Knock Down (Part 7)

The twins rise from their place at the table, comfortable and assured of their victory against you in their complicated little game. Slowly the book, the cards, and the little table that they summoned all disappear without so much as a flicker of smoke. Together they offer their hands. "It was a pleasure to play with you. Feel free to return anytime to challenge us."

Slinging her longgun over one shoulder, Alaryn glances back at the others and mutters softly, "I do not need this sort of frustration." and she turns to keep striding off. It's like the effect making her want to leave has made her self-justify her actions to herself.

Sargon frowns. He looks at the other party members. Then he looks back at the twins. "Perhaps Alaryn had a point. This is the first time we've played this game. Now that we know the rules, we may be able to defeat them..."

Stena stares after Sargon and Alaryn before turning back around to extend a hand to then to shake. "Yeah, sure." She mutters, "Still should have had that last hand..."

"We might..." Izzy replies slowly. "But more likely we find more interesting way to lose." The lizard clacks her jaw once. "I am not against trying if you are interested."

Sargon shrugs. "We must explore the dungeon, one way or another. If we have to resort to...extreme measures, at least it should be our last resort."

The brothers allow you to debate your next move, returning to their stations on either side of the pegasas pillars. The statues loom down over you with silent judgement, and Alaryn gets further away. You are left with any number of choices, but you'll have to make one.

Sargon studies the twins. "On the other hand...it was a game of chance. Knowing the rules won't help us get better cards..." he turns and looks at Alaryn, assuming she's still in sight. "I'll get her," he suddenly decides, then breaks into a run after her.

"If it's a game of chance then we should try again. There might be something we can do to improve our chances. OR maybe we'll lose badly and we can move on to other means. It's my first time playing cards, so I am interested either way. We might as well think while we play." Say’s Itzpapalotl.

At least Alaryn is merely walking away. Not rushing, not running. Just walking. But she -is- muttering angrily the whole time.

Sargon catches up in short order and grabs her by the elbow. "Our first game was lost, but we're going to try again. We should do better this time, and if not...we will try -another- way."

"Yeah, let's go again," agrees Stena, nodding at the Sith. "Let's do it! And this time, we'll play together." Firm tones.

She has no idea how to do that.

GAME: Alaryn rolls will: (7)+2: 9

Pulling her arm out of Sargon's grip, Alaryn narrows her eyes, "Oh, so you ignore my advice, and -then- you realize I was right and now you want me to come back?" she asks. . . it's obvious that for one reason or another, she doesn't really -want- to do that.

GAME: Sargon rolls sense motive: (11)+6: 17

Sargon narrows his own eyes at Alaryn . "You don't have to come all the way back," he finally offers. "If you are close enough to aid us when we...try the other way." He looks in the direction she was walking. "It should be shorter than going all the way back." He watches her again, closely.

Snorting, Alaryn shakes her head, "Oh no. That's not how this works." She folds her arms over her chest, causing her rifle (non rifled) musket to halfway slide off of her shoulder... which makes her reach to catch the strap. She lost a bit of dignity there, but tries to recover. "Look. You don't get to dismiss me, drive me off, and then expect me to help when you screwed up because you didn't listen. That is just... far too chaotic for my taste. Besides..." She jerks a thumb towards the statues, "They told me to leave.

Sargon gives Alaryn a flat look. "Drive you off?" he rumbles, voice mild but hinting at displeasure. "How did we..." he shakes his head, guessing that arguing won't help in this situation. He shoots a glance back at the twins. "They told you to leave?" He turns back to Alaryn, eyes flashing irately. "And you listen to them, but not me when I tell you to come back and stand with us?"

"...our friends at the cardss plassed much emphasis on politeness. But they are not ssaying everything they are thinking during the game, either. ...and they claim it iss game of chance, and sskill." The reptile flicks his tail, and looks towards the card players.

"Thiss-one would rather throw a party. We could challenge them to drinking and danssing!"

"This is -their- place." mutters Alaryn. "Their rules apparently. You guys wanted to do everything their way, so why shouldn't I?" she asks as she turns as if to depart once more.

"This should get interesting quickly," Izpapalotl notes in the same toneless, guttural voice she always seems to use. She clacks her jaw a couple times more, then turns slightly, nodding at Sargon as he calls out. "Drinking and meat eating," she apparently agrees.

Kuumvu says, "This-one would offer to ssing, and tell tales. Had we fruitss, and ale. Meatss, cooked-over-fire. ...sseasoned in mangos. ..." Kuumvu looks to the card players, and gets up. He walks over that way. "...esscuse me," he says to them. "Thiss-one wondered, how long you have been here?"

As Kuumvu comes up to the two men they too stride forward, turning thoughtful glances at him as if no one has ever thought to ask them that question before. "We have lost count. Over a hundred years. A thousand perhaps? A very long time." They nod in agreement and then look back at Kuumvu.

Sargon turns away from Alaryn, scowling. He heads back the rest of the party. "Something's not right," he practically spits once he reaches them. "Perhaps she is actually working with them. Or working for them." He glares at the twins, then seems to master himself. At least for the moment. "I'm willing to give the game one more try. Or to try something else." he looks meaningfully at the party members.

"Ssa. It comes-to-thiss one, what hass there been to do in thiss time?" Kuumvu asks. The skald's tail moves behind him, flick-flick. Flick-flick. "You have played many gamess--of cards? Againsst one another?"

"We guard the dungeon. Many animals come through and we defeat them. Other times those like you come through. Most chose to fight us and we have a good row. Few choose to play Dragon Poker, but we have had a few." The brothers nod, and look at Sargon. "We will accept your challenge any time so long as your group is made worthy by those who have completed the Tasks."

"...better homes and dungeons my.. " Stena can be heard muttering that.

"Better homes and dungeons did show us many fine caves in which to nest," Izzy replies in a helpful tone. "I found it quite informative."

"...yet only yoursselves? How good iss that, for creative minds? For individualss with very-great thoughtss and ideas?"

"Ssaa, you are creative, capable of dragon games--yet you are assked to guard a dungeon?"

"...and sso rare it iss, you have ssomeone to play cardss against? Forgive this-one. He iss just ssurprised. Perhapss there iss something-he-is not sseeing," Kuumvu suggests. "...but at leasst this-one understands why you offered to play the cards. Everyone elsse must-choose to fight. That iss very boring?" he suggests. He looks to Izzy, then back as though the other scaled had given him an idea.

The two brothers look at one another and then back at Kuumvu. "Yes. It /is/ very dull. We enjoy the game, and so few choose to play it." They sigh in unison and look back toward the area between the two pegassi pillars and then back again. "But we have little choice. We lost the game those many, many years ago versus Ignition and now we have no choice but to guard the dungeon."

Sargon says, "And if we defeat you in Dragon Poker, you will be free of this duty?"

"...say, what about that artificer girl? Isn't our camp that way?" She points the other direction.

Stena may not be right about that.

"We will have this duty until the master of the dungeon returns. But if you defeat us in a physical contest, or in the game; you will be allowed passage into the sanctuary." Their voices in unison create an odd echo that adds layers to their words.

"We can go and capture her and force her to come back or we can fight these things and keep moving, " Izzy replies vaguely irritably. "We should pick one now. If we want to chase we had best move /immediately/."

"She," Kuumvu says, sounding distracted. Then, "He. One meanss he. ...One only sseeks to undersstand. Ignition? ...why would a game forsse you to sstay here for that-many years?"

The skald looks to Sargon a moment. Back to the card players. Blinks a few times. "...how about we throw a party, insstead?"

"..." Kuumvu glances towards the walking away artificer, and back to Stena. "This-one does not know. Sshe was-flirting with the oruch? This-one understands there are half-oruch. It wass-not flirting? In the romances, you are to chasse after her," to Sargon. "Then there are children, and happily-ever-afterss."

Walk walk walk. Alaryn is doing as she was told to do. Leaving. Still leaving. . . Look away, look back. She's further away. Yep. For once, she's doing as she was told. That alone is WEIRD right?

"We made a wager on the outcome of the game. If we won we would guard where he is, if he won he would guard where we are. He won, and guards an opulent tower. We lost and guard this dungeon in the wastes." They nod low to Kuumvu turns his attention to the others, seemingly endlessly patient with how long it's taken you guys to make your choice.

Sargon scoffs. "Flirting? I doubt it." Although a small part of himself admits, that 'flirting' with Oruch females often leads to irritation and a headache as well, so perhaps the Sith is not too far off. He shakes his head. "But there is definitely something unusual going on with her. First she tried to chase off the creator of our map, and now she's doing as these guards tell her. Is she truly in good standing with the Explorer's Guild?"

"...well, why don't we tell them to bring her back?" asks Stena after a moment. "We kinda need her, I guess. They'd get really annoyed if we let one of our own just...wander off aimlessly into the desert! Hey, can you two bring her back?" she asks the brothers, then adds, "We'll totally beat you at Dragon Poker again. I'm part dragon. I have a leg up."

"Of course we can bring her back." The two fall silent for a moment and then nod. "There, she should return momentarily. Have you made your choice then? As to what you would care to do?"

After a few more steps... Alaryn slows to a stop. She glances back over her shoulder and then out into the wastes. Finally, she rolls her eyes and mutters, "Those guys would get killed without me." as she starts to trudge back.

"Among the People, the male sstorms off when he wantss-attention. The female iss to go after him, conssoling and petting the pretend-anger. Thiss-ssoftens him to the female'ss advansses, while he playss-difficult-to-get. This one understands ssoftskins have things-backwards with maless and females, but ...One can only ssurmise she wished you to chasse-after her, Ssargon."

The skald flicks his tail a while. "But there iss a ssimpler ssolution. We could insstead throw a drinking contesst and offer praisses to Angoron."

Then he confesses, "This-one iss sso very /bored/. And one has not sstood here hundredss-of-years." To the giants. "/How are you not-bored?/" STRANGE ALIEN SPECIES.

"I have now learned more than I ever wanted to know abvout Sith-Makar mating practices," says Stena, dryly, to Itzpapalotl and Kuumvu, nodding casually.

"Well, anyway! Poker! Or battle. But probably poker because we can totally BEAT YOU GUYS FOR SURE now."

"Or-drinking," the skald says, quickly. "Drinking and-fire and-danssing." And to the giants. "Are either-of-you ssingle? Neither of you looks..."

".../too horrible.../" He is so bored. Is he that bored? Take the fire and firewater away from the skald and you have...

HE IS SO BORED. "Perhaps they are not-sso-ugly," he's trying to tell himself, quietly. So he walks up to them. And looks up to them. "How about-we advansse ssome ssoftskin and sscaled relations? A good fight, a good rumble--and you let-uss-go?"

Trudging through the wastes back towards the party, Alaryn unlimbers her new longgun, making sure that it is loaded and primed. She has its barrel pointed skywards just in case so she doesn't accidentally shoot an ally. "You guys really need my help, don't you?" she calls out. "Now, can we finish this without playing by their rules?"

"Oh, whatever. Let us be destroying them then." Izzy is rolling her eyes and adjusting those servos she wears along her arms. She moves toward those challenging the party and clacks her jaw. "It is past being time for my sunbathing. This one will be forced to make friend Kuumvu miserable if she is tired. So let's get on with it."

GAME: Kuumvu rolls diplomacy: (4)+10: 14
GAME: Kuumvu rolls diplomacy: (5)+10: 15

Sargon shifts into his fighting stance, turned to present one side of his body to the twins with fists raised in a medium guard to shield his chest and throat. "I knew it would come to this," he says with a tone of finality.

GAME: Alaryn casts Shield. Caster Level: 4 DC: 15

Seeing that the fight is on, Alaryn curses since she realizes she's not really in optimum range. But she reaches to her belt, unfastens a pouch from there and opens it to reveal a small crystal model of a buckler shield. But it's a ring, not full sized. She slides the ring on her finger and uses her thumb to press a stud on the inside of the ring.. causing a field of force to spring into being before her.. projected from the ring like some really primitive Green Lantern. Oh yes, it's green, did I fail to mention that? As she does this, she trudges closer.

GAME: Kuumvu rolls diplomacy: (14)+10: 24

"...sssa," the skald suggests, quickly. "Ssa, ssa. Look, this-one favors sstrong, burly males. Every tumble-in-the-ssack is a praise to Angoron."

Eh? Eh??? Kuumvu looks like he's trying not to cringe.

He is SO BORED.

SO BORED. He offers a weak smile then, and spreads his hands to either side. "Thiss one propooses an alternative. Let'ss go and get drunk? And praisse Angoron? Ssurely it iss," oh god less boring, "more interessting than another card game, or a hundrendth battle? Pluss, one is athletic! As any proper sscion of the GREAT MOUNTAIN sshould be, ssa?" This time, the smile somehow takes on a shine. A lizardy shine with a hint of teeth, and a turn of shoulder. But maybe giants like that!

SO CHARMING. PRAISE ANGORON.

The two men in question drop their swords in unison - as they do everything - and drop their jaws. Maybe it's the whole 'praising Angoron' thing. Maybe it's the fact that they have been alone for over a thousand years. Who knows. They nod to Kuumvu. "We could take /one/ night's break. Yes. Come with us friend sith and we will show you how to rightfully praise Angorn. The whole mountain will hear of it!" They walk away, motioning for Kuumvu to follow them and... leave the mouth of the dungeon's entry way entirely unguarded.

Seeing this... Alaryn blinks and shakes her head, "I did -not- just see that happen. No. Not at all. Not a chance." she mutters, "Okay, so maybe they didn't need my help after all. Weird."

PRAISE DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS.

PRAISE ANGORON!

Oh god so bored.

BUT THIS IS BETTER, SOMEHOW.

RIGHT.

Kuumvu looks over his shoulder at the lot of you, a panick'd look--and then--straightens both shoulders. Resolutely. And turns that lizardy grin on the giants. Djinn. "Ssa. We sshall praisse the very gods!"

SO MUCH BETTER THAN BEING BORED.

There's a great deal of staring involved with all of this. Izzy clacks her jaw a couple of times and then gives a slow nod of her head as it is ending. She breathes a satisfied sigh. "It is good he is finding a male suitable to his tastes. Am thinking he would be too fragile for the proper fertilizing of eggs." SHe nods once, apparently satisfied by this summation. And Kuumvu's distress is either unnoticed or ignored.

Sargon stands motionless in his fighting stance, too stunned to move. Finally he slowly lowers his fists to his sides and straightens. He watches Kuumvu. Watches the giants follow. Then he turns his gaze back to the spot where the twins were when the party first encountered them. "Perhaps he does know something about romance," he admits.

"...wait what," says Stena.

"Wait... what?" repeats Stena. Shje looks at Sargon. Then she looks at Itzpapalotl and links arms with her.

"You know, I am just... gonna... turn around. We should turn around." She's totally turning around now.

You have one last thing to do before you can leave however. As Kuumvu and the two djinn leave for their own devices. And that's the dungeon you've all come for. Whatever you're expecting... you don't find it. What you do find as you trek down the path is a door in the wall of the cliff. You open the door and inside is an opulent room. It's filled will pillows and cushions and a little table with a odd looking chessboard on it. It's a really lovely little getaway but /not/ the dungeon you were expecting. You search the whole area for hidden doors (inside and out) but find nothing.

All in all it's been a really long week and getting a drink and praising Angoron doesn't sound like a bad idea at all.

-End