Chortan's Guild IC (Blue)

[Jack_Simth]

A universe, a multitude of worlds, a multitude of gods. Eons have passed. All worlds spin, connected by the astral sea. Once there were Titans and all creatures were immortal. The Fey run wild through and free in their terrifying lands that warp and change at a thought. The Endless creatures roam, beings born with time. Monsters, undying spawn live, knowing not what it means to simply survive. The Necril and all like them exist not as an antithesis to life but as a different kind. All the while in the stars above the Outsiders born with the titans at creation fight in their unending wars. Then the Titans fell, slain by upstart Gods who wanted their power, or imprisoned, or lost to time. Those outsiders that existed were made servants. Those fey that existed were given the gift of a finite life. And from these creatures the gods had a template. Mortals were made, born to die.

The many worlds and planes, the heavens and hells, they have changed so radically as to be barely recognizable. Even the Gods that slew the titans have fallen to upstarts and those upstarts have fallen, leaving few if any of the First. Fey still exist, far more civilized and less alien in nature. Their minds still twist in odd ways but they live on, enjoying hundreds or even thousands of years. Only a few learn to prolong themselves and they keep those secrets hidden. Still some search, knowing there is more, knowing life does not have to end. A Titan of old has been found, though he is no longer a Titan, and to him he has gathered a cult, and seeks what he has lost. Memories. Friends. Divinity. And from the heavens falls a servant disgraced, cast out from the immortal realm, who knows of all those things but has been stripped of them, seeks to prove her worth on the battlefield and so seeks challenges worthy of her power to do so, hoping she might one day earn her return.

And the mortals? Or the other Fey that are now mortals, that were born to die as everything else? They rail against their fate. Some creatures die to early, slain on a whim of Fate. One such creature finds that is not enough and grasps for life a second time. Fire drive hers as she seeks to elevate herself up, joining the ranks of those far beyond her power through sheer force of will. Others, those descended from some of the Endless that once existed, or cursed or blessed by some power, seek more power. A Vampire with a stronghold, but no allies to fill it. A behold who sees the limits of his race's beliefs and strives past them.

They all find themselves, find each other, meeting in a world that is not, a world that is Between. Here, where many such creatures of power, where many Endless, many Outsiders, many Fey, many Monsters, and many Mortals with the cunning to do so... Here they meet in the City of Doors.

This day, Chortan has gathered a few strong members for a particularly prickly guild assignment:

Heather Harrington: The succubus that remembers her former life, the most convincing liar in the guild.
Menja: The valkyrie who was cast out for developing feelings, and has an axe to grind.
Hoya: A catfolk who channels her inner tiger in a very big way.
Rame Toko: A water spirit, who can take - and make - the long shots very effectively.

All are in a guild briefing room, receiving their briefing on the latest guild contract.

For obvious reasons, Chortan starts off
"Details are slim on this one... but then, that's why they're paying us a rather lot. The contract is are signed and the payment's in escrow, so now all that's left is to do the actual work and collect payment." Chortan takes a moment to take a breath before digging into the meat of the mission. "What we do know: Urvaius and Daenia have been at war for quite some time. Recently, a skilled diplomat from Anticlere managed to broker a peace treaty. It has enough in there for all parties to be willing to set down arms... barely. The details are mostly irrelevant to the task at hand, with one big exception: The marriage of Urvaius' Princess Aubk'i and Daenia's crown prince, Arthago. This one is relevant, because the escort from Aubk'i from Urvaius to Daenia ran into trouble in a big way. Specifically, a dragon attacked the convoy. Panicked people are not the best at gathering details, but it seems to be an old red dragon that flamed the caravan. Essentially everyone fled; there were only two people to stand their ground: The princess herself, and her handmaid. The princess is missing, but her handmaid had an interesting story to tell. While most of the fleeing guards and servants reported that the dragon flamed the princess... the handmaid stuck around long enough that she added one detail to her account. Seems that before the dragon reduced the carriage to ash, a big marble cat appeared out of nowhere, and swallowed the princess, and vanished again... which is the point where the handmaiden broke and ran. Immediately thereafter, the dragon flamed the carriage... and the handmaiden's memory was clear enough that with further questioning we were able to identify the 'big marble cat' as a Taotieh. They weren't able to get an exact maker, but the details of the most common form of that particular construct are in your folder. Someone went to a lot of trouble to make it look like she was dead, and yet because of what happens when a Taotieh eats someone... we've got good reason to suspect she's not. We've no idea which warmongerer wants the fighting to continue... but then, our job is to just get the princess to her prince to cement the treaty. We might get a nice bonus if we can bring the perpetrator to justice, but it's not the contract. There's no telling what the kidnapper wants with her, so time is off the essence. Of course, the actual location of the raid is marked on the map in your folder; the gate should be ready in a few minutes, and will lead directly to that site." Chortan gives people a moment to consider, and then says "Details are slim, but are there any questions before you head off to sort it out?"

Spoiler

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Thank you again

[redfeline]

Hoya flips through each page in the folder lightly scanning it. A cat shaped bag of holding basically. The princess would need a way to exist with out air otherwise she would suffocate. I wonder if the princess may be in on this plot. Do we still get any pay if she was murdered, or would pay be contingent on haveing her raised from the dead? We could potentially question the dragon as well. Do we have the name of the dragon?

[Jack_Simth]

Chortan replies "The contract specifies delivery of the princess to the prince. For obvious reasons, I refused to make her status a condition of the contract. We've got a live delivery bonus, though. As to air... she's a champion swimmer. Part of the reason for her pairing with Arthago, actually; he's in very poor health, so to get a fit heir, he needs a fit queen. She can hold her breath for a few minutes without issues. Even without that, though... well, if death was on his mind, why arrange for the rescue? Whoever did it may want her for a sacrifice or something later... but the immediate intent was seems to have been for her to live. And no, we don't have the identity on the dragon. We don't even have a reliable age on the dragon... descriptions range from "as big as a wagon" to "as big as a castle". Panicked people don't generally catch details; we're lucky we've got the color, honestly."

[JBarca]

Menja, sitting perfectly still in her chair with her ever-present spear leaning against its back, inclines her head when Hoya speaks. She nods at the last question, then frowns a bit at its answer.

"Very little to go on, I see. Rame, I imagine tracking this six ton marble beast will be easy for you. Since we have few other pressing leads and it would not do for us to give the tracks time to fade, I say we begin there before looking into pursuing the Dragon. Assuming, of course, that the two are not in league together. These events seem quite conveniently-timed.

"Sir." Menja turns to address Chortan. "Did the Dragon make any attempt to kill anyone aside from the princess? You mentioned that most of the caravan fled and provided reports, and even the handmaiden, who was presumably near the princess, was unharmed.
Unless this Dragon was remarkably incompetent, this only lends credence to the idea that the Dragon and Taotieh had planned this together, with the Dragon as a diversion."

[Illven]

How long will the portal remain open? Heather replied. I'll need time to prepare my spells, but I can just do that at the site. Though I would prefer to do so here. Heather muses.

Where exactly is the handmaiden now? She might have further information. Heather continues. And we'll want to scour the area for scales for me to scry. Heather muses before thinking back to what she knew of the nobility of both countries.

Spoiler

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Do either countries noble families have connections to dragons, or have a high amount of sorcerers.

Knowledge nobility (1d20+29)[32]
Knowledge arcana (1d20+29)[47]

[redfeline]

Hoya listens to the others nodding at a Menja's comments. The succubus's suggestion also was a good one. Hoya had yet to work with her and all she knew was that the demon didn't detect as evil. How long has it been since the attack? The information was important for both tracking and if the princess was dead.

[Jack_Simth]

Chortan double-checks some of his notes, and replies to Menja's question "Let's see... the caravan was burned to ash, the horses were slain... all cargo lost... but no. There's not a report of a creature of greater than animal intelligence dying in the mix... other than the reports of the princess, of course, which appear to be mistaken. An interesting angle to work it from, and should bear investigating." He also answers others' questions "Portals to places are always useful, and you'll need a way to get back once you're done. This one will respond to your guild sigils until such time as someone demolishes it or I revoke your standing; as I don't see either of them happening any time soon, this one is liable to stick around close to forever. As to the time... just a day. They're in a hurry, because they'd rather not default on the terms of the treaty."

Spoiler: Heather

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Both countries have had a lot of dragon trouble in the past - lots of monster trouble in general, really - usually amounting to a monster coming out of nowhere every few years to assassinate some noble, merchant prince, general, and so on. Nobody's ever found the source; it's always been attributed to the creatures wandering through the area, in large part because it's seldom the same kind of monster twice.

[Illven]

I'll need to prepare spells before I leave then. Heather remarked.

Apparently the area in question just has monster issues that constantly assassinate noble, merchant prince, general. Assuming that commoner death isn't just being overlooked I'm thinking either the dragon's the boss of all the monsters, or he's working with some sort of summoner. Heather muses.

[JBarca]

Menja inclines her head toward Chortan as he answers her question.

As Heather offers new information, the Paladin squints ever so slightly. Her mouth opens a bit, as if to speak, but she closes it and nods. "Noted."

Looking at the others present, she raises an eyebrow. "It seems we had better hurry. Does anyone have other questions, and,
if not, how long before we can depart? For myself, I need the few minutes it might take to reach the site of the gate, and nothing more."

[Illven]

I'll need an hour. Heather pipes up raising her head.

[redfeline]

I wouldn't mind some time to pack myself. Otherwise I am ready to go. She looks at the succubus wondering what spells she may prepare, Hoya as happy to have another paladin along for the trip. Some one to watch her back.

[Jack_Simth]

As questions seem to be winding down, Chorton nods, and says "All right then; the portal will be ready shortly, so you can leave when you're ready. As always: Take care." and with that, Chortan takes his leave.

Spoiler

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And of course, by "soon" I mean "when you are". This portal is constructed of handwavium.

[JBarca]

Menja nods.

"Appreciated."

The Paladin stands, gathers her spear, and moves to wait for the others near the portal.

Spoiler: OoC

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I've nothing left to do, just posting to say I'm ready.

[Jack_Simth]

Spoiler

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So... two "ready" messages, and one "I'll need an hour" out of three currently-active participants. So moving on...

Everyone prepares spells and otherwise readies themselves, goes to the portal room. The room has much of a resemblance to a maze; for convenience, the room is set up as a series of long branching hallways, with the portals affixed to the walls, and labeled with simple numbers - which function both as a security system against stolen sigils and directions to the specific portal. When you know the system, the portal's number tells you where in the maze to find it, and you've practiced enough that you can do so easily. Where any given portal goes, though... that's stored in a log book that the guild master keeps largely hidden. There are many people that know where individual portals go... but it is hard to tell exactly how many portals are in the maze, and few know more than a dozen of the numbers. Even with a valid sigil, if you don't know which one to use, you may end up in dire straights; given the nature of a lot of the guild members, and a lot of the guild missions, many of them to lead to rather hostile places. With an invalid sigil, Celestia help you. Each sigil is unique and crafted for a specific individual. It's not entirely clear how Chortan revokes one, but you've seen the results; all guild portals switch from the primary destination to some final destination when that sigil is used... and you've yet to hear of someone coming back once having gone to their final destination. Without a sigil at all, the portals are simply there, and don't send anyone anywhere.

Fortunately, as members in good standing, with the correct number and knowing the numbering system, you have no trouble finding the right portal. The portal recognizes your guild sigils, and transports you... to what was clearly once a very nice cobblestone road through a verdant forest, but is now a blackened mess. The sun shines down on a place that has clearly been burned with fire; the cobbles are melted, there's no trace of the grass, and lines are burned into the surrounding forest - great columns of destruction over a hundred feet deep in places. You see what looks like it might have once been a carriage carrying glass... and the only reason you can tell is because the glass is one big molten slab, still glowing red. Amidst the destruction, a young man in what's obviously some noble's servants' colors sits quietly reading a book, oblivious to your arrival.

[Illven]

Heather inhaled the air of the material plane. Exhaled. It had been quite some time. Focusing for a moment her wings retracted, her tail seemed to slither into itself. In a few seconds, the succubus looked just like a normal, if attractive wizard.

Okay, I'll talk to the man, in question. Who wants to scour the area for scales or princess hair, or things like that? Heather mused rubbing a hand through her hair.

[JBarca]

"I'll leave the searching to those more suited to the task and join you." Menja moves toward the reading man, spear in hand and a pleasant smile on her face.

"Greetings, young one. You've chosen and interesting place to read, I must say."

[Jack_Simth]

On close inspection, it's clear that the young man's livery is a red and orange mix, with an emblem of a lion stitched into it in orange. Not very flattering on him. The young man doesn't look up from his book as he idly answers "When His Lordship tells me to do something, I do it. Today, His Lordship insisted that I dress up in this foppy outfit, and run out here to the middle of some evil monster attack, only a few scant miles from the battle lines, nominally to guide some people from beyond to wherever they want to go. Do I have descriptions? No! Not even names! Just some vague statement that they'll stand out if they want to, and it'll be obvious that they're them when they want me to see them. Feh. But, orders are orders, and His Lordship keeps me fed. So here I am, waiting for someone I have no idea how I'm going to recognize. Ah well, at least I can get some reading in."

[redfeline]

Very brave of you to so obediently obey orders. Many people would prefer not to be in such a spot even if it were to cost them many meals. Hoya turns to the pair of outsiders I will do the scouring and leave the talking to you.

At that Hoya turns off the road and searches the surrounding area.

(1d20+21)[22] perception

[JBarca]

Menja glances at her companions, clearly a bit irritated.

"Who is your lord, if I might ask? And, perhaps more importantly, of what battle lines do you speak?"

[Jack_Simth]

The man sighs, and looks up from his reading and turns to Hoya in response to her comment "Less dangerous than you might think... the war is on hold at the moment pending treaty negotiations, and - giant burn mark notwithstanding - monster attacks are pretty rare around here... and even then they leave the poor folk alone. About the worst I'm likely to deal with is a few bandits or a pack of desperate wolves... and most of those will have been scared off or killed by the soldiers. Nobody likes a bandit, and wolf pelts make good coats."

Seeing as how he's not getting any peace, the man also replies to Menja "Oh. Yes, his lordship Baron Shrike is the one what ordered me to stick around. As to the war... you're kidding me, right?"

Spoiler: Hoya

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You don't see anything, but you do manage to trip over - or rather, into - one of the stone footprints of the reported stone beast. While down there, you also spy some dragon prints.

Spoiler

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DC is only 15, but I have to make fun of a nat-1

[Illven]

No we're not. We have a big picture overview, but where the battlelines were was probably not considered important to our mission. The human looking Heather piped up. So we weren't told. Although with the princess missing, we might want to make note of the battlelines, an ambitious war hungry noble might attempt to cross them and bring themselves glory. Heather muses.

[JBarca]

Menja begrudgingly nods. "I understand that there is an ongoing war. I merely was concerned about an impending battle, which I felt you implied with your terminology.

"Aside from guiding these unkown beings of yours, what information were you to provide them, if I may ask? I imagine you were waiting for the four* of us, though I certainly can't be sure."

Spoiler: OoC

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* or three, perhaps?

[redfeline]

Spoiler: rolls for tracking

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(1d20+4)[8] scent trying to track the stone creature, if not attempting to track the dragon which I am hoping has a strong scent and gives me a bonus.

Hoya eyes up and down the tracks noting the directions.

[Jack_Simth]

The man nods, and says "Ah... well, that's starting to make a bit more sense now, then..." he sighs, and continues "Well, for most purposes, our side of the battle line is about two miles west of here; theirs, about three miles. For the last few weeks, Anticlere has managed a negotiation truce, so there isn't any actual fighting... and that will likely hold for a few more days, provided everyone not walking around under the truce banner stays about where they are, anyway. Daenia may get impatient soon, though... so we need to deliver Aubk'i for marriage to Arthago before their patience runs out... because if they do, it's back to full-out war..." he shakes his head, and says the last bit mostly to himself "... and there's no telling when that might be."

He continues, addressing you again "As to info I'm supposed to give you ... and yes, I've figured it out by now, I'm not completely dense ... whatever seems reasonably within my abilities. I can give you directions to where the attack survivors are holed up, point you to where you can get a room for the night, set up meetings with the local nobles if you want, that sort of thing. I'm hardly a soldier, though. Just a servant left here so that you'd have a contact when you arrived... 'cause nobody knew exactly when that'd be."

Spoiler: Hoya

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Even with the tracks to guide you, you find that the stone beast has very little detectable scent; it seems to have been washed quite well prior to the operation. You don't smell dragon at all. You do get a hint of something metallic in the dragon prints, but not enough to track.

[Illven]

Well if we get more questions to ask I'll be able to have one of them be how long will Arthago wait. Heather muses.

My first question to you. Heather replied cocking her head slightly. Are there any nearby volcano,
large mountains. Locations a red dragon might choose to place it's lair.

[JBarca]

Menja glances over her shoulder and calls out, "Hoya? Have you found anything?"

She returns her attention to the man.

"And you... What is your name, by the way? Please tell us where the survivors are, if they're all together. We may as well speak with them if Hoya can't discern anything from these likely obscured tracks."

[redfeline]

Hoya returns having investigated all she could. I don't know what to make of it. We have tracks of both beasts, steps were taken to hide as much scent as possible. That said the dragon doesn't smell like any dragon I've herd of, sulfur and the like. No this dragon smells faintly of metal. We could attempt to follow the tracks of coarse but I don't feel confident in my tracking abilities. I feel finding a witness may shed more light.

Turning to the the servant By the way what started this war, and may I ask who stand to profit from it?

[Jack_Simth]

Well if we get more questions to ask I'll be able to have one of them be how long will Arthago wait. Heather muses.

My first question to you. Heather replied cocking her head slightly. Are there any nearby volcano,
large mountains. Locations a red dragon might choose to place it's lair.

The man considers, and says "No... no volcanoes or mountains in a hundred miles. I think the closest ones are in the Illesen Hills, on the opposite side of Daenia. We have to import all our ores, and they're expensive right now because they need to go through Anticlere to the south, Ykalon to the north, or Dwynnen to the East - that last of which is usually the cheapest route, although those ores are coming from a bit further away, the Wrothgarian Mountains. So... really can't think of any mountains or nothing."

"And you... What is your name, by the way? Please tell us where the survivors are, if they're all together. We may as well speak with them if Hoya can't discern anything from these likely obscured tracks."

The man says "Huh. It's been quite some time since a highborn asked me that one. Call me Joe. Survivors are holed up about about six hours' walk east. Local noble came up with the bright idea of keeping them all in one place. I'm not quite sure whether that's so he can conveniently kill them all if he decides he needs to, or so he can protect them better. Lots of guards, either way."

Turning to the the servant By the way what started this war, and may I ask who stand to profit from it?

Joe shrugs, and says "Hmm... well, I'm told to be honest, so: Not a clue. The ore merchants from Wrothgaria are making out like bandits right now, and I suppose they won't make as high of profit margins if the war goes away and merchants can safely get here through Daena rather than having to pay tariffs a few extra times by other routes... which, of course, also means that Anteclere, Ykalon, and Shalgora are doing well, tax-wise. As to how it started? That was about twenty years ago. Any real news on that regard is going to be so buried under propaganda by now... " the man shakes his head "Yeah, I got no way to answer that one for you."

[Illven]

It's an unusual area for a red dragon to lair then... Increases the odds of it being a conspiracy. Heather muses.

We should go talk to the survivors, they may have something of the princess so I can scry on her. Heather pipes up.

[redfeline]

Do either of you have a faster travel option. Six hours is a bit of a time investment when you are in a hurry.

As for scrying, Joe would you lord have access to anything of the princesses?