- Messages
- 26
- Character Biography
- Link
A round of requests for an illustration of the creatures in question, and Gilcrest, after turning and glancing over the contents of his desk, perhaps expecting one to be there, shouted for an orderly. An orderly arrived dutifully at the door, Gilcrest relayed the request, and the orderly briskly disappeared on his appointed task.
"I should take a moment to describe the loathsome beasts, perennial thorn in my side they've proven to be," Gilcrest said with some disdain. "You'll see in a moment that they are truly hideous things. Mage-hunters. They can eat flesh, but very much do they prefer to drain mages, or magic things, of their arcane substance. They accord themselves like wolves—or hyenas, if you have seen those rarer animals—but, whatever analogy suits best, they accord themselves as pack hunters. Trust in what arms and armor you carry, because I tell you that any magic will have scant effect—though I imagine it will be useful as bait."
Gilcrest glanced to Zael, and Zael spoke of his own personal experience. "They like to hit-and-run, so watch your back—your back and your buddy's back. It's easy to scare 'em, they only really got confidence in numbers, but they're some dogged little bastards—they'll scamper away and then come right back. Watch the magic though; too much and they might go frenzied."
He sucked his tongue against his teeth and then, after that small pause, said, "They usually run around on all fours but...sometimes they stand up and walk like a man, or some strange parody thereof. And uh...I heard some of them talkin."
"What?" said Reven, taken aback.
Zael waved his hand, tempering wild imaginations. "Na, not like people, but like...you ever see one of those real smart birds? The colorful ones? The ones that can copy a voice?"
"Parrots," said Gilcrest. "Crows and ravens also have a similar intellect, bestial though it may be, and said ability to copy."
"Yeah. Like all those birds. Those kraits can copy what you say—some of 'em, anyway. They don't understand, obviously, but they're damn clever. One of 'em learned my name. Walked up to me on two legs in the dark of night and said it to me, and ran away when I figured out it wasn't my buddy Alistair. That little shit had me tricked for a moment there."
The orderly returned, and he handed the illustration of a krait to Kaelan first—this at Captain Gilcrest's behest.
Kaelan Pomrick Bloomsfield
"I should take a moment to describe the loathsome beasts, perennial thorn in my side they've proven to be," Gilcrest said with some disdain. "You'll see in a moment that they are truly hideous things. Mage-hunters. They can eat flesh, but very much do they prefer to drain mages, or magic things, of their arcane substance. They accord themselves like wolves—or hyenas, if you have seen those rarer animals—but, whatever analogy suits best, they accord themselves as pack hunters. Trust in what arms and armor you carry, because I tell you that any magic will have scant effect—though I imagine it will be useful as bait."
Gilcrest glanced to Zael, and Zael spoke of his own personal experience. "They like to hit-and-run, so watch your back—your back and your buddy's back. It's easy to scare 'em, they only really got confidence in numbers, but they're some dogged little bastards—they'll scamper away and then come right back. Watch the magic though; too much and they might go frenzied."
He sucked his tongue against his teeth and then, after that small pause, said, "They usually run around on all fours but...sometimes they stand up and walk like a man, or some strange parody thereof. And uh...I heard some of them talkin."
"What?" said Reven, taken aback.
Zael waved his hand, tempering wild imaginations. "Na, not like people, but like...you ever see one of those real smart birds? The colorful ones? The ones that can copy a voice?"
"Parrots," said Gilcrest. "Crows and ravens also have a similar intellect, bestial though it may be, and said ability to copy."
"Yeah. Like all those birds. Those kraits can copy what you say—some of 'em, anyway. They don't understand, obviously, but they're damn clever. One of 'em learned my name. Walked up to me on two legs in the dark of night and said it to me, and ran away when I figured out it wasn't my buddy Alistair. That little shit had me tricked for a moment there."
The orderly returned, and he handed the illustration of a krait to Kaelan first—this at Captain Gilcrest's behest.
Kaelan Pomrick Bloomsfield
