Athamar: Quests from Lorana IC

[sneakyonfoota]

The girl looked at the unicorn in wide-eyed surprise; her mouth was tightly pressed into a line. The magical beast was actually talking to her! He used her name! Her cheeks felt hot. She quickly snapped to stand straight, her hands folded in front of her over her shillelagh and gave the unicorn a respectful bow.

"I will take your counsel to heart, Master Reilios," said Marilyn with sincere devotion.

She removed a stained, yet nonetheless gold-tipped reservoir pen from a sleeve built into her book case. She tested its nib against the cuff of her rawhide glove, stroking the delicate tip against it until the ink flowed freely in fine lines. Then she carefully inscribed the unicorn's name upon the sheet, being very keen not to allow the pen to bleed nor the ink to run. Capping the pen and returning it to its narrow pocket, she stood straight again and inclined herself again respectfully.

"I... look forward to working with you, Master Reilios," she uttered softly.

[Auki]

"I will take your counsel to heart, Master Reilios."

He was slightly taken back by the method in which the human conducted herself (He had decided that it must definitely be a female considering the length of hair and slightly curvaceous figure, both which appeared to be signs of femininity in their culture) but he appreciated the gestures. He couldn’t help himself watching over her as she scribed his name although admittedly she did so flawlessly. Had he hands, he likely couldn’t have done it better himself. Satisfied, he nodded his thanks.

"I... look forward to working with you, Master Reilios."

He did not really approve of the title she added to his name but he didn’t criticise her on it. It was a small matter he would overlook for now. He was more concerned with the amount of people expressing interest with signing the Bulletin, particularly that of the half-giant. He was pretty sure one accidental fling of her fist would knock him to the ground.

“Seeing as we have both signed our name, I think it best we wait out of people’s way.”

He indicated a spot, close enough that they still seemed part of the crowd but far enough away that they would not hinder those attempting to put their names upon the paper. Urging her to follow him towards it, he cast a wary glance towards the grizzled ‘translator’. His eyes were instantly drawn across to the person next to him, a pale, red-haired human – Almost certainly a female judging by her bust. His interest was on the collar around her neck – he had travelled long enough to recognise the marking upon it – but did not pass judgement. He realised he was perhaps verging on staring and so, after offering a short nod in greeting, he diverted his gaze back to the female next to him.

“I just pray this quest can go smoothly, Gale. It’s gathered some… ‘unique’ characters after all and defeating a witch won’t be easy if we’re all squabbling.”

He sniffed in disdain, “Personally, I don’t feel like dying just yet.”

[sneakyonfoota]

The girl obediently followed the unicorn, maintaining a respectful distance from him.

She paused thoughtfully for a moment after considering the misgivings that Reilios had confided. After a swallow, she replied.

"Begging your pardon, Master Reilios," said Marilyn quietly, "but the bulletin described the objective to be the retrieval of the Magical Harp alone. While it is written that the Harp is currently in the possession of the Witch, it was not explicitly stated that we are to defeat nor engage the Witch in combat. Perhaps we will be able to arrive at an alternative strategy after giving it due consideration."

She glanced at the others who stood by the board, all engaged in conversation.

"Our prospective allies aside, Master Reilios; and with due respect; from my studies I have come to understand that your race is naturally resistant to evil, and that your aura of good affords you with efficacious offensive capabilities against it. Additionally, we are setting out to a wooded area, also putting you at an advantage."

[Cthulhu]

He didn't plan on sticking around too long. It seemed she kind of understood, his knowledge of the language was comparable to that of a giant infant who had just learned to talk. Minor as it was, it seemed to have gotten enough through to Ualan.

Normally he was more aware of his surroundings, and his focus on the half giant had caused an oversight. He hadn't payed any attention to the man he had just snapped at, and in error did not do anything to monitor his actions. The embers set on the cloth glowing for a time while he continued with Ualan.

Too many people had gathered around now for his liking. The one man had left, but there was a unicorn and another young lady with it. To be followed by a woman approaching him asking for his pen. He had to get to the smithy to urge a quickened pace with the blade. He turned his glance to the female now beside him, he didn't bother wondering who she was or details. "Yes yes," he said turning back away. He handed the pen with a limp grip. His action was followed by Ualan asking to use it. "If you go for the witch." he stopped for a moment thinking of the words in her language. "Give her...your name." It was broken with the way he spoke, but he spoke the simple phrase in the giant's language as clearly as he could.

He turned not even waiting for them to finish with the pen. He had elsewhere to be for the time being. However as he left the gathering group he felt something warm against his back through the leather vest underneath. He reached back, feeling for it, burning through his gloves. The embers hadn't ignited but had smouldered away at his shirt, and the contact ate through the gloves. He flung the gloves off his hands and to the ground, reaching back and tearing at the cloth with hurried hands. He hadn't noticed until after he was away from the fountain.
It wasn't hard to pick out who most likely did it, as only one person who passed behind him might have wanted to. "That drunken rat." he groaned to himself. "Annoying, but not worth wasting time over." He was a professional, and didn't, or rather wouldn't, let little annoyances like that strike him to a turn of violence on a single person. Then again if he saw him in a tavern, and Verlous had a few drinks well it might be a different story then.

[Imp]

Once the kind midnight covered woman had finished, Tal'set simply nodded to her and thanked her for her help. "I will join on the hunt with you and the party. I must also see the king of this land for I come to represent the Jotun." Tal'set nodded once more to the woman and the man who had commented on his mask earlier before approaching the board to place his mark under the previously written. With shield wrapped around his back and guan dao in one hand, he used the other to reach into a pouch for a piece of writer's coal.

The Jotun tribes wrote in characters rather than writing out their name in letters. Looking to the sign-up sheet, he saw only dragged out lines made into swirls and other odd writing. Hunching over, the Jotun gently began to draw with the piece of coal to create his symbol. The tag was nothing more than a 'T' with an 'X' positioned over the fork of the 'T'. This was to represent a dragon's skull which only a warrior chose for his or her sign. They varied of course and Tal'set just happened to make that one after being promoted.

There, he had added himself to the journey and was hoping to be of some service for a potential ally. Putting his piece of writer's coal back in his fur pouch, he looked to find the guard relaxing by the fountain. Tal'set still awaited the person he was suppose to speak to along with the king. But where was this person?

[Lúthien]

Oh, what was she supposed to do on a day like this? There was not even a single name on the Kings Bulletin. Just what was she going to tell His Majesty? Ialia took a big gulp of the ale and slammed her fist on the table, “This is preposterous! Not one single adventurer wants to pair up with me to stop the Evil Witch, Mordra!”

“Ialia!” Two knights stormed into the tavern as she stood up from her table. “We need you to come quickly to the Bulletin. We have a Jotun, a half-giant, and a unicorn gathered about the board.”

“Hmm, its no wonder the tavern is chaotic more than usual,” she responded, “All right, lead me to them.” When they both walked outside, there was no need for the knights to lead Ialia for she spotted them quite quickly. She fixed her throat to control her state of shock, “Well! This is quite the scene here.” Not only was it a strange site to see them here, but she also noticed quite a crowd of people around the board.

Could it be?

Could they have…?

Ialia wasted no time. While the people conversed or observed with one another, Ialia proudly walked up to the board and snatched the scroll away to prevent anyone else from signing the paper. Including her name, there was a total of eleven people who signed. Eleven! And here she was expecting five. Some signed in their full names, while others signed in initials or symbols. She looked over to the other two knights and nodded towards them.

The two knights then began to separate the civilians from the adventurers to prevent any confusion with the names. Ialia stood on the platform of the water fountain to be seen by everyone (even if it was no use with the two giants), “Adventurers, welcome to Lorana!” She shouted, her loud voice booming through the town, “Thank you for signing the Kings Bulletin, but before I lead you to His Majesty, I will call out the names listed on this scroll!” She raised the piece of paper for everyone to see, “Please step forward so I can judge your credentials to see you are fit for this…dangerous task.” She cleared her throat once more and called out the first name.

“JASON REGGIN!” Her voice grew louder. The man stumbled forward before her but remained still. She raised a brow, but ignored his foolish action.

“I.L.!” The woman with the strange hat stepped forward and stood next to Jason. Ialia eyed her carefully, black attire with a black choker? Clearly, the woman practiced dark magic and must wanted to cause trouble. “What are you? Mordra’s sister?!” The knights behind the mage laughed, “What’s your name?”

“…Isora Lelah.”

Ialia wrote down her full name next to her initials and continued, “CEASIOS SYOM!” He walked forward and stood next to the mage. So far so good, she thought.

“LUNA HOLMBERG!” Luna "gracefully" stepped forward and stood next to the rest of the group. Ialia observed her for a moment, “I suppose we all need a prayer sometimes,” she muttered.

The next name confused her for a moment. The name sparkled almost as if it was signed in magic. “Who in gods name wanted to show off?” she spoke under her breath. “M. GALE!” Expecting another adult to step forward, Ialia’s eyes grew wide when a child stood next to Luna. “What’s your first name child?” Before the young mage even replied, Ialia cut her off, “No matter! Witches love children! We shall use you as bait for Mordra!” Ialia laughed obnoxiously causing some people to roll their eyes.

“VERLOUS VASTION!” No one stepped forward. Ialia looked around the town to see if anyone was on their way, “VERLOUS VASTION!” She repeated, but no one came by. She shrugged and skipped the name.

“PHOEBE JAX!” Thankfully, an older woman stepped forward this time. Ialia felt relieved and was glad to know there was a ranger on the team.

“UALAN!”

“Here.”

Ialia looked up to see Ualan smiling down at her. Ialia slowly smiled back, “You can…just stay right there.” She went back to the list.

“REILIOS!” The unicorn walked ahead but kept its distance from the rest of the group. Again, she raised the same brow and wondered why a unicorn wanted to be part of the team. It was just a horse with a stick on its head. Big deal. Finally, it was the last name, the one that had to be difficult and added a symbol instead of a full name. It was the letter T marked with an X on top of it, but what was she supposed to say? TX?

“…T!” She called out and looked at the other giant with the dragon skull. She pointed to him, “Is this you?” Without letting him answer, she went on, “What’s your name sir?”

He also stepped forward to be with the group, “Tal’set.” She wrote down his name, slowly pronouncing it under her breath to make sure the spelling was indeed correct. She looked up at the group as she rolled up the scroll.

“Thank you for embarking on this journey! As you may know, Mordra Sayd is a dangerous witch that must be destroyed. Before we begin, Your Majesty, King Loranos demands to speak with all of you. Please follow me to the castle!” Ialia jumped down from the platform and walked on ahead, expecting her new party to follow. As they began to walk towards the castle, civilians parted themselves away to give them some space. Some even gave the adventurers white flowers as a symbol of luck and bravery. Of course, Ialia was filled with the flowers, she even began to put them in her hair.

[Princess Luna]

When her name was called, Luna had steppd forward, looking at the woman who had called her name. She mentally rolled her eyes at the woman's comment about the child who stood next to her. She smiled at the girl, put her quiver and her bow over her shoulders, and looked back at the woman as she finished calling the remaining names. When the woman finished speaking, Luna and the others followed her towards the castle, looking around at the town and the people.

As she followed the group, several of the townspeople gave them beautiful white flowers that Luna had only see in books. Luna blushed and smiled as one or two young men handed her small bouquets of the white flowers. She took one of the bouquets and some of the loose flowers and stuck them behind one of her ears. She held the other bouquet and the other flowers in her hands as she followed the group to their destination and hopefully towards the location of her family's sword.

[AngelicAsylum]

Damn. Already Isora faced a multitude of issues and they hadn't even seen the King yet. She eyed the boisterous Knight wearily; clearly the young woman was quite skilled and with good intent, and it was her sole duty to make sure everyone knew it. This would be fine on its own, but the Order had a tendency to despise most magi, especially those who looked like her. Already she was submitted to the humiliation of being compared to the biggest disgrace amongst magic users and to the potentially dangerous situation of giving her full name.

The initials were on purpose - Isora was still largely wanted by the law and a variety of bounty hunters. True, much of fuss had died down over the years. Walking the streets was safer than it once was. Still, she felt uneasy in such a large crowd, and bowed her head as she walked with the procession.

Secondly, a meeting with the King would prove quite difficult. Even if she hid behind one of the giants, there was no way someone of such high rank wouldn't notice the symbol on her neck and have her arrested immediately. To counter this, she took the long scarves hanging from her head piece and lightly wrapped them around her neck. She winced from the pain - the choker was bonded to her neck and to touch it enhanced the constant discomfort it gave her - but she managed to keep walking.

There were no flowers being tossed her way, and Isora looked on enviously at the others who received such praise. There was a time when she was studying to be a healer, much like the priestess who trailed in front of her. Those days were over, however, and until she found the person who ruined her life she would have to deal with the terrified and disgusted looks from those around her. This thought strengthened her resolve, and she lifted her head just a bit higher as she walked, crushing a blossom underneath her foot.

[Imp]

The group had been assembled and the Jotun would soon see the king. This would be another marker placed on the map for the Jotun's reach. Although the tribes weren't positive towards monarchy, they still would show respect to the King and kingdom to spread their message and peace. The guard that had kept an eye on him for sometime came with the knight, carrying Tal'set's peace offering. The guard better have tended to it well by the time they made it to the King or there would be consequences.

Walking the well made stone street, they were surrounded by a large audience of whom belonged to the kingdom and welcomed the party... or at least that is what Tal'set gathered. Sadly for him, he didn't receive any flowers from anyone and rather was either left out or was too much for most to look at. His outfit was intended to inflict fear upon the weak but this gleeful moment shouldn't have brought that upon the excited villagers. It did in fact scare them and the flowers that were being tossed, came to a pause when he passed by. At one point, he thought it would be nice to wave to some cheerful children upon a windowsill, they in fact closed the shutters and retreated inside. So much for happier times when a mercenary looking to benefit a kingdom is looked upon as a monstrous being. "Barbarian!" He overheard an angry villager speak out from the crowd while continuing along in the unpleasant walk...

[Auki]

"Begging your pardon, Master Reilios but the bulletin described the objective to be the retrieval of the Magical Harp alone. While it is written that the Harp is currently in the possession of the Witch, it was not explicitly stated that we are to defeat nor engage the Witch in combat. Perhaps we will be able to arrive at an alternative strategy after giving it due consideration."

“Of course, Gale. If you desire to risk negotiation with the witch or say, stealing the harp whilst she rests, then please do try. I’ll concede that we require strategy but I doubt with our companions and opponent that it will conclude to be a peaceful one.”

His tone was more than slightly bitter. Given the circumstances, he was assuming that the witch was powerful – After all, they were assembling a substantially large group for just a singular adversary; that in itself predisposed them for combat. He tried to remember the last time he had told a tale of human conquest that didn’t involve violence but it escaped him. It was a fact that most species took the offensive when they were convinced they would win and the majority of the gathered group seemed like they might follow that rule. Of course, first impressions could be fleeting…

"Our prospective allies aside, Master Reilios; and with due respect; from my studies I have come to understand that your race is naturally resistant to evil, and that your aura of good affords you with efficacious offensive capabilities against it. Additionally, we are setting out to a wooded area, also putting you at an advantage."

“True, the forests are a familiar terrain to my hooves… ‘Efficacious offensive capabilities’ may be an expanse of the humans’ imaginations however. An impure being is less likely to approach a Unicorn, that much is true, and we have a natural resistance to dark magic. With exceptional intelligence and power of the assailant though, these abilities become redundant.” He exhaled heavily in an equine-like sigh, his eyes turning sad for a moment, “In the early times, we were the bane of evil – the light’s ultimate defence - but much has happened since. Stories for another day, perhaps, although I doubt any of your species would bother to listen.”

He finished his sentence as a knight ripped the paper from the Bulletin. He – or at least the human’s height and physique made Reilios assume it was a male – seemed to have some authority over the quest, a military representative of the King’s he assumed. As he called forth the adventurers, the Unicorn waited silently. Gale was called up before him and he stepped to the side carefully to let her proceed. The way she was referred to as ‘child’ surprised him – He had not realised there was such a significant age gap between her and the other humanoids. It only brought light to the fact that few parents seem to bother looking after their children in this god-cursed city.

His name was announced shortly after the half-giant’s but, even as he paced forward, he maintained his distance in dignified silence. There were many members of the party, the knight included, that he did not want to stand too close to. When they begun their quest then he would become a slight more tolerant for practicality’s sake but, for now, he was happy to enjoy the freedom.

“…Before we begin, Your Majesty, King Loranos demands to speak with all of you. Please follow me to the castle!”

Reilios’ expression turned sour at the mention of royalty and he wondered if perhaps he was making a mistake - He had lived too long without rein to be bound now. Surely they would never be so insolent as to try and take him captive when he was offering his help… Even as he thought it over, hesitantly trotting after the knight, he had his doubts. A child – its innocence naturally drawn to the untainted presence of a Unicorn – stood on the tips of its toes, hands outstretched, and Reilios reluctantly lowered his head so it could weave white flowers in his mane. He guessed they would need all the fortune the world had to offer.