The Orphanage

[pbtenchi]

Dancy happily took Wash's hand.

After arriving at the library and being confronted by the towering librarian, Dancy had to try her hardest to stop from shrinking under the librarian's gaze (Literally). Sweat started to bead as she desperately tried to find the words and the wit to speak them, but all attempts at thought melted away to the genetic fear inherited from the ancient changeling hunts of old. "U-Uhm. B-book..."

 

[still watching fma]

Dancy happily took Wash's hand.

After arriving at the library and being confronted by the towering librarian, Dancy had to try her hardest to stop from shrinking under the librarian's gaze (Literally). Sweat started to bead as she desperately tried to find the words and the wit to speak them, but all attempts at thought melted away to the genetic fear inherited from the ancient changeling hunts of old. "U-Uhm. B-book..."

The librarian bent down to his knees and held out a hand. " Do not worry little one, my duty is simply to protect this sanctuary in the king's stead", he paused and continued, " Please state your purpose. We have big books, we have small books. We do not have new books, but we have a lot of books with a lot of wisdom and information". He held out his arms in an attempt to convey size and said, " ask and ye shall receive".

 

[Zotar]

Dancy took Wash's hand and put him at ease. In these times, it wouldn't do for anyone to be alone. He didn't like the dreary look of the town. It was kinda like someone had dumped a bucket full of mud on everyone's mood, and nobody bothered to clean it up.

They veered off into a properly aged-looking library. Once inside Wash's anxiety vanished. He could read, but he didn't do it very often. Today though, he figured he'd find something in line with his interests; mainly fighting and getting through trouble. When Dancy stumbled, Wash happily spoke up. "She'd like a book or two about changelings. Myself, I'd like to look at some stuff about the northern barbarian tribes. Their traditions and stories would be nice." Just like that, forward and to the point.

 

[still watching fma]

Dancy took Wash's hand and put him at ease. In these times, it wouldn't do for anyone to be alone. He didn't like the dreary look of the town. It was kinda like someone had dumped a bucket full of mud on everyone's mood, and nobody bothered to clean it up.

They veered off into a properly aged-looking library. Once inside Wash's anxiety vanished. He could read, but he didn't do it very often. Today though, he figured he'd find something in line with his interests; mainly fighting and getting through trouble. When Dancy stumbled, Wash happily spoke up. "She'd like a book or two about changelings. Myself, I'd like to look at some stuff about the northern barbarian tribes. Their traditions and stories would be nice." Just like that, forward and to the point.

He smiled and his gruff beard rose with his flushed cheeks. " Ahh yes, you may find information on changlings down that hallway, to the left. This is where we keep our monster archives. You may also find information on mimics down that way". He then stood up, his knees making a popping noise in the process and said, "ahh ach, up there, on the second floor there is a section on the barbarian tribes. Second row, should have books on the specific regions of the continent".


Monster section

barbarian section

 

[Ilikepie]

Kali smiles at the shopkeep's challenge and walks over and picks up the flute. She examines the positioning on the keys and the weight of the instrument while also thinking about which song she should play. After picking her song she places her lips near the mouth plate and positions her fingers over the keys. She beautifully begins to play "Go the Distance". After finishing the song she gently places the flute back down and looks towards the shopkeep with a smile. "Was my performance enough for me to earn the right to have the flute? My music will go the distance in showing how great I'm meant to be."

 

[Snek]

As Kali played her song, Io tried to pay attention and be supportive, but ever since he set foot within the walls, his tattoo itched like hell. His patron, or perhaps something else, was trying to veer him off course down a different path. He could sense where it diverged - back near a crumbling alley that they had passed on the way to the shop. There was no telling what was back there, but he was certain the itch would never cease unless he obeyed its call.

His companion finished her song on the flute, which Io had completely missed while he itched in the corner and muttered curses that no 10-year-old should be reciting out loud. He stumbled out from behind a shelf and tried to act natural. "Wow, that was really good, Kali! None of the street performers play like that."

He made a mental note to bring up the alternative path after they exited the shop. Maybe she'd be down for a little side excursion. If not, he'd just have to go it alone. Better than itching until his skin peeled off.

 

[pbtenchi]

Monster... Section... The words stung. They really did. Dancy peeled off from Wash, letting him go look at the books he wanted and wandered into the poorly lit monster section. "Let's see... Shapeshifters... Aberrants... Bargolocks... Here we are! Changelings..." she blew the dust off the untouched section and pulled out books at random. "20 ways to spot a changeling... No... Uses for Changeling Organs... Eek! How to Protect Against Changelings... Changelings: Villanous Shapeshifters..." she was quickly losing hope on finding what she was looking for.

 

[still watching fma]

Kali smiles at the shopkeep's challenge and walks over and picks up the flute. She examines the positioning on the keys and the weight of the instrument while also thinking about which song she should play. After picking her song she places her lips near the mouth plate and positions her fingers over the keys. She beautifully begins to play "Go the Distance". After finishing the song she gently places the flute back down and looks towards the shopkeep with a smile. "Was my performance enough for me to earn the right to have the flute? My music will go the distance in showing how great I'm meant to be."

A tear rolled down his cheek as his black as coal heart, was softened by the melody of the tiefling. He did not waver despite wanting to buckle under, as he watched the girl play his farewell performance. "The queen played a song for me when I lost my family. She said to pass it onto the next person who could move me, but I scoffed at that idea in this dreary god forsaken world", he said making a fist at the heavens. " Take it and be wary of the darkness that follows that boy, girl". He heaved while his chest glowed. Blood surged from his mouth as fire erupted from his chest. He was dead and the place was set ablaze.

As Kali played her song, Io tried to pay attention and be supportive, but ever since he set foot within the walls, his tattoo itched like hell. His patron, or perhaps something else, was trying to veer him off course down a different path. He could sense where it diverged - back near a crumbling alley that they had passed on the way to the shop. There was no telling what was back there, but he was certain the itch would never cease unless he obeyed its call.

His companion finished her song on the flute, which Io had completely missed while he itched in the corner and muttered curses that no 10-year-old should be reciting out loud. He stumbled out from behind a shelf and tried to act natural. "Wow, that was really good, Kali! None of the street performers play like that."

He made a mental note to bring up the alternative path after they exited the shop. Maybe she'd be down for a little side excursion. If not, he'd just have to go it alone. Better than itching until his skin peeled off.

" If you go, it will be the end of you, child", said a lyrical voice from within his mind. As it washed over you, a sense of cool air bathed your body and soothed the burning. Though you have no time to consider such things. Your patron is silent. The shop is on fire. You have 6 seconds to grab something of use before the flames endanger you. What do you do?

Roll 1-20 for random loot

Monster... Section... The words stung. They really did. Dancy peeled off from Wash, letting him go look at the books he wanted and wandered into the poorly lit monster section. "Let's see... Shapeshifters... Aberrants... Bargolocks... Here we are! Changelings..." she blew the dust off the untouched section and pulled out books at random. "20 ways to spot a changeling... No... Uses for Changeling Organs... Eek! How to Protect Against Changelings... Changelings: Villanous Shapeshifters..." she was quickly losing hope on finding what she was looking for.

???

A man appears to your right, rummaging through books as well. " Hmm, the theory of changelings. Ooo on the origins of the changeling". He nodded and tried to pull the book from where it sat. Though his facial features exhibited strain and he himself seemed to be out of breath from the endeavor. "ahh miss would mind helping an old man"?

 

[Snek]

Io's blood turned cold as the shopkeeper's eyes pierced into his soul, calling him out about the dark entity clutching his soul. When the man began heaving fire and blood from his mouth, the boy all but froze. This couldn't be real, right? This had to be some kind of awful vision.

In the moment, fight or flight took over as the flames roared up around him. It took mere seconds for the fire to spread through the shop, threatening to trap the two children inside to meet their ends. Io took a second to gather his sanity, then reached over for Kali's hand as his other hand closed around an object on a nearby shelf. He didn't know what he was grabbing, but he didn't come all this way to come out empty handed, not to mention burnt to a crisp.

He helped Kali escape the shop as the inferno consumed the store, and the cryptic words of the shopkeeper with it. Dropping to his knees in the dirt road to catch his breath, Io turned over his palm to examine the item he had snatched. Only after giving it a good look over did he realize he was still holding Kali's hand.

"Oh, sorry," he mumbled, releasing his less-than-gentle grip. "Are you okay?"

Ilikepie

 

[Ilikepie]

Kali froze in complete shock as the old shopkeep died in a blaze of fire that also set the store ablaze. She quickly picked back up the flute that she placed down earlier and was then pulled out of the store by Io. Kali was quiet for a moment thinking about the events that just happened. "I'm fine, but wasn't expecting something like this to happen. I was expecting to just get a normal flute and now I have a flute that likely has some kind of magical ability that I currently don't know anything about." Kali stares at the flute in her hand wondering what it's capable of. "We should get out of here before people think we started the fire and do you have any idea what he was talking about when he said there is darkness following you?"

Snek

 

[Zotar]

Wash took off toward the stairs and found himself drawn gullibly toward a book hanging on the banister. It even featured a cat on it. He resisted grabbing it though, figuring that someone probably planned on returning to that book later. Wash noted the title and then started browsing the shelves. So many options.

Ways of the Old Gods, Nature's Wrath Incarnate: Tactics and Battles of The Savage North, seven volumes of Tribal History. One Title among these stuck out to Wash today. Men of the Storm. Wash had heard of the Storm-ragers. Barbarian warriors who crackled with primal energy of storms and tides. They thundered and rolled and inspired fear in battle, and felt at home in the tempests of life.

That would be the style of Washed in on the Tide.

He paged through the volume and found that it contained vivid accounts of different people from two different tribes, whose names Wash couldn't quite pronounce. On one page, he found a chief's description of Stormrage, what it did and how to achieve it. It took time to learn of course, but Wash knew he'd struck gold. He found himself a remote nook in which to read, (on top of the shelves next to the stained glass window), and immersed himself in the volume.

The irony of Wash laying down and quietly reading about the path of a noisy, illiterate barbarian berserker was completely lost on him.

 

[pbtenchi]

Dancy carefully slid the last book she had pulled back into its shelf. She stared at the old man cautiously before answering his question. "...Yes?" this subtle reply was soon followed by a burst of uncontained curiosity. "Are you looking into changelings too? What can you tell me about them? Where did they come from? Where are they going? Are they as bad as people say? Have you ever seen a Changeling? Where? When? Do they have any cities? What's their culture like?"

 

[Snek]

Io nodded "Yeah let's get going. Guards will be here any second."

As the two walked, they discussed Kali's questions. "Seems like a blessing to me. You got a much better flute than you could have asked for, and you got it for free. I mean, I guess someone died but that seemed like his own fault."

He paused. This was a great opportunity to earn some pity points. "As for the darkness following me, well...a lot of people say I'm 'cursed' because of my condition." Tucking his orb into his pack, Io pulled up his sleeve to reveal his arm, scrawny even for a child; almost skeletal. "People say because I'm weak because I can't do normal things. They want to be afraid of me because I'm different."

He looked down at the mud. He was lying about what the man said, but otherwise it was all true and it stung a little to hear himself say it out loud.

 

[Ilikepie]

Kali keeps changing from looking at Io and the flute her hand as they walk and is slightly interesting in the mysterious jar he is holding, but the flute is much interesting to her at the moment. She stops moving when she notices that Io paused and then began listening to him speak. Kali is not convinced that Io's curse is actually the darkness shopkeep was talking about but decides that maybe Io doesn't know what it is either.

"Being different isn't scary and besides some dumb people fear my race from being descendent from demons, but who cares about the fears of the stupid. lifting objects with your arms is nowhere near as fun as moving things with magic". She casts a mage hand that she uses to pick up a small pebble on the ground and then has the mage hand drop the pebble in front of Io.

"So let's join Dancy and Washy at the library to see if we can find out any information on what this flute can do and what's in that weird jar you found." She begins walking to the library.

Snek

 

[still watching fma]

Wash took off toward the stairs and found himself drawn gullibly toward a book hanging on the banister. It even featured a cat on it. He resisted grabbing it though, figuring that someone probably planned on returning to that book later. Wash noted the title and then started browsing the shelves. So many options.

Ways of the Old Gods, Nature's Wrath Incarnate: Tactics and Battles of The Savage North, seven volumes of Tribal History. One Title among these stuck out to Wash today. Men of the Storm. Wash had heard of the Storm-ragers. Barbarian warriors who crackled with primal energy of storms and tides. They thundered and rolled and inspired fear in battle, and felt at home in the tempests of life.

That would be the style of Washed in on the Tide.

He paged through the volume and found that it contained vivid accounts of different people from two different tribes, whose names Wash couldn't quite pronounce. On one page, he found a chief's description of Stormrage, what it did and how to achieve it. It took time to learn of course, but Wash knew he'd struck gold. He found himself a remote nook in which to read, (on top of the shelves next to the stained glass window), and immersed himself in the volume.

The irony of Wash laying down and quietly reading about the path of a noisy, illiterate barbarian berserker was completely lost on him.

As Wash was lost in thought, the book began to rise in the air, swaying back and forth as if it was on a pendulum, before moving down the walkway and taking a hard left into an aisle. Though it plops on the floor, with a brief thud that echoes throughout the chamber.

Dancy carefully slid the last book she had pulled back into its shelf. She stared at the old man cautiously before answering his question. "...Yes?" this subtle reply was soon followed by a burst of uncontained curiosity. "Are you looking into changelings too? What can you tell me about them? Where did they come from? Where are they going? Are they as bad as people say? Have you ever seen a Changeling? Where? When? Do they have any cities? What's their culture like?"

The old man smiled and nodded as he reached out his hand briefly, before pulling back with a concerned frown. As he shook his head he said, " You remind me of your mother. She too, had a curious streak and a voracious appetite for knowledge when it concerned her", he chuckled and scratched his chin for a moment, before sticking his index finger up. " Legend has it, that a dark wizard intermingled dopplegangers and a human at aAmon duÑ". He paused, then asked, " Does that ring a bell child"?

pbtenchi Zotar

 

[Snek]

still watching fma Ilikepie

Io's face lit up when Kali comforted him and mentioned magic. That was true, he had powers that lots of people could only dream of. When Kali lifted the pebble and moved it to him, he laughed and cast Mage Hand as well and moved the pebble up in the air, then used the ethereal hand to toss the pebble to the side of the road.

"Yeah, let's go find them. Maybe I can find a book on oozes or magic concoctions or something. What a strange jar to just be sitting on a shelf like that..."

Io set off towards the library with Kali, using Mage Hand to lift the jar above him, trying to get the slime to catch what little sunlight there was and observing the ooze's consistency.

 

[Zotar]

Wash pondered the implications of what he was reading, until he realized that he wasn't reading anymore. He'd phased out for at least a paragraph. Darn. He tried to find the place where he was at before daydreams took over, but something caught his attention.

The book he'd dismissed before was flying. Without thinking, he set down Men of the Storm, slid down the ladder and tore after the flying book. It was a moot point. The book thudded to the floor and allowed Wash to seize it in his greedy paws.


"What's so special about you?" He wondered aloud.

 

[still watching fma]

Afropuppy It's been a couple of hours since your friends set off to town in order to undergo a quest to meet the forest guardian. However, you decided not to go. It is 9 am in the morning, three hours after roll call. Ma has went out to get something to dinner. Loman and Cain are nowhere to be found. Hoein is still on his way back from dropping the others off. Whatever Thia may be doing at the moment, she will hear a voice call out to her. Though it is indistinct as someone someone talking into a pillow. What does Thia do?

Zotar A tail sticks out down the aisle. It gestures to you like a hand beckoning to you, before the pitter patter of feet can be head scurrying away. The air feels cold though, and the lamp lights around you appear to become dim. What do you do?

Ilikepie Snek No one comes to stop you two, as the fire engulfs the shop.The citizenry and guards act as if nothing happened. Business as usual seems to take place while it goes up in flames. As the two shared a moment of levity, a voice reaches out to io. His patron whispers to him on a cool autumn breeze, " Lovely tiefling...girl". Just as quickly as the wind blew off his hood, it quickly vanished as it should. There was no burning. There was no psionic coercion. The Lord of secrets suddenly took interest in Kali. Though he did not elaborate further.

The two of them, however, would be able to reach the library without a hitch if they took no detours. You are greeted, by the very same all encompassing chamber that greeted your friends Dancy and wash previously. The head librarian approaches you two and says, " My my two more children interested in books? This is truly an auspicious day. May I be of service"?

 

[Afropuppy]

Thia stops drawing. She can't see where the voice is coming from in the treehouse so she climbs down. "Hello? Who's there? I can't hear you very well, where are you?" She says, hoping that it was something interesting. She thinks about maybe telling someone about it, but firstly she is probably alone and secondly she likes to explore, so that was a great opportunity.

 

[still watching fma]

Thia stops drawing. She can't see where the voice is coming from in the treehouse so she climbs down. "Hello? Who's there? I can't hear you very well, where are you?" She says, hoping that it was something interesting. She thinks about maybe telling someone about it, but firstly she is probably alone and secondly she likes to explore, so that was a great opportunity.

The voice calls out again. There is scratching noises and thumping noises resounding in your head. The only words you can hear is, "help and inside". What do you do?

 

[Zotar]

For the second time that day, Wash's fur stood on end. There were evil things afoot in this town, and at least one evil thing seemed to be toying with him. He held the odd book before him like a weapon, ready to beat a mystery over its head. He could hear his heart pumping faster. Wash didn't know whether to fight or flee. But in spite of his better judgement, curiosity goaded him on. After all, if he was ever do defeat a fearful thing, he'd need to know what it was. So Washed in on the Tide chased after the mystery... like an idiot.

 

[Afropuppy]

Thia stops and thinks for a moment. 'Inside? Of the orphanage?'. She starts running to the orphanage, since something there needs help. She opens the door and, before even looking inside, she says once again "Hello? Who's there?"

 

[still watching fma]

For the second time that day, Wash's fur stood on end. There were evil things afoot in this town, and at least one evil thing seemed to be toying with him. He held the odd book before him like a weapon, ready to beat a mystery over its head. He could hear his heart pumping faster. Wash didn't know whether to fight or flee. But in spite of his better judgement, curiosity goaded him on. After all, if he was ever do defeat a fearful thing, he'd need to know what it was. So Washed in on the Tide chased after the mystery... like an idiot.

Deeper into the second floor Wash went, he was now surrounded by bookshelves which formed aisles in each direction. There was a knocking sound coming from behind him and sound of someone running across the marble floor, barefoot it seemed, coming from his left. A book fell in front of him and a monster during all of this was making a stealth check on him. "Snake! What do you think you are doing mister? Look at you, you're filthy", came a woman's voice to the right just behind the bookcase.

Thia stops and thinks for a moment. 'Inside? Of the orphanage?'. She starts running to the orphanage, since something there needs help. She opens the door and, before even looking inside, she says once again "Hello? Who's there?"

Spoiler: orphanage

You run in and are greeted by an ordinary scene. It's quiet and a few candles are half way used. The thumping noise you heard before is more pronounced. There's a sound coming from the other side of the room. " I was trapped by the bad man...here...help help please"!

 

[Ilikepie]

Kali was happy her talk got her friend to feel better. The walk to the library was quiet and nice and she was glad no one came up to them about the fire. Despite getting a better view of Io's mysterious jar as he held it in the sunlight with his mage hand Kali still had no idea what it contains. Kali looks at the old looking librarian and smiles. "Mister do you have any books on magic flutes?"

 

[still watching fma]

Kali was happy her talk got her friend to feel better. The walk to the library was quiet and nice and she was glad no one came up to them about the fire. Despite getting a better view of Io's mysterious jar as he held it in the sunlight with his mage hand Kali still had no idea what it contains. Kali looks at the old looking librarian and smiles. "Mister do you have any books on magic flutes?"

He scratched his chin and asked, " that's quite the request. Is there a reason you want to know about flutes in particular"?