Author: Bernie77
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Chapter 2
Year 3726, 15 years after the Shattering…
He awoke from the nightmare abruptly screaming, "NO!!"
The Koda'Dal or High Elf as most of Norrath had refer to them as, sat up from the ground, heart racing violently in the dark. It was more than just a simple nightmare, but a vision. A vision that has hunted him for the last 620 years. The first real memory that he can recall with perfect clarity. It was different somehow. This vision never came to him in dream, only in meditation and only if he himself recalled in his mind. These entire questions would have to wait now. The elf could not dwell on the painful memory or why he even had it in the first place. Right now, the realization of being somewhere different, waking up in an unfamiliar room finally dawned on him and asked himself, "Where am I?"
Sinogra Nolatcon realized that the he was nowhere near what he would call home. First thing his nostrils were filled with air of decayed stench. There was also a hint of blood in the air, or was it? He brought his hand to his nose and found that his nose had been bleeding. Sinogra tried to recount what happen and where he was at in this moment in time. Am I dreaming again? Slowly, he picked himself up from the ground to his feet as he did, the aches and soreness filled all his nerves at one time. The High Elf Wizard let out a low mummer of discomfort but never the less got up. Most of the soreness was felt as his midsection and a couple of places in his face. However painful it is, Sinogra knew that these pain were not recent. Judging by the degree of pain he felt, though still painful, but minimal at best, he had felt worse. "How long have I been here?" the next question he asked himself.
The High Elf examined the room he was in. The room was small, four stonewalls, dirt floors, and ceiling to high for Sinogra to reach. Off in the corner were what look like dirty used rags in a small pile. One wall had a large wooden door without handles or knobs, at least on his side. On the opposite of the wall, up near the ceiling was a small rectangular hole, the window. In the window were bars that ran up and down. The small window was nowhere large enough fit even the tiniest of Gnomes, and certainly not a High Elf's. This room is what you would expect out of any other cell, clearly not made for luxury. Sinogra approached the wall with the barred window and rub his hands to see if there were any cracks or maybe even a foothold of some sort, nothing. He looked up at the window, and he could tell that it was night with the moon shining its radiant light. Sinogra again went to the wall to find some sort of hope, some sort of way to escape.
"Its no uses. I's tried myself master Nolatcon.." a voice from the corner where the dirty rags laid, except they weren't dirty rags at all. The low visibility made it seem it was rags but when fact it was a small creature, a Ratonga. Ratonga's were over sized rats that walk with two legs instead four. They were no taller than your average Halfling, but not shorter than a 2 foot Gnome.
"Wickle!" Sinogra called, as he remembered who his companion was, "Are you alright my friend?"
"I's took my licks form them, the Orcs. But it's yous I worries for. They's beat the senses out of yous master." Wickle recalled.
"Orcs???," Sinogra tried to drawn any memory of this, but came with a blank, "What happen to us Wickle? Why are we here?"
The Ratonga, once looked straight into Sinogra's eyes, then turned away in shame, then he began, "It's my faults master."
"I don't understand?" replied the wizard.
Wickle took a deep breath, "Yous wanted to harvest for more roots in the Commonlands. Yous said yous hads a big order to fills. So yous asks me to help you, and we had no such lucks with the normal harvesting grounds in Commonlands. I then suggest a place where no ones reallys knows about. Master, I took yous to the Outskirts of Bloodskulls Valley. I been there many of times, never had any problems. I's thought we be oks, but I's was wrong. The orcs came from nowheres, calling us trespassers and spies of Lucan. Its my faults…"
Wickle covered his eyes with his small furry hands and began to weep. Sinogra knelt down beside him and placed his hand and on the Ratonga's back to try to comfort him. Though Wickle continued to weep. He respected the old wizard. This High Elf was responsible for giving Wickle a second chance at life without thievery. Wickle will be the first to tell anyone that breaking into the wizard's house was the gods at work. The gods lead him to the old High Elf for that second chance at life. Just as Sinogra came home that night, he knew something was off. Of course, upon opening the door to his one bedroom house in the Scale Yard, a Ratonga just finish packing up the last bits of Sinogra's possessions. With out hesitation, the Wizard binded the little thief with is his magic and Wickle became immobilized.
If were any other Freeportian, they would have just called the Militia Guard, and they would have arrested the Rat and taken him to the Militia house in West Freeport for interrogation, or as some would call it, a screening to see if the offender has any abilities that may be useful to the Militia. However, Wickle knew that he was nothing more than just a common thief with no skills. That would have put Wickle in a grave situation, the death penalty. Instead of Sinogra calling for the guards, he closed his house door, pulled a stool and sat next to the immobilized Ratonga. Their eyes met and Sinogra asked one question, 'Tell me young one, why come to house?' Wickle stayed silent, but not out of defiance, but out of fear. Sinogra asked again, the same question, but add, 'You not be afraid my friend, the Militia Guard will not coming. And please be honest.' For some reason, Wickle believed those words the old wizard spoke.
So he told him almost everything. About how he was born as a runt of the litter, and how, by his own parents, tossed to the Freeport sewers to live among the diseased animals that inhabited it. How he had to steal to make some money for his next meal, which was not an everyday thing for him. Wickle had gone for 4 days at a time without any real decent food. Thievery was the only thing the scout knew how to do. As he continued with his story, Sinogra just listen inventively to every word the poor Ratonga had to say. When Wickle was finished, the Elf wizard released him from his magical bindings and made him an offer. 'You are released my friend, but I do offer you a job and even a place to stay. You don't have to take it but know that it is open to you.' What the wizard proposed was to have a companion to harvest items out in the many lands of Norrath. For his time, he would be paid. As for the room and board, Sinogra offered to pay for the place for the first 2 seasons.
He then told the Ratonga scout that he didn't have to take it but consider it as a new start. Then he lead the rat out the door gave him a couple of pieces of gold for the night's meal. Wickle returned the next morning and told Sinogra, 'I's wishes to serve you.' Since then for the last 8 months, Wickle has helped the High elf collect and harvest items that he needed. And as true to his word, Sinogra got him a home in scale yard.
Now here he is, knelt down into the corner, feeling responsible for the plight that they found themselves in. Sinogra, again still comforting the Ratonga, "It isn't your fault, I promise you my friend, I will find a way out."
"But master," Wickle responded, "we are in the middle of Bloodskull Valley with fort full of Orcs, how would wees escape?"
Sinogra still has yet to figure that out. He got up from his partner and examines the wall that had the barred window. Then he looked in his pockets, nothing and his satchels and even his spell book were gone. Of course, he didn't really need his spell book. He had some spells fairly well memorized. "Wickle, you my want to take some cover." Wickle obediently followed the wizard's warning. Sinogra began his incantation, and then thrusted his right arm forward. Nothing, not even a spark. He tried again same incantation, same movement to properly cast his fireball, still nothing. This dumbfounded the wizard. He tried a different spell, nothing at all, its as if his power had faded.
"Master," Wickle pointed up towards the window, "could that bees the problem?"
Sinogra looked up didn't see anything, at first. As he focused his eyes and saw passed the soft moonlight beaming down from the window, he saw what Wickle had seen. Camouflaged by the soft moonlight, was a Wisp, a small creature that is in a form of a point of light. Though, it wasn't just any Wisp, but a Manaburster. These creatures, feed on the magical powers that people possess. When endangered, they focus that power back to the attacker as full energy, burning energy. This explains why Sinogra can't form the simplest of spells, they Manaburster is feeding off his power. The orcs have gotten smarter over the years, he thought to himself. A plan started to formulate. If he could some how distract the wisp, it should be able to give him enough time to regain a small amount of power to cast a fireball spell powerful enough to burn a hole through the wall.
"Wickle." He called
"Yeses."
"Give me your belt buckle."
Wickle unfastened his leather belt and handed to the wizard. Sinogra then fixed his eyes on the wisp. All he needed was just enough to do this one spell. He started to swing the belt in circles to give its some momentum. Then with at the right point, he let go of it. The belt went up, the metal buckle first, as it sped towards the wisp, the creature moved over just out of the fly objects way. The belt smacked loudly at the top of the ceiling and came down almost immediately. 'Damn' Sinogra thought. He went to pick up the belt again, "MASTER!!!" Wickle cried point at the wisp.
The Creatures light glowed brightly now and it began to hum.
"Oh this is nots going to be good." Wickle crouched down on the ground with his arms covering over his head.
Sinogra fully agreed with Wickle. The wisp then shot out two brilliant blue lights towards the prisoners. Wickle got thrown back to the wall, momentarily suspend against it with his feet off the ground, then collapsed to the floor. Sinogra had the same happen to him. The energy was an immense stunning feeling of pain and drain. It felt as though his life was sucked out. This continued till the wisp felt that the wizard had no power. When the beam ceased, Sinogra fell down on to his knees. His world began to blur out into the darkness. The wizard was now, once again, unconscious.
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