un: raven master - audio | day ii

[pulvisetumbra]

Good afternoon. As ever, we have scant time for well wishes and compliments. This is the Merchant. To those freshly in my care, I bid greetings and remain at your service. To the rest: your ongoing survival is a matter of celebration.

( And... incredulity, though he will not be the man to say so. )

I am given to understand you remain in — a part of Yancai. I speak to you from five years onwards. We have succeeded to break the time's weave for precisely one hour to allow this communication, after which I regret to bid my leave. Let us employ our time wisely.

My hope and concern is that, in your attempts to remedy the harms of this village, you will succeed, as you have before, and break the flow of time. If you do — when you do, know this: just as there are territories outside of land, there are those beyond time. Often, they are wastelands or exist independently under the rule of tyrants without reason.

( A distasteful concept to him, for how his voice sours. ) Many of Akhuras' least... favoured sorcerers were exiled in such pockets. I hold minimal sway there, past episodes of commerce.

( Hesitantly: ) If you arrive in such regions, seek out waypoints bearing the carvings of an eye with the sun for a pupil. They were put in place to return Ellethian trade caravans to their true place in time.

( And might, on this occasion, serve the party. ) If you do not break time, if you merely wait out Yancai's next transition and return to five years onwards organically, ignore my cautions. Either way: see what may be gleaned from this Yancai of old. I trust no village whose House of Commerce once dealt on friendly terms with the warlord Anurr.

( ooc: please assume all interaction with the Merchant on this post happens within the span of an IC hour — thank you! )

Comments

[somebadnews]

[ Would it benefit him to be more diplomatic? Probably, but that was still a little harsher than he deserves. ]

We gave up on being tourists a long time ago. I'd rather not see the world destroyed while me and my family are still in it.

[pulvisetumbra]

Anurr is... the better option. Retaining him alive and free gives the dead lieges someone to battle on their par. Someone... who is not us.

But he is of their cloth. More ancient, no doubt he would say, claiming a birth right. I do not believe he or any of them will ever be truly satisfied with conquest. Whatever they have, they may have more.

If he told you otherwise, I am certain he lied.

[somebadnews]

[ It's possible. Anurr has long been established as a good liar, but Five still keeps a part of him as a failsafe so he must believe him to some extent. ]

I'd think you'd be more worried about being caught in the crossfire.

[pulvisetumbra]

I am. Constantly.

[somebadnews]

Along with us joining their forces, right?

[pulvisetumbra]

That... is increasingly a foregone conclusion. I have been made aware of the numerous occasions when members of our small coalition have been claimed by the dead.

[somebadnews]

Sending us to a pocket dimension outside of time might even seem like the better option for you.

[pulvisetumbra]

Barring the part where I am actively telling you to avoid that and simply not change the flows of time.

[somebadnews]

You know that isn't a real option.

[pulvisetumbra]

I know that is not an option you enjoy. But it is an option.

[somebadnews]

I think you're overestimating which parts I enjoy.