Tea and the Sea
Log Info
- Title: Tea and the Sea
- Emitter: Whirlpool
- Characters: Jinks, Paenitia, Cesran, Halani, Karelin
- Place: A03: Colosseum District
- Time: Monday, August 30, 2021, 11:12 PM
- Summary: Griva is relaxing in the colosseum district, or attempting to, and recovering from her experiences in the Sea of Mana. Cesran and Karelin join her, also aching and worn. Paenitia chases Ramirez through to the Tarrace, as he is having another go at Lord Emperor. Halani exits the Colosseum, victorious but somehow embroiled in strife. Jinks is hanging around, in case Halani needs another escort home - or he does. Cesran relates a summary of the events that occurred when the group went to investigate the Ley Line Cists and the holes in the Sea of Mana. It was a plot by Asumit, an old foe, that involved bringing in avoid creature into reality to absorb the Sea. Combatting it was difficult, including fighting alternate selves and the deaths of Kravar and Merek. They got better. Jinks hails them unironically as victorious heroes.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=-<* A03: Colosseum District *>--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=-
The earth trembled where the Champion once trod. Legend by some states that His strength was so mighty that He naturally clove in two, creating the twin gods of Angoron and Kor. Other legends tell other tales, too, and the tour guides are quick to spin them, while at the same describing the history of the Colosseum, a tribute to both gods as well as the glorious and competitive spirit of all creatures and even Alexandria, Herself.
The structure stands imposingly massive, a great stage crafted from a time when the oruch and khazad worked in tandem. It displays perfectly the contrasts and strengths of each culture in its carved stonework, from the oruch's tribal frenzy to the khazadi strength and solidarity.
Vendors, shops, surround the arena, and turn this into a place of commerce. At any time, a number of Warriors, Heralds of Angoron or Kor may be seen, offering advice and the wisdom of the Twins. For all its serious, it is a place of laughter as well. Tarien's taverns and trickery makes its home here, and the too-proud warrior may quickly find him or herself on the opposite end of a banana peel or practical joke.
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-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Appearing in Order =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Jinks 3'4" 39 Lb Gnome Male A gnomish fellow in fancy garb and jewelry. Paenitia 3'0" 34 Lb Halfling Female A Lucht knight, dark skinned in bold feathery finery. Cesran 6'1" 185 Lb Human Male A tall dark-skinned man. Halani 5'4" 120 Lb Human/Xian Female Shortish, dusky skinned woman with almond shaped eyes. Karelin 6'2" 256 Lb Human Male Tattooed Korite warrior. Tall, dark and scarred. -=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= NPCs of Note =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Griva Brassbringer Khazdi Female Head of the Alexandrian Chapter of the Resurrection Society -=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= As the GM -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Whirlpool 5'0" Otyugh I am stinky! -=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=
Griva Brassbringer looks worse for wear.
To be sure, she is not alone. Ever since the adventurers who left with her returned, more than one of them hasn't been themselves, if they returned alive at all. She's seated at her favorite tea place near the Colosseum, enjoying it and looking thoroughly, thoroughly drained.
Cesran is slowly walking through the Colosseum District leaning on his staff. He too looks worse for wear, his skin marked with black lines over his brown skin. He spots the tea place and he starts to slowly walk towards it. He spots Griva and nods to her, "Good day Griva. How goes your recovery?" He asks as he finds himself a spot and waits for the server to come by with a menu.
Jinks exits the Tarrace wreathed in hearthglow and the busy, chaotic din of a tavern for as long as it takes the door to close behind him. A few steps and he's closing his eyes and leaning back, looking up into the rain for a heartbeat. Then he's twirling one of the many rings on his fingers and stepping away from the building and into the square-- detouring towards Cesran once he's noticed the familiar tallman. The earthen smell of a fresh rain mingle with the warm, musky scent of his perfume.
"No! Ramirez! He is not in! This is not the time to challenge." A loud cry announces the transitory appearance of a large white peacock. A horse sized peacock, to be exact, that is also half-horse. He is squawking, flapping wings, and pursued by a small knight in rusty red armour, attempting to catch the hippogryph.
Ramirez is closing on the Tarrace, and issues his challenge again, 'Ruaaaaah!'
Halani was in the arena herself. Those who follow such things might realize that an open melee has just ended, and it's like Halani was involved as she strolls away from the building. When she's not even a badger's throw away, shouts and yells follow her... to which she twirls about, performs a few sharp movements with her arms involving fists and fingers, and pivots back to walking away again. Gestures which, for anyone familiar with Islander culture, might realize are quite rude.
The sudden shouting and chaos makes Griva sigh.
It is a bone-weary sigh of advancing age and fatigue with certain things. She turns her gaze on Halani. Recognizing her, there's a raised hand before her attentions swings to the peacock and it's friend.
A hand is raised to be placed overe her eyes and she blinks several times.
Cesran smiles as the server comes over to take his order for tea and a small snack. He hears the commotion and he makes sure he's far enough away so that the rogue hippogryph isn't going to try to barrel into him. He chuckles as he notices the familiar salute from Halani. He'd normally offer to help with the animal. He reaches down to hold onto his staff as he tracks the hippogryph's movements.
Jinks' casual swagger is interrupted by Ramirez' charge-- to be immediately replaced by a mad dash for cover and a half-spoken oath regarding Mulria's nethers. It's only a handful of long (relatively speaking), rapid steps that he's sorted the peacock's angle and realized there's no threat of being trampled. So he stops, tugs down his fancy coat, and adjusts his coyote's head brooch as he wills the entire event to have gone unnoticed. He's small, after all, and surely a sparkling dandy wearing enough jewelry to decorate a dozen concubines is the last thing people trouble themselves with.
"Ho, tallman," he calls to Cesran before offering the most-casual of waves to Halani and a raised-fist salute to the masked paladina somewhere in the wake of her steed. Then he's spotted Griva and the wizard's curious adornment quirks a shock-white, gnomish eyebrow.
Halani stops in her trakcs when she sees Griva. Little more than a stutter, really. But a pause nonetheless... a reminder of that time that nobody talks about. That NOBODY TALKS ABOUT. She takes a deep breath, shrugs, and is about to simply wave back to Griva and continue on her way.. when she sees Jinks's narrow escape from a premature flattening. She grins a bit, recognizes Paetentia and Cesran and well, then shrugs and saunters over.
"Hola!" Paenitia calls as she runs by, trailing quite far behind her peacock-andalusian. Short legs and heavy armour make for a slow Lucht. A strange mask that often obstucts breathing does not help with a hurried pace.
Ramirez halts outside the Tarrace, then splays his giant peacock tail and starts to dance. Rattle! Clop-Clop! The hollow feathers clatter like castanettes and his hooves stome like, hooves as the stomp along the pavement. It is impressive, large and loud, punctuated by his frequent 'Ruaaaah! Ruuaaaah!' Calls. Come out, fight me! I challenge you.
His Mistress catches up and waits as he works off his mood. She and Sabina have arranged that their respective peacocks do not meet, but have not managed to get them to forget each other's existence.
There will be a bit more dance. Fortunately it's far enough away it isn't a loud interruption, more background entertainment. Cesran winces as he watches Jinks have to avoid being flattened by the hippogryph, "Hello Jinks, are you all right? Would you like me to order a drink for you?" He says and smiles at the server as she comes back with his order. "Thank you so much." He says as he starts to add a bit of sugar to the tea. "I wonder what's up with that mount. I hope that it doesn't hurt anyone."
"Ramirez just... wants to dance, apparently?" Jinks offers, twisting to look back over his shoulder. "I've felt that call many times." He looks around Cesran and Griva, down at the counter in the hopes of sussing out what, exactly, is being drunk. He does a halfway decent job of masking the face he makes when he sees the teeth, twisting it instead into a wide, toothy smile. "Whistles still wet from Madame Sabina's establishment... but all of my thanks at the offer. Bumped into Merek; freshly back together and he asks after my health. Salt of the earth, that fellow." There's a tick as he swallows the urge to add 'once the salt of the Sea, I hear.'
"Out having the fun we've talked about?" He adds, asking this of Halani.
"...I am sure that the good knight will have it under control shortly. Won't you, good knight?"
Griva's tone indicates that she hopes that this is true and she is not unprepared to make sure it happens if it comes to it. This is disrupting tea time and that's unconscionable.
"It is good to see you up and about, Cesran. I trust your efforts to restore your comrades has gone well?" she asks.
"Hah! Yeah. Ever see what happens when you drop a giant on someone?" Halani doesn't wait for an answer. Instead, she slaps one hand down on the other, while making a 'splat' sound with her tongue. She does sober up a little bit when her gaze shifts from Jinks to Griva again, actually taking note of the dwarf woman's condition this time. And as the ressurectionist addresses Cesran, she also comes to realize whatever they're talking about, it's about something way, way above her. So.. "Well, I have to get to the walls for a.... thing, yeah? Tell you about it later." And then she's off at a lope. A rather swift lope.
Cesran hmms, "Is Ramirez the knight or the mount?" He asks as he watches the pair. "You are welcome any time. Yes I brought him back the other day, thankfully with no difficulties, it was hard enough casting that particular spell once, but to do it a second time soon after really taxed me. I have recovered from it, but still feeling the effects of the mana poisoning. It will be a little while longer before I'm back up to where I was before."
He smiles to Griva, "It's good to see you up and about as well. Yes so far Merek is restored and I'm sure Kravar will be back to his original form soon enough." He winces a bit at Halani's description. "Seems a bit rough in the Colosseum today."
"Ha! The Men of Isobar are like wild stallions, and it is worse when they are the stallion." Paenitia laughs, calling back to Griva and staying out of the way of her hippogryph's dance. "They calm down when they are ready."
Which is now, apparently. Ramirez snuffles a loud wicker of dismissal at the Terrace. The coward will not come out and fight. He is victorious. Yes. Tail lowering and dance over, he returns to being a more static, disruptive spectacle and not an active one.
The Red Knight takes his bridle and leads him back to the table, and tea. "Hola again," she waves to all assembled, answering Cesran, "Brave Ramirez is the mount," The little Lucht answers Cesran, then laughs, "He has been the rider once, but it is very silly looking. I am Sister Paenitia Snapdragon del Haranna, Knight of the Pillar and Paladina of Tarien, at your service."
"That is good news to hear." Griva gets a second and then a third look, "You look like the thing the cat drag in, eat, throw up, drag out then drag back in again. What you have been doing?"
Jinks had been struggling to sort through the paladina's titles and grants but instead gestures with an upturned palm as the Lucht answers for herself. His smile fades a bit when Halani makes her way towards the walls but returns quickly and in force. "That's good to hear, tallman. I seem to recall hearing a part of this story previously before that one needed an escort home," he cants his chin down the path the Xian woman took.
"An adventure at and in the Sea of Mana, so told. Fighting an entity of entropy-- chaos?" The gnome frowns, trying to remember specifics. "'The Unmaker of Things.' Sounds dire, eh?" A glance to Paenitia before he snaps his fingers waggles one at the Khazadi woman. "Which would make you Griva." Turns out Merek mentioned her.
Editor's Note: Halani carrying a KO'd Jinks out of a bar like a sack of potatoes is her needing an escort.
Cesran inclines his head, "It's nice to meet you both Sister Paenitia Snapdragon del Haranna and Brave Ramirez." He gives a weary sigh, "Yes Griva was there with myself and others, including the Great Paladin Serena, as well as Silver Guard Seldan, Merek, Cryosanthia, Aya, Karelin and Kravar. We had originally gone to investigate someone doing something destructive to the Ley Lines. I had through to use them to find the Animus Shards, but alas that's not possible using the Ley Lines. Instead we found a cyst, for lack of better term. We sought to excise it, which led to fighting alternate reality versions of ourselves. After a hard fought battle we realized that the problem was not in the Ley Lines themselves, but in the Sea of Mana." He pauses to take a drink of tea and let the others take in his tale so far.
Karelin comes out of the Tarrace, using his scabbarded war-sword as a cane. He coughs, wetly, but at least he looks clean. His skin is draw, his cheeks sunken. Slowing as he hears his name, he turns towards Cesran and leans on the crossguard.
"He speaks truly," remarks Griva, "and the danger posed was real."
She lets Cesran tell the tale, though, rather than weighing in further herself. A nod towards Jinks, though. "Yes. I am Griva," she offers, warmly. "Resurrectionist Herald. Have you heard that we're intending to bring a Dead God back to life?"
Her tone has some wry humor in it, fully aware how ridiculous that sounds.
"Ah." Paenitia says, her ever grinning mask concealing whatever facial reactions she has to the story. It is incredulous, but then, she rides a magical hippogryph. "This is the much strange tale."
"Silverguard Seldan, I have pledge to assist. Merek, he threaten to arrest me. The white lizard is known to me from the Guild of the Explorers. The others, they are not known." She lists off her acquaintances.
"It sound the much magic tale, and things the Knightly Orders not train to battle against. I congratulate you." The Red Knight makes a salute of sorts, tapping the wide brim of her hat. She then shakes her head, "I only hear a bit of those plans."
Jinks finds a high-stool under the tea shop's awning to climb for his own, rolling his fingers like a wave, straight and then bent, before plucking a coin from thin air and setting it down for the vendor. He may not want hot, leafy water but he'll rent his seat like any other patron. "How did you differentiate your alternate-selves? Tattooes on the ill-tempered alternates," he glances over at Karelin, raises a hand, and winks, laughing quietly as he adds "or not?"
"We could always do with more excitement." The gnome nods at Griva, reeling at the many revelations and offering an incredulous laugh. "The Father of Time might be happy to relinquish a corner of his cosmological duties... and we had quite the excitement between Mulria and the Mistress of Dream's minions the first time." For a gnome with a good chunk of missing time all of this history seems quite recent.
"I took a demon-blood half-Oruch boy to dip his wick," he volunteers for Panetia's benefit. "It's good that we're all doing our part."
Karelin stands there, watching Griva, taking in her humour with a certain lack of amusement. Such a killjo-- he coughs again, wetly. "Fuck." He glances over towards Jinks, and snorts, wincing. "It didn't take much."
"If I was feeling better I'd cast a spell to illustrate what I was saying, but then again that might scare passersby. Our duplicate selves were not mirror images of us, they were twisted and warped by whatever had happened in their dimension. You could see who was who, but the semblance only went so far."
He nods to Karelin, "Hello Karelin, good to see you up and about. I was just relating to them our adventure. So after we had defeated ourselves we had to go into the Sea of Mana to find the source of this and find it we did. It was an enormous tower made from the Void. We were able to enter and found Assumit in there along with other alternate versions of him, all bent on his plan to destroy the Sea of Mana. His dopplegangers left and then this version of Assumit unraveled into strands of nothing that attacked us. Serene was able to destroy the tower with a sword she had gotten from her doppleganger, but it only mad it into a monster that we had to try to fight. We quickly realized that we needed to recreate the ritual that the Gods did to bind the Void. Taking on the aspects of the Gods of the Light, Dusk and Darkness we were able to weaken it enough to destroy it. We then traveled from the Sea of Mana to the Material plane."
"It sounds unbelievable, but many things are possible through magic. Like," she continues, "restoring a dead god to life."
She coughs delicately once, pointedly. A few of the passer-bys stare at her because, you know. She stares aft er Jinks as he agrees, then departs, shrugging her shoulders.
The Red Knight nods at the gnome, not really sure how to respond to most of what he's saying. Her mask keeps grinning as always. "I can see how that helps." She can't.
It's the elaborate and intricate tale that follows, provided by Cesran, that leaves her staring out the eye-holes of her mask. "That's Incredible."
Incredulous even, though the truth of it and the evidence say otherwise. It must be so. She laughs at Griva's observations, "Sadly I know only the strength of arms and the names of halberds, the magic is beyond me, and so the possible all things, also."
"Ramirez! I mount!" She commands, he sweeps a wing down and raises her up into the saddle. She waves, "A most astounding tale. I leave you to the recovery, and go now to continue my quest to find the most miserable soul in Alexandria. I am certain it is not the metal-limbed gnome with the steak-eating monkey, despite what she say."
"Steaks for monkeys, they are very expensive." Observation delivered, the Dark Lucht clucks and her hippogryph prances off bearing her towards her quixotic questing.
Karelin stands there, leaning on his sword. "Everything dies," he observes, "if you hit it in the right place." Deep. Deeeeep.
"Well, I will say 'hail, conquering heroes' without my usual injection of irony and toast your names the next time I drink." Jinks grins after Paenitia and Ramirez, twisting out of the stool he'd almost just climbed. "It's good that Coyote decided to laugh with you at the Sea, tallmen." And then he's off, Griva shrugging at his back. He catches a passing sailor's shanty and hijacks it, his own tenor picking up without regard for the hour and he half-dances off into the rain.
Cesran finishes his tale and it looks weary, "If you will excuse me, I think I need to go lie down for a bit. Side effect of being in the Sea of Mana." He pays for his meal and takes out his carpet of flying before sitting down on it and having the carpet fly off.
