New Devils For A Darker Age (Private)

[DaGlobster]

You find yourselves standing side by side in a line, in the throne room within the royal palace inside the grand city of Polotskia, the capital city of Vazdovistok. The room itself is a testament to the wealth of the royalty. The massive carpet you stand on is composed of the finest velvet, and the walls are lined with tapestries, all of which depict great battles, fought during much happier times.

The floor is a clean, white marble, and the same goes for the columns that line the room. Ahead of you, is King Dardka Kailovich himself, sitting in a magnificent looking throne made of a single piece of marble, and wearing an exquisitely made set of plate armor. It has a golden sheen to it, and is adorned with a large purple cape and a bonnet of feathers on the helmet. To his left and his right, stands a knight, armored similarly to the king and carrying firearms in their hands, with two handed swords on their backs. They eye you menacingly, but remain stoic and straight.

Standing at the foot of the throne is a goblin, his face concealed by his large hood. The goblin carries a staff that at the very end is shaped like a crescent moon with a wicked smile on it.

The more perceptive characters will notice that there is a small badge that stands out on his robe among the various talismans attached to it.

The badge is that of High Court Wizard.

Zinder stared out from the base of the throne at the assortment of individuals that had been chosen. He looked bored, and was playing with a little flame in his hands, the bright orange and yellow snaking between his fingers. King Dardka nodded at him, and he sprung to work, adopting an orator's voice as he raised his arm and staff.  "King Dardka Kailovich, ruler by divine right of all Vlazdovistok, welcomes you to his palace!" He yelled out,  making himself and his scratchy voice heard. "You, either through distinction, profession, or history..." He trailed off, looking at Lukas for a few moments.

"...have been chosen by King Dardka for a special mission, in which the very future of the realm lies at stake. If you accept, you will come with me for briefing. If you refuse...well...let's leave that for speculation." He continued, and carefully stepped down the marble steps towards the lined up adventurers. He seemed to be awaiting an answer.

[blakethedestroyer]

Oleg respectfully kneels down bowing his head to Zinder , and announces "I am honored that you have chosen my my lord, and i will gladly do this 'special' mission to the best of my ability, and i hope that my peers follow suit"

After speaking he gets back up and smiles warmly to the men next to him and remains silent

[Wicked Basket]

Lukas observed the large, lavish throne room. He was not impressed. Having been an angel, he had seen the glorious and magnificent halls of his, now former, master and they were much more impressive than what any mortal could do. The same attitude was directed towards the way the king and his knights dressed. It was second rate compared to the glorious uniform he had once worn long ago.

It wasn't long before some scratchy-voiced goblin began speaking, welcoming them all to the castle. As he spoke the goblin gave a small pause after looking in Lukas' direction which he returned with a small scowl. Typical mortal judging by appearances alone.

As the goblin finished his spiel, he asked if they were willing to accept. He had not come right out and actually asked the question, but the question was obviously implied. The man next to him spoke first, readily accepting the mission. What a fool. He didn't even know what the mission was and yet he blindly accepts. Lukas was not that stupid.

"What kind of mission is this exactly and why should I care," Lukas asked flatly.

[Alegretto]

Viatrus, distracted as he was by the majesty of his surroundings, was only paying half attention to the court magician. He was only broken out of his considerations when a different voice came to him, from one of the men next to him.

He reviewed the conversation this far in his head, and was about to respond when the other  man began speaking. The halfling had been ready to proclaim his acceptance of the quest, most people of his station never questioned the decrees of royalty, let alone refused them, but he wasn't sure what to do after another of his group pose a question. So he did what he usually did in a tricky situation. He stayed quiet an watched.

[DaGlobster]

( By the way, Wicked, the guy addressing you is a goblin, not a man)

Zinder nodded at Oleg, and said "Thank you, Guardsman." With Lukas' reply, however, his eyes locked on to the ex-angel, and he frowned slightly. This kind of crap is exactly why Zinder suggested not bringing Lukas along, but the king had insisted on it.

"The mission's details are not for discussion until you agree. As to why you should care, allow me to repeat myself. This city is the last true fortress of man against the demon incursion, which you of all people should know the significance of. The fate of Polotskia, and therefore the fate of the world is hanging over the edge by its toes. When the demons capture all of this, your Lord's kingdom is sure to follow, Fallen Angel."

Zinder took a few moments to let his words sink in, dauntlessly standing a couple feet away from Lukas as he stared up at his face.

[blakethedestroyer]

Oleg looks towards Zinder wide eyed and says "A fallen angel, are you sure this is wise my lord, he has already acted against his master before to who knows what extent, and you are trusting him with the fate of the kingdom!"

[Wicked Basket]

Lukas' scowl became more pronounced as the man next to him spoke up a second time, now questioning Lukas' presence.

"I was fighting demons before your mother was even born, boy," Lukas snarled. "And unless you've got well over a century of fighting experience like I do, you'd do well to keep your mouth shut."

Lukas then turned and looked down on the goblin.

"As for you, I'll help you mortals on your little escapade, but know this; I don't fight for your kingdom, I fight against the demons."

[blakethedestroyer]

Oleg turns his head towards Lukas " I have no doubt in your ability in slaying demons, just i feel like we should know more before trusting you with the fate humanity, shouldn't we at least know how he acted against his master or something that would give us a reason to trust him"

[Wicked Basket]

"The fact that you are still breathing should be reason enough," Lukas spat. "I used to be angel. I've already been in control of the fate of humanity and, seeing as you're standing here right now, I think I've done a pretty good job. And while we're on the subject of qualifications, what makes you qualified to fight demons? Have you ever even seen one before?"

[blakethedestroyer]

"im unsure why they have chosen me, i am a decent fighter but not someone who would be chosen with the fate of the world, but i was once a guard and the most honest one in the town. As for the part about the demons, i helped take one down after it broke into the city, though im not sure how well i would have fared if i was not with my companions"

[DaGlobster]

Zinder stepped forward, an exasperated look on his face. "That's enough outta both of you. Oleg, you were chosen because you displayed great bravery in that battle, almost heroic. Men who show no cowardice in the face of demons are rare, Oleg. You're one of the few." He said, and glared at Lukas. "You'd be wise to not antagonize your future comrades, Lukas." He commented, and started walking towards a large pair of double doors.

"Come with me, I'll brief you on your mission."

[Alegretto]

Viatrus watched with relief as the Goblin reprimanded to two other members of their motley group. He had been worried that those two would go on all day, and that would be a terrible start to what frankly was probably going to be a terrible mission anyway.

When Zinder started walking away, the Halfling was quick to follow, he caught up with the goblin a spoke quietly to the wizard, "so why was I picked, sir?"

[blakethedestroyer]

"I apologize for being suspicious lukas, though i still have a bit of doubt i hope that you make a great ally" Says Oleg not wanting to create a rocky relation with his companions, as he follows Zinder

[Wicked Basket]

Lukas ignored the human and simply followed the goblin to wherever he was leading them. The sooner they got this mission over with the better.

[DaGlobster]

Zinder glanced at Viatrus as he came up beside him. Seeing as how the halfling was the only one who hadn't annoyed him thus far, Zinder decided to humor his question.

"You? Your pick was an interesting one. The king, in his wisdom, came to realize that a group comprised solely of great warriors would be doomed to failure. He realized we needed someone with savvy, quick, and light on their feet. I suggested a courier, and the rest is history." He said, his voice carrying absolutely none of the pomp that a court wizard's voice should. In fact, Zinder had been nothing but informal.

After about a minute of walking through the richly decorated halls, they came across a large pair of double doors. With little more than a tap of his staff, the doors slowly opened, allowing entry into the palace's vast library. Ahead of them, occupying a clearing in the bookshelves, was a large reading table, circular in shape. Spaced evenly around it were four chairs. Three ordinary ones, and one plush, velvet lined chair. Zinder accomodated himself into the velvet chair, and beckoned for the others to sit down.

[Alegretto]

The reasoning appeared sound to Viatrus, and he smiled, relieved at the wisdom behind the decision to assign him to the team. He'd been worried about it, especially after he met his companions. Their strength made him feel insecure, but he found himself now reassured.

The halfling followed the Goblin into the library, and sat when directed. He had to climb into the chair meant for someone significantly taller than him, and his legs, didn't even come close to reaching the floor after taking the seat. "So what now?" he asked the court magician with genuine curiosity.

[Wicked Basket]

Lukas was, again, unimpressed with the lavish décor. The halls and library of his former master were still far more breathtaking than what these mortals could manage. He took a seat at the table while fighting the urge to tell that snobby goblin that he felt that he deserved to sit in the fancy chair considering that he would be a major asset to this mission and was better than all of them.

[DaGlobster]

Zinder took one final glance around the table, and began to speak, resting his elbows against the table and clasping his hands together.

"I'm not gonna lie about this, gentlemen. It's bad. The demon's aren't conforming to the sorts of behavior we thought they were going to. Rather than wiping out towns, they're capturing them. They're breeding the villagers like cattle, sacrificing them to bring more of their into our plane. Several viages have been lost already, and if we don't curb this advance early, all of Vlazdovistok will be lost under an unholy tide, and then, the world. But..." He paused, and snapped his fingers. A large scroll appeared in a puff of smoke and white fire, and laid itself onto a table.

It was a map of the local area within a couple hundred miles. The city of Polotskia was clearly marked, and then there was a unnamed castle-type structure circled with thick, black ink.

"Inside their strategy is an inherent weakness. The demons need a stable portal into our plane, and a place to sacrifice their prisoners. They've taken over the ruins of Castle Bludgrad, and turned it into their center of operations. It's a two week journey by foot from here, but we will be providing a carriage that will cover most of the distance. You need to infiltrate Castle Bludgrad, and physically destroy the portal."

He took a second to breathe.

"Any questions?"

[Wicked Basket]

Despite how he felt about the goblin, Lukas paid close attention to what he said about the demons. He had heard of demons doing things like this before, but the method in which they were doing it was certainly different. Breeding humans didn't make much sense. Humans took quite awhile to have children. What was so important that the demons would be willing to wait for all of that to happen? Whatever it was it must be very big and very bad.

"Those demons will wish they remained in hell," Lukas said simply.

[blakethedestroyer]

"Sounds like a plan, have no worries they will stand no chance against us" Oleg boasted as he smiled to both of his companions glad that they seemed to share his eagerness to combat the beasts that they would meet during their mission