To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)
<h1 id="title">Elliquiy Role Playing Forums</h1>
		<h2 id="linktree">Play-By-Post: Bondage, D/s, S&amp;M =&gt; Bondage: Human Solos =&gt; Topic started by: MagicalPen on 26-03-2008, 21:55:43</h2>
		<dl id="posts">
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>26-03-2008, 21:55:43</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The Planet Slavus had once been a Slave Colony. It was now a Slave Planet, one of the largest exporting planets in the system. Male and Female slaves were brought there from around the empire, to dig away with low-tech tools. In the harsh conditions, many died from an assortment of things. Their labor was cheap - virtually free - and the profits gained were vast for those fortunate to be on the receiving end. The small, ruling class mainly lived in the city built up around the Space Port, running business associated with such living. There were no hover cars here though, only ground based archaic vehicles. It was the point - and part of the appeal - to those who vacationed in the numerous villas spread out on the planet. There was a lot of wealth here, but people enjoyed the rustic feel of the place. The hard labor slaves were always kept from public view, their camps and working areas were off limits for most citizens- those with out connections.<br><br>The slaves produced goods, mined, and performed a host of other chores that made the planet revolve and become important in the grand scheme of things. A recent survey of a jungle, looking for more raw materials, has instead uncovered a mysterious temple, buried under millions of years of growth. One of the under Lords has been chosen for the task, and he has recently moved his slaving crew to the site to begin excavation. But not until they built him a Villa overlooking the project, for his family, and a small village for those he employed. It was a long journey back to the City, as it was called, using primitive means so they would have to be somewhat self proficient. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-05-2008, 23:50:01</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The jungle is ... unbearably hot. Angelica sighs, reclining in the shaded litter and looking out through a crack in the curtains at the sallow yellow of the sky. She brushes a strand of long blonde hair from her face and stretches out on the soft pillows, feeling a trickle of sweat slide down between her breasts. The vivid crimson linen of her dress is light, but it sticks uncomfortably to every curve, and she sighs again. <br><br>Angelica has been the wife of a Lord on paper now for almost a decade, though she's been his wife in person now for much less than that. It's not necessarily a bad life. Slaves carry her, and wave the fans curcling her, keeping the biting insects and some of the humidity away. But having everything chosen for her, everything done for her... it settles a pervading sense of boredom somewhere in the vicinity of her stomach. <br><br>And now he's dragged her away from her cool oceanside villa to this ... place. This monstrous temple buried deep in a forgotten jungle. She sighs and steps out of the covered litter, setting her sandaled foot on the jungle's floor by her husband's temporary tent. The man is certainly not one to leave the comforts of home behind, and his wife counts among those. She turns her striking green eyes toward the slowly growing villa on the rocky shelf above the valley containing the temple, and she shakes her head. Even with so many slaves, this will take too long for her tastes. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>13-05-2008, 14:56:39</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The villa was perched on the edge of the cliff, perhaps fifty-feet from the base of the cliff to the top. It was more like a giant slab of rock jutted out amidst the jungle. The Villa had been completed the day before, the jungled pushed back around it to make it feel more homely for his family - and himself. A stairway led down the face of the cliff to a platform with a canopied dais where the Overlord could sit in comfort and oversee everything that was happening. Down below, slaves were busy at work. <br><br>One team of slaves used pick-ax, shovel, machete and spade to tear up the dense jungle foilage, clearing it away from the exposed end of the temple and clearing a large space around it. A second team of slaves worked on constructing small huts for the slaves to sleep in at night. Muscles rippled beneath tanned skin that glistened with sweat. All were stripped to the waist to work in the unbearable humidity and heat, the crack of whips urging them on. <br><br>Dargoth stood out amongst the slaves that worked around him, and not because he was armed with two machetes and was attacking the jungle with a vengeance. He was tall, perhaps 6'4", and stood head and shoulders above any other slave. His black hair hung nearly to his shoulders, a leather thong around his head keeping it from his eyes. He had broad shoulders and bulging muscles - a hard stomach with clearly defined abs - and sweat glistened off his sun darkened skin. He wore a simple loin cloth and moccasin shoes, and his back was scarred with criss-crossing scars. <br><br>By the way he wielded the machetes, it was clear that his past - prior to becoming a slave - had been that of a fighter. He cut a swathe into the jungle, the leading point behind which everyone else worked, and now vine was too thick for his powerful strokes, cutting each cleanly, beating back the jungle. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>14-05-2008, 09:24:08</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				At least the villa is completed. That's definitely a plus. The woman pads on her sandaled feet toward the villa, intending to go inside and see what her husband is up to. She pauses as she passes a group of slaves still clearing jungle some distance away. She has no idea how they work so hard in this heat. They probably do it because they must, but it seems to be beyond the capacity for human tolerance.<br><br>She pauses as one of the slaves in particular catches her eye, hacking away at the jungle with enthusiasm. There is barely-restrained violence in him, and that by itself is rare. The others are always so ... broken. Servile. Weak. She turns away somewhat quickly, because it won't do for her to be caught gawking at a slave, but her eyes go surreptitiously back to the man often as she picks her way toward the villa. <br><br>He's handsome, of that there is no doubt. For that reasona lone, it would be a pleasure to watch him work. But not only that, he's competent and ... he interests her. She runs her fingertips over her soft lips thoughtfully, then turns and beckons one of her attendants forward. "Those men. When they've finished their work with the jungle for a day, have them sent to my suite. I have furniture I need moved, and they look strong." The attendant bows and hurries away, off to make sure it happens. <br><br>Angelica is the wife of a Lord. She gets what she wants.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>14-05-2008, 16:17:08</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Dargoth had no idea that he was being so closely watched, so intent on his work. Unlike the other slaves, he wasn't dejected. Thoughts of escape always occupied his mind, and if one were to truly study his movements they would see that he was practicing combat, not just being enthusiastic about his task at hand. His feet danced on the jungle floor, one motion moving fluidly into the next, toned muscles moving with practiced ease. <br><br>The attendant, once dismissed, approached the team-master and informed him of their mistresses request. The slaves would be working until the sun began to set - their work was of the highest priority - before they'd be allowed to help her out. Another two hours or so. The attendant returned and informed his mistress.<br><br>Dargoth and his slaves continued to work, with one break every hour for about ten minutes to rest and drink water from a bucket that was just large enough to provide each of them with a cup of water. It was welcome relief, though many showed signs of cracking by the end of the day. Of the dozen or so slaves in the team, only 8 were fit enough to climb up the walkway to the villa. Dargoth was the strongest amongst them, their self appointed leader, and led the way.<br><br>They left their tools behind, dressed only in sandals and loin cloth, and approached the villa. They sent an attendant inside to inform the mistress of their arrival.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>19-05-2008, 02:10:35</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Angelica appears at the outside doorway, glancing over the handful of slaves waiting outside. Approval shows on her face as she looks over them, but she doesn't address them directly. "Have them unload the rest of the furniture," she murmurs to the attendant, then disappears back into her suite, apparently ignoring them further. She curls up in a corner of the sitting room, where the furnishings have already been moved in, and pulls out a slim reader, taking the stylus from it and settling in to read for a while. She keeps an eye over the top of it on the slaves as they move around, watching their movements through the strands of her pale hair.<br><br>While the attendant is out, she gets up from the chair and pads toward the doorway between the two rooms, leaning against the frame. She crosses her arms and watches the slaves move around for a moment, then speaks up. "You." She nods toward Dargoth. "Come here." She nods her head toward the room behind her.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>19-05-2008, 14:45:27</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The moving of furniture and other items is a welcome change of pace, especially inside the climate controlled home. It was a far cry from the hot, sweltering heat of the jungle around them, and the slaves all felt refreshed despite the labor they were doing. Dargoth looks around when she motions for him to go to her. Was she confusing him with some one else? Apparently not as her eyes remained trained on him. His bulky mass moves towards her and into the room she motioned to. His size filled up most of the door-frame as he moved through it, his eyes seeming very alert as they darted around sizing up the situation and a host of other things. Perhaps she had something else for him to move?
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>20-05-2008, 03:43:34</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Moving aside as he comes through the doorway, Angelica doesn't even spare a glance toward the other slaves, keeping her eyes on him. "That," she points to a chair. "It needs to go over there." She crosses her arms and watches him, waiting for him to go for the chair. <br><br>"I saw you working today. You looks as if the jungle gave you a personal insult of some sort." She arches her brow. "Or could it be that you're a rarity?" The corners of her lips twitch, and her tone holds a slight hint of mockery. "That rare slave that enjoys what he does?" 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>20-05-2008, 14:48:24</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				As he passes her, he notes that she was a woman of beauty, and apparently one of high status living in the Masters home. He grabs the chair with one massive hand, picking it up as if it were nothing more then a twig, and moving it over to where she had pointed, looking to her for approval. He saw no point in doing anything right now that would result in punishment. And apparently she had been watching him.<br><br>He paused for a few moments. "Old habits die hard." He responds simply, his voice deep and rough. "I have nothing against the Jungle."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>24-05-2008, 06:57:31</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She watches him move the chair, then smiles thinly as he looks at her. "Better." She crosses to the chair and takes a seat in it, watching him. "Tell me your name." She leans back, folding one leg over the other and settling into the chair lazily. <br><br>"Tell me where you're from. I'm curious about the slaves." And, of course, it's a bit of a sadistic streak to make them remember who they were and where they came from. She's miserable; they may as well be. The thrill is, of course, in the power.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>25-05-2008, 02:49:54</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Once the chair is in place, he takes a few steps back, eyes watching her as she takes a seat. Unlike the other slaves, he did not avert his eyes or look at the floor. He looked her directly in the eyes. "In your language," he responds, his voice clearly tainted with an off world accent. "I am known as Dargoth. My people are the Tresarthi, a proud and noble warrior race. I am the only one of my kind here." He responds, his voice clear and full of pride when he mentions his own people.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>05-06-2008, 07:17:06</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She meets his eyes and raises an eyebrow as he doesn't avert his. His will is still clearly strong. She settles her hands on the armrests of the chair, pale hands splaying across the dark wood. "The only of your kind? Why is that?" She tilts her head curiously at him. "Tell me of them."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>05-06-2008, 21:16:26</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"The others were not brought here. Most, I think, were taken off world, to fight for Gladiators." He shrugs his shoulders, huge muscles bulging. "My people are not like your people. We love the land, we do not destroy it. We fight for food and women." He says, eyes roaming over her. "We fight for what is scarce. We follow the large herds of Graman, following them wherever they roam. Your people are much different."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>12-06-2008, 01:16:30</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"Of course we're different," she answers, her tone deliberately arrogant. She's bored, and this man happened to catch her attention, and she's curious as to whether he'll allow himself to be baited or not. "After all, you're the one in servitude, and I am not." She tilts her head at him, taking in his stance, his physique. <br><br>"Tell me how you came to be here, instead of in the fighting ring with the rest of your fellows." She doesn't bother with requests with him, doesn't couch her orders in softness like some of the other women of her stature. Some think her rude, but she feels that it's more rude to pretend these people aren't captive, held here against their will, if they still have one.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>17-06-2008, 16:12:24</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He had to bite his tongue at the mention of his servitude, least he lash out and hit the woman. "I was deemed to much a threat to public safety to be given weapons with which to fight with. I heard the Slave Master mention that i had the strength of ten men and would serve better use out her fighting back the jungle." He responds, standing straight and rigid. His muscles gleamed with sweat from the days work, his tan and toned body the envy of many.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>18-06-2008, 01:30:01</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"Perhaps you are." She stands abruptly, unfolding from her chair. "This is all I wanted of you," she says dismissively. "You can go back to working with the rest of your fellows." She gestures toward the main room. "I have dinner to ready for." Retreating from him, she steps into an adjacent room, the gauzy curtain between the room he's in and her room doing little to hide her silhouette as she starts to remove jewelry. She doesn't doubt he'll go back to his work at the dismissal. What slave would dare stay and gawk?<br><br>Unselfconsciously, she disrobes, heading to her closet to select a gown appropriate for the meal.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>18-06-2008, 15:07:06</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He found it odd that she needed a reason to dismiss him, and his eyes follow her as she moves out of the room. She was rather...beautiful, he thought. She would make a good wife. It seemed cruel for her to be married to the Slave Master. He was such a vile pig, older then her by a number of years too. Lost in thought, he could see her silhouette, removing her clothes, and he stared at her - having forgotten he had been dismissed.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>20-06-2008, 02:40:26</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Moving about her room, Angelica is completely unaware of being watched, preoccupied with choosing her outfit for dinner. Though her husband seems to take great pride in having acquired her, his tastes seem to be caught often by the female house slaves, and after his initial fascination with his new wife wore off, his eye went directly back to wandering. Angelica prefers to subtly encourage this, having little use for the old man in her bed. <br><br>As such, she dresses elegantly, but avoids bright colours or eye-catching necklines, setting out a very pale beige gown. Turning toward the mirror, she starts to run a comb through her hair, then realises that her attendant has not yet returned. Or perhaps she has, and is simply waiting to be summoned. "Mira? Mira, I..."<br><br>As she speaks, she crosses back to the curtain, and stops talking abruptly as she realises that it isn't Mira in her sitting room. Moving the curtain so that it covers what flesh he may have seen, she frowns. "Did you need something else, Dargoth?"
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>23-06-2008, 14:41:50</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				It was a shame, he thought, that such a woman was wasting away married to the pig of a man her husband was. As she addresses him once more, it breaks the spell he had fallen into and he shakes his head. "No." He says, making no attempt to avert his eyes. He could still see the outline of her features beneath the fabric of the curtain. "I am dismissed now?" 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>25-06-2008, 03:42:34</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Frowning, she nods. "You were dismissed a while ago. What, did you think I wanted you to watch me change?" She arches an eyebrow at him, imperiously, though she runs a hand down the curtain, making sure it covers what she wants it to cover. His look unsettles her; he acts as if he can see right through the curtain.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>25-06-2008, 15:04:50</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"I apologize." He says, turning away from her after a bob of his head, moving back out into the hallway to help the other slaves finish the task at hand. Had the Slave Master caught him staring at his naked wife, he would surely be beaten to within an inch of his life. Let them try, he thought. He looks around at the other slaves, a few meeting the look in his eyes and nodding their heads silently. There appeared to be no defenses with in the house.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>03-07-2008, 05:58:41</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She watches him turn away with a hard look in her eyes, then goes back into her room, leaving the curtain fluttering behind her. The slave doesn't leave her mind quite so easily, though, and she pulls her clothing on while distracted, settling it all into place. <br><br>Leaving them to finish the last few things in her room, she leaves the slaves with her assistant and whoever else is supposed to oversee them, heading&nbsp; into the dining room. With her husband seated across the table from her seat already, Angelica apologises for being late, then says little else as she eats. Lord Marius Sahir is practically draped in the pair of slaves he's chosen to serve him this evening, and Angelica waves them away when they move toward her at all. She does not dally with the slaves, regardless of how much her husband would likely enjoy the show.<br><br>While her Master and Mistress eat on the other room, Angelica's assistant waits, bored, for the slaves to finish their work. "How much more did she ask you to move?" the woman, a slave herself, asks the men. She is treated somewhat better than them, working in the household, and fed better. At the moment, her meal is waiting for her in the kitchen, and she'd like to get to it.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 21:41:49</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Dargoth rejoins his fellow slaves, setting his muscles to work, moving more furniture around. When the assistant speaks, the other slaves keep working but he stops to talk to her. "We are almost done here." He responds gruffly. "You can return to your duties if we are holding you up. A few more minutes and we will be gone he says." A few slaves nearest him nod their heads as if to back up his claim. A few further away glance about for a few seconds as they set down another piece of furniture.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 21:52:40</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The house slave eyes them, chewing the inside of her lip. She shouldn't leave them alone, but she hasn't eaten all day, and she's hungry. She knows the men have probably already had their dinner - even for slaves, it'snot at all wise to starve those who are responsible for hard labour ... it's how accidents happen. So they're probably just fine, and wanting to finish so they can go to their beds.<br><br>"Okay," she finally says, with a nod and a smile. "Thank you," she adds quietly to Dargoth, then turns and hurries away, though she closes and locks the door behind her. They came in through the patio, and can get back out that way; this way, she keeps them from having widespread access to the rest of the house. It's not that she doesn't trust them, per se, but she would be beaten to within an inch of her life if someone were to find out ... and possibly worse, if something ended up actually missing.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 21:57:50</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				As soon as she leaves, Dargoth freezes as do the other slaves for a few seconds. Despite his large, imposing form, Darghoth moves quietly over to the door and presses his ear against it. He can't hear anything and tests the handle, noting that it was locked. He turns back to the other slaves and nods his head. They stop what they are doing and quickly move about the room, opening draws and the like as quietly as they can examining the contents for anything they can use. They needed weapons but there would be none found here. But something small enough that could fit into the hand, with an edge or blunt head would make killing some one with easier then with just bare hands.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 22:28:52</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				There is very little in Lady Angelica's rooms by way of even makeshift weaponry; shoes, jewelry, clothing... she does have some small stone statues that decorate her rooms, and one of them finds a letter opener made of silver and inlaid with emeralds... <br><br>It's not a long time before the Lady herself returns, unlocking the door and stepping into the rooms. It had been a dull dinner, with little conversation, none of it more than pleasantries. She had excused herself claiming an unsettled stomach and a headache, retiring a bit early to bed. Still dressed in her finery, Angelica closes the door firmly behind her with a sour look on her face; clearly she expects to be alone.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 22:32:23</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The jeweled letter opener is taken, everything else is left alone. The slave nearest the door hers the click of the lock turning and they quickly return to moving the few final pieces of furniture around the room, as if they had not been scurrying through her items. The letter opener is, of course, hidden in the clothing of one of the slaves. Dargoth looks up at her as she returns. "We are almost finished here." He says, refraining from calling her 'Mistress'. Anyone else and he knew he would be whipped for such insubordination. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 22:41:15</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Startled by their presence, she stops short just inside the door. Looking around the room at the slaves, she hesitates, then nods. Not feeling very talkative after the mind-numbing meal, she turns back toward her bedroom and starts to walk toward there. "Just leave when you're done." She pauses, then turns to look at Dargoth. "Except for you. I want to talk to you." It's dangerous to be alone in the room with a slave, especially one as strong as Dargoth is, but she really doesn't care at this point.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 22:44:18</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He quirks his brow at her strange command, simply nodding his head before turning back to the task at hand. It doesn't take long for them to finish and after a moments hesitation, the other slaves file out of the room and back down onto the path they had ventured up to arrive at the house. None where sure what lay in store for Dargoth, and nor did he. Trying to think what this could be about, he pauses in her doorway. "You wanted to see me?" He asks.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 23:09:59</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"Yes." Angelica has changed out of her dinner clothes, and now wears a dressing robe, and probably a nightgown underneath. The silky material is soft, but opaque, giving away nothing untoward. "How long has it been since you actually had a choice in soemthing?" She's sitting on a chair to one side, and she beckons him into the room, waving him toward a seat. "I wouldn't mind some company, but I'm not going to force you to stay up here. So... if you'd like, come chat with me."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 23:35:54</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				This was most unusual and he peers around the room as he enters, making sure no one was waiting to jump him. He moves slowly to sit in the chair. It would be easy for him to rape her, the thought crosses his mind, and he was sure no one was with in easy ear shot. But perhaps she had some sort of trick up her sleeve? She had changed again, it appeared, and he takes his seat, his frame almost too large for it. "I will sit with you." He responds cautiously.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-07-2008, 23:49:45</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She watches him as he slowly seats himself, no doubt thinking she means to trick him into something. Not that she can blame him. She folds her hands in her lap, waiting for him to settle int he seat before she continues. "Tell me more about where you come from." She fixes her eyes on him expectantly, raising an eyebrow. "You didn't seem to mind speaking of it earlier. I'd like to hear more."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 00:25:43</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Talking was innocent enough, he thought. "It is much like this place but instead of large seas of water, we have large seas of sand. My people live between the Jungles and the Sand, moving from Oasis to Oasis, fighting over watering holes. The Jungles are thick, filled with many strange things and other peoples. The Sands are barren, devoid of life if you do not know where to look. Only our strong survive. We do not have such...technologies." The word sounded foreign coming off his tongue. "As you do here." He says, referring to the electronics and the like. "I was a Warrior and claimed many lives - many of your people - before I was hit in the head. I am still shamed to have been taken alive."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 00:45:48</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She listens to him intently, tilting her head halfway through his tale. He paints an interesting picture, and she gets a slightly distant look in her eyes as she tries to picture how a sand-sea would work. <br><br>Focusing on him once more, she looks vaguely startled by his last statement. "Would you rather have been killed?" Though she focuses on his words, she doesn't stop her eyes from wandering over his bare chest and his muscular arms. He's speaking of his strength; why shouldn't she look?
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 00:57:32</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				His own eyes look across the room, to the distant wall as they speak. He longed for home, and the simple but hard life he had lived. He long for the feel of steel under his hand, the pleasant sound of blade biting into flesh, the warm feeling of blood splattering across his chest. "Aye." He responds, not knowing her eyes traced over his muscled, tanned body. "It is shameful to be captured in battle. It shows weakness."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:08:37</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"But you survived. One would think that would show strength." She gets up out of her chair and drifts over toward him, running her fingers along his shoulder and down his bicep. "Anyone can see how strong you are." She meets his eyes, watching him as her fingers caress his skin.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:17:14</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Her touch brings him back to awareness, not having noticed her getting closer to him. She would find his skin warm to the touch, radiating the heat of the day, his muscles firm underneath. His chest muscles ripple as he twitches, but he does not mind her touch. "I survived because I was knocked out. That shows weakness - letting myself succumb to such a state. Many of my brothers died. I did not." He does not dare move to touch her.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:24:26</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She runs her fingers down his bicep, then around his elbow, stroking back up along the tricep lightly. Her fingers are light, gentle, but sure. She considers him thoughtfully, toying with the idea of keeping him for the night. If her husband can dally with the slaves...<br><br>Abruptly withdrawing her hand, she turns away from him and shrugs. "I suppose I can see the logic, if not necessarily the sanity."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:27:13</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				His hand had left his own thigh and was about to land on hers as she abruptly pulls away. His hand freezes in mid-air and then descends onto her leg, his large hand closing over her thigh. A brash move, he thinks, but so had been hers. "Perhaps that is why your people amass what they have, and my people are on the verge of dying out."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:33:51</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Pausing as his hand closes on her thigh, she turns back to him and meets his eyes. The look on her face is vaguely surprised, but she doesn't comment, nor does she look at his hand on her leg. Instead, she keeps her gaze on his and says, "Perhaps. I believe you said something similar before... if you're not careful, one might think you're bitter."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 01:43:27</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				His eyes lock with hers, cold and forbidding, very different then her own peoples. "Perhaps." He responds, starting to feel something he has not felt in a very long time, with his hand on her leg. "Something needs to fuel the fire to get me through everyday."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 02:07:50</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She stares at him for a moment, then shakes her head almost imperceptibly. "I wouldn't think being bitter would be very productive. It eats away at you, breaking down your spirit, until there is nothing left." She moves then, stepping to pull her leg from his grasp, intending to move away across the room.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 02:15:44</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He releases his grip on her leg, letting his hand fall back to his side as he sits in the chair that looks entirely too small for some one of his stature. "Perhaps its what keeps me from getting lost in this jungle that surrounds us." He shrugs, his large shoulder muscles moving in unison with the motion. "Perhaps I long for a day when I will join my brothers in battle once more."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 21:55:31</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Angelica sighs and turns her back to him, pacing by the window. She'd hoped for a diversion, but now he's just getting depressing. She glances at the timepiece, and frowns at the hour. Though she doesn't rise particularly early, she knows the slaves do. "Come back tomorrow night," she says, turning back to him. "You can tell me more then." She tilts her head at him.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 22:02:14</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He quirks a brow at that. "I am not free to move about as you are." He responds, moving to the doorway. "I am a slave after all." He steps through the door way, following after the other slaves who would be a few minutes ahead of him. He would be punished, most likely, for not arriving with them and he was sure the Slave Master would not believe his story about being held back by the Overlords wife.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 22:08:28</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Rolling her eyes, she watches him go, then closes the door behind him. Of course he's a slave... and he's not really supposed to forget that for even a moment. <br><br>Once he's disappeared from sight, she goes back to her bedroom, shedding her robe and sliding into the bed. Her husband's chambers are across the villa from hers, a fact for which she is grateful. After all, she really doesn't want to have to listen to him with his diversions all night. She drifts into sleep before long, her slumber interrupted by strange dreams, probably brought on by the heavy humidity of the jungle.<br><br>She wakes the next morning still tired, not very refreshed, and more than a little restless. "I think I'm going to take some of the slaves and explore some of the jungle today," she tells her husband at breakfast.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 22:12:39</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He jogs to catch up with the other slaves, coming up behind them as the neared the bottom of the cliff, well below the house. The Slave Drivers apparently had not noticed, and they were soon herded back into their sleeping quarters. They all bunked together, in the hot hovels they had been ordered to build when they had first arrived. They were locked inside, but immediately went to listen, to make sure the guards had left.<br><br>Once all was clear, they peeled up a floor board, revealing a host of crude weapons, adding the letter opener to it. There were a few sharpened sticks, a shard of metal, some wire with wooden handles, and a shard of rock. Not much, but it was a start, and an improvement over bare hands. But it was not time yet, for the revolution. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>10-07-2008, 22:30:02</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				They are roused from their cots a bit later in the morning than usual. They've been allowed to sleep in a little to ensure that they will not flag while fighting through the thick jungle. The Mistress ordered it to be so. <br><br>Driven from their beds, they are taken not to the normal work fields, but to the patio out in front of the house. Personal slaves already stand ready at the corners of a litter, but Angelica ignores them when she comes from the house. Her hair has been bound back in a long braid, then pinned up, and she's dressed in a short sarong and a haltered shirt, her tanned skin protected from the sharp branches, but not stifled in the heat. Her assistant, the woman that left the slaves alone in her rooms the night before, follows her with a backpack, still apparently trying to convince her not to go.<br><br>"My Lady, this is not wise. You should ride along behind the slaves, and they will... Mistress!" The house slave gets even more frantic as Angelica strides past the gathered slaves and toward the jungle herself.<br><br>Rounding on the assistant, Angelica scolds her quietly. "Stop trying to talk me out of entertaining myself in this gods-forsaken corner of the world, or go back to the house and do your complaining there."<br><br>With a small whimnper, the house slave falls silent, trailing wordlessly along behind her Mistress as Angelica turns back toward the jungle path.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>11-07-2008, 15:55:43</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Roused from their sleep, their bodies quickly fall into the routine. Dargoth is the first to realize it is earlier then usual, but does not raise his voice. They are herded back towards the house and he quirks a brow at this. Soon, she appears, barging past them and towards the jungle. Supplies - food and water mostly - are brought out and some of the slaves pick them up. Dargoth is reluctantly handed a machete, along with two other slaves, while under armed guard, and are motioned to follow after.<br><br>Dargoth finds himself at the front of the pack, closest to her as she forges on ahead along the Jungle path. This was most unusual he thought. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>12-07-2008, 03:23:15</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Striding toward the path to the jungle, Angelica pays no mind to the slaves set to accompany her. Annoyed with the resistance she got when she stated she was going to explore the jungle, she keeps a stony silence the whole way down the path. It annoys her that she must travel with a full complement of slaves and guards and ... can't she go <em>anywhere</em> without a retinue?<br><br>Standing off to one side as she reaches the edge of the path, she folds her arms and waits for the slaves to do their work. Two of them are to go to the front, clearing the way for her to walk, with Angelica and the house slave in the center, and a couple more slaves following in the rear to make certain their path back stays clear.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>16-07-2008, 20:24:56</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Dargoth is one of the two ordered to clear the path ahead. As he steps past her, his eyes give no flicker of recognition, or any other sort of sign. His toned, tanned body looks more natural in the jungle, and the muscles in his shoulder and arm bulge as he raises his machete and brings it down with force on the thick web of vines and underbrush that blocked there. He did in one powerful blow what it took the other slave four blows to do. <br><br>Dargoth attacked the jungle with a vengeance. He hacked and slashed his way forward so that there was little need for her to have to wait, and he quickly put distance between himself and the other slave, he resigned himself to widening the path Dargoth cut. A thin sheen of sweat soon coated Dargoths body and the bugs seemed to ignore him.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>18-07-2008, 23:32:54</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Angelica keeps up with the burly slave, nimbly stepping along the path behind him. She watches him work with open admiration, not masking it even when he glances her way. It's her right to admire him, after all. She glances behind her after a while to find that the rest if their party has fallen behind, her personal slave as well as the guards unused to the heat. She isn't much more used to it, and her clothes are damp with sweat, but the discomfort only seems to spur her along. <br><br>"Are you able to come for another chat this evening?" She asks the question on low tones, taking the moment of near-aloneness to find out. "If you have other duties, I can have them reassigned," she adds, glancing at him. It amuses her to continue to see him, though the gods only know why, precisely.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>22-07-2008, 21:34:43</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"A slave must do as the master commands." He responds, not looking at her, continuing to whack at the jungle with his twin-machetes. "If you order it, then I shall be allowed to tend to you." He adds, stepping forward. Suddenly, the ground beneath him gives way to his bulky form, and he disappears from site, disappearing into the gaping darkness of a hole just big enough for him to fit through. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>28-07-2008, 00:35:24</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Rolling her eyes as he refers to her as his master, Angelica watches the swing of the machetis as he keeps going, doing her best to stay out of their way without falling too far behind. The rhythm of the machetes is almost hypnotic, the blades flashing in the mottled sunlight as they rise and fall, rise and fall, rise and ...<br><br>Angelica blinks a moment as the slave disappears silently into a hole that, she's fairly certain, was not there a second ago. It takes her a second to realise what's happened, and react to it. "Oh!" She drops to one knee by the side of the hole, peering through it. "Are you all ri-ah!" Angelica feels the ground give way under her own feet, and she falls with a shriek after him.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>28-07-2008, 18:56:40</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Dargoth found himself sliding down a smooth tunnel - perhaps an air-shaft - machetes in hand, that was at a relatively steep angle. He didn't think he'd be able to climb back up, though he braced himself for hitting the bottom. The hole did just that, as he felt himself sail through the air and land in a heap. It knocked his breath from him, sending his machetes careening off into the darkness. A short few seconds later, he heard another sound, and then felt something - some one fall on top of him. It was near pitch black down here, the only light trickling from high above. 
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>29-07-2008, 09:25:26</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				There is a terrifying drop through a tunnel, then she drops with a yelp on top of Dargoth, scrambling off of him awkwardly. Pulling herself to her feet, she looks around, but she can't see very much at all in the relative darkness of the place. Blinking rapidly, she sticks close to Dargoth as she waits for her eyes to adjust to the place, reaching out a hand to find him in the darkness. "What is this?" She can faintly hear calls from above; the others that came with them trying to find out if they're okay. She doesn't answer quite yet, though.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>29-07-2008, 15:01:00</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				A lesser man might have been crushed by the impact of her landing on top of him. It momentarily stuns him again, and he takes a moment to catch his breath before rising. He feels her pressing up against him in the near darkness. He focuses his eyes on the darkest area, letting them adjust to the darkness before looking around. The trick was to use the corner of your eyes to see, and not look directly at anything. He spots a machete off against one wall and bends down to pick it up - you never knew when you'd need something with a sharp edge to it. <br><br>"I have no idea." He responds after a moments consideration. "Its man-made though." They were in a hallway - that much was clear now that he had some time to look around and run his hand along the wall. "Its made of blocks - not carved through stone."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>05-08-2008, 07:00:17</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				Looking up and around through the stone hall, trying to see it for what it is, Angelica only sees more darkness. She keeps one hand on Dargoth's elbow a she shuffles forward, trying to pick her way along the tunnel. "... I ... don't see light coming from anywhere else. Or a way out." <br><br>It occurs to her that she's in a dark place, where the others cannot get to her, with a very powerful and unbroken slave. Her whole demeanor changes at this, and she gets very quiet, trying not to show her uneasiness with this fact. Instead, she reaches out her free hand, trying to find a wall. Her hand touches roots and stone, and then a sticky web. Immediately recoiling with a disgusted sound, she decides that exploring the walls is not actually something she wants to do right now.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>07-08-2008, 19:39:32</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He can feel her tense up a moment or two later, her hand still on his elbow. His eyes have adjusted to the dark and he takes a few steps forward, bending down. He fumbles with something, then there is a spark, then another before flame catches. He holds up a torch, the light spilling onto the cloth and bones of a skeleton. He slips his machete into his loin clothe, picking up the sword the skeleton still clutched. <br><br>The light reveals that they are in some sort of tunnel, clearly made from blocks, and damp. But no apparent - with in view - side passages. "Which way?" He asks, turning to look at her.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>09-08-2008, 20:19:03</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The sudden flare of the torchlight makes her flinch, and she squints a little in the guttering flame. "Ahm..." She turns to look first this way, then that, frowning. "I have no idea. Maybe if we went in the direction the villa's back in..." She points toward what she thinks is the way they've come, albeit above the ground instead of below.<br><br>"I would like to see what's underneath it, if anything."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>18-08-2008, 17:04:27</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				He looks both ways too. You could never be sure where a tunnel led - it could take them deeper, or circle them around. Either way, they weren't about to be rescued from those above ground, whose cries could only be heard faintly. "One way is as good as any other." He responds, not noticing any sort of elevation in the section the light revealed to them.<br><br>With out waiting for her - or her response - he heads off in the direction she had chosen, machete in hand. The skeleton was slightly unsettling. The man had either fallen in much like they had - which he doubted, based on the torch he now carried - or had died from starvation in the tunnel - or worse. He wasn't sure, but if there was something down here that could kill them, he'd rather be prepared.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>20-08-2008, 10:43:01</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The whole idea of being caught in a tunnel like this makes the hair stand up on the back of her neck. Angelica is completely and utterly not pleased ... this is not fun. It's not happy. It's <em>scary</em> and she doesn't like it. It's about all she can do not to mutter under her breath as she trails after Dargoth, staying close to him.<br><br>Thankfully, she doesn't recognise the old bones of the skeleton for what it is, mistaking it for a pile of sticks, or maybe old vines. "Is there any ... any writing or anything?" She peers at the walls as they pass along them, looking for inscriptions, something she can read. Angelica does speak a couple languages, though probably not the language of whomever lived here before...
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>20-08-2008, 18:22:55</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The walls remained some what nondescript, moss and moisture having worn the surface smooth or covered up anything - if anything - written on the walls. Dargoth could not sense a change in elevation, though the tunnel did begin to turn slightly, the light from his torch not revealing the tunnel ahead due to the angle. He glances over his shoulder at her, sensing her fear. He wasn't sure if he should be more fearful that this was man made, or its presence was unknown to the people who had apparently lived on this planet for countless years.<br><br>Rounding a sharp turn, Dargoth comes to a complete stop. The hallway opened up into a large chamber and his feet rested on the top step of a staircase that dropped down into the darkness. It also wasn't very wide, he noted, and the 4th and 5th step down were missing. "Well." He says after a moments more pause. "Things just got interesting."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>21-08-2008, 23:39:23</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				"Oh..." Angelica nearly doesn't stop fast enough, almost pitching down the stairs before she can see them. Her feet scrabble a little on the edge, and she peers down the treacherous staircase, taking in the broken steps, the slickened moss that coats many of the others. "That ... Interesting? It's a deathtrap, pretty much made tomake you break your neck." She shakes her head and backs away from the staircase. "If you're intending to go down that, you're insane. There's no way."<br><br>She would have turned and fled down the hall, but ot occurs to her that were she to do so, she'd have no light. He has the only light source. She has to stay with him. She freezes, and pales, and clenches her fists. "Let's... let's go back the other way."
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>30-08-2008, 22:55:36</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				The stairs seemed stable, apart from the missing too, which had been eroded by time or damaged from falling rocks. He couldn't tell which, and the light from his torch barely made out the ceiling a dozen feet above them. It, it seemed, bore the marks of being a natural cavern. But his interest had been stirred - what was this place, hidden beneath the surface, that the 'natives' didn't know about? His mind had already been made up, and he takes a tentative step onto the first steps. Solid enough for him. He launches his bulky form across the gap, landing nimbly, making it seem like a large step rather then a small leap. The otherside was stable too, but he couldn't see anything other then the darkness peering back at him. No telling how far down the stairs led. He turns back to her, extending an arm in her direction though she'd have to jump to reach it. "You coming?" He was in charge now.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>Trieste</strong> on <strong>06-09-2008, 09:27:54</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				She gives him an exasperated sigh. "... yes, fine." She shakes her head and reaches out, lunging for his arm and following him down. The place smells, and she's frightened, and it's slippery, and dark, and she generally gets more and more unsettled the more she thinks about it. She frowns a little as he foot slips on some of the moss, and then she regains her footing with his help. Her attention is on her feet and not their surroundings, so she doesn't notice right away what they come upon as they make their way down the stairs.
			</dd>
			<dt class="postheader">
				Title: <strong>Re: To Kill an Empire (Silvestine + Trieste)</strong><br>
				Post by: <strong>MagicalPen</strong> on <strong>09-09-2008, 15:17:47</strong>
			</dt>
			<dd class="postbody">
				His arm was strong and steady when she reached out for it, his body strong and unmoving even as she uses it for support. He doesn't think much of the contact -she had only reached out for him because she had lost her balance- so he turns and starts down the stairs. He pauses, occasionally, testing a suspect stair from time to time just to be sure. The top layer of one such stair crumbles away but otherwise remains intact. Soon, the floor rises up to meet them and Dargoth bounds down the last few stairs. They had easily come down 200 hundred feet, he thinks, and there is a noticeable chill in the air now, so far from the heat of the surface. The air is damp too. Which meant there was water seeping in somewhere, and they would need to drink soon. It had been a while since the waterskins had been passed around in the jungle, and now they were far below the jungle. For some reason, it hadn't occurred to him that they might not be able to find a way out for a few days. It caused him to come to an abrupt stop on the floor the stairs left them on - a path had been worn into the stone and water pooled in places. <br><br>
			</dd>
		</dl>
		<div id="footer" class="smalltext">
			
			<span class="smalltext" style="display: inline; visibility: visible; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;"><a href="https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?action=credits" title="Simple Machines Forum" target="_blank" class="new_win">SMF 2.0.19</a> |
 <a href="https://www.simplemachines.org/about/smf/license.php" title="License" target="_blank" class="new_win">SMF © 2021</a>, <a href="https://www.simplemachines.org" title="Simple Machines" target="_blank" class="new_win">Simple Machines</a>
			</span>
		</div>