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Tharbad Trouble

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Tharbad Trouble: The Visitor

 

--Background: Rainor, the former Grand High Sorcerer of the Tharbad Mage Council was arrested by the council as he was risking the neutrality of Tharbad in hopes of saving a fellow sorceress, Aerilla. Aerilla had saved the life of Queen Fina Aega of Southern Annakol during the fifth Annakol Festival where an attempt was made on her life by an assassin. Aerilla herself was wounded with a poisoned shuriken in the process; the poison proving incurable. The Tharbad Mage Council covered up that Aerilla was fighting for her life to the outside world to maintain the neutrality of the city; this was done without Rainor's knowledge. Rainor send a number of well trusted Mage Guards on a quest to find a cure and help him save Aerilla. To stop the poison from killing her he turned her into a statue with a Flesh to Stone spell. As he was getting more and more forward in his ideas that Tharbad could not stay neutral in this war that is tearing up the lands the Council eventually decided to charge him with High Treason of the city state and endangerment of its neutrality. He was arrested and thrown in jail; without resistance from his part.--

 

A man in a black mantle walks quietly through the streets of Tharbad. His hands are pale and frail, he leans on a worn wooden cane. A hood hides his face from the crowd of people in the marketplace.

 

"Long haz it been zince my veet touched upon theze streetz."

 

The man murmurs to himself as he makes his way past the stalls towards the bridge district. He moves through the crowd with a subtle grace which seems eerily unfitting with his aged appearance. He passes a few houses with a sideways glance, as if reminiscing on times long past. He stops. The house before him seems unimpressive; a shiver runs down his spine. He opens the door which leads to a downward staircase. Slowly but surely he descents into the darkness below.

 

"Hey, you! Hold your place old man!"

 

Two guards, well armed, stand in the torch-lit hallway. Their appearance betrays them as high ranked mage guards. The old man stops and looks at them.

 

"Did I do zomething inadmissible by law? I vas not aware that looking for a public 'private room', if you catch my meaning, vas a crime in theze regionz."

 

He seems to chuckle soundlessly at his own awkward joke. The guards seem less amused, yet see little threat in the old man.

 

"Sir, this is not a toilet, and this is private property of the Tharbad Mage Council. I will have to ask you to leave now."

 

Down the hallway the former Grand High Sorcerer opens his eyes as he is woken by the uncommon disturbance in the hallway. The cell he is in is taking his toll on him, he seems tired and pale after the many months he has spent in it. He rubs his head, wondering if he would feel better if he was not in an anti-magic field. He mumbles to himself.

 

"At least they had the intelligence to lock me up properly..."

 

Rainor sighs. In the meantime the old man approaches the guards.

 

"My dear mother alvayz zaid if it veels like a rat-hole, zmellz like a rathole and lookz like one; then it iz likely a public loo. And thiz establishment lookz, smellz and feelz like a rat hole. As such, my common zense zays that I am at the right place."

 

The guards laugh for a moment, then suddenly react as the man begins to pull up his robe.

 

"Sir, I am telling you to leave. This is NOT a public toilet."

 

The man leans closer to the guards.

 

"Vhat did you zay there my boy? Zpeak up!"

 

The guard leans closer to repeat his order. As he does the old man's hands touch the spines of both guards. Their faces pale, their muscles contract and both of them fall to the ground as if they were rag dolls.

Rainor sits up on his bed, his head turns towards the sound. Footsteps betray someone approaching his cell. The shadows of a figure form in the torchlight. The next instant the hooded figure stands leaning against the wall of the hallway, mostly out of the sight of the former Grand High Sorcerer.

 

"Who are you? What happened to the guards?"

 

The man's chest moves in a soundless chuckle.

 

I gave ze boyz zome vell deserved rest. Did zey not zeem overly exhauzted to you?

 

Rainor frowns.

 

"A simple sleep spell would not work on Mage Guards such as those."

 

The man's hand moves to one of the bars of the cell and slips inside the anti-magic field. He quickly retracts.

 

"Dizturbing, iz it not? That emptinezz inzide you were your magic zhould be. Vhere the weave uzed to be all around, now you veel nothing. Az if you zuddenly went blind."

 

Rainor sighs, but doesn't comment.

 

"It iz good to zee that not much haz changed. Ze Council retainz itz zhort zightedness in matters they do not have power over."

 

Rainor frowns once more.

 

"Who are you, why are you here?"

 

The man runs a finger across the bars of the cell.

 

"Zere are other vays. Vays that vould allow you to put thoze zhort zighted foolz right."

 

Rainor casts his eyes to the floor.

 

"I have to have faith in those I asked to help."

 

Another soundless chuckle.

 

"Most intriguing... You have a plan. A plan that haz lead to your imprizonment and to ze lozz of your position to a bloated fool, or zo ze vord on ze street iz."

 

Rainor's eyes flash to the small part of the man he can see.

 

"Who?! Who did they make Grand High Sorcerer?"

 

The man taps his cane on the stone floor.

 

"Zey azked thiz Mercon fellow. I could not help but overhear ze two of you had a bit of a hiztory?"

 

Rainor hand forms into a fist.

 

That idiot!? He'll do whatever those wizards whisper in his ear!

 

Rainor slams his fist against the wall.

 

"I could not help but notize that he iz remodeling your old study. And by remodeling I mean that he iz tozzing all your furniture out ze vindow. He vaz ztruggling with getting your ztatues out... No rezpect for ze better vorks of art."

 

Rainor's eyes widen, he speaks in a whisper.

 

"No... Aerilla..."

 

The man turns and walks away.

 

"Remember, vhat I zaid... There iz alvays a vay. A vay to repay them all for their transgrezzionz..."

 

The former Grand High Sorcerer is left alone in the cell, tears fall to the stone floor.

 

The old man walks back up the stairs but stops for a moment. He turns around and with a flick of the wrist the guards faces begin to flush, they slowly open their eyes with a moan. The man continues up as one of the Guards yells directions to a public restroom after him.

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Tharbad Trouble: The Visitor, again

 

--Background: The mysterious visitor has come to visit Rainor, the former Grand High Sorcerer of the Mage Council, once again. This takes place a few days after the first visit described above.--

 

Two guards once more lie on the floor of a torch lit hallway. The man in the black mantle bend over them.

 

"Zleep vell, boyz..."

 

The former Grand High Sorcerer wakes from a turmoiled slumber, hitting his fist against the wall as his nightmares slowly begin to fade into reality. He whispers softly as he wipes the blood from his hand.

 

"...Aerilla..."

 

The pale man slowly makes his way to the anti-magic cell holding Rainor. He seems to shiver as he steps closer and moves his hand into the cell.

 

"Dizturbing ztill... I muzt zay, you are ztrong villed to have zurvived in zis environment vor zo long. Then again, I do not bother to come here vor juzt anyone."

 

His face remains hidden from sight under a black hood, though some reddish light shines from beneath as he speaks the words, almost as if two red fireflies were dancing under the hood.

 

"I was wondering if you'd come back for another visit. I have to say, visitors are so rare these days."

 

A wry smile can be seen on the face of the former Grand High Sorcerer. He continues...

 

"Last time, you said there were ways to set things right..."

 

The man lets his pale hand slide over the bars of the cell for a moment before speaking.

 

"Are you zure you vish to know vhat vays I can offer you? Are you ready to know?"

 

Rainor's eyes remain fixed on the floor, he slowly raises the edge of his hat. Once a beautiful piece of clothing that added to both the prestige as well as the authority of the former Grand High Sorcerer. Now all that remained of it was a dirty rag, hardly worthy of the term rag. Slowly his eyes drift up and he looks straight at the man.

 

"Would you be here, if I wasn't ready?"

 

The visitor releases a hollow chuckle.

 

"A very accurate concluzion lad, very accurate indeed."

 

Rainor doesn't seem to share the man's sense of humour as his face turns grim.

 

"I think we both know what you are suggesting is not a path I would choose normally. However, too many have suffered at the hands of... certain individuals. And if my moral standards need to be sacrificed for justice..."

 

The man shakes his head.

 

"Come come, I azzure you that my moral ztandardz are quite high. In vact I dare zay that they var outpazz thoze of ze Mage Council. The methodz may be zomewhat lezz accepted though..."

 

The former Grand High Sorcerer releases a sigh.

 

"Higher standards then the Mage Council... I guess there's little challenge in that."

 

The man slowly raises extends his hand and the flesh begins to fade from what first seemed like a frail pale hand. By the time it reaches Rainor nothing but its bones remain.

 

"Zey have take everything vrom you, your pozition, your study, your council... and your city. And vhy? Becauze zey did not underztand that zometimes one muzt act, rather then zit by idle."

 

The man raises his head slightly and two red orbs can be seen underneath the hood where his eyes should be; they seem to glow with passion as he continues.

 

"But now, you can zet thingz right. You can help theze people... and I can show you ze vay. I vill show you ze vay."

 

The former Grand High Sorcerer seems to hesitate for an instance, his eyes on the skeletal hand being extended to him. The next moment he takes the offered hand. The next moment his cell door disintegrates into dust and he gasps. Finally free from the anti-magic field a rush of power surges through him. He gasps for breath, his muscles contract and for a moment he feels as if he is going to die.

 

"Calmly now, breath zlowly... It iz quite a ruzh iz it not? How you muzt have mizzed thiz."

 

The man supports the nearly fainting former Grand High Sorcerer with exceptional ease.

 

"Az my dear old mother uzed to zay... A vise man knows vhen it iz time to depart. And I thiz iz an excellent time to do juzt that."

 

Rainor coughs as slowly air begins to fill his lungs once more. His eyes drift across the hallway to the two guards lying on the floor. The visitor follows his gaze and guides him towards the exit. At the guards he stops and touches both of them for a moment; they both begin to stir as if awaking from an exceptionally deep slumber. As they begin to rise to their feet their mouths open in horror. Before them a balrog climbs from a portal which slowly expands itself along the wall. The balrog roars ferociously, flames shoot from between its charred teeth. The men rush up the stairs into the streets above shouting in terror.

No sign remains of either the visitor or the former Grand High Sorcerer.

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