The Innkeeper's Wife

[jada]

Lyndi had been listening to Kerodi and Silvarn's conversation while searching. She had no input she only listened as she searched the place for the eye symbols. So far there was nothing. She saw Silvarn colapse and almost ran to his side to comfort him, it was a woman thing, but she figured he probably would want to be by himself and he would come around sooner or later. Kerodi left Lyndi and Silvarn downstairs so he could get some rest. Lyndi didn't blame him she was pretty tired herself. She went into the kitchen and locked the back door, and retuned to the front room and locked the doors. They were locked in so nothing to worry about.

The whole downstairs was safe as far as there were no eye symbols anywhere to be seen and everything was in lock down mode. Lyndi would check the upstairs a bit later when she was ready for sleep. She went to the kitchen and brought out a two small plates of food. She set one on the counter for herself to come back to, and carried the other over to Silvarn.

"Here, if your not hungary it's ok, i just thought you might be, and I think it would be a good idea for you to get some rest. I'll keep an eye on things tonight, it's only fair. You and Kerodi have been doing all the work staying up and saveing my butt." She smiled at him. She set the plate down on a table near him and left him to decide weather to eat it or not. She went back to her own plate and ate up. When she finished she carried it to the kitchen and cleaned everything up. She figured it might be nice for Marisol and her husband to come back to a clean inn.

When she finished cleaning the inn she came back into the main room and started the fire. Instantly the room felt warmer and comfier. It had a homey feel to it. That feeling always made Lyndi happy.

[Silvarn]

Silvarn staggered from his heap to the inside of the inn, collapsing again into a comfy chair. His eyes became distant, his mind, normally churning through myriad thoughts at once, was in a stupor, no work getting done.

Silvarn? Scorcahr carefully interjected into Silvarn's clouded mind.

"Not now, Scorcahr." Silvarn muttered to the fireplace.

Even if Navras does not possess your mind at the moment, you should let him control you.

His eyes furrowed, his senses oblivious to the food, fire, and friend near him.

"What can I do against such power?" he whispered, his heart feeling as though it was cracking.

He covered his face with one hand and, contrary to his outward mask, began to weep softly. "I have killed them both. Them all. By wanting to help them, I destroyed them."

His fingers played over his forehead, feeling the familiar shape of his caste mark, the half-filled circle.

You were Exalted for a reason, Silvarn. Do you know why? Scorcahr asked with a conclusive voice.

"Yes," the Solar began, "I think I do, now."

Without a word, or even a sound, he left his two sleeping friends in the inn, making certain to lock the door he exited by. He would be a danger to them no longer. He would hunt down the Twisted Mirror by himself.

[jada]

Lyndi had fallen asleep. She hadn't realised it at first but when she had awaken the plate next to her was half filled with food that had grown cold since it was sitting out. Out of no where her body tensed. Something wasn't right, she could smell something...no it was the lack of a smell, Silvarn's smell. He wasn't here.

Lyndi spun around to face where Silvarn had been sitting before she had fallen asleep. She saw the empty chair and realised it was true Silvarn had left, but why? Lyndi didn't give herself time to think she dashed up the steps and pounded on Kerodi's door.

"KERDOI! GET UP!!! HURRY! SILVARN'S GONE! I AM AFRAID SOMETHING HAPPENED TO HIM. HE SEEMED UPSET, BUT NOW HE'S GONE GET UP!!!" She hollered hammering the door as hard as she could.

She couldn't wait for him to roll out of bed, she took actoin into her own hands. She shifted into tiger. She ripped at the door with her claws, shreading the wood. it was no use the door was thick and she had no choice but to wait for Kerodi to wake up. She couldn't leave without him. She shifted back into her elven form and continued pounding on his door.

[HoudiniDerek]

Kerodi awoke with to a large BANG! on his bedroom door. Instantly, he was on his feet, a small knife in his hand. He heard muffled yelling through the door and then another loud bang as something huge it. Kerodi shook his head as the pounding started again...it was Lyndi!

Kerodi stowed the dagger back within the folds of his cloak and strode to the door. He opened it and dodged the two little fists that were still pounding. "Yes, Lyndi?" Kerodi asked politely.

He listened intently as she told him that Silvarn had left. Kerodi motioned her into the room and began pacing, his normal stance when trying to think through a problem. He had known Silvarn was scared, but he had not expected him to take out on them. He had considered him to be more reliable than that....and he probably was doing what he thought was right....a way to protect them.

"The brave fool," Kerodi muttered, still pacing, casting a shadow on the small elven girl as he blocked and unblocked the light. Kerodi's plan was not going to work he could tell. He had set it up to try and find a way to get the ancient ruins before Navras, but now it was in jeopardy.

"Lyndi," Kerodi said after a few minutes of silence. "We are going to have to split up for a little while." He turned to look at her and his expression was kind. "I have to go and look for the magic that might help protect Silvarn. Even though he has left us, Navras knows of at least you, if not the both of us. He may still try to use us."

Kerodi sighed and continued. "I will go look for some of the ancient magic that might help protect us and Silvarn from Navras. You will have to do something much more dangerous, Lyndi. You will need to shapeshift into an animal that can track Silvarn. You must find him and stay near him at all costs."

Kerodi gazed out the window and saw that the moon was bright. It would be full in another few days. "I do not want to leave you, but we have no choice. This is getting more dangerous all the time, especially when splitting up." He took a deep breath and pulled a blue stone with a funny looking rune on i from his robe. "Take this. It will allow me to find you. If in trouble, break it in half. I am sorry I cannot give you more, but it is all I have at the moment."

Kerodi walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. She was shorter than he so he leaned down to look her in the eye. "You must be quick and brave. Silvarn may not want your help, but he will need it. Go to him...tonight. I will leave too."

Kerodi went downstairs and grabbed some food from the kitchen...packing it away into a knapsack he carried. He went to the back door and opened it. The night was cool and clear. He turned to Lyndi once more. "You should go first so the trail is not distorted. We should try to meet in Tamasha by the next cycle of the moon....in one month." Kerodi nodded encouragingly and walked down the stairs. He turned to look at Lyndi, waiting.

[jada]

Lyndi had only nodded through everything he said. Takeing it all in. It would be dangerous, but oddly that part didn't bug Lyndi as much as being alone. She could deal with the danger, but lonelyness was something that has bitten Lyndi hard in the past and left a huge scar. She tried to hide the fear and pain of it and smiled up at Kerodi," I'll see you again." She said. She gave him a quick hug and shifted into a wolf. She looked at him one last time and headed quickly out into the night.

Silvarn's scent was not hard to track, it was very different then the things in this world. It smelled light and odly Lyndi would describe it as silvery. After about five minutes of following his scent into the thick woods she smelled something else. Something thick as the night. It was harsh and unwelcomeing, almost like a cloud trying to sufficate her.

She growled, and the soft grey fur on her back quickly turned stiff and stood up. The thick almost smoke like scent surrounded her. It, like silvarn's scent, was not of this plane. Lyndi barred her teeth and looked all around her. The scent surrounded her and it was freash.

"Shoot! I'm surrounded." She felt so stupid, she should have paid more attention. This had to be Narvas.

Lyndi wasn't going to wait around for him to catch her. She bolted from her spot off into the woods. and she prayed she would stay on Silvarn's trail.

After about and hours worth of running Lyndi couldn't breath anymore. she collapsed on the ground and closed her eyes for a moment. She breathed in deeply and to her suprise she smelled Silvarn. His trail was maybe an hour old. He had been here. Lyndi opened her eyes and looked around. She focused the little energy she had on which way Silvarn was headed.

She sniffed again and the thick scent of Narvas was closeing in on her again. This time she wasn't so lucky. He stepped out from behind a tree and gased at her. His deep velvety voice calmly said,"I know your tracking him. I saw him leave the Inn but I cannot follow him unless I have someone tracking him. Unfortuantly I recently lost my previous tracker and so I'm going to get another one." His voice went to soft and velvety to dark and threatening," You will do as I tell you."

Lyndi just stared at him for a long moment. First she was asstonished for him to appear as an attractive male half elf half human. His hair was black as coals and his eyes were a deep navy blue. "I can only imagine physical appearance is used as persuasion." She thought to herself. She needed to stay on her toes and try to think her way around this mess.

"Shift into your elven form." He demanded.

Without a second thought Lyndi shifted. She wasn't sure what he was capable of but she wasn't willing to test it now.

He walked around her, circiling her, examining her. When he stood in front of her again he was closer to her. Right next to her almost. She couldn't help but think about how attractive he was, but that had to be a trick, he was the enimy after all.

"Is he close?" Narvas demanded.

"I...Yes..." Lyndi gave in. He would have just threatened it out of her anyway.

"Lead me too him, and don't you dare turn on me or I'll end your life. It would be ashame though, you have so much beauty, and potential." His voice went from threatening to soft and sweet.

Lyndi scowled at him. He was just trying to play her it was all a trick.

"No." She flatly said to him.

"Excuse me?!" he said, his voice regaining the threat.

"I can't help you. I'd rather die!" She hissed at him.

"As you wish beautiful." He pulled out a knife and held it up to Lyndi's throat,"You will help me find him first."

She was pressed up against him, the knife on her neck, she tried to pulled back but it only pressed her closer to him.

"I have to shift to track him, and his scent is an hour old at least." She confessed. Maybe with Silvarn's help she and Silvarn could escape from Narvas, or maybe she could delay Narvas from Silvarn for long enough that Kerodi can get to Silvarn first.

"Then I have a gift for you beautiful." He said spinning Lyndi around to face him. He slipped his knife away and kept a firm grip on Lyndi with one hand while the other one fished for something in his poket. She was still pressed up agaisnt him, which she didn't like. She pulled her arms up and pressed her palms against his chest trying to shove him away, but he was much stonger. He smiled at her worthless effort.

"Here," He finally said pulling out a ring. It had a navy eye in the center. He grabbed one of Lyndi's hands and slipped it on her finger. "Now you belong to me." His smile grew wide and he laughed lightly at his success.

"I belong to no one!" She snapped at him.

"Beautiful, don't piss me off, that ring you weat, well it will cause you pain if you cause me pain, understood. It will also cause you pain if you disobey me or wander too far. So once again I will tell you, and you must not forget, you belong to ME." His smile was pure evil, like a child doing something wrong that had gotten away with it.

Lyndi glared at him. She didn't have anything to say to a monster like him. No wonder Silvarn had been so eagar to get out of his way. He was overpowering, persuasive, and would take anything he wanted, even if it was stealing.

"That's it beautiful, I can see in your eyes you understand now, but it's time for you to go to work. Track him down." He spoke softly in her ear. She hated it, it was like he was trying to be seductive in a weird cruel way. It made her spine shiver. She took a few steps back from him and shifted back into her wolf form. She growled lightly at her anger and stupidity. She should have just kept running.

She sniffed the air and contined to trak Silvarn, only at a much slower pace this time.

[Silvarn]

Silvarn somehow finally caught his breath. A mere vibe that felt like Navras set him off, running madly and blindly through the forest. His body gave out before his will did and he tumbled into the lap of a tree, where he curled up and slipped into blissful oblivion.

He woke and found Navras before him. He tried to elude Navras, but eventually the mage was kneeling before the Tiwsted Mirror, before his terrible cyclopean glory. Silvarn looked up at the haunting disembodied eye with its eight spires radiating from it, giving Navras' face the look of a spider with a eye on its abdomen.

"Beg for mercy, Grey-Eyes." the Twisted Mirror commanded, pointing at Silvarn demeaningly with one of his three fingers.

"Spare them, Navras. I care not for what you will do to me. Just let them be free." Silvarn pleaded.

"I might not kill you outright, Silvarn." Navras mocked. "You entertain me. I might keep you a bit longer." The Twisted Mirror cackled with malicious mirth. Or, rather, barked. He began slapping Silvarn with a...wet fish?

Silvarn woke again with a start. A wolf before him barked happily, its fuzzy tail swinging to and fro at the velocity of a hummingbird's wing.

"Lyndi?" Silvarn asked quietly. The wolf shifted then into a beautiful elven girl. Silvarn nealy smiled in recognition, but the latest addition to Lyndi's attire caught his attention.

A dozen thoughts fired through his head, some believing Lyndi had sold herself to Navras, but perhaps she was forced into servitude. Then again, she could have been working for him since the beginning, or maybe she had simply found it.

"Get that thing off of your finger!" Silvarn exclaimed, touching a long, slender finger to the ring. The band shattered into dust, carried away by the wind.

"He is here, then." Silvarn's mask broke into a defiant smile. "Well, Navras," he called to the forest, "what say we end this here and now! The power of the Unconquered Sun against that of the Twisted Mirror! What say you?"

[jada]

"Look there isn't time, he's comming, he'll be here in about a minute, Before I go, you have to know, Kerodi is trying to help, find him, and don't forget about me, now RUN!" Lyndi spun and shifted back into a wolf. She dashed back through the woods, running in the direction she came from, she had to delay Narvas so Silvarn could get away, so there was still hope. She prayed Silvarn would understand.

Lyndi hadn't been watching to carefully at where she was going, and she ran right into Narvas.

"Hello beautiful, Shift into your elven form and tell me what is going on."

She obeyed," I lost his scent, I thought I could faintly smell it ahead, but I think he took flight. I can't imagine how though, but his scent ends here."

Lyndi looked down at her hand remebering the ring was gone, and Narvas followed her gase.

"Beautiful, Why do you lie to me? You know it hurts me and inturn will hurt you. You also know it's hopeless, I will win in the end." He wispered into her ear.

Tears of anger welled up in her eyes and a few spilled over. She hated him.

"Beautiful, Don't cry," He wrapped an arm around her restraining her, with the other arm he wipped away the tears," Now I have something for you, Silvarn won't be able to get this one off so eaily next time."

He pulled out a golden braclet covered in navy blue eyes and it was thick, he held out Lyndi's right arm and locked the braclet onto her wrist. It was a tight fit and Lyndi closed her eyes as it pressed tightly on her.

"DON'T call me beautiful, and don't tell me there is no hope, my friends will beat you with my help, and I will not help you!"

"I will call you what I please, and you will do as I say. Now as for the last part of your statement. Friends? There is more then just Silvarn? Who else is helping you?"

Lyndi tried to look away from him and defy him but it didn't work. He just pulled her tighter against himself and wispered softly at first and growing into a rageing roar," Look at me and awnser your master when he speaks to you!"

Lyndi winced at the shouting in her sensitive ears. He grabbed her chin and forced her to look up at him.

She quietly wispered to him,"Just one other person, but don't hurt them, I'll do anything, just leave them be."

"Anything...Be my slave Willingly if I don't hurt them?"

Lyndi hesitated,"No, not that. I can't serve you for the rest of my life."

"Then how about for...1 year. After that year you are free. And your only condition is that I do not hurt them?"

"Yes, and that you let me free after a year."

"Settled. Now hear is the plan beautiful Slave, You will hunt them down and you will be the one to kill them or make them become slaves to me." She smiled cruely down at her.

"No-" She was cute short, she had already given her word. She was in WAY over her head. She prayed that Silvarn would find Kerodi and that they would be ok. She also prayed that she could still try and stall Narvas.

"Thst's it beautiful, You made a small error in your words which turned out to be a VERY big mistake." He smiled for his victory. "Now Sit and tell me what you know..."

"I know that I saw Silvarn in the woods, but you already knew that since he removed my ring," she sighed to herself sadly, She secretly prayed that after all this was over Silvarn would be so made at her he would do everything he possible could to be as mean as he could to her. she hated doing this to him, and Kerodi. she hated herself for being so stupid. Kerodi had said her job was dangerous, and she hadn't thought ahead of the posibilites.

"I told him to run, and find our other friend, that maybe he could help." Lyndi didn't tell him everything. She told him what she knew, but it wasn't everything she knew.

"yes... well beautiful, you have made me happy today. You deserve a small reward. I'll let you rest for a few hours. You have some potential beautiful, I may like to keep you a little longer. Then we will follow Silvarn, I need some time to think. Call for me if anything i would want to know happens." He patted her head lightly, like she was a dog.

She scowled at him and pulled away quickly. She walked over to a tree and curled up at the base of the trunk. A few tears trickled down her cheeks, and she could only think about how stupid she was and how much she could potientialy harm her friends. If anything happened to them she would never forgive herself.

[HoudiniDerek]

Kerodi watched as Lyndi quickly vanished from sight on her four feet. He hitched up the knapsack and headed for the front yard. He stopped just out of sight of the backyard. He heard two voices. Silently waiting in the shadows, Kerodi listened. It was Marisol and her husband!

"My arm is better," Marisol said, and the gate squeaked as she opened it. "I hope that no one noticed we were gone."

"Me too," her husband grumped. "I still can see that guy threatening me."

"Which one?" Marisol asked...a sense of fear in her voice.

"Silvarn. No...Romrir has left us...he even took our eye rings off us in the forest. We don't belong to him anymore...we are free...we did what we could."

"Good." Marisol closed the gate and looked at the inn. "Do you think we should sell and move anyway? I hate the fact that it might happen again. Tamasha might be the better way to go."

There was silence for a few moments and Kerodi edged closer to be able to hear better in case they lowered their voices any more.

"I agree, hun. Tomorrow, I will let it be known that we would like to sell and retire somewhere else. I won't say where. With any luck, we can be settled in Tamasha by month's end." The husband started up the stairs to the back yard, but Marisol was not following. "What's the matter?"

"Didn't we leave the door open?" Marisol asked. The husband looked...a quizzical expression on his face. But the next words did not come from him, but from Kerodi.

"Yes. Yes you did." Kerodi stepped into the small circle of moonlight. Marisol swooned and her husband went ghostly white. "Why don't we go inside so we can have a chat?" Kerodi smiled menacingly, but both obliged.

**************************

Kerodi left early the next morning, having borrowed a horse from Marisol's husband. He was heading towards Tamasha. He needed some supplies and he had agreed to help the hapless couple to boot. It would take him about three days of hard riding to reach Tamasha. He would make the arrangements and then get back to the magic search. Sometimes the best laid plans fell victim to more immediate needs. He just hoped that Lyndi and Silvarn would be okay for a while longer.

Thinking of them, he spurred the horse to run even faster and the miles whipped away behind him as the sun journeyed across the sky. It would be a long and hard trip, but Kerodi knew that this was not the hardest part before him. Letting the horse have his head, Kerodi closed his eyes and slept in the saddle.I think we should probably lock this one too and start a new one. Since we have split up and left the inn, we will not need this heading anymore. I thought we might leave the next one in the Selkia section but call it something like "Missions." If you are both amenable to it, one of you can start it and I will lock this one later on. -

[jada]

(sounds good to me. Silvarn can reply here and then I will start the new thread after that.)

[Silvarn]

Lyndi's words miraculously cut through the mists in Silvarn's mind. He saw reality and realized that he still did not have the power to stand against Navras. At least, not alone. Navras was too old and powerful a being to be challenged to single combat. No, Silvarn realized he needed help.

He dashed off into the forest one hundred eighty degrees of the direction Lyndi had taken. His mind raced with his feet.

"Where could Kerodi be, Scorchar?"

Anywhere between here and oblivion. came the sneering response.

"We are running for our lives, and somehow you always find time to annoy me."

Makes you appreciate my company all the more, does it not?

"Now then, we need to formulate a plan. What do we know?"

Rabbit husks are not effective contraceptives, for one thing.

"I mean about Navras!"

He is a totally arrogant ass?

"Yes, and...?"

What are you getting at?

"I am trying to bounce ideas off of you."

Oh, I see. What is it you want me to do?

"Ugh. Now, look, how did we first get into this mess?"

We stayed at the wrong inn.

"No! We, well, I mean I, opened the Tome of the Twisted Mirror, thus releasing Navras, correct?"

Yes...

"He enslaved me, but I, as well as he, was defeated by that Solar Circle, yes?"

I think I see where you are going...

"He forced me to planeswalk, even though I thought both of us had died. Thus, if we remove the source of all this trouble, we remove the symptoms!"

If you want to kill Navras, pull a hard one-eighty.

"No, no, no. Navras is directly connected to that bloody tome. His thoughts pour directly into it. That means it must be in this plane. If I am somehow able to lock it again, then Navras will be trapped again."

It is a long shot, but it might work, I suppose.

"Even if it is long, it is definitely worth a shot."

With that, Silvarn and his demonic companion vanished into the forest, hunting for the Tome of the Twisted Mirror, Navras' mind incarnate.