A trap neatly laied.

As we, made our way up to the backside of the building it became apparent that my slipknot way in would not suffice. Too small. So I did what I could do, and we all went inside via the previously locked window. Room by room we walked, I opened a few unobliging doors, and a guard or three was no more. All not so much of a challenge. But the interior was amazing for such a people. The front room was open, and dark with two very large doors. Then chamber to chamber, they all had, and still may have a serene meditative feel to them. That is if the pool of blood washed off. Then came a room that required a bit more thought. Our prerogative, lying at the back of the room on a pedestal. I knew from the moment I stepped inside the doorway, that this room was trapped. Nothing may come to my hands so easily, nothing ever has. Non the less. Inside I went. As I was volunteered. Down came the bars. A literal maze of bars. Almost challenging. Out a door concealed, as it was on the same wall we entered stepped a lion. A very large, growling, and presumably hungry, lion. Moving quickly if I could get to the pedestal before he could get to me...well...there would still be the fact of leaving now, with out becoming a delicacy. Halfway through I knew it was futile, this lion would reach me first, for it knows its way through, and I was still learning. I was also learning what it felt like to become a late evening morsel."Do something your a Druid!" Jax's voice hissed out, somewhere behind me through the myriad of bars.Yes, please do something, I can begin to count the individual furs on this feline's mane.Alloriah began chanting, and suddenly the lion stopped and turned his attention to her, fully. I dared not move. Not until there was some reassurance. What ever was happening seemed to be important, and the whole of us seemed to hold our breaths.Then the lion turned and began picking its way toward Alloriah, and the rest of my party. Darren's muscles tensed, and Jax slowly began moving his hand to a hidden pocket in his robe. 

"Its alright," she finally said, "He's going to help us. I promised to help he get home to the mountains."
Jax shot her a glare, and Darren relaxed his just a bit. I nodded to her, glad she was going to help this poor caged creature. Then turned toward my goal. Another few moments of twisting and turning, and I was there. I took just a moment and looked at our treasure. A wand, long and thin, made of dark material. There was something wrongly familiar about it. I reached out for it, being the ever cautious one that I am, I knew something would happen. Happen it did.The treasure left the pedestal and immediately the whole wall behind it fell into the floor. On the other side stood ten guardsmen on either side of a clergy man.A few mumbles curses and a low growl came from behind me. I can assure you that my own thought echoed the vocal sentiments expressed by my companions. My stomach dropped as I clutched the wand more tightly, and backed up a step.A malicious smile came over the Cleric's face. "You have something that belongs to me."I quickly put the wand behind my back, futile as that motion was. He held out a hand."I'll give you one chance to give it back.""Or else?" I asked trying to stall for a moment to think."Or else you will all die."I brought the wand forth, looking at it. Where had I seen this before...where...ahhh..."I think not." I said looking him full in the eyes. Taking a deep breath I emulated as best I could recall what I had once seen a Elder do so many years ago.Black energy swirled forth, by the shocked expression that overtook the Cleric's face, blood draining from it, turning a stark white colour. I only assume I had remembered correctly. Quickly, so quickly, the guards, all ten of them were down, not moving. Only the Cleric remained standing, wobbly on his legs. Though, he seemed to recover quickly, hand moving under his robe and clutching a amulet."How dare you!", he hissed "I shall give you one last chance..."Once again I attempted to use the wand. This time it did not go so pleasantly. The blackness whorled again, around me, causing me to stagger as I fought to retain my life. As the darkness cleared and the world stopped spinning, I saw the Cleric grinning coldly, holding out his hand a second time. Backing up another step, I tossed the wand through a few sets of bars, as he reached for it. I was slapped to the floor.Looking up I saw Darren, with Jax following at a goodly distance, making their way through the maze of bars toward the wand, before blackness overtook me.The next thing I remember was a cooling sensation, and looking up into the Cleric's eyes. Angry, furious eyes, with something behind that. A hand yet again gripping the amulet around his neck. He had healed me, just a little, but heal me he did."Give me the wand or she dies!""Your bluffing, your a member of the clergy!", Lim's voice called back. Ever the diplomat."And you, are all thieves!", he hauled me to my feet, none too gently, "We do not take lightly to thieves stealing from us. Our inquisitors will have a glorious time questioning her, then she will be tried, and executed."They exchanged looks."Give us a moment to decide, will you?""By all means, I'd hate to see you make a rash decision." His grip on me tightened. Then he took a step back and pressed a stone that would have been behind the wall if it were still in place.The bars began rising back into the ceiling. As they finished resetting, Jax, of all people came forward, wand in hand. And silently tossed it across the room to the clergy man. The Cleric caught it, easily in one hand, slipping it behind his back into a belt. A look of triumph light up his face."I see you are wise in this decision." He walked back a step hauling me along.And immediately slipped, falling flat on his back.Lim, of all people had cast a spell. And had made grease appear behind the Cleric. Knocking him unconscious, of all twists of luck! Quickly I took back the wand, and seriously considered taking his amulet. He is already angry, and when he wakes up he will be angrier still, it would be foolish for me to increase that anger. This time. A pity, it would have made a lovely memento.Tossing the wand back to Jax, I began checking the fallen cleric."Get out of here, I'm right behind you!" I called.By the movement of feet I could tell that they were. Finding not too much of use on the Cleric I stood up and surveyed the fallen guards. Working quickly, I took a token from each of their uniforms. Ten down, felled in a single use of this wand. The implications of such a magical item are numerous as the stars. Nevertheless, it still remains that I leave this place. Alive.Backtracking and catching up to Lim, Jax, and Darren, who gave me a huge grin, I found that Alloriah and the lion was ahead of us, securing our passage out.Upon reaching the main entrance hall, we saw blood, across the floor, and on the large double door. One of which were hanging open. Outside guards were rushing around screaming about a large cat. Taking advantage of the distraction we made our way back to the back garden wall. Jax and Lim went over first, then Alloriah who had rejoined us. She called for someone to catch her...that didn't happen. Then Darren, and I. Up Darren went. It was raining now, guards had spotted us, and for the life of me I could not get a handhold. The guards were closing in. 

"Ann? Ann? Hurry up, the guards are coming!"Lim sounded concerned. 

"I'm well aware of that. I can't get a grip." 

By this time the guards had made it withing ten feet of me, and my weapon was drawn, back to the wall. Four guards, one me. I do not enjoy these odds. Shouts from Lim and Darren came from the other side of the wall. What they said, I couldn't recall, for my attention was focused, deftly. Blades barred, dancing, cutting, shouting, and chanting Battle isn't one nice hit, then someone else takes a turn, and so on. Its a dance, a deadly dance where your only chance is to gain the upper hand. At the moment the upper hand was in there favor. Battle is messy, bloody, dirty, and often very unfair. At least one of them went down from my blade...before...before the mass of wounds I received... 

Blackness, all that was known to me is blackness...

Into the Cidadel

"So where's the money?" 

That was the statement that greeted my back as I was walking out of this shamble of a village. From no other than Lim's lips.

I should have expected as much.

"What money?" I asked over my shoulder, not bothering to turn around.

"The money you stole from the men WE killed. That's party treasure, and you have to share it."

That statement almost, and I mean almost made me stop. I'll be damned by Kolos before I have to do anything for a stinking human. I do things because I choose to. Party treasure? Well, of course I have heaps and heaps of gold and silver on my person...not likely. Well not heaps. That would make too much noise. How does he expect we are going to eat once inside, and compensate those people who need a bit of coin to loosen their tongues? Of course personal greed is showing through, what else should have I expected?

"I don't know what money your talking about Lim, all I have is one small sack of coins, mostly coppers. Now be quiet. We are getting close. All of you be as quiet as you can be. I'll get us in."

Nicely diverted, if I do say so myself.

I did hear him grumble. "I saw her take something from them, I know what it was." And Alloriah's "She said be quiet, we'll deal with money later. Do you want to get us caught?"

Whispering for them to continue on, I slipped into the shadows, and hurried forward to check the entrance. And then waited for them to catch up. I showed them how to enter, and for Darren and Lim it was a bit of a tight squeeze. But enter we did, and then we began a rather uneventful track underground. This took some time, and the air is old and damp in there, but reach the end of our dark damp trek we did. I told them to follow me two at a time.

Inside we slipped, and through a few streets before I lead them to a inn, to get rooms of course, and dinner. In a private room. While waiting for dinner we discussed our 'plan' which consisted of them babbling, and me hoping to receive our food quickly. When it was delivered, our map was too, lovely, two for the price of one. Looking over the map of the city, I decided our route. And upon them finishing the meal we left to it.

I noticed more guard patrols then when last I was here a few weeks ago. Not much I could do about that, so I tried to avoid them as much as possible. We were stopped by one set of guards, and questioned to why we were out so late. It was then that I found out that human women were to be silent. That particular lesson left a stinging hand mark on my face, and me forcing myself to look at the ground in apparent humiliation. While really I was trying not to let my anger show. If we were in a different place, he would have a blade mark on his matching cheek.

Eventually, after taking three left turns, our bearings were set, and the mark's abode was being watched by us. Even outside the style of this place was different. Guards at the front gate, cliche. Guard towers set up along the wall surroundings the building, expected. I slipped into the back garden to find a less conspicuous entrance for six uninvited guests. I found a slipknot place for myself to enter. Perhaps this will suffice? Backtracking to our group and sharing my information, made it painfully obvious to myself, that I know little about thinking for a larger force. I was shamed privately. 

I work alone. Let me rephrase, I worked alone, now I have to think on a larger level, a over six foot tall, and not so compact level. This may take some getting use to.

The beginning of a long road.

A meeting with Master Crow, a man of no small respect in my eyes. I learned I was to work with four people. Two of which I have mentioned before, as well as two others. Brothers. One is a very impressive, very large man of no small appeal to my eyes, for a human. Darren. A fighter with a easy smile, happy twinkle in his blue eyes, and a very caring heart. The other is a smaller, thinner, and less cheerful. There is something I respect about him, but he is dark. Very dark. He is a magic user, this man is known to me as Jax.

After a, lets just say interesting start in our home base. Resulting in myself being just a bit annoyed that I was harnessed with four loud, obtrusive, humans...partners rather.

We left in the middle of the night, going toward the Citadel. Alloriah made it known to us that her home village, was close at hand and she wished to see how the people left outside fared. Upon closing in I alerted the group that all was not well. There was one, only one, house with a light. And a group of plunderers, attacking.

We made short work of them, leaving one captured, the rest dead. My pocket of coin considerably heavier as well. Lim and Alloriah were having issues of how to deal out justice to the one left alive. I was fondling my dagger considering how quickly I could act before they would react. When Jax killed the man, swiftly, I smiled, but quickly hid it.

Taking cover of the argument that was ensuing, I relieved the newly dead body of its coin, pocketing it. Then I went over to the captain of the town guard that was defending the people left in this shamble of a town.

Speaking to him quietly, I gave him four out of the five bags of coins that I had recently acquired, and directions to safety. Just as quietly and quickly before the argument was over between the rest of my party, I moved away into the shadow of the doorway, and asked when we were going to leave.

I would like to consider myself paintent...

I truly would, but my two new companions are making this difficult. I digress. I shall begin where all stories should begin. At the beginning.

There are two factions I am aware of in these lands. The Citadel, consisting of the clergy who are rumored to have taken over control of the Empress. The Empress is the ruler of the human lands, a human ruler who outlives the normal span of a human life. In recent years, the Clergy have taken over and are now said to rule using the Empress as a puppet for their wants. The Clergy seem to only care for their well being and the people inside the Citadel walls.

The other faction is the Rebels. These are the people I have chosen to side with. At least for now. As I understand it, the Rebels want the power of the clergy to diminish and the Empress to come back into power. They look out for the good of the people inside and outside of the Citadel.

Of course I came into these lands not knowing what was happening. The attack by these shadow creatures have been given a title. The Taint.

The Taint is a disease, killing men with a single touch, killing whole villages in minutes, and how quickly it could kill the people of a sizable city...that may take mere hours. This Taint, this is what was being fought at the keep when my people were landing, this is what killed so many so quickly. This Taint is why now the Clergy have shut their gates to the rest of the lands. Trapping those withing, as well as those without.

Survival? Mayhaps the Clergy is trying to save themselves. I know for a fact that there has been a study on a disease in this land that the Clergy is conducting. I know now, better, what exactly this disease is. The Taint.

I also know that I'm not one to be kept locked out of a place that I was told to get in.

Differances...

One would think, after being around so many humans, one would become accustomed to them. One would think, after being around so many humans, one would begin to understand them. One would think...well...one would... 

That one would be me. But, as I have come to learn what one would think about humans, is not entirely accurate all the time, if ever. After living a rather comfortable life nestled in the woods of my homeland, that I do love so much, I have found my living currant companions and this new land, shall we say, interesting. Not interesting like discovering a new use for evening primrose oil. But interesting like watching a pride of cats play with a mouse. 

I left my homeland of one hundred and twenty eight years for reasons of my own. Traveling on airship to the human lands and expecting a calm, quiet, and unobtrusive arrival. That's what I paid for after all. Lets just say, I got much more than I paid for, and not necessarily in a good way. 

The airship was attacked while it was landing. By something I could never have imagined. It looked like a shadow, a shadow with a large body and tendril things. After taking in that the the ship was not going to become air born again and watching the crew members fighting to no avail, I jumped. From twenty five feet in the air, I jumped, I was not going to let the shadow thing trap me and kill me, as I just recently witnessed. I'd rather die on my own terms. 

Upon reaching land and hurriedly scrambling up, I surveyed the scene.

Men everywhere were fighting more black shadow things, I was particularly close to one man fighting with a dagger, he kept looking to the west every few swings. Thinking there was aid coming I too, looked to the west, and saw nothing but forest and a slowly setting sun. I stayed back from the fighting, I am not ashamed to say, and I watched as this man was touched by the shadow thing and instantly felled. His dagger dropped onto the hard earth. Upon his falling a few more men came and attacked the creature. Making sure my hood was pulled up I took a deep breath and ran into battle, swooping down and picking up the dagger. The sun had set, and the dagger seemed to have a small inner glow. I noted this, but had very little time to actually examine it, as there was much fighting and screaming. The airship crashed with a sicking crack as it flew into the forest. My heart screamed. 

I cannot describe all that happened but as it turned out, amidst all of the turbulence I ended up fighting along side a man I must describe as a paladin. His eyes locked onto mine for a brief moment that seemed to last a eternity, finally as he looked away I followed his gaze to the keep that was to be the dock for my unfortunate airship...BOOM! The sound still reverberates inside me today. It seemed as if a tower had exploded, and five men came running out. The paladin ran to meet them, and began speaking softly to one of these figures. I followed at a half-hearted pace, and moved closer when motioned to, warily. 

"You have two choices." the figure said, "Stay here and fend for yourself. Or come with us and work. You will be kept as safe as possible, fed, and compensated." 

Realizing too late my hood had fallen back revealing my face. I realized that I indeed have 2 choices, accept his rather vague terms, or kill him. I gripped my new found weapon, and nodded. More than a acceptable answer in my homeland. 

"Your oath or your life!" 

I looked him in the eyes and nodded a affirmative. Just a bit confused at his outburst.

I had made my choice, I needed to live after all. 

Time passed, I was given my own quarters, jobs that tested my skills, and to myself I gave a new identity. 

I was Ann. I was human, and talented at getting into tight places. I worked solo.

Until that part was dashed to shreds... 

Eventually I was given a assignment that included partners, and I must say that didn't suit me well at all, but when in the human homelands, do as humans do, correct? 

After many assignments I came to know the two that continuously worked along side me. Note that I do not say worked with me, as that did not happen very often. But along side suited well enough, for the time being. 

Alloriah, is a druid, that is very, well, un-druidic. In my opinion. None of the druids I have ever been in contact with have ever acted so callously. And moralistically...I'm at a loss about that with her. She seems to do what she wants, hold her self to a higher standard, then turn around and contradict herself with out blinking a eye. She does seem to have it in her mind that I am trying to kill her every chance I get. And believe you me, if that was true, she would have been dead a very long time ago. But I'm sure she's useful, she can heal people after all. And after all actions speak louder than words, correct? She does have a rather fascinating animal companion, a ethereal panther dubbed Demetreous, and she seems to narrow her eyes every time I pat him. It makes me smile a bit inside. 

Lim Dul'Caravack is a sorcerer, of sorts. With a very large mouth, and a larger opinion of himself. Actually, I am unsure which is the larger...they both seem to get us into trouble. A lot. But he does have a few handy tricks that have helped us get around, he must just practice the timing of using said tricks and all will be well. Other than being ungainly large compared to myself, and did I mention very talkative? Kolos forbid, that he begins to talk about being dragon-blooded! That conversation alone could last hours, and, that is with him talking to himself. There is the matter of his familiar, a monkey named Mapu, meaning in my tongue, child. The reasoning of the name still eludes us. 

Now comes a rather newer addition to our party, Seimi. Seimi has lost her mind, and by that I literally mean all of her memories, her identity, and herself. We found her investigating a society hideout that didn't exist, and after a few rather interesting experiences, she decided to travel with us. She has some useful skills in diplomacy, which is nice, and she could turn out to be a rather talented rouge, with some practice. We have been on a rather intense adventure, and its nice to know someone will follow you, even into death. And perhaps useful. 

I wonder, truly, what I could have been thinking. I'm surrounded by humans, their short lived-short sighted-rather rushed lives are a conundrum I have yet to unravel. But for the experience, and for what I have learned thus far, I am grateful. 

I need to live after all.