Trog's Tavern CCLI

[Zefir]

At this time the fire elf girl get's her bowl of porridge
"That makes [Add Price] goldcoins."
The girl looks back.
"I don't have any coins with me." she says and befor the waitress can say anything she drops a few crystal shardes on the table. "Daddy gave me these to pay. Is that enougth for the Bowl?"

The nameless waitess looks at these , then takes them into her hand to get a closer look.
"Sure." she says. "That should do." She is not aware how much the shards are worth and anyone having any idea of it knows that the girl get a bowl every day for at least a month with those shardes.

The fire elf girl starts eating from her bowl as the waitress comes back, leaving a few coins as change. The girl takes a look around while eatlin, holding one arm around the bow to protecct it.

[Ionbound]

The card slides across the table and slips, pristine now and almost unnoticed, into the deck box as the smoke continues to waver searchingly. Then, slowly, it moves towards Sam... before turning and alighting on a man to his left, serenely enjoying a stout. The man does not even notice as the emerald vapors fill his lungs, ears, eyes, and vanish entirely within him, calmly drinking and chatting to his friends without a care.

The gambler steadies the now rocking table, and picks up the case full of chips that was scattered on the floor in the hubub. And then he slides five other cards back into his deck, removes the two of clubs from his deck box and does the same with it, and begins shuffling once more, completely unfazed by Sam's reaction. Another smile, another shuffle, another invitation for another soul to sit opposite him and risk.

A young lady with red hair, wearing a dark blue pull-over sweater, and with the look in her green eyes of a gambler that thinks she's better than she really is sits down opposite the man and says, "Hey there. You looking for a game of cards?"

[Slii Arhem]

"Not looking, I've already found my game. And it's not one most are prepared to play." The Dealer replies casually, continuing his ever-present shuffle as he regards his opponent with a piercing glance over his deep, red glasses, "Let's hope you're more prepared for taking a risk than the last one to grace that chair, hmm? It's the most simple gamble of all. Pick a card." He fans the deck out with a practiced flick, each card visible enough that it could be plucked with a finger and thumb.

[Ionbound]

The woman chuckles as she leans back, seeming relaxed, and says, "A game of chance, huh? That's hardly fun." She then shakes her head mirthfully and says, "Sure, though. Let's see what you've got." And, in a rather cliched and overly dramatic fashion, she pulls a card from the middle of the pile, not expecting too much.

[Slii Arhem]

"That's all life is, friend." Her card vanishes in a burst of fire as soon as it's drawn, and the Dealer shuts his eyes tight, pushing his glasses up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"The six of clubs. I suggest you get that taken care of soon, before too many people can get hurt. Hired help might be in order." Funny how he knew that, without even looking at it. He stands, ignoring the case full of poker chips at his side, and slides the rest of the deck back into the box where, if she looks closely, the six of clubs sits unharmed and waiting to be drawn again.

"I'll leave you to it. Sayonara." And then he turns to leave, as the woman may begin to feel the ominous dread of being watched by an expert predator from somewhere just out of sight.

[Cyber Punk]

"Maybe a smidge," Nimaah admits, "But don't think I'm slow. You two are rather prompt for some sociable barflies. There some bad blood there?" She asks, ordering another drink, "or maybe those two just do things that you'd rather not happen at all?"

"You're a smart Jemmy then, aye?" Dixie asks, an eyebrow raising up, though she doesn't stop smiling.
"Good. One's gotta be to be able to survive."
"We hate their kind, if you must know. Don't we, brother?" She looks to her brother, Currant, then back to Nimaah.
"We do, dear sister." He mirrors her reaction while he speaks.

"Parents sold us to the big men just to make big bucks."
"Aye, we're kinetics, you see? So we got to get experimented on."
"But now we're out of that tin-can."
"Doesn't mean we can't still hate them, though."

Nimaah might begin to get the sense that she's not talking to two people separately, but two people speaking at once. Their actions, movements and speech are a little bit too synchronized, as though they had a tight mental link. Which they do.

She might of course also notice (though these two are very good with their fingers, so she just might not) that these two are pickpocketing her, just to see what she's carrying. It makes for good conversation when you know what the other person's carrying in his/her pockets.

[Ionbound]

Laura glares at the man as he turns to leave, and says angrily, "Is that all? You just set a card on fire, say it's the six of clubs, drop a mysterious hint, and then walk away? Come on! What's the point, then?"

[Slii Arhem]

"We gambled." He stops, feeling he owes her at least that much of an explanation, "And as happens far too often, I did not lose, and you did not win. The six of clubs is not insurmountable, thankfully. It is a small kind of terror. But it will stalk you, hound you, and when you are not looking isolate you. And when there is no one else nearby, that is when you will see it for the first and last times." He grimaces, shrugging fatalistically.

"So I suggest the hired help. At least then you might force a confrontation, but even if you do not, you won't die so long as you have others with you."

[Ionbound]

Laura frowns and says, "So...I have some crazy shadow monster stalking me and looking to kill me when I'm alone. Wonderful. I mean, come on. This isn't even fun for anyone. Just paranoia." She grumbles, then looks around the room, her eyes settling on the biggest guy there and says, "Hey you! Can you help me out?! I've got a thing after me!"

[Deathkeeper]

Sam looks about the room a bit and then groans as he realizes he's being addressed. He'd been annoying that guy, but it's not hard to figure out what just happened. And he'd just found a chair big enough for him. With some deliberation, he gets up, going over to the young lady (she's pretty) and glaring at the man.
"Are you really not done yet? I don't know what you did to that poor sap before, but I could probably hit you pretty hard in the face before you could get more of your cards out of your box." he says with a grumble.

[8BitNinja]

Laura frowns and says, "So...I have some crazy shadow monster stalking me and looking to kill me when I'm alone. Wonderful. I mean, come on. This isn't even fun for anyone. Just paranoia." She grumbles, then looks around the room, her eyes settling on the biggest guy there and says, "Hey you! Can you help me out?! I've got a thing after me!"

Steve turns to Laura and says "Hello Ma'am, I overheard your conversation. There seems to be a monster problem? May I be of assistance?" He extends his hand that is not holding his shield and says "my name's Steve, I'm a Paladin"

[Slii Arhem]

The Dealer raises a placating hand, not coincidentally with a few cards fanned between his fingers, "A man and his means are rarely parted. But it's not me you'll have to worry about soon, friend. It might be in everyone's best interest if I took my business elsewhere." And with that, the man sort of... folds as if someone turned the page of a massive book and just swept him away, leaving the entrance, without him in it, behind.

From the rafters, a deep growling pairs with a flicker of liquid flame, dripping down from a massive, toothy maw to singe and pool on the floors below. Illuminated by its own acrid, smoking saliva, the perched dragon's amber eyes stare hauntingly at Laura, Steve and Sam, flicking between the two to look for any signs of weakness from the gambling lass and her impromptu protectors.

It's as long as a man is tall, its leathery wings folded tight against its back and all limbs knotted to prepare for a lunge. Tarnished copper scales reflect the blooming firelight below it, contrasting with its dull brown teeth and claws. It's thin to an almost sickly degree, looking even more dangerous for how famished it appears.

((Edited for 8bit.))

[Ionbound]

Laura eyes the dragon, and starts moving her hand very slowly towards a knife on the table, hoping to not draw it's attention more than she already has. She glances at Sam and Steve, nodding her head towards it as if to say 'get it, you idiots'.

[Deathkeeper]

Sam looks between the reptile and the girl and her slightly condescending attitude, crossing his arms. All of them.
"What? I'm not going up there after it. You yelled at a random teen to solve your problems, you ain't always gonna get someone who knows what they're doing, no matter how big he is."

[8BitNinja]

Laura eyes the dragon, and starts moving her hand very slowly towards a knife on the table, hoping to not draw it's attention more than she already has. She glances at Sam and Steve, nodding her head towards it as if to say 'get it, you idiots'.

Steve sees her glance and quickly reaches toward the knife. He puts his hand down where the knife is. "I'm pretty sure you signaled one of us to grab this knife, but I'm not sure which one" Steve waits for the woman's reply

[Slii Arhem]

With the confusion between the three, the dragon makes a move, making an disturbingly wet coughing, hacking noise in the back of its throat. After a moment of this, it spits a ball of fire about the size of a softball towards the knife on the table in a low arc. If nothing else, it's sure to set the piece of furniture ablaze.

[8BitNinja]

With the confusion between the three, the dragon makes a move, making an disturbingly wet coughing, hacking noise in the back of its throat. After a moment of this, it spits a ball of fire about the size of a softball towards the knife on the table in a low arc. If nothing else, it's sure to set the piece of furniture ablaze.

I pick up the knife and roll away from the table. Steve yells "everyone get back!" as he simultaneously attempts to roll and puts his helmet on

[Ionbound]

Laura glares and growls in frustration at the paladin, then shouts, as she runs away from the fireball and takes cover behind a flipped table, "You idiot! I needed that!" She looks around for another weapon, desperate for a way to defend herself. Then she notices Sam's inaction and shouts, "Hey! I don't care if you're 13 or 103! If you don't help me, I'm gonna die! So get to it!"

[Deathkeeper]

Sam bristles, halfway through picking up a pair of large stone mugs from an unoccupied table. This is the last thing he needs right now.
"Shut up, you brat. I haven't got a clue how to fight, so I'm just as likely to die, so shut yer trap and show some gratitude that I don't walk out right now. Sheesh." he says, before lobbing the heavy mugs at the reptile. He's not very accurate, but he's strong at least.

((8bit, please wait until everyone in the fight's posted before going again. Thanks!))

[8BitNinja]

Laura glares and growls in frustration at the paladin, then shouts, as she runs away from the fireball and takes cover behind a flipped table, "You idiot! I needed that!" She looks around for another weapon, desperate for a way to defend herself. Then she notices Sam's inaction and shouts, "Hey! I don't care if you're 13 or 103! If you don't help me, I'm gonna die! So get to it!"

"I'm sorry Ma'am, take the knife" says Steve. Steve throws the knife back to Laura and draws his own sword. He then raises his shield, the lion face on the front glows. "Cursed dragon, ancient serpent, come at me, today you will taste the judgement of the Divine One." Says Steve as he gets into a fighting stance, He yells to Laura "Get out of his range of fire, I can tank the hits, oh, and sorry about the knife thing"

((did everyone in the fight go? if not, just go as if I didn't post and I'll remove this))

[Slii Arhem]

One of the mugs scores a solid hit to its sinuous neck, causing it to hack up the fiery spittle it was preparing and denting a few of its scales. The other, sadly, misses as it leaps off its perch towards the rolling paladin, teeth and claws extended as it tries to hit him while he's still rolling, aiming to grab hold of and wrench his arm painfully if it can.

Laura will likely see plenty of glass and stoneware projectiles about, as well as loose chairs and the like. It's unlikely anyone else left weapons out in the open, but there's still silverware to be considered. A knife big and sharp enough to cut through a tavern steak might be good enough in a pinch.

[Ionbound]

Laura manages to catch the knife the paladin tosses her, then grabs the one on the floor near her, and...Waits. She watches the dragon, trying to see if it has any particularly noticeable weak spots on it before acting, though she holds the knives at the ready to defend herself if it becomes necessary.

[Deathkeeper]

Sam slowly lumbers around, trying to get to the creature's back as it tackles the knight so he can end this quickly. Maybe if it doesn't notice him he can sneak up behind and just break its neck in one go. It worked once before, with those miniature manticores.

[Slii Arhem]

((Going to need 8bit to post in response to the dragon attacking him. From that point on, for simplicity, the posting order will be Firedaemon33, LordDeathKeeper, 8BitNinja, Slii Arhem.))

[8BitNinja]

Sam slowly lumbers around, trying to get to the creature's back as it tackles the knight so he can end this quickly. Maybe if it doesn't notice him he can sneak up behind and just break its neck in one go. It worked once before, with those miniature manticores.

Steve turns towards the dragon and slashes at where his neck is. "All Powerful one, grant me your strength to destroy this evil" says Steve, when he does, his sword glows in a white light. ((I cast Smite Evil)) "die, you spawn of inferno"

((sorry I took so long, I was eating dinner))

[Slii Arhem]

The magical destruction of evil unfortunately fizzles against this foe, however the sharpened edge of his sword is a far more versatile tool than aligned magics, and scores a damaging blow before the creature's jaws can clamp down on his arm. Crushing through several scales, it draws blood which bursts into flame on contact with the air, searing the wound closed and bouncing the blade back with explosive force even as the dragon shrieks in horrible pain.

Its mouth still open from the lunge, it hisses out a mist of spittle which ignites in the gap between it and its holy foe, a small, loose fireball that should nonetheless do some damage at this close a range.

It's so thoroughly distracted by this, though, that Sam has an opening to do as he wishes, and Laura can spot that like most wyrms its underbelly lacks such firm scales. Whether she wants to draw its blood after seeing what happened before is another matter.

[Ionbound]

Laura sighs as the sees the searing blood and mutters, "Here goes nothing," as she chucks both knives as hard as she can at the wyrm's underbelly, hoping to get the blades stuck in it's flesh. However, due to her general inexperience with throwing knives, and the unweighted nature of the knives, they might not hit the target. If fact, they'd probably be more likely to hit if the dragon dodged into them than anything else.

[Deathkeeper]

Sam weighs over six hundred pounds and has feet that click on the floorboards, so he really can't even pretend that he's capable of being stealthy, but the holy sword seems to be doing a pretty good job of distracting it, so snatching another knife from a table Sam tries to grab the creature from behind with two of his thick hands, snapping its neck back as far as he can while his third holds the body steady for his fourth to plunge the dull knife into the base of the front of its neck. He's seen people's throats cut from behind once or twice back in Skyside. Well, normally it's cut, not stabbed, but he doesn't really expect these steak knives to slice well.

[8BitNinja]

Sam weighs over six hundred pounds and has feet that click on the floorboards, so he really can't even pretend that he's capable of being stealthy, but the holy sword seems to be doing a pretty good job of distracting it, so snatching another knife from a table Sam tries to grab the creature from behind with two of his thick hands, snapping its neck back as far as he can while his third holds the body steady for his fourth to plunge the dull knife into the base of the front of its neck. He's seen people's throats cut from behind once or twice back in Skyside. Well, normally it's cut, not stabbed, but he doesn't really expect these steak knives to slice well.

Steve yells "now taste justice!" As he jams his sword through the jugular of the dragon. Steve then utters a prayer "Oh Great One, keeper of all that is good, please do not let me die here." Steve holds his sword firmly and awaits what will happen next

[Slii Arhem]

((Hey 8bit, for reference in the future, any attacks or influences on other characters should be made as attempts, since in freeform it's important that defending characters be given the option to dodge, counter, or resist as their player likes. Also, make certain to carefully read the posts of your opponents, and even your allies, before posting. The dragon had breathed a small fireball at Steve the Paladin, but you didn't have him react to it at all. Other than that, you've done okay so far. ))

The dragon, faced with a distracting two knives knicking off his side and scoring a surprising, tiny hit to its abdomen and a far more distracting mass of muscle and sinew trying its damnedest to mutilate its throat with a steak knife, does not taste anything, let alone justice. Though the knives do very little, drawing some small flickers of flaming blood, the much longer sword is far more suited to combat. Even as the beast thrashes in Sam's grips, its scales and spines dragging roughly, the major blood vessel is opened wide before it, spraying its blood so far that it actually stays a liquid for a brief instant before igniting as before, exploding violently in the midst of the combatants. Laura, being the farthest away from the beast, will almost certainly take the least damage from the blast.

When the dust settles and the multiple fires are put out, some oddities arise. Everything set on fire by the beast's fluids has petrified, turning to a rock-solid substance instead of burning to ash. The table, in particular, is now entirely such and heavier than most can lift. Most flesh wouldn't have been exposed long enough for that reaction, but it's possible someone might have some skin that will need to be cut away entirely and either healed naturally or grafted.

The dragon itself, after its fiery death, is now utterly petrified. Its corpse is very hot to the touch, and utterly inflexible on the ground.