Rashemen - Book 3

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Delinos suddenly snapped out of his inebriated state and felt a tingling in his mind. Someone was trying to contact him, but he couldn't quite identify who. Was it Viconia, Nakia, Sepp or the others? He still couldn't tell. He informed Kelvados of the sensation, then kept plundering on through the storm.

 

Kelvados stopped suddenly, his ears twitched faintly. He heard something, or sensed something. A presence, near by. He couldn't look around for the sand, he glanced down to his brother. His face was swollen and wind burnt, and no doubt, so was his. They needed shelter, he turned their direction and headed for te sensation. He wouldn't do Viconia any good by being dead, and he would be shameful to die to the elements. He plundered on, he pulled his brother along. The sand quickly covered their feet, it was a struggle for each step. Kelvados' strength was beginning to fade, they needed shelter.

A dark spot appeared out of the sand. Kelvados wearily spyed inside. Living things were inside, Kelvados' heart sank. They were in no condition to fight, and no one would share their cave with Drow. But he was filled with hope when he saw small shapes and a quite large shape. It was close enough to his group. He pulled his brother close to his side, and the two trudged on. Delinos tripped once on his robes, by the time Kelvados got his hands on him, he was half covered. They had to keep going or they'd be buried. They came to edge of the cave.

"Is there room for two weary travellers?" He hollered inside, he pulled his cowl over his head, and hid his face in shadows. Delinos cast a illusion, a feeble one, but it may not be needed. Figures aproached them, Kelvados' vision became blurry, he slumped to his knees. The shadows rushed to him and picked him up. THe was placed on a rock, and some liquid was forced down his throat. It was too smooth to resist, it was heaven on his sore throat. He knuckled his eyes, then opened them cautiously, there was a fire inside. It was painful to his eyes, he let them slowly adjust. A smiling face was directly infront of him, a halfling face, Nakia's face. Kelvados smiled back, and leaned against the cave wall. As soon as he closed his lids, he was asleep.

 

Delinos coughed up sand as he tried to swallow the cool liquid. He too rubbed his eyes and looked around. Nakia had just finished with Kelvados. Delinos pulled himself up and hugged Nakia with all of his might. "Thank you.." He managed to croak out, "For everything. For believing." A tear ran down his cheek and onto the halfling's shoulder.

 

Sepp didn't trust himself to say anything. He cradled Kelvados' head in his lap, and laid the Staff of the Tree across the drow's chest. He noticed the Rose tucked under a fold of Kelvados' cloak. It was withered and black, but it returned to health as Kelvados regained his strength in exhausted slumber.

 

Nakia hugged Delinos back. "Rest now, Brother. Kongol has a story to tell and methinks that so do you."

She made him as comfortable as she could and sat quietly beside him. Now was not a time to scold him prehaps it wasn't needed. The brothers had come to them with trust and that could be built upon.

She glanced over at the two halflings huddled against a wall. She so much wanted to question them but unless they could find a way around whatever spell was on them it would be deadly to ask what had happened to them. Deadly at least for them.

 

Delinos sat, half asleep, staring at the halflings huddled against the wall opposite him. "What's wrong .. *cough* .. with them, Nakia?" Delinos whispered.

 

"They're scared and under a cures from Gruumsh One Eye." Jex said quietly from beside the fire. "They were with a group of halflings and orcs that attacked us. They are some of the few survivors."

 

The abrupt entrance of the Drow brothers surprised Kongol. The brothers were pretty bit up, the sand had cause some smalls cut in there faces and arms and they look terribly tired. After they were fed and there wounds taking care of by Nakia and the others, Kongol sat back down facing everyone.

“I'm sorry bothers, but I must interrupt, Nakia and the others have being waiting for me, I must explain why we are here and who Miranda is” Kongol replied.

“I must explain first where I come from, so you can understand where Miranda comes from.

We Half-giants were bred into existence in this desert land by cruel psionic-kings. We were intended as gigantic warriors and laborers. Some half-giants found that their forced breeding had somehow engendered within them a spark of psionic power. With the aid of this secret power, many half-giants escaped their circumstances to seek a new home deep in the desert. My kin and I called the dessert that we being traveling in it home, we had a small settlement no too far from this mountain. When I was about eight years old, my home and the homes of all half-giants were destroy and my family and all who lived in our settlement were killed. The person responsible for this atrocity was the emperor of this land; he was a Psionic Master and a descendant from the one of the psionic-king that created us.

That day I was to meet the fate of all like me, but Miranda spared my life. She is the daughter of the Emperor.”

Kongol eyes became red and watery, his chest expanded as he took a big breath.

“The memories of that day had sunk deep in the back of my mind, and the reason of why I became an adventurer like all of you was to forget my past. However, fate had me comeback here and go back to the person that once save my life. The only thing I don't understand is how she was able to found me, but for the sound of her latter she must need me and I most go to her”

Kongol tear up but quickly clean up his face and waited for any questions…

 

Sepp felt a large deal of sympathy with Kongol, different though their size, they had very similar pasts, though Kongol's loss of his family was more complete, and he had less time spent with a loving family than Sepp was granted. But strangely, he felt an even greater sympathy for this Miranda person. He wasn't sure why, but he liked her, or at least hoped that she would be a person that could be liked.

"What else do you know about Miranda? She showed that she has a good heart when she saved you that day. Is she the emperess now?"

 

“Aside from knowing that she was the daughter of the emperor, I don't know much of her; I only remember bits of her mostly from my dreams” Kongol closed his eyes as another tear cross is chick, he then explained the last dream the he had of her. “…After she saved my life, I was let to fend by myself; she had to go back to his father. I never saw or hear from her 'till now.”

“As per whether she is the empress, well… I highly doubt that. Although in all the time I being traveling I never seen another one of my kind, most of the people that I have met had mention that some years after I left the desert, the empire was overrun and there city desolated, as a result, she could not be empress ‘cause well there is no empire left.”

Kongol sighted and waited again.

 

Daie opened an eye and looked over at the Drow brothers.

'Glad to see I didn't waste my healing on those two.'

Closing his eyes again, he leant on Maron's shoulder and muttered something under his breath, before dropping off to sleep as his friend stroked his hair, absently.

 

Ciana felt relieved when the brothers cam ethrough the entrance, the vague sense of unease she had been feeling disappeared; with a mental shrug she thought no more about it. She listened to Kongol's tale about this Miranda and meant to say something reassuring to her friend, but she was too tired. Wrapping her cloak around herself she lay dosn and fell into a deep sleep and a dream claimed her.

 

Atten watched a spider, disturbed by the entrance of yet more noisy people into its quiet cave, scuttle off into the inky depths of the back of the cave. He considered trying to call it back, but decided that someone would probably squash it if he did, so it was probably safer to go and hide.

Atten realised that it had been a long time since he had last seen another animal, but that his senses were now becoming more attuned to the different types of life out here in the desert.

 

Delinos called Kongol over and clasped the half-giant's shoulder. "I am.. sorry, friend, for what I said and did in the swamp. I truly hope you can forgive me and my kind. And as to your story, I do not know what to say. I just know that I will make every attempt to help you."

 

"So you don't know where to find Miranda? I hope this shadow being finds us and lets us know where to look for her." She smiles fondly at Kongol. "We will help you of course."

She gets up and walks over to the two halflings who are trying to bury themselves in the wall and speaks quietly to them in Hin. She then gets some food and mead for them and talks a little more with them.

Going back to Scot and the two brothers she sits down. "What should we do with those two?" She nods towards the halflings. "I don't like dragging them into we know not what; yet I don't like leaving them here. I would like to get them to a temple and see if this curse can be lifted. Please think on it and speak any ideas you have."

She looks around at those who are sleeping, "And we needs set a watch. A dead adventurer is one who assumes there is no danger. I will take the first watch. The rest of you get some rest. Who should I wake for second watch?"

 

"I'm feeling a bit more refreshed now that we are out of that sun. I can take a watch. Any approaching visitors should stick out like a sore thumb to me against the desolate lifeless desert out there. Unless they're not living..... Man, I hate the undead."

 

"Thank you, Atten. I will call you in 2 hours so get a little rest."

She moves around, goes to the entrance of the cave and the to the back and down the tunnel a little ways. The tunnel curves to the right and once past the glow of the fire the tunnel is pitch black dark. She dons Jag's glasses and is able to see 60 feet down the tunnel. The is no movement, nothing indicate another presence so she returns to the group by the fire shaking her head at those still awake.

"See nothing, hear nothing."

 

"That because there IS nothing in this boring place. Nobody except us is dumb enough to be out here."

 

Ciana started moaning in her sleep, and moving around as if something was trying to get hold of her; then with a shout of "Perin, Danger NOOOOOOOOO", she settled back into a deep sleep.

 

Nakia jumped at Ciana's shout then settled back muttering, "Nah, couldn't be. Must know someone by that name." But she looks at Ciana intensely bothered by the cry.