conversations: human
conversations:  There is little in the large room beyond a well crafted table surrounded by a dozen chairs. Expensive shard torches, so called for the rare glowing gems that power them, line the walls. If it weren't for the most hated emblem in all of Vel etched in the table's center it would like an opulent, if functional, meeting room. Most of the inhabitants look nervous and a few are even staring at the chairs like they made from bone and covered in blood. A notable exception was the woman who had managed to gather all of you together, Medra Chell.
  
  She looked more like a small town schoolmarm rather than a member of the infamous criminal guild in Vel, but also seemed completely at ease in a room full of Lancers that she was currently blackmailing. At least in her late thirties, Chell was dressed in a plain dark dress and had no visible weapons. Instead, she carried a small stack of papers. A few of the Lancers, clearly those that had lead harder lives or in one case had a lot more to lose, stared at her and thumbed their weapons. Still, no one moved. No one spoke.
  
  Eventually the door opened one more to admit a newcomer. Dressed in an ill fitting hauberk and armed with a sword that he was clearly unused to having, only the company in the room could lead you to believe the plain looking man was a Lancer. With a careful nod the rest of the room he took a seat, seemingly too nervous to understand the implications of where he was sitting. Smiling pleasantly Medra Chell finally stood up and looked around the room.
  
  "Thank you all for joining me here, though I'm aware most of you don't think you had a choice. First of all, to address any potential complications, the details of the parentage of everyone here will become common knowledge unless a do a very specific thing tomorrow." She turned to smile at a heavily scarred woman that glared back, though she then let the ax at her belt loop slide back in. "Now I'm sure I don't need to spell out who you all are. In a very real sense most of you here are family. Believe it or not, many in the Shadowring saw themselves that way, as a family bound together through purpose rather than blood."
  
  Taking a moment, Medra slid a few of the small squares of paper around in her hands. "As for why I'm here, it is to fulfill a promise. Your parents believed in something and that's why they did what they did. They knew it was dangerous and to one degree or another cared for you. At least as much to make sure you were protected after they were gone. Not from the rigors of life", she stated as a one-eyed soldier angrily opened his mouth, "but from the very foes that insured their demise. Unfortunately, the threat has returned and it seeks vengeance for being denied twenty years ago."
  
  The plain looking woman's smile dropped and her arms fell to their sides. For the first time, she looked as uncomfortable as everyone else. "This   thing  , is the reason why the Shadowring existed in the first place. It put the entirety of this world in danger and our rulers were too blind and divided to do anything about it. Now it's back and while your parents managed to destroy the artifact that would have made it invincible, this monster is powered as much by spite as it is anything else. It will seek you out, it will find you, and it will kill you. Your only hope is to present a unified front. Alone, death is certain. Work together and you might stand a chance."
  
  "Now I'm sure many of you have questions, perhaps some that have been plaguing you your entire lives. I'll answer what I can in my room upstairs. It's been sealed for privacy, but there isn't much time." Medra placed the pages on the table and spread them out evenly. "A dozen Lancers from across all of Vel would raise far too many red flags if you all stayed in the same place. The adversary is arrogant and spiteful, but not stupid. Instead, I've reached out to several contacts in Freelancer guilds in most of the major cities. We'll split into teams of four and maintain regular contact. Hopefully, we can catch it off guard, kill it quick, and all of you can go back to your lives."
conversations: Phantos_Argent:
conversations: human
conversations:  Kaitlin the Spotless Leopard     
   Shifter Barbarian/Rogue 
   AC: 17 HP: 89/89 
   PP: 14 PIv: 11 PIs: 11 
   Conditions: --  
  
  Kaitlin sat in one of the chairs as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Another thing that set her apart in this company is that she wore no armor of any kind. If it weren't for the two swords she had on her, one might think she was just some random person off the street that stumbled in here by accident. Her friendly smiles and nods to each person in the room certainly didn't help her fit in any better. Though this was because everything Medra Chell said rang true for her. To her, these people were her extended family. Sure, not as close as her parents had been or the members of House Ebenhold she had been raised by and lived with all her life. But these were the only other people in the world with any meaningful connection to her and  they needed each all more than they ever had before.
  
  Her eyes widened as she heard about the threat and a look came over her face like "Ah, many things make sense now." at Medra Chell's vague explanation of their common threat.
  
  When Medra Chell was finished speaking, she took the paper before her and read it. Not merely skimming it over, but taking the time to fully digest every word.
   
   
    
conversations: Ramsus:
conversations: human
conversations:  Raka 
  
  Raka's parents, and all of his brothers were killed by this thing. He will never forgive himself for missing that day. Since then, he had tried to run away and avoid it. He tried to hide in taverns and brothels, burying his guilt at the bottom of a bottle. But there was no hiding from this. He didn't want revenge. He just wanted to live.
  
  If the Shadowring was his best chance to survive, then these people here would be his new best friends. He looked around and wondered who he was going to be paired with, taking his letter when it was his turn.
conversations: Bobthewizard:
conversations: human
conversations:  Dagny DeWhitte  
   Lvl 7 Rune Knight / Astral Self Monk | AC 19 | HP 60/60 
  
  Dagny's arms are folded as she leans back in the chair, balancing it on its back legs. Her teeth nibble rhythmically at the dry skin peeling off her lower lip as she listens skeptically to this rallying speech. At the realization of her mother's true profession the chewing stops, replaced by a wry smirk and slow shake of the head.
  
  When Medra distributes the cards, Dagny drops forward, the dull  thud  of the chair legs louder than she expected in the otherwise silent room, but she seems unconcerned about the attention. She grabs the paper, turns it over quickly to look at both sides then starts reading, glancing occasionally around the room at the others doing the same. Less than a sentence in she sets it back down on the table and looks challengingly at Medra.  "I'm sorry, what exactly is this  thing  supposedly hunting us?  IF  what you say is true and the Dreads formed to stop it, why did you attack the capital and kill the Queen? I don't see how some monster with the amount of power you're suggesting could have arrived there without being noticed. Or without ANYONE hearing about it."  
   
    
conversations: miinstrel:
conversations: human
conversations:  Caleb's leg bounces as he takes in this information.  His hand rests on the jolt of his sheathed blade as though it provides a measure of comfort to him.  This is all so much for the young man. His dreams of adventure coming into reality in a way he didn't expect.  He was about to say something but falls quiet when Dangy DeWhite speaks up instead, wanting to know what the answer was before he added his 2cp.
conversations: Lord Foul: