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Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

> "I am also Gelish."
[Write in: Province of Aurelius]
[Add Elven to known languages] <

---

A small smile formed on your lips, the similar smoothness in your tone likely not lost on her since you met. "Yeah, I'm Aurelian," you replied in the Gelish tongue as you nodded at her assessment. A returned smile of some commonality from Aika brightened the dim hall on its own, and she commented on it further in your shared native speech. "Oh! I've heard things have been quite peaceful in Aurelia lately, since Lord Brennan now rules as Duke, anyway." Your attention turned forward into the darkness and you let out a small sigh. With a bit of somber in your eyes, you looked to her again. "It was... It was rough. His father before him- Alexander- he was always eerie and aloof, but it was a betrayal of his people through and through, whatever it was he was planning with those mind-eating monsters. Brennan did the right thing, but I can't imagine it was easy to slay one's own father..." Your sobering comment grounded the previously airy mood for a long pause, a small "I see," being the only reply given to you.

Luckily, there was a light at the end of this gloomy tunnel- both metaphorically and literally- as a yellow glow came into view as you and Aika found yourselves in a chamber much smaller than the one you rescued her from. Similar to that giant hall from earlier, this space was filled with ornate banners and decor of the ancient Daldoran culture; tattered cloths of a deep maroon accented by fraying grey trim hung from the walls, each depicting designs both abstract and symbolic. You recognized one such symbol- a halberd whose single-bladed head is backed by a sun- as the crest of the current ruling empire. Across the chamber sat an equally intricate door-shaped depression in the stonework of the wall, complete with the shape of a long scaled and winged creature coiled several times around the symbol of a hand, within which a small black glass-like orb sat imbedded into the palm. Surrounding the serpent-like creature on the door were six white circles. The most eye-catching feature of the room however, sat in the center. There, six humanoid statues of varying designs stood in a circular formation, all facing inward toward a central pedestal. All of the statues and the pedestal each contained identical looking orbs, which sat nestled in the palms of the statures and a claw-like brace of the pedestal. The culprit of this strange yellow glow was the orb of the statue nearest the door, which was alight with an equally odd iridescence from within.

"Woah..." Aika found herself in awe as she gently stepped around the room to take in the sights. Your eye was trained for anything to trip over, step on, or walk past that would trigger danger, but her eager movement in a lap around the statues combined with your careful inspections found no traps. Satisfied with your current and relative safety, you turned your attention back towards her. "What is this place?" She looked back to you, beaming with discovery. "Well, I wouldn't have found it without you so... It seems to be some kind of sealing chamber," she aimed her finger at the door. "Either keeping us out, or something else in. In short- the target of my research." You looked around the room with her, trying to make heads or tails of it all. As you followed her explanation to the door, another question fell from your lips.

"So, how do we unseal it?"

"Ah- well- I'm not sure. Partly what I'm here to figure out, right?"

"Of course. Got any ideas, then?"

Aika lifted her hand to the handprint on the door, pressing her palm against the orb. "Something important enough to secure like this, it's definitely sealed off with some kind of magic- there's no breaking this door down anyway." She removed her hand and took a step back, just as you joined by her side to aid in inspecting the designs on the door. "Perhaps this artwork is a clue for how to open it?" She leaned in and studied the designs for a long and silent moment, then turned to the statues, wagging her finger at each one as she took stock of the room. "Six circles, six statues. And these glass balls," her curiosity got the better of her, as she reached her hand out to touch the glowing orb in the folded palms of the first statue. With a flash of light, the orbs of the other five statues began to glow, and the light of the orb she touched faded away into darkness. A surprised "Whah!" loosed itself from her as she recoiled. She laughed it off, then looked at you briefly. "Sorry- I couldn't help myself, hmmm," the gears in her head began to turn as she reached again toward the orb with greater confidence. At a second touch, the other five statues' orbs faded and this first one began to glow once again.

As you watched her little experiment, you had a view of this first statue from behind. Upon closer inspection, you noticed something engraved across its back. You squinted in the dim light and read the small Daldoran text, which read:

The Emperor - Commander of the Realm

You looked back up, taking note of the statue itself. As the engraving suggested, the shape of a royal crown built onto the head of the statue gave it a rather regal appearance. Your eyes shifted to the other five statues, realizing then that each similarly was constructed with different attire. "Aika, look," you beckoned her to join you as you walked around the statues, reading each engraving on its back:

The Acolyte - Advisor to His Glory

The Knight - Pursuant of the Vile

The Scoundrel - Pilferer of the Court

The Fool - A simple Distraction

The Hermit - Avatar of Solitude

"What do you make of this," you asked her as you returned to where you started. "Another clue?" She scratched the back of her head as she walked between the statues, pacing around within the hexagon they made. "Looks like it, but what about the centerpiece? It looks like just a claw... And there's no name or title on it. We could try experimenting with it more, what do you think?"

---

• "Do you know any magic that can help us decipher it?"

• "What of all these banners on the walls?"

• Touch one of the statue's orbs.
[Write in: Choose a statue.]

• Touch the orb on the central pedestal.

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

Thanks for the wait everyone. I've updated the Character Tab's post zero with information on the languages of each region. This week's choice impacts not only Verity's lineage, but also the languages she might know. Gelish is such a widespread language that it would be really rough if she didn't know it, and since this story has so far been set in Daldon, it seemed only sensible that she knows that too. There are more languages in the world than the ones listed, especially for other races that don't have their own fully fledged nations, so think of this set of language choices to be more of a flavor of upbringing, rather than a limit for the future.

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

> "There was something odd about the bookcase." <

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"Now that you mention it," you started, as your attention drifted over Aika's shoulder and to the desk you had stopped at earlier. With a lifted eyebrow, she turned to follow your gaze. You stepped past her, leading her back to the small wooden table and the shelving unit beside it. With her little arcane light, you once again peered between the dusty books that lined the case, and with increasing certainty you aimed a finger into one of the gaps between them. "Look, see that protrusion in the corner against the back of the shelf?" Aika wedged her face closer to the gap, closing one eye to get a straight look between the books. "Mmh, looks like a piece of the back came loose?" In a spur of curiosity, she simply lifted her own finger and pushed her hand into the shelf, reaching the little wooden button and pressing it flush into place for only until she retracted.

"Oh!" she pulled back and looked to the desk. "The books! Well- of course- but, let's put them back!" She moved with excited haste, scooping the three stacked books that remained, despite the decades of dust and cobwebs that had coagulated on them. She pushed each one back into a gap in the shelf, leaving only one slot remaining. Turning back to the desk, her alacrity was paused by confusion. "Wait. There were four here earlier, I left one open on the desk right here." She began to panic slightly, kneeling under the desk to look for the fourth book as you calmly drew it from your bag behind her. "You mean this one," you flashed the tome to her as she stood up and turned to you. "I scanned the page it was opened to, and thought it might be useful so I took it with me." You handed it over to her as you explained, and she accepted with a sigh of relief.

With the fourth book in place, the shelf was fully stocked. A moment of silent expectation from you both was rewarded by a sound from within the wall- a grinding of stone, low yet inducing the crawling of skin analogous to nails on a chalk board. The shelf began to move on its own, receding into the wall before sliding to the side, leaving behind a previously hidden hallway. You looked to your new companion, meeting her eager grin with your own expression more composed. With a simple "Shall we?" Aika directed her light to keep in front of you both as you made your way through.

The hall was winding, cramped, and dark. The silvery light of Aika's magic and your careful scrutiny for traps kept you safe, but the march down this narrow decent was slow. Luckily, you each had someone to talk to to keep yourselves sane. "So," Aika broke the silence. "You said you looked through that book?" You nodded with a small "Mhm," before elaborating. "My ancient Daldoran is rough, but I made out something about a beast and a seal- and this temple's name, Zorkuth," you recounted the passage you read, and Aika bobbed her head in agreement. "Yeah, I couldn't make out much more than that, especially since Daldoran isn't my first language... I'm from Geland actually- central Geland- that is." she turned to face you for a short moment as you walked together. "Are you Gelish too?" Despite your conversations with her being so far in the Daldoran tongue, her Gelish accent was certainly audible, a bit more legato and smooth than the percussive and impactful speech patterns of the empire's natives.

---

• "I am also Gelish."
[Write in: choose a province of Geland.]
[Add Elven to known languages]

• "I'm Daldoran."
[Add Dwarven to known languages]

• "I'm Ethwanean."
[Add Ethwanean to known languages]

• "I'm from Minerva."


• "I'm from Lasaruuj."
[Add Dwarven to known languages]

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

Got a draft saved, today was kinda busy. Will finish it tomorrow first thing.

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

> Introduce yourself. <
[Write in: Verity Shadowbane, female human.]

---

You nodded along to Aika's story, agreeing with her assessment of her master. You hadn't spent enough time with him to know him very well, but his to-the-point focus and matter-of-fact delivery didn't leave much of a hint anyway. As she explained the secrecy of her mission, your brow lowered slightly in concern. Nobody likes being told half-truths, and while she was holding that information from you, you decided to still be honest with her.

"My name is Verity Shadowbane."

"Verity Shadowbane," she repeated back as she held her hand out to you with a smile. "Well met then, Verity. And thanks again for picking me up."

Your hand met hers, and a firm shake between you two solidified the formalities. Still, there was a rather pressing matter that weighed on you both, and as she broke eye contact with you, her thoughts seemed clear on her face as she looked once again down the hall. "I don't suppose I can convince you to return with me, then?" You spoke with confidence in her next answer, as if she needn't say it. "How can I? I would be remiss to return empty handed," she justified. You let out a sigh, your work would be cut out for you, it would seem. Understandably so, as she was here on her own mission as well. "Unfortunately, I was hired to see your safe return. If you're set on spelunking here further, I'm coming with you," you asserted, vowing to see yourself return not empty handed as well. You could see the thoughts bubbling in Aika's head once again, though more a mixture of possible concerns, outcomes, and emotion. Eventually, she nodded and flicked her wrist again, recalling the little light to just over her shoulder. "All right, then. We'll get what I'm looking for and get out, easy with two of us."

"Sounds good."

"Great! By the way, did you happen to poke around the temple yourself before you found me?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know, any other doors, or traps or hidden things like that? Or should we just try to clear the rest of those spiders out?"

---

• "Let's take care of the spiders."

• "There was something odd about the bookcase."

• "I haven't checked the other side of this room yet."

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

Oh another tie. I think in the event of ties I'll just choose randomly from the tied options from now on.

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

@Jonisca Welcome! Thanks for joining us!

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

The unnamed woman's character sheet has been updated! Gee whoever could have guessed what her name would be wowwwww *sparkle sparkle*

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

> "Are you Aika?" <

---

You watched as this woman briskly kept herself moving back and forth, still energized from the fight-or-flight adrenaline pumping events of the last minutes. She seemed more frustrated at the situation itself as she kept looking back towards the hallway, as if she would take off towards the lower level of the temple again. Your hand raised slowly, an effort to ground her and draw her attention away from the spiders. "Hold for a moment," you urged her to caution. Her antsy nature paused, and in the dim light you could see her wrist flick again to give you both a small magical light to converse under. She released a long huff as her arms crossed in front of her, and the mixed feelings of her gaze locked with your eyes. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you must be, Aika Lennone?"

Her expression faltered, widening of her eyes a show of surprise as you spoke her name. Confusion and then suspicion pursed her lips, her hand falling less than subtly to the handle of her sword. "How do you know my name?" She spoke more flatly than before, a controlled and lower tone in her voice.

"Your master tasked me to find you. You had not sent word in quite some time, he feared for your safety and directed me here." Your explanation seemed to calm her down; Aika's posture relaxed, her fingers letting go of the sword as she let out a breath of relief. "Ah, I see," she shrugged and looked out towards the exit, the gleaming white mountaintops outside against the midnight blue sky. "It's quite hard to send a letter from atop a mountain, isn't it?" She gave a small and closed-lipped "hmm," as she mused to herself the notion, before looking back to you. "I must thank you for saving me, by the way. The floor in that hallway gave out when I tripped over something- I don't know what- but the fall was more than enough to leave me for dead. Luckily, I hadn't broken my right arm, so I was able to keep those giant spiders at bay with my magic. But then..." she shared with you a look of mutual understanding.

"My arrival must have stirred them again."

"Mhm, but either way I would have been a goner, spider-food eventually either dead or alive. Getting swarmed like that is a different beast than scaring them away before they get too close. So... thanks."

You accepted her thanks with a nod, and your curiosity pulled your own attention back down the hall. "If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing up here anyway, and by yourself no less?"

Your question poked at a spot she didn't readily seem willing to disclose to someone she just met, and she shook her head slightly. "It's... research, for my master. As you know since you seem to have met him, he's quite old. He's taught me invaluable lessons about magic but he simply can't hike up here like we can." Aika shrugged as she continued. "I'm his only student, so here I am doing his field-work. Not really my place to say what it is, though, wizards with their secrets and all," she cracked a smile as she lowered her arms again. "So, you know my name, what's yours?"

---

• Introduce yourself.
[Write in: choose a name, gender and race.]

• Withhold your name.

Adventure Awaits! - Prompt Voting CYOA (Always Open)

Today's post will be later in the evening. Friends made some plans and sprung them on me last minute ahah!

Probably going to actually cover a bit more than just asking the woman who she is in this post, to help move things along a bit more.