Fear and Loathing in the Greenbelt (IC Thread III)

[Morbis Meh]

Brin raises an eyebrow "Just get the priest to give you some protection if you're really worried about it I think the last thing you want is to wake up a pissed off fae that can mind rape you. What if she does it to me and tells me to kill all of you? I am strong willed and all but hey everyone has their off days."

[stack]

Johan stands ready to interrupt any magic one the creature is awake.

Spoiler

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readying a melee attack to disrupt casting (1d20+13)[18] [/roll]1d6+6[/roll] (assuming a prone target)

[Lost Demiurge]

(Assuming you're waiting a while...)

The day winds on. Roqoan eventually wakes up and resumes babbling about murdering him some fae. It takes about four or five hours for him to get it out of his system.

By this point night has fallen, and you've made camp in the ruined keep. The small bug-fae turned out to have all the items he stole upon him... Maple's sword, one of Fermor's pendants, Johan's spell component pouch.

Finally, the fae woman groans, and slides her eyes open. She looks around briefly, and tests her bonds, before sighing and rolling her eyes.

"How utterly rude."

Then her eyes light on the Quickling's gouged and messy head adorning Brin's belt.

"Oh. Cute. A snack for later? You do rather look... And smell... like a midget ogre. It would suit you, I suppose."

[Sithis]

Alistar

Alistar had been sitting nearby, sharpening his shortsword as he waited for the fae to wake up. When she finally does, he grins and stands up.

"Ah, good to see you're finally awake "M'lady". You see, you and I need to have a talk. You were awfully impolite last time, but I'm willing to give you another chance. Tell me what I want to know, and you have a good chance of surviving the day. If you don't...well...that midget ogre will get another head."

Spoiler: Action

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And then Alistar begins interrogating.

I guess since I should probably have SOME kind of social roll for this...intimidation? (1d20+10)[19]

Alistar is going to prepare an action to shank the bitch if she does anything hostile.
Attack: (1d20+11)[28]
Damage: (1d6+6)[8] getting a +1 for SHARPENED SHORTSWORD HECK YES

[Chained Birds]

Maple

"It really sucks we couldn't end this without an interrogation..."

Maple yawns as she checks her gun for any problems.

[Lost Demiurge]

The woman laughs, loud and long, with a sound like elegant crystal breaking.

"Down boy. Sit. Good dog."

She laughs until tears start from her eyes. Bloody tears.

"Oh. Oh, it is rich. Seriously, what can you do to me now that would make this day WORSE?"

"You've broken my home, slain my suitor, dispatched my guardian, and even stolen my fineries, by the looks of that heap over there. What are you going to do now, kill me? Well, I can guarantee my corpse shall tell you few secrets, my fine pooch."

She sighs and leans back against the ropes. "If this is the best you've got, just get it over with. Or perhaps you shall bore me to death? Go ahead and try, I think I can outlast you. Days off of your mortal little mayfly lives are as nothing to me."

[Morbis Meh]

Brin smirks as the fae wench mentions her trophy and then smiles wickedly "So you want torture eh? How about listening to some dwarven poetry, nothing is more excrutiating than that... or I could always feed you the head of your 'suitor' but hey I am willing to do what needs to be done to entertain you, our 'guest'."

[Sithis]

Alistar

Alistar waves off Brin. "Spin it however you want Lady. But this COULD have been done reasonably. Hells, you didn't exactly make yourself known. If you had we could have talked about things, then we would have left. But you made the decision for things to not go that way. It's regrettable, but it's what it is.

He kneels down, so that he's at eye level with her. As he talks, he gestures with his sword. "I'd rather not have had to do any fighting today. And I'd rather not kill you now. I'd rather we just talk and be done. However, I'm not going to waste my time with you. So I'm going to give you the choice now. We talk, and then figure things out from there, or we're done. And I end you. I'll leave the choice to you. Think about it, REALLY think about it."

[stack]

"You may want to consider that we CAN get answers from your corpse...so weight that before you decide." Johan chimes in, blade ready.

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aid another intimidate (1d20)[10]

speak w/ dead is cleric 3, so...may be easier in the end than talking to her

[Chained Birds]

Maple

"No torturing will be done. I guess we could always bring you to our Fae friends.
Oh, they won't hurt you, but they will spend every moment of every day for all their Fae lives doing happy and good things around you. They'll play music, dance with humans, love their neighbors. And all you'd be able to do is sit there unable to mess with their joy and the joy they bring onto others in wondrous camaraderie. They'd probably make you look prettier with flowers and rainbow colors everywhere.

How does that fate sound?"

[Lost Demiurge]

The woman sneers at Brin's threats.

She laughs at Johan's taunts.

She frowns at Alistar. "Reasonable. Hah! And what guarantee have I that you would let me live on? Bah. Shank me and have done with it."

Maple, though... She does not like the picture that Maple's painting at all.

"You... You wouldn't." She says, eyes wide.

[Sithis]

Alistar

Alistar grins ear to ear at Maple's suggestion (and the fae's reaction). "Now, that's a great idea Maple. What do you say, Lady? Instead of killing you, we'll just take you to see your fae cousins for a while. It'd probably do you a world of good. Or.."

He looks her straight in the eye.

"...you could talk to me. And then I swear on my family name that we'd leave you alone. You would be free to keep on being your miserable, terrible self. What say you Lady?"

[Lost Demiurge]

"Gh. Guh. All right, fine. Swear that you shall guard me from the more vicious among you as well, and release me with no harm when we are done speaking, and I shall answer your questions. And the rest of your brute squad must swear the same."

[stack]

"If Alistair is satisfied by your answer I will not harm you."

[Sithis]

Alistar

Alistar nods, "Fine, I swear on the name of Crowley that as long as you make no attempts at hostility against me and mine, none of us shall do you harm. If any of them attempt harm on you before you do on us, they will answer to me. When you have told me as much as you can, you will be free to go. Is that acceptable?"

[Lost Demiurge]

She raises her eyebrows. "Generous terms. Very well, my death curse be on you if you lie."

The night almost seems to hush, at that. She seems to mean it literally.

"Ask your questions, get of Crowley. He who betrayed a giant and was sent running like a cur for it. He who lost his best friend to a demigod made flesh. He who... Heh. Well, ask your questions, and hear stories of old. And be quick about it, because I have far to go on this night, if I am to reach safety."

[Sithis]

Alistar

Spoiler: OOC

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To speed this along, would you like me to just give a list of questions next time I post, so she can just answer them all at once instead of doing them one at a time? It doesn't really bother me either way, but I doubt you want to spend more than a day on this.

Alistar looks at the fae, his canine features not betraying emotion. "You speak as if you know a lot about my ancestor. What else can you tell me about him?"

[Lost Demiurge]

OOC

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Sure, that's fine. And if anyone else has questions, go right ahead.

"He was a crude and unshaven man, who made passes at everything even vaguely female."

"He lead the charge against the Tiger Lords when the war drums were beating, to drive them out of these lands. He promised safe passage to a giantess of the Tiger Lord tribe, only to try to kill her when he thought her weakened, and nearly ended up dead himself as a result."

"He was loyal to the throne, to the true bloodline of the king... Oh, what was his name... Some cur or the other."

"And he died in the east, fighting in the mountains to hold the line for his children to escape as the ferals overwhelmed this land. His tomb lies somewhere east of the Tuskwater, in the hills."

[Sithis]

Alistar

Spoiler: OOC

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Where is the Tuskwater in relation to where we are now?

Actually, now that I think about it, where are we in relation to Twilight Hold?

I'M NOT SURE WHERE WE ARE ANYMORE!

Do I need a Knowledge: Geography? Eh, I'll toss it in just in case. (1d20+10)[21]

"Tiermann. That was the name." He nods slowly. "That basically sounds right. Didn't know about the tomb though. Might have to go and take a look at that at some point..." He continues with his questioning.

Spoiler: Questions

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Edited in question: "What's your name? Or something I can refer to you by."

"My people have always suspected that the dragon Verdagathrous had something to do with the our curse. Is that the case? If so, do you know how he did it? Do you know if it's possible to break the curse?"

"You mentioned something about a Monolith, and implied that it was a bad thing for me. What is it and what does it have to do with my people?"

"What can you tell me about the Sanctum?"

"Where are the ruins of Vollmond and the Grove of Heroes?"

[Steckie]

Roqoan

Roqoan wasn't exactly happy with the terms Alistar agreed to.
He really, really wanted to kill that woman. Having him climb on walls to go kill his allies. Allies with whom he had a signed contract! He had never broken a contract before and if it were up to him he never would.
So he isn't happy, but getting answers to those questions seems to be important to the big werewolf. Better take advantage of the situation and ask some questions as well.
"This castle. Who built it and why? Seems like a weird place to build a castle.
And is there more than meets the eye here? Secret tunnels or rooms perhaps?
Are there any other buildings, humanoids or creatures somewhere around here?
There's a tower on an Island in the lake, what can you tell us about that tower? Why is it so appealing to those will-o-wisps?
Do you have any magic tricks you can teach me?"

[Lost Demiurge]

Geography

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Twylight hold is on the northern shores of the Tuskwater, a large lake. You followed the Skunk River west, and have sense gone a bit southwest, breaking from the river as the river curved north.

The Tuskwater flows into the Candlemere, a smaller lake to the south of it. The Island in the middle of the Candlemere holds the ruined tower.

You'd estimate you're somewhere between 50-60 miles away from home by now, in the western woods of the Greenbelt.

You ask the lady her name, and she laughs. "Names are not given from nobility to commoner, I fear." The lady smirks. "You may refer to me as the Dancing Lady. Many of you mortals have called me that over the years. For a little while, at least, before they ended."

"I was once maidservant and consort to a great lord in the land you call Sevenarches, but he was thrown down by jealous commoners, and banished until forever and a day. I was left behind."

When you speak of Verdagathrous, she shudders. "The great wyrm. The fearsome lord of the South. It is possible that he may have been behind the curse... It is known that your people would not send him tribute. In his wrath and scorn, he could thus have mustered the malice to reduce you to beasts."

"I have no knowledge of how to lift this curse, though I do know that the monoliths he distributed as bane against demons had something to do with it. Fools, your people were... To incur his wrath, then accept his gifts."

She smiles.

"The monolith was justified as an asset to keep demons out of the lands it warded. It did that while it worked. But it had a few more wrinkles to its magic. It was set to do something horrible to the beastmen of these lands. But... No one at all expected it to react with the Sanctum."

"No one at all expected it to corrupt and warp the Sanctum."

She sighs.

"The Sanctum is something your folk made. They awakened the spirit of the wilds. They awakened the land itself, bonded with it. Set it to guard. To ward. They did not think that putting another thing in to guard, to ward, might react with it. Stupid, in the end. And when the monolith whispered that you were wicked, the guards and wards turned against your folk."

She shrugs.

"It's broken and useless now. Large displays of magic, or massive growth of life in an area will draw its attention, and its reactions are unpredictable. It hurts as often as it helps."

"As to the monolith... Why, it sits in the island in the middle of the Candlemere, broken as well. Its shattered magic draws the will o the wisps like flies to honey. The barrier between worlds is thin there. Those who would go to it are best advised to tread lightly."

When the question arises about Vollmond, she shrugs. "Somewhere to the east, on the coast of the Tuskwater. There may be buildings that yet remain of it. Your people tended to build with wood and thatch more than stone, so if there's more than a castle left, I would be surprised."

"The grove of heroes? To the southeast." (She gives you directions. Worryingly enough, they match the area that you've heard the dragon occupies.)

She turns to Roqoan as he talks.

"Elves made this long ago, before the beastmen drove them out. It's the River Kingdoms, you see. You mortals are always fighting over things, displacing people, leaving behind remnants of your little nations and empires and whatnots. I'm quite sure you shall leave your own ruins when you fail."

She shrugs. "There are no secret tunnels, though the westernmost towers are ruins filled with scavenging rats. Best stay out of them, unless you enjoy being bitten."

"As to other buildings, there is a half-sunken shrine to the north, occupied by a few outcast bullywugs and a short-tempered beastwoman. They're fun to harass every now and then, though they never travel alone. Pity. I would have enjoyed a good meal from them." She smiles, her fangs quite evident.

"And I just told you about the tower. It was built around the monolith. As to magic tricks... Sure, why not? I can teach you how to make a foolish mortal disappear. But for the trick to work, you shall have to get on your horse and go east about twenty miles."

[Morbis Meh]

Seeing as how the men have been dancing around the question "How does one destroy the monolith and purify the sanctum? Lastly... do you know of any 'Vine Clad watcher on a hill?"

[Lost Demiurge]

The woman shrugs.

"How does one pull down the moon and put it in a jar? How does one slay a god, or complete the seven labors of lust and lunacy? There is probably a way, but I do not know of it."

"I do know that destroying the monolith would be a bad thing. The great druid of these lands... Ike Hill or something like that, he tried that in the final days, and it almost killed his kinsmen to the last cur. His bones still rest unquietly in the lake, guarded by a warped beast of water, a turtlelike thing the sanctum set to punish its wayward master, and prevent him from causing more harm. Even in death his ghost tries to continue his folly."

"As to vine clad watchers on the hill... That could refer to the old statue north of here, perhaps 30 miles or so. The last idiots to try and settle these lands put it there, an homage to some horned god, a mockery of the huntsman."

[Chained Birds]

Maple

"Hmm, turtle-like thing?

What might happen if the turtle thing goes?"

[Lost Demiurge]

Maple

"Hmm, turtle-like thing?

What might happen if the turtle thing goes?"

"Then the druid's ghost or whatever he is will probably try to complete his task again, just like he tried to the last few times he escaped. It's great fun to watch the common seelie folk scramble for their lives when the Sanctum fights back. There didn't USED to be a Candlemere lake, you see... One of their fights did that."

[Chained Birds]

Maple

"That's something... Hmm..."

[Sithis]

Alistar

"Well, ****."

"Do you know anything else about this dead druid, what he was trying, the Sanctum in general, or the monolith? Anything at all, might be helpful."

[Lost Demiurge]

She shrugs.

"I know nothing more on those topics. Are we done, or do you have questions on other things?"

[Steckie]

Roqoan

"Do you know anything about Hannis Drelev?
And do you know of some other werewolves around here?

We'll need to head back to Twylight soon. Check if there hasn't been some sort of fight between the monolith and the druid. If everything is fine there we need to start looking for this druid. See if we can help him with the monolith.
And yes, i know there's still a dragon and an army of trolls that we need to worry about, but i think this has just been moved to the top of the list."

Roqoan turns back to the Dancing Lady. "Coincidently, do you know anything about a green dragon or a troll army? They're both supposed to be somewhere int he south. The dragon near that Grove of Heroes you gave us directions for."

[Lost Demiurge]

The Lady looks at Roqoan.

"Hannis... Who? No."

"Werewolves? You get a few passing through now and again. Cursed, horrible people. The beastwoman to the north is one, though the bullywugs seem to help her stay sane. Pity, that."

She looks a bit disappointed at the mention of the dragon. "Ah. I know little about that beast, save that it is there..."

SENSE MOTIVE DC 26

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She was really hoping you'd just go wander into the grove of heroes going yay, this should be an awesome place, and get eaten by the dragon. But if you know about it, now it's unlikely.

She purses her lips at the mention of trolls. "Every now and then a few come snooping around here. I usually tell them to go away. Come to think of it, there have been more of them about lately. If you keep wandering the woods in the south, you should find them sooner or later. Or they will find you."