Chapter Two - "Thalambath" - Part One

[Lili the Elfcat]

For someone who'd been huddled in a makeshift tent in the middle of the desert, the bandit talked in distinctly overblown terms. He did look dangerous, though – or at least more dangerous than Te-oh, the little trickster. His movements were controlled and deliberate, and he was readying himself for the possibility of fight. Yet Lili wasn't worried. She'd seen Grallen's alertness, and had no doubt that if the bandit tried anything, the orcess would be over him like a swarm of wopses.

Lili lowered her cutlass, signalling that she, for her part, was not going to start a battle. Her voice rang out loud and clear, making sure Rudohn and the rest could hear, if they chose to listen.
”Tell your arsonist that we are glad to encounter high culture in this otherwise boring desert. I see no need to burn high culture to the ground, if it ain't necessary. All we want is for the sword-bearer to be the sword-bearer again. We'll even forgive Te-oh his pranks. Ain't that right, sword-bearer?”
She shouted the last question, so that Altario would hear.

She did not intend to insult Rudohn, by the way. She had not heard the word 'arcanist' before now, and had little idea what it meant, beyond an intuitive guess that it referred to some prestiguous title or other. She did not know what 'arsonist' meant, either, but that word, snatched unconsciously from overheard conversations, had lodged itself in her mind. And since her mind thought it had better things to do than learn new vocabulary while watching for tell-tale twitches in the shoulders of a bandit whose hands were only a few palmspans away from his weapon, it had decided to assimilate “arcanist” into the vaguely familiar form of “arsonist”. Who needed all these words anyway?

[Altario Shialt-eck-Gorrin]

Altario dropped the flint outside the tent and then scrambled back to his feet, mace in hand.  He looked to Drustai for a signal as to what they would do next.  He hoped whatever plan she had was a good one.

"Okay, what now?"

At that moment, he heard Lili's voice ring out loud and clear, taunting their foes, as well as announcing their plan.  With dread he awaited the elf to blame him for this.  Sure enough, it took only a moment before she accused his friends of being imbeciles.

He opened his mouth to argue, but he had nothing.  Instead, he could only shrug sheepishly. "I think that may be a bit strong, don't you think?  Imbeciles?  Yes.  Friends?  Still working on that one."

Then the voice of one of the bandits called out, asking to meet with him, as the "sword bearer".  He locked eyes with Drustai.  "This sounds suspicious.  But I don't think we have a choice."  He stepped past the elf to the tent flap.  

The next voice was Lili's once more.  Altario grimaced at what might come out next.  Did the strange women really need to taunt the bandits further?  Her last statement was directed at him, asking for assurance that Altario wouldn't cut Te-oh's throat.

No!  That little bastard is going to feel my wrath, and I'll gut him like a squirming fish!

That was what screamed out, if only in his mind.  Instead, he stepped out of the tent into the searing heat once more.

"I only want my sword.  With that, as long as we get to leave, then no blood need be spilled this day.  No one need die.  No one's been harmed yet," his hand went to the bruise where he had been kicked.  Well, almost no one. "So, I for one would like to keep it that way.  What are your terms?"

[Toama SorInyt]

It would seem that neither Grallen nor Lili had the inclination to set fire to the oil she had spread over the tent. Perhaps just as well - she didn't actually want to hurt anyone, just drive them out of their tent. However, Lili's solution to the problem seemed somewhat... radical. Toama's eyes went wide for a moment as she heard the woman's challenge. Not allowing her surprise to dull her senses, she immediately dropped the lamp she was still holding, and gripped her scimitar to meet any challenge that might present itself.

When she thought about it, as they waited for a reaction, it was not even that bad that Lili had called out, instead of starting the fire. The bandits now knew they were here, but then... there was really no way in Caelereth that they had not already known, what with the commotion of the bird singing out, and the furtive whispering of her companions. This way, at least, they were forced to react - if after that they still did not come out, there was definitely something wrong.

As it turned out, they did finally come out of hiding, even if it was only one of them. He held his hands spread out in a gesture of peace. Toama slightly lowered her weapon, though she did not put it away - if things went to the Void, she wanted to be ready. She kept an eye on the bandit, but she was happy to let Lili do the talking, and when he came out Altario as well. She understood most of what was being said, though some part of the conversation went over her head. For example, she had no idea what an arcanist actually did - or an arsonist, either, though she did hear the difference in words used.

[grallen gast]

As the man stepped out of the tent, he very nearly died. Grallen stopped herself as she was shifting her weight to lunge forward, gaze fixing just under his arm, where a blade would slide easily between ribs.  No. he is talking and things are still just about alright. Not yet. She slid the knife up her sleeve, letting the tip rest against a curled index finger. The slightest movement would bring the weapon to hand again, and she was willing to bet that she could have the blade at this man’s throat before he lowered his own hands to a weapon.

She wasn’t really paying attention to what was said. Words like “negotiate” and “necessary” drifted by, but mostly she listened to the tone of voice. Everyone was speaking cautiously, icily polite, concealing as much as possible. In this desert? It seemed laughable. In any case, Grallen was waiting for someone to raise their voice, or waver in fear or doubt. That was when it would be time to listen again. For now, she tried to hasten the process along. She stood her ground, by the door of the tent, and smiled at the alleged arsonist, in her characteristic manner, with too much teeth, but pleasant and cheery as you like unless one happens to take a close look at the eyes. Grallen’s eyes said very plainly that she was waiting for a chance to gut someone.

[Ílarolén'yliás (Drustai)]

Avhan peered at the party around him. Though they were likewise avoiding making any hostile moves, his muscles remained tight in anticipation. In the event they decided to go from peaceful to aggressive, he wanted to be ready. The most dangerous was the orc. It was closest, and he could tell by the way it stood--stiff and staring--that it was as ready to pounce as he was to retreat. The other two women, however, had lowered their arms, while the man seemed more distracted with speaking and nurturing his recent wound. He was safe--for now at least. Even if the orc attacked, she was only armed with direct weapons. Avhan could easily make it back inside before she reached him. However, one of the individuals was still unaccounted for, and that worried him. Where was the elf? Rudohn had said she had escaped as well.

No matter. They seemed civil enough for now. Avhan took a deep breath, allowing the cooling (but still hot) desert air to invigorate his muscles and steady his nerves. He gave the tall woman a nod in acknowledgment of her comments and then turned his gaze towards the sword-bearer. He then began to speak, with a smooth and deliberate voice as if he was speaking to a wealthy customer over a fine meal.

"I am merely a messenger. Avhan is my name. Arcanist Rudohn is inside, and invites you--and your friends, of course--to join him at the table to negotiate. We had just finished dinner when your friend shouted."

Okay, so it was not likely that the party would accept the invitation. Afterall, they would expect an ambush--and frankly, Avhan thought that that was just what they should be doing. But Rudohn had other plans, apparently. Either way, it was worth offering, at least, if only for the purpose of maintaining proper manners.

[Altario Shialt-eck-Gorrin]

Altario watched the man, watched his companions, and listened to the short speech.  Arcanist; a fancy word for mage.  Negotiate; a fancy word for trap? 

In his head, many thoughts raced.  What would happen if he refused?  Was this a trap?  Did they really only want to talk?  If he were to fight, could they win?  Was the elf strong enough to defeat this "Arcanist"?

Altario's gaze travelled to the other members of the group.  What were their thoughts?  Did the orc have one?  A question best pondered a different day. He shifted back to the man, Avhan.

"I speak for myself.  I don't trust you.  How do we know you are not setting a trap?  If you are who you say you are, bring me my sword, and allow me armed into this negotiation.  My friends can come or stay outside as they wish, but we will not relinquish our weapons."

This sounded like a good compromise.

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