Aw, man...I thought they were through with this! (Thorns of Steel TP)

OOC : Not only does this have Lenore and Ragg fighting in it, but you get to see how Oz is doing! Yay! BIC:

+St.Ninians{Sanctuary}+
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                    St. Ninians: Sanctuary
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The main hall of the church is old and abandoned. Lingering in
the air is a heavy odor of burning. The stone walls are covered
with soot. A heavy layer of dust coats everything, rendering it
a shadow of it's former glory. The seven multi-colored crystals
hanging above the now sooty stone altar are opaque, covered in
layers of dirt and soot, the candles behind each long burnt out.
Off to the left through an archway which was once shut off by a
door, since reduced to cinders, are the old priest's chambers,
abandoned for time beyond memory. This room feels cold and
drafty as well. The pews that aren't distengrated or dismembered
are shoved to the walls, a few thread-bare and charred blankets
draped over them. The roof in here is burned away to the charred
ceiling timbers.
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                    +=Exits and Entrances=+
                      [S]tairwell
                      [P]riest's [C]hambers
                      [O]ut to [C]hurchyard
                      [Li]brary [E]ntrance
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Dust falls gently from the hanging things in the old, burnt out church as a light breeze drifts through the building. Lenore closes her eyes and smiles as her feathers get slightly ruffled. The male crow that has become almost like a shadow to her hops around on the ceiling rafters above, sending down yet more dust. He is now wearing a carved wooden skull hanging from a leather strap from his neck, painted to match the ravens'.

Ragg walks into the ruined sanctuary looking a bit nervous. In his paw is a dagger....one of Vladmirs' daggers. He twitches at every sound and his eyes are more fear than joy as they rove about, falling on Lenore. He would have seen the crow if he had thought to look up. He nods at her "Hello Lenore...Have you seen my boss and your master anywhere around here? I need to talk to him."

Lenore's good mood is shattered at the entrance of the weasel, but it comes back a little at the civil tone he uses. Shaking her head, she answers, "'Fraid not. I'm waiting for him to show up myself."

Ragg sighs "Too bad....well really I don't /want/ to find him, but I have somthing info about that lizard of his." The laughter comes back into his eyes a little "I bet I know more than YOU do."

Lenore raises her eyebrow (if ravens have eyebrows). "Oh, really? I know that he lied to us, and that the mouse Leon is still alive. I know that he saved the cat Scioto's life and killed Bora. I know he is spending an annoying amount of time in Redwall and Ferravale. So what is it that you know?" She is pretty much /daring/ Ragg to ask her how she knows all this -- she just hasn't said it yet.

Ragg laughs gleefuly "What /I/ know is a secret...but I might as well tell you since part of it /is/ for you. That lizard...Sorrlagg I think, anyway he said that he quits and he is not longer a friend. I told him Vladmir would not be happy, but he seems willing to take a chance."

Lenore chuckles a little and caws something, which makes the crow land beside her. "Is that all you wanted to tell me?" she asks, preening her right wing. The crow pecks at a grub that has burrowed out of the wood, but Lenore pecks his wing and he stops, looking rather sad.

Ragg's eyebrows shoot up "You can do better? I also know.....well never mind....You would not like to know." His eyes giggle. He just loves withholding info.

Lenore hops forward, her eyes narrowing. The crow behind her mumbles something as she responds in a rather sharp voice, "Oh, I could, if I wanted to. Tell me what you think I might not like to hear, and we shall see if I do." The crow now begins to peck at the grub again, since the raven's back is turned.

The giggle from Ragg's eyes drips down into his voice "nope. I am not going to fall for that. Lets just say I know more than you (for once) and leave it at that." Yup, He is in the mood for 'walking on ice.'

Lenore ruffles her feathers, her dark eyes flashing slightly. "Why? Why should I let you leave it at that?" she mumble/caws something under her breath that gets a disturbed squawk from the crow, but he is quickly silenced by the much bigger raven.

Ragg laughs "Because you /know/ that whatever I know is somthing that you could probably figure out after awhile. Don't worry. I am sure that your feathery brain can figure it out."

If Lenore had teeth, she would be grinding them right now. Since she does not, she settles for second best -- cawing very /very/ loudly. Afetr the first caw, she lunges at Ragg and stabs her beak at his shoulder. She caws again and yells, "You will tell me what you know, or I swear I will torture it out of you!!" And she looks like she means it, too.

Ragg winces at the caw and as the beak makes its way into his shoulder he gives an ear spliting scream "ok -Gasp-" A Defiant light comes into his eyes "Do your worst -grunt- bird brain!" Quick! think of somthing to tell her!

The crow caws with alarm as Lenore speaks, her voice dripping with contempt, anger, and menace. "Oh, I will. You will /beg/ for mercy before I'm done with you. /Yeh-CAW/!" she gives off an ear-splitting caw of a battle cry, then lunges at Ragg again, her beak stabbing at his shoulders and stomach. Once, twice, thrice, four times she stabs, not to kill him, just to put him in /allot/ of pain.

Ragg gives out another scream as two of the blows hit. One in his shoulder and one in his stomach, the otheres he doged. He starts to painfuly back up toward the door as he says weakly "Is that all -cough- you have, worm guts?"

OK. NOW she's mad. Lenore screeches and lunges at Ragg again, stabbing at his chest and screaming, "I'LL PECK YOUR EYES OUT FOR THAT!!!" the crow groans and covers his eyes with a wing. This is not going to be pretty.

Ragg trips back and falls down which happens to save his life. He starts the move backward on the floor, going faster and faster, trying not to die by the birds beak. He is geting closer to the door.

Lenore is even more enraged now that she missed. Flying above his head, she yells, "Go ahead, run! I will find you, no matter where in Mossflower you hide!" she caws again, then dive-bombs him, trying to cut his right arm to ribbons.

Ragg yelps and tries to move his arm out of the way and is only slightly successful for he gets a huge gash from his shoulder to his paw. He quickly stands and stagger/runs out the door and into Mossflower, running as best he can with all the blood loss.

Lenore caws and follows the weasel, a silent, ebony feathered messenger of doom. The crow sighs and follows her, not wanting to be left in the dusty old church alone.

And they go to the hideout, the hunter, the hunted, and the shadow...

Large Slave Cell
There are many unpleasant rooms in this dark place, but this is one of the most unpleasant. It is not an air of evil which affects the senses, nothing to intimidate here. It is an air of misery. The room is low and long and room lacks any windows or torches, so the only light is the small amount which slips between the cracks in the door. There is a sort of spoiled smell in the room, as it seems to be the only one not diligently cleaned, and one can easily imagine the smell belonging to some beast that may have expired long ago and left his stench behind. A few of those who are not so tired from a full day's work have attempted to sort it out a bit, pushing the debris into the corners of the room. Beds are stacked up in two layers along both sides of the room with barely a paw's width between each, simple wooden boards at the foot of each frame provide as a ladder to the upper bunks. There are as many mattresses pressed in here as space allows, the only room on the floor to walk is a narrow hall.
Exits: [O]ut

Oz has no clue how long he has been here, all he knows is its been a good few days. His face is not as swollen now,but still bruised some and the talon marks on his arm and shoulders have scabbed over,his shirt is saddly still torn badly from the fight when he was caught.

Ragg opens and closes the door with a slam than he leans aganst it, panting like the bellows in a black smith shop. He slides to the ground with much pain in his limbs and has of yet to realize where he is.

The sound of enraged cawing sounds outside the door, and it begins shake as *something* begins to pound on it from the other side. Then Lenore can be heard shouting, "Open up, you yellow-bellied, lily-livered, spineless excuse for a weasel!" The door shakes again as the raven is appearently ramming her body against it to try and break it down.

Oz looks at the door and to Ragg, "What is going on?" His voice is starting to sound a little weak now, he moves his paws a little and sighs, red marks are on his wrist from trying to loosen the cuffs the past few days, he watches Ragg and the door.

Ragg braces himself as the door is ramed on. He cannot hold it for much longer and he look wildly around, trying to find a place to hide. His eyes fall on Oz "Going on? that crazy bird is trying to kill me! Mind if I hide behind you?"

Lenore rams the door again. "Let me in!" she caws. Another cawing voice echoes down the hall outside. Sounds like the crow has caught up. They seem to get into an argument that consists mostly of harsh caws, during which time the door stops shaking. Then, after a pain-filled 'caw', the door begins to shake again with even more gusto.

Oz rasies an eyebrow and shakes his head slightly, he sighs and looks to Ragg.

Ragg winces as the door is hit. One more blow and he will have to let go. He takes a huge chance and leaps away from the door, running over to Oz and simply sitting down by him and trying to blend in.

Lenore slams the door again, but, very unexpectadly, it swings open, and she lands in a very ungraceful heap of black feathers. Hopping upright again, she caws, and the crow comes in, a rather vicious-looking peck mark on his shoulder. The raven is about to speak when another raven apears behind her and caws something. Turning on him, Lenore yells at him in their strange tongue. An argument ensues, and soon they look to be about to go at it beak and claw.

Oz watches the two birds tumble in and start to possibly fight, he can not do too much as he is chained to the wall still.

Ragg laughs, but it is cut short by a shot of pain in his arm. He stands and starts to sneek toward the door, hoping the birds keep fighting while he escapes.

Sadly for Ragg, Lenore seems to have scared the raven guard. He back away, then dissapears down the hall, leaving the door open. At a caw from Lenore, the crow goes outside and closes the door behind him. The raven turns to Ragg and says in a quite, peril-filled voice, "Now, then, Where were we?"

Ragg gulps "I was escaping...." He stops moving and just stands there. He draws his rapier, but it will probably not do much.

Lenore takes a step forward, evil joy glittering in her eyes. "A sword? Come, come...you wouldn't attack an unarmed creature, would you?" Forget the fact that she has a (very) sharp beak and set of talons...and that she attacked Ragg earlier when he couldn't defend himself very well.

Ragg lets out a smile "Acutely I would." He holds his rapier out in front of him.

Oz glaces between them, "I thought you two worked together, and you're fighting."

Lenore narrows her eyes, then, as fast as quicksilver, spreads her wings and bolts, manuvering around the sword and jabbing at the weasel's side, hoping that he doesn't stab at her.

Ragg grins over at Oz "We DO work togather....in a very odd way is all." He was not watching Lenore and her beak digs into his side. He screams again and tries to stab her with his rapier.

Oz frowns and shakes his head, he looks towards the door thats part way open and then the cuffs he around his wrist and sighs just watching the two fight for now.

Lenore caws triumphantly when she makes contact, but then screams in agony as Ragg's rapier stabs her in her wing. Drawing back, she glares at him and speaks to Oz, "We do work together...he just likes to provoke me." she hops back another pace and looks to be ready to attack again.

Ragg frowns and he starts to get light headed from loss of blood. Soon he can not see clearly and after a moment his eyes roll back in his head and he faints, rapier falling to the ground.

Lenore is about to attack when the weasel falls to the floor in a faint. Her wings droop, and she gets an almost sad look in her eyes. Cawing softly, she sits down and just looks at him for a while. Turning to the badger, she comes out of her daze and asks, "Are you hungry? Thirsty, maybe?"

Oz looks at Ragg as the beast passes out and isn't sure what to do, he blinks and looks surprised at what the raven said, "You are...offering me food and water?" He has gotten very small amounts, not the best but it was something as the vermin want and need him alive for now.

Lenore rolls her dark eyes. "No, genius, I'm just curious." she pauses, then explodes, "Of course I am, you moron! Do you want something to eat?!"

Oz nods slowly, "That would be good.....thank you."

Lenore nods, then leaves, hanging her hurt wing awkwardly. After a few moments, she returns with a plate of food -- a farl of wheat bread (dry, but good), 3 peices of dried fish, and a large glass of water, just plain ole water. Her wing is bandaged up, too.

Lenore sets the plate in front of the badger, snappign, "Here." but she does take great care to not spill it. And to put it close enough for him to reach.

Oz manages a small smile, he eats the offered food and drink coughing some, "I..won't tell anyone you...brought that, just in case you'd be in trouble."

Lenore pretends to be bored, preening her now injured wing. "Good. I wouldn't want to be you if you did." she looks at Ragg's prone form, at the door, at her wing -- everywhere except at the badger.

Oz simply nods.

Lenore picks up the now-empty plate and leaves the room...but not without looking back at the incarserated Oz. She then leaves, locking both badger and weasel in the room.