Success at Last (Mousetrap)

Maurissen Blacktooth was invited to be the representative of her Collective in Pact. On a whim, she decided not to mention that Pact most likely had a higher-ranking member of Blacktooth already living there, and accepted the invitation openly. She slowly became a staple of the court’s politics, and phased out her heavy use of illusion magic entirely. Even when the Blacktooth’s representative did notice her position, he was esctatic instead of angry – they’d never before been represented in the royal court of Archos. Her opening night as a performer in Blackwash was received well, her arduous singing lessons paying off.

Noble Considerations (BrieCS)

When they returned to Pact, Ursula was rewarded by the King with a Keep at Far Point, and the accompanying title of Earl. She was terribly excited by the idea, and made immediate plans to go to the Keep with surveyors.

The land at Far Point was like a blank canvas, expansive and cold. There were mountains and plains and a shore with a village. When Ursula reached it, she was in awe of it’s fantastic possibilities. Her surveyors discovered that the mountains had great possibilities for diamond mining, and she commissioned Dwarven miners from the Valley of the Nord, as well as stonecutters, general labourers, carpenters, and numerous other talented workers to begin cleaning up Far Point and develop it to it’s full potential – nearly doubling the population of the small fishing village.

She arranged for work to be done at specific times throughout the year for all elements of the keep – new cooks and feasts, new guards, and architects and engineers to plan developments for the keep. Not only does she intend to enlarge the keep and build lodgehouses, but she intends to mine for diamonds and work out a trade agreement with New Andar that is more beneficial than their other diamond trades. She also intends to open the High Pass, with the help of Damien Ortra (the Black Judge).

Strange Reunions (jimtheduckie)

Arriving in Pact proved once again that teleports are not reliable. Terasian Goldbraid and Lady Adalia and the horse found themselves inside the attic of a poor tavern. After a rather uncomfortable period of time, a set of carpenters built a ramp for the horse to come down, and lured it down with a carrot. Finding himself in “Mud Valley”, the slums of the city, he made haste to get to somewhere that didn’t look like it would tear him apart as soon as night fell. Terasian was approached by a “salesman” with a cart, which held a fine magical longsword. He didn’t think twice of buying it for a mere 600 gold, though Adalia questioned how such a poor man could come across something worth so much.

Terasian found his way to Naufin Mannpurtz, whom he was told to speak with. Shortly after introductions were made in the inn, none other than Stavron Murra walked in the exact same door. A short discussion between Stavron and Naufin resulted in the Earl leaving the premise, though learning for the first time that Adalia was missing from home, he was undoubtedly suspicious of the Elf. If that coincidence wasn’t enough, Reynard, in the form of a bizarre foreigner, sat down beside Ter after the encounter, asking him how he was doing. Fearing that he might have been caught, he chatted pleasantly with the doppleganger, and learned that after leaving Blackwash the city became a hellhole, and that Reynard had made off with a sizable portion of his foolish “family’s” gold. Glad to see no direct harm was inevitable, he began plotting once again to use the doppleganger’s talents to their fullest.

Pact (BrieCS)

After she returned to Pact, she spent quite a bit of time working on the necessary letters and requests that needed to be sent out. She then, in a very tired state, spoke to Duke Francis Deepwell about obtaining a ship after she gifted him with the stone finger she had taken from Duke Murra. In her somewhat exhausted state, she lost some of her usual ability to make a sound agreement, but it seemed to work out alright nonetheless, due in part to his remorse over the attempt on her sister’s life.

She left for Blackwash a few days later to enjoy her wedding to Damien Ortra, which was a beautiful event planned by Maurissen Blacktooth. There were a few gorgeous gifts, including a bloodstone necklace gifted to her by Prince Karrel Gristuk, and after the wedding, Damien had them teleported to Pact for their honeymoon.

Transformations (BrieCS)

A few days into the honeymoon, they went to the University of the Archmage to have the ritual transformations performed that infused them with the power of the earth and made them both half-giants. The Court following was entertaining, as they were still getting used to their new, larger stature.

Price of Success (Mousetrap)

Despite things going so well, Maurissen began to lose focus and interest. Previously she worried over intoxication, fearing she would lose control of her terrible stone gaze. Now, she no longer seemed to care, drinking freely. After leaving court one day, she was met with the news that the gypsy clan that cursed her mother had been found, and were in the city of Pact itself. She rushed to see them, meeting with the oldest of them. It appeared that what was a curse to her mother was supposed to be a blessing to her. She wasn’t sure. Her issues of identity were resolved, however, when the old gypsy revealed that she hadn’t the power to give or remove the “Snake curse” – only her mother had. Maurrisen, feeling she was in their debt one way or another, offered her services should they ever be needed, and left as quickly as she came.

Unlikely Allies (BrieCS)

At that evening’s Court, Ursula stood in support of ‘Elren Goodsoul’, vouching for his good intentions in kidnapping Lady Adalia. Afterwards, Damien planned to go to Far Point to oversee the keep, while she looked into the upcoming Spring Tournament. She plans to join all of the events, but will correspond with her new husband on the progress at Far Point.

Clearing His Name (jimtheduckie)

Ter’s first goal was to clear out his, or rather, ‘Elren’s’ name. Naufin said she would vouch for him at court, though she would not agree to bring him along. He also received a request from Stavron Murra. Speaking with the man, he received a full pardon for previous transgressions and the offer to assist in speaking with the king to pardon kidnapping Adalia. He did request that Ter leave the girl be though, and while the wealth she carried still enticed him, he decided that path would not likely bear any fruit, and accepted.

At the court, prior to his own audience with the king, it was revealed that a string of grave robberies had been reported, and most notably stolen was a magic sword called “Kingmaker”. Putting two and two together wasn’t difficult, and the path which led him to a sword which could cast Charm Person suddenly seemed a bit more incriminating. It’s not that he objected to grave robbing, but it wasn’t something he wanted to be associated with directly. His own audience went smoothly though, and with the help of Stavron, Ursula, and Naufin, he was absolved of any transgressions.

Absolution (IceBob – GM)

King Denar II absolved Elren Goodsoul of any crime for his involvement in the alleged abduction of Lady Adalia Murra (daughter of the now-deceased Duke of Blackwash), further declaring that if any sought to revenge themselves on him for this action, they would be declared in open rebellion against the throne.