Lore of Leyuna RPG (FRPG)

[The Kingpin]

"I'd be willing to bet it STILL wouldn't be the strangest thing to happen here" responded Andruil with a chuckle as he eyed Arsenic, before handing both he and Vix an ale. heading towards the door, Andruil noticed a couple of cats playing around just outside. Walking past them, he headed down the street before him towards the market sector. Interestingly, there seemed to be a cat or two wherever he looked; eating dead mice in alleyways, batting around mushrooms that had fallen from the stalls of the Dwarves selling food, curled up round the neck of one Dwarf who seemed to be mumbling something about something called a Fuzzums. "You wouldn't expect cats of all things to live in such a place. Suppose you learn something new every day" commented Andruil as the ranting of one particular salesdwarf caught his attention. "Nu ah don't 'ave any cats! If ya wont a cat grab one off the bleedin' street and take it 'ome with ya! A year agoo, there were two cats caught in ar traps. Tha' wuz it! Now look at 'em! they'r all oover this stone-damned fortress! It's lahke a...a fecking catsplosion!" rambled the Dwarf, his customer obviously rather offended. "Bu'...bu'...bu' they're fluffy! they're cuddly an' playful an' wonderful! wha doont ya lahke em?" responded the customer, the Salesdwarf fuming at this point as he glanced at another customer. "Next!" he called, the disgruntled customer walking off, yelling something that sounded like 'I hope a Forgotten Beast bites yer ears off!' as he left, as another customer stepped forward to buy something from salesdwarf. "O....kay. That's not exactly your usual market rambling. Either of you heard anything like that before?" asked Andruil, chuckling, as one particular building up ahead caught his attention. it had a large double door and an intricately designed Anvil emblazoned on it, splitting apart as the door opened and a Dwarf walked out, armed with bronze armour and a similar sword. This was the place, it seemed...

[Hopeflower]

Vix, who had bent down to scoop up a curious kitten that wandered up to sniff her shoe, cradled the tiny, purring creature to her chest and gave it a scratch behind the ears as she said, "No. First time for everything though, I suppose." Arsenic was giving her a stern look, but said nothing, knowing she had always had a soft spot for cats. Her orange tabby cat, after all, hadn't been seen after the inn collapsed; he couldn't exactly blame her.

[The Kingpin]

Andruil smiled as he eyed Vix with the kitten. "Think it has a family to go back to?" he asked as he slowed...

[Hopeflower]

"I don't know," Vix said, "but it's thin." Underneath the fluff, she could feel the kitten's ribs sticking out; that obviously wasn't typical of a healthy, well-fed kitten. She turned her green gaze on Arsenic, who kept his gaze on the ground as if he'd suddenly spotted something very interesting down there. Don't look up, don't look up, he counseled himself, knowing full well that he'd cave if he met her eyes. Seeing it wasn't going to work on him this time, Vix turned to Andruil, tilting her head and cuddling the kitten closer, making it purr louder.

[The Kingpin]

Andruil chuckled as he saw the elf. "I'm starting to see why the Dwarf was ranting" he commented with a smile. "If the rant was anything to go by, my guess is they could use someone taking a cat or two off their hands" he said finally...

[Hopeflower]

Arsenic gave a joking mental groan, saying, 'Watch out or she'll take another three or four with her.' He gave Vix a gentle nudge, adding, 'That wasn't me saying you CAN, by the way.' Vix flashed her old friend a grin, scratching under the little fuzzball's chin with a finger. "Come on, I'm not that bad...besides," she added, poking the kitten's nose, making it give a high-pitched sneeze in response, "one fuzzball is enough."

[The Kingpin]

Andruil chuckled at the comment. "I suppose our little entourage has grown by one. Now, what say we finish this deal with the blacksmoth so we can get some sleep, hm?" he asked with a smile, the exhaustion evident in his expression in spite of the energy in his gaze. Meanwhile, all around them, Dwarves went about their daily business. One particular salesdwarf, a butcher by the look of it, was advertising his fresh cuts, among which seemed to be cat, if Andruil's nose hadn't failed him. Would be a way to counter the population explosion, come to think of it. Others included dog, rabbit, mountain goat, and one or two Andruil had trouble identifying. He decided it best to get to the blacksmith quickly, before his hunger started toying with his mind...

[Hopeflower]

'Sounds good,' Arsenic said, nudging Vix forward. The elf woman had a small smile playing around the corners of her mouth that she couldn't seem to get rid of while the purring ball of fluff was in her arms.

[The Kingpin]

As Andruil walked into the Blacksmith's shop, the smell of smoke and molten metals reached his nose, drowning out the scent of the food outside and levelling his head somewhat. A cacophony of hammering could be heard inside the building as four blacksmiths worked on various bits of armour and weapons. On the walls and shelves around them, dozens of weapons of every shape and size could be seen, and several mannequins stood on either side of the room, dressed in armours ranging from light mail to heavy plate armour in all sorts of materials, shades of copper, bronze, silver and dark steel notable in the various equipment decorating the chamber. "Ah. A Valenhad Knight. It's been long since I last saw one of you in my shop" said a gruff voice as a fifth Dwarf, standing behind a counter near the entrance, looked up, the light of a small lantern on the counter illuminating his face. His features were hard to identify thanks to the layer of soot covering his face, his seemingly jet black mane showing hints of gold in places, suggesting the man was actually blonde. "It's been too long, Thorgrim. Pity this visit's for business" responded Andruil with a smile. the Dwarf reached a hand out, gesturing to the sword Andruil carried. "Aaaah...Gladaman'tair. One of the more memorable blades I forged for your order" he said, Andruil drawing the blade from it's sheath and flipping it hilt first towards the Dwarven blacksmith, the shorter man gripping it firmly and bringing it close for inspection. "And it's been well cared for. I must say, I'm pleased to see it isn't filled with cracks, chips and dents. I trust this little feature's proven useful?" he asked as he pointed at the forward pointing metal part running from the hilt and alongside the blade edge of the sword. Andruil nodded. "They never see that coming. Their expressions are always satisfying to look at" commented Andruil as he smirked, the Dwarf chuckling heartily. a sixth Dwarf came forward, walking out of a room to the side of the counter, Thorgrim handing the blade to him to have it tempered. As good as Andruil's care for the blade had been, there was always better. "And what of your companions? I can't say I am familiar with them" inquired the Dwarf as he looked over at the two, obvious the question was aimed at them rather than Andruil...

[Hopeflower]

'Arsenic Xavion,' Arsenic said, the mute elf making a small, polite bow. 'Just a humble assassin, I'm afraid; not a knight like our friend here.' he gave Andruil a brief smirk. 'Pleasure to meet you.' Vix took a small, steadying breath before introducing herself. Her friends knew who she was now; but she still felt a certain reluctance to give out her last name. "Vixen Adsila," she said. The ball of fur cradled to her chest gave a small meow, as if to say, "and I'm a cat", much to Arsenic's amusement. Vix let herself admire a sleek silver dagger for a moment, before returning her attention to Arsenic as he said, 'nice craftsmanship there.' He was nodding to a longbow, the design of which having caught his eye. 'I've never seen a longbow shaped quite like that.'

[The Kingpin]

"I've never been greeted quite like that before" commented Thorgrim as Arsenic's mental response struck him off guard. "Adsila...That's a name I haven't heard in a long time. Tis a pleasure" he added as he eyed the elven woman with a smile, a genuine smile that seemed, for the subtlety of it, sincere enough to lighten the hearts of those who saw it. "Thank you, sir Arsenic. That particular bow is made from yew wood cut from the forests lining the mountainside, and enhanced with braces made of bronze to enhance it's strength" he said, smiling. "Each and every blade, bow, mace, staff, spear arrow and suit of armour are hand crafted by meself or me sons. Our business dates back nearly 600 years. T'was founded by me grandad, it was. Finest smith in all of Strakhtmarch. And that's a mantle we try our best to keep true to. Now, all boasting aside, what can I do for you?" said the Dwarf. "We're here to commission some equipment, and find some gear for ourselves" answered Andruil, the Dwarf nodding understandingly. "So, What do you have in mind?" he asked, eyeing the three...

[Giratina93]

"There will be no execution." Trajan said. " Dione is innocent, and that is all that matters. As for the evidence for her innocence, Guame already gave it, and seeing as he wouldn't lie about something like this, I'll give him my full trust."

But as Trajan looked around, he noticed Byakuren was deep in thought. What she was thinknig about was what had just happened... Why had Smaug suddenly shifted course? Yes, it made no sense, but slowly, the only thing she could think of as plausible came to her mind, and it was also the most simple: Smaug didn't operate at night, when it was too cold for his taste. He probably had simply headed back because it was getting too cold for his liking, which meant... "Everyone, I reccomend you all get a good night's sleep and be prepared for the morning. Trajan, order everyone here to get down into the catacombs as soon as the sun rises, and NOT to exit until you give the word. Have all your soldiers and dragon riders ready in the morning. I'm afraid that Smaug might try to attack us tommorow, I'm certain of it." As she said that, she noticed the golden goblet Djinn was twirling around. She now had a hunch as to why Smaug was coming, but a few things still weren't making sense in her mind...

By now, Thems had slithered back into her lair, and the crowd was beginning to disperse...

[TyrannoTitan]

By dawn, Jiier and Desrium were nearly at their destination. At the time, the two were flying over a frozen sea in the cold north, approaching an isolated city known as Vanguard. The city itself was situated on a particularly large island, part of an island chain that was a few miles from the mainland. Even from their current distance, the two could see the island in question. The smaller islands, which were basically frozen, snow covered rocks dotting the wintry desert that was the iced-over sea, were devoid of all life, making the landscape almost completely flat. Vanguard Island itself was a deep contrast to these miserable specks of land. It was surrounded on almost all sides by gargantuan sea cliffs, their rocky surfaces plunging immediately into the ice cold sea, in months were it was unfrozen. Jiier was forced to make the last few miles of the journey only a few tens of feet from the frozen water below them. At his usual cruising altitude, it was so cold that ice was beginning to form on the dragon's wings. In a normal situation, this would already be concerning. But Jiier was a dragon, a creature that exuded copious amounts of heat regularly. The fact that ice was beginning to form on his body was more than a little alarming, and thus they had to descend.

[C S]

For the armored being, however, frost was a completely different matter. Being naturally chilled, being in the cold north resulted in a cover of ice running down his back, helm fin and across his shoulders. Below his shimmering red eyes were patches of the snowy coating, the ice flakes twinkling somewhat from the glow. This did not seem to affect him much however, as he remained as quiet as he was through the night on Jiier's back, awaiting the arrival at their next stop...

[TyrannoTitan]

As Jiier continued to fly, he looked down at the ice-covered sea below him. The ice itself was frosted and partially covered by snow, making it difficult to see more than shadows moving below the surface. One particular shadow, slightly larger than himself, was, inadvertently or otherwise, following them from below. Despite Jiier's considerable speed in the air, the shape was easily keeping pace with him from beneath the ice. Jiier looked away from the shape as they approached the island, flying in through a small opening at the southern end. The massive sea cliffs dwarfed even the dragon as they passed, giving Jiier more of a sense of isolation than the frozen wasteland they had just traveled through. The island itself was rather pleasant; a stark contrast to the environment it existed amongst. Lightly covered in snow, it was heavily forested, unlike the other islands. Further inland, sitting against the sea cliffs, was the impressive city of Vanguard, the distant lights casting off the oppressive frozen haze that existed around the island and the surrounding sea. Although not the largest settlement out there, the city was definitely something to marvel at, considering how hostile its environment was...

[C S]

Down at the bottom of the sheer cliffs, a rolling light gray fog billowed. The silent ocean and frozen rocks disappeared within the freezing mist, as if the icy region mimicked the overcast sky that the dawn sun did not shine through, but simply lit up. The muted rays were just about bright enough to see by. The brilliant dawn the armored being saw in the forest was dark and gray here and if it weren't for the bastion of life in the expanse of white, he would have thought the shadowed being had already claimed it and departed, leaving the stillness bare...

[TyrannoTitan]

Flying over the island proper, Jiier noticed an abandoned harbor near the only open edge of the island. A few large, impressive wooden ships were wasting away under the snow and ice, as if they hadn't seen use in centuries. It wasn't long before the dragon and his companion arrived at the impressive wooden gates leading into the city of Vanguard, which was surrounded by an equally impressive wall, significantly taller than Jiier himself. Landing a short distance away, the dragon noticed there was a complete lack of sentries on the walls, as well as any guards standing at attention outside, like what they saw at their previous stop. The imposing wooden gates were simply shut.

[C S]

Desrium hopped off Jiier and landed with a crunch in the thick blanket of snow that covered the ground. After sinking in, the snow was almost knee deep. Aside from the occasional howling wind, there was no sound and there was no movement in between the trees. Bird song and other noise he had come accustomed to was replaced with silence to match his own. Even the noise of a waking city did not reach him. He exchanged glances with Jiier and the door a few times before finally starting forwards, trundling through the smooth, undisturbed snow.

[TyrannoTitan]

As Desrium proceeded forward, a bright flash of light was seen behind him. As it died back down, Jiier was once again in his familiar simian form. Sticking one arm into the opposite arm's sleeve, Jiier pulled free the staff, which shouldn't have been able to fit inside the robe by any means. Furthermore, the holes on the robe's back which allowed his wings to press through were no where to be found. The simian proceeded after Desrium, approaching the gate with only slight hesitance. With one short glance back at Desrium, Jiier knocked loudly on the impressive wooden structure a few times. Then, silence.

After what felt like hours waiting in the cold, the gate finally creaked open a little. Through the small opening, a bearded, stern looking fellow peered out with an expression of sheer confusion. Upon seeing the two robed figures in the show, the eyes of the one further back in particular, the bearded man pulled back with a start, slamming the gate shut in an instant.

[C S]

There was a soft cracking as Desrium flexed his jaws, the bit of ice that had formed over one side of his mouth shattering and falling freely. "We should have expected that" he said simply after, staring straight at the door.