Finishing his sandwich, Atal kicks his chair back from the table, balancing on the hind legs.  "I'm surprised Kel and Ander didn't show up for the food," he tells Uthal, helping himself to their crispy potatoes.  He makes sure to let Dilthen have his way with the leftover food as well, nabbing a few spare chips for later.  "You think something happened to them?  Here, of all places?"  Though he voices his liminal concerns, Atal seems neither truly very concerned, as well as loathe to go searching for trouble this afternoon as he lounges in his chair.

After licking his fingers clean, he slams his chair back onto the floor and picks up the mouse, pocketing it  "You know, I didn't come to this continent thinking I was going to sign up on a suicide mission to save a city of ungrateful bastards from an ancient prophesized evil.  Whelp.  Guess that's one way to fill a tenday."  He sighs and pushes back from the table, gathering his things.  "Feels like vacation's over… let's figure out where the others went and make a plan for how we're going swim through the rest of this shitshow."

Uthal polishes off his food and stands up. "It's only suicide if we make it so. Or if you all keep running into fire. Other than that I think we will be alright." 

"Undead.  Don't forget about running full tilt into undead, too.  Which from what the Arbitrator said, sounds like exactly what we're planning to do next."

Uthal just nods and tightens the straps on his armour a bit. "Seems likely. If we don't who will? And it seems like this is where the goddess wants me so I'll be there. And it seems like she wants you too, or else I wouldn't have heard you in that alley." 

"Ser Kel. Ser Ander. There you are. Why haven’t you joined us for breakfast upstairs?" Anearis said as he approached the two. He realized soon after why Ander didn’t show up.

Kel was just taking his first drag on the apparatus Valentina brought him when Anearis approached. He turned to the elf and blew the vanilla scented smoke out of the side of his mouth, away from his direction. "No need to be so formal with me." he stated with a tip of his head. Kel glanced back toward Ander again. "I believe Ser Ander found other arrangements at the bottom of his cup." he had a small smile, as if remembering some similar deed once performed by himself as he turned back to his meal. "As for myself, I was unaware that your group had arrangements I was allowed to access." He shrugged. "All well and good though, I found a pleasant enough bed in the comfort of the Maiden." 

Kel motioned next to him with his off hand. "By all means seat yourself, until the others arrive and Ser Ander regroups I am in no rush." As if to emphasize that point Kel took another drag on the apparatus and took a sip of his drink. He rolled the liquid fire around in his mouth for a moment before exhaling the smoke above and then downing the contents. The memory it conjured was pleasant, if short lived. He glanced at his meal again, a nagging sensation. "Isn't there a rumor an Earl of somesuch made this while playing cards?" He spoke to no one in particular, just mused aloud.

Anearis went to take a seat at Kel’s suggestion. For a moment, he simply stood there, in silence, waiting. Conversation topics didn’t come easily has he had only met the tiefling yesterday. The elf didn’t really know him all that well. 

Before the silence became unbearably awkward, Anearis asked. "I understand you and Ser D’armes were part of the same group, correct? The Order of the First Flame? What is the First Flame?"

"You tried to break my knees in that alley," Atal replies smartly.  "But I guess you're right.  Tymora's wheel turned, and here I landed, for better or for worse.  Might as well make the most of it, eh?"  He crosses his arms behind his head and strolls into the common room, pausing when he catches sight of Ander.  Nudging Uthal with a foot, he tilts his chin at the unconscious man.  "Maybe we should just save him the trouble of this regular embarrassment and encourage him to get a permanent full-facial tattoo."

Uthal gestures to the vines that begin on his own bald head. "I could make a recommendation or two. Though he might not like how these are applied." 

By the time Uthal and Atal made their way to the main level tavern, it was all but empty compared to the night before. Valentina saw them right away and watched them walking along the bar, ready to serve them should they sit and order anything further. Being that Kel and Anearis were the only patrons at the counter, she had little work demanding of her.

With Ander still asleep in the corner, the party made up half the population in the place. Aside from the five, Vincent, and Valentina, only a single other table was taken, by two human males, who seemed otherwise engaged with some sort of activity with dice. 

If ever there was a time to get what one wanted out of the place, it would appear that early/mid afternoon is when one should do it.

Atal approaches the table and raises a finger.  "I could use a Lemon, Lime, and Bitters over here," he says to Valentina.  Seating himself next to Kel and Anaeris, he waves in greeting to the two.  "Say!  Why didn't you join us upstairs last night?  Him, I understand," Atal says to Kel, pointing at Ander, who still hasn't been woken by anyone present. "You looked tired, though.  Thanks, by the way.  You and Uthal worked overtime last night.  I'd pay you back, but all I have is a pair of underwear and this fake pass to the Maiden," Atal says as he waves the ticket around. 

Pocketing it, he turns to Valentina when she brings out his drink.  "Thanks," he says gratefully.  "You know, the Arbitrator saved this city from a wave of undead last night.  He lost a hand doing it.  And he thinks he knows what the source of all the unrest is.  He sent us out to support the guards here while he claimed he was going to go looking for this 'Black Beast of Arrrgh.'  You look like you're up to speed on the local lore around these parts.  Do you know anything about that legend that you could tell us?  And... why the rest of the city apart from Blemish doesn't seem to take D'Armes belief in this prophecy very seriously."

Kel winced slightly, but let it slide. Instead he puffed and thought about how best to answer the question the elf had presented. As he reached a conclusion, Atal and Uthal joined them at the bar. He nodded to them curtly and sipped his drink. To Atal's inquiry to his sleeping whereabouts, he simply shrugged. "I didn't know, and you're welcome." He left it at that, turning back to Anearis with a thoughtful look as he puffed another puff of Vanilla smoke.

"It's a way of faith, a religion followed by my people and those that are claimed, like the Arbitrator, by the Territory of the South." He paused to drink, then continued. "The Faith of the First Fire, the Great Flame, the Eternal Pyre. We worship our creator, he that gave us life when this all began." He gestured around briefly. "I will spare you the majority of the dogma and history, but when the world began, The Light gave birth to the Aasimar, the fertile Earth gave rise to the many races and the Fire gave birth to us Tieflings." He smiled a bit at that, then continued. "The Faith is structured into Orders for those that wish to serve..." he made back and forth gestures with his hands as he spoke. "...more magic aligned becoming Flame Keepers of the temples or joining the Order of the Burning Brand or Flaming Rose. The Order of the Swords forming our military might and fighting forces. Finally the Order of the Wall forming our scouts and most sacred defenders of our faith." Here Kel moved his shirt open to display the golden emblem fused with his flesh of his sternum. A crown, burning and behind it a solid stone wall, tendrils of gold, like veins in ore, crept through his muscular chest . "I am a Hellheart, what you call a Paladin, in the Order of the Wall." He moved his shirt back and puffed. "The Arbitrator, Ser D'Armes as you know him, is what we call Fireclaimed, an individual converted to our faith that has stood before the First Fire himself and been accepted as kindred to us, his Fireborn." Kel let his words linger for a moment as he finished the last of his drink. "Few are given that opportunity and that honor, each Fireclaimed I meet is almost akin to some figure in a history book."

Kel motioned for one more drink as he smoked.

Around the same time Atal had mentioned the fake pass to the Maiden's Bossom, the two human males at the other table laughed.  It could have been that something humrous had been said at coincidentally the same time, or it could have been that the men eavesdropped and laughed at Atal's misfortune.  Either way, it ended shortly and nothing more came from their table, other than whispered grumbles to each other and the roll of dice.

Valentina continued to bring drinks to the party, paying close attention to any communications, from the party, directed at her, but not between the others.  When Atal asked her questions, she happily obligued, pulling up an unknown drink for herself, as she delivered Atal's to him. "Well the 'prophecy' as you call it is considered more to be tall tales. I don't know how the things from last night play into it, but the story goes that long before Midgar existed, heck, before Cathaan and Shinra even existed, this was site of a dragonborn commune. A race of peoples enslaved to the Black Beast of Aaargh. No idea how long the creature had been there, but even then, that castle was already ruins, and its builders long since dead.  But the beast spread its black touch, and was intent of taking the whole continent, and even the lands beyond the seas."

Valentina paused to take a drink, and a breath, before continuing. "Well the Arbitrator's ancestors decided that enough was enough, and while they couldn't kill the beast, they managed to trap it within the castle.  They took up position here, at the Spire to keep a watch on the castle and manage the beast's prison, but that was well before political and economical development led to the Midgar you see around you today."

She sighed slightly, "I'm not saying I don't believe the Arbitrator.  He's a wise soul and he and his have kept the peace here, since its founding. But there's no record of the beast ever 'escaping the castle'," she said with air-quotes. "Even the Arbitrator's clan has had members simply leave to live their own lives because the stories were a bit far-fetched. They live in some delusion and become obsessed with it."

Finishing her drink, "And we've even had a slew of treasure hunters seek out their fortune at the castle.  Sure not all return, and some that do claim they saw the beast and lived to tell the tale, but really, that's all they ever come back with, stories. Those ruins are so decrepit, I'm surprised more don't die from cave-ins and natural deaths." During her last few sentences, Valentina's tone became solemn and serious, but as she finished, she returned to her cheery disposition. "But as I've said, nothing we've seen, past or present has ever actually shown that any threat to the town is the work of some Black Beast in the ruined castle, so consider yourselves safe here. Is there anything else I can get for you lot?"

"Huh," Atal says.  "It's a pity the guards seem to be more worried about their visiting Royals than their Arbitrator.  It sounds more and more like this "Black Beast of Aaargh" is the local lore for a black dragon to me.  Wouldn't that just be peachy."  He scratches his head.  "So the Spire was made to be a watchtower to the castle, which was actually a prison.  I would think that means you could see the ruins of the castle from the Spire, right?  Where would we find the castle ruins from here, anyway?"

After a moment, Atal looks over at the other two men in the bar.  He turns back to Valentina.  "Those two over there… are they regulars?"

(Might as well try, no point in proficiency in religion if you don't use it.  Religion: 16)

Uthal goes over to rouse Ander and then comes back, turning his hammer over and leaning on the handle. "Well, whether the stories are fake or not I would say that a man with one hand needs more help than the city guard here. Plus that is where we were going anyways so it makes sense to me to keep going." 

Kel caught the end of the conversation Valentina was having with Uthal and Atal, turning from Anearis, and cleared his throat. "I made an arrangement with Blemish to discuss your next course of action with the lot of you over at the Spire but it would seem your minds are already made up." Kel finished the drink he just ordered and grabbed his gear from its resting place next to him. "I will have a short chat with him about your intentions and to see if he has anything else that could aid you in your journey to the Castle. Seek me there before you embark." He glanced at Ser Ander. "No rush, I think your friend could use a few moments." Kel turned to Valentina. "I thank you for your hospitality, your establishment is far better than any other from here to the Territory and let none say otherwise." He gave a slight bow of his head to the group and made his exit.

Having stepped outside, Kel took a moment to enjoy the air before moving towards the Spire. He hummed a bit of a tune from his homelands, a small part of a story extolling the deeds of a legendary figure as he gained approval from eight different warring tribes in a single night. It wasn't a story for the young. Kel rapped on the door of the Spire with his bare knuckles and waited.

Valentina continued conversing with Atal. "From what I understand, this being more actual history than lore, is that the Spire out there is only a small part of the original spire that stood here.  Time and war tore it apart, before the Arbitrator's put an end to the conflict between Cathaan and Shinra, solidifying this city, and the peace along with it. Though I don't know how tall it would truly have to be to actually see the ruins...Excuse me one second."

One of the other patrons, the smaller of the two humans was holding two fingers up in the air, though otherwise still engaged with whatever was on their table. Valentina walked away for a moment, delivering drinks to the two humans, before bringing refills to the party as well. "The ruins are directly west of here though, as the crow flies. But the road between here and there is a long round about way to the south."

"Well they're locals. One has a member pass, though don't know too much about them. In fact, I don't even think they come here enough to make having the pass worth it. Based on appearances, I'd guess adventures of some type, maybe mercenaries."

During Uthal's own training as a Cleric, he'd learned much regarding other systems of belief, even apart from that which he was to worship. One such was that of the The First Fire and their deity, Azzeal. Much of what Kel described to Anearis was information with which Uthal was familiar. Uthal knew of the different orders of the religion, not just the Order of the Wall (Paladins), like Kel; the Order of the Flame (users of fire magic), and the Order of the Sword (fighters and soldiers).  The First Fire was a political power as much as it was a religious one, however not one recognized by the 'established' and 'recognized' nations of Theviranne.  The lands of the First Fire overlapped the southern border of Shinra, as well as two other nations. Just as the First Fire's territorial claim is not recognized by these nations, nor are these nations claims recognized by the First Fire.

"Of course, dear. Just let me know if there's anything else," Valentina replied to Kel, flashing a smile. As Kel left the Maiden and headed towards the Spire, intent on locating Blemish, he didn't need to look far.  The halfling was sitting on a stool, right outside the shack door, his feet dangling in the air, as the stool was a few inches too tall to allow him to keep them on the ground. A wooden box sat on a thin table next to him, with a piece of parchment pinned to it that said "Black Knights Matter."

Anearis listened to Valentina’s story. The more he heard, the more he believed that they should there, if only to stop the Arbitrator from getting himself killed. 

He was also becoming increasingly suspicious of the other two patrons. While not doing anything to openly confront them, he tried to discretely keep an eye on them.

Stealth check: 8 (not sure if it’s the appropriate roll)

The two other patrons do not appear to notice Anearis watching them.

Atal nods in thanks to Valentina.  "I think I'll go have a chat with those two then. Maybe they know something that can help us."  Eying Anaeris and Uthal, he coughs slightly.  "You guys could come along and help out if you wanted.  I'm not always the most skilled with words, and I'd hate to repay the Maiden's warm welcome with a scuffle born of a simple misunderstanding."

Approaching the table, Atal grins and waves at the two men.  "Sorry to interrupt that intense dice game you got going there," he says.  "But I'm guessing you overheard my tale of bad fortune."  He produces the fake Maiden's pass and displays it carelessly.  "You fellas look like you know how the wind blows in this town.  Maybe you can help a greenhorn adventurer like myself out.  Let's say I was looking to spend a little coin in this town, but the only spot I had left on me was a piece silver."  He produces the Fool's Errand coin and begins flipping it over his knuckles slowly enough to let the symbol be seen by the two men.  "Know the best spot in town I might be able to redeem this silver for something actually worth it?"