Czlaplon Quest

[TarlimanJoppos]

Alston: Her Name is Audelia, and she's fifteen. She's also terribly embarrassed at the fuss being made, as teenage girls tend to be, and really not happy about the attention her parents are directing to her. Mekhitar approves of your request for more time and a bigger audience.

Isaac: “We'll catch her after the casting off,” says Mekhitar, “when she's a little off balance from all the kerfuffle and less likely to be resistant.” You do indeed have time for a karma ritual.

And so we move on to the next morning (28th of Strassa, 1513 Th). If you're not up by the time the first rays of the sun peek over the horizon, Mekhitar comes round and bangs on your door, being far too cheerful for such an early hour. “Showtime!” he announces.

Fortunately, the stewards are handing round mugs of strong tea. The morning is a bit damp and chilly, as it tends to be on the river. The crew bustle about, making final preparations. Clouds of steam belch from the stack as the fire engine is stoked. Some of the passengers are up and about, looking a bit bleary, wrapped in cloaks and blankets and standing at the rail to watch the proceedings.

[Kasbak]

Oh boy, a teenage girl, this will be interesting to say the least. I suppose it could be worse; she's not a t'skrang, so I'll be spared THAT joyful bundle of attitude.

I'll make sure to get to bed early after such a busy day. I'll most likely be up, but not about, when Mekhitar rolls around. When he does, I'll get a quick verify from him if we're to go fancy dress for this proceedure, or if it will be less formal. After the customary check over on my equipment, I'll make myself presentable and do a bit of stretching to get the blood flowing before heading out to find where we're gathering.

(Just a quick OOC note: I'm not sure how you've been handling LP's for the forum game, but I'd like to update that in my notes when it's convenient so I can keep track for my karma rituals as well.)

[arcomniflash]

Though I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to do - as previously mentioned I don't have flashy powers like everyone else, I'll make my way to the gathering area. Since the others seem to know what they're doing, I'll follow their lead for the moment. Perhaps displaying a bit of swordsmanship and showing up my metal arm would work, though really isn't very 'flash bang'."

[TarlimanJoppos]

Everybody: Thanks for the reminder on LPs. 300 LPs for completing the previous day. Isaac, 100 LPs for spotting the woman and handling it properly, and notifying Shaliko in private. Alston: 50 LPs and 20 Devotion Points to Astendar for the flashy entrance.

Mekhitar assures you all that traveling clothing will be appropriate for the casting-off. Some of the passengers will go back to bed afterwards. There's to be a breakfast laid on in the lounge after te casting-off for those who want to stay up and get on with their day. You gather at the forward rail, up on the lounge deck where there's a large open space for just such events. Shaliko is already there when Alston, Isaac, Kolbeinn, and Mekhitar show up, doing some sort of unarmed combat practice form. He's running it at half speed and exaggerating his moves a bit, which the kids and young adults watching him seem to find entrancing. Garsevan arrives just as Mekhitar is starting to glance around irritably, looking for him.

“Good morning!” Mekhitar calls out once Shaliko finishes his form, striding to the center of the observation area. “The Relentless Hunters welcome you to this voyage of Athenar's Fancy! First mate, are we ready to cast off?” This last upwards.

The first mate swings down on a line and drops lightly to the deck next to Mekhitar. She tosses him a salute, and bows to the passengers. “We are ready!” She blows a quick couple of notes on a bos'un's pipe, and calls out, “Cast off!”

Lines are brought in, the engine gives out a mighty chuff and a big cloud of steam, then settles down to a steady, slow puffing as the ship backs away from the dock. Mekhitar nods to Isaac. “You're on. Alston, wait till we're mid river and then launch a fire arrow as a salute.”

[arcomniflash]

I'll nod and tip my hat low, still not sure if this is appropriate, but I'll step forward and give a deep, gracious bow to those present with one hand on my hat to keep it on. I'll draw my blade and hold it in front of myself, so that the audience can see it.

"Greetings. My name is Isaac Himnerith, I walk in the shadows and slay the evils that dwell there, chasing Horror to its own domain. This is my blade Crystal Splitter, forged by Bortar of the Bearers of the Helm, this blade has slain many Horrors, and most recently I used it to cleave the named Horror, Baalentheron, in twain. Permit me to demonstrate the power and sharpness of this weapon for you..." I'll keep my tone as even and non-threatening as possible, a story for them to listen to before my demonstration.

I'm not a swordmaster, and I can't hope to come close to their showmanship, but I can demonstrate my own brand of swordplay, running through some of the basic katas that I practice every day. I'll incorporate my arm into these moves as much as I can, since that's what's unique about me. In order to show them the power of the weapon though, I'll look for something that I can cut without bothering anyone - any empty barrel, some wood, anything that isn't being used and can be expended.

I do not enjoy showing off in this manner, and so I hope at least one or two people in the crowd appreciate it.

This will be a display of both my own skills and of course of Crystal Splitter.

[Kasbak]

Though I do like the fancy clothes I got, traveling togs will be more comfortable. Even if only for familiarity. I'll make sure to have the fancy stuff laid out and ready in my room still; don't want to pack it away and have it get wrinkled when I'm sure I'll need it soon.

I'll give Mekhitar a nod at his instructions, and wait until I can feel the ship start its forward momentum so I know for certain we're under way before giving the salute. I do not need to give the Troubadour any excuses to make jokes on firing prematurely. Otherwise, I'll be hanging back for the most part until I'm called on. I will definitely be getting breakfast without hesitation once this is done, however.

[TarlimanJoppos]

Isaac: Two of the crew, who were holding boards for Shaliko to break with his unarmed combat strikes, will hold a board or two for you also. You get a few oohs and aahs and some tentative applause. The kid from last night jumps up and down and applauds wildly, and keeps telling his mother about you and pointing you out, in that way children have of drawing their parents' attention to something they like. His mother doesn't seem to know quite how to deal with this. It's obvious that she'd be happier with her child fanboying over an adept if the adept were a little less scary. After your demonstration, the kid comes over, waiting at a respectful distance until you've sheathed Crystal Splitter, then asks a flurry of questions about the sword and was it really Bortar the Pink and why isn't the sword pink and does your hand make you a better swordsman and can you grab someone else's sword with your hand and break it? His mother flusters a bit, but seems to have given up on trying to turn her son's attention away from you.

Alston: Mekhitar appreciates your checking with him for your cue, although he's disappointed at the loss of the opportunity for a double entendre. Your Flame Arrows get a nice ooh-ahh and some applause from the crowd.

As the kid is pestering Isaac and Alston is putting away his gear, Garsevan floats past, muttering "Run for the buffet, I'll hold them off," and goes sailing out over the rail. He puts on a flashy display of shadow-fencing out in the open air in front of the ship, swooping and rolling and spinning with the occasional "Have at you!" or "Ha!". Mekhitar gives the rest of the group the nod and heads in to the lounge, setting his course for the pastry table. Elves. Must be nice to be able to run on nothing but sugar.

[Kasbak]

Oh they won't allow Windlings to run on pure sugar; they'd never pay off all the damages. As tempted as I am to zip over on my own, I'll hold back on Kolbeinn's shoulder to make sure he also takes the opening presented by Garsevan's noble sacrifice and is spared any social awkwardness being caught speaking to someone he can't understand. Though if he delays, I might still end up darting ahead.

I'll indulge in some pastries as well, though I'll make sure to accompany it with something more substantial. Once we're all seated, I'll speak up. "So, what does our upcoming schedule look like? I've got a possible adept candidate to schedule time with, and a few activities for a larger audience I can do, but I want to make sure nothing conflicts with anything for the group." I'll address it openly, though mostly directed towards Mekhitar. Nothing on my end is truly pressing time-wise, so it shouldn't be difficult to work around the rest of our activities. I know we'll need to find a way to discreetly start scanning passengers and crew now that we're under way, though with the nature of that conversation, being in the open may not be the best place for that unless it can be done covertly.

[arcomniflash]

I'll answer a few of the kid's questions, but I'll keep my answers short and to the point. "Yes. He doesn't forge pink weapons. No. Maybe." Respectively. As soon as Garsevan floats past though I'll glance up at him, keeping my hand on my hat, before looking back down at the boy. It probably is time to eat something and all these questions are exhausting - not really used to talking so much. I'll mutter a "Please, excuse me.", give the boy a small bow and head off in the direction of the buffet. Not the best end to the conversation, but I'm known for politeness, not social graces.

[TarlimanJoppos]

Isaac: The boy seems disappointed in your departure, but doesn't try to follow you. However, you hear him behind you telling his mother all about you and Bortar and Crystal Splitter and the Baalentheron and the Lightbearers and and and.

Mekhitar, who has settled in with a cheese-filled pastry and a cup of tea, nods to Alston. “Not too complicated, really,” he says, waving the pastry. “We've got five days before the ship reaches Tansiarda. We'll lay over there for a day to replenish supplies, and then go off north up the Onman, another two to three days to our dropoff point. We'll each need to take a turn in the afternoon telling our stories to the passengers, but with seven of us, that keeps us down to one day each and I'll pick up an extra day. We should all be present for dinner, as we're the focal point for the cruise. Other than that, we're looking at a few demonstrations here and there. Alston, you've already done plenty between last night and this morning. If you've got suggestions for nooning demonstrations, by all means, make your pitch, but don't feel obligated to carry the entire voyage.” He switches to Sperethiel. “Kolbeinn, can you take the nooning today, do a bit of flashy spellcraft, maybe summon an elemental?”

Kolbeinn nods. “Yes, we are far enough from Ayodhya on the pilgrimage route that summoning a minor elemental should be relatively safe.” He implies that he doesn't want to attract undue attention.

“Fabulous. Alston, when and how you deal with your potential student is your own lookout. Isaac, can you and Garsevan work up a bit of decorative swordplay for tomorrow's nooning? The captain can lay to and put you on the riverbank for safety.”