Riverside 15

[Shadowcaller]

[Southside Apartment]

Elereshur also examines the new set of captives, making sure they're healthy and that the only consciousness in their head is their own.

[Below Malchenar]

Kanya nods and says, "I...I guess so. I was on an expedition to the Frozen Forest in Outside, and I got separated from my group, and then there was this light, and then I froze, and then...and then..." She starts sobbing, "And then I found my expedition after I was like this...And...And...I killed them all...Before I even realized what was happening..."

Light's Heart

Stepping up onto the golden stairs with a steel boot, Shoyler begins the ascent into the cathedral.

It was time he went about and started gathering people to fight with him. He'd been living here only a brief time, and had already found more darkness concentrated here than anywhere else he's been. Vampires, werewolves, evil spirits. Even witches. The Nexus was a breeding ground for Black Magic, and foul monsters. It was time someone actually did things about it. The Nexus would never be safe, unless some kind of movement was put in place. Maybe he could convince the Burning Light to join his cause. It was worth a shot, after all.

So, he'll move over to the doorway and knock, not knowing whether or not it'd be considered polite to just enter.

[Southside Apartment]

They all appear to be in order, even if they exchange hateful glances with the demon as she inspects them. "So what happens now?" The being asks, apparently confident that she'll accept the new prisoners.

[Below Malchenar]

"You... killed them?" Zareen asks carefully. "We'll make sure that doesn't happen again but it might mean we have to limit your freedom as long as you don't have control. You understand? You are very unique, even for what you are now. All of your kind we've previously encountered wouldn't even feel bad for what happened." She attempts to explains.

Light's Heart

Coming out to greet him is an huge horned being, large as a car and clad in shining golden armor, walking nearly on all four as it approaches Shoyler, looking at him with it's intense burning eyes and as it opens it mouth to speak the same light exits it's mouth as if it's inwards were on fire. "Who are you to enter here? You don't look like the usual astral pilgrims coming here." Tarim states in his deep menacing voice.

[Ionbound]

[Below Malchenar]

Kanya nods, and says, "I...I just don't want to hurt anyone else."

[Gullara]

[Suncrest Manor]

Irena ptsu on her white t-shirt. "Hanging out eh? You go to the same school or something then?" Irena slouch down on the coach right in between the two. She couldn't place the girl though, not that she had a very good memory for all other kids Eliseo hanged out with. Kids were kinda annoying.

[Suncrest Manor]

"No, She was in the park when we were in Inside the other day." Eliseo says. He definitely doesn't mention how exactly they met. He wants to spare himself that embarrassment again.

[Arkhosia]

[Suncrest Manor]

"No, She was in the park when we were in Inside the other day." Eliseo says. He definitely doesn't mention how exactly they met. He wants to spare himself that embarrassment again.

Irena will observe that Misaka, clad in her usual crisp white dress shirt, sleeves reaching the elbow, with a tidy tan sweater vest and short, clean brown skirt, appears to be quite intelligent, but has this fire of ambition, eagerness, and pugnaciousness in her bright eyes.
Yep. We kinda basically stumbled upon each other in a way.

[Deathkeeper]

The Toy Tinker

"Good." says Jim, a bit lost for words.
Who promptly starts walking away backwards, a quickly as possible while still being at all subtle about it. It's a good thing he was paying attention to the layout so he wouldn't run into anything.

[Solidarity]

[Jacob the Unfortunately Still Mute]

Jacob watches (silently, of course) and listens intently as Marcus explains the procedure of determining what kind of curse has afflicted him, assuming that it is indeed a curse. He seems a bit nervous watching the man pace, but he does seem to have a plan of attack, which helps to set him at ease. The mention of possibly having eaten something that could steal his speech, though, causes him to flinch; the mere thought gives him goosebumps, and it's likely that he'll think twice about where he buys his produce until he educates himself on such artifacts.

Anyway, there's an uncomfortable pause as Marcus performs some kind of spell. A symbol of sort appears briefly over his shirt for a few seconds, and as it glows, a strange tingling sensation causes the man to shiver slightly. He seems to be slightly sensitive to this particular type of magic, although it appears to be a ticklish sensitivity as opposed to one of discomfort. Unfortunately, when he opens his mouth and tries to speak, no sound is produced, and he shakes his head with disappointment. Still, that was just a single spell, and judging by the number of books held by the spell-caster, he's got more where that came from; Jacob was hoping for a quick and easy solution, but he hasn't given up hope just because the first attempt was a failure, and the sour look on his face soon fades to indicate as much.

There's no drop in Mark's expression, as he prepared for this. Internally, the disappointment lasts only so long as he methodically switches gears to his next prediction.

"M'k. That rules out petty hexes. Either you made enemies with pretty subtle casters, or you ate an even more subtle poison by accident. I'm going to check the house for hexes one last time and then set up a dispelling writ on your person." he states, walking over to his other book, labelled 'Elminister's Guide to Disenchantments vol XI'. "Lemme warn you though. Make sure to remove anything magical that you don't want to be mundane when I start the dispelling writ. This is potent stuff. Anything you carry, physical or otherwise is gonna get all its magical properties erased."

After his explanation, he walks back over to the first levitating book, and touches it with his hand. It glows as he steps away from it and touches the wall of the house. Runes and various symbols magically burn themselves into the entirety of the house (not permanently). No nook or cranny is spared. If there're any sources of curses in the house that's causing his rather severe speech impediment, they ought to shine brighter than the runes if physical and subsequently be countered. Otherwise, Jacob will remain mute for the next few moments and Marcus will walk over to the man and raise an eyebrow questioningly.

[Hattish Thing]

Light's Heart

Coming out to greet him is an huge horned being, large as a car and clad in shining golden armor, walking nearly on all four as it approaches Shoyler, looking at him with it's intense burning eyes and as it opens it mouth to speak the same light exits it's mouth as if it's inwards were on fire. "Who are you to enter here? You don't look like the usual astral pilgrims coming here." Tarim states in his deep menacing voice.

Shoyler is a dark-skinned man about the age of fifty. He's wearing a large dark leather armored longcoat of a somewhat tattered nature, obviously worn at a regular basis. He also appears to be regularly wearing some sort of chainmail, and a breastplate, silver buckles mixed in with the dull gray links. Dark red belts adorn his front, and dark red armbands are present over his coat. Combat boots, steel pauldrons, and dark gauntlets finish the man's dressage. He's a balding man, his hair in various stages of gray, from the steel gray of his eyebrows, to the lighter shaded sideburns. He's also boasting quite a proud looking beard, giving him a most regal appearance. He'd look fairly normal physically if it weren't for the odd metallic chunk covering his face, bolted right where an eye should have been.

The great being at the door should easily be able to spot a plethora of holy symbols etched into his armor, protections in every religious text he knows. These symbols don't really do anything, but they certainly look fearsome, and should easily identify him as some sort of cleric. His armor is black and silver, forged of Cold Iron and blessed by the head of his order. His long black armored coat covers most of his breastplate, however, so some of the more uncommon symbols are covered up by the thick leather. Shoyler was obviously a man who knew how invaluable armor was. His large heavy war hammer, Justice, can be seen, the beautifully crafted Reinforced Silver/Cold Iron alloy hammer hanging at his back. Shoyler was more than a little unnerved by the beasts light, but he'd seen stranger, and the beast didn't radiate negative energy. I am Shoyler Mctowry, of The Most Solemn Eternal Order of the Shroud, servant of Kelemvor, at your service, friend. I am a man of the cloth, much like you. He smiles a bit, though it's fairly awkward. The beast didn't seem to be like a man at all... I come with a few ideas to present to your council.

Spoiler: Shoyler:

Show

[Earl of Purple]

Southside Apartment

The two girls will look through the new prisoners, taking out any that appear to be young females, especially if they're under twenty. Babette is also smelling out innocents, ones that have never committed an evil deed nor thought an evil thought. These people are quite rare, but once upon a time Babette was such an individual. Then she had her heart cut out to open a portal to a prison-plane.

[Ionbound]

[Southside Apartment]

And, at one point, Adele was just a naturalist wandering around the woods. Fascinating how the world changes, isn't it.

Anyways, once Babette has picked out her victims, Elereshur grins at the construct, and says, "Normally, I'd have them starve until they began to eat each other so that they'd be in a proper state of mind, but, for the purposes of my little demonstration..." She takes one from her group and random, and whips her tail around, implanting it in the back of the creature's neck. Likely, it will soon begin to transform into some type of demon, though everyone reacts to the process differently.

[Shadowcaller]

[Suncrest Manor]

"No, She was in the park when we were in Inside the other day." Eliseo says. He definitely doesn't mention how exactly they met. He wants to spare himself that embarrassment again.

Irena will observe that Misaka, clad in her usual crisp white dress shirt, sleeves reaching the elbow, with a tidy tan sweater vest and short, clean brown skirt, appears to be quite intelligent, but has this fire of ambition, eagerness, and pugnaciousness in her bright eyes.
Yep. We kinda basically stumbled upon each other in a way.

[Below Malchenar]

Kanya nods, and says, "I...I just don't want to hurt anyone else."

Shoyler is a dark-skinned man about the age of fifty. He's wearing a large dark leather armored longcoat of a somewhat tattered nature, obviously worn at a regular basis. He also appears to be regularly wearing some sort of chainmail, and a breastplate, silver buckles mixed in with the dull gray links. Dark red belts adorn his front, and dark red armbands are present over his coat. Combat boots, steel pauldrons, and dark gauntlets finish the man's dressage. He's a balding man, his hair in various stages of gray, from the steel gray of his eyebrows, to the lighter shaded sideburns. He's also boasting quite a proud looking beard, giving him a most regal appearance. He'd look fairly normal physically if it weren't for the odd metallic chunk covering his face, bolted right where an eye should have been.

The great being at the door should easily be able to spot a plethora of holy symbols etched into his armor, protections in every religious text he knows. These symbols don't really do anything, but they certainly look fearsome, and should easily identify him as some sort of cleric. His armor is black and silver, forged of Cold Iron and blessed by the head of his order. His long black armored coat covers most of his breastplate, however, so some of the more uncommon symbols are covered up by the thick leather. Shoyler was obviously a man who knew how invaluable armor was. His large heavy war hammer, Justice, can be seen, the beautifully crafted Reinforced Silver/Cold Iron alloy hammer hanging at his back. Shoyler was more than a little unnerved by the beasts light, but he'd seen stranger, and the beast didn't radiate negative energy. I am Shoyler Mctowry, of The Most Solemn Eternal Order of the Shroud, servant of Kelemvor, at your service, friend. I am a man of the cloth, much like you. He smiles a bit, though it's fairly awkward. The beast didn't seem to be like a man at all... I come with a few ideas to present to your council.

Spoiler: Shoyler:

Show

[Below Malchenar]

"Neither do we." Zareen replies as she grestures at the other warlocks to approach her. One of them, a man whose eyes is shrouded in magical darkness hands her the aforementioned bone cage. "So this will cause you to pass out as your fire goes out." She can see the orb within the cage throwing a fit as it it's trying to bash it open. For a moment she can see a human skull grinning at her from within it.

Then Zareen opens it up and the demon caged within goes for the largest source of fire nearby which so happens to be Kanya herself. It will devour her heat in an insant, causing her to pass out (unless she can somehow resist it) and the warlocks will have to cage it again before taking her up to the castle.

[Suncrest Manor]

"Uhu." Irena says, not really interested. "And what are you doing now? Failing completely at The Crawling Dead again? Have you even passed the third level?" She confidently puts, having cleared the whole game herself.

[Light's Heart]

"Hrm..." The pit lord growls while looking at him intently with his burning eyes. "I am Tarim, servant of the burning light, holy man. What sort of ideas do you present before us? I want to make sure you do not waste our time." Not that much had happened lately. Not things they could deal with at the very least.

[Ionbound]

[Below Malchenar]

Kanya nervously asks, "Wait, what!?" and then screams as the demon takes her flame. For a very brief moment, intense cold emanates from her, though her fire is most likely extinguished before it can do any harm, leaving her unconscious form without her flame...Which is rather disturbing as it's still a frozen solid, mummified corpse of a young woman's upper body and arms.

[Aric Kale]

Burning Light

The Mourning Hoplite is here, accompanying Shoyler. He stands in full armor, every piece of it painted black, with face paint covering that which would be revealed through his helmet's gaps. The young man is shadowed by a five foot tall wooden golem. The construct is magically flame resistant, and responds to Hawthorn. It has also proven itself to be extremely durable and stealthy.
The hunting duo stay behind the elderly man, waiting for access inside.

[Hattish Thing]

[Light's Heart]

"Hrm..." The pit lord growls while looking at him intently with his burning eyes. "I am Tarim, servant of the burning light, holy man. What sort of ideas do you present before us? I want to make sure you do not waste our time." Not that much had happened lately. Not things they could deal with at the very least.

Shoyler breathes deeply before smiling, not bothering to offer a handshake. He didn't know if the pit lord could respond with something as dextrous. It might offend him, and the goal was to appear humble here. However, Shoyler's gray eye doesn't flit away from the pit lord's, though he does often blink. The light was so incredibly bright. My fellow man of the cloth, of late I've noticed an... unnerving increase in evil creatures here. There have been reports of a growing amount of vampires, and werewolves. There seems to be someone spreading the werewolf taint by force, though I have yet to find many. Even demons lurk about now, sometimes freely through the streets! Sir, never in my lifetime have I known there to be so many supernatural creatures in one place. The Nexus has become a breeding ground for witches, foul creatures that have been known to summon and use demons. Warlocks, necromancers, dark spirits.

We cannot stand idly by as the people are turned and slaughtered! Even some of the innocents justify vampirism! This land is tainted, sir. I believe The Burning Light would be interested in unification with my soon to be formed Templar. Please, the people need us, even if they won't appreciate us.

Kelemvor has shown me the way, but I need your help.

[ThirdEmperor]

[The Heist]

"Yes! But now you must make the pact and seal the deal or your soul... or whatever will be mine!" The imp exclaims, cackling madly from it's little lock. "Blood! Sign it in blood!"

"Uh, wait. Wait a second." There's still the small matter of his side of this contract. The thief hurriedly scratches down the rest, reading it off as he goes. "And, er, for all that, you'll let me through this door, and not set off any alarms, alright?" Stowing the pen and tugging off his glove, the Burglar pauses with his finger between his teeth.

[Shadowcaller]

[Malechenar]

Sanity was always so relative when it came to inventors. "Yes, I recall it. Remember thinking it was an very initiative idea when I first heard of it. But if you made it perhaps you still possess the rod or would one need to build a new one? It does sounds like ideal tool for our wonder if it's supposed to be fueled by souls anyway so it's fortuitous that you found it. The question is just what type of souls? One wouldn't want to take them from people of course. Spirits on the other hand are... free-range. Wouldn't you agree Sticks? Or do you prefer Vargain perhaps?" Ryhe slowly approaches Sticks as he talks.

Fourth Tower Compound

Zareen gives him an odd look. "Okay... whatever you want. It's not like we're charging you or anything." Though they really should. "Kipp can escort you out."

The tiefling suppresses a sigh, why did he have to be the one taking care of this loser centaur?

[Below Malchenar==> Isolation Chamber]

"...sorry." Zareen mumbles as the demon done it's job. She had said it would hurt and it was the best method they had! None the less, they put the demon back in it's cage and now that Kanya is unconscious they can easily transport her up to the castle...

Kanya will awaken some time later, feeling her fire and energy returned to her. She will find herself in a small chamber unable to move thanks to some sort of magical binding placed upon her. Just outside it, standing nearby is Zareen and two figures she won't recognize. One of them is a very tall man in a metal mask without eyes dressed up in a long elegant green and black robe. The other one is a woman with grey skin in a teal robe just as Zareen's. "Are you feeling okay?" Zareen asks, the other's simply looking at her. "Or well, like before you passed out?"

Kanya might make out two other awfully tall figures standing next to the entrance of the chamber. They're dressed in brown robes (apparently robes are really popular around here) and their faces are shrouded in a strange darkness which isn't lit by the blue crystal in the center of the ceiling which acts as the only light source in here.

[Light's Heart]

The servant let's his gaze sweep over the two other hunters as well, inspecting them for a brief moment as Shoyler talks. "A spreading plague you say?" He then asks, turning back his burning eyes to the cleric. "I can relate to that. Just a few months ago I and a few faithful attempted to bring down a place that sold corruption. They actually had the nerve to charge people for turning them into demons. Then when we attempted to shut it down we were stopped by the the government of eastside which actually let these demons continue their corruption business." He explains, his voice filled with rage which also manifests as his armor seems to catch fire. Shining golden colored fire.

[The Heist!]

"Fine, fine. I will let you through without setting off any alarms as long as you get me that job... within say a week or two." The imp replies. And if the Burglar attempts to open the door it will simply slide open now!

[Ionbound]

[Iso Chamber]

Kanya, when she wakes up and reignites, briefly causing another wave of bitter, freezing cold to wash over the area as she struggles against the bonds, before realizing that she is in no immediate danger, and apologizing, saying nervously, "I'm sorry...I feel fine. Just a little panicked...What are you going to do to me?"

[ThirdEmperor]

[The Heist!]

"Done." But then there's the business of actually signing in blood, which is painful, quite difficult and best skimmed over. The best that can be said is that he's got a short name."Now do I, uh, need to cut you out of there?"

[Gullara]

Irena will observe that Misaka, clad in her usual crisp white dress shirt, sleeves reaching the elbow, with a tidy tan sweater vest and short, clean brown skirt, appears to be quite intelligent, but has this fire of ambition, eagerness, and pugnaciousness in her bright eyes.
Yep. We kinda basically stumbled upon each other in a way.

[Suncrest Manor]

"Uhu." Irena says, not really interested. "And what are you doing now? Failing completely at The Crawling Dead again? Have you even passed the third level?" She confidently puts, having cleared the whole game herself.

[Suncrest Manor]

"I have so! I got to level four." Once, and then died immediately after. Though he and Misaka working together only got close to clearing level two. It's a hard game! "And I never actually saw you beat the whole game, you know. You're probably just lying."

[Arkhosia]

[Suncrest Manor]

"I have so! I got to level four." Once, and then died immediately after. Though he and Misaka working together only got close to clearing level two. It's a hard game! "And I never actually saw you beat the whole game, you know. You're probably just lying."

Are all video games as difficult as that one nowadays?
Misaka asks

[Aric Kale]

Light's Heart

The Hoplite and his golem are skippable until directly addressed, for they are only here to support Shoyler's cause. They will not speak it for him.

[Hattish Thing]

[Light's Heart]

The servant let's his gaze sweep over the two other hunters as well, inspecting them for a brief moment as Shoyler talks. "A spreading plague you say?" He then asks, turning back his burning eyes to the cleric. "I can relate to that. Just a few months ago I and a few faithful attempted to bring down a place that sold corruption. They actually had the nerve to charge people for turning them into demons. Then when we attempted to shut it down we were stopped by the the government of eastside which actually let these demons continue their corruption business." He explains, his voice filled with rage which also manifests as his armor seems to catch fire. Shining golden colored fire.

Shoyler nods as the servant asks his question, his steel gray beard somewhat crinkling up as he does so. He really needed to shave a bit of it off when he got to a suitable place. It was getting difficult to manage. Aye. Places like that deserve to be stopped. The Eastside government is corrupt, probably run by some dark forces in the shadow.... It doesn't matter, though. We can't do anything about them, not yet at least. However, we can stop operations like the one you encountered. But we must unify!

There are even rumours that a large group of monsters are banding together somewhere! It's.... ridiculous, and more than a little frightening. Too long have the people stood idly by as vampires turn civilians, as demons and spirits terrorize homes, and as witches cast their black magic. Too long have those with the power to stop them done nothing. What I'm suggesting, brother, is that we take the future into our own hands. He doesn't step away from the gold fire, but does look forward in awe. That was a wonderful effect.

He continues to speak after the fire manifests. I believe that it is time we begin to accept hunters. I think the best course of action here would be to form a guild of sorts, a group of men and women, clerics and soldiers, all devoted to hunting down supernatural monstrosities. There's strength in numbers, and perhaps the government will recognize us as a power once we've turned or killed a few of the dreaded things. I believe that The Burning Light should take a more.... militarized stance against the things that go bump in the night...

Are you with me? Will The Burning Light join my cause?

[Shadowcaller]

[Suncrest Manor]

"Oh come on, you've seen me played and my perfect save. It even got my name! Irena1." Irena claims. "A god of games you ain't Eliseo. That would be me in this household." She leans back in the coach. "You really ought to find your god skills soon you know?"

[The Heist!]

The imp giggles inside the lock. "No, no, once the new pact is formed I can leave whenever I want. Just give me a pen and the contract and let me sign..." Then a tiny little clawed hand comes out of the lock, waiting for an... pen.

[Isolation Chamber]

"An excellent question." The masked man suddenly speaks up. "Since you are a rare specimen. A fire vampire with it's mind intact? It's just mentioned twice in my entire library and I've never confirmed either sighting. Indeed, until you came to my doorstep your kind could easily have been dismissed as a mere myth." The man walks around her in a circle, never once actually looking at her. Finally he stops and puts his hands together. "But here you are and now we need to figure out how you tick... to help of course." For the first time he actually turns to her. "But I must admit I'm not sure how to control your powers. The other fire vampire we have here have never learned anything. But you are different after all. Have you tried simply... turning off the cold? Or perhaps feed from a singular source? Say, if I gave you an infinite source of heat perhaps you wouldn't need to take it from anywhere else?"

[Light's Heart]

The fire fades as Shoyler speaks, but Tarim's eyes never stop burning. "I could aid your campaign if you do as described. If the rest of the light does however is another question, when the high council send us here to the nexus it was decided that the leaders of our council should be "open-minded" to be able to handle the nature of the nexus." He scoffs. "But now they refuse any action, really as passive as this government that even refused to fight AMEN. So while I can talk to them I don't think all of them can be can convinced to join your cause." Unless Shoyler had any ideas!

[The Fox Inn]

Obriane slumps down on her bed, thinking. Her life had changed so much since she came in contact with the nexus and she wasn't entirely sure it was all good changes. It felt like she needed to stop and really think over what she was doing...

[Morty]

[The Fox Inn]

As Obriane lays in her bed and things, something starts slipping in through the window. It appears to be a long streak of black smoke. Close examination reveals it to be similar to a long centipede with a pair of beady, glowing red eyes, but it's hard to properly examine it - the creature keeps shifting out of focus. It stares around the room, as if unsure why it's there.

[Ionbound]

[Isolation Chamber]

Kanya shakes her head and says, "This is as warm as I can be...Any more, and I start to slow down. And as for feeding from a specific person, I don't know. Are you volunteering to let me try?"

[Hattish Thing]

[Light's Heart]

The fire fades as Shoyler speaks, but Tarim's eyes never stop burning. "I could aid your campaign if you do as described. If the rest of the light does however is another question, when the high council send us here to the nexus it was decided that the leaders of our council should be "open-minded" to be able to handle the nature of the nexus." He scoffs. "But now they refuse any action, really as passive as this government that even refused to fight AMEN. So while I can talk to them I don't think all of them can be can convinced to join your cause." Unless Shoyler had any ideas!

Shoyler nods his head slowly before continuing to speak. Hmm... It seems your high council is as guilty of inactivity as the rest of the populace. A sympathetic attitude towards the beasts of the dark is just as ignorant as a stance of tolerance. You wouldn't tolerate some termite infestation on a beautiful bit of woodwork, so why do the people tolerate the infections that are undead? That are demons? That are witches? I don't know... Tell me, how many of your order are as passionate as you? If I cannot convince your council to join me... Perhaps a few members will follow, at least. My friend, I am attempting to unify those of our mindset. The Silver Knights will be spoken to as well, and I'm certain they'll see eye to eye with me. Together, we can begin taking a more active position in defending the city. If I can just convince your council to join.... We can unify The Burning Light and the Silver Knights. Think of it! With the manpower and drive between us, we could take the fight back to the vermin of the night!

Perhaps I ought to speak with your council?

[ImpSyndrome]

[Jacob the Unfortunately Still Mute]


There's no drop in Mark's expression, as he prepared for this. Internally, the disappointment lasts only so long as he methodically switches gears to his next prediction.

"M'k. That rules out petty hexes. Either you made enemies with pretty subtle casters, or you ate an even more subtle poison by accident. I'm going to check the house for hexes one last time and then set up a dispelling writ on your person." he states, walking over to his other book, labelled 'Elminister's Guide to Disenchantments vol XI'. "Lemme warn you though. Make sure to remove anything magical that you don't want to be mundane when I start the dispelling writ. This is potent stuff. Anything you carry, physical or otherwise is gonna get all its magical properties erased."

After his explanation, he walks back over to the first levitating book, and touches it with his hand. It glows as he steps away from it and touches the wall of the house. Runes and various symbols magically burn themselves into the entirety of the house (not permanently). No nook or cranny is spared. If there're any sources of curses in the house that's causing his rather severe speech impediment, they ought to shine brighter than the runes if physical and subsequently be countered. Otherwise, Jacob will remain mute for the next few moments and Marcus will walk over to the man and raise an eyebrow questioningly.

Jacob grabs his pad and scribbles another note, adding to it as Marcus' explanation continues. Eventually, he hands over the pad, which now reads:

I don't remember making any enemies or eating anything strange, at least not in the last three weeks. Also, I don't own any enchanted items, if that helps.

The silenced man stands as still as he can as Marcus goes to work again. Several moments pass after the impressive procedure is finished, but nothing seems to be glowing or radiating any sort of magic. Then, eventually:

"...Did it work?"

Jacob claps his hands over his mouth, as if shocked that he could even form a complete sentence. After the surprise fades, he grins from ear to ear and lets out a delighted cheer, elated to have recovered his voice. His moment of celebration passes soon enough, and he approaches to shake Marcus' hand, lauding him, "You're a miracle worker, sir, and nothing less! I was sure that I'd never speak another syllable again...You may very well have saved me from total isolation! I won't ever forget this favor, I swear it!" Quite the chatterbox, this one, without that curse holding his tongue.

...Speaking of the curse, what could've been causing it?

[Shadowcaller]

[The Fox Inn]

As Obriane lays in her bed and things, something starts slipping in through the window. It appears to be a long streak of black smoke. Close examination reveals it to be similar to a long centipede with a pair of beady, glowing red eyes, but it's hard to properly examine it - the creature keeps shifting out of focus. It stares around the room, as if unsure why it's there.

[Isolation Chamber]

Kanya shakes her head and says, "This is as warm as I can be...Any more, and I start to slow down. And as for feeding from a specific person, I don't know. Are you volunteering to let me try?"

Shoyler nods his head slowly before continuing to speak. Hmm... It seems your high council is as guilty of inactivity as the rest of the populace. A sympathetic attitude towards the beasts of the dark is just as ignorant as a stance of tolerance. You wouldn't tolerate some termite infestation on a beautiful bit of woodwork, so why do the people tolerate the infections that are undead? That are demons? That are witches? I don't know... Tell me, how many of your order are as passionate as you? If I cannot convince your council to join me... Perhaps a few members will follow, at least. My friend, I am attempting to unify those of our mindset. The Silver Knights will be spoken to as well, and I'm certain they'll see eye to eye with me. Together, we can begin taking a more active position in defending the city. If I can just convince your council to join.... We can unify The Burning Light and the Silver Knights. Think of it! With the manpower and drive between us, we could take the fight back to the vermin of the night!

Perhaps I ought to speak with your council?

[The Fox Inn]

Perhaps she should get some other kind of job? There had to plenty of people who'd want someone with her particular talents right? Maybe- wait, what was that?
Obriane get's up from her bed. She's still dressed in her breastplate. She was about to sleep so she couldn't really take it off now, and especially not what seemed to be a spirit about. SHe stares out into the darkness, trying to focus on the light tingling sensation which she always get when there is a spirit around. How was she supposed to sleep with a thing like that stalking her?

[Isolation Chamber]

The masked man chuckles. "Perhaps I should introduce myself, I am Ryhe. One of the two lords of Malechenar." He places his hand on his chest. "But you may refer to me as your new host during your stay here. I'm afraid that I can't offer you my body however but I might have the very next best thing. Tell me, do you know a source of nearly endless heat and energy?" He turns away, wandering away a bit as he talks. "Since I think you do actually Kanya. Just make a guess."

[Light's Heart]

"You can feel free to try." Tarim replies. "Don't expect anything however, I've already used many of the arguments you use. They won't listen." He pauses for a moment but then opens his mouth again. "What we need is definite proof that the world is really going to hell. That the dark ones are actually destroying this fragile society. Something... big." He looks over at Shoyler again. "That would turn many to our side."

[Ionbound]

[Isolation Chamber]

Kanya frowns and says, "The sun? But...I do that already. I don't drain heat from people, or at least I try not to...I drain it from the air."

[Hattish Thing]

[Light's Heart]

"You can feel free to try." Tarim replies. "Don't expect anything however, I've already used many of the arguments you use. They won't listen." He pauses for a moment but then opens his mouth again. "What we need is definite proof that the world is really going to hell. That the dark ones are actually destroying this fragile society. Something... big." He looks over at Shoyler again. "That would turn many to our side."

Shoyler nods, before taking out a small gemstone. He shows it to Tarim before activating it, holding it in his hand like one would hold a holographic image dispensing device. Within a few seconds, the image of a tall wall, with navy text spray painted upon it, reading forth the terrible threat, "You may begin counting the deaths that fall on your shoulders." Lying beneath these words is a young man, drained of all blood, marks from four sets of fangs piercing his skin. Shoyler sighs deeply before speaking and dispelling the image. That was yesterday. A vampire, one of many unifying together has threatened the entire city. I believe he'll kill unless he's stopped by someone who actually knows what he's doing. The others, they didn't even appear bothered by the death! Sympathizers, all of them. If the proof of such pointless violence committed by a vampire won't sway the minds of your council, perhaps more deaths will.

We need to get this over with before more people end up drained and mounted on walls.

[Morty]

[The Fox Inn]

As Obriane uses her spirit-sense, the long, shadowy thing seems to come more into focus. It does indeed look like a long, skinny, pitch-black centipede with long, crooked legs and bright red eyes. It stares back at the changeling.

"I come from the King," it says, its voice full of clicks and hisses.