Heroica RPG - Quest #30: Ambassadors to Dastan

[Rumble Strike]

Tarn smiled at the prophet despite his wounds. "It heartens me greatly to see you again, Ella. And nice of your father to drop by. How is Mallelio?"

[Zepher]

"He's progressing quite nicely. Still bed-ridden, but most likely not for much longer. I can bring any questions you may have for him to him if you'd like." Ella nodded at Atramor.

[CMP]

Atramor shakes his head wearily, squinting in the glare of the camera the light of morning to see the form of Ella.

"Hmm? Aye, ask him about his research on the Gray Plague, tell 'im about the journals Wren took, and ask 'im about the Spiritus Intendere."

[Zepher]

"I will do that. I will report in when I next get the chance."

Ella leaves the room.

OoC: Feel free to role-play now. We're just waiting a day or two for the other Dastan Quests to catch up, but you guys might as well talk about Dastan and your thoughts on it/each other/heroing in general.

[CMP]

That's cool. My internet access is going to be somewhat limited tomorrow anyway.

Atramor scratches his chin. The silence builds and multiplies in the hospital room, leaving a heavy presence in the air.

"...So, when d'y'all we're gettin' outta this sand pit? If we're here s'long as the assassins are still alive, it's just a manner of how we can divide and conquer without gettin' beaten to the floor."

[Professor Flitwick]

Thothwick reached for his pocket watch, and flicked it open. Upon seeing the picture of Hoptet and himself, his stomach twinged in manor unrelated to the strange concoction that he drank earlier.

"I don't know, Witch. *cough* I'm unaware of how long we've been here, *cough* let alone how long we'll remain here. All depends how many more you poison."

[Rumble Strike]

Tarn looked at the others.

"I know the loss of U'Stus has been a real setback, but I am sure we will prevail in the end. We have kept most of our charges safe so far, and it has not been easy. My body still aches from our defeat, and my soul is weary, but we are strong, and we will keep fighting."

I have a question of a more personal nature, if I may. Atramor, Nyx, I believe you have seen the Copper Fox and have learned new skills to help you as a hero. I feel I am ready for that too. What would you suggest for me? I am undecided. My wise mentor Rystael is a Cleric, who taught me a great deal about honour and courage, and made me the person I am today. I would learn the skills as a Shaman to honour him, and the name of Valco, which was bestowed upon me once I came of age. But he also taught me how to wield words, and not just weapons. Atramor, you yourself told me in the Hall that I was more like a Knight than a Barbarian. This is why I am also considering the skills of a Bezerker.

We have been through many battles, all of us together. I would ask your thoughts on my dilemma."

I'm not ttrying to make it all about me, but would love some 'in character' advice from people who Tarn respects and admires.

[Pandora]

Nyx remains quiet, playing over the events in U'Stus's house again and again. The agony she endured as the Inventors bullets pierced her over and over was surely now her own ammunition, but the loss of U'Stus ran deep. She had always welcomed a soft bed, especially when they'd been so scarce before, but having grown so used to fighting she longed to be up and preparing for battle. Since joining Heroica, her impatience had only grown, along with her determination.

Her reveries are broken by the conversation; the metasimian and the witch bickering, and also Tarn, who was clearly in a contemplative mood too.

"The Copper Fox is a stern but fair teacher, and I believe he would find a good student with you. That you have a mentor that you wish to emulate speaks of the honour and courage he must have brought out of you. I have seen the same in battle. You fight with valour, you are not just fearless like a barbarian, but also brave like a knight. They sound similar, but they are in actuality very different qualities. You are also articulate, and charming, as many knights are..."

Nyx trails off, her mind wandering to thoughts of knights in general, and one in particular. She shakes her head, realising she should focus on the here and now.

"All that said, you are kind and caring Tarn - you have supported us all as a team, so the ways of a cleric would also come easily to you, I feel. I cannot say which specific enhancements of knight or cleric would suit you better, that you must decide with the Copper Fox. I would say, though, that fighting with honour and valour as a knight would still be a worthy tribute to your mentor, as it would embrace the ideals he has taught you.

Your choice must come from your heart, that is what I have discovered. I believe it is possible to change one's mind, although I'm not sure if that has ever happened. Whetever you choose, it will be right, because it is your choice."

[Professor Flitwick]

"Well, Mr. Tarn *cough*, I've never acquainted the Copper Fox, *cough* but I shall impart some advice, providing you have no qualms?"

Not leaving time for an answer, Thothwick ploughed on with his advice.

"I certainly agree with Ms. Nyx in saying you have the honour and valour of a Knight, as evidenced when the Witches knowledge of mathematics saw our party halved. *cough* Instead of panicking and fleeing, you remained calm and took charge of the remaining members of the party. You certainly seem to have the mindset of a Knight to further your battle prowess."

[CMP]

"Then I'll try not slip some Deadly Poison into your drink by accident, later."

On Tarn's dilemma, Atramor shrugged one shoulder, pulling out Ratsbane - in addition to his recently-acquired staff. With careful cuts, he began sharpening the end of the weapon into a sharp spike, brutalizing the once-beautiful Elven craftsmanship into a weapon more suitable to the Witch.

"I would say you decide for yourself, Tarn - and I don't mean that in a way that don't help you. I mean it in that ya' shouldn't bind yourself to a way of fightin' entirely based on your past. If I did that, I'd be pillagin' gold off everyone we fight as a Raider. I don't doubt you'd be good as a Shaman, but I think you're better in a pinch actually fightin'."

[Rumble Strike]

Tarn listens to the words of his friends, nodding in reflection.

"Thank you for your wise words, my friends. They are gratefully received by these ears, and give me more to consider once we depart these shores. If I may ask, Mr Thothwick, what path are you considering with the Copper Fox?"

[Professor Flitwick]

"Well, Mr. Tarn *cough*, I'm very much still mulling it over, but I can assure you that I shan't become a Witch; my morales wouldn't allow it!"

Thothwick bolts upright, though the pains in his stomach cause him to slide back down again.

"Blast, I still have Ms. Constance's sword! Ms. Ella! Ms. Ella, are you still there?"

[Zepher]

OoC: Don't worry, she took it back from you.

A cleric comes in and, after helping the party to their feet, lets them out of the hospital. They walk by a room as they exit, and Mallelio gives them a weak wave and smile from inside, but the clerics will not let the party talk to him as he needs rest at the moment. The sun has set on yet another Dastan day. Once outside, Felton bows to the party and excuses himself. A cleric tells them that Constance has requested them upon their release, and so the heroes make their way to the Dragon Knight Garrison.

They are greeted outside. Constance stands, sword in hand.

"We needn't bother going in. All my remaining troops are in the palace at the moment. I have a few bones to pick with you, heroes."

"It has come to my attention that you have cost us the life of U'Stus. If you had been more forceful with him, and remained at his house, he would still be alive. I held no love for the U'Kin, or the U'Kin in general, but the the riots his death has caused has lost me a number of men. Thankfully not Dragon Knights, enlisted boys, but regardless. I begged the Emperors to allow me to keep Dragon Knights around his house, but they assured me you would do your job. You did not."

"Dastan is in peril. The Emperors have thrown in their lots with strangers. You are not the only team of hired hands here. Lion Knights, the Chimera, and Assassins roam the land. One of our Emperors has gone missing. I would not be surprised if he turned up dead, or, worse, with the enemy. We can not have people in Dastan who do not have the good of Dastan at heart. It has occurred to me that if the Emperors are refusing to act, I must. I am asking you, politely, heroes, to leave Dastan. Take your friends the 'Wren Hunters', and leave. Return to Eubric. That is where you belong. The people of Dastan have always taken care of themselves."

[Fred Daniel Yam]

William finally speaks, "So, you tell us that we have to be more forceful? We put our lives on the line every day for our missions and we have seen and done more than you and your Dragon Knights. You are a cruel, sadistic and arrogant woman. You don't care whether boys die just so your precious Dragon Knights are alive. You probably value that sword more than your family! Look at us, we have fought so many enemies and made sacrifices all in our own way. You just stand there looking pretty while you send your men off to die. But you'll say, 'On! I fight with my men!' you need a reality check, Dastan is in peril, that's the whole freaking point why we're here. The Emperor have us here. Now I will say politely. Take a long walk off a short pier."

[Rumble Strike]

"Listen, lady. U'Stus was very much like yourself, and insisted time and time again that he did not need protection. In the end, we listened to him, although Nyx remained with him in case anything happened. I feel his loss, it hurts me, we acceded to his wishes and it cost him his life. So you can bet your lovely sword that we are now not going to listen to you. Because you are also one we are charged to protect. So we must decline your request to leave, our work here is not yet finished."

[CMP]

Atramor stretches at long last, two days having been spent cooped up in the hospital. He spins his personalized staff a bit, and chuckles at Constant after her ultimatum.

"Oh, for....ya' told me I didn't have to keep you company at Malleio's, and I don't have many doubts that uptight dragon-chafed megablocks of yours would've been thrown out the window by that Chaos Beast without me, Felton, and Hans' help. Removin' our protection from the people, what'll that do? We've saved over half of you so far. Look at the cleric, my friends here had to scale a mountain and cut their way through dozens of guard to save 'im, and they still did it. One screw-up ain't reasonin' enough for us to leave. You want us gone? You're gonna have to drag us out."

He glares the dragon knight commander in the ye, fists clenched tight over both his dagger and staff. After a moment, he blinks, and glances at the rest of the party.

"...Speakin' for myself, of course...but to be honest I don't see anyone else not sharin' me or Will's opinion."

[Pandora]

"Return to Eubric."

Listening to the tirade from the woman, the words about U'Stus cut Nyx like a knife. She replays the events in U'Stus's house over and over; relives the feeling that she must get to him, protect him, save him, and feels once more her closest ever brush with death. Having never known self-doubt, she doesn't understand the feelings running through her and her rage rises once more. She breathes deeply, controlling herself, and looks up before uttering one simple word, quietly but forcefully, laden with all her sadness and anger.

"No"

Nyx holds Constance's gaze even after she speaks, her intentions clear from the expression on her face.

[Professor Flitwick]

"I beg your pardon? Leave? Do you believe your Dragon Knights could have done better in our stead? It was us who averted the terrorist plot by XX, saving the lives of Mr. Nikolai, not to mention all the people in the market place. It was us who rescued Mr. Mallelio from the cultists. They'd be cadavers on a slab if it weren't for us! Dastan would not have taken care of them. You, Ms. Constance - Nay! Constance, that's correct, your rudeness mandates you not to recieve the correct appellation! - and people like you, with your narrow-mindedness and entrenched racism will only hasten your empires downfall! Send us back to Eubric would be the nail in your coffin."

[Zepher]

OoC: Way to come back en force VP!

"You do not understand, heroes. You must leave Dastan. You are not of this land. You don't feel the ground in your bones and the Dragons in your heart. Our people have fought to preserve this land for years, against all types of threats. You being here weakens us. If we lean on outsiders, our enemies will see our weakness and tear us apart. And I saved your lives, do not forget that heroes. I do not watch my men charge into battle. I lead the charge. I am no coward, Mr. Harkenshire, and you'd do best to remember that. I will ask you once-"

Constance is cut off by a cry in the darkness.

"Stand down, Constance. Your day of reckoning has come. You are a traitor to Dastan, and you will be cast out."

The party of Quest 29 steps forward. With them is Felton.

"Your actions have become clear. You have tried to stop our involvement at every turn. You have allowed the assassins into the city. You have prevented investigation of Mallelio's disappearance and you have sent us on an errand that resulted in an ambush. I have not told your surpriors. You have clouded their eyes. But the Wren Hunters and the heroes of Heroica have the ability to see through the cloud. We run up against evil time and time again. My present form is shaped by the evil that Wren has presented to me. Once I was a poor boy in a poor town. My goal was to protect and serve my town. Wren inadvertently gave me a higher purpose and I've adapted to recognize and fight evil everywhere. You are evil, and though Dastan is not my quarrel, your evil deeds must be stopped, regardless of whose quarrel they are."

Constance swings her sword in front of her.

"Time to show your true colors, heroes."

OoC: The way this works: Bold which team you'd like to join. Team Felton, or Team Constance. Alternatively, you could bold "I will sit out" or something to that effect. If all heroes sit out, there is a 50% chance Constance will be killed, and a 50% chance she will not be. Don't talk an outrageous amount of time. Once bolded, your choice may not be retracted. Once every hero has picked a team OR to sit out, we've got a fight on our hands.

[CMP]

Atramor blinks at the sudden arrival of others heroes, including the familiar Cronk and De'kra, lead by Felton. His eyes quickly flick back to Constance, though.

"My color is 006400 lies with Felton. At one point in my life I might've agreed with you, Constance, but it is clear to me now backwaters like this need help everyone now and again. Like weeding out the scum."

[CorneliusMurdock]

Greetings, fellow heroes! Before Cronk choose side, Cronk would like other party's assurance that Friend Felton is indeed Friend Felton.

Felton told Cronk and those in party with Cronk that Constance is bad lady. Do other heroes agree?

[CMP]

"Good to see ya' too, Cronk. This is certainly the real Felton, and yeah, lookin' back, Constance ain't been much in the way of help to us."

[Chromeknight]

Nerwen was still feeling lightheaded from the poison, as if it had collapsed into a weird there-but-not-there state. And now things were moving faster. Faced with the events unfolding, she understood that all that could be relied on were her party, as De'kra said. With she spoke,

I will side with whomever Sarick chooses. He is our party leader, I follow him.

Edited June 4, 2012 by Chromeknight

[Fugazi]

Galen was growing increasingly frustrated with the way people had been railroading his party ever since they set foot in Dastan. He was this far from throwing it all away and jump on the first caravan leaving Drakencourt in the morning, especially since the prospect of a reward at the end of their quest had grown dimmer every day. But he was curious to hear what the other Heroes would decide to do.

"Listen up folks, I don't see a point in fighting without knowing who we are really fighting for. Is it just me or is everybody we're running into trying to confuse the hell out of us? I don't know who the Lion Knights are allied to anymore, and whether the Emperors are acting together or not. Are we just pawns in a Cultist plan to turn the Emperors against each other and sow havoc? This Felton guy, he could be telling the truth, or he could be a traitor himself. How could we know for sure? Back in the caverns, we heard how Cultists were able to plant new souls in the body of dead people, basically creating perfect infiltrators. Russel, Nikolai, Felton, Constance, any or all could be Cultist spies trying to tear the Empire apart. It seems like by taking part in these fights and pointless missions, we're doing more wrong than good. Isn't there another way to figure out who's lying and who's not? Think people, because it's obvious that everyone wants us to rush into battle with our eyes closed."

[Pandora]

The sudden arrival of fellow heroes should have surprised Nyx, but the topsy-turvy events since arriving in Dastan had left Nyx just accepting all that occurs. She smiles at her old friends Cronk and Galen, and thinks back to the last time she spoke with Galen, in front of the Sand Queen, so very long ago. As expected he'd grown stronger, but his usual carefree, charming nature seemed fettered and his demeanour was one of a man with a heavy burden.

"Good to see you both Cronk, Galen."

Nyx nods politely and smiles warmly at their accompanying team, and then turns her thoughts back to the matter at hand. She speaks to her team and the newcomers quietly and out of earshot of both Constance and Felton.

"We have no way of really telling if Felton really is Felton; sure he looks the same, but this news of Cultists implanting souls in the dead has me worried. I will agree that Constance is exceptionally rude and obstructive, but my main reason for concern with her is that, as has been mentioned, Lord Lyons was expecting her in the Marketplace. I'm not convinced she is honourable, however I am still concerned that Felton may be an imposter. All the times we have seen him before he has fought bravely at our side and aided our cause, but your news Galen is really worrying."

Nyx turns and looks at Felton with a neutral expression

"Do you mind me asking, but what became of Hans and Phil and our dear little froggy friend? Are they well? And if I may ask further, but Constance was actually a charge we were hired to protect, what reason do you have to suspect her in particular of being a traitor?"