Trial By Fire - Exalted 2e IC Thread

[Sherwood]

She shakes her head. "I was never a part of the inner circle to know such things. Perhaps you can ask him about that, too." She says that last part with much dripping sarcasm.

 

[Kalin Scarlet]

"We won't get much else out of her, for now. We should probably regroup and work out our next step. In that time, I may be able to find some answers, another way." Heaven states, stepping forward. He sighs, and glances at the Abyssal.

"And you might want to be careful with that snark, in case she decides to break something of yours. Just because she won't kill you doesn't mean other things are off the table."

 

[Rykon]

Aredin laughs at Whisper, "I'm sure he'd like that, but I don't kneel to people who can barely keep a mudhill together. Sounds like your master wanted some sort of order here at least, so why don't you give us some details about his numbers and disposition. Leave none of these Exalted of his unspoken of." Aredins eyes beamed with mirth and ambition, the cogs were surely beginning to turn. For better or worse remains to be seen.

 

[Sherwood]

With the Abyssal's wounds bound and all trussed up, you are now able to move back up to the top of the Tower where Viktor has been working with Relza on one of the airships up there.

Where do you wish to go from here? Back to the first Flying Tower with the Dragon Kings, or somewhere else?

 

[Rykon]

Back to the first flying tower most likely. At the least, I don't want to leave the awakened Dragon King people vulnerable while we gather intel and plan our next move.

 

[Psychie]

As the Circle returns to the first Flying Tower, Darian has her face pressed up against the canopy, looking out at the city. Once they land, she is able to pull herself away and exit the Transport to go into the heart of the Tower. She asks the Dragon Kings to assist in keeping watch on the wounded Abyssal, warning them that she must be treated as a very dangerous individual, and to keep her bound up no matter what.

When the Circle is alone and out of earshot of their prisoner, she says, "I understand that there is some kind of . . . curse? On this woman, that is keeping her from being able to talk about her true master. Does this prohibition affect her from being able to tell us about Filial Wisdom and what followers he has here? And, is there a way to remove her from this curse to be able to tell us more about her?" She pauses for a moment, then says, "And I'd like to know why this Goblin King wanted me dead specifically."

 

[jaydude]

"Yes, there is a curse on her - it locks up her mind and makes her vomit up white slugs - but it doesn't seem to stop her from talking about Filial Wisdom, only her other master. Heaven can remove it with sorcery, but she seems to believe that him doing so would alert her master, wherever he may be. I found no reason to doubt her, and I didn't think any of you would appreciate me bringing in another powerful enemy for us to deal with at this early stage, so I stopped Heaven from breaking the curse." Annika said, in answer to Darian's questions.

"And as she and I both told you all earlier, she has no idea why Filial Wisdom wanted you dead. If we want to learn that, we'd have to find out by other means, or speculate on it between ourselves."

 

[Sherwood]

Dunbar looks at the group and says, "If she is able to talk about this Goblin King, lets plumb her mind for all that we can get from her about his forces and whatever other allies that he may have. I may be able to either confirm or debunk some of what she tells us with my Charms, but lets not tell her that and see what information she is willing to give out."

 

[jaydude]

Annika nodded in agreement with Dunbar, before turning to look at Aredin and Darian. "I can resume questioning her, and try to learn how best to depose Filial Wisdom, if that's what the two of you want."

 

[Psychie]

Darian nods. "I do think that would be best. Something tells me that we are going to have to use martial force to either kick this man out of the city, or to confront him directly and kill him. Forewarned is forearmed, after all. We will need to know how many Essence users he has working for him, and a rough count of the number of his troops. Finally, where do we find this supposed Goblin King? Where does he hang his hat? I would hate to try and raid someplace and discover he wasn't there at all."

 

[jaydude]

"You got it. I'll start talking to her now." Annika replied, after which she turned around and made her way back to where the Voice was being held.

 

[MasterDAF]

Viktor nodded along with the group's discussion, feeling agreeable to most of the ideas being presented. Smiling, he cracked his knuckles and then placed his hands back on the vehicle's controls.

The crafter wasn't able to add much input at the moment, directing the lion's share of his concentration towards piloting the skyship, but was glad his comrades seemed on the same page concerning their unmet foes and the captive Exalted prisoner.

 

[Sherwood]

When Annika heads back to where the prisoner is, you find her just as you left her, still lying on the floor under the watchful eyes of several Raptoks. Her eyes go to you when you come in. "I was beginning to wonder if I had been left for these lizards as a chew toy. I see now that it is time for more interrogation. Are you planning on using torture? If so, that might be kinda fun to see if you Solars actually have the stomach for that."

With the Gemstone of Surface Thoughts, you know that much of what she is saying is simply bravado, but she is curious to see what you have planned for her.

 

[jaydude]

"Well, seeing as you badly hurt our leader's wife - and it's one of those marriages where the couple actually get along with each other - I'd say some of us will have the stomach for torturing you." Annika said while grinning down at the captured Abyssal. "If you don't want to know for certain, I suggest you answer all my questions honestly, to the best of your abilities."

"First question, what does Filial Wisdom have in terms of followers? I want to know their numbers, and the composition of their forces."

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Sirocco took several steps away from the others. They needed intel, and she wasn't sure whether the Abyssal would talk, and even if she did, who's to say they can trust her words? And so she looks back at the gathered Solars, talking, and notes that Heaven is also engaged in the conversation. Knowing he would be safe among them, she turns a corner, and becomes a song bird. She then flies out, and starts taking a survey of the city, trying to note the troops there.

 

[Sherwood]

The Abyssal shrugs as best as she can. "Followers? Lets see . . . I don't have a actual count, but rough numbers? I'd have to say his army numbers around a thousand or so, with about half that number being human, the rest is a mix of Wyld twisted creatures. As far as I know, none of them are Essence users, so there's that going for you. The army is scattered about the surface of the city and in the jungle outside of the walls. Its not like there isn't enough empty buildings left over from the Dragon Kings for them to move into."

Clear as a bell in your mind, you can hear the thought from Voice through the Gemstone, She didn't ask about allies, so I'm not lying to her.

 

[jaydude]

Annika nodded at this answer. "And what of allies? As in other Exalts, or gods? People that Filial Wisdom might rank as equals, or at least be willing to work alongside as a partner?" she asked.

 

[Sherwood]

Annika can almost hear the word, "Shit!" in her head even without the Gemstone of Surface Thoughts. She ponders her response, then finally she says, "There is my elder Abyssal, Shadow That Walks. He is an advisor to him, and works to teach the Goblin King more about his powers. There is also another ally, one that I discovered by accident. It is a sprit that sometimes uses a Ride Charm to occupy Filial's body without possessing him. It is called Han-Tha, and it is a dark spirit of great power. Besides that, there are no other Essence users that I have seen here."

 

[Psychie]

In the other room, Darian is still trying to get used to the new eyes she has now. It is a startling process, learning to rely upon a new sense to be able to navigate around instead of her Essence-enhanced hearing.

As they sit, she reaches inside her robe and pulls out a bottle of wine and several glasses. After passing the glasses out, she pours everyone a healthy slug of the wine and then goes to sit. While she sips at the refreshing beverage, she asks the group as a whole, "So, we have cleared out the Fae from one of the Flying Towers, made contact with two of the three main gods of the city on favorable terms, we are in the process of making friends with the Enlightened Dragon Kings, and I have a new set of eyes. Not bad for a day's work, is it? I now wonder, where do we go from here? Do we return to Gwynnin for a time and possibly lose what progress we've made, or do we stay here, work with the Dragon Kings and try to make some kind of contact with this Filial Wisdom? I would hate to have to do anything violent without at least trying to talk to him, and see if he is as crazy as everyone around here seems to think."

 

[jaydude]

Annika grinned at being able to catch the Abyssal out, before asking her next question. "Assuming that's everyone, just how powerful are all those essence users compared to each other... and compared to you? Which of them's the most dangerous?"

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Sirocco glides out in the breeze, surveying the ground, looking for the troops stationed below.

2 successes

 

[Rykon]

Aredin takes a pull of wine from his own glass speaking on impulse, "I've lost interest in the Solar actually. I think we'd be better served dealing with the Abyssal's master. I have a hunch the Solar's just another pawn in her arsenal. Let's take a peak at what response we might get to a meeting and see what the real deal here is."

 

[MasterDAF]

Viktor listened to Darian's suggestions, agreeing with the notion that returning to Gwynnin at this moment could lead to a loss of progress. As Aredin spoke, the craftsman felt torn between following the Eclipse's lead and cautious apprehension concerning the unseen Filial Wisdom. He wasn't sure the overture for a meeting would be met positively, but decided to go along with his fellows. They were in the thick of it now, and if it all went sideways he'd be ready to keep his liege and lady safe.

"I agree. If we gain nothing else of benefit from it, we may at least get a chance to lay eyes on our probable foes."

 

[Rykon]

"I'm sure Annika can pry for such intel from our captive before we decide to take such a big risk. At the rate we're going though I think a direct confrontation with her master is inevitable though. As much as I abhor dealing with dark forces the unknown is rather more unsettling if we want to prosper here." Aredin paused for another drink then turned, "Dunbar, as our heavenly representative, what are your thoughts?"

 

[Sherwood]

Annika grinned at being able to catch the Abyssal out, before asking her next question. "Assuming that's everyone, just how powerful are all those essence users compared to each other... and compared to you? Which of them's the most dangerous?"

"Filial Wisdom and Shadow That Walks are both more powerful than I am; slightly higher in Essence level than you and your Circle. Han-Tha is more powerful than the two of them, a real threat. I suspect that the dark god is the one pulling Filial's strings and not the other way around."

"I'm sure Annika can pry for such intel from our captive before we decide to take such a big risk. At the rate we're going though I think a direct confrontation with her master is inevitable though. As much as I abhor dealing with dark forces the unknown is rather more unsettling if we want to prosper here." Aredin paused for another drink then turned, "Dunbar, as our heavenly representative, what are your thoughts?"

Dunbar leans back and looks at Aredin. "I suspect that this woman is a pawn of one of the Deathlords; powerful dark ghosts that rule the Underworld. You must have heard about what happened with Thorns, how it fell to an invading army in a day? That army was under the control of one of these Deathlords called Mask of Winters. Not much is known about the Deathlords or their overall goals, but there is currently a Convention on the Underworld looking into them."

He pauses to think about what to say next. Then, he says, "If you want my official recommendation, do not confront these Deathlords yet. You are not ready. I would suggest that you stay here in Rathess, aid the Dragon Kings, and see if they can help you form a core of your army of your new government. They are Essence users one and all, and that makes them a real force multiplier on the battlefield, especially when they are armed with Artifact weapons and armor."

"I am not saying that you shouldn't try to make some kind of contact with this dark Master, but do it diplomatically, and not militarily. You may learn some very important things from these Deathlords, if you approach them right."

Sirocco glides out in the breeze, surveying the ground, looking for the troops stationed below.

2 successes

While you soar high above the ground, you can see in the fading light of the day that there is movement on the ground below, both human and Wyld-twisted things, shifting slowly towards the Flying Tower that your friends are in. It is not a rapid approach, but more methodical, and they seem to be moving forward to surround the Tower. It is difficult to get an exact count, but you are looking at numbers in the one to two hundred range.