By sheer luck, or perhaps a good choice of Inns the night was attack-free! Unless you count biting floor beetles. The sounds of local roosters chime in the morning, followed by someone in a neighboring room screaming at the birds to shut up. -Rori
Heinrich: *As soon as the rooster crowed, Heinrich was awake and rolling up his bedroll* -05:06 Mar 22
Rori: *That guy screaming at the roosters had the right idea. …Crap. So she wasn’t at home or in a hospital, she was still in a book with a passing character she nearly killed, and has now become the main character in a book she’ll never finish because she’s going to be trapt in it forever…! …She might as well get it over with. Rori sat up slooowly. How early was it…?* -05:10 Mar 22
Heinrich: *he was belting his bedroll to his pack already when Rori finally got up.* Hey, you’re awake, Rori. Welcome to the land of the living. -05:14 Mar 22
Rori: That’s a strange thing for a necromancer to say. *She muttered… and promptly fell back in to bed! Forget it! No one should be awake this early! * -05:16 Mar 22
Heinrich: *he reached up, grabbed Rori’s leg, and yanked! The sun was up, she should be too! Okay, so, the sun wasn’t -quite- up, but there was light!* Come on, we have to get a move on. -05:17 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori spared herself from a painful flop in to the floor by digging her fingers in to the matress! Growling at him, she flung blankets out of her way and stood out of bed.* I’m up! Though, who in their right mind wants to rush off to Hevrai is beyond me! -05:21 Mar 22
Heinrich: I don’t know..people who want to go somewhere? People who need to get more information? People who want to sell things there? People who want to avoid patrols in the local area trying to kill and or capture them? -05:27 Mar 22
Rori: Those are awful reasons to go to Hevrai. *So Rori was not a morning person.. At least she grabbed her things and was ready to go quick.* What do you think about dropping the whole saving the clan business and run off to another country? -05:31 Mar 22
Heinrich: Change your mind, did you? Or just trying to get away? You do realise that would involve going to Hevrai, right? -05:34 Mar 22
Rori: Hevrai isn’t the only port town, you know. *She started towards the door.* But if you’re dead set on Hevrai, just stay away from strange woman. You don’t have your love interest for a romantic interlude, so that means you’re going to get seduced by some crazy harpy. -05:39 Mar 22
Heinrich: *he sighed.* Look, Hevrai isn’t the only port city, but it’s the biggest one inside of a month’s travel. Which presents opportunities. -05:42 Mar 22
Heinrich: And why are you so damn hung up on love intrests? Are you jealous, or something? -05:42 Mar 22
Rori: Jealous, ha ha. Could it occur to you that I write these stories, so I know what happens in towns like Hevrai. *Rori lead the way out the door, looking not at all amused!* -05:48 Mar 22
Heinrich: Could it occur to you that I have LIVED and OPERATED in Hevrai, and therefore know plenty about it? -05:49 Mar 22
Rori: Then you should have seen plenty of that happening in Hevrai to clueless heros near the end up their visiting, at those last moments when everyone thinks it’s going to be a dull weekend, right? -05:53 Mar 22
Heinrich: If you’ve mean I’ve seen plenty of adventurers robbed blind by whores – then yes. I have. -06:00 Mar 22
Rori: See. And you’ll be next. Maybe not robbed. Instead it will be a *She paused, seeming to be disturbed at her own thoughts! * You’re right… Nothing bad will happen in Hevrai! In fact, I think it will be a nice vacation! Maybe visit a museum? Nothing can happen in a museum. -06:02 Mar 22
Heinrich: Please, give me some credit. I’m smarter than that. Come on, let’s get moving. Breakfast will be downstairs. *with that, he heaved his pack on and left the room, headed for the common room!* -06:09 Mar 22
Rori: I am simply trying to spare you a gruesome death at the hands of harpies. *She followed, and with great effort kept that imagitation of hers under control. Heaven forbid if she accidentally gets him murdered.* -06:14 Mar 22
Heinrich: You know, I do know more-or-less what I am doing, right? He plunked himself down in a corner booth, over in the far corner, where he could see the door, and raised an arm to flag down the wench who was serving that morning* -06:18 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori slid in to a seat looking none too convinced.* I know you do, but things have a way of happening anyway… -06:21 Mar 22
Heinrich: Yes, things have a way of happening. But I have ways of dealing with them. *he pulled his dagger out, the one he’d killed the second bandit with. It was still glowing dull red and seemed almost to be silently screaming.* -06:29 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori pointed at the thing.* I suppose you make a habit of mummifying people, or are you stealing souls with that thing? -06:34 Mar 22
Heinrich: One soul. One lowlife thug who was going to rape and murder you, and I’m suddenly a villain. *he re-sheathed the dagger* -06:39 Mar 22
Rori: I’m pretty sure I didn’t call you a villain. *He had such a talent for making her feel bad, and she hadn’t even done anything yet!* I was just wondering how it worked. -06:43 Mar 22
Heinrich: Oh…well. You need to work on your phrasing then. Yes, I drained his soul into the knife. -06:45 Mar 22
Rori: What are you going to do with it now that you have it? *What’s wrong with her phrasing? …He’s just touchy!* -06:48 Mar 22
Heinrich: The soul, you mean? It’s bound to the knife. I don’t have the proper…ah…equipment for storing souls for other uses. -06:49 Mar 22
Heinrich: It isn’t something that I’d been planning to do, you understand. -06:49 Mar 22
Rori: *Her fingers were tapping on table… it was a rather uncomfortable conversation! A change of subject, something less awkward…* …Treasure! I mean… had you ever found any treasure while questing…? -06:53 Mar 22
Heinrich: Well, that sort of depends on your definitions of "treasure" and "Questing." I was…something of a specialist, you know. -06:54 Mar 22
Rori: Grabbing goodies from the rich, and giving to the poor empty pockets? -07:05 Mar 22
An Elf walks into the tavern, the hood of his traveling cloak thrown back and his white, mid-back length hair hanging loose. He taps a cane idly on the ground as he looks almost amusedly around the tavern. -Heinrich
Heinrich: Yeah. Mine. And adventuring parties hired me for unusually difficult circumstances. Which usually meant I got a fee, but I DID always get a cut of anything they found as a direct result of my involvement. -07:07 Mar 22
Rori: *Of course she didn’t expect anything different out of him, he WAS the Bloodfox after all. It was the elf with the cane that had her blinking curiosly. He looked like.. well, no.. That’d just be silly.* I see… -07:11 Mar 22
The Elf smiles and makes his way over to Heinrich and Rori’s table, using his cane more to subtly nudge people out of his way than to actually walk. “Well hello, there, Heinrich. I had heard you had hung up your daggers. What is it you call yourself….bloodfox, wasn’t it? Or something to that effect? Oh, I am sorry, Miss Borae. I hadn’t meant to neglect you. I trust you are well? -Heinrich
Heinrich: Merioc. Why am I not surprised to see you here? I like the cane, by the way. Much more stylish than your old staff. -07:18 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori blinked! First because she was addressed directly by a stranger and then because that necromancer called him Merioc! Nooo… that’s just, not possible. The Bloodfox had just been mentioned in passing, but Merioc was a major plot character and and…! Rori rest her head on the table. This was a disaster!* -07:20 Mar 22
“Miss Borae? Are you all right? Hung over, perhaps? I am certain I have a remedy for that somewhere on my person.” -Heinrich
Heinrich: Rori? You all right? -07:22 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori lifted a finger to point, but didn’t raise her head.* You know me.. I wrote you. This does not bode well… -07:26 Mar 22
Well, of course you wrote me. You are, of course, the Historian. Well, technically I suppose you are the avatar. But that, frankly, is more a matter of terminology best left in arcane texts.” -Heinrich
Heinrich: *Heinrich wisely shut up. In order to let Merioc and Rori have their conversation, of course. It had nothing to do with avoiding Merioc’s attention. Nope, nothing at all.* -07:31 Mar 22
Rori: *That is not helping at all!* I killed your wife and got him *she pointed her finger at Heinrich* near killed with a crossbow, and now I’m in a coma and saving the world! -07:31 Mar 22
“Ah, I see why you might be upset. And why you might think I would be upset. The fact of the matter is that for better or worse, the Historian does not decide the course of history. They merely decide the major players. Take Heinrich, here. He was nearly a member of Talin Darlandon’s party, years ago, at the beginning of his career as the Bloodfox. Unfortunately, he had a rather regrettable attack of common sense at the last moment.” -Heinrich
“That was not because you decided he would – but because you decided against including him in your story and instead filed him away for later use as ‘color,’ as I believe you would put it.” -Heinrich
Rori: Like right now. The world is my puppet stage and you my puppets…! *Rori sat up suddenly!* Why are you here right now? That always means something dangerous for the party leader… -07:41 Mar 22
“Yes, I am well aware that…Interesting…things happen to people after I speak with them. You’ll notice I’m talking mostly to you, Miss Borae, not Heinrich. Heinrich, you may stop hiding now. Anyways. I gather that it has to do with being descended from one of the early Avatars. Personally, it is my theory that I am attracted to people to whom things will happen, making me the effect rather than the cause.” -Heinrich
Rori: Oh… *…damnit! Double damnit! Triple cursing damnit! It was too early to drink away ones sorrows, wasn’t it?* … But HE makes such a brilliant main character! Totured history and reluctant present! -07:53 Mar 22
“You aren’t such a bad main character yourself.” Merioc coughs. “I would consider what OTHER roles might warrant such an individual as Heinrich, if I were you.” -Heinrich
Heinrich: The man’s got a point. You’re even more reluctant than I am, for all of your enthusias….waitaminute. -07:56 Mar 22
Rori: Antagonist, Bodyguard, last minute sacrifice… I’d say comic relief but he is hardly comical. Broody ever stoic mysterious guy…? *She was considering a few other things, but she was still fairly certain he was main character material!* -07:59 Mar 22
“Most good stories have multiple main characters. I should point out, incidentally, that your stories tend to have certain kinds of main characters…” He grins at their mutual discomfort, seeing that Heinrich has already made the connection and is starting to turn beet red. -Heinrich
Heinrich: *He dropped his head onto the table with a loud -thud!-* Rori? Remember what you said about Hevrai? -08:03 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat.. Why did she have to write Merioc as such a pain in the rear! She ignores Heinrich!* Certain main characters that are usually men, thank you very much. The Darlandon men to be specific, and neither of us fall in to that category! -08:05 Mar 22
“Some authors choose to develop side characters more through their books…in any case, rember that neither of you know quite as much about Heinrich as you might think. Who his father was, for instance.” While his statement sinks in, Merioc pulls something that looks oddly like an old-fashioned pocket watch out of a pocket somewhere and checks it, then puts it away. “Family heirloom. I rather like it. I would love to continue our conversation, but, regrettably, I have somewhere else I need to be. Farewell, and good luck on your journey. Doubtless we’ll meet again. Oh, and Heinrich? Do try and do the family proud.” And with that, he taps his cane on the ground and dissappears! -Heinrich
Heinrich: *Heinrich raised his head off the table and stared in shock at the space where Merioc had been.* -08:12 Mar 22
Rori: Pain in the ass. Why would it even matter who your father wa-… Ooooh… -08:14 Mar 22
Heinrich: Now, hold on. I’ve never even so much lived in the same town as a Darlandon. -08:15 Mar 22
Rori: You wouldn’t have to, considering most all of the Darlandon men were travelling adventurers. *Drats… she needs some paper to draw up a family tree…!* -08:18 Mar 22
Heinrich: *he groaned* Great. So I’m somebody’s bastard son. -08:19 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori cast him a rather wicked grin!* You realize this makes you the main character and you’re perfectly doomed. -08:24 Mar 22
Heinrich: *he sighed* You heard what the man said, you’re a ‘main character’ too. If I’m doomed, I’m dragging you with me. -08:25 Mar 22
Rori: I don’t seem to have much of a choice… But I’m not going to be the damsel. You can be the one to get kidnapped and I’ll do the rescuing. -08:29 Mar 22
Heinrich: Ah, well. We’ll see. In the mean time, where the hells is breakfast? -08:30 Mar 22
Weird, where IS breakfast? It should have been there ages ago! Infact, where was everyone else? During that whole conversation it seemed the Inn had died down to just the two of them and no one else was in sight! -Rori
Heinrich: This does not bode well. -08:33 Mar 22
Rori: every time he shows up randomly… every time. *She mutters, sliding herself out of her seat, and very determinedly heading towards the door. No one in their right mind just sits and waits for the badness to happen.* -08:35 Mar 22
SLAM! The Inn door slams right in her face before she can walk through it, and it seems to be good and locked! -Rori
Heinrich: *he shrugged and slid out of the booth, drawing his daggers as he did so, but keeping them concealed under his cloak* That bodes even less well. -08:36 Mar 22
There at the bar there “suddenly” seemed to be a black cloaked n hooded figure drying out a glass. It was even wearing black gloves. He might’ve even been death himself with how eerie he seemed, and for added atmosphere (which must have been well planned!) there was a good concealing mist forming around the room. -Rori
Heinrich: *A Necromancer. How lovely. A muttered phrase in the Nether tongue, and Heinrich was cloaked in his own eerie mist bank, in full Bloodfox persona* -08:40 Mar 22
Rori: …This is new… *Definitely not a typical scene… what is with glass? Rori inched herself towards on of the windows.* -08:41 Mar 22
Ever so casually drying the glass… Of course, the window is locked tight as well. Certainly not a normal Necromancer to be able to do those sort of things. “I am not here to harm anyone… But someone wishes to speak with Urora. If you’ll make this easy on all of us and come with me…” -Rori
Heinrich: Perhaps you’d like to elaborate? Far be it from me to question a colleague’s sincerity, but, you know, paranoia is, after all, a survival trait. -08:47 Mar 22
Rori: He’s talking about Demerick, I’m fairly sure. *Rori grabs a knife off one of the tables to try preying the window loose.* And we don’t want to see Dererick, that’s just going to get you killed and me doing something really weird. -08:49 Mar 22
Heinrich: I’d supposed as much. *he changed his grip on the dagger without the bonded soul to a throwing grip, without pulling it out from under his cloak* -08:51 Mar 22
“The goddess is wise. Demerick has been waiting to meet you, Urora. He’s been waiting long enough.” The cloaked figure continued to dry the glass, but something in the mist shifted… like a spell being put in place! “If I have to force the issue, it won’t be pleasant.” -Rori
Heinrich: *Heinrich hauled and flung his unbonded dagger at the necromancer! He wasn’t about to let that spell go off!* Not a chance. *he began quick-chanting in the Nether Tongue, and the walls, floor, and even ceiling of the tavern began to emit a black-red…glow. Sort-of glow.* -08:55 Mar 22
Seeming to have forseen a move like that, the cloaked figured moved to avoid the flung dagger! If a faceless cloaked figure could seem calm, he did! “So be it.” he said simply, throwing the glass over the bar to have it shatter across the floor. It was… summoned glass beasties! Like little crystal demons! -Rori
Rori: *Rori had stepped away from the sorta glowy walls, but with weird shiny demons she scoted right up against the wall again and grabbed the nearest chair as a weapon!* Creative! Really creative. -09:00 Mar 22
Heinrich: *Heinrich growled and ripped off the cloak and tossed it to the side.* We don’t have TIME for this shit! *he flourished his hand, gripping the nearest glass beastie in a tendril of pure Nether energy and pulled, sending spiderwebs of cracks through its substance.* -09:03 Mar 22
One little glass beastie down, and more than a dozen to go! They are focused on slicing Heinrich to bits, giving the perfect distraction for the cloaked figured to sneak out from behind the bar and get what he really came for! -Rori
Rori: *No way, she is not getting kidnapped! Rori weilds that chair like a lion tamer!* Back off! I’ll stake you through the heart if I have to! -09:07 Mar 22
Heinrich: *Rori’s protests wrenched his attention off towards her, and he changes focus! He uses the same trick he did back in Atzan on the Necromancer! He’ll be able to fight it, of course, but tentacles of Nether binding ones limbs and gagging one tend to slow spell casting!* You aren’t going anywhere. Hang out a bit while I deal with your little pets. -09:15 Mar 22
The cloaked figure is a skilled one indeed, and though temporarily detained, he is fighting through those tentacles quickly! The glass beasties use that momentary distraction to pounce on Heinrich!* -Rori
Rori: Oh no you don’t. *Rori moves quickly, slamming the chair over the cloaked ffigures head… and just to be sure… she snatches up a second one and does it again!* -09:18 Mar 22
Heinrich: *He shakes one off and skewers it with his dagger – which goes through it like melted butter! A few kicks and flails, and another half-dozen beasties are crushed or melting against the glowing walls! With a single word and a gesture, his un-bonded knife is yanked towards him by a Nether tendril, and as he catches it, he chants the same spell he used on the thug, cutting a shallow slice in his arm as he does so!* -09:23 Mar 22
Two chair smashes and that cloaked figure is still not down? And he’s not feeling friendly either, he lashes out with a big bad spell of burning goodness! -Rori
Heinrich: *Heinrich kicks one of Mr. Cloak’s beasties into the blast with a flick of his foot, then charges towards him, throwing himself into a well-practiced skid at the last moment and popping up behind him! Then he shoves his dagger into the man’s back!* -09:28 Mar 22
There’s a flailing twitch out of the cloaked man as he gets stabbed! The remaining glass beasties all shatter in to a million pieces as the figure in the cloak seems to shrink. -Rori
Heinrich: Gotcha, frogfucker. *he waits until the cloaked Necromancer stops shrinking and twitching, then pulls his dagger out.* -09:34 Mar 22
Rori: *She’s still waiting for the beasts to come back together or that guy to not actually be dead… but… it all seems to be okay now.* …That’s the worse closing line I’ve ever heard. -09:34 Mar 22
Heinrich: Well, ecxuse me for being the type that tries to stay OUT of the bards’ tales. -09:36 Mar 22
Heinrich: *his dagger glows the same dull red, but with flashes like black lightning across the surface. It emits a low howl when he flips it.* Oooh, nice. Very nice. I think I nave a new favorite knife. -09:37 Mar 22
Rori: That’s good. Now let’s us and Mr. Knife get out of here and off to Hevrai before we meet out doom. -09:38 Mar 22
Heinrich: That sounds like a good plan to me. If you’d care to try the door? -10:03 Mar 22
Rori: *Rori moves to the door and with a little force shoves it open! No more locked doors with a dead Necromancer!* -10:05 Mar 22
Heinrich: *Heinrich snaps off a word in the Nether Tongue that sounds like he’s trying to cough up his spleen, and the walls return to normal and his mist fades* Tell me, Rori – do you have any idea how to defend yourself? -10:11 Mar 22
Rori: Did you not see me weild that chair with deadly precision? *She stepped out in to the morning sun.. Bleh… it IS too early for all of this nonsense.* -10:13 Mar 22
Heinrich: *He chuckled* No, I mean really defend yourself. If I came at you with a knife, would you even be able to hold me off? -10:14 Mar 22
Rori: I would figure something out quick enough. What are you getting at? -10:16 Mar 22
Heinrich: I think you need to learn, is what I’m getting at. We should get you some knives or a staff or something. -10:19 Mar 22
Rori: Fine. Knives or a staff. I suppose that’d be useful when we run in to trolls. -10:24 Mar 22
Heinrich: Or perhaps you have a mage talent? That would be handy. -10:27 Mar 22
Rori: I thought we already discussed and figured I don’t have any magic talents? But if you like I can practice hitting you with a stick until you feel better. -10:28 Mar 22
Heinrich: And how do you figure that you don’t have any magic talents? Have you -tried- to find out? -10:29 Mar 22
Rori: Like trying to bend spoons or set people on fire? No… that’s kind of crazy! -10:32 Mar 22
Heinrich: Rori, you’re talking to a man who can command the dead. -10:33 Mar 22
Rori: Yes, and you’re kind of crazy aren’t you. -10:34 Mar 22
Heinrich: And you’re any saner? -10:35 Mar 22
Heinrich: Regardless, magic that isn’t necromancy is considerably more normal. -10:35 Mar 22
Rori: *Maybe not… she did dream up this whole place. That makes her goddess of the insane!* And how exactly does one figure out if they have talent? People are usually born knowing that sort of thing. -10:37 Mar 22
Heinrich: *Heinrich snorted* Born knowing? Hardly. Oh, sometimes there are signs, children with exceptionally strong talent doing magic without realising it and the like. But usually not. -10:39 Mar 22
Heinrich: Typically children are tested by a mage just before they would begin their apprenticeship. And sometimes people just kind of find out on accident or by reading the wrong scroll. -10:40 Mar 22
Rori: Uh huh. So then how do we figure it out… Like this? *She flicks her fingers at him! Oooo.* We don’t have anything else handy. -10:42 Mar 22
Heinrich: We can figure it out in Hevrai. There will be plenty of mages there. -10:43 Mar 22
Rori: Mage Testing in Hevrai. Might as well. I hope you won’t be too disappointed in finding me a perfectly normal writer that can beat people with furniture. -10:45 Mar 22
Heinrich: Well, in that case, I’ll just have to teach you how to EFFECTIVELY beat people with furniture. -10:45 Mar 22
Rori: That Necromancer had a shield or something, two chairs should have done him in just fine! -10:47 Mar 22
Heinrich: Or maybe he just had a hard head. -10:48 Mar 22
