A Goliath, Halfling and a Mimic Have Tea
Apr 28, 2022 12:21:22 GMT
Celina Zabinski, Velania Kalugina, and 2 more like this
Post by Andy D on Apr 28, 2022 12:21:22 GMT
* This takes place after the game ‘A Literal Calling’
* Many thanks to Youki/Chonk and Andy/Kelne
Training in Stonehand Fighting Techniques was going well for Kavel here at the Runaway Library’s Armoury with the Metal Bros - living suits of armour - as his trainers.
It was time for a break though, and Kavel had made plans to chat with Chonk, and they would be joined by his comrade, Kelne, for some tea, and a slice of cherry pie.
Tea was to be had by the entrance to the Library, near the Reading Hall. To get there, Kavel had to walk past the Laboratory where he gave up his mastery with polearms to get back Chonk’s missing memories. Kavel also had to walk past the Greenhouse, a room full of even less enjoyable memories for Kavel, where he was ambushed by displacer beasts that savagely clawed him, almost bringing him to death. His companions that day, which included the divinely blessed halfling Kelne, beat back the beasts into submission. When Kavel came round from unconsciousness, they were able to carry on with the actual mission… acquiring apples.
As Kavel moved further away from the Greenhouse, and closer to the alcove to the left of the Main Hall, unpleasant memories gave way to pleasant thoughts, as he saw a mimic holding a teapot and a cheeky halfling who had also just arrived, sat by a table.
Chonk pours tea in the cups on the coffee table in the library atrium with surprising dexterity for such a massive being.
"So, what did you want to talk about? I remember everything now... What do you want to know?" He asks, looking at you with at least 8 of his eyes, while shifting the plate with cherry pie (the cream inscription says Welcome Back Chonk. Love, Cookie) closer to himself. He's trying to make it a very sneaky motion, but it's super obvious.
Kavel looks at the pie and back at Chonk. "Let's cut up the pie, Chonk. You want a slice? I need the energy."
After slices were cut, Kelne turned to Chonk, and said, "so, your mother is a halfling, like me? And you said she went somewhere 30 years ago?"
Chonk cuts three pieces from the pie, and takes one that is significantly bigger. It still is barely the size of his tooth.
"Yeah, she's a halfling." He nods energetically. "She worked in the library for a long time. I don't know how long. But she really, really wanted to travel. I remember her saying she's been studying the Underdark, and it was really silly that she'd never been there. And then one day she hugged me and said she figured it out. Last thing I remember her wheeling out of the room, she told me... "Take care!" and that's it." He says with a concentrated frown that wrinkles the boards on his forehead.
Kavel, figuratively speaking, 'smashed' his slice of cherry pie. "Delicious. A lot of sugar, but I'm burning through calories in the Armoury, so it’s allowed," he thought to himself.
After listening to his large mimic friend's response to the questions. Kavel realised there was so much he didn't understand.
"Chonk, who owns this library? I was thinking it was your mother. But then I thought: ``I don't think I know what her job here is, and what is her name?"
"Oh, right!" Chonk says, emptying the entire kettle into his huge maw. "Her name's Breola. She built this place. Not like built built, she couldn't even lift me when I was six..." He chuckles, looking proudly over his large form. "But like magic built. Her friends helped," he adds, nodding at the portraits on the walls. "They all worked at Candlekeep. Researchers, scholars... Everyone built a room they'd want to have. And then mom told me to take care, and the library ran away. We were on the move ever since," he says, staring at the distance, as if glancing across years. "Went everywhere... the Underdark, all the outer planes, even picked up a baby kraken in some underwater town... So many pretty places! I bet she'd like that!" He smiles fondly.
Kavel’s stoic face shifted a little to make room for a smile at hearing his friend imagine how pleased his mother would be to hear about his experiences. In light of hearing what must be tough for Chonk, it was good he could be positive.
Out loud, Kavel mused, “So the library didn’t used to teleport? Privately though, Kavel thought, “I wish comrade Derthaad will show up for tea. He’s better than me at getting to the bottom of matters like these.”
Kavel did his best to channel his investigator friend, and tried to make sure he asked all the questions relevant to his friend Chonk’s situation, whilst also being a friend. Kavel was concerned that his emotional flat manner of speaking might work against him here. But, in the absence of Investigator Derthaad, he felt he had to give it a go:
“Excuse me Chonk, I hope you don’t mind, but I have many questions. I am not normally interested in magic myself, there are so many gains to be made in physical strength for me to be concerned with magic. But, I’ve come to visit you and your library often now, and I have become interested in the place… oh yes…” Kavel paused a little, as he remembered to show his friend sympathy, “... and I am also concerned”.
“So, if you don’t mind, maybe you could take us through the following questions, in your own time?”
The Goliath paused a little, to leave time for what he said to rest.
“So, do you have any idea why your mother went to the Underdark, when you last saw her? Was she researching something? Did she ever leave the Library before? And also, maybe it’s a separate point; why does the library teleport? Do you know where it will go next, or have any control over it?”
Chonk chews on the aftertaste of the pie rather than the pie itself for some time, processing all the questions.
“I don’t think my mom went to the Underdark. She could barely leave the library as it was. I mean, she could teleport. That’s how she got all the Underdark creatures to research. Like Cyanne and Joon. And the flumps! She just didn’t want to leave the library for a long time. Is 30 years a long time?” He adds, looking quizzically. “It’s not that long for us, but then oozes don’t age, and mimics just grow…” he looks around his own form proudly.
The Goliath and Halfling adventurers share a glance between each other over the question of, is 30 years a long time? Certainly for one of them, but also the other; although to a lesser extent.
Kelne relieved acting investigator Kavel for a bit, and asked, "Earlier, I think you said your mother's last words to you included, 'I've figured it out'. Do you know what she figured out, mate?"
"Well, her last words were for me to take care... I always assumed she meant the library... what else is there to take care of?" Chonk shrugs with at least five of his pseudopods. "I think... I think she figured out how she could travel. Not just teleport, but, you know, go somewhere and stay there. Without getting chewed up in a minute. She really wanted to do that. Got really bored at Candlekeep. Said there were only books and secrets, and not enough life. And not enough pie..." he says as he looks across the table where the remaining pie is being slowly munched on by Chomp.
"... Breola couldn't stay wherever she went? Wherever she went... did she used to be teleported back to the Library?" Kavel asked.
Asking all these questions was like brain training for Kavel, and since he prefered to train his body over his mind; he was very aware of his limitation feeling mentally exhausted. Returning to the Armoury for some intense physical training would be relaxing for the Goliath.
“She could stay. Just would be eaten. Most places aren’t safe. Also she didn’t want to leave us for too long,” he gestures between himself, Chomp and the flumps. “You can’t leave and stay at the same time, can you!”
Kelne sought clarification on a point, “And the library, has it always teleported? Or just since Breola left?”
“No. But I suppose it got bored. There was a big party. Then mom told me to take care. And then nobody visited us for a whole month after that. It was a bit boring. And then the library took off and left. It was a lot of fun! One day I look out of the window, and there’s a very confused lizard staring back at me! We went to the Beastlands! Then was the Underdark, and Faerun, and other places… lots of fun!”
A library that gets bored and teleports itself was a new concept for Kavel. It got him thinking, ‘did Fort Ettin change the colour of its walls to pink, because it got bored? No. Surely somebody painted the walls; because ‘they’ got bored?’
“Wait,” it dawned on Kavel, “Chonk, does this mean you don’t know where the Library will teleport next? No one here has control over that?”
“Of course not! That’s always a surprise! We only know that it’s gonna be a pretty place. It always chooses pretty places!”
Kavel turned towards Kelne, who unlike the rest of them hadn’t gobbled up their slice of pie as quickly as they could manage. “Kelne, should we offer…”
“Mmm! Es!” Came Kelne’s response whilst covering their mouth as they ate their pie.
“Okay,” Kavel proceeded, “Chonk, if you would like, we would be happy to try and find Breola for you?”
To the adventurers’ surprise, the mimic appears quite perplexed.
“Find her? I never thought about it…” he says slowly. “It never felt like she left… like yeah, she’s not here, but I guess cause she built the library… feels a bit like she’s still around. Like this corridor, with all her friends’ portraits! She had them painted…” He looks down the corridor, his many eyes glazing over as he stares into the distance. “But now that you mention it… maybe it would be nice to talk to her again. Or to get a hug…”
Kelne reached out and put a hand on one of Chonk’s pseudopods. Kavel stood up, walked over to Chonk, and put his hand on what he thought was the closest approximation of a shoulder on the large mimic’s body: “we can help. But.. I must get back to training for today. Do tell Kelne anything that could help us find your mother.”
Kavel patted Chonk’s ‘shoulder’, and asked Kelne to find him either in the Armoury or in the Dragon later, if they got any leads. Kavel then set off back to the Armoury, but before he moved more than ten feet, he turned back to face his friends, and then asked: “… hey Chonk, one more thing… which researcher thought to put displacer beasts in the Greenhouse?”
“Oh, they just wandered in from a jungle. Needed some place for a nest I think,” Chonk shrugged. “I let them stay. Their kittens were very cute when they were little.”
"... I see." Kavel said, whilst turning around and heading back to the Armoury.
* Many thanks to Youki/Chonk and Andy/Kelne
Training in Stonehand Fighting Techniques was going well for Kavel here at the Runaway Library’s Armoury with the Metal Bros - living suits of armour - as his trainers.
It was time for a break though, and Kavel had made plans to chat with Chonk, and they would be joined by his comrade, Kelne, for some tea, and a slice of cherry pie.
Tea was to be had by the entrance to the Library, near the Reading Hall. To get there, Kavel had to walk past the Laboratory where he gave up his mastery with polearms to get back Chonk’s missing memories. Kavel also had to walk past the Greenhouse, a room full of even less enjoyable memories for Kavel, where he was ambushed by displacer beasts that savagely clawed him, almost bringing him to death. His companions that day, which included the divinely blessed halfling Kelne, beat back the beasts into submission. When Kavel came round from unconsciousness, they were able to carry on with the actual mission… acquiring apples.
As Kavel moved further away from the Greenhouse, and closer to the alcove to the left of the Main Hall, unpleasant memories gave way to pleasant thoughts, as he saw a mimic holding a teapot and a cheeky halfling who had also just arrived, sat by a table.
Chonk pours tea in the cups on the coffee table in the library atrium with surprising dexterity for such a massive being.
"So, what did you want to talk about? I remember everything now... What do you want to know?" He asks, looking at you with at least 8 of his eyes, while shifting the plate with cherry pie (the cream inscription says Welcome Back Chonk. Love, Cookie) closer to himself. He's trying to make it a very sneaky motion, but it's super obvious.
Kavel looks at the pie and back at Chonk. "Let's cut up the pie, Chonk. You want a slice? I need the energy."
After slices were cut, Kelne turned to Chonk, and said, "so, your mother is a halfling, like me? And you said she went somewhere 30 years ago?"
Chonk cuts three pieces from the pie, and takes one that is significantly bigger. It still is barely the size of his tooth.
"Yeah, she's a halfling." He nods energetically. "She worked in the library for a long time. I don't know how long. But she really, really wanted to travel. I remember her saying she's been studying the Underdark, and it was really silly that she'd never been there. And then one day she hugged me and said she figured it out. Last thing I remember her wheeling out of the room, she told me... "Take care!" and that's it." He says with a concentrated frown that wrinkles the boards on his forehead.
Kavel, figuratively speaking, 'smashed' his slice of cherry pie. "Delicious. A lot of sugar, but I'm burning through calories in the Armoury, so it’s allowed," he thought to himself.
After listening to his large mimic friend's response to the questions. Kavel realised there was so much he didn't understand.
"Chonk, who owns this library? I was thinking it was your mother. But then I thought: ``I don't think I know what her job here is, and what is her name?"
"Oh, right!" Chonk says, emptying the entire kettle into his huge maw. "Her name's Breola. She built this place. Not like built built, she couldn't even lift me when I was six..." He chuckles, looking proudly over his large form. "But like magic built. Her friends helped," he adds, nodding at the portraits on the walls. "They all worked at Candlekeep. Researchers, scholars... Everyone built a room they'd want to have. And then mom told me to take care, and the library ran away. We were on the move ever since," he says, staring at the distance, as if glancing across years. "Went everywhere... the Underdark, all the outer planes, even picked up a baby kraken in some underwater town... So many pretty places! I bet she'd like that!" He smiles fondly.
Kavel’s stoic face shifted a little to make room for a smile at hearing his friend imagine how pleased his mother would be to hear about his experiences. In light of hearing what must be tough for Chonk, it was good he could be positive.
Out loud, Kavel mused, “So the library didn’t used to teleport? Privately though, Kavel thought, “I wish comrade Derthaad will show up for tea. He’s better than me at getting to the bottom of matters like these.”
Kavel did his best to channel his investigator friend, and tried to make sure he asked all the questions relevant to his friend Chonk’s situation, whilst also being a friend. Kavel was concerned that his emotional flat manner of speaking might work against him here. But, in the absence of Investigator Derthaad, he felt he had to give it a go:
“Excuse me Chonk, I hope you don’t mind, but I have many questions. I am not normally interested in magic myself, there are so many gains to be made in physical strength for me to be concerned with magic. But, I’ve come to visit you and your library often now, and I have become interested in the place… oh yes…” Kavel paused a little, as he remembered to show his friend sympathy, “... and I am also concerned”.
“So, if you don’t mind, maybe you could take us through the following questions, in your own time?”
The Goliath paused a little, to leave time for what he said to rest.
“So, do you have any idea why your mother went to the Underdark, when you last saw her? Was she researching something? Did she ever leave the Library before? And also, maybe it’s a separate point; why does the library teleport? Do you know where it will go next, or have any control over it?”
Chonk chews on the aftertaste of the pie rather than the pie itself for some time, processing all the questions.
“I don’t think my mom went to the Underdark. She could barely leave the library as it was. I mean, she could teleport. That’s how she got all the Underdark creatures to research. Like Cyanne and Joon. And the flumps! She just didn’t want to leave the library for a long time. Is 30 years a long time?” He adds, looking quizzically. “It’s not that long for us, but then oozes don’t age, and mimics just grow…” he looks around his own form proudly.
The Goliath and Halfling adventurers share a glance between each other over the question of, is 30 years a long time? Certainly for one of them, but also the other; although to a lesser extent.
Kelne relieved acting investigator Kavel for a bit, and asked, "Earlier, I think you said your mother's last words to you included, 'I've figured it out'. Do you know what she figured out, mate?"
"Well, her last words were for me to take care... I always assumed she meant the library... what else is there to take care of?" Chonk shrugs with at least five of his pseudopods. "I think... I think she figured out how she could travel. Not just teleport, but, you know, go somewhere and stay there. Without getting chewed up in a minute. She really wanted to do that. Got really bored at Candlekeep. Said there were only books and secrets, and not enough life. And not enough pie..." he says as he looks across the table where the remaining pie is being slowly munched on by Chomp.
"... Breola couldn't stay wherever she went? Wherever she went... did she used to be teleported back to the Library?" Kavel asked.
Asking all these questions was like brain training for Kavel, and since he prefered to train his body over his mind; he was very aware of his limitation feeling mentally exhausted. Returning to the Armoury for some intense physical training would be relaxing for the Goliath.
“She could stay. Just would be eaten. Most places aren’t safe. Also she didn’t want to leave us for too long,” he gestures between himself, Chomp and the flumps. “You can’t leave and stay at the same time, can you!”
Kelne sought clarification on a point, “And the library, has it always teleported? Or just since Breola left?”
“No. But I suppose it got bored. There was a big party. Then mom told me to take care. And then nobody visited us for a whole month after that. It was a bit boring. And then the library took off and left. It was a lot of fun! One day I look out of the window, and there’s a very confused lizard staring back at me! We went to the Beastlands! Then was the Underdark, and Faerun, and other places… lots of fun!”
A library that gets bored and teleports itself was a new concept for Kavel. It got him thinking, ‘did Fort Ettin change the colour of its walls to pink, because it got bored? No. Surely somebody painted the walls; because ‘they’ got bored?’
“Wait,” it dawned on Kavel, “Chonk, does this mean you don’t know where the Library will teleport next? No one here has control over that?”
“Of course not! That’s always a surprise! We only know that it’s gonna be a pretty place. It always chooses pretty places!”
Kavel turned towards Kelne, who unlike the rest of them hadn’t gobbled up their slice of pie as quickly as they could manage. “Kelne, should we offer…”
“Mmm! Es!” Came Kelne’s response whilst covering their mouth as they ate their pie.
“Okay,” Kavel proceeded, “Chonk, if you would like, we would be happy to try and find Breola for you?”
To the adventurers’ surprise, the mimic appears quite perplexed.
“Find her? I never thought about it…” he says slowly. “It never felt like she left… like yeah, she’s not here, but I guess cause she built the library… feels a bit like she’s still around. Like this corridor, with all her friends’ portraits! She had them painted…” He looks down the corridor, his many eyes glazing over as he stares into the distance. “But now that you mention it… maybe it would be nice to talk to her again. Or to get a hug…”
Kelne reached out and put a hand on one of Chonk’s pseudopods. Kavel stood up, walked over to Chonk, and put his hand on what he thought was the closest approximation of a shoulder on the large mimic’s body: “we can help. But.. I must get back to training for today. Do tell Kelne anything that could help us find your mother.”
Kavel patted Chonk’s ‘shoulder’, and asked Kelne to find him either in the Armoury or in the Dragon later, if they got any leads. Kavel then set off back to the Armoury, but before he moved more than ten feet, he turned back to face his friends, and then asked: “… hey Chonk, one more thing… which researcher thought to put displacer beasts in the Greenhouse?”
“Oh, they just wandered in from a jungle. Needed some place for a nest I think,” Chonk shrugged. “I let them stay. Their kittens were very cute when they were little.”
"... I see." Kavel said, whilst turning around and heading back to the Armoury.