Ah, the Festival of Lights. It was one of Vikram's favourite holidays. The brightly coloured lanterns and candles lined the streets and crossed the alleyways all throughout the city. The glow shone for miles in the dark desert evening, however the most impressive spectacle was the Sun Spire Keep. Lined from top to bottom in brilliant silks and cloths flowing in the wind each with a lantern tied to the bottom, a fire hazard to be sure but the last Spire Fire was decades ago. The Lighthouse flame periodically spiked with various powders and magics to alter the colors, Bathing the city in an iridescent glow like an aurora in the sand.

    Vikram wandered the city as he usually did, taking in the sights and the festivities. He had been out all evening enjoying the various food vendors peddling unique spiced pastries and savoury kebabs. The area at the base of the spire was largely populated by nobles wandering about for whatever it was that nobles did. Vikram noticed a few entering through a side entrance of the keep after stepping out for a breath of fresh air. There was a small crowd of peasants gathered around the entrance, clamoring for the attention of the visiting nobles, and held at bay by two guards dressed in the attire of the Sultanas personal guards. Approaching the guards, intent to figure out what sort of event was going on, they saw him.

"Stand back, make way! You are the Tribal Prince yes? Right this way, please, hurry in your highness."

    Tribal Prince? Did Tribes have princes? There wasn't time to answer before he was ushered inside the Sun Spire Keep towards the court area. It seemed as though there was some sort of gathering going on, Sultana Adatian could be seen idly mingling with several important figureheads at the head of the room. All present were dressed quite extravagantly and mingling to some banging jams. Was he supposed to be here?

Jester had been hired to dance for some large fancy party, apparently some kind of meeting was taking place at the spire, one where a lot of really important people were going to be at. The meeting itself was of no concern to her, she could care less about whatever the hell was taking place, she was just excited about the money. Having been back in Zeinav for only a few days, her funds were quickly running out, parties being expensive after all. Plus she could never refuse a chance to dance in front of the cities richest and most handsome men. 

The meeting was slowly beginning, troves of elegantly dressed dignitaries, princes, princess and every other kind of rich noble were pouring in, mingling about as Jester and the other goons hired to play music preformed in the background. Hell even the Sultan was here, guards stationed both at his side and all around the spire. Something big was going on.

The music continued into the night, the soft glow of various colored light littered the night sky, with the sounds of festivities and night life echoing out all across the city. Hopefully this meeting, or party or whatever ended sooner rather than later, she desperately wanted to spend the money she was about to earn. 

    Nobody seemed to notice that he wasn't meant to be there. Fine by him, the selection of food and drink here was exquisite, and the entertainment top tier. The band was one of which Vikram had vaguely heard of, Oasis, apparently playing one of their hits "Champagne Supernova". A whimsically dressed dancer twirled gaily at the forefront, her fanciful dress rivalling even Vikram himself. He laughed and clapped as she pirouette'd about the small area allotted for the bards. Quite the show! A few odd eyes were pulled their way, his boisterous enjoyment of the show slightly out of place for the current vibe.

"Typical, Tribal Chieftains making a fool of themselves in front of true nobility."
"Why'd we even invite them, no manners."

    The muttered whispers among the clusters nobility were cut short, as the Sultans advisor called the meeting to the fore. Each group found a cluster of cozy red and gold pillows and took their seats, more of a lounge than the large formal meeting tables found in Sol City. The Sultan spoke, talking of a year filled with security and stability. He spoke of rumours regarding an ancient artifact, currently being sought after by several adventurers. Briefly mentioning the upcoming Winter's Crown celebration that would be occurring soon. Vikram found himself sitting alone in some corner near the band, catching himself from falling asleep.

Another half an hour passed as more nobles entered the spire, talks of politics and business filling the forefront of most conversations. Jester just danced away, following the rhythm of the band of bards behind her. They continued to play their set as a few of the lower nobles began to take part in the festivities, dancing and drinking and eyeing the woman on stage. 

After awhile the crowd began to slowly hush, as the advisors to the sultan began the meeting. Most of the men found a comfortable spot to sit, nesting among the various pillows and blankets lining the stone floor. As the men settled in, many of the servants and dancers spilled into the crowd, taking seats next to the nobles, bringing them drinks and plates of fruit and cheese. 

Jester joined in on the tradition, bringing with her a silver goblet of Zeinav's finest wine. She causally sauntered up to one of the lesser known nobles, a man who didnt get very much attention from the others. Without knowing his name, or who he was, Jester relaxed next to Vikram, placing the cup on the ground in front of him and just casually sat. It was common for the entertainment to attend to the royals, and keep them company. This often helped ease their tension and aggression when it came to making important choices. 

    Almost startled at the performer sitting next to him, his smile widened. Thank goodness! Vikram had been anxious that nobody would wish to drink with him, And this woman had even brought him a cup!

"Ah! How thoughtful of you young lady, A pleasure to make your acquaintance! I am Vikram, Sukhbir of the Sands, and I find myself quite delighted to attend this wonderful event. Is it a Winter's Crown party or something?"

    Vikram leaned back, sipping the wine. Figgy, robust, bit of a bite. "This wouldn't be a Sapphire Special '56 would it? Quite the experience, I must thank you. Do you do these kinds of events quite often?"

    The Sultan droned on in the background, the warrior paying far more attention to his new acquaintances garish outfit. Each garment in Zeinav told a story to those who knew what to look for. His told the story of dedication, perseverance, and a stalwart idea of justice. Hers on the other hand seemed to speak of hedonism, kindness, and whimsey. Though the discernment between personal garment and professional seemed blurred at best. 

The well dressed, noble appearing man was excited by the fact that Jester had brought him a cup of wine. He was a very jovial man with a hearty laugh, the Tiefling could feel the joy exuding from the man. She laughed, leaned against his arm, and played dumb, half playing the part and the other half truly not knowing what was going on. The Sultan droned on in the background as the woman gave her full attention to her new sitting companion. 

"Lovely to meet you Vikram my name is Jester. As for what vintage this is and what those old men are talking about, I have no clue. I just grabbed a cup of wine and saw you sitting here. I'm not even sure what this meeting is about, I just got hired to dance. "

The woman chuckled playfully as she leaned into the man, resting on his forearm. Some members of the crowd shot eyes towards her, as if telling her to shut up. She had learned from doing parties like this in the past, that if you showed the men a little attention, flirted some, the tips were always higher. She flipped her bangs to one side and smiled at Vikram.

""So mister Vikram. What brings you to this fancy little meeting, must not have been important if you dont even know what they are talking about.

    He chuckled nervously. This dancer is certainly friendly is she not? Regardless, it seemed she was in the dark as to what was going on as well. He drank his fill of wine and sat it next to the pillow with a small clatter. He was starting to notice the looks and whispers from the various accoutrement of nobles sitting nearby. He gave them little attention, for the more pressing matter was what this woman leaning up against his arm was trying to get from him. He swore, Kamille had tried the same thing not even a month ago, did he give off the impression of a man easily swayed by the soft touch of a woman? Briefly, Vikram found himself distracted by thoughts of his first wife.

"To be perfectly candid, these gatherings are largely pointless. It's probably some kids birthday party and their daddy pulled some strings to get ole Sultan Adatian to show up. Poppycock"

    It was after his poppycock statement that he had noticed the room had grown silent. Perhaps he had been slightly too loud on the last bit. The advisor cleared his throat, glaring at the two who had interrupted. Sultan chuckled slightly, apparently not having taken the comment too personally.

"A million apologies, Jester" He whispered, his cheeks fully reddened.
    

The pale skinned woman playfully giggled as Vikram's face began to turn a vibrant red, the entire room looking at them as silence fell over the palace. She was use to getting in trouble, causing chaos and interrupting plenty of meetings like this. What the man said was true, this party was probably not important, but it was a gathering none the less, and while she found no value in it, others did. So it was understandable that a few of the nobles in attendance would be bothered by their outburst. What none of them realized was that things were about to get much worse. 

"Oh, no need to worry Vikram, it was entirely my fault, I should not have...."

Her low whispered words were suddenly cut off, as the woman just sat there and blankly stared at the man, as if every thought in her head vanished. A second or two went by, the Tiefling awkwardly staring at her sitting companion, before things suddenly changed. To anyone who had not seen something like this before, it would have been strange, almost startling, for Jester's form began to shift, various colors began flow across the woman's body as things like her face, hair, skin, eyes, even her clothing began to transform.

She made no noise, but it was obvious to anyone looking at her, this person was no longer Jester, and as their form began to settle, a new personality took over. Where once a grey skinned Tiefling woman in dancers clothing sat, was now a small, bulky dwarven woman. Long blonde haired curled down her back, a pair of rams horns poking up from the blonde mane. Her outfit now consisted of black clothing and a large bears pelt across her shoulders, with an obvious war hammer on her hip.

Barbarian was now in charge.

"It's hot as fuck, where the shit am I, hell?"

    Vikrams expression went from glee and embarrassment to bewilderment in the blink of a hat. The woman that he had been quite enthusiastically enjoying a glass of wine with had been transformed into this...dwarf? You could hear a pin drop in the room for several seconds before the party reacted. The guards around the sultan reacted first, pulling him from the lectern and drawing their weapons, assuming a defensive posture.

"Shapeshifter! Shapeshifter! They have come for the Sultan!" An errant partygoer cried out, panicking and sending the gathering into disarray. Tables overturned and guests ran for the exits as the beturbaned man quickly overcame his surprise. 

Vikram fell backwards and scrambled to his feet for a few seconds. Shit, the guards had confiscated his scimitar for security reasons, but had let this abomination through? Thinking quickly, he emptied a jug of wine atop a table and withdrew two Winecicle axes from the puddles and held them at the ready.

"Name yourself, demon! Before I find your tombstone bare and scriptless. Have you come for the Sultan?!"