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"The
Peacock Lord? He's a colourful cutter, alright. One of my
best customers, actually. Always in here flashing his jink
around, always after the latest Arcadian silk and Elysian
velvets. Dresses like a fancy bird too -- that's why they
call him the Peacock Lord I think. Thin chap, he is, slight
of frame, but by the Lady herself he's handsome. Highly
sought after in the Golden Lord circles, you know -- we get
more than one noble lady customer asking after him too.
Probably the lure of the money and looks -- a bit of a
winning combination in their circles, see. No, I haven't the
slightest idea where he gets the money from, but it
certainly ain't my place to ask. Probably a bit of a rogue
too, if you ask me. But I didn't say that,
right?"
-- Noilis Lightoak,
dresser at HighUp, exclusive (and expensive) Lady's Ward
fashion house
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SEE
ALSO:
- Cage
Rattlers:--
- Jovius,
Magnum
Opus,
Laurelli
Tantarella,
Voilá!.
- Uncaged:
Faces of Sigil:--
- Kylie
(p.56), Shemeshka
the Marauder
(p.96),
Tripicus
(p.102).
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"There's
a bit of a tragic story behind that one, I reckon. There
usually is behind the brightest ones, eh? Well, he ain't
called the Peacock Lord for nothing, cutter. Sure enough,
chant goes he actually was one of those animal high-ups on
the Beastlands. That is, until he got deposed. Rather than
hang around the wilderness looking pretty, the blood came to
Sigil, where his colours shone like the most vibrant
flowers, and hasn't left since.
"Why
was he deposed? Good question. Most of the Animal Lords stay
on their perch until they're put in the dead-book some way
or other, and that doesn't happen often. They're nearly
powers after all. No, the Peacock Lord was exiled by his
charges, the peacocks themselves. Now those beaky cutters
won't answer questions about their affairs, but I'll bet I
know what it was. See, the Peacock Lord was just too vain.
His nest, they say, was bedecked with the trappings of
civilisation; mirrors, expensive clothing and scents, and
fine objets d'art.
"Well,
a race can't give up its quintessential leader lightly, and
merely shunning the primal nature of the Beastlands wasn't
enough. No, the Peacock Lord harboured a deeper secret than
that, see. Fact is, he ain't such a lady's man as everyone
presumes -- see, the cutter prefers the company of peacocks
to peahens if you tumble to my meaning. For sure, it's not
like that's a big issue in a burg like the Cage, but out of
town in a backwater like the Beastlands, when a basher ain't
normal, he ain't wanted, it seems.
"Whether
the Peacock Lord is in exile or just chooses to remain in
the Cage is dark; there's little point in trying to
second-guess the blood because he's as sharp as a heron's
beak. The cutter understands the noble life better than
almost any gold lord, and plays the etiquette game to
perfection. Consequently, he's a darling of the rich and
famous. Some say a party ain't a proper party unless the
Peacock Lord's in attendance, berk. I wonder where he gets
the strength for the endless sleepless nights
meself."
-- Voilá!,
tout and mimir recorder
"The
dark on the Peacock Lord? I couldn't tell you all that much
that isn't fairly common knowledge already, mate. Actually,
tell a lie. The canny berk's found himself a new lover, I
heard the other day. Who? Aw, now, give a girl a chance!
It's all the gossip I have so at least let me build it up a
little! Anyway, I was chatting to Tripicus,
and the disapproving old bear let it slip that he'd bumped
into the Peacock Lord the other day.
"No!
Of course it's not the ursinal! Now that really would
be barkle worth paying for! No, cutter, the 'Lord was arm in
wing with Jovius,
the deva blood. Yeah, the friend of Laurelli
the Trumpet. Oh, I thought
those two were a bit of an item too, but it seems I was
sorely mistaken.
"Anyway,
Tripicus tutted and pshawed about it, the narrow-minded old
stick that he is, but I think it's sweet. About time the
Peacock Lord had some decent luck, I say, the poor fellow.
Must be such a hard life he leads. Hmmm. Did that sound
sarcastic? Probably just because I'm green as Baator steel.
No! Not because of Jovius. He's welcome to that berk. Did I
ever tell you of the time when he...? No? Probably a good
thing, that.
"Oops,
there's Shemeshka.
Better dash...the old scrote's still being funny with me
over that message for the Horde Lord. Best scarper.
'Grace!"
-- Kylie,
tout and message bearer
"Oh,
there's more to the Peacock Lord than his dandy-about-town
image belies, mark my words. Of course, I can't prove a word
of it, but I happen to know he's defected from his animal
lordship to work for a higher power. The goddess of joy and
happiness, Lliira, wanted a new proxy to replace one she'd
lost during the so-called Time of Troubles on that little
prime world Toril, and it seems her agent headhunted this
blood.
"It
probably wasn't an easy decision to leave his noble
lifestyle behind, but my guess is the basher was getting
itchy feet anyway; the Beastlands ain't exactly the most
fashionable street on the Great Road. So leave he did, and
now he operates out of the Cage, sending reports back to his
divine mistress. 'Course, it ain't common knowledge of his
proxydom, because must bashers'll think twice before
inviting someone quite so important to a humble party in
case the thing flopped and word got back to Lliira. Now
that would be a faux pas on a grand
scale!"
-- Magnum
Opus, medusa curator
of the Musée Arcane



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