Terexaltherin nods slightly, his tail lashing. I think I'll stay here. I'm sure we're going to get attacked here too.
Gift arrives at the edge of crowd
Strandel's entourage parts and he approaches the driver, who has the head of a tiger and a body like a muscular human carved of marble. When he gets within twenty feet, suddenly the entity waves it's hands and a large snake jumps out of nowhere, wrapping itself around Strandel. . At this point, the crowd surges forward obscuring Strandel's vision - but the end of the round, he isn't grappled anymore . Gift sees the crowd surge forward towards the Driver, who turns and flees.
Armaund reports the situation to the hive mind, letting Minna and Terex know what's happening.
She pulls up her rifle and takes slow aim at the driver as it runs. Taking her time she aims for its lower body, and legs.
She is aiming to drop it to the linch mob can catch up.
::"Well seems Strandel you have turned the tide, you want me to pop its head?"::
Strandel's entourage parts and he approaches the driver, who has the head of a tiger and a body like a muscular human carved of marble. When he gets within twenty feet, suddenly the entity waves it's hands and a large snake jumps out of nowhere, wrapping itself around Strandel. . At this point, the crowd surges forward obscuring Strandel's vision - but the end of the round, he isn't grappled anymore . Gift sees the crowd surge forward towards the Driver, who turns and flees.
Strandel quickly recovers from the manhandling, and looks aghast. "How rude!" The satyr comments as the crowd swarms the aggressive driver.
::"Well seems Strandel you have turned the tide, you want me to pop its head?"::
:Maybe. We'll see what's left of him.: The bard responds over the hivemind.
Terexaltherin splits his time between keeping watch for trouble, making sure the fusion plant is working properly, and checking on <Shimmer>.
Already manhandled by the crowd, the Driver collapses and turns into an inky smoke when Gift's shot hits him. This disturbs the Tarnuviens but things stabilize fairly easily after that - it seems all the Drivers have fled.
Armaund flies invisibly up and reports that the other two seem to be dispersing in multiple directions, their Drivers apparently no longer present.
<Shimmer> has the power it needs to attempt to remove the egg and will still be difficult and unpredictable.
She was a little surprised when the Driver vaporized, and quickly put her hands up to show the crewed she was not doing anymore Violance.
::"We have neutralized the mobs, taking Strandel to the others so he can work his love magics. After we should help Strandel get his followers to the hill. Meet you there?"::
Then she goes to the others.
As the large group walk to the Hill, Strandel regales them with news of the Hill, the Strandelelians; both singular and two-headed; and plays his melodies of verdant First World forests, Seelie Prince and Princesses, and overcoming adversity.
All right, Minna, let's get back with the others, Terexaltherin begins, then pauses. Uh, right, we'd better ask for a pickup, neither of us is all that good at covering large distances quickly.
He sends a message over to Gift asking for help getting back.
She comes and posts the others back to the hill. Then ports herself back to the fusion core to oversee the power transfer.
So the party rearrange themselves, Strandel and Armaund with the marching Strandelians, Gift at the reactor ready to channel power and Terex and Minna at the Hill ready to use <Shimmer> to extract the "egg" (or whatever it is) and send it elsewhere. It's still a day and half before the worms could arrive - their energy seems a bit diminished from half a day ago, however.
As they are beginning their final preparations, Minna says to Terex, "I am feeling like we need Strandel here to do the ritual, it feels like this is his hill and the resistance is going to be higher without him - and his wonderful songs can inspire us"
Unless the situation is dire, Strandel will march his new disciples to The Hill to meet the other Strandelelians.
Oh, the grand old Fay of Love,
He had ten thousand androgynous nonbinary shapeshifters;
He marched them up to the top of the hill,
And he marched them down again.
When they were up, they were up,
And when they were down, they were down,
And when they were only halfway up,
They were neither up nor down.
Gift waits to for the qu to send the enargys.
Strandel, Armaund, probably better if you get back to the hill fast, we'll want you for extracting the Dark Trader device, Terexaltherin sends while nodding agreement to Minna.
The preparations for the "operation" on the Hill are set. Minna and Terex have laid out the tools in the proper order and rehearsed the plan, such as it is. A lot will depend on how the "egg" reacts to <Shimmer>'s effort to move to a pocket dimension.
With that done, Minna brews some tea in a very small self-kettle that levitates on the force of it's one steam and drinks the sweat tea slowly. "We have until soon before the worms arrive to do this, still, soon would be good
As the pair look out over the hill, Terex notices a slightly blur close to horizon, which moves into and out of view a couple. Something invisible is out there... The pair are surrounded by many Strandelians, some dancing and singing, some keeping watch and treating the military of this in mind.
Strandel, Armaund, probably better if you get back to the hill fast, we'll want you for extracting the Dark Trader device, Terexaltherin sends while nodding agreement to Minna.
:Alright. I'll grab a wing with Armaund, be there soon.:
Strandel turns to his speak to his massive following."My Friends! I am needed at The Hill! I go before you and wish you can all come with us, but this sounds very important, so we must not dauddle!"
When the steel dragon is ready, the satyr climbs on his back and flies back to The Hill.
Right, I think we'll start as soon as Strandel gets here... Terexaltherin's telepathic message trails off into static as he notices something.
...There's something invisible out there, he says, after a few moments. Minna, I'm going to go take a look. Keep an eye on things here?
With that he cautiously heads out in the direction of what he'd spotted, trying to stay out of sight himself as he does.
Terex isn't able to sense any creature in the thirty five minutes it takes for Armaund get back but he does find an occasional skeletal footprint or disturbed area. What ever was (and probably is) lurking around is being cautious - invisible and stealthy and moving frequently.
When Armaund returns with Strandel, he volunteers to keep watch while Terex, Minna and Gift go to work.
Minna give Strandel a hug when he arrives and asks that he sing to shimmer as the process continues.
Gift begins to powering up the reactor and Minna channels the energy into <Shimmer> who creates an empty, parallel demiplane only a hair's breath in multispace away from the ordinary hill - the sacredness of The Hill means requires far more energy than such an ordinary act would require for <Shimmer> (Minna and <Shimmer> are straining..).
So the process begins.
rom Tiktok is
Once the process begins, Strandel hears in his head the voice of the Creation Spirit saying "What is going on my friend, I feel as if some deep part of me is being ripped out! Explain this..." Armaund flies overhead openly now, scanning for threats with nothing appearing yet.
Gift oversees the power tranfure
Minna give Strandel a hug when he arrives and asks that he sing to shimmer as the process continues.
The satyr does the gnome one-better and picks her up and kisses her. "Mmm. Such a welcome." Strandel puts Minna back down and walks toward the ritual site with a calm confidence.
The leader of the Strandelelians begins to play his music, using bardic performances and channel energy to power the process.
Once the process begins, Strandel hears in his head the voice of the Creation Spirit saying "What is going on my friend, I feel as if some deep part of me is being ripped out! Explain this..." Armaund flies overhead openly now, scanning for threats with nothing appearing yet.
Strandel spoke to the great earth elemental in the ether. "My great friend, please forgive the disruption. But like an endangered flower in the path of destruction; I, and my friends, are transplanting you to a safe place far from the worms we talked about earlier, in hope of replanting you in the soil you are used to. It is my greatest hope that this is a very temporarly solution. Please have faith in me. I do not wish you harm."
Terexaltherin does his best to support <Shimmer> and Minna during the set-up of the demiplane, then slips through to it as soon as it's ready. He takes in the scene quickly and then speaks with Minna.
We have to go slowly and carefully. I'll use my telekinesis to move it, you keep an eye out for any last-ditch traps while I do.
Then the little dragon gets to work removing the 'egg' from its place.
In the mundane world: The creator spirit sends to Strandel... "I do not understand but I will have faith in you for a short time..." Armaund circles, the Strandelians play harps and flutes, fight mock battles and engage in sensual enjoyment in the shade of the hill. Wine grapes are already starting growing on the hill and the dry weeds have been cleared. Still everyone has feeling of foreboding, knowing some arcane struggle is occurring...
In the semi-plane: Terex slowly and careful moves the thing from it's resting spot. The air itself seems thick and resistant. The thing seems to have some half-awake awareness of what's happening, one tentacle is floating out of shell, lazily probing the area. Gradually, it reaches the edge and very slowly comes to rest - Minna gives the cue for <Shimmer> to send the thing hurtling through the planes and for the pair to leave and they begin to go but exactly at the point they are fading, another tentacle from the thing lashes out and grabs Terex...
So Minna and Terex appear on the mundane plane but with a thing wrapped partly around Terex and Minna trying to help Terex get it off. Armaund is flying down from the sky like a rocket... Strandel hears inside his mind "Now I see the problem you have freed me of, thank you my friend...
Gift sends the last pules of power and then starts to power down the restore to a safe state.
Then she gets ready to port back to the others.
"Oh dear.."
Strandel rushes over to the struggling pseudodragon and gnome to assist against the alien attack.
Finding the tentacle too slimy, the satyr calls out to his Strandelelians.
"My beautiful babies! Help , please!"
Gift ports in and at once see there is a problem
She whips her weapon around and a needle-thin beam of pour laser energy comes out and seeks to slice the tentacle in half.
Terexaltherin's telepathic roar is much louder and more impressive than his physical roar. Unfortuantely, it's his physical sting and teeth he has to rely on right now, since being squeezed by a tentacle is ruining his mental concentration.
With so many creatures converging on Terex and Minna, the scene is chaotic and the miniature dragon suffers some harm but the tentacle is torn off, cut in half and disappears in black smoke and Terex and Minna to appear safe, fifty feet away from the excited crowd of saviors.
And with the event, the now apparent curse on the land seems fully lifted, the worms don't vanish but seem shrink and lose their direction and moving aimlessly.
Evidence of the Dark Traders more or less stops here. They could apparently see the writing on the wall. Rumors, however, appear of one or more alternate groups of stabilized Tarnuviens - especially followers of "fundamentalist" tarnuviens like Ishoomi of Kolsaneosha who you met earlier.
Gift lung her weapon back around her back, and powered down her force field. Then she walked over to Terex and Minna, shoving the Tarnuviens out of the way with her powered suit.
She helped the small dragon up.
::"Your plan worked Terex, cut it tight but it worked, my drones are following the worms and they seem to be harmless now. Cut of from the food source they will wither and die. We should take one back for study, The lab guys would love to get one up close."::
She then helps Minna
::"So you still want to run with us? I know a Fay songsmith who would like to take you home to meet mum and daddy fey"::
She joked.
::"Hay Strandel our heroes could do with some of the healing back rubs of yours, you old perv-goat. That is if you can pry yourself away from your lovers."::
Once things were sorted she check on the power plants and set up comes links for the cities. This one had been a hard one, The traders were getting smarter and more sophisticated. Going back in time and planting a seed of destruction in a plane. Shipping worms here was high-level plains killing. They were not raiding anymore, they were industrializing the process. As she worked she wrote her report up V Hexqil who was more than cable of doing so. then she took time to place one of the drone AIs into her suit so it was self-activating. It was a simple transfer process and helped her with the comms setup.
Once done she wanted to get back to Sigil and her own place. Her adoptive mother was being wired and her father was suspicious, but as her 1st life memories had come back. She was less inclined to help. Being reprogrammed as a child was still smart. And she was getting flashbacks of the war. She had to work out what was real and what was not. And that meant some me time. She had been drafted into the Agency, in her child version but if the truth is known, Now when she had most of herself back, she felt it was work she could do and felt more and more like her true home.
With so many creatures converging on Terex and Minna, the scene is chaotic and the miniature dragon suffers some harm but the tentacle is torn off, cut in half and disappears in black smoke and Terex and Minna to appear safe, fifty feet away from the excited crowd of saviors.
Strandel can clearly see Terexaltherin's wound and cast cure serious wounds on the pseudodragon.
"There, there. Right as rain, Terex." The satyr cooed. "Anything else I can help you with?"
With all signs pointing to a quickly-restored plane, Strandel talks with the group about some immediate plans.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, with your permission, I'd like to spend one more day on this plane and with my people", Strandel explains. "I wish to commune one more time with the Earth Spirit in the morning fresh. I hope to shore up the plane and our helpful earth buddy with power before we return to Sigil, in hopes that the restoration will stick."::"Hay Strandel our heroes could do with some of the healing back rubs of yours, you old perv-goat. That is if you can pry yourself away from your lovers."::
Noticing the joking tone of her telepathic voice, Strandel responds. ::Interesting. I've never used my therapeutic hands on an artificial muscle structure. What a wonderful challenge you have set before me!!::
::You know, there a flat bit of rock about 3 miles northwest of here. We could set up there. You would lay down on my bed roll, and I could get to work. What do you say?::
::"Really! you think that will work on me do you"::
She points at Minna and Terexaltherin
::"I mean, Them!! you randy, one-track-minded, incorrigible fay! they need it, I'm fine, well I could do with some down time to reintegrate my AIs, but nothing you can help with, now go cavort and heal strumpit"::
She smiles as he walks off, looks like the new guy has earned his boots.
That was an interesting viewpoint, he could be right, she was going to think about that later, not now, however, things to do now, But she felt she pass should on her own perspective. One relative to him.
::"Arr, Tricky things feelings, messy complicated and troublesome, one must always be careful not to get lost in them. Have fun at the orgy Strandel."::
And with that, she ported away to check on the worms.
Terexaltherin pants on the ground for a few moments after the tendril is destroyed, wings drooping with fatigue. After he's feeling a bit recovered, he broadcasts a wordless gratitude to everyone, then a more specific thanks to Strandel for the healing.
As the pseudodragon flies off, the satyr thinks, An asexual being. Poor bastard.
Gift is laying down on a hill, at a distance of 4km the worms of close to being specks in the distance. Aimless and well smaller she tracks them with her scope and an airal feed from drones high overhead, she is still until the shock wave from yet another shot. The tiny adamant round takes moments to cover the distance and see the result as the worm jolts with the impact. There is a spray of flesh and one more slump still. That one had taken 23 hits to drop, She was getting better at working out the critical spots. The 1st had taken 48. Her weapon recharged and she scop'ed in another. This was not combat, it was pest control and she was not going to take them all out, she would keep two for the lab boys. But while the organics got dirty with each other she would take this chance for some target pratice. It was while she was waiting to take the next shot that she realized two Tarnuviens where coming her way. She powered off her weapon and stood to greet them. As they came closer she could see there where more stabilized and well, healthy than before the removal.
One held up an appendage.
"Greetings, me and my friend here saw you from our home and wanted to know who you were and what you're doing."
Gift held up her hand in greeting.
"I am one of the travelers that help fix the world. 'Gift' is my name, that is the who, what I am doing is finishing off the fixing, by removing some leftover trouble."
They seemed happy with this but still curious.
"You are not like us, you seem different."
Gift got this a lot on planes that only had organic intelligence.
"Yes unlike you, an organic flesh from, I am metallic and Silicate based form."
They looked at each other non plused.
"I am not made of meat as you are, but complex minerals"
They still looked uncomprehending.
"Ok your made out of blood and meat, I am made out of metal and oil"
This they understood, she rolled her eyes.
"Well I had better get back to it"
They again looked at each other.
"We are about to have dinner, would you like to each with us and our families?"
She looked back at the few worms and thought a moment.
Looking back at them, she slung her weapon around her back and nodded.
"Yes I would like that very much, you can tell me all about yourselves."
She walked off with them to a small village.
So the party familiarize themselves with the various permutation Tarnuvien society has taken, with villages and larger settlements moving in multiple directions, generally peacefully, with Strandelians winding up 30-40% of the final population and other varieties taking up the remainder, all living in relative harmony though with some conflict.
The 10th city, Acarvan within Kolsaneosha, reveals itself and offers itself as place of learning while The Hill will be a great gathering spot for Strandelians but not a city.
Active weather returns to the plane, with a thunder storms drenching the entire area in the fifth day after the renewal. And the process goes on for a short while without thought of or contact from The Organization.
Then, after a week or so, Aranuna of The Organization appears in a sending. The half-metal Aasimar says "My friends, well done, can I welcome you back home? We once again need your skills.
Taking maybe another day, the party finally steps through the offered gate and returns to The Organization's Sigil headquarters ... which has once shifted locations ... to a large, ornate building that was apparently once a ashram of an obscure religion and which now is fill with several hundred Organization members engaged in planar research of a variety of sorts. Stepping off the Landing Area, you are greeted briefly by Ari Shadowfire, who seems friendly and serious (serious for her), "My friends, our long time members have done excellently as always and our newer recruits have proved their value. I may have time to catch up with some of you in private later (eyeing Armaund and Strandel) but I will be once again quite busy now" Pausing, "The situation is this, our forces have managed finally to get a handle on the Hell Galaxy and after the explosion of infestations was most taken care of, the situation has settled to a more normal stalemate. This gives us a short time to once again investigate the enemy on every possible front. This will be something like a very quick seminar for all in the organization. All of us will be students, many of us researchers and some of us teachers. The period will be fifteen days, Of course, we will spend time in recreation and strengthening our ties. So if you must at least come for the parties. Of course you'll remember your reports also" once she's oriented you, she gives warm hugs all around and finds a newer recruit to give a tour of the new digs.
After the greetings, Gift checked out her room in HQ, small but useful. Then down to the labs and she talks to them about the worms and downloading data.
"We need to go back there and grab one. Put a team givever and we will do this in the next few days, Then at the meeting, we can talk to them about how they work and what me and agent Terexaltherin did to dimatil them"
The meeting went into the night and the next morning.
As HQ was close to her adopted mothers and fathers it was not a long walk to get there. As she got to the gate, she was shocked to see her adopted mother and father just outside, with her brothers once again babies.
"Oookkkk"
she said as she pulled up Arlo, Her adopted father looked at her and simply said.
"Gift, your back."
he looked down at his sons,
"Long story, come in love and we will tell you all about it"
Gift nodded and followed them inside with them.
After she heard the tail, she then explained to them about her remembering her 1st life as a soldier and what happened to her before then found her body. She still had the haybrid soul they have given her and she was grafull, but she was a little older than they thought. So acting like a kid was no longer a thing. They were kind and grafull she had not left the family. She was and always would be a Fitzroy-Brighthammer. And she added, her brothers would need her to train them in none dwarf hammer weapons. So she stelled in and home. Her mother gave her body a full check-over. And was very interested in the odd psionic phasing that had happened. They worked to place an AI in her suit that would take some of the load off her looking after the spy drones.
Then she headed back to HQ to see how the research into the worms was going.
Once back in her HQ room she strips off her tech suit and had a shower, coming out of the shower, she went to the main room and looked out of the window some 14 floors up at the streets below behind around the torus of Sigil. She dried off and signed her suit's new AI to play something nice.
Relaxing she danced to the music as she wrote up the last parts of her repost in her head.
So the party familiarize themselves with the various permutation Tarnuvien society has taken, with villages and larger settlements moving in multiple directions, generally peacefully, with Strandelelians winding up 30-40% of the final population and other varieties taking up the remainder, all living in relative harmony though with some conflict.
Many of the Strandelelians come to say goodbye to the satyr before moving out into the greater world. Strandel sees them off, like a proud perverted father, wishing them the best and to keep his lessons in their hearts and loins.
The 10th city, Acarvan within Kolsaneosha, reveals itself and offers itself as place of learning while The Hill will be a great gathering spot for Strandelelians but not a city.
Strandel does teach the musically-inclined among the Strandelelians the musical and magical ritual to commune and feed the great earth spirit in The Hill, under Terexaltherin's watchful gaze. The satyr recommends this be done at least once a year, but it can be done every season or every day if they choose.
Active weather returns to the plane, with a thunder storms drenching the entire area in the fifth day after the renewal. And the process goes on for a short while without thought of or contact from The Organization.
Strandel dances around in the thunderstorm as he celebrates the rain returning to the land. The more sane of the Strandelelians look in wonder at the downpour from cover.
Then, after a week or so, Aranuna of The Organization appears in a sending. The half-metal Aasimar says "My friends, well done, can I welcome you back home? We once again need your skills. “
On his last night with his people, Strandel organized a huge orgy with the remaining Strandelelians on The Hill. The next morning was a tearful goodbye for many of the Strandelelians as their leader left to go to parts unknown.
”My dear Strandelelians”, the satyr began his goodbye speech. ”I had no intention of founding another race of like-minded beings. I was just set here to help my new team battle the forces of evil. What this dying world world gave me was an opportunity to give my knowledge to a people desperate to heed my lesson. Knowing you all, oh how I know so many of you”, Strandel chuckled, ”has been one of the highlights of my life. Now like so many messianic saviors before, I too much leave you to continue to fight the forces that brought this plane into ruin in the first place. I do not know, if I will ever be back, but I sincerely hope so. To see you or your descendants again. To see how you've grown in this Age of Rebirth. I shall miss you all in ways even I can't express. I love you all. Farewell.”Taking maybe another day, the party finally steps through the offered gate and returns to The Organization's Sigil headquarters ... which has once shifted locations ... to a large, ornate building that was apparently once a ashram of an obscure religion and which now is fill with several hundred Organization members engaged in planar research of a variety of sorts. Stepping off the Landing Area, you are greeted briefly by Ari Shadowfire, who seems friendly and serious (serious for her), "My friends, our long time members have done excellently as always and our newer recruits have proved their value. I may have time to catch up with some of you in private later” ”but I will be once again quite busy now."
Strandel leans over to Armaund and whispers, ”I'm thinking three-way. Her, me, and you. A great way to cement our friendship.”
Pausing, "The situation is this, our forces have managed finally to get a handle on the Hell Galaxy and after the explosion of infestations was most taken care of, the situation has settled to a more normal stalemate. This gives us a short time to once again investigate the enemy on every possible front. This will be something like a very quick seminar for all in the organization. All of us will be students, many of us researchers and some of us teachers. The period will be fifteen days, Of course, we will spend time in recreation and strengthening our ties. So if you must at least come for the parties. Of course you'll remember your reports also." Once she's oriented you, she gives warm hugs all around and finds a newer recruit to give a tour of the new digs.
Strandel sighs to himself as he waits to get assigned a tour group. I guess Sigil will have to wait till later. I hope it has a decent night life, the satyr ponders.
During the tour with the others, Strandel witnessed the new building and set up. Despite given a young male grippli as a tour guide, the frog man keep looking for excuse to look at the extremely handsome Strandel. After the tour, Strandel met with other members of The Organization, and then did what Strandel does best: make new friends. All he meet seemed enchanted by the fey.
Strandel reluctantly stayed for all the seminars and mission briefings, not because he wanted to. One time, during a history of Dark Trader expansions, Strandel covered his face with his hands and screamed into them. Obviously the lesson stopped, and Strandel saw the entire classroom staring at him when he uncovered his eyes. ”Oh sorry”, Strandel said sheepishly. ”I just couldn't stand anymore without screaming. Please. Continue.” Despite his reluctance to learn and be a bard, Strandel's time among The Organization members was too bad. Many of them fawned over the exceedingly charismatic fey, often getting him drinks, snack, and eventual shoulder massages.
After his work in The Organization ended for the day, the nights were all Strandel's. Many members, including Armaund, went out with the fey and took in various clubs, dance halls, taverns, and brothels in nearly all the districts of Sigil. During one of these night time exclusions, Strandel became introduced to Society of Sensation, or The Sensates. This faction, like most of Sigil were infatuated with Strandel, his music, his bravado, his musk, everything. So for a few weeks it was days of learning at The Organization and nights of the best planar debauchery Sigil could offer. During this time, Strandel reunited several times with Bethia, and rumor has it, had several mid-lunch delights in closets and other out of the way places with Minna.
Sure the satyr had to occasionally deal with potential basher who tried to rob him on the streets, but Strandel always came out on top. Sigil was Strandel's oyster. Though the skies were still quite brown from urban pollution, it seemed wherever Strandel was, the sun shined down upon him and his many sexual conquests.
A group of dust-is moved out the way as Gift walks along the street, she was not in her tech suit but had on simple clothing. This did not mean she was not protected, A psicystral was flouting close to her when she spotted Strandel stanging along with a group of hangers-on. In little over a week, he had garnered quite the reputation. There were some very interesting tails about his exploits. She fell in behind the group as it headed into a club she had not even known was there. A Devil stoped her at the door.
"You on the list?"
"I'm with that horned sex obsessed reprobate Strandel, you going to let me in or am I going to have to make you think you're a 6-year-old girl for the rest of your existence?"
She nudged his mind, not much but he felt it.
he unhooked the rope and nodded her to go in.
As she passed him she said.
"No trouble or your out"
"Meee! The very idea"
She flashed him a grin and was in.
What greeted her was flesh, lots and lots of flesh, sweety in most cases, oiled in others. It was not really her things but the music, now that was worth dancing too.
She hit the dance floor like a demon and was soon dancing with a group of Succubus.
"What?!" a red-haired githyanki shouted to Strandel over the music.
"I do believe I see someone from work. Someone I'd never thought I'd see in a place like this. Excuse me, darling."
The bard leap up and did a beautiful flip over his group of devotees, to dance his way onto the dance floor, up next to a modest GIFT.
"Hey, GIFT! What a surprise! You look good! Come here often?"
Terexaltherin does have fun during the group's remaining time with the Tarnuviens... by exploring their cities, talking with them about what of their history can be reconstructed, and of course the last meeting with the Earth Spirit. Well, and he does spend some time with Terecho reading in his library, too.
The little dragon is unsurprised by the summons back to the Organization's current headquarters. He'd honestly been expecting it a little sooner, but maybe they'd figured the team needed a bit more time to make sure things were settled.
He writes his usual detailed report on their experiences, specifically highlighting what they'd found about the Dark Trader operations on the plane and what he thinks it might mean for their methods and plans.
Terexaltherin participates eagerly in the research and discussions about the planes. He focuses his own research on two things--planes 'close' to that of the Tarnuviens, both in case the Dark Traders aim to recruit again and because he thinks they might help him learn more about <Shimmer> with their closeness to primordial chaos; and any planes he thinks might be used as Dark Trader staging areas.
He does come to the Organization parties, but quickly identifies the some of the more introvertered members who aren't into the whole... party part of the parties, and gathers them into some much more interesting (to them) debates and discussions in corners or along the walls while the rest of the party goes on without them.
The Seminar is whirlwind of learning and discussion. Most lecturers are engaging, a few are learned but dull, the "students" are attentive, impatient and blurt out their questions, reactions and fear more than regular book learning. Strandel isn't the only one reacting strongly though most remain stoic. Some sessions quickly become just brainstorming tactics of various sorts (how best to recruit, how run safe houses, which planes are most vulnerable, etc,etc).
Some sessions also involve Bethia or others examining the multiversal fields which the organization's equipment measures.
Highlight overheard: "So the worms and other world-destroying monsters are expression of flaws introduced earlier? But how? And how to stop them".."why are not the so-called Gods involved? Have they abandoned the many world?"...
The Organization turns out to be about evenly split between the quiet and the boisterous - some find their way to the more mind-blowing discotheques of Sigil while other check out more quiet and refined tea-rooms and similar locations.
One night Ari invites all who interested to an exclusive Fey club, the Crystal Rose, where the activities include dueling, a tango like dance, and a variety of strange games. All dress must with a combination of formality and whimsy. Ari dresses in formal gown made entirely of lace with hood like a giant snap dragon to go with the dragon-fly wings she sprouts for the occasion.
At one point in the events, Ari corners Armand and Strandel and whispers "We must get together ... once you two have written your reports" and she asks other similarly at other times. "I want to know what went well and who you could have done better, what you learned about the Traders, any changes we could make to our approach...
Gift smile as he cuts in and dances with Stranded, if he got a little grabby she deftly slapped his hands away. But keeps with the beat, Then she goes with him and joins his group but is a little standoff-ish, playing with meat is not really her thing. But then The song comes on... God is a DJ
And she goes nuts. She hits that dancefloor like it's a lover of old, really letting her body and mind go with the throbbing exhilaration and pounding beat of the club music. She may not be a lover buts she is sore as hells a dancer.
This is my church
This is where I heal my hurts
It's in the world I've become
Contained in the hum
Between voice and drum
It's in the change
The poetic justice of cause and effect
She is an Andriod, she does not suffer from exhaustion or tiredness, so she does not stop, she dances like a fiend from the hells till morning grey. And it's time to go back to the Seminar.
==== =====
At the exclusive Fey club, Gift came in a costume made of gold nanites that shifted around her like a mind-bending complex clockwork star map.
She is not hiding the fact she is a construct she is glorying in it.
As the intricate mathematical forms move about her, marking out time, they throb with the sound of the music. And once again, Dancing is her thing, the tango-like dance come becomes a lot more expressive. As even fey would find it hard to keep up with someone who never tires.
She hacks the music and gets it to pump out.
And she dances with any fey that will try and keep up.
Strandel arrives at The Crystal Rose wearing a fashionable tweed suit with matching kilt. He looks slightly out of place compared to the other more stylized dress but damn good.
The satyr brightens when meeting fey at The Crystal Rose, happy to get a chance to use Sylvan once more.
At one point in the events, Ari corners Armand and Strandel and whispers "We must get together ... once you two have written your reports" and she asks other similarly at other times. "I want to know what went well and who you could have done better, what you learned about the Traders, any changes we could make to our approach...
"I'll give a shot", Strandel said, trying not to over-promise anything.
Highlight overheard: "So the worms and other world-destroying monsters are expression of flaws introduced earlier? But how? And how to stop them".."why are not the so-called Gods involved? Have they abandoned the many world?"...
"You know! That's a damn good point, Bethia!" The former near-sleepy satyr asked.
"Where are all the damn heroes! Prophesy-fueled badasses who kick evil ass! Where the fu<k are they and why are they fighting the Dark Traders!""I mean, Ari was telling me about this Arlo guy who used to work for Th Organization! How come he's not kicking ass nowadays?"
Some days before
She stood in her full tech mission combat gear, Hexqil hovered next to her. She scanned the lecture hall. Some 26-odd new agents looked at her.
"Hello fellow agents, I have been asked to talk to you about tech and its uses on planes where magic of all kinds is the norm. Now from my understanding, you are all from planes that like myself were Sciance and Technolagy is the norm. This is not the norm across the planes, Magic is the norm. Gods and magic, you get the idea. Where we know of nature and our plane by means of investigation and laws"
She looked at one student that seemed to be armed with a large black powder weapon and armor.
"No matter the level of development on your plane, you are used to tech doing what magic does to a greater or lesser degree. In the class, I will be telling you about your own local effect field, relative to you and your kit, what that means, and how tech works even on magic-based planes because it's part of your personal field. And why this also means we can't take with us larger items of tech. The same with magic into tech planes, no summing massive army of dragons to fight squadrons of tanks."
She shows them her suit and kit.
"In a nutshell what you carry is what you can use. What I am going to show you today is how you can pack a big punch into your personal kit and what works and what does not. So Class let's begin."
She went on to go over the main parts of good kit makeup and how to maximize its use.
At the end, she added.
"So in conclusion, we are the techs, Every team now has one now, and our job on a team is to look after tech needs. Protect the magic users, From themselves and harm. and every now and then lay down gods all mighty levels of firepower that would make even an angel cry."
They clapped, she nodded
"Well, That's it for now, Good day class, and most of all, be safe out there."