Thank you to the player of Tavarius (Suits and Ties).
Prior to Raye's return to RhyDin.
It was night; the house was quiet, the old couple slept and Raye had been goaded back to bed by Tavarius after another bandage check. Tavarius' room was just down the hall from Raye's, and he had retired after making sure she was sleeping. The moon was high in the sky and it bathed the little village in a silver glow, the dirt road that led through its center was white as snow in the moonlight and the little ponds that surrounded it were liquid silver. It was quiet. The silence was split by the shattering of glass coming from Tavarius' room. A crash followed, wood splintered and a roar of what sounded suspiciously like a great eruption of flames came next. Then came the scuffling, the grunting, and more silence followed.
Thankfully, Tavarius had not drugged her again, so the sound of the shattering glass awakened her. It didn't take her even a moment to gather her bearings before rising; she was up out of the bed with a sword in each hand and out the door in the span of possibly five seconds. So many years spent sleeping with her eyes open, as the saying went.
She twisted doorknobs and kicked in two doors, the second the one belonging to the room Tavarius was staying in. She began to cough as the smoke assaulted her and she felt the heat of the flames. "Tavarius!" She couldn't see all that well so she rushed into the room with the back of her forearm pressed over her nose and mouth.
The window was open, glass littered the floor in front of it. His bed was ablaze with furious fire that spread eagerly through the room. Droplets of blood stained the floor, bright red and reflecting the rapidly growing inferno. The fire was unreal, it was unnatural, spreading too-fast and eating up everything it came across with reckless abandon. Outside the window was more blood, this one was a dark pool and smear that ran around the side of the building and disappeared from sight. The fire threatened to spread throughout all corners of the room and would engul Raye if she didn't get out quickly...
"Tavarius!" She shouted once more, looking about and moving in all directions with her arm outstretched. It was obvious he wasn't in the room. But now, her path back to the doorway was blocked by the raging inferno. The window was her only option and she dove out of it, rolling into a somersault and back onto her feet with a screech of pain as the stitching in her side protested.
The cool night air touched her feverish skin, hot to touch from the heat of the room she had just left. It lifted the hem of her long t-shirt and toyed with the ends of her hair. "Tavarius!" She shouted over and over as she cast her gaze about wildly, before turning back towards the house. That was when she noticed the blood along the side of the house and quickly followed after it.
The trail at first was deep and red, easily seen and easily followed. After several minutes, however, the blood became harder to spot, as it was little droplets rather than great sweeping strokes. It led her through the village, which seemed quite unaware of the commotion and was earily silent, and through the plains beyond toward the little wood on the other side of a small lake. On occasion, a shout echoed in the air, incoherent and distant, but distinctly in Tavarius' voice.
She followed the trail until she arrived at the small dirt road in front of the house and then wisely decided that she would return to the house to get dressed and fully arm herself.
Doing so, and also gathering some provisions, she came face to face with the older couple as she was getting ready to depart. "Something has happened to Tavarius, I am going to find him. I left a pouch of coins upon the table for you, in case we do not make it back here. I thank you so much for all of your aid."
The old woman surprised Rayvinn by putting her arms around the too-thin elf and giving her a squeeze. "Ye be careful and yer both welcome back 'ere if a safe place is needed." Raye swallowed the slight lump in her throat and nodded slightly at them both before turning and leaving the house. Upon reaching the stable, she led her horse away on a rope, unable to ride him and keep the trail of blood in sight in the dark of night. She was pushing her night vision to its fullest extent right now.
She occasionally heard Tavarius shout incoherently, and this caused her steps to quicken. She followed for hours without a moment of rest before she could ignore the burning in her side no longer. She stopped and fished fresh bandages out and re-bandaged her wound to the best of her ability prior to wrapping it in the tight elastic bindings again.
Drinking some water, Raye sat still for a few minutes while her horse grazed on the lush green grass. She was trying to piece together all of the knowledge she had so far on the disappearance of Tavarius.
As Raye sat there, drinking water, something snapped behind her. A twig cracked to break the silence that had followed in the absence of Tavarius' shouts. It was unnaturally loud. A man stepped forward, he resembled Tavarius vaguely, though was taller and paler with yellow eyes. His fingers were tied with individual strings that dragged on the ground behind him, and he wore a suit more fitting of the Victorian era than any modern fashion. He walked with the same lanky gait as the trickster, but the similarities stopped there; this man was not whimsical as Tavarius was, he was dark, ominous, and the hungry look in his eye suggested something sinister in his intentions.
"You are searching for Tavarius," said the man, his voice cold and monotonous. "Leave," a hand dragged the strings up off the ground as he lifted his arm to point away. "You have no business with the trickster, he is mine now. I will not suffer your interference. This is your only chance."
Prior to Raye's return to RhyDin.
It was night; the house was quiet, the old couple slept and Raye had been goaded back to bed by Tavarius after another bandage check. Tavarius' room was just down the hall from Raye's, and he had retired after making sure she was sleeping. The moon was high in the sky and it bathed the little village in a silver glow, the dirt road that led through its center was white as snow in the moonlight and the little ponds that surrounded it were liquid silver. It was quiet. The silence was split by the shattering of glass coming from Tavarius' room. A crash followed, wood splintered and a roar of what sounded suspiciously like a great eruption of flames came next. Then came the scuffling, the grunting, and more silence followed.
Thankfully, Tavarius had not drugged her again, so the sound of the shattering glass awakened her. It didn't take her even a moment to gather her bearings before rising; she was up out of the bed with a sword in each hand and out the door in the span of possibly five seconds. So many years spent sleeping with her eyes open, as the saying went.
She twisted doorknobs and kicked in two doors, the second the one belonging to the room Tavarius was staying in. She began to cough as the smoke assaulted her and she felt the heat of the flames. "Tavarius!" She couldn't see all that well so she rushed into the room with the back of her forearm pressed over her nose and mouth.
The window was open, glass littered the floor in front of it. His bed was ablaze with furious fire that spread eagerly through the room. Droplets of blood stained the floor, bright red and reflecting the rapidly growing inferno. The fire was unreal, it was unnatural, spreading too-fast and eating up everything it came across with reckless abandon. Outside the window was more blood, this one was a dark pool and smear that ran around the side of the building and disappeared from sight. The fire threatened to spread throughout all corners of the room and would engul Raye if she didn't get out quickly...
"Tavarius!" She shouted once more, looking about and moving in all directions with her arm outstretched. It was obvious he wasn't in the room. But now, her path back to the doorway was blocked by the raging inferno. The window was her only option and she dove out of it, rolling into a somersault and back onto her feet with a screech of pain as the stitching in her side protested.
The cool night air touched her feverish skin, hot to touch from the heat of the room she had just left. It lifted the hem of her long t-shirt and toyed with the ends of her hair. "Tavarius!" She shouted over and over as she cast her gaze about wildly, before turning back towards the house. That was when she noticed the blood along the side of the house and quickly followed after it.
The trail at first was deep and red, easily seen and easily followed. After several minutes, however, the blood became harder to spot, as it was little droplets rather than great sweeping strokes. It led her through the village, which seemed quite unaware of the commotion and was earily silent, and through the plains beyond toward the little wood on the other side of a small lake. On occasion, a shout echoed in the air, incoherent and distant, but distinctly in Tavarius' voice.
She followed the trail until she arrived at the small dirt road in front of the house and then wisely decided that she would return to the house to get dressed and fully arm herself.
Doing so, and also gathering some provisions, she came face to face with the older couple as she was getting ready to depart. "Something has happened to Tavarius, I am going to find him. I left a pouch of coins upon the table for you, in case we do not make it back here. I thank you so much for all of your aid."
The old woman surprised Rayvinn by putting her arms around the too-thin elf and giving her a squeeze. "Ye be careful and yer both welcome back 'ere if a safe place is needed." Raye swallowed the slight lump in her throat and nodded slightly at them both before turning and leaving the house. Upon reaching the stable, she led her horse away on a rope, unable to ride him and keep the trail of blood in sight in the dark of night. She was pushing her night vision to its fullest extent right now.
She occasionally heard Tavarius shout incoherently, and this caused her steps to quicken. She followed for hours without a moment of rest before she could ignore the burning in her side no longer. She stopped and fished fresh bandages out and re-bandaged her wound to the best of her ability prior to wrapping it in the tight elastic bindings again.
Drinking some water, Raye sat still for a few minutes while her horse grazed on the lush green grass. She was trying to piece together all of the knowledge she had so far on the disappearance of Tavarius.
As Raye sat there, drinking water, something snapped behind her. A twig cracked to break the silence that had followed in the absence of Tavarius' shouts. It was unnaturally loud. A man stepped forward, he resembled Tavarius vaguely, though was taller and paler with yellow eyes. His fingers were tied with individual strings that dragged on the ground behind him, and he wore a suit more fitting of the Victorian era than any modern fashion. He walked with the same lanky gait as the trickster, but the similarities stopped there; this man was not whimsical as Tavarius was, he was dark, ominous, and the hungry look in his eye suggested something sinister in his intentions.
"You are searching for Tavarius," said the man, his voice cold and monotonous. "Leave," a hand dragged the strings up off the ground as he lifted his arm to point away. "You have no business with the trickster, he is mine now. I will not suffer your interference. This is your only chance."