(2023-09-25) Chapter X: Scarlet Subterfuge, Part 1 (Cobalt Blade)

Details

Author:	OzmaAsimov
Summary:	The Cobalt Blade receives word that Brother Anton of the Scarlet Brotherhood has returned to Nijel's Point and wishes to meet with them about the matter of destroying the Seed. Zaara learns about Hallow's End. Arthur reveals the results of his mage testing.
Rating:	T for Teen

Arc: The Cobalt Blade

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Censored swearing, veiled reference to sex

[Vesyllah]: It's nice to be back in Desolace.

[Vesyllah]: Hey there, Silkytop.

[Thalstan]: 'Lo there, team.

[Thalstan]: Back on th' track o' th' seed now, eh?

[Vesyllah]: Assuming Anton's got something for us, I guess so.

Zaara yips!

[Vesyllah]: Tadget's still away on her "special mission" with her husband. I think we all know what that means.

Thalstan smiles at the ghost wolf. "That you Zaara?"

[Zaara]: Hello! I am here!

Thalstan chuckles.

[Thalstan]: If this is all of us then, let's go see if Anton's got anything new fer us?

[Zaara]: He has got things for us? A present?

[Vesyllah]: Let's hope so.

[Thalstan]: I could do wi' a present.

Zaara beams at Brother Anton.

[Zaara]: Hello! Do you have presents for us?

[Thalstan]: Bro Anton, we got word you'd like ta speak with us?

Brother Anton says: Welcome back, crusaders. I apologize for my long absence. My own crusade takes me many places.

[Thalstan]: I can imagine. Our crus… adventures take us a lot o' places as well.

Brother Anton says: But do not think your mission has not been on my mind. It has weighed heavily on me, and I have done further research into the matter.

Brother Anton says: I believe I know a way we can make the Elixir of Beginnings even stronger. But first, the basics.

Brother Anton says: South of here is a place called the Valley of Bones. It was sacred to the centaur. Then the Scourge came. But the centaur's elemental magic still infuses the bones of the place, even when they're up and walking around.

[Thalstan]: Even when they're… um…

Brother Anton says: Go to the valley and destroy the undead ravagers there. Crush their bones and collect the shattered pieces, so we can grind them into an element-laden dust. When you return, I'll explain further.

[Thalstan]: Alrigh' so we're jus'… gonna grind their bones to dust fer our quest. Got it. We're the good guys.

[Thalstan]: It's fer a good cause, right all?

Brother Anton says: Go with the Light, crusaders!

Vesyllah grumbles, "The Light…"

[Zaara]: Skeletons are not presents.

[Thalstan]: It's like th'opposite of a present.

[Thalstan]: Well… shall we head to th' skeletons?

[Vesyllah]: Sounds like a party.

[Thalstan]: Ves-style party, maybe.

[Vesyllah]: That's what I said.

[Arthur]: Revenge party!

[Zaara]: Wes, do you have skeleton parties?

[Vesyllah]: Only on special occasions.

[Zaara]: Oh! What occasion is for skeleton party?

Vesyllah snickers.

[Vesyllah]: Ever heard of Hallow's End?

[Thalstan]: Comin' up right soon.

[Zaara]: I have not hear of this! Whose end?

[Thalstan]: Hallow's. It's… no' a person.

[Zaara]: Oh. But it is ended?

[Thalstan]: It's… a complicated holiday.

[Zaara]: If it is a holiday for skeletons I will say so.

[Thalstan]: Mostly, people dress up in costumes and trade candy.

[Vesyllah]: It's my favorite time of year.

[Zaara]: Skeleton holidays sound very complicated.

[Vesyllah]: And you have to watch out for the Headless Horseman.

[Thalstan]: Aye that too.

[Zaara]: … what? You are having a joke at me.

[Vesyllah]: I'm not.

[Thalstan]: Right menace, that fella.

[Zaara]: A man with a headless horse? Horses can have no heads?

Vesyllah chuckles.

[Vesyllah]: He's a cursed knight who lost his head.

[Arthur]: The horse has his head

[Thalstan]: He replaced it wi' a pumpkin.

[Vesyllah]: He comes out during Hallow's End to terrorize Azeroth.

[Zaara]: The horse does not give back his head?

[Thalstan]: So yeh can tell how clear he thinks these days.

[Zaara]: So it is a horse with a man's head and a man with a pumpkin?

[Zaara]: This is horrible.

Thalstan laughs.

[Vesyllah]: Sure. That sounds about right.

[Thalstan]: I think sommat's got muddled up in there, but what I meant ta say makes about as much sense.

[Thalstan]: And speakin' o' skeletons.

[Vesyllah]: This must be the Valley of Bones.

Zaara eyes Undead Ravager up and down.

[Thalstan]: They do seem verra walky.

[Vesyllah]: Face the agony of your sins!

[Vesyllah]: Suffer the pain you have inflicted!

[Vesyllah]: Hey Art, can I get some of that magic water of yours?

You bow before Arthur.

Vesyllah bows her head reverently to Arthur as she accepts the Gift of Water. "Shaha lor'ma dula Luvas'alith."

[Thalstan]: Got word o' the exam grade yet, Art?

[Arthur]: Oh, about that.

Thalstan looks over curiously.

[Arthur]: Written short answer portion? perfect.

Zaara beams.

[Thalstan]: Nice!

[Vesyllah]: See, nothin' to worry about.

[Arthur]: Long-form answer on my theoretical technique development? high graded, but they drop the lowest and highest scores.

[Thalstan]: Wait what?

[Vesyllah]: Sorry…what?!

[Thalstan]: What's that mean?

[Zaara]: What?

[Arthur]: It means if someone gives me a perfect grade, and someone gives me a zero, neither of those count.

[Arthur]: It's the three grades in the middle that do.

[Thalstan]: Okay, I can see tha'. To avoid bias.

[Vesyllah]: Suffer the pain you have inflicted!

[Thalstan]: So if yeh've pissed one wizard off, he can't tank yeh,

[Thalstan]: An' if yeh'd bought another a lot o' nice beer, he can't pass yeh.

[Arthur]: Problem is, they say that as an example. nobody ever gets a perfect grade and a zero grade….

Arthur looks around and shrugs. "Until last week."

[Zaara]: Was it you?!

[Arthur]: Sure was!

[Thalstan]: Huh. Did yeh piss off one wizard and buy another a barrel?

Zaara claps excitedly.

[Zaara]: This means you are new achievement!

[Vesyllah]: You mean…you got a perfect grade, right?

[Thalstan]: Or was it just spontaneous? One thinks yer a genius and the other one's wrong?

[Zaara]: You are exactly the model for the system.

[Zaara]: This must be very exciting for them.

[Zaara]: Do they award you?

[Arthur]: They're having a big fight about it.

[Zaara]: … what? But this is their system!

[Thalstan]: A fight? Yeah. This was th' rule, no?

[Vesyllah]: This is why I hate bureaucracies.

[Thalstan]: Ach, that one was a centaur, no' a skeleton.

[Arthur]: But this isn't supposed to happen. and in any case where the spread is larger than sixty…

[Zaara]: It is the skins to watch for. If they have skin they are not skeletons.

[Zaara]: So you can tell from far away.

Thalstan nods at Zaara and then says, "Yup."

[Thalstan]: If the spread's larger than 60?

[Vesyllah]: I am vengeance!

[Arthur]: Anyway, I’m going to remedial classes to satisfy the zero grade giver.

[Zaara]: What?!

[Thalstan]: Why does he get precedence?

[Zaara]: Do you also teach lessons to novice pupils to satisfy the perfect grade giver?

[Thalstan]: What abou' the 100 giver?

[Arthur]: My technique is atrocious.

Thalstan nods at Zaara.

[Zaara]: This is nonsense. I will tell them.

Thalstan forgets briefly that she can't see it.

[Zaara]: Someone will write for me a letter?

[Vesyllah]: You're one of the $%#$ing Cobalt Blade, and they're whining about technique?

[Thalstan]: Maybe we all ought to give 'em a piece of our mind.

[Vesyllah]: I could haunt their dreams if you want….

[Zaara]: Yes!

[Thalstan]: Ooh, tha's a good idea.

[Arthur]: teaching myself introduced serious flaws in my casting technique. theres a foundation you're supposed to build on.

[Vesyllah]: Yeah, according to them.

[Arthur]: And I just…made stuff up on my own.

[Thalstan]: But some o' them think yeh've got a great foundation, aye?

Outcast Necromancer attempts to run away in fear!

[Arthur]: They care about the result.

[Zaara]: Do you think it is wrong to spoil this skeletons' holiday? Holiday comes soon, you say?

Vesyllah snickers.

Thalstan chuckles.

[Arthur]: But I could struggle later if i don't know the proper technique now.

[Vesyllah]: I think we've probably got more than enough bone bits.

[Thalstan]: So are yeh sayin' yeh want the remedial classes?

[Zaara]: The skeleton kicked me! I hope he has a very bad holiday.

[Arthur]: I want to be good.

[Thalstan]: No kickin' Booty, Bones!

[Arthur]: Archmage good.

[Zaara]: Like your Khadgar? He is pretty good.

[Arthur]: Exactly.

[Thalstan]: Then I guess there's no reason ta turn yer nose up at any trainin'.

[Thalstan]: Long's its useful.

[Thalstan]: Get these bones to Brother Anton.

[Vesyllah]: Just try not to care too much what they think of you.

[Thalstan]: Rumors?

[Arthur]: The hair.

[Vesyllah]: Bureaucracies care about one thing. Control.

[Thalstan]: Ah tha' yer like him?

[Arthur]: Yeah.

[Arthur]: It makes a good story, you know, something to tell each other.

[Arthur]: A poetically satisfying explanation.

[Arthur]: It's not true, of course, but when has that stopped anyone?

[Thalstan]: If there's a story can help yeh become an archmage, why no' use it?

[Thalstan]: Maybe there's a balance between no' carin' what they think o' a person and makin' em think a particular thing.

[Arthur]: Well, I mean I’m not 100% sure it's not true but come on.

[Arthur]: For the story to be true he'd have to be a terrible person!

[Vesyllah]: I just encourage you to forge your own path on your own terms. That's all.

[Thalstan]: Brother Anton! We've collected bones for yeh.

Brother Anton says: You're back! You work fast.

Brother Anton says: Excellent. Keep them and grind them into a dust. You'll need them. There are more things you'll need. Unfortunately, I don't have them.

[Thalstan]: O' course yeh don't. What do we need?

Brother Anton says: I have a colleague that may be able to help us. Unfortunately, he is away from Desolace at the moment. But I will summon you again when he returns.

[Thalstan]: Alrigh'. Then I reckon that's us fer today? One step closer to the prize.

[Zaara]: A prize!

Brother Anton says: We are ever closer to destroying the Seed, crusaders!

Thalstan nods at Brother Anton.

[Thalstan]: Thanks fer yer hard work, Cobalt Blade!

[Vesyllah]: I think I'll stay here a while.

[Arthur]: I better get back to stormwind.

[Thalstan]: Enjoyin' the skeleton atmosphere?

[Thalstan]: I might stick around as'well, in case his friend turns up.

[Zaara]: I hope we did not kill any of your friend skeletons, Wes!

Vesyllah snorts. "Yeah. Love those skeletons."