Shisa

A Tyrant's Undoing

Stephanie sighed and looked up at the old man, who seemed to have started the party without her.

"I sleep on a makeshift bed of hay and blankets. Not much worse than you'll do at the nearest inn, and it doubles as a food source for George or to sell if I get in real trouble. As for my wares-"

But Stephanie squeaked in terror as the Dullahan descended, flinching and taking a few quivering steps backwards. If the woman was almost any other creature, she might have seemed pleasant, but Stephanie had heard the tales and none of them painted the Dullahan in a positive light. Then again, if all the tales were true, she'd probably be dead at the moment. No, she'd most certainly be dead if the Dullahan desired her life. With this in mind, she gathered up her courage and spoke back.

"...H-honestly, I couldn't care less about Valstand. Everyone's hopes were banking on Nathaniel losing his hold soon. With this development, investors will pull out left and right and the currency value will dip. Hard. Valstand is dead, but if you plan on invading, tell me. I can hook you up with some nice weapons if you have the coin."

Stephanie hopped into the back of her wagon and retrieved a keg of beer and a bottle of wine. The beer, of course, was to get her drunk. The wine was going to be for when she made her big peppercorn sale. But that apparently wasn't happening.

"Anyways, I sell a lot of things old man. After a transaction went sour, I learned to diversify. You can make a lot of coin if you buy and sell a lot of one thing, but if it doesn't pan out, you're dead in the water. One gold for the wine, if you want it. It's good. It was supposed to be celebratory for when I made my big sale here."

She tapped the beer keg and filled a couple of mugs to the brim, sliding one across the ground to the Dullahan, still wary.

"Six copper on that. Drink up," said Stephanie, hastily grabbing her own mug and managing to down the contents in one continuous drink. She let out a satisfied groan and licked her lips, already feeling the warm embrace of her best friend: copious amounts of beer.

A Tyrant's Undoing

Stephanie eyed Ian warily as they approached the gate, half certain she had been betrayed and that the man would sell the princess out for money and try to implicate her, at which point her identification for the merchant guild would be checked and the thief would be shown to be a liar. On the other hand, he could legitimately have a way into the city and she wouldn't have to pay an entrance fee. Either way, Stephanie wins. Just how it should be.

Ian ended up flashing the guard a silver coin, but kept it and the man let them through.

"Thieves' cant," she murmured to herself. How odd. She hadn't imagined something so simple would work in so large a town with so many rotations of guards, much less how Ian would have known at what time and place a guard on the take would be. Perhaps he had something like this planned all along? But really. The Silver Fox. Only crappy thieves get so well-known. The best ones take what they want and vanish into the night. No witnesses, and certainly no notoriety.

Arriving at an abandoned noble's manse, the party disembarked. Well, most did she guessed. Stephanie stayed out by her wagon, taking a couple of apples from her cargo and stroking George's head as he calmly chomped at the fruit. She also offered one to the Dullahan's horse, which had traipsed alongside hers all the way to town. Even if commanded by an evil fae, a horse was just a horse after all.

"You put in a hard day's work," she said softly, "you deserve it."

Now to get drunk, which would probably end up being the best part of her day considering how crappy the whole ordeal was.

"Idiot nobility," she hissed under her breath.

A Tyrant's Undoing

Stephanie narrowed her eyes at the famous thief, shaking his hand if for no other reason than to know that it wasn't taking her stuff at the moment.

"Caroline," said Stephanie flatly, knowing that her real name could potentially be leveraged to implicate her if they were somehow caught. A fake name would be more safe for the moment. Her face grew more pale as she saw that that awful Dullahan had continued to follow them, and she tried to look away from the thing. She mustn't believe the lies of the unseelie death spirit, though the creature did seem weirdly genuine. Perhaps she would have to see how things progressed. If she could be trusted, the horsewoman would make for a powerful ally. As Stephanie was contemplating, the good-natured George exchanged a friendly whinny with Steve, glad to have a friend. She ignored Jacques, however, for the time being. She had no idea what he was doing there, and was a child of little consequence as far as she was concerned. The brat should be grateful, though. She wasn't charging him for the ride, after all.

Then a war veteran she hadn't noticed before lumbered up to the front, and not-so-subtly tried to leverage his wounds for better treatment. She respected that, and wondered how much free crap he had gotten with that arm of his.

"Well, Ian, you heard the man. You can look up here and direct me from the back. The old codger needs this seat more, don't you think? We should support our vets."

A Tyrant's Undoing

By the time Stephanie had loaded a crossbow, a powerful weapon that even the common militia could use well enough after a few days practice, her wagon had been jumped by a woman claiming to be a princess, an old man who seemed to have passed out, a young boy, and a man not much older than herself who the woman called Silver Fox. It was all so surreal, but given her profile of the king, the situation was sadly within the parameters of anticipation.

"Can't you nobles stop killing each other for one freaking day so I can make a living?" Stephanie spat, clambering back into the driver's seat and grabbing the reins, "I was counting on this deal! Stifling my business transaction, commandeering my wagon, and from the sounds of it you want me to risk my life to harbor a group of well-known fugitives. The freaking Silver Fox, you, and magic guy over here who I assume is famous in some way based on the power of the spell he just cast."

Then again, the communications were likely going fast. The other side had manpower, horses, and dogs more than likely. If she didn't allow them to use her wagon, it was almost a certainty that they would be caught. And this was a money-making opportunity. She cracked the reins, not stopping to see if the Dullahan was dead or not, and headed towards the city.

"You're asking me to risk my life, princess, and I don't even live in this kingdom. The term 'reimburse' doesn't even cut it. I'm expecting a payday so big that I can live the rest of my life like nobility. And you. Peasant boy," she said, glaring at the kid in the back of her cart, "mind your own business. Think I'd help some no-name in the same circumstance? If I hadn't gotten a name, I'd have been out of here. Remember that. And for God's sake, get yourselves under those blankets. We'll reach a checkpoint before we reach the city. I can talk my way out of just about anything besides actual fugitives in my wagon. And if they find you? I didn't know you were there."

A Tyrant's Undoing

Stephanie groaned as she glared at the road ahead of her, her palms moist and hot from holding the leather reins of the horse all day as it meandered towards Valstand castle, towing her thankfully well-shaded wagon. Because she hauled a variety of goods, it was always important to have quality wagon covering in case of rain. Well, that and the fact that it was a good deal more comfortable than having the sun beat down on you all day. She quickly perked up, however, as she approached the castle, wanting to put on a nice face for her customers-to-be. She was a charmer, and her face had to be at maximum cuteness if she wanted to sell the numskulls crap they didn't need for twice what it was worth.

As she forced a sweet smile onto her face, however, she came upon quite the sight. A group of people, half of whom were drenched, parked by the riverside. Stephanie held her reins tight and pulled back, her horse slowing down as they approached. Surely they needed overpriced clothing or washrags or else they'd catch cold!

"Hail and well met," Stephanie called out, her horse coming to a stop aside the group, "I couldn't help but notice that some of your number are moistened. Well no more! I have clothing! I have washrags! All for a very reasonable-"

And then she noticed the Dullahan. An evil spirit by any measure, who are said to take the lives of travelers on the roadside. Oh, but Stephanie was too young and beautiful to be cut down so viciously in her prime! She shrieked, and jumped into the back of her wagon, scrounging around for a weapon as her horse, George, fed calmly on some nearby grass.

A Tyrant's Undoing

Name: Stephanie Stints

Age: 21

Race: Half-Elf

Looks: A young woman with long, raven hair and sharp amber eyes. Her skin is somewhat pale, and decidedly unblemished. Her lean build is usually buried under a set of high-quality green vestments, though underneath she wears a suit of leather armor for protection. She’s somewhat short for her age, and her Elven heritage makes her quite light as well when compared to a full Human. As with all Half-Elves, her ears have a dull point to them and her eyes seem to have a mischievous fey glint.

Bio: Stephanie Stints had heard of her heritage from the rest of the townsfolk in the slums before she had ever heard it from her own mother. The bastard of a Human noble’s dalliance, no doubt. Some rich ass went slumming, looked for an easy woman, promised her the world, and left her with a child and empty assurances. Stephanie’s mother scraped by however she could, which often meant far less than legal actions, but the pair loved each other and that love made life tolerable despite their lack of food or funds. One day, however, Stephanie’s mother crossed the wrong man. Or group, rather. She had stolen a precious golden medallion from one of her clients as she left, and this client had turned out to be a higher-up in the mob. Stephanie returned home from a busy day of picking pockets to find her mother bound and gagged in a chair, a group of men surrounding her. One of the men restrained Stephanie, her screams muffled by his rough hand, and made her watch as they snatched the medallion and slowly tortured her mother to death. She averted her eyes whenever she could, however, concentrating on a silver serpent on top of the leader’s cane. Years later, this serpent would be all she could remember, burned into her mind forever. It was then that she understood the power of money, and she vowed to do whatever she could to never be in a situation like that. She was a thief to start, but quickly moved to legitimate business when she had enough funds to invest. She and her money were pure again, and she began making a name for herself in the business world. She now finds herself travelling to Valstand castle to sell exotic peppercorns, having heard of an upcoming celebration. A new queen calls for an expensive party, and expensive party food requires expensive spices. It’s a guaranteed gold mine.

A Tyrant's Undoing

What season is it, by the way? Is it hot, cool, or in between outside?

A Tyrant's Undoing

I'll just leave this here.

Name: Stephanie Stints

Age: 21

Race: Half-Elf

Looks: A young woman with long, raven hair and sharp amber eyes. Her skin is somewhat pale, and decidedly unblemished. Her lean build is usually buried under a set of high-quality green vestments, though underneath she wears a suit of leather armor for protection. She’s somewhat short for her age, and her Elven heritage makes her quite light as well when compared to a full Human. As with all Half-Elves, her ears have a dull point to them and her eyes seem to have a mischievous fey glint.

Bio: Stephanie Stints had heard of her heritage from the rest of the townsfolk in the slums before she had ever heard it from her own mother. The bastard of a Human noble’s dalliance, no doubt. Some rich ass went slumming, looked for an easy woman, promised her the world, and left her with a child and empty assurances. Stephanie’s mother scraped by however she could, which often meant far less than legal actions, but the pair loved each other and that love made life tolerable despite their lack of food or funds. One day, however, Stephanie’s mother crossed the wrong man. Or group, rather. She had stolen a precious golden medallion from one of her clients as she left, and this client had turned out to be a higher-up in the mob. Stephanie returned home from a busy day of picking pockets to find her mother bound and gagged in a chair, a group of men surrounding her. One of the men restrained Stephanie, her screams muffled by his rough hand, and made her watch as they snatched the medallion and slowly tortured her mother to death. She averted her eyes whenever she could, however, concentrating on a silver serpent on top of the leader’s cane. Years later, this serpent would be all she could remember, burned into her mind forever. It was then that she understood the power of money, and she vowed to do whatever she could to never be in a situation like that. She was a thief to start, but quickly moved to legitimate business when she had enough funds to invest. She and her money were pure again, and she began making a name for herself in the business world. She now finds herself travelling to Valstand castle to sell exotic peppercorns, having heard of an upcoming celebration. A new queen calls for an expensive party, and expensive party food requires expensive spices. It’s a guaranteed gold mine.

Here We Go Adventuring!

Lisa, seeing the dragon inhale deeply, knew well what was about to happen. She started backing away from the foul beast as a peasant threw birds into its nostrils and the undead crawled into its mouth. Her expression was nothing short of absolute confusion as the breath weapon failed and, as the dragon's breathing became more scarce and belabored, she had an awful hunch that the expulsion would find its way out one way or another. She quickly backed away further, before crouching and putting up her shield. She felt the shrapnel impact through the steel, but held her ground as she suffered the aftermath of the explosion. Getting up, she saw nothing left of the dragon except five pieces of something-or-other. Probably a valuable something-or-other that should go to the church. As two others called their shares, Lisa knew she had to act quickly.

"I shall take one also, for the chu- OH LILITH!"

Lisa's eyes widened in alarm as her gaze fell upon the brave avian-thrower who writhed upon the ground with dragon-bits lodged into his skin. She rushed over to him, and placed a glowing hand on his back.

"Shhh," Lisa whispered with care, "you are absolved of your egregious sin, brave peasant, for your hand in the slaying of the dragon. Lilith forgives. Go forth hereon, partaking in no evil, and have a fulfilling everyday life. Or as fulfilling an everyday life as a peasant can have."

Then Addis rushed into the clearing with a gigantic tree trunk, and Lisa raised her other arm in support.

"Yea, repent you sinners! You see well that even the most powerful of abominations are nothing against Lilith's light! Forswear your allegiance to the fiend now, and disperse from this accursed place forevermore! If you wish to seek refuge in the divine light of Lilith, then come to me and I will baptize you with holy water into her divine service!"

Here We Go Adventuring!

Lisa huffed and puffed as she ran through the woods. Of course the undead man had an undead horse of some sort, but Lisa had short legs and plate armor, and this particular combination did not equate to quick travel. After some time, however, she finally came upon the dragon, who was destroying the evil tavern. The fool obviously did not even realize that he was turning a sanctuary of evil into wood chips, and therefore depriving himself of power. Perhaps it was the large man on his neck that perturbed him so much that he blindly slammed into a place of evil, but regardless, this was her chance!

The dragon started to turn around, likely realizing his mistake and attempting egress. Lisa hid her luckily small self behind a tree and waited for it to get closer. After a couple of seconds, she heard a gunshot ring out, and decided that this was a fine time to strike. The dragon was probably too distracted by the gunshot and the screaming man on his neck to pay attention to a small speck of a woman rushing out from behind a tree.

And that is exactly what Lisa did. She charged out from behind the tree, her mace held high as it glowed with divine evil-smiting energies, and attempted to slam it into one of the serpent's more grievous, low-to-the-ground wounds.

Because Lisa was not a tall person.