Marlannan Hollysharp the Swimmer of the Sea of Despair in a Stone Loincloth, Performer of the Eternal Star

Role

Chapter 5

Years passed, and Marlannan though still short of middle-age had seen
and experienced much. Adventures that years before he would have quaked
to embark upon, allies before whom he might have previously quailed, foes
who now failed with regularity in their endless pursuit of the destruction
of most humble, foolish (indeed) gnome.

He had not become overconfident - he knew his limitations, but he also knew
that something had shifted within him during the intervening time since he had
attained the highest rank within the guild. Marlannan had always thought it
was the pursuit of Knowledge that had driven him. As a youth, if he had just
read one more book, done a bit more research, he might have been able to win
those arguments that drove him mad back in Hillcrest. Even as he grew, if he
could just learn a slightly more powerful shapeshifting form, or learn one more
spell, or find one more item of power, he might be able to survive the relentless
onslaughts of his foes.

But he knew now that none of those things would have availed him. It was not
Knowledge he lacked, but Wisdom. Wisdom that had come with age, experience,
and his exposure to the full Theran diaspora at the Inn of the Eternal Star.

He had seen into the true souls of many there, who bared themselves willingly
before naught but a humble fool. He knew now the power of a raised eyebrow, a
shrill laugh, a timely jibe - all means for a true performer to manipulate his
audience, which after all is what performance is all about. Chaos had begun to
creep into his soul as his artistic skills progressed, and he often found
himself (secretly, of course) gleeful when he came up with a particularly
astonishing routine.

Something was missing for Marlannan, however. A nagging hunger in his soul that
tugged at him, and a thirst for one vital piece of knowledge (yes, knowledge)
that he still craved yet had not revealed itself to him.

And he had a hunch where he might go about satisfying both - but it would require
a gambit of sorts. As his plan began to coalesce, he was surprised he didn't
feel a whit of fear about it. And that made him nervous.

Role

Chapter 4

Who pities the fool? As far as Marlannan was concerned, hopefully
everybody. Earlier in his life when he had suffered frequently at
the hands of merciless marauding killers, his craven pleas for mercy
and humorous acts of self-debasement were born out of sheer terror and
necessity in the moment. Now with age, experience, and some greater
degree of skill in his arts, it was not blind fear but something
greater that guided his wits and his tongue.

Not that his cowardice was pure affect - he still saw knives ready to
emerge from every shadow and demons ready to assail him behind the
eyes of most everyone he met. But beneath the stammering assertions
of his own inadequacy and subordination was now a growing sense of
self-confidence and a layer of calculation that had never been there
before.

His art was pathos though, and even were he able to shapeshift into
a demon-lord and butcher a dozen elven villages singlehandedly,
he would never admit it! For it is the clever fool who sees others
for what they truly are rather than what they wish others to
perceive them to be. And the most powerful, the most inscrutable,
the most guarded - all were readily unmasked by the careful pleas
of a poor, foolish, afflicted wretch of a gnome.

Meanwhile, just beyond sight, the jaguar blends silently into the
verdant canopy, watching. But would he hunt?

Role

Chapter 3

From : Marlannan
To : Herald
Subject: Employment

O mighty possessors of vast talent and charisma, please accept by way of
this humble missive my introduction of myself, and accept also my
apologies for the ill-chosen words and smudged ink wrought by chubby
hands and copious droplets of anxious sweat.

I do wish to petition for employment at your fine establishment as
a fool! It is not hard for me to admit my foolishness, for it has
been so ably explained to me by the host of rapacious murderers
and bloodthirsty savages that inhabit these lands - usually while
they stand over my corpulent corpse and sacrifice my academy seal.

As such I do hope you will allow me to demonstrate for you the limited
skill at entertainment and voluminous depth of foolishness that this
humble gnome does possess, ideally resulting in a permanent position
with the Inn of the Eternal Star (which most certainly shall not be
used, under any circumstances, for cowering wretchedly from the dangers
which seethe at all times from the treacherous environs beyond the front
porch).

Respectfully yours,

Marlannan Hollysharp

Role

Chapter 2

As he expected, Marlannan quickly came to regret his foray into
the world beyond the environs of Hillcrest. There were a thousand
tired gnomish tropes highlighting the harsh brutality of Theran
existence, and a thousand more admonishing those gnomes foolish
enough to experience said brutality first hand.

He was amazed at how quickly trouble found him. Murderers seemed
to inhabit every shadow, and pursued him relentlessly. His
paranoia grew day by day, as knives found him from every direction,
these killers deaf to his anguished pleas for mercy. Nay, rather
than have pity upon poor Marlannan, they followed up physical
assault with the verbal variety.

"You will die a thousand deaths, fool."
"You shall pay, fool, for the sins of your ancestors."
"Fool, you think you can enter my territory at a whim?"

Marlannan contemplated for a time returning to Hillcrest, but the
knowledge he had begun to accumulate in his time wandering the
lands was incredible, and he had many more fascinating leads yet
to follow up on! And not everyone he had met was simply a
heartless hatchet-wielder. The staff at the Inn of the Eternal
Star had been most welcoming and friendly after long days spent
traveling through muddy swamps and dusty caves.

He wondered how he might join their employ, to help establish
himself a safe and welcoming home - but what could he do there?
He was no cook, nor could he deal cards or mix drinks. But then
perhaps, his enemies in their verbal onslaughts had given him
a clue. There was one thing they did seem to agree upon, after
all. So he sat down and penned a scroll one day.

Role

Chapter 1

The Hollysharp clan of gnomes was notoriously argumentative. Not
violently so (except for maybe that one time Wella chased Birmud
through the briars while shapeshifted into a sword-spider) but
persistently, agonizingly, infuriatingly so. It had gotten to the
point where everyone walked wide of known Hollysharps when they
were seen around Hillcrest, so as not to run the risk of having
a conversation which would - invariably - lead to a heated clash
of wills.

Marlannan had never been a very good arguer, in fact he wasn't
sure he'd ever won an argument at all. So he mostly tried to
stay away from arguments, but among the Hollysharps that was
like trying to avoid raindrops in a monsoon.

So Marlannan spent most of his days finding places to hide,
often on the outskirts of town where he would take his books
and papers to study in blissful solitude.

He had a talent for shapeshifting - he knew that, and always was
fascinated by those creatures who had developed unique natural
defenses adapted to their specific surroundings. The lizard
that could blend into his surroundings flawlessly, the toad
with poisonous barbs, the slow-moving crab that was
indistinguishable from a rock - these were the shapes that
most fascinated him.

There was a part of him, too, that wanted to be fierce, wanted
to be brave. He had shown it a few times in his life, though
in each instance it was followed by waves of self-loathing and
regret.

He wished he could transform into a boulder and just sit in one
place undisturbed forever. But then he'd never learn anything
new, and knowledge was power after all - one who knows enough
can win every argument. That's what his sister had told him,
and she seemed to know everything.

So one day Marlannan decided it was time to be brave and venture
out into the world, seeking knowledge. He knew he would probably
regret it later (it's dangerous out there!), but like a boulder
rolling down a hill, once pushed he found no turning back.

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