RP:Underground and Undercover
Part of the Larketian Fault Lines Arc
Summary: Pilar meets Odhranos under the Sage Forest for a secret meeting discussing how to evacuate the witches from Larket with the least political damage to relations between Frostmaw and Larket.
Under the Canopy
Pilar, naturally, was confused and a bit paranoid when she got a message from Odhranos asking for a secret meeting in the middle of the woods. Sure, if was Odhranos and she trusted him, but her trust had been misplaced before. Yozenra had wanted to come along, but Pilar suggested an alternative. The naga was to wait for her in Kelay and, if she didn't return within an hour's time, to come looking for her. And so Pilar walked through Sage Forest, wearing a tunic and pants instead of her usual dress. She was ready for a fight, if it came down to it. Upon finding the agreed-upon meeting spot, she sat on a downed tree and waited, eyes and ears open for anything.
Odhranos lay buried in the earth, lying as if suspended in water with his eyes closed and only a tiny air-tunnel stretching up emerge under the low-lying scrub revealed his whereabouts. When the mage felt the faint vibrations of Pilar's footfalls through the earth, he slowly split the earth open a few paces from her feet, forming crude steps out of the dirt, which he stepped up carefully before offering Pilar his hand to step down. "I apologise for all the secrecy, but there's something important I need to discuss with you, and it is paramount that we are not discovered, much less overheard" he explained if she needed encouragement to clamber down into a dark hole in the earth with a batty terramancer. You'd imagine most -sane- people would.
Pilar jolted when the earth opened before her. Well that had been unexpected. She eyed him warily, slowly getting to her feet. She took his hand and followed him down.
Odhranos led her down a flight of steps, before turning back and waving a hand at the entrance to the tunnel. The entrance closed over and suddenly they were plunged into darkness. Way to make a person feel comfortable, Odh. "I don't know how good your eyesight is in the darkness, but if you need help, you can grab onto my shoulder." Odh stated, before setting off slowly down the stairs again. Navigating with his terramancy like a bat does with echolocation, the mage felt the change beneath his feet as the dirt transitioned to stone. A few more steps and they reached a flat wall. Placing a hand against the cool surface, the mage turned the stone to sand and it fell into a pile at their feet, letting a sudden bloom of soft golden light wash out of the chamber beyond and over the two mages. " Bienvenido a mi casa" Odh stated with a grin before stepping over the threshold.
Pilar had very good eyesight, and could definitely see better than Odhranos could in the dark. She followed him without problem, though she was definitely becoming more and more uncomfortable as they descended. The crumbling of the wall and the light did little to assuage her anxiety. She didn't even respond to Odhranos's welcome (his accent could use some work), hesitating at the doorway. Eventually, she stepped inside.
Odhranos noticed the growing unease in Pilar's face and his own expression grew concerned. "I'm terribly sorry if I'm causing you discomfort, I promise, no harm will befall you here." The mage extended a comforting hand before letting it rest by his side. The room they entered into was spacious enough considering it was buried deep beneath the earth. Granite walls were embedded at intervals with clusters of small illuminant crystals, casting a warm glow around the room and even giving it a squick of heat, as if a small hearth were lit in the chamber, hidden from view. A simple mattress was laid on pallets in the corner, piled high with blankets, while the centre of the room was dominated by a large, almost royal looking stone table. Inlaid with celtic ornamentation, the surface was scattered with sheets of notes and books, all laid on top of an exquisite cartographical map of the realm of Lithrydel, which Odhranos had acquired as a reward for a particular task in the Mage's Guild. "I'm afraid the seats -are- stone, but if they're too uncomfortable, I can get you a cushion." The mage commented as he crossed to a large iron-banded chest, taking out two clay mugs and a small earthenware bottle, which he placed on the table and gestured for Pilar to sit.
Pilar looked over the table, impressed with its craftsmanship. “It's... fine,” she said, taking a seat. “What's all this about?”
Odhranos steepled his hands and rested his elbows on the table. "What I'm about to say is of the utmost secrecy. If this gets out, we could both be in danger." The mage's face was stern and hard, before his eyes twinkled and a grin spread across his face. "I have a plan, a scheme that if it works, will allow us to evacuate all of Larket's witches to Frostmaw, at least those that are willing, but that also will keep Larket from dragging Frostmaw into another war. And to top it all off, if everything goes smoothly, we get away scot-free." Raising an eyebrow, the mage uncorked the bottle and poured sweet honeyed-cider into the two mugs, offering one to Pilar. "What would you say to that?"
Pilar smiled softly and the tension left her as Odhranos explained the reason for their meeting. She took the mug and lifted it in a kind of toast. “I say, what's the plan and when do we start?” She sipped the cider, relishing its sweetness. She didn't even care about the personal consequences, she just wanted the witches safe.
Odhranos smiled in kind and raised his own mug before taking a sip. "Hildegarde stopped by Larket, to oversee how construction was progressing and if there were any changes that she could make to help the process. Naturally the conversation soon turned to the witches and Larket's oppressive policies and mistreatment of the witches." Odhranos grimaced as he spoke, recalling the sights he had seen every day in the construction site and labour camp. "The Queen is supportive of the witches, she gave permission to set aside a stipend to provide meals for the witches who work on the site, but more importantly, she is in agreement that something needs to be done about the situation. Something drastic even."
Pilar sighed in relief. “I was afraid she'd side with Josleen, since she hasn't said anything publicly.” Pilar was still disappointed that Hildegarde hadn't officially condemned the treatment of witches and stripped Josleen of the rank she so obviously didn't deserve. It made Frostmaw look bad when it allowed its Thane to persecute a minority unchecked. “So what are we going to do?”
Odhranos nodded. "I brought up Josleen, I was pretty unsettled after our meeting, so I felt I had to mention something. While I'd imagine she still holds out some hope for Josleen, it's tempered with the realism of what has happened." Odhranos ended his sentence with a near-growl. "The reason why Hildegarde hasn't made any public condemnation of Josleen, or why she isn't acting to protect the witches directly is simple; Frostmaw isn't ready for another war. We had just survived one war, then another swept out of nowhere. Although she wouldn't admit it.." The mage winced apologetically, "...Frostmaw's victory wouldn't be as certain as anyone would like. Hildegarde can't help the witches publicly as she can't risk Frostmaw in open war while it is still recovering." Odhranos' face light up then, with a cheeky grin. "That's where we come in. While Hildegarde can't be seen to assist the witches, if, say, a few renegade Eyrie members turned mutinous and went against her -explicit- orders, neither she nor Frostmaw could be held responsible, right?" Odh's eyes twinkled mischievously.
Pilar drank from her cup while Odhranos spoke. It all made sense, but she didn't have to like it. She put the empty mug down and smiled softly. “I've already smuggled one family out of Larket. What's a few more?”
Odhranos paused, eye's widening, before he laughed aloud. "So the Duprees -did- get away after all! I had feared the worst, but looks like their "rebel in the shadows" came through after all." The grey-robed mage clapped his hands as he laughed heartily. "I commend you and your fantastic attitude. What's a few more? What's a hundred!?" The mage exclaimed happily, refilling Pilar's glass and his own before lifting it in a toast. "To the rebels in the shadows, may they confound Josleen and whisk the witches right out from under her nose!"
Pilar mimicked his toast with a smile. “To the rebels.”
You knocked back the mug in one go and grits his teeth as the alcohol warms his throat and stomach. "Right, now that the celebration have been had, we should get down to business." The mage pondered for a moment. "Perhaps the alcohol should have waited til after. Oh well." Straightening, the mage carefully moved stacks of books aside, many of which Pilar might recognise as copies of arcane tomes from the Mage's Guild, specifically on the subject of illusion magic. Once the map was cleared, the mage selected a small, light blue tinted crystal and set it upon the map, at the location of the Eyrie's Northern Outpost. A second, deep violet crystal went to the labour camp in Larket. "If my estimates are correct, the flight from the Northern Outpost to Larket is... four hours without any stops or complications? How long can you keep a moving object invisible for?" The mage inquired, as a thin line of golden sand sifted across the table to line up between both crystals.
Pilar exhaled. “I'm not sure... It all depends on how big the object is, how complicated. I can keep a ball invisible longer than a person. Moving that family, didn't tire me out at all, but then I brought them across the river one at a time. Holding the spell for four full hours... I don't know if I can do it. If I'm giving one person a ride, I might be able to manage one hour, maybe two. I could definitely get someone out of Larket's sight, at least.”
Odhranos nodded at Pilar's explanation of her abilities. "Hmm, I reckoned full invisibility would be a stretch, even for a full cadre of mages. Back to Plan A then, which involves getting seen, but not getting recognised." Pulling a book from the pile, Odh flipped to a page marked with a small bookmark before holding it in front of his face, obscuring it from Pilar's view. Concentrating hard, the mage revised the lines on the page before him, then lowered the book slowly. "What do you think?" He asked, grinning broadly. When his face was revealed, it looked somewhat different than before. Vibrant green eyes stared out from a wrinkled old face, topped by greying locks and finished off with a scruffy sage-like beard. "Not bad for a beginner, eh?" The mage chuckled, before the illusion slumped sideways. "Damn. Nevermind." He laughed as he dispelled the illusion. "If we can gather a group of halfway talented illusionists amongst the ranks of the Eyrie, we disguise ourselves so that we are unrecognizeable, these mutinous Eyrie members fly into Larket, evacuate the witches and return them to Frostmaw. When they arrive, Hildegarde reprimands them for their illegal actions, and as is her jurisdiction, punishes them accordingly. However, she accidentally leaves a certain terramancer in a stone cell, where he is more than happy to break himself and all of his comrades free. And the best part?" The mage grinned and waved his book in the air. "As soon as they escape, they disappear. Never heard of again."
Pilar swallowed hard. His illusory face was much better than anything she could have done as a beginner. Even when it started to fall apart, she began to doubt her own adequacy. “It's... fine.” She looked into her empty mug. “Do... do you really think it'll work? It's... it's hard, keeping a disguise up for a long time. Remember when I impersonated Hildegarde? It was exhausting. We need more than halfway decent illusionists.”
Odhranos raised his eyebrow and smiled warmly. "I do remember. I also remember being astounded by the accuracy with which you impersonated her. I'm just very good at catching illusionists out." The mage held out his hand and placed it on top of hers encouragingly. "And they don't need to be perfect. They just need to be enough to convince for a moment in the confusion of the evacuation. Confusion is the key to illusion, if someone caught a glance of someone and only saw one feature, all the illusionists would need was that one feature to be faked. Besides, we would only need to wear the illusions when there was a chance of being seen, so leaving Frostmaw, landing and carrying out the evacuation in Larket, then arriving in Frostmaw. We can do this Pilar, have faith in your own abilities and in our capabilities." The mage smiled supportively.
Pilar took a deep breath and sighed. This was going to be much bigger than getting a single family out of Larket. “Okay... Okay. I, I suppose we need to start recruiting. Also, should we do this under cover of night? I'd think it'd help things.”
Odhranos nodded in agreement. "We should inquire around the Eyrie, try to source out which members practice illusion magic and support the witches in Frostmaw. Also we should arrange a meeting with Hildegarde. While she was supportive of the idea, she still wished to try reason with Macon, and we can't go ahead until that meeting has happened." The mage explained, as he got up and began searching through his notes to find the census of Eyrie members. "Now, let's see who we can approach first..."