Fame, Glory, and Miza's (Open)

[Book__wyrm]

Winter 509 AV

Sunberth was an exciting place. There were places to be discovered, treasures to be found, people to be robbed, thefts to be foiled. Sunberth was the last stop on the road to adventure! There was fun and joy in the air! Of course, one mans joy was likely another persons beating.

However, the road to adventure was paved with danger. And so, one man, armed with naught but a stack of papers, started putting up notices, a request for help. He pasted them everywhere, in the hopes that a few would still be legible by the time someone interested came along.

The flyer was simple. "Adventurers wanted to explore cave. Will offer a share of the treasure when found." And that was it. That, and a description of his house.

The home is in the outskirts of the town. The house is mostly indistinguishable from the houses elsewhere around the city. That is, it would have been, if not for the cats. There were cats of every kind. Lean cats, fat cats, short cats, long cats. Black, white, ginger, or tabby, there were cats everywhere.

[Diem]

Diem didn't have a problem with cats, but even he had trouble dealing with all of the furry animals that came over to inspect him as he neared the house. Some sniffed him then left, some pawed at his pants legging, but most just hung back and hissed at him. Diem had never had any delusions of being good with animals, but with these cats and Spot, his horse, it seemed he might very well be just the opposite. Animals did not like him. It wouldn't be such a bad thing if he didn't keep encountering them wherever he went. Spot his horse, the birds, that wolf he had seen while traveling, and these cats. Still, the flier said this was the place to go. Adventure and treasure. Normally Diem wasn't the kind of person to give into such ideas but his life style wasn't exactly one filled with riches. If he could manage to secure some quantity of a treasure then he would have little worries when it came to food and shelter and he could keep his focus on trying to convince others that crime wasn't the only path to follow. Diem walked over to the door of the home and knocked. "Hello, is anyone there? I'm here about your flier."

[Book__wyrm]

A small window on top of the door peeked open. "M-my flier? Oh yes, oh yes, d-do come in." A pair of watery blue eyes appeared, darting to and fro nervously. "I-I'll be with you in j-just a second." The window closed. There was a click of a lock opening, a rattle of chains, and the door creaked open. Standing in the doorway was a small, terrified looking man. His nervous demeanor made it look like he would run off screaming if someone so much as said boo. He took a step out of the house, and suddenly, all the cats started hissing at him. He stepped back immediatly, almost tripping.

"C-come in g-good sir. A-and please, please don't let the c-c-cats get in!" He stuttered hastily. Stumbling back into his house, the man locked, bolted, and chained his door. The inside of his house was rather sparsely furnished. The walls were book cases, although over half the shelves were empty. There were notes, maps, and scribbles everywhere.

[Diem]

The man seemed nervous, Diem gave him that. It wasn't that much of a surprise considering how all the cats reacted as soon as he tried to step outside his house, but it seemed more then that. Diem carefully followed the man in, making sure none of the cats followed. One or two got close but saw he was going to stop them and seemed to think better of it. Now that cats seemed less of an annoyance and more of a rather terrifying threat. What could make them act like that, and were they truly as dangerous as the man seemed to think. "So those aren't your cats then? Why are they all out there?"

The man locked, bolted and chained his door. While he was doing that Diem took a quick look around the room it seemed spartan in its decoration, having only a few pieces of furniture. Notes, maps, and scribbles were everywhere, including along the walls which actually seemed to be bookcases. At least it seemed his idea of having found treasure might turn out to be true, though Diem couldn't help but wonder if he was doing it at the cost of his own health. "So your flier mentioned you were looking for adventurers to explore a cave. Is this cave far from Sunberth?"

[Lebramme]

Adventurers wanted to explore cave. Will offer a share of the treasure when found.

Lebramme held the flier in his hand, as he rode Bloodgait up to the small house outside of Sunberth. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't be caught dead exploring some cave; that was the work of mercenaries and fools-for-hire. But as it stood, his Mizas were a limited resource, and the supply would run out soon. He had planned to put himself into a cage match, or bet on a few, if they wouldn't let him compete, when he saw the flier. Lebramme couldn't help but recall something his father had said about magical relics being stashed in the strangest places, from caves to crawlspaces.

And so he found himself here, at an unremarkable house on the outskirts of Sunberth, surrounded by a plethora of cats. I wonder why they're here. Very interesting. He dismounted from Bloodgait, but didn't bother to tie him up anywhere; the day his horse abandoned him was the day he was no longer alive. As he made his way to the front door, a number of cats followed behind him, pawing at the black and red ribbons he had dragging behind him, fortunately not tearing at them. He rapped his fist upon the door three times, waiting for a response. Bloodgait let out a shrill cry, and the cats behind him scattered. Thank you, my friend. "I am here about a flier," he shouted. "Open up, your cats are a nuisance."

[Book__wyrm]

(OOC: Sorry for the delay.)

The man quivered as Diem spoke. "N-no. They're not my cats." He seemed somewhat less nervous now that they were inside. "I don't know why they're there. They just showed up one day." He swallowed. "They never do anything, but they scare me."

He had opened his mouth to speak again when someone banged on the door. The man hurriedly opened the door to let Lebramme in. "H-Hello. T-They're not m-my cats, a-actually."

He closed, locked and bolted the door, then began to explain. "There's a cave an hour's walk from sunberth. According to a Pre-Valatarian map I've found, A paranoid nobleman buried all his money and items in there. The problem is, the place is infested with m-monsters of all sorts." He said, nervously. "That's where you come in. I need you help to get past the creatures living there."

[Lebramme]

Lebramme stood listening to the man explain the situation, but his eyes were locked on Diem. Of course, he would have to be here, as well. Probably protecting the man from his cats. After the employer finished talking, Lebramme flexed his neck left and right, receiving two satisfying cracks in return. "What sort of creatures," he asked flatly. His eyes were still on Diem. He thought about taking off his gloves, but decided that it could wait. He was curious as to what Diem would do without a crowd watching.

[Diem]

Of all the people to take an interest in Sunberth, it had to be this man. The man whose soul was the color of blood. Diem couldn't think of anything more dangerous then traveling to a monster filled cave filled with valuable treasure along with this man. He would have to be vigilant. Careful to keep the man in the corner of his eyes, Diem turned to the reason he was here and nodded his agreement. "Do you know anything about the creatures?"

[Book__wyrm]

The mand blinked, obviously sensing the hostility between the two men. He gulped, looking from one to the other, then back again. Nervously, his eyes still darting between them, he mumbled "Well....I don't actually know. There was a friend of mine who went in. He told me that he actually saw the treasure before the guardians drove him back. He didn't manage to say much before he fainted. There are wild beasts outside, and all sorts of u-undead on the inside. He said that they tried to trick his friends into fighting one another. But in the inner chamber, there could be anything! Animated guardians, more undead, a pack of dire bears...." He was panicing, almost to the point of hyperventilating.

Taking a few deep breaths, he calmed himself down. After a moment, he said "It, um, occurs to me that I don't know your names. I'm Jarth. Hi"

[Lebramme]

Eyes still locked on Diem, his mind was spinning. Lebramme had only limited knowledge on the undead from his father's literature, and while the presence of wild beasts was nothing to be excited about, the prospect of encountering all sorts of unlife had a strange allure to it. Intelligent undead that can turn one against one's allies. He couldn't help but smile at the thought. I look forward to it, he thought.

Lebramme's employer was panicking, almost to the point of hyperventilating. Taking a few deep breaths, he calmed himself down. After a moment, he said "It, um, occurs to me that I don't know your names. I'm Jarth. Hi" Lebramme's gaze wandered to meet Jarth's eyes; it was as if he had just realized that Jarth was even there, nevermind the fact that it was his home.

"Lebramme. Lebramme Bloodgait," he said nonchalantly. "And I am not afraid."