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Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo


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The Orc stood in front, as always. Larger than life, red-and-black enameled armor dripping blood, screaming as he led the charge, his enormous sword still gleaming with unnatural light, free from the blood that should by rights coated the entire surface. Her father should have burned him to a crisp and added the sword to his collection. But that wasn't what had happened in truth, and it wouldn't happen in the dream either.

Beside him was the second warrior. Small only by comparison with the orc, her blonde hair trailing behind her in a tight tail as her more slender blade danced. It, Luminita knew, didn't hold blood any better than the orc's had.

Behind were the two mages. One tall and pale, with thick brown hair and pointy ears, throwing lightning that tore through the air and left unspeakable claps of thunder behind. The other intense and angular, with black hair that was quickly going white, whose magics hadn't been visible.

And in the shadows, eyes glowing just before she attacked, the lithe little ginger su-ku-ta who had kept turning up in unexpected places.

Luminita knew each of their faces, burned forever into her memory. She'd had the dream a thousand times. The orc shouting orders and charging, while the others turned aside everything her father and her family could throw at him. Driving his sword through her father's mighty scales like a hot knife through butter. The casual ease with which she'd been thrown aside. The fade to darkness. And the scene of death and destruction as she'd...


Luminita woke up. It had been more than a month, and the dream was still as fresh as the first time, when it hadn't been a dream at all. Finally, though, her wounds were healed. And now she looked down at the town. It was the mortal settlement nearest her family's home, and in the direction the five had left, from what little she'd been able to put together after waking.

The walls were simple, but solid stone, and had the scars of battles long past all around their length. No buildings crowded the outside, not so much as a farmer's wall or a sapling for a hundred yards or more, and little enough beyond that. Inside houses were crowded together, some as old as the wall but none showing the same signs of damage. A single large gate stood open, facing Luminita. Armed men stood on each side, more visible as movement in the towers above the gate. They didn't seem to have seen the dragonkin yet, but it was only a matter of time if she kept approaching.
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita settled lightly onto her feet, wings folding behind her as she landed. The wait had been agonizingly long, it had felt to her like far longer than the month it had been, but she had finally recovered enough to travel. She could only hope that the trail had not gone cold in her delay. The memories of their faces had not faded since the attack, she had seen them every night since she'd awoken, half dead in her home. She still wasn't certain if she was the only survivor, she'd seen no sign of her sister and didn't know if her father could be restored... or what they'd been after in the first place.

She would find them though, she had to. For what they had done to her family, she could not settle for anything less than vengeance. She had little to go on, not even names, only memories of their faces and skills, and a rough idea of which direction they'd departed in with their prizes over a month prior. She could only hope they'd told stories of their exploits, or perhaps sold something she might recognize from her father's hoard. She had never had much interactions with humans other than her mother, but her mother had told her of how humans liked to tell stories.

For now, however, there was the matter of guards. She'd spotted them on her approach, though they'd made no indication of having spotted her yet. There were likely archers in the towers, so simply flying over the walls was likely to get her shot at. They had walls to keep things out, after all, so she'd concluded they probably wouldn't like someone going over them. That was why she was now approaching on foot, wings folded behind her but still easily visible, along with her horns and tail easily marking her as something not fully human to the guards at the gate she was now approaching. She wasn't certain if they'd try to stop her, tensing to spring into action should they prove unfriendly.

Still, she was here for information, and while she doubted these men could stop her, she wouldn't be able to stop to ask many questions if she had to fight her way through the town. She'd at least try to do things their way first. Giving them only a slight nod of acknowledgement if they met her eyes, she would stride purposefully straight toward the open gate, not halting unless they actively tried to stop her.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

There was a shuffling among the guards around the gate as Luminita approached, and after a moment two of them stepped forward, assuming a more official position, one on either side of the path. The one on the left put his hand on the hilt of a sword, saying ""Halt, who goes -" before cutting off as the one on the right hissed something too low for the dragonkin to hear.

"Well fine, if you say so..." He turned back to Luminita, hand reluctantly moving from his hilt to his hip. The other guard, who as the silver-haired woman approached she was able to see was an orc - though definitely not the one she was looking for - spoke. "Welcome to Arrowpoint, dragonblooded. Do you...?"

He seemed to want to ask something, but neither guard actively barred the dragonkin's path, so she continued past them and through the gate. Inside was a moderately sized town. Down either side of the main street seemed to be shops - some displaying wares in front, others with only painted signs. Half a dozen smaller streets branched out, mostly bordered by cramped houses. The streets were much busier than Luminita was perhaps used to, but far from crowded, with one or two dozen people moving about on their midday errands.

From the sounds coming from behind her, at least one of the guards had followed her through the gate, though with no great urgency.
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita glanced curiously at the guards for a moment as they conversed quietly, but quickly turned away once she realized they weren't going to try to stop her. She gave little mind to their words as she passed, striding straight through the gate. She'd considered stopping to ask about the group she was searching for, but she'd dismissed it as a waste of time. She'd be better off seeking somewhere people were more likely to gather, perhaps tell stories.

She quickly found herself disoriented by the sheer mass of people around her. In truth, the streets were far from crowded, but there were still more people than she could ever remember having seen in one place in her life. She'd rarely ventured out of the mountains of her home, and the only settlements she'd ever visited were small villages, not towns of this size.

She'd noticed someone following her soon after passing through the gates, but paid it no mind as she scanned the buildings lining the streets for any sign that might indicate an inn or tavern, or anywhere people might gather to relax. If they had something to say to her, they could do so, but she wouldn't stop for them without reason. She did have some of what she believed was proper local currency, no more than a handful of golden coins taken from what remained of her father's hoard, so she could afford to stay if she needed to, though she'd much prefer simply learning what she needed and being on her way once again.

Pausing as a man pushed a cart through an intersection in front of her, Luminita gripped the fragment of a horn hanging from a simple string around her neck, trying to calm her mind and focus on the task at hand. It wouldn't do to get ahead of herself, she needed to find somewhere to gather the information she needed before she could worry about what to do with it. She flexed her wings slightly, almost unconsciously as she considered taking to the air once again to speed up her search, but the town's signs all seemed to be designed to be seen from ground level, so she quickly decided she'd only make it harder to identify the building she was looking for if she did so.

Again, she considered asking for directions, but quickly pushed the thought aside. There was no reason she should need to ask for aid for something so simple, she was bound to find what she sought soon enough if she continued her search. It stood to reason that such gathering places should be in a central location, so following the main street should be enough to find one before long, she hoped.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The center of the town - or as close as Luminita was likely to get without an aerial view - was a large square, with a few trees planted in fenced-off flower beds. There was a small ampetheater that looked like it was exactly intended for telling stories, but perhaps not quite the sort that would lead the dragonkin to her father's killers. And it was empty at the moment in any case, a few people milling around it, but nobody on the stage.

But surrounding the square was a modest market, full of people buying and selling food and trinkets out of carts, more permanent stalls, and full shops, with windows full of merchandise. Everything the town had been near the gate seemed to be concentrated here. It was much louder, and almost impossible to move through the thickest parts without pushing others aside.

One building in particular caught the dragon's eye. The sign was a glass on its side, with some unidentifiable liquid pooled around it. The words below said "The Fallen Flagon". There were no large windows full of merchandise. Instead, there were a number of tables. A bunch of mostly-empty round ones in the center of the room, and square ones up against the wall, with bench seats and wooden dividers between them. Several of these latter were occupied, by small groups of people talking quietly.
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita was beginning to grow irritated with this town. The closer she got to where she believed she'd find her destination, the more people there were, and the louder everything got. How could humans stand everything being so cramped and crowded? She felt constrained even though none were physically touching her, like she would be swallowed up by the mass of bodies. She couldn't even take to the air here, at least not without bludgeoning at least a handful of people out of her way with her wings in the process of spreading them. She had to hold herself back from pouncing on and mauling a young man whose hand had brushed across her thigh as he passed her, the unexpected touch sending an involuntary shudder through her body.

She'd found what she was after though, or at least found the place she expected it to be. Some sort of amphitheatre stood at the centre of the square, though it did not seem to be in use, and the concentration of people here seemed the largest. After some searching and trying to see over the heads of the mostly taller crowds around her while avoiding the biggest groups as best she could, Luminita eventually found what she was searching for, what she could only guess was some sort of tavern. It didn't look very impressive, but little in this town had so far, so there was no reason to expect that to change.

Forcing her way through the crowd between her and her goal perhaps a little more roughly than was necessary, Luminita tucked her wings a little closer behind her back as she stepped through the doorway and into the building. Humans made everything so narrow, even as small in stature as she was it was troublesome to keep her tail or wings from striking things accidentally. Merely adding that minor annoyance to the many she'd begun to accumulate since leaving home she pressed on, moving with the same measured, purposeful stride as she had when passing through the front gate, making her way to the bar where she was most likely to find the owner or manager of the place.

"Are you the owner of this establishment?" She asked curtly, her tone marking it as much a demand as a query, once she'd located the one standing behind the bar, ignoring anyone who didn't directly block her path on her way there. She wanted to be done with this place as soon as possible. It was cramped and noisy, though fortunately less so than the crowds outside, but worse of all it reeked of alcohol, among other things she didn't wish to think about. How anyone could enjoy places like this she had trouble imagining.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita drew no small number of looks as she moved through the town. Certainly nobody accosted her, but it felt like half the crowd did a double-take on noticing her wings or horns. Some exchanged whispers, sounding fearful, or wondering, or annoyed. These last become more and more common as the crowd thickened and she had to force her way through to keep moving at a reasonable pace.

Eventually she made it into the tavern. At this time of day it didn't seem very crowded. The bar seats and all the tables in the middle of the room were completely empty, only a few of the booths holding any patrons. One young woman leaned over the table in one of the occupied booths, leaning against it lazily and probably giving the men sitting there a view down her shirt of her ample breasts. Nobody seemed to mind, but at least it meant that half the people in there had something more interesting to look at than the dragonkin that had just entered.

The woman behind the bar, on the other hand, stopped frowning absentmindedly at the table and turned to Luminita the second she entered. She was a tall, middle-aged redhead, with a slim figure and alert eyes despite the lack of business. She raised her eyebrow at the newcomer's question, looking slightly amused. "I am." She pulled out a mug, and set it on the bar. "What'll it be?"
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

"I'm looking for someone." Luminita declared bluntly to the tavern owner, seemingly oblivious to anything else in the room, not having spared the woman the patrons seemed so enthralled with more than a passing glance. She'd noticed the mug being pulled out for her, but she had no interest in cheap alcohol. She doubted anything sold here could compare to the wines her mother had preferred.

"Several people, actually. It would have been around a month ago now, but I believe they passed through this town. I thought they might have stopped here." She continued by giving a brief description of the party as she remembered them, her tone growing vaguely bitter toward the end of her description. Despite her intent to question the woman in front of her however, she had not lowered her voice at all, and it would not be difficult for anyone around to listen in. "They may have even spoken of a fight with a Dragon."

She frowned almost imperceptibly even as she finished speaking. Would the woman be willing to part with the information even if she knew? Luminita's own draconic heritage was plain to see, it would not be difficult to make the connection between her and the dragon she spoke of. What if her father's murderers had friends here? She was confident that none here could match her should it come to violence, but she could not properly move about in buildings such as this, so she would be at a disadvantage. Even if that was not the case, she'd been told that humans rarely helped others unless it benefited them. She had some coins she'd taken from what remained of her father's hoard should the woman seek payment, but she didn't want to waste them frivolously either. She carefully kept her thoughts to herself however, meeting the tavern owner's eyes with her seemingly perpetual look of confidence. She would not show weakness to these people.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The barkeeper seemed vaguely disinterested for the duration of Luminita's description of the party, and frowned at the dragonkin as she finished, eyes lingering on the horns and wings that most obviously marked Luminita's heritage. "Never seen anyone like that." She sighed audibly. "And even if I did... I'm not in the business of selling my clients out."

She paused, and gave Luminita a meaningful look. "I'm in the business of selling a variety of drinks, and providing a place to drink it. Alone or with friends. Or to meet new friends, over a drink. We have red and white wine, beer, and ale. We're particularly known for our mead. What'll it be?"
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita frowned at the barkeeper's reply, not quite sure which of her comments to put more weight upon in her mind. On one hand, it was very possible that they'd never stopped here on their way through, she hadn't expected much to begin with. On the other hand, she couldn't shake the suspicion that came with the woman's second remark. What if she really did know, and was covering for them? She just couldn't be sure. She had always been straightforward in her interactions with others, and found deceit and misdirection to be distasteful, but she was aware that many did not share her penchant for honesty. Unfortunately, she'd never put any effort into learning to tell when she was being lied to either.

"I see. That is... unfortunate." Luminita gave a brief sigh as she finished, intending to simply be on her way, but something stopped her. She hesitated, taking a moment to look over the other patrons of the bar once more before turning back to the owner, fingers having slipped into the pouch at her side and idly fiddling with a few coins. She was somewhat thirsty after the flight here, and while she had water the mention of drinks gave her pause. She had no real interest in most of what was mentioned, she'd never really tried most of them, but neither was she particularly inclined to do so. On the other hand, her mother had always liked wines, and Luminita herself had developed a liking to some of them. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to... sample what was being offered here.

"I suppose a drink wouldn't hurt," She finally admitted grudgingly after a few more moments of consideration, "Wine then, red." She declared almost imperiously after only a moment's pause, quickly seeking out and taking a seat at the bar. "Would you know of anywhere else I might ask about the ones I am seeking?"
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The redheaded woman pulled a green glass bottle out from below the bar, uncorked it, and poured a generous portion into the mug, pushing it towards Astarte. "That'll be 2 denarii."

When the dragonkin had paid, the innkeeper nodded, smiling. "I'm sure I don't know anything about, uh, whoever you were looking for." She paused for a moment, glancing around the mostly-empty bar. "But if I might make a suggestion... I think you'd enjoy your drink more with company. Say, the men Lara is entertaining." She gave Luminita a meaningful look.

A closer look at the booth with the maid attending to it - the only other woman Luminita could see, aside from herself and the bartender - would show three men, features mostly hidden by shadows and the walls of the booth as well as the blonde maid still leaning over the table.
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita fished a pair of coins from her pouch when she heard the price, passing them across the bar and taking her drink. An experimental sip told her that while not quite up to the standards of her mother's better vintages, it was far from unpleasant. It was welcome after the journey here though, and she found herself glad she'd chosen to stop for a drink regardless of whether she got the information she was after despite her disappointment.

The barkeeper's next comment caused the dragonkin to pause mid-motion as she was about to take another drink, tilting her head slightly to give the woman an appraising look. She was being oddly evasive about it, but it seemed like she knew something overall, even if she wouldn't say it. A flash of annoyance was Luminta's first reaction to that revelation, but after a moment's consideration and another sip of her drink she chose to let that fact pass. The tavern owner had said she didn't talk about her customers, And Luminita was familiar with the ideas of honour and keeping one's word. That she was willing to help at all was enough.

"I'll do that. Thank you for the drink," Luminita gave a slight nod before hopping down off of her seat at the bar and making her way across the room. Despite her intention to try to get some information from these men, she was uncertain how to approach them. They still seemed more interested in the woman flaunting her assets at them than Luminita herself, a fact which made her feel mildly offended for a moment before she quashed that feeling. She wasn't here to be ogled like that after all, and she'd be even less pleased if they were.

In the end, she simply strode straight to the table and took a seat wordlessly, eyeing each of the men, then the woman in turn, judging their reactions before speaking up. She hadn't exactly been quiet in her questioning previously, so it wasn't unlikely that they'd overheard her. She was interested in seeing how they would react to her approach, especially interested in looking for any reaction that might imply they knew something about her targets they wished to hide.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The bartender went back to wiping down the area behind the bar as Luminita left, carefully not paying attention as the dragonkin approached the table.

As it became clear that Luminita was moving towards the group, the serving woman looked up, shot an annoyed look at Luminita, and bent over one more time to whisper something to three men. One of them tossed her a coin as she moved away from the table, which she caught, smiling until her back was was turned.

When Luminita sat at the table, the low conversation ceased altogether, and by then her eyes had adjusted to the low light enough to clearly make out each of the men. The one beside her, previously mostly hidden from view by the walls of the booth, was a redheaded human. He was easily six and a half feet tall, but young enough that he still likely couldn't grow a full beard. Across from him sat an older man, a touch of gray in his brown hair, with an old scar on one cheek, running almost up to his eye. The final man wore a hood that still managed to conceal most of his face.

The man beside her spoke first, tearing his eyes away from the retreating maid to face Luminita. "You, uh, lose your parents?" The hooded figure, taking a sip from his drink, choked. The older man was still watching the maid.
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita pointedly ignored the look the other woman gave as she approached the table, giving her only a brief look as she walked away. The dragonkin wasn't quite certain why she was leaving so abruptly, but in the end it made no difference to her. None of the reactions of the men here particularly stood out to her, but she wasn't quite sure what she was looking for either. She had never been very good at reading people.

The first to speak, however, caught her by surprise. Was it sympathy? The inflection was hard to judge, and the question had caught her entirely off guard. Her experience with humans in the past had demonstrated that they rarely seemed to care much for the problems of strangers.

"Yes, I have." She turned to the man who'd spoken, who seemed to be the youngest of the three as she gave her succinct reply, keeping her expression carefully neutral. She had already spent enough time in grief and mourning, she couldn't allow an offhand comment, even one as blunt as this, break her composure. "And I'm looking for the ones responsible."

She took another sip of her drink, not saying any more for the time being. She wasn't sure how much they'd heard of her previous conversation, but she'd been proven right in her assumption that they'd heard something of it at least.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The speaker looked confused. "Responsible? Like, a nanny or something? Do you want us to call a guard?"

There was a muttered sound of disbelief from the hooded figure, who was facing the man who had spoken.

After another moment's silence, the older man spoke, his tone patient. "Thatcher. Just because she doesn't have tits doesn't mean she's three."

The man next to her turned, looking Luminita up and down again, with special emphasis on her chest. As he did, he slowly turned redder. "Oh, uh... In that case how did you...?" There was a sharp thud under the table, and the man cursed, glaring at the man across from him. "Why did you do that? That hurt!" He blinked, twice, then turned back to Luminita, face creased with worry. "Oh, shit, um... sor-"

The older man cut him off. "And who were your parents, girl?"
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita shot the younger man a glare as his meaning became clear, the other men at the table seeming similarly shocked, if without her anger an annoyance. It was fortunate her drink had been given to her in a mug rather than the much more delicate wine glasses her mother had always used, as her grip tightened enough that she likely would have cracked if not outright crushed one. She had to resist the urge to reach over and punch the man, but she'd promised herself she wouldn't start any kind of fight while she was here.

"I am not a child," The dragonkin snapped at him, glaring darkly. She well aware that she was... small, even by human standards, much less those of her own kind, but this was the first time she'd been mistaken for a child. Of course, she hadn't had much contact with people, but it was still quite offensive. Perhaps they hadn't been listening after all. Or this man hadn't, anyway.

She turned away from him even before he began to apologize, focusing her much less hostile, but still intense gaze upon the older one as he spoke. "My mother... I doubt her name is known to you, but it is Lavinia. She told me that she used to be a knight, but that she came from the capital, originally." She paused, judging his reaction for any hint of recognition, though she doubted she'd find one. Her mother had never claimed any sort of fame, and they were quite far from the capital where any family or old friends were likely to live. "My father, well... you can probably guess. He was a Dragon." she made a brief motion at herself at that, wings unfurling only slightly before folding back once again.

"Ryluth." She stated his name almost reverently. While she had been closest with her mother, and had loved her greatly, she had always had the greatest respect for her father. He had demanded it, not through any words or deliberate actions of his own, but by mere presence alone. "We lived... not far from here, in the mountains, but we had little contact with the people here."
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The older man shrugged. "Never heard of her." He nodded impatiently at the suggestion that her father had been a dragon, and more thoughtfully at the name Ryluth. "Ah, now him I've heard of, at least. Well..."

"I don't get it, Uri." Thatcher sounded almost angry, glaring right back at Luminita. "And if she wants me to know what she means, she should be more... uh... obstiferous."

"Empty night..." The old man - Uri - stuck a sharp elbow in the ribs of the hooded man next to him, producing no reaction. "Stop trying to teach the boy vocabulary." He turned back to said boy. "The orcs will not be happy. And she obviously isn't either, you moron."

Thatcher scowled, cracking his knuckles, but the old man turned back to Luminita. "Well, I'm sorry to hear that. But what did you want from us, exactly? To track down your parents' killers? Not likely."
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita paused for a moment, silently regarding the younger man as she tried to work out what exactly he was trying to say. It was evident there was some confusion there, but before she could spell it out for the boy, she was instead drawn by the recognition the older man—Uri, and the other had called him—showed for her father's name. That he didn't know her mothers' wasn't surprising, she hadn't been particularly famous to Luminita's knowledge, and this was quite far from her hometown. His comment about the orcs wasn't lost on her either, and perhaps that would be another place to look. They'd probably be willing to help if she told them why she was there, after all.

"No." She replied simply to his question in, meeting his eyes once again. "I will track them down myself. But I was... injured in the fighting, and wasn't fit to travel until recently, so I'm afraid the trail has gone cold." She kept up her calm front as she spoke, voice even and vaguely authoritative, as discordant with her appearance as that might be. She didn't want to admit that the only reason she'd lived was that she'd been so badly wounded they'd thought her dead, or show the anger seething just below the surface at recalling that day yet again. "I know they came this way, passed through this town, but that was nearly a month ago. I'd hoped to find someone who might have seen them, who might be able to tell me where they went from here. They were... a recognizable group, I couldn't imagine them not standing out. I suppose hoping they'd spoken loudly enough of their fight to be remembered that way would be unlikely, though."

If prompted, she would once again provide a description of the group, but otherwise was content to take another sip of her drink and observe their reactions. If they didn't know, perhaps it would be wise to ask about the orcs he'd spoken of, and see if she could enlist their aid. She knew only the basics of their culture, but their reverence of the Dragons was something she was aware of. As the man had said, they wouldn't likely be happy about the news she brought. She might be able to use that anger.
 
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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

The older man paused for a moment, shooting a glare at the man who had been called Thatcher when he opened his mouth. "Nobody capable of hurting... one of your father's sort... would be stupid enough to go blabbing about it in this town. If they had, you'd find their head above the gate. Or possibly a crater instead of a town. But I do see most people who come through here... or a lot of them, at any rate."

They waited while Luminita repeated the descriptions, listening more closely this time. "Yeah. Not really a common sort of group. They had a big argument at the top of the amphitheater. Went out to see what the commotion was about, but it didn't come to blows. Something about payment. The two wizards, I guess, went off alone. The other three stayed a little while, but not overnight."

The younger man chimed in. "Uri, you didn't tell her -"

Uri cut him off. "Not sure exactly why I'd be telling you, though. Not when you're up against people who killed a..." he glanced around the still-mostly-deserted room, and lowered his voice. "dragon"
 

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Re: Dragonslayer Wanted (Astarte) GM'd by thetwo

Luminita simply nodded to the man's first response, she had gotten the impression that such tales might not be taken kindly to here. While that meant that she might find more willing to aid her, it also meant that the ones she sought would not have been as obvious about their deeds as she might have hoped.

Fortunately, she had more success once she described them, seeing recognition in the man. It seemed they'd had some kind of argument, something about payment, which made her seethe even further. The whole thing had been just for money? Unless one member of the group had been paying the others, it could also mean there was someone else behind the attack. And they had split up, which would make it harder to track them all down... but easier to fight. Despite her outward display of confidence, she knew she couldn't beat them if she fought them all head-on. They'd managed to defeat her father, who she'd never presume herself an equal to in combat, so there was no way she could succeed where he had failed.

If they had split up however, she could do it. The mages had apparently gone their separate ways from the others, which could leave them vulnerable... or should she pursue the other group? The Orc had appeared to be their leader, so he was the one most likely to know of anyone who might have been behind all of this.

He seemed hesitant to tell her what he knew, though, bringing a frown the the dragonkin's face. He had told her that he had seen them, and how they had left, but not where they had gone. She wasn't certain why he was withholding this after everything else he had told her, though. It was almost as if he sought to keep her from heading into danger, but why would he worry about her?

"Where did they go?" She asked simply, intense gaze fixed upon the man. Perhaps he simply didn't understand why she was here. It had been something her mother had tried to subtly dissuade her from, but dragons were well known for their pride. While not a full dragon herself, Luminita had nonetheless inherited that trait from her father. It wasn't a matter of her desires here, it was a point of pride, her family's. She couldn't let this go, no matter how dangerous it might be. "It doesn't matter how strong they might be, I must do this. I cannot let them slip away." She added after a brief pause. She stated it as a simple matter of fact, exactly what it was to her. Still, perhaps these humans couldn't quite understand that. "It is... part of the nature of a Dragon, I suppose. I... thank you for what you have told me so far, but if you cannot tell me where they went, I will have to seek out someone else who can."
 
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