Zalika notes the absence of two of their party, and decides to make a push to attempt one of her goals for the day, seeing an opportunity. "Aramus, would you know of a place where I could find an acceptable place of worship for Ptah. Obviously I am aware that perhaps in this city, other deities might hold greater stay, but I assume that with such a diverse conference tomorrow, in this global city, there would be some measures in place that would allow me to achieve this goal."
Zalika pauses, giving Aramus time to answer her question, before giving the others a slightly guilty look. "I apologise for requesting an activity that others might not find as interesting as I do, but considering the circumstances, a little bit of divine guidance never really hurt anyway. If anyone wants to come with me, you are welcome, but I completely understand if each of you wish to seek guidance from your own patrons, or if you have other plans."
Triel snorts. "Deskari happened. His ascension drew many followers to his side, and they started a civil war that divided Zirnakaynin."
Aramus had begun simply leading the group around the Avenue, not really wanting to leave a charge behind in the costume shop--although not fully privy to its secrets, as a hotspur, Aramus knew at least vaguely of its potential dangers--so Zalika's suggestion is a welcome one. "Ah, an Osirian god! Right this way, my lady, and right this way to the others as well! A stop-off for some guidance is always a welcome diversion, am I right? If anyone else needs a temple pointed out, let me know--like you, master kobold!" The big man rubs his beard for a moment in thought. "Apsu, is it? I think he'd be... that way? No..."
"Me, I think I'll tag along to visit... Ta, is it? I always enjoy learning about new gods." He grins and claps his hands. "So what say we take some time to see the sights here and talk with our divine patrons. Meet back by the Cathedral in, oh, half an hour?"
Maximo perks his fringes up as Aramus directs him towards the holy site for Apsu worshippers. He didn't even think there would be such a place in Absalom with all the other big followings of deities, but if a place to speak with the Waybringer was present, he couldn't very well pass it up.
Bidding the rest of the group farewell, Maximo and Ryx will head that way and see what they can find. Perhaps another vision... or at the very least, guidance to what he should do.
Zalika heads to the Temple of Ptah, and walks briskly through the threshold. Zalika remembers back when she was early in her studies, that the priests delighted her by manufacturing small trinkets, items, toys, at the same time expressing their devotion to Ptah, but times had changed significantly since then, and most of the creativity these days had been spent on new weapons for war.
Zalika kneels quietly and says a quick prayer, asking for favor from her patron in the negotiations ahead, she she could achieve her goals and achieve her primary mission. As always, she also quietly pleaded for guidance in finding a more permanent solution into stopping the spread of evil into hopefully allowing an opportunity to return the world back to balance.
Stepping inside, he was surprised to find the place attended by only one priest... and a softskin at that! No, no, that was a bad word. An elderly human. Nevertheless, Maximo approached the old man and bowed, Ryx slinking along and following suit in a respectful lowering of his head. "Indeed, experienced one. I am Maximo... the next Talon of Apsu, and this is Ryx, my guide. I believe Apsu has given me a vision... and it troubles me. Not so much at what it may mean, but... I don't really know what it means." Maximo detailed everything he could recall about the dreams he had and what he believed it meant. However, once finished, he looks at the floor in silence, hesitating to continue.
"...wise one... even if I knew what this vision meant... how do I do anything with it? I mean... I've met some very kind folk thanks to Ryx, but... I feel like even they don't really believe what I'm saying. How am I supposed to convince anyone else of the truth? I... I'm grateful that Ryx saved my life, and that Apsu deems me worthy of being his Talon, but... I feel like this task would be better suited to someone more... imposing. Convincing." He looked at the ground again. "...bigger. Or at least someone with more skill than me. I mean... I'm no bold warrior, I have no knack for trapmaking or shaman practices, no sorcery to wield. I don't have courage or cunning or even good self-control. I was just a miner for our tribe... and when danger showed up, I ran away. I couldn't even stand up for the good of my small tribe... how can I stand up on behalf of the whole world?"
Maximo stared silently at the ground as Ryx watched, circling around the old man before brushing against the kobold's side. Maximo shook his head. "I don't want to let Apsu down... but I feel this task is too great for me. I... I feel like... like Apsu has set me up to fail..."
He looks up at a towering statue of Apsu build over the alter. "I believe... I believe that Apsu sees in you what he cannot gain from his more powerful servants. Mighty dragons might hold humans in awe and command respect, but they each have their own goals, their own duties to fulfill. Even the great warriors and shamans of your people's tribes seek their own glory, whether it be through battle, or wit, or spiritual knowledge. Yet it is the simplest of us all that has the purest of hearts. You were but a miner, one who had no desire for glory, or power, or fame. So Apsu chose you because he knew that you would carry the burden of the mission he placed on you for no reason other than because it must be done. Even if you are afraid, you are here now, are you not?"
He sets a gentle hand on Maximo's shoulder. "So do not fear. The Waybringer can see, as I believe I see, that you have a pure heart, one that will grow through challenges and become strong and full. Never forget little one, even the smallest person can change the course of the future."
"Yes, I do" Zalika responds softly, giving the priest the traditional gesture of respect."With the conference tomorrow, I feel that some wisdom would be most welcome as a means of preparation for this task. Any assistance or guidance Ptah could offer me would be extremely welcome."
Acharn get a grim look on his face at Triel's comment, her tales of division reminds him of his own home. First they destroy our nation, then they destroy themselves. Leave it to the Drow to bring nothing but destruction. Still, Triel here haven't destroyed anything yet. The elf decides it's better to speak of it than remain still, despite it being a sensitive topic. If he wants to get closer to her they can't be talking about the weather. "Seems like we've both had our homes torn apart. I know what that is like. Civil war is brutal though, who to blame? Your own people?"
When Aramus suggests that they go visit various temples Acharn responds. "I've already said my prayers for the day earlier. It would be strange to go right back into the temple." He looks toward Triel again. "Do you have any deity you favor?"
"Seems like we've both had our homes torn apart. I know what that is like. Civil war is brutal though, who to blame? Your own people?"
"Oh, there are a whole host of things to blame for it." Triel sighs in resignation. "But the two biggest causes are the jealousy of the other demon lords and the aristocracy's crippling obsession with power."
"The younger, less well-known Houses pled allegiance to Deskari for many things--power, prestige, a chance to strike back at old rivals. Many of the Great Twelve found themselves allying with each other to stand against such a powerful upstart on the board. And I imagine others simply chose to go into hiding until the conflict settles." She wrinkles her nose and shields her eyes from an errant ray of sunlight.
"So what say we take some time to see the sights here and talk with our divine patrons. Meet back by the Cathedral in, oh, half an hour?"
"If you wish." Triel finds a bench to sit on.
"Do you have any deity you favor?"
Triel just shakes her head.
Most interesting. I had not expected to learn so much about what have happened in Drow society right away. They worship demon lords! No wonder they came up with such a catastrophic plan for Kyonin. Acharn is quite pleased with the progress so far, even if his face doesn't show it. He might not have gotten all that much closer to Triel, but at least he got her talking and he learned about the Drow in the process. "So what side was your house on? What happened to make you abandon the Drow completely and rather seek to join the Free Nations Alliance? Hmm... Speaking about the alliance, I do have quite a few contacts there. I was planning to meet up with them later."
"Thank you, experienced one. I will try... I just hope I won't fail." Ryx bowed his head as Maximo knelt before the statue, head lowered and offering a prayer to the Waybringer. All he asked was that he be given the power when he needed it to... do whatever it was he needed to do. Standing back up, Maximo nodded back to the priest. "I should return to my companions. I think they said some of the conference would begin today... perhaps I can get someone there to hear me out.... I hope..."
As Maximo headed back for the exit, Ryx took a moment to look up at the priest and eye him for a moment, before nodding his head in respect and moving to catch up with his partner.
Maximo returned a little while later to the cathedral, Ryx behind him (for a change), as he looked about for the rest of his new companions.
As the party reconvenes in front of the towering Cathedral once again, they find that the crowds have become rather thick, though not by choice. A squad of knights in black spiked armor have taken positions around the Chelaxian building and are forcing the crowds to give the entire front area a wide berth. Though the crowds are thick, you can easily make out several people coming out of the front of the building. The first is a slightly gaunt man with bags under his eyes. The second is abnormally tall, over six feet and managing to beat out even Aramus on height. His body is entirely covered in a red robe, but as he moves black spines are visible emerging from his back and a crown of horns can be seen around his head. His skin even has a reddish hue to it. A ring of scroll cases decorates his belt, carrying who knows how many rolls of parchment.
Zalika watches interestedly at the commotion, noting the presence of the Chelaxian diplomats. Part of her is slightly surprised that the diplomats need such a large escort, purely due to the size of one of them, but nevertheless, she silently plants herself in the path of the two of them. Father Makar had instructed her that the more allies they had, the more secure their position would be, and Zalika had no intention of shirking her duty.
"Greetings delegates, I'm Zalika, one of the delegates from Osirion, and I would be honored to accompany the two of you, perhaps learn how the current situation has affected Cheliax. Sadly, foreign news has been rather limited of late".
As Zalika speaks, she runs the two figures through her mind, trying to figure out if she could remember who they were, remembering names were so much better than relying on other people to tell them yourself.
"Seems the rumors of Cheliax bringing along a contract devil for the negotiations are more fact than fiction," Jonathan says as he exits the shop, watching as the man and fiend move through the veritable sea of armored knights. "And what looks like an entire contingent of Hellknights. Nothing less than what I expected. But this cannot be for protection alone; Cheliax is determined to make a show of force here, and so far it seems that they've succeeded. Now if only the Thassilonians would walk through the Ascendant Court in full regalia as well." Spying a few members of the group standing near the cathedral, Jonathan makes his way to them, package underneath his arm.
"Seems the Chellish have somewhere to be," he says, nonchalantly as he almost appears behind Acharn and Triel. "I wonder where he and the devil must be off to. The conference doesn't begin in full until tomorrow."
Maximo stood waiting for the others, when he felt an unshakable chill wash over him and nearly make him dizzy. Ryx crouched, hissing angrily in the direction of Cheliax's respite as the pair of figures departed. Swallowing hard, Maximo looked to see who was approaching, fighting the urge to sit down.
This... this was true evil. He couldn't identify them, but the malicious spite was thick in the air.
The gaunt man was not so much the problem as it was the tall hooded figure. He could feel it... this was a devil, and decidedly one not to be trifled with. Not that any devil was to be trifled with, but he knew what they were capable of. His old tribe had a shaman who had an imp as his confidante... he never liked the nasty thing. It always had this sneer about it, that made it seem like it knew more than it was letting on. It was always wise to mistrust the dastards, even if they were pretending to help you.
Zalika, however, seemed intent on building some kind of connection with the pair. That... that was bad. In the back of his mind, Maximo quietly wondered if this was part of the darkness from his vision. If that were true... he had to follow the duo. They couldn't be allowed to roam free. Maximo and Ryx moved behind Zalika, but remained silent (save for Ryx's growling as his hair stood on end). Maximo didn't know what he could do if he wanted to stop the creature... but by Apsu, he couldn't leave him be. Not without being anxious about it!
As Zalika approaches the embassy, two of the guards calmly step closer together, barring her from walking right up to the man and his devilish companion. She gets a better look at him and he looks a bit familiar, but of the countless ministers, lawyers, and governors in Cheliax, she can't place his face precisely. "Keep back," one of the black dressed knights says with a gruff voice. The man and the devil both look her way as they hear her call out to them.
"Hold a moment," the man calls out to his guards. "She speaks the truth. Let her through. She and her... servants I suppose, are welcome to accompany us as long as they remain respectful." The devil just stares at the party in silence, judging them by whatever standards a denizen of Hell might use for a chance encounter.
""So what side was your house on? What happened to make you abandon the Drow completely and rather seek to join the Free Nations Alliance?"
"We were split down the middle." Triel's tone turns icy. "And that's all you'll ever need to know."
--------------------------Triel rankles at the sight of the devil and the Chelaxian entourage, but keeps her mouth shut, even as the head of the delegation indirectly refers to her as a servant.
At least I'm not a slave of Hell, surfacer.
Zalika winces at the chelaxian diplomat's casual comment about her companions and attempts to diplomatically repair the situation. "Ah, these people here are representatives of the various factions here, rather like you and I. You are quite right though, usually I would have servants in my presence, but I left them behind after travelling here...sometimes being surrounded by so many people makes my thoughts so crowded. That said, I confess that you have me at a slight disadvantage, you know who I am but while I know of you, and the nature of your companion here, I unfortunately remain unaware of your name, and would prefer to rectify this unforgivable oversight on my part"
The diplomat clearly doesn't care that much if you call them servants or not, though he seems to recognize Archan a few moments later, acknowledging his presence with a nod. "Of course." His voice is almost unnaturally smooth. "I am Mephiston Thrune, the representative of Cheliax for this meeting."
"It's a pleasure to meet you ambassador" Zalika responds, making an appropriate. Cheliax gesture of respect before continuing on. "I must confess however, to being interested in why you are here at this conference. With most of us, it's slightly more clear what we all want, but compared with the rest of us, Cheliax appears to be on a secure position?"
The ambassador inclines his head to Zalika in response to her curtsy. "Practicality Lady Caliana. Demons are the very anathema of the servants of Hell that my people have allied with. Allowing them to grow too strong or spread their chaos across the world further would be unacceptable."
Allies of convenience, then. Perhaps the worst kind. Triel folds her arms and remains silent for now. Still, Zalika has things well in hand. Best not to upstage her and risk ruining things.
"So you would be open to entering into an alliance of some kind between one or more nations?" Zalika asks curiously turning over the prospect in her mind, before glancing at the contract devil alongside her. "With specific conditions attached I would assume"
"We're no isolationist," Mephiston says. "And if we were not willing to work with other nations, I doubt I would have been sent here. If you have... specific concerns, then perhaps we should talk somewhere more private. The street is hardly the best place to discuss political ties between our nations."
Zalika flushs slightly, her interest blinding her to the rather obvious location she was in. " I have no objection to a private meeting at a suitably private locaton, did you have somewhere specific on mind?" she enquires curiously.
"I would suggest we go inside. My office is in the embassy here. I believe it would be a much better place to speak."
"Then by all means, feel free to lead onwards" Zalika responds quietly, stepping to one side and allowing the diplomat to take the lead and provide the proper direction to the office.
"Do you have to do this now?" Triel finally decides to speak up.
"Milady." Maximo spoke up finally. He'd been silent on his part, intent on not letting the devil out of his sight and not wanting to mess up things for her. But the notion of her making any sort of deal with these... beings was something he protested greatly.
"I understand you are interested in making alliances... but with all due respect, you can do far better than making one with devils. They are not to be trusted, even if they aid you. They always have some loophole attached. They are not so different from demons... they are just not as honest about it."
Zalika turns in surprise and gazes steadily at the drow. "Perhaps not but why would I delay, I am perfectly entitled to make decisions on behalf of my own nation when an opportunity presents itself as it has now."
"Our deals are always honest," the devil says, speaking for the first time. "If someone is careless enough not to read the details, then they deserve the penalty they receive for not paying attention."
"It's a discussion little kobold, not a sentence of slavery" Zalika responds, trying to handle the discussion diplomatically. "Please grant me the courtesy of letting me make my own decisions. I do not instruct you how to achieve your own mission so please, grant me a little faith here".
"Well, there IS the fact that there's a perfectly usable diplomatic conference on what I assume is neutral ground that we're supposed to attend." Triel shrugs. "Just throwing that out there."
Not to mention that if you make a mistake dealing with these devils, then your people are going to be the ones who suffer the most for it.
"And always in your favor, aren't they?" Maximo countered, staring straight back at the demon, Ryx hissing as the demon spoke. He could almost see the sneer he remembered that imp having on this one's face. "That discussion is all they need... believe me... I know..."
Maximo tore his gaze from the demon before looking at Zalika imploringly."...Lady Zalika... I know you may not believe my visions, or me, or Ryx. I know I'm just one kobold and my word holds no sway to you, as you do not believe there is darkness or light. But... if there ever was one who would know anything of the dark, wouldn't it be me? Devils and their ilk should not be trusted... they only have their own interests in mind. Not yours. Not those of your people." Maximo closed his eyes, exhaling before looking down.
"...all I ask is your trust, and I will do all in my power to help you in their stead."