Mendira/Performances/Hhshal's Revenge

Real Date	2022-04-19
Game Date	441-06-34
Event	Theren Guard's Delights of the Desert Concert
Point of View Character	Mendira

[Heketha Theater, Twilight Stage]
The curved lip of the wood-grain floor flares out into the darkened theater. A band of stamped platinum and gold has been inlaid into the rim. Curtains dyed a dark indigo fall as a backdrop behind the stage itself. Thousands of small, sparkling flecks wink from their thick velvet folds.
Also here: Aerialist Emyrose who is hiding, Dancer Vixonia who is hiding, Entangled Cote who is hiding, Twilight Tippler Lasaia who is hiding and Master of Ceremonies Stelling.
Obvious exits: none.

You are Songbird Mendira Huns, Dancer of Zaldi Taipa, an Elf.
You have pointed ears and large expressive faded lilac eyes.  Your dark brown hair is hip length and silky, and is worn in an elaborate braid coiled into a knot and held by a fragile sungold hairnet woven with translucent whisperlayne blooms.  You have warm caramel-hued skin and a sylphlike figure.
You are statuesque for an Elf.
You are an adult.
You have several interlocking rings of green jade that pierce the flesh to follow along your right eyebrow, each notched in even intervals and rubbed with indigo.
Your shoulder has a tattoo of a brightly colored songbird darting through a cascade of musical notes.
You are in good shape.

You are holding an elegant filigreed sungold dancing fan trailing lengths of lilac whisperlayne in your right hand.
You are wearing a whisperlayne and petalette bandeau illumined by sungold beadwork, a wispy skirt composed of lilac whisperlayne entwined in fine strands of sungold and some delicate toe-bells of filigreed sungold.

Stelling exclaims, "Next up is Mendira!"

You notice Nilme cheering for you from the seating area.

A chorus of applause starts up, seemingly led by Senthic.

You notice Kamisama cheering in the seating area.

You notice Amaci cheering for you from the seating area.

You come out of hiding.

The audience response of unanimous applause surges louder. Glancing over the audience members, you notice Atvus, Ahneya, Senthic, Nilme, Miskton and Etasia are applauding and cheering.

You notice Nilme cheering in the seating area.

You notice Linkwurst cheering in the seating area.

The rushing sound of unanimous applause lowers in volume. Glancing over the audience members, you notice Shaoimhe and Salvitoriel are applauding and cheering.

(Mendira is revealed in shadow at the center of the darkened stage as bold purple and red lights suffuse myriad panels of pale chiffon draped from the rafters high above.)

You notice Merilwen cheering for you from the seating area.

You notice Nilme cheering for you from the seating area.

The lingering echoes of applause hang over the dais before ceasing altogether.

(Mendira's figure is silhouetted in profile, the shimmering metalwork sewn across her bandeau and skirt veiled by the lengths of whisperlayne suspended from the dancing fan she holds aloft. A rich, meandering melody begins to flow from the orchestra pit. The twining refrain showcases a keenly sonorous sarangi, accompanied by the steady syncopation of a tapani.)

You notice Zalinyar cheering for you from the seating area.

(Mendira fluidly turns to face forward, and a bright spotlight illuminates her form.)

You notice Anuril cheering in the seating area.

With slow, barely perceptable movements, you begin to dance, using your dancing fan to emphasize your grace. As your tempo increases, your fluttering fan moves more theatrically until, with a final snap of your wrist, you bring your fan up to veil your face as you sink to the ground. With lowered lashes, you hold your position for a moment before rising fluidly to your feet.

Mendira smiles and raises her gaze to the audience, the curve of her lips subtly shrouded by the sheer fabric of her fan.

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "I pray you'll allow me to spin you a tale,
    A story of intrigue, desire, betrayal.
    Of conquest and monsters, of lover's lost plans,
    But most of all, the tale of a very bad man."

(Mendira sweeps forward, the diaphanous whisperlayne of her skirt and fan fluttering with her smooth, lithe movements.)

With a graceful swirl, you raise your dancing fan to veil all but your eyes.

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "Thus we meet Mariq, so arrogant and brash,
    Burst through a drake's lair to claim its jeweled cache.
    Potion-maker Hhshal was there first, but got thrown aside,
    And so lost the gems meant to win him his bride."

In a single lissome motion, you go high on your toes to whirl in a pirouette that sends your wispy skirt flashing out in a gossamer circle all around you.

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "Hhshal sat alone, as the clan lauded his rival,
    But his morose mood was lifted by a sudden arrival.
    His beautiful Isna'le, how her moonlit scales did glint,
    Her gentle hand on his shoulder sent his heart to a spin."

You kick one foot out in a graceful arc, and with a dip of your shoulders and a tinkling of sungold toe-bells, you pirouette in a dazzling spin!

You sing in a soprano voice:

   ""My friend, I must ask a small favor," she began,
    He would offer her anything, he was so entranced,
    But she wanted the one thing he could not foresee,
    Her sweet voice said firmly, "Make Mariq love me.""

(Mendira's feet move more quickly across the floorboards, and the driving beat of the tapani urges the song increasingly, desperately forward.)

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "It was then that an ache in his chest grew and spread,
    In horror and hurt, he merely nodded his head.
    She left him from there, he did not watch her go.
    Instead, cruelty festering in him would soon overflow."

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "He went to her that evening, a vial in his hand,
    And in meticulous detail he laid out their plan.
    "See that he drinks this, and gaze in his eyes.
    If you do, he will kiss you, and you'll have your prize.""

You softly say, "The kiss will make it final."

Mendira smiles to herself, a portentous quirk marking the corner of her lips. Her hips and arms move in agile, sinuous arcs as she traverses the stage, and the lengths of whisperlayne attached to her fan undulate in trembling waves around her.

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "Later that night, Hhshal watched the raucous fete,
    Emotionless as stone as Isna'le approached her mate.
    The potion was slipped into the hero's cup of drink,
    Mariq, unknowing, took a swig and threw her a wink."

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "The maiden stood then before the object of her dreams,
    Her expectant gaze missed that all was not as it seemed.
    Leaping eagerly to kiss him, she saw not his faltering grin,
    But shrewd Hhshal spied it, his eyes blank and cold within."

(Mendira's feet seem to fly across the stage as the song builds to a frenzied pace.)

Moving in a rhythmic circle, you swish your wispy skirt quickly side-to-side, creating a blur of color and motion as you dance.

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "Mariq pushed her away fiercely, hissing then in anguish,
    Having at last discovered a foe he simply could not vanquish.
    He grabbed his eating knife and gave forth a terrible wail,
    Lunging forward, his blade found Isna'le's heart without fail."

(Mendira reels backward, clutching at her own chest as if struck. In a series of graceful twirls and tumbles, she swings back around to face the audience once more.)

(Mendira comes to a sharp stop at the front of the stage, her eyes woeful as she gazes up into the spotlight that trails her movements. The music from the orchestra shifts, growing slow and desolate with the discordant croon of a yarghul soaring over the ensemble.)

You sing in a soprano voice:

   "The poison coursed so quickly through the afflicted fighter's veins
    That soon after his maiden, he too collapsed, lifeless and slain.
    The clan was in an uproar, every attempt at rescue fruitless.
    Through it all Hhshal just smiled, lips twisted in gruesome hubris."

(Mendira stands eerily still as the closing verse echoes through the theater, her voice ringing out only to be answered by the fading howl of the yarghul.)

You somberly say, "The kiss will make it final."

A chorus of applause starts up, seemingly led by Linkwurst.

You quietly say, "If you wish to read this story in greater detail, please seek out the book "Hhshal's Revenge" in the Warrior Mage guild library here in the jewel of the Velaka, Muspar'i."

The lingering echoes of applause hang over the dais before ceasing altogether.

You notice Linkwurst cheering in the seating area.

You turn your skirt in a blaze of purples as you sway to your right and make a deep curtsy, then turn again to your left, swaying gracefully and ending with the same low reverence.

A chorus of applause starts up, seemingly led by Senthic.

You notice Merilwen cheering for you from the seating area.

The audience response of unanimous applause rises in volume. Glancing over the audience members, you notice Senthic, Nilme and Miskton are applauding and cheering.

You notice Senthic cheering in the seating area.

You notice Nilme cheering for you from the seating area.

(Mendira gives a grateful smile as she sweeps back into the wings, closing her dancing fan with a crisp snap as she goes.)

You see Stelling glance at you as you hide. You blend in with your surroundings, but know you drew some attention to yourself.

You notice Nilme cheering for you from the seating area.

The sound of unanimous applause surges louder. Glancing over the audience members, you notice Ahneya, Merilwen, Nilme, Shaoimhe, Blysse, Nawain, Tekhelet, Etasia, Dasheek and Salvitoriel are applauding and cheering.

You notice Amaci cheering for you from the seating area.

The cacophony of unanimous applause lowers in volume. Glancing over the audience members, you notice Senthic and Amaci are applauding and cheering.

You notice Atvus whistling at you from the seating area.