Phyrric Legacy - Shackled City IC Thread

[Land Outcast]

The man at the fire growls "This will not stop."

"They wanted for people to stop questioning."

"Children disappearing, will not stop. Unless we stop it" then he rises to his full (1,60) height and adds "I'm stopping it"

Now he -still somehow wet from the rain- starts pacing around the room, everything but calm, everyso often throwing glances at the door...

 

[Malvoisin]

The gnome pauses briefly as he reads the inscription over the door. Flannad sighs quietly to himself and steps across the threshhold behind the others keeping quiet, but gladly accepting a blanket and tea. "Would there be any food?" he asks hopefully, thinking that at least to fill his stomach while he can.

One of the acolytes, on his way out of the sitting room, replies uncertainly, "Umm...I'll see what we can come up with..."

 

[Malvoisin]

(OOC: Whizbang, it only just dawned on me that Arak would be known to many the acolytes and priests of the temple of St. Cuthbert. I'll try to acknowledge this in future posts, sorry I didn't remember sooner!)

After a few moments, the door to the sitting room opens and in walks a woman, wearing a brown robe with gold trim and the symbol of St. Cuthbert around her neck. Though she stands only 5'4", she has a resolute presence that makes her seem taller. The rich brown hair elaborately styled on her head betrays several streaks of premature gray.

The woman's gaze falls first on Arak, and she nods at him approvingly in a familiar fashion. Clearly, she recognizes him as a devotee of the temple.

With a smile she addresses the party, "Greetings, my friends. My name is Jenya Urikas, and I am acting as high priestess of this temple while High Priest Sarcem Delasharn is away from Cauldron on church business. Initiate Laro has informed me of your selfless acts of kindness and bravery this evening, and I am in your debt. As you have shown yourselves to be people of character and courage, I wonder if you might stay awhile and entertain a proposal...a plea for aid, really. This church, indeed, all of Cauldron, stands in need of your help."

She pauses, and waits for each person's response.

 

[Legildur]

The young whisper lifts his head at the mention of a proposal. He leans his body out so that he can see Jenya past the bulk of Remen, curious as to what she will next say. Olidammara knows that Flannad is short on resources right now, and that he is no closer to his goal.

 

[stonegod]

As the high priestess enteres, the voices in Jon's head explode for a moment, and he seems a bit distracted during her talk. Hoping to cover for it quickly, the scholar nods, if a bit hesitantly. "High Priestess, I would be glad to offer my services, but I must let you know I am no warrior. I am a scholar, and have access to some, uh, mystiical arts, and some say I have a way with words. If those could be useful, I can help."

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

"My life and my sword belong to Cauldron and St. Cuthbert, Priestess. You have but to ask, and the deed will be done."

 

[Land Outcast]

"Of course you are in need of help... Sure, I might lend a hand" says Remen, extending his hand to greet Jenya.

 

[Question]

Liracors nods at Jenya. "Of course.....what help does the church require?"

 

[Malvoisin]

(OOC: I know Jdvn1 hasn't had a chance to post Dowlee's response yet, but I am going to go ahead and assume that she too is willing to listen to what Jenya has to say...5 out of 6 ain't bad! )

"My life and my sword belong to
Cauldron and St. Cuthbert, Priestess. You have but to ask, and the deed will
be done."

"I expected as much, Arak," Jenya answers. "But, I needed to hear it from
you."

Jenya meets Remen's handshake with a firm grip of her own, and nods in
affirmation of the fact that all present are interested in what she has to
say.

She begins, "As you may know, Cauldron has been suffering under a rash of
unexplained disappearances and robberies for the past few months. While this
is a dire situation, we at the temple have been content to allow the proper
authorities to handle the matter. However, four children were kidnapped from
the Lantern Street Orphanage three nights ago. This is an affront to all
justice and decency, and the church cannot idly sit by any longer while
innocent children vanish in the night. We have publicly vowed to locate the
missing children and bring the kidnappers to justice!"

She continues with fierce conviction, "To this end, I borrowed an item from
the church's vault. The magical mace 'Star of Justice' can be used once a
week to divine the will of St. Cuthbert, among other things. It is only
supposed to be used by the High Priest, but in his absence, I felt justified
in calling on its power. I asked the mace this question: "Where are the
children who were abducted from the Lantern Street Orphanage?" The response
I received was a cryptic riddle, which I duly wrote down."

Jenya hands the party a note which reads as follows:

After pausing for a moment to allow the group to examine the riddle, Jenya
continues, "I believe that the first line of the riddle holds an important
clue. I don't know what 'locks' the message refers to, but I suspect it may
refer to the locks at the Lantern Street Orphanage."

Jenya concludes, "In short, I wish to hire you to find the missing
townsfolk....the children in particular...and punish the kidnappers for
their crimes. I will reward you with the sum of 2500 gold pieces if you are
successful in doing this. What say you?"

 

[stonegod]

The voices continuing to make his head swim, especially with the augury, Jon speaks with a bit distractedly, "Uh, yes High Priestess, I will help. I'm, excuse me, sure I can assist to help decipher that riddle. That sort of thing."