Chapter One

[Blaze]

The damage was done. The infamous flyer on Bounty row had been ripped down, stripped of all magical energy, and thoroughly demolished. A new flyer had gone up in its place warning people that the bounty notice the ‘Artists’ had so authentically posted was a complete fake and had been forged by some unknown party. It went on to say there was no record of a group called ‘The Cursed Hand’ and how the guild apologizes for any confusion in the matter. Strangely enough, there was no mention of the ‘Swan’ figure. What that entailed no one was quite sure. Nevertheless, the strange flyer that had swept across Autheuil was still the talk of many taverns, guard gossip, etc. Even though the commotion of Bounty Row had died down, precautions had been taken to ensure the capital’s outmost safety in the matter. Unfortunately for all those that had been present near or around Bounty Row at the time had been dutifully escorted out of the urban community towards the southern hills that formed the initial entrance to Parthia’s capital city. This part of Autheuil was very different from the hustle and bustle of the marketplace and other congregating spots. On a map, the area would have been center between Itymna Hill and Farough Hill containing the popularity of a regular city’s interest instead of the chaos of a capital city. And though a more peaceful part of Autheuil, those who were participants in the Artists’ evacuation had all clumped together just outside the Center they had been kicked out off. It wasn’t long before shouts of anger drew the people into a crowd.

“How dare those hooded freaks push us out of our own city!”
One person yelled.

“They must have been after that bounty sign they put up!”
Another person deduced.

“No you idiot, they didn’t put up that sign, someone else did!”
Someone replied to the previous deduction.

“Hey! Don’t call me an idiot you idiot!”
“Who you calling an idiot, idiot!?”

And before you knew it, tempers flared and hurt prides began to swell with anger. And those who didn’t feel like making the shift from crowd to mob decided to drink their embarrassment away at a conveniently close tavern.

No one seemed to notice the disappearance of the strange beggar by the bounty sign. In fact, most people probably hadn’t seen the altercation between him and Atalantia at all. But still, the fresh talk of Blackmoor and The Cursed Hand was still on people’s tongues. And with the city only a day’s ride away from Autheuil, the temptation to investigate this strange hidden mystery might overwhelm the simplest of adventurers.

[Relamtsa]

The spontaneous combustion of disorder and chaos had sent Rohtara's senses into alarm. And if she was on edge and defensive, then her dear ferocious companion was nothing short of hysteric.
The great lion peered over the splayed and fallen form of the woman who had fallen in from the crowd, eying her like a prime piece of meat. His attentions were quickly drawn, however, but the overjoyed shouting and hollering of a persistent and rather small viewer who had thrown coins into the open circle as though the lion himself would be egged on by the payment.
Of course the beast was not capable of the rational thought that allowed him to discern between people and food. Rarely did he ever attack humans, for he had been raised with them side by side. Other species, however, appeared rather exotic and tasty in his eyes. The beast could tell by the smell of the small figure jumping up and down, that it was not a human of any breed. With his keeper's attention drawn to another source of discord that was now descending upon them, it was all too tempting for the beast to move freely towards the mass of people.
The previous watchers scattered like ants that had been exposed from beneath a rock. But no matter how many of them ran, more just seemed to keep coming out of nowhere. Before long, the crowd around them grew into a sort of stampede of people and the noise grew to such a point that it assaulted the poor lion's ears, causing him to call out with a great 'Roar!'.
"Katal!" called the tribal woman, his dear keeper. She grabbed him by the wiry scruff of his mane as though he were nothing more than a kitten. And while a few screams could be heard due to their expense, the angry calls and complaints of the crowd hid them well enough from the guards that were heading in their direction.
It seemed the streets were being swept clean of all life by some higher order. And now that Rohtara had gathered at least enough of a pittance to scrape by the next time she saw civilization, she was not above attempting to leave the city unhindered and unseen by any armor clad officials.
If there was one thing she couldn't stand about the 'civilized' world, it was the pompous officials that wandered the paved paths, poking a sword into one's face for every minor infraction. She didn't understand how 'justice' functioned to these people.

On the way out, she took the time to listen to the shouts and complaints of people as they began to fan out and calm down.
What was this 'Cursed Hand' they spoke of? The dramatic presence of the phrase peeked Rohtara's curiosity. She hadn't gone far when she started to slow her step and look back to see where the sudden crowd of people had come from.

[Silverfish]

Even as more chaos seemed to unfold, Riff maintained his eager expression towards the lion. Well, until it started looking at him like a chewtoy, at which point his smile faded a bit and he shrunk down slightly. Just as he was about to take a few steps back and turn tail, the woman seemed to apprehend the animal as if if wasn't such a large pet. He let out a sigh, content that he wasn't going to end up full of teeth holes.

It was then that he really realized just how much of a wonderfully perfect mess the situation had become, what with the 'dead' person, the one who seemed to have fallen out of nowhere and the lion roaring. Not to mention the crowd's reaction to all this...of course, since he was no longer in danger, he found it quite entertaining. And then the guards began to appear. "Awwwh..!" Riff responded in protest. The guards always ruined everything...it was as if they wanted the city to be a boring place.

Anyways, now that they were here, it would surely wind down...not wanting to wait for this, Riff looked for something else to do... Well, he saw the lion and its keeper from before making their exit. And he was fairly impressed at the chaos they'd stirred up. He decided then to begin following the pair around, as he often did to people.

As the small street urchin kid he looked like, he was quite hidden among the people as he trailed them. At first, Riff had planned on staying hidden...but, he often changed his mind. And so, he went up a bit closer to them, staring at the wild-looking woman from the side. She seemed to be thinking about something...that didn't seem to both him though as he seemed to come at her from nowhere and beam, "Hey, hello there!".

[Relamtsa]

Rohtara jumped a little at the sudden, cheery greeting from the being she had not noticed to have followed her from the crowded circle. Katal, in a simaler gesture, stumbled to the side, swinging off balance as he turned his head to locate the source of the obnoxious, miniature voice.

"Does the nature of this event not strike you, child?" she asked without much thought or speculation as to the small person's persistant curiosity, "The streets are being swept of, what is the word.... inconveniences? Don't let your keepers fret over your absance for too long." The being most certainly appeared to be a child, though without the shy hand of one so small and helpless. It might have struck the tribal woman as odd if she had not considered the fluxus of human nature. Some were born brave. Only most had to earn it.
The curious turn of events still played about Rohtara's mind, drawing her attentions away from the persistant pest that continued to marvel at her beastly companion. All the while, Katal eyed the small specimin with a critical glare. Surely the being looked human in its frame, but there was nothing human or evenapetizing about its scent. The young lion growled in its throat, contemplating the little one with all the complexities his animal mind could manage.

After searching the crowd over once again, Rohtara looked back to find that the little one was still at her side. What a pesky child.
"If I hold his head and allow you to pet him once, will you get off the streets and make your merry way home?"

[Silverfish]

Riff couldn't help bit chuckle as he saw the woman's startled reaction, not to mention her animal companion's. He had actually expected to be scolded a bit more harshly for sneaking up on her. As she spoke to him, she asked him a question, told him something else...but he seemed mostly unmoved, though, as if completely oblivious to what had happened. He was about to comment on the part about his 'keepers', but found himself becoming distracted with her animal. The creature's gazing was becoming a bit uncomfortable. Though, by now he'd found out that animals tended to be able to sniff him out from whatever he was posing as. As Riff heard the lion's low growl, he was tempted to scoot back a bit. He didn't feel like becoming exposed in the middle of a city, or being used as a chewtoy.

All this seemed to fade from his mind as the woman spoke up again, offering to let Riff pat the cat a few time...but at the price of him being shooed off. Remembering what he looked like at the moment, he spoke. "Well, a'right. But, I ain't really got a place to call home, Miss..." He refrained from bawling his eyes out, but was still trying to play the 'grubby, orphaned street-urchin with a charming heart of gold' bit for all it was worth. "So, um...can I follow you...? Just for a bit?" He added, with a desperately hopeful and enthusiastic look in his false eyes. "I promise I won't bother you none..! Really!"

As he waited for a response, it seemed the chaos from before wasn't quite gone yet...as an agile figure bolted along, actually using the lion, and then its master, as stepping stones. Riff watched, amazed, as the strange person bounded off into the distance. "Wow! Did ya see that?" He asked the lion tamer woman, quite pointlessly.

[Relamtsa]

"I certainly 'felt' it, by the Gods!" the tribal woman growled in a heavy tone, almost matching that of her companion who even jumped up in an attempt to catch the culprit upon its initial vault. She continued on in a toung that most had never had the opportunity to hear before. It consisted of most the same sounds and sylables as the common language, but not in any way that could be deciphered by the average city dweller.
Meanwhile, Katal, the lion companion, eyed the small 'orphan' still, though not as eager or hungry as he had seemed before.
The woman spit her complaints quickly, as the gaurd seemed to be advancing in their direction. She had heard the street urchin's words, and though she was a skeptic, she couldn't deny that the little one hardly deserved to be trampled in this whole chaotic mess.
"Katal," she commanded with a voice of steel, "Guide." It was a strange command word, but the creature seemed to understand it perfectly, and by his expression didn't seem to like it at all.
Without much warning, the beast opened its great jaws and clamped down on the 'child's' sleeve. Without leaving time for a word of cmplaint, or even a yelp of fear, Katal, led by his master, pulled the little one through the crowd and away fromt he advancing guard.

(( ))

[Shan]

Shan chewed on a stale lump of bread, grimacing as he imagined a worm burrowing it's way through the bread and into his brain. "Well that's certainly an attractive face, has someone been practicing?" came a voice at his side as his constant companion, the shadow Caen, wafted into view beside him.

"No you idiot, I was imagining- Oh never mind" Shan grumbled as he shouldered his light pack and continued chewing. His morning was not going as he expected. First off the hunt that had brought him from his relatively quiet home in Blackmoor to the capital of the Parthian empire had gone awry when the strange chimera he had been tracking wandered off a cliff into the ocean. He then had to head to his least favorite city, due to his history with a certain recently deceased artist, Authueil to replenish his supplies. But nothing the artists could do to him if they found out could compare to the torture that was Caen and his never ending quest to drive Shan utterly insane, thus far that had included making farting sounds with his armpit all day and shouting in Shan's ear in the middle of the night. Yes it had been a long trip for the pair and Shan was ever grateful that no one could see nor hear the annoying wraith as Caen began making more strange noises in the air

"Look I'm really tired Caen, can you shut up for once..."

"Umm, uhh, well you see... There's kind of a horde of people coming our way, thought you might like to know"

Shan did look up from his unappealing meal to see a most startling sight, there certainly was a mass of people swarming out of the centre of Authueil, including a very out of place tribal woman following a massive lion dragging along a bright eyed beggar child. "Well that's something you don't see everyday" muttered Shan as he prepared to turn back to his meal and began to notice the large amount of artists that had joined the crowd. "Okay maybe it's time to go, Caen shut up for once I need to concentrate."

"Right-O boss, you should probably know that the kid in the lions mouth has some kind of illusion enchantment thingy on him, I dunno what it is but thought you might like to know. You see I'm helpful, sometimes... Now if you'll excuse me I'm working on a very important musical number." And with that he went back to making lewd noises with his armpit.

"Why did I have to get the idiot wraith..." muttered Shan as he wandered over to the tribal woman , covering his shadow arm and putting on his best "I'm new and have no idea what's going on" face, "Say miss, you wouldn't happen to know why the entire city has descended into a state of complete chaos would you?"

OOC:By the power of Greyskull I have joined the subplot! Actually the power of the internet... meh Grayskull is more fun!

[Relamtsa]

Rohtara had slowed to a stop after making good time with the rest of the crowd. The ruckus was calming as residents took to their homes, and it was easier to take in conversation from the fleeing visitors. The native toung of Parthia, however well she spoke it, was still a secondary language to her, and she could only pick out small bits and pieces of what people were saying with all of the voices still buzzing. She hadn't the faintest idea who the 'Cursed Hand' was, but by the way people spoke about it, neither did anyone else. And who were these 'Artist's' people were speaking of? Had she misunderstood the meaning of the word for the past eight years? These people sounded terrifying.
Katal had stopped just past his keeper, the 'boy's' sleeve still secure within his jaws.
And yet another peculiar soul approached them with a look of confusion. What was it about her that attracted the strange and peculiar? Most people approached her with casual intrigue or...interesting propositions, but always at a cautious ditance.
"A fitting choice of words," she began, turning to see that the man before her was a foreigner. Katal interjected with a thick growl before she could respond further. The great lion had released the urchin child and stepped between the two in a defensive stance.
"Katal!" she raised her voice to the beast, but he was reluctant to stand down. It was a very rare occasion for Katal to feel so threatened by a human. Rohtara had come to wonder if her fanged brother had a sixth sense for magic, but she supposed all creatures, however well bred, had an uncontrolable instinct at times.
She took her staff, carved of a remarkably large bone, and whapped her companion sternly on the backside, which forces a growl of surprize from him. He was not hurt, of course. The tribal woman could hardly kill a rabbit, let alone harm a lion by her own brute strength. He stepped back beside her, but did not take his eyes from the man.
"I am sorry," she sighed, although she was wary of him now, too, "I'm not sure what's happening. Some 'Artists' of some form are clearing the streets of a Cursed Hand.. I think. I was not at the source of the trouble, I simply mean to get out of this place. And to leave the boy off where he won't be jostled or taken in the midst of the trouble." She added the last comment as something of a side note. She cared little for the troubles of a street child in a large city. Surely life was hard, but these little scamps did not have to hunt or build their own shelter. There were homes for these children, even small jobs to get by on. They may not always have food, but she doubted anyone here ever had to locate their meals while they were still living.

[Silverfish]

Riff blinked in a puzzled fashion at the woman's order to her cat. "...Huh? Whaowh!", he yelped a bit late as he was chomped by the arm and pulled along. Of course after he realized he wasn't being torn to little pieces, he actually sort of enjoyed the free ride, eventually scampering along with the lion rather than being dragged. As they began to get into calmer scenery, it seemed the ride was already slowing to a stop, though Riff still didn't have his arm back. Luckily, he didn't have to wait long to be free, as the large cat left him to growl at some stranger who'd been speaking, apparently in defense of its master or something.

The stranger wasn't a threat, however, as the woman made very clear to her furry friend with a quick thwack, causing him to stand down. Riff took a moment to stare at the woman's staff--looked like it was made of a bone. He found that interesting, though his attention was switched again as he listened to the woman speak. Losing track of his 'character' for a moment, he gave a pouty scowl at the mention of Artists...but it soon changed as she mentioned a certain 'Cursed Hand'. Sounded familiar for some reason.

Before he could think any deeper into the subject, he snapped his gaze back at the woman with a great look of disappointment about him. Seemed she wasn't going to take him along after all...had he not been adorable enough? Maybe if he looked pathetic... "Wha..? Awww...But, but...can't I just follow you just for a little..?" He asked with a pleading look in his eyes, completely ignoring the fact that she was talking to someone else. Though he planned to stalk after her regardless of what answer she gave, there was something about being in disguise that amused him in some strange way.

[Shan]

"Well the beast seems friendly enough" commented Caen "Why don't you go out and pet him, it'd be funny to see you lose another arm!" Shan shot a quick glare at the wraith, "Well I think it would be funny anyways... On a serious note maybe we should tag along with these travelers, I kind of want to see what the lion does to the kid."

As much as he hated to admit it, Caen had actually given some useful advice, Shan quickly glanced up at the sky to see if a ball of fire was descending on Authueil, but seeing no signs of armageddon he glanced back at the tribal woman and her rather large club, "Well seeing as we're both foreigners here, mind if I tag along? I'm heading back to my home back in Blackmoor and I'm still a little unsure of how to get back, I haven't been this far south in quite some time." While he spoke, Shan shifted himself slowly to put the tribal woman and her rather large animal companion that seemed to have taken a sudden interest in him.

"I think the big kitty likes you Shan" whispered Caen "Isn't it adorable? Minus the teeth and claws and all that other fun stuff."

Shan muttered under his breath "Why don't you jump into his mouth and save me the trouble Caen..."

"Well I was going to tell you that the cat can probably sense your arm and that you should keep an eye on that kid, i don't know why but he smells strange... but now you've gone and hurt my feelings!" Caen then proceeded to whiz around the crowd, only stopping to 'hit on' a few of the maidens, fortunately they couldn't hear his lewd suggestions or see his groping fingers. Shan just ignored the lecherous shadow and concentrated once more on his new acquaintances.

"I'm Shan by the way, and you all are?"

[Relamtsa]

"Tag along?" the woman spouted in place of offering the other foreigner her name, "What misguided nonsense would lead you to beleive a simple introduction warrants companionship of any kind?" Rohtara certainly hoped that 'misguided nonsense' was a propper term in this case. Fantastic though her secondary vocabulary was, there were often times where she would use the impropper words in a certain context. Still, if she spoke with conviction in such situations, she found that she could be quite good at...what was the term, 'horse shitting' it?
Katal seemed quite pleased with his keeper's course of action, as his tail was now swishing about in a playful manner.
"I am Rohtara of the Pride Lands, and I have no need for your foolish logic, or companionship. And you, boy," she looked now to the odd child that seemed so bedazeled by her foreign characteristics and large feline friend, "are nothing if not troublesome. Besides, what would I have to find in Blackmoor? Hm?"
She paused only for a moment before turning to leave in a disgrunteled and all too femanine manner.

[Silverfish]

As Riff waited for another answer to his question, he listened to the newcomer...seemed to be something awfully strange about him, and not in anything he said. Not that it bothered Riff, he enjoyed the strange. However, he wasn't quite sure what it was that was making this person strange to him. If he would've been paying any serious attention, he probably would've noticed an odd extra 'presence' zipping about, along with whatever quirks any of the man's limbs might've held...

At the moment, though, he was more interested with what his new lady 'acquaintance' might say. As her response eventually unraveled, Riff's perkiness seemed to fade away. All of the sudden, she seemed quite antisocial. And as she addressed him and spoke, he looked quite speechless, acting or not. "What!? That's not a nice thing to say..!" He said, looking a bit awkward, seeing as 'anger' wasn't an emotion he was really designed to express. With a short "Hmph", he marched over to the newcomer and looked up at him. "I'll help you get to Blackmoor, Mr. Shan...", he said, before adding in a much smaller voice, "I don't know how to get there though..."

[Shan]

Shan scratched his dark hair as the strange tribal woman marched away in a manner that reminded him of the nobility of his homeland, "Umm okay then..."

The orphan then marched up to him saying "I'll help you get to Blackmoor, Mr. Shan... I don't know how to get there though..."

Shan was confused as to his next move, on one hand he could try and make the trek by himself, but with his luck he would probably end up on the other side of the continent. The other choice was to convince this Rohtara to help him back home along with the small orphan who seemed just as perplexed by Rohtara as he was. Of course he couldn't quite understand the child either, in his homeland beggar children where found in every nook and cranny of civilization and it was in the cities that they made their home and thrived on theft and trickery, none of them would ever want to be caught out in the open wilds with bandits and monsters roaming the lands. How did I ever get myself into this... Shan quickly spotted a strange dark cloud flying towards him, great more good news...

Caen talked rapidly as he slowed to a stop beside Shan "Okay there's a legion of guards heading down this lane, I think they're trying to clear out the crowd, or maybe they're just looking for something good to eat, I saw a couple of them just lounging around eating these weird circular bread things. I kinda wond-"

"Caen would you shut up please!" grumbled Shan a little louder than usual causing several nearby citizens to look at him funny, ignoring them he turned to the small orphan and was about to tell him to go home when his arm began to twinge once more and although he was still unsure of all the details of his shadowy limb he knew that it was being set off by this "child". "Okay kid I'm gonna try and get that nice lady over there to help me get to Blackmoor" he pointed at Rohtara's retreating back and turned back to the child convinced that he should keep an eye on this one, "You just follow me and stay out of trouble okay?"

Shan ran over to the tribal woman and her feline companion and jumped in front of them, presenting a fist with the other hand clasped over it, a sign of respect from his home, "Alright I know we got off on a bad start but I'm really lost and since we're both foreigners you must have been in my shoes at one point in your life, so do you think you could help me out?" He glanced down quickly trying to think of someway to better convince her when he spotted a slip of paper with small scribbles on the ground.

Caen floated beside him and glanced at the paper, "Looks like a note to someone, says here that there's a bounty for some Cursed Hand thingy, I think I heard some people talking about them, they're near Blackmoor bu-"

Shan silenced the shadow with a glance and looked Rohtara in the eye, guessing at the reason for the general commotion that they had been swept up in, "besides we could grab this bounty while we're there."

[Relamtsa]

Rohtara may have been observant of her companion's peculiar habits, but she was quite dim in noticing that she behaved in a similar way towards certain magics. Certainly, it was easy enough to excuse such behavior as a feminine outburst, but the presence of magic, dark magic in particular, had a strange way of bringing out the very worst in her.
She was about ready to sick Katal on the troublesome foreigner, but the manner of his gesture, though new to her eyes, suggested something of a white flag.

Her resolve seemed unmoving despite his plea. That is, until he picked up the flier and read its contents. The comprehension in her expression was slow. In her own mind she was taking note of the fact that the foreigner could read this language, which was possibly entirely different from his own, before understanding the words that he spoke.
It wasn't a fantastic argument on his part, but it was just enough to reach through her current stubbornness. She knew very well what it felt like as an outsider. It was a feeling that would have no end for as long as she traveled and as long as she communicated without the language of her people. Her accent would never fade and her skin would not change its color, yet she had channeled these 'exotic' differences as a strength.
And in this strange world that seemed to spring up around her people, one needed certain living expenses.

"Alright," she seemed reluctant, "I will travel with you. I leave Blackmoor once I have the expenses I need, however."

[Blaze]

Not long after the sudden tumultuous activity at Autheuil's center gates, a large structure began to roll out on the lightly paved path. It looked like a wagon with two wheels while being pulled by two large horses, also resembling a caravan but without as much luggage. Various tarps covered the merchandise within and there was no distinction from the shape to what the contents could be. Driving the structure was blond haired elf with long pointed ears and a sharp nose to match. Her clothes were nothing out of the ordinary nor did she carry and weapons on her.

The clipping and clopping of the two horses pulling their load got louder and louder towards the group till the wagon finally pulled up against the two foreigners and strange beggar child. At first the horses seemed like they were going to protest their close proximity to one of the stranger's massive beasts but only gave rough puffs of breath and irritable neighs.

"Stop!"
Came a voice from the back of the caravan. The elven driver stopped the structure without missing a beat. Her eyes remained forward and her position rigid.
From behind the piles of mysterious luggage a rugged looking dwarf landed on the ground. He ran up to the group with a sense of frivolity and began waving his arms around eccentrically.

"Yes! This is exactly what I'm looking for," He said with wide open eyes, "You three and the beast. Are you for sale?"
From his appearance the dwarf seemed to be some kind of merchant, and a rich one for that matter. Flashy colors and a stiff collar decorated his clothing while large obnoxious rings adorned his fingers. Even a sash tied around his waist had a small metallic glint to it.

Without an immediate response the dwarf repeated his question more elaborately.
"Are thee for sale wanderers!? I will pay you in whatever currency ye wish for safe travel to the city of Blackmoor. Supplies be provided and questions no not be asked! By Reth's non-existant beard, will you choose me over any other vendors that may have already approached you!?"