"Noh, you are most correct -" Lucrecia replies in an amused tone, watching Sparel reprimand ...Whatever zat was, sprites never was my area of interest. - but now zat it is taken care of, all is well. I suppose it is only fair to share a bit of myself then. Lucrecia Henderzane, of the Henderzane family. Zere was never a crown down ze line, only ze family business."
"But numbers and meetings were never my interest, noh - I prefer zings more tangible." She smiles "And zis ship is solid gold! Now - we're were we? Ah! Yes - Magic. I know a bit here and there, but most tricks aren't as impressive as my grand entrée." She pats her sword and smiles once more. "Tangible zings, hands on approach ... My preference as I said. You are welcome if you want to spar..."
"Noh, enough about me, zat topic doesn't interest me terribly much. You - spellcaster - yes. And a bit jumpy to? You must be good - Tris looked suitable impressed, even if it's hard to tell. She claims to command a piece or two of the arcane too ... Well, now zat I zink of it, I mostly seen her fly around or explode zings ... So two pieces at least. If I may ask, where do your talents lie, mister Radymah?"
Nobility
"Henderzane, you say. Humm, Arms dealing isn't for everyone." Sparel shrugs non-chantly.
"Tangibility is relative, my dear. " Sparel smiles with a bit of a gleam in his eye. " Also, you'll note I don't carry a weapon as such. I generally find more useful things to do."
"Well, a lady is inclined to have her secrets as anyone else. I will admit that I am curious though."
" My specialty?" Sparel phrases as a question, though it's not really. He looks at her and smirks a bit. "Lets kill two proverbial birds with one stone. Stand just there and I'll demonstrate." Sparel points to where she's currently standing and takes two big steps back. "Don't worry. I'm not going to harm you."
Sparel casts two spells upon himself.
Arcane Sight
True seeing
Spellcraft
Spellcraft
Spellcraft
Spellcraft
Spellcraft
The woman lighted up before Sparel's sight - as expected. Belts, bands and many more trinkets projected their small pandemonium of rainbow-coloured auras. As such were expected from adventures with experience and means.
Underneath the tangled mess lay Lucrecias own aura. Hard to see compared to the bright kaleidoscope of the items, it still held some arcane power. But there was a hint - just a hint of what lay underneath. Deep under the surface lay energy unfit for mortal life. Ancient and terrible, it was slowly stirring but it would not awake fully for centuries. A pittance of the power were shining trough the cracks, not much more then a sapling at spring - a mere hint of what to come.
Around her human frame was a thin veil tinted by sanguine and silver. It was the hardest of the three layers to spot - but not due to a lack of power, but it's own intangibility. It was nearly translucent even to the Arcane Sight, but the skilled mage could pierce it with his dual magic. When he did, the humanoid form dissipated as mist before the morning sun, churning and morphing into something else...
Black armoured scales, bodymass like a large bull and wings that could serve as sails for a small sailing boat, her lineage was clear. Not born of the pale nobles of Cheliax, but the darkened dragons of the sea and swamps. True - given her size her apparent human age mirrored her real, an adult. But unlike the frail and temporary humans, she would not be considered old for centuries - and fully grown, if such truly happened to her race, in a millennia to come.
The aura mirrored her stance well, but the difference in size made her real form appear almost comically hunched, leaning forward and the long neck lowered to put her draconian eyes level with her human. The unfortunate side-effect, due to their proximity, was that this put her teacup sized purple orbs merely half a feet from the elfs own eyes. And her fanged maw even closer ... Was that a faint hint of sulphur and methane? With a curious synchronization, the jaws of the dragon mimicked those of the woman as she spoke.
"A Diviner then?" She smiled with a smirk, voice devoid of accent. "I don't need magic nor mirror to know what you do now. You need not to worry, I fully intend to stick with the agreement - this is merely a more convenience wear in this circumstances. I'm sure you understand." She blinks and her accent makes a comeback. "Noh, I couldn't help but notice - I haven't seen any clerics around. Are ze Captains unwilling to associate wiz zem or ...? I zought I'd ask before I find myself channelled full of negative energy."
**Snip**
Sparels eyes widen visible for a moment. Clearly he was expecting something, but not that. Composing himself he realizes Lu asked a question.
"uh.. Diviner? Yes, It's one of my skills. I'm also the resident cleric." He pulls out a small rather humble symbol from a chain around his neck. It's a circle with a humanoid figure inside. Upon closer look the humanoid has a tale and a very pronounced muzzle.
His responses were uncharacteristically short. The far away look in his eye betrays that he's clearly he's still processing this new information.
"Uh. I look forward to earning your respect old one."
"Ah, I see ..." She nods and bows, turning away to seek out the rest of the crew. Well zat went 'well'... "'Old one'? Zat one is new ..."
//
A while later, a few minutes perhaps, another figure emerges from the lower deck. It is the little halfling servant that accompanied Lu aboard, but this time she is alone. She dashes from shadow to shadow, taking a careful look each time to avoid being seen by someone. When she spots the elf, she makes a beeline for him, looking both worried and hopeful.
"Mister priest, mister priest!" She calls when she is close, reaching out to tug his clothes to make sure he notices. Her breath smells clearly of garlic as she speaks. "Lady Lucrecia said you were a priest! Is that true ?" She pauses to catch some air before continuing. Her hand dissapears into one of her many pockets and return with a handful of coins. "Do you have an holy symbol to spare?" She asks with a hopeful smile and glittering eyes.
Looking curiously at the woman
"I am the resident priest. However, my holy symbol won't to you any good unless you revere the same deity. What is it you need exactly?"
Lima: "Oh..." She looks a bit disappointed. "I can't go on eating this much garlic - and I thought one of those symbols would help ..." She looks up and brightens again. "But then, this is easy. You could just teach me the basis and rites - then it would work, right ?"
Lima: "Oh..." She looks a bit disappointed. "I can't go on eating this much garlic - and I thought one of those symbols would help ..." She looks up and brightens again. "But then, this is easy. You could just teach me the basis and rites - then it would work, right ?"
Realizing where she's going with this Sparel takes a lecturing tone. He seems practiced at this.
"Ahh, I see. To keep a vampire at bay you can use any holy symbol. Even one you fashion yourself after whomever you revere. A mirror accomplishes the same thing. Your mistress has a hand mirror I assume? Keep it on you and present the reflective side to the vampire if you feel threatened. The mirror plus the courage of your conviction will keep it at bay. Make sure you have both. Clearly you also know the garlic trick, but you don't have to eat it. You can just wear a laurel around your neck or on your person anywhere."
As they talk Sparel casually walks to the nearest area with wine (the mess presumably). The little woman following close. Sparel pours a small cup of wine from the bottle, only a sip or two.
"Now presumably you fear the vampires will get hungry on the voyage and look for someone to eat. " He hands the cup to Lima. "Take a sip and tell me what you taste." He takes the cup after she tastes and tosses any excess away. Casting a short spell over the bottle sparel then pours out the same small amount. "Smell this, but don't drink it. You won't like the flavor." "You see that the vampires will have no shortage of fresh blood and thus no need to feed on the living. I am not so dim as to come onto a ship with vampires without a way to placate one of their most basic weaknesses. They'll have no need to feed on you as they'll have no need to feed on me." Recorking the bottle and calling to the nearest unseen crew member Sparel hands the bottle seemingly to the air and says "Take this to one of the captains."
Looking back to the woman, "Keep your garlic and mirrors though if you like. I sincerely doubt you'll have need of them." The tone of this statement indicates that the lesson is over.
Lima: The halfling follows Sparel closly, careful to not let him get too far away. "A mirror." She makes a mental note of the simple statement. That is better. And courage? *Ehm*... When he mentions that she doesn't actually need to eat the garlic, she shines up like a sun. "That is way easier!"
She watches him pour the wine and listens carefully to his lecture, taking only a small sip when prompted. She only smells the blood and grimaces, then nods - clearly impressed. After the lecture is complete she gives him a deep curtsey. "Thank you mister, you have been very helpful!" after which she wanders of to find a piece of string or something so she can tie the garlic around her neck. As a precaution.
Lima: The halfling follows Sparel closly, careful to not let him get too far away. "A mirror." She makes a mental note of the simple statement. That is better. And courage? *Ehm*... When he mentions that she doesn't actually need to eat the garlic, she shines up like a sun. "That is way easier!"
She watches him pour the wine and listens carefully to his lecture, taking only a small sip when prompted. She only smells the blood and grimaces, then nods - clearly impressed. After the lecture is complete she gives him a deep curtsey. "Thank you mister, you have been very helpful!" after which she wanders of to find a piece of string or something so she can tie the garlic around her neck. As a precaution.
Sparel watches her go for a moment and thinks to himself.
"Of course the mirror and garlic won't actually stop a vampire for long, less so for an intelligent vampire. However, it it makes her feel better than so be it. I should really look into making this charm into a spigot or something. That'll turn any wine barrel into a 'blood barrel' as the wine exits. I'll propose that to the captains and perhaps save myself from having to cast that spell so often. Of course If that barrel also created wine then even better. I just need to realign the ethereal matrix so that the phenumoforum changes to neoforum. I'll need a touch of iron sulfide with some pheumococosophorum..." Sparel mental catalogues the spells and materials he'd need to create a never-ending blood barrel.
Sparel picks an out of the way doorway, such as a small closet or other something similarly mundane, and rolls a strange thick disk like device around the edges.
Belor goes around telling everyone he is headed into town to go shopping and then heads out with anyone willing to go. Beaufort stays behind to watch the ship.
In Caliphas he first heads to a coffin maker and wakes him up saying he urgently needs 3 coffins for his recently departed friends and is willing to pay for them.
Assuming this works then Belor heads to Luvick's domain.
"My friends I would suggest those not of the same kind as Praetorius and I hold back from entering as it can be quite a dangerous place"
The four crew members travel into the city of Caliphas late that night, searching for supplies and vampires. Belor and Praetorius take leave of the other two once they pass into the city proper, leaving to make their way into the underground vampire city. With them, they have the Raven's Head, an ancient artifact that they intend to give to him.
Sparel and Lu are there for a much simpler errand - shopping! It's easy enough for the pair of them to find the items they're looking for. A half-dozen wands of true strike are easily obtainable - the city has a magical blacksmith who crafts them for the siege engineers that operate the trebuchets and ballistae that defend the city. An eversmoking bottle is just one of those curio, never-purchased items in the town's general magic store - one that the owner is nearly manic with glee that the pair of them are purchasing.
Belor and Praetorius' errand is a very different one. Going by Merrick, the vampire druid, is a simple affair - she has a rather favorable opinion of them since they helped her rid her park of the vampire traitor. Then, traveling through the underground itself is simple. The throne room is reached, and an audience with Luvick is requested.
One hour passes by, as the vampire lord forces the pair of them to wait for him. Eventually, though, his massive gilded double doors part, and Luvick is in evidence atop his throne. He idly has a hand clutched onto a drooling, feeble-minded human slave, and blood drips partially down his chin. "You have returned. What have you brought me?"
"Vampire City? Why have I never heard of this? I bet it's fascinating! I'll refrain from going this time, but perhaps with a little preparation I can take a look around and blend in. Regardless, Let me bond our minds before we split up. The spell will last for a few hours and we'll be able to keep the others updated on progress. "
"My Lord Luvick, we have returned to you to show both our loyalty and our dedication to our agreement. We have an artifact of great power that we wish to give to you to add to your vault. It is a weapon of great power, highly valued by the church of Pharasma. I believe you may be familiar with the Raven's Head?"
Belor presents the Raven's Head to Luvick.
"Yes, a little preparation. I'm sure zey would help you wiz zat, I you just ask nicely. But zen you'll need a coffin and a sun-hat ..." Lu laughs and blinks at the elf, clearly amused. Clearing her throat, she continues with other matters. "Shall we purchase some casks of wine? I heard about your little trick - handy. And we should make it a good vintage too, we might have to sample some, noh?"
Lima, whom been following a step behind Lu (as usual) blushes slightly, hoping she didn't accidentally reveal any of Sparels deep secrets now that he was so kind. Around her neck hangs a garlic tied to a string. When they enter the city and the vampires live, she puts it back in a pocket.
"Yes, a little preparation. I'm sure zey would help you wiz zat, I you just ask nicely. But zen you'll need a coffin and a sun-hat ..." Lu laughs and blinks at the elf, clearly amused. Clearing her throat, she continues with other matters. "Shall we purchase some casks of wine? I heard about your little trick - handy. And we should make it a good vintage too, we might have to sample some, noh?"
Lima, whom been following a step behind Lu (as usual) blushes slightly, hoping she didn't accidentally reveal any of Sparels deep secrets now that he was so kind. Around her neck hangs a garlic tied to a string. When they enter the city and the vampires live, she puts it back in a pocket.
"Well, I suppose that's one way to go, though I was thinking of a disguise. Far less trouble to remove. "
Sparel glances at Lima with a knowing smirk momentarily before turning back to her mistress (Lu) to continue. Sparel talks as they walk. He rambles a bit, but that's pretty standard when anyone touches on his life's work (magic).
"If we purchase the wine now it'll save up a trip later. I've been considering coming up with a spell that accomplishes the same thing only with water instead of wine. The problem is that wine was once a living thing and water was not as such. Also, the sympathetic similarities between wine and blood are close enough, however most of those sympathetic markers are not present between water and blood. I've heard of an extremely powerful spell that turns large bodies of water into blood, but as I've never seen it I can't be sure the blood created is sufficient to satiate a blood drinking creature. It's on my list of things to do, but frankly not a very high priority. A better and possibly cheaper solution could be to create a variant of the standard sustaining ring that works for vampires. Additionally I could add properties to that in order to negate other weaknesses. Possibly all of them. If I could do that then it might be worthwhile to become one. Of course there are still some serious downsides. For me it may be better to create something that mimics their strengths instead of becoming one and negating the weaknesses. I digress, back on topic. I am curious if higher quality vintages of wine translate to better quality blood. I think we should pick up a small variety and do some taste testing with the captains over the next few days. After all, if quality wine and crap wine create the same quality of blood then we may as well get the worst swill that technically qualifies as wine to use as the component for the spell. It wouldn't make any difference. Of course I don't suggest telling the captains that. They may take it the wrong way. We should get quality wine for ourselves, of course, as we'll actually be drinking it in it's non-transmuted state. "
Lucerecia and Sparel proceed to pick up whatever is available and on the list of things.
Praetorius stands proudly next to Belor with a smug look on his face
"We have acquired an artifact my Liege, I hope your proud of us Dad"
Luvick raises an eyebrow (one that he barely has) at Praetorius. "Dad...?" Nontheless, he directs a servant to advance and take the Raven's Head from Belor. "A lordly gift, truly. Thank you for your continued loyalty. This is a valuable and rare item, and I know it must have been difficult not to keep. I assure you that it will find a good place in my vaults, awaiting the time that it must be used in service against rival undead."
"But you must be awaiting a reward, aren't you? To that end, I have a question for you: what would you request? I have gold, I have many slaves, and my vault is filled with the relics of heroes and the artifacts of villians. Which would please you?"
"This is most generous of you to offer my lord. We are about to embark on a journey around the known world in search of wealth and power. What I would ask of you is anything you believe would be of great value to our journey aboard the magnificent flying ship The Good Intentions."
"And if it would not be too much to ask we would appreciate to know if their are any persons or groups who you as our Liege would prefer us not to do business with."
Luvick turns to Praetorius first, starting, "I will answer you first. The only serious compunction I have is that you do not serve the rival lord, Malyas. He owns a castle, large tracks of land, and sleeping legions of undead elsewhere in Ustalav. I would, in fact, advise that you stay away from him. Beyond that, do what you will. You are not my thralls."
"As for an item...I have something in mind." He snaps, and a spawn jumps up and runs behind his throne, through a small entrance farther into the vampire lord's castle. Luvick benignly smiles at Belor and Praetorius while they wait, but it can't help but seem somewhat...menacing, anyhow. It's only a minute or two before the servant returns, bearing a small package wrapped in violet velvet cloth. Luvick descends from his throne, unwrapping the cloth from the package as he walks. As he gets close to the pirate pair, the item is revealed to be a small, pearly-white ball.
"This can allow one to control the weather on a daily basis, and to bring the wrath of Gozreh himself on one's enemies. I've used it, sparingly, in the past, but it's sat collecting dust in my vaults for decades now. Perhaps a group of sky marauders can put it to better use, furthering the length of my grasp from above."
As he hands it over, he offers a final piece of advice before turning to walk back to his throne and dismissing the pair of you. "In times of great need, merely crush it. The orb will be destroyed, but help will come." With that, he waves a hand to dismiss you and turns to walk away.
Praetorius and Belor are dismissed from the court, and walk back to the surface world to rejoin Lucrecia and Sparel, who were out shopping, before the four return to the airship. All preparations are over with and the trip may now, finally, begin in earnest.
A Sizable Predicament:
Take-off day was a week ago - mist rose from the sides of the ship as the electrical engine activated, and the entire ship hummed and vibrated as it rose into the sky. Aiesha crowed with victory as her repaired ship takes to the sky at last. A small crowd, assembled outside the launching point, applauds as the thing rises into the sky, and disperses as it gets to a height too high to appreciate from the ground.
That was a week ago, and the flight to Alkenstar for firearm-siege engines is a long one. Fortunately, the crew is not subject to geography the way that land-travelers and seagoers are, but Aiesha is still wanting to keep the ship's location and identity a secret, so she spends most of the voyage high in the sky above the water, and crossing the Arch of Aroden is a landmark for the journey. Still, the crew must land every once in a while. You know, the bathrooms do fill up, and food's gotta be gotten every once in a while, so on a peninsula between Aroden and Cheliax, Aiesha takes the ship down for a landing. It's quite the middle of the day, which isn't exactly how Praetorius and Belor like it, but sometimes, things have gotta happen that aren't exactly convenient.
Something strange is in evidence as the group descends, though. Just below where they descend, a tiny red figure flaps away from a small group of mostly robed individuals, screaming curses in response to hurled spells.
Initiative:
Tar'jub - 11
Mages - 5
Sparel leans slightly over the rail and speaks casually to Lucrecia though not taking his eyes off the action,
*Sigh* "When I found out I'd be spending so much time flying I learned a very interesting spell for just such an occasion. Essentially it conjures a big metal spiked ball in the air. It then plummets rather ungracefully. This would be the perfect opportunity if we picked a side or simply squashed the lot of them. Perhaps next time. "
Via pre-cast message:
"Captains, if you're not looking out the porthole you should. Something rather interesting is happening below. I'm not sure what just yet. "
Lu, determined to make the very most of of the lower altitude and sunlight sits at a small table with a parasol. Lima and Tris, the later whom has been quite quiet during the journey, are with her and they are all 'sampling' some of the wine. In the centre of the table sits a boardgame, its pieces held still in the wind by a cantrip. Much to the chagrin of the taller ladies, the little hafling actually seems to be winning.
When Sparel spots the spectacle, Lu eagerly steps up and comes up to spectate. "Noh, but how curious. Shall we take bets? Tris, Lima! Come watch zis!" She takes a sip of wine as the other two joins them. "A piece of gold on ze tiny one. Any takers? And no cheating wiz spiked balls." She jokingly nudges the elf with her elbow and leans over the rail to yell-
Tris silently flashes a grin and produces a gold piece from her pocket, nodding to show that she accepts the bet. Lima covers behind the rail - sticking her head up just enough to not miss the show.
Lu, determined to make the very most of of the lower altitude and sunlight sits at a small table with a parasol. Lima and Tris, the later whom has been quite quiet during the journey, are with her and they are all 'sampling' some of the wine. In the centre of the table sits a boardgame, its pieces held still in the wind by a cantrip. Much to the chagrin of the taller ladies, the little hafling actually seems to be winning.
When Sparel spots the spectacle, Lu eagerly steps up and comes up to spectate. "Noh, but how curious. Shall we take bets? Tris, Lima! Come watch zis!" She takes a sip of wine as the other two joins them. "A piece of gold on ze tiny one. Any takers? And no cheating wiz spiked balls." She jokingly nudges the elf with her elbow and leans over the rail to yell-
Tris silently flashes a grin and produces a gold piece from her pocket, nodding to show that she accepts the bet. Lima covers behind the rail - sticking her head up just enough to not miss the show.
With a "why not?" nod of his head Sparel draws a gold piece from his pocket and holds it up.
"Just so that you'll have someone to bet against i'll bet for the three in robes. That looks like an Imp. Probably a pet or something that broke out of its containment. I imagine they'll have it destroyed or contained in shot order. Perhaps it's just target practice. Should be a good show, regardless. I almost feel sorry for it."
"Sorry? For an imp? Zere was plenty of zem back home. All bozersome pests ... So, I can't lose - eizer I get richer, or ze imp gets it! Hah"
"Sorry? For an imp? Zere was plenty of zem back home. All bozersome pests ... So, I can't lose - eizer I get richer, or ze imp gets it! Hah"
"I said 'almost'."
sounding nostalgic and still leaning on the rail looking down.
"I remember the first time I summoned one. I thought I was a big deal. Now I use them for running errands wherein I don't expect or care if the messenger survives. "
The small red creature fleeing the mages flits back and forth, occasionally turning to face its pursuers as if torn between a desire to turn back and fight and to continue fleeing. In his hand appears to be a large (compared to it, anyway) bone-white maul, flailing about as he twists and turns. Occasionally when it turns back to look in their direction it calls out to the mages, taunting them in a high pitched voice: "Stupid mages! Tar'jub never get caught by you, heehee!"
As Tar'jub continues his flight he seems oblivious to the ship above him until Lucrecia shouts at him from the ship. When he hears a voice from above he looks up and stops dead in his tracks at the sight of the ship floating in mid air. "Oooooooh, fancy flying ship! Tar'jub thinks that seem far more interesting than stinky mages!" he exclaims to himself, completely ignoring the mages as he marvels at sight. His brief reverie is interrupted by the crash of another round of spells aimed at him by his pursuers, and this time he turns around without continuing his flight. "Tar'jub doesn't have time for mages anymore! You go away now!" he shouts at the mages as he shoulders his mace. He continues yelling at them as he takes off towards them, clearly intent on charging the nearest mage.
Halfway through his charge he seems to zip forward faster than the mages and their guardian anticipate. He collides with the mage in a blur of red and white, his maul and scorpion-like tail working him over as he zips around the mage.
The poor mage barely gets a chance to react before he's collapsed to the ground in a bloody mess of shattered bones and pulped flesh. The imp, soaked in the blood of his foe, turns to the remaining mage and the guardian and glares at them. "GO AWAY, NOW!" the imp screams, clearly displeased that he's wasting time that could be better used elsewhere.
Sparel's eyes widen a bit.
"Well that's...different."
The guardian, a large, muscular man carrying a maul and wearing a shiny, steel breastplate, crumples quicker than he possibly could have imagined under Tar'jub's onslaught. His crushed, pierced body slumps to the ground, just a bag of flesh now.
The other two mages are terrified by Tar'jub's display of prowess, and one of them, merely a scholar with a few scrolls on his person and a big, fat, round monocle, he begins to dash. Both of the mages' faces are splashed with blood, but the mage that isn't running stands firm. He takes a few steps backward and away from Tar'jub, and begins to cast a spell.
Weaving abjuration magicks around himself, a look of desperation evident on his face, he points a finger at Tar'jub and shunts the magic towards the imp.
Unfortunately for him, the magic rolls very harmlessly off of Tar'jub, who is a practiced resistor of magic.
Initiative:
Tar'jub - 11
Mages - 5
Sparel watches intently. "This one is different." he thinks to himself.
Without speaking or taking his eyes off the fight Sparel reaches over and holds the coin out to Lu. He's aware he's about to lose the bet.
Tar'jub eyes the remaining wizard in disbelief as the magic of the spell washes over him harmlessly. He starts to charge forward in a mindless rage, but the sight of the sage fleeing in terror snaps him out of it.
It's not visible to those watching from up above, but Tar'jub cracks a wicked grin at the remaining mage. "Heehee, Tar'jub is going to get a mage to keep!" He charges forward more cautiously this time and proceeds to rough up the wizard as gently as he can.
"Tar'jub's day so much better now! Tar'jub almost forgive you for being mage!" the imp says delightedly as he clubs the wizard senseless. When he's certain the mage is out cold, he casts an eye at the fleeing sage, trying to see if he can run him down as well.
Lucrecia graciously accepts the coin but doesn't take her eyes off the spectacle. She was, too, intrigued by the little imp. "You zink we can keep it? Like a mascot or somezing ..." She laughs "Perhaps load it into a cannon and shoot at our foes!"
Lucrecia graciously accepts the coin but doesn't take her eyes off the spectacle. She was, too, intrigued by the little imp. "You zink we can keep it? Like a mascot or somezing ..." She laughs "Perhaps load it into a cannon and shoot at our foes!"
"Hopefully. We'll just need to figure out what motivates it. Regardless, I'm intrigued. "
Despite Tar'jub's attempts to injure the man as little as possible, he is staggeringly strong and he can feel a few ribs snapping in the man's chest as he pummels the mage into unconsciousness. It looks like it'll be a long time before the man wakes up.
The fleeing sage is already more than a hundred feet distant, and running as fast as his sandaled feet can possibly carry him. If Tar'jub were to fly after him for more than a minute, it's likely that the guy would get tired and Tar'jub would be able to catch up.
Glancing at Lu, but keeping one eye on the fight Sparel calmly makes a suggestion,
"You know, if we helped him out it may help endear us to him. "
He holds out a hand the implied message is that if she takes it Sparel will facilitate them helping the little devil.
With a word Sparel and Lu are teleported to about 100 or so feet in the Sages path.
Tar'jub watches the portly sage sprinting off into the distance and then looks back up at the ship. He sits there for a few moments pensively before finally making his decision. He pulls down the small bag from his back, opens it, and looks satisfied as his maul disappears into it. He then picks up the battered mage and takes off for the ship. As he approaches deck level it becomes quite clear that, while he physically appears to be a run-of-the-mill imp, he's definitely not some stray familiar. The little imp seems to be geared like an adventurer, with various magical items about his body, including a tattered old mage's robe and even an ioun stone orbiting his head.
Tar'jub flies over the railing with his passenger and dumps him unceremoniously on the deck before looking around at the various people gawking at him. "Tar'jub just leave his mage here for a moment. That ok? Ok!" he says excitedly, not even bothering to wait for an answer. He then proceeds to take off in a flash, zipping about the ship, inspecting it top and bottom, clearly fascinated by the vessel. He eventually comes back to where he dropped his new toy and begins looking over the people on the deck in earnest.
He immediately zips over to the elf and human woman to inspect them more closely. He approaches and circles them at a slow pace, whistling to himself and occasionally flipping upside-down to entertain himself. He first winds his way around the woman...
The imp's high-pitched voice resounds through your mind as he inspects you. "Oooh, you glow! So much magic! But not a stinky mage, no, so strange! You captain maybe?"
and then stops to look skeptically at the elf...
The imp's high-pitched voice resounds through your mind as he inspects you. "Tar'jub thinks elf smells like a mage, but maybe not a mage. Maybe ok then, not so bad."
before returning to the unconscious man and taking a seat on his back.
Satisfied, he begins speaking rapidly to the two. "Very interesting! Tar'jub not seen ship like this before, quite exciting! And no paladins or annoying troublemakers! Tar'jub has so many questions!" He quiets down for a moment, thinking what to ask first, jabbing his anthropoid-bench absentmindedly with his tail.
Settling on a course of action, he jumps up. "Oh, maybe introductions first! Tar'jub is great warrior and crusher of mages." he says before bowing slightly and grinning.
Quizzically looking at the imp Sparel speaks.
"Little one, I am a mage and I am a cleric. Though i'd wager I'm far more clever than...Well, than him (pointing at the Imps "chair"). Also, I'm not especially interested in keeping you as a familiar or whatever these were doing."
Based on the look on the imp's face Sparel isn't sure he understands. He speaks again a bit slower
"We can be friends."
"Oh, Tar'jub not worry about that. Mages just angry because he smashed their labs and maybe ate an apprentice. So much fun! But maybe not make Tar'jub very rich. Mages have too many books, no gold. Smashing mages maybe only qualify as hobby." he says in response.
Tar'jub rolls his eyes when Sparel starts talking to him extra slowly in common. He replies in what can only be described as a high-pitched imp lecture.
"தார்வேலை பொதுவான நன்றாக, சில அரை சுட்டி பிசாசு தெரிந்திருந்தால் இல்லை புரிந்துகொள்கிறது. தார்வேலை குறும்புக்கார பிரபுக்களின் நீண்ட வரிசையில் இருந்து வருகிறது! ஆனால் தார்வேலை தவறுக்காக நீ மன்னித்து, அவர் ஒரு விதிவிலக்கு தெரிகிறார்."
"Tar'jub understands common just fine, he's not some half-witted common imp. Tar'jub comes from a long line of imp consulars! But Tar'jub forgives you for the mistake, he knows that he is an exception here."
"So, Tar'jub very curious about boat. Where does it go? Why does it go? Lots of magic to make a flying ship, certainly up to something interesting. Maybe even profitable or fun!"
"Fair enough. I suspect many on this ship are exceptions. "
In common,
"We'll need to talk to the captains about you. They're below deck. "
Via Message to the Captains:
"Captains we have a ...um... Guest that needs to see you two. "
Lucrecia stands motionless and silently watches the Imp, declining to take Sparels hand. Jump and dance to impress an Imp? I think not. After a while she crosses her arms and watches what the imp decides to do.
When Tar'Jub boards the ship, she looks at him closer - curious. There had been many imps in Egorian, but ... noone like this one. How quaint. "Ze Captains await down bellow. Zen we can talk, little devil." She merely echoes the elves words, answering one of the imps questions. Proper introductions could wait until she knew if the imp would stick around.
Sparel and Lucrecia walk below deck. Presumably the imp follows.
Praetorius awaits below deck sitting upon a makeshift throne drinking blood from a wine glass.
Tar'jub follows his new acquaintances down into the ship, stopping only briefly to pick up his mage. When they arrive at the "throne room", he dumps the mage on the ground and checks to see that he's still breathing before facing the pale human on the throne.
"Ooh, throne! Tar'jub needs one of those. Maybe with more bones though. Maybe you are captain? Tar'jub greets you!" the imp chimes enthusiastically.
By Praetorius' side stands a tall, pale woman with flashing eyes, colourful desert garb and a shiny scimitar at her side. She regards Tar'jub with interest, and Tar'jub recognizes her kind as a jann, the least powerful of the genie races, though it appears she is much more than your typical jann. Flowing, moving tattoos cover her body, and the occasional crackle of electricity passes between her fingers.
"Yes, this is the captain," she says, her voice deeper and more resonant than her female form suggests, "And hello, Tar'jub. I am Aiesha, the ship's pilot and engineer."
Tar'jub seems pleased to be finally getting some names. "Aiesha." the imp repeats, making a note. "Janni? But tattoos and sparks... hmm... Mysterious!" he adds, nodding sagely.
"Tar'jub thinks crew maybe as interesting as the ship! Very lucky find for him. Tar'jub should thank mage for chasing Tar'jub here when he wakes up." He looks down for a moment at the incapacitated mage lying beneath him, half expecting him to wake up. When the mage fails to do anything interesting he turns again to the captain.
"Tar'jub asks the captain same question he asked the elf: Where does the ship go? Why does it go there? Profit? Mischief? Nothing boring, this Tar'jub knows."
Praetorius straightens himself upon his makeshift throne and proceeds to use his most haughty and regal voice
"We go to Alkenstar for cannons, unfortunately we will be spending money rather then stealing them, but never threaten the nation that invented guns and has many many many more than you do. Afterward we will then proceed to make profit.... I saw your performance with the mages down their you could be a useful crew member as long as you have some measure of self control. Would you like to join our crew? We will offer you a split of the spoils we acquire, what do you say?"