RPG The Summoners of the New Age [M-VL]

[Doublehex]

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[center][i]Nestled atop of the hills of the Eladri forest south of the city of Elartim lays the keep of Torikarn. Holding the finest tomes of knowledge known on the face of Areth, it is separated from the troubles that face the rest of the realm. It is secure, regimented, and it is home. For the apprentices of the wise summoner Ogarn, they knew no other safer place of solitude than here.

Among the three students, Malphris was Ogarn?s pride and joy. The other students, although often jealous of Ogarn?s prodigy, embraced the young man in their own way.

Today was seventh day of Galeris, the seventh month of the year. Today was going to be a day none of them would forget?[/i]

[b]OBJECTIVES:
-All of Ogarn?s non-students must somehow get to Torikarn, and get involved, in one way or another, with the storyline.
-Ogarn?s students must complete any task that their master gives to them.

The chapter begins?[/b][/center]

The orange sun dipped behind the hills overlooking the forest, its pink and black shadows spreading far and wide throughout Aladune, as Malphris struggled with lumber for his Master?s fire. The young man ?if nineteen could be considered ?young? in the literal sense- did knew few things of the sage, and understood even fewer of his philosophies. He could not possibly understand how doing physical labor could strengthen a Summoner?s connection with their aeon. Wasn?t the link between Summoner and aeon a mental one, a test of will, and not of muscles?

The thoughts burnt away as some drops of sweat burnt the young Summoner?s eyes. Deciding that the sooner he focus completely on the task, and stop thinking so much, the sooner he would get done. Of course, by doing so, he tripped on a small log, landing backwards, sending the logs he was carrying onto his face.

He cursed his stupidity, and pushed the logs off of him, wiping dust and dirt off of his face. He was gathering the logs when he heard the familiar footsteps of a certain white-robbed master. He quickly turned his face to see [url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v143/Doublehex/RP/Summoners/char_ogarn.jpg][u]Ogarn [/u][/url]rubbing his knuckles. ?Nineteen years Malphris, and still you are too overly confident.? The master Summoner chuckled softly. ?Malphris, the time is coming when you will leave this place.?

[i]?Why is he talking like this??[/i], Malphris asked himself. [i]?This wasn?t normal. Whenever Ogarn would talk about me leaving, he would look like I had committed a minor crime But here?he?s happy.? [/i]

?Malphris, we will be leaving today.?

?We??

?Azeck and Valaina. We?ll be leaving tonight, but without a sound.?

?Master, what are you ??

?Don?t speak! Just listen, for once. I need you to gather food for a journey for three days.? He searched through his robe, and brought out a bag of coins. He tossed it to Malphris. ?Go now. Seek me out when you?re done, at my chambers. I?ll be waiting.?

And with that, Ogarn left Malphris alone in the fields, with a perplexed look on his face.

OOC: All right, all of Ogarn?s apprentices (Kitty and Auron?s Ghost) must have Ogarn give them a task that would somehow relate to the journey. Everyone else, follow the objectives, Good luck!

[Domon]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Navy]Cael had been sitting on a log eating on a piece of bread that he had bought at the market two days ago in Freeport. At least it had kept somewhat but it was starting to go stale. As he sat eating he watched his horse grazing on some grass a few feet away.

"You're not going to get far by just sitting and eating Cael." The familiar throaty voice said. Cael turned to his left and looked his Aeon dead straight in its dragon eyes. "You know, I'm just trying..."

"Trying to keep up your strength.. That is getting slightly old Cael. If you want to see Master Ogarn soon then we must hurry. I have a bad feeling about this journey." Bahamut said as his wings twitched slightly. The dragon was right, something did not seem quite right. The people he had encountered so far on the way to Torikarn seemed different. Cael quickly finished his bread and strapped his travel bag back onto the horse's saddle, mounted the horse and took off at a gallop.

As Cael rode the horse down the dirt road he saw a group of bandits harassing a family. The father was being beaten on by three of the bandits while the other two were holding the rest of the family hostage. A sixth one though was looking for treasure. Cael stopped his horse, climbed off, and strode towards the bandits.

"Cael. Be careful, you don't know what they could do." Bahamut warned in Cael's head.

" I know, they could kill one of those people. That is why.." Cael said in his head as he focused on summoning the dragon into the physical plane. When the dragon became a physical manifestation he let loose a roar that made the air vibrate and caused the bandits to scream in fear and run off, "I summoned you. You always have a way with people." Cael said as he walked towards the familiy and helped the father up. The child stared at the dragon in awe.

"Thank you kind sir. I assume you're a summoner due to how that massive dragon appeared near you in an instant." Cael nodded at the remark and dismissed Bahamut with a nod.

"I'm Phineas. My wife, my son, and I are from Torikarn but we are headed for Freeport. Something queer brews in our home city. Everyone seems on edge. If you're headed that way please practice some caution and keep that creature of yours at bay for the time being."

"Thank you Phineas, I will. Here take some of my supplies, I noticed that those bandits ruined some of your food and water." Cael said as he handed the man one of his unopened bags of food and water canteens. The man thanked Cael and they started their cart down the road to Freeport. Cael on the other hand started back on his way to Torikarn.

When he arrived he noticed that the atmosphere of the city seemed to be off. Like there was some sort of force behind it. It wasn't like a physical presence, but instead more like a mental thing, "Cael be careful I feel something as well. I suggest you keep your weapons concealed for the time being until we are at Master Ogarn's." Cael agreed mentally and led his horse towards the market area. He would need to re-stock his supplies now.

As he roamed the market he caught glances given in his direction. They were usually glances of fear and despair. Something was definetly wrong. As he clamored through to a food stand he noticed that a lot of the food was not that great looking. Cael managed to rummage through it and find some good things. He paid for the food and headed for the bakery. The bread was a different story it was fresh and better looking than the vegetables. After he paid for the bread Cael started talking with the baker about things. Mainly what was going on.

"No one knows either. Its just this queer gut feeling everyone's got. Like an impending doom is fast approaching." Cael left the baker with those words stuck in his head.

"I think we should leave now and head to Ogarn's. But I would like to see if I can find a few more things for our journeys." Cael mentally thought as he started down towards a trade shop.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

ooc: sorry if I ended too abruptly, I just couldn't think of a decent way to stop. >_<;;

[Raiha]

[COLOR=DarkOrchid][font=times][i]Ananda smelled him first, and then she saw him. A dark elf in the cedar woods, coming very close to her. Too late.

At first, all the dark elf saw were a pair of eyes peering through leaves. Then he saw a burst of lilies and wondered why a summoner would waste her time learning how to make flowers burst from her hair. She turned away instantly, dispelling the flowers that had been her first impulse, and leapt through the trees again, zig zagging nearly pointlessly but always heading towards Torkarn. A huge laburnum tree obscured her view of him but that didn't matter much. Inside her heart, she could feel a faster beating of her heart. In her mind she could see the countless bodies he'd made corpses laid before her.

All of the women, disfigured horribly, and only in the way death could... They were not so different from what happened to the occasional man too stupid to realize he was about to violate the sanctuary of the Goddess. Ananda never stood for it, and neither did She. She of the Sword Struck Heart always demanded that men who violated her sacred precepts be put to death in the most horrible ways possible. Ananda quietly went over this as she continued making jumps, staying behind him enough to nearly lose sight of him, but not the smell. Eventually they both cleared the forest and she could see him very clearly for the first time. At least the back of him.

Then the front.[/i]

"You're following me. Stop doing it."

[i]Ananda was completely taken aback. Her first impulse was to summon her lance then and there and spit him to a tree. The second was to summon her aeons and command them to rip him apart and then let her decorate a tree with him. The third, and the one she decided to go with, was to fling herself into the air, summon her lance, and land with her scarves fluttering out behind, far enough away to give him a chance to either summon or draw his own weapon.

It wasn't the first time she'd run into a summoner, but it wasn't that that made her so hostile. It was the smells of death and power that ran rampant over his body, smirked in his sneer, and glittered coldly in his eyes. She gripped the edges of her lance and envisioned herself surrounded by the maximum number she could create. Fortunately for her, this gave Ananda a cold, cool smile, that was a near mirror image of his. It must've been apparent to him as well, not that he was a true empath, and he drew in response. A lance of his own, but she doubted he could multiply it. Not that he'd really need to.[/i]

"You smell like thirst."

[i]Her voice was lower than he'd expected. Most beautiful girls have high attractive voices...but hers was darker, quieter, but fitting enough. The gravity of her eyes was explanation enough.[/i]

"You desire power. You desire my suffering and sacrifice. She will not let it happen."

[i]She kept her face calm by envisioning forest surrounding them. He thought of the ways he could mutilate her face until her smile was turned inside out. Ananda raised her lance and judged his strength. The tingling of the hairs on her neck were the whispers of her aeons, visible to no one but herself, not fully realized, but waiting in the background for her beckoning whisper. She charged.[/i][/font][/COLOR]

[Aurons Ghost]

Mythril clashed against the bone and enamel of Lodur's teeth, yet neither gave way. Azeck raised his DuQ'lon again, feigning a repeat of the previous move, but at the last second, twisting the axe so that the long handle would smash on the aeon's hindlegs.

The move was successful, and soon the beast was crippled. This concerned neither Azeck or Lodur as the wolf's healing abilities could have repaired the injury within seconds, and they had done far worse in the past.

Azeck was grateful for the aeon's calming presence. Being here among so many irrational, unpredictable creatures, none of whom even claimed to follow a code of honour, was a great strain on his limited patience. He was often tempted to slaughter them all simply because they lied, they cheated and they were proud of it. That however would not suit his plans well.

He needed to pretend to be a good little Orc for a bit longer. Ogarn's teachings would give him what he needed to complete his plans, but Ogarn hinted that they would soon be leaving, and Galagrith only knows what that would mean. The looming uncertainty made his blood boil, and his swings for the now injured Aeon became unsteady and threaten to make him topple.

After failing to strike Lodur he swung for a nearby tree, sinking the blade of the DuQ'lon deep in its wood.

"Gah!" growled Azeck as his head cleared and he realised the stupidity of his recent actions.

"You still have a long way to go to tame your impulses," said Lodur, his hind legs audibly cracking as the bones shifted and locked back into place within seconds, "but your destiny is one of few I believe. If you are able to refrain from killing your [i]colleagues[/i], your plan may be a successful one."

"Plan?" asked an old voice in a doorway.

"Master!" grunted Azeck as the frail old form of the Master Summoner Ogarn appeared.

"Ah yes, the plan to unite your Orc brothers and sisters under a banner of peace," he continued, seemingly unaware that Azeck's true goal was to unite them under a banner of their own blood, but neither Azeck or Lodur seemed eager to correct the old man. "I am afraid your plans will have to wait. We are leaving tonight, and I need to be sure you will be able to work with us. I have allowed you tremendous allowances to live how you wish, but soon neither you or I will be able to define how we will live. You are an Orc, you seek order merely through instinct, so I understand this may be concerning for you.

"Alas there is little I can do to sway those concerns, and instead I ask you to go in search of healing supplies that we may need on a journey. Potions, herbs, perhaps even an incantation or two."

"Master, do you not already have such items in your quarters?" asked Azeck, his mind already loathed to the prospect of having to go into the busy bazaar.

"Yes, I do," Ogarn unclipped a bag of money for Azeck to use, "but you do not." Tossing the bag to Azeck, he turned and left the courtyard.

"Did destiny predict that Lodur?" remarked Azeck, removing the DuQ'lon from the tree. Lodur said nothing, but chose to dismiss himself, seeing the wisdom behind Ogarn's request and the benefits it could bring to the Orc's progress.

[Sandy]

[COLOR=SeaGreen]Burt followed his friend, Krampick, to a shady tavern at the outskirts of the mighty city of Elartim. He had never visited the place, but his friend assured him that today he'd see something not a lot of human men would ever see.

Huddled up in their woolly capes, the two men entered the tavern called [I]the Crescent of Etarlia[/I], both staggering in their steps due to the several flagons of Dwarven Ale they had already consumed in Krampick's house.

Neither man hadn't had much luck in life, and all they had was each other and daily tavern-hopping. Burt didn't admit it, but Krampick's short fuse often frightened him. Burt was no sissy either, in fact he was just as muscular and tough-looking as his friend, but when Krampick got mad, somebody always got hurt.

The Crescent of Etarlia was a smutty place, the waitresses would do better as prostitutes (which wasn't to say that they weren't ones), and the patrons were all scruffy sailors, mercenaries or drunkards. At the other side of the room there was a stage covered by a purple, velvet curtain - it seemed oddly out of place in a pub like this. Krampick led Burt to the table nearest the stage, shoving a skinny Tumerok off of his seat.

Suddenly an elderly woman stepped out of the curtain. She must have been a great looker in her youth, but the spirits of time had got to her. Her persona still emanated a certain aura that revealed she was the keeper of the tavern.
[B]
"Listen up, you horny dogs!"[/B] the woman croaked. The patrons howled in excitement, Krampick along the others. [B]"Have I got a special treat for you tonight! Lemme present, coming straight from the lush forests of Dian'Ardh, the otherworldly beauty known as..."[/B]

The curtain rolled up, and a slender figure covered by a thin veil and two large feathered fans came to sight. The stage was lit by magic lights, flickering in deep shades of red, purple and blue. An ethereal music started to play from thin air.

[B]"... The Butterfly!"[/B]

The figure spun around, spreading the two fans to its sides. The whole room full of people seemed to gasp in unison. It was a wood elf, dressed in nothing but a translucent silk veil, and furthermore...

[B]"Holy fuck, Krampick, that's a [I]guy[/I]!"[/B] Burt hissed to his friend, who to his astonishment was practically eating the elf with his bulged eyes.

[B]"Shut up and enjoy!"[/B] Krampick hushed him.

The Butterfly started to dance so smoothly and delicately that soon even Burt himself forgot the fact that he was staring lustingly to a member of the same sex. He couldn't explain why the wood elf attracted him so, but even the very air around the creature felt enchanted.

All of a sudden, the wood elf jumped up, fluttering his fans like wings, and hovered in midair. A flock of illusionary butterflies appeared around him. Another gasp ran through the crowd.

The elf landed on top of Burt and Krampick's table, and gave an alluring smile to the men. Burt just stared in awe, but Krampick couldn't hold his urges anymore. He grabbed the beautious elf by his ankles and tried to pull him to his lap.

[B]"Come here, my little bug..."[/B] Krampick whispered with a thick voice.

[B]"Get your hands off of me"[/B], the wood elf replied calmly, but Burt had never heard a more threatening tone.

[B]"If you don't give in willingly, then I'll have to take you by force!"[/B] Krampick laughed, and stood up. A sharp, nasty kick broke his nose and send him staggering backwards.

[B]"You fucking fairy!"[/B] Krampick bellowed, his eyes suddenly aflame with rage, and made a berserk rush at the table. The wood elf leaped over him effortlessly and landed behind him. Krampick hit the table, knocking it down with him.

[B]"Don't be fooled by my looks - this fairy will fight back!"[/B] the wood elf growled, which sounded odd with a voice as high as his.

Krampick stumbled up, and roared in fury. In a split second, the wood elf crossed the two fans horizontally in front of him, and as Krampick reached him, ignoring what he thought was a pathetic attempt to block his attack, the elf made a slashing movement with the fans.

Burt watched in horror as his only friend fell down in a rain of feathers, with two deep, crossing wounds running across his chest. He looked at the elf again, and saw that what had been two fans, were actually two sets of claws attached to the elves arms.

[B]"You want to follow your friend?"[/B] the elf asked, tilting his head. Seeing the green eyes of the elf burning with battle frenzy, Burt hesitated for a moment, but he knew he had to at least try to avenge his friend, or he would be damned to an eternal shame and dishonor in the Afterlife.

So he made a desperate leap towards the elf, and soon there were two dead bodies lying on the floor of the Crescent of Etarlia.

[B]"Tsch, tsch..."[/B] the owner of the tavern said from behind the wood elf. [B]"I'm afraid there's not going to be a payment for you tonight, Lariel Azaleah, for the mess you have caused."[/B]

[B]"It's alright, Madame Pesmerga"[/B], Lariel said with his melodic, high-pitched elven voice. [B]"The fun I had tonight makes up for it. If you show me a place to wash this filth out of my Wings of Destiny, I'll be on my merry way."[/B]

[CENTER]~*~[/CENTER][/COLOR]

[SIZE=1][B]OoC:[/B] This was certainly a different kind of approach to starting up with a character, I hope you liked it. Also, Lariel will not be as nasty a person as he may have been portrayed in this post - he just doesn't like scum. ;P[/SIZE]

[Doublehex]

The Old Dragon?s Nest Inn was as busy as ever. Patrons taking a much needed break from hours, if not days, of studying ancient tomes were treating themselves to Windbeard's? ale and wine. Waitresses, which certainly were not suggestive in their attire (much unlike the thousands of other inns you could find in the realm), were dashing from one corner of the inn to the next, in hopes of pleasing the impatient crowd with some good food and company.

That was when Malphris came in the door, pulling on some stubborn dust out of his brown hair. When he turned to see his favorite Summoner enter the door (the fact that Malprhis was still considered an apprentice by the majority of Torikarn didn?t deter him from calling Malphris by the formal title), he instantly got a waitress to handle a stubborn patron and went over to him.

?Malphris , me boy!? the burly dwarf exclaimed in the accent so typical of his kind, ?good to see you on dis fine day.?

?Its good to see you as well, Windbeard.?

?Now what can I be doing for you??

?Well, I am needing some food.?

The dwarf laughed. ?By the way old Ogarn is working ye, I?d not be surprised.? He walked over towards the kitchen. ?So how much you?d need??

?For this much gold?, Malphris said as he tossed the gold pouch to him. The dwarf?s beard nearly fell off out of shock (which was a good friend it hadn?t, since dwarves treasure the beards a hundred times more than their beloved ale!).

?What is de meaning of this, boy??

?Ogarn.?

?By Bordebane?s beard?this is enough for three days, four even! What is going on here??

?Maybe you could tell me.?

?I wish I could??

?Maybe you should just get me the food, as my master had requested of me.?

?I?can do that.?

[Domon]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Navy]After Cael finished purchasing replacement items for the ones he had given to the man he saved on the road Cael headed out back into the busy streets of Torikarn. When he retrieved his horse Cael set out to his former master's residence.

Hooves clopping along the cobblestones, Cael passed by the Dragon's Nest Inn. As he did Bahamut appeared to him, "Should I go on ahead and see if I can see anything?" The dragon asked as if there were some sort of danger. Cael shook his head and the dragon snorted slightly and flicked his tail. Cael could feel it too, something was amiss. He didn't like it at all. Cael called forth his sais and hid them underneath his robe's sleeves. The warmth from the weapons gave the summoner some slight comfort as he edged his horse on as they neared the edge of town.

Once Cael was out of town he got the horse into a full gallop. The speed kicked up loose dirt and the horse snorted as it ran at its full potential. Cael wanted to get to Ogarn's house as quickly as his steed would allow. The air seemed more tense as he got closer to Ogarn's residence.

"Cael, can you not feel it? Something is seriously amiss." Bahamut said as he appeared to be "flying" next to Cael and his horse.

"I know Bahamut. Its really pissing me off. I'm getting really frustrated at the fact that I don't know what this presence." Cael said as he slid one of his sais down his arm and into his hand. When the horse came upon Ogarn's house Cael stopped it and jumped off. As he did so he called Bahamut into the physical world. The dragon appeared and started to survey the area and lifted off into the air slightly to survey the fields.

"Dammit I don't see anything. Where is everyone? Where is Ogarn?!" Bahamut said with a note of annoyence in his voice. It wasn't like the dragon to lose his cool but with something like this Cael almost expected it considering how alike they tended to act.

As Cael approached the front door he had both of his weapon's Ta'Zo out and at the ready. Bahamut had landed and was growling enough to be heard. At that moment Ogarn opened the door and Cael nearly fell backwards.

"Oh-ho! Cael! What excellent timing! Come! Come! Inside, and your Aeon may come inside too, but you may want to dismiss him and then resummon him." Cael did and walked inside. Once he was inside he called his aeon back.

"Please Ogarn. What is going on and where are your apprentices?!" Bahamut asked. Cael had been about to ask that but his aeon had beaten him to the punch. Ogarn motioned for them to follow him into the main sitting room. Cael had Bahamut stand outside the door so he could still listen.

"All right Cael, I'll tell you once my apprentices return from town." Both Cael and Bahamut snorted at this in annoyance and got settled down for a long wait.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[TheResplendent]

[color=navy][size=1]Riakath stood in place and just watched as the wood elf priestess charged toward him. Her reasoning was flawed in his eyes, but either way if she desires to pick a fight with him...he would not let her kill him. Riakath readied the Voice of Galagrith in front of him, when suddenly Ananda seemed to dissapear from sight. Riakath surveyed the area around him, but saw nothing.

[b]"Cowardly priestess...how dare she waste my time."[/b] Riakath said to himself as he continued walking. After a few steps however, the dark elf noticed an abundance in white flowers as they not only adorned the ground, but they were twirling around him where he stood. He thought it to be an odd form of magic and tried to continue, but one of the petals zoomed by his face. Riakath at the last minute moved his head avoiding contact. He turned to see the petal continue on it's path as it carved into the bark of a nearby tree.

[b]"Ha...flowers as weapons. How menial your talents are, priestess."[/b] Riakath exclaimed as he lifted the Voice of Galagrith and with a single swipe in the air created a black mist. The mist wiped out the mass of flowers surrounding him, but as the mist cleared Ananda herself leaped down from a tree with her naginata extended. Riakath parried her away and stood across from her with an unchanged expression.

[b]"You are quite skilled even without your aeon, dark elf. It is no wonder you are capable of such slaughter you have committed in the past."[/b] Ananda said, placing her naginata behind her.

[b]"What is the matter priestess...do you no longer wish to fight me?"[/b] Riakath asked, suspecting another trick.

Ananda leaped back up to a tree and addressed him from above.

[b]"You are on your way to Torikarn, are you not? Continue on your way. Perhaps...we will meet again."[/b] she said as she dissapeared from sight again. Riakath shrugged the ordeal off and just conitinued on his way. Riakath had no intention of delaying his time for trivial matters, he had already wasted enough time. Riakath made his way through the forest as he wondered to himself what the priestess's agenda was...he had heard of the guardians of the forest of the goddess...but surely she wasn't one of them. Riakath kept focus on his destination however. Torikarn would provide him with reasonable lodgings and food, it had been days since his last stop. Riakath had travelled quite a ways from the city of Mazzillir since his self-appointed excommunication...over the years Riakath had roamed much of the eastern continent with no real home, but few cities that he felt comfortable enough in to stay...as well as citizens that were more tolerant of him.

The dark elf race is known world wide as a noble and intellegent race...but like every other race they have their shady side. Riakath was still a dark elf, it was his thirst for power that caused him to be seperated...but that made no difference to him. He was still intellegent despite losing any claims to "nobility" in the eyes of others. His knowledge of the dark arts, and Necrose were all Riakath needed to survive.

It seemed like half a days walks to Torikarn at this point...finally coming to the end of the forest. He looked over the horizon of a small mountain range, then back toward the forest.

[b]"It is late...i shall camp here for a few hours."[/b] Riakath said as he set his bladed staff into the ground...as if it were serving as his guardian.[/size][/color]

[center]* * * * *[/center]

[size=1]OOC: Sorry for the short post, i'm sure things will pick up once everyone gets to the city though.[/size]

[Doublehex]

By the time Windbeard had gathered all of the materials Malphris ? of Ogarn, depending on whom you asked ? had requested, it was an hour past noun. Knowing that his Master was never one to be forgiving considering tardies, Malphris made haste towards his Master?s house, with three bags full of food on his back. He entered the house as he usually would ? as if he owned the place. He entered with his muddy boots on, plopped the bags onto the nearest table, and called his master?s name repeatedly. Ogarn answered back ? obviously irritated by his student?s lack of courtesy ? and Malphris followed the trail.

He found Cael in the room.

?Cael?? Malphris asked, surprised to see the older student.

The elder summoner grinned behind the robe that had protected him hours before from the autumn wind. ?Good to see you again, little Mal.?

Malphris growled behind his teeth.

?Malphris sit down,? Ogarn asked in a calm manner, ?there are things we need to discuss.?

[i]?Yeah, like why are you acting as if Torikarn is going to be invaded any moment now??[/i]

Malphris did as he was told. The eldest Summoner folded his hands under his chin.

?Tell me Malphris, have you ever heard of the Entari??

?Can?t say that I have, Master.?

?An order born long ago ? so long, that scholars have never recorded it ? that could speak with the Gods.?

?You mean like priests??

?No. Not like priests ? literally speak with the Gods, truly as if they were right beside them.? He paused a moment, allowing the words to sink in. ?Malphris, have you ever heard anyone hear any sort of vision from any of the Gods for as long as you have lived.?

?No.?

?People are thinking the Gods are dead; that they have lost favor. But that is not the case. The reason no one can hear the Gods, is because the only ones who could speak with them, are dead.?

?The Entari, you mean??

Ogarn nodded. ?All but one. One being still living of the Entari order still lives, but has not been able to tap into their abilities. We must find them.?

?We?? Cael raised an eyebrow. ?How exactly does this involve all of us, master??

?Because you are Summoners. Because we must. Because if we don?t, the world will fall into chaos. The Gods are the very beings that keep this world alive. Without the foundation, the castle crumbles.?

By now, Malphris had his arms crossed in obvious disgust. ?So, when do we leave??

?When Azeck and Valana return.?

[Raiha]

[font=times][COLOR=DarkOrchid][i]Ananda considered her options. Watching him set up camp was nice. He had long slender fingers, and such lovely hair, even if it was the same pale silver of every dark elf that didn't bother to dye it. And then there was- Ananda shook her head to clear if of such frivolous things and then decided that staff marked in the ground or not, she wasn't going to let him get away with calling her talent 'menial' while she still had legs.

She had already been lying rather close behind him for five minutes before he turned. Ananda had already planted her staff next to his and it had turned into a flowering tree as cover, littering pale blue petals over his prone form. He shied back, brushing the foliage off him, to lock eyes with her once more. Again, huge lilies burst in his vision, but they were only an illusion this time around.[/i]

"You're a little forward, aren't you?" [i]The dark elf raised an eyebrow skeptically, not looking forward to having to dodge another flower from hell.[/i]

"I'm making up for earlier."

[i]The lights in her eyes reflected starlight, trailing across her near perfect hair, and settling along the curve of her scarf, resting between her neck and shoulder. Her lips, berry colored, parted rather slowly into a smile....one that showed milk white teeth, slightly fanged. As the male inhaled, a thousand scents registered in his olfactory receptors... ...all of them delightful to him. Ananda placed a hand close to the ground near his hip.[/i]

"What's your name?"

[i]He jerked away faster than before, his hands reaching automatically for his weapon. The priestess smirked and rolled until her back was against the tree that was her lance.[/i][/COLOR][/font]

[Sandy]

[COLOR=SeaGreen]Lariel Azaleah stood on a grassy hill, gazing towards south. A strong wind fluttered his chocolate brown hair which was tied into dozens of small braids tied with colorful ribbons. He carried the [I]Morgarath[/I], his two Wings of Destiny, on his back, wrapped into a thick cloth. He wore more clothing than he was used to, and the itchy wool and sweaty leather made him uneasy. He couldn't believe humans called themselves technologically advanced, yet they still wore such barbaric clothing! He missed the smooth elven silks and warm furs, but the chilly weather of the open hills had forced him to change his attire.

But his clothing wasn't the only thing that was bothering him, for his far-seeing elven eyes could clearly make out the figure of the Torikarn Keep looming in the horizon. It was his next destination, according to Hypnaeus.

[B]"Care to explain why I need to go there again? I've heard Torikarn is a dull place, where they value [I]silence[/I] and [I]knowledge[/I] over fun"[/B], Lariel said with disdain oozing from his words.

A tiny, glimmering sphere of purplish light appeared next to his pointed ear.

[B]"Ah, you and your mundane appreciations, Lariel..."[/B] the fairy said with fony despair. [B]"Most Summoners would be thrilled to visit Torikarn, the Sanctuary of Knowledge, and explore the vast libraries and converse with the masters of summoning, but obviously[B] such things are trivial to you."[/B]

"You sound just like Bel'aria, and honestly, I don't want to listen to that anymore"[/B], Lariel said annoyed, sweeping the summoned fairy away from his ear. [B]"Just tell me why we are going to that place."[/B]

In a split second, the purple light expanded and transformed into a tall, pale-skinned man with large iridescent wings of a butterfly standing next to the wood elf.

Lariel couldn't help feeling his heart wrench at the sight of his majestic Aeon. Hypnaeus's words were much more easy to dismiss when he was just a puny sprite, but the Aeon had learned to use his size-increasing abilities to get his message through.

[B]"Look around you, Lariel"[/B], Hypnaeus said with his deep voice, motioning towards the ground with his hand. [B]"The ground beneath your feet is rotting, the air around you has a foul tint to it, the civilization you hold so dear is grumbling into dust like so many mighty empires before it."[/B]

Lariel glanced behind his back. On the top of the hill was an ancient circle of stone pillars, eroded by time. Once it might have been an altar to the gods, but the gods were gone now. All that remained was illusions and dreams...

[B]"Torikarn holds the answers, Lariel"[/B], the Aeon said sternly, placing his ethereal hand on Lariel's shoulder. [B]"Let your Wings of Destiny guide you to them, for you have the ability to help restore the balance."[/B]

[B]"Please, Hypnaeus, cut down the "I'm so important"-talk! I'm just a worthless wood elf who tries to dance his way around everything! How can you think that my actions make any difference?!"[/B]

Lariel marched down the hill, and his uneasiness grew tenfold. Bel'aria, his mentor, had said the same things as Hypnaeus, over and over again. Then Lariel had betrayed her trust, and she had cursed him. He thought he had lost his chances in life, so he had given up everything. And now his Aeon claimed that he had a Destiny to follow?! From Lariel's point-of-view, he had nothing.

[B]"You'll see"[/B], Hypnaeus whispered softly to his ear, before vanishing into the wind.
[/COLOR]

[B]OoC:[/B] I'm thinking that Hypnaeus's size-increasing powers go beyond human size, if you don't have anything against that, Doublehex. Other than that, he has control over sleep and dreams, but nothing else much.

[Darth Vectis]

[SIZE=1]The sun was high in the sky as a single man walked slowly through the dense forest, his quarter staff held out in front of him. Using it as a kind of walking staff, his hood drawn over his head as it shadowed over his eyes, his other arm remained under the cloack as his sword swayed and lightly tapped against his leg.

His dark brown eyes focused ahead of him as he continued on his path, the hair on his face and small dropplets of the morning dew. Allanon had been trucking through these wods for the past few days, not because he chose to, he would have rather stayed on his orignial route.

He only changed because his deity had sent him a sign, showing him that he should change his direction. Allanon despised the fact that Adune would never confront him personally, not like that first time, he would just send signs and people who would momentarily would be his voice. A random stranger being Adunes voice was awkward some times, Adune wasn't to picky about who represented him on this planet, so it always was a bit of a surprise when someone would speak to him.

Allanon thought to himself the entire way to where ever he was being sent to, he wasn't sure what Adune wanted him to do or what the purpose of changing course was, but he followed regadless. He trusted Adune enough to let him choose his path when he desired. Allanon kept his gaze forward, shifting his eyes occasionally ever few second to make sure no one was going to try and get the jump on him. After a few minutes of walking, he heard panting.

He instanly took cover and looked around to see what the panting was, two elves, both obviously from different part of the elven race, but still elves. He watched as both the wood elf and the dark elf fought with impressive skill and ability, Allanon knew in close combat he could take them both out, but as he watched he could see the wood elf perform different illusion and tricks on the other. And Allanon had a feeling the dark elf could do magic too if he could continue to fight someone using.

Allanon considered his options, his current path had lead him straight to them and now he was faced with a rather difficult dilema. He could either intervene, stop the fight then pass through and try to get away, or he could just find a way around them. Both were simple, yet difficult at the same time. The first option had its obvious difficulties, he could be meddiling in some lover quarrel or he could die in the process of getting through.

The other was that, he could be passing up a potential ally in either of them. He was obviously suppose to go this way, it was just his choice in what action to take. And he wasn't much for taking the easy way around anything, he held his quarterstaff tightly in his hands. He had made his decision, he quickly passed through the shadows manuvering his way around the two fighters.

Soon enough he passed right around them, neither of them knowing anyone else was even there, both still caught up in the battle. In a matter of second, he was around them and continuing on his way, keeping his eyes set forward as the sounds of battle faded behind him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=1]OOC: Sorry about short post, got to be somewhere.[/SIZE]

[Aurons Ghost]

Being an Orc fortunately had it's advantages in the bazaar. His people had a bloodthirsty reputation, so not even the association with Ogarn made people feel safe enough to be near him. The few that did were usually panicked individuals, having just stolen from a shop, picked someones pocket or merely looked at a drunk in the wrong way. These people would have died had Azeck not had other priorities, but nonetheless is took pleasure in their fearas they came face to face with an Orc, they recent crime drained from their mind even quicker than the colour from their faces.

As he passed an armoury on his way to an apothocary, he noticed in the wrinkled reflection of a mythril shield that he was being followed. A young boy had his eyes fixed securely on the bag of gold that Ogarn had given him. Azeck slowed his pace suddenly, expecting the kid to walk right into him, an expectation that was met. Swiftly turning he picked the boy up by his neck. Down the street were a group of youths, only slightly older than this one. Azeck guessed the kid was new and wanted to prove himself to the others by picking the only Orc in town's pocket. The kid had failed, but was not yet shamed in the eyes of his friends as they looked on with concern in their eyes.

Growling slightly he raised the boy up to his face, allowing his foul breath to escape his lips. He smacked his lips in a human manner that implied tasty food was within reach, hoping the boy had been taught the fairy tales about Orcs and Ogres eating the children of their enemy. His hope was proven true when seconds later a slow trickle could be heard dripping of the boys leg. Seeing his companions burst out in laughter at the boys unfortunate accident he gently placed him back on the ground, carefully centering him in the now wet sand. Letting go, the biy fell to his knees, and Azeck strode off, satisfied that the boy would never pick his pocket again. Or anyone elses as the laughter echoed up to him, now compounded by the sobs of collapsed child.

"That was not wise Azeck," growled Lodur as the aeon reappeared at his side.

"I did not kill him," muttered Azeck as the shop neared, "merely disciplined the child."

"The humans may not see it that way, so excercise further control."

Azeck glared at the wolf, but said nothing as he entered the shop.

[Domon]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Navy]Cael felt like that Ogarn was sending them on a fools errand. If there was only one Entari then why wasn't there a mad scramble by all the temples to get ahold of this person?! What if this Entari was already a priest who was devoted to only one god? What if... The questions kept pouring into Cael's mind. It was overwhelming, "Cael, do you know what this means?" Bahamut asked with a tinge of excitement.

"Yes. A really big headache." Cael grumbled mentally to his aeon. The dragon however chuckled and seemed a lot more excited. Cael stood up and excused himself from Ogarn and Malphris. He then headed to the master summoner's library. It was rather large and Cael knew there were some books t hat he might need to study over, mainly some of the other race's customes and behavior. When he found the book he was looking for he sat down in a hardwood chair at a large oak table.

"Do you think this Entari is of another race?" Bahamut asked as he peered over Cael's shoulders.

"Possibly. I honestly don't know so I guess in your words 'Better safe than sorry.' Are the best course." Cael said as he leafed through the first chapter which covered the drawrves.

After about five or so minutes Cael gave up and shut the book and started sifting through other books that he thought that the group would need on the journey ahead, "You know, that since you are a summoner you do get some sort of special treatment with all races." Bahamut said but Cael shrugged it off.

"I think a low profile would be best for us. I don't want to have to call upon you all the time. That's why I think we should at least try to get as much information gathered as possible." Cael said without turning to face his aeon.

After awhile he had accumulated a pile of books and carried them back down to the study.[/COLOR][/SIZE]