Wyldgame/And now for plotty stuff

From Greenthings

(2010-04-24 15:05:43) Greenling: SO ANYWAY you all wake up the next day and end up heading towards THE WYLD.
(2010-04-24 15:05:52) Greenling: Reed!
(2010-04-24 15:06:18) Greenling: Blade? Mirra?
(2010-04-24 15:08:21) Greenling: The Wyld. That is where you are going.
(2010-04-24 15:08:23) Greenling: Reed!
(2010-04-24 15:08:32) Greenling: What have you decided to do with your adorable small child?
(2010-04-24 15:09:32) Greenling: As you trek through the land of the ice and snow?
(2010-04-24 15:09:55) Breanna: Reed has decided to keep the child with him, not having anyone else he would trust with Lion.
(2010-04-24 15:09:57) Greenling: Meanwhile, Mirra, have you murdered anyone yet?
(2010-04-24 15:10:16) Greenling: Blade, have you been murdered in your sleep by your apprentice yet?
(2010-04-24 15:10:38) Joyous_Blade: No.
(2010-04-24 15:10:46) Joyous_Blade: I am secretly also my own apprentice.
(2010-04-24 15:10:58) Mirra: Mirra has not murdered anyone yet... to my knowledge
(2010-04-24 15:11:07) Greenling: All right then.
(2010-04-24 15:11:32) Greenling: You are heading towards the nearest Bordermarch.
(2010-04-24 15:12:42) Greenling: Seraph gave you directions to someplace that ought to be safe to meet up with one of his other Solar apprentices, the one who has information on what the hell is going on.
(2010-04-24 15:13:09) Greenling: He'll be easy to spot, Seraph says. Look for the scaly Wyld barbarian riding a dragon with the orichalchum bling.
(2010-04-24 15:14:31) Greenling: Do any of you have any further things you'd like to do before we dump you into the Wyld?
(2010-04-24 15:17:07) Joyous_Blade: "So. The Wyld."
(2010-04-24 15:17:26) Greenling: Bright Lion is dancing around.
(2010-04-24 15:17:48) Jabu_Jabu: "Is home!  :D" Gah! Where did the fish come from?!
(2010-04-24 15:18:08) Joyous_Blade: "Hey fishie."
(2010-04-24 15:37:33) Greenling: ...Wyld!
(2010-04-24 15:38:11) Greenling: After another trek across the snow, you come to the Bordermarches.
(2010-04-24 15:38:36) Greenling: You know they're the Bordermarches because the wind is purple, and you're no longer respiring Essence.
(2010-04-24 15:39:08) Greenling: Except for those of you attuned to like six different Manses but Blade is a special and unique snowflake, much like the ones that keep nestling into her hair.
(2010-04-24 15:39:59) Greenling: The Sun is going back down again by the time you get there. It is chilly. Lion is playing with the skyfish.
(2010-04-24 15:40:17) ***Joyous_Blade is only attuned to *four* different manses thank you very much.
(2010-04-24 15:40:42) Greenling: You can see a camp of very strange-looking people... Wyld barbarians. With the particular markings Seraph told you to look for. Also, that's probably the dragon back there.
(2010-04-24 15:40:54) Greenling: Giant scaly red thing and all.
(2010-04-24 15:41:02) Jabu_Jabu: ^^
(2010-04-24 15:41:48) Greenling: What do you do?
(2010-04-24 15:42:24) Joyous_Blade: "...Well. No sense wasting time."
(2010-04-24 15:42:30) ***Joyous_Blade hails the camp.
(2010-04-24 15:42:41) ***Hel wonders how dragons taste...
(2010-04-24 15:44:51) Greenling: A couple of large, vaguely-reptilian-looking folk stand up and head over to the group.
(2010-04-24 15:47:08) Joyous_Blade: "Hey. We need to talk to your boss."
(2010-04-24 15:47:09) Greenling: One of them sniffs Hel.
(2010-04-24 15:47:43) Greenling: "Who are you? Where do you come from?"
(2010-04-24 15:47:44) Jabu_Jabu: Jabu eyes the wyld barbarians, then settles on Lion's shoulder.
(2010-04-24 15:48:19) ***Kairos_Midoya just kind of stands in the back of the group awkwardly.
(2010-04-24 15:49:10) Greenling: Lion kind of hides behind his dad.
(2010-04-24 15:49:26) Joyous_Blade: "We're Exalts. From all over Creation. Now take us to your boss."
(2010-04-24 15:49:29) ***Hel stares at the wyld barbarians and sniffs back (only polite).
(2010-04-24 15:50:44) Greenling: Barbarian A snorts and looks to Barbarian B.
(2010-04-24 15:51:04) Greenling: "We don't just let anyone see the boss."
(2010-04-24 15:54:52) Kairos_Midoya: "Oh?"
(2010-04-24 15:55:39) Greenling: "Well yeah, if we just let people wander in here..."
(2010-04-24 15:56:02) Jabu_Jabu: "Duh."  :P
(2010-04-24 15:56:08) Greenling: They attempt to look gruff. "Boss'd get mad."
(2010-04-24 15:56:22) Reed: Reed raises an eyebrow at Blade. "It's only polite to introduce ourselves, is it not?" He smiles at the barbarians. "You'll have to forgive my companion. My name is Reed, apprentice of Il Seraph. This is my son, Bright Lion --" he gestures to the boy "--and my companions: Hel, Joyous Blade, and Kairos Midoya."
(2010-04-24 15:56:47) Reed: "Il Seraph sent us to meet someone, you boss I presume?"
(2010-04-24 15:56:48) Greenling: One of them sniffs Reed.
(2010-04-24 15:56:55) Greenling: "Oh. You're *those* guys."
(2010-04-24 15:56:56) Reed: Reed gives his most charming smile.
(2010-04-24 15:57:22) ***Joyous_Blade glances at Reed. "Introductions are for people who'll remember you longer than an hour."
(2010-04-24 15:57:32) Greenling: "Sure." Spear-stamp. "We'll escort you."
(2010-04-24 15:57:43) Reed: "That's no reason to be rude."
(2010-04-24 15:59:00) Greenling: They wait for you to finish, then take you back through the camp.
(2010-04-24 16:01:38) Greenling: Beside the dragon is an unusually large tent. One of the barbarian folks goes in, then comes out. Then... yeah, that's probably the guy.
(2010-04-24 16:02:22) Greenling: Huge scaly guy, orichalcum tattooes much like yours. Weird shit going on with one of his arms.
(2010-04-24 16:02:41) Greenling: "Heh. You're late. Welcome to the borderlands." Teeth.
(2010-04-24 16:03:06) ***Jabu_Jabu wavies.
(2010-04-24 16:03:17) Greenling: "...Is that a skyfish?"
(2010-04-24 16:03:27) Joyous_Blade: "Jabu? Yeah."
(2010-04-24 16:03:49) Kairos_Midoya: "I'm sorry we're late."
(2010-04-24 16:04:56) Greenling: He tilts his head at Kairos, looking at him with one yellow eye. "You're... the Twilight?"
(2010-04-24 16:05:56) Kairos_Midoya: "Yes, I am."
(2010-04-24 16:06:57) Greenling: "Mmh." He looks over the rest.
(2010-04-24 16:07:53) Greenling: "You-" he pokes Reed in the chest, "I know, you-" points to Blade, "obviously one of the Sidereals. You I don't know." He looks at Hel, then Mirra.
(2010-04-24 16:08:13) Hel: "Hel."
(2010-04-24 16:08:38) Greenling: "Hel? Is that your name?"
(2010-04-24 16:08:47) ***Hel nods once.
(2010-04-24 16:08:49) Greenling: "Or are you coughing?"
(2010-04-24 16:09:54) Greenling: "Oh." He shrugs. "Ishinomori, god-king of the Tsala. You look useful."
(2010-04-24 16:11:28) Greenling: "So. It's late. We're camped; it's dangerous to move around at night, so no point in moving when you don't have to. So you can enjoy our hospitality, or I can give you the map and you can go. Up to you."
(2010-04-24 16:11:44) Joyous_Blade: "You're not coming in with us?"
(2010-04-24 16:12:56) Greenling: He snorts. "You're the ones who are supposed to figure out what's going on. Meanwhile, I have hobgoblins to destroy."
(2010-04-24 16:13:38) Greenling: "I can give you information, but I'm not leaving my tribe behind to go off and pretend I'm capable of subtlety."
(2010-04-24 16:13:48) Greenling: Large, pointy teeth.
(2010-04-24 16:13:51) Joyous_Blade: "Fair enough."
(2010-04-24 16:14:50) Joyous_Blade: "So. The information?"
(2010-04-24 16:15:09) Kairos_Midoya: "May I please see the map?"
(2010-04-24 16:16:05) Greenling: "Sure. C'mon in." He pushes open the tent flap. "I can also teach you how to use these things, if you need, by the way."
(2010-04-24 16:16:38) Kairos_Midoya: "...that would be nice, thank you." and he goes inside the tent, tries not to get his braids caught on anything.
(2010-04-24 16:16:43) Greenling: The inside of this tent is way bigger than the outside. It looks like an entire war room, complete with war council.
(2010-04-24 16:17:08) Joyous_Blade: "Huh. Neat." Blade looks around. "Any chance we could have one of these?"
(2010-04-24 16:17:19) Greenling: There's a table laden with papers, barbarians, and mugs of warm cider.
(2010-04-24 16:17:27) Greenling: "I don't have any more."
(2010-04-24 16:17:33) ***Jabu_Jabu floats after the group, flitting off to look at things around the tent before coming back to Lion's side.
(2010-04-24 16:18:02) Greenling: Lion looks up at everything. "Whoa. ... ... Can I have some cider?" He looks up at Reed.
(2010-04-24 16:19:09) Breanna: He looks up at the barbarian. "It's really up to our hosts, but you're not having any if it's alcoholic."
(2010-04-24 16:20:02) Greenling: Ishinomori waves his hand. "If anything, it's a stimulant."
(2010-04-24 16:20:33) Greenling: He goes to his seat and rustles some papers around. The council watches you.
(2010-04-24 16:21:30) Greenling: "The raksha have been playing war games for months... they've been far more organized than usual, but we didn't think anything of it until recently."
(2010-04-24 16:21:54) Greenling: "We captured this." He hands Kairos a shimmering sheet of something probably meant to be paper.
(2010-04-24 16:23:51) ***Kairos_Midoya examines the paper closely, holds it up to the light to see if there's anything he can tell about it. He chews thoughtfully on his lower lip and his eyes glow for a moment as Essence sparks in them.
(2010-04-24 16:28:08) Greenling: It's a written oath, every word infused with layers of Essence, promising obedience to a pair of raksha in pursuit of planning for a new Crusade against Creation, amounting to total war.
(2010-04-24 16:28:19) Greenling: There are about seven signatures.
(2010-04-24 16:28:31) Greenling: ...Or 'signatures' in some cases.
(2010-04-24 16:28:52) Greenling: Iikoto and Iitsasen are the raksha named in the former part.
(2010-04-24 16:29:35) Greenling: Magically, it mostly serves as an embodiment of the oath; though you're not sure to what extent or to what purpose.
(2010-04-24 16:30:08) Joyous_Blade: "So, what is it?"
(2010-04-24 16:32:08) Kairos_Midoya: Kairos bites back on the curse that floats to his lips-his grandmother would have beaten him if she had been able to hear him swear"...it is a written oath, promising obedience to a pair of raksha in pursuit of planning for a new Crusade against Creation. "
(2010-04-24 16:33:18) Hel: "Bad?"
(2010-04-24 16:33:28) Joyous_Blade: "Very."
(2010-04-24 16:34:00) Greenling: "Several of those are very high up in the Lapis Court."
(2010-04-24 16:34:38) Greenling: "And Red-Ribboned Liesa is one of the strongest raksha in the Direction who isn't a Courtier."
(2010-04-24 16:35:18) Kairos_Midoya: "Beyond description."
(2010-04-24 16:35:24) Greenling: "It's... disturbing, to say the least, that someone has been able to do this, much less without us knowing."
(2010-04-24 16:37:01) ***Joyous_Blade nods.
(2010-04-24 16:38:51) Greenling: "I can give you directions to some of them, or to the Court itself, or... most places around here, really. Wherever you think you need to go."
(2010-04-24 16:39:10) Greenling: "And if you need anything else from me, I'll at least consider it."
(2010-04-24 16:39:48) Greenling: "Oh. And I think the one I got that from is still around."
(2010-04-24 16:39:59) Joyous_Blade: "Oh?"
(2010-04-24 16:40:26) Greenling: "I thought it might have something valuable, so I let it go in exchange for one of its Graces and everything else it was carrying."
(2010-04-24 16:40:57) Greenling: He shrugs.
(2010-04-24 16:41:54) Greenling: "Little puffball-looking thing, looked vaguely like a Realmish courtier. Probably a Diplomat."
(2010-04-24 16:42:19) Greenling: "Might be interesting to know why it had that thing and was wandering around with it..."
(2010-04-24 16:42:25) Joyous_Blade: "Diplomat, diplomat... That's Cup/Staff, right?"
(2010-04-24 16:45:11) Greenling: "Staff."
(2010-04-24 16:45:34) Greenling: "I'm not sure it was even a noble."
(2010-04-24 16:46:15) Greenling: "Probably, but..."
(2010-04-24 16:46:27) Greenling: He pushes a mug towards Bright Lion and sits down.
(2010-04-24 16:46:42) Greenling: "So, any thoughts?"
(2010-04-24 16:47:21) Joyous_Blade: "Can we look at what else it had?"
(2010-04-24 16:47:28) Breanna: Reed grabs the mug from Bright Lion can get a chance, sniffing the cider.
(2010-04-24 16:48:06) Joyous_Blade: "Non-alcoholic drinks are pretty rare this far north, Reed."
(2010-04-24 16:48:30) Breanna: "Are you implying that I should let a five year old get drunk?"
(2010-04-24 16:49:19) Joyous_Blade: "No, just that he's going to have some eventually, and it may as well be where we can keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't have too *much*."
(2010-04-24 16:51:45) Breanna: "I'm afraid I don't agree with your opinions. Just because eventually my son might manage to get his hands on an alcoholic drink doesn't mean I should encourage him to drink. A little more than a year ago, he could hardly drink from a cup without spilling it."
(2010-04-24 16:53:03) Greenling: The cider smells like apples, nutmeg, and something vaguely spicy.
(2010-04-24 16:54:11) Greenling: "I told you, it's not fermented, it's mixed with a stimulant. Much more useful... and besides, I like the taste better. Whether you want him drinking *that* is up to you, though."
(2010-04-24 16:54:32) Greenling: Lion looks up to both Blade and Reed with big puppy eyes.
(2010-04-24 16:54:39) Breanna: "...How much of a stimulant?"
(2010-04-24 16:54:45) Joyous_Blade: "What kind of stimulant?"
(2010-04-24 16:54:54) Greenling: "Uh." He looks down at it. "I'm not an alchemist."
(2010-04-24 16:55:33) Joyous_Blade: "Hmmm.... Hey, Kairos, you do magicy stuff, right?"
(2010-04-24 16:55:43) Breanna: "How would it compare to, say, coffee?"
(2010-04-24 16:56:15) Kairos_Midoya: "...I'm not much of an alchemist, but..."
(2010-04-24 16:56:28) Greenling: "...I've never had coffee. Isn't that a Southern thing?"
(2010-04-24 16:56:44) Kairos_Midoya: There's always taking a look.
(2010-04-24 16:56:49) Joyous_Blade: "It's growing more common in Heaven and the Realm."
(2010-04-24 16:57:03) Greenling: "Yeah, I've never been to either of those places either."
(2010-04-24 16:57:24) Breanna: "My boss always had it imported straight from Gem, though that might just have been *her*."
(2010-04-24 16:58:01) Greenling: "..."
(2010-04-24 16:58:31) Joyous_Blade: "Hey, anyway, mind if I light up?"
(2010-04-24 16:59:02) Breanna: Reed hesitantly hands the mug to Lion, prepared to take it away if it looks a bit strong for him.
(2010-04-24 16:59:07) Greenling: "...Uh, we've got torches in here, but I guess I don't mind. You're blue, right?"
(2010-04-24 16:59:16) Joyous_Blade: "What?"
(2010-04-24 16:59:22) Greenling: "What?"
(2010-04-24 16:59:29) Greenling: Lion takes a sip.
(2010-04-24 16:59:44) Greenling: He grins. "Mmm, apples." Siiiiiip.
(2010-04-24 17:00:05) ***Joyous_Blade rolls herself a cigarette. "I suppose you've never seen one of these, either?"
(2010-04-24 17:00:47) Greenling: "Huh? Oh."
(2010-04-24 17:01:20) Greenling: "Eh, we've got similar stuff. Just don't set anything on fire."
(2010-04-24 17:01:51) Joyous_Blade: "No problem." She takes a long drag.
(2010-04-24 17:01:54) Greenling: Kairos: that is definitely a particular sort of herb, common throughout Creation, used to produce caffeine.
(2010-04-24 17:03:43) Greenling: It tends to build up, but he bought the kid an entire cake, so it probably can't be worse than that.
(2010-04-24 17:04:14) Kairos_Midoya: "The type of plant used in the cider isn't too strong."
(2010-04-24 17:05:36) Kairos_Midoya: "It tends to build up...but it shoudn't be worse than him eating an entire cake."
(2010-04-24 17:06:53) Greenling: The kid finds a seat and bounces slightly, sipping.
(2010-04-24 17:07:01) Greenling: "So where are we going?" says Lion.
(2010-04-24 17:09:01) Breanna: "We're going on an adventure. Do you remember hearing stories about the Wyld, and the Fair Folk?"
(2010-04-24 17:09:15) Greenling: Nodnodnod. :D
(2010-04-24 17:09:23) Greenling: "Are we gonna fight the fair folk?"
(2010-04-24 17:09:40) Joyous_Blade: "Quite possibly."
(2010-04-24 17:10:20) Breanna: "If we have to, though the less fighting we see, the better. They're powerful, and we'll be in their territory."
(2010-04-24 17:11:21) Greenling: Nodnodnodsip.
(2010-04-24 17:12:59) Greenling: Ishinomori shrugs again. "Anything else at the moment?"
(2010-04-24 17:13:16) Joyous_Blade: "Hmmmm. Do any of the Raksha who signed live particularly close to where we are?"
(2010-04-24 17:13:52) Greenling: "That depends a little on which way you go."
(2010-04-24 17:15:39) Greenling: "Red-Ribboned Leisa is near to everything, if you want to go through her waypoints. Okar of Spear and Dance and Scintillating Sword of Lapis are relatively close."
(2010-04-24 17:16:25) Joyous_Blade: "Which of those three would be easiest to ...convince not to take part in this Crusade?"
(2010-04-24 17:16:46) Greenling: "That's... I'm not sure. I don't know why they're in on it in the first place."
(2010-04-24 17:17:37) Joyous_Blade: "I see."
(2010-04-24 17:18:27) Joyous_Blade: "Oh, one more thing: is there any news of one Aepoifs?"
(2010-04-24 17:19:23) Greenling: "Aepoifs... never heard of her."
(2010-04-24 17:20:14) Joyous_Blade: "...Then how did you know she was female?"
(2010-04-24 17:21:04) Greenling: "...Wild guess?"
(2010-04-24 17:21:20) Joyous_Blade: "Suuuure."
(2010-04-24 17:21:31) Greenling: He looks at you funny.
(2010-04-24 17:21:51) ***Joyous_Blade grins at him and takes a long drag.
(2010-04-24 17:22:32) Greenling: "Are you always so damn paranoid?"
(2010-04-24 17:22:47) Joyous_Blade: "Occupational hazard. Sorry."