Nymph interlude (Afina)

[Anastasia]

In a tiny little voice, Bwimb II says, "I love my Dad. Sometimes I can get him not be so mean, since I split off him and I sort of understand him. Who would help the elementals here if I weren't here?"

[Ebiris]

"Ahh. I understand," Afina nods soberly. It's not entirely unlike her own relationship with Ilsenine after all.

"So, where was I? The tavern? There were five of us. Myself, Jaela, Ithea, Willim, and Adrian. He was the one on that quest, and for all that we came from the same ruined world we were strangers and ignorant of any connection. If a rough-housing band of devils hadn't barged in, it's quite possible we'd have gone our separate ways without ever talking, and things would have turned out quite differently. But the devils did barge in, and all of us with plenty of grudges to bear rose up to challenge them. Among the epithets thrown in battle we discovered what we had in common, and Adrian took us aside in the aftermath to tell us of his quest to find the lost fortress of Medicant. Finding it a lofty and remote goal, but no moreso than personally exterminating every devil on Lifasa.

"So we travelled together, making friends with elven battle-dancers and a long sealed vampire, finding the keys to Medicant in the Stoic Angel Galariel, and finally discovering the fortress itself sealed away in the Deep Ethereal. We claimed it for ourselves, earning the friendship of its custodian Elena." There were a few rough patches at the start sure, but everything's fine now! "Unfortunately we weren't overly keen on the name Medicant, a quirk of the Common tongue giving it fairly negative connotations. We ended up settling on the name of Aurora, I think mostly just because it sounded pretty. Now we had for ourselves a mighty bastion, a symbol of our commitment to fighting Hell, and a legend to rally others to our cause. Here is where the Crusade truly begins."

[Anastasia]

"Ooooh! That sounds neat!" Bwimb II burbles, bubbling up into a perfect sphere of floating purple ooze. She vibrates all over as she replies, "If I wasn't an archomental, I'd join it, since it sounds like a lot of fun. Devils are fun to beat up when they get too arrogant."

Canderella laughs a bit, "Pardon the question, but you don't act like your father at all. Do you take after your mother?"

"I don't have one," Bwimb II slumps a bit, sphere deflating into a general blob of ooze. "I split off Dad when Grumbar sliced him in half."

"Really?" Canderella remarks, twirling a bit of hair around her finger, "That's too bad, I'm sorry. Nevertheless, why ever did Grumbar do that to your father?"

"Oh, Dad got in trouble for inviting the General of Gehenna to Ooze. Grumbar and Istishia got realllllly angry and punished Dad for it. That's okay since it made me!" A rise up and now she's a column of ooze, swirling around and around.

[Ebiris]

Are para-archomentals subservient to archomentals of the prime elements? Or was it just a case of Grumbar and Istishia being strong enough combined to put Bwimb down? "It is a shame you can't join us," she agrees. "There's no shortage of arrogant devils that need beaten up. Which is what we did a lot of once the Crusade got going. There's too many battles to really cover exhaustively. We roamed the planes, finding the lost and dispossessed of Lifasa where we could, and gathering others who had their own reasons to fight alongside us." Here she favours Canderella and Bubbles with smiles, reaching down to pat 27's head as well.

"And for the most part we've seen victories. One of the nine traitors attacked one of ours at a fighting tournament but a warning from 27 here let us send forces to overpower and capture him, and more recently during a raid on Lifasa we annihilated the stronghold of another, bringing her back to inhabit our dungeons. Then there's Abigor, the spearhead of the original invasion. There was some infernal politicking at play which we did our best to fan, which ultimately had him go renegade and seek shelter in the domain of Auril. But leaving Hell's fold didn't erase his crimes, so we went there and bargained with Auril for his life. Either she believes we'll succeed in liberating Lifasa to hold up our end or else she really just didn't like Abigor, but she withdrew her protection and we battled him there before the Frostmaiden's throne, ending his long life of atrocities at last."

[Anastasia]

"Yay!" Bwimb II forms hands of slime, that clap. Unfortunately they don't make a clapping sound, being ooze and all. "You got him! Tell me about those others you mentioned - Jaela, Ithea, Willim and Adrian. They all sound neat."

27 perks up a bit and murmurs, "He's coming."

"Eh?" Bwimb vibrates and rolls side to side, before spiking out in all directions. "Eeee! Dad's coming, he got wind of visitors!"

[Ebiris]

"Well then," Afina pushes up off the couch and flutters into the air. "I'll tell you about those others afterwards depending on how this plays out. If we need to leave in a hurry can you make sure I can cast a gate spell from here though?"

[Anastasia]

"Oh, I'll open one for you," Bwimb II promises.

Just in time, since moments later a big, green-brown ooze. It leaps up in one blobby move and lands before all of you, "Aurora," It declares in a flat, menacing voice that ripples.

[Ebiris]

"Bwimb," Afina returns. "Thank you for allowing us into your fortress. Your daughter has been a lovely hostess. But please, before you think us churlish guests," she reaches down to pick up Bwytaflad, the axe oversized for her frame and so not held with any great expertise or intent to harm. Fluttering closer she presents it towards the archomental. "A gift, hopefully it suits your tastes."

[Anastasia]

Paste the weapon's stats here.

[Ebiris]

The finished axe is a work of art, delicate looking and light as a feather yet with a deadly blade of razor sharpness that bleeds acidic and poisonous mist when swung. The faces of the axehead are inscribed with sylvan writings espousing the fleeting and ephemeral nature of all things with a pattern of tiny emeralds set towards the base of the axhead in a fading starburst towards the edge.

See loot thread, it's a +5 corrosive and venomous battleaxe sized for a medium creature

Has +13 hardness from Gold's spell, and the crafting checks were at 60 for gemcutting and 60 for weaponsmithing

[Anastasia]

Diplo check, +20 bonus.

[Ebiris]

[19:36] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+15+20 diplo
[19:36] <Serith> Ebiris roll for Serith < 41 > [d20=6]

[Anastasia]

Bwimb stalks around all of you, circling. The ground hisses beneath his feet as he eyes the offering, before snatching it from Afina. "Acceptable," he declares, as it dissolves within his slime.

Bwimb II meanwhile slinks back, a little quivering blob. She doesn't say anything.

"Now," Bwimb says, "You are here to slay me, assassin?" He says, all his attention on Afina.

[Ebiris]

Aww, he didn't even savour it at all. What a pig!

"Of course not," she replies, simmering with irritation at seeing the axe dissolved so unceremoniously. Yes she knew that was to be its fate, but he could have at least shown some appreciation for the craftspixieship! "What sort of assassin announces herself at the front door? I have no grudge against you, nor have any of my allies spoken ill of you."

She would have led with 'We only kill devils' but that's blatantly not true. If someone asks Aurora to go kill a dragon or whatever in return for support in the Crusade, they'll go do it and quite happily too.

[Anastasia]

"That's right. I serve Talos. I'd blow your front door down and rain thunder on you without end, rather than this," Canderella scoffs, "Do you take me for a rank amateur?"

> roll 1d20+51 Canderella Diplomacy
<Rei-chan> Kotono rolled : 1d20+51 Canderella Diplomacy --> [ 1d20=11 ]{62}

Bwimb comes to a stop, slime splashing together and spraying all of you with foul ooze. It burns a bit, even with your protections.

"Plots and plans, then. But not your own," Bwimb concludes.

"They're innocent, father," Bwimb II cautiously slinks forward, moving in little waves. "I promise, it's probably those stupid arrogant devils that are lying again."

> roll 1d20+60 Bwimb II Diplomacy
<Rei-chan> Kotono rolled : 1d20+60 Bwimb II Diplomacy --> [ 1d20=5 ]{65}

Bwimb II moves around her father slowly, a little trickle of slime going around and around, "Please? I'm sure they're completely innocent."

"...fine." Bwimb concludes, "They are your responsibility. Muck, summon the Baatorian and Hadesian ambassadors to the precipice!" He then vanishes, gone.