Strand of Fate (IC)

[Supercape]

GM

Despite the vigilance of Arug, Ahmed could not resist.

The scrawny, ragged beggar flicked one eye open, looked around, then the other. It was debatable if the vagrant ever slept with both eyes fully shut. Seeing Arug, he slowly creeped out of his bed in the darkness, with surprising skill. He was silent, melding into the shadows, creeping round the room to the Professors bed.

It was only when he reached there, his hands searching for the urn, which glistened gently in the moonlight streaming through the cabin's window, that he gave the game away.

"What have we here..." he murmured, a bit too loudly, his mouth open and his eyes wide!

[Airon]

Arug perceived Ahmed getting up and snooping around where he shouldn’t have. He slithered on the floor from the door to the side of Al-Hakim’s bed and then rose up vertically, between the beggar and the urn. At the same time he sent off a empathic signal to Saeid, who woke up as if somebody had just spoken into his ear.

“What the…†Saeid couldn’t see much in the shadow, and Arug couldn’t send complicated messages. Saeid waved his hand in the direction of the light switch, getting it at the third try. “Ahmed? What are you doing? Are you insane?†he jumped off the bed rubbing his eyes, pushing the sleep back.

“Get back to bed, ok? Leave that urn alone, it’s dangerous. Very dangerous.†he snapped his fingers and a bedsheet came alive to envelop the urn. Now he'd have to rip through the fabric to open it. “We are working together towards a goal here, ok? One that is very dear to you, as well as to me. We can’t afford quirks and erratic behavior. Are we clear on this?â€

[Supercape]

GM

Ahmed scowled. He was hunched slightly but his eyes looked fiercely back at Saied whilst the Professor slowly roused from his sleep.

"Nobody has more determination than I!" he said in a steely voice that was neither soft nor raised. He beat his heart twice with closed fist.

"I spent my life evading the masters of fate! plotting my vengeance! learning...their tricks and ways!" he hissed, pulling his face closer to Saied.

He shot a look at the Professor and the Urn.

"Circumstance and experience has taught me caution, and suspicion..." he whispered "...and I would like to know what is in that urn!"

[Airon]

I really should be asleep right now Saeid drank a sip of water from the bottle beside his bed. It was warm and unpleasant, but it helped waking him up.

“We don’t know what it contains. We found it in another “secret place†or whatever you called it, near the sphinx. We both risked our lives when we put our eyes on it. It is protected by some sort of charm, a mystic ward that will try to shatter your mind into gravel if you look at it.â€

“I don’t know if it would help in our task – but we couldn’t leave it in Cairo – too risky. Now, when you tell me you are determined I believe you, when you tell me you know a way of getting to the weavers of fate I believe you, when you tell me you are invisible to them thanks to those rags you wear I believe you.†he tried to speak in the soft but firm tone he used with greedy suppliers who aimed for a higher price. He hoped he'd be as good asking for trust as he was negotiating for prices.

“What I’m asking is: believe me about this. You don’t want to look at it before we research it further.â€

[Supercape]

GM

“What I’m asking is: believe me about this. You don’t want to look at it before we research it further.â€

Ahmed took one long, lingering look at the Professors artifact, before shrugging and looking back at Saeid.

"Very well" he replied, with slinky eyes "I hope it of no consequence..."

With that, he shuffled back into bed, muttering inaudibly under his breath.

The Next Morning...

Ahmed had woken early, and woken his two companions, all of whom felt unrefreshed from the broken sleep. The sun had just risen, it was still early, about 7 in the morning.

"Come come, we are nearly there..." he hissed "...the boat stops further down. We can risk the town, and travel from there but it is longer and we may be spotted. I say we jump ship now! make our own way to the outpost...quicker, without being seen!"

[Airon]

Saeid looked at the beggar in disbelief. Jump the ship? He’s crazier than expected!

However, he took in conideration his proposal. He had already contradicted him enough: he scolded him that night, he forbid him to wander the ship… he was somehow afraid that the beggar may grow some resentment in his regard. Also, there always was the possibility that he was right, and that entering the town may lead to an early discovery…

He looked at al-Hakim “What do you say, professor…†ha proposed “I’ll get off the ship now with him, you get down normally at the dock, we’ll have a rendezvous once you get the jeep. Our smartphones still work here, right?†he checked. “The ticket officer was pretty focused on me and our eccentric friend here, I doubt will give you a hard time: in case, just bribe him some more.†He stopped a moment thinking “and it might be good if I work my magic diversion in private…â€

“What do you say, sounds like a plan? Or are you uncomfortable with the party splitting up?â€

[Supercape]

GM

"I'm sure I will survive" replied the Professor with a smile "I know more about this land and culture than anybody, and I am sure I can make my own way there. Our mad friend may just be right...you are more likely to attract attention with your clothes than a humble academic."

He nodded "Yes, this will work. I can hire a car, drive out. It should not be a problem. And I can concoct some story for your absence form the ship, if need be. "

"It's settled then. Just keep an eye on our crazy companion. I feel that he is telling us the truth, but perhaps not all of it. His mind seems shattered, to be honest, but then...perhaps this is not surprising. I remember that awful experience we had..."

He shook his head and pinched his nose.

"Never mind. Guard your body and sanity, my friend!"

[Airon]

“Very well then†Saeid packed quickly his small bag, then raised a scarf over his mouth and nose – maybe he’d bump into someone and he’d rather conceal a bit his identity “fare well, professor. We shall see each other soon, I hope.†He then turned to the beggar “Come, Ahmed. If you think we should get down unnoticed, this is the moment. Be very quiet…†He lead the way out of the cabin, careful not to make any noise nor to alert any member of the crew.

“I won’t jump into the Nile†said Weaver to Ahmed “My carpet is strong enough to carry both of us to land, if you trust me on this. Don’t worry about the Weavers sensing the magic on the carpet… we’ll use it as a distraction as soon as we get off this ship†he put forward his hand to the beggar, inviting him to climb onto the hovering Arug.

While the beggar moved, Saeid kept guard, ready to distract anybody who happened to be looking at them.

[Supercape]

GM

Under the pale light of the rising sun, Weaver, the beggar, and Arug sped away through the fertile banks of the Nile out into the lands of Egypt.

"Come come" whispered Ahmed, his bedraggled hair blowing in the still cool air. "We must not push our luck too far...the carpet, it is a magnet...we must alight!!!"

He pointed to the grounds below them.

"Down there, look: beggars, merchants, travellers...we can go by camel!"

He pointed at a group of the very beasts, travelling on a dusty nile road amongst cars, carts, and men and women on foot. The camels appeared to be owned by some merchant.

[Airon]

Saeid took a deep breath “I don’t know what your fascination with camels comes from, but luckily we can afford a jeep, and unless you have a very compelling argument as to why we should take those beasts, we’ll wait for the professor and the car.â€

He hid from the convoy with camels, and prepared to experiment with his powers in a new way, creating a hopefully useful distraction. He laid some of his clothes on the ground, and filled them with loose fabric. A long scarf would be sufficient to act as a turban. As for the eyes, he picked a pair of cheap sunglasses from his bag These, I’ll have to bind to the puppet… no way I can control them.

Before starting the incantation though, he looked back at Ahmed. Something the professor said had loosened a thought in his mind Really? Could I have been so inconsiderate, so blind? he wondered.

“Ahmed, come here, please. I… I’d like to check something.â€

[Supercape]

GM

Ahmed mumbled something incoherent about Camels being man's best friend, and Jeeps being the spawn of some infernal entity.

“Ahmed, come here, please. I… I’d like to check something.â€

The ragged man raised an eyebrow, then his hands, culminating in a thin bony finger pointing at Weaver.

"Hold on...what are you up to?" he asked suspiciously, his body tensing into a fighting posture. The man, for all his ragged appearance was fast and had that wiry strength that came with his build. He looked like he could be dangerous in a fight. At least, a normal fight.

He edged closer, still on guard and suspicious.

"What do you want to check?" he hissed, his eyes fixed on Weaver all the time as he moved closer to the hero.