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	=Log=		=Log=
−	<div></div>	+	<div></div><br> <br>The enterprising adventurers are led by the otter being outside Firmament and into the ever-present Eastbank forest. It was a warm, sunny day in Sweetwater which at the very least meant that it was pleasantly warm in shade of the trees as the group trudged along the narrow roads and passages in the green maze. The group would spend hours of marching until they finally got on a what must have been a well-trodden dirt-path at some point but whoever used this road is long gone if nature&#39;s efforts to reclaim it is any indication.
		+
		+	Twenty minutes more spent on the once-road before the group finally neared a large clearing, the sight of an old mansion clear in their view, waiting for them in a small camp at the edge of the mansion&#39;s clearing are four other beings and a fifth waving at them, this one is a bullfinch in fancy clothing, obviously the employer. &quot;Ah, welcome, welcome, brave adventurers.&quot; the bird says in a distinctly exotic accent, those who heard it before knowing it as clearly Andrussian, while those who never knew about it could mistake it for some odd Cliffside accent, &quot;I am really glad for your help, you see this mansion seems to be trapped.&quot; he says with a shake of his head before he looks at the group again, giving them time to catch their breath and adjust, &quot;You can have some refreshments before we discuss business if you wish.&quot; he says as he points at a small table with fruits and water.
		+
		+	Zuri steps up to look at the mansio in a challenging manner. The small salamander&#39;s packed for this job, having brought all of his tools for dealing with locks and other mechanisms, making him look more like an apprentice clockmaker than an adventurer. &quot;Traps huh? That sounds fun!&quot; He turns to the otter and smiles. &quot;And refreshments? This is already the best adventure ever!&quot; He plods over to the table, selecting several of the fruits and nibbling on a peach as he waits.
		+
		+	Bazalt Mumbles and Groans As he walks, Still covered in banadges, and looking sore. &quot;I&#39;m REgretting this already.&quot; he mumbles, rubbing his arm. He nods to the bullfinch and Head for the refreshments. &quot;Nrrhhh.....I&#39;m going to end up hurting more..&quot; He sighs, Grabbing a Drink and A Fruit to munch on.
		+
		+	Reginald makes his way along the once-road, no stranger to the wilderness, yet still rather unsettled by the path&#39;s return to nature. Upon meeting the Bullfinch, he offers a nod in greeting. Quickly retrieving a cup of water, the lynx finds a nice place to lean against as he waits for their briefing, offering a further nod to Zuri and a nuzzle to Bazalt.
		+
		+	The bullfinch nods his head, &quot;You see, my grandfather was an adventurer and a scholar of sorts.&quot; the bullfinch begins as he stands up for story time, &quot;He traveled fair and wide, he was also a dragon dedicant.&quot; he says with a shrug, &quot;So for some reason he really got into this ancient Creator stuff about knights and dragons and what not, but that is besides the point. He built this mansion and decided to live in it for the rest of his life, which if what he said in his letters was true was the last five years of his life.&quot; he says as he points at the mansion.
		+
		+	The building must have been really impressive, for a medium sized mansion in the middle of a forest. The mansion seems to be built mostly of woof but with a stone wall surrounding it,  and a, currently opened, creaky metal gate leading to a stone staircase leading upwards towards a small courtyard and finally the entrance. The mansion in general is in dangerous disrepair with moss growing around each possible crevice and vines infiltrating the structure, one would give nature another sixty years to completely claim this structure. &quot;You see he died about fifteen years ago. I had discovered his letters which he gave to my father to &#39;claim his inheritance&#39; a couple of months ago. And now here I am trying to see what my grandfather left for my father. But there is one problem, the door is locked and it seems he made the place based on puzzles!&quot; he says as he begins climbing the stairs, &quot;You can ask your questions while you begin to work.&quot;
		+
		+	Zuri listens to the story as he chews down on his peach, finishing it quickly so he can get to work on the pear he&#39;s holding on his other hand. He nods in between munchies to say. &quot;Inheritance, huh? And he was a dragon dedicant? I can see where this is going...&quot; He looks back at Reginald and Bazalt. &quot;Might be just like in the shrine. Or perhaps even more devious.&quot; He walks up to the door and starts inspecting the lock, before reaching for the appropriate tools to try and crack it open.
		+
		+	Bazalt nods and Sighs. &quot;Greaat.. there better not be water Traps here too..&quot; He mumbles as he walks up the Steps-smiling to Reginald. &quot;and I&#39;m still damn sore too..&quot; he sighs. &quot;walking didnt help..wh Build a house all the way out here? What was he hiding?&quot; He asks, rubbing the back of his head as Zuri gets to Work.
		+
		+	Reginald walks alongside the group, nodding in acknowledgement of Zuri&#39;s and Bazalt&#39;s thoughts - the lynx too hoped there&#39;d be much less water here. Although a thought did spring to the feline&#39;s mind. &quot;If the owner was a dragon dedicant, are we certain this place is meant to be accessed from the ground, and not the air ... just a thought?&quot; Upon seeing the pain the shadow was currently in, the lynx moves to his side and places an arm around the wolf, offering him something to lean against.
		+
		+	The bullfinch shakes his head, &quot;Of course we are sure. There is a perfectly normal gate, and dragons anyway are not designed for long term flight.&quot; the being says as Zuri rushes past and begins inspecting the locked door.
		+
		+	The group are standing in the small courtyard in front of the door, with Zuri himself looking at the door. Right in front of this door is a small square with four stone statues obviously not put in place. The statues are in a rather interesting fashion designed to look like dragons in full knight gear and regalia. A small slab of stone in the middle of the square declares, &quot;The knight struggles against the dragon. The knight is no more on Promise. The dragon takes the mantle of the knight. Where does the dragon knight&#39;s duty lie?&quot; On each side of the square are three spots which looks like they are designed for a statue to be put there.<br> <br>&quot;See? This is what I meant about this chivalry nonsense. It is a puzzle of sorts, but I don&#39;t really know a lot about those stories and those statues are heavy as well!&quot; he says as he lets the group piece the puzzle together.
		+
		+	Zuri tests the lock with a few of his tools, most curiously one that looks like a tiny hook at the end of a very thin and long handle. He frowns slightly as he clicks the tool inside the lock. &quot;I have good news and bad news. The good news is this lock is easy to crack. The bad news is there&#39;s a lot of stuff here that doesn&#39;t normally go in a lock. There&#39;s a latch on the left hand side that seems to connect to a different mechanism, and there&#39;s a small pressure disk at the far end of the lock&#39;s cylinder.&quot;
		+
		+	He pulls the tool back out of the lock. &quot;My guess is, the lock is trapped in a couple different ways. Even if you crack it you won&#39;t be able to do it without triggering one or more of the mechanisms.&quot; He looks towards the puzzle. &quot;The latch seems to indicate the lock could be opened by solving that puzzle there, maybe.. would make sense.&quot; He looks back up at the threshold of the door. &quot;This little courtyard could be laden with traps if we don&#39;t do this right.
		+
		+	Bazalt Sighs and Rolls his eyes. &quot;Of course..&quot;he trails off and sighs again. &quot;Hrrmm.. soo.. Four Statues? six spaces?&quot; He Frowns and sighs. &quot;Hrrmmm..&quot; The Wolf Just sighs and mumbles. &quot;and Traps? Just ast long as there are no bug or Water.. i&#39;ll be happy...&quot;
		+
		+	The lynx is by no means fluent with creator stories of dragons and knights, though, drawing on the various pieces of experience from his travels, something about the puzzle seemed to make a little sense. &quot;It seems to be asking us where this dragon knight&#39;s duties lie, and .. maybe .. it wants us to choose four of the six choices ...&quot; The lynx ponders the problem, not too well versed in the duties of knights, but trying to contribute none the less ...
		+
		+	The mute Nurse Shark steps in, careful to follow the footsteps of the rest of the group to not set anything off. She headtilts as she sees the statues, reading the inscription &lt;Sorry for my lateness.&gt; She signs to Bazalt. &lt;Had some bodily functions to work out.&gt;
		+
		+	The employer nods his head as Cirra arrives, &quot;Yes that is what I guessed as well, but I don&#39;t really know what to do so go ahead and solve it, that is what I hired you for.&quot; the Andrussian says as he looks peers at the door when Zuri finishes talking, &quot;Are you sure they are  deadly traps? Maybe we can afford setting one or two of them...&quot; he says before shaking his head quickly, &quot;But I am not responsible for any injury that might cause, that would be your fault.&quot;<br> <br>Zuri steps back to look at the inscriptions, then at the quote. &quot;Hmm.. where does a knight&#39;s duty lie.&quot; He looks between each of the six illustrations, going clockwise. &quot;Female being in a fancy dress, that probably represents the Nobles. No idea what that represents. Being with a crown, clearly the Royals. Being asking for alms, the Poor. Group of beings talking... hm... I guess that might just represent &#39;the people&#39;. The next one is clearly the Knightly Order as a whole, right? And finally the family of the slain knight.&quot;
		+
		+	He huffs. &quot;So what are the four things a Knight owes duty to? Specifically, this knight in this situation. The family of the slain knight is one of them. The others.. I can see arguments for all of them.&quot;<br> <br>Bazalt Nods &quot;hrrmm.. Yeah. Family... Maybe? Royals.. Probally nobles... perhaps?...&quot; He nods to the shark. &quot;It&#39;s ok-heh..&quot; He sighs. &quot;there is the posiblilty the statues are trapped to?&quot; HE Frowns. &quot;Hrrmmm... Any clues from the letters?&quot; he asks, looking to the finch.<br> <br>Reginald continues to be deep in thought, as he listens astutely to the conversations going on around him. Cuddling Baz a little tighter, the lynx offers up his thoughts. &quot;... knights are supposed to be noble warriors, always loyal to the king or queen of the time ... protecting the poor ...... I haven&#39;t really paid too much attention to the stories, but, aren&#39;t they supposed to rescue damsels, as well .... and don&#39;t they very rarely die, or engage in gossip or intrigue ..... but are loyal to there order ...&quot; The feline returns to his silence ...<br> <br>    Cirra nods a bit. &lt;I do not recall, though a knight&#39;s duties typically were to the crown first, to his order, and to nobles. If I were optimistic, I&#39;d actually say his fourth duty was to the poor, but I would need a bit more information, but am more versed in Shralestan history. Maybe something in history? Give me a moment, I need to check something.&gt; She moves to a corner to fiddle with her collar.<br> <br>Reginald tilts his head from one side to the other, before speaking up once again. &quot;... Or was that barbarians? In which case, aren&#39;t knights supposed to be blood-lust stricken warriors, who charge head first into combat, with no thought given for their own safety ... in which case the only place that makes any sense would be the &#39;female being with her child weeping over a coffin&#39; ... I not too sure, really ... though, for some reason, I get the feeling that kings are important here ...... yeah, I&#39;m pretty sure kings and knights are linked quite closely ... If no one objects, we could try putting one of those statues in the spot that has &#39;the picture of a being with a crown sitting on a throne&#39; ?&quot;  <br> <br>    Cirra nods to Reignald, signing to Bazalt her intentions. &lt;I know with confidence that two of them are to the crown, and to his fellow knights and his order.&gt; She moves to help Reginald move one of the statues into the slot matching the being with the crown.<br> <br>Zuri nods. &quot;Those two make sense. I still dare say he has a duty to the family of the being whose life he took, which I think is represented by the child weeping over a coffin. In any case..&quot; He shifts one statue over that one, hoping that he got this one right.&quot;<br> <br>Bazalt nods slowly. &quot;HRrnnn they. seem.. right...Or is it a Trick question and he has Duties to all?&quot; He muses as he looks around the courtyard. &quot;Hrrnnnnn Dont suppose it&#39;s that easy though...&quot; he just shrugs, watching for now.<br> <br>Zuri pushes the statue, quickly getting assisted by some of the employer&#39;s men to the intended spot. For a moment there is nothing before suddenly the statue begins sinking down again. As it sinks down, a slab of stone right in front of the statue that was put in place rises up, &#39;His duty to the weeping widows and oppressed orphans.&#39; Three more to go.<br> <br>The other statue that was pushed towards the picture of the king sinks as well as the slab in front of it rises, &quot;His duty to his king, ever faithful in word and deed.&quot;  Two more to go.<br> <br>Zuri huffs after pushing that statue into place, smiling thankfully at the being that helped him with the task. &quot;So.. hm.. those were the obvious ones. Now it gets tricky. I still say he has a duty to the Knightly order itself. But you could argue any of the others. The poor, all beings in general, and the nobles.&quot;<br> <br>    Cirra nods a bit. &lt;Knightly order and his fellow knights should also be correct.&gt; She starts sliding that statue into place. &lt;However, I am at a loss to what the last is. Since all three can be correct.&gt;<br> <br>Bazalt Nods and blinks &quot;Yeah easy done-what next? I&#39;s say... all beings, no?&quot; he Frownsing and sighs. &quot;I dare not think what happens if we get one wrong...&quot;he trails off, glancing at the door.<br> <br>Reginald lets out a slight smile at their success so far. &quot;Now, just one more ... if I had to guess, I&#39;d say either the nobles, or the poor ... though, perhaps, it&#39;s the poor, as the nobles wishes may conflict with the monarch.&quot; If no-one were to object, the feline would place the last statue, though unsure, into the slot with &#39;the picture of a being asking for alms&#39;.<br> <br>Reginald slides the statue into the post that he chose. The statue remains in that place and nothing happens before suddenly the statue&#39;s mouth opens, the little twinkle of light inside it the only sign of the divine maths glyph before it activates throwing a small fireball in the person standing in front of the statue. Reginald fails to dodge in time but his armor keeps the worst of the flames outside, except for the oddly singed hair on his hair and face. Any mathemagician around would notice that the fireball spell was not really supposed to injure but simple &#39;chastise&#39; but whether that was the spell losing potency due to neglect or the original intent is up for anyone to guess. &quot;Hmmm, it is worth noting that my father was also a dragon, and that it was him who was supposed to inherit my grandfather&#39;s legacy.&quot; he says with a shrug, &quot;SO be more careful will you.&quot; he says a bit unconcerned about the events.<br> <br>Zuri instinctively rolls out of the way as he sees the flash of mathemagic, even though it is not required. He bounces off the floor and sits up against the wall, blinking. &quot;Uuh..&quot; He scratches his head. &quot;That would have been good to know. He won&#39;t care about the poor then, and probably not about the people either...&quot;<br> <br>    Cirra winces, shaking her head. &lt;Well, still have two guesses, right? Nobility, and... the people... Another round of optimisim versus pessimism. I&#39;m... not equipped to take a fire breath, even one as weak as that.&gt;<br> <br>Bazalt Blinks and RUSHES over to teh Lynx. &quot;GAh-Are you ok!?&quot; He asks, looking him over carefully. He Glances to the statue and Pulls the cat away from it, heart pounding in his chest. &quot;damnit.... Why wouldnt they care for the poor?&quot; he also shoots the Finch a glare but says nothing. &quot;hrrnnn.&quot; he mumbles, hugging the cat<br> <br>The slightly smoking lynx just stands there for a few moments in shock, before stirring and quickly checking himself over. Reginald is relieved to find himself still in one piece, though the feline&#39;s chestnut coloured fur looks a little worse for wear. Holding the wolf tightly, he shoots an accusatory look back at the statue. &quot;... bloody mathemagic ...&quot;<br> <br>Zuri stands back up and pats his clothing down back into alignment after his slightly over-the-top jump. &quot;Alright, I&#39;ll do it. Knights owe their service to nobles. Many of them are knighted into noble family after all.&quot; He steps towards the puzzle and starts pushing the statue out of the &#39;Poor&#39; slot and into the &#39;Courtly Being&#39; slot. &quot;Get ready to dodge if I&#39;m wrong..&quot;<br> <br>Zuri pushes the statue into alignment and then after a moment the statue begins sinking downwards into the ground, &quot;As I told you, he studied Creator knights and their codes. Don&#39;t ask me why do they and don&#39;t they do things.&quot; the bullfinch adds as the slab of rock rises in front of the statue, declaring, &quot;His duty to his fair maiden, to protect the honor of his lady and love her truly.&quot;
		+
		+	With the fur statues in place the door of the mansion swings open inviting all inside, &quot;Wonderful!&quot; the bullfinch says as he moves inside. The group of beings would enter into the foyer of the mansion. The place is rather run-down with vines and small plants coming up from everywhere, pushing aside the furniture strewn about and leaving the books on the floor.
		+
		+	What seems to be the most important here are the three spiral staircases leading downstairs, &#39;Circle circle never ending; Circle always inward wending; Head for home but always fail; Trapped inside my twisted tail.&#39; declares a small wooden post in front of the three staircases. Three different crests are attached to the main pillar of each staircase. The one on the right a picture of a group of beings who seem to be standing behind a wooden fence of sorts, like a council or the other. The one in the middle clearly shows the Good Crown, while the one at the left shows a grand Creator Church abbey.<br> <br>Zuri steps inside and looks around the area, admiring the lushness of the mansion. He steps towards the staircases. &quot;Huh... you weren&#39;t kidding with the whole &#39;house full of traps&#39; thing.&quot; He reads the inscription to himself, then looks at the three crests. Then back at the inscription. Then back at the crests. &quot;... what?&quot;<br> <br>    &lt;Circle, circle...&gt; Cirra seems a bit dizzy. She blinks, looking at the beings in the council, seeing if any of them are pigs. But she&#39;s kinda lost with this puzzle.<br> <br>Bazalt Huolds the lynx close, walking into the mansion with him in tow. &quot;Creator damned traps..&quot; he mumbles. He glances around adn sighs. &quot;Yeaahh... how obscure?&quot; he sighs and frowns, refusing to let the lynx go anywhere. &quot;Hrrnnn i&#39;m begining to dislike this...&quot;<br> <br>Reginald , still looking a little shaken and undignified, follows along at the back of the group. However, the lynx takes a moment to linger behind and look down upon the statue that had singed him, before giving it a threatening, but quiet &#39;hiss&#39;, and kicking a small loose stone at it. Then, turning away, he hurries to catch up with the other beings. Joining them at their next puzzle, the lynx quickly familiarizes himself with the message, then the crests, before looking blankly forward, confuzzled.<br> <br>The team&#39;s employer is not in a better position himself either, &quot;Well looks like utter nonsense for sure.&quot; he says as he rubs his chin, &quot;A council, a crown, a church...hmmm.&quot; he says as he looks at the rhyme, &quot;Maybe there is a keyword hidden in this rhyme.&quot; he says with a shrug.<br> <br>Zuri scratches his head. &quot;Makes no sense to me. Especially the &#39;trapped inside my twisted tail&#39; bit.&quot; He fishes for another peach from the fruit that he stashed on his person from outside, nibbling on it thoughtfully. <br> <br>Bazalt just shrugs. &quot;I&#39;m lost myself...&quot; he just hugs Reginald and Frowns as he looks around. &quot;hrrnnnnn&quot; he shoots the finch another frown and sighs. &quot;Not a damn clue...&quot; <br> <br>    Cirra blinks a little. &lt;Want to say home is the answer, but I don&#39;t know which one that might be.&gt;<br> <br>Reginald begins his pondering again. &quot;...Something that keeps going round and round, getting closer and closer to the end or a resolution, but never reaching it ... council discussions, if you were to be cynical ... not sure about the good crown ... but, I suppose, it could be some kind of comment on the teachings of the creator church ... really, this is all trying to make sense of what appears to be nonsense ... though, if it were to be &#39;home&#39;, then wouldn&#39;t the home of a dedicant be somewhere linked to the creator church ...&quot; The lynx just cuddles the wolf, offering a little nuzzle as he thinks.<br> <br>The Andrussian shakes his head, &quot;No, not really. The church is not related to the sacred families.&quot; he says with a shrug as he looks, &quot;A crown, a council, and a church. Maybe it is something like a system of government?&quot; he asks with a shrug as he eyes Cirra and her suggestion for home then back at the group.<br> <br>Zuri nibbles on his peach. &quot;All of those sentences mean &#39;spiral&#39;. A circle that always wends into itself is a spiral. A true spiral goes in and in an in but never reaches the middle, like Reginald said. What the heck does &#39;spiral&#39; have to do with any of these three things, if that&#39;s even the right clue?&quot; He nibble son the peach a bit more. &quot;Mmm... &quot;<br> <br>Bazalt just shrugs. &quot;It&#39;s a trick question then... perhaps.. there&#39;s another crest.. in this room somwhere else?&quot; he says, glancing around. &quot;or.. maybe..Hrrnnn.&quot; the wolf just sighs and frowns. <br> <br>    &lt;I have an idea, but that would rely on the crown and the church being linked. The crown is not the head of the church.&gt; Cirra shakes her head.<br> <br>Reginald listens to the discussion, before once again speaking. &quot;... if it is a system of government, then, the council comes below the king ... but the church, now that&#39;s a quandary ... some would say that it sits below the council, as, if I recall correctly, there are church officials serving in the good king&#39;s council ... but others would say that the king sits below, or should sit below, the church, as the king is guided by the first text ... that would form a never ending loop of church, then council, then king, then church, and so on .... if the answer was an order, then that might be something, though I really don&#39;t fancy the idea of getting singed again ...&quot;<br> <br>Zuri takes a big bite out of his peach as he listens to the others. &quot;Mmm.. we&#39;re overthinking this, I believe.&quot; He turns towards the others. &quot;If it is a form of government then.. Reginald&#39;s first guess is probably the correct one. On the other two options the orders flow from one being. The Good King may have councilors, but he&#39;s the one that decides everything even if all his court disagrees with him.&quot; He turns towards the council &#39;staircase&#39;. &quot;Mmm...&quot;<br> <br>    Cirra nods. &lt;I like that reasoning, Zuri.&gt; She wonders if she should spend a moment to put a protective spell or two on the salamander.<br> <br>Bazalt Just shakes his head. &quot;I... &quot; he just sighs and glances to the cat. &quot;what do you think?&quot; he asks, holding him tight. &quot;I have no clue..&quot;<br> <br>Reginald , resting his head on the shadow wolf&#39;s shoulder, once again offers his thoughts out aloud. &quot;... if, on the other hand, the crests are linked to the countries of Promise, then the Good King would be Sweetwater, the church Shralesta and the council Cliffside ... the only one that would seem to make any sense with the riddle would be Cliffside - the back and forth of the endless council discussions ... well ...&quot; The lynx takes a deep breath, before pulling away from the wolf and heading down the council staircase, wondering what fate awaits him ...<br> <br>The bullfinch shrugs, &quot;Well, I guess that logic works, but you know we are also ruled by the People&#39;s Assembly.&quot; the Andrussian says as he looks at Reginald, &quot;So it might be Cliffside or Andrussya there.&quot;<br> <br>Reginald and Bazalt move down the stairs, they immediately notice that the other two set of stairs lead down exactly to the same room. One wonders if either one of those two stairs are trapped or if the group&#39;s first thought was correct and that was an utter nonsense riddle.
		+
		+	The room here is rather empty for a well-tended shrine in the middle of it surrounded by a number of bookcases, obviously dedicated to the elemental dragon. But around the shrine and the book is a metal cage, locked. Near them on a wall are three levels, each with a crest above it. One showing coins, another showing two knights battling, and the finally one showing a knight helping a being to stand up. &#39;Choose your goal&#39; is written above the three levers.<br> <br>Zuri races down to follow Reggie and Baz, peering into the room around them. &quot;Nicely done guys!&quot; He looks around to take in the room. His eyes fall on the three levers. &quot;What, no &#39;cookies&#39; lever?&quot; He wiggles his nose at it. &quot;Mmm... honor? What is a knight&#39;s goal anyway?&quot;<br> <br>    Cirra is a lot more cautious in following, though tempted to set off the traps in the other stairwells. When she arrives at the room, she tilts her head a bit. &lt;Elemental Dragon? Damn, I should have paid more attention when I went through the challenge.&gt;<br> <br>Bazalt Blinks and sighs &quot;well fun... good going though Regi.&quot; he says, kissing his cheek. &quot;Hrrrnnnn I&#39;m lost here too.&quot; he mumbles.<br> <br>Reginald stands in front of the three levers, an arm around the wolf. &quot;Well, the question is, is it the obvious one - to help others through kindness .... though, that line of thought got me singed earlier .... perhaps, the goal of a knight, and in turn a dragon dedicant, is to fight, protecting other beings that way ...&quot; The lynx, feeling fairly confident about this one, reaches out and pulls the lever with the battling knights above it, but readies himself to push Baz out of the way should things go south.<br> <br>Reginald&#39;s action proves true? As the door of the metal cage opens. The bullfinch grins, &quot;Finally it is open.&quot; he says with a shake of his head, &quot;Might I add, no wonder that none of you are knights.&quot; he says with a snicker of his own as he moves to the shrine, &quot;Well, I hope that you enjoyed yourselves. I just thought it would be fun to introduce my mixture of ancient creator traditions with dragons. I guess that I will call this a mild success.&quot; he says as he begins transforming into the form of a dragon as he finally enters the shrine cage and turns around, &quot;Mind you, pulling any of the three levels would have opened the cage. But enough of that, you will be rewarded for your troubles, and if any of you are interested, you get to ask me each a question about this dragon knight thing.&quot;<br> <br>Zuri quirks a brow at the dragon. &quot;So, it was all a game? I knew something was fishy when you kept giving us all those clues..&quot; She sighs. &quot;I&#39;m no knight, and I&#39;m happy to not be one either.&quot; He wiggles his snout at the other. &quot;I guess it begs the question, is the story from the first puzzle true, or just a story?&quot;<br> <br>    Cirra shakes her head. &lt;My job is to protect others. While I will respect my king, I do not hold the kind of loyalty to him required to be a knight.&gt; She shrugs. &lt;I am curious, though. Do other Elemental Dragons hold the same regard for these Creator Knights or are you the only one?&gt;<br> <br>Bazalt sighs. &quot;js what was this all about? You hurt my Mat-...love..!&quot; he says coughing at his slip-up. &quot;What was the point of this?&quot; he asks, sighing and holding reginald tight.<br> <br>Reginald lets out a sigh of relief when his actions bare a successful outcome. Though, when the dragon dedicant reveals the truth of the situation, the lynx just glares at him. If you were to listen very closely, you might just make out the slightest of growls emanating from within the feline, as he does his best to withhold his annoyance with their employer. However, a thought does cross his mind, and the lynx, though reluctantly, does pose a question. &quot;Like I&#39;ve said before, I&#39;ve never really paid much attention to the ancient stories. Though, there is one thing that I do remember, knights slew dragons. Why then, would a dragon seek to become a knight?&quot;<br> <br>The dragon looks at Zuri, &quot;What story? My story? Then it is true as I am that &#39;dead&#39; grandfather, except I didn&#39;t die yet.&quot; he says with a grin, &quot;Or are you referring to the statues? Then it is true! I have spent years of my life looking around for really ancient Creator history. In fact I barely know about it, because you know it was never important information for us beings so not a lot of it came with us to Promise.&quot; he says with a grin, &quot;But yes, for Creators, a knight would usually either dedicate himself to a lady, or to a sovereign, or to what passed as their church.&quot; he answers Zuri, &quot;Also widows, orphans, and other knights were among the most important people a knight should protect or respect.&quot; he then looks at Cirra and shakes his head, &quot;By the declaration lady. I do not actually believe in the idea of kings or queens, it is simply what the Creator knights believed, and to be fair what Sweetwater knights do as well.&quot;
		+
		+	The dragon then shook his head at Reginald, &quot;You see in the ancient stories dragons were large, evil creatures than breathed fire and liked to hoard treasures and wealth. The knights of old, noble as they are fought those representations of greed and power-lust to defend the poor peasants as was their duty, or so they believed. But we dragon dedicants are obviously none of that. We have a different job, and this is where my idea came to mind. Taking the good qualities of knights and merging them into an order for us dragons. Obviously you know that many sacred families have their own orders and philosophies, even among my kind as well. I simply formed my own. The idea being that a dragon knight would be a protector of the people and help fellow beings rather than being a greedy monster, or a warrior with no code of conduct or honor.&quot;<br> <br>Zuri scratches his head as he listens in. &quot;Fair enough on all counts I suppose.&quot; He turns to his companions, quirking a brow as he takes in their reactions.<br> <br>    Cirra nods. &lt;It is a fair motion. Just as I have merged philosphies of my own. My apologies for my uncertainty in my decisions, Sir Dragon.&gt;<br> <br>Bazalt just leans on regi and shrugs, nothing his question seemed to have been unanswered. HE sighs, shrugs and Hodls the cat tight. &quot;well... we&#39;re done.. right?..&quot;<br> <br>Reginald was a little taken aback that the dragon had an answer for him. A part of the lynx hoped that his question might stump the other being, and offer him a little satisfaction in compensation for what had happened earlier. Yet, in a lot of ways, what the dragon planned to do was quite noble indeed, and the feline couldn&#39;t help but respect him a little, though he showed no outward signs of such.
		+	Having no further questions, the lynx waits till the discussion is finished, before he looks about claiming his payment, and voices such to their employer. While waiting for a reply, the feline leans against Bazalt, resting his muzzle on the canine&#39;s shoulder. He was truly happy that no further harm had come to his lover.<br> <br>With their &#39;job&#39; done, the dragon motions for the group to get back up and exit the mansion before they received their due payment in the camp. With that, the dragon knight gave them all a way with a smile as the group left having a little more knowledge about both dragons and creator knights.[[Category:RPLogs]]

---

Latest revision as of 20:26, 20 September 2015

Participants

• Bazalt
• Cirra
• Reginald
• Rokarion
• Zuri

Date

20/9/478

Log

The enterprising adventurers are led by the otter being outside Firmament and into the ever-present Eastbank forest. It was a warm, sunny day in Sweetwater which at the very least meant that it was pleasantly warm in shade of the trees as the group trudged along the narrow roads and passages in the green maze. The group would spend hours of marching until they finally got on a what must have been a well-trodden dirt-path at some point but whoever used this road is long gone if nature's efforts to reclaim it is any indication.

Twenty minutes more spent on the once-road before the group finally neared a large clearing, the sight of an old mansion clear in their view, waiting for them in a small camp at the edge of the mansion's clearing are four other beings and a fifth waving at them, this one is a bullfinch in fancy clothing, obviously the employer. "Ah, welcome, welcome, brave adventurers." the bird says in a distinctly exotic accent, those who heard it before knowing it as clearly Andrussian, while those who never knew about it could mistake it for some odd Cliffside accent, "I am really glad for your help, you see this mansion seems to be trapped." he says with a shake of his head before he looks at the group again, giving them time to catch their breath and adjust, "You can have some refreshments before we discuss business if you wish." he says as he points at a small table with fruits and water.

Zuri steps up to look at the mansio in a challenging manner. The small salamander's packed for this job, having brought all of his tools for dealing with locks and other mechanisms, making him look more like an apprentice clockmaker than an adventurer. "Traps huh? That sounds fun!" He turns to the otter and smiles. "And refreshments? This is already the best adventure ever!" He plods over to the table, selecting several of the fruits and nibbling on a peach as he waits.

Bazalt Mumbles and Groans As he walks, Still covered in banadges, and looking sore. "I'm REgretting this already." he mumbles, rubbing his arm. He nods to the bullfinch and Head for the refreshments. "Nrrhhh.....I'm going to end up hurting more.." He sighs, Grabbing a Drink and A Fruit to munch on.

Reginald makes his way along the once-road, no stranger to the wilderness, yet still rather unsettled by the path's return to nature. Upon meeting the Bullfinch, he offers a nod in greeting. Quickly retrieving a cup of water, the lynx finds a nice place to lean against as he waits for their briefing, offering a further nod to Zuri and a nuzzle to Bazalt.

The bullfinch nods his head, "You see, my grandfather was an adventurer and a scholar of sorts." the bullfinch begins as he stands up for story time, "He traveled fair and wide, he was also a dragon dedicant." he says with a shrug, "So for some reason he really got into this ancient Creator stuff about knights and dragons and what not, but that is besides the point. He built this mansion and decided to live in it for the rest of his life, which if what he said in his letters was true was the last five years of his life." he says as he points at the mansion.

The building must have been really impressive, for a medium sized mansion in the middle of a forest. The mansion seems to be built mostly of woof but with a stone wall surrounding it, and a, currently opened, creaky metal gate leading to a stone staircase leading upwards towards a small courtyard and finally the entrance. The mansion in general is in dangerous disrepair with moss growing around each possible crevice and vines infiltrating the structure, one would give nature another sixty years to completely claim this structure. "You see he died about fifteen years ago. I had discovered his letters which he gave to my father to 'claim his inheritance' a couple of months ago. And now here I am trying to see what my grandfather left for my father. But there is one problem, the door is locked and it seems he made the place based on puzzles!" he says as he begins climbing the stairs, "You can ask your questions while you begin to work."

Zuri listens to the story as he chews down on his peach, finishing it quickly so he can get to work on the pear he's holding on his other hand. He nods in between munchies to say. "Inheritance, huh? And he was a dragon dedicant? I can see where this is going..." He looks back at Reginald and Bazalt. "Might be just like in the shrine. Or perhaps even more devious." He walks up to the door and starts inspecting the lock, before reaching for the appropriate tools to try and crack it open.

Bazalt nods and Sighs. "Greaat.. there better not be water Traps here too.." He mumbles as he walks up the Steps-smiling to Reginald. "and I'm still damn sore too.." he sighs. "walking didnt help..wh Build a house all the way out here? What was he hiding?" He asks, rubbing the back of his head as Zuri gets to Work.

Reginald walks alongside the group, nodding in acknowledgement of Zuri's and Bazalt's thoughts - the lynx too hoped there'd be much less water here. Although a thought did spring to the feline's mind. "If the owner was a dragon dedicant, are we certain this place is meant to be accessed from the ground, and not the air ... just a thought?" Upon seeing the pain the shadow was currently in, the lynx moves to his side and places an arm around the wolf, offering him something to lean against.

The bullfinch shakes his head, "Of course we are sure. There is a perfectly normal gate, and dragons anyway are not designed for long term flight." the being says as Zuri rushes past and begins inspecting the locked door.

The group are standing in the small courtyard in front of the door, with Zuri himself looking at the door. Right in front of this door is a small square with four stone statues obviously not put in place. The statues are in a rather interesting fashion designed to look like dragons in full knight gear and regalia. A small slab of stone in the middle of the square declares, "The knight struggles against the dragon. The knight is no more on Promise. The dragon takes the mantle of the knight. Where does the dragon knight's duty lie?" On each side of the square are three spots which looks like they are designed for a statue to be put there.

"See? This is what I meant about this chivalry nonsense. It is a puzzle of sorts, but I don't really know a lot about those stories and those statues are heavy as well!" he says as he lets the group piece the puzzle together.

Zuri tests the lock with a few of his tools, most curiously one that looks like a tiny hook at the end of a very thin and long handle. He frowns slightly as he clicks the tool inside the lock. "I have good news and bad news. The good news is this lock is easy to crack. The bad news is there's a lot of stuff here that doesn't normally go in a lock. There's a latch on the left hand side that seems to connect to a different mechanism, and there's a small pressure disk at the far end of the lock's cylinder."

He pulls the tool back out of the lock. "My guess is, the lock is trapped in a couple different ways. Even if you crack it you won't be able to do it without triggering one or more of the mechanisms." He looks towards the puzzle. "The latch seems to indicate the lock could be opened by solving that puzzle there, maybe.. would make sense." He looks back up at the threshold of the door. "This little courtyard could be laden with traps if we don't do this right.

Bazalt Sighs and Rolls his eyes. "Of course.."he trails off and sighs again. "Hrrmm.. soo.. Four Statues? six spaces?" He Frowns and sighs. "Hrrmmm.." The Wolf Just sighs and mumbles. "and Traps? Just ast long as there are no bug or Water.. i'll be happy..."

The lynx is by no means fluent with creator stories of dragons and knights, though, drawing on the various pieces of experience from his travels, something about the puzzle seemed to make a little sense. "It seems to be asking us where this dragon knight's duties lie, and .. maybe .. it wants us to choose four of the six choices ..." The lynx ponders the problem, not too well versed in the duties of knights, but trying to contribute none the less ...

The mute Nurse Shark steps in, careful to follow the footsteps of the rest of the group to not set anything off. She headtilts as she sees the statues, reading the inscription <Sorry for my lateness.> She signs to Bazalt. <Had some bodily functions to work out.>

The employer nods his head as Cirra arrives, "Yes that is what I guessed as well, but I don't really know what to do so go ahead and solve it, that is what I hired you for." the Andrussian says as he looks peers at the door when Zuri finishes talking, "Are you sure they are deadly traps? Maybe we can afford setting one or two of them..." he says before shaking his head quickly, "But I am not responsible for any injury that might cause, that would be your fault."

Zuri steps back to look at the inscriptions, then at the quote. "Hmm.. where does a knight's duty lie." He looks between each of the six illustrations, going clockwise. "Female being in a fancy dress, that probably represents the Nobles. No idea what that represents. Being with a crown, clearly the Royals. Being asking for alms, the Poor. Group of beings talking... hm... I guess that might just represent 'the people'. The next one is clearly the Knightly Order as a whole, right? And finally the family of the slain knight."

He huffs. "So what are the four things a Knight owes duty to? Specifically, this knight in this situation. The family of the slain knight is one of them. The others.. I can see arguments for all of them."

Bazalt Nods "hrrmm.. Yeah. Family... Maybe? Royals.. Probally nobles... perhaps?..." He nods to the shark. "It's ok-heh.." He sighs. "there is the posiblilty the statues are trapped to?" HE Frowns. "Hrrmmm... Any clues from the letters?" he asks, looking to the finch.

Reginald continues to be deep in thought, as he listens astutely to the conversations going on around him. Cuddling Baz a little tighter, the lynx offers up his thoughts. "... knights are supposed to be noble warriors, always loyal to the king or queen of the time ... protecting the poor ...... I haven't really paid too much attention to the stories, but, aren't they supposed to rescue damsels, as well .... and don't they very rarely die, or engage in gossip or intrigue ..... but are loyal to there order ..." The feline returns to his silence ...

Cirra nods a bit. <I do not recall, though a knight's duties typically were to the crown first, to his order, and to nobles. If I were optimistic, I'd actually say his fourth duty was to the poor, but I would need a bit more information, but am more versed in Shralestan history. Maybe something in history? Give me a moment, I need to check something.> She moves to a corner to fiddle with her collar.

Reginald tilts his head from one side to the other, before speaking up once again. "... Or was that barbarians? In which case, aren't knights supposed to be blood-lust stricken warriors, who charge head first into combat, with no thought given for their own safety ... in which case the only place that makes any sense would be the 'female being with her child weeping over a coffin' ... I not too sure, really ... though, for some reason, I get the feeling that kings are important here ...... yeah, I'm pretty sure kings and knights are linked quite closely ... If no one objects, we could try putting one of those statues in the spot that has 'the picture of a being with a crown sitting on a throne' ?"

Cirra nods to Reignald, signing to Bazalt her intentions. <I know with confidence that two of them are to the crown, and to his fellow knights and his order.> She moves to help Reginald move one of the statues into the slot matching the being with the crown.

Zuri nods. "Those two make sense. I still dare say he has a duty to the family of the being whose life he took, which I think is represented by the child weeping over a coffin. In any case.." He shifts one statue over that one, hoping that he got this one right."

Bazalt nods slowly. "HRrnnn they. seem.. right...Or is it a Trick question and he has Duties to all?" He muses as he looks around the courtyard. "Hrrnnnnn Dont suppose it's that easy though..." he just shrugs, watching for now.

Zuri pushes the statue, quickly getting assisted by some of the employer's men to the intended spot. For a moment there is nothing before suddenly the statue begins sinking down again. As it sinks down, a slab of stone right in front of the statue that was put in place rises up, 'His duty to the weeping widows and oppressed orphans.' Three more to go.

The other statue that was pushed towards the picture of the king sinks as well as the slab in front of it rises, "His duty to his king, ever faithful in word and deed." Two more to go.

Zuri huffs after pushing that statue into place, smiling thankfully at the being that helped him with the task. "So.. hm.. those were the obvious ones. Now it gets tricky. I still say he has a duty to the Knightly order itself. But you could argue any of the others. The poor, all beings in general, and the nobles."

Cirra nods a bit. <Knightly order and his fellow knights should also be correct.> She starts sliding that statue into place. <However, I am at a loss to what the last is. Since all three can be correct.>

Bazalt Nods and blinks "Yeah easy done-what next? I's say... all beings, no?" he Frownsing and sighs. "I dare not think what happens if we get one wrong..."he trails off, glancing at the door.

Reginald lets out a slight smile at their success so far. "Now, just one more ... if I had to guess, I'd say either the nobles, or the poor ... though, perhaps, it's the poor, as the nobles wishes may conflict with the monarch." If no-one were to object, the feline would place the last statue, though unsure, into the slot with 'the picture of a being asking for alms'.

Reginald slides the statue into the post that he chose. The statue remains in that place and nothing happens before suddenly the statue's mouth opens, the little twinkle of light inside it the only sign of the divine maths glyph before it activates throwing a small fireball in the person standing in front of the statue. Reginald fails to dodge in time but his armor keeps the worst of the flames outside, except for the oddly singed hair on his hair and face. Any mathemagician around would notice that the fireball spell was not really supposed to injure but simple 'chastise' but whether that was the spell losing potency due to neglect or the original intent is up for anyone to guess. "Hmmm, it is worth noting that my father was also a dragon, and that it was him who was supposed to inherit my grandfather's legacy." he says with a shrug, "SO be more careful will you." he says a bit unconcerned about the events.

Zuri instinctively rolls out of the way as he sees the flash of mathemagic, even though it is not required. He bounces off the floor and sits up against the wall, blinking. "Uuh.." He scratches his head. "That would have been good to know. He won't care about the poor then, and probably not about the people either..."

Cirra winces, shaking her head. <Well, still have two guesses, right? Nobility, and... the people... Another round of optimisim versus pessimism. I'm... not equipped to take a fire breath, even one as weak as that.>

Bazalt Blinks and RUSHES over to teh Lynx. "GAh-Are you ok!?" He asks, looking him over carefully. He Glances to the statue and Pulls the cat away from it, heart pounding in his chest. "damnit.... Why wouldnt they care for the poor?" he also shoots the Finch a glare but says nothing. "hrrnnn." he mumbles, hugging the cat

The slightly smoking lynx just stands there for a few moments in shock, before stirring and quickly checking himself over. Reginald is relieved to find himself still in one piece, though the feline's chestnut coloured fur looks a little worse for wear. Holding the wolf tightly, he shoots an accusatory look back at the statue. "... bloody mathemagic ..."

Zuri stands back up and pats his clothing down back into alignment after his slightly over-the-top jump. "Alright, I'll do it. Knights owe their service to nobles. Many of them are knighted into noble family after all." He steps towards the puzzle and starts pushing the statue out of the 'Poor' slot and into the 'Courtly Being' slot. "Get ready to dodge if I'm wrong.."

Zuri pushes the statue into alignment and then after a moment the statue begins sinking downwards into the ground, "As I told you, he studied Creator knights and their codes. Don't ask me why do they and don't they do things." the bullfinch adds as the slab of rock rises in front of the statue, declaring, "His duty to his fair maiden, to protect the honor of his lady and love her truly."

With the fur statues in place the door of the mansion swings open inviting all inside, "Wonderful!" the bullfinch says as he moves inside. The group of beings would enter into the foyer of the mansion. The place is rather run-down with vines and small plants coming up from everywhere, pushing aside the furniture strewn about and leaving the books on the floor.

What seems to be the most important here are the three spiral staircases leading downstairs, 'Circle circle never ending; Circle always inward wending; Head for home but always fail; Trapped inside my twisted tail.' declares a small wooden post in front of the three staircases. Three different crests are attached to the main pillar of each staircase. The one on the right a picture of a group of beings who seem to be standing behind a wooden fence of sorts, like a council or the other. The one in the middle clearly shows the Good Crown, while the one at the left shows a grand Creator Church abbey.

Zuri steps inside and looks around the area, admiring the lushness of the mansion. He steps towards the staircases. "Huh... you weren't kidding with the whole 'house full of traps' thing." He reads the inscription to himself, then looks at the three crests. Then back at the inscription. Then back at the crests. "... what?"

<Circle, circle...> Cirra seems a bit dizzy. She blinks, looking at the beings in the council, seeing if any of them are pigs. But she's kinda lost with this puzzle.

Bazalt Huolds the lynx close, walking into the mansion with him in tow. "Creator damned traps.." he mumbles. He glances around adn sighs. "Yeaahh... how obscure?" he sighs and frowns, refusing to let the lynx go anywhere. "Hrrnnn i'm begining to dislike this..."

Reginald , still looking a little shaken and undignified, follows along at the back of the group. However, the lynx takes a moment to linger behind and look down upon the statue that had singed him, before giving it a threatening, but quiet 'hiss', and kicking a small loose stone at it. Then, turning away, he hurries to catch up with the other beings. Joining them at their next puzzle, the lynx quickly familiarizes himself with the message, then the crests, before looking blankly forward, confuzzled.

The team's employer is not in a better position himself either, "Well looks like utter nonsense for sure." he says as he rubs his chin, "A council, a crown, a church...hmmm." he says as he looks at the rhyme, "Maybe there is a keyword hidden in this rhyme." he says with a shrug.

Zuri scratches his head. "Makes no sense to me. Especially the 'trapped inside my twisted tail' bit." He fishes for another peach from the fruit that he stashed on his person from outside, nibbling on it thoughtfully.

Bazalt just shrugs. "I'm lost myself..." he just hugs Reginald and Frowns as he looks around. "hrrnnnnn" he shoots the finch another frown and sighs. "Not a damn clue..."

Cirra blinks a little. <Want to say home is the answer, but I don't know which one that might be.>

Reginald begins his pondering again. "...Something that keeps going round and round, getting closer and closer to the end or a resolution, but never reaching it ... council discussions, if you were to be cynical ... not sure about the good crown ... but, I suppose, it could be some kind of comment on the teachings of the creator church ... really, this is all trying to make sense of what appears to be nonsense ... though, if it were to be 'home', then wouldn't the home of a dedicant be somewhere linked to the creator church ..." The lynx just cuddles the wolf, offering a little nuzzle as he thinks.

The Andrussian shakes his head, "No, not really. The church is not related to the sacred families." he says with a shrug as he looks, "A crown, a council, and a church. Maybe it is something like a system of government?" he asks with a shrug as he eyes Cirra and her suggestion for home then back at the group.

Zuri nibbles on his peach. "All of those sentences mean 'spiral'. A circle that always wends into itself is a spiral. A true spiral goes in and in an in but never reaches the middle, like Reginald said. What the heck does 'spiral' have to do with any of these three things, if that's even the right clue?" He nibble son the peach a bit more. "Mmm... "

Bazalt just shrugs. "It's a trick question then... perhaps.. there's another crest.. in this room somwhere else?" he says, glancing around. "or.. maybe..Hrrnnn." the wolf just sighs and frowns.

<I have an idea, but that would rely on the crown and the church being linked. The crown is not the head of the church.> Cirra shakes her head.

Reginald listens to the discussion, before once again speaking. "... if it is a system of government, then, the council comes below the king ... but the church, now that's a quandary ... some would say that it sits below the council, as, if I recall correctly, there are church officials serving in the good king's council ... but others would say that the king sits below, or should sit below, the church, as the king is guided by the first text ... that would form a never ending loop of church, then council, then king, then church, and so on .... if the answer was an order, then that might be something, though I really don't fancy the idea of getting singed again ..."

Zuri takes a big bite out of his peach as he listens to the others. "Mmm.. we're overthinking this, I believe." He turns towards the others. "If it is a form of government then.. Reginald's first guess is probably the correct one. On the other two options the orders flow from one being. The Good King may have councilors, but he's the one that decides everything even if all his court disagrees with him." He turns towards the council 'staircase'. "Mmm..."

Cirra nods. <I like that reasoning, Zuri.> She wonders if she should spend a moment to put a protective spell or two on the salamander.

Bazalt Just shakes his head. "I... " he just sighs and glances to the cat. "what do you think?" he asks, holding him tight. "I have no clue.."

Reginald , resting his head on the shadow wolf's shoulder, once again offers his thoughts out aloud. "... if, on the other hand, the crests are linked to the countries of Promise, then the Good King would be Sweetwater, the church Shralesta and the council Cliffside ... the only one that would seem to make any sense with the riddle would be Cliffside - the back and forth of the endless council discussions ... well ..." The lynx takes a deep breath, before pulling away from the wolf and heading down the council staircase, wondering what fate awaits him ...

The bullfinch shrugs, "Well, I guess that logic works, but you know we are also ruled by the People's Assembly." the Andrussian says as he looks at Reginald, "So it might be Cliffside or Andrussya there."

Reginald and Bazalt move down the stairs, they immediately notice that the other two set of stairs lead down exactly to the same room. One wonders if either one of those two stairs are trapped or if the group's first thought was correct and that was an utter nonsense riddle.

The room here is rather empty for a well-tended shrine in the middle of it surrounded by a number of bookcases, obviously dedicated to the elemental dragon. But around the shrine and the book is a metal cage, locked. Near them on a wall are three levels, each with a crest above it. One showing coins, another showing two knights battling, and the finally one showing a knight helping a being to stand up. 'Choose your goal' is written above the three levers.

Zuri races down to follow Reggie and Baz, peering into the room around them. "Nicely done guys!" He looks around to take in the room. His eyes fall on the three levers. "What, no 'cookies' lever?" He wiggles his nose at it. "Mmm... honor? What is a knight's goal anyway?"

Cirra is a lot more cautious in following, though tempted to set off the traps in the other stairwells. When she arrives at the room, she tilts her head a bit. <Elemental Dragon? Damn, I should have paid more attention when I went through the challenge.>

Bazalt Blinks and sighs "well fun... good going though Regi." he says, kissing his cheek. "Hrrrnnnn I'm lost here too." he mumbles.

Reginald stands in front of the three levers, an arm around the wolf. "Well, the question is, is it the obvious one - to help others through kindness .... though, that line of thought got me singed earlier .... perhaps, the goal of a knight, and in turn a dragon dedicant, is to fight, protecting other beings that way ..." The lynx, feeling fairly confident about this one, reaches out and pulls the lever with the battling knights above it, but readies himself to push Baz out of the way should things go south.

Reginald's action proves true? As the door of the metal cage opens. The bullfinch grins, "Finally it is open." he says with a shake of his head, "Might I add, no wonder that none of you are knights." he says with a snicker of his own as he moves to the shrine, "Well, I hope that you enjoyed yourselves. I just thought it would be fun to introduce my mixture of ancient creator traditions with dragons. I guess that I will call this a mild success." he says as he begins transforming into the form of a dragon as he finally enters the shrine cage and turns around, "Mind you, pulling any of the three levels would have opened the cage. But enough of that, you will be rewarded for your troubles, and if any of you are interested, you get to ask me each a question about this dragon knight thing."

Zuri quirks a brow at the dragon. "So, it was all a game? I knew something was fishy when you kept giving us all those clues.." She sighs. "I'm no knight, and I'm happy to not be one either." He wiggles his snout at the other. "I guess it begs the question, is the story from the first puzzle true, or just a story?"

Cirra shakes her head. <My job is to protect others. While I will respect my king, I do not hold the kind of loyalty to him required to be a knight.> She shrugs. <I am curious, though. Do other Elemental Dragons hold the same regard for these Creator Knights or are you the only one?>

Bazalt sighs. "js what was this all about? You hurt my Mat-...love..!" he says coughing at his slip-up. "What was the point of this?" he asks, sighing and holding reginald tight.

Reginald lets out a sigh of relief when his actions bare a successful outcome. Though, when the dragon dedicant reveals the truth of the situation, the lynx just glares at him. If you were to listen very closely, you might just make out the slightest of growls emanating from within the feline, as he does his best to withhold his annoyance with their employer. However, a thought does cross his mind, and the lynx, though reluctantly, does pose a question. "Like I've said before, I've never really paid much attention to the ancient stories. Though, there is one thing that I do remember, knights slew dragons. Why then, would a dragon seek to become a knight?"

The dragon looks at Zuri, "What story? My story? Then it is true as I am that 'dead' grandfather, except I didn't die yet." he says with a grin, "Or are you referring to the statues? Then it is true! I have spent years of my life looking around for really ancient Creator history. In fact I barely know about it, because you know it was never important information for us beings so not a lot of it came with us to Promise." he says with a grin, "But yes, for Creators, a knight would usually either dedicate himself to a lady, or to a sovereign, or to what passed as their church." he answers Zuri, "Also widows, orphans, and other knights were among the most important people a knight should protect or respect." he then looks at Cirra and shakes his head, "By the declaration lady. I do not actually believe in the idea of kings or queens, it is simply what the Creator knights believed, and to be fair what Sweetwater knights do as well."

The dragon then shook his head at Reginald, "You see in the ancient stories dragons were large, evil creatures than breathed fire and liked to hoard treasures and wealth. The knights of old, noble as they are fought those representations of greed and power-lust to defend the poor peasants as was their duty, or so they believed. But we dragon dedicants are obviously none of that. We have a different job, and this is where my idea came to mind. Taking the good qualities of knights and merging them into an order for us dragons. Obviously you know that many sacred families have their own orders and philosophies, even among my kind as well. I simply formed my own. The idea being that a dragon knight would be a protector of the people and help fellow beings rather than being a greedy monster, or a warrior with no code of conduct or honor."

Zuri scratches his head as he listens in. "Fair enough on all counts I suppose." He turns to his companions, quirking a brow as he takes in their reactions.

Cirra nods. <It is a fair motion. Just as I have merged philosphies of my own. My apologies for my uncertainty in my decisions, Sir Dragon.>

Bazalt just leans on regi and shrugs, nothing his question seemed to have been unanswered. HE sighs, shrugs and Hodls the cat tight. "well... we're done.. right?.."

Reginald was a little taken aback that the dragon had an answer for him. A part of the lynx hoped that his question might stump the other being, and offer him a little satisfaction in compensation for what had happened earlier. Yet, in a lot of ways, what the dragon planned to do was quite noble indeed, and the feline couldn't help but respect him a little, though he showed no outward signs of such. Having no further questions, the lynx waits till the discussion is finished, before he looks about claiming his payment, and voices such to their employer. While waiting for a reply, the feline leans against Bazalt, resting his muzzle on the canine's shoulder. He was truly happy that no further harm had come to his lover.

With their 'job' done, the dragon motions for the group to get back up and exit the mansion before they received their due payment in the camp. With that, the dragon knight gave them all a way with a smile as the group left having a little more knowledge about both dragons and creator knights.