EXX's Tavern

[Dragon444]

Drans moves and notices a few cobwebs break.
"My back feels like a giant stone has been setting on it," he said, stretching.
Then he notices the newcomer and the other moving patron.
"I wish Exx were here as well. But, alas, all that remains behind the bar now is a hollow body. Much like all the other patrons here."
He looked out beneath one of the nearby tables and saw a cricket jump out of the way. "That thing has to go. And those," he said, pointing up at a few bats that were now hanging from the rafters.

[vampirehunter42]

You hear a clattering sound from a darkened corner. Looking over you see the source of the noise, a worn staff caked with cobwebs.

"Dambed, youngens. Can't you keep a place quiet while an old man gets some sleep?"

A balding old man with a long white beard slowly stepps out from the corner. He is covered with dust, and you see strings of cobwebs between him and the seat he was sleeping in. He slowly bends over to get the staff, holding his back the hole way.

"Must be gonna rain, damed Sciatica's kicking in."

After standing somewhat straight up, he begins to knock some of the dust off of himself sending a large cloud of dust around the tavern. Followed closely by a loud sneeze, then the clattering of the staff once again. After another slow bend over to get the staff (waving off anyone who tries to help, saying "I am not a helpless babe, I can get it"). He smacks his lips.

"Who cleans this place, whippersnappers keep the place covered with dust. And don't even offer me a drink to wet my throat."

Leaning heavily on the staff, loudly clicking in on the ground he shuffles to the bar.

"Barkeep! Get me sommting to drink."

After staring into the empty bar for a couple of minuets. He begins to climb over the bar.

"Guess, I havta get it myself. I usta do tis in my youth."

You have the sudden shock of seeing the old man fall off the bar landing heavily on the other side. Followed by the clatter of the staff.

"Dambdle youngens, who build this place. Ya trying to kill an old man."

After a lot of ruffling and clanging you see a balding head appear from behind the bar. He begins to look around.

"Where is that blasted staff. I just had the dambdble thing. Ahhh, there you are."

Again you see the old man bend over reaching for the staff. As he stands and turns you hear a sudden crash of breaking glass. Looking the source of the crashing.

"Who cleans this place, keeping broken bottles on the floor. Best be glad I dednt fall in that."

He then turns to find a bottle of whiskey, pours it into a glass and takes a sip.

"At least this place keeps a good drink."

At last he turns to see the rest of you staring at him.

"Well if you youngens want summthing to drink, I guess ide get ya sommthing."

[Jishdefish]

I'll take some light ale, warm, with a tablespoon of honey, if you don't mind. Crease places some silvers on the bar. I trust some of these will go to Exx, as it is his establishment.

[vampirehunter42]

The old man stares at you for a moment.

"You part elf boy? Eaah, well to each their own."

He then grabs what you hope is a clean mug and using walks to the many kegs. He goes to the first one pours a small bit into the mug and tastes it, and continues to a couple of other kegs.

"No, that is a more of bock. Na, this one is quite cool. Ahhh, this must be what he wants."

He pours out the mixed beers wipes the edge of the mug off with his cloak. Fills the mug and start to walk back to you. He begin to rummage under the bar.

"Now if I were some honey, where would I be? No this is maple syrup, what is this easy cheeze. What could that be? There you are my little friend."

He pulls up a container shaped like a horse, and puts a tablespoon of the stuff that luckily looks like honey into the ale. (you try to forget where the honey came from.)

"There you go lad, don't drink it all in one place."

He grabs the silver and after looking around he finds a strong box with a number of locks on it and a slit on the top. And places the money into that. Looking winded after all that work, you notice there is a dust covered cushioned chair near him behind the bar. Was that there all this time?

"Now time for a breather. And some good whiskey."

[Jishdefish]

Crease takes a tentative sip of his honey-ale, trying not to think to deeply about the horse head from whence the honey came. Very good. I hate the bitterness of ale, and honey seems to mix better with than normal sugar in its taste. He looks oddly at the old man. So what's your story?

[John]

Jade peeks out from under his cap at the corner, eyeing the conversation before getting up, and, unsteadily walking over to the bar. As he peeks at the decapitated horse, all taste for milk is lost, and he eyes the older man nervously, picking absentmindedly at a splintered piece of the bartop.

"So...um...are you the bartender then, sirrah?"

[Pandora]

Mirravin giggles her usual sprite-ish giggle at the old man shaking her head, and waves her hand in the air making a duster and a few other cleaning supplies appear, and by themselves they start going about the tasks they'd most commonly be used for.

there we'll have this place a little cleaner in no time. now that the house hold cleaners were hard at work she seemed a bit more out of place than normal. It's widely guessed that it's because she's having to concentrate on the spell she just used to animate all the things she made appear from nowhere.

[Jishdefish]

"So you say. How come everyone who goes about that task gets bored and goes dormant again." Crease sighs, squeezing the bridge of his nose.

[Pandora]

meh, not sure. Mirravin answered halfheartedly. She still seemed too dazed to have a real conversation with anyone at the moment, but it looked as if the work her spell had sought out to do was almost completed. The tables weren't dusty anymore, the counters were clean, and the cobwebs were almost all gone now.

Besides all the ghostly figures sitting at the tables, the place was starting to look a bit more like a tavern, and a bit less like a deserted building.

[Dragon444]

Drans looked over at the cleaning supplies moving about. "Why didn't I think of that?" he thought to himself.

"Well, at least no one complained about this place's paint job, or burned it down," I say aloud.


OOC: I started my own tavern on my forums (G.E.E.K.) and everyone opened by saying it needed a new paint job. Later someone burned the thing down. I'm now having him work off the debt as a bouncer in the rebuilt tavern. I've had a hard time with my friends.

[Pandora]

hmm, if my memory serves me well, which in most cases it really doesn't. This place has been burned down before, on more than one occasion, and it could go for some new paint. What color do you think we should use? I was thinking maybe a few good shads of red and orange.Mirravin answered, and placed a thoughtful hand on her chin, but in doing so it caused a pair of water buckets to collide with one another and dump their content onto the floor.

darn! now I have to do the floors over again!She whinned angrily at herself, much like a small child would. Then as suddenly as it happened she went back to her slightly dazed state, and a mop wizzed over to sop up the new mess.

ooc: lol sounds fun, you know we used to try and fit ooc into character. It kept the place going as long as it did.

[Corva]

Cresent snapped out of his gaze and looked around. "oh, there's people here now." Gesturing to the figures, he said "have any of those lot returned yet?"

[Pandora]

Mirravin's eyes shifted from one person to the other still more or less bussy cleaning. Then she shrugged.

I don't suppose they have moved enough to amount for anything. I think i was talking to someone earlier or was that you? I don't know working spells always makes me slightly forgetful for at lest as long as I'm still casting them. Mirravin answered while looking over her handy work still a bit dazed but now she was a lot more responsive than before.

[Falconer]

OCC: OK, I must be bored. Joining as a new character, Janus the mage.

IC: The door creaked open, and a lone figure stepped in. Wearing dark brown robes, with dozens of little bags and... things... hanging from his belt, the mage walked up to the bartop. He was in his late twenties, with long black hair and silver eyes, and carried a 3' long black wood rod with an electrum orb topping it. As he walked, one could detect a slight limp, as if from an old injury. Leaning against the bartop, he said to the bartender, "Hot water, if you please," setting some coins on the counter. His voice was soft and quiet, with a slight Highland accent.

[Pandora]

Mirravin gave the man an odd look though her trance, and placed her work on hold. Quite literally so, as the dusters and mops stopped moving and frozen in mid air.

Hot water?

[Dragon444]

OOC: Since this is basically dead without Exx, Fyre, and Chal, I might as well post in here when I'm logged in, just to let y'all know I'm still living. I'll add a new character as well...


Rive walked calmly into the Tavern. His silver hair flowing casually down the back of his black trench coat.
"Have any Ash Wine?" He asked as he took a seat at the bar.

[Falconer]

"Yes." He smiled in what was intended to be a reassuring fashion. Truth be told, Janus had a longstanding habit of never drinking the local water unless it had been sterilized, a habit picked up after he contracted dysentary in a small village.

[Pandora]

Hmmm Mirravin stood thinking for a moment with a small frown on her face, and then she brighten up dramaticacally and snapped her fingers with glee. She used a bit of magic to drag one of the cups off of it's self behind the counter, and then a stream of steaming hot water fell from the air and into the cup, which Mirravin placed in front of the man.

how is that? She didn't wait for a reply as someone else was also ordering a drink at the moment too.

Instead she now turned to the one who'd ordered the wine.

ash wine, I'm not sure what that is, but maybe one of these labels will have it, let's see.....

Mirravin looks up at the wine rack and bottles start floating to her one by one as she reads them and sends them back to their resting place.

[Falconer]

Janus nodded in thanks, and dropped a few leaves in the mug, which gave off an aroma not unlike crushed pine needles and oak leaves. He glanced over at the man with the light gray hair and nodded in greeting.

[Corva]

"So, who actually owns this bar?" Cresent asked. "Is he here, or gone on vacation?"

[Dragon444]

"He, unfortunately, has vanished," Drans said. "His name was Exandrous, or Exx for short. He was normally found with his two friends Chalgrish and Fyre, but they've disapeared as well."

[Pandora]

ooc: bad poopy, double posting. Just do both characters in one post

ic: Mirravin paused from her current task and nodded, before looking back at the wine rack.

He was a very good friend of mine as well, although we spent more time adventuring together than here in the bar. Him and the others finally had enough of adventuring after a while I guess, and that's when they started spending all their time here. After that Him and Draggy came by less and less until we just didn't hear from them any more. None of us knew the reasoning behind it. They just suddenly stopped dropping by. Then after realizing that they weren't coming back we all kind of left this place behind as well.

I admit I was one of the first to leave, after all I had no other reason to stay here without Exx around. I had no idea everyone else would leave as well. I hate to think I took the lead in the horrible trend of leaving this place behind. I came back just recently to find the place deserted, and the chairs filled with the ghosts of a spell long since overdue for reforming.

That's what all the see though people you see are, it's like a marker for their bodies to be sent to when they want to visit this place. Although it won't do to keep them around if these people don't plan to ever come back. Even if they do I can easily set up a new spell to bring them here just as well. I'll more than likely work on removing the spell and laying down a new one as part of my cleaning.

Ah, ash wine, boy is it dusty! Mirravin grasped a bottle she had floating in the air and wiped the dust off of it with a bar towel. Then she uncorked the top and poured some of the substance in the bottle into a freshly cleaned wine flute, and placed it on the bar in front of the gentle man who asked for it.

here you go. and with that the cleaning supplies floating around the tavern went back to their duties.

[Dragon444]

Rive watched the cleaning supplies casually. "A marvelous spell, may I inquire as to its operation?" He asked as he lifted the amber liquid to his mouth.

Drans looked over the room of ghosts. "I really wish I had gotten to know some of these people... I believe I only actully met 10 or 11 of them."

[Pandora]

Hmmm, It's nothing big really. It's the basic manipulation of the natural energies surrounding all objects. It's like necromancy except without any rotting bodies. Since there is so much free floating magic in the tavern it doesn't really take much for me to will things as simple as a mop and a broom around. The biggest issue with it is keeping up my concentration. If I'm not paying attention to what I'm doing the whole thing will just stop working all together, and that would make a bigger mess than what's already here. I'm able to continue running the bar and making small talk because I have slightly split my conciousness in two halves. Which is a bit moe complicated than I think I care to explain at the moment. Otherwise being the scatter brain I am I wouldn't be able to keep up with everything all at once. Mirravin replied, and even gave a small smile though her trance like state.

"I really wish I had gotten to know some of these people... I believe I only actully met 10 or 11 of them.
At the sound of Dran's voice, a hint of regret glittered in her eyes.

You shouldn't feel bad. I've been in and out of this place far more than most have and I still think I more than likely only met as many of them as you did.

[Dragon444]

Drans looked at the temporary barkeep, "Well, we can't always dwell on the shadows of what could have been." He then raised his now dusty glass, "Here's to looking toward the future, no matter how bleak it may seem."

"I'll toast to that," commented Rive, raising his glass a well.