"You did, unless you were using the royal 'we'," Jigano pointed out, amused. "And Zariah might want to have a word with you about that, if it was." He didn't know the woman well, but his single personal interaction with her had left his hackles raised against her ever since, and seeing how Edy and Remi fawned on her had cemented his mistrust and dislike of her even before this 'tyrant' business. "If you wish to create a map, I don't imagine that anyone will stop you, but in a settlement of this size you can usually just ask where things are," he said kindly. "Maps are useful for traveling long distances, between cities, but within a town?" It was a curious concept, and one he had trouble wrapping his head around. "For all my traveling around Numeria, I only saw maps for traveling cross-country, or when exploring an underground or labyrinthine area. Those, the Guild has already begun compiling," he acknowledged. Though it would be interesting to see how far her Outlander haughtiness took her with the locals... and how swiftly Zariah would seize upon such an idea as a way of consolidating further control over the area. A depressing thought...
Sacrifice? Oh, she had no idea, and Jigano's amusement had faded at the memory of the slain. He watched her reposition herself, thoughtful as he considered what her previous comments indicated about her as a person. She was eager to take, but he was not so sure she was willing to return it back around again. Eager to read, yes, but he was uncertain what her reasons were for that acceptance of his suggestion. There would be much to wait and see about with this one. "The Spire was defended by a powerful creature," he began, weighing how much to share. Information was his guild's commodity, usually traded for favors later - such as the renovations going on upstairs to repair the building. But given her sharp attitude from before, he was uncertain how far to rely on her. Still, he had his duty, self-appointed though it was. "Before the Spire could be approached, a group had to slay the beast. That cost one man his life - temporarily. He was favored by the goddess Safrin and she turned him into a star for a time, rather than releasing his soul to the keeper of the dead." His expression grew neutral and closed off as he continued: "Many among the Naturals did not want the Spire to be breached, or the barrier brought down. The Gods had placed it there for a reason, after all, and they respected the wishes of their gods. Others wished to study the Spire and to proceed slowly, wanting to be freed from the barrier but wanting to fully understand the consequences and price of doing so before they acted. And some wished for the Spire and Barrier to be brought down, regardless of cost or consequence." He tilted his head, arching a brow at Melinoe and giving her a moment to consider which group she might have fallen into.
"In the end, despite the fracturing of the population into those three groups, it was the latter who got their way. The Voice gave her Ascended children the keys to unlocking the Spire, and a number of people entered the Spire with the intention to bring down the Barrier... Zariah being one of them," he acknowledged with a cooling of his voice. "Later, others - myself included - went in to drag out and save those we could reach, who had gotten in over their heads, but by then the damage was already done. People were dead, the cage that held the Voice was broken with the death of yet another, and the goddess who had brought the world to war three hundred years ago was freed."
He hesitated, eyes narrowing as he cocked a brow at Melinoe. "And soon after, a mysterious blight struck the Greatwood, one that hadn't existed before our barrier fell." And let her draw the conclusions from that bit of knowledge that she would.
Sacrifice? Oh, she had no idea, and Jigano's amusement had faded at the memory of the slain. He watched her reposition herself, thoughtful as he considered what her previous comments indicated about her as a person. She was eager to take, but he was not so sure she was willing to return it back around again. Eager to read, yes, but he was uncertain what her reasons were for that acceptance of his suggestion. There would be much to wait and see about with this one. "The Spire was defended by a powerful creature," he began, weighing how much to share. Information was his guild's commodity, usually traded for favors later - such as the renovations going on upstairs to repair the building. But given her sharp attitude from before, he was uncertain how far to rely on her. Still, he had his duty, self-appointed though it was. "Before the Spire could be approached, a group had to slay the beast. That cost one man his life - temporarily. He was favored by the goddess Safrin and she turned him into a star for a time, rather than releasing his soul to the keeper of the dead." His expression grew neutral and closed off as he continued: "Many among the Naturals did not want the Spire to be breached, or the barrier brought down. The Gods had placed it there for a reason, after all, and they respected the wishes of their gods. Others wished to study the Spire and to proceed slowly, wanting to be freed from the barrier but wanting to fully understand the consequences and price of doing so before they acted. And some wished for the Spire and Barrier to be brought down, regardless of cost or consequence." He tilted his head, arching a brow at Melinoe and giving her a moment to consider which group she might have fallen into.
"In the end, despite the fracturing of the population into those three groups, it was the latter who got their way. The Voice gave her Ascended children the keys to unlocking the Spire, and a number of people entered the Spire with the intention to bring down the Barrier... Zariah being one of them," he acknowledged with a cooling of his voice. "Later, others - myself included - went in to drag out and save those we could reach, who had gotten in over their heads, but by then the damage was already done. People were dead, the cage that held the Voice was broken with the death of yet another, and the goddess who had brought the world to war three hundred years ago was freed."
He hesitated, eyes narrowing as he cocked a brow at Melinoe. "And soon after, a mysterious blight struck the Greatwood, one that hadn't existed before our barrier fell." And let her draw the conclusions from that bit of knowledge that she would.
