Re: Music to Run With

by Consulting Detective Wed Feb 22, 2012 12:58 pm

Kreil noticed when the bard returned, and it became clear shortly afterward that the man was bathing. That came as a relief to Kreil. He really had been a bit disgusted with the state of the man's hair. Natural color aside, it had looked like it hadn't been cleaned in ages and just thinking about that was enough to make his stomach turn flips of revulsion. Taking his own bath right now wasn't necessary, though. He'd already bathed today, and just thinking about that bath was making him regret the events of the evening. It was truly inconvenient to be framed for a crime and chased from the place where he had a private bath available...

His curiosity over the bard's natural hair color piqued, and he opened his eyes to get a look. If the bard looked his way, he'd probably pretend to be in his trance again. Though for now, he was quite content to watch for the first signs of actually clean hair. And once those signs came, he shivered slightly. Blonde. So that darker color really was from dirt. How had this man avoided going insane from having his hair be so dirty? Kreil couldn't imagine letting his own hair get that way. His sparkling silver locks were immaculate. He'd bathed in many streams just to avoid having dirty hair.

by Nicola Christine Wed Feb 22, 2012 1:35 pm

Ephren used the last of the water in the vase to rinse his hair one more time. He let the strands play through his finger looking at them in amazement. It had been such a long time since he had allowed himself the luxury of clean hair and he had almost forgotten what colour it was. The firelight flickered over the blonde mass and gave it red and golden shadows. Three years ago he would never have dreamt of leaving his hair uncleansed for even one day, let alone weeks at a time. His hair had been his crowning glory many of his contemporaries claiming that they could find him in a packed ballroom simply by its colour and shine. What a sad state it was in now. He lifted the strands to his face exhaling the clean sent of lemon and his very own, unmistakable, smell. The wet strands felt silky and sensuous against his face. With a sigh he threw them over his shoulder allowing the wet mass to trail down his naked back. The coldness of the water on his skin made him shiver. Oh well, in a few days he would have to ensure to hide his colour again - for now he could just enjoy it. Only clothed in his threadbare trousers Ephren turned around to check on Kreil. Whilst he thought he saw a glimmer under the closed eye-lashes when his eyes focused on it it was gone. Kreil still seemed to be asleep.

Ephren "liberated" the other two curtains and brought them over to the fire. Should he dare to cover Kreil with one of them agains the cold? The fire was burning lower and they would have to limit the use of wood so that they retained some for tomorrow. He stood there, suddenly insecure and tense all the joy from the bath gone.

by Consulting Detective Wed Feb 22, 2012 1:45 pm

Kreil sufficiently pulled off feigned sleep when the bard looked his way, though it was a close call. It seemed like the man had questioned whether Kreil was really asleep or not for a moment, though he seemed to settle on the affirmative. Pretending to be asleep wasn't suiting Kreil anymore since the bard was done bathing, and therefore there was little reason to keep on pretending. No need to let the man know that he was the cause of Kreil's awakening, though.

He opened his eyes and looked up at the bard, who was standing there rather awkwardly as though he had some kind of huge dilemma on his hands. That got a raised eyebrow from the eladrin, who asked softly, "Is something wrong?" He openly admired the man's clean hair while he waited for a response, though he had likely startled the bard. Oh well. Such things happened.

On a brighter note, Kreil had a feeling he knew what to do with that symbol on the wall. He'd test this later, probably while the bard got his own bit of sleep. Not that he had any real intention of being secretive about this sort of thing--it was easy enough to explain that he'd gained a significant knowledge about the gods through study--but he didn't want the bard to see exactly what he'd have to do in order to activate that symbol and open what he assumed to be a passageway behind it.

by Nicola Christine Wed Feb 22, 2012 2:22 pm

Kreil suddenly opened his piercing green eyes and startled Ephren. He pushed the curtain at Kreil almost as if he wanted to ward of the Eladrin and lowered his eyes. Had the Eladrin not been asleep? Had he been aware of the bath? More importantly, had he noted the covert admiring looks Ephren had let roam over the Eladrin's body? And when had he become calm enough to see another human as something other than a threat.

He sat down in the other chair and wrapped the curtain around himself. He decided not to ask after the leg. Kreil seemed to move better. "We will have to find food tomorrow?"

by Consulting Detective Wed Feb 22, 2012 2:45 pm

Kreil had not noticed that the bard had been letting his eyes rake over his body while he was in his trance, thankfully. That would have made him rather uncomfortable, since he was quite unused to being looked at in such a fashion. Eladrin didn't often eye up people they thought were physically stunning. Unless there was a considerable amount of bare skin showing, in which case wandering eyes were perfectly normal as a reaction.

He took the other curtain from the bard, watching as the man used it as a makeshift blanket. Well that was interesting. Weird, but interesting. He had to admire the man's ability to improvise when it came to available materials. He'd used a curtain as a towel, as well. Fair enough. Kreil wouldn't argue over that.

After wrapping the curtain around himself for warmth, he gave a small nod to confirm the bard's question about food. "I will take a look around tonight," he stated. "There should be food available down here somewhere." Kreil would certainly look for it while the human slept.

by Nicola Christine Wed Feb 22, 2012 2:56 pm

As Kreil's words subsided Ephren realised how tired he was. His eyes were threatening to close. It was strange how relaxed he was, here in this forgotten room in deserted hallways. For three years he had only really slept when he was too exhausted to go on. In inns across his travels he never was given a single room and thus was unable to relax enough, to trust any human enough, to really sleep. Here, suddenly his body decided that he would be safe, and forced him to slip into sleep. He just hoped the nightmares that plagued his sleep, whenever he submitted to it, would stave off at least an hour or two.

x

by Consulting Detective Wed Feb 22, 2012 3:13 pm

Kreil waited patiently while the bard fell asleep, deciding to go back into his trance for an hour or two. Just to get a little more rest before beginning his search. That turned out to be a good idea, since after he'd gotten that extra rest he felt far better than he had before. His body had grown accustomed to getting less rest than was technically healthy--such was the downside of traveling so much--but even getting a couple hours was welcome. That was roughly the equivalent of four hours of sleep for a human, and it would have to do for now.

He set the curtain aside and carefully got to his feet, grimacing as his leg protested the movement. It always got a bit stiff when he was off his feet for a while, so this was no more than he expected. The massage had helped him be more comfortable when sitting, but standing again still hurt a lot. He had to keep his weight on his good leg until his bad one got its act together sufficiently to walk on it. Once the pain was tolerable, he limped his way over to the snake-like symbol on the wall, moving quietly so he wouldn't wake the bard.

It was time to do a bit of experimenting, and it all depended on what this symbol was made to respond to. He'd found a few different versions of these, and he couldn't tell by looking which one this was. He ran his hand over it, feeling how cold the symbol was compared to the rest of the wall. There was definitely some sort of power within it. It was no simple carving in the stone. That confirmed his suspicion that it was hiding something, and now he had to find out how to open the wall.

He carefully drew his sword, being mindful of the noise it made as it slid from its sheath. Hopefully the bard had not heard that. This next part would be awkward to explain if he had woken up. Kreil had the identical snake symbol on his sword face the one of the wall, and he channeled a bit of his divine magic into the sword to make the symbol glow violet. The mark on the wall also glowed, but that was the extent of its reaction. The wall did not move, and Kreil did not hear any sounds that meant another wall had shifted instead. Obviously that wasn't the right course of action here, and he sighed as he sheathed his sword in favor of pulling out a small dagger.

Holding the dagger in his left hand, he made a thin cut on the palm of his right hand. The cut began to bleed immediately, and he pressed the bleeding wound to the symbol on the wall. It glowed again, and Kreil watched as the blood he'd left on the wall slowly was absorbed. That was the right way to open this passage, it seemed, since there was a soft rumble as part of the wall slid aside to reveal a dark passageway that led downward. Wonderful. That would be the temple entrance. One of them, at any rate. It couldn't possibly be the only way to get in, and it would be their ticket out of the city.

by Nicola Christine Wed Feb 22, 2012 3:34 pm

Ephren's nightmares began as they always did: with the room. With the feeling of utter helplessness as he hung in the chains and the knowledge of what would happen. In his dream he whimpered. The first thing that reached him was the smell, the smell of the monster. The monster that had taken everything, his life, his dignity, his pleasure and his pain. Taken everything till, almost, there had been nothing left of what made Ephren. The smell of the man surrounded him in his dream, and he knew it was a dream but he also knew it was his past. As was what came after. But before his history court repeat itself in his dream as it did every time he slept a low grating noise intruded.

Ephren had long since learnt not to open his eyes and show that he was awake before he was in full control of his faculties. He waited and listened. Kreil was not in the chair across from him. Under mostly closed eye lashes he searched the rooms and saw Kreil across from him. He was pressing his hand against the wall - which opened. What?

by Consulting Detective Wed Feb 22, 2012 4:17 pm

Kreil retrieved a short length of clean bandage from his pack and wrapped it around his still-bleeding hand. Perhaps he had cut a little more deeply than he'd intended. Or his body was just in a bleeding mood, as strange as that sounded in his head. It wouldn't scar--none of the previous times he'd had to do this had--but it would sting for a little while. And it was another thing he had to keep clean so it wouldn't get infected.

He hadn't noticed that the bard was awake and watching him, though he had spared the man a glance as he retrieved that bandage. His bleeding hand would be enormously obvious to the human, but it didn't matter. It had been necessary to open up the passageway, and he was going to do a bit of searching in there while the bard continued to sleep.

Once his hand had been tended to sufficiently, he fetched another sunrod before limping his way into the passageway. Rethinking that, he returned the sunrod to his pack before simply walking into the darkness. He'd spotted a faint light up ahead, so there was only so much wandering in the dark that he had to do. The passageway wouldn't be guarded with traps. At least, he doubted it would be. It didn't stop him from being cautious, but he saw nothing in the faint light from up ahead.

He reached the source of light at the end of the tunnel, which consisted of several ever-burning torches which lined the wall, bathing the area in faint blue light. They gave off no heat, but their fires could never be extinguished. They were certain signs of habitation, and Kreil smiled to himself as he followed the path toward the archway at the end. There were inscriptions around the archway in draconic, a spell that kept out unwanted guests. Kreil could not read the inscription, but he recognized it for what it was. These temples usually had spells to weaken those who did not belong in the temple. Namely, those who were members of law enforcement.

After passing through the archway, Kreil found himself in a familiar place. He'd never been here before, of course, but these temples tended to be arranged and decorated in a similar manner. This one consisted of a large chamber with a vaulted ceiling. The walls were stone, though they had veins of obsidian running through them decoratively. There was an altar at the back of the chamber, with a giant statue of a snake poised in a striking position behind it, stone fangs bared. Stone pews were set up in the chamber, facing the altar. It was a temple, after all.

There were several doors leading away from this main chamber, leading to barracks of sorts where the clergy resided and the members of the temple could hide. They would have food there, but first Kreil had some business to take care of. Namely, speaking with the priest about a path out of the city.

It took less than a minute for Kreil's presence in the temple to be noticed. When a cloaked clergyman showed himself, Kreil was over by the altar, paying his respects. The cloaked man approached the eladrin, clearing his throat to get his attention.

"State your name and your business here," the man commanded, sounding almost hostile. Intruders were not treated well in places like these, and the cloaked man had never seen an eladrin who revered Zehir before.

"Kreil Maryne, Avenger of Zehir," the eladrin answered, turning toward the man. "The guardsmen of Stromholm attempted to arrest me for a murder I did not commit. I need refuge for me and my companion resting at the entrance, as well as a safe route out of the city."

The man's attitude changed immediately after Kreil said he was an avenger. "O-Of course, sir," he returned, bowing to Kreil. Avengers were highly-trained servants of their gods, taught certain knowledges which were forbidden in some temples and caused avengers to be almost treated as outcasts. In the case of Zehir and the other evil gods, though, Avengers were held in quite high standing. Almost like priests themselves. "You and your companion may stay here for as long as you like, and we will ensure you have safe passage from the city."

"Thank you," Kreil returned, giving a small bow of respect to the clergyman before striding back toward the passageway he'd come from to retrieve the bard. It would be more comfortable to rest in one of the beds here than in a chair. Warmer, as well.

by Nicola Christine Thu Feb 23, 2012 6:26 am

Ephren saw Kreil covering the wound and almost got up when the cloth slipped. But before he could make good the thought Kreil turned to the opening in the wall and stepped through it. Ephren's self-preservation instinct kept him in his seat for about twenty seconds and then quietly moved to the opening. He followed the passageway quietly, slowly. He always had had a talent for sneaking - a talent that had saved his life more than once. But sneaking was a slow way of movement and when he reached the end of the passageway it was clear that Kreil had been in a conversation for some time but the vaulted ceiling allowed the voiced to travel.

He caught the stuttering assurances of the priest. This was worrying, who was Kreil? What was going on here? What kind of temple was this? He suspected that it worshipped one of the evil Gods, possibly even Zehir. By rights he should be running and leading a group of guards here. But there was Kreil who had proven to be, if not trustworthy yet, then not dangerous. He could have killed Ephren at any tome over the last day. Calling the guards was tantamount to causing harm to people who had not given him any reason to see them as a danger. Before he could move Kreil was standing in front of him.

by Consulting Detective Thu Feb 23, 2012 8:08 am

"Wonderful," Kreil greeted when he saw the bard was already at the temple. "You are already here. Come with me. I negotiated a safer place to stay for a short while. There should be beds this way, and we will have a way to leave the city soon." He seemed to be in a good mood, not suspecting that the bard had overheard much. If the man had, he wasn't showing it. People tended to be more than a little uncomfortable around those who worshipped an evil god.

He led the way through one of the doorways leading away from the main chamber of the temple, and after about a minute of walking through torch-lit corridors they found themselves in an area with plenty of beds. Some of them were occupied, and Kreil spotted a few open doors which had private bedrooms behind them. Opting to take one of those, Kreil went inside the nearest one. There was only one bed in there, which Kreil would let the bard have. He could go back to being in his little trance on the chair.

by Nicola Christine Sun Feb 26, 2012 7:30 am

The room could have been found in any middle of the range inn all across the continent. The armchair looked old and comfortable, lit by the fireplace. The rest of the room was lit by an oil lamp on the rickety little table besides the bed. The bed itself was narrow but sturdy, made of dark wood and covered with a colourful blanket. This blanket seemed to be the only thing out of place in this temple far below the life in the city. It drew his eyes and caught his attention, almost mesmerising him into immobility. He let his fingertips run over the bright colours, the angular shapes as if the only thing of any importance at the moment were these patterns.

"Why this God?" Till he heard his own voice he did not realise that he wanted to ask this question. That he wanted to have something to justify this blind trust he had put into a stranger. His eyes were barely staying open, his whole body, still in shock from the most recent nightmare, demanding to fall into this inviting pattern but he could not let go. He needed to have something to hold on to, something that told his rationality that his subconsccious had not simplky decided to give into the suicidal urges. Not even the needles of pain still stinging his brain from magic burn could stop the question:
"Why am I still alive?" He was not even sure if he asked the Eladrin or the universe in general. But it was the Kreil on whom his eyes came to rest. The Eladrin was sprawwled relaxed in the armchair the firelight turning his hair into teh colour of moonligh, his eyes hooded.

by Consulting Detective Sun Feb 26, 2012 10:37 am

"I find the 'evil' gods to be far more trustworthy than the 'good' ones," Kreil replied easily, his eyes fixed on the bard. "You need not be concerned about resting in this place. We will not be harmed. The followers of Zehir are not deceitful." They weren't like Vecnans. Those who followed the god of undeath and secrets were terribly deceitful by nature.

He smiled when the bard asked why he was still alive. That was an odd question, but one that Kreil found almost... endearing. "Who can say why the Raven Queen takes some and leaves others?" he replied philosophically. "Your time will come, just like it will for everyone else." He sighed, then said, "Perhaps you should get some sleep now." Kreil certainly intended to rest.

by Nicola Christine Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:48 pm

Ephren kept his eyes trained on Kreil for a moment longer before his brain finally packed in all reason and gave up. He crawled up on the bed, not even debating with Kreil about who should sleep in the armchair. He had reached a state where the world had disappeared under a fog of exhaustion, pain and aimless hopelessness. He did not even manage to crawl under the blanket - the last thing he remembered was his head hitting the bed and the patterns before his eyes swimming into a mosaic of seamless colours. Then there was nothing.

The next moment of awareness came with the feeling of tension. He could see the empty chair in which Kreil had been sprawled the last time he had seen it. The room was quiet, the fire in the grate had almost burned down and the table light was turned down all the way. Shadows were dancing everywhere - but that was not what had woken him. He pushed up on his arms and sat up. There was movement behind him. He turned and saw a knife - a knife that was aiming at his throat coming irrevocably closer. The world froze.

by Consulting Detective Mon Feb 27, 2012 1:57 pm

In actuality, Kreil was still sitting moderately comfortably in his chair, eyes open after a few hours of being in his sleep-like trance. He felt fully rested, so he was taking the time between now and when the bard would awaken to get a bit of thinking done. It was a great annoyance that those guards had tried to arrest him. Obviously it had been a mistake on their part, but he wondered if this was just an error or if someone was trying to frame him. The latter was a cause of more concern than the former, and he frowned as he puzzled over the matter. It did bother him quite a lot.

He continued to frown as he noticed that the bard's rest was far from easy. It appeared that the man was having a nightmare of some kind, and he carefully got to his feet before limping over to the bed. He sat down on the edge of it, placing a gentle hand on the bard's shoulder in an attempt to lightly shake him awake. Nightmares were terrible things. Thankfully Kreil did not have them--he didn't dream at all in his trances--but he had seen others suffer from them in his travels.

by Nicola Christine Mon Feb 27, 2012 2:10 pm

... Ephren threw himself to the side and rolled out of bed. His only thought was to get into a more defensive position though he instinctively knew that he would not survive the next minutes. This was the end. He put his back to the wall and faced the black-clad figure in front of him. He had no weapon, had not trained anything but running in three years and was still slowed by exhaustion. His only chance - well, there was no chance. He grabbed the bedside lamp and swung....

.... and woke to Kreil's face above him and Kreil's hands restraining him. He freaked.

x

by Consulting Detective Mon Feb 27, 2012 2:15 pm

Kreil gave a little start when the bard suddenly woke up after thrashing around for several moments while the eladrin attempted to keep him from falling off the bed. It seemed like the bard's panic did not lessen upon awakening, though, and Kreil wondered just what he'd been dreaming about. Obviously something quite frightening, and the fact that Kreil was so close to him at the moment had probably just made things a little bit worse.

"Calm yourself," he directed, tightening his grip slightly. Having the man flail around like a fish out of water would do no good for either of them. "You are fine. You were just having a nightmare." Hopefully the bard would believe him and pull himself together. It was oddly distressing to see the man in this state of panic.

by Nicola Christine Mon Feb 27, 2012 2:28 pm

Kreil's words slowly entered through the fog of his panic. Ephren's rationality returned incrementally and the steel band that had tightened around his chest loosened. For a moment the only thing he could do was gasp for breath. Almost subconsciously he allowed his head to fall forward and rest against the Eladin's shoulder. The restraining arms were now comforting rather than frightening and the clean scent surrounding him with every breath helped him to relax. Sometimes over the course of the last day this scent, Kreil's scent, had become safety.

This thought shocked him out of his stupor. Embarrassment enfaced the moment and he pushed away from Kreil in a stiff and hectic movement. "I am sorry" he whispered avoiding the Eladrin's gaze.

x

by Consulting Detective Mon Feb 27, 2012 3:22 pm

Sitting there with a human in his arms and that very human's head resting against his shoulder was a new kind of awkward for Kreil. He didn't know quite how this had happened, but here he was with a male human in his embrace. And... was the bard smelling him? Granted Kreil knew he smelled rather nice, but that was still a bit strange. Certainly not something he was at all accustomed to. This entire situation was pretty new to him. Being on the run with a human... Definitely not on his list of everyday activities.

He blinked when the bard suddenly pulled away, looking quite embarrassed about having been that close to Kreil. Kreil couldn't blame him. The eladrin was pretty embarrassed about that, too. But his embarrassment was a bit overshadowed by the pain that had resulted as the bard pushed away. Kreil had shifted his position as he let the human go, which had not gone over well with his bad leg. It was paining him quite badly at the moment, and his discomfort was quite clear on his face and in his quick intake of breath.

"No need to apologize," he returned hurriedly, hopping up onto his good leg so he could limp back to that chair. A bit of distance between them sounded rather good right now, as did a soak in hot water. His leg could really use that, assuming this temple had access to heated water. There would certainly be baths somewhere, but he wasn't sure how private they were or how warm the water was. Food was another thing they needed, and he made a mental note to ask about that sooner rather than later.

by Nicola Christine Tue Feb 28, 2012 5:33 am

Ephren was still shaking, sitting at the side of the bed hanging his bed. Great, now he acted that stupid that he had to hide even from this embarrassment! Life sucked. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Kreil sinking back into the armchair with an expression of pain. For a moment, Ephren considered offering another massage but then swallowed the suggestion before it could even take real hold of his brain. Kreil clearly was mortified by the moment of intimacy Ephren had let slip past his guard. He was not about to make the situation worse for both of them by suggesting any further physical contact.

They sat there for a moment in uncomfortable silence, the only sound their breathing. Before Ephren could think of something to say to alleviate the discomfort of the situation one of the acolytes of the temple appeared in the door and addressed Kreil:
"Mylord, the bathing chambers have been prepared and the High Priest thought you might want to make use of them before food is served"

by Consulting Detective Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:31 am

Kreil was quite relieved that the acolyte had picked this time to deliver that message. It broke the tension in the room, and he nodded to the man and said, "Thank you. I will do that." The acolyte bowed before leaving swiftly, leaving the two of them alone again. At least they had something else to talk about now.

"I am going to bathe," he stated, as though that wasn't obvious enough already. "You are welcome to do so, as well." Not that he really expected the bard to take him up on the offer. The man had washed himself a bit last night, after all. Unless he was eager for a chance to see Kreil in the nude, he probably wouldn't go bathe right now.

by Nicola Christine Tue Feb 28, 2012 11:46 am

Ephren could hear the reluctance on Kreil's voice as the other man invited him to make use of the bathing chamber and something died in him. He shook his head without lifting his eyes. It would have been pleasant to have a real bath but Kreil clearly did not want to have Ephren there. Possibly there would be a later chance. Possibly he should leave. But it was still late in the night and he was dependent on Kreil to leave the city. It would be different then.

When Kreil had left the room Ephren let his shoulders relax. His eyes wandered and came to rest on the dagger Kreil had left on the little table. He took it up and weighed its perfect weight in his hand. It had been years since he had held such a perfect weapon. Almost absently he took a defensive position and moved the weapon through a simple attack move. Muscle memory awakened and his movement became faster and surer. He had been trained in weapons work since he had been a little boy and he had always loved the dagger. Faster and faster he moved allowing his body to take over

by Consulting Detective Tue Feb 28, 2012 12:01 pm

Perhaps the bard would learn in time that Kreil's reluctance to let them bathe in the same room was not because he disliked the man, but instead because he was enormously self-conscious about the scar on his leg. Just thinking about another person seeing it was enough to fill him with anxiety. He knew he needed to get over that eventually, but the injury was too fresh, too real, for him to fully accept it yet. He'd received it almost half a year ago, and it still felt so fresh. The scar was still that angry red hue, not yet fading to a paler shade. Perhaps once it did, Kreil would feel less awkward about it.

He made his way to the bathing chamber, finding his way there easily enough. Once inside the surprisingly nice room, he closed the door--there was no lock, unfortunately--and proceeded to strip down to his skin. His clothes were neatly folded and placed in a pile by the bath before Kreil slid himself into the thankfully-warm water. His leg initially protested the temperature, though, and he bit back a groan. Oh how he hated how tempermental his leg could be.

by Nicola Christine Tue Feb 28, 2012 2:01 pm

Too quickly did Ephren loose the fluidity of movement to exhaustion of his muscles. He had not trained in such a long time. When he stopped entirely he could feel that his body would cash that check tomorrow but it felt soooo good. A boyish grin flittered across his face and he suddenly realised that he had an audience. Two acolytes were leaning against the doorjamb with appreciation in their eyes. And not even this could destroy his elation of the moment.

However, he had to wash now as his shirt was drenched in sweat.
"Sirs, would you be so kind as to show me where the bathing chambers are? I believe I am in need of some water and soap."

The taller of the two acolytes entered the room with a dark grin on his face. He stepped close enough into Ephren's personal space for it to be uncomfortable. "I would love to show you and give you all the .... assistance ... you might require." His voice was sexual, his eyes cruel. Terror rose in Ephren's throat and he whimpered.

by Consulting Detective Tue Feb 28, 2012 2:11 pm

A strange sense of dread was setting in as Kreil finished with his bath. That feeling seemed centered in a corner of his mind that he'd come to recognize as his connection with Zehir, and he frowned. It seemed like his god was trying to warn him about something. Much appreciated, but Kreil didn't know exactly what was wrong. He needed to go see if the bard was all right.

He got out of the bath, wincing from the cooler air of the room. It made him shiver slightly, and he dried off as quickly as he could before pulling his clothes back on. Or, at least, his pants. The rest could wait until he was certain the bard was all right, and in the meantime he just slung his shirt over his shoulder. He had a mark that resembled a light green half-moon on the left side of his chest, right over his heart. All eladrin had such markings somewhere on their body. Usually it was somewhere on a cheek or their forehead, but Kreil's was on his chest. It was as unique as a birthmark, and no human had seen Kreil's before. He really couldn't care about that right now. Not with that feeling still nagging at the back of his mind.

by Nicola Christine Tue Feb 28, 2012 2:42 pm

Ephren stumbled back but quickly having his flight stopped by the too solid wall in his back. His eyes never left the man in front of him.That was his mistake, as it gave the second acolyte the chance to enter unheeded and approach him from the side. Ephren was quickly backed in the corner. The first acolyte, clearly the leader, leaned against the wall with an evil grin whilst No2 moved closer. Ephren's hands closed convulsively around the dagger he still held - but he was too aware of the tiredness in his hands, the sweat that made his palms slippery and the fact that his opponent outweighed him by a good 30 kilos.

No 2 licked his lips and leaned in enough that he could run his tongue up Ephren's cheek. Ephren's mind threatened to go blank as he huddled into himself in protection. He knew rape and he knew torture. He had survived it before and he could survive it again.

"How does the little rabbit taste, Teyn?" The voice of No1 was nasty.

by Consulting Detective Tue Feb 28, 2012 2:59 pm

A pair of fingers tapped on No1's shoulder, and the acolyte turned around in time to catch a fist in his mouth. The man gasped and drew back, a hand flying to his mouth, which had started bleeding from the punch. Likewise the fist of his attacker was bleeding now--his knuckles having been cut on the man's teeth--but that really didn't seem to matter to the rather angry shirtless eladrin. Those iridescent green eyes of his were just about glowing with anger.

"How does your own blood taste?" he growled, his voice sounding quite dangerous.

The acolyte who had been called Teyn was quite quick to turn to Kreil. Sure they'd been told that an avenger was in the temple, but he hadn't expected Kreil to look so... attractive. Or delicate, for that matter. Kreil didn't look all that strong, and Teyn thought he could handle Kreil. Obviously Teyn's inexperience meant that he had no idea what avengers were capable of.

"Back off," Teyn barked at him, noticing that his companion was getting back to his feet. Two on one. That sounded like good odds to him. Besides, Kreil was unarmed right now. His sword was over by the chair, and No1 was between him and the weapon. Kreil was visibly unarmed, and he was keeping his weight off his bad leg. This could go rather badly for both him and the bard.

"And let you torment my companion?" Kreil returned. "I think not." He had less than a second to react as Teyn practically threw himself at him, drawing a dagger in the process. The dagger was pressed to Kreil's throat a moment later, but Kreil had his own response to this. He just placed a hand on Teyn's chest and blasted him back with a shock of energy, making the man shout in pain and drop the dagger.

by Nicola Christine Tue Feb 28, 2012 3:38 pm

Ephren could suddenly breathe again. The body pinning him to the wall was gone and he saw Kreil facing off against the two acolytes and it did not look as if he was losing. Teyn flew across the room and Ephren ducked out of the way. He was impressed how the Eladrin dispatched the attacker with efficient and economical movements. But the odds two against one nevertheless were not good. As Kreil turned to the other acolyte Teyn rolled to his knees and got ready to attack again. The danger to Kreil, as small as it appeared to be, shocked Ephren into action and he attacked Teyn kicking the dagger out of the way.

x

by Consulting Detective Tue Feb 28, 2012 4:10 pm

The other acolyte drew his own weapon--a garrote--from his cloak and lunged at Kreil while Teyn and the bard had their own scuffle. Kreil recognized the acolyte's style of combat immediately, and he knew he needed to keep his wits about him with this foe. Teyn might be a novice, but this other acolyte was not. That much was abundantly clear as he successfully got that garrote around Kreil's pale neck, cutting off his air and nearly sending his mind into a panic from his inability to breathe.

Kreil clutched at his throat, trying to loosen the cord enough for him to breathe. The garrote was cutting into his skin, causing a few drops of blood to run down his skin. The acolyte was laughing, pressing against Kreil's back in a manner that made it very clear just how much he was enjoying doing this to the eladrin.

"You feel amazing against me," the acolyte whispered in his ear, making Kreil shudder. "I wish this could last." He pulled a little tighter on the garrote, forcing a choked sound from Kreil. The eladrin looked like he was on the verge of passing out, his eyes looking out-of-focus. It was now or never, so he had to take action.

He gave the acolyte a hard elbow to the ribs--or, at least, as hard of one as he could manage right now--before forcing himself to fey step, vanishing from in front of the acolyte before reappearing on the other side of the bed. It had not been the easiest feat for him to accomplish under the circumstances, and he was coughing harshly after he reappeared, gasping in air. His lungs felt like they were on fire.

The acolyte didn't give him time to recover. He rushed at Kreil again in an attempt to get that garrote back around his neck, but Kreil scrambled away. To his sword, no less, and once he had that weapon in his hand, he used it to send a far stronger blast at the acolyte than the one he'd nailed Teyn with before. That blast was enhanced by the symbol on his sword, and it hit the acolyte hard enough to knock him unconscious. Another blast to Teyn robbed him of his consciousness as well, and Kreil quickly found himself on the floor now that the fight was over. Every breath hurt, and his neck was bleeding as he rubbed it in an attempt to soothe the pain.

"Are you all right?" he managed to ask the bard, though his own voice sounded pained and rough.

by Nicola Christine Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:05 pm

Ephren rested against the wall panting. He really needed to get back in shape - runnning clearly was not always a choice.

"OK" he panted "Ok." He took another breath. "You?"

He rolled his head to the side to be able to look at the Eladrin. He saw teh blood and adrenalin pushed him off the floor and brought him too Kreil's side. He pushed his shoulder under Kreil's arm and guided him into the chair. Ephren kept a wary eye on his two downed attackers but they seemed to be out of it for the moment.

Turning back to Kreil he stroked the long pale hair carefulle back and turned Kreil's face into teh light with a firm grip. A long thin line of blood marred the pale skin of the throat but the wound did not seem to be too deep. This did not mean that the irritation and swelling airway resulting would not be more than painful - but not life threatening.

"Do you think I can leavve you alone with them for a second whilst I go get some bandages and someone to remove them?"

by Sponsored content