A Story for Siffo

[Noa]

Rakash Shadowclaw 
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Posts: 1
(7/1/02 10:35 pm)
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  A Story for Siffo
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I've been away for the past few days, but as promised to Siffo, here is a tale.

The price paid for the information was indeed worth it, thought the young Vah Shir rogue as he approached the gates. A large wyvern, a gryphon, and a winged horse guarded the gates and as he drew closer under a cloak of shadows, he realized to his horror that they were already alerted to his presence somehow as their eyes darted back and forth, searching in vain for what could not be seen.
"I smell you....cat." growled the gryphon as crouched low in front of the gates, ready to spring.
The rogue quickly moved back well away from the gates, cursing himself for getting so close despite precausions he'd taken to mask his scent.
"You may as well show yourself," called out the Wyvern. "Our Master is not impressed with unannounced guests dropping in."
The rogue quickly made his way off to the side of the main gates until he came upon a turret and began to climb up, the large cracks between the granite stones giving him easy purchase with his claws. As he looked back to the main gates, the winged horse took to the air and began a slow spiral upwards, searching the grounds for this unseen intruder. The Vah Shir rogue continued his climb until the gates and it's guardians seemed like insects at which point he pulled a small black bag off his belt.
"This had better work," he thought as he gripped the bag in his hand and quickly slapped it against the wall. It instantly spread to form an oval shaped hole which the rogue quickly jumped through...and into mid-air.
"s**t!"
The hole collapsed upon itself as the rogue fell, but luckily not too far - only twenty feet or so. He landed quietly on the ground and quickly looked around. No one was in sight. He breathed a sigh of relief and then caught himself.
"The path.....where's the bloody path?" he hissed under his breath. He'd been told that in this abode, straying from the pathway could prove to be fatal and here he was in a large anteroom with black marble floors ....and no path.

To be continued.....

[Noa]

Rakash Shadowclaw 
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(7/4/02 2:40 pm)
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The Vah Shir quickly drew his blades - an ornate looking dagger and a black long sword and darted across the anteroom towards a large oak door. It opened inward with a brief tug on it's iron ring and through it, the rogue saw a long hallway with a red carpet running down the middle.
"Ahh, the path." he thought to himself. "That wasn't so bad."
Suddenly he felt something wrap quickly around both his ankles and in a split second it had pulled his legs out from under him and began dragging him backwards across the marble floor! Spinning onto his back as he was dragged, the rogue saw what had him in it's grasp - a nightmarish creature of blackness, dark tentacles, and scythe-like claws, pulling him towards itself. The rogue slashed through the tentacles with his black blade and slid to a stop as the creature shreiked in pain.
"That oughtta wake up the neighbourhood," thought the rogue as he took to his feet, ran out the door, and down the long hallway.

[Noa]

Rakash Shadowclaw 
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(7/9/02 12:42 pm)
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As he ran down the hall, the rogue reached inside his breast pocket and retrieved a piece of parchment with a rough map drawn upon it in blood-red ink. He stopped to inspect it and sniffed the parchment. The ink was indeed blood - goat from the smell of it. It indicated the twists and turns he was to take within this castle. The informant had said he'd once been a guest in this abode when asked how he had been privy to such detailed information. Now this detail began to itch at the back of the rogue's mind.
He took another turn as indicated by the map and looked down the next hall. It seemed to turn to the right after about twenty yards or so, yet as he walked towards it the walls seemed to disolve and blur and suddenly the path was now turning to the left! Glancing at his parchment the ink in that section of the map seemed to swirl and slither like a tiny red serpent and soon it matched the hallways new direction. The rogue crept up to the corner and peeked around it. The hallway continued ahead and still no one was in sight, not a sound to be heard. It was as if the halls had always been this way and that a change had never taken place. The fur on the back of his neck began to rise and the rogue began a low, guttural growl as he turned the corner and continued on.

[Noa]

Rakash Shadowclaw 
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(7/18/02 4:24 pm)
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After a few more twists and turns the Vah Shir rogue finally found the door indicated on the map. It was an ornate gold plated door with a key hole in the center and no visible handle. The rogue quickly checked behind him before listening intently at the door for a moment. He quickly pulled out his mechanized lockpick set and inserted the device into the keyhole. A faint whirring noise was heard as the device tested and moved the tines of the lockpick until it had formed the key. One gentle turn and a satisfying click was enough to make the rogue smile as he pushed open the door.
The room inside was small and bright with no furnishings or adornments of any kind, save a small pedastel with a sparkling glass sphere on top. The rogue quickly inspected the room for pressure plates or tripwires before moving towards the pedastel.
"There it is....the lost city of my people."
Looking into the glass sphere the rogue could see a myriad of tall building, domes, and spires. His eyes went wide with wonder as he realized the city was brimming with life, beasts of burden, flocks of birds, and people walking around. But as he looked closer, he realized these were not his people. Squinting and peering at the city in miniature, he could not see any tails on these people. They seemed to be human, not Vah Shir as his informant had told him!
Suddenly the fur on the back of his neck rose again....he hadn't heard a sound but he was somehow aware of another presence behind him! He quickly whirled around and drew his blades.
"Find what you were looking for, Rakash?"
The man had stark white skin and wore dark black flowing robes. His hair was a spiked mass that shot out in all directions and his eyes were black as night. 

[Noa]

Rakash Shadowclaw 
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Posts: 5
(7/22/02 11:43 am)
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"Not exactly...." grumbled Rakash. He had a special poison in mind for his deceitful informant. "How did you know my..."
"I know everything that happens within my realm." replied the stranger. "At least I try to." he quickly added. "You got quite a bit farther than you should have."

"I have been doing this for awhile," replied Rakash.
"No. You had help, and I'd like to know who it was that sent you."
"I'm leaving....now." growled Rakash as he made for the door. The door quickly slammed shut and with a small wave of the strangers hand the rogue's weapons were knocked flying from his grip.
"If it's any consolation to you, your weapons could not harm me anyways." said the stranger in a calm and even voice. "You are not going anywhere until you tell me who sent you to steal this city."
Rakash knew this man's powers were far beyond him and saw no reason to protect the identity of his informant after he'd lied to him.
"His name was Korko." said Rakash.
"Ahh," replied the stranger as he smiled. "Elvish for Crow."
"He told me that you held a long lost Vah Shir city trapped in a sphere." explained Rakash. "The man said he'd been a quest of yours. Who are you?"
"I am the master of this realm. My name is Morpheus," replied the stranger.
Rakash's eyes went wide with fear. "The dreamlord?" he asked.
"The same." replied Morpheus.
Rakash cursed under his breath. He'd heard stories of the dreamlord as a child but had since dismissed them as bedtime fables. Now he'd been caught breaking into his domain.
The dreamlord chuckled. "As you may have noticed, that city within the sphere is not an ancient Vah Shir city. It is a city of humans, and not even of your world."
Rakash's skin redened with shame and anger. He breathed a deep sigh. "My apologies, dreamlord. I've been lied to and played for a fool."
"Lying is what the trickster does best, I'm afraid." replied the dreamlord. "I'm afraid our friend Loki is looking to cause trouble in an area of the world that has already seen it's share of grief. I believe I'll be paying him a visit in the near future."
Morpheus looked at the young Vah Shir rogue for a moment and a look of compassion briefly crossed his face.
"Your intentions, however misguided, were noble. You may go, Rakash. But please, don't ever enter my domain again without knocking first."
He smiled and waved his hand before Rakash could blurt out a reply. There was blackness and a feeling of falling through a void and then just as suddenly....
he woke up.

- End