Daeusite Coat of Arms

Log Info

• Title: Daeusite Coat of Arms

• Emitter: Andelena

• Characters: Andelena, Seldan, Skielstregar

• Place: A storage closet in the Temple of Daeus

There's a discussion afoot at the Temple of Daeus, something to talk about sanctifying the place so that fiends can no longer step foot into the structure. Both a certain Silver Guard and a certain Sunguard, who have been called to defend their faiths and temples, have been invited here to participate in what's really more of a dry and formal conversation with Temple officials regarding their experiences--

Which is why the Sunguard Andelena Donnelly stops at the door, blinking at the other Sunguard that's stopped her at the door to what she's sure will be one of the driest conversations she's ever been in. "Ah--you want me to check my sword in at the door down the hall?"

"Yes," the Sunguard replies, looking apologetic. "There's a guard posted outside it, so no one will take your sword. It was asked that all... sentient weapons be excluded from the room."

Andelena looks down at Deliverance. "Well, sorry Livvie," she says, "but at least you're not getting stuffed into a closet full of coats."

Except as she hands off the sword to the other Sunguard posted at that door down the hall and makes her way back into the meeting room, it's clear that's actually what it is. A storage closet. It's filled with mothballs, dust, and, yes, a few coats.

Deliverance sighs. "I suppose it could be worse," she says. "I could be propped up against another talking sword." Currently she's leaning against the back wall, next to someone's peacoat that's seen slightly better days.

Seldan, as is often his wont, is well behind Andelena, and not until she is gone does he approach the same Sunguard. A similar conversation ensues, albeit more brief, except that he merely inclines his head politely to the Sunguard. "Of course. Well is it to exclude all weapons from the room."

"Seldan, you don't mean-" The nasally old grandmother's voice emerges from the sword at his hip, even as he removes the belt supporting the weapon from his hip.

"Fallia, fret not. It is in my mind that they wish for a civil discussion, not contentious argument."

The querulous old man's voice bursts from the sword. "Hey now! Who said we aren't capable of civil discussion!"

"Such an outburst won't do much to convince them, Kanian." The younger, deeper female voice chimes in, followed closely by the gruff male voice with a khazadi accent. "Kanian wouldn't know how not to argue if his life depended on it."

All of this, meanwhile, is carrying on as the blade and its belt are handed off to the Sunguard, to be placed in the same closet, where the same old peacoat falls over the hilt - and not so coincidentally, right next to Deliverance. The Sunguard walks out, shaking his head in disbelief, and soon, the light is swallowed again by darkness.

A silverscaled warrior has an odd affiliation with the church of Daeus. While not directly venerating Daeus, he's still considered a Brother, and his unique circumstance may shed some insight into sanctification. And, well, he's in city for the time being to restock before venturing back out into Am'shere to deal with Charn's machinations.

He too is stopped a little bit after others. "... what isss this check? You can check here. Isss weapon, no?" Skielstregar tries to reason.

The gleaming, ominous looking polearm's jagged crack splits into a wide, totally reassuring grin. "I won't bite much!"

"You're not helping," Skiel grumbles to Malefic.

"As long as there is a window, I don't care!" Malefic's metallic voice relays, their mind on only one thing: the sun.

He shakes his head, reluctantly handing over Malefic to the other Sunguard before giving his parting words and heading off into the meeting. And before long, the polearm is hung on the rack, haft freely hanging as they're wedged between a forgotten parka and a ensemble of scarves. And above the other two swords. "... Not even a smidge of His Radiance! Seriously?!" it complains.

Once the other two weapons have been placed in the room and the sound of footsteps fall away from the door, an audible sigh comes from Deliverance. "I see that I have company here today," she says. "Hello, Malefic. Hello, Reunion."

The lovely longsword lets out a small noise that's somewhere between a sigh and an exhalation of breath. "It appears we have all been shoved into a dark closet. I trust you all are doing well--aside from our unfortunate waiting venue."

Another beat before she adds, "I do hope that Andelena will not curse at the higher-ups."

A moment of startled silence from Reunion, but it is a moment only. "Deliverance, was it?" the nasal, grandmotherly voice offers contentedly. "Well, at least we have company! And you said the other voice complaining about the light was - Malefic? Not the most auspicious of names, but we shall make the best of it."

The querulous old man cuts in. "Well, I suppose it's better than being shoved in that haversack. We never did bother with light spells, the boy's got his own light and usually uses that."

"Of course, Kanian. We've never really seen the need. It's better to work out things he can't do. He does need us more than he's willing to admit. But I talk too much. I'm Fallia, and the lout is Kanian. Golain and Tisa you've also heard. Alistair and Zee are here too."

"Alistair. A pleasure." This voice is deep and rich and fully formed, an older man's voice. "Tisa" turns out, on greeting, to be the young, deeper female voice, and "Golain. Ta." is the khazadi-accented voice, but the last voice haws not yet spoken up.

"Who else is- ah! Deliverance! Blessed Radiance upon you!" Malefic growls in a cheery greeting, the haft bending like it was in a bow. But it just makes them swing more on the pole they've been hooked onto. "Reunion? There's another one? Oh- the Silverguard mentioned you! Blessed Radiance upon you too! But-- you wear strange armor. That coat makes for terrible scales."

The metallic grin closes to a ponderous smile. "Not auspicious? It's not like I chose it. But it feels dangerous~"

It stills briefly. The only movements is little metallic clicks on the jagged maw. Malefic was... quietly repeating the names? "Kanian, Fallia, Golain, Tisa, Alistair, Zee." It grins. "Namesake is entirely fitting! How do you all fit in there?"

There's a beat. "Do not fear, Deliverance. If she does, it must be necessary! I am well. But the sun is out, and I'm here! Argh!"

"I was familiar with Kanian from before," Deliverance says in a voice that is very audibly like one straining to be polite on the subject of the old man's presence. "But it is a pleasure to be introduced to the rest of you. I am sure between all of you in one space, you must never be bored--nor that the Silverguard Seldan ceases to hear of your... prodigious output." That's one way to put it.

She clears her throat. "Malefic, if it would please you, I am capable of shedding my own light," she says. "It is one of the abilities that I have found myself blessed with in addition to serving as Andelena's blade against fiends that threaten the existence of mortalkind."

"It's never boring, that's for sure." Tisa speaks up. "No, we're all here because we want to be. I don't think every wielder this blade has ever had is here, but it's got to be close. Being tied to the Padaryn line is an honor, and we really are here to help. I don't feel like it's crowded - how much space does a soul take up, anyway? It's not as if we have bodies - or more like we all share one."

"More's the pity," Kanian grumbles, but the aside is mostly lost when Fallia speaks up again. "Honestly, Deliverance, Malefic. You can ignore Kanian. Most of us do."

A light voice, this one male and young and almost mousy, speaks up, finally. "I don't."

"Don't worry, Zee. You'll learn to in time." This draws multiple chuckles, but this time Golain chimes in again. "I like the name Malefic, and I sure wouldn't mind having something to see by, if you'd be so kind?" The request is almost drowned out in the "Hey!" from Kanian. "I'll have you know that I know a thing or two. Who was it that suggested we work out the anchoring enchantment, HMMMM?"

"Ohpleaseyes," Malefic's words run into one another. "It's not His Radiance, but it's still His Light." There's a creaking sound as the halberd moves its maw to swing more, and then a thud as they dismount from the rack. Land, then fall over to lean against the wall over Reunion and Deliverance. "That's a grand purpose, Deliverance. One that He would certainly approve of."

The halberd twists as they seem to point their maw in Reunion's direction. "Certainly fascinating that such weapon is in one line for so long. How long does a wielder live anyways? Two centuries? Three?" Malefic may have their timeframes skewed. Their maw cracks wider at Golain's approval. "Thank you Golain! It's got a certain bite to it!" Chomp chomp, Malefic clacks it metallic maw.

Kanian's exclamation gets a pause from Malefic. "A what enchantment? What's that do? That sounds fun. Normally I can teleport to the Warrior's hands but something in the city keeps me! Bah!"

Only a few moments after Malefic asks for the light, Deliverance's form, even in its sheath, is awash with light. It's not exactly the sunburst of radiance that Malefic prefers, but it's something for this closet full of mothballs--

Except that the blade shudders from the effort of having used the spell, just slightly.

And then she falls over. Thunk. A little bit of dust flies up into the air. A mothball rattles somewhere on the floor.

"Shit," Deliverance curses. And then a beat later: "No one tell Andelena I said that."

She sighs deeply. "The thing in the city that keeps you anchored is there for a good reason. An anchoring enchantment does sound like a rather good idea, I think. Something to keep a fiend locked down so it doesn't get away."

The sword quivers on the floor. "Oh I don't like this one bit," Deliverance murmurs. "It appears I am locked down to the floor."

Being stacked against a sword that has just fallen over is a precarious position indeed, and Reunion erupts into gentle laughter from several voices at once. It, too, begins to tilt over sideways, however, nudged by the loss of Deliverance's support against it, and leans heavily against the torn hem of the old, tatty green peacoat. "It's fine, Deliverance. Most of us swear. You've got it in one," Tisa explains, and sighs when the deep, rich voice cuts in. "I do naught of the kind." "That's because you had a stick up your arse in life and it hasn't gone away in death, Alistair. Anyway, anchoring keeps a creature we hit from shifting planes. Seldan can do it too, but magic in the midst of battle is a tricky thing."

"She's not kidding about the good reason, either," puts in Golain. "You ought to have seen when all of that was going on. It was like we had a vampire or a demon or some other unsavory character teleporting in every other day. I won't deny that those were pretty exciting times, but - enough is enough."

Zee finally speaks up. "But did Seldan really have to go to the Temple elders with that?"

"Absolutely, Zee. Demons are the absolute worst, and when you've got stupid adventurers making deals with demons and inviting them into temples, the line has got to be drawn somewhere. Eradicating them was one thing, but when you're badly injured or ill isn't the time to be messing with one. As long as he stays committed to destroying them, I'm all right with it. Even if it does mean that getting across the city takes longer."

"That wasn't the only incident, though."

Malefic sighs in relief as the light shines, a vibrating metallic rattle. "Ah... such glorious incandescence--" A thunk from the floor. Malefic, the looming halberd from above bends slightly as if looking down. And cannot help but join in with the laughter from Reunion. A deep, steely roil that only doubles from the bickering within the multifaceted blade. "Ahhh. That is rich! But, that sounds right grand! I'd love to take a big bite into something and my fangs keeping something locked in place."

The halberd ponders the uses and reasons that Golain lays out. Malefic makes a churring sound. "Feh. I'd rather die biting a demon's head off than groveling for aid. Oh! Deliverance and you have similar ideals, imagine if Seldan or Andelena wielded both of you at the same time! Glorious! Right Deliverance?" It twists about. "Deliverance?"

Malefic bends down slightly. "You shan't be locked to the floor! I have you!" The halberd clatters to the ground some feet away, disturbing all the coats on their racks. It spins, slowly, grunting, towards the fallen blade. "Alright! I'm pulling you free, we'll get you unstuck!" The jagged, metallic maw opens wide and clamps lightly onto Deliverance's hilt, and attempts to draw them out of the scabbard.

Deliverance continues to quiver on the floor. "It would be an honor to be wielded by the Silverguard Seldan," she says, "but I fear Andelena could--"

And then Malefic's got its maw around her hilt and she makes an undignified yelp. "No-no-no-no! Ah! I mean--yes! Be careful! Please! I do not wish to worry Andelena if she finds a new scratch on her blade!" The lady-blade doth protest too much.

The disturbance of the coats on the rack is too much for the precarious situation in which Reunion has been left, and it, in turn, tumbles in a metallic clatter on stone, blunted by leather and then muted still further as the green peacoat drops from its mooring to blanket the sword in musty old wool. A storm of protest erupts from under the fabric. "You great galoot, what in the name of the Light do you think you're doing!" "Now look at us!"

"Help, I can't see a thing!" Zee's voice is practical and to the point.

"None of us can, Zee. This dimwit knocked everything over trying to rescue his damsel in distress," Tisa cracks in disgust. "Not like we can do much about it.

Anything Reunion had been about to say about Seldan is lost in a storm of complaints and protests.

"Oh calm down! I can be gentle! Look at this smile!" Malefic's jagged, metallic, fearsome grin grows so wide there's a metal straining twang from somewhere. But they do- carefully- place their pointy maw on Deliverance's hilt and tries to roll one way to pull Deliverance out-

-Only halfway as they get dropped to the ground. "Dimwit?!" Malefic gasps, their grin dropping to an appalled jaw drop. "I am not a dimwit! How dare you! I'll have you know I enjoy wits. Take that back and I'll consider getting that coat off of you!"

It's at that moment, that exact moment, that the closet door opens and then there's the Sunguard posted outside of the door peering in. The poor beleaguered soul sighs. "What is all of that racket?" the man asks. "How many voices are in here? Why's the coat on the floor? What is shining down there? What in all of the Knight's holy name is going on?!"

"We have a problem!" Deliverance shouts. "I've fallen down and I can't get up!"

"You must eat them, then, because you sure aren't using any, you overgrown hunk of pot metal!" Kanian lashes out, the outrage muffled beneath the peacoat. "Kanian, be polite," Fallia chides, but it's lost in the cacophony emerging from the coat on the floor.

Meanwhile, Tisa and Alistair both speak up in response to the Sunguard, at the same time. "This idiot," Tisa starts indignantly. "I don't want you touching us, you'll bring down the entire closet on us!" The deeper voice is a bit more measured, but real annoyance rings through the words. "The halberd is trying to get to his lady love, down there on the floor," he explains.

Malefic stills, jagged maw ajar in shock. "T-Th-... The problem?! The real problem is me being slandered!" the halberd bays before gnashing at the air viscously. "OOOH if I had HANDS again so help me Dragonfather I'd- agggh! Pot metal?! POT METAL?! You don't use silver for pots! I bet three of my glass figurines from my hoard that your cacophonic catastrophe sleeps in a silk laden case every night if you can't take a TWO FOOT TUMBLE to the ground! Sod me for trying to HELP!"

"The halberd Malefic and I are not lovers!" Deliverance insists, scandalized. She's still writhing on the ground. "I have a reputation to uphold as a woman of the light! Err--sword of the light. Servant of the light! There." Certainly no existential confusion there.

The Sunguard stares at this whole ordeal. He tries to comprehend exactly what is going on then. The mouth opens and closes several times before finally, he shakes his head. "Daeus grant me strength," he mutters. "I'm getting your owners to come fetch you." And then he shuts the door, putting the three weapons back into the closet. The dark closet.

"Oh thank heavens--" Deliverance begins, and then she gasps. "Oh no. What if they were still discussing? Oh, Andelena will be so cross! Quick! We have to fix this!"

"You'll lose your bet, you self-righteous MOUTH!" Kanian doesn't have a lot of room to talk in that regard, but the outrage and fury is strong with this one. "The only catastrophe happening here is YOU!"

"Wait! Get us out from under this thing!" Golain shouts at the departing Sunguard, to no avail, and a gusty sigh can be heard coming from the blade.

Indeed, it seems from the shouting that Reunion is quite upset, but finally, Alistair roars, "Enough! All of you. Malefic, we are in the dark, the very thing you complained about upon entering. We cannot see Deliverance's light, or anything else, and I suspect that I am most grateful that swords do not possess an olfactory sense."

The anger hasn't wholly subsided, though.

"We are not lovers!" Malefic agrees in a bark with Deliverance. "Just because we touched blade tips does not mean anything!" They what. The sunguard is largely ignored, Malefic had their honor on the line! "I'll show you a catastrophe! You-"

The roar from Alistair gets the halberd to stymie. They listen, then there's a sound of a huff and a clank like their jaw slammed shut. "... Deliverance is right, we have to fix this..." they begrudgingly agree, the rumble in their tone belying discontent.

Malefic rolls over, jagged maw opening up to grab the coat, and they roll to the other side and away to free Reunion.

And now Malefic is rolled up into a coated burrito. ".... shut up," they warn, metal tone muffled by their own hubris.

It's a Sunguard that opens up the closet again, but this time instead of the poor and beleaguered man who is questioning if his solemn vows that he swore to Daeus included taking point on a closet with three talking weapons, it's the steel-eyed Sunguard herself, Andelena Donnelly.

Deliverance stops writhing on the floor. "Ah. Hello, Andelena. I trust that the talk went well?"

Andelena stares. And stares. And stares. Deliverance and Reunion are both are on the ground, and Malefic's wrapped in a coat-rrito. In fact, Deliverance is partially out of her sheath in a state of undress that might be scandalous... for a sword.

"Holy Knight," Andelena breathes. And she shakes her head. "What the fuck? Were the three of you having a fucking weapon orgy in here or something?"

"No! Malefic and I only touched tips," Deliverance immediately replies, and then immediately regrets it. "I mean--!"

The Sunguard sighs and picks Deliverance off the ground. "Gods, Livvie, I leave you alone in a closet with two hunks of metal and you turn into someone else. Wait til Bry hears about this." Her wicked grin promises the retelling of this will be one for ages to come.