[WoT Adventure] Turn 2 - Back at the Inn

[drothgery]

Light! Here we go...

"I assume you know who I am? I believe I know who you are, or at least where you're from. I'm not going back, not unless one of you gives me a straight answer about Tasha...or you wrap me up like a package and take me with you."

Edit: It should be noted that Yuri says all this very politely, but firmly about not going back to the Tower.

"I'm Lila Ellisor. I would have thought you remembered me; there aren't that many novices and Accepted these days, and I was wearing banded white when you left the island." Lila says, taking a sip of wine. She's not whispering, but she is keeping her voice low. <It should be noted that Lila has an insanely good memory for names and faces; one of her character flaws is that she expects the same of other people.> "What I could tell you about what happened to your sister is either second-hand or theory. But I can try to answer your questions." I liked Tasha; we probably would have been friends if she had been two or three years older. And I don't know what it could hurt to let him know what I do.

 

[Enforcer]

"I'm Lila Ellisor. I would have thought you remembered me; there aren't that many novices and Accepted these days, and I was wearing banded white when you left the island." Lila says, taking a sip of wine. She's not whispering, but she is keeping her voice low. <It should be noted that Lila has an insanely good memory for names and faces; one of her character flaws is that she expects the same of other people.> "What I could tell you about what happened to your sister is either second-hand or theory. But I can try to answer your questions."

"I knew you wouldn't! Uh, you will?" In a whisper: "Please, I must know. The others...they wouldn't tell me. What happened?"

Yuri's leaning forward, not wanting to miss a single syllable.

 

[drothgery]

"I'm not sure how much of this you know, so I'll start from the beginning. There is a ter'angreal inside the White Tower, shaped like three arches joined to each other. If you step through it, you are brought face to face with the greatest fears of your past, present, and future. And stepping through those arches three times is the final test before a novice is raised Accepted. A novice is given three chances to refuse, but once she begins, she must go through all three, or be put out of the the Tower. Each time, there is some reason to stay. Each time, it is worse than previous one. And if she loses focus for an instant, forgets that there is a world outside that ter'angreal, forgets that she is trying to take the most important step on her way to becoming Aes Sedai, then a novice might not come back. A novice would know all of this before she begins, of course.

"Twice, Tasha stepped through and returned. The third time... she did not. I cannot tell you much more than that. Exactly what each novice sees inside that ter'angreal is different, and few are willing to say much about it."

 

[Tay-Dor]

Noble Enjoyment

... which turns out to be about two 1-pint mugs of ale for every man in the inn, some of whom raise a mug to thank your generosity. Since you returned with Sirene, the mood in the inn has almost returned to the cheerful state it was in before the trollocs appeared, especially now that the Guards have carted away the trolloc corpse.

Lord Tomas returns nods with a smile and a raised mug. It is good to see the commoners making merry as if there is not a trouble in thw world. It is the Nobleman's place to ensure they do not have to worry. Strange thing about tonight. Mythical creatures became reality before my very eyes. At least these myths seem to die at the end of a sword like any other being. But why Caemlyn? Why this Inn on the edge of town? Are there more out there? Should someone be warned? Surely the Queen's Guards should be warned. But they have. I reported to that Guardsman. Surely they will take care of things. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to look into it in the morning. It wouldn't do for a Tairen Noble to be killed due to lax Andoran security.

Lord Tomas sits at a random table and listens to the talk of the Commoners, seeing what rumors are traveling through the streets. Sometimes the commoners' tongues hold pearls of information...

[changed the tense of the first sentence.]

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

Jain Hadlin

Jain takes a seat at the bar and orders a light snack and some warm milk.

Well I'm pretty sure the trollocs won't make it into Caemlyn, I just hope they don't have a Bloody fade leadin' them. With a smart leader and Caemlyn's lack of experiance with these creatures they just may be able to get into the city proper.

Jain sits with his head down in thought blocking out the sounds of the other patrons. His face is marked by a deep scowl and frown.

It's so strange, I come here chasing my past, and it looks like i found far more of the Flamin thing than i wanted. Just goes to show you should be carefull what you wish for. I think at first light i'll head back to the field and see if i can find anything, if those bloody trollocs get in the city, well i don't want to think about what could happen!

Jain sits there for quite a while before heading back to his room in search of sleep.

 

[Enforcer]

"I'm not sure how much of this you know, so I'll start from the beginning. There is a ter'angreal inside the White Tower, shaped like three arches joined to each other. If you step through it, you are brought face to face with the greatest fears of your past, present, and future. And stepping through those arches three times is the final test before a novice is raised Accepted. A novice is given three chances to refuse, but once she begins, she must go through all three, or be put out of the the Tower. Each time, there is some reason to stay. Each time, it is worse than previous one. And if she loses focus for an instant, forgets that there is a world outside that ter'angreal, forgets that she is trying to take the most important step on her way to becoming Aes Sedai, then a novice might not come back. A novice would know all of this before she begins, of course.

"Twice, Tasha stepped through and returned. The third time... she did not. I cannot tell you much more than that. Exactly what each novice sees inside that ter'angreal is different, and few are willing to say much about it."

Yuri leans back in his chair and wipes his hands across his face.

So, she never refused this test before taking it. She surely would have told me. She's so brave. And, she's not really dead? Just gone? Gone to...face her worst fears of the future forever... Oh Tasha! If only I could be there with you...

Yuri stands up brusquely, gives a deep bow to Lila Sedai, and then makes his way up to his room. Quickly, so that he can weep in solitude.

 

[dscrank]

Pedron

One look at Yuri's face convinces Pedron that now would be a bad time to talk to him. Well, he doesn't really want to track down more Trollocs anyway. He'd much rather have someone else do it. He's just not sure how he's going to sleep tonight knowing there might be more of them out there. Pedron finds the innkeeper to ask him about his previous offer. He's not interested in the best room, just the most secure one.

<How much did Pedron hear of Yuri and Lila's conversation?>

 

[drothgery]

Re: Pedron

Pedron finds the innkeeper to ask him about his previous offer. He's not interested in the best room, just the most secure one.

<How much did Pedron hear of Yuri and Lila's conversation?>

"I don't think one of those... trollocs?... could make it up the stairs." Master Ferrin tells Pedron, letting him make his own choice, excepting the rooms that Lila, Shalimar and Sirsei, and Lord Tomas have taken. Since the rooms are quite similar, except that about ten have better furnishings and slightly better locks than others (including the three mentioned earlier), about the only difference in security is positioning.

<Since I didn't put Circle of Silence on Lila's weaves list, and Pedron got a 24 on his Listen check, Pedron heard almost all of their conversation. Although somewhat confused by what they said, he did notice that Lila's accent was unfamiliar. She might look like a tall Andorwoman, but she didn't sound like one.>

 

[dscrank]

Pedron's new room

Pedron doesn't much care about the furniture, but he'll definitely take a room with a better lock--preferably one that would give him some trouble. "I'll take a look at the rooms," Pedron says, and makes a quick inspection of the seven remaining rooms. He looks for one that's out-of-the-way, not too close to the stairs and perhaps off the main hallway. Additionally, he checks the windows, both that they latch, and that there's no easy access from the outside--such as a tree or a trellis. Pedron's being paranoid and he knows it. He tries not to let Master Ferrin see exactly how paranoid he's being, trying to make it look like his inspection is cursory. Once he's found a room that's relatively secure, he moves his meager possessions into it and goes about securing it even better. He leans his pack against the door so if someone opens it, he'll hear the clatter, then checks and rechecks that it's locked. He fiddles with the latches on the windows until he's reasonably sure someone would have to break the window in order to get in. He considers not sleeping in the bed, instead simply arranging the pillows so that it looks like he is, until a bitter laugh escapes him. Light, now I've really gone over the edge. Still, he can't escape thoughts of Trollocs and worse.

To distract himself from his fears, Pedron tries to think about something else, like Yuri's conversation with that woman. Who is she? If she isn't Andoran, where is she from? Can she channel like the other two? Is she one of those apprentice Aes Sedai, those Accepted? More than that, Pedron is curious about Yuri's conversation with her. She had told him something that no one else had been willing to tell, something about what had happened to his sister. Pedron hadn't understood much else of the conversation, except that it had something to do with the White Tower. The details of what had happened don't interest Pedron half as much as the fact that this Lila had told Yuri something that the White Tower wouldn't. Why would she do that? If it is that much of a secret, she must be taking a great risk. What does she want from Yuri? And most importantly, can Pedron use this information to his advantage? He's not stupid enough to try to blackmail either Yuri or a woman who can channel, Aes Sedai or not, but surely a secret such as this must be worth something.

That line of thought partially succeeds in distracting Pedron from his paranoia, but he still has his hand on his rapier when he falls asleep.

 

[drothgery]

Lila was up before dawn the next morning, which meant that the two Accepted were as well. "I don't much like it," Lila told them, "But Queen Morgase needs to know about this, and not from guardsmen who don't really believe what they saw, which means that I will have to speak to Elaida Sedai." Light, I wish I could avoid that. I don't know if I'll be able to get to the Palace without using the Power, and I don't think Elaida has forgiven what Rochelle and I did... "If you must get a look at Logain, keep your distance." She says, before taking a quick breakfast and heading out the door.