[Adventure] A Call for Lovers (DM: jbear Judge:Lord Sessadore)

[jbear]

[sblock=Wat] Wat realises he is standing before a treant and an ancient and mighty one at that. They are the definitive protector of the forest, able to call the trees themselves to fight with them. These titanic treants violently protect the wild, giving little regard to the consequences for civilized races. A treant is passionate about the forest but cares little for the lives of any who live beyond the forest. The death of a humanoid is to a treant as the death of a tree is to a person. A whole city might erupt in flames, but the treant spares thought only for the danger to the wilderness surrounding the city.
A single crushing blow from one of these titans of the forest can crumple a person's body. Dryads and other plant creaturesare treants' most frequent allies. A dryad and a treant share the same disposition and feelings about the forest, and their close proximity often leads the creatures to develop a symbiotic relationship. A treant also allies with any creature that respects its values and opposes its enemies. A treants allies should be careful to avoid doing anything a treant might perceive as betrayal. Like dryads, a treant is swift to anger and difficult to placate. It holds grudges long after the grandchildren of the offender have come and gone. A human who wrongs a treant might doom generations of unrelated humans to death in that treant's forest. [/sblock]

 

[Neil1889]

Rain resists the sudden urge to step backwards as the treant moves forwards. Standing her ground, she falls back on her early upbringing and bows deeply, "Greetings, Oakstaff. I am called Rain; your friend Rosaline did send us to see you.

 

[CrimsonFlameWielder]

Shandra quickly spots the wizened forest protector. Slowly, but confidently, she moves into the creatures earshot and gives him a formal greeting in Elven.

[sblock=Elven]
"As but a leaf to the mighty oak, we bask in the glory of your power, oh great one. Please grant us permission to be in your presence."[/sblock]

Shandra waits to see what the Treant's reaction is to the greeting taught to her by the Handmaidens. Shandra was by no means skilled in oration, and she only hoped that the words, in and of themselves, and not so much their delivery, would be enough to show the sincerity of her reverence. If he seems pleased, or at the least indifferent, by the greeting, she continues.

"Rain speaks true, mighty Oakstaff. It is Rosaline who sent us. She has said that you guard one known as Porpherio. We too have come to ensure his good health, for we have knowledge of an assassin bent on ending the life of your charge. Have you recently seen any Satyrs in this place?"

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

Sabynha felt Ill-at ease in the presence of another living tree, but even she could sense that this one was great and powerful - certainly not to be trifled with - and so she stowed her blade.

She turned to the elf, "Shandra... is it? We do not know what form Ragnar's assassin will take; we should not assume, lest we be caught off our guard. Again."

"Though I'm sure one as mighty and noble as Oakstaff would not be so easily thwarted." The vistani kept her distance, but remained polite in tone and manner, curtsying slightly as she regarded the great tree.

 

[jbear]

The treant chuckles, a deep sound like heavy rocks falling into a shallow stream. "Oho, you are right, it is not an easy feat to defeat Sir Oakstaff. I am reminded of a time when I called the younglings to me and rode down upon the dragon Witherwind. A nasty red that had nested in the Western Wood. Burning and breaking and splintering the oaks left and right. A tragedy! Ha ... I can still smell the sulphur ..." Sometime later when the story has yet to reach its end, Sabynha coughs lightly and the treant turns to regard teh group as though he had been so wrapped in his own story that he had quite forgotten that they were even there. "Oh ... yes ... where was I?" All that is heard is the birds chirping in the awkward silence. "Wait, wait," rumbles the tree-creature. "Fleshy shrubs. Always in a rush. Follow me to a place where you can be at your leisure while we converse." Oakstaff, turns and leads you to a grotto through which a stream flows, with lots of rocks for comfortable seating.

Oakstaff refuses to say anything else until all obediantly sit. Once that happens Oakstaff winks and says, "Now, We can talk plainly in this shadowy grove. It and my grotto, here, are unknown to the Dream Queen as yet. Porpherio ... Orlando, I took from the bald hill top this morning, from Rosaline, whom you must know.

I saw the manling safely to the Water Palace out on the lake. That's where Porpherio's real secrets dwell. The place is warded against evil, such as the likes of that confounded fiend and his foul lady, that hag.

Rosaline said others might come seeking him. You must be the ones. Takes me back to quests I undertook when I was Sir Oakstaff. you see the formarians had been up to a great mischief, finding a way to tamper with the flow..."

The ancient treant continues to talk and talk and talk unless interrupted.

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

"I really want to hear the tales of your glorious questing, and it pains me to interrupt, so hold that thought, but..." Sabynha felt much less intimidated and hurried now, knowing that their quarry was safely tucked away. It also seemed that she was catching on to how to speak to this great tree.

"...you mentioned something about a 'confounded fiend,' and I am curious... of whom do you speak? Have we met this villain yet?" At this point, she could not be sure if her head was still wooden, or if she really were missing something.

 

[jbear]

"Oh, aye, that is right. The Dream Queen and her fiendish ape companion! Where she is there he goes too. Would that I could stamp my roots down upon his grinning face! And what a vile face he has this Kalbon! But not as hardly as ugly as a troll I once wrestled. You see, trolls like to make nests ... nasty smell a trolls nest. If it gets in under your bark..."

And off he goes again.

 

[Neil1889]

Rain started to feel alarmed about how long this could take and indeed felt a familiar conflict with her own cultural customs, but then she realised what Sabynha was doing.

She nodded her head to the treant's story, but then spoke, "Do you know, Sir Oakstaff, we have an expression for something that is bothersome where we'll say that the annoyance 'gets under our skin?'" Rain pinched the skin on one of her hands, "Not unlike your own literal problem with that troll!"

Rain then frowned, "Ah, now but now I may have a problem. An assassin, such as the one we seek, might in time overcome the protection of a barrier, even a warded one like this Water Palace of which you spoke. There might be a good chance we could catch this slayer there whilst he is still puzzling his way in. Forgive me for asking, Sir Oakstaff; in which direction is this Water Palace and lake?"

 

[CrimsonFlameWielder]

Shandra, rapt at the skillful diplomacy and tactfully timed interruptions to Sir Oakstaff's rambling stories, can't help but smile a bit. She was never really good with talking to others, and was entirely content to allow those so obviously more adept in social encounters such as this to do what they do. She was entirely attentive at what they were doing, Sir Oakstaff's stories, and the environment around her, waiting for her companions to suss out the information they needed to continue upon their task. Plus, after that last episode with the trees and vine creature, she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to rush into another fight. It wasn't at all that she was being cowardly, but the treant's stories were ever so nice to listen to, even if a bit rambling (something that reminded her, just a bit, of the mannerisms of the Handmaidens, and their never-ending patience and foresight in her training; not to mention their tendency to get a bit long-winded concerning anything of religious doctrine).

Shandra nods to Sabynha's wise acknowledgement in their lack of knowledge concerning the exact form that the assassin would take.

"Yes. Please do call me Shandra. You are all too right about the Assassin. I will keep alert with all of my senses, lest we fall for deception."

 

[Nemesis Destiny]

"Please do; I am difficult to trick if the assassin approaches in the open, but I may not see it coming. I have heard that the senses of my full-blooded kin are the stuff of legend." The vistani casually put a loose lock of hair back in place behind her slightly-pointed ear.

She spoke quietly with Shandra so as not to seem rude to Oakstaff, but then felt the need to press him a little more for answers on this diabolical fellow, Kaibon. She waited for a good break in his latest tale, then asked, "Your stories shall fuel my bardic tales for years to come, O great tree-lord. Could I trouble you for another tale of this Kaibon fellow? Every good tale needs a villain, and he sounds particularly vile..."

Sabynha could only hope that her line of inquiry would be fruitful, and that she would be awake to enjoy it.