(New no-longer-in-Tanus thread for your use)

Laurence, the librarian, is indeed on-duty in the library when you get there.

---

(Jon, where in the castle or on the castle grounds do you find King Random? What's he up to?)
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:35, Mon 21 Aug 2023.

"Hello Laurence, we have a query for you. Do you know where unicorn bunnies call home ? " Pets Hless letting him remain incognito about his ability to speak.

"I-- I... I..." Laurence is taken aback by the site of Hless, and studies him. He steps forward, fascinated. "Well...! Where did you find this little fellow...?" The urge to reach out and pet Hless appears to be strong in Laurence...

"Hless is it ok if Laurence pets you." she scritches his head around his horn.

It looks like Hless sort of fidgets at that moment, but to anyone who knows that Hless is sentient, it's clear that he's nodding.

Jade holds Hless out for Laurence to pet.

"His fur is wonderfully soft." Jade smiles happily.

"Yes, it is. What a nice little creature," says Laurence, petting Hless. "But... but if you aren't sure where he comes from... where did you get him?"

Ariadne "A merchant in Tanus was selling him, but he ended up there by accident, I think"

"Yes so it must have come from traders or merchants who travel the nearby shadows. We want to get him home."  Is so tempted to show Hless to Odile.

"Ah, I see! A sort of kidnap victim... Well, let's see..."

(Someone-- just one of you-- make an INT roll, please-- +2 because Laurence is helping.)

17:08, Today: Jade rolled 8 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 3,3.  Research for Hless.



Jade pours into the books on trade and other nearby shadows to help Hless.

There has been some record, from time to time, of a land with lots of (one-)horned bunnies, somewhere vaguely between the Shadows of Lambay and Kashfa. There are written descriptions. Jade and Laurence work together to make a sort of descriptive map with step-by-step instructions of how to find Hless's home Shadow.

(Jade and Laurence write out instructions, as best as they can, on how to find Hless's home Shadow. Jade will have to make the Move Through Shadow move-- hopefully just once. The library records aren't so good that you'll get an extra bonus, but at least you won't get a penalty or anything, either. If you're lucky, you may be able to arrive there after just one roll...)

"Thank you so much, Laurence." Jade will take Hless back from Laurence and head for the stables so they can get a coach to head for where they think Hless home is.

"Any luck we will have you home soon."



19:15, Today: Jade rolled 10 using 2d6 with rolls of 5,5.  Perception - To lead the shadow ride to Hless's shadow.

(SON OF A GUN! Total success!

Jade, please post for me a post about your successful journey to Hless' home Shadow.

DON'T talk about what you see when you get there-- I'll handle that.)

Jade gets in the carriage with Ariadne waiting for Prince Jon.

She then controls the shadow ride away from Amber looking for Hless home.
The way starts off as the other trip but diverges before they reach Tanus. The lands are greener that they ride through and sparkling water shines. The carriage rides through some mist from a waterfall and past some large dolman like standing stones. She focuses on one of the birds that was described in the books within Laurence's library. As they ride along she sings a soft Rebman lullaby to Hless as she pets him.

Ariadne tried to watch what happened as they traveled, trying to learn even more about this weird magic power she now had.   It was still such a bizarre situation.

Jon also looks on while sitting quietly, trying to better conceptualize the process and amazed at how easily it seems to be for Jade.

( https://filmfanatic.org/wp-con...-Down-Watercolor.png )

Finally the carriage, going increasingly slowly because of being on what's barely a clear dirt track, shifts and is on simple short green grass.

On a hill stands a very large, tall tree, wide with green branches. There are similar hills, though not all have trees, and none as big as this one, for as far as the eye can see.

And bunnies! One-horned bunnies like Hless are everywhere. The carriage stops as bunnies rapidly hop away from this strange large newcomer on wheels.

Hless, in his basket, gets a little excited. "Where are we? Are we there? This smells right-- very right!"

Ariadne had been focusing her attention on Jade and how she was moving thrm through shadow.  She had to sort of unfocus her eyes a bit to actually look around her at her surroundings.  She blinked in surprise at the bizarre surroundings.  Amber and Tanus had been exotic, but in a London or Marrakesh kind of exotic.
This place, however, was almost like a cartoon

Jade's eyes quiver as she sees the bunnies and Hless pops his head out to look around.
She smiles fighting back tears.

"We did it Hless, I am fairly certain your home."

lips tighten a bit as she hugs Hless possibly for the last time.

"Yes! This is where I came from! Thank you for bringing me back!"

"Happy to do so, I hope you can find your family and have lots of children.  I enjoyed my time with you a lot. I will miss you Hless."

She will bring him down to the nice green grass.

"Come get fruit from the big tree before you go! It's really good!" Hless urges.

Jade looks to Ariadne, "It wouldn't hurt to try the local fruits." She let's Hless lead her and will try out the fruit here.

You go over to the huge tree.

The fruit growing off the tree is easy for you to reach (not so for the bunnies) and seems like kind of in-between an apple and a plum, maybe? Only just a little bigger than a big apple?

However, they also don't quite seem ripe yet. "Oh, they're not quite ready. No wonder none of them are on the ground yet. Well, each of you take one with you, and then wait a few days! Then they'll be ready! But just take one each, or else they'll take much longer to ripen."

"Would you like for me to pluck a few for you and your friends Hless ?"

Jade studied the fruit and will let it ripen like Hless said.

Ariadne took one of the odd fruits down, looking at it carefully

"Oh, no, they'll fall off for us when they're ready," says Hless. "We like them a bit soft..."



It smells nice-- a little like a pear, maybe? But it's very hard. It's easy to believe that it's not ripe yet.

Jon smiles at Hless' excitement. "Good Job Jade, you are amazing." as they arrive and Hless confirms that it is his home.
Jon listens to Hless' advice and only takes one fruit.
"I am happy we were able to bring you home, Hless, I wish you the best."

Jade smiled at Jon for the compliment.

She then looked at the verdant fields and hills with trees.
"Your home is quite lovely Hless. You just be careful and warn your people when their are storms. I am sure you will have wonderful stories to tell them all about your adventures."

"I suppose they'll have to believe me, after seeing you here too! And I for one will definitely stay safe in a burrow at the first sign of any more storms!"

Ariadne smiled at the others
"I'm glad you're back home, Hless."

"Would you ever like us to visit Hless ?"

"That probably depends on how everyone here feels about outsiders "

Jon nods agreeing with Ari.

Jade tilts her head, "We're not outsiders we are friends."

Ariadne smirked
"That might be a bit presumptuous, cousin.  We don't know what kind of experiences these guys have with outsiders in general "

"True that merchant was a poor example of us."

Hless listens to all of this. "I think... I feel that you are welcome to visit... but... don't show anyone else the way. But... no one could even follow you, could they? You seem like an especially magical family. I don't think anyone could come here but you, if a magic storm didn't bring them here by accident. Could they?"

The cousins think... No... But what about the Chaosites, and the Gray Men, and the Black Road...? It would be terrible if the Black Road ever came through here... Maybe you should check back on Hless every now and then...?

Ariadne paused to think, then shrugged
"I  mean, there was very few people who can travel between worlds like we can, and the are an incredible number of worlds to go to.  So, mathematically, it's possible but incredibly unlikely."

She looked around for a fast second, then back at Hless.
"It's a bit like this:  it's like if a leaf fell off a tree in another part of the forest, so far away from you that you couldn't see it with your eyes.  And as the leaf fell, the wind caught it, and carried it around on the breeze until it landed here at your feet.   Now, the odds of that happening are not impossible, but they're definitely so small that they seem like it"

Jade nods listening to Ariadne's explanation.

Jon nods and smiles "Excellent analogy Ari! That makes it all make more sense to me."
He looks at Hless "Ari is correct, it is not impossible and I feel that I can speak for the three of us that we will not lead anyone but our family here and only those we feel very comfortable with."

"That sounds fine then," says Hless. "Come back in the spring, perhaps." He twitches his nose in the bunny version of a warm smile.

Jon nods to Hless "Thank you and I look forward to seeing you again."

When everyone is ready, Jon focuses and begins their journey:


OOC: 17:26, Today: Jon rolled 8 using 2d6 ((5,3)).

Ariadne tried ro pay attention as best she could, both to where they were going and how it was done

Gives any tips she can to help Jon out but mostly stays out of his first travel through shadow.

Jon does his best... and... he... gets a bit lost.

When he comes to a stop... there's a huge mountain.

Really huge. Larger than Everest, thinks Ariadne. Much larger. Can there even be air at the top of that-- well, sure there can, maybe, this isn't Earth. For all we know, the air might be the same for a thousand miles straight up-- who knows?

One of the soldiers accompanying the carriage rides up. "...This Shadow is called Bercarro, your graces. There's some sort of magic carriage thing that transports workers up and down to and from the town over there by that river... up to a mine entrance that starts about halfway up the mountain, see? We're just on the, ah, the north side. This is sort of one Shadow away from Weirmonken, or just a few, anyway. It might be a good idea, though, as long as we're here, to head to the town and ask if there's been any recent news..."

Ariadne was gawking at the mountain like a tourist, and was distracted by the guard's question.
"Recent news?  Would any news here affect us or where we're going?  I  thought these shadows were hard to traverse?   Are there going to be a lot of things that affect several at once?"

Though, in truth, she was happy they'd brought the soldiers.  Rather than being generic security, they were apparently well traveled. Much more than her, it seemed

"Normally you'd be correct, milady, but Becarro and Weirmonken are a little like Amber and Rebma... there is a path between them that travelers can use, even though technically they count as two different Shadows... it's a longer path for those who aren't royal Amberites such as yourselves, but it can still be done, even without the blood of Oberon. There is limited trade between the two Shadows... when times are good, anyway... That may or may not be the case currently..."

Looking at her cousins, Ariadne shrugged and looked back at the soldier
"Some scouting around isn't a bad idea. No sense going into a new environment blind, I suppose "

Jade nods, "Why don't we take their advise, Jon could you guide us to that city."

Jon listens intently to the Guard and Ari's exchange with interest. He smiles when Jade speaks up. Jon nods in agreement. "I apologize for the delay and error in travel to all of you.  And I agree with with Solider..." looks a bit ashamed "I'm sorry, I haven't learned all of your names yet." then sits a bit straighter and carries on "Your advice is wise and sound. If you would be kind to lead the way, we shall follow." his tone is friendly, if a bit formal as he finishes and there is a faint blush.

Internally he is mad at himself for messing up the trip ~I can't believe I did that. I should be better at this.~ and his internal anger fades into a self loathing. ~I am useless, back in Tanus and now this. Perhaps, I really didn't earn the rank of Ranger back home. Perhaps it was all a ruse...~

OOC: FIY, the dialog between the ~ is all internal, unless you have telepathy, you wouldn't be able to hear it.  I posted it for context, I'm trying to show Jon internal conflicts better.

Jade smiles at Jon.

"No need to apologize, I didn't get shadow travel right for a time. You did amazingly well, with only the description of others. Besides we get to see this amazing site." She gestures to the mountain, "It is larger than Kolvir and that is the largest mountain I have ever seen. We might even find something interesting in the site our guard told us of."

Still Jade had not forgotten the gray men and that they were hunted and so kept a keen eye out for trouble.

"My name is Pavel, milord. Let us continue on to the town of Beccaro proper."

You roll and ride forward, respectively, and come to the town. It looks like a town of perhaps 10, 15 thousand people? They're dressed in what Ariadne thinks of as vaguely late-19th-century clothing-- but with no class distinction-- there are-- so far, at least-- no disgustingly-poor people, and no fancy rich people. The social range seems to spread only from "Upper-lower-class" to "middle-upper-class," with hardly anyone at all under nor over that range. It doesn't seem to be the part of town you're in, either. Everyone seems to just be doing okay financially.

Jon notices too, but less.

Jade hardly notices it at all-- Rebma, too, takes care of its own-- but why not? The wealth of the sea is plentiful, and food there even more so.

People seem clearly mildly surprised to see you traveling through the streets, but not really astounded like in Tanus. Just more like hey, here's something you don't see every day.

Eventually, you get to a very large town square//courtyard, with large multi-story buildings on all sides. "I've been here just once, your graces," says Pavel. "That building there is the city hall. There's a trading office for Amber in that building over there, on the other hand-- the closest thing here to an embassy."
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 18:10, Mon 18 Sept 2023.

Jon nods "Thank you Pavel." and like Jade, Jon is keeping an eye out for trouble.
As they stop in the square, Jon exits the carriage. Offers his hand to Pavel "Thank you again, you have a good memory." he says as he acknowledges Pavel's building identifications and his only one previous visit.

Jon waits for Jade and Ari, offering to assist them down if they so like.

Jade accepts Jon's help happily stepping down from the carriage. "Thank you." She looks around for a bit waiting for the others near the city hall. She is still amazed at how many realities are just a step or carriage ride away and that so few get the privilege to travel between them.

She opens her parasol shielding herself from the sun though grateful it is not so hot and dry as it was in Tanus.

No indeed-- it's mostly cloudy, in fact.

And in less than an hour, the shadow of the mountain will fall over this spot.

It gets dark early in the town of Becarro. No wonder they have so many lamp-posts here and there.

Ariadne smiled at Jon, giving him a good natured pat on the back
"I agree with Jade, no need to worry about it.  This shadow walking business is more an artform than a science, and bringing us here might turn out to be to our advantage after all."
She grinned and shrugged
"Back home, a bunch of my friends are somewhat obsessed with the works of a painter/philosopher who says mistakes are 'Happy Accidents' that can many times create something new and wonderful. "

Jon chuckles at Ari's comment of 'Happy Accidents'. He nods "Shall we visit the "embassy" and see what we can learn about the state of affairs here and between here and Weirmonken?"

Ariadne nodded
"Spunds like a good idea"

Jade nods with a smile and closes her parasol.

Jon points to Pavel and two other guards to join the 3 Cousins.  He turns to the highest ranking soldier not selected and says "Please keep an eye out for trouble and protect the carriage & crew."

Once he receives a reply, he leads the group of six over to the building Pavel indicated and knocks on the door.

Ariadne looked uncertainly at the guards, but said nothing, following Jon's lead

Jade happily waited for someone to answer the door.

A man of perhaps 40 answers the door. "Yes?" He immediately does a double-take, and makes a little imaginary-hoof-pawing-the-ground gesture that Jade has sometimes seen people in Amber who are devout members of the Church of the Unicorn do. "Um... hello. How may I help you?" He doesn't know who the three people in front of him are, but he sees Jade's green hair, and especially stares at Ariadne. These are out-of-town visitors, and important, he can tell that much.

Jon nods "Good day sir. I, my cousins and retinue are visiting from Amber and are on our way to Weirmonken on official business.  I was advised to check in and gather information from you as the closest thing to a formal embassy." he smiles and points to each cousin in turn "This is Princess Ariadne, Princess Jade and I am Prince Jonathan, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance" and offers his hand.

The man bows. "Your graces, I am Simonel Tazik, the closest thing this Shadow has to an Ambassador. Please, come in, if you wish."

Tazik ushers the cousins into his office, which is nice, if very brown. "How may I help? What sort of information do you--" He pauses... (if Jon has his big sword WITH him right now, he Tazik definitely stares at that. "...Is this about Weirmonken, I don't suppose?"

OOC: Yes, he has Redring, the Knellsinger strapped to his back.

Jon nods "Thank you" and will follow Mr. Tazik into the building and room. "Well, let's begin with how has relations between Weirmonken and here?  Any changes, oddities or trouble?" Jon notices his stare at the sword.

Jade smiles pleasantly to Simonel Tazic and bobs her head in way of greetings. She couldn't help but notice the man stare at Jon's sword. For now though the green haired princess kept mostly quiet.

"People here are scared to take the road west to Weirmonken, now. Half the trading caravans that went there never came back again... and of those that never came back here, half made it there but never made it back here, and half never even made it to Weirmonken in the first place. The old troubles with the beasts in the forest has apparently started up again, everyone believes. So, now, no one from here goes there... and no one shows up here from there anymore, either."

Jon frowns at this news. "When did this start? How many Caravans and people have been lost?"

"It started weeks ago. I think around... five caravans, perhaps? Perhaps 18, 19 people?"

Jade wondered if it might not be the Graymen causing such mischief.

"Pardon, but the ones who came back, did they see their attackers ?" Jade blushed realizing she had blurted that out ad mists Jon's conversation.

Jon is about to respond, when Jade speaks up.  Jon nods and waits for his answer to Jade's question.

"No-- the ones who came back are the ones who weren't attacked at all. No one that we know of has been attacked and then also escaped. We have no proof that any caravans have been attacked at all-- we just know they've gone missing. ...I have heard, though, that some sort of monster was seen attacking-- and killing-- the mayor of Weirmonken. The last caravan to come back told us that. They didn't see it themselves, but it's what they were told."

Ariadne nodded, looking concerned
"What is your plan to stop this from happening?"

Jon nods Mr. Tazik answers Jade's questions.  He is pondering this information, when Ari asks her question and Jon waits for an answer as he mulls over the information so far.

~Hmmm, Caravans have gone missing, but no confirmed evidence of them being attacked.  The Mayor of Weirmonken has been killed, per a returning Caravan, that doesn't bode well. We are missing something.~ Jon thinks to himself as he is listening.

"Our plan? ...Please forgive me if this sounds impertinent, your grace, for no disrespect is meant, but our short-term plan has been to stop traveling to Weirmonken, and our long-term plan was to hope that the royal family of Amber would arrive to provide a solution. ...And... here you are." (He eyes Jon's big sword again (and Ariadne's axe, if she's got it on her).)

It was a measure of Ariadne's acting abilities that she immediately didn't do a confused double take, realizing that "Oh Crap!!!  We ARE the police!!!"
Ari had hardly been a "damsel in distress" back in Earth, preferring to handle her own protection and occasionally that of her friends, if need be.   She'd even gotten a bit of a reputation of being a kind of guard dog when a friend was being hassled by a creeoy guy in a bar or even on a movie set, and Ariadne had always been loathe to ask for help in such circumstances.
This, however, was a different situation.   While She'd been happy to drop kick a celebrity stalker or creepy barfly, she'd never been a vigilante or part of law enforcement, and it was just dawning on her that, as a member of the Amber Royalty, she was both.

Instead, she nodded.
"Well, then, perhaps we can see what we can do, or at the very least gather information to send back to the king or other higher authorities.   But i also wanted to know if you'd tried to investigate and what you'd found.   What else can you tell us?"

She was already trying to come up with plans to deal with this, like a stealth mission to the border, or maybe taking a fake caravan to the border?
Honestly, knowing that she could actually arrange such extravagant and important decisions made her a little bit light headed with wonder

"Ah... I'm not sure what else I can tell you, your grace. I have summarized all that I know." He tries not to shrug, and barely succeeds. "The people of Bercarro simply presume that the shapeshifters that plagued Weirmonken in long-ago times are behind the disappearances of the traders-- especially since one apparently killed its mayor recently, or so we were told. I... admit that that could be the work of a rogue, since they are said to go mad sometimes-- as individuals, I mean-- but add the other disappearances to it, and...

Is there... some... other specific information you wish to know...?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:37, Tue 03 Oct 2023.

Ariadne almost bit her lip in thought, but stopped herself just in time. That, she realized, might undermine her authority as a Badass if she were nibbling her lower lip in consternation.
She nodded, mostly to buy time for what to ask.  She was usually not at a loss for words, but this was definitely outside her comfort zone.   It reminded her of an Improv Comedy class she'd taken as part of her acting classes.   The class had been EXCRUCIATING.  It was like being on a high stakes game show where the grand prize was not being humiliated in front of her classmates.

Looking at Mr. Tazik, Ariadne shrugged
"Well, to be honest, I'm a little new to the area, so perhaps you could refresh my memory about these shapeshifters?"

"They were used in the old times when the throne..." Jade decides to discuss the rest with Ariadne more in private.

Ariadne raised an eyebrow when Jade stopped herself, then realized the green haired girl might not want to talk in front of their new buddy Tazik.  She nodded to her cousin

Tazik looks back and forth from Jade to Ariadne. "It... sounds like her grace may know more about them than myself..." he says, meaning Jade...

"I need some time to speak with my kinsman if you don't mind." She asks respectfully.

Jon nods and speaks up. "Can we meet with the personnel who returned recently? Have you actually sent word to Amber or where you hoping for a random encounter?" he pauses "Also, you seem very interested in my weapon. Have been since I arrived? Why is that?"

"I can make that happen, but I'm not sure how quickly I can make it happen... how long do you plan to be here? Some of them will likely be in the mines right now..."



"We have not, milord... we have no ability to send word. The last time someone from Amber was here-- it might have been Prince Gerard, though I could be wrong-- there had only been one or two disappearances, and we still had some hope that they might return. I'm not even sure if the mayor of Weirmonken was dead yet at that time.



"Well, I'm no expert... but it looks like your graces have come... ready to fight monsters." You feel like there might be an extra thought in Tazik's head that he's holding back...

(I'm not gonna make you roll for it-- just press him further if you choose, and if you do, he'll say a little more.)

Jon nods "How long ago was Prince Gerard here?" and then looks at the man and narrows his eyes and gives the man a stern look for a moment. "What is it that you aren't telling me? I sense you are holding back something and right now..." he pauses "Information is key to getting to the bottom of this situation.  So please share what you know or heard." his tone is friendly.

"Many weeks ago, now... I didn't see him, myself... he passed through quickly."

"What is it that you aren't telling me? I sense you are holding back something and right now..." he pauses "Information is key to getting to the bottom of this situation.  So please share what you know or heard." his tone is friendly.</quote>

"Well, I'm no expert in the old legends... but Prince Eric was said to use a very large sword to defeat the shapeshifters in the first place. Is... I just wondered if that might be the same one."

Jon nods "Could you share your old legends? And yes, this is that same sword." his tone is still friendly.  He gives a glance to Ari and Jade to see if they want to add anything.

Jade is smiling to Jon, "I knew your father's sword was special."
She twirls her closed parasol a little, letting him know she will help if there is danger.

In reply to Jade (msg # 91):

Ariadne also raised an eyebrow, very interested.  Amber seemed to be full of magical weapons, like some overly melodramatic Greek myth.

Tazik picks up on this. "The son of Prince Eric? How can this be?" It's not that he doesn't believe you, it's just... Then he thinks about it, and does a double-take at Ariadne. "Then again, you... you look much like every picture I have seen of the Princess Deirdre..."

Ariadne looked at Tazik, slightly surprised at being "recognized".   She chuckled wryly and smiled

"Yes, Dierdre is my mother."

Jade almost bounces on her toes waiting to see if he takes a guess at her heritage.

Tazik notices. "Oh, and, er... ah... daughter of Princess Llewella?" he (incorrectly) guesses (but, I mean, can you really blame him for getting it wrong based on the almost-no-info he's got?)

"That is a very good guess, but my mother is the Princess Fiona. I get my hair from my fathers side." Jade looks happy that the man guessed even if he got it wrong it was fun to her.

"Oh! I see..." He sort of squints at Jade a little. "Actually, I can sort of see it, if I don't focus on the hair..."

Jade smiles brightly, "I take after my mother in other ways."

Has lightning dancing between her fingertips for a moment.

"Oh! I... I see!"

Ariadne nodded to the man.
"Is there some place nearby where my cousins and I can get some refreshments and perhaps rest our feet for a few minutes?  It seems we need to make some plans for the afternoon.""

Jon nods at Ari's statement "The Princess is quite right." and smiles.

Jade bobbs her head.

"Agreed, if it is posssible Sir."

"I can have refreshment brought here quickly-- please use these offices for any planning you may wish to do. I can stay, or leave you in privacy, or some of each, as you wish. I am not just a private businessman-- I serve the crown of Amber. ...Although even if I were, highly capable individuals planning to try to restore order and safety to Weirmonken would be in all our interests here anyway... Now, having said all that, I'd be happy to rent you quarters in an inn if you wish-- or something else, if you need..."

Ariadne nodded to the man, smiling with what she hoped was encouragement.
"Thank you, big guy.  We appreciate it.  We'd like to have just a bit to talk amongst ourselves, if you don't mind "

Jon nods in agreement with Ari. "Rooms won't be necessary, we I don't expect that we will be staying long."
Jon pauses and then askes "Sir, if there was an emergency, how you would get in touch with Amber?"

Jade nods to Ariadne then listens to jon nodding.

"I'll be glad to step out-- I'll be out in the courtyard, if you need me."



"There is no such method. We just have to wait for the royal family to pass this way... That's how it is with most Shadows, I'm afraid... Even a few of the Golden Circle Shadows are in the same situation. Of course, they usually don't have to wait too long..."

Ariadne thinks about her cell phone in the learher pouch at her side, marveling that for all its magic and power, Amber is still lacking some basics.

She takes a seat, waiting for the others to join her.

Sits down, "We should buy some bows for you both and arrows."

Ariadne chuckled
"My father made me take archery at his country club.  At the time I was resentful and thought the whole thing was some elitist past time.   But, of course, he was preparing me for this kind of nonsense. "
She shrugged, grinning
"To be honest, I've never actually shot at a person before, or even an animal"

Jon smiles and takes a seat as Ari speaks. "But you did great against Uncle Julian's rangers." he looks a bit sheepish "Better than I did." he then gets serious "I am more familiar with that type of encounter. So you should be proud and have more confidence in yourself. You will bed great."

Jon nods to Jade "You have a good idea, having extra or spare bows and arrows wouldn't be bad, especially if we get stuck in an extended encounter. We will make that happen before we leave. Do you want to handle the negoitiations?"

He leans back "I'm concerned about the lack of a communication network between the territories protected by Amber. At least we now know why the Greymen have been able to make as much advances as they have. There is no way for our allies to contact us." Jon looks at Jade "Is that something your magic and your mother's might be able to help resolve? Could you create an Advanced Trouble & Trade communication network that connects Amber to our allies?"

"I might need to get a bow myself, or a crossbow. I can of course help in negotiations. Ari, Jon is right you did great in Arden !" She smiles.

Jade regarded her too cousins.

Ari smiled at her cousins praise, accepting it but not taking them too seriously.
She nodded to Jon.
"There are a number of things that we can do for long range communications, but I'll admit that the "different world" thing is a bit of a stumbling block.  Are Amber trumps something that could be used as inter dimensional chatting, or is that too much of a state secret?   I might even suggest empowering more phones, but walking the pattern to do it sounds like way too much work"

"I am not sure if it is a state secret, at least no one told me about it being so but they are not to be given out so freely as they can be used to attack ones mind."

Ariadne narrowed her eyes in thought, pursing her lips as she pondered.
"I'm sure this is just a weird idea, but would it be possible to make, like, a 'muted' trump?  One that only allows verbal communication, with no real contact.  Like one of those 'place to place' trumps, that Uncle Gerard used to bring my father and I to Amber in the first place?  A trump that opens up a portal to a set place, but didn't even have the strength to allow for transport, just looking through and speaking.   I dunno, kind of like a magic mirror from the old fairy tales?"

"Well, I did try and make a trump for Odile, but it ended up just allowing transport no real contact. It was an interesting experiment, I wanted to see if non family could use the trumps or be contacted by them."

Ariadne nodded, smiling with approval.
"You might be onto something there."

Jon nods in agreement "If we can setup a secure location that would be a hub, we could potentially allow "Cards" to that location and connect our territories.  It still poses a risk, if someone uses it to bring an army through, but that is why we pick a location we can easily isolate but that is close enough to have messages sent to and from the Hub. If we can limit the cards to a person or two..."

"My mother might know more about the art, as I am new to it."
She smiled a bit, "Should I try and contact her ?"

In reply to Jade (msg # 120):

Ariadne shrugged.
"There's probably no need to rush this communication system now.  We can wait to talk to her when we return back to Amber, I think.  For now, let's worry about these gangs that are troubling the area. "

Jon nods "I agree, the communication network is not something we can solve now or by ourselves. Just let it marinate in the back of your mind, so that when we get back to Amber we can at least put down some ideas and present it to the King & Queen as a project."

He looks around the space. "On our more immediate need, this trip sounds like it is going to be more difficult than expected. So we need to make sure that we and our escorts are as prepared as possible.  But we also need to be careful that we don't come in like an invading force either." he looks at Jade and Ari, "Thoughts, Ideas? How do you think we should best proceed?"

"Well if people from here are going missing when close to the territories we are going to, I must admit I don't mind giving an impression of strength and that we are prepared to deal with any raiders or similar attacks coming our way. I don't think that their army or government are the ones behind the attacks but I could be wrong. We must be prepared also for the possibility the Graymen are behind these atrocities. So we cannot appear to be weak at all."

Jade then looked from Jon to Ariadne, "What do we collectively know of the weir ? I only know of what I read in the books. Very fast to heal from even lethal wounds except for silver or special swords. Also I think your mother broke ones spine over her knee. It is unclear though if that permanently crippled the creature. I say we use our heads, local lore since they are more familiar with the problem and use the resources available here to prepare."

Jade fidgeted a bit, "Also escape routs are something we need to discuss as well as where to meet if we get separated. As for avoiding looking like an invading force, Ariadne or myself are fairly good speakers and might calm tensions down. Also, well above the waves most men tend to think women are weak and less of a threat to them."

Ariadne nodded, frowning in thought.
"I'll admit that this is definitely a bit out of my comfort zone.  I can think of this like the plot of a movie or a war game, but that might not translate into the "real world".  Do we want to ride through the area looking strong to deter them, or do we want to appear to be a weak or lightly guarded caravan to lure them in so we can try to capture them?"

Jon nods to Jade "I understand your concern about appearing weak, but I think Ari has a good idea of trying to lure them in.  That does align with how I didn't want to appear to be a heavily armed scout force at the head of an invasion force." he pauses in thought for a moment.

"I was think we get a second cart and have most of our soldier ride hidden in it with the extra armaments, so that we appear like a small caravan with few guards and a the enticement of a fancy coach which would indicate potential good hostages." he smiles as he looks at Jade and Ari. "But we know that neither of you are damsels in distress, so that will be a nice added shock to them. Meanwhile, I will trade out my normal outfit for something local, so I blend in better with the few visible guards."

He sits back and pauses "As to what we know of about Weirmonken...The shapeshifters came to Weirmonken, were not initially native and starting attacking the village and surrounding shadows.  Amber waged intermittent skirmishes with them until Prince Eric soundly defeated them and put the treaty in place.  The treaty which allowed the shapeshifters to live in the forest of Weirmonken, so long as they did not attack the villagers or nearby shadows. According to Uncle Julian, he and Ballad learned that the Mayor of Weirmonken was killed by one of the shapeshifter and a scout sent to get help was also killed. These sound like violations of the treaty.  And Uncle Julian stated that the shapeshifters used to come to Arden to be killed before a madness overtook them and that they had a strong sense of honor." he stops, gets up and goes to his bag.  He pulls out a journal and brings it back to the table and starts flipping through his notes.

Ariadne smirked
"I'm more of an action star than a drama star, but i can play a 'damsel in distress'.   One question, though. How do we tell these shapeshifters from regular villagers?"

"Well when they change we should be able to tell easily. It is startling I would think. Like when I change my appearance, though I do so with magic. I believe theirs is possibly something they are born with. Also Jon, your father's sword might be able to detect them in some way. though considering the mayhem when I tried to sense more about your mother's Ax, Ariadne. I would rather not attempt something with Jon's blade unless I have too."


"I like the idea of hidden strength though and can get behind that."

Jon nods "There isn't much on Redring, but it is was somehow instrumental in Eric's victory. Still not much on the quest tied to the sword, so that is something I am hoping we can find out once we are there."

Turns to Ari, "I'm not sure how to tell the villagers from the shapeshifters, unless they turn."

He sets the journal on the table and holds the pages open "Lord Dworkin said that there were four type of shapeshifters. Lethings which started as villagers or people who were turned. They transform fully either human or beastial. Thegns, which seem to be part of the migration.  They have a few different forms; but they again are all or nothing. The Gedriht, which are able to control their transformations and can transorm parts of their body.  These were the captains of the shapeshifters forces.  Lastly were the Æthelings (Aethelings), which can constantly shapeshift and I infer that they can have multiple difference aspects to different parts of their body.  These last two are the most deadly and at the time seemed to chosen to leave Weirmonken after the signing of the Treaty." he pauses "Let's hope we are not dealing with any of the last two."

Ariadne made a horrified and annoyed face
"This is quickly becoming Very complicated.   I'd almost rather be dealing with those grey jerks"

"It should be ok, we are all children of the Unicorn and will acquit ourselves well." Jade says with certainty.

Jade was not always a great judge of things.

Jon shrugs "Well it is a complicated situation, made more so by inaction by my father and the others of his generation, if I am giving my honest opinion." He then looks from Jade and Ari, "I wish Ballad and Lance were here. We could use their input and assistance." he lets out a little sigh "Can't dwell on that.  So let's review.  We are going to buy extra arms and an extra cargo wagon or two. We then pose as a trade caravan and see if we are attacked or make it to the village. If we are attacked, we try to capture as many as possible and take them to the village.  Once in the village, we need to see about the people and get their side of what is going on and if then interrogate anyone we capture." he pauses "Does that sound about right for the over all plan?"

"One of my concerns is that we should probably see if we can get some more soldiers.  While I don't doubt the valor or skills of those accompanying us, I do thing we are under staffed for this operation."

"Do you think we might need to hire mercenaries than ? I do have some coin but I am unsure if we have the capital for that." Jade spent a lot of her money on Hless and is slightly embarrassed now.

Ariadne was also worried about money.   She was already still kind of slow to adapt to having a pouch of gold coins at her side, like one of her movie characters, but she certainly bring a treasure chest full of them.
"If you think we need more people, I'll trust you, but that also means hiring locals that we might not be able to trust or properly vet.  And if we have too many people, they'll either trip over each other crammed into the wagon or the crowd might discourage the raiders.  Unless I'm misunderstanding your plan."

Jon nods "Both of you bring up valid points. We have with us a total of 12 soldiers, 3 designated to protect us and 9 to protect the carriage, drivers and the horses.  We are not a large force. If we get a two more carriages, we could put 3 in each and that would leave 3 to ride/walk as our visible escort.  Not an uncommon small caravan back home.  This way we would only need to hire local carriage and drivers.  But my concern is we don't know how large the raiding parties have been." he then looks to Ari and Jade. "Your safety is my highest concern."

"Thank you for your concern Jon, it is very sweet. We do have to test ourselves though and if we need to we can walk, stagger or crawl to another shadow. Our goal is for you to learn more of your father's sword. So this will be a diplomatic mission as well." Jade stands as heroically as she can to help convey confidence.

Ariadne chuckled at Jon's words, though it was a friendly, affectionate chuckle and smirk.
"I also appreciate your concern, Jon.  I like to think I can handle myself when things get rough, but I'm still pretty much out of my depth here.  As rough and tumble as my world is, with crime and corruption in many places, it's still a land of law and order, for the most part, so I'd probably never even think about doing this one Earth, going out to lure in raiders or highwaymen or whatever. "

She bit her lip, thinking.
"But you're right.  The biggest problem is that we don't know how many raiders there are for each raid.  I mean, I can presume that they'd want a small group, perhaps a dozen or so, in order to stay mobile and be able to hide if they need to, but that's literally just a guess on my part.   For all I know, they might attack each carriage and convoy with a group of hundreds of soldiers.  I mean, that seems like overkill to me, but I literally have no idea who these people are and how they think."

The tall woman shrugged.
"This might be a weird idea, but would it help if we tried to get some baseline surveillance and intelligence about their operation?   Perhaps the three of us, maybe with a few soldiers if you think we need them, can sneak into the area and set up some kind of hiding place to watch for other carriages and activities, and see them in action?"

Ariadne chuckled.
"Unless that means we'll be waiting around for months, or something."

"You do have a valid point, we can enter the shadow at any angle we wish, not just the well used roads."

In reply to Jade (msg # 137):

Ariadne nodded and smiled, pointing to Jade in appreciation.
"Yes!  Exactly!  That's what I was thinking about, but I just couldn't put it into a concept properly.  Our Pattern magic gives us more options and leeway than most other people.
We have ways of getting around more subtly."

"Protecting those I care about has been a central tenet of my life always.  And I care about you both." Jon smiles "I never indicated that you wouldn't be fighting nor that you two are not capable and competent in your own right. Quite the opposite, in fact.  I trust you both with my life, it is just my secondary priority it your safety.  Because if this goes south, someone needs to return to Amber and bring reinforcements and coordinate.  You two are much better at that than I am."

Jon nods "I agree, once we have an idea of where they might be camping, we could use our abilities to infiltrate the and observe their base. Unfortunately, it does not seem that there are any caravans leaving from here for us to watch. I mean I guess we could ask them to send one and some of us can be a part of that.  We use the Cards to stay in touch and relay what we see. But that seems more risky."

Smiles at Jade "Yes, this is definitely more aimed at a Diplomatic mission than a Military intervention, which is why we have such a small escort from Amber."

He leans back, puts his hands behind his head and ponders for a few "So how do you two want to proceed? The easiest is that we take our carriage and escort and just head to Weirmonken. Alternately, we try to make our group enticing and try to ambush the ambushers with the hope of capturing some for interrogation or following them back to their base."

"Jon, since these beings are effectively part animal. Do you know of any woodland tricks that might help throw our scent off ?"

Ariadne frowned as she pondered options.
"Well, I was thinking we could go to the main caravan route and lure them in, but perhaps that's a bit naïve and arrogant.  I don't want to get us in over our heads.  I know I'm still new at this stuff.   I was also thinking we could go up the caravan route a bit, then try to sneak around, scouting the area.   I'm not sure how feasible that is."


She looked at Jade and smirked.
"I had a great conversation with a horse wrangler on one of my movies.  He talked about a few tricks to discourage scent dogs.  Maybe that might work. "

"I have a few cards of the elders. I could contact one of them so they at least know what we are doing incase we need." then more quietly, "Rescue."

Ariadne chuckled at Jade's attempt to be subtle.   She smirked.
"Don't worry, Jade.  I'm as overconfident as anyone, but with these grey jerks running around, we shouldn't take anything for granted.   I would normally make fun of anyone who seemed overly paranoid, but after everything we've seen I wouldn't completely dismiss this whole mishugas as some kind of electorate trap for us"

"Alright, I will let our uncle Julian know about us." She smiles and goes through her meager deck of cards contacting Julian.

Jon ponders for a moment "Well, these are not typical animals, so I don't think normal hunting techniques would work. At least not to ambush the ambushers."

Ariadne sighed with frustration, though she smiled with cynical amusement.
"Yes, that's part of the problem, isn't it?   We just don't know what we're dealing with"

Jon chuckles "Exactly, this seems to be something we will have to figure out on the fly as it occurs.  All we can really do is come up with some basic outline."

"We trust you Jon." Jade says with a smile.

"Let's make some purchases and if need be hire people." She spun her parasol.

Ariadne frowned in thought
"Of course, now I'm worried about hiring people locally that are in league with the shapeshifters.   I mean, we can really only fully trust our own people, right?"

Jon nods "It is a tricky situation that we find ourselves in." he smiles at Jade "Thank you.  Were you able to reach anyone at the castle?"

"Not yet, still trying." Jade was focused on the card.

Jon nods in acknowledgement "Keep trying." looks at Ari "Well, let's see. Giving the valid concerns of collusion, I think it is best if we just buy supplies and head there via the trade route. It is unlikely that we will be attacked, because we are well armed and forewarned. But, I think we should operate as if we are expecting an attack.  We need to find out how many days travel it is from here to the Weirmonken."

Ariadne nodded
"That sounds like a good plan "

Jon nods his acknowledgement. "Ari, while Jade is trying to reach Amber, let's meet with the Ambassador and see about getting our supplies and information on the duration of the trip."

Ari nodded
"Works for me.   They'd probably have more information about what we'd need for a mission into the wild."

Jon nods to Ari and stands up. He puts a hand on Jade's shoulder and says "Keep trying, Ari and I will be back shortly. I will have a guard outside and inside this room while we are gone." he looks to Ari and heads the door.

Once outside the room, he looks for the guards that came with them.  He picks Pavel to stand inside and another for outside the door. "Please guard Princess Jade while Princess Ariadne and I are gone. We are going to get some supplies and information.  If she succeeds before we are back, please escort her to join us."

Ariadne looked over at Pavel.   She'd always been pretty good at judging character back on Earth, but these foreigners (which was definitely an understatement) were more challenging.   Still, while Jade wasn't as good in hand to hand as she or Jon, she was definitely better than "rando guard #3" (to put it in movie parlance.  And with her magic, she could most certainly clean the guy's clock.  Despite her lingering paranoia, Ariadne decided to trust that the green haired woman would be okay, and joined Jon.

"Certainly, milord," says Pavel.

As Jon and Ariadne walk off, Pavel turns to Jade. "So, ah, what did you all decide to do next? Er, if it isn't a secret, that is."

(This might be a good time to summarize for your poor GM what your next steps will be...?)

"We are going to pretend to be a caravan to potentially lure in some weir. So my cousins are getting things we might need for just this endeavor. I think some of our guard will be riding inside the covered wagons to hide our numbers."

Pavel nods seriously.

Jade is all ready to go. Keeping her magical implements ready at her side.

Once everything is set-up, Jon takes a moment to wrap up RedRing before putting in back in the harness on his back to carry it.

Jon askes Ari "So you do you want to Ride up in the first wagon on in the rear on a horse?  I expect to have Jade in the second.  I will take which ever position you don't"

This message was deleted by the player at 23:01, Mon 04 Mar.

Ariadne pursed her lips as she pondered the question.  Her frame of reference was setting up an action shot on a movie, or at the very least causing trouble among obnoxious drunk frat boys, where no one wanted to really hurt anyone.   This was like setting up a police sting operation, and that was actually a bit scary.  With a sigh of almost resignation, she nodded.
"I'll ride on the back horse.  It's been a few years since I've ridden, but I used to be reasonably good at it, so I'm sure it'll come back to me."

"So, Prince Jon on point, Princess Jade in second wagon, Princess Ariadne guarding the back. Yes? Sounds simple enough," says Pavel. "Are we ready to go? Or do we want to start at dawn? Or...?"

Pavel leaves the hint of other possibilities, such as starting at or near dusk... or later... unspoken for the moment, waiting to hear what the royals will say...

Looks at Pavel, "Do you have a recommendation, Solider"

(OOC: Did we determine Pavel's rank?  Is it Lieutenant?)

(We didn't. Lieutenant sounds fine to me.)

Pavel bites his lip, hesitates, looks worried, opens his mouth, looks around... and his gaze lights on the local guide you hired. Pavel's face lights up-- you can almost see an imaginary blazing lantern appear over his head, such is his moment of enlightenment. "...It's our native guide, your grace," Pavel says. "He's skittish as hell. If you're looking for my recommendation, I think if we started out at dawn, he'd have a much better chance of keeping his emotions under control and not panicking on this mission... My men and I would be sure he barracked with us tonight, of course, to make sure he doesn't just decide to take a sudden vacation before morning..."

Jon nods "Good advice, Lieutenant. Make it so." and smiles. Before Pavel leaves "Thank you for everything so far. You and your men have been great."

"Certainly, your grace. Just doing our duty."

(So, starting out in the morning? Any plans for how y'all wanna spend this evening in Beccaro?)

Ariadne also agreed to a morning departure

"Let's go out drinking !" Jade smiled eyes full of fun and mischief.

Ariadne chuckled
"I suppose, as the Earth saying goes, 'It's 5 o'clock Somewhere'?"

Smiles at Ariadne.

"We could sing, or you could drink someone under the table or have fun playing darts."

*nods* "I agree, but a job well done is still worth acknowledgement." he says as Pavel is leaving.
Turning to Jade and Air, he smiles "OK, but in Moderation, we need to be ready to leave at dawn and be on guard." he follows them to the inn.

Ariadne smiled at her cousins
"Sure,as long as everything is ready, checking out the local night life isn't a bad idea.  Just remember, we should be more observers than partiers.  After all, there might be spies for the bandits lurking around, scoping out fresh targets.  If word gets around that Amberites are in town, that might derail everything "

"My lovely green lockes do tend to mark me as a foreigner."

Ariadne smirked
"To be honest, this might be a good time for a Disguise of some sort"

Gets shifty eyes, "Want to help me with a disguise ?"

Ari grinned
"That sounds like fun! "

Jade has Glamoury so it will be fun coming up with disguises.

Ariadne has a variety of glamorous Hollywood friends to recommend

Jon chuckles softly and follows behind Jade and Ari.

"What color hair and eyes should I go with ?  Oh I can be short like my mother."

Jade chats with Ariadne and tries out different looks finding one that is the most amusing for her friends.

"Long and dark would be less noticeable, while still being beautiful. "

Shakes out her hair and brushing it changes it's color.

"Thank you, Ariadne."

She looked to Jon as well for input.

Jon smiles "I agree with Ari, long and dark.  I'd add matching eyes, dark blue or brown."

Ariadne chuckled
"I honestly thought we were going to have to scrounge Disguise materials from around town, but I'll admit that this is MUCH easier.  You'd make a fortune in Hollywood, or you would of magic didn't freak them out"

Jade smiles, "Thank you Jon. I think I will try brown."

To Ariadne, "Well, people make exceptions for things that are too their benefit, I have come to learn."

Ariadne just chuckled at Jade's words

And so, Simonel Tazik leads the cousins to a pub... The Silver Cloud.

It's a large building of stone walls and a slate-covered roof, with what you're told is a well-stocked wine cellar. Along with wine, they also have various beers and harder liqueurs-- Tazik seems mildly enthusiastic about the rum.

The proprietor (a tall, heavyset man with a well-trimmed beard, in his late 50s, perhaps) suggests a bread and cheese plate with hard cider, mmm?

There's a harpist playing over on a small dias... nice and relaxing stuff.

Jade smiled, "That cider sounds lovely, aye bring us a pitcher, our humble host."



Jade soon began putting words together as she listened to the song being played. She found herself singing with her eyes closed lost in the muse. She restrained herself from calling up illusions though.


A random person effected would be nice.

Beauty: (Siren's Voice)
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CREATURES
When you let someone see you, really see you, for the first time, roll +CHA.
*On a 10+, they must choose two. *On a 7-9 they must choose one:
• Reveal a profound personal truth
• Pledge to follow you
• Stand helpless, weeping silently for a moment
• Avert their eyes and back away.

(* Stand helpless, weeping silently for a moment
* Reveal a profound personal truth)

One woman, tall and thin with straight black hair (but cut shorter than the other women in the Silver Cloud), is very affected. She stands helpless, weeping silently by the end of the song.

When Jade is done, the woman walks up to her. "What... what was that song...?"

This woman doesn't dress like the local women... It's fancier, with darker colors (not as dark as what Ariadne wears, but darker and more subdued). More leather and lace, buccaneer boots.

Jade shook herself from her reverie when the woman approached.

"Oh, I just made it up from listening to the harpist at his art, I guess that means I get to name the song. Do you have a suggestion?" She asked the woman. Her own face showed some blush to it.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 19:53, Sun 17 Mar.

"No, oh no, I just... I... I felt like... you made it up on the spot? Really? I... I guess it just... it sang-- said-- spoke to me. It felt like it spoke things I've been feeling all my life. I... Um, are you from another Shadow...?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:12, Sun 17 Mar.

Jade looked to her companions and realizes she already blew her disguise. She gave a small little nod of her head since the woman knew of the existence of shadows.

"Please sit join us. I will ask for another glass for the cider."

"I... certainly wouldn't say no to a little cider... Just a small glass, though... Thank you..."

Simonel Tazik seemed to figure the cousins would be hanging out at the barstools at the bar, but now he goes and claims an empty table big enough to seat six for all five of you...

"I must say your choice of fashion places you as a visitor to this shadow as well ?"

She filled everyone's glasses with cider.

"Music and song are in my blood I suppose."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:15, Sun 17 Mar.

"I am. I am from Montevalno..." Tiny bit of a not-exactly-happy look there for a second.



"Oh? Might I ask what Shadow you hail from...?"

Ariadne took a sip of her cider, which was excellent, and ate some of the cheese, which was odd but not offputing.
She looked around the room, glass in hand (as an LA girl, she had learned long ago not to leave cups unattended), and tried to surreptitiously check out the crowd.    She'd gotten pretty good at surveying trouble spots and interesting people back home, but things were very new here.   The music was a bit subdued, but that let her concentrate better on her surroundings.  Jade was singing along with the harpist, and Ari nodded her head with the tune.
When a random woman walked up, tears in her eyes, it occurred to Ari that "Jade Singing" wasn't the harmless random thing that it should have been.   She winced and mentally kicked herself for forgetting, once again, about the weird magical shenanigans that were so common here.

She spoke up at the woman's question.
"We're from Tanus.  We're merchants, looking for new venues for trade and friendship"
Belatedly, she realized that she'd been hoping that they could just drink in peace, staying somewhat anonymous.
Ariadne realized now that a good cover story would have been a good idea.   Summoning up all she'd learned about Tanus, Ari started putting together a rough back story in her mind.

It had been a game, back in West Hollywood, when she and her friends had hit the bars after shooting on a movie or something similar.    The women had all stood out, especially in straight bars, even among a crowd of Hollywood drinkers, and always attracted a lot of attention, with many patrons asking who they were, what they did for a living, etc.   And they'd learned the hard way that talking about movie sets and stunt work was a great way to get swamped and bombarded with questions, and basically losing all privacy and any chance to relax.   So they took turns, with one of them inventing a job and sometimes backstories for everyone.  They'd figure out who's "turn" it was, and that person would, if the subject came up, introduce everyone, including fake names, and tell their "story".     The quartet of woman had been UCLA coeds taking a study break, a group of nurses getting off shift, kindergarten teachers getting courage to return to work the next day, or a bachelorette party after the groom hooked up with the caterer.   Having had a couple of improv classes in college, Ariadne wasn't bad at the game, though pretending to be a bride pining for her man had been a bit of a challenge, though not quite as much as pretending to be a nurse.  Nurses had very complicated jobs, it turned out.

This time, though, Ariadne smiled and looked at the woman, admiring her outfit and her hair, and went into the routine.
"Montevalno?  I've never been.  Is that nice?"

"I am Jasmine by the way." She smiles to the woman.

"Eh? Um... pardon me, but you don't seem like you're from... Ohhhh, you mean you've been sent here by Tanus, you work for them. Well that makes sense. Are you... able to talk about it?" She said it, Ariadne thought, like someone might say Did you sign an NDA?



That not-exactly-happy look again. "Mm. Some people like it."




The return-smile is geniune. "I'm Marlena. Marlena Archarossi." And there's that look again. What is it... dissatisfaction? A bad memory? A family thing? Let's see, what have I been told about Montevalno, again...? each cousin thinks...
This message was last edited by the player at 00:25, Mon 18 Mar.

Ariadne smiled, though inside she winced, forgetting that the variety of people in Tanus wasn't as varied as she'd have liked.  But their new friend had accidentally covered for her, so she rolled with it.  She spoke in a friendly way as she discussed details.
"Yes, exactly.  It's all merchant business, and you know how they get.  But that's business, and we're here to relax, after all."

She looked at the woman, really trying to get a feel for her mood, and frowned gently and spoke in what was hopefully a sympathetic way.
"Are you alright?  You seem upset, or sad.  Is there anything we can do?"

Didn't realize it rolled the first time.

18:32, Today: Jade rolled 9 using 2d6 with rolls of 6,3.  Shadow Lore.  For knowledge of this Montevalno



Jade thinks a moment on her Golden Circle Lore.

Marlena nods and smiles. It's genuine, though just a little guarded.



"No, not at all! And after hearing the song of, ah, Jade, here... and I..." Marlena slumps slightly. "It's that obvious?"



(Didn't know quite what you meant at first, but I figured it out: Yeah, okay.)




Montevalno is known to be a dramatic Golden Circle Shadow where the families often scheme to get more power, prestige, status, money, and/or revenge... Maybe this is family trouble? Or Marlena's on the run? Or... a scheme failed...? Or she's having trouble with one...?

Ariadne tried to get a bead on the woman.

OOC: 19:39, Today: Ariadne rolled 9 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,4.  perception. – 9

 

Jade blinks surprised her guise had been seen through that easily.

"Oh, is their family trouble ?"

Marlena doesn't seem evil nor scheming. She doesn't seem like she's having romantic troubles, either. Honestly, though, she reminds Ariadne of... something... something she's seen before on Earth... A woman unhappy about... her family? ...Rejection?




Marlena looks glum. "You could say that... It's not really anything new, though..."

In reply to The GM (msg # 207):

Ariadne gave her friendliest smile
"Well, it's new to us, probably.  You don't have to talk about anything you don't want to, but if it will help you, please feel free to say whatever you'd like.

"We are pretty friendly for the most part. We just wanted to enjoy things with a pub crawl before we are off on mercantile business."

(Hmmmm... give me a CHR roll, Ariadne... but you get an extra +1 to it)

OOC:20:20, Today: Ariadne rolled 11 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 4,6.  charisma. – 11

"Well, it's just... do you folk know much about... magic...?"

Jade/Jasmine smiles a bit.

She gives Ariadne a slight nod that it is ok if they wish to talk about magic.

Ariadne gave a friendly wry smile.
"We're not....unfamiliar"

"Oh, right, Tanus, huh. I guess they're not exactly strangers to magic. And then there's... wherever you're from." Marlena takes a big drink of cider. "So uh... what do they think of magic... where you're from...?"

"It is fairly common at least knowledge of it. Practitioners much less common but I am familiar with it. What seems to be the problem magically ?"

Ariadne gave a friendly shrug.
"I've met many who are scared or scornful of it, but I'm not of that opinion.  I'm not one to disparage a useful skill."

"That's... yeah. Well. So first of all-- and please don't... I mean..." Marlena sighs. "I mean... here." She finishes her cider, hands Ariadne the small glass. "Hold that behind your back for just a minute."

Clearly intrigued,  Ariadne put the glass behind her back.  Oddly, this made her a little homesick, as ot reminded her of the flirty games she played with various bar patrons

Marlena puts her own hands behind her back for a second, closes her eyes, frowns, concentrating... And then brings her hands forward-- her right hand puts the same glass (sure looks like the same glass!) on the table in front of her.

But that's impossible, Ariadne is still holding th--

--No she's not.

Ariadne had had an idea of what was maybe supposed-t'-be going to happen, so she'd kept a careful grip on the cider glass-- so when Marlena had made her final move, Ariadne had brought the glass forward to-- wait, where'd it go? She'd had it, felt it, was feeling it, but somehow when she'd sent a message to her muscles, nerves, and skin hey bring that thing forward again, quick, her fingers were like "sure okay wait what thing? Did we have a thing still? You sure? I don't think that's right, is it?"

Marlena doesn't look proud of herself-- she looks kind of disgusted with herself, really...

Jade watched with interest and smiled surprised since she had been expecting something different.

"You can apport objects. That is quite a f... wait you don't seem happy that you were able to do that."

Marlena sighs. "Yes, I know, it seems impressive as anything in this context, but... I'm not great at it. It has to be something I've recently touched. I have to be very still and concentrate. It can't be very far away from me. It helps if I'm just a little... tipsy. I can do other things, too, but it's all... very limited.

And my family... they were... interested... when they found out I had some small magical talents... when I was young... so they paid for me to get trained somewhat... but I'm just... not that powerful. So then when it turned out I'd never be all that useful with what I can do... they resented it. Now that I'm an adult and not getting any more skilled, I'm just constantly in the doghouse with them...

And it's... so... foolish? I know some people get rejected by their families because of their politics or their faith or because they love the wrong person or they're too greedy or too ambitious or even too ugly or too clumsy but... I can do magic! And they'd be fine with that-- but they can't use that part of me! And they hate that! Feeling bad about it is as foolish as why they make me feel bad about it! But I do!"
This message was last edited by the player at 16:25, Mon 18 Mar.

"So in Montevalno, magic is something the people understand and use ? Did you actually go to a magic academy ? You know it might be a blessing in a way because your family doesn't think of you as a party favor or as their personal magic item rather than as a person."

"Almost never! It's extremely rare!"



"No... A couple of private tutors from other Shadows."



"Yes, I know, that's crossed my mind... but they don't make me feel like much of a person, either..." Marlena signals to a waitress and orders a fresh drink, a glass of red wine...

"I still think what you did is rather impressive. Aportation is not that common. I could see it being useful for subterfuge. Do you think you would do better if you did go to an academy of magic?"

Despite coming from a fairly unconventional family (which is an understatement she'd have trouble saying with a straight face), Ariadne had always had a wonderful, loving, supportive father.  He might have had a secret agenda in training her to, hopefully, return to Amber someday, but his feelings towards her have always been genuine and loving.   Ariadne had always taken this for granted, and even believed it was the same for all families as she grew up.  But even as early as middle school, the young woman began to see that her situation in life was very privileged, in more ways than one.  She had rebelled against this on many occasions, but eventually accepted it.  When she turned her gaze towards other people, she saw that many of her classmates had parents living vicariously through them and lived with a Sword of Damocles over them in terms of their productivity and school careers.
In college, it was even worse.  Though still a bit self-absorbed, Ari saw students who seemed to be the saviors of their families, and even saw a few buckle under the pressure.  She remembered, back at Boston University, coming back to a woman's campus apartment one night after an evening of dancing and partying, to find the woman's roommate collapsed halfway between her bedroom and the restroom, having overdosed on pills.  After giving CPR and calling an ambulance, they found out that She had gotten a letter from very disappointed parents and had spiraled into depression.
Hollywood was, if anything, worse.  Many people on a production, especially women, were literally considered products of a sort, and needed to tow the line to make the production successful.  Ariadne, who had always had more self-confidence than seemed warranted, tried to encourage everyone and even intercede, but her power was limited, even when she had starring roles in small films.  People who couldn't perform as needed, even when that need was unreasonable, were cast aside frequently.
So she was no stranger to having to live up to expectations.

Ariadne reached out and took the other woman's hand, in a sisterly way.   She spoke kindly and softly but firmly.
"I'm no expert in magic, certainly, but I have two things to say.  One, that I've been told that magic is a skill, like any other, like archery, or painting, or cooking.  It needs to be practiced in order to get better.
Two, and again this is just a novice's view, but I'd say that there is no worthless magic, only magic applied incorrectly.  You just need to find clever uses for your magic, in order to make a mark on the world."

She took a small coin, one of the silver ones she got back as change for their drinks.  Releasing the woman's hand, Ariadne took the silver coin in her right hand and started flipping it from knuckle to knuckle, causing it to seemingly dance between her fingers.  Then she took her left hand and put it by her right and snapped her fingers.  The silver coin had vanished!  Then Ari opened her left hand, revealing the coin.
It was a simple sleight of hand, probably obvious to a professional, but perhaps not to the untrained.
"After all.....It's all about presentation."

"I don't think so. That's not what experts have told me... And anyway, my family have given up on funding such things... But... I don't think it's what I want anymore, either..."




Marlena is impressed. "Was that..." She narrows her eyes a bit... takes a big sip of her wine. "That wasn't... that wasn't magic, was it. ...Was it?"

Jade/Jasmine watches with intense interest as Ariadne performs her trick with the coin.

Ariadne smirked, but in a friendly way of commeradery
"No, you're right that wasn't actual magic.  It's merely a sort of visual illusion, a Slieght Of Hand trick that an old friend taught me.  But my point is that it's a skill that took practice and effort to perfect.  And, to behonest, it's still not quite perfect.
You might be able to perfect your skills as well."

She remembered, on the set of the movie"Long Live The Queen", her medieval vaguely cheesy bodice ripping movie, meeting the History Consultant Henry McQueen.  Henry, a bit of an medieval fanatic (he had a bad habit of yelling and screaming at everyone whenever he saw a historical error), was befriended by Ariadne, who found his tantrums entertaining.  Over the course of the movie production, he taught her his specialty, medieval magic, including tricks dating back to the Egyptian Pharoahs.

"I don't know... maybe... but... I..." More wine. "When I heard the song, I... I just... I felt... I've tried getting better with my magic, to win my family's respect... but... what if that was a mistake? A waste of time? Should I even want their respect, really? They're all kind of terrible people... Shouldn't people like me without magic? Aren't I worth anything, even if I couldn't do anything at all? With all the Shadows that exist... does Montevalno even matter, really, exactly? It's... just a... world. Just one world. It's not even as big as some. There are so many people who've never heard of Montevalno, nor anyone in it. Don't they matter? Wouldn't I be better off just... getting respect from other, better people..."

"You are rare for even knowing about shadow and worlds beyond your own. There may be whole worlds out there even places where you may rule for a lifetime. Still I think your home shall forever be on your heart as it is with us. With your bit of magic you must know how to find the paths between worlds. Think how powerful that would be for a mercantile empire. There is a plethora of trade items available to you because of that."

Ariadne shrugged, and smiled gently.
"I'm going to be brutally honest here.  If you want to get better with your magic, then do it.  But do it for YOU, not for your family.  Even if you loved them and they loved you, you don't need to prove anything to them.  And live for yourself, as well.  Unless you signed a contract, You don't owe them anything, really. "

"Hm? Oh, no, Montevalno is Golden Circle, we know all about-- oh, you mean Montevalno's rare that way. Yes, I suppose that's true, isn't it. Most Shadows probably don't know there are others, or else they think that other Shadows are just legends and myths. ...I see what you mean. I never thought about it that way. I'm lucky to know that there are other Shadows, other worlds-- I've even visited them! I'm in a different one than my homeworld right now...!"




"What?! Ha-ha! That's funny! Oh, dearie, that sort of thing's only true for the royal family of Amber, those lucky so-and-sos...! S'funny, though... Heh..."



"I'm not-- oh dear! Do you think I'm one of Oberon's children or grandchildren...? Ha! No, my mother could never ever... nor my grandmother, either, she'd be the last person in the world who might... No, I think I'm just... different..." A small sip of wine. "...I admit, it's a pretty tempting fantasy... one we've all had when we were little, mm? A magical princess... Must be nice..." She looks up at Ariadne. "What about you? Did you ever daydream about being a granddaughter of Oberon when you were little...?"

Ariadne smiled as she gathered her thoughts for a convincing lie.  It was an old Improv trick amongst her acting friends.
"Well, to be honest, I had a very good childhood.  My mother dies soon after I was born, but my father was well off, as well as loving, protective and supportive.   So much so that, as a dumb child, I actually resented it a little bit and felt guilty.   So I never really envied anyone.  I made my own adventures, to be honest.
Still, now that I'm learning more about them, I can see where they might be figures of envy.  But remember that with bigger worlds come bigger responsibilities and bigger problems.  "

"Speak for yourself,  I still dream about being a magical princess." Jasmine said with a warm smile.

Marlena giggles slightly. "I know, right? And... I don't know...? Living in a big castle? Riding horses along the beach and... I don't know what. Dancing at balls? That sounds a bit tiring... Maybe it is. Going out and finding your own Shadow to live in, though... that might be nice... Maybe... if Black Road demons didn't come along or something... I wonder what my favorite Shadow would be like...? Maybe I'd just... have a big home by the sea...? Or a small one...? A private chef and nothing to do but swim half the day, and read books the rest of the time...?" Marlena sighs. "What about you, Jasmine? What would your personal dream Shadow be like?"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:02, Wed 20 Mar.

Jade again wondered if her mask had slipped with Marlena using her real name.

"Oh, let's see." She tilted her head in thought.

"A place that carries the waves of sound well. Since I really love music. I would like it to be near the sea to hear the lapping of the water against the shore. It would have lots of choices of clothing for myself expression. It would have beautiful long nights with the sparkling of stars in the sky. I suppose there would be a bit of those things like riding horses and dances. I would have a handsome man at my side, but I suppose that is more than a shadow thing."

(OOPS, no, I just messed up and forgot you didn't give your real name yet. I've edited that last post of mine.)





"I know, right? I've been to Minos a lot, on business, but it's like, you're in the city, or you're on a ship. There's no 'relaxing on the beach' in Minos. And you'd have to be pretty super-wealthy to do that in Montevalno. And if you're that wealthy in Montevalno, someone's usually scheming against you. How can I be this young and want to retire already?" Marlena sighs. "Is Tanus nice? I've never actually been there."




"Yeah..." Another sigh. "The long nights under the stars sounds nice, too..." Marlena turns to Ariadne. "What about you? What'd your perfect Shadow be like?"

"Tanus is nice, it is alive with sound and color. The streets are sandy like the desert but filled with vendors and children quick to offer aid as guides or simply to serve. One can find almost anything among the many sellers in the bizarre. Just be careful and quick witted when dealing with them as they try to take as much coin as possible. So walk like a commoner there or expect to pay twice what they would. The people are nice though and if you gain a friend there they will do much to ensure your comfort."

She looks to Ariadne interested in what her perfect shadow would be like, would it be that Earth place?

Ariadne want going to volunteer anything, but Jade's obvious look to "share with the class" seemed insistent
"My ideal shadow,  I suppose, would have a variety of things.  Technology in some spots and pastoral beauty in others.  Energetic night spots next to relaxing spas. But most importantly, a huge variety of people, with no one judging anyone else for who they love and how they live"

"Oh! Are you from Begma orig-- Oop, sorry, secret, never mind... Go on..."




"See, you're more of a city girl, clearly-- and I respect that. But I think the country life calls to me... not just rural... Agrarian. I wonder if I'd like keeping bees? Or making candles? Or both...?" Marlena sips her wine, but her urge to get drunk seems to have worn off, at least for now. "Raising hounds? Would that be nice? I think it might be nice? Maybe?" She sighs. "I wonder why the Bercarro people don't build houses on the side of their mountain? Religious reasons? Superstition? Just too dangerous? Too windy? Probably too windy. Shame."

"Mmmm it sounds like you don't know what to do with yourself. There are so many different things you could do. I like the raising bees idea. That sounds unique and interesting. In addition to making honey, you would be helping the many flowers pollinate."

Marlena sighs. "It does sound kind of nice, doesn't it?" She frowns... but it's a frown of determination. "Well... if I want that kind of life... I'll need to make money. And... maybe... not by doing business in Montevalno. I know the trouble that can bring. Are the Tanus people nice to work for? --No, sorry, secret stuff... It's a shame that Weirmonken is having whatever monster trouble it's having-- I've heard they have some excellent arts and crafts they export... or, well, that they used to..."

"Monsters, OH wow what can you tell us about that ?" eyes get big and wide.

"You haven't heard? Apparently Weirmonken has long had a monster problem-- werewolves? Something like that? But Amber went in and beat 'em, forced a truce. Now it seems like the monsters are breaking the truce and attacking people again. Everybody here's pretty worried about it-- you don't want things like that happening in the Shadow next door... I mean, or at all, but if they're gonna happen in any Shadow besides the one you live in, you'd least want it happening in the Shadow next door to yours..."

"Sounds like that truce needs to be enforced again. For the safety of all who through luck, skill or providence can move among the shadows. I agree with you, certainly something you would prefer to happen in a shadow far, far, away."

Ariadne raised an eyebrow at Jade's wording and smiled briefly, but then frowned and nodded
" You're right, someone should do something "
This message was last edited by the player at 02:48, Fri 22 Mar.

"Well I heard a rumor that the Amber royal family's in town today. This town, I mean. Some of 'em, anyway. So... if it's true... I guess they're either on their way to do something about it, or soon will be?"

Ariadne smiled innocently
"Hopefully."

Marlena seems to lose interest in speculation about Weirmonken and the Amber royal family. "I like you folks. And not just because of the beautiful song... You--or your Tanus bosses--wouldn't ever have any interest in trading in glass? Wool? Pretty dyed fabrics? Those're the Archarossi family specialties... if you don't count schemes... or information pertaining to being useful to schemes..."

"Oh in Tanus, all those things would find market and they are keen on information. As long as you don't try to trade in sentient beings. They have strict laws against slavery. I am thinking the glass especially if stained glass would be a hit."

"Of course not! What have you heard about Montevalno, that we're slavers?!" Then she looks bitter. "Not counting feeling enslaved by duty to one's family, of course..."

"Oh no I just thought I should cover that as they punished someone for that last time we were there."

"Oh, it's a problem there? I mean, like... an internal problem, I guess? ...It's sometimes hard to remember the size of Shadows, geographically. Some seem to be just one city... sometimes a smallish one. And then some seem to be whole huge worlds of their own."

Jon smiles and watches the exchange between Ari, Jade and Marlena.

He keeps an eye & ear out on the room.

In reply to Marlena Archarossi (msg # 254):

Ariadne smiled with a shrug
"More like an isolated incident, we're hoping.  Some merchant was selling animals that were intelligent.  He was taken care of.  "

"Hmmm. I don't suppose you guys personally helped with taking care of him? Something suggests to me all of a sudden that some of you might know your way around a weapon." She looks at Jon. "Especially you." Then at Ariadne. "But maybe also you?" She sighs. "The most possible weapon of choice in Montevalno is the stiletto... deadly but concealable. I'm kind of terrible with them. If I have to defend myself, I'm more of a short-sword kind of gal."

Ariadne smirked slightly
"For legal reasons, we have no comment at this time. "
She also shrugged at the woman's speculation
"I'll admit that we've been lucky to have families that helped us with our education, both physically and mental "

"Hmm. I wonder if it's possible to have a career in inter-Shadow law. What the extradition rules are for if someone from one Shadow goes and commits a crime in another... what the extradition laws would be in each... What the extradition laws would be if a werewolf travels to another Shadow and... no I'd better not start thinking about that out loud in here, could cause a panic. ...I guess the problem with a werewolf is that at least part of the time, as far as anyone knows, they might look just perfectly like any wow I should really really shut up." Marlena looks around. "What are you guys doing after this? Hitting another pub? Or making an early night of it?"

Ariadne smiled, slightly, at the woman's words
"I've definitely heard about inter shadow lawyers.   I mean, if they're trade between shadows that's more substantial than bartering, there's probably going to be lawyers."
If she recalled, they're were definitely a few running around.  A guy named Bill, rumored to be from an Earth shadow, and even her father had said something about helping out with that before meeting her mother.
OOC:  obviously these details are pending your approval, GM

She took a dip of her drink
"I forget, Merlana, how did you get to this shadow, again? It's refreshing to meet someone so well traveled"

Jon smiles at Marlena and gives her a nod of acknowledgement regarding weapons.

Jon continues to keep an eye out, but focuses a bit more on Marlena as Ari asks her question.

(You're fine. Bill is still around. Living in Amber is prolonging his life some.)



(Psst-- you mean Marlena)

"Same as you, I'm sure-- Golden Shadow trade routes. The more the Amber royal family use one, the easier it is to use. Well, they have to use it a lot before any of us can use it, but eventually it gets there. Bercarro, here, is on the way to Lambay from Weirmonken, and they're both technically Golden Circle, so... Um... Or... or did you mean 'how did I come to be here?' You probably meant that. Sorry, didn't mean to be pedantic. I'm on a trade errand for my family, that's all..."

Ariadne grinned
"Well, since we're getting to know each other, both questions are good, certainly. "

"Yeah, Lambay's my next stop... probably leaving tomorrow, unless this one merchant turns out to be able to scrape together the money for a deal in time, in which case I'll leave day after tomorrow. Ever been? Lambay, I mean?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:58, Mon 01 Apr.

"Not yet.  What's it like?"

"Lots of gods. But their gods never actually seem to show up nor do anything, at least not in modern times-- they're apparently not like Amber's unicorn-- so they might be just, um, things the Lambethians happen to believe in? When they say that something is the will of such-and-such god or goddess, you just nod at them and they seem happy enough with you. I'm pretty sure some of them know we're just humoring them, but most of them seem all right with that. Lots of shrines and temples and things, though. And they're good customers-- pretty thriving economy."

Ariadne chuckled with a smirk
"Yes, i think I was raised in a shadow like that.   Dozens of religions, all claiming to be right and constantly butting heads.  But it was more about who made more money than who was doing more good for people "

*Smiles* "Where I'm from, there are also a plethora of "Gods". most are really just ancient Fae. But when you are nigh immortal and become very powerful, it is likely to happen."

Jade just watches the proceedings learning a little of her cousins and this new woman from the conversation.

"So, should we do anything or do we wish some sleep before heading off?"
She said being vague as to the specifics but she felt if got her point across.
She smiles pleasantly at all of those gathered.

Ariadne nodded and finished her drink
"Yes, let's call it a night and head back."

Jon nods in agreement. "Good call Jade and Ari, we should get a good nights rest."

"Eh? Like fairies and elves? I've heard of those, a little. Do they move from Shadow to Shadow like the Amber royal family? Or maybe they're like... clouds, or mountains, and lots of Shadows have their own versions..."



"Well, it's been nice-- wait, what did he call you?"

Jade closes her eyes and lowers her head before laughing.

She looked to Jon and shook her head.

"My relative was perhaps a little too, open."

"So you're-- you're not really-- oh, right, the secret-- oh no you folk are on a secret mission, aren't you-- wait I'm sorry am I blowing your cov-- we shouldn't be discuss-- let's go outside. How about we all discuss this outside? Yeah? Good idea? Check please!"

"Yes, we can depart and talk outside. Your ears are quite keen Marlena."

Ari looked back and forth, looking confused
"I'm sorry, what exactly just happened?"

"We can talk about it outside." Jade rose and headed to the door awaiting the others.

Frowning, and putting a hand on one of her handaxes, Ari followed

"Comes of being from Montevalno. Being able to eavesdrop is a survival skill." Marlena tosses a fair share of money on the table.

Tazik pays for the incognito royal cousins, since he's got local money on him. (Marlena notes that, too, but doesn't seem to think much of it.)

Everyone heads outside...

"Sorry Marlena, but like yourself we try to travel incognito. You are right that this is a covert action." Jade ran a hand through her own brown hair.

"Have you been to Weirmonken?"

Ariadne put the pieces together, nodding
"Yes, Sorry, Merlena.  We don't usually give our real names in public, just to keep better security"

Marlena thinks. "...Dangerous?" she asks quietly.



"No, I've never been," says Marlena, even more quietly. "I wanted to, but by the time I had the opportunity, their new troubles had started up, and so I didn't go after all. 'Cause, y'know... werewolves."



Marlena nods slowly, thinking. "...Are you folk huntin' werewolves?" she whispers.

Jade's eyes sparkle a moment (not magically just like a thought bounced around in her brain) "Yes we are seeking such great game, Weimonken is the place to go as thankfully they are not roaming shadow."

Ariadne looked at the woman suspiciously
"But It might be dangerous to meddle in other people's business."

"Whew! Too rich for my blood. Please don't let anything happen to yourselves..."



"Oh! Ooh! No! I won't meddle! Nor tell anyone! I don't wanna go with you, either! You aren't gonna make me come with you, are you? Oh no I know too much now don't I oh no."

Ariadne tried to gauge the other woman's honesty

OOC:   21:32, Today: Ariadne rolled 7 using 2d6+1 with rolls of 2,4.  Perception . – 7

Jon smiles "I think you hit on a great idea Marlena. Why don't you come with us. I mean, you said you wanted to visit there and we are headed there.  So it is the perfect opportunity."

He looks at his cousin.

"She seems very opposed to the idea. I mean I can't blame her with werebeasts about. We should relax, everyone is uptight over the werewolf menace." She rested her hand on Ariadne's to hopefully get her to ease her grip on her ax handle.

Ari flinched a bit in surprise as Jade put a hand on hers to get her to calm down.  She glanced at her cousin and gave a slight nod and released her grip.

Jon smiles "That is exactly why I think it is a good idea to take Marlena with us. She can be an independent unaffiliated observer. I mean she is privy to our secrets and it was kind of her idea to come along."

Jon gives an evaluating look of Marlena "I think she was trying to use reverse psychology on us.  I get the feeling that she really wants to go, but was not sure how to get invited. And she was hoping one of us would make this call."

Marlena really seems to be speaking honestly about this. Ariadne's, like, 90% sure.



"No, I wasn't! I really, really wasn't!"

Ari smirked at the woman's reaction, and nodded as if in agreement
"I certainly don't blame her.   And this thing is dangerous enough, with enough unknowns already.   We don't need to take a total stranger with us"

Jade looked at the woman and then to Ariadne, "Yes enough people are in danger, ourselves included facing those beasts. We shared some drinks and had a good time, no need to mar our good names in this pleasant place. After all, Marlena has her own reasons to be here. No need to keep her from her own reasons for being here."

For a moment Jade agreed with John that she seemed like she wanted to be brought along. Then she saw the fear on Marlena's face and remembered her run in with those Gray men. These Werewolves were easily as dangerous.

"Right, right... and I'm leaving soon... headed east, I mean... Um... could I do anything for you...? Start a rumor, maybe? Heaven knows I've had enough training in that... Rumors are like bread in Montevalno-- in that you have them every day and they're both more and less filling than you expect. Did that make sense? I'm not sure that made sense. But um say I could start a rumor that you got urgent news and went back where you came from? Or that you're super dangerous and people had better not mess with you? Or that... I don't know, anything you want people to think or not think about you...?"

Ariadne looked at her cousins
"Would an innocent rumor that we might be carrying something valuable be useful?"

Jade nods her head to Ariadne.

"That would be good, good thinking."

"Yes! Excellent! Good idea! Do you wanna say what it is? Money? Magic? Both? Something else? Ooh, maybe it's more mysterious and interesting if we don't say?"

Ariadne shrugged, a bit out of her element here
"Magic might be good, or perhaps some pricey components or ingredients for magic?  I  don't want people to think we're wizards or something "

Jade nods thinking that is acceptable.

"Thank you for your help, Marlena Archarossi."

Jon smiles "Well, Marlena, it is safe to say that you won't need to come with us.  Jade and Ari are OK with that and thus so am I. And I agree a benign rumor might be handy."

"All right, yes, yes, terrific, let's say you came here to buy magical weapons-- maybe a special amulet or two? --really expensive stuff, from a seller from, oh, Kashfa. So maybe you're loaded with money, or maybe you've got magical gear. Either way, you're a hot target for thieves to ambush... and/or monsters! But you're the ones who'll be ready to counter-ambush! Oh, that is fun. For you. The badasses. Not me. My part is the lying. Lying to criminals can be fun."



"Awww, sure thing... um, Jade? Right? Really? Right?"



"You bet! I'll go start right now! You bet! Thank you for not taking me with you..."

Ariadne waved goodbye to Marlena.  She v was bothered by the woman's insistence that they could have "made" her accompany them.  Ari didn't think they'd come across as that thuggish, but she supposed that having this random woman feeling intimidated by them was useful