From: Mike Sander <344LWKC@CMUVM.CSV.CMICH.EDU>
Date: Sunday, 15 Nov 1992 20:35:49 EST
Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn
Subject: [DQ] Week 14: The Green-Eyed Monster

After the battle, Vornik drags Valgar to a cell, and unceremoniously
tosses the bearded man in.

Valgar struggles to his feet, and to the front of the cell. Again he is
a captive, again helpless to do anything about it. The stress of the
situation weighs heavily upon him. He sees some blood trickle out from
underneath his wristbands, feels the hairs on his chin grow a bit. Feeling
the evil deep inside him, he tries to relaz, attempting to keep his
thoughts away from his troubles.

Vornik doesn't even look at the man's struggles, all too happy to be done
with what he considered a menial task. He heads back towards his quarters.

* * * *
Miro watches as the wight leaves. Recent events had been disappointing for
him. He had thought Lancos might be the promised traitor; there had been
brief nagging sensation that he was being considered like a predator might
consider another predator - assessed for threat, so to speak. But the sense
for threat which the Entity had given him, told him that none of them were
enemies. He had hoped all the DQers would resuse the offer. Well, it was up
to him to save them, as he had known. He looked around Valgar's cell, which
was unguarded. Obviously the Dark Master trusted his defenses, and felt
Valgar would be easier to break after some solitary confinement. Miro
shifted into visibility before approaching -- the last thing Valgar needed
was a sudden shock.

Valgar gives a small gasp as Miro enters the room, his heart suddenly lighter.
He would have hailed him, if the elf hadn't held a finger to his lips in the
universal sign for silence.

Miro speedily crosses the room, and goes to work on the lock. However, his
visage turns sour after only a few moments. "Magical -- as I feared," he
said, sighing slightly. "Let's try something else." He touched his swords
to the lock, and one side of it grew hoarfrost while the other started to
glow red-hot. But it didn't shatter. A few quick combinations of similar
tricks had no effect on the bars, either.

"Blast and blood. I've have to see if I can 'acquire' a set of keys. Hold
onto light, friend. I'll be back soon."

Valgar gave no words as Miro vanished out of sight again, only sinking into
his own thoughts once more.

* * * *
Later that night, the Dark Master had gathered the DQers together for an
unknown purpose, and Vornik had stayed around invisibly to see what the
situation was. The only people in the room besides the captives was Lord
Raven and Lancos.

>Lord Raven turned to Lancos, waving negligently at the line of chained
>questers. "Look at them, my servant. Pathetic, misguided fools, one and all.
>Still clinging, despite all the facts, to the most ludicrous illusion of them
>all: 'Virtue Must Triumph'" he quotes, smirking in pious mockery before
>continuing. "I wish to ... eradicate this illusion from their minds. I have
>chosen _you_ to assist me in this..."

>"What do you wish, Master?" says Lancos thickly, his eyes riveted on Raven's
>face.

>Choose one of them. And kill him. Now."

Vornik blanched. One of these people was expendable, and this -- this
NEWCOMER was chosen to do the deed, while the others had been deliberately
told to only subdue in the previous battle? Lancos was getting too much
preferrential treatment for his tastes.

>The hammer pauses at the top of its arc, wavering for a moment while the
>watchers hold their breath.

Vornik in particular views in earnest. The blow seems unsure. 'Perhaps
Lancso is having second thoughts.' Vornik thinks, smiling, 'Perhaps he will
fail after all.'

Then the hammer strikes, followed through continuously until the stake
pierces the wall.

>"You have done well, my servant. You may go to your quarters."
>Lancos bows low, murmuring "Thank you, Master."
>He leaves without a word or a glance toward the questers.

Vornik follows Lancos, eyeing the man jealously. He vows to himself to
get back in his Lord's high favor, and to take Lancos down a notch along
the way if he could. Killing the fighter would be one way to accomplish
the latter, but the Dark Master would surely restore him, find out the
cause of death, and the action would backfire at Vornik in the long run.

The medalllion guides Lancos' body to the room, and into the bed. It tries
to force sleep, but the man's mind suddenly fights violently for control.
The medallion tries to suppress the outburst, but it somehow hold up. Rather
than chance the man winning and gaining fuller control, the medallion agrees
to its removal, inwardly knowing that this was the last ebb of resistance
it would encounter.

Vornik sees the medallion's removal, and smiles gleefully. Here was his
chance -- he would steal the medallion and find out its secrets, and either
reveal them to his curious master, or use them to his own benefit. He
waited until Lancos was obviously asleep, and snuck in with the thieving
skills that had been part of his human form. Knowing of the medallion's
possible backlash -- from Krastin's reports --, he levitated the item into
a sack. Then he left with it, past Lord Raven's throne room and into his
own laboratory.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Michael Sander 344lwkc@cmuvm.csv.cmich.edu