Tales of Faerun

[GrueMaster]

"Iss it finally dead?" *Tck'chee* We'tak spoke between gasps, when the rocking finally stopped, having spent much of his energy leaping across the "bot" and evading tentacles, and the spiritual blessings he'd received earlier finally wearing off. "By the Moon..." *TCK'CHEE* "I think I know why thri-kreen sstay away from deep waters now..." *Tck'chee... tck'chee*

 

As he leaned against one of the masts that remained intact, he perked up slightly at the mention of someone being in the water. "This softskin seems very... lively...," the thri-kreen said to no one in particular as he studied the new arrival, head tilted in curiosity. Drawing closer, head twitching here and there slightly as he took in details. "Very sstrange... you look like a hatchling... but you have fur on your face..." Turning to Conall, We'tak looked at him in askance. "Are all softskins so very different?"

 

Before he could continue with the inevitable chain of questions he would surely ask, he heard the big silver flying lizard say he needed help. "Oh, "*Chee* "Does Big Winged Lizard need rope?" the hatchling cheeped out, distractedly. "I could help with that..." *chee* "Are you Pointy-ear Argyros?" We'tak couldn't help but ask, not sure if he had seen things correctly earlier in the battle. "Can all pointy-ears do that?"

[FreemasonGamer]

Rameses bit his lip worriedly at the prospect of the Silver needing someone to steer the crippled vessel whilst the dragon pushed it towards the shoreline; the genasi wanted to help, but he had a strong suspicion that himself at the helm would not result in any good progress. So, he quickly shook his head before glancing from Argyros to Rhaine and briefly replying, "It would probably be best to have a more capable, experienced pair of hands at the helmsman's wheel..."

With the slight turn of his heel, Rameses then cast his attention back towards Conall and the gnome he had easily fished out of the sea. Despite the gnome's rampant accent that encrypted his speech, Vee seemed perfectly fine; that itself was a large relief and an even larger surprise since he must have been one of the few survivors from the dainty ship the kraken had sunk earlier. Whistling quietly, Rameses raised both brows at the revelation.

"You indeed have someone looking after you to survive this morning's catastrophe, Mister Nobwrench...?" Rameses's statement trailed off at the strangely typical gnomish surname.

Upon Nawen's mentioning of the party's horses below decks, the genasi cringed slightly at the remembrance of of his steed, Jarl; the camel was likely in a fit of panicked chaos or possibly even worse after the Sea Compass was assaulted so violently by the leviathan. So, Rameses nodded briefly to himself, offering to his fellows, "I aught to make sure Jarl hasn't lashed out at any unfortunate horse, as well."

So, following behind Nawen below, Rameses peeked into Azuris's and Hexol's cabin when the drow woman checked on the two. Their condition unsettled the genasi and reminded him that not all of their companions had left their cabins when the kraken attacked the Sea Compass. Biting his lip once more, Rameses wandered down the hall and found the door to Hazel's cabin. A bit nervous, he knocked on the dryad's cabin door before calling inward with a slightly concerned tone, "Hazel? Are you alright in there?"

Inside, Hazel firmly gripped the edges of her bed, as it was nailed down to the floor of the ship. The corner which she was holding onto had come loose during whatever type of attack they'd just endured, but the rest of it held nicely. Her things, few though they were, had been thrown wildly around the room. Close by, the small table beside her bed hadn't fared as well as the bed itself had and laid on its side, contents strewn everywhere.

"Yes, I'm here!" She replied, freeing the bed from her tight grip, "What happened?"

Hesitantly opening the door, Rameses glanced inside the cabin and grimaced slightly at the mess. "The ship was attacked by a kraken." He soon answered, realizing how strange it sounded. "Everyone is more or less fine, and the creature is dead." Standing in the doorway, he whistled quietly and shook his head.

"Quite a mess; the rest of the ship is, too." He noted in a slightly astonished voice.

Still dizzy, Hazel carefully made her way over to Rameses and clutched his arm for support, "Well, I suppose my first sea voyage has been an eventful one. Judging by my room's condition, this can't be the worst of the damage..."

Resting a firm, steadying hand on the dryad's shoulder, Rameses nodded briefly with a slight sigh. "You'd be right; one of the masts is broken, so we won't be moving anytime soon without help." Looking her up and down for a moment, the genasi added, "But most importantly, we'll all alive and above water."

"I suppose we should all count our blessings, then," Hazel responded as her dizziness abated.

The genasi nodded as the words left his mouth before he realized it, "Glad you're okay." It only took a moment for Rameses to realize his own words before his runic szuldar markings flared bashfully, his cheeks reddening slightly.

Hazel felt warmth flush in her cheeks as she heard Rameses' words. The foliage atop her head sprouted tiny pink blossoms, and she quickly covered them with her hands. "Sorry!"

Watching Hazel's sheepish reaction, Rameses felt a bit better about his own response to his fond statement. "Don't apologize. I think it's..." Rameses thought carefully for a moment before finishing his thought, "Beautiful? Endearing."

After a few moments of awkward silence, the genasi wore a contemplating expression before he looked down at Hazel and offered a small, brave smile; if he was going to try anything, he had to try something. "Hazel, once we get the ship to land, can I buy you a drink sometime?"

Hazel smiled, more pink blossoms spreading across her foliage, "I'd like that."

Rameses could not help it when his smile grew into a wide grin when he spoke, "I'm grateful to hear it." He spent a quick moment of consideration before taking yet another leap of faith, "All the rumors and fairytales I've ever heard about the beauty of dryads don't do you justice, Hazel."

Hazel's eyes widened, and a row of large orange blossoms fanned out around her hairline. Rameses' words were very kind, and she could tell he was a bit smitten. She was flattered, and gave a nervous chuckle, before placing a hand on his shoulder, "Thank you, Rameses. I think that drink can't come quickly enough. If you'll excuse me now, I need to check on Aera. I'm not sure where she is."

Nodding softly, Rameses continued to smile bravely as his szuldar continued to flicker warmly like the fire of a well-fed hearth. "You are most welcome, and I should go help check on the horses and Jarl." He replied, a red warmth coloring his cheeks. "I'll see you once Arygros gets us to shore?" The genasi inquired before taking a step out of Hazel's door, a subtly gleeful briskness in his step.

A soft smile continued to rest on Hazel's lips, and she nodded to Rameses's words before quickly walking past him in search for Aera, a blossoming collection of flowers highlighting her foliage of hair.

Once the gorgeous dryad vanished from the genasi's view, Rameses sighed happily before closing the cabin door behind him. With a naive grin on his face, he considered the morning's merits and if they outweighed the brush of death; before Rameses even reached the cargo hold where their steeds were kept, he nodded in confirmation of his own gleeful thoughts. Though, his uplifted demeanor was dampened slightly when he found their horses panicked and one furious camel who bellowed and howled like a speared boar.

Edited August 11, 2015 by FreemasonGamer

[tokyobiohazard]

Hazel's cheeks flushed as she recalled the exchange she and Rameses had just shared, trying her best to suppress the flowers that had bloomed during the conversation. As she climbed out onto the deck, she took in the damage for a moment before noticing Aera in a panic, holding onto the railing of the ship, a large tentacle wrapped around her body.

"Please help me... Ugh!" Aera called out, her body covered in brine, salt, and other various fluids. The tentacle was wrapped around her body somehow, still fighting her despite being a severed limb. "The more I fight, the more suction this thing gets. I can feel that it's cutting into me when it tightens!"

"How did you get tangled in this thing without anyone noticing?" Hazel asked, panicking a bit when she realized Aera's words were true, and she was indeed bleeding. She called out, "Can someone get over here and cut this thing off of Aera?"

Edited August 10, 2015 by tokyobiohazard

[josh900]

Hearing Hazel's call for help, Lucas made his way over to her, but stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of Aera's condition. He couldn't quite understand why, but the sight of her in that state caused a blush to rise across his face.

 

"I umm. I'll h help." He stuttered, finding it rather difficult to concentrate for some reason. After fumbling to get his knife out, he was eventually able to cut most of the tentacle off of her.

 

"Th th there..." He mumbled as he quickly turned away from her. "You should.. probably.. get that all w washed off soon." He said as he nervously scratched his head.

[AurianaValoria1]

Shalena finally stormed from her cabin as abruptly as she had stormed into it, going directly to the ship's wheel to steer it while Argyros pushed. Not waiting to be prompted, the silver moved to the stern of the pirate frigate, speaking to We'tak all the while in his booming voice, "More like 'can all big winged lizards do that.' Yes, little one, I am Argyros, and I am truly a dragon. My elf form is merely a disguise. As for that rope," he grasped the hull with his claws, "I think I need to hold on to something more substantial to make this work." With that, he tucked his head down and used both his head and his paws to begin pushing the Sea Compass forward, his wings beating the air with staggering power. The progress was slow, but they would eventually reach port, possibly within the hour.

 

Meanwhile, Conall smiled broadly at We'tak, "Softskins are very different, friend. Even from each other."

 

Rhaine merely watched silently as the port of Laothkund came ever nearer...

 

================================================

 

Three hours later, the Sea Compass was safely docked, Argyros had returned to his elven form, Shalena had parted ways with them at the harbormaster's, taking Leif up on his offer to pay for the repairs, and the party was now well on their way out of the town and into the countryside beyond. It was not yet highsun, and so they could travel for a ways yet without stopping for lodging. The journey was a little wobbly at first after so many days at sea, and it was likely unwise to push their mounts too much this soon after landfall. Thus, Rhaine hoped they could find an inn along the road as they made their way northwestward through the plains of Aglarond.

[FreemasonGamer]

The dreadfully slow yet thankfully uneventful journey from the bay to the pitiful harbor of Laothkund couldn't have taken longer as Rameses calmed the animals and assisted in cleaning up most of the lower decks, which were in a complete mess of unprecedented proportions. Much to the genasi's dismay, their return to land was not under the best of circumstances; the pirate queen gruffly bid their party farewell while the rest of the city eyed their group suspiciously, cautiously. All the harsh looks caused Rameses's mood to dampen and his szuldar to flare uncomfortably, and it was only after one of his companions had explained to him why they were unwelcomed did Rameses widen his eyes at the realization. As it turned out, many among Laothkund's citizenry placed their faith in Umberlee, a violent and hateful goddess of the sea whose honorary title brought much warmth to Rameses's cheeks and even more confusion to his conscience. Since the sea and all its monstrosities were of her divine domain, her followers were less than impressed with the survival of the Sea Compass and the death of the kraken that had attacked it.

 

"Oh..." Was Rameses's only response upon his acknowledgement of Umberlee's lewd title.

 

Once their time in Laothkund came to an end, the genasi, his companions, and his camel were all more than relieved to depart from the city of sea cultists, to explain its population as briefly as possible. Reclined in Jarl's saddle comfortably, Rameses occasionally stroked the white fur of his steed, who seemed as content as ever to have dirt beneath his hooves again; both camel and rider seemed pleased beyond words to see rolling green and golden hills bordering the earthen road that stretched out before them. As he had done once before, the fire genasi began to hum the melody of a song, the lyrics of which sometimes escaping under his breath. Eventually, his humble tunes rode the breeze until Rameses sat up in his seat, digging through his saddlebags for his spyglass. Through its fractured lens—the said fracture having occurred when Rameses's effects were thrown around his cabin during the kraken attack whilst upon the Sea Compass—his hopes and suspicions rang true. A humbly designed inn or tavern of some variety stood upon a hillside bordering the road some miles up ahead.

 

"Time to finally relax in earnest," He said to his companions with a wide grin, "Warm, freshly cooked meals. Clean, motionless beds. An assortment of brews that isn't rum."

 

Excitement energized Rameses as he anticipated the modest luxuries of simply having a good meal, a good drink, and a good rest without the ground beneath him swaying back and forth constantly. Also, his mentioning of brews brought an equally excited hopefulness to his attention, reminding him of the drink he had offered to Hazel, whose foliage was still adorned with a few bashfully-sowed flowers from their conversation earlier in the day. For the first time in the genasi's recent memory, he looked to the fey woman and felt a certain inexplicable, naive fondness that many a child and bard often romanticized in extravagant tales of knights and princesses.

Edited August 16, 2015 by FreemasonGamer

[mickdude2]

Vee nods to Rameses as stumbles over his last name, grinning mischievously. For the remainder of the voyage, he remains mostly quiet and well away from the edge. Though determinedly rooted on the ship, he did not venture below deck, nor did he move much from the prow, where he watched with great interest the great silver dragon tear powerfully at the air.

When landfall was finally made in Laothkund, Vee would be among the first off the boat and would animatedly kiss the ground, vowing loudly to never sail again, with intermittent swears strewn in. As the group departed along the road, each gathering upon their mount, Vee found himself in a panic, looking around desperately for someone to help the poor gnome. As chance would have it, Vee found himself next to the genasi, pleading silently for Rameses to allow him to ride with him on Jarl.

In an act of kindness (possibly motivated by pity), Vee was allowed to ride in on the baggage near the tail end of Jarl. Despite the somewhat second class seats, even Vee's mood was greatly improved as Laothkund- and the sea- shrank behind them. At mention of a warm bed and a meal, Vee damn near started drooling.

Edited August 15, 2015 by mickdude2

[GrueMaster]

*Chee...* was the only way We'tak could respond to Argyros' and Conall's answers. I am going to need to learn a lot more about them, it seems... He could only think as he watched Argyros in awe as the silver dragon (as they call themselves, apparently) pulled them to shore.

 

===================================================

 

The young thri-kreen was whistling cheerfully as the clutch left the great stone softskin village, glad to be leaving such a place. Though he missed being on the "bot" and its wondrous contraptions, the way that the strange softskins of that placed looked at him left We'tak with a strong sense of unease, thus he was happy his clutch wasn't staying there.

 

Now, he was taking pleasure in the surrounding environment, obviously enjoying time in new lands. "See, Pekwe! Is this not wonderful!" Pekwe gave a withering look at the excitable hatchling, one with equal parts of displeasure at recent events, disapproval, and hunger. "Oh, do not give me that look. See!" We'tak exclaimed at the mention (and sight) of what the fire-skin Rameses made to be a place of rest, excited at the prospect of staying in a softskin home. *CHEE!* "We are almost there! I will even give you an egg once we are there." At another withering glance, though, accompanied with a hiss this time, had him hastily increasing that promise to two eggs, knowing the constrictor when she was in one of her moods.

 

As the group came upon the small structures (he could now see there were two of them), We'tak went to the side of the inn's entrance and opened it gingerly from there. Poking his head from behind the opened doorway, the young thri-kreen chirped out in greeting, head tilted to the side once more. *Chee* "Hello... I am We'tak... do you have any eggs?" *Chee?*

Edited August 15, 2015 by GrueMaster

[AurianaValoria1]

Rameses's spotting of the inn on the road ahead as they made their way through the tall grasslands south of the Yuirwood was met with no small amount of anticipation on the parts of Conall, Zorica, Abby, and Rhaine, though the last did little to show such enthusiasm aside from a small smile of satisfaction. She had been lost in thought for most of the near-silent ride thus far, absorbed in her own thoughts, as usual. The Doomguide's wings and armor, previously soaked from the storm summoned by the kraken, had dried out quickly in the near-summer sun, and her helmet she had long deposited back in her pack. Her hair she had kept in a tight bun at the back of her head, and so she could feel the slight flutter of a pleasant breeze around her neck. The light and refreshing wind also playfully lifted Kaliste's feathery mane as the caramel-colored mare plodded along at a steady pace, and the horse seemed to enjoy this freely-moving air immensely, her nostrils flaring as she frequently took deep puffing breaths.

 

Finally, as the party approached the humble inn, which also had a standalone barn situated to the back of the small property, Abby pointed after the scampering We'tak, "Hey, wa...oh dear. Cue screams of panic in three...two..."

 

"As long as he doesn't scare away the cook, I don't care," Zorica stated matter-of-factly, heart set only on warm food as she slid off of Araha's back and led the bay horse to tether her in front of the tavern. Conall dismounted not far behind her, wincing as he swung out of Gaius's stirrups; the werewolf was still very much in pain from his healing burns, which had been aggravated by the battle with the kraken. Meanwhile, Abby, who had shared a seat with Leif since departing Laothkund, bounced up behind We'tak with a wide toothy grin on her tanned face, "Watcha askin' for?"

 

Rhaine, dismounted and quickly tethered Kaliste, then glanced back to see that the little rescued gnome, Vee, had indeed hitched a ride with Rameses. She wondered how long he would remain with them and if he would consider joining their cause later. Pushing such thoughts to the back of her mind, however, she focused her attention on the modest establishment before them, wondering if We'tak's enthusiasm would cost them lodging this night...

 

It was a tiny two-story thing, rickety and very old. Many of the upstairs windows were broken, the plaster was falling away in some places on the walls, and the thatched roof was dangerously thin in spots. Nevertheless, a thick cloud of smoke issued from the chimney, the lanterns outside were lit and cheerily flickering, and the shingle above the door that read The Silver Hart was immaculately maintained - perhaps the only thing about the inn that was.

[tokyobiohazard]

Hazel smiled at the welcome sight of the inn before them, despite the state of disrepair it seemed to be in. Perhaps one of the group would find some extra coin to fix some of the windows, at least. Since it was the only welcoming inn they'd seen in several leagues, she assumed it still saw its fair share of business.

Aera quickly directed her horse to the stables, the poor creature getting a deserved rest once she hopped off the stallion's back. The weretigress wished she could do something about it, but she was too large for most horses, and this one, while being larger than average, wasn't ferrying her on their adventures without strain, either. As she removed the stallion's saddles and brushed down his coat, Aera made the decision that she'd trade or sell her horse as soon as possible in order to both relieve this horse of the burden of carrying her, and to find a horse more suited to her needs.

Not too long afterward, Hazel stabled her own dappled mare and headed out, walking with Aera toward the The Silver Hart. As the two opened the door, Hazel's theory about the inn receiving its fair share of business was proved quite wrong, and Aera headed straight for the nearest table and inquired about what was being served for supper.

"Hope you're not expecting anything special, ma'am. Your crew look like the fancy type," the young, bubbly bar maid gushed as she sat down a tray of bread and cheese on Aera's table, looking Aera up and down enthusiastically. "Are you all from a carnival or something? Can you do tricks?"

Aera smugly took a bite of her cheese wedge, nodding intently as she washed it down with watered down ale. "Something like that, yes."