What would happen if all my characters met and adventured together? It would be interesting, wouldn't it?

Featuring:

Katiana Nahalim Kudryo (currently 7th level Diplomatic Rogue)

Isis Amenhotep (currently 5th level Fig2/Sco2/Barb1 going Scorpion Heroiter)

Yuko Hizurumi (currently 9th level Warmage)

Chris Talespinner (2nd level Bard)

Rose D'Tale (2nd level Wizard)

Ursula Riyusa (2nd level Fighter)

Yuki Hizurumi (2nd level Cleric of Obad Hai)

A Time and a Place for Meetings

Isis yawned and stretched a bit as she waited for another pitcher of ale to be brought out for her to chug. She had traveled all week to find adventure, excitement, something to relieve the sense of boredom around her and that took her out of the desert into some tavern in some town. Her scimitar lay at her side, ready for any trouble, and she knew she'd be able to fight her way out if there was any. She was after all, a follower of the Scorpion. For now, her plans were to just get wasted and hope something would come up in the next day or two or she was moving on.

…

Katiana Nahalim Kudryo walked towards the tavern. She had just gotten out of some heavy political meeting, and wanted to relax a bit before heading back home. The tavern was a good place for that. She no longer had her bodyguard with her; he was off in the forest tending to his duties. He never did have much of a stomach for political stuff, but he was her protector when they traveled together. His name was Sarvanik, and she still saw him from time to time, but once major things settled down their individual duties and lives called for them to separate, at least for a time. She was starting to get a little restless, her adventuring days passing some time ago, and her days filled with meetings and traveling back and forth from Goliath encampments.

"It has been too long since I saw my friends. Almost just as long since I have adventured outside of Highfolk for something other than business," she sighed, and before entering the tavern, looked out towards the woods. She certainly hoped Sarvanik was doing all right. After everything with the Dawn, she just needed to relax for a while. She spun a dagger in her hand as she looked around at the patrons before finding a seat.

…

Yuko stepped off the boat she had been traveling on as she returned from the Shield Lands. She had longed for home so she had declined doing a mission with Kilak again because she hadn't seen her family in some time. Her husband had sent her a message saying he missed her, and her children Machika and Yuki missed her dearly. Of course, she had heard that Yuki had started adventuring so she couldn't wait to get home to hear what he had been up to. Of course, she also wanted to catch up on local news.

"You should go to the library," a voice said and Yuko pushed her spectacles up her nose a little. "Catching up on local news is boring."

"I don't need to study right now," Yuko said. "Besides, didn't you say you weren't talking to me after we got back from that other realm because I had almost died?"

"Leave me alone Yuko," he replied.

"MOM!" a voice called out and a small teenage boy ran towards her, dressed in a chain shirt and wearing a symbol of Obad-Hai on his chest. "Mom, I can't believe you're back!"

"Yuki!" she exclaimed. "It's good to see you again my little one."

"Mom, I'm not so little anymore," he replied. "I'm getting bigger."

"Already adventuring as well, right?" she asked.

"That boy looks remarkably like you, his black hair is quite lovely," the spectacles spoke up.

"Oh! Are those the glasses you were telling me about?" Yuki asked excitedly. "You're a gnome spirit trapped inside them, right?"

"And you're inquisitive," the spectacles replied. "I like that."

"How's your sister?" Yuko asked.

"She's doing fine. She's been tending the garden and everything while you were away," Yuki replied.

"And you haven't been getting into any trouble?" Yuko asked sternly.

"No way mom, I've just been practicing my healing!" he said. "Mom, can we stop at the tavern on our way home?"

"I was meaning to see what was going on locally anyways, but why do you want to stop?" she asked as they started to walk back.

"I want to hear the performer tonight; I heard she has a good voice. And not much has been happening mom, at least not that I know of," he replied.

"You don't like keeping up on current events young one?" the spectacles asked.

"I've never really seen it as much of a necessity. Hey Mom, who's Kilak? Is he a friend of yours?" Yuki asked.

"Yes, he's a dwarf, a Knight of the Holy Shielding in the Shield Lands. Hearty and brave, he's a good man and protected me. I was usually the arcane support, and you know the kinds of destruction I bring. He usually adventures with Dexter, who typically ends up being our healer. He's a cleric of Farlanghan," Yuko replies.

"That's the god of travel!" Yuki exclaims. "Must be exciting to be with them then! I didn't get to adventure with anyone like that. All I got to adventure with was a bunch of people that I didn't really know and one was named Jackson…he wasn't fun at all."

"What was he? Do you know?" Yuko asked.

"You are like him, he brought a lot of destruction to the table, he just wasn't as good as you were mom, or as fire happy," he explained.

"To say your mother is extremely fire happy is an understatement. How does your father put up with this?" the gnomish spectacles asked.

"I think we're all a little fire happy in the family. Except Machika," Yuki replied seriously. "So welcome to the Hizurumi clan!"

"I feel so honored," the spectacles replied and did a quick battle of the wills with Yuko, just a passing thing to see if he could run back on the ship and get away. It didn't work and he chuckled. "I'll get used to it, I should at least, you all seem to mean well."

"Thank you," Yuko replied dryly. "For at least trying."

"Come on mom, I don't want to be late and have to sit in the back, I'm not as tall as you yet!"

…

Ursula walked into the tavern with the intent on drinking with several dwarves under the table. She didn't see any dwarves that looked particularly hard to out drink, but she did see a young woman in a corner table chugging several pints by herself and she smirked at how the woman would be a good challenge. She looked like she was a Flan woman, and Ursula was curious about how she got that scimitar. They might have to spar later; her bastard sword hadn't been used in a good match in a while. Ursula had been tangling with slavers for some time now and decided to come home for a visit and a night out doing some random things or other stuff. Drinking was always good for relaxation.

…

Rose balanced several books carefully in her arms, exiting the bookshop after a successful series of finds. She had recently returned from her teaching job at Greyhawk and decided she needed to brush up on Rhene history, and she knew Highfolk, though not the best book place in the world, it still might have something to get her started as she began her research. She had looked forward to returning home, as teaching had been well and good, but it was a very pressing career. She hoped to one day go past just being a traveling professor and move to Greyhawk officially, but she wasn't holding onto that as she loved Highfolk too much to be away for long. She pondered the next few days what kind of things she should craft, and was settling on a few items and several scrolls.

She also planned to relax tonight, because she heard a pretty good bard was coming into town to share their traveling songs in one of the taverns tonight, one she had gone to on occasion. It would give her the opportunity to catch up on some local gossip, to see if she had missed out on anything while she was away on these teaching jobs and to potentially seek out someone for a battle of the minds. She did enjoy that, considering she knew everything there was to know about everything. She might not know intimate details of several monsters, races, and events in history, but every challenge drew her closer and closer to finding out more about even those minute details she so longed to collect.

…

Chris strolled into the bar with relative ease. She had come to perform, and perform she would. Having traveled all over, Highfolk was one of her favorite places to visit. She wondered what her audience would be like tonight. Would it be a bunch of drunkards looking for tavern tunes of drinking and wenches? Would there be emissaries of all sorts up for ballads reminding them of home as they attended business here? Or would there be adventures looking for songs of excitement and fantasy? She looked around, noting the types there, and eagerly went to the front to tell the barkeep that she had arrived and was ready to perform.

…

Stage set, contestants gathered. Chris sat down on the bar and smiled at everyone. "Evening!" she said with a wave. She noted a few in the crowd that stood out as the masses started to calm for her performance. One was a High Elf female who had green eyes just like her; another was an older woman who apparently was there with her son. She had a lot of tattoos on her, but from where Chris could only guess. Another one was a very busty redhead with a bastard sword. She was pretty, but looked like she had the personality of a drunk at best. Another young woman with darker sun-tanned skin caught her eye, many scratches along her body and the adamantine great scimitar as well as the other weapons she had on her body, she must be from the desert! The final one to catch her eye was a woman with glasses and books on her table. She looked like someone who had traveled a long ways from a teaching place perhaps? She smiled and made sure each of them caught her eye. Pulling her lyre out, she started playing the first tune of the night.