A DSMP Dungeons & Dragons AU Reply with what you want the characters to do! [About & How to Participate] [Ask] || [Character Sheets] || [The Story from the Beginning] || [AO3 Mirror]
“Most warforged were constructed for some noble purpose in cutting-edge factories, or crafted lovingly by master artificers.
Drista is not one of those lucky ones.
She first came to be in the dingy basement of a brothel her creators never intended for her to leave. But then again, they also never intended for her soul to be so touched by magic, or for a group of three young adventurers to blow their whole operation one fateful night just as they were about to cut that magic off. And they certainly didn’t intend for her to find a purpose - a family - in those three. Now Drista forges her own path, with her family by her side, and the magic in her grows stronger every day.”
Down the hallway, down the stairs, through the sitting area, into the kitchen. You can’t find it in yourself to act surprised when you see wisps of smoke rising from the pan on the stove, even though Sapnap is watching it; he’s always liked his food overcooked to the point of charring, much to George’s annoyance. Sapnap nods at you in greeting.
“What’d you ruin this time?” you ask as he finally pulls the pan off the heat, waving off the smoke.
“It’s a veggie stir fry, and it’s perfectly fine, thank you very much,” he answers, and yeah, okay, you can actually kind of identify the peppers and mushrooms and pea pods, now that you have the context, so you can safely say this is one of Sapnap’s better attempts. “Does George want any?”
“Probably not. He’s asleep, and besides, he likes his food to be edible.”
“Fuck off.”
It’s actually pretty difficult to really bother Sapnap. Sure, you can mispronounce his name or joke about his remarkable knack for setting things on fire, but in the years since the two of you escaped the Undercity together, he’s put aside much of the directionless rage that made him such a force to be reckoned with when you first met. You don’t mind, though; it’s been replaced in that time by a cooler - but just as fierce - protectiveness toward the rest of the Team, and now there’s no one else whom you’d prefer to have your back. Makes him less fun to tease, though.
“So what does Jimmy have us doing next?” he asks as he spoons burnt vegetables into a bowl of slightly soggy rice.
“Nothing yet,” you answer. “He left me some paperwork to fill out for the city, said he’d send Tariq over to pick it up tomorrow.”
“Oh! Uh, I can run it over.”
“Why? Wanna visit Karl?”
Sapnap nearly chokes on his stir fry. “What? No! I’m just offering to - stop laughing!”
On second thought, still just as fun to tease.
“What’s so funny?” Drista asks, sidling into the kitchen. She jumps a little to sit on the countertop, grabbing a green apple from the fruit bowl. You almost scold her for biting into it - we don’t need to eat, don’t waste George and Sapnap’s food - but you catch yourself. Things are better now; you can afford to let her eat for fun. Instead, you giggle again and waggle a finger at Sapnap.
“Sappy’s got a crush,” you singsong, and his blush only deepens.
“Sappy doesn’t have to put up with this,” he harrumphs, making to leave, but Drista pats him soothingly on the shoulder.
“C’mon, Dream’s just messing with you. We love you, big bro.”
As usual, Sapnap softens under the nickname. Ever since you found Drista, he’s been easily plied by her sisterly affection, always taking her side in whatever dumb debates the four found themselves having, just as George always took yours. “Yeah, right,” he mutters, but there’s no bite to it.
Drista opts to change the subject. “Did you like the sign, Dream?”
“Yeah, it’s great! We should put it up outside. Maybe then we can get more clients than just Jimmy.”
“Maybe we should go put some flyers on the boards around the city too? Since we’re kind of out on the edge of town,” Drista suggests.
“Good idea! I’ll grab some parchment from my office and we can make some posters. Then you and George can take downtown, and Sap and I’ll do the north side and the edges of the Undercity.”
Warforged Warlock (Great Old One) 4/Rogue (Inquisitive) 5
[Character Sheet] || [Spell List]
"Dream doesn't bring up his past; if you ask him his story, he'll start with meeting Sapnap in the Undercity just over five years ago, claiming nothing worth talking about happened until the 'Dream Team' got together. They met George six months later, and rescued Drista ten months after that. Since then, the group has been working hard to make a name for themselves as mercenaries, taking special interest in breaking up the operations of slavers and traffickers.
Dream prefers to not owe any favors, but begrudgingly accepted the patronage of Sir James Beast in an effort to provide a better life for the little family he's made himself."
But your father explained the meaning of the word to you, back when you were newly built. He said a dream was an ambition that came from your heart instead of your head. You asked if you even had a heart, and he laughed and put a hand on your chest.
“Of course you do. What, you think I’d forget something so important? It may not beat the same as a natural person’s, but it’s got all my best magic in it, so I think it counts.”
When you picked out your name, he was not surprised.
As a warforged, you do not dream. But if certain memories surface during the calmest moments of your rest cycles, well. You think it counts.
~~~~~~~~
>Dream: Deny the enemy a surprise round.
The gnolls have obviously had no experience with the warforged, or they would have known the motionlessness of you and Drista only emulated true sleep. You dispatch the first gnoll with an eldritch blast to the chest before George is even awake.
“Just once,” Sapnap huffs as he scrambles to his feet, dodging an arrow, “I’d like to fight someone in daytime. You know, when I can see.”
“Oh, my name is Sapnap, and I’m bliiiiind. I can’t seeeeeeeeee! I am completely useless between sunset and sunrise! George, save meeeee!” You hear George pitch his voice up for the imitation before breaking into giggles even as he lands a devastating hit against a gnoll trying to slip past their line. Its ribs crack and it stumbles back, snarling, before it’s finished by another easy blow to the head.
Suddenly, the world is awash in pale green light. “Hey, save it for after the fight!”
“Thanks, Drista, sorry!” Sapnap smiles. His rapier gleams for just a moment in the new light of the magic orbs hovering above them before it’s covered in dark gnoll blood.
You’ve done this a hundred times before: Drista takes the back, guarding the caravan drivers in case an enemy manages to circle around and attack the carts; George and Sapnap draw aggro up front; you circle around and deal with the enemy backline before they realize you’re there. On occasion, just to keep it interesting, you and Sapnap might swap places, but it always turns out the same.
Tonight is no different.
“I think they’re getting dumber,” you say when the fight is over and the Team is left with the much less exciting task of dragging the gnoll carcasses away from the campsite.
George shrugs, though the gesture is somewhat negated by the body he’s lugging into the grass. “At least this time they waited for Sap and me to have our armor off.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t see a spellcaster this time,” Sapnap observes, and you chuckle.
“Ah, yes. The incredibly powerful gnoll spellcaster. Two magic missiles. I’m quaking.”
Sapnap humphs. “Still! It was something new. And magic requires some intelligence… is what I would have said before I met you guys.”
George makes a vaguely offended noise, but you just laugh. “And of all of us, you know the least magic. Great job calling yourself dumb, Snapmap.”
“Say Snapmap one more time, I dare you, you-” Sapnap drops the carcass he’s carrying and sprints toward you, sword half-drawn.
“I’m going back to sleep,” George declares even as you start running. You do laps around the campsite, Sapnap hot on your heels, until the human gets tired and almost trips on a gnoll corpse. Your laugh turns into a wheezing giggle. Sapnap flips you off and returns to his bedroll.
After the sun rises, it’s only a short six miles back to the city; by midafternoon, you’ve finished debriefing with Jimmy, received your payment, and returned to the new building, which has been furnished in your absence, to rest.
You look around your new office - the green and gold curtains, the books, the couch that Drista has already taken to flinging herself into dramatically when she comes in. As much as you hate owing Jimmy… it wasn’t too long ago you wouldn’t even have been able to imagine this, and it’s worth it to see your friends happy.
You open your mind to feel the comforting presence of your friends - your family - nearby: Sapnap in the kitchen, undoubtedly burning dinner; George, down the hall, taking a “nap” that will likely last through morning; Drista painting in the underground workshop. An image enters your mind - a message from her. You see a sign, carefully lettered:
Dream Team
Bounty & Mercenary Services
(Inquire Within)
What would you like to do?
(pssst, you, yeah you reading this! you get to influence this story! visit the blog to learn how!)
