07.08b: Skin Deep

[Draylen]

Aibne shrugs a little, walking briskly to keep up with her. "I can if you want me to; why is it such a big deal, though?" he asks, a little confused. "People with power make showings of that power all the time, I thought. Morek does much the same when he does his Festivals, it's just a different kind of power."

[Wyvern]

"If this is something Dworkin arranged, that's one thing. But I wouldn't expect it to be... remember, we have Odin here, and most likely others who have been... less well announced. Should it come to conflict, any ability we show him is something he'll know about and have a chance to try to account for. Or, if there is no tournament after people are expecting one... well, I've heard some mutterings of discontent as it is. So either way, this could be a potentially serious problem."

"Or it could be that I'm being overly paranoid, or over-reacting for... personal reasons, or etcetera. Which is why I asked your opinion."

[Draylen]

Aibne nods a little and purses his lips, thinking about it. "Well..." he says slowly, considering. "If the people are expecting a tournament, perhaps one should be had. But if people are expecting a showing of Power, perhaps they should be disappointed. Surely stone, steel, and sorcery would be nothing new to the people who are forcibly arranging it," he offers, looking at Alys. He's growing though, thinking hard about it.

[Wyvern]

"That is... not actually a bad idea," Alys grumbles.* "Still, that is not something we should simply decide without discussing it with others. I suggest that we bring this up with Morgana and let her decide what to do with it."

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* She's clearly not happy with it, though. Probably has something to do with those 'personal reasons' she mentioned.

[Draylen]

Aibne nods slowly. "Yes. It's a good thing to contact all of the others about, actually - just in case anyone does want to do it. If enough people do, perhaps nobody will notice you didn't," he offers, tilting his head.

[Joshua]

Priscilla* is in the main waiting room of the fort, being surrounded by a number of rather large orcs who are attempting to hit on her as she cringes.

Off to the side, the real Priscilla runs up to the two of you as you enter, leaving the illusion to fend for itself. "Thank you for seeing me. I was thinking about seeing if my family is still there, and if... If any of them want to come here."
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*: Amber Psyche? You can spot it.

[Wyvern]

Alys doesn't spare the illusion even a first glance*, turning immediately the real Priscilla. "Of course; a choice is all we can offer them."

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* Well, nothing beyond her initial scan of the room, at least.

[Draylen]

Aibne raises an eyebrow at the orcs, shaking his head slightly. "My apologies. We're really all not like that," he murmurs softly, shaking his head. He blinks slightly. "So, uh. How do we do this?"

[Wyvern]

"The first step is to talk to Morgana - regardless of how the trip goes, we want to be back here in time for the festivities this evening, and that means having someone with cards that's able to call us back. The second step is also talking to Morgana - I certainly don't know how to travel using Pattern. For that matter, I don't know how smooth a trip to expect - I know Dworkin could take us the entire distance in a short walk through an orchard, but he's had far more opportunity to practice. If it's not too bad, we can bring Priscilla along directly, and..."

Alys snaps her fingers, and a large black-and-red dog trots up*. "This is Tinder," Alys tells Priscilla. "If anything goes wrong, stick with him, and he can get you back to one of us - or to Amber, if it comes to that."

"Or," Alys turns back to Aibne, "If you trust her enough**, or Morgana tells us the trip is likely to be rough enough to be worth it, you could loan her your card and she could wait here until we let Morgana know that we've reached our destination."

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* Where was he hiding? How did he get here so quickly? These are things that the orcs - and Priscilla - are likely to miss; Aibne may note that the "dog" seems to have unfolded himself out of a corner, accompanied by a faint whiff of burnt sulfur.
** That Alys isn't suggested giving Priscilla her own card, suggests that she does not trust the selkie that much. Though why trust comes into it may not be immediately obvious to Aibne.

[Draylen]

"I-I um." Aibne blushes a little, rubbing the back of his neck. "I can't. I gave it to Father Lane to give to Ashara." He frowns a little, looking down. "S-sorry..." he says. "S-so, um. To Morgana, then?"