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For broken servants, they seemed to have gotten away mostly intact... Eben thinks, but keeps his face both smiling and astonished."Oh... it sounds like there was no need for us to come rushing here to warn you after all," Eben says, tacking into the wind of the conversational turns. "It's just that, by our, mortal standards, they seemed a mighty group. A high priest, a sorcererous mind flayer, demons and tieflings, and a noble efreet. Scary stuff, compared to the sort of thing we're used to." Eben devours a few grapes. Well, only slightly, but if his ego need him to feel vastly far above mortals, no harm in underplaying ourselves. I wonder if he'd buy a kobold concubine story? He swallows and continues. "Though I suppose that explains why when we scryed them, they were in the midst of recovering. The minotaur was wounded, didn't you say, Astraden? Honestly, Conqueror, it's surprising, then, that we weren't greeted by their flayed bodies haging above your throne. I suppose even Conquerors can show mercy."
—Don't lay it on too thick, Forzamele speaks into Ebens mind.
Tanith joins Carina in enjoying the hospitality but his brow furrows as their host tells more and more of his tales. Nobody bested Kord at wrestling. He raises an eyebrow at Eben when the titan begins bragging about having already defeated the other group.
Krathanos raises an eyebrow. "Do you know, Eben MacTeague, I can't shake the faintest suspicion--foolish as it might be, as surely the notion is absurd--that I am being condescended to."
Astraden nods to confirm Eben's question. "Yeah, the minotaur seemed wounded. And I only saw part of the group - maybe the rest are even worse off."
She digs into the food with hands and teeth. "Wow, I didn't know you could eat pork this rare! You got anything to drink, Krathanos? I guess you probably drank it all when you were first locked away in here, huh?"
Farrukh just thinks it's great his allies are being so friendly to the Titan, with all their nice words.
"No, not at all, no condescension intended," Eben says, eyes wide. "I apologize if my words somehow came off as such. It's just, you see," he continues, spearing some boar meat on his fork,"The Krathanos of legend our sadly meager research had told of was reputed to be brutal and unforgiving. Clearly, history was written by your enemies. We thought we would have to plead for our lives merely to gain an audience, but here you immediately greeted us warmly, fed us from your table, and you even let those who tried to kill you escape with a warning. Clearly, you're a far more gracious Titan than we could have expected."
Eben's words are pretty, but he talks with his mouth full.
Seeing Eben's poor table manners starting to offend their host, Astraden quickly darts in and pulls some of the meat out of his mouth with her fingers. "Sorry about that, Krathanos. He eats too much when he gets flustered."
Carina sighs.
"Sir, none of us are foolish enough to try and talk down to a being of your power and presence." She shakes her head. "I mean, the size difference alone would be enough of an incentive to not do so."
"It's just that the food is so good!" Eben tries to offer by way of explanation.
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"No, not at all, no condescension intended," Eben says, eyes wide. "I apologize if my words somehow came off as such. It's just, you see," he continues, spearing some boar meat on his fork,"The Krathanos of legend our sadly meager research had told of was reputed to be brutal and unforgiving. Clearly, history was written by your enemies. We thought we would have to plead for our lives merely to gain an audience, but here you immediately greeted us warmly, fed us from your table, and you even let those who tried to kill you escape with a warning. Clearly, you're a far more gracious Titan than we could have expected."
[dice=Diplomacy]1d20+24
Eben's words are pretty, but he talks with his mouth full.
Krathanos gives a booming laugh. "Ha! I see! How foolish of me to have jumped to such conclusions!"
The bone of the boar leg he grips snaps in his hand like kindling. "Is that what you think? Do you think I am foolish, Eben MacTeague?" His voice raises until it echoes throughout the Keep, and the gargoyles cringe back. "Is that what you are implying, you worthless, "
Carina sighs.
"Sir, none of us are foolish enough to try and talk down to a being of your power and presence." She shakes her head. "I mean, the size difference alone would be enough of an incentive to not do so."
[dice=Diplomacy?]1d20+22
"Ah!" His face brightens, and he wipes his hands clean of grease with a handkerchief with a pleasant smile. "Very true, little half-life. How absurd that would be! Now, then, tell me more about these curious visitors, these Vecnans. What exactly are they looking for?"
Eben's expression is that of a rictus smile of pure horror. Crap, Olidamarra was right about this guy. I hate when gods are right, smug bastards... Not sure if he should still be speaking after setting off that last rant, Eben musters all his strength so as not to actually squeak the following words: "Your... belt?
"Yes, that would be what they're after." Carina nods, rather unfazed.
Astraden picks up one of the bone splinters from Krathanos's leg and begins picking her teeth. "Though that's just a stepping stone to what they're really after. Which is getting into the Library of Last Resort. You do know that the druids are sending everyone who comes in here after your belt, right?"
"Ha! Of course they are. The little almost-souls would love to be rid of me, I'm sure." He taps his nose with a wry grin. "Especially if I'm right about what happens when the Library is unsealed."
Eben ventures back into conversational mode. "Oh? I just thought it meant we could access the information. Is there more too it than that?"
"Hm." The titan looks thoughtful. "The creators of this cursed isle weren't wizards, Eben MacTeague, with their meticulously layered magics precisely calculating every eventuality. They were wretched druids. The world you inhabit is not a network of carefully-interlaced spells upon spells. Ha!" He pounds a pillar, and gargoyles race out of the way as it collapses. "As if they would know how to do such a thing. There is no 'getting into' the Library. You're in the Library right now. The Library is one vast spell, and one worked in haste, I think. Think of it like... like a scrap of cloth cut from the great quilt that is Oerth. They have separated it from the world, and used it to wrap many things together, to bundle them away for safekeeping. Like a bindle! Ha!"
He swings again, but this time encounters air where the crumbled pillar used to be. He scowls at it as if it has wronged him, then returns his attention to the party. "But I doubt they had the skill to allow it to open and close as they willed. If I had to guess, I'd say the only way to bring anything of the Isle outside the Isle is to break the Isle. To undo the spell and allow the Oerth Mother to stitch her wayward cloth back in its place."
His eyes glitter. "And then we'll all be free. Secrets and inmates alike. "
"Oh, cool. So we've just gotta break a spell. Carina, how many spell-breaking bombs did you pack today?"
"You're locked up!? That's terrible!" Cuetzpalli commiserates.
"Ha! Indeed, mighty Cuetzpalli." His expression darkens. "And if it was as easy as tossing a few reagents around, priestess, do you think Krathanos the Conqueror would still be here?"
"No, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were a practitioner of the alchemical arts." Astraden pulls a vial out of her backpack and tosses it to the titan. "Think fast!"
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Farrukh begins to think his allies are trying to antagonize the Titan, but he's not sure...why.
He leans over and whispers to Clunk.
"Did I miss something in our planning session? What are they doing?"
Eben does his best to snatch the vial from the air before it can make contact with their host.
Carina looks between the others with confusion bordering on panic.
Cuetzpalli's eyes go wide, "Astraden!?!"
Krathanos's hand moves in a blur, effortlessly intercepting the tiny vial between thumb and forefinger. He crushes it and flicks away the particles of holy water and broken glass. Some of the tiny shards can be seen sprinkling upon the remainder of the roast pork like tiny grains of salt.
He regards Astraden with the chill of an eternal cloudless frost. "When I am out of here, and my true strength is returned to me..."
His voice is suddenly very quiet.
"... I think it would be a great game to pay that creature you call a god a visit. Would it not be wonderful sport to shatter his mask and break his arms and drop him in a soup pot? I could seal the lid and sit there before him, and as the rest of Ysgard burns, I could watch the Laughing Rogue sit there and slowly heat up, cook in his own shell like a screaming lobster, boiling, boiling, BOILING, until--
His voice is suddenly deafening, his smile bright and merry. He throws back his head and gives a horrible laugh. "Or perhaps I'll challenge him to a drinking contest. What a sense of humor his representatives bring to my table! What a funny little beast he must be."
"Mm, you see, that's why I don't bother to have a patron deity. Much less complicated that way..." Eben says, before Krathanos's words can stretch into an uncomfortable silence, or worse, angry shouting by the devotees of Ysgardians seated at the table. Trying to bring the conversation back to a more comfortable place, he adds, "Oh, and speaking of gods that just need killing, what about that Vecna? Complete a#$~$!$, am I right?"
Astraden seems as unfazed as ever, but for a shivery movement that knocks her remaining hunk of boar meat off the stone table. "I bet Olidammara would love to be eaten by the likes of you." She winks.
"Ah, yes. The Archlich." Krathanos leans back, a twinkle in his eye. "So, I suppose you come here to beg of my assistance in disposing of his servants?"
"Would you want to give that assistance if we did beg?"
"Ha! Well, I didn't mean literally. It wasn't my intention to bruise your egos."
Tanith watches the antagonistic exchange between Astraden and the giant in confusion. He relaxes a bit when Krathanos starts laughing again. "Help killing them would be good. I doubt they're going to give up and move on after a wrestling match. Wouldn't that be nice for once?"
"They have no honor," Cuetzpalli states, as if it is the worst insult conceivable.
"Hm..."
"It would certainly be a mutually beneficial arrangement."
"They have no honor," Cuetzpalli states, as if it is the worst insult conceivable.
Astraden nods. "The mind flayer killed a bunch of us and then ran away, from what I've heard. Not an honorable guy."
"He does run away a lot. And then sends us messages afterward to try and make us mad." Farrukh adds, helpfully.
Clunk looks at the others, gaze lingering on Farrukh, then turns to the titan. "Great titan,"[b] he intones, [b]"it is in our shared interest that the Vecnans be defeated. My colleagues plan to release the island, which will free you. This unit does not speculate what the Vecnans plan."
Krathanos regards the party for a moment. "... Well, I haven't ventured from the Keep in some time. And those Vecnans are quite tiresome."
He rubs his chin, an impish grin forming. "... I think perhaps it might be time to pay them another little visit, don't you?"
"Last we saw them was at the beach. Are you able to fly, Krath?" Astraden wiggles her fingers and her arm begins to sublimate once again.
He puffs his chest out. "I can walk on air with ease."
"Well, they are, I'm pretty sure, lying in ambush down on the beach. Darl sort of dared us to come and 'negotiate', which to my mind, translates to 'come and get killed by our wishes and lich-god hands' So, maybe the best way to do this is for us to walk in, act like we're being wary and knowing it's a trap but still springing the trap anyway, and then right after they show their hand, you came out and show them your much larger one?"
"I'm pretty buzzy already," Cuetzpalli says, motioning to the multiple enchantments surrounding his body. "I'm not trying to be greedy, but, does anyone have a freedom of movement? Getting caught in something could really ruin my day."
"Yeah, hon. Here you go." Astraden weaves one of Olidammara's favorite spells over Cuetzpalli.
"Ah, a fine plan." Krathanos nods approvingly. "Of course, the one skill I lack is concealing my greatness. Perhaps your little trickster priestess might have something for me there?"
"She does, or I can do it too, but the Vecnan has a robe that shows invisible things. Astraden might be able to make you look different, like one of us...?"
"Yeah, we actually had this conversation right before we showed up for dinner, trying to be sneaky just isn't worth it. Though maybe if we painted you white and you flew REALLY high up so you'd just look like a big cloud, that would work?"
Astraden gets a glint in her eye. "We can make you look like a cool dinosaur! Cuetzpalli used to have a deinonychus named Spiny. What kind of dinosaur are you?"
"Ha! Why not a spinosaurus named Diney?" Krathanos's fierce grin grows vast and sharp-toothed as his form is morphed into that of a titanic spinosaurus by Astraden's spell.
