Just another day

Inside and around Castle Gravesbane
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Esmerelda
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Just another day

Post by Esmerelda »

Pinning the last of the blankets on the line, Esmerelda hurried back inside to the warmth of the keep. Doing laundry in the cold was not one of her favorite things! Coming through the door, the scents of the mornings baking made her smile. They'd been lucky to find some honey with a trader a few days back and she'd gotten it for a bargain. This morning a stockpile of cookies awaited to be taken to her small friends in the village. Just a few more tasks to complete and she could head out.

Stopping back by her room, she looked at the two sewing projects that were waiting, for two very different purposes. Fondly brushing the bolt of silk fabric that still lay uncut, she murmured to herself, "there's still time for that later," and smiling picked up a much simpler piece of work.

Settling in by the fire, she began to hem a small pile of child size cloaks...
Lady Esmerelda Harrison,
Queen of the Kingdom of Haven

"What if in order to save everything you hold dear, you have to become everything you hate?"
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Dallid
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Post by Dallid »

“The fruit and grain are stored, meat preserved, hay baled, wood chopped… but even here, sitting by the hearth, do you continue to help Haven prepare for winter. You never cease to demonstrate that this town has chosen well in its liege.”

Dallid enters the room and approaches the fire.

“Haven is well prepared – thanks in no small part to your efforts – and will weather the winter well. Though we must not forget that food grows scarce outside our silos, and beasts and men must range farther afield to find sustenance. Our watch must remain vigilant – day and night.”

“Indeed, as the darkest days come, the Master may be inspired to again move against Haven. He has long recognized it as a beacon of light and hope, and despises it as such. But no matter how hard he has tried to extinguish it, he has always faltered. Even with Corbyn, when he managed to kill Haven’s people, he failed to crush Haven’s spirit. Its strength today is undiminished. Indeed, it is perhaps even stronger now than before the Burning Skulls.”

“Haven is prepared, and possesses sufficient strength and endurance for the months ahead. So my concern is not for the coming Winter, but for the coming Spring. Changes brought about by the Cataclysm have begun a great awakening of ancient things long dormant. The Tree Man knew of this, and roamed these lands to ensure that which slumbered remained asleep. But now he is gone, and the awakening now occurs inevitable and unimpeded.”

“The Spirit of the Wood is the first such to become active. Half of Haven comprises half of her, and initially there was conflict. But now an understanding has been reached and harmony achieved. We are fortunate she has dealt with industrious races before, and is willing to compromise and cooperate if we are willing to do the same. She will enhance the fertility of our fields, keep watch over our lands, and provide deadfall for our fires and buildings so long as we do not cut her trees, respect her grounds, and commit our dead to her lands.”

“However, other entities will soon also be active – things that not only do not compromise, but are entirely, destructively selfish. They have no interest in balance or harmony, but in consumption. These will come, and it is we who must end their wicked ways. We must stop them, or they will destroy us and so much more.”

“For now these lands sleep for the winter, and so the destructive entities will continue to slumber. But come the Spring, so too will come danger. The Spirit of the Wood will watch for them and fight them, but we, too, much deploy scouts to detect such creeping evil before it descends upon us. Then coordinate our defenses accordingly.”

“As we have fought off invasions before, we must soon do so, again.”
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Post by Zydana »

The elven woman who had been keeping to herself quietly reading immediately looks up from her thick, black tome upon hearing Dallid mention "The Master."

Val continues to watch and listen to every word Dallid speaks thereafter and waits patiently until he has finished.

"Dallid, what do you know of The Master? He has come to Haven?"
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Post by Dallid »

Dallid turns to face Zydana.

“The Master was at one time Regis Mortem’s top lieutenant and strongest weapon against Phanterra – until he was defeated by Ulrich at the close of the Essence War. However, he eventually escaped his prison and sought to restore Regis to his full power.”

“It was these efforts that led to the Cataclysm. His toils continue – reviving the necromancer Floren, rallying the Red Tear, working with the Evil Dragon, even directing Corbyn’s schemes.”

“While he has likely visited Haven multiple times, he functions more as a controlling influence – a puppet-master – directing others to fulfill his goals.”

“His current location can only be guessed. His ambitions are formidable and cover significant territory. Unless he trusts solely to messages, he must travel far and often.”
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Post by Zydana »

"Strange. He was alive before The Separation? No mortal now lives that lived in the time of The Ancients. How can this be? The Master spoke of parents and a family. Has he found a way to transcend into immortality or at least devise ways of prolonging his life?"

"Or do you speak of The Cataclysm that restored the One Magic? Still, did that not occur over a thousand years after the Essence Wars? Quite a long lifetime for even our standards, I'd say."

"Does The Master of Death, Shri'Illi Aingun, Regis Mortem still remained sealed beneath the surface of Phantarra? There have been many who claim to ally themselves with the creature, but to truly form an alliagance would there not need to be some form of communication? Or perhaps The Master simply tries to justify his actions saying he's working for the creature."
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Dallid
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Post by Dallid »

“The Master is undying, if not undead, but it is the Cataclysm of our time to which I refer. The ancient one of Separation had sealed Regis Mortem beneath Phanterra, the current one was meant to free him.”

“Did the Master succeed? Perhaps. There’s an impression that he did, and we know little of happenings elsewhere in the world. But then why would the Master spend time and effort on Haven rather than staying by his own lords side?”

“But there is also an impression that he did not succeed – at least not completely. Indeed, one could question the very nature of Regis Mortem in the modern world – it is certainly not the same as the one in which he was introduced to Phanterra. Could the Master and Regis now be one?”

“We could research the matter, we could speculate upon it, but in the end we must always do the same – remain vigilant. The sooner we can detect the Master’s schemes, the better we can defend against them.”
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Post by Garritt »

Garritt walks into the room from one of the hallways just as Dallid finishes speaking. By the looks of him he has just finished bathing- he wears only his pants and pads along the stone floor barefoot. His hair is loose past his shoulders and looks freshly washed.

Obvious to anyone looking at him, his upper arms, chest and back are covered with old scars; more than a dozen, at least. Some bear tiny pockmarks along their sides from hasty battlefield stitching, and his left shoulder is pockmarked with an old arrow-wound the size of a copper-piece, with a matching mark in back where the arrow came out near his shoulder blade.

The vast majority, though, are just crisscrossing caterpillars of lighter flesh. Anyone with knowledge of the human body, especially healers, can see they are all scars of torture, clearly intended to leave a lasting scar even when healed. Two such scars on his back are the largest, running several inches long on parallel sides of his spine, directly over his ribs.

He seems entirely unashamed, neither of the scars, or what some would think of as a lack of proper clothing near a "Lady of Royalty" such as Esmerelda might be called.


"Rylls and I would be glad to help any way we can, My Lady. I'm a damn good scout, and I could work with others to secure the town's perimeters before the snows start to fall.

We were actually thinking of going to the people at the Academy as well, and help them secure the place. They held up pretty well for themselves during the attack by the Raven's Blood corpses, but I saw a few things that could be improved.

As for this "Master".......... (he shrugs)

We....had... tales of Regis Mortem in Midea, but nothing about any Master, so I'm at a loss there."


[/u]
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Post by Rothek »

no sooner did garritt finish his sentence as the morning's calm was shattered by a primal roar that came from off in the distance. such a sound was enough to make the most hardened of warriors feel a cold tinge of fear and a near by flock of birds all at once abandoned their perches as if to flee an oncoming predator.

the roar was only a few seconds long but its echo rolled over haven before it dissipated
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Post by Etrin »

"We call always make the walls stronger, and the gate thicker." Etrin says poking his head out of the Tower that held the forge. His face face ruddy with the kiss of the flame and his face smeared with soot.

"There are alot of people down at the fishing village and in the mining area. If there is a real threat, they will be ruined."
"My weapons have only a single flaw.
The same flaw that all weapons have.
The wielder."
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Post by Esmerelda »

Esmerelda blushes at Dallid's praise. Her fingers never stopping, she continues to hem as he and Zydana discuss the Master. As they speak she seems to be thinking very hard and eventually speaks

(OOG sorry for the tardy response- I lived at work last week)

"When we were trapped in the book in the library, Morgan, Goonter, Braidenvayl and myself managed to find our way into a different book than the one the rest of the town was trapped in. We found our way into the Master's journal."

She pauses for a moment to let that information sink in. "We witnessed several different scenes, all involving the Master. And unfortunately the Master and that man Malachi- the one who was trying to be oh so helpful when we fought the elves- are one and the same.

"It was the Master who convinced Strider of the necessity of doing what was done at the island. To force magic back together prematurely in order to save the world. Or at least, that's what Strider believed. And we got to see what happened at the island. When the magic combined, Regis Mortem was freed. Strider and Llyshon battled him. And won.

"But the Master's Machinations continued. It was he who gave the instructions to the Witch Queen on how to fight the dragons. It was he who found Corbyn's sword for the elves. It was he who told the elves how to best deal with Haven and Corbyn.

"And now he's working on something that I cannot help but think bodes ill for us all..."
Lady Esmerelda Harrison,
Queen of the Kingdom of Haven

"What if in order to save everything you hold dear, you have to become everything you hate?"
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Post by Etrin »

"What is he working on now?" Etrin asks, stepping out.

"All of those things Are pretty horrible. HOw are we supposed to stand up to him?"
"My weapons have only a single flaw.
The same flaw that all weapons have.
The wielder."
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Post by Dallid »

“We have been standing up to him all along. He has tried for years to eradicate Haven, yet here we are. Yes, he is still very much a danger, but we have thwarted him before and must do so again. Haven is entirely worthy of the challenge.”
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Post by Garritt »

Garritt leans against the wall and crosses his arms.

"Dallid's right. If he was behind all the things that happened to this place before I came here from Avenguard, then look at your situation- this place is still here.

If we stand together and resist- even if we lose in the end- then we work against this guy's plans."
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Post by Haku »

"We shall always stand and resist the evil manipulations of beings like the Master, Garritt. Haven will always be a beacon of hope, so long as I draw breath."

The Painted One is slow to stamp the snow off of his boots, making his way to the fireplace and hanging his cloak as close as possible to the flames. He's been gone for some time now, and he relishes the warmth as it seeps into his bones.

"If the Master and Malachi are one and the same, then what purpose did it serve aiding us in liberating Haven? Why not strike at the end of the battle, when we were at our weakest? When an enemy is weakened, either show them mercy or press for the killing blow, but you never allow them to nurse their wounds and regain their strength. So I wonder... What would he have to gain by aiding us in our victory? He obviously needed us back here for some reason, and I intend to find out why."

He stands there, thinking aloud and gazing at the hypnotic flames. 'Always another battle' he muses to himself 'but at least now I'm attempting to think this through instead of rushing headlong into combat with sword and shield.' A small, wry grin begins to form at the corners of his mouth but is cut short by the intense, searing pain behind his left 'eye'. Thankfully he doesn't pass out, but the agony was enough to make him wobble towards a chair and collapse into it. 'Pain is a blessing' he whispers, barely audible 'hold it, and use it against your enemies. Pain is a blessing...' He recites the mantra that was taught to him when he first picked up a sword. 'use it against your enemies. Pain is a blessing...' Over and over, barely a whisper, until eventually it becomes a mere throb in his forehead and temple, easy to block out. His 'eyes' remain closed, but he is still aware of his surroundings and of those in the room with him. Yet another 'gift' bestowed upon him through the Eyes of the Seer. Or was it a curse? Regardless, it was still his burden to bear and no one else
~ Carpe Nocturn ~

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Dallid
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Post by Dallid »

"Why commit yourself to battle when you can have your enemies fight each other? Indeed, the battle outcome weakened Sil'van'dar greatly, and you'd be hard pressed to find a greater collection of lore and artifacts than the High Elven City."

"Of course, knowing the specifics of the Master's ambitions would be a telling boon. Any knowledge that might be gained in that theater would be worth a great deal."

Dallid turns back to Esmerelda.

"The Master's alter ego was Malachi - not Mortimer?"
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