Role

Chapter 6

The Beginning
Added Sat Jan 7 16:21:29 2006 at level 21:

Ulthinius remembers very little of the following events.

The band of ragged orcs flew through the tunnels of the Underdark with their
duergar guides, grunting and snarling, growing more and more nervous as the
neared the territory of the drow. There were nearly fifty orcs and six duergar
guides, their mission was to kill and capture as many drow children as possible. A
sort of nursery, or prison (depending on your point of view) for male drow children
had been created on the outer edges of the city. These children were destined to be
bodyguards and blademasters. Just on the other side of the outer wall of the
nursery, three svirfneblin slaves were hollowing out an access tunnel for the band
of raiders. The operation was well planned, and as the band of raiders turned the
last corner at a dead run, the outer wall came crashing down inside of the nursery,
killing twelve drow children while they slept.

The slathering band of orcs poured into the nursery like an avalanche and
immediately rushed forward towards the small contingent of guards. The drow cut
down nineteen of the attackers, but were soon overwhelmed, as there were only
three of them. With the guards dead, the orcs looted the nursery, of the few
weapons and over seventy of the bewildered and terrified children, none older than
seven years. Almost as quickly as they hade come, they were gone. Forty six
drow, nineteen orcs dead, three drow still alive though terribly scarred, seventy
four missing.

The band of orcs fled through the Underdark as if the whips of Thrakburzug
himself were at their heels. As they neared the surface they slowed. The split with
their duergar guides and paid them, in flesh. The duergar took with them thirty of
the drow, who were now slaves in the truest sense of the word. The chieftain of
this band went forward into the cave where the benefactors of this operation
waited. They were members of a secret order of black magicians, who wished for
new students. The chieftain was assured his pay would be prompt upon the
delivery of the new students and reminded that time was short, as darkness would
be lifting soon. The mages disappeared with a word and the chieftain led his band
into the blackness of Ar'atouldain. They worked their way west and north,
towards the dark academy.

"Captain Ergenius, the sentries have reported a band of orcs moving through the
forest, they have just crossed the path, they seem to have prisoners of some sort,
children perhaps, nearly forty of them."

"Very well, they shall pay dearly for daring to enter our realm," the captain of the
wardens was a vicious enemy of the orcs, who had killed his wife and daughter,
"Assemble the wardens."

The wood-elf band of forest warriors glided through the dark trees without a
sound, they would cut them off just before they reached the northwestern
boundaries of the forest. They neatly intercepted them and the orcs first warning
was a spear hurled through the dark that split the throat of their chieftain who was
dead before hitting the ground, blood spraying as it forced its way out of his body
around the shaft of the spear. The captain drew his longsword from its sheath and
pulled his hand axe from its fastening at his hip and waded into the terrified orc