OOC:I apologize for the atrocious writing, but I figured it was time, at least,
to finish this
little part up. Badly. Again, apologize.

IC: Milo Fairbottom leaned forward against his falaffel cart and sighed. Today
was not
going to be a good day.

Aven had been chaotic lately. Word on the street, word being what his son heard
while
talking to his hooligan friends, was that the Shakir was trying to move into
Aven again.
Every time the mysterious guild tried to move in on Basilisk territory, things
got ugly.
Uglier than the usual blood running in the streets.

No, this sort of thing made the politicians edgy. Half of them started spouting
off about
"law and order" and "common decency," which usually referred to the fact that
neither
guild had the common decency to bother bribing the city council members into
favoring
one side over the other.

And talk about law and order, inevitably led to questions about what exactly was
in those
falaffels, a question old Milo had no interest in answering, if he wanted to
stay in Aven.

So when Milo heard shouting and screams, he figured it was another city-wide
brawl. Milo
didn't mind the brawls; they were good for business. After a long hard morning
of
smashing skulls and breaking legs. a thug needed a good wholesome meal. And when
he
or she found out everything else was closed, they went to Milo. Maybe, he
thought, the
day was going to be better than he thought..

And when Milo saw the strange group of men and women run past his cart, yelling
at each
other, he shrugged. Another group of troublemakers pulled apart by interpersonal
disputers. Though one of the little bastards jostled the cart as he ran past...
stupid
punks...

Then he saw the ugly monsters following them.

Today was not going to be a good day...

#######

"They'll never make it under the gate, you said!" Ryder shouted.

"Well, the first three or four didn't!" Paidan shouted back, lepaing over a pile
of horse
dung.

"No, it was the next three that jammed themselves under the impaled bodies of
their
fellow spawn that we had to worry about," Giada shouted.

"Well how was I supposed to know they'd throw themselves under the portcullis? I
didn't
know Shadow spawn would sacrifice themselves so the rest of them could kill us?"
Paidan
shouted back.

The make-shift group ran blindly through the streets of Aven. Granted, only
Paidan, who
was leading the way, realized he had no idea where to go. He couldn't bring the
strangers
who'd saved him to the guild headquarters: the guildmasters would flay him. On
the other
hand, the shadowspawn chasing them were going to rip him, and probably them, and
everyone else they came across, apart.

It was supposed to have been a simple robbery for an antique collector. Instead
he'd
helped an agent of the dreaded Xan to steal some sort of artifact that he
accidentally kept.
The unhappy Wardens of Shadow sent their misshapen shadowspawn after him, and it
was
only complete random chance that led him to this group of would-be heros who
initially
sought him for reward, and kept him alive because of what he'd stolen. Not that
they knew
which item that he had from the job was the item the shadows were seeking...
Though
why they hadn't stolen everything on him and left him to die-

"Why are we running?" Carisaac shouted as he bumped into a cart while trying to
avoid a
fresh pile of horse dung. "It's the thief they want. We could just stand aside,
let them pull
him apart, and clean up the mess."

"But.. but that's wrong!" Del shouted. The apprentice magician leapt over a
fresh pile of
horse droppings.

"No, what's wrong is being too busy running and... and.. what is with all the
horse dung?"
Giada demanded.

"Poopsmith strike?" Paidan answered loudly and helpfully.

"We could probably just stand on the side of the street and wave bye as the
shadowspawn
ran past." Ryder shout-muttered.

A scream erupted from behind them. Everyone spared a quick glance backwards as
two of
the shadowspawn stopped to tear apart a street vendor on the side of the street.
Gore,
guts and illicit vegetarian food flew into the air.

"Keep running!" Maugrim shouted.

#######

The group stopped at a four-way street. To their left was a warehouse district.
To their
right were apartments. And ahead, to the south, were the docks.

"Does anyone have enough money to get passage on a ship?" Ravyn asked, panting.
"We
could-"

"Screw this!" Paidan shouted. He pulled out a butter dish from the sack on his
back and
threw it behind him.

"Paidan, what are you doing? Dishware as ranged weaponry is so last century,"
Giada dryly
panted.

"They want the stupid things," Paidan cried, throwing a silver jug behind him,
"they can
have them. Just.. just SCREW THIS KLUSKIN' CRAP!" He threw a gold belt behind
him,
narrowly missing Del's head.

"Are you insane!" Maugrim shouted. He pushed himself to the front of the group
and
grabed Paidan's sack. "The Xan can't be allowed to possess what ever it is
they're seeking!"

Paidan tugged the sack towards him, his left hand reaching inside. "Don't care,
don't care,
lalalalalala" he screamed as he threw a notepad behind him. A few seconds later
one of the
spawn grunted as they slipped on a pile of horse poo.

"Why not just drop the stupid sack? Ryder yelled.

Paidan pulled harder on his sack. "Damn it, it's my sack! I've had it forever!
They're not
after my sack!" He pulled sharply on the sack, nearly tripping Maugrim.

"It's just a sack!" Ryder shouted.

"Don't give him ideas!" Maugrim yelled.

"It's a very EXPENSIVE SACK AND I'M NOT THROWING IT AWAY!" screamed Paidan and
he
threw a spoon behind his back. The shadowspawn roared as they charged towards
Paidan's latest offering, ignoring everything else. Maugrim's head turned
around, his scowl
of disapproval replaced with one of last-minute revelation and horror.

A scream erupted from in front of them, Maugrim's head spinning back around. A
gray
blur pushed past them, knelt to the ground, picked up the spoon, spun around and
raced
back to the others. "Idiots!" he shouted, "It's a wonder any of you half-wits
are potty-
trained!"

"Bugger," Maugrim muttered as he released the sack. "How bloody convenient."

Leus had returned.

#######

Leus Ex Machina

The druid scowled at the mysterious old man. "How'd you escape-"

"No time!" Leus shouted. The shadowspawn behind them had doubled their pace.
Having
their target dangled before them had only served to, from what Del could tell by
glancing
quickly behind him, really, really piss them off.

"But how'd you know we'd-"

"Later!" Leus shouted, slowly pulling ahead of the group.

Del stared as the old man continued to increase his lead over everyone. Leus
headed
towards the docks. Maugrim and Paida raced after him, the druid demanding
answers.
Everyone else ran after Maugrim, because there were hideous abominations a few
yards
behind them.

Alessio, forgotten by everyone, cried out "can't.. can't run any more..."

Carisac slowed down. "I've got you" he shouted as he picked Ravyn up.

Ravyn blushed. "Um, I was actually doing oka-"

"Don't worry, they won't get you!" Carisac shouted.

Meanwhile Del slowed down and picked Alessio up. Alessio clung to Del's
shoulder. "My...
hero..." he panted.

Del grimaced. "Don't... just... don't..." he warned.

Leus paused, then ran towards the piers. "This way!" he shouted. He ran towards
the
largest pier in the docks.

Maugrim shook his head and charged past Leus. "Not that one, the one next to
it!" he
shouted, going towards the pier to the right. "The supports on that one-"

"By the light you're right!" Leus gasped. "How'd you guess-"

"Later! Maugrim shouted, taking the lead towards the pier he pointed out.

Leus glanced behind him and raced ahead of the others. The pier was deserted by
the time
Leus reached the first few rows of planks. He knelt before the pier for two
seconds while
the others ran past him. He stood up, glanced at the spawn, and started running.

Just as the group was half-way across, the shadowspawn reached the pier, their
odd
assortment of claws, talons and feet pounding the planks.

"Just a little farther" Leus urged.

Just after the last of spawn raced past where Leus had knelt, the old man
turned around
and waved his hand. Flames and wood shard exploded behind the shadowspawn. The
beasts ignored the destruction behind them, the entire pier shuddering as the
first several
yards of the wood structure was shattered.

The group reached the end of the pier and stared. "So. now we're trapped on a
dangerously-unstable pier a couple of stories in the air with a dozen
shadowspawn
heading towards us and deep ocean riptides beneath us," Giada said, staring at
Leus and
Maugrim. "I can't wait to see what you two pull out of your rears next."

Leus knelt down and watched the shadowspawn as they rushed towards them. "Just a
few
more seconds" he muttered.

The shadowspawn were 15 feet from Leus when the planks in front of them
exploded. The
leading monster tumbled into the ocean. A second beast tried to stop when a
half-hairy
thing knocked in into the blue abyss below.

Del watched as the two creatures struggled to stay afloat. The rest of the spawn
growled
furiously at the edge of their portion of the pier. "What about the two that
fell?" Del asked.

"Look at the sad things," Leus said. "They're so misshapen they're physically
incapable of
swimming." He stood up and spread his hands. The air in front of him shimmered
briefly
before it burst into flame, waves of fire washing over the pier and the
shadowspawn.

Three of the spawn leapt towards the group only to fall through the gap. While
icy waves
quenched their flames, the spawn were left struggling as they were pulled under
the
surface.

There were about six left, though it was difficult to tell through the flames
and smoke.
After a half-hour the entire structure collapsed.

Maugrim, Del and the others watched as the last of the spawn and the pier
collapsed. Leus
stared at the spoon, which he still had in his hand. "Too many questions," he
muttered,
"and not worth the effort." He walked to the other edge of what was left of the
pier, raised
his arm and threw.

A dull glint arced into the ocean.

Maugrim stared at Leus. "And what was the purpose of THAT!?"

"Just getting it out of the hands of the Shadows," Leus answered calmly. "This
way no one
will ever find that."

"Highly unlikely," Maugrim snorted, scowling at Leus.

"Yes, well, does anyone have any idea," Giada asked, "how WE are supposed to get
off this
pier alive?"

#######

Carisaac sat behind the bar at The Flirty Maid, guzzling a large pitcher of
poteen. Maugrim
and the others were due at a meeting in an hour but Carisaac wasn't in the mood
to listen
to politicians argue. Not without several liters of poteen in his veins.

It'd taken the local wizards and magicians four hours to get them off the pier
yesterday. It
would have taken less time if they hadn't had to haggle about the cost. Carisaac
took
another drink. Stupid bastards. If only Giada'd let him eat them. If only his
bloody arm
hadn't still been broken.

"You. I need your help."

Carisaac turned to stare at Leus. "Bugger off."

Leus grabbed his arm. His not-quite completely healed arm. He pulled Carisaac's
face to
his own. "LIsten lizard breath. I don't have time to put up with your crap. You
help me, and
I'll finish healing your arm."

Carisaac stopped grimacing his teeth long enough to spit. "Bite me.."

Leus sighed. "Fine. What about a basement full of mutton and mead?"

"...Can I get that in writing?"

######

Carisaac swept over the ocean, his wings flapping asa he rose higher in the air.
<Is this
high enough?> he growled.

Sitting at the base of Carisaac's neck, Leus nodded. "I think this will do
nicely. Can you
hover a few yards to your left?? Our target is over there."

<Hover?> the Wyvern complained. <What do you think I am, a ghost?>

"Fine" Leus growled. "Just get over there. I can spare a little power to keep
you in place."

Carisaac swept back around, his eyes glancing around constantly for any other
large flying
reptilians. <YOu're sure the council won't detect me?> he asked, drifting to the
area Leus
had pointed out.

"Don't worry, I've made sure you're secure. It's in both our interests to keep
our activities
quiet." Leus pulled a small item out of his jacket.

<So, Maugrim know you didn't throw the spoon?> Carisaac felt like he was
floating in a
salt pool, rather than a mile in the air.

"Not that it's your business, but I suspect he suspects the truth, and why,"
Leus answered.
"JUst throwing the spoon would have done nothing. It could have drifted
anywhere, it's
light enough. Even under the sea, it might not be out of the Shadows' reach. It
has to be
weighted down, and sent into a trench, deep enough that no living thing I no of
could
retrieve it."

Carisaac shook himself awake. <Uh, yeah, sure, what ever.>

Leus sighed. The spoon slowly rose from the palm of his hand. Dust swirled
around
strange talisman, swiftly coating it in a ball of concrete. Leus waved his other
hand, and a
layer of steel covered the ball.

Carisaac felt his position shift slightly. <Uh Leus?I think you're losing power
or
something.>

The old man ignored the wyvern as he leaned over Carisaac's side. He tipped his
palm
downwards and let the ball slide off, into the ocean. With a loud splash the
ball sank into
the depths.

Leus sighed, and Carisaac began dropping down. <Damn it, warn me before you do
that!>
he growled.

"Sorry... it's been a long couple of days," Leus sighed. "Remember, not a word
about this
trip."

<Like I want to brag about having you around my neck> Carisaac grumbled.
<Besides, if
there's as much poteen as you say there is, I'll be lucky if I remember my own
name.>

#######

Leus stood underneath a large fir tree, just outside the Aven City Council
building.
Maugrim and the others were still being drilled about what had happened
yesterday
morning.

"How's it going?" he asked out loud.

A small, coffee-colored man appeared in front of Leus. He wore bright white
robes and a
large grin. "They're almost finished. Between Maugrim and Giada, they'll all be
getting
medals for their service to Elaria."

"They're lucky they aren't hanged," Leus grumbled. "They nearly ruined
everything."

"If it hadn't been for them you wouldn't have found the spoon," the man said.
"I'll admit
they're... a special group of people, but there's great potential in them.
Maugrim and his
school could play an important role in the direction of events to come."

"What events?" Leus asked.

The man shrugged. "That's for mortal and immortal actions to decide. Our duty is
to
intervene in specific circumstances. The rest of the time, you mortals are on
your own."

"Either way, Warden, the less I see of them the better," Leus grumbled.
"Besides, I still have
a servant of the Shadow to bring down. I doubt the Shadows would eliminate Thull
for this
failure, but his usefulness to them will be diminished. They'll probably focus
their energies
on another agent."

"I'd still keep an eye on Thull. Despite yesterday he's still their best agent,"
the Warden
warned. "Anyway, They'll be coming out any minute."

"Then I'm getting out of here," Leus sighed. "Until next time, D'vor."

The warden of light grinned as he faded away. "Take it easy old man."

#######

Del looked at his reflection in the medal pinned on his robes. "I don't know how
you did
it..." he sighed.

Maugrim stuck his medal in one of the pockets in his robe. "It's all a matter of
speaking
slowly and in simple words," Giada said brightly.

"So now what?" Ryder asked.

"I know some traders who're going to Tirdannan tomorrow. We can go back to
Amergin
with them," Maugrim said.

"Good," Del sighed. "I still have to take care of the bills... they're probably
late now."

"I think I'll hang out here a while," Ravyn said. "I might try and get some new
contacts for
when I get back to Selark."

"Hey, can you tell my family I said hi?" Del asked.

Maugrim stopped listening to everyone's chatter. He, Del, Giada and
Carisaac-where ever
the lizard was-would head back with the caravan, while Ravyn and Ryder would go
their
own way. He suspected the only reason Giada wasn't staying in Aven was so she
didn't
ahve to deal with a lust-sick wyvern moping around a barely-legal girl.

Maugrim glanced up at a fir tree near the door. For an instant he thought he saw
a small
figure grinning up in the branches. This didn't bode well.

He stayed behind while the others slowly drifted away. "This is just the
beginning, isn't it,"
he whispered.

A gentle wind rose, and he thought he heard someone whisper, "You folks are in
for an
interesting ride." Scowling, Maugrim, the Reaper, walked away. There was a lot
of work to
have Del do for him, and not much time before the next "adventure..."