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 Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2009 10:40 pm
Mikaril moaned slightly; he supposed Kyil hadn't notice his reluctance to mention the place at all, or its location. He had come out here to get away from his House, and he never felt as secure as when he was far away from Undrek'Thoz and his House full of drow who either looked down on him or wanted to kill him. He supposed he could swallow his dread and make the trip for his friend's sake, especially after all Kyil had done for him recently, but if it was all the same, he would exercise every other option before trying that route.
Taking Kyil's sudden hesitiation eagerly, Mikaril nodded. "Yes, it is quite dangerous, especially to someone who has never travelled outside of his city. But I have been out there many times, and though it's impossible to guarantee completely safe passage, I would like to think I stand as good a chance as any of getting you through the Underdark safely."
He resumed pondering, this time as to how they would test Kyil's newfound abilites. He figured that it would be simpler than it sounded; this was a drow's world, and it was SO HARD to find magical items in the Underdark; about as hard as finding light on the surface. If they could fins a few inexpensive trinkets, try stealing their magics and planting them on other non-magical objects, and Mikaril himself already knew one spell, albeit a non-agressive one. Perhaps if they acquired a simple wand with some minor attacks.....
His thoughts were really taking off now. He would have to do more thievery (and for goodness sake be more careful this time!) to get some money; shouldn't be too terribly hard. One thing that had gone right during that botched job was that their disguises had both stayed on; for the time being, they were still two nameless thieves in a city where at least half the population were thieves, going off the definition.
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Posted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 3:52 pm
Sadly Kyil, as astute as he could be sometimes, was simply a bit too preoccupied to catch the hesitation. By mentioning the place of learning Kyil had assumed that it would be a viable option. Still...to travel through the Underdark wilds... Kyil glanced down at his own hands as his brows furrowed. "I do not doubt your skill Master...but I nearly got you killed with a simple lesson. I do not think it would be wise to tempt fate by taking someone who is utterly unskilled and defenseless into such a dangerouse place. You would have to watch over me as well as yourself and I fear that it would lead to a unpleasent end for either or both of us. Perhaps we should stay here in the city until you deem me capable of ventureing into the wilds?" Even if it meant waiting much longer to learn about himself...
Unconsciously Kyil flexed the fingers of the hand which he had used to steal away the magical energies of the spell cage. He did want to try it again... Now that he knew a little bit about this power...and that he possessed it, Kyil desired to practice with it.
Mikaril appeared to be...caught in thought. So Kyil gave him a few moments of silence to turn over those thoughts. In the meantime... Kyil shifted himself to where he had left the fish and resumed cleaning them.
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Posted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 7:48 pm
Mikaril hated to admit it, but Kyil did have a point when he mentioned not being skilled enough to survive the wild Underdark. Doing what he did with spells was an extraordinary skill, but out in the Underdark, one was more likely to encounter brute force and natural weaponry than spells and magics. Things like hook horrors and elementals probably wouldn't be swayed by Kyil's particular talent.
At any rate, staying in the city was just fine by him. Although sooner or later he was going to have to send some sort of relay to try and find out what was going on at House Torlyl, if there was anything going on at all. Even if all was as it had been, he would be at ease knowing that his mother was still in charge, for as long as it lasted. Sooner or later, he knew, Haellara must take over. Being the only daughter, it was only a matter of time.
Mikaril suddenly became distracted as the smell of fish grew stronger. He sat up all the way and watched Kyil as he cleaned the fish. They had a nice smell to them; it reminded him of the Glimmersea. How long had it been since he had last sailed on it's inky waters, with the mineral veins gleaming overhead? He needed to take Kyil at least that far someday.
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Posted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 8:12 pm
Mikaril's movement drew Kyil's attention. he looked up, and flashed his friend a smile. "Is your appitite returning Master? I can make us something nice to eat. There's the water nearby and I was able to catch some fish. I have some herbs, berries, and mushrooms that I can possibly make a nice meal out of. You probably should eat a bit...." Kyil scraped the slender bones of the fish to one side and dipped the fish meat intot he water to clean it off. "Something solid in your stomach will be good for you."
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Posted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 10:48 pm
Mikaril shrugged, not giving much thought about it until now. It probably should have occured to him why he had been out for a week and not feeling as though his insides were feeding upon themselves. He did remember an instance or two when Kyil had seemed to be feeding him, including the one that his fever had been warped, but he honestly would have quite a time sorting out which visions were reality and which were pure fever-induced fabrications.
"I suppose," he said with a shrug. "Though I would like to ask that if you must insist on using mushrooms, can I trouble you to disguise them so that they don't resemble mushrooms? I still get the creeps when I see them, even if I know they aren't the kind Haellara is fond of." He wanted to ask if he could help, but there was no guarantee that Kyil wouldn't tie him up just for asking to ensure that he stayed in bed. He didn't think he was ever going to get used to being fussed over.
Instead he focused more on the possibilites of exercising Kyil's newfound power. It was a good thing they had chosen a marketplace area for their hideaway; it would make it easier to acquire the items needed for their made-from-scratch training. And who knows; they might even come across a bookseller and find something pertaining to spell thieves. It was always worth a shot.
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Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 7:46 am
Kyil seemed rather pleased by Mikaril's answer. Even though he did look partly perplexed over the mentioning of mushrooms. "I am certain I can manage something Mikaril" He replied.
The next few moments would be silent ones as Kyil would work on prepareing the meal. He needed to get a small fire started, his eyes squinting at the unpleasent light and the pain the bright flickering flames gave him. After which he busied himself with more of his impromptu cooking. The cave simply did not have the conviences that Kyil had been spoiled with. As he cooked, he glanced at Mikaril. Partly to keep a eye on his friend and ensure he did not slip off into sleep unepxectantly. In part to study the throughtful gaze. He had to be putting a great deal of thought into something, and Kyil really did wonder what that could be.
"Mikaril...we will be staying in this cave for quite a time yes? Do you have any suggestions on..well...improvements we could make? I put some pegs in the walls to hang our things up. And I've placed dried weed mats out in front of the cave enterance in case anything wanders by.... I was thinking maybe we could...I don't know...make it a bit more civilized somehow?"
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Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 10:26 pm
Noticing Kyil's puzzled look, Mikaril tried to remember whether or not he had ever mentioned that one particular phobia of his with the mushrooms. He couldn't look at one without thinking of the special ones Haellara grew and used specifically in her play. He figured it didn't matter now; Kyil had probably just drawn the conclusion that he didn't like mushrooms.
He flinched at the light, knowing it was a necessary pain to produce fish that tasted good; he knew fish cooked with fire was better as opposed to boiling, which was what he usually had to make do with whenever he had caught fish in his travels. Fire was something he really hated to use; it had a tendency to attract unwanted guests to your camp.
"Improvements?" Mikaril looked at Kyil with an odd expression and fell back to pondering. Whenever he had found a suitable hiding spot in the past, his goal was usually to make it seem as unoccupied as possible; leaving little trace that someone had stopped there. Adding decoration was an entirely new idea for him. But it wasn't an entirely unattractive one. It certainly was appealing to have a home away from home, like his sanctuary inside his House.
"Well, speaking from a practical point of view, the first thing I would look into would be some form of protection for the cave entrance. The mats are good, but a bit of extra precaution wouldn't hurt." He pondered more on what had made his sanctuary so appealing to him besides the wards. "Shelves, to display things on. And books maybe, ones we can read by the light of glows instead of those stinging candles. And....." his thoughts traveled back to the westernmost corner of his sanctuary, where a small bush resided, feeding off of a muted magical light and giving forth delicate fragrant flowers.....
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Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 6:23 pm
The fish cooked quickly under the fire. It was one of the few things that Kyil liked about the bright and hot thing. Food often finished much more quickly. He had mashed the mushrooms up into a sort of fungusy paste, and mixed in a moss like herb that he hoped made the mushrooms less...obvious... Dabbing the fire cooked fish into the paste, he returned it to the fire only long enough for it to harden into a bit more dry coating.
It was this that he brought to Mikaril to eat. On two seperate flat rocks that served as plates, he handed the 'battered fish' to his friend and sat beside him to eat his own piece with his fingers.
"Mmm." Kyil hummed softly, not out of enjoyment of the fish. But rather for an idea that he had. He lifted a finger, and swallowed his bite before he continued. "Protection. I was thinking Master. We could probably provide outselves with a lot of these small things easily enough if we look into a few of the abandoned buildings. Shelves and whatnot. I think it would be nice if we could manage to obtain a bed and washtub too? But, my thought..."
Kyil paused to hastily eat another bite of his fish.
"Once it is that we have tested my power and learned how it works...would it be a poor idea to suggest we attempted to rob a place that relies heavily upon magical wards for protection? Like..a magic shop?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 11:04 pm
Mikaril accepted the piece of fish gratefully, trying not to look suspiciously at the coating as he ate it. It was actually pretty good; the fish had just enough flavor to negate the slight flavor of the mushroom, and it became easier to enjoy it. He reminded himself to ask Kyil just what it was he had done to make it this way; he was no gourmet, but he wouldn't mind learning a few new ways to cook fish. It would definitely come in handy when he next ventured out into the Underdark and found himself facing the prospect of fish for a few weeks. But then he couldn't help but wonder; would he be alone that next time, or would he have company on the long and treacherous road?
He made himself chew more quietly as he listened to Kyil speak of finding the shelves and whatnot, adding his own input mentally since his mouth was otherwise engaged. Abandoned furniture would be the safest choice, but if his own city was any indication, people abandoned things like furniture for a reason, and they might have a long search before they found anything serviceable. They could probably make their finds more servicable, but Mikaril wasn't about to say no to the odd pilfered item, like things to place upon the shelves. He had always been fond of the soft glow of various magical items that he had collected and hidden at his House; it had actually helped him to fall asleep on the common nights when his own bedroom hadn't felt safe.
It was a good thing he had paused in his eating when Kyil mentioned robbing a magic shop, or he might have had to pick fish bones out of his throat. Far from being a poor idea; with Kyil's newly discovered ability, a magic shop wuold be an ideal place to test his powers! The thought hadn't even occured to him when he had been searching for other means of testing to avoid them making a trip back to Undrek'Thoz. His eyed went huge and he felt his pulse quicken. The very thought of shelf after shelf of magical trinkets, scrolls piled up in corners that contained who knows what sort of spells, and row upon row of colorful bottles with equally colorful potions was enough to make his fingers start itching.
"You know something? I think that would be a marvelous idea! What better place to test you spell thiefing abilities than a place crawling with magic! It will be dangerous, no doubt about that, but with your skill, any spell the owner might throw at us will be like putting a weapon in your hand! Although, we would definitely have to make sure that we stay absolutely covered up; when word gets around that someone like you is going around robbing places, suspicions will be raised and so will the conventional steel weapons."
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Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 4:47 pm
While it was they ate, Kyil glanced up at Mikaril often. He wondered what he was thinking. He also wondered how he was feeling. Was the poison still effecting him? Would he need more sleep? How long would Kyil be left to worry? He wished for his friend to recover quickly, but fretted that there could be lasting side effects.
It felt good.
Having someone to focus on. To worry about and care for. It made Kyil feel at peace with himself. Despite his worry and fear. It was a wholesome feeling of content that came with it all. Thus he smiled. His pink eyes glimmering in the dim light as they ate. Surely whatever Mikaril was thinking about would benefit the both of them.
And so it surely seemed to. As Mikaril seemed to really appreciate his suggestion. Kyil felt a small swelling in his chest. At the same time though he felt a tiny icy dart in his chest. Kyil swallowed the last bit of his fish and brushed his hands together to clean them off of the crumbs and oily feeling left behind.
"I was thinking perhaps we could avoid running across a merchant while doing this job. I worry that crossing paths with a spell caster would be ...well...beyond my ability to manage. If it is we are to rely on what could potentially be a unreliable ability." He paused then, and felt a small flush creeping into his cheeks.
"Master. If it would please you, I would rather no one other then you were aware I possessed this possible gift. Is there no way to keep this secret? I would be happy enough if they thought you were the skilled one and I merely a manservant."
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Posted: Tue Jan 20, 2009 7:55 pm
While it was true that Mikaril was fast becoming tired, like a human child staying up past his bedtime, he was too excited to sleep just yet. He'd probably have the occasional inside tremor for a while, but he figured he would manage to pull through alright. It even crossed his mind that if his sister knew he was bedridden from poison, she would hunt down the female responsible and hang her with her own innards; not out of any love, but because she would have wanted the pleasure of causing him pain herself, and would be furious if someone else did it, like a child fighting to keep her favorite toy to herself.
He laughed a little nervously at Kyil's uncertainty. "Yes, of course it's best to not get caught; I was just saying that if we did, we would have another option besides running away. I really should have had a plan B the last time, but for me it's usually 'run away as fast as you can.' But if you feel you're not up to an actual clash of magics, that's fine. In a thief's world, there's no shame in running."
Mikaril nodded as Kyil expressed his wish to keep his power a secret. He couldn't deny that he felt a little disappointed that Kyil seemed unwilling to use it. Granted, it was a smart move, using it sparingly when you didn't fully understand it. But that was why one nurtured powers such as those, in order to hone them and use them to your fullest advantage. He wanted to tell him this, but he held his tongue, mainly because there was something else he thought needed more nurturing than Kyils power, and that was Kyil's making his own decisions without trying to please anyone other than himself.
"Alright then, we won't let anyone know. We'll just be a regular pair of thieves, and who knows; maybe we'll one day be good enough to start a guild."
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Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2009 2:43 pm
Kyil had to admitt that seeking Mikaril awake, aware, and excited felt very good too. He smiled openly at the other. His hands clasping before him.
"I suppose that is plan B in most cases is it not Master?" Kyil questioned. "I do not think thieves are noted for their tenacity in anything other then living until the next day? Personally..I simply do not think it would be wise to rely on a skill we have not fully explored or learned about. Perhaps if we manage to get some useful magical items...like perhaps a wand? We could use that to test and see how well my power works on a spell other then one that is stationary? I worry about having a spell cast at us and I being wrong about being able to redirect it."
Mikaril's nod was encouraging...but he seemed to be thinking about something more. Well, they did have a lot to think about! "I would think that would be a wonderful idea Master! There must be more safety, security, and gains to be made by being a part of a guild. I would be greatly pleased if I could help you achive a goal like that!"
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Posted: Wed Jan 21, 2009 6:45 pm
Mikaril shrugged rather sheepishly. "It's probably a part of every drow, living to cause trouble another day, but more so in thieves, I suppose." He was glad at least that Kyil was mostly unwilling to use it when it was freshly discovered and not because of any personal squeamishness or anything. If he had learned anything from surviving on your own without much help from your house, getting your hands dirty was unavoidable.
His eyes lit up at the thought of a wand; he had always loved magical artifacts of any kind, especially ones that pulsated with unreleased magic. He wouldn't even say no to jewelry, like earrings and pendants. He wouldn't wear any of it; his armor was more than enough ornament for him, but to him they did resemble proper spoils, and Kyil would probably like them. Maybe they would even increase the strength of his ability!
The more he thought about creating a guild though, the more he felt like a bag of sand that had gotten a hole in it and was slowly leaking out. Establishing a guild surely meant disowning his House, and whether or not it had new leadership, House Torlyl had never been a house that let abandonment slide easily. Banishment was different; leaving on one's own was intolerable. And he was quite sure that if there was a new matron mother, she would exercise every ounce of skill and prowess she had to learn his whereabouts, at the very least.
Shoving these unpleasant thoughts away, he tried to focus more on the creating of a guild itself. "It would definitely carve a place for us wherever we chose to set it up. Though I have no idea how to establish such a thing; I am not particularly adept at social circles, being the odd one out in my House and all." He didn't mention his other, bigger concern. A leadership position would mean that he would be making himself wide open for any ambitious drow in the fledgeling guild to get rid of him and assume command. He felt that he was as capable in a figh as the next male, but he was a fan of adrenaline, not constant, gnawing worry.
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Posted: Sun Jan 25, 2009 7:41 pm
Kyil's features lit for a moment with amusement. The urge to tease Mikaril was quite strong. His tongue tickled the backs of his lips as he stifeled his urge to laugh. He did not wish to make fun of Mikaril in the least after all. Particularly when he was still feeling low from his poisoning. Still, it was heartening to see Mikaril's face filled with a ement. Something about the conversation seemed to have gotten his interest. So then, it was something of interest for him as well! Kyil really did enjoy seeing his friend and choosen Master in a good mood.
"I am afraid I am not going to be of any help in this manner Mikaril." Kyil replied while bowing his head slightly. "I am more used to the social structure of the pleasure House. I do not believe that will be as great a help in establishing a guild of sorts. Perhaps it would be best if we just found others who were like minded Mikaril? A...a... gang of sorts? That seems far easier to establish, with less requirements really. If we had others to work with...well...perhaps you would feel more comfortable then?"
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Posted: Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:07 pm
Noticing the brief flicker of amusement, Mikaril fixed Kyil with one of his own. "What're you inwardly snickering at?" He wasn't the least bit put out about it, whatever it was; he couldn't help but smile when he saw Kyil smiling like that, whether it was at his expense or not. He could think of a bunch of things he had done in his rather short lifetime that warranted him being laughed at.
He sighed a bit as he remembered; Kyil was just as unused to that sort of social group as he was. But a gang, now......that was different. A less defined or sometimes nonexistant head or foot; just a bunch of drow looking out for themselves and together for purely professional reasons. That and it sounded like they would be less likely to be under the same roof as he was, and therefore he wouldn't have to go back to sleeping in his armor, like he had done at home.
"It would definitely be more beneficial, so long as whoever joins has their own territory firmly established; that I think is the primary reason thieves fight among themselves; drow 1 mugging someone in drow 3's turf, and so on. Other than that, it'd be up to them just how much they would be involved in the gang."
Mikaril lowered himself back down and stared up at the cave ceiling. "Sounds like a good plan. I suppose the first thing we ought to do then is make ourselves known, and nothing gets the attention of a fellow thief like becoming infamous. We can start with the magic shop, then various other places. Start small, work our way up. Hopefully by the time we become capable of doing the bigger stuff, we'll have others there with fresh expertise.....might be fun...." He closed his eyes and was surprised as how heavy they seemed. "By the way, thanks for the fish....it was wonderful."
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