Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Ms Ravenwinter
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As the night burned into their time, the others dispersed from the table. The table itself seemed to join them as it receded into the palm of the Duke's hand in a little ball. Servants came to usher the party to their respective rooms. Elle followed with little fuss, silently eager to try out the new artefact. The room she was led into was lavish, to no surprise. Devoid of ceremony or consideration, Elle pulled at the straps of her bark-laden armour, letting pieces fall at her feet. The handmaiden that guided Elle to the quarters blushed at the absentminded display and quickly dismissed herself with a nervous slam of the door. Ellenara simply shrugged, some pieces of the armour clattering off her in the motion.

The bed provided to her simply wouldn't do. These fresh linens were just too much. With some motions of her hands, she weaved a bouquet into her grasp and set it upon the floor. After a while, she had layed a bed of soft flowers to rest upon. Much better.

Once she let herself sink into the floral mattress, she plucked the crystalline orb from her belt pouch. For a moment she just felt its sleek surface, smoother than the smoothest stone, staring into it. Her thoughts soon started to focus, pointing themselves to the wayward monk's tale of peril. Briefly, she wondered if it wasn't working, if she wasn't told the truth, only for her vision to pull away and the already pale color of her eyes to fade entirely into milky white. For scant moments, she saw the clouds blur before her, and mountain peaks streak below. Snow quickly riddled past her, blinding her to the rapid descent upon a single mountain's peak.

She blinked, and before her was the sight of a monumentous figure. She sees its hunched, muscular back of pale bronze with stormy hair cascading over it. The figure turns toward her, violet eyes piercing her gaze. The frozen cavern around them collapses into blackness as Elle is shunted out of the vision, her body heaving with a labored gasp. With some detached disappointment, she tried to spy upon the giant once again without the use of the ball. But the vision never came. Palming the sphere, she turned her gaze into the clear crystal with the image of a pale dragon emblazoned in her mind. Nothing. And once again with her own gift, but to no avail.

Oddly reserved, she let out a gentle sigh. Turning her head toward the ball, now resting at her side, she saw the bed of flowers below her subtly shift color to a reddish hue. "Oh, don't give me that tone," she replied, seemingly to nothing. Elle turned away from the flowers, feigning indignation, while bringing the globe to her eyes. After brief concentration, her vision faded far away to the settlement of Vael Turog. The landscape was battered by cruel gusts and bitter snows, and the homesteads were minimal, their sole purpose being to shelter from the biting winds. The roads were unpopulated except by the few guards clad heavily in furs. Before she pulled her vision, she spotted a cluster of burly trees, ripe for transportation.

With that, and her sight returning to the room around her, she called the night over and entered a restful trance.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by JBRam2002
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The sun rose, peeking into the windows of the rooms of these fated adventurers. For most, the night passed with minimal interruptions, the entire keep sleeping off an eventful day. A deity had arrived, giving his infinite wisdom to these mere mortals, and had asked a request. What else could the commoners hope to experience in their lifetimes that could rival this?

As dawn broke, a horn could be heard blowing loud and clear from the courtyard, summoning the adventurers forward. The party made their way forward to the courtyard, wondering what the day would bring. However, the blower of the horn seemed to be an uninvited guest: an orc whose armor was trimmed with furs riding a great wolf. His company consisted of several orc and half-orc followers, their gaze menacing and purposeful. As the group arrived, followed by a stumbling Ada wincing at the sun, the orc chieftain raised his voice.

"I have arrived to greet the god who would bestow his greatness upon me! Me and my men will become the most powerful of all orcs, and you will aid us!" Another blast from his horn echoed out, filling the courtyard with its thunderous blast.

"Who is this?" Ada asked a guard with tired disinterest and not a small amount of annoyance.

The guard simply shrugged. "He just showed up, like he teleported here, then blew that infernal horn of his. He wouldn't talk to anyone but the ruler of the city. The Duke still hasn't shown up, though..."

"I am Lady Ada Mavros," Ada proclaimed, stepping forward to the orc. "Kindly explain your purpose so that you may leave our courtyard. We have much to do today."

The orc grinned, his tusks gleaming in the sunrise light. "I am Krusk, Lord of the Hunt! You haven't heard of me yet because we have not chosen to hunt your city yet. Those we hunt flee in terror before us!" He drew a bow and nocked an arrow, letting it fly to land at Ada's feet. The arrow whistled as it careened through the air and sent a small shockwave out from where it landed, causing the skirts of those nearby to flutter. "I wield the Howling Bow and the Huntsman's Spear! I ride the strongest steed! I call the hunt, and it calls to me! Bring forth this god who has blessed you, so that we may receive his blessing as well! Otherwise, your city shall burn!"

Ada sighed and shook her head, drawing her own bow. "Like I said, we're a bit busy today. If you could hold off your rampage until next week, we could schedule you in?" The sarcasm on her voice was definitely not subtle. "I'm sorry, but I don't respond well to threats or to orcs teleporting into my courtyard making demands."

Krusk's hand grasped the spear he wielded and the two shared a glare for a moment. "If you will not bring forth the god, perhaps we can call him forth with your blood's sacrifice! Men? Ready arms!"
Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by Guardian Angel Haruki
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Scrapmouse


Scrapmouse had been snoring blissfully in her bed, until there was a loud blaring of a horn, that caused the excitable gnome to jump with a yelp and fall out of her bed. Sparky raised itself up and followed Scrapmouse out to see what the commotion was. Scrapmouse reached the outside to see that it was a bunch of orcs and half orcs. She sighed when she listened to what the orc was demanding and Ada seemed to reply with hostility. The gnome couldn't help but sigh and pinch the bridge of her nose. They were lowering the IQ of the entire courtyard!

It's a good thing Scrapmouse is part of a guild and has her own stores. She knows how to deal with customers, and considering how the half-orc said that he would talk to his god last night, it didn't take long for the artificer's brain to come up with a solution that made the orcs happy. She just hoped that the orcs would not be complete idiots.

Scrapmouse called out to the orcs, after giving a shrill whistle, "Hey! You're a little late to the party. That was yesterday. However, if you really think you can stand toe to toe against a dragon and giants, or a horde of undead, than feel free to pray to Valkur yourself and tell him you'll help us fight them! The chances of him appearing and giving you that blessing is much higher than just us calling him for you,"

Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by JBRam2002
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As the artificer made her well-worded suggestion, a handful of the orcs began to acquiesce, bending the knee to begin a prayer to whatever this deity was. Krusk, on the other hand, looked aghast at his subordinates kneeling to anyone but him. "On your feet!" he shouted, and the orcs sheepishly obeyed.

"Let me get one thing straight, Pinky," Krusk snarled, goading his wolf to approach Scrapmouse. "I bow to no one. I pray to no god, not even the mighty Gruumsh. The gods will hear MY name and tremble in fear! This Valkur should face me, if he is no coward, and bestow his blessings! Stand toe to toe with dragons and ghouls? Ha! I have slain more of both than you have ever seen!"
Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by ihinka
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Lonett sighed as the obstinate orc rebuffed the reasonable offer of the colorful gnome. They didn't have time for this. Time was of the essence! Undead hordes were amassing and a vile ghoul empire was allowed to expand and prosper underground. And now, it appeared, it was attempting to spill out onto the surface. Added to that the threat of giants and an ancient dragon collaborating. Lonett used her shield as cover and emitted a birdlike chirp that would remain indistinguishable from the local bird life, but that held a completely different meaning to a certain owlbear. 'Approach my position with caution. Do not expose your presence.' Was the message the ranger sent her companion. She then stepped forward a bit, placing herself between this Krusk and Kethen, the elder, as he appeared to Lonett the most frail of the group.

"If I may... Master orc." Lonett spoke. "We have not the time to stand here and listen to you contradict yourself. You either want Valkyr's blessing. Or you seek to issue challenge to him." The ranger gripped her shield, Kord's sigil clearly visible in the center of it. "My companion here has told you how to obtain the first." Lonett motioned towards Scrapmouse. "As for the second, we care not how, when and where you do that." The ranger locked eyes with each of the orcs. Her gaze burning with determination and a hint of irritation. "If you seek glory in battle. Join us. One, or all. And you shall have it!" Again Lonett made sure to lock eyes with the other orcs as they seemed more malleable then Krusk. "But if all you want is to stomp your foot on the ground and demand attention from the gods, then we cannot help you as we do not have their ear!" The ranger stood tall. "Now kindly make your choice. Or let us get on with our urgent matter." There was a note of veiled threat in Lonett's voice.

Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Hekazu
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Come morning, Marcus awakened from the bed he had set himself in, though he could not remember at what point he had fallen asleep. What he could tell was that it definitely had not been instant. Nonetheless, he was ready to move on. After all, it was the very world that was at stake here, the civilisation and all of the people. Gods themselves had called upon them. If that was not the sign of things not going too splendidly, what was? The assembled heroes joined each other's company again, the entire cavalcade marching out to the yard. Marcus had sought position by Ada's side as he saw her staggering slightly more than anticipated, wanting to make sure that she wasn't going to fall over of sheer hangover any given moment. After all, as he had already concluded... there was a world to be saved.

The Paladin placed his gauntleted hand gently on the string holding his prayer beads together and the other, shield carrying one on Ada's back. "Favour of the gods, placed upon you", he called out, one of the beads vibrating gently under his armour as magical energy flushed through him into the former Duchess. She would feel the effects of Greater Restoration, her hangover removed. And gods be praised, she needed that. After all, the buffoons in the yard sure required a mind ready to take on colossal amounts of stupidity at once.

Marcus followed for a while, giving the bunch the benefit of doubt at first, but as soon as they had given their answer to the pink haired gnome's suggestion, the Paladin knew where this would be going. The leader of this band had no brains and the confidence to match. How very typical of an Orc. As Lonett got on the move on the other end of the spearhead formed by the heroes, so did he start moving forward, gritting his teeth. He allowed the Ranger to have the first word, but after that began a tirade of his own.

"Here you are, in pursuit of power. Why do you seek power? You seek it for the sake of having it, for the sake of wielding it. You want others to see that you wield power. That is all. Your power holds no purpose, other than to spread terror to those that do not align themselves with you. And here you claim that you are above Gruumsh. Are you not following the teachings of the One-Eyed God to the letter when you scour the lands without purpose other than to scour? And your words of slaying more ghouls than we have ever seen only speaks of ignorance on who you speak to. Unless you were summoned like the rest of us, the gods must not have deemed your loud person worthy of their attention. Much less bow to you", he schooled the bag of bricks on the poor animal and took the hilt of the Sun Blade off of his belt and pointed it towards the ground, activating the item to burst forth the sword of sunlight. "Now, make yourselves scarce or useful. I care not which."


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Krusk's ears perked up at the sound of something crashing through the stables, and he turned to follow the sound, seemingly ignoring Lonett's words. When Marcus stepped forward, he turned his attention back. "You, Half-breed, have no business challenging my words. You abandoned what make orcs strong to wallow amidst lesser beings? I shall make myself useful indeed, and rid this land of your existence. We will not fight for some deity's play. We fight for ourselves!"

With that cry, the orc lifted his spear into the air, and those who followed him gave a mighty shout. It seemed combat was inevitable.
Initiative:

23 - @Lurking Krog - James
23 - @ihinka - Lonett
21 - @ihinka - Divna
20 - Champion A - KO'd(231 damage taken)
18 - @Hekazu - Marcus
17 - @16 Bit - Vale
17 - Half-orc A - KO'd (147 damage taken)
16 - @Keyblade87 - Vincent
15 - @Hekazu - Bartimeus (out of combat)
15 - Half-orc B - Burning-1d10 (91 damage taken)
15 - Warpriest A - KO'd (186 damage taken)
13 - Champion B (55 damage taken)
13 - @16 Bit - Earth Elemental
8 - @Guardian Angel Haruki - Scrapmouse
7 - @JBRam2002 - Ada
7 - Krusk (285 damage taken, mount has 20 damage taken)
7 - @Guardian Angel Haruki - Sparky
6 - @The Grey Dust - Kethan
6 - Warpriest B - KO'd & Burning-1d10 (188 damage taken)
3 - @Ms Ravenwinter - Ellenara


"You haven't heard the last of me," Krusk muttered, glaring at Marcus before reaching into a satchel. He withdrew a piece of paper and muttered a word in the orcish language. Before the teleportation spell could take effect, Lonett uses her Magic User's Nemesis ability to force Krusk to make a DC 17 WIS save or lose the spell. He succeeds, and he and his allies disappeared, leaving the courtyard as if they had never been there in the first place.
Battle Complete!

All PCs gain 40 EXP!
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by The Grey Dust
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"A pity the cowards fled. They will soon be back, and in greater numbers." Shaking his head as the old cleric approached the fallen owlbear. A curious creature, powerful in muscle as a bear, though bearing the feathered visages of an owl. Tutting to see the extend of the injuries, making short work the hybrid although it did get a few licks in against the Orc's wolf. At his age Kethan was far less a combatant and more of a mentor, his slow steps purposefully cadenced as he crossed the threshold from his perch. Wading into the afterglow of battle to inspect the damage done, whispering his incantations under his breath as the eye of Ioun grasped by his hand shimmered with a soft mesmer. A soothing light which oversaw the group, a beacon of hope the mend the wounds of those who bore them. A single tap of his cane to unleash another pulse of restorative magic. A shine of light from the symbolic eye to maximize the healing, hopefully the owlbear would be better now. Although the paladin took a good brunt of the burden too, he trusted that the holy warrior would live beyond a mere flesh wound. Even the rascal who had for some reason taken a higher vantage only to leap off like a fool no less could do with some alleviation of minor scrapes. But otherwise the party seemed all the better, with nary a scratch on the others.

With dry cough, or rather a series of three of them, Kethan felt his strength sapped. A falter of his hold as he hunched over, leaning on his staff to deal with the loss of power. He certainly was not as young as he used to be, and now the ravages of time grip his body so. The evening's rest was much required, but this bout of combat, the seconds it lasted was as much action as Kethan had seen in months. The others may have been more battle ready, but a bookkeeper like him was well into his retirement from adventuring. This was to be his final year no doubt, and he would need to seek a means to extend his mortality before it was over. There were still many books to collect, repair, catalogue, work to be done. "A brief respite for Sir Lakeltia and the Owlbear ought to do. Perhaps some tea as well for myself. We should see to our means of transport to Caelmarth. And it seems... Rethink our divisions if indeed this Krusk Character will threaten the safety of Mavros while we are away. Perhaps the warforged can stay behind to defend, and perhaps if he would be so inclined, our resident magecaster. They should be more than plenty for the cur with a bit of help from the guards..."

A small suggestion as Kethan calmly returned to his original place, having given his consul. " We should leave sooner than later to Caelmarth... It is better to curse the busy day, than fear the quiet night."

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The end result came as no surprise to Marcus. Those whose reasons of wielding power were similar to this "Warlord" had the tendency of turning tail and running when they find out that their might did not quite match up to what they had thought it to be. He gave Krusk a few seconds to change his mind and attempt a sneak attack against someone present, but with no signs of the man or his troops returning, the Paladin laid his hand on the hilt of his sword, calling for the weapon to cease its functions. And that it did, the blade winking out of existence with final refractions of the light breaking apart from the formation in a halo of sorts.

Kethan's call for respite was thoughtful to be sure, but there was no time to be wasted here. He raised his sword hand onto his heart and called upon the latent healing power granted to him by his god. A faint, flickering light could be made out even in the sunlight of the day if one looked for it, but the display was neither grandiose or prolonged. In but a few seconds he let the hand fall off to his side and turned to look down at Kethan. This elevated position was not something he was actually used to, but that was not to say he would not have welcomed it in the thick of things, even if it didn't end up being all that useful.

"I am fine. We can, and should, press on. The animal shouldn't need too long either", he stated in an attempt to urge matters onward on their path. The Cleric's mention of Caelmarth reminded him of something this incursion had almost made him forget though, so that was another thing that needed to be addressed. "Yes, Caelmarth. Tyr's wisdom has confirmed that to be our destination. Unless someone has a faster way to offer, we may step into the air as clouds. This ability is granted to me by my prayer beads. As for those heading North..." he shared, looking around for a second before spotting Scrapmouse on top of the archway, "I know not if the lair can be collapsed, but you should indeed head to Vael Turog. Seek knowledge there."

Marcus was not exactly welcoming to the thought of leaving two of the few heroes behind when the whole world was at stake, but he knew he couldn't live with himself if Krusk ended up returning and savaging the walled city in their absence, so he said nothing regarding the plan. Better that way. But standing around got one nowhere. As soon as he would reduce back to his ordinary size, he would head off to fetch Bartimeus. His magic could easily affect the chosen mounts of the ghoul empire topplers, so there was no reason to set things up so that he would need to resummon his mount later.

Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by ihinka
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After Lonett's attack was denied so nonchalantly by Krusk, she watched in horror as Divna fell stricken to the ground yet again. The ranger made a move to approach the Orc leader, now completely enraged, just as a chain lightning was let loose by one of her companions and the orcs revealed their cowardice and turned tail and ran. Oh, no, you don't! Lonett thought and sought to foil Krusk’s plan as she recognized his attempt to teleport out via a scroll he produced from a satchel on his side. However her reaction was off by seconds and the pompous pretender fled with no reparations to be made for the havoc that he wroth with his empty demands and desires.

Lonett rushed to her fallen companion just as the elder Kethan was once again one step ahead of her, healing her mighty friend and bringing her back from the brink. "Your precious aid is yet again most appreciated, Master Kethan!" The ranger uttered with a slight catch in her voice, her words muffled by her war mask. She dropped to her knees, depositing shield and javelin on the ground, and wove her arms around Divna's neck. "Silly beast!" She murmured mock angrily. "Don't do that ever again!" Lonett chastised. She then stood up letting the owlbear do the same and laid a hand on her beak. "You are a mighty beast! I know. But these are not the enemies we two alone would normally encounter. Please, promise me you'll be more careful. Less impulsive." Lonett peered into Divna's eyes pleading, but at the same time not.

The hulking beast screeched and squawked indignantly for a moment or two, but then acquiesced with a far too perky for her current condition peck on her human's head. "Ow!" The ranger grumbled, but accepted the lovable gesture. "Sit and rest a while." Lonett directed. "I have some business to take care of." She continued as she started to survey the battlefield in search of a nice, unspoiled puddle of orc blood. A sample of the orcs' blood would help the team with a possible Orc Hunt later on. Should they survive this mission they were about to embark on. I will survive! Lonett promised herself vehemently. If only to teach that pompous Orc a lesson or two about humility and priorities! When the ranger found a spot on the ground that carried what she was almost positive was an uncorrupted sample of orcish blood, she gathered an ounce or two in a vile and stashed it into her bag of holding.

She stood up and looked about the ground in search of anything else that might have been left there by the interlopers. Finding nothing however she surveyed the courtyard and pinpointing the slight form of the gnome artificer perched up on a stone arch, she simply walked up the wall until she joined Scrapmouse. Sitting herself near the gnome she gazed down at Divna resting on the ground, observing the movements of the humans around her. "I almost lost her today." Lonett muttered in a pained voice. "And this mission we're about to undertake is going to be even more dangerous than this silly fight with a petulant, megalomaniac Orc." Lonett looked at Scrapmouse. "I wonder if I could interest you in a cooperative crafts and arts project. Something that would allow Divna to be more effective in combat against more durable and resilient foes. Please, think about it. I would certainly appreciate the help. I know my way around weapon crafting. But when it comes to imbuing them with magic... Well, I'm afraid I'm a rank amateur." At that Lonett stood and once again walked down the wall as if it was nothing.

Her feet on solid ground once again, the ranger looked about to see if the Duke was anywhere near as she had a boon for him for the hospitality that he and his sister had extended to her and the other heroes in the party. Yet, oddly enough, the Duke was nowhere to be found. Strange! Lonett thought, approaching the former Duchess instead.

"Lady Ada." She began uneasily, lowering her mask. "I... I m-made something for you and your brother..." Lonett reached in her bag of holding once again. This time to withdraw the carving she'd produced last night before going to bed. She offered it to Ada almost timidly. "I-it's a small token of my gratitude f-for your hospitality." Lonett looked away, feeling immensely uncomfortable with the situation she'd put herself into. Why again had she decided to carve this as a gift to the Twin Dukes knowing all too well she would have to present it to one of them as a gift? Divna produced a quiet hooting sound that Lonett knew perfectly well was equivalent to laughter. Yeah, yeah, laugh at me why don't you! She commiserated. Well, at least I get to give it to the sister, rather than the brother. Lonett thought and immediately went crimson, looking even more uncomfortable if at all possible.

@The Grey Dust@JBRam2002@Guardian Angel Haruki

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"Thank you master cleric." James picks himself up off the ground and brushes the dirt off. He puts the hand crossbow away and utters the command word for the blade before sheathing it.

If we are to off then I suppose a finalization of who is to go where would be in order, or are we maintaining our prior discussed groupings? As I remember it Kethan has requested I go west with him, Sir Lakeltia, and Mrs Lonett. Unless Lady Mavros has any objections with that I will go west with them to aide in the elimination of the ghoul threat."

While he awaited replies from the others he runs his hand over the holy symbol he possesses muttering his thanks to Tymora for her blessings, past present and future.
Hidden 6 yrs ago 6 yrs ago Post by JBRam2002
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As Krusk and his cronies disappeared, Ada felt a twinge of regret that she hadn't focused more on downing the main foe faster. How were they to know that he had a teleportation scroll up his sleeve? The annoyance festered as she placed her bow into her magical quiver, assuming and hoping that the threats were gone for now. Her newfound allies began to perform their individual tasks: tending the wounded, investigating the scene of the fight. Efficient and proactive: two qualities one would expect from warriors of the highest caliber. Well, she could be proud of that, at least.

As the others went about their business, Ada called one of the servants aside. "Please tell the Duke that the threat is passed," she requested quietly. The servant nodded and exited the courtyard to complete the task. Ada stepped forward to glance about the fight herself, but she was rather certain there would be little left to track them by. Whoever had supplied that bag of hot air had prepared him well. Hopefully Krusk's pocket mage was simply another lackey, and not a foe to worry about.

The former duchess contemplated the possibility for a moment, but her contemplation was interrupted by Kethan voicing her internal concerns. "Yes, Uncle. You are wise to suggest such a course of action," she replied with a smile. "I would not force any of you to remain here against your will, but I do believe that Titan and Vincent are the best choices. A fiery caster and a warforged to tune out the pain of blows. We all saw how effective the lightning spells were; it is a shame that you will be missed on our journey."

She returned to silence as Marcus stepped forward, confirming their destinations. Vael Turog was not a place Ada had ever planned to visit, despite its proximity to the Seat of Mavros, but there was a first time for everything. "Caelmarth lies a couple hundred miles to the west," Ada cautioned. "Even floating on the wind, it will take several hours for you to travel. We shall have a similar distance to travel north ourselves, unless anyone wishes to teleport us there faser." Sadly, teleportation lay outside the meager spells that Ada had been able to glean, at least for now. She found herself lost in thought once more as she looked back to where Krusk had disappeared. Would her brother remain safe if the orc returned while she was away?

Ada was snapped back to the present by the Ranger's approach. Ada held out her hand to receive the gift, a practice she was not unaccustomed to during her tenure as duchess. What she was not expecting was the extreme detail and precision crafted into the emblem. Silence overtook her as she peered closely at the intricacies, how the wolf's fur seemed to ripple in the breeze as it stood majestically on the hilltop. A near-perfect rendition of her family's crest. For a solid minute, she immersed herself into the detail, amazed that one person could craft this. A tear formed in her eye as she realized... this represented what she was turning her back on, what she would lose should the worst come to pass. She surreptitiously wiped away the teardrop before it could find its way down her cheek. "Very-- ahem..." Ada cleared her throat, not realizing that it would sound so weak in this moment. "Very well done," she continued. "I shall make sure that Vinny sees this. Your gift is... much appreciated."

A moment passed before the Duke appeared from the keep, striding forward purposely. "I apologize that I was unable to aid you in your fight," he announced quickly before any could accuse him of cowardice. "As the only current heir to the Seat, I must recuse myself from dangerous positions. If I were to be lost, Mavros would be thrown into chaos, and Savoyne would have a field day. More than likely, they would wrest control from the Mavros family again, and our autonomy would be rescinded. I envy my sister and her journey with you, and I congratulate all of you on your swift and fruitful research. If there is aught I can assist with, I am at your disposal."
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by Ms Ravenwinter
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The violence vanished faster than it started. In a mere blink, the offending orcs were gone. With no fuel for her pyre, Ellenara returned to her natural state. Very briefly, she looked down and remarked to herself at how even the ash had fled from her feet in this disappearing act. Very tidy.

Seeing that the devouts seemed to have the vital aid well handled, Elle turned to her never-ending pouch once more. Lowering herself to the freshly scorched stone, she sat cross-legged with the crystal ball upon her lap. As the others spoke of their plans, her gaze beseeched the orb of knowledge of this warlord's whereabouts. After the ritual was complete, the orb revealed only fog, its destination unclear. "The orc man seems to be gone," she said in her usually dreamy voice, interrupting the Duke's apologies.

She seemed to give this a moment of contemplation as she stowed the artefact within her bottomless bag. Only then did she seem to recognize that the question of transportation has arose. "I can take us there. The trees rustle with excitement. They want to transport us to the North!" she proclaimed, as if they were to ride upon a cloud of leaves.
Hidden 6 yrs ago Post by 16 Bit
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Vale wondered if she did the right thing in having her elemental friend hold back its attack. Of course, she had just sliced apart one of the orcs with her dagger herself; but that was before they had decided to fall back. She spent most of her life helping lost souls out of her forest. It would've been a shame to silence another lost soul just because he thought he could muscle his way in. Anywho; She had hopped her last display hadn't given away her abilities. She'd stick with the insisting of her mage-y prowess in any case. Even if she was just a beginner, she still had plans to be the best wizard ever.

Vale dusted herself off and sheathed her dagger. Her elemental had settled back into the ground, no longer controlled by her, and she skipped over to the owlbear to make sure the beast was all right. It was good to see the old man take care of her, though she was prepared to save her if things had gotten dire. At the mention of heading north, Vale looked at Ellenara in remembrance that the day wasn't over and they had much stuff to do. "Ah! North! I would be grateful if the plants could take me along. I had a horse I could summon, though who knows how well it would've fared if the terrain became rocky."

Vale paused momentarily. "Is everyone that's heading into the mountains ready? Or do we require a small break before we depart? I'm should be fine if we decide to just bully through."
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Scrapmouse at first decided to sit down on the arch and watch the other allies from a distance, but then to her surprise, Lonett, the huntress with the pet owlbear, decided to climb up and sit next to her. The gnome looked to the huntress and listened when she made her request. She answered Lonett after she finished speaking, "Listen. I'm up for any sort of tinkering. I'd be happy to help out. Just gimme time to come up with an idea to come up with an idea for how to help...Divna become more resilient. If you've got any ideas for how you want to help your owlbear, you let me know. I know what it's like to worry about a companion," She nodded downwards as Sparky made his appearance underneath the arch and looked up to Scrapmouse, sitting on the haunches waiting for her to come down or for her orders. The red light of its visor was now blue once again.

Scrapmouse watched Lonett climbed down, before standing up herself, and using her crafted Wings of Flying to get herself down from the arch.
She patted Sparky on the head before she marched up to the group that was going to face the Dragons and Giants and she asked, clapping her hands and rubbing them together in anticipation, "So! What are we waiting for?"
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"A small break might be of some relief. There were a few things I was unable to tend to this morning due to the interruption. I don't know how much use it would be to the others though."

James removes his robe of useful items from his bag of holding while walking towards the stall where his horse was kept. Once in the stall, he dons the robe and begins taking off some of the patches. He starts with the two healing potion patches, the scroll of locate object, a sack, two of the three ladders, a ten-foot pole, the patch of gems, the two coils of rope, the silver coffer, and a steel mirror. He takes the robe off and stuffs it in the sack with the eight potions of healing. Setting aside one fifty foot coil of hempen rope he puts the raining items in his bag of holding. He puts the sack to his left side, his bag of holding on his back, and the coil of rope next to the bag of holding.

He returns to the courtyard where the others were leading his horse."I am ready to go now. I have no preference as to the method of travel. Whichever would be most beneficial to our mission"
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Marcus shook his head at Ada's concerns. "If it will take hours, then it will. Whatever be the case, we must travel the distance", he explained his reasons for going forward with the plan. If there was no faster way of doing it, they might as well resort to what they had available instead of sitting idly by and awaiting for a better method to rain upon them from the heavens. The gods had given what they could, or would, give them and the rest was up to the Titan Hunters themselves, those chosen for the job by those divine entities. The paladin looked around himself, scoping out everyone who were going to join him. They were all more or less present. Good. They could begin.

"Those heading West, gather where we first saw Krusk when you are ready. Bring your mounts and belongings, especially the former. The gift from gods we will transport ourselves with only reaches so far from me and to so many souls at once", he switched to a much louder volume, so that anyone could hear. Then he was off to fetch his mount from where it was being held. Bartimeus was used to the magic they would utilise. The fellow hunters would be able to handle it through the merit of understanding alone. But if there were any wild animals, which it appeared there was bound to be, Marcus could not be sure on their reaction. A fair warning should likely be given to all of those involved either way.

In the stables, Marcus held a hand on Bartimeus's forehead as the servants removed any bindings the Pegasus might have had placed upon it. Finally he was given the green to open the gate and walk the Greater Steed out from its holding. The two exchanged a few pleasantries through their link, mostly about how the night had gone and what had the awful racket been about. The news of them having to use Wind Walk to move onward came as quite a displeasure to the winged steed, but he knew better than to complain. They needed to move fast. Not everything could be achieved.

Once those whose destination was the empire of ghouls and whose (current) destiny would amount to toppling said power had gathered in the smaller part of the courtyard, Marcus would nod. "I would like to ask everyone to gather close to me and prepare for quite the experience. Do your best to keep any animals in check", he stated as he fished out his prayer beads and held one of them in his fingers. He spoke a few words of prayer, and the air around them changed quite suddenly. "This will only take a minute!" he yelled over the ever rising wind. And soon even if he tried nobody could hear anything over the deafening gale.

Everyone affected by the spell would find themselves in their own personal maelstrom, the thundering winds ripping at their armour, clothes and flesh. But instead of pain, only a light feeling would come around. Through the winds, one could barely make out the shape in the middle: The half-orc who had called this spell upon them stood there, calmly, slightly wavy in his disposition. His eyes were closed for the whole duration of the casting and he would stand still, holding on to the single bead from which power radiated into his surroundings. His armour shimmered as it became air, his face and hands had long since been but fog. Only a moment later, the vestments he wore under the plate puffed into a more transparent form too, though simultaneously the armour would strengthen in its opaqueness. Or perhaps it was everything under that became so much softer? Nonetheless, the paladin appeared more or less his usual self, if only made of coloured air instead of his actual physical form.

"If everyone is ready to move, we should be on our way. Last chance to pick up anything forgotten", he declared and began a slow ascent off the ground and towards the sun.

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James had to hold fast to the reigns to keep the horse from bolting. He himself was starting to wonder what happening. He was only slightly familiar with magic outside of enchanted items. As the spell took hold he could feel the gale rushing around him. He expected to feel the sharp pull of the wind only there was only a feeling of lightness. When he looked at Markus seeing the man become what appeared to be air. James looked over himself seek seeing the same starting to happen to him. With another quick glance he saw that the horse was also turning into air.

He turned back to Markus as he said it was now time to take off and make way to the ghoul empire. "Lead on." James takes up behind Markus following his lead.
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Marcus had not had the opportunity to lead the newly formed Ghoul Slayers for longer than few minutes before he heard a now familiar voice call for him from the sending stone given to his use. At least the blessings of Tyr allowed the item to function even when reduced to a form of air and wind, so when he raised it again to his mouth and requested in a billowing voice for the message to be repeated, Ada would hear those words just as well. The news from the former Duchess were worrying to say the least. Marcus shook his head as he asked for one more repeat, wanting to make sure he had absolutely got that right. And he had. Well, it would seem that despite everything, today would not be the day for the empire to fall. A royal shame.

The windsweeping Paladin turned to the other coloured clouds travelling with him and shared his concerns: "An issue most dire has presented itself to us, and it seems it is impossible for us to divide our forces any longer. Our numbers have reduced further, with one of our kin stepping away from the task. With the mandatory guard detail in case of the returning warlord, that means we cannot on good conscience dare even attempt breaking our forces into separate squads. We need return. Not least thanks to the parting words of the one who stepped away: The giants know."

Marcus shook his head again, but put his chin up only a moment after. "Yet the ghoul empire remains a standing issue. We need someone to alert the remaining Hammers-" he began on his next concern, only to be interrupted by Lonett.

"I volunteer for the task", the Monster Slayer shared, her motivations clear in her own mind. Marcus pondered briefly on whether they were of righteousness, fear, or something entirely different, but now it was not a pressing matter. No, now it was important that the task was done.

"Go with my blessing, Lonett of Caernath. I have no doubt my fellow Paladins will listen to the word of someone like you. I hope this is not the last time we see one another", Marcus shared his parting words, followed by the two clouds formed of the Ranger and her Owlbear separating themselves from the group and heading towards the house of the Hammers of Grimjaws. In the meantime, the rest could only follow the call sent to them once again by the one who had originally called upon them, turning for the quick return trip to the Seat of Mavros.

The heroes would descend upon the courtyard where they were awaited by those that still remained, Ada now in possession of the powerful Scrying Orb again. Upon his wispy form touching the ground, another whirlwind erupted around Marcus as he would reform into his physical body. In only a minute, the Paladin stood before the one who had called again upon them, letting loose a question from his lips: "We have returned. What was it that you saw, that made you call for our immediate return?" Of course, he knew exactly what it was. He had heard it multiple times now. The others would benefit of hearing it from the source as well though.


@JBRam2002 - Ada's insights, please and thank you.
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The group riding winds had just departed when Ada heard a quiet voice behind her. "They fly to their deaths, and we to ours," Ellenara whispered, her voice barely loud enough for Ada's elven ears to perceive. "The winds have changed; spring turned to fall. Destruction awaits."

Ada looked to the druid in confusion. "Destruction? You mean there's a trap? Nothing that the servants of deities cannot handle, though." Even as she spoke, Ada was cut short by a derisive laugh. "If you have seen something, let us know, for all our sakes," the duchess demanded.

"The giant has seen us, and I have lost the orc man. They will have bolstered their numbers, and perhaps may seek us out. Even now, the strength and desire of many of our number has faded. Even I long to return to the trees. I see death of many at the feet of Orcus's handimen. No, it is useless unless we are gathered. And the orc man will return. You need many to guard in your absense, and I believe I am best suited to help those who have already volunteered."

Ada sighed with some frustration. The Keep could protect itself, but the city below would be vulnerable from a large-scale onslaught. Plus, Krusk had already proven he could teleport past the magical wards of their keep. That spoke of a powerful mage assisting him. There really was no other choice. She spoke into the Sending Stone, requesting Marcus to return. Only a few minutes were wasted waiting and explaining the situation.

"If we split up much further, both parties will be doomed. If we leave no one to defend the city, thousands could die. If we do not stop the Giant, he has already been alerted to us and may march on the Seat. I'm sorry, my friends, but our only choice is to ignore the ghoulish threat for now and focus on the more pressing matters. When we complete this mission, we still may have the chance to stop the emperors' advance." It wasn't what Marcus wanted to hear, Ada was certain, but it was the only way.

They must all head North.
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