The last couple of weeks have been a little wild for the giant red Fellblood. Somehow, he has met not just one but two Knights of Duros, including one especially decorated man from the capitol by sheer happenstance. The first one offered him a ride to Sol City to escape a pair of old friends, and now he’s on his way to make strides to possibly join a knighthood order or even one of the guilds himself! Obviously, he needs to do a little bit more research and training, but things are going ridiculously well despite having thrown away everything he grew up being comfortable with.

What better way to celebrate than with a drink or two at the city’s most popular tavern? So, Das heads to the coveted Brass Dragon to fancy himself a drink, and to his surprise, a recently met familiar face is inside. “The Ancestors smile upon me today!” Das exclaims upon seeing Everett inside. “We’ve only just parted and here we are crossing paths again!” Motioning to an empty seat at Everett’s table, he asks, “Mind if I join you?”

---

Quest Details:

SPOILER: Click to show

Quest Name: Enjoy the Festival!
Participants: Two or more
Location: Sol City
Post Requirements: 4 posts per person, 150 words per post
Reward: +1 Renown, +1 Mystical Archive Ticket
Description: The festival is booming, and all that is required of you is to have fun! Stroll through Sol City partaking in any kind of festival-like activity. You can attend the joust, or participate in a sword duel. Maybe watch some jugglers or Bardic Virtuoso's perform in the city square. Enjoy some of the rare cuisines found across Charon at local vendors and markets. The choice is up to you, as long as you enjoy the festival!

Arriving back in Sol City has been a whirlwind. After dropping Das off and parting ways at the docks, Everett, Ophelia, and Elleon were stuck in the streets as a wagon accident involving horses, oxen, and a drake backed up all foot traffic for several city blocks. With the help of a gremling that had stowed away on their ship from King's Valley, they had managed to clear the traffic jam and now were focused on enjoying the festival and relaxing before their next voyage. 

The city is incredibly busy, as is the most popular tavern in the whole capitol. Luckily Elleon and Ophelia were able to secure one of the last available tables before Everett parted ways with their new gremling friend and rejoins them for a drink. Elleon is already two mugs of ale deep while Ophelia is making a face at her first as if the taste had somehow insulted her tastebuds when Das approaches the table. Everett looks up from his own drink and smile at the armored fellblood. 

"Good to see you again so soon." He gestures towards the empty chair. "Not at all, please do." 

Ophelia slides her drink across the table over to Das. "You can have my drink if you want. This stuff isn't to my tastes." 

"He probably wants his own drink, ye know," Elleon says, raising an eyebrow at the young mage.

"You don't know that," she retorts. 

The two have very quickly developed a bit of a rivalry with one another. Das would recall that the elf quartermaster and new mage apprentice had a few minor arguments while aboard the ship on the way over that were very similar to the way siblings would banter with one another. It never escalated into anything serious and Everett hasn't really stepped in to put a stop to it. He more just seems amused than annoyed or concerned. Das of course would know how crews tend to have their own dynamics which may seem dysfunctional from an outsider's point of view. This seemed to just be how the trio were adjusting and adapting to each other's presence. 

Everett looks at Das. "Enjoying the festival so far?"

“Excellent!” Das says enthusiastically, taking the last empty seat. The wooden chair groans under his weight, but he doesn’t seem to mind or notice. Either is possible. “If you’re sure you don’t want it, I’ll finish it off! You never turn down a free drink when among friends.” With a grin, Das takes Ophelia’s drink and takes a mighty gulp before wiping the froth from his beard. “‘Course, I won’t say no to one or two of my own!” He flags down a barmaid and orders himself a couple of drinks and a simple meal of seasoned meats.

The younger pair’s bickering hasn’t phased Das in the slightest, even aboard the ship. To him, the likelihood of an all out brawl isn’t particularly high between the two of them, and even if there was, he has full faith in Everett despite only seeing an inkling of his skills in magic or swordmastery.

“Oh, yes! Well, what I’ve seen of it, I have enjoyed. The streets are pretty crowded, so navigating has been a pain in the ass. Admittedly, it makes our camps look roomy by comparison. Imagine being crammed into a table of this size with at least two others the same size as me if not larger! No elbow room, I tell you.”

Taking another large swig of the remaining ale in the mug, Das sets the empty glass down with a satisfied huff. “How about yourselves? Find anything interesting to do yet?”

"Yeah, I'm sure," Ophelia confirms, happy to let Das polish off what's left. 

Everett nods in agreement about how crowded things are. The influx of people on the streets for the celebration does make things a lot more chaotic. He can't imagine how the locals must feel, then again, there's a lot of business and money to be made during these sorts of events. So, it's not all bad. 

"I can imagine that fairly well. I've served on a few ships with men who have dwarfed me in size and we all had to share quarters. It made you feel like a fish in a barrel." 

Elleon nods in agreement to that sentiment. Both he and Everett are quite tall and it makes getting around even on a ship the size of the Lightning's Edge a pain. The elf's long lost count of how many times he's hit his head on a ceiling beam or doorframe. Everett's a bit better off, but that's just because he's used to being more careful about how he moves around in general. Having to compensate for one less limb just kind of makes you a bit more conscious of your balance and your surroundings. 

The captain shakes his head. "Not yet. We had to help clear a bit of a road block, but now we're just relaxing a bit before we head out to explore more. I've been to this festival before, but Elleon hasn't." 

"I'm not much of a party person." 

Ophelia rests her elbow on the table and props her chin in her hand. Her eyebrow raises at the elf. "Are you much of an anything person?"

Elleon makes an unimpressed face before he reaches over, looms his hand over Ophelia's head, then plops it down to roughly ruffle her rainbow hair. 

Ophelia flails in protest. "OW OW OW! THAT'S MY HAIR!"

This does get a bit of a wince out of Everett, mostly because of some of the annoyed looks they're getting from other tables around them. 

"Elleon, come on, you're too old to act like that to a kid." 

Unperturbed, Elleon just stares at Everett while taking a long sip of his drink. Ophelia does manage to shove his hand off her head and sticks her tongue out at the elf. 

Everett shakes his head with an exasperated sigh before turning his attention back to Das. "You're welcome to join us for the rest of the day. We're going to stop by some of the markets and check out any other activities they have going on." 

The fish in a barrel comment really resonates with Das, his demeanor taking on a very freshly educated posture while he stares at the wood grains of the table. On the ship with Everett and his crew, Das did his best to stay on deck rather than below it. Not only is he a good seven feet tall without his horns, but the horns add another foot at least and are generally inconvenient in tight quarters. The man is used to ducking under doors or into tents, but the ship’s doors and ceilings are even lower than most. The number of support rafters and doorframes that he hit his head or horns on have left his cranium bruised beneath his salt and pepper hair. Somehow, he hasn’t cracked one of his horns, but he definitely got the point of one stuck in a beam while they were at sea, much to his embarrassment.

“Road block? Seems like there’s a lot of opportunity for those around here.” Somehow, Das now understands some of the elder Riders’ hatred for places like Sol City. Not that he thinks it’s justified, but it is really crowded.

Seeing the two crewmates flailing about, Das stifles a snort. In some ways, it makes him a bit homesick. Meals with his group of Red Riders usually had that kind of roughhousing at a bare minimum. “You’re never too old to have fun,” he remarks, sitting back while his meal is placed in front of him. “Thanks.” Then he starts digging in. “I’d love to join you if you have something interesting or new in mind. I’ve mostly been wandering aimlessly just taking in the sights. I heard there’s a few friendly fighting tournaments and games I might go see about later.”

"The streets are pretty narrow in some places. Luckily there wasn't too much damage or any serious injuries." 

He wonders where the little goblin girl who helped clear the roadblock ended up running off to. Hopefully, she's managed to avoid any other congested spaces or angry drakes. 

"I suppose not. Though I'd rather us not get kicked out for roughhousing."

They certainly were getting shot some displeased looks from the other patrons in the tavern. Though no one had been put off enough to complain or confront them as of yet. Best if they kept it that way. 

"Oh, I want to look for anyone selling any exotic ingredients for potions!" Ophelia chimes in when the topic turns to their activities for the day. 

Everett tilts his head thoughtfully. "Do you know how to make potions?"

"No, my old mentor didn't teach me anything useful." She huffs. "But I want to try and learn it anyway. Being able to make potions could come in handy later." 

"I wouldn't mind looking around for a tournament like you mentioned," Elleon says giving a nod to Das. 

"You itching to fight someone?" Everett asks. 

The elf shrugs. "Just sounds like fun." 

"I'm sure getting your face punched in is a grand old time," Ophelia comments without even trying to hid the sarcasm laced through her tone. 

Everett shakes his head and takes out his spellbook. He opens it up and once of the pages lifts out of it before folding itself into a small origami dragon. The little paper construct flits over to Ophelia before Everett closes his book. He also counts out some extra solars and slides them over to her.

"Why don't you take Scribbles to go look for some books in addition to those ingredients you mentioned?" 

Ophelia is quick to scoop up the coins and let the bookwyrm up onto her shoulder. "Can do." 

"We'll meet back up at the ship at before dusk." 

"Works for me." 

Once they're done eating, Everett is quick to pay the tab for the group. He knows Das will probably need every solar he has on him since he's between jobs at the moment. As they leave the tavern, Ophelia wanders off to the city's markets while the boys head towards the more open squares where more of the festival activities and attractions are. 

It’s entirely possible that Das has seen Scribbles during his time on the ship with Everett and the crew, but it makes him no less impressed to see it while he eats his meal. As a man raised by the saddle, book learning has never been something very high on Das’s priority list. For all the Red Riders ever cared, once you know the saddle and the blade, you know all you need to know. Raiding, too.

But that’s beside the point.

As Ophelia and Scribbles go on their merry way, Das quickly finishes his meal and starts fishing into his coin purse to pay for it when Everett beats him to it. He looks at the other man with a blank expression for a moment as he processes what’s happened, then sighs with a smile and nods to him in thanks. He’ll pay the man back for all his kindness someday.

“So, if we find a tournament, will either of you participate?” Das asks while they make their way through the crowded streets. He’s partially wondering about potential competition and partially curious if the three of them are about to try to win something together. Even just watching, Das knows he’ll have a good time. It wasn’t uncommon to watch people in the Riders brawl to pass the time.

Elleon nods in response to Das' question. "Aye, I plan on it." He looks to Everett. "Cap'n?" 

Everett makes a face like he's giving it some thought, though he ends up just having an awkward smile. "Admittedly, I'm not the best at contests of strength." The half-elven man gestures to Das. "Last time I fought someone of similar stature to yourself I limped away with a dislocated knee and several broken ribs."

Had Ak'ka not been there to combat the fifty or so Stormriders attacking Hearthside...well, he probably wouldn't have been able to limp away at all.

"Even if they allow magic, I'm not sure they'd want a caster with my skill set making a mess of things."

"Ye would make a mess of things." 

Everett laughs. "Yeah. Storm magic isn't exactly easily contained."

While extremely handy in open areas and out at sea, his combat magic definitely isn't as well suited for contained areas or dueling. He's just as likely to hurt himself as well as others if he were to call a lightning storm or tornado into being. 

Elleon looks at Das, almost sizing him up for a second. "I'm sure ye'd give most of these fanciful folk a run for their money."

“Storm magic sure comes in handy on the seas though,” Das points out, somewhat through a mouthful of meat as he does. “I don’t have any skills with magic myself. Most folks in the Riders didn’t really. It was brute strength or nothing. Well, or smarts, but only the lucky ones have those.” A little chuckle escapes him.

“I might enter,” he says to Elleon, “but sometimes just watching is as much fun. There are a lot of skills swordsmen in the world, and I’m sure many of them come to show off in the tournaments here. Maybe one day I’ll feel good enough to compete. For now I’d probably be better off in a wrestling tournament.”

Then he remembers the last time he tried that and the other guy snatched his wooden leg and toppled him unfairly. His expression sours at the memory while he nurses the wounded pride over some ale. “Maybe not,” he murmurs before downing the rest of it and slamming his cup on the table.

“Anyway, there’s fun to be had! Other challenges of skill than just fighting! Just don’t enter me in a chess tournament.”

Everett laughs. "No chess, got it." 

The group wanders through the festival grounds for a while longer. They do find a few contests of strength including a hammer challenge, something akin to a caber toss, and arm wrestling. Takes a bit longer to find anything that's more like organized duels, but they do eventually find something with sign ups and even a cash prize in the form of a pot full of solars funded by the entrants themselves.

Elleon takes a shot at the arm wrestling against an grem individual with a snaggle tooth grin. While not really expecting to win, the elf does better than the grem initially judged. The two share some grins of mutual respect before the burly mountaineer slams the seafarer's knuckles into the top of the barrel they were propped up on. Elleon walks away with a hearty slap on the back, some words of encouragement, bruised knuckles and a slightly bruised ego. 

Everett wanders about some of the craft stalls and looks at a few felted animals and wooden toys meant for children. Being at the festival once more brings back memories of when Cypress first found him. He recalls her mentioning living at an orphanage in Darkveil which he's been intending to visit for some time now. It couldn't hurt to bring a few gifts for the kids to lighten spirits given the state of the city. He can't imagine it's easy to come across good quality toys in a den of thieves and crooks.

The mage ends up buying a few different things he thinks kids would appreciate before returning to Das' side.

"Enjoying your time so far?"

While wandering through the festival, Das tries to be cautious about getting overly excited and spending coins on rigged games, but his competitive spirit struggles to see others not do as well as he could. His time with the Red Riders saw many contests of strength, though in more violent ways than simple arm wrestling. He remembers one time, they took bets on who could wrestle a Deeptusk, which went about as well as one might think. The clan’s healer was not too plussed by the results.

The organized duels tempt him, but the entry price is a little too steep for his liking. Still, winning that would be a big boon to his confidence. Instead, he opts to watch Elleon hold his own against the grem in the arm wrestling contest, standing on the sideline with his arms crossed but watching with interest. “You did well,” he says to Elleon, knowing that losing in front of a crowd can feel pretty rough. At least the laughing seems to be good-natured rather than mocking. Still, it can’t help making Das feel like he has when he lost contests of strength in the Riders.

With a pursed lip, he joins in. Maybe it’s in some attempt to reclaim some of Elleon’s lost pride, but Das steps in and takes on the grem. They are fairly evenly matched in size and strength alike, so much so that both of them are sweating with veins protruding from their straining muscles. Das about looks like his eye is going to pop out of his head as he battles against the grem, and he starts to feel very hot. Not just sweaty, but physically or magically hot.^[1] Gods, the sun is really beating down on them, isn’t it?

Finally, the area around them becomes too hot for either of them to stand, and Das and the grem agree to call it a draw and leave off with a handshake and both needing a good break. Returning to the group, Das wipes his brow and takes a look at what Everett’s been buying.

“Yeah, what have you got there?” he asks, referring to the toys. “Gifts for the crew?”

---

1. Heat Cloak (but not intentionally)

Elleon gives Das an appreciative nod at the encouragement. He's not too broken up over losing given the fierce competition and the fact that elves don't tend to be all that buff to begin with. He's not willowy by any stretch of the imagination, but compared to the grem he might as well be a twig. 

Everett and Elleon do cheer on Das when he decides to participate and challenge the grem warrior. It's a nail-biting, intense competition that heats up quickly. Literally. It gets scorching in temperature and eventually they have to call the match before someone passes out from heat exhaustion. 

Being fairly in tune with magic and weather, Everett isn't at all convinced that the sudden heat wave is natural. But at the same time he didn't see anyone cast a spell to sabotage the match. He lets it slide this time, but is a bit more wary of anyone trying to cause trouble in the crowded streets. 

Things end amicably enough between Das and the grem, so that's good.

"Thought ye had him for sure there," Elleon comments while clapping Das on the back in a friendly manner. 

Everett likewise gives Das an approving nod. "Good match." 

He then looks down at the bag full of toys as Das asks about them. 

"Ah, no. They're for some kids in Darkveil. Someone I know lives at the orphanage there and I've been meaning to visit for some time now." 

That reminds him that he doesn't know what Das' plans are for after the festivities are over. He can assume Das won't be headed back to King's Valley anytime soon, but he also showed some interest in Leandros' guild. Since there's in Sol City, maybe he can introduce the fellblood to the lion himself. 

"Hey, while we're in Sol City, do you want me to see if I can get you a meeting with Guildmaster Leandros?"

“It got weirdly hot,” Das says, wiping his brow and having absolutely no idea that he was the source of the heat. “Probably the exertion,” he reasons with a shrug. It is summer, after all.

“Kids in Darkveil?” he asks, looking again at the bag before looking at Everett. “Isn’t that where the volcano exploded? Are they alright?” There is genuine concern in his voice. Maybe he’ll set his destination there soon enough if the place still needs help. Besides, he wants to see the remnants of the volcano itself. A place of power and flame like that really resonates with him, even if the events of the area were tragic. Still, he’s glad to see Everett is the type of person to care about some down on their luck kids, not that he’s surprised by this.

At the mention of the lion himself, Das’s expression lights up. “Leandros! Funny story, I actually ran into him by chance! There was an accident between two carts, and he helped me settle things down. He seems to be a good man, and his wife was pleasant too. I’m glad I had an inkling of an idea of who he is thanks to you. My suspicions of him proved true. I’m going to strive to be worthy of joining his guild. I think it would be a good place for me.”

"I noticed that as well. I didn't see anyone cast a spell to mess with the match though..." 

It's troubling, but seeing as no one got hurt, maybe it's not that big of a deal. He'll at least let the local guard know to keep an eye out for any further foul play. 

On the topic of the orphanage, Everett nods. "Yes, the city suffered significant damage. As far as I know, the orphanage managed to survive, but I have not been able to confirm that myself." 

If things were dire, he's certain Cypress would have sent him a letter or have said something the last time they saw one another. Should Das express any interest in going there too, he'd be more than happy to have the man journey with him to the ashen land. 

Though Das may have other plans given his goals of distancing himself from the eastern lands of Charon. 

Everett smiles as Das explains that he has already run into Leandros while in the city. "Oh! That's great to hear." It's not hard to imagine the two instantly getting along and instantly working to help other folks. He too ran into a road block shortly after they had disembarked from the port and ended up freeing some horses and a drake with the help of a gremling who stowed away on the ship. 

"He is a good man," he affirms. "I don't think he'll lead you astray."

Though he will have to keep one eye on things with the guild. Leandros is a good man, that much he knows, but he does worry that tensions with the Crown might end up turning into something violent one day. He'd do his best to be the voice of reason, but if Leandros ever turned his back on the Crown...he isn't too sure he would be able to support that. 

"You are, of course, always welcome on my ship whenever you need to cross the seas."