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The power of her shout even startled Alayna, but it barely fazed Talia. She scrambles to her feet only to be brought down to the ground again.
Infuriated, desperate to avoid those accursed chains, Alayna dives away as she manages to slip past them for once. Desperate to get away from her, she somehow calls a bank of fog to surround her and obscure her from Talia's sight.
"Get away from me!!" she shrieks raggedly as she puts some distance between them. For a split second, she thought she was safe in the mist, but the chains sweep her off her feet again.
"Stop it! Stop it, please!" she shouts once more. She rolls up to stand and steps away from the spectral chains that snapped again at her. She barely avoids falling. Something about the fog told her exactly where Talia was.
Talia's mention of Garrick incenses her. "Garrick killed my mom and dad!" A horrible surge of hate courses through her, up and down her marked skin. Electricity crackles through her, calling forth the thunderous power in the sky. An earth-shattering lance of power flies from Alayna and through Talia.
"And my dog."
Fast as the Lightning Bolt is, Talia is even faster, thrusting her hand outwards, a lightning slamming into an invisible barrier of pure force. The barrier easily holds, but Talia still feels the strain of maintaining the shield against a lightning strike of that intensity.
"Thats enough for today I think" she remarks simply, in a soft and calm tone, contrasting with Alayna's shriek of hatred. Alayna had shown an exceedingly large depth of power and Talia was satisfied that Alayna was showing signs of controlling her magic proactively, instead of being reactive. Besides, Talia had all but run out of 'safe' spells to throw at Alayna, and Emergency Force Sphere wouldn't hold forever.
Talia waits patiently for the mist to dissipate and for Alayna to hear and understand her commands before deactivating her Sphere, smiling brightly. "You did very well Alayna, Talivar would be extremely proud of you I think, with the level of mastery you have over evocation magic. Your magic is definitely a force to be reckoned with."
Talia lets the praise sink in for a moment before gesturing toward the kobold camp. "Why don't we pick this up again a little later, and instead go and pay our respects to your father. I think the rest of the Pact might be waiting on us"
Alayna coughs and wrings out her hair after the "training" session. She glowers at Talia, not taking her compliments well. She hadn't physically hurt her, but her emotional attacks had been vicious.
Still, Alayna instinctively knew that Talia was just goading her; pushing her into unleashing this power that she'd unlocked. She looks at her hands and tries to summon the electricity. It flows much easier, as she mutters some nonsense and lets her fingers dance in a strange motion. Lightning crackles along her fingertips, threatening to discharge against anything she touches.
Why now? Why had this power only come to her now, after she had been captured and enslaved? Why couldn't she have had it to use to save her mother? To save herself? (Her father?) For that matter, her father had developed powers too, but also too late to save her or her mom.
Like father, like daughter.
She lets the energy in her hands dissipate and follows Talia back to the kobolds.
Makkatat seems quite pleased that Uruelleth noticed his lack of a limp, but his demeanor quickly sobers as Uruelleth tells of Talivar’s death.
Shaking his head, Makkatat says, “If there’s one thing I’m learning about the Mantis, it’s that we should never underestimate their capacity for cruelty. It is their speciality. I think they’re constantly scheming of ways to outdo each other.
“Yes, I’m familiar with Achutla, or I was a little over a decade ago anyway. And a dwarf? I see. It’s good to have at least one decent dwarf on the island, I suppose. I hope.”
Makkatat doesn’t seem particularly thrilled about Bharaz, though it’s not entirely clear why. Something about dwarves in general, perhaps.
Changing the subject, Makkatat says, “Enough about the living. We’ll have time to catch up and get to know each other in due time. For now, we should see to Talivar’s arrangements. He deserves a proper send off. What do you have in mind?”
Uruelleth frowns in thought for a moment. Talia had mentioned that she might be able to eventually learn a way to bring him back to life, so he wonders if they would need his body for that. Probably. He knew from experience that one only needed a small portion of the body for reincarnation, but she had said Talivar was beyond that.
"Building a pyre feels wrong. He was all about the ice and cold. Is there a place somewhere on this island that is always cold? Or, maybe a tomb in your deepest tunnels?
"Last thing we want is to let the bugs get their claws on his body. They'd probably try to make him undead or something. Bad enough on the girl, what they had her do. She doesn't need that. Hell, none of us need that. Maybe the pyre is the best call."
Kilarra crosses her arms. "We need to burn him. We can't risk the Mantis getting his body. The girl will have to be content with ashes."
As they wait over the body, Kilarra shifts from foot to foot. After a short time, she sighs. "Yeah, I'm good. I'm heading up for air."
Alayna stands quiet and grief-stricken during most of the ceremony. Toward the end, though, she steps forward and puts her hands on her father's casket.
"Dad... I'm sorry. I was controlled. I hope you know that." She squeezes her eyes shut and tears drop from her cheeks down to splash on him.
Her eyes open as she reaches down and takes his hand. "I thought-- when I thought I was going to die, I promised that you would kill him. Garrick. The man who killed Mom. But... he took that from you. So it's my turn. I swear. I swear I will kill him. I will put that dagger so deep into his chest that it will come out the other side. It's got one life left to take. And I'll make sure it's his."
She takes a few steps back until she's standing next to Talia. She holds out her hand expectantly.
Bharaz listened silently. He approved of the oath of vengeance. He just hoped that the human had the stones to follow through.
Talia puts her arm around the girl. "He knows that you were controlled Alayna and at the end of the day, Talivar bears you no ill will, he did achieve his goal after all in freeing you which had been his mission from the start. Don't just take my word for it though, you can ask him yourself" Talia responds simply.
Talia reaches out with her mind in concentration, pulling Talivar's spirit back here, to this location. The strain in keeping Talivar present was incredible, but Talia marshals her will, manifesting her friend from his resting place.
"Typically, we use this spell to ask questions, but technically I can maintain this indefinitely. Its only right for Talivar to be present here while we honor him."
Talia hands the blade to Alayna after her spell, trusting her to manage it.
Eyes tearing up, Alayna stands before the ghostly apparition of her father. She reaches her hand up and touches his faintly ethereal one. I'm sorry, she mouths, unable to give voice to her heavy remorse.
Talivar's spirit touches her cheek, shaking its head at her apology. She nods, dropping her head and leaning into his ghostly hand.
"I'm free now," she whispers, "thanks to you. You rescued me. Thank you."
She steps away, trying to keep from breaking down again. She moves next to Talia.
Alayna takes the hated dagger but she can't bring herself to look at it. She wills it to fade into her glove of storing, the soft and light glove she had been given in order to smuggle the Mantis' Kiss past scrutiny.
Uruelleth watches the ceremony, not really sure about Talia's idea of bringing Talivar's spirit back for a send-off. Still, he gives the frost mage a salute of respect.
Ruel turns his attention to Talivar's daughter. He approves her oath of vengeance; he just hopes she has the stomach to fight when things get difficult. No doubt, she endured terrible things in the Mantis's lair, but he doubted she had fought off enemies directly trying to kill her. He'd known some warchiefs in Belkzen who favored harems of slaves. It turned his stomach then, and he hadn't changed his opinion in his lives since.
"Well," he finally says after the ceremony is over, "if the girl's a sorcerer like her dad, she could probably use some of his gear. Better she use it, than burn it up."
He takes Talivar's magical belt, headband, and cloak and hands it to Alayna. "It may not fit all that well, but here."
Alayna's eyes go wide when the elf steps up to her. She shrinks slightly, then accepts the belongings he handed her.
"Uruelleth. The one they killed twice already. The reincarnated. The orc wearing the skin of an elf."
Bharaz’s eyes went wide as he looked at Uruelleth in surprise. He held his tongue, but his look shifted from surprise to anger. He glared angrily at the “elf” and then at Kilarra and Talia before he turned and walked away. He had enough presence of mind to not ruin a funeral, but inside he was fuming. He wasn’t sure if he could control himself if he didn’t leave immediately.
Talia lets the spell fade when the ceremony is over. Truthfully, she felt better that Talivar heard Alayna swear her oath on her own - the last thing she wanted was Talivar ruining her afterlife for dragging his daughter back into this conflict. At least her conscience was clear.
Talia was however, a little alarmed when Bharaz storms off at Alayna's words. She wasn't sure why the dwarf was so upset but she gathered it had something to do with Uruelleth's orc bloodline. "No, don't storm away now, not after glaring at me in that way. Lets address it head on and have it out, talk to me about whats going on" she remarks, chasing after the dwarf
”He’s a tusker.” Bharaz hissed. ”A butcherer of me people. Our ancestral enemy. I laid myself bare before ye lot to prove that I could be trusted, and ye keep that from me? The bloody gall.” He was shaking with anger. ”I could have understood. I’ll do a fookin’ lot to get me revenge. Even work with a wolf in sheep’s skin. But it shows that we’re bloody well not comrades, and how I’d be a fool to think of any of ye as such.”
Talia frowns at Bharaz, seeing his anger but at the same time slightly perplexed by it, as if it didnt perfectly compute to her.
"No-one intentionally kept it from you. It took Uruelleth almost a month before he told us and even then, it was only after we had fought side by side every day and he trusted us enough to keep his secret. We have known you for...what? Two days? Do you believe you have earnt his trust, especially based on your reaction now? Have you told us about every single secret in your life?
Everybody here shared personal memories, laying themselves bare on this mission. You were brave baring yourself to us, but its nothing that the rest of us haven't done also to prove our loyalty to each other."
Talia pauses for a moment, regarding the dwarf with sorrow in her eyes. "I admit, I'll never know the depth of your hatred for orcs Bharaz. I could view the memories but I'll never feel that depth of emotion. That said, I don't have the luxury of judging someone solely on their race. I judge them based on who they are as individuals. Which, is actually is in your favor as it happens. If I judged an entire race based off my experiences with a few select individuals I'd believe dwarves were all greedy slavers in service to the Red Mantis - as Goldshackle is. I would urge you to actually get to know Uruelleth before passing judgment."
Achutla has no desire to interfere in the group's past social conflicts and entanglements, or to start new ones like Brother Bharaz seems content to do.
Instead he stands by Kilarra, who seems to be the most straightforward of the lot. He stands stoicly with her for a while before he says. "What makes you want to kill them? The red mantis... They took my people, my family. What did they do to you?"
”How to say this...his people and mine have been at war with each other before either of our races had a written language. An ocean of blood has been spilled. My people drove his to the surface. His has committed genocide on several of our cities, and there aren’t enough dwarves alive to take back what they have taken. They’re capital is our city of Koldukar. They put the entire population to the sword, and would gladly do it to every last one of us if they could. This war is something both he and I were born into. I hope that explains my reaction to...” He shook his head. ”I made an oath and I’ll see it done. I’m nay looking to cut it down.” It didn’t take a detective to see that the dwarf was still far from being pleased. But he was trying his best to remain civil.
Uruelleth scowls when the girl recognized him and blurted out what she'd apparently overheard while enslaved to the Mantis. He gives her a warning look, then catches the glare from Bharaz.
He'd seen those kind of looks before from dwarves.
He relaxes somewhat when Talia goes after Bharaz when he stormed out. He figures she'll do what she does best: take control of the situation and get him focused on their true enemy. And if not... well, he could take the next ship to Lastwall and go fight orcs.
As Achutla wanders over to talk to Kilarra, that left Ruel with Talivar's whelp. He turns to her.
"Any more of our secrets you've got to share?"
Alayna clutches her father's belongings close to her chest as she stares up at the tall elf looming over her. She shakes her head no tightly.
"I'm sorry. I... heard a lot about you. All of you."
She turns her back to Uruelleth and goes through the magical items that had belonged to her father. She holds up the cloak while she continues. "We couldn't talk about you. It was too big a risk. The other... 'servants' would turn you in to the overseers if you ever spoke of escape. So I couldn't dare say anything."
She tries on the headband and gasps as she immediately feels her mental faculties expand.
"Talar jag dvärven?"
Talia listens to Bharaz give his explanation without butting in, and pauses for a few seconds to think.
"As you say, both you and Uruelleth were born into this conflict and yet here we are, the two of you prepared to work together to eliminate the Red Mantis. Sometimes, we can choose whether or not we are a slave to history. Besides, if it helps, Uruelleth the orc died a long time ago - he is now Uruelleth the elf."
Talia thinks before her face changes into a thoughtful expression. "You should talk to him at some point I think. I think his Reincarnation has been difficult each time - to go from Orc to Elf though would have been a major change. Even if we win and defeat the Mantis its going to be difficult, if not impossible for him to return to his old original life. As a fellow warrior you might be able to connect with him better than I can. Still, I leave it up to you"
Talia nods before withdrawing slowly, attempting to give Bharaz space with his thoughts and feelings.
Bharaz nodded, his scowl softening. ”I am not so much of a zealot that I would let a blood-feud lead to oath-breaking. And what ye say may yet be true. I will try to judge...him...based on his actions.” He finished, with some difficulty. ”Return to the funeral. It is the lass’ time. I’d be alone for a minute.”
Ruel snorts in wry amusement. "Ja, det låter som dvärg för mig. Fortsätt bära det, så kan du ha en trevlig konversation med Bharaz."
"Yes, that sounds like dwarven to me. Keep wearing that, and you can have a nice conversation with Bharaz."
He watches the girl marvel at the magic of her father's magic item for a moment, then thinks back to what she had been talking about earlier. "You don't have to tell me anything about that place. Fair warning, though. Talia's the nosy sort. She'll want to know all about it, I expect."
He steps closer, leaning over her. "No, there's only one thing I want to know. You talked a good game to your dad. So I'll help you get your revenge. But are you up to it? Will you fight?"
Before Alayna can answer, he points to her forehead. "And your answer doesn't come from here." His finger moves to right above her breastbone. "It's got to come from here."
For a moment, Alayna stood frozen in shock at Uruelleth's challenge. She understood, sort of, what he was meaning. Just saying she'll fight doesn't mean anything; she has to believe it.
She tries to summon the storm. She reaches for the thundercloud inside her, and tries to draw the lightning forth for a show of electricity arcing up and down her arms.
It doesn't come easy, as doubt and disappointment begins to creep into Uruelleth's expression. "I will," she says, desperately trying to believe it. Hoping she sounded convincing.
As the elf warrior starts to turn away, she grows more urgent. "Wait! I will! I'm going to-- I mean, I will! I will fight!"
A couple sparks dance in her hair. "You believe me, right?" she asks him.
At Achulta's woods Kilarra smirks. "I dated one. It didn't end well. Wanna help me kill him?" Despite her irreverent tone, it's clear there's more to the story.
As Alayna sends sparks flying, Kilarra raises an eyebrow. "Whoa, reel it in, kid. We don't need a lightshow. Save it for the Mantis."
Alayna's breath catches when Kilarra addresses her. The sparks fade immediately as she stares at the woman. "You're Kilarra Calvennis. The one who--" she cuts herself off before saying more, glancing at Uruelleth and Achutla. "Nevermind."
Kilarra crosses her arms and leans against a nearby wall/tree. "Go on. If you've got something to say, now's the time. I won't bite." She smirks. "Not you anyway."
Alayna swallows hard. Her voice drops low as she looks at the smirking woman. "You're the one who could have been one of them. You were Bastien's project." Instinctively, she drops her eyes and looks away. "I'd... heard of him, but he never visited the Gardens. The others said he... finds his own fun."
Talia nods to Bharaz. She turns away and spots Alayna sparking again. Rolling her eyes, Talia moves in that direction. When she is within 30 feet, she triggers her Heaven's Leap ability, vanishing and then stepping out of thin air, appearing just in time to hear Alayna talk about Bastien's project. For a brief moment, her eyes turn pitch black before she blinks and they return to normal.
"What did I miss? Are we all discussing the delightful names the Mantis have for us? Apparently my name isn't very nice, its probably something like Witch or something." she remarks with a wry smile.
"Alayna, while you were in Sivlamlik did anyone mention Project Otataral to you? Garrick had overheard Vernai Duvall discussing children of Aroden and Project Otataral and asked the Blood Mistress why he had been abducting these children and bringing them to the Citadel. Excluding you Alayna, there is at least one other. I was wondering if the Mantis were careless and you heard something in passing since they were very interested in you, Maria and Talivar."
Talia reflects for a moment "Actually, I wonder how the Blood Mistress is going to react now that you escaped and Talivar died. I wonder if that impacts on whatever Project Otataral is."
At Achulta's woods Kilarra smirks. "I dated one. It didn't end well. Wanna help me kill him?" Despite her irreverent tone, it's clear there's more to the story.
Achutla laughs. "It would be my honor. Hell hath no fury like a woman mistreated by the Mantis."
Talia nods to Bharaz. She turns away and spots Alayna sparking again. Rolling her eyes, Talia moves in that direction. When she is within 30 feet, she triggers her Heaven's Leap ability, vanishing and then stepping out of thin air, appearing just in time to hear Alayna talk about Bastien's project. For a brief moment, her eyes turn pitch black before she blinks and they return to normal.
"What did I miss? Are we all discussing the delightful names the Mantis have for us? Apparently my name isn't very nice, its probably something like Witch or something." she remarks with a wry smile.
Alayna jumps at Talia's sudden appearance. "Oh, um, something like that. The names would come up when some of them fantasized about what they'd do to the Pact." She bites her lip. "Some were very creative. And, ah, graphic."
"Alayna, while you were in Sivlamlik did anyone mention Project Otataral to you? Garrick had overheard Vernai Duvall discussing children of Aroden and Project Otataral and asked the Blood Mistress why he had been abducting these children and bringing them to the Citadel. Excluding you Alayna, there is at least one other. I was wondering if the Mantis were careless and you heard something in passing since they were very interested in you, Maria and Talivar."
Talia reflects for a moment "Actually, I wonder how the Blood Mistress is going to react now that you escaped and Talivar died. I wonder if that impacts on whatever Project Otataral is."
Alayna looks confused, but searches her memory while shaking her head. "No, I never heard anything like that. The Vernai were very tight-lipped whenever they visited, which wasn't often."
She opens her mouth to ask about how Talia had heard about this, but stops herself. The seer. Right.
At Achulta's woods Kilarra smirks. "I dated one. It didn't end well. Wanna help me kill him?" Despite her irreverent tone, it's clear there's more to the story.Achutla laughs. "It would be my honor. Hell hath no fury like a woman mistreated by the Mantis."
Kilarra lets out a cackling laugh and claps Achutla on the back. "Good answer."
Alayna swallows hard. Her voice drops low as she looks at the smirking woman. "You're the one who could have been one of them. You were Bastien's project." Instinctively, she drops her eyes and looks away. "I'd... heard of him, but he never visited the Gardens. The others said he... finds his own fun."
"Project? Fun?" Kilarra scoffs. "Better words than I'd have chosen." Her smirk grows cold. "Of course, I do intend to have fun with him before the end." After a moment she focuses back on Alayna. "I heard they want me alive. That true?"
Alayna jumps at Talia's sudden appearance. "Oh, um, something like that. The names would come up when some of them fantasized about what they'd do to the Pact." She bites her lip. "Some were very creative. And, ah, graphic."Talia nods to Bharaz. She turns away and spots Alayna sparking again. Rolling her eyes, Talia moves in that direction. When she is within 30 feet, she triggers her Heaven's Leap ability, vanishing and then stepping out of thin air, appearing just in time to hear Alayna talk about Bastien's project. For a brief moment, her eyes turn pitch black before she blinks and they return to normal.
"What did I miss? Are we all discussing the delightful names the Mantis have for us? Apparently my name isn't very nice, its probably something like Witch or something." she remarks with a wry smile.
Talia snorts a little bit in amusement. ”I’m sure that Chessin has had time to get over the fact that I escaped his ambush months ago. He always struck me as a forgiving sort. I’m pretty sure they don’t intend to take me alive through, I know too much about them now I think.”
Alayna looks back and forth between the two women, rather amazed at their cavalier attitude. She shrugs helplessly at the speculation about whether the Mantis want the Pact dead or alive.
"I don't know if there's orders from the Blood Mistress. Most have talked about killing you all slowly. I've heard there's places worse than the Chambers in the Citadel." She shudders involuntarily and hugs herself tightly as she fights against her memories.
With an effort, she recovers. She looks at both Kilarra and Talia and suddenly realizes that one had almost been a Mantis, and the other managed to escape the fate that she had unfortunately got to experience. A bitter taste rose in her mouth.
"Excuse me. I'm tired."
She pauses one more time at the body of her father, thinking one more time that he didn't look like she remembered him. Then she goes to find a place to rest.
Talia waits until everyone is together before speaking.
"We agreed yesterday that we would eliminate Goldshackle. We have time to do this, but not a lot of it so we will need to be swift."
"Unfortunately, I cannot teleport all of us in and out, so a quick strike attack will not work. We could use a smaller force, but that makes us weaker and the Red Mantis are sure to be on the lookout. We also dont have any way of rescuing the slaves - which to be honest I would like. I could have been a slave and I don't really want to sit idly by and watch unless something can be done about it. Besides, if we dont get them out the Mantis probably kill them all anyway, just to make a point."
The Mantis will be looking for ways in and out of the city, they will be on high alert. By now, they know that I have been using Teleport to get around, therefore I think there is an advantage towards showing up in a Pirate Ship. The Mantis probably wouldn't expect us to have access to a ship, and it does allow us to get the slaves out safely. We can always turn them loose once we are out of the city if we dont want to transport them a long distance. Furthermore, I think a Pirate ship might give us some standing among the Pirate Lords of the city. Its a symbol of prestige or status to them I think. I can handle the creation of a crew, and the creation of the ship, but we will need a large amount of wood, a small amount of cloth (or technically plant based material would still let me create sails out of it), and metal, maybe weapons from the goblin tribes we have killed so far.[/ooc]
[ooc]Once we are in the city, I want to meet with the druid Jaxira. She said she would help against Goldshackle and I think she would be a valuable ally. I also want to make contact with the Cult. Their mission can wait, since they were planning their current kill target for months, but we may as well make contact when we are in the city, and you never know, they might be useful. At any rate, a strike in the city, followed by a strike in the jungle within seven days would really hurt the Red Mantis, and should provide enough encouragement to get the Pirate Lords on our side - I hope. Does anyone have any questions or comments?"
"You're going to magically make a pirate ship?" Kilarra asks, raising an eyebrow. She smirks. "I admit I'd find that impressive."
"Very impressive! I could never work such powerful magic."
Ruel nods along with the others, similarly impressed if Talia could pull it off. But his face still twisted with concern.
"Even with a ship, we wouldn't be able to just sail into the harbor without some sort of permission, would we? I'll grant you that the bugs won't be looking for us coming in on a ship, but that doesn't mean the harbor will be unguarded."
He looks over to Bharaz. "You managed to get here through the port at Ilizmagorti. What was it like? Was your ship inspected?"
Keeping his face as neutral as possible, Bharaz said ”I can teleport us as well. We could sail into the harbor. Yon lass teleports half of us, I get the rest. Most I can bring is three. I also can’t go too far. Eight hundred feet, max. But that’d be enough to get us in. Ship sails in, we teleport, ship turns around. No need for anyone to suspect anything.”
Talia nods at Uruelleth pointing out the obvious flaw in the plan. "Yes, we will need to sail right into the harbor which will mean getting past the Blood Watch. We did it in the past, and I think arriving on a pirate ship is something that they wouldn't expect. I still believe that the port should have a steady flow of traffic - the city wouldn't be able to survive without people travelling to and fro on business, delivering goods, and so on."
Talia then turns to Bharaz "I don't particularly want to teleport from the harbor into the city. For one thing, there is an increasing suspicion that the city has Teleport Traps around key locations. Unfortunately, we don't yet know where which is...limiting. We have got around it so far by teleporting to the secret tunnel entrance and then using the tunnels to enter the city but I still think a direct teleport is risky. "
"Even if it could be done though, I'd still want the ship to sail in, I don't want it to turn around. That ship is the only way to get the slaves out which means that it needs to go all the way in."
”Fair nuff. Got any disguises for ye three? The lizardling and me wouldn’t be known. Chances are there’s a sizable bounty for all three of ye.”
"Actually we need disguises for five - or basically anyone that isn't you Bharaz. Uruelleth, Kilarra, and myself definately need disguises, but Alayna also needs some serious work, there is no way that she can be walking around in the city with runes that advise she is a pleasure slave from Sivlamlik. Also, the Mantis were planning on promoting her likeness to the pirates as part of their original plan to lure Talivar out - they know what she looks like and the Blood Watch might too. Achutla also potentially needs a disguise. He has been waging a private war against the Mantis for some time, and he was briefly captured recently. Its a fair bet that they would be on the alert for a lizardfolk after we attacked the temple and freed him in the process."
Alayna had been quiet during all the talk about pirate ships and attacking slavers. She knew there was a good chance they would all decide to leave her behind if she gave the slightest hint of being doubtful or not wholly committed.
At Talia's mention of her tattoos, she pulls her father's cloak close over her shoulders, feeling self-conscious. The tattoos were definitely a clear mark that any Mantis would know, but not everyone in Ilizmagorti was one.
"Only the Mantis ever get to visit the Sivlamlik. No one else would even know what my tattoos mean," she ventures. She looks down at the ground. "And I don't plan on showing them off."
"What will I disguise myself as?"
"Thats very true Alayna but they are looking for me, and Uruelleth, and Kilarra, they would also being looking for you. You know as well as I that the Mantis don't view you their slaves as people, but as possessions at best. They want you back. Plus, you know a lot about them and for the Mantis, thats often too much of a risk. Besides, theres a chance they want you for the Project Otataral stuff anyway. You can hide the runes but you still need a disguise"
"As for you Achula, you could still be a lizardfolk, but we could temporarily change your scale color to better blend in. Its hard to be incognito with a hulking lizard but I think we can manage it - I think some pirate crews have exotic members of the crew anyway so it might help."
EDIT
"My armor is already glamored. Yes, I suppose if someone has the magic I could turn my scales green, like the Greenscales. There are enough of them around."
Interested to see how this magic works, Ruel follows along. He takes an axe to fell some trees if he can find one amongst the kobolds' supplies.
Alayna watches the powerful magic on display as Talia reshapes and reworks metal, cloth and timber into a functioning sailing vessel. She looks down at her hands and wishes she could do something to help, but thus far all of her magic she'd been able to discover has been of the destructive variety. Well, not all. She'd also been able to surround herself in protective magics, as well as a field of electricity that would harm anyone who came close. Another neat trick she figured out was to turn herself into a bolt of lightning and streak across a short distance, reappearing on the far side and damaging anything in her path.
When the ship was finished, she supposed the blasts of wind she could generate might help give it a burst of speed, or the banks of fog she could call up would help disguise it, but she certainly lacked the versatility that Talia possessed.
She simply had to bide her time until she could test her powers against her former captors.