[RQ] [SE] and right there where we stood was holy ground

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

Aithne stands in front of the Temple, hands on her hips, as she surveys the newly completed fountain. It's a marvel of dark stone and blood-red wine, but it's still missing the healing properties that are so crucial to its completion. Aithne has been tasked with helping to purify the area, but as someone without a lick of light magic to her name, she's unsure exactly how she's going to accomplish that goal. 

She prowls around the fountain to peer at it from a different angle, head tilting to one side as she crosses her arms over her chest. Pursing her lips, she considers. Maybe she should have thought this through a little better, found someone to help her rather than diving in headfirst. Making a soft tsking noise, she glares at the fountain. She might have to come back another day to do this, and that will really piss her off.

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

It was meant to be a quick jaunt to the Grounds – one that has him dropping off something nearby and ensuring he takes a very wide berth from anything that might come close to where Astaroth might be given the season it is and the rumors he’s heard. And yet, he still finds himself smack in the middle of the Inner Quarter and the Temple that appears to have some work being done, and standing there in the middle of it as he hesitates and watches, he sees an Ancient staring at the fountain that still looks somewhat in progress but seemingly at a loss.

Glancing around to make sure the butcher isn’t just hiding and waiting to jump out at him, Sunjata steps over toward Aithne with a curiosity as he stares at the fountain. “Everything alright?” He asks, raising his brow and glancing back toward the Ancient he’s pretty positive he’s never met.

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

An accented male voice interrupts Aithne's musings, and she turns to regard a man she's never seen before, who seems to have taken note of her general state of distress. He's tall and handsome, with a variety of scars and tattoos that tell of a life well-lived, at least in Aithne's mind. She shoots him a fanged grin. "Who, me?" she asks innocently, flicking her tail as if she hasn't a care in the world. "Oh, everything's fine."

But she sighs dramatically, turning to regard the fountain once more, deciding that it's the current bane of her existence. She's got no ideas on how to purify the area, absolutely none. Pursing her lips once more, her dark eyes slide to the stranger. "Here to see the healing fountain?" she asks, gesturing towards the work-in-progress architecture. "You're a little early, I'm afraid."

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

Her fanged grin greets him and the tension in his shoulders relaxes a fraction to realize that she isn’t in dire trouble. He shoots her a lopsided one in return, the scar that carves up the side of his cheek one that makes it crooked just by existing. “That’s good.” He offers with a breath of relief, before her dramatic sigh leaves her and she’s looking back at the fountain.

His own attention flits toward it, seeing its sharpness and how it looks relatively deadly all things considered. He’s surprised to hear that it’s to be a healing fountain, though for a region full of Ancient’s he’s not too sure what he expected if he’s being honest with himself. “First I’m hearing about it, actually.” He admits with a little purse of his lips before he straightens up a bit. “What’s left for it?” He’s currently in progress for the healing river back home, and a curious part of him wonders whether or not the tasks line up with what Rae has asked him to do.

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

The air grows suddenly, oppressively still around you. Caught in the eye of a storm you didn't know you were in, you almost wish for the shrieking cries, for thunderous wails of unrest.

Instead, it's a mournful, keening sound that sighs overhead, like a voice too tired to scream any longer. More human, perhaps, than any other voice in the storm, you're nevertheless relieved when it's gone.

---

You have encountered one of the Scream Rain SE serendipities! You may use this to complete requirement 1. of the seasonal event. Please note: this serendipity CANNOT be used for levelling purposes.

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

So the stranger isn't from around here, then. Aithne's dark gaze flits over him again, noting the scars, the tattoos, and she thinks it's a shame. "Well -" she begins to say, but is interrupted by the mournful keening sound of the rain overhead. The sound is unexpected, but Aithne doesn't startle. If anything, she looks vaguely annoyed when she glances up into the clouds.

"Rude," she mutters under her breath. Then, ignoring the scream rain entirely, Aithne turns her attention back to the stranger. "Well, we have to purify the area. I may or may not have volunteered to assist with that." She frowns at the fountain again. "I also may or may not have thought that particular decision through."

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

Leaning in a bit toward her to hear her speak, the Heartless soon grimaces to hear the screech of the scream break across the sky. His jaw sets for a moment as he, too, glares up at the sky before his attention drops to the fountain – wondering silently if the Mathair was upset enough with his offering that she’d waited until he’d been in deep in the Grounds before letting him know.

But there’s a task here, at least, and when they both come back to the task at hand, his steel gaze flits back toward Aithne. “Oh, so you need some healing or light magic?” Which isn’t something he imagines Ancients had a lot of, and luckily for her, he does. And from what he knows about his own current regional quest, it was its own requirement for him too. So he shoots her a crooked smile, inclining his head. “I can help with that if you want? I'm Sunjata, by the way.” Figuring if they were getting started with this task he might as well introduce himself.

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

Aithne perks up immediately at the mention of healing or light magic. Yes, that's exactly what she needs. Now, if she can only figure out where to find it -

But the stranger has the answer to that, too, offering assistance in a way that would be suspicious if Aithne didn't need the assist so badly. "Ooooo, could you?" she asks, grinning widely. Then, holding out a hand to shake, she adds, "I'm Aithne."

The rain is falling in earnest now, and Aithne flicks her tail, annoyed by this turn of events. She pulls her hood up over her head, hoping to avoid the worst of the cold and wet. "Do you want something in return?" she asks belatedly, cocking her head to one side. She doesn't have much to offer, but... "I could show you our rage room, if you're so inclined. Or there are all kinds of fun things to get into around the Last Whisper - my treat."

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

She grins widely and offers her name out, too, accepting his help. So Sunjata reaches out to take her hand in a shake, shooting her a lopsided grin of his own. “Nice to meet you Aithne.” He offers before he’s withdrawing and shaking his hands out a little, ignoring more of the rumbling thunder that seems to remain in the sky even past the screams that have just passed.

At her question, though, Sunjata’s surprise is clear across his face as his steel gaze flits to her from the rather menacing fountain. “Oh, no, I’m just happy to help.” He admits with a soft laugh. “I have seen the rage room, though. It’s a pretty neat place.” He’d spent time in it with Charlie way back when, actually. But that’s not really a conversation for right now. “Though you could show me some of your favorite haunts if you really wanna do something? I’m not in the Grounds all that often.” He isn’t pressed on whether or not she wants to repay him, but his answer is a truthful one. He wasn’t here regularly enough to know where the good spots were, aside from the Dusklight of course. A space he's trying desperately to avoid this time of year lest he run into the Theocrat's fiancé.

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

The thunder continues to rumble overhead, but Aithne ignores the weather. It's getting chilly, and she'll have to seek out the warm and dry soon enough, but for now, she should be okay. Hopefully.

Since Sunjata has seen the rage room already, Aithne does her best not to pout as she thinks of other places that she could show him. There's all the natural splendor of the Grounds, she supposes. The Glade is particularly pretty. But she's not interested in nature today, preferring the warm and dry to being out and about in the scream rain.

So she shrugs. "Well, there's obviously the Dusklight. You do know about that, right?" she asks, just to confirm, though she assumes that if he's familiar with the rage room, he's at least been to the Grounds enough to know about the Dusklight, too. "But other than that, there are some other places down in the Last Whisper that are worth a visit. Just depends on what specific kind of poison you're looking for," she says with a wink.

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

“Oh yeah.” Sunjata says with a hum of a laugh, stepping forward toward the fountain while they figure out just what they should do after. “Maybe we can just peruse what’s on offer, huh?” He wouldn’t mind that – drifting throughout it to see what options were available, so long as Aithne didn’t mind. He knows the VlamVloed is down there – the bar he’d made ages ago that still lingered even after the war, even if he wasn’t prone to stepping foot inside all too often since.

For now, though, he straightens up as he stands beside the fountain. “You might wanna keep a little bit of distance if you don’t want to get wet.” More wet, he supposes, given the scream rain from earlier and the light drizzle there still seems to be. After a few seconds, Sunjata conjures his own little rain cloud – imagining the fountain as an ally so the rain falls with a warm, healing aura, splashing against the stones of the fountain and the basin.

---

Sunjata uses his healing magic on the fountain!

Magic: Let it Rain | Can cause rain to fall in a 60 ft radius that heals allies while damaging enemies. Has a 2-post cooldown.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

"Sure," Aithne says, giving a playful salute. "Happy to play the tour guide." And she means it, too. There's not an ounce of irritation or regret in the girl as she flicks her tail, seemingly watching for something to happen to the fountain at any moment, like the purification that Sunjata has offered will materialize into thin air. And when he warns her to step back, she tilts her head, confusion flickering for a moment before understanding dawns. "Oh, well, guess I'll scoot over there, then." And off she goes, propping herself against a nearby wall to watch.

A little rain cloud forms above the fountain, droplets - well, more droplets - beginning to fall as Aithne watches. From her vantage point, she can't tell much more than that it's raining harder over the fountain than it is around it. But she can't see whatever magic or healing aura or whatever the rain brings with it, so she shift impatiently in place before calling out, "Is it working?" She's nothing if not eager, that's for certain.

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.

// ships are launching from my chest
some have names but most do not //

Glancing over at her as she steps back, Sunjata conjures his magic and gets to work spreading the healing droplets across the fountain to hopefully purify it and offer that little bout of help for the residents of the Grounds. Besides, he’s sure Danta would appreciate it – something tells him the man he’s chosen has a tendency to get into trouble more often than not.

The rain from Sunjata falls away and he squints at the fountain before he looks back at Aithne with a huff of a laugh. “You know, I’m not sure how to tell. But if we wait for a little bit more I can do it again just to be safe?” Flexing his fingers as he feels the magic within him start to recharge, he shoots her a lopsided smile. “It’s gotta build back up again is all.” Demigod he might be, but he still had limitations to his magic.

---

Magic: Let it Rain | Can cause rain to fall in a 60 ft radius that heals allies while damaging enemies. Has a 2-post cooldown.
Type: Grey | Rank: Mastered | Cost: Action

Post Cooldown: 1/2

the flood

// if you find one, please,
let me know what piece i've lost //

I salute you if you're much too much to handle

Sunjata's rain stops - or at least Aithne thinks it does. It's a little hard to tell given the actual rain still dripping down from above. Pushing off the wall upon which she's been leaning, the girl half-skips over to join her new friend. "Sure, once more won't hurt," she agrees as she looks over the fountain. It doesn't look any different, but who is she to say whether or not something has been purified?

When she's satisfied he at least hasn't done anything to harm it, the girl turns her attention back to Sunjata. "So, is it healing rain, then?" she asks curiously. "What's it like, having light magic?" All she has access to is fire, at the moment, and somehow she doesn't imagine that her future will include much aside from absolute chaos. Light magic doesn't really fit her vibe, and she's not sure if it's in Dygra's repertoire, regardless.

Aithne

Minor powerplay allowed without permission.
Feel free to use force/magic on Aithne.