Stealth Training

[Eriond]

The last leaves of winter drifted on the breeze, filtering the light of the cold winter sun. Among the scattered trees stood the recruits for the New Coldmoon's Wilders.

Arraeth with a staff in his hands, Solonor and Windrek with swords at their belts. (And then Sabar. Sabar had some sort of weapon probably, but nobody new what it was. Perhaps an invisible sword? Or perhaps the armory had run out just before he got there... Doesn't matter. He wont be using whatever it is during this training session.) None had been told what to expect for this training. They were to be shown the ways of stealth, but how had not been mentioned.

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After a half an hour of waiting, the group still stood alone. Had they come to the wrong place? Had their instructor forgotten them?

[Solonor Gil'anar]

Solonor arrived at the site he had been told to visit. He had no knowledge whether he was the last person to arrive or if more were to come. He had simply been told to be there, and that was what he did, no questions asked. There were three other people waiting there. Two people whom Solonor didn't know, but he recognized one of them from the inn, who were holding staves. And the third person was Windrek, whom Solonor knew well enough.

He greeted Windrek with a short "Vedui, melonamin." and fell silent. He waited. For what- Solonor didn't know yet, but he was sure he was about to find out. After half an hour passed, and still nothing happened, Solonor continued to wait. Patience was a virtue in many situations, and this one was no different. Solonor waited.

[Morinor]

Arraeth arrives as instructed, noticing a willowy Elf immediately. It was strange, he had never seen an elf like that before, with their ears longer than normal and wrapped around their head. His arms were longer than normal as well, delicate fingers and overall appearance. His copper skin was nevertheless, nice to look at. Arraeth was wearing his new uniform and had with him his Jo Staff, his sea-foam green skin glittering lightly in the sun, his dark black hair and eyes like shadows.

"Serrale," he says to the Elf..."I am Arraeth, arrre you the instructor?" His katta accent would likely spark interest, as there aren't many sea-elves walking the face of Telath with katta accents.

(OOC: Hello Solonor. I see that you have Quel'anthsan Elf as your race and I have read your profile as well. Let me ask you this...have you recieved permission to do so? I only ask because most PCs fail to realize that Quel'anthasan Elves look different than any other elves in the Empire, and are all together a very different sect of the elvish race. It is usually okay to claim oneself as a descendent of Quel'anthasan elves, but to claim oneself a Quel' in Alleria and not Telath is a little risky. Quel' are not yet listed under 'playable races' in the compendium.)

[Solonor Gil'anar]

OOC: Edit- read my next post.

[Sabar]

(OOC: I'm confused. Do I have a stave? I don't remember getting one. I requested a longbow and Katana, is the stave mandatory?)

IC: The slight chill in the air was comforting to Sabar, he had always liked the colder weather versus the warm. As he walked to the spot where he was to be for stealth training he let his mind drift to other things like how tips at the hotel for a day was more than a days wages, as he approached the spot were he was to be for stealth training he quickened his pace, not wanting to be late. Spotting Arraeth he greeted him, "Serale, Arraeth." He then saw a elf like no other he had seen in his day's. "Serale, I am Sabar," he said and extended his hand.

(OOC: Arraeth, is a Thelyri a species of elf?)

[Solonor Gil'anar]

OOC- Sorry for another OOC, but as I am writing an IC post I included that. Arraeth- I have recieved permission to do so, from GM Leafsong, and I still need to speak with him before I can finish writing my history, as it involves his PC, Sa'brael Laernhoun. Once I post my history it will clear things up, but it could still take a while...

IC- Solonor witnessed as the two people he didn't know well greeted him. One, as he noticed, was a Thelyri. The other, who was the one he had recognized- Solonor could not determine his race precisely. He assumed he was of mixed blood.

Then, the Thelyri spoke. Immediately, Solonor noticed the strange accent. He had spoken to thelyri before, and he didn't recognize the accent, which was more similar to the way Katta talked. "Vedui, Arraeth. I am Solonor." he replied. "I'm afraid I am not here to instruct anyone. I was merely told to be here, and so I have done." He wanted to ask about the accent, but he didn't know if that would insult the elf, so he didn't press the subject.

When the other Elf arrived, Solonor shook the extended hand. "Serale, Sabar." he said. "I am Solonor, pleased to meet you. It seems we are to wait here, but I have been waiting for quite a while. It might be a test of patience, I wouldn't put it past the New Coldmoon military, they have done it before..."
And waiting was what he did. Something will happen, that much Solonor did know...

[Morinor]

(OOC: Well, I'm going to include one more OOC post since they seem to bother Solonor so badly. Sabar, no...you do not have a stave. I think that Eriond was not instructed in the weapons you have chosen, but no...you were never given a staff and you do not need to have one, they are not mandatory. Solonor, the reason why I ask is because I am the GM in Trelore and it is my responsibility to know about Trelorien races outside of the Greater Elvish Basin. Either I or Michelle will likely be contacting you. Thanks)

Not knowing what "Vedui" means, nor any other elvish word, Arraeth smiles at the Elve's comment about the New Coldmoon military. But it isn't a smile that is accompanied with a light heart or laughter. It is a smile of uneasiness, for Arraeth feels that this elf has perhaps too little respect for the military he is joining. "That isn't the sign of a good soldier," he thinks to himself.

[Eriond]

Arraeth & Sabar & Solonor: For a moment the wind seemed to take on extra strength, stirring the leaves with new vigor. Thankfully, after only a few seconds, it died down again.

The students conversation filled the minutes whilst they they waited. Windrek had still not yet arrived and niether had their instructors made an appearance.

Arraeth: You hear someone clear their throat behind you.

Solonor: The theylri elf that Solonor had been talking to smiled rather blankly at his quip about the New Coldmoon military. Whether it was reaction to the joke or simply the way the quel'anthsan looked, one could not tell. Most likely the first though.

Solonor realized that something was... off about Arraeth. It was several moments before he put together what was odd about his fellow recruit, but finally he snapped to the conclusion that it wasn't Arraeth at all. It was the whip-thin man in brown leathers standing directly behind Arraeth. There was no telling how long he had been standing there, but he almost seemed to have simply appeared. He gave a polite cough.

Sabar: You hear the cough from behind Arraeth, but are a little distracted by a wierd itchy feeling in between your shoulder blades. It feels like someone is watching you.

[Morinor]

Arraeth swings around to meet the throat clearing behind him. It was a graceful swing around and quite quick, for he wasn't sure what to expect, although some answers would be nice. It seemed that no one new exactly why they were here. Arraeth had guessed it a lesson or training of some sort, but in truth, he didn't really know. All he knew was that the wind was curiously strong at the moment and that there is someone behind him.

[Sabar]

The cough took Sabar's attention for a moment before the itch needed scratching and he quickly reached behind himself and scratched, the itch didn't immediately go away so he had to dig his fingers in a bit harder to make it go away. With the itch gone Sabar decided to sit to wait for the instructor who had yet to show. Picking up a twig that was on the ground near him he started absent mindedly scratching the ground with it while starring into space.

[Solonor Gil'anar]

Solonor gazed blankly at Arraeth, watching the Thëlyri smile without much interest. Only after gazing at the Elf for several seconds did Solonor notice that someone was standing behind him. A thin, wiry man was standing directly behind Arraeth, apparantly materializing out of thin air, though Solonor doubted that was indeed the case. The man simply stood there, as if he had been there for the last hour waiting for the trio to notice him. He gave a small cough, presumably to alert the recruits that he was there. Solonor watched as Arraeth whipped around to meet the coughing man, and as Sabar, who seemed unaware of the man's presence, scratch his back idly. Solonor felt awkward about the man's silence, so he spoke: "Serale, sir. Are you the one who is to instruct us today?" For some reason, something about the man's presence made Solonor feel strange about talking, so he waited silently for the man to respond...

[Sabar]

When Solonor questioned somebody it snaped Sabar out of his daze, getting up he turned to see who Solonor was talking to. After a moment he relized there was a stick thin person behind Arraeth. Thinking back to the cough he though, 'I'll have to become more alert, not to even think about the cough, how stupid could he get?' Standing straight he waited to hear a reply to Solonor's question.

[Eriond]

Solonor, Sabar & Arraeth: All of the students, save the absent Windrek, turned to face the man standing close behind Arraeth. The human stood around five and a half feet in hieght and was as thin as a willow switch. His pale skin and black hair gave his crystaline blue eyes an almost otherworldly look. Then he smiled, revealing slightly crooked teeth.

"No," he said cheerfully nodding to himself and looking around for a moment. "I'm a distraction."

Sabar:

"No," he said cheerfully to himself and looking around for a moment. "I'm a distraction."

As the thin human said his words, Sabar saw something flit past his vision and felt something settle about his arms. Before he could so much as twitch, the something pulled tight.

He looked behind and above in time to see a rangy woman bearing a long sword leaping out of a tree. In her hands was one end of a rope. The other end passed over a tree branch and traveled to the lasso binding Sabar's arms to his sides. He fairly flew into the branches of the tree.

The woman tied him off and left him to swing helplessly.

Arraeth & Solonor: In the exact second that the man spoke, the leaves in front of Solonor and behind Arraeth erupted into the air as a large framed and muscular man bearing a quarterstaff burst from them with a roar.

As fast as the eye can see, he jabbed Solonor in the breast bone with his staff, sending the elf flying. Almost in the same motion, he swept Arraeth's legs out from under him and then stood with one foot on his back. Staring at the sky, stunned, Solonor could see the smiling face of the thin man who first confronted them. The man stared down at him and gave a little wave.

[Solonor Gil'anar]

"No. I'm a distraction." Solonor heard the man say. But that was it. In a split second, a large figure burst from a bush in front of him, catching his completely off guard. Solonor gasped as the figure's staff hit him hard in the chest, knocking the wind completely out of him, and sending him to the floor. He lay there, struggling to regain his breath, staring at the clear blue sky through a gap in the trees above. Then, the smiling face of the thin man appeared in front of his eyes, and he waved a hand at him.

Solonor didn't know what to think. It all happened extremely quickly, and Solonor couldn't figure out exactly what happened. He hardly doubted this was an ambush meant to hurt them, but the fact remained that they were ambushed. Solonor simply glared back at the man with an angry face, and made to stand back up, and survey exactly what happened there.

[Morinor]

Arraeth's senses had been alert and he knew what was happening the moment it had happened, but still he was helplessly on his stomach and wondering what was to happen next. Neither his skills in Zinn'ka or the Jo Staff would help him in this situation, for his opponent is most likely more skilled than he. And so the sea-elf remains still on the ground, hurting his neck to look up and breath, trying to see what he can.

Not sure if this is for real or not, he kept his body still, but ready. His hands pressed against the dirt, ready to push him up into a springing motion if the situation waranted it. Something though, told him that this wasn't for real, that it was the reason they were called there this brightening. Something told him it was some sort of lesson.