Gateworlds Homebrew - Chapter 1 The Calling of Heroes

[Grimtina]

Of the planets and moons known as the Gateworlds, Esidro, "the Key" in common language, was the most advanced and, at least to its inhabitants, the most beautiful of all worlds. Esidro, named after the shape of the landmass looking somewhat like a key to the High Temples, was a world with no extreme climates, not counting two deserts which had once been devastated in a psionic war and not yet regained their former qualities.

What was more important was the lack of wars - again not counting the war between Lugun and Myn, which was only pro forma since Myn had become a protectorate of Paniha.

Yet the same lack of war had caused other problems. Personality types who would have been in an army or some sort of special assault group were now out on the streets forming brigands and organized crime. What was worse, rituals done by the Kayagi monks and priests had unearthed a great many evils. Old tombs, temples, artifacts or awakened creatures started troubling many of the lands, and the forces of law and order were unable to deal with such a threat. As the Old Treaties did not allow for the building of large armies anymore, regents turned to a different source to solve the problem.

Each year, three of the many countries had the right to call in the Hero Assembly. A colorful name to describe fighters, priests, monks, mages and many others to meet in a city to listen to the list of troubles the country or its immediate neighbors were dealing with. Those heroes or wannabe heroes formed groups to go out and conquer the evil - never mind that some of them were evil as well. The contracts with the regents were always simple. solve the problem, get paid a 1000 gold each and keep most of the loot, if there was any. Successful heroes often found themselves in further employ.

Adventurers, Luckchasers, Cleaners and many more names were given to those who rose to the challenge. And who was lucky enough to return could usually be certain of fame and glory.

But many of those would be heroes never returned and more parties were needed each year. And in addition to the never ending issues on their own world, the two inhabited moons now asked for aid with similar problems. The Kayagi sect was still active and had spread, and no one had yet found out why they were doing what the were doing.

The situation on the Ghost Moon, Khevon, is especially bad, as it had just recently been settled and fights with native barbarians were still ongoing. The Misty Moon, Ladir, is less affected yet, probably due to the strong presence of the Clerics of Dhar.

This year, Koya, home of mostly forest elves, fey and halflings, had been the first realm to call the Hero Assembly, closely followed by Hashel, realm of the southern dwarfs. Koya was expecting a strong attendance, but Hashel's queen was worried about the lack of transportation magic they were facing. Neither portals nor gateways or teleports worked inside the kingdom and most of its surroundings. This limited the number of interested people. Most heroes only wanted to start their adventuring after they had their assignments, not while traveling to get them.

In Koya, the assembly is held in the capital Dramar. In Hashel, the dwarfs have relocated the meeting from their underground capital to Khalbador, as people will be able to reach the city easier by water.

You have just arrived in either city - although the elves, as usual, do not have much of a capital in most people's eyes.

Dramar (http://www.krath.org/arania/private/ForumRPGs/Gateworlds/dramar.jpg) (Map used with permisson)

Khalbador (http://www.krath.org/arania/private/ForumRPGs/Gateworlds/Khalbador.jpeg) (Map used with permission)

[Penitent]

Gargath is anxious, still new to the whole, being on the run thing, he's not sure if this nearby country will be looking out for him, or if they will know his face.

He wears the form of a overly large pixie as he walks calmly through the forest, awaiting the posting of the lists.

[WrathOfLife]

Zain Location: Hashel

Arriving at the docks of Hashel, Zain looks around carefully. This land was new and strange to him. Zain wasn't worried about being attacked or robbed, but rather more worried someone would make the mistake of assuming Zain was an easy target and forcing Zain to hurt him.

Walking down the strange streets, Zain looks at the underground surrounds of the dwaven city. Unwilling to get sidetracked by the many pubs and public areas, Zain makes a bee line as best he can towards the Hero Assembly.

Zain wasn't so much interested in the money, as he was in helping the people and forgetting his past. With this in mind, he waits patently for the coming announcements.

[Vauron]

How do the numbers on the map relate to the key? I don't mean the coordinate grid, that is simple enough, I mean like the 4 and 5 in square J2. Also, am I correct in assuming that the jobs will be announced in Foresters Hall?

Eton lounged under a tall willow tree not far where the Assembly was to be called. As he lay there, he passed a critical eye on the many groups and individuals who were also waiting for the commencement of the Assembly, mentally sizing them up as possible compatriots.

So many neophytes, most of these children would likely run in terror from a quasit. Most of the rest either seem to be closely knit mercs which has no need of another, or individuals who can't play nice with others. None of those three types would be a useful source of teammates, and I have no interest in babysitting. Morbidly, he wondered how many gathered here today would still be alive after a month's time.

[Grimtina]

4 is the Foaming Jug and 5 is the Green Dragon.


Location: Dramar

Most of the gathered adventurers were in a good mood, which was partly due to the nice weather and the free food and drink provided on this day. Some were definitely overdoing it with the drinks, too.

Forester's Hall, where the announcements would be made, was filled with elf nobles and some druids talking calmly among each other. Hard to believe they had such a dire need of heroes, seeing how everything appeared to be so perfect.

But the faces of the halfling workers making sure the dais they had erected in the middle of the yard was safe for climbing up spoke a different story. Unlike elves, they were unable to play happy.

[WrathOfLife]

4 is the Foaming Jug and 5 is the Green Dragon.


Location: Hashel

Most of the gathered adventurers were in a good mood, which was partly due to the nice weather and the free food and drink provided on this day. Some were definitely overdoing it with the drinks, too.

Forester's Hall, where the announcements would be made, was filled with elf nobles and some druids talking calmly among each other. Hard to believe they had such a dire need of heroes, seeing how everything appeared to be so perfect.

But the faces of the halfling workers making sure the dais they had erected in the middle of the yard was safe for climbing up spoke a different story. Unlike elves, they were unable to play happy.

Isn't this Koya? Not Hashel? I thought Hashel was the dwarfs?

[Grimtina]

My bad, fixed. Silly me shouldn't try posting without coffee.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius: Hashel

Belifilius cautiously stepped off the dock, taking in at a glance the architecture and people that made up the unique 'character' of any city. He walked along, assessing the many who had come to try themselves, to become "adventurers". Belifilius had never really seen the point in these Assemblies, up until a few months ago: now, it would pass the time and extend the distance to the memories, even if it did nothing else. Besides which, he had heard that a certain brand of psion believed that such exercise was good for the soul, and relieved tension in the mind. Who was he to argue with the great minds of the glorious modern age?

[JKTrickster]

Johnathan stepped off into the docks of Khalbador, looking around with wide eyes. He noticed all the different sights and sounds of the working sailors as cargo was constantly loaded and unloaded from the ships. People screamed to each other in harsh and foul language. Just as he was looking around, someone called a harshly behind him.

"Watch where ya going kid!" a sailor said as Jason bumped into him. "Or I'll snap that little neck of yours next time!"

Jason gave one look at the sailor and simply turned around and walked away. He had much more important, and enjoyable, things to do.

Now, he thought. Where can I get into the most trouble?

[Mokuren]

Location: Dramar

Alfìdis had absolutely no clue how she ended up there.

Oh, no, actually she did: she followed whatever possible lead she could in order to find Cassilda, the woman she swore her life to, except that she did little more than stumble blindly, looking for whatever woman of high birth, good looks and noble attire she could find, even to the point of appearing suspiciously interested in other women.

So she sighed, attracted to this city for their need of heroes. Certainly, her Cassilda is a heroine so the chances to find her here or somewhere related are higher than just asking around town and looking like some sort of dangerous bounty hunter.

She also couldn't help but like the free foods and drinks; while she could more than well cook for herself, money wasn't the easiest thing to come by in her travels, and food and lodging weren't a close second either.

As she attacked more pears than necessary, trying to make up for the weight she lost once she left the castle, she tried to make something out of the tension in the air. She couldn't help but think of herself as a little bit of a heroine out to look for a damsel in distress; not really a humble thing to imagine, but it helped build up her morale, which wasn't too high as of late.

[Grimtina]

Location: Hashel

It was easy to see that the amount of non-dwarfs in the city was above the usual, and many citizens did not like it at all. Mothers took their children out of the way of suspicious strangers, and the vendors on the streets and markets paid extra attention to their goods. Not that it helped much, the foreign thieves were usually more clever.

Something new to the city and the dwarven world as such were the doomsayers, a group of dwarfs all dressed in grey, preaching the end of the world as everyone knew it, predicting chaos, hellfire and death. It was not hard to overhear other dwarfs talk about them, usually in a mocking way, but occasionally, people took them more serious.


Location: Dramar

As far as predictions were concerned, the elves did it just the other way round. Predictions of good luck and brave adventurers "to pull the sweetroots out of the fire." although here and there, you could see the older elves talk among themselves wearily.

There was one elf woman, from the looks close to her death and blind to top it off, who was sitting in the middle of all the commotion, seemingly listening to something from far away. She sat quietly under the house right across the entrance to the Forester's Hall. Sometimes she was smiling at nothing, then nodding and muttering something. In all this, she does not at all appear to be crazy. Every now and then, an adventurer moves towards her, curious, and then listens to her for a while. From the comments some of them make, she is the town's oracle and has never gone wrong in a prediction, although she refuses to predict some things, as "to allow them to change" on their own.

A magically enhanced voice announces that the assembly will start in one hour, and for the non-adventurers to stay out of the way and let the adventurers get to the hall.

[Penitent]

Garath appears on the roof of the hall a few seconds after the announcement, and looks around for a seat overlooking the courtyard.

[JKTrickster]

Location: Hashel

Johnathan walked along, paying the dwarfs no mind. When a particularly annoying kid walked up to him to examine the newcomer, Jason leaned in particularly close. "Hi!" he said, his mouth opening into a gigantic smile. "Wanna play?" But the overly anxious mother pulled the child away before he could answer and he could only sigh. "Maybe next time," he said as he winked at the child before moving along.

Looking around, he spotted a group of quirky dwarfs preaching about the end of the world. For a moment Jason sat over and listened to their eccentric ramblings. He tipped himself back and forth on the ground before abruptly sitting up and walking off.

"Ahh idiots," he said dismissively. "Don't know anything they are talking about."

[WrathOfLife]

Zain Location: Hashel

Zain heard some of the Dwarfs preaching and listened for some time. With nothing better to do until the jobs were announced he felt that it would be of some amusement.

After only a few minutes of listening however, he grew tired. It was clear that what the dwarfs were saying was nothing but fear mongering, but still if there was this much fear in the city something must be going wrong.

Zain tightened his grip on his halberd and continued on his way to the gathering.

[Mokuren]

Location: Dramar

Alfìdis was kind of distracted when she heard about the assembly starting in one hour, she was busy soaking her worries and sadness away with food and drinks. Not that it was unusual for adventurers to do so, after all this fine meal could have very well been their last, thought she herself thought quite differently, she just couldn't die before at least giving Cassilda's sword back.

That sword was, in fact, the most striking piece of equipment she wore. Long and set in a black metallic scabbard with red lineart that almost seemed to glow, its hilt was elegant yet brutal, producing several sharp points and spikes along the hand guards.

Of course, she was carrying it on her side because it was easier to move around and less likely to lose on the way, should she need to draw a weapon her first reaction would be to reach to the simple yet stylish dagger at her other side, with a strangely wavy blade and a sea green pommel that almost looked like it had something inside.

[Vauron]

Dramar

"Might as well get a spot now," Eton mused aloud. So saying, he rose from his shaded shelter, and began making his way to the hall. On his way over, Eton bumped into several people, most of them non-adventurers withdrawing from the area, but also others who were making their way to the stalls, or the hall.

>_< Post was eaten, lets try this again.

Also, just how common are anime hair colors like pink, blue, green, etc etc? Mainly I'm wondering how much Alfidis stands out.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Location: Hashel

Belifilius walked through the streets, soaking in the sights. As he moved, he saw the doomsayers again and again, and picked up bits and pieces of their speeches. What he heard worried him, not so much because of the quality (the odd nutjob wasn't unexpected) but because of the quantity, the sheer number of people tapping into the fear of others to fill the days. It worried him, because this was almost certainly not a spontaneous occurrence.

[Grimtina]

Location: Hashel

The assembly was to be held on "The Flame" - the northern island or what is known as "The Candle" in the middle of the river. Where other cities might have placed most of the docks, the dwarfs have put their main temples and shrines and several buildings for religious retreats. Some of those retreats involve the forging of holy weapons, so the sound of hammering can be heard here as well. It is a holy sound to them, dedicated to the god of metal and fire, Medeth.

The whole island has been enchanted with a magical aura supposed to inspire the heroes-to-be. It works too well with some, as usual, and little for others who seem to be there because they have to. Under this category fall many dwarfs who have been pushed by their families to prove themselves.

There are no doomsayers here, just a few priests of different religions blessing the event and the participants and maybe utter a warning here and there.


OOC: Will write more later, still having trouble seeing much.

[Grimtina]

Location - Dramar


Somehow fat elves always look a lot more ridiculous than overweight members of other races. You almost expect to see their ears grow out to balance out for it, like cats grow wider whiskers.

The government official they had picked to talk to the assembly is one of those not so fine examples of the elven race. No one would later remember his name, but if this was because everyone looked at his shape or because his name was one of those unpronouncable elvish noble names, who could tell?

So there he is, swaying back and forth while looking more than slightly unhappy. Maybe because so many folks who are almost all in good shape make him more conscious of his own weight. But then he smiles and coughs. "Welcome to Dramar, heroes and those who want to be so..."

He's done with the babble relatively quickly. Then he points to a buy behind him to bring up the box where urgent but not so dangerous assignments were hidden. He pulls one out randomly. "Bandit trouble in the mountains, but they seem pretty new at thieving. Is there anyone...?"

A group of five obvious beginners, elves and halflings,who seem to know each other well, too, jumps up and down and waves. Almost as if this was their home the fat elf was talking about. and come to think of it, it likely was. Civil watches were not allowed to leave the settlements, not even for farms, so anyone wanting to be of help would need an authorization such as this one.

It goes on like this for a bit, beginner assignments including retrieving the lapdog of a prince. At times, there are groups of people who have decided to do this together, but at times when there are not, the elf just picks seemingly random from those wanting the mission. Never more than 5 though, unless from the groups if a group is already that large. But slowly, the prospects are becoming more interesting.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius: Hashel

Belifilius strolled for a while longer before he made his way to the 'Flame'. As he went, he glanced around, keeping an eye on everything around him.

[Grimtina]

Location: Hashel

Asides from the adventurers, there were a lot of onlookers, mainly younger and older folks who did not have to work this day. Drums could be heard from a short distance away, and a choir of dwarfs chanting a holy prayer to their highest gods.

The place was packed with people, with the adventurer's interests centered on the halfling seer who was perched on a wooden throne-like seat in the middle of it all.

No sooner did the drums and the chanting stop that the little man started calling out names, groups of 2 - 6 people, assigning them missions. "I heard they have a lot less casualties around here," a human mumbled. "They only give people what they can solve, but of course this way, some will not get to do anything at all."

It was not that long before the halfling called up upon Belifilius to step forward.

[Mokuren]

Location - Dramar

Alfìdis has let most of the jobs slide by her; she wasn't really looking for employment, even thought she considered that doing work and getting paid was something she'd resort to do anyways or her travels would have grinded to a halt pretty soon. Still... She wanted to pick something that had as many chances as possible to bring her closer to her objective, or to where she thought her objective could be.

She nervously shifts on her feet as the crowd thins, earlier or later she'd have to jump on one bandwagon or the other, for they sure were no tasks that a person could take alone. She just had to wait for the right chance...

[WrathOfLife]

Zain Location: Hashel

Zain waited in the flame for his turn to be called. It had been a long trip and while he wasn't eager to go out and see more bloodshed, he would like to have more of purpose in life.

The small halfling watched those around him with a face that gave nothing away, years of discipline had drilled him to be always ready for battle and even now he gripped his halberd carefully whenever some one approached too quickly.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius: Hashel

Belifilius raised an eyebrow slightly at being called so early, but left the crowd. He turned to survey the assembled adventurers, wondering who he would be grouped with.

[Grimtina]

Location: Hashel

Zain's name comes up next. It is obvious there will be only two of them as the halfling seer waves to the dwarf behind him to hand out the assignment.

"Blackbrook" the top paper of the file, put together in typical dwarf buraucracy - efficient and without too many words - reads. And in smaller letters under that "Dekellus, son of the Lord Holder murdered, possible vampire involvement."

Location - Dramar

"Simple investigation," the fat elf calls out. "One or two people needed to aid Governor Drunn of Kaaliqar to find source of fake money."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius: Hashel

Belifilius let his eyebrows rise another few notches when he read the word vampire. He picked up the piece of paper and turned to his companion.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Belifilius Consulus, Fil to my friends."

He extended his hand, smiling slightly.

[WrathOfLife]

Zain Location: Hashel

Reading the paper carefully Zain wonders how they came to the conclusion of 'possible vampire involvement' but none the less when Fil introduces himself, Zain gives him his complete attention.

Zain bows slightly to Belifilius as he shakes his hand in a firm but friendly manner. "It will be an honor to work with you. I am Zain." Zain hesitates slightly before continuing "Zain to my friends?" he finishes as if a question, unsure of the customs here.

Glancing back to the paper Zain comments to Fil "We should go and speak with this Lord Holder. His life may be in danger." Zain looks back at Belifilius in a manner that suggests he was keen to leave, but not willing to force the issue.

[Grimtina]

The paper tells Zain that there had been "some sort of bite marks" on the dead man, and that he had been very pale and no other visible injuries.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius: Hashel

"You'll get no argument from me on that count. The faster we respond, the better."

[Vauron]

Dramar

Eton raised his fist in the air at the counterfeiting job, "I'll take this job."

[Mokuren]

Location: Dramar

Alfìdis' senses tingle audibly as someone offers for the counterfeiting job. Not a group of seasoned adventurers, not a closed circle of people, just one brave man that doesn't fear going around alone.

If her mistress was at his place, she'd have done the same, which probably means...

"Me too!", she throws her hand up, hopping around and trying to hurry towards the other volunteer, "I'm coming too! I am!"

[Grimtina]

Location: Dramar

Alfidis makes it over to where Eton is standing. The fat elf smiles and hands the assignment to a young halfling in wizard's robes. "Get them there," he orders.

The halfling quickly makes his way over to the two of you and gives a quick bow. "Greetings, heroes. I am to teleport you to your destination as soon as you have your gear together. Then I am to return here."


Location: Hashel

Belifilius and Zain meanwhile get a detailed map as to how to get to their destination, together with the offer of good horses if they happen to have none. The servant bringing the map apologizes again and again for the failure of transport magic in this area - a matter other heroes already look into, supposedly.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Hashel

Belifilius thanked the servant, cautiously accepting the offer of a horse. Although he had been exhaustively trained in combat and war, it was a long-standing tradition of the Consulus family to march to war among their troops instead of riding above them. Yet again his mind flickered back to his family, and yet again he wondered how his friend could possibly have been right, despite the doubt nibbling at the edges of his certainty.

"Sorry, I was daydreaming. Let's get going, shall we?"

[Vauron]

Dramar

Eton was taken aback by the outburst by the pink haired girl. He'd expected one or two others would volunteer, but her enthusiasm was surprising. For a long moment he looked at her, trying to take her measure. Finally, Eton spoke, "Very well."

Eton half turned to the young arcanist who would be providing transport, "I travel light, I have all I need." Almost as an afterthought, he looked to the young woman, "Are you prepared, Miss?"

[Mokuren]

Location: Dramar

Alfìdis looked up at the tall, red-haired man she had paired up with. She only saw something red from back in the crowd, but on second thought she had to expect he was at least this tall, or otherwise she wouldn't have seen him.

Even thought, yes, the crowd was pretty thin by now.

"Of course I'm ready!", she answers with a smile, "I prefer to travel light, as well". There is only a meager hint of nervousness in her lips as the reason for her light travel is not really that of preference as much of that of diminishing resources. Still, she looks ready to depart.

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqae (http://www.krath.org/arania/private/ForumRPGs/Gateworlds/Kaaliqar.jpg)

Kaaliqar

Without waiting, the halfling teleports Eton and Alfidis, leaving them on the top of the cliff of the river based city. They find themselves in the front of a large fortress-like building in the middle of a plaza, and the walls around the area can be seen a short distance away. It takes no genius to see that they are in the governing center of the city.

A pair of guards comes towards them. One of them seizes them up and then states the obvious. "You must be the required investigators for the forgery problem. Follow me, please."

After quite a bit of running around in the large and confusing hallways of the fortress, the guard finally bring you to an ebony door and let you in. Governor Drunn sits behind a mahogany table and smokes a cigar, although he is obviously not enjoying it. "Finally," he says. "I was thinking no one would care about our problem. Thank you for coming."

[WrathOfLife]

Zain, Location Hashel

Zain awakes from his own pondering about his connection to noble life and smiles at Fil "Apologies are not needed among friends. Yes, I believe we should leave with utter most haste. I fear even then we may be too late."

Zain mounts the horse with obvious lack of skill, and motions for Fil to ride along side of him. "I fear I have little skill in communicating with nobility. I did however spend my youth as a Royal Body guard, perhaps I could be of best service in finding out information from the servants and guards?"


OOC: Sorry, I thought this had died.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Hashel

"A good plan, I think."

OOC: That is not dead which can eternal lie.
And with strange eons even death may die.

[Grimtina]

Hashel/Blackbrook

After two days travel without incident but therefor with much rain and fog, you arrive in the village of Blackbrook. village is maybe pushing it, as it is mostly a large farming community, with the houses stretched out over the whole farm area except for the core of the village.

You can't help but notice the anxiety and gloom in the faces of the locals. The woman tending the almost empty tavern points you towards the lord's small castle and explains why everyone is so on edge.

"We've had our share with the restless - vampires, zombies and even wild ghouls from time to time. But they mostly stay in the mountains where hunting is easy. That might be changing now. Some nights ago the lord's son went missing and was found dead at the edge of town a day later. With a vampire bite, our rangers said, and they know one when they see one. Not a drop of blood in him either. Looks like the undead are on the hunt again. You'd best be careful if you are traveling at night."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Blackbrook

"Thank you. We'll definitely try to keep that in mind."

Belifilius turns his horse to the castle.

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook

The castle is fairly small, but well guarded and, from the looks of it, has had its share of sieges.

An old man greets you and takes your horses, and a young girl in a maid's dress shows you the way to the lord's office. The man is graying, but vital and eager, but you can see why he cannot take the search for the vampires upon himself. The lower half of his right leg is missing. "There you are," he greets you. momentarily forgetting his manners. "I hope you have some experience with vampires."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Blackbrook

"My pleasure to meet you, sir.

"As to vampires, my experience is greater than one could wish, and yet probably less than you will want. Still, I offer my blade and my blood and my oath to you in this task, and with them the bond of a Consulus."

Belifilius kneels and cuts above his hip with his kukri as he says this, offering the reversed blade to the lord.

OOC: I've explained this in the OOC.

[Vauron]

Kaaliqar

Eton strode into the room, taking a moment for a quick scan of the room in an attempt to gain an insight into the character of the Governor. He comes to a stop before the desk, and nods respectively to the man.

"Think nothing of it, this is something that needs to be done, so it will be done, one way or another. It just so happens that the two of us choose to take this task.

"Now, I'd like to get down to business. What can you tell us about the counterfeiting operation? What work has been done on the matter prior to our arrival?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

On the walk towards the lord's manner Zain mutters quietly to Fil "I shall try to speak with these rangers and see what they know of this."

When before the lord, Zain bows deeply. "We are at your service my lord."

Still bowing Zain adds quickly "My lord, I wish to speak with the rangers who discovered your son's body. I fear unlike my partner here, I am not as experienced with vampires and wish to gain as much knowledge about them as I can. If my lord could direct me to them I won't delay you further?"

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook


Lord Karsul nods and accepts Belifilius Blade, then perking up at the mentioning of his dead son's body. "Aysin and Farla are just back from scouting the forests for more information. They can be summoned to the main hall for you to question them." He claps his hands and gives his servant respective orders.

"There is also one boy who says he has seen a vampire around the fields a few weeks back. At first, no one believed him - he's not the brightest child in the village. But I am thinking he might be right. He will be brought to the hall as well.

As for my son's body, it is in the Chapel of the Sun God, preserved by the priest if you would like to have a look. They are still debating if it is save to bring him back to life, or if this would make him a vampire himself."



Kaaliqar


Governor Drunn tosses a handful of gold on the table in front of you. "This is what I am talking about," he huffs.

The shining coins are stamped with the image of a hand in a sack, rather than the city's seal as you would have expected.

"It's the bloody thieves and their damned guild that did it! They broke into the treasury a few weeks ago and emptied it of every last gold coin. Then they re-minted it with their symbol and handed it out on the streets. We acted as quickly as we could and confiscated every stolen coin we could find. but it was impossible to get it all. To make matters worse, now people are using it as legal currency in the markets - the traders from outside the city don't know the difference.

So now we look like the bad guys for taking people's money and the blasted thieves look like heroes, even though they stole the people's money from their government and handed out only a small fraction of it.

We've had problems with this guild before and have made efforts to shut it down. The City of Kaliqaar has even passed new laws with harsher penalties for guild related crimes, but things have only gotten worse! Our own knights and guardsmen can do very little about the situation. No one will give out any information about the thieves or the gold.

I'm relying on you to track down the thieves, capture them, and recover the stolen gold. They are passing out more gold every day - you must act quickly."

[Mokuren]

Location - Kaaliqar

The young woman peeked on the handful of coins, then took one to examine closely. A hand in a sack, heh, how appropriate.

"It's certainly a... Eh, peculiar way of working", she says, silently wondering what was the point of making this only to give all the money away, it certainly doesn't look like a quick way to make money, or even a slow one. Maybe a very, very, very slow one. Unless...

"Well, we're certainly going to investigate the matter", she says, her smile a little unsure as she glances at her companion which she knew from a grand five minutes, "Is there anywhere you recommend us starting from? Some contacts we might be able to peruse?"

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar


"There is a tavern called Back Door, the members of the guild go there a lot. Our knights do not even try to go there any more, as they are only laughed at."

[Fortuna]

OOC: If you like, I can remove this post for lack of Knowledge(religion). On the other hand, this knowledge is part of the bit of my backstory that only the DM knows, so I think Belifilius should have it.

Belifilius, Location Blackbrook

"If he will return as a vampire, he will do so only if you leave him in the eternal sleep. The best thing you can do, for both your son and your town, is to return him to life. If he does, to be blunt, turn against us, we will know that we are not dealing with 'common' vampires, and if he does not then it will surely aid your state of mind. As well, he may have seen them, or may be able to tell us something about them."

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook

"That is what most of the priests want to do. It is, of course, what I would prefer. I will give orders to perform the ritual, then." The lord sighs. "And maybe under the circumstances, I will not be called selfish for using resources on my son's revival."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Blackbrook

"No reasonable person could ever accuse a father of being unreasonable for using every resource at their disposal to recover a son. After all, did not the Great Bard himself, when one of his characters claimed that revenge was a cure for grief, have another respond 'He has no children'?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Remaining quiet as is standard protocol for him in these situations Zain wonders what Fil is on about. Still Zain couldn't help but wonder how a vampire would be able to strike at a lords son, and having struck would then leave the body behind to be brought back from the dead.... no... something else was afoot here, something elusive.

Zain steadied himself. His new friend was skilled with words, surely if a plot was underfoot he would spot it. It was Zain's role to ensure once spotted any threat will be completely and utterly destroyed.

With a small bow Zain puts forward his request "If it pleases my lord, I would like to speak to these people as soon as my lord can arrange it. Time is of great importance in this matter."

[Grimtina]

The lord's secretary personally brings you to the hall where the rangers are waiting. They are both elves, with something else mixed in you cannot make out. Also, both of them look neither male nor female to you.

There is also a small boy, maybe 10 years of age, who indeed does not look too bright and ho is very nervous. "I didn't do anything," he blurts out before someone else can say anything. "I was just minding my da's flocks."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius, Location Blackbrook

Belifilius kneels in front of the boy, bringing himself to the same level.

"And a very good job you were doing, I'm sure. Tell me all about it, and I'll tell you a secret."

Belifilius glances over to Zain and jerks his head minutely in the direction of the two rangers.

[Grimtina]

"Really?" The boy looks to the rangers and back. "My da says telling vampire stories is bad. But lying is bad as well." The confusion is clearly too much for the child. "I was at the forest fields. Best grass, makes good meat. Was trying to teach the dog to go around the flock an bring them to me an there comes this man out of the forest. Almost nakeded, just some gray coat. An he had red eyes an fangs." The boy makes fangs with his fingers.

"I got all scareded an the dog was hiding, an I was running to the creek because grandma says vampires don't like water much. But when I go in I remember I can't swim. I almost drownded an then someone grabbded me at my shirt and pulled me out and it's the vampire. I think I fell over because when I waked Dinny - the dog - was licking my face.

Da says the dog pulled me out and I just saw ol' Adrew from the miller's, but he doesn't have fangs, just a broked off tooth, an Andrew hasn't red eyes."

[Fortuna]

"My goodness. That's a pretty big secret. I'm going to have trouble beating that one. You probably won't want to hear my secret with such an exciting one of your own."

[Vauron]

Idly, Eton took a few of the coins, pocketing a them after a cursory examination. During the examination, he shot a glance at the young woman who choose to follow him.

Perhaps it was a mistake to take someone I know nothing about with me. ...Hells, I don't even know her name. We'll need to have a proper talk in private.

As he fingered the coins, his thoughts turned back to the case. Passing out rebranded coins? Really? This can't be a money-making scheme, anyone who was able to pull off such a heist couldn't be stupid enough to think they'd make a profit this way. But if not Money, then why?

"Before we begin the investigation proper, I do have a few minor questions. First, you mentioned that they cleared out the entirety of the treasury, which is no small feat. Do you have any estimates on the numbers the guild can call on? Second, will we report directly to you, or to one of your subordinates?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Taking his cue, Zain heads over towards the Rangers.

"Greetings friends, it is unfortunate we must meet under such circumstance. I am Zain, Blade master from the far west. I understand you two discovered the body? Could you please go over that days events for me, and give any possible motive you can think of, that a vampire would strike a noble?"


Diplomacy - [roll0] to get on their good side and get as much info as possible
Sense Motive - [roll1] because I don't trust them, and want to know if there lying or holding something back.

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar

"We are talking about an estimate of 200.000 gold pieces and 20.000 platinum pieces - which haven't shown up in the streets, for sure. And no, you will not be reporting to me, but to Battlemistress Loramas from the knight assembly. She has her own ideas as to what is behind this, so I've heard."



Blackbrook


"I like any secret, I do," the boy replies. "Especial when it is a real one, not like the town gossip woman who says allthing is a secret an then tells it to alls of us." He smiles a little.

Fala nods and does most of the talking for the rangers. "We were sent to see what took Dekellus so long on his hunting trip. He liked hunting alone, said it was more of a challenge. In truth... well, he loves the bottle, too, and his father is not fond of him drinking so much. His 'hunting trips' often result in him falling asleep other a tree." Fala looks as if she is not too happy about revealing this secret. "The Lord, he doesn't know. Dekellus was never fallen to the bottle, you see, he just needed it in touch times."

"He did not look much like a noble on such days," Aysin throws in. "I do not think the vampire knew who the man was."

"Yes, that much is true. Well, we came upon the forest and found his horse and his pack mule there, as often when he was out to drink rather than hunt. He does not hide his tracks from us, he wants to be found. So we went after him, but then we saw another set of tracks following his. Probably a male, from the size of the feet. Light tracks only, as if from an elf. But they started abruptly, as if the person has fallen from the sky - no trees on the clearing where we first saw the footsteps."

"I said is must have been someone using a fly spell, or a natural flyer," Aysin says.

"Yes, you did. It looked suspicious, so we got our bows out and proceeded more quietly. But when we arrived at the other end of the clearing, Dekellus was already dead, completely bloodless and with bite marks on his neck. And the tracks vanished there as they had come. We know enough about vampires to sound the alarm immediately."

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Glancing across at Fil, Zain nods carefully. "What sort of trouble was causing the young lord to turn to drink?" Zain considers what he had been told about the poor noble's misadventure. "Do many other people enter this forest? You say you believed it to be a vampire attack, have you seen one here before? If so how was it dealt with?"

Zain smiles and bows sightly "Forgive my nature, it strikes me as uncanny luck that the first victim of this vampire happened to be the good lord's son. The vampire could have killed a great many peasants before the alarm was ever raised."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius's mind raced, blurring through possibilities. Why? Nothing added up, nothing made sense. Why kill and drain a noble, only to leave him to be found and recovered? Why terrify a child out of his wits, and yet not finish the deed?

"All right, then, I'll tell you my secret. My secret is a very secret one. Not many people know this secret at all. My family has a neat trick that we've learned, barely worth mentioning really. We've picked up the knack for making it a little harder than usual for other people to see..."

Closing his eyes for a moment, Belifilius took a moment to remember the secret that he had been taught years ago. Flashing back for a moment to his erstwhile friend, Belifilius wondered for yet another fleeting moment as the room darkened around him.

Quickly, his eyes flashed open and his fingers went to the boy's neck, just for a moment, hunting the tell-tale puncture marks. At the same time, he watched the eyes, watching for any sign, any recognition of the change in the room.

Belifilius uses his daily Darkness ability, as well as what is described above.

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook


"Dekellus fell of his horse during a hunt for murderers a few years ago. A knife hit him in the shoulder and he lost his balance. The knife wound was harmless, but the broken shoulder never healed right. The priests made an attempt to correct the situation, but got some sort of cryptic remarks from their gods to leave it be," Fala explains. "I am not very religious, so I am not sure of the details. But the pains he was getting, especially from autumn to early spring, were immune to anything but alcohol, so he said. Some people say Dekellus was often angry, but he was actually in pain."

"And it is not the first time vampires have hunted here," Aysin adds. "Just that normally, we'd find wild animals without blood, or the occasional cattle. Once a dog. But never before a human. That is, not that we know of. No one was reported missing."

"That is not quite true," Fala suddenly remembers. "Lady Lysara's handmaiden went missing around end of autumn, remember? She was never found. Lysara does not live down here, she lives up on the mountain, somewhere close to an old abbey at the black stairs. for some reason, she likes solitude."

"Ah, but Dekellus visited her a lot, did he not? At least last year up to first snowfall." Aysin smiles at the thought. "Both of us thought that they would soon reveal their secret and marry."



The boy's eyes go wide in surprise. You can see a silver shimmer in them, as if there is a tiny spark dancing, but there are no puncture marks. "Is that magic?" he whispers. "The Lord's people can do magic sometime but I never see it."

[Mokuren]

Location: Kaaliqar

"Well, I see. I think we're good enough to get started then, shall we?".

She flashed her companion a smile that tried to be as least nervous as possible; clearly they had a lot to talk about, but she hoped she could give the idea they were actually a very tightly-knit team. Sort of.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"Well, yes and no. It's a sort of magic, but really it's just a little trick, like making a coin vanish."

A silver glimmer? What could cause that? Whatever was at hand here, vampires alone were not it. With barely a thought Belifilius returned full light to the room as he settled into musing.

[Grimtina]

"I can't make coins vanish, but I can juggle balls an other things so Belge the bard sometime let me help in the tavern. Can't sing and not remember stories well so can't be a bard myself. But my da says farming is as good a job as any."

The boy now feels more at ease. "Are you going catch the vampire? If you find him can you say thanks for saving me from drownding? Ma says we need to thank everyone when they help us, even animals, and the vampire did help me I think."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius straightens up. "We're going to try, anyway. I'll remember to tell him thanks for saving you. Thanks a lot for all your help."

[Vauron]

Kaaliqar

Eton shook his head at that. "My apologies, apparently I was unclear. I was referring to the number of people the Guild can call upon."

After hearing the governor's response, along with any interjections from the pink haired girl, he tried to wrap up this conversation.

"Right, we have taken up enough of your time today. You surely have many responsibilities to discharge, so perhaps we should go introduce ourselves to the Battlemistress and hear what she has to say concerning the case."

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Frowning heavily Zain comes to the realization that everything he thought about this mission could be wrong. This might not be murder, this might be love.

"Has anyone being to this mountain hideaway recently? You said there was a problem with vampires in the past? Did you learn anything about where they live around here? Weaknesses they show?"

Zain considers the situation, turning to face Fil he gives a nod with his head indicating he wishes for him here. Turning back to the two rangers Zain carefully adds "Does Lady Lysara know about Dekellus' trips in the forest? Did she ever join him?"

[Grimtina]

"We believe the vampires live in an old cave system under the old abbey. They don't all mind sunlight, but some seem to avoid the full moon. Our elders believe this is because they are afraid of werewolves. And we think the Lady had no idea the young Lord was going to the forest so often. I once heard her warn him to better not be out at night when she was down here for her monthly shopping."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius steps over to Zain and the rangers.

"Interesting. For now, since neither of us has any expertise in forest lore, I don't think that we will need to visit the site of death. But might I suggest, purely out of my own personal interest, that you examine the area where this brave young chap found himself? His story, while odd, is hardly odder than the rest of the situation, and every little piece of knowledge helps us now."

[Grimtina]

The rangers look at each other and nod. "We'll do that immediately."

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar

Battlemistress Loramas is already expecting you in the small administrative office a floor down. It is clear that she is happy about the help. "I have a feeling the thieves want to play with us, present us as fools to the public," she admits to you. "It cannot be all about money or they would not give out so much freely. Myself, I am dreading the hunt already, more than I would any battle."

[Mokuren]

Kaaliqar

"But... Why would they want to do that?", Amaryllis blinks, not really understanding what's going on, "It seems like they're more interested in ruling the town in your stead than gathering riches, they're losing a lot of money by doing so".

"Plus", she continues, "When we'll come down to taking the currency back, the population as a whole will turn against us like we're the thieves". She then pauses. Really, why couldn't it be much, much simpler?

"Do you... Know who these thieves are?", she frowns, not sure what she's thinking herself, "It seems like they have a personal grudge against someone".

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar

"That would be the governor - he's been trying to crack down on crime to hard. We've tried to explain to him that this is no good, that the guilds will strike back, but he did not listen."

[Vauron]

"So our job is to be a bandage over the larger problem of having powerful syndicates that rely on illegal activities, tied with the issue of a ruler who is not making the most ....effective decisions to reduce their power, yes? Well, seems we will have our hands full.

I meant to ask this of the govenor, but how many people can the Thiefs' Guild call upon?"

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"Thank you. Now, I have another question: is there perhaps a mage or a lorekeeper somewhere nearby? There are certain aspects of this situation on which I feel an expert's advice would be most useful."

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar

"Based in the city, maybe about 300, although most of those will be out and about in the area at most days. And this counts, of course, all the small fish as well."

Blackbrook

"Well, there is Mother Dainar, who cares for the Lord's library. She also doubles as history and geography teacher. And there's Nilligan, the old wizard the Lord employs but he is... difficult, to put it diplomatically. He's paranoid, at least."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"I see. Where would I find Niligan, do you think?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Politely lost in thought Zain nudges Fil as softly as he can and whispers. "We need to check the cave system under the old abbey. I think that's where the vampire will be, however, I'm not convinced this vampire, is in fact an enemy."

[Grimtina]

"Around this time, Nilligan will be in the herb gardens. He's growing most of his herbal ingredients himself, and the cooks love him for providing everything else, too." The ranger quickly gives a description how to get there.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"Thank you very much."

He turns to leave the room, whispering back to Zain.

"I get something of the same feeling, but there was something off about that boy. His eyes in particular. I want to check with someone before we go rushing headlong into anything."

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Zain nods and whispers back "I will follow your lead, something about this whole situation just doesn't feel right." Zain fingers his halberd "I should very much like to question this vampire once we find it."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"We can only try."

[hr]

Emerging into the garden, Belifilius looks around for anyone matching Niligan's description.

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook

"That's right, grow into a nice, tall bonewood tree," the voice of a man is heard.

Niligan, wearing green gardeners robes and not having any beard, looks nothing like a wizard as he is busy watering plants and talking to them. Not noticing your arrival at first, he finally turns around and sees you. "Ah, the heroes-to-be I heard of, no doubt. Are you looking for me? What can i do for you?"

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"A pleasure to meet you. I am Belifilius Consulus, and this is my friend and companion Zain. We have been asking a few questions, and a couple of things don't add up. I was hoping that you might know something about an... unusual phenomenon that we observed."

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook


"I see, I see. Ask away," the wizard beams. "I've come to learn of many peculiar things in my life."

[Vauron]

Kaaligar

"Right, plenty of work to be done. Well, how do you want us to report to you? And is there anything else you feel it is important we know?"

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"Thank you. It's hardly anything, but I like to check these things.

"We were speaking with a boy who claimed to have been rescued by a vampire. Naturally, we were suspicious, and I (having learned something of the arcane arts from my grandmother) attempted a minor magic to discern whether his eyesight had been affected by darkening the area. My surprise, as you can imagine, was all but complete when I noticed a slight silver sheen over his eyes, almost like a spark. I wondered whether you might know anything of such an occurrence?"

[Grimtina]

Kaaliqar

"There is a beggar near the thieves' favorite tavern who works for me. A lot of people talk to him, so you won't be out of place. He'll report anything you tell him back to me.

There is something else you should know though. I am sure you haven't been told, as the matter is a bit delicate. The thieves did more than just steal our money. When we got to the stables the morning after, all our horses had insults shaved into their fur. And then we found out they stole the front doors, of all things, of every single Council member. The doors have never been recovered. The horses and the doors are still the talk all over town, so you would have found out anyway. The governor just prefers to pretend it did not happen."


Blackbrook

The wizard's eyes widen in surprise. "I have indeed heard of such a thing. Very rare, and not done anymore by most vampires. The boy, he must have been dead when the vampire got to him. Vampires are not equipped to heal the living, so he must have made the boy a Bloodbond to keep him alive. Likely, the lad never noticed, and if the vampire is truly interested in helping the child, then he will not find out for a long time. He will notice that he does not age once he grows up. Nor will he get sick as long as the vampire he is bonded to survives. Should the vampire die, he will just age normally again.

Very fascinating, indeed. I would like to meet this vampire, and the boy."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"While the boy will be easy to arrange, we might have some trouble with the vampire. Can you tell me anything more of this Bloodbond?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Zain smiles softly, he was right. Something was amiss with this vampire. The question is what can they do about it.

Zain watchs Fil work quietly, he has little add, his mind stuck on the coming exploration of the caves.

[Grimtina]

Blackbrook

The wizard nods. "A Bloodbond is done by infusing a little energy from the vampire into the mortal - although we do not know the type of this energy. It is not negative, obviously. The vampire in turn licks a little blood from his the mortal.

This gives both an advantage. The mortal becomes immortal as long as the vampire exists, and the vampire becomes more like a normal being. This is used, among other things, to be able to walk among mortals freely, to endure the sun, holy symbols and even be able to eat and drink as everyone else. Vampires could have quite a lot of Bloodbonds, and they could even be transferred in some rituals.

The method went out of practice when some vampires discovered that Bloodbonds lead to weaknesses of a different kind, such as becoming too emotional, as the emotions of their bonds affect them and they lost control over them. You see, a Bloodbond must do as the vampire commands, as long as it does not go against his or her moral code. I believe many vampires do not even know the option exists.

Some vampires still use one or two bonds each, but they usually pick their bonds very very carefully, so to gain the best benefit for them. Like taking control over the general of an army, or a king himself. The boy does not seem to give a lot of benefit, so the reason to bond him must have been to simply save his life. Which has only been mentioned done a handful of times."

Nilligan now paces up and down in his garden. "The only way for a mortal to get out of the bond is to become immortal by other means, or turn into a were-crerature Were-creatures and vampires do not mix well, somehow their energies ae not compatible."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"I see. This complicates matters somewhat, I believe. Can a vampire so bonded cross running water? Can they be detected at all, short of magic?"

[Grimtina]

"Oh, yes," the wizard nods. "The reason vampires do not usually cross running water is because they associate it with true life and progress. The flow of blood, magic energy, and of course water gives life to all and never stands still. A Bloodbond gives them enough connection to true life to overcome that.

Which probably means the vampire you talk about has another bond, too. As far as I heard - but of course, those are only rumors - didn't the boy almost drown in the creek?

As for them being detected, they might show in mirrors but will show the mirror image of their bond - which is why some very influential vampires try to bond people who look a lot like them. I do believe they still detect as undead. But the accounts there are conflicting."

[Vauron]

Kaaliagar

Eton ran his hand through his hair, not hiding his exasperation. "Quite frankly, how in the seven heavens of Celestia did they manage all of that? All told, that would be such a massive undertaking that I refuse to believe that there was no warning. Everything I've heard indicates that this was accomplished quickly, without any forewarning as to what exactly might come. People talk, and the only way three people can reliably keep a secret is if two of them are dead, and sometimes not even then."

[Grimtina]

Kaalinqaar

"Thieves do not really need to keep a secret, they can talk among themselves freely, and from what I heard, they are somewhat looking down on us," the woman shruggs. "Maybe they have talked to someone and no one believed it, and now they keep quiet because they did not tell the guard what they heard. Really, who would believe thieves to steel front doors, or bothert to shave taunts into horse fur? The tales of a drunken mind."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"Then I suspect that we may all be in far more trouble than I bargained for. If you don't mind too much, I think that we should perhaps delay your meeting the boy. This entire situation is too full of unknowns for my liking, and introducing another might be the straw that breaks the camel's back. In fact, I would ask whether I might inspect your eyes, and perhaps see your reflection: with this information, I am loath to trust anyone but myself and my colleague. I hope that you understand that this is nothing personal, but I cannot take risks with myself or the people of this castle."

[Grimtina]

"Oh, I understand. Good idea, really, go ahead!" the wizard says.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Slightly taken aback for a moment, Belifilius nods and then peers at the man's eyes.
"Zain, do you think you could find a mirror?"

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

"Read my mind." Zain trots off to locate a mirror.

In returning he appears thoughtful, "If we have two bonds, does that mean we see two people? Or three.... Do they stand in the same place, or stand next to each other? This should make it remarkably easy to find the vampire."

[Grimtina]

The eyes of the mage are clear, but his mirror image shows a much younger man in his prime. The old man laughs at that. "Oh yeah, I am under a permanent 'Rorrim's Vitality' spell. I found that one some years ago and thought it would make me young again, not noticing Rorrim is mirror backwards. Old fool, I am."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"You will understand, I trust, if I do not take you at your word? You must admit that it is suspicious at best, and damning at worst."

[Grimtina]

"Oh, of course. I would be suspicious if you would just believe me." He smirks. "We could try the mirror spell on you to prove it, but it has some unpleasant side effects so that's not really a good idea." Then he brightens. "Ah. I know. Water. The spell only affects mirrors, or basically anything made of glass, really."

[Fortuna]

"I'm afraid that I have never seen a vampire's reflection in water before, and so I cannot trust it either. However, I may have an option. Zain, if you will guard him here, I will be back shortly."

Belifilius races out and hurries to the lord's office.

"My lord, I have found what may be a breach in your security. I need someone who knows everyone in the castle, and preferably in the village, by sight."

[Grimtina]

"Well, that would me Erina," the Lord answers. "She is the oldest person in the area, a half elf living on a farm. I'll send for her."

Within less than 15 minutes, thanks to teleports, the woman, wrinkly and small, is brought before you. "How can I help?" she asks.

[WrathOfLife]

Zain

Staying true to his word, Zain keeps the old man under a close watch. Wondering what Fil is up to.

OOC: Sorry, for my lack of replies exams are stressful!

[Grimtina]

With little chance to do avoid it, Zain is treated to several anecdotes about herbs and flowers and their use for magic.

OOC: no prob

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

"I need you to come with me. Have you ever seen Niligan's reflection in a mirror?"

[Grimtina]

"I'm afraid not, I barely see my own reflection in a mirror," the woman answers, slightly confused. "But I have seen him often enough."

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius is moving as quickly as the old woman can move.

"There is magic afoot, and little time to explain. Suffice it to say that the lives of everyone in this castle may depend on your reaction to this."

[Grimtina]

The woman just nods and follows. She seems to be used to not ask a lot of questions.

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius strides into the garden, the old woman tailing behind him.

"I need you to look at this mirror and tell me whether you recognize the man in it."

[Grimtina]

With only a slight hint of confusion, the woman looks into the mirror. "That's Nilligan when he was just a wizard apprentice in his 4th year. No mistaking the sheepish smile. How does he come to be in a mirror?"

[Fortuna]

Belifilius

Belifilius visibly deflates.

"Perhaps... I was in error. I apologise for the inconvenience to both of you."

[Grimtina]

"Not a problem," Nilligan says, now all serious. "I would have worried if you would ot be that careful. There are so many strange things going on in the lands nowadays."


OOC: Sorry for the delay, had to look after my dad for a bit.