The Death of Princess Maria IC

[NeoSeraphi]

The kingdom of Kha'Rest is quite silent in the morning. Its capital city, Jazi, is even more solemn. As you each wake up you can see guards walking around outside your window, placing a poster on every door and wall. You don't even need to read it to know what it says. It's been three days since Princess Maria was kidnapped and her father has been grieving since then. King Caineghis is a mighty and proud man but he is also well known for being a loving and doting father. The last three days have no doubt been a blitzkrieg of divinations, reconnaissance and other forms of information gathering in preparation for a rescue mission.

The posters soon draw crowds. Young men from all over the capital are eager to prove themselves as fine warriors or brave knights in order to impress Princess Maria, who is by far one of the most beautiful human maidens this kingdom has ever known. Her features, almost elf-like, are renowned for being able to bewitch any man who dares to gaze upon her lovely face.

Well, whatever is happening in the kingdom, it doesn't change the fact that you need to get out of bed at some point.


The Palace of Jazi - Located in the center of town, it is a tribute to Kha'Rest's long and proud history of fine masonry. Dwarven men built this palace long ago and it has stood proudly ever since, never once falling to enemy hands. The current ruler is Caineghis I, a man whose long red hair has earned him the nickname The Lion of Jazi. He is a fair and just man who has always treated his subjects kindly and instituted a policy where the crown would pay for half of the upkeep of the city and its infrastructures, as opposed to the previous policies of paying for it entirely through taxation. This has led to the people of Kha'Rest becoming far wealthier than neighboring states, as they get to keep much more of their income. Support for the king has never been greater. He has two daughters, Maria and Amora, as well as a son, Prince Michael, who is a deadly fencer that acts as the current captain of Jazi's guard (a position he earned through years of working on the streets as a patrolman).

The Barracks - Here you can ask for the guard's assistance, or visit any prisoners as long as they are not deemed too dangerous. Prince Michael can often be found here as well.

The School - Fancy some scholarly learning? The school system in Jazi is a vocational institution that requires you to be at least 15 years of age before you begin taking classes. If you study here, you can gain bonuses on Profession checks and other types of skill checks related to your profession (approved by me, but the check bonus will increase as you level up provided you keep up with your studies, up to a +10 bonus!)

The Hierophant - Every city needs a tavern, and The Hierophant is a special kind of tavern. Run by the town's priesthood of Calistria, this place is where you can come to get a drink with your healing, or perhaps a blessing with your whores. The barkeeper is also the high priestess, Madame Volutia, though to every man in the city's distress, she sadly only has eyes for her female patrons.

The Merchant District - Your standard set of shops, including a blacksmith, an apothecary, a menagerie and a magic item shop. Each merchant has a name and a personality and can be interacted with on a deeper level than just a shopkeeper if you so choose. The maximum caster level of any item you can buy in Jazi is 8.



The poster reads: "To all citizens of Jazi: Please lend us your aid in rescuing our Princess! Come to the palace for details. Reward: The King will grant anyone who is directly responsible with the rescuing of his princess any wish that is within his power to grant."

[Diachronos]

Nissa grumbled and sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes and trying with little success to fix her hair. The half-elf stifled a yawn as she saw her companion Ghellin by the window, the raptor growling softly at the figures moving around out on the street. She stood and walked over to him, laying a calming hand on his side as she looked out her window at the guards. They seemed to be putting up fliers or posters of some kind, possibly more of the ones she'd seen the day before when they'd come into town.

A faint knock made her jump, and she snatched up her cloak and draped it around her bare body like a makeshift robe. "Yes?" She couldn't help flinching at the somewhat hoarse sound of her voice; it got little use out in the wilderness, and she rarely said much on the infrequent trips the pair made into town. The door opened, admitting one of the inn's maids, who bowed and left a fresh pitcher of water on the dresser beside the washbasin before leaving.

Nissa washed her face and hands before styling her pine-green hair into a tight braid and getting dressed. A little effort went into making the bed, though she knew that the maids would likely need to correct it anyway once she'd left. Offers of breakfast or refreshments were met with a brief shake of her head as she headed downstairs and out of the building, though she did leave a few gold behind as payment for the services.

Her curiosity led her to the poster that the guards had left, which she had little trouble approaching once people caught sight of the man-sized dinosaur at her side. Her eyes scanned the poster, at which point she nodded and began making their way to the capital. Three days was a long time to be missing, but it couldn't hurt to see if there was any way she could help out. Maybe she'd even find what the other investigators, with their skills being limited to urban searches, had missed.

Tipping 2g at the inn

[WindStruck]

The thumping of hammers woke Fenlaen as the legions of guards pounded their posters upon every nailable surface imaginable. Normally he was somewhat of an early riser, waking when the sun rose and the birds began to chirp. Indoors, it was an entirely different situation, though. Windows only allowed in a fraction of the light, blocked the sound, and really, there weren't that many birds in the city. The grogginess in the pixie's head quickly cleared.

He slept in a chair, on top of an unfurled bedroll and under some blankets. It was somewhat of a tight fit, but also pretty cozy in the right position. Of course, he didn't rent out an entire room from an inn just so he could sleep in a chair; in the bed slept a 15-year-old girl. Fairly young for a human or anyone, really, to be out on their own. The girl certainly had ambition and spunk, and Fen liked that.

When the rumors of the king's kidnapped daughter spread like wildfire and it seemed his own efforts were failing, the girl had fancied herself to be a rescuer and was looking for some muscle to help protect her. Some locals had recommended "a warrior without peer and of outstanding repute." It was Fenlaen Valir. So apparently, they were just pulling her leg, but the pixie was adamant that he was a fierce warrior and proved it. She decided to "hire" him for relatively cheap. But as Fenlaen saw it, he was actually the one taking her under his wing and doing the girl a favor. This kidnapping business seemed serious, but he could use a bit of extra help.

That's how we got to this point. Sharing a room with her was just the more natural thing to do to help protect her, if need be, and it would probably be the most comfortable thing for him inside a city. Fen stretched his limbs and wings, yawning all the while, then took off to face the first challenge of the day: the door. The doors didn't have a fancy locking mechanism where you could just flip a switch and it was locked from the inside. No, you had to use the key from the inside too. To make matters worse, the key wouldn't seem to turn unless you pulled on the door a little.

"(Sylvan) Oh, this is the worst..." he mumbled, fumbling with the knob and holding the key with his other arm trying to get the damn door to unlock. Sometimes Fenlaen really hated being in human cities.

Finally the key turned with a click, just seconds after he had contemplated simply busting it down. But only after that small ordeal had he thought of checking to see if his new partner, Eren, had woken up yet.

[Inspector Valin]

"Ugh..."

Eren blinked and groaned a little, slowly starting to return to consciousness. She hadn't had a restful nigh. The last few days had been tiring ones, filled with thought and preparation for the quest ahead. She needed to be ready for it before the meeting with King Caineghis. If she looked like an ill-prepared child, the King wouldn't take any notice of her. So the young Galata had been busy in the merchant's district securing camping supplies, pen and ink for writing, as well as knowledge of local warriors who she could join with for this quest. The last point had led her to the Hierophant and her new ally Fenlaen Valir. Probably someone's idea of a joke, but she'd talked to the pixie for a good few hours. He was a kind soul beneath the bluster, and it seemed like they'd both made up their minds to search for the princess anyway. Best to stay together.

The young wizardess' head rang slightly, but soon enough she's dragged herself up from the Heirophant's bed, and down towards her pack. Things to do today... change clothes. She was wearing her nightrobe: it'd be bad manners to go and meet a king dressed like this, even if she was still wearing her pointy hat. She also needed to finish checking her supplies, and possibly locate a couple more companions. First job of the day though was more important: spell memorization. Before she began pouring over her spellbooks though, she looked up, smiling to see her new comrade by the door. Nodding to the pixie, the young girl spoke up, shifting to his own tongue as naturally as her own. Sylvan "Morning, Fenlaen. Did Madame Volutia send up that bucket of water yet?"

A glance to her left confirmed it was there; as large and undisturbed as she'd requested. Grinning to herself, Eren returned to her spellbooks. She'd already procurred the mirror she needed for the ritual yesterday. As soon as she had her spells prepared, she'd try to scry Princess Maria. The King's arcanists had probably already tried to do the same, but they were at a key disadvantage. None of them were Eren Galata. And as she'd told Fenlaen last night, if the King's mages had managed as much already, they still looked prepared for having found out about Maria's fate on their own. Eren looked up to Valir again once she was done with her books. Sylvan "Could you bring me the poster? Having a picture of the Princess could help the spell."

[WindStruck]

The door was locked, wasn't it? Nevermind. :smalltongue:

"(Sylvan) Erm, what??" Fenlaen asked, a bit confused. To the right of the bed (from his perspective) did appear to be a bucket of water. How did that get in here? He looked down at the broken key he was holding, puzzled for a moment. "(Sylvan) I suppose she did..." Was the door already unlocked before he ruined it?

Fenlaen tried twisting the door handle but now it wouldn't budge at all. Ok, so maybe now it was locked. He laughed nervously at Eren's request. "(Sylvan) Alright... Seems there is quite an abundance of posters. It wouldn't hurt if I took one. Anyway, I was just going to eat. Did you want something as well?"

Fen liked how Eren could speak Sylvan. There were few people, save perhaps elves that actually knew his people's language. All the more reason to help the poor girl out.

[Inspector Valin]

Figured she'd left it after Eren went to sleep. Kid sleeps early. :smallwink:

Eren pointed towards the cover of her current book with a flourish and a mock serious expression. Sylvan "Magic cannot wait for food!" She couldn't so much as hold that face for a second. Chuckling, the young magess shook her head. Sylvan "Just ask Volutia to keep a little porridge warm for me, thanks. The spell will take about an hour to cast, even if it doesn't work. I'll eat quickly after that and then we can go see the king." The young girl smiled as she turned back down to her book. Fen was proving to be a good friend, and the excuse to practice her Sylvan was helpful. She'd never had to speak the forest tongue aloud before.

[Diachronos]

Nissa had gotten about halfway to the castle before hearing about the occasional volunteer or adventurer being turned away upon offering to assist with the search for Princess Maria, the supposed reason being that the job was more than a single person could handle. It was just a rumor, but rumors were like wildfires; wild and uncontrolled, but something had to have sparked it.

She wandered through the capital, asking around to see if any groups were getting together to offer the king their assistance. Her search eventually led her to the Heirophant, where there was supposedly a "mighty warrior of small stature" and a "prodigy of a mage" who were seeking allies on this quest. The mocking tones from a few of the adventurers she'd met hinted that this might be a waste of time, but the looks she and Ghellin had received in town left her unwilling to join up with the "professional" adventurers that had directed her here. On the way, she picked up a light meal for herself and some meat for Ghellin.


Spending 6s for a common meal and a chunk of meat for Ghellin

Also, unless stated otherwise, Ghellin will have the Bull and Bear animal focuses active. Probably not going to change them up much aside from swapping one for Dex (extra AC), or switching to a combo of Bat/Falcon for watch duty at night

[WindStruck]

"(Sylvan) Right, porridge in an hour. Should give me plenty of time to find a locksmith. I think you may be locked in..." Or maybe he could find a way to fix the situation without one. Fenlaen flew to a window and pried open one of the locks with some effort. His strength really wasn't the problem, it was more like angle of approach and leverage. Pushing open a window, he flew almost unnoticed to the street below and carefully pulled a poster from one of the doors. Not all of them had a picture, and the ones that did were sketchy at best.

He returned to the room, handing the poster to Eren, and asked, "(Sylvan) So what spell is it you are trying to cast? Something to find the princess??" Honestly, he doubted if it would work. Maybe he would be counted among the many that would doubt a perfectly capable girl's magic ability just on account of her age... much like people discount him based on his size, but honestly it wasn't that. Surely, the king had far more skilled magicians at his beck and call. Wouldn't they have already found her?

[Inspector Valin]

Eren paused at the question, trying to think of how best to describe it. She could attempt to explain in Common but that might make the analogy harder to grasp. After a little thought, the Wizardess nodded; he had the right basic idea. Sylvan "Sort of. It's Scrying magic. If it works, I'll get to see her location in the water. It'd be like a window, between us and wherever Princess Maria is now." The young magess frowned, leaning back against the bed for a second. She didn't seem the most optimistic about this course of action either. After a second or two she turned back to Fenlaen, shaking her head. Sylvan "It might not work if whoever took her put wards in place, and the king has probably had his wizards try the same thing. And even if it does work, it won't tell us exactly where she is, just what that place looks like. But there's a chance we'll see something the king's men didn't. And this is a fairly powerful spell. The fact that I can scry for her should show that I'm not to be taken lightly."

[WindStruck]

"(Sylvan) Well I wish you the best of luck." Fenlaen left the girl to cast her spell in peace and went to rummage around in his satchel for some tools. After digging around in the keyhole for a minute, he was able to retrieve the piece of broken key. Then he got some of that alchemical glue and applied it to the surface, applying the tiniest dab of accelerant possible. Still, it would be more than enough. After holding it together for a minute, the key looked almost as good as new. Hmm. Perhaps it had been broken in the same place before...

Since he was absolutely sure the door was locked now, he tried to use the key correctly this time. However, the lock was still being stubborn because he had forced it the wrong way when the key broke before. He sighed, deciding to give up. "(Sylvan) See you soon," he said, exiting out the window once more.

Fen glided down to the front of the inn, tugging on the door, but otherwise he entered nonchalantly. He flitted over to the counter and greeted the barkeep while standing on top of it. You still had to crane your head down a bit to make eye contact. "Hello, Madame. I'm here for breakfast. Also, do you have porridge here?" he asked, looking around the room for any signs of other food and at the other patrons.

[NeoSeraphi]

Your scrying spell is ineffective. You see nothing in the pool.


Madame Volutia, a beautiful and voluptuous woman, stands behind the bar as she spots Fenlaen flitting down the staircase. When he flies up to the bar, she laughs a bit. Her voice is booming as she speaks. "My, my! Aren't you up a little late? Well, I suppose I can get you some breakfast. Hold on one moment..." She heads back into the kitchen and comes out with a small wheel of cheese and a bowl of porridge. "Afraid you're going to have to get your friend to come down for hers, there's no way you can carry this. Would you like a plate for your cheese?" She sets the wheel, which is as big as Fen is tall, on a plate and lays it on the bar. She also fills a shot glass with some whiskey and places it next to the cheese. "Bon appetit. Meals are on the house as long as you have a room. Let me know if you'd like to make any donations or prayers today."

-------


As Nissa walks through the city she spots a young human with blonde hair holding a half-orc against a wall by his throat. The human's other hand holds a rapier which is pointed directly at the half-orc's snout. "Once more, with feeling: if you don't tell me what you know, I'm going to pierce your throat and then tie you up so you can't even struggle while you choke on your own blood!" the human threatens. His voice is so cold and angry that even hearing it, Nissa can't help but shiver.

The half-orc speaks rapidly in Orcish and the human listens, growling before shoving the other man against the wall and letting him go. "Pathetic. I'm not going to waste my time with you. Be grateful that I have more important matters to attend to. Any other day and you'd be skewered right now." The human leaves the alley and starts walking ahead of Nissa.

[WindStruck]

The heck? Whiskey and cheese?? Fenlaen wasn't usually a very picky eater, but quite frankly the 'meal' offered to him just wasn't appetizing, and from the look on his face, wasn't what he had expected at all. His eyes narrowed when the woman said there was no way he could lift the bowl of porridge. Well of course he could! It almost was like a challenge, except there was no point him him trying because the door was jammed and Eren didn't want it right now anyway.

"Uh, right, donations..." he began absentmindedly. "...do you have any bread?" he asked, picking up a knife which was about as big as a short sword for him and slicing into the ridiculously huge wheel of cheese.

"Oh, and... I think I'll have to fetch a locksmith. I accidentally broke the lock," he admitted with a blush, nibbling on a piece of cheese and eying Madame Volutia like an innocent puppy.

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia smiles. "Sadly, all the bread I had made for this morning's breakfast was eaten by my patrons who woke up in time. I could make some fresh bread for you, but it'll take about an hour to bake. Let me go get started on that. And as for the lock, there's a locksmith in the merchant district by the name of Martin Sikes. If you go talk to him, he'll come and fix the door for you. Of course, you're responsible for any expenses related to repairing your room while you stay."


Fen can tell Volutia is backed up quite a bit, and she seems both weary and like she has a lot on her mind. The way her voice broke when she mentions the other patrons suggests that she's probably housing a lot more people at the moment than she's used to, you suspect they're likely a bunch of travelers looking to take on the king's quest for the reward. You definitely hear the truth in her voice when she says that all her bread is gone, and likely the only reason she offered you cheese is because that's probably all the food she had left that was fresh.

[WindStruck]

[roll0] Now to make a will save to resist peeking in the spoiler.

"Eh, well, sleeping inside inn rooms still tends to throw me off. But my friend seems to be the type who sleeps in all the time though, so she was no help there," Fenlaen chuckled, trying to explain away his tardiness. "Well, I would much appreciate that, Miss Volutia!" he said, smiling sweetly at the offer to bake some fresh bread.

"And... um, yes, I understand about the door," he said laughing nervously. "I'm not sure exactly what is wrong with the lock now, but we should have it fixed soon. Otherwise Eren will have to climb out the window too!"

The pixie continued to nibble on the cheese, deciding to leave the whiskey entirely alone for now. "I'll pass on the whiskey. Thanks anyway!"

So, about what time is it?

[Inspector Valin]

The young magess can be heard to cry out loudly from the locked room, breaking the undisturbed bucket of water with a slap and splashing the liquid against the wall. She should've expected this, but being thwarted in magic was a new experience for her. And one she did not at all care for. Her scrying should've produced something. Eren'd hoped her spell might be successful, pierce whatever wards whoever'd kidnapped the princess had set in place... but not a thing. It took the young woman a serious effort of will to refrain from throwing her one thousand gilder mirror straight out into the street through sheer frustration.

Focus. That had been an expensive mirror. Don't destroy things that cost you money.

Eren's stomach growled as she stood glaring at the mirror. Food. She hadn't eaten since yesterday evening. And now, she had the room to herself. Dress for the day, take breakfast in the common room, then she and Fenlaen could go to the palace together. Somewhat less triumphant than she'd hoped, but... no matter. There'd be other chances to prove herself. For now she needed to wash, change, and go down for breakfast. She moved over to the wretched bucket, doffing her hat with a silent grin before muttering at the water. "At least this is something you're good for."

A few minutes later, there is a brief clattering at the doorway and then a few words are chanted in Draconic. As if by magic, the lock clears, and the door to Eren and Fen's room swings open. Strangely enough however, the young woman who steps forth looks nothing like the arcanist that had previously inhabited the bedroom. She is now fully grown; tall, and striking rather than the slightly mousy and unassuming Eren, with slender eyes and a well proportioned figure. Instead of the young Galata's humble brown jacket and white shirt, this strange wears a light blue robe that seems to sparkle in the candlelight, embroidered with designs of snow and wind. Her hair is blond and worn long, broken by a red headband that flutters in the draft of her window, and of course, a navy blue pointed hat. She is to all intents and purposes a different person

She smiles, slowly descending the stairs, and looking between Fen and Volutia. For all her changed appearance, when this woman speaks, it is with Eren's voice. "How do I look?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia smiles. "That form is quite pretty but it doesn't suit you that well, dearie. Here's your breakfast. And you better be careful about who you appear before with such a poorly crafted disguise." She pushes the bowl of porridge forward and heads into the back room. Sounds can be heard from the kitchen, presumably she's going to get back to cooking for the lunch crowd.

The inn is very lively, currently. You see at least three groups of people from out of town sitting and drinking together, all of them chatting animatedly about where they should look for the princess first. Word of a king's wish as a reward is certainly not something people in Kha'Rest take lightly.

[WindStruck]

"Eren?" Fen asks as the girl walks down the stairs, a completely different person. It was enough to fool the pixie by sight, but quite honestly her voice did not seem to go with her new appearance. "You look, uh... different."

Madame Volutia was rather blunt, however. He adds, "She may have a point. I wouldn't be surprised if the king had agents which could see through it. That wouldn't be a good first impression, would it? If you are found out, it would be reason to believe that you think yourself to be inadequate. And besides, you couldn't bring glory to your own name if under a disguise, now could you?"

Fenlaen grinned at Eren, twirling the knife around and spearing a piece of cheese. Perhaps an impressive display in its own right, but overall he still looked ridiculous, as expected. "Hey, so did you manage to fix the door?"

[Diachronos]

Nissa raised an eyebrow and started toward the blonde man at a brisk pace. When she was within arm's reach, she reached out and tapped him on the shoulder. "What was that about back there?" Her hood was up and her scarf had been drawn over her face as she'd walked through the city, so now all that was visible of her face would be her amber-colored eyes and the skin around them.

[NeoSeraphi]

Nissa stops the man and when he turns around his striking features immediately alert her to this man's identity: Captain Michael Leonis, the Lion Prince of Jazi. The blonde man stands about 6' tall with dark grey eyes that form a catlike slit that is the trademark of the men in his family. Even by just touching his shoulder, Nissa can feel his muscles are hard as a rock, and his bones are as dense as any steel. He wears a suit of chain mail and a red cape, though his cape does not bear the normal insignia of the guard, it seems as though Captain Leonis may be off the clock right now. It's clear from the rings under his eyes that the man hasn't slept in days.

"What was that about? I don't have time for this. I'm holding up every thug in this god-forsaken city until I find out who knows where my sister is. To hell with a fair trial, I have dirt on all of them and the second I find someone who knows more than he's letting on I'll torture him until he forgets everything but where she is, then I'll lock him in a cell for the rest of his days, which will be very short. Murder, thievery, public urination, I don't care. The man who knows where Maria is and hasn't come forward yet will go to the gallows and I will kill every last guard who stops me if I have to!"

Captain Leonis rips his shoulder away forcefully and spins around, the force of his step causing his cape to almost fly off. He storms away, heading towards the Merchant District.

[TheEmperor]

One of the men who seemed interested in the posters that had been distributed around the city was Neroth Vandire, a human who was, at the time of speaking, sitting in one of the inns around the city, sipping on a mug of ale. He seemed to have a constant frown on his face, and he lacked any form of smile wrinkles around his mouth, giving the feel of a very serious man. His attention singularly lay upon the poster on the wall, his eyes going over the written words with zeal.

The disappearance of a princess was something he felt obligated to look into, especially a princess of such a powerful and contemporary country. The father of the maiden had appeared as a dignified and courtly fellow, and he was rightly saddened by the loss of one of his daughters.

It didn't take long for Neroth to come to a decision, and he slammed his mug onto the table, slapped a gold coin onto the table, and arose from his seat with force. He immediately marched right out of the bar, and made his way towards the castle, barging his way through the Merchant's District towards the palace.

But he was very polite, and attempted to not knock over anyone with his figure, or the greatsword on his back.

[Diachronos]

Nissa could only watch as the young prince stormed off, unable to think of a response in the brief time he was snarling at her. She hadn't expected him to be taking his sister's disappearance so hard, and from what he said it was clear that he wasn't thinking clearly.

There was nothing she could do, though, and she continued on to the Heirophant. Inside she saw a small person standing on the bar counter and skewering a piece of cheese with a knife. It was an odd sight, mainly because of how tiny the man was. Ghellin seemed to perk up at the sight of the pixie and came forward, looking like he was trying to stalk the creature.

She looked over and saw someone in the traditional garb of a mage, though she didn't appear to be as young as the person she'd been directed to.

[Inspector Valin]

The comments, as kindly as they're meant, have a near comical effect on the young magess. She sinks into her chair, looking slightly dejected as she slowly shifts backwards towards her traditional appearance. She gestures to Fen. "I need some way to make the king take me seriously. (Sylvan) You're a warrior with a sword who knows what he's doing. I'm a wizard who can't properly manage a scrying spell. He'd probably tell me to go home to my parents and leave adventure to my elders." The Pixie's question clears her frown for a moment however: Eren raises an eyebrow in curiosity. She wasn't entirely certain herself. Sylvan "I'm not sure. My spell unlocked the door. Perhaps it cleared the lock?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen didn't know the first thing about wizardry, so he couldn't offer her any technical expertise. He could only reason one thing, based on what he already knew, however. He tried to encourage her the best he could. "(Sylvan) Well, you admitted yourself that many a practitioner would have likely attempted to scry on the princess. Some, dare I say, more powerful than yourself," he added, chidingly. He then began to chew on this last piece of cheese before continuing with a modest mouthful. "(Sylvan) And it has been three days hence. Therefore, I can imagine no one has succeeded thus far. You also mentioned that there could be wards thwarting your attempts, and who knows what else. So. I think the blame does not lie in your ability to cast a scrying spell..."

Then he quickly turned around and pointed the knife toward Eren. "(Sylvan) It lies with your lack of imagination: doing that with magic which countless have tried - and failed - to do before you. Surely a girl with your talent can find a way to impress the king. But if you try to beat those who have decades more experience than yourself with conventional methods, you will certainly fail."

Diachronos, feel free to approach us if you want. :smallsmile:

[NeoSeraphi]

As Neroth makes his way through the city, he spots a strange sight indeed. An old human with one eye is moving down the street slowly. He wears a soft blue robe and hobbles along on a cane. The man supports his weak strides by keeping his free hand on his knee, steadying himself as he walks. The man stops in front of Neroth and he smiles, closing his good eye and speaking. His voice is soft, and Neroth can barely make it out, but his message is clear and it is jarring.

"Your future is quite bleak, my friend. Rarely have I ever felt such a strong aura of unluck as the one that comes from you. I don't even need to pull my tarot deck out to know that you are heading down a dangerous path. Forces outside your control may seek to harm you." The old man reaches into his robe and pulls out a deck of tarot cards which glow as he presents them to Neroth. "It is as I thought. Your aura is so strong, why, just take a look at my poor deck!"

The old man draws a hand of five cards and flips them over, revealing that they are all Death. "Son, if I were you, I'd at least take care not to get myself into anything too dangerous, lest you let fate get the better of you. If I'm still kicking, then you're far too young to die!"

[Diachronos]

Nissa approached the pixie as the exchange went on between him and the mage, who seemed to be getting younger for no apparent reason. Her hand came to rest on Ghellin's back, which caused the dinosaur to lower its head and move away from the tiny fey. When she reached the counter, she pulled down her hood and scarf.

(Elven) "I heard that a pair of adventurers were looking to gather a band of volunteers to aid with the king's search for Princess Maria. The rumors I heard were that the adventurers were a small swordsman and a very young mage; would I be wrong in assuming that you two are the ones I was informed of?"

The half-elf abruptly turned and grabbed onto the raptor's snout as it tried to lunge at the pixie, her hands clamping the creature's jaws shut. "Enough, Ghellin! You just ate, you can't possibly still be hungry!" The raptor gave a small whine and settled down beside her, resting its head on her boot. "Greedy lizard..."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren sighed at Fen's words. The Pixie was mostly right; other spellcasters across the kingdom were likely trying exactly the same thing. But it still hurt that her attempt had failed. And then his advice was to try and think up other magic that might impress the king? Calling that a tall order was putting it mildly: she had spells for battle, warding, even a spell to entertain the young. But nothing for impressing royalty at their court. The young Galata chuckles, lapsing back into Common briefly. "Fen, you mean well, but you know dah-zen about making people feel better. At least you weren't that direct, Madame." She looked up towards the older woman with a smile. She liked Volutia, even though the older woman made her feel a little on edge. As though she knew more than she was saying.

Nissa's arrival seems to energize the young magess. She doesn't quite catch Ghellin's target, instead smiling at the elven traveller. Now this was an adventurer! A warrior of the wilds, with a fearsome beast companion. Elven "We are! I thought going to the king as a band of warriors rather than individuals would be more effective. And... well, I'm just fifteen and Sir Valir is new around here. I'm a little worried we won't be taken seriously like this." Hence experimenting with the different appearance, presumably. Now the girl's face was plain to see; younger, with brown hair and slightly over eager blue eyes. The young woman bowed her head, gesturing first to herself, and then the pixie. Elven "I'm Eren Galata, child of House Galata, Wizardess by blood and trade. My friend with the slightly too honest tongue is Fenlaen Valir, warrior of the vales, the finest warrior of his people. Who're you?"

[WindStruck]

"Erm.. well, sorry," is all the pixie could manage, with a shrug. So perhaps his little pep talk didn't turn out so well. It figured as much though. He wasn't the most eloquent of speakers. At Nissa's approach, he initially smiled up at the half-elf, before realizing he was being stalked by... quite a large and hungry-looking reptile. Did that thing want to eat him?

Fenlaen chuckled nervously as it lied down and he focused on the conversation. "Well, I wouldn't refer to me as 'Sir'. I have not received a rank of nobility - at least not yet, but we wouldn't want to give people the wrong idea, would we?" he said, with a wry grin. He let Eren continue handling the conversation for now. Though the half-elf seemed to be a capable woman, it would be good for her to identify herself.

[Diachronos]

A pixie and an overeager child... what am I getting myself into? Nissa thought to herself. "My name is Nissa, and my conpanion is Ghellin. I don't have any sort of title, and I no longer have any familial ties, but I know the wilds better than most could claim."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren's mood seemed to grow even stronger Nissa's words: exactly what she'd hoped for when she'd seen the scaled creature. A ranger! Someone knowledgeable about the wilderness. She beamed at Nissa. "Great! Wherever the Princess is, it'll almost certainly be somewhere remote. A dragon's cave, a hidden fortress..." The young wizardess seems in danger of losing herself entirely to fantasy before realizing the slightly more reticent look in Nissa's eyes. Calming a little, Eren met her gaze directly, trying to look confident. "Err... so do you want to go with us? Three are better than two. Fenran's good with a blade, and my magic should help against any of the stranger things out there. We'd be strong together."

[TheEmperor]

Neroth's eyebrows began to ascend to ever greater heights in surprise, as he heard what the peculiar old man told him. He'd always prided himself on having some amount of survivability, and had always managed to make it out alive, through fire and rain, and therefore was caught off guard by the old man's prediction. It had been difficult enough keeping his face straight when the man had just randomly begun to speak to him.

Was he a mad man? Or was he just another wise old man, who deigned it important to inform him of his apparent bad luck? Perhaps both. Neroth was not someone to believe in superstition, but it was obvious that something was afoot, either with the reliability of this man, or something else. "What do you mean by this, wise old man? Forgive me, but I am somewhat caught off guard by this."

[NeoSeraphi]

The old man strokes his beard thoughtfully. "My apologies, son, but I cannot see past the cloud of destruction in your future to discern any details. It seems that great peril awaits you in the near future. If I really concentrate..." The old man rubs his temple and then suddenly reaches over his eyepatch and lifts it up. Where you would expect to see an eye socket, instead is a golden crystal glowing with magical power. The old man's voice changes, from being tired and mystic to forceful and deep.

"Fire...I see fire and destruction hanging over your head. On the one side, your friends seek to save you, on the other, the enemy desires nothing but your slaughter. Your screams are deafening, they block out any sounds of metal clanging or flesh ripping. You are drowning, clutching at your neck, gasping for air, but the life leaves your eyes all too soon. Beware! BEWARE LEST YOU SUCCUMB TO YOUR DESTINY!"

The old man shakes and struggles, but finally manages to pull the eyepatch back over the crystal and shakes his head. "A shame. You seem like such a nice young man, too." He begins hobbling off, apparently convinced that there is nothing you can do to escape your inevitable demise.

[Diachronos]

Nissa was hesitant about agreeing to join them. On one hand she was worried about Eren's eagerness and about Ghellin's apparent decision that Fenlaen was food; on the other she had never seen them in action, and had no way of knowing whether they could live up to their claims. After a while she nodded. "It makes more sense to join up than to search for the princess seperately."

She looked around at their motley crew. "There are 4 of us now, including Ghellin. Do you think that will be enough, or should we wait for another?"

[Inspector Valin]

Eren grinned at that, shaking her head. Nissa had seemed a little reluctant, but she'd agreed. That was the important thing. The young wizardess waved the complaint aside with a smile. "We'll be fine. Four's a good number. You, Ghellin and Fen all look ready for a fight here and now. Between us all, this conversation will go perfectly. We'll be on our way to rescue the princess before lunch time"

Kind of impressive, considering how late in the day it was already. Taking a deep breath, Eren looked back upwards, towards their room. A touch reluctantly, the magic using girl dragged herself to her feet. "Just let me go change into different clothes. I was hoping to get away with using the hat. I can't just wear a scholar's robes. I need to try and look... experienced. A proper traveller. Give me a minute." She treks back upstairs with the look of someone marching to an execution. Through the rain.

It took the young wizardess a surprising amount of time to return. When she did however, the change was surprisingly effective. Her face remained the same, but now she wore leather beeches and tough walking boots, coupled with a shirt, a light blue jacket, and a wide brimmed red traveller's hat. She even bore a backpack; one that looked a touch heavy for her in truth, but she wore it passably well. Resting a hand onher new hat,she looked across the trio, a little nervous still no matter how she tried to sound calm. "Is this better?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen just gives Eren a friendly laugh. "Well, you look fine either way. Just as long as you're comfortable. But if you think I'm ready for a fight this instant... dear girl, this knife is only good for cutting cheese." Indeed, the pixie was for the most part unarmed and only dressed in a comfortable outfit. All his equipment and gear were still up in the room. "Anyway, you've changed what? Three times now? You should stop worrying about how you look and eat something already. I'll be back in a minute."

It took him about a minute to don his armor and put the other little pieces on separately. It looked a bit like chain mail, but had a lustrous, silvery sheen. His boots came next, then his quiver, which hung lower than normal and somewhat to the side. Typically to reach for an arrow or javelin, he'd lift his left arm a bit and reach under it for access to the quiver. Then came his satchel, which hung on the right side, along with his handaxe, hanging in its loop. His cloak had a large slit in which his wings would fit through, with some practice and effort. It seemed to blend into shadows well and dampened the sounds of his movement slightly. After a few other bits and bobs, he finally put on his helmet, completing the set. It was comfortable, lined with fur on the inside and was adorned with a red jewel on the front and even two horns. Somehow, it cast a sinister shadow over his eyes and face...

Now perhaps to make his first actual impression: Fenlaen exited the room and began to skulk down the hallway. What he'd do is sneak up on the two girls. He silently made his way down the stairs, checking to see when they had their attentions turned away first before proceeding. He launched into the air, carefully flitting high above their heads, and slowly lowered himself into a seat next to them.

"I'm back," he said with a mischievous grin.

Because why not? [roll0]

[Inspector Valin]

The Galatan heir is busy fiddling with her cloak, trying to adjust it so the broach is properly displayed. Fen's timing is exquisite; catching his friend completely off guard and making the young mage jump out of her chair, white as a sheet. Soon enough though she calms down, a faint smile slowly starting to creep over her face. Sylvan "You are a pest, little warrior. And...worryingly good at that."

Eren slowly rose to her feet, hefting her pack upwards. Before turning to the door however, she rummaged briefly in her pack before withdrawing a coin pouch, and passing it to Volutia. "I'm not after a spell, but I... feel like I could use a prayer, Ma'am. And you've been good to both me and Fen. Thank you for that." She takes a step backwards, raising the hood and bowing her head politely to the older woman. The magess' cheeks are reddening a little at the goodbye, but the tries to hide it, winking at the cleric. "Wish us luck?"

The pouch contains fifty gold. Eren's not sure just how generous that is, but she's appreciated her time at the Hierophant and wants to be kind.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth very nearly jumped back, as the old man burst out with his predictions and doomsaying, and did not recover his balance until the very last moment. He caught a hold of a wall, and pushed himself back into a properly standing state, and slowly touched the greatsword on his back, as if it was for reassurance. He watched as the old man slowly walked away, and all he said was "Thank you very much for your help.", in a very confused tone of voice.

With a troubled mind, he began to continue his path towards the palace, his determination somewhat wavering, but pulling itself together again.

On his way there, he began to convince himself of the untruth of what the man had spoken, in an attempt to fashion his mind into a force of will once more. He could not have the most important part of his body, of any warrior's body, confused or wavering at any time. To keep one's mind sharp was a warrior's exercise, not to be forgotten.

Perhaps he was a senile fellow after all. What he spoke of, enemies and allies? I have no enemies alive, and no longer do I have friends or family. Anyone other than those do not exist. Perhaps I should heed his warning, and work with others in this quest of mine. Investigating the disappearance of a royal princess is dangerous work indeed.

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia gives a booming laugh. "You want a prayer? Haha, such an adorable girl! Oh, the things I could teach you...if you ever come back here after you've matured a little bit, you could be one of my best girls, you know." she winks teasingly. "You know, lots of people have been coming through here, talking about how they're going to save Maria, but when I look at you, I see an...honest desire. How can I put it? It's like the reward doesn't mean anything to you. So I'm going to help you. Here, take this," She reaches into her pouch and pulls out a necklace. It is emblazoned with the symbol of Calistria. "Wear this, and know that my blessing will be with you always, child." She hands it to Eren and takes the pouch from her.

-------

Neroth, as you walk, you pass a booming inn, The Hierophant (a different tavern than the one you're staying at) which is full of traveling mercenaries and other such people who would make excellent allies on your quest.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth's gaze wandered as he made his way through the crowds that littered the street like large clumps of wet dirt, and it eventually landed upon another inn, The Hierophant, which sparked thoughts into his mind. It occurred to him that the best place to find another adventurer like him, who would also be attempting to find the princess, would likely be an inn. He could have found others earlier, when he'd been in the other inn, drinking, but he had not lost his feeling of self confidence back then.

He made a quick decision, and altered his stride, to make his way into the tavern. It was a tad bit darker inside the inn, than outside, making his mithril breastplate shine slightly, but other than that, he did not make much of an impact on the crowd. He decided to announce himself, instead of prowling about, as that was a far less suspicious method of acquiring others to form a fellowship of any sort. He had no desire to mingle with shady people, much less evil ones with hearts that were less than pure.

"I have stopped by here, for a singular reason. Any and all who are about to make their way to the palace, to quest for the rescue of the missing royal maiden for righteous reasons, if you would so deign to form a fellowship with me, we could, perhaps, journey together?"

OOC: I deserve to be punched for this cliche trainwreck of a post, but sadly, I lack the creativity to see another way to get the party together.

[Diachronos]

Nissa sat down at the counter as Eren headed back upstairs. She had a hard time not burying her face in her hands when the girl came back; the outfit might not seem bad to some, but the blue and red would stick out like a bulette in a cattle pasture once they left town. Then again, she had no room to talk seeing as she looked like a walking bush in the middle of a city.

The pixie's sudden appearance made Nissa's hand dart to her sword, and it was half-drawn before she realized who it was. She weapon gave a soft hiss of metal on leather as she returned it to its resting place, though for the brief amount of time it was exposed the metal could be seen as a stark black. "Please don't do that again. I don't react well to being startled, and I can't guarantee I'll stop in time next time."

She turned to the newcomer as he came into the tavern and announce his intentions. It seemed they'd have five now, if Eren and Fenlaen accepted the man's offer.


TheEmperor, consider yourself punched if you want :D

[WindStruck]

"My, you are most kind, Madame Volutia!" Fenlaen says. Reaching into his pouch, he pulls out 5 gold pieces and hands them to her as well. "I don't know if this even covers that beautiful necklace... but for what it's worth, I was going to give you a donation anyway."

When the man comes in with his loud speech, Fenlaen considers the man seriously and immediately tries to discuss with the others. "What do you think? He seems to be a fine warrior with good intentions. We could probably use a bit more help, and a fifth would not make our group too large..."

It may be interesting to see how the other people in the tavern react?

[NeoSeraphi]

One of the tavern warriors stands up and walks over to the group, sizing the large human up. "Heh. You look like you could use a few more years under your belt before you run with us. But I'm sure this lot," he gestures to the people by the front entrance, "would be more than happy to make use of your 'talents'. A wee pixie, an underage girl, and a beast. Try not to slow em down too much eh?"

The muscular dwarf returns to his table, drinking and laughing with his men. One of them makes a loud and inappropriate joke about Neroth's mother's body and morals, and the table roars with laughter.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen scowls at the dwarf and his little group with fiery passion. He was at least used to getting looked down upon, and while some stranger pointing out obvious 'flaws' of his and his companion's was one thing, calling Nissa a beast and making jokes about a complete stranger's mother was completely uncalled for.

Bunch of pompous pricks. Well to hell with them. So maybe they wouldn't want to adventure with Fenlaen and his new friends. The feeling was mutual, though probably for different motives.

[Diachronos]

Nissa chuckled, though the mirth didn't reach her eyes at all. A beast, was she? If it came down to it, she just might have to show the dwarf that he wasn't too far off. "He may be young, but I think you'd slow us down more than he would. At least he doesn't have some mangy, unsightly beard tripping him up every few steps."

[TheEmperor]

Neroth looked at the dwarf with slight bewilderment in his eyes, but that only lasted a few seconds. After his surprised mind came back to it's normal state, he began to frown in an irritated fashion. Slow them down indeed. The only reason he'd slow them down is because he'd be carrying the incapacitated bodies of half their party anyways, since he seemed to be the only person with the power to do as much there.

He turned over to the other team, which was far more welcoming, but perhaps not as intimidating in looks. "Perhaps you wouldn't mind me joining your company? I'd rather not have to deal with those fellows, and I do have a temper, so if I did go along with them, I'd likely be driven mad by their methods."

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia clicks her tongue and looks at the group with a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Welcome to The Hierophant, good sir! I'd appreciate it if you stopped blocking my door with your large frame, and also there's a two drink minimum for walking in the door. Can I set you up with a prayer, or perhaps you'd like one of our beautiful sacred prostitutes?" She pulls up a glass and slams it down on the bar with such force that it's unbelievable the glass didn't break. She gives Neroth a look that's somewhere frightfully between a glare and a smile. "What'll you have?"


This woman is not someone Neroth wants to piss off

[TheEmperor]

Neroth smiled slowly, his eyes narrowing due to the genuineness of the smile, and moved forward. He sat down next to the rest of the adventurers, and slipped his right hand onto the table. "I apologize for that, and so, in return, I'd like to buy a bottle of your finest ale. Yes, yes I would. However, I'd rather decline on the generous offer of one of your girls, as I lack the compulsion to.. uh, well procreate for enjoyment. Sort of a quirk of mine, but I reserve that for only someone I find love in. Its a fragile thing, and I'd consider it a gift. A prayer, however, would also sound very nice. I've been informed recently, that I'm cursed with terrible luck, so I would like all the help I can get. Thank you."


Diplomacy to make a great first impression (hopefully)
[roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

"One bottle of our finest and most expensive ale coming right up, sir!" Madame Volutia replies, a big smile on her face. She seems much happier now that Neroth is one of her customers instead of just loitering in her doorway. She reaches behind the bar and pulls out a bottle, uncorking it and filling a mug, handing it to Neroth. "Enjoy. And what's that you said about having bad luck? Let me take a look here..."

She closes her eyes and chants a few words, her holy symbol around her neck glowing brightly. When she opens her eyes again, her pupils and iris are gone and her eyes are a solid pink color. She turns her glowing gaze upon the human. "Well, now that's interesting. It seems you've been cursed by the Tarot. A tragic fate really." She closes her eyes and re-opens them, smiling again as her eyes return to normal. "You should stick close to this lot, they might save you from the horrible horrible death in your future!"


In this world, the 21 Major Arcana featured in Tarot decks function collectively as an actual deity known as The Tarot, and their portfolio is widespread. Handling things like power, fate, love, money and luck, but most of all, destiny. Their church is full of fortune tellers and gamblers, and they are a shady group to be sure. It is unclear what the significance behind Madame Volutia naming her inn after one of these other gods is though.

[WindStruck]

"Seems you are taking those 'professionals'' advice after all. Well, I don't think I would mind if you joined us. You look quite strong. Experience may be an entirely different matter, I suppose," Fenlaen said with a shrug, glancing upward at the man and sizing him up. "The five of us, including Nissa's eager pet could make a fine team. We were still trying to discuss the matter, though. Why don't you tell us a bit about yourself, stranger?"

Madam Volutia's insight on the matter raises some alarm, however. "Why Miss Volutia! What in the Gods' names do you mean cursed by the tarot? Is it bad??"

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia stops wiping the glass in her hand and sets it down. "Well..." she says, glancing around to make sure no one's watching. She gestures for you to lean in close as she bends down under the bar and comes back with a box. She opens the box and pulls out a deck of tarot cards. "Occasionally, when someone is embarking on a quest they aren't meant to take, or perhaps leaving their destiny behind in order to pursue a path that is not predetermined, they are cursed by the Tarot."

She pauses, glancing at Eren for a moment, before continuing. "If that happens, the person is doomed to suffer the punishment of ignoring their fate." She deals nine cards and spreads them out in a nine-card array in front of Neroth. The cards all glow for a second before settling. She frowns and flips the middle card over. "As I suspected. The Wheel of Fortune, in the Reverse position. You will have extremely poor luck in the days ahead. You will feel as though you are unable to succeed, and your failures will only cause more failures. It will feel like you are trapped in a never ending cycle of despair and misfortune."

She turns over the card next to it. "The Hanged Man, in the upright position. You will be paralyzed with indecision, and there will come a time when you must make a choice but you will be unable to see past your own fate, your own constant, neverending bad luck, and if you choose the wrong decision..."

She flips over the last card in the row. "Death, in the Reverse Position." she concludes.

[Diachronos]

Nissa leaned back in her chair. "If we're going to be discussing things before heading to the castle, perhaps I should make myself comfortable. Do you have any light ale?" Ghellin lifted his head and prodded her in the side. "Fine, fine... would you happen to have any spare meat as well? I swear, Ghellin, you're going to get too fat to fit in your armor..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia nods and bends down to start pouring ale in a smaller glass when there's a loud noise from the doorway. The violent young prince Nissa saw from before kicks the door open and it slams against the wall, snapping one of the hinges. Captain Michael Leonis enters the bar and takes a look around.

"Well now. So these are the brave men and women who came from all over the country to try and rescue our princess? Drinking ale in the morning when they shouldn't be wasting even a second of daylight getting information from my father and going out to do their ****ING JOBS!" He smacks the mug out of the dwarf patron's hand. The dwarf stands up in anger, placing one hand on his axe. "Why I oughta"

Before he can finish the sentence, Captain Leonis punches him right in the jaw and the dwarf drops like a ton of bricks, out like a light. The other patrons all quickly finish their drinks and bow their heads, scattering out the door with an occasional, "Sorry for your loss" or "We'll find your sister, don't worry" to the prince as they pass. Soon the unconscious dwarf and the group by the bar are the only ones left in the tavern.

Madame Volutia watches the display in silence and as soon as the prince has cleared everyone else out, she shakes her head and walks out from behind the bar, touching the door and repairing it instantly and walking over next to the dwarf, kneeling down and saying a small prayer. The dwarf's swelling goes down as she touches his face, but he remains unconscious. The madame stands up.

"Michael, honey, I love you as much as I love my own daughter but Maria would be beside herself if she could see the way you're acting right now," she lectures. The prince glowers and turns away. "I'd take all the disappointment in the world, hell, I wouldn't care if she hated me for the rest of her life, if it meant that she was back here," he mutters quietly, walking out the door without a word.

Madame Volutia is quiet, looking at the ground for a moment, before she turns to the group with a smile. "Well then, you heard the captain. You best be off to see the king! Oh, and your tab...here's the bottle, you can keep it...that'll be 20 gold for the pair of you." she smiles, her eyes lighting up mischeviously at such a great sale.

[Diachronos]

Nissa scowled as the prince emptied the tavern of its patrons, though he did leave their group alone. She had half a mind to step between him and the others, but knowing he was the prince was enough to keep her in check. No sense in causing anything with the prince if they were going to be meeting with the king.

Once he left, she turned to the others. "I saw him menacing a half-orc in an alleyway on the way here. Do you suppose he's been like this for all of the past 3 days?"

Her expression turned to a frown at the mention of the price, but she did fish out her half of the tab and lay it on the table.

[WindStruck]

The prince's anger makes Fenlaen's heart feel like it dropped straight down into his stomach. Oh sh*t... he thought - or whatever passes for the Sylvan equivalent of such an expletive. This was one guy he did not want to mess around with. If not because he was the freaking prince and captain of the guard, then because he just knocked that dwarf out stone cold. Never had the pixie felt so terrible for having woken up a bit later in the day. He tried to tell himself it wasn't his fault though. And in his defense, at least he wasn't screwing around and drinking...

He replied to Nissa, "I would imagine he has been. Or perhaps his mood has been getting progressively worse..." Looking up towards the newcomer, he said, "If you are looking for teammates to help find the princess, I guess that would be us then. Unless you would rather look elsewhere... or carry him around." He pointed to the dwarf.

Hmm... Fenlaen flew over to the adventurer now splayed out on the floor and softly kicked him in the thigh trying to rouse him.

[Inspector Valin]

Eren blushed deeply at Voulentia's words, she hadn't exactly intended... but the older woman's eyes kindly. She could understand what was meant. The young wizardess took the symbol with a slightly nervous smile, placing it around her neck slowly and carefully, before turning back to the high priestess. It'd been a little while since an adult was that supportive to her. Eren murmured a simple "Thank you", not quite sure what else to add, but looking up into the other woman's eyes made it clear. The young wizardess deeply appreciated what Voulentia had said.

So much so that the dwarf's words, a little later, barely riled her at all. Who cared what some random traveller thought of her? Still, the young Galata turned curiously to this new figure in the doorway, seeking a group. Like Nissa and Fen, he looked like he knew what he was doing, experienced, seasoned. Perhaps adding one more member to their little band...

Her thoughts were interrupted by the Prince's arrival. Eren blinked repeatedly at the young man's manner, seemingly unbelieving. Prince Michael was supposed to be a knight; well respected, the honourable Captain of the Guard of Jazi. The paragon of honour in Kha'rest and a true dashing hero. And now he was assaulting tavern patrons. The wizardess stared at him briefly as the other would be adventurers filed out of the bar, uncomprehending. Her eyes lingering on the door after he was gone, trying to rationalize this. Nissa's added words about his earlier conduct didn't exactly help. What kind of man were they dealing with there?

Still, he was right about one thing. They did need to be going. "Farewell, ma'am. Until we meet again." Words given, the wizardess nodded to her collection of companions, smiling at them all. "I'll go ahead. There's probably going to be a queue now, I can try and grab us a place. I'll see you there." They might not know the new one's name, but he seemed willing enough to travel with them. At this point, that was all Eren asked for in a friend. With a final bow and a raise of her hat, Eren Galata let the tavern.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen lost interest in the passed-out dwarf. Honestly, he did not even know why he had bothered. Maybe because everyone should be doing what they could, and this fellow did nothing lying there unconscious. But he agreed that they should be going.

"I'm coming too!" he exclaimed. Looking back to Neroth he said, "Well, you are more than welcome to come, but please tell us about yourself in the mean time." He gave Madam Volutia a final parting wave goodbye before following Eren. The poor woman. That prince probably just killed her business for the day.

[Diachronos]

Nissa stood and pulled up her hood, quietly thanking Madame Volutia before following Eren and Fenlaen. Ghellin trotted along at her side, occasionally glancing up at the half-elf or at one of the stalls that they passed. The pair of them looked highly out of place among the city crowd, though with her other companions they probably looked like one of the most bizarre parties imaginable.

[NeoSeraphi]

The group of five talk animatedly among themselves, though the weight of what they saw in the tavern hangs on each of their minds. Neroth, in particular, has a lot to think about. The blessing of Calistria graces Eren's neck and she feels more determined than ever to embark on her quest, the gift from Madame Volutia emboldening her and removing whatever doubts or fears she might have had before she met Fen.

When the group arrives at the castle they spot a noble paladin stepping out of the castle along with three companions. He turns around and bows to the king, who is standing on the steps. "My Lord, I can understand why you are nervous, but please, trust me. I will find her." The king nods fervently. "I believe in you, Sir Sclavo. Please, be careful out there."

The paladin Sir Sclavo mounts a decorated war horse and rides off with his group to the east. The king turns and spots your group. "Ah! More adventurers, seeking to assist the kingdom in our direst hour, eh? Please, come in."

The king leads you inside and has you all stand before the throne. He sits down and sighs heavily. "You might find it odd that I'm greeting this people myself. Well, I actually...I gave all my staff a few days off. You might think it's silly, after all, they're just paid employees, but really, everyone who knows Maria loves her. Most of the maids feel like they've lost a sister."


http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080204084600/fireemblem/images/d/dd/Ferd-caineghis.jpg


His Majesty King Caineghis I cuts an imposing figure, and normally merely being in his presence would cause a man to cower, but this lion's teeth have been filed down thanks to his worry. He looks thin and pale in the cheeks, and it's clear when he said "his staff" he included his chefs as well. The Lion of Jariz is fabulously wealthy and a proud warrior, and his throne room is a testament to his and his family's legacy of tactical prowess. The Leonis Coat of Arms hangs behind the throne, a lion and lioness circling a bleeding human, and it speaks volumes about their history. The Leonis princesses and queens have long ruled alongside their husbands and brothers fiercely, and are just as active if not moreso in the rulings of the kingdom. The queen has an equal voice along with the king, and their children are each considered to have "half" a vote, so that when policies are made, they are made as a family with everyone having some level of input. Due to this group-based monarchy, the Leonis line has rendered itself practically immune to infighting and family-planned assassinations, no one ever feels like they're being excluded.

After about sixty seconds of sitting in the throne, Caineghis snaps out of his daze and looks up. "Oh, you're still here. Right. Here is what we know. We believe that Maria has been taken to The Cavern of Fate on the eastern border of the city. I doubt that's the kidnapper's destination, it's too close to the city, but he's probably hiding out there right now waiting for a lapse in security so he can sneak away. He probably already would have if Michael didn't immediately dispatch his troops to comb every inch of the city's outer wall. There are thirty arrows on each corner just looking for a single person out of the ordinary. Of course, that's left Michael to guard the city entirely on his own, but he hasn't seemed to have a problem with it."

[Diachronos]

Nissa laid a hand on Ghellin's side as they entered the palace and came before the king. She listened patiently to the explanation before speaking up. "I assume that you've avoided sending people to search the cavern in order to avoid provoking the kidnappers into doing something drastic. If that's the case, they've likely hidden themselves deep in the caverns where searchers haven't looked yet." She tapped her chin in thought. "However, I find it suspicious that they could've holed themselves up so close to the city and yet never been caught... something else may be at work here."

She tensed a little at the king's mention of the prince. "I think the task of guarding the city by himself is affecting the prince more than you think. He forcibly emptied an entire inn aside from ourselves and a dwarf that he knocked unconscious, and before meeting up with my companions I found him trying to intimidate information out of a half-orc in an alleyway."

[NeoSeraphi]

King Caineghis I shakes his head. "You couldn't be more wrong. Actually, none of the guards are able to enter the cavern at all. The Cavern of Fate is a special shrine that is guarded by a mystical power. When Michael was rejected...I don't think I've ever seen the boy so angry. He's always been very protective of his sisters, and I think feeling powerless to go in and save her is frustrating him even more." Caineghis frowns. "I am able to enter the cavern, but I don't believe I am capable of coming face to face with the man who has done this to my family without doing something that might cause the cavern to collapse."

The group isn't sure which is more disturbing, the sheepish smile on his face that shows his embarrassment at his potential lack of restraint, or the completely serious way he describes "accidentally" causing an enormous cavern to cave in.

"That's why we've had to hire outsiders. The ability to enter the Cavern is based on your Fate. None of the guards are fated to rescue the princess, so all they can do is wait. Though apparently, as much as it pains me to admit, it seems Maria's Fate was to be kidnapped and brought there." The king frowns and rests his chin on his hands. "Perhaps this is my fault? I have never thought twice about allowing the worship of The Tarot in my city, but I have never been a follower, my family have been devoted to Pharasma since the beginning..."


Caineghis looks up at the mention of his son's assault. "That...doesn't sound like Michael at all. He's a just and noble knight, he's never been one for strong-arming or intimidation. Such tactics are beneath him."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren is quiet as the king begins to speak, her eyes turning around the throne room and its rich appointings. She does not ignore the conversation however. Nissa's remarks about Michael's behaviour make the wizardess frown, but she refrains from comment before Caineghis. The issue of the Cavern of Fate confused her too, but the explanation made a fair amount of sense. Gods were capricious. Perhaps Maria's kidnapping was the result of a Tarot worshipper? He had their blessing at least, otherwise he'd not have been allowed in either. In the silence, the young wizardess steps forward with a question of her own. "How large is the cavern, sire? About the size of a regular temple? Or does it go deeper?" If the caves ran deep, there could be a lot of territory to explore.

[WindStruck]

Now it was Fenlaen's turn to chime in. "I am sorry to say, but this is the truth. I know this must be incredibly difficult to bear for both you and him, but... he really isn't taking this well," the pixie says, lowering his head and shaking it slowly.

"So... this cavern. Are we to understand correctly that only a very specific few will be allowed in to save your daughter?" He almost added 'or try to' but the last thing anyone needed now was a downer. "It's a special kind of ... Fate magic? It's odd, because we were just talking about a tarot curse. It's something that happens when one 'ignores their fate'."

Fenlaen really didn't know where he was going with this. The whole situation both mystified and confused him, but he didn't want to waste the king's time speculating or receiving a lesson in fortune telling. "I just wonder, has anyone looked into the outcome of what happens when those 'fated' ones enter the cavern to save her? And if that outcome is bad, surely there would be a way to circumvent it at the cost of a tarot curse?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Upon hearing Eren's voice, the king's eyes snap open and he looks up at the girl curiously. "Hmmm...you bear...a striking resemblance to her..." he mutters to himself. "The Cavern of Fate is actually manmade and it possesses three floors separated by staircase. We believe Maria is being held at the bottom most floor, three floors down from the surface. The cavern is home to many monsters and foul creatures, as well as a few Tarot priests, no doubt."

"Fate is a very old and very strange magic, my boy. I'm not sure how to explain it to a non-believer. Essentially, if you understand your place in life and you obey your destiny, then the Tarot is pleased. Otherwise, they will lash out and curse you. The Cavern of Fate is special. Even those who are granted access must face a trial inside the Cavern, and that trial is more often than not very dangerous. Challenging one's fate is a terrible idea that will always result in death. That is why the Cult of the Tarot is so strong and so numerous."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren blinks a little at the king's words. She... reminded him of Maria? That was unexpected. Wasn't the princess older than her? Still, no sense in questioning His Majesty. Bowing her head in thanks, the magess took a step back, her questions asked. As far as she was concerned, this was enough. They'd go to the cavern of fate. They'd get in or not. No more questions need be asked.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth had stayed quiet the entire time, even as the Prince had entered the tavern, and begun his raging speech over all the other adventurers. Politeness stopped him from saying anything at all, although he understood that the Prince was justified in his fury.

He felt grateful, however, to Madame Volutia, and so left a bag of fifty gp in front of her, as he left along with the rest of the party. In front of the king, he let the others, who were far more eloquent than him, and smarter, to do the talking, especially the little girl, who seemed very nice, if young for an adventurer.


Woosh, I'm back. But, I can see I'll have trouble with keeping up with all these quality posts, with school and all, so never let me drag you down, ever.

[NeoSeraphi]

King Caineghis I gives Nissa a map and asks if the group needs anything else before they go.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth listened to the King speak, and came to a conclusion. He had a question. "Sir, my reward is always going to be grace of doing something to honor myself, but I pose this question for the rest of my fellowship. How will your ever so precious grace and good will be divided up amongst the rest of the party? I would understand if you take offense to any of my questions, as I lack eloquence." He paused, after his statement, and then realized he'd forgotten something. "Err, your Majesty. Sorry, your Majesty"

[NeoSeraphi]

King Caineghis I blinks in surprise at Neroth's question, then something none of you expected happens. Your characters all jump in surprise as the king throws his head back and gives a hearty laugh. Each laugh echoes through the chambers, and honestly it's hard to distinguish it between a sound of joy and humor and a deadly roar. The man wipes a tear from his eye and walks forward, towering over Neroth (Caineghis is 9 feet tall). He slaps the human on the back a few times, and Neroth has to forcibly steady himself to prevent himself from being knocked into the wall. It's clear to everyone present that the Lion Prince of Jariz really is the cub of the family, his monstrous strength is nothing compared to his father's.

The king calms down a bit and smiles. "Ah, don't be such a stiff, boy!" he declares, giving Neroth one last firm pat on the back. "Come in here talking about honor and what not! You sound like Michael, you do. Damn, I think I really needed that. Reminds me of what's important! My daughter may be missing, but that doesn't mean I don't have two other kids who need their dad way more now than they did three days ago! I can't sit here and mope! My son is out there apparently terrorizing people out of guilt, I gotta go talk some sense into that boy before he hurts someone."

The fire has returned to the king's eyes and he smiles at Neroth proudly. "I'm sure Maria will be happy to see someone like you in her rescue party. She must miss her brother like crazy right now. Here, I'm going to help you on your quest." He turns and walks back to the throne, going behind it and reaching onto the wall, pulling one of the two swords off the Coat of Arms. He returns to the group and extends his hand. "Take it. Only someone with the heart of a lion can wield this blade, but you have proven you have the honor of a wolf. You can borrow this, for your trip. It's my old practice blade. I used to use it when I was a wee lad, hunting giants in the Corico Mountains."

The greatsword the king hands Neroth is fantastic, it looks amazingly well-designed and is clearly one of a kind and hand crafted.


http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20061005233418/dothack/images/e/e6/RebirthGabi.png
Just the sword, Caineghis looks the same as ever.



This sword is worth around 30,000 gold



This is called the sword of the lion. It's a +3 Large greatsword, but its handle is specially designed so that it can be wielded by a Medium creature with only a -2 penalty (as opposed to standard Large two-handed weapons, which can't be wielded by Medium creatures at all).

Additionally, the wielder may use beast shape II, as the spell, as a spell-like ability at will with a caster level of 10. The wielder may only assume the form of a lion, gaining +4 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +4 Natural Armor, low-light vision, grab, scent and pounce.


"As for the reward, what kind of man do you think I am?" he snarls a bit at this but is otherwise still in a good mood. "Everyone who participates in Maria's rescue will have one wish granted by me if it is within my power to do so. That's what the flyer says, and that's what I intend to grant."


Also, anyone can make any checks about the throne room, the sword, or the king (Sorry for forgetting to mention his height before) if they find the idea of a 9 ft tall human unlikely

[TheEmperor]

Neroth was a bit taken aback by the whole outburst, something that was seemingly happening to him way too much today. Even at six feet, the King dwarfed him like nothing else, and while he found it slightly unnatural and intimidating, he did not seek to question this, for he had seen worse things, such as beings made of fire, and large wyverns of the sky.

What surprised him the most, however, was the offered weapon. It was magnificent, and while Neroth had seen many things, and done many things, he had never seen anything as... well made and imposing as the large sword. He knelt, in a fashion which he had learnt from his father, to receive the blade, and took it into his hands as graciously as possible. his face was straight, although with slight bewilderment, and then a mix of gushing admiration, and what in the nine hells was he hiding, he felt incredibly honored. His face was as red as the back side of a devil, and his hands seemed to tremble for a moment, as he held the blade.

He looked down at the King's feet as he accepted the blade, and in a spur of the moment, said "Your Majesty, I so make an oath upon this day, by my name as Neroth Vandire, that as long as I carry this weapon you have gifted me, I shall not spare a moment of my mind focusing on anything other than the return of your fair daughter. I shall use this blade to strike down the vile kidnapper, cursed be his name and his family's, and bring him to you, Your Majesty."

He blinked, and let his lungs take in air again. That was something he hadn't expected to come from himself.

[NeoSeraphi]

King Caineghis I smiles and nods. "Thank you very much. I have thousands of beautiful weapons, millions of gold and more land and subjects than I know what to do with, and I will give as much of it up as I have to to get my little girl back. Oh, but when you find her...do be careful. She may be my little kitten, but Maria does have her claws too." Smiling, he nods to each of you in turn before heading out to find Michael.

[Diachronos]

Nissa blinked in surprise at the king's outburst of laughter. It did a lot to ease the apparent tension in the old man, and she had a feeling that it was probably the best thing he needed right now barring news of his daughter's safe return. While Neroth received the massive blade from King Caineghis, the half-elf was unfolding the map and looking at the two parts. The first just seemed to be a city map that extended far enough beyond the walls to show where the cavern was, so their initial destination wasn't going to be too difficult to find.

The second half of the map confused her. It had to be a map relating to the Cavern of Fate, but it looked more like the inside of a building than a cave. Then again, he had said that the Cavern was also a shrine, so it didn't seem that unlikely that they would have carved out a living space inside. The entrance hall and second level seemed normal, outside of their location, but the third floor was absent; what awaited them inside?

As the king left, Nissa turned to the others. "Well, it seems we have our destination and goal marked out for us. Shall we head out?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen shot Neroth a reluctant glance, stifling a cough as he began to pose his question, as he put, 'for the rest of his fellowship'. Thankfully the king seemed to have taken it all well. A hearty outburst, a magnificent gift, and a solemn oath later, and Fen was utterly inspired.

"Farewell, your majesty. Some way or another, we will find a way to help your daughter, even if we are not those chosen ones. Even if it means tunneling through the bottom of their temple, or finding some way that you might enter without losing yourself to a fit of righteous fury."

"Oh, but if that happens... you might want to eat something first. I don't know if anyone has told you yet, but as regal as you still are, you look half-starved."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren is quiet, bowing her head as the king made his exit. Once he's gone however, the young wizardess can't help a chuckle. "The Lion of Jazi, everyone.". She glances around the throne room, taking it and its history in. She'd studied noble families long and hard in the past: after all, House Galata were nobility themselves. She pondered briefly the King's family; their history, their place in the kingdom and what exactly had led them to this point.

The thoughts were interesting, but ultimately unproductive. They had work to do, and a target: that was more important. Muttering a few words, Eren's eyes flashed slightly as she glanced at the sword, spending a moment to take in its magic, before nodding to Nissa and turning towards the door with a smile. "Let's go. Maria's waiting for us."

[roll0]: Appraise on the Sword
[roll1]: Spellcraft, on the Sword
[roll2]: Knowledge, Nobility on House Leonis.
[roll3]: Knowledge, History on House Leonis.
[roll4]: Perception (not the focus, but Eren's glancing around the room. She might notice something)

[NeoSeraphi]

House Leonis is famous for its military conquests, most notably of the giants in the Corico Mountains. These mighty and proud warriors often would kidnap people from the road and eat them or sell them to the drow in slavery, but when Caineghis was a young prince around Michael's age he led a group of warriors into the mountains and challenged their king to 1 on 1 combat. When he slew their king and took his weapon as his own, the rest of the giants peacefully surrendered and promised to never attack humans again. As his first political move, Prince Caineghis annexed the Corico Mountains and made the giants citizens of Kha'Rest, imposing reparations on them that made his house very wealthy, along with taxation despite the fact that there is no infrastructure or services provided directly to them. However, because they are tax paying citizens, the giants are able to walk freely inside the city, and occasionally they do.

Additionally, there are rumors flying around that King Caineghis has a secret. No one but the soldiers have ever seen him fight, so no one has any idea what kind of tactics or weapons he uses when combined with that monstrous strength of his, but people say that there's more to him than meets the eye. (Knowledge Nature DC 25)


The king nods as he heads out the door. "I'll see if Michael wants to grab some food and the two of us will have a nice chat about abuse of power and being a general jerk to other people," he says, all smiles at this point. "Make sure you bring back my daughter without a scratch, and I'm not talking about her there!" he winks and heads out.

The Cavern of Fate awaits your arrival, unless the group has something else they'd like to do in town.

[Inspector Valin]

Once the group had left the castle, Eren turned to their now named fifth group member, a curious look in her eyes. She gestured into the city. "Neroth, you had that run in with the Tarot reader earlier, yes? Can you show us where he was?"

Closing her eyes, Eren thought back on the conversation, explaining her request. "Either the Cult is responsible for Maria's kidnapping, or they've approved it. Otherwise the kidnapper wouldn't get past the barrier. We'll probably find more priests in the cavern to interrogate, but..."" But that one had been out and about, talking to an adventurer who'd soon be heading to the Cavern of Fate. And trying to stop him doing so. If they could find the old man, chances were good that he'd have some information about just what was going on, or even a way to bypass the barrier. Even though the man was almost certainly long gone by now, it was worth a short detour to check. Just in case.

See, Michael? This is how investigation works. Not yelling at people and abusing your position. The young Galata sighed inwardly at the image of the angered Prince. She'd heard so many good reports of Michael's behaviour, people praising him for his work with the watch and his honourable nature. It was disheartening to see how his sister's loss was affecting him. He might as well be a different person.

[Diachronos]

"Indeed. The longer we wait, the more likely it gets that they will have left, or that something might happen to the princess." She folded the map and tucked it into one of her belt pouches. "I'm heading to the city gates. If any of you have something you need to tend to before we leave, let's meet up there."

She paused upon hearing Eren's suggestion to look for the old Tarot priest. "That sounds like a good idea. If nothing else, it won't take that much time out of our day to look into."


Let's see what the king's secret is... [roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

From your limited exposure to him, you can still discern that his features are not altogether human.

You deduce that he is a werelion lord, in other words, a lycanthrope with a dire lion as his base animal.

[WindStruck]

As Fenlaen follows the others, he thinks about the suggestion to find the fortune teller. "I don't much feel like a wild goose chase, looking for some old man that could be anywhere in the city. And besides, this whole tarot business is extremely cryptic. Even if we find him, what do you expect to learn? Either way someone needs to rescue the princess, and we promised the king we'd do so. Or try..."

Fenlaen sighed, thinking of the remote possibility. "Why don't we just head over to this cavern of fate first? I would imagine we aren't those fated ones destined to rescue the princess, but just in case... if we aren't able to enter, then we can concentrate all our time on this other suggestion."

[Inspector Valin]

"Don't be so depressed, Fen. You can't know that. We've as good a shot as anyone else has of getting past the barrier. Or are you saying you're not fated to be the boldest warrior in the land?"

Eren smiled to the pixie, this time trying to lift his spirits. The talk about Fate had truly worn him down if he was this resigned to failure already. Eren could relate to that though. She gestured in the rough direction Nemoth'd come from earlier. "If he's not in the marketplace where Nemoth met him, we'll go straight to the Cavern. I agree, we shouldn't waste time. But if the old man is there, he might know a lot of things. Like who exactly kidnapped the Princess. That's valuable enough information that I think we should look for it before we head down there."

The young Wizardess looked down at the ground. For all the magic of her new talisman was bolstering her will, it took Eren several seconds to finally say what was on her mind. The words are forced, uneasy, but the truth as best she knows it. "Whoever took Maria had three days already. They've not made any demands or asked for a ransom. If something bad was going to happen to her... it probably already has. A few more minutes won't hurt. We should be careful where we can be."

[WindStruck]

The pixie rolled his eyes. "If we wanted to know who kidnapped the princess, all we'd have to do is go there, then rip their guts out."

But that was strange. They made no demands yet? Just what were their intentions? That did interest Fenlaen. "Well, if you think this man is related... Frankly, their motives confuse me. But we had better not waste much time looking."

[NeoSeraphi]

The group heads to the center of town where Neroth spotted the strange cultist, and they find the man with a booth set up giving people fortune readings. When he spots the group, he covers his crystal eye and turns to them. "Intriguing...why have you come to seek me out? Should you not be on your intended route? You seek to save the princess, that much is sure. Yet I suppose you could not resist The Tarot's allure? If you wish to know the truth behind your Fate, you will of course have to pay my standard rate."

He gestures to the sign below his desk. "Fortunes Foretold for just 5 Gold!"

[Diachronos]

Nissa laid a hand on the table. "I have no interest in what a deck of playing cards has to say. I'm more interested in whether Tarot cultists would want to abduct Princess Maria, and why."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren blinked: she'd been sure the reader would've moved on by now. The fact that he still sat there, eye gleaming in the sun and ready to speak, was... interesting. She raised a hand against Nissa. "Now, now, friend. Let's be polite" The Wizardess reached to her side, withdrawing her money pouch as she approached the booth, though not loosening the strings just yet. "Give me a second, old one. I've an... unusual request for you. It might not come under your standard fee"

She glanced downwards towards his table, and the Tarot set upon it. Fate and fortune had never truly been something that interested Eren, but it seemed at the heart of what was going on with this strange kidnapping. They could attempt to intimidate the man, or... they could play his game a little. The magess smiled, turning to meet his half-crystal gaze. "Just how good are you with those cards? Could you read the fate of someone not here right now?"

[NeoSeraphi]

The man laughs. "The idea you suggested is frankly absurd! To read someone's fortune without them saying a word. Consent is necessary for all services rendered. If you seek unlawful divination you best find another vender." He says this with an edge of steel in his voice, letting you know he will not be intimidated into breaking the law for you.

The old man has no reaction to Nissa's words. If he heard what she said, he doesn't seem at all disturbed or interested in it. He speaks directly to Eren.

[Inspector Valin]

Eren scowled; the old man didn't have the right to laugh at anyone. But she nodded: he had the upper hand there. "All right. Not a divination. Just explain something to me."

The young Wizardess takes the seat of the booth, looking across at the old cultist. She paused, thinking briefly before beginning. "The Princess was taken to the Cavern of Fate. That's no secret; anyone whose spoken to the king knows that. But to get in, that must mean her kidnapping was fated to happen. How can it be someone's Fate to be kidnapped? Is the Tarot that much written in stone? Is her abduction blessed by the Tarot?"

Eren's eyes narrowed, but she managed a thin smile. "We seek to free her. I'd like to know if we're going against Fate in that." Not that that'd stop me, but it'd at least let us know how the priests in the cavern are going to react.

[TheEmperor]

As the rest of the fellows talked to the Tarot Cultist, Neroth was beginning to realize, that perhaps something wasn't right with the old man. He was acting a tad less... mannerly than before, although that could be excused by the fact that they were essentially intimidating him into doing some work. He decided to take a better route, and stepped forward, from behind the rest of the party, where he felt he belonged, being the less-than-charismatic part of the party.

He raised his eyebrow as he looked at the old man, and said "It would be quite helpful to the search for the Princess, and the King would certainly be quite grateful to you. But if you do not... well, sadly, the King's son, Michael, happens to be quite off his normal personality, and has been seen thrashing people around, just for the slightest offense, and just because of his beloved sister disappearing. And if he, for some reason, found out that you were not helping... Well, that would be a shame if that happened..."


Lets start out with Diplomacy, for the first sentence
[roll0]
And then intimidate
[roll1]

[NeoSeraphi]

The old man looks ready to answer Eren's question, but then Neroth steps in. The old man narrows his one eye. "Threatening me for following the law? The Lion may have teeth, but The Panther has claws. I already said it, but since you insist. I won't read her fortune, so do not persist. The Lion of Jariz commands this himself, and if his son doesn't like it he can go...wait, that doesn't rhyme."

[Inspector Valin]

"The Panther?"

Eren's eyes glinted at that. It was probably a game on the old man's part, but you couldn't know. Best to remember it, just in case. Briefly pondering the potential significance of the name, the Wizardess withdrew her five coins. "Anyway, my question, old one? Was what happened to the Princess a matter of Fate? And do we oppose it by going on?" She drops the coins on the table, considering them a worthwhile sacrifice at this point. She smiled to the cultist. "Feel free to read my fate, if that helps. For your time and trouble."

She glances briefly towards the rest of the group. "If this takes too long, go ahead to the Cavern. I can catch up."

[roll0] Diplomacy.
[roll1] Knowledge Arcana on relevant people called 'The Panther'.
[roll2] Knowledge Nobility on relevant people called 'The Panther'.
[roll3] Knowledge History on relevant people called 'The Panther'.
[roll4] Knowledge Religion on relevant people called 'The Panther'.

[NeoSeraphi]

"The Panther" refers to Princess Maria Pardi Leonis, who is referred to as The Panther of Jariz because her hair color is black, as opposed to the red or blonde her brother and father have. The vender is suggesting that even if Michael may beat him up for not reading her fortune, Maria will also likely beat him up if he did read her fortune without her consent.


The vender closes his eye and shakes his head, thinking for a moment. "The will of The Tarot is sometimes hard to understand. If the princess is there then They must have a plan. Though why someone would kidnap her and take her to that place, I could not say. It is a horrible space. As for whether you oppose Fate by attempting your rescue, I am sure either answer would not deter you. Though the Gods may challenge you in the path that lies ahead, you do not look the type to leave that poor woman dead. Do not let the words of an old man hinder, hurry on to her side before she is put to the tinder."


The man does not seem to recognize Neroth in the slightest. There is not a trace of guilt or secrecy on his face.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen chimes in with his own strange humor, tugging at Eren's sleeve. "You heard the old man, there's no time to waste! Who cares what they plan, we must get there post haste!" He almost keeps a straight face before he bursts out laughing.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth had a slightly grim face on, as he heard the words of the old man, and he was beginning to see how things were, and he finally understood what he was about to undertake. He took most religions quite seriously, even if he didn't personally believe in any one of them, as they were usually quite true to effect him, in mind if not in reality.

He touched both the greatswords on his back, once more giving into the habit to comfort himself.

Rolling for Sense motive
[roll0]

Originally, I had a larger post, but it was before the Sense motive. Whoopsies

[Inspector Valin]

[roll0] Sense Motive

Eren stared at the old man a second or two longer, curious. He seemed almost a different person from the one Nemoth had described. Not the sinister old manipulator she'd envisioned, with secret plots and hellfire hidden behind his kindly disguise. Not the master schemer or secret dragon responsible for everything, hiding in plain sight. He seemed... normal. Which was the last thing she'd expected, all of her assumptions saying that he was tied closely to whatever'd happened. She briefly tried to think of a question for the stranger when Fenlaen's antics soon snap the wizardess out of her reverie. She laughs along with the pixie nodding emphatically as she rose from the seat. "You're right, Fen. Thank you for your time, old one. I'm... sorry I misjudged you."

Those words spoken, the young Galata nodded to her other companions, before turning towards the gate and walking briskly along the street towards it. They've still got a fair way to go towards the Cavern, and gods knew what they'd find inside. A holy site or some unhallowed nightmare of twisted fate. But they'd overcome whatever it was. That's what heroes are for.

[Diachronos]

Some of the old man's words caught Nissa's attention, but she chose to stay quiet for the moment. As they all left, she chose to bring up her concerns once they appeared to be out of earshot.

"Did you catch the last thing he said? About hurrying to Maria 'before she's put to the tinder'? You don't suppose they intend to harm the girl, do you? Or do you think it might just be the old fool trying to make everything he says rhyme?" Another, related concern came to her mind, but she decided not to voice it just yet. If he knew what would happen to Maria, it begged the question of how he knew, but hurling accusations of him being involved would do no good without proof, and the most it would accomplish right now would be delaying them further.

[WindStruck]

"I would think a kidnapper would keep their victim alive if they expected to receive some kind of ransom and not be killed in the process. But if it's true that absolutely no demands have been made..."

The implications were grim. Fenlaen did not even want to think about it. "Oh Gods, we really musn't waste another second. C'mon!"

Having had a good look at the map, he had an idea of where this temple was. He launched a distance in the air and made a direct route for it, possibly leaving his companions behind unless they ran.

[NeoSeraphi]

The group arrives at the entrance to The Cavern of Fate. The cavern is located in a small grove of trees about a quarter of a mile from the city wall, still very much in range of Michael's guards' siege weapons mounted on the wall. The party spots Sir Sclavo, the paladin they had seen before, frowning as he stands at the entrance.

"For the last time, I need to go inside and save the princess. This must be my fate!" the paladin pleads. At first, the group wonders who he is talking to, before a ghost appears in front of the cavern. The ghost is of an elven male, and it looks extremely annoyed at Sir Sclavo.

"Are you seriously still here? It's been a few hours, at least. Look, I don't make the rules, okay? Either you get in, or you don't. You got a problem with that, take it up with corporate." He points to the sky.

Sclavo groans and looks over at the group. "He won't budge. My men went home a while back, but I have to save Maria. She's...she's everything to me. I've been trying to get into this cave for hours, but there's some kind of invisible force stopping me. It's like walking into a wall."

The ghost looks intrigued at the group. "Oh ho. Now who do we have here? A few challengers of Fate, are you? Well, step right up! The Curse of the Cavern awaits you!"

The ghost waves one hand and a deck of ghostly tarot cards appears over the entrance of the cavern. "The Trial of the Cavern of Fate is about to begin. Those who would enter will subject themselves to their chosen fate. This will either operate as a blessing or a curse while you are in the cavern, and the only way to rid yourself of it is to either accomplish your goal or to flee with the honest intention to never return. Or you could die. That's always a possibility. But hey, if adventuring isn't your thing, there's always room for more spooky bouncers around here. Strength knows I could use some vacation days."

The ghost gestures for each of you to line up. He looks particularly eager when Neroth steps forward. "Oh man, yes, come right here, and let's judge your fate!"

The cards shuffle above Neroth's head and one card is drawn. "The Wheel of Fortune, in the Reverse Position!"

Neroth starts to reply to that but as he steps forward his shoes come untied and he trips, falling face first into a small puddle. As he pushes himself into a squatting position to stand up, there's a loud sound as his undergarments rip under his armor. Reaching to tie his shoes, he accidentally gets one of his fingers trapped in the laces.

Nissa is next, and the ghost snaps his fingers. The cards reshuffle and a new card is drawn. The ghost snickers a bit. "Oh, this should be good. The Lovers, in the Upright Position."

Nissa blinks in surprise and before she can respond, her raptor does so for her. "The Lovers? What do you think that means?"

Nissa stares at her pet and stammers, "Um, your guess is as good as mine..."

The raptor seems to understand her, but also shifts uncomfortably. "If you say so..."

The ghost nods to Fenlaen. "Come come, we don't have all day." Fen flies forward and the cards shuffle above him. "The Devil, in the Reverse Position."

Fen frowns, having no idea what that means, but as he opens his mouth to voice his confusion, he instead nods firmly and glances back at Eren. "I understand that completely. No explanation needed here. Good luck."

Finally, Eren walks up. The ghost's eyes light up. "Oh yes, I have something special prepared for you...now show me what her fate is!" The card shuffle and one of them is drawn. The card reveals itself and the ghost laughs. "Too bad! The Empress, in the Reverse Posi- what?"

The amulet around Eren's neck begins to glow pink and the card above her head fades. The cards reshuffle and a new one is drawn. The ghost stares blankly. "The Hierophant...in the Upright Position. What on earth? How could you...change your fate?"

The ghost shakes his head and says. "Whatever. You must have someone out there watching your back. Either way, you guys better get lost before I change my mind and shut the door."


The Curse of Unluck - Every time Neroth rolls a d20, he must roll twice and take the worse result.
Absolute Misfortune - Every time Neroth rolls a natural 20, it is treated as a natural 1 instead (before his lower dice is chosen).



The Lovers - Nissa can speak freely with her animal companion while in the Cavern. However, everything she says is translated in a way that makes it sound flirtatious or seductive. It is up to Diachronos to roleplay this in whatever way he chooses, but he WILL have to at least mention it each time she speaks to her raptor.



The Silver Tongue of the Devil - Fenlaen gains a +4 bonus to Bluff, Stealth, and Disguise checks while in the Cavern, but every factual statement he makes comes out as a lie. It doesn't matter what lie it is, Fen is physically unable to tell the truth (which kind of means he can't make Intimidate checks, since saying "We're going to break your kneecaps" comes out as "We're going to buy you ice cream!")



The Blessing of the Hierophant - Eren receives a +2 morale bonus to her saving throws against divine spells.
Faith in all Things - Casting an arcane spell causes Eren to gain Fast Healing X for X rounds, where X is the level of the spell cast. So if Eren casts a 3rd level spell, she heals 3 every round for 3 rounds. This ability does not stack with itself.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth frowned in a most righteous of fashions, with his eyes reflecting extreme annoyance, as he heard the ghost speak and determine his faith. He pulled his self esteem's metaphorical breeches up, and dusted off his armor, as he coughed, and cleared his throat. In his mind, only the vilest of curses were repeating like a repeater crossbow with a very large magazine, and seemingly had no end, but he managed to keep his face as neutral as he could, drawing his mouth into a tight line, and pushing his eyebrows up, to stop himself from frowning any longer.

The "unlucky" prediction that had been made for him was coinciding with his failures at balance, which was seemingly proving his fate. He sighed as he stepped forward, and rubbed his eyes. He drew the large greatsword he had been gifted, and slid two fingers down the blade, only to get the equivalent of a small papercut like scratch from it. It was nearing the last straw, and he very nearly swore, before he caught himself, and tried focusing his mind once more.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen is still incredibly confused by the whole ordeal. Everything from the carnival-like behavior, to everyone acting weird, and the words coming out of his mouth different than he meant. He stares dumfounded at the ghost for a moment and asks "Whuh..? So... we can come in??"

[NeoSeraphi]

The ghost bows. "By all means. You have challenged your Fates, and now you are cursed. You may either demonstrate your Will to the Tarot, or your Will will break under the pressure of your curse. Or you could die. Again, that's a possibility." The ghost disappears, indicating you guys have a green light to enter the cavern.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth looked over to the rest of the party, as the ghost disappeared. Already, everything seemed difficult. "Woo" he said, with sarcasm dripping from his mouth. "Cursed for the third time today. Such good luck."

He looked over at the Sir who was further away from him, and raised a single eyebrow, questioningly. He wondered how the man was feeling, after having been rejected. Certainly not as foul as him, even if he had some anger in him.

He said to the rest of the party "I suppose we should begin our way in to the cavern. And, of course, talk it over about... whatever that was all about."

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen felt uneasy about the whole ordeal. Though he was determined to press forward, he thought he might express his concerns to the others before peeking in. "This is fantastic! I knew we'd make it in! We'll be in and out and save the princess in no time!" Wait, what?

Bluff: [roll0]
Perception: [roll1]
Stealth: [roll2] whoops, +4 due to devil tarot

[Inspector Valin]

The one person that seems more surprised at the Ghost's verdict on Eren is Eren herself. The young Wizardess stares at the reader, then down at the amulet, and then back to the reader, eyes wide, convinced that this could not be real. Soon enough though, the wizardess expression of shock shifts into a massive grin: she looks like the cat who got the cream. She bows theatrically to the elf. "Because I'm Eren Galata! Wizardess extraordinare!" She steps into the cavern with confidence, and a smile for her companions. Still, once she is past the threshold, Eren bows her head for a second, her thoughts turning to her amulet. Thank you, Lady Calistria. Your power throws the Tarot to the winds, and lets us all rewrite what could be. I walk this path in your name

Prayer given, Eren looked back to the Paladin with a frown. The man clearly wanted to enter, just as they all had. What made their group 'challengers of fate'? Still, soon enough she smiled, for his sake. "Sir Sclavo, a favour. Can you rouse your men, and keep an eye on the city's interior? Prince Michael had dispatched the guard to the walls, and is patrolling the city alone. If something does go wrong within Jazi itself, having a worthy knight and his friends ready to assist His Highness seems wise." Nothing was that likely to go wrong, but anything was better than letting the poor man just languish there whilst others went on the adventure he'd sought.

[NeoSeraphi]

Calistria has nothing to do with it, lol. That's part of Madame Volutia's protection spell.


Sclavo blinks in surprise and then nods. "Michael...yes. I will go to Prince Leonis's aid. Well then, by your leave." Sir Sclavo bows to the group and heads back to town.


You can tell that Sclavo feels uneasy about the idea. Perhaps he and the prince have a history together.


Entering the cave proves no problem now, save for the horribly unlucky Neroth. Once inside, the group finds the first floor to be a simple pathway, but something blocks the stairs below. The creature stands on four legs, but has the body of a man, and the longbow he carries looks very deadly. He knocks an arrow and points it right at Nissa's chest. "Halt! None shall pass until Princess Maria's ritual is completed! Now back away slowly and you can leave with all your blood where it belongs!" the creature asserts.


http://fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2013/071/d/b/centaur_archer_by_dino_sawr-d5xv3ub.jpg



The centaur clans in the forests beyond Kha'Rest are well known for their surefire archery skills. Being on the wrong end of one of their bows spells certain death for a tenderfoot. Often outsiders will challenge these creatures to tests of combat rather than duels. Centaurs enjoy competition, and a test of speed or of precision is more enjoyable to them than outright killing their enemy. Centaurs are typically Neutral Good, and very few things make them angry other than directly insulting them or harming nature.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen flies directly in front of Nissa, now with his little axe ready and holding his shield where it seems the centaur is aiming. Talking about rituals was one thing that would pique his interest, but not so much while he and his companions are being threatened. "You watch where you point that," he growls, "or it will be your blood used to redecorate these halls!" He brandishes the axe menacingly.

Intimidate: [roll0] (negate one size penalty)

And by directly in front of Nissa, I would mean like RIGHT there, just inches away and occupying the same space. At least Fenlaen is tiny size, so, I don't think this would hinder her either.

[Diachronos]

Nissa swallowed nervously as the centaur trained its arrow on her chest; there was little doubt that the weapon would seriously injure her, if not kill her outright, if the centaur saw reason to let the arrow fly. It didn't help that Ghellin began to growl at the creature and puff himself up. "Ghellin, stop, you're just going to anger him."

Or at least that's what she'd meant to say. Instead, something completely different came out, sounding almost like a husky purr that made her glad nobody else could understand her. "Oh, I didn't figure you to be the jealous type..." The raptor backed down, at least, so that was one upside to the situation, though her face was beginning to turn pink from the embarrassment and absurdity of what was happening to her.

Her attention turned back to the centaur, and she moved her hands away from her weapons, even taking a step back from the centaur to show that she didn't mean any harm. Now all she needed was for Fen's threat to not make the centaur shoot at either of them. "You said that Princess Maria is taking part in some ritual... Does that mean that she came here of her own volition? Or is she being made to participate?"


Suddenly I'm regretting pulling points out of my Knowledge skulls to get ranks in Bluff and crafting...
[roll0]

Apparently she knows just about everything there is to know about centaurs!

[NeoSeraphi]

The centaur is a Large creature. More importantly, it is currently 60 feet away from you all, and you need to be within 30' to attempt to demoralize a creature.



As per the rules for Knowledge checks, you may ask one meta-game question per 5 points you exceeded the DC by. So you can ask me any 2 meta type questions like "what's its poorest saving throw" or "does it have any weaknesses", whatever you want as long as there's no numerical value in the answer.


The centaur scoffs a bit. "I would shoot through that tiny shield, pixie, but out of respect for another creature of the forest I will pretend you didn't just make a threat you couldn't keep."

Glancing at Nissa, the centaur lowers his bow, then re-aims and knocks his arrow again. This time the bow is clearly aimed right between her eyes. "The Princess is here because that is her Fate. Soon, the scars of The Moon will be removed from her. She will be able to rule as a true princess, rather than...that beast...that she is now."

[WindStruck]

"Well, that certainly answers our question!" the pixie says with mirth. After a few seconds, he says, "I mean -- Argh!" Fenlaen is totally acting like a schizophrenic looney.

Looking back to the others and at the centaur again, he realizes that they might need some kind of cover if indeed they decide to take this guy on. And if they could possibly talk their way through, he'd be no help in this state. What they'd need is some sort or edge...

Slowly, he puts his axe back in its holder and turns to the others, asking, "What is he talking about?" However, from his satchel he then attempts to covertly pull out a smoke stick.

bluff: [roll0]

And should I need to make any rolls for this other action?

[Inspector Valin]

"Wonderful. The Half-Man, Half-Horse is calling the Princess of Kha'Rest a beast. After kidnapping her, and subjecting to a ritual against her will, with the only justification being 'The Tarot made me do it'."

Eren doesn't even attempt to disguise her sarcasm or anger at the guardian's words. Her inner feelings were closer to bewilderment and disgust; both at these cultists, and at herself for not hurrying here sooner. This was... worse than she'd imagined. The young wizardess' hands were shaking slightly, but her gaze was firm as she met the archer's eyes. "We don't have long, centaur. Stand aside, or send word to stop your ritual, or I swear, there will be nothing left of you but ash once we're through." It was hard to find an unarmed fifteen year old girl threatening, but Eren's tone was clear enough. She meant what she said.

Yeah, Eren's being direct. Also, [roll0] Intimidate. No way it'd work, but just for the record.

[NeoSeraphi]

The witch's words only seem to anger the centaur. He narrows his eyes. "So be it. If you will not stand down, then I have no choice but to make you leave by force!"

The centaur's body begins to glow blue and he throws one hand up, pointing to the ceiling. "I am blessed by The Tarot! Now, Cavern of Fate, reveal my destiny!" The cards appear once more, shuffling and drawing one. "The Chariot, in the Upright Position! I am the embodiment of Competition and Skill! You will not take one step further!"


Blessing of The Chariot:
I Won't Miss Twice!: If the centaur misses an attack roll, he receives a +2 profane bonus on all his attack rolls for the rest of the round.
You Won't Keep Me Down!: The centaur receives a +5 profane bonus to his CMD.


Glaring at Eren, the centaur reaches for his quiver and draws a second arrow, then fires them both, aimed right for Fenlaen's chest! Without missing a beat, he draws another arrow, knocks it, and lets it fly at Nissa! His fourth arrow comes out and aims right for Eren's flank. He shoots!


All of you are flat-footed, so Dexterity bonuses to your Armor class are denied. That means Fenlaen's AC drops to 24, Nissa's drops to 14, and Eren's is 11.

First attack (Manyshot): [roll0]
Damage (2 arrows): [roll1]

Second attack (Rapid Shot): [roll2]
Damage: [roll3]

Third attack (BAB): [roll4]
Damage: [roll5]


The centaur attacks with deadly accuracy, landing four blows across the party. His steeled eyes are determined to take you all out at once.

[Inspector Valin]

Eren reels as the arrowheads cut deep; the centaur's aim precise, and his ammunition painful. Her skin felt like it was burning as she looked downwards. She'd.... never been hurt like that before. So much for making us leave. Unless killing us counts. Soon enough though, the magess is standing tall again, eyes glinting with anger as she looked towards the centaur. With a few gestures and whispered words, the wizardess conjured a field of force around herself: enough to hopefully limit the flight of any future arrows. The first attack had left her reeling, but she'd be ready for the second.

Protection from Arrows. DR10 against arrow attacks. Duration of eight hours, or until the spell reduces 80 points of damage from arrows. She also gains Fast Healing 2 for 2 rounds so will heal 4 HP up from that attack over the next 2 rounds.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth grimaced, as the half man, half horse beast in front of them began to shoot at them, getting worried even more so when he realized they were targeting the other members of his party, who were not quite has hardy, or armored as he. Certainly not the wizardress child, who seemed around fifteen or fourteen, although he had no real clue what so ever.

In return, Neroth pushed himself forward, and ran as fast as he possibly could towards the centaur, but did not swing. Instead, he employed the Stone Dragon maneuver, taught to him so long ago. With his elbow raised, he ran right into the centaur's center of forward mass. Or at least, attempted to.


Highly unlikely this is gonna work, sadly, with that +5 to CMD the bugger has, and my..uh... Unluckiness.
Also, I'm posting from a tablet, so could someone please tell me my roll results?
Hopefully this works. (As in, actually rolling)
[roll0]
[roll1]

If this works, ill not provoke AoOs because of the maneuver used, which is charging minotaur. I won't provoke even if I fail. If I win, I do [roll2] damage.

[WindStruck]

The centaur's superior speed surprised Fenlaen, as a sharp, yet dull pain lodged itself into his chest. More arrows flew as the bastard fired a volley of arrows into his allies. The son of a bitch may have caught him by surprise once, but it wasn't going to happen again. He launched himself at the centaur, quickly closing the distance and screamed, "We'll see if I can't keep that threat!!" Losing himself in a fury, he wildly swung at the half-man, half-beast just before nearly ramming into him.

60 feet, you said? Good, that's Fenlaen's fly speed. I did put my weapon away thinking I might try something with a smoke stick but wasn't gonna happen, apparently. So drawing weapon while flying again, raging, and I'll attempt to hit him with a "piranha strike".

attack: [roll0]
damage: [roll1]

[NeoSeraphi]

[roll0]
Damage: [roll1]


The centaur laughs and shakes his head as Neroth charges forward, planting all four of his feet firmly on the ground and taking Neroth's charge head on. He doesn't budge an inch and gives Neroth a forceful shove back into his own square. "Careful there, human. I was being nice to you because you're the one who's cursed the worst, but if you try anything like that again I'll trample you under my heel!"

Fenlaen shoots forward and flits around the centaur's body. The centaur looks annoyed and rears up, trying to slam Fen into the ground with his hoof. Fen manages to swiftly dodge that attack and stabs the centaur for some damage.

"Why you..."

The centaur cuts himself off as he hears a loud growling sound from down the stairs. "Oh you've got to be kidding me... why now?" the centaur mutters to himself. He grits his teeth and draws an arrow, about to knock it and put it right through Neroth's chest, but then he shakes his head. "My people are not one to run away, but fortunately for all of you I have a job to do."

He puts the arrow and bow away and withdraws.


The withdraw action grants the withdrawer 5' of free movement. If your character has 10' reach, you may take an attack of opportunity against the centaur, otherwise he's leaving.


The centaur rushes downstairs.

[WindStruck]

Damnit, why was he running away? Fenlaen took a moment to catch his breath, kneeling on the ground, and pulled the arrows out of his body with terrible cringe. "D-did you all hear that growling sound? I'm sure it's nothing we have to worry about." He would have probably tried to correct what he just said in vain, but he was a bit too weary for this moment to think about it very hard.

[NeoSeraphi]

The group hears a commotion coming from behind them this time, at the entrance.

"Wait, stand still, if you want to enter you need a blessing or a cur-"

"Let me put it this way, sugar. If you don't want to retire permanently you're going to move out of my way."

"Y-yes ma'am!"



There's a brief beat of silence and then Madame Volutia enters the cavern, walking up and shaking her head. "Well now, I had a feeling you lot were going to be the ones to get into the cavern, but it looks like you might have bit off more than you can chew here." She raises one hand and a burst of positive energy flies through the room, restoring 40 health to every member of the party.

Madame Volutia smiles at the group. "Sir Sclavo dropped by The Hierophant," she explains. "He told me how bad Neroth's curse was, and I had to rush over here to check on you. And now, we come to the second part of your fortune."

She steps forward and looks Neroth in the eye. "So, Mister Hanged Man. You know now what fate awaits the beautiful princess if you don't step in and help her now, but do you think you'd survive that in your current state? You have to make a decision, press on, or fall back and try to pick up some better gear and form a coherent strategy. If you choose wrong..." She reaches into her pocket and procures the Death card, handing it to him.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth rubbed his elbow, which still tingled a bit, after his attempt to push the damn centaur back a few feet, but still was able to function quite well. He stroked the stubble he had on his chin, before letting his mind entirely consider Madame Volutia's words, for a full second, although he was still getting used to her dynamic entry.

He opened his mouth to speak once, and stopped, before seemingly coming to a conclusion in his head. He started to speak once more, this time surer than before. "Madame, I am not an experienced man, not by a long shot, and nor do I possess the willpower or courage of a great man, but I am smart enough to recognize that I cannot abandon my duty. I swore to the king, that I would not rest until the kidnapper was brought to justice, and will stand by my oath. Most normal men fear the reaper, and that is what I am, but I recognize my own duty, and will uphold my duty in the face of death itself."

He accepted the card, not quite understanding the exact significance behind taking it.

[WindStruck]

"Madam Volutia! You could get in here the whole time? Why didn't you-- hmm, I bet you could have easily dispatched that centaur without breaking a sweat. Well, we don't need your help, and I don't think the princess is in danger this moment." Wait, what was he saying?? No, come back! After the smugness and confidence had thoroughly left his voice and mannerisms, he proceeded to facepalm himself violently.


bluff: [roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

Sense Motive: [roll0]


Madame Volutia raises an eyebrow at Fen. "The Silver Tongue of The Devil?" she asks, seeming genuinely surprised. "Damn, The Tarot really don't want anyone interfering if they're going around cursing everyone who enters the Cavern. How about you, sweetness?" she looks over at Eren. "Those damn cultists didn't touch a hair on that pretty head of yours, did they?"

Sighing at Neroth's declaration she nods. "Well, I suppose it's a good thing I left Sapphire and Mercedes in charge of the inn then. If you are still going to plow through this to save the princess, then I'm going to tag along. To make sure you idiots don't get yourselves killed." She takes a file out of her pocket and starts filing her nails. "I'm not going to fight anyone off for you of course. That would only get me cursed as well. I can handle a few cultists but someone in my position doesn't need to go around pissing off other gods. Reflects poorly on Lady Calistria, you understand." She stops, checks her hand, blows some stray nail off her fingers and continues. "Still...I'd be lying if I said that I didn't want to be here. Maria's a good woman, and I'm sure little Amora is missing her sister terribly right now. And I promised Her Majesty I'd look after Amora for her."

[Diachronos]

Nissa dropped to one knee as the arrow sank into her stomach, hissing in pain through gritted teeth and clutching at the shaft. A few quick words and gestures later, a billowing cloud of misty fog appeared around her, hiding herself and all within 20 feet from view. She bit her lip to keep quiet from the pain; the shot had been well-placed, and possibly mere inches from striking a vital organ. The half-elf shifted to the side, hoping to move around the flank the centaur alongside her companions once she was back on her feet.

Before she could gather herself and prepare to charge, though, she heard a loud growl coming from further in the cavern, and the centaur announcing its withdrawal. Just what was this "job" that the centaur was referring to; was it to guard the Tarot cultists while they forcibly "cured" Maria of her affliction?

She dismissed the spell at the sound of Madame Volutia's arrival, and unsteadily got to her feet. As the surge of healing light filled the cavern she plucked out the arrow that had hit her, leaving only a hole and bloodstain in her shirt. "Your phrasing of your reason for being here aside, the help is appreciated, Madame." A small, thankful smile crossed her face as she moved to rejoin the others.

"I might be wrong on this, but... from what the centaur told us and what I've noticed of Caineghis, I think I know what they're planning to do to Maria." She crossed her arms and remained silent for a few seconds, before deciding that there wasn't really a delicate way to put this and continuing. "Caineghis is a werelion lord, so it stands to reason that at least one of his children is also a lycanthrope. Considering they've abducted Maria and are talking about 'removing the scars of the moon' from her, my guess is that the ritual is to 'cure' her of her lycanthropy, though I don't know enough about werewolves and their kind to know just what kind of ritual could accomplish such a task."

[Inspector Valin]

Eren's reeling for a moment as many things seem to happen at once. The sound from below, the centaur withdrawing, Madame Volutia came here, because... she was concerned? The wizardess gritted her teeth a little, this wasn't the time to worry about her, or anyone other than Maria. She shook her head, a little limply. "I'm... fine, Madame." She might not have sounded it, but the fear generated by both the wound and the sounds from below was tough even for the amulet to deal with. She... just needs a few deep breaths. Then she'll be fine.

Nissa's words don't seem to phase Eren, as though the ranger's theory was simply confirming what she'd already suspected. She looks first to the ranger, and then the two swordsmen, before finally turning again to Volutia, face set and determined. "We need to go. Now. That sound was Maria trying to escape, I bet. And that shin-zen has silver arrows. He'd..."

That thought is a hard one to complete. The wizardess looks down at the wounds she'd recently suffered, still feeling a little queezy. It was like the arrows had burned straight through her flesh. Who knew what they'd do to Maria if she dared resist their precious 'charity'? Eren glances between her companions: they all seem ready for this. Or at least as ready as they could be right now Barring any further objections, the wizardess moved towards the exit the sentinel had taken, clearly intending to follow him down into the cavern. And most likely make good on her earlier threat.

[NeoSeraphi]

The group heads down to the second floor. The walls here are lit by torches that seem to keep themselves alight through magic. The staircase leads to the entrance of the temple, which depicts a single coin, spinning constantly between heads and tails over the archway that leads into the inner sanctum. Inside the door, there are 22 statues, each one depicting a different major Arcana. Each Arcana seems to be its own god with its own worshippers and offerings. There are no monks or priests in this hall at the moment.

Nissa recalls the map the king gave her. There were several rooms marked on the map that she could explore at her leisure.

[WindStruck]

"Which way is it to the 3rd floor? Quickly! And let me stay ahead of you and sneak a bit so that I can tell them all we're coming." He pauses for a bit, retrieving a smoke stick, a tindertwig, and a thunderstone, holding them in his free hand. He sighs and says, "...maybe if I only gave quick orders and asked questions, I could avoid telling the truth..."

My plan is to try to get a surprise round to hopefully give us an advantage with a smoke stick and thunderstone when we encounter any sort of ritual/encounter that may be going on in the floors below. So I'll try to sneak ahead of the group by a good margin, up to 20 feet if possible. I can hopefully get a good idea of the danger around corners and stuff. But yeah, opening doors... that would still hopefully not give me away.

And yeah, I'll probably be trying to juggle these small (relatively) objects in my hand while doing so. It's a pain having to use 3 move actions just to get each.

stealth: [roll0]
perception: [roll1]

[Inspector Valin]

Eren looks pale as the group proceed deeper into the temple, glancing around at the various tarot shrines. What did these gods and goddesses have against Lycnthropy? The suggestion of it was enough to make them risk the wrath of the kingdom. That was no common grudge... but she couldn't dwell on theorizing. She has a job to do.

At Fen's question, she pauses for a second, taking a step back. "Give me a second. Magic might help us with this." Chanting briefly in Draconic, Eren closes her eyes, gesturing to try and focus on the connectedness. Magic is in all things. Magic can see all things. There is a connection right now between her and Maria; all she has to do is draw upon it, and she'd know roughly where the princess was. Where she'd have to go to help the kidnapped woman. This would work, it had to work...

Locate Creature. Lasting for 80 minutes.

[Diachronos]

Nissa quickly looked over the map as they descended to the second level of the temple. It seemed to be a simple layout, so searching the full floor likely wouldn't take too long... but there wasn't a clear marking that she could see that indicated where the passage to the third level was.

"I would recommend splitting up to cover more ground, but given how much of a threat the centaur was I don't think going off alone would be the best idea." She drew her sword and took a few steps off toward the right side of the second level when they reached the bottom of the stairs. "It may be better if Fen and I scout ahead to see if we can find the entrance or get an idea of how much opposition we might face, since the two of us are probably the best suited to sneaking around. Do any of you have a concealable way for us to communicate from across the floor?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Though there was no one in the inner sanctum originally, the party members that are not Fenlaen make enough noise that it attracts someone from one of the outer rooms into the hallway. The creature walks into view from the kitchen, according to Nissa's map.


http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/images/pc_endo.jpg


"My my, now this is unexpected." The human male smiles politely and bows. "Please excuse me for making you wait. It is rare for us to receive visitors in this temple. However, if you have made it past the barrier, it is clearly the Will of The Tarot that you are here. My name is Hikari Sendoh, and I am the priest of Justice in this temple."

Looking past the group, he spots Madame Volutia bringing up the rear and gasps. "You are...! The High Priestess of Calistria!" He quickly clasps his hands together and bows. "Madame, you honor our temple with your visit. To what do we owe this pleasure?"


This guy is clearly happy to have guests. Seems like he doesn't get to preach or help anyone very often while he's studying in a cave outside of town. Go figure.


Madame Volutia smiles politely and exchanges a brief bit of divine conversation with him, explaining that she is only here to advise the rest of the group. Hikari looks at the rest of you expectantly, waiting patiently to hear your reason for being here.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen thinks quickly and decides to go along with his curse, for once. "We came to see the ritual! Rumor has spread so fast throughout the kingdom that the princess was trying to remove her curse, and so many people, especially her loved ones were clamoring to see it! But alas, it seems only we have been blessed by the Tarot to see it!"

[roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

The monk blinks in surprise. "The...princess?" He winces, as if he's in pain and places one hand on his temple. "Th-that's right...Princess Maria....is here..." He struggles with the idea. "The ritual...what is going on?"

Hikari closes his eyes. He seems to be trying to think or remember something, and starts muttering to himself. "But our temple doesn't do anything like that. I don't even know how we could do something like that. And that roar earlier. It sounded like she was in pain...ugh...my head...what's going on?"


The man is suddenly overtaken by a powerful mythic suggestion spell


Hikari's body seizes and the same blue aura that surrounded the centaur suddenly appears around him. He lets go of his face and slowly raises his head, opening his eyes. His expression is one of malice and anger. "You intend to stop the ritual, and to defy the princess's fate. I see now. You all are my enemies..."

He raises his fists and drops into an aggressive fighting stance. "Begone! Or I will be forced to kill you all for defying the Will of my gods!"

[Inspector Valin]

The aura. Eren starts, recognizing it... and her stomach churns at the implications. Magic was at work, against both this priest and the centaur. They were puppets on the string of some magician, lurking down in the depths. Whoever had kidnapped Maria had invaded their minds; set innocent people to the job of defending the shrine to the death. Enchantment was one of the few types of magic she'd never had the desire to study, and seeing the actions of this practitioner made the young Galata all the more glad of the paths she'd chosen. I am going to kill that Enchanter. I am going to kill him and burn him and rip him apart for what he's done...

Focus. She needed to focus. A battle now was against everyone's best interests, it'd take too long and get an innocent mankilled. She might not be able to counteract the spell... best to try and work around it. The wizardess bowed low, respectfully, her tone practised and polite. "Master Sendoh, please. We've come here with Lady Volutia; we've no intention of stopping a legitimate Tarot ritual. That would be a crime against the Kingdom, and the Gods. We'd just like to see it to make sure everything's fine. To make sure the Princess is fine. That's not against the will of the Tarot, is it?"

[roll0] Initiative
[roll1] Spellcraft
[roll2] Diplomacy

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari slices one hand in front of him as if to smack away all of Eren's words. "Enough! You trespass on sacred ground! And now I will escort you to the door...in a body bag, if I have to." He raises his hand to the sky. "I am blessed by the Will of The Tarot! Now, Cavern of Fate, reveal my destiny!" The cards appear before his head, shuffling and then one is drawn. "Justice, in the Upright Position! You would threaten my royal guest, and I will save her! I will protect her from all of you with my very soul!" The blue aura intensifies as the monk absorbs the blessing into his body.


Blessing of Justice:
The Lone Savior: As long as the monk has no allies within 60 feet of him, he gains damage reduction 5/Evil
Hand of the Martyr: The monk receives a +3 bonus on his weapon damage rolls, including natural weapons, but half the damage he deals to others is dealt to him as well (ignoring damage reduction)

[WindStruck]

With his hand moving for his axe again, Fenlaen says, "Stay out of our way, you crazy lunatic! We're going to kill the princess whether your Gods like it or not!" ...well, despite being a complete lie, it seemed to fit the context of the conversation just fine. If not already there, Fenlaen puts himself in the front of the group.

bluff: [roll0]
initiative was 18

By the way, is a 5-foot-fly possible to close the distance needed and both make a full attack and avoid AoOs?

[NeoSeraphi]

Fen wins initiative, so he can fly where ever he wants without provoking AoOs (Hikari is flat-footed)


There is another loud roar, this time everyone can hear it, as they are much closer to the basement floor than before.



You can hear the sound of arrows being fired and flesh or fur burning.


You can hear a female voice yelling "Michael, where are you when I need you?!"


You can hear a male voice seething. "Damn them. Whoever these people are, they are threatening to destroy your temple, kill your priest, and vandalize your gods' statues. Are you going to let them get away with that Zemma?


If you roll a 20 or a 25, you get the lower DCs as well as the higher one.

[WindStruck]

The princess!! There is no time!

Quickly, Fenlaen flies directly at the monk and swiftly bonks him on the head with the back end of his axe as he continues past. "Lets see you try and stop me!!" the pixie yells back toward the monk as he zooms for the stairs to the lower level.

Double movement towards the stairs. (120 feet)

And the "bonk" isn't really anything, I'm just trying to distract him and/or piss him off and hopefully get him to try to go after me or something. Maybe I'll still roll an attack roll...

[roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

Putting this in spoilers so it doesn't distract from the fight.

As Fen heads downstairs, he sees a small room, about 60x60, with a hooded figure, the centaur from before, and a young woman who is bleeding from several arrow injuries.


http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/92/80/ef/9280ef20c8ba6775d52976423aabd7d7.jpg



http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5PMPwF1bzm0/TfwvpiOHlzI/AAAAAAAAA1k/oiL9BRGSbwA/s1600/11.jpg


The hooded man looks up, turning his staff around and pointing it at Fenlaen. "Heh. Looks like someone got to the party a little early. Zemma, keep the girl at bay. I will deal with this rat personally..."

[NeoSeraphi]

The mage grins and strokes his chin. "Been a long time since I had to deal with someone so weak personally. I wonder what spell would be good here? Hmm...I haven't bound any souls lately, though I could always turn your blood into acid and watch you boil from the inside out...Oh, I know!"

The man slams his staff into the ground and his entire body is covered in black mist. Fen's mind is filled with images of the the man killing him in horribly gruesome ways over and over and over again.


Fen needs to make a Fortitude save, DC 25. If he fails, he is panicked for [roll0] rounds, then shakened for...well, a while, and if he comes in sight of the mage again he will become panicked again.

[WindStruck]

The pixie's resolve melts away like a snowman that had just been hurled into the depths of the sun. Before he could even gasp he saw himself being butchered apart, decapitated, burning alive in an oven, exploding, and disintegrating into a lifeless pile of ash. His hands tremble as he drops his axe - he would have dropped his shield too had it not been strapped to his arm - and then, what's this? The man was coming after him?!

Oh no, he had to get out of here!! Fenlaen was out of there before you could say 'save or suck'.

Flying at breakneck speeds, faster than even before, trying to escape the evil man, he screams a warning to the others: "Noo!! He's going to buy me ice cream!!"

[TheEmperor]

Neroth was already quite annoyed about the centaur running away, his unlucky condition, and the fact that Madame Volutia felt like she needed to help them, but now it was getting ridiculous. It was like someone wanted everything they encountered to turn hostile. And, considering everything, he wouldn't be surprised if there was some god who was immensely butthurt with everything on the planet, and making their little dungeon, or "temple" crawl difficult.

But the pixie fellow, who had seemed quite weird this entire time they'd been in the temple, rushed past the monk, way before he could even react properly to everything, due to him getting terribly caught off guard, and into the bowels of the dungeon. He then came running out, screaming about something called 'ice cream'.

For some reason, he felt incredibly slow, and was, for some reason, incredibly slow to react. If the monk came for him, he wouldn't be ready.
Oh dear.

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia hears the fey screaming as he flies back up the stairs. She smiles and blows him a kiss and he stops in his tracks, no longer haunted by scary thoughts. "Charging in alone not work out for you, sugar?" she asks teasingly.

Madame Volutia casts remove fear. Fens fear is suppressed for 10 minutes.

[Diachronos]

Nissa lowered her weapon when the priest came out, her hardened look softening a bit. The man didn't appear to have any involvement with Maria's abduction as far as she could tell from his demeanor, though he could simply be masking it as well. Her hand rested on Ghellin's side as the others explained their reason for being here, but her grip on her sword tightened as the monk began to mutter to himself.

Some kind of spell was affecting him, though she couldn't be sure what. Maybe a bolstering spell, or an enchantment? Whatever it was, it was accompanied by a shift in the man's behavior, and he was clearly no longer in a talking mood. Things just kept getting more tangled and messy; she wasn't a religious woman, but she wasn't the sort to attack a priest of a non-evil deity, and she didn't want a holy man's death on her conscience.


[roll0]; will adjust the post based on what she hears from the stairs.


She watched as Fen flew off ahead, and she was tempted to run after him. Doing so would leave Eren, Volutia, and Neroth to deal with the monk alone, though... "Ghellin, dear, be a sweetheart and go help out our pixie friend." Gods, what was wrong with her?! The dinosaur obeyed, though, and it sprinted toward the stairs, reaching the top of them just as Fen came running back.

Her free hand fished out a small chunk of clay from her belt pouch, and with a few incantations the clay began to glow faintly. This was going to be risky, but there were few options that she could see outside of beating Hikari into submission or killing him. She darted toward him, and as she ran her appearance shifted slightly: her eyes took on the appearance of a serpent's, and her teeth took on a slightly pointed, almost fanglike appearance, while her movements became lithe and smooth.


Casting Stone Shape, looking to use it on the stone floor by Hikari to shape it into a circular wall around Hikari to box him in and keep him from attacking us. Also using a swift action to activate Animal Focus: Serpent, which will give her a +4 dodge bonus to her AC against attacks of opportunity for 1 minute. She's also getting a +4 on her own AoO attack rolls during that time, but I don't think it's going to be relevant against a monk.

[NeoSeraphi]

Nissa's spell works perfectly and the earth moves around the monk, trapping him in a box so that he can't escape or attack anyone. Nissa can hear the possessed monk's anger from inside the stone. "You would trap me using my own temple? Hah! Not even the earth itself will stop me from protecting my charge!" He slams his fist into the rock and Nissa hears silence for a moment, followed by a soft "Ow..."

The party is now free to head downstairs.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen scowls at Lady Volutia, and although his mind is no longer gripped with unbridled fear, he is still a bit disoriented and hysterical about the situation downstairs. "The princess! She's --" This damned curse! He tried to communicate as best he could, despite it, sort of playing a game of charades, wrapping his hands around his neck. "She is well. And there is a woman down there, a mage who is completely harmless." This last sentence came out much more calm than it should have, but he hoped by now the others could glean what he was trying to say.

bluff: [roll0]

As the group prepares and heads over to the staircase, Fenlaen grabs the two potions from his pack and utilizes his race's notorious ability to become invisible. The last thing the group hears, before he breaks all contact is, "Please, whatever you do, just stall him."

[NeoSeraphi]

The group heads downstairs. The stairs lead to a small room, only about 60x60, and it is completely empty save torches, a pentagram drawn on the floor, and three creatures. They come to a horrible sight, with the centaur standing over a woman's body. The woman is wearing a thick metal collar and heavy armor. Her skin is pale from being kept down here for three days, and her chest, arm, and flank have arrows imbedded in them. She is bleeding heavily and panting hard. Standing above her is the centaur from before, quiver full of silver-tipped arrows and his bow drawn, ready to finish her off in a second.

The other person is a hooded figure, though at the appearance of the others, he throws his hood back, revealing his face. "Hmm..uninvited guests..."


http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/92/80/ef/9280ef20c8ba6775d52976423aabd7d7.jpg



http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5PMPwF1bzm0/TfwvpiOHlzI/AAAAAAAAA1k/oiL9BRGSbwA/s1600/11.jpg

[TheEmperor]

Neroth was quite happy about the girl taking care of the monk, as he was entirely unready to go into combat against someone, for some terrible reason, at that moment. His reactions were slow, and that was terrible.

With the monk immobilized, and removed from combat through arcane means beyond his understanding, Neroth moved down along with the rest of the team, sadly having been entirely ineffective the entire time, either due to his inability to, or the curse's effects. This was bringing his mind to it's last straw. He knew the Princess was below, and he was in such a terrible state!

He angrily descended the steps to the last floor, his mind bringing the utter and sheer force of will that was usually locked away beneath his serene manner upon the very binding force of the gods that had inflicted this terrible unluck on him. His mind surged, and stopped moving down the steps, halfway down. He gripped his blade tightly, his heart pumped faster than ever before, and his blood rushed to his brain, as his mind wrestled with the intangible concept of being cursed, before snapping it in the surge of will. This was the power of the Iron Hearted. The power to break down any bond.

Neroth calmed himself, trying to hide the immensely difficult task he had just undertaken in his mind, and continued down the steps, acting as normal as possible. Once the last step was reached, they came upon a foul sight, which Fen had warned of, although the man seemed way worse than just "harmless". And then the centaur from earlier, and the worst sight of all, a wounded fair maiden, who he could only assume to be the fair princess Maria, now in a misbegotten state that he could not bear to see any maiden such as her in.

The memory of his oath resurfaced, and he assumed a stance of brutal offensive combat effectiveness, which sacrificed defense for offense. He would do as he had promised, and use the blade he'd been gifted to bring down justice and righteous retribution upon the kidnapper of the Princess, in her father's name.


Punishing Stance= +1d6 to all damage rolls, -2 to AC, swift action
IRON HEART SUUUUUUUUUUUURGE
Level: Warblade 3 (One Iron Heart maneuver),
Components:
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Personal
Target: You
Duration: See text

By drawing on your mental strength and physical fortitude, you break free of a debilitating state that might otherwise defeat you.
Your fighting spirit, dedication, and training allow you to overcome almost anything to defeat your enemies. When you use this maneuver, select one spell, effect, or other condition currently affecting you and with a duration of 1 or more rounds. That effect ends immediately. You also surge with confidence and vengeance against your enemies, gaining a +2 morale bonus on attack rolls until the end of your next turn.

[Inspector Valin]

Eren almost bolts down the stairs, the ranger and pixie barely able to keep ahead of her. Once in the room, the wizardess' face turns ashen pale. Things were bad. The man in black lurked ominously; he was almost certainly the Enchanter responsible for the spell upstairs. And thus a man more powerful than any spellcaster she'd ever met. The Centaur still stood there, damnable silver arrows knotched to his bow (where had those come from? Did the Cult keep that many silver arrows on hand?) And bloodied and standing in the centre of the room in heavy armor, and looking as though she was on the verge of death...

"MARIA!"

Eren forgot everything else for a second. The Enchanter, the centaur, the threat both of them posed... none of it mattered. Instead she darted forward to the princess' side, placing a hand upon the worst of the wounds, and focusing upon the symbol she now bore around her neck. She'd never done this before, and in desperation, the young magess muttered to herself. "pleaseworkpleaseworkpleasework..."

Cure Critical Wounds, courtesy of the Amulet, burning Locate Creature for the spell. [roll0] HP returned to Maria

[NeoSeraphi]

Both the mage and the centaur blink in surprise at the witch's rash actions. The centaur draws an arrow and mutter, "You're so much trouble. I should have put you down on the first floor. Know your place!" He aims the arrow right for Eren's throat, the silver tip almost touching her jugular even while it's notched on his bow, but before he can fire...

*SLICE*

The centaur leaps back, his reflexes kicking in a second too late as he clutches his chest, pulling back a bloody hand and glaring at the samurai princess before him. Maria sheathes her wakizashi, holding her katana in both hands and glaring at him. "Amora...I have no idea why you're here, but thank you so much. Now, just leave the rest of this to your big sister!" the young woman exclaims.

The mage chuckles to himself. "Well now, everyone here seems so lively! It's too bad, really. Just a couple more hours and I would have taken that annoying chaos from your blood, allowing my spell to work on you just as it works on everyone else. Then I could have sent you back to the palace with a nice little story claiming you had been kidnapped but you escaped, leaving the mangled bodies of the monk and the centaur here to take the fall, while you brought your family down from within. But that's fine. One pawn is all I really need anyway."

He bows. "Allow me to introduce myself, as I'm sure this won't be the last time we meet. I am Orion. And though I was unsuccessful here, I'm sure that this will still work out better for me."

Maria narrows her eyes. "How do you figure?"

Orion chuckles. "Well, my servants will fight to the death in order to do my bidding. So, either the Cult of Tarot is blamed for the death of two princesses," he glances at Eren knowingly, "or the High Priestess of Calistria will be accused of murdering Master Sendoh, well loved and respected in the community for being a peaceful, gentle soul who would never harm a fly. Either way, that's more than enough destruction and malice for the amount of effort I put forward here. And Kha'Rest isn't the only kingdom in the world, you know. I think I'll drop by Mullmoon. See how it's doing. It's a lovely time of year for a blood bath, wouldn't you agree?" He chuckles. "Ta ta for now, Princess Amora. The second I succeed in taking over Mullmoon, I'll send its entire army to come here with only one goal: to rip your pretty little brother's limbs off, one by one." He disappears.


He teleported.


The centaur warrior Zemma draws an arrow and glares at the group. "Well then, it would seem I'm quite outnumbered. But that doesn't matter! I am blessed by the Will of the Tarot! Lord Chariot, guide my bow!"

Suddenly, there is a loud cracking sound, like thunder, and Zemma's aura begins to turn red. A booming male voice echoes through the cavern. "This...is NOT...MY WILL!"

The set of cards appears over Zemma's head again and this time after they shuffle they reveal the same card, but in the opposite position. Zemma gasps in pain as the blessing is ripped from his body and replaced with a curse instead. "Ah!...Lord Chariot, why have You forsaken me?..Grr...this changes NOTHING!"

Zemma hops backwards to give himself some extra space, glaring hatefully at Maria. "You all...aren't the only ones who can challenge your fate! HAH!" He raises his hand to the ceiling and the aura surrounding him turns an even darker, bloodier shade of red, flaring up to twice its size and thickness.


Miracle Surge:
The Cult of the Tarot have the ability to resist their fate when they don't like how The Tarot judge them. By sheer force of will and devotion to the power of Fate itself, the cultists can reverse their judgment, gaining a powerful Arcana-themed boost to their abilities for one round, even stronger than a typical blessing. However, after that one round, the curse comes back, with an additional two penalties as punishment for defying the Gods. This is called a Miracle Surge.


Zemma pulls a single arrow out of his quiver and knocks it, drawing it back as far as he can. Eren can see the bow almost snapping under the strain. He launches the arrow directly at Maria, and it hits her with a force unlike anything a mundane warrior could deal.


Attack Roll: [roll0]
Miracle Surge bonus: The attack is automatically treated as a critical threat and automatically confirmed. The critical multiplier for the weapon increases by 1. (x4 for a composite longbow)

Damage: [roll1]


Maria shrieks in pain as the deadly silver bolt erases all the healing Eren had given her. She drops back to her knees, clutching at the collar around her throat, unable to stop herself from crying due to sheer pain.

As soon as the arrow hits its mark, Zemma's aura changes from blood red to dark black and the group sees a pair of ghostly shackles forming around his arms. It seems Lord Chariot intends to punish the arrogant archer quite severely.


Curse of The Chariot:
Skill at the Cost of Power: The centaur treats all weapon damage rolls as the minimum die roll.
Non-Competing: Zemma takes a -5 penalty to his CMD.

(Bonus Curse) Sadistic Frenzy: Zemma takes a -1 cumulative penalty each round that he doesn't deal damage to an enemy. This penalty does not reset on dealing damage, it just does not get worse for that round.
(Bonus Curse) Distracted Aiming: If Zemma misses a shot, he takes a -4 penalty to his attack rolls for the rest of the round.

[Diachronos]

Nissa gave Ghellin a nudge and nodded toward the hooded man. "I'll let you know when to let him have it..." Once again her tone was like what one would expect between two lovers in bed, but she didn't care at this point; there were more important things to worry about.

She crept around the room while Eren rushed forward and healed Maria, seeming to avoid the notice of the mage and the centaur as she came around to the pair's side, waiting about 30 feet away. The mage's words worried her, but there was no time to dwell upon it. They could discuss what he might be planning once they'd gotten Maria out... assuming they didn't get themselves killed first; the mage looked to be a battle-hardened man, the sort who would be far from easy to defeat.

And just like that, he vanished.
[roll0]

The half-elf cringed when she saw the arrow plunge into Maria's body and drop the princess to her knees, and she found it hard to believe that the lycanthrope had survived the blow at all. The centaur had to be dealt with before he could strike at Maria again, or the girl very likely would die.

She charged the centaur, letting out a shrill whistle before she got into range. As her blade struck out at the centaur, Ghellin charged himself, and pounced upon the centaur in a frenzy of biting fangs and slashing claws. She sent an empathic request to the raptor to hold back and avoid killing their foe if possible.


Tempted to activate Animal Focus: Tiger, but I won't because I don't want to end up killing Zemma if it can be avoided. Also not going to do an actual charge with Nissa, just moving in to attack. I WILL change Ghellin's Bull focus to Tiger, I think he could use the extra AC more than the damage right now
Nissa: +1 Adamantine Agile Dueling Sword
Attack: [roll1], including +4 bonus from Outflank
Damage: [roll2]

Ghellin: Charging (+2 to attack rolls, -2 AC until his next turn), performing a Pounce (full attack), choosing to NOT use Precise Strike right now, each attack roll gets +4 bonus from Outflank and counts as magic due to the Amulet of Mighty Fists
Talon #1: [roll3] to hit, [roll4] damage
Talon #2: [roll5] to hit, [roll6] damage
Bite: [roll7] to hit, [roll8] damage
Foreclaw #1: [roll9] to hit, [roll10] damage
Foreclaw #2: [roll11] to hit, [roll12] damage

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen had planned to help the princess, but Eren rushed forward. Lucky for her the dark mage did not turn her into a greasy spot on the floor. In all the commotion, just as he was about to kill Eren, Maria stabbed the centaur, and then the man began to gloat. All this was enough time for Fen to get near the princess like he planned... though she seemed to be in passable condition until Zemma lauched a lethal arrow into her chest.

He quickly considered his options. The potions he had were still in his hand. Perhaps he could feed one to Maria, but... seeing what that centaur could do, they might not be enough. And we had Madam Volutia here. Would she do nothing? Maria was still up, however. The centaur needed to be stopped. He dropped the potions in front of Maria and sped toward the centaur trying to think what he should do in that split second.

Trying to punch him or bash him with his shield would be laughable. Disarming and taking the bow could work, but it would be difficult. Aha! The arrows! Let's see the bastard shoot with an empty quiver! Fenlaen grabs handfuls of arrows from Zemma's quiver as fast as he can and drops them, spilling them all to the floor. This caused him to become visible, however, and to finish he shouted, "Stop it, you damned fool!"

CMB: [roll0]

Looking at the rules, I can't see anywhere where it says an opponent loses dex to CMD to an invisible opponent. :smallfrown: But I still do see something about getting +2 to attacks, so maybe it should be +14?

[NeoSeraphi]

The pair of assaults from the half-elf and her raptor would normally be enough to make the centaur think twice about his choice of combat, but when combined with the devastating blow he received from Maria before the fight began, it was enough to make him pass out. Seeing this, Madame Volutia calmly walks over and touches the centaur gently, stabilizing him, before heading right for Maria.

"Her wounds are very bad. I'm sorry sweetie but I need you to give me some room to work here," she says to Eren, her voice holding some kindness but not able to totally mask the sternness of someone who was taking charge of the situation. Once Eren got out of her way, Madame Volutia kneels and her hands glow with a soft light, she touches Maria and instantly all of the arrows are pushed out of her body and the wounds begin sealing themselves up.


Madame Volutia casts the heal spell on Maria, healing 110 hit points and curing any negative conditions.


Maria calms down and manages to stand up. Madame Volutia steps out of the way so that Maria can hug her sister, and then smiles and says. "I think this moment would be much more heartfelt if that collar was gone. Eren, could you dispel the magic keeping it there please?"

[Inspector Valin]

Eren had sunk into Maria's arms as soon as Volutia had drawn away, barely noticing anything else around her; the room, her friends. None of it mattered. It wasn't every day that you see someone you love so close to death, and for all her amulet's power, the wizardess didn't have the knowledge to truly put her fears behind her. She held the samurai close, as close as she could, as though anything else might risk loosing her to that Enchanter and his mage-craft

The young Wizardess looked up reluctantly from the hug as the motherly cleric spoke again, drying her eyes with her slightly puffy sleeves. Taking a deep breath, she nodded to Volutia, going along with the Priestess' request almost unthinkingly. "I can try, ma'am. I'm not sure if I'll succeed though. That man...." She shook her head: this was Maria they were talking about. She could unravel Orion's magic, she had to. Touching the collar with her off hand, Eren started to gesture with her right, trying to find the lines of force feeding power to the device and sever them. It wouldn't destroy the collar, but it'd make it mundane for long enough that Maria could break it easily. She had Father's strength.

[roll0] vs DC 11+Caster Level. A long shot that becomes impossible if Orion was this thing's creator, but hey. Let's see how the dice pan out.

[NeoSeraphi]

Eren's magic does not suppress the item completely, but it is enough to get the item off Maria's neck. The collar falls the ground and instantly a lot of color returns to Maria's face. She gasps and coughs a bit and then firmly kicks the collar across the floor. Madame Volutia smiles and heads upstairs, presumably to try and break the spell on Hikari.

[Inspector Valin]

"Sister..."

Eren was silent for a while, just looking at Maria. A lot had happened for her to process in a short period of time. Orion, the fight, those wretched silver arrows. But now things were fine. Her sister was safe, the cavern was secure, the Enchanter was gone. Today was theirs. The wizardess turned back to her companions,bowing deeply to Nissa and nodding politely to Fenand Neroth. "Thank you. Thank you all. I... I..." The young witch stammers, not sure where she was going with her thanks. Eventually she throws up her hands, turning back to the Samurai Princess at her side, laughing at her own ineloquence.

"Maria? Help me out?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Maria tousles her sister's hair lovingly and steps forward. "Ahem. On behalf of House Leonis, I, Princess Maria Pardi Leonis, offer my gratitude for your assistance in my rescue and the defeat of my kidnappers. I apologize for any inconvenience or injury you may have sustained on my account, but I assure you that my father is, quite frankly, a little too generous when it comes to making sure his children get the best services available, so whatever he promised you for rescuing me, you can expect even more than that when you actually show up."

Turning to Eren, she frowns. "Amora...what Orion said is bothering me. He said 'I only need ONE pawn'...but he has two servants here. And more importantly, neither of them would be helpful in bringing down House Leonis like he planned. Has anyone in our family been acting strange since I disappeared?"

[Inspector Valin]

Eren frowned at Maria's words, unsure of the situation. When dealing with such a powerful, unknown magician, nothing could be truly certain. "Michael's been getting angry. Excessively angry. But I don't know if that's magic or just him being worries at not getting to come here. And Orion singled him out later as a target..." The young witch sighed: this wasn't over. There would be more problems to deal with, more fights to win. This was just a breather.

Looking back towards her friends, Eren turned a deep shade of red. This was probably a little confusing for them. She stepped forward, still blushing at the situation. "I'm sorry. I should... probably introduce myself as well." Doffing her hat, the wizardess' features shift slightly. Not by much, a slight change of the bones, a lightening of the skin, but when set against Maria, the increased resemblance was noticeable. With a slightly worried smile, 'Eren' bowed her head to her companions. "Amora Leonis, Princess of Kha'Rest, daughter of King Caineghis. Pleased to meet you."

[WindStruck]

What? Amora...? The centaur was knocked out, Maria was saved and healed, all was well, but something was afoot. The young girl he'd been helping the whole time was none other than Amora, the princess of Kha'Rest? Fenlaen's mouth gaped open at the revelation.

"P-princess Amora?? I.. I had no idea! It's an honor!" Blinking, he also noticed that terrible curse was gone. He didn't know what was worse: being cursed with terrible unluck, or every single word coming out of his mouth being a lie.

In response to the question about there being pawns, Fenlaen said, "Do you think that old fortune teller was one? Despite Neroth insisting that he was the one who gave him that warning... I don't think he recognized Neroth at all when we approached him. You think it was more mind control magic?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Madame Volutia and Hikari Sendoh come downstairs together. Hikari bows solemnly to the group. "My ladies, I am so sorry for the trouble my temple has caused you! I swear, it was not our intention to house you hear, and indeed, we are not the ones who captured you."

Madame Volutia revives Zemma Taursal, who rubs the back of his head and slowly gets to his four feet. "Ow...what happened? Feels like I just got hit by a truck...with claws." He rubs the back of his flank and glares at the raptor on the floor, before looking over at Hikari. "We have guests, Master Sendoh? I'll go make some tea." He trots upstairs, seemingly oblivious to the events that went on here.

Hikari turns to the group expectantly. "I assume you all have many questions. I will do my best to answer every single one of them. Please, what do you wish to know?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen shrugs. It seemed there were a lot of potential questions, but he could not fathom what to ask first. "So, this barrier that prevented others from entering the shrine... is that your Gods' doing, or was it... that man's?" He wasn't sure if Hikari would even remember him.

In the mean time... there seemed to be a ton of everyone's belongings on the floor. Fenlaen removed his shield placing it in his pack and began scooping everything up. His axe, his potions, and.. heck, might as well collect those arrows for the centaur. Provided he didn't start going crazy again.

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari nods. "The Tarot prevented anyone who was obedient or whose mind was particularly vulnerable to invasion from entering. To make sure that Orion did not gain more followers. We had several such persons approach the cavern over the last three days, but all of them were repelled because their sense of honor actually made them more of a target for him."


Essentially, Orion's magic works better against Lawful creatures, like city guards and paladins. The reason he kidnapped Maria to begin with is that the only thing keeping her from being Lawful is her were-panther affinity. Take that away and she's a noble samurai daughter ripe for the mind-screwing like everyone else.

[WindStruck]

well no one else is asking anything so may as well keep you busy

Fenlaen asks, "But why let Orion hide out here in the first place? Oh well, I guess they're not omniscient, and it would be better than him hiding out in the middle of nowhere..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari frowns. "I'm actually curious about that myself. A few days before Maria's kidnapping, he showed up at our temple and requested to stay here. He had a letter of recommendation from the High Priest of Death, Yassir. Being a scholar, I am very familiar with all sorts of handwriting and I would know a forgery if I saw one. Whether under Orion's influence...or possibly unaware of his true intent, High Priest Yassir is the one who wrote that letter. As for why The Tarot did not initially prevent him from entering the cavern, I wish I knew."

[WindStruck]

"Where does Yassir reside? It might be possible he was that one pawn he was referring to."

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari laughs heartily. "I'm afraid, my boy, that that particular guess is quite impossible. His deep, strong faith and total commitment to the church aside, High Priest Yassir is the least likely individual to be anyone's 'pawn'. He's a vampire, and is therefore completely immune to any type of domination or suggestion. Though I will agree this behavior is at least suspicious. High Priest Yassir presides over The Temple of Fate in Makilos, the capital city of the kingdom of Sha'zhen."

[Diachronos]

Nissa's head spun from the rapid-fire revelations after the centaur fell and she pulled Ghellin back. The young mage was actually the younger princess of Kha'Rest and Maria's sister? Did that mean she shared the same "curse" as her father and sister?

She shook her head and pushed the thoughts from her mind. They needed to focus; Orion said that he still had a pawn in Kha'Rest, and if Hikari and Zemma were any indication leaving that pawn to its own devices could have dire consequences. The worst part was that, assuming Hikari had been acting like his normal self before they'd triggered whatever spell was controlling him, the pawn could be waiting for the right trigger, with no outward signs of the dark mage's influence.

"Ere- ...er, Amora, Maria, is there anyone in your courts who could exert a strong influence over the kingdom? I know King Caineghis and Michael hold that kind of power and shouldn't be ruled out as possibilities for Orion's minion, but is there another that they may listen to? An advisor, a general?"

A nudge against her leg caught her attention, and she looked down to see Ghellin looking at a black object on the floor. She picked it up, and upon further investigation it seemed to be a black amulet crafted in a sun design, with the number 3 detailed in white upon it. It didn't appear to hold any significance or power that she could tell... perhaps the Tarot priests might now? "Hikari, does this look familiar to you at all?" She held out the amulet, with the number clearly visible.

Her gaze turned over to Fen, who was gathering up his myriad of dropped belongings. The silver arrows that Zemma had dropped caught her attention; in the event that one of the other royal family members were the one under Orion's control, they might be necessary to subdue them. They probably wouldn't take too kindly to her walking in with a quiver full of silver arrows, but what could you do?

[NeoSeraphi]

Important note: The amulet isn't black. The sun is. The amulet itself is gold, it just has a black sun with a white number 3 inside it on the front.

Maria frowns and crosses her arms, thinking for a moment. "I highly doubt Father is the person Orion would attempt to exert control over. My dad is known for slaying titans after all, he's not someone you trifle with easily. Not to mention he and Mother rarely leave each other's side..."

Maria shudders. "And if anyone came near Dad with evil intent, Mother would leave them a bloody mess on the carpet."

"As for advisors, I don't believe so, no. We pretty much keep it in the family. The old Captain of the Guard used to counsel with Father on important issues before he retired, but he passed away a few months ago, so it's not him. If Father is counseling with anyone other than my brother and Mother, I have no idea. Little Amora will get her turn once she comes of age, of course."

Maria smiles and pats her sister on the head. She strikes everyone as a genuinely warm and caring person who has strong love for her sister.

Hikari takes a look at the amulet. "I'm afraid I can't tell you anything about this, young lady, other than that it is not of any religious significance." he declares, handing it back to her.

[WindStruck]

"Wh-what? A vampire...?" Fenlaen starts, a bit surprised by this revelation. But then again, he probably shouldn't be. "Well, as a high priest of Death... I guess that makes sense... Orion was gloating, and it seemed he was targeting the leadership of other countries as well. It would only figure he'd be in Sha'zhen, and he also mentioned going to Mullmoon... You are right, though. It is very suspicious, and if you have any convenient form of contact with him, I suggest you inquire about it as soon as you can."

Edit:Now is probably a good time to mention my meta-knowledge of stuff like command undead and rebuke undead. I'm sure there's probably some spell somewhere that would let you "mind control" a vampire!! :smalltongue:

[TheEmperor]

Neroth was beginning to not feel surprised any more, with all the information that had been flooding his mind the entire day, although the revelation of the young girl's identity as one of the Princess's of the kingdom was once more catching him off guard. It was just one of those days, what with all his inability to figure out anything, his combat ineffectiveness in the fellowship, and all the curses he'd acquired.

Neroth did the mental equivalent of a sigh before respectfully looking at the original princess they had set out to rescue. He bowed deeply, and in an utterly stunning move, became the demonstration of how not to be in front of princesses, he fell right over, due to some imbalance in his armor. He finally snapped, and let out a small, and tiny curse, before quickly getting back to his feet, and spoke as though nothing had occurred "Erm, fair Princess Maria, I made an oath to your father to see to it that you be safely returned to his embrace, and your kidnapper brought to justice. If you would not mind, I believe it is my sworn duty to escort you to your father as fast I possibly can, as he will be relieved to see you are well."

Way to go, Master Vandire, smoooooooooth. I thought my curse was lifted, but I think that doesn't apply to my normal unluckiness. It's like I have a black cat constantly going in front of me.

[NeoSeraphi]

Or, you have it backwards, and Orion is being mind-controlled by Yassir! What! A! Twist!


Hikari frowns and thinks for a moment. "The High Priestess of this temple will be returning from a visit to Sha'zhen tomorrow. If you like, you can stay the night here and meet with her to discuss High Priest Yassir's behavior while she was visiting him. It's also possible that she saw this Orion person while she was there, if he really does know Father Yassir."

[NeoSeraphi]

Maria chuckles. "Rise, sir Knight, I'm more than happy to accompany you. Just don't say anything like 'fair princess' in front of my brother or my father. They're both very protective. Though of course...I'm the one you should be scared of." Her eyes flash with a bit of mischevious threat. She draws her katana and examines it, noting its shine and thrusting it in Neroth's direction so he can see how sharp it is while she runs her fingers along the flat of the blade. "I may be a Princess, but that doesn't make me a woman. One more comment on my appearance and I'll show you my finer qualities, the ones that I actually spent years working hard to earn, rather than just being born with. Are we clear?"

She gives Amora a playful wink. "I'm going to take the smooth knight here and go see how Michael's doing. If any of these other men try to charm you, let them know exactly how we lionesses choose our mates." She glances sideways at Neroth while she says this: "You have to be strong and skilled with a blade. Words are nothing but a coward's weapon."

With that, Maria sheathes her blade and bows to Hikari, walking with Neroth to the palace.

When the pair arrive in the palace, Neroth almost has to cover his ears at the roaring and screeching coming from behind the door. Maria whistles. "Sounds like Mom is pissed," she comments drily.

Neroth can hear a bunch of yelling coming from the throne room. "Not only has my beautiful angel Maria been kidnapped, but you've been so busy that you didn't notice my precious Amora sneaking out of the tower? What if she's been kidnapped, too?"

"Now, Tigris, please, be reasonable," Caineghis says, almost mewling like a kitten compared to his booming robust nature before.

"REASONABLE? RAAAAAAAAAAWR!" There is a sound of breaking glass or porcelain. "Poor little Amora isn't strong like her brother and sister! She could be dead in a gutter somewhere!"

Maria rolls her eyes. "Let's go, before she kills him." She opens the door. "Mother, Father, I'm home!" she calls.


http://33.media.tumblr.com/ddef2370bbf503af2f5eb86cb70c09b7/tumblr_mx8ubyUrOi1rd7twso1_1280.jpg


Maria's mother, Queen Tigris Leonis, stands about 14 feet tall and looks like she easily weighs around 2,500 pounds. The Tiger Queen of Jazi gasps in surprise and rushes over, shaking the ground as she walks to scoop up her daughter and squeeze her tightly. Caineghis laughs heartily and walks over as well, patting Neroth on the shoulder. "I knew you could do it, lad. You made me proud, you did. Where are your friends? I hope no one fell in the battle."

Maria pats her mother on the shoulder and says, "Mom? Remember what the doctor told you about human spinal bones..." Queen Tigris blushes and lets her daughter down gently. Maria brushes herself off and steps back. "Mother, this is one of the people who rescued me. He's also been looking after Amora. She snuck into the Cavern of Fate to save me herself. She's got a lion's heart after all!" Maria is practically beaming with pride.

"Is that right? And who might you be, noble knight?" Tigris asks.

[WindStruck]

Neroth and Maria leave, while the others stay with Father Hikari. Fenlaen beams genuinely at the invitation. "That sounds like a wonderful idea. But! I couldn't say for sure what our plans might be tonight. I'd imagine there would be a lot of celebrating," he said, with a toothy grin.

"Hm.. although, this Orion fellow certainly is something we can't ignore... I don't suppose we should try to describe him and see if anyone can draw a picture... that is, if he can't just change his appearance as easily as Erin, er, Amora here..." Clearly, as much as the pixie wanted to have a good time and celebrate this victory, his mood was still disturbed by the recent turn of events.

[Inspector Valin]

Amora smiles upwards as her sister ruffled her hair. Briefly, it felt like the two of them were back home again, the past and all of this was a dream. But the conversation continued fairly swiftly and the young wizardess followed closely, frowning. She wasn't sure how to explain the power behind Orion's spell on Hikari, but it'd been a strong spell. To the point that if he'd chosen to attack the kingdom directly, they'd have been in serious trouble. For all House Leonis' personal power, Orion was capable of matching, if not exceeding them. He could threaten them directly if he chose. What was he up to? Did he have a pawn here or was he bluffing? And why target their family like this?

Still, all that could come later. The wizardess winced slightly at Neroth's words, but managed a smile. Maria wasn't in the mood to take them too badly. Though the magess put her hands on her hips in mock irritation at the mention of wordcraft. "Hey! Words have power, sister!" She can't keep even mock indignation going, not with Maria. Chuckling, the younger Princess nodded at her plan to leave. "Be well. Give my love to everyone; I'll follow you back shortly" Her eyes lingered on Maria as she left. A part of her wanted to go back too, to set her family's minds at rest in person. But they had questions to answer first.

Glancing towards the spot where the Enchanter had disappeared. one word played on the princess' mind. She muttered it aloud, more to herself than those around her. "Mullmoon..." Amora hummed to herself, before looking between the two Tarot cultists. "The commonality between Kha'rest and Sha'zhen is that Orion targeted the Tarot temple in both. Why? Did he go to the trouble of influencing Yassir just to have an easy way through the barrier here?"

It seemed implausible. Orion could probably have found a different way of gaining entrance; hell, if Madame Volutia could pass through unhindered, it should've proven easy for someone that strong in magic. Which suggested he was targeting the Tarot as well? Or perhaps literally blessed by them. Nothing said that following the Tarot's wishes made you a better person. She glanced between Hikari and Zemma, obviously still concerned. The old mage's final words were still echoing in her mind. "What's the Cult's status out in Mullmoon? Is the faith strong over there?" Even Orion couldn't bewitch an entire nation. What was he planning?

[roll0]: Knowledge, Geography on Sha'zhen
[roll1]: Knowledge, Geography on Mullmoon
[roll2]: Knowledge, Religion on High Priest Yassir and his immediate subordinates
[roll3] Knowledge: History on relations between Kha'Rest and Mullmoon.

[TheEmperor]

Neroth was actually expecting the fierceness from Maria, considering he had seen her fight, and her ancestry. At least this wasn't surprising to him, which was a first today. As he and Maria left the room, he muttered something about fair maiden being only a way to address princesses he knew, he also snuck a quick line to Nissa. "That's not a very good thing to be carrying around, since it belongs to a gang. If we meet up later, I will elaborate the best I can."

He wordlessly accompanied the princess on their surprisingly uneventful journey back to the palace, or at least, uneventful until they arrived at the castle. That was when things began to worry him.

The Queen, to be to the point, made him fear for him life. If forced, he would fight her, but he'd definitely try to find some other way. His mind used a quote to justify his feelings. 'Violence is the last resort of the incompetent', his mind thought, trying to excuse the cowardice that was expressing itself.

As the King smacked him on his back, he very nearly fell over, but managed to keep his footing, even with the force he'd been hit with. "My name is Neroth Vandire, Your Majesty. I am not really a knight, as I lack a title or land, but I am simply a humble doer of good, or at least, I try to do good. And be humble. Princess Amora and the rest of my group, your Majesty, is on her way here, but she is just taking a longer time, as she wishes to check out the entire temple..."

He was, as was usual, at a loss for words.


[roll0] Diplomacy for good first impression
Watch as I botch it and crit fail

[NeoSeraphi]

Maria blinks in surprise at Neroth's expression. "Oh, right. You're from out of town, aren't you? Please tell me my sister told you my mother is a frost giant. Nope. No she didn't. Mom, can you...er...be a little more regal in front of our guest please?"

Tigris's eyes widen and she bows humbly. "Ahem. My apologies, good sir knight. Welcome to my home. I am Queen Tigris Leonis, and I also serve as the official ambassador to the Cornico Mountains and the giant tribes who live there. My people were at first concerned when Cai showed up and tried to strong arm his way into their world, but soon they respected him for his abilities, and they certainly feel much better about their situation as an annexed property of Kha'Rest with me sitting by Cai's side." The giantess curtsies. It would almost be adorably comical if it weren't so terrifying.

Maria smiles. "Well, now that you know I'm okay, I'm going to go check on Michael. Amora said he was acting a little funny."

Caineghis laughs a bit. "Yes. That boy has been tearing up the city holding up every criminal in town trying to find out more about the person who kidnapped you."

Maria blushes in surprise and transforms into her hybrid form, sprouting black fur all over her body. Her tail grows out of her armor and twitches from side to side nervously. "Michael was...really worried about me? Well, then you know...I'd better go stop him...wouldn't want him to get in a brawl and get himself hurt over me..."


Neroth can tell that the very idea of Michael brawling over her thrills Maria.


She skips out of the castle with Neroth in tow, and finds Captain Leonis harassing some more adventurers. Sir Sclavo is also there, hesitantly trying to calm Captain Leonis down. There is a pile of four poor sods unconscious and bruised at Captain Leonis's feet.


http://gothic29.bloxode.com/images/115496205126.jpg


Maria stops and puts one hand in front of Neroth to halt him as she peeks around the corner, her tail still twitching. She watches as Captain Leonis questions a man angrily and then punches him in the face, purring softly to herself. "Oh, Michael..."

After he knocks the guy over and she spots Sir Sclavo stepping in she winces and snaps herself out of it, quickly rushing out to the courtyard. "Michael! I'm okay!"

Captain Leonis stops arguing and stares in disbelief. "Maria? Maria!" He rushes forward and hugs his sister. She smiles and steps back, transforming back to her human form.

"I-I'm sorry to have made you worry so much, my prince." Maria whispers, her face bright red as her eyes skim the ground.

Captain Leonis laughs a bit and rubs the back of his neck. "Oh, you know...no big deal. I wasn't really that worried...I mean, I noticed you were gone of course..."

Sir Sclavo gives Neroth a look that says "seriously?" nodding at the pile of abused renegades.

"Well, you should have seen me take down those guards holding me! I've been practicing this new finishing move that I used, wanna see?"

"Maria, if you were rescued in part by some travelers Father and Mother will want us to throw them a banquet together as a family. We should go and begin preparations. After all, the staff have the day off today."

Maria stamps her foot and pouts at her brother cutely. "But...I've been alone and scared for three whole days! I was hoping...you know...that the two of us could eat dinner together...alone?" she adds hopefully.

Captain Leonis sighs and reaches into his pocket, pulling out a small notebook. "I'm scheduled for patrols tomorrow night but Edric owes me a favor." he replies, jotting a few notes down.

Maria grins and hugs him again. "Yay! Alright, let's go get dinner started. Oh...Neroth, was it? Go back to the temple and bring your friends back over to the palace. We'll be eager to see you!"

Maria leads her brother off, clinging to his arm. "So I've gotta warn you, there's this totally ugly half-elf girl in the group that rescued me, she'll probably try and say something like she's the one who took out the centaur archer guarding me, but that's only because I almost sliced him in half a few seconds before she stole my spotlight..."

[NeoSeraphi]

The Machina City of Sha'zhen is a steampunk society full of alchemists, crafters, inventors and scholars. The technology capital of the world, Sha'zhen is where everyone gathers to trade ideas, invest in promising inventions, and most importantly, buy weapons. Sha'zhen is the number one dealer of magical and mundane arms and armor in the world, including the extremely rare and expensive firearm. The city is ruled by an oligarchy of powerful merchants, and the main religion is Abadar, the LN god of Wealth, Merchants and Trade.



The War Tribe of Mullmoon is the center of a group of fierce orc tribes that live in the plains to the south of Kha'Rest. Shamanic rituals, battle scarring, and even humanoid sacrifice are commonplace here. Because of the proximity of the other tribes, Mullmoon and its allies boast one of the most feared and disciplined militaries in the world, no one is stupid enough to challenge them to war. The ruler of Mullmoon is Chief Zhaami.



With that roll, you know Yassir is a vampire high priest who worships and preaches about Death, the XIII Major Arcana of The Tarot. That's about it.



Kha'Rest and Mulllmoon are close enough to not ignore each other but too far apart to really waste any effort meeting commonly. They send ambassadors for public events a few times a year but other than that they tend to stay out of each other's way.



Hikari Sendoh shakes his head. "Not at all, the orcs of Mullmoon worship their own shamanic deity. We don't have a temple within fifty miles of Mullmoon. Not that we haven't tried in the past but we respect when people don't want any missionary work done near them."

[Diachronos]

"Stealing her spotlight," eh?
If she brings that up, I'll have to remind her who had just been brought to her knees and nearly killed by said centaur...


Neroth's statement about the amulet was met with a quick nod, and Nissa tucked the item into her pocket. Depending on what Neroth knew, it might be worth looking into this 'gang,' especially if the amulet's presence here had some connection to Orion.

She moved to rejoin the others as Amora began to ask about the Cult's status in the other kingdoms. "I'm interested to know if there are any places such as this in other lands as well. If there are, it would be good to know ahead of time about what insanity we might be dealing with instead of having unwanted surprises dropped on us." The half-elf glanced over at Ghellin before pointedly turning her attention back to the monk, her cheeks coloring a little as she recalled the way the Tarot's curse had made her speak.


Yeah, not going to try to hide her feelings toward most of the "cult-ish" religious organizations. This would be the second one that got her into serious danger, but she fared a bit better than last time

[Inspector Valin]

"Hrm..." Amora frowned, thinking swiftly. Try as she would, she couldn't work it out. The Orcs had no real grudge against them, no real incentive to attack Kha'Rest. Was Orion going to orchestrate something? How? Tying Orcish warriors with Sha'zhen's weapons could be devastating, if he had influence in both kingdoms, but what was the man's motive? What was he trying to do? Cause Chaos for its own sake? Bring down the House of Leonis? He was at once strangely direct,and oddly circumspect for someone so powerful. And for such a powerful mage, it still surprised Anira that she'd never heard of the old bastard...

They didn't have enough information yet. She wouldn't solve the problem like this. They needed to investigate, plan, think things through. And all of that could wait until tomorrow. "Thank you for your help, Master Sendoh. I hope we can speak more later, though for now we had probably best be getting back to the palace." Smiling, the Princess bowed to Hikari before turning to Zemma. She tried hard to smile to the warrior, though it was hard. Looking at him just made her skin feel like it was burning again. "One question though, master Centaur. Where did you get all those silver arrows?" They seemed a strange thing to have on hand unless you were expecting to fight Lycanthropes. Had Orion procured them for his guardian?

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari Sendoh nods and explains, "There is one temple for each of the Major Arcana. This is the Temple of Fortune, though it is usually called The Cavern of Fate by most. The High Priestess of Fortune will be returning here tomorrow. I could list off the rest of the temples and their locations but we'd probably be here all night."

He bows politely. He and Madame Volutia head upstairs to the common room for tea.

Zemma Taursal shifts uncomfortably as he takes his silver arrows back from Fen and Nissa, hoisting the quiver over his shoulder. "Not to be rude, princess, but your family in the woods isn't quite as...regal...as you are."


The population of natural lycanthropes in the Scarsall Forest to the east of Jazi are mostly feral beasts who enjoy hunting and killing for sport. The centaurs are the only warriors with enough skill and the right weapons to keep them at bay, and frequently centaurs are forced to fend off bands of lycanthropes who go hunting for the most precious resource in the forest: unicorn blood.


Once that is done, the group will head to the palace, where they meet King Caineghis I and Queen Tigris (see above posts for an image of Tigris and her son Michael). King Caineghis is happy to see his little girl safe and sound. "Amora! You scared me!" he comments, hugging her and whispering in her ear, "You know how your mother gets when you're not home..."

"Amora, darling!" Queen Tigris explains, picking the girl up in one of her enormous hands and kissing her, squeezing her tightly. The 14 foot tall giantess looks down at her daughter with a disapproving glare. "Now, I appreciate that you were worried about your sister, but you were very reckless today young lady. With how stressed your brother has been over Maria's disappearance, imagine if he had found out you were missing too! We'd probably have to find ourselves a whole new Merchant District!"

Tigris sets Amora down and calls, "Children, we have guests!"

Maria Pardi Leonis and Captain Michael Leonis come out of the kitchen. Maria is holding a pan and a whisk, wearing an apron and absentmindedly mixing her food. She is in her hybrid form, and the reason appears obvious to everyone. Her tail is wrapped firmly around Captain Leonis's waist. Captain Leonis is holding a cook book and meat grinder.

"I am Captain Michael Leonis. Thank you so much for you assistance in helping locate my sister," Captain Leonis bows. "And Amora. Your behavior today was commendable, if not a bit dangerous. Please try to consider Mother's feelings before you run off on your own next time." A stark contrast to Maria, Michael seems to hold his sister to a high standard, possibly higher than she can reach at times.

"Sorry about the wait, but we'll have dinner ready soon," Maria explains, unable to keep her purring to herself.

The pair of them head into the kitchen and King Caineghis turns to the group and nods. "Right! So, without further ado, your rewards! Please, name anything you wish to own or have done and I will grant it!"

[Inspector Valin]

The young Wizardess grins widely as they pass the palace gates: incalculably glad to be with her family again. She grins wide as they grab her in sequence, though the strength of those around her leads the young princess to come across something like a small fluffball, bounced around between the larger king and queen. Still, Amora doesn't seem to mind, laughing at her father's words and solemnly nodding to her mother, trying to focus on the giantess' reprimand. She should've left a note or something, just to make it clear that she wasn't in danger, so they wouldn't worry. But it was hard to get too worried about the situation in retrospect. Everyone was better now. Everything's worked out, and Maria's ok. That was what mattered.

Smiling, Amora takes a step back as Father turned the conversation around to her friend's rewards. This was their moment, and they'd all earned it, to a one. Still, the young wizardess' gaze lingered on Nissa briefly as she withdrew towards her parent's side. The half-elf's swiftness in that final confrontation had been amazing, bringing down Zemma in seconds as she had. The thought of Maria bowed as she had been, bloodied and nearly dead... even with the amulet to guard her thoughts, there were some things that it was best not to ponder.

Yes, Amora is totally going to not ask for anything. She honestly wouldn't consider it: she went out to get her sister back, not to extort stuff out of her father. Her wish might come up later, but for now, this is something she's happy to leave with the others. They didn't have a reason for putting themselves in danger. They deserve this.

Also, Seraphi, was Amora aware of just how well trained Maria was with the blade? You didn't make it entirely clear before.

[WindStruck]

Wow, Fenlaen thought. It had been a wild day. Actually, it had been a wild few days, with this one finally culminating in action. Ever since princess Maria was kidnapped, he had hoped she was alright and wanted to do something to help. Of course, there were thoughts of riches and rewards, in the back of his mind, further reinforced by the writing on the posters all over town, but... really, it was all secondary.

For the first time, strangely enough, the pixie concentrated on what he might actually ask for as a reward. It was strange. Why hadn't he put much thought into it sooner? Well, maybe because normally when you had a job, the terms were already clearly there. Find this lost trinket, get 50 gold. Help protect a caravan, get 10 gold for the service, plus whatever stuff the bandits have on them. Unblock whatever is clogging the sewer drains, get 200 gold...

As an adventurer, he was a skilled fighter, and through the various things he had done, he had already acquired - and spent - what amounted to several fortunes for an average commoner. But now, apparently he could have more, more than what he could imagine in his wildest dreams. The king could probably easily grant a large estate, thousands of acres, a nearly endless supply of money, a title of highest nobility, and live his whole life in extravagance and luxury. Hell, it was probably possible to request the throne. A lesser being so bold enough may certainly try... But none of that interested Fenlaen. He was not the type that wanted to laze around in an idyllic life, nor did he want to hold power over another.

Soon, his thoughts wandered from what kinds of things the king could possibly grant him, to actually considering what he wanted in life, itself. ...he couldn't say, for certain, at least not right now... Fenlaen just hovered there, deep in thought, unable to come up with an answer.

I guess it will be Nissa and Neroth up first then.

[NeoSeraphi]

Maria is a samurai. It kind of comes with the territory. Also, until you came along, it came with bearing the Leonis name.

Incidentally, their giant blood explains why Maria and Michael are both so tall (Michael is 6'6" and Maria is 6'3"). It doesn't explain Caineghis being 9 feet tall though.


"Amora, can you come help us in the kitchen?" Maria calls as they leave.

If Amora follows, she comes to a messy room with flour dough everywhere, water boiling on the stove and steaks laying on a cutting board. Maria uncurls her tail from her brother and walks over to a pile of dough on a counter, kneading it and picking it up and putting it inside the mixing bowl she was carrying. Michael heads over to the steaks and starts slicing them in half, holding his book up and calling out instructions to Maria. He glances over at Amora and says, "Could you add some pasta to the boiling water and stir it please?"

The siblings chat for a while about normal house hold things. Maria asks Michael about training and Michael listens to her detailed description of her kidnapping, promising to hire some extra guards to station around the palace walls (Orion apparently flew in her window and kidnapped her in her sleep). Amora is, at first, unsure of how to interact here. Her brother and sister are both older and therefore they usually set the tone for when she is allowed to speak, but Michael is stern with her and Maria is relaxed, not to mention they both seem to be interested in catching up with each other over talking to her specifically, but Maria eventually asks Amora how her spellcasting studies are going and if her magic was useful in passing the barrier. When she tells Michael that Amora was the one who managed to heal her wounds, Michael stopped cutting and talking for a second and glanced over at Amora. "I must admit, that's pretty impressive, little sister." Coming from him, that was some substantial praise.


That's just a little family life interlude, nothing too important here, but at least Amora isn't stuck waiting around when she's not going to ask for anything.

[NeoSeraphi]

After a beat of patiently waiting, King Caineghis I laughs to himself. "I see. Tigris, dear, could you please go and set the table for our guests?"

Queen Tigris blinks. "Why would you ask me, of all people...my fingers are bigger than the-"

Caineghis gives her a look. "Now, Tigris."

The frost giantess nods and bows. "Please forgive my insolence, my Lord. Well then, if you all will excuse me." She heads into the dining room.

The king turns to the remaining three members of the group. "Look. I get that you guys are nervous. I would probably be too, if I bothered being scared of anything. After all, my family consists of a bunch of creatures out of towners probably consider to be monsters, and even if you don't, we all have the strength to rip each one of you in half and eat you for dinner, but seriously, I'm happy with you. None of you are my enemies, and you will not offend me if you ask for something that is greater than my expectation."

He strokes his chin. "However, if you are wishing to know what my expectation is, then let me tell you. I am willing to give each of you a valuable piece of treasure, like that sword I gave young Sir Vandire, or its equivalent in gold, approximately 10,000 each if you desire wealth. I could give you your own estate or I could provide valuable information or assistance in whatever quests you might be on. I could pardon a criminal you are interested in protecting, even if they are guilty of murder (though if that person happens to be guilty of murdering my family, then you can go to the Nine Hells, quite frankly)."

Caineghis sweeps his arm behind him, emphasizing the extravagance of his manor. "I am a man who has always wanted for things, and now that I have everything, all I want is to protect it. You gave me back one of the most important treasures in my life. Compared to that, my heart of the manticore or my blade of the red dragon are nothing. Ask of me whatever you desire, and I will grant it. Though, if it is power you seek, I may have something more interesting than a simple noble title waiting for you..." he grins eagerly at the prospect.

[WindStruck]

It seemed everyone was either nervous or having just as much trouble thinking as Fenlaen did. He replies, "Oh it's not that, your majesty. --I, I mean... yes, you can be imposing and your wife, well, sh-she must be a thousand times bigger than myself..." He chuckled nervously. While maybe true, this probably wasn't where he should be going...

He had been getting progressively nervous for some reason though, like he was fearing for his life again, until images of Orion came back into his mind every now and then, somehow killing him a new creative way every time. Oh, right. Now might be a good time to mention that the effects of that fear spell were coming back. Perhaps this is why the king thought he was fearful.

"Erm, don't mind me. The man that had kidnapped Maria... he- he cursed me or something." The pixie almost seems to flinch from something that isn't there. "Well, any- anyway, the worst thing I think I fear right now would be disappointing you. Or this mage. Can't seem to get him out of my head... c-could I have some time to think? I think your wife had a point I might be better at setting a table?"

[NeoSeraphi]

King Caineghis I looks annoyed at Fen's indecision, but nods. "Alright, go ahead. But be careful, our dishware was a gift from a Sovanni prince, if any of it breaks I'm never going to hear the end of it from his mother."

[TheEmperor]

Neroth rubbed his stubble covered chin for a moment, before coming to a conclusion. His entire life, after leaving the monastery, had been him roaming around, without a place to live or enjoy life peacefully. He'd fought in a war, killed a dragon (not a very powerful one, to be fair), and other things, but none of those really compared to having a month off, which he'd never had.

Now, he could possibly have one. "A man with an iron heart should be decisive, and so I have made my decision. As much as I had wanted to simply not make a wish, I feel like I do want something. I would like a place to live. I have traveled for many years, and constantly fought against the evils that may plague this land, and my job will not be finished for a very long time, but sometimes, I wish just to take a break. This would enable me to do so, because otherwise, I'm just homeless..."

[NeoSeraphi]

The king laughs and nods. "Done. Here's the key," he reaches into his pocket and tosses Neroth a silver key. "You can have my summer retreat in the Sundial Islands. It's nice and isolated in a grassy area with a few acres of land around it, but it's close enough to the city that you can still go out and have a good time when you're in the mood. It's a four bedroom, two bath two story home with plenty of expensive furniture. I'll miss that place, but it's fine, whenever I want a vacation I usually go skiing on the Cornico range instead. Oh, and by the way, go ahead and keep that sword I gave you. It'll make me proud to know that whatever adventures you're going on, I helped to make sure any evil doers were taken out by giving you a choice weapon."

[Inspector Valin]

Amora moves in to helping fluidly, glad of the mildly monotonous task. It'd been an eventful few days; all of which had been spent away from this place and her family. For once, something boring and simple was a relief As she generally did, she let Maria and Michael talk, glad just to hear their voices. Besides, she'd seen how worked up Michael had been getting over all of this. It was best to let them talk for a bit. She started a little Maria turned the conversation around to her and her spell research, hesitantly bringing up her final work on the scrying spell. She couldn't quite bring herself to mention the failure of her first casting: magic was the one thing she had. It was hellish for a spell to fail on her.

And then, Michael actually praised her. The young wizardess nearly dropped her ladle at that, reddening from both the heat and shame. Her brother was strict, focused, precise. Praise from him was rarer than gold in this palace. She'd be ecstatic... if she'd deserved it. Bowing her head, Amora placed a hand upon the pendent, smiling a slightly embarrassed smile at Michael as she clarified. "It was this amulet Madame Volutia gave me. Not a new spell of mine. I'm going to need to practice with it, but that's useful magic. It really helped us."

It really had. Though what came afterwards almost hadn't been so pretty. Still though, a little good might be able to come of it. Returning to the pasta briefly, the wizardess glanced towards her sister with a grin. "You deserve more credit than me though, Maria. I just managed to find the right people to get past the barrier. You were the one who stopped Zemma from taking that shot at me afterwards. And my spell hadn't healed half the wounds you'd suffered by that point." There was a twinkle in Amora's eye as she spoke, and an excitement to her tone. Still, once she fully turned towards Maria, the youngest Leonis child was serious for a moment. "Seriously. Thank you, sister. I was.... in over my head a little just then. Just a little." The magess managed a wink and a grin at the last, her sombre manner fading swiftly. The danger had passed them by, a little joking was fine, no?

[NeoSeraphi]

Michael sighs and set the knife down. "Amora, you reacted to the situation with intelligence, preparation, and just a hint of recklessness, and because of that, you have avoided a calamity that would have ended in tragedy for our entire family. Modesty does not suit you any more than my armor would, little sister." He picks up the meat and walks out of the room to set it on the table.

Maria bites her lip and glances at Amora. "Wow...seems like he's really grateful to you. I guess he's a little resentful of me. I mean, I guess it is partially my fault for getting kidnapped in the first place...damn. What's the point of all this training I do if I can't even protect myself? Some warrior of the family I am. I'm supposed to be the one looking after you, Amora." She looks down and transforms back into her human form. "Um...Michael and I were going to have dinner together tomorrow night but I think maybe you should come too. I bet he'd like that, and I know I would."


You can sense a whole typhoon of emotions coming from her: Jealousy, regret, bitterness, fear, sadness, and shame.

[Inspector Valin]

"Only if you let me help cook. I have to pull my own weight somehow around here."

Amora grinned at her sister; the retort an old one. She finished one more rotation of the pasta before putting the ladle down, turning about. For all Michael accused her of false modesty, it wasn't the wizardess who was blaming herself for everything that'd gone wrong. Frowning, she shook her head. "Maria. It's not your fault. I examined the spell that man cast on the priest upstairs. He's strong. Like... like an evil wizard out of a storybook strong. He was magic with no limits, no restrictions, no rules. Just the power to do whatever he wanted. If he'd chosen to kidnap Mother, he'd probably have managed it."

She thought of those old figures from the tomes she'd been shown as a child. Hogarth the Black, Shaziri of the Emerald Eye, Glassya of the Seventh. Orion fit right in with all those villains of myth and fable. Chuckling without much humor, the young wizardess put a hand upon her sister's shoulder, smiling up at her. "You couldn't have won that fight any more than I could. Just... focus on next time, OK?"

[roll0] Sense Motive

[TheEmperor]

Neroth carefully caught the key that was handed to him, and stared at it for a couple of seconds, his mind envisioning the house he'd just been gifted. It was like a dream come true. Now, he didn't have to worry so much about life, and burning himself out.

He carefully held the key, and bowed, and then spoke once more. "Thank you, your Majesty. I am honored in ways I did not know I could. I have no words for this, and were I to try, I would likely fail. Thank you."


Sorry, got distracted by a PM

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen nodded and flew the direction the queen headed. The thoughts and images of Orion still haunted him, though he should be able to manage just setting a table. He thought it funny, though, as the king had warned him not to break those dishes, when it was almost unfathomable how Tigris could avoid doing so. Come to think of it, the king was 9 feet tall, the mother was 14 feet tall and just huge... how could everyone even sit at the same table comfortably?

Sorry, I have an excuse of my own. I'm usually sleeping around that time, so of course the times I posted were intermittent times when I had been woken up. :smalltongue:

[NeoSeraphi]

Caineghis offers Nissa a ring that will allow Ghellin's claws to rip through the hardened bones, flesh, and metal of any vampire or construct. The family then gathers in the dining room and has a nice meal. Dinner is quite talkative, though the family hasn't much to add to what's already been said today. After an hour or so of munching, chatting, and Maria assuring everyone she wasn't injured, the group decided to call it a night.

Amora goes to sleep in her room, and the rest of the party have the option of either returning to The Hierophant or taking up Hikari's offer to stay in the Cavern of Fate.

[WindStruck]

After the dinner, Fen says, "So, I've been trying to think what it is I want... seeing your family together is heartwarming. I enjoy the company... it reminds me of my own family. I do not seek to extort riches or land from you. I want to keep doing what I have been doing: traveling around and helping people. But my only regret is I am always so far from home..."

He asks, "I have no idea if it is even within your power, but do you have anything that might let me travel home whenever I wanted?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Caineghis nods. "I see! So family is important to you, too, eh? Well I can respect that. Unfortunately I don't have the type of magic necessary to grant that request, but...I do know someone who can! Let me give you a letter....hmmm..." Caineghis sits down and scribes out a letter, signs and seals it, and also hands Fen a bag of gold. "Give the letter and the gold to High Priest Yassir in the city of Sha'zhen and he should be able to craft what you seek in a few days."

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen looks utterly shocked by the coincidence. "W-what?? Yassir?! We believe he may have been related to Maria's kidnapping! Orion apparently had a letter of recommendation from him. Although... perhaps it could have been a superbly-made forgery. Honestly, with his power, I fear anything is possible..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Caineghis laughs and waves his hand airily. "High Priest Yassir would never do something like that. He's Maria's godfather after all. That's why I'm sure he'll be happy to craft this for you, since you rescued the woman he considers to be his adorable little niece."

[NeoSeraphi]

Okay, so we're about to start the second storyline, I want you guys to be thinking about a few things:

1) Where to go next. Sha'zhen or Mullmoon are both good targets, but you could also explore the Scarsall Forest, the Cornico Mountains, or even look around Jazi for a little longer. (If you guys want a full list of places, you can have them, though there won't be any major plot points happening atm except in the four places I mentioned).

2) One of the Leonis siblings is going to accompany you. You can choose either Maria or Michael, and the person who goes will be decided by party vote. (If Michael goes with you then Maria will take his place as the Captain of the Guard). As a reminder, Michael is a fighter/duelist, and Maria is a samurai.

3) You all reach level 9. Think carefully about how you want to allocate your skill points, as I take Knowledge checks very seriously and often a lot of lore will be missed if you don't ask the right questions or make the right checks at the right time.

4) Does Eren want to make a Spellcraft check to try and identify the collar Maria was wearing? Nissa's check failed.

[Diachronos]

Nissa accepted the offered ring and slipped it onto one of Ghellin's foreclaws, a little surprised that the ring was big enough to fit around the creature's finger.

She was silent through dinner, only really speaking when someone addressed her directly. Social gatherings and the like had never been her strong point, and she felt somewhat out of place among the royalty and others. Once everything had quieted down for the night, she returned to the cavern and settled into one of the rooms that had been offered. Sleep didn't come to her just yet, and so while Ghellin dozed off by the fire, she began whittling a decent-sized stick that she'd found on the way to the cavern. It would likely take a few days, but the stick seemed to be of about the right size for a simple wind instrument.


Craft (Woodcarving): [roll0]

[NeoSeraphi]

Okay, so you make no progress. You discover after a while that you are using the dullest part of the knife, and you just give up.


Fen and the others head back to the Cavern of Fate, where they are treated to some excellent tea by Hikari Sendoh and Zemma Taursal. After the tea is served, Zemma sits next to Fen and begins talking to him. "Most of the fey that live in the Scarsall Forest are quite a bit larger than you, but they are still very good-natured, if a bit mischievous, creatures. Their leader is The Voice of the Wood, a woman whose beauty is only matched by her charm, and when she speaks, all the trees bend over to listen to her. The centaurs ally themselves with her, though she is not nearly as skilled as us, we appreciate her ability to commune with nature."

[Inspector Valin]

Before the party heads out, Amora stays awake long enough to wave the party goodbye. She considered asking to leave with them, to spend a little more time with her new friends, but the Princess had spent a long three days away from her room. She falls into her bed with a grin, tension leaving the young wizardess. She can rest now. Her room was the one place in all the world where she felt truly, unquestionably safe. Surrounded by her books, high above the ground, it was her little sanctum from the world, decorated with a couple of pictures taken from the castle gallery. This was where the youngest Leonis sibling could rest in comfort and safety, where she could forget her problems for a while and turn her mind towards magic and make believe.

Her dreams, however, are not easy ones. Black clad smiles are lurking outside her window, and with a laugh and a few words in Draconic, the frame bursts open. A cold wind pulls the young princess outwards, into the void of a starless night, laughing at how powerless she was. How useless she was..

Amora jumped as consciousness returned to her. The Leonis witch lay there for a minute or two, letting the nightmare wash away, before slowly rising from her bed. She had no light spell prepared, but the moon was out; she could see well enough. She reached into her pack, withdrawing the collar with a frown. She'd picked it up from the scene because... well, leaving something like that where anyone could find it was a mistake. But she still didn't know for sure exactly what the wretched thing did. Staring at it intently, the young wizardess begun to analyse the flow of magic around the item, frowning to herself. Just what had Orion worked into his little toy?

[roll0]: Spellcraft, to identify the collar. If that fails, Amora will cast Identify on it tomorrow.

I'd kinda like to make the Sha'zen vs Mullmoon decision IC. Amora's honestly not sure which is more pressing. Orion probably wants us to go to Mullmoon, but that doesn't mean he was bluffing about having plans in motion there. It'd take us forever to try and talk this out, but I'm honestly not sure which way she'd pump just yet. Does the castle have an ambassador from Mullmoon in residence?

[NeoSeraphi]

As Amora finishes examining the collar she realizes there is a shadow standing in her doorway. A mysterious figure has appeared in her room under cover of night! But, how could she not hear him? She didn't smell anything different when he appeared! Was this the end? Was this Orion, here to finish her off? The figure takes a step into her room, his footsteps so soft she could barely hear anything. The figure was definitely male, but not bulky enough to be her brother and far too short to be her father. The strange male reaches out to her then there is a crack, the sound of a match being lit. A candle appears in front of her and she sees her brother standing in the middle of her room. He is wearing a red shirt and a pair of red sleep pants, completely slimming him down from his usual oversized armor. Amora can't remember the last time she saw him without it.

"Couldn't sleep, huh kit-kat?" Michael asks, smiling at her. "Kit-kat" was Michael's nickname for Amora until she was around 10 years old, back before he joined the guards and stopped having free time to play with her. "You know, your were blood might be a bit diluted, but some of us have really sensitive ears. Your little episode with you banging all around your room at this hour of the night...you're lucky you only woke me up."

Michael walks forward and frowns. Amora can sense uncertainty in his face, like he's not quite sure what he's supposed to do in this situation. But he sets the candle down on her night stand and sits next to her on her bed, putting one arm on her shoulder and drawing her into a side hug. "You're worried because the guy who kidnapped Maria got away."

There was no question there. He just stated a fact, and continued. "Doesn't matter that you've got Father and I here to protect you, because Maria did too, and look what happened to her. I can't say I blame you, but I think you might be underestimating me just a tiny bit here."

He lets her go and looks at her across the bed. "Fear is important. Don't let those paladins from the churches bragging about their divine protection from fear, or Father's pride at not being afraid of anything fool you. The only people who really, truly can't feel fear are those who have forgotten what it's like to lose something important. If you're afraid, it's because you have people that you would miss if they were taken from you. You have goals in life you haven't completed yet. You don't want to die and you don't want others to die because you know there's potential left in yourself and in them. And that is more important than any strength or skill that you could bring to a battlefield. I could be the best tactician in the world, but if I wasn't afraid to lose a single man I'd win every war but lose more than every other general, because I'd send men to their deaths without hesitation. Not because it was the right thing to do, but because it was the smart thing to do. Fear keeps your ego in check. It keeps things in perspective."

[WindStruck]

Once they settled in at the Cavern of Fate, Fenlaen had removed his armor and settled in quite comfortably. He sat on a small cushion on the table, and he sipped the tea, enjoying it and holding it in both hands. As much as he did enjoy a nice mead or wine, he also loved sweet and savory things. And thankfully, considering his size, a small cup of tea was more than plenty for him.

"Well, we are often called the Wee Folk for a reason," he replies with a chuckle. "So, you come from the Scarsall Forest, then, I presume? Have you personally met The Voice for long?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Zemma Taursal raises his eyebrows in surprise. "Personally? I am but a humble warrior of my clan who also serves as an acolyte at this temple. I have only ever been in the presence of The Voice of the Woods one time. I did not speak to her, but she was unbelievably beautiful. No, The Voice mostly speaks and deals with the head of my clan. Her will passes down the chain of command right from the top."

[Diachronos]

After maybe half an hour of carving at the chunk of wood, Nissa tossed the stick and her knife onto her bedroll. Clearly she wasn't up to the task of making anything if it took her that long to notice that she wasn't even using the knife properly. The knife bounced off of a bunch in the bedroll, causing it to land on the stone floor with a clatter. Ghellin lifted his head to see what the noise was, but the half-elf laid her hand on his head and gently shushed the creature. "It's nothing, go back to sleep."

Once the raptor had dozed off again, she got out of bed and left to rejoin the others. Everything that had happened earlier that day must be making it hard to focus... yes, that had to be it. She found Fen talking with Zemma, and pulled up a chair at the other end of the table. Nissa was still wearing her armor, and didn't intend to remove it for some time; not that she didn't fear an attack, she simply had a habit of wearing it to bed unless she was sleeping in town, and the cavern technically wasn't a town.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen smiled to Nissa and continued his conversation. "So, to put it simply, you take orders from her..." he says, nodding slightly. "If you don't mind my asking, what got you interested in the Tarot? And as for you being here, is that part of her will, or was it your own decision?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Zemma Taursal chuckles a bit. "Well, you know that angry, competitive, proud centaur you fought while trying to rescue the princess? That's really me. The darkest, most violent part of me brought out by Orion's magic, but me nonetheless. I love to compete, and I love to win. Lord Chariot understands that, and his followers believe that only by clashing our blades for fun and profit can we avoid clashing them for war and bloodshed. As for how I became interested, well, that would be The High Priestess of The Wheel of Fortune, Janessi Dedoal. I was hunting in the forest when I overheard one of her sermons about The Tarot being given to a group of travelers in a clearing along the road to Jazi. I stopped and listened, and heard many things I liked, so I approached her about learning more. I am now an acolyte of Lord Chariot, but someday soon I will be able to relocate to The Temple of The Chariot and serve as a priest there, similarly to Master Sendoh."

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen laughs as well. "I certainly do remember. I also remember what you said about making a threat I could not keep. You would not be the first to underestimate me..." His eyes glint mischievously, almost offering a challenge. But he didn't want to fight. At least, not any time soon.

"It seems we are quite similar. That.. it also wasn't really me. Well, I mean, not always. I can just get like that when protective or angry. Heh, and I might have a similar story with how I took up Cayden Caliean... Well, I am not hoping to become a priest or anything like that, but... I truly believe in what He stands for."

[Inspector Valin]

Amora flinched at the lighting of the candle, mind flitting through spells suited for an environment as contained as her room, something that might buy her time. She blinked a little at the light, eyes adjusting to the suddenly brighter room, until she saw Michael all in red. The sight was oddly bizarre; as though they'd stepped back half a decade in time. She had only just started studying magic, Michael was still the friendly big brother who always had the time to chase "little kit-kat" around the castle tower. Amora's fears faded at her brother's presence; she smiled up to him, sitting on the bed and meeting his gaze. She blushed a little at the mention of noise: it was rare for her to have uneasy sleep. But at least her brother understood the reason.

He understood more than she realized, it turned out. About what she was afraid of, and how all the walls in the world weren't that reassuring. Amora almost interrupted when it sounded like Michael was just going to stress the security of the castle, but the guardsman didn't take that route. And that made her feel so much better. She nodded as he brought the explanation to a close, rising to her feet. "There's one thing to take away from fear. That we have to be better. When there's a threat, we need to be the best that we can be to face it. That's the point of fear. To encourage us to fight, to preserve our lives and the things that matter to us." With a slightly thin smile, Amora gestured across from her nightstand to her desk. Her two spellbooks lay upon it, her work book open and filled with scrawl in Amora's strange combination of Draconic, Elven and Dwarfen. To one side though laid the iron collar that she'd been examining when Michael entered. The wizardess' eyes lingered on that, even as she resumed talking to Michael. "I might not be as strong as you, big brother, but that doesn't mean I should just stand by and leave you and Maria to fight our battles. That's one thing this proved to me. I can help. And I need to help. Wherever I can."

Grimly, the young Princess of Kha'Rest took back the iron circlet, placing it swiftly back in her bag of holding. If Orion wanted to try scrying on the damned thing, he was more than welcome. She took a step across the room, closer to Michael, and brought her hand up around his shoulder, a gentle half-hug of her own by way of apology. Amora didn't deserve her family. She smiled and winked at the much humbler seeming Prince of Jazi. "Thank you, Michael. Sorry for waking you up. I tried to be quiet. Need to work on some kind of silence spell for times like this."

[NeoSeraphi]

Michael hugs Amora back and starts to leave, but right before he closes the door, he says, "I suppose you heard about my...inappropriate behavior in the city over the last few days. Our sister may be beautiful and a fierce warrior, but, Amora, I would have done the exact same thing if it had been you in that cave."

With that, the prince closes the door and walks away.

-----------------------------------------------


Zemma nods to Fen and finishes off his tea. "Well then, if you'll excuse me. I need to get some sleep. Mother Dedoal will be back tomorrow and...well, it's better if you're well-rested for the meeting yourselves." He heads to bed.

[NeoSeraphi]

The Next Day

------------------

Fenlaen, Nissa, and Neroth awake to a loud ruckus outside the cavern. It sounds like, singing, music, yelling, and general rambunctious behavior. Master Sendoh and Zemma Taursal, both sleeping in the same room as our heroes, also wake up. The two of them share a groan. "It would seem our Lady has returned."

"Yeah. And judging by the sound of things, she got pretty lucky."

There is a sound that comes from the staircase, and suddenly, a woman carrying large sackfuls of gold in one hand and a traveling suitcase in the other bounds down the stairs. She has a holy symbol around her neck, the mark is a golden ring. Slung across her chest is a bandolier of daggers. Strapped to her back are a pair of short swords.


http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/11/cb/bc/11cbbc847ad6e4a8533783ad5278aadd.jpg


The human woman swings her large sacks of gold and sings a joyful song to herself.

"Oh those fools
They come from far and wide
To challenge the legend!
But they never find
Their coins or wine
It's not something you can just do
Rolling dice with the best of you
They come from far and wide
And leave without their gold or hide
Those fools, why can they never see?
You just don't gamble against Janessi!"

Master Sendoh bows. "Welcome back, High Priestess. We, er...have guests."

Mother Dedoal looks the group over. "Well now, how do you like that? Bunch of adventurers showing up to my temple and not one of them has a gift or a donation! No, wait, don't tell me. You guys need healing. No! You're a bit more seasoned...you need someone resurrected? Well, too bad! Oy, Hikari, why didn't you tell these adventurers that we don't treat injuries here?" She looks over at the monk expectantly.

Master Sendoh shakes his head patiently. "No, my lady, they wish to ask you about Father Yassir."

Mother Dendoal reaches into her suitcase and pulls out a mug of mead, taking a hearty swig. "Oh! Well, why didn't ya say so? A pleasure to meet you ungrateful information-seeking nomadic vagrants! I'm Janessi Dedoal, the High Priestess of this temple. What do you want to know?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen takes in Janessi. She is quite the energetic one, more so than even him! Or maybe it was just because she was drunk? He wasn't too sure...

"Erm, well, a lot has happened recently. Bit of a long story and almost unbelievable but... was Father Yassir acting strangely at all when you visited him?"

[NeoSeraphi]

"Well well, now, look at the pixie acting all high and mighty! You know, where I come from, when someone introduces themselves, you introduce yourself back! Bad manners piss me off almost as much as bad poker players!" Janessi Dedoal takes another swig of her mead and then tosses the mug to the ground where it rolls around, empty.

"And I know all about what happened. Some jerk mage stormed my cavern and brought along a royal hostage. These two idiots almost got themselves killed, because they're so damn WEAK," she yells, glaring daggers at Hikari and Zemma, who both quickly wince and bow apologetically, "and you lot want to know if Yassir's really the one who gave him that letter of recommendation. Well, I'll tell you, I met that Orion chap while I was in Sha'zhen."

She opens her suitcase, fishing around. She can't seem to find what she's looking for, so she drops both her sacks of gold, which hit the ground with a resounding thud and split open. The light immediately reflects into your eyes from all directions, there must be over 500,000 pieces of gold here! Janessi continues rummaging around. "Sha'zhen is such a boring place to have a conference too. Bunch of bookworms and investors looking to make a quick buck, not one of them knows how to party! I swear, if Yassir didn't specially prepare my room with male escorts every time I visited him (free of charge, of course) then I'd have stopped attending the Sha'zhen conferences years ago!"

Janessi finally finds what she is looking for, which is another mug of ale, and pops the top, pouring a generous amount down her already intoxicated throat. "Where was I? Oh yeah. You!" She points at Fenlaen. "Respect your elders and introduce yourself when someone introduces herself to you first!"

Master Sendoh clears his throat. "Er, actually Mother Dedoal, you already said that part, you were getting to whether Father Yassir was acting strange?"

Janessi stops drinking and glances at Sendoh, confused. "Oh yeah! Nah, Yassir was the same general all around good guy he always is. Kinda sucks that he's dead though. Means he can't get drunk. Bet he was a riot when he was still kicking, you know?" She stands up and repositions the mug in front of her and begins to chug it. "Ah! Right! So, I'm Janessi Dedoal, High Priestess of The Wheel of Fortune. While you lot are here, do you have any questions about The Tarot, or Lady Fortune in particular?"

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen merely blinks incredulously at the priestess's antics. For one thing, this kind of behavior was one thing Cayden Caliean frowned upon. Drinking for merriment was one thing, drinking to the point where you don't remember you introduced yourself three times was... well, it would disgrace anyone, really. Honestly, he was surprised she could even play poker well. It would seem she would forget what cards had already been played or what cards made a winning hand, even. Her pushy attitude only irritated Fen, as was the fact she was was asking for donations when she had such a ludicrous amount of gold.

As the conversation seems to almost reset himself, he replies, "Erm, no Ma'am, no questions about your religion, at the present. We were here about Father Yassir and this 'Orion'. My name is Fenlaen Valir." The pixie bows in mid air. "I, along with these two and princess Amora were responsible for saving Maria," he says, motioning toward Nissa and Neroth.

"Oh, and Ghellen, the raptor, too! I still think he wants to eat me..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Jalessi Dedoal blinks and stashes her mug back in her suitcase. "Princess Amora, you say? Interesting..."


Almost immediately you all sense a change in her. There's clarity, deep thought and calculation. Was she ever really drunk?


Jalessi sighs and draws a dagger from her bandolier, spinning it around her finger. "Orion sits on The Council of Mythos, a group of the eight most powerful warlocks in the world. He is one of the authorities on arcane magic. My first impression of him? An easy target. His pros? He's calm. He's intelligent. He knows how to watch his back. His cons? He's overconfident. He's sloppy. And he thinks he knows how to watch his back. Final total:...30,000 gold."

Master Sendoh frowns. "His ability to invade the minds of other-"

"Means nothing if you surprise him. Mages are deadly foes to confront directly, but that's true of all mages, including the adorable princess. That's why you're better off finding them alone, sleeping, and making a 2 inch incision right into their right internal jugular vein. I've yet to find a target who survived that."

She chuckles, and then vanishes from sight suddenly. You all look around for where she could have gone and spot her standing behind Neroth with her blade on his neck. "Right here..." she says, her voice cold and calculating, "is where you cut someone to make them bleed to death. You don't have to be a surgeon to figure it out. One slice on their right internal jugular vein. One slice on their left internal jugular vein if the person weighs more than 200 lbs. And they'll be dead before they wake up in pain." Her steel feels cold to touch on Neroth's neck, and she applies just a bit of pressure, and Neroth starts bleeding.

[TheEmperor]

Meanwhile, in the background, Neroth was actually spending his time on other things. He had been practicing for the past couple of minutes, four to be exact, to ready him self for any possible combat that could occur, so that he could so readily defend the party.

In the night, he'd had an epiphany, and had been trying to bring to life a new maneuver he did not know existed before. A little twirl there, and swing the sword at a forty six degree angle and-

His thought was cut off, as his sword cut straight through a large rock that he'd been practicing on, using the combined power of careful blade placement, and brute force.

He pulled out the sword from the stone, and looked over at his team mates, his eyebrows high in the sky, and his eyes showing some pride in himself. He actually smiled, and decided not to continue his lonely practice session, and join the greeting of the new priestess.

He arrived in time to hear her talk about bad poker players, which immediately brought terrible memories of his gambling phase, in which he'd lost two hundred gold coins in a terrible, terrible night in a caravan. It immediately occurred to him that one couldn't have five aces, and he realized he'd been cheated. Once more, he cursed in his mind.

And then people started making him bleed. For ****'s sake. He very nearly punched the woman, but held back, as that wasn't a good thing to do. He drew his mouth into a straight line, and said "Could you not."


Feats Learned: Adaptive Style
Stone Power

Maneuver Learned: Elder Mountain Hammer

Maneuvers Readied (also in sheet): Wall of Blades
Iron Heart Surge
White Raven Tactics
Elder Mountain Hammer

[NeoSeraphi]

Amora wakes to the sound of a busy castle. All of the servants, maids, cooks and butlers have returned and they are all quite eager to work. As Amora rises from bed, she finds a suit of chain mail and some leg guards laying on her bed, along with a note, and a scabbard. "Put this on and meet me in the courtyard - Captain Leonis." Inside the scabbard is a longsword.

As Amora walks through the halls of her estate, she sees many people rushing around, cleaning portraits and rubbing windows. The whole castle hadn't been cleaned in three days, so there was certainly a lot for everyone to do. The help all called to Amora, telling her they were proud of her and saying they were happy Maria was safe. As Amora passes Maria's bedroom, she hears the princess stir and the door opens.

"Oh no! I overslept! Damn!" Maria darts out the door, pulling up her shoes and buckling them as she runs. "To make up for lost time, I need to do one thousand squats instead of seven fifty, two hundred push ups instead of one hundred...but will that leave enough time for weapon drills?" She doesn't even notice Amora as she runs downstairs.

As Amora nears the courtyard, she hears a loud roar and a horrible clashing of steel. When she draws closer, she sees her brother and her father engaged in serious combat. Her father wields an enormous greatclub, that looks more like a tree he ripped out of the ground than a weapon, and her brother is in his lion form, circling her father as best he can.

Captain Leonis attempts to jump and grab Caineghis's arm with his teeth but Caineghis swings his club and the young prince is sent flying across the courtyard. He lands on his back and there is a loud snapping of bone. He transforms back into his human self.

"Too slow. Too predictable," Caineghis declares.

Captain Leonis narrows his eyes and draws his rapier, charging forward. Caineghis swings his weapon in an arch in front of him, but Captain Leonis drops down and slides along the ground, just barely ducking under the weapon. He leaps forward to jam the rapier right into Caineghis's heart, but...

"ROAR!" Caineghis transforms! He loses about four feet of height, and suddenly the Lion Prince has nowhere to land. He transforms as well, and the two lions face off, their weapons on the ground, forgotten. The larger lion with the deep red mane tackles the smaller lion with golden flecks and pins him to the ground. The dire lion leans in close and opens his mouth to take a bite out of the younger lion's neck.

[Inspector Valin]

Amora groaned inwardly as she held up the chain shirt to the window, as though the thing was some form of torture device. She could guess exactly where Michael was going with this, and it wasn't something she relished. Physical drills thrilled most members of her family, and the wizardess could understand the appeal to them... but it wasn't her calling. It just wasn't something she enjoyed any more; once they'd been fun, but they grew more tedious as the gap between her and Maria grew wider. She'd have been happier up in her room with a warm drink than out on the field exchanging blows with her family. Still... it was her duty to try. And Michael had set these ready for her.

Better do what I can to not disappoint him. A gleam comes to Amora's eye as she looks down at the longsword. She had a few minutes, surely. With a grin, she grabs her books, and positions herself behind her bed; out of sight of the door. Her magic couldn't enhance her strength to last through whatever training session was to come, but it could help make her seem a little more impressive at the start at least. A show of what wizardry could do.

Once the enchantment washed over her, Amora didn't hesitate, donning the chain and guards as swiftly as she could. With a grin she started to run down the hallways; blushing and crying thanks at the servants who stopped to greet her. She laughed as she passed Maria's room, calling out "Morning sister!" before vanishing down the coridor almost as fast asshe might've in animal form. She'd be there. She'd be ready to join in. She'd do the best she could. That's what being a Leonis meant.

When she arrived at the fight though, that enthusiasm faded swiftly. Amora expected a rough brawl; she'd seen countless like it in the past, but this... was different. She just stood there for a moment, unable to react as events played out before her eyes. Father seemed.... so cold. There was none of his usual joy in his fighting, just precision and strength. It was almost as odd as seeing him whilst Maria was gone. And Michael... Amora had watched her brother fight so many times now, she knew his every stance and move. She wasn't quick enough to match him, but she could read the prince and his intent. Both men were more than prepared to kill each other. Over what? A training match?

Before Caineghis could finally tear the neck from his errant son, a great chinking of chain rang out as Amora desperately sprinted across the field towards the battling duo, her face the picture of bewilderment, sword fallen from her hands in haste. She looked between her brother and father in utter astonishment, still panting a little. Sprinting in chain was tiring work.

"What... in the hells... are you two DOING?"

[roll0] Going for Sense Motive to analyse the scene before acting. Both parties are striking to kill, but both have damage reduction. Does this look like a lethal fight to Amora?

Bull's Strength on herself, cast before putting the armour on. It won't make her the equal of her brother and sister,but it's a way to try and keep up a little.

Amora's sheet should be updated. Keeping Eren as the name until we determine how she's travelling with the party: officially or unofficially. New spells are Wall of Sound and Teleport. (as an aside, are familiars/animal companions counted as separate beings for Teleport?)

[NeoSeraphi]

Both men return to their human forms and Michael stands up, pressing on his back harshly. There is a loud cracking noise and Michael seems to be in a lot of pain, but it looks like he managed to set his broken bone back in place. He calmly steps forward and kneels down, scooping Amora up and taking her off the battlefield. His eyes never leave his father's though. He sets Amora on the side of the field and walks back to the center, picking up his rapier.

"My apologies for the interruption, King Caineghis," Michael says, holding his blade high.

"On the contrary, it was my daughter interrupting us, so I shall apologize to you, Captain Leonis," Caineghis replies, lifting the enormous weapon over his shoulder.

The two of them glare at each other and then dash forward. Their weapons clash again, but this time something is different. Michael's eyes dart over to the young witch standing on the sidelines and he grits his teeth, swinging his weapon with surprising force.

Caineghis staggers back in surprise as the tendons in his right hand are severed. The titan's club is too big for even Caineghis to use one-handed, so it falls to the ground. Michael dashes forward. He stabs Caineghis in the stomach, then draws his weapon out and delivers two sharp blows to the chest. Caineghis gasps and coughs, a bit of blood coming out. Michael has punctured one of his lungs.

Caineghis growls and shifts into his hybrid form, grabbing Michael and slamming him into the ground, but Michael only takes this as an opportunity. He stabs Caineghis right in the Achilles tendon. The werelion lord howls in pain and lets the man go, who promptly rolls over and jumps as high as he can. His blade arcs right over his father's throat. "It's over!"

Caineghis snarls. "Time Be Still!" he yells. And then, Amora and Michael's perception of the situation gets a little hazy. Where Michael was about to stab Caineghis in the neck, he is now flying backwards through the air, feeling pain from a blow he never even saw happen.


Caineghis somehow used a time stop effect


Michael lands at the other end of the arena, his chest ripped open by claws. He slowly starts to get up but Caineghis is there, and he slams one clawed foot onto the young man's stomach. Michael coughs as the wind is knocked out of him, gasping for air under the lycanthrope's weight.

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen pales at the scene before him. Jalessi went from something like a merry drunk to a cold and calculating killer. As much as he could criticize the former behavior, he much more preferred that to... this. "Priestess, stop. This isn't funny! That, and I'm sure we are all very aware people die when you slice their necks!"

[NeoSeraphi]

Jalessi Dedoal narrows her eyes and lets Neroth go. "'Not funny'? Did you just say that discussing the assassination of a wanted criminal who very nearly ritually de-furred and then mind-controlled a princess in my temple was 'not funny'?" She puts her face in her hand, the bloody dagger inches from her skin as she laughs. "That's rich! Of course it's not funny. Look, you asked me for information about Orion. I gave you a detailed report, and a price. You want this guy dead? Come back with 30,000 gold and give me a week."

[Inspector Valin]

Amora watched the battle briefly, wordless protests at Michaels' treatment of her unheeded. Glowering at the two me, she briefly waved her hands,summoning a minor defensive ward around herself as she tried to place what was happening. Her stomach turned a little as the realization came to her. Amora wouldn't have believed it if she wasn't witnessing the rite, but.... this was a shai-la challenge. She'd heard her mother describe the ritual, as part of explaining the facts of life to her, and it was something Amora had once dreamed about, working it into her tales of romance. A dashing young Trueblood emerging from the night to whisk her away to some far off magical land, risking Father's wrath and fending off blow after blow to prove himself worthy of her. It was thrilling, charming, romantic and touching...

It was the two men she cared about most in all the world beating each other to a bloody pulp. One of them might die here. Or be hurt forever. And she was just standing here...

Before Caineghis's foot could squeeze the life right out from Michael, Amora moved between the two men, the witch's hands sparking with lightning. She could not stop her father's hold on Michael, but none the less the wizardess placed her hands between the two men, her words quiet but forceful. enough to ensure they'd focus on her and her intent. "Stop. Both of you."

The witch does not lament. If her father withdraws his paw from Michaels' chest, she lets the two rise to their feet, though her expression is far from happy. For once honest true anger seems on the verge of overwhelming Amora. She turns first to Michael, her speach starting slow and cold but growing in intensity as she progressed."We have a mage with the powers of the Mythos Council seeking to bring us down. Maria kidnapped and nearly turned against the family. Trouble for us brewing in both Sha'zir and Mullmoon. And now is when you choose to fight a Shai-Le?" Incredulous enough at that, she wheeled around to Caineghis, tone not lamenting. "And father, you let him make the challenge? You were fine with almost killing the man who is in charge of protecting our city every day? You didn't point out how this is, in every way possible, the worst time that could ever have been?"

Amora snarled: she was on the verge of transforming herself, purely on instinct. She fought it off however: more anger wouldn't help the situation. Instead, the wizardess threw her hands apart, gritting her teeth in frustration at her family members. "You're both fools! Good hearted fools who wouldn't see a star fall from the sky if it was aimed straight at your thick heads!" Anger would not solve this situation. Anger would not solve this situation. Breathing deeply, Amora looked between the two of them, honest calm slowly returning to her face. "The fight is over. My shai-le will be decided by me. In a more peaceful time when I have the luxury of thinking about such things. For now, everyone protects everyone. We stand together. That's what we put on the seal, after all."

She led up her right hand, first to Michael, then to Caineghis. The seal of House Leonis glinted on her silver signet ring, the lion and lioness of metal still in unity. Amora's tone relaxed as she stepped backwards, away from the two. "That's what being a family means. We care about each other, and for each other, no matter what. We fight bleed and die for one another and their happiness, putting those around us before ourselves. Titles don't matter in that and neither do the Old Ways." Trying as hard as she could not to let her nerves show, the young Wizardess grinned at both men. "As long as the House of Leonis stands, everyone here has a shai-le. At least as far as I'm concerned."

Amora cast Defensive Shock on herself whilst the two men were fighting. Anyone who touches her takes 4d6 damage. That's pretty much the lightest 'threat' effect she can bring out in this situation. Enough to deter either side from attacking, HOPEFULLY not enough to kill them.

As to what she's doing.... not sure myself. She's invoking her right to declare the ritual over, and speaking her mind to both men. For now I'm going for pure RP with this; if you want me to roll a social stat, say. And yes, the last sentence is meant to be her twisting the term into its original Sylvan meaning, rather than the one Lycans have kinda imposed on it over the years.

[roll0] Spellcraft on what Caineghis did.

[NeoSeraphi]

Yeah, so from Amora's Know (History) check, she knows what happens when a female tries to mess with the father's right to decide the results of a shia-le, and that has never worked out for anyone.

Basically, system of checks and balances:

Father protects the girl until she is challenged for, and then decides if the challenger is worthy.

Challenger is able to decide the day and time of the challenge, as well as how to protect her aftewards.

Female is able to stop the challenge before someone kills someone, and is able to request someone else make a challenge for her to her shia-le, but until such a challenge can be performed, she's stuck.

This is hundreds of years of tradition, biological imperatives and clan instinct she's fighting here, it's not going to work the way Amora hopes.


King Caineghis I towers over Amora and looks angrily at her. "How dare you speak to me about what I should and should not do? I am the king of this country and am also your father, young lady! You are already on thin ice for sneaking out of the house and lying to me about your identity when you were trying to rescue your sister, but the sacred tradition of the shia-le is not something you will debate with me. Are. We. Clear?"

He starts walking away, and then stops. Michael forces himself to his feet, looking at his father expectantly.

Caineghis is silent for a moment, then says, "I don't want her to go." His back is still turned, facing neither of them.

Michael grits his teeth. "She's going to, whether you try and stop her or not. That's her strength. She's doing what she can for House Leonis. The least you could do is let me protect her along the way."

"...That's not up to me anymore. You're her shia-le now. All decisions regarding her travel, exposure, and safety are in your hands. And they are not in hers. Do I make myself clear, young lady?" Caineghis speaks, he is clearly angry at the entire situation but accepting it for now.

Michael nods. "Thank you." He starts walking, slowly, past Caineghis. One hand clutches his shatter ribcage, the other hovers near his waist trying to keep him balanced.

Caineghis crosses his arms as his son passes him. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Michael stops walking, listening to his father's words, and then just keeps moving.

Caineghis chuckles and shakes his head. "Well, even if I found out that my son is an idiot, I also discovered that my daughter will be protected by quite an amazing warrior. On her journey that I did not authorize," he says, glaring behind him at her. Turning around and facing Amora, Caineghis sighs and shakes his head. "Well, by our laws I can no longer stop you. If you want to go deal with this mess Orion has caused, that's up to Michael. And it would seem Michael was determined to make sure you had that choice." There is a lot of regret in his voice.

Amora's father turns back around and walks to the throne room.

[WindStruck]

The pixie's eyes narrow. "Perhaps it's because you've had a bit too much to drink, priestess, but you are stuffing words in my mouth. I said nothing of assassination, and what isn't funny is you were pressing a knife to my comrade's throat in a crude attempt at an anatomy lesson!"

He looks over to Zemma and Hikari with an expression that exudes both 'What's going on?' and 'Help me out here!'

[NeoSeraphi]

"Pardon me, Mother Dedoal, I don't believe these adventurers were aware that you are an assassin," Master Sendoh supplies helpfully.

Jalessi Dedoal frowns and sighs, shaking her head. "Well I'm sorry that when someone asks me about a person I just assume they're talking about a job. You ask a priest about your knee and he's going to recommend a cure spell to fix it, not tell you what color boots you should wear to complement it."

Mother Dedoal sighs and says, "Look, if you want to meet with Yassir, I can arrange that much for you. He's a very busy man, but he also owes me a favor or two. If that's why you're here, just say the word and I'll contact him with a date and time, but I expect you to show up, because if there's one man's time I don't want to waste, it's his." She shudders a bit at the thought.

[Diachronos]

Nissa crossed her arms at the priestess' behavior. She didn't seem at all like a priest of any kind outside of her questioning about their interest in the Tarot... then again, neither had Madame Volutia, or the handful of clergy she'd met who followed Calistria or Cayden Caliean.

"A meeting with Yassir would be helpful. I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd like to know why he gave someone like Orion a letter of recommendation to enter the Cavern of Fates. As for dealing with the wizard..." One hand came to rest on her sword, the other on Ghellin's back, though the latter was more to stop the raptor from stalking after Fen again. "I'm not the sort to leave solving my problems to someone else."

[NeoSeraphi]

"Great. It's a three day walk from here to Sha'zhen, so shall I schedule you for four days from now? Or do you think you guys have some other pressing matters? Maybe you'd like a week?" Jalessi asks, pulling a wand out of her suitcase and beginning an incantation.

[WindStruck]

"Uh, it may be more complicated than that. He said he would go to Mullmoon and try to start a war with Kha'Rest. You said he was arrogant and sloppy, so... he'd just blurt something out like that, right? If you do trust Father Yassir, then maybe there's little point going there. Maybe he just fooled everyone into thinking he was a swell guy, and that's that..."

Turning over to Hikari, Fen asks, "Say, do you still have that letter? What exactly did it say?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Master Sendoh retrieves the letter and hands it to Fen.

"Dearest Jalessi,
How are you my darling? I haven't seen you up here in quite a while. Looking forward to the next meeting. Should be in a few days, no?
I'm sure your heart is racing with anticipation. It's too bad I'm not there to hear it, yours is one of my favorite heartbeats. So alive and passionate.
Incidentally, I hope you don't mind, but the bearer of this letter is a friend of mine and he has no place to stay. He's a good man, so I hope your acolytes will put him up for a while.
His name is Orion. He may look a little rough around the edges, but hey, so do I, right?
I'll see you soon, love. And do remember to not drink until you get here, you know how much I hate the taste of alcohol in your blood.
Sincerely,
Yassir"

Hikari nods. "I'd know Father Yassir's handwriting anywhere. Also, he's probably the only person who knows that he can get away with talking to Mother Dedoal like that. No matter which way you look at it, Father Yassir is the one who wrote this letter."

[WindStruck]

Fenlaen reads the letter. It seems rather personal, and he hoped Jalessi didn't mind... but one thing stuck out in his mind, through everything. "Wait, this doesn't make any sense! Didn't you say you were all at a conference including yourself, Mother Dedoal, Father Yassir, and Orion?? Why does it seem like this letter was written long before then, even though Orion had to have come here either during or after the conference?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Jalessi shrugs. "No idea. I assume it's because Orion intended to teleport down here before the conference started, as he wasn't actually supposed to be there. The conference was for priests. He was there for the Council of Mythos, which wrapped up two days before my conference started. He was there the day I got there, but he gave me the letter to read in person. I cleared it with my acolytes and he teleported here right after. I spent maybe...two hours in his presence."

[WindStruck]

Fen just shakes his head. "I don't know, guys.. what do you think?"

[Inspector Valin]

Amora simply stood there, blinking. She knew the technical laws of the rite, but... she'd always thought that her family had moved away from that. Father listened to Maria. And Mother. But not her. Not weak little Amora, who didn't fight with a sword and would rather read a book than chase her siblings around the city. She needed Michael, unasked, to do this for her. Because it wasn't like this was something she'd have an opinion about, or that could muck up anything else for him and those who cared about him, could it?

With a wave, the princess whisked herself back to her room in a shower of blue sparks. Barely noticing her surroundings, the young wizardess fell on the bed, sobbing in a way she hadn't had to for a long, long time. So much had fallen apart, in so little time. Her family put stock in tradition, far more stock than even she'd realized. They'd respect what Michael had done, even if they disliked his choice to do so. And so the two of them... were together now. Because of what she'd said to her brother earlier, out of context. It was all her fault. She messed everything up. Little Amora. The second sister. The one who couldn't fight, who didn't want to fight, and who didn't understand how things were supposed to work. She should apologize. To Mother, Father, Michael... and especially Maria. She would've, if she'd been able to think of what to say to any of them.

Things would've been so much simpler if you'd never been born.

Eventually, the young wizardess dried her tears, rising from the bed with an effort. Michael had... given her an opportunity. A chance to help defend the family against a serious, brewing threat. No matter how she might feel about what his becoming her shia-le meant, she needed to make use of this. Duty to her family came before her feelings about her family and their ways. They needed her. Even if they didn't understand it. Still sniffing slightly, Amora started the slow process of changing out of her mail, back into her customary navy robes. She had a trip to take, a foreign land to investigate. And a band of adventurers to reunite with. She knelt down by her bedside; checking to see that her pack was still there, before withdrawing her pointed hat from it with a flourish. The hat made her feel better. It always had.

With a brief thought, a young scribe with ink stained fingers, brown robes and long blond hair stood in the Princess' bedroom. Eren smiled to herself, before moving to the desk and scribbling a brief note upon it. Meet me at the Cavern of Fate That done, she hoisted her bag onto her back and stepped out of the room, starting to wend her way through the castle towards the gate. She'd make her way towards the Cavern soon enough, but a little time in Jazi proper couldn't hurt. She hadn't walked through the streets properly since yesterday. Now the news about Maria's return should be known. Time to see what state the rest of the city was in.

[roll0] Teleportation miss chance
[roll1] Disguise check.

Just looking to spend a little time in the city proper, see what the mood is like. If there's time before we leave for wherever, Amora will stop by the Heirophant, but I knew this post was holding the group up so wanted to get it out there ASAP

[NeoSeraphi]

Where are you leaving that note? In Amora's bedroom?


Eren walks through the city, hearing various things being discussed. A few people say that they've heard The High Priestess of Fortune is back in town, suggesting that they may want to go visit her and give thanks to the Goddess of Luck for her role in Maria's rescue. Many people are talking about the princess being saved, some taking guesses at what her kidnapper was really after, others thinking that the king must have ransomed her back, and still others wondering what kind of amazing wishes her saviors received.

As Eren passes an alley, she hears a whistle. A couple of thugs step out of the alley, grinning wolfishly at her. "Well, now. Hey there, kitty cat. Didn't think we'd find one of you in the city. Thought all the cats in this town were royalty."

"Heh. Maybe she is royalty. Trying to hide her face since she got kidnapped. Ain't that right, Princess Maria?" the other thug asks. The two of them advance closer to Eren. Both of them seem to be armed with daggers, and judging by their scents, Eren can guess that they have some other tricks up their sleeve as well.

"Oy, wait." The first thug stops the other. The two of them whisper to each other and then they both grit their teeth and spit at the ground near Eren's feet. "Consider yourself lucky we have better things to do, kitty cat. You better watch yourself come zhe'tahl though." The two of them turn around and start walking away.

Eren swings by The Hierophant, and when she walks in she sees one of Madame Volutia's sacred prostitutes running the bar. The girl smiles and waves to her. "Hihi! Welcome to The Hierophant! Can I get you something to drink, ma'am?" She frowns and then clears her throat. "Ahem, um, also, I'm sorry to say this but if you're here for a...'good time', or if you're here to utilize our blessing or healing services, you'll need to come back later. Madame Volutia has all our girls in the back treating this one patient who came in looking pretty bad, she thinks she'll need at least an hour to work on it."

[Inspector Valin]

The thugs puzzled Eren almost as much as they scared her. They knew what she was? How? Magic? If they knew that House Leonis was composed of Lycanthropes, they must've known enough about Maria to guess that she wouldn't be going around under a disguise spell. And her face was all over town. How'd they found out what she was but missed the who? Let alone the fact that common thugs speaking Sylvan was a rather amazing oddity in its own right. Neither had looked particularly inhuman, or particularly academic. Were they afflicted-hunters like Zemma? Then why use regular daggers rather than silver ones? The pieces were there, but nothing quite fit.

Just what I needed. Evidence that proves Father right. A part of her was tempted to throw a fireball down the alleyway after the pair, but she resistedthe urge, turning back towards the path to the Hierophant. She'd tell Michael about it later. He probably knew who the thugs were already, anyway.

The young wizardess fell down upon her barstool with a sigh of relief: no matter what the time, the tavern felt welcoming to her now. The news about Volutia's preoccupation however was yet another surprise for the day. Eren blinked, glancing towards the back room door before turning back to the girl manning the bar, obviously taken aback. "What happened to him?" She could still remember Volutia healing Maria in a matter of seconds. What earthly wound could cause her to take an hour? Death?

[roll0] Taking that Knowledge: History reroll. And I get the message about Knowledge: Nature ranks. :smallwink: Unfortunately it's kinda hard for me to justify taking them OOC: Nissa's invested heavily in the skill, but Eren's bonuses would allow her to equal/upstage her fairly quickly. I'm kinda reluctant to do that. Although multiple people being able to make knowledge checks isn't a bad thingI guess.

[NeoSeraphi]

So many things about Amora's culture that Nissa wouldn't really care about require Know (Nature) checks. I mean, sure, Nissa might find them interesting and might pass them off to Amora, but that's not the same thing as Amora taking initiative and trying to learn more about her own people.


"Death? Hah! He wishes! Looks like he got into a tangle with King Caineghis. Wish I could have been there, looks like quite the brawl. Madame Volutia can heal wounds easily enough, but mending broken bones is something else entirely. I'd let you go back to see, but unfortunately we have a "family visitors only" policy when it comes to our patients. So, about that drink?" The girl smiles expectantly. "Oh...right. Damn, I'm the worst bartender. Ahem, Miss, there's a two drink minimum for walking in my door. So...what'll you have?" she says, trying to mimic Madame Volutia's assertive nature.

[Inspector Valin]

"Ah."

The news made the traveller's eyes droop slightly: she evidently found the man's condition less than humorous. She'd seen the fight, seen how many blows Michael had taken... she should've gone after him, offered healing herself. Instead he'd had to limp half way across the city to ask the priestesses for help. And it was still all her fault. But what should she do in this situation? She'd need to talk to Michael sooner or later. But should she really go in to the place where he was lying bloodied and broken, after she was the reason he'd ended up here.

She sat there for a few seconds, not seemingly hearing the barmaid's request, eyes fixed on the counter, mentally playing through all the possible ways that conversation might go. None of them seemed all that promising.. Eventually though, the wizardess seems to snap back to reality, looking up towards the priestess, with an embarrassed smile. She shouldn't just lose herself in her problems like that. She nodded, reaching for her coin pouch. "Water, please, if you have it. I need to clear my head."

She paused for a second, hand in her coin pouch, before making up her mind. She should go to him. As she brought the money out and placed it slowly on the counter, the traveller's fingers twitched slightly, adjusting the small ring she bore so its crest was turned upwards towards the light. If the bartender looked towards it, she would see the one piece of her outfit Amora had not changed through the power of the hat.

The Leonis signet ring.

Hrm. True...

Would purchasing some ranks give Amora a passable knowledge of the basics? Like, the rites and rituals that Lycanthropes go through normally, rather than the obscure stuff? (Which she'd have to roll for?)

[NeoSeraphi]

As the barmaid pulls up a glass she stares in shock. "Ah! That's...Begging your pardon ever so much, Princess! I..er...I didn't mean to talk badly about the Captain, it's just that, well...everyone knows how great a hero King Caineghis is so we all kind of want to see him in action. It's not that I like that your brother got hurt, just that...your dad's really strong! A-anyway, please, come right this way!"

She lifts the door behind the bar and allows the traveler inside, leading her back to a back room. She knocks on a closed door. "Madame Volutia, the...er...patient, has a visitor."

There's a beat of silence, and then "Let her come in."

Madame Volutia opens the door and lets Eren inside. As she comes in, she can see Michael painfully sitting, back to her, as he reaches for the bedside and pulls on a cloak to cover himself. He turns around to face her. His ribcage is a mess of bandages, but all the bleeding has stopped and all the claw marks have closed up. He glances at Madame Volutia.

"Please give me some time alone with my mai'se."

Madame Volutia bows. "Of course, Michael. If you need anything, let me know. And if it starts to hurt again, lay back down. I don't care how damn proud you are, you can't take care of her if your ribs break again." She takes the other girls and leaves, touching Eren's shoulder gently as she goes.

Michael looks up at her. "Don't worry. I broke the news to Maria so you wouldn't have to. I think doing it before I got my injuries treated might have saved my life, she only ended up slapping me across the face."

[Inspector Valin]

"Smart move."

Through everything that'd happened, Amora couldn't resist a bitter-sweet smile at the last. She'd doffed her hat as she walked into the back room; she had nothing to hide from Volutia and her acolytes. She knelt by Michael's bed, looking her brother in the eyes and letting a few seconds pass in silence, before eventually speaking. "I meant what I said. You're an idiot. There were a dozen other ways of dealing with this. If you'd told me what you were doing, I'd have tried to talk you out of it. There were better ways of dealing with Father than resorting to challenging him. You took the direct, most honourable course, regardless of the consequences to those around you."

Her words are calm, matter of fact, and uncompromising. Once she was done, however, Amora hung her head, looking towards the floor rather than Michael. The next words come more slowly. "You're also kind and noble and the best brother I could've ever asked for, Shia-le or no Shia-le. Every good thing I ever thought about you, you proved right. You gave me the chance to chose, the chance to fight and help those I love. And you gave up more than I'd have ever asked of you for it."

The young princess sniffs, struggling to control herself. Her true form's eyes are still red from her crying earlier. Now though she chuckles, a touch sardonic at her own ineloquence "I... don't know what to say. I can speak eight languages, know smatterings of every common tongue, but I'm at a loss for words here. For better or worse" She looked towards Michael, silent. She'd try and press through if he wanted her to, but working through this tangle of feelings and traditions... wasn't how she'd expected to spend her day.

[NeoSeraphi]

Amora notices a lot of pain and frustration in Michael's face when she mentions the words "most honourable course".


Michael sighs and shakes his head. "You're so typical. You always try and think through everything. Rationalize it. Come up with alternatives. That's why you never really took to combat training. You don't understand that you have to solve problems as they come, and face what lies ahead, rather than dwelling in the past."

He sighs. "Listen, I'm sorry, alright? I know this isn't what you wanted. But it's the reality of our situation now. I just...when I found out you went behind my back to try and save Maria, sneaking out, forming a group with a bunch of strangers, lying to father, wearing a disguise...I felt powerless. Like you had to rely on those i'khal...I mean...on those others...to help you and protect you. That should be my job. And when I realized that's how I was feeling, I thought to myself 'well if that should be my job I'll just make it my job'. I know it was selfish, but I couldn't let you put yourself in danger again, kit-k...mai-se."

Eren can easily see the conflicted feelings and anguish her shia-le is currently dealing with. They easily match, and possibly exceed, her own.

[Inspector Valin]

"Michael, you...."

All her fault. Again and again. Because she'd acted on instinct rather than thinking her actions through. Hadn't considered how her approach would make others feel. It seemed the best thing at the time, but... there had to have been a way to explain herself to Michael in advance. Something he'd have understood..

Amora darted forward, throwing her arms around Michael's shoulders and hugging the injured lion perhaps a touch more tightly than was advisable. For all his faults, he was still her Lion, her white knight. A Paladin could not be truer to his principles, no matter what past memory had made him twinge back there. A little breathlessly, she whispered into his ear. "We'll muddle through. Somehow or another, we'll muddle through."

The princess was silent for a while, before finally pulling herself upward. She had to bring up the thugs. It might be important. She grinned at Michael a little warily, not sure how he'd react to the news. "By the way, we have cousins visiting. A couple of wolves were lurking in an alleyway not too far from here. Their daggers looked sharp, and they caught my scent." Amora chuckled, shaking her head. This was not exactly something she wanted to be relaying to her Shia-le, but Michael knew more about these matters than she did. There was a fair chance he'd know what the duo had meant. "First time anyone's mistaken me for Maria. I should feel honoured. Anyway, they muttered some kind of threat about zhe'tahl. Does that mean anything to you?"

[Diachronos]

Nissa crossed her arms and thought for a moment. So far, everyone had confirmed that this was in fact Yassir's letter, so there seemed to be little sense in going just to confirm it again.

"...I have to agree at this point. Nothing indicates that Yassir didn't write the letter, and judging by everyone's opinion of him it's unlikely that he knows about Orion's plans, unless he's good at hiding things. In any case, we can go meet with him later, after we've checked out Mullmoon."

She turned to Hikari. "There was actually something I was hoping to ask you about regarding the curses the Tarot placed on us. Could we discuss it in private?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Michael gently strokes Amora's back while she hugs him. He seems better until she brings up the wolves. "The Scarsall thugs have already showed up? I thought...no I guess we don't have that much time left huh?" He laughs bitterly. "With everything that's happened, I almost forgot the zhe'tahl was next week. ...Almost."

He shakes his head. "The zhe'tahl is nothing you have to worry about, mai'se. It has nothing to do with you. Or me...anymore."

There is a sound of regret in his voice, but Michael sighs and lays back down. "You should go meet with your outsider friends. You want to travel with them, right? As long as you don't go any further than the Cavern of Fate, I won't harass you or follow you. You can have your own space. Just...don't leave town without me."

[NeoSeraphi]

Master Sendoh nods solemnly at Nissa and the pair of them head into the library. "What's on your mind, my child?"

[Diachronos]

"Actually..." She glanced back toward the door. "It's not about the Tarot, though I am curious about what happened with that. I'm more concerned with Jalessi; two hours with Orion is two hours where he could have bewitched her like he did with you or Zemma. I very well may be wrong about that, and I hope I'm just being paranoid, but it's a possibility we can't rule out just yet. Orion said he still has a pawn here in Kha'Rest, and we don't have a clue of who that is yet."

[NeoSeraphi]

Hikari Sendoh frowns thoughtfully. "I doubt that. She's acting just like herself, not to mention she was in a room full of powerful allies. Orion would have had to be practically invisible to hex her without someone noticing and killing him."

[Inspector Valin]

"I won't. But..."

Amora hesitated. A part of her hated bringing this up. As out of nowhere as all of this had been, she and her brother were now... together. Even ignoring the physical aspect, the child in the Princess remembered all those evenings spent chasing one another around the castle. All the fun, all the smiles and laughter. That'd stopped when Michael joined the guard, he just focused on his fencing and the guard, but now... they were together again. Not lovers necessarily, but companions, allies, closer than blood. She could gather the implication of what the zhe'tahl was from her brother's voice, and the idea of letting her shining white knight of a brother attend an event like that grated on some deep instinctive part of the wizardess. He was hers, had always been, would always be. He deserved more than that. She wouldn't let him go.

But...Michael's manner made his feelings plain. Something was bothering him. About honour... and perhaps about the zhe'tahl. She wasn't as sure on the latter, but bringing it up dampened his mood, and somehow she doubted that no longer being able to meet those two thugs was that depressing. Drawing closer again, Amora knelt down, meeting his gaze directly. Her words, when they came, were slow. They felt strange to say aloud. But the feelings behind them, in their way, were genuine. "You're my shia-le, Michael. I'm your mai'se. We're together now, like it or not. What affects one of us affects the other. And you're thinking about something,"

She tilted her head, quizzically. "You've told me what I need to know. Is there anything else I should know?"

[NeoSeraphi]

Michael Leonis hesitates. "It...well, I guess I can't protect you from everything. The zhe'tahl is a three day cycle once a year where males are possessed by their animal instincts. For single males it is a time of hunting. We gather in the Scarsall and track deer in animal form all day. Then we feast all night. For those with a mai'sita, its a time of fertility and passion. That's why Father and Mother go to the islands once a year, to be alone for the zhe'tahl. For me..."

He sighs and shakes his head. "For me, in order to prevent myself from doing something you're not ready for, I'll need to put as much distance between myself and you as possible. I could probably find some drugs to dull my sense of smell so I couldn't track you. If the instinct gets too strong I'll probably have to immobilize myself. Break my leg or something. And before you go blaming yourself again this was my choice."

[TheEmperor]

Neroth sat down on the floor, with his back to the wall, and pulled out the keys he'd been gifted, which were supposed to be the keys to the King's own summer resort, a very prestigious gift he'd been given. He was still taken aback by it, but decided not to do anything to lose it, and decided to put it back into where it was, safely. Wouldn't wanna lose it, would he?

He then pulled out the greatsword that was also a gift to him. It was massive, and almost beyond his capability to wield, but through considerable effort, he was able to wield it, and boy, to what extent. The damage it caused was certainly massive, and it seemed much more powerful than his other, older blade, which he'd grabbed from a bandit.

But it seemed so... what was the word? It had an aura he couldn't recognize. Was it magical? He didn't know. Not the slightest of clues about it, and without magical training, he'd never know. He spent the rest of the time examining it, while also keeping an eye and ear on any other conversation going on between the rest. And he also made it clear that he was listening, and paying attention, just in case they felt offended.


Appraise [roll0]

Heavens preserve my roll. I hope nothing wrong happens with it.

[Inspector Valin]

Amora blinked at Michael's description, honestly surprised above all else at his description of the time. She stood there a second longer before chuckling sardonically, looking down to the floor and sighing slightly to herself. "Like I said before. Worst timing imaginable."

Well, that put the wolves' words earlier into a new perspective. The dogs weren't exactly friendly at the best of times, now they thought that some meek young trueblood was just wandering around the streets, ready for their three nights? Now she very much wished she'd thrown a fireball or two in their general direction. Still, there was no sense in wishing away the past. Michael knew about them now. She had other things to worry about. Amora smiled, nodding to her brother. "We'll think of something. Don't worry about it just yet. If worst comes to the worst, I'll teleport away for the night. Or get you too drunk to chase me. There are solutions to this."

There were, but it was one more thing to manage that she didn't need. Another threat to manage and account for. Still, best not to let Michael know that. Appear calm and confident. Amora smiled politely as she took a step back, nodding in mental acknowledgement of his earlier words. "I'm going to find the adventurers. I haven't technically talked to them about this yet. I'll come find you when that conversation's over. There are leads in both Sha'zhen and Mullmoon, so we could be heading in either direction. I've camping gear for both of us in my pack, if you need it." She'd prepared for a long trek to save Maria, after all.

Amora half-turns, almost making for the door before a thought struck her. She looked back to Michael. "Any specifics on how we travel?" A simple question, but it had connotations now. If they were shia-le and mai'se, Michael had the right to decide where they went and how their travel was arranged. He would probably leave that to her... but he could claim that power if he wanted it. And short of flat out rejecting him as her shia-le, she had to play along.

[NeoSeraphi]

The sword is definitely magical and looks to be of incredible craft. Handmade with beautiful folded steel designed to sever even giant bones with a single swing, the sword is heavy but graceful. Neroth can swing it as easily as he can move his arm, though its cuts might be a bit unpredictable at times. He deduces that its weight and power are inappropriate for the Shadow Hand discipline and its lack of crushing power would not help him much in the Stone Dragon department, but he feels that its power would really come out in the Tiger Claw school. The slashing potential of this blade exceeds any other.

Upon closer examination, Neroth discovers a few words written in Sylvan on the blade: "Siti'las can ro'han domni, cor'las can su'li domni."

[NeoSeraphi]

Michael is quiet as he watches her stand up. When she turns back, she catches him staring at her, a strange mix of emotions on his face. He seems to be in another world and when she prods him he shakes himself out of it and says simply, "I won't restrict you unless you decide to be reckless about it."

With that, Madame Volutia and her acolytes enter the room again and gently shove Amora out. "Sorry dear, as stubborn as this boy is, he's not going anywhere unless he has at least an hour of bed rest. Give my best to your sister!"

As Amora closes the door, she can hear "Now this might sting just a little..." followed by an angry lion's roar. "Oh ho! So feisty, just like his father. Ladies, hold him down, I'm going to need to rinse off that wound again since someone-" Michael howls in pain. "is being difficult!"


When Amora turns around, she realizes that Michael is not looking at her, but at the back of her neck.

[Inspector Valin]

Amora sighed as she left the room, shifting back into her original Eren form as she passed the doorway. That... could have gone far, far worse. What to do about any of this mess long term was another question, but before that, she had adventurers to recruit, and plans to lay. What to do about Michael, the family and all of this could afford to wait just a little while longer. Though she couldn't help but wince as she heard him scream.

I'll make things work out, Michael. Somehow. For all of us.

[roll0] Perception, and Eren is off to the Cavern of Fate.

[Diachronos]

"I guess you're right." She sighed and brushed a strand of her green-dyed hair from her face. "I did have a question about the Tarot, though. The curses that it inflicted on us... Are they unique for each person? And do they..." Her cheeks reddened a little, though she turned and feigned interest in the bookshelves in hopes of hiding it. "Are they a sign of something? Neroth said that he'd been cursed with bad luck before we even knew Maria was being kept here, Neroth always seemed open and honest..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Eren sees no disturbance on her way and arrives at the Cavern of Fate a while later. Her companions from the previous day are still there, drinking tea and enjoying nice, pleasant conversation with Hikari Sendoh and Zemma Taursal. As Eren arrives, the topic changes to fey influences in music.

"Now, I myself enjoy the classics," Zemma comments, picking up a pan flute. "I learned how to play one of these from a satyr, though of course when I do so there's no mind-influencing effects. Listen closely to the second crescendo in this song." Zemma plays a calm, sad ballad and Hikari sings the lyrics, a tale of a woman who has lost her way in a forest at night, being chased by a hungry wolf, only to be led out of the woods by the screams of her child, though she is too late and he dies in her arms. The woman is sad, but she realizes her child's sacrifice was what allowed her to live, and she is determined to live for two now. The song is both strangely empowering and mildly depressing.

"You see, before satyrs developed pan flutes, there were very few ways to express that special sound that only a wind instrument can deliver," Hikari continues. "The flute was useful, but the pan flute was constructed in such a way that you could easily chain together multiple octaves, like a piano. So, what type of music do pixies enjoy?" He looks at Fenlaen expectantly.

[NeoSeraphi]

"The curses and blessings of Fate are reflective of someone's inner personality. Their darkest and lightest moments. A blessing seeks to highlight them, such as my innate sense of Justice granting me power to protect others. A curse seeks to pervert and distort them. For example, in your case, as an animal lover you might find that a curse would cause that care and love that you hold for your pet to become something uglier entirely. Additionally, the stronger the person is, the worse the curse is."

Master Sendoh shudders. "I still remember the last time that Mother Dedoal was cursed by her goddess. I had no idea they could get so bad. The poor woman lost the deed to her temple and had to move in to this cave and renovate it from the ground up to make it somewhat acceptable! Since then, she's been trying to earn as much as she can to buy the temple back, but she can't make the purchase until she has atoned for her sins. Otherwise Lady Fortuna will simply take that away from her again."

[WindStruck]

"Oh, we like all kinds of music! Well, not everyone is the same but... seems we normally like fast and energetic tunes. You know, since I have been traveling, I notice the melodies are sometimes similar to the nursery rhymes elven, halfling, and human children sing. But honestly the meaning of those songs is pure gibberish. There aren't too many sad songs, like that ballad. It's probably better that way, as they are reserved for sad occasions... It's bad luck to play one otherwise..."

It seems as though something was bothering Fen, but he changed the subject soon enough. "Anyway, we have a great variety of instruments too. Pan flutes from Satyrs yes, but other woodwinds. Violins and other kinds of string instruments, which I believe originally came from Grigs. We have lutes, guitars... one really talented fellow I know even managed to replicate a working piano." He snorts with a hearty chuckle and a grin.

"We are a lot more advanced than people seem to think, but even though it is possible to create so many instruments, singing is how we normally express songs."