In Search Of The Goddess

Log Ten

This is a mess. A Goddess damned mess. There's shattered glass everywhere and Nik is close to death inside the gallery. He's locked into a fight with a guard. Javior's familiar is running around screaming. And where is Javior? I can't find her anywhere. 

I knock out the guard. It isn't difficult. He's tired. And focusing on Nik.

We give him a little reviving potion and he pops back up. He looks a little ragged, but healthy at least. We take the painting and get it outside before we really even look at it. 

The night is bitterly cold and I want to get back to the church as quickly as possible. The painting is wrapped in a protective sheet. I go to grab it so we can get going but it makes a strange sound. Like someone yelling underwater. Soft thuds shake the painting. We all look at one another questioningly. Nik nods. I nod back and we look at Javior. She screws up her face and yanks the sheet off. 

The guy in the painting is moving. His fists hit the canvas and the entire thing shakes. He's screaming and the sound is getting louder and clearer by the second. He'll wake the surrounding neighborhood soon. 

"He's too loud," I say. 

"Let me," Javior says. She sounds exhausted, but she casts something and the canvas moves. The guy falls out as if carried out by a huge wave of water. He lays heaving in the cold snow. The canvas sits empty now except for the background of fancy architecture and twinkling stars in the sky. 

"Gemini," Nik says quietly. 

"What?"

He points to the sky. The constellation Gemini is clearly present there. I nod to show my appreciation for his knowledge. And back to the problem at hand. A live person just fell out of a painting.

"Hello, who are you?" Javior asks.

"DID MY BROTHER SEND YOU!?!"

He is speaking way too loud.

"I'm sorry?" She is being incredibly polite under such duress. I feel more and more stressed the longer we stand next to this crime scene.

"Did my twin brother send you," he asks, still too loud. 

"I guess so," she replies calmly.

"Hey," I say, too severely, I realize this too late. Everyone's head snaps to me. "We have to go. We're going back to the the church of the Goddess. You, sir, can tell us your story on the way. But we can't stay here for much longer."

"What about the guard," Nik asks. 

They want to kill him. They say there's no way out aside from killing him.

"Wait. Just a minute. Let me think," I say. I'm peeved at them for nearly dying over some ridiculous painting. I'm glad they're alive. I'll rejoice in that later. When we're not in such a dangerous spot. 

"Why don't you just frame him. Lock him in the room. Make it look like he was robbing the place and got himself knocked out trying to steal these heavy statues. Nik and Javior get to work arranged the unconscious guard. We start heading back to the church before I come back to myself.

"Wait! What are we doing!?! We can't frame this man for our crime? What is he even guilty of?? Doing his job???" I am so stressed and so flustered.

Nik glares at me and rubs a cut on his lip.

"I don't like him, he's rude," Javior says, arranging her hair off her face. Even though she was in just in such an ordeal, she still looks glamorous and menacing at the same time. 

In the end, we just go back to the church. It's nearly dawn now. I shuffle into the room and prepare our morning tea. Elizabeth is sound asleep. She doesn't even stir as I fall into my cot for a short cat nap. I'll wake up soon and we'll... go back... to the rich guy who sent us....

Zzzzzzz.

Also: I didn't come up with all this. This is part of an actual D&D game. I'm only playing Melek. The storyline is coming from our DM, Arthur. Nik and Javior are played by Zac and Javonte (sometimes Matt).

If you don't play D&D, you should because it's awesome.