[Last Time, on El WHAT?!: Our heroes made it back to town, assisted by a ranger named Alexis who salvaged a potentially bad situation by killing the goblins our heroes let get away.] [Once back in town, they reported back to the more experienced adventurers, who decided that some training time was in order for these t0t4l n00bz. Our heroes in training did their best under their chosen mentors, and now it's time to see how they did.] [We open on the common room of the local inn, where our heroes have been staying, save for poor Emmet, who signed up under the harshest taskmaster available, and has been spending all his nights falling out of the trees he was supposed to be sleeping in.] [The sun is just beginning to rise, awakening those heroes who have been staying in town. Emmet, of course, is already awake, and has been for quite some time, since he's on a brisk ten mile run to get back to his friends this morning.] [Session... Start!] * Harold is eating a quick, simple breakfast, his gear all wedged rather creatively into his old school backpack. His old school uniform has been exchanged for fairly colorless but comfortable-looking homespun garments and soft boots. His staff is laying on the floor next to his pack... not much can conceal the fact that it's simply a big ol' polished stick. * Fadi is eating, pretty much, whatever is available. His clothing's similar to what he had before (check log 4), with his greatsword right at his side in its balderic. He's looks pretty unchanged from last session, except a little less concerned with the way he looks. * Nick is sitting across from Harold, eating the same breakfast, gear likewise packed into his schoolbag. His clothes are different, however, in various shades of gray and black. While tight around the cuffs, the clothes are fairly loose on the sleeves. His mace and short sword are on each hip, and the various scars, scabs, and bruises have faded into almost nonexistance. * Tiffany stretches her arms high above her head as she's served her morning meal. Her long black locks fall unceremoniously over her shoulders as her warm eyes scope out her morning meal. On her outfit is, as always, her proudly displayed Auryn, and her pack is slung over her chair. * Emmet lopes through dew-spattered grass and past the first few buildings at the outskirts of town. He barely recognizes the street on which the inn rests, because he hasn't had much chance to spend any time in the town. * Harold sighs as he finishes up eating. "... I wonder when we'll get to see Emmet again?" * Emmet resists the strong impulse to sprint across the finish line when the comfortable-looking building that is his destination comes into view. There is no finish line, and if his sore and boot-clad feet could talk, they would add that Emmet's cross-country shoes haven't been much help from inside his rucksack, either. Soon, probably. * Fadi has his school bag at his side, a surprising amount of stuff inside of it, including his jacket. He shrugs. "Ya got me." * Tiffany shrugs. "Yeah, prolly soon. We're all finishing up training, and even if his is a little... unorthodox... I'm sure he'll be back soon." We're finishing? ... hmm, I guess we are. Never'n end to learning... but we're just finishin' for a while, I guess. * Emmet slows his pace to a walk as he approaches the building. He stretches his arms and runs a hand over his freshly-shaven scalp--Alexis allowed him that one vanity, at least--as he makes his way to the front door of the inn. He stops outside to stretch his legs and to catch his breath a bit, though he wouldn't dare let Alexis see him do THAT... * Emmet plows forward through the open door, flying through the air up onto the table to finally plant his face in Tiffany's plate of food as his mentor swings down from above and gives him The Boot. * Emmet groans in dismay from his place on the table. "Aw, crap." * Fadi blinks, then laughs at Emmet's plight. * Harold starts as Emmet comes flying in. "... oh, there he is." * Nick just rubs his temples and sniggers. * Tiffany picks a piece of her morning meal out of her hair. "Your timing is impeccable as always." * Alexis stands ominously in the doorway. "Catching your breath? No student of mine should need to catch his breath!" * Emmet pushes himself off of the table and out of Tiffany's breakfast. "I'm sorry, sir!" More quietly, he adds, "I thought you weren't watching, sir." Good morning to you, sir! * Alexis nods to Harold, then scowls at the group in general. * Fadi snickers. He rolls his neck. "Nice ta see you again, 'lexis. What're we doin' next, anyways?" Finishing breakfast. * Nick gets on with doing so. * Fadi has already finished. Funny that. "I was implying after that." * Emmet wipes his face clean with his sleeve. "Did you guys only just wake up or something?" * Alexis tosses a large, clinky bag on the table. "Well, don't say that I leave debts unpaid." * Fadi shrugs. "Kinda tough to sleep here. Too quiet." ..Eh, about ten or fifteen minutes ago. * Nick yawns widely and pushes his clean plate away. And you're as ready as you're going to be. The army is getting ready to move, and that means we need to strike soon. ... ahh? What's this? The money from our bet. ... oh. We bet he could do it, and look, here is out little Emmet, all grown into a man! * Tiffany smiles. "Well, you did. As I recall, Nick, you owe me 1 solar." * Emmet stretches his neck and shoulders while he can. He's needed quite a lot of stretching since he started training with Alexis. He smiles faintly when Alexis mentions the bet, and even more broadly when Tiffany teases him. * Nick grumbles and flips a gold piece over to Tiffany. Well... if nothing else, I'm sure the money will do us good on the road. Do we really leave today? Yes. Yeah, I mean... I do feel more sure about our capabilities now... but I'm still not sure how we're going to find our target. It shouldn't be hard. Just go to the biggest house in the camp. That'll be where the leader lives. That seems simple enough. Heh. Must be overcompensatin' for something. Well, he is kind've small.. * Tiffany turns somewhat red. "You are in the company of a lady, and I suggest you act like it." * Fadi shrugs. "We heading out now?" * The loud rumbling voice of Draghmal comes from the shadows in the corner. "Not just yet." We need to work out a few details, then set out. * Tiffany handles Draghmal's sudden appearance well. It appears she's getting used to his appearing and disappearing. "What kinds of details?" Like communication, so we can coordinate our efforts. * Fadi smiles as he looks back at Draghmal's appearance. "Hey, what's up?" * Alfred, Feld, and the spindly, awkward man known as Blind Edward enter through the main door of the inn. * Harold starts at Draghmal, but the expression on his face gives the impression that he now expects strange things to happen with alarming frequency. Communication? The sun is up. Fortunately for us, goblins are nocturnal. * Nick straightens a little when he sees Blind Edward, but doesn't react to the others. Good morning, everybody. * Emmet tugs at the strap that holds his large greataxe close against the outside of his backpack when the other town leaders enter the inn. "Good morning, sir." Morning. mornin' * Fadi semi-salutes Alfred, not bothering to stand up. "G'morning Alfred." He's pretty calm right now. * Draghmal either smiles or grimaces at Harold, it's kinda hard to tell. "Yes, communication. We don't want to kill any more of the goblins than necessary. Once the leader is dead, they'll naturally disperse." * Fadi nods. "So you need to know when the jobs done?" Yes. * Harold nods good morning to the three who've entered, while carefully listening to Draghmal. * Fadi looks over to the other two who entered, nodding a 'hello' to them as well. * Draghmal walks carefully over to the table, the floorboards creaking ominously under his feet. He slaps a scaled hand down onto the table then withdraws it, revealing a pair of golden rings. * Fadi notes when Draghmal moves his hand back. "What're these for?" * Harold peers at the rings curiously, but knows better by now than to say anything just yet. They're magic. Powerful magic, in fact. They establish a telepathic bond between the people wearing them. ESP? ... and you're giving them to _us_? * Tiffany looks at the rings for a few moments in suprise. "Powerful... magic." Of course not. You will have one, and we will have the other. And when all this is over, they'll go back to the wizard I borrowed them from. * Emmet takes a few steps closer to the table to get a better view of the rings. He looks from the jewelry on the table to Draghmal and then back as the reptilian sorceror explains the purpose of the items. I see... then whoever wears the ring in our party shoulders an immense responsibility. Which is why I'm not takin' the one we get. * Tiffany nodds solemnly and looks back to Draghmal for direction. Anybody can use them, so it's up to you who wears it. I will be wearing one of them. * Tiffany looks up slowly. "Then perhaps I should wear the other." That sounds like an excellent idea! * Emmet nods his agreement with Tiffany's suggestion, though he doesn't actually voice an opinion. Eh, that's okay with me. * Draghmal smiles toothily. * Fadi shrugs. "Sure." Well then. Now that that's settled, we're pretty much ready. * Tiffany reaches out and picks up one of the rings, but doesn't put it on. She merely holds it between her thumb and forefinger and looks at it with intense awe. Speakin' of which, where's Sophie? Or did she pull the vanishing trick we all do at random? * Harold stands, shoulders his pack, and picks his quarterstaff up much more easily than he ever would have imagined possible before his training. She vanished. Mid-thrust, in fact. Oh. It's still a little creepy. * Nick stands up, slinging the pack over one shoulder. Little? I'd say it's damn creepy. Can't do nothin' bout it, though. * Tiffany stops staring at the ring and stands up. "So how does this work? Will you just hear my thoughts if we have them on...?" * Fadi stands up and easily picks up his greatsword, slinging the balderic over his back. He also shoulders his backpack afterwards. You have to actively think at the other person. * Tiffany nods. "Hmm.. all right. So if we need support or something, you'll be right there." Tif then picks up her pack and slings it over her shoulder. She reaches in her monk's outfit and checks her darts, just to make sure they're all in place. We're going to want to strike at dawn, if possible, so we'll leave today, sleep when we're most of the way there, and finish the journey before dawn. * Tiffany nodds again and goes about putting her newly-aquired sack of coins into her backpack. It doesn't appear to fit well... but it does fit. * Emmet nods to indicate that he's ready. Sleeping outdoors is certainly nothing new to him now. I'm ready to leave. * Harold doesn't look like he's looking forward to this, but is otherwise stoic. * Tiffany finally slips the ring on her finger. "I'm ready to go too. No time like the present." * Nick doesn't really look like he's feeling much at all, except maybe a little sleepy. * Fadi doesn't seem displeased in the least. "Sooner we get there, sooner we can rest up for the next day." * Alfred turns to face the doorway. "Let's go, then." * Alexis scowls at Emmet. "Every time you have to stop to catch your breath, you get to give me a hundred Adventurer Stomps." * Fadi chuckles. * Emmet winces. "Understood, sir." * Nick glances upward as if to give thanks for something, and starts heading for the door. * Fadi heads for the door. * Emmet moves to the door as well, though he holds it open for Tiffany before proceeding outside himself. * Tiffany smiles and nodds to Emmet before moving past him and outside, into the harsh morning light. * Blind Edward falls in silently behind Nick and whispers hoarsely, "You get to come through the underbrush with me. No trail for you!" * Nick snaps his fingers. "Yes, sir." * Alexis chuckles. "Same goes for you and me, of course, Emmet." * Emmet smiles grimly and without any surprise whatsoever. "Yes, sir." ... there's not going to be a lot of people on the trail, are there. * Alfred shakes his head happily. "Nope. Just the people who are too busy doing other things to be sneaky. The technical term for us is "bait"." * Emmet can't help but chuckle at that. * Tiffany doesn't look so amused. * Nick shakes his head ruefully, ready to follow Blind Edward. "Meat shields." * Fadi laughs. "Bait? Never been the bait before." ... oh, how wonderful. * Feld sighs. "And I get to patch all the bait up after each attack. Poor priestly me." Get used to it. You're the one who wanted to be all feral and barbaric. That means that your sorceress friend is going to put you between her and anybody that wants to hurt her. * Harold frowns, as he's reminded of his current total lack of magic. * Tiffany nods furiously. "I'll need the protection." No problem there. * Fadi smirks. "Just counting on you guys to cover my back." * The outskirts of the town pass swiftly, and down the coast our heroes go. Well... you don't need to worry for now, Tiffany. How has your training been coming along? * Emmet hits his travel rhythm and gets to enjoy the scenery a bit. If he hadn't hit his travel rhythm, of course, Alexis would have made him Adventurer Stomp half the way there. * Nick doesn't really have a travel rhythm, but is moving along nicely regardless. * Tiffany smiles wryly. "I don't know if I'll be helpful in a fight, but I do know a few other useful tricks now." * Fadi takes in the scenery as he walks at a steady pace. Don't be so hard on yourself. You're progressing well as a sorceress. * Tiffany grins and nodds. "Thank you, sir! I have a great teacher." Well, you're farther along than I am, at least! * Tiffany grins at Harold. "Well, how about a demonstration of what I'm learning?" She stops in her path and raises her right arm forward, paralell to the beach. She then closes her eyes in concentration. You're able enough with that staff, I don't see why you'd be worried. Let's see some'f it. * Tiffany begins a chant that sounds almost inhuman in language, and raises her palm to the air. As she does so, a stone 25 feet from her levitates into the air. * Tiffany opens her eyes and her concentration-laden look fades, replaced by a typical smile. She waves her arm quickly toward the waterfront and the rock flys in that direction, skipping gently three times on the water before going under. Well... yes, you're right. I shouldn't worry... * Fadi blinks. "Hey. That's pretty cool." ... wow. An excellent utility spell. One of the basics. I'll bet. * Tiffany 's grin is nearly from ear to ear. "You'd never believe how long it took me to learn something that basic, guys. But I think it was worth it." No kiddin'. * Nick glances over and blinks. "..Whoa." * Fadi laughs. "Most've what I learned was how to hit stuff really hard in the right place." Which may actually be more useful where we're going... Feld taught me... well, all sorts of things. I'm not even sure where to start. You're able enough as a fighter. There are worse paths you could follow. Never underestimate the power of a properly used cantrip. I once used the same spell you just demonstrated to kill a camp full of orcs. * Off to the side, Blind Edward snorts. * Tiffany glances at Draghmal. "Uh... How?" Somethin' tells me that's not the whole truth. Is it, Blind Edward? * Alexis pipes in with the tired voice of someone who's heard a story a thousand times too many. "He used it to open the latch on a berserk troll's cage, and the troll did all the real killing." I know... I just get the feeling this isn't the best path for me. I suppose it's the one I have to walk for now, though... * Tiffany smiles warmly at Harold, "You'll get there. I'm sure of it." Hey, you'll get to wherever you're goin'. * Emmet grins and shakes his head at the byplay. * Harold smiles back at Tiffany, his urge to complain and navel-gaze suddenly quite forgotten. * Nick can't hold back another snigger. * Tiffany turns back to Draghmal, "I hope I can come up with such creative uses of my abilities when it's important." You're smart. I bet you'll know exactly what to do. * The river is reached in short order, and the journey up the river into the forest begins. * Tiffany manages to walk slightly closer and closer to her entourage the deeper into the forrest the party goes. * Emmet trots along the riverbank, apparently much more at home in the forest here than he was in the town. * Before this enlarged party, the forest animals retreat swiftly. Not even the snakes come near this concentration of people. * Fadi treats the area just like the earlier one. In other words, casually. * Harold lopes along, apparently yet to feel significantly uncomfortable with the long march. * Nick is still moving through the underbrush, still looking mildly uncomfortable. Before too long, the massive clearing caused by the mega-tree is reached. * The large fallen tree is still there, acting as a bridge. Cross the bridge? * Emmet looks around for signs of any activity near the clearing since the last time the group was here. * Fadi glances around the clearing. * There are signs of use all around the clearing. It looks like the goblins either didn't notice the faint bloodstains on the ground, or just didn't care. * Tiffany glances around quickly, holding her hands together, and spinning the ring on her hand self-conciously. * Alfred looks around the clearing. "We may as well stay here for the night, it's close enough, and we'll want to make it an early night, anyway." * Fadi nods. "Who's stayin' on watch?" Just be sure to sleep outside the clearing. * Emmet looks instinctively toward the branches of some of the smaller trees near the clearing and sighs. * Alexis grins evilly. "Wrong direction, Emmet." * Nick settles his gaze on the underbrush and sighs. * Alexis looks up the trunk of the massive central tree. "You're going up there." What's wrong, Emmet? ... oh, I see. * Emmet blinks and looks back at the big tree. "Yeah..." Can I sleep in the tree instead? If you like. I never quite got the hang of that. It's not that much fun, Nick. I think I'll sleep down here... ..Yeah, maybe the ground's better. You can't fall off of it. * Fadi chuckles. "Solid ground." You'd be surprised. * Emmet looks around the clearing again, and at the signs of activity there. "We're not going to have a fire, are we?" Of course not. Get used to cold nights. Fire'd just attract attention. * Emmet smirks and rolls his shoulders in anticipation. "I thought not. Thank you, sir. I guess I'd better work on getting into bed..." He walks up to the large tree and paces around it, looking for a good place to start his climb. A fire strikes me as a bit dangerous, given that goblins still nose around. How are we going to handle a watch? I will stand watch tonight. Everyone else may sleep. You'll need it. I'm... not very tired. I could take part of a watch with you. ... all night?! * Nick shrugs and starts putting his bedroll down in the scrub. * Fadi smirks as he puts his blanket down in the scrub as well. "Do you even sleep?" * All your mentors chime in at once, "Not anymore." * Emmet gets a few feet up the massive trunk and then falls on his ass. ... Okay. Do you realize how creepy that was? * The elder adventurers break up into helpless laughter. * Nick snorts and puts his pack down, taking off the weaponry while making sure to have it close by. * Emmet winces and focuses so intently on the tree that he doesn't notice the mirth nearby. ... * Fadi chuckles. * Harold decides to just pull out his blanket instead of thinking about that statement much more. * Tiffany wanders off into the brush and puts down her sleeping equipment. "If you need help, you will call for me, won't you, Draghmal?" Of course. Sleep, now. You'll need your rest in the morning. * Nick nods and practically falls onto his blanket, asleep shortly afterwards. His snoring seems to have disappeared. * Tiffany lays down and looks up at the sky for a long time, dozing. * Fadi rolls his neck and plops down with a thud. He lies wide awake. "Where's the blasted sirens..." * Tiffany snickers to herself. "What did they sound like? Perhaps my magic could immitate them if you described it well enough." It'd keep the rest of ya up, really. I'll get some sleep somehow. * The veteran adventurers, save for Draghmal, quickly disappear into the underbrush and get to sleep. * Emmet finally manages to get his ass up into the tree, and then spends an hour finding a good place to sleep without plunging to his demise. Or at least to his embarrassment. * Fadi stares at the sky (or at least the trees) until he goes off to sleep. He speaks quietly to himself... "What a world, what a world..." * Harold slides behind a likely-looking bush and gets ready to bed down for the night, taking off his pack and wrapping himself in his blanket. One hand is on his quarterstaff. * Fadi did take his greatsword off, by the way. It's at his side. * Tiffany slowly fades into a troubled sleep, the ring on her finger kept warm, snuggled close to her body as if for her protection. [Session... End!]