Sunday, 28 March 2021

The Fantastic Voyage (Introduction, Part One)

The Wedding of Sunaeco and Yasmina Al-Amara

At last the big day arrives for Sunaeco and Yasmina.

Sunaeco's party are Gated in by Cerys (who travelled there in advance to help get things set up having been provided one of the Amulets that permits transit to and from the Demiplane of Gloaming). The Amir temporarily lowers the plane's defenses allowing ingress without the amulets.

Sunaeco has had a new outfit tailored for the occasion in his favourite colours of blue and white, and wears a fine pair of boots. He also wears his platinum belt with sapphires.

He is a little nervous at the prospect of meeting all Yasmina's relations - so far he has met her, and her parents, and one of her cousins, briefly. He is glad to be finally putting down some roots after many years of gadabout itineracy, and be marrying into a prestigious family of geniekind.

To be sure, Yasmina's family are looking to benefit from this union as well. It is an unconventional match, but their eldest are already respectably married off to other Janni and so they are willing to tolerate its unusual nature. Sunaeco is recognised as a member of "Team Elysium" the winning delegation who brought the Janni the gift of the Waters of Elysium. (And by a startling coincidence, his name is like that of the sacred river running through Elysium, but reversed, which is surely a fortunate omen). So this marriage brings them a degree of prestige even if Sunaeco is not so very wealthy by their standards, though by no means a pauper. And, given that the Vizier to the Amir recommended this union to them, there may be other advantages, too. Even the occasion of this wedding here on the Amir's personal demiplane is an opportunity for them to mingle with a higher social class among the Hubul and forge connections. They will be milking this for every bit of advantage.

The Demiplane of Gloaming has been remodelled. The interior space is now entirely walled and roofed over in glass. The space between the glassy walls and the boundaries of the plane is filled with water. The Janni Vizier Rashid Al-Suliman has taught Cerys how to summon a type of aquatic Eladrin called a Noviere, from the plane of Arborea. He has sometimes had uses for them but they generally serve him grudgingly. Cerys can cast more summonings and be far more persuasive than Al-Suliman. The Noviere have a humanoid form, and also an alternate form, that of a shimmering golden dolphin made from luminescent water. A school of these playful creatures is persuaded to swim about in the watery space and put on a bit of a show, and make the aquatic guests feel at home. There is no gravity in the watery zone except for where the waters open out into the pools and fountains of an elegant water garden surrounding a gilded gazebo-like affair in the centre. The design is quite geometrically symmetrical and intricate.

Sunaeco has agreed to a Janni wedding service, not having strong views about such matters himself. He will not be converting to worship of Anumon the creator of geniekind in any formal sense, though he has of course agreed that he will respect the progenitor of his wife's race.

I think that for many of Sunaeco's wedding guests this will be their first trip to a plane other than Oerth. Certainly his family members; quite a few of his friends too, I think.

Echo has brought Quaenas along as her guest, though she pretty soon detaches from him and hangs about mainly with Cerys and Reynardia, until she discovers the Eladrin dolphins who she is definitely going to want to play with. Cerys has her two attendants, who will be Pumpkin and Tori (who are probably also going to wind up sporting with the Eladrin). It will be noticed that Cerys seems to be in high spirits and a bit more capricious than normal. Maybe just the excitement of the occasion, but her features look a little more elfin, and every so often a toss or flick of her golden mane will reveal a glimpse of a shapely, pointed ear. She can polymorph, after all, so maybe just her latest affectation. But there is something different in her gaze, too. Something potent.

Among the Janni guests, Jibran Barakas is there, together with Mrs Barakas. He shoots Cerys a look of guilty longing. Cerys tips him a saucy wink when his missus isn't looking and telepaths him an erotic memory of them together, laughing wickedly at his flustered reaction.

The Amir Utha Alzmed himself will conduct the service; he is authorised to do so and he certainly will want to in his own demiplane. Sunaeco waits nervously before the altar. Like all expectant grooms he naturally feels a moment's anxiety that she might have a last minute change of heart, to leave him covered in disappointment and shame.

But she does not. Yasmina will look truly lovely of course as she floats down the aisle (literally) in an expensive diamond studded wedding dress. The train and midriff are designed to be unlaced and detached so that it turns niftily into a two-piece diamond-studded bathing costume so Yasmina can go swimming with the groom's family in it later in the day if she pleases.

Sunaeco and Yasmina recite their wedding vows, repeating them in Janni and in the aquatic elf tongue of Oerth.

The wedding rings have been provided as a gift from Yasmina's grandmother, and Mumm-Rah produces them, having been entrusted with them earlier. (Someone warned him to keep his hand on them at all times as there were pixies about, and possibly more than were strictly invited might have flown in through the Gate spell)

Vows are exchanged, rings are exchanged and a jubilant Sunaeco kisses his bride as the Amir pronounces them elf and wife.

There are congratulations and the Amir declares that the bridal feast shall commence at once. He claps his hands and the wedding gazebo transforms into a wider affair with low tables and cushions set all around. Genasi ushers will show people to their places as other servants sweep in carrying platters of exotic food.

There will be speeches naturally.

<insert Mumm-Rah's speech hereabouts, hopefully delivered in lizardman so no-one can understand all the awful things Sunaeco has done and remember what happens on The Sea Ghost STAYS ON THE SEA GHOST>

After the feasting Janni musicians will provide entertainment and Yasmina shows off her dancing skills with her new man. Cerys will NOT be dancing as she is not such a meanie as to upstage the bride. But she will have fun in other ways. In fact there will be a bit more chaos than the Janni are wholly comfortable with. There seem to be a lot of dire bears about the place, for starters. Reynardia loans Cerys a use of her Wild Shape at one point - it's a thing she can do (later when the stuffy formalities are out of the way) and they both turn into dire bears and start frolicking and rough and tumbling in the water with the other dire bears. Then Cerys starts flying around in bear form. Jibran completely accidentally gets a cheeky slap on the rear from a flying dire bear paw. Later they turn into giant squid and go chasing the aquatic elf kids and the Eladrin about in the watery area.

Part Two is here.

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