The Elemendi-Chapter 2-A Meeting in the Shadows

[Kayne]

The first part of the Elemendi Story: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=121423&hl=elemendi

As Kha opened the door to The Maritime Inn, he was assaulted by a myriad of senses. Foremost of course was the combination of odors of roasting pheasant, stale ale and unwashed bodies. He turned and looked back quickly at the sign just outside the Inn, it was a clever combination of a smiling sailor aboard a ship. With a chuckle at the at pun the innkeeper used to name his establishment located on the southern coast of Kaliphlin a days ride northwest of Ras-el-Ahken but not quite to Mypa Stedor, Kha continued through the door into The Maritime Inn, or The Merry-time Inn as many of the locals referred to it.

The interior was dimly lit, and heavy with smoke from both the fire burning in the hearth as well as the many patrons and their various pipes. The smoky odor was riddled with different aromas hinting of spices and weeds from all over Historica, but all of them were strong enough to be noticed. He looked to the corner where he knew his contact would be waiting. The Inn itself was built with a tall ceiling nearing twenty feet, with windows all the way up that look out upon the Great Southern Ocean. In the distance out upon the sea, Kha could see the darkened clouds that made up the vortex of The Void Tide a few miles off the coast. There seemed to be nowhere in the place where space was not used for something. There were barrels of all sorts of sundries or potent drinks all over, shelves and crates of other goods. Even the air space was used up with strings of lights, supports that held up Kha knew not, and nets of other goods hanging above the patrons heads.

But there, at a table in the corner, and facing the door to see Kha when he entered was Masa. Masa is another member of The Resistance here in Kaliphlin, and Kha’s co-conspirator in this current endeavor. Joining Masa at the table was what appeared to be a mercenary or some sort of adventurer that Kha did not know.

“Masa, good to see you safe!” Kha said.

“You as well Kha. May I introduce Jarrick of The Dragon’s Cape. He is the man I was telling you of that knows that which we seek.” Masa said with a sidelong glance to the closest table. It was a habit both Masa and Kha had seemed to fall into lately since the Desert King began hunting them both.

“Hello Lord Kha of Ras...”Jarrick began.

“Let’s skip the formalities and lower the volume.” Kha said and also looked around the gathering room. “I cannot afford to be known anywhere in Kaliphlin as it stands right now.”

“Understood, well I suppose I should get right down to business then.” Jarrick took a drink from his glass, and Kha could smell the pungent odor of strong spirits as he tilted the glass.

“I know what you seek, and what you need in order to supplant The Desert King. The are referred to as The Elemendi, and once were a common sight across all of Historica. They are race of beings with an affinity to the Five Elements.”

“Five Elements?” Kha asked. “Last I knew there were four elements, and Revolword already tried to tap that power.”

“Revolword was an amateur compared to the Elemendi. And yes, there are five elements. Earth or Stone, Fire, Water, Air and Life. Each of them has its own power, but when they work together, even more can be accomplished. Some of them can boost or assist the others. That is where the trouble started!” Jarrick paused again to take another drink.

“Three thousand years ago, the Elemendi were all over Historica. They live for centuries and can tap these powers, but when they mate, it is for life and they never have more offspring than two. It was impossible, the mother would pass during the third pregnancy. I don’t know if it was some sort of divine limit placed upon them, or just the cost of the magic, but it was never recorded that three children were born from a coupling. As you can imagine, that power was craved by those in power. The elemendi themselves were never interested in politics, they seemed to garner a joy of life simply from helping. But, those in power always have resources, and those resources led to ways to control the elemendi. I don’t know the details, or how they did that, but that was when much of Historica was plunged into a dark time. Wars raged across the land and the elemendi were controlled by both sides.”

Jarrick looked away as if seeing that faraway time himself. “The power of the elemendi was tremendous. The five elements each meant so much more than implied. Water, the ability to manipulate any liquid and control all of its properties. The ancients used it purify water and help with agriculture, but once the wars started, new uses were found. Freezing the blood of victims too weak to resist, creating great fountains of ice and water that were used as weapons and so on. Fire, the ability to manipulate heat and flame. Once used to provide heat and food to the masses, it was turned to a burning inferno of destruction and death. Air, once used to aid in transportation, was then turned to be a razor focused tempest of destruction. Earth was used to terraform and mine for needed items in colonies, became an earth shattering force of destruction. Once the warmongers took over, they soon learned the elemendi could also control metal and used that in so many destructive ways it couldn’t even be recorded well enough to lend merit. Finally, the Power of Life, used originally to grow plant life and heal, it was distorted to its opposite and used to snuff out life and harm rather than heal.

“The cost of the magic and its destructive properties began to take a toll on the elemendi and they began to die off, unable to rebuild their population. They were lost to civilization, wounded and retreating to where they were believed to be extinct.”

“But they are not, you are implying?” Kha asked.

“No. They are still around, but in such small number and in such fear of abuse that they remain hidden. But, there is man who lives deep in the Rakath Mountains who has some elemendi under his control. He is known only as a collector. He has spent lifetimes collecting races from around the world, and he has some of them in his keep.”

“How do you know?”

“I have made contact with someone who has escaped from him. I was given first-hand account of what transpires there. He has rows and rows of cages and prisons full of creatures only known in imagination. What is worse, he is intelligent and creative. He has bred different races, just to see what it would beget. Some of them have been bred with the elemendi and have gained some sort of control over the elements. Not to the extent of a pure bred, but he has found a way to produce their magic to some degree without being limited to two births.”

Kha exhaled and leaned back. Looking over at Masa to see if he believed this tale as well.

“That is horrible and incredible at the same time,” Masa said. “If that is true, those poor souls lead a tortured life and need to be freed no matter what!”

“And, they could be a great ally in our cause against the Desert King.” Kha added. “But, I agree. We need to help them out, and once free we need to share our plight. If they are sympathetic, we would welcome their help. But, we cannot force them.”

Masa looked Kha straight in the eyes, and Kha could see the emotion there. He knew that his friend was as hard as steel, but could see the empathy for these poor souls. As he watched, Masa’s eyes darkened and they both turned to look back at Jarrick.

“I am glad to hear that you both understand what is at stake.” With that, Jarrick tapped the floor four times with his boot.

The front door of the Inn opened, and immediately everyone turned to see what had seemed to swallow the light. Kha was speechless as he saw what appeared to be at least a 10 foot tall cross between a man and an elephant enter the Inn. His girth was large enough to match his height as well, and he was heading directly toward Kha and Masa. They exchanged glances and began to set themselves for trouble. Jarrick, just chuckled and set down his drink.

“This, gentleman is Bronos. He is the one I was telling you about. Bronos, introduce yourself.”

“Hello gentlemen, my name is Bronos of the Mastadoni tribe. I assume that Jarrick has told you of my origins.” His voice was surprisingly gentle for a beast of his size, yet still sounded as if it were coming from down a hallway that amplified and deepened its tenor.

“I was born from a Mastadoni in captivity with the collector. My mother was bred with a Water Elemendi and I am what resulted.”

“Bronos….it is a pleasure to meet you! I think we may be able to help…”, Masa turned to Kha and saw the same look of awe on the face of his friend.

[Isundir]

Wonderful interior and yeay Bronos, love the use of the bigfig

[Kai NRG]

Very nice interior here Kayne, really like the stuff dangling from the ceiling! The texture on the walls and roof colors are well done too!

[Henjin_Quilones]

Great pub! You created a good atmosphere for the place, with the curios hanging on the walls and dangling down from the rafters, plus a wide selection of beverages. It looks like a great place to sit down with some friends for a pint and regale each other with adventure stories. (Or meet for an important plot developing moment.) I like your style.

[Blufiji]

You really have outdone yourself with this interior man. That room is something awesome, especially with the details like the hanging lights and nets. I also like the floor very much and the texturing is nicely done.

[TitusV]

Stunning. Just stunning.

[BrickCurve]

It looks excellent! I really like the detail of having the barrels suspended from the ceiling by the net, it gives it a very maritime feel. All the little details, from the wall and roof texturing, the lights and the tables and cutlery are top notch. It's a great pity that the lights on the ceiling stopped working, it would have looked really brilliant lit up.

Also, really nice storyline.

[soccerkid6]

I always enjoy a good interior, and this is exceptionally cool Great use of color, and the roof set up with rafters holding lamps is brilliant

Clever name too

Very intriguing story too

[Gabe]

Excellent interior build Kayne! Really enjoying all the detail and different textures, and the scene has just the right amount of clutter to make it feel really inhabited. I especially like the exposed wooden beams, (even if they don't look like they are supporting anything) and the netting is a great touch too. Such a shame the lighting didn't work out, this is a scene that is crying out for some awesome atmospheric lighting!

Great use of the bigfig too, looking forward to hearing how the story plays out!

[Exetrius]

The lore is outstanding!!! Intriguing plot and excellent writing! The build is nicely detailed build, I like the furniture and the crates with stacked bottles. Bronos is cool as well. I'm really looking forward to the next part!

[LordDan]

Awesome interior! I really like the rafters and all the cool details scattered throughout the build, like the nets and furniture.

[LittleJohn]

Very engaging story, looking forward to the next part! Of course, the build itself is wonderful too, I especially like the wall texturing, rafters, and the large amount of windows.

Excellent furniture, and the rat hiding behind the crates was a great touch too

[Tezclatipoca]

Excellent interior !

There are so many details, furniture is great too !

Great job !

[Kayne]

Excellent interior build Kayne! Really enjoying all the detail and different textures, and the scene has just the right amount of clutter to make it feel really inhabited. I especially like the exposed wooden beams, (even if they don't look like they are supporting anything) and the netting is a great touch too. Such a shame the lighting didn't work out, this is a scene that is crying out for some awesome atmospheric lighting!

Great use of the bigfig too, looking forward to hearing how the story plays out!

I actually based the interior off of The Mariner's Inn from Penny Dreadful season 1. There was so much going on inside the place and haphazard beams, etc....I just had to throw them in there to!

[ixypixy]

I love the amount of work you've put into this, both in the build and the story. Both of which I enjoyed immensely, fantastic work

[Mike S]

Awesome job with both the build and story!

[halixon]

So much detail! The walls and roof are very nicely paired with all the small details inside!

[Wedge09]

That build really feel like a tavern!

[bricklover]

Amazing interior.

[Sorrelon]

Great storytelling there! The great gatehouse you've built in the chaper 1 is still my favourite, but this inn is also great! I particularly like the hanging lanterns, although the textures on the wall are also neat. Inn must be having all sorts of visitors to have a door large enough for Bronos.

Edited July 13, 2016 by Sorrelon

[Gunman]

Heyy Kayne, that elephant figure is amazing... :laugh:

The overall moc is great, I really like the lamps there...!

(I guess it was a bit hard to photograph because of the roof... If it had less glares from the flash it would look MUCH better... but obviously a great scene)

[dathil]

This is really awesome :O the mastadoni is so cool, and the interior is really good too