Laue — Roleplayer Guild

Mages
Those who finally arrive at The Black Forest find that the forest itself guides them deeper and deeper, as if showing them a path. The forest was dark and gloomy, and without this "aid", one could get lost extremely easily. Eerie sounds echoed around, but nothing ever showed up. Eventually mages would come upon a large structure, seemingly formed by trees themselves. It was circular in nature, and around the perimeter there were various rooms, with massive leaves for doors that would open as soon as someone approaches. The rooms would contain a patch of warm moss, looking and smelling better than most beds the mages have ever slept on. In the middle was a massive hall, with tables and chairs scattered about, once again, looking just like trees that just happened to grow into that form. The tables were filled with various berries and tasty herbs, as well as fruits and vegetables. In the very center there was a huge throne of vines, with an old woman sitting upon it. The throne area, currently protected by a barrier of roots and vines, had three more people inside.

The Witch of The Black Forest [+]

There a rather young looking man, together with a sophisticated, older, finely dressed man, both talking with The Witch. A stack of official looking papers sat on a nearby table. And all mages could feel it - the power radiating from both the old woman and the young man was even mildly paralysing to some. None could deny that those two held great power. The third was a young girl, held suspended mid air by vines, with a shimmering aura around her. Nearly all her body was badly burned - are they trying to heal her. The young man stood vigilantly near the girl, caressing her hair, arguing with the witch about something. He tried to grab a stack of papers from the pile, only for The Witch to slap his hand with her staff, with a painful, whip-like sound.

Eventually, a rather large group of mages gathered around, resting and having a feast like no other. A small girl, no more than 12, appears within the closed off throne area, relaying something to the young man, and both of them disappear. Looking disdainfully towards were the two just stood, the woman lifts the barrier, bellows with a commanding voice: "Sit, and listen."

"You have called here to change your fate. You have been caller here to find the means and will to fight for our right to exist. You have been called here to change the world. This man is an influential noble, one that has too lost everything to this Paladin reign of terror. This man, in secret, with utmost risk to himself and his family has helped mages whenever he could, and now he gives the opportunity to fight back, and the opportunity for him to regain what was taken from his family - his country, his land, his people, their virtues and traditions, all in the name of unity. Near me are are documents that would make you official citizens of Meldiniar, free of suspicion, free of persecution, and free to go where you please. Count Deliah Eternus will explain this to you in detail."

"Thank you ma'am. As this dear lady has said, this paper would mean you get to traverse Meldiniar freely, and you will draw no suspicion unless you directly show your powers, which I doubt you will. And even if you slip up, accusations against other citizens, especially ones sponsored by the likes of me are not taken lightly. And I've taken good measure to make sure that any slip ups you do will turn into a political shitstorm, one that few dare to weather. Though preferably, it shouldn't come to that. As members of the Covenant of Scholars, your duties would be roaming the land, seeking lost history. Your real objective, amongst that, would be find others who are not content with the current leadership, and convince them to take action. And trust me, there are a lot of people like that. To that end, I've managed to acquire a remote, abandoned fortress. At the moment, it is not even a shadow of it's former glory. But the moment your name appears on this paper, that fortress will become your official home, a home that I already dispatched people loyal to me to fix. It will need a lot of work, and these workers will need your assistance, but I believe you can make your home in there. And this is the least I can do for your assistance, but anything more is currently out of my power."

The count has stepped back, picking up the stack of papers, as an inked feather started floating near it. A stand of hair was glued to the feather. The witch stood up, and continued from where the speech has left off: "Your names will be written in the handwriting of an important inquisitor, to further secure your safety. And so, I run out of things to say to you. Leave, and once again hide and run in fear. Join, and carve out your destiny. What is your choice?"

Paladins

After a brief moment of blissful mingling, a bellowing, commanding voice could be heard for the paladins to stand in formation. In front there was a pedestal, guarded by paladin officers. As the men got into formation, a middle-aged man stepped on the podium. Wearing the trademark Inquisitor armor.

Inquisitor Levran [+]

"My name is Levran. I am an Inquisitor. By now you must be wondering why I have gathered you here. After all, we had no need to amass a group of his scale for quite a while now. The Azure Covenant is the answer. With the help of one of our most honorary noblemen, Count Deliah Eternus helped us to figure out the general whereabouts of their lair. Since any other encounters with them ended with a complete loss, a much larger force was deemed necessary. According to our findings, the lair is none other than the infamous Black Forest. And so, you will be led by me, to finally purge their evil from this land, and cleanse the forest. Prepare yourselves, for we will soon set out.

Also, we have a few paladins that I will be keeping my eye on, as they are being evaluated for potential promotion to the Inquisitor status. A few of those are freshly initiated. The first is none other than the daughter of Count Eternus himself, Alicia. Another one is Varkasan Trenact. The last potential candidate is Zander Parliah, who has already given us years of his service. Learn from them and respect them, as they may the future shapers of our destiny. And that is all. Horses will be provided for each and every one of you, and you will follow me and your commanding officers. Any questions are to be relayed to your commanding officers. Dismissed."

Alicia

Alicia didn't mind being the center of attention, but this the awkward type of attention. At the very least, she was not alone. A man she was training with was also in the same boat. She did not fully consider Varkasan a friend, but he was pleasant enough to talk to. The briefing itself said nothing new, as Alicia knew this days in advance. And that she is heading into a trap, a trap that she will avoid. Though she was dedicated to her father's plan, a fragment of guilt still bugged her - the people who suffered with her, the people who overcame the hardships to become what they are now, people who believed in the paladin cause - most of them were going to die.

Suffered, she scoffed in her mind. No, they suffered, Alicia did not. From since she could walk, Alicia was being prepared for this. The exercises that would leave others exhausted would only be a light warm-up for her. Long months practicing weapon techniques would minutes to Alicia, as there was no one left to sharpen her skills in Mel'Shi. Though her refusal to use the uniform sword and board style have earned the ire of the instructors at first, it all ended when she defeated her own combat instructor. Wanting to prove a point about how unpractical and ineffective her fighting style is and armed with training sword and shield, the said instructor missed his first swing, with Alicia effortlessly stepping out of the way and twisting her body to deliver a spinning blow to the instructor's legs with both of her training swords, slamming him face first into the ground. The expected "oohs" and "wows" from the observers also came with some sign of respect, as Alicia found others less hostile to her. And her weapon training was replacing with sparring with experienced paladins. Though they were not caught of guard, nevertheless the girl managed to hold her own every time, until she was overcome by the lack of experience that those paladins had.

As those fondest memories faded away, nearly everyone had already left, and Alicia rushed off to keep up. And this time, daddy's little princess was truly on her own, ready to prove that she has finally grown up.

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