Samuel's hand doesn't stray far from the stock of his musket as he watches Llewellyn talk. His eyes keep flicking between the tall, shimmering figure and the two women behind it.
When the bard finishes his line, Samuel speaks up, his tone dry and edged with suspicion "That's it, Nagubel the Ineffable..." he says, giving the name a wry twist "The lady of the house is... otherwise occupied, and we somehow got our asses involved in some sort of dragon wars. So now, if you would let us, we have our hands busy with that topic and cannot care for whatever business you have with our patron"
The figure cock it's 'head' to one side, the cowl moving and the little lights within swirling, "Ah...as I mentioned earlier, you couch your words with caution. Very sensible, for the truth is a currency all it's own, not one should bandy about with abandon. Still, my needs are pressing...where is that house spirit. Ah! There you are!" it says, its voice continuing its traversal of various octaves and tones, as it sees Zorka half disappeared into a nearby wall.
"Come!" Nagubel commands, and Zorka emerges and drifts swiftly to stand demurely before the strange creature. "These worthies prevaricate on the current whereabouts of our Dear Baba Yaga, enlighten me on your understanding of her situation."
Zorka shudders a bit, "She's gone! Disappeared! They search for her..." she says, indicating the party grouped behind her.
With a gesture of dismissal, Nagubel takes a step back, looking up and down at the Hut, "Disappeared....but not dead, as the Hut's continued existence shows. "
It then turns to the doorway, Zorka disappearing herself into the floor, where Samuel, Llewllyn and Letitia stand, "Do you search for her...truly? Speak plainly and truthfully, I have not the time for games. "
Naguble didn't believe you or Samuel. Though alien you sense no falsehood coming from it. It merely wishes to know where Baba Yaga is.
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Letitia dares to hope when Nagubel sees through their deception yet commends their caution. Zorka's confession upends her hope that they could convince these beings to leave, so she could only trust that the truth will not doom them.
"I appreciate your understanding of our caution. We do seek to find the Mother of Witches, my grandmother. I am Jadwiga, child of Irrisen and loyal to the White Throne -- if not the current queen who is past her time. Elvanna has somehow overthrown Baba Yaga. My companions and I follow the breadcrumb trail left by Grandmother, from the Golarion nation of Taldor, to Irrisen's capital Whitethrone, and to the fortress of Artrosia. It has been a journey fraught with dangers of all kinds, from capricious fey to agents of Queen Elvanna to worshippers of Kostchtchie. We have overcome much, which should speak well of our capabilities. "
She pauses, watching Nagubel's reaction while her hand grips Emberchill tighter. "We also have little time for games. Queen Elvanna threatens to place all of Golarion under an eternal winter. Aid, we will accept, but hindrance will be unwelcome."
Still not sure how their patron is going to play this, Thashara is reasonably certain that it's not going to come to blows in the immediate future.
That doesn't mean that the situation isn't filled with challenges to be met and overcome - battle exists in many forms. She sizes up the three individuals, biting her lips slightly as possibilities occupy her thoughts.
Rising again to her tiptoes, she leans in to her companion.
Samuel exhales through his nose, lowering the musket a fraction but not taking his eyes off the towering figure "Yeah, we are looking for her. Not that we wanted, but we have seen us forced to save our lands. The trail she left behind is cold, but it's all we've got, and it's led us through enough frozen hells already to make me think those Qadiran deserts are not that much ill"
He gestures with his chin toward the Nagubel "You said you were her friend once. Maybe you know something we don't, or maybe you just want something from her. Either way, we're after the same woman. So unless you're here to make our day worse, how about you tell us what business the 'Ineffable' has with Baba Yaga?"
He lets a wry grin touch his lips as he looks at her two companions "Could be you're the first useful visitor this Hut's had in a while"
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He lets a wry grin touch his lips as he looks at her two companions "Could be you're the first useful visitor this Hut's had in a while"
A pale shade of pink dusts the blue-haired girl's cheeks and she moves slightly behind her taller companion. She continues to peer out from behind the warrior woman, shyly meeting Samual's eyes.
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Letitia's nostrils flare as she feels a surge of exasperation mixed with an anger she can't quite explain when Samuel flirts with the female companions. The blushing of the blue-white girl further raises her ire for unknown reasons.
Letitia resists the urge to glare at the gunman, instead fixing her attention on Nagubel. "As he said. You could be most useful in our endeavors to find Baba Yaga and restore the natural order of things. What say you?"
"You would." Natalya replies, her hair rippling into a deep red as she watches the hut's occupants speaking to Nargubel in a way that only the truly ignorant would. It's refreshing.
The sight of Thashara hiding behind her when the bearded man looks at her makes Natalya smirk but she stays rooted to the spot and lets Icicle hide behind her. It's not the first time she's played the intimidating 'bad girl' in the tiefling's seduction routine - although the first few times she hadn't been acting at all. Icicle's 'innocent maiden' act is definitely an act but even Natty, who has known her for much too long, can admit that she does the act very well.
And the Winter Witch doesn't like it... Natty has enough willpower not to bounce up and down in the snow but it's a close run thing. She hasn't been able to watch a nice romantic drama play out for ages!
"I hope we get to stay." She murmurs.
"Yeah, we are looking for her. Not that we wanted but we have seen us forced to save our lands."
"Indeed. I for one would prefer if Golorion wasn't turned into a giant ice cube..." muttered Llewellyn.
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Nagubel listens as the truth of the matter is told, it's cowl'd body 'nodding' along as the particulars of Baba Yaga's situation is revealed.
"Tsk, tsk...I had warned your Grand Mother of the risks she faced meddling in the lives, nay, generations of mortals. But...she did as she wanted. Overthrown...and most likely imprisoned. Not an endeavor lightly undertaken by this Elvanna. But the old Witch lives still...most difficult to slay one such as she. So, worry not. Follow her 'breadcrumbs', for they were most assuredly laid with great care, they will most surely lead you to her. " it says distractedly.
"It is a shame she is indisposed, for I needed her counsel. Still, there are others nearby I can consult. I believe Tar-Baphon is still imprisoned on Golarion. It is there I shall venture next!" it declares.
It then pauses, as if thinking, "You asked for my aid. Would that I could provide it, but I have interrupted a vital work of enchantment to travel here for the old Witch's advice, and must hurry on to Golarion to annoy the lich-king. But, I will leave these two worthies to assist you. They are talented in their own ways, if you can tolerate their incessant bickering. " Nagubel says with what you're certain in a measure of affection, as it gestures to the two ladies standing behind it.
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"What."
Letitia's usual quick mind stalls at Nagubel's outlandish claims and its sudden extension of aid in the form of its two companions. The mercurial alien being defied common logic.
She nearly opens her mouth to decline the assistance of the two unknown women, but stops herself. She had asked for aid after all, and declining what was offered was rude even though she had hoped he would move them farther along the breadcrumb trail instead of adding two more bodies to their retinue. Aid asked for she would have to accept. However, she wonders about their motives and reliability.
"I see. Are they... under a geas or some obligation to you that you can pass to us?"
Thashara steps back out from behind her companion and clasping her weapon behind her back with both hands, approaches Letitia.
"Nagu's always making jokes," she declares with a soft smile. "Natty and I have a relationship akin to sisterhood. And sisters sometimes disagree about things. Isn't that right, Natty?"
Up close, Letitia can see that Thashara's crystal blue eyes are clouded at the center, enhancing her air of innocence. Her head tips down slightly and she looks up at the witch through her lashes.
"I think we'll have a lot of fun working together. If you haven't guessed which of us is which, I'm Thashara," she says in a quiet voice. "What's your name?"
Letitia's eyes narrow at Thashara; the innocent-seductress technique wholly ineffective against her. She arches an eyebrow when their closer proximity allows her to spot the milky cloud over the newcomer's irises.
I've seen that before, she recalls.
"I am Letitia," she says, keeping her voice cold and folding her arms. "This task we have undertaken is not 'fun'. I've already spoken of the types of threats we've overcome thus far, and I've every expectation that what lay before us will be just as harrowing, if not more so."
"Case in point, we're being prevailed upon to get involved in a war... Personally I'd rather not." murmured Llewellyn.
"You don't trust me," Thashara says with a slight nod and her eyes drop to her feet. "That's understandable. You've only just met me and my Abyssal heritage is off-putting. I don't blame you." She looks back up at the witch and her lips turn up into a warm smile. "That's okay. We'll be the best of friends in no time, you'll see."
She turns away, spinning her long weapon in her hands and actually skips towards the doorway, peering inside the magical hut in a pose of exaggerated curiosity.
"Since we're going to be staying for a while will we be sharing rooms? 'Cause Natty snores something fierce."
"Not that she'd know because she finds someone else's bed to sleep in most nights." Natalya adds, apparently unperturbed by Nargubel handing them over like a gift-basket. "We can fight. Icicle thinks she's good at it and I actually am. But she has good magic so she's still useful."
The smirk which the last line is delivered with seems very sisterly - the teasing, get-under-your-skin kind of sisterly.
Samuel gives a short chuckle, resting the musket on his shoulder "Maybe its you who shouldn't be so quick to trust, miss. Around here, the friendliest smiles usually come with fangs"
He tilts his head toward Letitia, his gaze calm but edged with a faint smirk "Take our witch here, looks all refinement and cold logic, but cross her and you'll find out she's far deadlier than she lets on"
The tone is light, almost teasing, but the warning beneath it rings true.
Turning back to the two newcomers, Samuel's expression hardens "Now, if you still mean to join this merry band, you'd better know what you're in for. No salary, bad food, long marches through frozen nightmares, and the occasional dragon or eldritch horror for company. Chances of survival are poor, chances of fame even worse. But if you're after purpose, well, you might just find it"
He gives a small nod, almost a salute with his chin "Welcome aboard"
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Nagubel claps it's 'hands' together, "Ah, it warms my 'Ineffable' heart, you are sure to become bosom friends!" it pipes in its odd voice.
It turns and regard's Thashara and Natalya, "Aid them in their...no, now your quest. Find my friend, the universe would be a poorer place should Baba Yaga pass out of it! " it intones solemly, then raises it's staff half threateningly, "But do come back whole, you represent a considerable investment in my valuable time and attention! " it says in an earnest, lightly trumpeting voice, before continuing more subdued, "It would cause me some distress to lose either of you, so..." it says, leaving the obvious unsaid.
It then turns back to the Hut entrance, "I must be away, then! My labors await...and I've been gone too long now. Where was I going next... ah, yes Golarion, Ustalav, I think it's called."
With a wave of it's staff, it turns and trudges down the steps, pausing beside Thashara and Natalya, saying lowly, "Do take care, my dears."
Letitia remains still as an ice sculpture, not responding to the talk of future friendships. A friend is someone to whom you've given the knife they will eventually use against you, her mother had cautioned long ago. Friends betray one another, and the one betrayed never sees it coming. There is no place for friendship within the Jadwiga. Letitia brings her mother's lessons to the forefront of her mind now as Thashara and Nagubel promises they'll become best friends.
A smile and a promise of friendship is more deadly than a knife to the throat.
Letitia smiles back.
Llewellyn watched for a long moment as Nagubel trudged away and once it had gone he shook his head and said softly, "Well that's something that doesn't happen every day..."
More loudly he asked the others, "Well I guess we need to decide, are actually we going to the aid of Spurhorn? I'm not sure I really want to get tangled up with somebody else's war, but what other option do we have?"
Samuel gives a short chuckle, resting the musket on his shoulder "Maybe its you who shouldn't be so quick to trust, miss. Around here, the friendliest smiles usually come with fangs"
"Are you sure we haven't met before?" Thashara questions, an inquisitive finger pressing against her chin and her smile revealing teeth that display the literal truth in Samuel's words.
More loudly he asked the others, "Well I guess we need to decide, are actually we going to the aid of Spurhorn? I'm not sure I really want to get tangled up with somebody else's war, but what other option do we have?"
"But wars are rife with opportunities," the tiefling declares. "The timeless struggle between good and evil. Matching strength against strength to determine at the end of the day who is the stronger. Wits against wits. Weapons against weapons. Magic against magic. It's only in the heat of conflict that one strips away the masks we all wear and reveals our true selves to the world. Our sins and our selflessness both." She closes her eyes for a moment, basking in the slight rush of adrenaline. "And you can never beat the after action tumble," she adds, opening her eyes to give Letitia a wink.
She turns her gaze back to Llewellyn. "So who is this Spurhorn and how do we get to his war?"
"Point proven" Samuel gives a small nod of acknowledgment to fangs an all "Reckon we'll get along just fine, so long as you keep those teeth pointed at the other monsters"
He leans his musket over his shoulder, and looks over at Llewellyn "As for Spurhorn... I agree it is not our war, but it seems the only road left open. I say we go to the appointed meeting, assess the current situation, then decide our way forward"
A quick glance toward Letitia, his voice lowering just a touch "So unless someone's got a better plan that doesn't end in frostbite or fire, I say we get moving. Probably lend Spurhorn a hand. Maybe we even live long enough to regret it"
"I'll do what you do." Natalya says with a shrug. "Naggy didn't give us much other choice and Icicle is going to go find a battle just so she can get off. I'm stuck with fighting either way, so might as well fight for someone who actually helps. This will help, right?"
Once the group moves off Natalya slowly adjusts her pace until she's walking next to Letitia. Walking beside the tall woman is quite pleasant (for most people) in this weather, she radiates palpable warmth, making the freezing air something close to balmy.
"You don't trust us and I get why. You don't know us, where we came from or what we want and Icicle is already flirting with your men. She's not a demon but she is... a lot. So ask. I'll tell you whatever I can. If nothing else we're stuck here until Naggy comes to get us or you let us come into the hut with you so you have the power here." Her dark face is open and guileless as cold blue eyes meet warm brown ones. "Seriously, what do you want to know?"
A quick glance toward Letitia, his voice lowering just a touch "So unless someone's got a better plan that doesn't end in frostbite or fire, I say we get moving. Probably lend Spurhorn a hand. Maybe we even live long enough to regret it"
Letitia sighs and shakes her head. "We still have some number of hours to wait for the merchant to return with your purchases."
When Natalya invites questions, too many come to mind. She sifts through them to find the most important. "There is much I wish to know," she replies. "But only a few questions are necessary. How are you beholden to Nagubel? How do you feel about fighting for a cause that is imposed upon you?"
"Naggy decided that we were." Natalya says with a shrug. "If Baba Yaga said you were going to work for her, could you refuse? We were in the same place at the same time and they found it amusing. We couldn't say no. Then Icicle saved my life, I saved hers a bit afterwards and..." She trails off with a shrug. "I couldn't leave her now. Even if Naggy let us go, which they won't. Thashara always reminds me I'm not smart and I'm not, but Naggy won't ever let us go. I know that." She looks rather grim for a moment, her hair turning the deep red of dying flames.
"Fighting is fine. Icicle and I both like fighting. She likes the conflict, likes winning when everything is on the line. I... things are much simpler when I'm fighting. I like that. No worries, no right or wrong. Just living and staying that way. So we'll fight for you. Naggy said we have to anyway."
She shrugs, looking up at the vast wintery sky.
"Ever wished you could just sprout wings and fly away? Leave everything behind and fly so high that the world just... I think it would be nice sometimes."
"No," Letitia replies bluntly. "Wings would be unwieldy and inefficient."
Another question finds its way to the top. "You were introduced as Natalya Orinsdottir. That surname sounds derived from Ulfen naming conventions. Are you from the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, on Golarion?"
Llewellyn watches this exchange with unabashed interest, he already had enough material for one play, perhaps there would be another, or maybe even a novel. He liked that idea, who would Golorion know these people as, would they they heroes or villains or perhaps a bit of both.
With a wry chuckle he added, "The problem with flying is you always have to come back down to earth, sometimes harder than you intended..."
Another question finds its way to the top. "You were introduced as Natalya Orinsdottir. That surname sounds derived from Ulfen naming conventions. Are you from the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, on Golarion?"
"My parents were Ulfen Guard in Taldor." Natalya replies. "One of the princes went to Thuvia to purchase a Sun Orchid and my parents were in his guard. He ran out of money so they were left behind and they stayed."
It's an answer and again she doesn't seem to be lying, but there are some vast unexplained areas - mostly concerning how two, presumably blonde and pale parents could have a daughter who looks like Natalya.
Letitia nods in understanding. The Ulfen diaspora across Golarion was, of course, rooted in the Winter War when Baba Yaga invaded their lands to form the nation of Irrisen.
"So you are from Golarion, then. I am also from there. Irrisen, to be exact, although I can say with certainty that my story began in Taldor."
With pleasantries out of the way, she turns to more practical matters. "Can you speak Draconic? The natives of this planet favor that tongue. The clue we have from Baba Yaga is that we must procure a two-headed eagle from the commander of a fortress called Spurhorn, which requires us to assist in breaking the siege that surrounds it. If you like fighting as you say, you will get your wish."
"I hate waiting," Thashara declares with a roll of her eyes. "I wanna do something."
She leans her weapon against a nearby wall carelessly and flounces into a rough chair. Pulling a tattered deck of cards from a tooled leather bag, she riffles the cards in her hands.
"Anyone know how to play 'Cripple's Gambit'," she asks hopefully.
"Sun Orchid Elixir, huh? That's no small errand. Your prince must've had deep pockets, or the kind of ambition that makes men forget how much gold they've got left"
Resting his musket against the wall, Samuel pulls up a seat near Thashara, giving the deck of cards a skeptical look "Cripple’s Gambit, you said? Can't say I've played it. But since we're stuck waiting for our friendly neighborhood merchant to finish his errands, I suppose I can risk a few coins and my pride"
Llewellyn raises an eyebrow at the mention of sun orchids and starts humming a tune.
The talk of playing cards has Letitia's eyes rolling. "If you want something to do, it would be advisable to find Bescalylie so that you could make plans to break through the siege around Spurhorn. She should be able to give us the numbers and types of foes that we would have to defeat or bypass in order to gain entrance."
"Right... planning instead of cards. Sensible" Samuel taps a knuckle on the table once before standing, slinging the musket back over his shoulder "And the sooner we know what sort of army is waiting outside Spurhorn, the sooner we can decide who gets to do the stupid heroics and who gets to brag they warned us not to"
Taking a few steps toward the path out of the hut, he nods toward Thashara's abandoned deck "Hold onto those cards, though. If we survive the briefing, I'm still learning Cripple's Gambit. Long as you promise not to hex the deck if I start winning"
He gives Letitia a brief, knowing look as he passes her "Alright then. Let's go find our scout and see what kind of trouble we're walking into"
Llewellyn nodded "Yes, lets get this over and done with." He followed shortly behind Mr Samuel, wondering just what they where getting themselves into.