npc inbox: ephes

[groundrules]

NPC INBOX

Reach out to your (not-so-)favourite NPC here, putting their name in the comment header. Try to keep it to just quick text/audio/written exchanges or inquiries that can accept summarised answers, please!

Previous NPC inbox posts:

Arc I: Sa-Hareth | Interlude: Stairs of Sighs + Arc II: Taravast | Interlude: Ellethia

Arc III: House of Ravens | Arc IV: Serthica | Arc V: Alem

Arc VI: Yancai | Interlude: Unkharil

EPHES | ALLIED NPCs | OTHERS

EPHES

	CAIUS Leader of the great Senate, revered for enlightenment, wisdom and fairness. A cunning politician whom the Senate has, exceptionally and unanimously, voted to retain into a fourth mandate, after the expiry of his lawful three. Nominal commander and head priest, currently retired in a temple of the Chained God to consider Messalina's proposal.
	MARTELLIUS Second speaker of the Senate and cat wrangler of senators representing both patrician and plebeian interests. A veteran of political warfare who gives starting orators and politicians a hand. Immune to bribery but vulnerable to reason.
	LAETIO Keeper of the main gladiatorial arena and administrator of the games. Offers instruction and care to new gladiators, as well as arranging their matches. Strict, abiding no disobedience or attempts to sabotage fellow gladiators.
	VALERIA Formerly the mistress of Caius, now sworn off earthly pleasures to serve as the great priestess of the Chained God and holiest of women. Where she walks, they say a thousand blessings follow.
	NARULA Genera of the Hand armies of Ephes. Disgruntled, easily irritable, demanding. Never thanks, never congratulates, never disobeys an order or fails to generate a result. Under his leadership, the Hand rose from meager hope to glory. Some yet question... how.
	MESSALINA Newly risen mistress of the dead, who promises Ephes any territories she conquers when defeating the established Undead Lieges, in exchange for the citadel's army. Soft and honeyed spoken, hypnotic. Advocates for freedom and equality and an end to the conflict between the living and the dead.

ALLIED NPCs

	KARSA Sorceress, young (?). Employed by the Merchant and deferential to him. Talented but fiery and frequently impatient, intolerant of fools. She will get today's job done yesterday. Struggles to sympathise with men, objections and those who cannot absorb information quickly. Enchanted the group's translation devices.
	ZENOBIUS Former caretaker and scientist of Ellethia, site and cauldron of the first undead attacks. Fell victim to local enchantment and looked after the comatose bodies of his former colleagues for years. Fell and awoke from a long sleep, partly amnesiac. Practical, grumpy, unafraid to challenge the Merchant.
	'QUICKSILVER SAM'(UEL VANE) Pirate king of great renown, master of haunted waters. Recovering from a journey through the Crossing Seas, where he summoned the drowned dead for a foolish act of vengeance with an elusive artefact he himself misunderstands. Agile, quick-witted, charming and possessed of more street smarts than many. Intent to repay his debt to the party.
	HATISSE Revived witch of the Attaryl, partly responsible for the massacre of the Stairs of Sighs. Formerly a court witch of the Attaryl. Manipulative, vicious, a trained seductress. Formidably powerful. Buried with wards and injuries by her own sisters to prevent her return. Somewhat bound to Wrath.
	ASGEIRR The ghost of a scholar monk. Haunts the tattered execution cloak that the party stole from the La Rea bank in Sa-Hareth. Once a champion of equality and freedom, he faced ire for converting his followers against the regionally profitable trade of slavery. Soft-spoken but wise and just, slow to regain his strength. Will speak to those who visit his cloak in brief interludes. Favours necromancers.
	THE MERCHANT The patron saint of etiquette and the eastbound getaway expedition. Seems to largely trade information alongside wares. Appreciates spices, strategy and collaboration. Has an eerie and overly cautious manner. Committed. Defends the benefit of the many, to the detriment of the few. Not travelling with the party.

OTHERS

"HALTHAM" | ANURR The undead warlord Anurr, previously posing as gentle-mannered giant Haltham. An embodiment of Sa-Hareth's cold storms and wind, who regained his territory from contender Unhalad with the inadvertent help of the party in Arc I. Frostily rational and amenable to some negotiation.

Comments

[somebadnews]

[ Five knows enough that he doesn't think she's exaggerating that much. Natasha may not have had the pleasure, and he wonders how much she buys it, but his brushes with Matthias are enough to warrant this meeting. He could erase them. Everything they are; Matthias could bend them to his will if he chose. It's been obvious for a long time who they'd have to face eventually.

Just as much as it's obvious they can't fight him alone. ]

You don't have to tell me. [ Matthias is beyond them. Although now he wonders where Anurr lines up, if he asked. ] I'd say that being underestimated is an advantage, but it's not enough of one alone. Where does he get his strength? He had to have gotten his power from somewhere.

[aprescoup]

( Here, her gaze tightens, and she considers again — so consumed by her thoughts that she nearly drops the date from her hand, before gently remembering at the last moment to cast it aside.

And softly: )

I do not know. What deals he struck. What agreement. There must be one. He is not dead. ( Therefore, the power cannot be his own. And yet: )

But he is not a man. I do not know what he is. I do not like him. Not in the way of hating an enemy. But he is... not to be liked. Unlikeable. ( Another moment's consideration. ) Unctuous. But also arrogant. What does he want? He wants nothing. What will he do? Whatever he pleases. How can such a person be liked? He wants for nothing, and does harm only because he can.

[mustact]

[ Ugh, she just won't falter at all. Sure, he has nothing but her voice, and maybe that was his first mistake, but there's not the slightest waver. Most likely, this will go nowhere.

He scoffs, very quietly. ]

I am not so certain.

Though they may think they do.

[aprescoup]

Then, I encourage you to consider asking those people... what is it they gain by delaying? Why does your Senate not support righteousness? If I am not their ally, who is?

[mustact]

[ There's no point in lying about it, he thinks. If only because he's certain she suspects it already. ]

I believe they are concerned about the truthfulness of your claim. That you will give them the land and that will be the end of it.

[aprescoup]

But is that not what they wish for? Land? Empire. Do they request gold? Let them have gold. Resources? They are yours. All the spoils of war belong to your Senate. I only ask liberation.

[somebadnews]

[ She makes him sound like a god. Or a demon, like Wrath, who is the most powerful that he knows among them and still got wrapped up in Matthias' dreams. It's an unknown if he can even be killed.

Her way of describing the ways she doesn’t like him make him wonder if they’ve ever really met, or if it’s his reputation she opposes to. ]

That doesn’t give us much to work with. It’s harder to take someone down if you don’t know their motives. [ He sighs and leans back, dropping some of the formality he carried when he entered. ] We know he created the brotherhood, but not why. He took a boy with him, the son of two of them, and I assume he’s still acting as his caretaker.

That doesn’t mean he did it out of empathy. He could have been lonely or bored, but the boy is the only one we’ve seen in his company. [ Five couldn’t even take the boy out, but the fact remains he’s the weaker of the two. ] We need to know what he’s thinking before we come at him with force. Has anyone challenged him before?

[aprescoup]

No. ( This, she speaks with emphasis, with purpose. ) They do not seek to. They think, he does nothing. He puts no limitations. He seldom intervenes. He is no where, speaking to no one.

( But her teeth grit. ) But he only waits. Do you think I am paranoid? I am not. He has no reasons. That is what makes him dangerous. Whenever he is done waiting, he will act. When the whim strikes him. Just so. It will be too late for the others, his disciples. It will not be late for me.

[mustact]

And to them that sounds too good to be true. Why would you not wish to keep the land for yourself? After all, that is what they desire.

[aprescoup]

I cannot answer. I have no such instincts. Then, what is the point of further talk? We will never come to understanding.

[mustact]

[ It's easy to say those things, obviously. Doesn't mean it's true. ]

I do not think understanding requires sharing the same experiences or ideas. But perhaps you are right. I thank you for your time.

[aprescoup]

I for yours. We are not so unlike, you and I. I am grateful.

[somebadnews]

[ She seems to be spiraling in a way that gives the impression she really is afraid of Matthias. Or that she's had to defend her position to those who haven't experienced him. Probably both. ]

I don't think you're paranoid. [ Even if he did, it wouldn't be an insult coming from him. ] I think you don't know what it will take, or where to find him once you do.

If Ephes stops being the obstacle and follows you tomorrow, what's next?

[aprescoup]

We devise a strategy. ( Unflinching, without pause. ) We go where they Brotherhood is weak. Where they are only just setting roots in the west, in Qather, or where their forces are depleted from fighting war recently, like in holy Alem.

( Another moment, another date. ) We go one by one and take some surprise, and some we fight fairly. To all, we extend the option to release their enslaved and join us.

[somebadnews]

[ She's more proactive than Anurr, but they have similarities. The question is what their best option is, and if Matthias would even show himself if the Brotherhood was eliminated. ]

The undead and living alike?

[aprescoup]

I have no trouble with the living. No interest to go against them. ( She will not have to extend them a similar truce, if they are not part of the war.

But then, that moment is distant, hypothetical. A part of her, sitting straighter and more rigid in place, has finished considering it. )

Now. We are friends. We have spoken at length, as friends do. But I tire for the day. ( And so, she dismisses them, elegantly. )

[somebadnews]

[ Five looks once to the largely-silent Natasha, and nods. He'd hoped to get more of a sense of her thinking, but she didn't hint at what Alir told him. A lack of trust, more than likely, so he wonders how much she'd ultimately listen to his advice.

Still, he doesn't push for more. Whatever drives her, it seems to him that her ideals don't necessarily mean she knows more about Matthias than they do. He stands less confident that she'll be formidable enough to take the risks he's been considering, but without an alternative. Something needs to change. ]

Until we speak again. [ He stands and moves to leave, certain he'll return once he's had time to mull over their next steps. ]

narula | action

[clavesregni]

[Wen Kexing's discovery of the scrap of purple fabric clutched in an undead hand has led Caitlyn here. She's only aware of one person among the Hand who wears the colour: Narula. So while Wen Kexing plans to find out which - if any - senators the cloth might belong to, Caitlyn has decided to use her limited access to Narula to question him.]

Sir, I have some questions regarding an item that was discovered during the recent incident at the Colosseum.

[aprescoup]

( He is stern-faced, jaw locked. A man of middling manners and a cutting gaze — impatient enough that he regards the woman who disturbs him as he works through the next exercise regimen of the new recruits with something like exasperation.

All the same: )

Louder. Speak, soldier.

[clavesregni]

[Speak she does, a little more eagerly than might be expected of someone who intends to interrogate their commanding officer. She doesn't raise her voice much, though, not wanting to draw anyone else's attention.]

A hand was found in one of the rifts. The undead around it seemed to avoid it, and when it was picked up the black water abated. [As much as she wishes she could speak from first-hand knowledge, all she can do is relay Wen Kexing's account of events and trust that they're accurate.] It was clutching a scrap of purple fabric. A colour you wear. What do you know of this hand?

[aprescoup]

( She's a barking dog, and his bite is meaner. Time to show so. )

That isn't. How we speak. To a commander, soldier. ( And more cutting, evenly: ) There were hundreds of disgusting and vermin at the arena. A sign of the atrocities that devilwoman Messalina brings. Dozens tried to pursue me. I succeeded to withdraw, applying the tactics and formations taught to you. How should I know which of them clutched my uniform, as I walked along?

[clavesregni]

[Caitlyn is so eager to find answers that she barely even processes the fact that she's probably meant to be intimidated by his tone.]

How close did you come to the rifts? Did you cross directly over any of them? [Perhaps it's clutching at straws, but Wen Kexing had said he'd found the hand in the middle of one of the rifts...]

[aprescoup]

Of course. They were everywhere in arena. I proceeded to take stock of the land and of the immediate threat I faced before engaging in altercation. I was alert and cautious. I moved quickly. I withdrew when it was apparent that I would be overwhelmed by enemy forces.

( If he is ashamed by having to retreat, he certainly does not seem to show it. ) As any responsible infantryman should.

( But then, straightening in place: ) What is the nature of your concern, soldier?

[clavesregni]

I'm trying to determine the origin of the hand. It could lead to further information about the black water and the nature of the undead, especially given the way that both seem to react to the hand.

[She sees no reason to conceal anything about her inquiry.]

The scrap of fabric it was clutching is as promising a clue as I have.

[aprescoup]

Black... water. ( He murmurs, watching her carefully, gaze slanting. ) That dreadful element of contagion from the Hives. Is that the one that concerns you?

( The same that sullies their grains. But then: ) Who assigned you this investigation, soldier?