The tavern door opens.

[BeccaH]

A Lizaedman female enters the tavern. Her clothes are tatters and scraps, her dirty feet unshod, and the only jewelry that can be seen is a tarnished copper torque around her neck. Her skin is stretched tightly over the thin bones of her face, sunken under her cheekbones and her tightly closed eyes. Her scales are dull, and cracked, and pitted, as if they have been weathered for centuries.

The only spots of color come from the shiny iridescent feathers that line her withered arms, and the vials of potions hanging from her frayed rope belt and the poorly made wooden pack on her back.

The woman’s apparent poverty is belied by the two guards that follow her with what seems to be great respect and attention. They seem young, healthy, very strong and are adorned with expensive looking enameled metal helms (one shaped as a jaguar head, the other the head and beak of a colorful bird), stout shields, and well crafted swords.

With her eyes still shut, the scaly hag walks unimpeded to the center of the room, crouches to the floor, hands moving as if they are feeling something in the air. With a satisfied sound, she nods, removes her pack and settles into a meditative position, essentially ignoring everything else in the room.

The two guards stand in an “at ease” guard posture on either side of the woman. They also ignore almost everything in the tavern, and make no move to stop anyone from talking to the hag, but interposing themselves quickly and quietly between anyone who gets within arms reach of her.

[Chris Lynch]

Sir Ash sizes up the lizardmen as they enter and after they get settled he moves over to speak to the female.

"Hello, I'm Sir Ash.  What brings a group of lizardmen out and about today in the Oasis?"

[RT]

Davkil looks at the lizardmen as the come in and then as Sir Ash speaks to the new comers, Davkil speaks up...

"Don't listen to anything he has to say lizard people, he is a dirty dirty necromancer."

[Chris Lynch]

The elf walks over to Davkil and speaks quietly. (pm)

[RT]

The elf walks over to Davkil and speaks quietly. (pm)

Davkil listens and responds in turn

[BeccaH]

Still ignoring anything and anyone in the tavern, the old woman runs her hands across the floor, as if smoothing away the dirt, then spits in the middle of the cleared section. Her eyes still closed, she pulls vials from the pack, sprinkling the contents randomly on the floor. The combined smells of the solutions create a noxious, nose burning, eye watering stench.

Reaching over to one of the guards, she pulls a silver dagger from his boot sheath. With a firm neat stroke, she slices her hand open (Astrology, right down the fate line) and cups her hand so the blood wells to fill it. As her cupped hand fills with blood, she slaps it down on the floor so that splattered blood covers the other substances.

Slowly, a blue fog rises from the mixture, filling the tavern and flowing out the windows and doors to briefly cover the visible area. The eye watering stench is replaced with a familiar, pleasant smell, reminding you of one of the happiest moments of your life (your mothers baking, your lovers perfume, etc.)

As the fog clears, the woman opens her eyes, and glares at the glowing blueish black glyphs on the floor that slowly fade to nothingness, leaving only a section of clean floor.

The only sound is the quiet growling hiss of the hag cursing a blue streak.

[Jessi]

A little dustier then when she left, Emerald steps back inside from the porch.

She approaches the lizardman group but stays several paces away from any of its members.

She inclines her head respectfully toward the woman but does not interrupt her cursing.

[Chris Lynch]

As the scene unfolds Sir Ash turns from Davkil and breathes the air in deeply and frowns slightly.  "That's familiar.  Its been years."  The elf then crouches near the lizardwoman and watches as she continues, his hand grasping his chest.

[BeccaH]

The woman finally manages to formulate understandable words "Three thousand, two hundred and twenty seven years. Thousands of  lives. Sacrifices from  every Amrothian. For WHAT! Tell me what you gain from DESTROYING our world?!!!'

[JillyBean]

Tari bursts in through the doors not long after Emerald "Bacon! I smell bacon and.." she takes in another deep breath "And..." the elf blushes "Mmmhhh! Who has it? I want it in and around my mouth!" she walks up next to Emerald about to say something when she notices the lizardman woman on the floor. She opens her mouth as if to say something but instead closes it again and listens politely.

[Chris Lynch]

"Davkil! Be polite and give the lady an answer, ya big heroic necro hating......lich bringer-backing?......Star King ressurection ritual defending?.....guy...person."  SIr Ash stands and takes a seat near Tari and Emerald.

[RT]

Davkil looks at Ash and laughs out loud before responding...

"Ya know, Ash, you have one thing right of all that you listed. I do hate me some necromancers. The funny thing is that you are a part of a group who was suckling the teats of the Star King not too long ago... so, the question that really needs answering is this: are you more angry that I helped put the Star King in a form that could be killed OR are you more upset that you and your group lost the Star King parts that you had and the powers that came with them?"

[Jessi]

Emerald sighs, looks at Tari and shakes her head then looks at Davkil. 

She speaks in a low calm voice.  "Davkil, the Red and Black have always stood against the Star King.  We do not want the power of the Star King anymore than Camalie did. 

As far as the Star King needing to be reformed, that is only according to this prophesy" Emerald points at the wall, "which I have told people we are not bound to.  That is the real reason NANG would not tell us the truth about what they were doing.  They knew we were looking for alternatives to playing out this puppet show.

Had we taken the time to work together as a town and gather the resources we need to face this threat and summoning him been our only option in the end that would have been one thing. Now we have no solid way to defeat him and very limited time to put our longshot plans into action.  We are forced into a corner with the fate of the world now our responsibility. 

We have spent the past year fighting him at only a minimum of his power.  Now we face a war against his full force and his full army and we are scrambling to keep the few allies we have manage to acquire because they blame all of us for this betrayal.  Some now even see us as their enemies because they feel all served the Star King willingly instead of most of us simply putting our trust in the wrong people and unwittingly aiding him in his return. 

And don't try quoting the "greater good" line to me because the truth of that phrase means that a few people put their egos over the lives of the countless victims who will be lost over the next year. Are you going to save them Davkil? Tell me how you plan to defeat the Star King."

[Gerald]

Darken enters the tavern from the side door, looks around seeing the Red and Black he heads over. "What'cha talkin bout Emerald and what is that wonderful smell?

[Jessi]

"Davkil was accusing our group of working for the Star King while at the same time admitting to willingly putting him back together and unleashing the hell that is to come on all of Amroth."