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Tales of the Legacy - Concluded
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<blockquote data-quote="Delemental" data-source="post: 1669297" data-attributes="member: 5203"><p><strong>School Daze</strong></p><p></p><p>The large double doors creaked slightly as Kavan pushed his way into the chamber, looking around at the rows of empty tables and chairs. Even the circular instructor’s dais in the center of the room stood unoccupied. At first, Kavan thought he was the first to arrive, but his keen elven ears picked up a slight scuffling from the lowest row of tables. Moving to the side to get a better look, he saw a large figure crouched on the floor, apparently fiddling with one of the chairs. The scene was almost comical as the broad-shouldered man tried to squeeze himself under the long table to get a better angle at his work.</p><p></p><p> <em>Nothing but a common laborer</em>, Kavan thought at first, but caught himself. Whoever this man was, he was one of Erito’s* children, just like himself, and worthy of respect as such. Kavan fingered the holy symbol around his neck, and said a silent prayer asking for forgiveness from his goddess.</p><p></p><p> The man rose from his work as Kavan let his symbol fall back to his chest, and for a moment the elf’s usual poise and reserve was nearly broken. The man had somehow managed to fit his broad shoulders into a set of mustard-colored robes, which Kavan swore were the same kind the school issued to students of magic. The man brushed a few wood shavings from his black scruffy hair, then flashed a toothy grin as he put away his dagger.</p><p></p><p> “Howdy,” he called out in a leisurely drawl. “You here for Interdisciplinary Tactics?”</p><p></p><p> Kavan nodded as he set his pack down on the table in front of him, far up on the back row. He’d felt a little silly hauling all his worldly possessions up to the 267th floor of the Tower, but the directions given were specific.</p><p></p><p> “Me too,” said the man, sitting down in the chair he’d just been working on. He shifted his weight back and forth, then slapped his hand on the arm of the chair in satisfaction. “I hate a wobbly chair,” he said. “It’s why I always show up early – I swear there weren’t four chair legs of equal length in this whole tower before I got here.” He put his feet up on the table, then looked back up at the elf in the top row. “Name’s Kyle,” he said. “What’s yours?”</p><p></p><p> “My name is Kavan.” He studied the man below him for a moment. “You are… a student here?”</p><p></p><p> “Yup,” said Kyle, grinning. “And let me tell you, no one was more surprised by that than me.”</p><p></p><p> Their conversation was interrupted by a commotion across the room, as two women in heavy armor came into the room through a door across from Kavan and Kyle. The first was a blonde-haired woman in half-plate, with a longsword on her hip and a shield strapped to her back. She had one hand wrapped around the arm of her companion, and seemed to be pulling her along. The second woman wore chainmail armor, and wrapped across her chest and waist was a length of spiked chain. Strands of brown hair drooped into her face as the two of them found seats in the midst of the room. As the crash of metal and wood echoed through the room, no one noticed as a small figure slipped in through the door Kavan had used, and stood in the shadows observing.</p><p></p><p> “Okay, Autumn, you can let <em>go</em> now.” The woman shrugged out of the other’s grasp, then looked around. Across from her she saw an elf with short, dark brown hair, wearing simple white robes. There was some sort of holy symbol around his neck, but she couldn’t make out the details. <em>Erito, probably</em>, she thought. Below him sat another man, human like herself. Even though he was as large and muscular as some of her fellow students in her combat training courses, he wore wizards’ robes. The man looked up and grinned.</p><p></p><p> “Howdy, ma’am,” he said to her, “Name’s Kyle. What’s yours?”</p><p></p><p> “I’m Arrie,” she replied, “and this is my sister Autumn.” Arrie gestured at the woman with strawberry blonde hair, who nodded in reply. “She can’t talk today,” Arrie continued, “she got sick after last week’s outdoor survival course and lost her voice.”**</p><p></p><p> Kyle nodded at the introductions, though he was having a hard time seeing the family resemblance. Autumn seemed to have an inner glow, a subtle quality that suggested she was one of the Touched***, an aasimar. Arrie, on the other hand, seemed as human as he was. Still, the style of etching on their armor suggested noble heritage, and nobility sometimes had a strange definition of ‘family’.</p><p></p><p> Arrie and Autumn’s glance turned up toward the elf in the top row. “My name is Kavan,” he said to the implied question.</p><p></p><p> The doors opened again, and a slender woman dressed in an unadorned outfit made of green silk stepped quietly into the room and sat down. Her black hair trailed down her back in a long braid, which curled loosely around the end of a long pole strapped to her back. She sat quietly, eyes nearly closed, until Kyle spoke.</p><p></p><p> “Howdy, my name’s Kyle. What’s yours, ma’am?”</p><p></p><p> “Xu Dhii Ngao,” she replied.</p><p></p><p> Kyle’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “You know, it was just a simple question. No need to threaten me.”</p><p></p><p> Xu’s brow furrowed. “I do not understand,” she said, perplexed.</p><p></p><p> “Well, all I asked was your name, and you tell me I’m going to die now. What am I supposed to think?”</p><p></p><p> Xu shook her head, a tiny smile on her face. “No, no, you misunderstand. My name is Xu… Dhii… Ngao. You may call me simply ‘Xu’.”</p><p></p><p> Satisfied, Kyle relaxed. “All right then. Well, this is Kavan, and that’s Arrie and Autumn.”</p><p></p><p> Another figure entered as the chimes signaling the beginning of class began to sound. This person, also a human like Kyle, Xu, and Arrie, wore deep green robes that were frayed and singed at the edges. He wore a full beard, and his blonde hair was long and starting to turn gray. His eyebrows were missing, and the skin on his face seemed unusually pink, which only highlighted the criss-cross scarring on his cheeks that was typical of someone who has survived wyrmrage fever as a child. He appeared several years older than the others, and at first it was assumed he was their teacher. But he sat down quickly at a table without comment.</p><p></p><p>Everyone in the room turned toward the central podium, expecting their instructor to appear. After a minute had passed, Kyle looked up at Arrie and Autumn. “Um, are we sure this is the right room?”</p><p></p><p> Just then the door closest to the two armored women flew open, and another female dashed in. This one had a wild shock of hair that seemed dyed in a garish mix of pink and orange, and wore clothes in various shades of violet that, although seemingly thrown together from several different styles, somehow managed to look good together, especially considering the amount of skin they revealed. As she collapsed in a chair, the others could see that her left eye was emerald green, the other sky blue. She let out a muffled greeting, her voice blocked by the wedge of flatbread still in her teeth.</p><p></p><p> Arrie elbowed Autumn. “See, I wouldn’t have been the last one here,” she quipped.</p><p></p><p> “Well, now that everyone else is here…”</p><p></p><p> They all turned at the sound of the strange voice. Stepping out of the shadows in the corner came a diminutive figure, just barely over three feet tall. The young hin wore a black vest over dark studded leather, and his long black hair was pulled back. A set of pearly white teeth flashed in the middle of a neatly trimmed goatee and mustache, and everyone could see the hilts of several daggers protruding from his vest, belt, boots, and his wrists. He jumped up on top of the table near Kavan and sat cross-legged, still grinning.</p><p></p><p> “Impressive entrance, Osborn,” said another voice, this one high above them. Looking up, they saw a large man in leathers clinging to the ceiling, observing them. He let go, and spun in midair, landing gracefully on his feet in the center of the instructor’s dais. “I was wondering how long you would remain hidden. At least I know you weren’t late for class.” The instructor’s eyes wandered meaningfully over to the wild-haired woman. “Isn’t that right, Lanara?”</p><p></p><p> The woman called Lanara merely shrugged. “Long lines at the kitchen,” she said, wiping crumbs off the table.</p><p></p><p> The instructor turned back to the class without comment. “Welcome to Interdisciplinary Tactics. My name is Shilsen Brandovich. Up until now, your instruction at the Tower has been focused on improving your individual skills; thus you have been working primarily with those of your own profession. Now, you will learn to work with those of different talents and abilities. You will learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and in so doing learn to create a more effective whole.”</p><p></p><p> Shilsen circled slowly, taking in each person in turn. “I’ve observed that most of you have already begun introducing yourselves. This is good, as you will be working closely with the other students in this room for the remainder of your term here at the Tower, and quite possibly beyond. However, this course is supposed to be about risks and how you handle them as a group. Therefore, your first simulation will begin immediately.”</p><p></p><p> The students looked around at each other. Simulation?</p><p></p><p> “In one hour, you will be taken to a simulated scenario very much like what you would encounter in the outside world as professional adventurers. This is a simple pass or fail test; complete the assignment, and you pass. But if you don’t complete the assignment, or you die, then you fail.</p><p></p><p> “You have in front of you all of your equipment that you either brought to the Tower yourself or has been given to you as reward for your studies up until now. This is what you will have to complete your mission. Other items that can aid you may be found within the scenario itself, but don’t rely on that. You have the next hour to talk amongst yourselves, to figure out what your capabilities are and what you lack, and make any plans.” With that, Shilsen stepped off the instructor’s platform, went up the stairs, and exited the room.</p><p></p><p>----------------</p><p>* Erito is the head goddess of the Aelfenn pantheon. She is the patron deity of the elves, and also the goddess of life, death, and magic.</p><p></p><p>** Translation: after making the character, her player was unable to attend the first few sessions. Thus we needed some explanation for why she wasn't able to participate in the conversation.</p><p></p><p>*** The various races in Aelfenn that are humans with mixed blood are known as the Touched. There are the Planetouched (classic aasimar and tiefling, as well as the chaotic cansin and the lawful axani), the Element-Touched (the same as the genasi in FR), and the Elf-Touched (half-elves) and Orc-Touched (half-orcs).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Delemental, post: 1669297, member: 5203"] [b]School Daze[/b] The large double doors creaked slightly as Kavan pushed his way into the chamber, looking around at the rows of empty tables and chairs. Even the circular instructor’s dais in the center of the room stood unoccupied. At first, Kavan thought he was the first to arrive, but his keen elven ears picked up a slight scuffling from the lowest row of tables. Moving to the side to get a better look, he saw a large figure crouched on the floor, apparently fiddling with one of the chairs. The scene was almost comical as the broad-shouldered man tried to squeeze himself under the long table to get a better angle at his work. [I]Nothing but a common laborer[/I], Kavan thought at first, but caught himself. Whoever this man was, he was one of Erito’s* children, just like himself, and worthy of respect as such. Kavan fingered the holy symbol around his neck, and said a silent prayer asking for forgiveness from his goddess. The man rose from his work as Kavan let his symbol fall back to his chest, and for a moment the elf’s usual poise and reserve was nearly broken. The man had somehow managed to fit his broad shoulders into a set of mustard-colored robes, which Kavan swore were the same kind the school issued to students of magic. The man brushed a few wood shavings from his black scruffy hair, then flashed a toothy grin as he put away his dagger. “Howdy,” he called out in a leisurely drawl. “You here for Interdisciplinary Tactics?” Kavan nodded as he set his pack down on the table in front of him, far up on the back row. He’d felt a little silly hauling all his worldly possessions up to the 267th floor of the Tower, but the directions given were specific. “Me too,” said the man, sitting down in the chair he’d just been working on. He shifted his weight back and forth, then slapped his hand on the arm of the chair in satisfaction. “I hate a wobbly chair,” he said. “It’s why I always show up early – I swear there weren’t four chair legs of equal length in this whole tower before I got here.” He put his feet up on the table, then looked back up at the elf in the top row. “Name’s Kyle,” he said. “What’s yours?” “My name is Kavan.” He studied the man below him for a moment. “You are… a student here?” “Yup,” said Kyle, grinning. “And let me tell you, no one was more surprised by that than me.” Their conversation was interrupted by a commotion across the room, as two women in heavy armor came into the room through a door across from Kavan and Kyle. The first was a blonde-haired woman in half-plate, with a longsword on her hip and a shield strapped to her back. She had one hand wrapped around the arm of her companion, and seemed to be pulling her along. The second woman wore chainmail armor, and wrapped across her chest and waist was a length of spiked chain. Strands of brown hair drooped into her face as the two of them found seats in the midst of the room. As the crash of metal and wood echoed through the room, no one noticed as a small figure slipped in through the door Kavan had used, and stood in the shadows observing. “Okay, Autumn, you can let [I]go[/I] now.” The woman shrugged out of the other’s grasp, then looked around. Across from her she saw an elf with short, dark brown hair, wearing simple white robes. There was some sort of holy symbol around his neck, but she couldn’t make out the details. [I]Erito, probably[/I], she thought. Below him sat another man, human like herself. Even though he was as large and muscular as some of her fellow students in her combat training courses, he wore wizards’ robes. The man looked up and grinned. “Howdy, ma’am,” he said to her, “Name’s Kyle. What’s yours?” “I’m Arrie,” she replied, “and this is my sister Autumn.” Arrie gestured at the woman with strawberry blonde hair, who nodded in reply. “She can’t talk today,” Arrie continued, “she got sick after last week’s outdoor survival course and lost her voice.”** Kyle nodded at the introductions, though he was having a hard time seeing the family resemblance. Autumn seemed to have an inner glow, a subtle quality that suggested she was one of the Touched***, an aasimar. Arrie, on the other hand, seemed as human as he was. Still, the style of etching on their armor suggested noble heritage, and nobility sometimes had a strange definition of ‘family’. Arrie and Autumn’s glance turned up toward the elf in the top row. “My name is Kavan,” he said to the implied question. The doors opened again, and a slender woman dressed in an unadorned outfit made of green silk stepped quietly into the room and sat down. Her black hair trailed down her back in a long braid, which curled loosely around the end of a long pole strapped to her back. She sat quietly, eyes nearly closed, until Kyle spoke. “Howdy, my name’s Kyle. What’s yours, ma’am?” “Xu Dhii Ngao,” she replied. Kyle’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “You know, it was just a simple question. No need to threaten me.” Xu’s brow furrowed. “I do not understand,” she said, perplexed. “Well, all I asked was your name, and you tell me I’m going to die now. What am I supposed to think?” Xu shook her head, a tiny smile on her face. “No, no, you misunderstand. My name is Xu… Dhii… Ngao. You may call me simply ‘Xu’.” Satisfied, Kyle relaxed. “All right then. Well, this is Kavan, and that’s Arrie and Autumn.” Another figure entered as the chimes signaling the beginning of class began to sound. This person, also a human like Kyle, Xu, and Arrie, wore deep green robes that were frayed and singed at the edges. He wore a full beard, and his blonde hair was long and starting to turn gray. His eyebrows were missing, and the skin on his face seemed unusually pink, which only highlighted the criss-cross scarring on his cheeks that was typical of someone who has survived wyrmrage fever as a child. He appeared several years older than the others, and at first it was assumed he was their teacher. But he sat down quickly at a table without comment. Everyone in the room turned toward the central podium, expecting their instructor to appear. After a minute had passed, Kyle looked up at Arrie and Autumn. “Um, are we sure this is the right room?” Just then the door closest to the two armored women flew open, and another female dashed in. This one had a wild shock of hair that seemed dyed in a garish mix of pink and orange, and wore clothes in various shades of violet that, although seemingly thrown together from several different styles, somehow managed to look good together, especially considering the amount of skin they revealed. As she collapsed in a chair, the others could see that her left eye was emerald green, the other sky blue. She let out a muffled greeting, her voice blocked by the wedge of flatbread still in her teeth. Arrie elbowed Autumn. “See, I wouldn’t have been the last one here,” she quipped. “Well, now that everyone else is here…” They all turned at the sound of the strange voice. Stepping out of the shadows in the corner came a diminutive figure, just barely over three feet tall. The young hin wore a black vest over dark studded leather, and his long black hair was pulled back. A set of pearly white teeth flashed in the middle of a neatly trimmed goatee and mustache, and everyone could see the hilts of several daggers protruding from his vest, belt, boots, and his wrists. He jumped up on top of the table near Kavan and sat cross-legged, still grinning. “Impressive entrance, Osborn,” said another voice, this one high above them. Looking up, they saw a large man in leathers clinging to the ceiling, observing them. He let go, and spun in midair, landing gracefully on his feet in the center of the instructor’s dais. “I was wondering how long you would remain hidden. At least I know you weren’t late for class.” The instructor’s eyes wandered meaningfully over to the wild-haired woman. “Isn’t that right, Lanara?” The woman called Lanara merely shrugged. “Long lines at the kitchen,” she said, wiping crumbs off the table. The instructor turned back to the class without comment. “Welcome to Interdisciplinary Tactics. My name is Shilsen Brandovich. Up until now, your instruction at the Tower has been focused on improving your individual skills; thus you have been working primarily with those of your own profession. Now, you will learn to work with those of different talents and abilities. You will learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and in so doing learn to create a more effective whole.” Shilsen circled slowly, taking in each person in turn. “I’ve observed that most of you have already begun introducing yourselves. This is good, as you will be working closely with the other students in this room for the remainder of your term here at the Tower, and quite possibly beyond. However, this course is supposed to be about risks and how you handle them as a group. Therefore, your first simulation will begin immediately.” The students looked around at each other. Simulation? “In one hour, you will be taken to a simulated scenario very much like what you would encounter in the outside world as professional adventurers. This is a simple pass or fail test; complete the assignment, and you pass. But if you don’t complete the assignment, or you die, then you fail. “You have in front of you all of your equipment that you either brought to the Tower yourself or has been given to you as reward for your studies up until now. This is what you will have to complete your mission. Other items that can aid you may be found within the scenario itself, but don’t rely on that. You have the next hour to talk amongst yourselves, to figure out what your capabilities are and what you lack, and make any plans.” With that, Shilsen stepped off the instructor’s platform, went up the stairs, and exited the room. ---------------- * Erito is the head goddess of the Aelfenn pantheon. She is the patron deity of the elves, and also the goddess of life, death, and magic. ** Translation: after making the character, her player was unable to attend the first few sessions. Thus we needed some explanation for why she wasn't able to participate in the conversation. *** The various races in Aelfenn that are humans with mixed blood are known as the Touched. There are the Planetouched (classic aasimar and tiefling, as well as the chaotic cansin and the lawful axani), the Element-Touched (the same as the genasi in FR), and the Elf-Touched (half-elves) and Orc-Touched (half-orcs). [/QUOTE]
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