In reply to Boreas Highwind (msg # 842):

"The road to Lo'driel is long and fraught with peril," Baldwin says. "But I agree, that's our next step."

He turns to Zuriel.

"It's true I was involved in saving the Tyrant's life, but that degree of fondness only goes so far. In doing so, we deprived the rest of Drynn of his reforms, and decreased his sphere of influence tremendously. Morachiga may be pragmatic, but... I truly believe he still wonders whether he could have prevailed through diplomacy alone all those years ago, even as the High Priest of Kazul advanced upon his throne room with murder in mind."

Baldwin sighs and empties his chalice.

"There's also the slight matter of a certain woman of some beauty for which we shared a fondness. And the fact that I refused to stay and help him solidify his hold on Lo'driel after ferrying him across the Sea of Tears. No, it's far better that I remain behind and continue my research."
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:56, Wed 21 May 2014.

In reply to Boreas Highwind (msg # 842):

Keef listens attentively, though it's clear it requires great effort to do so.

Ignoring Baldwin's example, Keef begins with the fruit and honey and then picks at the meat.

Chubbs, having claimed a bed for himself, decides that he doesn't really care if he has it or not.  Instead he hops over to the table and plants himself on Lyriel's right knee.

Zuriel leans back in his chair. "That would...complicate matters somewhat. Regardless, we have no choice but to go. I do wonder though..." He frowns, running a hand through his hair to brush it from his eyes. "I have no qualms about flying against Harlindon. Especially as I have received no orders to the contrary. But I worry that my presence in Lo'driel might be misconstrued as aggressive. I can't be there in any official capacity, diplomatic or military. If the wrong people were to find out, or misunderstand my intentions, it's not outside the realm of possibility that it could spark a war early."

The paladin looks at Baldwin intently. "What are your thoughts on that angle?"

Lyriel likewise turns to hear Baldwin's response. On that note, our lack of orders concerns me. It seems like the Church as a whole has issued a recall to it's forces, but neither Zuriel or I have heard anything. I wonder what that means? Add to that the fact that I'm currently being sought by my mother, to be returned - against my will if need be - to Hae'driel...things are getting complicated quickly.

The priestess daintily cuts a few choice morsels of meat into small pieces, which she then delicately feeds to Chubbs. With the utmost decorum, of course.

In reply to Lyriel Vesper (msg # 846):

Chubbs accepts the morsels greedily.  While he eats he makes a low rumbling noise almost like a purr and glares at Zuriel triumphantly.

In reply to Keef (msg # 847):

"I'm not sure a single misplaced paladin would be sufficient to send everything spiraling toward war any worse than it already is," Baldwin says with a shrug. "I wouldn't be overt about it, but... it's not much different than skulking about Drynn."

"Fair point." Zuriel takes a sip of wine. "So that's it then? Attempt to secure the final godstone from Drynn before all hell breaks loose? Perhaps literally?" He grins. "Seems easy enough."

Zuriel looks at the wine, swirling it before looking back up to Baldwin. "I hope that securing the last godstone will finally get us some answers. There are too many uncertainties, too many unknown variables. It would be nice to know some things for true. Though I suppose we're still also missing an empowered symbol of Le'lothriel. No chance you've had any luck with that?"

Hey now, Lyriel scolds Chubbs. If you're going to be mean I'll stop feeding you. Don't be childish. You're better than that, she says chidingly.

In reply to Lyriel Vesper (msg # 850):

"I'm afraid not," the bard sighs. "Though now that you're accomplished planeshifters, perhaps a hop to Fey'driel would solve that problem. Surely there's something from your time with the Wildheart that could serve as an anchor?"

Zuriel shakes his head. "I'm afraid not. Unless he gave something to those who accompanied him to the Aether." He looks to Boreas, Maeve, and Keef.

"Although..." he furrows his brow speculatively, drawing his longsword and placing on the table. "Elder Travian said this once belonged to Agarwaen. You perhaps knew him best as an adventurer - is it possible this sword originates from Fey'driel? They keyword to activate its magic is Sylvan..."
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 02:00, Thu 22 May 2014.

Boreas pulls back his eyepatch.

There is another option.  I've known for some time that my eye is of fey origin.  It could serve as our focus to Fey'driel, I believe.

"Well, there we have it.  Boreas' eye should be able to get us to where we need to the fey realm and maybe he can learn something more about it while we're there," Maeve says, leaning back contentedly in her chair after the excellent repast.

"But it sounds like Lo'driel is our first stop.  Which begs the question of when we need to leave and how we intend to get there. I gather that the presence of our highborn friends is going to be a problem. . . .

Lyriel looks at Boreas' eye gem curiously. I'm not sure that it's enough to simply have an object of the plane of origin...I think it has to be extraplanar metal. I can pray and reflect on this though. These spells are...complicated, but we have time to figure things out. As you say, it's not our immediate priority.

The priestess taps her finger against her goblet, deep in thought. We could try to do a double plane hop again to cross at least some of the continent, but without an anchor location that Keef has visited and can key in on to teleport us to, we'll likely have quite a bit of walking to do. I've heard of mages scrying locations they've never been to before to get an accurate enough mental image to then teleport, but that is imprecise and risky. And at any rate, we would need to find scrolls for both those spells...
This message was last edited by the player at 02:51, Thu 22 May 2014.

"Or we can do things the old fashioned way," Zuriel speaks up. "I'm sure there are plenty of enterprising Gaelian merchants willing to risk a Drynnian blockade to trade with Lo'driel. If we're crew to a ship, we might have more legitimacy to move freely around the city..." the paladin shrugs. "But that method is not without its own risks."

Turning to Maeve, he responds "I don't think our status as Highborn will be any more risky in Lo'driel than it would have in Drynn. As I understand it, we're equally unwelcome in either place," he says with a grin.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:55, Thu 22 May 2014.

In reply to Zuriel Silendril (msg # 856):

Keef perks up when Zuriel mentions posing as a ship's crew.  He smiles.

I can be the cabin boy. he notes.

"And what exactly is the Sultanate's involvement in all of this?  Everyone I've spoken to thus far seems to be in the dark.  But you've been here a whiel now Baldwin, mingling with the locals.  Can we expect retaliation for the blocked trade routes?

In reply to Maeve Hassan (msg # 858):

"Undoubtedly, if they persist," Baldwin says in response to Maeve's question. "The Sultanate has dispatched representatives to Grelklic, Tris, and Nekria to discuss the matter, but this has caused problems of its own. Hae'driel is upset that the Empire will speak for them on this matter, and the Empire is angry that Grelklic was included as a political entity capable of formal entreaty."

He glances at a few glazed looks around the table.

"Grelklic, of course, is the capital city the minotaur tribes constructed over the ruins of the gnomish capital of Lodestone. The above-ground portion, anyway. The Empire does not recognize the minotaur as anything but invaders, but the Sultanate and the Dominion have both legitimized them as a legal entity for the purposes of trade and treaties. After all, they do have a mighty navy of whalers or raiders, depending on who you ask."

"Grelklic is a fragile enough power that they normally bend to the Sultanate's demands fairly quickly. The fact that they are not -- and are almost certainly working in tandem with Drynnian efforts in the south -- is somewhat disconcerting."

The bard rises and moves to the wall, where one of his maps is hanging.

"Lo'driel had a thriving harbor back when the Empire controlled it, true, but in the past century the place has been captured, razed, abandoned, recaptured, occupied, and restored. No fewer than four banners have flown above its ramparts, and each time one got torn down, it involved torrents of flame. The harbor sits beyond the walls of the restored city, and is by all accounts a dead port."

"The ships that took Choso and his allies across the Sea of Tears were mostly disassembled when the arrived -- supplies for seige engines, battering rams, and simple repairs. You can still risk the journey by water, of course, but it will leave you a good distance beyond the city walls, and exposed during the approach."

Zuriel furrows his brow. "So if they don't trade with anybody, then there isn't going to be much of an excuse for any outsiders to be there at all. Which means we'd have to either declare ourselves, or infiltrate. Given the circumstances, I almost think being open might be the best solution. Choso has always been known to be shrewdly diplomatic. Do you think he might see value in a discreet audience?"

I'm tired of secrecy, and hiding who I am.

Boreas considers, stroking his beard. Hm, declaring ourselves openly is a risky move.  What cause would we give Choso to meet with us?  Still, if we feel we can convince him, may as well go in openly.  I guess now we just figure out who we're representing and what we want to say to get the audience in the first place.

In reply to Boreas Highwind (msg # 861):

"He may consent to meet with an envoy from the Imperial Army or even the Flame under the pretense of avoiding war or making common cause against the Drynnian forces," Baldwin muses. "But that only works if he hasn't already been approached."

"If the Imperial Army is threatening to defend Lo'driel against the Flame if they attack, then I imagine it would be safe to say the Empire has been in contact with Lo'driel regarding the whole sordid situation. I think it highly unlikely, however, that the Flame would have sent any envoy whatsoever."

Zuriel frowns, a concerned look on his face. "For me to make such a move, however, would be bordering on treason. If word ever got out, I could be tried, and likely found guilty. But if that's what it takes to get to the bottom of this...."

The paladin takes a deep breath. "I'm willing to risk it. There's too much at stake."

In reply to Zuriel Silendril (msg # 863):

The bard nods.

"So that's one option, then. Do we have others to weigh it against?"

He turns to Maeve and Keef in turn.

"Do we think we can involve the East? Or the Order?"

Baldwin blinks as he glances at Keef more closely.

"You're... how's... tell me about the Everstaff, too, since you still seem to have it. Does it still speak?"
This message was last edited by the player at 15:29, Thu 22 May 2014.

Lyriel clears her throat. You know Zuriel, if what Lt. Faye said is true, and roughly a third of the Flame have refused Grand Marshall Harlindon's call to arms and are instead flocking to your father...perhaps you need not represent yourself as an envoy from the Flame, officially.

The priestess bites her lip. You could bring it to Choso's attention that there are other factions within the Flame that don't agree with Harlindon....

Zuriel turns to Lyriel. "Aye, that's a twist on the first option that I like better. More honest. Though I want to hear what Maeve, Keef, and Boreas would propose."

He regards each of the other PARTY members in turn.

In reply to Zuriel Silendril (msg # 866):

Keef nods enthusiastically.

It does sir, mr... master Baldwin!  Longshank talks and all, mostly to me but sometimes to others.  He had a hat and a scarf but those aren't on him right now.  Mostly he's helped me with research, basic alchonomy and numerethics but also some more basic topics...

Keef looks at Zuriel for a moment then continues.

I still think he just wants to help.  In his own way.