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Elberrin's Bow

Started by Dray, May 17, 2005, 12:44:38 PM

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Griznuq

?Well,? Elberrin began, pausing to sort out his sentences diplomatically. ?Firstly, I would submit that I do not know him and may be totally wrong. First impressions are almost always misleading."

After that, Elberrin said "In earnest, I do not like him but I do not consider my opinion yet complete. It is never wise to cast aside rubble without being sure it is not a dirty gem. On the surface, which is all that I have seen, he is impetuous, impatient, arrogant, and rude. He would do well to sit in silence with the monks of my woodland city for a few years.

I think his unwillingness to consider the intangible speaks of naivety and inexperience. The fact that he is fast to disbelieve in the abilities of a seasoned ranger speaks of mistrust and possibly fear.

Unfortunately this does not speak of his talents, which I have also yet to see. He is young, even for a human, and in unfamiliar territory. Why we have not seen his talents yet today could be either ineptitude (which wouldn?t make much sense ? you would clearly have reason to invite him, so there must be something there.) or a simple lack of motivation. Either scenario would go along with his rattling backpack and loose lips.?

The thought had just come to Elberrin, ?Yes, one wonders what his motivation may be. What is his formal duty here on this island??
=]V[=

Griznuq

[color=green:c97a3a0035]Good grief! Gimmie a few... [/color]
=]V[=

Dray

It was only about a half hour wait by the longboat (one of the boats they had broke shore with that first day in the Sahuagin attack) before Ivellious and Trinity joined them. Trinity looked far more prepared for whatever Ivellious had planned. She wore a leather skirt and tunic over a silk shirt. She also had a short sword strapped to her side and sported a short bow and quiver. Ivellious handed Cainell a long bow and quiver, Syth and Gage had already come equipped. Ivellious gave Elberrin a look which, somehow, Elberrin immediately understood. Elberrin did not need a bow.
    The six quickly boarded the longboat and rowed out onto the slow moving river, heading up stream.
    After a few minutes of rowing Ivellious spoke.
    ?I am bringing us to where I found the tracks of Trekell?s group,? he said solemnly.
    ?Trekell?? asked Gage, not familiar with the name.
    ?Captain Shakahrs? son. He and a group of nine sailors were left here after the Captain discovered the island was approachable. You see, many nations knew of the islands existence, but none could penetrate the ship-wrecking reef. Somehow the Captain discovered the break in the reef and sailed into what we know as Outpost Bay to explore. He left his son and the group here so as to claim sovereignty at least over this region. Hmph. If you ask me, it really was a useless and dangerous venture. No nation has a long enough reach to enforce title-ship out here. Ten men on an unexplored island the size of this one claiming ownership. Madness. But I am no politician, so what do I know?? He said in disgust.
    ?Anyway, I had discovered a few hints of their passing upstream of here. It leads to the waterfall and then beyond. I will show you how I found these tracks and what to look for if you?re ever asked to do the same.?
    They rowed on.
    A few hundred yards from the waterfall, and far east of Outpost Ledge, they made to land on the southern side of the river. Each of them dismounted off the side of the longboat and began to drag it ashore. Elberrin noted that the girl seemed to have difficulty in knowing what to do, but didn?t complain even the slightest. Gage on the other hand, had a smirk on his face the entire time.
    After landfall, Ivellious led them to a clearing in the dense jungle foliage. There was the remains of a tent scattered about and a few pieces of wood that could have belonged to a barrel or a box. The camp appeared to have been sacked quite some time ago.
    ?As you can see, this was a hint that even Grushnek wouldn?t have missed.? Ivellious said with a smile.
    ?I would assume they made camp this far in so as to escape detection in the open area of Outpost Ledge. When I first found this spot four days ago, it was obviously apparent to me that Trekell and his fellows had left it many months ago. It appears that they left under their own free will. Always a good sign. After their departure, it appears the Girallon ransacked their camp.? He said again with a smile.
    Ivellious proceeded to show them how he had come to his conclusions. Showing them the fine details and clues left behind and how all the elements that affect them. Elberrin could tell that Ivellious had taught before, he had a way about him. He was able to keep the explanations interesting and detailed without wasting time. He also answered some of Cainell?s very stupid questions, not only without embarrassing him, but actually making the answer a very valuable lesson to them all.
    Ivellious led them away from the camp, and east to the waterfall. Beyond the clearing the dense foliage soon met the river?s edge. It made passage very difficult. Each step had to be planned so as not to trip over massive roots or lose half a leg between them.
    ?What in the Hell makes you think they came this way?? Gage asked rudely.
    Ivellious took it in stride. ?In one moment I will show you,? he said.
After that moment he stopped and bent over and pointed at two large roots that ran parallel to each other but were slightly apart. He brushed off a large fernlike leaf and showed them a scrape on the root. ?This is just one spot of many in the area where the men lost their footing,? he said as he looked straight at Gage. How he remembered that this was the exact root amongst the maze of foliage Elberrin did not know.
    They came to the pond the massive fall emptied into. Elberrin guessed that the crest of the falls had to be at least 200 feet above him. It was amazing the amount of water crashing down to the pond that lay in front of him. The falls had to be at least fifty feet wide. One thing he knew, with all that water crashing down that height, the pond could very well be very, very deep.
    ?Wow that?s pretty,? said Trinity. None argued with her. A rainbow formed tight to the base of the falls, just above the massive mist, as if summoned by Trinity?s words.
    ?Yup, that it is,? said Ivellious. ?The tracks continue around the pond and to the very right of the falls.
    ?You have to be kidding?? asked Gage. ?There is no way they went up the side of that cliff,? he exclaimed. Elberrin, as rude as he thought Gage was, had to agree, it was quite the slippery looking sheer drop off.
    ?They did indeed Gage, and that is where we will be going.?
The five students followed Ivellios to the base of the cliff. When they got to it, Elberrin was not surprised to see that this cliff appeared to be the result of an earthquake. Five feet in front of him, the cliff simply vaulted straight out of the ground. He could even see some small holes and pockets where the two different levels of ground didn?t quite mesh. To think, the land two hundred feet above him, used to be where he now stood.
    Ivellious was almost up against the wall, he had turned to face his students as they gazed up the expanse.
    ?There is no way you can teach us how to climb this cliff Ivellious,? Gage said, crossing his arms.
    ?I would have to agree, I am not sure I can make it up that,? Cainell said nervously.
    ?I?m glad I?m little, not much weight to pull up.? Trinity said with her head back, squinting at the top of the cliff.
    ?Did we bring enough rope for this?? Elberrin asked.
    ?We will not need rope, we are going to scale this without it.? The words from Ivellious made all the students stare at him in shock. He continued. ?The tracks led here, and there is no indication of splat marks anywhere near here.? He said with a laugh, Elberrin knew something was up.
    ?I am not going up that!? Gage announced, who apparently, did not.
    The smile faded from Ivellious. ?Then go home.?
    Gage appeared ready to turn and leave, then remembered how far east they were of safety. He thought better of it, and asked with a little more respect, ?but how are we to climb that??
    ?With your feet.? Ivellious said, then backed up a step, and simply vanished from sight.
    All five students gasped.
    Ivellious poked his head through what was an illusionary wall. ?Ever seen one of these before??
    All of them shook their heads.
    ?Not sure how old the magic is, but it appears the tunnel behind it could be a few hundred years old,? he said, his head still poking thru the illusion. It was very discomforting to see their teachers head disembodied like that. As if it grew from the very rock.
     ?Come on in, it?s perfectly safe, and cool too.?
     It had gotten hot in the noon time sun. They stepped through, one at time.
     Beyond the illusion, which had an odd sort of elastic pull to it as they stepped through was a constructed passageway heading west twenty feet to an iron door. A torch was lit and in a bracket on the wall.
    ?It?s awfully dry in here,? said Elberrin while rubbing the dry, dust covered wall. [color=red:6260f38450][The construction also didn't appear to him to be similar to the brick walls found in the dwarven dungeon.][/color]
    ?Very good observation Elberrin. It?s my guess that the illusionary wall keeps out the mist from the falls and any other inclement weather.? Ivellious said. He walked ahead of them and opened the iron door.
    Beyond was an enclosed stone spiral staircase that ascended above them, constructed in the very granite. ?If only it were this easy all the time,? said Ivellious who had obviously been here before. With the torch (how did he get it lit so fast) he had taken from the bracket in the entry hall, he proceeded up the steps.
    The group made their way up the 200 feet to the very top, stopping a moment or two for Gage, who complained about the effort. Meanwhile, Elberrin noted, the weakest of the group, Trinity, was huffing and puffing and had not said a word.
     The top of the staircase seemed to simply end, a solid piece of rock at the top. Ivellious, without hesitation walked through the illusion. The five students followed him through. The staircase exited in the floor of a 20 foot circular black & white marble gazebo. The solid marble domed ceiling was cracked down the middle, and some of the support columns appeared to be riddled with surface cracks, but it felt looked just the same.
    The gazebo was 30 feet away from the edge of the falls and 10 feet from the river. The water was slow moving all the way to the drop.
    The view was incredible.
    To the east was the Outpost Ledge, they could make out their comrades who were nothing but small dots moving across the beach. To the north and south were the mountains that protected the outpost?s eastern border. To the east, the river cut through the mountains and carved it?s way up higher still. One wondered how tall this island was. The jungle covered the mountains, but was not on this granite ledge that seemed to be flattened over time from the meandering river.
    ?See that over there?? asked Ivellious, pointing to a spot hundreds of yards away. ?That small carved stone you see is what?s left of a moaring dock. [O.O.C. - DM'S MAYBE MADE-UP DICTIONARY - A POST YOU ATTACH A DINGY TOO] This was a stopping point for someone it appears. Perhaps travelers from the islands interior stopped their boats here and then made their way down to the ledge via this stairwell. What business they had down there is still a mystery to me.?
    ?Who were they? What race?? asked Cainell.
    ?Not sure, I haven?t brought a dwarf up here yet to examine the construction. And I have not seen any glyphs, symbols or clues of any kind indicating what race. But we digress from the task at hand. Using what I have taught you thus far, please examine the gazebo and look about the area. Try to find where Trekell and his men went.? Ivellious then proceeded to walk over the ledge, sit down and bite into a piece of fruit.
    The five looked at each other for a moment and then looked around.
After about a half hour of looking about they all came to the consensus that the group had gone to the moaring dock and left by boat. As there seemed really no other way to go as the jungle to the north and south of the river seemed impassable.
    When they brought this to Ivellious? attention with the very few clues they had to back this up, he did not appear disgruntled. Instead he pointed out some other things to them.
    ?Yes, but did you notice the marking on the shore next to the moaring stone??
    He walked them over and showed them a mark in the soft sand just under the surface of the water.
    ?Made from a longboat, and a decent one in that the mark is deep and wide, suggesting a strong and decent keel.? Ivellious said.
He got up from his crouch at the water and walked towards the gazebo, saying as he went, ?and see these more recent marks?? As he pointed them out it was amazing to Elberrin how obvious they were after he had been shown them. Why could he not see them before? ?These marks are of recent travelers making their way to the gazebo and beyond. Marks I have seen all over these mountains and around our new home.? Ivellious stated, with some concern.
    ?What of, dare I ask?? asked Cainell.
    ?Hobgoblins, and an advanced more intelligent offshoot of them, from what I can see. The longboat is their craft, it is not a piece of crap raft the hobs would build back at our homeloand. The prints they leave are not barefoot, but made from hard leather boots. This area, the gazebo and other areas I have seen them traverse are unspoiled. This is also not a trait of the hobs from our native land. All this, and a report from Elberrin?s group a few days ago, leads me to believe we are dealing with a hobgoblin group that are not the animals we are used to dealing with.?
    ?I hope their friendly,? said Trinity.
    ?So far, they haven?t been,? said Elberrin, with a nod from Ivellious in understanding.
    Ivellious had them take a break to eat some rations and then had them do a couple of hours of shooting practice. He set up a couple of targets, using some fallen wood within the jungle, then gave a first lesson to Trinity and Cainell, and pointers to Gage and Syth, both of which had shot before.
    He then took Elberrin aside to discuss his throwing knives.
    ?I envy you Elberrin. You are at the beginning of your career, and you haven?t been tainted by some bad soldier?s teachings. I think you should stick with your throwing knives, they are excellent in close combat and can be far more deadly if the tactics of a ranger are used. Let us discover how deadly these can be.?
    The entire afternoon, while the others shot arrow after arrow, Elberrin and Ivellious discussed the art of throwing knives. Elberrin was amazed that Ivellious could throw the knives so well, as he had admitted to not using the weapon before. But was happy that he could keep up with his discussions on what he could do to improve, their wasn?t the slightest nuance about a throwing knife that Elberrin didn?t know.
    Ivellious continued to give the others pointers, but as a group, he would then return to Elberrin to throw knives at a log. He actually seemed to be having a wonderful time with it.
    As they were a distance away from the others, and the crashing falls below created a low rumble, Ivellious wasn?t afraid to be overheard. ?Elberrin, what are your thoughts on Gage? Do you know him well? For I myself think something is out of place with him.?

Griznuq

[color=green:b1c45b5363]OOC: I probably should have mentioned this a long time ago... When out "in the field" Elberrin would bring no backpack. He would bring only the bare rations he would need for the trip, a water skin, and his weapons. His rope would be coiled and hanging from his belt.

He would certainly not bring his harp. (there's a story behind his recieving the harp. However, being that I've only just decided that, I don't know what the story is yet. Soon as I know it, you will too.[/color]

Elberrin ignored the question. His opinion of this Gage was starting out low. This human came off as disrespectful and was lacking in discipline. Elberrin didn't like the idea that his saftey my one day be in this human's hands.

Still, Elberrin gave Ivellios' judgement the benefit of the doubt. "After all" Elberrin though "I have been wrong before." He descided that he would not make his distate known about the fellow until his opinion was fully founded.
=]V[=

Dray

Elberrin made his way to the Quartermaster Headquarters Tent. He had been told to meet Ivellious and a few others outside of it. The sun?s glow was advancing over the mountains to the east, it would be a clear and warm day.

As he approached the massive tent, he was surprised to see someone already there. A young human man with short blonde hair, he was short in stature for a human, but still a half foot taller than he. He knew of him, his name was Gage, he had come over on the Endeavor.

Elberrin waved as he came near, placing his belongings at the foot of a pile of crates outside the tent. Gage said, ?Morning?, but otherwise remained quiet, which was perfectly fine with Elberrin, not one to be chatty, and even less so before dawn.

He looked down the shore to the south, taking in what had become there home this last week. ?Only a week? he thought, seemed like a year.

As the Headquarters was on higher ground, it overlooked the entire encampment. He could almost see the entire row of tents that house over 800 men, laborers and adventurers alike. He hoped that it would all work. That they truly could build an outpost out here, so far away from their native land. So far things had gone fairly well. They had defeated the Sahuagin, who either appeared to be few in number or at least didn?t have an imposing force nearby. The two Girallon beasts, that had killed a couple of men, had been hunted and killed by Ivellious. And his group had been very successful in searching out an old dwarven complex.

Yeah, he would have to say that things weren?t too bad yet. But that gave him no consolation. He knew all to well that life could turn on you any moment, and he was not going to let his guard down.

Gage was thankfully quiet while he was lost in his thoughts, watching the outpost of MSI wake with the coming dawn. A lot of dwarves awakened first, making there way to the Mess Hall. He had heard that a group of them were very busy in the mountains south of here. He was sure that Dullstrand had more than just a trade post in mind when they had sent this very large expedition out here.

As he watched the people departing there tents and head to the mess hall, he observed a woman who passed it and was making her way to Headquarters. She was a tall, thin Oeridian woman with straight brown hair. As she got close to where he stood she gave a warm smile. He recognized the symbol of Merikka on her tabard, and gave her a nod.

?My name is Arnine, good morning gentlemen,? she said.

He and Gage both said morning in turn.

?Are you the men who are awaiting Ivellious for a little field trip he has offered to take you on?? she asked. Elberrin quickly had a bad feeling that his trip was about to be cancelled.

?Yes?? he answered begrudgingly.

?Has a girl named Trinity shown up here yet??

?Oh good, she isn?t about to cancel for Ivellious,? he thought.

?No, I saw her at the mess hall earlier. Her father has refused her, she can not come with us,? he said to her.

Arnine raised her eyebrows like a mother who had been told what to do by her own child. ?Is that so?? she questioned with indignation. Thinking it rhetorical, Elberrin didn?t reply.

?Well, we?ll have to see about that. Don?t you boys go anywhere.? She said in a huff and turned around, marching straight to the mess hall.

Elberrin was glad to not be on the end of that. Although the fairly good-looking woman appeared to be only in her late twenties, she had the look of a sergeant mother. She did not look like a person to be trifled with.

Two more men arrived, a fellow elf named Syth?Kayell and a half-elf named Cainell. The half-elf fidgeted a lot while they waited, seeming very nervous. Syth?Kayell almost appeared bored. None of them spoke, which was comforting at first, but as the dawn had arrived and people were milling about, Elberrin was becoming a bit bored. No sooner did he have his harp out of his backpack that Ivellious arrived.

Ivellious was in his adventuring garb. He wore a dark leather tunic and leg protectors that had been somehow stained a deep shade of green. The entire dark-metal studded suit was worn over a brown silk shirt and cloth breeches. A massive black leather belt with shoulder straps tucked the tunic to him tightly. His fingerless gloves were also stained the same dark green and covered his arms up to the elbow. A small, tightly bound backpack was on his back, he wore no cloak. On one arm he wore a buckler that was shaped like a landing eagle with wings wrapped open around his arm. At his side was a sheathed sword, the hilt of which was an ornate, carved in ebony with mithral strands finishing the raised detailed sweeps along the length of the grip. The pommel was a clear stone grasped by a mithral eagle claw. Around his neck was a beautiful mithral amulet with the carved symbol of Ehlonna upon it. He was a tough looking elf.

He walked up to them and looked tem over.

?Syth, Gage, Elberrin, Cainell. Hello all. Where is Trinity?? he asked.

?Seems to be a popular question this morning,? Elberrin said, then explained further with, ?she seems to be having difficulty convincing her father that this is something she should be involved in. A woman named Arnine was just here, I think she went down to the Mess Hall to retrieve her, judging by her anger.?

Ivellious let out a sigh. ?Women. It?s a favor I owe Arnine that permits the little one to even attend our hunt. Please forgive me all for this inconvenience, if she slows us down I will send her back to the mess hall.?

?If she even shows, Arnine has been down there quite some time.? Gage said.

Ivellious let out a small chuckle. ?Heh, you don?t know Arnine. Trinity will be here this day,? he said. ?But her being late shouldn?t slow the rest of us down,? he said, seeming to regain his composure of authority. ?Please sit down and put your backpack down in front of you.

Ivellious proceeded to have the men take out the contents of their backpacks. He taught them what a ranger would take out into the field, how to store and properly pack each item within their packs and on their person. Each item was carefully considered so as to be packed tight and properly so not to hinder movement.

Each student took a trip to the supply tent for one item or another, and Gage even had to take some of his original equipment back to the tent. All in all, Elberrin thought it was a thoughtful start. He hadn?t considered the pack to be such a hindrance until he placed the newly arranged pack onto his back and was amazed at the difference. It was much smaller and lighter, and when strapped tight to his back was almost completely silent.

It was when this lesson was almost complete that Arnine returned with Trinity in tow. Trinity?s face was beat red with embarrassment while Arnine looked equally as flushed.

?That bastard cook better watch his step Ivellious,? was all she said as Trinity sat beside Gage. Arnine then stormed off.

All five men watched Arnine storm off then turned to look at the very small Trinity, who was dressed as a common peasant.

?Sorry I?m late,? she said, staring at the ground.

Ivellious gained quick command of the situation. ?Not your fault Trinity, come with me to the supply tent, we got to get you outfitted for this. The rest of you, get to where the dock is being built, I got a boat ready for us there.?

He quickly led Trinity away.

The four men made there way north, to the mouth of the river that emptied in Outpost Bay. Syth and Cainell walked on ahead. Gage walked along with Elberrin.

?This is turning out to be useless don?t you think?? Gage asked his backpack still making a few clanking sounds.

Griznuq

Elberrin shakes his head. Last thing he needs is to be in the middle of anything. With a sigh he moves along. He figures it would probably be wise to find food from a different cool.

Still though, he would not let this ruin his mood.
=]V[=

Dray

?But he asked me to come! He knows who my father is. He knows what my duties are each day. I am sure he considered all that when he invited me. Listen?I am sorry, what was your name sir?? she asked, making an obvious effort to control herself.

?Elberrin.?

?Elberrin. Could you at least tell Ivellious that my father would not allow me to come?? she asked. ?And tell him it was because he needed me for the important task of dish washing, critical to the survival of all.?

?Trinity!? the cook shouted from inside the hall.

With a roll of her eyes, she stormed into the tent.

Griznuq

"Ivellios knows that there is no more important duty than to one's family. If he has a problem with this, you can rest assured he will address it. Whether or not your father takes orders from Ivellios is between them. What I do know, is that he does not take orders from me."
=]V[=

Dray

She looked as if she would burst into tears, instead she stated boldy to Elberrin, "If Ivellious asked me to attend the hunt, isn't that the same thing as ordering me? Is he not our leader? Doesn't my father take orders from him?" Although this a slight stretch in the reality of the situation, Elberrin was impressed with young girl's ability to argue her case. Ivellious was in charge of security, and really didn't hold any authority over her father.

She continued, "Won't he be angry with my father for having to come here later to take me by the hand like some child?"

Elberrin thought this wouldn't be the case at all, and had a sneaking suspicion that she would be left behind if she didn't appear at the designated spot this morning.

Griznuq

"I'm afraid not, young one. You forget, I wasn't even privvy to the fact that you were coming. It is not my place. You must respect your father's descision. The only person who might sway him is Ivellios."
=]V[=

Dray

"The later in the day it gets, the more of a boar he becomes. If I can sneak us some food, would you take me with you? Learning from a mentor like Ivellious is worth a thousand days of punishment. I care not what he will do to me when I get home. I just know that I need to go. Like you said, it will be for my future."

She again looked at Elberrin with pleading eyes.

Griznuq

"It's too early to argue with pigheadedness."
=]V[=

Dray

"What do you mean okay?!" The girl asked imploringly of her only hope.

"I think the lad has come to his senses Trinity, he just realized that your nothing but a silly young girl," the cook said. He walked off and back into the tent.

Trinity looked at Elberrin, obviously hoping he would intervene again.

Griznuq

"Ok" Elberrin turns to leave.
=]V[=

Dray

"Twilight of my life? Who in the Nine Layers of Hell do you think you're talking to boy?!" The cook was now shouting and his face was red with anger.

He seemed to quickly realize how loud he was and regained at least his voice, his anger though was barely in check.

"This is my daughter, and I am just happy as can be with her doing an honest day's work thank you very much!" He said in a loud hush. "She ain't going to go off and get herself killed cuz you fighter types put stories in her head. Is that clear?!"

A small voice came from behind you. "But pappa, if Mel truly is as good a cook as he is a hero, then you would have more than the help you would need. It's only for one day pappa." the girl said.

Elberrin turned to her.

The girl was very small in human standards, being just barely above 5 feet she was Elberrin's height. But she was pixish as well, being propotioned to her height. She could almost be mistaken for a very tall Tallfellow halfling. She had short, straight black hair, that was long enough to cup under her porcelain doll face. She was absolutely the cutest human girl he had ever laid eyes upon. He wasn't familiar with human girls and when they reached maturity. He could only guess that she must be about fourteen or fifteen.

She was awfully young and small to be going out on a hunt, he thought.

He suddenly did a double take as he looked at her. Did she say that Mel was a hero?