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[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Leela chose not to buy anything in the markets. Nothing seemed to be worth her time or money and she was sure Efrit would not wear the bulky fireproof gear she had found. She certainly wouldn't.

~~~~~~~~~~

Giving Abi a look to remind her not to touch the offered food, Leela left the drink and snacks on the tray. After all, she had told the imp to only eat when she ate and it would not be fair to her to enjoy such things in front of her after telling her not to eat anything in public. She did, however, motion to Efrit that she was okay with him partaking of the food if he desired.

The Princess sat in silence as they waited, looking around the room as she continued to go over in her head the plans and possible scenarios.

[Treesinger]

Treesinger

Treesinger nodded at Adventurer Extraordinaire's and her twin's appreciation for her decision to let the human share his tales. Her response to her twin's request that she go to was simple. "I shall."

Her brother was more than talkative enough and full of questions, so there had been no need for her to inquire about the human's boots when instructed by her brother to do so. The human even willingly supplied the answer. 'Why would you need to walk on water when you can swim? Why carry a frog and a scorpion across water? Were they fighting over how to get across?' Like her twin, she had begun to open her mouth to ask questions about that before the human quickly continued speaking. She did not really care if he had a twin or not, though she would be interested in seeing what twins were like. The Elves that visited had told them that there are different types of twins, ones that looked exactly alike and ones that did not. She was curious to see what twins that looked the same as each other looked like. Surely there would be something different about them.

When Adventurer Extraordinaire finally stopped talking, asking questions of his own, Treesinger immediately asked the questions that had been spinning around in her head. "Why did you carry a frog and a scorpion across a river? What was their dispute that carrying them across would solve it? Why was the scorpion angry with you for helping them? Was it angry because it got wet? Is that why you would make boots for walking on water instead of swimming? What did the frog do?"

She waited quietly for him to answer, not answering any of his own questions. After all, she had said she would let him pass to tell his tales, not that she would tell him about herself and her people. She would leave answering such questions to the others who were more experienced in dealing with strangers.

[Treesinger]

Treesinger

'All over Yslia? Horns that summon things? Swords that can slay dragons? Hats that make wearers invisible?' The more her brother spoke, the more curious she became. It was true that the elders might be interested in his tales of other lands, to gain more understanding of the outside world. And most of their brethren would find such tales fascinating in general. Though she did not see a need for a dragon-slaying sword or hats that make people invisible, she still wondered how such things had been made. What most caught her interest was the horn. To be able to summon things to defend herself and her people, that was one of the things she could do as a Treesinger. But such spells were limited. To be able to summon even more, outside of the magic that nature allowed for, sounded very useful. Still, she refrained from showing her curiosity. She had to be steadfast in her duties.

'Young... lady? What is a lady?' She wondered as the human spoke up. She had never been addressed with such a term before, not even by the visiting Elves. She, like many of her kind, was once Sapling and thus often called young Sapling; then, when she was considered an adult and began her training, she was Ranger. Now she was Treesinger. This human had many names. She did not know what Melvorn Lionroot meant, but his other names interested her. Adventurer Extraordinaire matched with his claiming to have travelled all over Yslia, but also made it sound like his travels were even more exotic than mere traveling. She supposed the other two were names he gained from being Adventurer Extraordinaire.

She continued to stand where she stood in the path, letting the human and her brother speak to explain themselves and maintaining a serious expression. She was sure the human was lying when he said he saw their resemblance; she looked more like some of the other children of the Dreaming Tree than her own twin. Then again, this seemed to be his first time meeting Briarborn, so he did not really have anything to go by.

"Yes, those who do not belong in the Springrove Forest often lose their way. You are fortunate Treesinger found you instead of some other." Though she had yet to actually meet other communities that lived within the forest, she was aware of how many of them were towards those who did not belong there. A Dryad may have have found him and charmed him to do her bidding. Or he could have stumbled across a Nymph and gone mad with obsession. If he gave off a threatening aura, many of the forest's inhabitants would even seek to kill him before he could do harm to their home.

"My twin speaks for you. I shall let you pass to share your tales with our brothers and sisters." She finally stated, making the decision to trust in her twin's intuition. The green figure studied the human a moment more before stepping to the side, attempting to put on a friendly smile - something that was much more natural on her twin's face than her own, especially in social situations. She would still accompany them, to support her brother in his decision and so that she could keep watch on the human in case he decided to turn on them. Or rather, that was her official reason for ending her scouting duty early. Secretly, she did not want to miss out on the tales the human would tell.

[Treesinger]

Treesinger

Having begun training as a ranger prior to the arrival of the Treesinger Elf who had offered to teach her and her twin, it was still Treesinger's duty to scout around the the edges of the Knot's territory. This was a job that she took very seriously. In her short life, she had only ever run into beings and creatures who were accepted by her people as allies. The forest Elves, who had left one of their own behind when it offered to teach them, had returned only a few times so far. She had heard of others who, although might not know where the Knot was located, were allowed in the general area to interact with her people. Her people would be glad to know if such visitors were in the area. Still, the creatures that she was truly on the lookout for were ones she had been warned of. Truly horrible beings who cared little or nothing about nature and forests, with some even going as far to seek to destroy her people if they were found by such beings. Orcs and goblinkind were at the top of that list. Humans were also a race she had been taught to look out for, although they were much harder to figure out the intentions of.

It was much to Treesinger's surprise when she heard a voice she had never heard before and then the voice of her twin responding as she did her rounds that day. Perking up at the thought of a visitor, she had moved towards their voices. As she moved nearer, she began to make out the words that were being spoken. Whoever this stranger was must not have met a Briarborn before if her brother felt the need to explain them. Curious, but still cautious, she peered at the pink-skinned figure that walked beside her brother.

'What?! A human?!' She was taken aback at the sight of her brother talking with such a creature and telling it information about herself and their people. Quickly, she moved so that she could step in front of them and block their path.

"What is this, Treesinger?" Although called twins, the two Briarborn were very different from each other. While he stood at five feet and eight inches, she was a shorter five feet and four inches. The frost green colored leaves on his head were long enough that he had to pull them back with shorter leaves in front to form bangs, while her emerald colored leaves were shorter, but even all the way around so that her "bangs" framed her face. The way in which the bark, vines, and plant material that made up their bodies had formed also gave them different facial features, including different colored eyes, of which, hers were as black as coal. The clothing she wore was obviously completely made up of natural components; if one were allowed to look closely, they would find that the clothing was actually attached to her body as though she had grown and shaped it herself from her own body.

"Where are you leading this human?" She inquired, although she was sure that he intended to take the human to their home. Her face was serious, with not even a hint of a smile. Her eyes, however, betrayed the curiosity she tried to hold back at seeing a human, a creature she had only heard descriptions of prior to this moment.

["I want that."]

Nature's Daughter stared at a particular hat for a long moment, decided if she should bother with it or not. After all, the only thing it did was allow herself to appear different. It was not like there was any combat benefit to it. On the other hand, it would prevent people from gawking at her whenever she had to enter town, or worse, try to feel her arm or hair. Finally deciding that it was worth having if only for that reason alone, she pointed at it and looked at the shopkeeper. "I want that."

Nature's Daughter buys the Hat of Disguise at listed price of 675g.

[spoiler=Perception Training for 1 Hour][blockquote]Rolled 1d20+5 : 9 + 5, total 14[/blockquote][/spoiler]

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Leela had been about to correct Abi in that she just wanted Zavan to prepare the nightmares for departure, but decided to leave it. If he brought the nightmares to them, then they wouldn't have to look for wherever he and the other imps are hiding.

"Good. Make sure you remember, as it will be very important." The princess pat the imp's head affectionately.

"I think, as soon as we get back, I will start researching how to make completely fireproof clothing..." Leela muttered in response to Efrit.

Once the plans were fine-tuned and she was sure everyone knew their role, Leela decided to spend the remaining time they had before the meeting checking out the market. She checked out fabric and clothing shops, hoping to find something that fit her desire for fireproof clothing. They avoided the food, as she did not want Abi to forget herself and show off her pearly white fangs. She made sure to keep a close eye on the time, making her way back to the Grand Cathedral so that they were ten minutes earlier than the specified time.

[spoiler=Training]Leela will be training her perception while she is exploring the marketplace.[/spoiler]

~~~~~~~~~~

"I am Princess Leela Steading of the great country of America. I have an appointment to meed with the Cardinals at 1pm." She declared to the guards of the Cathedral, showing the medallion that Bishop Mateo had provided her with to gain entry.

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Unsure if Zephyrus had heard what she had said to him with how spread out he seemed, she decided to let him do as he wished rather than ask him to do anything special. He did not seem to even notice when she mentioned him in her Plan C.

Leela had not expected Abi to think that she wanted her to repeated everything she had said since the start of the meeting. Luckily, Efrit pointed out Leela's actual meaning to the imp and the tears forming in the imp's eyes immediately disappeared.

"That's right. When I say your key word, you go to Zavan. What do you tell him if we are fleeing the city without fighting? What do you tell him if we are fighting?" She encouraged the imp.

There was a faint blush on her cheeks as she turned to consider Efrit for a moment. It probably would not be a bad idea to have a keyword for him to have permission to attack all out if it was necessary. Though, unless she was unconscious or otherwise unable to use her powers, she would just telelport away rather than let him carry her.

"Fine." She said to him. "If I say "Erik Lief" without being asked by someone what your full name is, then you have permission to fight, but you must keep casualties to a minimum and not to destroy the city. If I say "Efrit" before we leave the city, then you have permission to go all out, regardless of damage to the city or civilians. If I am knocked unconscious, put to sleep, or otherwise unable to move on my own during combat, you have permission to carry me to safety." She paused for a moment, then added, "This does not give you permission to burn off my clothes, by accident or not, so try to remember to avoid becoming a living fireball."

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Leela smiled at the bishop, although she did not like the idea of going to meet the cardinals without someone they both knew. "I understand. Sorry to keep you from your duties for so long. We will see you later, then."

When Mateo turned to walk away, the princess turned to her companions. "Lets head back to the inn. There are a few things I would like to discuss with you before the meeting."

[spoiler=Spellcraft Perception to see if Zephyrus is still hanging around them.][blockquote]Rolled 1d20+21 : 12 + 21, total 33[/blockquote][/spoiler]

~~~~~~~~~~

When the group returned to Leela's room, she had everyone join her sitting around the table they had been eating at before.

"I'm sorry I took your mission away from you, Zephyrus." She started, knowing how excited he had been about helping her by trying to find Ashaki for the rescue mission. "But if things do not go well diplomatically, it is a relief to know her exact location as well as the level of security they have her under."

That said, she turned her attention to the group as a whole. "When I was talking to Bishop Mateo on our way there, he mentioned that their hero is coming to oversee the planned execution of Ashaki. The execution is scheduled for a week from now, but he is expected to be here in a few days. He also said that because heroes are from the 'goddesses themselves', they are as equal as, if not higher than, the governments that they work for. I'm not sure how the cardinals actually think about that, since Mateo seems to be a hero worshiper, but he did say something that sounded a lot like some sort of scripture from their holy book. It was something along the lines of... a hero will come forth from the goddess in times of trouble and lead the people to prosperity, so "blessed is he who treats the messenger as king". That being said, if the cardinals all feel the same way about heroes, there is a chance making my being a hero known to them will increase the likelihood of them doing as I request."

She paused for a moment to let that all sink in before continuing. "I am still hesitant to consider it, though, as that would give away any advantage of surprise then not knowing provides me. I imagine they would ask for some sort of proof that I am a hero, in which case I would have to either come up with something using what I have already copied with my actual 'blessing' or tell them the truth of it."

"So, my plan A is that we will attend this meeting and I will do my best to secure the release of Ashaki in the way that I have started, as Princess of America trying to return their captive to her home in the hopes of protecting her people and forming alliances. Mateo did already say that they flatly refused when he brought it up to them, so I do not imagine this working as I hoped."

"Plan B is, if they seem to be of the same mind as Bishop Mateo about heroes, I reveal that I am one and apologize for keeping it a secret. Then try to negotiate Ashaki's release officially as a hero."

"Plan C is, if they reject all my attempts at negotiation or decide they want to wait until their own hero has arrived to talk it over with him, I took note on locations I could teleport to within the dungeon. Since she is small enough that I might be able to carry her, I can try to teleport down there and then teleport out holding her. I imagine it would be possible, since Abi can teleport holding things. I figure doing it this way, before the hero arrives, would give us the best chance of success so that we do not have to worry about their hero on our tails as we flee. The only problem with this is that we would have to wait for night to sneak around easier and I would be alone unless Zephyrus can meet me there or come with me somehow as I teleport."

"Plan D is... well, all out combat in which we fight our way through to rescue Ashaki and then flee once she has been successfully obtained."

"Abi, if you hear me say "Abi Gale" during or after this meeting without being asked by someone what your full name is, this will be a key word for you to teleport immediately to Zavan, tell him what is going on, and either have him ready the nightmares for flight or bring him and the other imps back to us to help us fight. If we do end up in combat with the Orthodoxy, I also want Zavan to send one of the nightmares to Roadmarech to tell him to have all the nightmares come as soon as possible to help as well." She stared intently at the imp. "This is very important, so you must remember this. I want you to repeat to me what I said."

[spoiler=Diplomacy][blockquote]Rolled 1d20+8 : 6 + 8, total 14[/blockquote][/spoiler]

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

"Thank you for allowing me to confirm that she was the one, Bishop Mateo." Leela said once the group exited the final door of the dungeon into the outdoors. "We shall see you at the meeting?"

[info]Leela intends to spend the hour+ they have before the meeting having a last minute meeting with her companions about their plans and options for if things do not run smoothly.[/info]

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

"There is no doubt, she is." Leela stated, turning her gaze back to stare expressionlessly at the demon girl when Mateo prompted her for an answer. The demon hero wanted to talk to Ashaki, to find out her side of the story, but not with so many others around. Besides, she had told Mateo that she only wanted to look at the captured demon.

"I strongly recommend you have your people cloth her properly and discontinue any foul treatment until further notice." She looked around the room once more as she said this, her eyes landing on Mateo as she finished speaking. There was a hint of a cold, threatening undertone in her voice as she spoke, strongly implying that she would not accept no as an answer. The longer they had walked in this dungeon, the fouler her mood had seemed to become. She did not know exactly what all those demi-humans she had passed by had done, but if she had not already been clued into it before, there was no way she could miss the obvious racism portrayed in the dungeon. Between that and her desire to get what she wanted without relying on some god-like being granting her wish to be diplomatic about things, she decided she was done being nice for the moment. Intimidating them into doing what she wanted sounded much more agreeable to her in her current state of mind.

That done, Leela reached down to grab Abi's hand and forced herself to turn around walk away, back the way they came from. She spoke softly to Efrit as she stepped closer to him. "Come, Erik. We must finish preparing for our meeting with the Cardinals."

[spoiler]Intimidation:
[blockquote]Rolled 1d20+14 : 15 + 14, total 29[/blockquote]

Also, good to move on to when they exit the dungeon unless Mateo has things to say as they go back up. Leela will keep a closer watch for parts of the dungeon that she could use as points to teleport to if needed.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]Reg Perception:
[blockquote]Rolled 1d20+5 : 1 + 5, total 6[/blockquote]

Spellcraft Perception:
[blockquote]Rolled 1d20+21 : 6 + 21, total 27[/blockquote][/spoiler]

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Leela kept mental note of how far the traveled, hoping that if she needed to, it would fit within the range of her ability to teleport. She had not tested out how far she could teleport, but remembered Zavan telling her that they could teleport roughly a hundred feet at a time. If she could not teleport all the way from the surface to where they were keeping Ashaki, then she would also need to remember areas that could be stopping points. With the amount of security they seemed to have the farther they went down, she did not think they would be able to just storm the place to free the demon.

As they entered the room in which Ashaki was being kept, Leela glanced back at Efrit, giving him a warning look to remind him not to do or say anything. She also moved her hand to Abi's head, hoping the imp would remember not to say anything, either. She then turned her attention to look over the battered creature shackled to the far wall. The girl certainly did look like what Leela had seen back in that room. She was certainly a lot younger looking than Leela had expected a hundred year old demon to look, but that was the least of the princess's concerns at that moment. What concerned her most were the facts that Ashaki wore practically nothing and there were two robed figured inside the room with her. She eyed the robed men, trying to determine why they were there.

[Leela Steading]

Leela Steading

Leela wondered exactly what these animalistic urges were and if they involved horrible crimes such as murder and rape or if the issues were more of... them just doing or saying things that the Orthodoxy just did not like. Such as them simply not believing in the same deity. Or saying certain things to a foreign ambassador. She chose not to inquire farther on that.

"Slavery is a terrible thing. Although it was abolished in my country hundreds of years ago, we still see the unfortunate side effects of it in the form of racism today." She sighed sadly, hating that such a thing still existed. She also could not remember exactly when slavery had been abolished, but she knew it was at least a hundred years and that was good enough for her.

As she continued to follow Mateo, Leela considered the possibility of offering to take some of the demihumans off their hands. Her dilemma was that if any of them were actually murderers or whatever, she did not actually want to take them. Perhaps she would bring up the idea to Efrit later... Although it would be better to discuss it with Zavan, considering Efrit's amount of advice on most things she asked him about had been minimal, if not disappointing.