"Common?" Nygil laughs at Mordred's question. "Not as common as one would think with how paranoid everyone seems to be about it. ...I was never interested in taking over, but once I showed interest in fighting....well it made my family cautious. ...not that they weren't cautious already, what with me being the second son and all... My brother can't stand how easily I can beat him in a fight. I think it scares him honestly." He chuckles, shaking his head, "He thinks he knows how to use a sword...but it doesn't do him much good when I can disarm him before he manages to get the thing out of its scabbard. And he is practically useless if you take his weapons away...which means he's helpless whenever he has to go to any sort of political meeting or stupid party...I hate those formal parties, the clothing we're expected to were is always so stiff...its like we're expected to be helpless. Ugh, so annoying." He moves his arms around as if to emphasize his point before continuing, "Anyways, I don't know why my parents are so worried about me trying to take over. Its not like I haven't had chance after chance to get rid of my dear brother. It would be so easy to murder him if I wanted to...which they don't seem to understand. I could have ousted him sooooo many times if that was what I wanted, but I have never had any intention to get him out of the way since I don't want any part of my father's job. I'm perfectly content where I am...though it is annoying that they won't let me back home and that my title seems...worthless now." He pauses in his rambling, suddenly going a little more serious then usual, "Not that I really ever cared about titles...but...lets just say there are places and things I had grown used to being privy to, but now I'm having trouble getting. But oh well, if they cut ties with me I'll cut ties with them. And we can all be happy, if not a family."

When Mordred says his training was paying off, he grins widely--returning to his usual self, "You think so? Ha! I KNOW so!" He laughs, "But there is always more to be learned and more fights to be had... You're not bad yourself though." 

He frowns as Tamara mentions Florie, "Florie? ...Oh the stammering handmaid? What about her? How is she a 'clue'?" He is genuinely confused here, having dismissed the girl as nothing but a stammering servant.  

"Oh, you have got to teach me how to do that." Jack nods in understanding at Nygil's explanation of where his skills come from, having learned a lot of the skills she knows today by reading books and watching videos. DIY. "I think that's the best way to learn something, on your own. But isn't it hard learning how to do some of those martial arts moves effectively just with pages from a book? Or do you use videos to help too?" She nods along with Mordred's comment on training. "It sure has paid off. That looks like it would hurt, if you were on the receiving side of it." She pauses. "That is what it's for, right? Fighting?"

When Nygil begins talking of his family, she falls silent. At first, she's in awe of his descriptions of his agility and speed, compared to that of his brother. But then he mentions... getting rid of him, and she is no longer in awe. How could someone talk about death so casually? Especially family... She doesn't think this with any hint of disgust, just sadness. Her breath and memories of of a life left behind get caught in her throat for a few seconds, choking her to death and threatening to bring back emotions that Jack did not want to remember living in that moment. So she forces them down, and listens.

"It's very common to cut yourself on machinery like that." She turns to Mordred. "More common than you think. I've got quite a few scars myself, but they're not visible in this form. I've never actually cut anything off. I know a few people that have, though." She rubs her palms together, remembering all the scars that will appear the next time she changes into her carpenter's skin. When she looks back up at Mordred, and he gives his version of a 'your welcome,' she drops whatever expression her face was holding and looks at him dead in the eye---if he doesn't immediately look away, that is. "You did a lot. And you ran yourself dry healing everyone afterwards. There's no need to regret anything." And just to prove her point---with a cheeky smile on her face---she repeats, "Thank you, Mordred."

Jack chuckles as Midnight skitters out towards him. "Thank you, Rethan. Thank you, Midnight." Now that he has a model, he gets to work. He smooths the wood out with the plane, until it is perfectly square. Marking the soft wood with his fingernail, "Forgot to bring a pencil, idiot," he begins carving a general shape in the block of wood with his dagger. Like magic, the woodchips curl off the edge of his blade and fall to reveal a small spider figurine, about the size of a watch face. Jack cuts a small cavity in the spider's abdomen, small enough to fit one of the stars he collected at the river inside. He rips a small strip of fabric from his shirtsleeve, and nails it into place with a few small nails on the underside of the figurine. He ties it around his wrist, seeing how it looks on him. Thinking it looks alright indeed, he then shows it to Midnight with a wink. "What do you think? Did I do it right?"

He looks at Tamara when she talks. "Butler? Sounds weird. I definitely don't want to find out what 'more dangerous than he looks' means, that's for sure. And I don't have much experience with this kind of stuff, but I like the sound of sneaking in better than a full-front assault. The less fights we can get into, the better."

"Oh... sure. If we have time of course. My master always said that teaching is the best way of learning!" Nygil nods to Jack's question, "Yes, its for fighting...though that was really just a drill. All of the movements can be taken apart and used in different combinations though, it really depends on the situation. We use drills to help master the movements and practice putting them together into different combinations, that way when faced with a real fight its second nature to pick the best follow up strike." He frowns, "What are videos? I learned a lot from books, but I also learned a lot from the many teachers I've had. ...Is a Video some sort of...person? OHH is it a title? Like... Grand Master?" 

Though he doesn't notice Jack's moment of silence following his rambling, he does fall silent for a moment himself. It was so easy to go off about his family, but it wasn't as if it didn't pain him that they never seemed to have any affection for him...at least they hadn't in a long, long time. He'd often wondered why his parents had decided to have a second child...perhaps mother had hoped for a daughter. Still, there was nothing he could do about it. He'd tried everything he could to assure them that he was content to be a second born noble, heir to nothing but whatever portion of wealth he would inherit. Though now it seemed he would receive none of that inheritance. Oh well, he could always return to the monastery if he needed anything. It wouldn't make for that much of a change in lifestyle. Perhaps his family would accept him later...or not. It was out of his hands. There was no point in moping about it. 

When Jack says 'the less fighting the better' Nygil gives him a disappointed glance before shrugging and saying, "If you say so."

"Must be a common piece of advice, my dad used to say the same thing." Jack beams at Nygil. It always made her happy, the prospect of learning a new skill. "That sounds like a good thing to know how to do. I normally have to think about what I'm gonna do next whenever I make something, but I guess you don't have the luxury of time in combat---" She nearly chokes on air when Nygil asks what a 'video' is, opting for a coughing fit instead. "I'm---I'm sorry, you don't know what a video is?" She stands there looking extremely confused, concerned, amused, and skeptical, at the same time. Repeatedly opening and closing her mouth again, not seeming to find the words, a small sigh escapes her throat. So she pulls out the wooden box from her pocket. It has some sort of black glass pane on one side, and is relatively flat and the size of her palm. It lights up her face as she moves her thumbs across the glass, then holds it up so Nygil can see. On it is a moving picture of an elf on the deck of a ship, playing a lute, and a mini-Jack next to them playing a tambourine. The unmistakable sounds of song, dance, and general merry-making accompanies the moving image. "These things. Moving pictures. Videos. It's a thing, not a person. Do you seriously not know what these are at all?"

Jumble suddenly appeared beside Nygil, almost as if by magic. His eyes were wide in shock, glued to the flat wooden box with a glass plane showing moving pictures.

"What... is... this... sorcery?" he mumbled in a barely-audible whisper.

Nygil stares intently at the box, "Wha.... Hmm... I've seen casters create scenes with light before...but they weren't this.... flat?" He moves to poke the glass pane, as if expecting it to be made out of light... "Is there light trapped inside it? But... how does it make noise? Is there some sort of contraption inside? Or is it all done with enchantment? ...I really don't know anything about magic. Its...never been my specialty." He glances at Jumble, "Sorcery? hmm." 

Looking at Jack, "I've never heard of this before. ...why? Are these common in your world? Does everyone have their own video? Does it always show you the same thing or do the pictures change?" 

Kashika likely had been in the middle of eating her rations when she had passed out. Perhaps she had been more tired than she thought... or perhaps she had been put under the thrall of a spell? Whatever the case, Kashika found herself on the receiving end of it. and in that brief moment of unconsciousness, aside from the 'tequila' song being stuck in her head, with her name as the punchline she bolted back awake, eyes wide, not necessarily from fear, but instinct as her head was instantly on the swivel... atleast until she realized the only people there were those she came here with.

Brushing it off as the group seemed ready to go, and feeling her own energies returned. Mordred commenting on her idea and Kashika, for once not intentionally dismissing the Paladin but offhandedly nodding with an affirmative nod. Her mind was elsewhere as the group walked out of the cellar and began their journey, still discussing exactly where to go and how to proceed, when Zalten came to Kashika as the others... especially Jack and Mordred became entangled in their own conversations. She listened, forcing herself to focus, as Zalten was one of the only ones here who knew of both her past to some degree and of her future plans. 

Her eyes shoot down. Not in meekness but sudden consideration on how to proceed. She wasn't used to having to plan or think quite so thoroughly, though she as more than capable of it. Maybe....she thought to herself before speaking in hushed tones to Zalten in return Maye that is what I saw... did you also black out m-momentarily as we rested? I had a breif... dark dream ... in the literal s-sense. I was in a .. sea of pitch... no matter what I did i couldn't see anywhere. Then a pair of eyes simply appeared, and c-called out my name l-loudly before I jolted awake... and i-if that is the case... then... perhaps negotiation is off the table... d-depending on what he w-wants, and how he intends to g-go about it. If worst comes to worst.... if you and I and Tamara can atleast get the c-crown... e-even if we have to test this in the sands... 

I can fulfil my end of the bargain...or... at the very least... t-try to.

Jack bursts into laughter, finding Jumble and Nygil's curiosity very funny. He doubles over, nearly falling to the floor. It was incredible seeing people who came from a world so different from his own. A disconnected world! His companions might very well be aliens! "It's not magic, guys, it's technology!" He tries to regain control of her body and fails. His sides ache from laughing so much! "This is---oh jeez---This is a cell phone. Look." He stands mostly upright, still wheezing, and removes the back of the wooden block. Inside is a mess of tiny flakes of metal, a cacophony of copper, cobalt, and other shiny things. "It's electric. All these little things help tell the screen and speakers," he turns the phone back over to show them what he means, "what to show and what to play. It's a lot more complicated than that, but it can do a lot of cool stuff." He looks at Nygil as he asks some more questions, which makes him laugh even more, and he's now crying from laughing so hard. "Sorry! Sorry!" He wipes a tear from his eye. "There are millions of these! People take videos of everything! If you can imagine a scenario in your head, someone's probably taken a video of it. Or made it into a video. Lemme show you." He flips the phone back over so he can see it, but her smiling face drops as she does so. "No service... Of course. Well, okay, look at this." After a few more seconds of squinting at the screen, he makes a small 'aha' noise, and shows Jumble and Nygil what's on the screen now. It's a moving image of a human woman, surrounded by heavy machinery, cutting some wood with extreme, almost comical, concentration. Jack's voice can be heard in the background, humming a tune. A bittersweet expression washes over his face, and he hums along with the video. "That's my best friend. We were working on a project together, and I took a video of her working on it cause her 'focused' face is adorable." The phone screen goes dark as Jack turns it off and pockets it. "Videos are things you take, and it records real-life things almost as if you were there. You can see and hear exactly what the person was taking a video of. And people share these things with each other, like books. It's like an illusion spell, but not a spell and not an illusion. It shows the thing that was recorded and saves it on the phone's memory for as long as it's needed."

Jumble, in a spurt of nearly panicked hurry, had pulled out his notes and had gotten as far as "Magic Item Using Programmed Illusion" before Jack started laughing. His face contorted into confusion, his hand paused above the paper, as the changeling began explaining, and the bard could only keep looking between Jack and the wondrous item he held before it was pocketed.

Quote from Tez005 >>

"Videos are things you take, and it records real-life things almost as if you were there. You can see and hear exactly what the person was taking a video of. And people share these things with each other, like books. It's like an illusion spell, but not a spell and not an illusion. It shows the thing that was recorded and saves it on the phone's memory for as long as it's needed."

Jumble slowly frowned, then closed his eyes as he shook his head. "Wait, wait, wait... you're using a lot of words wrong, and a couple I've never even heard of." He took a deep breath, almost as if to calm himself, before continuing.

"Okay, let's start with the simple stuff." He pointed at Jack's pocket. "You keep saying that device 'isn't magic,' and 'isn't a spell,' but... well, what else could it be? Wood and wax and metal and glass and whatever else was in that item won't just suddenly start glowing with patterns that look like real things, no matter how you arrange the bits. And they certainly don't take on the image of some nearby event. So it must be a form of magic, regardless of what it's called in your world."

The bard furrowed his brow. "You had said, 'it's electric.' Which implies it's of a magic related to harnessing the power of lightning. Which also makes no sense, as you don't use electric bolts to create illusions. Maybe some light, if they're sustained bolts, but not entire illusions, that's just... absurd...." Jumble's brow furrowed more as he trailed off, and he tilted his head, almost as if trying to think through the concept again. He stopped after a moment though, and shook his head again.

"Alright, clearly I'm going to have to wait until we have more time to explore this. And that's not even getting into how you said the thing had a memory, as if it was alive, or even sentient! And that there are millions of them in your world..." He suddenly stared at Jack with a look of horror. He continued staring as his hands took the sheet of paper and, for the first time in his life, deliberately and thoroughly crumpled up his note. "With that many," he said slowly, "they're likely everywhere, and if so, I... I can only imagine the innumerable uses they likely have."

He glanced down for a moment, then hurriedly put up a hand as he looked back up and continued, "I'm NOT asking, though! Truth be told, I--and I can't believe I'm about to say this--I don't think I want to know." He looked at the crumbled paper, and muttered an incantation that caused it to alight and quickly turn to ash. Breathing in, almost in relief, he concluded, "Well, that's probably knowledge that I'll deal with should I ever visit your world. Hmmm."

He looked around at the others. "Oh, I think we're about to be off?"

Nygil nods slowly, though he clearly doesn't understand any of what Jack just said. "Eh, I'm not going to question it... like I said, magic, illusions...videos. Whatever you want to call it... tech-no-logy... none of it makes sense to me. Though I can see how being able to capture memories would be useful... just think of how much more knowledge I could find if there were videos of all of the Grand Masters of old! Ah... but, there is no use in fancies." He pokes the 'phone' again, "Hmm, what other tech-no-logy is in your world? Can it teach you to fight?"

Once that conversation is complete, he turns to the others and says, "Well, what is our heading? The streets or the slums? I'd prefer the streets, but that's just my humble opinion." 

OOC: Kashika prefers the slums approach. If it wasn't clear.

(( OOC: Jumble is fine with the slums; it seemed like the less obvious approach. ))

(OOC: Nygil wasn't paying attention lol. He was distracted by Mordred and Jack. But he will follow where everyone else goes.)

Mordred had listened to Nygil talk about his brother and the life of a noble.

"I take it you and you're brother aren't close past all the fighting huh? The ability to fight with a weapon is most impressive. I can hold my own in a fist fight but I've certainly trained more with a blade and magic certainly."

Nygil had carried on about titles and loosing one's familial bonds over such paranoia this had answered many of Mordred's questions. His face was sour if only but a moment.

"A family that value's titles over one's own flesh and blood. That's hardly a fair environment for a child to grow up in. It's honestly remarkable you had grown up any to hold any conversation at all with another living being."

Mordred wasn't the wisest nor was he the smartest but he had a strong sense of morality even if one wouldn't tell upon his appearance. Something inside him boiled at the thought of Nygil being left to his own devices due to his families paranoia. However as an adult he seemed content to be apart from his family despite how unfair the situation truly was.

Nygil had begun to return to his usual self talking of battles to be had. Mordred had let out a light coarse chuckle.

"Heh, I spend much of my time on building up my physical prowess when I can. Though admittedly I've can always remember being a bit more study than most. It helped in my job of being a Knight after all."

@Jack

It appeared Nygil,Mordred,Jack were now all talking at full swing to one another. She had asked Nygil how to obtain such skill but she had brought up a term most foreign to himself.

"Video's..? Is that an arcane learning technique?"

She had mentioned sustaining serious injury with machinery and with that he had offered her a nod. She told him that she never lost any parts, as a changeling would she be able to take forms not missing anything? If she were to lose a finger? Or an arm?

Mordred had tilted his head upon her cheeky smile his face still sullen and the shadows under his eyes visible. Many had avoided Mordred for his appearance and yet.. Nygil and Jack had proven to be rather friendly. He had chuckled as his lips struggled to curl into a small smile before bursting into a rather.. Comfortable grin.

"Heh.. You are truly kind, thank you Jack."

OOC
Sorry if I forgot stuff (I probably did)
Just tried getting a post out before work today ><
I can add more to my next post in case I did! (I probably did)

(Alright, slums it is.)

Kashika and Tamara take the lead, maneuvering the group through the crisscrossing maze of streets and buildings that make up the slums of Dawn. As you walk, you are surprised to find that there aren't to many civilians in the area. The alleys sound utterly quiet especially when compared to the loud commotion coming from the main road. You pass an occasional homeless citizen leaning on a building. None of them speak to you. They stare in your direction and watch as you make your way along the dusty streets. At some point a few dirty children run laughing across your path. Upon seeing the group, they fall silent and quickly scurry off to hide in an alley or behind some boxes. However, you can feel their wide eyes watching as you walk. They didn't seem scared of you, just curious.

As you get closer to the castle, you do start so see more citizens. They seem to be a bit better off than the homeless you saw in the slums. However, just as you would expect based off Zeffery's comments, you see mostly Minotaur, Lizardfolk, and Gnoll citizens. A lady gnoll, wearing a dirty dress and shawl, sees you and quickly enters the door to her small house, closing it behind her. You get similar reactions from many of the other residents.

This area also seems to have a surplus of drunkards.  A dragonborn leaning heavily on a Lizardfolk stumbles out of what looks like a tavern while still holding a sloshing cup of beer in his hand. The Lizardfolk struggles under the dragonborn's weight but laughs drunkenly along with his companion. They barely notice you as they stumble down an alley, knocking down a stack of barrels as they go. The barrels tumble down, some break on impact while one rolls into your path. You hear something clunking around inside of it as it rolls to a stop in front of you. A tiny Kobold slides out of it wearing a hat with a feather sticking out of it and what looks like dirty bards cloths. Shaking himself awake, he takes one look at you and lets out a drunken garble of a laugh before jumping up, spinning around and dashing away from you, lute case bouncing on his back as he runs.

(Any of you who saw the poster and has a passive perception of 11 or higher would recognize this Kobold.)

Whether or not you dash after the Kobold, you continue down your path. Exiting the alley onto a wide street surrounding what looks like another housing area. You are no longer in the slums, but on the outskirts of the upperclass residential area. You can clearly see Zoran's castle raised above the level of the tallest house and sitting in the center of the city. Looking to your right, you can see that this road connects to the main street, though there are several other smaller streets through the housing area leading to the castle. The commotion from the market is softer now, though you can see people walking up and down the main road carrying baskets or pulling carts. From where you are, the streets of the upperclass area seem empty, other than a lady Minotaur sitting on her balcony overlooking the view of the castle, while fanning herself and eating what looks like grapes.

(Anyone who wants to try to find the Kobold can roll perception.)

Nygil shrugs in response to Mordred's comment, "Eh, I can't say I noticed it too much when I was younger. I mean, we got along fine as kids. It wasn't until we started our training and...well I think the rest can explain itself." He waves a hand dismissively. "It wasn't like I was isolated. Just... politely avoided. ...for the most part. Then my parents had the grand idea of sending me off to the monastery, which I think was the best thing that ever happened for all of us. I got what I wanted, they got what they wanted ...me gone... so everyone is happy. ...I would have liked to be able to visit home, sure...it's still home after all, but, I can't change what they think of me. It isn't like I haven't been trying for the past century. We elves get rather stuck in our ways, and father is no exception." He shakes his head, chuckling a little, "I try not to dwell on it. They are all alive and well, as am I, so I suppose that's all I can ask for. ...I mean, it would be so awful if something happened to my brother AND my father...then I would to take over...unless mother decides she can handle it. I wouldn't put it past her, even in her old age. But even then, they'd still expect me to take over once she passed, and I don't think I could handle that. I might be a noble, but I don't care for the duties that come along with it...or the politics...or the people...or the parties...or, well, any of it for that matter." He laughs, then pauses, realizing how cold those words might sound, "It...probably sounds like I don't care about them at all. Quite the contrary. They are my family, whether or not they want to be. So I wouldn't wish any harm on them, regardless as to whether or not I want to take over."

When Mordred talks of building up his physical prowess, Nygil playfully (and a little awkwardly as if he'd rarely engaged in such type of interaction) punches him on the arm and says, "Hah, well, perhaps we should spar sometime. Maybe you'll to better then my dear brother."

-----------

"Well, off to the slums then," he says with a little less enthusiasm then usual. "Let us embark on this...quest of ours. What were we doing again? Oh, right, stealing a crown. ...Hey does anyone have any clue as to where the crown would be? We aren't going to have to snatch it off old Zoran's head are we?" He pauses, eyes sparkling, "Now THAT would be a challenge."

Ooc 

I missed all the tech talk ahhh xD 

Aww well.i can mention it in my next post.

Sorry mine was rushed

Quote from Rynn_Elocin >>

(Any of you who saw the poster and has a passive perception of 11 or higher would recognize this Kobold.)

(( OOC: Ooof.... curse Jumble's slothful ways! ))

"Hey, that kobold looks a lot like one of the wanted posters back at the guard house," Rethan whispers to his allies as the kobold starts to run off.  "Something about a bar fight and not paying his tab?"

He tries to keep an eye on the kobold as it rushes off, but loses track of the small creature in the flow of traffic.

Perception to try to spot where the kobold went: 4

(Nope.  Rethan doesn't see nothin :D)

OOC
I have passive perception of 12 ^^

Perception check to see where the Kobold went as well ^~^

5