Melody flings another insult at the goblin ghoul grunts which involves saying that quickly three times peppered in with other G words.
Amethyst seizes up as the ghouls paralyze her!
Vasia takes a breath and pushes out her feelings in the form of a wave of positive energy.
Just like Vasia, Sabriyya sends a burst of positive energy through the room.
Morgana's arrow arches upwards and takes a ghoul in the back of the head while Melody's gruesome gabbling gashes ghoul guts greatly. Although the final ghoul resists both surges of positive energy it is just enough to reduce it a burned out husk even as Amethyst freezes in place.
From the doorway into which the revenant vanished comes anguished screams and cries of pain - audible even over the rhythmic crashing of the waves below.
Amethyst recovers her ability to move within thirty seconds - just enough time to reform Jenica if it is so desired.
Looking to the cries of pain, Sabriyya nods in that direction and says "I think she found who she was looking for."
With the healing wand in hand, she asks if anyone needs a bop before they continue on.
"No bops needed." Melody says, looking at the doorway at the screams, "Should we... hurry? or wait for it to die down?"
"No. No waiting," Vasia says with a determined gaze towards the sounds. "We need to see what's happening and how it ends."
She takes enough time to shift Jenica back to her ectoplasmic form and then gestures for her to accompany Morgana, leading the way.
Amethyst takes a few moments to protect herself with a shield spell and mirror image, then nods her compliance. "Let's go!"
Morgana meets everyone at the doorway, having ascended the damp and slippery path slowly and with great care.
Melody nods and casts heroism on their three fighters, with a simple acknowledgement of 'you will be great, I know it'. Jenica gets hers with a hug.
Following the revenant the heroines enter a damp cavern which reeks with a horrific stench - a foul combination of decay, brine and mold. The cave contains a rickety table, its damp surface cluttered with all manner of what appears to be garbage: empty bottles, bits of clothing, crumpled pieces of paper, and more, lying in neatly orgnanised rows. A painting, crudely daubed with viscera, leans against the far side of the table, facing a large leather chair that sits nearby. This chair's high back and cushions are horribly stained by smears of rotten meat and its arms are sticky with blood. A smaller table sits against the southern wall, its surface heaped with plates and platters of rotten, maggot-infested meat.
The horrific stench in the room seems strongest to the west, where the cave's wall has been overtaken by a horrific growth of dark green mold and dripping fungi. At the center, a patch of black tumescent fungus grows, its horny ridges and tumorlike bulbs forming what could almost be taken as a humanoid outline. What appears to have once been an exquisite puzzle box the size of a man's fist lies smashed on the ground at the fungoid shape's feet.
Most important however is the sobbing figure in the chair. Undeath has not been kind to Aldern Foxglove. Remnants of his handsome face are recognisable, but undeath has ruined his fine skin and his mouth no longer holds teeth, but pointed fangs and a long, flickering tongue. The remorse in his posture and voice however is entirely real as he weeps over the corpse in front of him - the revenant you released from the attic. Her head has been separated from her body, but she went down fighting - as evidenced by the massive gashes across Aldern's chest, through which his ribs show white amid the the putrefying brown of his internal organs.
"Oh Iesha, my love! I am sorry, so sorry!" He moans. "I never meant for any of this. The Brotherhood, they said they'd take care of it. As long as I delivered the samples to Magnimar that everything would be all right!"
He looks up and his manner suddenly changes to delight. "Vasia, my love, you came! I knew my letters would sway your heart! Look, I even painted your portrait!" He gestures to the bloody painting, a portrait of the woman at his feet, covered in blood that one might just about imagine making an outline of Vasia's face. "You can save me, my love. I'll tell you everything, about her, but quickly, before he comes! The Brotherhood is..."
He jack-knifes forwards and then stands slowly, his posture once again completely differet as one hand reaching for the long razor on the table at his side. "His Lordship is weak." The figure says, running his tongue languidly down the blade. "But I am the Skinsaw Man, Norgorber's most devoted. Your blood will serve him well."
Aldern is supernaturally fast and he leaps forward, swinging the lethally sharp razor at Morgana's exposed belly as his face morphs into a perfect replica of Vasia's!
Morgana parries the razor with her gauntleted hand and thrusts her blade forward, the blade glowing with a pure white light as she channels holy power into it.
"You don't deserve to wear her face!" The paladin declares wrathfully.
Morgana's sword punches straight through the ghouls chest and he throws his head back, letting out a thin scream as as light erupts from his mouth and eyes. Vasia's face burns for a single horrid moment before Aldern crumples - his unlife ended in a single blast of holy power.
Aldern still possesses a suit of dirty but serviceable magical armor , his magical razor , two magical rings , a thoroughly unpleasant mask seemingly made of human skin , a suit of fine clothing (200gp) and a tiny cameo of Vasia (100gp).
The laboratory contains a number of other valuables, some of which seem to have been scavenged from the manor above. This includes silver plate and fine crystal decanters worth 1,000gp as a set and a collection of aged wine which would fetch 300gp if sold to a collector. The portrait of Iesha would fetch 200gp if cleaned of Aldern's improvements'. There is also a small silver key ring on the table holding two keys. The larger one is tarnished iron set with a large opal (worth 100gp). The smaller is made of bronze and is unusually long, ending in a set of three notched blades. Finally, nearly hidden by the fungus coating the floor is a chime of opening with five charges.
The most curious thing however is a letter underneath the key ring.
You have served us quite well. The delivery you harvested from the caverns far exceeds what I had hoped for. You may consider your debt to the Brothers paid in full. Yet I still have need of you, and when
you awaken from your death, you should find your mind clear and able to understand this task more than in the state you lie in as I write this.
You shall remember the workings of the Sihedron ritual, I trust. You seemed quite lucid at the time, but if you find after your rebirth that you have forgotten, return to your townhouse in Magnimar. My
agents shall contact you there soon—no need for you to bother the Brothers further. I will provide the list of proper victims for the Sihedron ritual in two days’ time. Commit that list to memory and then destroy it before you begin your work. The ones I have selected must be marked before they die; otherwise they do my master no good and the greed in their souls will go to waste.
If others get in your way, though, you may do with them as you please. Eat them, savage them, or turn them into pawns—it matters not to me.
—Xanesha, Mistress of the Seven
You are able to escape from the tunnels without further conflict, although it is dark by the time you emerge into the night air once more. Sandpoint is safe, for now at least, but Aldern's bloodsoaked trail although it ended here seems to have come from Magnimar...
Amethyst easily resists the haunt. ”A tragic ending. But with luck, he will find peace in the next life.”
Vasia blanches and stumbles back at Aldern's corrupted visage. Morgana's simple execution doesn't change her stance as she takes a half-step back to lean against the wall.
"Oh, Aldern," she says in a tiny voice. "What have you done?"
Melody peers up at the letter as another reads it. "Why destroy a list of people's names but not the letter that tells all of this?" she muses. Why is this important enough to take precedence in her mind? It isn't. It is a distraction from the horrors in this room. Vasia screaming in rage, trying to kill them, the mold, the bodies, the blood, the "mask of human skin, that is..." she stops. wanting to throw up suddenly, but she holds it in and does her best not to breathe until they are outside again.
"Jenica, take them out of here." Morgana says firmly, trusting that the phantom knows who she is referring to. She herself sets to work stripping the dead ghoul of his valuables, keeping a wary eye on the fungus as she does so.
"One day we will have to return with a priest and consecrate this place." She says to whoever stays with her. "Either that or raze the house down to the foundations. This is an evil place."
-----------------------------------
Once finally outside she takes a deep breath of clean air and looks around her companions. "Shall we camp in the woods or push on back to Sandpoint?" She asks. "I don't think any of us want to sleep here tonight."
"I'd rather push through back to my bed then stay anywhere remotely close to this place. Who know what other horrors lurk nearby?"
Reaching into the bad of endless sweets, she says with a grin "Besides, I've been saving these triple sugar coated candied cherries for such an occasion! While not magical, I'm sure their energy will keep us awake enough for the trip back."
Jenica nods back at the paladin. Her sabres vanish into mist and she turns to take her nepoata by the arm to lead her back, up, and out.
"Come, My Lovely," she says to Melody, holding out her other hand to the halfling. "Why don't you come with us back outside? Good hearts need to see no more of this."
Vasia offers no resistance when led out of the horror-filled cave. "Why would he dabble with such madness?" she questions aloud as they reach the outside. The sea-breeze isn't enough to blow away the stench that still seems to cling to them all.
She takes a seat on a nearby rock, wrapping her arms around herself and slowly rocking back and forth.
~~~~~
When the others finally emerge, Vasia agrees with Sabriyya in a quiet voice. "I have no wish to remain here any longer." She looks up at Morgana. "Was there anything else about this group of people in Magnimar? This ... Xanesha ... whoever she is?"
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You make it back to Sandpoint after a long trek through the woods both cold and damp, but sustained by the amazing sugary power of Sabriyya's delectable sweets.
Arriving in an awakening Sandpoint, just as dawn is breaking, you immediately trudge over to Hemlock's house and rap upon the door to report in.
The Sheriff listens to you, albeit bleary-eyed, growing more and more sombre as your tale goes on. "Well, at least Sandpoint won't be facing any more ghoul attacks and murders in the coming months." He says thankfully, "It sounds as though this is just one part of a much bigger problem. I will write to the law enforcement in Magnimar but after badgering them for reinforcements, they probably won't give me the time of day. I think you can be rest assured that you can take a few days now to recuperate, but if you are all willing, I'd appreciate you following up on these leads just to make sure that nothing is going to come back to Sandpoint. Sandpoint has suffered enough."
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The light is low, candles all about. A cleared out space in a mess of a bedroom with seats for five before her stage.
It starts with...
--------------------------
Thistletop. The huge stone head makes the backdrop of the stage, a rope bridge stretches across from one side to the next. The heroes stand ready to save their town, once again. Fluffybottom, BunBun, Princess Polli, Queen Thumper, and Jigglypaw. Beautiful dolls that someone put their very soul into sewing into the likeness of her friends (with animal bits still included, because, well, of course)
The goblins come in waves, fighting in wiggling finger puppet hordes, scratches of rhyming songs about fire, and nibbling everything (from Melody behind the stage). Queen Thumper the greatest Roo of all the Roos in silk scarves with a very impressive tail, dances through them, both charming and slaying as she goes.
A marionette of a giant gecko then bursts on the bridge with a shiny armored Goblin King on its back, screaming in despair “My Gobos! Pay with your lives, you meanies!” His head is at least seven times larger than the rest of his body, making him rather intimidating, head-bashing away Fluffybottom and the Thumper but not Jenica the brave and amazing (Jigglypaw, but who more than any of the other dolls is obviously Jenica). The pearlescent ghostly warrior raccoon (with a lovingly stitched and impressive bust) faces him without flinching saying “Boo” with such authority the goblin king flees in terror, right off the bridge to his splatterings (a tomato is used for effect here, it is rather deliciously gross).
The midriff displaying hate-ridden fallen angel doll comes next. All blacks, whites, and vivid reds. Fluffybottom gets distracted for a moment by Belly Button, making the BunBun rage in ApppleFlames (copyright pending) and pelts the pretty evil one with a string of every increasingly sized apples sewn in (dragged quickly through loops in the background) to smash into the enemies face, making it swell (blowing into a straw makes the dolls face puff out). BunBun gives Fluffybottom a look of reproach, making the warrior woman blush (predestination to color things) and then presents the midriff armor to her love. A curtain falls on the lady dove, letting her keep her innocence as the old armor is flung off. A backlight creates an exaggerated silhouette for the imaginations of those that care. And then new skimpier armor it adorned. There are then an accompanied whistle and a dipping kiss between the two.
The demon dog with chalkboard scratches for words and legs as long as stilts (how Melody remembers from her vantage) tears through them seconds later. Brimstone is smelled throughout the room (thanks to some purchased sulfur), cloth flames are pulled up to surround the heroes, worrying all that the end is near. But Princess Polli the Yelly has had enough, rising to a new height (Polli’s doll for this fight is big but was kept further in the background to seem smaller), she loom-stares down the beast into submission accompanied with a stern SIT, which it does with a whimper.
BunBun is then kidnapped by a horrible flaky skin man (dipped in flour leaves ‘skin flakes’ everywhere) to a haunted mansion. Melody has constructed a facade in the shape of the evil house, three stories tall. Laughing and throwing out My Loves to the BunBun he drags her to the basement, where he holds her entrapped, even steals a kiss. Hand over the mouth when the rest of the heroes arrive. There is an opening of a kitchen to have a brown yarn ball with dozens of snarly rat heads poking out rolled toward them but they shut the door quickly. A room of painted pictures, a kid's room also, each with shadow puppets always reaching toward the heroes, to disappear when they turn to look.
On the second floor, they find a pretty pale lady, sad and angry. They free her by breaking a mirror (a real small mirror that cobwebs when Fluffy strikes it with the weighted sword). The pretty lady runs to the bottom, to the flaky man, freeing BunBun who cries ‘I am Here!’
The heroes run and join BunBun in time for a battle of zombie goblins (Melody thinks most people understand zombies more than ghouls), while the flaky man and the pretty pale lady fight (a revolving wheel Melody makes move with a petal and gears, has them twisting about to look like they are fighting while she concentrates on the other battle). When the gobos are hit, they fall apart (a string bow is undone to release arms and legs). The flaky man does a final hit on the pale seal and she ends in a waving twisting sigh.
Finally, the battle with the true evil of Sandpoint is joined. An epic battle to end epic battles, Fluffybottm glows in righteous fury “You Kissed My GirlFriend’ she screams and stabs at him, piercing him in one thrust (sword through the doll’s armpit). The action pauses. Then he bursts into flame(soaked in a little oil). Action pauses again, A whispered My love, then he falls over.
Battle over.
Curtain falls.
--------------
The private showing to her friends, the heroes, ends. Melody comes out from behind the stage with a nervous look “It is okay? I changed things, lots of things, tried to give everyone a Moment, of glory, of spotlight, you all do so well in all of these fights, but stories need to be shortened to keep everyone focused. I am sorry if it isn’t as good." she nibbles on her fingers "I should work on it some more. It’s not good, is it? Oh, I should have spent more time on it before showing it to you all.” she has spent little time doing anything else since they got back, other than snuggles and kisses and… well other things she quite enjoys with her l… Jenica, not hers, that's not her place to even think. "sorry"
With a huge smile on her face, Jenica swoops forward and scoops the halfling up in her arms to give her a twirl. "That was amazing, My Lovely," she says before planting a cool kiss on her lips. "You are a wonder and a delight." She kisses her a second time before setting her back down on her feet to allow everyone else to properly congratulate her.
Standing just behind she doesn't take her hand off the woman's shoulder.
Melody is swept up with a surprised giggle smothered by cool lips, and then again. "You liked it? That makes me very happy... and relieved" she whispers and beams, tilting her head she rubs her cheek against the hand on her shoulder.
Vasia steps forward to bow and shake Melody's small hand. "Your skill at telling a story is unsurpassed," she says with a smile. "I can only hope to live up to the bravery of Lady BunBun."
Morgana has a smile for the halfling too. "You're an amazing storyteller Melody, never let anyone tell you otherwise. The effort and the craft you put in is wonderful. You deserve all the praise you get."
The paladin looks awful, despite her smile. Her skin is paler than usual and there are large bags under her eyes. It looks as though she hasn't slept in days. Even her normally glossy hair is looking somewhat lank and she fiddles with her hat incessantly, and appears to be avoiding Vasia's eye.
Once the congratulations have concluded and everyone has vacated Melody's room to let Jenica congratulate the halfling in a more private manner, Vasia approaches the paladin. She directs the woman towards two chairs sitting in a corner of the common room.
"So would you like to tell me why you've been avoiding me since we got back?" she asks with a slight frown. "If I've done something wrong, please tell me what it is so I can make it right."
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"It's not your fault sweetheart." Morgana says, offering Vasia a smile that makes her eye twinkle for a few moments. "I'm just very tired. Ever since we got back from Foxglove Manor I haven't been sleeping well."
'Not sleeping well' means not at all, as every time she closes her eyes Vasia's face burning from the inside out looms before her. The one time she actually made the effort to take a sleeping draught she woke up screaming an hour later as a charred corpse with Vasia's hair crawled up her bed whispering 'How could you Morgana? How could you?'
Even that was less painful than the dream where Vasia's naked and charred form was embracing Aldern's ghoulish visage.
'I loved him first silly girl.' The dream Vasia said, sneering. 'You were just a way to pass the time until I could return to my true love.' Aldern's long tongue traced lovingly down Vasia's seared flesh as Morgana tried to close her eyes, to run, to... anything!
"Nightmares." She says, shaking off the visions and trying to be strong for the real Vasia in front of her. "It was truly creepy. But I'll manage. How are you holding up?"
"Would ... um ... would it help if I ... uh ... slept near you?" Vasia questions with a blush. "I mean, it would mean that Bunica and Melody would have to spend a night or two apart, but after all the noise they've been making that might not be a bad thing."
"That might help..." Morgana says tentatively. "I can come down to the Dragon if that's better for you."
Sleeping together helps somewhat, and Morgana only wakes up twice in the night, although she is covered in a cold sweat. After the second night she finally plucks up the courage to admit to Vasia what she's been dreaming about.
"I'm so sorry." She concludes. "I feel like such a fool. I know it wasn't you. I know he had to be destroyed, but every time I go to sleep..." She trails off.
"That might help..." Morgana says tentatively. "I can come down to the Dragon if that's better for you."
Vasia smiles at Morgana's offer. "I think Melody would appreciate it," she says.
~~~~
"I feel like such a fool. I know it wasn't you. I know he had to be destroyed, but every time I go to sleep..." She trails off.
"Nightmares are nothing to be ashamed of," Vasia says with a frown. "I used to suffer from them horribly." She reaches out and touches the woman's arm. "This sounds like just the result of a single traumatic event, though. So the effects should lessen over time." She shifts to pull Morgana into her arms. "Until then, don't be afraid to wake me if it happens again. I'm always here for you."
Leaving Sandpoint for Magnimar, the City of Monuments, our heroes journeyed to the townhouse of Aldern Foxglove. There they found a pair of faceless stalkers, masquerading as Aldern and his wife Iesha, before both of their falls. When the creatures tried to slay them our heroes fought back valiantly and overcame the shapeshifters. Searching the townhouse revealed clues as to the involvement of the Skinsaw Cult, worshippers of Norgorber, and revealed their hide-out - a 'legitimate' sawmill on the outskirts of the city.
Travelling at night our heroes approached the sawmill and were forced to battle a dozen cultists of the God of Murder and Poison before they came face to face with the cult's leader - Ironbriar, an elf who served by day as one of Magnimar's justices of the peace. Taking the elf into custody after a swift and brutal fight it became clear that he had been ensorceled by some third party. Thanks to Sabriyya and Amethyst the heroes were able to lift the enchantment and, when Ironbriar came to his senses, the spiteful elf revealed what had happened - he had been bewitched by a powerful lamia named Xanesha, who preyed on the unwary from a tower, long forgotten beneath the Irespan.
Led by a paladin who called Magnimar her home, the heroes next actions were never in doubt. The following day they assaulted the ancient clocktower to end the threat posed by Xanesha and her cultist minions. The gruelling battle was hard-fought, battling faceless stalkers between the clanging bells until Xanesha herself faced them on the tower roof - but with good fortune and the aid of Falayna the heroes were victorious, albeit at personal cost, and all of Magnimar could sleep a little safer.
Date: 1st Desnus 4708 (6 months after Xanesha’s defeat)
The docks are humming with activity as head to board the ship mid-morning. Weaving through the hustle and bustle you can still see cargo being loaded upon the impressive freshly varnished Peregrine that is nestled between two other large supply ships on the dock. Seagulls screech overhead as they try to take advantage of any lackadaisical fishermen and the smell of the salty ocean and the fresh catches of the day being hauled in from the morning’s hauls fill the air around you.
A smartly dressed man with greying hair and short, well-trimmed beard stands at the top of the gangplank wearing the teal Captain’s uniform of the Bountiful Venture Company. ”Captain Jacob Markosi,” he says, holding out his hand as each passenger board’s the ship and pauses for a greeting in kind before moving onto the next passenger. ”All passengers are being directed to their quarters to settle before we set sail. My quartermaster kindly informs me we will be fully loaded in the next hour, so please be ready to set sail in due course.”
There are a very few cramped individual cabins available, at a hefty additional cost of 20gp for the six weeks. These tight cabins sleep three. Otherwise you will be sharing accommodation in one of 2 separated sleeping passenger quarters, one for men and one for women.
The Peregrine is a three-masted sailing ship with a spritsail on the bow. The vessel is 100 feet long and 25 feet across at its widest point. There are three decks and the ship can accommodate a cargo volume of 180 tons. Two ship’s boats, used to ferry passengers and cargo ashore, are stacked on top of each other on the top deck. Each ship’s boat is 10 feet by 20 feet, and is capable of transporting eight Medium creatures without squeezing
Shaumatiel arrives bright and early, eager for the expedition to get underway. She shakes the captain’s hand and drops her pack in the communal quarters before heading back on the deck to take a last look at the City of Monuments and await the arrival of her new companions.
The elven priestess stands just shy of six feet tall, her body slender but fit. Her silver hair is long on one side and cut short on the other, and it seems to gleam in the morning sun. A long, curved blade is halted at her belt. She wears the familiar breastplate that once belonged to Nualia Tobyn, along with a mail skirt, leaving her arms, legs, and midriff bare. On her right arm is a birthmark that closely resembles an upraised sword—the symbol of her deity, the empyreal lord Falayna.
”Adventure awaits!” she says to nobody in particular, smiling in anticipation of the journey ahead...
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"I..." a small voice next to the elf, causing the priestess to look over and then Down. A halfling, in a colorful dress, and newly earned worry lines on her cute face, seems surprised she started to speak.
Her eyes travel up to see that not only she spoke, but got the other watcher of the waves' attention. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, I just... um... I don't think it awaits, Adventure I mean. It seems to jump at you, then latches on and shakes you a bit to end dropping you wet and drooly in a puddle... with fewer friends and more nightmares then when you started" the halfling trails off for a moment
"I am sorry for interrupting. I'll leave you to... Awaiting???" an apologetic smile, a nod, then beginning to turn to shuffle away.
The elf smiles at the halfling. "No apologies are necessary. It has been quite some time since I have been anywhere but Magnimar. I am merely excited to see what lies beyond the horizon. You must be Melody. I am Shaumatiel. Morgana has told me much about you. All good things!"
"Oh, Morgana..." Internally Melody worries about what Morgana said. The shining knight has been Not Herself since that roof top. But she's always been honest. Nice but honest, which is the source of worry given Melody's general feelings of self-worth.
Twidling with her skirts, with Sweets in her head urging her on, she engages in conversation "Hi. Its very nice to meet you. Um... if you don't mind me asking? What do you want to see out there? Beyond the horizon."
”I have heard many tales of the lost glories of ancient Azlant. I hope we will see some for ourselves firsthand! But along with those wonders, there are sure to be dangers as well. The new colony is going to need strong women like us to keep it safe. I intend to honor Falayna with my battle prowess. It is what I was born to do.”
Shaumatiel shows off the strange birthmark on her arm.
Melody cranes her neck up to see better "Battle prowess does sound like a good thing to have." Melody herself has bought a SPEAR thinking she has six months to develop her own prowess. "That is pretty, the color and shading..." she says honestly, but then has to admit "Um... I'm sorry for having to ask. But who is Falayna? it does seem rude to not know a god.
Shaumatiel laughs in surprise. ”You mean in all that time together, Morgana never spoke of her deity?” The elf shakes her head. ”Well, Falayna is a powerful archon empyreal lord and patron of femininity and martial training, believing them to be complementary instead of exclusive. She also is a goddess of rings, wearing numerous rings of all colors on her fingers. Brides often pay homage to her, but her main worshippers are women warriors, jewellers, and squires in training. She does not have many followers in Avistan, but there is a small cult that worships her in Magnimar. I sought them out upon coming of age to fulfill my destiny and become one of her priestesses.”
"Oh... she sounds amazing." Melody nods along her eyes shining a little with awe "I do remember her correcting one of my dolls once. Expressing the fact one could dress pretty, with a big hat, feathers, and a fluffy bottom and still hack apart the Bad into even slices with a glowing sword." that conversation grew a bit in Melody's imagination.
"I'm not any of that though. I am closer to Shelyn, since I just tell stories and not vanquish evil or dress pretty." Melody's eyes look about noticing the clear lack of covering around so much of the pretty elf. She considers asking about whether she'll get cold, worry about mosquitoes, or handsy sailors, but instead just says "Your armor is lovely" because it truly is. Melody does not know much about armor but aesthetically is it both fascinating and distracting.
”Thank you!” Shaumatiel says. She twirls around and strikes a few poses. ”I designed it myself. The breastplate belonged to Morgana, who claimed it from the blackguard, Nualia Tobyn. After her recent tragedy, Morgana feels she is no longer worthy of it, but I wanted to honor her past victories. Perhaps, one day, she will find her way back to her faith.
“At any rate, the lightweight nature of this suit is the perfect balance of defense and mobility. Plus, I worked hard to achieve this body, and I am not ashamed to show it off.” She gives Melody a wink.
"And she never stops talking about it either." Comes a voice from the bottom of the gang-plank.
Morgana has looked considerably better but since the last time she and Shaumantiel spoke her frame has filled out somewhat and she looks, if not better then at least on the mend. Without looking at Vasia, who is hovering nearby, Morgana walks carefully up the gangplank and steps onto the deck of the Peregrine. Perhaps in deference to her long illness she wears a light blouse and trousers, although her pack seems to contain some sort of armor and she has a spear, which seems to double as a walking stick.
She crouches down carefully to give Melody a hug.
"It's good to see you again Melody. I'm sorry you've had so little time with Jenica because of me. Hopefully you'll be able to spend some more time with her on the voyage." A small grin. "I heard about your shows, you're one of the most popular performers in the city from what Vasia told me. I wish I could have come to see them."
She heaves herself up, leaning more on the spear than she'd like to admit and turns to Shaumatiel. "We're still on for training while we sail, yes? I'm determined not to be a burden to you all once we arrive so I need to get back in shape!"
Melody snuggles into the hug, whispering "I am glad you are better. Don't do that again... almost die I mean. Not the hug."
Standing away she gives Vasia a wave, the disappointment of Jenica not being there flashes before she managed to smoother it and give a proper smile to a friend.
She raises her hand "I'd... like to watch or... take part. I bought a spear and have been practicing" ... so I'm not quite as useless in the next battle she keeps that part to herself.
Shaumatiel grins at Morgana. ”While I doubt my abs will ever be as tight as yours, I would argue my belly button is cuter!”
She gives the other woman a firm clasp on the arm. ”Of course, we will continue training. We must remain in fighting shape, as Falayna commands. We cannot grow complacent over the long journey.”
The elf turns back to Melody. ”It is a fine weapon. You are welcome to join our training, Melody. We’ll make a woman warrior our of you yet!”
Vasia watches Morgana carefully as she eventually follows up the gangplank. Watching the reunion with the halfling she can no longer ignore the other voice in her mind. She closes her eyes and steadies her breathing.
About bloody time!
When she finally reaches that sense of calm, she gives her bunica a mental push ...
Cool, ephemeral hands slide around Melody's small waist from behind and a breathy voice whispers in her ear. "Hello, My Lovely. Miss me?"
The Captain's eyes narrow as he watches the apparent reunion taking a fair amount of time on a fairly narrow gangplank. "Come along now, off the gangplank please, my crew need a clear way to transport if we do indeed want to leave within the hour. Please, step aboard and see Ramona, she will gladly help you with your rooms." He gestures expectantly, waiting for you all to follow his request.
As you step foot on the main deck, a tanned woman steps forward with short brown hair pulled back from her eyes dressed in a tidy but no-nonsense tunic. "Please to meet you, I am Ramona Avandth and will soon be the Leader of Talmandor's Bounty. I think you're nearly the last of the new colonists to be joining us!" She glances around at the new colonists, clearly looking for someone in particular.
"You must be Vasia Miklosovici! I'm so glad you could accept our invitation this time, you had come strongly recommended through a few channels. Remind me to introduce you to Perrell Beys later, she has been dying to meet you."
Ramona looks down at the list in front of her, "So...your sleeping arrangements were...?"