The Edge of Shadow || Original RP || IC Thread

[Hack Thornias]

So, Master Thornias, can you use Magic?"

Victor chuckled at the word Master, “Please, just call me Victor, it’s rare when I don’t have to act formal and all noble. As to your question…..” he let the comment hang in the air while he reached for his powers of Illusion and willed into existence a pack of wolves.

The constructs were not perfect because his focus wasn’t completely on them, but the general details were there. If you were to get closer you could see that the hair was just a sold color, no individual hair, and the details were like blurry outlines. Wanting to at least make Kelevra laugh he decided to have a bit of fun. With a thought he made the wolves all stand on their hind legs and start dancing and howling in tune with a popular song.

He felt the energy slipping away so he ended the illusion and turned towards Kelevra, “Illusions are my forte, I’m also a Sensor and have some talents in Shapeshifting but Illusions really are my specialty.”


As they walked he considered the fact that Kelevra was a Magic wielder as well and wondered just what powers he had.

“What about you? Besides Teleporting what can you do?”

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Victor Thornias

"Well," Kelevra said. He reached to his belt and removed a basic looking dagger, then held it to his wrist and slashed. Blood poured rather quickly...

The reactions he received were always why he did this. He held the dagger up so Victor could get a good look at it. Then he wiggled his fingers and the dagger evaporated. Then he held his wrist up and there was no cut, no blood.

"I'm an illusionist as well... I also ha-" A Wendigo roar cut him off. It sounded behind them, just over the top of a hill...

Another display he favored simply for the reactions. He laughed. "Don't fret. That was me. My natural talent is with Physical Manipulation. Such as making sounds appear out of nowhere."

Suddenly he realized this situation could be akin to The Boy Who Cried Werewolf.

"But I won't be doing that again." He said, partially because his energy was waning, and he was already weak from his earlier teleport. But also because he didn't want anyone letting their guard down until they were off The Plains. "If you hear another roar like that, it won't be because of me."

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra LeCarde

“Still, that ability can still be very useful. And that illusion was also fantastic, I’ll have to keep that one in mind.”

So Kelevra was a Physical Manipulator and a Illusionist, and he could fight it seemed, so the man definitely had talents. It was a shame that Lord Dorian had done what he had to the young man, he was sure that Kelevra would have been extremely significant in future plans.

Speaking of Lord Dorian Victor realized that he needed to somehow get word to the Lord that he had been delayed. He should have actually been arriving in Dorian late today or early tomorrow. But now it seems that it was going to take several more days to reach him. If only he had a raven.
As they walked Victor thought he could finally see the edge of the plains, a sight he was more than happy to see.

“Is that the boundary of the plains up ahead?” he asked Kelevra, personally Victor could not wait to be done with this place, he always hated traveling through the area but it was better than taking Azazel’s pass. Gods know that many a traveler have disappeared going through that place.

Just when he thought he was out of the woods so to speak, a Wendigo roar was heard again. Glancing at Kelevra he asked, “Please tell me that was you again.”

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: Port of Overlord Slade.
Speaking With: Servants

Overlord Slade sat in his throne room in his capitol as his war generals laid out their plans for their first assault into expanding their territory. The generals were suggesting an all out assault using their fleet as shock troops to weaken the three cities of whale tail bay and then drop their troops to invade. The Overlord was tired of this pointless bickering however, and he had his own plan to conquer the lands that were rightfully his. Speaking from his throne he called down to the generals gathered below.

“Enough. I want the three cities taken at once, I want there to be no opportunity for the militaries of each city to flee to the others. For that we will send half the fleet to whale tail bay and half of the army to march to the three cities. Have the fleet blockade the inlets to the three cities and have our army blockade the trade routes. Soon enough the people will run out of supplies and begin to starve. After that it is simply a matter of time for their resolve will weaken.”

“But sir, you’re talking about letting innocents suffer and die and possibly our own men. Our plan would minimize those casualties by assaulting the cities from sea. If they fight on land we’d probably lose a quarter of the battalions.”

The general that spoke was a newer member of the war council, Slade couldn’t be bothered to learn the man’s name but his words were of dissent, of Slade being incorrect. He rose from this throne and slowly descended the steps to the floor of his throne room, where the generals stood.

“You dare to challenge me?” He spoke barely above a whisper while insanity and malice danced in his eyes. “ I am the OVERLORD OF DRATHIA AND I WILL HAVE YOUR OBEDIENCE!” He roared at the generals as he drew his sword and with a single stroke, beheaded the man who dared to question him.

He picked up the now detached head and spoke the rest of the generals who were spattered with blood and had looks of guilt and fear on their faces. “I will not tolerate my orders being questioned. But still, he did have a point. Send a raven to the three cities and let it be known that if the cities willingly submit to my rule will not crush them. They will be occupied by three battalions each, yet I promise no harm will come to them unless they rebel or one of the Guilds decides to cause issues If that happens we will kill ten people every day until the violence stops. I will install a overseer of each city who will run them as my proxy. Oh, and, the cities will pay a tithe for their occupation.”

Glancing at the scribe who was writing furiously in the corner to catch every word the Overlord said and wondered if it was time to replace him. But before that would be decided he asked,

“Did you get all that Scribe?”

The young man jumped when he was addressed but nodded and said with a submissive voice, “Yes, Your Majesty. I’ll send your instructions to the Raven Master myself.”

Slade gestured for him to go and then turned on the Generals who grouped together ever so slightly when he approached. “Get another man to replace the one you lost, and this time, make sure he knows his place. Understand?”

The generals nodded that they did and so with a dismissive flick of his hand, he waved them away. As they left he smiled and licked the blood that had splattered on him from the beheading. He still had the head in his hand and he passed it to a servant as he retook the throne, “Feed it to the hounds. He’ll at least be good for something.”

He smiled as the taste of blood slid its way down his throat while he imagined the war that was to come.

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: Northeast edge of Wendgo Plains
Speaking With: Victor Thornias

“Is that the boundary of the plains up ahead?” Victor asked. Kelevra looked up and breathed a sigh of relief. His heart lifted at the sight of the landmarks that made the border between Wendigo Plains and the rest of Drathia.

The roar sounded. Kelevra's heart dropped. The walk hadn't give him proper time to recover his energy.

I should have asked to ride the bloody horse. Kelevra cursed his stubbornness. He was trying to discipline himself, and now he'd possibly killed himself and Victor.

“Please tell me that was you again.”

".... It wasn't..." Kelevra quickly began trying to figure a way out of this. A way he could escape without using Victor as bait. There weren't many options. Wendigos were smart, and moved faster than any man (or animal for that matter) could hope to.

Other than weaving a distracting illusion, which wouldn't fool the Wendigo for more than a few seconds, since neither Victor or Kelevra would stick around to maintain it, he didn't see anyway out...

But then he found it. "Victor... Quickly. Kill your horse." Kelevra winced at the idea. He didn't know how close this man and his beast were, but it was obvious that the horse was well trained, so surely there was some time spent between the two. "Grab the bags, kill the horse, and we run and hope the Wendigo takes the horse instead of taking us."

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra LeCarde

"Grab the bags, kill the horse, and we run and hope the Wendigo takes the horse instead of taking us."

Kill Alduin? The idea was unthinkable to Victor, they’d been together since he was a colt and Victor a young man. And now Kelevra was requesting him to kill his favorite companion. He was about to say to Kelevra exactly what he could do with that sword of his when he saw the Wendigo crest the hill.

The creature invoked terror in Victor’s heart and he realized that Kelevra was right… it was the only way.

Drawing his sword he stared into Alduin’s large brown eyes and said, “I’m sorry old friend. I always thought of you as my best friend. Good bye.”

He raised his sword above his head and cast a illusion on Alduin to make him believe that there was nothing wrong. With a thrust he shoved the blade into his horse’s heart, twisting it as soon as it was to the hilt. Alduin gave out a small cry and then collapsed onto the ground, dead.
With tears in his eyes he grabbed the bags from his horse and turned to Kelevra,
“I hope you can run. And you were right. It was the only way.”

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: Northeast edge of Wendigo Plains
Speaking With: Victor Thornias

I didn't think he would actually do it... Kelevra thought to himself. He was expecting Victor to refuse, or to make Kelevra do it. But he had done it himself and, oddly, Kelevra was impressed.

He and Victor began running. Kelevra thought it best not to waste his breath on words. But when he looked over his shoulder, he couldn't help but say, [********]

The Wendigo had stopped and grabbed the horse. It had picked it up with two of it's four arms, and ripped it into pieces. But that wasn't what bothered Kelevra. It was that there were two other Wendigos cresting over the hill. It was hopeless.

"Don't look back!" He yelled at Victor. "But they're in a pack of three! Since when do Wendigos run in packs?!" He knew they were all part of the same tribe long ago. As history told it, they were all migrating east when they were caught in a blizzard. They ended up having to eat each other, which is what made them into Wendigos. But ever since then, Wendigos had run separately. They were too competitive over food. And now they were suddenly working together and sharing?

Kelevra knew they were doomed. There was no way they could get away safely unless they teleported, and Kelevra just didn't have it in him to do it again. Even if he had the energy to teleport the both of them, he still wasn't entirely sure how to do it on purpose.

Kelevra glanced over his shoulder quickly, the Wendigos were fast approaching.

He looked back in front of himself and Victor... About fifty yards away, a man was standing, watching. He drew two swords... Then disappeared.

The Wendigo's screamed.

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: Northeast edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Victor and Kelevra

Kostro watched as the two men ran toward him. He watched as the Wendigos chased them. He had even watched moments earlier when the flamboyantly dressed fellow had killed his horse. It was a strange thing to witness, but desperate times often called for equally desperate measures.

With an amused smiled, Kostro drew his dual swords, spat on the ground, set his swords aflame with magic, and teleported in. He placed himself just infront of the Wendigos, and thrust both his swords.... Contact. Both Wendigos screamed. It was oddly human, but still somehow beastly and evil.

He ripped his blades free from their torsos, but not before giving them a twist. The beasts collapsed. Not dead, but surprised. But they were up again within the second. With one hand, they covered the wound, while they threw wild swings and tried to claw at Kostro with their other three arms. Kostro dodged each hit. Normally he could dodge wild throws like this from men with little effort. But Wendigos were big and fast, so it wasn't too easy.

Kostro teleported behind them, grabbed each of them by their mane and teleported away, bringing the two Wendigos with him...


..... A moment later, he teleported back to where the other two men were, landing right in front of them. One Wendigo remained, but it was busy ripping the horse to pieces and figuring out a way to carry it all back to it's hole without wasting any.

He looked at both the men, released the magic fire on his blades, and sheathed them.

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra & Kostro

As they sprinted the best Victor could hope for was that they would have a quick death. Alduin was gone, they were in a dead sprint against two other Wendigos that had come out of nowhere. He began to pray to the Gods that somehow they would make it out alive.

The Gods it seemed, took pity on the two men for suddenly a figure came into view, standing there. It drew two swords and then vanished. He heard the Wendigos scream so he turned around and saw probably the best use of physical manipulation and teleporting he had ever witnessed. It was full of finesse, cunning, skill, and it scared the hell out of Victor.

When the battle was over he was stunned, a single man had taken on two Wendigos and had come out more or less the victor. He honestly didn’t know what to think or to say, but one thing was certain, he was VERY suspicious of that man. He had a look like he had seen death many times and would again.

Bowing his head to the man he said, “Thank you good sir for saving us. We would have died if you hadn’t stepped in.”

He thought it would be best to try and be friendly towards this man, he was too good a fighter to pick a fight with. Although Victor thought in a pinch he could throw a illusion around the man that would warp his senses for a few minutes. But that would be a last resort, he HAD to get to Lord Dorian.

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: Northeast edge of Wendigo Plains
Speaking With: Victor & Kelevra

“Thank you good sir for saving us. We would have died if you hadn’t stepped in.” The flamboyantly dressed man stated. Kostro eyed him suspiciously. His fashion had him pinned as a noble, which more than likely meant he was involved with the Families of Power. Not that he personally had anything against those families, but those families would sure have something against him.

The other, however, was dressed in a simple black shirt, black vest, and black pants. His cleanliness was probably the only thing that gave him away as a noble... Probably not too high on the political food chain. Probably didn't even care much about politics at all.

"Yes, thank you." The black-clad man said.

"Clever trick, killing the horse. It takes a certain something to put down your own animal... I'm impressed." Kostro said. And it wasn't much of a lie. His ferret, Lana, was the only thing he cared about. The only thing he felt he could protect with absolute certainty. He couldn't imagine being the one to kill her. "It would have worked if there hadn't been two more Wendigos... And now you're going to have to walk to Dorian."

Kostro smiled. Perhaps he had been watching this pair a little longer than before the Wendigo attack...

"My name is Varys Alduin." He lied."I'm a Sellsword from the south."

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra & Kostro

"My name is Varys Alduin. I'm a Sellsword from the south."

Victor analyzed the man with a critical eye, for once he was glad he had spent years in politics and maneuverings of those in power. He was fairly certain the man had lied, but about what he could not tell. Was it his name, his occupation, or his place of origin?

Still, the man had a intriguing personality, his comment about his horse did little to allay his grief but it did make him feel a little better about the choice.

“If we’re walking the rest of the way I’m getting rid of a few things.” He began to tug off his robes and his shoes, he knew that they were flamboyant but in his station, sometimes the illusion of power created power itself. Underneath he had a deep violet shirt, black pants and he pulled black boots out of his bag. Yes violet was his favorite color, it always had been since he was a child. “Good thing I packed for travel.” ” As he strapped his sword back onto his belt he looked at the two men, “Shall we get going?”

Before they got going however, he had a question about Varys... “How did you know we were headed to Dorian?” he asked, the question had important undertones to it, there was no way the man could know their destination unless he had watched them, or had made a extremely lucky guess.

Victor had a suspicion about this man, his combat training was too good to be a Sellsword, he had a hunch the man was Guild. It would be a problem if he was however, Victor remembered the last time a Guild member had been found in Lusca… it had taken two dozen guards to finally subdue the Guild Member. Even under torture the man had given nothing about what Guild he belonged to and what his mission had been. For now however, he’d keep an eye on the man if he was going to travel with them.

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: Northeast edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra & Victor

"Because I was listening to your conversation by the lake earlier." Kostro said, ever confident, not worrying at all about what may come from pissing off either of these two amateurs. "Pardon me for eavesdropping. But a certain someone wants to make sure you make it to your destination safely..."

Kostro dropped his hands to his side and looked at the black-clad fellow., then back to the not-so-flamboyantly-dressed-anymore man.

"I told you... I'm a Sellsword." Which wasn't a complete lie. He kind of was... He was the kind of Sellsword that people hired to quietly slit throats and turn people into bodies. "I was hired to make sure your new friend here stays safe. You just happened to show up. I was told to keep my distance unless things got too dangerous." This was true. He was told not to show himself unless needed. "Then things got dangerous... So here I am."

The fact that it wasn't a complete lie felt pretty good to him. The truth was a pleasant thing to tell every now and then, seeing as an Assassin like Kostro was required to tell lies in order to live.

"On the bright side, I have two horses just near the road." Kostro looked over at the man dressed in black, who was eying him suspiciously. "I have no intention of hurting either of you. I'm not a stupid man. If I wanted to rob you, I would have just waited until the Wendigos were done sucking the marrow from your bones. If I wanted you dead, I would have killed you by now. Let's walk to the road and get the horses. We'll ride to Sa' Kari, make it there before midnight, and then we can all part ways and I can get paid."

[Hack Thornias]

Current Location: North-eastern edge of Wendigo Plains.
Speaking With: Kelevra & Kostro

Victor could see little choice but go along with this man, this Varys. He was right, he could very easily kill them if he wanted to and he didn’t have to save them from the Wendigos. But why would someone want Kelevra to make it to his destination safely? What made him so important?

He made a mental note that as soon as they reach Sa’Kari that he would send multiple ravens requesting information on this young man. He would also find out if this Varys Alduin was exactly who he said he was. Alduin… the name suddenly struck his mind like a physical blow. His last name was the name of his dearly departed horse…

Victor went rigid as this thought consumed him, pieces began falling into place as he thought about it. This man had been observing them for sometime without being detected, something that Victor’s Sensory powers would have picked up on if he was using magic. His combat skills were incredible and his use of magic in conjunction was almost on a mastery level. He was Guild. Of that Victor was certain, but he knew he didn’t stand a chance. His only hope was to get to Sa’Kari alive.

“Very well, lead on Varys Alduin.”

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: On the road from Wendigo Plains to Sa' Kari
Speaking With: Victor & Kelevra

Kostro led them toward the road, and found his horses grazing nearby. "You two are going to have to share. I only brought a spare horse for Kelevra, if he ended up needing it." He told Kelevra and Victor.

He climbed onto his own horse and looked at the other two men. Kelevra was obviously still hesitant. Perhaps it was the name that he had chosen... After all, it was chosen to bother both men equally. It was chosen to show he knew a little more about each of them than he let on.

... An idea that was surely going to be alluring to a man like Kelevra LeCarde.

Kelevra was the first to climb on the horse. "I guess that makes you the girl." He said to Victor.

Kostro thought back to a day, long ago. When he had first met Victor... Well, meeting wasn't exactly the right word. He had been called in to assassinate his father's Master of Coin, who had been stealing gold and using it to fund some of Overlord Slade's weapon purchases. The man had to die. Kostro had entered their home through Victor's bedroom window and then proceeded on with the assassination. Before anyone had noticed, he had also exited through Victor's window.

The thought humored Kostro. Victor had been merely a teenager at the time, and now he was much older, but still looked quite the same as he had all those years ago.

Kelevra, on the other hand, looked nothing like he had when Kostro had first met him. Kostro had come to the LeCarde estate to gather information on Varys, who was Kelevra's grandfather, on his father's side. A loathsome old cockroach, he was. He had a personal affinity for children. He was a sadistic *****, and on more than one occasion, he'd killed a child... But that all ended when he was caught by Kelevra.

[Kelevra Black]

Current Location: On the road from Wendigo Plains to Sa' Kari.
Speaking With: Victor & Kostro

Varys... The name stabbed into Kelevra... He was instantly suspicious of the man. Curious, though lured in by his skill. But now Kelevra was cautious. The name... Varys.

Kelevra followed him to the horse, but as he hopped into the saddle, he couldn't help but think back to that day...

..
..
..
..
..


"Kelevra...." His grandfather said as Kelevra barged into the room. Kelevra walked to the bed, and looked at the girl...

"Grandfather... Is she dead?" Kelevra nudged the little girl. She wasn't moving. She wasn't breathing. Her eyes were open, but they were glassy, as if she was watching her own soul depart from this world.

".... Yes. She was very ill. I was trying to help her recover." His grandfather said. Kelevra was only eleven years old, and the girl must have been only a year older than he was.

"You aren't a maester... And what illness requires her to be nude for treatment?" Kelevra said. He knew his grandfather was lying. He knew what had happened. But he also wondered if his grandfather would be able to admit it.

"She... had a terrible fever... Her clothes had to be shed so her body could cool."

"You're lying!" Kelevra spat out.

"Boy! You will show me respect, I am your elder and your grandfather!"

"You're a murderer, Varys! A *****... and I will be sure that my father hears of this!" Kelevra turned to run, but his grandfather grabbed him quickly and threw him into the mirror. It shattered beneath Kelevra's body.

Kelevra grabbed a piece in his hand and slashed as his grandfather tried to pick him up again. There was a smooth, yet resistant slide as the glass cut flesh. Kelevra looked down and saw his Grandfather's leg bleeding. It was a deep cut, and it must have hit an artery because the blood was flowing quickly. He looked into his grandfather's eyes... They were scared...

"Please. Call a maester, Kelevra. I don't want to die." His grandfather, Varys had begged.

Kelevra stared at him blankly. Not sure what to do. His fear had him frozen, but he regained his composure after a few seconds. "Neither did that little girl."

Kelevra plunged the shard of glass deep into Varys' neck... repeatedly...

.... The next day, Kelevra reported what had happened, but instead blamed his grandfather's murder on some commoner, saying it may have been the dead little girl's father.


... Kelevra snapped back to the present and looked over at the man who had saved him and Victor. Whoever he was, he knew the truth of what Kelevra had done all those years ago. That was a certainty.