, trying to think of what to say.
I'm going to be heading there to let Nikole live with her mother for...some time. I would really like if you could come with me.
A good scientist is a person with original ideas. A good engineer is a person who makes a design that works with as few original ideas as possible.
Orp Boon [M:83:616:][D3v:http://www.rpgmenagerie.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=cs&thread=406&page=1#374]"Is that family heirloom for sale?"[0:Gone fishing.][1:The store is open!]
Orp Boon could smell the lingering effects of riches on the clothes of the Howle escort. He opened the tavern door and tilted his head back. His nostrils flared as he took a deep breath and zeroed in on the escort. He walked towards them with a hand outstretched.
"Greetings from Wistvale! Name's Orp Boon. If you need anything I'm a man who can get most anything for most anyone. You all seem weighed down by rubles- I mean troubles! How can I help you?"
"Breathnaìonn mhaith a fhios acu maidir linn tar èis an tasoil!" said Richard in a sudden new accent. (Looks like they know about us after all!)
"Wistvale cinte go bhfuil ag bogadh suas ar fud an domhain, anois gur fèidir è a thabhairt ar lèarscàil." replied Glen, both the men laughing among themselves. (Wistvale sure is moving up in the world now that it can afford a map.)
Donna seemed unimpressed by the foreign word exchange and rolled her eyes before turning in her seat to give a quaint smile to the sentinel.
Rodan did more and stood up, a rather imposing figure due to his height and broad shoulders.
"That's right, guardsmen, and we appreciate being able to move freely in Wistvale unannounced. Our lady Howle remembers you all fondly."
He spoke with courtesy and respect, with a deep tone of voice that was near impartial to emotional stress.
Donna turned in her seat once more to face the cyclops, a little taken back by his sudden appearance and his forwardness. Collecting herself quickly, she reached out for his hand and shook it,
"Thank you, sir, but we're just waiting for our lady. She is exploring with the Captain."
The Howle guard gave a curt a smile to Orp, with light brown eyes curiously looking back at his one. Her golden brown hair flowed down and draped haphazardly across her black cape. She seemed to be the nicest in the bunch.
"Ba chòir duit ceist a chur air amach ar dhàta!" said Richard suddenly. (You should ask him out on a date!)
"And you should speak the common tongue, it's rude to our hosts to speak in that garbage language." she said turning to the two jokers.
Dominic [M:123:1420:][D3v:http://rpgmenagerie.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=cs&thread=382&page=1#14144][b]Let me tell you a story...[/b][0:No encore today][1:You have my attention]
Dominic was quiet for a time, mulling it over. A tiny bit of him was hesitant, but there was a certain measure of responsibility that had come to him on his wanderings, when he'd accepted a blue cowl. To use all the senses to keep danger at bay, to be watchful and mindful and use ones skills for the good of many. Well it seemed an easy task at the time he said yes, as that was pretty much what he'd been doing for most of his adult life.
But it wasn't just his association with them. If whatever had gone down had cost Chaz his arm, there was little doubt he could do with help. This was his friend, there was only one response.
"When do we leave?"
Poor Chaz. Losing the arm was probably less painful than this.
Love, like Hope, has too few letters for a word so powerful.
Marlena watched the tavern from her seat, wine in hand and bright green eyes scanning those that are enjoying the relaxed atmosphere. She shudders as she notices the number of guards has increased, her upper lip lifting in a sneer for a moment before she turns her head and ignores them, choosing instead to watch the blind man and those he was seated with, the Drow child amusing her to the point of putting a smile back on her lips.
Thanks, Dom. I...really appreciate that. His gaze turned to Nikole as she visited with some of the residents of Wistvale, munching a cookie and chattering away to them.
A few weeks from now. We're taking a carriage most of the way there, then walking to my old town, Fennen. It's the only real way into Overwood. From there we'll get ahold of Anri's people, then head in. He was silent for a while, rubbing his missing arm.
I don't know when I'll see her again after that.
A good scientist is a person with original ideas. A good engineer is a person who makes a design that works with as few original ideas as possible.
Dominic [M:123:1420:][D3v:http://rpgmenagerie.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=cs&thread=382&page=1#14144][b]Let me tell you a story...[/b][0:No encore today][1:You have my attention]
A comforting hand was plced on the smith's shoulder. Loss was never something easy and although he'd only been there for the first few months of the baby being in town he knew he'd probably miss the tyke too.
"Well, we'll just have to make the best of the time we have left with her. And I'm sure a time will come when you'll get to see her again. She'll never forget her Dad." he consoled, voice smooth and calm. Then his tone brightened.
"We should throw her a going away party, something a little special. I've got a few coins saved up. Music and dancing. It'd be fun." He lowered his voice again "And hey, you ARE going to get to see your lady love once again. Maybe you should take a couple'o days and make a few attempts at giving her a little brother or sister." The grin he gave Chaz was positively lupine in its lechery.
Last Edit: Jun 11, 2012 13:01:00 GMT -5 by Dominic
Love, like Hope, has too few letters for a word so powerful.