...

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

First post on these forums. Nothing too big, hope you like it.

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"Crap!"

 

Ignoring the surprised looks of his fellow miners Grum threw the pieces of what should have been a steel long sword into a corner. He had been working in these caves since early this morning, but somehow nothing came out right today. He knew why, of course.

 

He had had the dream again, the same one that had been haunting him for as long as he could remember. Not that the dream itself was so bad, but it always gave him a splitting headache the day after. It seemed as if he was having it more often over the last few months.

 

The dream always started the same: he was flying over lands unknown to him. He wasn't afraid, as he would normally be at such a height. It was even enjoyable, it felt natural to see the trees and animals below as if they were small toy models. As he flew on, he would see a human city --

 

-- Grum shook his head. Of course it would be a human city. There were no other cities. Yeah, of course he had seen a dwarf in the mines every now and then, and he had even heard rumours about a dwarven town, but he felt confident that only humans could build something as huge as a city. He should not be wasting his time with this nonsense, and get back to making weapons again. The trader would be here in just a week, so he'd better hurry if he wanted to earn some money.

 

With a sigh he got up.

"I'm going for coal. Be right back."

The others mumbled some greetings as he turned around and walked away.

[Berenice]

:wink: I like it, Grum, sounds really dwarfish ...

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Thanks, Berenice, I appreciate it.

 

Well, Kayliana, it looks like it's going to take a long time before I catch up with you, but here's part 2:

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Grum was mindlessly hacking away at the coal. Harvesting the stuff was always a boring job, and he wished he had someone else to do it for him. The problem with harvesting coal was -- well -- exactly that. It was just stupid, simple harvesting, but he liked to create new things. That's why he chose this profession in the first place, for the pride that he felt when he had created another sword or armour. Most of the times times he thought that the people he sold them to could not feel the passion that had went into his creations. Oh, well, at least they paid well enough.

 

He listened to the dull <thud>, <thud> of his pickaxe hitting the coal. Stupid actually, but the rhythm of the sound made the job less boring. <thud>, <thud>, <thud> ... a vague tingling sound reached his ears. What in Glilin's name was that!?

 

"Did you hear that?", he said, to noone in particular. No answer was given. Looking up, he saw that he was alone. Damn it, he was speaking to the rocks again. Well, at least this time there was noone around to see how he made an ass of himself. He picked up his pickaxe, and hit the coal at the same place as before. Sure enough, the same sound as before, like something was hidden inside this massive layer of coal. Frantically he started hacking away around the spot the sound came from.

 

A minute later he was holding a small, strange-looking sculpture in his hand. It looked somewhat like a lizard, except that it had wings, and seemed much more ferocious. He could almost feel the arrogant pride of the sculpted animal radiating towards him. For such a small object, it was surprisingly heavy. He whistled. "Wow, must be solid silver", he thought to himself, "and really ancient, too". He smiled at the thought of his friends seeing the little treasure he had found.

 

He turned it round in his hands. It seemed in to be in a perfect condition, not a scratch on the surface.

 

Strange.

 

He was sure he had hit it a few times with his pick axe.

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

LOL, the scenario you sketched sounds a bit familiar :twisted:

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Grum frowned as he looked closely at the little shiny object in his hand again. No, not the least damage was done. He shrugged. "Even better then", he thought to himself, "it will only increase the worth of the thing". He realized that he had spent far too much time on the sculpture. Time was always hard to guess inside the caves, but experience told him the afternoon was already halfway past. He should really be going back to harvesting coal before the day was over.

Carefully he wrapped the image in the cloth he had with him, and put it in his bag. Just as he took up his pick axe again, he heard a cry from behind him. "...anyone there ... lost". He grumbled to himself. Roua's kids again, probably. She really ought to keep a better eye on them, even if she was busy in the tavern. It was just last week that they had had to organize a search party in Evergreen Forest because the kids hadn't come home for dinner. Well, he'd better go find them before something happened to them.

 

As Grum turned round the corner, he heard the voice again. "Help!". This time it seemed more distant then before. "Stand still, for crying out loud", he yelled, "or I'll never find you". No response followed. Worried about what might have happened, he hastened his pace. Usually the caves were pretty peaceful, but sometimes a fox or a bear would come in. The children would be able to scare a fox away, but if there really was a bear...

 

There was the quartz circle, the voice had come from behind the rock wall, he was now certain about that. He ran the last few meters, and stood face to face with a tall, strange-looking woman.

 

She smiled. "I could hear you coming", she said, in a voice that sounded like music.

 

"What the...?". "Who in Elandria's name are you!?"

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Ok, quick update before I leave, so Kayliana has something to respond to :lol:

 

We need more people to join in, so anyone reading this (if any...) please start writing your own background and I'm sure we'll meet you in this story

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"Kayliana Eli ... what?"

"What do you need so many names for?"

 

Kayliana just smiled.

"They were given to me at birth."

 

Astonished by the sudden appearance of this strange looking woman, Grum scratched his head. This was certainly an interesting day, more had happened today than in the four years that had passed since he decided to follow Glilin's path.

 

"Well then, Kayliana, we'd better get you out of here if you don't wish to spend the night here. Follow me."

 

As they walked towards the northern exit, many questions raged through Grum's mind. Who was this person, why was she here? Not to mine for ore, it seemed. They walked past Estilo. Normally the dwarf would ignore him, but not today.

 

"Hey there, Grum!", Estilo shouted, "what are you doing there with that elf?"

 

With a sudden move Grum threw himself away from the woman.

 

"A what?"

"You're a what!?"

"What do you want from me!?"

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Arafin]

Arafin d'Arc sat once again alone in the White Stone City Inn. He had been there many a night when the day seemed like it would never end. He sat there not a soul in the room...and even if there was he had way too much to drink to know anyways.

 

He was the Captain-General of the White Stone army. He had just got off duty of protecting the fellow citizens in Lakeside from Gargoyles. He rarely went anywheres without his sword and armor these days. His armor was of ancient design, supposedly created many years ago by Aluwen herself. Well dwarves always were the typeto make things seem better then they were. Arafin being human did not have much use for dwarves or elves. In fact White Stone City disliked any type of race other then human. It was rare to see any dwarves or elves in White Stone these days, and the only ones that did come wee to buy flowers or sell items made in the mines.

 

Arafin had long blonde hair to his shoulders, and trimmed facial hair to go with it. His armor was blue and shining silver...even after many battles it remained dentless. It was famed to be mithril as was his sword. He acquired his sword from his father who claimed he had bought it from a very old dwarf in a forbidden city he had stumbled across. That wasludicrousof course as no human nor darf he knew had set eyes upon it, and those who went searching neve returned.

 

He eventually drank himself to sleep, and one of his seargents ended up carrying him back to his room in nothern White Stone. This happened more often now then normal. Arafin had been highly relgious and followed Aluwen strictly but lately he had slacked for unknown reasons and the city was thinknig of removing him from Captain-General of the guards because of it.

 

The next morning Arafin awoke with a splitting headache. "Ooohh, what did I eat. Must have been those potatoes, they looked a little too brown." As he was getting out of bed he fell and hit face first on the floor. "Grr, stupid feet. You act like your over 100 years old and I have not even reached 23 yet."

 

He moved over to the washing stand in his room and washed up and placed his armor and sword in the respectable places. "Today is the day." Arafin had planned on moving away from here for a long time now. He thought maybe to Kilaran Fields and find himself a place in thier military. He went outside-the sun was just rising-and he found his horse Twilighter adn set off to Kilaran Fields with only a letter to his second in command.

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Arafin]

"Hello their my Lady. Why yes sure I can give you a ride to Kilaran Fields. In fact I was heading there myself." Helping the women up on the horse he noticed she had the most luxurious eyes he had ever seen. Pushing the lump in his throat back he ask, "So where do you be coming from my Lady. Hope it isnt too far from here. I'd hate for a pretty lady like you to have walked this far by yourself. The roads are dangerous nowadays." She did not seem to here Arafin. She was looking to the sky for something. Maybe she wasnt in the talking mood.

 

Arafin went back to looking at the wodnerous scenery on the sides of the road. The trees were of every shade and of none. He could hear the critters in the woods running around, and what seemed to be the sounds of birds chirping and squirrels chattering. It was peaceful out here, but he had not been out on the road during the night, and it would not be long beofre it would be too dangerous to ride the horse because he might not see a hole in the road till Twilighters leg was broken. He cleared his mind and set the image of the forest in his head to keep his cool serenity.

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Arafin]

Knowing he himself was too dumbfounded to have remembered to get any food before departing accepted the bread gladly, "Thanks my Lady. I will savor it."

 

He sat there eating the bread for a good while. He was taight that when rations were low eat slower and you will be full quicker. A strategy to sav food, and quench your hunger. However, if you do this for too long you shorten your enrgy level and become weak in both mind and body.

 

Arafin built a small fire to keep himself and Melantha warm during the night. Having done that he got up to search the surrounding area. He could not see much in the way of danger but it was too dark to tell. Rumors of Gargoyles traveling this far were not unheard of in the least, and even though Arafi could take on a Gargyole face to face, it was dark he was tired, and he might even be sleeping when it approaches. Keeping all of this to himself as not to cause an great alarm he went and layed down to go to sleep. "G'night my Lady. Pleasant dreams."

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Grum saw the look in the elf's eyes as she made her way out. He had heard stories about the elves, about how they used their magical abilities to get people to do their will. His parents had thought him they were... not so much evil, but rather... dangerous. The elves, they said, cared not for humans, and would not hesitate to destroy a human life to meet their own goals.

 

He had always laughed at the stories. Surely elves didn't exist. There had not been an elf to Corren for centuries, and only the age-old dwarf that always sat there in the corner of the tavern claimed to ever have seen an elf in his life. But then again, that dwarf was insane, he couldn't even remember his own name. Always begging for new ale too, he was, saying he needed it to forget what he had seen in his younger days. Noone had ever found out what it was that he tried to forget, it seemed as if he had done a mighty good job at drinking his memories away.

 

"Good day to you, Master Dwarf. And to you, Grum who Helped an Elf. The Forest of the Fall is where I am off to."

 

Estilo grunted. Grum saw the shudder running through the young woman's body as she heard it. And he saw the pain in her eyes as he had jumped away from her. This could not be right. But then again, this was an elf, and elves were dangerous. Better leave it at this, and hope she would leave the Pines forever.

 

Softly singing what seemed an age-old ballad the woman walked into the woods.

 

Oh, crap.

 

"Kayliana, wait..."

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Grum walked towards the elf woman.

 

"I..."

"I apologize if I have offended you. I'm sorry, Kayliana."

 

She simply nodded. Grum sighed, this was not a discussion he liked to have.

 

"It is getting dark, we should get something to eat. Let us go to the tavern, and have dinner there, all right? Where will you sleep?"

 

Kayliana let out a little laugh.

 

"Do you think it is a good idea to take an elf into the tavern here? You are a kind man, Grum, but I doubt that all people around here are like you. Fear of the unknown is a very strong force, that can make otherwise normal people set aside all reason. I will just go hunt in these forests, I have seen there is more than enough wild life here to feed me."

 

Although the meaning of the words was bitter, she made it sound... understanding. Grum thought about it. She was correct, of course, even his closest friends would not want her there. Still, this wasn't right. He thought about it for a moment.

 

"I would like to join you, Kayliana, but I honestly don't know how to hunt. Gilrand always sells his meat to the the tavern, and he does not want to take anyone with him while he's hunting. Besides, I'm a miner and manufacturer, not a hunter."

 

The radiant smile that she threw him made his last doubts go away. This woman could not be evil.

 

"I would be very happy if you'd care to join me, Grum", she said. "I could teach you how to hunt. It is not that difficult." With another smile she added: "You might want to pack that pick axe up first, though. It won't do you any good while hunting."

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Grum touched his sore knee. Ouch, hopefully this would not be too bad tomorrow.

 

"Oh, please stop it", he grawled to Kayliana, who was nearly choking with laughter. "It's not that funny."

 

His words did not make much of an impression, it seemed, since her reply was still interrupted by several outbursts of laughter.

 

"But it was, Grum, it really was. Not the fact that you tripped over that tree root, but the movements you made while flying through the air were simply... hilarious. Priceless. Sooo funny..."

 

"Alright! Stop it already! Ouch. This hurts, you know?"

 

Taking the last grin of her face, Kayliana walked back to him. She placed her hands on his knee and pressed a little. A warm glow started flowing through the sore spot.

 

"There now, that ought to do it", she said.

 

Amazed, Grum looked up.

 

"How did you do that?"

 

He bent his leg a little. The pain was gone.

 

"This is a miracle!"

 

She looked down on him with an ironic smile.

 

"It's an example of the evil elven magic you humans keep babbling about. Anyway, let's go find the contents of your bag."

 

Grum stood up from where he was lying. Yeah, she had a good point there. Everything he had with him lay scattered over the ground. He picked up his bag, as he heard a surprised cry. Kayliana was standing a few meters from him, and held the sculpture he had found earlier that day up.

 

"Where did you find this?", she asked. "And when? Please tell me, I must know, it is important!"

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

Well, everything seems to be coming together nicely now. Good job Kayliana

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Grum's mouth fell open. This could not be happening, it was an illusion. Yeah that was it, an illusion. The wind blew harder than before, and at the spot where the silver figure was dropped, the leaves started to twirl around in circles, wider and wider. Even more violently than before was the sculpture shaking, and then, in a sudden blow, it seemed to open. Slowly a truly huge figure arose from within, and a great brown reptilic animal that looked exactly like it's silver counterpart unfolded. Grum stumbled back, full of respect for that grand shadow against the night sky. In a strange way, he did not feel scared.

 

As the animal reached it's full form, it opened it's mouth an let out a violent roar.

 

In what seemed like an ancient voice it spoke: "Finally you have released me, O Mighty Black Empress! Our exile has been too long, yet it can all be forgotten now you have told me that it has come to an end. Surely I will accept the human before me, for I have chosen him myself. He shall be as brave and faithful to the Dragon race as were the elven of old."

 

With these words the dragons lowered himself, and approached Grum.

 

"Fear not, Grum human, for a grand and glorious future awaits you."

 

Grum felt a sudden sharp pain in his chest, which disappeared immediately. For a brief moment he realised that the gigantic figure was making it's way into his own body.

 

Then everything turned black.

[Kayliana]

...

Edited May 8, 2019 by Kayliana

[Grum]

A strange sensation had overcome Grum. He felt...whole. Alive. Ne smelled, he felt, he heard the creatures of the woods. He could feel the life surrounding him. All was clearer than before, the shapes and forms of the trees were easily distinguishable, even though the sun had set at least two hours ago. Although he had worked in the mines his whole life, it seemed as if only now he could feel the full strength of his body.

 

He seemed to remember so much that his head would explode. Images of the past floated through his mind. Gigantic dragons, who treated him as if he was one of them, with respect even. A gigantic white palace, in the middle of the woods, that could be seen from miles and miles away. A huge banner on top of it, proudly flaring in the wind. And he remembered people, men as well as elves and dwarves, coming to the palace, and talking to the dragons to learn from their ancient wisdom. And he saw the first signs of what was to come, the betrayal by mankind, who lusted for knowledge they could not comprehend...

 

Kayliana touched his arm. "Listen."

 

In the distance Grum heard the cries of the oncoming people. He jumped to his feet.

 

"They must be searching for me!", he said, "I should have been home hours ago."

 

With a sad look, the elf shook her head.

 

"It's not you they're looking for. Well, in a way they are. Look, and listen carefully."

 

He ran up the hill, and heard the cries better now. A pack of villagers was coming from the direction of Corren, armed with sticks and torches.

 

"...must drive them away...elf...trouble...should have known...death to the beasts..."

 

With a puzzled look on his face, he stared at Kayliana.

 

"What...No!"

 

She looked back, with a knowing expression, as if she had seen this happen a thousand times before.

 

"I am sorry, Grum, that this should happen to you. It is not fair, but you must not blame them. We cannot stay here."

 

"But...I live here. I cannot leave. I was born here. These are my people."

 

"Not anymore. You have a lot to learn about what just happened to you, and it's important that you do. I can teach you, but it would help if you were alive in the process. We must go. Now!"