Al'Mian Oasis, Part II (Request Invite)

[Gavriel]

The Plot

 

This story takes place the morning after the events in Al'Mian Oasis, Part I. It is six o'clock in the morning and the previously crowded tavern is quiet and motionless. Only a few unconscious drunks remain by the bar, sleeping in their own drool.

 

Outside, the sky is brightening but the sun has not yet shown itself. All is quiet, save for the wind that is kicking up sand and the crickets that chirp in the foliage that grows close to the oasis. Nobody is awake at this hour save for a few souls...

 

Gavriel Venitiago

Shamad Conde

Faythiel

Tadir

 

 

The Setting

 

This story takes place several leagues to the south of Ul'dah within the small trading outpost known as the Al'Mian Oasis. As the name implies, Al'Mian is strategically located around a small watering hole that is essential for the survival of trade in the remote southern regions of Thalalan. To the east and west the outpost is protected by treacherous desert that extends for as far as the eye can see. To the north lies a sprawling flatland that eventually leads to the city of Ul'dah. To the south lies a rocky, mountainous region populated by tribes of Hellsguard Roegadyn.

 

Al'Mian has been in existence for several generations in one form or another thanks to members of the Ul'dah Syndicate who regularly send food, supplies, and troupes of mercenaries to safeguard their interests. It is very common to see an assortment of travelers and merchants of all races passing through, especially the Dunesfolk, who must water their giant beasts of burden.

 

(I lack the skills to draw the layout of the camp, so a description will have to do for now...)

 

The Oasis itself is located in a shallow dip at the base of a treacherous cliff. The southern part of the camp is completely blocked by the cliff face, but it is easily accessed by any other route. The only road into the camp is from the north, which leads back to Ul'dah. However, Roegadyn and Dunesfolk with their beasts of burden tend to arrive unannounced from the middle of the open desert.

 

There are three mudbrick buildings in Al'Main. The first is the tavern, which houses as many as twenty-five guests at a time with plenty of room outside for stragglers. Like any respectable tavern, there is a well-stocked bar and kitchen. There are a dozen tables as well as sitting room at the bar.

The second building is the Marketplace. Here, traders may set up their own booths and sell their wares to fellow merchants and travelers. Al'Main is a crossroads for several trading routs and a quick deal can be easily made, without burden of taxes, before heading off to Ul'dah and beyond.

The third building is the barracks. This small building houses a-dozen-or-so mercenaries who are hired to protect this vital trading rout. Seeing as how this area is so remote, the mercenaries tend to fight amongst themselves and drink entirely too much wine.

 

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Rules

So this time around we are going to have an "Open Invite" system. If you would like to join in, please send me a PM. I will fit you in when there is a break in the story or when it seems the most appropriate! The reason for this change is that things got a little out of hand last time. So many people wanted in on the fun that the thread became congested and it became very difficult to follow the story. However, I'm very glad that our community is so active and that people couldn't wait to start having fun. There are absolutely no hard feelings

[Shamadconde]

 

Here I go!

 

 

Shamad woke up and groaned. He hurt all over. He rolled over and was graced with the "lovely" sight of Serenla naked. He groaned again. That was an image he would never get out of his head. She got dressed, dressed him, and carried him downstairs. She plopped him at a table and strapped him into the chair. "I'll get you some breakfast and then therapy starts!" She said in a deep voice that was oh so completely wrong for a Lalafell as she rubbed her hands with glee. Shamad shuddered and started his mental exercises to get himself emotionally away from what was going to happen. A placid expression suffused his face.

[Tadir]

Tadir opens his eyes, and immediately regrets it. Not only is it oppressively hot in his room, but his head feels like someone is smacking it with a hammer.

 

With a groan and a muttered curse he sits up and looks around his room...his...room?

 

If it was his room at the inn, someone had stolen all his things and replaced them with the possessions of a g...Tadir's eyes shift slowly to the figure lying on the other side of the bed. Holding his breath, he closes his eyes and, moving very slowly, attempts to get out of the bed without waking her up.

 

The bed goes "Glink," but the sun browned Miqo'te doesn't shift.

 

"...pants. I need my pants," he thinks. Seeing them on the floor, he pulls them over his legs, grabs his shirt and sneaks to the door. As he reaches for the handle the world starts spinning again. He manages to grab the handle on the third try and opens the door just as he hears a rustle and yawn from the bed. He slips through the door and tries to shut it quietly before the woman notices him. He hears a muffled, "Hello?" before pulling his shirt on and stumbling down to the bar, buttoning his shirt.

 

The bar is much brighter than the hallway. He shuffles, squinting, up to the bar and croaks, "...w'ter..." before his face falls onto the sticky bar.

 

 

Sorry for my delay in getting to the thread. I've had very limited computer time since Friday. I had 11 family members staying with me for the weekend.

 

[Gavriel]

Hey guys. I'm sorry I haven't been around. I went on vacation assuming that I'd be able to get internet access... Doesn't look like I'll be around very much! Go for it you guys.

[Tadir]

Tadir peels his face off the bar to look for the bartender. Apparently no one is tending bar. He looks around at the few people still passed out in the room.

 

"Ehnywo..." he croaks and stops.

 

Clearing his throat he says, "Anyone mind if I...uh...nip over and grab myself something?"

 

Without waiting for an answer he leans over the bar and rummages around for a cleanish glass. Finding one, eventually, Tadir sticks it under the tap and pours himself a beer.

 

After leaning back in his chair and putting his feet, which he now notices are lacking shoes, up on the bar, Tadir takes a deep sip of the frothy beverage.

 

"By far the best thing to get rid of a hangover." He nods to himself with a smile. It wilts slightly as he realizes that at some point he's going to have to go back into that room to find his shoes.

[Vareal]

 

Thanks Tadir. Here we go!

 

 

Nedral awoke with a start, bolting upright and breathing heavily, her forehead beading with sweat. Her eyes darted around the still dark room, trying to get a fix on what was reality and what was still a dream. She sighed, closing her eyes and placing a hand on her forehead.

 

"'Ere ya go, princess." Luther held out a damp cloth to Nedral, a warm smile spread across his large face.

 

She smiled and took it. "Thank you, Luther."

 

He nodded then lay down on the floor, stretching his giant limbs gratefully, then rolled on to his side, propping his head up with his hand. "You were thrashin' about somthin' fierce there fer a while. Oi nearly woke you up, but you calmed down." He let out a bellowing yawn and laid his head down. "But, Oi'm going to get a few hours of shut eye, didn't sleep a wink last night." And with that he closed his eyes.

 

Nedral finished wiping her forehead off, setting the cloth on the night table, then swung her legs over the bed and stood up, stretching just as gratefully as Luther had done, her tail standing straight and stiff. She looked around the room and, eyeing her clothes, got fully dressed then headed downstairs to investigate the remnants of last nights chaos.

 

When she crested the pathway from the stairwell to the bar, Nedral surveyed the area keenly, at one point appearing as if she were staring off into space, thinking. Shamad and that horrid looking Lalafell that accompanied his doctor the previous night were at one table while one, she had never met, sat at the bar and had already began his trek into a inebriated stupor by drinking so early in the morning.

 

She had come down into the bar just in time to see the man mumble something then reach behind the bar and pour himself a glass of beer. Nedral eyed him a moment, then decided to follow suit. She moved quietly behind the bar, found a clean glass, filled it with water and took a large drink of it.

 

"Finally..." she said, leaning against the back wall of the bar.

[Tadir]

Tadir glances over at the Miqo'te who had just poured herself a drink.

 

"A woman after my own heart." He smiles playfully at her and raises his glass, wincing as soon as he does. "This is what comes of drinking in a desert..." he mutters

 

He looks queerly at the Miqo'te, trying to place her from last night.

 

"I'm Tadir," he says with a little wave. "Not exactly in finest form right now, but what can I say? Last night got out of hand." He chuckles as softly as he can without his head exploding.

[Shamadconde]

Serenla glanced at the other two patrons. She looked behind the bar and seeing no one, hopped behind the counter and cooked breakfast. The smell was offensive and cloying. She brought the two plates to the table and plopped one down in front of Shamad. He took one sniff and pushed it away. Serenla gave him an evil look. "It's good for you and will help you become strong again. If you don't start eating it, I will force feed you." She flexed an arm. "As you can see, I have the ability and the desire to do it." Shamad gave her face a long look and shoveled it in without tasting it. It was an ability that came in handy sometimes. Serenla chuckled and ate her food with gusto.

[Vareal]

"I'm Tadir," he says with a little wave. "Not exactly in finest form right now, but what can I say? Last night got out of hand." He chuckles as softly as he can without his head exploding.

 

She raised en eye brow, studying the the man. She finished her glass, refilled it, then moved around to the other side of the bar, sitting on a stool with her back to the bar. She turned her head to Tadir. "I'm Nedral. You know the hangover is caused by dehydration, you should drink some water."

 

Nedral finished in time to see the the overly built female Lalafell hop the bar, cook something awful smelling, then brought it over to Shamad who fought her before eating.

 

"I feel worse for him now than I did when I first saw him." She mused, taking another drink of water.

[Tadir]

Tadir almost retches at the smell of whatever the little woman was cooking. When she finally abandons her attempt at the culinary arts Tadir looks to Nedral.

 

"I've been told that. In the long run it tends to be true, but getting rid of a hangover drinking water takes hours. It only takes one beer." He chuckles softly. "So I drink water after the beer. Never heard of the saying the hair of the dog that bit ya?"

 

Tadir allows his chair to fall to all four feet and winces at the impact. "Anyway, I've found this to be the most effective method of dealing with the morning after. A beer and a nice piece of fish...all they seem to have here is eggs and meat. How do they survive without seafood?" he asks in a manor clearly indicating it's not a real question. Obviously no one could really survive in a land without sea food.

 

The man glances back over his shoulder at the little guys attempting to eat whatever it was the woman had been failing to cook. Glancing back at Nedral he says, "This beer is better than whatever they're having." He gestures with his head.

[Shamadconde]

Serenla belched and grinned at Shamad. Shamad shrank back as far as he could. She unstrapped him and, in front of the Twelve and everybody, stood him up and took all his clothes except his undies. He gasped and attempted to cover himself. She laughed and pulled out a jar. She took out a big dollop of green goop and liberally rubbed it all over him. He gasped, giggled, and blushed as she spread the stuff. She redressed him and strapped a harness on him. She put a similar harness on herself and connected the two with a rope. She grinned at him. He wished she would stop that. "Here is how your therapy will be performed. I like to run therefore YOU like to run. We are going on a brisk jog around the oasis. You can either run or be dragged. Now lets go!" Shamad started to hyperventilate. "Don't I get a say?!" She shook her head and walked them out the door. He was proud he didn't start screaming until they had made it around the corner.

[Vareal]

Nedral smiled a girlish grin and chuckled slightly as she watched Shamad be forcefully derobed, strapped into a harness and dragged outside.

 

She took another drink of her water and looked to Tadir. "Perhaps, maybe you should buy him one."

 

She ran her hand through her hair, turned around to face the bar, grabbing her tail and absently fraying the fur. With her other hand, she gently probed around her bruised nose, noting that the swelling was nearly gone but the bruise would remain for some days yet. She looked to Tadir. "So what's your story?"

[Tadir]

"I don't envy him." he says, indicating Shamad with a chuckle.

 

Tadir tilts back in his chair again. "My story? It's pretty short. My editor sent me out here to get a story that no one wants to read. I've been wasting time trying to get it. I have a couple other articles for...Oh, I work for a newspaper." He gives a slight smirk. "I have a couple other articles for him, so I'll finally be getting out of this desert soon."

 

He stretches, but leans to far back in his chair. As it starts to tip backward he hooks one of his feet under the bar to catch himself. Pulling himself back to a safe, tilted back position Tadir takes another sip of his beer. He rubs idly at a spot of beer that had spilled on his shirt.

 

"And you? I can't help but notice your bruise there. Bit of a confrontation somewhere?"

[Vareal]

Nedral finished her glass of water, setting it on the bar and ran her fingers over the rim and turned the glass back and forth, staring off into space remembering. The morning light spilling in through the windows reflected off the transparent surface of the glass, the refractions dancing across the wall behind the bar, others playing about on the bar surface.

 

"I had a run in with some slavers a few days ago out in the desert..." Her voice was somber and low but easy enough to hear in the silence of the empty bar. "They took something of mine and I reclaimed it." She continued to stare at the glass for a moment longer then set it flat on the bar and leaned back in her seat, turning her head to Tadir. She said darkly, "They won't be a problem to anyone any more." She moved her other hand from her tail to absently finger the pommel of her sword.

[Shamadconde]

Serenla opened the door. Dangling from her huge fist was Shamad in his harness. She was harangueing him in her deep and disturbing voice. "That was pathetic! You didn't even make it half way around! You had better do a better job tomorrow or we'll move on to something more bone breaking." She plopped him into a chair. "I'm going to finish my run. You stay here and don't be hassling the wait staff." She ran out the door with a cackle. Shamad shuddered.

[Tadir]

Tadir perks up slightly at hearing Nedral's comments. He lets his chair rock forward to both feet and gets up to move to the chair next to her. Taking the seat, he looks her in the eyes.

 

"Slavers huh? Would you be interested in talking about your adventure a little bit? See if we can put a little story together for the paper?"

 

Tadir smiles hopefully at her. He gives a little jump as the door slams open and Serenla drags Shamad back into the bar, harrasing him even more than she was before.

 

The journalist chuckles and turns to the dunesfolk, lifting his glass in sympathy. "One of these might help." He turns back to Nedral.

 

"Well?"

[Vareal]

She looked to Tadir and studied him, his curiosity piqueing her own slightly. She appeared to drift off into space for a brief moment before returning her attnetion to the present.

 

"I don't mind talking about it, though I'm not sure how well of a story it would make. Sure, violence sells, but how much of if can you sell?"

 

Her attention was stolen as the door burst open and Shamad and his new counterpart came into the bar. She chuckled out loud as he was chided for his performance, forced into a seat then left alone at his table as the grotesque Lalafell went back outside.

 

"You know, Shamad, I could have Luther come down and set her straight." She smiled sheepishly. "He's got a few pounds on her."

 

"Well?" Tadir asked of her.

 

She turned back to Tadir. "What would you like to know?"

[Shamadconde]

Shamad sat with some discomfort. That "lady" ran like the wind and he ran like a rock.

 

"You know, Shamad, I could have Luther come down and set her straight." She smiled sheepishly. "He's got a few pounds on her."

 

Shamad shakily got up and, using the chairs for support, toddled over near their table so he wouldn't have to yell. "That's ok Nedral. As much as I hate her right now, she is here to help me. I'm guessing she's being a jerk just so I will get well as fast as I can so she'll go away. Besides I'm not sure Luther could take her. It would be an interesting fight though. I'll let you know when I get to that point." He looked around the bar. "Where is the wait staff?"

[Tadir]

"Where is the wait staff?"

 

Tadir looks around, wondering where the cute bartender from last night went as well, then shrugs.

 

"Do you want a drink?"

 

Without waiting for an answer he drops his barstool to all four legs again, stands up and leans over the bar. He scoots a bit farther so his feet are off the ground, kicking slightly to keep his balance.

 

"...got one!" he grunts before slipping off the bar and returning to his feet with a glass full of beer. He sets it on the bar next to his and Nedral's chairs.

 

"Join us? I'm sure you could tell us an intere..." Tadir's eyes widen slightly and he starts to grin as he realizes Shamad is a Dunesfolk. He coughs, "uh, I'm sure you could tell an interesting story."

[Shamadconde]

Shamad looked at the goofy grin on Tadir's face and grinned himself. He carefully got up and, wincing, sat between them. He took a sip of the beer and sighed. "What do you want to know?"

[Vareal]

 

Sorry, slept for several hours and got caught up doing stuffs in AoC

 

 

Nedral was a little relieved at the change of attnetion and she sat back in her chair and crossed her arms, her tail shifting back and forth gently behind her. She let out a yawn and tilted her head to either side, stretching. She became lost in thought for several minutes, staring off into space, taking a single glance back at the stairway to the bedrooms before going back to her lost state.

[Shamadconde]

As Tadir was considering what question to ask, Shamad pulled a folded piece of paper, sealed with wax, out of his shirt. He slid it to Nedral. "Chalinda left this for you."

[Vareal]

Nedral's ears perked up as she broke from her reverie. She looked to Shamad then to the note on the table. She picked it up, turning it over once, then slid her thumb under the fold and broke the seal with a snap as the wax broke in half. She unfolded the letter and began reading it. Her dual colored eyes narrowed for a moment then looked up to the door, then back to the letter. She refolded the letter and slid it back to Shamad, eyeing him curiously. "It would seem Chalinda isn't happy with your present company." She nodded to him, signaling him to read the letter.

 

 

Feel free to post around this, Tadir, I don't want to step in your way of wrestling info out of Shamad

 

[Shamadconde]

Ya. Go ahead whenever you are ready Tadir. Serenla won't be back for "hours" however long that is. Wish we had a way to tell the time.

Shamad read the letter. His eyes widened. He looked pleadingly at Nedral. "I would very grateful for anything you can do. I don't feel like being broken."

[Vareal]

Nedral pondered, coming in and out of awareness. She sat forward, resting her elbows on the table, clasped her hands together and looked between Shamad and Tadir. "First thing is to get you away from Serenla, I would prefer it not come to blows in doing so, but so be it should it. The second is we should get you to Ul'dah, as that was the original plan before the good doctor showed up. Chalinda relayed some importance to me, but did not express much urgency, so I'd say we have some time to devise a plan to safely secret you away."