Fantasy Of Distant Legends

[Epiphany]

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[/div][div class=statusText]Location: Cesimir's estate (again)
Tags: Birdsie Hanarei LostHaven [/div][/div][div class=title]Shriandriath the Debased Maiden[/div][div class=text]Shri accepted the map from Cesimir's hand. She even made a point of looking at it, noting the spot, and approximating how to best get there using the knowledge gained through a decade or more of life in the Capital. Then she folded it up and tucked it into an apron pocket. "Thank you, sir, I'm sure we won't need potions." Again, a tone of cordial politeness.

She's better this time at pretending she actually respects the man. His continued ability to be professional without wild lapses of behavior make it increasingly easy to deal with him. Ironic, actually, given most of her lifespan had been spent being around creatures just as mercurial as this mage. Had she outgrown Hell? When her husband and children inevitably passed away and she returned home, would it still welcome her or feel like home at all?

"Don't worry, sir, you won't have a yellow mark on my account." There. Mind on the job. Azhi's question, driven by his uncanny insight, made the Succubus smile though. His talents weren't as strong as her own, not exactly, but he had some strange width to his empathy she didn't comprehend. This wasn't the first time he'd made an observation of something he couldn't possibly know otherwise. When Cesimir lectured her son, she initially bristled before relaxing and nodding along, well accustomed to the vagaries of magic and what it sometimes did to those who wielded it. The arch-mage wouldn't be the first wizard who'd found a way to curse himself. Shri patted Azhi's shoulder affectionately, showing she approved of him, while speaking to Cesimir's retreating back. "We do know how it is. See you tomorrow, sir."

Hanarei LostHaven
As she turned around, son on one arm, the Succubus spotted her daughter and positively beamed. In contrast to Evelyn's condemnation of her own outfit, Shri seemed to admire the girl's choice of outfit. With the first group gone, it left only Shri, Azhi, Evelyn and Faust. The Succubus hadn't really noticed the floating skull yesterday but seemed curiously indifferent to its presence. Perhaps she just assumed her prodigy of a mage offspring would naturally have necromantic minions at some point.

Detecting the girl's embarrassment, Shri glanced down at her outfit and shrugged apologetically. "The message said it was an emergency. I didn't pause to change my clothes. That's what I'm going home to do now." She gave Evelyn another look over and in a bright tone said, "Stop by after you get your mission, and I'll have breakfast waiting and ready for you!"

The floating skull's abrupt rant brought an amused smile to the Succubus' face and she approached the pair, Azhi in tow. "Do you see that?" she asked her son, pointing at Faust. "Your sister has her first minion! He's remarkably intelligent for a first-time minion, don't you think? I think it's awfully brave of her to have a pet minion that's able to criticize her. When you get older and have minions of your own, you might find that useful too. But try to remember to keep them in their place when you're out in public, alright?"

She then reached out to pinch Faust on the cheek bone. "Oh you!"[/div][div class=text][/div][/div][/div][/div] [class=wrapper] background-color:#5e5560; box-sizing:border-box; color:#eeeeee; display:inline-block; position:relative; width:100%; text-align: justify; [/class] [class=title] color: #bfbfbf; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size:3em; font-style:italic; padding:0; text-shadow:0 0 1em; margin-bottom: 10px; [/class] [class=box] margin:2em 1em; padding:2px 4px 0px; position:relative; [/class] [class=boxBg] box-sizing:content-box; height:100%; pointer-events:none; position:absolute; width:100%; [/class] [class=boxBgLarge] top:0; left:-5px; padding:0 4px; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.35); [/class] [class=boxBgTall] top:-8px;left:3px; padding:8px 0; width:calc(100% - 8px); height:100%; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.25); [/class] [class=boxBgMedium] top:-4px; left:-1px; padding:4px 0; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.4); [/class] [class=boxInner] background-color: #5e5560; overflow:hidden; margin:0.5em; [/class] [class=statusBox] box-sizing: border-box; border-right: 3px dotted white; padding: 15px; float: left; max-width: 250px; margin: 0px 15px 15px 0px; [/class] [class=text] padding: 0px 15px 15px 15px; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size:0.8em; [/class] [class=statusText] font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.75em; margin-top: 5px; [/class] [class=characterPortrait] box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; border-radius: 20px; overflow: hidden; [/class] [class name=characterPortrait state=hover] opacity: 0.5 [/class]

 

[Noble Scion]

Devourer of men “Mai” Mlaiorve- Guild reception area

Spoiler: Appearance

“Ah, Mr. iron giant or whatever your name is. Yes, this man is bothering me, but I was just about to.. Deal.. With him.. sorry, why are you on my desk?” She pondered as another of the guild members made themselves known before the clergyman decided to take on a much more aggressive nature in response to the ogre’s provocations.

Her carefully organised papers were flung into the air as the guild member was shoved into the wall beside her. She usually didn’t expect anything unusual to happen in her day-to-day life, but today was shaping out to a little bit more unpleasant than usual. “I must say, I thought priests tended to be pacifists,,” she pondered aloud, as though the brawl were nothing more than an inconveniance, maintaining her resting scowl that adorned her other-wise beautifuk face.

“Now.. If you would be so kind to reorganise my work-space that you savages have wrecked with your human touch, I might consider not requesting to my master that you both be FED TO ME, YOU IDIOTIC MORTALS THAT BARELY DESERVE THE AIR YOUR SHRIVELED LUNGS ARE BREATHING” Mai fumed, starting off filled with calm, coolness and composure, which slowly dissipated as she spoke, her tentacles practically writhing in rage as she glared at the duo with barely-concealed murderous intent.

“If not, then I’m sure she’d be more than happy to comply, either that, or you both be arrested for your INCONVENIANCE AND WASTEFUL USE OF OXYGEN.”
IamNotLoki​

 

[Archdemon]

Fox
Location: Cliff Outside Grog's Cave
Mention/Interaction: IamNotLoki Kylesar1 June Verles Reinhardt Birdsie

Fox set out with his team to complete the mission given to them, they had a while to go before reaching the cliff. Still as he walked he kept close to Aegis, his apprentice, to keep her protected. He saw that her hair was all over and bent down to fix it. He saw a lot of his past self in her when he was a kid, and he was determined to make sure she wouldn't follow the same bloodfilled past he did. Under the mask, Fox smiled has he patted her head.

Over the next hour, the party traveled down the road, taking care to look for monuments to help lead them to Grog. Fox stopped at a little pond, he was curious if everyone had eaten properly. So he took out the 5 lunch boxes prepared for the team, Fox decided that the wolf probably needed it more than Fox, after all Fox had eaten breakfast. He wasn't sure if Viktor needed it or not, or whether he could taste it, but even still, he gave his lunchbox to Viktor.

Once everyone began chowing down, Fox began to practice his stances and moves near the edge of the pond. This was more so to keep in practice so that he doesn't get rusty. His Brute stance focuses more on his strength as he punched and kicked with force. His Rushed stance was quick as he did various combos of kicks, flips, and Jabs. His Beast style focused on Speed, Strength, and looked Brutal. Fox fought has if he had claws as his strikes focused more on an open palm with curled fingers. You could almost believe he did in fact have claws, but still the Stance looked powerful.

Once everyone had their fill of food and enjoyment with each other, they went back on their way towards Grog's Cave. About an hour later they arrived, in which Fox looked to Shelby for her role in climbing the cliff.

 

[June Verles]

Viktor von Styxland
​

As Viktor followed his troupe along he could help but feel a tad bit out of place, however he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Was it the out of date uniform? Or his inability to walk normally and instead opting to do a military style, almost mechanical like, march the whole way. It was probably all of those and also that he was in fact, a rotting corpse.

You see after being given back the control of his mind and coming into Ethergarde Viktor tried his best to help, but when a zombie knocks on your door at night you will probably not wait to hear about his offering of help before calling the guard. That's why he's tried to beautify himself, like buying skin products and conditioner, to look less dead.

Luckily for Viktor, to him at least, it seemed like nobody noticed his obvious un-death. The door to door salesmen was right! The cream does do wonders for fatigued skin.

However as he sat down for a break with the rest of them he couldn't help but notice that most of them were rather particular as well. Especially that white haired kid with the katana, he definitely looked out of place with the rest of them, which garnered him a few stares from the ghoul.

When it was time for lunch he was surprised to see that his commander gave him a set of rations? So his attempt to hide his identity did work perfectly at hiding his undeath! Still he couldn't just refuse the offering out right, that'd make everyone suspicious of him. That's why as he was opening the box he decided to hand it over to the child before smelling a familiar, appetizing smell...

Looking down he squinted in disbelief, before closing the box and opening it again just to make sure. What was inside was medium rare brain with calf muscle as a bread substitute. A thought started rampaging through his mind, was Cesimir a psychopath or was Ethengarde really ok with cannibalism?

After careful deliberation the conclusion was achieved, clearly Ethergarde was more progressive than he thought! But he couldn't exactly give the young lady a heavy protein/fat diet right...? Yeah he should just... eat... it.

With that sorted he immediately dove his head into the box and started feasting, ignorant of his rather rude table manners.

Mizu Nagoyaka
​

During the entire trip couldn't help but feel like someone was staring at him from beyond the grave, but every time he'd turn around he find the only undead in the group minding his own business. So inevitably as they say down to eat he just sighed and decided it was just hunger upsetting his humours.

Still all the negatives of the trip were easily countered after basking in the calming and pure aura that Aegis was constantly giving off. It did seem like cute and wholesome things were able to calm him, and was more wholesome than a family trip. Well most family trips don't culminate in a encounter with a troll but that's not the point here.

Nonetheless, everyone one there was a posing as a model image for what an adventurer and an adult is, so they should act accordingly.

As he opened his box he was met with the sight of something beautiful, freshly made egg and bacon sandwiches! After having his breakfast so grievously defiled he couldn't believe it when he saw it right there, in the form of a sandwich no less!

"Thank you for the food." he said as he readily clapped his hands together and closed his eyes before digging in.



As having their bellies filled with good food both Mizu and Viktor were revitalized, the latter more so due to the regeneration from eating meat kicking in. So they both followed along.


Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt Birdsie

 

[IamNotLoki]

Aegis
Location: Cliff near Grog's Domain.
Goal: Eating, preparing for the battle.
Tags: Archdemon Birdsie Kylesar1 June Verles Reinhardt

"Thanks for your kindness... everybody..." Aegis said meekly as she took a boxed lunch from her masked mentor. She wasn't used to everyone being kind to her, usually people tend to chase her around the slums, trying to get back whatever food she stole. It's almost looks like a family...

The other side of her mind though felt bad. It was her fault she was tricked by the scary man... these Adventurers are giving her special attention not really because they want to be her friend. No, they are just doing their mission. I have made the mission twice as hard. Now they need to protect me too.

Aegis couldn't stand that idea. I need to grow stronger. She thought puffing her cheeks. She watched as her teacher started to do poses at some more isolated part of the camp. She placed her food box down, without even opening it, and walked to him. She tried copying his moves... I need to be stronger, for myself. I won't let others carry me. I need to be an adventurer not for that kind priest, not for my wise teacher, I need to do this for myself.

She leapt ferociously, mimicking the masked man's animalistic stances.


Liam Gregory
"Nolan No-Shoes"
Location: Adventurer's League Hall
Goal: Rescue Aegis. Avoid getting tricked by a shady person.

"Calm the FUCK down, you underpaid desk squid!" The pale looking man said to the enraged receptionist as Nolan tried to tighten his collar. "Listen wise guy, if you don't fucking calm down, that slimy bitch... over there will shove one of her dirty tentacles up your wrinkly ass..." The man said through labored breaths.

Nolan's eyes cleared up as if he woke up from a trance. He let go of the man quickly. He looked around him and looked at his own hands. The memories of the battlefield slowly faded away and he felt great shame about what he's done. "I-I apologize... I don't know what got into me..." He said as he reached out his hands towards the person he just assaulted.

"Don't fucking touch me!" The man slapped his hands away while he tried to catch his breath.

The man's nose was as sharp as a beak, his ears were also sharp... his teeth sharpest of them all. Everything about this man was pointy and sharp.

The man looked around the room at the people staring at the scene.
"Hey, assholes! What's up!? Never seen a man get choked by a fucking priest before? You have nothing better to do!?" The man made a violent gesture at an onlooker causing him to flinch and run in terror.

The man turned to face the receptionist who is visibly still upset. "Listen Mai, about what I said about you... forget about it okay? You're a swell babe... ok? Love you..." He teased.

What an irritatingly savage man... Nolan thought as he watched the tall, skinny, pointy fellow make a fool out of himself.

Nolan sighed. "I'm so sorry... please just tell me where Aegis is... I need to find her, for her safety. Our Lord Hann will remember your kindness..." The priest smoothened his robe so that he can put both his knees on the floor. "I am begging you... please tell me where she is..."

The man crouched and looked at Nolan with a somewhat more sympathetic expression. "Hey man... what's your name?" He put an arm around the priest's shoulders.

"Ah... I'm Father Nolan..."

The pointy man closed his eyes... savoring the name like it was fine wine. "Hmmm... yes... Nolan...." He put his face close to Nolan's and grinned. "Okay, my name is Ichabod... I'm a pretty famous adventurer... heard about me?"

Nolan weighed his words carefully. "I'm sure your deeds are valor are noted by our Gods above..." He said simply.

Ichabod's face twisted and he spit on the old man's face. "I don't believe in Gods..." He said, standing up. "Your elf is most likely sent over to fight that Troll called Grog in the Northeast... Now get the bloody fuck out of my face..."

Ichabod said as he left the priest there... kneeling on the floor with spit all over his face.

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

At least I have a lead... Thank you Father, you have given me a Trial but you have also led me a path.

Deep down Nolan didn't trust this information. That man wasn't the most trustworthy person. And he spit on the Gods.

I pray that the Gods will forgive his wretched soul.

When Nolan was done feeding his mule, he untied its ropes. Old man and a mule... off to a dangerous adventure... just like the old days.

"You won't be going, Old man..." Said a shadowing figure at the corner of the stable.

The sound startled Nolan, making him turn to the direction.

Ichabod was now wearing a full suit of armor... an axe on his right hand and a dagger on his left.

He wants to fight me... Lord give me strength to prevail in this tribulation.

 

[Kylesar1]

Sheub "Shelby" Mangoza
Grog's Cave- Entrance​

Shelby scarfed her food down like a ravenous beast. Magic burned calories like a bitch and if she didn't eat, casting spells would become painful. When she was done, she grabbed the rope Fox gave her and began to fashion it into a usable tool around one of her normal arrows. She already had a plan of action regarding it. By the time she was done with that, it was time to go. She notched the arrow to her crossbow and held the rest. Soon, they made it to the cave, the dark rock hole that she had heard far too many jokes about with orc women to compare it to. "This seems to be the place. It's the only cave in the area, so I guess we start inside."

Shelby took the lead as the one with the rope. She pulled out one of her brimstone arrows and it ignited, meaning she pretty much had her own set of torches. 20 of them in fact. "If he gave us a rope, that means that at the end of this corridor should be a drop that'll take us down," Shelby started, her voice low for some reason. Maybe she just didn't want to alert Grog beforehand. Since Grog was a troll and very likely not that bright, the cave shouldn't have anything that'll give them a hard time like water pits or booby traps.
"Honestly, I was hoping to catch Grog outside mobbing people. That would make things easier." Keeping the fight outside gave them lots more maneuver room, which gave them the advantage against large enemies. Shelby just sighed and kept her head on a swivel for any other enemies they could encounter that lived early on in the cave. She wasn't worried about animals like bear or things like that Grog would either beat one flat or think such grizzly was a puppy or something and squeeze it until it died. Most trolls were either one or the other. Shelby..........wanted to try the peace route, for Aegis more than anything to show her that words could be just as effective as the sword.

Archdemon Birdsie June Verles IamNotLoki

 

[Inheritance]

Brom Beararm​

Just watching all those talented fighters, magi, and other creatures, Brom knew he was out of his league here. He decided to leave town and walk around in the closest thing he could find to nature-a very small forest that seemed to be living its last few years. Still, this small wooded area was enough like a forest, and it was here he felt the most comfortable; spending so much time here over the years that he became a fairly talented woodsman. Still, the safety of the trees didn't stop him from thinking about what had happened. He held his own easily enough, and he wasn't scared of anyone there, but he seemed so powerless. All of those people were talented beyond his reckoning, and even his age probably wouldn't be much when immortal demons were able to share their wisdom.

As he continued his stroll, he started to question why this was bugging him so much. He certainly wasn't scared of them-he was certain of that. He didn't think he would beat any of them in a fight, but he simply didn't feel threatened. He knew from a young age that he was no more than a man, and while men could do great things, there were limits. There had to be, and despite how strong was someone could become, there was always limits on their capabilities. He had learned that the hard way when he had watched his family get butchered by a man that seemingly couldn't be taken down. He watched, as this man slaughtered warrior after warrior, and eventually his own father. Brom confirmed his own mortality that day, lying so close to death, while his village was raided. He sometimes looked back and wondered why the man left him alive when all else who opposed him had died, and what made him so lucky that he should live in the place of others? Who gave the divine right to wielders of magic to chose someone's time of death, and ignore their own?

All this he thought about as he walked. But why was he dwelling upon this so much? He had spent years considering this- so why was it coming back to him now? After much walking, he figured it out. He didn't fear them or hate them, nor was he jealous or disappointing at his lack of power. He was wondering what the hell he was doing here. Why him? Why would he be placed with all these brilliant beings? To pick up the scraps? To clean up after them? He touched his own sword slightly, the small amount of magic still sparking him a bit. Whatever it was, he intended to be the best he could be, and not lose himself along the way.

He was startled out of his thoughts by the letter. He read it quickly, and without giving it much thought, teleported to the castle. He was already geared up and ready to go-as he always was.

"What's the problem?" He said, ready for what would await him.

Birdsie IamNotLoki

 

[IamNotLoki]

Liam Gregory
"Nolan No-Shoes"
Location: Adventurer's League Hall
Goal: Rescue Aegis. Find out what Ichabod's deal is.

The the pine needles made soft, crunching noises as hooves trampled over them. Two riders, one huge and one stick-like, rode carefully up a stiff hill covered in roots and boulders. "You can't ride too fast here old man... If you aren't careful your horse will break an ankle," Ichabod told the old priest as he led the way.

Nolan eyed the man's back suspiciously... deep down he couldn't trust the man completely. He wonders why the League of Adventurers would even consider allowing such a vile and despicable man to join their ranks. Nolan tried to quench his doubts. I am in the hands of my Lord... he will not lead me astray.

A while ago back in the stables, Nolan thought that the shady adventurer came to attack him while he fed Woguran... what took place instead was more surprising than Nolan thought.

"Who is the girl to you... your daughter? Did you bang a Drow, father? I thought followers of Hann vowed oaths of celibacy..." The strange, sharp fanged adventurer inquired as he placed his weapons on his belt.

"My God tells me to save her from the life of misery and poverty... I cannot let her die..."

"Psh... she's an adventurer, right? You got her to sign the contracts. She's going to need to do missions regardless. What's saving her going to do? This is the life of an adventurer... It's not all about gaining fame and fortunes..." Ichabod said as he bit into an orange.

The priest narrowed his eyes at the man.

"And what's helping one kid going to do? How is that going to fix this shithole world? Other kids will still be starving... little girls will still get raped. What makes this girl special? You see a cute face and you lose your shit..." Ichabod scoffed.

"I do what I can..." Nolan said simply. "To be an agent of our Gods..."

"Bullshit old man, you're just running away. I can see it in your eyes..."

Nolan kept his calm and chose his words carefully. "Are you here to judge my life choices?"

"No, I came here to make a deal with you..." Ichabod grinned.

Nolan stood in front of Ichabod... staring him down and crossing his arms.

"Let's face it, you can't get to Grog's domain alone... I bet you don't even know where it is! I can help show you where it is... for a price. Give me the rest of your fruit and I'll do it... not a bad deal right?"

"Fruit? Why do you want fruit?"

"You want my help or not?"

"Why should I trust you?"

"Why wouldn't you trust me?"

Nolan stood silent.

"Oh... one more thing. I'll take you there... I'll even show you a shortcut. But you have to do one thing for me..." Ichabod grinned.

Here it comes... Nolan was sure that this fiend would not go to this treacherous quest for a couple of apples. Nolan was ready to decline Ichabod's condition.

"You remind me a lot of my old man... you place kids into the paths that YOU think is best for them. You think you know better. You think that the future you imagined for them is better than the future they can choose for themselves. When they do things on their own though, you panic... you micro-manage their lives..." Nolan can sense a bit of genuine emotions from the adventurer.

"If I take you there, I want you to avoid getting involved in the kid's mission... When we get there I want you to sit the fuck down and watch. Kids can do more than you think, grandpa..." Icarus grinned as he took the reigns of two horses. "Last chance... make this deal with me, or you travel alone!"

Nolan considered the conditions of the strange adventurer. He does make some good points. However, he couldn't just sit by and watch as Aegis gets hurt. He is responsible for pushing her into the life of an Adventurer... when it comes to it, he will get involved.

The two continued on their journey North.

 

[Hanarei]

Bethany Evelyn - "The Arcanist Absolute" Armitage

Evelyn had barely registered the talking head's insults that day only at most a light blush at his one comment even if it was insanely ridiculous. No words he could utter could ever match the embarrassment her mother brought to her. It only peeked that much more when she approached her so nonchalant. The girl seem flustered as she looked around nervously afraid someone might see her interacting with such a woman and put two and two together to connect them. Even briefly gazing past Faust she didn't even recognize his own shock at first as the two shared a moment of disbelief together despite what seemed to be a trend of petty arguments and insults towards one another. It was a brief glance at the ground where she noticed his jaw giving a quick wave of her hands to float his jaw back up before turning to her look of horror. Shaking her head Evelyn slipped out of her daze to finally speak up after her moment of hesitation.

"Th... that d.. doesn't matter, even if it is an emergency you should of changed at least a little!" She spoke fumbling pronouncing her words at first before finally catching herself. It seemed so easy to her for her mother to at least changed into something less... shameful looking before she arrived! Then again for Evelyn she could be a bit fickle being very concerned with appearances where putting something off even if there was urgency in it was worth it if it meant she could at the very least look decent. It likely didn't help she wasn't one to take things very seriously all that often to begin with. In truth she couldn't care less about what others wore. They could deserve and eye roll from her sure, but the fact it was her mother is what bothered her most. The last thing she wanted was to be associated with her mother wearing such ridiculous wardrobe choices else people might assume she is the same!

A look of confusion filled her as her mother went about a minion? It made her confused in part given her fluster nature making her take a bit longer to realize just what she was implying until it was practically spelled out for her. She glanced over at Faust and back to her mother shaking her head a bit. Before she could speak up though she witnessed her mother attempt to pinch Faust's cheeks, ending up instead pinching at his cheekbone as an alternative. What had been an initially flustered protest ended up changing instead into a light laugh as the potential insult she registered directed at her for having summoned her 'first minion' or the fact it had been Faust had faded with the attention the loud mouthed skull being given a rather humiliating treatment himself.

"Haha... I... I suppose he is pretty c... cute like that." She spoke with a snicker eager to embrace Faust being mocked likely unintentionally by her mother. It didn't help his constant 'nagging' made her felt he deserved it in her mind. Someone who thought so high and mighty of themselves deserved to be knocked down after all, so Evelyn hypocritically thought at the very least. She straightened up relaxing a little bit as she seemed to in some small part get over her embarrassment mostly for the fact she could laugh at Faust and then gloat a bit.

"I've summoned more things then that before. A talking skull is small talk to me. If I wanted an undead I'd simply summon and undead dragon, or perhaps even a powerful lich if I so chose to do so." She spoke tilting her head up with pride and a smile on her face. The expression softened a bit as she seemed to snap back to reality blushing a bit more.

"B..but seriously mom... j... just go back and change already. I don't need your food I can provide enough on my own." She spoke crossing her arms as she suddenly acting a little bit in defiance turning her head away a bit and puffing out her cheeks lightly in response.

Mentioned: Epiphany Birdsie LostHaven

 

[Archdemon]

Fox
Location: Grog's Cave
Mentions/Interactions: IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Birdsie June Verles Reinhardt

Fox watched as his companions enjoyed their break, he was surprised to see they allowed him to lead them. Fox would have assumed they'd have picked the more talkative amongst them, oh well. When Aegis came to copy his stances, he smiled underneath his mask. So for the entirety of the break, Fox decided to have her copy basic martial arts moves and stances.

After the break, Fox patted the head of his student. While she is still new, she at least shows interest in training. So Fox looked on towards his group and together they left towards the cave.

When they reached the cave, Fox let Shelby use the ropes and together they all went forwards. Fox crouched down, and moved stealthily towards where he believed Grog would be. He wasn't trained but his quiet nature and quick/agile steps would help. Hopefully Grog was interested in the proposition that they had for him.

 

[Birdsie]

Azhi Armitage - Ludenwick Manor

Shri furtively approached Azhi, pointed at Faust, and taught him about the proper utility of minions. If the boy was surprised by the suddenness of the topic, he didn't show it. He only smiled and nodded, and then tried not to laugh when he saw as Shri pinched Faust's cheekbone.

Then, Evelyn boasted, and Azhi found himself skeptical. He raised an eyebrow at his older sister, nonplussed. His voice sounded incredulous as he asked, "A lich minion? Come on, a lich would never agree to serve anyone, and wouldn't allow themselves to be bound! If there exists a lich that's willing to serve a mage, they must be a pretty pathetic lich. Besides, liches are for destroying, not serving - that's what papa says."

Azhi turned on his heel to face Shri. "Hey, mama," he said. "When I grow up, I'll find that lich who locked you up and I'll destroy him!" He grinned nonchalantly, not aware that thirteen-year-olds shouldn't say things like those.

LostHaven Epiphany Hanarei

Grog - Grog's Cave

When the group entered the cave, they would see a big, green thing sleeping near a large boulder, snoring loudly. It was at least twelve feet tall. The troll was a disgusting creature indeed, with yellow-black teeth, a long nose, and greasy patches of hair, and a lush beard. It was chubby, clearly well-fed, and had a closed chest on its belly as it slept. Grog's fingers were grubby, long, and had sharp talon-like yellowed-out fingernails, which looked like they were excellent for climbing. The same went for the toenails.

It slept next to what looked like a tiny stockpile of items; several barrels with unknown contents, several crates of similarly unknown contents, and several large bags. One of the bags was open, revealing yellow grains inside of it, which meant that in addition to merchants, the troll was also robbing regular commoners from their farming products.

As Grog slept, he scratched his nose, unperturbed and unaware that anyone was approaching. Upon closer inspection, there were several emptied bottles of alcohol next to Grog's sleeping body.

He wasn't waking up without good cause.

IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Archdemon June Verles Reinhardt

 

[IamNotLoki]

Aegis
Location: Cliff near Grog's Domain.
Goal: Trying to help the team. Use diplomacy on Grog
Tags: Archdemon Birdsie Kylesar1 June Verles Reinhardt

footsteps echoed throughout the cave as the young drow followed behind the adult adventurers. For the first few moments, darkness engulfed them... Aegis couldn't help but feel powerless. The damp cave floor flooded her thin shoes with cold water... the sensation of which caused Aegis to shiver. She gripped her arms in the dark to feel somewhat warmer, but the metal of her gauntlets offered no warmth at all. She couldn't see in front of her and she feared that the others have left her behind. That thought made her walk faster, causing her face to bump into what seemed to be Fox's back. She took a step back in embarrassment. "sorry!" She whispered. Her eyes eventually adjusted to the dark. She saw that at the far end, light was streaming down from a crevice above. The blade of light painted a huge black figure huddled up in a corner. Disgusting was the best word to describe such a creature. Aegis tried not to gag at the creature's long, warty nose and dirty, unkempt beard. So that's what a troll looks like...

Aegis paid attention to all of the goods around Grog... taking mental notes.

"Teacher... what should we do?" She whispered in the dark.

 

[Kylesar1]

Sheub "Shelby" Mangoza
Grog​

Shelby thought about how to navigate this obstacle. Grog was asleep. Not only that, but he was drunk. The troll stinks something fierce, good god. It smelt like "bath" was a foreign word and he never heard of taking a crap SEPARATE from where you sleep. It'd take a lot of training even from her perspective to get him anywhere near a functional member of society. He had to be convinced to take a bath first before getting a job. Shelby wouldn't be surprised if humans paid him just to take a few steps back.
It was hard to breathe. Not hard to breathe because it was physically hard to, but hard to breathe because Shelby literally had to choose whether to cease breathing or breathe in this immensely rancid air.
"I have an idea," Shelby whispered to her teammates. "Let's pose as humans for him to mug. If we wake him up as is, he WILL go berserk." Drunk and laying in his own filth, Shelby was willing to bet all her pay from this mission that Grog wouldn't want to be woken up just to be told to try and change his ways. They were looking at an immediate attack probably without question.

The plan was to get the hell out of this cave before she died from this nastiness and lure Grog outside so they could confront him. They had to cover up the fact that they were the ones who woke them up and make him think that HE had trapped THEM to mug. That would be the easy part, but they couldn't stay here. These aren't negotiating conditions in the least. If he woke up with them in his cave, he may (rightfully) assume intruder and attack them.

Archdemon Birdsie June Verles IamNotLoki

 

[June Verles]

Mizu Nagoyaka
​

Climbing up the rope for the training maniac was easy, his mind still being half absent thinking about the great lunch they had before. Something that he would regret having as the horrid stench reached his nostrils, barely having enough to cover his face with his sleeve so to avoid alerting the troll by vomiting.

And as if the hygiene of the place wasn't bad enough already they just went in without discussing battle tactics, as mean-spirited as it was to do so when going on a "diplomatic" mission. Well if anyone who isn't meant to be in the front ends up there he can just use his ability to quickly pull them out of there, hopefully without hurting them like with the borrower.

Still as his eyes acclimated to the darkness he couldn't help but feel somewhat nostalgic when his eyes laid on the drunken oaf that was the asleep Grog. It reminded him of that time when he and his friends used to whisper in the guard's ears as they slept on the post.

"..."

No, that couldn't work right? It was probably safer to just listen to Shelby and do as she told. But what if it did? It kind of made sense right? The troll was so asleep he might as well be dead and his low intelligence plus the inebriation might make him prime for some subconscious suggestions...



So, tip toeing towards the large ear of the behemoth Mizu would crouch and then putting his hands around his mouth he would begin whispering into it's ear;

"Grog like human, Grog like Bath, Grog like human, Grog like Bath, Grog like human, Grog like Bath, Grog like human, Grog like Ba..."


Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt Birdsie

 

[Birdsie]

Grog - Grog's Cave

Grog swatted Mizu away in a subconscious reflex, like someone asleep swatting away a fly he heard near his ear. He then turned to his right, using one arm as a pillow, and the chest on his abdomen fell off, opened, and cluttered to the ground on its front.

The chest, upon opening, revealed a bounty of treasure - it was full of copper, silver, and some gold coins, as well as a small, red jewel.

Grog muttered something in his sleep. Something that sounded suspiciously similar to, "No... no more music... music bad... bards cursed..." He then started snoring again, loudly enough to cause small vibrations in the earth.

Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt June Verles

 

[IamNotLoki]

Aegis
Location: Grog's Domain.
Goal: Bait Grog into mugging the team. (Shelby's plan)
Tags: Archdemon Birdsie Kylesar1 June Verles Reinhardt
The stench was overwhelming. It smelled a lot like spilled ale, regurgitated meat, dried blood, and nightsoil. Aegis had never smelled anything so foul... even in the dirty slums of Glamis. She stayed at the very back of the party while they discussed their plans. The kind orc lady, Shelby, gave the party a somewhat interesting idea. She suggested that the team would pose as regular humans to bait the troll. "Um... how would we disguise the big doggy as a human?" She asked. She wondered if her question was stupid. She wondered if the team heard her at all.

Escaping her notice, the handsome boy that gave her a cookie was now dangerously close to the troll. He seems to be whispering things to the creature's ear. Aegis held her breath... she wondered what will happen next. "Y-you're whispering in his ear... s-should we whisper too?" She said in whispers... trying to piece together what was going on.

The suddenly, the troll moved in its sleep. It revealed a treasure trove of gold and jewels. That's enough to buy a billion oranges... Aegis tried not to let her mouth water. She wondered if she should go ahead and take some of the gold... just a handful couldn't hurt.




Liam Gregory
"Nolan No-Shoes"
Location: Adventurer's League Hall
Goal: Rescue Aegis. Avoid getting tricked by a shady person.

Smoke. Nolan wiped his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things. No, there really is smoke. Ichabod's body was letting out wafts of smoke as he calmly rode his horse north. "H-hey... Mister Ichabod... you... there's... smoke coming out of you!" Nolan said as he rode behind his guide.

"S-Shut up! I know..." Was the only response from the sharp tongued adventurer. The voice was dry and raspy.

Nolan felt that something was strange so he rode on ahead to see what was going on with his guide.

What he saw chilled him to the bone. Nolan fought the urge to faint from a heart attack.

Riding in place of Ichabod was a pale, shriveled corpse with a gaping mouth. The skin was tight around the skull... making the corpse look like a tight bag of bones. The corpse's eyes moved and focused on the dumbfounded priest.

"AAAGHHH!!!" Birds flapped their wings in all directions from the trees as Nolan's voice echoed through the valley.

"f-fruit... give me... fruit..." The corpse's raspy voice called to Nolan as hot steam evaporated from it's mouth. Bony hands reached the priest's garb... before the miserable creature fell off the horse.

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

Sharp, Iron teeth crushed fleshy chunks of apple meat as Nolan observed the strange phenomenon in front of him. "You... are a vampire..." Nolan said as the man chewed on apples.

"Wow... inshereshting obshervation!" Ichabod said with his mouth full of apples. Flesh started to return to his face and torso... but his arms and legs were still shriveled up. "Gimme more apples..."

The old man held up an apple and watched as the Vampire reached up with his teeth and break off a huge chunk.

"You poor miserable creature of the night... would you like me to exorcise you?" Nolan said half-jokingly.

"Fuck you!" Ichabod said as his limbs started to gain volume.

"Why didn't you suggest us going there at night time?" Nolan said as he threw his guide another apple.

"If we go there at night, everything would be over by the time we get there..." Ichabod said, shaking his left arm as the sensation returned.
"Adventurers shouldn't be scared of anything... especially daytime..." The Vampire managed to stand up. "Thanks for the fruit, old man..."

"No worries... If I didn't give you any you would have probably drank my blood right?"

"I'd rather not have old man wrinkles in my mouth, but yeah...I really wouldn't like dying..." Ichabod got on his horse. "Come on, priest... lets get to your little girl... I want you to see what's going to happen... with your own eyes,"

Nolan smiled to himself as he mounted his horse. "For an asshole, you are kind of sweet you know?"

"Want me to bust your teeth?" Ichabod said as he led his horse through the shadows of the trees.

 

[Archdemon]

Fox
Location: Outside Grog's Cave
Mentions/Interactions: IamNotLoki Kylesar1 June Verles Birdsie Reinhardt

Fox nodded towards Shelby, that plan might work, but then again how would they start negotiations with Grog? Maybe it was better to just lure him out and be honest with their intentions. Fox at least knew a couple things about Grog, first he drinks until in a drunken stupor. Second he robs more than just merchants. Third is that he smells like a dead corpse, rubber on fire, and various other disgusting smells.

Fox looked at the box of treasure for a second. He stealthed over and made sure everything was placed inside correctly, and he closed it. He walked back to the group leaving the box alone, and shook his head towards Aegis when she looked at it. He left the cave and began writing a note for Shelby to read once she joined him as well as the rest of the crew.

Once Shelby was there, he handed the note over to her.

"Sorry, I couldn't leave the box alone. I figured if we went with your plan and he found the box either missing or in the messy state that it was, he would find us suspicious. While unlikely, I seemed it necessary to make sure that he couldn't link anything to us, whether or not we had something to do with it. Anyways we will go with you plan, tell the wolf that it would be best to hide in the forest so that grog may not see him. Now I also request that we make sure we retrieve the ropes we used so that we leave no evidence of our presence. If Grog will not listen to us, we shall beat him but not to kill. Once beaten we shall offer our proposal again and if he still refuses then we shall be forced to kill."

 

[Birdsie]

Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt June Verles

Grog - Grog's Cave

There was a raspy cough all of a sudden, followed by rustling, as the troll seemed to grow lively. Soon, his eyes opened with a lethargy, and he cleared them with his hands before sitting up, and giving everyone time to hide if they so chose.

Grog scratched the top of his head, looked around his cave, then walked to one of the barrels, the top of which he promptly smashed open to reveal it was full of water. He lifted it into the air and began to drink from it.

 

[June Verles]

Mizu Nagoyaka
​

Unsurprisingly his attempt failed horribly, being met with a slap that sent him flying out of the cave, stopping only when he hit a tree. Falling down to the ground he checks his wounds, he broke a few ribs.

As he reached into his coat to pull out the surprisingly sturdy healing potion and drinking it he'd start to thank god that he'd at least be able to avoid shame by the time the others finally made their way down.

When he made his way back to the group he would make sure to act as if nothing happened, and he would also ignore any question about it.

Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt Birdsie

 

[IamNotLoki]

Aegis
Location: Grog's Domain.
Goal: Bait Grog into mugging the team. (Shelby's plan)
Tags: Archdemon Birdsie Kylesar1 June Verles Reinhardt
SLAP!
Aegis flinched when the troll smacked the cookie-boy out of the cave as if he was made of straw. She turned around to see what happened to the man. "A-Are you okay?" She called out. She covered her mouth after realizing that she said those words just a tad too loud. The words echoed around the cave a bit. She turned around to check if the troll was still awake after her outburst... turned out it still was.

The Fox risked his life to close the chest and shook his head at Aegis. She blushed in embarrassment. Did he really think I would risk the mission by grabbing some treasure? She pouted and puffed her cheeks.

She felt the puddles around her feet make small ripples. A shadowy bundle of flesh was now standing... it was much bigger than Aegis realized. The troll was even bigger than the priest... and the priest was the biggest person Aegis knows.

She quickly ran behind a stalagmite and hid from the beasts' sight.

She watched as the troll drank water from a barrel. "Please don't eat us..."

 

[LostHaven]

Faust Windfallow
Get off me, you goddamned weirdo of a Succubus! Wait, you can't break the fourth wall! Yes I can.| Hanarei Epiphany Birdsie

Faust's eye sockets widened in eldritch horror as the Succubus wearing the most mortifying apron he'd ever seen began approaching the floating skull. He was even more horrified as Shri managed to mistake him, the immeasurably powerful Elder Lich, Faust Windfallow, as little more than the mewling moron of a mage that was Evelyn's familiar. Or at least that's what she called herself. Faust had reason to believe that Evelyn wasn't actually her name, and she just calls herself that to sound cool. To be completely fair, 'Windfallow' wasn't really his family name either, he had given up on attempting to pronounce the mess of a surname his old teacher gave him eons ago. At least it seemed like eons. It probably wasn't eons. But eons sounds a lot cooler than 'a long time ago', so shut up and stop questioning, ok?!

"Get off of me, you hellspawn!" The floating skull screamed at the Archdemon in front of him. Was it an Archdemon, even? Faust's intuition told him it was most likely some sort of greater demon, but part of him wanted to believe that the Archdemons of the Nine Hells wouldn't dress in whatever that thing was wearing. If Faust had to choose between that horrible apron, or Evelyn's disgraceful choice of fashion, he'd have chosen that annoying Arcanist's in an instant. "STOP PINCHING MY CHEEKBONES, GO BACK TO HELL AND SUCK A FEW MEN DRY OR SOMETHING!" Faust didn't know how long he could go on with this kind of shame. He thought he'd die at any moment. Was it truly end of the line for this Elder Lich?

Faust's hope in the clusterfuck of a family was restored somewhat as the youngest son spoke up. He nodded in agreement (or as best as a floating skull could) to Azhi's calm (and too advanced for his age) rebuttal to his idiot sister's boasting. "Indeed. Liches are almost impossible to bind like a standard undead creature. Most of them would far exceed the power of whoever was trying to enslave one since the Lich would've been an incredibly powerful mage in life anyways. While an undead dragon may seem plausible, even for your moron of a sister, a Dracolich, on the other hand, would eat the guy summoning it for lunch. Unless it was a particularly nice dragon..."

Speaking of this topic only served to worsen Faust's mood. He could only remember the shame of defeat at the hands of a trifling gnome. He let out a sigh of sadness and irritation. "That being said, I'm at your sister's mercy, since my body and soul is trapped in a limbo between existence and nothingness. As such, I cannot utilize magic, even with chant." As Faust spoke toward the kid, a plan began to brew in his head. As stupid as Azhi's ambition may sound, Faust realized he could use whatever motivation Azhi had to benefit himself as well.

"That's right kid!" He suddenly called in response to Azhi's statement that he'd defeat whichever Lich had bounded and hurt his mother. No wonder why that succubus felt so off. She was tormented by some evil lich for ages, probably. Poor Archdemon. "Though, your power is nowhere near the level you require to fight a Lich. You seem to have a decent aptitude for magic, though. Get me away from your sadist exhibitionist whore of a sister, and I can teach you everything I know, since a certain somebody doesn't want to hear what I have to say."

 

[Birdsie]

Archdemon IamNotLoki Kylesar1 Reinhardt June Verles

Grog - Grog's Cave

The troll suddenly choked when he heard Aegis' call. He almost dropped the barrel in a clumsy fit of jerky arm movements, but managed to set it down, before wiping his mouth.

He looked at the exit of the cave. The troll growled in that direction like a territorial animal and picked up his club from a stack of items. It was big, as far as weapons went, easily as long as a zweihander sword, except made entirely from cudgel-shaped wood, and yet he held it in one hand.

The troll spoke in a broken Common dialect, "Who that?! Disgusting hyumans not allowed in Grog cave! Go away or Grog make human man into human stew!" As if to accentuate the threat, Grog thumped his club against the cavern floor repeatedly; a common tactic for scaring away animals.

 

[Epiphany]

[div class=wrapper][div class=box][div class="boxBg boxBgLarge"][/div][div class="boxBg boxBgTall"][/div][div class="boxBg boxBgMedium"][/div][div class=boxInner][div class=statusBox][div class=characterPortrait]

[/div][div class=statusText]Location: Cesimir's Estate
Tags: Birdsie Inheritance Hanarei LostHaven [/div][/div][div class=title]Shriandriath the Debased Maiden[/div][div class=text]The absolute outrage of the skull was sweet music to the ears of a demon who'd spent far too long without that sweet song of suffering in her life. Evelyn's answering snicker made the Succubus smile more and her blue eyes positively glowed in the sound of fierce humiliation. Amused, she brushed her hands off on her apron before tucking a lock of hair back, smearing a bit more flour across her forehead. Then she patted Azhi on the shoulder and squeezes him fondly.

"Thank you, dear. You'll need to pace yourself before trying to tackle a lich like your sister has." The lich's offer of instruction was a bit concerning though and her smile faded slightly as she considered the floating head, trying to fathom the game it intended to play. Still, there wasn't anything intrinsically wrong with learning sorcery from the dead, right? "Talk to your father first, dear," she added to Azhi before noting Brom had arrived at the mansion as well.

Looking between the warrior and her daughter, Shri said, "My son and I have an assignment already, though I doubt there'll be an opportunity for glorious combat or spectacular spellcasting. The two of you are welcome to join us, though. It's always nice to spend some time with my daughter. And as for you, warrior, you're a formidable fighter and there could very well be the opportunity for bloodshed if things don't go well. And if they do, consider it practice. Many employers appreciate a fighter who is swift with their tongue as well as their blade."[/div][div class=text][/div][/div][/div][/div] [class=wrapper] background-color:#5e5560; box-sizing:border-box; color:#eeeeee; display:inline-block; position:relative; width:100%; text-align: justify; [/class] [class=title] color: #bfbfbf; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size:3em; font-style:italic; padding:0; text-shadow:0 0 1em; margin-bottom: 10px; [/class] [class=box] margin:2em 1em; padding:2px 4px 0px; position:relative; [/class] [class=boxBg] box-sizing:content-box; height:100%; pointer-events:none; position:absolute; width:100%; [/class] [class=boxBgLarge] top:0; left:-5px; padding:0 4px; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.35); [/class] [class=boxBgTall] top:-8px;left:3px; padding:8px 0; width:calc(100% - 8px); height:100%; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.25); [/class] [class=boxBgMedium] top:-4px; left:-1px; padding:4px 0; border:1px solid rgba(255,255,255,.4); [/class] [class=boxInner] background-color: #5e5560; overflow:hidden; margin:0.5em; [/class] [class=statusBox] box-sizing: border-box; border-right: 3px dotted white; padding: 15px; float: left; max-width: 250px; margin: 0px 15px 15px 0px; [/class] [class=text] padding: 0px 15px 15px 15px; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size:0.8em; [/class] [class=statusText] font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.75em; margin-top: 5px; [/class] [class=characterPortrait] box-sizing: border-box; position: relative; border-radius: 20px; overflow: hidden; [/class] [class name=characterPortrait state=hover] opacity: 0.5 [/class]

 

[Reinhardt]

Markus

GROG'S CAVE​

Markus initially did as he was told, and stayed at the entrance. He would have remained there silently and waited for the party's return, if it weren't for the sudden noises that he heard. First was this strange thud, then followed the voice of the small dark elf, resonating from somewhere within the cave. He was starting to get on the edge after hearing such things.

As far as he knew trolls weren't on good terms with anything other than themselves. They're not much of an intelligent creature, after all. Markus was readying to move at any moment, and just as if it was destiny, he heard the voice of what sounded to be something not so smart. And it was accompanied by repetitive thuds, which echoed throughout the area.

Witt this, Markus leaped into the cave.

And surprisingly, he landed without noise and on his feet. The giant wolf's eyes glowed in the shadows of this dimly lit cave like a menacing creature from the dark. Markus bared his fangs, and assumed an aggressive form, positioning himself between the giant and the others.

"Silence, fool.", he spoke. "You will not make stew out of anyone. You will hear them out."

Interactions: Sheub ( Kylesar1 ), Fox ( Archdemon ), Mizu & Viktor ( June Verles ), Aegis ( IamNotLoki ), Grog ( Birdsie )

 

[Kylesar1]

Sheub "Shelby" Mangoza
Grog​

This was a train wreck. This was a grade A train wreck. They walked into the cave and didn't need the rope to find Grog. Fine. Shelby's plan was simple: leave the cave, alert Grog, try and convince him to stop. Simple. Then it fell apart from the moment Mizu deviated from said plan. Then Aegis spoke and that alerted him while they were all in the cave. Aegis was a kid and her concern came from a genuine place, worried about his health after being knocked like a fly......Then the wolf came to bare his fangs to Grog. Even to a troll as dumb as Grog, that was a challenge, a threat. If Shelby face palmed, she may give herself a concussion.

She was an orc. Orcs and trolls worked together a lot. Maybe she could still try to salvage this situation with words rather than swords. "Grog!" She called out, committing to her plan and stepping up to the wolf. She pointed to herself. "Sheub orc!" She would be DAMNED if she tossed the primary objective (diplomacy) to the wayside because Grog thrashed a bit. This was atrocious teamwork so far, but they were a brand new team so they could discuss this later. The value of sticking to the plan even if the plan had to be improvised. "Come in peace! Humans want Grog help!"
Come on, Shelby thought, a knot building in her stomach and her palms getting sweaty. The alarms in her mind was blood red and screeching at her, trigger happiness making her fingers start to itch and beg for her to draw her weapon. Shelby was completely unarmed, her crossbow on her hip. She was far too close to be in her kill zone and too close to be in effective shooting range.


All she was armed with was her commitment to diplomacy over fighting.

Archdemon Birdsie June Verles IamNotLoki Reinhardt