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Post by Lironah on Aug 15, 2009 23:06:10 GMT -5
You're having that dream again. You're standing in your black robes, face concealed by a thick veil, as are those around you in the circle, each with their hand and eye medallions hanging from their necks. The question is asked, and you raise your hand - you can't stop yourself - and the next thing you know, your hand is covered with the blood of the guard who was posted at the back gate of the Phirios Family gardens. They are a small family, nobody very important, and their deaths shouldn't have mattered, in the grand scheme of things. But they did.
The dream skips forward, as it always does. You watch your sister being dragged to the dungeons for a crime she didn't commit - the crime of killing the noble heir to the throne, who had retired to the gardens for a week of fresh air away from the pressures of court. You can't clear her name - you don't know who did it - and revealing your involvement would only prevent you from seeking out the true culprit.
Finally you break free of the dream and wake up, in your quarters in the manor of the Nien family, contestors for the throne, and your benefactors - the ones who agreed to place your sister in house arrest in their mansion in exchange for your service.
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Post by Galadare on Aug 15, 2009 23:33:53 GMT -5
I sit up in bed and let my vision adjust to the predawn light, then stand and traverse the room to the washbasin, where I splash a generous portion of cold water on my face and let it drip from my hair and beard.
I dress in a loose robe and walk to the small shrine I've set up across the room, where the silver hand and eye hang upside down from a peg by the door. I kneel before the blasphemed emblems of the Secret One and recite my morning prayer.
"Holy Vecna; Lord of the Unseen: May your secrets be laid bare and your hidden treasures found. May light pierce thy shadowed veil and reveal thy mysteries. May your fraud be cried from the rooftops and your works exposed. For your ways are an abomination, Amen."
Finally, I brush my hair and beard, braiding them neatly before clothing myself. Then stride out from the room snatching up my axe and holy symbol as I pass, on my way to the practice yard to exercise with the house guards.
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Post by Lironah on Aug 15, 2009 23:45:26 GMT -5
Your practice session goes well, despite your troubled awakening, though you have to cut it short to take Artemisia her breakfast - it will be the last time you see her for many months, and the carriage leaves in less than two hours.
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Post by Galadare on Aug 15, 2009 23:52:44 GMT -5
As is customary, I wash up quickly before going to see Artemisia, removing my customary eye patch, and placing my glass eye in the empty socket. I take care to set it in as strait as possible.
I then proceed to her room by way of the kitchens. We make small talk while we eat.
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Post by Lironah on Aug 16, 2009 0:01:06 GMT -5
Artemisia is apprehensive about your departure, despite the fact that she seems to be getting along well with Lady Kerswen li'Nien (the li' denoting her status as chosen heir to House Nien), your mutual benefactor, who has promised to visit her as frequently as you have been. There is no getting out of this errand, however, and too soon, the summons comes. Your carriage is waiting, and Lady Kerswen with it.
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Post by Galadare on Aug 16, 2009 0:03:46 GMT -5
I bow to lady Kerswen, bid my sister a final farewell, and climb into the carriage.
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Post by Lironah on Aug 16, 2009 0:16:09 GMT -5
The Lady steps into the carriage after you, and it starts moving. You travel in silence for a while, but finally she opens a satchel and hands you several sealed documents from inside, explaining the purpose of each of them. There are letters of writ for your journey south to the coastline, and a letter of mark for the royal quartermaster at the docks, but most important is the document which declares you the courier for the valuable package you will be picking up from the country across the sea - the mystically forged artifacts commissioned more than a year ago.
Several hours later, you arrive at the Nien family's second largest estate, in the capital city. There, a horse has been prepared for you, as well as a change of clothing - even though you are of noble blood, your mission requires a good deal of haste as well as secrecy. If the enemy discovered your purpose, they would surely attempt to stop you. Therefore, it has been decided that you will travel light, incognito, and most of all, alone.
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Post by Galadare on Aug 16, 2009 0:19:27 GMT -5
I accept the offered documents and follow the instructions I have been given.
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Post by Lironah on Aug 16, 2009 0:24:05 GMT -5
You ride south, quartering in common inns most of the time, and for several days your journey is boring and without incident.
(Roll perception and initiative)
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Post by Galadare on Aug 16, 2009 0:29:57 GMT -5
Perception: 22+ Initiative: 16
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