Young Writers Society

Name: Atari Tiger's Song.
Gender: none.
Place in the Quest: Atari is a Heaven-sent, an angel here on the Earth.
His place is as the company's mapmaker and scribe.

Atari heard his last words from the One: "Be their calm center. The Lion has called you to fight, but in
your own way. Keep your heart safe, Atari."

He nodded and flexed his paws. "This will be fun, Emperor."

(Sorry, Stori. We've already got six people participating and eight characters. If my experience as a storybook writer has taught me anything, it's that too many people will cause confusion among some of the writers which will, in turn, cause them to drop out. Even if that wasn't the case, just by looking at your post I know you haven't read my first post with the character profile outline and the link to the storybook's site containing the information of all the classes. And the only race you can be is a mortal human. I failed to mention that because I didn't think it would have been a problem.

If you had joined a few weeks ago when the storybook was just starting I would have been more than happy to let you write with us, but considering the number of people already participating it would just muddy things up. We're pushing our luck as it is with six people, two of which who are controlling two characters. There's just not enough room for more people without causing confusion, and I worked hard to arrange all my ideas for this storybook to just let it die off. Please understand.)

Oh. It's six; if you see a 'book with six, that's the good one. I don't quite get it, but it seems "six" is just "six." Does that make any sense at all to you?

***Starting from 12:00 noon today, I will be gone until Sunday; I will be participating in an Honor Band. I will not have access to a computer at all, so please, keep my characters alive and active! I know you can do that Dynamo; you know me so well already. Later!***

(Some storybooks die off before they even reach their fourth page. Again, I'm sorry I can't let you participate. Maybe next time.

You can count on me, Ayumi. Have fun. By the way boltageman, I changed your skill from fire to ice like you asked.)

"So, your father's a Necromancer?" Adrian asked. Balaes nodded.

"Last I heard the practice of necromancy was banned from the Mage's Guild by the previous guild master, before Lady Raven came into power," Edgar said. "They say it's a corruption of magic that desecrates the resting souls of the dead."

"Maybe, but that doesn't mean it's evil," Adrian said.

"What do you mean?" Adam asked. "Of course necromancy is evil. How else would you describe giving the dead life and making them your slaves?"

"From what my mother taught me, magic is neither good nor evil," Adrian explained. "The evil only lies within the person who uses it. A sword can be used to take a life as well as save one, magic is no different. The only difference is how it is used." He looked over his shoulder Adam. "Remember how Balaes used your dark magic to stop Shmet from catching us?"

"Yes."

"If it wasn't for his magic, we'd all be dead by now. If dark magic can be used to save people, is it really evil?"

Adam thought about it for a moment. "...I guess you have a point."

"Besides, I think Balaes' magic is a great asset to our cause. And right now we need all the help we can get."


An hour later they arrived at Weynon Priory. It was a two story building beside a small chapel. The road split off into three directions, the way they had come, toward Chorrol, and between the two buildings into the forest. The third path was the beginning of The Red Road, and led to the far off town of Bruma, located in the snowy mountains.

"So this is Weynon Priory?" Adam asked.

Adrian nodded. "This is the place. Jauffre already knows me, so let me do the talking."

Adrian knocked on the front door. A few seconds later it was opened by a young monk. "Yes? Can I help you?"

"We need to speak with Brother Jauffre," Adrian replied.

"May I ask what this is about?"

Adrian shook his head. "It's an important matter that concerns Jauffre, I can't tell you much else."

"Well, all right. He's in the study right now. Just up the stairs and to the right." The monk opened the door the rest of the way and let everyone in. They followed Adrian up the stairs and into the study. At one of the desks sat an old, balding man. He was reading a book.

Adrian approached the man. "Hello, Jauffre."

Jauffre placed his book on the table and faced Adrian. He seemed a little surprised at first, but smiled and said, "Adrian, what a surprise. I didn't expect to see you here. Why, the last time I saw you was three years ago. How is your father doing? Is your training going well?"

"Sorry, Jauffre, but I'm not here just to visit. I need to talk to you about something important involving the king's death."

Jauffre looked more serious now. "King Uriel? Do you know something about his death?"

Adrian nodded. "We came here to deliver the Amulet of Kings."

"You have the amulet?" Jauffre asked, shocked. "Impossible. Let me see it." Adrian nodded at Adam. Adam took the amulet out of his pocket and handed it to Jauffre. "By the Gods. this is the Amulet of Kings! How did you get this? What do you know of the king's death?"

"Tell him what you told me, Edgar," Adrian said.

Edgar told Jauffre everything he remembered, right down to Uriel Septim's last words. For Adam and Balaes, it was the first time hearing the whole story. Jauffre listened intently all the way through. When Edgar was finished, Jauffre said, "As unlikely as your story sounds, Edgar, I believe you. Only the strange destiny of Uriel Septim could have brought you all here to me carrying the Amulet of Kings. But why is Adrian with you, as well as these two," he asked, looking at Adam and Balaes.

Edgar explained, "Adrian's father wanted me to bring him with me so you could make him a Blade as soon as possible. Adam and Balaes were with him at the time. I'm not going to get into the details, but they both wanted to lend their strength."

"But from what you have told me the king gave you the amulet. Why was Adam carrying it?" Jauffre asked.

Edgar shot a quick glance at Adam. It wasn't all too friendly. "I don't want to talk about it."

Adrian cut in. "When the king talked about the Prince of Destruction, was he refering to Mehrunes Dagon?"

"He did indeed," Jauffre said. "Mehrunes Dagon is one of the lords of the demonic world of Oblivion. The king's words, close shut the jaws of Oblivion, Definitely suggests he perceived some sort of threat. But the mortal world is protected from the demons of Oblivion by magical barriers."

"If that's the case then how can Oblivion threaten us?" Adrian asked.

"I'm not sure. Only those within the royal family truly understand the meaning behind the rituals of coronation. The Amulet of Kings is ancient. Saint Alessia herself, the first ruler of Arcadia, received it from the Gods more than eight hundred years ago. It is a holy relic of great power. When a king is crowned, he uses the amulet to light the Dragon Fires in the Temple of the One in the capitol city. But now that the king is dead and no new heir can rise to take his place in the throne, the Dragon Fires in the temple will be dark for the first time in centuries."

Balaes had a sudden moment of realisation. "That's it!"

"What is?" Adam asked.

"The Dragon Fires, they must have been what was protecting us. Now that there's no one left to light them again the magical barriers between our world and Oblivion will weaken."

"You're probably right," Adrian said, "but there's still the matter of Uriel Septim's fourth son."

"Martin? What do you know of him?" Jauffre asked.

Edgar told him, "The king told me he still had one son left, and that you knew where to find him."

Jauffre nodded. "Yes, you are correct. I am one of the few that know of his existence. One night Uriel called me into his chambers. A baby boy lay sleeping in a basket. He told me to take him somewhere safe. He never told me anything else about the baby, but I knew it was his son. From time to time the king would ask me about the child's progress. Now it would seem this illegitimate son is the only heir to the throne, if he still lives."

"Then we have to find him as soon as possible," Adrian said. "Where can we find Martin?"

"He serves as a priest in the Chapel of Akatosh in the town of Kvatch, South from here along The Gold Road past Skingrad."

Kvatch? Adrian thought, Kai and Enya live there. "All right then. We need to get to Kvatch right away. If we leave now we can get there in two days."

"I'll hold hold onto the amulet and keep it safe until you come back with Martin," Jauffre said.

Adrian nodded. As he turned to lead everyone out he noticed Balaes' suddenly pale face. "Balaes, what's wrong?"

"Kvatch..." He took a moment to clear his throat before saying, "That's where the Oblivion Gate opened."

REON~~

Even Reon was getting tired of the walking now. The fresh air had filled him to the limit and now he was just cranky now. "are we almost there" Reon whinnied
"no" Ivellios said simply and continued on.
"well how long till we get there" Reon asked
"a couple hours at the least" Ivellios continued.
"then can we take a break, make camp, get some rest and of course eat" reon asked
Ivellios seemed to consider this for a moment then asked "are you going to keep whining till we do stop"
"most likely" Reon answered
"then fine will make camp after we clear that hill there" Ivellios said pointing to the highest ans steepest hill reon had ever seen
"great" reon said then dragged his feet in disappointment.

(Your group is already at Skingrad, boltageman. And it's already dawn for them.)

(oh then ignore my last post)

Adam

Fear wasn't something Adam often associated with himself. He'd been a rogue as a child, risking stealing from anyone, even the guards with their swords and he'd come close to having his head chopped off once or twice, closer still to loosing a hand. But now, he could feel it dimly in his ageing heart and he wondered if it would be the end of him. A man without fear could manage amazing feats while a man afraid would miss the flash of the blade while looking for the gun.

"Let's go," he said in a firm, steely voice. He hadn't expected that but somehow he was all the more determined that he would be someone, suddenly he wanted his life to count for something. His father had never amounted to anything but people would not say the same about Adam. About Tylar, the boy who didn't have the opportunity to be a good boy.

"You're with us?" Edgar asked, sounding surprised. He'd taken the amulet back and now checked his pockets to see if it was still there. It was. Adam didn't know how to put what he was feeling into words so he nodded grimly and strode out the door. He waited outside, realising he did not know the way. Never had he left the city, not to his knowledge.

(Jauffre has the amulet now.)

Balaes

The last thing he wanted to do was get closer to the gates of Oblivion in Kvatch, but he couldn't see what choice he had. As Adrian had said, Dark Magic was a good thing to have at one's disposal when going against the forces of Darkness. Fighting fire with fire, so to speak. But Dark Magic wasn't something Balaes liked much. It made him sick that he could use it, like most mages, he saw it as a perversion of true magic. Whatever Adrian had said about magic being neither good nor evil, Balaes had his reservations about aiming to become a necromancer.

Just as he was about to tell them that he couldn't join them in their fight against the Prince of Destruction, another vision came to him. This one wasn't sent by anyone but himself. His imagination conjured up several things in a terrifying vision of the future. Mehrunes Dagon standing tall above the ruins of Arcadia, his demonic legions charging across a world of unending night, slaughtering innocents without quarter.

Then a second vision came, this one of the present, or the recent past, and also merely a product of his imagination. His father was standing in darkness, dressed in a black robe. Small bones and feathers hung on strings from it, and he had fashioned a human skull into a mask, becoming the image of the necromancers everyone feared and hated.

Then the darkness ebbed away, and he was standing beside an Oblivion gate - not the one in Kvatch, but one elsewhere. He was speaking with a minor demon prince, speaking as an equal. As though he were a major player in this, although he had to be lesser than Dagon himself.

He snapped out of it all of a sudden, forcing his imagination down. He'd have to accept the burden of the Dark Arts, for the greater good. He looked around at the others, "I'll stand with you as well."

I know but I had Edgar take it back from him. I assume that we will be finding this fourth son with directions given us?

(We know the fourth son is in Kvatch, the town that was attacked by demons through the Oblivion gate. And as for the amulet, Jauffre needs to have it for the story to progress properly. Besides, he's the Grandmaster of the Blades. Do you really think he'd let us walk into danger with the amulet? He may trust us, but he's smart enough not to risk having the amulet fall into enemy hands if the one carrying it were to die in battle.)

Adrian nodded. "Thank you, Balaes." He was trying hard to keep his composure, but deep down Adrian was worried about His friends Enya and Kai live. Their parents, Ilum and Karana, fought along side his mother and father again the Dark Knight eighteen years ago. They visited Adrian's family in the capitol city once or twice a year. After hearing Balaes telling them the Oblivion Gate from before opened in Kvatch, he began to fear for the worst.

"Our first destination is Skingrad," Adrian said. "If we leave now we can get there before nightfall. We'll rent a room in one of the inns, buy supplies, and leave for Kvatch in the morning. If what Balaes said about the Oblivion Gate is true we'll need to be ready for anything when we get there."

"There are horses in the stable out back," Jauffre said. "You can borrow them to get to Kvatch quicker."

"Thank you, Jauffre," Adrian said. "Let's go everyone."

Just before they left, Jauffre said, "Edgar."

He stopped at the door and faced the Grandmaster of the Blades. "Yes?"

"Please, let me hold onto the Amulet of Kings. There's a secret room in the priory where it may be kept hidden. It'll be safer with me that way." Edgar nodded and handed him the amulet. "Good luck finding Martin. If Mehrunes Dagon truly is mustering an invasion he is our only chance at stopping him."

(As you've undoubtedly noticed, there's lots of ads on the VG Rumble II site. The website creator I used has a ranking system based on how many people visit your site. If you get the highest rank possible no more ads will be shown on your site. I'm about half-way there, so hopefully soon there will be no more ads on the site. I'm not going to ask you guys to keep visiting the site over and over again, just keep doing what you're doing and it'll get there.)

***Um...I'm a tad confused. Can someone explain to me what is going on?***

(All you need to know, Ayumi, is your group is at Skingrad now and it's morning.)