KoL: Tide of country.

[KingOfLaughter]

The port was crowded, men, women, children scuttling about, but only the rich today. You each only know that you were contacted by someone, a courier, bought and paid, having slipped you a letter while you walked. It stated simply,

Await me by the port.

You don't know why, but the letter lured you, pulling on every fiber of your being, you were drawn, like fish on a hook.

But who... Who delivered the letters? Which of the city's' many bustling rich folk? Or was this but a cover? Suddenly you notice, others, standing, looking out of place, not poor... but not the folk that would attend a rich folks merchant day... They look... like mercenaries... almost... the gears not quite to quality... But maybe. Then you see an old man, he looks... Familiar, not like you've seen him around town... but like you know him personally, you seem drawn to him, just like the letter. He hurries fast, toward the gardens, and the red oak.

[Tsumeken]

Shunt mental scratched his head, searching through recent memory in the faces around the port, the mercenaries in general. It'd been some time since Shunt's last tussle with some one out of ton why I think it was.... yeah about last week when he found that guy running his mouth back in the taverns. Shunt laughed, he always laughed when he remembered a fight, largely due to the outcome for the loser. "Port huh.... well I'm here along with every other person in this two bit town? Now lets get this over with." He began looking for the person who sent this letter, most likely they all got the same letter so he looked for who they were all talking,, or trying, to.

He then sees the man and is once again lost in his head. "Running? Why would he be running? Heh... maybe he's a cutpurse." Shunt cracked his knuckles with his steel gauntlets. "Come on ladies... we gotta teach a man some manners...." With that, he began running after the man as fast as he could in his armor.

[VirgoBushin]

~Fiona~

The twenty year old raven haired girl... or young woman, she supposed, had been switching between re-reading the letter and looking up from it to ensure she didn't run into anyone. Sure, she had but graduated from the Magical Academy not too long ago and was intending on seeking out adventures, albeit, she didn't quite intend to have her wish come true so swiftly.

Standing at her full height of five and a half feet tall, she wear what looked more like a rather simple set of traveling clothes, with a cloak, undershirt, and pants and looked unusually exotic for someone who was supposed to be a lower-middle class person. Her set of hazel eyes looked up once again from the letter and she found herself at the port.

A slight "Meow" hinted to her she'd almost lost her footing,, making her turn to the source of the noise and smile. "Thank you Yuna. Almost lost it there." She turned back in time to see a man and a .... what was it? It wasn't quite human ... so she wasn't sure what to call the man ... but it was definitely humanoid. Nonetheless, it definitely got her attention, especially when she felt compelled to follow the man who had first run off. "Wait.... excuse me.... sir?! Who are you?!" She continued running behind the humanoid and elderly man, hoping to find answers soon.

Humanoid = Tsume
I'm purposely having her naive to other races aside from humans .... I probably should have put that in my background but I just thought of the idea now. Go figure huh? x.x

[Frivolous]

Ernest Archbinder


Ernie Archbinder munched on a pastry as he gloomily considered his prospects.

He was running out of money. The temple of Hieroneous was more than willing to host a paladin (even a rookie like himself), but Ernie disliked taking charity, even from fellow servants of his god.

Plus the food served was not very tasty and the wine was closer to vinegar than he liked. Ernie did not consider himself a materialistic man, but he did like to eat, and he got depressed on a poor diet.

He could always move back home. But that would be even worse, a retreat if not a capitulation. It would not look good for a servant of The Invincible to retreat for so little reason.

Ernie finished his croissant and decided. He hated to do so, but there was really no alternative. He had not yet been able to find an adventuring company to join, and he would not live by another's charity. He would go look for a job.

Ernie picked up a broom and swept the floor as he gloomily surveyed the wealthy noble and common families he knew. He had received the power to Detect Evil only recently, and he had a sinking feeling that many or even most of his prospective employers were not of sufficient moral purity.

Besides, even the best families might balk at employing a paladin as a butler, much less as an ostler.

Then a courier walked in and handed over the letter. Ernie read it and scratched his head.

"I wonder what this is about. I hope it means employment. Purity is all well and good, but I want pie. Haven't had any in over a week now."

Ernie almost went to the appointment in his ordinary clothes, but then prudence made him stop. It could be a trap. So he put on his scale mail (a hand-me-down from his aunt) and brown cloak. He walked out the door with his morningstar at his hip, his shield on his arm, and his bow and quiver over his shoulders.

He whistled on his way to the docks, then caught sight of the old man, and followed at a fast walk (or as fast as one could walk in armor) for no reason he could discern. Frowning, he paused just long enough to reach out tentatively with his senses, looking for malice, then continued walking.



Ernie is using his Detect Evil, aiming it mostly forward, towards the old man.

[Ermanti]

Izhan padded down the avenue, eyes squinted against the glare of the blasted sun, and once again wishing that his father never left the dwarven halls of his forefathers. By the port eh? Well, I hope whoever this is will buy me a drink. It's been a week! When he arrives, he notices a group of people running away from the port. Loyal dog starts to growl as they pass by.

"What's that boy? Maybe we should follow them, eh? We can always see what's going on later. We need a drink anyway."

And so the fat little druid waddles after them.

[Alth Falath]

Kor Axebeard
Kor walks down the avenue, following the old man. Dwarven rule 113: Old men must be respected and listened to at all times. He strokes his beard 5 times, careful to leave the braids intact. He hums an ancient dwarven mining song to himself as he follows along. "Gold gold gold gold, gold gold gold gold..."

[KingOfLaughter]

Sorry guys, that maniacal thing called life decided to mess with me...

The elderly man is easy enough to catch up to, but he always seems just barely out of reach. Suddenly he jets off, a boost of speed seemingly unlikely for a man his age. He rounds then corner into the gardens and as you follow he seems to have disappeared completely. Suddenly you find yourselves not in the city garden, but in a palace. A palace built not of stone, but wood. The very forest bending itself to create walls and a roof. Animals running freely about, and on an elephant sits the old man. He hops off and bows. "I am Mortimor, guardian of the natural bonds. You might wonder why I brought you here, or why I would need the service of a group of mercenaries." Mortimor walks over to an empty spot of 'floor' and suddenly it twists into a table, with chairs surrounding it, "Please, sit. I have much to explain" Mortimor takes a seat in one of the chairs, and awaits for the group to sit.

[VirgoBushin]

~Fiona~

As Fiona stopped and found herself in the garden, she heard a light "Meow" from her shoulder once again. As she looked around, she saw others had followed after her and the humanoid. Behind her were a mixture of other humans and humanoids. Interesting group....but.... why are they all here? In the end, she decided she wouldn't get any answers by merely trying to answer them in her own mind and, as the man began to speak and introduce himself, she turned to listen to him. When all was said and done, he invited everyone to sit down. She smiled and bowed her head, eagerly taking the offer as she sat down a little bit away from Mortimor. The running had hurt her body as it wasn't used to so much strenuous activity.

[Tsumeken]

So many things were wrong right now. The first being that old men don't just move that fast. The second... where did all these people come from? Although Shunt would admit he hadn't paid much attention after chasing the man so that was probably his fault. The old man had introduced himself as some sort of guardian of this part of town to which Shunt just scoffed. "So you're one of them crazy tree-hermit things right? You know... all the talk with the animals and walk with the animals, right? Eh... whatever."

As Shunt looked at the magically created table and chairs, he stood with his back against the tree. Sitting down was fine and all, but he didn't know the first thing about this person aside from what he had been told and he definitely didn't know anything about these others.

[Frivolous]

Ernest Archbinder


Ernie halted as the old man began to talk and the trees and animals bent themselves to become a room. His eyes widened and his mouth opened in wonder.

Instead of speaking, the stout young man slowed his approach and rubbed his forehead with his left hand, trying to concentrate and will away any magical assault on his senses. He poked his finger at the newly created wooden wall and discreetly kicked at a newly created wooden chair.

He also studied the people and animals and things around him, focusing his god-given ability to probe for malice.

He said nothing for now, only observing.


KingOfLaughter, Ernie is using Detect Evil on everyone and everything nearby.

He is also trying to disbelieve any illusions that might be present.

[KingOfLaughter]

Nothing shoots up as evil, and the surroundings seem entirely real.

If this is an illusion, it's a good one.

[Alth Falath]

Kor sits quietly, eager for more wisdom. He grimaces at Shunt's arrogance. He should've been more respectful of the wisdom of the elderly. Pity that. He eagerly awaits the task that will be set before him.

[Ermanti]

Izhan huffs and puffs loudly, it seems as though the dwarf is badly out of shape. "Ye couldn't run just a wee bit slower could ye?"