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"Indeed," replies Achkby to Elthan. "Though the person I would worry about most would be your dragon-slayer... but honestly, I fear assault from the outside more than that coming from within this motley group. We both know that there are forces moving against these quests."
__________________ DON'T PANIC
(Arthur Avatar by the Losar.)
GO BLUE
The biggest problem with the alignment system is that it encourages us to choose.
Darius keeps an eye out for Sheyra and every now and then casts a glare in Elthan's direction.
Bastard... he knows too much... he talks too much... he's giving himself away. Treachery from within... I know who's the traitor here...
Darius claps Hajih on the back. "Hey, didn't turn out so bad after all, good job. Do you think we can eat the fish here? Are there any fish here? I could go for a seabass, that'd be heavenly."
Should've gone hunting... damn I'm hungry.
__________________ Currently Playing: Lotho Vendara, Halfling Rogue, in End of Ages IC/ OOC
Elthan looks as suspiciously at Sheyra as she does at him. Sheyra is increasingly convinced that Elthan knows more than he is telling. She wonders what he has been confiding in Achkby along the way ...
Her sidelong glances reveal that Elthan's robes are clean, free of bloodstains, though the hem of the robe is muddy and dusty as would be expected.
Elthan's hands, likewise, appear to be clean, soft and white. "Scholar's hands," she thinks to herself.
OOC: Just FYI, Elthan I is the original Elthan. Elthan II is the clone created by Elthan and Oden Homm.
Lumpy remains near the drow, casting a watchful eye upon him, though there is no real wariness or suspicion in his glance. It is as if arming and armoring him has lessened the orcs suspicions, rather than the other way around.
Eventually, he drifts away from the drow, incongruously (for an orc) slipping closer to Lissa. The short orc stoops slightly, waving a hand towards the drow, and murmuring a few words hopefully too low to carry far, "He may not know how ta use a crossbow, but shadow killers ain't traditionally trained fer wearing heavy mail." That said, he drifts back towards his original position, as if nothing had happened. Subtlety is clearly not his strong point.
(OOC: Whether you hear him or not, I leave up to you.. anyone with a decent listen score probably could, Lumpy's not a great whisperer.)
Trinark passively observes the group, his hands clasped behind him. He occasionally tugs at the Heavy Crossbow slung across his back.
Trinark turns to Lumpy, "What does everyone keep arguing about? I haven't given anyone cause to doubt me, have I? The warrior fellow there (gesturing to Darius) still seems rather agitated."
Trinark will remain quiet unless someone asks something of him.
Lumpy manages a lopsided smirk, revealing his full set of yellowed fangs, "Hell, they're always arguing about something. Call it politics, I don't have the stomach for it, so I usually just ignore it."
Despite this, he seems as concerned with keeping an eye on the others as he does the drow, Don't look like it'll be much longer before they start killing each other, and then the murder will be the least of our problems.
Lissa has been padding along in silence, playing rearguard with crossbow loaded and ready. A sharp-eyed glance back would reveal that the rogue is frowning and her brow is furrowed, as in thought. Indeed, Lissa is thinking as she goes along, analyzing the words and actions of her comrades for the past several days. Something teases at her mind... something that seemed a bit odd at the time...
When Lumpy sidles over to give her his message, Lissa doesn't say anything. She simply looks him in the eye and nods deliberately. Great good gods, could he BE any more obvious if he tried? She tries to see if anyone took particular notice of Lumpy's whisper, already concocting excuses if anyone asks about it. He might as well have hung a big red sign around his neck that said "Hi, I'm being sneaky!"
Once the half-orc leaves, Lissa goes back to thinking... and to one of her current favorite pastimes, watching Achkby from behind. However, this time the otherwise pleasant sight triggers a memory. "I admire the blue dragons most..." Grandpa had a rhyme about dragons. 'Color of jewels, run away! Color of metal, safe to stay.' Blue is a jewel color. I think I'll ask the lizardkin about dragons when we stop. He's got almost as much of an honor thing going as Thokk does, if he killed someone they'd be awake while he did it.
(OOC: When they stop, Lissa will ask Ssathiya a bunch of questions about the different dragon varieties, especially those that use electricity. If anyone asks why she's so interested all of a sudden, she'll just kind of blush and mumble about how she wanted to impress Achkby. ;) )
"I fear assault from the outside more than that coming from within this motley group."
Elthan continues his conversation with Achkby.
"Perhaps you are right, but something else has been bothering me ...
"Sethra guided us to his hidden tower. When we followed his directions, we found a portal guarded by a demon, which we barely defeated, and the portal led us here. The demon was defeated only through the use of holy and blessed weapons ...
"There was no sign of Sethra at the tower, but we know that Sethra's original body was destroyed, and we know that he survives by inhabiting or possessing the body of others.
"I am beginning to suspect that he lured us to the tower because he was unable to pass the demon sentry himself in his current form. If I am right, my group might have inadvertently opened the way for him to travel through the portal himself.
"If Sethra followed us through the portal, then he could very well be nearby stalking us, if he hasn't already taken possession of one of our bodies ..."
*One Elthan picks up from the other.*
"... And if he has taken possesion of one of our bodies, how can we tell? Can he withhold his personality and hide behind one of us as a mask? Can he leave freely from body to body or must his vassel be dead first? Can he affect us without a body, have killed Sedryn without a body, lifting a rock by force of will 'than strength of arms? Can he be following behind us now, listening in on our plans, hiding in one of our shadows?"
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Spoiler
Quote:
Originally Posted by erikun
Aww, a griffin! Cute!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Collin152
Heyheyheyheyheyhey.
If griffin-hugs are going around, I want in on them!
Quote:
Avery: What are you, some kind of grammar nazi?
Millie: Yep. I've just invaded Grammar Czechoslovakia and duped Grammar Neville Chamberlain, and now it's off to Grammar Poland and Grammar World Conquest!!
"Ach, I dont think that be too likely. The portal told us Noone but Sertha could enter, and when we werent Sertha, the evil one appeared, WHICH WE KILLED"
*Thinks Hard*
"Though Sertha did, If I remember, project his voice once, could he have done it again?"
Lumpy glances at Darius, snorting, "Just so ya know.. Down here? Yer the ones who can't speak common. He ain't got any more reason ta know surface common than ya do undercommon." He pauses, letting that set in, "And ya don't speak undercommon, now do ya? It ain't that easy."
Lissa's eyes grow wider and wider as she listens to the Elthans speculate. "Gods preserve us!", she blurts out. "If this creepy undead body-snatching necromancer is hopping around bodies like stepping-stones, we are seriously up the Styx, people!" Shivering reflexively, she peers suspiciously at everyone. "Okay, no personal offense here to anyone. But I am staying the hells away from everybody until we figure out what's going on here. The very last thing I want is to wake up one day with a sadistic sorcerer in my skull! So don't touch me, don't get near me unless I'm dying or something." Lissa repeats this in Draconic for Trinark.
Fizahn seems to ignore Lissa's statement about staying away from everyone and drops back to talk to her. Carefully making sure Thokk can't hear him, he begins conversing with her in gnome. "I'm sure we told you about Sethra. He did possess one of our friends, but he always seemed to have a gem with him. I think we should do a little searching for the gem. The only problem is if we got caught, then they'd think we were evil. You also need a reason to leave rearguard. I think you should search my group and I should search your group. Pay close attention to the Elthans, Sethra would want a body close to his original, which was human. So, do you want to try?" As a token of trust, Fizahn gives Lissa his pack if she wants to search it for the gem and empties any belt pouches and pockets.
After listening to Lissa's comments, Trinark speaks up (in Draconic and Undercommon). *"Is it possible that this "Sethra" person possessed your Cleric without your knowledge? *I wonder if there could have been some sort of internal conflict going on if he was possessed? *Especially if "Sethra" was as evil as you describe, related to the "goodness" of a Cleric of Lathander. *Perhaps rather than going mad or injuring someone in your group, Sedryn took his own life? *That would fit the facts..."
[OOC: *Anyone remember the Detect Magic Sedryn cast and his head almost exploded? *Was it really the altar he sensed, or something else?]
Lissa eyes Fizahn suspiciously, but looks like she's considering his words. She replies quietly, also keeping an eye out for Thokk. "A gem, you say? What kind? I know Lumpy got a weird black gem off one of the driders, and one of the Elthans said it was magic."
Since Fizahn gave her his things to search, Lissa does the same (still not standing too close), including her quiver and all belt pouches. She also turns out a couple concealed pockets in her cloak, revealing a few coins and a vial labeled 'CURE MOD.' but no gems. "The backpack is actually a handy haversack, so there's a lot more stuff in there than you'd think. No gems to my knowledge, though. Oh, and... and try not to disturb this sack too much, please? It's got Sedryn's ashes in it." Clearing her throat, Lissa quickly and efficiently searches Fizahn's gear.
The orc remains a touch aloof from the others, an otherwise impassive scowl set scross his face, though from what he's gleaned from the the conversations of the others, he can't be all that happy, "I don't know who the Hell they've been crossing paths with, but I really wish I wasn't one of them."
Hearing all of the different, unfamiliar tongues flying around her, Sheyra smiles for the first time since the funeral and shakes her head in mild exasperation. "When we get out of here," she says, "Someone remind me to learn more about languages."
__________________
And then they made me their cheif.
"Princess has a point. We need to find some common language that we can all speak. All this repeating and going back and forth in all of these different tongues makes my head spin. I figure we should at least teach the drow common. My elven is a little rusty, as is my orc, and my goblin."
"Well, this is getting more and more confusing by the second then, isn't it? First stalking shadows then how such a heterogenous group is going to communicate. Lets just find out what collective languages we share and just use those. Trinark knows both Draconic and Undercommon at the least, and Lumpy knows common orc and undercommon. So for Trinark to speak to the group majority, he would use draconic. To speak to lumpy he would use undercommon, and lumpy would use surface common to speack to the group at large. Tell me what languages you all know and I can try to figure out in what manner we shall all communicate to each other.
I wont be too suprised if we end up making symbols with our fingers to speak to each other with all the wild languages we know."
(OOC: to eliminate clutter here, pm it to me and I'll post what Elthan replies in the OOC)
__________________
Spoiler
Quote:
Originally Posted by erikun
Aww, a griffin! Cute!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Collin152
Heyheyheyheyheyhey.
If griffin-hugs are going around, I want in on them!
Quote:
Avery: What are you, some kind of grammar nazi?
Millie: Yep. I've just invaded Grammar Czechoslovakia and duped Grammar Neville Chamberlain, and now it's off to Grammar Poland and Grammar World Conquest!!
Lumpy shrugs, waving at the crossbow slung across Trinark's back, "Yer welcome ta teach him if ya like. I already did my teaching fer the day."
The short orc turns back away, "Not like you'll have him speaking tolerably by tomorrow anyway. I wouldn't get too far ahead'a ourselves."
Having finished her search of Fizahn's belongings (and complimented him on his excellent magical 'short sword'), Lissa turns to the rest of the group. *"I don't know about the rest of you, but since it seems we're going to be down here a while, I'd like to learn the local version of Common. *How about it, Trinark? *I'll trade you lessons in surface Common." *As usual when addressing the drow, she repeats in Draconic. *
Trinark is about the only one of us with a solid alibi for Sedryn's murder, seems how he was all tied up at the time. *Hmm... and now that I think about it, that was an awfully big rock the murderer used. *Would Achkby have been able to use it effectively? *Probably not, and neither would Fizahn. *So that lets them out. *A rock... who in the Nine Hells uses a frigging ROCK to kill somebody? *We've all got weapons, and we were all just in a fight, so everyone had a valid excuse for blood on their weapon. *Wait... IS everybody armed? *Lissa looks carefully at everyone in the party. *Everybody including the spellcasters is armed- except Sheyra. *
Lissa chokes down a gasp. *Great Baravar Cloakshadow on a polka-dot mule! *Could this be what the dream was about? *The gnome clears her throat to get the party's attention, then points her crossbow squarely in Sheyra's direction. *"If I'm wrong about this, Sheyra, I apologize in advance. *But if I'm not wrong, I don't want to get killed. *Everyone, I think Sheyra might be our possessed one. *It's the dream- the shadow could have been Sethra. *And the murder weapon. *Why would you use a rock, unless you usually use your hands to fight and didn't want to have blood on them the next morning? *I've been informed that Sethra always had an unusual gem on his person, so Sheyra, if you'd kindly remove any magical items, turn your pockets out and let us inspect your backpack and belt pouches..." *She turns toward Achkby and the lizardkin, crossbow still aimed at Sheyra. *"Have you got a detect magic handy, Achkby? Or you, honored druid?"
(OOC: Dun dun dunnnn! *Now we see if I'm right or humiliated...)
Fizahn slaps his forehead and has a very annoyed look on his face as Lissa accuses Sherya. He then mutters something quietly into her ear so Thokk can't hear as attention shifts toward them. "I meant for it to be a quiet search. If you just announce it, then Sethra might have time to hide the gem. No, I don't know how, but he could! I'm not entirely sure the gem is magic, truthfully, but he did use it to store his soul, I'm just not sure if it has any enchantments on it. Also, I really doubt Sethra would posses a female. And doesn't your dream take place on the surface?"
Fizahn takes off his cloak and lays it on the ground with his "short sword." "While you're at it, you might as well search everyone with detect magic. Not to point any fingers, but I think Sethra, if he even did posses one of us, would posses Hajih, Darius, or one of the Elthans."
When Lissa levels her crossbow at Sheyra, the young monk steps back into a defensive stance, her hands raised protectively.
In a flash, the lizardkin druid steps in front of Sheyra. His eyes are dark as he glares at Lissa. The others stand helplessly by unsure of which side to take.
In order to break the impasse, Achkby agrees to scan the party for any magical auras. "Any objections? No? OK, here we go ..."
[hr]
One by one, the party members take turns placing down their weapons, potions, and scrolls on Fizahn's cloak, then they step back to be "scanned". Achkby concentrates on each person, probing for any magical auras ...
Many of you seem to have no magical auras at all, including the lizardman, Darius, Hajih, Fizahn, and Trinark. Linda, Thokk, and the Elthans radiate faint abjuration, presumably from their protective magic items.
Lissa's backpack radiates moderate conjuration. Thokk and Aeroz radiate faint transmutation. Elthan II has some moderate conjuration auras as well as a faint aura of illusion.
The strongest aura comes from Lumpy's gem, however Achkby has trouble getting on a fix on exactly what kind of magic the stone is radiating.
Sheyra, the initial object of suspicion, radiates faint abjuration. She holds up her magic ring of protection. "Satisfied?" she asks acidly.
OOC: OK, someone is going to pay for making me look up all of those magical auras ...
Trinark watches the "test" run its course, with casual interest. When the findings are announced he doesn't look very surprised.
He speaks up in Draconic, "Are any of you able to detect EVIL? Especially perhaps on the stone that Lumpy found? That seems to be the most suspicious item to me...it came from a Drider, right?"
"I already searched myself for any evidence of having commited the murder," Sheyra says, still a little hurt by the accusation. She continues,"I think the wisest course of action right now might be for Lumpy to get rid of that gem. We don't know that it had anything to do with this, but then again, we don't know that the attack came from withing this group either."
__________________
And then they made me their cheif.
Lizardkin Druid
Absorbed as he was in watching the back and the drow i front of him, the suggestion by the big-nose female or gno-me as Fiz-an had taught him went over his head.
When the thought that his prey may be right under his nose sunk in, his pupils dilated rapidly from the shock. It was only when the gnome pointed the little one out as the culprit that his expression darkened. No sense does it make for the hunted to BE the bait..Feh.. but the stranger ..could..could it be SEthra!?
He swithches his dark look from the gnome to the drow openly, an expression of frustration replacing one of disbelief when he is revealed to not have any magical aura.
He moves away from Sheyra's side when hes senses the hostility to her diminish and watches the others wordlessly quarrel with the half-orc. Lizardkin did not value baubles and trinkets so he saw little worth in the jewel but did not express his distaste when it was revealed to be strongly magical. He did push Sheyra gently away from the half-orc with an outstretched hand.
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