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1. [DL-J] Endings, But No Beginnings
From: John Pepper <trissana@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
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Message: 1
Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2005 12:54:33 -0700 (PDT)
From: John Pepper <trissana@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
Subject: [DL-J] Endings, But No Beginnings
Jerram
Day 1, Evening
/snip from Arlene's post "A Chance Worth Taking"/
Oga stared at the scepter, as it gathered power into itself. The room
was growing colder as the scepter grew hotter in his hand. Oga cried
out, and dropped the scroll. Panicked he turned around, searching for
an escape from his doom.
The restraining magic wall fell apart and everyone came ru****ng down
the
hall. Rellik gasped as he realized what was happening. "The scepter!
It is going to implode!"
Oga threw the scepter at Tyler, "You die with it!"
Tyler stared at the scepter in his hand. It was only fitting, he
briefly thought.
"NO!" Rellik cried out, "It will kill us all! You have to get it out
of here, fast!"
Tyler tried, but shook his head in frustration. He couldn't move. The
throw onto the table had injured him too badly; he couldn't crawl, much
less run.
The scepter was snatched from his hands and he looked up into the eyes
of his cousin. "Gus?"
"No time. Take care of yerself, kid," and she raced for the end of the
hall, the scepter's glow making it hard to look at her as she ran.
/end snip/
Jerram had been pressing up against the invisible barrier, with Gus
alongside him, when suddenly it collapsed and both of them pitched
forward - along with all of the other people who had been pressing up
behind them. Jerram went down with two rather bulky riders on top of
him, and by the time he managed to extricate himself from the pile, he
saw Gus running out of the inner chamber with a brightly glowing rod in
her hand - the Scepter of Ythfaru.
"Where are you going with that??" he asked as she whisked by him
without even so much as an acknowledgment. She was by him so fast he
didn't even think to ask HOW she had gotten her hands on it. Surely
Counselor Oga wouldn't have just handed it to her. But then she WAS
the best thief he'd ever known, and he wouldn't put it past her to have
simply snatched it out of his hands when his attention was diverted
elsewhere by Hsina or one of the others. He moved into a blocking
position behind her, and drew his sword with the expectation that any
second he would be seeing an enraged Oga in hot pursuit of her. He
risked a quick look behind him and saw her vault up onto Loki's back.
The small grey dragon launched himself skyward and hurtled out over the
bay, his wings pumping furiously. But even from here, he could see the
glow of the Scepter growing stronger.
Suddenly he saw a figure running out of the darkened corridor, and he
raised his swordpoint. But he saw a second later that it was not Oga,
but Tyler Grouty who skidded to a stop only inches from impaling
himself on Jerram's sword. "We've got to stop her!" Tyler panted
breathlessly.
"Stop her? Why?" Jerram asked. "It's Oga we need to stop!"
"Hsina and the others are handling Oga!" Tyler cried. The words
tumbled from him almost too fast to follow, but Jerram got the overall
message - the Scepter was going to destroy itself, and Gus had taken it
out of the warren.
"By the gods...!" Jerram whispered, turning even as the words left his
lips as he broke into a run.
"We've got to stop her!" Tyler said urgently.
"No, we've got to overtake her and make sure she doesn't do anything
stupid!" Jerram replied. *Seydor, talk to Loki! Have him tell Gus to
drop the damn thing in the water and get back here before its too
late!*
[Loki says it is already too late!] Seyd said as Jerram leaped up onto
the saddle and ordered the blue dragon aloft before he'd even taken
time to fasten the riding straps.
[Plastyra wants us to wait for her and her rider,] Seyd said as Jerram
struggled to get himself situated in the saddle.
*No time!* Jerram told him, looking behind to see Plas and Tyler
running toward one another across the green. But Plas had been farther
away from the exit to the green, and Jerram knew that Tyler would be at
least thirty seconds behind him. And those thirty seconds could be an
eternity in terms of what needed to be done.
*Give it everything you've got!* he yelled at Seyd, and felt the blue
dragon's exertions increase still more. By now, Loki was just a small
grey dot on the horizon - a dot surrounded by a golden glow, now tinged
with red at the edges, that glowed brighter and brighter with every
second they watched.
*Tell her to drop it!!* Jerram mindshouted.
[Loki is saying that...that they need to get it as far out to sea as
they can. Beyond the warren, but also beyond the seapeople's army.]
*Do whatever you have to do to overtake her!* he cried. *Tele****t!!*
[They are far out to sea already, in the area where our magic is
uncertain, it is very dangerous...] Seydor tried to tell him.
*DO IT!!!!* Jerram screamed.
Seyd tele****ted, and then they were wingtip-to-wingtip with Loki. But
something was wrong - Jerram could feel the bond that connected his
mind to Seyd's begin to fray. As the dragon had warned, they were too
far out to sea. It was the same effect that took place if a joined
dragon and rider went too far into the wastes. He knew they had only
minutes before the bond attenuated so far that it was lost forever.
"Gus!!" he cried out, over the short intervening distance. "Drop it!!"
For a moment he wondered if she heard him, but then she looked him full
in the eyes. "My Da brought this thing to the warren, and woulda took
it out if he coulda!" she called back. "Jerram, tell my Da I love
him..."
"Damnit, I love YOU!!!" Jerram shouted back. "Drop it, now!!!"
"Enough folks died 'cause of me today," she told him. "No more...no
more."
[He's...getting ready...tele****t...won't listen...!] Seydor told him,
the sea's incompatible magic already making it difficult for them to
communicate with one another.
"Gus, stop!!!!" he cried.
"I love ya, ya big lug..." she told him, and then suddenly Jerram and
Seyd were alone in the air.
*Where'd they go??* Jerram asked Seyd.
[Out...sea...] came the blue's garbled reply. Jerram knew they had
only a short time themselves to get back to the warren.
*Tele****t out after them!* he ordered.
[Can't tell...where...tele****ted...] Seyd replied. Jerram swore
silently as he realized that Gus and Loki had tele****ted so far out
that Seyd could no longer sense them. All they could do was fly
seaward, and hope to spot them.
Suddenly, from out past the horizon, came a blinding flash that left
both dragon and rider dazzled. Jerram knew what was coming next, and
ordered the dragon to turn about. Seyd banked sharply, and had only
just completed the turn when suddenly the shock wave hit. It felt like
an ocean wave had slammed into them, flipping Seyd over in the air.
The dragon struggled valiantly to regain his balance and check their
fall, which he succeeded in doing just before they would have plunged
into the waves.
[Where...go?] Seyd asked. [Back...warren?]
*I don't care,* Jerram said. For all he cared, they could just as well
have plunged into the sea and been done with it.
* * * * *
Seyd landed on the green moments later. As one, the dragons of the
warren began to keen for Loki as they learned what had happened far out
to sea, beyond their ability to sense another dragon's passing. Even
Seyd had not actually felt the passing, but all knew what must have
occurred.
Jerram got out of the saddle and slid heavily to the ground. For
several moments, his numbed mind didn't even register the chaos around
him. He only knew that Gus was gone. And he should have been gone
too, out there, with her...
[Jerram, Kethriss wants to know where you are,] Seyd said. [Now that
they were back at the warren, they could communicate normally again.
*Tell her it's none of her business.*
Seydor sighed deeply. [Varaenna's rider is critically injured, and may
die.]
*She wouldn't be the first today,* Jerram replied.
[Keeza's rider is hurt also, and the healers are working on her,] Seyd
continued. [Syngnath's rider is with her...Kethriss' rider is busy
with the Emperor, and no one has heard from Britche or his rider
since...]
*Seyd, enough,* Jerram said, leaning back against the cool hardness of
the warren's high seaward wall.
[All of the queenriders, wingleaders, and wingseconds are either
injured, missing, or...] Seyd did not need to finish for Jerram to
catch his drift.
*So?* he asked. With Gus gone, this place could go to hell in a
handbasket for all he cared.
[Well, you are the Swordmaster, and Kethriss thought that perhaps you
could help restore order until her rider or Syngnath's is available...]
Seyd began, but then stopped as he sensed what was in his rider's mind.
Jerram blinked his eyes, raising a hand to wipe the tears onto his
sleeve. "Swordmaster..?" he asked numbly, drawing his sword from its
scabbard. He gazed dispassionately at the gleaming silver blade,
presented to him by the Dragonlady herself.
With a single, fluid motion he gripped the tip of the sword in his free
hand, and brought the flat of the blade down across his raised knee.
The blade snapped in two with a loud *crack* that seemed to echo across
the warren. In disgust, Jerram hurled the broken pieces to the ground
in front of Ansel.
"Not anymore," he said. Then he sank to his knees and wept quietly for
all that had been, and would never be again.
(Tag to anyone who wants to talk with Jerram)
NRPG: Gus and Loki will be presumed dead, but this is not confirmed as
no one saw it happen and the dragons didn't actually feel Loki's
passing.
Submitted by:
John
Jerram & Seydor
Jasra Warren
Summary:
Gus and Loki, pursued by Jerram and Seydor, take the Scepter of Ythfaru
far out to sea where to prevent it from destroying the warren along
with itself. Failing to save them, Jerram and Seydor return to the
warren where Jerram ignores Kethriss' request that he help restore
order. He breaks his sword across his knee, thereby renouncing his
title as Swordmaster.
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