D&D II Act One Scene III - The Lost World

Fourier

Banjo wrote: »

"I don't know any kings. But that's such a terrible reason to be here it must be true. Permission to come aboard sir!"

"Sure thing, just step on up."

Banjo

"You totally need to work on your interpersonals, that was a very suspicious reply dude. Do I get a cabin?"
Raven on shoulder, eyes open for trouble. And anchors aweigh!

Fourier

Banjo wrote: »

"You totally need to work on your interpersonals, that was a very suspicious reply dude. Do I get a cabin?"
Raven on shoulder, eyes open for trouble. And anchors aweigh!

The anchors are pulled up.

"Oh yes, a very special one. You'll get a good long rest."

Banjo

"that sounds great. Show me! Is there food? Entertainment? How long will the trip take?"

Fourier

Banjo wrote: »

"that sounds great. Show me! Is there food? Entertainment? How long will the trip take?"

"Trip should take about two weeks, we're stopping off in Soetrard, Zassan and only then Krosic, the harbour town for Osinzir.

Food? There's plenty to eat on this boat, just head below deck, the cook is preparing...something special."

Banjo

"aye aye, captain. Consider me shivers to be timbered."

She heads down, Raven looking back for that 360 coverage

Fourier

When Retula heads below deck, she notes that the sunlight doesn't seem to penetrate the floorboards very well giving the kitchen area a dark appearance.

The cook is standing stirring a large open pot, with a thick meaty smell coming from it.

"Retula?" he says without turning his back "Been looking forward to having you here, hand me the knife over there."

He gestures to a large stake knife on a nearby shelf.

Banjo

"Why sir, you have me at a disadvantage! How doo yoo Doo, and hoo are yoo?" She asks in her most ladylike voice.

She checks the blade and hilt for any suspicious markings before picking it up and handing it over. She also looks for any recipe he might be working from or indications of ingredients used.

"So how come I'm such a celeb all of a sudden?"

Fourier

Banjo wrote: »

"Why sir, you have me at a disadvantage! How doo yoo Doo, and hoo are yoo?" She asks in her most ladylike voice.

She checks the blade and hilt for any suspicious markings before picking it up and handing it over. She also looks for any recipe he might be working from or indications of ingredients used.

"So how come I'm such a celeb all of a sudden?"

She quickly spots the recipe he is brewing, a powerful hallucination to put it mildly, no doubt about it.

The dagger has a symbol of a dragon on the hilt, red, digging its claws into a T-Rex.

"A celeb, that'd be because the king wants you. Payed us good money to bring you to him."

Banjo

"and did my dear friend the king mention anything about what condition I should be in when I arrived, what he wants me for or ... Look dude what **** is going on? Did the Somari send you? I'm not a Rennae anymore. I was called. Stop rattling my beans and gimme the straight up."

If he's wearing any kind of ostentatious crystal necklace or broach, please let me know.

Fourier

He scoops up a ladle full to the brim with the concoction he is brewing. As he does, the captain and two other crew members, humans with muscles to spare descend down to the deck. They take up position on either side of the steps.

"Drink up, that's the quickest 'straight up' we can give you" the captain says, blocking her exit as he stops on the steps.

Banjo

"Gimme a why or imma **** one of you up before you make me. And straight up, I have tried to hurt people but leave them alive before, I am awful at it. When I'm done, one of you can ask them yourselves.

And while I'm being honest, I could leave if I wanted. If your king knows anything more than my name he'll have told you that. I won't though. I'll **** one of you up. So come on.

Why.

Then let's get off our tits."

Fourier

The cook turns.

"The subterfuge is unnecessary, she is not that attached to this plane or its people."

The captain nods.

"Sister...it is time for a great mission."

They release the illusion over their forms, revealing they are Shadar Kai themselves.

"The King of Osinzir is a mage who defies death, worse he has inhibited its functioning in his lands. His people praise him for this, but the lady calls us. It does not matter if they feel they benefit from his extension of their lives. All must die. The Queen demands it.

She has reformed her pact with our race...drink so that you may partake of the new one."

OOC: Finished reading Mordenkainen's tome of foes, I'll be discussing the update with you now.

Banjo

"Her word is my command. Promise not to tattoo me while I'm ... Uh... Pacting?"

Bottoms up! *Gulp*

Fourier

Retula drinks from the cup.

The kitchen around her turns into a long cobbled street. Other Shadar Kai leer at her. She seems to be in the Shadowfell once more.

Banjo

She tentatively takes a few steps along the street, not entirely sure that she still has legs. There was this one time when her and t'Clsee drank fermented Ghirrash milk and she was paralysed and tripping balls for a week. But that was before...

There's no doubting that it feels good to be back and out of that damned sun but the only thing worse than being away from the Shadowfell is being stuck in the ****ing Shadowfell; she's very very worried about what she's going to have to do to get out of here, and what macho bull**** lie she'll make up to cover it up this time? She rubs the scars on her belly.

Fourier

As she walks forward Retula sees that all the city's roads lead to a castle covered in ravens lying in the mountains. The castle is that of the Raven Queen, obvious by its design, despite it often shifting shape. Meaning those were the Letherna mountains and this city was Farad Exitis, the home of those most faithful to the Queen.

Banjo

Her step falters. She doesn't belong here. Not among the true faithful, the real chosen. Her's was a marriage of convenience - a life of servitude for a not-being-dead and maybe a chance to make up for some bad decisions. The uncalled stay out of the city.

She looks at her hands, looking for signs of age, and calls out
"You guys, am I still on the boat?"
Maybe if this isn't real, it doesn't really matter? She presses on.

Fourier

The eyes of those who dwell in the city turn on her. Spite filled, rejecting her presence.

The path leads ever up until she comes to the gate of the city and the lonely barren mountain path that leads up to the castle.

Banjo

Ooc : if that's a choice between city and castle , castle pls

Fourier

Retula walks up the mountain path, the winds getting colder and colder. She can see the castle ahead.



A raven lands next to her.

"Come on lazy bones, let's see what you have forgotten."

It leads her to the bottom of the castle, how long this takes she does not know. Suddenly the giant grey doors are looming over her.

Banjo

"*I've* forgotten? You left us on that mountain to die in ignorance, and when we refused you let those bastards take us and wear us like ****ing sombreros. Don't talk to me abo- hey! I'm not done with you, Quesse-anta!"

She had forgotten what dicks the ravens could be. She pressed on.

Fourier

The castle doors open to her.

The first floor a large ballroom with mirrors floating in the air.

A set of twin stairs lead up to the second floor.

Two doors lead out of the ballroom on the first floor, one to the East, the other to the West.

Banjo

She looks at the mirrors

Fourier

The scenes within the mirrors are hard to understand or known to Retula only through myth, titanic battles of beings as large as mountains, planes forming from dust, planes shaped like disks, spheres and tori. The first elves, rising from the blood of Colleron, dancing in the sun, not yet with a fixed form or gender. Then Lolth, an elf Colleron raised to godhood, teaching the ways of an unchanging body, 'for their greatness' she said. Then the sundering of the tribes when Colleron banished them to different planes. Then the Raven Queen being elevated to divinity during Colleron and Lolth's battle, trying to become a third god who could calm them. She looked beautiful in mortal life.

The raven lands next to Retula again.

"Tell me, how did we come to our pact. You do not worship me, we have a deal. Truth told in some ways I prefer this, but how did it come to pass?"

Banjo

"is that what this is about? Look, I know I may have told some half-truths about.. ok look it was pure horse**** but I mean I couldn't tell the truth! I'm a warlock, I have a pact with the Raven Queen, life and death spring from my fingers, I couldn't just be..

look, I mean people thought this poncho was badass, they didn't know everyone here's got one, and I had the scar and.. and.. I didn't start the story, really I didn't, people just assumed 'oh look, Shadar kai on the material plane, I bet she's hunting liches and vampires and ****' and I just sorta went with it and embellished it and it grew and people wanted to believe..

I mean, it's shameful, I know it's shameful but you have to believe me, I'd just lost my big sister, my best friend - no, worse, because she was still there but gone too, y'know, and that's when I knew it was all a lie, there was no Araushnee, there was no calling, there was just the Somari taking our bodies and discarding our souls and I just had to get out before it happened to me, and I just...

Look, I never *told* him I was pregnant, it's not my fault he was dumb and lawful, but he was cute and headed back to the Material and he was so happy about some magic sheep he'd rescued or something and he wanted to settle down and have a son and how the **** was I supposed to know he had a cleric of Orcus in his party?


Soon as we were here on M that prick gutted me like a sturgeon only there was no roe for him to steal was there, and now I'm bleeding out and that necrodork is the hero because *he* exposed *my* treachery, you believe that? Anyway, that's pretty much the last thing I remember before waking up in a pool of blood and feathers except she - you? I don't know how this works - anyway, it was burned into my brain that I owed a debt I could never pay, but maybe I could have some fun trying to keep up with the interest?"

It felt good to let it out.

Fourier

The Raven stares at her for a long time.

"Ah yes, I remember now....Somari though, what is that?"

Banjo

"Wizards? Slavers? I don't know, you only get to see them one way and like you tend not to be too chatty after - you're the god here, you tell me! They're ****ing vultures is what they are. Scooping up the abandoned and the weak, raising them like cattle, filling their head with bull**** about form and purpose and calling and then you're called and... and... and I don't know but what came back wasn't her, it was not!. And these vulture-wizard-slaver-featherpluckers are doing it right under your ****ing nose too.

I'm sorry.. I mean, I know we're not your people, not really, it's not your problem but I just - I mean they took everything away, everything. It was never even there to begin with.

Oh wait, you mean the name? I dunno, t'Clsee told me and she heard it from this guy Jeg, said he was a cleric of some chastity god, but like she needed the practice cause she was taking the pink train to M Plane if you know what I mean and most guys you try that on have certain expectations of the Shadar Kai like a few tattoos and piercings mean you'll rub off on a battleaxe given half a chance so yeah anyway she always gets her way so....

Sorry I forgot the question?"

Fourier

"Go up the stairs, we have more to discuss, but I feel we are almost there" the raven says before dissolving.

Banjo

She heads up the stairs, percepting for traps or the edge of the boat.