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Post by Nascha on Mar 12, 2019 20:39:55 GMT
“Thank you, Mr. Vivacity.”
It took a lot of effort for Xae to maintain her cool, but she led the way with considerable aplomb into the foyer. If it wasn’t for the fact that she’d be horribly insulted by the comparison, she could probably carry herself quite well on the stage.
The cultist struggled and protested, until Dhaunmyr twisted his arm just a little bit more, and he squealed in quite the undignified fashion. Dragged out into the far quieter area, his eyes were wild, and he opened his mouth – no doubt to continue spitting invectives or try to bargain for his life.
Before he could continue to insult them both, however, Xae turned and raised her orb. The light within blazed stark white and glorious ,illuminating all three faces as she hissed out her command.
”Sleep.”
It wasn't spoken in common. It wasn't spoken in any mortal tongue. But the meaning came through, unmistakable, and the cultist obeyed.
Whereupon the struggling cultist… did just that. Slumping, he collapsed into Dhaunmyr’s arms, and whilst the drow might feel a little edge of magic tug at his consciousness, he was, naturally, entirely immune to such base enchantments as this. No elf could be forced into something so undignified as sleep by magic.
“I will fetch a guard.” Xae said, finally brushing blood-slick hair from her eyeline as she gave Dhaunmyr a more appreciative look. “I will not forget your assistance tonight, Sir. If there is anything I might do to repay you for your aid, you have only to request it.”
(Wordcount: 3776)
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Post by enchilada on Mar 13, 2019 12:01:18 GMT
“Of course, my- oh my goddess.”
He stared down at the now silent figure in his arms, now unconscious and quite the weight - given that he wasn’t expecting to hold an entire person this suddenly. Dhaunmyr carefully placed the man down, propping up his back against the wall to keep him more compact. No one should have to trip over just because of one absolute idiot who did... something. He still didn’t quite understand the situation he’d managed to involve himself with. He kept looking at the sleeping figure, occasionally finding himself flicking his pale blue gaze to Xae. There were no further clues to be put together, that was it. Other than that device of his.
“Should it be broken? Removed?” He gestured to the contraption on the man’s arm, then started to lightly rub his palm where it had pinched, narrowing his eyes at the little ridges and dips. Maybe it would have been less painful if it had actually drawn blood, but, that would be an absolute bitch to deal with in the mean time. The palm was sensitive, and pretty important in sales - you should always shake the buyer’s hand. Always. “It seemed important.”
Turning back to Xae completely, Dhaunmyr folded his arms. “While it was a pleasure, my lady, I have but one favour I could possibly ask - that is, what in the heavens is going on here? I have mind to explain your inflammatory behaviours to the guard when she comes.” He didn’t seem angry, just blatantly confused and frustrated that he had no idea what had transpired or why. He was partially concerned he’d gotten himself tangled in some madwoman’s affairs, or perhaps entirely on the wrong side of the fight, if it be called one.
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Post by Nascha on Mar 14, 2019 18:51:56 GMT
Xae raised one sculpted eyebrow as Dhaunmyr expressed his confusion. She took a deep breath, and clearly, visibly, took control of her emotions. The dark elf had been very helpful in her mission. She wouldn’t have been able to complete it without him. She had to suppress her internal desire to just, berate him further for not immediately joining the dots. Not everyone, she had to remind herself, could be as brilliantly insightful and intelligent as she was. The world did need people of all kinds, after all. Even those whose talents were more about muscle.
She really did try to keep the condescension out of her voice, but the very fact she was clearly trying to do that so hard… well, it might not help all that much.
“I am a member of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors.” She said, “My mission here was to find the cultist.” She gave a faint wave of her hand to dismissively take in the incapacitated man, “And ensure that he is brought back into our custody for interrogation. He was here to siphon the emotional energy of the performance in order to use it for some, unknown, and more importantly unsanctioned ritual purpose.”
Her nose wrinkled delicately at the very thought of someone performing an unsanctioned ritual.
“Such things are how we get catastrophes like demon invasions, magical plagues and cats suddenly turning into dogs across the city. They are a blot on the reputation of all magic users, which is why it is so vital that when we sniff them out, we put an end to their schemes before they come to fruition.”
She pursed her lips in contemplation, eyeing the gauntlet.
“My spell should keep him under for a minute, and I will reapply it, but if you will excuse me, I will now fetch a guard. I don’t know what will happen if you try to take that off him, or break it, which means that we shouldn’t. Uncontrolled emotional resonance dispersion is not how I wish to end this evening.”
(Wordcount: 4120)
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Post by enchilada on Mar 14, 2019 19:43:41 GMT
He raised one back. Oh yes, my apologies for not knowing about your little society of nerds. Phah. No wonder he saw her as much less than a matron or priestess could ever hope to be. Tactless bitch. Entitled maybe, but there was a reason that drow women held that superiority. And Xae was reasonless, blinded by self importance instead of inflated or bettered by it. He’d keep note for the future of her ridiculous buckets of self worth. For the first time in his life, he almost immediately disrespected a creature such as a woman. Not verbally. Yet. But her attitude boiled Dhaunmyr’s blood in a way he was unused to. He hated that the most.
“Watchful Order, huh? Right, of course. How could I be so forgetful?” He shook his head. He thought it was bullshit. He also didn’t care for an argument, nor a fight. So he swapped the shaking for nodding, matching the inflections of her voice with an unsympathetic smile. “Well. I won’t stop you.”
He sat down next to the sleeping body, sighing and pushing his hair back off of his face. If this was all highly illegal, well, he was simply uninvolved. Sure he might have said a few words and touched a few hips, but so what? And even if he did get into trouble, nothing was worse than the Underdark. And according to his papers, at least, he wasn’t from there, they couldn’t send him back. He needed to stop worrying. Just stop worrying.
“Okay, go do your thing.”
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Post by Nascha on Mar 14, 2019 20:02:54 GMT
If it was illegal, it was a strange way to go about it, because Xae wasn’t lying about her intent. In the entertainment district, it wasn’t difficult to find a member of the City Watch, and to bring them back to the theatre, whereupon the cultist was indeed taken into custody, and dragged away into the night.
Xae dipped her head one last time to Dhaunmyr after that.
“Again, thank you for your assistance, Mr. Vivacity. I get the impression you are somewhat new in town, but if you wish to find me, the Watchful Order is not an institution it is difficult to locate. I owe you a favour. And I do not forget such things. If you require my assistance, seek me out.”
Her hand dipped up, and touched what was, quite clearly, a rather nasty head wound from the impact she had suffered earlier.
“For now, I am going to return to my quarters and rest. Good evening to you, Sir.”
(Wordcount: 4284 and probably closing it out there unless Dhaun demands further interaction right now.)
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Post by enchilada on Mar 14, 2019 20:23:24 GMT
(Nah, he’s spooked and pissed off - good place to end :) )
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