The spy and her master plot an assasination
Mossflower Woods
Mossflower Woods -------------------------
The woodlands are thicker here, the trees close and the underbrush
dense. It would be very easy to get lost in the thicket. Strange
mounds are visible here and there. It seems that they must serve
some purpose, but it is unclear what that may be.
Exits: [T]oward the [R]oad
Vladmir emerges from the trees, with something concealed beneath his cloak. He sits down on a rock, tapping his footpaw on the ground impatiently. After a moment he looks around, and mutters, "Where has that miserable excuse for a bird got to?"
A flapping sound slowly emerges from the quiet cocphany of rain, and a dark shape comes into view. After a few moments the shape turns into a sopping wet, jet-black raven. She lands on the ground in a very sorry state. "I /hate/ flying in the rain." says Lenore.
"So you finally arrived," Vladmir growls. He reaches for the object beneath his cloak. Whatever it is, it's wrapped in cloth. As the murderous fox begins unraveling the cloth, he murmurs, "So. What have you seen?"
Lenore begins to preen -- after, of course, cawing. "I've seen a bunch of things. That mouse in Ferravale, Lorimis, seems to be enamored with my feathers." she suddenly sneezes -- a remarkable feat for a bird.
"Well, you learn something new every day," Vladmir mutters, more to himself, both at the spy's news and the sneeze. "Anything USEFUL?" he asks. "What of the Seer?"
Lenore jumps and poufs up at the mention of the Seer. "Wh-what about him?", she gasps. She recovers herself and adds, "I haven't learned anything new about him. But I have learned things about other beasts."
"Good. But first, answer this: Do you fear this Seer?" Vladmir chuckles a bit at his unintended rhyme.
Lenore stands there for exactly 1 minute, her beak open and eyes wide from shock. "Ye-wh-OF COURSE I FEAR HIM!" she manages to stutter out, poufing up to about 3 times her own size.
"Well..." The cloth bundle is unwrapped, revealing a finely crafted mahogany case, a little over 12 inches long. As Vladmir lifts the case's lid, he says, "...Don't be. He won't be bothering us much longer, thanks to my little friend here." He reaches into the case and produces a long bamboo cylinder, again, about 12 inches long.
Lenore un-poufs slightly. "What is that?" she cocks her head to 1 side as only a bird can.
"My little messenger of death," Vladmir purrs, almost lovingly. "This can bring even a mighty Badger Lord to their knees, so a scrawny, crazed little ermine should be no problem." He brings out a small padded box from /within/ the box. Is this sequence never going to end?
Lenore hops closer. "What's in there?" she asks, the curiosity natural to ravens surfacing.
"Do not touch!" Vladmir barks. As he slides the smaller box open, he purrs, "One prick will be the death of you." Now the contents of the package are revealed: A row of colorful, feather-tufted, razor-sharp darts. Each one seems to be colored in accordance with their effects.
Lenore clacks her beak. "Pretty feathers..." she murmers, then caws -- /very loudly/. "What is your plan?"
"We have many options, my pet," Vladmir murmurs, carefully holding up one of the darts and examining it in the small amount of sunlight that shines through gaps in the rain clouds. "We could kill him outright, or we could do FAR more damage in other ways..."
Lenore caws again -- this time an eerie, menacing sound. "What other options do we have, Master?"
Vladmir grins. "Cut off the head and the snake dies...These darts can do much more than kill...They can ruin the mind...Hallucinations...Visions...Insanity. With a leader reduced to a crazed wretch, our foes will fall."
Vladmir melts into the woodlands, leaving the case on the rocks, saying, "Take it and use it. But do not touch the tips of the darts!"
Lenore picks up the case and flies off, thunder rumbling like a messenger of doom.
