RP:Sophie asks Tirona about the runes on the ex-slave
Setting
Frostmaw Tavern 18th Sept 2011
The gentle healer and the slave
The gentle healer enters the Frostmaw Tavern. She is unusual amongst the patrons of this establishment, but it is far from unheard of to see the elf here. What is completely unheard of, to those who know the kind Sophie, is that crawling after her on his hands and knees is a man. A completely bald drow male wearing a slave collar. Sophie pats the terrified looking slave's head, and heads over to Tirona. "May I speak with you please sir?" She asks the avian. The nameless slave cowers in terror away from Tirona.
Tirona was asleep in the corner, asleep there since Ranok had left him there several hours earlier. He needed the sleep, on top of the teleportation he hadn't had a proper night's sleep in at least two weeks. Probably a bit longer at this point. However, the moment Sophie spoke to him, the Avian's eyes snapped open, his usual passive expression taking its position on his face. Its only addition were the bags, which had lessened slightly since earlier in the afternoon. He looked over at the woman who had spoken, his mind scanning through to see if he knew her from somewhere. She had been in the tavern earlier while he had been talking to Ranok but her appearance in general had been familiar before that. He paused for a moment to think of why, before what Satoshi had told him popped into his head. A woman matching the description in front of him had wanted to speak with him. "You are Sophie, correct?" he said, his voice an eternal monotone.
Sophie nods to confirm her identity giving the Avian a respectful bow in greeting. The drow slave prostrates himself on the floor. Sophie sighs sadly. "As you may know I am working with the refugees from sage forest who have settled here in Frostmaw, and helping Queen Satoshi fortify our new home. That is not the matter I wished to speak to you about however. This poor fellow, my patient is an ex-drow slave he has several magical runes tatooed upon his back." She speaks a few words in drow to the man, and he obediently removes his warm upper clothing, and turns to show the avian the three tattoos on his shoulder. The poor wretch's back is a mass of old scars from a barbaric whip, and other instruments of torture also.
The wise avian explains the cruel purpose of the tatoos
Tirona , the desire to return to his sleep too great for him to want to put up the same argument he put up before, or resort to his usual rhetoric, pointed at the one on the left. He knew the symbols fairly well, a cursed lot that he'd seen in a book he had on him now, one he hadn't the slightest intention of opening anytime soon, if he could avoid it. There were 5 total that were used then, but only four of them had lasted through to the modern use. "A cursed symbol used in torture and enslavement, created by Orcs centuries ago and co-opted and enhanced by the Drow, it enhances the pain the one who has it carved into their flesh feels. A paper cut would be the equivalent of slashing him with a knife." He pointed to the one in the center of the grouping. "That one enhances the fear of the bearer. Someone who avoids spiders would be paralyzed with fear at the mere mention of one with the rune at full strength. It was originally created by a Warlock known as The Harbinger." He pointed to the third one, "That is intended to keep the wounds from getting infected. Created by an Elf healer to keep her patients from dying before she could finish healing their wounds, it was changed to be used by interrogators during rather brutal interviews. A safeguard, to keep the slave or torture victim from feeling the cold embrace of death." His eyes scanned the room as he spoke, wondering if it had been Satoshi who'd told her that she might have the answer to her question. Tirona aside from bags under his eyes, neither Tirona's voice or his face even remotely suggest that he wants to return to sleep. His face is blank, and his voice is in a standard monotone he always has.