Anlundar Plains

[ShadowWolfSBI]

Situated between the Western Lands and the Iselgarn Empire, the Anlundar Plains are sparsely populated. However, a few trade routes cross it, and it is down one of these that an Imperial group escort a wagon, bearing a steel cage. Inside the cage is perhaps the only known captive from the Battle of Calladris, a Kaliveran named Isha Breananin. However, perhaps halfway across the plains, a violent storm rose up, and the resulting damage caused by it left the small convoy in shambles. While Isha was left relatively unharmed, the Imperials were wiped out. Fortunately, an ally well-known to Isha, one Kara Steamhammer, had just managed to catch up.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

The wagon lay on its side, door down, its prisoner bruised but otherwise unharmed. Isha had been trying to either bend the bars enough to slip through, or lift the wagon enough to get the door in the cage open, the keyring having found its resting place within her grasp, but both efforts were to no avail. She had been there for at least two hours before Kara managed to catch up. Seeing her old friend, Isha gets up from where she was resting and goes to the edge of the tipped cage.

"Kara? Kara Steamhammer? By the gods, is that you? Of all the places... How did you find me?"

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

"D'ye really think I'd le' ye get in this much trouble wi' out me, ye daft lass?" The dwarf grins as she unbuckles her backpack and removes a good-sized set of pipe cutters and bolt cutters.

She get to work on the cage, first cutting deep into the bars with the pipe cutters, then snapping the bars at the newly-weakened points with the bolt cutters. Once cut, she bends them with repeated strikes from her hammer, swung with her gloved right hand. She keeps an eye out nervously, her left hand staying close to the axe on her hip.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha gives a chuckle at her friend's remark. "No, I guess not. You weren't caught in that storm, were you?" She asks, waiting patiently for a gap large enough to slide through. Once there is, she slips through and starts collecting her possessions, which were thrown around near the dead bodies that had claimed them from her.

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Kara's grin widens. "Nice par' abou' bein' less vertic'ly built. Ye can dig a small hole, wai' ou' tha winds." She replaces her tools in the backpack, both axe and hammer securely rigged about her waist again.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

"Indeed, I'm just glad all of my escorts were vertically built then" Isha responds with a smile, finding two more of her blades under another body and picking them up. "Hey, you see a chest around here, should have the rest of my gear in it, these fools only wanted my blades."

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Kara goes to help Isha look. "Hopef'lly ya gave a few of 'em your blades. I never seen ya give in withou' a scrap."

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha leans back, simultaneously stretching and remembering the battle. "Mmm hmm, I must have taken down a score or more, but they had managed to cut me off and surround me. I tried to fight my way back, but by then Elric had... disappeared, and the rest of the army was being routed. I fought them to a stalemate, but I had nowhere to go. Not much left to do but surrender by then. In hindsight, I'm surprised they accepted it, considering I haven't seen another captive since."

She finishes her stretch and gets back to searching, finally finding the chest half covered by one of the horses that was drawing the wagon. fortunately, the lid was exposed and came open easily, revealing her leather armour, cloak, and handful of rations. Isha strips off the rough woolen clothes she was given and slips easily into her armour, not caring if Kara has a view but keeping an eye out for any travellers. She then begins strapping her weapons to their assigned places. Once she finishes, she quickly polices the bodies for coin and supplies then nods to Kara.

"Looks like we're walking, we should get going before someone finds us here." She states, wrapping her cloak around herself and pulling up the cowl to hide her Kaliveran features.

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

The dwarf looks around, surveying the surroundings one last time.

"Weather seems fine... fer now. Any idea where we walkin' to?" She assists the swordswoman with her armor and gear.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha thinks for a moment before responding. "I want to go back to Calladris, see if we can find any evidence of where Elric has gone. If he isn't dead, then there's still a chance we can put Kalivor back together again. Plus, I still think there was a war academy there, I want to see if there's anything left of it, there was no time before the battle. Are you up to it, my friend?"

 

[ShadowWolfSBI]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Something catches the eye of both Isha and Kara at that moment. Half-buried by the body of the leader of the convoy is what appears to be a container holding a note of some kind. Given the quality of the paper that's visible, it's more than likely to be orders of some kind.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha walks over and picks the container up, checking for anything else inside before reading the note. "Hey, look at this." She says, passing the note over to kara as soon as she has read it herself.

 

[ShadowWolfSBI]

Re: Anlundar Plains

The note seemed to be orders, likely from Muristan himself.

Once all matters with the skirmish are dealt with, report to Fort Shard on the northern edge of the Teladran Forest. We need you to help keep the freaks away from the 'shrine' nearby. Without the tool there, and the other two, that binding we had placed on their leader can't be broken.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha waits a moment for her companion to read the message, then speaks.
"Well this changes things. If that message is true, then Elric is trapped somehow and that shrine seems to be the key to saving him. but it also means that we need to find either an item and two people, or three items in order to free him, so there doesn't seem to be much point in rushing over there just yet. I still say we go to Calladris, see if we can find some evidence to prove this note's veracity, but I'm still open to suggestions, what do you think?"

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

"Aye, lass, bu' I thin' we dunna haf' the time to wai' fer all tha'. I say we go to For' Shard and investigate this tool." Kara's eyes gleamed at the possibility of discovering (and possibly dismantling and reverse engineering) a powerful tool.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha thinks it over for a minute before responding. "Alright then, we'll head off to the Teladrin Forest then, see what we can discover there." Pulling the cloak a bit tighter and making sure the hood covered her features, she heads off in the direction of Fort Shard, slowing her pace so the dwarf can match it easier. She takes one last look at the ruined caravan as they leave, her face showing suspicion and a bit of confusion under the cowl, but her expression is quickly hidden once more.

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Thinking quickly, the dwarf strips two of the guards of their clothing and cloaks. "These migh' come in 'andy if we wan' t' keep a low profile, though my profile be a bi' low as i' is." She follows Isha towards the forest.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha and Kara travel till around noon, stopping for a short rest under some trees on the side of the wagon trail. "So," Isha says after a moment, her back to a tree and her eyes closed. "Whats my good friend Kara been up to since we last met?"

 

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Anlundar Plains

"Oh, no' much lass. A lil' o' this an' tha'. I made this lil' device." Kara reaches into her pack and quickly assembles an unusual looking steel crossbow, then affixes a cylindrical drum with twenty bolts to the bottom. "Tha's a twenny bolt drum wi' semi-automa'ic fire rate o' one second per sho'. Single-load capability as well, three seconds per round."

She keeps the safety on, and affixes a second drum to her belt for easy access. The dwarf then takes a swig of water from her wineskin, and passes it to her tall companion. "An' ye, lass? Apar' from gettin' inta trouble?"

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Anlundar Plains

Isha takes a drink and passes it back to Kara. "Same as I've always done since the fall of Kalivor. I found a couple of writings and a single teacher since we've last seen each other, he was killed in the last battle there, but i managed to save this from those Imperials." She draws the rapier she carries, and runs a finger along one of the flat sides of the inch-wide blade, examining it again while she speaks. "He called it Priscilla, after his wife. Said 'There isn't anything on the continent sharper than that woman's tongue, but this is pretty close.' He was training me with it, but we didn't get a chance to finish before Elric reappeared and united what was left of us..." She seems lost in reverie, replaying the short and brutal campaign in her mind.