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| The Adventures of Aidan Olivieri Cassius, the Bard | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Aug 25 2012, 01:40 AM (265 Views) | |
| Fenwick | Aug 25 2012, 01:40 AM Post #1 |
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When the Lenshuufu, the elder of the three races of elves in Eacha, were created, the god Fadreiclya created a gift for each of them to assist in their reign. For centuries, they maintained possession of the items bestowed upon them by the 'Savior of Elves', but eventually the minds and spirits of many were tainted by the greed and anger that crept into their lives. Disappointed and feeling that the gifts had been misused, Fadreiclya wrested the gifts from their owners and hid them away. Years have passed since the items were lost. Many adventurers have been sent to find the Gifts, what follows is the journal kept by one such traveler. I present you with the writings of Aidan Olivieri Cassius, the Bard. --- 4/73/872 Received a letter today. It was waiting for me when I came down for breakfast after a long night of storytelling. While I was still rather groggy and wanting a bit of bread and pork, the fact that I'd received any sort of correspondence at all was a tad mysterious. Twas even more so, considering that I did not know the sender, nor was he an enthusiast. The author seems to be requesting my services and would like to arrange a meeting in Anga. What service he's requesting is rather vague. Still, it would be nice to see home again; It has been far too long since I've been in Lunata. Curiosity has always gotten the best of me. Perhaps I shall make the trip to hear him out. At the very least, I can visit home, gather a few tales and songs along the way, perhaps more. --- 1/33/873 Spent a week in a small border town between Melyta and Lunata. Gathered a few new stories, passed along a few more of my own. Learned the basics of some form of Melytan stringed instrument, however I think I will stick to my stories and flute. Without spending the needed time here, I'd just look as inexperienced as I probably am, and that's no good for a bard's reputation. I'm leaving with a caravan headed across the Lunata-Melyta border in the morning, I figure roughly forty days travel to Anga. --- 1/78/873 Finally have arrived in Anga. I believe that if the caravan owner had requested "Night over Heart Lake" one more time I'd have put his eyes out with my dagger. Still, have arrived a few days earlier than expected. Perhaps I can earn a few coins and a stay with my talents, Leytalia willing. Hopefully the tavern guests here will appreciate some of the tales I've acquired along my travels. --- 1/84/873 Met with our benefactor's representative, Ruadhal. Something about him struck me as slightly off, but the money that they're offering is quite substantial. Believe it or not, the man wishes us to pursue the Gifts of Fadreiclya. Hah! At this point I believe that I'll tag along with the group that he has gathered together for his quest just to see if any good stories can be spun from them. The invitations seem to have gone out to a rather disparate group. So far I've met with a half-Fenke monk, but rumor has it that more will arrive tomorrow. Most must have traveled a while. Perhaps I can speak with them all about their travels and make something of them. Some of the riddles that supposedly lead to the hiding places of the Gifts seem fairly straight forward. I find it hard to believe that, if they are legitimate, no one has located them yet. I have included them below: I gave eight gifts to the highborn Lenshuufu to guide them through troubled times and for eight gods they were named. For years the gifts served well until greed and anger permeated those noble minds, and now they are no longer worthy of my gifts. I lay them on the rivers to carry them to worthier hands than those that sullied them. The King of All Things rests in the loving embrace of his wife and his treacherous son beneath double skies, far beneath his golden ring. One retained ownership over her gift and it is entombed in her fair hands. The Queen lies within the palace of jade. The lord of night may be found with the fruit of one who did not sully his gift but still suffered the fate of the others. She has always walked two worlds and may be found within the trees of no deities. The most dangerous gift, born from the earth’s metallic womb, is ensnared by the Oaken Rose in the domain of the warring daughters. He pierces to the heart of things with fury, yet it takes the mind to reach him. Look to the sky where sky is king. The devoted son could not save those he loved and was banished to the realm of his father to live with the ghosts of regrets. To find the fire of battle one only has to revitalize themself in Cine rituals and be purified by the fires of the ancients. I believe that I shall spend some time in the libraries reviewing a few tomes. Can't hurt to brush up on history and such while we wait for the others to arrive. 1/85/873 Met up with two more of Ruadhal's appointed party members today. One struck me as some form of spell caster, given her attire and attitude toward things. Then again, it could just be because she was an elf. The second seemed to be one of the Nalen. She even had a wolf with her. Drew a few stares from the other tavern patrons when she came in, but she herself seemed rather nonplussed. Spell weaver kept muttering to herself about the price of daggers or some such with strange frequency before Ruadhal's arrival. Once Ruadhal had presented them with the riddles, she was able to discern a few of them that the monk and I had not managed to decipher. The Nalen was also helpful in tying parts of the clues in with Nalen beliefs, linking the Nalen Forest to at least one riddle. They also clarified that the Jade Palace was in Kaemu Hoshi, which I know as Sacred Rock. I can't believe I had forgotten that the Jade Palace was another name for the palace in the city's heart. Studying in the libraries here leads me to believe that our search in Tyr Kelador should be centered in Al Carais. Given that they lean heavily on sky worship and the fact that Al Carais is the most powerful of the Keladori city-states, I should have assumed as such. However, at this point Lake Morthinduil seems to be our first destination. Must procure transportation as soon as possible. 1/86/873 After attempting to purchase the services of a carriage, exorbitantly priced at that, I have managed to secure us passage back toward Majiswati with the caravan that brought me to Anga. For some reason the mage believes daggers to be some form of currency as she stated we could purchase a horse and two ponies for that many daggers when the carriage owner requested over a hundred gold for our transit. Madman. I fear that "Night over Heart Lake" will be a nightly occurrence once more on this travel. Will stab them all. 2/8/873 We have finally separated from the caravan as we neared Lake Morthinduil. Two weeks and I only was able to play "Night over Heart Lake" and tell the comedic tale of the angry Cine clothier. If I had to rant about how his sheep died one more time... Have made camp for the evening and have just assigned watches. Seems that I will have second watch. Hopefully it will remain uneventful between the fire and Nayala's wolf. 2/9/873 Was awoken shortly after my shift ended by Nayala. Apparently a group of wolves had wandered near our campsite, drawn by the smell of the breakfast she was preparing. They milled about the outskirts of the camp for a time, seemingly agitated even after the Nalen had sacrificed some of her rabbit to them. Swear one was about to attempt eating my arm before Nayala calmed it and ran them off. 2/10/873 Have had more activity in the past two days than in the weeks leading up. We were attacked by a couple of large cats last evening. Managed to kill them both, but I seemed to have punctured some of the internal organs when I killed one, leaving the meat tainted. The Elf and Nalen have set about drying meat from the other. We set out toward the lake again and were set upon by a peryton, but it was quickly chased off by another one that seemed to be domesticated. We were approached by what seemed to be the owner, but none of our group could comprehend his speech. He left shortly after what seemed to be a chastising rant, based on tone. 2/11/873 We have arrived at the lake. Shortly after setting a base camp, we found what looked to be a body on the shore of the lake. Upon investigation of the body, we found Anubia's symbol carved into the flesh just before the body disappeared before our eyes. Have decided that the watch should be exceptionally vigilant this evening. --Was attacked by what seemed to be a wisp while on watch. Didn't harm me, just buzzed about then vanished. Odd. 2/12/873 We've found the ruins of a temple which has partially collapsed into the lake. There is a riddle inscribed on the altar near a cracked throne. "You must find out the rule to the riddle: Behind the Green Door there are trees but no forests, there are glasses but no eyes. There are geese, but no ducks. There are feet but no shoes." Solution opened watery stairs that lead down to a cavern with a tall statue of a woman. We noted a crown on the altar in the temple, so I rushed back to retrieve it. I placed the crown on the head of the statue and the statue *smiled*. The Nalen was unnerved by the whole environment and did not want to enter the room. The statue's reaction to my placing of the crown on its head intrigued El and she began examining it. Nayala finally entered the cavern and it sealed behind her. Statue animated once more and started to ask us riddles as the room flooded with water. I cannot recall them all at this time as we were more focused on solving the six she stated she would present us with than scribbling them down. We managed to solve all six before the water even made it to our knees. I'm curious how so many bodies were trapped down here with the ease our group made of them. Perhaps we were lucky with the riddles it had chosen. Once the water fully receded, the statue produced a small, nondescript golden ring, which El took and secured in her spell pouch. As we exited the cavern, we came across a werewolf who was skulking around the ruins. El scorched its fur and it scurried away. We decided not to remake camp here and started toward the nearest town on the map. Encountered the ghostly form of the woman from earlier and followed her to a small shack. Encountered the full-wolf formed werewolf. Should have killed it when we had the chance originally. The werewolf severely injured the Nalen's wolf, Demetri, and bit me while I was protecting him. I managed to kill it with a decisive thrust through the beast's mouth and into its brain. Nayala assures me that I have not contracted the disease or she'd have killed me already. Comforting. 2/13/873 Arrived in Eire Le late in the evening and came across a dwarf being accosted. We tried saving him, but were unable to dispatch his assailants before they had delivered mortal wounds. He left with me a letter to be delivered to one Mbweha Tenebrae back in Bilial, Lunata. Seemed insistent on our delivery as it was last words. Just as he expired, one of the Night Watch came across our group. Shame they weren't there to save the dwarf, but showed up in time to accuse El of possibly killing the dwarf as well as one of the robbers. I managed to convince them otherwise, but we were required to check in with them the next morning and not to leave town until the situation was clarified. 2/14/873 Met with the town watch leader this morning and were cleared to leave the town as the bandits had been apprehended. We continued on to Famalati where Jio's destination lay. A large monolith has appeared in a field there and is drawing several viewers. We have also met up with two more adventurers hired by Ruadhal, a Paladin of Fadreiclya and a barbarian. We've combined the information that each of us has deciphered from the riddles and they seem to be on the same track. The monolith bears a golden inscription on the black granite-like structure: "My eyes pierce into soul of man, my soft touch protects it, and my will heals it. To serve me means to serve all." Upon investigating the monolith itself, which felt oddly warm and fleshlike to the touch, several of us were sucked into another plane. Briefly after arriving we were set upon by a gauntlet of monsters. The first few were easily dispatched, but we ended up fighting what appeared to be a shade of some sort, whose semi-corporeal state made efforts of combat challenging. The last being that we faced grappled with myself, El, and the Paladin and upon each attack started looking like each person it had attacked. Exceptionally unnerving. After the last being was vanquished, a field of covered mirrors appeared. Uncovered them with El's examination after the first froze several party members solid. Uncovered several mirrors without incident after that before triggering another trapped mirror. Next thing I knew, we were all outside the monolith again. After recovering from the encounter, El approached me about a magical bracelet she had obtained from a mirror before we were transported back to our realm. Definitely one of the artifacts that we're after and given the attributes she had discovered, I suggested that she hand it off to Jio. |
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| Fenwick | Aug 28 2012, 09:42 PM Post #2 |
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2/15/873 We have discussed the two paths immediately open before our group and have decided to venture back toward Belial to deliver the letter I am carrying for one Mbweha Tenebrae. Once we deliver that, we shall endeavor to procure a vessel to take us out into the Strait of Storms where Jio's compass seems to be directing us. 2/45/873 Have arrived in Belial. Somewhat nice to be back in Lunata. While attempting to determine the location of Mbweha, I was approached by a local and slapped. Not certain that I deserved that. While wandering the town, Jio was approached by a woman keen on soliciting him and he scampered off to the security of his hotel, convinced that it was against the law. I tried assuring him that it was perfectly legal in Lunata, but he'd have none of it. Finally found the Inn that Mbweha was residing in at the moment. Quite a nice establishment and charged accordingly. Once we met with her, El and I recognized her as the goddess Tania. We delivered the letter and were promptly rewarded with a considerable sum of money and a rather nice ring which I still have in my possession. 2/46/873 Stopped a group of pickpockets that were attempting to relieve us of our money while we were searching for a vessel. Knocked one out rather swiftly, stripped him of his possessions, and marked him as a thief. Found passage, but is still a bit more than we can afford as a group at 100 gold pieces for each of us to book the vessel. The Captain agreed to wait until we were ready to venture out. Will have to do some work here in town. 2/70/873 After procuring the funds for the travel, have booked the vessel, only to encounter heavy storms in the strait (imagine that, storms in the Strait of Storms). The ship is currently stuck on a sandbar and in need of some repair. Jio's compass led us to a garden on the nearby island. After a bit of investigation, we managed to open a shaft. Nayala mentioned that it was remarkably similar to a dream she had recently where she managed to heal Jio and I after we took a tumble down the shaft. Decided to trust El's magic to get us to the bottom instead of using the rope. Found a spherical room at the bottom of the shaft, full of levers and a few doors. After a bit of trial and error, found our way into a room where a large tree stood, surrounded by mirrors. With a bit of effort, we managed to redirect a shaft of light onto the tree, which then animated and spoke. Nothing surprises me anymore. Combat ensued, Nayala and El slinging fire while Jio and I attempted to distract the tree and cause what damage we could. It knocked me out with a great sweep of its branches. When I came to, a dryad seemed to be handing something to the Druid. Will have to consult with her on the nature of this new artifact. |
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| Fenwick | Sep 13 2012, 10:35 PM Post #3 |
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2/73/873 The Dryad has repaired the ship, saving us an extensive amount of repair time. The captain seems particularly pleased, seeing as how it appears to have improved the quality of his vessel overall. El and I focused on repairing the sails so that we could shove off of the island and head back toward Aetan. Travel through the strait was challenging, as we once more ran into turbulent storms. Once arriving in Aetan we rapidly found a bath house in which to clean up. Very necessary. 2/80/873 Have moved southward into the Nalen forests. While venturing through the forest towards where Nayala believes the settlements to be, we encountered a Wraith. It did not seem to acknowledge our presence, so I utilized the 'holy' symbol of Anubia I have been carrying and crafted a hasty disguise, due to the fact that I knew the Death's Hand Cult uses the apparitions as guards. I attempted to negotiate our way past, but was unsuccessful and we ended up having to destroy the being. It's death wail drew the attention of a passing Nalen patrol who expressed their displeasure with my garb by shooting a volley of arrows in my particular direction. Luckily, I was only minorly injured before Nayala was able to call them off. I hastily explained the reason for my disguise and they seemed convinced. Though it was most likely due to the composition of the party I am currently travelling with. The patrol agreed to escort us to Amonkyu in order to allow us to meet with the Nalen council, including a half-Lenshuufu elf. The council was rather standoff-ish and asked us to prove our worth by dealing with a group of the Death's Hand nearby that had been harassing their lands. We readily agreed to aid them, as none of us particularly care for the practices of the dark group. 2/82/873 We ventured northwest into North Aetan and came across the compound that the cultists were utilizing. I whipped up disguises and convinced the guards to allow our entry, somehow convincing them that I was one of Anubia's prophets. I swear, these people must've been dropped on their heads as children. We shifted about the compound, gathering information from several of the acolytes there before moving to confront the leader in her chamber. Our encounter was brief, having gained the element of surprise. She proved to be quite a capable necromancer, but even her more powerful magic was unable to match the focused efforts of our group. Her acolytes came charging in when they heard the sounds of battle, but believing that I was a prophet of their cult's god, I was able to convince them that their leader had been found unworthy of Anubia's blessings. All but a few sacrificed themselves as penance for failing their god, the others fled. We sacked the compound and recovered a tiara that may be the item we were searching for in the forest. 2/86/873 We've returned to the Nalen village with the news of the cult's destruction. Malka, the half-Lenshuufu, proved to be already attuned to the tiara and we decided to leave it in her care, rather than to abscond with it. As a reward for both our actions against the Death's Hand and for returning her stolen item, we were rewarded with superbly crafted and enchanted weapons, as well as attempting to foresee our futures. We have decided that our next destination shall be Kaemu Hoshi in Amoratae. Perhaps we can figure out where in this "Jade Palace" the artifact can be located. 3/22/873 We've entered Amoratae and have acquired a follower. One of the local cheetahs has taken an interest to our group and has followed us for over a day. I tried to approach it, but it shied away. I did notice that it had emerald eyes, a trait that is believed to indicate divine blessing among the Amorataen people. Nayala attempted to communicate with it and was told that the large cat was there to assess us and attempt to discover our intentions. I found this quite interesting. Perhaps when I get the chance I'll consult a religious figure on the importance of this. 3/24/873 Have moved into Kaemu Hoshi and started inquiring about anyone fitting the description of a Lenshuufu. After digging around and sifting through a lot of hearsay and rumor, I've discovered that the previous head handmaiden fits the description of an elf and had the same last name as the elven royal family. Unfortunately, she was the victim of an unsolved murder, having been killed in her locked room, with no one having heard a sound. We've decided to attempt gaining access to the plateau and to her crypt. Given the elven lineage of most of the party, I have decided to disguise myself as a Lenshuufu in order to give credibility to our request to retrieve her belongings. --- We've been invited to dinner with the Empress herself by the new head handmaiden, Ariana Nedia. What have I gotten myself into with this disguise. Here's to hoping that it holds. --- Dinner was relatively uneventful, though the Empress asked questions that we could not readily answer. She seemed very curious about Adiwyn Moonflower's past, but we were forced to disappoint her with our inability to give her more than passing information. She has agreed to allow us to investigate the scene of her murder and to gather her belongings for return to the Elven Lands. --- We ventured into the crypts and viewed Adiwyn's tomb. Shortly after our arrival, we were confronted by a member of the Elven Royal Court, specifically Talihd, Fourth in line to the Throne. We exchanged words and threats before Talihd cast a magical spell, stunning me in place, then tried to push past to Adiwyn's resting place. I quickly regained my bearings and promptly expressed my displeasure with a few rapid thrusts of my rapier. Caught off guard by the assault, he was disarmed and had to rely on a few hastily cast spells for his defense. Unfortunately, El was compelled to defend the man, as she is a sworn servant of all Lenshuufu. Apparently even the exceptionally rude and hostile ones. She cast a fireball into the group, but must've pulled her punches as it did not seem to be as forceful as normal. Exchanged a few more blows with 'his highness' before the coward teleported away. Moments after his departure, Ariana and members of the High Guard ran in, demanding to know what had just happened. They had heard the sounds of fighting and had rushed to them. We explained the confrontation with Talihd, carefully leaving out the role El had in the brief battle. She seemed to accept the account and allowed us to return to our lodgings for the evening with the promise of further inquiry later. |
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| Fenwick | Sep 21 2012, 05:47 AM Post #4 |
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3/24/873 (Cont) We returned to the catacombs later that evening with the High Guardsman Alexis Nedia. Upon examining the belongings around the tomb, we came across the seal that was pressed into the letter we delivered to Tania. Discovering that they were in correspondence, we decided that her remains and possessions should be returned to the goddess, if we could find her again. We then ventured to Alexis' room, which had been Adiwyn's previously. Through magical detection, El located a hidden cubby where several diaries and a thick stack of letters were stored. We passed our findings to Alexis, but kept the papers in order to pass them along to Tania with Adiwyn's other belongings. We then ventured off of the plateau to visit the Ruadhan shrine and were told of the myths surrounding the tree there and the history of Tania and how it relates to the deities in Amoratae. Nayala attempted communicating with the tree, which confirmed the stories of its creation. The tree was planted in the blood of the sacrificed daughter of the empress at the time. When the empress had attempted to cut down the tree once she had retaken Sacred Rock, the tree screamed and bled. It has remained since as a seal to prevent Amoratae from awakening and potentially destroying the country itself. After speaking with the tree, Nayala wished to track down one of the green eyed cheetahs and attempt to communicate with it again. It did not take long to come across one and through the course of the conversation, Nayala became convinced that she was speaking with an avatar of Amoratae herself, though it was not confirmed directly. The cheetah passed on knowledge that Adiwyn had been attacked and killed by two other elves, including the Prince we had just defeated. We returned with this knowledge to the Empress, who seemed saddened that due to Adiwyn's murder being at the hands of Lenshuufu royalty. She then expressed her concern that justice would most likely not be attained. We promised that we would strive to see that it would be if we were capable of rendering it. We left the palace and stopped at Tania's shrine briefly where El prayed to the goddess. Surprisingly, she appeared and spoke with us briefly, suggesting we take Adiwyn's sword to her children and then cremate her remains and other effects. El scryed using the sword as a focus and it guided us to the east. It seems that our next destination will be Sioshar. 3/26/873 We've ventured east in the carriage that the Empress gave to us in order to facilitate the return of Adiwyn's belongings to her offspring. As we entered into Sioshar, we once again met up with the barbarian and the paladin. We stopped in the own of Sicaoin in order to lodge for the evening and discuss the current situation. El talked with them about her growing distrust of our employer and they seemed to agree, though Jio seemed bothered by the discussion and left for a short time. After talking to a few of the locals, we were directed to speak with a Dame Natiir, who turned out to be the one that Adiwyn's sword was guiding us to. El passed the weapon along to her and spoke with her for a short time. She relayed her concerns about increasing unrest in Sioshar due to the disappearance of the Kirin that signified support for the King. We investigated the disappearance and found materials that would have been used to cause magical paralysis. Nayala tracked wagon treads to a nearby mansion, where gargoyles set upon us. Nayala proved the effectiveness of some of her new abilities by destroying one gargoyle with summoned lightning while Natiir deftly destroyed the other using her mother's blade. |
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| Fenwick | Oct 1 2012, 02:51 AM Post #5 |
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--- After we defeated the gargoyles, Nayala attempted to pick the lock to the door on the front of the mansion. She triggered a trap, but luckily managed to avoid anything coming of it. We worked our way inside and headed up a staircase which led to a long hall. We examined a few rooms, finding in one a woman chained to a bed. El seemed a bit stricken and avoided entering the room, opting to investigate elsewhere. We freed the woman and she immediately ran to Jio's side. We headed into an adjacent room while Jio stood out in the hall with the freed woman. The Barbarian thought something was amiss and checked on the two of them to find the woman sucking the life force out of Jio. He shouted and we came running back out. Upon taking in the scene, we tried to wrestle her away and she slashed at a few of us. Natir deftly moved in and severed her head. Jio seemed a bit disoriented and weak, which honestly makes sense considering something was sucking out his soul. We ventured further into the house and came upon a large chamber where the Kirin was being held. El promptly vaporized the man holding the Kirin prisoner. The Kirin thanked us and then vanished. We stayed overnight while Nayala hallowed the mansion in order to prevent further habitation by evil creatures. 3/27/873 Ventured back to the palace where we met with the King. The Kirin had informed him of our role in its freedom and he wished to reward us for our aid. He offered us Knighthood which would give us certain advantages while in Sioshar and asked that we help him seek a particular item out of the set we were currently hunting. |
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