Princess Peril [IC]

[JNAProductions]

You awake in a well-lit, comfortable room. You are all on a rather large bed-big enough for you all to be on and not be crowded-with ornate silk curtains drawn back around it. The room around you is covered in gold and gems, piled high, all sorts of coins from all over, and radiant gems twinkling with an inner glow.

The dragon-the last thing you remember-is nowhere in sight.

[Elfbird]

Meredith

Merry imagines herself bolting upright, grabbing and shaking the princess next to her while shouting Dragon! We've been kidnapped by a dragon! We'll be eaten or roasted or, or, or made into puppets! Delicious little jewel-studded dolls!, then burrowing so deep into the plush covers that she and reality will have no choice but to ignore each other indefinitely.

However, that wouldn't be very ladylike.

Merry forces down her panic with a deep breath, then slowly rises and sweeps a gaze of feigned disinterest around the room, taking in every detail in hopes of finding some advantage for herself.
She then looks left and right at her bedfellows and addresses them in a steady tone, as if giving a small speech at a ball.
"My ladies, royal sisters gathered here, it seems that we... have become jewels in a dragon's horde. At least, such is my impression, and pray correct me if I misjudged. Should the scaly brute have caused harm to your persons or attire, I humbly offer what small magics I have to make well. Now, what say you all?"

...Merry then realizes that she forgot to check if any of the others were actually awake before speaking. She starts to flush with embarrassment as she wonders whether it was rude to speak aloud around sleeping princesses, even in this circumstance, or if she should have woken them gently first, or maybe tried to sing something, or...
It's presently lost on her just how silly it is to be worried about the finer points of propriety when faced with a mass kidnapping by a dragon.

Spoiler: Rolls!

Show

(Have a set of things, use or ignore as you see fit)

Investigation to maybe spot any useful details overlooked in the initial room description:
(1d20+2)[20]

Arcana to guess if some of those radiant gems might be magical:
(1d20+6)[21]

History to briefly ponder major precedents for dragon-kidnapping scenarios:
(1d20+4)[9]

And lastly, for myself, a Cha save to see whether the Inner Panic Meter goes up or down from here, barring external influences...
(1d20+4)[20]

[JNAProductions]

Spoiler: Investigation DC 20

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There appears to be a small door, leading off to gods know where.

Spoiler: Arcana DC 21

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It's impossible to tell, from this distance. They could be twinkling from the chandelier, or it could be an inner glow.

Spoiler: History DC 9

Show

Dragons kidnapping princesses is a common historical occurrence. Or possibly a mythical occurrence. You don't remember which.

[appending_doom]

Siksta rises only a moment later, mouth parted slightly to reveal the hint of fangs. Her burnished gold scales are dull against the gleaming gold of the treasure surrounding her. For a moment, she might be mistaken as an ally of her own captor, save for the delicacy of her rust-colored robes and the silver circlet set on her brow.

She gives Merry a sidelong glance before giving a careless shrug.

"If by your claim you have some magic at your disposal, I would recommend you hold it in abeyance until my own are expended. I have some small talent that can be expended only for the purpose of healing, and I would far prefer keep any more flexible talents available if they should be needed."

She holds out a scaly hand to Merry.

"Regardless, for the sake of our compatriots' safety, I would recommend we keep calm. House Throdeni will likely send a rescue mission in due time, and it would be best we stay out of their way until justice has been done." Something akin to a growl winds its way through Siksta's voice, though she makes no outward movement.

[ptdapen]

The Princess Isabella found her predicament to be frightening, at first. She had opened her eyes for a brief moment and had shut them just as quickly; she had hoped her situation was a bad dream. However, it was not so. She sat up in the bed and noted the difference between all of them in her head. In some cases, their only similarities seemed to be the fact that they were all princesses of some sort.

For the time being, she did not feel compelled to speak to the other princesses. It seemed improper to her, nobles from different houses consorting with one another outside of a court event. She crawled her way to the edge of the bed as gracefully as she could and stepped down. Then she made her way over to gold piles and started digging through it in hopes of finding something noteworthy.

Spoiler

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Investigation: (1d20+5)[22]

[JNAProductions]

Spoiler: Investigation DC 22

Show

Gold, platinum, gems, silver... You do find a few lockets and other jewelry pieces, as well as some cast-off scales of many different colors.

[SaintRidley]

Machka wakes up to the voices of the others, a little hazy on details. Her clothes, fine wolf's fur, are still there, so that's a good thing. She listens a bit to the others, but quickly finds herself bored with listening.

She gets up, thinking. She tries to recall tribal history to see if any prior princesses were kidnapped by a dragon before. She also starts assessing the bed. Maybe it could be broken apart and fashioned into spears?

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

History: (1d20+2)[21]

I dunno if there's any roll you'd want to use for assessing the bed's usability for weaponmaking. Here's a d20 to add to whatever modifiers, if any, might be good: (1d20)[4]

Machka doesn't say a word. She's not terribly interested in talking until something worth talking about presents itself.

[aturtledoesbite]

Ketilya Linnel, upon waking, saw the others with whom she was imprisoned. She was terrified far beyond fear, so all she had now was curiosity. The stories said that the dragon would kidnap a princess, one singular princess, right? Why, then, were there several princesses here? If nothing else, how was the brave adventurer that would come to defeat the dragon supposed to decide which of them to marry? An idea, equally preposterous to Ketilya, but one she would have to accept the possibility of, was that there might be multiple adventurers. But then, would there be an even match? And if there were, how would they decide who would marry who? Ohhh, the tales never talk about this...

...though, it occurs to Ketilya; the tales also never mention why the dragon kidnaps a princess...or, well, princesses, in this case. Perhaps she could ask it? Except...it's not here right now. Leaving aside the question of how the dragon managed to get the princesses into the room, she searched for some sort of door to try to leave the room.

Nary a word was spoken to the others; Ketilya was much too shy for that.

[Insolitus]

A young, elven woman, with a shaved head and wearing what appears to be the blue robes of the Order of the Azure sky, starts to stir out of unconsciousness. At first glance she does not appear to be a princess, but her unmistakable grace and poise as she awakens, and the signet ring upon her fingers, clearly mark her as of noble birth.

As Sameen sits up and witnesses her surroundings, a look of shock and horror crosses her face. The realisation of her abduction so soon after escaping the burning monastery hits her like a ton of bricks. The deaths of her friends, the monks sent to protect her, flash before her eyes. She can still smell the burning flesh. "Anton... Vera... I'm sorry". She almost let's out an involuntary sob before she steels herself. Utilising the breathing techniques taught to her by the Order, she reestablishes her composure. "Now is not the time to despair, I have to keep going. I have a responsibility to my people." she reminds herself.
Sameen let's out a deep breath and, turning to the group, she takes a moment to regard the princesses fully.

“Although help may be on its way, I don’t think we should simply sit here and wait. We have our mobility; we should use it while we still can.”

Suddenly, a flash of realisation comes across her face followed by a flash of sheepishness. “Ah, where are my manners. Greetings, may you always rejoice under the blue sky. My name’s Sameen, what're yours?”

[appending_doom]

"I am Siksta Throdeniitmen, second born of House Throdeni." The reptilian princess shifts closer to the edge of the platform, scanning the room. "And not to upset, but I vehemently disagree that we should move. Risking the safety of our...less durable sisters seems ill-advised."

[JNAProductions]

Machka wakes up to the voices of the others, a little hazy on details. Her clothes, fine wolf's fur, are still there, so that's a good thing. She listens a bit to the others, but quickly finds herself bored with listening.

She gets up, thinking. She tries to recall tribal history to see if any prior princesses were kidnapped by a dragon before. She also starts assessing the bed. Maybe it could be broken apart and fashioned into spears?

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

History: [roll0]

I dunno if there's any roll you'd want to use for assessing the bed's usability for weaponmaking. Here's a d20 to add to whatever modifiers, if any, might be good: [roll1]

Machka doesn't say a word. She's not terribly interested in talking until something worth talking about presents itself.

Spoiler: History DC 21

Show

Yes, princesses have been kidnapped before. Surprisingly, they've never been harmed-held captive and distressed, sure, but never any physical harm.

As for weapons... The bed would make fine spears.

There's an ominous rumbling throughout the cavern. You can feel it coming from just around the corner, behind some piles of treasure. The dragon is coming.

[igordragonian]

"That wasn't me, father! Aye! And we were just holdin' hands!" Gondorfa grumbled, as she fell off the bed when she fell.

"Aye, that sure a mess." she blinked and looked around.
she were looking for something useful, and tried to remember what she knew about dragons

Spoiler

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perception
(1d20+3)[14](14)

History

(1d20)[5](5)

|"Ah go by the name Gondorfa Goldentoe... I'm afraid we need to prepare ourselves for fight!"

[JNAProductions]

"That wasn't me, father! Aye! And we were just holdin' hands!" Gondorfa grumbled, as she fell off the bed when she fell.

"Aye, that sure a mess." she blinked and looked around.
she were looking for something useful, and tried to remember what she knew about dragons

Spoiler

Show

perception
[roll0]

History

[roll1]

|"Ah go by the name Gondorfa Goldentoe... I'm afraid we need to prepare ourselves for fight!"

Spoiler: Perception DC 14

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You don't see anything of note, other than an out-of-place door behind some treasure. It's sized for humanoids, not a dragon.

Spoiler: History DC 5

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Yeah, you don't know anything special about dragons.

The dragon rounds the corner-it is as you remember it. A massive, scaly creature, bigger than a house, with beautiful, radiant scales of all colors. It looks down at the group of you on and around the bed, and intones in a deep, resonant voice Good morning, Princesses.

[igordragonian]

Gondorfa was about to lead the others to the door she has found- but now it was too late.

'Thousand curses and their offsrping on your head, filthy wyrm!" Gondorfa stomped and yelled.
'May Reorx smash nail your tail to a volcani!' she added just for flavor.
If she were dressed with more than white dress she was more intimadting

[JNAProductions]

Gondorfa was about to lead the others to the door she has found- but now it was too late.

'Thousand curses and their offsrping on your head, filthy wyrm!" Gondorfa stomped and yelled.
'May Reorx smash nail your tail to a volcani!' she added just for flavor.
If she were dressed with more than white dress she was more intimadting

The dragon takes a seat, curling up near the bed. It chuckles slightly.

[igordragonian]

"So..." Gondorfa said, putting her cheeks.
She sat with leg on the other, on bed.
"Does a Blasty friggin wyrmhead like you have a name? Aye?" she has asked, with a friendly dwarfish grumble.

"You seem qulte happy lad."

Spoiler: persuasion?

Show

(1d20+5)[17](17)

[JNAProductions]

I am Phaeris the Mighty. And I know who you are, Gondorfa, Phaeris says. Are you comfortable?

[igordragonian]

"Comftroable? Wid' what? Wid' being held captive of some mighty and alarmingly handsome dragon? I donno, maybe I lack some freedom? Nay?' Gondorfa has answered with mix of cynicism and charming dwarven grumpyness.

Spoiler: Persuasion?

Show

(1d20+5)[14](14)

[JNAProductions]

Spoiler: OOC

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What are you persuading Phaeris about?

Phaeris sighs, a loud exhalation that sends coins scattering along the ground. I cannot tell if you are upset with me, happy to be in this situation, or trying to seduce me. I'm hoping for the second option.

[igordragonian]

Spoiler: ooc

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Mostly befriending/seducing(?) him, sort of? She want to make him low down her guard and maybe, make him trust her. She planning later to find a chance to bluff him to go away

"I guess d'at why you collecting us, y'a big crock. Dontch'a? We amuse you, more than some mute golden coins. Nay?"

[JNAProductions]

Do they not teach the myths of old? Little one, he says, not referring to her dwarven stature but rather their relative sizes, there is an ancient reason for why I have done what I have done, and one that will not cease till all the kings of the lands know their wrongdoing and make amends.

[aturtledoesbite]

Ketilya is startled from her course of action when the dragon itself shows up, at which point she bolts to hide on the other side of the bed. Now the fear catches up to her. She does, at least, take a moment to calm herself while the dragon is talking to the dwarven princess. She realizes that trying to find the dragon was what she intended to do earlier, though it is of little comfort now. She takes a deep breath and asks -- wait a second.

Would 'Lord' or 'Lady' be more appropriate to address the dragon? Ketilya couldn't even begin to consider the thought of not using a title. Her main assumption was that it was male, considering its deep voice, but she'd hate to offend if she were wrong...she was just going to have to do it anyway and hope for the best, she supposed. Now she peeks up over the side of the bed to ask,

"L-Lord Phaeris, for what 'ancient r-reason' are you r-referring?"

[JNAProductions]

I am glad you asked, Ketilya. Perhaps the younger races can learn after all... he says.

In a valley, there was a shepherd, who prayed for guidance for his people. A princess of the angels descended from the heavens to give him guidance, but when she came down, she passed by the home of the first dragon-the son, or daughter-it is not known which-of Tiamat and Bahumat themselves-and this first dragon fell in love with this angel in an instant. He followed her down to the valley, and sang songs and worked masterpieces for her beauty. The shepherd, being a brave and perhaps foolish man, told the dragon in no uncertain terms to go away, and to leave the princess for himself.

The angel, though, was a just and fair woman, and so told the two that she would judge both for who she would court in the mortal realms, and that regardless of who won her heart, she would help all she could. But, since the man had been the one who had summoned her, she would allow him the first chance.

The first dragon, of course, was livid! But they were not so angry that they would risk drawing the princess's wrath, and so agreed. They returned to their home, awaiting with first bitterness, but then patience, the day when the shepherd would be done and the princess would come to him.

But then, the shepherd's king saw the angel, and desired her for himself! He had the shepherd executed, held the angel captive in a gilded cage, and declared her his bride by divine right! The first dragon, in their rage, stormed the palace, destroying the walls and toppling the towers to see their beloved free.

And that, my dearest princesses, is why I have sought to free you from your gilded cages. I am sorry to keep you here for now, as I have merely replaced your old cage with a new one, but I assure you, in time, you will be free.

[ptdapen]

Princess Isabella frowned after her search through the treasure. She fluffed out her dress and stood upright. Before she even realized what was happening, the dragon appeared before them. A mix of fear and curiosity overcame her. The creature was certainly dangerous but it seemed to pose no threat to them. While she listened in on the conversation, she tiptoed closer to inspect their captor in the name of research!

Spoiler

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History/Arcane (whichever is more appropriate to assess a dragon): (1d20+5)[11]

[igordragonian]

"That one fine story aye... but you ain't d'a first dragon, and we are not some angels." Gondorfa said with raised eyebrow.

[JNAProductions]

Spoiler: Arcana DC 11

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No special knowledge.

Can you say you lived your lives free? Were you able to do what you wished, when you wished? Did you have even the freedom of a common farmer-to till your own land, and live by your own hand?

[SaintRidley]

Machka is disturbed from her reverie by the arrival of the dragon, and listens when it starts talking. This is not her strong suit.

"Well that's all we'll and good. How about you pick one of us then and have done with it?"

Her stomach rumbles. Must be time to eat. "And get us some food while you're at it."

[igordragonian]

"Pff. How noble. Ah personally did what I want.. until...-" she mocked the dragon and paused.
Well, y'know, gods decide how much freedom, any of us need. Aye' she finished, more decisively

[JNAProductions]

Machka is disturbed from her reverie by the arrival of the dragon, and listens when it starts talking. This is not her strong suit.

"Well that's all we'll and good. How about you pick one of us then and have done with it?"

Her stomach rumbles. Must be time to eat. "And get us some food while you're at it."

Food I can provide. What do you wish?

[igordragonian]

"A roasted reindeer and dwarven ale for me" Gondorfa said,
"and also, a rockberry pie."