Don't Wanna Get Caught in the Middle

[A Nony Mouse]

If a traveler passed by the headquarter building deep in Concordia Forest, they likely would give the place a second glance. Four live trees formed the corners of the structure, effectively hiding it from the casual observer. Between the trees, three groups of poles were lashed; one just above the ground, one near waist height, and the last nearly eight feet off the ground. Across these poles, bark and thinner rods formed makeshift walls. The entire structure looked like a child’s fort, but in fact it was the base of operations for Lucht du Sol, an Explorer’s Society.

In truth, the Society had actually been around for quite a while. It started in the sandy outskirts of Fallien when two friends were traveling through the desert on their way to forbidden lands. They stumbled across a chunk of rare glass and instantly knew that they wanted to find more. The discovery could have netted them a large sum of gold, but instead the pair held onto the glass for its sentimental value. Thus Lucht du Sol was born.

However, before a few weeks ago, the Society had been held together solely by the willpower of the two friends. They recruited more adventurers to their cause, expanded the scope of their exploration, and began stockpiling treasures from all over Althanas. With no centralized base of operations, though, the explorers found it hard to keep in touch with the leadership and soon smaller factions of the Society broke away. Lucht du Sol all but fell apart.

That’s when Travis Kiltias had stumbled across a faction of the Society while they were traveling through Carnelost. He instantly began their friend, joining them in a tavern near the center of town to share stories of travel, adventure, and home. They had asked the young adventurer to join them on a particular quest and Travis had readily accepted.

That was three years ago.

The small faction of Lucht du Sol had split up since, yet Travis still longed for the exploration and adventure. And so he had journeyed to Fallien, origin of the Society and home to more wonders than man can possibly imagine in a lifetime. There he had stumbled across a treasure; a bowl crafted from Calli glass. It had been quite the ordeal to find the thing, but his efforts had paid off in the end. Of course, his left eyebrow might take some time to grow back…

Travis Kiltias sat inside the hastily constructed fort, admiring his handiwork. It had taken him the better part of three days to create the structure, but now the Lucht du Sol finally had a home. All that was left to do was recruit some members; but that was a job for another day.

Settling down against one of the walls, the red-haired explorer let dreams of epic adventures fill his head as he drifted off to sleep. His first treasure lay on a table neaby, its amber glass seemingly glowing in the fading light. The thing was likely almost worthless, but it marked a step toward greater goals. First the Society would find bowls and soon they would find ancient civilizations and forgotten technology. It was just a matter of…

*yawn*

Closed to Karuka's Carmen character.

[Alydia Ettermire]

Normally, a Cillu glass bowl from Fallien wouldn't have intrigued Aly too muhch, and this one didn't appear to be anything special, as far as the glass itself went. It was odd, however, to see it in a bowl form, and perhaps it might be interesting to see the ritual purpose of it. But other than that, it wasn't necessarily something she'd normally want to take.

No, she'd pegged the object for a very specific reason, and that was its owner. When her contact in Corone had told her that Travis Kiltias was there and had something of value, it hadn't meant much to her until she had gotten word from her contact in Scara Brae and heard that Travis Kiltias, Pagoda Warrior, had left the island and had a Cillu bowl. Participation as a heirarch in the Dajas Pagoda offered a modest amount of fame, and it would give her a leg up in her quest toward recognition as the world's greatest thief.

So she'd come all the way from Alerar to scope him out, and it turned out that he'd made himself a little hut. It had a door that any thief would be able to get into - a simple plank door with leather hinges, but what fun was that? Such a low security place wasn't a challenge at all, so she decided to see if there wasn't a window to break in through.

There was.

It was right at her chest level, four feet tall, two feet wide, and absolutely open. It made her want to just walk away for the sheer lack of challenge. Heck, even though the owner was there, he was sound asleep. There was no challenge to taking this one at all. Nothing.

Still, there would probably be plenty of interest in the chase, since he WAS a Pagoda warrior, after all, so with great reluctance, she hoisted herself through the window, taking care to be silent and not wake her target. After that, it was a simple matter to pick up the bowl and suck it into her "pocket."

As silently as she had come, the red-clad Drow left the poorly constructed hut with no more noise than a soft ruffle of her trench coat as she stepped into the shaded woods of Concordia.

In the place Travis had left the bowl sat a piece of paper, waiting for him when he woke up.

http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/Kaymiril/FirstClueTravis.jpg

[A Nony Mouse]

The warbling calls of the morning birds woke Travis and he stretched sleepily as he opened his eyes. Sunlight filtered through the lone window in the makeshift structure, illuminating the table where his treasure sat. He blinked.

The bowl was gone.

“What?” Travis muttered in shock. “Where did I put it?” His first reaction was to search the entire building, trying in vain to locate his Calli glass bowl. When that yielded no results, he was forced to accept a second option. “I’ve been burgled,” he admitted with a groan.

His dreams of late had been filled with visions of a great Explorer’s Society teeming with eager minds and seasoned adventurers. The group would scour the face of Althanas, searching for treasure on perilous quests and dangerous journeys. All of those dreams had begun to unfold when he found the bowl, but someone had taken them from him.

Stepping out into the forest, Travis didn’t even bother to tie the door to the headquarters shut behind him. There was nothing of value left there anymore; it had already been taken. The morning mist swirled about the trunks of the massive trees, kicked up by animals scurrying about as they tried to find a place to rest for the day. The low hanging fog obscured his vision, but the Pagoda Warrior didn’t let that stop him.

He walked boldly through the damp mists, pausing only once to find his bearings. In a matter of minutes, the redhead arrived at a small clearing near a stream. In the center of the clearing sat a large stump, its surface worn from ages of weather and weary travelers. It was on this stump that Travis sat and dropped his head into his hands. Worried thoughts troubled him, but he managed to push them to the side and assume a meditative stance.

He left his mind call out to the natural forces of the Concordia Forest and waited patiently for them to answer. He let his pain carry across his voice, breathing agony through every unspoken word. The woods knew his troubles; it knew why he called upon its powers. Travis waited for what seemed liked hours, sitting beneath a leafy canopy and communing with the forces of the world around him.

To the north.

The spirits of the trees knew all that happened beneath their leafy embrace and they told Travis his next move. Silently thanking them, the traveler opened his eyes and turned to the north. “How far, I wonder…” he pondered as he remembered the landscape of Corone. The pine forests, the Comb Mountains, the Niema River; how far had the mysterious burglar planned on going? “To Radasanth,” he realized. So many merchants stopped by the bustling capital that any thief would make it worth their while to sell stolen goods there. Shaking his head, the adventurer returned to his base of operations to collect his supplies. It was a long journey to the Coronian capital.

When he pushed open the door, the growing sunlight illuminated a slip of paper lying on the floor near the table. How he had overlooked it in his first search of the building, he did not know. It was from the burglar, of that he had no doubt. Crumpling the note in anger, Travis let his rage cool before reading it over again.

“You’ll ‘Niema’ come quickly?” He wondered why the change of words. Then it dawned on him, the thief had left this note as a clue! But where did the clue point?

The Niema River!

He quickly scanned the note for other key words; toy, bridge, gap, game… “The bridge of the Niema,” he exclaimed as the pieces fell into place. Grabbing his pack and equipment belt from their places near the side wall, Travis raced from the headquarters of Lucht du Sol and toward South Road not too far away. His plan was to follow the road the whole way to his destination. He’d have his bowl back by tomorrow.

[Alydia Ettermire]

Ah, yes. The Niema river. She didn't suppose that her clue was too difficult for a traveler like Travis to follow, and even if he'd gotten a late start, he'd be there soon. While there were many little rickety wooden bridges, the most famous one, almost a landmark unto itself. The cool gray stone stood firm through war, flood, and political upheaval. It not only linked one side of Corone's major river to the other, but one era to the next, a more subtle and potent reminder than any historical text.

He'll be here soon. Still...Aly didn't suppose she should concern herself. She'd be long gone before he arrived. So for now, she contented herself in making a little smudge painting and writing her calling card on it.

Some day, she mused absently, I'll be like a river. And even if they think they can grasp me, I'll slip through their fingers and go on my way. It was, really, a most inspiring place.

With a slight sigh, she pulled herself away from her river-watching and turned to a nearby street urchin. "Child, how would you like to make a gold piece today?"


~*~*~

The carriage rattled and bounced, and Aly watched the scenery go past while listening to the other passengers make conversation. She wondered how Travis would react to not having his target when he reached the river...and how quickly he'd understand her next clue.

She'd left the child on the bridge, bright red fedora on his head and clue (http://s17.photobucket.com/albums/b56/Kaymiril/?action=view&current=Travisclue2.jpg) in hand.

[A Nony Mouse]

As he left the Comb Mountains, the red-haired adventurer stopped and adjusted his pack. His green eyes scanned the horizon, following the winding ribbon of the Niema River as it flowed toward Radasanth. He still had a few more hours of travel, but it made him anxious to be so close. He’d wasted the better part of a day hiking the road through Concordia and soon he would find the thief that had stolen his prized possession.

“Who are you?” he whispered into the still air. With little to go on, the traveler had tracked down the culprit… but he wondered why his enemy had left such a mysterious riddle at the scene. “Plenty of time to find out when I catch you,” he mumbled to himself. Cinching his pack tighter against his shoulders, he set off toward the bridge at a jog. No sense in wasting time.

~~

He’d scoured the bridge and surrounding area thoroughly, but no sign of the glass bowl or the enigmatic burglar. To be honest, he didn’t really know what he was looking for. The idea that a thief would steal something and then leave an honest clue as to its location was laughable; he’d clearly been duped.

“How could I be so gullible?” he wondered out loud. Sitting on the southern edge of the bridge, he pounded a fist against the stone. “He’s halfway to Radasanth by now, if I’m lucky.” Gritting his teeth in frustration, the redhead hopped down from his perch and snatched his pack up from its place against the wall. If he ran the whole way, he could reach the capital city by nightfall. Then a quick inquiry as to the bowl’s location and he’d make the thief pay for his crimes.

Irritated that he had been tricked so easily, Travis sprinted across the bridge as the sun climbed higher into the sky. Lost in his thoughts on how exactly to make the burglar rue robbing him, the Scison of Lucht du Sol slammed into a young child and sent the both of them tumbling across the ground. “Ungh,” he groaned as he pushed himself up off the ground. “Are you alright?”

“Yessir,” the child answered, clutching a scrap of paper tightly in his small fist. “Nearly lost this though.” Travis helped him to his feet, casually glancing at the parchment as he did.

“Well, again I am sorry, but I really should be going…” his voice trailed off as he saw the decoration on the note. It bore a striking resemblance to the one left in his headquarters… “Where did you get that?” he questioned the boy.

“Must be for you,” the child smiled as he handed the paper over. Travis snatched it from him and read over the words carefully. With a sigh, he folded it once and slid it into a pouch at his belt. He scanned the river far below, his mind wondering as he watched the water tumbled over smooth stones. “Uh, sir?” the grubby child was still standing around.

“What?” the redhead snapped, his irritation rising.

“The elf what left this for you said you’d pay me for my services,” he replied with a grin. The urchin’s tiny hands reached out pleadingly, imploring the adventurer for a coin or two.

Fishing a gold coin from his purse, the explorer flipped it to the child and told him to be on his way. “Did you see which way he went?” he added as an afterthought. The clue was puzzling and the red-haired man had no idea where to start. Any help would be appreciated.

“No,” the boy replied simply as he scurried away. When he was a few steps from the edge of the bridge, he turned and shouted back, “And it was a lady elf!”

Scoffing at the latest news, Travis leaned against the stone wall of the bridge. Outsmarted by a female elf? It was hardly something to be ashamed of; the fair race was far more clever than any human. Still, it irked him that someone would make a game of his treasure. “Well, I’ll show you,” he grumbled. “Think you’re so clever…” Pulling the clue out from his belt, the adventurer set to work on decoding its hidden message. “Where in the world are you?” he absent-mindedly asked the river.