[center] [h1][b][u]Alys[/u][/b][/h1] & [h1][color=A52A2A][b][u]Mathias[/u][/b][/color][/h1] [/center] [hr] The low stone palisade of the city of Azanta came into view, as the Carnival walked along the road. Well, not all of them were walking. Alys was seated in the back chariot, in a luxuriously padded seat. A single driver sat up front, steering the two quillats which pulled them. As she set her eyes upon the city’s walls, she yawned, and then brushed a stray strand of hair out of her eyes. “Mathias,” she called out in a light tone. The avatar appeared from somewhere else in the Carnival’s traveling group, his footsteps light and nearly silent, he walked up alongside the chariot Ays had chosen as her mount to travel with constantly. [color=A52A2A]”What is it Alys?”[/color] he spoke, his voice still harsh as ever. “The city up ahead. Do you know anything about it?” Mathius looked far ahead at the low walls, thinking long and hard for a few seconds. [color=A52A2A]”I believe that is the city of Azanta, a smaller lesser city, i don’t know much else beyond that, seems like a good place to hunker down at least for a bit.”[/color] “Hm,” Alys mused. “I’ve heard some interesting things about these cities, you know. That the men and women are all so clean and beautiful, and there’s no shortage of admirers for entertainers.” [color=A52A2A]”Both things which could greatly assist us,”[/color] He looked up to Alys sitting on her cushions [color=A52A2A]”I think our little group will be more than welcomed there.”[/color] She nodded. “Let’s see what it has in store, then.” They reached the gate a few minutes later. The guards questioned them about their business. As usual, they claimed to be a travelling group of entertainers, which was technically true. And the guards seemed to have heard of them. Eventually, they were let through. But only a few moments after entering the city, Alys recoiled, as the stench of thousands of people living together struck her nostrils. “Ick,” she gagged in disgust. Mathius chuckled [color=A52A2A]”You know, after a while I was sure you’d get used to the smell.”[/color] This, despite the fact Mathius had no nose, and couldn’t smell a single thing. She frowned. “So, what do you think we should do next?” [color=A52A2A]”I’d suggest first finding a place to set up, a nice public place for our performances.”[/color] “There’s usually space in the market,” she pointed out. [hr] And so they had gone to the market, and found a place to set up. A number of those in the Carnival began to perform, playing lyres, flutes, and drums. Alys stood among them, but had decided to hold off displaying her magic just yet. As a crowd began to form to observe and listen, two members of the Carnival walked among them, stealthily picking the pockets of wealthier looking citizens. Mathius meanwhile, stood in the shadows, keeping an eye out but not revealing himself, as he could never be too sure on how a crowd would react to him. Eventually the market closed, and they set about the task of finding lodgings for themselves. They performed again the next day, which more or less went the same, although at the end a servant approached them and revealed that his employer, a high-ranking nobleman, wished to hire entertainment for a feast in three days. “Hm. I accept,” Alys smiled, and the messenger looked as if his heart had melted. After he was gone she turned to Mathias. “Looks like we’re moving up in the world, hm?” [color=A52A2A]”Quite, such a venue will let us show ourselves off a bit more, of course,”[/color] He “gazed” off to where the servant was heading off [color=A52A2A]”We should be careful, one wrong move and their tragedy shall become ours.”[/color] “Yes, yes, of course,” Alys said, though her mind was clearly elsewhere, as she thought about what might be in store. She then remembered that she had been invited as an entertainer, and not a guest, so it might perhaps not be as exciting or as luxurious as she expected. She frowned. “We’ll need to think of something to perform, then.” The avatar thought for a moment [color=A52A2A]"Our host is most likely expecting something good, perhaps we get the Ashlin twins to perform some of their acrobatics coupled with some magic?"[/color] “I could do some magic,” she nodded. “Maybe start out with something simple, like flashing lights, and work my way up to more complex spells if that’s not enough to impress them.” Mathius nodded, his face still scanning the city [color=A52A2A]"That should work, give them something to, die for, as my creator always says, of course, if you need an extra boost I'm sure I can aid"[/color] “Well then… let’s start planning out the specifics…” [hr] Three days passed. They spent their days performing in the marketplace, and other public spaces. In the process, they learned more about the happenings in the city. Their noble patron, the Lord of House Petrelis, was one of the most powerful men in the city, second only to the King. The King himself was a supposedly wise and just ruler. Only two years ago he had married a princess from a neighbouring city-state to secure an alliance, and already she was pregnant with their first child. The city as a whole was relatively prosperous, with the past few years offering bountiful harvests. In the nights, when Alys wasn’t otherwise distracted, she and Mathias planned the show they would put on for the city’s nobility. A display of acrobatics, accompanied by an illusionary light show. A short play, enhanced by illusion magic. A dance. And of course, plenty of instrumental interludes. When not performing, the members of the Carnival were instructed to learn as much as they could about the city’s nobility by taking every opportunity to talk with the staff or the guests. It was not enough to simply know the broad strokes of the city’s everyday happenings. Alys wanted names. She wanted to know who she could exploit, either for her own amusement or her own personal gain. Though, as Mathias had said, she should still exercise some level of caution. Eventually, the night came. [hr] The Petrelis estate was more impressive than any building Alys had ever seen. It was larger than any ruddy chieftain’s hall, and its main hall alone could hold nearly a hundred people. Over a dozen noble families were present, and to fill up the guest list several wealthy landowners and merchants had also been invited. It was more people than Alys had ever seen in one place, and though she was initially overwhelmed, she quickly composed herself. [i]Your far more powerful, and more important, and more beautiful than all of them combined,[/i] she reminded herself, and then smiled. She wore a linen dress, which had been dyed purple. The rest of the Carnival was not as well-dressed; despite their best efforts to wash their attire, some still had the stains of travel. But it would have to suffice. And suffice it did. Although many in the hall looked at the stains or the faded fabrics with disapproval, others had been more understanding - they were, after all, travellers, and had only been in the city for a few days. Indeed, they had actually been last minute replacements; the troupe of bards that Lord Petrelis had originally sought to hire had changed their plans at the last minute. Then the performance began, and the rest were willing to overlook the shoddiness of their attire. They first began with the acrobats, with the two twins in their company impressing the audience with a series of flips and sommersaults, as Alys created a show of flashing colourful lights. Then there was the dance routine, where a small group of dancers carried out Mathias’s carefully planned choreography with surprising ease and grace. After that, they launched into a small play, about a dispute between two wizard who loved the same woman. Eventually they wound up duelling each other, which resulted in both of them being killed, before it turned out that the person the woman actually loved was one of the mage’s apprentices. Alys had used her spells to simulate spellcasting, making the duel look surprisingly realistic, to the point where the actual mages in the crowd began to tense nervously, before realizing it wasn’t real. Then the tension turned to admiration, for all had thought illusions on that scale to be more or less impossible. The three acts had all been met with cheers and applause, and Alys knew they had done well. Lord Petrelis, who had begun the night looking somewhat nervous, now beamed with pride. Afterward, while a handful of the Carnival’s bards continued to provide instrumental music that the rest of the room could drink and dance to, the rest - the dancers, the acrobats, Alys and Mathias themselves - were permitted to wander the room and join in the festivities. Alys soon found herself with a crowd of admirers. Some of whom, based on the glares she received from various women in the room, already had attachments. She was bombarded with invitations to dance, and, after feigning reluctance, she accepted. She wasn’t particularly good at dancing, but most did not seem to care. More than a few had made certain propositions to her - her noble employer among them - and although she found some to be rather tempting, she had instead feigned nervousness and refused. She wanted to know more about these people, and besides, she believed an initial display of reluctance made them desire her even more. Elsewhere, the rest of her followers did their own part to charm the crowd and gather information. In the end, the night was a resounding success, and there was already talk that other nobles might hire them for other occasions. Alys grinned as she and her followers left the estate. “Well,” she said to Mathias. “I think that went perfectly.” [color=A52A2A]"I must admit it went better than I expected, the performance most certainly gave them a show, and I am impressed they seemingly had little opinion of my or the other's dress, that Lord certainly took a liking to you"[/color] Mathius chuckled at that, he enjoyed the constant stream of suitors Alys had, and this time was no different. “He was rather handsome,” Alys smirked. “Anyway, they’re paying us in grain, so I think tomorrow we could go to the market and exchange it for some finer clothes. At least a few nobles want some of our performers to put on smaller shows for them in more private settings. We could probably stay here a long time before we have to move on, I think.” [color=A52A2A]”It would not be a terrible idea, having their patronage for a time could help us, upgrade our appearance, no offense but our little troupe does have a habit of looking no better than poor villagers.”[/color] He looked down at himself [color=A52A2A]”Though, I must admit I am no better.”[/color] “Indeed,” Alys nodded. “You really should find some better garb.” [color=A52A2A]”Not my fault my creator decided to choose this as my form, a mask should be sufficient to limit the amount of staring eyes, and I'm sure you will seek some more opulent outfits yourself.”[/color] “I suppose your outfit works if we say it’s a costume for a performance,” Alys shrugged. “But still. Can you not change it? Or at the very least wear something else over it?” He shrugged in return [color=A52A2A]”I haven’t had the care enough to attempt, admittingly my creator is loose in his use of me, but regardless, it is hard to find garb that will fit my, body shape.”[/color] He gestured to his own incredibly boney arms still covered with golden cloth, and his similarly golden cloth face that just barely looked like an actual face. “Hmm…” a rare look of thoughtfulness passed over Alys’s face. “What [i]does[/i] your creator want, anyway? Flattered as I am that a divine avatar has spent so much time following me around, you never did tell me why.” [color=A52A2A]”Well, I would’ve if I knew, despite my deep connection to them, they have only informed me to keep an eye on you and, in their words ‘draw her closer’, I’ve always assumed I am here to ensure you cause as much tragedy as possible, which, is not that hard a task.”[color] The end of his words were filled with, some sense of pride. “Oh, you’ve ensured nothing,” Alys scoffed. “I do what I want. I have power, and I use it as I see fit. Not that I’m not grateful for your help, of course.” Mathius chuckled, [color=A52A2A]”My creator would say otherwise, but, I have no interest in arguing it, just glad I'm no longer babysitting a child who somehow managed to get more lost than she already was.”[/color] “Hey,” Alys gave a mock-pout. “I seem to recall that I was the one giving the orders. And my infallible leadership eventually brought us here, didn’t it? It may have taken several years, but it’s progress!” [color=A52A2A]”Yes, and let us forget the several regions and villages we can never return to due to your orders.”[/color] He replied, taking a similar mock-tone of disappointment. “But that was all part of my master plan! Those places were so awful, I had no choice but to engineer events so that we can’t possibly go back. Really, in the long-run I did us a favour.” Mathius couldn’t help but laugh at that one [color=A52A2A]”Alright I’ll give you that, some of those places were pretty horrid, but, I digress.”[/color] He looked up at the dark sky [color=A52A2A]”We should find rest once more, not like I need it, but our group will need it, what with all the nobles in a mile radius offering us gigs.”[/color] “Oh, I’ll rest… eventually…” her eyes flickered over to the acrobatic twins in their troupe, and lingered on them for a few moments. “The next few days will be rather busy, I think.” [hr] And indeed, they were. The troupe was outfitted with finer clothes. Plays, songs, and dance routines were rehearsed in preparation, and Alys began sending off performers to various new patrons. It was nothing major - mostly family dinners or small gatherings - but it did serve to bolster their reputation and bring in a source of income. Then, exactly one week after their first performance in the city’s marketplace, tragedy struck. The Queen of Azanta had gone into labour early, but her child was stillborn, and the Queen herself perished not long after. The once cheerful King was stricken by grief. The tragic news even gave Alys pause, but only for a moment. Then she shrugged. People died all the time. What made royalty so special? So, she went back to enjoying herself, and planning for the next performance… [hr] [hider=Post Summary] Our post begins with the Carnival arriving in the city of Azanta. They set up in the marketplace and start performing. Eventually a nobleman in the city receives word of it and, needing last minute entertainment for a party, decides to hire them. Although the nobles at the party initially disapprove of their travel-stained clothes, the performance is still a success, and many express a desire to hire them again. Alys and Mathias then have a short conversation about what Yamat wants with her, with Mathias admitting that he doesn’t really know. Then, exactly one week after their arrival, the Queen of the city dies giving birth to a stillborn. [/hider] [hider=Prestige Summary] [u]Alys[/u] [b]Beginning Prestige:[/b] 17 +5 for 10k+ characters. [b]Ending Prestige:[/b] 22 [u]The Carnival[/u] [b]Beginning Prestige:[/b] 5 +5 for 10k+ characters [b]Ending Prestige:[/b] 10 [/hider]