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"So am I." Jhael replies almost curtly. Jhael quickly fills in the Tengu on what he had seen through the Oculus, leaving out Mephisto entirely, but describes the other man and mentions that he may be important. "Do you know anything about him? About the secret passage?"
"Yeah." Jhael mutters as she leaves. Turning from the desk, he walks over to the pile of papers that the tengu is buried beneath. "Excuse me," he offers, hoping to not startle Lars. "I had a question for you."
Jhael turns to leave, and then changes his mind. He walks to where she's sitting and speaks to her back, almost to himself. "I know it's dangerous, and that I'm at risk on all sides, but you know why I have to go." Surprisingly, he moves closer, and reaches down, putting his hand on hers. When she looks up, he says, "If things... go badly. It may not be a safe place to be for a while. I mean, not that it ever was. But, you know, less so. Is... is there anyone that you want me to check in on, to try and keep safe?"
While Jhael understands Relveti's point of view, her outburst still puts him on the defensive. "I know. I know. It was Mephisto's idea, and I know I'm a fool for trusting her in the first place. But whatever her plans, she has a stake in the future of our hometown." He shakes his head with a smile, saying "I'll be careful, I promise." before adding quietly, "Listen, the man I described, does he sound familiar?"
"Cid and Oswald." He admits, looking somewhat embarrassed at first, but sounding resolved. "There's even more going on in Argosal than I'd thought." He finishes with a frown. "I was using the Oculus to look in on Urnrad, and I saw a couple of interesting things. There's a secret entryway underneath a statue in the church. The church's windows are boarded up from the inside, the stairs to the balcony are blocked with furniture. And. I saw, there was a man. small, lanky, cloaked. He and Urnrad were arguing." "I know that it has been a while," Jhael finished apologetically, "But do you know anything about any of this?"
"Not that sudden." Jhael said with a short laugh. "My questions can wait, what's wrong?"
Jhael breathes a sigh of relief when Mephisto disappears. Surprised as he is that she can do that, he decides that he'd rather not deal with her when she's angry. Or concerned. Or whatever else she may have been. "Where can I go for more information..." he mutters, before a light goes on in his head. Deciding that Oswald can wait, he moves quickly, passing through the teleporter and walking quickly through the hallways before arriving at the library, searching for Relveti, or, at the very least, the strange little tengu.
Jhael looks surprised by the revelation that Mephisto was looking in on the city. He knew that she had spies, and had not expected her to do most of the watching herself. 'So... she has been there before.' He thought. "I didn't see where he went," Jhael confessed. "He seemed rather angry at Urnrad. Couldn't say why, though. I don't suppose you happened to catch what Urnrad said to get the secret passageway to open? Might be worth knowing if I'm to investigate it." Jhael paused for a second, thinking. "Are multiple people able to use the oculus at the same time? Sort of piggy-back based on where someone else has been?"
"Well, that was disappointing." He muttered, looking around to re-acclimate himself with the room. Studying Mephisto's face, he realised that he still probably could not trust her, maybe could not ever, but that he did need a hand to make sense of this. "They left, and rather rudely at that." "Urnrad argued with someone, though of course I couldn't make sense of any of it. The man was small, lanky, and had a cloak covering some of his face. Definitely no one I've ever seen before. When the man left, Urnrad went into a secret basement of the church, hidden beneath a status." He shook his head, adding that "I wasn't able to follow him." He paused to look at her, "Does any of this sound familiar at all?" "Strange, too," He said, "The windows were boarded up from the inside and the stairway to the balcony was blocked with furniture. It didn't look like anything was up there." He looks at Mephisto, studying her face while he waits for her reply. Everything she said had to be taken with a grain of salt, he suspected.
Feeling even more troubled by having nothing turn up in the balcony, Jhael shrugs, deciding that he would have to venture there in person if he were to learn anything of value.
Standing in the middle of the church, Jhael realised that he was not sure how to leave, and blinked multiple times. Remembering that he was specifically viewing the church, he decided that he should be sent back to the Nexus if he simply left. With something of a shrug, Jhael turned around and strode through the church's solid doors.
Jhael looks around, disappointment spread across his face at the feeling that he learned very little. 'More questions than I had before.' He thought to himself. Watching through the window as the shrouded man leaves the church, Jhael tries to think if there's anything about him that seems familiar.
Frowning, he decides to see what else there may be to learn while waiting for the priest to come back. Trying to find a way to pass the time, he begins wandering around the inside of the church. The windows being boarded up seems natural, but the stairs being blocked piques his curiosity. He decides to walk up them, to see if there's more to the second floor than is immediately apparent.
Jhael took a deep breath and moved into the door. Passing through it felt somehow different than the portals in the Nexus. This was more like being somewhere that he did not belong. The very matter that made up the door had no power over him. It felt unnatural, as if he was forgotten in the balance of the universe. He decided to learn what he could and get out quickly. Walking through the center of the cathedral, Jhael approached the men, hoping to hear their conversation, before remembering what Mephisto had said, and noticing that he couldn't actually hear anything at all. Jhael frowned, before getting an idea, and he moved to stand closer to the men, hoping to determine what they were saying from their lip movements and mannerisms.
Jhael looks pleased with himself for figuring something out, and felt for the first time that he might eventually understand some of the Nexus after all. He smiled, genuinely, at Mephisto. "Let's give this a try, then, yeah?" Speaking towards the device, he declares "I wish to gaze upon Priest Urnrad."
Jhael relaxes noticeably when Oswald leaves the room, and follows Mephisto towards the device. The number of rules, and the nature of them, causes his brow to furrow. "How can someone wish to not be viewed? How are they even aware of it? I didn't think the Nexus, or the things in it, were known to many outside these, er, 'walls'?" A mischievous look spreads across his face as he thinks he may have found a loophole towards power. "You can view a person or place? So, if someone doesn't want to be watched, but you know where they are, can't you just view the place?"
The look of annoyance quickly fading, Jhael cocks his head at Oswald. "I believe that was my point." Jhael strides away from Oswald, hoping more than a little bit that Mephisto would tell him she needed to keep Oswald around, and could Jhael possibly find someone else to go on the trip. He sighed, knowing that what they had to do was larger than petty disagreements. Who knows, maybe they'd even become friends. Jhael was still laughing as he reached Mephisto, and greeted her with a nod as he caught his breath. "Greetings Lady Mephisto. I was hoping to use the Oculus for, ah, reconnaissance, as it were."
Jhael stops in his tracks. "It's easy not to be," he began without looking over his shoulder at Oswald, "when you've seen the bodies of your loved ones come back as monsters." He now looked at Oswald, a surprising amount of fury burning in his eyes. "Have you been to Sanctuary before? It's not what I thought it was, you see. Despite the things I had to do in its service, I had likened it to a beacon of hope, and that was a nice thing to be a part of. But since dying, I've learned what a fool I was: It's a town that exists so that a bored Necromancer has things to play with. Apparently even the Preacher is in on it. The man who brought many of us into the world, now desecrates our remains that the Lich's army should grow." Shaking his head, Jhael turned from Oswald and walked towards the teleporter. "There are no 'good' people in this world."
Spending 550 of my 1586 White Aether on potions for the trip: Gravity Bow, Bear's Endurance, Spider Climb, and Invisibility.
Hey, wanted to let you know that I'll be in England from Dec 16th to the 30th, so I'll likely only be able to get on once every two days or so. Hopefully we'll be back in business by then, either way!
You too, dude! And enjoy the vacation, I'll still be here afterwards.
No worries, I know it's holidays, too. I shan't be around on Saturday all day, but otherwise today/tomorrow/Sunday, I'm doing very little aside from updating my portfolio and writing a Google Chrome plugin for the forums here, so I'll be around pretty much constantly.
We're casting some Raise dead on this. The spell failed, possibly due to missing components.
\o/ No worries!
I figured such! I'm not disappearing, so no worries. I should be around through Thanksgiving, but Christmas will be another story (one which I have not entirely figured out as of yet).
F$%# it, I'll pass on the potions and see about getting by with my good looks and daring heroics.
OH. Alright, I'll check over the list tonight and let you know.
So you said that Marco has one of all the Level 1 and 2 Transmutation spells available as a potion, but he himself mentioned an Invisibility Potion, which would be, you know, Illusion school, so does he have more than the Transmutation ones? I'll definitely end up picking up something, I am just not sure what, yet.
Jhael nods a response filled with disappointment but understanding. 'Shouldn't have expected it to be so easy.' He thinks, purchasing a few potions from the Wizard before moving on. Casting a last look at Oswald before passing through the door, Jhael tried to decide what step to take next. Deciding that investigating as much as possible before his mission would be the best course of action, and started the walk back to Mephisto's lair to see if he could learn anything from the large orb housed there. The idea of scrying leaves an unpleasant feeling in his stomach, but he had no intention of being killed again.
Jhael nods, adding "His control over the elements should be quite helpful where we're going, though if what you say is true, I may need to keep a closer eye on him than I had hoped." Jhael nods his thanks, considering for a moment and then adding slyly, "What about some kind of, ah, truth serum?"
Jhael nods periodically as the Wizard speaks. "I thought it was strange as well. What he's up to, I don't know, and I'm certainly not in a good position to stop him. But perhaps by slowing down his progress, I can learn something more." His ears perk up at the mention of potions. "Indeed not - I'm bringing a mister, ah, Cid with me. More than two might be suspicious, since the town is completely cut off due to the Mist." Jhael shakes his head. "At any rate - potions. What do you have in mind?"
"As can be expected." He replies with a smile, though his eyes quickly move over to Oswald. He wonders for a moment if the man was meant to spy on him or the others. 'Yet another person for whom subtlety isn't their strong suit.' He thought, noting how he stood out like a sore thumb. "I wanted to ask you about something. It looks as though I'm returning to Argosal to... investigate something - someone. I wondered if you might be able to tell me anything useful. Anything you've heard from there in the last... few weeks. Anything about the Lich. Rumours of bodies going missing. I figure you may have heard something."
Jhael smiles. "You've got a deal. I have a few things to tend to as well, preparations and so forth. We can meet up later and I'll fill you in on the specifics." Jhael rises, gives Cid a nod, and heads for the exit, trying to decide what exactly he's going to ask Marco as he walks towards the Wizard's room.
Jhael stares with interest as Cid loads up his weapon, and grins in response to his statements. "Relveti wasn't great with subtlety either." He laughs, adding, "Nor Conrad for that matter." His smile fades as he continues, dropping his voice somewhat. "Truth be told, I can do the sneaking around myself. But given that I died there recently, my ability to communicate with everyone I may need to is somewhat... limited. Hiding my feelings will likely be difficult at times, and I wouldn't want to give myself - or this place - away. What do you think?"
Jhael smiles shyly in response, wondering how it is that everyone seems to know what he wants. 'Adventure must be par for the course in this place.' He muses. After idly wondering for a moment what Gibraltar is like, he meets the man's eye. "Investigation." He replies dryly. "No fame, probably little money. Lots of risk..." His voice trails off, but after pausing for a second, he clears his throat and adds. "But. It's the right thing to do. It'll save countless lives."
"I don't doubt that." Jhael replied, looking at the weapon. "Looks like quite the device. Provided that it works." He added, with a teasing smile. "I'm from Argosal," He replied. "And soon to be back there, it seems. Problems at home." He said by way of an explanation. "Someone's stirring up trouble." Taking a sip of his own drink, he peered at the older man. "Been here long?"
At a conference for most of this week which is draining at best - won't be able to have a post up until Thursday, but I'll try to make it a good one!
Oh yeah no worries at all dude.
Jhael smiles warmly. "Pleasure. I'm Jhael, a fairly recent, ah, arrival." He nods to the man, "That's quite the device you have on your back. Your own design?"
"Hrm. Alright." Jhael replied with a smile. "Thanks for the advise. I'll talk to Mephisto." He started to walk away, and then stopped and turned back. "Say," he asked. "There isn't a way for me to stay in contact with you while I'm out in the world, is there?"
Jhael nodded to Relveti, both upset and pleased to see that the suspicions about Urnrad may not have been misplaced. "Conrad had crossed my mind," he explained, "Because he's someone I can trust. But there won't be any riches on this trip." He thought for a second before adding, "Just bittersweet nostalgia. Plus, as you said, he's not exactly quiet." "What can you tell me about Oo? I think I saw him watching me, but it was very brief." He thought for a second, seeming to consider Bagrin even though he knew that he couldn't lie to the little guy about it being Mephisto's plan, and Bagrin would absolutely not go along with it if he knew it was. "Bagrin. Hrm. Maybe." He considered for a moment before continuing. "Those that are under Mephisto's thumb. What ... hrm. That is to say... How bad would it be to recruit one of them? Mephisto must understand the need to stop the Lich, yeah?" He shook his head, "Bagrin told me not to trust her, but I haven't really heard any reasons why."
Jhael nods a thanks to Relveti as she mentions the idea of assistance. "Not sure." He replied with a sigh. He paused, before continuing "Lars has a message that was intended for Priest Urnard that seems to be encoded, but that doesn't really say anything. He thinks it was written by a Lich, but, well, you know, the bird's a bit of a loon." Jhael smiles at his own joke, not expecting Relveti to get it, and continues all the same. "I don't know who it could be, or who to trust, but I feel that I may have to go and ask around soon. Do you know anyone who may be interested in joining me?"
Jhael made a mental note not to irritate the bird again as he walked back over to Relveti. At her question he shakes his head. "Just been thinking about how you died. I figured the same you did, but now I'm not so sure. Seems to me that whoever betrayed you might also be smuggling bodies to the Lich. Not sure who, though." He looked her in the eyes, and continued. "I know you aren't looking to go back any time soon, but I still have friends, family there. I can't just let them sit in a trap that's waiting to close on them at any time."
"Wait wait," he pushes, refusing to be shoo'd away without getting something he can use. "I didn't mean when as a time, I meant when as a day. Do you know how often? Or when the next time will be?" Jhael noted that the last thing he wanted to do was walk around exposed while the Mist was at large. Hopefully the bird at least knew a way to minimise how often he was there. Jhael didn't mind dying again, not if it meant hindering the Lich, but he'd prefer to come back, and it didn't sound like the Mist permitted that. Once the Tengu answers him, Jhael will move back over to Relveti, looking deep in though, and say to her. "The bodies that Argosal uses for his army. Did you ever wonder how he got them all?"
Do I have any idea what "When the fog lowers" means? I didn't think the mist dissipated at night or anything.
Jhael stared hard at the Tengu, feeling his mission becoming more complicated by the minute. "Do you know who?" he asked quietly. "If not, perhaps you know when?"
Jhael scratches his head, realising that for all his apparent missing marbles and loose wiring, the Tengu may in fact be seeing things that he isn't. "Undead." he muttered, the word tasting of ash on his tongue. "Tell me, have you decoded the letter?"
Jhael stares hard at the paper, and then at the Tengu. "You may be right. Where did you get this?" Without waiting for a reply, Jhael sits down at the table, pulling an ink vial, pen, and journal from his bag, preparing to see if he can discern anything about a hidden message.
Jhael scratches his head, wondering if the Tengu's gone brain dead from having died so many times. 'If this is what I have to look forward to, I'll walk straight into the damned mist.' "Uh. How can I help?"
"Uh, yes. Right. Anything I can do to help?"
Jhael looks at the papers strewn everywhere in a mixture of disbelief and dismay. He looks at the Tengu. "My apologies, sir. Allow me to help." Wincing as Lars shrieks a response to the books, Jhael makes a mental note to keep conversations with him brief. He places the books on the table, and reaches over to help the Tengu clean up. While picking up the papers, Jhael notices several of them deal with Lichdom. Such a thing is not studied by many. "Are you working against the Lich Agosal, too?" He inquires, bracing himself for the surely irritating response.
Jhael nods at Relveti, feeling rather uncertain about what to do with Urnrad. He wonders if he should try to use Mephisto's scrying device, but the notion of spying on him rubs Jhael the wrong way. 'Maybe I should talk to him.' The man thinks. He thanks Relveti, and picks up the books, walking over to the Tengu. "Excuse me, Lars I presume? I have acquired some books that I wanted to add to the library."
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