Fantasy We Are The Evil Nutty Cultists, I Guess

[Conloth]

Kol’ Undyer An’thoweken
at The Esoteric Orders base in Trihexa
In the War room

Kol’ sat stroking his graying red beard thoughtfully. He had politely greeted everyone as they had entered the room but ignored any further attempts at conversation. Even if the beautiful and powerful woman was enticing, almost as enticing as the pie that had been placed on the table. A great surprise was seeing the businessman change into the Leader of the Order. An even greater was the Ring of Truth on the grand lich’s finger. In that moment Kol’ knew that the Esoteric Order was what he wished to die serving.

Then the problem of the key to releasing the Primordial being was brought up. Kol’ listened to the younger man shout out about his unwillingness to kill the children and nodded. Looking at the room he was surprised that his master would even be willing to place that idea on the table. Did he not see how many of those who had gathered were here with weak connections? That they didn’t truly believe in the tenants of the Order? No there was no way that Ner'Zhul the Despoiler, Burner of Allenbrool and Puncher of Fate would make such a blunder so it must have been planned. Very well Kol’ trusted his better. The strange pale woman Tamah seemed to be approaching this from a awkward but agreeable angle.

“Well if we are ta choose a plan might as well make this a proper introduction, so that we can get ta know what we can and can't possibly do as a group. My name is Kol’ Undyer An’thoweken former son o’ the physician Jem Kulandyer An’thoweken and his wife Anora Kilfin An’thoweken. I am a practitioner and scholar o’ poisons, acids, and other toxic substances and magics connected ta ‘em.” Kol’ rattled of this introduction having given the exact same one at a few of his lectures and presentations given in his former place of employment.

“Now logistically, I would agree that sacrificing the children would be tough ta accomplish but with the soul storage proposal that our Brother…. Um…. Proposed it would be less difficult. I can also offer me own expertise in that area. If we managed ta draw a large enough crowd to a pre set sacrificial area. I can ensure that they all pass from this world at roughly the same time.” Kol’ had to pinch his forearm painfully to keep himself from drifting into the fantastical dream of thousands choking, gagging, and thrashing on a cocktail of poisons flooding their bodies and destroying them piece by piece.

“I would also with utmost joy ta apply me trade ta the breaking of a hero if we were able ta get our hands on ‘im. You'd be amazed what happens ta a man’s mind when their own body turns against ‘im and tears apart at the smallest level possible.” Kol’ couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across his face as he spoke of the task. Oh yes just imagine the hundreds of poisons and acids he could test and try on such a strong and willful prisoner as the Hero of Might.

“Unfortunately, a fighter I am not, nor am I skilled at infiltration and thievery so the first option will be tough for me to directly contribute but if any o’ ya get a wound or sickness while out about the Orders business. I would be ‘appy to provide aid and relief.” Kol’ finished speaking, smoothly slid a piece of pie over to himself and began eating. There now the group new that whatever the choice he would be able to offer some sort of skill.

mentioned: archur Churl Shatter Shard Birdsie Hanarei

 

[Reinhardt]

Y'ndra

THE WAR ROOM​

"Cool ring, old man.", Y'ndra commented on the lich's revelation. Most would have been surprised at such a reveal, but for some reason, Y'ndra's demeanor didn't really change that much. Sure, a lich is something to either be in awe at or be afraid of, and the totally-not-forboding ring on the lich's hand is easily eye-catching, but from what Y'ndra has read from the grimoire, she's gotten quite used to...inexplicable things, for lack of a better term.

With the purpose of the meeting addressed, a discussion was immediately held - and with the extreme diversity evident within the group, there was no question that varying opinions and perspectives would inevitably clash and get mashed together into an absolute mess. Y'ndra opted not to join in, and instead placed her attention onto the girl that approached her, inquiring about the tiny dancing skeleton and how it came to be.

"Magic.", Y'ndra nonchalantly answered the girl's question. Explaining magic in detail usually didn't end well, after all, especially when it came to people who weren't involved in the field - but that was not the reason for such a half-assed answer. She was simply too lazy to spit up big words and lengthy sentences.

But after a short second, she changed her mind. "More specifically, I cast a spell that-", but was cut short by an unexpected, inexplicable occurrence.

The tiny skeleton stopped repeating its movements, pointed at Mercy, then started to speak incomprehensible noises with its squeaky voice. It would jump ever so often.

"What."

The tiny skeleton continued to repeat its new actions.

Interaction/s: NPC( Birdsie ), Mercy ( archur )

 

[Noble Scion]

Tael Rendan
Esoteric Order war room

Spoiler: Appearance

Tael's allies, were exotic to say the least. Each being vibrantly coloured or wielding strange artifacts he had no recollection of, or in the case of the small bearded fellow beside him, a pickaxe. Not exactly the most practical thing to carry into a battle, but to each their own.

Mentionable people that certainly caught his attention through appearance alone included just a straight-up demon, A young man that appeared skilled in the culinary arts that had baked pies (Did all men now how to cook now? He wasn't hungry), A very red woman (Needs armour, especially on that chest), One who appeared to be a bandit or rogue of some sort (Reminds him of his younger days, before became a dragonslaying bad-ass), the incredibly strange-fashioned man wielding small blunted pointy things (Very impractical, not even good for stabbing), Another woman who looked rather sickly based on his expertise on people that are either dead or dying, A little girl that was apparently with a doctor (Neither even clad in armour), A beastkin reading a book (Rather disrespectful) , A metal-faced knight that seemed to be yelling about art (At least he has something to protect him), A younger girl with a bigger version of the strange one's weapon (Must be a new fancy children's toy), What initially was a black knight (This one brings joy!) but turned out to to be just another smaller woman (This one does not bring joy.), A professional woman that seemed to have an air of expertise around her (is that alcohol? Haven't had mead in years..), and last but not least, the lich at the head of the table (Oh, was everyone mentionable?).

When their contractor changed forms, Tael's curse mark sent the strongest impulse it could to go for the ring, to which he just about barely reigned himself in, showing itself in him standing up and releasing a restrained heavy-fisted attack on the table, sending several cracks seeping through the wood. "SORRY." the knight seethed as he sat back down again,not bothering to give an explanation.

"Any option is fine, but our rewards must be sizable in proportion to the difficulty. I want your ring or something equivalent in value. I will also require payments in advance due to.. Personal difficulties." he growled, his irritability transformed into half-concealed lust as each of his bitter words were spoken through gritted teeth. The options sounded horrific to him, but he couldn't exactly just turn down such an opportunity for such valuable things. The rattling of metal was now gone, replaced with a much more unsettling stillness of the dragon knight, eyes locked on the lich, more specifically the ring of truth, and was planning on remaining that way until either their contractor left or he was dragged out of the room.

Interactions: Birdsie
Mentions: everyone else (I tried ;-; Tell me if I missed you)

 

[Lemercer]

ARRIN KELLAM

Overview

Location	Esoteric War Room
Interacting	Conloth
Tags	Noble Scion Birdsie Conloth June Verles Hanarei Barbas Churl archur OldTurtle Epiphany Zerulu Reinhardt Worthlessplebian Shatter Shard

worn boots pounded the underground garden as the elfling approached the grand...ish, oak doors in front of him. A thousand thoughts ran through Arrin's mind, the most prominent however being just how damn late he was. "shit shit shit shit" he mumbled under his breath as he sprinted towards the door, his rushed pace betraying him at the last possible moment as he quite literally tripped over himself and tumbled recklessly into the plainly dressed room.

Unfortunately this wasn't the first time he had entered a room ass first and wound up on the ground, but damn if it wasn't the least desirable. Arrin glanced around for a moment from the floor, seeing the eyes of the cult's company eyeing him. Some glared, some shrugged, regardless, he was noticed. In a swift throw of his body the elfling stood, giving a quick wave at the variety of characters in front of him, trying to casually retreat to the place Kol resided as he individually addressed everyone. "heh, hey, how ya doing... good to see ya... cool armor... oh boy..." each greeting accompanied by a cheesy and obviously unnerved hand gesture.

Once he had successfully made it behind Kol's seat, standing just barely above it, he began to speak. "Mr. Lich sir! Hello, hi, I'm uhm.." he hesitated as he recognized the commotion he had already caused. "Well, you know, so sorry I'm late, really so sorry. heh" Arrin apologized with wringing hands, completely forgetting he was in a den filled with quite possibly murderers and thieves. Though he was very well one himself, in the presence of Kol, the Lich and of course the eccentric collection of... 'participants' in front of him, Arrin reverted to his younger self as if he was called to the headmaster's office.

As people began to speak up again, answering the Lich and each other, Arrin leaned into the ear of the greying dwarf beside him. "please don't kill me, but what the hell is happening?"

 

[Hanarei]

Lady Manourei (Reine Manourei)
Location: Esoteric Trihexa Base - War Room

She nodded listening to who she now knew as William Von Strauss spoke to her telling her what she asked. His comment about her being a vampire causing her to shrug a little not at all caring for him to mutter such a fact out loud. It wasn't as if she was in some public space where such a fact would be a problem for her after all. At most it would make it harder to feast on some of the members in the meeting she found a particular interest in. Not something she really should be doing in the first place given they were all part of the same group. A pity in a way but she had self control as was. Not all the souls inside her were taken against their will after all, many of whom lived as humans in her presence for a good length of time without becoming her meal.

Her eyes lingered looking over to Modesty. A rather humorous name to lady Manourei though she didn't show any visual signs on her face displaying such a thought. It was as she had expected and it was all the more twisted. To think one would try and play god and create your own children. A human could simply fornicate if they so desired a child... baring infertility being an issue. It was clear he had an ideal he wished the children to live up to. Whether it was of his own imagination or perhaps modeled on children he once had... or perhaps even an amalgamation of both. How she wondered if her parents might of attempted the same... or perhaps they were corpses themselves long before they might of even got a chance.

Her head turned focused upon the Lich as he spoke up. Her eyes were locked in his direction sitting back in her chair as if to take on a bit more proper posture. She took in his words glancing about looking upon the others once more vaguely scanning the room to get a better look at the few new individuals of whom arrived. His plans were about as she had expected, rather annoying though all achievable if played out smartly. The heroes were likely the most dangerous of the bunch though she had experience of her own in taking out a foe who far outclassed herself. The right amount of tact could be used to find a weak spot and achieve that goal, although going that particular route was also far more likely to bring up further risks if anything went wrong.

It seemed as if the others all had their own ideas and much to her delight it seemed they weren't all that stuck up. More so a lot were willing to give their input... a plus and minus really. The only concern were the ones who seemed more inclined to goof around then to provide real feedback. As long as they acted as sheep following the flock though she supposed it wouldn't matter too much. She shrugged a bit glancing at the plaguedoctor... or rather William as he offered his ability to preserve the souls using his own magic. It wasn't much a surprise he would offer such, after all she knew full well he was capable of doing so given his 'daughters' so long as his 'modifications' were just to make his 'daughters' more to his liking rather then more an act to fix damage the souls he harvested might take. Whether it worked for a ritual she wasn't sure though she figured the Lich could provide input on the matter.

"I see little reason why the cult would ever be discovered unless someone acted recklessly. Finding children is quite easy whether it might be some lost lambs... or taking the lambs form the wolves who might of already gained some of their own for their own nefarious purposes. Such individuals won't have such a luxury of reporting those kidnapped kids and should a trail somehow even be discovered it would lead to those... individuals... rather then to the cult. Kidnapped children I see the least risk of so long as you do it right after a period of time." She spoke seeming to hesitate on finding a word for them out of a sense of her own disdain for them though she elected not to choose a more harsh word. She leaned to the side resting her fist against her cheek looking upon the others before speaking more.

"Caution is the best approach when time isn't a limiting factor. There is little reason why we can't work on multiple tasks at once. It doesn't necessarily mean all our resources need to be spread evenly, after all some tasks will clearly easier then others. Information is the most powerful tool to gather. This supposed temple is likely to have guardians is it not? We all know mortals are rather... imperfect beings. I am sure information gathering on those who might reside there or have access to this cipher we so desire. I'm sure there are at least a few with skeletons in their closets... or sinful desires of which might coax them to do our bidding. Who knows what a little digging there could provide us whether it might be an easy way to swipe the cipher or a man or woman who will do so willingly of his own accord for us. It doesn't hurt to devote some resources to trying to pry a little and see what we might find."

She leaned back in the chair tapping her chin as if in thought before speaking again.

"As for the heroes I think it wouldn't hurt to do the same... though I would recommend approaching them with far more caution. It might be far more beneficial if we can play our hand as discrete as possible with them... if possible working to manipulate them to ensure they might remain as spread apart as possible and distracted with other affairs to keep them out of our business. If things might be falling apart and there is risk of our exposure... hopefully we might have enough information to gather a hero with the easiest pickings and lure them in and take care of them separately. Who knows if we get to that exchange we could perhaps expand our stage of influence to make the hero be viewed negatively by the public to the point of having their back against the wall... a place made far easier to mislead them into their own demise. Though, just to reiterate, I see any direction actions against a hero outside being discrete as a last resort."

Reine shrugged a bit leaning back in the chair. She said her piece and left it out there. She had all the time in the world if she must... though she had to admit the sooner the world could suffer the better she would feel about it. She knew enough about patience to not be careless though.

 

[OldTurtle]

Solomon Whitehall
War Room, Trihexa Branch of the Esoteric Order of the Celestial Dragon
Mentions: Birdsie Hanarei
Interactions: Shatter Shard

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​

Sol busied himself with his slice of pie as more of the members entered the room, each accompanied by their own eccentric feature, from a full-face mask modeled after some sort of bird to more strange armor and even a set of miniature, dancing skeletons. People quickly settled into their seats, some falling into quiet conversation while others chose to keep to themselves. Feeling very much out of place amongst the rather showy surroundings, he focused on the pie, quickly devouring his portion.

"You're alright," the mage sitting beside him said comfortingly, patting Sol's shoulder. Strangely enough, it was actually comforting to know that at least one other person seemed normal. Polishing off the last of the slice, he returned the gesture. "You too."

Soon enough, the flood of arrivals slowed to a trickle and Zaraon rose to speak. As he did, the man transformed, all vestiges of humanity slipping away from his form and leaving behind a dark skeleton wreathed in visible power and clad in ornate armor. Sol barely managed to prevent himself from flinching. He'd been aware that their leader wasn't human, but knowing the fact and seeing it were very different things, especially when it came to liches. Sol's gaze was particularly drawn towards the strangely attractive ring on Zaraon's hand. Sol wet his lips, inexplicably unable to tear his eyes from it. Thankfully, the lich's explanation of the situation and the Order's task was enough to draw Sol's attention away from the trinket.

Once he was finished, Sol sat deep in thought, quietly drumming his fingers against the table. Zaraon had presented them with an incredibly difficult decision. Slowly, the others began to pipe up, each voicing their opinion. It appeared that most of them were supportive of the second option, barring a few dissenters such as the nice mage sitting beside Sol. It shouldn't have been a surprise, really, not with how this was a cult intent on releasing a wanton force of destruction on the world. In truth, Sol was torn. While his gut desired either the first or third option, his mind said otherwise. Despite common sense dictating that the mass slaughter of innocent children was the least attractive option, it seemed like the safest option. In addition, it wasn't exactly like children would magically be spared from the consequences of unsealing Lykkenan anyways. As much as it didn't sit well with Sol, it seemed like the best option. Sol chewed on his lip and made his decision.

Or at least, he did until the woman with long, red hair brought up a very important point. It was true, they had as much time as they wanted to enact their plans. Deciding almost immediately, Sol spoke up. "I agree with that sentiment. I believe that we shouldn't limit ourselves to a single plan. If it fails, we'll have no backup to rely on so that'll be the end. Even if we can't follow through on every avenue, we should at the very least investigate them. We'd be able to make a more informed decision then."

 

[Shatter Shard]

Falmme Aceros
War Room


Falmme was in deep thought as he tapped the table. The other's reasons for choosing their options were reasonable, and given their perspectives, were something plausible within the scopes that he could see in them. Many opted for the children, and a few went with his option. However, he agreed with the dwarf; the expertise of the people gathered here may offer new routes for a far easier process. Years spent in an academic institution will not be spent by a narrow-minded approach of opting for just one route, and so Falmme began to think of something else.

Slam!

The knight's sudden outburst made Falmme jump from his seat as he loudly exclaimed, "Pork liver and chicken fillet on a stick! Calm down!" The knight spat out a "Sorry." before sitting back down, prompting Falmme to take a breath of relief. Unfortunately, his relief didn't last long as the knight demanded the Ring of Truth for the reward of accomplishment, causing Falmme to take in a sharp intake of breath through gritted teeth. His eyes immediately darted towards the lich in front, trying to ascertain if kicking in his Fight or Flight response would be appropriate for the current situation. The big boss thankfully didn't react, or at least didn't show it yet. Although he wasn't sure what his response would be, Falmme reassured himself that nothing too bad would happen.

As the situation was happening, another participant joined in with a rather embarrassing entrance. Although he found it funny, he mostly felt pity for the guy, particularly to the his dignity. As he passed by, he nodded in a friendly manner, before facing the table again.

The lady in red and his newfound companion also began to lay their opinions on the matter, and he found himself agreeing with the points they tackled. They had plenty of time, so it was wiser to spread their power between options and allows the allocation of resources to be properly divided between them. However, even then, he was still strongly against the second option.

"Many of you make great points, but as the dwarf said, the success of the plans we are about to do demand that we know what we are capable of, so that we may be assigned to whichever roles fits us the best." He began, before introducing himself with a smile. "My name's Falmme, and I'm a fire mage as you can see." He raised his arms to prove his point, showing his coat and the fiery patterns embedded on them. "I specialize in quickly burning things and turning an area into hell itself, as well as magic inscriptions, deciphering symbols and creating them, and pretty much anything related to fire magic." he said, confidently putting his hand on his chest. "Though I am not an expert in it, I am experienced in covert operations, and as of now, I am a spy at Sarafell's ranks and I can provide some useful information."

After introducing himself, he set his eyes on the masked man and the demon, a smile still plastered on his face. "We have plenty of time, but the resources is another thing." he then swept his gaze to everyone in the room. "Please, before we decide, I'd like for us to think what these options could need, and so a self-introduction would really be needed as to not leave any detail out and waste resources." he pointed out, nodding at the dwarf across and at the masked man. "Of course, that's aside from Mister William and Mister Kol."

 

[Conloth]

Kol’ Undyer An’thoweken
at The Esoteric Orders base in Trihexa
In the War room

Kol’ sat enjoying the slice of pie and carefully watching the faces of those seated around him. It was important that this group didn’t fracture apart at the first signs of disagreement and with how controversial the options to free the primordial were it would be a pain if someone were to try and ruin the whole operation.

Kol’ had been reading the room when the large armored knight smashed the table sending Kol’s pie into a surprisingly high double flip before landing back down in a clatter. Luckily none of the dessert was lost. Then the beast had the gall to ask for the Ring of truth. Kol’ stared side eyed at the man. He must be mad or arrogant. Kol’ thought and judging by his earlier outburst and twitching it was the former.

Before Kol’ could chastise or even speak to the knight, another loud and disruptive noise, this time from the door, blared out into the room. Kol’ let loose a long sigh. This meeting of respected members of this grand Esoteric Order was not holding up to the calm thoughtful and stoic meeting he had dreamed off. Lifting his suddenly heavy head Kol’ nearly choked when he saw that this late member was Arrin Kellam. The elfling he himself had in fact recruited. Quickly he adopted a forced smile and leaned his ear to the lad as he asked his question. Please don’t kill me? Heh. Good to know he hasn’t forgotten our first meeting. Kol’s smile turned genuine and he turned his head to whisper.

“Naught a worry lad we had just been told by our esteemed Grand master of the Order what our options to release the primordial are, We can either steal a powerful relic from the terrifying Auspice of Fate, kidnap and sacrifice roughly a thousand children or capture and break the mind of the physically most intimidating of all the Auspices’ chosen heroes.” Kol’ paused his explanation as the stunning woman in red spoke up. He agreed with her that so long as they had time there were many safe and viable ways to solve these three problems disguised as solutions. Kol’ couldn’t help but nod as the rough young looking rouge agreed that it seemed that they simply didn’t have enough information to choose a plan.

Kol’ smiled brightly as the young fire mage Falmme followed his lead and introduced himself and some of the skills he brought to the table. It would be nice to have a foot in the door with the mages of Sarafell.

“Go on then, introduce yerself. Tell ‘em yer skills and hint at what option ye would prefer.” Kol’ whispered back to Arrin hoping that a second introduction would help everyone feel more comfortable.

Interacted with: Lemercer Mentioned: Shatter Shard , OldTurtle , Noble Scion , Hanarei and Birdsie

 

[Lemercer]

ARRIN KELLAM

Overview

Location	Esoteric War Room
Interacting	Conloth
Tags	Noble Scion Birdsie Conloth June Verles Hanarei Barbas Churl archur OldTurtle Epiphany Zerulu Reinhardt Worthlessplebian Shatter Shard

Kol's surprisingly calm response to Arrin's messy introduction put the young man's mind at ease, allowing him to put his spinning head on straight. The elfling nodded as he listened to the woman in red, who he tried desperately to look square in the face, followed by the pale fiery character across the room. It was truly astounding the variety of people the grand master had assembled, from the drifter beside Kol, to the literal winged demon who everyone was way to cool in not acknowledging. It made the boy... well, insecure in a way. Especially in the presence of the Grand Master, he could feel the darkness eminating from the skeleton. In fact he felt an overwhelming amount of magic ability in the room. Regardless, Arrin put his thoughts behind him and followed Kol's advice.

With a shoulder brush and small wave, Arrin addressed the table "Uhm, hello. I'm Arrin Kellam, bastard of Akridge and thief extraordinaire!" he said with a child-like exuberance which quickly died once he noticed the unimpressed faces around him. "Right... Well. I'm small, uh, i'm smart... uhm" Arrin looked to Kol for a moment "oh! magic! yes! i know lots of it. I don't know crazy powerful stuff like you." he pointed at the woman in red "or you.. or you... you, you and you but!" he said pointing the various magically inclined members of the lot "quantity over quality right?" Arrin chuckled, cleared his throat and gave his best firm look of respect to the mighty, albeit quiet, lich. "I know I got here late sir but from what i've gathered so far, I think the more the marrier. Mine as well go for every plan at once, spread any resistance we may face thin. Oh! and I can help with the whole 'child soul' issue! I know the location of every orphanage and gang of misfits in this forsaken city! Got friends everywhere too. If you wanna find kids, gotta think like one huh?" said the elfling with as much charm as he could muster. "But really, there's thousands of little rugrats just like me out there prime for... well. Y'know. dying.".

In hindsight, Arrin realized just how twisted he probably sounded. A teen using his thousands of orphan colleges across the city to wake a terrifying beast for the sake of money. But in that moment of concern, he looked about and was oddly comforted by the fact that he wasn't the only one with an odd amount of dried blood on his robes. "I mean, I don't know what everyone's personal morality is when it comes to killing kids, but I'm just saying, if that's the plan, I can help". A final grin swept across his face as he crossed his arms, borderline excited to get out there and get to work.

 

[archur]

William Von Strauss
The War Room

The doctor listened as everyone spread their ideas and gave their various forms of expertise and eventually, some names. There seemed to be enough people at the very least agreeable with his idea, kidnapping children, but there were valid points to doing any of the other options. At the very least, it seemed the room was agreeable on the moral implications of what they were doing, something that alleviated some of the tension that was building up in his chest. The only real opposition was the fact that the resources and time necessary would immediately prove to be a detriment, but that was-

William could feel his train of thought getting smashed into oblivion as the knight brought his fist down onto the table. Where was he again?

"Caution is the best approach when time isn't a limiting factor. There is little reason why we can't work on multiple tasks at once. It doesn't necessarily mean all our resources need to be spread evenly, after all some tasks will clearly easier then others." That's where he was, considering other options. It seemed that others in the room agreed with this line of thinking as well.

"Then I am glad we can all agree on the fact that we do need to have each of our wonderfully diverse and unique talents put to use. Time isn't of the essence for once, and I think we all need to make the most of it. Yes, our second option of kidnapping can be costly, but clearly-" He gestured to the new boy who had just entered the room. "We have our "ins", as they say. It could be timely, and costly, but so are the other options. For example, if we were to infiltrate the temple to gain the key, we would still need to research the floor plans for the temple, find who works for the temple and at what time, find who might be susceptible to our influence much like Lady Manourei suggested. There are a lot of other factors that will also require resources from the cult, just different types of them. We can't dig ourselves an early grave, no offense, because of a lack of foresight. There are even still further things to consider during an operation like this! Complications can arise during the spree of kidnapping that may make things difficult for us, asides from the authorities finding us out. Or perhaps we aren't able to find the perfect time to catch one of the Seven?

"It is incredibly pertinent that we all at least give some form of our abilities, and names if you will. In addition to holding souls in these," With that, he pulled from one of his pockets a necklace with an assortment of red glowing gems on it. "I can do a great many other things as well. These are my soul containers, I call them soul gems. I always keep a few handy on my person just in case I were to come across any unfortunates." He put the necklace away, fished around in his pocket, pulled out a small handful of similar red gems, devoid of light, and placed them on the table. "These I suppose, are for whomever would find use for trapping a soul indefinitely, as they are not currently occupied. In addition, I am an accomplished doctor and sole inheritor of the art of homunculus creation. If we need extra hands for some simple tasks, I can help create them. I only request I oversee their further development after the fact." He briefly looked over the room again, before quickly adding "Of course, not to say anyone here is incompetent. We are all here for a good reason, and I don't seek, nor could I attempt to replace the talent we already have. I'm sure you are all wonderful individuals, and we will get to know each other soon enough."

~x~

Mercy rolled her eyes at the woman's initial response. It was usually the response she got from her father when he didn't want to talk. She began to lean back in her seat as to not bother the other woman when she began to speak up again.

"More specifically, I cast a spell that-"

The homunculus perked up at the caster going to clarify, until the skeleton in miniature began to babble incoherently, hopping about and pointing accusingly at her. Her gaze shifted back and forth between Y'ndra and the skeleton. She would've thought it was some sort of joke at her expense if it weren't for the confused expression on Y'ndra's face.

Whatever it was doing was annoying. "I probably shouldn't have asked." She mumbled to herself, before going to close her hand around the tiny irritation.



Mentions: Conloth Noble Scion OldTurtle Shatter Shard Hanarei and Birdsie
Interactions: Reinhardt

 

[June Verles]

Spoiler: Appearance

Katarzyna Kaliskanaov "The Night Witch"

War Room.


The girl would nod periodically as the person spoke about the story of their rifle, looking at the old Winchester like a kid in an aquarium. Kata prided herself as a complete gun nut, interested in all aspects of fire arms from their past, present and future, and this alpha predecessor to the relative flop that the model 71 became was one in a dozen if the cowboy's account was to be trusted. I mean she didn't even understand why the military would bother when semi-automatic weaponry was already being developed, though she did have to admit that the lever action was one of the most stylish designs that humanity ever came up with, Imhotep himself would be proud that we are still using the same technology he did to make the pyramids.

Looking up at the ghostly man Kata would drop her interested facade, returning back to her stoic and non-committal expression.

"I don't know what a painted lady is, but I'm assuming you mean a prostitute from context clues. Personally the chance of observing a special prototype of a somewhat iconic gun is much more interesting than any carnal desire to leave descendants. Though I've got to say my knowledge of US history is shoddy, but if you shooting a lever action and robbing trains post ww1 you are probably just as much a relic of a bygone era as much as your gun, even when you were alive. Isn't that right Cowboy-Ojisan?" She'd put it rather bluntly. Before turning to give attention to the rest of the table, where discussion had heated up.

First she'd notice that Mr. Zaraon had dropped the act and returned to his jrpg midboss persona. You she didn't realise until now but considering he probably rotted his vocal chords long ago the lich might've chosen a different voice from when he was alive, I mean no one has a voice that smooth in real life without some magic or something right? The few notes about his ring would somewhat interest her, she just thought it was because he was married to a nice lich lady. Everyone else though seemed to begun formulating plans on how to best liberate the dragon, she had her own ideas but there was no rush to spew them out, some people already present already seemed competent strategists, like the red dress lady. So for now she would just chime in with a self description.

"I am Katarzyna Anastasia Kaliskanaov, 22 years old, Gemini, my blood type is AB and I've never seen star wars." Most of that information was useless, but at this point due to how many self introductions she has had to do she just repeated it automatically. "I graded as an international master of the sport at 65kg in the women division by the World Sambo Association." She then holds up her rifle. "This is a Avtomat Kalashnikova 47, please just call it an AK-47, it boils my blood when people screw up the pronunciation. It's lethal range is 1500 m- mhmm" She pauses realizing they might not know her measurement, so she'd struggle to switch to feet. "Like 5000 human feet, though I am only effective with it below 1600 human feet. At my effective range it can penetrate through steel armour through both sides and through a concrete block. Oh yeah and I've got a toggleable 15 feet null magic zone since I've arrived to this world. Nice to be made your acquaintance." She'd finish off her self introduction with a japanese bow.

Noble Scion Birdsie Conloth June Verles Hanarei Barbas Churl archur OldTurtle Epiphany Zerulu Reinhardt Worthlessplebian Shatter Shard Conloth

 

[Silver Wolf]

Sophia Surumbrax Kleidon
"The Black Knight"
Interactions: Birdsie (Lich Boi), Hanarei (Manourei), archur (William)
Mentions/In Area: Worthlessplebian (Frank), June Verles (Russian), Churl (Tamah), Barbas (Kruvick), Zerulu (Al-Amin), OldTurtle (Solomon), Shatter Shard (Falmme) Conloth ( Kol’ Undyer), Noble Scion (Tael) Alteras (Vitaliya)
Location: Common Room ----> War Room

Spoiler: Appearance

Sophia finished her pie and felt content. As she listened to the lich and watched the room, she merely smiled. What a fun group of people! Once the discussion of plans started up, she began thinking. Her expression didn't really change, but the room began to dull down in thought after the big knight smashed a table and talked about rewards. The most obvious course of action due to the whole prospect would really be to treat it not as a single conspiracy, but the caution was a double edged sword. If an entire plan hinged on a silent part without any noise being generated somewhere else, that plan would fail. It was basic tactics really, if you want to catch your enemy by surprise, you distract them. That was something her master had drilled into her enough to be a core of her fighting style. Sophia thought about the plans and realized that they could feed into each other.

Not only that, but she thought trying to force the seal was bad practice. If they didn't outright destroy the seal, wouldn't it still do its job in some form? Maybe they would only partially free the primordial or other unforeseen complications would appear. Once she had her idea thought out, Sophia went back to listening to the conversations in the room and after hearing what everyone had to say about the plan, she raised her hand with a wave.

"Helllooooooooo~ Excuse meeeee~" Sophia called until she had peoples' attention. Once she was satisfied with getting at least the lich's attention, she continued. "So, while it is true that we may all think the best option is to be secretive, I think those whose talents lie in being loud and disruptive also have a role. The first step in creating a plan that relies on surprise is how you'll draw attention away. So I was thinking, do we really want to be quiet and sneaky? It seems silly, so what if we made ourselves known?" She looked around to make sure some were listening then let her joyous grin intensify.

"If we start kidnapping children, it would become unavoidable. The more time we take, the more chances we'll be discovered. If we're to use all of our talents, as Mr. Birdie Mask says, we should be making a scene. What if we made it seem like we were going to target something else entirely? Maybe the king or the towers, and then they would pay attention for loud obnoxious groups who don't think too hard about their plans. If they were weakened enough, they could write off the children disappearing as a side effect or something to make the people distrust the king and guards, or if we're really awesome, steal the key and make it look like a thief took advantage of the chaos. That would put is in the most amazing spot to free the imprisoned primordial without any possible complications like partially freeing them or ripping them out and leaving a chunk of their power still sealed. They would also keep focused on the other conspiracy threatening the king or key parts of the city, and then we could use the key to undo the seal and the city goes kabooooooom~!"

With the last sentence, Sophia made a grand gesture upwards with her hands and tipped her chair back. Then she swiftly faced forward and asked, "What do you think? Pretty smart, right?"

 

[Worthlessplebian]

Frank Cassidy
Pardner, Carter, Rider

Location: War Room
Interactions: None
Mentions: Kata ( June Verles ), Sophia ( Silver Wolf )

The apparition appreciated the lass' enthusiasm about firearms but was a bit confused about what she said to him, what's an Oh-je san? Bah, it doesn't matter, Frank thought. He lowered his hat, obscuring his eyes, folded his arms and laid back into the chair while listening to the suggestions made by everyone else. He didn't even budge when that overgrown chariot ornament slammed his fist down at the wooden table, sending wooden splinters into his coat. The reason why Frank didn't speak up or add onto his suggestion was he felt that his input is not required. Either he'll repeat previous thoughts or will add nothing new to the conversation.

Instead, Mr. Cassidy decided to hum an ol' tune that he use to sing when he was alive. Subtly bobbing his head to the rhythm of the song. He hummed at a low tone, so he didn't disturb the others conversation. Humans transforming into monsters, spirits, ancient creatures, immortal madmen, primeval horrors, divinity, and heroes of legend. All this sounded like a bad theatre play. Hopefully which ever plan the crew settles on that it would be over quickly so that he can get back to his time. He'd rather hunt the wendigos in the mountains than deal with this asinine trash. At least that was simple.

The little girl's shrill voice grated on the ghost's spectral nerves.

 

[Churl]

Tamah Babbit

Location: War Room

Spoiler: Appearance

She listened to the others as they introduced themselves with a growing sense of dread. Oh no, she hadn’t listed any of her skills when she introduced herself! It wasn’t even an introduction either, she had just selfishly given her opinion and complained! Oh Auspices, she was trapped in an awkward hell of her own doing. No way to covertly erase everyone’s memory one at a time and start over, either. Well, great going, Tamah. Now you have to murder all these people, find another branch of the cult, and not mess up your introduction next time, you complete deviled idiot! Wait, no, the Lich. He’ll just come back and kill her, or say hurtful things! Only a Good person should make her cry, not a fellow villain! Looks like she’ll have to suck it up.

In the meantime, she watches the girl in the cool armor (definitely reoccurring boss aesthetic) make her case. A decoy scheme? How perfect! It would help the Cult *and* take the attention of any wannabe or authentic heroes! The idea is so deliciously vile~

Standing up, Tamah fights to hide her blush (which just looks like a bruise with her colors) and clears her throat.

“I-I don’t know if my opinion matters much, but I support this idea. I’d be willing to volunteer for the false plot too, doesn’t matter to me either way, hee hee. S-Sorry about that. Um, forgot to say. I’m Tamah Babbit, and uh, I’m a dark mage. Or wait, I think the right term is Warlock, but I’m kinda my own patron now. W-Well, I can fire corruption magic, cast hexs, drain people of their strength, health, emotions, memory, that sort of thing. I’m a bit tougher than I should be from a lot of... experimental magic over these last three years. Oh! Almost forgot, I have connections in the Adventurers’ Guild from my first year traveling! W-Well, not connections, per se, since the Guilds tended to hush up my missions. I was a bit ‘salt the earth’ and overeager, but the people that could uncover the truth anyway are probably the sorts that would, uh, appreciate that sort of thing, and be more valuable to, well, our sorts. Reputation, I guess. Beyond that, I’m really just... a simple servant of Good.”

While her smile was gentle, there was a very disconcerting change in her posture at the last word. All meekness seemed to slough off, and there was a manic look in her eyes.

Mentions: Silver Wolf
Interactions: Conloth OldTurtle Barbas Birdsie Hanarei archur Zerulu Noble Scion June Verles Shatter Shard Worthlessplebian Alteras

 

[Birdsie]

Ner'Zhul
Underground Base

"I'm afraid this ring is not for sale," the lich coldly answered the armored figure's request. The light of Truth shone in the statement, making everyone instinctively aware the lich meant what he was saying. The ring on his finger would not be sold, given away, or exchanged. The only method for obtaining it would be to challenge and kill its wielder.

He walked across the room, standing behind Tael. His voice, pleasant and humming, gained the quality of a chilled grave. "All of the people in this room will be rewarded handsomely. Gold, knowledge, artifacts, precious treasures, trading goods, or slaves. The choice is yours. Speak to me after this meeting, and do not cause a commotion again or I will show you what this ring can do to a mind that has left its gates unbarred."

Cutting through the tension, a young man entered the room, mumbling apologies for being late. "That's fine. Sit down and have one of the others fill you in on what you've missed." Ner'Zhul began to walk back to his seat, where the pie was growing cold from some ephemeral chill, flakes of misty frost having crept up from the surface of the table to coat it lightly.

"I'm afraid that while discussing options is fine, we must settle on a course of action. There isn't much known about the current set of Chosen Heroes, because their cycle only began a scant couple of months ago. They are not to be underestimated, despite their relative inexperience compared to most of us. Likewise, not much is known about the Temple of Fate due to the secrecy of its priests, and the difficulties involved in infiltrating it. As for the sacrificial option, wasting time in order to make research isn't worth it if we're not going to commit to it to begin with."

"We're going to put the matter to a vote." The lich sat down in his chair, perfectly regal as if he were a king on his throne. He even possessed the relics one would expect: scepter, crown, and ring. "But, before doing that, I'd like to introduce you to my apprentice. He's been studying under me for three years and is quite talented. I had intended to let this be the first real test of his skills."

Ner'Zhul raised his right hand. Mages in the room would recognize the pair of hand gestures that followed as the ones that would be used for a summoning spell. The fact that he only had to use two and no incantation suggested a high level of talent, but that was to be expected of someone hundreds of years old.

There was a noiseless flash of light, aside for the slight whooshing of wind, as a young boy appeared standing to the lich's right.

Celestial Speck Kingly K Duel Uasal Twist Noble Scion The Black Knight LostHaven Reinhardt Churl Gravitys Momentum Space Buddha Epiphany

 

[Celestial Speck]

Birdsie | @ everyone in the room.
​

As the flash slowly died down, and the room's light finally went back to its natural levels, they could, indeed, see a young boy next to him. Although clearly, due to the fact this was a Lich, and he was an extremely powerful one, the boy was nowhere near what one might call 'common.' It was perhaps only natural, after all. Liches are powerful, emotionless creatures. An apprentice, a living one, at that, obviously was going to be...Different, to say the least.

His hand held a small book- Advanced Magic Theory. While it was unlikely the boy actually knew such level of skill to cast magic of that level, he still held and read the book on his hands. Either out of the sheer wish for knowledge, wanting to learn it quickly, or perhaps boredom.

The last one was a possibility due to the look on his face. There was a very notable look of boredom on the boy's face. His fair and white skin barely moved in response to his muscles making him move about, as only his red eyes, hidden behind a pair of glasses, showed any sign of movement, proving that the boy wasn't frozen in time. His clothes, an ugly mixture of an ashen grey and white, consisted of something soldiers would use in wars. Combat boots, an outfit that encompassed his entire body, and gloves that only left his knuckles bare. His long and black hair covered a good portion of his face, too, leaving reading his face and age hard- but he couldn't be older than twelve. A long oxygen tank was behind him, followed by a mask attached to it via a tube.

Flip, flip, flip.

...Yet despite this, what was likely the youngest in the room didn't show any signs of looking at anyone, not even his master, as he flipped through the book. A few seconds passed, then a few more, and before anybody could likely speak out as to why he was taking so long, the boy closed the book- the audible sound of it piercing through his initial silence.

"Society is dead. All hail society!" His speech pattern, despite high pitched, showed something else. An almost unnoticeable, and hard to pinpoint accent. However, his strange words aside, he spoke again, opening his arms. A large, toothy grin formed itself on his face. "It seems your theory was right, mastah! At least one person truly will come for anything one sets up, no matter how ridiculous it is! Kakakaka!"

The boy smiled, his grin soon disappearing before he looked at each person currently in the room.

"Kaith. Are you the ones whom I will be working with?"

 

[Noble Scion]

Tael Rendan
Esoteric Order war room

Spoiler: Appearance

Tael continued his staring contest with the lich's hand, his mind barely registering either the question or the two new arrivals. He didn't trust his voice to say anything coherent and simply sat still, gripping the table with excessive force.

His free hand reached into a fold in his armour and pulled out a small pouch, widened the opening and reached comically deep inside, shakily rummaging before finding something that seemed to relax the knight significantly. His hand slipped out, the pouch closed and disappeared, and suddenly he resembled something that wasn't just a big metal Gollum.

He'd upsettingly missed most of the points brought up in his hysteria, and his old pride flared up to prevent him from asking. Tael sighed, a long breathy sad sigh, typically reserved for older people that lived life in pain before taking a breath and speaking his own thought "Once we complete our objective, how quickly can we get removed and repaid for our work? It might be effective to rip it off like a bandage and go loud, hard and fast to get this over and done quickly, I think I'd much rather just go beat up a hero, as difficult as that may be."

Introductions seemed to be continuing with the arrival of the two boys, which led onto him feeling inclined to do so himself. "... Tael."

Eloquently put, if he didn't say so himself. He wasn't one to mince words and skill sets were more important than reasons behind being here, but maybe that was just some small part of his mind feeling guilty about his fall from grace that didn't want to explain itself, not that it could even if it tried, he'd forgotten all but the recent events of his past.
Interactions: Birdsie
Mentions: All

 

[Alteras]

Vitaliya Kardos

LOCATION War Room

INTERACTIONS everyone

CS

So far, the responses and suggestions have been a mixed bag. Some were sane for the right reasons, others were sane for the wrong reasons. To be honest, none of the options felts very comfortable to Vitaliya. If she had to choose one though, it'd probably be the last option. While crazy, it felt the fastest and clearest out of all the choices, either we succeed or fail. Besides, she didn't want to be associated with this cult any more than she had to. On the other hand, temple raiding sounded a lot safer, and judging by the people in the room, the odds of a successful raid are higher than breaking a Hero.

Well, with the lich introducing the apprentice and the knight voicing thoughts that closely mirrored her own, she thought to herself that it's finally time to toss in her opinion/vote. She stepped forward a few steps toward the rest of the group.

"Vitaliya, an adventurer. Before we come to a decision, I want to know how confident is everyone's combat ability. The Hero proposition sounds great, honestly it does, but it'll be too much if we can't even last 10 seconds. As for the ever-evolving Orphanage, it's too time consuming, and even if the Kingdom doesn't take note, the Adventurer's Guild will."

Putting aside the moral argument of sacrificing children, Vitaliya has other concerns. Having been a part of guild since birth, she knew how children from the slums played a role in the Guild. City dwellers seem to think all the entry/base level quests are fulfilled by country-bumpkins visiting the city for the first time, but even country-bumpkins know how to hunt. It's the orphans and children of the slums that do the Guild's lowest quests, and the Guild intends to keep it like that, lest they have to pay higher rewards for every quest.

"Now, as for the Temple Raid, it wouldn't be bad at all if we can even get a hold on a scrap of a blueprint. But even without one, a raid would be far more feasible than taking on a Hero."

Pausing to let her thoughts catch up, she turned to look in everyone's eyes, or where their eyes would be, one by one. Success in any strategy required the abilities of everyone to be proficient in their own fields. She's been in one too many parties where a weak adventurer destroyed the group. If this group was going to self-destruct, she'd rather it be in a temple instead of against a Hero.

"How skilled are all of you in combat? If you think we can take on a hero, we should use everything to hunt for the weakest Hero. If not, I'd say we go become raiders."

Turning back to the lich, she said, "I have faith in my combat skills. I vote for Hero hunting." And with that, she returned to her spot against the wall.

FontsFonts Coded by Alteras

 

[OldTurtle]

Solomon Whitehall
War Room, Trihexa Branch of the Esoteric Order of the Celestial Dragon
Mentions: Everyone
Interactions:

.

​

They were honestly all over the place, Sol realized. As would be expected of such a mixed bag of characters, each person had their own opinion and valid reasoning behind it. Not unexpectedly, no one, not even the chipper young man who had arrived late, was restrained by any moral values. Well, except for the mage - Falmme, he introduced himself. It would take an argument based solely in logic to sway these people. Sol let his gaze drift over the individuals seated around the table. Or, well, whatever was most similar to logic in their eyes.

The introductions continued, ranging from some rather ordinary ones to others that were much more... unique. Sol didn't understand half of Katarzy-something-or-the-other's description and he wasn't sure if he wanted to. And as for Kaith, Zaraon's apprentice, he was just plain disconcerting. Choosing to ignore all the oddities rather than acknowledge them, Sol reclined in his seat and began to introduce himself, following on the heels of the somewhat standoffish adventurer, Vitaliya.

"I'm Solomon Whitehall. I, uh, I don't really have any noteworthy skills," he started. "A little bit of magic, but nothing special. I suppose you could consider me a rogue of sorts." Sol paused and scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "I'm not much of a combatant, unfortunately. But if you need to get something done stealthily, then I'm your man.

"And I disagree with what was said about raiding the temple. I'm not sure it would be as easy as you make it seem," Sol grumbled, gesturing towards Vitaliya with his chin. "Even if we manage to get our hands on the key - and that's a big 'if'; the Temple of Fate is not likely to be carelessly guarded - we'd still have to deal with the ritual and all our opponents afterwards. In my opinion, combat ability would be just as important as when dealing with a hero."

 

[Shatter Shard]

Falmme Aceros
War Room

Falmme was in deep thought as he tapped the table. The other's reasons for choosing their options were reasonable, and given their perspectives, were something plausible within the scopes that he could see in them. His only gripe was the moral standing of most of the people here, but that was to be expected. With how he is right now, Falmme have little chance of persuading them, so he might as well compromise.

"As sir has said, he demands votes." He started. "Just like before, I vote for the temple, and if we are able to, choose the hero as well." He crossed his arms before continuing. "We can choose the second option as well, but rather than a way to free the primordial, we could make it as a deterrent against our would-be interceptors; hostages in short. This could also double as a feint of sorts while we work on the other routes." He suggested as he swept his gaze among everybody. "Again, I am against the second option because, one, the resources for maintenance is better put on other things. Two, children as they are, they are still unknown variables that might cause the failure of our plans. The world isn't short of "chosen ones" or people with "hidden power", and taking orphans with no history with them will cause blind spots to our information." He reasoned, a little too far-fetched but reasonable otherwise. "Third, as mister William, miss Sophia, and miss Vitaliya has stated, no matter how secretive we would be, we will be noticed one way or another. It would be preferable if it's already near the end of the plan, but it wouldn't be surprising if we're caught still halfway through. This is the capital, after all."

He then leaned back on his chair and raised his hand, raising one finger as he continued. "The temple, on the other hand, is a much safer choice. Of course we would need greater resources than the second option, but we have the advantage of being an unseen threat, still in the dark. We can juice out as much information as we can while being hidden, and if we do it fast enough, take hold of the key before they can call in reinforcements." He argued. "It's better to strike fast undetected to have more time to deal with anything else afterwards." He then raised one more finger. "As for the hero, well, we can choose to fight the weakest of them all, but that would be too hard, wouldn't it?" Falmme shrugged. "Even if we send our best to get them, what if we still fail? They would realize that there's something going on, and we'd have another set of eyes on our back." He asked, before leaning on the table. "Unless, we bait them to a trap." He then immediately straightened his back and shrugged. "But that's just a suggestion of mine."

"Either way, again as what miss Sophie has said, distraction is a must." He declared, before gesturing towards Solomon and himself. "I'd like for us to pass on that front, since he's not much of a combatant and I'm not that much of a fighting person myself." He lied the last part as naturally as he breathed. He then looked at Vitaliya with a friendly expression as always. "That includes fighting the heroes, miss Vitaliya." He took a moment to readjust his position before continuing. "What we can do is provide espionage, at least. For me though, If you guys do the temple route, I can provide help by delaying the kingdom's military from sending reinforcements." After saying those, he looked at the newly arrived person, the apprentice of the big boss. "So yes, that's what I can put on the table. I'll be in your care..." He then looked at everyone else at the table. "...and your cares as well."


Mentions: E V E R Y O N E
Interactions:

 

[June Verles]

Spoiler: Appearance

Katarzyna Kaliskanaov "The Night Witch"

War Room.

The apparition of the small annoying book worm didn't surprise or impress the stoic russian woman, quite the opposite actually. He just reminded her of online trolls who think they know shit because they saw one youtube video and refuse to listen to any other contrary opinion or view, evidence or otherwise. She'd put her rifle on the table as he flicked loudly through his book, pulling the trigger to the safety armed weapon as she imaged a bullet leaving the barrel and splashing his brains over the walls of the room.

Letting out a sigh she realised that was probably a bad idea, after all the lich and her boss was his arcane baby daddy and who knows what the lich might do if his little passion project got ended, probably resurrect him as a level 10 skeleton mage or something.

"Добро пожаловать в цирк, маленький мальчик." She called out to him in her native language. "Feel free to join us but don't be disrespectful." Kata would give him a brisk warning before returning to the matters at hand.

So far in terms of votes placed nothing concrete, though it wasn't like she was set on any particular idea either.

"Personally I don't feel particularly comfortable going for any of these options immediately as it's suggested. We've just met each other and we're already planning for the final piece to the puzzle to Armageddon? Lich-sama said it himself, we don't have nearly enough information to jump to conclusions like this. I say we delay all these options and instead go out and scout out our potential options.

Our best weapon is secrecy and we best use that through patience, I'm sure no one's in a rush here to bring calamity to the world."



Noble Scion Birdsie Conloth June Verles Hanarei Barbas Churl archur OldTurtle Epiphany Zerulu Reinhardt Worthlessplebian Shatter Shard Conloth [/USER

 

[Epiphany]

"On the contrary, I think calamity is exactly what we're bringing into the world."

It's impossible to say how long the dwarven woman clad in a hooded cloak has been standing in a corner, evidently concealed behind one of the four banners embossed with a blue eye and a golden maw over a white background. But as soon as she is observed, the fact of her presence becomes inescapable; there's no doubt she is here and always has been. Stepping completely out from behind a banner, she approaches the long oak table and it's obvious now she wears a stylized breastplate with leather reinforcement over her limbs. So well fitted there's scarcely a creak of leather or mail. No sword, nor axe, but instead a pair of knives sheathed on her belt.

Approaching one of the empty chairs, the dwarf sighs and hops up into it, opting to stand in it rather than sit. She smiles wanly, as if this perfectly ordinary problem happened all the time in ordinary situations. Of course, this conference was anything but ordinary.

"Chise Fireforge, at your service. And there's nothing wrong with calamity, provided it's for a good cause or leads to a good outcome. And there's little doubt this world needs both. Which is why all of us are here, isn't it, in one way or another." The dwarven woman pans the room with her golden gaze, making eye contact one by one. "None of you are wholly necessary and sufficient unto yourselves. You've left the ordinary and stepped into extraordinary and no one does that when perfectly content. Each of you wants something. Needs something. Well, you're in luck, you've come to exactly the right place for a few of you will absolutely find it." She shrugs and adds, "And the rest won't. Half of you are going to vanish no matter what choice we make, at least a few during this very conversation. But if you're true of heart and firm of purpose, you will find a satisfying resolution at the end of all this."

"Now. By all means let's vote but there's really only one choice. The Temple of Fate is where our destiny lies, those of us who are imbued with the strength of will to press on and not begone before we've begun. That cipher is exactly what we'll need. Exactly how we'll get it remains to be seen but we will see it. That I can promise."

The dwarven woman notices the pie, sniffs diagnostically and smirks before in fact serving herself a slice. While she does so, she continues to speak, each word delivered with the kind of surety usually found only in madmen or priests. "Forget the other choices. They have the illusionary quality of substance, of real choice, but they're not. We won't bypass the seal by child sacrifice. Not can't. Won't. Nor will we find any success by pursuing a Hero and attempting to capture them. We'll fail if we try. And by we, I mean most of us because there is a path to victory there but it lies in the defeat and even death of a number of us and you don't want that."

"No, it's the Temple for us. It also has the advantage of being the only one of the three options not presently...anticipated by certain parties, which is part of what makes the other two such bad options. But our employer has suggested a vote so, by all means, show of hands; do we raid the Temple of Fate, collect children for sacrifice or capture a Hero?"

 

[Birdsie]

Noble Scion June Verles Conloth Hanarei Barbas Churl archur OldTurtle Zerulu Epiphany Reinhardt Worthlessplebian Shatter Shard Uasal Alteras

The voting continued for a while. Some held strong opinions, while others abstained in uncertainty whether or not any of the paths was acceptable.

It was natural and easy to see why, since all three options would be quite ridiculous and hard to pull off. Should they succeed, this would be the kind of event that scholars would write about a hundred years into the future.

Ner'Zhul ensured that everyone in the room understood that, if they did not want to have anything to do with the job due to the risks involved, they were free to do so - he'd clean their memories to ensure the Order's plans were safe, then allow them to go. Of course, having one's mind touched by an ages-old undead king was even less tempting to some than outright terrorism.

It served both as a reminder and control measure, as well as a positive, calming feature to those who'd actually consider that acceptable.

In the end, upon counting the votes, raiding the Temple of Fate had won out.

"Very well," Ner'Zhul said. He sounded satisfied with the conclusion, as well as confident. Some would view this positively, while some would scoff - he was a lich, of course, he'd be confident, as this was nothing new to him, and carried no risks so long as his phylactery existed.

"I'd like those of you who believe can contribute to information gathering to come into this room at dusk. This will include skill in bribery, interrogation, observation, or mind-reading. We'll attempt to find the floor layout plans and question the temple staff."

The lich moved his scepter in a pointing gesture. An eagle's view of the Temple of Fate appeared on the table in the form of a scrying orb. Everything within swirled and turned gray, showing lines and areas outlined in purple, dark blue, and cyan overlaying the Temple's entrance, rooftop, and side balconies in various arrangements, to contrast the monochromatic background. The cyan fields spilled out to areas surrounding the temple as well, in complicated and intricate linework that appeared to run alongside focal points with an origin somewhere underground.

Ner'Zhul explained in a brisk tone of voice, "As you can see, there are intrusion wards and annihilation wards around the grounds. I believe I can prepare countermeasures for those. On the other hand, the teleportation wards in the Temple and around it cannot be safely bypassed, so we'll need to figure out an optimal escape route. If there are volunteers for that task, I'd like them to come forward and see me in this room tomorrow morning. This includes people with skills that lend themselves to transporting everyone outside."

"Everyone else," he said, dismissing the conjured image of the Temple, "I'd like to consolidate their resources and combat skills in the downtime, as well as get acquainted with the city. As soon as we steal the Key, the rest of the Order will launch a full-scale invasion to support us. We won't be running down to hide, but moving to the Oppose in order to enact the opening ritual. This means we'll be fighting in the streets, so you need to be at least somewhat familiar with them. Study the best routes, and prepare.

"We'll be fighting paladins, holy men, and war-clerics. Quite possibly we might cross paths with a Hero or several, once they catch wind of this. The Kingdom itself is sure to spare some of its royal guards to apprehend us, and once we begin the ritual, more polities and organizations will begin to send in their members. The fighting might potentially last for hours, and unexpected complications will near-assuredly arise since we are stealing the Key from the Temple of Fate."

"If you have any questions, ask them now, and then let us be dismissed," Ner'Zhul said, casting his gaze across the room.

 

[Epiphany]

As the voting went on, Chise cheerfully munches on a slice of pie. She's not particularly rushed but she eats with the kind of steady, determined pace of a soldier too used to surprise orders or ambushes to do anything but eat at a steady, prompt pace. The dwarven woman appears unsurprised at the outcome and greets the final vote by nodding agreeably as she finishes her last bite of pie.

Once Ner'Zhul mentions splitting up into teams, though, Chise dabs at her mouth with a napkin and stands up in her chair once more. This, of course, makes her barely taller than eye-level for many of those seated at the conference table. "Right, Information Gathering. Let's see."

Lemercer June Verles Churl OldTurtle Shatter Shard Alteras
Her finger lifts and falls like a conductor's baton as she sights down it and points at various individuals around the table. "Arrin, for sure. Fate likes you. Katarzyna, up to you, you'd be an asset on either team. Tamah, your presence on the team will make an asset fall into place so there's a spot for you if you want it. Solomon, you've got the skills to go the distance but I warn you, if you come, you're going to see something that will make you reexamine your beliefs. Falmme, we're going to need some magical support for this and you're the closest thing to a sane wizard in this crew so you're with us. Vitaliya, you have some legitimacy and exactly the right skill set we're going to need to overcome an obstacle that will only come up if you come along, but having it come up with us means it won't come up later."

"If any of you aren't up for it, feel free to opt out. There's a chance someone I didn't mention just now will join up with the Information Gathering crew and fill your spot so we should have enough dwarfpower to get the job done. Especially if we can get a teleporter or someone who can raise an underground river."

Conloth
Finally, her finger lands on Kol...and then Chise grins roguishly. "Not information gathering, no. Dinner. Wear something nice. There's a good 80% chance you or I will keep it clean from the inevitable brawl that will break out at the tavern you decide on after I give you six choices."

Birdsie
Last, Chise turns to look Ner'Zhul in the eye. "From now on, if you see me, I'll be accompanied by one of the people in this room. If I'm not, don't hesitate to kill me on the spot if you know what's good for you."

On those parting words, the dwarf hops out of her chair and makes for the door.

 

[Hanarei]

Lady Manourei (Reine Manourei)
Location: Esoteric Trihexa Base - War Room

Lady Manourei wasn't the most pleased with the choice. It seemed rather reckless and prone to problems fixating so heavily on one plan. Was it that much of a need to push things so quickly forcing all their eggs to be placed in one basket. If it all fell through it meant her desire to see the world suffer as it deserved wouldn't come to fruition. The last thing she wanted to see was for the mortals to be spared of such a calamity and continue living in their blissful ignorance like the greedy selfish people they were. She couldn't bare seeing those bright smiles on people as others suffer for their benefit whether directly or indirectly.

She turned to the dwarf looking at the small woman not quite in a favorable degree. She came off far to upbeat for her liking just in the tone she used and the certainty. It made her question just who she was and what her motif was. The fact she wasn't mentioned only agitating her a bit more as if to lump her in with the more as she might call it 'the meat shields'. Her red eyes all but watching her get up heading to the door as if her word was final meant to take control. While Reine wasn't intending to take charge or truly cared if she was in charge, that sort of attitude she viewed it being didn't please the vampire.

"So much certainty in such a little body. If I didn't know better I'd envision you to be one of those old hags perched upon the streets willing to read their blank palms with perceptive assumptions for a few coin of which they would dearly miss." The red haired woman spoke leaning back perched up on the arm of the chair her palm gently cradling her cheek in a look that only further displayed her doubt. Not quite the approach she had told herself she would take with this whole meeting but the chance to speak up was far too tempting of the annoyed woman to not resist it. It wasn't as if she were an enemy of which showing her hand would be ill advised... or if she was it was something she wouldn't at least mind revealing.

Her head turned to Ner'zhul as if reflecting on what he had stated before clearly having to of gotten something she viewed as a higher priority off her chest. The fact he mentioned a hero possibly showing up was a bit of a worry to her. It made it sound as if they were close enough or had resources of which might allow them to get their quickly if trouble should brew so suddenly. Would the ritual open enough time for that to be a possible risk. It seemed very unlikely or at least in the Lich's mind that they could use any sort of duplicity from anyone figuring out just what their goal might be.

"I really do hope you don't think the only option is fire and brimstone for once the key is obtained. I would hope at least some efforts can be made to avoid raising a flag announcing what is going on to avoid bringing the wrath of the gods down upon this entire operation right away. At the very least taking some time to weigh in options to be as discrete as possible or to minimize the risk of the task failing and several heroes arriving and disrupting the entire process. How you put it, it almost makes it sound as if singling out the weakest hero and taking them out discretely would of been a far safer bet... something when you first pitched the idea it sounded as if the former was much less risky then the later." She commented pushing the chair out not really caring for theatrics in summoning her servant not being in the greatest of moods.

Mentioned: Epiphany Birdsie