The Adventurers Guild

[Marcus Pheonix]

((Sorry bout the delay, I was busy with uni and in my free time i grew obsessed with Stardew Valley Let's put an end to this battle!))

 

Koral kept re positioning himself, using the nearly dead wargs body. The others seemed to be taking care of a few of the other wargs but Koral himself couldn't really pay attention in the situation he was in. He heard the cries of the others but kept his eyes fixed on the warg opposite him, the other one still groaning from the bear claws embedded in it's jaw.

 

Then another sound pierced Koral's ears, a low chuckle, and he realised it was coming from the other warg.

 

"Heheheh... it's been some time since I've smelled such a strange mix as you... I've always been fond of elf. A lot more... tender... than human," The warg droned in sickening common tongue.

 

At the creatures words Koral felt his eyebrow raise and the blood begin to rise. He hated any and all mention of his heritage... the fact that the wolf could discern it just from his scent meant that Koral was more elf than he though.

 

"If you want an elf, theres one up in the trees behind you," Koral said, his eyes glancing up behind the warg.

 

The warg chuckled again.

"Heheheh, amusing. To think your kind who call yourselves our betters are more willing to sell your comrades out than we you call beasts... amusing indeed", the warg continued chuckling. Koral smiled at the warg and chuckled himself, watching as Hinaii's broadsword swung down at the beasts head.

 

But before that could happen, the world seemed to grow silent, before a collosal shriek of wind enveloped it. With a crash the tree Oryx and Toyos had been standing in collapsed upon itself, the trees surrounding it all began creaking loudly as they were pulled towards the vortex summoned by Oryx.

 

The warg that had been talking, while large was still significantly lighter than the two half orcs, and it was instantly pulled towards the gravitational pull of the vortex, colliding hard into Hinaii, already injured was knocked off her feat. Koral was unaffected due to the body of the, now deceased, warg he was gripping as a shield. The combined weight of Hinaii herself and her armour kept her from being pulled, as the warg that had collided with her tumbled over on itself, towards the vortex, it's neck snapping in the process.

 

((Well the vortex will finish off any of the remaining wargs assuming there are any, but now it's up to you folk to explain how you weren't sucked in))

[Paintra]

((Toyos jumped down from the tree, by the way. ^^ Also, I'm a big fan of Stardew Valley too! ))

 

Toyos gasped as the tree behind them flew into the vortex. The elf, who did not have the greatest brute strength, couldn't possibly force their way out of the situation. However, the spectral warg they had summoned soon ran to their aid. Toyos grabbed onto its fur, and the warg, who was much stronger than they were in terms of pure force, began to help drag the elf away from the vortex.

 

When they were strong enough to break away from the influence by themself, the elf moved further and further away, until they could sit down, and not be moved by the sheer force of the windy vortex.

 

"That was nicely done." They murmured, just loud enough for the two half-orcs to hear. "I should congratulate him later."

 

[Drakkoh]

((*whispers* a moooooooonth!))

 

Looking down at the worg he'd slain, it's cold, dry, lifeless husk of a shell now baring nothing left for Bryce to feed on, he felt a familiar craving. The smells of the forest were overpowered by the scents of open wounds and blood splatter. He felt as if he could detect the very pulsations of the hearts of the living, and he wanted nothing more than to see them driven before him, to drain every little bit of life from their shells until their writhing forms were... No! Nooo! -he struggled to keep the horrid thoughts at bay for a moment.

 

*smack*Bryce reeled back in pain, realizing he'd been hit right in the face by a branch carried by the winds. It stung like hell, but it certainly did assist him in snapping out of his delusions. Shaking it off, he jabbed his dagger into the ground, and used it as leverage to pull himself against the wind. It didn't take long, but with a lot of effort, he managed to move away just enough to avoid being sucked straight into that accursed vortex. Ears still ringing and stomach feeling like it was filled with sewage, he paused for a few moments to recollect his thoughts.

[Marcus Pheonix]

((Remember how I said 1 post per week... yeah... I see no sign of Windra and Spyro informed me that oryx would be unconscious, or at least far too out of it so I'm gonna progress things, please ignore the minor godmodding))

 

The gale died down, leaving a pile of leaves, sticks, bark and dead wargs at it's epicenter. Koral pulled himself to his feet and finally pulled his hand free of the dead warg he'd been holding. Holding out his hand he assisted Hinaii to her feet and the two of them walked over to the pile of wargs, Koral dragging his warg with him.

"Damn, what was that?" He asked aloud. There was a slight rustle of leaves and then the body of Oryx dropped onto the pile of wargs. He let out a pained groan, drained of nearly all his energy.

The elf soon joined them looking at the pile of wargs and Oryx at it's peak.

"Where is Bryce?" They asked looking around, before hearing the pained 'here' of the human.

"Figures, the healers the one most in need of healing, well I'm gonna get about gathering up the valuables from these beasts, I'd wager Warg pelts and claws would fetch a penny when we reach Mountainfel," Koral said, getting down on one knee and drawing a knife as he began to skin the wargs.

Laughing, Hinaii reached down and scooped up the paralysed Oryx off the ground.

"Haha! That was a good bout! Though I wish you would've let me finish them!" She chimed.

 

((Timeskip))

 

After some time followed by another day of travel the crew finally arrived at the town of Mountainfel. Build into the side of Heavens valley the town had large stone walls, and plumes of smoke billowed out from it, as a mining town it was also a prominent smiting town, it's metal goods being it's second biggest export after the silver. As they approached the gates the guards naturally crossed their spears.

"Alright, what business do you have in Mountainfel?" The taller of the two asked.

"We are the adventurers here from the guild in Hargrave," Toyos said clearly, displaying the glowing mark of the guild on their arm. In response the rest of them all showed their own marks.

The guards relaxed their stance, "Thank goodness, we've been having so much trouble with those goblins. You'll want to speak with the captain of the guard once your settled at the inn, he'll be able to inform you on what's been going on down there," The taller one said.

Toyos gave a nod and the crew walked passed.

"I guess we should do as they said and head for the inn first?" Bryce said.

"Aye, thats probably the best idea. But let's talk to the chief then tackle the mines tomorrow... after all that walking I could use a proper bed," Koral said, nursing his sore arm.

 

((You can decide how your characters all ended up after the battle, was Bryce able to heal everyone (and himself) or not. Sorry for the timeskip if you still wanted to do more in the fight))

[MrSpyro]

Oryx, unlike the others, was wide awake, as he was out cold for most of the trip. He figured he might as well make himself useful. He told the others, "I think I'll ask for the details now. I'm not as tired as you guys, so I can strategize while you sleep, if you're okay with it." And hurried off before someone could comment, because he knew he wouldn't be able to argue with them if they weren't okay with it. Oryx approached the city guard's station ((or whatever the word is)) and knocked politely on the door. After about a second, a gruff voice came from inside. "State your business," it said. Oryx responded, "I-I'm a member of the Adventurer's Guild. I was sent from, uh, Hargrave to deal with the Goblins." The guard opened the door to see the visitor and stifled a laugh. "You're a member of the Adventurer's Guild?! Like a scrawny little brat like you could even lift the quill to write out your application!" Oryx tried to explain. "Actually, I, uh, am a magician, and there are four other people on my team, but they, uh..." Oryx gave up and showed them the sigil on his hand. The guard stopped laughing. "My apologies. The Captain is right this way." And led him inside.

[Paintra]

Toyos sighed, watching Oryx run off. Not like we could have stopped him anyways. I need to sleep... Toyos yawned, then turned to the remaining members of the group. "Have any of you ever been to Mountainfel? I have. I met a conjurer here once. A tiefling. Taught me my first rune."

 

"Anyways," They continued, beginning to walk towards where they knew the nearest inn was. "Unless Mountainfel's been jumbled around since i've been here, I should be able to lead us to the inn." Aside from knowing where the inn was, Toyos also just wanted to be in the lead due to their liking of being in charge.

 

Toyos's mind wandered back to that tiefling. His name was... Valkeyrie? Valkera? Something with Valk, that's for sure. He had a whole book of runes. I wish I could have studied something like that. I didn't ask him if he lived here. Maybe we'll see him again?

 

((I talked to Fiskit about Val! Toyo and Val met briefly, and Toyos assumed he was a conjurer just because he taught them a conjuration rune. Hopefully Val can join in soon!))

[Drakkoh]

Finally... -sighed Bryce, his tired and sore frame finally able to get some rest. Adventuring was hard, and he needed some time to get his head back on straight. He hadn't expected to have to resort to using blood magic so soon after starting his new life. It was a great relief, however, that he heard little to nothing about it from his new companions. Either they were accepting, or ignorant of the school.... either way, it played to Bryce's advantage.

 

He'd done what he could to patch up his team, at least as well as a field medic with limited time and injuries of his own to deal with could. Now that they stood before an opportunity to rest and recover, he would probably get a chance to better handle his party's wounds.

 

Listening to Toyos about the encounter, he sighed and stated Never been here before, but I'd like to get my hands on one of those books too. We had next to nothing on anything besides healing, divination, sodding religious testimonies and texts and what not in that church I'm from." -he shook his head, scowling a little Glad we had people coming through every now and then. This one time, this creepy bloke passed by, right? Baggy eyes, pale skin, the whole package. I was tending the main hall at the time. He just walks in, not wanting anything, and before I could even ask him a single damned question, he shoves a satchel into my hands, grins like a bloody idiot, and walks off. he shrugs, then takes out the curved dagger he'd used against the worgs earlier. It's blade was still caked in blood and pulsing with warmth, despite his numerous attempts at washing it in cold water.

 

I took a look and lo' an bloody behold! This little blade right here, and a book with the weirdest damn cover I've ever seen. -he recalled the events- It felt like leather, but it was unlike any kind of leather I've ever known, that's for sure. But the contents have saved my arse more times than I'd like to let on about. So I hung onto it, glad I did.

Edited April 2, 2016 by Drakkoh

[Marcus Pheonix]

Koral grunted in acknowledgment for Toyos to lead them to the inn.

He paused and looked at Bryce, listening to him go on.

 

"I thought you religious magic wielders didn't like the arcane... it's two separate things, like how warlocks use a contracted demons magic, religious folk use the power of their deities," Koral inquired. He gathered that natural magic would also fall outside the bounds of standard arcane and holy magic.

 

"You know, now that I think about it, I wonder if any other people were meant to join us... that dwarf he sounded surprised that there were so few of us at the meeting, and I don't think it was just because we were missing a single person," He said, looking intently at Bryce, wondering where the dagger had come from.

 

"Anyway, how far to the inn, I could use some mead!" Hinaii's loud voice burst out, glancing eagerly around them, as if expecting the inn to just appear within arms reach.

Koral chuckled, "Ha! So long as you don't get into a fight I'm down to drink with ya!" He said heartilly, earning himself a thump on the back by the taller half-orc.

In his head he was wondering whether alcohol induced property damage would be taken out of their pay.

 

-----------

 

The captain looked up from his desk, he was a halfling with a bald head, and thick salt and pepper mustache that curled at the tips, quite an impressive stache indeed. He looked up as one of the guards lead in a lanky looking black dragonborn.

 

"Dragonborn ey... you ain't one of t'e locals I can tell ya t'at" He said, his thick accent heavily evident.

"Ya 'ere ta report a stolen item or sumt'in?" He asked, looking inquisitively at the guard.

The guard in response shook his head and replied, "No sir! This ones one of the adventurers sent out here to help with the mines".

The captain looked at him for a moment then stood up, dropping in height as he did, as he got off his raised chair.

"Fair enough, are you all we got? T'eres quite a number o' vermin down t'ere," He said, leaning on his large battleaxe to look at Oryx, inspecting him up and down.

 

((I know that Val is meant to be from Mountainfel, or at least thats where Toyos met him, but he'd still have had to go to Hargrave to sign up, so perhaps he and Aluel can come together?))

Edited April 7, 2016 by Marcus Pheonix

[Paintra]

Toyos opened the door of a sparsely-crowded inn, it's visitors including an intoxicated-looking dwarf, along with an elf with deep gray skin writing something at a table. A gruff dragonborn who almost looked to be half elf -how was that even possible?- greeted them gruffly when they walked in.

 

"Newcomer! Lookin' fer a drink?" He called, then noticed the rest of the crew walking in. "Er... Drink an' some rooms, eh? We might 'ave a bit'o trouble with tha' biggun." Hinaii barked, "What's that supposed to mean?!" The innkeep chuckled to himself. "Nothin, nothin... Just a little joke. Ya want beds, ya got em. How many do ya need? Four?" Toyos shook their head, correcting him. "Five. One of us ran off somewhere. He'll find us eventually." They shrugged, looking over the rest of the group.

 

The innkeep nodded. "Make sure he don't get into too much trouble 'round tha city, though. Locals don't appreciate it much." Toyos nodded. "Anyways. Yer rooms, eh? Ya got coin?" Toyos nodded, and looked back at the rest of the group. "I'll pay for Oryx's room, so don't worry about him."

 

As the rest of the adventurers pooled their money, the half-elf looked over them. "Now, we got a couple of rooms for ya. Now, I'm no expert, but I think tha biggun right 'ere should have a room to 'erself. We don't have enough rooms fer the rest've ya to 'ave rooms to yerself, with tha rest've my customers, so ye'll have to share rooms, if yer okay with that."

 

Toyos sighed and nodded. They hoped whoever they had to share a room with wasn't a noisy sleeper, at the very least.

 

"Now," they turned to the group, addressing them once more, "Would anyone like some drinks?"

 

(I'm thinking Val (or the other newcomer! ) should come in in the middle of them having a good time in the inn? I told Fiskit that they'll be able to post soon, so most likely they will. Also, welcome, to everyone joining!!)

[Fiskit]

Val pulled his minx fur a bit tighter around himself and gave himself a final look in the mirror before exiting the claustrophobic inn bathrooms. He had styled his hair into two long braids down his back today, falling behind his ears and horns and ending near his hips.

 

It was so tiresome to be in a town he had been in before. And to stay in a town that he had been in before for more than a day? While having to stay at least mostly sober? Unheard of. Returning to a place where the majority of your memories were of drinking, dancing, and being otherwise carefree was not very fun when you had an actual purpose this time.

 

The Adventurer's Guild. So prestigious! It was supposed to be fun. Life's next adventure. He had traveled, partied, learned magic and learned lessons... Now it was time to get serious. A steady income. A team!

 

A team that he couldn't seem to find, no matter where he had been looking. He had rented a horse hoping to get here fast so that he wouldn't miss them, but in his haste he had arrived at Mountainfel before them, and he had wasted his remaining cash on renting a stupid horse. It was a struggle to even afford his inn room. And here he was, walking out of a dirty inn bathroom, to find--

 

Elf! The elf! He had met them here, last time he was here! On a sober day. He had taught them a sigil, maybe? Or a rune. But it was them! Right? He had never seen another elf quite like them. Toys? Toyso? It was blurry. But there they were! Talking to the inn keeper. With a whole posse.

 

A very buff orc (ooh-la-la), a... dragonborn... orc... combo...?, and possibly most surprising of all, a human! And then there was the elf. They were even taller than he remembered! So freckly! So, well, cute! A familiar face was a relief, and Val didn't hesitate to approach.

 

"Elf! Apologies, I seem to have lost your name! But we've met! Right? Wait, please tell me I have the right elf!" He laughed briefly, not leaving space for an answer as he went on speaking. "Gods, you wouldn't believe how pleased I am to see you! I'm looking for some people from the Adventurer's Guild, I-- Sorry, but brief sidenote, have you gotten taller? Maybe a little more muscular...? Sorry, sorry! So have you seen anyone like that? Someone, well, adventurey?" He laughed a second light, airy laugh, akin to bells chiming. "And while we're talking, introduce me to your friends!" He turned towards the party, pointing each one out in turn. "I'm seeing a human, a dragonborn type thingy, and an orc. Does that sound about right?"

[Paintra]

Toyos actually almost laughed. They had just been thinking about this particular tiefling! Even more funny, he was looking for adventurers from the Guild! The elf relaxed a little bit. "These are my partners, that's Koral. He's a half-orc, actually. To his left is Hinaii. She's half-orc, half-dragonborn, so you got that one perfect, along with Bryce. He's human!" They brought a hand to their lips, letting out a small chuckle. It wasn't often that you got that from the regularly-solemn elf.

 

"I suppose I'll explain things one by one. First of all, I'm Toyos. I seem to have neglected to tell you my name! I suppose another important thing to mention would be that if you're looking for the adventurers from Adventurer's Guild, then you've found it right here." The elf showed the mark of the guild, confirming their statement. "There's also one more of us, named Oryx. He's another dragonborn. Scales black as night. Tall. You can't really miss him."

 

"Oh, and, I do believe I've gained a bit more muscle. I've been training more and more lately. Perhaps I've become taller as well. You seem to have changed in stature a bit since we last met, as well." ...it flew over Toyos' head entirely. They continued. "Anyways, we're staying here for the night. I don't suppose you happened to join the guild as well? It would be interesting to see your skills. You were quite quick with the rune you taught me, even while slightly intoxicated. It impressed me." Toyos admitting awe was, in itself, impressive. The elf almost never let a person get a chance to think they were better than them at anything.

 

Toyos went over some other minor details with the contract they were given, such as how they planned on leaving the next day to head to the cave that the goblins were coming from, and also explained a little bit about how they had got to Mountainfel from Hargrave, with the wargs, and their fighting strategy. The tiefling and the elf sat down at a table together, and Toyos, feeling as if they needed to be in charge, ordered drinks for the entire group, grimacing a little bit at the price, despite how cheap plain alcohol is. Then the group began to have a merry time in the little inn. Halfway through their drink, a sudden realization entered their eyes.

 

Letting out a quiet laugh, the elf took another sip of their drink before awkwardly asking. "I don't... quite remember your name either. Valkyrie doesn't seem right, but I know it was something similar to that? Valke? I don't recall. My apologies." They dipped her head slightly, looking down at their freckled hands.

 

((Toyos has an immediate bias towards liking Val, because they think he's a conjurer AND they know him already ))

Edited April 11, 2016 by Darkstorm34

[Fiskit]

Val giggled to himself, already feeling at ease with his new companions, despite the human's tenseness and the dragonborn orc's loudness and how intimidating the half orc was.

 

"Valkesel. But Val works. Or Kessa!" He replied, taking another sip. It was good to drink with friends. It was also a bit worrying how quickly he trusted them all. Suppose that's a naive optimist for you.

 

"But I'm not interested in discussing myself any longer. I want to hear about everyone else! Toyos, I know a bit about you already," He threw in a quick wink, "But I know next to nothing about the rest of you! Perhaps the half orc would like to mention his other half? Or the human would like to talk about... whatever it is he does?" Val turned towards the group, smiling, excitedly waiting for a response.

[MrSpyro]

Oryx avoided making eye contact with the halfling. "I know I don't really look like much, but I have four teammates. They're probably asleep right now, because it took most of the day to get here and we were attacked by Wargs. I'm just really here for the details so that I can take tonight to figure out a good method to get rid of them."

 

((My brain is fried from math homework, so sorry for the short post, even by my standards.))

[colourcodedchaos]

The horse galloped through the streets - well, street - of Mountainfel like a thing possessed, its eyes glassy and half-mad with terror. As the villagers watched in shock, the poor thing skidded and fell, colliding heavily with a rain barrel outside the tavern and twitching as it lay on the ground. At least it hadn't gone lame; that would be no fate at all for a proud white charger like him. He was the kind of horse you'd want your prince to ride in on and save the day, and here he was, frightened to within an inch of his life. What manner of foulness could have done that to such a noble steed?

 

---

 

"Er... let's, let's try the young lady out on Boris, gentle sirs, he's a bit more, y'know, docile..."

 

Aluel shrugged, and there's nobody that can shrug quite like a six-foot greenish octopus woman that walks like a man. The two humans from the guild simply helped the stablemaster about his business, and were indifferent to the baketako recruit as she squelched off to complete the rest of the physical exam. At least the other ones seemed to have gone well; if nothing else, she had the fastest completion time on record for the theory examination, though the fact that she filled out the papers simultaneously might have had a little to do with it.

 

Her gaze alighted on another party of Loki-tiers leaving for Mountainfel and an unqueenly pang of jealousy ran through her. She hadn't been, but she could read maps and make them, and she at least had her pistol and wand for defence. The muzzle-loader was a heavy and rather inelegant thing, but it was hers and she was used to its many, many foibles. Guns, it was becoming clear to her, were as temperamental as cats and liked to do their own thing even when under close supervision, but the twin-barrelled pistol was sturdy and resilient, as some previous firing tests had shown it could fire small stones, iron nails, and even sturdy bits of bog-oak without much damage to the operating systems. Newfangled percussion lock weapons had been recommended to her, but flint and powder was the way she liked it. She could take them apart and see how every component worked. It was... soothing, in a way.

 

A more compliant horse with the slightly glazed expression of someone who may well be seeing three of you, all in different colours, was eventually dredged up from the stables, and she demonstrated her skill at riding. Baketako commonly rode on the surface as part of long trading caravans, and she was reasonably competent at it once human-bred horses had got used to her. The pretty white stallion's remarkable turn of speed, however, was what happened when they weren't used to her. Idly, she wondered where it might end up, then dismissed the thought. It'd show up somewhere.

 

---

 

A much more sedate clip-clop of hooves arrived a few hours after the horse had recovered, and there was the smell of the briny deeps on the wind. Since Mountainfel's only major body of water was a freshwater lake several leagues away, this might have been a bit disturbing. The white horse, renamed to Grey by one of the townsfolk's less imaginative members, promptly went completely berserk.

 

---

 

Aluel rode briskly through the scrubby foothills, Boris the horse still bearing an expression normally associated with the heavily medicated. It would still only be half a day's ride at Boris's pace, assuming there weren't any unforeseen proble-

 

The windrang with the snarls of Worgs, the last remnants of a pack already bested.

 

I just had to say that, didn't I? I just had to.

 

---

 

The slow, dazed-looking horse was tied up in the remaining stable while some workmen got on with nailing up the other one's wall. And into the inn came the source of the horse's terror, a strange thing, dressed in fine blue robes, wielding a staff, brandishing a pistol, and holding a worg's head. All at the same time. She looked around the bar and found the party from earlier, so she squelched over to them, doing her best to ignore the pin-drop silence that had filled the room like poison gas.

 

"Ladies, gentlemen, beings of indeterminate gender. I am Aluel, the Arrow of Piye, third leftenant of the King's Guard, and I am at your service." Aluel rooted through a pocket for a moment and turned to face the barmaid. "Ah, humble maid, a round of your finest ales for everyone in the inn!"

 

The barmaid shook and stared at the bright green walking octopus.

 

That was roughly when the screaming started.

[Marcus Pheonix]

The Guard Captain

 

The man chuckled as he looked at the nervous face of Oryx.

"What's t'a matter kid?" He asked, amusement evident in his voice.

"T'ink i'm gonna challenge you to a duel?" He finished, before chuckling heartilly, hefting his axe up onto his shoulder.

"I've no doubt I'd like to test t'a mettle o' anyone who says t'ey can 'andle our problem... but I know t'ose robes boy... you're a mage o' some kind," He said, his mouth returning back to just a smirk.

"No doubt if you got into t'a Adventurer's Guild, you got some talent... and I don't wanna spar against someone 'ho's skills are an unknown," He placed his axe on the ground and limped over to oryx, using the axe as a cane. Before giving him a heartilly pat on the back (or lower back, considering their size difference).

"Now stop mopin', let's get to t'e briefin'" He cheerily declared.

The chief walked over to one of the cabinets in his room and began searching through the draws before pulling out a thin roll of parchment.

Placing it on his desk, he unraveled it, revealing a fairly detailed diagram that was clearly a map.

"Alright, alright, alright... Couple weeks back, these goblins broke into our mine, attacking all the folk we had down there. Broke in t'rough t'e back, down by one o' t'e mined out shafts," He said, placing his finger on a section of the map.

"T'ere ain't many to be honest... but with the safety of our city, t'ick walls at t'e front, mountain at t'e back. The guards been limited, t'e majority 'ead out, escorting caravans t'at pass t'rough. But as a result we can't 'andle t'ese goblins," He said, removing his hand and looking back up at Oryx.

"Now, from what t'e survivors of the attack said... t'ere can't 'ave be more t'an ten or twenty! But the tunnel t'ey came t'rough is likely still open, so who knows how many came t'rough since," He said, looking earnestly at Oryx.

"Now. You lot 'ave got to clear t'em out. We've 'ad supplies stored and 'ave made due, but word from t'e smiths is t'at stocks are runnin' low. We need t'ese mines back. Can I count on your party t'e get t'e job done?" He asked, extending his hand out in a sign of agreement towards Oryx.

 

((Sorry about his accent... it's probably hard to read... and i'm regretting it now))

 

Koral

 

((Miko will you get around to changing Toyos knowing about Korals elven blood please?))

 

Koral watched the excited exchange between Toyos and the newcomer, as they chatted he sat down at the bar, dropping a few copper on the table.

"Can I get a mead?" He asked, dully.

The innkeeper nodded and soon enough a sweet smelling pint was in Korals hands. He lifted it up to take a sip when the newcomer suddenly spoke to him, prompting Koral to pause.

He turned his gaze to the newcomer... tieflings weren't common but he knew about the species, though he thought they would be more serious considering their connection to demons.

"Half", He replied flatly, before taking a swig of his mead. He nodded, they must get their honey imported fairly fresh... either that or stored with magic, it was certainly as sweet as honey.

As he went to take another swig the whole inn came to a shuddering quiet as a loud voice echoed about the room.

Turning to see the commotion his jaw partially dropped at the sight of the... person? Who just spoke.

What the... what is she? He wondered, she looked like a monster of some kind, but the fact that she... he thought it was a she, spoke so clearly in common that he guessed she mustn't be.

Turning back around he downed the last of his flagon and held it out to the innkeeper.

"You heard the... tentacles, filler her up," He said, trying to maintain a cool demeanor.

He glanced at Toyos and Val.

"So Pal... Twigs, what you having?" He asked curiously.

 

((Hooray new nicknames , Pal and Tentacles (though the latter will evolve in time)))

[Paintra]

((A topic I'm introducing in this post is Toyos' native tongue, Sollish! The letters are pseudo-cyrillic! коэѓ, Toyos' new name for Koral, literally means "Bear", while vаlкэѕ, their name for Val, is just a more personal version of his name, pronounced a bit different than normal (though with toyos' accent, everything sounds a little "different.")))

 

Toyos barely even registered that Koral had said a thing- they were too busy gazing at the new stranger. I recall hearing of something like this. A bake...taku? Who knows. They certainly weren't on our theory exam. Likely because they aren't monsters. They're people, just... Very unusual people. Then a smile spread across their lips. "Thank you, madam. My tiefling friend and I here gladly accept this gift."

 

A vague memory burst into their mind, and they spoke quickly and quietly. "Фссаи таv. The literal translation from Sollish, my tongue, being "Ocean Folk." Baketako, I believe? vаlкэѕ," They met Val's eyes, then turned to Koral, "коэѓ, have you ever met one?" They didn't wait for an answer, beckoning Aluel closer with a hand. "Why don't you introduce yourself to this kind lady?"

 

Something definitely seemed strange with Toyos. They were usually cautious about new people, never so nice and friendly, but they were definitely being overly sociable. They also had never used those nicknames for the members of the group before. So what was up with them?

 

...was it the drinks? Oh, no, it couldn't possibly be the drinks, could it? They had hardly had two and a half! Of course, the elf was small, but that was hardly anything! But it was true- Toyos could barely hold a drink. They quickly became intoxicated from even the least bit of alcohol- as, unlike most species, it wasn't custom in their group to drink or make alcohol, so they didn't have alcohol until long after they left their home. Thus, their low tolerance.

 

That aside, there still stood the... situation which was the tentacled creature which was the cause of general panic in the inn. Had this newcomer just come to drink? Perhaps not.....

 

Only Aluel knew that as of yet.

[MrSpyro]

Oryx nodded as the captain explained the situation. "Goblins aren't too hard to deal with, so I doubt that it would be too hard a task. However, do you have a map of the mines, preferably with the point where they got in marked? I think that's all we'll need for now." The captain simply replied with "Aye, we got plenty." And motioned to one of the other guards, who left and returned with a scroll tied with a red ribbon. The guard handed it to the captain, who presented it to Oryx, along with an "I guess y're all set." And with that, Oryx headed out to meet his teammates at the inn.

 

Oryx walked through the door thirty minutes after he left, due to getting turned around near the markets. He called out to the others. "Alright. I'm back." and set the scroll on the table. He noticed two others sitting by his teammates, a Tiefling with long hair and a cloak and a Bakeneko or whatever you call them wearing a headband. She probably has a Tumblr, whatever that is, Oryx thought to himself, cringing a little. He noticed both of them had weapons. "So," he began. "Are these two going to be on our team?"

 

((I temporarily controlled the guard captain to advance the plot, and just ignore the fourth wall break.))

[Fiskit]

Val's eyes flitted from person to person, silently consuming all of the excitement. A walking octopus! Holding a worg head! Drinks! Friends! Toyos using nicknames!

 

He had to admit, his initial reaction to the baketako, as Toyos had called it, was not a very pleasant one. Though he had been away from home for many years now, his upbringing still weighed heavily on him, much to his dismay. He was tragically terrible at accepting new people and ideas, so he would be lying if he were to say that the bipedal sea creature hadn't terrified him. But upon hearing her voice, and seeing how pleasant she seemed to be, once you got past the... slimy exterior, he realized she would be a great companion to have!

 

He continued to listen to the conversation avidly, but while Toyos spoke to the octopus woman (or at least, he assumed it was a woman), he was mentally taking a tally of the teammates he'd met.

 

Koral, the very strong half orc with the bear skin and the secrecy who enjoyed a pint.

 

Hinaii, scary large dragonborn orc that burps a lot and drinks like a menace.

 

Bryce, spooky human. Still didn't quite have a reading on that one.

 

Toyos. Gorgeous, gorgeous Toyos. He had to remind himself that he wasn't allowed to "play" with his teammates like he might like to.

 

And now, the octopus woman. Once the initial shock faded, he was actually rather excited to get to know her! Did she live underwater? Was it hard for her to walk on two legs? Did she do any magic? He shivered a bit just thinking of all the questions he wanted to ask, and instinctively wrapped his shawl a bit tighter around him.

 

Then, the second dragonborn walked in. Metallic black scales (shiny!) and impossibly tall! He walked a bit funny, which Val quickly attributed to his apparent lack of a tail. Valkesel began to turn over possibilities in his mind. How did he lose it? It couldn't have been too long ago, because he still seemed a bit shaky and awkward, despite his massive height. Or perhaps he was just a shaky and awkward person?

 

Then the dragonborn opened it's mouth. "So, are these two going to be on our team?"

 

Val beamed, standing immediately and extending a delicate hand over the table he was sharing with Toyos, standing on his toes a bit to reach his hand all the way towards the dragonborn. "I believe so! Pleasure to meet you! My name is Valkesel, but just 'Val' will do! Who might you be?"

 

Realizing he hadn't extended a similar courtesy to the baketako, Val put down the drink that he brandished in his other hand and extended that hand to the octopus woman. "And I'm very sorry, but I haven't extended you the courtesy of an introduction either! I'm a bit scatterbrained today, I do hope you'll forgive me! Just a name will be fine. Or tell me what kind of abilities you have! Or about life underwater, maybe? I just wish to get to know you, if it's not too much trouble!"

[colourcodedchaos]

"You are all well met, and the Kingsguard greets you." Aluel bowed, the gesture courtly and oddly stiff considering she didn't technically have any bones, and gently shook the tiefling's hand, the suckers of her tentacles making rather off-putting slurping noises. "And yes, I am to be an adventurer. The Court of my King, Piye the Ever-Living, has need of those who would fight the battles an army cannot. Mine has been a life of soldiery, and I would put it to use defending the innocent, those small and simple folk who have no recourse to the privilege of rank or the strength of arms." She gently lifted the tray from out of the ashen-faced barmaid's hands (without looking away from the assembled adventurers, that would have been rude) with a word of thanks and let the worg's head thump onto the table, one of its fangs breaking off in the wood. "My people, the baketako in your tongue and the -" a complicated series of flashing lights "- in our own, are sea folk in large part, but others form caravans and wander whither we may throughout the kingdoms of the land-dwellers. Walking upright is something we must learn, for our normal gait is ill-suited to the land, but we ride well and are rich folk. Those are oft enough for bandits to come after us... hence my desire to fight."

 

"And you would not believe the kind of day I've had trying to get here. So come! Drink! Let us make merry, for - so the guards at Hargrave would tell it - we journey under the mountain soon, for to find goblins and their foul ilk." Her skin flashed under her makeup, the light making her face seem to glow as she turned to face Oryx. "So yes, good sir, I am seconded to this happy band. I am a water mage by training and a gunner by inclination, though I have but one old pistol and scant ammunition to my name. You may have guessed as to why." A spare tentacle prodded the worg's tooth, which made a noise like spunnnnng, conveniently for a narrator. "It is my fervent wish that we all survive, and I was informed that a ranged combatant with knowledge of water spells would be most useful in a confined space like the mines at Mountainfel. And so, I most humbly beseech your permission to join; I do not wish to impose upon you if you have already planned for the coming battle, though perhaps I might assist if you have not. If I might see your notes on the schematics of the mines? Tricks and traps are a goblin's stock-in-trade, and it would serve us all well not to have the party's wizard blunder blindly into an ambush or triggered rockfall."

 

She looked around, taking in the band as she produced a fat gold coin and placed it in the barmaid's apron pocket. "You... have done that, yes?"

 

((OOC: Oh Aluel. U so tryhard. =] ))

[Marcus Pheonix]

The innkeeper looked down at the wargs head.

"Could you please get rid of that..." He said, trying not to over vocalise his disgust as the drying black blood of the creature oozed out onto the counter.

 

Koral meanwhile just stared, his mouth slightly agape as Aluel spoke. When she finally finished he downed the entire second pint of mead in one long gulp and stood, patting his hand on Bryce's shoulder.

 

"You smell strange, I'll share with Onyx," He said, there was a lingering smell of blood on Bryce that Koral didn't like, all of them had gotten a little bloody during the fight but he himself seemed to retain the smell a lot more. He he then walked around the rest of them and up the stairs towards the rooms of the inn. He made his way inside and saw two human sized beds, kicking off his boots he dropped down onto the bed, his hood and pelt still in place.

 

And went to sleep.

 

((Koral no likey tentacles))

[MrSpyro]

Oryx looked down at the floor. "Actually, I just kinda got the map half an hour ago." He looked even further down, somehow, and added, "And those thirty minutes were spent trying to find my way here. Anyways, here's the map." Oryx undid the scroll and flattened the map on the table. One area, marked in red, was probably the place where the goblins got in, and a larger area, in blue, was most likely the presumed location of their camp. "Also," He remembered, retrieving his guide to monsters. "It wouldn't hurt to determine the kind of goblins we're dealing with." Oryx flipped through to the entry on goblins, noticing an entry on Baketako in the Civilized Races chapter. Oh, that's what they're called, Oryx remembered. Bakenekoes are the people with cat ears.

 

((Not dying on me))

[Fiskit]

Val watched as the half-orc stood and left the table, and listened as he proclaimed that he would share a bed with Onyx. Onyx? Val supposed that that must be the name of the dragonborn who was now spreading a map on the inn table. Or was it just a nickname?

 

Val watched in anticipation as the map was spread, and carefully examined the colored areas of it, trying to figure out what each could mean. He then began to ponder the general idea of how this fight was going to go down.

 

The little tiefling had never really been one for organization or planning. He was rather impulsive, and the vast majority of fights he had been in were against bandits on the road or bar fights, which he could never fully remember due to the amount of alcohol he had to consume in order to even consider trying to fight somebody in a bar.

 

Koral had already turned in for the night. Was that an indication that they were all supposed to go to sleep, and continue talking in the morning? It was rather late.

 

Who was leading this group? Who made the decisions? The whole idea of having a group was becoming increasingly hard to conceptualize. How long would Val be traveling with these people again?

 

Val noticed the dragonborn pulling out a book. Alright, time to go to sleep. Val had many interests and hobbies, but reading was not one of them.

 

He cleared his throat to gather the attention of the table of adventurers. "I know that I'm new, so I'm not one to be speaking for the group or making decisions, but perhaps we should take a page from Koral's book and go to sleep for the night? I would assume you're all fairly tired from your travels and things, and we can always talk about goblins tomorrow."

 

Val stood, preparing to make his grand exit. "These inn rooms have two beds each. You all rented a room, which has two beds... Koral is sharing with Onyx, so that leaves another bed in that room. I also have a room which I rented before you all arrived, so that's two more beds!"

 

He turned to the lovely elf seated beside him. "Toyos, would you mind sharing a bed with me?" After asking the question, Val turned to face the rest of the table, waiting to see if they would follow his example and head to sleep.

 

It had been a long day.

[Marcus Pheonix]

((Gonna BUMP this mates, it's been over a week and darkstorm and colourcoded haven't posted

 

EDIT: I'm regretting putting Koral to sleep now, I don't have anything to post ))

Edited April 29, 2016 by Marcus Pheonix

[Paintra]

((I'm finally a little less busy! Sorry about my delay. This post will be pretty short, since I'm out right now and also because Toyos is just gonna head on to sleep))

 

Toyos blinked, as if taken aback by this question, then realized what Val meant and nodded. "That would be fine, I think," They spoke a bit sleepily, as if the talk of beds had made them more tired. "vаlкэѕ, come and show me what room it is, please."

 

Their request seemed a little more like a command as the elf grabbed Val by the hand and pulling him along towards the rooms. After being informed of which room they were going to be sharing, they let go of him, opening the door with a little bit of help from their tiefling friend, and stumbling into their bed and falling into soundless sleep, as if they were but a baby.

[MrSpyro]

Oryx realized the three-hour nap wasn't enough to offset his internal clock. He yawned, and, seeing as Aluel wasn't responding, went upstairs. Oryx entered the room where Koral was sleeping, and plopped down on the bed. He fell asleep within minutes.

 

((Short post. Just tryin to move things along.))

Edited May 12, 2016 by MrSpyro