Legends of Persia: The Rings of Shaddad (Sword & Sorcery Quest)

[4/6] Plan Zeitgeist Blue

[X] Ask her about why she chose to join this group

"You are a tribeswoman of the tribe of Elimelech, are you not?" you asked Shenhav.

She narrowed her eyes somewhat. "Yes. What of it?"

"Nothing much. I was under the belief that your tribespeople had certain tenets against greed, though."

"We do."

"Then what is one doing with a band of treasure hunters?"

The question seemed to have caught her off-guard. She glanced away from you, drumming her fingers. Thinking of a fabrication, perhaps. Then, she appeared to give up, and simply said: "There are things in Irem to be sought other than treasures."

She was not wrong. Though the Rings of Shaddad were the most popular subject of legends about Irem, they were not the only subject; not even the only subject that involved jewelry, in fact. Irem's vaults were supposed to be replete with treasures of all kinds, from jewelry to exotic spices to great tapestries and more. The Rings of Shaddad were simply the prize among prizes, due to their purported size and history with the lost city's king.

There were also, however, purported to be scrolls and tomes containing ancient arcana and esoterica from the Magi of ages passed, and artifacts of singularly vast antiquity. Though your knowledge on the subject was rusty, you recalled that Irem was supposedly founded by one Aram (initially, the city was eponymous with its founder, but language mutation had caused them to differ) who was a direct descendant of the Noah of Hebrew lore. You would be willing to bet that Shenhav's goal had something to do with that, but you suspected that if you were to broach the subject directly, she would be evasive.

Instead, you took a more roundabout method, and nodded towards where the Cultist sat in the far corner of the tavern. "You reckon you'll find any competition from that one?"

Shenhav followed your gaze. You saw some flicker of emotion across her features, before recovering her previous repose. "That... thing's goal is different from mine."

"What exactly do you think its goal is?" you asked, letting your interest enter your voice.

"There are... whisperings about Irem. About something underneath Irem, more specifically."

"It's a buried city. What could be below it?"

"Something... old."

That was fascinating in and of itself, but you changed subjects obliquely: "And what you're after isn't?"

"The matter of my pilgrimage is from the earliest parts of human history. What is beneath the city is from prior to human history altogether."

You nodded.

"And what are you doing with a group of treasure hunters."

This time you were the one caught by surprise. "I'm a mercenary."

"Yes, I can see that," she agreed, with a pointed glance at the small armory of weaponry you were carrying, "however, for a mercenary, you seem quite well-educated; moreso than those louts over there." She gestured to the two men and woman sitting at the table in the middle of the tavern. They'd begun passing around the bottle that the Rogue had bought, and the Mongolian in particular was beginning to get quite rowdy.

"So are you," you countered.

"Certainly, but I am on the pilgrimage. I have a reason for coming along. What's yours?"

What is your reply?

Name: Ardashir

Gender: Male

Appearance: Ardashir is a man in his mid-twenties of medium stature, with a skin touched by the sun. At first glance one could guess by his lean body and muscles that the man didn't focus on strength but rather speed and dexterity to outmanoeuvre his foes—this spared him from being wounded, and in turn scarred, too badly. On his, bereft of any scars, face was an old month facial hair—at first trimmed and taken care only to be later neglected during his travels—of dark brown colour, same as his braided and reaching to the middle of his back hair. The most defining of his features were his eyes, always calm and of unusual colour—pale green with brown specks around the irises. Most of the time the eyes are also the only visible feature because of the helmet with a camail.

Although mostly unseen, under his plated mail armour he wears cotton baggy pants and a shirt of the same material (sudra), tied by a woollen girdle (kusti). Over all this, including the armour, was a type of long coat flared below the knees (jama). Whenever he doesn't use the previously mentioned helmet he usually wears a turban on his head, otherwise it's tied around said headgear. It's worth mentioning that all of the clothes are white in colour. On his sides were a curved sword and a mace, while on his back a composite bow with a quiver full of arrows, and a rucksack.

Personality: Ardashir has the qualities necessary for someone who lives a long time as a professional soldier; he's rational, he's intelligent, and he knows what risks to take, and which to pass up. However, this hasn't made him as cynical or cold-hearted as many peers in his field. He is still a man willing to make friends, and a man who knows allies when he sees them; however, he has the wisdom necessary to differentiate between the two. On top of this, after everything, Ardashir is also a person who is still willing to follow after his dreams, if he well and truly believes that they are attainable.

Health:

• Vitality: Full
• Sanity: Sane

Abilities:

• Strength: 2
• Constitution: 1
• Dexterity: 3
• Wisdom: 2
• Intelligence: 1
• Charisma: 1

Skills:

• Acrobatics
• Riding
• Mysticism
• Polyglot
• Survival

Perks:

• Calm and Collected: Having a Sanity status of Sane grants you a +2 on all rolls; with each step down the Sanity ladder you progress, this diminishes by 1
• Disciplined Mind: May reduce the ill effects of a low Sanity status by one step

Inventory:

• Sword
• Mace
• Bow
• Quiver and Arrows
• Medium Armor