The Linus being seems to think for a moment. Eat? It finally asks in a curious tone. Oh, right, I used to do that, didn't I? My, it has been a while...
The revelation that the ruined fort had once been an outpost of his order... even a particular element of one... sent a pang of grief shooting through Shiro. Suddenly, he was struck by the fact that the fort they had seen had been VERY old and abandoned a LONG time. Caution and curiousity warred within him, curiousity finally winning out... "Linus... How do you know of this? Are you of the Order? Or allied with it? Were the Scro responsible for the desecration of the site?" He pauses. "Linus... How old are you?... What are you?"
You're not a paladin, are you? He asks, an irritated tone in his voice. I know it is a stupid thing to ask, but trust me on this, you get hit with a Smite once, and you never want to feel that again...
"No, I am not." The sentence hangs in the air as silence blossoms... Shiro stares at Linus, not threateningly but willing an understanding that goes beyond words.
Silence fills the air for a moment, then 'Linus' lets out an annoyed sigh. Fine, but if you try to smite me I won't give you access to my library, he tells you. Pulling back the sleeves of his robes, you see a pair of skeletal hands, and when the hood is pulled back, a skeletal head as well. Glowing... eyes (?) peer out from the sockets in the skull, glowing a pale blue color. As to what I am, he says in a bitter tone, I am an idiot who thought he could trick a genie. I don't know how old I am at the moment though, as I don't know what year it is...
Drew raises his eyebrows in shock when Linus reveals his skeletal form, Drew instinctively picks up his crossbow, but then remembers what Linus said about how he cannot be hurt, if that was true, Drew did not want to piss off an immortal skeleton. Drew puts his crossbow down, and then watches the skeleton's every move intently.
Huh. Linus seems to think for a bit, then sighs again. Well I have been here, on this island, for just over two hundred years. The fortress the scro are infesting was decimated about a hundred years ago. As to how old I actually am, I am not sure. At least five hundred years, possibly more. Suffice to say I did something stupid when I was alive, and this is my punishment.
Shiro breathes in and out slowly to calm himself. “I appreciate your trust in us to reveal yourself Linus. Firstly though, it isn’t of great import to me whether the Scro were responsible for the ruining of the fort and whether you were connected to the Order in any way.”
Bang yawns and wakes up from his nap on Drew's head. "oh look a new guy." Bang quickly inquires what he has missed. Bang gags when the man says he is over 500. "500?! damn."
I was... connected to the Order in a kind of observational way? Not what you think, though. Somehow, despite being a skeleton, he managed to roll his eyes. Honestly, it is a fancy way of saying the Order was keeping an eye on me. Apparently they thought I was going to go all 'evil overlord' or something. They tolerated my presence, asked me questions sometimes, and generally tried to prevent me from becoming some kind of dark emperor. Big waste of their time, really. They should have paid more attention to their internal issues. Letting out an annoyed hiss, he looked around, found himself somewhere to sit down and did so with an odd clicking sound. The Order tore itself apart in the end. A pity, really.
Shiro nods, at least there would be no persecution of him here. “Fair enough, friend. What and who were you in life? How do you come to be cursed, alone on this island with no-one else around?”
Linus laughs, a kind of odd, hollow sound. Well, like I said, genies. You know that whole 'three wishes' thing they talk about in the stories? Well it is true. It is also true that genies take a twisted pleasure in interpreting those wishes in the most annoying way possible. I wished to live forever, be immune to death, and never age. To be honest, I should be glad I didn't wind up being turned into a tree, or a rock. I was an apprentice mage in life, and didn't think through the consequences. Kind of figures, right? As for this island, when I got here there was nobody else living on the island. I built the first part of what became my library. For some reason, people assumed I was some kind of reclusive sage, here to answer their questions. He rolls his eyes again. They started calling this island 'Linusia,' for some reason. Over time, people stayed - mostly to serve those coming here to ask questions - and then the Order showed up, assumed I was evil, and settled on the big island to the South to keep an eye on me. As to what I am? I honestly don't know. I think I am a kind of Liche these days, but don't know for certain.
“The creatures of magic are fickle and untrustworthy, friend.” In his mind, Shiro can hear Azaphor growling softly, but ignores her. “I am sorry for your plight. What is in the magically sealed abbey yonder? And is there anything we can do to help you in your situation?”
Abbey? Oh, you mean the library! That is my home. The Library of Linusia. As I mentioned, I am something of a Historian. I collect books. I do not really need to sleep, so I spend a lot of time reading. Sneaking around in a cloak is not exactly useful, but I do have some magic, so disguising myself in order to purchase books is fairly simple. As nobody else lives on the island, I have warded the doors so that only someone with a special token can get inside. It keeps out stupid paladins who think I am the evil overlord the Order thought I was. Just because I cannot be destroyed permanently does not mean that a smite cannot hurt me, merely that I will re-form eventually if I take enough damage. That said, pulling myself back together after a paladin smites me into dust is rather unpleasant and time-consuming.
Shiro smiles and asks tentatively: "Can we help you with your condition?" "I would also like to know of what internal troubles you speak of the Order having?" He thinks for a second and adds: "I would also like to know whether or not you would be willing to help us against the Scro?"
My condition? You sense a note of amusement in his voice. Not really, but I get by so it matters not. The only way out of my present condition would be for me - or someone else - to wish that I was mortal again. Since I have no reason to 'fix' my condition, I feel it is best left alone. As for the Order's internal issues, suffice to say that not all half-Celestial beings are as pure and righteous as their parentage would have you believe. There was an issue over the succession in the Empire to the West long ago. One faction wanted to step in and try to make certain the, um, 'right' candidate became the next Emperor. The other faction did not. It eventually resulted in a full schism that broke the order apart. When the Order went to war with itself, most of the inhabitants of my island tried to remain neutral, but the conflict spilled over onto the other settlements. When the fighting was done, there wasn't much left for the survivors to do but return to the mainland. He seems to be thinking as he talks, and lets out an irate sigh. As for the scro, leave them to me. I will have to deal with them, or they will, in turn, have to deal with me. Given that I have no desire to join their little crusade, nor do I wish to have them invade my home, I suppose I shall have to take the fight to them.
Bang looks quizzically "I mean if he can deal with the scro, can we just leave him? Im not one for succession, orders, and empires as my people live in an anarcho-syndicalist commune." Bang thinks about his next words "I mean we could try and help.. but i have one condition."
Ah, I am afraid you have that the wrong way around. I do not need your help to deal with them, and your condition is moot as you owe me for the sheep you ate. Now, if you will excuse me, the roadway to the big island is only usable during the night, so I will have to use magic to get over there...
"those were your sheep?" Bang looks confused "Well i didn't eat any." he repsonds a few moments later. "What i was going to ask for is if you have a large chunk of glass, something that can magnify an object in its view"