Present Party: Keviks, Lupan, Nana, and Wren
Setting: The city of Lanti, in the kingdom of Midtia.
Lupan, being an elf and not needing much in the way of sleep, woke up early after the party's long day to try and see if he could figure out where Xade and Alaion went, being more concerned about the former. He looked around the Mulcaster estate, but didn't get much of anywhere. The room Xade had been staying in appeared as though it'd been left very abruptly. There were clothes left behind, but not much else.
He used his druid wild shape to turn into a wolf, and using his keen sense of smell, he was able to track Xade through servants' halls and outside. He followed the trail all the way through town to the north gate, and even a little further. The trail continued north. Lupan asked Quest if he would be willing to have a look around the area. Sadly, nothing turned up. It appeared that their largest threat, at least for the moment, was gone.
 |
| Mirabelle Cromdor Human, age 20 (Art by Svetlana Tiaga on Art Station) |
 |
| Orion Mulcaster Human, age 25 Wren's Older Brother (Art by Tina Yeh on Art Station) |
She also took a moment to find Mirabelle, who was entertaining three young gentlemen who'd come from the island town of Aincour: two tabaxi and an elf. Wren spoke to her privately for a moment, and mentioned that she'd heard from Sebastian that Mirabelle had always had a calming effect on Orion. She asked Mirabelle if she'd be willing to stay with Orion as much as she could. Wren thought it might help his mental state. Mirabelle kindly agreed; she was very concerned about Orion too.
Nana sent a message to Queen Wisps, Fang's mother, in the morning, to inform her of what happened. She also assured her that King River was on his way as well. The queen was already in Dragon's Valley at the request of the party, and replied that she would get a head start on her husband and make her way to Lanti herself, rather than waiting.
 |
| The Silver Dragon's Staff Possessed by Dragon Lancer Axel (Art from "Elder Scrolls") |
Lastly, later in the afternoon, Nana received word from Hugo. He'd managed to make good on parts of their deal.
- Alaion's family was safe.
- The king was being accompanied by his associate, Veers, and his party for safety.
- Hugo was sending Veers with the information he had collected on "The Blind God's Bow" and with another gift from his library because...
- Hugo had been unsuccessful in finding Ego, even by magical means. He would keep looking, but he was growing increasingly frustrated.
- Eli was accompanying the king to Lanti. "Removing" him now would be ill-advised, especially in the way that Hugo wanted to remove him. Still, Veers and his friends were with the king now so they could defend him if needed.
- Until Ego and Eli were removed, as promised, Nana only owed Hugo one favor.
Nana informed Alaion via Sending that his family had been secured, and Alaion told her that he was still in Lanti. They arranged for him to meet them at the Cromdor Estate at 10:00 tonight.
~~~~~
 |
| Quest The Copper Dragon Demigod |
While Keviks was cleaning, he noticed a very interesting painting. It was about six feet long, and only two feet tall. It was done in a style that didn't reflect a lot of detail, when it came to the creatures that were in it. In total, there were 10 creatures: five dragons, and five humanoids.
- The dragon furthest to the left was bright yellow. The humanoid underneath it had red skin and curled ram's horns.
- The next dragon was also yellow, but had some tints of brown added to it. The humanoid beneath it was the tallest. They were very large too, and had long hair... or maybe they were ears? It was hard to tell.
- The center dragon was red with brown tints. The humanoid associated with it had Caucasian skin and long brown hair.
- The next dragon was orange with brown tints to its color. The humanoid below was the shortest, and had gray hair braided over their shoulder.
- The last dragon was gray, and the humanoid under it was short, stout, and had a large, bushy, gray beard.
Not long after that, Quest returned with Axel so he and Keviks could talk. Axel had been with Nana and heard everything Keviks had to say before. Now, he had only one question. Axel did not write well in Common; it was not his first language, but he couldn't speak. The illusion of himself conjured a piece of paper, and wrote: "You did this for you, or for better of everyone?"
Keviks insisted again that he did it to prevent one person from ruling everything. He liked Fang, he wanted him to have a country to rule over one day. Axel believed him, and the two seemed to be on good terms, which was good if Keviks ever wanted to use the staff's abilities.
Keviks also asked Axel about the painting, and Axel claimed that the painting was of the first five dragon gods. When Keviks brought up that Axel should have his own art, Axel produced illusions of the dozens of paintings and pieces of art he'd seen of himself and his party already. It was as if he was saying, "There's enough out there."
~~~~~
Wren, Lupan, and Nana reconvened with the prince, Castilian, and Quest that night to meet Alaion. It was decided that Keviks being alive would be a secret for now, and Quest would fill him in on everything that happened.
 |
| Alaion Eleneth Formerly of the Erdian Invasion Force (Art made by me, using Heroforge) |
He said that, right now, he'd tell them everything that he knew. If they wanted to know more, they'd have to guarantee his family's safety one hundred percent and he'd find a way to get it to them.
There were a number of things that Alaion was willing to talk about:
- He didn't really know what the plan was here in Lanti. They were all supposed to discuss that, as he told Keviks, on the night Vekea and Nithea Keenstalker were murdered.
- He knew that the other generals - Ureik and Grisdain - were out in Midtia somewhere. The party knew already from their run-in with Kalicosio, a mysterious and apparently omniscient creature. They were in Rockland and Lakeside, respectively. Alaion knew they had plans there as well, but he didn't know what. He also wasn't really aware of a timeline.
- The only thing he did know in regards to the generals was that they hated each other, and as a result, didn't communicate well. There was little to no coordination when it came to their plans. The only reason he knew this was because Xade had complained about it all the time.
- He did not know where Xade was heading.
- If his family was safe and gone from Kystad, the Erdians won't tell him. They know they'll lose their leverage over him. They'll likely order him to leave Lanti and assist with one of their plans elsewhere, probably Rockland or Lakeside.
- This invasion plan has been in motion, or at least been talked about, for at least a decade, as far as he was aware from what he could glean from talking to Ego and Eli.
- Not everyone in the Riot Guard had turned traitor. Alaion knew most of Kystad was no good, but he knew some people here in Lanti who were loyal to the crown. He could probably seek out more if needed.
- Ego is a wizard, or at least partially a wizard. When Nana asked Alaion if he could describe the most powerful spell he'd ever seen Ego used, he described something that sounded terrifyingly like the 7th level spell Mirage Arcane.
To guarantee Alaion's family's safety, Nana decided to ask for Hugo to bring them to Lanti for a moment, so he could see them. Hugo claimed he could be there in ten minutes. In the meantime, the party discussed other things.
- They debated over whether or not Fang should tell his father that he's not attracted to women. Ultimately, the prince decided that it wasn't a good time. King River had an invasion to worry about right now.
- The party reminded themselves that they should fill in Finch: a fellow adventurer and ally who was here for the engagement party. He, much like Wren, was descended from a noble family in Rockland. He'd probably want to know Erdians were hiding there too.
- Fang was growing increasingly worried about the safety of his family in all of this, especially knowing that both his parents were on their way to Lanti and Xade was going north, potentially towards the capital. Fang's three younger brothers and elderly grandmother would be the only royals home. There was talk of asking Hugo for another favor, just to make sure they'd be safe too.
Nana and Lupan had both been particularly encouraging to Fang, insisting that he'd done a great job keeping himself together. He'd been very brave.
Fang chuckled sadly. "I don't feel very brave..."
Shortly after that, Hugo arrived with a pregnant human woman who was carrying a 2-year-old half-elven girl. Alaion practically ran towards them, and pulled them both into his arms. Hugo assured Alaion that they'd be safe in his care. They were somewhere where no one could find them, even by magical means. Alaion was willing to work for the party, against Erdia, in the hope that he could make Midtia a truly safe asylum for his family. His wife, who the party learned was Rosa, seemed hesitant, but she wanted that too: safety from Erdia. The only way to get it was to stop them from invading.
Before Hugo left with the Eleneth family, Fang did request for Hugo to protect the rest of his family in Kystad.
Hugo smiled. "What you're asking for has a high price tag..."
"I will pay it," Nana said immediately.
"You will not." Hugo kept eye contact with Fang. "It's time the boy grew up. I want a favor... but not now. I want a favor from you when you are king."
"You know, when I am king, the relationship you have with my father will not be the same that you have with me," Fang declared.
Hugo chuckled. "Perhaps not... but that doesn't mean you'll forget me. And if you do, I'll come right back around to remind you." He leaned in. "How much do you love your brothers, Prince Fang?"
Fang looked down, and then back up. "You have a deal."
"Perfect." He stood straight again. "I'll be in touch."
With that, he disappeared, taking Alaion's family with him. After that, the party developed a plan to have Alaion as an inside man, and keep him as safe as possible. They'd need Sending Stones. Nana also requested that Alaion get her a spell scroll she needed, and another of the amulets he had. He claimed he could find all of it in the city, if she'd give him a day or too. She agreed, and Alaion left the party to themselves.
They now had a pair of eyes and ears on the invasion force.
~~~~~
The next morning, Nana had a short discussion with Lupan about using Speak With Dead on the Keenstalkers. The bodies were still at the Mulcaster Estate; the Erdians had not been here to claim them yet. Ultimately, they decided against it out of respect.
 |
| Finnegan "Finch" Pomeroy Human College of Whispers Bard (Art by Claparo-Sans on DeviantArt) |
The Erdians were meant to arrive today at the Mulcaster Estate. They were coming for an engagement party that was no longer going to happen. Finch was meant to meet with the Mulcasters today, on behalf of his own noble family. He offered to accompany Wren and her party to tell the story of what happened, as moral support. The two of them also lamented over their lost dance together, and Finch declared that they'd have to go out to a show or something to make up for it. Wren agreed.
Additionally, the secretary Lindsey Woods at the front desk of the guildhall gave Wren a letter to give to Guildmaster Riskan, who was currently at the Mulcaster Estate. Wren said that she would.
 |
| High Guildmaster Eslek Riskan of Hero's Way Lizardfolk, Circle of Stars Druid (Art made by me, using Heroforge) |
Baron and Lady Mulcaster stood ready, alongside Wren, Lupan, Nana, and Finch to greet the Erdians who had been invited. There was a small company of nine soldiers, and then a Lord and Lady Sultasar. Lupan had noted Lord Sultasar's title on the guest list Wren had brought to them: Fey Slayer. He suspected that he was a hero from a folktale he'd heard as a child about a Winter Court archfey being killed.
 |
| Lord Ulair Sultasar, the Fey Slayer Winter Eladrin (Art by Alex Maragondi on Art Station) |
The Sultasars entered alongside the small company of soldiers. Lupan was shocked to see a type of creature he'd yet to see since leaving his tribe in Isverden: another eladrin. However, unlike Lupan himself, Lord Sultasar appeared to be of the winter variety: white skin and hair, and piercing blue eyes. When he spoke, he was calm, but everything he said had a kind of coldness to it.
He was upset by the news that the engagement had been canceled and even more upset when Baron Mulcaster refused to give up the dowry Sultasar had give him on Vekea Keenstalker's behalf. Overall, his interactions were very rude and Lupan called him out. When he did, three rays of frost shot from Sultasar's hand, at Lupan. Luckily, they missed. Sultasar stormed out, taking the soldiers with him... but leaving his wife behind. He claimed that he would inform Turnuroth of this at the earliest opportunity.
 |
| Lady Avala Sultasar, an Erdian Councilwoman Moon Elf (Art by NeexSethe on DeviantArt) |
She stayed to hear the party's story, and then assured them that she would speak more to her husband about this.
"All we want to do is keep the peace after what has happened," Nana told her.
She smiled. "And that is all Turnuroth wants, I assure you."
Lady Sultasar left not long after that. The party wondered now if they would finally get to see the man behind the army...
~~~~~
ART LINKS:
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/qArgRe
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/4blGw4
https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/396386/coolest-looking-staff/p2
https://www.deviantart.com/claparo-sans/art/Edricane-547043882
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/zAwqym
https://www.deviantart.com/neexsethe/art/Elf-705093140
No comments:
Post a Comment