Battle at Harkon Manor

Lora had agreed with Aidan - after all, she was the one to caution him about Lords and their habit of beheading people for no apparent reason in the first place. When Vance had stated that he was the one to maim the viscous serpentine creature, Lora could not help but throw him a quick glance - his clean shined boots, his long sturdy legs clad in platemail, the muscles beneath his armour, his blue eyes and short beard giving him a handsome rugged look. Some part of her felt like she wanted to ride with him in to the sunset, feeling safe in those strong arms and cuddling against that wide chest.

That was a very small part however. The ever vigilant and unsociable main part of Lora screamed DANGER and flashed a red banner as she looked upon the man and his lustful gaze. It was hard to ignore, that one.

When they were presented to the Lord and Head of House Valorn, Lora clenched her teeth and curtsied - she never curtsied! Not even when she had thought she was meeting with Lord Bairan. But this situation was different, and she would not risk presenting herself as an unrefined peasant girl. Well, she was a peasant girl, having grown on a farm and all, but Lora liked to think herself more as a Wizard's apprentice than as a farmer's daughter.

"My Lord Valorn" she said flatly as she raised the edge of her dress. "I really need a fresh change of clothes." Lora thought as she eyed the old man and his bodyguard. Something in the guard's eyes made her cringe with disgust and fear - perhaps he reminded her of her assailant.

"Claude is quite versed in the art of negotiation and presentation, so I have full confidence he will aid me in relating our message in full." Lora turned towards the aged Paladin and gave him a slight nod.

[sblock]Anything further i need to know or roll a knowledge check on?[/sblock]

Trinham keeps to his position in the middle of the group, as they move into the manor. Although it takes most of his attention just to keep up, he does manage to listen to most of the conversions going on around him.

As the party moves into the hall and Vance introduces his relations, Trinham is surprised at his demeanour. To Trinham's mind there is something seriously wrong with this family and he decides that if he has any spare time he will try to get to the bottom of it. Meanwhile Claude has started to introduce the party and Trinham finds himself in a bit of a dilemma. He doesn't want to make a complete fool of himself but he realises that if he bows like he is supposed to he will probably fall over. In the end, he leans heavily on his stick and stiffly bend forward as far as he feels is safe.

[sblock=OOC]As a background task during downtime, Trinham will use his charm (CHA=18,+4) on the staff (mainly kitchen ) to find out all of the gossip about the nobles.[/sblock]

[sblock=ML] Nothing else needed most of the general stuff is listed in the RG. Go ahead and deliever your message when reay. [/sblock]

[sblock=ghostcat] Great I think that will be loads if fun [/sblock]

Lora collected her thoughts for a second, and then got on to delivering the message - and keeping her appointed task. "My Lord Valorn, as i have already said to your brother, we have been sent here to deliver a warning from Lord Bairan, who is in charge of the main Pesh force headed out to meet the Treylor Empire's invading force." She then repeated the message in the letter that Mart had shown her, and also voiced her concerns that Dellex was behind this and not Bear. She also reported the burned-down village, the single Treylor helmet found as evidence, and the groups most recent escapades on the road to Harkon Manor.

When her story reached the group's encounter with the Hydra, Lora could not help but spare Vance a quick stare, boots-to-head and down to the boots again.

She also elaborated on the part Jareth had in all of this, which she now saw as more important than originally thought. If the letter had insisted they take him, there was a purpouse behind it, although she spared her assumptions on that. Once she was done, Lora kept quiet and stared at the old man, averting her gaze from the bodyguard behind him.

After Lora has delievered the message the party was sent with, the Baron nods and says, "Thank you my dear," his voice is dry and dusty. "You are all travel worn from your journey I can tell. Please except the hospitality of my home and the villiage while we wait for my brothers scouts to return."

He starts to stand and is helped by the stern looking guard. "The tales of your adventure through the Western Woods is one I hope to hear more of," he says turning to leave, "maybe in the morning."


"See to our guest dear Rizella," he says passing his sister and back out the door he came from.

Offering a hand to Rizella, Vance's smile has a sour cast to it as he looks to the doorway his brother had exited through. "Miss Lora," he says bowing and getting an eye full, "I must regret we may have to postpone are stroll till tomorrow. No doubt my brother will want to... discuss all this at some length with me." With another passing glance at Lora, Vance then heads out the way his brother did.

"Please follow me," Rizella says turning to head to the grand steps off from the main room.


[sblock=ooc] Unless you want to add something or throw in a question to the Baron I will fastfoward to the next morning. [/sblock]

Lora nodded to Vance and set out after Rizella, mounting her glaive once more. The Nobleborn girl had an elegiac feeling about her, an aura of sadness much too familiar to Lora. The Wizardress felt a strangely akin to their silent hostess. "You have beautiful hair mistress Valorn." observed Lora, eying the Lady's long dark mane.

Giving Lora a smile, Rizella Valorn continues to lead the group to where they will be staying. She gives Lora and Tira rooms fit for royalty with their seperate sitting rooms and grand beds. Jareth and Claude get seperate rooms as well but not as lavish but nice all the same. When she shyly states she will have to put someone in the servants area near the kitchen, Trinham quickly accepts the accomidations. Leaving Onesimus and Aidan to be put up in the barracks with the half dozen off duty men-at-arms.

The evening passes by without much incident for almost everyone. It is in the morning when things become rather complicated and out of place. Aidan is missing.

After a search that takes most of the morning it is discovered that Aidan is gone but all his equipment was left behind. Even the clothes that he traveled to Harkon are still in the manor, he is somewhere in just his smallclothes. Odd that Aidan might have left in such a state the others think a search for Aidan is in order.

"Yes a ride out is a wonderful ideal," Vance says at the suggestion. "My scouts returned while you were searching for the lad, and they wish to show me the Treylor camp."

So after a quick brunch Lora, Claude, Trinham, and Onesimus meet Vance at the stables.


Meanwhile Jareth wanting a little more time alone started back to his room. Turning the corner he sees Tira standing in front of his door as if she had knocked and was waiting for him to answer. Seeing him she flushes slightly and bows her head looking away.

[sblock=OOC] Just a post of you meeting your ideal horse for the first time. You can be as descriptive as you like. Make a note only Claude gets a horse with a military saddle the rest have riding saddles. [/sblock]

[sblock=Trinham]Not tired right away Trinham steps from his room to the kitchen. Mogins curiously tagging along finds himself near an open door leading back to the great hall. The young cat darts through and Trinham hurrys to catch him.

As Trinham nears the door he hears voices one belonging to the Baron. "... those Reygurians who were here, the ones who murdered our father, they new the Treylor would be coming here. We thought they meant to The Five Kingdoms but really they were saying they were coming to Harkon Manor." His voice is thin and soft but their is an undertone of strength. "They came seeking information on the Nandirly but as to why I am not sure."

"Our father new something perhaps that very thing and they silenced him." Vance says calmly.

"So a connection then? Between..." Cut off as Mogins jumps up on the table the two lords start looking about. Trinham trying to quickly get back to his room steps off balance, the bite still effecting him badly. Falling with a loud crash the young battle mage looks up after words to see Vance standing near the door watching.

"Sorry I was um.. looking for my cat." He says with a straight face. [/sblock]

Lora felt wonderful this morning, despite not having made much progress in finding her brother. She was beginning to think that after all, a seventeen year old lass was truly not her older brother's keeper. She had taken a long relaxing bath last night - her rooms in the manor were vastly bigger and more lavish than anything she had ever lived in.

Back on her parent's farm, she had to share a room with Arthur, and they didn't even have a proper door - just a piece of brown linen cloth hanging on a wire. Later, when she had moved over to Mirella's cottage, she had to sleep on a small cot next to the hearth, in the kitchen that also doubled as an alchemical laboratory, study and guest room.

The accommodations last night made Lora truly feel like nobility, and the girl was very content. "I could get used to such a life." she mused, and eyed young Vance quickly. She was wearing a red and white dress today, cut on the sides for riding - Lora was overjoyed to find a wardrobe full of stylish and quite expensive dresses in her room. Most of them were too revealing, or too impractical for one such as her, but Lora had found several to be quite adequate in both size and make.

She had even gone so far as to give her mane the one hundred strokes this morning, and put a purple rose clasp she had found next to the mirror in it. The girl's thick, shiny black hair now flowed down to her shoulders, her usual ponytail gone.

Not surprisingly, Aidan had gone and gotten himself in trouble. Lora still felt responsible for the group, and growled in a low voice when she heard the news. "There aren't any fighting rings around here are there?". Then a thoughts struck her - Aidan's main purpouse was saving his father from an illness, and perhaps he had gotten some crazy idea involving a local priest.

"My Lord Vance, perhaps the first place we should look for is a temple or other place where the local clergy makes it's home. Aidan has been looking for a priest." As she said that, the girl beheld the horse that had been provided for her - a black stallion with flaring nostrils and a wild look in it's eyes. Having grown on a farm, Lora knew how to ride. But this... monster, this tribute to extreme masculinity, scared the life out of her.

Of course Lora would never admit it, and tried to still her trembling hand as she patted the animal's large muzzle. The horse breathed warm air in her palm as she touched him, and that made Lora back off with a jerking motion and a quiet gasp. The beast was huge - Lora was barely able to reach it's back with her slender hand when stretching her toes. How was she supposed to subdue such a thing?

[sblock]HM i took the liberty of adding the purple rose hair clasp - something like this, but it will be in the front of her hair, keeping it from falling over her brow. I also took the liberty of giving Lora a new dress. The horse - well it would have been more appropriate to have Lora ride a timid mare, but a raging black stallion is a representation of her fear of men, and i'ts a nice contradiction i think [/sblock]

HolyMan said:

[sblock=Trinham]Not tired right away Trinham steps from his room to the kitchen. Mogins curiously tagging along finds himself near an open door leading back to the great hall. The young cat darts through and Trinham hurrys to catch him.

As Trinham nears the door he hears voices one belonging to the Baron. "... those Reygurians who were here, the ones who murdered our father, they new the Treylor would be coming here. We thought they meant to The Five Kingdoms but really they were saying they were coming to Harkon Manor." His voice is thin and soft but their is an undertone of strength. "They came seeking information on the Nandirly but as to why I am not sure."

"Our father new something perhaps that very thing and they silenced him." Vance says calmly.

"So a connection then? Between..." Cut off as Mogins jumps up on the table the two lords start looking about. Trinham trying to quickly get back to his room steps off balance, the bite still effecting him badly. Falling with a loud crash the young battle mage looks up after words to see Vance standing near the door watching.

"Sorry I was um.. looking for my cat." He says with a straight face. [/sblock]

Click to expand...

[sblock=HM]"Sorry I was um.. looking for my cat." Trinham says to Vance with a straight face. Looking back into the room, he addresses Mogins. "Mogins. Bad cat. How many times do I have to tell you not to creep around strange houses without an invitation. Come here immediately." While Trinham says this in an angry tone of voice, he projects a Don't worry, I'm actually quite pleased with you. emotion over their private link. Meanwhile, Mogins takes one more look around the room then jumps down from the table and saunters over to Trinham just as though he has every right to be here and it is the nobles who are the trespassers*.

Trinham picks Mogins up and holds him tightly. Unfortunately, bending down makes him dizzy and it takes several seconds for him to recover. Once he does, he backs slowly out of the room, bending his head in a slight bow while mumbling "Sorry mi lords, I'll leave now mi lords.". Once out of the room, he turns and stumbles back to bed.

Arriving back in his room, he drops onto the bed and says quietly to Mogins "Well that was interesting, I'd better tell Lora what I overheard in the morning and see what she makes of it.

Trinham has not slept in a proper bed for a long time. That and the fact that a lot had happened over the past few days, means that he just cannot fall asleep, even though he is tired. As he tosses and turns trying to get to sleep, his mind keeps going over what has happened to him. As he does so, he realises that he is now capable of learning another spell. Fortunately, Archimedes had previously taught him how to recognise the signs, so that he would not start to loose control of his sorcerous abilities again.

Instantly he is wide awake, although he still lays quietly in his bed. A few moments thought on which spell to learn brings him to the realisation that his career is at a crossroads. He could either become a fighter with some spell casting ability or become a magician who can fight. Reviewing the last few days in his mind, Trinham shivered as he remembers the desperation of being totally paralysed in a camp under attack. he envisage this being a regular occurrence if he became a fighter and so starts down the magician's path.

His decision made, Trinham is finally able to relax and quickly falls into a deep, dreamless, sleep until he is gently shaken awake in the morning.

[sblock=OOC]* Anyone who has every lived with a cat, will know what I mean. if not, its hard to explain.[/sblock][/sblock]