Sought a Rogue

[Irrie]

REVIEW:

http://www.bzpower.com/board/topic/17181-sought-a-rogue-review/

 

 

20 Years Ago…

 

 

The Protector of Jungle walked into a clearing of dry land in the heart of the region of jungle. Next to him walked the stout form of Taya, another resident of the jungle. Over his shoulder Taya carried a limp body that resembled that of Okoto’s villagers. It was not made from regular tissue, however. No, this was weaved from plant fibers intertwined with sturdy and flexible branches. 

“This should be a good spot,” said the Protector. Taya dropped the body onto the ground. He affixed a green mask on his face. 

“Stand back,” he said. Taya scurried off and stood on the edge of the clearing. The Protector took off his robe that was draped around his muscular body. He stood to his full height and gazed down at the body. He raised his hands into the air, and in a language unheard by any ears for thousands of years, he said,

“Child of mine, hear me. Spirits of thine, see me. Fruits of the vine, feed me. Breathe life, bring life, bestow life. The time of your King is here. Rise, rise vines of the jungle, rise roots of the sea, rise shrubs of the lavaside, rise cacti of the sands, rise mosses of the rock wall, rise trees of the hills! Your King is here! He is here.”

A greenish glow emerged from the Protector’s palms. Twin beams of light shown from his fingertips, and they connected onto the limp body. The beams twisted and turned around the figure. Its brown appearance slowly turned green and black. It began to transform from a wooden puppet to a living creature.

The process only took about a minute, but it felt like a lifetime. When it was all over, the eyelids of the body slowly opened. Green light pulsed from its eye sockets. It slowly sat up.

“Where am I?” it said. 

“You are among your subjects, Mere, King of the Plants,” replied the Protector. 

 

 

 

 

19 years ago…

 

 

Mere gazed upon the many islands of the Region of Water. He himself was standing on the mainland. Behind him were many beach houses. Most of the island’s fishermen lived on the shore, however the majority of the metropolitan areas of the Region of Water were below the waves. He slowly walked forward, the water crashing around him. 

Before long, he was completely submerged. He propelled himself forward with his feet against the sandy seafloor. After about five minutes of swimming, he found himself poised at the top of a ravine. Its walls were lined with lined with huts, each of them surrounded by a protective air bubble. He swam down, and landed on the porch of a large sized shack. The sounds of hardy music muffled through the door. Mere slowly walked in, passing through the bubble.

He entered a large, circular room. Wooden tables and chairs filled the area with villagers from all over Okoto sitting in them, and it was illuminated by candlelight. There was a bar on the far side, as well as a trio of musicians standing on an elevated platform. 

Mere scanned the room, his green eyes twinkling as the lids closed to slits. He then spied the person he was seeking. His name was Jitte. He was from the Region of Stone.

Mere slowly made his way through the bustling crowd of the bar. When he got to his table, he saw him staring into a half-empty mug. 

“Mister Jitte?”

He looked up from his beverage. 

“Yes?” he asked, somewhat surprised that he knew his name. 

Mere took a seat across from him.

“I believe that you arranged with a man to make a business deal involving dried cactus fibers.”

“Oh, are you the buyer? Sorry, I didn’t expect to see you here. I thought that we were meeting here in two days.”

“No, I’m not the buyer. However I believe that we can make a deal with even more gravity than that.”

Jitte put down his mug and leaned forward, folding his hands together. 

“...which is?”

“I have discovered, via a long series of researches and studying old papers and tablets, that there is a piece of land in the central mountains that is unclaimed by any of the villages.”

“Most of the central mountains are like that.”

“Ah, but unlike the rest of the range, this specific spot is relatively flat. A plateau. And on it is fertile soil and many trees.”

“What’s your point?”

“I will be leading a small fellowship to that area to secure it before any others do. Not only is it great farmland, but there are many resources below the ground. I want you, Jitte, to be the first one to help me, and to serve as my deputy.”

The villager of stone leaned back in his chair and scratched his chin. 

“How do I know I can trust you? And how do I know that this will be lucrative?” 

“You don’t. However, I have the option of forgetting about you and going to the mountains myself, and you’ll hear about my success in the streets.”

“If you’re going to succeed so much from this, then why are you telling me? You’re endangering your chances for total wealth.” 

“I can’t make it there alone. And even if I did, it would take years for me to fully extract the wealth from the land. With the assembled fellowship, we will split the earnings equally, and we’ll all go home happy.”

Jitte narrowed his eyes. 

“I’m in.”

“Excellent. Wait here and keep doing what you were doing. There are two other people in this tavern that I need to talk to before we head out.”

With that, Mere got up from the table and walked to the other side of the room. Jitte saw him leave. He saw the honesty in his eyes, so he knew that this place existed from that. He also knew that it had a great amount of wealth, also. But the real reason why he asked to go was because he was sick and tired of being in the market business. He wanted an adventure, even it it only lasted for about a week or so. 

 

Mere spotted a villager of water. He was sitting in the back of the room, his feet propped up on the table. He held a beast’s fang in his hand, jabbing into the table. Many tiny dots were littered on the wood from where he jabbed the tooth. 

“Mister Shillelagh?”

The villager slowly raised his head. 

“What?”

“I was informed that you were a mercenary for hire.”

“I only do that sometimes.”

“I also heard that you were a pirate, and responsible for looting and sinking many different trade ships.”

Shillelagh narrowed his eyes. 

“I’m a mercenary.”

“Excellent. I have a job that I will pay you handsomely for.” 

“Keep talking.” 

“Some of my sources have told me of a location deep within the central mountains. Within it is a canister containing a huge supply of gold. I am currently assembling a fellowship of six people to go to the mountains, myself being one of them. When we find the treasure, we will split it six ways.”

“16 percent each?”

“Yes.”

“20 for me.”

“What?”

“20 percent of the treasure, or I’m not coming.”

“Why?”

“By joining you, I will be abandoning one of my associates, who I agreed to meet on an island tomorrow. I want an extra four percent to cover the possible injuries he’ll deliver to me once it’s all said and done.”

“Very well. 20 percent for you.”

They both stood up and shook hands. 

“Wait here. There is one more person in this tavern that I need to ask to join me.”

“Do what you have to.”

With that, Mere left Shillelagh and walked to the other side. This was the part that had the bar. He sat in a stool and looked at the bartender. She was a villager of fire.

“Miss Rungu?”

She looked at him from behind one of the kegs. 

“I’ll be with you in a second, hon. Let me finish this order first.” 

After she delivered two beverages to a villager of water and earth who were also at the bar, she walked over to Mere. 

“What can I get you hon, or would you like to hear the menu, and I can also get you today’s special.”

“No thank you, Miss. I’m here to ask you a question.”

“If it’s marriage, I’m going to say no, hon. You’re the third one this week that’s asked me that.”

“Um, no. Actually, it’s going to take a long time to explain. Meet me outside once your shift is finished.”

He left the bar, leaving Rungu to finish her work. She called after him, but he didn’t acknowledge her back. 

 

Hours later, Mere, Jitte, and Shillelagh met outside the bar. Just according to schedule, Rungu emerged from the hut. 

“What’re you doing, lads?” she said nervously. 

“I have a proposition for you,” said Mere. “Knowledge has led me to believe that there is a place of value within the central mountains. I am assembling a fellowship to accompany me there, and I believe that you have what it takes.” 

Most people would immediately turn down this offer because of how vague and suspicious it sounded. But Rungu was not most people. No, she often dreamed of what the other regions of Okoto were like, for she was born and raised in that of water, despite her being a villager of fire. 

“I’m in,” she said. “Anything to leave this run-down, low paying business. When do we leave?”

“Now.”

“Oh. Can I got to my house and grab a few things? It’ll be quick.”

Mere exchanged glances with Jitte and Shillelagh. 

“Sure, just make it fast.”

“Thanks!” she said, swimming away. The three of them waited. 

“So...what do you do for a living?” asked Jitte to Shillelagh. 

“I give boat tours,” he replied. Mere knew he was obviously lying. 

“Is it a good line of work?”

“Yeah. It pays very well.”

“Hm. What about you, Mere?”

“I’m an attorney.”

“Cool.”

Rungu was back by this point, however she looked different. Instead of a natural right arm, she had a robotic one. She also carried a gun-type weapon. 

“What’s that?” asked Jitte. 

“Just some stuff I’ve been puttin’ together over the years. I’m a bit of an inventor, hon,” she replied, smiling. 

“Alright, let’s get back to the surface. There are two more people that we need to contact. They’re in the Region of Ice.” 

The four of them swam back to the beach. They then walked up a narrow pathway on the cliffside, and started northward, the outlines of the mountains in the distance.

Edited February 2, 2015 by The Irrational Rock

[Irrie]

Mere, Jitte, Shillelagh, and Rungu stood on the banks of the river that divided the Region of Water and Ice. These waters were fast, however many villagers lived on these banks and made their living operating ferry services. The four of them found a small shack next. Tied to a tree stub was a rope that connected to a boat idely sitting in the water. In it was a lean villager, holding a long oar in his hand. 
“Goin’ across?” he asked.
“Yes. How much?” replied Mere. 
“A lotta money, ‘cept on Tuesdays. Today’s Tuesday if ya haven’t heard. Yep, we’re givin’ free rides on Tuesday.”
“We’ll take it, then.”
“Get in.”
They piled into the canoe. The ferryman untied the rope from the stump and began paddling. The oars were long and narrow, so big that the ferryman had to stand up in the boat to use it. 
The trip across the river was somewhat relaxing, but that was because only Mere knew the true gravity of this expedition. 
Jitte was deep in a fantasy about what he would do when he claimed the land. He dreamed of building a quiet cottage and owning so much money that he didn’t have to embark on any more trade missions across the island. 
Shillelagh was imagining the immensive wealth that he could capitalize on. No longer having to resort to piracy or getting his hands dirty with extortion. He could live like a king in jeweled halls, not a small shack on the edge of the water. 
Rungu was imagining the thrill of the adventure, the sweet smell of trekking down mountain passed and through deep valleys. She wondered what it would be like to stand on the peaks of the ice mountains, or stumble through the forests of the jungles. And to finally get away from the horrid industry of bartending. 
They finally came to the other bank. They unloaded and thanked the ferryman. It was just then that Jitte noticed the two spears that were mounted on Mere’s back. They were shaped light bolts of lightning and were colored black. 
 
The other side of the bank was a prairieland with tall grasses that were tipped with snow. As they advanced, it slowly became a series of foothills that gave way to mountains. Over the course of a few days, they made their way through a small pass in the mountains. 
The four of them stood around a map that Mere brought. 
“We’re right here,” he said. “And my associate is here,” as he moved his finger to the left a bit. 
“They’re not in the city?” asked Jitte. 
“No. She lives alone in the mountains as a wolf herder. We could make it to her cave by sundown if we book it southwestward.” 
They walked parallel to the high slopes. The snow slowly became deeper and deeper, as this part of the land had not been eroded by travelers as much as the gap had. The land also became more of a slope. 
By the time they had come close to the location, it was already nightfall. Mere decided to set up camp for the night, and make the short walk in the morning. They unrolled their bed mats (which Mere provided them with before they set out) and leather blankets. Since it was Okoto’s warm season, it was not as unusually cold in the Region of Ice as it normally was. The next morning soon arrived. They ate a quick breakfast of their food rations. Shilelagh managed to hunt down a few snow hares, which they cooked over a fire, which was made by Rungu’s blaster. 
After they ate, they gathered their things and set off once more. It took about forty-five minutes before they arrived at the location that Mere spoke of.
“So, where is this person?” asked Jitte. 
“Wait…” said Mere. Suddenly, he reared his head back and let forth an ear-splitting below. It was low and guttural, and range for many minutes after he uttered it. A quiet pause came after the sound dissipated. Then, there was howling. 
Over the edge of the ridgeline came the shape of a wolf. As it neared, it became evident that it was not a beast, but a villager that was crawling on all fours. She also had a blue tail and two large forepaws.
“What are you doing in my land?” she roared. 
“Oslop!” replied Mere.
“How do you know my name?” she said, drawing nearer. They spotted the gleam of sharp fangs as she bared her teeth. 
“I’ve heard of you by some of the city-folk in this region. I have a proposition for you.” 
“What could you possibly give me?” 
 

 
Mere turned to the other three. 
“I believe that negotiations will go better if we talked in private,” he said. They nodded, and walked away. When they were beyond visibility, Mere turned back around and address Oslop. 
“Listen. I must inform you that there is a piece of land located in the central mountains, and it’s very rich in hunting grounds. I have gathered a small company with me to secure it. I want you to join us. Once we get there, you are free to do whatever you want with your claim.”
“I don’t know who you are, but I’m not buying it. Leave my land.”
“Listen, do you think that I would come this far just to scam you? What benefit could I possibly get from extorting a hermit? I must tell you, I am here to ask for your help, and I am willing to reward you with new hunting grounds for doing so.”
Oslop paused for a moment. 
“Will I be able to claim the passage that we take that connects here to there?”
“Certainly.”
“Very well. What’s your name?”
“Mere. My companions are Jitte, Shillelagh, and Rungu. And now, you are one of them. I promise that you will not regret this.” 
Oslop nodded and followed Mere as he returned to his companions. She never got off her four legs. 
 
“So where’s the last one?” asked Rungu. 
“Well, she lives right below our feet,” replied Mere. With that, the ground below them gave way, and they were engulfed into darkness.

[Irrie]

The five villagers scanned the dark surroundings that were around them. The fall didn’t knock any of them out, however it did manage to bruise them quite a bit. 
“What was that?” shouted Oslop at Mere. 
“I don’t know,” he replied in a frustrated tone. 
“Is this your trap that you laid for me, eh? You’re one terrible trap maker if it is!”
“I didn’t plan this! Does it look like I planned this? I told you that the last person that we were seeking was underground, but I didn’t anticipate for us to be right on top of her cavern!” 
The hole in the ceiling was about ten feet up. They heard a voice that came from the back of the cave. 
“Mere.”
They all turned around and saw a Villager of Earth. She was short in height, and her armor glowed as if it was alive also. In her hand she held a shield made from crystal. 
“You must be Cudgel,” said Mere. 
“Indeed I am.”
“Where are we?” asked Jitte. 
“You’re in my house,” she replied, a faint smile cracking on her face. With a wave of her hand, the ground below them rumbled. Several massive stone slabs rose from the ground and formed a staircase. 
“I must speak with Mere,” said Cudgel. “You are all dismissed.”
The four of them reluctantly climbed the staircase and out of the cave. Both Mere and Cudgel caught a suspicious look being shot from Shillelagh. Once they were sure that all of them were out of earshot, Mere turned around and confronted the Villager of Earth.
“I suppose you know why I’m here, if you knew my name.”
“Yes, Mere, King of Plants. I am also aware of what you have in mind to convince me, what you have been doing to convince the others, and of the reason why you have summoned them.”
Mere narrowed his eyes.
“Yes, I know what you have been doing. After you were given the names of the people that you were to gather, you promised each of them something that they wanted, however all kept a similar setting. For Jitte, land that he would be able to develop. For Shillelagh, treasure buried beneath the ground. For Rungu, an adventure. And for Oslop, new hunting grounds.”
“How do you know all of this?”
Cudgel chuckled. 
“I live by myself for a reason, Mere. I had to leave the Region of Earth or face being lynched by the population. The reason? Witchcraft. I have a way of knowing things with my connection to the mystic world.”
Mere folded his arms. 
“In fact, you can see an example of my work on one of your members. I fused her to one of the local fauna. Now she’s a combination between both of them.”
“Oslop?”
“Indeed. She was walking past the roof of my cavern one day, so I followed her. When she approached a wolf, I unleashed a blast of magical energies, which fused them together. The once gentle and caring villager became fiendish and wolf-like, and her once erect posture became savage and crude.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Because I needed to make sure it worked.”
“You’re twisted.”
“I know.” 

Mere sighed. “Well, I suppose that there’s going to be no way to get rid of you. Let’s go.”
And with that, the sixth member of their company was discovered. However little did each of them know, Shillelagh had stayed near the edge of the cave, and listened to every word that was spoken between them. He quickly darted back to where Rungu, Oslop, and Jitte were talking before Mere and Cudgel emerged. 
“Now we’ve got everyone accounted for,” said Mere as he approached the rest. “It’s time that we made our way to the location.”
The group gathered their equipment and marched southward, each eager to arrive. As they progressed, the terrain began to become much more rocky and uneven. Many stones jutted from the ground, and were covered in a layer of ice. Eventually the path gave way to these stones, and they were forced to scramble up the stones. The sun began to set and storm clouds rolled in. Sleet poured down onto them.
“We have to make camp somewhere!” shouted Jitte over the roar of thunder. 
“Wait! We have to get to the top, there’s a network of caverns that has an opening there!” 
Jitte replied, however a clap of thunder sounded and he was not able to be heard by any of the others. 
They kept climbing up, the summit of the ridge almost in sight. However their progress was interrupted when they heard a cry from Rungu. She had lost her footing and slipped off the rock. She fell back down about ten feet and landed on a platform. Almost immediately, Oslop lept off her position and fell after her. She landed next to the fallen and opened her jaw, it spreading surprising wide for her head size. It wrapped around Rungu’s lower back, and she carried her back up to where the others were waiting. They didn’t delay, and began to go faster. Finally, they reached the summit. The party landed a small bowl in the land, where the wind wasn’t as strong.
“I’m alright,” said Rungu as Oslop let her fall out of her mouth. 
“What?” replied the Villager of Ice. “A fall from that far could have injured you severely, especially since you fell on your arm.”
Rungu tapped her shoulder. “This arm is artificial, I built it. It’s loaded with shock absorbers on the underside of the metal coating, so I was able to take the fall.”
Oslop frowned and didn’t say anything else. 
Jitte climbed out of the bowl in the ground. 
“I’m going to see what’s beyond this ridge, the rain seems like it’s cleared up some,” he said. However as he emerged from the basin, a bolt of lightning fell from the heavens and struck the Villager of Stone. His companions gasped in horror as they witnessed millions upon millions of electricity coursing through his body, and it all happened in a heart beat. However it lingered. The strands of lightning stayed attached to him, rather than dissipating. His flesh began to fry and sizzle, darkening and smoking. His armor fractured, and his mask was shattered. His body was condensed and after the bolt left, the only thing that remained was a shriveled fragment, dark wisps of smoke blowing in the wind. 
It was at that moment that the storm had stopped, and the clouds had lifted. However no light was shed, for it was still nighttime above the clouds. 
All five members of the company yelped in horror as they ran and faced their fallen comrade. After the shock had lifted, Shillelagh spoke up. 
“Where should we bury him?” he said, referring to the piece of charcoal that was once Jitte. 
“We’re not,” said Rungu, wiping the tears from her eyes. She walked forward and picked up the coal. 
“What do you mean?” said Mere. 
“We need to make haste. I have to return to the Region of Water. His life could depend on this.”
With that, the group retraced their steps, much their frustration. They never spoke a word on the way back. The return trip took about a week. 
Once they were back in the Region of Water, Rungu took them to her house. When they stepped inside, they found that it was littered with various mechanical parts and contraptions. There were several half-finished robots standing around like statues, their hollow eyes staring at the visitors. 
“I have several extra bedrolls in the back,” said Rungu. “Go find one. We might be here for a while.” 
They spent the night at her home. None of them knew why she had brought them back, but none questioned her, either. 
That night, Oslop couldn’t sleep. She heard faint buzzing sounds coming from the other room. Getting up from her roll, she walked to the other part of the house. When she was there, she saw Rungu connecting several wires from a computer (which was about the size of the entire wall) to a strange part. It looked faintly resemblant to that of a pointed stone. 
“What are you doing?” she asked. 
Rungu looked up. Her eyes were weary. 
“Well, since I planned on getting done by tomorrow, I guess I’ll just tell you now, hon. I managed to find some traces of Jitte’s DNA in that piece of charcoal. After some analyzation, I was proven correct in that rather than destroying him, the bolt of lightning condensed him into the coal. By scanning the information in the coal onto my computer, I managed to recreate him into the machine by extracting his consciousness from the coal. Now if you’ll look over there…” she said, while gesturing to a robot suit in the corner. “...I will be using that body to implement his consciousness into.”
“So you’re transferring him into the armor?”
“Yes, essentially. In fact, I’m about done.”
She unhooked the wires from the stone-shaped object and carried it over to where the armor was positioned. Ever so carefully, she connected several wires from the bottom side of the object and the robot’s back. She then welded them together using her blaster set at a low level.

Once she was finished, she stood back and admired her work. 
“Was Jitte ever dead?” asked Oslop. 
“No, rather he was placed into a state of deep unconsciousness. Almost comatose.”
“Interesting. When do you think that you’ll be able to activate him.”
“He’s active right now, hon. But it’s taking some time for the memory to be transferred from the database over to the actual suit.”
They waited for a few moments in silence.
“Oh, and Oslop?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks for carrying me up the slope last week, hon.”
“No problem,” she replied. 
However little did each of them know, their entire conversation was being monitored by the suspicious eyes of Shillelagh, peering through the keyhole in the door. 
The next morning, all six of them gathered in the computer room. Rungu explained to all of them what she told to Oslop. Then, as if on cue, the eyelids of the robot flittered open, however there was no light behind them. The metallic body’s pistons creaked, and hot steam hissed as it was ejected through the exhaust tubes. The body slowly sat up. It stared at Mere, hard. In Jitte’s voice, only slightly more monotone, it said,
“You.”
Jitte lunged forward off of the table and grabbed the green villager. He picked him up by the neck and slammed him against that wall.
“YOU!”
He ran forward and picked Mere up. Oslop tried to stop him, however her claws simply grazed off of his metallic body. Jitte spun him around over his shoulders, and slammed him against the floor. Rungu ran and grabbed her blaster, and pointed it at him.
“Jitte, stop! Now!”
However he ignored her. He pinned the bruised body of Mere up against the wall and held his fist out.
“You did this to me!”
“What are you talking about?”
“This is your fault! If you hadn’t persuaded me to join you, none of this would have happened to me!”

Mere closed his eyes and sent a silent plea to his subjects. A strand of seaweed seeped through the cracks of the building. It then expanded to a gigantic size and wrapped itself around Jitte’s body, causing him to let go of Mere. 
“Don’t underestimate my power, Jitte,” he said. His body armor was glowing bright green, and a greenish energy radiated from his palms. “I am Mere, King of all Plants.”