[Game Thread] Together Again

[Frodiddly]

"I will absolutely deliver this speech. I understand that ye' are restricted by these... missions, that ye' mentioned, but if ye' wish to say a few words there was well, ye' are certainly welcome to. But I will take care of this, and I thank ye' for the opportunity.

"Now, about Amelia... Is there anything I can do to aid ye'? I would not have ye' put at any undue risk."

[Jshaft37]

Lotharian was thankful that not all his companions had turned against him...either with or because of Amelia. Lotharian is hoping that he doesn't have to deal with the halfling and cooler heads will prevail.

Lotharian addresses Turin, Thank you my friend. Now I have some business to attend to during the parade.

Lotharian looks to Hedgewick, Shall we meet this evening? I will be at Edea's tavern.

If no one or nothing else stops him, with that Lotharian leaves the group in search of Plaxagorus.

[BDax]

Hedgewick nods at Lotharian. He was glad that Turin agreed to give the speech, especially with being put on the spot with so little time to prepare. The dwarf was a good speaker though, and if anyone had to do it he was glad it was Turin (more specifically, glad it wasn't himself).

Aye, though with the parade and such I don't know that I'll have very much work done by then... I should at least have a plan, or something started but it will be a while before we've got something really usable.

[wisdomtd]

One of the men wearing cultist robes had said nothing after his quick introduction. he remained silent and he kept his hood up. because of this you could only see a feint outline of a face. and within that feint outline the only thing you could see where 2 little lights coming out of his eye's. and whenever he would blink the lights would disappear. other then these 2 lights there was nothing you could tell about this man. that he was male was clearly heard because of his voice, but since he had not said a word since his introduction he could be almost anything.

and when the group had gathered and started talking to each other he still remained silent and just stood there. it was not until he was asked a direct question that he moved, his hand went along side his face around his ear. it looked like he had just put his hair behind his ear. then his arm went back to his side and it was almost as if he was trying to be a statue. then with a deep sight he spoke.

Alright, Firodren has decided. I must say the decision was not easy to make, and I must say you might be quite happy with it. That sword he pointed at the sword in Emurian’s hand. was able to tip the balance and now the ball has started rolling. And as it gains more energy I will share some more of my information with you, as for now I will give you a head start.”

Then the man put his hand at his hood and moved it backwards revealing the man that was behind these words. As the sunlight started shining on his face it was clearly visible that it was a elf that had been speaking. A normal pale skinned skin,very long waved brown hair and a scar going from his right eyebrow to his earlobe. When you follow the scar with your eyes you can see that there are 2 sylvan words above the scar. At the end of the scar, engraved in the elf’s skin is the silver crescent moon of Corellon Larethian. When you look at the man’s eyes you can see where the little lights came from. At first glance you see that the eye has an orange colour with red spots in it, as you take a moment longer you see that the red spots are moving, appearing and disappearing once every few seconds, and these spots seem to be completely random. Then inside of the pupil is the source of the light, two little flames seems to be burning inside his eyeballs. It does not seem that he can feel them or that they burn out his eyeball from the inside.

”Since I don’t know how much you people know, I will begin with what our job as cultists is.. ehh was. We have been given several tasks, first we need to interpret the writing of Aurora which are given us. Second of course we need to worship aurora, and third off all cultists are always recruiting new members. The last makes it somewhat easy to infiltrate the cult if you are open minded. Those that are truly good hearted will most likely not get in. Those that are just open minded will get in but will not get recruited by avis to join his personal army.

Firodren took a pause, he put his hands behind his head and pulled his hair out of his robe. His hair was surprisingly long, the end of his hair was black as if it was burned off instead of cut.

”Now those that get recruited by Avis will entirely obey his orders, he will take the person’s soul corrupt it and regurgitate it back into it’s body. This is a very holy honour, who doesn’t want to work for the prophet? This should about even it out. not really an advantage is it, well if you want to have an advantage in clearing out this cult and eventually helping in defeating Aurora you will have to listen closely.

Speaking directly to the dragonoid, the elf started counting on his fingers. Not really counting to 5 since at 3 he started ticking on his fingers. although there was some sort of pattern in it, this was not a normal way of counting and it seemed as this was only the tip of the ice berg.

”there are about 50 to 60 normal cultist followers, I don’t expect them to be much trouble but you can never know what’s behind the white robe can you? The challenge however will be the high priest and high priestess, they are the leaders of this part. They answer directly to the knights of aurora. When you face them do not be afraid, you must face them without fear. “

The last word was spoken clearly and said with a certain tone. His hand went up in the air as if he was holding the world in his hand. At the same his sleeve drops down and you are able to see that a small flame runs across his skin. The flame travels around his arm towards his hand, and then when it reaches his palm the flame flies up and disappears in the air. The little flame in his eye has turned to a blue stable flame and his eye colour has the same colour blue as the flame.

”Fear and chaos, these are the two things that feed Aurora . it will make her stronger and if she has her Strength back this world will be devoured. The knights of Aurora are doing their job very well, even their presence causes fear. For the moment I will give you one more piece of the puzzle. There will always be knight next to each een torenrook and only one knight will jump at a time, when white faces black only one knight will be on a piece to feed the sideline.”

As he spoke his riddle, the colour of his eyes turned back to the normal orange. He put his hood back up and his face disappeared in the shadow, the only thing you could see was that little flame in his eyes.

[Emurian]

Emurian his eyes lingered upon Lotharian as the Elf revealed his intentions to the group. Partly confused about the contradicting facts, he listens closely as the man asks Turin to speak up for the Crowd instead. The Paladin his eyes float towards Amelia once again while he raises his shoulders to express his confusion. It seemed that he no longer needed to speak, which was fine enough by him so he didn't probe any further about the subject as there where other things at hand which should be dealt with.

The man doesn't even seem to notice Mazia her initial question as she inquires about the cultists. Willow her voice caused the Warrior to turn his focus back again on the conversation at hand. A simple nod followed after her speech to confirm her words yet he remains silent for a moment longer. Looking towards the newcomers the Paladin is about to prod them for some more information yet one of the Cultists seized the initiative in the conversation. Closing his mouth again the man listens, observes the remarkeble features of the Elf and allows his brain to sort out the information. As always the strategic mindset of the Warrior didn't allow a single word to be left unturned. Wetting his lips with his tongue he waits briefly with speaking once the Elf is done.

,,Hmm I don't really know how to process all this at this very moment but let me get this clear. This sword.'' he says while lifting Qualin his blade. ,,Plays a certain key role in our quest to oppose Aurora and her followers. So WHY is this sword so important? What makes it able to withstand the powers of her Knights, which have shown powers far beyond our imagination.''

The thought that Qualin his blade was significant had crossed the man his mind before as he had noticed the other cultists looking at it while he and Turin where standing in front of the Church. Somehow people seemed to recognise the blade which upon itself is a truly remarkable fact considering that the chance of someone actually recognising it would be small. Qualin had after all, retired a long time ago and hung his sword for probably decades above his fire place. An inner desire to learn more about the sword had slowly grown within the Dragenoid yet so far he hadn't been able to find a single person that was able to shed some light about the subject.

,,The next thing which you are unclear about is the soul corruption that you spoke off, are all the cultists their souls tainted, which would mean that YOUR soul would be tainted by him aswell?''

The man his eyes narrow while speaking as the sight before him, a man with non human pupils didn't do much to comfort his thoughts about learning to trust this person. Being on his guard the Paladin keeps reading the Elf his body language as he spoke while considering his words carefully. The tension of the mans voice coupled with his body language made the Paladin believe that he spoke the truth yet the back of his mind kept drumming as a warning that the Cultist could have different motives to tell them. By now the Paladin was sick and tired of being used as a pawn in a greater game, to be steered into a certain direction by one of Her Knights. Despite the possibly trickery he allowed himself to remain open minded, to try and understand how the Docterines of Aurora works.

,,As for the riddle, to be honest I am not one thats so fond of riddles but I might have a idea of what your meaning. Now, my question to you is: what are you going to do now you have revealed yourself to us? Surely you can no longer be accepted in the Cult. Perhaps my companions and I might find a use of your. .connections to the cult and the information you gained there. I can't promise you much, but I will promise you my swordarm if the need arises for it. Think about it carefully Elf for you will have to make a decision on who's side your on. I don't have the time nor the patience at the moment to play games so you better start thinking fast about it.''

[wisdomtd]

After having made his first impression on this group it seemed that most of them where waiting for someone to speak up. Again the dragonoid was asking the questions. Obviously the dragonoid did not know everything about his sword, or perhaps it might not be the sword of legends. And he must be an experienced fighter since he asks questions concerning number of opposing strength.


”As for the riddle, to be honest I am not one thats so fond of riddles” “well, not fond of riddles are you, then I better hope that if he is the leader that he listens very careful. Now lets clear some air about this all”

”I don’t play games. I don’t show all my cards, I Love riddles. Some of them will be for this moment others might be for the distant future, there is but one way to find that out. Listen to my words and think about them, gather what you need and save the rest. Now I will clear some of these illusions, keep your guard up but don’t be alarmed.

The elf starts chanting a spellcraft check DC 15 to know that it is detect magic.spell and he makes 5 seals with his hands, with the final seal his fingers align in a triangle with his middle fingers pointing to the ground. With this seal he pushes his hands forward. Then his eyes are no longer the color of a normal flame but the are bright yellow. Although this seems to be the only effect the elf stands still for the next three minutes. While standing he looks at each person, he looks at the sword and fixes his gaze on it.


”Now that I have gained my bit of information I will give you some of mine. That sword, if it is the sword I think it is, is a part of many legends an stories. It is said to repair the fabric of destroyed worlds. At this moment it seems highly unlikely to be able to do that, but there is more. Often these kinds of powers are not fixated on a item but are able to grow on a person, and in time such items form their powers according to their masters. I might know someone that could tell you more about the sword but that will come in the future.

Although he would like to find out for himself what the sword holds it doesn’t give the elf anything. The others around him are not so much a problem at this time. None of them have spoken and said anything that concerns him. If he can work something out with the dragonoid than they would follow.

”as for my soul, I can assure you I am not corrupted. Only those that are recruited into Avis his personal army are corrupted that way, and I have only seen two cultists being called to Avis. Now if I was indeed stripped of my soul and was a part of Avis his personal army then thing would have gone another way. You would all have been dead the moment I had set my eyes on you. I know you want to fight Aurora and with what I have told you, you could have already know why that sword might be a key role. But you won’t need that sword to do it.”

Firodren was not going to tell him exactly what is was. He wished to see if the dragonoid could figure it out on his own, he was testing him on knowledge and perception. And if he could figure it out then he would know that this was man was more than just someone with dragon blood that had taken the role of a leader through fear and muscle.

”You have already shown interest in my knowledge, but You must understand that I am not good with sides. I only share my knowledge if I can see the benefit of it. I have made up my mind, as I have said earlier. I have shared you these things so far to show you that I mean no harm, you have told me that you can offer me the strength of shield and sword.

Now instead of more directly to the dragonoid the elf started speaking towards the group.

”we will be spending time with each other, it seems only fitting that we get to know each other. You can all address me with Firodren if the need arises, and I would like to have something I can address you all with. And I though I heard something about a speech, perhaps someone could return some of the favor by telling me about that.”

It seemed that Firodren had suddenly became more a kind person, this was reflected by his voice. Every time he was speaking about Aurora, magic and information his voice was serious and at a slower speed then normal. Every word was carefully thought out and could change the way a sentence was going. Now that the elf had introduced himself he began to speak faster and a more friendly voice was used.

[Frodiddly]

Turin follows the lead of Lotharian and Hedgewick, and prepares to leave. He offers his arm out to Mazia, and says "Well... Shall we depart then? It seems there is plenty of things to deal with today." With her at his side, Turin leaves the room.

[Emurian]

,,You probably already heared Mazia drop my name but I will give you my full name. I am Emurian Shadowsun, Paladin of St. Cuthbert and member of the White Guard. I assure you that my promises are kept and your in good hands with this group. Stay close near me or the main part of the group if you fear that the cultist might retaliate for your presence amongst us. Altough I would love to hear more about that which you know about Them I think that our current priority is to prepare for the Parade.

So Lotharian what exactly is Turin supposed to say against the people of Black Grove? It might be usefull for our old Friend to think a little bit about what sort of speech he is going to give. I think that we should let our presence be known amongst the people of Black Grove. Many of them have lost everything they once had thanks to Aurora her minions that blew up their Worlds, OUR world. Considering the large increase in citizens and the lack of Houses I think that we might be able to rally those people for a common cause if we show the sense in it all. We ARE the Heroes of Black Grove in many their eyes, this advantage might give us a chance to influence the crowd to take certain actions. I was thinking about using the ''homeless'' from the other world to let them take up certain projects to expand and improve Black Grove alltogether.

The Black Grove people have lost their Guard recently, Men and Woman from Their society. There would be no better person then you Turin, to pay honourage to the dead. I am sure you will do fine, tell them the Truth and try to reflect the White Guard their intentions.

As for the cultists here by now they have surely spotted us, studied us and therefor know more about us then we know about them. Its therefor logical to seize the initiative by displaying ourself on the stage and openly proclaim our Duty towards the people.

We will hunt them down soon enough, but for now the people should know that there are Those that fight in their name against all thats evil. ''

Pausing briefly the Dragenoid keeps his eyes on Turin to see if the Dwarf is following him. Raising both hands in a gesture to breathe he continues with a growing smile on his face while speaking in softer tones.

,,There are just some ideas to work with Turin but dont worry youll do fine. Your a honest man with a pure Soul, people will recognise that aspect of you and gain respect for you. ''

Looking at the others Emurian gestures to the door.

,,We better get going by now are we not?''

[Jshaft37]

Lotharian addresses the dragonoid before he departs.

I have told Turin everything I know about the speech. Naragath surprised me with the request as the parade was beginning. It seems important to Naragath though, so I'm glad that his request will be honored.

[Chekken]

The adventurers hear jubilant noises of celebration outside, and decide to investigate. As it turns out, the parade has started without them. Streamers fly in every direction, and people sing and dance. A marching band moves down the avenue, as well as dancers, magicians and all sorts of other performers. You watch for about twenty minutes. High above the crowds sits the portal, which has been placed on top of a platform that looks over the town. It glows gently. However, there was something new about it that you did not notice before: there are two holes in the portal, presumably where the crystals would be placed. When the last of the performers have passed you, the mayor steps onto the platform, addressing the crowd. He holds the crystal in his hand. Naragath stands by his side.

[B]"Welcome, people of Black Grove! Welcome! Are you enjoying the festivities?"[b/]

There is a deafening cheer from the crowd. It takes some time for Mayor Loki to settle them down.

"It has been a strange few days, hasn't it?", he begins. "Both bad, and good has happened to this town. Good in the sense that we have heroes to protect us, bad in the evil that they are protecting us from. This evil was responsible for the deaths of the military who fought in the mines. But we shall not engage in the normal, human means of grieving, oh no. We shall celebrate the achievements of the heroes and military jointly. We shall recognize the joy that the lives of the deceased have brought to our fair town. But most of all, we will rejoice in the value of our own lives. Huzzah!"

The crowd repeats after him. "HUZZAH!!!"

"And now, I'm sure that we would like to hear from the heroes of Black Grove themselves. Heroes! Step up to the platform. We must give you your gifts. Perhaps one of you would like to speak?"

[MystOtter]

Willow was among the last that headed towards the celebration. She still wasn't sure if it was a good idea to trust the cultist so easily. They could just be playing with them for all Willow knew. Things weren't adding up. Nevertheless Willow remained close to them and kept an eye on them.

As the mayor riled the crowd, the warrior barely paid any attention until he request them to get on stage. This caused some inner conflict within Willow. She sighed and went on stage. Yet, Willow still kept her focus on the two cultist

[Jshaft37]

Lotharian moved away from the companions as the speech began. He moves through the crowd looking for Plaxagorus. The parade, the people, the celebrating...It all made Lotharian uneasy. He wasn't much for crowds, and the festivities would certainly make it harder for him to find Plaxagorus.

As Lotharian hears Mayor Loki call for the champions of Black Grove to take the stage, Lotharian pulls his cloak collar high, concealing his face. He dives into the nearest pool of celebrating people, and continues to move through the crowded street, careful to keep his back to the stage. It was important to distance himself from the champions and the militia, if Lotharian wants to succeed in infiltrating the Lunk No'k Gang. As it stands, he could explain that he fought the infected horde as a merc, and wants to join the Gang to make some real money. Lotharian could play the sellsword angle, but if he was seen on stage celebrating with his friends, it would make his job that much more difficult.

[Emurian]

The Paladin waited for his companions and the newcomers to start moving before he himself aligned himself with the group behind Willow. A uneasy feeling went through him as his mind was mulling through the concept of needing to confront hundreds if not thousands of people outside. With so little time, the Dragenoid doubted that Turin would be able to properly prepare himself for the speech that he was assigned to give away. It didn't matter though, the people respected The White Guard and would most likely be satisfied with whatever the group had to say. Looking at Willow in front of him he started attempting to read her body language. She was a difficult one for him to perceive as the Warrior rarely seemed to openly show her true emotions on her face. Despite this, the way she stared at the newcomers gave him a slight hint of what she was thinking at. Laying his hand atop her shoulder he brings his mouth closer to her ear while speaking at a near whispering tone.

,,You focus to much on those in front of you, try to relax and smile for the crowd, there will be plenty of time to probe these newcomers once the festival is over. Il try to keep the both of them between us as much as possible. If you think that they might try anything which endangers our group then throw out a sharp whistle and I will be near your side within a moment. Im not trusting them either at the moment but we should be open minded for their stories and grasp any possible resource to gain information about Aurora and the way she and her cult operates. I don't like the riddles that this Elf spins but he seems willing to share his knowledge if only in small bits at a time. We will unravel his mysteries over time but for now our main focus should lie with our duty towards Black Grove.''

Padding her softly the Paladin picks up his speed to move more or less to the front of the group towards Turin. Throwing up a smile he speaks up. ,,Nervous?''

The 2 green emerald eyes of the Dragenoid are to be seen focussing upon the crowd in front of them. Surprised for a moment at the sight of the festivities he seems to take in his surroundings before continuing to move towards the mayor near the stage. Listening to his speech the Paladin nods in assent as the mayor proclaims the deeds of the militia. It felt good that Loki didn't leave out their contribution in his speech for the Paladin as the last thing he wanted to do was taking all the glory for the White Guards.

The man turns around towards the group at the mayors cue for the Heroes of Black Grove to reveal themselves. Holding out his arm outstretched he motions for Turin to be the first to enter the stage while watching the others. The Warrior his right eyebrow shifted slightly as he noticed that Lotharian was no longer amongst their ranks. Biting his lip for a moment the man tries to understand what drives the Ranger to sign one of their Kin up to speech to the crowd while dissapearing himself at the most crucial moment. Letting out a sigh he turns around again while forcing his mind to focus on the things ahead, there would be time to contemplate about Lotharian his motives later on he told himself as he started to climb upon the stage.

Staring forward the Dragenoid takes in the gathered crowd before him. A sense of unease passed through his body as he felt their eyes locked upon every single one of them. The Warrior had never liked to speak up to the Flock, it was one of the reasons why he had chosen the path of the Paladin at the monestary and not that of a Priest. Nevertheless it also felt good knowing that many of the people before them looked up to them and applauded their deeds. It gave a sense of self fullfilment to know that he had been fighting for the right cause.

Remaining silent the Paladin stands up straight in a knightly pose while tilting his head slightly higher then he should. Leaning slightly on his tower shield the man waits patiently for Turin to take the lead.

[BDax]

As the mayor calls the "Black Grove Heros" forth, Hedgewick follows suit of his companions and makes his way to the stage. The last few minutes have him very much confused (cultists of Avis seemingly helping them?) but at least some of his fellow adventurers seem to understand whatever is going on. There would be a lot to talk about from both groups back at the camp later, he was sure of it. He didn't trust the newcomers at all but let it go for the moment, the cultists would be fools to start trouble at a speech in front of an entire town full of people who would probably kill them anyway if it was known they were Avis' cultists. He pushed the worries to the back of his mind for now and thought about the task at hand; Turin's speech.

What a chore to accept, giving a speech with absolutely no preparations to a town expecting to hear from professional Heroes.... I hope Turin is up to it.

He suddenly smiled a little. And even if he's not...
Hedgewick waddled up behind Turin as the dwarf was headed out to the stage, just before his speech. He reaches out to pat him on the back comfortingly. Good luck friend, I'm sure you'll do well!

[Chekken]

Lotharain spots Plaxagorus. The man was dressed in a white shirt and brown pants: typical civilian attire. He is standing a little bit aways from the crowd. As you eye him, he speaks up.

"Whaddaya want?"