"Good morning, brother. Nice to see you again," Mara says to the halfling. "Has Merovyna risen and left for the day?" Mara talks but continues to walk to the door, unable to quell the tremble of haste and anxiety from her voice.
The halfling is lightly startled by the sound of Mara's voice. "Wha...ah...sister. Welcome back!" He notices the presence of the rest of the group "And welcome to you too!" and his gaze passes rapidly between them and Mara, striding towards the entrance. "I...I...I believe she is in the inner courtyard. Shall I call for her?"
He makes no attempt at physically stopping Mara or any other to enter the temple, but he seems to be made uneasy by a group of people he has never seen before entering the temple without a word. Then again, the door to the temple of Chauntea are open to anybody who seeks her guidance and with them is a paladin of the faith.
[As you may have noticed, we lost Father Cadfrey along the way. I thought he was busy or something, but he actually appeared to have withdrawn from the campaign. You might have realised this earlier than I did...I tried to message him but he did not reply. I will let you know if I get to learn something new. Game-wise: his being around or not could have actually changed what you guys are doing right now, so, for the sake of continuity, let's just say he separated from the group on the way to Derval, muttering under his breath something about needing urgent provisions from the market. He has done so before, so it's up to you if you would be concerned or not about it.]
"No need brother, this will only take a moment. Chauntea's blessings be upon you," Mara smiles and winks as she strides by him. Walking into the inner courtyard where Merovyna was said to be, Mara sees the revered sister tending to plants and, what looks like speaking to some small rodents. "Good morning sister. I am afraid I need to interrupt you again." Mara walks closer and before getting too close to Merovyna, turns to them and whispers, "Wait here."
Turning back to Merovyna, Mara eyes soften as she speaks, relating Derval's conditions on the silvering of their weapons. "We obviously have nothing of value as yet, but I know the Great Mother will provide. I ask for another boon from you, perhaps not coin but something of value to aid us in our fight against the unholy and undead. We..." Mara stops short and glances at her companions, "well, I for certain, pledge to you on the trapped souls of my husband and children that we will repay this debt. I owe Arnold all that I can do to bring a sense of justice to the memories of his family. What happened to them is an affront to nature and the natural cycle of things," Mara's eyes harden and burn with intensity as she mentions her fmaily and Arnold, but soften again as she refocuses back on Merovyna. "So, sister, can you aid us - me - further?"
Dahvik enters behind Mara, trying not to look as uncomfortable as he feels. He nods gravely to the halfling in mute greeting as he passes, and waits with uncharacteristic silence as the paladin speaks with Merovyna.
Dahvik takes the opportunity to slip outside. He looks around at the carts, looking for one that might be carrying shields. If he finds one, he'll walk confidently up to the soldier loading it. "Soldier," he says authoritatively, "I and my party have been authorized by Captain Spearslayer to investigate the recent disappearances. I need to requisition one of those shields to round out our matériel." As he speaks, he looks over the shields in the cart. Without waiting for the soldier's response, he pulls a small shield out of the cart. "This will do nicely. Thank you." He turns on his heel and heads back towards the temple, leaving the soldier only the choice to get back to work or raise a fuss. Striding away, the rogue mentally crosses his fingers that the soldier will take the easy option.
"No need brother, this will only take a moment. Chauntea's blessings be upon you," Mara smiles and winks as she strides by him. Walking into the inner courtyard where Merovyna was said to be, Mara sees the revered sister tending to plants and, what looks like speaking to some small rodents. "Good morning sister. I am afraid I need to interrupt you again." Mara walks closer and before getting too close to Merovyna, turns to them and whispers, "Wait here."
Turning back to Merovyna, Mara eyes soften as she speaks, relating Derval's conditions on the silvering of their weapons. "We obviously have nothing of value as yet, but I know the Great Mother will provide. I ask for another boon from you, perhaps not coin but something of value to aid us in our fight against the unholy and undead. We..." Mara stops short and glances at her companions, "well, I for certain, pledge to you on the trapped souls of my husband and children that we will repay this debt. I owe Arnold all that I can do to bring a sense of justice to the memories of his family. What happened to them is an affront to nature and the natural cycle of things," Mara's eyes harden and burn with intensity as she mentions her fmaily and Arnold, but soften again as she refocuses back on Merovyna. "So, sister, can you aid us - me - further?"
Merovyna looks up with a mildly surprised expression on her face, as the squirrel that she was seemingly chatting with hurriedly climbs the tree next to the high priestess.
"Welcome back, my child...I did not expect you back so soon. Is something amiss?"
She listens to the recount of Mara and looks over at her companions with a greeting head-bow when they are mentioned. After the brief tale, she speaks to Mara: "I understand the situation. I believe we can provide aid for your specific situation. Just wait here for a minute, my child."
Merovyna walks across the courtyard and stops in front of a door, where she reaches in one of her pockets and extracts a set of keys. She opens the door with one of them and enters the room. After a few moments, she re-emerges with a small pouch in her hand, locks the door again and walks back towards Mara.
"Here is 200 gold pieces. This should cover the kind of expenses you were mentioning earlier."
As he follows Mara into the courtyard, he quickly looks at his surroundings in search of any small details, threats, or paths to escape.
Perception: 16
Lorian and his companions find themselves in the inner courtyard of a two-story building. The courtyard is lush with plants and the pavement is covered with grass. Small trails cut through the grass field connecting the edges and corners of the courtyard. A tall pine tree grows from a hole in the pavement in the center of the courtyard. Plants grow in more pots, orderly placed around this open space. Three young human men women are tending to these plants and the small animals (birds and rodents) that nest and live in them. A simple wooden altar sits in front of the pine tree. Delicately carved in it is what Lorian assumes is the holy symbol of Chauntea. Corridors and doors are directly accessible from the edges of this inner open space on the ground floor and the second level of the building can be accessed through staircases that lead to balconies that run along the four walls of the building. More doors are visible from the ground floor that can be accessed through the balconies. The only obvious way out of the building is through where Lorian and his companions walked in.
There is no immediate sign of danger here. The highest preoccupation of the people Lorian sees here appear to be the tending of the plants that seems to be growing everywhere in the temple. Apart from first glances as they entered, Lorian and his companions do not seem to be attracting much attention. Noc has left Lorian's shoulder to perch himself on a nearby tree. Lorian does not perceive danger from his familiar either, just a sense of curiosity and mild confusion at the presence of such lush vegetation inside a city and enclosed in four walls.
Although Lorian does not believe this would be his place of choice to study the mysteries of the Weave, it appears an apt refuge where devout followers of the Earth-Mother can find themselves at home.
Dahvik takes the opportunity to slip outside. He looks around at the carts, looking for one that might be carrying shields. If he finds one, he'll walk confidently up to the soldier loading it. "Soldier," he says authoritatively, "I and my party have been authorized by Captain Spearslayer to investigate the recent disappearances. I need to requisition one of those shields to round out our matériel." As he speaks, he looks over the shields in the cart. Without waiting for the soldier's response, he pulls a small shield out of the cart. "This will do nicely. Thank you." He turns on his heel and heads back towards the temple, leaving the soldier only the choice to get back to work or raise a fuss. Striding away, the rogue mentally crosses his fingers that the soldier will take the easy option.
[Not many carts are passing through Farmer's road, but the Market square is not far off. Is Dahvik willing to walk there in search for a cart that transports what he is looking for? In that case, I will have you roll a Persuasion check for this one.]
[Yes, Ellara is with the others. In detail, I assume Lorian did not walk out with Dahvik, so I guess Ellara and Lorian are in the inner courtyard of the temple, waiting for Mara to deal with Merovyna and Dahvik walked outside shortly after Mara started to talk with Merovyna.]
Mara takes the pouch reverently with a small bow. “I will not forget this boon you have provided me...us. I am in your debt, sister. May the cycle be favorable and the Sun, illuminating.” Mara opens up to her companions and gives a nod, beckoning any who wish to meet Merovyna the green light to do so.
Seeing few carts outside the temple, Dahvik realizes he'll have to wait until the party heads back in the direction of the market square. Though tempted to proceed himself, he decides he's unwilling to leave his money - his companions, rather - behind, and so he heads back inside the temple.
Mara takes the pouch reverently with a small bow. “I will not forget this boon you have provided me...us. I am in your debt, sister. May the cycle be favorable and the Sun, illuminating.” Mara opens up to her companions and gives a nod, beckoning any who wish to meet Merovyna the green light to do so.
The high priestess of Chauntea turns to Ellara and Lorian, and a warm smile appears to her face. She takes a few steps towards them, who notice that she is walking bare-foot on the soft grass. She stops in front of Ellara and Lorian and takes a small bow. "Everyone who walks the path next to a champion of Chauntea is welcome here as if they were of the faith too, of course. Thank you for assisting Daggerford in such worrying times, you all have my gratitude. If there is anything I can do for you, please, do ask. I will help you if I can."
As Mara noticed the previous night, Merovyna seems to be in her seventies: her long hair are completely white and her face and hands bear the sign of wisdom, experience and just a hint of weariness. But her posture is tall and her presence irradiates an energy and kindness that few people half her age seem to possess.
Hastening back to join his comrades, Dahvik strides into to chamber to see everyone bowing to Merovyna. He comes to an abrupt halt and hastily bows as well, his mind racing to figure out what in the nine hells just happened and whether or not he just screwed up again and offended someone important!
Ellara inclines her head respectfully. “In such times as these, those who can should not shirk from defending those who cannot. Your assistance is appreciated.”
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Xanaphia Nailo: Level 4 Warlock, Grey Hands PbP.
Ellara Nightflower: level 1 blood hunter, Curse of Strahd
Mara looks around, searching for Father Cadfrey. Must have got lost in prayer, she thinks to herself, inwardly laughing at her own joke.
She gives a nod to Merovyna before addressing the group: “Thank you all for being patient. We should head back to Derval and see if he can accommodate us quickly.”
Seeing as the party bows to her Merovyna waves her hands "Oh, no, please. That is not necessary. I am not the duchess. No need to bow to me. We should all be paying you our respects for helping Daggerford in these troublesome times. It's enough for me to know I am helping your efforts."
As Mara mentioned that the party should take their leave to go back to Derval she adds: "Take my greetings to Derval and his sons. And don't be harsh on them: we cannot expect them to work for free. His prices might be a bit high, but rest assured that his work is worth every copper and from what I heard he is really trying to meet you half-way."
Mara
"Good morning, brother. Nice to see you again," Mara says to the halfling. "Has Merovyna risen and left for the day?" Mara talks but continues to walk to the door, unable to quell the tremble of haste and anxiety from her voice.
DM - And In The Darkness, Rot: The Sunless Citadel
DM - Our Little Lives Kept In Equipoise: Curse of Strahd
DM - Misprize Thou Not These Shadows That Belong: The Lost Mines of Phandelver
PC - Azzure - Tyranny of Dragons
The halfling is lightly startled by the sound of Mara's voice. "Wha...ah...sister. Welcome back!" He notices the presence of the rest of the group "And welcome to you too!" and his gaze passes rapidly between them and Mara, striding towards the entrance. "I...I...I believe she is in the inner courtyard. Shall I call for her?"
He makes no attempt at physically stopping Mara or any other to enter the temple, but he seems to be made uneasy by a group of people he has never seen before entering the temple without a word. Then again, the door to the temple of Chauntea are open to anybody who seeks her guidance and with them is a paladin of the faith.
[As you may have noticed, we lost Father Cadfrey along the way. I thought he was busy or something, but he actually appeared to have withdrawn from the campaign. You might have realised this earlier than I did...I tried to message him but he did not reply. I will let you know if I get to learn something new. Game-wise: his being around or not could have actually changed what you guys are doing right now, so, for the sake of continuity, let's just say he separated from the group on the way to Derval, muttering under his breath something about needing urgent provisions from the market. He has done so before, so it's up to you if you would be concerned or not about it.]
Mara
"No need brother, this will only take a moment. Chauntea's blessings be upon you," Mara smiles and winks as she strides by him. Walking into the inner courtyard where Merovyna was said to be, Mara sees the revered sister tending to plants and, what looks like speaking to some small rodents. "Good morning sister. I am afraid I need to interrupt you again." Mara walks closer and before getting too close to Merovyna, turns to them and whispers, "Wait here."
Turning back to Merovyna, Mara eyes soften as she speaks, relating Derval's conditions on the silvering of their weapons. "We obviously have nothing of value as yet, but I know the Great Mother will provide. I ask for another boon from you, perhaps not coin but something of value to aid us in our fight against the unholy and undead. We..." Mara stops short and glances at her companions, "well, I for certain, pledge to you on the trapped souls of my husband and children that we will repay this debt. I owe Arnold all that I can do to bring a sense of justice to the memories of his family. What happened to them is an affront to nature and the natural cycle of things," Mara's eyes harden and burn with intensity as she mentions her fmaily and Arnold, but soften again as she refocuses back on Merovyna. "So, sister, can you aid us - me - further?"
DM - And In The Darkness, Rot: The Sunless Citadel
DM - Our Little Lives Kept In Equipoise: Curse of Strahd
DM - Misprize Thou Not These Shadows That Belong: The Lost Mines of Phandelver
PC - Azzure - Tyranny of Dragons
Dahvik Aloro
Dahvik enters behind Mara, trying not to look as uncomfortable as he feels. He nods gravely to the halfling in mute greeting as he passes, and waits with uncharacteristic silence as the paladin speaks with Merovyna.
Lorian
As he follows Mara into the courtyard, he quickly looks at his surroundings in search of any small details, threats, or paths to escape.
Perception: 20
Ellara
(Assuming the Ellara has caught up by now.)
Xanaphia Nailo: Level 4 Warlock, Grey Hands PbP.
Ellara Nightflower: level 1 blood hunter, Curse of Strahd
Dahvik Aloro
Dahvik takes the opportunity to slip outside. He looks around at the carts, looking for one that might be carrying shields. If he finds one, he'll walk confidently up to the soldier loading it. "Soldier," he says authoritatively, "I and my party have been authorized by Captain Spearslayer to investigate the recent disappearances. I need to requisition one of those shields to round out our matériel." As he speaks, he looks over the shields in the cart. Without waiting for the soldier's response, he pulls a small shield out of the cart. "This will do nicely. Thank you." He turns on his heel and heads back towards the temple, leaving the soldier only the choice to get back to work or raise a fuss. Striding away, the rogue mentally crosses his fingers that the soldier will take the easy option.
Merovyna looks up with a mildly surprised expression on her face, as the squirrel that she was seemingly chatting with hurriedly climbs the tree next to the high priestess.
"Welcome back, my child...I did not expect you back so soon. Is something amiss?"
She listens to the recount of Mara and looks over at her companions with a greeting head-bow when they are mentioned. After the brief tale, she speaks to Mara: "I understand the situation. I believe we can provide aid for your specific situation. Just wait here for a minute, my child."
Merovyna walks across the courtyard and stops in front of a door, where she reaches in one of her pockets and extracts a set of keys. She opens the door with one of them and enters the room. After a few moments, she re-emerges with a small pouch in her hand, locks the door again and walks back towards Mara.
"Here is 200 gold pieces. This should cover the kind of expenses you were mentioning earlier."
Lorian and his companions find themselves in the inner courtyard of a two-story building. The courtyard is lush with plants and the pavement is covered with grass. Small trails cut through the grass field connecting the edges and corners of the courtyard. A tall pine tree grows from a hole in the pavement in the center of the courtyard. Plants grow in more pots, orderly placed around this open space. Three young human men women are tending to these plants and the small animals (birds and rodents) that nest and live in them. A simple wooden altar sits in front of the pine tree. Delicately carved in it is what Lorian assumes is the holy symbol of Chauntea. Corridors and doors are directly accessible from the edges of this inner open space on the ground floor and the second level of the building can be accessed through staircases that lead to balconies that run along the four walls of the building. More doors are visible from the ground floor that can be accessed through the balconies. The only obvious way out of the building is through where Lorian and his companions walked in.
There is no immediate sign of danger here. The highest preoccupation of the people Lorian sees here appear to be the tending of the plants that seems to be growing everywhere in the temple. Apart from first glances as they entered, Lorian and his companions do not seem to be attracting much attention. Noc has left Lorian's shoulder to perch himself on a nearby tree. Lorian does not perceive danger from his familiar either, just a sense of curiosity and mild confusion at the presence of such lush vegetation inside a city and enclosed in four walls.
Although Lorian does not believe this would be his place of choice to study the mysteries of the Weave, it appears an apt refuge where devout followers of the Earth-Mother can find themselves at home.
[Not many carts are passing through Farmer's road, but the Market square is not far off. Is Dahvik willing to walk there in search for a cart that transports what he is looking for? In that case, I will have you roll a Persuasion check for this one.]
[Yes, Ellara is with the others. In detail, I assume Lorian did not walk out with Dahvik, so I guess Ellara and Lorian are in the inner courtyard of the temple, waiting for Mara to deal with Merovyna and Dahvik walked outside shortly after Mara started to talk with Merovyna.]
Mara
Mara takes the pouch reverently with a small bow. “I will not forget this boon you have provided me...us. I am in your debt, sister. May the cycle be favorable and the Sun, illuminating.” Mara opens up to her companions and gives a nod, beckoning any who wish to meet Merovyna the green light to do so.
DM - And In The Darkness, Rot: The Sunless Citadel
DM - Our Little Lives Kept In Equipoise: Curse of Strahd
DM - Misprize Thou Not These Shadows That Belong: The Lost Mines of Phandelver
PC - Azzure - Tyranny of Dragons
Dahvik Aloro
Seeing few carts outside the temple, Dahvik realizes he'll have to wait until the party heads back in the direction of the market square. Though tempted to proceed himself, he decides he's unwilling to leave his money - his companions, rather - behind, and so he heads back inside the temple.
The high priestess of Chauntea turns to Ellara and Lorian, and a warm smile appears to her face. She takes a few steps towards them, who notice that she is walking bare-foot on the soft grass. She stops in front of Ellara and Lorian and takes a small bow. "Everyone who walks the path next to a champion of Chauntea is welcome here as if they were of the faith too, of course. Thank you for assisting Daggerford in such worrying times, you all have my gratitude. If there is anything I can do for you, please, do ask. I will help you if I can."
As Mara noticed the previous night, Merovyna seems to be in her seventies: her long hair are completely white and her face and hands bear the sign of wisdom, experience and just a hint of weariness. But her posture is tall and her presence irradiates an energy and kindness that few people half her age seem to possess.
Lorian
Lorian bows respectfully and gives Noc a look. He telepathically tells the raven “Do it.” Noc just seems to nod up and down with his head.
Dahvik Aloro
Hastening back to join his comrades, Dahvik strides into to chamber to see everyone bowing to Merovyna. He comes to an abrupt halt and hastily bows as well, his mind racing to figure out what in the nine hells just happened and whether or not he just screwed up again and offended someone important!
Ellara
Ellara inclines her head respectfully. “In such times as these, those who can should not shirk from defending those who cannot. Your assistance is appreciated.”
Xanaphia Nailo: Level 4 Warlock, Grey Hands PbP.
Ellara Nightflower: level 1 blood hunter, Curse of Strahd
Mara
Mara looks around, searching for Father Cadfrey. Must have got lost in prayer, she thinks to herself, inwardly laughing at her own joke.
She gives a nod to Merovyna before addressing the group: “Thank you all for being patient. We should head back to Derval and see if he can accommodate us quickly.”
DM - And In The Darkness, Rot: The Sunless Citadel
DM - Our Little Lives Kept In Equipoise: Curse of Strahd
DM - Misprize Thou Not These Shadows That Belong: The Lost Mines of Phandelver
PC - Azzure - Tyranny of Dragons
Seeing as the party bows to her Merovyna waves her hands "Oh, no, please. That is not necessary. I am not the duchess. No need to bow to me. We should all be paying you our respects for helping Daggerford in these troublesome times. It's enough for me to know I am helping your efforts."
As Mara mentioned that the party should take their leave to go back to Derval she adds: "Take my greetings to Derval and his sons. And don't be harsh on them: we cannot expect them to work for free. His prices might be a bit high, but rest assured that his work is worth every copper and from what I heard he is really trying to meet you half-way."