Fantasy Saga of the Nineteen Islands

[Baconhands]

Despite being behind the mask, it was easy to see that the Merchant was giving Keenan a patronizing look. The serpentine creature began circling the group.
"Interesting servants, one must say. You have business in the temple? Well-well, do give my regards to the Grand Priest. They have been very busy as of late. Business has been good recently and that has kept the poor creature from making many appearances in public."
The merchant stopped circling and produced, seemingly out of nowhere, a notebook and a quill and began scribbling down something. "Well, cousins, each of you are cousins. Very interesting. Each of them would fetch a good price at the Market, don't you think your majesty?"
Kadri straightened her back, her eyes stormy, "What are you implying?"
"I imply nothing, I have stated what I need to state. Since you are all new to Marnus, I beseech all of you to come and experience the culture! Once you have taken care of your business, that is." Its eyes fell on each member of the party sequentially, "The Casino would suit you well; it is particularly... enticing. Though if you're the mind for it, the Library and the Theater are much more... cultured. I personally find them a bit drab myself but, honestly, who doesn't enjoy... well, I wouldn't want to spoil them."
SilverFlight Dominaiscna Athanas

 

[Dominaiscna]

To Kadri's words, Isolde only nodded, falling into silence as the Temple came into view.
The building itself was an architectural masterpiece. it difficult to admire its beauty when taking into consideration the environment in which it was situated and the beings that frequented its grounds. There was something deeply sickening and terrifying about the place. Such polished beauty placed along such displays of horror and suffering caused a chill to run through her body. Uneasily, she tore her eyes away, focusing rather on her travelling mates.

Particularly, her gaze stayed on Keenan. She studied his every move, every slight shift of his shoulders as he walked, turn of his head and flicker of his eyes. Even if Kadri had not said anything to her, Isolde would have picked up that something was very, very wrong. It was clear to see that the knight was deeply bothered and disturbed by all that he was seeing. His behavior was different from usual; he seemed more aggressive, as was shown by his reaction to the Merchants, and though she wouldn't let it show on her face, Isolde was greatly worried for him.

Seeing Kadri's eyes grow dark, Isolde gently tapped her arm in reassurance before taking a step forward.
"Thank you for your recommendations. They are greatly appreciated," she spoke, doing her best to keep her voice calm and smooth, almost confident sounding though she was anything but. "We will definitely need to explore more of Marnus when we have the time, but for now, especially since he is so busy, it would be best not to keep His Eminence waiting." She looked to Kadri for confirmation, "Shall we?"

Athanas Baconhands SilverFlight

 

[Baconhands]

The Merchant backed away and Kadri breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced briefly a Keenan, a cautionary one, hoping that she would not have to say the message out loud until they were in somewhat more private quarters. At Isolde and Graham's encouragement, she began leading the party forward once again, catching up with the Emissary. The corpse was waiting at the entrance to the Temple, facing towards them with a lifeless attempt at a welcoming smile. Kadri did not wait for the invitation in; she stepped through the open doors and was greeted by a familiar sight.
Much like the exterior, the interior was far from humble. The floor was carpeted gold and green, and the walls were lined with ancient relics, tapestries, and paintings depicting scenes and battles right out of one Kadri's story books. The Creation of Humanity, one was titled, The Peace, another. The final in a line on the right-hand wall was The Glory of Arenthor, a painting that had been reportedly stolen from that country's royal palace several centuries prior, created in honour of the Kingdom's defeat of numerically superior force in battle against barbarian tribes. Kadri hoped that Keenan would not notice such a piece.
Milling about were many humans all wearing priestly robes of black, white, and green, the symbols of hornets, snakes, and scorpions embroidered into their clothing. Most of them proudly displayed their emerald scales. All were doted on by at least three servants and they all cast vague looks in the party's direction before they carried on, business as normal.

The Emissary bid them wait in this lobby for a few moments while the Grand Priest arrived. They were stood in the centre of the room, and corridors rand down to their right and to their left. Kadri took in a breath; the heavy scent of incense lingered in the air, so potent that the lineaged gagged. She caught herself, spluttered a bit and, sighing heavily, turned to look at the party.
"There is a lot I want to say and to do, to reassure you. But... I'll be honest, I do not wish to spend any more time here than necessary. So I would like to lay down some rules; first of all, do not travel anywhere alone. Bring your servant with you as well. Um... Keenan... you may have to pretend to be one if worst comes to worst. Second, do not travel somewhere unless it is absolutely necessary. We've been very lucky so far with our encounters, and even then there were no guarantees for our safety. Finally-"
"Your Majesty!" A chittering, androgynous voice called from one of the corridors.
"Never accept anything if it's being offered for free." Kadri turned to face the newcomer, barely suppressing a look of despair.

The figure approaching them brought about a great fear in Kadri. They were wrapped in loose fitting clothes, giving very little form to the approaching character. They walked upright, but from the back of the robes were dozens of deep green segments with dozens of pairs of pitch-black legs. As they approached, it was easy to estimate that they could have been maybe fifteen feet long. They had no arms to speak of, though Kadri knew they were hidden, and no humanoid features, only mandibles, eyes, and chitin. The ends of its legs, or at least most of them, were stained crimson, and it appeared to be trailing a red path as it walked.
The lineaged gulped, and then struggled with a greeting, "Your Holiness."
The creature bowed, and then straightened the many segments of its back, "I bid you and your entourage a warm welcome to Marnus. It has been so long since your last visit. And it is a surprise one, nonetheless. I assume you must have a purpose beyond vacationing this time around."
"Important business, that we need to discuss. Immediately."
"Your Majesty, you know that is not how this city works! But perhaps I can speak with you tomorrow? I shall clear my schedule in fact! Now, you must be tired and I must return to my rituals. Vulpes!" A priest spun round in his walk, "Please escort our guests to the royal suite! Provide extra care to them." If the creature could grin, it would have done. It stared at Keenan with its four eyes, "If you would provide some care for our cousin too, that would be most grateful. Perhaps some light reading material?"
SilverFlight Dominaiscna Athanas

 

[SilverFlight]

Keenan had nothing complimentary to add, and so, he stood silently, he followed silently. He was angry, but not foolish enough to let that anger put them in danger.

Graham seemed a bit put out at the dismissal. He leaned in to Kadri to whisper once attention was off them again. "We come all the way te this blighted temple just te be told tha' a giant centipede is too important to see us?" He looked at her with purpose. "Your call highness, are we pressin' this or doin' wha' he says?"

Keenan hung back, trying his best to keep out of the way. The creature stared straight at him and he stared back, face like stone. Blue began to growl, but a gentle hand on her head soothed her.
"I might need a walk." He said quietly when the conversation was done. "And if I need a nanny, then so be it. Whoever wishes to may come with me, but I am not taking one of those corpse slaves."

Baconhands Dominaiscna Athanas

 

[Baconhands]

A frown came to Kadri's face, at least only initially. Then her eyebrows furrowed, her eyes grew stormy, and her fingertips crackled with lightning. Graham had a point; how could he so easily dismiss them? There was little time to lose: the lich could show up at any point and throw a spanner in the works, and Kadri was slowly but surely becoming a shade. The latter was like a constant itch in back of her mind, slowly clawing its way to prominence.
"You'll see us today." She heard herself state, "I have no time for your games, your Holiness, not this time. I entertained your customs on my last visit and I do not want to repeat the experience."
A smirk came to the Grand Priest's expression, if such a thing were possible, and it scuttled to within an inch of her. It stood there, studying but for only a moment, before a commotion at the door caught its attention.
Aezi had stayed outside, due to the Emissary's insistence, but the pegasus had forced its way in, past the priests and to the party's side. The Grand Priest took a couple of paces back, and as Aezi's wings crackled with lightning, genuine fear seemed to come to the creature's eyes.
"Six hours to make yourself presentable; I will meet you in your quarters. Your entourage are free to explore the city if they so wish."
SilverFlight Dominaiscna Athanas

 

[SilverFlight]

Keenan listened to the words exchanged, but as soon as they were done he went to try and calm the magical horse.
"I think something's wrong." Keenan told them. He had worked with many horses, and though none of them were magical, all it seemed had a similar way of communicating.
He approached slowly and reached a hand out to the beast, speaking softly.

Gray let go of the knife hilt he had been holding. When the creature had gone so fast, so close to Kadri, he had been ready to bury a blade in its eye if it was going to do anything more than posture.
"Make ourselves "presentable"." He grumbled so only his teammates could hear. "Charming lot these people aren't they? Wha's presentable te them? More legs?"

Keenan looked to Kadri for direction. "Aezi's never done this before. We should find out what is agitating him so much."
"You wan' te go see wha's bothering the horse?" Graham asked with a tone less than sympathetic.
Keenan didn't bother answering him.

Baconhands Dominaiscna Athanas

 

[Dominaiscna]

Isolde was silent as they entered the Temple. Her gaze roved every inch of its glistening interior and studied any living creature that caught her attention before Kadri turned to address them. However, while she did listen to her friend's warnings about exploring the city, her ears pricked at the light tapping of many claws on the cold floors. The sound echoed from one of the corridors, above the quiet bustle of the Temple, and nervousness settled into her frame. Her gaze swept in the direction of the sound and sure enough, a creature came into view.

At the sight of the Grand Priest, she sucked in a sharp breathe, but kept her expression unreadable. The exchange was less than pleasant and, as the creature looked dead straight at Keenan, Isolde froze. From his words and actions, he could sense Keenan's lineage... though she could not tell whether this was good or bad news to them.

At the Grand Priest's dismissal of Kadri, she found herself agreeing with Graham's comment, though her attention was partially on Keenan. When he voiced that he wished to take a walk, she found herself wanting to join him if only to offer support and comfort should he need any... yet at the same time, she did not know whether she could bring herself to say anything. Fortunately, she did not have to, as Kadri raised her voice to the Grand Priest, demanding that he stop his games. The creature in turn approached her and the temperature in the air dropped as it hovered way too close for comfort.

However, Aezi's charged presence seemed to scare off the Grand Priest who backed off, announcing that they had 6 hours.

"It gives us time to rest if anything," she said softly in response to Graham, "I imagine you would appreciate maybe a warm bath, food and some sleep? if only for a little while?"
Her gaze flickered to the panicked Aezi though her expression did not reflect incredible concern. She thought that Aezi, due to his connection with Kadri, may have charged in when the Grand Priest stood dangerously close to his Master. However, this could only be cleared up by Kadri.

Baconhands SilverFlight Athanas

 

[Baconhands]

The Grand Priest seemed to take a pause, albeit only for a few moments. Its eyes barely flickered to glance at the amulet around Kadri's neck and then quickly at Isolde's ring. Something seemed to spark in its eyes, akin to recognition, and without even so much as dismissing itself, it slowly turned, each foot tapping against the ground purposefully as it started on its path down the corridor from whence it came.
Kadri watched the insect go, before she turned to Aezi. The pegasus's wings folded back to its sides when the Grand Priest left, though its muscles remained tense, and its eyes seemed to be intensely scrutinising its surroundings. When Keenan reached out, the pegasus seemed to calm further; its breathing slowed, and the lightning that crawled across its fur dissipated.

"Would you like to take Aezi with you on your walk, Keenan?" She asked, though it was less of a question and more of a request. "I'm not entirely certain that he will aid any sort of diplomatic effort here, and he will do much more to keep you safe then I will."
SilverFlight
A pause followed, and then she turned to address the rest of the group, "I'm happy to stay here by myself if that's what you all would like. If you head back to the ship, and Elena, then I understand completely. I... I should not have made you all come here. I should have done this part myself. And so the option is there if you would like it." She let out a sigh, her irises darkening, and her voice becoming suddenly full of conviction, "Should all of you be staying in Marnus, I request that you be back here, in the quarters they've assigned me, at the latest in five hours. We need to... make ourselves presentable for the Grand Priest."
Dominaiscna SilverFlight Athanas

 

[SilverFlight]

Graham gave a small chuckle. A Bath? Food? Sleep?
"No' in this place." He grinned at her. "I'll no' be caugh' with my trousers down anywhere near these folk thank you very much."
He leaned in closer and said in a quiet voice. "And I'd cache the magic baubles if I were you. I don' like the way our dear grand priest was ogling them."
Kadri then had the audacity to offer them some free time without her.
"Ha! I suppose after days bein' cramped up in a ship you're hoppin' te get rid of me." He threw her a roguish wink. "No highness, I'll be stayin' right with you."
There was absolutely no way Graham was about to leave the queen of Volk unguarded here.
"There's somethin' else though." He became a bit more serious. "Tha' amulet of yours. Would you consider lettin' me hold it for you? I'm worried our lovely hosts would be a lot less lovely if they ever go' a hold of it."
He stood back and added for the benefit of whoever might be listening.
"Jus' for curiosity's sake, wha' does this lo' see as "presentable"?"

Keenan was surprised Kadri offered to let him take the magical horse. She had been fairly covetous of Aezi up until now. He stroked the stallion's neck with a gentle hand.
"I'd like that." He said to her with gratitude. A little of the old Keenan slipped back into his expression, chasing away the dour brooding that seemed to have been the new norm since they landed. He loved little else more than horseback riding, and the chance to ride Aezi filled him with exhilaration.
"Five hours then." He turned the pegasus carefully about. "Is anyone else coming?"

Dominaiscna Baconhands Athanas