A mocking voice from Zilo can be heard as the lone bard leans on the wheel of the ship.
"Zilo, you stay here, someone needs to watch the ship."
"But Maldrek I'm the healer, you might need me." Says Zilo in his normal voice before going right back to his mocking voice.
"The entire reason we got this ship was because the last group forgot it, I don't plan to repeat their mistake, besides, why would I want my best friend to come to my homeland? It is not a place for the faint of heart."
Zilo utters the last line motioning out to a portal to hell that blocked the ship's path into the river that entered the mainland. Zilo huddles down and wraps around his legs.
"Instead he brings a drunk, a boyscout, and a b-" Zilo looks over his shoulder then continues with, "bad attituded woman... even if she isn't here wouldn't mean she wont find out."
Zilo stands back up and looks at the two horses on the ship's deck. he wanders over to them and says, "I just now realized that we never named you two guys."
The horse on the left whinnies in Zilo's direction.
"Sorry, guy and gal...hm, what to name you both. How about Presto and Vivace, those sound good?"
Both horses seem to nod their large heads. Zilo smiles as he scratches them both behind their ears. Zilo leans back on the rail as both horses sit down to face him.
"Its weird, when I'm on the road I never get the chance to just talk with the others that much, time between cities leave long spans of silence, just traveling, and it seems to go by so quick, almost instantly. It's only when I explore a new town, or when we fight side by side that I ever feel like I'm connected to the others."
The two horses just stare on at him intently.
"You're right. I never told them why I became an Umbral Bard, most individuals are hand picked to become one so as to entertain or spy for the Umbral Dragons, but its only ever that the sons and daughters of the noble family get picked."
"They groomed me young before the Academy. Apparently I was lucky enough to get noticed off sheer talent by the Hand of a Dragon while I was playing in the street when I was barely in the double digits. They liked the songs taught by my mother from the age of 5 in the ways of music... or at least what the Fetchlings called music."
"My people are sort of cowardly and tend to act more subtly, so once I was picked up on by the Hand of the Dragon, my first test was to prove I could do more than just play songs. I needed to learn to defend myself, and then my father began to teach me, so I could prove my battle prowess."
"My dad was a hunter, he protected the little town I called home, and got us food from the wilds. Most of the time he hunted Zoogs and Augurs, but on his best day he could take down even the viscous Gloomwings. He taught me to use a bow, and turns out I had a knack for it."
"In fact he was the one who gave me my title, 'Sharp with a both sorts of bow eh Zilo, Its like you're a Master of Strings' its what he said after I felled my first Augur. he also taught me to use a sword, but we both always preferred the bow."
"My parents weren't like most Fetchlings, they knew our customs sure, but my people tended to be gloomy, secretive, and kinda sniveling. But mom and dad faced each day with a smile, but what they didn't know as that I would see them when they didn't smile."
"I knew since I was 13 that they only smiled around me, but it wasn't until I was being shipped off to the main academy 5 years later that I asked them why. and they gave me the motto I try to live by every day 'We smile so that you can smile.'"
Zilo nods his head to the horses.
"I'll never forget that. I may not have gotten that advice while they died in my arms or some melodrama like that, but it still struck a chord with me, and so I made them a promise. Once I know the music my mother wanted me to know and once I am the master my father claimed me to be, I'll return to the My home and I'll be the one making them smile."
"For 4 years I studied as an Umbral Bard, how I studied is secret, but I also learned every tune, note, and melody my people had to offer, and tried to become well rounded enough to become a master... but I was limited. My whole life I had only known the Plane of Shadows.
"Even though I was a court bard for a well respected Dragon for about 4 years, I had no muse. And a bard without a muse is not worthy to be called a bard, and so I decided to try something risky. I was going to try and trick a dragon."
"It wasn't easy, In fact, most say that it is impossible, but I made a plan. I learned the languages of the elements, Aquan, Ingan, Auran, and Terran. Then I left subtle clues throughout my lord's manner that the other elemental planes made planes to usurp him in the shadow plane."
"Normally dragons don't fear much, but if threatened from all corners for long enough, they do begin to worry. My lord called on me, as his court bard to help him understand this threat. He did just as I had hoped."
"My lord figured that the elemental's couldn't survive on their own planes to plan and send in their threats, so he determined that the threats came from the one plane where all creatures can survive, this plane."
"Like the others of my plane, my lord wanted his foes felled via skulduggery rather than brute force, and so he sent me on ahead as his operative. He hired a wizard of the Shadow plane to cast Plane Shift on me and boom, I was in the material plane, and with the things I learn from here, I know I will fulfill my promise to my parents."
Suddenly the portal to the hellscape closed up and the Paladin strut onto the ship with the rest of the group behind him.
"Gods, Cruxis, that was incredible." Said Alaroc as he strode about on Twenty-four. Maldrek runs up to Zilo and begins shaking his shoulders and said, "Zilo you are not going to believe what happened!"
May arrives on board and picks up where Maldrek left off, "Cruxis just told off a Demon Lord! To his face!!!"
"Sounds right to me, we just beat a Lich King, so a Demon Lord is around the same ball park." says Zilo, shrugging.
Alaroc Leaps off his horse and shouts at Zilo, "BUT YOU DON'T GET IT ZILO!!!! IT WAS RIGHT IN HIS FACE!!!!"
Both May and Maldrek shout, "YEAH!"
"It was no big deal." Said Cruxis as he folds his arms back to his head and rests his foot cross-legged while he stands
"SO COOL!!!" Shouted all three, as Zilo watched them all do so with a questioning look.
"Guess I missed something really special, huh. By the way I named the horses." Said Zilo as he points back with his thumb at Presto and Vivace. Maldrek takes his hand and points the thumb at Cruxis.
"Who cares about some stupid horses, You should be talking about Cruxis telling off the Demon Lord."
"TO HIS FACE!" Added in Alaroc.
"I got that part, but I kinda just had a moment with the two horses and this is kinda-."
"IT WAS SO COOL!" shouted May.
"I BELIEVE YOU!" Exclaimed Zilo. "It was clearly a cool moment, but it was something I get the feeling I had to be there for, so for someone like me, who missed that little adventure, it honestly doesn't hit as hard."
Zilo motions over to Cruxis.
"I don't doubt that Cruxis told this demon off." Zilo raises his hand to stop Alaroc from interrupting before continuing with, "To his face, and that it was cool. I don't want to take this away from him, but truthfully I've been waiting here for you all for a half a day and just wish to move on."
All three of them lower their heads and get back to their positions on the ship. For the entirety of the rest of their time together however, the three of them refused to let that one moment that Zilo missed go. (Nor did the GM)
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