Chapter One: Infiltration

[Terra Artemos]

Terra walks upstairs to the room where she had lift her gear, notesing Capher sleeping on one of the beds, and Avour sleeping, nealing on a chair, facing the window.

Terra moves over to her pack, replacing the dagger and the sharpening stone, and retreave some clean clothing. She then crosses the hall to the room where Capher had indicated the men would be sleeping, and finds a tub of warm water. She slips out of her clothes, laying her katana with in reach of the tub and lowers herself in, almost instantly feeling the burden of road filth lift from her, for the first time in a while be relaxed. It has been a while since she had felt secure with a group, and has time to herself with which to think.

} = Thought

{ = End of though

}So, we are to retreave an object, a jewle from theaves. Easy, with enough time, and the right oppertunity. The group seems able to fight there way out of trouble should we need to. Some have misguided ideas about fighting evil though, it is not something that can be destroyed, or even conquered. It must be balanced, as it is inherant in all living things.{

Terra finishes washing, and gets dressed,  now waring a light blue komono like garment with a buitifully embroitered gold serpentine dragon, on the left chest, with two emboitered red drops, one under each of the dragons claws. She walks back to the other room, her dirty cloths and sword in hand, removes and empty pouch from her pack, places the dirty cloths in it and then replaces it before sliding into an empty bed, her sword within reach, and goes to sleep.

'Life is a grim reality, through which only honor shines.'

[Ta'lia of the Seven Jewels]

Talia puts her chin on her knees, arms around her legs. Somehow the fun is out of the situation,even  the stars seem to have dimmed their light. And it started do funny, indeed.
She turns to both men asking: „Do you still like to tell one of your true stories or should we take Caphers advice? I can‘t really wait till I something, but otherwise.....“
She falls silent waiting for an answer, but  decides then that she will go to sleep :
„I see you this morning, I will go to sleep now as well. Thanks for the story Silfer, hope to hear one of yours soon, Koldar. Good night.“

Somehow Talia is sad, she doesn‘t really know the reason. She goes upstairs to take a bath as well, but decides against it. It is not the time now making noise with the others sleeping, Koldar and Silfer will probably come as well soon. Avour sits in an what has to be uncomfortable way on a chair and sleeps with the arms on the windowsill. Talia just can see her falling from the chair or having again a bad dream, so she takes her carefully in her arms and wraps her on the floor in her woollen blanket, hoping not to wake her.
She realises, that she doesn‘t want to sleep in the house. These people might all be friends sometime, but now she suddenly needs to be alone, too many thoughts are filling her head now when no distraction  keeps them out.
So she gathers all her other belongings and leaves the house  to look for Swing who is near the well under one of the rare trees. Despite the cold of the night she undresses and washes herself where the water of the well forms a little water path to the garden, looks for some fresh clothes and wraps herself then in her cape. It is not as comfortable as her blanket, but  warm enough. Lying down with her body close to her Ai‘ she is looking quite a while at the stars  till she finally finds sleep.

"Don't be pushed by your problems.  Be led by your dreams."

[Silfer Darkflare]

I see that Talia went to bed as well, and realize that i am pretty tired as well. And if we are to start early tomorrow... Then i better go.

"Koldar, i am going to bed now. And i suggest you should as well..." I say, then go towards the inn.

Going upstairs i begin to think of what will come out of this. After entering the room i see Capher snoring nicely. I lay down on the bed and try to get an overview of this.

Here we are: Avour, like a child. I hope she knows how to swing a sword..
Talia, a noble, but not showing it. A good warrior, she seems...
Terra, grim and alone. I wonder what she is hiding if she does...
Capher, the one "hiring us.." He seems strange to me. I can hardly feel his aura, even when he is sleeping right over there... And his aura radiates... ancienty... as if he were very old, much older then a human can be, older then an elf can be... I wonder who or what he is.
Koldar, the one i cant find anything to think about. Knight of the moonlight, eh? Who knows how he really is...

With this i fall to sleep.

Nor good nor evil can exist alone. Only in balance the world is maintained.

[Koldar Mondrakken]

Avour's appearance and her involuntary joke about me had confused me so much that I nearly overheard Talia asking for the story I should tell.
But now as everybody is going to bed and me not knowing how to feel at all I keep silent. So Silfer takes over. I can barely follow thinking about other things. At least I listen to the ending.

Talia seems to feel guilty in some way and soon wishes us a good night and leaves.

I say to Silfer "A good story, Silfer. But not a true one. You cannot fight the evil without becoming part of it. Have a nice rest and peaceful dreams. As I said: This night will guard us."
I pause looking around. At the abandoned dochnuts and the wine then back at the house "I still have to think about various things. I'll come later."

When Silfer is gone I go over to the wine and have a seat on the tree stump. For minutes I stare at the bottle thinking about old times. The night envelopes me, the moon shines on me, the stars sparkle, just as it should be, but something is missing .... as always.

I keep looking at the fine wine bottle. 'How easy to forget!' But I don't open it. And while I feel the hard coolness of the glass I start to mumble. "Once, in a kingdom without a king, lived those who guard the night in a tower of..."

I sit there till dawn watching the stars and my own deep thoughts. 'We're a strange group of people- Noble, funny, serious and tortured. Eventually we even become heroes when we finish the task if Capher's story is halfway true. But the price to become a hero is always too high. I hope the thieves of Strata still know me. Otherwise we are dead already or failed. Hope. That's it. And nothing more we need. Just a little... hope.'

If I have slept peacefully and dreamed I can't say but it is close to dawn when I wake up still sitting on the tree stump. I shake the tiredness from my body and get up waiting for the sun to rise.

Koldar Mondrakken, Knight of the Moonlight

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