Imperial Heresy

[JediMaster12]

"Spare me knight," Saimhain replied holding Darlene firmly. If he desired, he could snap her next right then.

 

"Let her go Saimhain!" Rowan replied gazing with a full blown hatred in his eyes. There was no way Saimhain would take her. He would die first. He flourished his blade, "You will not take her!"

 

"You are in no position to demand anything Aldstar," Saimhain replied, the demon racking in his voice. "No one commands me. The Temple will know that well enough and don't you try to use your holy water on me missy." His gripped tightened on Darlene making her drop the vial she had of holy water.

 

Rowan was ready to throw his blade when Darlene said, "Don't!" She gave looked sadly and said, "Live today, fight tomorrow."

 

Rowan struggled internally. He couldn't just let her go like that. Too much was at stake but when she looked at him that way, he had no choice. He sheathed his blade with much difficulty. Saimhain smiled and said, "Wise words and even wiser for you to obey."

Rowan muttered something in a different language at Saimhain. It made him smirk as he left pulling Darlene with him.

[Alkonium]

"We have to go after them. If they bring Darlene back to Theion City, the inquisitors will burn her alive!" Curudir said to Rowan, not wanting to abandon the person he considered to be the only hope to restore the Mortan Empire.

[JediMaster12]

"I know," Rowan said as he watched Saimhain take her away. He made his way to where her horse was. He took the leading rein but noticed something sticking out of the saddle. Taking a closer look, he saw it was a piece of parchment. He pulled it out and opened it. His eyes got wide and he motioned to the others, "Look at this!"

[Alkonium]

"Let me look at that." Curudir replied, looking over the parchment. "We may still have a chance."

[JediMaster12]

"This is a layout to the temple itself and a secret entrance into the city," Rowan replied. He studdied it some more, "From the looks of it, the entrance is not far from Riverfalls. It completely bypasses the Inquistor routes."

[Alkonium]

"Ok, but this is only a rescue mission. We need an army if we want to take out the Inquisitors." Curudir told Rowan. "If we had more time, I could seek out fellow Knights, and we could storm the Temple, but that's not possible."

"High Inquisitor, the Nightcrawlers have found the heretic, and they are bringing her to the gates of Theion City as we speak. Shall I ready the cleansing pyre?" A priest asked Inquisitor Torah. "No. Allow me to do it myself. I want the honour of ending heresy for good." The High Inquisitor replied.

[JediMaster12]

Rowan looked at Curudir, "It can be both. Riverfalls is the codename for the hiding place of my people. There are warriors and the dwarves can help. If you ride hard..."

 

Darlene struggled against Saimhain's grip and the result was a tighter hold. It didn't help that he unceremoniously drapped her across his horse that had had been waiting a distance from where they were attacked. She said, "I see you waste no time on ceremony."

"There is no point if your prey is to be 'cleansed' as it were," Saimhain replied as they started off at a gallop.

Darlene took a whiff and was met with the stench of death that clung to the horse's coat. She managed to lift her head to see the other Nightcrawlers following in suit. Even if she fell off, she could be trampled. Still it was better to die than be forced to reveal Riverfalls. She couldn't do that to Rowan. She looked at her hands that had been bound and she could feel the tautness of the ropes on her ankles. She couldn't escape if she wanted to. She then said, "Why take me to the Temple anyway? What is stopping you from taking me and converting me to one of you?"

"It's never been done before. It is said that you priests have an agent in your blood that burns if a Nightcrawler drinks," Saimhain replied. Part of it made him shudder at the stories told but then again no one really dared to. Still what she said had some merit. He added, "Still what you say has some merit. If you are really as valuable as they say. then maybe I have a bargaining chip."

Darlene closed her eyes in a grimace. She didn't want to do it but it would delay her inevitable meeting with the Temple. IF she could get the Nightcrawlers to think twice about their deal, she might be able to buy Rowan some time. Rowan, please hurry.

[Alkonium]

"There's no time. We have to quickly go in, rescue Darlene, and get out. An assault requires time we don't have." Curudir replied, knowing the haste at which inquisitors acted. "We will go to Riverfalls after we rescue her."

[Empress Padme]

Elodate looked at Curudir. " We will get her back.There has been to much suffering and evil must not truimph over good." then in whispered tone." Evil can't win in the end...it just can't"

[JediMaster12]

"Riverfalls is on our way and there is no way that we can get in and out alive. The Temple is heavily fortified and from what I know, the priests are very good at arms. Besides we will have numbers and Elfish magic on our side," Rowan explained. "From experience in times when you want to go fast, it is best to slow down."

[Alkonium]

"Fine, but we can't take too long." Curudir replied. "Have only as much people as we need for a rescue. An army takes too much time to gather."

[JediMaster12]

"Follow me then," Rowan said. He mounted his horse and galloped towards Riverfalls. It was the only way to rescue her.

 

Darlene eyed Saimhain and the Nightcrawlers as they fed on a helpless tinker and his family. She groaned in disgust as she saw the savagery and felt sick. Saimhain noticed her discomfort and walked up to her and asked, "The sight of it bother you priestess?"

"You kill in wanton slaughter..."

"We kill to feed," Saimhain corrected her, "To live we must kill. That is the way of things."

"Will it still be that way if you turn me over to the Temple?" Darlene asked. "After all you are on of the uncleans."

Saimhain peered at Darlene and ran a cold finger down her cheek. He watched as she shivered against his touch. He replied, "I have considered your point and I will act upon it. I am sure that the Temple and I can come to some arrangement." He smiled at her.

Darlene didn't like the smile. Something told her that things may go south. She would just have to wait and see.

[Alkonium]

Curudir knew of Riverfalls, though he had never been there himself. On the outside, it simply looked like a cave on the inside of a waterfall. Inside, it was a sanctuary and a bastion, protected by secrecy. Few non-elves knew about it, and noone from the Temple, except possibly Darlene, had ever set foot inside. He felt an increasing calm as the group neared the sancuary.

[JediMaster12]

Rowan called out to the guards on duty in his language. He called, "Friends of the forest will you accept outsiders?"

Two other elves emerged with their bows and looked at Rowan with a smile. The fairhaired one said, "Riverfalls always welcomes the one who saved us. As for any who wish sanctuary, they may have it."

"Thank you friends but I call for warriors. Our friend has been taken by the unholy Nightcrawlers. We must break for the castle," Rowan replied making a slight motion to indicate he meant for the secret passage.

The elve nodded and replied, "Follow us and they will come," and he turned to lead teh way into Riverfalls.

Rowan, polite, motioned that the she-elf go first while saying, "shall we?"

[Alkonium]

Curudir bowed before the elves. "My name is Curudir Therias. I am a former Knight of the Mortan Empire. My fellow knights have sought refuge here the past, and I only hope you will extend that courtesy to my allies and I." He said to them.

[JediMaster12]

"Anyone who wishes to restore the old order is a friend of ours," the fair haired elf replied as he led them to the mustering ground, "Lord Rowan spoke of a battle that must be fought. He found our refuge. We owe much to him."

[Alkonium]

"This is only a rescue mission. We don't have time to prepare an army." Curudir pointed out. "The Nightcrawlers took someone very important to the restoration of the Old Empire, and if we don't hurry, she'll be burned alive by the Inquisition. If she dies, we have no chance of putting an end to the so-called Divine Empire of Man, and none of us want that."

[JediMaster12]

"There is always time to muster an army," the elf said as they came to the mustering ground. Already standing was a batallion ready to move out. He then said, "We have been ready since Lady Darlene beagn helping us."

 

The sun was rising meaning that the Nightcrawlers had to get under shelter. Darlene was relieved that they would be asleep soon. Saimhain motioned for his men to make for the cave hideout. He grinned at her, "You just got lucky darling."

[Alkonium]

"How soon can we have a group set up for a rescue? An assault won't work against the Temple. They can never fall unless we can expose the lies within, and to do that, we need Darlene. If we can expose the truth, it will divide the Temple, and turn the citizens of the Empire against them, and even then we need a larger army." Curudir explained.

[JediMaster12]

Rowan had been watching the skies when Curudir spoke. He watched as dawn broke over the east. He knew that Saimhain wouldn't risk showing his prize too soon, especially if Darlene managed to convince Saimhain to delay it. He then felt something brush his mind gently. He remembered the feeling when she first showed him. He looked at his companions and said, "We have until sundown to make preparations. I suggest we hurry."

 

Darlene concentrated hard on her power. She did it only once when she and Rowan were walking alone in the forest. It was a bit more difficult considering that she was a distance away but he had to know. Concentrating hard enough, she sent the thoughts that she was alive and that they had stopped. She could only hope that he got it.

[Alkonium]

"We should sent two groups, one to ambush the Nightcrawlers at their caves, and another to ambush the priest, in case the first group fails." Curudir said to Rowan. He then asked the elf leader. "Have any other knights like me come here since the rise of the Temple?"

[JediMaster12]

"Only those that have been persecuted have come here," the fair haired elf replied, "It seems you humans have a resilience at remaining hidden."

 

Rowan nodded in agreement. In response to Curudir's suggestion, he said, "Saimhain is not stupid. He would post sentry or guard himself. He didn't get to where he was by playing the incompetent. Still a group can slow them down. It is just a matter of finding which cave. There are hundreds between here and the Temple."

[Alkonium]

"And there is no way we can search them all in time. Given the circumstances, I'd say the cave is very close to where Darlene was taken. It was raining, so the Nightcrawlers would be careful about treading too far away from safety." Curudir pointed out. "It would reduce the area needed to search to a 250 metre radius around this point." He added, pointing to a spot on a map.

[JediMaster12]

"Rain means nothing to Saimhain," Rowan replied quietly, "but if he had to stop he would stop here," and he pointed at a spot outside the 250 meter radius. "He is the oldest therefore he knows how to move and expects no less from his men. IF they lag behind they would be within your circle."

 

"Lord Rowan is correct," the fair haired elf pointed out. "When we tried tracking down this Nightcrawler, he was just withun grasp but always eluded us."

[Alkonium]

"The rain wasn't the point, cloud cover was. As long as it's overcast, Saimhain can travel openly during the day, because he's not exposed to the sun. However, the clouds are clearing, so he can't risk leaving whichever cave he's in until nightfall. If we can get to that cave before then, we won't even have to attempt breaking into the Temple." Curudir pointed out. "We should still be prepared for the worst however. I'll lead the group going to Theion City."