'Oose there? Dont be playin' no games. Its too dark an eve' for tha' kinda thing.'
The old man got reluctantly to his feet, squinting into the darkness, before bending down to collect a piece of wood to use as a torch. As his back turned, there was another rustle, and what may have been the faint woosh of wind, almost as if something ran past. Augham whirled round, his weak heart jumping as he held out the torch to get a better view. Nothing. Damn these nights, the old man thought. Im on edge.
Breathing easier now, he stepped towards the bushes, still holding the torch in front of him, the dim light flickering over the undergrowth, lighting it up temporarily. There was nothing. Wait.. what was.. that? Something was.. flickering ahead. Augham stepped forwards, and stared furiously, before giving a moan of indignation. It had been a shadow. Gods, give me strength. It was during this moan that he would say out of the corner of his eye he saw something. It was.. or it looked like a tall.. shadow, or figure so dark it could be his mind playing tricks, jumping the town wall in one swift bound. The grizzled gatekeeper jerked his head to the left. Nothing. Again. He scratched his head, puzzled. Perhaps the wife is right, and i need to lay off the goblin wine.
Shrugging, he turned away, and untied his old leather pants, preparing to answer a call of nature. A sigh of satisfaction left him as he let a stream pour into the undergrowth in front. The piss made a pattering sound as it hit the floor, like on parchment. Wait. PARCHMENT? Augham blinked in utter confusion, quickly doing up his pants and peering forward. There was something hidden in the long grass, but it was too dark to see. He stretched out an arm, feeling around, before he felt his fingers enclosing on something thin, cold, and wiry, like.. hair? He held the torch over the object, and looked down.
A few hundred yards away, off the path, a dog froze to the horrible sound of someone screaming.
The gatekeeper had pissed on a head. The head belonged to an elf, augham could see this from the pointed ears pertruding from each side. However.. it was impossible to tell anything else. The eyes had been ripped from the sockets, the nose sliced of, the lips torn away, teeth splintered, and cheeks hollowed into holes. The mutilated face, and long hair which hung lank round its head was covered in dried blood. And there, pinned on top of the head by a long, slim knife was the parchment. Hand quivering, the gatekeeper who had thought he had seen it all could not prevent himself from vomiting his evening meal before gripping the parchment and pulling it lose. Face white, he wiped his mouth and read, lips moving, eyes wide.
The First.
****
Meanwhile, inside the town, a gloved hand grasped the doorknob of the tavern and opened the door, stepping inside. His entire face but for his mouth is hidden by a hood. From beneath it, he scans the room for occupants, and whether he is alone or not, makes his way towards the seat by the fire. He sets himself down, and puts a pipe between his teeth.
((ooc: I cant access the game right now so anyone who wants to rp with me may do so here. For now. <_< ))
((also i hope his name is augham, its been a while
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/icon_razz.gif)