It is the New Year of Our Lord 1437, at the dawn of the Age of Exploration, and the dawn of New Years Day. Winters have been colder and longer than usual in recent years, and folk of Scandinavia and Northern Europe whisper rumors of Fimbulwinter, the endless years of winter heralding Ragnarök, the Twilight of the Gods, the End of Days...
All the lands north of the Alps are blanketed with snow, and even the southern kingdoms of the Mediterranean Coast are colder than usual.
The Antichrist, Enperor Nero, became a lich after his supposed suicide many centuries ago, and disguising himself as such villains as Atilla the Hun, or Constantine, wreaked havoc and mayhem throughout the many kingdoms of Earth throughout the ages, according to his father’s (the Devil) will. Most recently disguised as some Italian nobleman in Rome, Nero called down from the firey planet Mercury a terrible red fire dragon named Wormwood, who now lairs in Mount Vesuvius and demands annual tribute of maidens and treasure from every prince and potentate throughout Europe and North Africa. With this dreadful ally, the Antichrist leads a secret Luciferian cult with branches all over Europe, the British Isles, and parts of North Africa and the Middle East. The Maid of Orleans has been burnt at the stake as a witch, after having been captured by Philip the Good of Burgundy, a high ranking member of the Church of Lucifer, and handed over to the English (the young King Henry VI’s Lancaster uncles were also in league with the Prince of Darkness).
The world is on the brink of Apocalypse! It is in dire need of heroes!
England and France have been at war for territory within France for so long, later sages would call the conflict The Hundred Years War. Young King Henry VI of England has also been crowned the true king of France at Notre Dame Cathedral, in defiance of Dauphin Charles VII, who also claims the title from his palace in Bourges. Lancaster Dukes John of Bedford and Humphrey of Gloucester seem to support their nephew as King of England and France, though whispers persist in the English Court that they secretly belong to the satanic Church of Lucifer, and plot against their young King, seeking to usurp his throne.
In fact, a plot of treasonous witchcraft against young King Henry VI was uncovered recently by the heroic adventurers known as the Lucky Fools, resulting in the arrest and imprisonment of Margery Jourdamayne—“The Witch of Eye Next Westminster”, the astrologer and sorcerer Roger Bolingbroke, Duchess Eleanor Cobham, and several others. (These conspirators have been sentenced to be burnt alive at the stake, but this sentence has not yet been carried out, and they currently languish in the Tower of London.)
In the County of Holland, The Hook and Cod Wars have been raging between the more progressive cities of Holland and the more conservative nobles. Some surmise that the underlying cause of these wars is the dissatisfaction of the peasants with the oppressive rule of the nobility.
Meanwhile, the Holy Roman Empire has grown into a complicated patchwork of German kingdoms, duchies, counties, and baronies, all nominally loyal to the Holy Roman Emperor, currently Sigismund of Luxembourg, King of Germany and Bohemia. Sigismund’s reign has been turbulent at best, including temporary periods of imprisonment by political rivals, and wars to pacify rebellious domains within the empire.
In Italy, the Wars In Lombardy, waged by the Duchy of Milan against the Republic of Venice, and their various allies, each side seeking hegemony over the Italian City-States, have seen an influx of foreign mercenaries and condottieri, who grow wealthy fighting on behalf of the highest bidder.
These conflicts have been temporarily interrupted by a much bigger threat—the ancient red fire dragon Wormwood, believed to be the Dragon of the Apocalypse foretold in the Book of Revelation, has flown down from the fiery planet Mercury to lair in the volcanic Mount Vesuvius near Naples, and demands annual tribute of treasure and maidens from every kingdom and city-state in Europe, destroying by fire the cities, towns, fields, livestock, and people of any prince or potentate that refuses. Four years ago, reacting in rage to the defiant heroics of the famous band of adventurers known as the Lucky Fools (who struck several blows against the dragon’s allies, the Church of Lucifer), Wormwood made an example of Naples in an event now known throughout Europe as the Halloween Holocaust of Naples. The coastal city has slowly begun to rebuild under the leadership of Queen Joanna II, but the Neapolitan people live in constant fear of the dragon’s fiery wrath.
In Portugal, Prince Henry seeks to convince his father, King John, and brothers, to join him in a conquest of Muslim Morocco, having already captured the city of Ceuta several years ago. Ceuta has become little more than a ghost town, inhabited only by a garrison of increasingly restless Portuguese soldiers, and Prince Henry has proposed plans to invade and capture Tangier, Marrakech, Fez, and Rabat, but his ambitions have met with resistance from his father and brothers.
The inquisitive and adventurous Prince Henry is also curious about the unexplored regions of the world, and has been funding voyages to explore the coast of Africa, and even an ill-fated expedition to explore the mysterious Underworld, a vast region of subterranean caverns and tunnels accessed via several cave entrances, including Morocco’s Cave of Hercules, located near Tangiers, and named for the mythic demigod and son of Zeus, Hercules, said to have rested inside the cave during one of his Twelve Labors. The first expedition sent into the Cave of Hercules to explore the Underworld has not returned, and is feared forever lost...
In the snowclad mountains of Norway, within a glacial cavern, lairs the ancient white frost dragon Frostfloyen. This white wyrm is served by a horde of frost giants, ice trolls, winter wolves, bugbears, hobgoblins, goblins, and orcs, which regularly raid the nearby city of Nidaros (Trondheim). The Bishop of Nidaros seeks brave adventurers to strike back against these rapacious monsters.
Over the past six years, the Church of Lucifer has been dealt a series of crippling blows by the valiant band of adventurers known as the Lucky Fools (also the Lusty Fools, in some regions). Quite by chance, the adventurers discovered that the true Dauphin of France, Charles VII, was imprisoned in a secret cell within the catacombs under Paris, replaced on the throne by a monstrous pretender, a doppelgänger in league with the insidious Church of Lucifer. Freeing the real Charles, and revealing the doppelgänger to the French court by slaying the imposter, the Lucky Fools became heroes worthy of song. This was in the summer of 1431.
Following their adventures in France, the Lucky Fools pursued evidence they’d found in the catacombs of treasonous witchcraft against young King Henry VI, then only ten years old. Nearly ending up in the Tower of London or Newgate Prison for daring to accuse such English nobility as the Dukes of Bedford and Gloucester of treason, the Lucky Fools unveiled the plot of witchcraft and sorcery used to sicken the young monarch, saving the life of another sovereign. They were obliged to flee England aboard a folding boat named The Hippocampus, captained by undine water kineticist Frederick, and First Mate Nachtigal, a wood elf huntress from the Black Forest.
Other heroes making names for themselves at this time include Prospero Blue, a Pygmy catfolk wizard from an uncharted island (Bermuda) in the Atlantic, and his companions, Roman Catholic aasimar paladin Tunes Holiday, and Egyptian human cleric of Ra Pamentet. These adventurers made a foray into the Underworld via the Cave of Hercules in Morocco on behalf of Prince Henry of Portugal in 1435, and returned briefly, telling fanciful tales of battling dark elves in a giant spider-shaped fortress and fire giants in a brass castle near a lake of magma. They made a second foray after presenting incomplete maps of the areas they’d explored to Prince Henry in Lisbon, but have never returned.
The lands of Europe are riddled with the ancient ruins of the fallen Roman Empire. The current Holy Roman Empire is Roman in name only, being the invention of Frankish barbarian king Charlemagne in the early 9th century. The ruins of even older civilizations can also be found beneath the streets of modern towns and cities—the ruins of Etruscan and Mycenaean cultures, holding unknown riches and monstrous horrors of the Underworld...
Timeline of Recent Events
1430: Joan of Arc captured by the Burgundians at Compiegne
Modern English develops from Middle English
In music, beginning of the first Dutch school with Gilles Binchois and Guillaume Dufay
Great cast iron gun Mad Marjorie introduced
1431: Joan of Arc burnt at the stake at Rouen
Henry VI of England crowned King of France in Paris
First German peasant revolt at Worms
Pope Eugene IV (--1447)
Universities of Caen and of Poitiers founded
Lucky Fools expose treasonous witchcraft against Henry VI of England after rescuing Charles VII of France from secret imprisonment in the catacombs under Paris and killing the doppelganger impersonating him
1432: Portuguese sailor Gonzalo Cabral discovers the Azores
Lucky Fools sail the Atlantic along the coasts of Spain, Portugal, and North Africa as Portuguese privateers and engage in a naval skirmish with Japanese bakemono (goblin) pirates led by an oni (ogre mage) captain and a hit squad of Koga ninja sent to assassinate renegade ninja Lucky Fool Hattori Hisao, attracting a plesiosarus which swallowed whole any unfortunate enough to fall overboard
1433: Sigismund crowned Holy Roman Emperor
Donatello "David" sculpture, Florence
The double-eagle becomes the emblem of the Holy Roman Empire
Lucky Fools joined by Merlin the Archmage of Wales and begin questing after legendary artifacts, recovering Excalibur from Loch Ness, the Papplewick Yew Bow from Robin Hood's grave, the Andvaranaut Ring and Tarnhelm helmet from the lair of ancient white dragon Frostfloyen in Norway
1434: Vladislav III crowned King of Poland (--1444)
Taborites defeated at Lipan, their leader Prokops killed
Cosimo de' Medici becomes ruler of Florence (--1464)
Revolt in Rome, Pope Eugene IV flees to Florence
Florence Cathedral completed (begun 1420)
Halloween Holocaust of Naples: Wormwood burns the port to cow mankind, driven off by several mages of House Angevin
1435: Peace of Arras between Charles VII and Philip of Burgundy
Swedish Riksdag meets for the first time
The Lucky Fools convince the ancient white dragon Frostfloyen that Wormwood bought off his minions and plotted to rob his hoard, causing the white wyrm to fly from Norway to Mt Vesuvius, where he was killed by Wormwood in a "hoardduel"
Prince Henry of Portugal:
Infante D. Henrique of Portugal, Duke of Viseu (4 March 1394 – 13 November 1460), better known as Prince Henry the Navigator (Portuguese: Infante Dom Henrique, o Navegador), was a central figure in the early days of the Portuguese Empire and in the 15th-century European maritime discoveries and maritime expansion. Through his administrative direction, he is regarded as the main initiator of what would be known as the Age of Discoveries. Henry was the third child of the Portuguese king John I and responsible for the early development of Portuguese exploration and maritime trade with other continents through the systematic exploration of Western Africa, the islands of the Atlantic Ocean, and the search for new routes.
Prince Henry the Navigator
Duke of Viseu
Born
4 March 1394
Porto, Portugal
Died
13 November 1460 (aged 66)
Sagres, Portugal
Burial
Batalha Monastery
House
Aviz
Father
John I of Portugal
Mother
Philippa of Lancaster
Religion
Roman Catholicism
King John I founded the House of Aviz. Henry encouraged his father to conquer Ceuta (1415), the Muslim port on the North African coast across the Straits of Gibraltar from the Iberian Peninsula. He learned of the opportunities offered by the Saharan trade routes that terminated there, and became fascinated with Africa in general; he was most intrigued by the Christian legend of Prester John and the expansion of Portuguese trade. Henry is regarded as the patron of Portuguese exploration.
Henry was the third surviving son of King John I and his wife Philippa, sister of King Henry IV of England. He was baptized in Porto, and may have been born there, probably when the royal couple was living in the city's old mint, now called Casa do Infante (Prince's House), or in the region nearby. Another possibility is that he was born at the Monastery of Leça do Bailio, in Leça de Palmeira, during the same period of the royal couple's residence in the city of Porto.
Henry was 21 when he and his father and brothers captured the Moorish port of Ceuta in northern Morocco. Ceuta had long been a base for Barbary pirates who raided the Portuguese coast, depopulating villages by capturing their inhabitants to be sold in the African slave trade. Following this success, Henry began to explore the coast of Africa, most of which was unknown to Europeans. His objectives included finding the source of the West African gold trade and the legendary Christian kingdom of Prester John, and stopping the pirate attacks on the Portuguese coast.
At that time, the ships of the Mediterranean were too slow and too heavy to make these voyages. Under his direction, a new and much lighter ship was developed, the caravel, which could sail further and faster, and, above all, was highly maneuverable and could sail much nearer the wind, or "into the wind". This made the caravel largely independent of the prevailing winds. With the caravel, Portuguese mariners explored rivers and shallow waters as well as the open ocean with wide autonomy.
In 1419, Henry's father appointed him governor of the province of the Algarve.
Prince Henry of Portugal, part 2:
On 25 May 1420, Henry gained appointment as the Grand Master of the Military Order of Christ, the Portuguese successor to the Knights Templar, which had its headquarters at Tomar, in central Portugal. Henry held this position for the remainder of his life, and the Order was an important source of funds for Henry's ambitious plans, especially his persistent attempts to conquer the Canary Islands, which the Portuguese had claimed to have discovered before the year 1346.
In 1425, his second brother the Infante Peter, Duke of Coimbra, made a tour of Europe. While largely a diplomatic mission, among his goals was to seek out geographic material for his brother Henry. Peter returned from Venice with a current world map drafted by a Venetian cartographer.
In 1431, he donated houses for the Estudo Geral to reunite all the sciences—grammar, logic, rhetoric, arithmetic, music, and astronomy—into what would later become the University of Lisbon. For other subjects like medicine or philosophy, he ordered that each room should be decorated according to each subject that was being taught.
Henry also had other resources. When John I died in 1433, Henry's eldest brother Edward of Portugal became king. He granted Henry all profits from trading within the areas he discovered as well as the sole right to authorize expeditions beyond Cape Bojador. Henry also held a monopoly on tuna fishing in the Algarve. When Edward died eight years later, Henry supported his brother Peter, Duke of Coimbra for the regency during the minority of Edward's son Afonso V, and in return received a confirmation of this levy.
Henry functioned as a primary organizer of the disastrous expedition to Tangier in 1437. Henry's younger brother Ferdinand was given as a hostage to guarantee that the Portuguese would fulfill the terms of the peace agreement that had been made with Çala Ben Çala. The Portuguese Cortes refused to approve the return of Ceuta in exchange for the Infante Ferdinand who remained in captivity until his death six years later.
Prince Regent Peter had an important role and responsibility in the Portuguese maritime expansion in the Atlantic Ocean and Africa during his administration. Henry promoted the colonization of the Azores during Peter's regency (1439–1448).
For most of the latter part of his life, Henry concentrated on his maritime activities, or on Portuguese court politics.
Map of Medieval Lisbon, capital city of Portugal and a major seaport...
In addition to the objectives noted in his biography above, Prince Henry of Portugal is quite curious about the mysterious subterranean Underworld that supposedly riddles the Earth throughout Europe, Africa, and the Orient. In June of 1435, he financed an expedition into the Underworld via Morocco's Cave of Hercules, near Tangiers, by the famed adventurers who'd rescued Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund from evil gnome magician Rumplestilskin and his cloud giant minions the year before. These were Prospero Blue, a strange bipedal talking cat wizard; Italian aasimar paladin Tunes De Holiday; and Pamentet, Egyptian human cleric of sun god Ra. The three briefly returned, showing Prince Henry incomplete but intriguing maps of areas they'd explored, and regaling him with tales of battling dark elves at a great spider-shaped fortress, and fire giants at a brass castle on the bank of a river of magma...The adventurers made a second foray into the Underworld in July 1435, but have not been seen or heard from since...
In the Portuguese capital and naval port of Lisbon, in the Royal Palace, 43-year-old Prince Henry sits upon a throne of ornately carved Lebanese cedar, covered with the fells of lions and feathered hide of an owlbear of Africa.
The prince is clad in fine clothing of the latest courtly fashion, and a rapier with bejeweled hilt hangs at his side in a scabbed of young black dragon hide. In one hand, he holds a bejeweled golden goblet of red wine, while the other holds a scroll of vellum sealed with red wax stamped with his own signet ring.
Prince Henry addresses a rather motley band of adventurers from various lands, summoned to the palace by the prince himself to receive a special quest...
First in Portuguese, then impeccable English:
Salutations, and welcome to the Royal Palace! As my herald announced when you came in, I am Prince Henry, Duke of Viseu, and Grand Master of the Military Order of Christ. Each of you have been summoned to this court because of your individual capabilities and growing reputations... Brave adventurers such as yourselves are required to undertake any of a number of special quests on behalf of Portugal, and indeed, all of Christendom!
The prince pauses to sip some wine before continuing:
Our chief enemy at the nonce is the Maranid sultan of Morocco and his emirs. These heathens enslave the black Africans and even their own people, and they torture and murder Christians who fall into their wicked clutches, and yet they call US the barbarians and infidels!
Prince Henry rises from the throne, steps down from the tiered dais of rose quartz and marble on which the throne is raised, and paces the floor of the court among the six adventurers, seeming to scrutinize and appraise each one for a moment...
Ah, yes! You six seem to possess special qualities that will allow YOU to succeed where common mortals would surely fail... Many years it has been now since my father, King John, and my brothers and I captured the Moroccan city of Ceuta... It is little more than a ghost town, now, inhabited only by an increasingly restless garrison of our soldiers, and ghosts of the dead...We have made no more progress in conquering this heathen land... It is time we sailed once more to Morocco, and finished what we have begun! It will bring glory to Our Lord Jesus Christ, and to Portugal!
After a brief pause to sip more wine and gauge the adventurers' reactions to his speech thus far, Prince Henry continues:
Our military forces will handle the direct fighting against the heathens, but small bands of commandos such as yourselves can do much to soften our enemy prior to the main assault, would you not agree?
The prince does not wait for reply...
The Arab Slave Trade enriches our foes... They grow rich and fat on the broken backs of the Africans and desert nomads they enslave! Cripple the Slave Trade, and the enemy is crippled, for they are one in the same! Who do you suppose buys the greatest numbers of these slaves, and who do you suppose also treats them worse than they treat dogs!? Yes--the sultan and his emirs and sheikhs!
Prince Henry continues:
Our brave spies report that a hub of the Arab Slave Trade is in the Kasbah of Marrakech. It is here that you should begin to strike at the Arab Slavelords! It is said that their leader is one of the Sultan's emirs, and that the slavers occupy the old Royal Palace of Marrakech. Beware the emir's private zoo of exotic monsters from all over the Known World! It is said that some of them are more than simple-minded brutes, and can be commanded by the wicked emir!
Ceol na ndaoine
Prince Henry looks down in amazement at the tiny winged fey creature standing among the other six adventurers in his court, and grins wryly.
Mother of God! I did not notice you down there at first! You must be one of the Wee Folk, from one of the green forests of the North! I bid thee welcome, Little Adventurer! Have you come to offer your unique talents to the service of Portugal and Christendom? Do you know fairy magic?
Image of Lord Perpireen McGibel
His clothing is green and simple, he dose not seem to carry any weapon but a tinny dagger in his boot. He stands some 1' tall with green insect like wings. Between his wings hangs a long green cloak.
He dose not seem to be uncomfortable in the heat.
Lord Perpireen McGibel bows low to the Prince, then with his wings flies to eye height of the prince. Then in fine Portuguese says.
"Your Highness, let me introduce myself, I am Lord Perpireen McGibel.
I am a courtly representative of the Tuatha King under the Hill.
And yes I am from the most green and lush land Irland, where great trees of the
green whisper on the wind. Where Beds of flowers carpet the land, where fresh rain
lets all things drink deep. Where dance, music and poems are worth more than gold.
Where a joke can hold you to task just as much as love. Where great storms blow
on land and in the heart. Where magic is in all things.
That is where I am from your highness."
He bows again. Then adds.
"As for being of service to Portugal and yourself. To show the magnanimity of my King, Dread Prince. You need only command me your highness."
Then he flies higher.
"As for the magics of my people."
His body glows bright like a star, Then balls of light spin around him, after which a spray of color fill the room over head. When the light fades he is nowhere to be seen. Then a voice comes form the side of the prince. There he is again hovering.
"I know a little your highness, but you should ask my fellows who they are, I think you will find them most interesting."
He bows one last time and then moves back to the side of his fellows.
Clearly impressed by the eloquent words and noble bearing of this tiny lord of the fey, Prince Henry nods, smiling broadly in approval.
Your Portuguese is without fault, and you speak with the golden tongue of a poet, Lord Perpireen of the Tuatha De Danan! I am well pleased to have you in my service!
The Prince turns now to regard the others...
I should have said, you SEVEN seem to possess special qualities that will allow YOU to succeed where common mortals would surely fail!
Prince Henry grins and shrugs, gesturing at the little sprite hovering with near-invisibly-fast-beating wings...
Do not underestimate the big power that comes in the little package, my friends!
Taken aback by the sprite for a moment, the young Spaniard takes a step forward whilst bowing. Dressed in cream and brown travelling clothes, stained a bit from travel, the young man straightens his back to look at Prince Henry in the eyes.
"I am Volreg Sundek, a humble farmer from near the city of Seville, your Highness. Yet I have heard that I could help expand my family's farm if I were to head to Rome in the far east, but have no funds to take me there. That is when I heard of your call for adventurers in talks with a few traders, and headed here, sir. I am hearty, and can travel somewhat well, by your Grace, I will provide as best and honorably as I can."
Gesturing towards the others in the room, Volreg smiles as he turns back towards the prince.
"These folk seem to have seen much more than I in the world, but I am willing to learn and adapt under their guidance! I foresee a grand tale of us many generations from now, hopefully all good, and hopefully to more than our families!"
Chuckling for a moment at his own enthusiasm, Volreg steps back into the grouping and bows once again.
Mwikali stands in a bright colored dress of green, white, and yellow. Her hair was tightly bound, even the strange colors of white, orange, blue and gray were bound this way. Her deep almost midnight black skin almost sucked in the shadows of the room as she slunk forward and curtsied as the ladies in this dreadful place often did.
"Your Highness, I Mwikali came not for your god or the glory of your kingdom, but to save my people. To save Mother Africa from the dangers of these Arabs and there God." She spat on the floor while her little bird danced about shifting right and left It even spoke in the tongue of her people.
"You are right Kiku, I am sorry King, I spoke out of turn. I am not accustomed fully to the ways of Europa." She curtsied again but not before she flashed her blue and brown eyes at the king. She than rose and spoke to them all.
"I bring with me the power of Mother Africa herself, behind her come the spirits of the land and the gods of my people. With them, I conjure the necessary forces to weave my magic and make it affect the first world. I Mwikali pledge to bring an end to these Arabs, and free those unjustly enslaved." She said as she gripped her spear her clawed thumb running along the shaft to shave a bit of the wood away.
Prince Henry smiles and nods at Volreg, pleased at the Spaniard's endearing balance of modest humility and enthusiastic confidence.
Well said, sir! I have heard the tales told by your fellow farmers of your ability to bend the wind to your will... I believe that this power you possess was given to you by God for more than just growing healthy crops, Mister Sundek!
Prince Henry takes the letter written by Sir Anton Flavian de Ripa of the Knights of Rhodes from Wulfgar and reads it before nodding with a pleased smile at the muscular aasimar.
Most excellent, Sir Wulfgar! Welcome to Portugal, and thank you for your faithful service to Christ in fighting the evil pirates and slavers. You are surely storing up treasures in Heaven!
In reply to Mwikali, Prince Henry nods thoughtfully.
I wanted my squadron of liberators to have a native African among them... Someone who knows the land well, and has love for the African people suffering under the yoke of Arab slavery... All the better if she is also a clever witch, with a wise talking bird to aid her!
Altin springs forth, executing a one-handed flip to cut through the group. He lands on his feet in front of the prince and falls into a low bow, his hand on his heart. "Greetings, your Highness. My name is Altin Karela, and while I am Ottoman trained I look forward to spitting in the eye of my former captors." He straightens, planting his longspear on the ground. "I am a scout and a diplomat, and I also channel the magic of my people - the magic of trickery and obfuscation." He hums an arcane tune under his breath, and his form begins to swell, growing in both height and mass, his skin darkening, his clothes morphing into colourful pants and vest, until he appears as one of Mwikali's kin, six and a half feet tall, with bulging muscles under his gleaming black skin. He flashes a grin of white teeth, then shrinks back to his original form.
"I have travelled here with Wulfgar Ivarsson, and I look forward to beginning our mission." He bows again and steps back lightly into the group.
Dressed in cream and brown travelling clothes, stained a bit from travel,
Lord hovers over to Sundek and surreptitiously casts prestidigitation a few times so his clothing becomes clean and fit for a prince to see. He flies close to his ear and whispers.
"Much better"
Responding to Wulfgar Lord McGible chuckles,
"That might be, but he would be a fine fellow to have at a dance, would that not be true Altin Karela. As one Diplomat to another, I will wager your feet would woo the heart of a woman as much as any mans words of love"
He says this in a light hearted even playful way.
Mwikali looks at the others. She especially looks at Lord McGibel."You are of the Spiritual First World Yes?" She then looked at Kiku and then spoke.
"Ah your people do like to dance, yet I hear the dances of the more noble blooded are dour. Why dance if you lack the passion. To think of the couple who kiss and fondel, aw the dances and celebrations. To revel, Something most of you know nothing about. To think you lost all of the pleasures of your past. I will have to teach you when we return to the Motherland. Feasts and celebrations, dancing,all the joy one can muster. It might even make this one blush" Mwikali says with a smile pointing at the seemingly worldly ALtin.
"Don't worry though the people of Africa, will be grateful for any work you King Henry would support. I even support you taking this Morocco. Such a strong position and a great way for my people The Kunai to secure an Alligance with. That is when these Arab raiders and traders are gone from these lands!" She said standing tall looking at the others around her. She noted many of them save the Arab and the spirit were more warriors than wizards. Save the farm boy something about him made her ears warm. He had some hidden talent. It was hard to tell though as this place was teeming with power. She had heard from one of its caretakers that some legendary Dragonslayer resided here. If it was true, Mwikali doubted it would be mere sundry furnishings. No powerful artifacts must reside here. Which could through off her original castings and observation.
Perpireen tilts his head at Mwikali's words and then says in responce
"Is féidir liom a bheith ina aisling fós. Ach bhí mé ag iarraidh bualadh le cailleach ó na tailte daonna. Tá sé an-taitneamhach chun freastal ort Cé acu Mwikali, Bealtaine go mbeidh do chlaonadóireacht i gcónaí."
"I may still be a dream. But I have always wanted to meet a witch from the first human lands. It is most enjoyable to meet you Mwikali, May your incantations be always fine."
And bows to her.
Then so that overs can understand he says.
"In the court of the King under the Hill, there has always been a dance, from before the beginning of mortal history. A great dance with music and song to beguile and entrance any who would enter it."
He says as if remembering Then with a cautionary tone adds.
"But be warned, time passes in the court is unlike time here. A mortal who finds their way to the great dance may dance for night there, but on returning home at dawn, find their loved ones old, their children all grown with family's of there own, and a grave stone with there name on it."
Then to himself thought
"What an interesting group, What a tale I will have to tell the king when this is over."
"Sounds intriguing, Lord McGibel." She says with a wide smile as she giggles."I bet the revelry is as passionate as it is decadent! May you come to love the spirits of Africa as much as your own 'court'"
"So I assume we are to set sail soon as I have seen the ships and felt the wind? Are we to feast before the fray, or do you require some sort of religious ritual before we continue on?" She asks feeding bird seeds to Kiku.
He tips his head.
^Knowledge (Geography)(Int)
^Knowledge (History)(Int)
^Knowledge (Planes) (Int)
"I know of the spirits of Africa, I would like to meets some."
Eyes darting back and forth between Mwikali and Lord McGibel, it seems that the young man is trying to understand as to what the two are talking about, eyes lingering equally on both.
"I don't mean to pry, but what do you mean by spirits?"
Stomach then growling somewhat loudly at the mention of food, Volreg chuckles slightly with a hand over the organ producing the noise.
"While some sort of meal would be appreciated, I would also like to see what ships we will be on. Never been on one myself."
Taking lead of the strange, dark skinned woman, Volreg would like to see the boats. Hearing only tales of the ships, one of his first dreams was to be a pirate or privateer.
"The woman has a point, we need to see most of what we can before heading out. Always travel prepared, faith in God or oneself guiding my next decision. Thank you father, for that advice.
Lord McGibel flies over to Volreg and lands on his shoulder. He leans in and whispers into the young mans ear.
"Spirits are awakened things, or mortal souls languishing in the world unable to move on, or small gods waiting for faith to power them to greatness, one of many things that have gained a life or their own. Most are harmless but some can very evil indeed. Demanding tribute of mortal souls or blood sacrifice. Some take over the bodies of the living or dead. Some inhabit things. I like the witch can see and hear them, we can talk to them, argain and fool them if needs be. Sprits of the elements need to be treated with care, for they can make life most difficult if not. Other not so, but one should always be aware they are there."
Altin snorts at Wulfgar's talk of showing off, and watches the sprite and the witch's banter with an easy, appreciative smile on his face. He leans to Wulfgar and murmurs softly, "Look out my friend, these two will keep us on our toes. And if the African queen wants to try to make me blush with passionate dancing and celebration, all the better!"
In a louder voice, he adds his voice to the suggestions of food, then action. "Like any true warriors, an empty belly is the first enemy we must defeat. All this talk of revelry and feasting has fired my appetite!"
Fear not, friends! Every prince worth his crown knows that armies march on their bellies. And here in our Kingdom of Portugal, even the poorest host feeds his guests with the best he has to offer. Even now, you may notice the aroma of the feast the servants are setting upon my boards in the feast hall...
Almost as if on cue, the bewitchingly delicious aromas of roasted meat, herbs and spices waft through an archway to the north, and the clatter of platter and clink of silverware can be heard faintly there from...
Come! Feast, drink, and make merry, for the quest before you might prove perilous.
Prince Henry leads the adventurers through the north archway into a spacious festhall...
The festhall is lit by a roaring fire in a fireplace against the north wall, and by a glittering chandelier of carnelians and crystal hung from antlers and horns...
The fell of an enormous dire tiger sprawls across the flagstones between the fireplace to the north and three long boards with benches dominating the center...
Upon these three boards, servants are laying platters laden with herb-roasted boar, lamb, and goat shaved from the kitchen spits, salted cod, pickled herrings, wheels of red and white cheese, loafs of warm bread, and a variety of exotic fruits and vegetables from throughout the islands of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean Seas...
Crystal carafes filled with the finest wine, flagons of creamy ale and mead, and pitchers of water or fruit-filled sangrias are also set upon the boards, with crystal goblets and copper mugs...
The tapestries covering the walls depict Saint George slaying evil dragons of various colors and breath types (red fire dragons, white frost dragons, green poison vapor dragons, black acid dragons, and blue lightning dragons), serving as a lesson in dragonology to the keen observer... In most of these tapestries, St George is depicted wielding a lance or spear, but in one, he is wielding a longsword with jeweled hilt, crossbars and pommel, the silvery blade engraved with mystic runes. A real longsword identical to that depicted in this tapestry hangs above the fireplace on the north wall, along with a spear resembling that depicted in the other tapestries, crossed with the sword in an X...
A trio of squatty, green-skinned humanoids, with long, pointy ears, long pointy noses, and sharp-toothed grins, clad in fine jester garb, play a shockingly excellent arabesque on lute, fife, and drum. The bewitching music somehow seems to whet the listener's appetite...
Gesturing to the three goblin musicians, Prince Henry explains, in Portuguese, then English: These are my cursed goblin minstrels... Once, they were rapacious beasts who raided and murdered in the night, as their ilk are wont to do, but after they tried to cheat the Devil himself in a bargain to gain fame and fortune, the Prince of Darkness cursed them, giving them the musical talent of the finest virtuosity, but also an irresistible compulsion to play in service to a Christian monarch. Thus, they came willingly to serve my father, King John. Of course, the Devil must hope to use them as spies thereby, so speak freely, and yet, with reasonable discretion in my hall. That is to say, speak no evil, for the Devil might be listening! Prince Henry grins and winks, then gestures to the food on the boards, adding: Feast, noble adventurers! The hospitality of Prince Henry is yours to enjoy!
A man with vaguely Turkish features walks into the feast hall, flipping a coin as he walks and whistling an old Turkish tune. A short, straight sword sits at his hip, along with a small shield. Tall and lanky, he wears simple studded leather armour. He smiles at the finery and says in a deep voice, punctuated by the lightly rolled R's of the near East, "Apologies for my lateness, I had other business to attend to. So, you say you wish to fight the Arabs? Count me in then, I have no love of them, despite my appearances. I cannot say I am an especially virtuous man, nor a crusader. I can say I am a good fighter though." He nods his head at the others and grabs a flagon of ale, draining it quickly and saying, "Well Allah be damned, this is some good ale. Better by far than that cheap swill I got at the inns on the way here. The riches of a king can buy quite a bit I suppose."
As the Turkish newcomer enters, the Goblins Three conclude their enchanting arabesque and begin a dolorous pavanne that seems to relax the listener and ease the weariness of travel...