The Grey Wars

[Crusher]

"My name is Orikan, and I am a Mage. Do not be afraid, I no longer belong to my clan. You were being hunted by other humans, right? Well, you were hit in the shoulder with a poisoned arrow. The poison was extremely fast working, and I had to work fast to heal you. My friend, Orel, A Telepath, found you and fixed your wound, but did not know about the poison. I had been watching him with a tracking spell, and saw him find you. After analysing the past, I was able to discover that the arrow had been poisoned, and came here to heal you. You are a very lucky girl, a few more minutes and you would have been dead. You should feel fine now, I have drawn out the poison and fully fixed the wound. Why did I help you? I knew you would not be an ally of the Humans if they were hunting you, maybe you could be an ally to us. Orel, and I, along with another inexperienced Telepath named Leron and a pack of four dragons are seeeking peace in this land. It will not come easily, but we are sick of the fighting and bloodshed. We will do what we must to free this land of war.

 

Crusher

[antiaircraft]

Orel strode confidently past the guards and into the mine, barging his way past a few of the mage slaves. The imposing mental projection he was creating even caused a few of them to run back down the shafts. He followed the worn, poorly maintained tracks deeper into the mine, closing in on his target.

[Crusher]

Orikan thought, long and hard, for many hours. Wherew as his life going? What were his goals? He decided after many hours that he ould do the following. He would look for his friends, praying that they still lived, and would look for allies to rise against the Human King and overthrow him, so the different races could live together peacefully, or at least seperately in peace. His first thought was of Jispar. He had been near when Jispar was captured, but the guards would have outnumbered him 13 to 1. Even with his magic, he could not stop all of them at the same time, especially not when they were wearing armour and weilding pikes and longswords. He missed his friend dearly. He remembered as a child he would look up to Orikan. It was almost like having a (much) younger brother, something he had never felt before. Aside from his feelings, he knew that he would have been training himself in fighting, how else would he survive? And survive he did, staring back at Orikan through his Bowl of Vision, oblivious to the fact that he was being tracked. He would make a good ally, along with Venny and her pack, Leron, Orel and possibly the girl from the forest. He decided to go hunt for him, as he had with Orel. He woke the girl, who was sleeping and recovering from the blow of the poison.

"I am leaving to look for a friend. Do you wish to come with me? If not, I can offer you protection for the time being, but if you accept I will gladly bring you to my friends. What do you say?"

 

Crusher

[The Original Luna]

Rathunta sat up, and quickly thought ahead. The mage, Orikan was looking for his friends, but she too was looking for her friends. "I know the forests well, from here to Forest of Ruin and south to the City. Maybe your friends know what happened to my friends Reynold Greenleaf and Nasuanari Scathlock. I will go with you for a while. Who knows, I might be able to protect you." she smiled briefly, then she stood up.

 

(Guess who I based it on :P))

[Crusher]

Orikan smiled warmly. "Excellent! Hold my hand and I will teleport us back to the Temple." Orikan did so, and was back in was seemed like seconds but was actually an hour.

"Do not harm the girl," he ordered, "she is not an ally of the Humans." The dragons grunted their approval, and went back to sleep. "So, what's your name? I will leave in the morning, I need to recharge after using so much energy today. In the meantime, what did you say the names of your friends was? I can track them with a spell."

 

Crusher

[The Original Luna]

Rathunta shied away from the dragon a pace, "I have not seen a dragon before, so hence I am nervous. My name is Rathunta De'lune, daugther of L'infamous De'lune. The people you scared away are Lord Sealamin's men, and my friends and myself, Nasuanari Scathlock and Reynold Greenleaf were in the midst of his mines, and although we freed a few slaves our real mission was to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of his part of the realm. But that's when we got separated." Rathunta had deliberately witheld the information about her brother also being enslaved there.

[antiaircraft]

Orel, deep in the mine by now, slowed his pace. The pain was excruciating now, and he needed to focus. He reached out, searching for the microscopic creatures that populated the soil and rock in the area, and using their concentration to distinguish air from soil, he determined the fastest route to his destination. It was still a few hours walk away, but he would have to take it slowly anyway. Telepaths could normally block out pain easily, but this was different. It was pain delivered mentally, as if by another telepath - only to be expected since the artifact was a telepath creation. Only a telepath could activate it, and its creators had wanted to make sure that only an experienced telepath of great power could reach it.

[Crusher]

Orikan eyed her with two old, wizened eyes. "Rathunta, that is a nice name. Yes, I have heard of your father, L'infamous indeed. Do not fear the dragons, they will not hurt you unless I say so. Their pack leader Vinny grew up with me, and I have their full turst and vice-versa. Even if they did attack us, I could freeze them long enough for us to be on another planet. I hear Mercury is nice this time of year..." Orikan's voice trailed off as he attempted to remember when he had last had a holiday. Then he remembered he hadn't. Oh well. "Anyway, do not attempt to withhold information from me. I do not know what it was, and I haven't read your mind, but I know you are not telling me something. I am not a Telepath, but an extremely experienced Mage can do more things than you may think. Nevermind, you will learn that such doing such things only loses my trust in you. Anyway, let me track those friends of yours. Hmmm...." He began a chant, and once again the bowl of water turned misty, before becoming a camera like visual of the two Humans, split down the middle. "There they are," he said. "Shall we go find them?"

 

Crusher

[antiaircraft]

((Oh yeah, a note on dragons:

- Unless specifically provoked, a dragon will not take sides with anybody but their own family. Although, in most ways, they are less intelligent than the 'sentient' races, they are smarter in the respect that they have remained neutral in the pointless wars that have resulted in the deaths of countless people.))

[The Original Luna]

Rathunta looked into the bowl. She could almost imagine them talking, then as she saw no trace of her brother there. The sun was unusually bright in that part of the woods- It might have been about midday by her standards. The bushes seemed to move, as if animated, then arrows flew from bows and her friends were surrounded. "I think that's our cue." she whispered to Orikan.

[Crusher]

"Hmmm. We'll never get there in time. Oh well." He sat down, unflustered and uncaring.

"What do you mean, "Oh well"?!? He's surrounded!"

"Not anymore," he laughed, "take a look now."

In the bowl was an image of two men surrounded by about 8 brightly coloured butterflies. The attackers had vanished, and the pair were both incredibly shocked and slightly hysterical. Hardly surprising.

"Well, we better get a move on. Hold my hand again, we'll teleport. The dragons are still tired, and way too fat and lazy," he whispered quietly.

He clicked his fingers, and they were gone. 10 seconds later they were back.

"I forgot my coat!"

 

Crusher

[Midtime]

It was the next day. Jisparianterae was working, and thinking about the stone.

Where had it come from?

Where did its strange properties come from?

Then a sense of unease came over him. This grew into fear, and when he saw the imposing figure walking through the mine, he tried to run. But he couldn't.

He couldn't move.

His hand, under the command of some unseen force, took the stone from its hiding place in the cart and offered it to the stranger.

He couldn't even move his eyes.

What was happening?!

 

((The force is the stone's, not Orel's))

[antiaircraft]

Orel accepted the stone with both hands, and instantly the pain disappeared. He sensed that the force that had overtaken the mage slave in front of him had dispersed as well. There would be time to examine the artifact later. I thank you for finding this for me, and I hope it did not cause you too much trouble. If you wish, I will assist you in an escape in return. What is your name?

[Midtime]

Jisparianterae heard the voice in his head. He realized he could move again.

The mysterious figure in front of him was offering a way out. He was torn between what he'd always wanted and common sense.

Eventually, the former side won over.

"Er... my name..." He realized it would be impractical to recite it right here, right now. "...they call me Jispar."

"Okay, so how do I get out?" He was jumping with excitement. He was going to be safe, to be free--

"Hey!" called one of the overseers. "Pardon me, sir, but why are you wasting time on that stupid slave?"

((We'd better hurry))

[antiaircraft]

Orel waved a hand vaguely in the direction of the overseer, and he passed out. He would wake up with absolutely no memory of the past 3 days. Very well then. Follow me, and stay close. I will take you to a mage I know who will be able to remove your slave cuff, and teach you magic. With that, Orel strode along the shaft back towards the surface, hiding them both from any form of perception.

[The Original Luna]

"I don't think I'll get used to that in a rush." whispered Rathunta, then she walked up to Reynold and Nasuanari. "Did you really intend for this to happen?" she shook her head, clicking her fingers in front of them, then when that didn't work, she cracked a knuckle in their ears. They both recoiled with the noise. "Where's Warden?" Rathunta asked Reynold.

Reynold thought, "He was right behind us, before we got separated."

Rathunta felt like screaming. Only Warden knew how to find the book of days, an artifact of the old times, filled with much wisdom and strategies, that could be used against the king. "Keep calm, Warden might be nearby..." said Reynold.

"Or lost." added Nasuanari with a smile.

Rathunta then lead them to look for Warden, the healer of the group.

[Crusher]

"I have other matters to deal with concerning my friends. I have cast a Mind Link spell on you, Rathunta. Just think of me and I will come to your aid, if you need it. I wish you good luck, and hope we can cross paths again. Do not be afraid. So long as you have me protecting you, no harm can come to you and your friends. Farewell."

He thought of Orel, using his Mind Link with him to see through his eyes.

"My god. It's...can it be? Jispar! My dear friend! I look forward to seeing you again." He grinned. This was going to be a good day. Suddenly, his smile collapsed. He had seen the slave cuffs, and shuddered with both fear and hatred. They had locked up Jispar. His friend, Jispar! They would pay dearly for this. He would find out who had captured him. Oh yes, they would pay. He spoke in thought to his Telepath friend. "Orel, I see you have found my friend Jispar, and the artifact you seeked. Come back to the temple and I will remove those ugly cuffs. I cannot enter the compound myself, I will be spotted. They have force fields that drain my strength, I would be more of a liability than a help. I can, however, cast a spell from here. My powers are exceedingly limited at this distance, but I can still increase your jumping height and agility. I have already done so, give it a shot. I can't help Jispar, the cuffs overpower my magic at this distance. Also, you now should be able to lift Jispar easily, I have temporarily greatly improved your strength. These abilities will be functional for only half an hour, you better get cracking."

 

Cameron

[Midtime]

Jisparienterae continued to follow the stranger. Suddenly he felt... a presence, that was simultaneously here and somewhere else, somehow.

A voice he somehow knew only he and the stranger could hear spoke out of thin air.

"Orel, I see you have found my friend Jispar, and the artifact you seeked. Come back to the temple and I will remove those ugly cuffs. I cannot enter the compound myself, I will be spotted. They have force fields that drain my strength, I would be more of a liability than a help. I can, however, cast a spell from here. My powers are exceedingly limited at this distance, but I can still increase your jumping height and agility. I have already done so, give it a shot. I can't help Jispar, the cuffs overpower my magic at this distance. Also, you now should be able to lift Jispar easily, I have temporarily greatly improved your strength. These abilities will be functional for only half an hour, you better get cracking."

He was about to ask the stranger - no, Orel was his name - who it was speaking to him, when suddenly a barrier in his mind, induced by sorcery and the refusal to think of those memories, broke and he remembered.

He remembered that voice, and his father's - "Don't get associated with him, he's more telepath than mage really."

He remembered, as a three year old child, one of his conversations with Orikan. The last, just before the humans came.

Spurred on by the thought of meeting him again, Jisparianterae walked faster.

((Just a note, but only the slave masters refer to me as Jispar. Mages call me by my real first name, Jisparianterae.))

[antiaircraft]

You need not waste your strength friend, you are underestimating the many works that the telepaths have crafted over the years. Our years are longer even than yours, and we have been in this land longer than you have.

 

Orel and Jispar left the mine undetected, and Orel levitated them both, heading at full speed towards the mountains through which he had first arrived in this region.

[Crusher]

Back in the temple, Orikan smiled. He had known that Orel and Jisparienterae would not need his help, he just didn't want to be caught with his guard down. "The Humans have been advancing their technology rapidly. Perhaps Jisparienterae can provide and insight...," he thought.

He ate a roasted duck with vegetables and minestrone soup. It was his first meal in days, he relished it. Mages rarely needed to eat, which was good considering they lead such active lives. He looked at the moon and awaited Orel, and his friend. They had much to discuss. Up in the sky, an owl hooted. He turned his head to look, and was pleased to see a full moon. Those cuffs will be no match for my powers on a night like this. He remembered his amulet for Orel, it had been some time since they met. He hoped he would appreciate the gift, and began to slowly duplicate one for Jisparienterae. They would be unstoppable.

 

Crusher

[antiaircraft]

Orel reached the disguised pillar through which he had first came, and performed much the same ritual as he had done at first, except this time he sent a different signal to the microscopic creatures in the slime. He arrived at another hidden pillar with Jispar, stepping out right behind Orikan.

 

I'll leave Jispar with you for you to assist. You might also wish to start teaching him magic, since he will need it soon. he said to Orikan, I will proceed to a room deeper within the temple to activate the artifact, since I am quite sure by now that it is genuine. I must advise you not to seek for me or attempt to interfere in any way - the inner temple is guarded by incredibly powerful spells that could easily overwhelm even you.

[Midtime]

Jisparienterae looked up at the temple in awe. The closest he'd ever seen to this was the enormous building in the humans' city, and that hardly matched up.

He looked down at his slave cuffs. He'd worn them for nine years... were they really going to be removed?!

He looked back up at Orikan, his childhood friend. His future lay in his hands, and the hands of the telepath who had brought him out. He felt fear mixed with eager anticipation, and wondered how it would all turn out.

[Crusher]

(What on Earth happened to Crash? Are we just going to erase his character from the storyline?)

 

"Before you leave, take this." He handed Orel a multi-coloured bracelet made from what appeared to be glass beads. "It is a magical artifact that grants many powers, including the ability to animate non-living objects and have them serve you, x-ray vision, force field creation and protection from poison. It has many others, one for every bead it contains, but I will let you find out those yourself. Perhaps you will find it useful. Good luck, my friend."

He turned to Jisparienterae. "My friend, it is so great to see you after so long. We have much to talk about, but first I will remove those cuffs. It will not be easy, but I assure you I can do it." He looked at the sky, eyeing the moon.

"I must ask you to completely relax. This is a long and tedious procedure, and I will need you to be absolutely calm. it will take two hours, but once they are gone they will have no lasting effect. I will need to summon extra strength from the etheral relm. You cannot move or it will undo the spell and I will need to restart. I would suggest lying down, you won't get cramp then. I will begin now." He began to make a semi-circle in the air with his hands, and suddenly glowed a brilliant crimson red.

 

Crusher

[antiaircraft]

Orel nodded his head in thanks, then strode down a dark hallway towards the inner temple. A few minutes later, he arrived at what appeared to be a solid rock wall. He focused, and sent a specific mental signal into the wall, as he had done in the teleportation pillars he used earlier. He felt a sharp pain as the micro-organisms there probed his mind, following preset instructions embedded by the temple's creators. The pain finally eased after five minutes, allowing him to stand, and walk straight through the wall. The telekinetic field closed behind him as he entered.

[Crusher]

Two hours later, after many many incantations, the cuffs finally broke, shattering to the ground in a million pieces. The cuffs themselves wern't actually at all strong, but they had had well over fifty binidng spells laid upon them, these had to be undone first.

"You can sit up now, it's over." Orikan watched gleefully as he saw Jisparienterae's pleasure and wonder as he rubbed and twisted his arms, grinning with delight. They talked for hours, catching up on life over the years. It went on for ages, until they both were struggling to hold their eyes open. "Get some rest, Jisparienterae, you will need it. Tomorrow we will begin training. Sleep well, and do not worry about the dragons, they are quite harmless."

 

Cameron