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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Delemental" data-source="post: 2092575" data-attributes="member: 5203">Family ReunionsIt took a while before the group was finally allowed to return to their inn.  The city watch, taking statements from each person in turn, questioned them extensively.  The group was not even allowed to clean their weapons or armor, as the watch claimed that every piece of gore was ‘evidence’.  Finally, however, the group was permitted to leave, after the missing relic was secured and delivered to the Temple of Estranë, and a message was sent back informing Lanara that the church had made a ‘mistake’ and that she was no longer a suspect.“That’s it?” said Tolly.  “No apology?”“Let it go, Tolly,” said Osborn.The group was studiously avoiding Kavan, whose rage had been replaced by a distant numbness.  He walked silently back to the Uncut Emerald with the others, and upon arriving home went wordlessly upstairs to the bath chamber.The others soon made their way to their rooms, acutely aware of the harsh looks they were getting from the innkeeper due to the blood dripping from their armor onto the floor.  Only Kyle and Osborn did not stay at the inn; being relatively gore-free, they chose to walk to a nearby market to get some breakfast.  Lanara, exhausted from having been up all night, immediately went to bed without even bothering to change clothes, figuring that anything Kyle couldn’t clean magically could be burned.Autumn went upstairs without her sister; Arrie decided to go around to the back of the inn to clean out the chunks of hair and skin still stuck in her spiked chain.  She sighed as she closed the door to her room and began pulling off what she could of her heavy armor.  She glanced down at her sword, the blood coating its edges now thick and tacky.  She was somewhat dismayed to see the bright red of humanoid blood, rather than the greenish-black ichor of a rampaging devil.  Though she enjoyed the company of her friends, she couldn’t help but feel her talents were wasted at times; she had been trained to battle outsiders, not dwarven cutpurses.As they had so many times before, her thoughts drifted to the mysterious shadar-kai who had appeared in the forests in Tlaxan.  She still disagreed with their decision not to confront these otherworldly beings, even though the reasons were sound and logical.  It was a different kind of dissent, one borne of the heart rather than the mind.  But even this didn’t touch on the real source of her troubled soul, something that ran much deeper, an indescribable feeling of unrealized potential that she’d borne silently ever since she had come of age.She became so lost in her thoughts that it took several minutes for Autumn to realize that something in her room was amiss.  But eventually she realized that her pack was not sitting on her bed exactly as she’d left it that morning, and laying on top of the pack was a folded piece of parchment.Autumn tentatively reached out and picked up the parchment, opening it.  There was a brief note inside, written in a neat, elegant hand.Thank you for such an enjoyable time.  Now that I have what I was really after, I’ll be on my way.  I hope I will be seeing you soon.-          Marrek Gasping, Autumn dropped the note and grabbed the end of her pack, dumping its contents on the floor.  As she scanned her belongings, one prominent item came up missing.  Autumn quickly snatched up the letter again, and opened her door.  She needed to talk to someone about this.  Her first thought was to talk to Arrie, but she was nowhere to be seen.  She thought of Kyle next, but she knew he was off with Osborn.  She made a decision and walked across the hall, banging on a door with her fist.The door opened a moment later, and Tolly looked out at her.  “What is it?” he asked.*          *            *Tolly and Autumn quickly decided to bring the matter to Kavan.  The elven priest was still in the bath, still looking ill, when Autumn knocked.“Come in,” he said weakly.They stood on either side of Kavan, each unsure of who should begin.  Finally, Autumn handed Kavan the letter.  Reading the letter’s playful tone, he didn’t have to ask who Marrek was.“The oathbond knife is gone,” Autumn said.Kavan crumpled the note in his fist.  “Damn that bastard.  Damn him.”“We have a conundrum,” said Tolly.  “Obviously, there would be merit in pursuing this Marrek and retrieving the oathbond blade from him so it can be returned the the Elven Court as we planned.  However, I still have nearly three weeks’ worth of work to complete on my armor.”“Isn’t there someone in the church you could trust to finish the work for you?” asked Kavan.“It’s not that simple.  Forging the armor is part of a ceremony I must undergo to mark my transition into the Secretariat.”“Then we’ll lose him!” cried Kavan.“Not necessarily.  We have means at our disposal to track Marrek magically.  I could ask members of the church of Ardara to perform divinations.”“But I want to go after the knife now!” Kavan was nearly shouting, as he raised up out of the bath.Autumn looked at Kavan coolly, careful to keep her eyes locked on his.  “The knife, or the thief?” she asked.The commotion in the room drew attention, and soon Xu and Arrie wandered in to see what was going on.  They were quickly filled in on the situation, and just as quickly began arguing about what to do.“I think we should all be here to make this decision,” Autumn said.  She went out and walked into Lanara’s room, knowing that knocking was futile.  It took a few minutes to shake the cansin awake.“How long have I been asleep?” she muttered into her pillow.“About fifteen minutes.”“Is this really necessary?”“I’m afraid so.”Moaning, Lanara stood up and followed Autumn into the bath.  Her eyes perked open somewhat at seeing Kavan standing in the midst of her friends, wearing only a bath towel.  The thought of using mage hand to whisk away the pesky towel entered her mind, but she figured it would be a bit too disrespectful under the circumstances.About this time Kyle and Osborn also returned, chewing on strips of crisp bacon.  They paused in the doorway to the bath, and went inside to see what was going on.“Marrek stole the knife,” Autumn said to them.  “We’re trying to decide what to do.”“That’s great,” said Kyle.  “Who’s Marrek?”The story was retold, and the crumpled note passed around.  Autumn, Kavan, and Xu expressed their desire to begin pursuing Marrek right away, while Tolly again reminded them that he needed more time in town.“You know,” said Arrie, “I get the feeling that this Marrek is playing a game.  If he wants to play, he won’t get very far away.”“Kyle, what do you think?” asked Autumn.“Well, he does seem to be baiting us,” said Kyle.  “I mean, if he really wanted to get away with the oathbond knife scot-free, he wouldn’t have left the note.  It might have been a couple of days before we realized it was gone.  But he left the note, as if to say ‘look what I have, come get me’.”“Kind of like a big, fat ‘neener neener neener’?” said Lanara.“Exactly.”“It’s like the dwarven game of ‘Hide the Tap’,” commented Tolly.  “The point of the game, to some extent, is to get caught.”Kyle looked sympathetically at Kavan.  “Look, I know it’s a shame that Marrek got away, and took the knife.”  He turned his gaze to Autumn.  “I know the knife meant a lot to you, especially.  But I have to figure that if Marrek wanted this knife so badly, he’ll hang on to it for a while.  We can always track him down later and get it.”“I agree with Kyle,” chimed in Osborn.  “This feels like a trap to me, and I’d rather not walk into it.  If Marrek wants to be found, we’ll find him.”“And by the same token,” Kyle added, “if he doesn’t want to be found we won’t find him, whether we start now or in three weeks or in three months.  He’s a priest of Qin-Chu, and if a priest of the god of deception wants to hide, he hides.  Even the divinations of the church of Estranë couldn’t find him, and they’re in their home territory, so to speak.”There was a long silence in the room.  Finally, Kavan spoke.  “I can’t deny the wisdom of your words,” he said.  “But part of me longs to go after the dirty bastard.  I have to be honest; it will be hard to fight the urge to pursue him.  At the very least I will be going to the elders of my faith to request they try and find him.”“Understandable,” said Autumn.  “I’m sure we’ll get the chance to confront him soon.”Another heavy silence hung in the air.  An unspoken question hung in the air, seeming to swirl around Kavan.  Finally, he spoke.“I wish I knew who the mother of that bastard child was,” he said through a clenched jaw.“Must’ve been a heck of a party,” Lanara muttered to herself.“Look, it’s been a long morning,” said Arrie suddenly.  “Obviously this is a hard subject for you to discuss.  Why don’t we all leave Kavan alone, and when he’s ready he can tell us more.”“Yeah, like maybe tomorrow!” said Kyle, hoping to break the tension.“Or in ten minutes!” said Osborn, catching Kyle’s intent.Osborn was obviously the only one, as the room fell silent.  Just as the silence reached the point of discomfort, Kavan looked up, eyes burning.“I was a whore, all right!  A whore!”The uncomfortable silence immediately switched to a stunned silence.  Kyle blinked, and stammered weakly, “I didn’t mean it, really…”Suddenly Kavan rushed forward and put his arms around Kyle, seeking comfort.  Tears flowed freely down the elf’s cheeks.  Kyle, not sure what to do, just stood there.Lanara sidled up to Arrie.  “You were right,” she whispered, “everyone does want a little wizard loving.”  Arrie ignored the comment, and instead went up and put a hand on Kavan’s shoulder.“Look, no one thinks less of you for your past.  We like you for who you are, not what you’ve done.”“I’m sure we’ve all done stuff in our past we’re not proud of,” said Osborn.  “But, here we are now.”“Like what?” said Tolly, eyeing the hin.“I don’t know, I’m just saying that there’s something in everyone’s past… maybe you swiped a rock once, or whatever it is you guys do!”“It’s true, Kavan,” said Autumn.  “We don’t care about your past.”The others nodded their agreement.  Kavan released his embrace, and stood looking at them.“Thank you,” he said.  “I’m glad to know you don’t think badly of me for what I was.  But I was a whore…”Lanara interrupted him.  “And that’s a problem because…?” “Because of my bastard spawn,” he muttered.  “And now he’s passed from my problem to yours.”“We got into this business to be adventurers, right?” asked Lanara.“We graduated together, we stay together,” commented Tolly.“All of us may have things in our pasts that could one day arise to trouble us again,” said Xu.  “To deny ourselves companionship for fear of bringing trouble to others is foolish.”Kyle stepped up.  “Look, if we all wanted nice, safe lives, then none of us would have signed the admission forms for the Tower, right?  I mean, maybe one day Arrie’s husband decides to come after her, or Xu’s parents, or people from that guild Osborn was pretending to be a part of.  The point is, we’ll deal with it together.”Kavan stood in the midst of his companions, taking in their words.  “Perhaps I should finally write to my father,” he said at last.“Why?” asked Autumn.  “Would he know about Marrek?”“Perhaps.  He’s the one who turned me into a prostitute.”Silence descended on the room again, but it was quickly broken by Lanara.“Okay, I have had way too little sleep to handle that bit of information,” she said, as she began walking to the door.  “Good night.”*          *            *The final few weeks in Laeshir flew by, even for poor Lanara and Osborn.  The divinations requested by Kavan indicated only that Marrek was heading north; ironically, the very direction the group would be heading.  They decided to buy passage on the River Lassh north from Laeshir to Aleppi, and from there journey east to the nearby kingdom of Merlion, Autumn and Arrie’s birthplace.  After a brief stay, they would then continue onward to Noxolt, the capital city of Tlaxan.  Lanara didn’t seem very enthusiastic about riding on the gnomish riverboats, but agreed to anything to get out of the stuffy dwarven city.The group discussed what Marrek’s motivation for stealing the dwarven oathbond knife could be beyond baiting them, but could reach no firm conclusions.  Kavan was able to narrow down the list of Marrek’s potential mothers to ten women, but none would have any particular reason to seek him out.  With no tangible leads, the group busied themselves tying up loose ends in the city.After the ill-gotten goods from the Stone Shadows guild was sold off, Kyle approached Arrie and handed her a sack of coins.  “I understand that you paid the tab for me at that tavern during Midsummer.”She looked at the sack of coins.  “You don’t need to do that.”“Well, in a way I kind of do.  I mean, I know what you’ve said before about how you feel about being born with more than others, and it’s your responsibility to help.  I guess I can respect that.  At the same time, I was raised to believe that a man’s got to pay his debts and be able to support himself.”“I really don’t look at it as a debt, Kyle,” Arrie said.  “I’m sure that if the situation were reversed, you’d do the same for me, even though you know I come from a wealthy family.”“Well, sure.  But it’s not really about that.”  Kyle got an odd look in his eyes.  “I mean, I guess I just need to prove to myself that I can make my own way without relying on help.  I know that paying the bar tab isn’t the same as buying food for my family or anything, but I guess in my mind if I can’t do the former then I’ll never be able to do the latter.”Arrie shrugged.  “Okay, then.”  She took the sack of coins from Kyle, and returned his grin.  After he departed, though, she began to wonder why it was suddenly so important for Kyle to prove his own solvency.  She considered that maybe traveling with several people of means for all this time had made him uncomfortable, seeing more money spent that he was accustomed to.  Despite his talents, he still came across very much as the son of a farmer.The riverboat ride from Laeshir was rough.  The River Lassh was well known for its rapids, descending rapidly out of the Charnhold Mountains.  Even with the gnome’s specially designed craft made from wood treated alchemically to bend rather than break upon impact, it was not a comfortable ride.  The entire group decided it was best to splurge on a concoction sold by the gnomes that would render their horses unconscious for the entire five-day trip.  Lanara asked if she could buy an extra dose for herself, but the gnomes informed her that the effects on humanoid digestive systems were unpleasant.  Lanara still weighed the decision for a few moments.After the five-day trip out of the mountains, the groups stayed on the ship for another week until it docked at the harbor in Aleppi.  After taking a day to recover from the voyage, they turned their horses east and headed toward Merlion, another week’s ride.  After a long, monotonous ride through grasslands and light forests, they began to approach the foothills of the mountain marking the boundary of Merlion.  The mountain might have been impressive, had they not just come from the Dwarven Confederates.Soon they came upon a small but impressive castle, sitting in a small valley.  Banners were fluttering in the breeze atop the tower, and they could all see people moving about in the courtyard and surrounding village.“Home,” Autumn said, looking down at it from atop her steed Defiance.“Home to our parents, too,” Arrie said, with less enthusiasm.  She turned to her sister.  “I’ll give you five to one that she yells at me for not telling them we were coming, and will thank you for bringing me home.”A slight smile crossed Autumn’s face.  “Five gold,” she replied.The group rode down into the valley, approaching the castle.  Two guards at the main gate came to attention as the strangers approached, but came to even sharper attention once they recognized two of the strangers.“Lady Ariadne, Lady Autumn!” one of the guards called out.  “We hadn’t heard of your arrival!”“We hadn’t known we were coming, Brandon,” said Arrie.  “Are my parents here?”“Yes, milady,” Brandon said, bowing.  “I’ll send someone to announce your arrival, and to have rooms prepared for your entourage.”  Brandon nodded, and the second guard ran into the castle.A few minutes later, three people came to the main gate.  The first was a short man, in his fifties, who looked as if he were once fit and muscular but had lost much to age.  The second was a stiff and regal looking woman a half-head taller than the man.  Despite the heat of summer, she was dressed in her full regalia, right down to the wimple.  Next to her walked a tall elf in a purple tunic with gold trim.  Upon seeing the elf, Arrie’s face blanched momentarily.Autumn looked over at the others.  “Lord Zanich and Lady Auror Verahannen,” she said, indicating the two humans.  She made no attempt to identify the elf.The party bowed as the trio approached, except for Arrie, who grasped her father in a bear hug.  The embrace was returned, despite the cold looks that Auror shot at her.  Introductions were made all around.  Zanich seemed to warm to the group immediately, while Auror remained coolly formal.  Glancing at Lanara, Auror commented that she was pleased to see her daughters had brought along a minstrel for the evening’s entertainment.  When Lanara was introduced as one of their companions and not as hired help, there was little if no acknowledgement of her error.  Lanara did her best to ignore the slight.Arrie finally turned to address the elf.  “It’s good to see you,” she said.“You as well.  Your letters have been interesting.”“I’m sure they have.”  Arrie almost cracked a smile.  “I’m sort of an interesting person that way.  I’m sorry that you’ve missed experiencing some of it in person.”“Your letters are… enough,” he replied.“How is your family?” Arrie asked, changing the subject swiftly.“Generally well.  We’re looking into some potential trouble – that is the reason I’m here now.”Autumn walked up next to Arrie suddenly.  “So, Arrie, introduce me to your friend.” She spoke with an unusually flat tone.“Yes, Ariadne,” said Lady Auror.  “We have a distinguished visitor, and you do not give him the respect he is due?”“Sorry, Mother,” Arrie said.  She turned to address the rest of her friends.  “Everyone, this is my husband, Prince Herion*.”  She turned to Herion.  “Would you like me to introduce my companions again?”“I overheard their names the first time, Ariadne.  That won’t be necessary.”“Prince of…?” Tolly asked.“Of Tlaxan,” Arrie said hurriedly.  “Sorry.”“I am in line for the throne, but likely that will not fall upon my shoulders,” Herion explained.  “Though my father tires of rule, my elder brother will likely succeed him.  This frees me up to handle other family affairs and obligations.”Lanara looked Prince Herion over, and nodded approvingly when she caught Arrie’s gaze.  Arrie returned a sly wink before returning her attention to her husband.The group engaged in idle conversation as they went inside the castle.  The group quickly learned that the warnings that Arrie had given them before their arrival were accurate; Lady Auror was as formal and cold as anyone they had ever met.  Lord Zanich seemed to want to be more friendly, but was reined in by his wife’s disapproving looks.  Lanara tried to keep her tongue still at the ridiculousness of it all.  Kyle was looking decidedly nervous, and barely spoke at all unless asked a question.  At one point Osborn couldn’t help but snicker at a comment made by Lord Zanich, and he was immediately shot a contemptuous look by Auror.While Autumn kept her attention focused on Zanich and Auror, Arrie was looking about, greeting servants as they passed by.  There were several hunting dogs running about in the lower level, and Arrie would stop to pet one occasionally or scoot it out of their way.The party was taken to a small room, where they were offered platters of fresh fruit and cool spring water.  Zanich, Auror, and Herion departed to give instructions to their staff to make preparations for their stay.  As soon as they were gone, Tolly turned to Arrie.“So, how much of the tales of our exploits will we have to curtail in your mother’s presence?” he asked.“I’ve pretty much explained everything in the letters I’ve written home,” she replied.  “Though I may be impulsive, I don’t tend to do things I’ll regret later.  I have nothing to hide.”  A mischievous grin crossed her face.  “In fact, I often tell her things I think are hilarious because I know she won’t approve.”  Suddenly she got a serious look, and her gaze wandered to the stairs that Lady Auror had ascended.  “I’ll admit that I’ve not been the best daughter.  We argued quite a lot.  My mother was always more fond of Autumn.”An hour later, a pair of servants came down and escorted the group upstairs.  The men were separated from the women and led to separate sitting rooms where they could relax and prepare for the evening meal.  They were informed that they could shed their protective gear in the room and it would be cared for.  At first Tolly was reluctant to shed his armor, knowing that Kavan’s son was still on the loose somewhere, but it was pointed out to him that dealing with Auror’s disapproval in armor would be more difficult than dealing with Marrek without the armor.A half-hour later, there was a knock on the men’s sitting room door, and Prince Herion walked inside.  “Pardon me,” he said, “but do you mind if I join you for a moment?”Herion came in on their invitation, and sat with the other men.  Osborn immediately walked up.  “So, what do you do for fun?”“Mostly I walk in the forest,” he said.  “Though recently I’ve had little time for that.”“Yeah, what’s this I hear about family troubles?”Herion smiled.  “Actually, it’s because of information I received from Ariadne that I’m here.  I’m looking into the recent activities of our cousin, Sauroth.  I understand you had a run-in with him a few months ago.  One of the reasons I came to speak to you was to get information on what you saw.”The group talked for quite a while, relaying everything they had seen or heard when they confronted the elven necromancer Sauroth.  They gave him theories and conjectures on his motives.  Herion listened carefully, then stood.“Thank you for the information, gentlemen.  Hopefully I will be able to track him down and set things right.”“Well, if you ever need help,” Kavan said, “let us know.”“Interesting,” said Herion, rubbing his chin.  “It would be something to see my wife in action on the field.  Perhaps I will take you up on that offer should the need arise.”  Nodding to the group, Herion took his leave.Eventually they were summoned by the servants, and the group collected together in the hallway waiting to be escorted to dinner.Kyle leaned over to Autumn.  “This is going to be one of those occasions where they use more than one fork, isn’t it?”“Just sit next to me, and follow my lead,” she said.  “Be very polite and courteous when spoken to.” She glanced over at Kyle.  “In fact, it would be best if you said as little as possible.”They were led into a large, elegant dining hall.  Huge portraits were hung at each end of the hall, and the head and foot of the table.  Lord Zanich and Lady Auror stood at the head of the table, and Prince Herion was standing to Zanich’s right.  Arrie took a seat next to Herion, while Autumn stood next to Auror.  The others shuffled in and took up their seats.Dinner was long, and dull.  Auror directed the conversation, and it mostly revolved around affairs of court.  When she did direct her attention to the group, she filtered her questions mostly through Autumn, clearly expecting that she spoke for all of them.  Zanich and Herion were a little more open in speaking with the other party members.  The evening was uneventful, except for once when Kyle accidentally cut his thumb right after a serving girl leaned over his shoulder to refill his wine glass.As the meal wound down, Auror looked the group over, then turned to Arrie.  “I suppose you’ll want to get an early start on your way tomorrow, won’t you, Ariadne?”“Of course, Mother,” said Arrie, not missing the obvious hint.  They all rose as Zanich and Auror stood and walked out of the room.  Servants came and escorted the party to their rooms.  As they walked, Lanara elbowed Kyle."So, what’d you think of your first exposure to the noble life?” she asked.He shook his head.  “I thought I’d understand it better after seeing it, but I’m more confused than ever.  That woman is…” he glanced up at Autumn, who was walking just ahead of him, and cut off his comment.  “It’s… different.”“Well, at least they have a mother to dislike them,” Lanara said.  “Mine left when I was a baby.”“Really?  I didn’t know.  I’m sorry.”She shrugged.  “Don’t be.  Obviously, she had it in her blood to not be the type to settle down.”  Lanara tugged at a wisp of her tousled pink hair.  “Besides, Dad was good to me, and I got to see the world with him.”Kyle was silent for a moment.  “Did you ever notice that adventurers seem to have rotten family lives?”“Mostly.  But Osborn’s parents are still around, and seem to be decent enough from what he says.”“True, but he also grew up in a circus.”Lanara laughed.  “You may have a point there.”----------------------------------* I'm not sure that we ever discuss this in-game, so a bit of background to clarify.  The kingdom of Merlion is a small human kingdom that is part of the elven Empire of Tlaxan.  Among the treaty obligations is for intermarriage between the noble families.  Thus Arrie was obliged to marry Herion.  After the wedding she basically negotiated a ten-year 'vacation' so that she could see the world before settling into court life.  Since this was a relatively insignificant amount of time to an elf (and he wasn't all that thrilled about the arranged marriage either), Herion agreed.  At this point they have been apart for about two years.</blockquote>

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