[IC] Forgotten Realms

Kingdom of Gadabastia

The ancient kingdom of Gadabastia, a land of mysterious magic and strange, otherworldly beasts. There are many holds scattered throughout the land, but all answer to the high king Randar Valanthian III and his queen, Victoria. Under their supreme reign, the kingdom has experienced an extended period of peace and prosperity. Even the lower class enjoy a high standard of living within the city walls of the kingdom'a capital, Zespah. Business for the merchant class has expanded as well as their wealth, and the nobles live a life of marvellous luxury.

It was not always the case, however, and before the kingdom was united, Gadabastia was a relatively untamed wilderness. There was little communication and trade between the separate holds, and even the roads were considered unsafe. Trolls, Ents, giant rhino and other magical beasts had settled the land. Uniting the kingdom was a magnificent feat that sent the humans into a new Era, and the Valanthian bloodline became legendary for it.

The kingdom has survived many dramatic events since it's unification under the Valanthian bloodline, including attacks from dragons and invasion by foreign armies from exotic lands. The heir to the throne has always been well educated and recieved the best training, in all aspects of lordship. This is well accepted by the people as the reason for the kingdom's great success.

Now, a new threat to the peace of the kingdom emerges, and high king Randar seeks a team of brave adventurers for a dangerous mission...

A massive portal has seemingly opened itself just outside of the capital, leading to another world. Although nothing eventful has happened so far, the people of the kingdom are worried, and have an understandable fear of the unknown. The king has promised great reward to the adventurers who are willing to enter the portal, find out why it has opened, and seal it once again.

Are you up to the task?

---

An elderly farmer nonchalantly cruises toward the grand city of Zespah from atop his wagon, nearly overflowing with vegetables from the recent harvest. It's the middle of spring in the kingdom of Gadabastia, and the sun shines brightly overhead, blanketing the landscape with it's life-giving warmth. A network of roads extend from the capital in all directions, weaving through the grassy, rolling hills and off into the horizon.

To the north, far off into the distance, the road disappears into a precarious looking mountain range. The peaks extend high above the clouds, and the tallest of the mountains are capped with snow. Travellers and miners from the north claim to have recently seen ice wyverns flying about the mountain tops, although nothing has been confirmed yet. There is always the chance that these are just rumors being spread with some sort of hidden political agenda.

Westward, beyond the grassy hills surrounding Zespah, the dry plains of Adimar extend even further. There is little rainfall to the west, and therefore very little travel on the roads in that direction. The desert of Gi'Thai lies at the edge of the plains, although this is beyond sight from the city of Vespah. The inhospitable sand dunes of the desert are said to go on forever. Still, the occasional merchant rides from that direction, with mysterious origins and a rare selection of exotic wares.

To the east, the road curves around lakes of various shapes and sizes before eventually reaching the Silver Ocean. Travellers and a great deal of fishermen come from the east with seafood, pearls, and other coastal wares to trade. There are also stories of enormous sea creatures spotted around the ancient islands. Apparantly, piracy is becoming a booming business as well, making the sea a dangerous but rewarding place to adventure.

To the south lies the fabled, enchanted Brayweave forest. It is filled with tall, gnarled trees and moss covered earth. It is mainly herbalists and alchemists arriving from the south, eager to sell their concoctions. Occasionally, even a wizard will make the trek to Zespah from beyond the forest, where the white citadel floats among the clouds.

Arriving at the enormous city gate, the farmer steered his wagon in line to be checked into the capital. Guards equipped with heavy plate armor and bearing the heraldry of the Valanthian bloodline casually searched the various travellers as they passed through. The heraldry depicted a magnificent lion roaring triumphantly over a crossed sword and chalice, on a purple backdrop trimmed with gold. It was business as usual in the kingdom.

Just within the city gates, outlined by the thick, towering walls and towers mounted with devious siege weapons, was the bustling market district. Huge crowds of people, nearly brushing arms, scour the market stalls as they conduct their daily shopping. It was here that much of the gossip and rumors of the kingdom spread, even with the official news printed and made freely available by the King. The sound of merchants haggling prices and discussing their wares, along with the idle chatting, made this a fairly noisy area to be.

Surrounding the market district are various housing districts, consisting of giant buildings elegantly carved from whitewashed stone. It is clear that the architects here are highly skilled, their work being very clean and displaying great precision. At the end of the main road, leading directly through the market from the main gate, stand another set of gates. These are much smaller than those at the entrance to the city, but are outfitted with beautifully carved wooden double doors.

Behind them, many of the public amenities reside. Long, plain looking buildings contain the outhouses for the population, separated from everything else by a low stone wall. In the center of the public district, a beautiful garden is watered by servants, filled with flowers, bushes, and an assortment of trees. An enormous, cylindrical building with many floors contains the public library, and is known to be the largest collection of written knowledge in the kingdom.

A temple dedicated to the various gods also resides in this district, along with public bathing pools and water fixtures. Another impressively large building houses the engineering facility, where the best craftsmen, scholars, and even mages combine their talents and draft various prototypes for the king. Adjacent to it, the prestigious Valanthian school stands tall, where every citizen of the kingdom is eligible for a free, basic education in history, geography, mathematics, architecture, and more. There are also seperate, smaller buildings surrounding it for those wishing to pursue more specific knowledge.

The grandest of all buildings, however, is the Opal Keep, an impressive fortress resting upon a small hill where the king himself makes his home. Two large banners bearing the Valanthian heraldry are displayed on either side of its doors, and another flag waves valiantly in the wind atop it's spire. On either side of the keep are the barracks and armory, respectively. Here the Knights and nobles perfect their skill with all types of weapons and pursue the noble art of chivalry.

A smaller, more temporary building has been constructed at the base of the hill, with a sign displaying the need for some worthy champions. A handful of adventurers of different shape, size and even species wait outside this building, all tending to their equipment. Meanwhile, as two other adventurers duel in the courtyard, a representative of the king watches the display with keen interest. Despite being the capital of the kingdom and having the highest centralized population in the land, only a few brave adventurers have answered the king's request for aid this day...

[Diexsmiling]

[Accidental double post :/ ]

[Rice Porridge]

Astrophel

There were a few children in the scene outside of the building receiving adventurous hopefuls, most of them either playing or watching the duel. However, in the small line at the door, there was a child, likely in his preteens, standing in wait as well; the odd one out in an already-diverse group.

"Hmm," Astrophel knocked on the wooden exterior of the building. It seemed a bit shoddy, as if the city had just set it up a few days ago. He wouldn't have been surprised if it did, but Astrophel doubted that it was so poorly done for it to break under normal conditions. As he was thinking about this, the ring on his right hand let out a faint, pale purple flame-like glow.

"'Twould it not be wiser to stand over yonder?" A youthful voice--not too unlike his own, despite the archaic speech--entered his ears with a windy tone, as if whispered into his ears. Although that was the natural response from the people he knew, the concern was strangely touching to Astrophel when it came from his demonic friend.

"Thanks for worrying about me Aery, but it's fine," he whispered back. In reality, it would sound like Astrophel was talking to himself, but he didn't particularly care.

"F-fool, thy appetency for this one's companionship is going to thy head. 'Twas but to safeguard our contract, naught else."

"Well, thank you anyways, Aesrfel."

While Aesrfel began to spew out abusive words, Astrophel shifted the bag on his back. He could roughly tell where the contents were when he did this, but he'd mainly just taken them for his parents' ease of mind. Useful, yes, but nothing valuable nor anything he was particularly attached to; he'd often lose its contents in an accident, or have it confiscated upon entering a city.

In fact, the latter had almost happened to him at the gates. Since he was convinced that the guards were trying to extort him, Astrophel called them "the slimiest, most disgusting blackguards he'd ever had the displeasure of meeting" and booked it past them into the city. Used to running from his problems, he used the small alleyways and vertical paths(aka, climbing up walls) to escape. Thinking back, that was probably not the wisest choice he could have taken, but he had managed to get far away and deep into the city, and it wasn't likely that they were stupid enough to report that they were chasing a child who ran after they tried to extort him.

... Probably not anyways.

[Diexsmiling]

@Rice Porridge

Behind the child at the front of the line, an enormous creature resembling a minotaur waited rather impatiently. The behemoth's upper body was that of a yak, and even under it's thick green fur, it's bulging muscles were clearly evident. A battleaxe the size of a grown man was strapped to its back, and exquisitely carved golden jewellry adorned the beast's beard.

The yak man had just finished a rather heated debate with the young lady waiting in line behind him, a slender figure bearing a cloak and hood as black as night. She was only half as tall as the behemoth, covered in tightly fitted leather armor and strapped with various types of blades and knives from head to toe. Astrophel also observed a mysterious symbol, that of a snake coiled around a dagger, sewn into her gloves and boots. A rapier was loosely hanging from her utility belt, and a seemingly enchanted ruby pendant rested elegantly upon her chest.

"No, little lady. Axes are the best. Axes can cut, chop, cleave, hack, dismember... all a rapier can do is poke!" The yak man grumbled, stomping a hoof and snorting with discontent.

"Ha ha ha, don't be silly!" Replied the girl, chuckling with delight. "Rapiers are fantastic weapons, and they can do so much more than poking."

With a deadly flourish she drew her weapon, waving it about in the air with great skill and finesse. "I would like to see an axe that can simultaneously disarm an opponent, and pierce through their heart!"

After a few minutes of banter back and forth, the wooden door to the shack of champions finally opened, and a loud "Next!" was shouted from the inside. Within it's walls, various stations with three judges each examined the would be adventurers. Carefully, a scribe at each of these stations documented their abilities, names, background information, and any other relevant information that the King might be interested in.

The greeter at the door, garbed in white robes and the heraldry of the Valanthian empire, motioned for the next adventurer to move to one of these empty stations.

[Grnmachine]

Te-klak had been lying down in front of the shack- house?- for a few hours now. He'd stared at the sky, nibbling on some herbs he'd purchased earlier today. In the distance, or so it seemed, was an argument. It did not interest Te-klak, so he ignored it. Several others talked, argued and sparred as they waited, all of them ignored by the insectoid.

He simply stared up, enjoying the simple beauty of the skies and clouds, and occasional birds. It was something that never ceased to entertain him. Every cloud changed constantly, and yet, to this day, he's not seen a single cloud identical to one he's already seen. It amazed him. Despite the fact that clouds were so numerous, they had many different shapes and sizes, so many as to never repeat.

His eyes followed one cloud in particular. The winds blew south for the clouds today, and this particular cloud was in a hurry. It smashed into another cloud it seemed, and in a few short minutes it grew a tad darker. A thunderstorm was brewing. The forests could always use more water.

"Next!" A voice shouted. Te-klak turned his head, and remembered why he'd come here- more work. He sighed and sat up, making his way inside. He needed the work. The men in the robes escorted him into a room, where three people sat. "What's your name?" One of them said.

"Te-klak." He responded, plainly.

"Where do you come from?"

"The deserts in the west. Its where all my people are." He said. His voice revealed he was a bit bored.

"What do you do?"

"Mercenary work."

"What weapons do you use?"

Te-kalk, bored of talk, unsheathed a shortsword, and unshouldered his bow. "And daggers." he added.

"Do you have any magical prowess or unnatural abilities?"

Te-klak thought a moment, and shook his head.

"Anything else we ought to know?"

To the untrained eye, he nearly vanished into thin air, leaving a blur behind. The judges looked around for a few moments, before Te-klak spoke. "Up here." He said. He hung from the ceiling, behind the judges desks. "I've also been told that i'm good at finding things, even in the dark."

"W-well," One of the judges said, a little shaken at his speed. "Thank you. You certainly are a promising candidate!"

"Thanks." Te-klak responded. "But... does that mean I have a job?" he said, honestly.

"The king will decide once he's reviewed the notes." Said a judge.

Te-klak nodded and left the building. He found a spot and laid back down, watching the clouds. The thunderstorm he observed earlier was gone, but there were quite a few clouds to observe.

[shivershiver]

“No, no, no, MEREK. M-E-R-E-K. Sir Merek, Baron of Ashenfield. You know, where you get your mead from? Ashenfield Mead? No?”

Though he couldn’t see the guards faces through their closed helms, Sir Merek, Baron of Ashenfield was almost certain these two cretins preventing him from entering the capital were sniggering at him.

“Listen, certainly the King knows I’m here; I sent him a messenger last week. Just go and fetch the King, I’m sure he can clear up this little tax you’re trying to pull out of me.”

Any other lord or lady born into their title would have been clear past the city gates by now, supping in the King’s great hall, but Merek… Well, he didn’t have the authority, nor the coin to negotiate past the two heavily-armored guards. Truthfully, raising some coin was the only reason the baron found himself at the capital gates in the first place. Ashenfield was almost bankrupt after the gluttonous spending of the past baron, and though Merek had claimed his title, he claimed the fiend’s debts as well. Paying a hefty sum to these guards simply wasn’t an option.

“Fine, I don’t have time for this, let me just…” Merek began, reaching into his coinpurse, when he looked up to his right and end exclaimed, wide-eyed,”By the gods, A DRAGON!” The guards scrambled from their positions to get a better view while Merek grabbed his reins and spurred his horse forward. ”Hyah! So long fools!" he shouted as his white stallion galloped through the open portcullis and over the bridge. ”Don’t forget, today’s the day you were bested by Sir Merek!” The ragged baron’s voice trailed off he rode into the heart of the city. The guards shook their heads and turned to the endless line of peasants and merchants who had formed behind him growing restless from the delay.

Sir Merek rode through the city as if he were the king himself, smiling and waving to onlookers. He was met with nods of recognition and cheers, especially in the run-down lower districts filled with average citizens, but as he made his way towards the king’s keep, Merek received more scowls than grins. Still, he was blissfully unaware of the wealthy noblemen and women shaking their fists as his steed trotted along the cobblestone streets. Sir Merek looked quite out of place in the wealthy district, his ragged clothes, missing armor, and cut-up face a sharp contrast to the regal garb and flawless skin of the upper-class citizens of Zespah. Though Merek wasn’t extremely wealthy, he wasn’t always this disheveled. On the journey to Zespah, Merek was accompanied by his squire, Ergon. The man was perhaps 60 years old, a little long in the tooth for a squire, and spent most of his life as a thief, but wanted to change. Merek wasn't one to judge, and he took the fellow under his wing. One night while on the road, the baron was woken by some rustling by the campfire and managed to make out a group of ruffians making away with his supplies! Unarmed, he managed to defend himself and chase off the thieves, but not without losing a significant portion of his supplies. Dazed, Merek noticed his squire was missing, and feared he was captured, but heard faintly in the distance,"Merek ya bleedin’ fool, tis’ what ye git fer trustin’ strangers!" Merek shrugged and simply went back to sleep.

The baron finally reached the Opal Keep and spotted the temporary building erected where a ragtag group of ruffians and adventurers were queuing up. Merek received a letter from the king one-week prior begging for the brave baron’s help. Well, in truth, the decree was posted on the notice board in front of the tavern, and addressed any brave adventurer rather than him specifically, but still, Merek interpreted it as the king’s cry for Merek the Brave’s assistance. He led Stormy to a nearby hitching post and tied the stallion up before swaggering towards the shack. "Alright, alright, excuse me, pardon me, lemme through, knightly business and all that, king’s expecting me," Merek said as he pushed his way through the line. He finally squeezed through the crowd and into the building just as he passed a strange, ant-like creature with a couple more arms than him. Jeesh, bet that guy’s handy in a fight he mused before taking in his surroundings. He stood in front of a small, circular arena with a dirt floor, behind which was a great wooden table elevated on a platform about three feet high. He recognized the tall, slender man sitting in the center as one of the king’s aids, Valanthian heraldry stitched onto his long robe. Before the aid could open his mouth, Merek spoke. "Sir Merek the Brave, Baron of Ashenfield, at your service," he said, giving a lazy bow. "Heard the king needed me. Go ahead and tell’em I’m here.”

The king’s aid raised his eyebrow at the ragged champion before him. ”Hmm, yes. Well, Sir Merek, the king is occupied at the moment so you’ll be dealing with me. Now pray tell, what are your skills?" Any ordinary onlooker could detect the disdain dripping from the aid’s voice, but Merek hardly noticed.

”Skills? Come on, you haven’t heard of me? Merek the Brave? Slayer of Dragons? Destroyer of Urak? Guardian of the People? Etcetera, etcetera?" Merek was tempted to regale the aid with the exaggerated stories that accompanied his titles, but he managed to restrain himself.

The aid rolled his eyes. ”I’m afraid I haven’t. Now. Skills please.”

Merek scoffed. ”Well, I thought the king’s aids would be a little more cultured than this. But I’m more in the habit of showing rather than telling, and I’ll show you I can best any knight in this room, starting with…" Merek’s gauntleted finger stabbed out to an unassuming knight standing at the sidelines. "You, sir!" Just as he spoke, however, an armored knight two heads taller than anyone in the room and a neck thicker than Merek’s waist pushed his way through the crowd and stood in front of the knight Merek challenged. Oh boy.

The aid smirked as the hulking knight stared down at Merek, his eyes burning coals. ”Very well, Sir Merek. Clear the arena, lords and ladies, for a duel is afoot!”

[Diexsmiling]

@shivershiver

So you want a piece of me, eh little guy?" spoke the giant of a knight, curling the fingers of one hand into a fist and punching it into the palm of the other. A very broad smile spread upon the man's face, revealing two rows of gleaming white teeth.

A thick suit of heavy iron armor formed a protective shell around his body from top to bottom. It had to weigh a ton, because this guy's legs were the size of tree trunks, and the biceps he flexed looked like they belonged to an arm wrestling champion. There was a lot to cover.

The most revealing feature about the man, however, was the Valanthian emblem engraved onto the corner of his chestplate. It was only awarded to those who served their time in the kingdoms army honourably. He was retired military, and carried himself as such. The cape that draped itself down his back gave him a surprisingly elegant look.

Elegant, but powerful.

All eyes in the room were now focused on the two combatants, including the judges. Some of the other adventurers even began cheering Merek's name, impressed by his bold move to challenge the military veteran. It certainly wasn't the duel he was looking for, but at least he had earned himself some fans. Today, it seemed, the people would root for the underdog.

Feeding off the energy of the crowd, the gruff knight reached behind his back and unsheathed a devious looking mace. It wasn't in great condition, worn and chipped here and there, but that meant it had seen battle before. And judging from the knight's demeanor, he knew how to wield it.

The crowd that had assembled gasped as he did so, temporarily halting the chanting of Merek's name. Just moments later, however, he tossed the mace aside and readied his fists in front of his face. The judges took note of the knight's confidence, and the onlookers erupted with cheers yet again. The excitement of battle permeated through the air.

"Well, let's have at it then!" the knight rumbled, still smiling behind his goatee, ready to let his fists fly as he steadily closed in on his opponent.