12. Foundry Tavern:

[Cin-Ezra Oovalli]

"Now, do you want to know how to get to the Town Hall of not?"

"Of course wise one.  I graciously accept whatever schooling you have to offer."

Kaska squints slightly at the woman, then turns and walks after the others, shrugging internally. The woman seems to be constitutionally unable to identify herself or answer a simple question.

The rudeness of this one seems to know no limits, Cin thinks while the woman walks away.  First she offers directions.  Then after I accept, she turns and walks away.  Cin looks up at the sky and shakes her head at the ridiculousness of what just occurred.  But she recognized her kind.  She was of the same barbarian stock as ones who enslaved her and slaughtered her parents.  It's no wonder that manners escaped the woman.

Cin listens and when the woman describes her as moving like a vulture she can't help but smile slightly.  Her movement had never been described as vulture-like before.  An interesting description from someone so jumpy and confrontational.  One might describe her as a cornered rat.  But while Cin was a slave, she had learned patience in the face of ignorance and an uncanny intuition to which battles needed to be fought and which could wait for another day.  So Cin calmly accepts the woman's scolding and once she's finished, Cin bows deeply at the waist while simultaneously stretching her arms out wide in surrender.  "Of course wise one.  I graciously accept whatever schooling you have to offer."  There was no hint of sarcasm or disrespect hidden in her words.

Taijun remembers a lesson from his master as he watches events unfold. "The tree stands tall until the wind blows it down, the reed beside it bends with the wind and remains." He had a gift for remembering the words of his master.

"You have a strange accent I have not heard before. Will you allow me to walk with you to the town hall, since we all have interests there?"

If Taijun sees her pistol/pistols he will ask Cin-Ezra about them and explain his backstory if asked.

"Of course," Cin replies. "It is good to have polite company.  My name is Cin..."  While they talk, he notices that a pistol hangs lazily from her left hip.  She didn't seem to be making any real attempt to conceal the weapon.  Likely this was a kind of warning to the regular riff-raff to approach at your own risk.  When he asks her about the pistol she replies, "Was taught how to use this while being a girl.  Weapon fell into my... ahh... possession[?] after I escaped capture from slavers."  Then quickly changing the subject she asks, "What about you?  Why you here in town?"

[OoC: In Cin's background I said that Cin's common isn't that great.  So I'm going to use the [?] as a way of saying in text that she is having trouble with a word or asking if she is using a word correctly.

[Taijun]

"That is your weapon." Taijun says of the pistol.  "These are mine." He holds up two clinched fists.  "They are the simplest form of weapons, but that is how I was trained.  The bow is for... things my fists cannot reach."  He says openly and honestly.  "Me?  I was born from one of the tribes here, but I know not which.  My tribe was slaughtered.  Lucky for me, my wise master found me as a little boy and raised me.  He taught me the Martials Arts but I was not a very good student." He sighs.  "Apologies, I was talking of myself.  I was fortunate to be raised by my wise master, you were not so fortunate.  My master would say that failure is more important than success.... I think he meant that not all good comes from good, and that not all bad can come from bad."  Taijun will continue on like this as they walk, asking questions of Cin-Ezra and offering answers, however cryptic of his own past.  He will explain that he was, no is, a Kellid of these lands but not raised of the land.  He has a personal interest of what happens here.  It is hard to explain.  Nonetheless he tries to explain that he is both a native and an outsider, belonging yet not belonging to Numeria. (Taijun is not aware that his martial arts may have stemmed from where Cin-Ezra's family is from.  He's only human after all!)

[Cin-Ezra Oovalli]

"I'm aware of martial arts and it's a beautiful fighting style," Cin replies while they walk to the town hall.  "Your master would not have taught it to you if he did not think you had potential.  

I was born far to the East, across the Embaral Ocean that borders the eastern shore of Casmaron, in a land called Tian Xia.  If this name is not familiar then maybe you know it's other common name, the Dragon Empires."

[OoC: I don't know if Martial Arts is as prevalent in Tian Xia as it is in our Real World Middle east.  Is there a culture in pathfinder that is most known for its Martial Arts?]

[Taijun]

"Yes, I have heard of Tian Xia.  I have never met anyone from there, it is an honor to meet you.  My master travels the world, that was where he learned how to turn his body into a weapon.  He began teaching me the bow before I left the monastery at my insistence.  It is an ancient weapon of his people... I am talking of myself, apologies, tell me how did you come so far to these lands?"

[Man in Black]

The large party of adventurers meet back up at the tavern to begin final preparations. The final members of the group are just arriving when a loud crash and a scream of terror comes from Khonnir's home behind the tavern.

[Taijun]

After helping Reawyn and Cin-Ezra buy and carry supplies needed for the venture into the caves, Taijun was about to suggest that they all head to the Temple of Brigh to receive their water breathing enchantment when a scream is heard. Taijun rushes to the house behind the tavern, worried the metal man Khonnir supposedly possessed had awakened.

[Ursk]

Ursk arrives at the Foundry after having bought a waterproof bag for torches and food and begins looking for the humans, half-elf and thing when there is the loud crash from in back. Damnation! That fool went and turned on the robot!

He drops the adventuring gear to the floor, then hurries behind Taijun, drawing his axe as he shoulders aside hapless patrons.

[Cin-Ezra Oovalli]

Cin hears the crash and is about to exclaim, "What was that..." When she sees Tiajun run off toward the noise.  

"And I'm talking to myself," she says to herself.  The gunslinger then yells, "Wait for me!"  

Cin scurries off after Tiajun with her gun and buckler at the ready!

[Kayla Striegold]

Kayla also runs to the sound of the scream. Maybe Val just dropped something important. Or saw a snake...Val hated snakes and had screamed just like that when she had nearly stepped on a black snake in the garden...

Still, everyone else was running towards the sound, and Kayla wasn't about to get left behind!

[Chrome Veneer]

As with many others, Chrome was ready and waiting when he heard the crash. Jumping up with the rest, he joined the many that made their way to the noise. He hadn't had a chance to actually mess around with the automaton, and if that's what was causing the disturbance he would be damned if he'd let the rest destroy it before having a chance at disabling it first. What a cruel fate for the machine if that's all that it saw in its future. He left behind the gear he'd planned to bring along, as it'd slow him down if he'd held on to it.

OOC: Just to be sure, Chrome wasn't the cause of the crash right? XD He definitely was interested enough to have been fiddling with it if it activated or something and he was to blame. If he was, i can fix my post.