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Post by Meluivan Indil on Aug 13, 2009 18:50:14 GMT -5
It had been many years since they traveled these particular woods, but Megan remembered them well. It was in these very woods that the Gypsies had found her in and allowed her to join them on their varied travels.
Which considering the fact that they had caught her stealing, had turned out decently enough for her. Luckily they had pitied the half starved waif. Or at least what they had seen as a half starved waif. Truth be told she had been designed that way, to fool others into not seeing her as the threat she really was. But what the gypsies didn't know couldn't exactly hurt her.
The gypsies did not know her secrets and she had vowed that they never would. The less people who knew the better. Yes, they knew that she avoided any and all government entanglements, but that was true of most of their numbers. Being a people who lived by either panhandling or thievery, it never seemed a good thing to find yourself around the law types of the valley.
So it was that she found herself along with her people traveling through the wilderness. But these weren't just any woods. It was rumored that one of the elven races lived among these trees. The gypsies were mostly careful while dealing with the fey folk and avoided altercations at all costs. But they had found that trading with them usually brought them the best of goods to be found in the realm.
But Meg had another very important reason for wanting to venture onto their territory. She had heard a rumor that among these elven people many trinkets of mystical value could be found. And one particular trinket was tempting her to go against her own people's mandates. She had heard tell that an amulet did exist that gave the wearer the ability to change their appearance at will. Just a thought and you could look like any race, s*x, or build that you wished. And for a human that was being hunted by the Infinity Corp, that type of item would be invaluable.
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Post by Ark on Aug 14, 2009 14:09:15 GMT -5
Lore stepped out of the canvas tent to the rush of pure, clean air hinted with the light fragrance of a damp forest. A little smoke wafted off his clothing in time with the polite and dim applause coming from the tent he had just exited. He often spent his evenings providing such public recitations of the great battles of old, where elf fought besides man and fae, and at times against them. All such tales were of great interest to elves of all ages, who yearned to be closer to their heritage.
Epireth T'iell was a sizable forest, and though the elves had settlements spread throughout it, this central group was by far the largest, consisting of maybe a hundred varied structures, from the vine-suspended canvas tents that filled the canopy, to the trees that had themselves become homes, and finally to the vaults and libraries that filled the great earthen spires that rivaled the trees. All of these structures were cared for pridefully, decorated with the lightest of gold leaf and whitest of bone. It was a sight that Lore hoped he would never take for granted.
He managed to overhear a scout party commenting on a passing caravan of gypsies and smirked. Perhaps they'd be willing to trade for a few new stories.
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Post by Meluivan Indil on Aug 15, 2009 10:45:41 GMT -5
Yes! Things were working out perfectly. She had just overheard the gypsy clan leaders' plans for their trip through the forest and it included camping throughout the night for three nights only a few hundred yards from the elves' main encampment. That would give her plenty of time to scout the elven encampment and ascertain the location of the particular amulet she had been seeking.
With this in mind she set up her own tent planning in her mind that night's activities. Being of the more nomadic type she did not have a wagon of her own like most of the gypsy families that she called friend. But most nights either slept on a palette under the stars or in the tent that she stowed in one of the several wagons that traveled through the caravan. With the group staying a full three nights she thought it best to keep out of sight of the elves as much as possible, so her tent would need to go up.
The plan forming in her mind would require two nights of scouting. Hopefully in that time she'd be able to determine the whereabouts of the item she wished to procure. If so the final night of their stay she'd make her move. It all seemed so simple going through her mind and she was almost positive she'd be able to pull it off without anyone being the wiser for it.
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Post by Ark on Aug 15, 2009 14:59:07 GMT -5
With his drum and club slung behind his back, lore made the short trek to the road, having volunteered to represent his tribe as a welcome party. Normally when outsiders entered the forest the Elves of Espireth Y'iell sent a full scout party with a diplomat, but since the gypsies were common travelers, the elves didn't have much to fear.
Though that didn't stop the posting of some forty archers around the entire encampment they had set up, dutifully hidden in the highest trees. The elves were nothing if not careful.
Still, as lore stepped out of the woods and into the edge of the camp, his eyes shone with pride and he carried himself as an elf should. He approached the nearest person, a girl who didn't fit the typical gypsy description, and bowed lightly. "Pray tell young lady, perhaps you could escort a diplomat to whoever is leading your caravan? The elves have sent me to deliver some welcoming gifts." he explained, patting a beautifully decorated satchel on his side.
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Post by Meluivan Indil on Aug 15, 2009 22:27:52 GMT -5
'Oh now isn't this just wonderful?' went floating through her almost dumbstruck mind.
Lost in planning, she had become so distracted that she missed the elf approaching her. She had planned to stay out of sight of the elves, but apparently her plans had just been ruined, at least as far as this one elf was concerned.
"Uh... I.. sure," she said dumbly then motioned him to follow her to the wagon belonging to the gypsy clan leader. She knew it was rude not to speak to him, but her mind was drawing a blank as she moved through the encampment.
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Post by Ark on Aug 16, 2009 10:34:17 GMT -5
Lore thanked the young girl politely and followed her to a rather nondescript tent, where he left the girl to return to her business as he stepped inside. The meeting was long and filled with pointless bartering. The gypsies were very economical, and were often quite eager to try and strike a deal, especially for things that weren't particularly for sale, such as Lore's ritual-drum.
By the time he'd exited the tent dusk had fallen, bathing the campsite in the long combined shadows of a hundred trees. The air was thick with campfire smoke and cooking meat, and Lore was eager to return home and practice his recitations, for he had another performance tomorrow evening. as he walked by the tent of the girl who had escorted him, he slid his drum down to his side and began drumming a light rhythm as he set off into the woods again.
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Post by Meluivan Indil on Aug 17, 2009 14:09:16 GMT -5
Meg had sat for hours in her tent using her ultra sensitive hearing to eaves drop on the elder tent where the elf was conducting his trades. Nothing mentioned during that time sounded even remotely like the item she was searching for.
Now that she was using her heightened senses to scan the area it was easy to tell that the camp was surrounded by elven archers, something that would make her task that night more difficult but now impossible. Stealth would be required, and all her senses combined to accomplish her tasks.
With some curiosity she watched the elven delegate cross in front of the partially cracked tent flap and wondered what his place was among his people. A delegate yes, but probably more. Normally she would have been curious to discover more about him and his people especially since he had managed to sneak up behind her earlier. Something most people were not capable of doing. But she had more important tasks to accomplish this trip.
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