Murder most foul

[DM_Shadowlands]

The night was peirced by a woman's dying scream near the tavern of the Keep. It was cut off then silence filled the night. In the Hamlet a man cried out and died in a pool of his own blood. Another man walked the alleys looking at his hands that were covered in blood. He talked to himself as tears streamed down his face.

... so begins it all.

//Players do post on this thread your side of the story. Each Wednesday there will be more added. In the mean time the rp is on going and those who are part of it know their parts. Do have fun with the shadows.

[Aegis]

Geis slowly makes his way towards the magistrate building as he think's back on to the events that transpired from the murders, to the demise of Calvir, and that of 'Piel' who pulled that man's strings like a marionette.

*Geis's hand shakes as he tries to pin a note to the public board, he cannot shake that coldness that is tugging at his hand for it was this same coldness that he felt when he placed his hand upon Calvir. He pull's out a small flask and drink's some of the amber liquid to calm him down, for the moment his hand is calm and he pin's the note up*

Information Wanted: Information is wanted on the one known as 'Piel' *description of Piel is given*, a reasonable fee will be rewarded for any useful and reliable information given.
Signed Geis...

*he stamp's a seal at the bottom *

Geis retires to the tree to lament upon the death of 'Calvir' and to the enigma of 'Piel' it is then a lady approach's him and strikes up a conversation. Geis was shocked when the lady revealed her true identity before leaving him with a cryptic message and like the shadows she simply disappeared before Geis’s eyes.

A voice echoed in his mind speaking of ‘shadows’ before going silent, as he was brought back to his senses all he could hear was the cold rain… He begin's to make a entry into his journal of these events...

*Geis return's once more to the board and tack's on another note to the previous*

Inaddition information is also wanted on all lore relating to 'Shadows' and I would also ask that anyone who came in physical-contact with Calvir contact me post-haste. The same reward will apply for all useful and reliable information given.

*The note end's here*

Silently he walk's off as his hand continues to shake once more as if pulled by a string....

[Pi'el]

Pi'el, hiding in the shadows of Blackstone shivering from a coldness within, replays the nights events through his mind. Starting with the murder's, the woman dead on top of the Playful Maiden and then the man found stabbed out in the Hamlet. Smiling "Did we commit these acts"? A voice answers Pi'el, "no we didn't but we did" as a the image of Calvir floods his mind. The voice then says "But now we can play, look at all these bugs that need to be squished" as they watch the people of Blackstone wonder about not knowing who or what is watching them.

Pi'el stalks through the shadows with in the keep, moving ever so slowly as not to be seen. He come's to the public board and watches Geis post a note on the board. Remaining hidden until Geis leaves, Pi'el makes his way to the board and notices the posting inquireing about him. With an evil chuckel "They want more information about us do they". The voice states "they want to kill us, we must remain hidden". "Yes but, no one in this land knows us anymore and those that did are no longer about" answers Pi'el. "Then let us watch these bugs and squish the ones that come to close", Pi'el moves away from the board and into the deep shadows of the keep. Looking back at the board he watches Geis return.

"Hidden we must remain for now until we are found and then we must squish the bugs that come to close. Agreed we must remain hidden" as Pi'el makes his way to his favorite vantage point with in the keep so that he can watch all the bugs...

[Hordack]

*A figure unseen to most reads Geis's note from the shadow's and thinks to himself for a few seconds then places his own note next to Geis's note.*

*note reads*

I know little of this person you seek *gives desription of Pi'el* Other the he wears purple and black armor and has a demon tail. His skills as a shadow dancer are modest at best. I have seen better in my lifetime. Probaly a second rate thug or assassin making a name for himself.

*the note is left unsigned*

*the figure return's to his Guild Hall and finds some nice pillows to lay on and goes back to his nap*

[DM_Shadowlands]

Cavir looked at his hands then were covered in blood. 'You did this not me, I could never do that to Loria.'

'Your hands... she and Rishon did not care about you like I do. Your better off without them. We can do so much to...'

'NOOOO! I loved her and you took her from me. Why?'

'I told you why she was not true to you... not like I will be.'

Cavir walked the alleys of Blackstone torturing himself as he tried to wipe the blood from his hands. He had lost the dagger a while back and all his searching had not found it. And the voice was always talking to him. Telling him things, begging, pleading, promising and giving orders. Why him?

Hours later they found him and were going to take him to the Warden. The voice screamed in his ears that he was weak and should run, to not let them part us... It was all driving him mad. Then the odd humanoid touched his shoulder and his hand stayed there. Cavir felt something leaving him. No words the voice was gone and he was cold and empty. Loria was gone and they were still telling him he murdered her. It was not him it was the voice. He looked at Pi'el and could see in his eyes that he was the murder. He told the others the truth but they said the blood on his hands told a different story. Then Pi'el told him to run... and he took the chance.

He ran to get away from it all, them and the voice but he did not get far only to the docks before they caught up with him. It was all too much his heart acked. After a few words he ran for the last time to the end of the docks. He could see her face in the water. She wanted him to join her.... Yes. Loria I'm coming to you...

He jumped and never surfaced again...

When Cavir had run Pi'el took his chance and ran while the others went after the human. He laughed at their stupidy. He was free once again...

[Alter Fritz]

*shakes his head* "Why do I care about this dwarf and his voices? There is no gold in it for me."

*pulls out a bottle of Starkson wine* "Maybe this will help." *takes a long pull on the bottle*

"What happened? Why do I care about this dwarf ... what was his name?" *drinks again*

Hector

"Yeah, Hector. That was it." *drinks again* "and what of the odd fellow with the demon tail?"

Pi'el

"Of course, Pi'el." *finishes the bottle of wine* "Why do I know their names? Why do I care?"

They are our friends

"Right, they are our friends." *pulls out another bottle of wine* "But why?"

Together we are powerful

"But I don't care for power, just gold." *takes a long pull on the fresh bottle of wine*

Jon, we don't need the wine

"The wine makes me feel better. Makes me not care." *looks in his bags* "Good, I have plenty of wine, and some dwarven ale." *pulls out several bottles of dwarven ale* "We will drink tonight until we don't care."

please don't

[Nimrod]

HECTOR!

HECTOR!

HECTOR WAKE UP!

*Hector rolls over and breakes some of the many empty ale bottles that are laying around him*

*Startled Hector jumps to his feet scythe in hand*

"Whos there!" Hector bellows.

It is us Hector your friends.

"Oh you, I was hoping you were just a bad dream." Hector moaned as he sat back onto the ground, rubbing his aching head.

Are you still our friend Hector, will you still save us Hector?

"Aye im your friend, and I will take on a whole nest of Great White Wyrn if you gets you out of my head! Dwarves arent suppose to user their head as much as your making me use mine, its thick with bone for good reason!" He said with a laugh, as he pulled a stone out of one of his many bags, and started sharpening the blade of his scythe.

Many will try to stop you Hector, they dont understand, but you must not let them stop you, you must save us!

"Aye some already have tryed to stop me, I say LET 'EM TRY...istn that right Rikus?" Hector looks at his friend Rikus laying face down passed under a tree some 10 feet away, surrounded by his own collection of empty bottles.

Can you trust that drunkin dwarf Hector?

"Aye, to the death, we have been on many adventures together! But there are many men in the keep, many powerful men who may try to stop us, we will need help." Hector said as he stared off into nothing, pondering something.

We have friends, very powerful friends Hector. Jon is our friend, Fenix is our friend, Pi'el is our friend...and there is more...and you have the power to get more to understand, you must make more understand Hector!

"Aye we have friends, very powerful friends indeed!" Hector said smiling.

Make them understand Hector!

"Aye we will make them understand!"

If they dont understand, kill them!

"Aye, if they dont understand we will kill them!"

KILL THEM ALL!

"Aye, we will kill them all!"

[DM_Shadowlands]

A knife slides quickly the sound is music to the ear... It sinks deep into the flesh and there is a sigh.
The shadows smile, one less to trouble them... one less to stop them.. one more to act as host to them.

Sing the song, strike the drum, let the voices be heard throught the land.

The game has started.. do the players know who they are, what is the goal and the true prize?

[Alter Fritz]

Jon crouches on a rooftop overlooking the plaza of the keep. Not really hidden by shadows, not really hidden by light, but a combination of the two make him nearly impossible to see. Jon has learned to bend light and darkness to conceal his movements. Very few can see or hear him, if he wishes to remain concealed.

"My head hurts." Jon sighs as he rubs his temples with his fists.

Its called sobriety

Jon moans, "I don't like it".

You will get used to it

Jon looks down by the large tree at the dwarf sitting on the bench. "You were right, the dwarf mage is not a friend"

I told you, he will try to stop us

"Do I sense evil from the dwarf mage? If not him, then his arts are evil. If not his arts, then he is evil. Something strange."

Evil, good, it matters not. He is not our friend

Jon reaches into his pouch and rummages for a bit.

You don't need a drink

"I do, I just don't have any. Remind me to go to the Starkson Island for some more wine." Jon closes his pouch and ponders, "Where is Pi'el, I have seen Hector about the keep, but not Pi'el."

He is around, can you not feel them?

"No, not yet. Is there more? Is the elf our friend?"

Yes, Fenix is our friend

Jon rises and moves across the roof to look down on some more citizens of the keep. "What are we to do?"

Unite and feel the power

"Yes power, and with the power comes gold" Jon smiles as he notices a large gold pouch on a traveler. He rises and slowly scales down the wall of the building to put himself in position to have a closer look at the traveler's pouches.

[Davanté Warsong]

The elven monk, Fenix, lays on the ground somewhere deep in the Blackstone Crypt. Physically, he is uninjured. Yet within the fortress of his mind, a battle of will coninues.

"What do you want from me! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

We cannot. You are a part of our cause now.

You--You're the same voices in Hector's head, aren't you!

Yes. When he bumped into you, we used the brief physical contact to enter your mind.

For days you have tormented me with your whispers. WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME! He slams his undead fist on the ground.

We have only asked for one thing. Help us.

Yes yes... I hear your incessant pleas. Why me?

You are not alone. There are others.

Like... like Hector? And the shadowdancer?

Yes.

How do I help you?

There are those who are with us, and there are some who will try to stop us.

So?

Alone, you can do nothing. Only when united will we stand. You must find our brethren. They also hear our call.

The others who hear your voices... like Hector?

Yes. You will be drawn to the others. They are your friends. Unite with the others, and slay anyone who prevents you from doing so.

He rises from the floor and clenches his fists, making his way to the crypt exit. He kicks open the door and allows his eyes to adjust to sunlight that he has not seen in days. He walks south, to Blackstone Keep.

[Pi'el]

It has been quite some time now since Pi'el has come in contact with Calvir and starting having conversations with the unknown entity. In these most recent days Pi'el has been seen just wandering about the lands and leaving a trail of blood in his wake but without a marker identifying him as the killer. The victoms are random and of no importance for it they just happen to be what ever crosses his path.

The latest trail of blood came from the Inn out in the most remote of areas, the Oasis. But for some strange reason, Pi'el left a mark on the wall within the Inn, a message so grotesque that one cannot imagine how any creature could do that to another.



While resting in her temple the Priestess of Lia begins to hear screams of sheer horror coming from the Inn out in the Desolate Oasis. Grabbing her staff she runs out of the Temple to see smoke coming out of the Inn. The Priestess runs to the Inn in search of survivors and upon entering her breath is taken away at the smell of Blood and the sight on the wall. The Priestess runs from the Inn in with a frieghtened look on her face. Upon exiting the Inn the Priestess blindly walks in to the storekeep from the wagon on the other side of the water. He looks at the Priestess and asks her what has happened?

"The people....all the blood..." she says, the storekeep starts to enter but the Priestess grabs him by the arm. "No, don't go in there, there is no help for those people." She turns and closes the door. The storekeep asks "do you know what happened?" The priestess answers "the people were all slaughtered, there is blood everywhere and there is a symbol on the wall." The storekeep continues to watch the Priestess and starts to panic as the color leaves her face. "The symbol is made up of bloody stumps to form a single letter...P."

Watching the sight, from the shadows of the trees surrounding the Oasis, Pi'el says in a whisper "well, this should start the hunt shouldn't it" The voice replys.."I could not have imagine this going any better, you have done well Tiefling, you have done very well!" "come, lets go for a walk my dear Tiefling and see what other wonderful acts we can commit"

Pi'el slowly stands and leaves the Oasis through the gate and disappears out in the Waste Lands...

[Alter Fritz]

Relaxing in a corner of the tavern wtih his boots up on the table, Jon enjoyed another stout ale. Hidden by the shadows of the dimly lit corner, he thought of the peace he had felt the last couple days. Finally the voices are gone, he thought, I can't remember why I cared about the voices, but I am glad they are gone.

Watching the local waitress Kim, he almost felt bad for her. She was working constantly with a rowdy bunch, serving drinks and swatting away too friendly hands. She must make good coin in tips, why else would she put up with them.

Finishing his ale Jon rose and stepped forward from the shadows, Now to see about these rumors of pick-pockets working my town. Slipping out of the tavern he paused long enough to remove a few coins from a loud drunken dwarf and drop them into Kim's apron.