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Post by K Man on Nov 22, 2005 15:02:42 GMT -5
Romar - You panic, wondering just what agents of Sturmguard would be doing here. Pulling your cloak about you and wrapping yourself in shadows, you pull back and slink to a position where you can watch the conversation. [Listen and Spot Checks] You easily pick up the conversation from your vantage point, hearing all that they have to say. {Your checks were 28 and 26 respectively, easily enough to hear the whole conversation. Just read below.} ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Irris and Tineniel - The council remains speechless as you continue the conversation, their eyes alight with confusion. Erid looks side to side, suspicious of an ambush of some kind--he clearly was not expecting this kind of confrontation. "Outside of the council, you are but two of three people that know of the shard...first Romar from Ravenshead wants us to move the shard to keep it safe and now we hear, from two, who have spent little time in our midst, that it is unsafe."Romar...Ravenshead...More flashes of memory. You manage to stay coherent enough to listen to the council as they murmur among themselves. "This is an omen Erid, we must turn around."
"We can't turn around! Do you want to just wait for 'The Master' to come for us? We must press on."
"Yes, press on and warn the troops of an attack, protect it."
"Protect it? How can we protect it if everyone has fallen to 'The Master' before? What good will it do?"The council is in an uproar over the news, each adding more and more concerns to the problematic news you bring to them. Erid frowns as well, finally holding up a hand to calm the conversation down. He looks to you both, eyes burning deep into your intentions. "We were told that the shard is desired by Ravenshead as part of their plan to defeat 'The Master'. We knew little of the shard's powers, beyond our guesses that it was the reason for our Life-Giving Lake."
"We made the choice, rather than wait for this war to destroy us, to move the crystal and our people to boats that will be provided by Blackwing Kingdom. We were told we would be safe.
"It lies there, in the center of the cart with the water."Erid leans in. "You two arrived at our city a little less than two years ago, how could you know so much?"He thinks, as an afterthought more than anything. "And how do you plan to protect it?"------------------------------------------------------------------------ All in the Fortress - [Spot Check, Mordock] The Goblin shakes his head, unable to find anything... [Adelia, Detect Magic] Aside from the magic that makes this place perpetually dark and infinite. [ Darkness, Conjuration (Teleportation), Can't identify the spell] she can pick up nothing. {The inivisible stalker is not magical} The stalker does nothing again this round...leaving you wondering if its sole purpose in this fortress is guard this one portal. [Initiative: Krysta, Girud, Yuri + The Invisible Stalker, Galdren, Alton and Adelia, Mordrock] Map;
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| |...............................|R|
| |...............................|T|
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1#................*......@@.......#3
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| |...............................|G|
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[/pre] <<<Legend>>> * = Top of Pillar (3ft wide) # = Top of Staircases, 1-4 ...... = Darkened Pit @@@@ = Invisible Stalker (50/50) A = Galdren G = Girud M = Mordrock D = Adelia T = Alton K = Krysta R = Garor Y = Yuri __________________________________________________________________________________________ |
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Post by BluSpecs on Nov 22, 2005 17:34:20 GMT -5
"Given some time I could cast an invisibility purge spell... but it would only be effective in a 5' radius around me. "
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Post by TheUdjat on Nov 22, 2005 18:57:13 GMT -5
Tineniel takes careful stock of what the other councilmembers say, taking their thoughts into consideration. He looks to the large 'cart' for the Life-Giving Lake, contemplating things in his head while Irris, completely without cue (but apparently needing none), steps up to reply to Erid.
"Please, be calm, all is not lost. We must press on with the shard, but we must be vigilant and ready for attack." He had to guess here and there, but those were the words that felt right to Irris. Going back just seemed completely contradictory. "You ask how we know what we know - All I can explain is that our knowledge comes in pieces - very valuable pieces. Surely you all can remember the very odd circumstances of our arrival at the Dune Palace. We know, without knowing why, certain very intrinsic things - particular about the shard, and the 'Master'. We know that it is in danger if we continue as if nothing is amiss. We must do something. As for what..."
And Tineniel is right there to pick up the speech. "We must make the quickest path to water. Be it river or ocean, it matters not. We must be ready to, at the snap of a sandstorm, take the shard as fast as possible in one direction - and the people to safety. We must have a plan of action for warriors and for you, the council. I believe it is right to go to... to Ravenshead." The name is uncannily familiar. "But we must pick up the pace. And, I believe, change our course. If we have enemies watching us, we must confuse them." He pauses in his speech, looking over the council.
"Can you do this? I can get us transportation at water's edge - do not ask how, it is complicated." He couldn't lie, after all, and tell them he didn't know. "Please, trust us. We want safety as much as all of you."
As an afterthought - and because them name is more than familiar to Tineniel (he bears a letter writtin in Romar's hand), Tineniel adds, "And this... Romar... Is he about? I should like to speak with him about all of this, if we can."
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Post by VemuKhaham on Nov 23, 2005 5:24:05 GMT -5
Okay, here comes the part in which Romar might officially be given the name and lable 'Wormtongue'.
His name... it had been mentioned! Dammit, now these two knew he was here, or at least had been here. Being oblivious to the memory loss of the two, he realized that now there was no way back, and he would sooner of later have to argue with these two over the shard's fate. The big question was now, whether these two servants of Sturmguard had meanwhile communicated with those who knew of Romar's infidelity to the Blackwing Kingdom. It would be strange if they had, for according to these councilors they had been in the Dune Palace for two years... but didn't these two have a means of riding veins in a second all the way to Ravenshead? And what was all that about knowing without knowing why they knew it?
But he had to take the chance. Standing up, removing his cap from his head, he took a few large passes forward until he stood just on the border of the light provided by the Council's large campfire. He looked tall and stern as he gazed at his two former companions from underneath dark and shadowy brows.
"Romar is indeed about, Caelith... Callian. Romar Belamor, as always at your side, ready to work for the common good."
He made a slight bow, as if to excuse his sudden interuption.
"Begging your pardon, wise Council of the Dune Palace, but these two gentlemen are known to me, and I could not help but overhear when I noticed their presence."
Turning again to the two familiar faces, he says politely:
"Caelith and Callian, why are you here? I for one thought you were dead. Why have you never reported back to your king Sturmguard?"
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Post by Japic on Nov 23, 2005 10:23:50 GMT -5
Well, since there's nothing else going on and no better suggestion currently Girud will huck his blade out into the openness and hope to strike the invisible foe.
+10 to hit, 2d6+8 damage 20x2 (If I can hit the damn thing) I'd like the evens on a d20 please for my miss chance.
"Well, we can't just stand here all day, we need to get up there."
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Post by Fangor the Fierce on Nov 23, 2005 10:31:12 GMT -5
Krysta is not sure on how to proceed. Spying the pillar, and the router between it and the group, she knows that something out there does not want them to continue. Perhaps the Master already knows that they are here, inside his fortress, and he is simply toying with them, trying to whittle them down, little by little....
She grabs a bag from her stock, and throws it at the spot where she was recently attacked, only 5 feet more west, towards the pillar. Hopefully, the thing would be revealed when the bag hit, IF it should hit....
Move action, grab tanglefoot bag, standard action, throw at spot where she was, plus 5 feet towards the pillar.
+8 to hit (penalty taken for DEX mod), but not sure how much penalty for distance???
Mordrock, seeing his woman try a stunt like that, can only hope it works.
IF IT WORKS:
+8/+8 to hit, 1d4 damage to the thing
IF IT DOESN'T:
He grabs another tanglefoot bag, and does the same. Hopefully his will hit the thing where she was aiming... (HE WILL AIM 5 feet east of where she aimed)
+8 to hit as well....
Adelia continues to try and spot this thing. Hopefully the others would fare better than she has....
Spot +3 if WIS is the base, or +1 if INT is tha base, not sure...
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Post by Jevva on Nov 23, 2005 15:28:45 GMT -5
Galdren stays put, watching the others' attempts to reveal the invisible creature. Taking a mental stock of his inventory, he realizes that there's really nothing that he can do to help find it.
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Post by Wizard on Nov 27, 2005 0:11:33 GMT -5
Callian...Callian...is it...?[/i]
*FLASH*
A finger, tight, sweating, pressed against a trigger, ready to fire...fire at what? A bat...a bird...in the sky, holding a man with a bow, aimed at...threatening her. HER. And the fear, the worry...but most of all, the sadness. Something lost...something far more important than...he must have been tricked into doing it.
*FLASH*
A letter...Tineniel had read it to Irris a thousand times, a hundred thousand times, over the last few years...
...for I truly have committed a grave crime: desertion...
...taken captive by a powerful vampire...
...safe compared to what the companions I deserted must have experienced...
...the mission I started on initially: to find and secure a crystal.
*FLASH*
By the Gods...
In Elven:
"Tineniel...Mes ir Ysrtk. Tre mirsil loreth...Wo silhien tre kellar ir Escer."
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Post by TheUdjat on Nov 27, 2005 10:36:42 GMT -5
Tineniel nods at his companions words in elven, though he keeps his eyes locked on Romar, digesting his words carefully and calculatingly. While 'Caelith' is the name that strikes a deeper, more familiar chord... it is another that consumes his immediate thoughts.
Romar Belamor.... Hearing the name conjured up images of it on parchment, signed with a quick flourish. Having no memory of his past, Tineniel had no idea quite how it came into his possession... But it was most certainly not in his hand writing, and he could only assume that it was his last link with the past. The letter was written by Romar, and it spoke of a great many things...
A great many distressing things that, until now, really hadn't made sense. But like a perfect little puzzle, the piece was sliding in, snug and secure, exactly where it belonged. And as usual, it was accompanied by images and feelings - His arm strained keeping a bow nocked back, aimed at... The image was unclear, but it felt like the same familiarity he saw in this man. And there was anger, and a sense of distrust and, perhaps, betrayal. His legs shifted as he sought to keep balance - where was he? But as always, the image evaporated before it made much sense. And then he was back on the sand dunes, the Romar of the now speaking to him.
One all-encompassing thought commandeered Tineniel's mind (or was he Caelith, then?): Romar Belamor could not be trusted.
"We are here, Romar Belamor," the name sounded odd tripping off his tongue, "Because we serve the Dune Palace and the Council." The words were stern, unforgiving, and had the brunt of a warning. "And as you can plainly see, we are quite alive. So it is you who advised the council to move the shard to Ravenshead, is it? That strikes me as rather odd. Last I heard, you had left Sturmguard's service. Is this not so?"
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Post by VemuKhaham on Nov 27, 2005 14:00:17 GMT -5
That letter will be the death of me... *groans*. 
Not knowing that, in his inability to correctly associate due to memory loss, Caelith was actually referring to the initial desertion of Romar by leaving to search for Hirsuthe, and not the more resolute abandonment of his former king Sturmguard after slaying Mordrid, Romar curses under his breath that these two people seemed to have spoken with Sturmguard even in the last few days. While to Caelith the puzzles pieces were slowly falling into place, it seemed like he was stealing pieces from Romar's already complete puzzle and thereby confusing him more and more. Looking sideways toward Telena, and then back to Caelith, trying to conceal that he had abandoned the service of Ravenshead, he retorted with a plain lie: "You are most assuredly incorrect if you say such things about me. I have never left the side of my king or my people! I shall not heed this ridiculous accusation for now though, because indeed this is a strange meeting, and I will refrain from hurling back likewise accusations at you, which I could.
Yes, I have asked the Council to move their shard for it was no longer safe and above all it was more needed elsewhere. They have, as you can see, agreed, after much debate. Now, Caelith, why would you or your companion seek to sabotage such an attempt, as was initiated by King Sturmguard from Ravenshead, he whom you once served and are still bound to serve by oath, and agreed upon by the Council of the Dune Palace, which you say you serve currently?"Then, a suspicious gleam came from his eyes as the lids about them narrowed. He remembered more vividly their last encounter, how Callian was among the first to draw weapons against them, and how they had never left Hell - most feared of all places - together with their friends. To what devil had they sworn allegiance to escape that dark place? The next words were indeed not so friendly: "Tell me also, whom else do you serve, as you seem not aware of or obedient to the plans of the masters you now speak openly of; or are all your masters too many to mention, or perhaps too foul to mention? Could that be the reason you wish to stop the shard's movement, and yet not be willing to say why?"
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Post by Wizard on Nov 27, 2005 19:22:40 GMT -5
/\ lll lll lll (Sense Motive +10) "I serve the people of the Gathered Nations, since they took me in. Before that, as all in this Council know, I do not remember.
"As for you...how are we to trust that you are in reality an emissary of Ravenshead, and not simply a smooth talker?"Irris holds his hand out to Tineniel, who gives him... "This letter was found on Tineniel when Irrkin rescued us from the Sands. The letter, which I submit to the Council for their own judgement, details the systematic and serial desertion of the writer, one Romar Belamor, from the armed forces of Ravenshead, Astoril, and Bazarkrak. Will we be the next?
"I, for one, should like more than the word of a deserter that Ravenshead wishes us to change our entire way of life."(Diplomacy +14 to influence the Council) (Letter is here.) |
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Post by VemuKhaham on Nov 28, 2005 12:25:22 GMT -5
Almost coughing up a laugh, Romar sarcastically repeats Callian's statement: "You... you do not remember?"
For a moment, Romar is silent, actually beginning to wonder what this was all about, while Callian yet again twists the direction to whom the insults are hurled. He did not remember? He knew not why he knew something? Had they lost all sense?
And then the letter was brought up. Romar immediately knew what letter for of the two letters he ever wrote one only had reached the king. It was then that finally Romar began to understand that Caelith and Callian, somehow in the past five year period had lost part or all of their memory and now could only cling to his old and worn out letter for clues of their past.
Pondering on that hypothetical thought he looked at his old companions with both pity and frustration. For a moment, he remained silent after Callian had finished, as if to digest all the information, going by any other possible explanations for what was said, but he knew that it had to be true, however strange it was. After all, they even messed up their own names...
He didn't know what to say: at first he doubted whether he should help them recover their memory or try to exploit the situation without mercy. In the end, he spoke:
"Give me that letter, Callian, before you come to any further rash conclusions. Or give it to the Council, as you please. Yes, I wrote it, and given the time, I could explain every bit of detail written in that letter to you, and more. But for now, let me just say that I have absolutely nothing to hide, despite the things you might have read. King Sturmguard, were he here, could confirm that he has already forgiven me for all the things I have said in that letter. It was he to whom I directed the letter, as you can read. Now tell me, why would a deserter keep in contact with his lord of his own volition? If you read further, you might find the answer. I indeed once abandoned a mission, which all three of us volunteered upon. But that was not out of disloyalty, but rather because I was needed more elsewhere. In the end, you can also read how I saved King Grandil of Bazarkrak Castle in person, and thus provided a valuable ally to the Blackwing Kingdom. That is but an example of what I have done in Ravenshead's service. But all of my history is besides the point, as we all know here that present dangers are at hand. For that reason, I shall also take back my accusations towards your persons, even apologize for them, for I did not know then what I assume now: that both of you along the way have somehow lost your memory.
Now what is it to be, Callian and Caelith? Will we bicker over how we should interpret this letter with its writer, or shall we come to matters at hand and shake hands, forgetting this unfortunate reintroduction?"
Romar offered his hand to Caelith and Callian.
Edit: by the way, has anyone seen GenMHB? I'm beginning to worry.
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