Clovius and beyond

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Alberich
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Alberich »

Tim wasn't mollified, and he sure as hell wasn't "just relaxing," but at least she was talking instead of pushing and grabbing, so he moderated his own tone, and left out the things that made him angriest. He already knew the prior incident had not been his own fault -- he laid a slight blame on Tovah, if anyone, since her community had known he was here and what he was, yet had chosen a cryptic message rather than to send a neighbor to warn him or get him up to snuff. He promised himself that when he led this community (spiritually, anyway), visiting clergy would receive better welcome than that. (Though with enough caution in case they were spies.) He asked where they were proposing to go, and having learned that, he spoke.

"It's not a smart disguise," he said. "There's a Faithful community here. So if one of them talks to her, or asks her blessing, like my friends right downstairs, she doesn't know the doctrine. And if they see she isn't real, they'll figure her for a spy, an infiltrator, and that's a worse problem than what we have already. And she isn't ordained or of the Faithful, and it's wrong to deceive them. Not when they've waited for so long for true clergy!

"Also, some of the locals despise the Church enough to profane our temple by making it a gambling hell. Anyone who feels like that - will see the vestments as an excuse to start some trouble. And if they're using the temple grounds for that, what if they've been using the vestments, too, to deck out their..." -- he didn't know the words -- "...card dealers and dice rollers? Or worse? Then she gets mistaken for someone who works there, or wants to, and we have an extra entanglement. Any way you look at it, it's a costume that's more likely to tangle her up with the locals, in a way that's a mistake. In fact, I don't think even we should be going around that temple in our vestments. Having that wrong undone is going to take time and diplomacy. And probably money. Which will take a long time to raise.

"If she really must go out, and needs a disguise that doesn't make her look local, why not deck her out as a Tsuirakuan? They come in all colors, they don't have a community here, and even if they did there's nothing she does to offend their sensibilities. Better still, though, not to go out at all - your mission is to get through this town and deliver your message, not get tangled up with...that. What good could it serve? If I can stay I'll have years to get the details and do something about it!"

To Tim's mind it was like the dragon fight all over again, a danger that had nothing to do with the mission, a pointless trap for the overcurious unwary. Rose and Therese had seemed too eager to rush into that one, but he hoped to raise some common sense this time.

"Besides, you know there is a much more useful and charitable deed we could be doing, than walking around town into trouble we don't need -- though it's a deed that should be done without this costume. And it's something we really all ought to do together, today, right here in this inn, while we're as fresh as possible." Of course Tim was referring to the healing of Yona, which he'd already told Rose about, and which he assumed Rose had mentioned to the others. "He's here - we could get started in minutes." Or however long it takes Desiree to change.

Meeting Rose halfway, as he thought, Tim didn't raise the other part of his concern -- that it was simply wrong to dress the priestess of a lust cult, a sacred prostitute, in the vestments of the Church. In extremis it might be excusable (if, say, they needed to spirit her out of a fortress under siege and there were no other clothes available) -- but this was not an in extremis situation. Here they had options, including another kind of costume, or better still, just not going out until it was time to leave. This looked more like a gratuitous insult to the Church than a thought-out plan.
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Graybeard
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Graybeard »

Sister Rose was quietly impressed. He's learning. Just a couple of weeks ago, he would have been raging at what this "infidel" did, never mind that a clerical robe is just an item of clothing and that it means nothing out here. He might just work out as a priest for this place yet.

"The flip side," she answered, "is that there's strength in numbers. There'll be enough of us now who look Veracian that we can go check out this corrupted temple without much worry for our security -- not that I was too worried anyway, since this Tovah seems to wield a lot of influence in town, but it's better to be on the safe side. First, let's look at this man who needs healing." Although if what I think I saw at a distance is accurate up close, we're not going to be able to do much for him... and Desiree may not like it.

----------

"Ooooo! She speaks our language!" one little old lady gushed to the other. "Come, child, you look hungry." She extended a plate full of bacon toward Tamina.
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Drusia
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Drusia »

Tim actually has a lot of the same concerns I do. Mostly about me not being able to say the right stuff. His implication that this disguise might make me more likely to be hired by someone is just... weird.

"Do Luminosans have vows of silence?" I ask Tim and Rose. "Cause, if so... I could just not speak. Then I couldn't make a mistake."

-- Desiree



OOC: Sorry, super busy this weekend.
Desiree will follow along quietly pretending to be a nun. She has nothing much to say ATM and a lot to think about. Not to mention the fact that she has a lot of hard acting to do.
Edit: Actually, in response to Tim, here is a quick post.
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Graybeard
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Graybeard »

Sister Rose giggled at Desiree's question. "Do I act like I've taken vows of silence?" I think sometimes she forgets that I'm a Veracian nun ... which I find strangely flattering, actually. "Seriously, there are a few small orders in the church that take vows, but I don't think we'd find any of them up here. They tend to be rather ... I guess I'd say inward-focused. But you're not going to get any hard questions here, I don't think, judging from the way the Matins service went. If someone asks for a blessing, just smile and make this hand sign, it's easy enough." She demonstrated the Sign of Luminosita. "Now let's find this person Tim wants us to try to heal, and you can practice. Healing magic is pretty much the same wherever you go."

When they reached Yona, however, Rose's own serenely pleasant demeanor slipped a notch before she put her game face back on. <"Errant,"> she thought at Desiree. <"I'd just about bet on it ... which means not only that we're not going to accomplish much, we'd probably better be careful.">
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Alberich
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Alberich »

Tim arranged for Yona (and his friend Enoch) to come upstairs to be looked at in a private room rather than to have this group (including Desiree in that...costume) come downstairs to be seen by everyone.

Having explained what was going on with Yona -- that he'd been like this for time out of mind, that he appeared to be a member of Desiree's own race, and that he'd been a loyal member of the local Church for ages -- Tim most earnestly asked Desiree to please dress some other way before looking at the afflicted brother. "I don't think you can diagnose him without talking," he said, "he's not a Mountain King worshipper, and he wasn't at the restaurant last night, so it's not as if he'd raise a fuss if you were dressed the way you were before."

The rest was obvious: Since Yona and Enoch were members of the Church, this was the perfect opportunity for Desiree's cover to be blown. If she wore that cover at all. (Which she shouldn't.)

Tim also asked where Tamina was...since the kobold was one of the great healers that he hoped might afford some relief to brother Yona.

The other matter, about whether they should go looking at the defiled temple at all, let alone with Desiree in religious vestments, that was something Tim would raise later on. [OOC: i.e., please don't skip the group over there without giving him a chance to talk]. He didn't like Rose's idea, that they should take the risk of causing a ruckus because they had "strength in numbers." The point was not whether they would win in any confrontation. The point was that, even in having the confrontation, they would lose. And it was the local community -- with or without Tim -- that would pay the price after Rose was gone.

Beyond that, to Tim, priestly vestments were no more "just clothes" than a regimental standard was "just a piece of cloth," and he would no more put the former on a "soiled dove" than he'd use the latter to mop up spilled beer. Unless there was some important reason, which here there most certainly was not.

[OOC2: Since Desiree has a major role to play in this scene, I really don't mind waiting a few days for her to be able to post.]
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Jack Rothwell
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Jack Rothwell »

"She speaks our language! Come, child, you look hungry."

Tamina's polite smile grew into a beam as she took a piece of the delicious meat and shoveled it into her mouth as she addressed the old dears.

"Thanks! *nom* Learned it when I was a *slurp* gah! Umm... child, I mean."

The kobold was a little disappointed that her disguise hadn't held up under scrutiny, but the ladies seemed friendly enough. Then again, offering Tamina bacon was a surefire method of earning her trust.
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Graybeard
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Graybeard »

[OOC: Yes, waiting for Desiree seems indicated here. Meanwhile, as regards our junior troll:]

The two old women watched delightedly as Tamina polished off the meat. "Good! Now run along and tell your mama that we have some wonderful sheepskins to trade her," one said; her generosity to the "troll child" was not without a bit of self-interest.
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Jack Rothwell
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Jack Rothwell »

"My ma-ma?" Tamina said uncertainty. "She's... umm, returned to air... but Rosie might want some! She leads our group. I can go find her for you!"

The kobold turned to go.

OOC Just leaving it at that point if the women have anything else to say. If you want a sudden gust of wind to whip off her hood for comedy purposes feel free, or have her return to the group at your convenience./OOC
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Graybeard
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Graybeard »

OOC: Nothing more (now) from the LOLs, so we can get everyone back together.
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Graybeard
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Re: Clovius and beyond

Post by Graybeard »

[OOC: I take that back. There's actually a thing brewing that may as well happen now. It will take Rose out of the picture with Yona, and there are more significant long-term consequences as well. So:]

A tap-tap-tapping on the window of the room distracted Sister Rose momentarily from the attempt at healing the crippled half elf. To her surprise, a messenger parrot stood there on the sill, looking expectantly at her. She went over to open the window and admit the bird, but it refused to enter the room.

"Uh, oh," she said to anyone who would listen, notably Argus. "Looks like there's something that not everyone is supposed to hear. Argus, would you join me while the others get started here?"

The pair stepped out into the hall, and then to the outside of the building, where the parrot was waiting. After the code words were exchanged, it began to recite.

(OFFICIAL USE ONLY) As indicated earlier, here is the classified parrot concerning the message from Father/GEN(RET) Amalric. I have been ordered to give you one unusual caution regarding this message.

(SECRET) To date, you have been able to use your discretion about showing the contents of these classified messages to others in your party, on the grounds that pretty much by definition, they have the "need to know." However, I have been told to stress that the present message is for your ears only.
(The parrot was practically screaming at this point.) You are NOT authorized to share its contents with others in your party, including either Dr. Cleiviein or Brother Timothy.

(SECRET) Accordingly, before proceeding, you will make sure no one else is in hearing range, and then give the parrot the code word FUCHSIA. At that time, and only then, it will give you the remainder of the message, the contents of which you are to hold in strictest confidence while you prepare a reply. (How you're supposed to do that, since your instructions will be to consult the others in your group while you prepare that reply, and will need to ask them certain questions, is beyond me, but I didn't write the order.)


This said, the parrot cocked its head expectantly at Rose. "Damn," she swore. "This doesn't sound good. Go ahead and do what you can for that poor man, although the answer is almost certainly 'not much.' I'll be up when this is taken care of." Argus returned to where the group was trying to heal Yona, while Rose went back to the room they shared and set up a Damping field.

[OOC: Not going to post the message here, but Rose isn't going to like it... Again, things with Yona can proceed without her.]
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