Alden takes a seat at the table, and nods. "What would you like to know, M'Lady?"
Jaxom looks at the cluster of gemstones on the table. He hadn't thought about possibly merging with already merged stones. How huge would the mass be if they succeeded in merging the world back together? There were a few places that he wondered if there could be a way from blocking? The world wound? Lands over run by orcish armies or undead?
He sits and looks at the 'lady'. "Alden could probably handle any question best. He selected the merge. I was hoping for iron, for making tools. More mouths to feed means more land needing to farm."
The lady stands and takes several small plates from a stack, handing them to each of the shard bearers before taking a cloth from a tray and offering a variety of small tea biscuits. "I don't normally take sweet things with tea." she explains to Kevan as she pours him tea first and sets it before him, "But I will keep your preference in mind in the future."
Moving on, she pours tea for Alden and Jaxom as well before returning to her seat. "I would like to know what is different about this time." she says placidly, "I know it isn't in our contract that you share everything, but I believe we've both operated in good faith so far."
"The merging was more complicated this time, m'Lady," Alden replies. "Some of the shards are bigger, much bigger. Others are....shinier, as they seem to have a larger amount of the energy in the stones. The shard I selected was one of these shiny ones. I don't know if was the right decision, but I went with my gut." He looks at the rest of the group for a moment, and then back to the dragon. "When the stones merged, they flew off back to you. Why, I don't know."
"You don't have to take my tastes into account, ma'am. I wanted to add something to the table, that's all. If you prefer something less sweet, I'm sure I could accommodate. Do you have a preference?" Kevan asks before taking a sip of tea.
After Alden gives his explanation...
"If this keeps up it's likely we won't be able to carry it at some point. Seems like it would get huge if we get much of the world back together."
Jaxom sips the tea. It wasn't really his favorite drink, but tasted, OK.
"I've been thinking about that. You know I'm not fond of magic, but I think there are rules. The other side of this merge was dead. The previous merge, well, he really wasn't available anymore either. So I think the stones sought out the strongest of previous merges, even if it required both stone to be transported."
Turning first to Kevan she favors him with a polite smile. "Guests need not worry about such things." she says firmly, "But if I find myself at your table know I am not particular about such things. Your hostess serves fine drink, and of that I am."
"Yes, but where is the shard you merged with? Underground?" she asks Alden, "As to where the shard went, neither time did it come to me. Though I appreciate you acknowledging my domain, I certainly didn't have them come land at my feet." She gives a light chuckle at the notion.
"I should be so fortunate." she adds.
"If you are referring to the new shard of land, m'Lady," Alden replies, glancing down at the collection of gem-shards on the table in confirmation, "it is a hill with a network of underground caverns beneath. If you would like to see it, we can take you there. Some of the art objects contained therein are quite large, and the one you select might require you to take your true form in order to carry it out of the cave."
"I take it you didn't bring my tithe then?" she asks with a thin smile, "I suppose I wouldn't be against personally collecting it. Though I might need some boots for a walk through the forest." As she speaks she looks to Kevan.
"Let me go get my bag." she says as she stands and gives a slight curtsy. Then, she walks down into her lair before returning a few minutes later. She had a waist pack at her hip, latched to the belt of her dress. It wasn't very large, resting easily on her slender hip.
Kevan has the boots off by the time she comes out. "My lady, your boots await." he says holding them out to her. "The people are fond of going barefoot anyway."
The lady accepts the boots and considers them a moment. She takes her seat again and places them at her feat. With some comments in draconic and some minor arcane gestures she casts a spell and any residue on the boots begins to flake off and dissipate into the air.
With a nod to herself she takes a pair of silk socks from her hip bag and puts them on. Then, she draws her dress up her legs a bit to slip the boots on slowly. The magic of the boots expands them in size, letting her feet slip into them.
As she finished her eyes flicked up at the men before her from under her brow. "Well, I'm ready." she assured them.
Alden rises from the table, and says, "It's this way, m'Lady." He then moves in the direction of the caverns.
Kevan follows. As he goes he tells a story of providing an escort to a royal lady of some sort. "So I was hired as a stable hand for this royal lady's entouragy. Nothing important, mind you, I was to feed the horses and the dogs. She had a ton of dogs. I really liked those dogs. Very friendly to me and the children but they were not on their best behavior with most of guards. They were big black brutes too but nice as could be if you were their friend. Anyway..." he rambles on expanding the story as time requires.
Talschornvox listens intently to Kevan's story with a look of mild amusement. "Did you perhaps leave a broken heart behind ser?" she asks when he pauses long enough to get a word in, "It is a common tale, for a lady to become smitten with her escort."
"To be honest, I don't think she even knew I existed. She knew the dogs by name but just called me dog boy. But the pay was good and she didn't keep good track of her stuff." Kevan says with a smile and thrumming his fingers together.
The lady gives a melodic laugh and smiles down at Kevan. She doesn't continue, but gives him a nod of gratitude. When they get to the village she pauses to look over the activity with an air of approval. Then, when coming to the descent she pauses to look at Alden. "After you ser." she says with a gesture toward the entrance.
Alden gives Tal a respectful nod. "As you wish, M'Lady," he says, using the light from his bow to illuminate the route through the caverns.
Jaxom ignores the story from Kevan. He'd heard enough from the man to be fairly certain that most of the stories were just that....
He follows the group. watching and wondering what dangers they'd find. So far there had always been dangers. Maybe the dragon lady would be helpful?
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Descending through the tunnels Talschornvox keeps her human guise, even descending down the rope from the falls. When the group enters the treasure room her brow lifts, eyes widening for a moment and her breath hitching. "You have certainly found a horde." she muses, "Did you have some idea what I am owed from this?"
"Roughly fifteen hundred gold, twelve hundred silver, thirty platinum, and one of those," he says, gesturing to the sculptures, "of your choice, M'Lady. Of course, the coin amounts are only a guess at this point, as we haven't counted them yet."
The lady walks amongst the stacked treasure and slowly observes what is there. It wasn't hard to imagine a dragon's tail flicking behind her as she reached out and traced fingers over some of the gold and jewels. Finally, she stopped at the lion statue. "Taldoran." she noted with an even tone, "Majestic and overbearing at the same time."
Moving on she takes the large aquamarine, lifting it up and admiring it's luster despite it's uncut state. "Strange." she notes without looking past the jewel, "Such a horde and not a single magical item." The slightest hint of a smile teased the corner of her mouth.
She turned to face the three. "You'll help me collect this yes?" she asked.
"There were magic items, M'Lady. The terms of our agreement, as you proposed them, were to give you a fifteen percent share of wealth, and an art item of your choice. As such, no coins, gems, or items of art have been removed from this cavern. It will be my honor to assist you in the counting and apportionment of the coins." Alden gives the dragon a genuine, respectful bow.
"I'm aware of the wording." the lady said softly, "Yes, please assist me."
With help her tithe is collected and placed into her bag. Though it does not bulge at the seams or weigh down her belt in the least. After which she exits the tunnel without comment and goes to the inn to meet with Milana.
Once the group and the dragon had finished counting coins Jaxom moves around, searching for anything made of hard metals. The coins used to be valuable as currency, but they were useless for making plows, or weapons.
Remembering his promise to Sarana, Alden discretely asks around to the women in town to find out if any of them would be interested in joining her at her pond.
In the meantime, he focuses teaching the newcomers how to plow, plant, and harvest, utilizing sufficient land to feed everyone, with an estimated surplus in case of additional mouths arriving in the next merging.
Finally, he journeys into the Dragon’s Forest, both to report on any likely candidates for the Swan Sisterhood to Sarana, and also to explore the Druid cottage she mentioned on his last visit.
"I know no one is interested but I'm just going to take a few hundred gold. Never know, the next shard might be a bustling trade area." Kevan says as the others leave the cave.
The passing of the year moves a bit differently this time. The somewhat regular cycle of summer and winter between the joining of shards has changed thanks to the intrusion of New Ostenso.
As summer passes and the fall harvest comes in there is a grand celebration. Milana drags in much help to prepare a feast for all. There is no meat, as there is not enough for all, but stockpots filled with vegetables and mushrooms are offered. There are fresh baked squash, plentiful pies, and a variety of other sweet desserts laid out in a great spread. Not to mention a variety of different moonshines and the first brewing of a genuine ale from the inn's cold room.
The harvest feast festival, as it was, came a bit early though. For Tel Beys had planned to coop it with another fall celebration. One celebrated in both Andoran and Cheliax. Signing day. There were a variety of fireworks made with the help of Kevan and Varny that lit up the festivities, including sparklers for the children. Norian and Kras'tak added to the show with a variety of magics as well.
Though it wouldn't be Tel Beys if there wasn't a practical aspect for it. There were a series of laws put plain, and the festival was a way to ensure everyone was aware of them. They were laid out as follows:
1. Every citizen would be responsible with finding a productive trade. Those not practicing some kind of trade could and would be called on by the city to serve as general laborers.
2. Each citizen's domicile was their own. No trespass by law or fellow citizen would be allowed without reasonable suspicion of crime. Anyone trespassing or stealing from another would be subject to trail and imprisonment.
3. Election for mayor and council positions would be held every other year. All citizens, including those currently in prison, would be allowed to vote.
The feast ended up being a great event, brightening the mood of many after so many months of hard work. The projects taken up through the early spring and summer were mostly complete. Now people could savor the fruits of their labor. At least, unless some terrible catastrophe came of the coming merging.
Jaxom: In addition to the new construction and farming operations there was some exploratory digging in the underground. The only real thing of value discovered was large deposits of crystal and large edible mushrooms that served as a decent meat substitute.
Kevan: Read above.
Alden: During Alden's attempts to get Sarana's offer out he receives mixed responses. None of it is positive. From people cursing and warding against fey folk, to polite refusals he makes no progress. No obvious progress. There were a few people he wasn't able to talk to directly who did watch and listen with interest.
Sarana is not surprised when he comes to report to her. In fact she seems a little amused at his approach. "You're certainly direct with people Alden." she says with a stifled chuckle. Her amusement lingered through his visit, and she joins him on a walk through the forest to the abandoned hut.
At least, the formerly abandoned hut. It was repaired now, and in the clearing moss and vines grew over the old construction and new alike. It would seem Eochaidh had moved in. He had also buried the previous resident and setup a small shrine. "The previous occupant." Sarana began slowly, "He tried to cast out Talschornvox when the mistress settled here. It was a terrible fight.
Etherium: I am seeing different numbers than I believe I should. I'm not sure if it is adjusted amounts or if I was using old data when I posted. Either way, I will now tally your etherium total in case the group wishes to make use of it during downtime.
Norian and Bart - 1000 gp (tiny)
Talschornvox - 1700 gp (tiny, double payout, tax)
New Ostenso - 850 gp (tiny, tax)
Treasure - 8,500 (small, double payout, tax)
This leaves the party with 11,550 GP worth of etherium.
Date of joining: 17 Lamashan
Jaxom looks around at the celebration meal. It looks and smells good.... "On the next join maybe we should look for ranch land? Cattle, sheep, and maybe chickens? Do we have any rabbits? We could set up pens and start raising them for meat."
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to persuade anyone to join you," Alden says to Sarana. "Perhaps you are correct. I should be a little more subtle. I will try to identify likely candidates, and make the suggestion less publicly. Anyway, thank you for understanding. If I were a good matchmaker, I would've matched someone with myself by now." He ends his statement with a small smile and a chuckle. He walks with Sarana back to her pond, bids her farewell, and makes his way back to town.
"I believe you did nothing wrong." Sarana answers Alden, "You said you would seek out interested people for me and you did. I am certain anyone who might be interested now knows." As she walked with him she called lights into being that danced around them and reflected in odd ways off the surface of the water.
"People are not so different than animals." she reasoned, "Just because they do not walk into your embrace to be petted does not mean they are not interested." She continued to talk with him, and once they were back to her pond she sat down on a rock on the shore and continued to discuss small details of the forest.
As the paladin made to leave he saw the same large brown wolf again. Watching him from the treeline. It held him in it's gaze for a long moment, and then turned and walked off.
As the group gathers in the inn there isn't as much of a collective this time. Tel Beys and others had made their requests known, and in her own words they had enough work to do without bothering the shard bearers.
As Alden holds the conglomeration of gems in his hands he hears discordant voices. Seven individuals trying to speak in his mind at once. Then once more. Eventually the noise lowers as less gems try to speak, and after another moment he hears the familiar voice of Deshrit.
"We have decided to leave the communication to me my lord." he tells Alden in the formal cadence the gem was known for, "Let us begin."
Focusing on the task at hand, the gems begin to glow dully and hum.
As Alden watches the eight lights form in the swirling darkness of the ritual he notices four of them merge together. Once again forming a brilliant pair that blocked his sight. The other four however, he was able to catch glimpse of.
The first he saw was a familiar, lonely mine shaft next to a cottage. He remembered it as the other treasure shard from his previous vision.
In the second, he had a bird's eye view of the strangest expanse of land he had ever seen. Every quarter of the shard before him featured vastly different terrain. A stretch of high cliff along a coast for one section. A verdant forest for another. Crags of rock that were black as night dominated another corner, rising high and having molten rock pool and run along the broken surface. The final slice of this odd shard was gray and barren soil. Like a bleak and lifeless badlands. It was flat, and the surface was cracked. Above all of these, in the center of the shard, was a small island floating in the sky.
The third shard he had vision of was dark. He could sense formless rock around him, but wherever the shard may have been was either underground or drowned in supernatural darkness.
The fourth shard, and the last one he could see without the light interfering was a shard very similar to their own. A rather large village was ringed by a wooden pallisade. There were farms around it's borders and the land around it was rolling hills and plains dotted with small thickets of trees.
There were, of course, also the two shards too brilliant to see into without looking closer. Time yet again to choose which shards to take a look into.
"Let's take a look at that dark shard," Alden says to Deshrit. "The one that seems to be deep underground or underwater."
Alden is brought back into the dark. He wasn't sure at first what the difference was, but he could feel as if he was moving. He could make out water lapping at a shoreline beneath him. Which grew quieter and died as he noticed a faint light. Drawing closer he saw a glinting purple and red source of light coming from a sconce on the ground. It's magical light dims, shedding less light than a torch.
He can see forms laid around it, huddled into themselves as they lay on stone...
He couldn't make out what race the hunched forms were. Nor could he make out the shadowed forms that came in from the darkness. They started to strike and lash at the sleeping forms. Those that didn't rise fast enough were collapsed on, several attackers striking them. Focusing on beating that one form as others hurried the others into the dark on some business.
"Thank you, Deshrit. Let's now look at large shard with the floating island."
Swooping in over the landscape Alden can see each section of the shard had odd construction and landscaping done. The shore had several trenches dug for ocean pools to form, and some of the ledge along the shore had been dug into. The verdant forest had seen some trees chopped down and a small, unroofed woodworking mill had been setup. The calmer and less volcanic site of the blackened land also had a small camp setup with a tiny, covered shed. The barren area had some long drag marks that entered and exited over and over in the same spot, but Alden could not make out what had been done there.
Finally, soaring high, he got a look at the underside of the island floating above. It had long beams underneath it, supporting the weight and glittering with pockmarked spots of silvery black etherium. As he drew up the the lip of the island he saw a structure above... and then the vision cut out.
"Hmmmm..." Deshrit said curiously, "One moment master Alden." There was a long pause, and then the gem's voice returned. "Alcheas says it is likely warded from scrying." Deshrit explained, "You have not met him yet. He is one of our newest gems. A magus of some kind, though I have not spoken with him at length about his former profession."
"The shard with the floating island and the one with the mine shaft are the two with the highest amounts of etherium, correct?" Alden asks the gems.
"Let's join with the shard with the fortified village," Alden says to Deshrit and the other gems. "They seem to have built something similar to us, and Dead-Eye willing, they will have the same communal spirit."