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"Per the haunt upstairs... your ancestors were river guides, which ties them in a way to Pharasma. It seems a requiem, a song of moving on, or a song of rest would be ideal, yes. I'd be surprised if they weren't waiting for someone to provide the refrain for their song so that they can..." she continues flitting through, "Finally rest, themselves."
As she is once again ignored, Anna simply sighs and digs out her kitten bag to dig out the songbook. She begins to flit through it, looking for anything that might help them, moving to the back of the group and leaving Amber in the middle so that she has a chance to protect the book in the event someone triggers the haunt before they're ready to properly put it to rest.
Sana watches the walls as they travel down into the barrow, looking for the signs that Greta had asked for her to seek out. Her eyes widen as the haunt begins to come to the fore. She stops well short of interacting with it. "Do you recognize the song? I have Greta's song book if you don't, so we can... maybe figure out what's going on better from there?" Sana adds to Myrna.
While Sana waits to receive word, she places her hand on the butt of Alase's spear, renewing the glow there as well. "We'll get moving once we hear back from the others, I think. I'll stick close to whoever's in front, and keep Amber nearby. Try to stay in her light."
"Can you check in with Mindy and Ehren, Rue?" Sana says, ready to fight anything that shows up, but not wanting to head inside until they know what's going on with the others.
Meta Stuff:
Stats and Resources:
Mythic Power 8/11 | Confidence 1/3 | Opal Legendary Power 2/2 | Rainbow Sparkle Legendary Power 2/2 | Spell Points 13/19 | Martial Focus 2/2 | Illumination 14| Animus (Rounds-0) | Momentum 17/18 | Incorporeal 12/12 | Faith 7/7 | Channel 1d6 Healing 10/10
Haste Rounds: (), Status: Healthy 159/160 | 0 Temporary HP ( 0 rounds) | 0 Nonlethal. (120/80/40) | Healing Pool 3/360
Maneuvers Readied: Eldritch Consumption, Carnival Swap
* * *
As Unafe's fist connects, Sana winces at the impact. As soon as she sees the flesh fully rupture, she has already turned away and shielded her exposed flesh from the blast. A golden mote appears between the two, and a shield forms, blocking still more of the impact. Even still, the viscera coats her and she groans. The wound is just pure disgusting, all the time. The blackened portions of her skin quickly return mostly to normal as petals fall from her wrist. She immediately turns and darts into her allies, favoring keeping them safe over killing the other ghoul immediately. Even still, she waits for there to be a gap to hurl her starknife through, hoping to force the creature to at least let go of Myrna. Silver-white light coats her blade before she whips it through the melee, hoping to send lunacy to the forefront... though, that presumed that this ghoul was even capable of understanding lunacy. Even still, Sana's return would bolster her companions against the impending blast.
Meta Stuffs:
Stats and Resources:
Mythic Power 8/11 | Confidence 1/3 | Opal Legendary Power 2/2 | Rainbow Sparkle Legendary Power 2/2 | Spell Points 13/19 | Martial Focus 2/2 | Illumination 10| Animus (Rounds-0) | Momentum 18/18 | Incorporeal 12/12 | Faith 7/7 | Channel 1d6 Healing 10/10
Haste Rounds: (), Status: Healthy 160/160 | 0 Temporary HP ( 0 rounds) | 0 Nonlethal. (120/80/40) | Healing Pool 0/360
Maneuvers Readied: Eldritch Consumption, Time Skitter, Breath of the Moon, Carnival Swap, Fluctuation Movement
* * *
As Myrna's song begins to work its way into Sana's mind, she winces slightly, pushing the feelings away and gripping her starknife tighter. "If you let go, even for a moment, what do you think you'll become?" the question resounds in her mind as she grits her teeth. Losing control, meant losing control of her magic, of who she is. But... she could gain strength when it is needed by relinquishing control. If she gave in to the song, she could be... more effective. She could better protect her friends. But she might also leave herself and her friends more vulnerable. Unable to wield the power of her full self. A weighted question that she would have to consider again and again, every time Myrna sang for her allies. "Ghosts suck, Rue." she sends to the Succubus, as she shifts her weight, darting off towards Unafe to attempt to help pin down their foe. She winces as she sees her take a hit... but then take hold of the bloated monstrosity. She arrives at her ally's side, before hurling her starknife towards the undead in her grasp.
Meta Stuffs:
[spoiler=Stats and Resources]Mythic Power 8/11 | Confidence 1/3 | Opal Legendary Power 2/2 | Rainbow Sparkle Legendary Power 2/2 | Spell Points 13/19 | Martial Focus 2/2 | Illumination 7| Animus (Rounds-0) | Momentum 18/18 | Incorporeal 12/12 | Faith 7/7 | Channel 1d6 Healing 10/10
Status: Healthy 160/160 | 0 Temporary HP ( 0 rounds) | 0 Nonlethal. (120/80/40) | Healing Pool 0/360
Maneuvers Readied: Eldritch Consumption, Time Skitter, Breath of the Moon, Carnival Swap
* * *
Sana slips easily to the side to get a clear view of the bloated ghoul in front of Myrna before launching her starknife once more, leaving it skittering along the ground before bouncing up to strike against its torso once more. "Do we think it's digging away to inform their boss, or trying to reposition?" she asks Ehren. "I'm not used to fighting enemies that can't talk in their head." she says after a brief pause. "But I think Unafe can handle most of the 'running away' problems."
When Rue finds her arrows aren't particularly effective, Sana chimes in. "Undead usually have resistance to different types of weaponry. The necrotic magic that holds ghouls together make their organs and bones less important than their flesh. Go for removing as much as possible with each strike."
Meta Stuff:
Stats and Resources:
Mythic Power 8/11 | Confidence 1/3 | Opal Legendary Power 2/2 | Rainbow Sparkle Legendary Power 2/2 | Spell Points 13/19 | Martial Focus 2/2 | Illumination 4| Animus (Rounds-0) | Momentum 18/18 | Incorporeal 12/12 | Faith 7/7 | Channel 1d6 Healing 10/10
Haste Rounds: (), Status: Healthy 160/160 | 0 Temporary HP ( 0 rounds) | 0 Nonlethal. (120/80/40) | Healing Pool 0/360
Maneuvers Readied: Eldritch Consumption, Time Skitter
* * *
As the undead begin to erupt from the ground around them, Sana's starknife falls easily into her hand from her quiver. She glances back to Ehren, seeing the impact that the overwhelming stench was having on him, and focuses inwards, pulling out magic to help keep the team going in the face of what was likely to come. The result of her magic is immediately clear - safety amidst allies. Almost as an afterthought, she glances at the large, bloated corpse nearest to her, and hurls her starknife towards it, hoping to delay its advance and do some damage while she had the opportunity.
"Yeah. The Riversoars said that they wanted to understand us so that they could properly guide us. They asked who I am without the masks, what I fear should I stop fighting, and what my best day looks like. They left me wondering what exactly it is that I want." Sana sends telepathically to Rue. As she watches the others make their preparations, she nods. The light of Amber shifts once more. The light becomes harsh, but warm, not unlike sunlight. "If you stay near Amber, she can protect you from death magics, and will help to protect you from some off the worst things that undead can do to you. I'll try to keep her in the center of the group so she's never out of reach unless you press too far from the team." "If need be, I can spend a little magic to help us with either repositioning or with preventing us falling to undead tricks. Unafe's magic is a good call! Ghouls and Ghasts and Liches can all sap the life straight from you and leave you powerless on the ground. If we have any protections against negative energy, that would also be ideal. And, if we have any way to create a sacred or hallowed space, that would also be spectacular. I'm personally not sure how much magic I can afford to use before what might be an undead siege."
Sana:
Sana quickly sketches out everything as it is described to her, filling a corner with the drawing as she commits it to memory. 'Do it careful and right... don't risk it.' "I... thought it was all of us." Sana responds, still kneeling with her sketchbook in her lap. She wipes her face once more. "Myrna's aunties seemed to have a problem with my make-up." she adds, her way of explaining her mascara and eyeliner. She stands up and nods to Rue. "It's good to be back!" she says, back to her chipper persona. "And it sounds like you all already know about the lich. And ghouls. And ghasts. And worse." she says, nodding to Ehren. "The Riversoars taught me how to repair their wards once we've cleaned the place up a bit. So, we'll have the ability to do a whole ceremony, after we get rid of the undead."
"What a time for Yui to have been called elsewhere." she says, packing her belongings away.
Sana: "That... is a complicated request." Sana replies. "And... I can offer you three different kinds of answer. But I don't think you want me to take the time for the third... nor is it the kind that you're talking about." She slips her parasol back onto her quiver, taking out her kitten bag, and removing her art tools and sketchbook. She flips through rapidly until she finds the newest page, the one with the rough draft of Ehren, Li'an and Yulin. She begins commiting more energy to the page, adding layers of shadow and contrast, leaving the whole in black-and-white, despite having other colors to choose from. "The first... is the kind of love that simply happens spontaneously. When it is needed, not always perfect, but there, nonetheless. A hand to catch you when you fall." She slides her attention to the next page, "The next... is love that you can count on. A warm embrace from a loved one, day in and day out." she says, beginning to hum softly to herself, an old Sarenrite prayer. She slowly but surely sketches the lines, A Klarah perhaps fifteen years older, face clear in Sana's memory, hair perfect - as always when she was home. "A warmth that you know won't leave you." To this, she adds shocks of red and gold with her pastels. "And... the third is dedication. Giving yourself entirely to someone or a work. Tearing it to pieces as you create the draft again and again, until you're able to work out the flaws. As nearly to perfect as you can get it. The kind of art that I basically never do. The kind of love that is hard, because you do it every single day. Working slowly but surely until everything is just right." "I don't really do 'perfect.'" she says, finally. "Which is more appropriate for your wards? Something made with clear mistakes, because I took chances and got things wrong? Or allowing my practice and dedication to guide me, afraid to experiment with what could be?"
Sana: Sana's eyes slide over the child once more, before looking away and back at the drawings. She had expected the Riversoar to fight with her more... she had been ready to push back. She hadn't expected acquiescence. Her lips twitch at the mention of her wisdom being painful.
She nods as the Riversoars explain their plight to her, that there were undead, a lich... and shattered wards, but doesn't raise her eyes. Instead, another question. This one harder in a way that she hadn't anticipated. What she wanted? She stays silent for a time, searching the ground, the images before her, the things left incomplete, the things still to do, the joy she felt when she gave others joy. What did she want besides that? She laughs, a bitter laugh at that. "I... don't know." she says, twisting her parasol in her hand. She turns towards the water, where she hadn't drawn before. She begins one final scene, her hands slowly guiding the parasol like a brush as she etches out the lines. A wing extending outwards into space, upon it plates, bowls, glasses, silverware, bread, vegetables, soup. A table, broad and wide, as seen from the height of a child. In the background, two people, smiling and eating, enjoying their meal. "When I was young... and we were looking for a way to fix me, my family took me to Heaven. There was this restaurant, where they said that they could prepare any meal you could set your mind to. So... I asked for my Mother and Father's favorite meal." she bites her lip as she blinks away the water building in her eyes. "They exceeded expectations. As it turns out... my Mother's favorite meal had a very specific recipe that included my father and I." The tears break free, prompting her to wipe her eyes with a silent Opal. "This is what my best day looks like. This was the most important lesson Heaven was able to teach me. It's the little things that make the big things matter." She pauses, exhaling heavily. "I think... a day where there is nothing to do, but draw happy memories." She sinks the tip of her parasol into the ground, her voice no longer hollow, back to the girl she was pretending to be. "If you're able to show me what your wards should look like... our group should be able to restore them. I can commit them to memory and draw them out. Unafe and Li'an can ensure that they're right. Ehren and Eleri can work to sanctify them. I'll do my best to make sure everything is done the right way. Because you don't always get to do things the right way."
Sana: Sana shifts, sliding her starknife easily into her quiver and pulling the parasol off, letting it flip end-over-end. She lets it settle on the ground as she begins to draw, using her light magic. She slowly but surely makes a rough sketch of Greta Blackwood, suddenly standing to grasp the hands of the face she wore this morning, as she listens to the spirit speak, glancing up to watch as things shift. She does so with a practiced ease that reflected on more than a decade spent honing her craft. "You misunderstand. That wasn't deflection." she says, drawing a slow and steady line with the tip of her parasol beneath the glowing image, this one simply a line in the dirt. "That was my answer. There will always be someone who needs me, even if I have to go find them. I don't fear what is beneath my mask. I don't fear what I'll become. I already have a face that isn't mine. Wearing another one doesn't change that." She looks back to the child, not bothering to glance to the consuming shadows. "Now... if you're asking what the child-in-me feared that made me start wearing the masks, made me start running away... that's an entirely different question." She turns once more and begins sketching another image, this time the one from two-nights-past. The river-druid who asked for their help in delivering a message to Gundrun. As she draws, she continues to speak. "A scared little girl that needed help, and got it. Someone who was taken care of and cared for, but for whom it wasn't enough. Someone who had to cope with her family being heroes, leaving her so that they could save the world. Someone for whom the complaint would have been impossibly selfish." "That little girl feared that the demon would win, that she'd turn out wrong and be evil, that she'd be driven to do things by Eustoriax. But my Eustoriax is dead and gone. He can't hurt anyone or me ever again. That little girl's fear is why I won't stop fighting." "What waits in the darkness is more masks. More me. More opportunities. A thousand-thousand ways to be someone's 'enough'." She pauses, using her magic to make the images stain the ground so that they would outlast her light magic. "The little girl that was afraid of becoming a monster is long-gone. The woman that replaced her fears that she won't be enough... so she fights to be more than enough every single day. To go one step further."
Sana: Sana's eyes follow along as the world around her shifts once more. Her eyes trail across the spirits as they gaze into and follow the water. She sits quietly while the Riversoar speaks and explains its needs and perspective. She glances back to the child as it reaches out to her, but doesn't take the offered hand. "It... could be its own kind of drowning, yes. But maybe I'm a fish. Maybe I need that water so that I can breathe the same as everyone else. A river to polish my jagged edges again and again." she says, beginning to twirl her starknife idly, adding its flash of color to the otherwise stark scene. "Some days, a deluge, others a fine mist. The ability to be someone else when they're needed. The ability, in small moments, to capture beauty that couldn't otherwise exist... or to borrow someone else's light for a time, to do things no one else could have." she says, pausing, and leaning back to look at where the sky should be, staring up into the abyss that the mists were showing her, her brow furrowing in annoyance at the manipulative images being shown to her once more. Nevertheless, she listens. "I don't." she replies, "Because I won't stop fighting. Not until people don't need me." She tosses her starknife into the air and catches it, twirling it still, as her eyes move away from the faces sinking into the darkness. "The Riversoar Elders told us that something was corrupting the mounds here. What can you tell me of the thing that is defiling your resting place?"
Sana: Sana comes to a halt as she realizes that the shadow is just another image in the hall of mirrors, eyes still narrowed, shadowy wings grasping silently at the still air. She lingers there in the silence left in the wake of the question, eyes scanning the images around her. After a long while, she huffs.
"I don't know anymore." She pauses for another breath as she glances back to the result of the ritual that had made her most of what she is. "Less than there was. More than perhaps there should be. All the time I've spent clawing away the things I hate about myself... has rendered very little." she responds, the sharpness gone from her voice as she accepts the spirit for what it claims to be, at least for now. "I've spent years wrestling with the demons... and perhaps worse than wishing ill of others, wishing to have what they have, is the constant twisting of the self-image. Who I am hates who I see in the mirror. Who I am isn't enough, but I can be someone else, for at least a time. I can make them real, be what is missing in the portrait." "Be... not hollow." she says, descending. "Not fractured. Enough." she says, eyes moving down her own tainted form. "For a time." "Some days, Yui is all that's left of me. Some days, all that's left is the light that pushes me to be better." she says, finally. She pauses for a moment, once more, then looks up to meet the half-demon child's eyes. "Now, your turn. Why do you need to understand?"
Sana: Sana attempts immediately to unweave the magical fog as it rushes around her, but without warning she's too slow... not that she was certain her magic would have even worked in the first place. Her starknife falls easily into her hand at the first sign of danger.
"I'm still here, I can hear you, Rue." she responds, mental voice soft. She glances around herself, eyes narrowed, trying to penetrate the fog despite it overwhelming the archdruid's magic. She listens as Rue's voice begins to fade, looking to each shattered mirror with what is initially fear, which slowly becomes annoyance, which gives way to anger. As the images cascade into a kaleidoscope of what is, was, would-be, and could-have-beens, her grip tightens, eyes darting to each as they appear in time... before she sees something new. Immediately, she darts after the shadow, starknife whirling, certain of her ability to outrun most anything that would be attempting to hide in the mists... so long as she could keep it in sight to begin with. As she seeks out the only thing that seemed not to belong within her illusion, she responds, voice cold, hollow, and raspy. Nothing like the Sana from outside the fog. "I'm not in the habit of giving away secrets to strangers who look into my mind and soul without consent. You already have plenty of answers, and I don't like being left in the dark. Who are you, and what do you want?"
"You're right, Eleri!" Sana calls from the fog just after entering it. "It does smell of pine. But it looks a lot more like white oak. White oak as far as the eye can see. If we're going to move forward in this, we're going to want to consider ways of keeping connected to each other. We can't really scout if we're going to wind up in different places."
After finishing up with the bit of training that Unafe had planned, Sana nods, replacing the light on Alase and Rue's gear with a tap of her parasol each. For Unafe, she provides a glow that matches the accent color of her scales on both her weapons and armor. "Anyone else? I'm happy to help, but I don't want to step on toes."
Sana nods to the massive stone person before introducing each of the people there. She swirls her parasol as she does, touching the spear and starknife in turn. "Any preference for color or style?" she asks the two after casting the initial glow. "It'll take time to keep them up, but should be pretty quick and easy, as long as I can reach everything."
"Good, I'm glad. Sorry that I didn't ask sooner." Sana replies to Rue as she lands. "I don't see anything besides us that's overtly dangerous." Sana offers to the group, "The river would try to murder anything that went into it, likely in more ways than one... and there's that fog up ahead." Sana says, adjusting Amber's light, so that she provides her allies with a silver-blue sheen along their armor. "I don't know what to expect from it, really. But... either the ability to get rid of or see in the fog might be useful! Either way, we should probably get prepared." she says, before beginning to cast her various protective and enhancement spells. "It's a pleasure to meet you, would you be okay with being called Mindy?" Sana asks of the earth elemental as she continues weaving her magics.
"Anyone with heavy armor or weapons that they use regularly, let me know. I can add some magic to your gear to help you fight against ghosts." Sana offers, "Though it's best cast after everyone has done the rest of their preparations since the duration won't be long!" she glances to Rue, "It's pretty awful with projectiles, though. Sorry!"
At Rue's mention of being back in the Wound, Sana glances over to her. "I... didn't really think to ask. Did you actually want to come back with us?"
At the mention of being carried, Sana pauses for a moment... then simply flits up and over the river in an arc, giving the water a wide berth, opting to see if there were any hidden dangers for the group before they split up entirely by bounding back and forth repeatedly.
"Good, I'm glad." Sana says to Li'an. "I was worried that perhaps I made things worse. She's had a rough go of it." She bounces slightly on her heels, now unladen thanks to Alase having collected the river pole before she'd returned. "Oh, Unafe. If you have any more wild ideas for things you might be able to pull off, don't hesitate to share. That's the happiest I've seen Rue since I joined up with you. It's good to see her happy." she adds, as she takes her place beside Ehren.
"I... uh... yeah. Yeah." Sana says, staring at the grass beneath her feet for a moment, then standing straight before arching her back, stretching. "Ground... sky. Got it." She nods to Unafe. "I've got my ups and downs again. I'm good to go." * * * After the leap back, Sana is considerably more presentable than she had been upon the initial landing. Now that she knew exactly what to expect, the terror was slightly abated - though not entirely gone. The result was significantly more pleasant, filled with honks, rather than stream-of-consciousness. Her hair is still entirely wild, as she steps free of Unafe's grip. She tugs a handkerchief out of her leathers and uses it to wipe her glasses as she attempts to settle in once more. Ground, sky. Ground, sky. "As predicted!" she says, back to her chipper tone. "Now to head back into the 'Wound!" she says, moving over and gathering the river pole from where she ad left it leaned against a menhir. "I take it everything went well with Yulin?" she asks as she moves towards Ehren. "You'll want to check up on her when we come back... she seemed deathly afraid of you sending her away. Most of what's going on with her seems to stem from feeling like she's unwanted."
"Oh... I was expecting you to get big and us to..." she says, before shrugging, and moving into Unafe's embrace. She starts suddenly at the honk, and then they're off. It's fast... but not much faster than she could manage in a sprint. "Oh, this is pretty-" WHUMPH "-FaaAAAAA" she screams as they lift off once again, going much faster this time. "Oh gods it's so" Anna says, getting a grip on her glasses. WHUMPH "Aaaaah!" "Fast. So fast." WHUMPH "Yeaaaah! F#*$ you, physics!" Anna cries, as her character melts away from the dopamine high. "Whew, okay." WHUMPH "TREE! TREE-TREE-TREE-TREE." "Oh, thank the gods. It's..." Unafe honks again, WHUMPH "HOOOOOONK!" "Oh gods, you should cha-" WHUMPH "AARRRGGGEEEE FOOOORR THISSSS." "You would make so mu-" WHUMPH "uuuuuuuuch." "I can't... I can't..." WHUMPH Sana just pants, wide-eyed as they fly. "Okay, okay. I'll... I'll leave the money... on the... on the end table. F$#%..." She takes a moment after they finally stop leaping, slightly dizzied and euphoric from the whole experience. "Okay, okay. I'm good. I..." she pants, having drawn her parasol and leaning on it now. Her messy hair is entirely wild now, the curls pulled a bit straighter by the rapid movement through the sky. She slowly stands up straight, "Right, right... ready. Ready." she says, looking to Rue, and when she indicates she's ready, she mentally sketches Rue and slides her into her parasol. "I want to go again and never again..." she mutters, still bent over.
As Ehren backs the plan for them to keep Rue with them, Anna nods, the chipper demeanor returning. She had been worried that the group would resolve to simply leave their friend here as opposed to proving to her that she was worth the effort. "Okay, so we can combine plans A and B to get everything done faster, I think." "If Unafe can carry both Rue and I out, then we'll only take a few minutes round trip. Less effort on her part, less time spent. We get to test out both theories... and have a semi-permanent solution to our logistics concerns. Ready when you are, if you're willing, Dau-Galon."
Sana nods to Alase slowly as she kneels down, stripping off her quiver to drag out her kitten bag. She places the song book inside of the messenger bag, then slides her bag back in and shoulders her pack. She leans the river pole against one of the menhir as she adjusts her straps. "Diolch." she says, though there's considerably less passion in her voice when she does so. "If there are no objections... I'm willing to try the parasol method now. It'll be a quick flight out... and back in if the barrier will let us. Li'an should be able to maintain a message with me, I think?" she asks, looking over to the former half-elf. "If I hit a wall while trying to carry her, we'll know it's not even possible to bring her in in that way... which is something much more valuable to learn while trying to leave friendly territory than enemy territory."
"Mmmm... next, we figure out if I can smuggle Rue successfully, I think. We should be able to fly out to the edge of the Sword's radius pretty fast from here, and then I can slip her into my parasol. Assuming that the extradimensional space isn't considered within the radius of the sword, we should be able to teleport with her inside... though getting her out while within the radius would be theoretically impossible." Anna says balancing the pole so she can press her glasses up the bridge of her nose with her semi-free hand. "But assuming that the sword only prevents travel between two planes and teleportation, it shouldn't have any impact on something staying off the material plane. In theory." she says, looking to Rue. "Up for testing, or... do we need to find another Menhir to use?"
Sana calls as they crest the nearest hill. Her new sketchbook remains bound and clasped dangling from her belt within easy reach, while a massive pole used for river work rests across one shoulder. She's carrying still another book in her hand, delicately, protected from her claws by Opal. She's not the blonde Sana that they had worked with last night, but instead is pale, befreckled, with messy, curly black hair. Her general demeanor has changed as well, voice upbeat and chipper, words flowing at a quicker clip than normal. "I ran into a lovely old lady named Greta Blackwood who was able to tell us a bit about the Riversoar Clan... she's kind of like your cousin, Riversoar, if that's a thing. Her grandmother was a Riversoar, prior to marriage. Anyway, she was positively delighted to hear about you, and... I think when we come back, you should go meet her and more of your kin, if we have the chance!" "Anyway, she copied down some old songs that your people used to sing in here." she says, raising up the journal. "And another of your kin offered us a river-pole... cracked from use. And she said that your kin used to be buried with some smoothed-out river stones, so I collected a few of those as well... so we should be a little more prepared." she says offering a smile as she settles under her weight slightly. "Oh, and she wanted me to tell you that all of your kin here are grateful that you're still alive to honor your ancestors." she says, swaying slightly as if humming. "If you'd like to read through the songbook, you're welcome to, but I'd love to have the chance to transcribe it into this new sketchbook. She asked that we copy down any names or clan marks that we found in the burial mounds... and I was hoping to repay their kindness by adding sketches and names along with the songs into a new book, when we return her old one." she says, still swaying. "Maaaaybe that means sharing your dream space so that I have the time?" she asks, looking over to Unafe. "And... maybe take the pole now? Please?"
Anna starts suddenly when the woman reaches out to grasp her hands, but doesn't pull away, instead just letting a bemused smile that slowly gives way to a very genuine one. She quickly stands, brushing off her thighs as if she's just eaten something and then quickly follows after, following a little more slowly once she's given the unwieldy oar. She carefully tries to balance it this way and that, before finally finding a decent grip between one arm and her shoulder, balancing it. She nods to each family as they move about, and finally settles when the woman does, taking the journal when it is offered. She holds the journal with the reverence it deserves as it is passed over, nodding in vigorous agreement. "Of course I will. What was your Clan-name, Greta, so that I can pass on who helped so much in our restoration attempts?" she asks, ensuring that the woman's aid would be remembered when she passed it on to her ally. "Thank you so much!" she calls as she begins to turn, "Hopefully I'll see you again soon!" "We did good here, Rue. It's the little things, yeah? Feels really good. Way more heroic than heroism." she adds as they begin to leave, eyes brimming slightly with tears that she blinks away. "That adds two stops," she says aloud. "Neither should take long. I'll need to pick up a small sketchbook, preferably with a chain... I have no idea what to do with my hands without a book in them." she says, offering a sly smile to Rue. "But before that... we need to head to the coast for a quick dip. I presume they'd rather have... freshwater... river stones. Than the brackish, orange, glowing, local ones." she says, wrinkling her nose.
Anna slips easily enough into her character as she speaks with the woman. She brushes one of the stray strands of curly hair out of her face as she adjusts her glasses, listening to the woman as she speaks. "Well, as it happens... good news and bad news. The good news is, there are still some among the Riversoar clan! My name is Anna, and I've been working alongside a Captain with the Crusades by the name of Myrna Riversoar. While we were out and about, we had the fortune of meeting with the elders of her clan who informed her that the Riversoar burial mound was in danger. While investigating the local area, we came into contact with a druid who had mentioned that there were disquiet spirits... 'Silver-white, cold as winter, smelling of pine,' I believe were her words for the phenomena. She mentioned that the natural sites were becoming corrupted, as were the burial mounds, and when we spoke on the proper rites... she mentioned that honoring the ancestors could take on a great many forms. And... when you have the opportunity, you should do these things right. An axe for a lumberman, an oar or pole or net for a fisherman, a song for a tavernkeep... so on and so forth, as she said." she says offering a small, sheepish smile that showed none of her too-sharp teeth. "So, just the mention of the worn riverstones is quite good to know! I could see that there is the opportunity to bring more river-bound supplies as well. Our druid-friend mentioned that well-loved objects or a song from their scions - their daughters' daughters as it were - would be worth more than gold! So... pressed for time as we are... I thought it would be great if I could meet their descendants, listen to some stories or songs, so that I might share them at the grave site. Or, gods forbid, their stories having been lost or forgotten as is so often the case these days... deliver objects important to their family that they might know how their descendants live, and how they are remembered." she continues, hands clasped in her lap. "So... more good-news-bad-news-good-news. Hopefully."
"No problem, we'll have to do it again sometime... under better circumstances." Anna replies, offering a small smile as she waits for Rue. "No worries. I'd rather not be alone either. Exhausted and stressed, and not entirely sure how to feel about having my childhood fears spoken aloud by someone currently living them. Except stressed. I'm glad the adults made it in time." Once they find a room and start to settle down, Sana takes a moment to quickly sketch out the trio. She was too exhausted to fully commit to the drawing, but wanted to add it to her sketchbook all the same. * * * Come the following morning, she works with Rue with her Makeup Kit to prepare her disguise more fully. She settles on a pale skin-tone with dolloped freckles, and makes her hair curly, and black, almost mousy. She leaves her outfit the same so as not to throw the others off any further than necessary. Once the pair are ready, she opts to grab quick bread and some street meat on the way through town, deciding for something fresh while they still had the chance. She heads back towards Mother Heartwood and the kellids that lived there, hoping to manage a quick canvas and discover the information that might lead to a more ideal outcome in the barrowmounds. Having spent years in the 'Wound after it had been sealed, moving amidst the ruins, she had learned that knowledge of such things was invaluable. She begins to look for descendants that could fill the group in... and maybe pitch in cherished items or songs or stories to share... things they certainly wouldn't find if they didn't look. She gives Iverri and Eleri a small wave as she spots them.
Sana breathes a sigh of relief as the other two are able to de-escalate the situation. "They were able to calm her down, Rue. I think she'll be okay for now. I don't have a place of my own, but if you don't have anywhere else to be, we can grab a room together if you want. I understand if you'd rather see more of the city." she sends to the Succubus once more. "I'll uh... need my bag back," Sana says quietly from the shadows off to the side of Yulin, lampshading the previous meltdown, now that communication had been restored within the family. She makes a note to herself to remind Ehren to check in on Yulin, since one of her fears had clearly been that he would simply send her away, but otherwise keeps quiet. "Sorry."
'No, not that she can't. That she... very likely won't. Sana thinks to herself as the young girl asks about her mother. The possibility was there... but that a demon would go against everything the universe had poured into them for anything more than self-preservation had been tediously rare. If she didn't know of Rue as of yesterday, she wouldn't have ever heard of a single one that capable. Worse still, Sana suspected that the goal might be to destroy the relic, but that it was more likely to destroy the Yulin that stood before her. And then, once the mother had what she coveted... she would no longer want it, casting Yulin to the shadows once more and without her human heart to break her fall. Left twisted and broken and eternally seeking a mother that would want her and not the child she had tried to replace. It is when Ehren speaks up that she starts like someone having been caught in a scandalous affair. She turns her head only slightly, keeping her focus on Yulin as he speaks with wisdom well beyond his years. This was who she needed to hear, not Sana, who had merely been a substitute. She allows herself to fade quietly into the background as he speaks.
Yulin: As Yulin speaks, Sana leans back tilting her head and flinching slightly at the revelation. What sort of cruel god would allow any of those circumstances? What twisted mind could even come to a conclusion that that would be a reasonable outcome? How had no one warned the mother that Yulin would be nothing but harmed by all of these decisions?
She closes her eyes and shakes her head. An exceptional cruelty to play upon a half-invidiak. "I'm so sorry, sweetie. That you're dealing with any of that. You... can be sure that the big feelings of being half-invidiak aren't to blame for all of the wrongs." Sana says with a huff. "But... I don't think Ehren will care that you took the things beyond the implications that it leaves. And those will wither away if they know that your intent is good... though good intentions..." Sana shakes her head. "Demons love good intentions. Drezen was initially taken because of a well-intended Crusader, years upon years ago. Before either of us was born. And..." she shakes her head. "I know you don't want to hear this... but... demons have louder words than we do in their head. So loud that only very, very rarely can they even dream of acting against them. They're the victims of those just as we are... but they listen. They let those words drive them to make more victims, because their hurt has to be everyone else's. Our desire... for things that aren't ours, or to see others do just a little worse than their best? They want it so desperately that they want no one else to ever have it." Sana says, growing quiet, but more emphatic as she speaks.
"What I'm saying is... I don't trust this ritual, and I know that you just met me, but I need for you to not fully trust in it, either. What she's planning with the relic, on the new moon, when none of Sarenrae's light touches the Inner Sea? It just... can't be good. Even if you get what you want out of it. Let's just wait, at least one moon. We'll research it, we'll make sure it's safe. And until then, you can come back inside, you can talk if you want or not... but I don't want you falling asleep in a tree tonight, or worse. Just... let all of us help you." she finishes, her shadow diving in closer to Yulin's shadows.
Rue:
"Yeah... choices are hard. I've talked to a lot of people... and a lot of outsiders about them. It's weirdest talking to heavenly outsider, to be honest." Sana thinks back, cracking her neck as they walk. "Like, everyone thinks differently, of course, but there's more to it than that. I talked to Yulin about big feelings... and I figure you've got bigger feelings than both of us. In some ways at least. I figure it's as different for you as it was for Zepha. Choosing had to be a conscious, willed act. I'm honestly kind of curious how you've been able to keep choosing for so long. My aunt was kind of like a mentor to me, being a half-succubus... with no one to really guide her but herself and her friends. I could only imagine how loud the voices would be if I didn't have Opal and Yui with me all the time. So... uh... what's your trick?" Yulin: "I didn't ask about the baby." Sana says, offering her a smile. "I asked about you. Let them all fuss over the baby for now. It's shiny and new and it isn't you." Sana says with a small shrug. "and as I recall, Ehren was quite firm with Zael. 'Yulin is of my clan, my kin. Her heritage is not evidence.'" she adds, attempting to match his tone and cadence.
"But... if you want to talk about both, you're Kiku and Ehren's cousin... just as you will be to their child. But it won't be the same. You'll be the child's Ehren or Kiku... or Yulin, I suppose. There will be a small gap in what you are to them, but that's the thing with family, as long as it's a good one, the bigger it is, the more full it becomes. Only the roles change. So if you're really worried, you can just be your little cousin's big cousin." she says, offering a small shrug. "But... all that being said." Sana continues, leaning against her parasol once more, "That's... the second time you've talked about a replacement in as many conversations. Who in the world has made you feel like you're just a replacement? Because the way Ehren talks when he doesn't even know you're around..." she trails off, motioning to Mother Heartwood, and letting the young girl complete the thought on her own.
"The land didn't choose for any of that to happen to it, Iverri." Sana says, still leaning heavily on her parasol. "You needed help, and it was given. I'm... sure there's a lot that will stick with you for a very long time, things we'll never hear about. But just try to focus on the good that you can do now... because there is a lot of good that you can do." She pushes herself up from her parasol to head over to Eleri. "Maybe that's what the Archdruid summoned everyone for. The circles, along with Iverri and Mother Heartwood... maybe you can expand outwards and fight the taint. Purify the nearby sacred sites in places we can keep safe. The real fear is that without protectors, the demons will do what demons do... but it's worth a try, if we can get the structure for it." she says offering a pat on the shoulder. Once the ceremony begins to wind down and everyone heads for the Archdruid's home, she hesitantly follows along, less because she doesn't feel welcomed and more because moving feels like a punishment. "Copper for your thoughts?" she sends to Rue telepathically as they begin to head towards the tree. * * * As Sana enters, she takes a wall and claims it as her own, leaning against it and sliding down until she's practically a ball, taking up far less space than should be possible for a woman of her apparent size. Her eyes dart from person to person. Congratulations were always incredibly awkward. It's not something she'd learned to properly do growing up, and something she'd never quite gotten over. And congratulating a thing that was not wholly good only served to complicate things... certainly, one of her mentors was shifting into another aspect of her life, but that meant that she was shifting out of the current one. Bittersweet. A joke comes unbidden to mind, but not from mouth about announcing her pregnancy at someone else's rebirthday party, prompting Sana's soft smile to become a smirk.
Sana's smirk vanishes as Yulin opts to do the same. She huffs, pushes herself through the wall, shoving herself through it from her seated position, before standing and following after the elf. 'Note to self, do not give succor to the young runaway. Let her earn her rest from now on.' As she follows, floating above the ground as she was significantly faster flying than walking... especially when she was so tired, she ponders exactly what to do about all of this. "You mentioned feeling lighter?" Sana asks, breaking the silence. "You want to talk about that?"
Sana visibly stumbles as the ritual draws to its conclusion, the weight of the bone-deep weariness crashing down all at once. "Agh, right in the back." she mutters, as she catches herself with the tip of her parasol. Her shadow swirls from the others, to focus solely on her for a moment, before she forces herself to stand up straight. "Going to be walking on three legs tonight, feels like." she says to the shadow. "But not the worst blank check we've written." As Li'an mentions the ability to cleanse the wound as a whole, Sana responds. "But, if we're going to do that on a larger scale... we're gonna need more people. A single dryad took everything we had. I do not look forward to whatever we're going to need to do to settle an entire barrowmound." she adds, leaning back to look at the sky as the colors swirl above. 'Thank you, Sarenrae, Desna, Pulura, for guiding us through this. The green too, if you're listening.' she prays, silently to herself as she bows her head. 'Now, let's see if we can lessen the burdens of our friends a little, Ary.' Sana lifts Opal overhead and an ethereal facsimile of Mother Heartwood appears, roots swooping down into the ground and towards several of her allies, Sana's efforts to reduce the exhaustion to only fatigue.
Meta Stuff:
Stats and Resources:
Mythic Power 7/11 | Confidence 3/3 | Opal Legendary Power 2/2 | Rainbow Sparkle Legendary Power 2/2 | Spell Points 02/19 | Martial Focus 2/2 | Illumination 14| Animus (Rounds-0) | Momentum 16/18 | Incorporeal 12/12 | Faith 1/7 | Channel 1d6 Healing 09/10
Haste Rounds: (), Status: Healthy 160/160 | 0 Temporary HP ( 0 rounds) | 0 Nonlethal. (120/80/40) | Healing Pool 0/360
Maneuvers Readied: Eldritch Consumption, Breath of the Moon, Fluctuation Movement, Time Skitter
* * *
"While the relic won't make the ritual easier, it'll help to keep her safe from the ritual while she holds it." Sana shares. Recognizing the spell being cast by Myrna on Ehren, Sana pushes up from her parasol... that was something she could add to the ritual. She digs deep and draws on her magic. She twirls her parasol and her shadow leaps between each person from Amber's light, but the shadow lingers, keeping them all connected. "I don't know that there's much else that I can do... so I'm ready." she says, twirling the parasol once more and shifting her stance so that her features blur once more... just in case of a threat emerging from all of this. "Anyone else who doesn't mind the risk of the ritual... feel free to join in." she says, just as Ehren begins chanting.
As soon as the medallion is drawn from the bag and into the light, Sana gives it its first real look. A lifetime with the Crusades has left her with a truly broad and sometimes deep knowledge of religions and their various artifacts.
"If I can provide anything... it would be holding back the darkness, I think. I've got a couple of decades experience in that." Sana suggests. "Amber should be able to help a bit, too." Sana offers, shifting the light from evacuation to clarity. "And I can try to figure out some magic that could help." she says, unhitching her parasol and using it to lean against, balancing her weight.
With Yulin: Anna holds Yulin for a time, closing her eyes as the words that Sana buried deep inside of herself long ago bubble up from a voice outside of herself. Keeping her eyes closed, she has found, keeps the tears in. She bites her lip rather than chewing this time, before taking a moment to speak. "Oh, Sweetie. They're too much, I know."
"Too much and not enough." comes the thoughts burbling up from deep inside of Sana, staying buried in her head, where she keeps them safe. She is just barely able to prevent ruining her makeup while she had no kit available to fix it. "These feelings... everyone has them. They're meant to protect you. But some of us, sometimes... we have them too much, or feel them too strongly. It isn't right, and it isn't fair. And we just... we have to learn. We have to teach the feelings what to protect us from. We have to give our shadow something to be watchful of. So that it doesn't hurt us while trying to help us... and can't hurt the people we care about." Sana takes a moment to pat the little girl's eyes dry with the hem of her swimskirt-hidden-in-the-illusion of clothing. She helps her up as Li'an takes her hand. "And besides, even if he did take the medallion, I can always steal it back, if we need it. And you and I both know that being sent to our room is more of an honor system when you can walk through walls." she says, squeezing her shoulder. She reaches into her quiver, pulling out her kitty bag, offering it down to her, knowing that if she had a bag she wouldn't be clutching the medallion under her dress. "Here, you can borrow this for now. All you have to do is think about what you want and it'll give it back to you. I'll need it back, though... it has most of my life in it." she says with a small smile. As they begin to head back, she chimes in again. "You know... when I was about your age, I stole a lot. Every time someone was better than me at something... I had the urge to take things. Faster than me? Nick their shoes. Smarter than me? Glasses are mine. I was a real terror when I was little. It took a long time to teach my shadow to stop stealing joy and start spotlighting it. It isn't easy... but it does get easier, as long as you're willing to keep trying." she says, thinking back to sitting in the mausoleum with her collection of stolen trinkets when she had been so, so young and unable to parse exactly what she was or why she was so bad all the time. "But like Fen'wen said. You're not alone. There are plenty of people who will stick up for you and help you." she says, as they walk. "Don't ever let them take your light." she says, summoning Amber to their side to light the way as they go.
With Yulin: "Oh, sweetie." Anna says, crossing the intervening space and attempting to hug the girl. "The real you is right here. You don't need to do anything." She says, chewing on her lip once more. "You just need to learn how to be your best you."
With Yulin: Sana takes a moment to consider the possible ramifications of her actions, had Sana shared what had happened to her with the child... it would stretch to the edge of believability... but it was important that she understood the risks, even if it risked her own cover.
"What's more... I wasn't born a half-invidiak. I was made that way. I was used as a sacrifice to call a powerful invidiak named Eustoriax into this world by some cultists when I was little. They used a Sarenrite Temple at sunset. Cultists and bad guys love turning the gods' temples and artifacts on their heads... inverting rituals and all that." She pauses, "Light and dark, are two sides of the same coin." she says, pulling out her locket - a crusader's cross - and casting a glowing light on it. "Just as envy and kindness are two sides of the same coin." 'Both in weakness and in strength.' she thinks to herself. She chews her lip for a moment. "As inverted as a Sarenrite ritual when the sun is setting is... I think it would be even more powerful to do it during a new moon. Not only is the sun entirely gone from the sky, the moon is as well. I can only assume something like that would invite darkness, rather than cast it out. You need help to do this right. Trust your cousin to do what is right, and let us help you."
With Yulin: Sana tilts her head back and forth in a non-commital 'kind-of' gesture when she says 'like me', inherently unable to fully accept that she was the same as a natural-born half-demon. She lets Li'an take charge of the not-interrogation for now, just listening attentively. She purses her lips slightly when Li'an begins to treat the preteen like a child, side-eyeing her slightly at that point, but otherwise just actively listening. "I tend to go with sort-of human tiefling... it's the easiest to cover since they're so much like me to begin with." Sana offers, hopefully helpfully.
Somewhere only She knows.:
As Anna reappears on the rooftop, she alights down slowly, looking around to see where they are. Li'an hadn't taken them far, it seems... she had expected a different sort of seclusion... but rooftops were good. Open. It'd let Yulin flee if she felt the need, less cornered, maybe. She takes a moment to look over Yulin, finally recognizing her for what she is in the new light.
She listens to Li'an lay out the situation, slowly tilting her head. "That's... a lot of exposition and a lot of different topics. Reminds me of Ary. But more... scattered? You don't seem okay at all, Fen'wen." she says, after a moment. She looks around to make sure the coast is clear.
"Ugh. Twice in one day." she whines, slightly, as she lifts her cloak to wipe her disguise from her face, causing her shadow to go wild once more, swirling around Fen'wen and Yulin. Her demonic features coming into clear display... before slipping the cloak back over once more to replace her disguise just as quickly as it had gone. "So... um, yeah. Nice to meet you, Yulin. I'm Anna. Kind-of half-invidiak, though not exactly. More like 80-20 by volume." she says, attempting a joke, as she lets her wings flutter out of her clothes.
"Do you want to talk to us about what's going on?"
Meanwhile, back at the group, Amber floats and bobs in place, forgotten where it had been left when Li'an disappeared - still able to ferry others to Anna's side, should they wish. |
