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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:34:33 GMT -5
At Shira's pointed look, Calypso flushed a little.
But then, why should he feel embarrassed? If he hadn't caught the horse, Killik wouldn't have it at all. It would have run for miles. She should be thanking him, shouldn't she?
Feeling a bit more disgruntled than embarrassed now, he led the horse over to her, careful to keep between it and Queezle.
Once she'd taken the reins from him, he felt a bit at a loss, and stood with one hand clenched around his staff, glancing between Jakkin and Shira. So the boy was a thief, then. Not unexpected, although he'd begun to expect something a little more impressive, taking that... Queezle creature into account.
He paused a moment, then remembered his concern, and looked at Joniak.
Oh... dear. He thought... perhaps... that he recognised this man. But until it was daylight, and Elrick was awake, he wouldn't be able to tell for sure. He'd have to stick around until morning at least, then, he decided reluctantly. He managed not to let any of his anxiety show, but he prayed silently that his fears were unjustified.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:34:54 GMT -5
"Killak" took the horse gratefully, and murmured a thanks as she led it next to Joniak. After several swears, groans, and a mumbled "Leave me alone" from "Elrick" himself, she got him on the horse. His cloak hood still covered his face to much extent; only a few dark curls poked from under it as he leaned forward on the horses neck, arms to each side.
Looking at Joniak, then looking at her situation, she sighed. It looked like this place, more or less, shall be where they were camping for the night. She hoped to get farther before having to stop, but time was quickly passing them by, and, if she remembered correctly, there was a stream a quarter of a mile away where they could set up camp.
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Post by RuThor on Mar 21, 2006 16:35:21 GMT -5
Queezle seemed to find the humans' behavior humerous, because she took flight to perch on one of the branches just above the horse's heads.
"Honestly," she tweeted, shaking her head sorrowfully back and forth. "The way the both of you act, you'd almost expect me to eat the horse. Nah," she said, shifting to the form of a falcon (it did her pride good to be in a more powerful form). "My essence shivers at the thought of that, it does. All bones and hide."
Jakkin made a face, wrinkling his nose distastefully.
Neither boy nor djinni seemed to notice the tension and anxiety in the air.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:35:49 GMT -5
At Queezle's remarked, Shira laughed. "Possibly. Things you've never meet before have that sort of response on people."
And then, after a fight with the voices in her head, Shira turned to "Periel", and asked the question that had been buzzing around. "Do you know a mage by the name Calypso? I've been sent to find him, to ask him a favor."
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:36:10 GMT -5
Only the fact that Calypso did not happen to be looking at Shira as she asked her question saved him from reacting too obviously. His eyes may have widened a fraction, and, it's true, he may have twitched very slightly, but it was dark, and his momentary reaction could have passed unnoticed. He hoped.
He turned to look at Shira casually, tilting his head with almost-natural curiosity. "The name rings a bell," he said slowly, thinking much faster. Was she hunting him? Had the Dragon Ryders finally got bored with toying with him, and decided that they didn't need what little help he could give them in tracking down other fugitives? Had the others placed a price on his head too tempting for anyone to ignore offhand? Gods, how long had it been since he'd last checked up on the state of things in any of the big cities? He hadn't got a clue now - he'd thought he was managing, on top of affairs and in a reasonable amount of control, but now, out of the blue, someone was throwing his name around with such casual ease it terrified him.
"I can't remember," he shrugged. "Why did you want to find him?"
He had to find out as much as possible before he fled back into the forest. Maybe one of the nobles he'd irritated was behind this... He'd hoped they wouldn't go to any great lengths to revenge themselves on a simple bounty hunter. He'd been working for other people when he stole from them! It wasn't his fault!
He forced himself calm, praying that none of them had picked up on his sudden terror, and waited for "Killik" to give him some more information to work with.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:36:42 GMT -5
How could she tell him what she needed to tell him without telling him that an old friend of Calypso's had died because of her? It had been an accident, one that she had no control over.
Jared, Calyspo's friend, had bought her from a slave holder when she was younger, around the age of ten, when he sensed she had magic. Joniak worked for Jared sometimes, for things like landscaping, etc., and that was how they met. Jared didn't mind that they were friends, but he didn't push their friendship on them, but it was nice to talk to someone when they were pretty much out in the middle of no-where.
Some mages that had wanted Jared's head had attacked the house that they lived in. A mage, an apprentice, and a learning swordsman wasn't enough manpower to go agianst nearly a dozen full-fledged mages.
In the middle of the battle, Shira saw Jared fall. That was the last thing she remembered. Joniak later told her that she more-or-less exploded, killing the mages that were attacking Jared. She also hurt him pretty badly; the wounds that had made him fall to the ground had been infected with poison.
Shira woke up nearly a week later, the excat moment that Jared had died. Jared wrote a note to Calypso, explaining about what had happened, and how she needed some real training to control her magic.......
"Um.....I'm a messenger girl, and I need to give him a note from Jared. Any idea where he was last?" Shira asked.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:37:11 GMT -5
"From Jared?" Calypso frowned, looking at Shira more closely. But no, he didn't know her. And she'd made him more than a little jumpy already.
"Sorry," he said with a shrug, leaning on his staff a little more. "I can't say for certain. Last I heard, Calypso was passing through some village or other in south Tarlena. But that was months ago. He could be anywhere by now."
He pushed his blond hair back behind his ear, and checked that the strip of grey cloth he had tied around his head, to keep his hair a little more under control, was still secure. It would be typical, the way this night was going, for it to fall over his eyes and one of the others to turn out to be a ropemage and blindfold him with it. That thought, at least, amused him a little. Thieves, runaways, brigands, even rogue mages like himself... What did he care what this lot were?
As long as they didn't know who he was, he was probably safe. He didn't exactly have anything worth stealing, after all.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:37:33 GMT -5
Shira frowned, and then sighed. Great, she thought, back to square one. She had already ben around many of the bigger cities, the one's that didn't have the latest wanted pictures, that was, and no one had seen the weather mage recently.
"Well, I'm going to go off and make camp now. Anyone's welcome, as long as you have your own food. There's a river not that far from here- it'll be easy to find us."
And with that departing note, Shira strode off, through the woods, instead of on the path. Her hand was on the horse's neck, and it walked obeidently next to her.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:38:00 GMT -5
Calypso glanced at Jakkin, then went straight after Shira. He caught up with her quickly, and said as an explanation, "You've already been attacked once, and your friend's still unconscious. I'd be happy to give you a hand if you need it. And don't worry, my intentions," he added with a smile, "are completely honourable."
Well, more or less. He needed to find out what Jared had wanted - if indeed there was a message from him, and it wasn't all part of an elaborate trick.
Was he getting paranoid? Now there was a thought to consider.
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Post by RuThor on Mar 21, 2006 16:38:16 GMT -5
Without a word to Jakkin, Queezle spread her wings and rose into the air, starting after the other two. Jakkin sighed, shaking his head, and followed her. It was no good arguing with her if she had made up her mind.
Besides, perhaps while the others slept he could make some worth of this whole excursion.
Queezle seemed to have read his thoughts, because she took on his form again, throwing one arm around his shoulders. "See, you're getting used to how it works!" she said happily. "All we need to do is get rid of that 'I-command-you' thing, and we'll be best friends!"
Jakkin rolled his eyes, shrugged out of Queezle's grip, and continued after the others, with the djinni shadowing him.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:38:34 GMT -5
Shira nodded, and smiled back at Calypso. The smile was for thinking that his intentions were honorable- that made one in the camp, knowing full well what Joniak would want to do as soon as he got up in the morning.
She looked behind her and noticed the rest of the quartet following them. This wouldn't be the weirdest group of people that she had camped with (the gypsies won that bet, and also her clothes in a game of dice) but they were getting there.
Shira laughed quietly to herself, and continued to walk to the campsite, which, thankfully, wasn't that much farther.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:38:56 GMT -5
Calypso also glanced back, following Shira's gaze, and was not really surprised to see Jakkin and Queezle following. Had he been in the boy's position, he would have done the same. He did hope, however, that the young thief would stop and check whether there was anything valuable in his bag rather than just running off with it.
The bag wasn't for what he took with him as much as it was for what he picked up on the way.
And just as soon as he'd found out what this Killik girl wanted with him, he could turn Elrick over to the Dragon Ryders and get back to the job he was supposed to be doing. He had a time limit, after all.
With that in mind, he flicked his fingers a little, covering the movement by hooking his thumb through one of the belt-loops on his trousers. In the sky above, a breeze or two shifted just a little, and clouds began to drift in. It wouldn't rain, but the cover would keep some warmth in the ground while they slept, and he did hate to be cold unnecessarily.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:39:13 GMT -5
Shira looked up in the sky, and noticed the way the clouds were coming over their heads, and understood. It was nice to be able to notice when other mages were able to do magic.
After a few more minutes of walking, they came to the camp spot. It was actually one that she and Joniak had stayed at before going into town.
"We're here," she said, smiling. She took the packs off the horse, rolled out his pack, and put it on the ground, before kindly pulling Joniak off the horse and on the unrolled pack.
Shira then started going through Joniak's pockets, boots, and other places where he liked to hide things to make sure that Queezle and Jakkin didn't get off with anything even remotely expensive.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:39:29 GMT -5
"Need a hand with anything?" Calypso asked solicitously, shucking his bag from his back and setting it against a tree. But he couldn't see that there was much to be done. It was late enough in the night that he, personally, couldn't face the thought of eating, and he'd made sure it'd be warm without a fire, so that job was unnecessary. It wouldn't rain, so there was no need to set up tents or anything else to keep the water off.
In fact pretty much all that remained was the simple act of rolling oneself up in one's blankets and going to sleep. And, he thought with a slight wry smile, he had no intention of helping Shira do that - he'd only just met her, after all.
He waited a beat, then leant his quarterstaff against the same tree as his bag. It seemed unlikely that there would be any great need for weapons or fighting readiness tonight.
Though he had a feeling that there certainly would be at some point in the not-too-distant future.
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Post by RuThor on Mar 21, 2006 16:39:47 GMT -5
Jakkin finally convinced Queezle to leave his form alone, and after she'd inflated his head a few sizes, she obeyed, taking the shape of a cougar. Without a word to either of the others, the boy crossed his arms and sat sulkily with his back to a large oak tree.
Queezle, on the other hand, beamed around at the group (or as best as she could in cougar form), her cat's teeth glinting slightly. She almost seemed to be gloating over something.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:40:05 GMT -5
Shira frowned. She didn't know what there was to do other than talk, but she could think of something. Joniak mumbled something in his sleep, and proceded to tangle up himself in his cloak.
The thing is, something of Periel reminded her of someone she meet years ago, just after she had gone to live with Jared. She gritted her teeth at the memory before shutting it out of her mind- there would be no use in trying to remember if her memory didn't want to comply.
She shrugged, and sat down near the form of Joniak.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:40:22 GMT -5
Calypso also sat, watching Queezle change her shape with some interest. He wondered briefly why the boy was only at the level of mugging travellers, if his counterpart had such an ability. The possibilities... But, considering what they'd already seen of Queezle's contrary nature, he supposed that getting her to co-operate and obey, as would be necessary for anything more ambitious, was not as easy as it sounded.
He looked back over at Shira. He had to find out more, even if the only way was to ask.
Casually, toying with a fraying thread at the end of one sleeve, he said, "You mentioned Jared earlier. I knew a Jared once. Haven't seen him for a good few years though. I don't suppose it could be the same one?"
He kept his tone conversationally polite, and his expression showed nothing more than a touch of curiosity and interest. Nothing suspicious about him at all, oh no. Innocent as an angel, that was him.
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Post by Shira Old Site on Mar 21, 2006 16:40:50 GMT -5
Shira bit her lip agian, thinking. What should she tell him, without telling him what happened? Gah, what a problem this was.
She opened her mouth to say something, but Joniak beat her to it. He had always had a problem talking in his sleep, especially about things that was supposed to stay a secret. That was how Shira first learned he had liked her.
"Jared's dead," he mumbled before turning over agian. Apparently the ground was too uncomfortalbe for him, but that was what he got for making then flee the town.
Shira dropped her head, trying to figure out what to do now since her only source of power was now out in the open. She could try and lie, to refute it, but then her necklace would glow agian (since it had stopped) and she would be caught. Instead she started to think about the best ways it would be to kill Joniak.
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Post by Calypso on Mar 21, 2006 16:41:11 GMT -5
"Dead?" Calypso said slowly, and swallowed. "Is he telling the truth?"
It felt like someone had just given him a good kick in the chest - and he knew what that felt like, so the comparison wasn't totally unfounded. Jared, dead? But the man had seemed nigh on impossible to kill. It couldn't have been an accident.
"How?" he found himself asking, though he realised that that perhaps gave away the fact that he had known Jared fairly well - enough to be upset at his death, anyway. He blinked a little, and forced himself to relax again. It took a moment before another thought hit him - if Jared was dead, then surely the girl couldn't have a message from him? It was a trick!
That led to still another conclusion. Jared was dead. He had known Calypso. Now these two were looking for Calypso. Had they... were they responsible? Did he have Jared's killers here, unaware of his powers?
He gritted his teeth as a flash of anger ignited deep inside him. For their sake, he hoped that they weren't the murderers. He'd helped them already, and that would make him that much more reluctant to kill them. Which in turn would mean their deaths were slow. But if they'd killed Jared, then by the gods, he'd make them pay.
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Post by RuThor on Mar 21, 2006 16:41:31 GMT -5
Queezle's interest seemed to have piqued, and even Jakkin was now paying attention. Unwilling as he may have been to accompany the others in the first place, this seemed like it could be interesting to watch.
Particularly if there was a fight.
"Who is this Jared person?" he asked, speaking for the first time since they had arrived.
Queezle glanced over at him, her cougar's tail giving a twitch. "Look who's decided to stop sulking!" she taunted, but Jakkin ignored her.
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