Main Chamber (Council Room)

[Warlord]

The doors to the conference chamber are very cleverly hidden and require a Spot check (DC 40) to discover; it took more than a month for a sufficiently skilled Drow Rogue to notice it. The doors can be opened by touching them and willing the doors to become ethereal (but only if the person has Elven blood, including Half-elves).

Within sits a room of exquisite craftsmanship, its floor carved and polished to perfect smoothness and its walls decorated in detailed masterwork motifs of various points of ancient Elven glory. A full pace away from the circular wall sits a ring of eight chairs, each tailored to provide the most comfortable seat for one of each of the eight sub-races of Elvenkind. Usually this comes in the form of empathetic artwork such as crawling vines raised in relief on the Moon Elf chair or scenes of kingly might on that of the Sun Elf representative. However, in the case of the Avariel, this takes the form of a high seat and extremely narrow back carved sinuously to allow for the 12 foot wing span of the sub-race.

Each chair provides the person who sits in it a +4 bonus to their Wisdom score for a period of 24 hours as they are visited and infused with the spirits of the ancient Elven diplomats that once worked in this location. Use of the spell Tree Stride will allow a being entry to this area, but the spell cannot be used to exit the area.

[Warlord]

Hallistra Melarn sweeps into the chamber and takes her seat wearing a long, flowing dress that has all the appearance of having been made from liquid shadow. High necked, the collar reaching all the way to her jaw, and long sleeved the garment covers everything but her face and hands... or at least it would have if not for the plethora of strategically placed slashes through out its surface. Her smile is pleasant but thin as she levels a greeting nod at each of her fellow diplomats. "Welcome. I trust you all have found your accommodations to your liking? Our ancestors apparently worked quite hard to ensure that the individual residential towers appealed to our individual tastes." She looks suddenly to Amalie Dawnsinger and Aquilan Greatspan. "As well, you have looked over the items that were sent to you and are prepared to bequeath them on to your seconds?"

Amalie nods briefly but her expression forestalls being looked past, allowing her to speak. "It is a curious item, for certain. But it isn't meant for a Druid as your messenger was lead to believe. It is arcane in nature, which will suit my second well."

Aquilan smiles in a grandfatherly way. "It is a beautiful and fascinating gift you sent us. My nephew will be most pleased by its appearance and craftsmanship. Not that he isn't absolutely excited about the chance to explore the world so long denied to him." The elder was certain his place in this council would be reconcile.

Hallistra takes in Amalie's words silently, using an expression that informs the onlookers that it was an oversight that the Drow Priestess intended to take up with the appropriate people at the earliest convenience. She shifts her attention to Aquilan as he speaks. "We are most pleased with your nephew's willingness to join this endeavor. An ounce of enthusiasm will save the party a great deal of trouble I think, and my son Kal'esril has already spoken of his own appreciation for your Lysan's presence."

Cad'miun listens on quietly through out the back and forth, not deigning to speak until he was certain of the currents working in the room. "The accommodations were quite sufficient. And the item you sent has already been completely analyzed by our mages and given to young Auroa." Even before he got a reaction he knew the decision had been made rashly by others in the political structure of his home dimension.

"We noticed." Hallistra looked on levelly. "She will simply have to stand by while the others receive their items and take comfort in being more familiar with her own item. That said, shall we call them in?" Receiving assent from each of the other ambassadors Hallistra makes a gesture, the doors open and the four party members are permitted entrance to the council chambers.

[Kal'esrïl Melarn]

Kal'esril Melarn moves through the door smoothly, make hardly a sound despite the casual appearance of his movements. From neck to booted feet, he is clad in chain reinforced leather armor bearing a red silhouette of a black dragon's head with a jagged stick figure etched in the middle of the forehead section emblazoned across the back of the jacket portion. The pair of wicked elven lightblades are once again hard strapped to his thighs, complementing a hand crossbow holstered on the back of his belt where it would be easily accessible to his left hand. This makes the dozen small crossbow bolts made from some black wood stored on the front of his right thigh a good placement for the loading and firing of the matching weapon.

He is without a helmet, as he ranger had never gotten into the practice of covering his head with armor. His style of combat didn't support anything that could slow him further or limit his field of vision, it was purely for the sake of necessity that he kept the pair of goggles high on his forehead. When in sunlight or bright light he had to have them or he would be blinded briefly and at a disadvantage for the duration. Instead of a helmet, how ever, the young Drow warrior keeps his short white hair spiked wildly for the affect of appearing quite.... prickly.

He finishes his short march and comes to a straight-backed attention position in front of his Mother. "Matron, I am here as commanded with my fellows."

[Auroa]

Next through the door is Aurora.
She has exchanged the starlight silver robe for
an elegantly simple set of adventuring gear all stone gray.
Upon her chain shirt sits her Golden Heart.
Her hair is held back by two long strands that meet in the center.
She comes up beside Kal in front of Cadi'um and bows to the assembled leaders.

[Ilyrana Sevayni]

The wild elf decided with an inward sigh that she'd be glad when all this decorum and such was over. Not that her own people didn't have their own formal affairs, but the style even then felt less stressfull, more casual.

Ilyrana watched as Kal and Auroa made their way into the room. Lysan was perhaps taken aback by the small, enclosed size of the room, so he didn't move right for the door then. Ilyrana just wanted to get this part over with, so she moved into the room next, ahead of him.

The young wild elf is dressed in a rather similar fashion to the previous evening. A lighter brown strapless top falls from her bust line to her hips, only a couple shades darker than her skin, then a pair of short leggings of the same leather, that hit just shy of midway between curve of hip and knee. The boots she wore were flatter heeled than the set she'd had on before, and came mid calf in height, studded with a brass closure. A set of nearly grey leather studded bracers with a pattern of leaves stamped onto them adorned her wrists, laced with leather cords.
In her hair remained the flower, vines appearing as if to spring forth from her head. The hair itself, though, was tied back in a firm braid, the edge of which just brushed her lower neck, which still held the pendant from last eve.
At her hips are the set of knives she'd had the previous evening. Her right hand bears the staff as usual. Notably absent is a certain psuedodragon, at least for now. She seems to lack armor, and shows no acknowledgement of such.
Her other gear remained out in the hallway, as there was no need to carry the packs until they left.

She moved to the opposite side of the drow and gives a slight bow to the leaders assembled without taking her eyes off of anyone, something habitual and practiced.

[Lysan Cloud]

Lysan watches the others enter the room before him. It is closed in, but not too close... He stiffens his back and strides into the room as though he doesn't think about it.

Lysan wears pretty much the same thing he was wearing when they arrived. Chainmail, soft leather boots, no helm, as he hated the closed feel of one. His Auburn hair tied back and wrapped in a single piece of gray leather that covered his mid-back length tail from head almost to the end and is tied with black cord. His sword is on his hip, and his bow and quiver are over his shoulder. The rest of his gear is in the hall.

With a very quick glance at his mentor, Lysan bows to the assembly and stands ready.

[Warlord]

Hallistra and the others all gave solemn nods to their seconds as they entered. The Matron-Mother of House Melarn waits until they are all there and arrayed before standing. "I apologize for the further sense of ritual, but I felt it would be better if you received what we have to give you in a distraction free environment conducive to allowing your full attention to be focused." She claps her hands loudly, the pop of air and skin signaling a trio of Drow soldiers to enter. Each of the males carries a plush crimson pillow atop which sits an object. A large sword, sheathed in black, an unstrung bow of exquisite make, and a staff of exacting craftsmanship.

The soldiers all line up, from side to side, behind Hallistra. She looks over the three adventurers for a long moment before deciding there was nothing else for it. She turns smoothly and takes up the sword. "This weapon is known as a courtblade, long used by elves off the sun and Moon persuasion in high end duels over any number of topics. My people, however... only rediscovered this weapon two centuries ago along with many a text on how it was to be wielded. Since, we have created exactly three masters with the weapon." She turns back to the cluster of adventurers. "Kal'esril Melarn is one of those masters. Your new weapon my son." She passes the sheathed weapon into his hands. "This is Tyrant."

She turns to Auroa. "I'm afraid your superiors have gotten ahead of themselves, awarding you an item that was not theirs to do so. They'll not be given the opportunity to repeat the behavior. We've learned from the mistake." Hallistra doesn't look apologetic, her expression merely says that her expectations of the Star Elves had been adjusted accordingly.

Matron Melarn turns back to the cushion wielding warriors, this time selecting the staff. "We discovered this rather by accident in... well that's not important. Suffice it to say we had reason to think it was an all to rare creation of a Druid, we have since been informed better. Its secrets are still locked beyond our reach, but perhaps it won't be beyond yours Ilyrana." She turns back and presents the staff into the hands of the Wild Elf. "This is Shadow Vine."

Once again she turns to her soldiers, taking the bow from the final cushion. "This was found in a Green Dragon's hoard, the reward for lives lost in the Dragon's slaying. Through many years of scrying and speaking to the dead, we have reason to believe that this bow is as old as Elven society on Toril. We know you will do it honor." Hallistra turns and hands the weapon to Lysan. "This is Silent Thunder."


{ST} If I got any of the names wrong let me know and I will change them. In the mean time I'm leaving it for each of you to describe your item and its Omen which will activate upon it passing into your character's hands. Be mindful of others and remember to react to their interactions as well as these things are obviously not happening at the exact same time. Happy gaming.

[Kal'esrïl Melarn]

Kal takes the profered weapon reverently, holding it up so he might inspect the inlaid runes on the outer side of the sheath. In an ancient dialect of Elven, no more closely related to the Drow tongue than to modern Elven, the runes spell out the lone word "Tyrant." A swift, deft movement clears the blade from its sheath and brings it upright before his eyes. A thin line of crimson light slowly makes its way up the sharpened black edge to the point and then back down the rear edge the eight or so inches that the back is sharpened as well. Just as slowly an identical light makes its way around the edge of his eyes, almost imperceptible beside the actual crimson color of his eyes. "It's immaculate."

With another sudden and practiced movement the sword is sheathed and strapped across his back. As he turns his attention briefly to Auroa and then more permanently to Ilyrana it takes a few long moments for the light in his eyes to fade away. He expresses an appreciation for the artfully crafted staff. "Well made."

[Auroa]

Auroa closes her eyes leans her head forward and bows slightly placing a hand on her pendant at the matrons words. As Auroa's
head rises there is a blush to her cheeks. To all that look at her
pendent it appears nothing out of the ordinary. That is until they notice it pulsing first quickly in reaction to the embarrassment she was feeling then slowing as the attention of the others moved on to the other items.

[Ilyrana Sevayni]

Ilyrana watches with interest as the pillows with items are brought out. She hadn't any idea they'd be recieving gifts, Amelie had said nothing. Briefly her eyes went to her mentor, but only a moment, then they went back to the Matron Melarn as she handed Kal'esril his weapon.
For a moment, it almost seemed as if his eyes grew brighter as the sword's edge gleamed with crimson light. Perhaps she was imagining it, or it was a trick of the light, but her senses told her not to doubt first impressions. Most strange, but it seemed to fit him well.

Then Auroa is addressed, and Ilyrana gleans from the words that the drow were not pleased at the fact she'd recieved her item. She sees Auroa blush and had she less control over her emotions, she might have piped up there. It wasn't the girl's fault her elders had erred, after all. But now was not the time, and Ilyrana was not the being to do so. The pendant got a moment's look as it pulsed, seeming to reflect it's wearer's state. She wondered about the jewelry as it wasn't a weapon or didn't appear to be. The wild elf remembered staring might be a bit rude here so she offered a small quirk of the lips into a smile before looking away.

Then, Ilyrana straightened as she was being addressed. As Hallistra turned and presented her with the weapon, the young wild elf bowed in thanks, placing her own, worn staff on the floor in order to recieve her new weapon. As it was placed in her hands, her eyes focused on it and she repeated the name. "Shadow Vine."

She'd expected it to be heavy, it was of a dark wood, very nearly black as pitch, and elegantly carved with vines along it's surface. But it felt as light as her old one, which was half the width of this. Suddenly she blinked as if her eyes were playing some sort of trick, but no, it was true. The vines were moving, where her hands touched wood, they touched her. Tentatively for a moment, as if it were alive and hesitant, then they wound up her arm, seemingly made of shadows themselves. The dark ghost of tree patterns nearly looked painted on her arm, nearly to her shoulder. It fit her hand perfectly, almost as if the carver might have known just where she'd place her hand to grip it. She was silent now as she took that in, resisting the urge to drop it, teal eyes wide with curiosity.

Somehow she managed to hear Kal speaking to her and took a breath before nodding in agreement. "Beautifully made. Your blade as well."
Then to Hallistra, she bowed her head again, speaking. "Thank you. "

She then turned to watch Lysan recieve his weapon, the last appeared to be an exquisite bow. Her eyebrows arched as a dragon was mentioned. Seemed each gift was very special and carefully selected, making their quest seem all the more important.

[Lysan Cloud]

Lysan stands quietly watching as the others receive their gifts. He appreciates the beauty and craftsmanship of each, wondering, as the others do, about Auroa' pendant. Being more curious than your average cat, his hands and mind itched to find out all about each of them.

As the bow is brought to him, he notices it seems to be made of metal, rather than wood. He expected it to be heavy as it looks, but finds himself almost tossing the bow as it is as light as, if not lighter than, wood. Fine wrought filigree work and deep blue sapphires decorate the bow, making it a bit flashy for his normal taste.

As he takes hold of the bow, the sapphires glow a deep, muted blue and miniature arcs of blue energy run up and down the bow for a moment, causing goose-bumps to appear on his arms.

He looks to Hallistra, "My thanks for this wondrous gift. I hope I use it well."

This bow makes his favorite, that he had brought with him, look like shoddy children's work... And the living 'feel' of the bow was truly intriguing....

[Warlord]

Hallistra Melarn watches her son carefully as he takes up the weapon, particularly his eyes. Something about her expression conveys that she is both disturbed by what she sees and yet not surprised in the slightest. She had expected as much. When suddenly sheaths the weapon again she merely smiles as if pleased he approved.

The Matron of House Melarn turns her focus briefly to Auroa's pendant as it did as it would. Of those assembled Hallistra was one of the few who knew what the weapon really was and she still debated making sure others knew of it. Cad'miun at least had the good grace to look a touch embarrassed.

When Ilyrana's eyes flick to Amalie the older Wild Elf merely looked on with a small smile. The girl deserved a pleasant surprise now, as she would have few enough to look forward to on the road ahead. Hallistra, however, couldn't look more pleased as the Wild Elf gave an abbreviated bow and thanked her. She manages to slip in a quick "You're most welcome" before turning her focus to Lysan.

She watches the almost child like reaction of Lysan to the weapon with amusement, watching him have to suppress the urge to test the object's lightness. As he focuses on the weapon's testament of power she nods firmly and responds to his words. "We know you will, that is why it is in your hands now. That is why all of you have been given these objects of power." She steps away and turns her attention to them all as she speaks. "You are being entrusted with more than just that, however. You are being entrusted with the reputations of your peoples, the reputation of this council alliance. You will be our first introduction to the world and I cannot tell you how important it is to me and my Nation that you hold this fact seriously."

"I wish that we had more time to allow you to investigate these new assets appropriately. Though my own people are by habit more ambitious than some of our fellow Elves, even we like to know what we have at our disposals before we rush into situations of import, but as you know already thanks to the loose words of one of your own number your first mission is a pressing one with an element of limited time. I must ask you to go forth immediately, this very day, to rescue the children of our potential first allies. Go, and safe journey my young friends." She makes a slight gesture toward the door and several soldiers take up the gear that had been left out there before disappearing down the stairs.

[Kal'esrïl Melarn]

Kal'esril grins and makes a deft movement that places the courtblade's sheath across his back. "I will do you proud Mother." He turns on his heel and moves out the doorway, turning sharply left and disappearing down the stairs behind their gear and the guards. "Last one on a lizard is a Halfling!"

(ST: This will be continued in the adventure thread with a starting ST post, post your exit and look to the future!)

[Auroa]

Her face a mask of impassiveness, Auroa nods bowing to the matron
and the ambassadors then she floats out of the chamber.
Once out of the chamber and hopefully out of the counsels ear shot. She giggles at Kals taunt and hurriedly floats to catch up with him

[Ilyrana Sevayni]

Ilyrana was comforted by the fact Kal'esril had filled them in on some of the details, so that at least she was prepared for the fact they'd be leaving immediately. To Hallistra she nodded at the words.

She took a breath, and let it out slowly as Kal took off, followed by the Star Elf. She quirked the corner of her lip slightly as he made his declaration, but did not rush off. There was a quick matter to be settled. Ilyrana took up the old worn staff she'd laid on the floor in her off hand, and took a handful of steps to where her mentor stood. "I promise you, you will not be disappointed in me, and that I'll return. Be well."

With that, she offered Amelie the staff. In their culture when something wasn't of use it was passed down or another use was found. Leaving this piece of nature, that had served her well for a time, on the floor would have been most....distressing, and an insult to it.

Once that matter was settled, she turned on a sharp heel and set off, feet barely making a sound as she followed the others.