Open Chronicles The One They Left Behind

[Kiileet Glassdancer]

Kiileet continued to comply, he laid her on the bed but he knelt beside her and removed his wet cloak and put whatever dry blankets were there around her. He then cast another healing spell on her to slowly work while he turned and sat in a chair. He crossed his legs and leaned back in the chair a bit with both hands visible on his cane planted in front of him.

He looked Azure up and down and again showed him a diplomatic smile, "Ye seem ta be in as much trouble as she is, mate. And I may be the only bloke in ere that don't care if ye were the son o the king himself that I would turn aside for some idea of social class or position. You've seen some of what I can do by now, ye can't tell me that hasn't given you any ideas as to how ta fix both of yer situations. I can be whoever I want to be."

He tilted the chair back on two legs as he lounged back a little bit more looking at the ceiling, "Besides, why should the nobles get in the last word? a bloke can't just take from another bloke an expect ta get away with it, ye don't need to be born rich ta know that. I say we give the nobles a taste of the real world... Our world... An show em the cost of taking what don't belong ta them."

He turned his strangely glowing eyes on Azure again, "I understand what yer going through, mate. An ye can't tell me otherwise. Nobles set the rules an people get hurt while they sit high an mighty unaffected by their own rules. They took something... or someone from you. The unspoken law demands their lives get torn apart before their very eyes."

He leaned forward quickly and the legs of the chair slammed down to emphasize his point as he looked the assassin straight in the eye, "Tell me I'm wrong!"

 

[Lyssia D'avore]

Azure blinked at the man. Is he for real? After a moment of consideration, he assumed that, yes, this was the genuine article. He had no idea how he had survived so long. Of course, it could simply have been that he never found himself in situations like this one. Azure didn't imagine many would find themselves in such.

"You clearly don't know what you are talking about," he snarked at the stranger as they took their ease. "You are either not from around here, or your are willfully ignorant. Are you a one-man army, capable of felling legions by yourself?" The look on Azure's face showed exactly what he thought of that. Incredulity just wasn't in it. "They control the government, the Guard, the Royal Army, he Parliament, and quite a lot of the criminal elements of the city besides. I don't know what kind of quaint, idealistic vision of the world you seem to inhabit, but this place is cold and hard."

"You...would know," came a croaking voice from the bed. The girl was looking at him, now, her fever-bright eyes with their faint, odd glow from within intense on him. "Tr..aitor..."

"They have my family, mistress," he snapped, and then suddenly looked as if he regretted revealing so much in front of a stranger, He looked at Kiileet, clearly deciding whether or not he should just kill the man and be done with it once and for all. The pressure of sorcery seemed to build in the room as he began to process of drawing the energy of creation....and then stopped. Fell flat, the mounting pressure bleeding away.

"They have my wife and son, Miss Lyssia. I either do their bidding or they kill them. They already killed my daughter, to prove they meant what they said..." His eyes went distant for a moment, a fleeting glimpse of sorrow. It was gone a moment later. "They want-"

"Your...family...is not worth...my entire...House..." she replied from the bed. Azure seemed taken aback by that, features hardening.

 

[Kiileet Glassdancer]

Kiileet grimaced a bit at her words, "Well now... I would agree an disagree with the lass on that one. The lass cares about her family an ye care about yers, in an ideal world these wouldn't be in competition with each other on worth. But some enemies of the lasses family put pressure on ye by keeping yer family hostage, so ye did what ye thought ye had to do as a husband an father to protect yer family, aye?"

He looked at the girl, "I think it's unfair to Azure ta say his family wasn't worth protecting over yer family. Sure it's a terrible thing he had ta do to ye, but to him his family was worth it. So let's not antagonize the bloke with the daggers, aye?"

He turned back to the assassin and cloned his voice for a second, "In my 'Quaint, idealistic version of the world', you take those daggers and use them to make the men who wronged you and killed your daughter very afraid of a deadly assassin. You turn the girl over to your enemies, but you are also in another part of town ready and standing by to save your family for if and when the nobles betray you."

 

[Cra'ull]

i nibble at a piece of bread quietly, after some interesting pipe travel i found myself in some sort of room. a lot like the others id come across except for a odor i know all to well death. i had hoped there would be some good eating to be had here. ive been a rat for a little over a year, not for any reason other than to escape the boring drab that is human existence. i much prefer the quiet life of a rat. ive gotten a bit of trouble from the local cat population but i can hold my own. amall traits of my form are easy to shape shift on the fly. oh whats that mr kitty u need some venom? meet my rat snake fangs!

as i was nibbling the bread the door to the room opens instinct kicks in and i scurry into the shadows the bread completely forgotten.

one human was carrying another. possibly dead? my hope for a nice dead meal quickly faded as the two began talking to each other. this white haired fellow seemed off somehow. i mean i find most humans to be strange but this one didn't look like any of the humans ive seen. the girl was very average looking however perhaps this girl is in trouble. i scurry and climb to the top of a stack of crates and watch from my perch i dip back into the shadows for a moment. two seconds later im a parrot. this girl could be in trouble. most humans i couldn't care less about but young ones of any race are to be protected at all costs.

"squack, when the nobles betray you.when the nobles betray you.'' i say in that shrill speech parrots have. i had switched to the bird in just in case i had to claw his eyes out. a rat cant fight humans but a bird sure can i hope. until then i hope my distraction give the girl time to attack her kid napper

 

[Lyssia D'avore]

The motion was too quick to follow, well practiced. The flash of steel in the light, the gleam as it passed within a bare hairsbreadth of the colorful bird that had appeared out of nowhere, only to land with an audible thunk into a crate just beyond the parrot. Who the fuck left this thing loose in here? And how did he miss? Unimportant details. More important things were going on.

"He...is a traitor..." she mumbled at Killeet, in an almost sulky, childish manner. If she wasn't hurting so bad, she probably would have been pouting. "Common....blood. How can...you think that such as...he and his could weigh the same on the scales...as that of nobility?" she asked, haltingly.

"They can't, so I do what I must," the assassin said forcefully. "How am I supposed to make them fear me? if they did, they would kill my family for certain, and then come for me. I am but one man." He eyed the child-like changeling, and shook his head. "You still see things in black and white, as simple as a child's view. I am not mighty and powerful. if I fail, my family dies. I don't have the resources to even consider fighting back. I see no way forward....but this."

 

[Kiileet Glassdancer]

Kiileet barely noticed the parrot before Azure already had a dagger in the air, hitting next to the animal. Kiileet smiled as a plan started coming together in his mind. He looked at the girl again and responded to her pouting, "Take away all the riches an servants, an everyone is suddenly the same as everyone else, lass."
He was still on her side, but he was beginning to see that she was somewhat of a noble brat. That didn't lessen his resolve to protect her, but she should have realized by now that her ivory tower wasn't enough to save her then and it wouldn't save her now.

He returned his attention to the assassin and changed his shape once more, turning into the assassin again and using Azure's voice and smiling with his face. "Only one man? Sir, you have me! Who doesn't fear an assassin that could be in two places at once? Sure it would help to know where your family is being held, but once we figure that out we can work out how to tear the proverbial castle down around these corrupt nobles and then get away scot free!"

He glanced at the parrot, thinking something was off about it, but he put the thought aside for now. He stood up from the chair and moved to stand at the head of the bed, leaning against the wall.
"I reckon I can sow what chaos needs to be done when I deliver a convincing fake girl to your employers. Stall them long enough before dropping the charade and they see they've been duped. But when word is sent to kill your family you have already been there and gone having already rescued and tucked them away in a safe place where no one can touch them, at least for a while."

He tapped his cane on the floor, "But the way I see it, the nobles have to see and REALIZE that they are being played, nothing damages a nobles ego like them realizing that all their plots and plans have failed and turned up nothing in their favor."
He tapped the cane on the floor again loudly for emphasis, "That is how you make them fear you, my friend. In one fell swoop you break their power over you and take a huge chunk of their confidence with it."

 

[Lyssia D'avore]

Lyssia was silent for a long moment, and then laid back on the bed, wonderfully soft in comparison to the places she had been recently. Staring at the ceiling, she closed her eyes.

"I..," she began, sounding as if she was choking on the word. "I am...sorry," she finally got out, and squeezed her eyes shut. If the apology sounded like it had to be wrung out of her, well, at least she had offered it. "You don't know what it has been like..."

There was supposed to be something bred in the bone that made her and her ilk better than the common man. It was never spoken outright, but it was taken as gospel truth among the peers of the kingdom. The peasants were merely cogs in a machine, and even the wealthiest of them were somehow less. Nineteen years being spoon-fed these realities...well...

"You needn't apologize to me, mistress," Azure replied, then turned his attention to the stranger. "You propose a dangerous game. A deadly game. You assume you know so much of this country, but you know nothing. You are a commoner, as am I. If we wrong the ruling families, we might be better off jumping off a cliff. You, me, our families, and our friends...all will he at risk. Financial ruin at best, a shallow grave at worst."

 

[Kiileet Glassdancer]

Kiileet continued to use Azure's voice and shape, "I assume nothing about the country, my friend. I've had my share of bloodthirsty nobles. Nobles are the same no matter where you go. Trust me, I know how to make them squirm. They are good at playing deadly games, but they play a game with rules, so we need to break their rules."

He raised a finger, "Rule number one: The assassin does as we say, or his family dies."
He raised a second finger, "Rule number two: He brings us the girl, or his family dies."
He raised a third finger, "Rule number three: If he betrays us his family dies."

He lowered his hand, "Are there more rules that I'm unaware of? knowing all of the rules is half the game." He rested his hands on his cane again and turned back to his main form, "Think about a couple things for me, my friend. First: What is the common denominator for the three rules? That's the first thing to think about. Second: How do you remove that threat? If that denominator is taken away, what do they have over you to stop you? Third and finally: You've seen proof that they will kill your family, but what actual proof have you seen that they will spare your family when the job is done?"

 

[Cra'ull]

the blade passes me by with a thud to the crate behind me. i let out a well timed squawk that made it seem as though i was startled and i flutter to another box, ive never truly feared for my life although many creatures seem to so i simply play the part so as to not seem out of place.

the humans seemed to dismiss my presence and continue on with there conversation. the conversation seemed boring right up until the odd looking man took shape of another human. this peaked my interest. another like me perhaps? no that couldn't be it, i would sense him if that were the case.

ive been mistaken the small human is not in danger of the man but rather she knows him or at least is here of her own free will. now im more interested in the man. absorbing him would be rather pleasurable.

"i find humans rather boring" i say in a deeper tone not at all like a parrot more like a man with sand in his throat.

my form shifts and changes and in a matter of moments a young boy is sitting in place of were the bird once was.

"but another like me" i say in the little boys voice. i smile showing my lack of front teeth. "now thats interesting"

 

[Lyssia D'avore]

The girl on the bed looked startled to see the parrot both speak, and then shift its form to that of a human child. She tried to shift herself, but the pain was just too intense. If only she hadn't been tossed like a rag doll...

"Just who...do you think is human here, you...monster?" She queried haltingly. Azure already had his knives at the ready, and looked ready to do violence. The dismissive tone of the shifter was at best foolish, at worst suicidal. It didn't matter how strong he was, there was no way anyone was walking away from a fight here in one piece.

"What is interesting," Azure began, voice deceptively mild, "is that you found this place at all. Maybe I should kill you now. You could be a spy for Lord Farron, and I'd not have my family slain because of you." Azure turned his attention to Kiileet. "I am not stupid. The common thread is easy enough to see. Now, if you can tell me where they are keeping them..."

Meanwhile, the girl was muttering about nobles, and Kiileet's assessment of her kind.

Cra'ull
Kiileet glassdancer

 

[Cra'ull]

the humans reacted in the way i suspected they would. so quick to jump to violence so easily scared by the unknown its why i avoid them. i remain on my box as calm as can be.

"i know not of this Lord Farron ive spent the better part of two years as a rodent. as for how i found this place well its rather putrid smelling. as a rat theirs nothing better than a rotten corpse to nibble on. so i entered through the pipes. when i entered i found humans or rather i thought i did im afraid all of you look alike to me." i wave my hand dismissively " As for being a spy well i do love spying, what humans do when only a fly is in the room is rather interesting but ive only ever spy for my own pleasure and so far things have been less than pleasurable" i eye the defensive stance they all have seemed to taken.

i take on a stern look and hop town from the crate landing on my stubby little legs. i look up at them all.

"you must relax if i wished to harm any of you i would have turned into a rattle snake and simply bitten you all in your sleep. or i could turn into something big with alot of teeth?" i giggle like a child would,hand over my mouth and a huge grin on my face before continuing"as you can see ive done neither and truly wish not to"

the boy form i had taken was wearing suspenders i absorbed him on his way home from a local religious gathering many humans seem to have.

i loop my thumbs in the suspenders and grin. humans are so quick to judge but maybe these will be different, i doubt it though usually my introductions lead to me having to turn into a pile of snakes to distract my enemy while i make an escape sacrificing most of my life force and leading up to a year of hibernation to regain my strength.not to mention after all that sleep trying to find a bear that i can capture and absorb to fully regain my ability's, ive found that humans are insufficient and after all if u eat a bear the bears dont put a bounty on your head afterwards.no that trick will have to be the last resort im not going through that again its the only time i ever feel pain. i dont know how humans survive pain, i dont like it.

 

[Kiileet Glassdancer]

Kiileet was just as surprised as the others when the Parrot spoke without a parrot voice and then turned into a little boy. He wasn't instantly hostile but severely intrigued by the beast shifter. He returned to his chosen form and regarded the child curiously, "Well this is an unexpected visit. Color me impressed! It seems a changeling as been eavesdropping on us!"

He smiled wide, instantly liking the kid. He imagined how incredible it would be to hire someone like this boy into his traveling show and he could already see the advertisement in his mind, 'Come see the lad who can change his skin! see the lad become what ye most fear, or what ye most adore!'
He admitted it wasn't his best impromptu advertisement in his head, but it can be changed to the boys preference. But right now there were more pressing matters.

"This is yer problem, Azure. Ye can't seem ta see when someone wants ta help ye out. We don't know where yer wife an lad are being held. But if this lad is willing, I think we can find out right quick!"

He slowly walked past Azure and approached the boy. He was happy to see another creature that was like him, even if his abilities included animals and his own did not. He shifted to his childlike form so he was closer to the changelings size and gave him a crooked smile, "What do ya say we show this bloke an lass how ta bring a crooked noble low? I think with all o us we could pull it off easy!"

 

[Lyssia D'avore]

Azure eyed the second changeling with a grimace in his face. If this fool thinks that my being human counts for anything in a fight.. He did not trust anyone that said they had no desire to fight when it was not askedof them. Instead, he turned that grimace into a feral grin.

And then looked to Kiileet. "You are mad," he said flatly. "We might - might! - be able to recover my wife and kid, but bring Lord Farron low? Unless you have an army somewhere, it won't hapoen." He sounded both butter and resigned to it.

He couldn't get within a hundred feet of Farron. The man was a snake, and whatever design he had, it certainly wasn't to gain him direct power. All the same, he and his cabal had the Royal Guard in their pockets, either through bribery or leverage or some other means. The city guard remained unsullied, but they were hardly much if a force to begin with.

"I k how of a few places they could be held. I am pretty sure we can get in to a few of them, but as for getting back out..."

 

[Cra'ull]

ive spent all this time feeling alone knowing there were more changelings in the world but with little idea as to how i would find one. i smile back at the changeling paying little mind to the objections of the others.

i shift shape once more growing tired of the young boys size and the shrill tone of his young voice. i take on the form of a human soldier a tasty snack i came across in the wild during a time when i did not even know of humans . he was my first human snack

he had on a suit of chain mail leather boots and a metal helmet but not one that covers his face. he carried a simple sword as well. a fighter from a forgotten era

i decide to shift his sword as well though inanimate objects that are detached from me unfortunately hold that shape till my death even i cannot reclaim that part of me back. clothes are different they are more like my skin rather than garments to cover my shame but no matter i feel as though a quest such as this will bring me many new prey to feed on, perhaps enough to sustain me for generations to come, for it doesn't sound like we are going up against a minor threat though i find that there are not many things threatening to me, i feel this group will benefit me greatly and if i have to devour them in the end so be it. i rather enjoy that image. the lass will be spared of course id never intentionally end a child's life not these days that is.

i smirk slightly

"i think this might be fun, im able to turn into anyone or anything i come into direct contact with. inanimate objects such as this sword remain in there form and ultimately drain my life force,so i prefer living forms however i have ways of replenishing " i say in this forms voice.

i am looking forward to the possibility that this changeling may let his guard down though i sense hes as cunning and cut throat as me, true family i suppose. a worthy ally and a worthy future foe if it comes to it.

ill give him the benefit of the doubt. hes a changeling i owe him that. ive never been so giddy in my life! is this what true excitement feels like?i never knew. i only have the memories from those i devour to tell me but i am sure this is what excitement feels like.