Wheel of Time: The kingdom of Shadows

[fireinthedust]

The wheel of time turns, and the ages move on and on. There is no end and there is no beginning, but many endings and many beginnings. This is one of them.

A wave flowed in over the ocean, pulled up from the depths to the surface and on, to crash on the shore and rise into the air. It rose into the wind and blew over the land, past the landed ships of the seanchin, and their armored soldiers and exotic creatures. It blew past them and over the mountains, down over the fields of amadicia to the heartlands of andor, then round and round to an Altaran town covered in red tapestries and bright colors.

Swallowtail was like a bird: it minded its plummage on special occasions. It was not a beautiful town, but sat in the mid-range for places that were lovely. The buildings were stone foundations, many of which still used old stone doorframes or walls, though most had been built up with spackeled plaster and thatch as new designs. It was one of those special occasions today, and the old stone archways of the main buildings, sitting just off the wide main roads, were wreathed in colors of red and vermillion, blue and lavender, and more, as Swallowtail presented itself for a very important festival.
At least a hundred strangers had come to swallowtail this week, most of them merchants but also no few representatives of various trade companies, such as the Westlands Trading and Spice merchantile society, all of whom met annually here as an important tradition.
Swallowtail was generally a sleepy town, a market town which, between trade seasons, was emptied of residents. Now that the Swallowtail Festival was in full swing, the population had begun to swell. By month's end the town would be swollen with residents buying goods and currying favor. The town's more rustic inhabitants were met by nobles representing trade interests who, by tradition, met on this neutral ground once a year to debate trade rights across the Westlands.

This year promised to be one for hot debate, as even now much of the Westlands were roiling with strife in one form or another. The Dragon Reborn had revealed himself, one Rand Al'Thor, and he had begun to gather to himself armies. One of them was from the Aiel, those same savages that had massacred their way through Caemlyn only decades earlier. Another, smaller and no less deadly, were male channelers, gathered to a so-called Black Tower. Both were his armies, allegedly to fight the Dark One in the great battle.

Yet in far off Swallowtail, far from the conflicts and strife, it is easy to forget the troubles of the rest of the world for a festival celebration.

Between the varied buildings, some built with more solid, ancient architecture, there is a collection of stalls for various merchants. Some are calling their wares from the tops of their wagons directly. There are poles with a lot of streamers of various colors on them.

Just off the main square is a large tower, a square house that continues up from the doorway with smooth dark stone. In the archway stands an old man with a thick moustache, looking over the crowd for... someone. He points at two nearby strangers and calls to them.

You there! Hello, yes. You'll do nicely, I think. Can you help me?

[Yawielas]

Jianna is walking slowly around the fair, looking at all the stalls and merchandise. Her flute stuck under her belt, she's looking for a place where she might "set up shop" so to speak, and play a little. With so many people around, in such a good mood, someone was bound to feel giving, and a few extra coins would not go amiss.

Jianna's about 16-17 years old, of average height and build, although a little on the thin side. She's got brown hair and inquisitive hazel eyes, and is dressed in a long rust red tunic with a square cut neck, over tan pants and boots. Cute as a button, but with a stubborn core. She stands looking at a stall of fine silks when an old man calls out from an archway. Turning, she looks curiously at him, not sure he was talking to her or not. "Who, me?"

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

With his horse stabled, saddle bags tucked away in the room he shared with his fellow caravan guards, and Jaim taking his turn at watching their employers back, Ishigari finds himself wandering the streets of Swallowtail, taking in the sights, sounds and smells of the town.

His youthful face, bright green coat and bells in twin braids, on sleeves, and in the turned-down tops of his boots give him a boyish, carefree look that is only offset by the hilts of the twin swords over his shoulders, and the confident way he carries himself.

His outlandish clothing, pale skin and large eyes mark him as being a long way from home, and a Borderlander, to those who know what to look for.

He looks surprised when an old man hails him from the archway of the stone tower, but makes his way over and inclines his head politely.

”How can I be of service to you old man?”

[Ifni]

Kireyn strolls between the stalls, her attention equally divided between the merchants and the distinctive architecture of the older buildings. After arriving in Swallowtail that morning and stabling their horses at the inn, Vera Sedai had given her permission to explore the town, telling her to keep her eyes open.

It was good to wear clothes other than a Tower initiate's white dress again, good to see places and people that she hadn't seen a hundred times before. The Tower was the center of her life now, its libraries holding knowledge she had barely begun to explore, but she did not want to be like those Aes Sedai who forgot there was a world outside Tar Valon's walls.

Kireyn is 20 years old, short and of average build, with light skin and bright hazel eyes. Her glossy black hair is braided and coiled into a knot, secured with a round copper clip. She is wearing a dress of fine brown wool, a short embroidered jacket of the same fabric, walking shoes, and gold-and-amber earrings. A belt knife and purse hang at her wide dark-brown leather belt, and she carries a satchel containing writing and sketching materials.

She turns to a jeweller's stall, mentally comparing the quality of the woman's wares to those she remembers from her parents' workshop, then hears a man's voice calling out from the stone tower. She looks over curiously, wondering who he is addressing. Her gaze catches on the stone archway, and she steps closer, trying to decide how long that tower has stood there.

A few others seem to have responded to the old man's question. One is Arafellin, judging by his twin swords and belled braids: perhaps he will have recent news of the Borderlands. She walks over to join the gathering.

"What sort of help are you seeking?"

[fireinthedust]

He waves you to follow him into the tower. His voice is cheerful as he speaks to you, though he quiets down somewhat. Why, three strong backs! How lucky for me! I need help moving these boxes of books I just got in from Tarabon, though don't go telling any one. I could've sworn I saw a Domani woman around the fair, I think, though for some reason... gorgeous women, those Domani, never could say no to them, not at my age. Anyways, where was I? Yes, these crates.

He motions to several hay-stuffed crates in the front foyer, then at some stairs going up around the quare tower.

I'd move them myself, but what's the point of being old? I thought so. So kind of you three, so very kind.

[Ifni]

Kireyn's smile turns a touch rueful. Moving heavy objects isn't really where her skills lie. On the other hand, she's certainly had enough experience in various libraries at sorting books and carrying stacks of them around. And it might be interesting to have a look at these books from Tarabon, and to see what else is upstairs.

"I'd be glad to help. Is this a library, or a bookshop, or are these for your private collection?"

Kireyn walks over to inspect the crates. Looking back at her fellow volunteers as she tries to lift the first crate, she says, "So, what brings you to the fair?"

Where are the Warder-trained when you need them?

[OOC: How large and heavy do the crates look?]

[Yawielas]

"The fair, and the chance to make some coin," Jianna grins at the other girl. "I like your earrings." The Midlander girl tilts her head looking at the crates, then sighs a little, walking over to try picking up one of them. "Strong backs, indeed..." She struggles a little with the crate, but manages to hoist it up, and starts for the stairs. She glances at the young man with the braids and the bells. A Borderlander, if she was not mistaken. She wasn't sure about the girl, though.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

The festival crowds eddy and roll, sweeping around booths and games and the occasional public argument, each with its own ring of spectators. Amidst all this motion, one man stands still. His clothing marks him as a Shienaran, as does his height and the freefall of black hair that flows down his back. His mannerisms are those of an adolescent, still uncomfortable with the shape he's stretched into.

Studying the jeweler's stall, Daran feels vulnerable. Like a hare in the middle of a wide meadow. He resists an urge to wrinkle his nose and glance at the sky. It would look foolish, and he very much wants not to look foolish to the Altaran woman on the other side of the counter.

"Anything catch your interest?" She leans in, causing the marriage knife hanging from her neck to swing towards him.

"Well, um..." Truthfully, he isn't sure. The array of bracelets spread across the stall is a little daunting. "Maybe something simple?" he pauses for a moment, and then amends an 'I guess' onto the end of that.

"Well, how about this one?" Expert fingers pluck up something from the table, then curl over it just as quickly. "It isn't so flashy as to make a woman think you're trying too hard...but it could well get her attention." The fingers unfold, revealing a bracelet made from slim loops of ornamented silver, each a little wider than a woman's wrist. It shines prettily in the afternoon light.

Daran gulps. "How much is it?"

"For you, a single silver mark."

He hesitates. Fumbles for his coin pouch. Stops. Looks around. "That is hardly an affordable price," he whispers, determined to haggle as quickly as possible.

"Well, you could have affordable, or you could have the interest of a pretty lady. Trying to choose both is, I assure you, a mistake."

"Suppose I only had enough coin to cover half of it?"

"Then I suppose half of it is all you'd have. That's hardly a fitting gift."

"Well, suppose--" Daran catches something out of the corner of his eye and trails off. A flash of soft brown. Kireyn. Has she already seen him? There's no way to tell. Daran takes a step away from the jeweler's stall, mumbles something vaguely apologetic, and then dashes away into the crowd.

[Arxheon89]

Mas strolls down the main street with an obvious air of confidence and nobleness. Blonde hair tied up at the nape of his neck and a dark green coat with silver thread displaying creeping vines running up his sleeves. Just a hint of lace at the collar and sleeves gives Mas a look any man would envy.
Looking around for a good time; Mas looks over the wares of a jewlery stall when a man, clearly uncomfortable in this setting, walks up and makes an attempt to browse with a purpose. After a small, awkward conversation with the shop keep the man walks away without buying a thing. Feeling in a good mood Mas quickly buys the bracelet the man was looking at and hurries after him, hoping to meet a new drinking buddy for this evening.
As Mas moves faster and comes behind the man he exclaims "My friend I believe you dropped this back there, such a nice piece of work I would hate for you to lose it."
Holding out the bracelet to the man, Mas waits for a response.

[Ifni]

Kireyn briefly considers embracing the Power and floating the crates upstairs with weaves of Air, but thinks better of it: she had the impression Vera was trying to remain relatively unnoticed, and having a member of her entourage seen channelling in public would not aid that goal. However Vera causes people to forget her, Kireyn has not yet developed the trick. She hefts her crate, and starts after the Midlander girl. "I like your tunic, that color looks good on you. Did you travel far to get here, or do you live near Swallowtail? I'm Kireyn, by the way."

Kireyn pauses near the Arafellin youth, lowers her crate for a moment, and slips into Borderland dialect. "Peace favor you, warrior. I'm from Chachin, but I've been travelling for some time. Have you come recently from the Borderlands?"

[Unkabear]

The day started early for the Ogier known as Noal, he had his cart set up and a couple of empty barrels to sit on the large man sat and greeted the dawn with a loaf of fresh warm bread and cheese from the inn. He waved to the village folk about their day to prepare for the day. Noal did not expect to sell anything of real value today and mainly just contented himself with talking with everyone who passed by.

He had a good deal of conversation throughout the day as many merchants wanted to speak with the builder. The man in the cart next to him even broke out a game of stones that the two had shared since early morning. Another game, snakes and foxes was set up on a barrel that Noal used to divide his attention away from the stones board to play with the kids. Noal intentionally played the foxes knowing that he was going to lose. One could not win a game of snakes and foxes without cheating, but he would not allowing the children that gathered and played to win small prizes, trinkets really but an exotic kings treasure to those who are land locked. Small Sea-Folk Porcelain Animals were the gift that he doled out, being mindful to only allow each child to receive one so as not to cause trouble later.

He sold a few books to farmers and the innkeeper but often his trade would be for food or drink. It was painfully obvious to the other merchants that Noal was not there for profit, but for interaction and stories. People tended to feel comfortable with the gentle giant so much so that he even shared a few words with the veiled Aiel and the men in black, the Asha’man. There was not talk of the Stedding though, but Noal figured that he offered something of consistency. And it was so, Noal was not going about looking for a fortune, but simply funding an expedition that needed no funding. Allowing Noal to pay his way in a world that many would pay his way for him.

“Ah, I win again Tobin, you almost had me this time, but for that stone played on the 43rd round.” Noal said as he placed the stone that both knew would win him the game. “Care for another?”

“No,” Tobin chuckled gathering the stones and beginning to put them away, “I have had enough losing today, and besides I am only taking second fiddle to the children.” It was more likely that Tobin realized that he needed to put more into Hawking than gaming, but still their friendship was something to cherish.

Noal turned back to Dehrel and took the small dice in his massive hand. The dice seemed only a fraction of his finger but with a shaky grace rolled the dice onto the mat. He moved his foxes through the lines and circles in a vain attempt to evade the snakes, but soon Dehrel would be victorious as he had already used Noal’s distraction to his advantage and shift his pieces a few spaces.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran whirls like a cornered animal--or a child caught with his hands on a baker's display. "I was just browsing, I--oh." He trails off, finally getting a look at the other man. "Beg pardon. I mistook you for someone else and--oh." His second shock comes at seeing the outstretched bracelet. "You must be mistaken. I wasn't aiming to buy anything and..."

The bracelet glitters alluringly. Little variations in light play across its surface. "Thank you, but you must have paid for that, and it wouldn't be fair for me to leave you with the cost. Here," he swaps the bracelet in Mas' hand with a coin from his pouch. "Now we're as equal as strangers can be."

ArxWe seem to have both chosen dark green as our color. I'm switching to blue.

[The_Snark]

The fair, and its multitude of outlanders, was a blessing straight from the Light so far as Sarinen was concerned. She had been in Swallowtail for a few weeks, longer than any of the merchants, longer than the nobles, and certainly longer than the folk from other villages who'd come visiting for the fair; and while Swallowtail was used to having outlanders, it wasn't quite as used to having them during the rest of the year. Especially not young women bearing swords and a telltale Amadician accent. Sarinen supposed she was fortunate most of the town seemed to have taken her for a refugee or wanderer; she'd been afraid of being taken for a spy or worse (maybe better in terms of how the town would have treated her, but worse in her own eyes) one of those who had left their homes in the belief the Dragon really was reborn. Light send that not be so.

Maybe she'd just been worrying too much. She would have moved on already, if it weren't for the rumors of Dragonsworn bandits, killing all across Altara, and even stranger things. She didn't believe most of that, but she did believe traveling alone might be dangerous. The fact that local merchants were willing to pay in coin for a hand to help them set up at the fair also helped; she was running out of that worryingly fast. But whether it was in her own mind or not, Sarinen was glad she didn't stand out anymore.

Although she's still a slight oddity—a woman carrying a sword—Sarinen looks like any other traveller at the fair. Rather self-consciously, she's wearing the best clothing she brought from home: a blue woollen riding dress, which feels very peculiar with the sword belt buckled over it. She has light brown hair cut just a little below her ears, and dark eyes set in a face that's reasonably pretty. A Hunter for the Horn, maybe, albeit young, but she looks more worldly than most of the folk here.

At least, she would have at any other time. Wandering in between the smaller peddlers and fending off a hawker who felt he had a jeweled knife that would look perfect on her, she catches sight of an oversized cart, and the owner sitting on a barrel in front of a tiny child. No, not such a tiny child! Her mouth falls open, though she doesn't realize it. He... he must be ten feet standing up! He's taller than I am sitting!

"Wha-" Something occurs to her mid-word, something her friend Danesse had told her about once, and she blurts, "Are you an Ogier?" Her cheeks redden slightly at the question, as she realizes she's standing there like a country yokel gawping at a king. Even she wouldn't have believed she was born in Amador.

[Unkabear]

Noal handed the child a porcelain bird as the woman blurted out her statement. Noal was used to it. At least it wasn’t “Trolloc! Trolloc!” That one tended to end badly no matter how gently he spoke. Noal shook the childs hand, their hand his sausage like finger, and looked up at the woman, the low rumble of his voice was that of the oaks of the deep forest, “That I am” he says with a rolling chuckle, “care for a drink?” Noal said reaching for a seemingly small bottle in his fingers. Drawing a few clay mugs he hands them over to the Amadician to let her pour, he knew that he tended to spill a little of the wine as he poured.

“What brings you to this corner of the lands?” he asks as he sets out another barrel for Sarinen to sit on. The heavy oak seemingly handled like a toy in his hands.

[Arxheon89]

Handing back the coin Mas smiles "No friend i'm sure I saw you buy that."
Putting his arm around the man's shoulder "I mean after all, you aren't doubting a noble's word are you? I only speak the truth and I saw you buy that bracelet. Now if your not up to anything how bout i buy you a drink?"

[The_Snark]

Sarinen finally snaps her mouth all the way shut. So much for not sounding like some farmgirl wearing her father's sword... She takes the bottle, holding it for a second before realizing what it was and deciding a little drink wouldn't do any harm. "Ah, thank you," she says, pouring and trying not to stare at the massive Ogier. Ogier! The thought is incredulous.

Her wits have not completely deserted her, though, and she notes his careful movements, especially with the child. It only made sense that somebody that big would have to be careful, of course. She pours a second mug for him. "I'm—here for the fair, of course," she says as she realizes the big Ogier is still waiting peacefully for her answer. It wasn't much of a lie, really, she was here because of that more than anything else. "Just traveling." Time to get off that slightly awkward topic. She really couldn't give a straight answer. "What about you? I can't think there are many of, ah, many Ogier around here..."

[bahamut920]

Jak Garris

Jak wanders somewhat aimlessly through the stalls set up at the fair. Not having much money, he couldn't buy anything besides supplies for the next leg of his wanderings, but he enjoyed chatting with those who would stop a moment.

Of course, none of those amicable folks would stop to chat with him if they knew what he really was; a male channeler. One of those who had caused the Breaking of the World. If these villagers ever found out what he was hiding, a Trolloc who showed up to browse the stalls might have a better chance than he. Fortunately, Jak could blend; his mind and body had not yet succumbed to the taint on saidin, and his appearance was hardly that of a madman crazed by the One Power. He had freshly bathed just that morning; he bathed as regularly as possible, because his mother - a healer in his home village in Andor - had believed that disease came from dirt and filth. In his opinion, his health was worth the extra expense of having the water heated and brought up to his room. His short brown hair is neat, and his inquisitive brown eyes, handsome face, and pleasant demeanor forestall any thought of danger in the minds of those he met. Though his clothes are simple travelling clothes of forest green, and somewhat threadbare, they simply proclaim a drifter with little money, not uncommon around these parts, especially with the Dragon Reborn - or, at the very least, another in the line on those claiming to be him - turning the world on its ear. Not wearing his traveling pack, and with his knife tucked away underneath his tunic, he simply looks like another youth out to enjoy the fair.

His profession had raised eyebrows in the past: men practicing the healer's trade were few and far between, at least in the midlands; that job usually fell to the women. Which, of course, was often enough to prevent some from seeking his help, mostly those claiming men "have no head for the job." He had long ago decided not to let those claims bother him, and to prove that he could, in fact, perform the healer's job.

He passes a very large, somewhat strange-looking man sitting next to a young woman. Mentally, he remarks on the man's immense size and strange ears, and the sword belted to the woman's waist - rarer even than a male healer - but keeps walking in order to avoid staring. After a few more minutes of wandering, he comes across a group of people hauling crates, one of which was a girl no older than himself. He strides over, smiles, and says, "Allow me to help you with that..." as he reaches for the other end of the crate.

[Yawielas]

Jianna smiles and answers Kireyn, glad for a chance to put the crate back down. Perhaps she shouldn't have taken one of the heavier ones. "Thank you. Yes, I've travelled quite far, but that's what I do. Started out in Andor, though. My name's Jianna." She watches as Kireyn stops to speak with the borderlender, and startles a little when suddenly someone starts to pick up her crate from the other side. However, she smiles when she hears his accent, and nods at Jak. "Thanks. Good to hear a familiar dialect. You're Andoran, aren't you?"

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari smiles at the old man’s simple request, and even wider the mention of Domani women, and moves over to the nearest crate. A brief look of surprise flashes across his face as he lifts the book filled box, before becoming a look of curiosity. He echo’s the sentiment of the young woman in the brown dress as she asks whether they belong to a private collection.

"You have a wealth of knowledge by my peoples standards in these boxes. How did you come to own all of these books?"

He watches an even younger woman in a red tunic move past him, catching himself at the point of staring, in time to her the woman in the brown dress name herself as Kireyn. He smiles at both the woman as the younger one, who introduces herself as Jianna, sets down the crate she is carrying and straitens.

The look of surprise once more, however, as Kireyn makes a formal greeting common amongst the Borderlands. Ishigari inclines his head as far as is possible and responds with equal formality.

"There is peace in the mothers last embrace."

He recovers once more and speaks in a more casual voice.

"In truth it has been many months since I left Arafel, and what news we have heard since leaving Caemlyn would seem to be half truth and speculation at best, and most of that has been talk of the Dragon Reborn."

[fireinthedust]

Kireyn and Ishigari: Um, aren't you two *both* with Vera Sedai? I believe Ishigari is the warder-trained, along with Daran. (if you decided a status update for that, fine, but I was under the impression that such was the case; I should respond to switches like that, though)


Bookseller: The bookseller smiles at the new young man lifting boxes for him. He motions for everyone to follow him, and he makes his way slowly up the steps. He is very cautious as he does this, being an old man, and the journey up is that much slower for it.

Wonderful! All we need to do now is get them up to the top! My name is Stevos, and books are my trade. My back isn't what it used to be, so I like to trick young folks like yourselves into helping. Normally we don't see that many in these parts, but a contact of mine is a noble in Tarabon. Well, he *was* a noble, now he's worm food, light take his soul. I'm his only friend in the world, it seems, so these treasures come to me. Thoughtful of him to send so many! Only a few more landings, you four'll be at the top soon. Then you can take the others without me chirping in your ears!

As you climb to the top you find the entire top level of the tower is a library. All the walls have shelves, and there are low shelves in the middle of the room. Its not huge, only about 20ft. on any one side, but it is cozy. You can see a small desk with papers, a quill-and-ink set, and a stand where he obviously writes notes on each book while sitting on an old cushioned chair.


The Cart: Noal and Sarinen enjoy their drink for only a moment before there is a shout of pain and a loud rumbling sound. You note suddenly that a wine-merchant's heavily-laden wagon has snapped its bond and now an avalanche of massive wine-barrels rumbles towards you both! You both know that you must move out of the way, or else be killed by wine barrels that weigh a ton.
The child by Noal's foot sees them and is frozen with fear. Likewise, Noal's cart of goods is in the way, the contents at risk of being destroyed or damaged outright.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"If you're not up to anything, how 'bout I buy you a drink?"

Daran stuffs the silver bracelet in his belt pouch as fast as politeness allows. He glances twice over his shoulder as he does so, but fails to find Kireyn in the crowd. Perhaps she's moved on? Or she'll keep what she saw to herself? Daran has never quite been able to predict the behavior of the accepted. Shaking his head slightly, he turns back to the noble. "I sure wouldn't turn down the offer. It's been a thirsty day, but..." Daran hesitates for a moment, and all of his tact goes out the window. "Who are you? This is twice that you've shown kindness to a complete stranger. Have we met before, or do you have any relatives at Tar Val--"

Whatever Daran was about to say is cut off by a low rumble--a wooden grind against cobblestones--intermixed with screams of surprise. Turning, he catches sight of a group of runaway wine barrels. Most of the fair-goers have already scattered out of their way, but a group of three by a merchant's cart seems not to have noticed the danger yet. Daran squints, trying to get a better look at them even as he charges through the crowd, shouting "look out!" There seems to be a man, a woman, and...a child?

Daran drops his shoulder and surges forward, hoping to grab the child and dive for cover.

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods to Ishigari. "May she welcome us home, one day. But for today... what have you heard of this new Dragon? Can he truly channel the Power? So many false Dragons, so fast: first Logain, then Mazrim Taim, then this one at Falme." She looks over at Jianna and the newly arrived Andoran man as she speaks. "Did you have any trouble on the way here?"

On reaching the top of the tower, she looks around the library and smiles in pleasure. The unguarded expression makes her look younger. Turning to the old man, she says, "You have quite a collection here. After we've finished moving the crates, may I have a look around? I'm a scholar of sorts, and I'm always pleased to find a treasure-trove like this. I would be happy to help you unpack your new acquisitions."

[Unkabear]

Noal looks to the oncoming barrels and acts on instinct. The first thing he does is scoop up the child into his hand, pulling them into himself as to be secure and safe, then he reached out to grab the girl by her waist dropping his mug in the process and with all his might and speed ran a few spaces and leaped out of the way of the barrels. He knew that his cart was going to be destroyed, but really the cart was just a cover, a reason to be out in the world. And you can buy more carts, but you cannot buy a life back.

After he guaged himself out of harms way he set down the child and the girl and asked them both "Are you alright?" In his low rumbling tone.

Touch attack to grab kid = 11
Touch attack to grab Sarinen = 19
Roll to jump = 28 [enough to leap 14 ft without a running start 16 if I get the +4 for 40' move if Ogier get that. But I am not sure as I am at work and away from all of my books] (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1719841/)
I am assuming that the child and Sarinen are not fighting me on those grabs, if I cannot grab both then I will just get the child and run.

[Yawielas]

Jianna shrugs a little at Kireyn's question. "No....at least nothing to do with any Dragons, false or otherwise. There sure is a buzz goin' round, though. I've steered clear of the largest crowds. Never know when a fanatic can turn a group of people into a mob." Jianna holds her tongue when she enters the library, and stands gawking. "I've never seen so many books!" Turning to her fellow Andorman, she asks, when she's caught her breath:"Where are you from? Me, I'm Jianna al'Ruam, from Devon's Ride."

[bahamut920]

"I'm Jak Garris, from-" at that point, his introduction is interrupted by a cry in the distance, and a low rumbling sound.

"Er, sorry to leave you half-way through, but I'd better go see what that was, and if anyone's hurt," he says, setting down his end of the crate and starting off towards the source of the commotion. As he leaves, he withdraws his healer's kit from its place in his belt pouch.

Rushing to the scene, he discovers a pair of broken carts, with large barrels strewn about. He quickly surveys the scene, attempting to see if anyone was injured.

[Yawielas]

Jianna watches him go, then sighs a little, skipping down the stairs to get another crate. Choosing a lighter one this time, she starts hauling it up the stairs to the tower library.

[Ifni]

Kireyn descends the stairs a little more sedately. At the base of the steps she goes to the tower door and looks out, shading her eyes against the daylight, to see if she can discern the source of Jak's alarm.

"I couldn't hear much of anything from the library, but if people are hurt, we should go and help. The books will keep, if they've travelled here from Tarabon."

[OOC: If Kireyn can see the crash site from where she's standing, she'll go and help, especially if she can see injured people - she's not a healer, but she knows basic first aid, and has healing balms in her belt pouch for emergencies. If everything looks calm outside, she'll shrug and go back to carrying books. By the way, are these crates < 25 pounds?]

[Arxheon89]

Mas will attempt to grab one of the people out of the way.
Which ever one hasn't been grabbed yet.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari, still surprised to hear the greating so common to his homeland this far south, thinks momentarily before answering Kireyn in typically blunt Arafelling style.

"From what we have heard told this new Dragon Reborn has the ability to channel Saidin, though truth to tell many of these so-called false Dragons could channel. There has been much unrest recently across so many nations, and some conflicts that are not so small, which we have barely avoided being ensnared in. I think it is lucky we left Caemlyn when we did. With so many openly standing against Morgase Trakand the city was less than safe."

He nods in silent agreement with Jianna’s attitude towards large crowds, and heads back down to get another crate.

Before he reaches them however, a thunderous crash reaches the tower. Before he fully has time to recognise the sound, Ishigari begins racing down the tower, taking the steps two at a time. Unconsciously his right hand grasps at the sword strapped across his back before he is even out of the door, drawing it in a flash of steely grey so out of place in Swallowtail as he races towards the sound of the commotion, eyes alternately seeking his employer and the source of the danger.

[Yawielas]

Jianna sighs, as the last of the helpers leave to check out the commotion, and she's stuck with the crates alone. She hauls another one up the stairs, shrugging to the old man. "Looks like it's just me left. So this might take a while. There's some sort of commotion outside. Is there a window overlooking the square up here?"

[fireinthedust]

Library Crowd: You can hear the crash outside, and see out a small balcony window. There are barrels rumbling towards a group of people.


Down Below: ((just waiting on Sarinen (The_Snark) to see what she's doing))

Mas: it's way too far for you to make it in time to grab anyone. You're in the midst of a conversation; this is like a loud bang from a car crash in the street you weren't expecting.

[Ifni]

[OOC: Well, in that case... are the barrels within 110ft? Sorry, my previous action assumed it was all over by the time the tower people could react. Let me know if you want me to change things below or in previous posts, for consistency.]

As the crash rings through the stone walls of the tower, Kireyn jumps, then steps quickly toward the nearest opening, embracing the True Source. Light and life rush into her, and the scene in the square springs into sharp focus. Seeing the barrels bearing down on a group of people, Kireyn draws on the Power and begins to channel Air, planning to weave a protective barrier. She cannot create a large enough weave to completely protect the group, but she hopes to slow or deflect the barrels to give them more time to get away. Vera Sedai will doubtless be angry at her if she channels in public, but lives are at stake here.

I don't know if I have time for these actions, but if I do, Kireyn will embrace the Power (full-round action) and channel Harden Air (standard action), using a L1 slot, which counts as a L2 weave as she has the Air affinity. Either the barrels or the likely victims need to be within 110ft for her to do this: she can harden a volume of air equal to a 5ft radius sphere, and it's impenetrable to items, so I hope that will be enough to form some sort of protective shield. If Noal and Sarinen have gotten everyone out of the way by the time she's ready to channel, no worries ;-) If they've jumped out of the way and the kid is still in the path of the barrels, I'll try to weave Air around the child, forming a protective cocoon but shaping it so he/she can still breathe: the kid will get a Reflex save in that case. Correct me if I've gotten anything wrong re the spellcasting: I'm new to this system.

[Arxheon89]

fair enough. In that case Mas will make sure he does not get hit and then go see what caused this.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen has just enough time to scramble to her feet before the Ogier's massive hand grabs her about the waist, half pulling and half carrying her out of the path of the onrushing barrels.

((In short, not fighting Noal's attempt at heroism.))

[fireinthedust]

The book keeper answers Kireyn. Well, that wouldn't be too bad. They are antique books, though, that's all I deal in, so I'll need to show you how to hold some of them. A bit of a hodge-podge, but some fools will pay anything for the right book. He moves the lid off one of them, revealing two volumes, one of which is wrapped in soft cloth. He picks it up, unwraps the covering, and reveals a black-bound book with a pattern on the black leather that appears and disappears with the light. He stares down his spectacles at it, raises an eyebrow...

then there is a crash from outside that makes everyone's head turn.


*******
Noal turns to move away from the barrels, child and Sarinen in tow, but there is a figure standing in the way: a tall man wearing a gray cloak. As you vault away, he gets caught up in your jump, and the four of you, Noal, the man, Sarinen, and the child, fall down in a tumble.

******
The folks from the tower cannot act to prevent the crash, they are aware of it as it happens (being up in a high tower, behind stone walls, busy talking about books and the Dragon Reborn).

******
A moment after the barrels crash into Noal's wagon, several onlookers see a terrible mess. One of them takes off his brightly colored hat, shakes his head and looks at Mas and Jak.
Light be praised, look at that! One of the barrels is broken clean in half, and there's wine in there to fill a pig trough!

As he points you two can see a large half-a-barrel with a lot of wine still in it, enough to actually fill a pig trough. The wine merchant, who is very upset, is looking at how at least most of his barrels did survive, and many didn't even leave his cart. Only one or two lost.

*****

Sarinen finds herself slightly stunned and lying on the ground, the man in a gray cloak fallen on top of her. He pushes himself up and she sees his face: he is incredibly handsome, with tanned features and eyes like an Aiel, except that he is in entirely Western garb. He looks back at her, then moves off ad starts backing away. He struggles at his forearm, and Sarinen sees that he's got wrapped cloth bandages over both arms; one of them has fallen loose, and she notices a golden tattoo like a snake underneath. Before she can act, he moves away into the crowd, muttering an apology.

*****

By the time everyone gets to the street, everyone there is picking themselves up and getting out of the way. No one seems to be terribly hurt, though there is a woman who is hyperventilating (about twenty feet away from any form of danger). The child is excited that they got picked up by such a big man, and hasn't noticed any harm from a fall.

The wine merchant's helper is yelling at an old man who is standing hunched by the wine cart. The old man has on a wide-brimmed wicker hat and loose-fitting clothes that haven't been washed in ages. He coughs, and his head is shaking back and forth (out of old age, not in response to anything) but the helper keeps yelling at him. What do you think you're doing, old man? I don't care if you are a disgusting, smelly old bastard, you've just cost us fifty gold crowns! I should cut your throat for that, you pathetic old hobbler.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari slows to a more sedate pace upon reaching the ground level as he realises that there is no danger. He eyes the destruction, and the large half-barrel still full of wine with something of a smile, glad that the disturbance was nothing more than a mishap.

Unable to see his employer, and recognising that it would probably disturb many of the inhabitants of Swallowtail, Ishigari sheaths the naked blade in his right hand in one smooth motion. He is about to head back into the tower when he hears the voice of the wine merchants rising above the startled voices.

Anger rises unbidden in him as he hears the menace in the helper’s voice, and the naked threat to the old man. Hand twitching back towards the blades crossed on his back, Ishigari begins moving calmly towards the men, his face devoid of emotion, ready to intervene should the threat turn to violence.

[Yawielas]

Jianna watches from the balcony window, whistling low at the mess. Luckily there doesn't seem to be any injuries, at least not to people. It's funny watching everyone from so high up. Curiously, she tries picking out familiar heads and clothes in the crowd, spotting what seems like another Andorman, a noble by the looks of it, as well as an incredibly big man getting to his feet. "Whoa.....that's the biggest man I've ever seen!"

[Ifni]

Kireyn relaxes and releases the Power, letting the half-formed weaves of Air dissipate, as she sees nobody has come to harm. She is turning away from the window when Jianna's words cause her to glance back down at the square, and her eyebrows go up.

"Is that an Ogier?"

She shakes her head in wonder and turns back to the old man, moving over to look down at the black book.

[Arxheon89]

If he heard the threat Mas will walk up to the helper and try to calm him down so the old man doesn't get hurt.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

They shouldn't build onlookers so solidly. Daran picks himself up off the cobbles, apologizes to the man whose back he just rebounded off of, and makes his way more carefully to the site of the accident.

Sidestepping a shouting match (and the small audience that street theatre usually attracts,) Daran finds himself in a small clearing. The ground is strewn with splinters and, in places, slicked bright red. No one seems to be harmed, though. He breathes out a small sigh. Even if he hadn't left his healer's kit at the inn, he'd only ever applied its contents to horses.

OOC: I'm guessing that if Mas wasn't close enough to do any good, neither was I.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen struggles upright herself, slightly embarrassed at that awkward situation but mostly relieved that the wine barrels missed her. A half-muttered, "Sorry," to the odd-looking man is said too late and not loud enough for him to hear her.

Although really, he'd landed on top of her; he was the one who ought to be apologizing. Well, he'd said something. Good enough. "Are you all right?" she asks the Ogier, trying to brush the dust off her dress. The child seems to have come out completely untouched, or he wouldn't be laughing; in her (admittedly very small) experience, they tended to make a fuss over very small injuries.

[fireinthedust]

The Old Man: Getting close to him, Ishigari and Mas note that the old man isn't wrinkled so much as... burned. He looks like a skeleton of a man in clothes you note are more like wrappings than normal clothes. He has no hair, and rather than wrinkles you can see he's completely covered in scar tissue that, oddly enough, seems to do the same visual effect. His nodding is involuntary, and he begins to move past the merchant like old drunkards typically do, ignoring the one speaking to him. From where you stand you can smell him, a cross between alcohol and burnt dung.
The merchant grunts as he walks away, spitting in the street. Crazy old man..., he mutters, and begins the task of salvaging his wares.

Ogiers and crowds: I'm leaving this rp to you lot. There is a growing crowd around Noal, onlookers, and no shouts of Trolloc (audibly).

the Bookseller makes his way to the door of the tower and calls out to his labourers. is everything alright? My goodness, you all disappeared so suddenly!

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran walks among the wreckage. With the accident past, he's got no good reason to be here, but something pulls at him all the same. Curiosity, probably.

Dodging around a harmless looking old man, he notices Mas in the crowd and jogs over. "Everyone's okay, I think. Er," Daran does an abrupt mental rewind, "begging your pardon for running off like that, sir."

[Unkabear]

Noal shakes his head and says in a near mumble, sort of like the sound of a deep oak forest settling for the night, "Curious, I have never seen an Aiel dressed like that before," before Sarinen catches his attention from the man that he had nearly crushed.

A broad smile almost separated his face as he looked at her and set the child down, "I will be fine, no harm was done to any but a cart, and carts can be replaced." Noal then stood up and dusted himself off, taking the lauds of saving the child with humility and good humor, almost blushing at being a center of attention, at least when he did not orchestrate it.

As to the commotion of the wine merchant Noal simply walks into the middle of things with the pretense of picking up the pieces of his cart and looks down at the arguing men. Then getting down on one knee Noal looks into the yelling mans face and asks "Does there seem to be any trouble with the wine barrels that broke up my cart?" He says looking to turn the attention not to the barrel, but to the damage that it caused so that they could all dismiss it.

[Arxheon89]

Turning back to his new friend. "Well how bout that drink now? After all this excitement I'm rather thirsty."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari looks in shock at the state of the burnt vagabond, and seems about to step forward when he hears the voice of the old man floating over from the tower.

Deciding things are well enough in hand he turns and moves back to the doorway of dark smooth stone.

My apologies to you, sir, I feared for a moment that there was more amiss than ill luck and some lost wine barrels. Shall we see to those crates for you?

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

The nobleman looks curiously unshaken by recent events. Strange, but perhaps he's seen a lot in his time. Besides, he's been awfully friendly so far, and what harm could a single drink do?

"I wouldn't mind that at all. Do you know a good place?"

[fireinthedust]

The old man smiles. Of course! And when you're done I'll pay for a meal and a drink for you all, the least I can do. Right this way.

He goes back upstairs, leading any who want to earn their mid-day meal back to the library with another load of books.

****

Daran and Mas are stopped by one of the wine-carriers. Hey you two! This is your lucky day: we can't sell this, we can't bottle it, so somebody has to drink it! A donation to help us cover our costs and you can use my tankard if you have to.
He smiles with missing teeth and pulls out two silver cups hooked on his belt.

((any suggestions for what you all do next? I suggest some conversations, or other character-building talk for a bit. Not much has happened, so I don't need to fish-hook the plot right now ;) ))

[bahamut920]

Jak scans the area one last time for any injured, and sees the Ogier, the sword-bearing woman he had seen earlier, and a child disentangling themselves from each other, and walks over. "Anybody here hurt?" he asks.

[Ifni]

Kireyn smiles at the bookseller. "I'm sorry, the crash startled me, but it looks like nobody is hurt. Jianna, shall we take one of the larger crates up together?"

As she heads up the stairs with the next crate, she says to the Andoran girl, "You said travelling was what you do: have you visited many lands, then?" She hesitates and colors slightly. "I'm sorry if I'm being pushy: I'm curious, that's all. I've read a lot of books, but visited very few of the places I've read about. Andor seemed like a peaceful and pleasant land, though, from what I saw of it."

[Yawielas]

Jianna tilts her head, thinking as she hauls the crate up the stairs with Kireyn. "Well...we've mostly travelled through Andor, but I've been in Cairhien a stretch, and in Murandy and Far Madding. I haven't been on the road very long, though. There's lots to see in Andor, to, like Caemlyn and WhiteBridge..." She glances down the stairs. "I hope those boys are coming back...these are heavy."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Cheered at the thought of a free meal, Ishigari follows the old man back inside his tower.

"I am not one to turn down a free meal kindly offered. I should be glad to join you for lunch when we have finished with these boxes."

Selecting another box at random, he begins moving up the stairs once more.

Upon reaching the top library level, Ishigari sets the crate down next to the last one he brought up and stretches, bells on his sleeves making a pleasant jingle. Working the kinks out of his shoulders he turns his head and addresses the two young women.

"I must admit while this town has a pleasant atmosphere, save for errant wine barrels at least, I have found increasing unrest in the nations we have travelled through in recent months. Are you both travelling alone?"

[Yawielas]

Jianna's expression turns a little guarded at the arafellin's question. Studying his face for a little bit, she nods, though. "I am." She looks to Kireyn.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran fishes a few coins out of his belt pouch and exchanges them for the cups. He dips them both into the cracked-open top of a still standing barrel, and then pases the slightly fuller one to Mas. "The town where I'm from, people have a saying about how 'the wine of calamity tastes sweeter.' It's supposed to be about how disaster makes a man feel alive, but I suppose it might be literal, too."

Moving slowly through the crowd, Daran finds an unoccupied stoop and sits down. He pats the ground to one side of him, and then remembers with a jolt that that's probably not the sort of thing you do to invite nobles to sit with you. "Have a, uh, have a seat, sir." In a rush to get all his formalities out at once, he presses his knuckles to his forehead and bows. The gesture looks odd, coming from a sitting position, and Daran hastily fumbles out a question to cover for it. "So, uh, what brings you to this fine fair?"

[Ifni]

Kireyn answers, "No, I travel with my patron - Lady Vera - and her retinue." She nods to Jianna. "You are brave to travel alone, in these troubled times." To Ishigari, "Do you travel alone? And - might I know your name? It would make conversation easier."

She looks thoughtful and continues, "I have a friend who might like to meet you, as well: he is Shienaran by birth, and he is learning the sword, but he left the north as a child. We've met few other Borderlanders in these southern lands."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari notes the change in Jianna's expression but does not remark on it, instead giving a wide, reassuring smile.

"It takes courage for a young woman to leave her homeland alone to wander wherever the road may take her – I am impressed."

He shakes his head at Kireyn’s question, and then straitens as she asks his name. He gives a small courtly bow as he introduces himself, one bell-laced braid falling over his shoulder, giving off a brief, merry tune.

"Of course, I forget my manners. My name is Ishigari Narshima. I am a caravan guard for a merchant out of Shol Arbela. We have been travelling for many months now, though my employers business has been less, and mine more frequent, the longer our travels have continued. He decided that Swallowtail represented his best chance to trade properly for weeks, so we made our way here."

He listens intently as Kireyn speaks of her friend from Shienar before gesturing to the stairwell.

"Shall we continue while we carry? I fear our patron may fear we have disappeared again…"

He looks back at the two women and continues without missing a beat.

"There are more Borderlanders in my employers escort, however I have only got to know most of them since we left Arafel. I would be happy to meet your friend however, and even to introduce him to the other guards, though there are no Shienaran’s among them."

[Unkabear]

Noal sighs at an offer for wine, he really did not imbibe all that often, and really he needed to salvage what could be salvaged. He politly declined before moving in to move around the peices of cart to find what survived. Books did better than pottery, his small keg of needles was almost unscratched. The pots and pans were banged up to begin with so one more ding did little to lessen their appeal. But it was a small bag that disheartened Noal, the small figurines were a mess, only one in six or seven remained in tact and of those only a third were without a scratch.

Noal began the process of picking out the ones that were salvageable occasionally pricking his finger on a sharp shard.

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods at Ishigari's last words. "Thank you - perhaps we can go look for Daran after we finish up here."

Walking down the stairs, she continues to speak. "I'm looking forward to reading some of these books we're carrying. Tarabon... I've never been to Tarabon, or anywhere close to it." She rubs her back. "These crates are certainly heavy enough... I'm surprised to find such an extensive library in this small town."

Glancing up at the others, she asks, "What goods does your employer deal in, Ishigari? Jianna, you said you were here to make some coin - are you a trader also?"

[Yawielas]

Jianna nods and shrugs at the same time. "Sort of. I trade a little and play some. My pa's a peddler, so I've picked up the trade so to speak. Not that I have much merchandise to offer anymore. But if I can make a good deal, sure, then I guess you could call me a trader." She smiles, seeming happy about Ishigari's remark on her bravery. She asks Kireyn in return:"What about you? What else do you do beside read books?"

[fireinthedust]

Noal: you get the job done. There's splash on one side, but the other side seems fine. You'll have to dump half, but it's concentrated in specific containers; an easy clean up when you figure out where to put the garbage! Most of it's cloth and such, ergo it will biodegrade (yay).

You note two humans sitting not far from you, enjoying the opened keg of wine. Also nearby are the wine merchants, but thy've been watching you with more trepidation (and it would seem awkward to drink with them), even though they're drinking too.

Sarinen: what are you doing after the crash?

Everyone else: keep up the great RP! Let me know when you're ready to move on.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen regards the dress with a mental sigh; she'd gotten as much of the dirt off as she could. That man had been rather heavy, and some of it was pressed into the fabric. It was either go about in a dust-laden dress all day, or change—and this was her best set of clothing, humble as it was. Oh, well.

She stoops to help Noal pick up the pottery shards, feeling slightly embarrassed that she hadn't noticed the damaged goods until now. "Thank you," she says to the Ogier. Light help me, I'm forgetting my manners. Father would be wincing on the inside if he were here. Her father hadn't generally showed disappointment on the outside, but she was good at telling when it was there anyway. "I'm sorry, I don't think I even told you my name. I'm Sarinen," she introduces herself.

[Ifni]

Kireyn picks up another crate from the dwindling pile, and smiles at Jianna. "I attend my lady - usually, at least. This morning she released me to look around Swallowtail."

It's good to talk to people from outside Tar Valon again, but difficult, too. I can't tell them anything about what I've been doing for the past four years, except vaguely: it would raise too many questions. I wish I had Vera Sedai's skill: then I could float these crates up to the library quickly, and talk freely to Ishigari and Jianna, and not have to watch every word I say or worry about their ability to keep secrets. But if wishes were wings...

She sighs quietly as she looks away from Ishigari and Jianna, her gaze distant for a moment. Then she begins talking again as she takes her crate toward the stairs. "So what do you think of Swallowtail and the fair? I saw some interesting old buildings before we started hauling crates. I didn't have time to look at many of the stalls, but one jeweller had some nice pieces. My parents dealt in gems, back in Chachin."

[bahamut920]

The group around the carts seemed to have gone back to conversing with each other and picking up the pieces of the smashed cart. They must not be seriously injured, or they would be more concerned about themselves than their possessions, he thinks. Heading off to enjoy the fair, he suddenly remembers the group toting crates back a few blocks away. Having nothing really more productive to do, he decides to rejoin them.

After a short walk, he finds the tower (a rather distinctive structure, especially in a smaller town like Swallowtail - hard to miss), and sees some of the group he had been assisting before, still lugging the few remaining crates up the stairs. Attempting to heft one by himself - Jak is not a particularly strong young man - he begins making his slow way up the stairs.

[Arxheon89]

Mas tosses the man a few of silver marks, grabs both cups, hands one to his new friend and starts drinking. "Oh by the way I'm Mashodricar Tinethyn, but you can just call me Mas." Taking another drink mas continues. "So what's your name friend and what brings you here, to this fair?"

[Yawielas]

Jianna smiles at Jak when he reenters, then turns to Kireyn again to answer. "It's nice. The town, I mean. They seem to have forgotten about all the bad stuff that's happening outside. It's...peaceful. At least mostly peaceful, when there aren't any road accidents, I mean," she adds, nodding towards the street where the wine barrels crashed into the cart. She sets the crate down when they reaches the top floor, and starts back down for another. A free meal was a good motivation.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari strolls down the tower stairs, relaxed despite the physical exertion, and enjoying the company of the two women. After so long on the road, it is nice to talk about something other than campfire war stories, cards and dicing…

He nods in agreement Kireyn’s suggestion of looking for Daran after, and rubs his hand across the back of his neck as he answers.

"My employer has released me for the rest of the day – one of the other guards is escorting him around the town. Perhaps your friend would like to join us for lunch. I believe the old man mentioned something of food.

As to what goods my employer deals in, he is a trading partner with a Kandori merchant. We were carrying furs, good quality raw timber and ice peppers when left Arafel. He trades as we travel, however, and by now we have various goods from several different nations. Like Jianna he is generally willing to deal in anything that may be profitable."

He seems interested in the cause of Kireyn’s soft sigh, but not wanting to sour a pleasant conversation, once more says nothing. He picks up another crate comfortably and turns for the stair, nodding a greeting to Jak as Jianna speaks.

"In truth I have not yet seen much of the fair. I had only just left the inn where we are quartered before I walked by here. It seems like a peaceful town, as you say. An innocent peace too, so unlike the Boarderlands."

[Unkabear]

Noal glows with warmth as Sarinen helps him through his cart. It was not a total loss and if he were about the money then he might have felt devistated. But instead he simply accepted his place in the weave. "Thank you for your help Sarinen, my name is Noal."

Then fishing through the remaining figurines Noal pics out a fish, It seemed remaniscent of a silverpike, but the details were wrong, but that was all well, they were intended for the youth, but Noal felt no shame offering it to one who lended a hand.

"Here," he said offering her the porcelin fish, "consider it a simple thank you, for your help." Noal tried to make sure that his tone did not include a dismissal, but Humans tended to be hasty things and he was not as versed in thier ways as he once was.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"So, uh, what brings you to this fine fai--"

"--So, what's your name, friend, and what brings you here to this fair?"

Daran looks down at the ground, a little bit miffed at how easily his question was headed off. However, time spent at Tar Valon had taught him that the best way to talk with an unpredictable person is to be as polite as possible. That way, you're less likely to offend him before you've gotten a good idea of what he's like.

Daran looks back up and answers "My name's Daran. Pleased to meet you, sir." He holds out a hand. "I'm here to guard an Ebou Dari lady. She enjoys traveling, but the world's grown dangerous lately. It's best that she goes accompanied."

The last statement is a curious mixture of half-truth and wish, and it tastes funny leaving Daran's mouth. Not that she really needs my help. Not yet anyways. She could probably hold off an army of brigands on her own.

[bahamut920]

"You just have to watch out for some of the refugees," Jak replies. "I met a few on the way here, and they seemed to be trying their hand an banditry. Fortunately, I managed to scare them off by convincing them I was part of the 'Dragon Reborn's army'." One of those black-clad Asha'man to be precise, though I'll not tell them that... he thinks to himself. Some simple channeling and an illusory growth, and they practically soiled their breeches before I said anything.

[Ifni]

At the mention of the Dragon Reborn, Kireyn glances over at Jak curiously, surprise and faint suspicion shading her gaze. The Andoran man doesn't look that intimidating, and he carries no weapon other than a belt knife. Perhaps he presents a less pleasant demeanour to those he meets on the road.

"So what brings you to Swallowtail, Jak? I don't know if you caught my name, earlier: I am Kireyn."

[Arxheon89]

"Ah, escorting a lady, what a fine thing to do friend Daran." Mas replies with a smile. "Come you must introduce me to your lady, so that i can treat both you and her to a fine meal at the inn in which I'm staying."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"I'm afraid that she can be a little shy sometimes."That's an obvious lie, and Daran is mildly surprised when it doesn't scald his tongue on the way out. "I'll certainly relay your invitation to her, and perhaps she will, ah, gather up her confidence and accept. I'd be happy to join the two of you, but...uh, I'm just a guard. I don't really know the kinds of things nobles talk about with each other. Uh, I mean--" He almost claps a hand over his mouth, but the words won't be unsaid. 'Let me just remind you that I'm a commoner. A common, common, commoner.' And bloody addlepated, to boot.

Daran is obviously flustered, but tries to cover it with a gulp of wine. It tastes the same as any other wine. Isn't every kind supposed to be distinctive, or something? Maybe nobles can tell? Maybe that's one of those things nobles talk about. I certainly wouldn't know.

"Um, if you'll pardon my asking, what are you here for? Travel, maybe? Or trade?"

[bahamut920]

Jak instantly regretted mentioning his encounter on the road; the way the young woman's head snapped to him, and the appraising look she gave him told Jak that he had aroused her suspicions. Nothing I can do about it now, he thinks regretfully. Better just answer her question...

"I was in the area, heard about the village fair, and decided to check it out," Jak replies. "I'm a traveling healer, see; I go from village to village plying my trade. I find the most work in cities or villages without a healer of their own, but I'd heard good things about the Swallowtail trade fair."

[Arxheon89]

"Nonsense, nobles are no different for any other person, at least I'm not." Putting an arm on Daran's shoulder "Come we'll have a nice meal and when the lady retires you and I shall drink and dice the night away. Now lead on to this lady of yours, I am most eager to meet her."
Mas takes one last gulp of wine throws his cup to the merchant and begins leading Daran up the street, the way he was walking before Mas caught up with him.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari smiles and gives a brief laugh at Jak’s story of imitating followers of the Dragon reborn.

"I must admit, scaring bandits away rather than fighting them blade to blade sounds like a far less dangerous way to travel. Though, as my people say, the dancing is sweeter on the edge of a sword."

The laugh does not quite reach his eyes however, and he too gives Jak a considering look, wondering what he is and is not saying. He listens as Jak answers Kireyn’s question, before putting down his box and freeing his hands. He rubs them together before looking back at Jak, allowing them to fall to his side as he continues.

"I do not mean to give offence, but I have heard tales of those who have sworn to the Dragon Reborn recently, saying that his coming breaks all bonds . I have heard stories too of those who have sworn themselves to the Dragon themselves turning to banditry."

The Wheel weaves and the Wheel wills

He waits patiently for Jak to answer, having spoken his mind as his Arafellin honor required.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"I, um, she's probably indisposed at the moment, I mean, um," Daran's eyes dart back and forth across the crowd, looking for a way out. Vera is a difficult woman to predict. She might be delighted by Mas' sudden appearance at dinner, or she might appear delighted but have that subtle tightness to her face that promises a future rebuke. It's better if I don't bring nobles that I met on the street tromping in to meet her. At least, not without a little bit of warning.

"Perhaps we should just...oh, there's Kireyn! She's a friend of mine. You'd like her. Let's go meet her." Daran spots the accepted descending the stairs of a small tower, and practically drags Mas over to meet her.

[bahamut920]

Jak smiles a little at Ishigari's comment about not having to fight the bandits. He replies matter-of-factly, "I don't own a sword, though, and the only person I'd probably hurt with it if I did would be myself..." Jak pauses for a moment, listening to the rest of what the Arafellin has to say. He can't be sure, but it sounds like the Arafellin is asking him in a roundabout way if he really is a Dragonsworn.

"I don't know much about the Dragon Reborn," Jak replies to Ishigari's second statement. "Or, rather, I've heard a lot, but not a lot of it makes sense, and even the pieces that do often contradict each other. I'm not particularly eager, however, to learn anything first-hand; I've heard enough to make me leery of the man. Thankfully, I haven't met any Dragonsworn, or if I have, they haven't been announcing themselves as such." Especially considering my... unique talents, he thinks. They'd probably drag me off to their Black Tower and turn me into a weapon for killing.

[Yawielas]

Jianna listens to the conversation with half an ear, her mind momentarily distracted. She brightens seeing there's only a few crates left. As she tunes back in, a name mentioned makes her blurt out:"I've heard he's really handsome." She colors slightly once she realises what she said, and busies herself with a small box of books, hurrying back up the stairs.

[Ifni]

Kireyn continues to turn over Jak's words in her mind. He says he doesn't own a sword, but scared off a band of brigands by pretending to be part of the Dragon's army. What soldier wouldn't carry a weapon? Unless... oh. Well, if he was pretending to be one of those, I can understand why he doesn't choose to give details. And I imagine a commanding presence would be enough to pull that off: few would make such a claim falsely, and fewer are the fools who would ask them to prove it. She shudders slightly: the rumors they have heard of the Dragon's recruiting efforts are enough to chill the blood of any student of history.

A familiar voice calling her name breaks the momentary silence, and she looks over, smiling as she recognizes Daran. She puts down her crate and steps toward the newcomers.

"Ah, Daran, we were just considering coming to look for you. Allow me to introduce Ishigari Narshima, of Shol Arbela in Arafel, and Jianna al'Ruam and Jak Garris of Andor. This is Daran Alema, the Shienaran friend I mentioned earlier." Kireyn inclines her head politely to Mas. "Will you introduce us, Daran?"

Not the sort of friend I would expect Daran to make, but I'm glad to see him with someone else at all: he can be so shy.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"Ishigari Narishima, Jianna al'Ruam, and Jak Garris, peace be with you." Daran pronounces every syllable carefully. The cup of wine seems to have slowed his tongue and heated his cheeks a little bit. Not so much that he's in danger of tumbling over the words, but he's still a little nervous about offending Kireyn's friends. Shrugging out of Mas' arm, Daran bows slightly. "This is Mas...Mashodricar Tinethyn. I met him earlier today when he--uh, I mean, we met earlier today."

[Arxheon89]

OOC: Does Jak reconise my name, since he is from Andor as well and my rep is pretty high. Also would Mas realise that Kireyn is an accepted?

"Ah greetings to you all, what a pleasure it is to meet so many new friends."
Walking up to Kireyn, Mas gives a bow. "My lady, the beauty of thy face, is surpassed only by the depth and sparkle of thy eyes."
"If you would all like to accompany myself and friend Daran, we were on our way to meet his lady so that I might invite her, and of course now all of you, to a fine meal this evening."

[fireinthedust]

Jak, Kireyn, Mas:
ooc: Jak: would you recognize an Andoran noble? Keep in mind, Mas, that you're still just first level. He may think he's famous, but he might not actually be that big outside his circle of friends and family.

Kireyn: would she look accepted at this point?


((otherwise, continue))

[Ifni]

Short version: no, Kireyn doesn't look Accepted at the moment.
Long version: being Accepted doesn't do anything special to your appearance (unlike Aes Sedai, who have an ageless look), and Kireyn isn't wearing her Great Serpent ring at the moment, it's in her belt pouch (which I should note on her character sheet). Accepted traditionally wear white dresses banded in the seven colors of the Ajahs, but Kireyn's currently dressed like the lady-in-waiting she's pretending to be. Channellers tend to get remembered, and she's trying to keep a low profile.

Kireyn blinks at Mas' extravagant compliments but smiles at him, then chokes as he mentions meeting Daran's lady. She turns it into a coughing fit, putting her hand to her mouth. "Sorry... my throat's dry after carrying those crates up the stairs. It's rather dusty in here, isn't it?"

She meets Daran's gaze briefly, laughter in her eyes. You invited someone you met on the street to come meet Vera Sedai? Well, I guess it won't hurt anything... I don't like the poor man's chances of a dinner invitation, though.

Composing herself, she addresses Daran and Mas again. "Thank you very much for the invitation, Mashodricar - but Daran, our lady released me for the morning, she had her own affairs to attend to, and may not wish to be disturbed. We were about to get lunch, though - the bookseller who these crates belong to offered us a free meal for our help. Would you like to join us?" She looks over at Ishigari, Jianna and Jak. "If that's alright with you, of course."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Mas' back is turned, so he probably can't see it, but Daran covers his face with his palm in frustration. At least he didn't mention the bracelet.

[Yawielas]

Jianna turns, stopping half way up the stairs when the new arrivals enter. She nods to Daran and Mas, looking curiously at the latter. Another Andoran, by the look and name. A rather dashing one, as well. "Pleased to meet you." Looking to Kireyn, she nods. "Of course. I think they'll have to pay for their own lunch, though," she smiles.

[bahamut920]

OOC: Does Jak reconise my name, since he is from Andor as well and my rep is pretty high.
Probably not; Jak doesn't have any ranks in Knowledge (nobility and royalty), which means he can't beat any DCs over 10. Which means that, unless fireinthedust decides your name is common knowledge, Jak has no chance...

I have no idea if the Reputation system works in regards to PCs, though; if it works, you can roll 1d20 and add your Reputation score; if you beat 20 (DC 25 for being in the midlands, -5 for the midlands being your home region; though fireinthedust is withing her rights to interpret "character's home town/area" more strictly than "home region") then Jak (and probably Jianna, she's Andoran as well) know who you are, probably; or at the very least, we might recognize your name, or surname, or something...

Jak pipes in, "With two new helpers, we'll probably only be one more trip up for each of us, and we can be off to eat." He glances over at the crates, and, indeed, there seem to be exactly six remaining. "It would be best if we just finished off this task now," he continues, picking up another one and finding it almost too much weight to bear. With typical midlander stubbornness, however, he refuses to put the crate down and try another; he simply lets out a grunt and begins waddling towards the tower door, his legs slightly bowed under the weight of his cargo.

[The_Snark]

Surprised, Sarinen takes the porcelain figure from the massive fingers, turning it over to examine it. "Thank you," she says. A fish—a pike, she thought; she knew next to nothing about fishing, but it had a distinctive shape to it. The carving was fairly good, and she knew the ceramic had to be expensive; now that she actually held it, she could feel it had to be delicate. She remembered him giving them to children earlier, and wondered at that.

Of course, compared with the ruined cart, a few figurines given away to children who would probably break them fairly soon counted for little. She blinks as she looks at this, realizing that while some of his wares might have survived this would be a severe loss to his livelihood. "I'm sorry about your cart. I guess you'll be staying for the rest of the fair, and maybe after."

[Arxheon89]

I was thinking the same as Jak with the rep thing, I have a rep of 6 which say on page 105 that they would be known through their home domain or kingdom, on par with an Aes Sedai or a Great Lord, which is Andor. By the way my rep is 6 because of the fame feat, 2 for noble and 4 for the fame feat.

"That sounds to be a wonderful idea. Now please ladies..." Pointing to Jianna and Kireyn "Do not move another hand, my friend Daran and I shall take your boxes as well."
With that Mas moves to pick up a crate and begins the trip up stairs, planning to come down for a second crate when done.

[Unkabear]

Noal's ears wiggle a bit as a pensive look draws across his face. "I was planning on it, and this shouldn't change my plans." He said lifting the remains of what was salvageable into a blanket that quickly turned into a sack. If he was really as apprehensive as he should have been he would have worried that something might scratch. But he could fit most of it into saddle bags or a pack for Sofie and perhaps leave the cart behind for a while.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"Do not move another hand, my friend Daran and I shall take your boxes as well."

"Now wait a minute, I didn't volunteer for extr--er," Daran glances at Kireyn and her friend. Can't very well back out of it now, can I? With a sigh, he heaps one box on top of another, picks up the bottom one, and begins a tottering, uneven ascent of the tower stairs.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

For his part, Ishigari seems content to accept Jak’s explanation and says no more on the matter. He looks startled at Jianna’s sudden outburst, but cannot help but smile a little at her obvious fascination and embarrassment, though he attempts to conceal it so as not to embarrass her further.

Who can blame her? I cannot imagine anyone who would not want to know more about the Dragon Reborn. Or wish that he had been reborn in someone else’s lifetime.

Suddenly the somewhat awkward silence is broken by the appearance of two disparate yet obviously acquainted men. He listens politely as Kireyn and Daran make introductions. He seems unsurprised by the nobleman’s forward nature and side-steps his relentless advance on Kireyn, greeting Daran personally.

"Peace favour you sword, Daran. As Kireyn said, my name is Ishigari. I understand you hail from Shienar. I was explaining to Kireyn that there are a number of Borderlanders with whom I am currently serving as guards for an Arafellin merchant. Perhaps I could make introductions later?"

He notes the look that passes between Daran and Kireyn, getting the impression that the young woman somehow stood above him, even though they were simply lady-in-waiting and bodyguard to a presumably higher ranking woman. He snaps himself out of it as Kireyn speaks to the tower group.

"I would welcome the company, so long as the old man has no objection."

He nods in agreement as Jianna refers the newcomers having to pay for their own food. Shaking his head at the somewhat foppish nobleman’s gallantry after the young women had already moved their fair share of the boxes in the tower, he makes his way over and picks up one of the last boxes.

"Come now, let us move the last of these so we can relax and enjoy our meal and the fair."

[fireinthedust]

ooc: so Mas is famous enough that he would have been heard of (I can let you Feat do you thing for you). Good enough for me.


Moving Everyone Along ((I'm taking liberties, but think of them as RP aides)):

The day of the fair moves forward, and soon enough the evening comes.

Noal and Sarinen find themselves enjoying each others' company, the young lady fascinated by someone so different from herself and human beings. The people of Swallowtail are *very* interested in an Ogier, and his remaining goods are sold very easily: everyone wants to meet and have a piece of a stranger. He makes back just enough from the sale of his goods that he's not ruined, despite the loss of some valuable goods. The crowds come and go, and while he is occasionally asked about prices and haggling (there's always one), Noal is asked about his people, Steddings, whether he was made by the shadow, whether he's met the Dragon Reborn, if he has magical powers, etc.
Sarinen keeps an eye out for the stranger she and Noal stumbled over, but never sees him for certain. Something about him, and not just his incredible good looks, fascinates her; she cannot seem to entirely stop thinking about him.
Afterwards the pair wander about the fair, conversation coming easily, with events and performers sparking their interest. Eventually they find themselves in need of an evening meal more substantial than apples and candies, and they make their way to a large house of hospitality: the broken wheel Inn.

Those helping the book seller go for their meal, but such a good time is had that they stay together for the rest of the day. Jainen and Jak together startle as they suddenly remember who Mas is: an Andoran noblemen of some reputation, stories of whom are told (or made up) all over Andor with some level of notoriety.
Jainen spends some time telling stories, including reference to Mas' exploits, while the rest of the group watches. Some rowdies move to the stage, foreign guards without manners requesting impolite things of Jainen; the Shienarans in quick order make it clear to them this is a bad idea after a short fist fight (one of the guards tripping over a strangely hard piece of air mid-battle, for some reason).
Later the group finds it is time already for an evening meal, and they make their way to the Broken Wheel Inn.


The Inn:

The Inn is crowded now, and many long tables and benches are crammed with patrons from all over seeking a treat from after the fair. The food is good and hot, and the atmosphere friendly.

Where are you?

[Ifni]

Kireyn laughs at a comment from one of the others, and takes off her jacket as they step into the warmth of the inn. She'd meant to spend the afternoon in the bookseller's tower library, but she was glad she'd stayed with the others after lunch: she hadn't had so much fun in a long time. The books would keep - they had several more days in Swallowtail, after all. She was especially intrigued by the black book the old man had been examining. Light willing, nobody will buy those books before I get a chance to look them over. It had been a most satisfactory day, all in all.

She steps to the side to allow another group entry into the inn: it seems to be a popular place for dining. Her eyes widen as she takes in the size of one of the newcomers: he must be an Ogier! She has read of the great builders, of course, but not met one before.

She dips a curtsey and says haltingly in the Old Tongue, "Kiserai ti Wansho, T'ingshen." Light, I hope I didn't mispronounce that too badly. Just in case... "Glory to the Builders, Treebrother."

[OOC: Kireyn's greeting is the traditional Borderlands greeting to Ogier.]

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran follows a few steps behind Kireyn. He's grinning--it's hard not to in such good company--but every few minutes the grin slips a little bit and he reaches up gingerly to touch the area around his right eye. If the angry stab of pain that he gets when he does this is any indication, he's going to have a truly spectacular shiner there by the end of the day. Won't say it wasn't worth it, just wish I'd thought of something better to do than headbutting his oncoming fist.

[Yawielas]

Jianna, whose stage name apparently is Jainen ;) , counts the coin she made from her storytelling and music, still a little red in the cheeks after the commotion following the rather rude requests. She had thanked the Shienaran guards, and followed her new friends to the Inn for an evening meal, starting to feel a little parched.

Inside the Inn, Jianna sits with Kireyn, Daran, Jak, Ishigari and Mas, and orders a mug of cider and a platter of roasted meat and vegetables. She gasps a little as the Ogier enters, he looks even bigger from the ground.

[Unkabear]

Noal entered and sat down cross legged still towering above the table below him sat grazing on breads and cheeses, not wishing to look the glutton though he really desired a half a lamb, He sat having suffored the assault of questions thrown at him with good humor and a friend in Sarinen came as a plesant suprize.

As Kireyn approached he heard the sweet sound of the Old Tongue, it was becoming a lost art for the humans of this world, and now usually only nobles, schollars and Aes Sedai know the forms. "Ninte calichniye no domachita" Noal replies his grin stretching his face. Your welcome warms me

[Arxheon89]

"By the light an Ogier, what great luck this is." Exclaims Mas with a smile.
"Come my large friend pull up a chair or three." Mas turns towards the bar yelling "Innkeeper bring some ale and food for our large friend here."
"Now my new friend I have long heard that Ogier tell many a fine tale, meaning no offence to the fine tales of the beautiful lady Jianna, so if you could regale us with an Ogier story I would feel most blessed."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran is just sitting down to his meal when Mas and Kireyn spot the ogier. At first he very nearly gawks at it, but his manners make a quick recovery and he turns the gawk into a mouthful of bread. His gaze snaps right back to his dinner after that.

He probably gets this everywhere he goes.

[Unkabear]

Noals ears twitched a few times before he accepted the invitation to spin a yarn. He tells of Artur Paendrag Tanreall and how he broke the False Dragon Amalasan's army. It was a simple tale that any child knows, but the Ogier had fewer generations between now and then and there are tales that they tell and there are a few details that he slips in (in a humorous way) about things that might have happened in spectacularly outrageous ways.

He tells the story between bites to eat and sips of a drink to keep his mouth moist. He tries to keep it flowing and though he is not a gleeman he believes that he does the story justice.

Performance Rolls = 16 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1729348/)

[The_Snark]

The day passes pleasantly for Sarinen, and she has found that the best cure for her tendency to stare and marvel at the Ogier's great stature is to see the openmouthed stares of others seeing him for the first time. In hardly any time at all, she is acting as if talking with ten-foot men were something she was completely used to, on the outside at least. Inwardly, she still sometimes can't believe it, watching his mannerisms out of the corner of her eye. He moves incredibly gently; all the big men she'd known before had been... controlled, perhaps. Gentle was not a word she would have used of them, but it was easy to see in Noal's motions that he was. Picking delicate pottery out of the dirt, shaking a small child's hand solemnly with a single large finger, holding the inn's cutlery (she wondered if they would give him a ladle to use as a soup spoon)... it was clear that Noal was used to keeping his motions slow and careful, and that he didn't mind.

Unfortunately, while he tries, he's a little less used to matching pace with her shorter legs. By the end of the day, Sarinen is more than ready to sit down; if it weren't for her training, she'd have been exhausted. She can't help but smile inside at the gapes Noal got in the tavern, but that inward smile quickly turns rueful as they handle themselves with much more aplomb than she. Greeting him in his own language, no less! Well, it isn't as if I expected to be the most worldly person here. I don't even recognize half their accents.

They seem pleasant enough, though, and she listens to Noal's story with interest. She knows the basics, of course, but reading it from a history text and hearing it told as a story are two very different things.

[Ifni]

Kireyn flushes in pleasure at Noal's response to her greeting, and takes a seat beside Sarinen. She listens to his story with delight, still finding it a little difficult to believe that she's sharing a table with one of the fabled Treebrothers. The wine is good, the company is better, and she is soon laughing with the rest at the Ogier's impromptu additions to the tale.

She does notice that Daran doesn't seem to be enjoying himself as much as she would expect. She remembers he took a punch in the face from one of the louts who was bothering Jianna earlier, and his eye is starting to look puffy and painful. As Noal pauses to catch his breath, she leans over and whispers to him, "Are you all right? If your eye is really sore, maybe Jak could look at it, he said he was a healer."

It would be nice if Healing was one of my Talents, although I know what the Yellows would say about using it on a bruise.

As the old story goes on she looks curiously at the young woman who came in with the Treebrother, wondering what her tale is. She can't be much older than Kireyn herself: not many women of her age wear a sword and are acquainted with Ogier. Kireyn smiles at the other woman but waits for the end of Noal's story to introduce herself.

When the tale has ended and the applause has died down, Kireyn turns to Sarinen. "So what brings you to Swallowtail?" She holds out her hand. "I am Kireyn Sakuri, of Chachin."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Never having met an Ogier before, Ishigari reacts with similar surprise when confronted with Noal’s presence. He listens as Kireyn greets him in the traditional Old Tongue greeting for the Treebrothers. He gathers himself and, having no aptitude with the Old Tongue, simply sinks into a deep bow of respect normally reserved for those who stand far above him.

"I am honored to meet you Treebrother. The blessing of the Light and stillness upon you."

He smiles as Mas, who he now realises is only a few years older than himself, orders food and drink and asks the towering Ogier to regale the group. Adding his own polite request to those of the others around the table, he listens with avid interest as the tale unfolds, enjoying the humor the gentle giant adds to the story.

He leans back at the end of the tale and takes in the odd assortment sitting around the table.

Nobles and commoners, humans and Treebrothers, all in a small town that is nothing more than a village for most of the year – I never thought to see this when I set out this morning.

He leans forward as Kireyn speaks to the young woman sitting next to her, his interest obviously aroused by the sword she wears and her friendship to an Ogier.

[Arxheon89]

OOC: Don't have time for a full post, I must away to work. But I have to say i'm loving this game so much, specialy the parts where daran becomes awkard.

[The_Snark]

"Sarinen Casfil, of Aldessin," Sarinen answers in kind, taking the hand. "Just passing through, but I thought I'd stay for the fair." She sizes up the other woman: about her age, a little shorter and not as fit. Better dressed, though, at the moment. Her companions were a mixed bunch: a young man with his hair in two long braids (odd as that looked, she seemed to recall it was some kind of Borderland custom), with not one but two swords lying against his chair; the slightly older man who'd invited Noal over to the table, dressed more finely than anyone else in an embroidered silk coat; and another three her age or maybe younger, none of them as armed or exotic.

An odd mix, although not half as odd as she supposed an Ogier and a young woman with a sword was. Then again, maybe they didn't all know one another any more than she did. The inn was crowded enough that plenty of strangers were sitting together. "What of you?" she asks, curious. "Chachin's a long way, I can't think you came all this way just for the fair."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

In spite of himself, Daran gets caught up in the ogier's web of words. There's something to the rumbling undertone that carries them that puts him at ease. Still, he does his best not to gawk, keeping his eyes on his meal. When Kireyn leans over and whispers, he jolts a little bit, then realizes that he's been staring mesmerized at a potato for the last few minutes.

"It's, ah, nothing to concern yourself over. It'll remind me to duck next time."

[Ifni]

Kireyn answers Sarinen, "Daran and I -" she nods at the Shienaran youth "- both serve the Lady Vera. She travels a great deal."

"Aldessin... I don't think I've ever heard the name. Is it near here?" She's not sure where the other woman's accent is from, and listens more closely, trying to pick it out. She sounds southern, but her voice doesn't quite match the Altaran accents Kireyn has heard around Swallowtail... Amadician, perhaps, or maybe Ghealdanin? "I hope your journey here was peaceful? Jak mentioned some trouble with bandits on the road." She takes another swallow of wine and waits for Sarinen's reply.


Knowledge (Politics) check on Aldessin = 13 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1729917/)

Knowledge (Local) check on Aldessin = 9 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1729920/)

Listen check to identify Sarinen's accent = 22 (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1729921/)

[The_Snark]

"It's a town west of here a ways. No reason you should have heard of it," Sarinen replies. "The journey was peaceful enough, but I've heard there are bandits and Dragonsworn all across Altara, so I've been staying here the past few weeks." In addition to the work people had for her helping to set up for the fair, she'd been considering seeing if she couldn't find work as a merchant's guard, or at least find somebody she might travel with for more security. A sword and a horse were enough to discourage the most casual banditry, but any two or three men—or just one if he had a bow—could be the end of her if they tried. Not a risk she really wanted to take, not any more than she had to.

[Unkabear]

Noal accepts the greeting and offers his own, "Suravye ninto manshima taichite" He says but finishes with the translation just in case, "Peace Favor your Sword." He says with gratitude in his voice.

Although he was getting used to the stares and gawks, it was nice to begin to feel accepted. He knew that the little one Sarinen was beginning to feel safe around him. And generally given his size most people are.

[bahamut920]

"The roads have been getting very dangerous recently," Jak pipes in, his expression the most serious anyone here has seen it. "More so for those without proper weapons or armor, and even more so for those alone. I've been thinking of asking either Sir Ishigari or Miss Kireyn if it would be possible for me to travel with them and their patrons for a while; I'm not too handy with a sword, or any weapons really, but I have a quick wit and am a capable healer, both of which would be an asset to any group on the roads these days." He looks Sarinen straight in the eye and continues, "Perhaps that might be best for you, too, milady."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Having been content to listen to the conversation between Kireyn and Sarinen, Ishigari straitens at Jaks demeanor and tone as he speaks of the possibility of joining the caravan.

"It is true that the longer we have been away from Arafel, the more unrest we have encountered. I have had to earn my pay more once, unfortunately. Sometimes a merchant caravan guarded or not can be a tempting target, though we soon teach them the error of their ways. We often have travelers join us for a time though, as long as they are willing to contribute in some way, to take advantage of the comforts and security that travelling in a group does present."

Not sure how Sarinen will take Jaks suggestion, Ishigari speaks up once more.

"I cannot speak for my employer, but I am sure you would be welcome to join us. We will be travelling northwards again after the fair, heading back slowly towards the capital of Arafel, Shol Arbela. Likely we will also stop in Kandor, though no decision had been reached on the road we will take last time we spoke."

[Arxheon89]

Listening to the conversations around him Mas decides that It will soon be time to leave this town and some company was in order.
Jumping into the conversation "Well what a surprise, Shol Arbela is my final destination. I'm visiting an old friend of mine, and some company would be must welcome, perhaps I should meet this Lady Vera and make arrangements for our joint travels." Taking a swig of ale Mas continues. "Of course I would need to hire a few people to act as my bodyguards and porters first, but that can all be worked out in the morning for now let us all drink."
"Innkeeper, another round for my friends and I, no make that for the whole room." Mas shout towards the bar, shaking a purse full of coin at the man.

[Yawielas]

Jianna finally closes her mouth after staring at the ogier, and nods in greeting in stead. She looks curiously at the woman with the sword, wondering if she might be a Hunter. She'd heard tales of female Hunters just as eager as the men. She orders a cider when Mas buys a round for the whole tavern, then ponders whether or not she should join a caravan for a while. Travelling alone was not quite the experience she'd imagined it to be. Exciting, yes, but sometimes too much. However, the scene with the caravan guards left her reluctant to consider joining up with one. Maybe the Arafellin's caravan was different, though. While she thinks, she pulls her flute from her belt, and starts playing softly, just adding some background music.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

For perhaps the first time, Daran regrets being such a quick eater. I can't very well keep staring at an empty plate, can I? He looks up tentatively and finds his gaze drawn towards the ogier again. He can't be real. He's twice as big as the stories, and they say that when an ogier gets mad he throws trees around. Not only that, but he looks like he could eat an entire boar by himself. How do cities of ogier survive? You'd need a farm the size of Tar Valon to feed them and...Light, would you listen to yourself? You're probably gaping at him like some Borderlander kid.

Daran snaps his jaw shut and turns his face sharply away, which leaves him looking at Jianna. She's playing something slow and contemplative on her flute. Probably dwelling on those toughs.

"I wouldn't worry too much about what happened earlier. Men like that are a lot of talk...and occasionally a few fists, but mostly talk." He tries to angle his developing black eye away from her. How long have you been traveling for, by the way?

[Yawielas]

Jianna puts her flute down and looks to Daran, wincing a little seeing his eye. "Well....not for very long, although it seems long...I left home almost a year ago, travelling with my father at first. We parted ways about 3 months ago."

[Unkabear]

Noal asked for some fruit sweetened tea, and ended up with the whole clay pitcher. Not that Noal complained, it looked like a small cup in his hands instead of a toy that he had been using before. Between that and the leg of lamb that he was munching on rather like a human would a chicken leg. He decided that now much like many other times that he would allow the others to be noisy and let them mistake his silence for wisdom. He was not wise as those that would speak at the stump, and his wife would often shake her head at him, but she was supportive and knew that he at least knew how to appear in the manner that did not disgrace their kind.

[fireinthedust]

ooc to Everyone: here's something to move the story forward (I just don't like to do it artificially)

Whoever answers this post first gets something to happen to them. Just post a spoiler with "DIBS!" in it.

[bahamut920]

I suppose I'll take one for the team... As long as it isn't hit point damage (with my whopping 4 HP, I'll probably die from any single attack). :smalltongue: Sooo... DIBS!

Jak overhears the conversation between Daran and Jianna, and asks, hios tone simply curious, "If you were traveling together, why did you split up? Are you looking for something?"

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"With your father?" A sad shadow scuds across Daran's face for a moment, as if a cloud passed high overhead. "What was that like? I've never traveled with family before. My Ma and Da were content to work the same little patch of earth for as long as they could pull crops out of it."

[fireinthedust]

Jak ((a brave man, Jak; if only more o' yer kind liv'd t'tell the tale...))

Jak's stomach suddenly makes a loud rumbling noise... and a wave of nausea passes through his bowels. He is feeling sick, and needs to step outside (perhaps to find the facilities, if he can figure out where they are). His healing skills inform him that it would be a good idea to do so immediately, if he hopes to avoid social scandal.

The rest of the table can hear the sound his stomach makes, and look impressed. One drunken guard, who had been watching Noal's impressive performance, hoots. Hoy! This lad needs some food, I'd wager, or I've been in my cups. Oh, wait, I have! and with that raises his cup.

[Ifni]

Kireyn sits quietly, enjoying the good food and listening to the conversation. She is glad that Mas and Ishigari spoke up in answer to Jak's request: she likes all the people she has met today, but doesn't know how Vera would react to being asked to take on more followers.

She reacts minimally to Jak's stomach rumble, hiding a slight smile behind her wineglass, unless he actually starts to look distressed.

I'm away from home on a work trip at the moment, so may not be posting much for the next two days.

[bahamut920]

Jak stands up from the table almost immediately after the rumbling noise and nausea, saying, "Excuse me for a minute; I think that means I need to use the privy..." His face is slightly tight, and his forehead shows several beads of sweat.

Jak attempts to reach the inn's outhouse in time, but if not, he tries to at least remove himself from casual view before he does his business (whatever business it may be). Afterwards, he embraces the One Power and channels, directing a flow of Spirit inside himself, attempting to find the disharmony which has caused his sudden illness.

Crunch: Jak casts the delve weave at level 2 (his Spirit Affinity reduces the weave slot required by one level, so he can cast it with a level 1 weave slot). Delve allows me to find out what's wrong with the target: level 2 covers injury, disease, and poison. Jak gains a +5 bonus to Heal checks made to aid the target (himself). Speaking of which, he attempts a Heal check to at least stave off the damage:
[roll0]

[Yawielas]

Answering Jak before he has to rush off to the outhouse, she shrugs. "Nah, we just...I wanted to see the world, and maybe I was keeping him from living his life the way he wanted." Turning to Daran, Jianna answers:"It was both interesting and a little awkward...I don't really know him all that well. He's a peddler, and I went with him to learn and to get out from Devon's Ride for a while. I did learn a lot, but after a while I realised we might be better off apart." She glances after Jak as he darts from the table. "I hope he's allright.."

[The_Snark]

Sarinen is about to reply before Jak's hurried excusal cuts her off; she directs her reply to the young man with two swords, instead. "I... might take you up on that. I can pay my way as a guard, if needed." She doesn't touch or even look at the sword propped against the leg of her chair, but her words are a reminder anyway. The idea of fighting just to pay her passage isn't all that appealing, but she doesn't think it likely that she'll find a less tempting target that still has enough people to protect her. "You're... Ishigari, then?" she questions, pronouncing the odd name carefully as she looks over the Borderlander again.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari listens politely as Mas speaks and then orders drinks for the room before answering.

"That is generous of you, and much appreciated. I have not personally met Lady Vera myself, but I am sure either Daran or Kireyn could make the appropriate introductions, and I would be happy to introduce you to my employer. As for guards, there are a number in the caravan I travel with, but I am sure you will be able to hire some help here."

He listens to the conversation between Daran, Jianna and Jak, enjoying the music from Jianna’s flute and smiles as Jak excuses himself, shaking his head slightly before looking over at Sarinen as she addresses him. He inclines his head in assent as he speaks and pronounces his name a bit slower than normal, to help her.

"That is correct - my full name is Ishigari Narshima. As I said before, I see no problem with you joining our caravan for as long as it is going your way, though you will have to speak to my employer first."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"I hope he's allright.."

Daran follows Jianna's glance. "I think he'll be fine. I've yet to hear tell of a man who was done in by a trip to the sh-" polite company! polite company! "The sh-outhouse. So, uh," Daran tries brightly to change the subject, "was it your father that taught you to play the flute? He must've been really talented."

[Yawielas]

Jianna shakes her head. "No, that was my mother. My Da only knows how to peddle and charm women," she says ruefully. She takes a sip of her cider and changes the subject. "So, are you some kind of bodyguard to this lady you're serving?"

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"I, uh...suppose that might be one way of putting it. I have learned the use of a sword, and I can certainly take care of myself, but I haven't much experience with, y'know, bodyguarding. Maybe it would be better to call me an apprentice?" Daran drops his voice just a little bit, letting it slip under the dull roar of background conversations. "I'm traveling with the lady Vera to learn how to protect other people. It's not terribly hard work when things are going well. Most of what I do is stretch out on the beds of various inns or sit under the stars and watch the night. But there's always a little buzz in the back of here," he taps the side of his head, "reminding me to keep an eye out for trouble. Traveling alone must be a lot more relaxing. You only have to worry about you."

[Unkabear]

Noal leans back and knows that if he desired to join he would be welcome, there were few places in the light that he would not be. He continues to nurse his Tea, and listens.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari looks thoughtfully at Sarinen for a moment before geasturing towards Mas with his mug as he speaks.

"I understand Mas intends to eventually travel to Arafel, but how far would you be seeking to travel with us? Do you have a final destination in mind?"

[fireinthedust]

Jak: It would be good if you read this now.

You make it outside to the outhouse. It's a small, grey-wood building out back from the Inn, near a collection of thin-trunked trees (more oversized shrubs, but still). You go inside, getting over the smell, and try to clear your head. Just being outside seems to make you feel better.
You check your wounds well enough, and see a slight case of stomach upset from a minor cold boosted by what you've had to drink. You see it inside you, the cold, like a dark shape in the weave of your body. The thought occurs to you as you look at it I wonder if it's looking at me, too. and for the briefest of instants you see the cold running around your body, looking back at you. It seems entirely natural for you to say "hello" to the charming creature... and then the moment fades, and you find you're still in the out house, aware only of holding on to the power.

Leaving the outhouse you feel a cold wind blow over you. It is at first refreshing, but then overwhelms you with its chill. You can hear a strange noise, like pieces of metal spinning and cutting through the air with a hum.

You look and notice a figure walking along the main street. There are lamps in the evening at Swallowtail's fest, and whoever this person is they're moving from one spot of illumination to the next. Cloaked, the figure is a male with swords in his hands: two longswords, both spinning up and around, back and forth, hypnotically. It's strange, but you are fascinated by the swords' motion.

And then you see it: a monster, standing a few paces away from you to your left. It's as large as Noal, but its body is covered in black plate armor. Its body is mishapen and strong, with white fur covering its body, and a head like a goat with two pointy horns, white ears and flat-pupiled yellow eyes. It is, you are certain, a Trolloc. It doesn't see you yet, it's moving in the shadows of the building next to the Inn. You can see the door leading back to the Inn, but there's a patch of light between your current spot and it. You risk alerting it to your presence if you make a dash for it.

[bahamut920]

Jak freezes in place, dumbfounded by the sight of the Trolloc. His mind reels uselessly for a few moments, then he begins to search it for an answer, for something to do about this menace. Blood and ashes, he thinks, I joked to myself about a Trolloc showing up to browse the stalls before, but I didn't think it would actually happen!

Jak's mind turns up nothing; he is simply not suited for combat, even with the aid of the One Power. Perhaps I could attempt to scare it off by a bluff paired with an illusion, but if it's not fooled, I'll die... Seems best to wait and see what that man with the swords does. He considers attempting to slink away unseen, but remembers a story he once heard; supposedly, Trollocs have excellent hearing. But if it do nothing, I'll surely die... Blood and ashes, what am I supposed to do?! Setting his jaw, he realizes that his only chance to live is to try to get away, and his best chance at that is stealth. As quietly as he can manage, Jak begins to carefully slink backwards.

Crunch
Skill Checks
[roll0], [roll1]

[fireinthedust]

Jak attempts to slip back behind the outhouse, into the trees. His foot scrapes the ground, bu the Trolloc doesn't turn. The dark-cloaked man in the street seems to be doing two-sword versions of various blade-forms, systematically going from form to form. The Trolloc moves off to a nearby building, away from Jak.
Jak can hear a crash, perhaps from a few streets away, and a faint sound like a shout. There are other shadows moving between the houses.


Everyone Else: the music is loud, the drinks are cold, the company warm. :smallsmile:

[bahamut920]

Once the Trolloc is out of sight, Jak hurries back to the door of the inn. He pauses a moment, composing himself, before he heads back in. He hurries back over to the table and, still standing, says to the group, "We have a problem." His tone is just loud enough to be heard by everyone at the table without carrying to other nearby tables. "There was a Trolloc outside the inn. It almost saw me; fortunately for me, I think it was looking for someone - or something - else." He puts his hands down on the table. "We need to deal with this quickly and quietly; if word gets out, there will likely be panic. I'd have gotten the town guards, but I was worried that there were more, and I can't fight my way out of a bedsheet, let alone a fist of Trollocs."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"WHAT?!" Daran blushes and drops his voice by a few decibels, but the damage is probably already done. "Er, that is, what? It's not that I doubt your word, but perhaps your eyes deceived you?"

Even as he says this, his eyes are darting back and forth, pupils wide. There's no way a trolloc could have found its way into town. It would have stood out like...well, like a trolloc at a festival would have. But...supposing one did. It wouldn't come in so far past the borderlands without reinforcements. Or leadership. The image of a shadowman rises involuntarily before his eyes. Daran blinks it away. Vera needs to be informed of this. Unless... is it here for her?

Dropping his voice to a whisper, Daran asks Jak "can you show me where it was?"

Question for the DM:Where are Vera Sedai and the inn where Daran left his equipment, anyways?

[Ifni]

Kireyn looks up with a smile as Jak comes back into the inn, but her face goes white at his first words. She does not even consider the possibility he might be joking: surely not even a southlander would jest about Shadowspawn. She whispers, "This far south? But how..." but Daran's reaction means she goes unheard.

Even as Daran speaks, though, Kireyn is pushing back her chair and standing. She opens herself to the True Source, letting the Power rush into her, and prepares threads of Spirit and Fire and Air. Her face is deliberately calm as she looks to the others, nods toward the door, and says, "Shall we?"

[OOC: How solidly built is the inn? If it looks like it would be possible to defend it (i.e. stone / brick / thick wooden walls, not too many doorways or large windows), Kireyn will weave a L1 Ward Against Shadowspawn in the doorway as her first action after embracing the Power, to protect the people here and give us a place to fall back to. After that, if nothing else has happened, she will follow the others to the door.]

[bahamut920]

Jak winces at Daran's shout, and casts a glance at a few of the nearby tables. He responds to Daran in the same hushed tone he used before, "Where it was? Not more than a dozen feet from the inn. I had to hide behind the outhouse to avoid being seen. Where it is now? I'm not sure, but I can point out the direction it left in."

[Unkabear]

Noal sighed and stood up and began clearing a way to the door, with "excuse me" and "pardon me" and other things. The sight of him quickly opened a path, what path could be open as he gently picks his way through to the door, grabbing his walking staff at the door, it was easy to tell apart from the other quarterstaves as it was nearly a length longer and thicker by a few inches. Though once he clears the door he steps aside and keeps watch. As much as he was the strongest, he was not a fighter and would be swinging over the heads of those that are.

[Arxheon89]

"Looks like a hunt is about to begin, any who can fight come with me, we must deal with this problem with speed." Mas quickly runs up stairs and grabs his sword and bow. Upon arriving down stairs Mas yells to the barkeep "Another round of drinks for all." Shoving another fistful of coins at the man. With that Mas follows Noal out the door.


OOC: even though Mas is a noble, he is very serious about hunting and enjoys sword play. he prefers to use his bow to take down prey (eg. deer and bears.).

[fireinthedust]

Daran and Kireyn: You both happen to have booked rooms here at this Inn. As Vera and her warder are oft forgotten, you two were booked in as... either brother and sister or newly wedded couple (whichever would work better for the story: uncomfortable bonding or frustrating Daran's hopes to be seen as a love interest (rather than a "little brother"). I leave it to you two what the story is/was.
However, your equipment is here. The Inn is moderately defensible, but there is a lot of wood: the foundation is stone, with a low stone half-wall, but from three feet off the ground and up it's plaster and wood, emphasis on the wood.
Still no sign of Vera.


Noal: Looking outside you don't see anything amiss. There's the smell of char in the air, but that's likely from cooking fires.
Oy, what you lookin' at, Ogier? Any more o' yor kind showin' up? Says a drunken tradesman. he seems jolly and in his cups, and a red-faced sort of friendly.

Mas: The whole room cheers as the gold lands in the Innkeeper's hand, and many trays laden with ale are brought out for all the guests.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen almost swallows her wine the wrong way at Jak's pronouncement, and almost asks, Are you drunk? Only the startled, serious manner in which the others take the news keeps her from doing it, and she stares at Jak and the rest as if not sure whether this isn't all some elaborate prank. Jak doesn't really look drunk, after all. Maybe it's a dream.

"Are you serious?" she finally gets out, standing and looking between the others uncertainly. "I mean, Trollocs? Here?" It wasn't that she didn't believe in them, not exactly, but they were supposed to live up near the Borderlands, not in Altara.

[bahamut920]

Is there any way that either Jak, Mas, or Jianna, being Andoran - and Jianna from Devon Ride - could have heard of the events in the Two Rivers (from Eye of the World, when Trollocs invaded Emond's Field)? Jak has no Knowledge (local), so he'd only be able to know if the DC is 10 or less (common knowledge), but maybe Jianna or Mas have heard something...
Jak sighs, thinking, I guess I should have expected some disbelief; I mean, I'm telling them that there are Trollocs where none have been since the Trolloc Wars...

"Of course I'm serious," Jak says, a bit of his frustration and fear creeping into his voice. "Do you really think I'd joke about something like that?!" He stands back upright, and continues, "Our first goal should be to rouse the watch. We should all go and try to make it to a guardhouse; then we'll have reinforcements, should there be a number of those things. We'll need to move swiftly; does anyone know where the nearest guard station is?"

[Ifni]

[OOC: Let's see how much Kireyn remembers about Trollocs right at the moment... [roll0] Knowledge (Shadow).]

Kireyn nods curtly at Jak. "I agree. Some of the other swords here might be helpful, as well." She looks around the inn, assessing the other customers: if a fist of Trollocs has invaded the town, they will need all the armed assistance available. "If the beasts are trying to pass unseen, we may have some time." She moves purposefully toward the door, but stays behind Noal.

Her brow furrows in anxiety as she looks at the wooden walls of the inn. She had considered Warding the door against intrusion by Shadowspawn, but this place could become a deathtrap if the Trollocs set the roof alight. She continues to hold the Power, and strains her senses for any hint of another woman's channelling: where is Vera Sedai?

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Feeling calm and relaxed, with a strong drink and good company, the last thing Ishigari expects is a southerner to walk in to an Altaran inn and announce the presence of shadowspawn in a calm manner. Nevertheless he acts calmly but with purpose, evan as Darran’s brief exclamation rings out through the inn, reaching down in an unhurried manner and picking up his two sheathed blades.

He looks at Kireyn with a confused look as she stands and indicates the door, strapping on the scabbards so the blades sit crossed once more above his shoulders, obviously wondering what the young woman with no weapons intends to do. Before he can voice his concerns, however, his attention is claimed once more as Jak speaks. He listens patiently and then replies in a low calm voice.

"Did you see how many there were, or any distinctive markings on its weapons or amour?"

Sensing that the mood at the table was a mixture of purpose and disbelief, he moves around the table towards the young women as Noal and then Mas move towards the door. As Sarinen voices her shock, he steps close to her and bends down, picking up her sword and handing it to her, his other hand resting lightly on her shoulder.

"Whatever happens here you must remain calm, we will have need of your sword arm before too long."

He turns back to the group at large as they discuss rousing the guard and Kireyn moves to join Noal. He looks at Sarinen and then longer at Jianna before speaking in a brisk voice.

"This festival will have left this town badly defended unless there is a highly professional guard. There are a good number of blades in this inn, but we have all been drinking and many are in no shape for a fight. Right now the best thing we can do is to organise the defense here. Going outside right now will only lead to fighting Trollocs in the street, and any guards who do not yet know will hear the screams soon enough. If you have weapons, I suggest you get them now."

Once finished, Ishigari moves towards a window near the door, dodging merry-makers with a smile, but catching the eyes of the more professional and less inebriated looking mercenaries. He looks out, trying to see if he can make out any shapes in the shadows…

[bahamut920]

Even though Jak wasn't specifically looking, is there a chance he saw the emblem on the Trolloc's armor or something? Can I make an Intelligence or Wisdom check to remember it?
[roll0]
[roll1]
Use whichever one you want, or neither if you think it's impossible. Normally, my group uses Intelligence checks to remember details, but a Wisdom check might be valid due to the fact that it's a Wisdom-based Spot check to notice them in the first place.
"I only saw one, but I think there are more," Jak replies to Ishigari's question. "And I wasn't particularly concerned with emblems or armor designs, but I'll tell you if I remember anything."

He listens to the rest of what Ishigari has to say, then speaks up again, after a moment's thought, saying, "But what if the Trollocs aren't here for conquest? They can't possibly hold a single isolated village this far south; they must have come with another purpose. Likely it's a smaller group, to slip past so many countries and armies without notice, and for a small group it would be suicide to attack an inn full of warriors. It's likely that if we get a few of the more sober fighters here, we can drive them off..." His face assumes a sheepish grin as he says, "Though that's just my untrained opinion; I haven't fought any Trollocs before, so I'm only going on what common sense tells me. Perhaps you're right, and we should set up a defense here at the inn..."

[Yawielas]

Jianna had stared wide eyed at Jak ever since he mentioned trollocs. Now she looks to Ishigari, nodding, frightened, then darts up to her room to get her sling and her quarterstaff. Not that it would do much good, but at least she'd feel safer with a weapon in hand. Upstairs, she peers through a window to see if she can spot anything out of the ordinary.

[Ifni]

As Mas and Jianna run upstairs to get their weapons, Kireyn steps next to Ishigari and says in a low voice,
"As Jak says, the Trollocs may have another purpose here. If we hide in this inn then we may allow them to accomplish it." As she speaks, she reaches into her belt pouch for a moment: when she withdraws her hand it is closed over something small. "This inn is largely wood, as well: if they decided to burn us out, it could become a deathtrap."

She hesitates for a moment, then uncurls her fingers just enough to let those near the door see the gold ring in her hand, shaped like a snake eating its own tail. If we're going to fight Trollocs, they need to know. She lowers her voice even further, and murmurs, "That said, I can ward the doorway so they cannot enter, if we judge this a good place to set up a defense."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari keeps his eyes focused outside, save for a brief acknowledgement as Kireyn approaches him. Momentarily confused at the mention of warding the door, he turns back to look at her, receiving an even greater shock as he sees the ring in her hand. Gathering himself he replies, dividing his attention equally between her and the window.

"I admit that Trollocs would not be in Altara for a simple raid, but I suspect you would know better than me the reason for the presence. Ah, forgive me Kireyn Sedi, but you seem young to have gained the shawl, and I forget my manners. As you say, this inn is less than ideal, but I am not sure we could move all these people to a guard house safely in the state they are in. Not without knowing more about their numbers and where the nearest guardhouse is."


Don’t know how far out on a limb this is, but just want to roll to see if Ishigari knows whether the Trollocs are more likely to try and force their way in first, or burn the inn to force the people inside out onto the street.

1d20+4

[Ruik]

okay that didn't work, one more try and then I'll move to the ooc thread:

[roll0]

[Unkabear]

Nolan not the ideal of stealth gently laid his hand down upon Ishigari's shoulder and with his other hand his finger over his lips. "Lower your tone" he said, though at the softness that he said it it could have just been a few bass rumbles.

[Ifni]

Kireyn shakes her head in negation as Ishigari addresses her as Aes Sedai, and murmurs, "Not Aes Sedai as yet, merely in training. An important distinction." She nods thanks to Noal and peers through the dark window, her face a determined mask of calm.

[fireinthedust]

((I'm out at the moment, but here's the best reply I can do right now))

Trollocs: most of you havn't seen them before. Those who have would think they'd likely just kill everyone in an uncoordinated attack on everything... or they'd surgically destroy everything. Trollocs are an army of boogeymen. Likely everyone here, being drunk and unprepared, is going to die horribly on the end of curved serated sword blades. think Serenity: they'll rape you, kill you, skin you and eat you, hopefully in that order! One more thing: an army would be way more than you apprentices could deal with.

Vera: You can sense her only faintly. She's never easy to locate with the Source, even when you know where she is.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen stares at Ishigari for a moment, nodding and heading upstairs. She might have her sword with her, but she didn't have her shield. Or her armor, though she isn't sure whether she ought to take the time to put it on.

Unfortunately, she's still wearing skirts, which is a downright terrible idea in a fight and makes wearing armor all but impossible. She changes as quickly as she can, donning the armor under her shirt so as not to draw too many eyes.

Sarinen is donning her armor hastily, which means her AC would only be 16. If she hasn't heard anything new from outside or downstairs in about a minute, she'll take some time to position the straps correctly (i.e. don it properly), and be down three minutes later.

[Yawielas]

Jianna walks back down, clutching her quarterstaff in both hands, while silently asking herself why she's not hiding under her bed. The answer is not very pleasant. She'd rather see them coming and die on her feet, than be dragged from her hiding place and stuffed into a trolloc's cookpot while possibly still alive.

[bahamut920]

Jak, having no more weapons than his humble belt knife, and no armor heavier than the clothes on his back, spends the time the others are using to get ready to think a bit about the situation. If we think they are here just for slaughter, then they will eventually come to the inn, and this is the best place to make our stand, he thinks. But if that is the case, we're all likely to die in the end, as they will overrun us with numbers. The inn will be surrounded and they'll break down the back door and we'll end up fighting on two fronts. Our only hope is that they are here for a reason, like I think they are, and they won't come get us, so we can fight them on our terms.

At that point, he notices that Jianna has returned from upstairs, looking absolutely terrified at the prospect of facing Trollocs. Poor girl, he thinks. Out of all of us, she's probably the least prepared for this... He walks over to her and puts a hand on her shoulder, putting a smile on his face. "Don't worry," he says. "We'll be fine. We have three Borderlanders with us; this is probably just business as usual for them. And nobody's going to die if I can help it!"

[Yawielas]

Jianna smiles weakly at Jak's attempt at encouragement, but it quickly fades. "I've heard stories. And read books. I know what they can do..." She turns a pair of wide, frightened eyes at Jak. "You...You're a healer, right? I heard you say. Can I ask you a favor? If they come in here...If it gets bad...Could you..I mean...Do you have anything in your healer kit? So that it won't hurt..." She shakes her head a bit. "No...that's cowardly, ain't it..."

[bahamut920]

Jak looks puzzled for a moment at Jianna's request. She wasn't just asking me to... he cuts off that train of thought, and decides to attempt to cheer her up again. "It won't come to that," he replies. "See, we can turn that door into a death zone. Just three people can hold it against any number of Trollocs. We set up another three people at the back door, and have a couple watch the windows. Eventually they'll get tired of breaking their teeth against us and leave. And all we have to do is convince a couple of the other fighters here to join us." He turns to Ishigari and asks, "Speaking of which, where are the rest of your friends? Having even a couple more tough fighters with us could make a world of difference."

[fireinthedust]

Sarinen: You manage to put on your armor hastily ((do you not have any trousers at all?)) and then discover nothing yet has happened. You have enough time to put on your armour all the way.

[fireinthedust]

Minutes pass, Sarinen comes down ((change of clothes to suit the armor? You've got loads of time)), and Noal still doesn't see anything. Everyone else arrives back, and still no attack has come.

The mood in the bar is still good, in that everyone's started drinking and singing. One of the patrons sits next to Jianna; a portly little guy with chubby cheeks and a gray mop of hair. You're not sad, are you love? Too pretty a lass to be sad on a night like this. Someone break your heart?

[Yawielas]

Jianna turns to the portly man, starting to feel safer now that nothing's happening. Perhaps Jak was wrong, and there were no Trollocs. After all, what would they be doing here? Everyone knew they roamed around in the Blight. "No...I'm just tired, I guess."

[bahamut920]

Jak, on the other hand, becomes more tense as minutes pass with no sign of the disgusting bestial creatures. I'm right, then, and they have a reason for being here, one which might be more dangerous than if they simply killed us, he thinks. He flops down in a nearby chair and puts his hand to his forehead, kneading his temples to help dispel a rising headache. He mutters under his breath, "Or maybe there was only the one? It didn't seem like it, but maybe it was just my fear playing tricks on me..."

Why can't I believe that? he thinks as he orders some tea.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari nods at Noal and then looks thoughtfully at Kireyn’s statement that she is not a full sister. He turns and looks sadly at the common room before turning back to the Ogier and the young woman and speaking once more in a hushed tone.

"It is unlikely we can save everyone here if this is a true raid, and I am doing naught but fooling myself if I think otherwise. It may be possible for us to leave from the Kitchen entrance if we make our way there calmly, though without my armor I hope that we do not run into Trollocs on the street."

He looks at Jianna as she comes back down, the feeling of responsibility washing over him once more, and he looks back outside. Seeing nothing, a frown creases his brow and he turns back to the group and whispers once more.

"I do not know what the Shadowspawn are doing, I would have expected them to attack by now."

He looks at Kireyn, instinctively trusing her Borderland hertige and the knowledge her serpent ring represents, whatever she might say, before continuing.

"This kind of discipline does not come to them naturally, at least not with Halfmen leading them. If we are going to leave, I suggest that we do so soon, and quietly. If we are to make our stand here, then we need to get the warriors in her out of their cups and standing too the windows."

[fireinthedust]

Noal: You keep looking out and seeing nothing. Just as the thought begins driving you mad, you see something in the street not too far away, a bit of movement over and over. You could get a better look if you got closer, and out of this doorway, to see around the corner of the building.


Ishigari and everyone else who might not yet have their stuff: I don't believe we decided where everyone had their equipment. I assumed you'd be carrying it. The Inns are generally in the same area, so you could move to them if you want; whether you leave the Inn or not is your choice (ie: steal the weapons of others...)

[Unkabear]

Noal slips out to see what had caught his attention, but first with caution he looked around the corner to make sure that there was nothing there to surprise them.

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods slightly to Ishigari in agreement with his words, her mouth twisting slightly in unhappiness, but whispers,
"I doubt the folk here will notice if we leave quietly by any door, thanks to Mas' generosity, and we've seen no watchers. Now -"

Kireyn sees Noal's tufted ears prick up. As he takes his first step away from the door, she glances back over the room and tries to catch Mas, Sarinen and Daran's eyes, beckoning them toward the door. She looks at Ishigari and murmurs, "- I think the decision has just been made."

It might be best if Jianna and Jak stay back. But the more blades, the better, if Noal has seen Shadowspawn sign.

Kireyn waits for the Ogier to clear the door and then follows cautiously outside, slipping her Great Serpent ring back into her belt pouch as she moves. She maintains her embrace of the Power, letting the sweetness of saidar be her shield against fear.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

She could be out for a walk, unaware. Passing by open alleyways, glancing up at the moon every so often with a soft smile. Letting her attention wander. And they could be waiting in the shadows all the while; all slaver and fur and the sick-mad eyes of terrified cows.

Maybe she'll hear something. A pebble scuffling underfoot. A low, hungry bark. The whuff of steamy breath that trickles out through their noses. And she'll turn. but it won't matter, 'cause they'll be on her and...

Light, Daran. Would you bloody well shut up?

The boy shakes his head and says something indistinct before turning and dizzily heading off towards his room.

Just because Jak thought he saw something--something utterly ridiculous, at that--and everyone's spooked, you shouldn't fly into a panic like some...some kid who's heard too many trolloc stories from his older sister.

All the same, Daran goes to his room and begins to rummage through the heavy wooden chest at the side of his bed. He removes from it a chainmail coat, marked discreetly as the property of Tar Valon, plus a sling, a pouch full of pebbles, and a hard oak club. Stripping quickly, he shrugs into the chainmail, then re-dons his robe over it. It doesn't completely cover the glint of metal, but it makes it less conspicuous.

Daran tucks the sling, pouch, and club under one arm. That leaves one thing still in the chest. Atop a stack of robes is a longsword, resting quietly in its sheath.

Not this time. I'm not going to frighten the patrons here. At least, not any more than I have already. A rueful grimace slides across his face. You're staying behind. Turning around, Daran marches back downstairs.

Kireyn: Of the two options fireinthedust gave us for our traveling arrangements, I think that posing as a couple has a lot more potential. Daran would be way more comfortable if they were pretending to be brother and sister, and anything that makes Daran uncomfortable is good for character development :smallbiggrin: Since he's completely crushed on Vera Sedai, he'll be doing his best to vigorously deny that he and Kireyn are together without compromising his cover. Also, given that Vera is an Aes Sedai and all, she probably has some inkling of his crush and has assigned them the role of a newly wedded couple to to try and defuse it.

However, if you're uncomfortable at all with that or if Kireyn would kick up a mighty fit about having to be pretend married to Daran, I'm also totally okay with having them pose as siblings.

Thought I'd check with you in advance before working it into one of my posts.

[bahamut920]

As Jak notices everyone preparing to leave the inn, he stands up from his chair. Canceling his order for tea, he walks over to the group preparing to leave. "I'm going, too," he says to Kireyn and Ishigari. "I may not be a warrior or Aes Sedai," he almost whispers the latter title, looking uncomfortable as he says it, "but if one of you gets hurt, which is likely, you'd regret not taking me with you." With that, he begins striding purposely towards the door, his hand reaching for his belt knife, hidden under his tunic.

I'm the one who started this whole mess, and now I'll be damned if I'll let them leave me behind for the finish, he thinks, his midlander determination (some might call it stubbornness) calling for him to finish what he started.

[fireinthedust]

Noal "slips" out the door and around the corner. No shadowspawn attack him. Nothing in the trees beside the outhouse.

Coming around the corner, Noal sees a form standing in the middle of the street, spinning sharp lengths in each hand.
A small girl is skipping in the middle of the street, a long stick with a short ribbon in each hand. She walks and skips, stands in place and twirls the sticks.

The other houses nearby have lights, and you can hear music coming from the other Inns. Everyone seems to still be having a good time tonight.

Daran and Kireyn: I thought Daran was buying the trinket for Kireyn! Gosh, I totally missed that one. huh.

Jak: Could you do me the huge favor of choosing a color for Jak's dialogue? It's easier for me to read it quickly when I've got a dozen posts if I don't have to pick out every non-colored line of speech. Thanks! I recomend maroon, as it's like red but tainted (reminiscent of Saidin!) :smallsmile:

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods to Jak as she turns to follow Noal out into the darkness. Her face is sombre as she murmurs in reply, "Your skills and your courage will be most welcome. Peace and the Light favor us all."

Stepping out into the street after Noal, she startles momentarily, but then relaxes on seeing that the movement is just a skipping child. As she looks around at the peaceful scene, she begins to feel relief well up in her: probably Jak was just mistaken, after all. How would Trollocs come so far south, and why would they strike this small Altaran town?

But what could he have seen, that even an Andoran could mistake for a Trolloc? He sounded so certain.

Kireyn steps aside to let her armed and armored friends leave the inn, and glances around casually. She does not release her hold on saidar.

Is it normal here, for a child to be skipping alone in the street after dark?

[OOC: I congratulate our GM on seriously spooking the party :smalltongue:]

Daran: I'm fine with what you suggested, it makes sense, and Kireyn really isn't the sort to kick up a fuss. Hmmm... given she mentioned Daran to the rest of the party as a "friend" earlier, this could lead to some amusing misconceptions :smallsmile:

I envisage their current friendship as fairly sibling-like - Kireyn is a few years older than Daran and he's still pretty gawky, I think she probably treats him much like a slightly younger brother (although only slightly younger - she doesn't think of him as a kid). I'd be happy to modify that, though, if you prefer.

Of course, all this presumes my 5-HP Initiate survives her first Trolloc encounter (or pseudo-Trolloc encounter, depending) :smalltongue:

[The_Snark]

As she finishes dressing and still no outcry is raised, Sarinen resists the temptation to. It wasn't good to be too tense whenever there might be danger—it tired you out—but allowing yourself to relax too much was equally dangerous. Discipline, she reminds herself firmly, hanging her shield on her back for now. You're forgetting discipline, Sarinen Casfal. Jumping at shadows or not, this is good for you.

She comes back down the stairs, and looks quite different, short hair bound back and dressed in trousers and shirt, with a sword at her belt and a shield at her back; overall, she looks ready to travel. A hurried glance around the common room confirms that the others are no longer there, though, and she hurries to the doorway, wondering if she took too long in arming herself.

Fortunately, she catches sight of somebody rounding the corner, and hurries to follow. Noal's huge silhouette makes it clear she hasn't lost them. "Where are we going?" she asks in a low voice, sparing only a glance for the child; the oddity of a girl being out alone at night doesn't register with her, only the fact that she's not a threat.

[Yawielas]

Jianna follows the others outside. They were the only ones she knew, at least sort of knew, around here, and she didn't want to be left behind on her own.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari turns at Noal's sudden movement as Kireyn’s sentence tapers off and murmers to himself.

"So it would seem."

With a brief look around the room to see if anyone is marking their exit, he nods to Jak and gesturing for him to follow steps out into the cool night air. Once satisfied that no one inside will immediately notice it, his right hand snakes over his shoulder and grasps the hilt of one of his swords. He draws the blade as quietly as possible and then lets it hang point down by his side as he moves after the Ogier.

Already uncomfortably aware of the number of warriors in the group and his own lack of armor, Ishigari points towards one of the inns further down the street with his blade in response to Sarinen’s question and whispers to the group.

"I am not sure where the Trollocs have gone or what they are hoping to achieve, but I can see the inn where my employer, myself and the other guards are quartered. If we have time, I would prefer to recover my armor at the very least. We should also try and get that young girl to seek safety."

The last is accompanied by a worried glance at the cute young girl, and Ishigari is obviously distressed about leaving her to die, despite his previous statement about abandoning the patrons of the inn.

So young, with too much life ahead of her... Why is the night still so calm? Surely they should have attacked by now.

[Yawielas]

Jianna steps quietly up beside Ishigari, speaking softly:"I'll go get the girl. She won't be scared of me, but men with weapons might frighten her...If she screams, then maybe....things....will get drawn here." She starts heading for the young girl in the street, using her quarterstaff as a walking staff.

[fireinthedust]

The little girl is playing unconcernedly in the street, by the light of one of the town's lamps. Her parents must be inside the Inn nearby her position. Interestingly enough it's Ishigari's Inn, where his belongings are.


A pair of lovers has come out of the second Inn while the rest of you are puzzling over the girl. They go around back of that building, unaware of your party's presence. The boy nuzzles the girl's ear, she grins, and pulls her lover around the corner and into her embrace. There is a faint gasp, but the corner of the building hides them.

Jak: ((GM rolls d20's for the group. huh.)) There is a temptation to think you made a mistake, but just as you think to avert your gaze from the lovers you see it: a dark cloaked figure emerge from the shadows behind the lovers. You can see it more clearly than when it was in the street, its hands are pale white though its strangely armored clothes are darkest black. It draws two longswords and, before thrusting, stares up at you and grins; the mouth is filled with sharp teeth, and there is a jagged red scar across its lips. Its face is white under the cloak, but without eyes; the look fills you with abject terror for a moment, slowing your reaction. The thrust is sudden and brutal, and you hear two gasps from the lovers as their bodies stiffen and twitch.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran follows the group out of the inn, keeping a hand on his cudgel. Something about him reminds you faintly of a sheep dog; circling around the edges of the pack and staring intently into the darkness.

Rolls: Spot: [roll0]+7
Listen: [roll1]+5

...wow, what were the odds of that?

Kireyn:That's perfect, and it makes a lot of sense for them to have a brother/sister sort of friendship. I think Kireyn reminds him a bit of his older sister, Jonei Alema.

Also, I wouldn't worry too much about surviving this encounter. Daran's got a strong protective streak, and a trolloc attack on someone he thinks of as family hits just about every plot-button needed to trigger it.

[Yawielas]

(Did Jianna see it to? She was already heading for the little girl.)

[bahamut920]

(OOC: Apparently, Jak is the most perceptive member of the group... :smalltongue: Obviously it's because he's the most on edge after seeing the Trolloc.)

Jak himself lets out a gasp as he sees the strange, obviously nonhuman creature. He tries to alert the others in time, but by the time he says, "Over there... In the alley..." and points to the creature, the grisly scene is already complete. In order to make sure somebody sees, he grabs the shirt of the person nearest him and gives a tug, without removing his eyes from the creature.

At this point, everyone gets to retry their Spot checks with a +2 bonus, because Jak is pointing out the source of the disturbance, but if they do, it eats up their move action for the round... If the thing hasn't pulled a Batman by the time they look. That would be quite the feat, though, considering Jak's looking right at it.

[Yawielas]

(Spot: 6 http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1740384/
Listen: 4 http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1740388/)

[bahamut920]

(OOC: You seem to have forgotten the +2 bonus I'm giving. Either that, or you forgot your own +2... Your total modifier should be +4.)

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

A hand comes out of nowhere, seizing Daran's collar and re-orienting him. He stumbles, windmilling his arms, and at the same time finds himself staring into a dark alley.

Rolls:Spot: [roll0]+9
Listen: [roll1]+7

okay, I think I got it that time...

[Ifni]

Kireyn jumps at Jak's gasp and takes a hurried step away from the alleyway at his words. She's evidently not quite as calm as she's trying to appear. She peers into the shadows of the alley and draws deeply on the Power, taking a quick glance around for any buildings that look more secure than the inn, in case they need to retreat to a better position.

Rolls:

Spot [roll0]
Listen [roll1]

If I see the creature,
Knowledge(Shadow) [roll2]


EDIT: Evidently, Kireyn's attempt to look in three directions at once meant she didn't see much of anything in the alley.

[Unkabear]

There is something not right in the air, and Noal reaches out and places his hand upon Jianna's shoulders stopping her from moving forward as he felt that they should not be splitting up.


[roll0] = spot

[Ruik]

 
Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari nods after Jianna as she begins moving towards the young girl and turns back to the rest of the group, making sure everyone is still together. He notices the lovers moving around the street corner, but seeing no danger ignores them, looking back after Jianna.

His head snaps around once more however as Jak grabs Daran from the edge of the group and indicates the ally. Hearing Kireyn’s gasp, he almost instinctively moves between her and the apparent danger, drawing his left-handed blade in a smooth motion even though he is not as experienced at his people’s traditional method of fighting as he would like.

He takes unconscious comfort that Noal is watching over Jianna as his eyes seek out the threat that Jak has spotted, hissing in a low voice while dropping slightly into a fighting stance, eyes searching the shadowy streets.

"What do you see Jak?"


Spot: [roll0]
Listen: [roll1]

Not sure whether these count as the pre or post Jak flailing wildly rolls – if it is after, then you will need to add +2 to the spot check to get the actual result.

[Yawielas]

Jianna jumps a little as a giant hand lands on her shoulder, but manages to keep quiet. Glancing up at Noal and to the others, she notices that they're on edge, and grips her quarterstaff tighter. She doesn't see the couple, but she can sense the troubled mood, and looks concerned back towards the little girl.

[bahamut920]

Jak answers with a shaky voice, "I... I don't know... It looks like a man, but it has no eyes. And it... it killed those people..."

Immediately after answering, Jak attempts to master his emotions. Ever since he had eliminated his block almost a full year ago, rampant emotions had made it harder for him to channel, not easier. After a few moments and more deep breaths, Jak is ready to begin grabbing hold of saidin. He dislikes the sensation of saidin - the oily, dirty sensation that must be the taint, which makes men go mad - but he must; If they're going to fight Trollocs and whatever that thing in the alley is, they're going to need my most powerful healing abilities, not just the healer's kit I keep in my pouch, he thinks. I'll have to disguise the channeling as actual healing, but it's what I need to do to keep these people alive.

[Unkabear]

Noal grumbles a bit about a fade and how they were woefully unprepared to face one of their ilk.

[fireinthedust]

((so is anyone going around the corner, or are you all just going to stand back and fret?))

[Ifni]

((so is anyone going around the corner, or are you all just going to stand back and fret?))

Fireinthedust:
I think we're waiting to find out (a) how many of us saw the thing, (b) if anything happens to make us roll initiative while we're stepping back, seizing saidin, etc, and in my case (c) do I know anything about the creature with a 20 Knowledge (Shadow) check. Kireyn is not walking around that corner first, though :smalltongue:
Could I get a rules question answered? Ward Against Shadowspawn is a 5ft-radius hemisphere at L1: can Shadowspawn still attack into it from outside the radius? If so, it's kind of useless to cast it in the open, as no matter where you stand inside it, you can still be attacked: you need to cast it in a doorway or other small space for it to serve its intended function. That might well be the case - it's only a L1 weave - but I'd like to check.

Kireyn looks at Daran, armed only with a club, and toward the dark alley. She reaches out to grasp the club and channels Fire and Air, weaving interlaced threads of the Power through the solid oak. A five-inch-long tongue of white flame erupts from the end of the cudgel and then settles down to a steady glow as Kireyn ties the weave off, her face still and focused in concentration.

"That should give you some light, at least," she murmurs. "Take care, Daran."

[OOC: Casting Blade of Fire as a L1 weave, and tying it off. If Daran chooses to attack with the flame rather than the club, it counts as a touch attack for 2d6 fire damage. The tied-off weave will last for 20 hours or until I choose to release it.]

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari looks somewhat shocked at Kireyn’s open use of the Power, despite her earlier admission. Realising that he cannot let Daran go alone, he straitens from his half crouch and looks back at the rest of the group.

"Try and stay as far away from Shadows as possible. Myrddraal, if thats what Jak saw, can move through them."

He looks at Daran and then gestures towards the corner where Jak saw the . Taking a deep breath and summoning all his courage, Ishigari moves around the corner to confront the Fade.

Embrace Death…

I hadn’t moved Ishigari around the corner for the reasons that Ifni mentioned, and also because no young half-trained armsman in their right mind would confront a Fade without a good reason. I figure a group of even less prepared friends counts though, so let us see if he dies before reaching level 2!

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran recovers from the stumble, but when he regains his balance he stands rooted to the spot, staring into the mouth of the alley. It yawns, cool and predatory, before him.

A fade? Did he just say 'fade'?

A gallery of images rises up before the boy's eyes. Men swathed in shadow, tall as draft horses, teeth long as belt knives glinting beneath their hoods. As a child of the borderlands, Daran has heard a fair share of stories about the halfmen. But, then, he's also heard a few about Aes Sedai 'witches',

And look at how wrong those turned out to be. Maybe the fade is just a...just a...gigantic creature of the shadow with razor-sharp teeth. Blood and ashes. I can't do this.

He turns toward Kireyn, lips already framing words. And then he catches her expression. Somewhere subconscious, it's more familiar than he'd care to admit.

"Don't, uh, worry. I will."

Holding the incendiary end of the club ahead of him like a talisman, Daran walks into the alleyway.

[fireinthedust]

Infi: Good point.
Ruik: Hey, that was spoiler text!!! :smallamused:
Infi Again: You know a bunch about them. Basically common knowledge among channelers trained at the tower, especially ones who love books. However, one weilding two swords is highly unusual; darkfriend blademasters, perhaps, but a Fade blademaster...

Everyone who made a spot check: Um, well since *I* will be rolling all spot checks unless I request you lot to roll them... And since (for Jak's view of it) it is behind the corner of the building from where you are: None of you see it right now. Not even Jak.

Ruik makes it around the corner, followed by Daran with the brand... and the pair interrupts a pair of lovers kissing.

Mmmm... Oh, light! Hey, do you mind getting that light out of here? The man says angrily. The girl covers her face, looking away from your group. Both of them have disshevelled hair and clothes. They're a young couple, not unwealthy, but not nobles. Perhaps locals dressed for the Swallowtail festivities?

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"Uhhhh....." Daran shuffles his feet uncomfortably, aware that he is still holding the blazing club out in front of his body like a lance. "I, um, er....carry on," he squeaks, darting back out of the alleyway. In the warm light that's pouring off of the fire weave, it's easy to see the blush written across his face.

[Ifni]

Prepared to hear the sounds of battle, Kireyn frowns in puzzlement as she hears a yelp from the alleyway. She takes a step forward and nearly bumps into Daran as he hurries back out, his face aflame.

"What - no Shadowspawn, I take it? Or bodies?" She does remember to speak softly, although it's impossible to keep the relief out of her voice. Imagine what passersby would think of such a question.

She turns to Jak, eyes questioning. "This is the second time tonight you've claimed some dark danger, that was gone when we went to investigate. If this is some sort of joke, it's not an amusing one." Her voice hardens as she speaks.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"No shadowspawn. Definitely no shadowspawn. And I don't think bodies would take so much offense at being...uh," Daran clears his throat, "interrupted."

Edit: This post no longer reads Daran Bodies at the top. Whoops.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen's voice comes right on the heels of Kireyn's, but it's considerably less calm. "What did you do?" she says in a strangled yelp, gripping her sword hilt hard enough to whiten her knuckles. Her face is pale with some emotion as well, either fear or anger.

The fact that she was almost certain it was Kireyn and not Daran calms her only a little bit. Daran was holding the fire somewhat uneasily, and Kireyn had said he'd need light; besides, Daran hadn't seemed insane. Light help me, she's a witch. She has to be. Light help me.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

My bad about making reference to spoiler info… You know how it is when you are trying to write something and you have to make reference to a page of other peoples responses… Just forgot where I read it. In other news apparently Ishigari’s stage name is Ruik :smallsmile:

Ishigari looks confused and tries to appear non-threatening despite the two naked blades in his hands. Giving up, he sheaths them both and gives a small but polite bow, trying to speak clearly through his accent.

"My apologies, a friend thought he saw someone in distress. We will not trouble you further."

He then follows Daran back into the street, avoiding any comment of the blush, not wanting to make him any more uncomfortable than he already is.

Strange, Jak did not seem like the type to be excitable or lie about something as important as shadowspawn overrunning Swallowtail, but we seem to be jumping at shadows.

Before he can speak, he is interrupted by Sarinen's outburst. Realising that she did not see the ring Kireyn showed in the inn, and worried by the hand now straining on her sword hilt, he moves towards her with his hands held in front of him in a calming gesture.

"Easy Sarinen, we are not in danger, at least not from Kireyn."

I forget not all nations have a King who’s sister is Aes Sedi, and that they are not always as welcome in the south as they are in the Borderlands.

I made no reference to this in crafting the post, but man will I laugh if Jak is failing madness rolls this early in the game. I’m too tired to even look at the book right now (not sure whether I’ll even recognise this post tomorrow), but it can affect your judgement ic right? Guess I’ll look at it myself tomorrow.

[Ifni]

Kireyn turns to face Sarinen. She does not step back and her face remains calm, although she swallows and takes a deep breath before speaking, keeping her voice quiet.

I wonder if her accent was Amadician after all. Then again, she could just be frightened. Many people have heard fearful stories about the Power. Thank the Light for Ishigari, and Borderlands custom.

"I thought that if we were to fight against one of the Dark One's creatures, it would be wise to have light: some of them also dislike flame, and most go armored and can be injured more readily by fire than by blades and cudgels. Against the Shadow... it would have been wrong for me to withhold any skill I had, that might help even slightly. I've seen the aftermath of Trolloc raids out of the Blight, at home."

She continues, speaking more quickly, "I promise you, no matter what you may have heard, I would never use the Power to harm you or any other man or woman, save in self-defence. Daran knows that he must not use that brand as a weapon against people."

"Under the Light, I will make no weapon for one man to kill another." I may not have sworn on the Oath Rod yet, but I will not break the Three Oaths if I can possibly help it.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"Kireyn, I don't think that's much comfort for her."

First time I saw someone flinging around the One Power, I would have been pretty spooked. If things had been anything like normal at the time.

Turning to Sarinen, he says "I wouldn't worry too much. She's not going to sprout three heads or make your hair fall out. That's just superstition. Probably. Besides, Kireyn's not even a full sis--er, I mean, ah..." Daran trails off.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen ignores the Arafellin for the most part; she didn't need to worry about him. Unless he's a Warder. Light! "Then you are one of them," she says disbelievingly, staring at Kireyn. She really had thought an Aes Sedai would look different, or act different, somehow. Scheming, calculating, cruel. "Light! What are you doing here?" She backs away, looking from Daran to Ishigari to Kireyn again. "Is this all some trick of yours?" she demands piercingly; unlike the others, she's not making much effort to keep her voice down, and it's slowly rising. .

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran kneels down, placing his blazing club on the cobbles. He stands back up, brushes at the bottom of his robe, and holds his hands palm-out.

Light. She looks terrified.

"Relax. I'm not entirely sure any of us know what's going on, but Kireyn means you about as much harm as a rabbit. Er," he hesitates for a moment, "that is to say a particularly strong and capable rabbit..."

Too late for that. Just keep going.

"I've known Kireyn for a while, but before that I must've heard all the same stories about 'white tower witches' that you did. They're not true. Any of them. Especially that business about babies and pins. They're the kind of tales that scared folks tell about things they don't understand."

[Ifni]

Kireyn's carefully practiced calm breaks a little at the fear in Sarinen's voice.

She was willing to try to hunt down Shadowspawn. How can she possibly be afraid of me? Will it be like this everywhere in the south, away from the Tower?

She opens her mouth to speak again, then shuts it as Daran begins to talk - maybe she'll listen to him. Daran's choice of words wins a glare, though: more emotion than she would normally allow herself to show, but she's feeling unsettled. "Rabbit? Babies and pins?" she snorts at Daran. "Thanks a lot!"

She looks back at Sarinen, unfeigned hurt in her hazel eyes. "I'm here for the fair, like you are. If this was some trick of mine, why would I even have revealed my ability? What could I possibly be trying to accomplish? I'm not even Aes Sedai! I was just trying to help!"

Kireyn realizes abruptly that her voice has grown louder as she speaks. She looks down briefly and tries to regain her composure. Thank the Light Vera Sedai isn't around. I swear, I will never tease Daran again about losing control of his emotions. But... how CAN she be so afraid of the Power when she was willing to go blade to blade with a Trolloc? At least the others aren't... although Jianna's been very quiet...

[Unkabear]

Noal looks down at the others. "No one will harm a little sister today, I will not let ignorance from ruling over calm thoughtfulness." Looking at Kireyn Noal simply and calmly states "Do not fear little sister, but please remain calm, if there are shadowspawn afoot I shudder to think of what they would do with such a prize as yourself."

Then again Noal looks about watching for anything that might be cause for alarm.

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"What? It's not like I go around telling people that Aes Sedai have to prick a baby's littlest toe every week for their witchcraft to work. I had it told to me when I was young," don't add that it was by my sister, "and...and I've done my best not to spread that sort of nonsense around."

Pausing for a moment, Daran folds his arms across his chest defensively.

"And is there a harmless woodland beastie that you'd rather be likened to? I'm doing the best I can here."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Still maintaining a careful eye on Sarinen, Ishigari barely hears Kireyn speaking, wondering if he would find himself fighting a southern woman rather than Shadowspawn. In an effort to calm her he speaks in a quiet voice, making the strongest vow he knew.

"There is no trick, Sarinen, and under the light and my hopes of rebirth and salvation, I swear that you have nothing to fear."

For the most part, Ishigari ignores the interaction between Kireyn and Daran, keeping his attention firmly centered on Sarinen, intent on her reaction. He takes comfort from Noal, hoping that his connection to her will calm her.

[Unkabear]

Noal nods his approval of the oath, one does not make such an oath lightly, and none shall take it as such.

[Ifni]

I think I must have had too much of that wine. Kireyn blinks rapidly, against the tears that threaten to cloud her eyes. Idiot! Get control of yourself!

Still, it's hard not to be touched by Noal and Ishigari's willingness to vouch for her. They barely know her, but still they come to her defence. Two sides of the same coin? When you won that ring, you bound yourself to the Tower forever, and people will judge you for that. The Borderlands and Ogier honor the Tower... and the Whitecloaks call us witches and Darkfriends. She must be Amadician, surely.

Daran, on the other hand, is as well-meaning and clumsy as always. He makes her want to laugh, even as the situation as a whole makes her feel like crying. Definitely too much wine.

She takes a deep, shaky breath and looks up again, meeting Sarinen's eyes with as much calm as she can muster.

[Arxheon89]

ooc: hey sorry for my week of not posting, it was a heck of a week.

Mas stands there looking around, waiting for something to happen. To shocked to say anything, for once in his life, Mas waits for someone else to make a move.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen's fear is edging towards confusion, as various people say conflicting things, trying to soothe her. She finds her voice again as they start to fall quiet. "You mean you want me to believe you're not a... Aes Sedai," she begins, voice shaking, "even though I can plainly see different. And that you came all the way here from Tar Valon, for the fair?" Perhaps it isn't fear that's making her voice shake anymore. "What is going on here? Who are you really?"

[Ifni]

Kireyn sighs - partly in relief that Sarinen seems calmer, partly in frustration. Light. I was really hoping to avoid this. I'm going to strangle Jak if this was all a stupid joke. Her voice is still unsteady as she begins to speak quietly.

"First things first: I can channel the One Power, as you saw, but I'm not Aes Sedai. Please don't ever say I am, even as a joke. I know many people equate the two - as Daran said, there are many stories about "White Tower witches" - but real Aes Sedai come down very hard on women who claim that title falsely." She nods to Ishigari and Noal. "I told Ishigari and Noal that in the inn, before we came out here: I thought they should know, if we might be fighting Shadowspawn. I would have told you as well then, if you'd been downstairs - I'm glad now I didn't, else we would have had this scene with an entire common room as audience. But if you trust them to speak the truth, they can attest that I'm not just claiming this now to calm you down."

She hesitates, but then says, "And... Aes Sedai aren't what you think. I know Amadicia outlaws Aes Sedai, but most places don't, and don't suffer for it. In the Borderlands - well. I don't expect you'll listen to a word I say, on this topic, but you might ask Noal what he thinks of the Tower. Ogier built Tar Valon, after all."

"For the rest... well, it's hardly your business. We're not in Amadicia: I've done nothing wrong by Altaran law and custom. Nonetheless, everything I've told you is true. My interest in Swallowtail is the fair - well, and the architecture, and a shipment of books from Tarabon that came into town earlier today, but I didn't know about those until this morning. Daran and I are here in service to our lady: I didn't choose our destination."

Kireyn studies the other woman. "And I might ask you the same questions. You're Amadician, I take it? And just "passing through", a lone woman bearing a sword and armor, and ready to hunt down Shadowspawn? Who are you, really?"

[The_Snark]

Sarinen hesitates. "You can wield the Power, but you're not Aes Sedai?" she asks—rhetorically, since Kireyn did just say that. She sounds a good deal less certain than before, and looks a little less tense. "I suppose that would... I've never heard of that before," she mutters.

She still bristles a bit at being asked what she was doing here, though. "Exactly who I said I am," she says, with a little heat returning to her voice. "I am just passing through; I'm just not sure where I'm headed next yet. If you really must know, I trained with the garrison in the town I grew up, and as for hunting Shadowspawn, you all seemed convinced there was something out here, so I thought it would be best to make sure. I wasn't taught to run away at the first sign of something that might actually be a threat." Kireyn receives an annoyed look, but Sarinen's hand is no longer clenched tightly around her sword hilt, only resting on it. "Is that good enough for you?"

[fireinthedust]

The Two Lovers: Light, the she just say she was Aes Sedai? Let's get out of here! Wanna come back to my place? Mmmm, my sweet. Yeah, but seriously shut up and go into the hay loft until I can sneak out. My father will kill you if he finds you there after dark. Better dead by him than some Aes Sedai, or those men she's seduced with her witchery! Let's go before they feed that girl to the Trolloc they have with them! And with that they scurry off.

A Scream in the Night!

Across town there is a shrill and chilling scream. It is a woman's scream, of shock and horror, and comes from a square not too far off.

((Everyone: just so you know, as this isn't table top, there are some situations where I'm willing to let the party break apart. If Sarinen wanted to storm away from the aes sedai and her darkfriend minions, she can do that. She may find herself winding up with them later by accident or design, but she doesn't have to go against character in a way that's... too different from who she is. Flexibility is good (as sometimes I need folks to want to enter the dungeon rather than live a long and happy life like the rest of us) but in RP by post... well, it's okay to follow suite if it's what the character would do or attempt. If I can't guess what's likely to happen, I'll make something up as we go along.))

[Arxheon89]

Hearing the scream Mas snaps out of his daze looks around.
"What was that scream? Does that mean there are more than one of these flaming things? Begging the ladies pardon for my language."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran drops, snatching the burning club off of the ground and immediately interposing himself between Kireyn and the source of the scream. He glances at Sarinen.

"I'm, ah, glad that you're having second thoughts about stabbing Kireyn, but you might not want to put your sword away yet."

His muscles are tense and he looks ready to bolt for the square at a moment's notice, but he's unwilling to leave the rest of the group behind.

Light. This had better not be some prim old lady who stumbled onto another pair of...uh...really close friends.

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods to Sarinen, and even gives a slight rueful smile. "Good enough... She seems about to say more, but then her head whips around as the scream echoes in the air.

She glances at Jak and mutters, "Maybe I was wrong to doubt you." To the rest of the group, "We should go, quickly. Although..." she glances at Ishigari, "Ishigari, how long would it take for you to get your armor?"

Kireyn gathers up her skirts, ready to follow the others toward the square as fast as she can walk or run.

Not that we'll be able to do much to help, if it really was a Fade that Jak saw. It can always step through the shadows and be somewhere else, attacking another victim. If that's what's happening... we should be getting everyone inside, into well-lit buildings, and waiting it out until dawn.

As the group begins to move toward the sound of the screams, Kireyn will quickly explain as much as she knows about Myrddraal and Trollocs, looking first to Mas. "Jak spoke of an eyeless man - such are called Myrddraal, or Fades, or Lurks, and they are very dangerous. There is a Borderlands saying, the look of the Eyeless is fear. They can step through shadows - a single Myrddraal could jump from shadow to shadow, striking and then disappearing again. Though they have no eyes, they can see like hawks, in light or darkness."
"Trollocs are less intelligent, more brutish - although Myrddraal can control them, and then they are more disciplined. They see in the dark - bright light can blind them. Both Trollocs and Fades often carry tainted blades, that cause strange fevers, and wounds that will not heal."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

If this night gets any stranger I think…

Ishigari suddenly finds his train of thought derailed as a scream echoes through the night. Remembering his own prophecy that the city guard would know of the danger soon enough from the screams, he finds himself drawing his swords once more.

He looks at Kireyn as she asks about his armor and grimaces.

"To long I fear, if we intend to offer aid, though I am not sure what we are going to do if we finally find a full Trolloc raid at the end of that scream."

He looks to her, obviously now taking his lead from her, Aes Sedi or not, and follows with the rest of the group as they move towards the source of the scream.

That last bit is obviously contingent upon the group actually going towards the sound of the scream. IF we do have time (and that really depends on the group and the GM), then he will duck inside and put on his armor as quickly as possible…

[fireinthedust]

Ishigari: as you head intot he Inn to grab your armor, other guests are dashing out of their seats to go see what happened. Some get up and look out a window, others are moving out of the Inn to get a closer look directly.

((so is everyone moving to the scream? I'm perfectly alright if you lot don't.))

[Yawielas]

Jianna had stood frozen since the ogier put his hand on her shoulder and she turned to see the magic light on Daran's club. Her gaze flickers between Sarinen and Kireyn, but she seems not to focus on them so much as the area right above their heads. Her eyes grow distant while the others argue and talk, but she snaps out of whatever trance she was in at the sound of the scream. She quickly turns around to see if the little girl is still outside, then looks at the others. "I'm not really in the habit of running towards danger, but if you're going....I mean...I already have my quarterstaff. Maybe I can help."

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran pauses for a moment when Jianna speaks. "If there are trollocs, don't fight. Run. Someone'll need to warn the town and you're, uh, a lot better with words than I am."

We are most definitely moving towards the source of the scream. I think most of our posts hinted at that, so I'm going to say it outright.

[fireinthedust]

((Ok, but I want to hear from everyone checking in. I don't like to move characters along for this part of the story, per se, because I want to learn how everyone would act in the situation (players, characters). I havn't heard from Jak, for example, since the lovers were discovered in the allyway. I havn't heard from Noal, Sarinen or Jak since the scream. All of you are important protagonists (in my book, anyways! :smallwink:) so I want to know what they're up to. ))

[Unkabear]

Against his better judgement Noal moves toward the scream if for nothing else to allow another to gain escape.

[bahamut920]

Jak stays out of the discussion following the revelation of Kireyn's position as an Accepted of the White Tower. He has his own reason to be nervous and wary around such a person, but doesn't want her to become suspicious, and bears her no ill will personally.

Intent on the discussion, and just about to speak up in defense of his own perceptions, Jak jumps almost a foot when the scream rings out. As the others head towards the source, Jak follows, desiring both to help the injured party and not to lose the relative safety of numbers.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen hesitates as the others begin to hurry in the direction of the scream, finally deciding to follow. There had been somebody screaming, after all, not just someone claiming to see a Trolloc, and it felt awkward just lettig them walk away. She half-walks, half-jogs to catch up, conscious of the armor she was wearing; if she did this for too long, she'd start to tire herself out.

Her sword is sheathed; people roaming the streets with drawn blades is understandably frowned upon. By coincidence or design, most of the group is in between her and Kireyn as they walk...

[Arxheon89]

His shock over Mas rushes after the others. Bow in his left hand, quiver on his back and sword loosened in his sheathe. If a hunt was to begin Mas intended to be ready.

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Deciding that now was not the time to be trying to rush heroically to save someone and dying because he was not wearing armour, Ishigari ducks inside the inn. Pushing his way through the throng of merry-makers and those having dinner he races up the stairs, barely slowing down as he unlocks his door and lets himself into his room.

He curses as his swords get tangled in his haste and changes as quickly as possible into his armour, keeping an eye out through the window where possible for movement.

As soon as his armour is on, he shrugs the twin scabbards on to his back once more and moves downstairs at a more measured pace, still taking the steps two at a time.

Once out on the street he moves towards the group, or if they are gone, he moves towards the direction he remembers the scream coming from, reasoning that the group would have headed that way

[fireinthedust]

((Anyone else enjoying the suspense of when I'm going to post?))

[fireinthedust]

The Scream:


The group runs through the streets to reach the source of the scream. Last to arrive is Ishigari, his swords strapped to his back. He finds himself with the rest of the group, and a small crowd of other strangers, surrounding a gruesome sight.

He's dead says a man bent over a withered form in the middle of the street. Looking, you see that there is a crumpled form around the wheel of a large wagon in the middle of the street. The crumpled form is somewhat familiar to some of you.

A long, bizarrly intricate sword is plunged into the chest of an old man in rags; for his part you feel it wouldn't have taken much to kill such a wretch, a man covered in scar tissue from serious burns, and apparently a vagabond. The size and cruelty of the blade is bizarre as well, surreal in a surrounding like this festival. It is a black blade, made of thick black steel with its length zig-zaging into the wound; the hilt is a solid grip with a stylized skull on the pommel. None of you has ever seen a more evil-looking blade, made all the worse for the murder of such a helpless soul.

The source of the scream appears to be a young woman, held in the arms of her lover and obviously shaken by the event. I just saw him there, lying under the wagon. I thought he needed help, but when i turned him over... and with that she begins to sob once more.

The crowd has begun murmuring words like "darkfriends" and "murderer", and many of them make warding gestures. The summer heat seems suddenly chill.

[Ifni]

Kireyn stares at the black sword and the body, and makes a warding gesture. "The Light illumine and preserve us," she murmurs. "May he find peace in the mother's last embrace."

She looks around at the gathered crowd. "Did anyone know him?"

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Blood and ashes and bloody flaming coals to boot. There is something out there.

Daran feels his gut heave and subside. He's seen worse, but that doesn't make this pleasant. Moving quickly, he does his best to position himself between Kireyn, Jianna, and the corpse, but he directs his attention to the crying woman.

"It wasn't your fault. What happened, I mean. All you did was find him."

[fireinthedust]

The girl sobs, but her lover (a larger guy with straw-blonde hair, possibly a musician) nods his thanks.

One of them men in the crowd speaks up from the low murmuring everyone else is doing. Well, what are we going to do about this? We have to find the murderer and bring him to justice! Who has swords like this? Darkfriends, that's who! And they can't hacve gotte/n far! Fan out and find anyone suspicious, anyone with ...weapons!

The crowd starts to fan out and move away from the cart.

[Yawielas]

Jianna tilts her head, looking at the couple to see if they're the same couple that was hiding in the alley. Cause that would be suspscious....

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

"Anyone with...weapons."

Daran glances down at the sputtering club-torch in his hands, then at his companions. "Uh..."

Oh light light light light...

"Beg pardon?" He calls after the dispersing crowd. "Isn't that a little bit, ah, inexact? I mean the killer obviously left his weapon in the body. Shouldn't we be searching for men without weapons? Or, alternately, trollocs?"

[fireinthedust]

((Daran: too late, you said it. Noal: how do you feel about Daran's suggestion? Before I post the crowd's reponse to it, that is.))

[fireinthedust]

Jianna tilts her head, looking at the couple to see if they're the same couple that was hiding in the alley. Cause that would be suspscious....

Actually they're the same couple! The square is very central to the town, though, while the building they were in was near the edge of town.

[Unkabear]

Noal felt a shudder run down his spine, this group was a stones throw away from becoming a mob and he just might find himself in the middle of it. "Perhaps we should also alert the guard" Noal said loudly in his deep rumble. One attempting to place himself in the spot of reason, and two attempting to keep the target of Trolloc off his back.

[The_Snark]

Sarinen stares at the body, but she feels disgust and puzzlement, as opposed to the outright horror many of the other people around her are feeling. Why leave a weapon with the body? More, why have a weapon like that at all? Anyone would notice it, and it's disgusting. She is inclined to agree with the muttered sentiment that it was the sort of weapon a Darkfriend would own.

At least there are too many foreigners in town for me—or the others—to be singled out as the culprit. "I don't think they have a guard here, Noal," she says, then raises her voice authoritatively, to be heard over the muttering as people fan out. "One of you should inform the mayor, if he hasn't heard already. You..." She points ambiguously towards a knot of people, focusing in on the one who turns toward first; it was a trick she'd seen officers at the garrison pull to find the most agreeable citizens. Of course, that was in Amadicia. She just hoped the Altarans wouldn't live up to their reputation for contrariness. "Do you know where to find him?" If the person does, she tells him or her to go and let the mayor know as quickly as possible.

[fireinthedust]

Some of the crowd turn and give Noal a look when Daran mentions Trollocs. Even as Sarinen mentions the mayor, and Noal mentions the guard, they mutter amongst themselves.

Hey, why you folks have weapons out? It's the middle of the night! The muttering grows louder, going to grumbling. There are a few looks at Noal, who can remember hearing reasons why Ogier don't travel into towns where folks have only heard of Trollocs.

[Yawielas]

Jianna steps back, moving closer to the others. She only had her quarterstaff out, but it was a weapon of sorts. Her eyes quickly scanned the crowd as it was turning ugly, and her gaze fell upon the couple again, wondering why they turned up on two different sites with possible Shadowspawn attacks. Trying to diffuse the mob, she answers whoever asked the question:"There was screaming, of course some has weapons out!"

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran scans the crowd with growing apprehension.

"Just wait a minute. Not very long ago we were drinking with our ogier friend when Jak," he waves a hand at the man, "thought he saw something suspicious outside. Ishigari, here," he gestures vaguely with the hand holding the club-torch, "is a caravan guard. He let us borrow some of his equipment in case the something that Jak saw was carrying a blade like that." Daran points dramatically at the sword sticking out of the merchant's corpse.

"Besides, aren't darkfriends supposed to look normal? That's what makes them scary. They could be anyone. If they went around carrying loppers like that, they'd be pretty easy to spot."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

As Jianna steps back, becoming defensive in the face of the mob mentality that seems to be threatening the small knot of townspeople, Ishigari moves to her side and places a calming hand on her shoulder before stepping slightly in front of her, shielding her from the crowd. He looks calmly on as Darran argues his case with the crowd before speaking.

"As my young friend has said, I am a caravan guard. I hail from Arafel, and do not know enough about your customs to know if you have a town guard or not. Regardless, it would be best if you found someone of authority and let them know what happened here. We are all of us guests in your town, but that alone should not be enough to condemn us."

Not wanting to do anything to provoke the situation, Ishigari remains still, but ready for action should anyone threaten the group.

Sorry about not posting for a couple of days, RL got on top of me a bit, but it should be all good now. I’m also operating on the assumption that Ishigari didn’t have his weapons out this time around, as he sort of jogged after the group once he had put his armor on and arrived last, and I can’t imagine he would have run the whole way there juggling a sword.

[Ifni]

Kireyn steps closer to Noal and reaches out to touch the Ogier's arm.

I'm unarmed, at least, and wearing a dress rather than armor... maybe if they see I'm not afraid of Noal and the others, they'll calm down a little.

She tries to keep her voice calm, brisk and matter-of-fact as she speaks, using the local dialect rather than Borderland speech. "Panicking won't solve anything, and nor will blaming Noal - surely some of you must have seen him earlier in the day, when he rescued that child? Or maybe you bought goods from him, or heard him telling stories at the Broken Wheel Inn? Calling him a Trolloc would be like calling a sheepdog a wolf."

"Now, as Sarinen and Ishigari said, what we should do is inform the authorities. There's a murderer out there, someone who would kill this poor man, and since he left the murder weapon behind, we're not likely to catch him with blood on his hands. If your friends are still at taverns, it might be a good idea to go find them and make sure they get home safely: nobody should be out alone tonight, especially after a few mugs of ale. Some people should stay here as well, and make sure the body isn't disturbed, in case the murderer tries to dispose of the evidence."

Kireyn folds her arms and waits to see how the crowd reacts.

[bahamut920]

Jak steps forward, towards the dead man, and channels a thread of Spirit into the corpse under the pretense of examining it. He searches the body with that thread of the One Power, seeking anything unusual - other than the blade - in the corpse. As he does so, he looks back to his companions and says, "One of you check the area around for footprints or some kind of trail; there's still a chance to find the monster who did this!"

Jak casts the delve weave at level 2 again, which allows him to identify the cause of death of a corpse. Level 2 allows him to learn whether the cause of death was injury, disease, or poison, and his Spirit Affinity reduces the weave slot consumed by 1 level, to level 1.

[fireinthedust]

Jak Good chance the cause of death is a big sword in his torso... in fact, exactly that. It's stopped his life functions.

Some of the crowd continues muttering and milling about. Others go off in various directions.

[bahamut920]

Just wanted to make sure... It's possible that he was killed beforehand by something else, and then run through with the sword. Of course, that may just be the six-hour marathon of Detective Conan I just watched talking...

Jak stands up from the corpse, thinking, Okay, so it's just what it looks like... "Which means that we need to find out how the murderer managed to get out into the middle of town carrying that huge sword without being noticed," he mutters under his breath. "No mean feat for even the stealthiest sneak-thief..."

[Ruik]

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Ishigari feel’s the tension go out of his shoulders as the crowd starts to disperse. He takes a deep breath of night air before turning back to the others and moving over to Jianna, lowering his voice as he speaks.

"Are you alright? I thought that was going to get out of hand for a moment."

[Yawielas]

Jianna nods a little, looking pale. "I'm allright. But something is out there..." She looks around for the young couple. "And that couple has shown up twice now whre there's been trouble..."

[bahamut920]

"Actually, yeah," Jak replies. Maybe I wasn't going mad, after all, he thinks, relieved. "We should check out that alley again; maybe there's something there that we missed the first time," he continues. "After all, we weren't exactly keen to investigate while they were around..."

[Ifni]

Kireyn nods. "Let's see what we can learn here first, though. Although - are we sure this town has no guards? I don't know the first thing about hunting down murderers." She shivers, although the night is warm, and looks over at Sarinen and Ishigari. "Ishigari... Sarinen, have either of you seen anything like this before? You said you trained with your town garrison, Sarinen?"

She hears the hesitation in her own voice as she addresses the Amadician woman, and is annoyed at herself for it. Light, you have more important things to worry about at the moment than whether some Whitecloak sympathizer likes you.

"Can any of you follow tracks, as Jak suggested? Although... with that crowd of people here, I doubt there's much left to find. Jianna's right about the couple -" she smiles briefly at the younger woman, "- maybe that's our best lead."

Kireyn circles the body cautiously, peering at the sword. "Daran, could you bring the light over here?"

[OOC: Does Kireyn recognize the markings on the sword as anything Shadow-related, apart from the obvious "skulls are bad"? She has +7 Knowledge (Shadow).]

[Kuma Da]

Daran Alema

Daran approaches the corpse, but his attention is now focused less on the body and more on the sword protruding from it. Something tugs at the corners of his mind, but he can't quite place what it is.

"This doesn't look familiar to you, does it?"

Daran gives the blade a cursory glance, checking for conspicuous markings.

Probably not even worth the bother, but who knows? Maybe it'll read: 'property of one Randal Darkfriend, number 13 Cobbler's Lane. Please return if lost.'

Knowledge: Shadow[roll0]+4

[Unkabear]

Noal felt a release in his muscles that he didn't know he was holding. The tension began to flow away and he began to relax.

[Ruik]

EDIT

Ishigari Narshima ( http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheets/view.php?id=77836)

Not entirely sure that Jianna is okay, but taking comfort in the fact that she shown the strength to travel on her own before, Ishigari gives her a comforting smile and continues in a low voice.

"Whatever is going on, I am sure that we will be fine as long as we stick together."

He rests his hand briefly on her shoulder again before moving over to Kireyn, shaking his head briefly.

I am afraid I have never been trained as a tracker, and I am not sure it would be so easy in a town in any case. As for that blade, I do not believe I have seen one like it before.

He looks thoughtfully at it, straining his memory to what he had heard of darkfriends and the servants of the Dark One.

Ishigari has Knowledge: Shadow, if you feel like rolling for him. Specifically trying to remember whether he remembers any tales of blades that look like that being used by darkfriends and the like.

[Yawielas]

Jianna nods a little, but studies the shadow extra closely, feeling the hairs on her neck rise.