Varielky instinctively looks up, then down to the door again. She hadn't considered unreachable archers. That would definitely be a problem. Varielky steps closer to the building, though she doesn't enter it just yet. She hopes to gain at least a partial cover from the tower by getting closer. Though, if it comes to that, she can always just sprint inside, where they definitely won't be able to shoot her. She'll be harder to extract too, though. Thinking about it, she should warn the others of the archers in the tower, but she didn't want to shout at the top of her lungs so the others would hear. Whatever, arrows aren't very dangerous to a ship anyway.
"I'll wait for him, then." Varielky replies, then walks forward and leans on the door, her shield still raised and her feet still ready to leap away at a moment's notice.
--
Still dodging, Varielky moves to I-4 (or H-4, or between). She hopes to get some cover from the turret, if possible, but she remains there even if it seems even there the turret has a good line of sight on her.
The bard pulls back his hood, revealing a shock of white hair in the darkness, and a long moment passes in silence as the airshipman draws upon his pipe, then releases a puff of smoke.
“I say…,” the man asks somewhat breathlessly, “…Snow??”
How much courage does the most intrepid adventurer possess when faced— not with brutal warriors — but with a truth both longed for and dreaded, a truth which reaches to the very core of the hero’s past, the bullseye of their long suffering?
Snow might ask this question now, for the man’s voice and demeanor, his tone… it is that of his long MIA father.
Snow stops in his tracks, frozen in place mid step. This man who had seemed so familiar, could he be the one he had searched for for so long? Could he be the one whose appreciation and respect he had so longed for his entire life?
His search for his father had always been a double edged sword. If he did not find him, then he was truly gone, never to be seen or spoken to again. If he did find him, then he and his mother had been truly abandoned. He had never really known which outcome he had dreaded most.
And now, standing before him, was the man whose affections he could never win. The man who left him when he was merely a teenager in order to satisfy his own curiosity. The man who was likely responsible for most of the major decisions he had ever made, without even knowing it. His rebellious youth, longing for a father figure that wasn't there. His decision to become an archaeologist. The very journey he was on now.
Of course he had done things in his own way. He wasn't the scholar his father was, but he was no less accomplished.
How should he feel right now, when confronted with this man? Elated? Relieved? Angry? Confused?
The fact is that he feels all of the above and more.
And what does he say to this person whom he hasn't seen in two decades?
"Hello, Father. I've been looking for you", he says simply before adding with a shrug, "I'm in a spot of bother, being chased by some Jenghen's and their Warlock Captain".
The saddle handler’s face, at the moment, is somewhat stuffed into the saddle he was carrying, which now roughly holds him in place in the enormous talon, and though he is indeed shouting commands and a reply to Auger, his words are unintelligible in their entirety.
The huge red-brown feathered beast makes a stomach-wrenching turn over the airship whose sole visible crewman shouts back and forth with Snow from the gunwale to the ground. Then the roc is past the ship and over the cliff, flying through the mountain mist, and gaining altitude.
Auger’s questions remain unanswered. As for his current predicament, he is now, he imagines, at least one hundred feet over the nearest mountain slope with the edge of the aerie at least eighty feet behind him, although due to the darkness and mist, he can’t know for certain. The giant claw holding him aloft doesn’t squeeze any tighter than necessary, but instead encloses the warlock like a steel cage.
VARIELKY
The guards, having witnessed the results of the massacre downstairs and in the guardhouse, are, shall we say, reluctant to engage.
“There’s always one,” interrupts the captain, before the guard whom Varielky addressed can reply, a voice saturated with ennui, and not far indeed, in the vicinity of the stairway down to the landing, Varielky might guess. “Leave her to me.”
In another moment, the shield-maiden sees Dairiku Sorakayoshi take a place confidently in the open doorway, there, backlit, facing her rather carelessly. Right elbow comes up to rest on left hand, chin rests on right thumb and forefinger, from which position he gestures with that arm as he speaks in his scathingly superior cadence.
“So. You’ll be the hero tu jour, mmmm? Giving up your life so your friends can escape. How boring.”
SNOW
The man seems likewise stunned, the incisive intelligence of a few moments ago giving way to, to what? Silence. His jaw works, his pipe droops in his mouth. “You… you’ve grown…,” he says, stupidly.
Then Auger careens past in the roc’s grip, and the airshipman — yes for a certainty, Snow’s father, Chanakya Trivedi Das — comes to his senses, bites down again on his pipe, and disappears from the gunwale. A moment later, a ladder, seemingly of its own volition, lowers down, with an amber sconce attached to it, offering enough light for climbing.
“Come up, come up!! ALL HANDS! SAILS FULL!! SET COURSE FOR THE CLOUDS!! NOW!! NOW!! NOW!!, AYE THE BOAT’S SAFER ANCHORED AT PORT, BUT THAT’S NOT THE AIM OF BOATS!!,” Snow hears from the deck.
Despite his trust in his coat to protect him from a fall, Auger finds the sudden flight disconcerting. What is in the mind of Baylen? What is it thinking? And then, while being bounced around within the talons, Auger realizes something. He feels a sense of contentment.
For the first time in a while he is happy with his unending predicament. Though he is far from his family. Though he is far from his traveling companions, as they start to dwindle below. He is doing nothing about his promise to the Dowager. He is in fact trapped in the claws of a young Roc with no idea what it intends. And he feels... good. This is -- this is not something I should feel right now, Auger thinks. Strewn is the question and Auger is the answer. Or something like that. The Dowager had said. The Dowager protects his family and village. In an exchange. There was nothing to feel happy about. He was shirking his duty. And wanted to smile about it.
Then Auger remembers the most important thing of all. And he moves. He movesas far as he can, up, back and above, hoping by some trick of the wind or some mountain updraft, that he would be able to fall to the ship. And his friends. And his promise. And his mission. He turned away from seeking his own goal and his own contentment. That was the key. He would not turn away ever so slightly and slowly lose his path. He would not be like his cousin. He movesback the way they came and angled upwards. And he flies in the sky, if only for a passing moment.
It was not long ago he had received his coat, just a few weeks really. It was an exchange for helping an Angel of D'ya Boabab. An Angel in possession of a mighty weapon now. But an Angel who had honored the deal . As he flies through the air, Auger thinks again on the encounter with the Angel. As his speed increases and he begins to fall in earnest, he thinks on what little he knows of D'ya Baobab and realizes a connection existed to this God and to the Pixie he serves, something he learned long ago.
Auger’s village lore — his village having been his whole world before stepping away from it into the Dowager’s service—includes only a few tales of D’ya Baobab, and there, in the Orcan Conquest, in the South, the god of magic is considered a lesser god. One story comes to mind, in which D’ya Baobab is depicted as having been, at first, a friend to mortals, freely sharing keys to arcane energies with ancient benign rulers, through his children, the P’ixyathrin. However, goes the tale, mortals became selfish, the god withdrew his affections, and the P’ixyathrin were never seen again. Incidentally, Auger recalls, in folklore, the P’ixyathrin have come to be known as Pixies, who are sought after — folklorically — because it is said that to find one will earn the finder a magical gift. It is a tale told to children, for one of the secrets learned by all who leave childhood behind is that Pixies do not in fact exist. Original post
Auger falls. And strives towards the mission. Towards his promise to the Dowager. In his deep family past, his people had been among those who stole from the Pixies. Auger owed it to the Dowager to stick to the path. If he could live through this that is.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM of RotFM | AUGER the Warlock (Archfey & the Chain) / Shadow Sorcerer in Age of Resurgence | Rahui & Javier in Sea of Memory
Snow watches his father closely, intrigued by what what he might say when coming face to face with the son he hasn't seen for 20 years. Surely this great intellect, this highly respected professor, would have something interesting to say for himself.
...
Apparently not.
...
He starts to reply to his father's rather inane comment, but is distracted by Auger swooping passed in the claws of the Roc.
"Crikey!", he exclaims, before his father springs into action, shouting his orders. Now there was the assertive figure of authority he remembered!
As the ladder descends, he turns to the others, "All is safe, get on the airship!". He then turns his attention back to Auger, as he starts to climb the ladder himself. He stops for a moment, whispering, "Might be a silly question, but are you ok up there?".
(OOC: I am assuming Snow has been too busy at the airship to have realised Varielky has gone to the guard tower. Oh, and I understand Auger may be far out of range of Message, but worth a try)
(OOC: Will Varielky have heard Snow's father's calls? Would she see the ship taking off, despite the dark?)
"Hero? I don't know. That depends on you." Varielky thinks. In fact, now that it seems like they weren't even planning on going out, at least to her, she feels rather stupid to have come here. "If you try to stop us, and I stop you from doing that, but remain behind here or die, then I suppose that's a heroic act, right? If you try to stop us, I stop you from stopping us, but I somehow manage to join the others and escape, that means I have simply done my job. If you don't even want to stop us, I'll walk right back and we'll be away. Our business here is done. I suppose that makes me a fool for coming to face you at all, but at least I will be sure I did all I could to guarantee the others' safety."
It is at that moment that Varielky realises she forgot to ask Snow and Strewn whether they have found anything. They came to them, so she supposed they did, but what if they simply couldn't find anything? Well, too late. They probably won't be able to return either way. The captain warlock would - she hoped - not chase them if they leave, and she wasn't especially interested in fighting a warlock. She couldn't measure one's prowess in battle if one used magic, especially if that were complicated magic beyond healing wounds or stuff like that.
"So, what will it be?"Varielky asks. "Are you content with standing in our way, fighting me on the way, and gaining nothing from that? Or would you rather let us go, leaving yourself and your men with no more casualties? It's your choice."
Tamazaert, having left her borrowed shield and sword behind and now carrying Sura in the imperial cloak which she has turned into a sling, follows Snow up the ladder, and behind her comes Granophyre.
When Snow reaches the deck, followed by the pair, he finds himself in traffic, for rushing about, so that he must duck and step quickly aside, are the barest outlines of Kingdoms-clothed men and women unfurling the sails, rotating the large wheel which retracts the anchor, and carrying out other tasks to ready the ship for departure. The barest outline, I repeat, because the crew is composed entirely of ghostly figures, the result of some arcane casting not unlike the bard’s own mage hand, but rather than an ectoplasmic appendage, there are whole invisible persons floating across the deck in answer to the commands of the bard’s father.
VARIELKY
Sorakayoshi chuckles. “Varielky Indallian. Yes, I had a moment to check the ledgers, if the name you gave was indeed your own. You and your friends, led by Granophyre Strewn, have broken the laws of the land repeatedly in recent days. Not surprising, for your leader is a fugitive from Imperial custody to begin with, mmm? There will be no escaping. I see that you’re… the direct type. We can settle this easily enough, the old-fashioned way.” He motions, smirking, to a guard who, fearfully, draws a longsword and hands it to the captain. “You demanded my attention, now EN GARDE, Indallian!!”
AUGER
Like an autumn leaf embarking on the single sojourn it will ever make, Auger detaches, his material form disassembling and reassembling above and behind his prior location in an instant, as if a brisk autumn breeze had sent him spinning higher up before his inevitable fall should begin. Now falling slowly, he shifts his trajectory, aiming for the top of a tall fir tree he spots through the mist, only ten yards from the aerie’s edge, and as he floats, sees the sails of the nearest airship unfurl, of their own accord, and spots Snow on the ship’s deck looking across at him.
Then a moment of expectation, for somehow, he knows what is coming. A huge talon wheels out of the mist and plucks him up once again. (OOC: assuming he dodges, the roc grapples at disadvantage, rolling 23.)
Auger is in range for Snow’s message spell and can message back. Auger intuits that it may take some time to work out this roc situation, though how long is anyone’s guess. A roc can’t fly forever, can it? This perhaps inspires him with the thought that he would do well to suggest a place to reconnect with the party.
Puzzled at first as to why the warlock captain would use the place where she was born as if it were part of her name. She, of course, did not remember a simple mistake someone who seemed insignificant made back when they first saw this captain. More importantly, though, the captain chose neither to let them go nor the path of magic. He took a sword instead. Not only that, but he didn't seem to ask for his subordinates' help. It seems that this is truly going to be a duel. Perhaps it wasn't a mistake after all.
Indeed, Varielky is excited. Her last duel ended in a bitter defeat, and though she couldn't guarantee a victory here either, she felt more confident, for better or worse. At the very least, she starts the fight in a better condition than she started the other one, though she doesn't excuse herself for her loss. A warrior shouldn't have moments when they're not at their best, impossible as that ideal may be.
"I don't know if you find this boring, but I find fighting itself to be worth it all. Tsk." Varielky answers in a tone of mixed excitement and irk. "It is not something you should do if needed, it is something you need to do. But you should do it properly! I may have been born in northern Indallia, but my name is not Varielky Indallian. Neither have I ever said so. My name is Varielky Halladdottir!"Varielky now brings her hand that holds Dreygaard to touch her forehead, where the mark glows, as if to prove her words are true. "Dreyen blood flows through these veins! I accept your offer for a duel, Captain Sorakayoshi! Now show me your worth!"
Varielky leaps towards Sorakayoshi. In the brief moment as she closes the distance between them, Varielky begins to breathe deeply yet quickly, in short intervals and in a fixed pace. Bringing her body to the state of peak performance again, Varielky prepares to give her all to this fight. Not to save the others heroically. Well, not entirely, at least. But instead, to satisfy her own fighting spirit, her zealous faith and perhaps, to lift a weight off her chest.
As she lands right in front of the captain, Varielky brings down Dreygaard powerfully on the captain and immediately follows with an upward slash. Both were powerful attacks, a great start to a duel (assuming they hit).
Bonus Action: Rage. I don't mind if you rather I do the halving of damage (assuming it's of the resisted types) or you do, but do tell me which of these you prefer. Action: Attack captain Sorakayoshi. Attack #1: 17+10=27 to hit, 8+11=19 damage. Attack #2: 18+10=28 to hit, 1+11+12 damage.
Auger floats down, somehow a little bit surprised that D'ya Baobab's coat had kept its bargain and saved him again. He is content in himself because he had made his choice, and he knew it was the right one. The Roc, Baylen, of course had its own ability to make choices. Swept up again in its talons, and knowing the futility of it, Auger does nothing to attempt to resist. As the familiar piercing headache strikes Auger again, he senses that he cannot attempt the same kind of escape again, not without some rest. And a meal. And some comfort. Those things seemed far away at this moment.
He sees the ship, and Snow and hears a question in his head and so attempts to respond, "I don't know if this Roc has chosen me for a future meal or as a toy to play with. But I am trapped. I suspect it feels the connection as I do and so I am probably safe. It is taking me away. To where I cannot say. If I am able I will return to Kalahata. And the Vale if needed. Leave word with people we know and trust of where you are. I have promised to help Granophyre on his quest and intend to do so. I am just--- going to be occupied with Baylen -- this Roc -- for... a while."
Thinking for a moment, Auger again calls over to the handler, "Free your mouth man! Where do you think this Roc will take us?"
As Auger waits on a reply he tries to maintain the connection with Snow, but then whether the Roc stays close enough to allow the communication to continue is not really in Auger's hands.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM of RotFM | AUGER the Warlock (Archfey & the Chain) / Shadow Sorcerer in Age of Resurgence | Rahui & Javier in Sea of Memory
Snow listens to Auger’s reply with incredulity, not understanding this bond he has somehow made with the creature at all.
And that isn’t even the strangest thing going on right now. Not compared to the strange ghostly crew of the airship, apparently summoned by his long lost father.
”If we make it away, the archives pointed us to Kalahata. The one we seek, this Safiyah, is the High Priest of Idiwala. She is imprisoned in the Poppy Citadel”, he whispers back to Auger, his mind racing trying to get enough information to him to facilitate their future reunion.
He then looks from the retreating figure of Auger, clasped in the talons of the Roc, back to the ghost crew and the rest of the ship. It is then he notices that Varielky and Benita are missing.
He rushes over to Strewn, “Auger says he will meet up with us later, he has some connection with that Roc or something. Where are Varielky and Benita? Have you seen them?”, he asks, looking around the deck for them but also for his father.
He wants nothing more than to go and talk to him, to get answers, but escape is his priority and he can’t make good on that without the others.
”We will soon be airborne, they need to get here now”, he adds.
(OOC: this will have to move very slowly, as Varielky and Sorakayoshi both have reactions and so forth. Also, I’m adjusting some things for dueling.
We will roll initiative in every round. Whoever has the initiative can move as far as their movement rate, or their opponent’s, whichever is less. Whoever doesn’t have initiative must follow, remain engaged, and end up in a safe space of the initiative-winner’s choosing. By safe space, I mean you can’t move your opponent off a cliff.
The movement happens at the end of the round, after both players have taken their turn, provided neither player is KO’ed, disengages or does some other kind of movement which would cause them no longer to be engaged.)
Both of Varielky’s strikes hit hard. Sorakayoshi grins. “Dreyen then, and why am I not surprised. I've seen the glyphs on your sword in the north. While I was smothering the life out of the scum who lived there. You will be summarily executed at the next Games. I must take care not to kill you right away.” But in contrast to his words, he suddenly closes, forcefully shoving Varielky back into a lunge position with his ornate shield, and, her balance compromised, Sorakayoshi slashes with the guard’s old broadsword, a glancing blow, 22 for 2HP damage (after resistance). The next strike seems odd to Varielky, for the blade comes round to hit her at such an angle and with such force against the strongest part of her shield that the weapon cracks as the swing fails to connect. Does Varielky riposte as the shards fall away, leaving the Jenghen unarmed? (Sorakayoshi is AC20; his turn is not over yet, but Varielky may take a reaction now if she wishes).
Sorakayoshi’s initiative roll is 10 this round.
(OOC: To answer your earlier question, I think Varielky was keeping an eye on Snow, and noticed him and Tamazaert climbing up the ladder onto the ship. Her attention was then focused on Sorakayoshi too much to see anything else.)
The bard now spots Varielky, darting in and out of the guardhouse as she exchanges blows in a duel with Sorakayoshi. Benita is nowhere to be seen. Snow's father has disappeared below deck, but Snow sees him peer out of the stairway long enough to gaze oddly at him, Snow, for a moment, shake his head, take in Granophyre and Tamazaert as they board, glance at the guardhouse, frowning, and in so doing, drawing Snow's attention to the tramway, which shows signs of life: the car Snow and the others had ridden earlier is now returning, filled with guards. And slithering along the cables is some other unidentifiable danger, yet too far to discern in detail.
Auger hears Snow's message as he is carried aloft, but by the time he might reply, he is too far away. The great bird's wings flap in a regular rhythm, and the wind seems to rob one of breath, making conversation with the handler during the flight difficult. Indeed, the old man doesn't even try. He has managed to right himself, and seems sanguine with the current situation. Auger sees that they are heading northwest toward the black monolithic Bantu mountains, keeping low above the trees to fly under the low-hanging clouds.
The flight might take a while, one could reasonably assume. Does Auger do anything to intervene? (N.B.: from this point on, Auger's posts will not be synchronous with the others.)
Auger thinks hard on some alternate escape and is unable to come up with something. He could bring forth an illusion and, lets say, momentarily startle Baylen into dropping him. But it seemed he was quite easy to catch. So instead he could... cast the illusion. Startle the bird. Be dropped. Become invisible? The connection might still lead the Roc to him. And the Roc might drop the handler as easily as Auger. Dropping either would not be a guarantee unless the illusion was quite shocking. Daunting perhaps. What could possibly daunt this bird such that it would not just fly around it?
And so Auger's thoughts turn. The contentment he feels in the presence of Baylen continues but Auger chooses to not let it become complacency. As Auger thinks on options he tries to pay attention to where they are going. Northwest it appears. To the mountains ahead. Are those the Bantus? Auger scarcely recalls, his head for maps not being the strongest.
Suddenly Auger realizes a return may take some serious time and so he fixes details Snow had shared into his head. Kalahata. The archives said back to Kalahata? And Safiyah is the High Priest of Idiwalla? Imprisoned in the Poppy Citadel. They had been so close! Auger had tried to enter that Citadel, though he was turned away. What else about the Citadel? They had passed right by it on their way out of Kalahata on the Animu Borongo. Was that it? Granophyre had been held there at the Citadel himself. Until he escaped. On the back of a Roc. How... how did he get the Roc to go the direction he wanted? He... had charmed the rider. And Kotashin. The small elephantine fey... knight? Kotashin had appeared. Out of nowhere to help Granophyre to escape... The last he had seen of the fey, it had been gobbled up by a lizard beast. Though Auger had guessed that Kotashin was probably fine. Back again if summoned properly. Like Py. And that lizard beast was in the service of --- Auger stops that train of thought before it gets too far. His cousin was dead now, no need to dwell upon it.
Re-focusing. Kalahata. The High Priest of Idiwalla. Held in the Poppy Citadel. Auger would try to meet them there. Auger looks back, trying to mark the direction in his head for a return to Kalahata.
Idly Auger wonders if Kotashin might appear to help him, laughing at the thought. At the growing distance Auger thinks about removing his pack to check if it still had any food in it, or if the wood he needed to resummon Py was where it was needed, but in the tight circumstances, Auger decides to hold off. He might accidentally drop all his things if he were to mess with it. Drop them from the night sky into the forest below.
With thoughts of home in his head, Auger resigns himself to his plight and his journey. Eventually Baylen would become tired. And then Auger would have to find a way to return on his own quest. But still. There was this curious sensation of contentment to it all. What did it mean?
Snow again curses under his breath, not surprised at all to see Varielky at the guardhouse fighting, but it complicated things all the same. And where is Benita? Lurking somewhere close to Varielky no doubt.
He wanders over to his father's position on the stairs.
"Look, I am sure you have questions. I have a million and one. But right now my companions and I are in trouble. One has been kidnapped by a Roc, one is missing and one looks to be in a duel with Captain Sorakayoshi", he says matter of factly.
"To answer what I assume is going to be your first question. We are here retrieving that ladies baby, stolen in the Jenghen fashion due to their paternal heritage. I have to go and help my people, but I need your promise you will keep mother and child safe, along with my other companion there. Your word does not exactly carry a huge amount of weight any more, but I want it anyway", he finishes, motioning at Tamazaert, Sura and Strewn, and then waits for his reply.
"Time is of the essence, reinforcements, and something....else...is on the way", he hurries.
Chanakya Trivedi Das, who had been shuttling up and down between decks, readying for departure, halts in his tracks. His face is plainly gripped with emotion, pale and wide-eyed. He stops mid-step when Snow speaks to him.
“Yes… yes, to be sure. Questions. But Captain Sorakayoshi is the worst of the locals—his confounded ambition has lent no end to his cruelty.”
“Captain!,” shouts one of the spirits, “all is ready!,” and Chanakya Trivedi Das shouts back, “anchors aweigh!,” and then, unable to control himself, turns to Snow and whispers excitedly, “I’VE FOUND THEM! THE OLD MYSTICS!,” and grasping his son’s shoulder and smiling with pride, he turns to his ghostly crew, shouting, “Up, up, but only a few mere feet!,” and, rushing to the control booth, an open box of a room, whirls the rudder full around and rides the altitude lever.
Answering Snow’s demand, he says, “As long as they’re aboard the Reaver’s Word they’re under my protection. We’ll come around to the guardhouse,” he continues, fear and courage both writ now upon his whiskered features, “no better time than now to collect your friends!”
Snow stares at his father. Could it be true? Could he have achieved his life's work?
Eager to hear more, but aware the current situation did not allow for it, he turns his attention back to the task at hand.
"Ok, that sounds good. I hope this airship has some tricks up it's sleeve", he replies, then runs across to the gunwale closest to the guard house again, towards the front of the airship as he knows it is pivoting.
"Benita, where the hell are you?", he calls out, not shouting so loud that it would reach the guard house, more of a loud whisper that he keeps repeating as they travel.
As they approach the guard house and come into range, he will prepare to whisper to Varielky, "We are coming, be ready to get aboard. There is another tram full of guards heading up, and something....else. We may only get one shot at this".
He continually flicks his gaze across to the cable and the tram to see if he can spot what it is that is coming.
Perception: 16+7=23
(OOC: I understand that Snow is a little ahead of Varielky time wise, and won't be receiving the message yet. Will be waiting patiently for the continuation :-) )
(Sorry for the slower pace. Was busier during the last few days and might be similarly busy tomorrow. Maybe.)
Varielky quickly retaliates, just barely piercing through Sorakayoshi's defences. Despite that fact, her attack is not a weak one, moe than enough to kill any regular guard. If only Sorakayoshi was a regular guard. But then again, that would have been far less interesting.
Reaction: Riposte manoeuvre. 10+10=20 to hit, 8+11+3=22 damage.
Varielky's initiative roll for this round is 12+1=13, so I suppose she would have gone first after all.
(OOC: Any update for Snow please? I notice a couple have come for the others, did you miss my latest post 1973 - #1234?)
Varielky instinctively looks up, then down to the door again. She hadn't considered unreachable archers. That would definitely be a problem. Varielky steps closer to the building, though she doesn't enter it just yet. She hopes to gain at least a partial cover from the tower by getting closer. Though, if it comes to that, she can always just sprint inside, where they definitely won't be able to shoot her. She'll be harder to extract too, though. Thinking about it, she should warn the others of the archers in the tower, but she didn't want to shout at the top of her lungs so the others would hear. Whatever, arrows aren't very dangerous to a ship anyway.
"I'll wait for him, then." Varielky replies, then walks forward and leans on the door, her shield still raised and her feet still ready to leap away at a moment's notice.
--
Still dodging, Varielky moves to I-4 (or H-4, or between). She hopes to get some cover from the turret, if possible, but she remains there even if it seems even there the turret has a good line of sight on her.
Varielky
Chapter 14 - Bonds Unbroken
SNOW
The bard pulls back his hood, revealing a shock of white hair in the darkness, and a long moment passes in silence as the airshipman draws upon his pipe, then releases a puff of smoke.
“I say…,” the man asks somewhat breathlessly, “…Snow??”
How much courage does the most intrepid adventurer possess when faced— not with brutal warriors — but with a truth both longed for and dreaded, a truth which reaches to the very core of the hero’s past, the bullseye of their long suffering?
Snow might ask this question now, for the man’s voice and demeanor, his tone… it is that of his long MIA father.
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Snow stops in his tracks, frozen in place mid step. This man who had seemed so familiar, could he be the one he had searched for for so long? Could he be the one whose appreciation and respect he had so longed for his entire life?
His search for his father had always been a double edged sword. If he did not find him, then he was truly gone, never to be seen or spoken to again. If he did find him, then he and his mother had been truly abandoned. He had never really known which outcome he had dreaded most.
And now, standing before him, was the man whose affections he could never win. The man who left him when he was merely a teenager in order to satisfy his own curiosity. The man who was likely responsible for most of the major decisions he had ever made, without even knowing it. His rebellious youth, longing for a father figure that wasn't there. His decision to become an archaeologist. The very journey he was on now.
Of course he had done things in his own way. He wasn't the scholar his father was, but he was no less accomplished.
How should he feel right now, when confronted with this man? Elated? Relieved? Angry? Confused?
The fact is that he feels all of the above and more.
And what does he say to this person whom he hasn't seen in two decades?
"Hello, Father. I've been looking for you", he says simply before adding with a shrug, "I'm in a spot of bother, being chased by some Jenghen's and their Warlock Captain".
AUGER
The saddle handler’s face, at the moment, is somewhat stuffed into the saddle he was carrying, which now roughly holds him in place in the enormous talon, and though he is indeed shouting commands and a reply to Auger, his words are unintelligible in their entirety.
The huge red-brown feathered beast makes a stomach-wrenching turn over the airship whose sole visible crewman shouts back and forth with Snow from the gunwale to the ground. Then the roc is past the ship and over the cliff, flying through the mountain mist, and gaining altitude.
Auger’s questions remain unanswered. As for his current predicament, he is now, he imagines, at least one hundred feet over the nearest mountain slope with the edge of the aerie at least eighty feet behind him, although due to the darkness and mist, he can’t know for certain. The giant claw holding him aloft doesn’t squeeze any tighter than necessary, but instead encloses the warlock like a steel cage.
VARIELKY
The guards, having witnessed the results of the massacre downstairs and in the guardhouse, are, shall we say, reluctant to engage.
“There’s always one,” interrupts the captain, before the guard whom Varielky addressed can reply, a voice saturated with ennui, and not far indeed, in the vicinity of the stairway down to the landing, Varielky might guess. “Leave her to me.”
In another moment, the shield-maiden sees Dairiku Sorakayoshi take a place confidently in the open doorway, there, backlit, facing her rather carelessly. Right elbow comes up to rest on left hand, chin rests on right thumb and forefinger, from which position he gestures with that arm as he speaks in his scathingly superior cadence.
“So. You’ll be the hero tu jour, mmmm? Giving up your life so your friends can escape. How boring.”
SNOW
The man seems likewise stunned, the incisive intelligence of a few moments ago giving way to, to what? Silence. His jaw works, his pipe droops in his mouth. “You… you’ve grown…,” he says, stupidly.
Then Auger careens past in the roc’s grip, and the airshipman — yes for a certainty, Snow’s father, Chanakya Trivedi Das — comes to his senses, bites down again on his pipe, and disappears from the gunwale. A moment later, a ladder, seemingly of its own volition, lowers down, with an amber sconce attached to it, offering enough light for climbing.
“Come up, come up!! ALL HANDS! SAILS FULL!! SET COURSE FOR THE CLOUDS!! NOW!! NOW!! NOW!!, AYE THE BOAT’S SAFER ANCHORED AT PORT, BUT THAT’S NOT THE AIM OF BOATS!!,” Snow hears from the deck.
Varielky is now situated like so.
Auger, Snow and the others are situated like so
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Despite his trust in his coat to protect him from a fall, Auger finds the sudden flight disconcerting. What is in the mind of Baylen? What is it thinking? And then, while being bounced around within the talons, Auger realizes something. He feels a sense of contentment.
For the first time in a while he is happy with his unending predicament. Though he is far from his family. Though he is far from his traveling companions, as they start to dwindle below. He is doing nothing about his promise to the Dowager. He is in fact trapped in the claws of a young Roc with no idea what it intends. And he feels... good. This is -- this is not something I should feel right now, Auger thinks. Strewn is the question and Auger is the answer. Or something like that. The Dowager had said. The Dowager protects his family and village. In an exchange. There was nothing to feel happy about. He was shirking his duty. And wanted to smile about it.
Then Auger remembers the most important thing of all. And he moves. He moves as far as he can, up, back and above, hoping by some trick of the wind or some mountain updraft, that he would be able to fall to the ship. And his friends. And his promise. And his mission. He turned away from seeking his own goal and his own contentment. That was the key. He would not turn away ever so slightly and slowly lose his path. He would not be like his cousin. He moves back the way they came and angled upwards. And he flies in the sky, if only for a passing moment.
It was not long ago he had received his coat, just a few weeks really. It was an exchange for helping an Angel of D'ya Boabab. An Angel in possession of a mighty weapon now. But an Angel who had honored the deal . As he flies through the air, Auger thinks again on the encounter with the Angel. As his speed increases and he begins to fall in earnest, he thinks on what little he knows of D'ya Baobab and realizes a connection existed to this God and to the Pixie he serves, something he learned long ago.
Auger falls. And strives towards the mission. Towards his promise to the Dowager. In his deep family past, his people had been among those who stole from the Pixies. Auger owed it to the Dowager to stick to the path. If he could live through this that is.
DM of RotFM | AUGER the Warlock (Archfey & the Chain) / Shadow Sorcerer in Age of Resurgence | Rahui & Javier in Sea of Memory
Snow watches his father closely, intrigued by what what he might say when coming face to face with the son he hasn't seen for 20 years. Surely this great intellect, this highly respected professor, would have something interesting to say for himself.
...
Apparently not.
...
He starts to reply to his father's rather inane comment, but is distracted by Auger swooping passed in the claws of the Roc.
"Crikey!", he exclaims, before his father springs into action, shouting his orders. Now there was the assertive figure of authority he remembered!
As the ladder descends, he turns to the others, "All is safe, get on the airship!". He then turns his attention back to Auger, as he starts to climb the ladder himself. He stops for a moment, whispering, "Might be a silly question, but are you ok up there?".
He then carries on climbing.
Movement: Up the ladder
Action: Message Auger
(OOC: I am assuming Snow has been too busy at the airship to have realised Varielky has gone to the guard tower. Oh, and I understand Auger may be far out of range of Message, but worth a try)
(OOC: Will Varielky have heard Snow's father's calls? Would she see the ship taking off, despite the dark?)
"Hero? I don't know. That depends on you." Varielky thinks. In fact, now that it seems like they weren't even planning on going out, at least to her, she feels rather stupid to have come here. "If you try to stop us, and I stop you from doing that, but remain behind here or die, then I suppose that's a heroic act, right? If you try to stop us, I stop you from stopping us, but I somehow manage to join the others and escape, that means I have simply done my job. If you don't even want to stop us, I'll walk right back and we'll be away. Our business here is done. I suppose that makes me a fool for coming to face you at all, but at least I will be sure I did all I could to guarantee the others' safety."
It is at that moment that Varielky realises she forgot to ask Snow and Strewn whether they have found anything. They came to them, so she supposed they did, but what if they simply couldn't find anything? Well, too late. They probably won't be able to return either way. The captain warlock would - she hoped - not chase them if they leave, and she wasn't especially interested in fighting a warlock. She couldn't measure one's prowess in battle if one used magic, especially if that were complicated magic beyond healing wounds or stuff like that.
"So, what will it be?" Varielky asks. "Are you content with standing in our way, fighting me on the way, and gaining nothing from that? Or would you rather let us go, leaving yourself and your men with no more casualties? It's your choice."
Varielky
SNOW
Tamazaert, having left her borrowed shield and sword behind and now carrying Sura in the imperial cloak which she has turned into a sling, follows Snow up the ladder, and behind her comes Granophyre.
When Snow reaches the deck, followed by the pair, he finds himself in traffic, for rushing about, so that he must duck and step quickly aside, are the barest outlines of Kingdoms-clothed men and women unfurling the sails, rotating the large wheel which retracts the anchor, and carrying out other tasks to ready the ship for departure. The barest outline, I repeat, because the crew is composed entirely of ghostly figures, the result of some arcane casting not unlike the bard’s own mage hand, but rather than an ectoplasmic appendage, there are whole invisible persons floating across the deck in answer to the commands of the bard’s father.
VARIELKY
Sorakayoshi chuckles. “Varielky Indallian. Yes, I had a moment to check the ledgers, if the name you gave was indeed your own. You and your friends, led by Granophyre Strewn, have broken the laws of the land repeatedly in recent days. Not surprising, for your leader is a fugitive from Imperial custody to begin with, mmm? There will be no escaping. I see that you’re… the direct type. We can settle this easily enough, the old-fashioned way.” He motions, smirking, to a guard who, fearfully, draws a longsword and hands it to the captain. “You demanded my attention, now EN GARDE, Indallian!!”
AUGER
Like an autumn leaf embarking on the single sojourn it will ever make, Auger detaches, his material form disassembling and reassembling above and behind his prior location in an instant, as if a brisk autumn breeze had sent him spinning higher up before his inevitable fall should begin. Now falling slowly, he shifts his trajectory, aiming for the top of a tall fir tree he spots through the mist, only ten yards from the aerie’s edge, and as he floats, sees the sails of the nearest airship unfurl, of their own accord, and spots Snow on the ship’s deck looking across at him.
Then a moment of expectation, for somehow, he knows what is coming. A huge talon wheels out of the mist and plucks him up once again. (OOC: assuming he dodges, the roc grapples at disadvantage, rolling 23.)
Auger is in range for Snow’s message spell and can message back. Auger intuits that it may take some time to work out this roc situation, though how long is anyone’s guess. A roc can’t fly forever, can it? This perhaps inspires him with the thought that he would do well to suggest a place to reconnect with the party.
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Puzzled at first as to why the warlock captain would use the place where she was born as if it were part of her name. She, of course, did not remember a simple mistake someone who seemed insignificant made back when they first saw this captain. More importantly, though, the captain chose neither to let them go nor the path of magic. He took a sword instead. Not only that, but he didn't seem to ask for his subordinates' help. It seems that this is truly going to be a duel. Perhaps it wasn't a mistake after all.
Indeed, Varielky is excited. Her last duel ended in a bitter defeat, and though she couldn't guarantee a victory here either, she felt more confident, for better or worse. At the very least, she starts the fight in a better condition than she started the other one, though she doesn't excuse herself for her loss. A warrior shouldn't have moments when they're not at their best, impossible as that ideal may be.
"I don't know if you find this boring, but I find fighting itself to be worth it all. Tsk." Varielky answers in a tone of mixed excitement and irk. "It is not something you should do if needed, it is something you need to do. But you should do it properly! I may have been born in northern Indallia, but my name is not Varielky Indallian. Neither have I ever said so. My name is Varielky Halladdottir!" Varielky now brings her hand that holds Dreygaard to touch her forehead, where the mark glows, as if to prove her words are true. "Dreyen blood flows through these veins! I accept your offer for a duel, Captain Sorakayoshi! Now show me your worth!"
Varielky leaps towards Sorakayoshi. In the brief moment as she closes the distance between them, Varielky begins to breathe deeply yet quickly, in short intervals and in a fixed pace. Bringing her body to the state of peak performance again, Varielky prepares to give her all to this fight. Not to save the others heroically. Well, not entirely, at least. But instead, to satisfy her own fighting spirit, her zealous faith and perhaps, to lift a weight off her chest.
As she lands right in front of the captain, Varielky brings down Dreygaard powerfully on the captain and immediately follows with an upward slash. Both were powerful attacks, a great start to a duel (assuming they hit).
Bonus Action: Rage. I don't mind if you rather I do the halving of damage (assuming it's of the resisted types) or you do, but do tell me which of these you prefer.
Action: Attack captain Sorakayoshi.
Attack #1: 17+10=27 to hit, 8+11=19 damage.
Attack #2: 18+10=28 to hit, 1+11+12 damage.
Varielky
Auger floats down, somehow a little bit surprised that D'ya Baobab's coat had kept its bargain and saved him again. He is content in himself because he had made his choice, and he knew it was the right one. The Roc, Baylen, of course had its own ability to make choices. Swept up again in its talons, and knowing the futility of it, Auger does nothing to attempt to resist. As the familiar piercing headache strikes Auger again, he senses that he cannot attempt the same kind of escape again, not without some rest. And a meal. And some comfort. Those things seemed far away at this moment.
He sees the ship, and Snow and hears a question in his head and so attempts to respond, "I don't know if this Roc has chosen me for a future meal or as a toy to play with. But I am trapped. I suspect it feels the connection as I do and so I am probably safe. It is taking me away. To where I cannot say. If I am able I will return to Kalahata. And the Vale if needed. Leave word with people we know and trust of where you are. I have promised to help Granophyre on his quest and intend to do so. I am just--- going to be occupied with Baylen -- this Roc -- for... a while."
Thinking for a moment, Auger again calls over to the handler, "Free your mouth man! Where do you think this Roc will take us?"
As Auger waits on a reply he tries to maintain the connection with Snow, but then whether the Roc stays close enough to allow the communication to continue is not really in Auger's hands.
DM of RotFM | AUGER the Warlock (Archfey & the Chain) / Shadow Sorcerer in Age of Resurgence | Rahui & Javier in Sea of Memory
Snow listens to Auger’s reply with incredulity, not understanding this bond he has somehow made with the creature at all.
And that isn’t even the strangest thing going on right now. Not compared to the strange ghostly crew of the airship, apparently summoned by his long lost father.
”If we make it away, the archives pointed us to Kalahata. The one we seek, this Safiyah, is the High Priest of Idiwala. She is imprisoned in the Poppy Citadel”, he whispers back to Auger, his mind racing trying to get enough information to him to facilitate their future reunion.
He then looks from the retreating figure of Auger, clasped in the talons of the Roc, back to the ghost crew and the rest of the ship. It is then he notices that Varielky and Benita are missing.
He rushes over to Strewn, “Auger says he will meet up with us later, he has some connection with that Roc or something. Where are Varielky and Benita? Have you seen them?”, he asks, looking around the deck for them but also for his father.
He wants nothing more than to go and talk to him, to get answers, but escape is his priority and he can’t make good on that without the others.
”We will soon be airborne, they need to get here now”, he adds.
VARIELKY
(OOC: this will have to move very slowly, as Varielky and Sorakayoshi both have reactions and so forth. Also, I’m adjusting some things for dueling.
Both of Varielky’s strikes hit hard. Sorakayoshi grins. “Dreyen then, and why am I not surprised. I've seen the glyphs on your sword in the north. While I was smothering the life out of the scum who lived there. You will be summarily executed at the next Games. I must take care not to kill you right away.” But in contrast to his words, he suddenly closes, forcefully shoving Varielky back into a lunge position with his ornate shield, and, her balance compromised, Sorakayoshi slashes with the guard’s old broadsword, a glancing blow, 22 for 2HP damage (after resistance). The next strike seems odd to Varielky, for the blade comes round to hit her at such an angle and with such force against the strongest part of her shield that the weapon cracks as the swing fails to connect. Does Varielky riposte as the shards fall away, leaving the Jenghen unarmed? (Sorakayoshi is AC20; his turn is not over yet, but Varielky may take a reaction now if she wishes).
Sorakayoshi’s initiative roll is 10 this round.
(OOC: To answer your earlier question, I think Varielky was keeping an eye on Snow, and noticed him and Tamazaert climbing up the ladder onto the ship. Her attention was then focused on Sorakayoshi too much to see anything else.)
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
SNOW
The bard now spots Varielky, darting in and out of the guardhouse as she exchanges blows in a duel with Sorakayoshi. Benita is nowhere to be seen. Snow's father has disappeared below deck, but Snow sees him peer out of the stairway long enough to gaze oddly at him, Snow, for a moment, shake his head, take in Granophyre and Tamazaert as they board, glance at the guardhouse, frowning, and in so doing, drawing Snow's attention to the tramway, which shows signs of life: the car Snow and the others had ridden earlier is now returning, filled with guards. And slithering along the cables is some other unidentifiable danger, yet too far to discern in detail.
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
AUGER
Auger hears Snow's message as he is carried aloft, but by the time he might reply, he is too far away. The great bird's wings flap in a regular rhythm, and the wind seems to rob one of breath, making conversation with the handler during the flight difficult. Indeed, the old man doesn't even try. He has managed to right himself, and seems sanguine with the current situation. Auger sees that they are heading northwest toward the black monolithic Bantu mountains, keeping low above the trees to fly under the low-hanging clouds.
The flight might take a while, one could reasonably assume. Does Auger do anything to intervene? (N.B.: from this point on, Auger's posts will not be synchronous with the others.)
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Auger thinks hard on some alternate escape and is unable to come up with something. He could bring forth an illusion and, lets say, momentarily startle Baylen into dropping him. But it seemed he was quite easy to catch. So instead he could... cast the illusion. Startle the bird. Be dropped. Become invisible? The connection might still lead the Roc to him. And the Roc might drop the handler as easily as Auger. Dropping either would not be a guarantee unless the illusion was quite shocking. Daunting perhaps. What could possibly daunt this bird such that it would not just fly around it?
And so Auger's thoughts turn. The contentment he feels in the presence of Baylen continues but Auger chooses to not let it become complacency. As Auger thinks on options he tries to pay attention to where they are going. Northwest it appears. To the mountains ahead. Are those the Bantus? Auger scarcely recalls, his head for maps not being the strongest.
Suddenly Auger realizes a return may take some serious time and so he fixes details Snow had shared into his head. Kalahata. The archives said back to Kalahata? And Safiyah is the High Priest of Idiwalla? Imprisoned in the Poppy Citadel. They had been so close! Auger had tried to enter that Citadel, though he was turned away. What else about the Citadel? They had passed right by it on their way out of Kalahata on the Animu Borongo. Was that it? Granophyre had been held there at the Citadel himself. Until he escaped. On the back of a Roc. How... how did he get the Roc to go the direction he wanted? He... had charmed the rider. And Kotashin. The small elephantine fey... knight? Kotashin had appeared. Out of nowhere to help Granophyre to escape... The last he had seen of the fey, it had been gobbled up by a lizard beast. Though Auger had guessed that Kotashin was probably fine. Back again if summoned properly. Like Py. And that lizard beast was in the service of --- Auger stops that train of thought before it gets too far. His cousin was dead now, no need to dwell upon it.
Re-focusing. Kalahata. The High Priest of Idiwalla. Held in the Poppy Citadel. Auger would try to meet them there. Auger looks back, trying to mark the direction in his head for a return to Kalahata.
Idly Auger wonders if Kotashin might appear to help him, laughing at the thought. At the growing distance Auger thinks about removing his pack to check if it still had any food in it, or if the wood he needed to resummon Py was where it was needed, but in the tight circumstances, Auger decides to hold off. He might accidentally drop all his things if he were to mess with it. Drop them from the night sky into the forest below.
With thoughts of home in his head, Auger resigns himself to his plight and his journey. Eventually Baylen would become tired. And then Auger would have to find a way to return on his own quest. But still. There was this curious sensation of contentment to it all. What did it mean?
DM of RotFM | AUGER the Warlock (Archfey & the Chain) / Shadow Sorcerer in Age of Resurgence | Rahui & Javier in Sea of Memory
Snow again curses under his breath, not surprised at all to see Varielky at the guardhouse fighting, but it complicated things all the same. And where is Benita? Lurking somewhere close to Varielky no doubt.
He wanders over to his father's position on the stairs.
"Look, I am sure you have questions. I have a million and one. But right now my companions and I are in trouble. One has been kidnapped by a Roc, one is missing and one looks to be in a duel with Captain Sorakayoshi", he says matter of factly.
"To answer what I assume is going to be your first question. We are here retrieving that ladies baby, stolen in the Jenghen fashion due to their paternal heritage. I have to go and help my people, but I need your promise you will keep mother and child safe, along with my other companion there. Your word does not exactly carry a huge amount of weight any more, but I want it anyway", he finishes, motioning at Tamazaert, Sura and Strewn, and then waits for his reply.
"Time is of the essence, reinforcements, and something....else...is on the way", he hurries.
SNOW
Chanakya Trivedi Das, who had been shuttling up and down between decks, readying for departure, halts in his tracks. His face is plainly gripped with emotion, pale and wide-eyed. He stops mid-step when Snow speaks to him.
“Yes… yes, to be sure. Questions. But Captain Sorakayoshi is the worst of the locals—his confounded ambition has lent no end to his cruelty.”
“Captain!,” shouts one of the spirits, “all is ready!,” and Chanakya Trivedi Das shouts back, “anchors aweigh!,” and then, unable to control himself, turns to Snow and whispers excitedly, “I’VE FOUND THEM! THE OLD MYSTICS!,” and grasping his son’s shoulder and smiling with pride, he turns to his ghostly crew, shouting, “Up, up, but only a few mere feet!,” and, rushing to the control booth, an open box of a room, whirls the rudder full around and rides the altitude lever.
Answering Snow’s demand, he says, “As long as they’re aboard the Reaver’s Word they’re under my protection. We’ll come around to the guardhouse,” he continues, fear and courage both writ now upon his whiskered features, “no better time than now to collect your friends!”
DM for Candlekeep Mysteries // Dev Hornd in Curious Critters // Eclipse Faraway in Gallows Dancer
Snow stares at his father. Could it be true? Could he have achieved his life's work?
Eager to hear more, but aware the current situation did not allow for it, he turns his attention back to the task at hand.
"Ok, that sounds good. I hope this airship has some tricks up it's sleeve", he replies, then runs across to the gunwale closest to the guard house again, towards the front of the airship as he knows it is pivoting.
"Benita, where the hell are you?", he calls out, not shouting so loud that it would reach the guard house, more of a loud whisper that he keeps repeating as they travel.
As they approach the guard house and come into range, he will prepare to whisper to Varielky, "We are coming, be ready to get aboard. There is another tram full of guards heading up, and something....else. We may only get one shot at this".
He continually flicks his gaze across to the cable and the tram to see if he can spot what it is that is coming.
Perception: 16+7=23
(OOC: I understand that Snow is a little ahead of Varielky time wise, and won't be receiving the message yet. Will be waiting patiently for the continuation :-) )
(Sorry for the slower pace. Was busier during the last few days and might be similarly busy tomorrow. Maybe.)
Varielky quickly retaliates, just barely piercing through Sorakayoshi's defences. Despite that fact, her attack is not a weak one, moe than enough to kill any regular guard. If only Sorakayoshi was a regular guard. But then again, that would have been far less interesting.
Reaction: Riposte manoeuvre. 10+10=20 to hit, 8+11+3=22 damage.
Varielky's initiative roll for this round is 12+1=13, so I suppose she would have gone first after all.
Varielky