Quickly to Quelynos (Part 2)
As one might imagine, Verna's attention and focus are currently rather ... divided.
PREY! HUNT! BITE! I must stop this! What if I can't?
With the sudden flurry of activity, the divisions only grow deeper and spread farther. Dolan holds her focus briefly, wholly aiding Andelenas darting grab and the snatching of Vernas bag.
NO! MINE! Excellent. The mission is paramount. I must be stopped. Andie! Careful! Its dangerous!
Lysos may well be correct in her concerns and is proven prudent in her actions. Her slow steps back do not garner Vernas attention amidst the others and chaos. Far more attention- (and ear-) grabbing is the little golden dragonette. One hand awkwardly, absently, and rather ineffectually lifts to wave as if to shoo Tanith away.
GO SNACK! A novel sensation, having ones ears pulled upon by a tiny dragon. It is different than-
AURANAR?
Once more, Vernas head snaps on a swivel back to Telamon. Amber eyes again focus firmly upon him, pupils narrowing to slits. Divergent directives abruptly find a point of commonality and converge amidst a slew of memories.
Chasing-no, HUNTING her in the darkness. The scent of her fear. The sounds of her frantic heartbeat. PREY! HUNT! BITE! Those eyes, that smile; both more bright and warming than The Sun (with all due respect to Daeus). No. I must-
That thought is finished aloud with a whining, panting, snarl. "Stop. This!" Demand? Plea? Both? This is not the last thought of Aura. In fact, the one that follows is one of her first memories of the sylvanori.
Her features turning blue against her crimson dress as she struggles for air and freedom. All against an impossibly strong grip and booming vile laughter. Laughter that threatens to spark a whole new series of threads of thought
Then Auranar and the laughter are gone; smothered and silenced in a noxious cloud of death. And freedom?
They must continue the mission! She must be safeguarded! BITE! At least Aura is is safe? We left her in- RAGE! No, no. I distinctly recall she told me she loved me, and then- I don't remember! TASTY CHUNKS OF FLESH! No. I would not have- I couldn't have. Could I? Did I?
Her raised hand lowers whilst the other hand now rises; both trembling amidst the influence of conflicting thoughts, urges, and hypotheticals. One sentiment is clear, at least: she is a threat others, here and now. Potentially a dire threat, as her bark could be far, far worse than her bite.
One set of fingers curl around the emblem at her neck and begin to tug. The ringed finger of her other hand is jabbed into the side of her maw to pull at the band with her teeth.
I must- Please! BITE!
The growl of sudden effort brings forth a snap metal, crunch of bone, and tear of flesh. Mithril scales drop into the fuschia foliage at her feet, joined a moment later with a spat bloody chunk bearing a glint of metal band.
If the ounce of flesh might appease the beast, then so be it. If it still demands more, may it be further challenged. If it has already claimed more, then the trinkets upon the grass are merely metal.
Dolan's artificial eye can't widen any further than it already has, but the flesh one certainly does as he watches Verna fight with herself. "Andie, the statue can drain rage! I don't know how, but try to talk her down and will her rage to subside! I did it to someone else!" He takes a step, two, towards Andelena, reaching towards it as if to help.
Telamon had -hoped- Verna would master whatever was driving this transformation. However... seeing her not only wrench off the holy symbol, but the -ring-... "Fuck." he says rather evocatively in oruch. It really is a good language for swearing in. He flicks his glance to Tanith, still tugging at Verna's... um... ears.
He takes a slow, easy step backward, then another, hands still visible but ready to cast... though he's not sure what he can do.
"You can pull the ring off, Verna, and the scales, but you can't remove Auranar -- or Vardama -- from your heart that easily." He looks at Dolan and Andelena. "Words in the heart cannot be taken," he adds.
GAME: Lysos casts Mage Hand. Caster Level: 10 DC: 18
Lysos has different words going off in her head. Words like, Run. Run Now. Various versions along that theme. She doesn't know Verna very well at all.. about as well as she knows anyone else here. And while she hears Telmon and Dolan appeal to Verna's sanity, and watches Andelena and her heroics, Lysos is almost frozen. But then she sucks in her breath. The items Verna discarded. Maybe.. Taking a deep breath to calm her trembling hands, she utters wone of the first incantations she ever learned to channel that power she was born to... then reaches forward. Slowly, carefully, invisible bands wrap about the discarded ring and symbol of Vardama.. the two items begin to float slowly, low to the ground, towards the tsuran as she does her best to stay out of Verna's immediate attention.
Andelena's hand goes into the bag she's wrenched from Verna's figure--and then she has a very quick realization. There's not a way in hell she can find that statue quickly, not with all the stuff that's in the bag. "Fuck it," she murmurs, and she dumps the contents of the bag out on the ground--
And as soon as her steel-grey eyes catch hold of that ugly statue, that infernal statue, she takes hold of the thing despite its nightmarish origins. There's a look on her face that's wrenched between disdain for the thing and what it was born from--and then a look of sympathy as she looks up at Verna.
"Compassion," she reminds herself, and she holds the statue up in the air. The Sunguard doesn't falter.
"Mourner of Vardama! Verna!" Andelena calls out. "Do not forgot /who/ you are! This rage isn't yours--it's something else! Some/one/ else! Follow the light of the Morning Lord and give it up!" Her hands tremble a little around the statue, but she's holding on in this foreign place--feet planted fast to a realm that is not hers. She hopes beyond hope that Daeus's light holds power even here.
GAME: Verna rolls will+2: (6)+24+2: 32 GAME: Verna rolls melee: (11)+10: 21
Tanith flies upwards as she's waved at, irritatedly chittering at Verna. "Iamtryingtohelp!" She says hurriedly, her words sliding together into one nearly incomprehensible mess. She darts away from the hands and hovers above Verna's head uncertainly.
The taste of blood is now strong, sparking a fresh, menacing growl. Ears swivel toward Andelena and her call, or perhaps that to Daeus, and a moment later her muzzle swings around sharply to follow. There is a slight rustle of the rear of her robes before Verna(?) lunges in a leap at the Sunguard. There is a new spring in her step, quite literally.
no... not...
MINE!
There is a gush of fetid breath (and perhaps faint hints of berry scones?) as snapping jaws near Andelena's face and ... clamp down upon the statue to wrench it from her. The lycanthropic Verna (Verwolf?) keeps much of her momentum as she continues moving forward past and away.
GAME: Andelena casts Bless. Caster Level: 4 DC: 14 GAME: Telamon casts Haste. Caster Level: 8 DC: 19 GAME: Lysos casts Thunderstomp. Caster Level: 10 DC: 19 GAME: Lysos rolls 1d20+10+8+1+1: (3)+10+8+1+1: 23 GAME: Lysos rolls 1d20+10+8+1+1: (13)+10+8+1+1: 33
Andelena's the first to act as Verna goes tearing past and takes the statue in the process. She grits her teeth together. "Shit--VERNA!" she yells after the werewolf. She murmurs a prayer to Daeus and seems relieved when she feels His blessing on her form, and she takes the opportunity to follow after Verna.
GAME: Verna rolls will+2: (15)+24+2: 41
Telamon looks exasperated. "Why does this feel like we're being distracted? Because we're SUPPOSED to be finding Phyrelia..." He scowls. "Of course. We can't let Verna run around all hairy. If nothing else, Auranar will kill me." He gestures wildly, fingers flashing. "Lukas sa-i'iz!" A silvery burst of light limns him, then jumps to Andelena, Dolan, Lysos, even Tanith... quickening their movements and speeding up their pace.
Lysos is holding the two items she snatched.. with a rather disgusted look on her face. Because.. finger. "Oh gross.." she whispers, then her eyes go wide when Verna does the snatch and run. The symbol and ring-finger get dropped into a pocket, and as Andelena's blessing and Telamon's spell of urgency fall upon her, she takes one step forward, then pushes her foot down, stomping on the ground as she channels power through her body and the earth towards the ground under Vernawolf's feet. "Karak!" The ground underneath Verna heaves. And then Lysos is running with the others, doing her best not to trip herself up with the world around her slowing down.
Verna is sent sprawling into the bright grass from the tremor and heave. Her teeth maintain their hold on the thing, which makes the curt ...bark(?) barely intelligible. "STAY!" Maybe there is still something of Verna in there...
... and then she shifts from hands and knees to standing... on all four paws with a physical change in form rather than position. Half-wolf to full.
Tanith flies after the group, moving so fast that she's a tiny golden blurr. She hovers over Verna - somehow the first to reach her destination, and then makes a surprised sound when the woman goes full-wolf. "I didn't know peoples could do that!"
"Keep her busy!" Dolan lunges forward as Verna grabs the statue, hand automatically going to his blade as the werewolf goes for Andelena, ready in an instant to defend her - but it's the statue it wants! And then Telamon comments - and something crystallizes in his mind. "Keep her busy! Tanith, can you take me to Phyrelia?"
GAME: Andelena rolls melee: (16)+7: 23 GAME: Telamon casts Hydraulic Push. Caster Level: 8 DC: 17 GAME: Telamon rolls 1d20+14: (14)+14: 28 GAME: Lysos casts Invisibility. Caster Level: 10 DC: 20
Andelena's never run so fast in her life, steps aided by magic and by her own sheer adrenaline as she catches up to the furrified Mourner--and there's the glint of realization in her steel-grey eyes as she hears Dolan's plea to keep her busy.
"Okay. Let's play. Gimme the chew-toy," Andelena growls, and she reaches out to the werewolf, forgetting all of her fears--
--And she manages to pry it from the werewolf's snapping teeth. She even blinks in disbelief as she realizes it's actually in her hands. "Holy /shit/, I can't fucking believe that /worked,/" she murmurs to herself.
Telamon sees Andie wrest the statue away from Verna, and sighs. "Verna, look at yourself. You need to embrace the finer things, the civilized parts of life. Like baths." A deft gesture, and he says, "Anumun lirum." A blast of water shoots out of his palm, hitting Verna in the face and shoving her back a bit.
GAME: Verna rolls will+2: (2)+24+2: 28 GAME: Verna rolls will+2: (10)+24+2: 36
Lysos is definitely grateful for the training Strike put her through.. aside from doing her best to avoid tripping on her dress, she's actually not feeling too winded from her running yet! She'd planned to try and trip up Verna again.. but as she sees Andelena wrest the totem away from the wolf's jaws, she realizes the new game. The new play. She turns just enough to bring her up behind Andelena, tracing an oval in the air and then thrusting her finger through the center as she cries, "Obscurius!"
The Sunguard fades from sight.
There is a yelp as her new-found toy is wrenched free. Is that how fetch is played? Verna, in any form, admittedly, would not know. Yet.. MINE! sparks an immediate growl. This is promptly turned into a less intimidating GRAWLFALFALRF as she is struck bodily by the torrent of water. This also pulls her attention to Telamon. Mayhap she does not like baths, now?
Rather than shake, she sniffs, her focus shifting slightly from Telamon, though not quite to another. Ver-wolf then bolts back towards Telamon or, rather, near him.
The mission is paramount! I won't hurt them! HUNT! BI --- SQUIRREL!
She vanishes, fur and all, a few steps from Telamon.
Tanith earperks at Dolan's calling of her name and darts over to him. So fast. Little lightning bolt of movement. She almost seems to just appear on his shoulder. "Wegoyes! Yesfastgo!" She nods to him once and then... The pair vanish without a trace. Gone.
A moment later however Tanith reappears, frantically flying in every direction. "IDIDNOTMEANTOGOTHERE! Oh no! Must go! Hurry-hurry!" She flies overhead, trying to herd you into a group. "Touching-touching! Dolan needs help! Hurry-hurry!" Begging you in a hurried tone.
Telamon's eyes widen as Verna charges, but then she vanishes. "Uh..." He looks around hurriedly, but only sees Lysos. "What happened?" Then Tanith reappears in a panic, and he stares up at the frantic little dragonet. "...This is going to be unpleasant, isn't it? Lysos, Andelena... get close." He holds out his hands to them. "I suspect our little friend's about to take us on a ride."
"Shit-what--" is the first thing out of Andelena's mouth, then she finally seems to process what's going on. She takes whoever holds their hands out first by said hands--unfortunately, her hands are mildly wet from the statue, since she /just/ wrested it from the maw of a werewolf. Not exactly a lot of time to dry them off first.
Lysos backpedals when Verna lunges towards Telamon, not having any desire to be closer to Verna right now than she has to be. And then Verna's gone. Tanith's babbledegook is lost on her as she tries to absorb what just happened. She doesn't quite get there by the time Telamon is telling her to take hold. "But.. where's Andelena? Oh.. that was a terrible, terrible idea," she says, cursing herself even as she reaches forth to take one of Telamon's hands. Her other waves about, trying to find Andelena.
Tanith neatly lands on Telamon's shoulder, her body warm and surprisingly heavy given her size. She purrs low in her throat, and suddenly you're... elsewhere.
It's dark. The first thing that you notice is that it's pitch-black. Then, is the realization that there's... something hanging in the darkness of the ceiling. Something with tentacles. Something with eyes. Something... unnatural.
You look away from it without realizing that you've done so and see across a pond of water that is inky-dark a man in shades of white and gray. His hair is long and spider-web white. His skin equally pale, and his clothes in shades of gray in a style you don't recognize. He has a crown of bones on his head, his eyes match their color so that he almost looks blind. Indeed he sits on a throne of bones. So many bones.
Not far from you is Dolan, staring at the man and admittedly he's worth a few extra looks. He's said nothing. Hasn't moved. Yet you know he's alive, and that he's watching you patiently.
GAME: Lysos rolls knowledge/the planes: (16)+4: 20 GAME: Dolan rolls knowledge/the planes: (20)+7: 27 GAME: Telamon rolls knowledge/nature+2: (7)+10+2: 19
Dolan is nearly frozen when you arrive, only his flesh eye moving as he quickly works to assess the situation in which he finds himself - and to try to locate Phyrelia. It hasn't yet occurred to him that Tanith might have made a mistake, but when the others arrive, he is indeed regarding the figure on the throne. "The King of the Sluagh," he greets the others, looking back to confirm it's them. "Shit. Where's Andie?" Where his tone was level before, holding despite nerves, it loses all semblance of composure now. "You didn't leave her behind, did you?"
The weight of Tanith on his shoulder reminds Telamon of Pothy, almost, and his hand comes up reflexively to pet the dragonet, just as he would do with his fiancee's raven. As his eyes adjust to the gloom, they land on the ghostly-pale man on his throne of bones. He tenses, ever so slightly, before relaxing.
Flicking a glance up at the strange tentacular creature on the ceiling, he makes a courtly bow to the seated king. Switching smoothly into the tongue of the fey, Sylvan, he says, "Greetings, your Majesty. Pardon our sudden and unexpected arrival -- we came in search of a friend. I bid you greetings from the mortal lands of Aeryth."
"Left behind? No, I'm right here--I've got the statue and everythi..." Andelena's voice trails off as she (invisibly) looks up at the King of the Sluagh. She audibly gulps... and keeps. Her. Mouth. Shut. And hugs the statue tightly to herself.
It takes a moment for the new location to settle in on Lysos. That method of transport is never comfortable, at least not for her. And Dolan she sees right away, particularly because he immediately talks to them. "No, she's... " And then she trails off as she finally gets a look at her surroundings. At the figure on the throne, and... other things. Immediately her hands release Telamon and go to her mouth to cut off... a yelp? A scream? Only the initial sound escapes before she's muzzled herself, and her eyes start to glaze over a bit in an attempt to not look at anything directly.
The man on the throne blinks placidly. "Yes. The King of the Sluagh." He sounds as if he's almost bored as his eyes slide from Dolan to Telamon. He speaks in the common tongue of your land. His voice is cultured and slightly deep. Not really what you were expecting. "You do not come in search for a friend."
There's a flicker of distaste in his eyes. "Lies are unwelcome in my Kingdom, and that is very nearly one. You come in search of a girl that you do not know. You come in search of one to aid you. You come for things that you do not even know that you come for."
He glances at Lysos. "Do not stare at her too long. You will go mad." He seems to be speaking about the... thing on the ceiling. Her? Oh my.
Telamon feels a trickle of sweat down his back, but instead of looking dismayed, he puts on a look of offense. "I disagree, your Majesty. A person I do not know is simply a friend I have not met yet." He takes a deep breath. "But let us not quibble. We do not seek Phyrelia out of any desire to do her harm. And yet we find ourselves waylaid, and not, I suspect, by mere chance. The Nightmare is on the move as well, and does not desire our success -- or rather, they would prefer a different outcome than the one we seek."
He keeps his eyes firmly on the king. "Let us begin. Some call me Telamon, others the starborn prince or the Lord Lupecyll-to-be. I am not here to cast any aspersions, or make any claims. Only to find someone that I believe is needed by Ea."
Dolan hasn't said anything else yet, nor does he venture another glance at the tentacled thing above. He does relax visibly when he hears Andelena's voice, and turns towards it. "Oh, good. Thanks." He turns back towards the fae king and Telamon, looking between them, his expression plain to read - he's not sure if he should jump in or not.
Lysos definitely knows she shouldn't jump in, not that she's in much of a state to do so anyways. Initially, it's all she can do to keep the strangled noises to a minimum, particularly after the king's warning. Eventually, though, she manages to get ahold of herself enough to slowly drop her hands to her side. Probably on account of needing to breathe. Her fingers wind into the fabric of her skirts to try and keep still, and she very pointedly does NOT look up at... Her.
The tsuran starts recounting in her head the things she was warned not to do here. Don't eat or drink anything. Don't... oh no, what were the rest? The panic begins to rise. Don't.. tell lies? Don't... make deals? Don't tell them your name? So, so many don'ts.
Andelena. Does. Not. Move. A muscle. Which is impressive, considering the size of those, but she's not moving an inch. She's just looking at Telamon and keeping her mouth shut, letting everything ride on the words of a man who she was calling a 'kid' not that long ago.
Words taste different when you're eating them.
"My title is Siomoin Ceallachain, Lord of Madness, King of the Slaugh." Again his voice is totally unemotional. His eyes flicker briefly toward Dolan and then back to Telamon who seemingly everyone is trusting to speak. "Among many others. But let us dispense with such things. You seek the girl, and she is in my lands. She is in my court in fact. Tell me why I should give her to you."
Tanith hums nervously on Telamon's shoulder, shifting her weight and allowing her eyes to roam from person to person.
Telamon lifts an eyebrow, affecting an air of calm even though his heart races. Another deep breath. "I see. I admit, this is... an unexpected development. But not unwelcome, if she is safe." He pauses. "We believe she is a fragment of Eluna, fallen to Ea through the machinations of Caracoroth. The Nightmare plagues us with lycanthropy, turning men and women against each other."
He spreads his hands. "We believe she may be critical to turning back this endless tide. Even now, one of our most respected magician-priests has been lost to it." He drops his voice. "Your Majesty. I do not tread the paths of Quelynos lightly. I had not expected to come here for many years. But even I cannot ignore those in need, especially when they did me service as well."
Now that he knows where Andelena is, Dolan relaxes, and turns back towards the fae king. It's the relaxation born of ignorance, if not knowing just what the creature before is capable of. Two things are evident, though. The first is that this being is not to be trifled with. The second is that he seems to appreciate straight shooting, and that, at least, is a thing that the simple-at-heart inquisitor can relate to.
"The worry's this, and it might be that she's as safe here as anywhere. But it's not fair to you if you don't know that the forces of the Nightmare - and that includes demons and devils - are looking for her. I don't want to see your people get hurt if they do come after her. Like he says," he tilts his head at Telamon. "We think she's a small piece of Eluna, and the right thing to do for all the realms is to send her back where she belongs."
"Caracoroth and Eluna are like the tide. One rises and the other must fall. The minions of Caracoroth hunt the girl for a different purpose than you, yet neither of you have a right to her. You have given us no reason to give her over than your desire, and that is insufficient to sway this court." The King of the Sluagh looks at Telamon squarely. His eyes are difficult to meet for the weight that is held within them. He turns that uncomfortable gaze on Dolan. "You are not wrong. The girl brings a danger to our people, and that might be sufficient reason to exile her from this court. Yet it is not reason to hand her over to anyone."
Lysos keeps her hands stiffly trapped... easier to keep them out of trouble there, and disguise the tremor. She focuses on her heartbeat.. thundering so hard a part of her wonders why no one else can hear it. Or maybe they can and they're just being polite. Her throat is dry, feeling like she tried to swallow something and it refused to go all the way down, remaining lodged in her throat instead. And all she can think of is.. we're going to have to deal. There's going to have to be a deal. She remembers the offering she gave the Wee Queen... the impression left to her being.. "There's no freebies with the fey," she mutters to herself. "There's no..." She shakes her head, looking at Dolan, then looking at Telamon. Andelena she doesn't look at because.. well.. she can't. "I think he's looking for an offer.." she manages to muster the courage to say.
Telamon eyes the King back with his starry eyes. "And if the cycle was perpetual, your Majesty, I would agree with you. But I argue that the minions of Caracoroth seek to do more than perpetuate their cycle. They seek to -break it-, and this girl, Phyrelia, is a part of this plan."
He cocks his head at Lysos, thinking fast. "Your Majesty, are you aware of the fetters that bind Caracoroth? Do you know they have been appearing on Ea? These are not just mere ephemera, but tangible artifacts. Symbols of his chains. The minions seek them just as much as they seek Phyrelia."
Dolan's gaze meets the fae king's for a moment, then blinks and looks to one side of him briefly. Then down, then back, his answer simple and short. "What does she want? Do you hold her here against her will?"
Andelena finally speaks up. "We're going about it all wrong. The King's saying none of us have any right to the girl--because the girl can make her own da--decisions." She catches herself almost about to swear at the last moment. "May we meet with Phyrelia, please, and have her determine if she wants to leave with us, Your Majesty?"
The King of the Slaugh looks at Telamon and then turns his gaze to Andelena. It's as if he can see her. "Yes. I am aware. One was brought into my kingdom." He pauses then and looks from Dolan to Andelena. "No. I do not, nor do any here, hold her against her will, but she is young and her choice is a hard one."
He makes a motion with his hand and the girl appears at his side. As if she'd been there all along, or perhaps simply just now arrived. It's hard to say. She has platinum blond hair now, but her bright pink eyes remain the same.
"If I go with you... I can tell you where Eluna's Avatar is, and you could find her... But then I can not return here to the safety that this court offers me." She looks toward the king and he nods once. "If I stay here, I can not tell you, because this is a place of darkness and Caracoroth will hear the words I speak and carry them to his minions." She seems torn.
-TBC