carabadgermum
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Post by carabadgermum on Jul 30, 2010 20:59:48 GMT -5
Jayne arranged the drinks on a silver tray. Callista's crystal goblet of wine and Artist's Delight mixed was nearest the outside because she would be served first. The King's gold challis of damson wine was next. and then a serviceable silver vessel not as nice as the others but still saved for special guests with a mixture of the Artist's Delight and as much water as Jayne thought she could get away with. She didn't want Vrelt to go crazy like those beasts in the Queen's stories.
Skillfully she balanced the tray on her paw and made the rounds. "M'Lady." she curtsied then moving on to Drask, "Majesty." she curtsied again still not dropping a drip of the liquid. Then she came to the guest. Here as propriety demanded she called him, "Sir." and also dropped a curtsy but here also she looked into his eyes and begged him silently for forgiveness for any ill effects he may suffer from the drink. When this was done she looked back at her mistress and nodded. She had done everything just as she had been asked.
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Vrelt
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Post by Vrelt on Jul 30, 2010 23:09:17 GMT -5
When the drink was handed to Vrelt and Jayne looked into his eyes with an apologetic expression, he knew that something was up. Why else would Jayne have this almost guilty look about her eyes, this look of apology. Vrelt tried not to appear overly cautious, and looked at the liquid in his cup, which was different than Callista's or Drask's damson wine. The corsair looked over at Jayne with a dark look in his eyes, this servant may have tried to apologize, but Vrelt figured if there was something wrong with his drink, that ferretmaid obviously contributed.
Vrelt looked to Drask who had already taken a long sip from his chalice, and to Callista. The corsair silently willed that this drink would not kill him as he drained a bit of the liquid into his mouth. It tasted very good, though watered down, that must have been the work of Jayne. The drink was not something he was familiar with, its taste was unlike anything he had ever drank before, and that concerned him, for he had drank a lot of alcoholic beverages in his time. Vrelt swallowed his first sip, savoring the drink and making a point to show that he did, if he saw a spark of happiness from Callista, then he would be sure that this drink would kill him. He was going to have a long talk with Jayne about this after he left the throne room, if he survived that is. The captain was sure he could persuade the ferretmaid to talk.
With a smile returning to his face, the ferret looked at Callista, deciding to ignore her stab about controlling the seas. "This is quite good, might I know what this is called?" Little did Vrelt know that this drink was already beginning to work on him, in just a few minutes the ferret would experience the effects of the extremely strong Artist's Delight.
Drask was glad to finally get some of his damson wine, it tasted as delicious as it always did, bringing a bit of comfort to the ferret. He didn't crack a smile when Vrelt took a rather large sip from the Artist's Delight, he didn't feel sorry for his brother, but then again, a death caused from that drink wasn't something he wished on anybeast. Drask would have used his saber, instead of this drink, to kill his brother; the corsair deserved that much. He nodded his thanks to Jayne as he took another drink of the rich damson wine, enjoying the taste of the drink, and wondering how long the Artist's Delight will take to have an effect on Vrelt.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Jul 31, 2010 1:11:16 GMT -5
Callista never smiled, she simply sipped her own drink, but in very small and short sips. That was how she was able to avoid it's cruel effects and keep from becoming nuts with addiction for it. She would only have one small glass of it and would only take very small sips throughout the entire day. By the time it was night, she was FINALLY finished with the drink, but the most important tactic you did to avoid it's addictive, hallucinogenic and deadly ability....... FIRE WATER! The taste of it was so strong that it could 'cleanse' the tongue of any past tastes, even Artist's Delight. Callista often drunk this after she was finally done with it, so the lingering taste of it could not coax her into poring just 'one more' glass.
Another great tactic was to not drink it often at all. Callista often drank it once every three weeks.
The effects of Artist's Delight as multiple stages...
Stage 1: Victim likes the taste, (not addicted at this point, just enjoys the taste) tries to get more of it. Due to how defensive The Coastal South Kingdoms were about pirates and other criminals at sea, beasts like Vrelt would likely try to reach out to any non-controlled islands for it, though such places are much less likely to give you warning about the drinks bad effects if abused.
Stage 2: Between the days or weeks, victim becomes addicted to the sweet taste and starts to become the victim of extreme drunkenness and as the drink exploits badder feelings when it runs out. Depression and emotional suffering. victim tries to find and drink more, believing it's sweet taste will make them feel better, not in the mental thought to believe that maybe it's BECAUSE of the drink that they are suffering.
Stage 3: If the victim have not killed himself by now. The hallucinogenic effects start to come in. A lot of them will start out a little weird, than they keep getting progressively worse and worse as time goes on. The victim also proceeds to start losing control of his actions or his ability to think clearly and reasonably. Leading to the victim doing strange things himself. Sometimes even self harming or harming others in radical ways.
The victim will likely die due to trying to fight off, run away or accidentally making fatal mistakes to grab a hold of something that isn't there. Like the Fairy Artist Wife.....
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carabadgermum
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Post by carabadgermum on Jul 31, 2010 21:31:58 GMT -5
Jayne held the now empty tray in front of herself like a shield while she watched in trepidation as Vrelt took his first sip of the drink. She nearly cringed waiting for the strange concoction to take effect. She didn't want to see this. She didn't want to be a part of it. For the first time since Callista had taken her into service the ferretmaid had second thoughts about the true nature of her mistress. She turned and set the tray back on the wine cabinet. The clatter it made seemed loud in the grand throne room. Jayne spun around to face the queen and hurriedly asked, "Will there be anything else, m'Lady, or would you have me go?"
Larka expertly wove her way through the palace corridors and out into the streets of the town. She kept to the shadows mostly out of habit but she was also trying to stay out of the way of any creature who might provide a distraction of her duty. It was imperative that the ship 'Vrelt's Pride' be searched to make sure that the king's half brother was not planning anything that might be deemed dangerous to the monarch and his wife. However, Larka had other plans this evening that were far more desirous than sneaking around some corsair's rig. The stoatmaid smiled at thought of Krauser's avarice. It was that moment of inattention that caused the collision. Just as Larka reached the dock she ran smack into some other creature and her reaction to her own clumsiness, before she even stopped to see who the beast might be, was to lash out. "Out of my way, I'm on the King's business!"
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Kal Skirata
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Post by Kal Skirata on Aug 1, 2010 16:25:00 GMT -5
The beast stopped and reached out with one hand to steady the stoatmaid. A hand with a head of a distinctive adder tattoo that wrapped around the bulging muscles of his arm grabbed her shoulder. Eyes as hard and unrelenting as the sea itself regarded the stoatmaid from beneath a black tricorn hat. His other hand held a blue trenchcoat slung over one shoulder.
"Business of the King, eh? Now just what might that be?" A deep but cultured voice rang out. The Fleet Commander of Riftgard looked at her. "Anything that happens on these docks is my problem. And if there's a problem, I need to know about it."
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Vrelt
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Post by Vrelt on Aug 2, 2010 10:50:38 GMT -5
Vrelt had been at sea for eight years, his knowledge of drinks surpassed that of his half-brother for that reason. Still, the corsair had little idea what this was, the sweet taste was better than any wine he had drank, but the drink was very strong as well. Vrelt felt the urge to drink the whole chalice down in one long gulp, but he tried desperately not to. It was then he began to think, forcing himself to hold the drink without bringing it up to his lips, while looking at Callista again, who took very small sips of the same drink he had. A near snarl was on his lips by this time, staring intently at the drink, that begged him to swallow more and more, but his mind refused it. If he was any other beast, with a weaker mind, or less pride, he would have given in to the delicious tasting beverage, but he was no fool, or weakling. This had to be the legendary Artist's Delight. What else could it be?
Vrelt had been all around the seas, and to many taverns spanning across these various islands. He had heard of some stories of Artist's Delight, how beasts that weren't careful suffered from addiction to the rare drink, and did insane things while under the influence of the drink. It was too late, he would not be able to resist finishing this drink, despite he resolve to throw the chalice at Callista. He followed her example, taking a very small sip of the drink, and knew that he was probably going to be drunk today.
The captain pretended to be completely occupied with the drink, but in reality, the ferret was trying to come up with something to get back at Callista with. He would like nothing more than to cause this cunning ferretmaid physical pain, but that was out of the question, Drask would have him executed in some kind of humiliating public manner. Vrelt decided he could do something a bit out there in terms of revenge, he would try to seduce Callista's servants. That would enrage the queen enough, in fact, it might even be worse than simply killing her. Vrelt took another tiny sip of the Artist's Delight, forcing himself to smile. "You have quite a taste in drinks, Callista. Unlike Drask with his old damson wine over there."
Drask found himself fighting the urge to laugh and say something sharp to his wife, he thought Vrelt was too smart to be fooled into downing a lot of the Artist's Delight in the first place. The way Vrelt copied Callista by taking extremely small sips of the potent beverage gave evidence to the king's reasoning. Drask looked over to Jayne, giving her orders instead of waiting for his wife to do so. "No. You may still be needed eventually." He thought Jayne would be the one to escort Vrelt to his chambers, if the corsair got himself drunk from the Artist's Delight after all, he sure wouldn't do it, neither would Cad Bane or Callista. Jayne would have her paws full with Vrelt if he was drunk, though. Perhaps if Krauser would show his face, the king would have the stoat escort Vrelt away from the throne room.
The king was almost happy to see his brother come to his senses, for he knew that if anybeast was going to kill Vrelt, it would be him. And he would kill Vrelt with his saber, not by getting him addicted to Artist's Delight or having him assassinated. Drask's smile was genuine when he looked to Vrelt. "Damson wine isn't bland, brother. You've been drinking to much grog to taste wine properly anymore." The king didn't want to know what Callista's reaction to Vrelt would be, for the simple corsair was proving to be an annoyance to her already. Drask saw that while Vrelt was at Riftgard, Callista would be at his throat, and he looked forward to seeing that; there wasn't going to be a dull moment for the few weeks or months that Vrelt remained on the island.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Aug 2, 2010 15:51:36 GMT -5
Callista stopped sipping when she realized what Vrelt was doing, which was copying her in order to avoid becoming to addicted to it! She also noticed how the drink seemed to much less....... potent..... He has drank it before. This idea was not working out the way she planned. She would have to keep thinking of new ideas..... Like maybe booby trapping a part of his ship?
Despite her disappointment that things were not going her way very well, Callista kept her nerve and normal behavior in order and spoke cleanly. "Thank you, though the wine is not too bad itself...."
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carabadgermum
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Post by carabadgermum on Aug 2, 2010 16:45:43 GMT -5
"Yes, your Majesty," Jayne answered the king's order quietly and stepped back against the wall and hopefully out of the way enough to be ignored. She glanced up once or twice more at Vrelt and was reassured to see him sipping his drink slowly the way her mistress always did. What else could they possibly need her for now? She hated this waiting, doing nothing. She almost wished to be back doing hard labor as a slave. Back then she had worked from dawn till dark and gone to her bed on the floor exhausted enough to sleep through the night without noticing the discomfort. The ferretmaid sighed and and tried to wait patiently to be called upon.
Paw on the hilt of one of her swords, Larka stiffened until she realized the identity of the ferret before her. She rolled her eyes. "Walon, it's you." She took a much more relaxed stance. The Shadow Group had often shared information with the Fleet Commander when their jurisdictions crossed. She knew in this case that it would be essential for her to have his cooperation if she was to continue on her course. "I'm sure you've noticed the royal brat's ship cluttering up your wharf? I was just going to check it out, make sure there's nothing amiss."
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Kal Skirata
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Post by Kal Skirata on Aug 2, 2010 21:21:35 GMT -5
A flicker of recognition crossed the ferret's face. "My apologies, Larka" he said, releasing his grip on her shoulder. "You wouldn't believe the number of times I hear that excuse for somebody to wander around down here. Blasted annoying." growled the large ferret, glancing over his shoulder at the docks.
"How could I miss it? I had to re-route three ships to accommodate that little bastard's ship where he wanted it. I had to pay the captains extra because of it." he snarled, throwing the ship a black look. "If you want, I'll give you a hand. It'd actually be less suspicious, because I check most ships when they come to dock. For larger ships, I even take an assistant." Then he grinned. "Besides, if that little snot's up to something, I want to be in on finding it out." Walon knew he could talk like that with Larka because their opinion of Vrelt was much the same.
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Vrelt
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Post by Vrelt on Aug 3, 2010 10:25:35 GMT -5
((Yay! Walon's back! XD))
Vrelt was not immune to the strong beverage, however, even if he was taking small sips. His first taste of the addictive drink was a rather large gulp after all, and already, despite his precaution, the ferret was feeling a bit dizzy. The captain forced himself not to bring the drink back up to his lips, not to let anymore of the sweet tasting liquid run down his throat. He was thinking of all the curses he had heard throughout his life, wishing to yell them at Callista for giving him this drink, at Drask since he allowed her to, and even at Jayne, who gave him the Artist's Delight.
The ferret looked to his half-brother, narrowing his eyes. "I think I've been on my paws too long. It's been a long day, an' I need some rest. Any chance of you letting me go an' visit my chambers for a while?" Vrelt would take his chance of leaving the throne room for a while, just so he wouldn't be tempted to drink any more of the addictive beverage. In fact, he planned on having one of the guards stand by the door, to keep him from doing something crazy under the influence of this drink. The captain felt as if his feet were giving out from under him, and he did his best not to sway from the drink, not to demonstrate how just that one large gulp had messed him up already.
Drask knew his brother well, and he could tell the other ferret was hiding something, it was clear in his voice, the way some of his words came out in a clear, proper way to speak. While others sounded as if he was back on his corsair ship. The Artist's Delight was having an effect on him, that much Drask could tell, though he didn't know what that effect would be. Artist's Delight manifested itself in different ways, depending on the beast. In Vrelt's case, he was very strong mentally and physically, not to mention how headstrong he was. Those qualities could very well have something to do with how potent a drink was. Drask knew his brother was famous for winning drinking contests, but that was with ale and grog, not with Artist's Delight.
The king looked over to Callista, deciding to let the queen handle this however she wanted; she was the one who wanted Vrelt to experience the drink in the first place. "I wouldn't object to you leaving, Vrelt. But Callista has only just met you, I'll let her decide. There might be more she'll want to talk about." Drask was disturbed by the changes in his brother, he had seen the ferret drunk before, but not like this; it was if the corsair was fighting a battle to resist the drink's effects on him, and he was losing. He knew that Vrelt would do whatever he wanted, if it was just Callista commanding him, that is. Drask thought his brother had a chance to save himself from the embarrassment of being drunk with Artist's Delight, if Callista allowed him to leave.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Aug 4, 2010 10:15:30 GMT -5
Callista has had enough for now. Seeing the ferret pirate struggle to survive the drink was already becoming too pathetic to keep watching, than and until it starts to effect him more deeply, the effects so far were merely boring and just the start. Callista had all the time in the world now, it was simply a wait and enjoy kind of game. "Eh, if you want to go already. I guess we could continue this tomorrow, don't want you to suddenly feel like your in a cage right?"
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carabadgermum
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Post by carabadgermum on Aug 4, 2010 10:37:59 GMT -5
Jayne looked up at the turn in the conversation. She was pleased that they were going to let the poor beast off the hook for the moment at least. She nearly opened her mouth and asked if she could show Vrelt to his chamber but quickly bit her tongue. Surely Callista would see that as a disloyalty on her part. She would stay here and attend to the queen and then as soon as she was dismissed she would slip down the hall to the place where the corsair was staying to make sure he was well.
Larka grinned or really it was more of a smirk and then nodded. "That could work, although I doubt the crew he's left behind will be too keen on having a patrol nosing around in his business. If you could keep them busy with questions I could slip in and do my looking and be back before you know it." This sort of espionage was what she was trained for. And she was very good at it when she wasn't distracted by thoughts of Krauser. "And Walon i do promise to share anything interesting i might find out."
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Kal Skirata
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Post by Kal Skirata on Aug 4, 2010 18:33:14 GMT -5
"I don't care if they do have a problem with it. It might be Vrelt's ship, but his ship, as are all ships, under my command. Only three people can tell me what to do. Their Highnesses and the General. Seeing as he occupies exactly zero of those three positions, there isn't anything he can do to stop me. Because if I'm right, Queen Callista will back me up on this." said the ferret, with a slight smirk. "I'd normally insist you go first, but that wouldn't really work. Give me five minutes and they'll be sufficiently distracted." he promised, turning and heading for Vrelt's ship.
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Vrelt
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Post by Vrelt on Aug 4, 2010 22:19:40 GMT -5
Vrelt nearly breathed out a sigh of relief, they were letting him leave! The corsair found a smile tugging at his lips as he bowed slightly to Callista, the drink still in paw. "Thank you. I shall look forward to continue speaking with you tomorrow, Callista." He was careful to keep the drink upright while he bowed, so that the potent beverage would not spill, and he found a wave of strength and energy in the news, giving him enough to press on without succumbing totally to the drink.
The corsair kept the Artist's Delight in paw as he spun on his heel, striding back out of the throne room, his cape swirling behind him. Vrelt maintained his grip on the drink only to make the queen think that he was growing addicted to the drink, just to stay on top of the situation. The ferret knew exactly what he wanted to do with this cup, and it involved an amount of violence, and it involved pain on Callista's part. Vrelt pulled open the doors of the throne room, not even noticing Cad Bane standing in the shadows near them, of course, no other beast knew he was there either. Save for Drask, since he had paid special attention, to see if the mongoose followed his orders to the letter. The pirate closed the door, and leaned against the heavy object once he was out of the room, letting a sigh escape from his mouth. Vrelt wiped the back of his paw across his forehead, feeling as if a weight was lifted from his shoulders. With a snarl on his face the ferret regarded the expensive and addictive Artist's Delight, and he had half a mind to throw the cup on the ground right there. But if he did, Callista would no doubt hear him; so he determined that he would get rid of the drink once he was away from the throne room.
Vrelt stepped away from the door, the snarl leaving his face, replaced by a stony grimace, much like the intense look that Drask had on his face once his brother arrived. The corsair regarded the guards outside with a nod, strolling down the hallway to his room, which thankfully was just down the hall. Vrelt found it easily and went in as fast as possible, not even looking over the room to see if anything was changed. He slammed the door shut, and quickly slung the cup, sending the silver vessel crashing on the floor, spilling out the remnants of the Artist's Delight.
Drask didn't dismiss Jayne, leaving that up to his wife, instead he frowned at Callista. "You think that this plan of yours will work? I believe Vrelt is far stronger, mentally and physically, than you give him credit for." The king had many things against his half-brother, but he did respect several things about the other ferret; primarily his mentally toughness and fierce spirit. Something that even Drask, one of the more honorable and brave vermin around, would look up to. Especially when many vermin lacked any type of courage, unless it was courage from being drunk.
Cad Bane finally stepped out of the shadows, like a wraith that had come to haunt the three ferrets in the throne room. The mongoose glanced over at Jayne, clearly very interested in seeing her reaction to his sudden appearance, whether the servant would cringe at the sight of the bodyguard. Cad nodded to Drask as he stepped in front of the king. "Everything went smoothly. The other guards followed you orders down to the letter, completing your plan to perfection." Very few beasts could speak to Drask without calling him by a proper title, Cad was one of those beasts. The mongoose had done enough throughout his career to earn that, and Drask allowed him to get by without correcting him, considering Bane was one of the few beasts that Drask openly respected, and felt that deserved much credit for his service at Riftgard.
((I suppose I'll RP the random crew left aboard Vrelt's ship, eh?))
Though the majority of the crew had gone ashore, to visit the local taverns, a few, including the first mate, remained aboard the Vrelt's Pride. The first mate was a tall and lean weasel, dressed much better than the average vermin, like his captain. He was standing on the deck of the ship, looking a bit longingly in the direction of the taverns, wishing that he could be out there, but he had an important duty. A duty that he volunteered for. The weasel spotted Walon as he headed for the ship, a grimace was on his face; that ferret would cause him significant trouble. He looked over at the remainder of the crew, all of them looked bored, but all had a determined resolve about them, they would follow Vrelt Darkfang to hellgates. And the captain's orders were that no beasts come aboard for any type of inspection unless he was present. The first mate stood straight, preparing himself to speak with the Fleet Commander, Walon Vau.
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Post by Hans Vermeer (Cole) on Aug 5, 2010 2:29:41 GMT -5
Krauser had long left the doors to the throne room, He stopped listening in after Callista had dismissed Vrelt. Despite this though, he walked away slow enough to see Vrelt come out, allowing the stoat to catch a glimpse of a possible enemy he would have to get rid off. Of course though, he would have to Callista to confirm such.
Callista did not sound too impressed by Drask's claims about his brother. "Psh. So was 'Lord Arthur the Almighty.' The one who was supposed to conquer all of the Middle Kingdoms long ago. See his recent generations ruling the Middle Kingdoms as one empire right now? ....... Of course not. Old, dead members of my family from long ago killed him, and they didn't have to slip a dagger into his back, or shoot him in the heart with a poisoned arrow. All they have to do, was give him a little chalice of this special little drink....." She smiled. Almost like a cat torturing and playing with a dying mouse.
The ferret didn't look at Jayne, so only Drask could she her expression after her smile. It was smug and confident that she had already dealt a death blow to her new-found opponent. only waved her paw in her general direction in a dismissive manner. "Your excused Jayne..."
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