Trog's Tavern CLIV

[5a Violista]

"Yeah, I'm still pretty small," Obsidian says. She shows using her hand the approximate size when she's a dragon: about medium or medium-large dog sized.

"Oh! But my mom! She was so big! Like, sooooo big. The biggest." How big? Dunno, she was a hatchling. She just remembers that she was huge.

[Zefir]

"She was?" he wonders. It is safe to say her mother is either dead, killed by those dragon hunters she mentioned earlier or maybe just disapeared. In both case it's barly hhis part to take action but he got nothing else to talk right now. "What happened to her?"

[bc56]

Jade finishes another beer and looks around the tavern. She looks visibly inebriated at this point, but maybe there's someone who wants to talk to the drunken former man anyway. She won't be going anywhere for a while, not after drinking so much.

[5a Violista]

"She's dead," Obsidian says. It's that simple.

She shrugs, like it's no big deal. After all, she died when she was still a hatchling. "Dragon slayers took out everyone," she says. "I got away."

She twists on her chair again.

"But that doesn't matter. It was a long time ago."

[Shadowcaller]

[EVENT: The Nexuswide Story]

Every character in the thread will (if their players allow it) suddenly know a story, or perhaps several versions of one story, as if they’ve learned of it long ago.
Do you remember where you learned of Red Riding Hood, Snowwhite or Goldilocks for the first time? Since the characters won’t exactly remember where they learned of this story. Though the story and its many versions won’t only exist inside the characters heads as it's being added to storybooks and other media across the multiverse at the same time.
It’s just a story however.It has no special mental influences or compulsions connected to it. The story just exists as a simple narrative within a characters memory and sometimes such a mundane thing can have the greatest effect.

Spoiler: The Story: Once upon a time...

Show

...there was a king that ruled over the fairest of lands. There were many beasts and villains threatening the lands but he always managed to best them with the aid of his noble knights. But one day those who he had fought so hard to protect rebelled against him.
They took his title, they took his crown and threw him out of the fairest of lands to be forgotten.
But learning of the king’s banishment, the beasts saw their opportunity and attacked.
Without their hero king the inhabitants of the fairest lands could not protect themselves and without his title and crown the king could not protect them.

Thus the king was forced to watch on his forgotten throne as the beasts rampaged through not only his former home but also the kingdoms outside the fairest of lands. The inhabitants fought valiantly but against the beast's sheer numbers they could not win.
But finally the king had enough and dubbed new knights that would unite the kingdoms against the beasts. Along with his new knights the king returned to the fairest of lands and freed it from the beasts which had taken it over.

Only then could he reclaim his rightful title and crown and used them to once and for all end the threat of the beasts. Once the beasts had been defeated the king would grant many gifts to those loyal knights who had helped him retake fairest of lands and freed the kingdoms from the beasts. Then he would take the greatest among them as his queen and they would live happily ever after as rulers of the fairest land.

This is the “prime story” but it’s likely not the version your character knows. The version or versions they’ve heard of is likely specific to their homeworld with the actors and elements being unique to it. So their players can feel free to invent their own versions of the story that can be wildly different as long as it have these elements:

1. A being/person is a figure of great importance in a fantastical place.
2. They are banished from it for some reason.
3. A great threat emerges which not only threatens the fantasy land but ALL the lands.
4. The banished is helped by a group of people to regain their former glory and with it they end the threat and save the day.

Again, knowing the story have no special effect in itself. It's up to the players if:
A: The characters learn it at all.
B: If they do anything with it.
The story is connected to the King of Rags (who is controlled by the player Morty) so that's where they would have a chance to do anything with the knowledge.

[Zefir]

"Have you tried to find others of your kind?" the man asks. "There are some around, even halfbreeds as far as I saw. Maybe trying GloG or Vigil since I knew they had some around. They would also offer you shelter against hunters. I would say many visitors od the Dancing Fox inn got a connection to them."
As he speaks he doesn't really look at the girl he rather swirls the drink in his hand around trying to collect every drop for a last sip. His eyes wander to the other woman and when she looks back he shivers. He has encountered such a transformation for a bit himself, but getting so far to get comfortable with the new form is unbelivable for him.

[5a Violista]

Obsidian shakes her head, and says, "I've looked a lot, but there aren't any," she says.

But!
She met other dragons earlier, right?

That's totally different.
Saying that a silver dragon and a gold dragon and a black dragon are the same is like saying an orc and a shiny elf and a mermaid are the same.
Or saying a housecat and a lion and a panther are the same.
Or saying that sandstone and ruby and obsidian are the same.
Or...
anything else along those lines.
Totally different!
Anyone who says otherwise is weird.

Obsidian kicks her legs.
"I know about GLoG, but what's Vigil?" she asks. "Sounds like some kind of cult."

[Zefir]

The man doesn't know the scale color so he doesn't make that a difference.
He thinks for a moment.

"Not wrong I would say." he then says "They are a lot like one, but they got the most dragonkinds working there as far as I know. Maybe they even know one they can send you. I don't think any dragonhunter will follow you up there."

[5a Violista]

Obsidian has forgotten that she's in a human form and not dragon form. So she just assumes he can tell by just looking.

"Cults can be pretty scary," she says. "I'm not sure if I want to become a cultist..."

She thinks. "But if you're saying it's safe, then maybe...?"

[Zefir]

"I wouldn't suggest you to join them, but you can at least ask around at their place." he says.
"As long as you don't sign anything you are fine. I haven't heared that they forced anyone into their ranks."

[5a Violista]

Obsidian is now imagining Vigil cultists trying to trick her into signing things.
"O-kay," she says, a little worried.

She stands.
"But that's good, right? So long as I don't sign anything, I should be fine, right?"

She considers maybe flying there - it's in the sky - but...with her shoulder injured, flying might be hard.

"Um. Thanks."
She smiles.

Obsidian waves, and then leaves.

[Zefir]

The man waves back and then turns his attention to his drink. He got no reason to hurry with his drink . None wating for him, nowhere he needs to be. Just plain old killing time.

[cheshirewolff]

The tavern door swings open, and a newcomer enters! She seems to be a young woman, rather short with delicate features, wide green eyes, and shoulder length dirty blonde hair. She wears a green capelet draped over a crisp white buttoned shirt and dark trousers, and she carries a bag that seems to be packed full of books and scrolls. A rather large and ostentatious silver broach is pinned at her neck, depicting a toad with no eyes.

Looking around nervously as she enters, she makes her way to the bar and orders a large coffee. She seems a bit taken aback by the strangeness of this place, and her eyes dart rapidly over her fellow patrons. The coffee probably isn't helping.

[Morty]

The newcomer's nervousness might not be helped by the fact that her immediate neighbor at the bar is, while physically small, rather boisterous. She's a goblin woman, rather heavy-set, with very dark grey skin, bright yellow cat-like eyes and brown hair kept in a bun, with some of it slipping out. She has rather large tusks, even for a goblin, but her ears are on the (again relatively) smaller side, with their ends bending slightly downwards. She's wearing a shirt with a high collar, cargo pants and suspenders. She puts down an empty metal mug, clearly a little tipsy.

"I'll just have another one," she tells to the staff rather loudly. "My siblings decided to call it an early night." She then looks over to the woman next to her. "Ooops, sorry. Didn't mean to yell."

[Recaiden]

Another visitor sashays into the tavern, brightening up upon entering. The day's work is definitely done once you're in Trog's. Now just to get a drink and perhaps enjoy a bit of the chaos at the center of the Nexus.
She's wearing a sleeveless white shirt with a lot of buttons, jeans, and an intricate metallic visor that completely hides her eyes. She's got a pair of long furry ears and two fluffy tails (black with a spot of white at the very tip). And I suppose she's constantly radiating a field of wild magical energy. Otherwise, perfectly normal.

"Hey, Cosmo. Get me a fox cola to start."

[cheshirewolff]

The nervous woman jumps slightly at her fellow patron's proclamation, almost spilling coffee on herself. She seems somewhat mollified at the apology, however, especially after seeing that it comes from a goblin. After all the strange things she's seem on her way here, seeing a goblin is almost comforting.

"Oh, no worries! I'm just new here, that's all," she says, brushing her hair out of her eyes. Uh, better start making contacts here. Maybe this goblin knew more about the environs than she did. "So you, uh, have siblings here? Does your family live in this...city?" It's a little more than just a city, but she's not clear on the terminology.

As she waits for a response, she notices a surge of chaotic energy that seems to be emanating from the betailed visitor who has just arrived. Narrowing her eyes, she studies the newcomer thoughtfully. Wild magic was always of interest.

[bc56]

Someone else is already here, but she's not nearly as happy. She's a very beautiful human woman with shoulder-length brown hair and deep brown eyes. She's clad in a blue t-shirt and jeans, and currently leaning glumly over a half-drinken beer and a plate of french fries. Something seems to be making her distinctly uncomfortable. Those capable of sensing such things will possibly note the powerful curse affecting her, and the magical seal keeping its worst effects at bay.

[Recaiden]

The magic is specifically leaking out from around the edges of her visor. And maybe a bit along her spine, but mostly it's the eyes.

Let's take stock of the company at the moment.
Generic humanoid, tiny humanoid with big teeth, humanoid with lots of paper, and humanoid whose barely touching their food. Not particularly exciting.
That guy seems to be sulking, and those two are talking, so...
Honeysuckle leans over to Jade, inquiring in a bright voice "Doin' okay? Taking your time with that drink."

[Morty]

The nervous woman jumps slightly at her fellow patron's proclamation, almost spilling coffee on herself. She seems somewhat mollified at the apology, however, especially after seeing that it comes from a goblin. After all the strange things she's seem on her way here, seeing a goblin is almost comforting.

"Oh, no worries! I'm just new here, that's all," she says, brushing her hair out of her eyes. Uh, better start making contacts here. Maybe this goblin knew more about the environs than she did. "So you, uh, have siblings here? Does your family live in this...city?" It's a little more than just a city, but she's not clear on the terminology.

As she waits for a response, she notices a surge of chaotic energy that seems to be emanating from the betailed visitor who has just arrived. Narrowing her eyes, she studies the newcomer thoughtfully. Wild magic was always of interest.

"Not my family, no. Most of them are far away. It's just me and three of my siblings working here." The goblin woman's cup is filled with something blue. "We're mercenaries, so our work takes us places. We live in a goblin colony a ways from here, for the most part."

[bc56]

"I'm fine." Jade looks up at Honeysuckle with an expression that betrays that she's really not fine at all. "It's nothing. I'm fine." Who is she trying to convince with that tone? She's clearly not fine.

[Recaiden]

She's not convincing Honesysuckle, that's for sure. Who doesn't notice the treacherous expression, but that "I'm so non-okay I can't even muster the energy to ask" voice is really obvious.
Yeah, real fine."
"What, trapped here from another universe? Doomed hometown? Haunted? C'mon, lighten up."

[bc56]

"No, cursed." Jade abandons any pretense of being fine at this point. "Turned into this." She motions at her curvy, feminine body. It probably doesn't look like a bad thing to be, clearly both healthy and attractive.

[Recaiden]

Honeysuckle concentrates on deducing the shape and nature of Jade as much as she can.
"And before? Could be worse." She's a little short, and has no tail, but with more muscles, more curves...it's not a bad thing to be transformed into a human.

[Zefir]

There is also a man sitting at the bar. He's rather plain looking wearing a shirt and jeans.He has dark blond hair and brown eyes. The only thing that is odd are his leather boots which doesn't seem to fir his outfit. He shakes his empty glass thinking if anoterh drink would be okay or should he rather leave.

What maybe noticed by others is the distance the other patrons keep from him. Just like he means more harm then to stay close.

[bc56]

Jade seems a little upset by the question. "I was a man, okay?" Happy with your prying questions yet, Honeysuckle? "I never wanted to be a woman. But I... Forget it." She shakes the thought off.

[Recaiden]

Oh, it only gets more prying from here.
"Ah, really sucks then." Honeysuckle says, actually sounding apologetic.
"Hard being a woman. But you don't totally hate it, ah?" she suggests, feeling that Jade's last words were along the lines of "I'm totally fine."

[cheshirewolff]

"Not my family, no. Most of them are far away. It's just me and three of my siblings working here." The goblin woman's cup is filled with something blue. "We're mercenaries, so our work takes us places. We live in a goblin colony a ways from here, for the most part."

The nervous woman nods, trying to focus on the goblin's words rather than the strange blue drink she holds. "Still seems like a lot of family to me," she says ruefully, "Mercenary work seems, uh, exciting though? Traveling around and stuff." She shifts awkwardly, then extends a hand, presumably to be shaken. "My name is Isabeth, it's nice to meet you."

[bc56]

"No. It's hard to explain," Jade says. "I guess I'm just getting used to it. But it feels wrong somehow. Like I'm betraying myself." She's uncomfortable with the idea of being comfortable in her new shape.

[Recaiden]

"Hmm."
Honeysuckle shakes her head.
"Honestly. Feels like pretending sometimes, 'n I've never been a man. Prob'bly normal."
"Were you real macho before?" Or is it just...ya know? Not who you thought you'd be?"

[Morty]

The nervous woman nods, trying to focus on the goblin's words rather than the strange blue drink she holds. "Still seems like a lot of family to me," she says ruefully, "Mercenary work seems, uh, exciting though? Traveling around and stuff." She shifts awkwardly, then extends a hand, presumably to be shaken. "My name is Isabeth, it's nice to meet you."

"My name's Olvisin. Nice to meet you too." The goblin woman shakes Isabeth's hand vigorously. "I wouldn't say three is a lot, but this might be one of those cultural perspective things. We work for the biggest mercenary company around. These days we mostly do security. And try to take jobs that put is near interesting tech when we can."