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After that man, my guards! Duke of Savoy’s men-at-arms try to push through the panicked crowd with little success... The sight of a dire bear roaring and charging toward the ninja at the portal of the Basilica of Saint Peter causes a chaotic uproar and significant obstacle for the Duke’s men...
Good heavens! What on Earth is...hap... A BEAR!? This is the best feast you have ever thrown, Duke of Florence! Hahahahaha! I mean, uh, MY GUARDS, APPREHEND THAT ASSASSIN!!
Hahahahaha!! A maroon!? I believe you meant moron, my dear Madam Du Berry! Hohohohoho!
HAHAHAHAHA!! Who said that!? What a cute little voice! Was that you, Madame Du Berry?
Warmly embracing Toshio and kissing him on both cheeks, Amadeus, Duke of Savoy seems particularly pleased to be introduced to the Japanese composer. I have heard much of your rare talents, Maestro Okumura! I am a great lover of music, and I have some modest talent on lute and organ myself... I was wondering if you would do me the great favor of accepting a commission for a mass in the Aeolian mode, to honor the Lucky Fools, who a few years ago recovered and returned the stolen Shroud of Turin from the fire dragon Wormwood’s lair?
Amadeus, Duke of Savoy, is visiting Rome and attends the feast with several condotierri, all clad in shining full plate and armed with longsword and halberd, as if the Duke were expecting trouble...
"Yes...they seem friendly enough. And with us they can ply their trade without consorting with such unsavory characters as these bugbears and Oni." Indeed! Well, it pains me that the Shroud was not to be found in yon Tower of Bones.... But mayhap you shall find it in due course of your adventures. I would be forever in your debt if you should see fit to return it to its rightful place, should such a happy event unfold.... The Duke clasps hands with Alphonse and hands him the letter of commendation he wrote while the heroes were engaged within the tower.... Godspeed, Lusty Fools....
It would seem that you have retained some rather dubious chroniclers of your exploits, Lusty Fools.... The Duke of Savoy seems amused by the trio of goblin minstrels following the party....
The Norseman seems to have a fascination with fire and cumbustion that can come to no good.... And what's the mystery behind this Beetle Man of Paris? Why does he travel with them? He and the Asian man seem to appear and disappear as they please.... And the Irishman as well.... Is it magic or skill? Or some combination of both? There is something I like about the Englishman with the silvery scythe.... Something pure, angelic.... Like he is above the squalor and ugliness of this world.... He would make a great ruler, but he would never seek power for himself....
The Duke of Savoy grins wryly as a flickering glow brightens the inside of the upper chamber of the Tower of Bones--the burning lamia.... Hmmm.... Then again, these Lusty Fools would likely burn my palace to the ground apprehending the first assassin that came along....
All of the unfolding tableau of violence is observed by Duke Amadeus from afar.... He sits atop his mountain-bred horse, watching the calamity unfold in the Bone Tower through the gaps and windows between mammoth ribs and mortared skulls.... Remarkable!.... What passion for their work.... What workmanlike cooperation in their deadly danse macabre.... How elegant their form as they butcher and hack through the enemy.... A well-oiled death machine.... What prince would not desire such an elite guard?
Beware, good sirs! This monster has preyed upon my people for years! Do not let her touch you, for her caress is poison to the will of men!
If we are to hunt and track perhaps we should start right away Hisao says musingly Cities have eyes and ears and spies Agreed, says the Duke. Then you do not wish to rest and dine at my palazzo first? I can take you into Turin to refresh yourselves after your trek through the Alps first, or we can go at once to the Etruscan ruins I suspect are where the raiders and their Oni leader lair....
I believe unrelated to the raid and theft of the Shroud, we also had to be vigilant against recruiters sent by the king of Aragon and by his enemy, Franscesco Sforza, to poach soldiers of Savoy away to fight in their squabbles over Naples and Genoa.... But as I said, I doubt that has anything to do with the raid....
Before the Shroud was stolen, emissaries of the dragon did come to demand tribute--red-robed priests of Satan and their foul Orc minions.... We sent them away at sword-point and told them only death awaited them here if they dared to return.... Three weeks after, the oni and the raiders came, butchered many brave men and women of Turin, and stole the Shroud!
Dai Oni, big, fearsome magic, can hide track with magic, but minion army maybe not so stealthy. What was with Oni and which way did they go? Yes, exactly.... The raiders included orcs of the Piedmont region, formerly of the Tusk-cracker Tribe, and bugbears of the same region, formerly of the Gut-Ripper Tribe.... These brutes have long inhabited the ancient ruins of the Etruscan tribe, that flourished before the rise of the first Roman Empire....
The Shroud of Turin was housed in the Church of Saint John the Baptist, one of three Christian churches in Turin that would, in later ages, be combined into Turin Cathedral.... Duke Amadeus leads the Lusty Fools into the city through the main gate, and along the ancient streets to the Church of St John the Baptist. Gesturing to the stone temple, the Duke speaks.... Here is the Church of Saint John the Baptist, where the Shroud had lain undisturbed since the days of the apostles.... Now, we can only guess at its current whereabouts.... But divinations performed by my court astrologer suggest that the Shroud is in the possession of this oriental demon, the Dai Oni.... And the surroundings of its lair appeared in the waters of the divining pool as a cavernous place, no doubt underground somewhere.... But where, exactly?
"The honor of retrieving and being in the presence of such a valued Church artifact is more than reward enough." May Our Lord bless you and keep you safe on this perilous quest, good sirs.... Yours are the words and bearing of true soldiers of Christ! The Duke smiles warmly at Alphonse and Iommi-Tyr for their apparent willingness to recover the Shroud without need of reward. But I assure you, good sirs, that if you succeed, you shall have more than mere gratitude in recompense....
Nacht twiddles a dagger's blade along the thumb of his right glove, " As long as we get to chooose, how we 'fix' the problem. " a wisp seems to follow its very word and there is a clear menacing gaze at the word fix. ....As for your methods of "fixing" the problem.... I will leave that entirely up to you.... So long as no harm comes to Turin or my subjects....
I am sure I can also spare some gold and silver from my coffers if you bring back the Shroud in one piece....
The least I can offer you in exchange for your willingness to recover the Holy Shroud is the best hospitality Turin has to offer, at my own palazzo.... And I believe I can give you some advise on where the Dai Oni and its minions may be lairing....
Well, yes.... Of course.... But what would you ask for such a service.... If, indeed, you were capable and willing of so daunting a task?
The Duke grins wanly at Paddy..., You have a keen eye, stranger.... Fear not: they are my men.... They will only fire on my command, I assure you.
Seeming to notice Nacht for the first time, Duke Amadeus narrows his eyes to gaze curiosly at the strange figure.... That's correct, stranger.... The holy Shroud was taken almost a month ago, now, in a brazen and bloodthirsty raid on the Church of Saint Veronica.... The cardinal was murdered, as were several other priests and laymen.... The duke's face darkens as he recounts the raid and theft of the Shroud of Turin.... There was an evil spirit of the Heathen Orient in league with the Satanic raiders.... Like a great, blue-skinned cyclops, with spiral horns on its head and magical powers of flight, invisibility, and the ability to conjure blasts of icy wind and hail! The others seemed to defer to this evil thing, and called it the "Dai Oni"....[/b]
Dark times indeed have befallen Turin.... As they have all other lands, I gather.... Our Shroud has been stolen by evil thieves in league with the Devil and his minion, the dragon Conflagratius.... We seek it far and wide, to no avail.... Divinations tell us that it now lies in the corrupt hands of the Antichrist, wherever he may be hiding.... It does not bode well for us, sirs....
Descending through alpine meadows fragrant with evergreens, the heroes come to a wooded, hilly vale in which the city of Turin is nestled. The city's gray stone walls are visible when the sound of horse hooves crunching pine needles reaches the heroes' ears.... Riding at a casual trot out of the foliage ahead, a handsome man in his middle years, astride a dappled stallion, both clad in mail, appears on the path before the Lusty Fools.... He reigns his horse to a stop and regards each of them.... Bienvenuto, travelers.... I do not recognize your faces.... Where are you coming from, and to where are you borne, if I may inquire, as Duke of this Land? |
