Chorton's guild Blue 2 Bluer harder

[Illven]

Heather for her part, had her own mission in the coming weeks. Although she had worked well with Menja in delivering Princess Au'buki to the wedding, what her next job was, was something Menja simply couldn't help with. Heather was being retained as a King's court wizard, due to their previous one dying and the apprentice not being up to stuff just yet. She was being called to perform wizardly duties with her divination and teach the apprentice some more complicated spells.

But don't worry, Chorton has jobs for the rest of you.

"This is another story about a princess. She hasn't been kidnapped." Chorton starts off as way of explanation. "She left of her own accord and that's the concern. She's the crown princess of the Asluzuian empire, an elven kingdom. She's found religion. Normally we wouldn't get involved, but her parents are paying quite well, and... she's found the religion of Pelor. Which my sources tell me on that material plane world, is a primarily human god. Almost exclusively in fact."

"She isn't being mind controlled. That was the first thing her parents checked, but unless they keep her under-guard twenty four seven she'll just leave at the first opportunity. Something is up with her drive for this religion. Her parents want her home, and her mind cleared. That may involve making her have a crisis of faith, that may involve finding out if the church has something on her, and removing that leverage. That may involve convincing her to try to stay and home and convert the court, or something else of course. Are there any questions?"

[Jack_Simth]

The slightly transparent nymph, clothed in magic items that are enchanted to pass through walls with her, sighs, and says "Gods. Lovely. Always 'nice' when they get involved in things. Conversions are often prompted by friends, family, relatives, mates, or prospective mates... is there any indication of who brought that particular bit of corruption to her, or failing that, some form of contacts & relations list?"

[Lord Bayushi]

The serpent creature Corivar balanced his form coiled around the chair provided, and used a simple cantrip to manipulate his mug of what the legged ones called 'coffee.' Alchemically, he mused, the combination of chlorogenic acids in the bean extract was complemented by the disaccharide cubes, but it was truly the phenolic compounds in the small amount of ethanol matrix commonly referred to as 'whiskey' that made the compound complete. Though he no longer required such sustenance since his transformation, he ingested certain compounds for the pleasure of the experience, his slightly spiked coffee among them. He sipped from the mug periodically as Chorton addressed the group. In between sips, his bright yellow tongue darted in and out of his mouth, a subconscious habit.

"Have the elven-breed sovereigns considered allowing an influential member of another, more racially or politically appropriate religious faction to attempt to sway the neonate toward another deity?" He spoke to the group in general, thinking out loud. "If she was manipulated into following the human-breed god, could it not be a simple matter to manipulate her to follow the elven-breed equivalent instead? At the very least it could allow her a forum to divulge the nature and fervor of her sudden faith and it's origins."

"Does the elven-breed royal neonate have a name," he continued, "or simply a title, like certain performers among the legged ones?" He used the same cantrip to manipulate a pen and some parchment to jot down notes.

[Gunhaven]

Quill, as others called the floating brain, had dressed It's vestigial body in a comically sized scholar's outfit since it was roughly a fifth the size of that most important organ and now did nothing short of being useless or a means to hold magical items. The gems, mainly topaz and amethyst, of its headband and bracers glistened in the light as it maintained its position floating at eye level of whoever was speaking. Every few seconds it would bob as if it was nodding along, vestigial body swaying under it, and it waited patiently for a moment to speak. The silver ink pen that it used for its magic was pulled out of its pocket with telekinetic force and a pair of golden glyphs was written within the air once such a break presented itself. From the glyphs it pulled out a proper ink pen and journal as it used telekinesis to join the serpentine companion in taking notes.

Politely it waited for another brief pause before it sent telepathically, its voice like a cool breeze devoid of emotion, "I would like to check out some books from the library before we leave. Anything on this Pelor and similar deities from the racially appropriate pantheon, the Asluzuian empire and surrounding lands, relationships between humans and elves in that particular region of space and time. Ultimately if she isn't being blackmailed and there isn't racial tension among the less enlightened races then we may want to talk to the court itself. Pelor, much as my goddess Shelyn, likely wouldn't turn down a devotee and could accept a change of appearance." Once It finished speaking it let the journal and ink pen circle around it's useless body, silver ink pen still it's telekinetic grasp.

[Illven]

The slightly transparent nymph, clothed in magic items that are enchanted to pass through walls with her, sighs, and says "Gods. Lovely. Always 'nice' when they get involved in things. Conversions are often prompted by friends, family, relatives, mates, or prospective mates... is there any indication of who brought that particular bit of corruption to her, or failing that, some form of contacts & relations list?"

"It would have to be a friend or a mate. As family or relatives would have convinced her to follow some Elven god. That at least narrows it down to outside the court."

The serpent creature Corivar balanced his form coiled around the chair provided, and used a simple cantrip to manipulate his mug of what the legged ones called 'coffee.' Alchemically, he mused, the combination of chlorogenic acids in the bean extract was complemented by the disaccharide cubes, but it was truly the phenolic compounds in the small amount of ethanol matrix commonly referred to as 'whiskey' that made the compound complete. Though he no longer required such sustenance since his transformation, he ingested certain compounds for the pleasure of the experience, his slightly spiked coffee among them. He sipped from the mug periodically as Chorton addressed the group. In between sips, his bright yellow tongue darted in and out of his mouth, a subconscious habit.

"Have the elven-breed sovereigns considered allowing an influential member of another, more racially or politically appropriate religious faction to attempt to sway the neonate toward another deity?" He spoke to the group in general, thinking out loud. "If she was manipulated into following the human-breed god, could it not be a simple matter to manipulate her to follow the elven-breed equivalent instead? At the very least it could allow her a forum to divulge the nature and fervor of her sudden faith and it's origins."

"Does the elven-breed royal neonate have a name," he continued, "or simply a title, like certain performers among the legged ones?" He used the same cantrip to manipulate a pen and some parchment to jot down notes.

"Well all nobles are educated in the basics of the elven gods from an early age. They probably have figured that if she was going to take to a religion so strongly, she would have before now." Chorton explains. "Their may just not be a priest with the charisma to convince her to follow more acceptable gods. As for her name, it's." Chorton continues looking at his notes. "Princess Nyna of the Forest."

Quill, as others called the floating brain, had dressed It's vestigial body in a comically sized scholar's outfit since it was roughly a fifth the size of that most important organ and now did nothing short of being useless or a means to hold magical items. The gems, mainly topaz and amethyst, of its headband and bracers glistened in the light as it maintained its position floating at eye level of whoever was speaking. Every few seconds it would bob as if it was nodding along, vestigial body swaying under it, and it waited patiently for a moment to speak. The silver ink pen that it used for its magic was pulled out of its pocket with telekinetic force and a pair of golden glyphs was written within the air once such a break presented itself. From the glyphs it pulled out a proper ink pen and journal as it used telekinesis to join the serpentine companion in taking notes.

Politely it waited for another brief pause before it sent telepathically, its voice like a cool breeze devoid of emotion, "I would like to check out some books from the library before we leave. Anything on this Pelor and similar deities from the racially appropriate pantheon, the Asluzuian empire and surrounding lands, relationships between humans and elves in that particular region of space and time. Ultimately if she isn't being blackmailed and there isn't racial tension among the less enlightened races then we may want to talk to the court itself. Pelor, much as my goddess Shelyn, likely wouldn't turn down a devotee and could accept a change of appearance." Once It finished speaking it let the journal and ink pen circle around it's useless body, silver ink pen still it's telekinetic grasp.

"I'll tell the librarian to help you find the books necessary. Return them in the condition they were in." Chorton warns sternly.

[Jack_Simth]

One ghost raises an eyebrow at the other, and says "I can likely answer any question you have about Pelor at least as well as our library. I've made extensive study of deities in general. The 'almost' on Pelor's worship is well-supported; Saint Jalnir the Gentle, for instance, was half-orc. Which may be useful if the princess has mostly-standard elven views...."

Spoiler

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+31 Kn(Religion) modifier over here.

[Genth]

The strange shape of light that had been quietly sparkling in a corner suddenly coalesces, the image of a handsome, androgynous creature emerging from within the glittering energy. Sikhī bows their head to the group. "Religion is a wierd thing. People needing a voice for their morality I suppose. So we find the Princess, check if she's in a pickle, and help her come back to her family? Are they hiring the guild for prestige, or because they think something more dangerous is going on?"

[Illven]

The strange shape of light that had been quietly sparkling in a corner suddenly coalesces, the image of a handsome, androgynous creature emerging from within the glittering energy. Sikhī bows their head to the group. "Religion is a wierd thing. People needing a voice for their morality I suppose. So we find the Princess, check if she's in a pickle, and help her come back to her family? Are they hiring the guild for prestige, or because they think something more dangerous is going on?"

"In case the church backs the princess and refuses to let you simply take her." Chorton replies. "Not that I think you will unless something's dangerous about the church. But you also have people among you, who can be quite convincing." Chorton adds.

[Gunhaven]

"I'll tell the librarian to help you find the books necessary. Return them in the condition they were in." Chorton warns sternly.

Quill gave another bob and sent "Of course, sir. I don't have the means to handle them physically anyway" with just a touch of humor that seems odd coming from such a monotone voice normally.

One ghost raises an eyebrow at the other, and says "I can likely answer any question you have about Pelor at least as well as our library. I've made extensive study of deities in general. The 'almost' on Pelor's worship is well-supported; Saint Jalnir the Gentle, for instance, was half-orc. Which may be useful if the princess has mostly-standard elven views...."

Spoiler

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+31 Kn(Religion) modifier over here.

The Contemplative adjusted it's facing toward the nymph and gave another bob, sending "That would be appreciated. It's important that one researches their next story before they begin writing it." It then floated silently toward the library while maintaining a position within one hundred feet so that it may still communicate, unless it was stopped by someone else, and gave a bob toward the librarian. It had spent countless years here and knew the rough location of where it needed to be without bothering anyone else and, true to it's word, didn't physically touch a book as it began to manipulate up to 11 of them at a time while using a bit more of it's mental ability to write down notes almost as fast as his mind could turn the pages. With each book it manipulated the silver ink pen to form a golden hand written in languages long lost that then opened it before putting it back in the same spot, under the same condition it had been found in.

Spoiler: Knowledge?

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I don't know if you actually care about that nonsense or not but I'll spend as long as I can researching things. I have a +30 History, +25 Arcane/Nature/Planes/Religion, +20 Others (although the religion I'll just use Jack_Smith's knowledge for). I'll look for whatever I can relating to the world we're about to go to and the noble family, etc etc, just so we don't look like complete tourists when we arrive.

[Lord Bayushi]

The naga took another sip from his mug while the others spoke. He continued with his own questions once there was a pause to do so. "Is the neonate Nyna of age, as the elven-breed define it culturally, to make decisions of her own? If so, and she is free of dire influences or blackmail, and still decides on her evangelical path, what are we to do?"

[Jack_Simth]

The nymph considers the Naga's question, and adds "That is indeed a good question... how does local law view her?" while she reviews her knowledge of Pelor's requirements, rituals, and ceremonies

Spoiler: Rolls

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Kn(religion): Taking 10: 10+31=41: Requirements, rituals, ceremonies, and rights of a Pelorite?

What does Pelor require of worshippers in terms of marriage, worship, holy days, and so on?
What rituals and ceremonies is a new pelorite expected to go through?
What rituals and ceremonies is a pelorite expected to observe regularly?
What does the Church of Pelor grant a worshipper that they don't to regular folks?

Kn(Local/Geography/Nobility/Planes): Taking 10: 10+18=28: What's the law that applies to the princess regarding adulthood, choice of deity, and so on?

After a little bit, the specter adds "Regardless, we should probably get going. I imagine that our customer is eager to have the matter resolved." And begins to head there.

[Illven]

The naga took another sip from his mug while the others spoke. He continued with his own questions once there was a pause to do so. "Is the neonate Nyna of age, as the elven-breed define it culturally, to make decisions of her own? If so, and she is free of dire influences or blackmail, and still decides on her evangelical path, what are we to do?"

"You are to convince her. In whatever way you deem fit." Chorton replies.

The nymph considers the Naga's question, and adds "That is indeed a good question... how does local law view her?" while she reviews her knowledge of Pelor's requirements, rituals, and ceremonies

Spoiler: Rolls

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Kn(religion): Taking 10: 10+31=41: Requirements, rituals, ceremonies, and rights of a Pelorite?

What does Pelor require of worshippers in terms of marriage, worship, holy days, and so on?
What rituals and ceremonies is a new pelorite expected to go through?
What rituals and ceremonies is a pelorite expected to observe regularly?
What does the Church of Pelor grant a worshipper that they don't to regular folks?

Kn(Local/Geography/Nobility/Planes): Taking 10: 10+18=28: What's the law that applies to the princess regarding adulthood, choice of deity, and so on?

After a little bit, the specter adds "Regardless, we should probably get going. I imagine that our customer is eager to have the matter resolved." And begins to head there.

"She would be considered an adult by elven standards. However, as a noble she is expected to fulfill certain obligations. Obligations that I'm led to believe are impossible to fulfill if she's in a abbey half a country away." Chorton explains.

Spoiler: Pelor info

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Pelor has slight homophobic tendencies in marriage. Humans are expected to multiply and be fruitful, although an unknown gay affair is not considered a problem.
Pelor clerics pray in the mornings. And their holy days start at the solstice and end around harvest time.
New clerics cannot take the cloth until they have destroyed at least one undead.
The most common rite is the blessing of the sun kissed field. Where farmer's harvests are increased.
Cheaper healing. Military training. Room and board in exchange for being a guard or arm of the faith.

[JBarca]

The statuesque warrior, Menja, had thus far remained silent, choosing to think on the coming mission rather than try to defend the gods from the comments of her companions.

Finally, as the others prepare to leave, she stands. "I will go along to ensure nothing untoward is happening here and to preserve the good name of the Guild, of course. But I will not force Nyna to worship a god other than the one she chooses, given that Pelor is a Good deity. I will lend my voice in conversation, but not conversion. I trust this is acceptable?" She looks toward Chortan at this, but glances at her companions as well, in case they have any objections that need addressing.

Assuming there are none, she nods. "Where can we find Nyna? Will one of the gates be taking us near her? And, more importantly,
should we speak to her family or her first?"

[Illven]

"Acceptable. She's right now traveling out of elven lands with a group of priests. You should talk to her family first to get a better idea of what goes on in her head." Chorton replies.

[Gunhaven]

Quill started to put away the books it had been researching once it's comrades seemed ready to leave, organizing notes as it floated back to join everyone else. Another flash of golden words and they were put away within the extradimensional space it kept its belongings along with the ink pen it used to consolidate what already existed. It's cold voice swept over their minds as it sent "I have done what I could. Let us go and expand upon our knowledge while we discuss theirs."

[Jack_Simth]

The transparent fey comments to Menja "Do keep in mind, at best we have a fragment of the story of what's actually going on at this point. Can you imagine, say, some clerics of Erythnul tricking the lady into thinking she's heading off to join the church of Pelor, when they're actually leading her to be sacrificed? I'd rather not limit our courses of action until we've got more solid information, if it's all the same to you. If I do find she's off to be sacrificed, I'm liable to want to get her out of that situation even if I can't convince her that's what's going on. But yes, let's go get more information. If there's a nearby gate, then well. If not, I can probably find a suitable path of shadows there if nobody else has a faster method."

[Lord Bayushi]

The serpent uncoiled from the chair it was perched on and slithered through the air, into the antechamber just outside the room. It's possessions were in a pile at the side of the room, it slithered into each strap, belt, and bandoleer with a practiced ease, and with a magical shiver, shifted into a shape of a male elf of average build. His facial features were much his own, the addition of hair and a finely trimmed beard to accent his slightly slimmer and longer nose and chin. He returned to the table making slight adjustments to his gear and clothing, grabbing the now empty mug and scrubbing it clean with another cantrip.

"There may be little mystery here at all. A rebellious youth seeking out what her parents disapprove of seems as likely a story as any other. None the less, we should see if there is a puzzle to be solved. I'm ill equipped to travel between the planes without scrolls or other implements, so I will be grateful for any assistance in our timely arrival."

He placed his mug into the haversack hung like a satchel at his side, gathering his writing utensils and notes into it shortly thereafter. "I am ready to commence as soon as the rest of you are."

Spoiler: OOC

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Corivar will make a Knowledge (Local) roll for appropriate dress for the area and a Linguistics roll for an appropriate accent. Due to the limitations of the die roller and how the Tenacious Inspiration ability works, I have to split up the rolls whenever I'm using my inspiration ability.
So, Knowledge (Local) (1d20+13)[22] plus (2d8b1)[6]
and Linguistics (1d20+12)[28] plus (2d8b1)[7]

[Genth]

The strangely 'perfect' apparition leans back against the wall, smiling at the rest of the gathered group. "I'm with Menja, personally as well. As is Royal Eyes, being forced away from one's deity isn't something to take lightly. But I'm sure if the other theory is right and she's being coerced, we'll be able to figure it out!" they push themselves off the wall, a bright and airy demeanor to their step, walks into the center of the room, and offers out their hands. "I have Plane Shift prepared, so unless someone else wants to pilot? And don't forget to suppress any natural inclinations against magic, did that once and left a poor fellow two planes away because he forgot to take off his protective mantle."

[JBarca]

Menja nods in agreement. "As I said, I won't attempt to sway her from a Good god she chooses. If she is being tricked or coerced, it is not a choice.

That said, I believe we're ready to depart? Chortan, which gate are we to use?"

[Illven]

Chorton gives you directions to an inn about a mile away.

The portal takes you to a building you were told that you were just outside the Elven capital, about 6 hours riding speed away. A inn used as a rest spot on a major road called the Moss trail road.

-Oh.- A young pretty elven boy calls out in elvish, before focusing for a moment and speaking in common. "It's um. How. You are from the city of many doors, correct?" He speaks hesitatingly as you realize you crawled out of a small fireplace. "How may I help you? You are on Moss trail road outside of Asluzuian the Capital city of Asluzuian empire. Do you have any questions?" He asks as your eyes take in the area you realize you are in a large tavern area of the inn.

[Jack_Simth]

Darshee, disguised as a living elf, takes a moment to consider that in elven lands, she probably ought to either switch appearances a bit or learn Elvish decides to solve the problem by silently casting both Tongues and Cultural Adaptation before responding in elvish "Perceptive of you. What's your name? You can call me Darshee. And yes, we do have some questions. We understand that there was a party of Pelorites that came through recently, possibly with a new convert? We'd like to learn about them, and maybe meet with them."

[Illven]

The elf boy shakes his head for a few moments, before snapping his fingers in realization. "Oh you mean the group of humans with that one elf? They didn't stop here, we offered them discounts but they gave us dirty looks and implied that they were force marching for pretty much as long as their was daylight." He replies.

[Gunhaven]

Quill for it's part didn't bother hiding what it was, or what all sentient life that focused on the mind would eventually become, as it performed the same motions necessary to start recording this newest chapter. Location, flora, fauna, and especially speech were recorded as they happened. For a second, though, it paused it's writing and sent to the child in an elvish monotone "Do you recall what direction and how long ago it was? Any information would be helpful."

[Illven]

-It was a couple of days ago. And she went heading to the west. May I ask why?- The young elf boy asks concerned.

[Lord Bayushi]

The elven version of Corivar adjusted his hat as he took in his surroundings. As he normally did in such disguises, he clinched his pipe in his teeth to help remind him to keep his tongue behind his lips. He started to light the pipe with magic, but, seeing that they had company that might not be used to such demonstrations, he walked over to the fireplace and used a tinder instead.

"We have business with the party in question, though first we must visit the capital," he stated in Elven. "You said that the humans reacted harshly to you and your fellows as they passed through. How about the elf woman with them, did she have a similar demeanor?"

Spoiler: OOC

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Perception check to take in whatever might be present in our surroundings or interesting details about our contact: (1d20+22)[39] plus (2d8b1)[8]

[Illven]

The elven version of Corivar adjusted his hat as he took in his surroundings. As he normally did in such disguises, he clinched his pipe in his teeth to help remind him to keep his tongue behind his lips. He started to light the pipe with magic, but, seeing that they had company that might not be used to such demonstrations, he walked over to the fireplace and used a tinder instead.

"We have business with the party in question, though first we must visit the capital," he stated in Elven. "You said that the humans reacted harshly to you and your fellows as they passed through. How about the elf woman with them, did she have a similar demeanor?"

Spoiler: OOC

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Perception check to take in whatever might be present in our surroundings or interesting details about our contact: [roll0] plus [roll1]

"She.... Seemed a little confused and she herself wasn't hostile, but she went along with the group." The boy replies. "What business?" He asks concerned.

Spoiler: Perception

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There doesn't seem to be anything particular unique about your surroundings or the contact.

[JBarca]

Menja offers a polite nod to their host, but chooses to remain in the background for this discussion. She does raise an eyebrow in curiosity when the boy mentions the hostile attitude of the Humans, filing it away for future reference.

The warrior glances through the windows briefly before standing with the rest of the group, absorbing the information.

[Jack_Simth]

The apparition in the guise of a living elf, considers the boy, and says "The short answer is that the lady's parents are worried for her, would like us to make sure everything turns out OK, and to see her safely home. But then, all decent parents are worried for their children and want that, no? That said..." Darshee turns to her companions "... we may not have time to visit the palace. When we were given the contract, she was still there, so it made sense to start by going that way. If she's already a few days gone, that's not going to work out well."

Spoiler

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Sense Motive:(1d20+23)[29]: I'd like to know how bad the 'Peolorites' were to the boy. Are we talking people who are simply in a hurry and didn't want a sales pitch (which he was giving them), are we talking "active cruelty", or are we talking somewhere in the middle? It's a fairly important distinction, and it's also the type of thing perceptions can mess up - hence the sense motive check to see where his perceptions are slanting things. Additionally, there's often the desire to not slander others, so he could be sugar-coating for that reason.

[Illven]

Spoiler: Sense motive

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Somewhere inbetween, certainly rude but they didn't come to blows or anything.

How fast are you following the group guys. List whatever travel speeds you're going at, and how many hours a day you're willing to move.

[Genth]

Having been quiet for most of this conversation, Sikhi steps forwards, a soft smile on their features. "Well, these people don't seem particularly... friendly, and our friend Darshee is correct, time is of the essence. Besides, we'll learn more from the fair lady ourselves than from her friends. If it pleases the more tactical members of our group, I could follow the road as a beam of light to find how far head they are?"

Spoiler: OOC

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So Sikhī can turn into a beam of light, which lets them travel without effort for 150ft/round. It says it works like the Bralani's wind form ability, which would let them move at 600ft per round, but I'm not quite sure if it works like that, happy for GM to make a call.