Kyffin shrugs, "Sure, let's." He heads to the staircase and proceeds upward.
Though she rather doubts it's the case, Starflit tries to read the servants' suggestion to try the ballroom first to check for any sinister motives. Then she moves and adjusts Tristain's cravat.
Just because they're scared for their own lives doesn't mean they might not send a bunch of strangers to the slaughter in their stead....
'Flit also says that she'll cast communal protection from evil on the group before they enter the ballroom, but the spell will only last for 3 minutes on each of them.
Lastly, the inquisitor leans against a wall and clutches her holy symbol of the Black Butterfly. "If you gentlemen would be so courteous as to protect me for half-a-minute or so...I'll take a listen to the whispers of this awful city and see if I can learn anything of value that'll get us out of here sooner rather than later."
1. Where is the bard we seek?
2. Where is the young lady/vampiress we seek?
3. Are there any secret passages that could make the rescue mission easier and where are they located?
4. What happens in the manor once midnight strikes? (For the purpose of knowing if we have to be gone long before then.)
Tristain does a series of supportive wall bonks as he waits for and protects Starflit as she does what she does.
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As Tristain makes sure the wall will support everyone, Starflit again casts her spell, getting back several answers.
1. The best bar will depend on what you are looking for, but it will be difficult to find one with both books for Tristain and broads for Lothan. The best bet may be the Bawdy Librarian, which was named for its proximity to a bookseller. It's on Uzumaki Street in the heart of the city.
2. She waits in the fitting room to make her grand debut.
3. The bedrooms on the second floor allow guests to make a secret rendevous with none the wiser.
4. The curse lifts and the vampires remember themselves for what they truly are, and behave accordingly.
Al is ready to check the rooms upstairs and follows Kyffin to the stairway.
Tristain will follow Al up, as needed. He will try to avoid barging into something that they should not be barging into.
Lothan follows behind the others, walking along as if he owns the place.
When her brain returns from the whirl of sights and sounds, she opens her eyes, thanks the others for watching over her while she was vulnerable, and tells them about the answers she received.
"I'm guessing the young lady we seek will be somewhere near the ballroom, but I haven't a clue about the bard fellow we're supposed to rescue. I imagine if he's being imprisoned in a dungeon, that might be on the lowest level of this place."
You ascend the stairs to the second floor, where a hallway wraps around, offering you a number of doors to choose from. An attractive man and woman in fine clothing look at you with smiles as your arrival interrupts their conversation. They certainly seem to be relatives of some sort -- perhaps siblings? -- as they look very similar.
"Oh, hello," the man says.
"Well, hello, how do you do? It's a fine evening, isn't it, say, have you any idea when the music starts and where we can enjoy the entertainment? We seem to have gotten ourselves lost in this beautiful home."
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”Yes, hallo,” Tristain responds, showing off his cravat. As this is a social situation, Tristain has nothing witty, smart, informative, funny, or leading to begin a normal conversation about…unless they want to talk about an obscure interest of his? Maybe they do….
Kyffin remains silent, letting Albert take the lead. But he remains close, and tries to keep his hands off his scimitar so he doesn't look threatening. Or at least not immediately threatening.
"Well, of cooourse," the woman seems to almost purr, eying you all. "I think they're playing music in the ballroom already. Would you like to dance? Perhaps we could make some music of our own?"
Tristain realizes suddenly that not only is she not wearing a cravat, but she is in fact showing all of her neck and a fair amount more flesh, including parts of her bosom.
The man -- who also lacks a cravat, but is otherwise wearing more concealing clothing -- doesn't seem to notice, or perhaps simply doesn't care about, her response, and nods as if in agreement. "I'm sure we can help you if you're lost. Is it the ballroom you're looking for then?"
"Yes, the ballroom, that seems like an appropriate place for dancing and music. How do we get there? Please don't trouble yourselves on our account, no need to show us the way, I'm sure we can find our way there with directions and we wouldn't want to interrupt your activities."Al hopes they can extract themselves before Lothan tries to make any music with the vampiress.
Tristain looks at the cravatless cretins with disdain. How do you attend a party like this without appropriate attire? It's scandalous.
"Well, of cooourse," the woman seems to almost purr, eying you all. "I think they're playing music in the ballroom already. Would you like to dance? Perhaps we could make some music of our own?"
Eyes going wide as soon as he immediately catches sight of the fancy looking hot chick, Lothan finds himself hearing nothing else said that doesn't come from the seductress. Shoving past the others quickly and rudely to make his way up next to her, "Well well well, who is this lovely creature before me? And for the record, I'm all about music. I just love me some music," he says, sporting an arrogant look and a grin to match before throwing her a wink.
"Oh, I'm Ovonda," the woman coos to Lothan. "And who are you? Perhaps we could go dance. The ballroom is just downstairs."
The man sighs. "Ovonda, I'm sure he's not interested in any such thing -- or at least not so early in the party. At any rate, I'm Ultor. I do apologize for my sister's forward behavior. And I'm sure it's no problem at all. This is quite the party, and spending it with people is what one does."
Looking back to the others with that smug grin of his, "The ballroom is downstairs, ladies and gents. And you're welcome. That's what I'm here for." He winks.
Turning back to Ovonda, he clears his throat, gives a slight, yet proper bow, and offers his hand for her to take before, "I am Lothan Robgard, milady Ovunda, at your service. It would be my honor to escort you to the ballroom if you will allow me the great pleasure," he says most eloquently as possible(as far as he's concerned anyway), his smile a fixture of complete confidence as he finds himself quite pleased with how excellent he was with his 'proper' talk.
Kyffin watches Lothan do his thing, and smiles, nearly laughs, but manages to contain himself.
He'll move back downstairs with the others to the ballroom.
Tristain will scan the area around the duo, especially past them into the back corridors, and then will follow Kyffin back downstairs.
When out of earshot, he will complain.
"Well, I guess those are the guards? I can probably get some of us to that second floor and around them, especially now that I've seen it, but not all of us, if that helps."
You all head back down to the ballroom, Ovonda hanging on Lothan's arm. "It's Ovonda, darling. Wherever is that accent from? I don't think I recognize it," she coos.
Entering, you find a large octagonal room with a domed ceiling that is twenty feet high at the center. Four marble pillars provide structural support and the floor is polished marble. Red silk ribbons are twined around the columns and tied in large bows to provide a festive appearance. Along the south wall, a wooden bandstand has been erected with a small set of steps. A set of double doors exits to the west.
Three human play instruments, while two more dance. The dancers are joined by two vampires who are also dancing and a horrific humanoid with its skin completely flensed from its form, revealing the violent pulsing of its massive, exposed muscles. No one else seems to notice anything odd about the three undead enjoying the music, you assume thanks to the curse you've been told about.
It's an ecorche.
Kyffin doesn't know religion well enough to even have a chance at knowing what the hell that thing is. And he's probably better off not knowing.
What he does know is that the sight of that dancing is going to linger in his head for some time. He hopes it does not overwhelm him.
As much to avoid the scene he moves to the double doors to the west, opens them, and steps aside (bowing slightly) for Al to enter.
Know (Religion)
"Oh yeah. That. That probably sucks," Tristain notes and explains the religious significance of the creature.
This brawny creature has had its skin completely flensed from its form, revealing the violent pulsing of its massive, exposed muscles.
[b]"Well, we probably, definitely don't to dance with that. In fact, I suggest we go back upstairs and try to deal with the guards who were disguised as common party guests, because that thing is full of ass.
Al is disgusted by the skinless creature and the vampires, but he stays on task trying to find the bard and the missing daughter. He slowly meanders around to the side of the stage and waits for a pause in the music to ask one of the musicians about the bard. "Hey, we heard a very talented bard was performing this evening, do you know when he will be arriving? Can we get a signed lute?"
Tristain knows the ecorche is hard to hurt with weapons, though magically good, silver weapons can do the job. Worse, he has a sinking feeling about what they can do in a fight, and is glad this one doesn't seem to realize its true identity. It rends foes with its vicious claws -- in the best case scenario, it just leaves them bleeding, but in the worst, it rips off their skin entirely, quickly killing them.
The musicians shrugs at Al's question, not seeming to know of anyone else coming. "Just us," he whispers.
Ultor seems intrigued, however. "A bard, you say? Is it Tobill Bin? I hear he's a very talented harpist. It would be quite the coup if Avaric was able to get him to come!"
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You all head back down to the ballroom, Ovonda hanging on Lothan's arm. "It's Ovonda, darling. Wherever is that accent from? I don't think I recognize it," she coos.
Smiling, "Ovanda. Great name. I like it." He gives her an impish wink. "It is Riddlepor...tian. Yes, Riddleportian. I'm from Riddleport. Third largest city in all of Varisia. Pretty far away from here... I think." He says, furrowing his brow in slight confusion. I'm not even sure where "here" is. Ah well. "Anyway, it doesn't really matter because I'm never going back. SO, where are you from, gorgeous?" he asks, quickly changing the subject.
"The city, of course," she says with a tinkling laugh. "Where else would anyone be from? At least anyone of importance! Would you care to dance?"
She looks out toward the center of the ballroom, where a couple dancers continue to move to the music.
Tristain backs away from Lothan and this dancing companion (vertical or horizontal), and stands by the wall to make sure it doesn’t fall down. He has no desire to dance. He thinks that they should go back up upstairs….well, anyplace is better than here with the undead monsters in the room.
Kyffin will hesitate in case Lothan wants to dance with this lot, but he too is keen to head back upstairs. He'll be a wall flower for now.
However, he moves back to the staircase when it's convenient to do so.
Even Starflit pauses, intrigued to see Lothan dance. Kind of like a witness to a spectacular horse-and-carriage wreck...she can't look away.
Even Starflit pauses, intrigued to see Lothan dance. Kind of like a witness to a spectacular horse-and-carriage wreck...she can't look away.
Tristain nods at some internal thought, an understanding and agreement that few would know of.
He agrees with something, that Lothan has a certain grace and panache, and sometimes even finds his mark when he aims his weapon, and most of the time the target is unwilling and probably unflattered by the attention. Tristain would want to see the peacock prance for it would surely be a rapt viewing.
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"The city, of course," she says with a tinkling laugh. "Where else would anyone be from? At least anyone of importance! Would you care to dance?"
She looks out toward the center of the ballroom, where a couple dancers continue to move to the music.
Bowing, "It would be my pleasure, milady." With his hand in hers, he escorts her out to the floor, places his other hand upon her hip, and moves his body right against hers to where not even an inch of light is able to escape between them. Looking deep into her undead eyes, (which literally never even crosses Lothan's mind), "Don't you worry about a thing, gorgeous, I'm light on my feet and can move like a midsummer's night breeze," he winks, dancing smoothly and awesomely to the music - at least in his mind - while unconcerned about any music tempo. Mainly because it's not about the tempo to Lothan, it's simply about... THE DANCE!
As the rest of the group watches, even if they don't really want to, Lothan and Ovonda dance around the room. After a couple of songs, she whispers to him, "It looks like your friends want to go back upstairs. Should we go too? Maybe we can find a room and have a little private time?"
Ultor, perhaps fortunately, doesn't seem to hear his sister's question.
Raising an eyebrow and smiling wickedly, "I think that is an excellent idea, gorgeous." Taking her by the hand, he looks to the others and states quite clearly, "Upstairs we go, team! Burning daylight here. Or nightlight. Or whatever. Let's just go." Lothan immediately heads upstairs, leading Ovonda along the way.
The group, with Ovonda and Ultor tagging along, returns upstairs, where Ovonda heads to the door at the top of the stairs. Opening it, she reveals a guest room with a bed, small table, and wardrobe. "Well, all of you enjoy the party, and Lothan and I will see you later," she coos, pulling the half-elf in.
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Boy does Kyffin think this is a bad idea, but it's not his business what someone does with their body.
He shrugs, and proceeds to search the other rooms... though he keeps an ear open for the screams of combat.
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"Have fun!" Starflit tells Lothan and Ovonda. To Lothan she adds in a whisper. "Remember to use protection. I recommend garlic."
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As the party proceeds to the other rooms Al fixes Starflit with a serious gaze. "If there was ever a time to Not use your eyes and ears of the city this would be it."
As she pulls him in, he quickly looks to the others and waggles his eyebrows, saying, "Ta-ta, all." He does manage a curious look at Starflit's words before shrugging it off and throwing her a wink.
"Have fun!" Starflit tells Lothan and Ovonda. To Lothan she adds in a whisper. "Remember to use protection. I recommend garlic."
Tristain likewise turns away and wishes Lothan the best. He wasn’t sure Lothan would ever find someone who would enjoy his company, but notes that usually the dead would be his first thought of a group that might. He just didn’t think it would be the walking dead, and even then, it was going to be a fine line.
However, Tristain knows his purpose here at the party (outside of flashing his fancy cravat), and that’s to support Kyffin in finding the lady. He follow Kyffin and helps with the search.
First checking the central area, you find another empty bedroom -- this one leading to a private bath (perhaps making some of you wonder why Ovonda didn't take Lothan there) -- and a lounge . A billiards table occupies the center of this carpeted room, with cues standing in a rack mounted on a nearby wall. Plush, overstuffed chairs sit in the northeast and northwest corners. A sideboard with rows of glasses rests against the west wall.
Two vampire guests are here, enjoying a bit of sport and friendly wagering. "Well," one exclaims as you enter, "maybe there will be some real competition here. What do you say? Give Nellin here a break and me a challenge?"
Ovonda gives you a toothy smile as she turns and closes the door behind you. "Let's just lock this, so no one interrupts us," she purrs. She comes up and takes your bow. "We'll just leave this here by the door? That's not your weapon I'm interested in."
Assuming you don't object, she starts undressing you.
"What's the wager and what's the game?" Kyffin asks curiously - furiously trying hard not to think of Lothan naked.
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Tristain feels a completely imaginary pang of regret, almost as if he had read something that he should never have read. A sharp pain hits his gut, and he will not learn from this.
Tristain follows Kyffin and tries to keep out of the way while everybody tries to clear their mind from all the unwelcome and intrusive thoughts that might be there.
Tristain examines the game, trying to see if there is some way that he can help or advice he can offer to improve Kyffin’s odds.
Intelligence
"How about 5 golds, if that's not too rich for you," the man says, sizing Kyffin up. "The game's called billiards. You try to use the stick, to hit the one ball, to get the other balls into the holes in the table. Care to give it a try?
"I'm Varujan," by the way.
Ultor leans back against a wall to watch the game.
Things are going really well for Lothan -- maybe the best they've been since he went into the Mysterium what feels like years ago. He's sure Starflit is probably jealous, but she had her chances. He's down to his underclothes, and definitely enjoying as Ovonda starts nuzzling his neck. Right up until he suddenly realizes she's sinking her fangs into it!
"Grace really isn't my thing." Kyffin laughs, "Brute force is more my thing. But sure, for the pleasure of it!"
He plunks down 5gp and does what he can to not crack the balls as he shoots.
(ACP, 'cause he is not taking off his armor!)
(ACP)
He grins with his opening, feeling confident that maybe he's not as bad as he feared. On his second round though, it becomes clear to him that he didn't in fact do well the first time, and he did really horribly the second time!
He watches for his quick demise, as he waits on the other to shoot.
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Tristain watches Kyffing futz around, wondering where Lothan might be when his ball and stick handling skills might actually be appreciated.