Strange Bedfellows
Jigano Silversmith
the Sage
Provost of the Loreseekers Soul Shepherd
Portal Guardian
Age: 36 | Height: 6'2" | Race: Attuned x Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 30 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 38 - Luck: 42 - Int:
ISUMA - Mythical - Griffin (Venomous)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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MP: 10170
#1
With the alchemist's sight not what it had been it made sense to meet somewhere familiar to Remi and where the tools of his trade were readily available if they came up with any simpler experiments to try. So it was that as the Leafchange sun set below the horizon and sucked the remaining warmth of the day with it Jigano arrived at the appointed time, pulling his cloak tight around his shaking shoulders.

He did not expect this to be a very pleasant meeting, even without taking into account the hostility between himself and the third Queen of the Hollowed Grounds. Long Night was never raised without a frisson of loss and fear and often frustration to go along with it. What could they try now that the Naturals hadn't tried in the last three hundred years? But the barrier had fallen and the world was a wider place now, if only by a little. The gods were speaking to them more frequently, sharing more information than they ever had in the past, and more Outlanders arriving meant more viewpoints that might catch some hint or bring some new trick from another world that had been overlooked beneath the weight of local tradition.

And, as he had concluded with Loren, his personal antagonism didn't mean a damn against the monsters of Long Night. Whatever problems he had with Wessex would have to wait until they'd all survived another Deepfrost.

Well. Hopefully all. He wasn't so naive as to think they would be entirely successful this first year of fighting back.

Taking a breath and firmly taking hold of his blight-edged temper, the bard pushed open the door and stepped inside. He patted his pouch where he kept the notes he had brought and looked around, calling into the cluttered shop.

" Remi ? Wessex ? Are you here?"
Remi Taliesin
the Bastion


Age: 31 | Height: 5'11 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 15 - Strg: 68 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 100 - Luck: 93 - Int: 3
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#2
Я
"Mmmmm, back here!" Remi's bright voice rang out from somewhere in the back of the shop. Though nothing about this place was set up to house a former-king and current queen, the alchemist had done his best. Clearing a table of experimental clutter and various bits of paper, the alchemist had created three teacups and a pot, below which a fire was brightly burning to heat water for tea.

Glancing up with slightly narrowed eyes to see through the monochromatic landscape, the titanium-white of the Sage's hair was smeared against the canvas of reality in a way that unmistakably marked the bard. "Hallo." Remi greeted with a boyish smile. "Wessex is not yet here." He added, before turning back to potter about with the tea.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Wessex Theskyra
the Wraith
General of the Hollowed Grounds

Age: 47 | Height: 5'8'' | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 61 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 61 - Luck: 58 - Int: 2
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#3
There is hope for them, but the Wraith thinks much of it lies in her ability to not slice and dice the man who thinks he knows everything about Caido and life there. She was fully aware of the inherent problems with the trio when she’d suggested ordered the meeting, but then necessity breeds strange bedfellows, indeed.

Wessex had been up before the sun went down, looking to things before the meeting. She briefly lost track of time and finds herself acknowledging that reprimanding voice in her head which says you’re going to be late, with fuck off, they can deal. And so she is a couple of minutes late, lost in thought about LongNight until her knuckles on the doorframe of the Alchemist’s shop announce her presence and her silhouette appears in the empty space.

“Thanks for hosting,” she directs towards Remi as she enters, and then a swift nod to Jigano, “and for coming,” to placate the potential elephant in the room. What Wessex does know is that Jigano reads. A lot. And Remi is trusted. A lot. And she has power in darkness. A lot. So perhaps the three of them can put their heads together for the good of the people. Seeing a place set for the three of them, she doesn’t stand on ceremony and simply takes a seat, pulling out a notebook from a cloak pocket and waiting for the other two (if they haven’t already sat down, they shouldn’t wait for her - fuck that nonsense) to settle in with their tea (none for her, thanks, though the gesture is appreciated with a tiny smile) before beginning.

The Queen is prepared for their wrath. Again and again and again, she will take it, the way a tempestuous sea batters against a cliff’s edge, but cannot bring it crashing down into its depths. She will be bright.

“So. I’ve found an old book about LongNight Monsters and translated it, and the information in it has been confirmed. It may be upsetting, so I want to save it for later. Jigano, if you could start with any new information and briefly recap what you said at the meeting, that would be great.” Emphasis on the brief, as she knows her own triggers when it comes to the bard.“Remi, I’d like to hear your thoughts, too.”
Jigano Silversmith
the Sage
Provost of the Loreseekers Soul Shepherd
Portal Guardian
Age: 36 | Height: 6'2" | Race: Attuned x Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 30 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 38 - Luck: 42 - Int:
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#4
Remi’s voice was brighter than the weary bard felt by far, but he could appreciate that at least one person in the coming meeting would be determinedly cheerful and trying to grease the wheels of politics. He managed a wan smile as he followed the source of the greeting and made his way back to the table and tea that had been laid out. ”Hello, Remi. Thank you.” He settled himself in and was pouring tea into one of the cups when a rap of knuckles announced the third member of their odd little trio. He tensed, though it was hard to see beneath the blight-shake of his hands as he set the pot back down and steeled himself to manage courtesy when the darkness growing within him wanted nothing more than shouted epithets and destructive violence.

Be better, Amalia’s voice whispered in the back of his thoughts, and he drew strength from her words, composing himself to greet the Queen with a cool but polite nod as she thanked him for coming.

”Not much new since the meeting,” he acknowledged, trying to keep things brief per her request, and his own exhausted state. ”We know that the monsters can warp minds as well as attack bodies and wear the voices and faces of humans to trick people into opening their doors. Not all souls go to Ludo and Mort… some can resist moving on, becoming twisted and monstrous, though that’s not necessarily limited to Long Night.” He hesitated a moment, sliding a glance to Remi. There had been more time to think and turn over what he and the alchemist had bounced back and forth between themselves that night of starlit flying, and he had come to some new conclusions since then. Jigano swallowed uncomfortably before raising his eyes to meet Wessex’s gaze with an outwardly calm expression that wasn’t more than skin deep.

”I’ve also learned a bit more about the Ascended and what the Voice was doing with them a few hundred years ago. Some of the experiments that she did, and the, ah, ‘upgrades’ that she had given. Upgrades that were largely focused on changing voices or appearance, allowing Ascended to mimic others. Upgrades for moving silently… even altering memories..” The temptation to arch a brow and let them draw their own conclusions was great indeed… but this was neither the time nor place.

”Those upgrades sound unsettlingly similar to the abilities of the Long Night monsters, as their madness and destructive urges seem similar to the Spire Demon’s habit of lashing out at anything human, just as it was once of the Voice’s experiments as well, albeit a thankfully unique one.” He sat back, dropping his gaze to watch the shake of his hands with a faint grimace of unhappiness. ”But so far all I have is correlation, not proof, that the pain and rage-maddened spirits of those past Ascended the Voice experimented on have become the Long Night monsters within the barrier.”
Remi Taliesin
the Bastion


Age: 31 | Height: 5'11 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 15 - Strg: 68 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 100 - Luck: 93 - Int: 3
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#5
Я
The alchemist hums a cheerful sound of acknowledgement, nodding towards the queen. Though many have their hackles up around Wessex, all of his interactions with her have been quite pleasant. And, where once he believed Zariah was trying to do the right thing, in Wessex he knew it. He still harboured the same worries he had with her predecessor about methods, but at least he could stand in a room with her and not expect his abilities to be manipulated and abused to the point of unconsciousness.

Listening with his head slightly cocked, looking for all the world like a dog with its ear back listening to the conversation behind him, Remi poured three cups of tea. That Wessex wouldn't taste hers nor feel the heat from it seemed to be no reason not to pour her any. Sam had drank tea before his patch after all, and he could both spare the leaves and the water even if it went to waste. Setting the tea down for both Jigano and Wessex, the alchemist decided to remain standing. Leaning against one of the shelves, he crossed his arms over each other, biting his lip and listening to what Jigano had to say.

At the conclusion, the alchemist was forced to sigh in weary acknowledgement, having recently heard much of what Jigano had just said.

"So...if there is a link between the Voice and the LongNight monsters—" The alchemist shot Wessex an almost apologetic wince having said this, before continuing. "—to what end? Are they merely tests, once completed having been allowed to roam free? Why trick us to open our doors? Why kill? I could see if they merely bit, taking power and using it for themselves but...the bodies are gone when the sun returns." Blame was not a game the alchemist was fond of and no more so than now, when figuring out what was going on was much more important than why it had been done. "From..what I have heard and seen, mostly from Sam but my limited experience with the Voice as well...she seems to care for you." Remi nodded gently towards Wessex. "If those are her creations, I cannot imagine she would simply let them...degrade." The word sounded much more callous than he meant it to, more impersonal that the living (if not breathing) woman before him was, and so again Remi winced an apology Wessex's way.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Wessex Theskyra
the Wraith
General of the Hollowed Grounds

Age: 47 | Height: 5'8'' | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 61 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 61 - Luck: 58 - Int: 2
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#6
At least someone knows she isn’t going to drain Remi dry or harm babies or, what was it, go whine to her not-Goddess about something? Sick burn, there.

Her hands wrap around the offered hot cup of tea, feeling teeny bits of warmth seep through her skin. It’s almost comforting, a nostalgic motion to go through. Wessex listens and waits, but doesn’t say anything until Jigano is finished, trying to figure out the right way to phrase things, though there’s a sinking suspicion that no matter how she delivers her confirmations, it still won’t go well. The alchemist, at least, is kind with his words: both a blessing and curse in some circumstances.

“It’s true,” she begins, careful not to look away from the two of them in shame, nor harsh or broken in her tone. “The LongNight monsters are early Ascended, unable to keep their physical form. How or why it happened, I don’t know, maybe she failed, or maybe they weren't strong enough. But that’s why they have peculiar abilities. The mimicry, going through walls… singular talents, though I’ve never heard of warping memories or assuming human faces.” She shrugs a little, wondering if he’d exaggerated for effect, assumed, or his research had offered such tales. Her own was a personal account, it may not be completely reliable.

“Which is also why they only come out at LongNight. They need total darkness to manifest their powers, the way we do. Fire and such doesn’t deter us, and since they have no fluid, they aren’t flammable any more. Godly light and magical light and true sunlight do. But again, why they never went to Ludo. He won’t accept them. I even read that in the beginning of the barrier, there was a race to find those who died during LongNight - a race for their souls and bodies.” It’s a lot to digest. Definitely doesn’t paint the Voice well.

But, she emphasizes, “despite them being senseless and ravenous, they recognize other Ascended. Last LongNight I was able to communicate with one and it didn’t kill me. It destroyed Rory’s house and then put it back together at my request - must have been some time manipulation ability or something.” And here’s where she gets iffy on whether or not she can do something similar or this LongNight. “Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to give it what it wanted. So there may be one very vengeful spirit out there… but if there’s a way for the Ascended to help, or try and placate, or even just guard, because we are strongest then...”

She trails off, knowing that it’s a big ask of everyone. Hey, our Goddess is directly responsible for the two really bad things, but we’re totally trustworthy in this regard.

One small relief is that the Fae might be equipped enough to deal with this on her own, but she is ultimately unsure of their magical prowess and predicaments.
Jigano Silversmith
the Sage
Provost of the Loreseekers Soul Shepherd
Portal Guardian
Age: 36 | Height: 6'2" | Race: Attuned x Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 30 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 38 - Luck: 42 - Int:
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#7
Remi’s questions were good ones, but Jigano only gave a weary shake of his head. The alchemist’s insistence on seeing the best in people, even gods, still hadn’t changed. In some ways it was reassuring, but in others… It was better not to think about that. One thing Jigano trusted Wessex not to be was overly optimistic, and he waited to see what the Ascended Queen would say before trying to answer Remi’s questions with what were, admittedly, only guesses on his part.

He sipped his tea, wishing the warmth could thaw the coldness that had settled into his bones, and met her eyes warily as he listened to what she had to say. The confirmation was like a lead weight in his stomach as their worst fears were realized. Where she had gotten her information from, whether tome or goddess, mattered less than how well it dovetailed with his own. He merely nodded wearily, closing his eyes briefly as he sought to draw strength from a well that was swiftly running dry.

”The light, godly and magical… it only deters the monsters, not the… the modern Ascended, yes?” he asked, seeking confirmation with a slight frown as he tried to remember… ”Isla was able to call luxere with me during Deepfrost without a problem. She didn’t seem to be bothered by the light of their antlers the way the Long Night monsters were. Perhaps it is the difference between having bodies and not?”

He bit his lip, careful not to break the skin as he considered his next words carefully. ”Ludo… when I spoke to them about bringing twisted souls back to them and Mort, they seemed… pessimistic, but did not forbid me to try. I do not think they will seek them out, but they might accept them if the souls are brought to them. If the numbers of these souls are finite, we might be able to whittle them down in such a manner.” So long as they were not replaced, of course, by the souls of their victims.

”Though not all Ascended,” he cautioned at the suggestion that the nightwalkers had some protection, though part of him bristled with a purely animalistic rage at hearing that Rory’s home had been damaged. He wrestled it back down, taking an overly large swallow of tea and focusing on the burn of the hot water as he used it to distract from his own senseless rage. ”It was a monster that killed Isla. Being Ascended didn’t save her.” And if there was bitterness there, that Wessex had survived where the bright and beloved medic had failed? That much, at least, he could not blame on the blight.

Jigano didn’t question the idea that the Ascended could act as guards. He might not like Wessex, but it wasn’t because of her Ascended blood fluid. No, he saved his mistrust and ire for the goddess who tricked and bribed and wheedled mortals to her cause, with all the wiles of a black widow spider. He would not soon forget that she had used gentle Sam to spread her blight, and he was not inclined to forgive her, either. He only tilted his head in a nod towards Remi, offering the alchemist a slight curve of his lips that couldn’t really be called a smile. ”Given that the blight is also a thing of the Voice, and how it is… affecting those of us who have it, we were similarly wondering if those of us who are, ah, afflicted might also be able to walk Long Night with more impunity. Assuming we can still walk by then,” he added quietly, grimacing as he turned his eyes to watching the tea in his cup rippling with the tremble in his hand.
Remi Taliesin
the Bastion


Age: 31 | Height: 5'11 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 15 - Strg: 68 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 100 - Luck: 93 - Int: 3
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#8
Я
As Wessex begins, the alchemist lowers his chin to his chest and closes his eyes as if that might help him better retain the information being given. Already his mind is so overloaded by everything happening that he feels he cannot contribute to this conversation in the way the two present likely need him to. Still, he pulls in a breath and tries.

"If...if the monsters are ascended of a limited kind...Jigano, did you not say that the things that make them capable of their super human feats—their upgrades—are just items? What if...Archebold, a friend and ascended has a cane. Magic does not work in its vicinity. I wonder if something like that could be made so that their abilities are muted."

Hearing Isla's name makes Remi flinch and hold his breath. While many mourned the medic last year, Remi has started to mourn her now. So much of her mind is gone that she truly can't be said to be the woman she was when she was taken, ascended or not.

As the bard mentioned their theory, Remi let his eyes open and nodded wearily. "Safrin said those who were blighted would not die, but be taken over by it. Not entirely unlike the minds of the LongNight monsters. Though I suppose monsters is not really what they are.." He murmured almost more to himself, rubbing absently above one eye.
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Wessex Theskyra
the Wraith
General of the Hollowed Grounds

Age: 47 | Height: 5'8'' | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 61 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 61 - Luck: 58 - Int: 2
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#9
“Just the monsters,” Wessex agrees, remembering how she was able to see the Sparkbird up close and marvel at the miracle without turning into ash and bone. “But I don’t know why there’s a difference.” And quite frankly, she doesn’t care. That’s not what they’re here to figure out.

Even though she’s been playing it nice, part of the Wraith is itching for some kind of fight. She almost wants Jigano to devolve in front of her, wants to fight about Rory or being Ascended or whatever bone they currently have to pick with each other. It would be a great excuse. She sighs.“I was under the impression that the soul thing is an either/or situation. Either they’re brought to Ludo in time or they’re lost in LongNight. Go for it if you want to try, but I don’t want you to be disappointed if it doesn’t work.” She knows that her own soul will never be with Ludo, she will literally never see Magrethe or her mother again. The Festival of Lights was a small, but much-needed boon, where Wessex made as much peace with that fact as she could while basking in the memories of the two beloved women’s smiles.

Wessex wept that night, unabashedly happy and then later, torn to pieces. It will be a long time before she does that again.

“No, you’re right. It may not be an Ascended thing, actually. It may just be a me thing,” Wessex says in dawning revelation.“They called me Reborn, demanded to know how it was possible.” Because of course, she’d died and been remade.[say] “I was able to come back. They weren’t.”[/say] The thought of which was sobering. To some extent, Wessex has begun to take her resurrection for granted, to forget that it was indeed a great feat that speaks volumes about her Lady’s power and how it’s grown. And it’s probably something none of them have ever realized before.

“I wonder if his cane will work for others. Do we know if Loren was successful in his summoning?”

Because if Wessex can protect Loren, and Loren can summon a Sparkbird, and then someone else (someone without the blight) can collect the souls (not necessarily in that order), then maybe… maybe they can eradicate the LongNight monsters for good.


{don\'t mind my time jump with the summoning thread x.x}
Jigano Silversmith
the Sage
Provost of the Loreseekers Soul Shepherd
Portal Guardian
Age: 36 | Height: 6'2" | Race: Attuned x Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 30 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 38 - Luck: 42 - Int:
ISUMA - Mythical - Griffin (Venomous)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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MP: 10170
#10
There had been a thread, a spark of inspiration that he had been trying to chase. The difference between the older Ascended and the new had almost given him the seeds of a plan for capturing the monsters that hunted the week of darkness—

The Queen’s swift dismissiveness killed it aborning, the idea flickering out like a candle against a storm, and Jigano sagged a little in his chair as the weight of hopelessness descended more fully upon him. ”An item to mute mechanical abilities?” he echoed Remi dully. ”If the gods could make such a thing, wouldn’t they have used it against the Voice already? And somehow I don’t see her offering such a treasure up.” He glanced to Wessex with humor, wry and black, bleeding into the blue of his gaze. ”But it might not hurt to ask. Well. Not much.” Then again, it might very well hurt a great deal, as Remi knew better than most.

Wessex’s admission that he was right almost drew him out of his growing depression in surprise, though it was short-lived. A group of Ascended sweeping the night could protect a fair bit of the Sanctuary, at least, if not the whole Settlement. A single woman? No matter how regal, the Wraith couldn’t be everywhere at once, and she’d be greatly outnumbered. Not to mention she’d just told them that she might have a target painted on her back for at least one of the monsters. They had proven smart enough to lay a trap with the destruction of the perch last year; what was to say they wouldn’t do it again, only more personalized for her this year?

‘Personal’ being far too likely to include Rory for the fox’s liking.

”If you’re going to be out in the dark, watch out for traps,” he growled reluctantly. ”Especially… especially if they know where Rory lives, and are trying to get at you through him.” The farmer was still the one thing that could get through his pride when the darkness raised shutters around his soul; for his mate, he’d deal with the Queen with a civil tongue. Or at least, something like one.

He glanced to Remi, not sure if the alchemist had seen the light behind him as he’d flown away with what was probably a concussion, but the bard gave a curt nod to them both. ”A luxere first, and then a spark bird, though only one at a time, and they both seemed to drain him fairly quickly.”

He scowled at the unwelcome reminder that he was losing himself, piece by piece. Each time he let the rage loose it was harder to fight it back, and he found a little more of his soul had been lost. He had held it at bay – or at least, hidden its worst effects – longer than most, but the closer Deepfrost crept, the stronger it grew. It was, however, enough to remind him of the other item he’d meant to raise. With Ronin, he’d thought back then, but now…

”We need a list of the blighted,” he admitted, though he had to force the words past his distaste. ”Remi can make a list of symptoms better than I at this point. Loren and I started making a list of afflicted, for what it’s worth. If you find a cure, you’ll want to know who to get it to as quickly as possible. Don’t want to miss anyone. Here.” He dug the paper out of his bag and pushed it to the middle of the table. The handwriting was atrocious, shaky and barely legible, but it held the names of six people:

Ronin
Jigano
Phoebe
Kiada
Melita
Caiside?


”It’s a start, at least.”
Remi Taliesin
the Bastion


Age: 31 | Height: 5'11 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 15 - Strg: 68 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 100 - Luck: 93 - Int: 3
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#11
Я
The alchemist can do little more than shrug. "What the gods can do and what they choose to do..." He ran a hand across the bridge of his nose and left it to cover his eyes for a moment. He of all people wouldn't try to guess at the motives of the gods. There were already enough what ifs to drive him mad.

The alchemist hadn't seen what Loren had summoned, but the magician had explained well enough when the pair met again. "The ascended can bite him of course to take that particular ability—" Something black and unhappy twisted in Remi's belly at the mere thought of Loren being forced into that sort of touch knowing how he felt about it, but perhaps moreso because Remi knew how it would make him feel. Banishing those thoughts he let his hand fall back to his side. "I could make amulets that could contain the power as well. Not that the ascended should not have it, but that way there is at least some sort of protection for anyone who feels the need to leave. Within reason of course." Wasting the charge of a spark-bird simply to fetch a book or so (Sam) would have to be monitored.

Remi sighed weakly in response. Yes. He certainly could put together a list of symptoms. He'd been categorizing them quite diligently up until now.

"Lily." The alchemist added softly looking at the list, probably far too short. "And Sunjata."
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.
Wessex Theskyra
the Wraith
General of the Hollowed Grounds

Age: 47 | Height: 5'8'' | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 61 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 61 - Luck: 58 - Int: 2
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#12
As quickly as the cane idea comes, she begins to cast it aside. Old and secret magics, it seems. The Ascended are neither old nor secret. The monsters are failures, and though she doesn’t think the Voice used magic to make them, it might be worth a try. Or an ask. Somehow she seriously doubts the man keeps a cane that would affect his abilities, and if the monsters are like them, then… she would be surprised if it worked. A good idea, though.

Jigano’s next bit finally gets to her. Her fists clench and nails dig into her palms as Wessex finally says, a little too sharply, “Jigano, thank you for your warnings, but I am well aware of what the monsters are capable of, I’ve lived through their destruction thirty-nine times. So has Rory. Extra precautions will be taken. For everyone. She then stops herself and lets the conversation move on the blighted and the summoner, looking down at the list as they two men draw it up.

Half of them she already knew, but Melita?
Fuck.

Well. Now it’s far more personal than it was before. Wessex visibly blanches at the names, noting that most of those who were on it were good and were no doubt instrumental in keeping the luxere herds close. “Amulets are probably more effective, as long as making them doesn’t drain you too, Remi. I’m sure Loren will need all the strength he can get, and blood loss is -” she spreads her hands in a sort of shrug. It doens't help. Well, he knows. They were in the cave together. They know the effects first hand.

Back to the blighted. “We may have to confine them - you -” she says with a look to Jigano “or try to, for LongNight. Any suggestions on lures? We were thinking of using the prison, but I haven’t been there yet to see if there are enough cells… Obviously this is just a theory, we’ll have to see how everything progresses.”
Jigano Silversmith
the Sage
Provost of the Loreseekers Soul Shepherd
Portal Guardian
Age: 36 | Height: 6'2" | Race: Attuned x Abandoned | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 12 - Strg: 30 - Dext: 45 - Endr: 38 - Luck: 42 - Int:
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Played by: Cirago Offline
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MP: 10170
#13
Remi's words were well-taken, the bard nodding resignedly at the seeming capriciousness of the gods of Caido. As he had told the alchemist before, though, he didn't think it was deliberate cruelty on the part of the local pantheon so much as living on different scales and being bound by different limitations. Was it what they 'chose' to do that stopped them, or were there compacts and rules that prevented them from certain types of interference, or interfering too often? Faith could have such a deceptively fragile strength, but he chose to put his own in Ludo and Mort, believing that the god of death would not call souls to his domain before their time without reason. What point would there be? In time, most mortal souls - those not lost to Long Night, at least - would find their way to Mort. All the god had to do was be patient, and from what Jigano knew of him, patience and kindness were very much a part of who and what he was.

Ludo, of course, was a different matter entirely, but given what Jigano knew of Mort's herald that wasn't entirely surprising.

Wessex's temper finally drew his lips back in a silent snarl as he fought not to snap back at her. His warning had been meant as a courtesy, albeit a grudging one, but of course she took it as some sort of insult. His fingers dug into the table, nails kept from turning to claws only through his instinctive reservations against partially-shifting himself in view of others. She was spared his sharp retort only because he knew that once he began spitting venom at her there would be no stopping, and he turned his attention inwards, biting his tongue to keep it firmly under control. He let them discuss using Loren as a piece of meat, the shock of hearing Remi offer up the scholar finally distracting him from the rage that bubbled like molten tar beneath the surface of his thoughts.

At least it let him gain control of himself for a few minutes longer, enough to remember the list he and Loren had been building and to hand it over to those most able to make use of it. Remi's additions were noted, and Jigano slowly withdrew a stub of a pencil from one of his sleeve pockets, adding the names to the list - the additions noticeably worse than the previous writing on the sheet.

Of course he had known they might need to be confined. He had said as much to Loren, and to Rory as well. As much as he hated and feared the thought of being imprisoned, the thought of physically hurting one of his friends was worse. He nodded slowly at Wessex , though not without a hard line to his mouth that Remi would not have received if he had been the one to say it aloud. "For now, the worst of the rages are only harsh words and broken crockery," he said quietly, sliding a glance to the alchemist and a pulse of weak support, knowing that Ronin was farther along than he was, and probably far worse as well. What had the alchemist told Loren at the oasis? He hadn't seen his husband for a week? "But... they are growing worse. Quicker to rise. Harder to control. Food has no savor, and it's not as though we've stopped thinking and reasoning, so you can't simply lure them - us - like animals." Yet. Always that 'yet' hanging over their heads like a thunderstorm about to break. "Lures... it doesn't make sense, but... it's hardest to keep control around the ones I love," he admitted, looking down at the table and the half-drunk tea cup in front of him as if seeking forgiveness in its reflection.

He didn't find it.

"The urge to lash out is... stronger. Overpowering, sometimes." He slanted a glance to Remi. That might be why Ronin left. In his better moments he was afraid of the rage getting... worse. Of hurting more than just plates and cups. Hopefully Remi already knew that, but Jigano doubted it would be of much comfort to the alchemist. "If this continues as it has been and we lose more of ourselves to the rage, you might be able to lure us with those who the blighted care for most."
Remi Taliesin
the Bastion


Age: 31 | Height: 5'11 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 15 - Strg: 68 - Dext: 60 - Endr: 100 - Luck: 93 - Int: 3
ORIA - Mythical - Spriggan (Ghost)
Played by: Odd Offline
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Posts: 10,723 | Total: 16,193
MP: 3059
#14
Я
Remi says nothing about the bickering. He finds both sides of their coin equally persuasive, but being an Outlander himself, he has nothing to offer. Everyone needs to be protected, looked after, and in that they all agree. Saying so now would only muddy waters that he has no business wading into anyways.

With a look towards Wessex, Remi's jaw feathers as he nods. "Loren is...quite stubborn. I think he feels as though it is his only way to help. As a healer he is probably better suited to being in the Infirmary during LongNight, which is partially why I offered up the amulets. As you say..." Or well, didn't say, but only because it didn't need to be said. Of all who might handle the effects of repeated ascended bites, he didn't think the summoner was one.

Remi pulsed a flickering of something towards Jigano as the queen mentioned the jail, though he kept his face free of emotion, eyes trained on his teacup. It was only the mention of the blighted's verbal assaults that made him tense and look up again. "No...that is not quite true." He said in a low voice, swallowing hard. Ronin certainly had progressed far passed yelling and breaking things. "I had to restrain Phoebe the other day...and Ronin.." The alchemist couldn't look at either one of them now, merely staring with wide blank eyes somewhere near the floor. "..he is hardly himself at the best of times."

On the subject of lures, Remi really didn't know. "I expect it would be like trapping any sort of creature, in that it all depends. For Ronin, Aoife always brings him. If it is Rory for you, we know that much at least. But the rest of them? For whom they have no strong loves here?" Biting the inside of his cheek, he closed his eyes with a sigh. "I hate to trick or trap them...but it is for their own safety as much as ours. During the times the blight takes over Ronin he does not eat or sleep. He sleeps in the cold. His blighted-mind seems not to mind, but when it clears? He can hardly manage much of anything."
Speaks with a thick Italian accent.
Force and magic can be used against Remi without permission.


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