[ Currently, we find Nebby and Fyril in their inn room. Nebrinel has quickly painted a card with a likeness of Xivilai, be it portrait or charicature, and being satisfied that she succeeded her Craft check is using a bit of magic to make the paint dry quicker. Fyril is probably washing the brushes, poor slave-boy. ] [ Meanwhile, back in the dark forest, Ethan has transformed into the Hulk and is battling Juggernaut to save Ada from becoming Ground Ada. But that's not important right now. ] (How much...Ada would a Ground Ada Ada if a Ground Ada could Ada Ada? c_c;;) (Unknown.) [ And so we find Nebby focusing on this little card, and if we didn't know magic was involved we'd probably think she was insane. Er. Sessions tart! ] [ ...Session Start, too! ] * Nebrinel does, indeed, focus on the card, and murmurs to herself, "Could be worse. Could be juggling morganti weapons." (And for Nebrinel's next trick...) ( *wonders what the card looks like* ) * Fyril sits quietly off to the side, looking out at the moon. He holds a couple brushes in his hand idly. (I'll pull a sorceress out of this card!) * Nebrinel does the Trump Contact Trick, thinking of Xivilai, who looks almost like the picture on the card. [ So, Nebby didn't draw a moustache on her or something? ] (No, this is slightly more important. She can do that later to blow off steam.) (Or while she's waiting for contact. ^^;) [ Alright. In that case, Nebrinel feels a sort of numbing sensation at the front of her brain, and then she is, apparently, in the library of Black Peak. Xivilai is looking at her, one eyebrow raised in question. "Well. Good morning, Nebrinel. Tell me, please, what is so important that you would forge a trump just to contact me at this gods-damned hour?" ] * Fyril uses one of the brushes to idly draw on the back of his hand. He looks at Nebrinel curiously, but stays quiet. [ To Fyril, Nebrinel is still right there. And yes, kid, she's still hawt. Go fig. ] * Nebrinel says, as impassively as possible, "The fact that there is a person in the Empire collecting a multitude of great weapons who is attempting to kill anyone who has one, most likely including Ada and I." ( Nebby is concentrating... her mind is obviously elsewhere. I should leave her be... then again, I *am* a thief... *grope* ) (I forget. Do those things get said out loud?) (Nope. She'll move her lips, but you don't hear anything.) [ "Fair enough. You're lucky I recognized you, you know. Is that little boy of yours with you?" ] * Nebrinel smiles a faint smile. "I believe I have an inkling of that luck, and yes, he is. I assure you he was not involved in the theft of your items." [ "Of course he wasn't. If you could perhaps focus on your location for a moment?" The image of the library fades until it can only just be made out, allowing Nebrinel to see what's around her. ] * Fyril blinks a few times as he watches her move her lips, then squints a bit at them as he drags the brushes over his hands. * Nebrinel does, indeed, focus on her location. Her eyes glance over at Fyril for a half-second as she does so. 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Fyril (2d6) and gets 7. * Fyril is smiling vaguely, but his eyes are crinkled a bit still. [ "Very well. Hold on a second and I'll pull you through." And then she does, and there's a barely-percieveable lurch in your bowels, and then you're both in the library of Black Peak. ] [ Fyril does indeed fall into a chair. What a nice Xiv. ] * Nebrinel shakes her head as if to clear cobwebs, and says, "That was immediate. Were you already aware of the situation, or did you simply want to go back to bed?" * Fyril blinks a few times, and swivels his head around to take in his surroundings before going starry-eyed. The books! [ "I tend to be a night owl. Most of my old friend are too, largely due to the fact that they're undead." ] [ "But that's immaterial. Tell me more about this situation, which, no, I was not aware of." ] * Nebrinel nods, drops her pack and bow, for she was prepared and had them, and takes a seat. * Fyril starts a bit at the noise, and looks around for his satchel. * Nebrinel hrms, "First, has Ada informed you of the situation surrounding Friyas's death?" [ Fyril finds his satchel. It's sitting on part of the Inn floor that apparently came along for the ride. ] (Pfft.) (Man, that guy's gonna be angry.) ( He'll be more confused. 'Specially when he finds the burnt card with gold sitting on it near the doorway. ) [ "She did not, at that. That unpleasant business with Faydra must have distracted her. Do elucidate, please?" ] (RECAP EPISODE! WOOT!) * Fyril closes his eyes, and waits. He looks at the backs of his hands. Colors! ( And the GM adds to Nebby, "And make it quickish." ) (Now we chibify them and give them a chalkboard...) * Nebrinel nods. "To simplify, when Fyril and I arrived at Friyas' estate near Menevia, we found that he had recently been assassinated. We later ran into this assassin, and Ada conversed with him at length, although as to what she didn't inform me. But we also ran into a odd elf in all black, who was obviously Imperial, and who assaulted us for our great weapon pieces. We managed to fight him off, with no real losses." ( Except your clavicle. ) (It's surprising how much of that Fyril managed to avoid. =P) (It was only mostly dead.) However, as of last night, we ran into this assassin again, who informed us that the elf in question had collected seven full great weapons, and was out to kill anyone he suspected of having one, including Ada and I. [ Xivilai raises her eyebrow again, and has a sip of coffee that's appeared out of nowhere. She must've learned that from Ethan. ] (Xivilai learning from Ethan...SCARY.) The reason I contacted you was because you were most likely the only person we could find on short notice who could guarantee that we could disappear and not be detected. Informing you also assures Ada's continued wellbeing. * Nebrinel leans back. "And that gets most of the major relevant details." [ "Perhaps. Why did you need to disappear? I'd assume a fearless young woman such as yourself would keep on living as per normal. Also, if this assassin worries about this situation, why not simply kill this elf in black?" ] * Nebrinel nods. "Excellent points. The first is that the resources of the empire and seven great weapons far surpasses my own." She glances over at Fyril, and then back to Xiv. "Secondly, the assassin attempted to, shall we say, leave his employ, and in the process, learned that his body had no attackable vital points, and was mostly invulnerable to even simple morganti weapons. Great Weapons are possible, as we found in the battle in Menevia." (Yay! I'm a resource!) This allows us to bide our time, as, assuming the assassin is trustworthy, the elf will now think we are dead due to our disappearance and his confirmation of the fact. [ Xivilai scowls. "No attackable vital points, you say. And immune to morganti weapons of lesser than Great Weapon stature?" ] That is what he said, and I am inclined to believe him, as the elf took Plaguebringer in the side, a lightning bolt, attacks from Ethan's glaive, and still escaped. I believe he was unprepared at the time, though. [ "You have no idea what you, and he, have described, do you?" ] * Fyril widens his eyes a bit at that list, but continues to gawk around at books. ( Mention that the elf in black seemed not to want to lose 'this body'! =P ) * Nebrinel shakes her head. "No, although I was imagining some sort of construct or avatar." ( "Actually, he's my son." "... okay, that's it. We're putting duct tape over your reproductive tract." ) (Ha.) (You can try that. I'll be in the other room.) [ "Unfortunately, no. A construct wouldn't be able to operate in high Imperial areas. An avatar is animated by the spirit of it's posessor, which can be assaulted using a morganti weapon of any grade." ] [ "No, Nebrinel, you have described a Jenoine." ] [ "And this means that one of those *things* has infiltrated the Empire undetected and is busily going about removing the only defence this planet has against his kind." She scowls more. "What a lovely thought." ] * Fyril cocks his head, and focuses on Xivilai with a bit of a reluctant look. "Um... what are those?" * Nebrinel smiles faintly, and reminds herself to thank Fyril for asking the question for her. [ "Ah, yes. What are they." Xivilai decides she needs some wine, and so she has some. "Well. I may as well start at the beginning to make sure you understand all of what I'm about to say in it's complete context." She sighs and thinks a moment before she continues. ] * Nebrinel settles into her chair. (Go, Captain Exposition!) (*gives Xiv her captain's hat*) * Fyril nods brightly, and leans forward a bit. [ "Somewhere in the nebulous past, the Jenoine came to this world from somewhere else and enslaved all that lived there, most notably the humans. They conducted all manner of research using advanced technology and foul magic. Nobody's certain how long they continued on thus, but eventually a creature - an elf - was 'gifted' by them, through biological manipulation, with the ability to create or summon and manipulate Amorphia directly. Why they did such a thing is unknown, but it can be assumed that, since the Great Sea did not exist yet, that it was to obtain in reality something that had previously been in the realm of theory only." ] ( Yarr, I be Captain Exposition!) ( ...did all of that go through? ) (Good thing Ethan isn't here. His eyes'd be all swirly already. =P) * Nebrinel frowns, but doesn't speak up. * Fyril blinks a few times, then asks tentatively. "And what are Amorphia?" (Poor Fyril.) [ "But th... oh, of course. My apologies. Amorphia is also known as Chaos. It is the source of what we currently know as magic, tapped by the Orbs and converted into raw energy waiting to be put to use. It is quite fascinating, wretchedly unstable, and probably the most dangerous substance in existence. Does this answer your question?" ] ( And this is why I use a pointy stick. ) * Fyril nods, but doesn't look particularly calmed by that. "There's someone who can just play with that?" [ "There used to be. Keep in mind that this person was created just before the creation of the Empire, and that was slightly over a quarter of a million years ago." ] * Fyril nods slowly. "Right. And no one else after them could?" [ "Not without a great deal of training and... other pursuits." ] * Fyril furrows his brow. "But... then there are still elves around that can, then?" * Nebrinel shifts and sits up in her chair. [ "Yes, there are. But that. Is. Not. Important." She eyes Fyril. "At any rate, the enslaved populations of elves and humans did not like being enslaved, and so when they heard about an accident involving several Jenoine being boiled into nothing by what this new elf had made, they decided to revolt." ] * Nebrinel nods. * Fyril looks somewhat cowed, and leans back a bit quietly. [ "The eventual revolution, however, consisted of the freed humans and elves fleeing for their lives while the Great Sea of Chaos was created, which also resulted in the birth of the majority of the current gods and the destruction of nearly every Jenoine that was on the planet." ] * Fyril nods, and speaks somewhat hesitantly. "So, there were some left, then?" [ "Yes, and they promptly fled. Despite their superior abilities, they were heavily outnumbered by the new gods. The elves, meanwhile, went on to create the Empire and to forge the first Orb, which protected them and the Sea from the Jenoine. But the Jenoine have always wanted to come back, because they feel that this world is rightfully theirs, and they covet the vast power that the Sea represents." ] * Fyril nods slowly. "So... if there's one there, they've figured out how to get past the defenses? * Nebrinel nods very slightly. [ "That, or they have devised a trick to allow them to work here without actually being here." ] * Fyril looks down to his satchel, and he tugs it towards him as he says, "I don't know which of those sounds worse." [ Xivilai shrugs. ] * Nebrinel makes a small hrming noise. "There was a mention of a vessel. Perhaps the second is more likely than the first." She shakes her head. "Nontheless." * Fyril pulls his bag open, and talks while looking into it. "But it sounded like users of that Amorphia thing wouldn't have that much trouble with them. Wonder if any of them would be willing to help?" [ "Yes. Nonetheless, something will need to be done about this. I'll be speaking to my colleagues on the matter, soon; other Great Weapon wielders will want to know. In the meantime, I must rest, and so much you two. You have a busy day tomorrow." ] * Nebrinel frowns. "Wonderful. Will we be in the same room as before? ( Let 'em come. I'll moiderize da bum! ... ballsy. Stupid, but ballsy. ) [ "And Fyril, I am currently the only living being on this world that can use Amorphia with any guarantee of safety. It is not common practice, and it is much too dangerous to just throw about." ] * Fyril looks up a bit guiltily, and nods. "Right. I get it." ( ALthough I have been pondering teaching such skills to Ethan ... *TURN WHITE* ) [ "And no, you will not be in the same rooms as before, although you can have them if you wish." ] (Turn white nothing. Summarily kill Ethan.) (Can we?) * Nebrinel shrugs. "I was just wondering where we would be put up for the night." She yawns. "I guess this will be a good opportunity to look into these Great Weapons anyway." ( WAI! AMORPHIA! ... it appears that I have miscalculated somewhat. ... gee, ya THINK?! ) (Like I said. Summarily kill Ethan.) [ "Yes, I suppose it will. But first thing's ought to come first. You must go forth tomorrow and retrieve Ada, Ethan, and Sei." ] * Fyril nods as he rearranges his bag. "And books. And cooking. And... huh?" * Nebrinel smirks. "If they are where I think they are, I had better be rested." [ "Yes, you had. And it is simple, Fyril; two of the three of them have completed or nearly-completed Great Weapons, not to mention whatever pieces they carry. They are targets on the one hand, and allies on the other." ] * Nebrinel frowns. "Completed? Since when?" [ "Pantryfiller is completed, or nearly so. The same goes, I believe, with the healing blade." ] * Nebrinel hrms. "Neither displayed a personality. How odd." She grins. "Then again, compared to Ethan, what sort of personality can Pantryfiller have?" [ "It is likely exercising a terribly subtle sense of humor." ] * Nebrinel nods. "I could see that." She frowns. "Well, unless there is anything else you feel you need to know, I will leave you to your deliberations?" [ "I... believe this shall suffice. More information will be ready for us in the morning." ] * Fyril nods, and tugs the satchel shut again. He yawns widely, halfway through covering it with his hand. * Nebrinel nods, and stands. "Our rooms?" [ "I will have someone show you to them. For now, I retire to my chambers as well. Good night, both of you." And she walks out, and a really pale guy shows you to your rooms, and you sleep because you're tired. Session end! ]