Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.
Enchanted Trinkets Complete--a hardcover book containing over 500 magic items for your D&D games!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Emperor Valerian" data-source="post: 1422319" data-attributes="member: 15043">An Invitation...Tess growled as the morning light began to press through her closed eyelids.  For several minutes she fought it, pulling blankets and covers over herself, but only succeeded in making herself uncomfortable.  With a grumble, she finally rose.Gah.... its eight at least! her mind complained as she looked outside at the sun rising in the sky.  At the foot of her bed, the elf paladin was still fast asleep, despite the light in the room.  He looks adorable sleeping like that, she thought, too bad I have to wake him up... nah... I can be quiet enough.With one eye on her mirror, the other on the sleeping elf, she quickly changed into her glammered armor, setting it to a dress different that the one she wore to bed... to keep up appearances.  Then, she slipped out of the room.I need to track down this Renee... ask her if we can speak with her father, her mind planned going up the hallway, before she stopped suddenly as she entered the tavern.Standing before her was a young girl, barely 15, with long blonde tresses reaching to her waist.  She was well dressed, andher face was young and innocent, though her green eyes cast a mix of hope and was it... fear?“Hello Tesseron Keldare,” the girl gave a bow, as Tess tried to form words.  How do you know my name?  This has to be Renee, but sti...“My name is Renee Destare,” she gestured towards herself.  “My father has learned of your group’s presence in the village, and he desires to dine with such varied travellers as yourself, Lady Siabrey, Lord Lucius, and Sir Shaun...”“Um... uh,” Tess tried to form words, desperately caught off guard.  Her confusion increased further only a second later.”Can I come in?” a voice asked softly in her head.  Tess spun her head around, looking for the source of the voice.Who are you!?  What are you doing!? her mind panicked. “I am still Renee.” the voice said softly in her mind, ”I merely ask permission to talk to you mentally as well as verbally.  I know full well someone’s mind is their personal sanctum... I want to have your favor before I enter it.””You can... read minds, and talk to people’s minds?” Tess asked in wonder.  She’d heard of people like this before, though they were exceedingly rare... psions.”Yes,” the psionic voice of Renee seemed to smile, ”I can.  I have things I need to tell you that are too dangerous to say aloud.  In the meantime, I shall talk aloud to keep appearances.  Listen through your head though, not your ears.”  Tess nodded slowly, and the young girl spouted off something about dresses aloud as her mind voice spoke.”My father has been acting strangely lately.  He leaves suddenly when there is roaring in the mountains... he never did that before.”  He has done something to my mother as well, he’s controlling her mind it seems.  He has not been able to use arcane magic to do that to me yet... he knows not that I have a powerful mind.”Roaring in the mountains? Tess thought back, nodding at Renee’s verbal statements on fashion, We are here looking for a friend... and your father might have something to do with his disappearance.  IS there a way we could meet with your father?”I fear he might not be my father in mind anymore,” Renee’s inner voice said sadly, even as her outer voice laughed out loud at a quip.  ”I need your help to find out what has happened to him.  I have only a little experience with magic... you have two experienced spellcasters with you.  And by helping me, I can do my best to ensure your safety.  My father has taken an unnatural interest in your stay here...  I must go however.” she quickly broke off the mental conversation.  ”We can continue this after dinner.””Dinner will be at eight, Lady Tesseron,” Renee said aloud, her voice still and formal.  “Please don’t be late... my father is a very punctual man.”  ”Please help me, Tesseron Keldare!  Please come!”“We will be there promptly,” Tess said aloud, nodding to the girl.  I need to talk to the others first.”Understood.  If you do not show up, however, father will be very wrathful...”  “Goodbye, Lady Keldare,” Renee said, and she turned and left the inn.Siabrey’s eyes flitted open as the noise flooded her ears again.  Her groggy mind couldn’t pick out what it was... save that it happened right when she was about to slay a balor in the mists of a dreamworld.  It came again... loud insistent, and she finally recognized the knocking from the door.“Hold on!” she shouted, taking in her tactical situation.  Hmm... step one... extricate arm from under Lucius, her mind smiled, remembering how the arm ended up there, Step two... find some clothes...“C’mon, Siabrey, I haven’t got all day!” she faintly heard Tess’ voice say from behind the door.  Siabrey also recognized the ‘very annoyed’ tone in Tess’ voice.Ok, she thought, slipping her arm free without waking her love, Scrap Step Two Plan A... replace with Step Two Plan B...  She walked over to the door, and carefully opened it a crack, only letting her head stick through.“Yes?” she said, blinking.  She had no idea how her hair was smashed to one side, frizzed out, and how utterly disheveled she looked.“Siabrey, is Luke up to?  I need to talk to the two of your, along with the rest of the party.  I can’t raise either Shaun or Elenya, and...” “Um... Luke’s not awake,” Siabrey said.  She then paused, and got a sly half grin on her face.  “Yet,” she purred.“Siabrey,” Tess groaned, “We don’t have time for this!  A very important... GAH!” Tess spun away and covered her eyes after Siabrey ducked over and she caught a full view of the sleeping and unclothed Lucius, laying on the bed.  “I’ll come back! I’ll come back!” she pulled the door shut hurriedly.Xanadu, when we find him, needs to give those two bunny ears, and bunny tails, she fumed, storming back to her room.  I need to buy both of them a massive bunch of carrots it seems!  Seeing Pellaron rolling up the last of his blanket, she began venting aloud to him.“I swear! Lucius and Siabrey! They’re like bunnies!  Gigantic, rabid, bunnies!  I’m not surprised they haven’t starting sprouting up new ones yet!”“The world wouldn’t be ready for something like that,” Pellaron smirked, causing Tess to laugh.  The elf looked like he was feeling better today than last night, which relieved her.  “Did you find anything out, Tess?”“Well... I found out that the wizard Alustair already knows we’re all here,” she said, sitting down on her bed.  “He’s invited all of us to dinner, as a matter of fact.”Tess was not surprised when nearly an hour past before a Siabrey clad in nightclothes and a Lucius clad only in trousers showed up outside her room.  It took another half hour of waiting before Elenya was the first to stumble from her room (she was promptly sent back to fetch the worse half of the duo).  Annoyed, Tess managed to keep her tongue in check once everyone was gathered in her room and she explained how Renee had just appeared with the offer, and how the girl spoke in her head.“...in short,” Tess concluded, “I think this offers us an excellent excuse to get in the wizard’s tower.”“So someone is doing enchanting up in there,” Shaun said thoughtfully, his brain surprisingly awake considering his body looked like it had been through a marathon and a gladiatorial match, “Do we know whether it is Alustair, his wife, or even this Renee?  What if she is the one doing in the dragons?  Anyone considered that?”“No offense, Lucius,” Siabrey said, looking at him for a little reassurance before turning back to Shaun, “I seriously don’t think anyone that young is capable of capturing and locking up dragons!”Orion coughed.  “Don’t doubt the power of the young,” he said quietly.  “I have seen them do many strange and wonderous things in my day.  Though I must state that regardless of who is hurting the dragons of the desert, this does present an opportunity to enter the tower...”“Maybe if we say something like we’re going to be leaving early in the morning, we can get him to let us bring our equipment with...” Shaun thought aloud.  “And of course, if he turns out to be evil as we suspect, I can raid his treasury, and...””Does everything have a pile of gold coins inside it for you?” Tess asked, slightly annoyed. “No,” Shaun said, “some things have silver, others have platinum!”  Tess rolled her eyes, while Siabrey and Elenya chuckled at his quip.  “Regardless... we have a day to waste before heading off at dusk.  I am going to their little market here to see whats available...”  Tess started, before Siabrey eagerly interrupted.“I want to go too!” the fighter almost jumped off the side of the bed into the air.  Everyone, especially Tess, looked on in shock.Something’s wrong... Siabrey NEVER liked going to the market or store for ANYTHING over the past two months...”Who are you, and what did you do to my Siabrey?!” Tess asked mockingly as she crossed her arms.  Siabrey giggled, and smiled at Luke.“I’m in a good mood.  You should ask Luke what we...”“Thats quite enough information, dearie!” Tess said far louder than the last part of Siabrey’s statement.  “If you seriously want to go shopping, we should head out now.  Those that aren’t shopping can scout for information... anything you can find thats unusual or odd, or related to our wizard friend, the better!”The party spent the rest of the day looking through the market of the village.  While Tess found a few magic trinkets (None she was interested in... she had no use for a seed that grew into ten corn plants and the like), Siabrey found curious brown looking knives.  After looking them over (and having part of one crumble in her hand) she determined they were adobe knives.  The very concept almost made her retch.</blockquote>

Verification