-Heyday 12th, Damesday-1003-69 degrees, no rain, smoke drifts toindicate direction, leaves and weathervanes stationary
Scene #54 (Not really…54 since the last reset): Immersion: Smell, Acid
On Damesday, I wake in my small room at the inn, pack my things and head downstairs for breakfast. Today is the day that I hope to set sail and retreive the Souldbinder’s Rod from the wreckage of the Argent
Q: Does Rardi ask about my baggage? EXCEPTIONAL NO
Rardi looks up from his breakfast, nods at me, and then returns to his meal.
“I’m not checking out…I want you to hold my room until Reflection, but I am taking my things for a friend to hold onto while I leave town for a day or two, in case I don’t come back,” I say, hoping to assuage what I thought might be his concerns…having thought he might care.
Rardi shrugs his shoulders and dourly responds, “You could just leave everything here if you are paying up the room in advance. And if you go missing, your friend could retrieve your posessions, but do whatever you need to do. Doesn’t matter to me.”
Kind of embarassed, I look down at my pack, and say, “I hadn’t thought of it like that. I’ll put my things back upstairs. That would be easier, after all.”
I return my things to my room, and reassert the Alarm spell that I leave in place whenever I depart. Then I return downstairs for breakfast, though not much is left after the other lodgers have filled their plates, and then head into the marketplace.
As I pass through the increasingly busy streets, I hear someone behind me say, “There you are!” and feel a strong hand suddenly grab my arm and spin me around.
“Get your hands off me!” I shout, but he slaps me across the face before the words leave my mouth. Passersby stop and stare.
“Thought you could get away, did you? Not till you serve your time you little bitch,” he shouts as he starts to drag me down the street. That’s when I see the shackles and whip hanging from the man’s belt and realize he’s some sort of slaver.
“I’m not some sort of goblin prisoner of war you idiot! And I’m not some common criminal either. Let me go or you’ll regret…” the man tries to backhand me but I quickly twist to the side and draw my dagger, which he must not have noticed on my belt! He jumps back, releasing me from his grip and drawing his sword.
“Fine! You’d rather die than serve your sentence? I’m alright with that!” he says, lunging towards me, blade leveled at my chest.
“Scutum!” I command, and his eyes grow wide as a blue shield appears in front of me, turning his blade to the side.
Q: Does he realize his mistake? NO
Spectators stagger away from us in wide-eyed terror, but the slaver’s resolve only strengthens as he hurls himself forward…though I easily sidestep his second thrust. “Spharos Ignus!” I shout, focusing my energy to create an orb of fire which singes the man’s clothing as he circles me, looking for an opening.
Q: Do spectators try to intervene? NO 4 minutes till guards arrive
The man slashes at me, and only a second shield spell blocks the blow, which could have easily taken my head! “Sparos Frigia!” I shout, hurling a globe of ice at the man. It encases his left arm briefly, but he shakes it free…though it looks as though a couple of his fingers turned blue from the cold. He lunges again, and this time my shield knocks the blade from his hand, sending it flying underneath a nearby merchant stall. As he glances back towards me in terror, the word “Ignus” spills from my lips…and a bolt of flame strikes him square in the chest, setting his tunic on fire as he staggers backwards and falls to the ground writhing in pain.
A couple of men rush over to the fallen scoundrel while others look on the scene with wide eyed terror.
“As I was saying, I think you have mistaken me for someone else!” then with a flick of my wrist, I pull his sword from across the street into my hand, and then toss it onto the table of a nearby weapon vendor. “He’s not worthy of it!” I say, as I turn towards the docks, where I was heading all along.
–Cities gave my first random encounter of the day as a “Slaver” who has “mistaken me for an escaped slave”. In Ardeles, this means he either mistakes me for a humanoid POW (highly unlikely) or a convict sentenced to a period of servitude. Too bad he didn’t realize his mistake!
–Two luck rerolls and all of my first and third level spells later, I win. Now I cannot sail towards my destination…at least not prudently—
Q: Is there a watchman nearby? NO Q: Any interference on the way tot he docks? NO
Scene #55: Immersion-Sound
Reaching the docks, I begin looking for a boat to hire. The water is nearly still. There is no breeze, and the harbor is full of craft of every shape and size. The shrill cry of gulls overhead fills the air.
Q: Do I see Ambar or Wart? YES Q: Does he beckon me YES Q: A quality ship? YES E: Negative for Benar of Whitewood: the Abandonment of Animals
I walk past the piers and observe the bustling workers carting goods aboard caravals bound for distant shores. I briefly wonder which one Ambar and Wart will be boarding, but then spot Ambar standing guard near a vessel called the Lowestoft. When he notices me, he smiles and beckons me over.
“Come to see me off?” the man asks, then grinning, “or to give my brother a kiss farewell?”
The look of disgust on my face was so obvious that his chuckle becomes a hearty laugh that then turns into a brief coughing fit. “You alright, Ambar?” I ask, patting his back. He raises his hand and collects himeself, then I point out, “You aren’t going anywhere without a stronger wind than this.”
The man shrugs his shoulders, “so the Captain says. I hope the wind holds once we do set sail. I’d hate to be stranded in the middle of the ocean.”
Looking over the vessel, I muse, “I guess ships that size don’t have any oars at all do they?” The old caravan guard rolls his eyes. I laugh at my own joke. “May Fate and Fortune smile upon your journey and bring you safely back home to the land of your ancestors.” I say, bidding him farewell.
Q: Does Wart show up? YES
“Well what have we here?” calls a familiar voice from the ship’s deck, as Wart climbs out of the hold and spies me talking to his brother. “Coming to see us off?” the fool asks.
I shake my head, and then give his brother a peck on the cheek before turning away to continue on my own business. Wart cries out in shocked dismay as his brother laughs about having bested him for my affections.
E: Positive for Rard the Renegade: Carelessness and Art (Decide Rard has seen the painting of the Argent, and is now seeking the vessel to recover one of the seven books, adding that thread)
Scene #56: (Investigation roll of 23 to find potential boats, ChatGPT for 3 boats and captains)
I find the cluster of small fishing boats that make Wedale their home, and begin looking for one to hire. As soon as I start asking around though, word spreads quickly.
“Well, young miss,” a grizzled sailor who’s old enough to be my grandfather addresses me, “word has it you need to hire a boat. Where do you need to go that you aren’t just booking passage on a merchant ship?”
“Well, I need to go to the Evershin Shoals to look for something lost beneath the waves there, so i need a boat that can wait for me a bit while I explore,” I say as the look of surprise spreads across the Captain’s face.
“Well perhaps you’d be wanting to hire me then?” a young woman interjects. “If you’re going treasure hunting, I’d certainly be eager for a share and my boat’s faster than old Thorne’s there.”
Q: Is the wreckage more than 200 ft down? YES (some quick Google Fu tells me that “shallows” are often as shallow as 60 ft, but apparently, this battle must have taken place near the edge of the shelf)
As I turn to face this eager young woman, another man speaks up, about twice my age, “You are looking for wreckage from the battle of Evershin Shallows aren’t you?” asks a third man. “My name is Asher, and you’ll find that among Thorne, Sable and myself, I’d be your best option. Even if you are able to dive far enough to reach the seabed without the weight of the water crushing the life from you, you are unlikely to find anything of value quickly. My boat is far more comfortable if it takes you a few days to find your fortune.”
The three begin arguing amongst themselves but I intervene asking, “Please, show me each of your boats in turn, and tell me what it would cost to hire you for five days. I’ll start with yours, Captain Thorne,” following the eldest to his ship.
His ship is a sturdy looking vessel called “The Lucky Catch”. It reminds me of the boat my father sometimes sailed on when he wasn’t taking my sisters and I out on the skiff to dive for pearls. The boat is well kitted out with nets in good order and sturdy rigging. As I talk with Thorne about my plans to look for “treasure” I get the sense that he is very eager to help, even suggesting that he knows a man who once used a bell to dive down to the depths seeking to explore the ocean floor. He eventually offers his ship and crew for 30 crowns per day. (22 vs 10 persuasion to cut half of the basic profit)
Then I look at sable’s craft. It is narrower than most fishing boats and the sails are configured a bit differently than most. She calles it “The Blackfin” and proudly boasts of having designed and built it herself. She’ll let me sail with her for only 25 crowns per day because she is eager to see what I might find! (19 vs 4 persuasion to cut three quarters of basic profit)
Finally, I look at Asher’s boat, “The Seabreeze”. Once I board, he starts telling me about the battle of Evershin Shallows, he knows the story quite well it seems. His ship is well equipped, though not quite as well as Throne’s, but in the cabin, I see he has an array of cooking spices on a secured wall rack, a shelf of books that have been secured so they are not tossed about by the waves, and even a drum and a pair of lutes hanging from pegs on the wall! “I see what you mean by more comfortable!” I say, turning to see his wide grin.
“Forty crowns per day,” Asher demands, “but I’m a great cook!” I laugh and shake his hand. We agree that I will return in the morning to see if the wind has picked up and we can get underway. “How are you going to get down there anyway? Magic?” I smile, and nod. He smiles back knowingly.
Q: Is he a caster? YES (ChatGPT for his spell list, my previous source never changes its base list that it gives EVERYONE of a given specialty)
Having hired myself a boat, I head back up into the market district.
-City Encounter-City Official-Mistaken for for infamous criminal, so…probably the escaped convict/slave the slaver mistook me for-
No sooner have I left the docks than I hear, once more, “There she is!” I turn and see a man in the duke’s livery, accompanied by half a dozen soldiers, pointing at me. “That’s her! That’s Vespera Thorne! Arrest her!” the officer yells, and I look behind me to see who he might be pointing at, but alas, it’s me!
“Aw crap!” I mutter as I turn and run. I really don’t have time for anymore cases of mistaken identity.
(Chase Scene-3 Challenges- Dead Run Strength (Athletics), Slipping through crowed Market Dexterity (Acrobatics), Throw off the scent in maze of alleyways Wisdom (City Knowledge-guards have it, Mendy doesn’t). Final check, lose them? Difference between prior successes as contested roll
-dead run, Average guard roll is 15, Mendy rolls a 5
-marketplace-Average guard roll is 13, Mendy rolls a 4
-Alleyways-Average guard roll is 13, Mendy rolls a 19 (+19) vs (+6)=35 vs 13
I turn and start running, but the guards are on my heals in an instant, in spite of their heavy armor! I roll underneath an applecart, but blunder right into the vendor’s legs, and before I can get to my feet, there are four spears leveled at my throat!
“Alright Vespera, you’re coming with us!” one of the men says.
I shrug my shoulders and ask, “Would you believe me if I pointed out that I’m not Vespera? That I am actually Mendy of White Tower?”
-Persuasion-5- Mendy might not even be able to convince Master Telgast with of who she is with that kind of roll-
Q: Do they take me to the palace? EXCEPTIONAL NO (Yikes, so probably…) Q: Straight to the chain gang? NO Q: Prison? YES (Good, because gallows is the final option) Q: my boot knife? YES Q: Did they take my jewlelry? NO
The guards quickly shackle my hands and disarm me, stripping my satchel and belt from me, even taking my boot knife. Hefting up my pack, “What are these two books here?” he demands.
“That is my personal journal, detailing my travels since leaving the service of Master Telgast of White Tower, and also my spellbook, which I scribed while a guest of the Archmage Ronuleant at the White Palace in Coravos. If you open my Journal to the entries from two weeks ago, you should see notes about by visit with your master, Sir Calistor, Lord Steward of Wedale.
(Persuasion 18, vs Target 20, minor risk or sacrifice)-
“Riiight,” says the guard as he looks over the relevant passages. “stealing someone’s journal and then claiming it as your own as some sort of alibi? Nice try, Vespera!”
Another guard laughs as they push me forward. The men are proud to have captured this vile criminal, whoever she is. I’m not terribly pleased with the situation as my battle with the slaver earlier in the day exhausted most of my magical strength. Then I notice Corvo is flitting from one rooftop to the next, keeping pace with us.
“Corvo!” I call to the bird, “Tell Sir Benar what has happened so he can ask His Lordship to intervene!” The men look from me, then up to the bird in confusion as the bird takes off towards the palace. I smile at the guards and suggest, “Perhaps someone will meet us at the prison when we get there, I reall don’t want to have to spend the night in a cell.”
(Unfortunately, this is where Benar’s “abandonment by animals” comes in to play. Lucky for him, as I was interpreting it as thrown from a horse and died or was critically injured, but not having added that to the story yet since Mendy would have no way to know it, this “event” now merely means that Corvo cannot reach him)
My confidence fades when we reach the prison, and nobody is waiting for us. “So….who is this Vespera that I am supposed to be?” I ask the guards stopping just in front of the gate.
They laugh, and tell me that I (or rather, she) is a well known thief, convicted of stealing nearly two thousand crowns worth of jewelry over the last three years at public gatherings and festivals, and of nearly murdering an officer of the courts by magic this morning in the marketplace.
“Oh! Well, that certainly wasn’t her in the marketplace. That was me! There weren’t any guards around to help me avoid being kidnapped, but I was confused as to who he thought I was. I suppose I must look like this Vespera person, right?” I ask the guard as he tries to nudge me forward, though I refuse to budge.
He gives me a puzzled and disbelieving look, “Shut up, you little tramp! Time to go back where you belong!”
(discreetly slip free of the manicles, DC 20, rolled 22)
I smirk, “I’d like my books, my belt, and my blade returned to me now. You have the wrong person, and though I’ve been a good sport about it to this point, you are beginning to try my patience.”
The other soldiers are suddenly on their guard, backing up a bit and preparing for a fight.
“What? If this Vespera person is a skilled thief as you say, do you really think you’d have been able to run her down in a street chase? No! You ran be down because I’m not exactly a fast runner. Before today, before your damned court slaver attacked the wrong woman, has this Vespera ever been known to wield magic like a weapon?” I say, dropping the manacles to the ground and holding up my hands, now sheathed in flames. “And if a battlemage tells warns you that they’ve had dealings with the High Steward of Wedale, and has studied under two of the most powerful wizards in the kingdom, don’t you think it a bit foolish to try and hold her against her will? My satchel, and belt, now!”
-Intimidation 19 (rolled with advantage due to circumstance/effects), vs Guard Intimidation DC 12-
My gear is handed over, and I quickly turn and walk away before they have a chance to recover their wits.
Q: Do they decide to pursue? YES
Then the officer shouts, “Stop her!”
(22 on my Strength (athletics) vs their 13)
I race back up into the crowded streets, and spying an open second story window “Step” through it with a single word. Inside, I see that it is the living quarters of a man of good means, and a second word transforms me into an old man, well dressed, but feeble looking.
Q: Do the guards realize what has happened? NO Q: Is anyone home right now? NO
As the guards race by on the streets below, I sit down on the bed, and then start to look around the room. A leather bound book sitting on the nightstand catches my eye. I pick it up and thumb through its pages. Prayers and litanies dedicated to this family’s ancestors, plus a few legends common to all of our people. I smile and instinctively reach up to tuck my hair back behind my ear, only to realize it’s not hanging loose like normal, as I am wearing an entirely different body than my own.
I put the book back in its proper place, and then walk downstairs and out into the streets, heading towards the ducal palace to see what’s taking Corvo so long and to ask the Duke to set his men straight about who I am.
Scene #57: Immersion (rattling sound?)
I arrive at the ducal palace to seek an audience with his majesty, or at least with my friend Benar, but I am surprised to see five strings of a dozen human captives each chained together and kneeling outside the entrance of the palace. I’ve never seen anything like this before! The closest thing to it was been strings of goblin captives at auction to mines and great estates, but not men. This is something one might expect to find in Lushan or Sultar, not here!
Hobbling up to the palace guard, I ask the man for an audience with the High Steward. “Mendy of White Tower sent me to continue some prior business concerning the red comet with your master.” (Persuasion 17).
The guard nods and has a page run inside to deliver my message. Soon the page returns to escort me inside the palace. As we walk, I allow the spell to fade for it won’t last long. The page is surprise to look back towards the old man he was guiding only to see a young woman in his place. “What..who are you?” the boy asks.
“Mendy of White Tower, of course. Now lead the way,” I smile, encouraging him onward.
Q: Is this quickly settled? NO
My audience with Sir Calistor does not go as planned. “It seems you have been stirring up quite a bit of trouble, Mendy of White Tower.” the steward begins. “You’ve nearly killed one of our men, and then threatened half a dozen others. Now you have the nerve to come into our home?”
“Milord, you know perfectly well that I am no thief, and certainly not this Vespera person your men keep mistaking me for. Anyone falsely accused has the right to defend herself, don’t you think so?” I plead.
“Certainly, if trial by combat is what you request, that can certainly be arranged,” Sir Calistor suggests, smugly.
“No, that’s not what I mean. I mean that if I am attacked in the streets, I have no choice but to protect myself!”
“And defy the authority of the duke?” Sir Calistor thunders, “No! You shall submit to the rule of law at all times, or face the consequences.”
“Well sir, I challenge you then,” I respond, not even thinking.
For a moment, we both look at one another in shock. “I see…” he slowly responds. And I continue, “Dawn.”
I am escorted to a guest room, and from there I find Benar and explain to him what has happened.
Q: Is the steward a standard knight? NO Q: weaker? YES Q: does Benar offer to serve as my champion? YES
“Mendy! What have you done? You are not match for a knight in battle. You must let me take your place,” Benar pleads.
I shake my head, “No, I made this mistake. I can’t put you in harms way for it. Go to the docks at daybreak and find captain Asher, tell him that I will be delayed. He captains the Seabreeze. I was supposed to set sail with him in the morning, but now…this has happened. How can I be so foolish?”
-Heyday 13th, Godsday, 73 degrees, no rain, calm, smoke rises vertically-
Immersion-Sense-Gloom (how fitting)
Scene #58 (Negative Alteration):
I join Benar in the garden for breakfast, a sense of dread weighing down my heart as I pick at my breakfast. “I don’t even like eggs that much,” I mutter as I cut one in half to get at the golden treasure inside. Then a sergeant walks over to us, handing me a parchment and stating, “His Lordship forbids the use of magic in this duel, it will be settled by skill at arms alone.”
Benar immediately leaps to my defense, “That is preposterous! A mage’s power stems from her arcane might just as a knight’s strength shines through his blade. This is unjust!”
I hold up my hand, “No wards for me, then no armor for my worthy adversary either. No arcane might for me, no blade for him. By tooth and nail we will settle this if he has the courage.”
Q: Does he accept this challenge? NO Q: Does he insist upon his armor? NO Q: Does he insist upon a weapon? NO Q: Does he back down? YES– Apparently, the steward is a physical coward
The sergeant returns a few minutes later, somewhat abashed, “His lordship, Sir Carisol, would like to speak to you in private.”
I eye him warily, “No, we speak before his master, Duke Wedale. It is right that he knows that his noble steward seeks to disarm his foe before accepting a fair challenge demanded to right an injustice. And his highness has a right to know if his steward is such a coward as to not meet a woman in combat, both unarmed and unarmored.”
Q: Will he meet before the duke? EXCEPTIONAL NO Q: Surrender? YES
The sergeant leaves, and returns once more with a writ bearing the steward’s seal. I hand it over to Benar to read, for his curiosity burns as much as mine.
“To all our loyal subjects of Wedale, Let it be known that the women, Mendy of White Tower, a friend of the Crown, and Vespera Thorne, a common criminal, are hereby pardoned of any and all charges leveled against them in the the Duchy of Wedale, and are to be considered friends of our lordship. Hereby witnessed by Sir Carisol, High Steward of Wedale”, and also apparently signed by the Duke himself, though only the steward’s seal is upon it.
Q: Is this sufficient? YES
I ask Benar if this document carries any weight without the duke’s personal seal, and Sir Benar assures me that it does. He then ensures that this proclamation is to be read throughout the town this morning, and each of the next three days so that everyone hears it.
“Is it not customary, when one bests a man in a duel, that the victor can claim his foe’s armor, blade and mount a spoils of war?” I ask Benar. The noble nods, and suggests that such goods could of course, be ransomed back if the fallen man or his kin desire. The sergeant sighs deeply and returns to his master.
Q: Will he pay a ransom? YES
A short time later, the sergeant returns with 2,000 crowns worth of trade script, a suitable ransom for a knight’s mount and equipment. I smile while Benar laughs.
My portly companion suggests “Well, I suppose I’d best pack my things, as I don’t think that Sir Carisol will want to see me around the palace anymore.” The two of us soon leave together and I set him up in my room at the Bark and Eel, as I hope to leave…tomorrow, for there is no breeze today!
Q: Is there an empty room at the inn? NO Encounter: Traffic Jam
On our way to the Bark and Eel, we find our bath blocked by a crowd of people shouting in anger and confusion. Peering ahead, we see that a pair of wagons have tipped on their side, spilling sacks of grain across the path and completely blocking the road. The braying of injured mules can be heard and it sounds like the drovers are yelling at each other, each trying to blame the other man for the accident.
Benar and I shrug our shoulders and take an alleyway to the next street so we can continue on our way.
Q: anyone accost us in the alley? NO
When we reach the Bark and Eel, Rardi tells us there are no empty rooms for my companion. “Well Benar, if you can’t find something else today, I guess you can stay with me tonight?” I suggest, shrugging my shoulders, “I can use my bedroll and you can have the bed.”
Q: Is that agreeable to Benar? NO Q: Dog and Quipper? YES Q: Does Taylor remember me? NO
“Thank you, Mendy, but I will find another place. I just need to leave my things here for a bit while I look,” he replies. We put his things in my room, and then part company, me to buy some supplies and him to find lodging.
I return to Taylor’s Hermetics, where I had purchased a dead rat which I had thought to raise as a servant before my grandfather warned me against it. The man doesn’t recognize me, but I am able to buy some ruby dust for a spell I need.
I find a jeweler in the market and buy a pair of brass rings from him for 25 crowns each. The first is a nicely carved piece in the shape of a dragon coiled about itself with its jaws clenched upon its tail and its wings folded against its body. Not very realistic, but pleasant enough for my purposes. The second is a simpler piece with “My word is my bond” etched into it.
Then from a glassblower, I purchase two net globes. From a netmaker, a net pouch for collecting oysters, and a small square to weave over each of thes globes.
Encounter-Town Watch-Off Duty-Drunk
On the way back to my lodging, I (and every other woman passing by) am accosted by some rather loutish, and probably drunk, men in the duke’s livery. “Hey missy, why don’t you come join us for a drink and show your appreciation for our protection, eh?” One man leers at me. I give him a death glare, but rather than intimidating the man, he takes it as a challenge
(Intimidation 20 vs 22)
“Hey there, girl, you’d best come over here when I call you!” the guard demands. His fellows seem to be egging him on. So I turn to them and walk right up to the men while the loudmouth chortles in self satisfied delight at my obedience.
Showing my sigil as a battlemage when I draw close, I see his eyes widen in fear as he meets my steady gaze, “Did you want me to turn you into the dog that you are? Then you can sit, come, and fetch as your betters command.”
(Intimidation 15 vs 18)
He snorts in disdain, “You think you are better than me? I can put you in your place…”
I raise my hand sharply and allow flames to spread between my fingertips, “I’ve already put Sir Carisol in his place, do I need to put you in yours as well? Go back to the barracks and sober up. Fighting is a waste of both of our times!”
(Intimidation 22 vs 14)
He glares at me as he backs down, and I make it back to my room without further incident.
Benar is there to collect his things. He has found lodging at the Dog and Quipper. I help him carry his things there, along with everything I don’t intend to take with my on my voyage. Up in his room, I pen a letter to Aleelill for him to mail for me, and then I return to my lodging to enchant the rings with light spells and secure each to a globe float for use when I dive.
After dinner, I retire to my room and regret the loss of the book on the Sultani…I’d been rather enjoying it! I end up falling asleep rather quickly. Life in Wedale is not as leisurely as I’d hoped!
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