Baklava"I'm just saying, try not to get your hopes up, okay? There are probably hundreds of Ikana Knights out there, so I'd say the odds of your dad being one of the prince's escorts is pretty slim," advised Zunari, taking a swig from his flask before offering it to Oliver, who refused. The young contractor and his employer sat on the edge of the small platform in front of the Clock Tower's (currently closed) upper entrance. With the preparations for the procession completed just in time, South Clock Town was already packed with spectators eager to witness the first public appearance of Ikana's royal family in over 25 years.
The parade path, blocked off by a series of gaudy golden fence-posts connected by a sturdy metal chain, began at the southern gate, wrapped around the Clock Tower, and continued through the northern park, finally ending at a small stage in front of the mayor's residence, where the Prince would be giving his highly anticipated speech to the eager masses. From their lofty perch, Oliver and Zunari could see the entire parade path. The two had elected to stay out of the crowd and watch from afar, more for the sake of comfort than anything else.
"I know, I know. I'm just excited to finally see some real Ikana Knights either way," added Oliver. "I doubt I'd be able to recognize Swiftblade even if he was there. My mother only ever told me he was handsome. I guess pictographs weren't in style back then," he mused, with a sigh. He secretly wished his mother could've been there with him, but he'd resolved to avoid dwelling on such thoughts. Oliver was surprised when Zunari, who was absolutely drowning in paperwork with all the contracts coming, offered to keep him company at the parade. At the end of the day, in Oliver's world of week-long acquaintanceships, Zunari was perhaps the only person Oliver considered a real friend.
"I'd wager he wouldn't be able to recognize you either, Ollie. Last time he saw you you were just a little baby. Now you're a slightly taller baby," smirked Zunari, rubbing his spindly black goatee.
"Oh, I'm a little toddler, am I? This coming from the guy who needs a custom made high chair just to make eye contact with clients?" sneered Oliver. It was true; Zunari was not blessed with even average height, something that the snide merchant-thief was loathe to discuss. An exotic looking little man, Zunari had strangely dark skin and beady black eyes that were somewhat enchanting, if a bit shifty. Perhaps to make up for his lack of physical ability, Zunari was a shrewd negotiator and a cunning thief; it was under Zunari's tutelage, in fact, that Oliver had developed his own brand of guile.
Before Zunari could retort, however, the low chime of the midday bells erupted from the Clock Tower behind the pair, startling both of them. Perhaps there was a reason why no one else found their spot so desirable. Nevertheless, shortly after the bells ceased, the sound of a lone trumpet echoed from the South gate, followed by the sound of distant drums. The Ikana had finally arrived, it would seem, and in a grand fashion at that. First through the gate were four bannermen, flanked by two drummers dressed in ceremonial battle garb. Next came twenty knights, marching in rows of five, armed with spears and tower shields. Compared to the conservative garb of the Clock Town locals, the Ikana seemed like they'd stepped right out of a museum. The armor of the Ikana had an exotic feel, to be sure; instead of plate mail and full helms, the Ikana favored elaborate headdresses, light chain armor, and elaborately decorated mantles like the one Oliver had inherited.
At last Prince Davos Du Ikana, atop an impressive white horse, came through the gate. His armor was perhaps the strangest of all; a chain cuirass with golden plate accents, a red cloth tabard-cloak bearing the Ikana Royal Family sigil in silver embroidery, and a fully enclosed helmet crafted from what appeared to be the skull of a fairly large wolf. At first the strange helmet shocked many onlookers (perhaps those who remembered a time when the Ikana were trully walking skeletons), but when the prince removed it with a grand flourish to reveal a human (and rather ruggedly handsome) face beneath, the crowd immediately erupted with applause.
Davos was flanked on both sides by two other mounted knights with elaborate skeletal headdresses and highly ornamented greatswords. These were likely the prince's first escorts, and they certainly looked the part. Both men were incredibly tall and muscular, so much so that their hardy black steeds seemed to be struggle under their sheer girth. After the Prince came another block of twenty nights, with two more bannermen bringing up the rear.
"The kingdom seems to be doing remarkably well for itself. Strange," wondered Zunari, scanning the ranks of the soldiers with a rather perplexed look on his face. Oliver gave no response; he was too busy searching the entire parade for a knight wearing a royal blue mantle like his own. Perhaps today would be the day he'd finally meet Sir Cecil Pike, the father who was nothing more to him than an old tattered cape and bunch of secondhand stories.
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some rill rill sassafrass going on in hurr
If it makes you feel any better, I'm willing to chalk this up to being entirely FM's fault, as usual. 99/100 times it's FM's fault anyway so n-beedy.
If it makes you feel any better, I'm willing to chalk this up to being entirely FM's fault, as usual. 99/100 times it's FM's fault anyway so n-beedy.
Prince of Seraphs said
I changed it some twenty hours ago.
Clearly some sassafrass goin down right hurr
#benicer
Prince of Seraphs said
Hey Chanda, FM, You guys didn't go into detail in the opening post about the fate of the Great Fairies. I assumed in my post that they are not around anymore but if that's wrong I can alter it.
Because Link never came to Termina in this timeline, the Great Fairies of the four regions were broken apart and never reassembled, so most assume they won't be coming back and it's really difficult to track down the stray fairies to complete the restoration. However, because the Clock Town fairy was only missing one fairy, someone found that one fairy and put her back together, so she's the only one left. She doesn't appear very often anymore. People still go to the shrine in North Clock Town for guidance, though, even if she doesn't always show up.
Oliver, being everyone's favorite character and undeniably the hero of this story, was built with survivability as the primary objective. Having the highest athletics skill in the current cast, he is able to flee from most conflicts if need be, but his superior stamina also allows him to fight longer than most everyone else too should he have his back up against a wall. His expert fleeing capabilities are bolstered by a major skill in acrobatics should he need to engage in le parkour, but this also gives him the edge in dodging attacks in combat (which is once again complimented by having the best athletics skill). In case he needs to hide instead of run, he has sneaking as a major skill. As a last resort, should he by some strange freak accident need to take a hit, I gave him light armor as a major skill to give him more bulk. Thievery was just a trade skill I threw in to flavor up his backstory.
As a specific counterbalance to prevent him from being #godmode, I also allotted his only means of damage output in his lowest tier, with one of the most skill intensive weapon types (long blade) as his weapon of choice. You're welcome. Unless "steel hummingbird" has recently become a character class, I don't think Oliver fits any established archetype.
I'm thinking that I may timeskip to the Prince's arrival soon if that's alright with everyone. If we could all get to some sort of resting point so our characters can "exit stage left," that will be great. The Prince's procession will begin at the south gate, go around the Clock Tower, enter North Clock Town, go through the park, and then end in front of the mayor's residence. After the prince is formally "received" by the mayor, he will give his speech, after which the ceremony will end and he will begin negotiations with the mayor in private.
As a specific counterbalance to prevent him from being #godmode, I also allotted his only means of damage output in his lowest tier, with one of the most skill intensive weapon types (long blade) as his weapon of choice. You're welcome. Unless "steel hummingbird" has recently become a character class, I don't think Oliver fits any established archetype.
I'm thinking that I may timeskip to the Prince's arrival soon if that's alright with everyone. If we could all get to some sort of resting point so our characters can "exit stage left," that will be great. The Prince's procession will begin at the south gate, go around the Clock Tower, enter North Clock Town, go through the park, and then end in front of the mayor's residence. After the prince is formally "received" by the mayor, he will give his speech, after which the ceremony will end and he will begin negotiations with the mayor in private.
Yeah, Prince, as long as dialogue and internal speech only utilize information that a character should actually know I'm fine with people using real names in their posts to avoid confusion. Such a thing is called narrative license, and it generally keeps things much clearer.
Oliver didn't seem to be nearly as amused with his reply as Marcus did. He openly frowned as the obnoxious sword-swallower ridiculed his request. Sure, perhaps it was a paper-thin lie, but they didn't have to be so mean about it. He threw another glance at the signpost to find that it was clearly advertising for the Rock Circus, which likely competed with this Black Marsh operation every year. So not only was his lie thin, it seemed, but it was also wholly absurd. Fantastic. At this point he could either pretend it was a joke, or just keep going with the lie. The former seemed much easier.
"Oh no, that was just a little joke. I've never met the guy personally, but if he competes against you guys he must be crazy," he smirked, hoping that she would play along with his alleged sarcasm. "My friend's name is actually Clyde Kenneth. Could I trouble you to write that in for me, again? Sorry about that," he apologized, handing the flier back to Lorelei, rather sheepishly. If he didn't try to get the flier made out to his imaginary friend, then he would be admitting to the past lies, and his retroactive joke disguise would fall through. It was a dangerous game at this point.
Oliver figured now would be a good time to get some information that might be slightly helpful to his cause with the book, and also make it seem like he was interested in whatever this circus had to offer. Two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.
"So you're the troupe's exotic dancer and he's your servant boy, right?" asked Oliver, even though he knew that the girl's companion was a performer due to his prominence on the poster. "Does your circus, by chance, have any worldly, psychic, clairvoyant, fortune-telling magician types who might know a lot about magic and such? I've recently found myself in need of some arcane consultation, as weird as that sounds," he explained, with an awkward chuckle. "I know, I don't look like the type who gets involved in such interesting pursuits, but I think this time the mystery managed to find me," mused the swordsman, trying to explain his situation without mentioning the book. She'd probably forgotten about the book right by now, right? Of course she had.
Oliver received an Autographed Black Marsh Circus Flier (Limited Edition)!
A flier for the Black Marsh Circus. Also lists show times for the carnival season. Includes limited edition Lorelei the Siren autograph. Estimated to be worth several hundred rupees... probably.
A flier for the Black Marsh Circus. Also lists show times for the carnival season. Includes limited edition Lorelei the Siren autograph. Estimated to be worth several hundred rupees... probably.
"Oh no, that was just a little joke. I've never met the guy personally, but if he competes against you guys he must be crazy," he smirked, hoping that she would play along with his alleged sarcasm. "My friend's name is actually Clyde Kenneth. Could I trouble you to write that in for me, again? Sorry about that," he apologized, handing the flier back to Lorelei, rather sheepishly. If he didn't try to get the flier made out to his imaginary friend, then he would be admitting to the past lies, and his retroactive joke disguise would fall through. It was a dangerous game at this point.
Lynette received an Autographed Black Marsh Circus Flier (Limited Edition)!
A flier for the Black Marsh Circus. Also lists show times for the carnival season. Includes limited edition Lorelei the Siren autograph. Estimated to be worth several hundred rupees... probably.
Oliver gave the Autographed Black Marsh Circus Flier (Limited Edition) back to Lynette.
A flier for the Black Marsh Circus. Also lists show times for the carnival season. Includes limited edition Lorelei the Siren autograph. Estimated to be worth several hundred rupees... probably.
Oliver gave the Autographed Black Marsh Circus Flier (Limited Edition) back to Lynette.
Oliver figured now would be a good time to get some information that might be slightly helpful to his cause with the book, and also make it seem like he was interested in whatever this circus had to offer. Two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.
"So you're the troupe's exotic dancer and he's your servant boy, right?" asked Oliver, even though he knew that the girl's companion was a performer due to his prominence on the poster. "Does your circus, by chance, have any worldly, psychic, clairvoyant, fortune-telling magician types who might know a lot about magic and such? I've recently found myself in need of some arcane consultation, as weird as that sounds," he explained, with an awkward chuckle. "I know, I don't look like the type who gets involved in such interesting pursuits, but I think this time the mystery managed to find me," mused the swordsman, trying to explain his situation without mentioning the book. She'd probably forgotten about the book right by now, right? Of course she had.
Oliver did his best to hold back a smirk as the girl's companion snapped at him for referring to Lynette as a mere celebrity, although he did muster a sheepish smile, as if to apologize for not properly recognizing this "legend amongst performers." Though, now that he was thinking about it, if this Lorelei was such a prodigy, then why was she stuck doing her own advertising? Surely if she was as good as this punk claimed she was, she would be in some dressing room drinking tea while hired hands distributed fliers in the park. He decided he'd rather keep this observation to himself, as he already felt Lorelei was beginning to catch on to his white lies. He wasn't expecting her to offer an autograph right away though, so he quickly retrieved the flier from his bag, figuring that was as good of a thing to sign as any.
"Hey, you're on this poster too, aren't you?" he asked (of Marcus), as he handed the flier over to Lorelei. "That's pretty neat. I like the drawing a little more, though... it's much quieter," he said, in a rather nice, almost saccharine tone. Oliver wasn't one to shy away from a battle of quips, and this fluffy little ponce didn't look like he'd be the type to start a fight -- especially with his babysitter standing right there. It was odd to him, too, that this Lorelei girl kept heavily suggesting he should come to the late, adult only shows (which he most likely guessed were geared towards a male audience, what with Lorelei being featured so "prominently"). He hoped he didn't look like one of those creepy older pervs who went for that exotic dance kind of stuff, always drooling over scantily clad young girls like the one currently standing in front of him. Another lie at this point couldn't hurt, right? After this autograph thing she'd probably forget he ever existed.
"Well, I'm not in town a lot so I'm trying to spend what time I have with my family, y'know? If I do come, I'll probably be taking my younger sister along, so it'll most likely be one of the earlier shows," he explained. "But I do appreciate the offer. I'll let my friend know; he kinda likes that... sort of thing."
He wasn't sure what he meant by "that sort of thing," but hopefully this girl would take it in the least offensive way possible. This conversation was quickly becoming a bit of a trainwreck, something that wasn't really helped by Oliver neglecting to think of a fake name for the autograph during all this time. He tried to play it off nonchalantly.
"Well, my name's Oliver C. Pike IV, but you can go ahead and make it out to..."
Oliver let his eyes dart away for a split second, fishing for some inspiration in the busy park. His eyes landed on a large signpost staked in the ground in the distance, and Oliver finally found a worthy name to use.
"Grout Mutah. Make it out to Grout Mutah, please," he answered, relieved. "Maybe add something nice, like 'with love', or 'to my biggest fan.' That'd be really special, he'd like that a lot," he finished, heaving an internal sigh. Hopefully she'd just sign the autograph and be on her way, and this whole mess would be behind him.
"Hey, you're on this poster too, aren't you?" he asked (of Marcus), as he handed the flier over to Lorelei. "That's pretty neat. I like the drawing a little more, though... it's much quieter," he said, in a rather nice, almost saccharine tone. Oliver wasn't one to shy away from a battle of quips, and this fluffy little ponce didn't look like he'd be the type to start a fight -- especially with his babysitter standing right there. It was odd to him, too, that this Lorelei girl kept heavily suggesting he should come to the late, adult only shows (which he most likely guessed were geared towards a male audience, what with Lorelei being featured so "prominently"). He hoped he didn't look like one of those creepy older pervs who went for that exotic dance kind of stuff, always drooling over scantily clad young girls like the one currently standing in front of him. Another lie at this point couldn't hurt, right? After this autograph thing she'd probably forget he ever existed.
"Well, I'm not in town a lot so I'm trying to spend what time I have with my family, y'know? If I do come, I'll probably be taking my younger sister along, so it'll most likely be one of the earlier shows," he explained. "But I do appreciate the offer. I'll let my friend know; he kinda likes that... sort of thing."
He wasn't sure what he meant by "that sort of thing," but hopefully this girl would take it in the least offensive way possible. This conversation was quickly becoming a bit of a trainwreck, something that wasn't really helped by Oliver neglecting to think of a fake name for the autograph during all this time. He tried to play it off nonchalantly.
"Well, my name's Oliver C. Pike IV, but you can go ahead and make it out to..."
Oliver let his eyes dart away for a split second, fishing for some inspiration in the busy park. His eyes landed on a large signpost staked in the ground in the distance, and Oliver finally found a worthy name to use.
"Grout Mutah. Make it out to Grout Mutah, please," he answered, relieved. "Maybe add something nice, like 'with love', or 'to my biggest fan.' That'd be really special, he'd like that a lot," he finished, heaving an internal sigh. Hopefully she'd just sign the autograph and be on her way, and this whole mess would be behind him.
Oliver's investigation of the mysterious book ended up being rather inconclusive, sadly; the strange script was just as undecipherable on page fifty as it was on page one, although this came as no great surprise to him. He began flipping through the pages rather absentmindedly, scanning each page for any sign of a language he could understand. At last he settled on a something he recognized: the Royal Crest of Ikana. It seemed to be part of some sort of diagram, based on the various arrows, footnotes and a small map on the adjacent page. Before he could investigate further, however, he was promptly handed a flier by an attractive young woman. Rather surprised that he suddenly had company, he quickly took the flier and snapped the book shut with his other hand, unintentionally creating a rather loud clap that startled even him. The whole affair made him look quite defensive, in the end, and although he didn't want anyone asking too many questions about the book, he never liked to come off as overly suspicious.
"Catching the show tonight?" asked the girl. Whatever she'd said before was lost on Oliver, who had been thoroughly occupied with his complete failure to glean anything from the book. Oliver took a quick moment to scan over the flier, which was for one "Black Marsh Circus." He'd been to Marshfall a few times in his travels, so he'd heard the name, but had never been able to spare enough time to see a show. Upon closer observation, the aforementioned girl happened to be featured prominently on the flier.
"Hey, this is you, right?" he asked, pointing to her picture on the flier. "Wow, I can't believe I'm talking to a celebrity right now. You don't look nearly as blue in person, though," he joked, referring to the stylized ink drawings on the flier. He hoped that little quip made up for the awkward defensive book snap reaction, but he guessed she was probably eager to move on and pass out more fliers. It was at this point that he realized he had yet to actually provide an answer her initial question, which was likely all she wanted to hear from him in the first place. He hadn't actually read the show times before, so he figured he'd just give a blanket, non-committal answer.
"Gosh, though, I'm actually really busy handling contracts this time of year. I will try my very best to make it to a show while you guys are in town," promised Oliver, placing both the strange book and the circus flier in his satchel. These assurances were both lies, however; once Oliver had heard the Prince would be in town he purposely arranged to have his contracts covered so that he could be free to see that. He also had little intention of actually attending some circus act now that he had this strange book to investigate. Either way it was unlikely that she would notice him even if she did show up; by the looks of things she'd been distributing fliers all day. He doubted that she would sorely miss one mildly handsome young swordsman amid a slew of far more interested fans.
"Will you be signing autographs after these shows? I don't want to hold you up now, I'm sure you're terribly busy and I'm already being a bother as it is, but a friend of mine is a very big fan of yours, and I'm sure if you signed something for him he would be delighted," he lied. The very least he could do was throw her a softball, small-talk question before he went back to his reading.
"Catching the show tonight?" asked the girl. Whatever she'd said before was lost on Oliver, who had been thoroughly occupied with his complete failure to glean anything from the book. Oliver took a quick moment to scan over the flier, which was for one "Black Marsh Circus." He'd been to Marshfall a few times in his travels, so he'd heard the name, but had never been able to spare enough time to see a show. Upon closer observation, the aforementioned girl happened to be featured prominently on the flier.
"Hey, this is you, right?" he asked, pointing to her picture on the flier. "Wow, I can't believe I'm talking to a celebrity right now. You don't look nearly as blue in person, though," he joked, referring to the stylized ink drawings on the flier. He hoped that little quip made up for the awkward defensive book snap reaction, but he guessed she was probably eager to move on and pass out more fliers. It was at this point that he realized he had yet to actually provide an answer her initial question, which was likely all she wanted to hear from him in the first place. He hadn't actually read the show times before, so he figured he'd just give a blanket, non-committal answer.
"Gosh, though, I'm actually really busy handling contracts this time of year. I will try my very best to make it to a show while you guys are in town," promised Oliver, placing both the strange book and the circus flier in his satchel. These assurances were both lies, however; once Oliver had heard the Prince would be in town he purposely arranged to have his contracts covered so that he could be free to see that. He also had little intention of actually attending some circus act now that he had this strange book to investigate. Either way it was unlikely that she would notice him even if she did show up; by the looks of things she'd been distributing fliers all day. He doubted that she would sorely miss one mildly handsome young swordsman amid a slew of far more interested fans.
Oliver temporarily obtained the Black Marsh Circus Flier!
An advertisement for the Black Marsh Circus. Lists show times for the carnival season. Likely to be deposited in a trash can once Lynette is out of sight.
An advertisement for the Black Marsh Circus. Lists show times for the carnival season. Likely to be deposited in a trash can once Lynette is out of sight.
"Will you be signing autographs after these shows? I don't want to hold you up now, I'm sure you're terribly busy and I'm already being a bother as it is, but a friend of mine is a very big fan of yours, and I'm sure if you signed something for him he would be delighted," he lied. The very least he could do was throw her a softball, small-talk question before he went back to his reading.
See, Dervs knows what I'm talking about. #truethat #chudat #trudat
Look, you're asking the wrong person. If you want help with ideas or NPCs, I'm the guy. If you want to ruin all the fun and get spoilers, ask FM. The girl spills so many beans it's a wonder she can even walk without slipping all over them. Seriously. You don't even have to pry. She just spoils things for the hedge of it sometimes.
Badwolf knows what I'm talking about.
Morgan McMouseCop said
Okay, just tell me if he he's an existing character in TLOZ or if you made him up.
I'm this close to combing my Hyrule Historia for candidates.
Look, you're asking the wrong person. If you want help with ideas or NPCs, I'm the guy. If you want to ruin all the fun and get spoilers, ask FM. The girl spills so many beans it's a wonder she can even walk without slipping all over them. Seriously. You don't even have to pry. She just spoils things for the hedge of it sometimes.
Badwolf knows what I'm talking about.
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