Phineas welcomes Ira back to the Watering Hole!

[Phineas J. Pennefeather]

From the doorway of the Watering Hole, Phineas recognizes that Ira, his Elven assistant, has made her back to him.

“Ira! Come into the Tavern!”

The Halfling seems to be deeply concerned with her well-being and very surprised by her return.

“Come in!”

[Ira the Elf]

08/10/14 17:56 GMT

"PHINEAS! IT'S YOU!"

Ira, overjoyed at having made her way back home, eagerly runs out from among the last of the ruined buildings, clears the tree line, bounds up the steps and wraps Phineas in a bone crushing hug.

"Phineas! IwentEasttofindmyfamilybutthereweren'tanyElvesleftintheScarredLandbecauseallofthehumanskilledthemallandyouhadtoseethembecausetheywereallcrazy
andthemagicoverthereisdifferentandgoestotheirheadsandmakesthemdoweirdthingslikepreytogodsofsquirrelsandstuffandIkindofthoughtofTorvaliswhenIsawthem
buttheyweren'tasfriendlyasTorvalisandtobehonesttheydidn'tsetthingsonfireasmuchbutanywayitwashorribleandIwassoalonesoIcamebackassoonasIcouldbutIgotlost
againbecausecouldn'trememberthewaybacktotheinnandIgotallwetbecauseoftherainandthatbogIfellinearlierbutit'sokeybecauseIfoundyou!"
*gasp*
"Oh my goodness you're turning purple!"

Ira promptly lets go of Phineas realizing that he has been unable to breathe for the last minute.

[Phineas J. Pennefeather]

Phineas takes a deep breath. He is simply shocked and overwhelmed by the outpouring of words and emotions from his Elven friend - and recent travelling companion. Nevertheless, the Halfling is very happy to see her and very, very surprised that the Elves let her go in such a state.

He is also very glad that the hug did not squeeze out any of the various potions and small weapons that he often has secreted away in various hidden pockets and secret scabbards about him.

“There, there, Ira. Everything is alright,” he says reassuringly. “Please sit down, and I will make some chamomile tea. Have a bite to eat and tell me all about what happened!”

[Ira the Elf]

08/10/14 19:20 GMT

"Oh yes! Please! I'm starving!" Ira can smell the delicious rabbit stew from the door and follows Phineas inside making sure to hang her dripping cloak and muddied boots in their place by the fire. Realizing how tired she is, Ira plunks herself down on the nearby bench feeling warm and happy for the first time in weeks.

"So here's what happened," Ira says stifling a yawn. "I left just as you told me with the group of Elves that passed by three weeks ago they were very nice but quite unhelpful because they unfortunately didn't know where my village was. I told them about how my family had sailed over from the Eastern Continent and they suggested that I travel to the coast to find a ship that would take me across the ocean to the Scarred Lands so that I could find my extended family. I took their advice and was able to barter my way onto a human fishing ship by offering to use my air magic to help expedite their journey. It took us several days but the waters were fairly calm and the fishermen were a surprisingly agreeable bunch so the time passed quickly."

"When we arrived they dropped me off on a narrow beach and, after thanking them, I started walking inland looking for signs of the native Fae, but after three days of walking, I seemed no closer to finding my Eastern cousins. Just as I was about to give up I heard shouts on the path behind me and I quickly jumped into the bushes and Blended with the Air. The voices became louder and suddenly there were two very strange looking, and might I add out of breath, men on the section of the path I had just left. They spoke with funny accents but from what I could understand the taller of the two thought that he had seen a Faerie. The other man gave the first a whack over the head and said that the first was "daft" and that the Faeries and Elves died out years ago when the upwellings happened. The second said something else but I didn't hear the rest of the conversation at that point because I was still in shock from what the tall man had said. I guess my magic wore off at that point because they immediately looked in my direction and called out to me. I panicked, spun them both with Air, and ran off into the woods as fast as I could."

"When I was sure they couldn't find me I sat down and well," at this point Ira shifted uncomfortably. "I hope you won't think any less of me Phineas, but I cried for a good while after that because I had gone over there for no reason only to find out all of the Elves were gone and now I had to try and find my way home without the humans finding me. A few more days passed as I wandered the forest, trying to keep out of sight of humans and searching for any plants or animals I recognized. They have giant trees there Phineas and all of the animals are smaller than here, it was so bizarre! Anyway, I eventually stumbled upon a village, and, using my magic I managed to sneak over to a house and grab a hooded cloak to hide my ears. Don't give me that look Phineas, I know I'm not supposed to take other people's things but I was desperate, and I did leave them some of the carrots I found in the woods, or at least I think I did, that parts a little foggy. Besides, it wasn't that great a cloak."

[Ira the Elf]

"So with my ears covered I started wandering the town trying to get an idea of where to find a ship that would take me back to the Island. There were tons of strange temples littered around the central market square covered with many armed statues, pictures of the sun, and wild animals just to name a few. While I was looking around the stalls, this procession of strange men with red sashes came through dragging a foul smelling human covered from head to toe in blue and red tattoos towards a dais in the centre of the market. Once the man was kneeling before the, by now extremely large, crowd that had formed the sashed men introduced themselves and the Arbiters of the Great Void and that the man forced to kneel before them was a wild mage tainted by the upwellings. They said that because he worshipped the false Gods of the Deeps he was a traitor to the Union and would be put to death. Then came the awful part Phineas, he used pure Void magic to tear the man's mind to shreds. I could feel the heat of it from the back of the crowd, the searing awfulness and hate woven into the incantation andI couldn't look anymore because I felt like I was going to be sick."

"I gave up going into towns after that."

[Ira the Elf]

"A week later I was slowly on my way to the coast again. I had to travel at night to avoid detection and circumvent the main roads and villages. There were a few times I ran into wild mages like the tattooed one from the square. Although I hid myself in time, I was certain they could feel my presence. Many were alone but some of them were travelling in the company of mangled tattooed corpses returned to life using the strange magic of the land. All of them tended to mutter under their foetid breath praises to the Gods of the Deep. After my encounters in the forest it was nice to see the open ocean and feel the breeze that would, with any luck carry me away from this dreaded land. I spent several days searching the coastline for a ship that I could sneak on or a port to buy passage. I was hesitant to deal with these strange folk but short of growing wings it would be my only chance of returning home. Finally after five days of searching I came upon a gigantic vessel carved in the likeness of a great dragon. Cautious, I Blended with the Air around me and tiptoed closer. Well, guess what I saw Phineas, go on, guess." Ira looked expectantly at Phineas.

[Phineas J. Pennefeather]

Phineas follows as well as he can as Ira pours out her story of the past weeks. He is simply fascinated by the Elf’s tale of travel and adventure.

“I cannot even hazard a guess!” he swallows. “What did you see?”

[Torvallis!]

"Hm? What?" Torvallis! seemed to appear from nowhere.

"Did I hear someone say: 'Torvallis: Set things on fire'?!", an expectant and excited look on their face.

[Volkihere Malacalo]

"I'm curious to, what did you see."

You here from the still opend door behind Torvallis!

"Welcome home Ira." Volkihere enters the tavern.

[Ira the Elf]

"Torvalis!!, Mister Volk!" Ira says with excitement, "It's so good to see you!" Ira bounces off the bench and gives each of them a slightly sodden hug.

"Oh, and Torvalis! you will be pleased that in the Scarred Lands to the East people actively worship Lord Fire by burning things, and -" she hesitates here but manages to finish with "People" before shivering at the memory another event from the past few weeks. "And um, Mister Volk could we, maybe, um tomorrow, could we have another sparring lesson? I'm really bad with swords, but at least I have one now!" she says immediately brightening up. "In fact I got it while I was on the ship, which brings me back to my story..."

[Torvallis!]

"AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

WETWETWETWETWETWETWETWETWETWETWET NEED FIRE! CURSE YOU, WATER MAGE!!!"

[Volkihere Malacalo]

"My skill with individual weapons is not as sharp as I'd like it to be. I can teach you the basics of any weapon but I'm not a master. There is however a new blacksmith who I believe has more skill than I with a long blade, he can probably teach you to hone your skill." He says calmly to Ira.

[Horns]

Horns walked back into the Watering Hole with an armload of wood for the fire. As he walked over to the stove, he heard an unmistakably cheery voice, and dropped all the logs in surprise. "IRA!?!" He screamed, running through the small crowd which had gathered around his friend, and wrapping her in a huge hug. "IRA! You're back! And wet! And probably hungry! Oh lords, you must be starving!" He deposited her next to the fire to dry off, and dished up stew and bread as quickly as he can, shoving it into her hands as he dashed off to get her some ale and grab the kettle for tea. "I got your letter, it was lovely, I keep it with me all the time!" He hastily deposited the ale on the table next to her, and the kettle on the stove. "I've been meaning to write back, but I haven't had a chance. But now I don't have to! How fantastic!" He said this last into a cupboard, looking for a mug fit for tea. He turned back, mug in hand, and beamed. "Welcome back!"

[Volkihere Malacalo]

"It seems someone missed you." Volkihere says with a smirk.

[Volkihere Malacalo]

"Phineas if I may speak with you" Volkihere says to Phineas as he prompts him to move away from the crowd. I must ask you somthing.

[Phineas J. Pennefeather]

Upon hearing the request of Volkihere Malacalo, the very well-armed “man-in-black”, the Halfling gestures to the table by the tavern’s main counter quietly says, “How about over here?”

Phineas sits down and indicates Volk to have the facing bench, so that the human can have the advantage in position and sit with his back to the wall.

“And what can I do for you?” Phineas asks.

(OOG: Let’s move to a new conversation thread: A private conversation between Volkihere Malacalo and Phineas.)

[Ira the Elf]

Ira bounces up to Horns and gives him a hug before deciding to leave him to his cores and take the break in the conversation to change into something warmer and less wet. With a slight nod to Phineas, Ira leaves for her room.

[Sponsored content]