Tales of Aequar: Runite's Rise IC

[Devmaar]

Mind in turmoil after the events of the day, Alim pores through books and scrolls, scribbling notes deep into the night. Eventually he falls asleep at his desk.

[Draconi Redfir]

Elsee groaned again as her eyes fought to stay closed, sitting up on her bed and wrapping herself in her blanket as she tried to focus on what Badger was saying. "What es there even to talk about?"

[Athedia]

"I wanted you to know that I understand why you did that. Incited the bar fight. I know your people see us as the bad people and believe me, you are more right than wrong. But could you warn us next time? We had new people on the circuit, they don't know the atmosphere here." She slid an arrow out of her quiver and started playing with it, running her fingers along the feathers at the bottom.

[Draconi Redfir]

Elsee groaned again as her head collapsed back into her pillow with an audible *thud*, her words more mumbled then anything else as she spoke.

"Eye sent Alim out ta warn ya, that shoullda been enough."

[Silverraptor]

As sora gets home, she quietly bathes and changes into more comfortable night clothes. She lays out her damaged shirt to repair with a mending spell the next day, before slipping into the bed.

[CoffeeIncluded]

The rain stops sometime during the night, and the group is greeted by an unusually dry, pleasantly warm morning as they wake. Jadeite fixes his clothes while meditating, letting the chosen formulas and incantations from his spellbook settle into his mind.

He goes to the mess hall immediately afterwards, and sits with the rest of the group if they're already eating breakfast. The different mercenary teams are waking up and getting the day started, trading stories and jobs. One small group is going around, loudly sharing their story to everyone else, and laughing the whole time. You can't help but overhear.

"So we finally drag out the guy splashing and flailing in that well like he'd been zapped, and you know what it was?" The girl with a patchwork robe and goggles that he's talking to can't even answer before the man telling the story howls, "It was Cesare's grown lout of a son, drunk off his ass! He'd been prowling around with his buddies, and they didn't even stick around to watch the show when he fell in! I didn't even know dwarves could get that smashed!"

The girl can't help but snort into her hand and snicker, "So how much was the bribe to keep you from yapping about it?"

"Not enough!"

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Feel free to join in or listen, I'll post another thing in a bit.

[Athedia]

The Badger sat at a table wrestling with Naga for a piece of meat. She flashed Jadeite a quick smile and then cursed, diving under the table as the dog took advantage of her distraction. Emerging breathless a few seconds later and without the meat she pushed some bread toward him. "Don't know what you pointy ears eat. Aren't you all vegetable eaters or something?"

She was always cheery in the mornings, trying to hide the fitful sleep she had at nights. Having Naga in her room helped, but didn't stave off all her nightmares.

[CoffeeIncluded]

"Oh, no, not at all," Jadeite replies. "We dine on lighter fare, and while that does mean mainly vegetables, I do partake on fish, poultry, and red meat in moderation. Hemlock, on the other hand," he says, gesturing to his familiar, "obviously can't get enough of it. He prefers meat that's more...tender, shall we say. You needn't worry, you'd be far too tough and chewy."

[CoffeeIncluded]

Elsee, Jadeite, and Artorias:

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You notice the woman from last night who was running to the watchtower as you left. She still looks distraught, though less panicked than last night.

"...Did we not see that woman yesterday?"

[Draconi Redfir]

Elsee grumbles to herself in tiredness as she bites into a strip of bacon, her eyes still unwelcoming of the morning's bright light and the way the sun was just low enough to pierce through the windows of the room and into her eyes if she looked too far in the wrong direction. “frikkin hate late night work” she muttered to herself as she took another bite, her opposite hand grasping wildly as she missed her morning's grapejuice by just a few inches with each idle reach. Elsee yawned suddenly, her mouth opening wide and briefly showing off her sharp Goblinoid teeth before snapping shut around another strip of bacon.

“ 'ny jobs git picked out yet?”

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I'm assuiming you acciently put down Elsee when you meant someone else when reffering to the guard tower lady, Elsee wasn't there.

[Athedia]

The Badger shifted the grapejuice into Elsee's hand as she grasped. "You goblins, not morning creatures are you? Did you wake Alim?" She fed a scrap of her meal to Naga who lay resting on her feet.

[CoffeeIncluded]

Jadeite's tuned them out; he's watching the distraught woman. "You must see rather frightening things during your work...How bad must something be before it affects you?" he asks.

[Silverraptor]

Sora is slightly delayed in getting out to breakfast for a couple of reasons. 1) She has to pray to Astrid and replenish her spells. 2) She takes the time to figure out what what she wants to wear today.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Elsee, Jadeite, and Artorias:

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You notice the woman from last night who was running to the watchtower as you left. She still looks distraught, though less panicked than last night.

"...Did we not see that woman yesterday?"

Lifting his head from his plate to look at the woman Jadeite pointed out he answers the elf between mouthfuls of food "Now that you mention it, yes I think she is the lady from the watchtower... she looks off though. Perhaps someone should talk to her." With that he returns to his breakfast.

[CoffeeIncluded]

Jadeite raises an eyebrow. "You think I would provide a good shoulder for her to cry on. Though...heh...I would be able to dry her tears."

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All the dessication spells. Also, I'll put up a list of his daily spells in a moment.

EDIT: Okay, his spells are the same as yesterday's, but with Mending in place of Mage Hand and Spectral Hand in place of Baleful Transposition.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Jadeite raises an eyebrow. "You think I would provide a good shoulder for her to cry on. Though...heh...I would be able to dry her tears."

Spoiler

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All the dessication spells. Also, I'll put up a list of his daily spells in a moment.

"I didn't meant you specifically, just someone (preferably not me), though if you want to talk to her, be my guest. Though I would refrain from talking about your experiments"

[CoffeeIncluded]

"Me? Why, I never! In fact, I'm offended you believe that to be all I am capable of. I assure you, I am a man of many talents," he says, with a flourish.

[Dusk Eclipse]

"Never said that, I just mentioned that you tend to freak people out with the talk of your experiments"

Edit: Looking around himself he notes the absence of Alim.
"Hey, has anyone seen Alim around here?"

[CoffeeIncluded]

"Well, it's hardly my fault that most people fail to grasp the intricacies and complex beauty concealed behind even the simplest cantrip," the elf says, shrugging. "But then again, I doubt you were raised with the family grimore read to you every night. Not everyone can be so lucky."

Jadeite pauses at Alim's second statement. "I suppose I'll get him. I'm quite finished with breakfast anyway."

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Anyone want to talk to the girl?

[Dusk Eclipse]

"Well, it's hardly my fault that most people fail to grasp the intricacies and complex beauty concealed behind even the simplest cantrip," the elf says, shrugging. "But then again, I doubt you were raised with the family grimore read to you every night. Not everyone can be so lucky."

Jadeite pauses at Alim's second statement. "I suppose I'll get him. I'm quite finished with breakfast anyway."

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Anyone want to talk to the girl?

"Fine, guess I'll talk with the watchtower lady" Artorias stands up and cleans himself a bit before approaching her.

"Hi, I am Artorias Kaathe, I was one of the guys that dropped off some rowdy goblins last night. Is everything all right? You seem a bit off.

[CoffeeIncluded]

The woman jumps back when she hears Artorias. "Ah! O-oh, it's just you. Sorry..." Artorias has seen this woman around but can't quite place her name. He's fairly certain she's new though.

She shakes her head. "I, I'm fine. It's just, well...My friends and I were hunting down a burglar, when we found a dead kid in an alley." She looks down. "It was awful, he was all curled up stiff, and he looked so scared..."

[CoffeeIncluded]

Jadeite:

The elf quietly walks into Alim's room to see the goblin passed out on his desk. For a moment Jadeite's just going to tap him on his shoulder, but then Hemlock chooses that moment to brush against his master's cheek. Jade looks at his familiar, and the two share a grin.

When Alim eventually wakes up, he's greeted by the sight of the dark green viper hanging upside down, hissing inches from his face.

[Devmaar]

Alim jumps slightly at the sight of the snake but quickly regains his composure.
"Oh my! That certainly caught me by surprise. You'll have to do better if you want to give me a real scare though Mr. Nocrius, by my recollection your snakes venom is rather lacking in potency. What time is it, oh my, I better get down to breakfast. If you don't mind I'll just ready myself and be straight down."

Spoiler

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Unless I say otherwise, Alim's 1 prepared spell each day will be Prestidigitation.

[CoffeeIncluded]

"Oh, Hemlock wouldn't have to kill you Alim, merely weaken you enough for either of us to overpower. Thank you for your concern though." He then steps out to give the goblin some privacy as he changes.

[CoffeeIncluded]

"I'm sorry," the woman says, still holding her head in her hands. "I'm a mercenary, I should have a stronger stomach for these things. But he was barely my age, and I don't even know how he got killed, I couldn't find any stab wounds or anything..."

[Dusk Eclipse]

"Don't be, a death is a death no matter what. Though no wounds... magic perhaps?" Artorias tries to comfort the woman by putting a hand on her shoulder.

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I am assuming Artorias is used enough to magic to make that kind of relation, he is smart (though not as smart as Alim or Jadeite)

[CoffeeIncluded]

"Maybe, but..." She frowns. "I saw the holy symbol around his neck. Wouldn't Astrid's grace have protected him?"

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Artorias would think that magic killed him if weapons did not.

[Dusk Eclipse]

"Frankly I don't know... though I think I know someone who might, do you remember where the body was?"

[CoffeeIncluded]

She chews her lip for a moment, then says, "I couldn't carry him, but I told the watch...He'd be there or at one of the temples. I just couldn't leave him in the gutter."

[Dusk Eclipse]

"I'll see what we can do, thanks for the info, if you recall anything else or just need someone to lend a friendly ear, you know where to find me" Artorias leaves with the intention on finding his companions, they definitely have something fishy on their hands.