The Valinor Offensive: A Short Rest at Fort Valor

[opius]

As Alastair sat his backside into a chair at the bread table, two things were on his mind.

One, somehow everyone was okay. Despite an ambush, those closest to him had come out standing, if scathed.
Two, Sae's advice about his coat had, regrettably, paid off. Even if magical cleaning was on the table, the Adventure Coat was not meant to withstand the full splatter of a humanoid skull.

Eyes on the chandelier, he let out a sigh and with a phrase instructed Hermes to stand down and conserve the oil in the lantern. Soon after, the mechanical Tressym found her way to his shoulder, and then the table, where she approximated a rather lifelike circle, knead, and loaf.

He hadn't the spell slots to consider the humor in that, what with this being the bread table.
-------
He washed friends and allies make their way in, passing casual waves and nods. He hadn't the slots to pursue any one just yet, nor interrupt Sae and her wine and her love interest for the sake of patching her up, nor poke at the very magical staff Taliesin had recovered, nor quip at his estranged father, Mareki lord, or Very Cool Dwarven Princess (despite how cool she was). Alastair had only spoons enough to sit and to. Bread.

And to that end, still damp with perspiration and with frazzled hair, he tore into a small round bread roll.

Gods the food was good here...

[§~Samwise~§]

Taliesin walked just ahead of Mirrai towards the bread table. He was looking at the details of the staff and pondering its utility as he took in the sight of Alastair ahead of him. In comparison to others, Taliesin looked completely untouched. Maybe there was a hint of exertion, but nothing much beyond that.

"Sometimes I forget that you aren't used to this life." He remarked to Alastair as he took a seat to the side.

[CautionCat]

Konane was mentally drained, and trying to not think about a spider with multiple eyeballs all over it, larger than Jaeger. Alastair covered in remains... God's above, what the hell happened? Everything went so quickly, and now they... We're here, sitting. Konane was sitting. She didn't realize she walked in and took a seat next to Alastair.

Taliesin spoke up, and she blinked some. Was he there for long? She shook her head a little, and rubbed the side of her face.

"Taliesin... Does the Glade have sake? Preferably warm..."

[redcoat]

Draining a dwarven ale mug and refilling it with wine, Sae would lead Ve'ra to the bread table. With a smile, she'd settle in near the others- with room for Ve'ra.

"Oh, Alistair's as used to it as the rest of us. Just more honest." She said in a teasing tone to Taliesin and Alistair, before looking to Konane.

"Oh- I haven't had sake since I was in Otori... and Kaladin specifically told me not to judge sake based on the quality of stuff we had had. I bet the glade could do something..."

Sae was in surprisingly good spirits. Whether it was the blood loss, the adrenaline after the fight, how well the negotiations had gone... or perhaps the rulers of the local countries taking charge of their own future for a change, it was anyone's guess.

Probably all of them.

[opius]

"Unfortunately." He responded to Sae's comment with a mouth full of bread.

"I knew getting close to a face being unmade by means of hot lead would be part of the adventure. I *should* have realized becoming part of the *spray pattern* was a statistical inevitability." He leaned back, chewed, and sighed.

"I should be disgusted, not hungry. What's Sake?"

[CautionCat]

"It is a sweet rice wine." Konane answered Alastair. She was sure she mentioned it before, but today was... Well, the whole entirety of everything was a wild ride.
"You can drink it at room temperature, but it is best served warm. Many Otonins traditionally drink it while having a soak in a hot bath, the water warming the sake in its bottle."

She sighed, and reached for a bread roll, tearing it in half and taking some butter to slather into it. "I have no had it since leaving Otori. I did have some plum wine..."

[§~Samwise~§]

Taliesin flashed a look towards Sae as she responded to his statement to Alastair. Nothing came out since it didn't need to. He set the staff on the table.

He turned his head the slightest bit to regard Konane."Oh ... yes." He looked over his shoulder and spoke in Sylvan to seemingly no one as the sensor had been removed "2 jugs of warm Otonin Rice Wine, 10 warmed ceramic Sake cups, and a full plate of various nigiri rolls."

He looked back towards Alastair. He almost addressed his statement of disgust, but that wasn't necessary. "It's a lovely beverage. Sae had bad luck with one in a village we passed through." He looked toward Konane knowing that she as well as Mirrai and possibly Alain had understood what he said to the unseen servants.

"We'll have some here momentarily along with some food that pairs well."

[redcoat]

Sae smiled, looking over Alistair. "Sorry about the splatter, but the head shot is the surest way to put someone down. You just... aren't usually in the blast radius." She took a swig from her mug of wine and grabbed a roll from the table, slathering it with honey butter.

"True- I'm willing to give it another try though." She said, as conversation turned to sake.

[opius]

Alastair snorted a laugh. "I think I'm picking up bad habits from you and the doctor- like getting close enough to the bad guys' pointy parts."

He glanced about some as Taliesin gave orders to his... Ghost.. friends. "So I'm the odd one out with this Sah Kay business. Good to see I haven't dropped all of my old habits.."

[uberwulfx]

Well behind the others, Jaeger finally entered the room. He did so while affixing a dirty rag onto an open belt loop; his own hands had been battle-grimed and dirt-soiled, and it wouldn't do to touch communal food like that. His entrance was just after the reference to him, so there would be no apology for being a bad influence. Rather, he gave a single all-encompassing nod to the room, not yet willing to speak in a conversation he'd no context for.

[§~Samwise~§]

Taliesin chuckled both at Alastair's pronunciation and the bit of self-deprecation. "Think of it more as having friends who can steer you to better experiences." He offered with a smile.

"You may be odd one out on this, but it's also a new experience with friends who can help you have a pleasant experience."

He took notice of Jaegar and gave him a nod of recognition. "Some Otonin food and drink is coming to the table."

He looked away from the table towards the spiral stairs and called out in Sylvan. "Pale of warm water with milk honey soap a washcloth, and a towel, please." He turned back to Jaeger and flashed a smile. "And you'll have what you need to clean up enough to eat without tainting your food."

[CautionCat]

"Nigiri..." Konane blinked some, Taliesin knowing about that particular food made her surprised, but thankful. Something she had not eaten in a while, either. She wasn't sure if Alastair would like preserved fish, atop rice... He didn't seem like the type to like strong tasting foods, unless it was sweets. Nigiri used fish preserved in soy sauce, salt, and vinegar, which were contrasting favors to what Alastair enjoyed.

She smiled, and nodded to Jaeger as he came to sit at the bread table. "Ah, do you know what takoyaki is, Taliesin? That is my favorite festival food. I love watching them make it! Spinning it in the hot pan with the little dips in it to make it round."

[redcoat]

"Gods a bath sounds amazing. Soon. Once the diplomatic stuff is done." She gave a half smile, looking at the head table, currently empty as most all the leaders marshaled their troops and well. Led.

"Thankfully I think that will be soon. Everyone seems on board with the agreements as proposed."

[uberwulfx]

"Ah, thank you Taliesin." Jaeger sat quietly, lips pursed briefly before he began eating bread.

[Ancelas]

Mirrai had appeared pensive as she rejoined the others. She had seemed distracted by the space the abyssal spider had been summoned through, and had paused at the entrance to the glade, looking it over before following the others inside. Now, she had taken a seat near Taliesin, listening to the conversation and staring out at the creatures coming and going, a distance look on her face that slowly turned into a faint smile and a quiet chuckle.

Ve'ra had gone to retrieve a hand towel and now returned to Sae, dabbing a corner on her tongue before giving a quick wipe to the side of Sae's face, followed by a casual toss of the hand towel over Sae's head.

"Clean up. You're covered in the blood of... what was that, a hobgoblin? In hobgoblin blood."