[RPG] [BT][Avalon] Arrival

[Matt Runyon]

Kaeterin opened her eyes.  Her body ached, and her wrists and ankles 
were torn and bloody from the ropes.  All she could remember was the 
trader...The one who took her coppers and her promise to work her way on 
the ship, and then, when they were out to sea, "visited" her cot...And 
what was she to do?  He threatened to "share" her with the sailors and 
the passengers if she said a word, and she had no doubt he would have 
done it.  So, after the shock wore off, she began feigning sickness, 
covering herself in pustules made from leftover grease, forcing racking 
coughs and the like.  It stopped him, indeed it did, so she only had to 
endure him the one awful night, but in return...He had sold her to 
slavers upon landing. 

Without access to all the ships stores, she could not keep up her 
facade, and was soon put to work, and tied up each night.  Kinder than 
most slavers, but that was akin to saying "less deadly than most 
poison".  However, one of the many armies passing through these strange 
lands had found the slavers, slain them all, and released the slaves.  
However, that was all they did.  After picking some berries, Kaeterin 
had collapsed into a deep, deep sleep.

As she slowly pulled herself to her feet, she saw that she was at the 
edge of a mountain range, and spotted a nearby village.  She dragged 
herself towards it, terrified of what they might do, but knowing that 
unless she received help, she would be dead before another dawn.

About halfway to the settlement, a couple of men, carrying what appeared 
to be firewood walked by, talking cheerfully.  Kaeterin gritted her 
teeth, and called out to them, fearing for the worst.  The men turned, 
saw her, and immediately dropped their wood and ran towards her.  She 
recoiled, unsure of their intentions, but to her surprise and delight, 
they merely picked her up, as gently as possible, and began carrying her 
toward the village, sending one of their number ahead to bring word. 

They laid her on a cot, and, although they had done their best, the 
jarring had drained her completely.  The last thing she said, before 
passing out again, was incoherent.  "Arlian...letter...find..." and then 
she dropped her hand onto her chest.  To the amazement of those around, 
it crackled.  Tenderly lifting the arm, the removed a sheet of paper.  
However, none could read, and they sent for the village leader to take 
it to the local lord.

A strange day indeed...