Serious Plots 6: Srs bsns

[Deathkeeper]

Cavern

Spako yelps in surprise as a rock falls near them and gets the message. He sprints for the entrance, only slowing down if there's a monster he needs to fly over or if Cleo falls behind.

[Recaiden]

Cleo follows, keeping right on his heels as they flee up the stairway.

Which is now, also, properly full of fleeing monsters who have no desire to be buried, wings and scales and leather and spikes all running into each other.

[Deathkeeper]

Caverns

Flying seems like a reasonable way to get over the crowd of monsters. Or perhaps jumping on top of their heads. Spako has a few plans, but for now he tries to fly over the monsters, occasionally pushing them with wind to try to keep those he can affect from escaping.

[Recaiden]

It is a reasonable way, with the open stairwell meaning there's no real ceiling to worry about.
More than one aberration slips or is shoved or justled over the edge and tumbles down to the bottom of the way. Most don't survive that. A few are climbing up the center of the spiral, ignoring any stairs, if they have the limbs to do so.

Cleo, much as she might prefer not to, is following Spako's lead and flying on out of here, by magic.

I think they'll make it away just fine.

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cavern

Spako will fall over panting once they manage to reach the mouth of the cave.
"Well, I don't know about you Cleo, but I think that was pretty impressive."

[Recaiden]

Cleo takes a bit longer to arrive, having stopped to put the strange sealing stone back in place (just in case) and destroy a few of the monsters closest to escaping.
But in time she comes out of the cave, back in her normal shape, and lies down near the little kobold.
"Thank you. Not exactly what I had expected to be here."

[Deathkeeper]

Forest

"Yeah, from your experience I figured it would be something dragon down there. Sure was weirder than I thought." he pants.

[Recaiden]

"I don't know if it's the job or luck, but I turn up a lot of elder evils on otherwise normal outings." Cleo answers, slowly, out of breath. Seems perfectly happy to rest here for a moment.

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cave

"Well, you're not hellish, so I guess in the end you being a dragon had nothing to do with that place. You did it all on your own." Spako suggests, pondering.

Or did she?!
She probably did.

[Recaiden]

"I guess I did."

Cleo can't resist the occasion to stand and strike a dramatic pose.

"Which means you can too, don't you think, Spako?"

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cave

Spako looks at her, frowning.
"I guess? I still don't really understand how. So I don't know..." he says, trailing off.

[Recaiden]

Cleo shakes her head, disapproving.
"Well, first you have to not give up like that. If you only did things you already know, would you be here today?"

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cave

"Well yeah, but what do I do? I'm not saying I can't, but I don't know where to start." the kobold returns, sitting up straight.

[Recaiden]

"Well, you learn."
Cleo says, nodding often.
"Look into having the koboldness punched out of you through martial arts, or transcending physical existence and reincarnating yourself, or earning a wish, or a ritual with a dragon's blood, or studying transmutations. I did mention I had a lot of material for you to read up on, right?"

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cavern

"Well, I don't have any interest in trying to get a Wish from the Deck. But I'll try. Are you volunteering to ritually bleed on me?" he asks jokingly.

[Recaiden]

Cleo sticks her tongue out.
"I'm hardly the only dragon around, am I?"
"Besides, I doubt you'd keep your wings in that case."
She glances back at the cave.
"Should we head home?"

[Deathkeeper]

Forest Cave

Spako gets to his feet and nods. "Yeah, we should.
...
your blood doesn't actually do that to people, does it?" he asks.

[Recaiden]

"I can't say I've ever tested it."
Cleo eyes her fellow wizard with mock-suspicion. He won't be trying to steal anyone's blood, will he?

And off they go back to the wizards' tower. Hopefully an uneventful trip, after all that.

[Deathkeeper]

Wizard's Forest

Once they're comfortably on the walk home, Spako will begin some good-natured complaints.
"My feet are absolutely filthy. There wouldn't be a nice bath in the Tower, would there?" he asks.

[Recaiden]

Although it should be noted that the Wizards' forest and the forest with the caverns are very different forests. The former is deciduous and interspersed with many clearings, the other is evergreens and shoreside scrub, thick and dizzying and ancient.

"There's a nice stream nearby."
"You didn't have a bath in your own tower?"
Cleo teases. The answer is of course 'yes'.

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Forest

"We did, but it was inefficient and didn't have heated water. Had to do it yourself. Not very luxurious." the kobold explains grumpily.

[Recaiden]

"You didn't enjoy the chance to use your fire-breath for mundane things?" Cleo titters.

"But yeah. We had a fire mage here once, so the heating and cooling is really top-level. Here, I'll show you how it all works."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Forest

"I don't have fire breath. Thanks, though." Spako grumps. That's one thing he was looking forward to.

[Recaiden]

While Cleo certainly intends to explain to Spako how the heating and water work (and some time, they'll want to extend channels for water up into his part of the tower), they may well be interrupted by what they find back at home. An unusually localized stormcloud hovers over the tower, and a colossal silvery dragon is lying in the meadow, wrapped around the whole clearing such that their head and tail perfectly meet to enclose the space.

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

Oh no! Spako is positive that they didn't have a Silver Wizard, and Cleo didn't mention a guard-she-dragon, so that must mean this is....
an intruder!

Or a needy citizen who happens to have a storm following her.

Spako considers this possibility and decides to be polite. He goes up to Rhin's face and decides to talk instead of poking her with his scepter.
"Ma'am? Ma'am? Do you have business sitting on our lawn?" he asks as politely as he can.

[Recaiden]

In a flash, Mei collapses down to only about 20 feet long and gets to her feet.
"Oh there you are. Hello! Yes, I'm here to see the wizards about-"
"Cleo, where did you get this kobold? He doesn't look anything like you."

Cleo, for her part, mostly just smiles.
"This is our new wizard!"

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

Spako looks between the two dragons. He gives a formal bow to Rhin.
"I'm Spako, Miss. What business do you have?" he asks her.

[Recaiden]

"I am Aurani Meirhindaniacolanmastarania. Pleased to meet you, Wizard Spako."
She inclines her head slightly, not quite a nod.
"Three things: Riverside could go very badly very quickly. Old evils. Be ready."
"The second, you already know, Cleo."
She turns her head, looking away.
"And there's this group of kobolds that appeared after the bank robbery scene and I feel I should do something about them but I don't know what; they're nothing like before and please help."

[Deathkeeper]

Wizards' Tower

"What's 'before,' Ma'am? I mean, if they're anything like my people usually are you could just show up, or have another dragon do so,
tell them to woship you, and then do whatever you want. It's a very vexing pattern they have." he grumbles.

[Recaiden]

"I take it you don't approve of this inclination?"
Rhin asks, peering curiously at Spako.
"Are you some sort of anti-theist?"

"Before is, well, I'm not very good at living things. They always end up as something...wrong. But the postshallar at least got things together. They were independent enough. These kobolds keep following me around and asking me things. I don't have time to fix all their problems! But I do feel sort of responsible for them. I can't just leave them alone in the Nexus, can I?"