[Log] Rebirth Height 4, lunch time!

[offyougonow]

Characters: King Erasmus the Utterly Unhelpful Randomly Biased and his reluctant loyal subjects!
Open? To all!
Where: The throne room in Schwanheim Castle. And possibly also the dinning room if you're late.
When: Just before lunch!


The castle in Schwanheim has two throne rooms. One is the type you would expect in these settings, an insanely ornate, intricately decorated work of art with a huge throne and stained glass and shining floors that echo when you walk down them. It's designed to humble and amaze those who would come and seek an audience with the king. It's also the type that gets aired out and dusted once a week and before important dignitaries and other royalty come for official visits.

The throne room that the King is in is rather different. Rich wood paneling, a comfy cushioned throne, rugs that seem a shame to wear shoes on, well lit by windows, big enough to fit 200 people, but not so big that it feels empty when the king is sitting around with just his cloud of advisers and bodyguards, chatting conversationally with a small cluster of his subjects.

The queue of visitors is rather short today, so give the steward your name and any title you happen to have and have a seat in the comfortable chairs in the waiting area until you're called in.

Comments

[sorcerous]

"Loki," he tells the steward. "Liesmith. Silvertongue. And God of Mischief. And, as your king put it, the one with the odd sense of humor."

When he'd arrived, he'd felt empty. Every ounce of emotion drained out of him, expended in one burst like a star-nova in his fight with Thor. But this -- his quiet frustration, his anger is not gone. It lurks there still. He feels it, like seeing a dark shape flicker under murky water. There are demons buried in him that will not go away.

Perhaps it isn't the best idea to introduce himself this way. Perhaps he should attempt to portray himself as upright, honest, kind.

Like Thor?

No. Never. He will be Loki, or he will be no one.

[offyougonow]

The steward bows before opening the double door. "The Hero with the Sense of Humor, sire!" he calls.

"Right on time! Send him in, send him in!" came the resulting, all too cheerful reply.

With another small bow, the steward steps back, holding the door open, a small quirk of a smile on his face.

It would appear that whatever impression was going to be made had already been in their first conversation.

[sorcerous]

Meanwhile, Loki is going to keep a ready eye out for anyone who looks a bit less self-indulgent than the king. There must be a proper ruler here, even if it is just a power behind the throne.

He sweeps in, and, though it galls him, kneels before the king's throne and salutes with a fist over his heart. He moves to his feet without being asked or given leave, which is the most show of disrespect he can manage, as one trained to behave as a proper Prince of Asgard.

"Loki Silvertongue," he announces himself. Not Odinson; not Laufeyson. This is a name he has earned. "I have come to ask you of the menace that threatens your land."

[offyougonow]

The king nods, getting to his feet to stand properly. "It is a thing that the greatest scholars of the land have never heard the likes of before, a great thick of thorns and darkness that is slowly devouring out lands." There's a far more official tone as he speaks, as if the weight of the matter has made him more serious. "The best of my kingdom have been at it's borders, keeping it at bay, but it still continues to grow, eluding all of our attempts to contain and defeat it. The lands that it have covered have been lost, and all attempt to reach those who were in those lands have failed."

"So we have called on you, hero from another world, to seek out the source of this great plague to our land and destroy it so that peace may return to my people."

[sorcerous]

Hero. How tragic that they caught him in their fingers rather than Thor.

Then again, when did Thor ever bother to open a book?

"And as the birds fly," Loki asks. "Do they avoid the menace or travel freely above?"

[offyougonow]

The king looks over to one of his cloud of advisers, an aged man with a cane.

"Have to ask the soldiers that. Been far more worried about them on the ground than any flying things," the adviser shrugged. "Though it didn't seem to much like the catapult, so I don't think the birds'd do much better."

[sorcerous]

Loki makes careful note of that man. It will be worthwhile to speak with him alone, later, if he is the one the king looks to first.

"The catapult?" He questions.

[offyougonow]

The adviser raises a wrinkled eyebrow. "You know, them things that launch rocks and such? Heavy duty slingshot kinda deal."

[sorcerous]

"A surprising use indeed," says Loki, dryly. "I was asking what was done with it, and how it reacted."

[offyougonow]

"Oh. Right," the elderly man nods, shifting slightly so that his bones creaked. "Never can tell with you newcomers.." he mutters half under his breath, shaking his head.

"Well, the first time we tried it, it was that ball of burning brush, and it just swallowed it all up like it was nothing. Tried another and the dang thing started growing like crazy out to where the catapult was. Nearly got that poor Oswin fellow in the process. Horrible mess that was," he sighed, shaking his head.

[sorcerous]

And Loki gives a little laugh, at that. "Fair enough," he says, "though when you have walked the Nine Realms, as I have, there is little you have never seen."

He listens, frowns, nods. He has tangled -- heh -- with enchantments of thorns before. A sort of enchantment he could have defeated, were he at full strength.

"Then it responds to attack," he says. "I believe a first step will be to see where the birds fly, and perhaps take wing myself to see what may be seen."

He glances to the King, inclines his head, as a slight gesture of respect, and turns to face the advisor. "What else has been tried?"

[offyougonow]

The elderly man pondered, absentmindedly tapping his staff. "Let me see now... grows back when you slice it, doesn't burn..."

"It nearly made that poor mage kid cry when his spell didn't work too," one of the younger advisers pipped up. He was one of the only ones sitting, despite looking no older than 30.

[sorcerous]

No doubt Loki could do better than a boy, but that wasn't the point, was it?

He paces a few steps, lean and tense. There's something of the wolf about him.

And he turns to the King.

"Your Majesty," he says, "you have already lost this battle. You cannot fight an enemy with a thousand arms, an enemy that does not suffer loss or pain. People may be killed, but the seeds of plants carry on the wind. You will never be able to rid yourself of this menace."

He pauses.

"Unless you find the source," he says. "Either there is some intelligence guiding this, or there is something to prompt the growth that we now see.

"So I ask you. Would you rather the heroes you find fight a battle they will lose, to protect your kingdom as long as possible, or find a way to learn the cause of the thorns?"

[offyougonow]

There's a very pleased look on the king's face as Loki talks. "The idea is to have enough heroes so we can have both; The smart ones to the source, the strong ones to hold up the wall so that we don't have any more casualties in the meanwhile." His eyes twinkle slightly. "I think it's very clear where your greatest strength lies."

[sorcerous]

And Loki's steps still.

"Perhaps, then, there is some wisdom to you after all."

A breath.

"In Asgard, I was a trusted adviser to the King." This is a lie, but he delivers it with the same equanimity as he has all else. It isn't so far from the truth, is it? -- He could easily have fallen into that role, with Thor.

"I hope that, in time, I can find the same is true here."

[offyougonow]

"Advisers I have in abundance," the King grinned, gesturing to the cloud of people around him. "It'd be pretty foolish to reach out to another world just to pull in another one. No, your role should be something far greater, if you are up to the task. I look forward to hearing of your great triumph against this great evil!"

[sorcerous]

"And I hope we do not find your faith is ill-placed."

He gives another bow.

He believes this concludes the audience.

[offyougonow]

"I'm sure you won't disappointment me," was the pleasant return before the king turned to sit back down on his throne to await his next visitor.

[schrien_die_raben]

"Princess Rue," she announces, sweeping in wearing all of her royal finery, crown included. She objects to being seated at first, but seeing that the king is already speaking with someone else, she settles herself in on an ornate chair, looking peeved.

I hadn't meant to start this all in present tense, yet somehow did.. :D

[offyougonow]

The steward gave a small bow, waiting for the right moment before announcing her arrival.

"Hello, my dear!" the king greets with a happy smile. "So nice of you to stop by! What can I do for you?"

Roll with it, present tense is magical

[schrien_die_raben]

Rue does not return his smile, but begins immediately, terse and polite.

"I want to know what you can tell me about West Haven," she says. "I am traveling there with a group tomorrow, and the villagers are too afraid to speak of it."

[offyougonow]

"Ah, West Haven. Tragic, really," he lamented for a brief moment. "It's a small town, less than a day's ride from here. Wasn't anything special about it until everyone vanished from it. It's not even near the border of Thorns!"

[schrien_die_raben]

"Nothing special?" she presses. "Nothing at all that you can recall?"

[offyougonow]

"Nothing at all. It must have been a very pleasant little town, there's not a single complaint from them in the records."

[goldeneyeball]

James had been skulking around the castle for the better part of the day. He was lost, hungry, cranky, and he felt a headache blooming right between his eyes. He eventually came to notice a line. Sometimes lines meant free things. If anything it would give him some clue as to what to do with himself in this place...or at least give him an outlet to complain to someone.

As he approached an eel of unease twisted in his stomach. The last time he'd stood in line he'd been zapped to the Land of Whatthefuckever. He wasn't entirely sure that wouldn't happen again.

"JW. Wizard or Something." he announced himself.

[offyougonow]

The steward bowed, walking over and pushing open the double doors. "JW, the Wizard of Something!" he announced before stepping aside with flourish to let the man go by.

"Greetings, o wizard!" the king greeted with booming enthusiasm. "And what may I help you with?"

[goldeneyeball]

JW had started to look at the furnishings around him with a half-interested gaze when the steward announced him word-for-word. He face-palmed. Some days it just wasn't worth getting out of bed. He entered the throne room and eyed the king for a good long while before straightening up.

"I want to go home." There. That sounded nice and direct. Surely there wouldn't be any confusion...

[offyougonow]

Non at all.

"Well, I guess that's only to be expected. However, it's a good deal trickier sending you back than bringing you here, you do understand! Are you prepared to face that task?"

[goldeneyeball]

"What task? And why do you want me?" He jabbed a thumb at himself. "I got stuff to do back home. There's a little old lady in Hawksaw who isn't going to have any eggs to bake with this afternoon and it's all because of you."

[offyougonow]

"Surely you must be a great hero if your loss to your home would leave such a state of disarray!" It was said with such sincerity that it was nai impossible to tell if it was sarcasm or not.

[goldeneyeball]

...Was this guy for real? JW's face falls and his arms dangle slack by his sides.

"Buh." Very intelligent. He shook himself. "Fine, whatever, what do you want me to do? Kill a dragon? Find some ring? Get a kitten out of a tree?"

As much as he hated cats, he really hoped it was the kitten thing.

[offyougonow]

"You see, the great evil that's currently devouring the land is also getting in the way of our efforts to return people back home. The fastest way you can get back to your dreary life back home is to help find a way to stop that interference so we can get you right back where you were."

[goldeneyeball]

The great wizard of something or other's shoulders sagged.

"Oh."

That was...most certainly not a kitten.

He rubbed the back of his neck and grimaced. That headache had only gotten worse. "So, ah...what am I supposed to do about it? I can't...bake it away. I don't have a shotgun with me...I don't think."

He took a moment to look up his sleeves. The only things he had were the hat they'd given him and a button he'd picked up off the floor. Nope. No shotgun. Only disappointment.

"Yer honor, I think you mighta made a mistake...you won't cut my head off for sayin' that, will you?"

[offyougonow]

"Surely you must have some great power! You're a wizard, aren't you?" the King pointed out with a grin. "And never fear, beheading are saved for much more serious crimes."

"Like Ed's horrible caterwauling in the middle of the night the other day!" piped up one of the advisers in the back of the cloud, resulting in raucous laughter from both the king and the advisers.

[goldeneyeball]

"I...guess so." He held his arms out to show off the purple robes he'd been gifted with. "But I don't know anything about magic."

He stopped complaining when 'Ed' was mentioned. James swallowed hard. He didn't want to be like whoever Ed was. He liked his head right where it was!

[offyougonow]

"Well, you have the robes, don't you? Surely that's half the battle!" the king grinned cheerfully, not at all realizing that the jest had been taken seriously.

[goldeneyeball]

James just stood there awkwardly, regretting setting foot outside his door more and more.

Were the robes magic? He doubted it. They didn't feel very magic. And they were too short for him. Without excusing himself, the Wizard or Something turned and started trudging back the way he came. 8C He had some...books to read. He hoped there were large-print versions.