Volcano's Land - A New Beginning

Game Master Miner Cotren

Kallik, trying to keep a straight face, Lui says, "The closest translation would be prickly, or thorny. A sign of a strong personality, some might say."

Ibinu shrugs as he watches what Culkin's attention keeps popping back and forth. "Oh no need to inspect it, I don't really have a clue how to make one. Any idea where to find one... um, may I ask about the dress? You seem focused on it."

Nodding, "That is one of the nicer things I have been called."

Lacing her fingers behind her head, "Is there something I am supposed to do today?"

Ibinu, Culkin flushes a bright red. "Well, there's this el I see around the Temple every once in a while, and I overheard her lamenting that her nicest dress had a tear in it, and she had no money for a seamstress," he is talking faster and faster, not pausing, "so I piped up and said that I am a seamstress, ha ha, by which of course I meant I was capable of sewing the dress after all it's really much simpler than sewing flesh and- well, you get the idea." He clears his throat.

Kallik, Lui shrugs. "It is not my place to tell you what to do, but I'm sure the council would appreciate the presence of one of the Blessed after your sojourn through the rift." He shrugs. "Otherwise, we could find some leaves today to go with the wood."

Ibinu smiles, "Culkin you old dog!" He gives a nod, "I'll leave you to your work, best of luck!"

He will head out to his next task... which is probably regrouping with his allies and maybe managing the tree stuff? Other than that he just has a bunch of crafting rolls and work to do.

I'm fine with that timetable in discussion, though that Sunday I'm likely to be busy in the afternoon/evening.

Shrugging, "Sure I haven't bothered them today. And I do not need any leaves."

Smiling but still looking forward, "Give me time and I will find some other strange thing to fixate on. I did promise to leave Antonio bored guarding me."

The three of you make your way to the closest thing you have to a home, instinctively finding each other. None of you has ever experienced such a bond before - the wordless camaraderie that comes from shared strife and shared grief.

Ten or twenty feet away, Edoardo confers briefly with Lui and Sophia. Almost immediately, all three of them start to leave the room. Sophia exits right, and Lui goes left. Edoardo turns and says, "If you need anything, call." He settles in right outside, the door open a crack.

As always, there is a mostly fresh assortment of food and rocks, alongside drinking water and washing water. Fresh sheets on comfortable beds...and really, nothing else. No more idly perfect drawings from Egret, her clever sylphan fingers fluidly sketching pine trees and hawks, needles and feathers sharply defined. The girl's absence is palpable, almost a weight in the air.

Inam enters your quarters, friendly though withdrawn. Etrah's plumage seems tired and wan, sporting subdued reds and pale oranges.

who speaks first?

Kallik and Inam, you notice something odd- the now-healed scars left by Ssarkofaugos's claws upon Ibinu's face are not the shiny-white of a regular scar. Instead, they have a faint golden tint to them, and they reflect torchlight like a mirror

Glancing over her companions silently, she offers a half-hearted curtsy...though it's obvious her mind is elsewhere. Letting out a long, ragged sigh, she forces a smile over her features.

Looking up from the floor, she begins "So, how are you g...." Trailing off as she takes in Ibinu's new look for the first time, she blurts out, unceremoniously "What happened to you?!"

Looking up at the shouting, Etrah shrugs and flitters towards the food. Picking at it a bit, he keeps Ibinu in sight.

'This is sure to be interesting' considers the phoenix as it finds something suitably palatable.

Glancing up from her food at Ibinu, "That is odd."

Ibinu wanders in, surprised a bit to finally see his allies. They seem to be rushing around managing business lately. He shrugs as he gathers up some food. I guess I've been just as busy lately.

His brow furrows for a second when Inam exclaims. He thinks and then replies, "oh you noticed, excellent." Ibinu pulls his pack off his shoulder, "I know it isn't much different in look from my last pack, but this one has some interesting features!" He hefts it easily up and down with one arm, "see, very light!"

Opening it up he starts pulling out his entire alchemy set and placing it on his desk, "and look at all the storage space!"

With their blank looks he looks down at his new armor and then realizes they aren't talking about his pack, "OH YEAH! I FORGOT! I figured out what the armor that assassin was wearing and it's better than what I had so I'm wearing it now. It has some special benefits. Mainly I can turn invisible and silent once per day for 10 minutes. Granted, it has a minor downside of maybe backfiring and making that effect permanent but if I really needed it, it's good to have!"

He takes a bite of apple, "so how are you all?

Titling her head and staring at Ibnui in all of his excitement. "Permanent is a really long time and I would not call that minor. Also your scars are golden."

Before Ibinu can answer, you all hear Kallik's axe chime that same clear note - a tuning-fork perfect C.

Kallik only has time to mutter something about the iron bell before it happens.

From just outside the walls of the Temple, you hear a earth-rattling thump. One second later, a drunken chiming sound wobbles through the air – you realize that one of the Temple bells has been struck, hard. The warped, strangely beautiful note continues for a long moment, then-

A sudden thunderclap of hideous shrieking, a chorus of ten thousand flayed and screaming elens, fills the air. The broken-glass wails become louder, and louder, intolerably-

and then there is only ringing silence.

Eyeing Ibinu inquisitively, she takes in the items as he rattles them off in turn. 'Huh...hadn't noticed any of that...but what about your face?!'

She starts to asked more pointedly, "Neat, but your...."**CLANK**"

Jerking towards the sound, she instinctively grabs her blade as Etrah takes flight. With but a glance towards her companions, she remarks "Nice Ibinu. Lets see how it works...NOW!"

Rushing from the room, she stops just outside briefly. "Edoardo, come! We must see what that was about!" Without another word, Inam sprints away.

Edoardo nods, already in motion. Lui and Sophia fall into step behind you.

Outside, you behold a strange sight - a huge root, hundreds of feet long, rests upon the side of the Temple. The tip of the root, which is taller than Egret, comes to a stop right next to the former location of the iron bell of alarm.

The bell itself rests in ten thousand pieces upon the dirt far below. As you watch, you see dozens of arms poke out of the ground. The thick arms, obviously orean, grab the bell pieces and, just as quickly, disappear back into the ground.

Ibinu looks in concern at Kallik then moves to touch his scars, "um... wait what?" His musing interupted by the call to action, he dashes out into the hallway after Inam.

"Is that an order? Cause I don't want to risk any permanent magical mishap just on a whim." He hustles as they dash towards whatever.

Finding the root outside is almost as concerning as the bell disappearing underground. "It's GOTTA BE AN ATTACK! First strike to take out the warning system! Prepare yourselves!"

He turns to Kallik as he slams an elixir back, "any idea why your race would attack?"

Elixir of False Life used.

1d10 + 6 ⇒ (6) + 6 = 12 Temp HP

"Is that an order? Cause I don't want to risk any permanent magical mishap just on a whim." He hustles as they dash towards whatever.

Glancing over her shoulder as she runs down the hall, she calls back "What? No, of course not. I only meant it's ability to protect you and that backpack."

Once outside...

Stopping suddenly in her tracks, Inam looks up at the root. "Uh...I...what in the...Is that a tree?!"

Unable to stop in time, Etrah flies headlong into Inams back. Bouncing off, her nearly falls to the ground before he rights himself.

Landing softly to take in the view, he frowns. "Well...that was a root...and those look like Kallik's kind." he observes. "Should we pursue or regroup?"

Yelling over at Ibinu, "Then don't use the abilities."

Coming to a stop and staring at the now gone and stolen bell. Turning to the two sylph's, "Not my tribe so I do not know them."

Sucking in a deep breath and glaring at the massive root, "We need to pursue."

Antonio--who used to be one of Ibinu's, but is now Kallik's second guard--clears his throat. "If you don't mind my saying, it is not an attack on the Temple. It is an attack on the bell only. When it rang after So Khong's murder, it had a...strongly unpleasant effect on the Tree, and all oreads near him." He speaks quietly.

As the young-ish oread explains this, voice muffled by his visored helmet, you all see the gargantuan root start to recede. It is slowly shrinking away from the Temple, leaving unharmed obsidian behind. Only the bell, and its cast iron stand, are gone. Two thick iron staples stubbornly remain behind, the only testament to the bell's existence.

Where do you go? Follow the rapidly retreating root?

A smile smile forms on Kallik's green lips while staring at the receding root. Shrugging in response to Antonio, "I did not think that it was an attack though someone should let the temple know that." That said she starts to follow the root.

Ibinu pipes up in support of Kallik's assumption, "I concur. It appears to be the tree elder thing acting to protect itself and oreads. "

He follows after Kallik, "though I do think we need to go have a few words with said wooden being. Maybe try to figure out some ground rules to prevent mistakes from sparking something bad in town."

He looks over to Inam, "and while we are already renovating the temple, might as well get it done right!"

He whispers to a guard, "can you advise Captain Dove of our beliefs as to the nature of this occurrence and our intentions to go speak with the tree to confirm that this was not meant to be a type of attack?

I have a ton of games going right this second, they all sorta started at the same time and a few I expected to be done are still dragging along. I may miss a posting need here so don't hesitate to toss out a reminder if it has been a day or two. Thanks!

Giovanni, your remaining guard along with Sophia, nods and goes toward the council chambers to inform Dove. Edoardo, Lui, Sophia, and the others form a vanguard around you as you leave the Temple. A small crowd gathers in the courtyards, and frightened elens shout to you-

"-the Blessed!"

"Fenice Madre, what has happened?"

"a phoenix all right-"

"--please! When will our city have peace?"

and more voices that begin to drown each other out. The crowd is not angry or desperate, but they are certainly nervous.

Ibinu nudges Inam and says quietly, "I think the locals could use some reassurance and a reminder that we are facing new things that can be blessings too."

Unable to help herself, her mind wanders back to her mother once more as her companions discuss the bell and root. Feeling Ibinu's touch, she nods, "Huh...Yes...yes of course."

Stepping forward, she smiles politely. "Fear not fellow elen. We have seen what happened here and are headed to speak with those involved. We believe it's a simple misunderstanding."

Pausing a moment, she chuckles. "You know, that would be the mildest and easiest thing we've encountered lately. Don't you think? We've been to the land of the dead and returned. Trust us to find a quick resolution to this new complication as well. Do we look worried?"

"I can undoubtedly affirm, we are not. Please, relax and go about your day. We hope to update soon."

With a deep curtsy to those milling about, she returns to her place within the group. "Thanks Ibinu. Oh, before I forget again...seems things keep coming up. I'd like you to do some research for me if it's not too much to ask....when you have time of course. What would cause a person to be incapable of keeping a fire burning? I'm looking for reasons of a magical nature."

Inam, the crowd swells somewhat, not in anger or violence, but simply wanting to get closer to you. Several battered copies of the Rove Voce (the Burning Voice) are pushed toward you, and you hear pleas to touch their books, bless their families, and slay the terrible spawn so their sons can come home.

Ibinu starts to reply, "that's an odd request, I think I need more infor..." and then the swell of the crowd pushes it out of his mind. Interrupting the mass, "we need to go. Arrange a speech later to explain our findings and you can greet your public then."

If Inam hesitates, Etrah quickly flies around and touches the books and outstretched hands. The more fanatic among the crowd are satisfied, and eventually everyone disperses back to their lives.

Locking her fingering into fists but not backing up as the crowd swarms up. Glancing over at Inam, "Sounds like Volcano is angry. It could be a curse. Those things seem rather popular right now." Or a remnate of Sky. You need air for fire after all but that would just start another argument.

As they follow root-sign, Ibinu takes in Kallik's thoughts. "That does seem like a distinct possibility. Could said elen have annoyed a deity?"

Allowing Etrah to handle the crowd, Inam falls in with her companions and moves forward. "Lets hope it's not a curse..." she mutters. "If it is though, hopefully we can end it."

"I'm sure it's possible the gods are punishing someone...but even if that's the case there should be a way to appease it."

The...Steamless Slums no longer holds mephits or a rift. The low-quality stone buildings remain, squat and cracked. You see evidence of oread families living in these abandoned places. But in truth there is but one thing that defines the slums - the Tree.

Eighty or ninety feet tall now, the Tree can easily be seen from the Temple, and visible to most of the city (except the extreme corners). Despite its towering presence, the Tree seems ill, shadowy. The vibrant brown bark has faded to a dull gray. The leaves, too, are various tones of charcoal and ash.

The same ancient oread ele meets you soon after you enter the slums. The grandmother is helped by a different granddaughter (or grandniece) than last time. The bright eyes, surrounded by bark-etched wrinkles, take each of you in as she hobbles over.

"Ukwamukeleka." (welcome) She waves her hand, slowly, slowly through the air, beckoning you. "My name is Dowanhowee. We have time to talk now, and I would know more about you, so I can explain you to the Young Elder."

Glancing at Inam, "The Gods are fickle. Do we get to know more about who it is? It took Ibinu quiet a lot to be rid of his curse."

-----

Staring at the massive tree and not altering her gaze until spoken to by Dowanhowee. Turning her head to stare at the ele, "What is it you are wanting?"

Gesturing towards the tree, "The Young Elder might not know but you all should have. Why did you simply break and steal the bell?"

Ibinu adds a question after taking a long look at the tree, "is the Young Elder okay? It seems ill."

lop

Dowanhowee looks at each of you. "Those were made from the stolen bones of dead oreads." She shrugs. "If you had experienced the Young Elder's outrage..." She trails off, overcome with emotion. The grandniece gives her a flask of water - she drinks, and calms. "Then, you would understand why we acted quickly."

The ancient ele turns her slow attention toward Kallik. "I could give you an echo of the vision, if you would like to know how it feels to be an oread in the city of Hearth right now." Her bright eyes do not judge, but she regards you keenly.

To be clear, the bell was made of bones?

Glancing over at Ibinu then Inam before refocusing on Dowanhowee and nodding.

Kallik, Dowanhowee nods in response, looking sorrowful as she reaches a gentle hand to brush your forehead.

Jerking back and looking around wildly. A few unsteady steps backwards before her feet simply give out on her. Landing on her ass and staring blankly at the ground in-front of her while visibly struggling to steady her breathing.

Ibinu gives a sad little sigh, "honestly, it should but doesn't surprise me that the temple would do something like that. With all we've seen..."

As Kallik allows the vision and then collapses he steps over and puts a hand on her shoulder, "are you okay?"

Ibinu gives a sad little sigh, "honestly, it should but doesn't surprise me that the temple would do something like that. With all we've seen..."

As Kallik allows the vision and then collapses he steps over and puts a hand on her shoulder, "are you okay?"

Jerking from the touch and turning to stare up at Ibinu. Giving a small shake of her head in the negative, "There were bodies with not bones.. Just writhing in agony... They do not kill but make misery last an eternity."

Glancing over at the Quiet Elder, "That temple was built on slaughter and pain. Nothing good comes from that vile place."

Dowanhowee looks pained at Kallik's distress. "I am sorry, my child. I wish we did not live in times with such pain." A deep sigh. Quietly she says, "Even if we had counseled the Young Elder to caution, I doubt we would have been heeded."

She has not taken you directly to the Tree yet. You can see its proud height stretching above the rooftops, still two or so blocks away. As Kallik recovers from the shock of the vision, you all hear the thunderous rumbling of a hundred oread feet stomping in rythm - a sound Kallik recognizes as The Dance That Honors the Elders.

Shifting her gaze to Dowanhowee, "It is not your fault or the Elder's but the plague of monsters wearing pious masks."

The wizened oread nods. "Now, before I bring you before the Young Elder, what do you intend to say? I will be translating for at least the two of you, as the Elder has not chosen to speak to any but his own kind as of late."

Ibinu looks at his allies and rolls his eyes a bit before speaking as accent-free Oread as a Sylph can manage, "kahle akuyona okokuqala okwenzekayo. Ngiyahamba nawe ukuhumusha mina, asifuni ukucasula."

He continues in common, "I believe we merely seek to gauge the Young Elder's intentions in Hearth and try to figure out if we can help each other out. The Young Elder's presence here, I believe, is a fantastic opportunity for this town. Long has it been held under the shadow of Volcano and specifically under the nastiest aspect of the deity. We are intent on changing how all elen are treated in this town and diverse representation of all gods is an excellent start to that."