Tag Archives: Alexis

There Are Worse Prisons

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After the group is arrested by the Collegium guards and taken to the comfortable “holding cell”.

Alexis, looking tired and energized at the same time, who is still bruised from the bookshelf and burned from the scroll magics, speaks.

“Well” he says looking around the richly appointed room “if we’re going to be held for questioning, this is a better spot than most.”

He sits down and starts fiddling with his jasper necklace.

“Lorianne’s surely going to have already gotten the first word. I never thought the Collegium could be so compromised. Have to see how this plays out.”

After shortening the leather thong around the jasper necklace, Alexis wears his red jasper around his wrist. He moves to Gustav to tend to him while they wait.

Threatened Beggar

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The man on the street had grabbed onto Ca’armine’s leg with an iron grip. He then told Ca’armine “You may have killed the Snake, but the Wolf still hunts and spider weaves its web, and the King Behind the throne is coming.”

Seeing that Rask was about to draw his sword on the man, Alexis threw himself between Rask and the old man. After the threat of Rask’s sword has passed, and Alexis gets back to his feet, he looks at Rask with concern.

“Are you doing okay? Did he remind you of someone from your past?”

Not Who We Are

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After arriving back at Mavon’s estate after the confrontation with the Bloodfang and the killing of Thorgar. Alexis takes Rask slightly aside.

After a moment making sure they’re alone.

“Rask. Throgar surrendered. Twice. The Crimson Calling aren’t blood-thirsty mercenaries. Killing isn’t how we solve problems. I appreciate you leaping in front to confront Throgar after I’d gotten him angry. I do. Thank you for being so willing to risk yourself for me. But when someone surrenders we need to let them. If we kill the helpless, we sink to the level of those we fight against.”

At this moment one of the other Crimson Calling hands Rask and Alexis their share of the money for completing the job and killing Throgar.

Alexis looks at a loss for words

“This… we don’t kill… who surrendered.”

Alexis starts to walk away while putting his reward away.

Coming Home, Again

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The night before the Crimson Calling enters Sutheron.

“Tonight I stand before you not just as Alexis Laelius, renowned treasure hunter and lore seeker, but as a son returning to his beloved home city, a place where the echoes of my family’s leather working craft still resonate through the cobblestone streets.”

“As I prepare to walk those familiar avenues, I can’t help but feel a rush of memories. Memories of my father, tirelessly crafting fine leather goods with hands weathered by time and toil, trying to instill in me the value of hard work and dedication. Memories of my mother, whose gentle spirit and unwavering support guided me through the darkest of tombs and the most treacherous of pits. And let us not forget my dear younger brother, who shares in our family legacy, ensuring that our craft endures through the ages.”

“But there is another figure, a mentor whose wisdom illuminated my path like a torch in the darkness. Publius Helvius Laeca, sage of our city, whose passion for humanity’s past glories and the pursuit of lost artifacts ignited a flame within my soul that has burned ever brighter with each discovery, each adventure.”

“I am reminded of the rich tapestry of history that weaves through the very fabric of our city. A city where old meets new, where the craftsmanship of antiquity mingles with the innovations of tomorrow. Yet, amidst this juxtaposition, there lies a challenge, a challenge to uphold the standards of excellence set by our forefathers, to preserve the legacy of our ancestors, and to safeguard the treasures of our past for generations yet to come.”

“For too long have we allowed the shadows of mediocrity to cloud our vision, to tarnish the splendor of our… heritage. But fear not, for I return not only as a prodigal son but as a champion of our city’s greatness, a defender of its legacy.”

“Together, we shall embark on a new quest, a quest to free humanity from the shackles of those who would enslave us and send us into the dark. The path ahead will be full of peril, and though the challenges may seem insurmountable, I know that the Crimson Calling is up to the task!”

“So let us raise our voices in triumph, let us march forward with heads held high, for we are the heirs of a legacy forged in the fires of history, and together, we shall write the next chapter of our not just our city’s tale, but the tale of humanity once-sundered, being stitched back together. And remember, as we journey forth into the unknown, we do so not as mere mortals, but as guardians of humanity’s past, present, and future.”

“To glory, to adventure, to the enduring spirit of humanity!”

The Choice of Steel

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The night forest is shadowed in the soft glow of lamplight and Alexis’ magical light, revealing old trees, dead bodies, and pools of blood. In the center Alexis stands amidst his weary but resilient team. Their faces are etched with concern and anticipation. Gustav stands slightly apart, clutching a simple dagger with a look of stubborn defiance.

ALEXIS
(seriously, addressing the group)
“This isn’t just about a choice of weapons. It’s about understanding the weight of our decisions, especially when they put others at risk.”

Alexis looks over the group, capturing their post-battle adrenaline-state, Ethelred’s post-battle dread, and highlighting their reliance on each other for survival.

ALEXIS(CONT’D)
(firmly)
“We’re in this together. Choosing a dagger over a magic sword, in the face of bow-wielding orcs no less, it’s not just a personal mistake. It’s a risk to every single life in this camp.”

Alexis walks over to Ethelred, wiping off some of the blood running down Ethelred’s armor and looking at it on his fingers, his voice softening as he turns back to Gustav.

ALEXIS(CONT’D)
(softly)
“Gus, your bravery isn’t in question here. But bravery without wisdom is folly. We needed that sword, not just for its power, but for the protection it would offer us all.”

He steps closer to Gustav, looking into his eyes, searching for understanding.

ALEXIS(CONT’D)
(gently)
“Every choice we make in our crusade against the Dark Hand has consequences. Today, it was a close call. Tomorrow, it might not be.”

A moment of silence fills the room as Gustav stubbornly meets Alexis’ gaze.

ALEXIS(CONT’D)
(curiously, with a hint of something else)
“So, I have to ask… Gus, why? Why choose the dagger over the sword and put Red in dire peril? What was it that you saw in this choice that we didn’t?”

Gustav, looks down at the dagger in his hand, then back up at Alexis. The rest of the team looks on with curiosity.

Just Confusion?

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Rask scanned: the horses’ and mule’s ears, the trees, the trails. After a few minutes, his eyes settled into a pattern and he started to think again.

His eyes slowed a bit as they swept across Gustav and the sword Alexis called “Dauntless,” Torr Bjorn’s sword, a gift from Ishtar, made of start metal, and re-forged by Torr himself. The sword had rejected Rask, chosen Gustav, but Gustav spurned the sword, wished to be rid of it. Gustav Raidensbless’d seemed disgusted and disturbed by the relic. They both needed protection from the Dark Hand.

Alexis Laelius, Ethelred, they were planners, engineers. What was the plan here? Were they really going to take the sword to Mage Eye and Ursill? Even if that is his plan, doing it while being hunted by the Dark Hand and their orcs?

It must be an elaborate ruse. We learned a bit more about the enemy. We could double back soon, push the logs over the trap door, and take on Shyeeni and her orcs. We killed three quickly, we could take out the slaver and her minions before going into the caves to rescue the refugees from the other slavers below… Yes that must be the plan.

Rask scans: the horses’ and mule’s ears, the trees, the trails…

A bit later, Rask clears his throat “A-huH-lex-IS.”

He looks at the Sutheroni sharply and jerks his head back towards the cave and enemy.

He whispers, “How much time are we going to give them?”

Rask scans: the horses’ and mule’s ears, the trees, the trails…

Good Blessings. Bad Blessings.

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At some point during their two weeks at the grove before heading to Barra’s pool the three treasure hunters are all having an evening meal together. After some logistics Alexis turns to his companions.

“I’ve been thinking about our battle with the Red Cloaks under the fort, and how much easier it might have been if you’d both accepted the ‘blessings’ of the symbol/archtype you both refer to as ‘Avv’. And the thing that has me confused is the ‘blessings’ you’re willing to accept and the ones you’re not. And I speak as someone who is happy to accept boons and blessings from almost any ‘god’. Obviously Nurgle would be hard for me because the slime, the spores, etc.” Alexis gives a shudder of revulsion. “And I wouldn’t trust a gift/boon from the Arril-Noroth since I expect it would contain a barb of some sort. But back to the subject at hand…”

“You both willingly accepted a ‘blessing’ from Bora Bloodfist, servant of She-Who-Is-Fierce, and from that ‘blessing’ we were taken on a journey together and now better understand the Path of the Peacemakers. Great. But that started because you both accepted magics from a priest of the goddess of the gnolls. That was acceptable, but ‘blessings’ from ‘Avv’ are not.”

“And you both willingly accepted the task to break Dauntless for a boon from She-Who-Is-Fierce. And I was, and still could be, excited to see what sort of boon that would be. But my point is that getting a boon from that goddess whom many consider evil and hostile to humanity, Raiden, etc was acceptable, but blessings from Avv are not.”

“Red, you can I carried the Eyes of Maglubiyet accepting the risks and rewards therein. But somehow a blessing from a matriarch of humanity is not.”

“Gus, you wear bracers of the VahnYir, who pledged themselves to the Arru-Noroth. And you accept the magics I learned from those bracers to further help you in your aim. Magics that also come from the VahnYir. This is all acceptable to you, but blessings of Avv are not.”

“Please help me understand how you are both willing to accept the magics of forces so antithetical to humanity and Raiden, and so hostile to accepting help from the human magics of ‘Avv’, who defended humanity at one of the points when humanity needed it most.”

Alexis looks between Gustav and Ethelred.

In With The New

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A day or two down the road to the Greyfax estate, as the Crimson Calling has just finished setting up camp and is starting their evening chores, a lone man approaches leading a horse.

The man is wearing a heavy winter cloak, and a simple undyed tabard. Under the cloak and tabard, the observant make out dark-red, almost black chain mail and the hilt of odd shaped, dark-handled sword. It reminds those that remember of the blade Ethelred called “Bushwacker,” but longer.

The man raises his arms confidently in the universal gesture of peace,

“Hail, I am Rask Felmar, of Thater that Was. You must be the Crimson Calling.” He calls out confidently.

Another Troll About To Be Born?

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As the group is about to leave their two week spot after getting Dauntless, Alexis muses to his companions “I can only imagine Leer’s troll powder supply is getting pretty damn depleted. Even though we haven’t seen eye-to-eye with Leer, and he poisoned us, nobody deserves whatever fate is about to befall him.

“I’ve made a little progress with scrying magics, but if I’d studied more at the Collegium I might be able to know Leer’s fate now.”

Test Plan: Wooden Rings

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After Alexis has examined the wooden rings and found out

  • They are abjuration-hued
  • Clear connection between them
  • They seem identical
    • but in two different places
    • AND they seem more like one thing than two things
    • OR like their connection is so strong they seem like one thing
  • They appear like pieces of a working, but not the full working
    • They seem like they are a blank canvas which other magics have yet to be put on

He addresses his companions “I would like to test the nature of these rings. The one time we experimented with them, my nausea was amplified because of what Red was feeling? Or I got his feeling of nausea?”

“Over the next while I’d like us to run some tests, and I want us to come up with a plan for these tests. Red and I will be ‘conducting’ the tests. Ezrin, you’ll be studying the effects from the outside, and possibly working on trying to save us if things go very badly. Gus, you will do your best to protect us. I leave it to you to decide how best to do that.”

“Some of my thoughts on the rings:

“I would like to figure out what makes these rings ‘abjuration’ in nature. What sort of protection was the intent?”

“The ‘blank canvas’ nature of the rings made me think that perhaps we could put magics within the rings and they could be released at a later time. And this might be the case, but perhaps only protections can be ‘painted on the blank canvas’?”

“I didn’t notice any particular warren flavor while studying the rings, which is interesting of itself. Especially interesting given the material of the rings.”

Alexis looks at the group “everyone understand the plan? Any questions, or other feedback?”