A/N:WHAT'S UP MUCKACHUNGAS!? It's Travez here, and I'm here to bring you my longest session yet! Honestly, I was planning on making it longer, but honestly, I consider myself to be kind of pushing it with this Session, but I promise you, I have my reasons for this! I honestly didn't think the Dice would be this generous this time, so I decided to cut the session short before I pushed my luck too far this time! Anyway, at the end of the last chapter, I can confirm, Durgaul now has the Change Shape ability, allowing him to take the form of a humanoid! Though there is a reason why I chose an elf over that of a Dragonborn, and that was due to the fact that my girlfriend, Wolfflight of ShadowClan, actually found the Dragonborn to be ugly, as do I in some cases, but I honestly wanted to give everyone a long awaited humanoid form for Durgaul, for "reasons"... Anyway I will also tell you guys that in this arc, we will be taking part in the First Arc of the Four Horsemen Personal Story Arc for Damos! So I hope you guys will like what I am doing for this session! I honestly don't have much to say on this one, I've been working on this chapter all day and I'm burned out! So before I start on the next session, I'm going to take a break for a few days, then I'll get started on it. Please be sure to Follow, Favorite, Review, and Share this story with everyone you know who loves D&D Content! Catch ya on the Flipside! NAT 20!
Session 5: Love and Hate
Ember rouses from her fainting spell, sitting up as she and the group are still in the lair, everyone sitting around a fire as Longclaw is gathering scales from the dead dragon's body, the young woman looking up, but realizes somebody was using their lap as a pillow for her. Her eyes turn upward and she sees the young Elf that Durgaul had turned into. "Good evening, beautiful!" Durgaul says, smiling at her, Ember looking at him with a red face.
"I-Is that you Durgaul?" Ember asks, looking at the elf in shock.
"Yup!" Durgaul says, smiling at her, gently patting her head, the Genasi's cheeks glowing red with heat as she blushes. "My you are beautiful when you blush!"
"Eep!" She says, covering her face, as she hears those compliments. "Please stop, you're embarrassing me!"
"Well it's the truth!" Durgaul says, smiling as he looks at her. Damosarion smiles as he looks to the two of them acting all adorable as he stirs the cauldron over the fire, having found out it is a Cauldron of Plenty, so he can easily make a warm and hearty stew for everyone just by pouring enough water in it to feed everyone. He smiles as he stirs it, with Evolyne mixing in ingredients. This particular cauldron was created to make a different kind of soup or stew depending on the time of day it is used, and the environment, and thankfully, this time it is making a bean stew known as chili, with this hearty beans, onions, ground beef chunks, and more.
"So Damos, what can you tell us about yourself?"
"Well there is much to tell, but I don't know about what you guys might find interesting… Though I think one detail might be interesting!" Damos explains, "Did you guys know I was not born on this plane?"
"What? You're an Outsider?" Longclaw asks, sitting up.
"Yeah, I was born in the Nine Hells of Mount Baator!" Damosarion says, "I'm actually a cleric of my own father, the Archdevil Bel!"
"Whoa!" Evolyne says, stunned, smiling. "So how come you're not evil?"
"Oh trust me, I am Lawful Evil, I admit that to you all here and now, it's what I have been since I was born. However, while I am loyal to my father, my King, and my realm, my personality doesn't match up, and that is because I am not acting on the Evil Part of my Alignment. I've also learned that by being good, you can get more stuff done with those of a good alignment…"
"So you've been bullshitting us this whole time?" Durgaul asks, poking fun at him.
"Not entirely!" Damos says, "In the Nine Hells, I'm pure Lawful Evil, but here in the Material Plane, I can be whoever I want to be! It's mostly because my mother was a human and I was conceived here on the Material Plane, so when I was born in the Nine Hells, my Mortal Plane Personality was buried beneath my Nine Hells personality. However, it took a lot of effort to draw out who I actually am here." He then pauses, "As for my reason for adventuring, I'm actually looking for my elder brothers, thanks to Zariel, they disappeared years ago, and now I'm trying to find them."
"Interesting…" Durgaul says, "Well you guys know my story! I pretty much told all of you, and you've learned that my father is the Greatwyrm Klauthiym."
"For me… I think it's time I revealed to you all who I really am…" Ember says, "My name is Anastasiya Elin Romanov… I am the heir to the Empire of Russia in Suncradle, and I am currently on my Noble Odyssey to prove myself worthy of my family's throne." Ember explains, "I chose the name Ember because I'm a Fire Genasi, and Fire Genasi typically choose elemental names."
"You're royalty too?" Mina says, looking at them, "Well I guess most of you figured it out back in Kyiv, but I'm Annamina Van Helsing, Princess of Romania, and soon to be crowned Queen… I left my homeland in search of a coven of vampires that killed my parents and bring them to justice. Though it seems this Red Dragon is ending my journey early."
"If we're going to be revealing our pasts, I should inform you that my name, in truth, is Jaehaerys Targarys, Prince of the Kingdom of Wales, I was born in Albion, but raised as a bastard for most of my life, and now I hope to, one day, find my way to the Isle of Stormhold to kill the man who murdered my father and attempted to rape my mother, as well as started a war that decimated both of my families." Longclaw explains, "But please, just keep calling me Longclaw, I prefer it, to be honest."
"My turn then… You may know me as Nevermore, but my real name is Fumikage Tokoyami, I was born in Suncradle's Empire of the Rising Sun, Yamato. I was born on the streets, but found by a group of mercenaries who took me in and helped me earn my way into the military as a Warrior Monk. Thanks to my abilities, I was capable of sneaking into enemy camps, stealing intelligence, or even misdirecting enemies so that my allies could do their work. I had to leave Yamato when I learned that the Three Sacred Regalia of Yamato had been stolen, and I must return them as quickly as I can, for without them, the next Emperor, Shogun, and Grand Priest can't rise to their positions."
"Is there anything of interest when it comes to these regalia?"
"They are made of a special alloy known as Hihirokane, it's an alloy that passively absorbs sunlight and grants it's user powers. The Sword, Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, has the power to manipulate the wind and generate blistering hot gales that burn the user's enemies and slice them apart." Nevermore explains, "The Yata-no-Kagami is a mirror that has powers similar to but greater than a legendary ring known as the Ring of Spell Turning, but instead of just reflecting spells that target only the caster, they actually reflect all spells back at the caster, but grant the user the power to amplify the spell with their own magical power. Finally, there is the Yasakani-no-Magatama, a jewel of crystallized Hihirokane in the form of a jewel that actually grants the user the power to bring the dead back to life with True Resurrection, but only once a day."
"Why were you sent on this quest in particular?" Longclaw asks.
"Because somebody had attempted to destroy them in a great fire that engulfed the temple in which they were being protected. I barely managed to rescue the artifacts, but I was too weak from escaping the blaze that I collapsed, and the items were stolen whilst I was unconscious. If it weren't for the Emperor's dying wish, I would've been forced to commit Harakiri, ritualistic suicide, for my failure." Nevermore explains, "He gave me a chance to redeem myself, and I spent every resource that I was given to follow the artifacts, but after I arrived in Ukraine, I lost them… I met Evolyne and Eryn not long after I lost the trail, but thankfully, they provided me with a saving grace…" He holds up two red dragon scales, "They had found these, the Scales of the Western Dragon that had burned down the temple in order to steal the items, and thankfully, I followed the Ki signature to where I met the rest of you. And thanks to this map that Durgaul had found, as well as Eryn-dono's Marauder's map, I think we might be close to the location of one of the Regalia."
"That's good!" Ember explains, smiling "Then we can help you get one of them back!"
"Well next is me, my full name is Evolyne Magia! I actually come from a very long and distinguished line of Bards who all attended the College of Swords!" Evolyne says, smiling at them, "As for my goals… Well let's just say I owe a debt to somebody for saving me when I needed it most, and so I am going to retrieve something that was stolen from them!"
"Well… I'll explain who I am then…" Fiona says, "My name is Fiona Bloodmoon, and I was born on the streets of a certain city west of here, and I was found by a master thief, who trained myself and an Owlin named Werk… When I came of age, he passed on the book to myself and the one who I considered my brother attacked and killed my master, then took the heirloom he left for me, and tore it apart, splitting the pages between himself and his compatriots. I want to find the pages and restore the book to how it was!"
"You guys pretty much know how I came to know our black bastard over here!" He points to Durgaul, his voice sarcastic, "However, I was born to a Selandrine Drow, and her human husband, but when I was coming of age, I got captured by some Illithid Thralls and taken down to their nest. You pretty much know the rest of the song and dance… As for my goals, I don't have any right now, except to get stronger so that I can go back to that colony and burn it down!" Everyone nods to this, and soon, the stew is ready, and Durgaul is digging into the chili with a smile on his face, almost as if eating something he hasn't in a long time, though technically he is. However, Durgaul then looks into the fire, giving Ember a look, who nods as she looks at him.
"Well I don't think I've been entirely truthful with you guys…" Durgaul says, looking at the group. "Have you guys ever heard of Reincarnation, as in the Spell?"
"I've heard of it!" Evolyne says, smiling, "But it's an extremely difficult spell, and the next best thing to that of Resurrection in some cases. Why do you ask."
"Well picture this if you will, another Echo of the Material Plane, but one where the Gods are a distant memory, and only exist in the hearts of those who believe them… an Echo where magic does not exist, except in parlor tricks or stage shows… Where technology based on science is what runes the world… A World with no dragons, no demons, no devils, nothing we know as real here ever existed, except in the minds of those who imagined them, or those who draw them out. Where information is no longer stored on physical documents, but a network of technology that can be shared throughout the entire world, and where kingdoms no longer exist, but massive governments control the world…" Everyone tries to imagine it, "That is the world I was reincarnated from…"
"Seriously…?" Eryn asks, shocked, "How could such a world exist?"
"It does, and I'm from that world… But I was reincarnated into this one as a shot at redemption from my past, where I was a terrible person in my early years, but around my twenties began down the long and hard road to redemption, only for it to be cut short due to a worldwide pandemic that slaughtered millions… And I wasn't the handsome and athletic elf or the rather dashing and terrifying dragon you know me as, but an overweight, morbidly obese man who created this world in my imagination, only for it somehow be an actual real world…" Durgaul says, looking down, "I was reincarnated into a world I thought I knew, but time flows differently between realms, and to me, what was nearly 10 years turned out to be millions of years in this one…" Everyone looks at him in shock as Ember gently takes his hand, "I don't know this world anymore, everything I built for it is long since past, so I'm a stranger in this world now…"
"I… I don't know what to say…" Damos says, looking at Durgaul, but then pours himself a bowl of chili. "However, for how long I've known you, and how many times you've nearly died so far, first to chickens, then to that Red Dragon not long ago, I think you're not some god sent to save us, but if what you say is true, and this is your shot at redemption, i say just go for it!" Everyone calls out in agreement, and Durgaul smiles as he wipes his tears, feeling accepted by the group… To which Durgaul decides to have everyone celebrate this joyous occasion by taking out the Alchemy Jug and making wine for everyone to have something to drink with their dinner, with everyone cheering at this, though Nevermore groans as he decides to sit out on the drinks. Unfortunately, right off the bat, after just one cup, Ember starts hiccuping with her face turning red, everyone else is fine despite this.
"Uh… Ana?"
(A/N: Ember rolled a fucking Natural 1… I need to roll Severity… *Rolls* 96, thank god!)
That is when Durgaul notices the now drunk girl scooting closer to him, "Follow me…" She whispers to Durgaul, and begins to wander off, intoxicated.
"Uh I'm going after, to make sure she doesn't do anything stupid…" Durgaul says, to which everyone nods and continues drinking, Nevermore just shaking his head and sticking with water.
Durgaul follows close behind the woman and… As he follows her, he notices something on the ground, articles of her clothing, causing the Dragon in Elven form's cheeks to turn bright red, and he decides to be a gentleman and gather the clothing pieces whilst following the woman, with the last two pieces being her panties and her bra, laying next to what appears to be a large pool of water, big enough for a young dragon to relax in, and warm enough to be a hot spring, causing his face turn an even deeper shade of red. Rising out of the water is the naked Tsarina of Russia, her naked body on full display for Durgaul to see… If one were to imagine her body, one would imagine this princess standing before them having a cup size of 36DD despite being thin with an hourglass figure, and if Durgaul were able to see behind her, he'd see she has a heart shaped buttocks that is perfectly proportioned with her breast size with a 36in wide hips, and 24in waist. Durgaul's face is turning red as the flushed woman makes her way towards the Dragon in Elven Form, to which she gently wraps her arms around his neck. "Durgaul'Nergahl… I may be drunk, but I know what my heart wants…" She gently places a hand on his cheeks, pulling him into a kiss. The Dragon is stock still, whilst, in his head, he remembers the feel of these lips…
'Ana…' Durgaul, no… Traves thinks, tears flowing down his cheeks. "Ember…"
"No… Call me Ana, just as you called the "me" in the other world…" Ember says, smiling at him. "I may not remember this tomorrow, and I don't know when I will have the courage to do this normally, so please, allow me to do this while I still have liquid courage flowing through me." To which Durgaul looks at her.
"As you wish, my dearest Light of Resurrection…" Durgaul says, letting her undress him, and they make their way into the pool…
(*Rolls* You rolled a Nat 20 on your Perception! Lemons ahead, The DM is giving you a chance to bypass them if you don't want to continue. Roll Stealth!)
Once fully disrobed, Durgaul's body is indeed muscular, standing tall with a dark olive skin color whilst carrying golden undertones, his muscles rippling through his body, giving him the appearance of, if one could be considered a good comparison Arnold Schwarzenager in the height of his prime during the 1980s, specifically around the time of the First Movie of the Terminator Franchise. However, his musculature is perfectly spread out across his body, and despite it his body is comparatively lithe and dextrous. However, across his body are the scars of the injuries he had taken so far, including the bite marks from the fangs of the Abyssal Chickens, along with their scratch marks, as well as the burn scars from both the Red Half-Dragons and that Young Red Dragon they defeated not too long ago. However, the biggest prize for any woman would be the size of her man's "tool", in which it is barely an inch long, but, surprisingly, as it gets filled with blood, the shaft engorges and extends to a good 9 inches, with a width of 2 inches across.
Looking at the prized lover in front of her, the Princess blushes as her slit, if it wasn't already from being in the water, feels her aching slit starting to become wet from her own arousal. Every Tsarina needs a Tsar to protect her and lead her armies in war, and what better candidate to protect her would be the Black Sapphire Dragon in mortal form in front of her, the Genasi wrapping her arms around his shoulders, kissing him deeply and passionately as her tongue dances with his. However, unbeknownst to her, she manages to overcome the Alcohol, Durgaul running his left hand up her hand, whilst his right gently gropes her heart shaped ass, his long shaft pressing against her stomach.
The Tsarina kisses him, and much to Durgal's surprise, he notices that Ana is actually as tall as he was in his first life, 5ft 7in, and he has a 5 inch height difference between them, and as he gets lost in her lips and tongue, both of which taste like they have a slight cinnamon taste to them, he feels a warm hand gently wrap around his member, gripping his shaft and slowly moving up and down it's length as he slowly breaks the kiss and licks her ear. Both of them are moaning lightly as this goes on, Ember kneeling as she follows her instincts and begins to lick up and down the length of his shaft, her tongue as warm and soft as a blanket but as warm as a hot bath at his preferred temperature. Ember, for her part, has a glowing light in her pupils shaped like hearts as something of a manic look fills her face with each lap of her tongue. Her inner Genie is coming out, and how she is claiming this dragon as hers, in body, mind, heart, and spirit.
Sliding the shaft into her mouth, the Tsarina begins to take as much of his length into her as she can, feeling him twitch, her instincts telling her is about to release his seed, and she smirks, her instincts driving her onwards. It takes a few minutes, and the Princess licking the tip of his shaft for a good few seconds, but with each passing second, Durgaul can feel the sensation for the desire for release to run through his glans, through the nerves in his shaft, and up his spine and into his brain, driving him crazy with each pass of her lips and tongue, until he can't take it anymore, feeling the princess taking him as deep as she can into her mouth, and the feeling of release soon washes over him, and he releases his sperm into her mouth. The Princess smiles as feels his seed fill her mouth, savoring the strong but pleasantly salty taste of his seed as she pulls her mouth off, swallowing with an aroused but crazed smile on her face.
The Princess lies on her back as she spreads her legs, beckoning for him, "My turn, my love…" Ana says, smiling as Durgaul, still feeling the sensation flow through him, gets down on the ground and moves his face close to her gates, seeing how wet she is, and can smell her scent flowing from her as the lips twitch in anticipation. Opening his mouth, he slowly lowers his tongue onto the lips of her vagina, and he begins to lap up her wetness. As he does so, the taste of her reminds him of something he drank in his old world, something he only got around Christmas Time, Cinnamon Coca-Cola, it has the same flavor, just without the carbonation, and that alone starts to spur him into licking her vigorously, and sliding his long triangular tongue into her to get at the source inside her. Ana leans her head back, moaning, doing her best to keep her voice down as she feels his tongue lap at the folds inside her, lapping up the liquid that her body produces from her arousal. She gasps and pants as the situation goes on, with her moaning steadily becoming louder.
Deep in the Tsarina's core, she can feel a burning sensation, and a sensation of pressure build up in her, a pressure that desires for release, but it only intensifies when Durgaul finds her clitoris, and his tongue rubs against it as it slides in and out of her slit. The Empress's arousal reaching it's peak at this point as she feels the pressure becoming too much, and she orgasms, spewing liquid from her body, and Durgaul tastes it, a complimentary sweetness that accompanies compliments her already delicious arousal fluid, a flavor that reminds him of Cherry Coca-Cola and Vanilla Coca-Cola, all three flavors melding into perfect harmony. As this release happens, Ana moans as loud as she can…
Back at camp, everyone is blushing bright red as they hear Ana's moans, gasps and panting, and they all roll dice to determine who stays outside to keep watch over the camp, in which the one who rolls the lowest stays outside and keeps watch. Unfortunately for Longclaw, that means he and Ghost have to keep watch for the first shift. "Gods preserve me…" Longclaw says.
Back to Traves and Ana, with the pressure in her core fading, Durgaul slowly lines up his shaft with her slit, and the Princess holds out her arms. "I am yours, and you are mine…" She says, still panting as Traves kisses her, sliding his shaft deep in her. The stretching and tearing of her Hymen causes Ana to groan in pain as his shaft enters deep inside her.
"Are you alright?" Traves asks Ana, never having had the chance to make love to his beloved back in his home world.
"I'm fine…!" Ana says, "Just give me a moment…!" Ana adjusts to the pain, feeling her dragon's shaft reaching all the way to her womb, the glans actually kissing the entrance as she looks into his eyes. However… As she feels the pain, she sees images rushing past her mind, images of an overweight, morbidly obese man, enter her mind, he was handsome in his own way, and did his best to become thinner for her, eventually reaching a good point where his health improved, but she had died in his arms as he cried, holding her… And back then she had brown hair like chocolate, eyes like that of bronze slowly fading into it's patina, and with pale skin, with a mole near her chin. She was a beautiful woman who fell in love with a man who had been there for her when she needed him most, and though he was lazy and a bit of a pig, he was a good person, a loving autistic man, but more than that, he tolerated her fury.
Ember realizes these memories were hers, and she pulls him in for a kiss, to which Durgaul, lost in the moment, slowly starts moving, Ana's pain slowly turning to pleasure with each slow thrust. She moans as she feels her folds being stretched slowly and surely, molding herself to fit his girth as her body memorizes the feel, shape, and length of her beloved's penis, kissing him deeply as his hands explore her body, groping her breasts, licking the nipples, kissing her neck, the sensations slowly overwhelm her as her folds grip tightly around this dragon's member. Traves, wanting to savor each moment, stays slow and steady, feeling her massaging his length and glans, enticing him to build up pressure, as the rubbing builds pressure in her.
"I can feel it coming again!" Ana says, holding onto him, her hair glowing with heat and creating a dazzling display of colors as she looks at him.
"I am too!" Traves says, wanting to pull out, only for Ana to wrap her legs around his waist. "Ana!?"
"Inside me… I want it inside me!" Ana says, "A Genasi can't get pregnant if she doesn't want to! Please! I want it! Cum in me!" Traves's pupils glow a dazzling blue as he keeps up the pace, pressure building for both of them, the two of them looking into each other's eyes, kissing deeply. Then it floods them, the rush of release as Traves thrusts his shaft, the glans kissing the entrance to her womb and flooding it with his cum, whilst pulling him in close, pushing him deeper into her, her folds moving to squeeze out as much of it as she can. The two breathe heavily as they look into each other's eyes, Traves pulling out as he falls onto his backside, only to reveal he is still hard. Ana sits up, smiling as his seed flows out of her slit… "More…" The two go for a few more hours, and inside Ana's body, the heat is unbearable for his sperm, her body's natural defenses kill each cell if it doesn't boil over and explode. Once finished, the two snuggle up close to each other, holding their naked bodies in each other's arms as they stare into each other's eyes.
(*Rolls* You beat the Stealth DC and managed to bypass the Lemons! The Trail is safe to continue*)
"Ana… I don't mean to sound crazy, but something about that look in your eye is… Vaguely familiar…" Traves says, looking at her.
"I am sure it would…" She then whispers into his ear, "Long time no see… Toroka…" Traves's eyes go wide at the mentioning of that name, and he looks at her with tears in his eyes.
"No… Way…" Durgaul says, looking at her. "Anastasiya?" To which Ember nods as she looks at him, and then kisses him passionately, the two holding each other close as this intimate moment now becomes tender, the two of them shedding tears of joy after finally being reunited.
The Next Day…
After everyone has had their long rest, though some of it was disturbed thanks to the two love birds, the group continues on their way along the trail, but, strangely enough, after Eryn and Nevermore check the maps they got, it turns out that one of the ruins that is mentioned on the Dragon's Map is that there is a ruin not far ahead of them, and, after some calculations, reveals the route between the fork which passes by the ruin and to their destination, is only altered by a few hours, and there is a city just north east of it, so they can sell any of the stuff that they got from previous adventures. It takes them a few hours to reach the town, which, if one could describe it, is just inside the northern borders of Moldova, which makes things just a bit easier, the city of Soroca.
The City itself is bustling with farmers, soldiers, and even merchants from other places within the region, and, unsurprisingly a group of what appear to be militia actually arrive to investigate them. "Hold!" The guards say, "What is your business in Soroca, travelers?"
"We are making our way towards Romania to aid a friend's people against a Red Dragon, but we recently discovered a Young Red Dragon nesting in the mountains North of here…!" Nevermore says, "We recently found this map in it's possession, and it's talking about a ruined city near here called… "Kurast'' I think was it's name?"
"Kurast?" One of the guards asks, "You seek out this cursed place?"
"It's along our way, and we thought it would be fun to look into…!" Durgaul says, turning his head to the guards, who just now notice the sapphire dragon, and aim their weapons at it, only for the higher ranking member of the group of guards to raise his hands.
"You dragon, are you black or are you sapphire?" The Guard Leader asks.
"I am both sir, I was born a Sapphire Dragon but was also born with this black coloration!"
"You wouldn't happen to be known as Drugo'Naigo would you?"
"Previously, my half-dragon half-brother gave me a new one, but how did you know that?" Durgaul asks.
"You've actually gained quite a bit of fame on your travels from Kyiv to Vapnyarka! First demons then Half-Dragons, and now a Young Dragon! You and your group have gained quite a bit of fame from the battles you took part in, especially since not many adventurers, for the first outing, take on a Glabrezu, even a reduced threat one, and manage to kill it as brutally and efficiently as the rumors say you did.!" The Guard Captain says, "The Name's Captain Bard by the way!"
"Nice to meet you captain! But yes, we are seeking to investigate Kurast, as it is on our way to Romania." Durgaul explains, smiling.
"Then I suggest you take a day's rest at a local inn that is actually fair priced for adventurers like you and will provide decent food and rest for you all!" Bard says, looking to Durgaul, "Though you might!"
"Oh don't worry about that, good sir, I have a way to get inside the inn, I just need a place to park our carriage!" Durgaul says, smiling. "I suggest you and a few of your men come with us if you can show us a place near the inn that we can safely stash our carriage, I can then show you, if it will help with security!"
"That would be acceptable!" Captain Bard says, to which he and his men escort the dragon-driven carriage to a nice place it can be parked for the duration of their stay, and Durgaul has the straps magically removed as, before everyone's very eyes, he transforms into his Elven form, with his opulent work of art garments resting on his body. "Oh my!"
"Sorry, but when I first transformed, these garments were the only thing we had on hand that actually fit, so I would like to do some shopping later for some actual clothes and…" He then holds his chin, "Is there a place I can get these garments enchanted?"
"There is actually a shop near here run by a dragonborn artificer named Ormr Blodskalm! He can enchant your gear for you, within a reasonable price, and within a few hours if you pay for a rush order!"
"That would be perfect!" Durgaul says, smiling as the group are shown to the tavern, as well as a map of the local part of the city, where they can find some shops for stuff they need. Going to a nearby Shop, a Jeweler's known as Tamatoa's Shinies, Durgaul meets with a Simic Hybrid who has a pair of crab arms sprouting from his shoulders, an Elven Simic hybrid.
"Why hello there young master, is there anything I can do for you?"
"I've actually come to sell some gemstones I have on hand!"
"Oh? How interesting!" The Simic Hybrid says, "How can old Tamatoa help you?" To this, Durgaul brings out the 25 Blue Sapphires and 16 Black Sapphires, to which the man smiles as he looks at their quality. "My my my! You must've gotten these out of a dragon's hoard!"
"You wouldn't be wrong on that one! So how much would all of these together fetch?"
"Well, if we were going straight from their value based on their type alone, it would be well over 105,000 Gold, but all of these are extremely high quality gems, so that price would jump up to 125,000 Gold!" Tamatoa says, looking at them, "However, I honestly don't have the ability to pay out for all of these gems…"
"Then how much can you pay for?" Durgaul asks.
"Well, I can pay for the Sapphires, but the Black Sapphires are a bit too rich for my blood… So how about I pay you the 27,000 for the Sapphires, adding the value of their quality into the mix, and you keep the Black Sapphires for a rainy day?" Tamatoa asks, to which Durgaul shakes on that deal and Durgaul smiles as he trades in the Blue Sapphires, and returns to the group, finding them at the Green Dragon Inn, in which he finds the group eating a fine meal.
"Durgaul!" Eryn says, waving him over, "Come on, join us!" The dragon smirks as he sits down next to them. "So how did the sale go?"
"It went well, got us a hefty profit for the sapphires, totalling 27,000!" He then carefully splits it amongst the group, each getting 3,000 gold to spend. "This will be the pocket money we all get to spend whilst we are here for the night!"
"Sounds good to me!" Evolyne says, "Because, while we do have healing potions, I think we'll need some other things as well, since there are some decent shops around here!"
"Then I suggest that, after we eat, we go do some shopping to make sure we're stocked up!"
"I'll focus on getting basic supplies and load it into the carriage's cargo hold…" Nevermore says, "It will come in handy!"
"I'll find an apothecary to get us a good price on a couple of crates of healing potions!" Eryn says.
"While you guys are out, can you guys see if you can find me a supply of Wheat Grains, Lupine Blossoms, and Butterfly Wings, as well as Warbler Egg Shells and Tern Feathers if you can…!" Ember says, reading what is on the cylinders she has. "And a Cauldron for me to mix them in!"
"Is that what is stated in the recipe on those cylinders?" Eryn asks.
"The former three were for a regular healing potion, whilst adding Warbler Egg Shells are for Greater Healing Potions, and the same with Tern Feathers for Superior Healing Potions! And it even gives me the preparation, mixing, and boiling times! Also has a mix of ingredients to add some flavor into it!"
"Oh flavor to a potion, now that would be interesting!" Eryn says, to which Ana gives the sorcerer a list of ingredients on what the recipe calls for.
"I will see about having our arms and armor repaired and honed if we need it!" Damos says.
"And I'm going to buy myself some proper clothes, to be honest these garments make me a target, and I want to reduce that a bit. I'm also going to look into seeing if I can get this stuff enchanted, I think it could come in handy!" Durgaul says, smiling. Everyone nods, "As for everyone else, see if you can find anything out about Kurast! We might need the information sooner rather than later!"
Everyone eats their fill but before they scatter, Durgaul decides to visit the nearby magic shop with everyone and, thankfully, they find a Firbolg Man walking over to them "Oh Good afternoon!" The Firbolg says, "My name is Davith, and how might I be of service to you?
"Do you have any Bags of Holding for sale?" Durgaul asks.
"Why yes! Are you looking to pay or trade?"
"Depends on how sturdy these ones are!" Durgaul says.
"Well I can certainly assure you that my bags are made with the highest quality materials! In fact…" He looks at the man, seeing the bag at his side, then to Mina and Fiona's bags. "You actually have quite the Bag of Holding yourselves!"
"Selves?" Durgaul asks, to which Mina and Fiona show they have Bags of Holding as well. "Where did you get those?"
"We had them for a while now…" Mina says, "Mine was a gift from my father!"
"And I stole mine from a group of bandits!" Fiona says, smiling. "There is no honor in ripping off anyone undeserving, my master taught me that!"
"And those bags are made with some high quality Dragon Leather!" Davith says, smiling at the bags, "I use the same material, but those bags of holding you have there are not of my make! Anyway…" He counts how many members of the group there are and begins to dig through his stock, "But you're lucky, I still have 6 Bags of Holding Left!" He then places them all down on the table, "Now, normally, each of these costs about 7,000 Gold Each, but…" He looks at Durgal's garments, and smirks, "I am sure a noble lord like yourself can shell out something of equal value?" Durgaul, looking at the man, tempted to raise an eyebrow at this, doesn't get the chance to as Damosarion rushes forward.
"How dare you!" Damosarion says, almost zealously, "Do you know who this is!?" Damos shouts at this man, "This is Durgaul'Nergahl, son of the Greatwyrm Klauthiym! How dare you demand more of an Empyrean of such greatness and power, who sought your aid out specifically, to obtain the means for us to explore and possibly even find plunder in Kurast!?"
"Wh-what!?" Davith asks, shocked, before falling to his hands and knees, bowing his head to the ground. "Forgive me your Holiness, I meant not to offend!"
"There is nothing to forgive, good sir…" Durgaul says, gently, placing his taloned hand on the man's chin. "I only recently obtained the power to take on human form myself, and I defeated a Red Dragon who had these garments in his hoard. So there is nothing to forgive for people such as yourself, trying to make money to bring prosperity to his family and people, to make such demands."
(*Rolls Persuasion for Durgaul* NAT 20!)
Unbeknownst to Durgaul, a divine halo of sapphire light forms around his head as he looks down upon the Firbolg in front of him, tears of both fear and awe running down his face as he looks upon the dragon in elven form before him. The man sees the halo flowing from the dragon's head, his chocolate brown eyes both piercing, but warm and gentle, staring deep into the merchant's soul as the man etches the face of this son of Klauthiym into his very soul. "I am not worthy of your forgiveness, your Holiness!" The man says, looking at Klauthiym with eyes full of wonder and awe, "Please, your holiness, take these for half-price… Your Cleric is right, I should not have assumed of your wealth because of your garments."
"Good man…" Durgaul says, smiling gently at the man, "However, I still wish to pay you for them…" He gently reaches into his bag of holding, and brings out his bag of Black Sapphires, "Take these, good sir, and may your trade dealings be ever more prosperous and may your choices lead to the betterment of your people." Durgaul gently hands his companions their bags, and they leave, with Durgaul looking at the man one last time with a gentle smile. The Firbolg falls onto his backside as the dragon leaves, holding a hand over his heart as tears flow down his face.
"A God…" The man says, crying as he had seen the face of a god, and he think back on all the dealings he had in the past, how he had ripped off many an adventurer with his overpriced goods, and that Dragon, the son of a Greatwyrm, showed him mercy when one of his companions sought to punish him… He can't help but cry in shame, but also shed tears of joy, and he engraves the name of the Dragon into his heart. "Durgaul'Nergahl…" The Merchant says. It was in this moment that, hundreds of years into the future, a new religion would be born, where a single merchant would become the first of what would thought to be a cult, only for it to grow and expand into a religion covering what would later be realized as the Carpathian Empire, where, from a simple act of mercy and benevolence, a god in the form of a Black Sapphire Greatwyrm would be praised and prayed to, a God whose domains are War, Life, Nature, Trickery, and Twilight… A God whose dogma would have it that everyone did everything straight and honest, but to never forget to show mercy and compassion to others. A God whose symbol would be that of a large Black Star Sapphire cut in the shape of a dragon's scale.
Outside the shop, whilst this man is having his great revelation, Durgaul gives Damos a look, "Did you really have to bring my father into this? This may end up causing problems later on!"
"Well I couldn't just let him take advantage of you…!" Damos says.
"True… But still, don't do that again, please? I feel like you're betraying your father when you do that…" Durgaul says, shaking, "Plus, I don't want a cult to form around me if I can help it… I don't want competition with my father…"
"Well, based on how you did back there, I don't think you'll have a choice…" Ember says, gently wrapping her arms around his left arm while holding his hand. After this little instance, everyone goes about their business… Durgaul finds a clothing store, and speaks to the proprietor, who understands Durgaul's plight about his garments attracting unwanted attention, and how more practical garments might be worth the price. After some tryouts with Ana oooing and awing over everything, they manage to settle on Durgaul going with the idea of him getting some well made travelers clothes made out of black leather, a black leather trench coat that falls down to his just above his toes, a black leather shirt, a pair of black leather pants, black leather boots, with a matching belt, as well as black leather fingerless gloves. Getting ten sets of these clothes, as well as a number of Noble Garments just in case Damos's ploy ever backfires on them. After this he buys himself the supplies from a Dungeoneer's pack, along with an extra ten Potions of Healing, just to be on the safeside.
They soon make their way towards the shop of Ormr Blodskalm, revealing him to be a Sapphire Dragonborn who whistles as he does his work, but this is no ordinary shop, it's a mix of a tinkerer's laboratory, a smithy, and an enchanter's shop. "Hello the-" The Dragonborn says, turning to the two of them, only to stop as he looks at Durgaul, "Well well well, look what the dragon dragged in!"
"Huh?" Durgaul asks.
"You're one of Klauthiym's brats, right?"
"Uh… Yes, sir?"
"Oh humble, huh? Good, you just might survive out here!" The dragonborn then walks over to the counter, "So how may I help you?"
"Well I was looking to get these enchanted…" Durgaul says, bringing forth the garments he had been wearing previously, "I don't know much in the way of enchanting but I was wondering if…"
"If I could turn these into armor or make them more durable for adventuring?" Ormr asks, to which Durgaul looks at him, surprised, "Don't look so surprised kid, there are many Dead Ends like you roaming about these days, so it's not hard to read you!"
"Dead Ends?" Durgaul asks.
"Wyrmlings who leave the nest before they are strong enough to defend themselves, either leaving on their own or being forced out by their parents or siblings. Such dragons are born different from the rest of their kin, having Weaker Breath Weapons, are generally physically stronger or weaker than their siblings, and have physical characteristics that are different from the rest of their kin." Ormr says, examining the items, "What are you specifically looking for in an enchantment?"
"Simply an enchantment that will allow these items to repair themselves as I journey through the world with my friends!" Durgaul explains.
"I see, so a Mending spell that is constantly being cast, that shouldn't be too hard! Cost you about 600 silver in total… Anything Else?" The man asks, to which Durgaul thinks and looks at the mantle.
"Is there a way to turn the mantle into a Cloak of Displacement?" Durgaul asks.
"Easy! Though it will cost you a pretty penny, and if you throw in a little extra, you'll still use the mantle's properties, both it's strengths and weaknesses, in your dragon form as well!"
"And the Amulet… Could you turn it into a Necklace of Adaptation?"
"Anything Else?" The Artificer asks, smiling
"Just one more thing… Do you have any Eyes of the Eagle?"
"I have one set, why?"
"Well I never told anyone this, but the reason why I usually stick so close to our opponents is because…" He blushes in embarrassment, "I'm near-sighted… If I don't get up close to my opponents, then I will more than likely miss…"
"Is that why you were only able to hit three of those Abyssal Chickens when we first met?"
"Yes… I overestimated the range of my blast and only got three out of those ten bastards… and I nearly died because of it…" Durgaul says, blushing with embarrassment.
"I see, I think I can attune them to you if you want me to, and I'll even waive the additional melding enchantment fee as well!" He then does some calculations, "That will be… About 1000 Gold!"
"Deal!" Durgaul says, to which the man says, telling him he'll have them ready in a few hours.
Meanwhile, Nevermore does all the shopping for the group, buying his group each the Supplies for a Dungeoneer's Pack, and as well as a couple of healing potions for each person, but as he does so, he overhears something in passing, something about Kurast, and something that dwells within there. What he manages to hear causes his blood to chill… A story… and a name… That is when his eyes look up and see Damos listening in on, but more intently… It is a bard telling a terrifying tale, but this tale brings Damos to, silently, shed tears of joy…
Hello Friends, stay a while and listen, for today I tell you of the Downfall of the City of Kurast, a once shining Utopia here in Moldova, but long since destroyed by powers of the Blood War that raged there…! Thousands of years ago, the Blood War nearly spilled upon the Material Plane, demons and devils fighting one another fiercely as the Evils attempted to take this world. However, the Powers both above and below saw things as they were and sought to give aid to the peoples of the world. The Gods of Mount Celestia and the Lords of the Nine created a pact, in which, should the Blood War spill upon the Material Plane, Four Champions would ride out upon mighty steeds to set things right… It was one Archdevil who offered his own children, quadruplets who were now fully grown Tieflings who sought glory and honor in the name of their father… These Tieflings, who swore a sacred oath to protect the Material Realm with fire, brimstone, and fear, and thus were granted divine power by the Gods, whilst being promoted to the Rank of Pit Fiends, granted the power of such creatures, but as they were still living, their Pit Fiend forms became unique, and thus Asmodeus would declare that every Pit Fiend who was forged from the Soul of a Tiefling would gain a unique form, whilst others, whose souls were not of Infernal Descent, would take a standardized form.
These Four Horsemen mounted the backs of great and powerful Nightmares, only larger and more powerful than the rest of their kin. These Four Horsmen were given titles that exemplified their powers, and when these horsemen rode, they were tasked with killing any and all fiends to force them back into the proper battlefield, and the fear they delivered upon their foes was no ordinary fear… For even those who could resist or were immune to Fear were caught off guard by how it overpowered their senses and forced them to flee back into the Battleground of the Lower Planes. When their task was done, they were tasked with patrolling the regions of the Carpathian Mountains, where the Portals to both the Abyss and the Hells opened, and were tasked with finding and destroying these portals.
However, each of these Riders met a terrible fate, but here, in Moldova, one is known for it is the center of our story. For I am here to tell you about the smartest and most cunning but also the weakest of the Four Riders, for he is a Rider who fights with magic and skill, not brute force and power… He is a Rider who built his home in the city of Kurast, establishing the Order of Zakarum to defend against Abyssal and Infernal threats, all the while forwarding his own ambitions as a powerful Necromancer… I speak of the Rider of the Pale Horse, the Rider of Death and Undeath, the Lord of Hatred, and Eldest Son of the Archdevil Bel…! Dul'Mephistos!