@Lucius Cypher

Ethan notes that the man had quite the stutter but would not point it out. Instead, he offers the young man a friendly smile before taking the satchel of ingredients from him. "Thank you for the offer, but I don't think I would need anything else. To answer your question as to why I am late. It was because I was..." He pauses to think about if he should reveal that the reason he was late was due to poor maps and getting lost. He frowned slightly as it would paint him in a bad light so he chose to tell him another factor that caused him to be late. "attacked by a duo of blood hawks. Uhh...I'd like to stay and chat some more but I still have a ways to go for the next pick up. Goodbye." Ethan tips his hat again and was about to turn and leave when he realized that carrying the ingredients with his hands would be inefficient and would make defending himself much more difficult if the event arises. "On second thought, do you have any knapsacks or anything of the like available? Nothing fancy, just something durable and would last long."

One minute Shem'et was looking about her, claws out, her body in battle-ready posture, and the next one everything was happening at once. The colorful elf from Barthem's shop showed up after having followed her into the woods with an intent to help her with both of her errands. And then a green something was whizzing past her, followed by a large rock, and by a frustrated looking orc, cursing up a storm. The crafter was confused to say the least. She turned her keen feline gaze this way and that to get a better grasp of the situation. The green something turned out to be a small pixie, who sported a suspiciously mischievous look about them. Shem turned toward the orc. Somehow she thought she got the gist of what had happened. Considering the orc's irritable cursing when he'd burst onto the scene.

Shem'et put herself between the pixie and the orc, who looked mighty intimidating with that ore he wielded as a club. The tabaxi raised her hands, retracting her claws. "That we are indeed, Master orc!" She began with her most benign and soothing tone of voice. "We've come from Frontier Town on an errand for Master Bookie of the Black Mines. I am Shem'et, a crafter, and this..." Shem indicated at the peacock of an elf beside her. "... is Master..." Shem fell in stunned silence, realizing the feathery elf hadn't really given his name. "... um, a friend of mine who just arrived in Frontier Town and we have come to the woods in search of iron sand at the behest of Master Bookie as I've said. And as a side task we have been asked by Barthem the merchant to collect as much Greenwarish as we can." Shem indicated the disturbed herb by her feet.

The tabaxi crafter was praying the pixie behind her wouldn't do anything else to set off the orc again. She could tell by looking at the tiny creature, it had had it's fun on the back of the poor orc. "Is there something we can do for you, Master orc? May I ask what put you in such a foul mood?"



_{@Lucius Cypher @Black Keys}

---

"Ah, that would have been a useful thing to have. I don't have much coin left on me and I doubt there are those willing to share a room." Sihlas nodded at the suggestion to continue talking at the inn, "Yes, that sounds great." As Dormic led him towards the inn, Sihlas was able to look around at the buildings of the town, a majority of which were made of thatch, wood, and quarried stone. What the inside and floors of the buildings were like, he couldn't tell. The rest were made of wood and logs, some with thatch roofs others with planked roofs.

Soon enough, though, they approached their destination. The Drunken Dragon sign was what made it stand out as the inn, aside from that it was a rather large and well built wooden building, complete with a stone foundation. It reminded him of when he was helping his family build the same type of structure, that was before he was found by that old wizard. Granted, he wasn't that old at the time.

They passed by a passed out patron and as they did Sihlas glanced down and thought of whether or not the patron couldn't handle their drink, or just had too much to drink. They were soon seated at a table and handed water to drink, "After all, life can't even sustain itself without clean water. Well... most life." He would take a drink before returning his attention to Dormic.

"Actually, yes. I came here with the intent to study and learn magic, that includes exploring and researching any special sites in or around the frontier. And yes, I know, its weird that I'm a wizard's apprentice at my age and don't yet have a spell under my belt." He felt it best to get that last part out of the way, as whenever that fact came up he was given odd looks by those that expected him to know some spells already.

@Lucius Cypher


Looking at the man, Darunia nodded slowly. In the back of his head, he hoped that his joke was lost on the two, especially one of the owners. A joke like that taken the wrong way would definitely sour the disposition of the owner of this establishment, though he already felt as if he was under some scrutiny. Being the object of attention for anybody was something that annoyed him; with attention usually came trouble, and he wasn't looking for trouble for now. Especially of concern was the fact that he wanted his name, for a registry. Did they typically ask that of all of their patrons? His eyes wandered over to the key in the barmaid's hand, watching it for a moment in thought. This felt like a less extreme interrogation, as if the two were going to peel and pry at the Drow until he spilled everything. His life story, how much gold he had, what his plans were... He felt hesitant to answer, but knew that there was certainly no reason why he shouldn't have to answer.

"Darunia," the Drow whispered under his breath. "My name is Darunia."

His own name always sounded strange when he said it out loud. Writing it, drawing it in some dirt, or even saying it in his Elven tongue was fine, but in Common... Urgh.

"This is a rather well put together establishment you have here," Darunia said, looking around the room. "I am pleased that you are welcoming me into your doors. Not everyone I have met has shared the views that you do. For that, I am grateful; may I be so kind as to ask a few questions of you and your employees?" He cleared his throat and slowly rubbed his hands together. "I hope you understand when I say that I require special accommodations that this town, from the looks of it, cannot provide. Are there any stores that stay open into the later hours of the night? I require goods that, unfortunately, I have either lost or had stolen from me... Specifically, goods to offer me protection where the city guard may not. Likewise, I am looking for an opportunity to earn some gold. May I ask for more information about this incident, or, should you be unable to provide me with this information, could you point me towards someplace that I may learn about this incident? I believe I may be able to assist with whatever is the matter there..." Darunia took long, heavy pauses between his questions. He did not want to impose on this man, having just met him, but he was sure that the tavern was where the most gossip flowed. This man would likely be more helpful than those brats who stood guard around the city. "Finally, I was wondering... How much information on the registry is able to be viewed by the public? I understand if you are inclined to keep such information visible, but I do hope that you understand why I ask as many questions as I do."

With a sigh, Darunia closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. "Though I cannot afford an entire bottle of the wine, it has been far too long since I have indulged in the luxury of my kin's drink." Turning to the barmaid, he raised a hand skywards for a brief second. "Forgive my difficulty, but would you be so kind as to provide me with a mere glass of Dancer and Prancer?" The Drow gave a sheepish smile. His head was still spinning... He couldn't wait to be further inside of the building, away from the grasp of the sun. Disorientation was his strongest sensation at the moment, brought on by an onset of fatigue from traveling, his current experiences in the city, and having spent so much time in the terrible, terrible sun.

---

---

Katherine sighed as Livia divided the tasks. She supposed she shouldn't be too down as she watched her sister leave the building. "Very well then." She leaned back on the counter rolled her head a bit. "So, I guess that leaves me with the Underhaven. Well, that's fine with me. Town Hall or the tavern... I think I remember where it was in the tavern." With a slight sigh, she pulled herself up from leaning on the counter and turned to Barthen. "Many thanks again, my good man. I suppose I shall be seeing you again in the future." Katherine told him before turning and leaving.

She headed to the tavern where she vaguely remembered seeing staircase or something that went down. After arriving, she asked some people and confirmed her thoughts. There was the entrance... Gathering her courage, she decided to take the descent into the darkness. Luckily she wasn't fully human. Her heritage allowed her to see about sixty feet into the darkness so she wasn't blind down here at least.

”Goddamn fairy has me stuck in these woods! I’m gonna kill it so I can get out of here!” The orc roared as the pixie giggled and taunted him in it’s fey language. She seemed to hide behind Shem’et, thinking the tabaxi woman would defend her against the mean old orc. ”If you know wot’s good fer ya, you’d kill it too! It’s messin wif yer eyes an mind so dat you can’t find yer way outta deez woods until it gets bored wif ya. And my pa taught me dat fey got a messed up idea of wot dey do when dey bored! I ain’t about to let em make soup outta me teeth or live in me skull, so sod off so I can smash da bugger!” The orc raised his oar menacingly, waiting for Shem’et to move so he could crush the pixie with a stroke of his improvised great club.

@ihinka

---

"Not weird at all I'd say. Never too late to learn. As for any sites to study, the frontier town has largely been unexplored despite how long we've been here. Why in fact I hear there's been a discovery in the mines just today! I don't know what it's about, but perhaps that could interest you. See the foreman, a tall man named Bookie, or even the town mayor himself if you want to learn more." Dormic thought about what else could interest Bookie and raised his finger. ”There’s also this grand old tree a couple miles south of the town. I can’t explain it well but… I believe there are strong magics radiating from the place.”

Dormic extended his hand while speaking softly. #Flame.# A ball of fire as big as Dormic’s hand appeared around his hand, as if engulfing his entire fist, yet it did not hurt him in the slightest. It radiated a soft glow that illuminated their area lightly. ”I mediated and studied under that tree for twenty days and twenty nights, seeing through the aetherium and tapping into the very nature of magic in our world. I’ve only learned this much unfortunately, but I feel that with more time and effort, I can do so much more. Perhaps you too can do the same.”

@Kangutso

---

”Chatty one ain’t ya?” Sips says as he cracks the knuckles in his hands and serves himself a drink. He mulls over the Drow’s questions and answers to the best of his ability. ”Right, you’re a drow after all, most places on the surface don’t take into consideration your sensitivities. Well we have a little place here called Underhaven for those types but well… Let’s just say what happens in Underhaven isn’t our business. I’m not saying it’s dangerous, but don’t be surprised if the guards don’t lift a finger if you got troubles down there. In any case Underhaven is ran by a lady named Lucilia, she can set you up with gear so long as you can pay the price and don’t annoy her. And let me tell you, the latter is the hard part. She doesn’t just work with any blighters who come in with a winning smile and coin in their pocket.”

As Sips was talking one of his barmaids left to help a new customer, pointing her in the direction of a trapdoor in the corner of the room. She soon returned to Darunia to speak to him about the mines. ”From what the miners told me, they dug up some sort of crypt. Smells of death and has mummified corpses in coffins. The entire mine has been closed off until further notice. The town mayor would likely know more, or if nothing else, has a plan to deal with the crypt.” Sips nodded. Mine wasn’t really his business but knowing if the town was suddenly going to be attacked by zombies were. And while most of the miners had nothing but rumors and stories, Sips knew better than to just dismiss the crypt as the ruins of an older time. It was never that simple.

As for the registry Sips chuckled. ”The registry mostly for my sake. Helps me remember the names of my patrons, who to pin tabs on, and who I might need to throttle if you shit on the bed or something. Of course only me and Revas over there actually get to see the registry, so it’s not like I just hand it over to whoever asks. And sure, people could use fake names or give no name all the time, just means I’ll make up one for them like ass-hat or bitch-face. Honesty is the best policy you see.” When Darunia asked for a cup of the Dancer and Prancer, the barmaid fetched it while Sips prepared a cup for Darunia. ”We sell this one by the shot. It’s powerful stuff even for an elven wine. Any more than that and I’ll have to haul you to Dormic. Anyways five silvers for the shot.”

@The Large Dumbo

---

When Katherine arrived to the Drunken Dragon, she was greeted by one of the barmaids. When she asked about Inderhaven she seemed surprised at first, but then pointed towards a trapdoor off in the corner of the room. It was dark and blended well into the floor, so well that if you weren’t actively looking for it you could easily miss it. ”That entrance leads to one of the tunnels into Underhaven but well… Just be careful. The townguard can’t help you down there.”

Even so, Katherine would continue down the dirt hall. Her eyes would allow her to see in monochrome through the black, dank smelling place, until she’d turn the corner and run into a ghastly sight; at a fork in the road, right at the center appeared to be a young boy pinned to the wall with wooden spikes, blood trickling down his mouth and arms. He only had one wing on his right side, the other wing apparently gone. His eyes were partially opened and he seemed to be dead.

@Pyromania99

---

And of course the first person Nartur saw was another orc. A gruff looking man, twice her size, with muscles as big as a ham hock and teeth as sharp as knives. Oddly clean as if he brushes a lot. She looked Livia up and down and chuckled. ”Wot, does she owe ya or sumthin? Da boss might be a bit busy considerin she’s workin up a sweat already, but I guess if he wanna go fer a tussle ye can wait in line.” The orc walked away, leading Livia to a little clearer space in the barracks.

The place smelled of sweat and grim, given considering that laborers and working class people lived here, and such roughneck fellows had their own ways to entertain themselves, namely with roughhousing. Bunks have been cleared out for the patrons of the barracks, most of whom were drunk miners, formed a circle around a couple of brawlers. Sure enough standing at the center was Nartur, brawling with another orc of equal statue to the one Livia was speaking to.

Nartur clapped both hands around the orcs head, stunning him for a moment as she pulled his head low right as she drove her knee into his face, breaking off one of his tusks and sending him sprawling onto the floor. Nartur went up to him ready to continue the beating until others pulled the unconscious orc away, causing her to shout at him. ”And that’s why I’m the boss! So next time brush your goddamn teeth or I’ll break every last one of them!” Evidently Nartur was a stickler for dental hygiene. She turned to the others in the crowd and called them out. ”Who else wants a dental appointment?! Free removal right here right now!”

@Rune_Alchemist

---

”B-B-Bloodhawks huh? Y-You should be careful… They hunt around t-t-t-this time.” The young man said as Ethan was heading out to leave. Before he did he asked for some sort of knapsack or backpack, which the young man nodded again and went to the back. He took some time just like before, and soon enough he returned with a rather dusty looking traveler bag. Big enough to fit the sack Ethan was given and seemed serviceable enough. ”It’s um uh…” The boy seemed very confused and uncertain, and so he raised his hand to Ethan and showed three fingers. ”T-T-Three gold?” Seemed more a question than an answer. This kid didn’t actually know how much this backpack costed.

@Searat

@Lucius Cypher

Ethan lets out a soft hum as he discerns the quality of the bag. It took him a couple seconds but he sees the true worth of the bag underneath its dusty exterior, the boy chose a quality bag. Albeit, a bag that was often used. He notes the number of scratches and scuffs the pack had and if Ethan were to speak his mind, looked like its been through a couple of wars or so and still looked like it could handle a number more wars before giving out. 'Three gold pieces for a bag this reliable? This must be a farce of some sort.' He thinks to himself. Ethan then fixes his gaze upon the young man carrying the bag and tries to discern if the man was joking with him. The boy seemed to be nervous that Ethan was staring at him intently, but the look in his eyes was honest and without ill intent. Just as he was about to speak, the young man reaffirmed that he was sticking to the price of three gold pieces and not a copper coin less. It seemed that he was hellbent on three, so Ethan shrugged. Opened his small satchel and took three gold pieces and placed them onto the table and took the dusty bag from the young man. Putting it off as an act of generosity to a first time customer.

After patting off the layer of dust on the bag, he opens the pack and places the satchel of ingredients within. Content with his purchase he walks out of the general store but not without thanking the young store owner. "I thank you for your generosity, sire. May the goddesses of Joy and Fortune smile upon you." Once outside he looks at the children and offers them a friendly smile and a tip of his fancy hat to greet them. Though he would have loved to talk to the children, he had little daylight left to burn and he had yet to pick up the second order. If Ethan wanted to reach the last boat to Frontier Town, he couldn't afford to leisurely dawdle around here. With a quick glance to his corrected map, he then jogs out of the town towards his second destination at a brisk pace.

---

@Lucius Cypher

"Twenty seconds. That's actually... Pretty good. Most take thirty or more, assuming they don't trip and fall in the process. You're showing a lot of promise Kael! Now then, follow me, I'll show you to our water area."

That was, in fact, MUCH better than Kael was expecting.  Nonetheless, he was greatly relieved when Ashley brought him to the garrison's water reserves. Parched from all the hard work, and hot from the cumbersome set of armor, Kael greedily chugged the mug Ashley had handed him the moment it touched his hands.

”Drink up and breathe. We’ll work you hard but that doesn’t mean we want you dying out there. The next test is going to be simply lifting weights. We’ll start small, about three pounds or so, but gradually increase them.”

Spending the next several minutes refreshing himself, Kael was raring to go.  This next task seemed easy enough. "Three pound weights? No problem." he said with a smile as he rubbed his hands together.  Picking up the weights, Kael attempted to mimic the same motion Ashley had demonstrated; slow punch before pulling her fist back into a ready position. Seeing how easy the first few were, the young man increased the pace, the sooner he could get through this, the sooner he could begin the REAL training. 

As he continued to crank up the pace, the slow, precise strikes that he'd started with, had devolved into a maddened flurry. By the time he had finished, Kael was actually pretty tired. It probably would've been smart to pace himself better like Ashley had said.... Regardless, he turned toward the red haired dwarf, ready for whatever was next on the list.

@Lucius Cypher

---

---

Spirits, Orcs were big up close.

She had ever actually met one before outside of a brief encounter with Nartur but she hadn't thought much of it then. He was more well built than a barn and teeth that could probably rip flesh without a thought. Clean, too. Must take care of himself. His grammar left a lot to be desired though. That gruff accent nearly made her ears bleed. So grating.

"Ah, thank you." Livia politely replied as the Orc led her further into the barracks. Tussle? Well, she wasn't looking for a fight but she had no illusions she might very well have to at least attempt it to get the Hashish resin. At least he was cooperative so far. That was good. What wasn't good however, was the absolutely horrendous smell of the barracks. The place absolutely smelled of sweat. Unsurprising, giving what it was for, but it still caused her nose to scrunch unconsciously as she followed the orc leading her. Probably made her stand out more than she already did, and she soon found out what the orc meant by 'tussle'

Standing in the center of a cleared out space, Nartur was currently in a brawl with one of her subordinates. In a rather impressive display of physical and combative prowess, the Orc drove her knee into the face of the other one, breaking one of his tusks in the process. Sprawled out on the floor, he was helpless as Nartur gave him a thorough beat down, using him as a living punching bag until a few other orcs dragged the unconscious one away.

Note to self: Don't piss of the Orc. Now or never she supposed.

"Well," Taking in a breath, Livia decided to test her luck, taking a single step into the makeshift ring. "I'm quite confident my teeth are fairly well maintained." Livia began in a friendly, familiar tone as she gave the Orc a suggestive smirk. "But I certainly wouldn't mind giving you a personal showing of how good they are if you're giving free exams." The implication on some levels there were obvious she hoped.

---

---

Katherine had no problems for the most part. Her natural ability to see in the dark was a boon in this case. Well, should be. She was use to the life of dirt, grime and squalor but times have changed greatly. She'd been living the noble life for the better part of eight years. Still though, the dirt walls didn't seem to be... What one might consider stable. She was no engineer, but she had learned quite a few thing over the years. It didn't matter too much to her as long as she didn't get squished under them. Soon enough, she came upon an interesting sight. It was a boy. "What a sad little piece of history." The idea of wings, well with this case wing, seemed to clash with what she would have expected in this place. At first she would have considered that only she'd have seen things like Tieflings or kobolds down here, but this was outside of her expectations. "Guess she wasn't wrong when she said it was a bit rough down here."

Her initial thought was to walk past the body but she stopped in front of the boy for some reason as she was about to pass to the rightward passage. Her body was telling her that he was similar to her. An Aasimar, if she had to gander a guess at it. She had a rather annoying feeling in her gut. One that told her to just keep walking and contradictory also told her to try and help the little unfortunate being. Perhaps she felt a bit of kinship for the as, aside herself, he was the first of her kind she had encountered though by her account, he seemed to lack some of the... Dreaded fiendish hints she had but, nonetheless, she moved to get a closer look at the boy. "I would say you've lived the charmed life, but you current circumstances lead me to believe otherwise."

He was pinned to the wall good, but nothing Katherine couldn't remove with a measily amount of her flimsy strength. She struggled a bit with him as she set him in a sitting position on the floor. He seemed damaged. Luckily she had since childhood been able to heal small wounds. Paper cuts and the like. She placed her hand against the boy's chest and channeled some of her innate power, slightly healing him. After she used whatever power she had, she checked on the boy's condition of whether he was alive or not. He seemed dead enough earlier... Still, she might just carry him back to town either way. "What sort of messes do I involve myself in? I should have just walked on by, but here I am. Such an annoying whim I feel today." She muttered to herself.

The young boy waved goodbye to Ethan as he continued his job for Sips. The sun was still up but definitely falling, with any luck Ethan might be able to reach the second village before nightfall. From what his map showed, there should be a stone bridge and a creek about half an hours up ahead. Still sore from his run from the Bloodhawks, it would be incredibly difficult for Ethan to try and push himself anymore than he already is right now. If he tried chances are he’ll just end up even more tired. At least he had a bag to hold the supplies, as well as a torch from Myrn. Either way Ethan would eventually find the bridge and the creek. And a sleeping ogre. The big lug was just snoozing on the middle of the bridge, snoring loud enough for Ethan to have heard it before he saw the giant grotesque monster.

The creek was much deeper and much faster than the map would indicate as well; while only ten feet wide, the water was fat moving and deep, more like a stream or even a narrow river rapid. Either way it would be difficult for Ethan to pass, unless he wishes to test his luck to sneak pass the ogre.

@Searat

---

Ashley smirked, watching Kael flail in the air. He did the classic rookie mistake of going all out instead of focus on his technique. Barely ten seconds into the punching and he was throwing sloppy, messy swings that wouldn’t even hurt a drunkard. Kael’s poor technique wasn’t just observed, by felt as well; Kael would feel a soreness in his wrists due to the weights straining his hands and fingers. But the training wasn’t over yet. Ashley took the three pound weights and handed Kael the five pounders.

”Here are the five pounders. Just like before, steady punches. Technique is what’s most important here! You aren’t going to hurt anyone throwing sloppy punches not matter how many you can put out there. You’ll likely just end up breaking your arms with attacks like that. Remember, twenty strikes each hand, one after the other.”

Ashley took the three pounders into her hands and did the training alongside Kael, though going at a much slower pace so he could see the proper punch technique. As she was training him, seemed that most of the other trainees had left for lunch, leaving the burly Ork to watch Kael’s training from a distance.

@Guy0fV4lor

---

When Livia approached there was silence. Wasn’t unusual for the women in the group to join the brawling (Nartur was hardly the only female miner, she was just the only orc female), but Livia certainly didn’t look like a miner. Too skinny, too noble. Some were concerned she was here to shut down their little brawling circle. Other were already placing bets. A lot betting on Nartur but a few gambling souls willing to put money on Livia, thinking she has some trick up her sleeve.

Nartur simply glowered at Livia. She recognized her from the Mayor’s place. She didn’t know what Livia was doing there, but she could recognize nobility when she saw them. Lucia’s words just confirmed it; those aristocratic types always had a way with words. At least Livia wasn’t one of those sniveling mechavalian types. ”Heh. You got a pretty mouth, princess. Be a shame to see you kiss a fist.” Nartur crossed her arms and looked to Livia. The crowd continued to be quiet. ”Unless you’re here to donate your teeth, I imagine you got some business with me. We’re both busy women so just speak plainly.”

@Rune_Alchemist

---

The boy wasn’t dead, but as far as Katherine knew he wasn’t doing great either. The young aasimar stirred slightly, his eyes opening to see Katherine’s face. When he opened his eyes completely he seemed almost surprised to see Katherine. ”... Mama?” The child reaches up to touch Katherine to make sure she was real. He seemed completely mesmerized by her appearance. He sat up and looked down at himself. Though his clothes were dirty, he seemed okay now. He touched the bloodied spots and he didn’t seem to feel any pain from there.

The young boy looked up to Katherine with big, innocent eyes. Despite what he just been through he seemed to still have some shred of hope. ”Who are you?” The child tries to stand but falls onto his butt. His legs felt numb, likely due to whatever predicament resulted in him being impaled on the wall. He just looked up to Katherine expectantly.

@Pyromania99

Shem'et listened to the orc's heavy accented, irritable rant. With every other word that fell from his mouth the feline eyes lit up with a realization. So it was you, damned Puck who made me lose my trek and go around in circles! That won't do. Without saying a word to the orc the Tabaxi swirled around and relying on her feline grace, made a grab for the pixie. Since the tiny creature was without a doubt pretty svelte Shem hoped the element of surprise will be on her side. And luckily enough, it was! Finishing her one-eighty the crafter ended up with a hand full of pixie.

"Now then, mistress pixie!" Shem'et purred ominously, showing off her needlepoint feline teeth. "It would appear you've been a very, veeeeerrrry naughty pixie!" Shem turned to the orc and presented her hand, clutching the pixie. "Isn't that right, Master orc?!" The Tabaxi brought her hand back to eye level and squared the tiny pixie with a hard stare. "So you have two options." Shem paused for effect. "One, I give you to my friend the orc here to do with you as he pleases." Another pregnant pause. "Or two... You stop messing with people's sense of direction while in the forest... And... You help me and this feathery elf gentlemen here find what we are looking for." Shem'et unsheathed her index finger claw and pointed it at the pixie. "And don't get any ideas about double-crossing us!" The crafter glanced at the orc. "What do you say, Master orc? Will you leave this one for me to punish if she helps you get back to wherever you need to get back?"

@Lucius Cypher

Ethan didn't know if he stood at the foot of the bridge for ten seconds or for ten minutes. He just couldn't comprehend the situation that presented itself to him."An ogre...of all the things, it had to be an ogre." Ethan said incredulously. First it was getting lost, then the blood hawks that nearly killed him. Now an ogre decided to take a nap on the only bridge that led to the second down. It seemed that he had done something to gain the ire of the god of fate. Ethan tried to wipe the tiredness from his face as he discerned the length of the creek. It seemed that it was more of a miniature rapids, and Ethan was not a fan of deep water. Yes, he could float but the act of swimming was beyond him. Living in a landlocked continent had its fair share of disadvantages too. With a tired sigh he looks toward the sleeping form of the ogre and decides that the best course of action was to sneak past the brute.

'This is stupid. This is stupid. This is stupid.' Ethan repeated the mantra in his head over and over again as he tried his best to move as gently and quietly as he could past the limbs of the sleeping ogre. It took him about four minutes of sneaking to finally move past the ogre's prone form. He smiles in relief as he finally reaches the other side of the ogre, but as fate would have it, Ethan would stumble and fall flat with a loud thud. It seemed a loose stone would be the reason he fell. "Oh Istus above, why do you hate me so?" Ethan muttered to himself in despair.

@Lucius Cypher

---

---

Oh good, she got her talking at least. Hopefully this trend would continue. She just had to play her cards right and she could perhaps do this with minimal interruptions and fist-eating. Judging from the murmurs though, it seemed like they were expecting a brawl. Hopefully she could avoid that.

"Well if it was your fist I certainly don't think I'd mind too much, but very well." Livia replied with an amused smile before clearing her throat lightly. "I am Livia Fiore, and I have two things I would potentially like to discuss with you. Barthen informed me that you may have some Hashish resin you would perhaps be willing to sell. Secondly, I am traveling out of the town here after this and I was looking for some skilled help." She smiled. "And you left quite the impression on me back in the Mayors house."

---

---

"I'm no one special really and definitely not your mother. I've never seen another Aasimar before, so I found it would probably be distasteful to let you rot here." Katherine said, attempting to sound disinterested. She looked over the boy for a bit to make sure she wouldn't dirty herself too badly with blood. Figuring it be annoying to not have a name for him she decided to speak to that.

"My name is Katherine Lindall." No reason to have Fiore on her name right now. "What is your name? If I helped you and got you to the surface, would I be able to drop you off with a healer? I have something I need down here, though your situation makes me have a slight unease about it." She rather hoped she wouldn't end up like this kid. Perhaps she's let her demonic heritage speak for itself whilst down here... Supposing they didn't like Aasimar.

---

That was nice, someone who didn't assume he could already do things he couldn't. "A discovery in the mines? That is odd, and intriguing." Then Dormic spoke of the tree, an area around it radiating strong magics, and Sihlas guessed that the source was the tree from the sound of it. He leaned in slightly as the man extended his hand and spoke the word 'flame' in a soft tone. Immediately after he spoke his fist was engulfed in a small ball of fire, slightly bigger than his hand, yet it clearly wasn't causing him any harm. Despite it being fire, it only glowed with enough light to to lightly illuminate their area.

Sihlas paused a moment as he stared at the flame, then recalled a spell he had read of before, "Hmm, 'produce flame' is the name I read about that spell. It was in one of my study books about druidic, or druidic-like, magic. It would make sense for it to be druidic magic considering where you learned it." The young scholar couldn't hide the twinkle in his eye, the part of him eager to learn magic starting to show, "I will have to visit that place myself to see what I can learn, maybe will someone else for more security. But first I think I'll see about that mine discovery, its closer and is a bit more of an immediately concern for the town, which means it is very unlikely I'll be alone."

Standing from his seat once finished with his water, Sihlas held out a hand to shake with Dormic and then Ntaj, "It was good to meet you two, its always nice and reassuring to have my first experience in a settlement be meeting friendly individuals like yourselves." He shook his head with a sigh at some of the other... less than friendly receptions he'd had before in other places, "I guess I will speak to the mayor about what's in the mines, and maybe see about a place to sleep tonight, whether indoors or out. Do you know where I can find the man? Or woman? I'd assume at the mayor's house."

"Do forgive my inquisitiveness," Darunia said, as he looked at the Elven wine. Five silver still seemed a bit much... Ah, well. He placed another gold piece down onto the table before grabbing and slowly sipping on the drink. Though he hadn't had an inclination for alcohol in quite some time, this was a night of celebration. He set the glass down for a moment. Perhaps he should investigate the Underdark. It seemed like it may be his best shot in... wherever this was. While he was at it, it may be in his best interest to prod some of the miners should any of them be around. Of course, he had ten days to get adjusted. He needed to find the most efficient routes to and from all of these places he would be doing business at while he was on the surface. Darunia took a slow sip from the glass, forming a mental list of objects he needed to gather hastily.

The first thing he needed, for sure, was a map of the town. Navigating by himself and finding places to loop around and throw off any potential harassers may prove to be very useful in extending his stay here. It would also help him figure out where the proper residential areas were, as well as the mines. These places would be very key to his survival.

The next thing he needed to grab were some weapons. He trusted the guards here about as far as he could throw them; they were novices, inexperienced. Troublesome, even. If he was going to navigate the city, he needed to gather something that he could use to protect himself. A slender blade, like the one he had practiced with so long ago, would work, but he knew those were terribly expensive... Arms like what the guards were using would suffice.

Finally, he needed to grab some protection. The tatters he was wearing were good for fending off the cold, but cloth would do very little against a blade to the gut. He could try to steal some... No, that wouldn't do. He'd have to buy his own pair, or at least something that would give him even an ounce of protection. Maybe a shield? They were quite expensive as well... Darunia took another drink. How troublesome this process was turning out to be. He sat in silence until he finished the drink, at which point he stood up.

"I appreciate your helpfulness," Darunia said slowly. "I'm afraid I need some time away from the din of the bar... May I trouble you one last time to show me as to where my room is?" A bit of a mental break was all he needed before he could hit the streets of this city once more.

Damn double post. Here's a picture of a cat.

The pixie was shocked and frankly afraid when Shem'et actually managed to grab her. Dodging the green man's attacks were easy, to the pixie he moved like a particularly lazy turtle. But the cat was faster and the little fey didn't realize that Shem'et would so quickly turn on her. The tabaxi proceeded to make demands that the pixie didn't understand, and her scared expression started to turn fearful. The orc was far less willing to negotiate than the tabaxi was and simply raised his oar over his head. "Enuff talk! Just smash da bug!" Between all of this shouting, the pixie screamed at the top of her lungs fearfully, Shem'et's hand would feel uncomfortably warm, and suddenly the entire area around them exploded into pixie dust.

The first to drop was the orc. Before he could get a swing at the pixie his vision got blurry, his grip weakened, and he fell to the side. Shem'et was the second to get hit; her grip would also feel weakened enough for the fairy to easily fly out before Shem'et would also fall asleep on the forest floor. Alas in her panic, the pixie herself was the third victim of her slumber spell; she barely was able to get more than five feet, hidden underneath a toadstool, before she too fell asleep. Jarynth was the fourth to feel the effects of the spell as a magical slumber washed over his body and made his eyes feel weak. For a moment at least. A second later he'd still be wide awake, unaffected by the sleep spell. He would see a sleeping orc, a slumbering tabaxi, and if he looked carefully he would see a tiny fairy curled up on a mushroom.



@ihinka@Black Keys

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As Ethan sneaked around the slumbering ogre, and before his eventful meeting with the loose stone, he would spot something odd on the ogre that wasn't immediately obvious when he would first spy upon the ogre's prone back; a glimmering greatsword, which the ogre held close to his body. It was no mere rusted blade possibly looted off a ruined battlefield; this blade was immaculately made, as if forged from moonlight. It's soft, inviting glow would distract Ethan just long enough for him to stumble, and in the process awaken the ogre. The beast lazily stirred, yawning loudly as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. The beast looked at Ethan with indifference as he sneezed, blowing a large glob of mucus right into the young man's face. "Sorry."

The ogre blinked and looked around. He seemed to be thinking about something before looking back at Ethan. "Uh. Garg sorry. Um..." Uncertainly, the ogre reached over the side of the bridge and pulled out a handful of tall water grass, handing it to Ethan. Presumably to wipe his face. "Clean face wif dis?"

@Searat

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"My name? It's..." The boy seemed to wince when he tried to say his name and when Katherine mentioned taking him to the surface he stood up and hugged her tightly. "No! I can't go up there! They... They don't want me up there! That's why I'm down here. That's why I came down here but they..." The boy seemed to have quite a grip on Katherine, relative to his size anyways, making it almost impossible for her to get out without a bit of a struggle. "Bad people up there, they don't want me so they put me down here. But when I tried to go up there they chased me down here... I didn't mean to cause any trouble, I was just looking around and then..." The boy seemed to started crying, gripping Katherine's skirt tighter as he buried his face against her body.

@Pyromania99

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Dormic and Ntaj shook the older gentleman's hands and nodded. "It's no trouble at all! Out here in the wilderness, civility is what separates us from the beasts. If you do wish to meditate at the grand tree, please do come find me! While I'm sure some of the others in the village could lead you to it, I take it upon myself to make sure it's well cared for, not to mention it's a fair bit away from the town. While not dangerous in and of itself, a place with that much magical energy can be volitile to even the most subtle of actions. As for the mayor, his name is Nicolas, and his home is near the Town Hall. It's the the largest house nearby. If you see a lot of cats you're going in the right direction. And I'm sure if you can make yourself useful to some of the townsfolk, they may help you find accommodations for tonight. Why, if you can't, simply come find me and I'll see about getting you set up my camp. It's not exactly as comfortable as an inn's bed, but it'll at least keep you out of the elements." With the directions given to Sihlas, he should have no problems finding the mayor's home.

Assuming Sihlas heads straight to the mayor's house, he'd in fact find the mayor quite easily. He was already outside of his home tending to a small garden in front of his home. It was mostly just flowers, which had a few kittens frolicking and lounging around. The man's granddaughter was also nearby trying to get the cats to follow her, however they seemed far more interested in playing among themselves or rolling in the dirt. When she would spot Sihlas she would immediately go and hide behind the mayor, alerting the old man to Sihlas's presence. He would greet him with a polite smile and a wave.

@Kangutso

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"Peh, I ain't got problems if you got questions. Better to look naive now than stupid later." Sips says as he puts the bottle of wine away. A few more townsfolk came in and sat at the bar, so Sips simply gave Darunia a curt nod and went to deal with the new customers. The barmaid who had been serving Darunia most of this time went up to him and motioned him to follow her. "I'll show you to your room, right this way." She would lead the drow upstairs where there were more rooms lining the walls, eight in total. She took Darunia to room 02. "Here is your room, and this will be your key." Digging around her apron she handed Darunia a small bronze key with the number 02 etched onto it. She opened the door and revealed the room inside. It was fairly sparse and small; there was a wooden bed pushed into the corner of the room, a small wooden chest at the foot of the bed, a chamber pot at the opposite corner next to the door, and a window with a single curtain. The bed itself had a wooden frame and a single stretched out sheet of linen to serve as a mattress, with a quilt blanket also made of linen and a pillow with some sort of firm but spongy material inside. The wooden chest had a lock on it that could be opened with the room key. The chamber pot was made of clay and had a lid.

"Breakfast is between dawn and mid morning. You'll know it's mid morning when the ships start moving out of the docs. Dinner starts at dusk and ends around the same time we close the bar. If if you need anything for your room such as clean linens or toss out your pot, simply ask me, Sips, or one of the other girls and we'll come as soon as possible. Please try to keep the noise down as much as possible at night for the sake of our other guests. Just as well, if any of the other guests are disturbing you in any way please don't hesitate to come to Sips or Revas and make a complaint."

@The Large Dumbo

---

Nartur snorted. "Bah. You aristocratic types think you can just waltz in here and flaunt your wealth and influence, thinking that'll be enough to sway everyone to be your toadies. I know your game, girl, and we're not about to be pawns in your schemes. Strangers coming in thinking they can own the town just because they were big shots back at home won't last long here. You're in no position to start making deals with us just because that's how things worked where you came from. Here in the frontier, you gotta earn respect." Sure enough everyone here seemed uninterested in Livia beyond the possibility such a dainty girl was going to engage in fisticuffs with Nartur. They were unaffected by Livia's air of nobility and simply saw her as a strange tart coming here asking for drugs and minions.

"There's only two ways you get this hash; you pay for it just like we did, or you earn it fair and square. So either show us the gold, or show some grit."

@Rune_Alchemist

@Lucius Cypher

---

---

Well, that went about as well as she had excepted.

It seemed Nartur wasn't quite so receptive to negotiations. Going so far as to even accuse an honest woman such as herself as scheming and using them as pawns. Here she was hoping she was smarter than that. Oh well. If she'd have to get a little forceful, she would. If Nartur wanted her to show some grit, then she could. She wasn't going to be intimidated by this Orc. Her mother was far scarier than this half brain dead fool could ever be.

"Hmph. Is that how you treat all your guests, Miss Nartur? Or just the ones prettier than you?" There was a definite hint of smugness in her voice as she said that. She'd have liked to have said more too, but she needed to keep it short and too the point or else it'd just go in one ear and out the other. "Accusing me of scheming when I was just looking for a good time with you and to honestly purchase your services and Hashish Resin. Here I thought you orcs were the honorable sort." Taking steps closer to Nartur, she placed herself right in front of the Orc with very little regard for her own safety at this distance.

"I was even planning on spending all my coin here, but fine, you want me to show you 'grit', miss Nartur?" She reached up and grabbed the orcs ear, and twisted. "Fine. I'll play your game instead. I'll take a single bundle of Hash. I will pay you five gold for it, as well as for your services escorting me out of town...if you don't, well," Livia paused for a moment. "I suppose I'll have to tell all everyone how uncooperative you orcs are being. That wouldn't be good for your reputation now would it? Does that sound more palatable to you, or will you continue to be uncooperative?"

She had no idea if this would work or not, and quite honestly she wasn't sure she'd survive if this completely enraged the Orc. However...if it did work, and she could get on good terms with them, even shaky terms, then she could easily make use of them later.