StreamOfTheSky
Adventurer
Chat log from last session:
[sblock]
DM: Last time, you found Torrent, Torrent's gear, a disturbingly large (and emptied) pool of biomancy fluid, and Caela. After a tough battle, she was slain, calling out to her master as she fell. The lab began to shake and you had to flee as a massive tornado aimed right for the lab with pinpoint accuracy threatened to bury you alive inside. Camping for the night, you all saw something....massive...in the sky. And it was watching you. You got back to Eresh early evening and were invited to the monastery in the morning by an honor guard of Longinus.
DM: You wake up in the morning and eat, prep spells, get Torrent's armor, etc...
Eril: "I can't believe I'm still in this town...."
Tansley: "We'll be returning to Seaquen ourselves... eventually."
Tansley: "I hope we can wrap up business at the Monastery without wasting any more time."
hopla: "A lot happened, it's hard to get out of a town during a siege."
Eril: "I can't believe you took down that bitch."
Kalinah: "Well, we didn't come this far just to let so psycho monk get us."
Roslyn: "Which bitch?"
Tansley: "Caela or the General?"
Eril: "The one that apparently killed my friends...."
Eril: "I knew not to trust her, wish they had been more skeptical like me."
Tansley: "Yes, that's tough."
* West Wind Monk 1 enters the Peak's Shadow inn
West Wind Monk 1: "Are you ready to head to the monastery?"
Tansley: "Soon enough I'm sure we'll find who she was working for."
Kalinah: Kalinah stretches a bit, then nods. "Let's try to sort this out."
West Wind Monk 1: "Shall we go?"
Tansley: "Yes, let's."
Roslyn: "To the monastery"
Tansley: (Tansley will give Phet Heart of Earth and Angir and Torrent Phantom Stag.)
* West Wind Monk 1 leads you up the trail, dismissing the air elemental guards with the pass phrase, "Aeshir."
Tansley: (That was the one Caela told us?)
West Wind Monk 1: (yeah, she said it'd be good for at least 4 days)
Kalinah: "...huh. I guess she wasn't a total liar..." Kalinah says softly to herself.
DM: The Monastery of Two Winds is perched atop a low peak at the edge of this valley, with yet higher mountains beyond. Visible from anywhere in Eresh, it is an impressive sight, a massive, redroofed edifice hundreds of feet across, comprised of many wings that have an orderly sprawl atop the uneven mountain peak. The site is made all the more vivid by the pale snowy mountain peaks in the distance.
Tansley: "Efforts to gain trust are sometimes a good way to decieve."
DM: Hundreds of brightly colored banners and flags flutter from the rooftops and hang from the walls, flapping violently in the strong wind that whistles about the peak. Flocks of unusual white birds wheel about the monastery. Occasionally one of these birds will flap close to you, allowing you to see the unnatural creature close up. It has three wings, and sharp claws clearly designed to grip onto something. Its beak appears upside down, curving upwards rather than downwards. Its flight is somewhat erratic, its third wing allowing it to change direction suddenly or hover in place.
Tansley: "Those birds, what are they?"
Kalinah: Kalinah looks unnerved by the birds.
Roslyn: "They kind of look like demented seagulls."
Tansley: Knowledge Arcana(take best of two rolls) 20 , 10
Kalinah: "Are these birds native to this area?" Kalinah asks.
DM: They are Remora birds. Clearly the creation of biomancy. You recall there was a quill made of a remora bird's feather at the desk in the lab
Zayed: "After what we saw in the Valley of Storms not many creatures should surprise us much."
West Wind Monk 1: "Ah, you're interested in the Remora birds?"
Tansley: "Remora, yes of course."
Tansley: "The Khagan suggested to us that Pilus knows a lot about biomancy or at least others who do. He said Pilus had helped him out and spoke fondly of him."
West Wind Monk 1: "Yes, Master Pilus is quite skilled in it. I do not understand any of it myself, but those birds were one of his first creations."
West Wind Monk 1: "They help keep the walls of the monastery clean, and their flight patterns are interesting."
Tansley: Tansley will attempt to spot some feathers to collect while they walk.
DM: You can collect a few
Angir: "They keep the walls clean? How so?"
* Torrent whispers to Tansley, "I'd think you'd find the birds horrifying."
Tansley: whisper "I didn't voice any opinion about them."
Roslyn: "Their flight patterns are amusing..."
West Wind Monk 1: "They eat the grime that collects on the walls."
Tansley: "Normal birds do not? Are they designed for that?"
West Wind Monk 1: "I suppose so. I don't know why they were created, just how they are helpful to us."
Angir: "An intriguing use of biomancy."
Roslyn: "How long has Pilus been practicing Biomancy?"
West Wind Monk 1: "Quite a while. I've been here for five years, and he's practiced it the whole time I've known him."
Tansley: "Did he have a teacher? Or students?"
West Wind Monk 1: "I don't know, sorry."
Kalinah: "We should hurry to see the masters."
West Wind Monk 1: You reach the front of the building
DM: The monastery wall is pierced in many places with narrow slits and holes, designed to funnel the wind through them, creating various sounds based on the direction of the wind.
West Wind Monk 1: "Here we are. Allow me to formally welcome you to the monastery," he says as monks open the doors
Angir: "Thank you. It's nice to be welcome here."
DM: Once inside, the true scale of the building is impressive. More palace than humble temple, the tiered building is a maze of corridors, courtyards, and chambers, connected by interior and exterior staircases. Within, the monastery is light and airy, many small windows and slits in the roof allowing shafts of light to illuminate the rooms. Most chambers lead directly to open-air courtyards and gardens, linked by corridors and colonnades. Clever use of ducts and angled vents draw air through the monastery, creating a constant wind that whistles gently through the interior of the building.
DM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDphw4krDyY
Roslyn: "I concur, Angir."
* Tansley nods
Zayed: (w) "This place could have held half the town..."
Roslyn: Roslyn takes a moment to position heself in a wind stream.
DM: The gentle breeze is soothing
Roslyn: (Damn right)
DM: The monastery is home to a few hundred monks, with vast open arenas designed for training aerial and acrobatic combat, and elegant open-air gardens for meditation.
West Wind Monk 1: "Visitors are occasionally allowed to the monastery, but in general we create everything need, only going to Eresh to purchase food, or to trade with the occasional foreign merchant."
Kalinah: "Wow. This place is impressive!"
West Wind Monk 1: He says, giving you an semi-tour as he leads you to the meeting room
* Tansley nods in agreement with Zayed.
West Wind Monk 1: He smiles, "Believe it or not, this whole complex was built in just eight years, or so I've been told."
Tansley: Tansley struggles not to sound impatient. "But of course, we came to see the masters, not to be tourists."
West Wind Monk 1: He leads you up to the highest step of the monastery and a door. "This is where the masters will meet with you. Please, go in."
Zayed: "I guess you are pretty lucky the Ragesians didn't raze it."
Kalinah: "If they even could have."
West Wind Monk 1: "Yes, Master Pilus in particular was very protective of our monastery's security."
Kalinah: "I bet he was."
Angir: "It's an ideal place for Caela to take over and use against the town... I wonder why she left?"
Tansley: "We don't really know why she did anything yet."
Zayed: "Maybe she didn't leave..."
Roslyn: "Maybe she was ousted."
Kalinah: "Maybe she was ordered to go."
Zayed: "Maybe she had the monastery's blessing... Biomancy seems popular with Master Pilus."
DM: The two brothers sit on cushions before you, near the wall of a sparse chamber seemingly intended for meditation rather than command.
Longinus: Longinus wears a white mask with blue highlights, and the rest of his body is hidden by gloves and a hooded white robe, etched with gold and black feathers, representing the Stormchaser Eagle.
Roslyn: "All dressed up for the meeting, expecting us?"
Pilus: Pilus, by contrast, wears a robe with patterns of two entwined, stormy dragons, and his expression is clear and open; he has a somewhat amused posture, as though he is not devoting his full attention to the proceedings.
Pilus: "Ah, the agents from Seaquen! Please, have a seat."
Angir: "Biomancy's not bad. It's what she was using it for. And, y'know, being a spy."
Pilus: "We made sure to get a large cushion for you," he says to Kalinah
Tansley: "It's good to finally meet."
Tansley: Tansley takes a seat.
Kalinah: "Very thoughtful of you." Kalinah says, then moves to take a seat. "It is nice to finally meet you. You would not believe how hard it was to get here."
Zayed: (w) "We tried to meet before the battle but were not allowed entry."
* Longinus wheezes and speaks with a hoarse, weary voice. "Please, sit. Tell us of your request that brought you here."
Roslyn: "We believe you can help us. We need a storm cleared."
Pilus: "The firestorm surrounding Castle Korstull, you mean."
Tansley:
"Yes, Simeon believes you may be able to help us get to where the torch may be held, at Castle Korstull."
* Longinus nods
Kalinah:
"If we can get it before Ragesia does, we might be able to save the lands from their purging efforts."
Pilus: "Yes, we are aware of your quest to retrieve the Torch, much as the Ragesians are seeking it."
Pilus: "We sought to stay out of the conflict until now, but it's become clear that is no longer feasible."
Roslyn: "That battlefield at your doorstep probably didn't help."
Pilus: "This war," Pilus says, "seems to have gone beyond any prior conflict, both in scope and power. Longinus worries that the world itself might be threatened, particularly given the strange and fiery planar fluctuations that are affecting teleportation."
Tansley: "We had to use a lot of magical protection, just to teleport part of the way here."
Pilus: "On the other hand, I see this as the perfect opportunity to bring down the Ragesian Empire, a nation which is far too powerful, a bully among kings."
Roslyn: "We can agree on both fronts."
Pilus: "And the effects would have been far, far graver had you tried to teleport into the vicinity of the castle itself."
Pilus: "I have not tested this, but it seems obvious."
Tansley: "So you think the torch is the source of the effect?"
Pilus: "I do."
Kalinah: "As bad as Ragesia is, it seems they are not the only threat."
Pilus: "What do you mean?"
Kalinah: "Well, we have encountered a few very powerful enemies that had nothing to do with Ragesia."
* Longinus remains quiet, content to let his brother speak for both of them
Tansley: "We can't discern if what their goals are as of yet."
Pilus: "Ah, well there are certainly all kinds of dragons and fiends and such of power that have no allegiance to any mortal."
Roslyn: "There will always be a bigger threat, that has no reason to be a threat other than its power."
Kalinah: "So, where did you learn biomancy?"
* Pilus chuckles, "Well that was out of the blue."
Pilus: He smiles, "I am self-taught."
Tansley: "Do share with us though, any information you have may be useful, and we can tell you what we know of the Trillith."
Angir: "There /is/ always the possibility that one of our enemies is planning to take the torch once we clear the way to it."
Pilus: "The Trillith?"
Tansley: "Have you taught others?"
Pilus: "I have."
Tansley: "Caela? Dogwood?"
Pilus: "Caela? She was starting to learn how to perform biomancy, yes."
Pilus: "I'm afraid I don't know who this other person you speak of is."
Kalinah: (( Sense motive to see if he is telling the truth? ))
Pilus: (sure. tell me your bonuses, I'm rolling in secret for you if you want to sense motive)
Pilus: (which is how I should've been doing it all along)
Tansley: "He was working out of the lab in the Valley of Storms."
DM: You're skeptical of his claim that he doesn't know who Dogwood is
Kalinah: "A lab which it seems impossible to me that it would be there without one of you two knowing about it. It was defended by monks, and had a sculpture of your sacred eagle and dragon in it."
* Pilus sighs
Pilus: "Ah, so you found the lab, then."
Pilus: Perhaps to your surprise, he shrugs his shoulders and seems indifferent about it. "Yes, it is true, I had a laboratory within the sacred valley...."
Zayed: "And Ceala..."
Kalinah: Kalinah looks to Longinus. "And you?"
* Longinus turns his head, seemingly surprised by this acknowledgement
Angir: "Do you not realize what Paradim and Caela were using it for? They were kidnapping people and turning them into monsters!"
Longinus: "Brother? The valley of storms is sacred..."
Tansley: "From what you say, we have common enemies and perhaps common goals, but then why destroy most of the first envoy that was sent here, and attempt to do the same to us?"
Angir: "Your monks were in our way! If they'd stopped us, Torrent here would be..."
Pilus: "The monks were guarding the valley, as it is sacred to our people. They did not know what was in it, nor did my brother."
Pilus: "Please though, I think we've had an unfortunate misunderstanding."
Tansley: "Yes."
Kalinah: "The misunderstanding happened when you kidnapped our friends and comrades and tried to turn them into monsters!"
Longinus: "Brother, why would you enter the sacred grounds?"
Pilus: "That is precisely why it had to be there, brother. It was the most secluded, hidden location in the area. I realize you may be upset about it, but it was all for the greater good."
Tansley: "I hope it is a greater good we can all be on the same side of."
Pilus: "I've learned to appreciate a broad view of events courtesy of you, brother."
Kalinah: "When something is for the greater good, you ask for volunteers. You don't kidnap people and force transformation upon them!"
Pilus: "That was what I was trying to get to...."
Angir: "I think it was Caela and Paradim doing that, not Pilus..."
Pilus: "I admit, I asked Caela to take some of the villagers away to the laboratory. But ONLY with the intention of trying to discover what was afflicting them."
Tansley: "She took Torrent after we explained the cause to her."
Pilus: "She told me" he says, "that there was no way to help them, and that several had died upon leaving the village."
Kalinah: (( Sense motive again. ))
Pilus: (everyone doing it?)
Tansley: (yes)
Pilus: You're not sure. He seems to be telling the truth, but it's somewhat straining your sense of credibility
Pilus: "I suspect now that she was using my biomancy laboratory to grow monsters to sell as warbeasts." His face filling with shame, he continues, "I admit, I am not the judge of character my brother is."[/sblock]
[sblock]
DM: Last time, you found Torrent, Torrent's gear, a disturbingly large (and emptied) pool of biomancy fluid, and Caela. After a tough battle, she was slain, calling out to her master as she fell. The lab began to shake and you had to flee as a massive tornado aimed right for the lab with pinpoint accuracy threatened to bury you alive inside. Camping for the night, you all saw something....massive...in the sky. And it was watching you. You got back to Eresh early evening and were invited to the monastery in the morning by an honor guard of Longinus.
DM: You wake up in the morning and eat, prep spells, get Torrent's armor, etc...
Eril: "I can't believe I'm still in this town...."
Tansley: "We'll be returning to Seaquen ourselves... eventually."
Tansley: "I hope we can wrap up business at the Monastery without wasting any more time."
hopla: "A lot happened, it's hard to get out of a town during a siege."
Eril: "I can't believe you took down that bitch."
Kalinah: "Well, we didn't come this far just to let so psycho monk get us."
Roslyn: "Which bitch?"
Tansley: "Caela or the General?"
Eril: "The one that apparently killed my friends...."
Eril: "I knew not to trust her, wish they had been more skeptical like me."
Tansley: "Yes, that's tough."
* West Wind Monk 1 enters the Peak's Shadow inn
West Wind Monk 1: "Are you ready to head to the monastery?"
Tansley: "Soon enough I'm sure we'll find who she was working for."
Kalinah: Kalinah stretches a bit, then nods. "Let's try to sort this out."
West Wind Monk 1: "Shall we go?"
Tansley: "Yes, let's."
Roslyn: "To the monastery"
Tansley: (Tansley will give Phet Heart of Earth and Angir and Torrent Phantom Stag.)
* West Wind Monk 1 leads you up the trail, dismissing the air elemental guards with the pass phrase, "Aeshir."
Tansley: (That was the one Caela told us?)
West Wind Monk 1: (yeah, she said it'd be good for at least 4 days)
Kalinah: "...huh. I guess she wasn't a total liar..." Kalinah says softly to herself.
DM: The Monastery of Two Winds is perched atop a low peak at the edge of this valley, with yet higher mountains beyond. Visible from anywhere in Eresh, it is an impressive sight, a massive, redroofed edifice hundreds of feet across, comprised of many wings that have an orderly sprawl atop the uneven mountain peak. The site is made all the more vivid by the pale snowy mountain peaks in the distance.
Tansley: "Efforts to gain trust are sometimes a good way to decieve."
DM: Hundreds of brightly colored banners and flags flutter from the rooftops and hang from the walls, flapping violently in the strong wind that whistles about the peak. Flocks of unusual white birds wheel about the monastery. Occasionally one of these birds will flap close to you, allowing you to see the unnatural creature close up. It has three wings, and sharp claws clearly designed to grip onto something. Its beak appears upside down, curving upwards rather than downwards. Its flight is somewhat erratic, its third wing allowing it to change direction suddenly or hover in place.
Tansley: "Those birds, what are they?"
Kalinah: Kalinah looks unnerved by the birds.
Roslyn: "They kind of look like demented seagulls."
Tansley: Knowledge Arcana(take best of two rolls) 20 , 10
Kalinah: "Are these birds native to this area?" Kalinah asks.
DM: They are Remora birds. Clearly the creation of biomancy. You recall there was a quill made of a remora bird's feather at the desk in the lab
Zayed: "After what we saw in the Valley of Storms not many creatures should surprise us much."
West Wind Monk 1: "Ah, you're interested in the Remora birds?"
Tansley: "Remora, yes of course."
Tansley: "The Khagan suggested to us that Pilus knows a lot about biomancy or at least others who do. He said Pilus had helped him out and spoke fondly of him."
West Wind Monk 1: "Yes, Master Pilus is quite skilled in it. I do not understand any of it myself, but those birds were one of his first creations."
West Wind Monk 1: "They help keep the walls of the monastery clean, and their flight patterns are interesting."
Tansley: Tansley will attempt to spot some feathers to collect while they walk.
DM: You can collect a few
Angir: "They keep the walls clean? How so?"
* Torrent whispers to Tansley, "I'd think you'd find the birds horrifying."
Tansley: whisper "I didn't voice any opinion about them."
Roslyn: "Their flight patterns are amusing..."
West Wind Monk 1: "They eat the grime that collects on the walls."
Tansley: "Normal birds do not? Are they designed for that?"
West Wind Monk 1: "I suppose so. I don't know why they were created, just how they are helpful to us."
Angir: "An intriguing use of biomancy."
Roslyn: "How long has Pilus been practicing Biomancy?"
West Wind Monk 1: "Quite a while. I've been here for five years, and he's practiced it the whole time I've known him."
Tansley: "Did he have a teacher? Or students?"
West Wind Monk 1: "I don't know, sorry."
Kalinah: "We should hurry to see the masters."
West Wind Monk 1: You reach the front of the building
DM: The monastery wall is pierced in many places with narrow slits and holes, designed to funnel the wind through them, creating various sounds based on the direction of the wind.
West Wind Monk 1: "Here we are. Allow me to formally welcome you to the monastery," he says as monks open the doors
Angir: "Thank you. It's nice to be welcome here."
DM: Once inside, the true scale of the building is impressive. More palace than humble temple, the tiered building is a maze of corridors, courtyards, and chambers, connected by interior and exterior staircases. Within, the monastery is light and airy, many small windows and slits in the roof allowing shafts of light to illuminate the rooms. Most chambers lead directly to open-air courtyards and gardens, linked by corridors and colonnades. Clever use of ducts and angled vents draw air through the monastery, creating a constant wind that whistles gently through the interior of the building.
DM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDphw4krDyY
Roslyn: "I concur, Angir."
* Tansley nods
Zayed: (w) "This place could have held half the town..."
Roslyn: Roslyn takes a moment to position heself in a wind stream.
DM: The gentle breeze is soothing
Roslyn: (Damn right)
DM: The monastery is home to a few hundred monks, with vast open arenas designed for training aerial and acrobatic combat, and elegant open-air gardens for meditation.
West Wind Monk 1: "Visitors are occasionally allowed to the monastery, but in general we create everything need, only going to Eresh to purchase food, or to trade with the occasional foreign merchant."
Kalinah: "Wow. This place is impressive!"
West Wind Monk 1: He says, giving you an semi-tour as he leads you to the meeting room
* Tansley nods in agreement with Zayed.
West Wind Monk 1: He smiles, "Believe it or not, this whole complex was built in just eight years, or so I've been told."
Tansley: Tansley struggles not to sound impatient. "But of course, we came to see the masters, not to be tourists."
West Wind Monk 1: He leads you up to the highest step of the monastery and a door. "This is where the masters will meet with you. Please, go in."
Zayed: "I guess you are pretty lucky the Ragesians didn't raze it."
Kalinah: "If they even could have."
West Wind Monk 1: "Yes, Master Pilus in particular was very protective of our monastery's security."
Kalinah: "I bet he was."
Angir: "It's an ideal place for Caela to take over and use against the town... I wonder why she left?"
Tansley: "We don't really know why she did anything yet."
Zayed: "Maybe she didn't leave..."
Roslyn: "Maybe she was ousted."
Kalinah: "Maybe she was ordered to go."
Zayed: "Maybe she had the monastery's blessing... Biomancy seems popular with Master Pilus."
DM: The two brothers sit on cushions before you, near the wall of a sparse chamber seemingly intended for meditation rather than command.
Longinus: Longinus wears a white mask with blue highlights, and the rest of his body is hidden by gloves and a hooded white robe, etched with gold and black feathers, representing the Stormchaser Eagle.
Roslyn: "All dressed up for the meeting, expecting us?"
Pilus: Pilus, by contrast, wears a robe with patterns of two entwined, stormy dragons, and his expression is clear and open; he has a somewhat amused posture, as though he is not devoting his full attention to the proceedings.
Pilus: "Ah, the agents from Seaquen! Please, have a seat."
Angir: "Biomancy's not bad. It's what she was using it for. And, y'know, being a spy."
Pilus: "We made sure to get a large cushion for you," he says to Kalinah
Tansley: "It's good to finally meet."
Tansley: Tansley takes a seat.
Kalinah: "Very thoughtful of you." Kalinah says, then moves to take a seat. "It is nice to finally meet you. You would not believe how hard it was to get here."
Zayed: (w) "We tried to meet before the battle but were not allowed entry."
* Longinus wheezes and speaks with a hoarse, weary voice. "Please, sit. Tell us of your request that brought you here."
Roslyn: "We believe you can help us. We need a storm cleared."
Pilus: "The firestorm surrounding Castle Korstull, you mean."
Tansley:
"Yes, Simeon believes you may be able to help us get to where the torch may be held, at Castle Korstull."
* Longinus nods
Kalinah:
"If we can get it before Ragesia does, we might be able to save the lands from their purging efforts."
Pilus: "Yes, we are aware of your quest to retrieve the Torch, much as the Ragesians are seeking it."
Pilus: "We sought to stay out of the conflict until now, but it's become clear that is no longer feasible."
Roslyn: "That battlefield at your doorstep probably didn't help."
Pilus: "This war," Pilus says, "seems to have gone beyond any prior conflict, both in scope and power. Longinus worries that the world itself might be threatened, particularly given the strange and fiery planar fluctuations that are affecting teleportation."
Tansley: "We had to use a lot of magical protection, just to teleport part of the way here."
Pilus: "On the other hand, I see this as the perfect opportunity to bring down the Ragesian Empire, a nation which is far too powerful, a bully among kings."
Roslyn: "We can agree on both fronts."
Pilus: "And the effects would have been far, far graver had you tried to teleport into the vicinity of the castle itself."
Pilus: "I have not tested this, but it seems obvious."
Tansley: "So you think the torch is the source of the effect?"
Pilus: "I do."
Kalinah: "As bad as Ragesia is, it seems they are not the only threat."
Pilus: "What do you mean?"
Kalinah: "Well, we have encountered a few very powerful enemies that had nothing to do with Ragesia."
* Longinus remains quiet, content to let his brother speak for both of them
Tansley: "We can't discern if what their goals are as of yet."
Pilus: "Ah, well there are certainly all kinds of dragons and fiends and such of power that have no allegiance to any mortal."
Roslyn: "There will always be a bigger threat, that has no reason to be a threat other than its power."
Kalinah: "So, where did you learn biomancy?"
* Pilus chuckles, "Well that was out of the blue."
Pilus: He smiles, "I am self-taught."
Tansley: "Do share with us though, any information you have may be useful, and we can tell you what we know of the Trillith."
Angir: "There /is/ always the possibility that one of our enemies is planning to take the torch once we clear the way to it."
Pilus: "The Trillith?"
Tansley: "Have you taught others?"
Pilus: "I have."
Tansley: "Caela? Dogwood?"
Pilus: "Caela? She was starting to learn how to perform biomancy, yes."
Pilus: "I'm afraid I don't know who this other person you speak of is."
Kalinah: (( Sense motive to see if he is telling the truth? ))
Pilus: (sure. tell me your bonuses, I'm rolling in secret for you if you want to sense motive)
Pilus: (which is how I should've been doing it all along)
Tansley: "He was working out of the lab in the Valley of Storms."
DM: You're skeptical of his claim that he doesn't know who Dogwood is
Kalinah: "A lab which it seems impossible to me that it would be there without one of you two knowing about it. It was defended by monks, and had a sculpture of your sacred eagle and dragon in it."
* Pilus sighs
Pilus: "Ah, so you found the lab, then."
Pilus: Perhaps to your surprise, he shrugs his shoulders and seems indifferent about it. "Yes, it is true, I had a laboratory within the sacred valley...."
Zayed: "And Ceala..."
Kalinah: Kalinah looks to Longinus. "And you?"
* Longinus turns his head, seemingly surprised by this acknowledgement
Angir: "Do you not realize what Paradim and Caela were using it for? They were kidnapping people and turning them into monsters!"
Longinus: "Brother? The valley of storms is sacred..."
Tansley: "From what you say, we have common enemies and perhaps common goals, but then why destroy most of the first envoy that was sent here, and attempt to do the same to us?"
Angir: "Your monks were in our way! If they'd stopped us, Torrent here would be..."
Pilus: "The monks were guarding the valley, as it is sacred to our people. They did not know what was in it, nor did my brother."
Pilus: "Please though, I think we've had an unfortunate misunderstanding."
Tansley: "Yes."
Kalinah: "The misunderstanding happened when you kidnapped our friends and comrades and tried to turn them into monsters!"
Longinus: "Brother, why would you enter the sacred grounds?"
Pilus: "That is precisely why it had to be there, brother. It was the most secluded, hidden location in the area. I realize you may be upset about it, but it was all for the greater good."
Tansley: "I hope it is a greater good we can all be on the same side of."
Pilus: "I've learned to appreciate a broad view of events courtesy of you, brother."
Kalinah: "When something is for the greater good, you ask for volunteers. You don't kidnap people and force transformation upon them!"
Pilus: "That was what I was trying to get to...."
Angir: "I think it was Caela and Paradim doing that, not Pilus..."
Pilus: "I admit, I asked Caela to take some of the villagers away to the laboratory. But ONLY with the intention of trying to discover what was afflicting them."
Tansley: "She took Torrent after we explained the cause to her."
Pilus: "She told me" he says, "that there was no way to help them, and that several had died upon leaving the village."
Kalinah: (( Sense motive again. ))
Pilus: (everyone doing it?)
Tansley: (yes)
Pilus: You're not sure. He seems to be telling the truth, but it's somewhat straining your sense of credibility
Pilus: "I suspect now that she was using my biomancy laboratory to grow monsters to sell as warbeasts." His face filling with shame, he continues, "I admit, I am not the judge of character my brother is."[/sblock]