[Hopetoun] Duty And The Feast

Thu Oct 20, 2022 12:10 am

Alyssia looked over and smiled seeing Darius walk over while they were talking. She always loved to brag on what Devin had accomplished; he had become an older brother to her and so everything he did made her proud of him. Though it was clear from how Hopetoun had come along that Darius was no slacker either. She was shocked when Kura offered her to become her apprentice. To learn how to be in the political spotlight from none other than the Alberach of Scalvoris herself. Only two others could claim that honor. It was not a decision that Alyssia could just jump into without thinking about it first.

“Thank you Lady Alberach. I hope you do not mind if I request some time to think on your offer and make my decision. I do not want to jump into anything without giving it the proper thought and understanding the full scope of what will be expected of me. If only two have been your apprentices before me that already tells me how much you expect of your students. As you should, your time is already precious. You cannot afford to waste time on students who are not serious about their studies,” Alyssia explained looking up at the woman.

Alyssia smiled and looked at Darius very glad to have him as a friend. He could have left her to face her past alone when Keanu had come after her. But he stepped up and helped to protect her and get the tracker off the streets. Everything since that day had been quiet when thinking of the danger of her past. The young girl turned her attention back to Kura when the man dismissed himself heading to speak with the other guests. It wasn’t long after his departure that a loud noise caused the teen to cover her ears.

With her ears still covered, she looked over to see the portal and whatever it was climbing out of it. A gasp left her lips as she felt a pit in her stomach start to form. Was it nice? Was it there to kill the guests? How did a hole just appear in the air out of nowhere? Alyssia looked around a spotted Tunawa standing on the table with a knife of some kind. She turned to ask Kura what they needed to do before suddenly being hugged by none other than Sovar. Instinctively the girl hugged the giant wolf remembering what he had told her of Karem the night she should have died.

“Sovar! What’s going on? What is that thing?” Alyssia called to the wolf staying close to his ear in case he couldn’t speak loudly in the room.

Alyssia looked around seeing Greyhide watching the portal while trying to push Kura towards safety. The teen followed what Sovar requested of her while trying to look for the other guests and the barons.

“Where is Darius and the other guests? Is everyone okay?” Alyssia asked, looking around in the chaos that had suddenly ensued.

Mon Nov 07, 2022 7:03 am

1 Ymiden 721

All things considered, Balthazar was fairly confident that it would be a bad idea to host similar events in Haven. Things had turned sour quickly but he couldn't stop smiling. Saoire's candy did its job very well and the mage, despite all the recent things that had happened which he would normally have been focused on, seemed to have an air of joy about him now. He saw faces he didn't particularly enjoy and instead of feeling angry or bothered by their history, he felt a strange bubbly sensation in his chest. As the party began to turn south around the trio he was standing with, he felt nothing but the joy rise to overwhelm the negative emotions he'd have normally been feeling. He could have fought the effects but he did not want to. Why fight what felt like genuine joy- even in the face of conflict and battle? Praetorum asked Elisabeth about Kura and the four-time spark survivor beside them did not offer information or an opinion on the woman.

Trills later, Darius had called out to them and in an even shorter time after that, the chaos began. The little wooden man did something, that much was clear almost immediately to Balthazar who recognized the domain of magic Kisaik was using. Rupturing portals were fairly familiar to the mage by now but he would never have attempted to open one to the place that the Tunawa had. Such portals were probably closer to vergences than portals and the consequence for even attempting a feat like that would probably be more than the effort was worth. He'd never tried it... but in his daze of magically-induced joy, he pocketed the idea for another trial.

Nir'wei shouted for everyone to flee and Balthazar let out a most uncharacteristic giggle. He was not going to run. Why would he run? He could do so many other things to whatever came through the small wooden one's portal. He could even just ignite the small wooden one and hope the portal collapsed because of it. He didn't think his portals stayed open if he fell unconscious... or if he lit on fire. Then again it had been a long time since he was on fire and he wasn't particularly sure he even could burn anymore given his mutations. Balthazar looked to his left and then to his right at the many who'd assembled and then his eyes settled back on Nir'wei as the wolf friend began to launch his own plan of action.

Only, the plan involved covering everything in a thick blanket of fog. Balthazar didn't need to physically see to know what was happening around him due to his own enhanced senses and his Rupturing spark, but he certainly preferred to see what was happening. He didn't want to lose track of the little bugger coming out of the portal either. He took a deep breath in through his nose as he pulled a drink off of the table and blew out through his mouth before taking a sip of the drink- which was just water. As he breathed out, he coaxed a strong breeze from the wind to spread and thin out the fog that Nir'wei had cast. He was not looking to dispel it entirely, just to spread it out enough that he could see through it.

"A bit of an overreaction, in my opinion." Balthazar said in a quiet voice to Elisabeth and Praetorum. After all, it was just a bit of magic and maybe a little fight. If not for Saoire's candy, he might not have felt so casual about it.

Mon Dec 19, 2022 5:08 am

In the folly of his youth, Darius had believed that heroes were always brave. Fearless, fictional fighters courageously combating made-up monsters.

But things had changed since his path to adulthood.

For one, he would soon discover that the fantastical flying fire-breathers found in fairytales were in fact real.

But he had also learnt that bravery was not the absence of fear that a young Darius had believed it to be. Fear did not vanish; it remained, but bravery was found in overcoming that fear, and acting in spite of it.

Darius would find himself reflecting on the relationship between fear and bravery later that night, after the chaos had subsided. He would run the event through his head and consider the actions he'd taken and the decisions he'd made. Hindsight could be harsh like that, pointing out flaws in the moment, but it could also be a good teacher.

Because when it had happened, they only had their instincts to rely on.

Darius didn't see what Kisaik did. He was busy enjoying a conversation with Balthazar, Elisabeth, and Praetorum, when he heard someone yelling. Turning, he saw that it was Nir'wei, and even as the Scalvorian took in what the man was saying, a giant wolf with a large glowing scar across its chest appeared before him.

It wasn't the sight of Cold that made Darius nervous - the beast was a member of Nir'wei's menagerie and was there to protect them - but the need for him to be summoned certainly put him on edge. Instinctively, one hand reached for the hilt of his longsword, and he turned to Balthazar, expecting the mage to also be preparing himself, but the man seemed strangely calm.

"Balthazar!" he growled, trying to get his attention. "Ready yourself!"

He looked to Elisabeth and Praetorum briefly, as if to ask if he could leave the mage with them to manage, before turning to face the many settlers who were in the area, for he knew many would be looking to him for guidance.

"Make your way to the Hopeful Rest! Help one another, and barricade the entrance!"

The inn was the largest stone structure in the settlement, which made it the safest place of refuge for anyone not willing to fight.

As parts of the crowd began to heed his instructions, Darius caught sight of Astra and Josef. They were together, each guiding other settlers to follow them.

Then the Scalvorian drew his longsword and looked to Nir'wei, nodding to the man deferentially - for there was no benefit in a leadership struggle in a time of crisis - but not before checking to see if Elisabeth and Praetorum had succeeded in shaking Balthazar from his stupor.

Thu Jan 26, 2023 5:11 pm

Ymiden 1, Arc 721

Balthazar's kiss on her head prompted a soft smile, moving closer to him as the trio continued to talk. Never one that felt the need to 'work the room,' so to speak, Elisabeth was perfectly content to stay with them and watch the activity going on around them.

Following Prae's nod towards a figure he was wondering about, she replied, quickly identifying the source of the question. "Kura? She’s the Albarech of Scalvoris. We've had several dealings with her, in fact." The nature of those dealings remained unsaid, although it wasn't an exaggeration to classify them as 'colorful' and 'unique.'

Darius made his way to their group, and conversation flowed easily until the shouts started, causing Elisabeth to glance in the direction of the noise. Chaos began ensuing, which, if one was being honest, was almost typical for the pair.

The issue at hand was that Elisabeth had no idea what was going on or what had been summoned. Nir'wei was yelling, wolves everywhere, Balthazar not being Balthazar, and Darius telling Balthazar to 'get ready.' For what was still undetermined, along with why Balthazar was the only one that needed to 'get' that way.

The counterpoint was….it didn't matter – people needed help. Mixed into those people were those she had just been appointed to guide and protect. Her focus needed to be on getting the people out of harm's way as quickly as possible.

Seeing Silk, Baldur, and Ronan, Haven's new leader called out to them, tone made of steel, leaving no room for argument or debate for the guards. "Get everyone safely out of the area! I'll join you when I can!" The purpose of the instructions was two-fold - it gave them particular, distinct direction while also informing them that they were not to wait for her. Elisabeth's sword, which rarely left her side, was ready to be used should the situation warrant it but right then, she saw nothing that prompted that response.

What she really needed was information.

Then, she remembered that being Forged gave her specific insightsForged ability "Identify", and she felt that the…well, whatever, in front of her qualified. Drawing upon her connection to the Induks, Elisabeth looked upon the spirit with new eyes, trying to determine its reason for being.

Knowing Balthazar was under the influence of Saoire's candy, Elisabeth did what she could to rouse him, jabbing his ribs as hard as she could. Sweet words had their place, but the people needed Balthazar to be, well, Balthazar, and quickly.

Moving swiftly between the spirit, which she now understood to be an Anak of some sort, and the fleeing people, Elisabeth called out the information to those that might not know. "It's an Anak!" She recognized the telltale signs of rupturing well enough, considering Balthazar was a master in the discipline, but everything else about it was still a mystery to her.

Her sole job at that moment was to put herself as a barrier between the spirit and those leaving the area. Whatever else she did would be determined in the moments to come.

Sat Jun 17, 2023 1:35 am

Rewards Requested

Notes/Warnings: There may be knowledge claims in there. Please uncheck those, this is a non-lucid dream for all concerned. It's a pc run event that just kind of went forever untill my pc decided to summon a hunger demon, and everyone lost interest

Thread: [Hopetoun] Duty And The Feast
City/Area: Dreamscapes & The Veil

Renown: None
Collaboration: Yes

!	Message from: Winston
	Done!

Tue Jun 27, 2023 1:38 pm

This has been graded as a non-lucid dream at player request.