[Last Time, on El WHAT?!: Tithian left in a hurry to get decent, then returned. He denied any knowledge of what is wrong with Amy and Ichi's plushies, and said that if the group were to retrieve an artifact from a place called the Pristine Tower, he might be able to break whatever it was that was keeping them plushied. He left, and the Amy plushie started glowing. The group was forced to look away or be blinded, and when the light... ...disappeared, the plushie was gone, and a guy named Taro had appeared. He was also a schoolmate, the self-appointed school detective, and he had been alone for almost a year. Shiho had him go through a strange ritual, and then said he could come with the group to Shadow Square.] [Session Start] * Daphne has a drink. * Shiho goes to Shadow Square. * Taro follows. * Rocky peeks out from Shiho's backpack. * Cara follows after Shiho. * Daphne shrugs and follows too. * Shadow Square isn't far from the inn, and once Shiho starts to get close, it's quite simply to head in the right direction. Like the moss on the north side of a tree, you just follow the dirt, since the messier and darker it is, the closer you are to the square. * The concentration of elves here is higher than just about anywhere outside of an elf tribe, and everywhere you go, you can feel eyes on you, people sizing you up, and occasionally measuring you for coffins. * Cara shivers and walks closer to Shiho. * As you enter the main square, you're struck by the sheer number of people here. Small blankets and tents are spread everywhere, leaving only cramped alleyways for you to walk down. * Shiho peers at Cara. "Are you sure you don't want to wait for us outside?" * Daphne frowns. * If you look in the right places, and ask the right questions, you can find anything for sale here. Informtion, magic, people... anything. I...I'm okay. Really. * Shiho nods. Daphne, don't indicate to anyone that you have any money. Or iron, or anything of value. Aw, gee, just ruin my day, why don't you? * Cara smiles a bit and attempts to look a little more confident as she walks. * If you want to enter the square itself, you'll have to proceed single-file. * Shiho heads thataway, not smiling at all. * Cara hurries closely behind Shiho. * Taro follows behind Cara. * Daphne brings up the rear, smirking slightly. * There are a great many places you could go. To one side of your entrance to the square is a small blanket spread with weapons, to the other is a small tent marked as having fortunes for sale. * Drunk stumbles into Daphne. * Drunk falls flat on his face in front of Daphne. * Drunk moans a little. * Daphne frowns. "Y'alright?" * Shiho eyes the drunk, then glances to Daphne. * Taro looks down at the guy.. * Cara turns around to look. * Drunk slowly starts to pick himself up. * Daphne looks back at Shiho. "Well?" What happened? * Drunk stumbles off onto another small path and is quickly lost in the crowds. Daphne, do you still have your, uh... Yes. Make sure you aren't missing anything... Exactly. * Shiho tries to keep track of the drunk. * Taro is doing likewise Oh, good. * In order to keep track of the drunk, you would have to follow him, and four people following one in this crowd will be difficult, at best. I don't think he took anyhing. So. Hmm. Well, let's move on, then. * Shiho does that. Alright... * Cara nods and continues after Shiho. We had best check to see if anything's missing later on, though. Or if anything was added. * Daphne shrugs and resumes following. She keeps an eye out for more staggering drunks, tho, just in case. * To one side, there is a tent that doesn't seem to have any purpose. Few people are going in, few are coming out, and from what you can see as you walk past, there is nothing for sale. * To another side, an elf hawks alcohol, a cloth that looks rather like silk, and various other objects of no real note. * Shiho stops and observes the tent a bit, though she watches for anyone else of interest. * A merchant behind you decides you're interested in _his_ wares and tries to pitch some jewelry to Cara. * Daphne frowns, shrugs, and glances around. Pretty young miss, I have many fine pieces of jewelry that would look quite good on you. * Merchant holds up a beautifully worked silver necklace. Uh, sorry, no thanks. Ah, you prefer jewels? I have many fine jewels. * Merchant holds up another necklace, this one thin gold chain with a clear stone, possibly diamond. * Cara 'oooh's at the necklace, then shakes her head. "N-no, sorry, I don't need anything." Oh, you think it out of your price range, but that is not so! And if it is, I have many that are just as good, but much more affordable! Perhaps you would like some earrings? * Merchant pulls out a small pair of silver earrings with emeralds dangling from them. * Cara shakes her head. "No means no." She's starting to sound annoyed now. * Taro is making sure nobody takes anything from us while we're distracted, because he's paranoid! Whoo! Ah, a very discerning woman. I mean no offense, madame. Could I perhaps interest you in some of my more... useful wares? What sort of wares? Oh, I have many things for sale. Things for the woman with... special needs. If you have a task to perform, I may well have a tool that will help with it. Really. Absolutely. If I do not, I may also be able to procure it for you, or direct you to someone who has it. * Shiho grins. "Such as a Dark Lens?" Ah, you wish a lens. Indeed, I have several, tinted in various shades. * Cara blinks, then stifles a giggle. You need only speak the tint you wish, and I will fetch it. I'm speaking of a particular lens. One I'm told any sorcerer-king would love to get his hands on. * Merchant flinches as Shiho mentions that particular phrase. * Merchant backs away. You needn't invoke THEM, madame. * Daphne rolls her eyes and goes back to watching the surroundings. * Shiho grins. "So you know what I'm talking about?" She doesn't phrase it as a question, though. * Merchant pointedly ignores Shiho. Aww...I think you scared him, Shiho. ^_^ I guess so. Looks like we'd better find someone who's not so afraid to spend our money on. Looks like it. * Merchant looks away. * Shiho heads over that way. It's interesting enough. * Taro follows Shiho. Yay. * Cara follows Shiho in. * Elf steps out in front of Shiho. He's large, even for an elf, hairless, and covered almost entirely with tattoos in wild patterns. He looks down at Shiho, scowling a little. * Daphne follows too. * Cara stops. "Um..." What do you want? * Shiho shrugs. "I see an unmarked tent in the square with no indications of what it's selling. I'm a bit curious." Curiosity killed the would-be-elf. * Cara blinks. "Funny expression." * Daphne raises an eyebrow. I suppose that has nothing to do with me; I've been informed often enough how much I'm not an elf. No, you are not, and you never will be. But I'm still curious. What's this tent for? This tent is the place of business for my tribe. * Cara pipes up. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?" What sort of business is that, that people come in and different people come out? * Elf smirks. What business is it of yours, would-be-elf? Why do you keep saying that? Who says she wants to be an elf? Curiosity again. Although I suppose what business of mine it is would depend on what business you actually do. So I should let you in becase you are curious? Is there some reason not to? I can't image you could run a business very well by turning down potential customers. If you wanted to buy what we sell, you would already know what you seek. What do you seek? I seek many things. How would I know if you have them? If you don't know what we sell, you have no business here. * Al-Ric steps out of the darkness at the back of the tent. An unmarked tent that keeps people out? I'm betting you sell something illegal. * Al-Ric glares at Shiho. Hey, isn't that... Go. What you seek is not here. * Daphne shakes her head, still smirking. * Shiho eyes Al-Ric curiously, then shrugs and goes somewhere else. "Alright. I was starting to get that impression anyhow." * Daphne follows! Bye, elfy guys! * Taro follows Shiho * Cara walks after Shiho. * Merchant steps out from his blanket as the group approaches. "Ah, my friends! I have what you need!" Please, have a seat! * Daphne eyes the merchant. * Merchant is a totally new merchant that you haven't seen before! He's a fat, balding, sweaty elf with only a few tattoos. * Shiho casts a glance back towards the unmarked tent. * Shiho then looks at the merchant. "You sound sure of that." Oh, I _am_ sure. Then, what are you offering? * Cara looks at the merchant curiously. You seek a certain legend, do you not? * Shiho sits down. "That's a start, yes." Very well. You need only tell me the particular legend you seek. If I do not know myself, I will know someone who knows. * Cara grins and sits down. "Hey, you pay attention!" What's the catch? The catch is that it will cost you, of course. Of course. Well, then, what can you tell me about the Pristine Tower? * Merchant gets wide eyed. That is very dangerous information. Just knowing it can be enough to get you killed. * Shiho shrugs. "Well, since we know a bit about it already, that doesn't matter too much to us." Why would it be dangerous to know? Very well. The cost is, of course, commensurate with the danger. Naturally. However, I don't intend to pay for any information that isn't of use to us, either. Of course. I require a fee of 100 pieces of silver. Rather steep. The danger of this information is worth my life if word gets around. My life is certainly worth a hundred pieces of silver. It would depend on just how much you know, and how much we can use it. I can give you directions that will take you directly there. * Cara 's eyebrows shoot up. * Daphne decides to have a drink, and does so. Is that the extent of the information you know about it? * Shiho considers. "I don't see why its location would be quite so dangerous. Perhaps I can talk you down to seventy silver, with the promise of more for a few other questions we have? Ninety pieces of silver. Other questions will cost you more. There are many who would kill for the knowledge of this place. From what I understand, many people already know where it is; but that's not why they avoid it. Eighty-five for the directions. Eighty eight. Nobody knows the exact location but me. All who go there die, I was lucky to escape alive, and did so only through the sacrifice of my entire tribe. * Cara blinkblinks. Eighty-six silvers, five coppers. * Daphne raises an eyebrow. Eighty seven silvers, five coppers. Eighty seven silvers even. * Taro watches the two, fascinated. Done. * Merchant spits in his palm and holds it out to Shiho. * Cara looks around at Daphne and Taro. "Um..." * Shiho looks to the others. "We'll give you one-third now, the rest after we hear what you have to say." Half. Deal. * Shiho looks to the others again. * Cara spreads her hands. "Don't look at me. You guys were always the ones who looked after the money." ^^ * Shiho scowls. "And Amy had most of it, didn't she?" * Cara nods. "Think so. Didn't you have some, Daphne?" I... have money. * Daphne licks her lips. "Well, I can cover the first half yeah." * Shiho looks to Taro. "Enough?" * Daphne looks at Taro. * Taro takes out 4 gold pieces... * Merchant doesn't bat an eye. ... hmm... that's half of eighty... divide 7 by two comes out to three-point-five... * Taro takes out 3 silver pieces... * Cara looks at Taro, surprised. "Wow, did you s...er, forget it." ... point five... point five... that's... * Taro shakes his head a bit to clear it. Ah, yes. * Taro takes out 5 copper. * Daphne rolls her eyes. * Shiho rolls her eyes. * Cara giggles. This should cover it. I think. * Taro gives it to the man. Yay. * Merchant pockets it swiftly, before anyone sees. * Merchant leans in towards Shiho and whispers, "You must journey to the city of Urik. You must leave from the east gate and travel one day's walk east. You must then turn north and walk for four days. You will arrive at a large pillar of strange stone used as a waypoint. From the waypoint, you must go directly west for four days. You will know you are in the correct area when you near the tower." * Merchant holds out his hand to recieve the rest of his payment. * Rocky memorizes it. Then turns her gaze back to the others. * Shiho does too. They both do, because they can. * Daphne fishes out the rest of the money for the man and hands it to him quickly. * Merchant pockets it in some unknown place. Tell noone that I gave you the information. Of course not. 'Course. ^_^ Naturally. Now, how much would it cost to learn why it is that even some certain powerful city rulers are afraid to go there? Mmmm, that is an interesting question. I could tell you for perhaps... twenty silvers. ... Quite a large amount, for such information. It is very valuable information. It may well save your lives. I don't see how. None of us are one of those rulers, as I'm sure you've gathered. If it was only rulers who need fear it, would my escape have required the sacrifice of my entire tribe? But if they couldn't handle it, what chance do we have? Knowing exactly how were going to die isn't worth too much. The Tower doesn't play favorites, girl. It strikes old and young, smart and stupid, ruler and ruled, without prejudice, and it spares none. Then what can we do about it? There is a secret, and this secret, I will tell you. For twenty silvers. * Cara sighs. * Shiho considers. "For the both reason the rulers are afraid, and for what we can do about it, then." Done. * Shiho looks to the others this time first, before agreeing to it. * Taro nods * Cara laughs nervously. "You guys still have the money for this?" I know I do. ^^; * Daphne nods. * Shiho looks back to the merchant. "Done. Same as before: half now, half after." Of course. * Daphne fishes out ten silver and quickly hands them to the merchant. * Merchant pulls his left hand out of its glove, revealing that instead of skin, the arm from halfway to his elbow to the tips of his fingers is covered with scales in every color of the rainbow. "This is why none survive, and why even They fear to tread there." * Taro blinks. * Cara 's eyes widen. * Shiho blinks. "I see." But...what does it mean? I'm afraid I don't understand... The tower's influence extends for over a mile around the tower itself. If you become wounded within the tower's influence, the tower's power begins to twist you. _Any_ wound. A tiny scratch is no different from a gaping wound. * Daphne frowns. * Cara urks. * Shiho nods. * Taro nods... There is no telling what you will become. You may become a plant, an animal, or some creature never before seen. You may retain your intelligence, you may not. So what does one do about it? I suggest not getting wounded. If you _do_ get wounded, you have a few minutes to get out of the tower's influence before you are fully changed. * Taro nods... Does the tower still have traps and stuff? And that's what happened to you? Yes. It's what happened to me. The tower itself... I don't know if it has traps inside, because it _is_ a trap, as far as I'm concerned. * Daphne frowns. What caused the wounds? You've never made it to the tower itself? The wounds were caused by the beasts that range around the tower, forever getting injured and changed and changed again. * Taro nods... The tower itself is... unimpressive. Only four, maybe five floors tall, and shrouded in shadows. I've yet to discover _why_ it's called the pristine tower. Do you know if closing a wound while still close to the tower would cause the transformation to halt as well? Haw! If that worked, my tribe would be here right now. * Taro nods... * Cara remains silent, looking down at her feet. * Shiho nods and stands up. "Very well, then." Pleasure doing business with you. * Cara slowly pushes herself to her feet. * Taro stands up, a bit more freaked out than when he entered. ^^; You're forgetting something, aren't you? * Merchant slips his glove back on and holds out his hand. Right. The rest of the money. ^^; * Taro hands him 20 silver. Taro, that's too much. Oh. Whoops. * Taro hands over 10. * Merchant grins. * Merchant pockets it and starts packing up his gear. ^^; * Shiho nods to the merchant. "Thanks." Then she heads back towards that unmarked tent. *** Merchant is now known as Elf * Daphne turns, still frowning, and follows Shiho. * Taro follows. * The unmarked tent is still there. * Cara walks after Shiho, face downcast. * Shiho peers at the tent and its surroundings. * The tent is unremarkable, which in itself makes it somewhat remarkable. There are several merchants around it on each side except the front, but the tent itself has the appearance of having been there for quite some time. ...so horrible... Yeah... * Shiho looks for Al-Ric. * Al-Ric is not in evidence outside the tent. * Shiho moves towards the tent. * The tent does not move. * Elf steps out in front of Shiho when she tries to enter the tent. * Elf is the same elf as before, and still has that same irritating half-smirk, half-scowl on his face. * Shiho grins at him. "I'm seeking someone." Who? * Cara doesn't notice the elf this time. * From what you can see of the inside of the tent, it is almost completely empty. There are a few crates near the back, but that's all. That fellow who was here earlier. Which fellow, precisely? There are quite a lot of fellows that come through here. I believe his name was Al-Ric. * Elf grins widely. Stay here. * Shiho stays. * Elf walks back behind a stack of crates and shouts, "LITTLE BROTHER, YOUR LITTLE WHORE IS HERE TO SEE YOU!" o.o * Shiho scowls. * Cara snaps her head up at that and boggles. * Daphne has to bite her cheeks to keep from laughing, but can't manage to keep the smile off her face. * Elf comes flying over a stack of crates and lands on his back about three feet in front of Shiho. * Al-Ric steps out from behind the same stack of crates. * Shiho folds her arms and looks at him. * Al-Ric looks at Shiho. Why did you return? * Cara looks down and scowls at the lying down elf. * Elf is unconscious. @_@ Creep. I was curious as to what you would be doing here. It looks like I have an answer. I am here because I belong here. This is the shop of the Magnus clan, of the Star Dancer tribe. My brother's life is yours, if you wish it. * Daphne frowns. I would not have you angry at my clan on his account. * Shiho frowns at that. "No, don't do that." More importantly, you said that what we sought wouldn't be here. How do you know what we're looking for? I do not know what you are looking for. I know that what we have here, you are not looking for. Why's that? Are you hiding something? Please, do not ask this of me. * Shiho eyes Al-Ric. * Daphne watches Shiho. * Cara returns to spacing out. * Shiho sighs. "Fine. I guess I owe you that much." * Al-Ric bows deeply to Shiho. "My thanks." * Daphne nods to herself and glances around idly. * Shiho nods and turns to the others. "Come on, we're leaving." Huh? ...oh. * Taro nods. * Al-Ric drags his brother off none too gently. * Daphne shrugs. "Sure." * Shiho leaves Shadow Square. "Looks like we'll have to have another talk with Tithian." Tithian? * Cara trudges after Shiho. * Daphne nods and follows. Or maybe not. Maybe we shouldn't mention anything to him. Brian, Taro. Tithian is Brian. It's long, and complicated, and you shouldn't trust him. * Daphne chuckles. * Taro blinks. Alright... But either way, we're going to need to find a way to escape injury. Yeah. ... I hope that merchant we scared doesn't give us higher prices. ^^; * Shiho shrugs. "We don't need anything from him." * Taro nods. * Shiho waits until they get well away from the Square before asking, "Just how much money do you have, Taro?" 23 gold, 17 silver, 18 copper. * Daphne whistles. * Cara continues to walk along, lost in her own little world. So, what's Brian been doing? Becoming powerful, mostly. More recently he took up ruling a city-state, too. * Taro blinks. In one year? Oh, and he's been here a lot longer than we have. He might have been responsible for whatever happened to Amy and Ichi. What happened? * Daphne shrugs. Don't know. Amy's gone. You seem to have replaced her. * Taro frowns. "I see." * Cara finally comes out of her reverie. "Um...oh. Are we back yet?" More or less. * You're just emerging onto Caravan Way, the main street of the city. * The Inverted Inix is a short walk away. Our problem is this: We can't afford to be so much as scratched when we go there. What do we do about it? * Taro appears to be deep in thought... I...I dunno. I'm scared... * Cara is shivering as she walks, despite the heat. Have we figured out what all those things we picked up at the ruins are, yet? Maybe one of those can help with that. * Cara blinks. "I only identified one. There were three more." I could try that. Who has them? * Shiho checks. "I have a bunch." I think I have some of 'em, at least. *checks her backpack* * Cara fingers the necklace that she's wearing. * Shiho frowns. "Hrm. My mistake." I do have a wand of stoneskin, though. That should help. It's only got two charges, though. I just have some potions. No idea what they are. So...Amy must've had the dove and the other things. Well, shit. * Cara frowns sadly as she says the name. * Shiho sighs and rubs her forehead. * Daphne turns to Taro. "I don't suppose a bunch of stuff magically appeared in your pack when you appeared here?" * Taro blinks. * Rocky yawns and peeks out of the backpack. "The shiny stuff? I got it." .... no. I had to earn everything I own. * Taro checks his backpack to make sure Rocky didn't take anything. * Rocky digs around in Shiho's pack, then lifts up the dove with both paws. "Eureka!" Hey, great! * Daphne chuckles. What's that? No idea. I don't know. But it's shiny! *_* We'll have to check if you got the other items when we get back to the inn. ^_^ * Rocky puts it back in digs around a bit more and comes up with the bracers and the rope belt. "I got this shiny stuff, too!" Heh. * Shiho nods. "I hope it turns out to be useful. Hmm... Ditto here. If not... I might have an idea. So what's in this Pristine Tower, anyway? Something that a lot of power people would love to get their hands on. Oh, well. That's a relief. ... I see. Yeah! I would hate to have lost that stuff before we even knew what to do with it. ^_^ Alright, so there's a dove, bracers, rope belt.. What other things are there? * Rocky shrugs. "That's it. Why would I want that other junk?" It wasn't shiny. Hm. We also had two scrolls with spells...didn't you take those, Shiho? Some potions here. That seems to be all I have. * Shiho nods. "Identify and Find Traps (which I don't seem to have, so we must've used it :P)" Amy had the Find Traps one, I think. ... I've got a gut feeling telling me that we're strong enough to make it through the tower and meet our goal. But common sense is telling me that strength isn't everything. I was going to keep the identify one for myself, so I could cast it any time once we left this place. I think I speak for everyone here when I say I'd rather not change into some lizard. So we're going to do this carefully. * Taro nods * Daphne gives Taro a funny look, then shakes her head. "I'd rather not turn into something scaly either, so careful is good." * Cara nods vigourously. * Taro nods... then seems to think of something, then laughs nervously.. ^^; ... you know, if we do end up there and turning into different things, maybe that elf at the tent could be wrong about what he said. ^^; ...whaaaaaaat? About how Shiho wasn't an elf and never was going to be one. * Shiho eyes Taro. * Daphne blinks, then laughs. Fine. I'll be the elf. You can be the mushroom. ^^; ... * In just a short time, you're outside the Inverted Inix. Perfect for sleeping for a night or for trying to see Tithian. So, any ideas? We definitely need a while to decide and think things through. Well, let's find somewhere that I can identify those things. Will the inn do? * Daphne nods. Yeah. That sounds good. I'm glad I stepped through that portal. I'm not home, and this world stinks, but at least I'm among friends... * Shiho heads for the Inn. * Bartender looks up at Shiho as she enters. Back so soon? * Cara enters after Shiho. Will you be wanting the special room again? Not just yet. Drinks? Food? A room of your own? The latter, thanks. Rooms are a half-ceramic apiece. Per night. We're not planning to stay too long. Do you have a small room we could use to talk in private? Yes, ma'am. Thank you. * Bartender points to one side of the bar. "Right through that door." * Shiho goes through that door ^^ * Cara follows Shiho. * Daphne goes through the door, too. * That door leads to a small room with a long table, suitable for seating ten. * Taro follows * Daphne has a seat, and a drink while she's at it. Okay. ^_^ * Shiho sits at the nearest seat, putting the three unidentified objects she has on the table. * Taro sits. Whew. * Daphne sets the unidentified potions on the table. * Cara takes the dove and places it on the table in front of her before taking a seat. She takes out her pencil and a two sheets of paper. Okay. Let's see if this works. ^_^ * Daphne nods. * Cara places one sheet next to the dove, and begins to work on the other one while very slowly drawing power. She draws a picture of the dove with the paper beside it, with words appearing on the paper reading "This item is..." * It takes about twenty minutes and a lot of concentration, but Cara manages to identify the items. [Session End]