The Summit Road Campaign Thread

Arthem shakes his head. "What do you want me to...do?" He frowns. "Of course I remember my mother," he adds, as if it were a silly question.

Caelius signs,

 Caelius reaches out a hand, his eyes pleading with Arthem.

"H-He w-wants you t-to l-leave with u-us, w-with him," tears fall from Taran's eyes, "H-He w-wants t-to find y-your Mother, t-to re-rebuild y-your f-family."

Arthem frowns. "I don't want to leave. It's safe here. It's dangerous out in the world. I'm small, and the altavar are everywhere."

Caelius's face crumples and shakes his head, he's not holding back his tears anymore.

"I-It isn't r-r-really s-safe here." Taran says quietly, "Y-you h-had to h-have heard r-rumors, wh-whispers of the cr-cruel pr-practices of L-Lord Sulatesh. W-why would w-we have to c-come and r-rescue p-people i-if it w-was s-safe for th-them h-here."

Taran turns, looking dead at Arthem, with eyes filled with pain and longing and a hint of jealousy. "A-and, e-even if the w-world outside w-were tr-truly filled with darkness and evil. E-even if it m-meant s-suffering and d-dying a th-thousand times. I w-would g-give anything to b-be you. To h-have a loving Father c-come back to me, t-to have the ch-chance of living w-with him, a-and my M-Mother. To b-be a tr-true family. W-we will l-let n-nothing harm you. I-I al-already w-would g-give my life to pr-protect your Father, and I w-would do so e-even more to pr-protect you, s-so th-that you c-could grow in l-light and h-happiness, t-to make th-they w-world better. Pl-please, d-do not l-let f-fear k-keep you apart. Fear i-is th-their t-tool, l-love and tr-trust their e-enemy. P-please, b-be br-brave, and st-stay together."

Arthem scowls. "Lord Sulatesh is my friend's uncle, and my host, and words against him are treason and lies," he snaps, his small body going stiff with anger before he hesitates, biting his lip. "What if I...did go with you? Where are you from? Where would you take me? How long would we visit there?"

Caelius wipes his tears, and signs,

Taran realizes as Caelius is signing that he might be seen as looming over Arthem, so as he gestures to Caelius's hands, he also takes a step back and sits down. "H-He's telling y-you that h-he is c-currently l-living in Adar. I d-didn't kn-know h-he was pl-planning on l-l-leaving after f-finding you and you M-Mother, b-but that is wh-what he is s-saying. He is s-saying th-that the Monks th-there helped h-him see th-the g-good in the w-world af-after he l-lost you b-b-both. W-we b-both d-d-doubt y-you'd b-be able to r-r-return here. S-Sulatesh is d-dangerous, and y-you'd be in d-d-danger if you r-returned a-and they kn-knew you h-had been to A-Adar. C-Caelius w-worries th-that A-Adar would b-be re-reluctant to let you l-leave, b-but I d-don't think they will. W-We h-help a l-lot of p-people, and th-they'd res-respect his w-wish to go back to Salaek with you and y-your M-mother to st-start a new l-life t-together."

Taran looks to Arthem with a weariness in his eyes. "I-I kn-know th-the st-stories y-you've b-been t-told. B-But your F-Father w-wouldn't w-work with b-bad p-people. He's a v-very k-kind an-and patient m-man. H-He's h-helped m-me tr-treat the w-wounded, an-and h-helped p-people f-find b-balance when th-they th-think they have n-nothing. D-Don't b-be a-afraid of h-him, pl-please? I-It w-will br-break his heart."

Arthem makes a derisive noise. "Of course I'm not afraid. I'm going to be a soldier, and soldiers can't be afraid of anything!" He frowns, glancing past you both out the door to where Likashtai and Roiin are pulling the guard clothes over their own clothes. "Are you all from Adar?"

"Zi'til'natek is this one's home." River coos in the voice of a young girl.

Taran stares at Arthem for a moment before snorting, then giggling, a manic tinge to the action as he tries to hold it in. "Y-You're C-Caelius's s-son f-for sure. Y-You ar-aren't c-concerned w-we might b-be demons, j-just ch-checking the facts." 

Arthem blinks at Taran. "I told you, soldiers can't be afraid." His voice implies this should be obvious, although he gives River a peculiar look. "Um...what are you?"

"crr People call crr My kind crr Kenku~" She reaches up to lower some of her scarves, revealing her bird-like beak and black, beady eyes.

"Oh." Arthem frowns. He looks slowly back at Taran and Caelius. "If I went with you...I couldn't ever come back?"

Caelius shakes his head,

Taran looks aghast at Caelius's signs, "Pr-probably not Ar-Arthem, i-it w-would b-be very d-dangerous if y-you c-came back."

OOC: Okay, time for the aforementioned Persuasion. Here's the deal. Caelius will give Taran the words, and Taran translating will count as help. So you'll use Caelius's Persuasion modifier, rolling with advantage from Taran's assistance. After this roll is made, this scene will be wrapping up one way or another so that the other PCs can get back into doing things. So...Astromancer, give me a Persuasion with advantage! Make sure to rp what you're saying. And I won't be posting results until after Taran translates, so don't be waiting on those to post, Chaosmancer.

Caelius continues to sign, 

Persuasion 22

Taran grows misty eyed as Caelius's hands convey his feelings. "H-he says please come with us, h-he needs you. Y-you'll both st-stay in Adar until he finds your Mother. Then you'll g-go back home," tears drip from Taran's eyes, "y-you'll go b-back to y-your uncle, your aunt, y-your grandmother. B-back to the fields, s-safe and n-never having to worry about R-Riedra or Adar or Mabar or altavar. He j-just wants you to be happy Arthem, happy together as a family. He... H-he l-loves you, and he wants t-to make th-things right."

Taran sits in silence, wiping the tears from his eyes.