Lowthor
Idea Man
Lowthor
The town of freehaven at the tip of the peninsula that marked the southernmost extent of the straights of Gorandor. The body of water that seperated the isle of Gorandor from the mainland of the Meutal Empire. The town was gone, wiped from the face of Ayenee in a maelstrom of firey death. The priests in the Meutal capital cast their fortunes and predicted the end of the world. The great wizards in their towers thought that the world was already ending, and Planewalkers throughout every level of existence felt as if the fabric of reality had been ripped apart.
Only a small number of individuals knew what had truly occured. A creature imprisoned within the depths of the nine hells had escaped. Freed by the intervention of Bralgyrr; god of Chaos, Father of Lies and leader of the four. Bralgyrr never left his realm in the Abyss, but his actions caused the great hellwyrm to break free of its bonds, chains of power crafted millions of years ago from Hellish steel worked by Celestial hands.
The great hellwyrm had fled his prison, and broken through onto the material plane, and in the process killed thousands. It would become known as the tragedy of freehaven. A haven no longer, now a place of desolation where no life would ever thrive again. Then it took to the skies and headed inlan. It was spotted by numerous sources, and word began to spread. Something must be done, so adventurers, beast hunters, palladins, wizards and hundreds of others, began the hunt. It must be stopped.
Mithrandirxx
A soul at peace you could say, or atleast one who never dwelled on that which transpired before. Asana Tremon, a high elf Paladin who had dabbled in other fields of study over the years was one who had never heard of the town of Freehaven, but despite this it was a shock and an affront to Asana that such a marvalous town had been destroyed. Brandishing his twin rapiers Courage and Vengence he headed towards the ports that would take him across the sea to the lands that were once Freehaven.
Lowthor
The news of the destruction of Freehaven spread through the Empire and beyond like wildfire, and a number of benevolent organisations sought to determine the cause in the hope of preventing what happened to the once bustling port occuring elsewhere. Once such organisation was the Order of The Burning Blade; a Knightly order of spellswords spread across the lands with chapterhouses in most large cities, and a few in more remote locations where their members could train and plan. Baros of the Burning Blade, a human who was of the rank Knight Leutenant in the Order was dispatched to Freeport in order to investigate. He left the Imperial Capital City and rode southwest towards the ruins.
Aven
Bitterly ironic luck was on his side, it seemed. What better excuse to return to Freehaven than this? The terms had been clear, and had now been eliminated.
So what was stopping him? He chuckled and adjusted the dark leather strap which ran across his chest. Nothing. A dark grin crossed his features as he urged the roan beneath him forward, the ruins of the fallen city already visible on the horizon.
By all estimates it would take him another day or two to reach what was left of the port. The wyrm had moved on by now, it seemed, and an unlikely ally at that. Black hair whipped in the wind as the gelding broke into a stretched canter, his long strides swallowing up the hard ground with ease.
Two days.
Mithrandirxx
Day one of three and a half.
Asana arrived at the ship and looked across the great blue expanse his heart sinking as he looked to the horizon. He was a great warrior but he always hated water, or at least massive bodies of water. Swallowing hard he made his way up the gang plank and onto the deck of the ship.
The ship was to set sail by the end of the hour and Asana had stowed his gear below deck by the time the ship was under way. With each rise and fall of the ship upon the waves his eyes bulged and his stomac churned. " why didn't I just use magic, it would have been faster......" he said to himself before running onto the deck of the little ship and dropping his head over the side loosing his lunch.
The rest of the day was mainly devoted to prayer to Tyr, so that Asana would not be forced to vomit anymore of his internal organs over the side of the boat....
SJ
Lye sat with legs crossed under him, deep in concentration. His magical gifts were few, and his skill was nothing compared to those wizards in their towers. He required concentration and focus to work the simple spells he had managed to master.
When the hellwyrm was released, he was deep in a trance, using the magic to communicate with his cousin in freehaven.
"Yes, Eliza, the hunt went well. The pelt of the Maruvian Ape sold for enough to pay for my trip, so I should see you the day before the Moon Festival.
Good. My mum is cooking up that rhubarb pie you like so much. She's going to- .... hang on. Something just happened outside. I'll check to see what it is and contact you later."
That was the last Lye heard from his cousin. She never got back in touch with him, so here he was, on the road to see what had interrupted her. He had no doubt it was something silly like the Gravel Beetle had broken out of its pen again. She had just forgotten about him.
Thats what he kept telling himself at least, but no amount of convincing could get rid of that gnawing feeling in his stomach as he travelled towards freehaven. He avoided cities and towns on the way, so he had no idea what news there was to be had.
Lye was a hunter by trade. A trapper of furs, and guide for the nobles who enjoyed game hunting in foreign lands. He had a reputation as a capable young man, who had a knack for finding where the best place to be was for the perfect shot with a longbow. And of course, he enjoyed sharing his stories with the local rowdies at the tavern. He expected to have another whopper of a tale by the time he got back from freehaven.
Lowthor
The Emperor dispatched a Captain of the Imperial Bodyguard to investigate the sudden massive destruction of the town. They were concerned that the Gailan rebellion, who had already displayed uses of magic that contradicted everything that the Empire knew about the Gailan, were behind it. At least this was the information Baros had managed to gleam from the sullen and snobbish Imperial guard captain he'd been travelling with for the last few hours as they approached the city.
The sky was dark, filled with clouds of dust and ash from the fires. They sun was barely able to penetrate them. There was a faint smell of charred flesh on the air, carried inland by a sea breeze. The ground as far away as two miles from the city was baked hard and all of the plantlife had been charred, or when they drew closer, burn't to a crisp.
The town's walls were only a few feet high now, and they looked like they had actually been melted. The heat must have been as intense as anything ever seen, Baros thought to himself. When they rode through what remained of the gatehouse, the Captain cursed the name of the Gailan and spat into the ash that covered the ground.
They made their way into the main square of the town, and then the Captain spotted something. Baros spotted it a moment later, a red headed figure with long hair fluttering in the wind. He wore a blue coat, and Baros already suspected that he knew who it was. There wasn't time to think though as the Captain had drawn a sword and charged at the man. There was a clash of sword against sword, and then the red haired figure vanished. The captain swore again and looked around. A few moments later the man appeared at the other end of the square. Baros could feel the expenditure of magic, and his suspicions were corrent. It was the most wanted man in the Empire. Ranik of the Planar Citadel. One of Baros's oldest friends. Best not to let the Captain learn this though.
"Surrender yourself rebel. You will pay for what you did to this town." The captain shouted, and started walking his horse towards Ranik.
Ranik shook his head. "We were not the ones behind this. Do you really believe mortal magic could do this to a city." Ranik said and sheathed his sword.
"He is right." Baros said. "Besides the creature that did this was a dragon. Or so they are saying.."
Aven
The closer he got to the town, the more he slowed the horse down until the canter finally collapsed into a smart trot. The destruction was beyond what he had imagined. He had dealt with a dragon before, but nothing like this. The city stood in ruins, partially shattered, partially melted, jagged peaks competing with the glazed stone in a grotesque gallery of downfall.
A sickly-sweet scent tickled his nose, though he recognized it instantly and pulled the reins a bit tighter. Blackened branches, like claws, reached to the burnt sky from what trees remained, and everywhere, the ground was baked hard, molten, and barren. Shaking his head, he looked up, the city now only about half a mile away, and drew in a sharp breath. Even from this distance, he recognized the armor and carriage of an imperial guard. Perhaps this one would not recognize him as an exile from the city. Then again...he had every right to be here now. The roan tensed and skitted sideways, away from a barely-recognizable corpse on the ground. Patting its neck, he turned it slightly so he'd be coming at the city from the side, rather than right where the guard stood. There had been at least one other man as well, though he could have sworn there was a third. However, when he looked again, there were only two.
Mithrandirxx
A journey by water, day two of three and a half.
Asana's eyes narrowed upon the distant horizon hoping to see what they were going to encounter but even looking that far was a strain on the high elf's eyes. But what he could see so could every mortal for miles , the black tower of smoke and the haze that had been spread by the winds, chances of soot storms seemed likely which could delay most boats if any hot ash fell with it. Asana decided to act, although his strength was his divine magic, Arcane seemed to hold what he needed. As he spoke the words his hands slowly were enveloped with a greenish energy web. His control not wavering as he released the spell. It was merely a gust spell, something he had actually learned from a nobel who always wanted his robes to look wind blown but still have his hair in place.
The Spells effects were helpful to the extreme although its draw backs were less appealing to the crew. Because with that sail up, it seemed they were unable to catch any fish for dinner. However it seemed they had at least shaved off the last full day off their journey.
SJ
Lye crested a ridge and his breathe caught in his throat as he saw what was left of freehaven. It looked like he wouldn't be enjoying that pie after all.
He clearly saw movement so not all was dead. Perhaps there was a chance that his relatives were still alive. A slim hope, he knew, but there was only one way to truly find out.
Lye started heading down the ridge, towards the penninsula and the former city of freehaven.
Lowthor
"Not even a dragon could do this. Something burst through from one plane into this one. It is not unlike a giant stone being dropped into a pond. You cannot planewalk from here, you could end up anywhere." Ranik replied to Baros.
The Captain was still moving towards Ranik, but the red haired spellsword raised his free hand and pointed it at the Meutal. "Come any closer and I will kill you." He said. There was alread a red glow forming around the spread fingers of his raised hand. The captain brought his horse to a halt. When Ranik had taken part in a rescue of prisoners to be executed, the Captain had been present, and he recognised the spell Ranik was a single thought away from casting.
"Good", Ranik said. "My business here is concluded, but I will be generous and offer you some advice. If there was a dragon involved in this, it wont be your gold loving cave dwelling material plane dragon. It will be a planar beast, and a far more difficult challenge." Ranik nodded to Baros, allowed his spell to fade, and then turned to walk from the city. He took the road out that Baros and the Captain had used to make their approach, and would no doubt pass Lye on the way.
The Captain swore and turned to Baros. "You know that traitor to his blood?" He barked. "He should be strung up for siding with the Gailan, nevermind the crimes he's commited in their name."...
Mithrandirxx
End of a Sea Voyage~
As the boat sailed into the cove near the former harbors of Freehaven the scent of burned skin and melted mortar filled the air. Asana looked around the area slowly plotting which way he would go from here. The Damage was massive the loss of life staggering. Asana headed below deck and grabbed his gear before heading to the small boat that the crew had prepped for him.
As Soon as his boat was in the water and the abilical cable was cut the ship left with out a word. Although Asana had told them to wait he shrugged his shoulders before paddeling the boat towards the shore. " Well this looks far worse than I expected, Although there are some demons and arch devils that would do this kind of thing, yet I do not feel that they were responsible. " Paddeling for a few more minutes it was obviously about three in the afternoon when he finaly hit the coast.
Glancing back and forth over the chared remains of a once magnificent city he looked for the clues of what beast or man had done such a thing.
Aven
Muffled hoofbeats turned into sharp clatter as the roan broke upon melted cobblestone and rubble. The man's wary glance missed little as he slowly surveyed the destruction up close. Long black hair, drawn back into a series of braids along the sides of his head, and loose in the back, contrasted sharply with his deep crimson robe and golden choker. The horse's nostrils flared and its ears flickered to the right. He knew that it sensed the men a few blocks away, hopefully the only living beings he'd have to worry about for now. He stopped the gelding briefly and listened, but no sound reached his ears.
"Keanna would know more about this than I. I need to find her." he said more to himself than the silent death which hovered all around. But she would have to wait, for he was here now, and she was quite obviously not.
Touching the roan's flanks with his boots, they started forward again, oblivious to the ship in the harbour. He struggled to recognize any sort of landmark, and had almost given up hope on finding what he had come here for when he saw the mark. Though twisted in a post-molten form, the road still had a slightly reddish tint where the alley had been. The red road. He didn't know or care what its real name had been, only that it was still there. Black leather boots raised a fine cloud of soot and ash as they touched stone, him leading the horse by the reins. It was impossible for the man to know exactly where the object of his interest would be, as little was still distinguishable from the rest, but he could estimate. Quite well.
SJ
Lye began sifting his way though the rubble. He heads towards the home of his Eliza and her mother. He doesn't hold any hope at this point. He knows that he won't find anything. He just hopes to find something of their remains in order to give a proper burial.
He covers his nose and mouth with a cloth. He pauses for a moment, closes his eyes, and calms his thoughts. He considers using a spell to search for remains. Magical senses can be much more accurate than normal senses. And they don't make you nauseated. They can make you black out though, if they are overloaded. And judging by the damage, its a good chance that whatever caused this wasn't completely natural.
Lye opened his eyes and continued through the wreckage.
Lowthor
Ranik left the ruins of the town, and when he was clear of the strange side effects of the destruction, he was able to use his magic to planeshift. Once he'd returned to the Planar Citadel he made plans adapt to the loss of three agents who had been based in Freehaven. The dragon was a concern, but there was a war to be fought. Baros could contact him through a contact with the Order of the Burning Blade if he was needed...
..Baros looked at the Captain. The man was furious, and once you get past the man's superior attitude and his unwavering loyalty to the Empire it was simple enough to understand why. A big part of the Empire's hold on its citizens and serfs was that it could protect them. When an entire large town; almost a city in fact, could be destroyed like this it put the fear of the gods into the Meutal.
The Captain shot Baros a glare and then walked his horse back over to the spellsword. "Well then Sir Baros. Have you anything else to add? I noticed that you did not offer to assist me in the capture of Ranik."
Baros shook his head. "You know the code of my order Captain. We are not here to enforce your laws or anyone elses. Ours is a higher purpose, and taking sides in civil wars serves only to the detriment of that." Baros walked his horse away alittle and looked at one of the larger piles of melted stone.
"Have you ever seen the aftermath of a barrage from a Dwarven trebuchet team?" He asked the Captain.
The Captain had never served in the border provinces, so had not witnessed the campaigns of the last twenty years of expansion. The majority of the work had been done by mercenaries, the most successful company of which were Annoch's Hawks. They included a number of Dwarven siege engineers, who made particularly effective use of explosive trebuchet missiles.
"They explode in the air and the blast tends to melt anything too near to it. The town looks like something similar happened here. I'd say that it was near the centre of the merchant quarter from the pattern of the ruins."
Mithrandirxx
As Asana walked down the heat smoothed paths towards the center of the destruction he could tell there were other people here, perhaps looters taking what prizes they could from the dead. The smell of death was over powering almost like jumping into a crowd of zombies that were on fire. As his swords jingled upon his belt as he walked he knew full well that this was not any normal attack. The power of the destruction was far beyond any normal attack from anything on this plane. There was of course the chance it was a mage who had caused this , but it seemed unlikely that a mages power would see this chaotic.
Asana continued to muse to himself over the causes and possibilities of what the attacker was and how they had accumulated so much power, He stumbled and tripped hitting the ground with a satisfying thud for any who happened to be sadistic enough to hear it. Slowly picking himself up he glanced around his surroundings he had apparently misstepped upon a childs arm that was sticking out of the molten ground. His Heart wretched but he showed no visible sign of being upset. Standing slowly he kneeled by the hand and began to say a small prayer for the childs soul.
After a few moments of silence he stood once again and turned slowly back to his path of choice walking towards the center of the destruction he could see what looked like a man huddled over something, a grave robber perhaps or perhaps a survivor pulling out a family member. Asana quickly and quietly strode towards the man digging about the rubble his eyes narrowing upon him as he moved in closer " Pardon me, my good sir, but May I inquire what it is you are doing here ? " he said to Lye his hands resting on the hilts of his rapiers.
The town of freehaven at the tip of the peninsula that marked the southernmost extent of the straights of Gorandor. The body of water that seperated the isle of Gorandor from the mainland of the Meutal Empire. The town was gone, wiped from the face of Ayenee in a maelstrom of firey death. The priests in the Meutal capital cast their fortunes and predicted the end of the world. The great wizards in their towers thought that the world was already ending, and Planewalkers throughout every level of existence felt as if the fabric of reality had been ripped apart.
Only a small number of individuals knew what had truly occured. A creature imprisoned within the depths of the nine hells had escaped. Freed by the intervention of Bralgyrr; god of Chaos, Father of Lies and leader of the four. Bralgyrr never left his realm in the Abyss, but his actions caused the great hellwyrm to break free of its bonds, chains of power crafted millions of years ago from Hellish steel worked by Celestial hands.
The great hellwyrm had fled his prison, and broken through onto the material plane, and in the process killed thousands. It would become known as the tragedy of freehaven. A haven no longer, now a place of desolation where no life would ever thrive again. Then it took to the skies and headed inlan. It was spotted by numerous sources, and word began to spread. Something must be done, so adventurers, beast hunters, palladins, wizards and hundreds of others, began the hunt. It must be stopped.
Mithrandirxx
A soul at peace you could say, or atleast one who never dwelled on that which transpired before. Asana Tremon, a high elf Paladin who had dabbled in other fields of study over the years was one who had never heard of the town of Freehaven, but despite this it was a shock and an affront to Asana that such a marvalous town had been destroyed. Brandishing his twin rapiers Courage and Vengence he headed towards the ports that would take him across the sea to the lands that were once Freehaven.
Lowthor
The news of the destruction of Freehaven spread through the Empire and beyond like wildfire, and a number of benevolent organisations sought to determine the cause in the hope of preventing what happened to the once bustling port occuring elsewhere. Once such organisation was the Order of The Burning Blade; a Knightly order of spellswords spread across the lands with chapterhouses in most large cities, and a few in more remote locations where their members could train and plan. Baros of the Burning Blade, a human who was of the rank Knight Leutenant in the Order was dispatched to Freeport in order to investigate. He left the Imperial Capital City and rode southwest towards the ruins.
Aven
Bitterly ironic luck was on his side, it seemed. What better excuse to return to Freehaven than this? The terms had been clear, and had now been eliminated.
So what was stopping him? He chuckled and adjusted the dark leather strap which ran across his chest. Nothing. A dark grin crossed his features as he urged the roan beneath him forward, the ruins of the fallen city already visible on the horizon.
By all estimates it would take him another day or two to reach what was left of the port. The wyrm had moved on by now, it seemed, and an unlikely ally at that. Black hair whipped in the wind as the gelding broke into a stretched canter, his long strides swallowing up the hard ground with ease.
Two days.
Mithrandirxx
Day one of three and a half.
Asana arrived at the ship and looked across the great blue expanse his heart sinking as he looked to the horizon. He was a great warrior but he always hated water, or at least massive bodies of water. Swallowing hard he made his way up the gang plank and onto the deck of the ship.
The ship was to set sail by the end of the hour and Asana had stowed his gear below deck by the time the ship was under way. With each rise and fall of the ship upon the waves his eyes bulged and his stomac churned. " why didn't I just use magic, it would have been faster......" he said to himself before running onto the deck of the little ship and dropping his head over the side loosing his lunch.
The rest of the day was mainly devoted to prayer to Tyr, so that Asana would not be forced to vomit anymore of his internal organs over the side of the boat....
SJ
Lye sat with legs crossed under him, deep in concentration. His magical gifts were few, and his skill was nothing compared to those wizards in their towers. He required concentration and focus to work the simple spells he had managed to master.
When the hellwyrm was released, he was deep in a trance, using the magic to communicate with his cousin in freehaven.
"Yes, Eliza, the hunt went well. The pelt of the Maruvian Ape sold for enough to pay for my trip, so I should see you the day before the Moon Festival.
Good. My mum is cooking up that rhubarb pie you like so much. She's going to- .... hang on. Something just happened outside. I'll check to see what it is and contact you later."
That was the last Lye heard from his cousin. She never got back in touch with him, so here he was, on the road to see what had interrupted her. He had no doubt it was something silly like the Gravel Beetle had broken out of its pen again. She had just forgotten about him.
Thats what he kept telling himself at least, but no amount of convincing could get rid of that gnawing feeling in his stomach as he travelled towards freehaven. He avoided cities and towns on the way, so he had no idea what news there was to be had.
Lye was a hunter by trade. A trapper of furs, and guide for the nobles who enjoyed game hunting in foreign lands. He had a reputation as a capable young man, who had a knack for finding where the best place to be was for the perfect shot with a longbow. And of course, he enjoyed sharing his stories with the local rowdies at the tavern. He expected to have another whopper of a tale by the time he got back from freehaven.
Lowthor
The Emperor dispatched a Captain of the Imperial Bodyguard to investigate the sudden massive destruction of the town. They were concerned that the Gailan rebellion, who had already displayed uses of magic that contradicted everything that the Empire knew about the Gailan, were behind it. At least this was the information Baros had managed to gleam from the sullen and snobbish Imperial guard captain he'd been travelling with for the last few hours as they approached the city.
The sky was dark, filled with clouds of dust and ash from the fires. They sun was barely able to penetrate them. There was a faint smell of charred flesh on the air, carried inland by a sea breeze. The ground as far away as two miles from the city was baked hard and all of the plantlife had been charred, or when they drew closer, burn't to a crisp.
The town's walls were only a few feet high now, and they looked like they had actually been melted. The heat must have been as intense as anything ever seen, Baros thought to himself. When they rode through what remained of the gatehouse, the Captain cursed the name of the Gailan and spat into the ash that covered the ground.
They made their way into the main square of the town, and then the Captain spotted something. Baros spotted it a moment later, a red headed figure with long hair fluttering in the wind. He wore a blue coat, and Baros already suspected that he knew who it was. There wasn't time to think though as the Captain had drawn a sword and charged at the man. There was a clash of sword against sword, and then the red haired figure vanished. The captain swore again and looked around. A few moments later the man appeared at the other end of the square. Baros could feel the expenditure of magic, and his suspicions were corrent. It was the most wanted man in the Empire. Ranik of the Planar Citadel. One of Baros's oldest friends. Best not to let the Captain learn this though.
"Surrender yourself rebel. You will pay for what you did to this town." The captain shouted, and started walking his horse towards Ranik.
Ranik shook his head. "We were not the ones behind this. Do you really believe mortal magic could do this to a city." Ranik said and sheathed his sword.
"He is right." Baros said. "Besides the creature that did this was a dragon. Or so they are saying.."
Aven
The closer he got to the town, the more he slowed the horse down until the canter finally collapsed into a smart trot. The destruction was beyond what he had imagined. He had dealt with a dragon before, but nothing like this. The city stood in ruins, partially shattered, partially melted, jagged peaks competing with the glazed stone in a grotesque gallery of downfall.
A sickly-sweet scent tickled his nose, though he recognized it instantly and pulled the reins a bit tighter. Blackened branches, like claws, reached to the burnt sky from what trees remained, and everywhere, the ground was baked hard, molten, and barren. Shaking his head, he looked up, the city now only about half a mile away, and drew in a sharp breath. Even from this distance, he recognized the armor and carriage of an imperial guard. Perhaps this one would not recognize him as an exile from the city. Then again...he had every right to be here now. The roan tensed and skitted sideways, away from a barely-recognizable corpse on the ground. Patting its neck, he turned it slightly so he'd be coming at the city from the side, rather than right where the guard stood. There had been at least one other man as well, though he could have sworn there was a third. However, when he looked again, there were only two.
Mithrandirxx
A journey by water, day two of three and a half.
Asana's eyes narrowed upon the distant horizon hoping to see what they were going to encounter but even looking that far was a strain on the high elf's eyes. But what he could see so could every mortal for miles , the black tower of smoke and the haze that had been spread by the winds, chances of soot storms seemed likely which could delay most boats if any hot ash fell with it. Asana decided to act, although his strength was his divine magic, Arcane seemed to hold what he needed. As he spoke the words his hands slowly were enveloped with a greenish energy web. His control not wavering as he released the spell. It was merely a gust spell, something he had actually learned from a nobel who always wanted his robes to look wind blown but still have his hair in place.
The Spells effects were helpful to the extreme although its draw backs were less appealing to the crew. Because with that sail up, it seemed they were unable to catch any fish for dinner. However it seemed they had at least shaved off the last full day off their journey.
SJ
Lye crested a ridge and his breathe caught in his throat as he saw what was left of freehaven. It looked like he wouldn't be enjoying that pie after all.
He clearly saw movement so not all was dead. Perhaps there was a chance that his relatives were still alive. A slim hope, he knew, but there was only one way to truly find out.
Lye started heading down the ridge, towards the penninsula and the former city of freehaven.
Lowthor
"Not even a dragon could do this. Something burst through from one plane into this one. It is not unlike a giant stone being dropped into a pond. You cannot planewalk from here, you could end up anywhere." Ranik replied to Baros.
The Captain was still moving towards Ranik, but the red haired spellsword raised his free hand and pointed it at the Meutal. "Come any closer and I will kill you." He said. There was alread a red glow forming around the spread fingers of his raised hand. The captain brought his horse to a halt. When Ranik had taken part in a rescue of prisoners to be executed, the Captain had been present, and he recognised the spell Ranik was a single thought away from casting.
"Good", Ranik said. "My business here is concluded, but I will be generous and offer you some advice. If there was a dragon involved in this, it wont be your gold loving cave dwelling material plane dragon. It will be a planar beast, and a far more difficult challenge." Ranik nodded to Baros, allowed his spell to fade, and then turned to walk from the city. He took the road out that Baros and the Captain had used to make their approach, and would no doubt pass Lye on the way.
The Captain swore and turned to Baros. "You know that traitor to his blood?" He barked. "He should be strung up for siding with the Gailan, nevermind the crimes he's commited in their name."...
Mithrandirxx
End of a Sea Voyage~
As the boat sailed into the cove near the former harbors of Freehaven the scent of burned skin and melted mortar filled the air. Asana looked around the area slowly plotting which way he would go from here. The Damage was massive the loss of life staggering. Asana headed below deck and grabbed his gear before heading to the small boat that the crew had prepped for him.
As Soon as his boat was in the water and the abilical cable was cut the ship left with out a word. Although Asana had told them to wait he shrugged his shoulders before paddeling the boat towards the shore. " Well this looks far worse than I expected, Although there are some demons and arch devils that would do this kind of thing, yet I do not feel that they were responsible. " Paddeling for a few more minutes it was obviously about three in the afternoon when he finaly hit the coast.
Glancing back and forth over the chared remains of a once magnificent city he looked for the clues of what beast or man had done such a thing.
Aven
Muffled hoofbeats turned into sharp clatter as the roan broke upon melted cobblestone and rubble. The man's wary glance missed little as he slowly surveyed the destruction up close. Long black hair, drawn back into a series of braids along the sides of his head, and loose in the back, contrasted sharply with his deep crimson robe and golden choker. The horse's nostrils flared and its ears flickered to the right. He knew that it sensed the men a few blocks away, hopefully the only living beings he'd have to worry about for now. He stopped the gelding briefly and listened, but no sound reached his ears.
"Keanna would know more about this than I. I need to find her." he said more to himself than the silent death which hovered all around. But she would have to wait, for he was here now, and she was quite obviously not.
Touching the roan's flanks with his boots, they started forward again, oblivious to the ship in the harbour. He struggled to recognize any sort of landmark, and had almost given up hope on finding what he had come here for when he saw the mark. Though twisted in a post-molten form, the road still had a slightly reddish tint where the alley had been. The red road. He didn't know or care what its real name had been, only that it was still there. Black leather boots raised a fine cloud of soot and ash as they touched stone, him leading the horse by the reins. It was impossible for the man to know exactly where the object of his interest would be, as little was still distinguishable from the rest, but he could estimate. Quite well.
SJ
Lye began sifting his way though the rubble. He heads towards the home of his Eliza and her mother. He doesn't hold any hope at this point. He knows that he won't find anything. He just hopes to find something of their remains in order to give a proper burial.
He covers his nose and mouth with a cloth. He pauses for a moment, closes his eyes, and calms his thoughts. He considers using a spell to search for remains. Magical senses can be much more accurate than normal senses. And they don't make you nauseated. They can make you black out though, if they are overloaded. And judging by the damage, its a good chance that whatever caused this wasn't completely natural.
Lye opened his eyes and continued through the wreckage.
Lowthor
Ranik left the ruins of the town, and when he was clear of the strange side effects of the destruction, he was able to use his magic to planeshift. Once he'd returned to the Planar Citadel he made plans adapt to the loss of three agents who had been based in Freehaven. The dragon was a concern, but there was a war to be fought. Baros could contact him through a contact with the Order of the Burning Blade if he was needed...
..Baros looked at the Captain. The man was furious, and once you get past the man's superior attitude and his unwavering loyalty to the Empire it was simple enough to understand why. A big part of the Empire's hold on its citizens and serfs was that it could protect them. When an entire large town; almost a city in fact, could be destroyed like this it put the fear of the gods into the Meutal.
The Captain shot Baros a glare and then walked his horse back over to the spellsword. "Well then Sir Baros. Have you anything else to add? I noticed that you did not offer to assist me in the capture of Ranik."
Baros shook his head. "You know the code of my order Captain. We are not here to enforce your laws or anyone elses. Ours is a higher purpose, and taking sides in civil wars serves only to the detriment of that." Baros walked his horse away alittle and looked at one of the larger piles of melted stone.
"Have you ever seen the aftermath of a barrage from a Dwarven trebuchet team?" He asked the Captain.
The Captain had never served in the border provinces, so had not witnessed the campaigns of the last twenty years of expansion. The majority of the work had been done by mercenaries, the most successful company of which were Annoch's Hawks. They included a number of Dwarven siege engineers, who made particularly effective use of explosive trebuchet missiles.
"They explode in the air and the blast tends to melt anything too near to it. The town looks like something similar happened here. I'd say that it was near the centre of the merchant quarter from the pattern of the ruins."
Mithrandirxx
As Asana walked down the heat smoothed paths towards the center of the destruction he could tell there were other people here, perhaps looters taking what prizes they could from the dead. The smell of death was over powering almost like jumping into a crowd of zombies that were on fire. As his swords jingled upon his belt as he walked he knew full well that this was not any normal attack. The power of the destruction was far beyond any normal attack from anything on this plane. There was of course the chance it was a mage who had caused this , but it seemed unlikely that a mages power would see this chaotic.
Asana continued to muse to himself over the causes and possibilities of what the attacker was and how they had accumulated so much power, He stumbled and tripped hitting the ground with a satisfying thud for any who happened to be sadistic enough to hear it. Slowly picking himself up he glanced around his surroundings he had apparently misstepped upon a childs arm that was sticking out of the molten ground. His Heart wretched but he showed no visible sign of being upset. Standing slowly he kneeled by the hand and began to say a small prayer for the childs soul.
After a few moments of silence he stood once again and turned slowly back to his path of choice walking towards the center of the destruction he could see what looked like a man huddled over something, a grave robber perhaps or perhaps a survivor pulling out a family member. Asana quickly and quietly strode towards the man digging about the rubble his eyes narrowing upon him as he moved in closer " Pardon me, my good sir, but May I inquire what it is you are doing here ? " he said to Lye his hands resting on the hilts of his rapiers.
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