Burnt Out Ends of Smoky Days
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#15
The most recent Fiat Lux had almost washed the memories from the previous one away, and it took him a moment to remember the sight of his young friend dancing with the masked god. He smiled slightly, nodding as the puzzle piece slid into place, filling a small hole in the past he had lost hope would ever be complete, but his thoughts mirrored hers. Apparently Frey had intervened with the mud monster, while the Voice and Safrin had both stepped in during the mess with Ronin and the Temple. Only Ludo had been missing, but given all the souls that had been released to Mort's realm it was likely busy with its own responsibilities.

He explained the lantern's purpose, and nodded affirmation at Maea's guess at his song, pleased that she made the connection so quickly. For a moment he considered telling her where the song had come from... but after her revelations on her complicated history with Amalia he thought better of it. In that moment's hesitation, though, Maea pushed on, hinting at secrets that had been buried for many seasons. He regarded her solemnly, smile fading to seriousness as he turned her warning over in his mind. There was a great deal of pain and guilt in his life already; his schism with Sam, his failure to protect Amalia - twice, now. The renewed tension between himself and Deimos after they had begun to mend their fences. Being shoved to the front of a war he knew he couldn't win.

The disappearance and deaths of friends. The way Rory had retreated from the world. The threats from the Voice and the hatred of Safrin.

"Please," he said gently, offering Maea a reassuring smile. "If it would ease your heart to share it, I will listen. What is it?"

In the end he was a Loreseeker. His curiosity would kill him someday, if his pride didn't manage it first. But that meant learning the bad as well as the good, no matter how painful it was to hear.
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#16
In the quiet of the evening, the lone trill of that nightly bird echoed far and wide. Once, twice... and then it quieted. Maea wondered if it had simply retired for the night, or if something had made it quiet. Some prowling shadow with sharp claws and a hunger to sate, perhaps. She missed the song, as she patiently waited for Jigano to decide. It made the darkness feel more solemn, less friendly somehow. Her feet were wet with dew, the tattered skirts of the dress sagging against the legs and chilling them. Even in this early LongHeat evening the air was cool, and if not for her shawl she would have shuddered. As it was, she thanked Ludo again for the gift, and sought solace in the light of the lantern Jigano held. The pale glow steadied her, gave her courage as she sought to gather her fragmented memories.

"It would, at that" she sighed, "though to be honest I can't tell how important it is anymore. But... well. I'll let you decide that for yourself. It concerns you more than me, after all."

Easing herself down to sit on the stone, clueless about the purpose it had once served, she pulled restless fingers through the white tresses and looked out over the fields. Her eyes went distant, as though looking at something that wasn't quite there.

"Do you remember what the Voice said, before the barrier fell, about how she -or the Core, I don't recall the specifics - brought you all here? Reaching out through the void, to worlds beyond this one, to have you aid her in breaking free. I dreamed about it. When I was ill, before I disappeared. Only... I'm not so sure it was a dream." She plucked lint off the skirt, and rolled it between her fingers.

"In the dream - or vision, call it what you like - I saw when she did it. How she did it. There's a... building? creation? inside the Spire. Something that she made, from metal and tubes and complicated pieces. It was assembled together over many years. Centuries. It reaches out, plucks information, and gathers it together again over here. Only... only it's not... it's not that she takes a whole person and moves them from one place to another. Instead..."

It was clear Maea had trouble describing what she had seen. But beyond that, it was even more difficult to reveal the truth of what she'd realized, because she had no idea how Jigano would take it. How any of the Outlanders would feel about it, if they knew. But now that she had begun to speak, she couldn't stop. The words kept coming, rolling over a tongue that felt more numb with each syllable. Faster, with every racing heartbeat.

"Instead, she copies it. Like translating a text onto a new piece of parchment, making a second version. And... the process is still happening. Still the assembled pieces keep reaching out, making new copies, placing them here."

Solemn eyes rose to the Lorekeeper's face, apology and dread and so many questions mingling as she summarized what she was trying to tell him.

"You are a copy, Jigano. Of yourself. As are all the other Outlanders who have ever arrived on Caido."
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#17
Given the losses and tragedy of the recent festival, Jigano knew Maea's secret must be dire indeed for her to be so worried about it, but he was weary with grief and guilt. He could no longer afford the luxury of breaking beneath it, though, not with Rory withdrawn from the world and Amalia lying wounded in the infirmary. Caiside and Isla were dead as well, lost to LongNight, and where once he had leaned on them for support, now he forced himself to be strong in their stead. 'No hero,' Safrin had called him, and she had been right. But he would not let that stop him from moving forward. He had made too many promises, fallen too many times before. Now it was his turn to be the steady one, and he braced himself for the revelations that Maea wished to share.

She spoke of the past as the dark settled gently around them, starlight and moonlight dappling the fields beyond the lantern's glow and hiding the remains of the carnage from easy sight. He nodded at the mention of the Voice and her portals, now common knowledge, but the dream...

Metal and tubes made sense with what he had seen of Ascended technology, and the magic-melded technology the Rain of Stars had dropped on his own world. He didn't know how it could do what it did, but he knew enough to know it was possible, at least, and it lent all the more credence to Maea's 'dream' because she didn't know. A portal generator, one that could reach across time and space and reality itself, to pull people from...

Oh.

He blinked, going still as Maea went on, speaking of copies and simulated souls and memories that were not his own. Time seemed to slow around him as her words sank in, each one clear and meaningful but together creating an impossible whole. A copy A fascimile of someone who was still alive on a distant world, making his way through it a bitter, jaded man, one who had never met Amalia or Rory or Sam or Maea, never started a Guild or bonded to a gryphon. One who still had time and chance to get his head out of his own ass and go back to find Isuma and Hiraku and Val and Khonnir again...

He sat silently for some time, turning over her words and their implications, testing them for plausibility and probability. Finally he exhaled, as if he had been holding his breath that whole time, and suddenly realized part of his light headedness was from not breathing. "The dream..." he said at last, "the... vision. Do you know who sent it? The Voice, or Ludo, or... something else?"
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#18
All the while she remained silent. Hardly breathing, as she watched him process the impossiblity of it. She couldn't fathom what it must be like. Was it something to break him, to build him? A relief, a burden, a curse? She only knew what her own feelings might be to realizing she might not be all she was supposed to.

But... that was also something she wondered about. How thorough was the copy? What did it mean in terms of souls, of impact on this world? So far, none of the gods seemed inclined to discriminate against the Outlanders in terms of realness, so did it really mean anything? If their fabricated selves were still embraced by Mort, capable of living a life in honor of Vi, bound to the laws of nature as dictated by Rae... then was there even a problem?

Biting the inside of her cheek until it felt raw, she shrugged somewhat helplessly at the question. "I don't know she said, more honest than helpful. "In the dream I was guided by my brother's spirit. I was shown the construct, and the existence of the portals before anyone else had realized what they were... When I asked why it was shown to me, he said it was because I was soon to be in a position where I could act on the knowledge. Because I'd almost managed to become a ruler, I think."

Maybe it was the gods who'd shown her. Maybe something else entirely. Perhaps her brother's presence had only been her own thoughts, trying to help her cope with a vision that otherwise would have driven her mad. It was impossible to say.

"I suppose it is possible that Ludo might have... But somehow I don't think so. There was no touch of their presence, and I think I would have known if it was done by the Voice. The vision she gave me before was very distinct in nature... nothing at all like this."

Pulling a strand of grass free, the slender girl wound it between her fingers, considering her friend with brows wrinkled in quiet concern.
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#19
He took her words in silently, letting them fall into the maelstrom of his thoughts though his face remained outwardly calm, hiding the turmoil within. Spirit guides and impossible knowledge and the girl who had almost been Queen. How different things would be now if she hadn't gotten sick. Would Zariah ever have risen to power? Would Wessex have ever held the throne? Gotten them banned from the Greatwood? But those thoughts were a distraction from the gut-wrenching news of his own falsity. He nodded numbly at her assumptions that it had been no god they knew of that had sent that message and yet...

And yet.

If it had been her brother's spirit, wouldn't that mean Mort had been involved? At least to allow Noah to bring the dream to Maea. It was a guess and nothing more, empty supposition with no proof, but what else could he do? The information made a certain horrible sense to him and he sighed finally as his shoulders relaxed, one reluctant knot at a time. "I see no reason to disbelieve you," he said, looking to his friend with a crooked smile as the bats began to come out, fluttering overhead in their nightly hunt. "Hard though it is to hear. But... without proof, I'm not sure if the information should be widely shared. Many won't want to believe it. Others may be hurt by it." He shook his head, smile softening as a recent memory surfaced to soothe the mad scramble for someplace existentially solid to stand on mere moments ago. "Questions I have in plenty, but the most important one I already have the answer to. Thanks to Soulkeeper, here, I've seen souls of Naturals and Outlanders alike. Outlanders have souls, even if our bodies are mere constructs. This is something to be considered and pursued though, I think. Not that it should matter but... there may be those who wish to use it as a weapon against Outlanders in the future, and the best defense we have on that is for the Loreseekers to gather as much proof and facts as we can, to better understand it." How that would be undertaken, he didn't know yet, but with a little luck they would have some time to see what they could learn.
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#20
A brow rose as Jigano admitted to believe her, in silent outrage that he even considered that she might fib about something like this. She wasn't cruel, would not heap torment on her friends just for a laugh. Indeed, she wasn't the kind of person, she hoped, that even could laugh at someone else's misfortunes. It was indeed a fortunate thing he took her seriously, and perhaps lucky too given how outrageous the implication of her story was... but just like Jigano, Maea could only shrug at the information and admit she had no answers. Only more questions, and concerns.

"A few things in particular worry me about this," she told him, ticking them off on her fingers. "Firstly, if the construct still is active, what fuels it? No fire burns forever without kindling, and for something so... big, I can't even imagine what it takes to keep it functioning. Second, if it stops working... what will happen to you? Are you stable enough now that it have no more power over you, or would it harm you all somehow? I saw nothing of what happened to the original versions either... Are they still alive? Dead? Somehow affected by all this?"

Finding out more about this could indeed prove to be important, and Maea had a nagging suspicion about whom they might have to ask to get answers.

"Maybe... do you think some of the Ascended could talk to the Voice about it? She ought to know, if it's her machine. I'm sure an Outlander ascended would be just as worried about all this, if they might be affected." She thought of Sam, Amun, Wessex, and shuddered as a memory surfaced, of a head spinning through the air in a cascade of sparkling fluid. Far too fresh for the time that had passed, still raw in her mind, still unprocessed...

Pushing it down, shying away from it like a skittish horse, Maea forced herself to focus on Jigano. Real, solid, very much alive and unhurt, holding his lantern, with a name that made her smile ever so slightly despite the severity of the subject.

"That's a relief, at least. To know the gods do consider you a part of this world, now that you are here. Being left without their favor... would be a hard lot."
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#21
It hadn't occurred to him that Maea would lie to him, but it had occurred to him that something might have lied to Maea. Sowing discord between naturals and outlanders, destabilizing the Hollowed Grounds even more, could be useful to certain malicious spirits even before the Barrier had fallen. Stirring anger and resentment against the Voice for making copies of people would even be useful to any or all of the old gods, not just Ludo. Had it been a sad truth, shared to strengthen Maea's almost-rule? Or an insidious lie meant to shake it apart? Finding the source of it might not even be possible now that the barrier was down and all manner of things from the Hollowed Grounds let loose in the world again, but Jigano decided to err tentatively on the side of believing in the message as much as the messenger.

He listened to her worries, a small, proud smile tugging at the corners of his mouth at her analysis as she proved yet again why she was Loreseeker. "The gods can take space and do strange things with it," he said first, with a wry smile. "The inside of the Spire was - still is something separate from this world. There is a space within the Fae Village that is, too. Size and space aren't the same barriers to gods' constructs as they are to ours. And fires don't need to burn forever..." He set the lantern down and flipped a corner of his cloak over it to hide its glow as he gestured up to the stars above. "Some fires burn longer than years can be counted. If the Voice harnessed a fraction of the power of those fires, she would have all the power she needed and more." He paused, brow furrowing as the mention of years sparked a train of thought of his own.

"But... you said the device took centuries to build? If it was made to bring through Outlanders to free the Voice that's not possible. We have records in the Atheneum showing Outlanders arriving almost as soon as the barrier went up." He was unworried about the device still being tied to them, tilting his head at her in a comforting smile. "Nothing will happen, I'm certain. That we can arrive Attuned or become Attuned is proof enough that we are part of this world now, no matter where we came from before or how we got here. And whatever happened to those who might be our templates is... well, I know it sounds callous, but it's largely academic since we have no way to see back into our previous worlds to find out."

He nodded slowly at her desire to ask the Voice - or send someone else to do so - but could only offer a shrug. "I think it's a good idea," he said slowly. "Though... I'm not sure who I would trust with the information. Perhaps Rexanna... though she's certainly been through enough already. Still, if you think it was meant to help you rule, it is up to you whether you want to share it with her." He watched her as he unshielded the lantern again, seeing the flinch but uncertain what had caused it. At least he could reassure her about their souls, and again his lips tilted up in that crooked half-smile. "No harder than being born a mage here," he pointed out. "Not so different from that at all."
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#22
She pursed her lips thoughtfully, listening carefully to Jigano's theories. They did soothe some of the worries, indeed also the sense of urgency she'd been carrying. It was a relief to have shared this, so that the burden of all the questions no longer rested entirely on her. He was right that they probably ought to keep this information from becoming widespread, but he also had a point in that it was a rhetorical piece of knowledge. What could they do, indeed, if something happened to the originals? Travel to other worlds on some kind of crazy rescue mission? They could still barely leave the Hollowed Grounds!

Breathing in deeply, Maea let out a long sigh, and plenty of the tension along with it. Rolling her shoulders, she straightened a little, nodded again and smiled.
"Perhaps we can just keep it in mind for now. With so many other things happening, and considering it's been a year since I learned about this without anything dire happening, I think we can assume it's not an urgent matter. Just another puzzle piece, to save for later." It certainly wasn't a riddle they could solve here and now.

"How have you been, Jigano?" she asked, changing the subject. "Very busy, I assume, and with a lot on your hands, but aside from work?" She recalled something frail and beautiful budding between the bard and Rory at their latest junction, the ever-present gryphon who melted every heart, and... realized, that she really didn't know all that much about her guild master.
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#23
He nodded absolute agreement to keeping the news in mind, but the roiling tension he'd felt at the initial shock of the revelation was fading as his reassurances for Maea served to reassure himself as well. Maybe he was completely wrong about them... but he didn't feel like a copy, and it was really no different than what had happened to his friend Cassandalee on his world. A mind and soul caught in crystal and glass shortly before her original form had been destroyed, until a new body could be found for her centuries later. He had not viewed her as lesser for it, so how could he view himself as such? The Voice's interference in his life hissed and burned deep in his heart, but he had risen above her meddling, and he refused to let her drag him down again now.

The sudden change in subject earned an arched brow of surprise, not least because so few people ever asked him. He was usually on the other side of the question, and a warmer smile played at the corners of his mouth for a moment as he looked down at his pale friend before the carnage of the recent festival reasserted itself and it faded. "Ah, well, busy, yes. Blighted and cursed, with a warrant out for my arrest for a season before I was king for a few hours. Zariah nearly succeeded in closing the Guild, but failed in the end thanks to Amalia. New friends have been made and old ones lost..." He shook his head, looking around at the moonlit Fields and then past them, to a distant farmhouse out of sight, at the edge of the Woods. "Rory and I have come to an... understanding," he said quietly, slanting a glance and a small smile towards Maea again as he spoke. "I live at the farmstead with him now. Isuma often stays near him for me when I am in town or traveling. He is... much withdrawn from the world, these past seasons. This past LongNight was particularly hard on both of us." But Rory's tale was his own to tell should he choose to seek out the pale youngster, Noah's sister. The Provost sighed at the tumultous past and tilted his head at his colleague, a questioning gesture as his hands began to play idly with a pale lily that hadn't been there before. "And you, Maea? How much have you heard of what has passed since we were last together?" A formal phrasing, but a gentle teasing in it for his young friend as they fell back into the rhythm of question and answer and question again.
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#24
With widening eyes she listened to the tally. Shocked to hear that Jigano had been made outcast for even a moment, she wanted nothing so much as to ask about the ordeal. What blight? What curse, from whom? And King!? Questions crowded on her tongue, urging to be let out, but... already, she could see the weight of these things on her friend. From the burdens and sorrows of the recent carnage, to her own terrifying news, she did not want to open any more wounds, old and healing or not. If that was even the case. Perhaps it would be a topic best saved for another time. Safely indoors, over a cup of tea - or something stronger - and without nothing but the night bewteen them and the grime of failure on the ground.

"I'm so happy for both of you," she said instead, choosing to respond only to the happy tidings with a deeply felt honesty. "I'm sorry to hear about Rory, but try not to worry about him too much. He does that when things get too much. You should have seen him after his mother passed... I'm sure with time, he will be able to bounce back." She didn't know when, how long it might take, but she was certain her brother's childhood friend would come around. Between Jigano and Isuma, and the opening of the barrier there was no reason for him not to. The cage he'd so loathed was gone, and time would hopefully see the bars around his mind whittled down as well. He had things to live for - it would be alright.

Tucking a strand of hair between her ear, she considered the question he offered in return, curiously eying the flower he'd produced. Where had that come from? There were no others like it in the grazed grass of the field, nor did she recall seeing any along the side of the road.

"Not much, I'm afraid," she responded, while pondering the puzzle. "I went straight to home from the portal. Adam gave me company for a while, and told me a little, and I saw Peter at the farm. None of them were very clear about details, though. I know it's been roughly a year since I... since then. The portals have been opened, between here, Halo and the Greatwoods. For some reason the gods have started to allow Abandoned to attune, despite their spark... or perhaps because of it. And my farm..." She trailed off, looking down at her hands, "It's beyond repair, at this point. The house, the animals... it's too much for me to handle on my own."

It was the first time she admitted this out loud, and gods, how it stung. She'd let down all the kin who'd ever worked or lived there, every Valaire of generations past. A monumental failure on her part, beyond doubt.
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#25
He had left her openings for questions deliberately, wondering what threads she might pursue in the grand mix of mayhem and loss that the last year had contained. That she ignored the drama and historic clashes for the deeply personal earned a brow arched in curiosity, but he bowed his head in gratitude for her joy on behalf of himself and his lover. He hadn't thought she'd known Rory well; the hunter had given the impression that though he'd been friends with her brother, he'd had little interaction with the sister until the first attempted council had fallen through. Still, she'd been on the periphery of his life enough that Jigano smiled at her attempts to reassure him. He had lived with his mate for a year, and the Rory he knew now was not the man Maea had known as a child.

He ran his fingers along the lily's stem and leaves idly as he listened to his friend. She had already explained about her lack of memories and lost time, but it was good to hear about others she had found. At the news of her farm, though, his expression fell a little and he nodded in understanding. "Yes... we could muster enough hands to repair the damage a year has done to it, but running a farm alone..." he shook his head slightly, knowing how Rory had struggled to do just that after his sister disappeared. Jigano's efforts - especially his ability to coax the animals into line and renew the soil in the fields - helped to an extent, but even so the bard was often in town during the day. It at least made for a socially acceptable excuse for why Rory remained withdrawn. But that was because he wanted to be, at least for now. Maea was more inquisitive and eager to be part of things, the light in her soul still burning brightly with the desire to make a difference.

A light so many of them had lost over the past year, or at least had dimmed.

"Would you like help moving into town instead?" he asked cautiously, unsure of how far in advance she had begun to plan, if at all. "You can, of course, stay in the Guildhall for now. We can set up a cot in one of the reading rooms for you. It will be sheltered, at least, and cool in Longheat. At least until you decide what you'd like to do in the longer term." He smiled and offered her the lily, pale and fragile in the moonlight but stronger than it looked thanks to the Healing magic he'd used to strengthen it's vitality. "You're a Loreseeker, Maea. We help each other. When you know what you want to do, you need only ask and I will be there - others, too. Once we've mourned our dead and dealt with a few jobs that are pending I'll call a gathering so people can introduce themselves and you can meet the newest recruits." So everyone could meet each other - give or take Amalia, wounded and angry, who might not want to be included in such a convocation just yet, though he'd be sure to extend an invitation to her as well.
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#26
She nodded glumly, unaware of the lost opportunity he had offered. The time she'd spent trying, from Flowerbirth to the beginning of LongHeat - of last year, now - had been difficult enough. Now that she would have to rebuild the house and procure new sheep, the task was growing insurmountable in her mind. Not only was it a hard life, but it also was not one she was keen to live for herself. Maea wanted to study, read and learn and research the wonderful new world she'd been priviledged enough to see, and with the farm to hold her back, and draw attention away? It would only become another prison, not the haven it once had been.

Accepting the flower with a small smile, she brought it to her face and breathed in the sweet, heady scent. "Thank you, Jigano. I really appreciate the offer, and I'll gladly stay in the Guild for a night or two. But I think... I'd hate to get in the way of the others trying to work. I'll have to clean out the farm before I decide what to do with the land, so I'll be able to trade for board elsewhere. We can think about longterm later."

Giving him a grateful look, she said 'we' quite deliberately. To show how grateful she was for the consideration, to show she wouldn't try to do everything on her own. A meeting to greet the others would be fun, and she'd accept help with what she couldn't do on her own... but she did feel a need to at least try to manage herself first. Part pride, part because... it was what all these things were about.

Growing. Changing for the better.

"You know it goes both ways, right? If you need help with anything, just let me know. I'm at your disposal, both as a friend and as your Loreseeker. Don't let my personal circumstances keep you from putting me to work if there is a need." She would be more than happy to perform tasks for the guild, and Jigano was about the only person she might consider taking orders from.

Touching the petals of the flower, she studied it for a while, then let her gaze roam Jigano's form, searching for hidden sleeves or any other place he could have hid the flower. But why would he be carrying it around? And how would it have survived the long workday without getting crushed, or wilted?

"Where did you keep this...?" she mused, puzzled.
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦
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
Change author:
Posts: 3,914 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#27
He gave a slight shake of his head and a wry smile. "You won't be in the way, I promise. Amalia is... in the Infirmary for a while, and Sam is spending much of his time off exploring Halo. Loren seems to prefer doing most of his research upstairs in the Atheneum, and Ingrid and Tarasha live elsewhere and are rarely in the guild anyways. But if you'd rather make other plans, I understand." For him, a year had passed since their disagreement over ruling, time for emotions to become blunted and turn to regret and nostalgia. For her, it had been... what, weeks? Since the last time he'd checked on her during her illness, before she had disappeared - forever, he'd thought then. Relief at having her back now made those old disagreements seem trivial, but for her they were likely still fresh.

He nodded, smiling gratefully that she was still willing to include him in her future plans, but recognizing the pride that drove so many in the Hollowed Grounds - Natural and Outlander alike, yes, but particularly those Naturals who were survivors of such a difficult and dangerous home.

He hadn't expected the offer of return assistance, blinking slightly in surprise that quickly faded to a warm smile at her willingness to help. For the briefest moment he considered telling her to focus on finding her own happiness--

But she, like he, was one who liked to feel wanted. Needed. Useful. Perhaps the best thing he could do for her was to do just that, and he had that task he'd acquired from Neron...

"There is something..." he began, turning the idea around in his head, considering her thoughtfully. She looked stronger than he had ever seen her, healthier somehow, and her eyes... "A task, to potentially benefit the Loreseeker archives as well as our new neighbor-through-the-portal, Halo. Tell me, have you heard of mage glass?" Perhaps unlikely, given her missing memories, but then again maybe it would jar loose one of them?

His smile widened but turned rueful and a little pained as she sought the flower's origin. He rubbed his hands together for a moment in silent contemplation, plucking silently at the strings of magic in his soul, and when he spread his fingers again a yellow rose seemed to grow between them in the blink of an eye. "Ah, well, I did mention that I'd been 'cursed,' didn't I? I've made an unfortunate habit of angering goddesses of late, and one doesn't do that without consequences."
Maea Valair
Hollowed Grounds Ambassador / Loreseeker

Age: 29 | Height: 156 cm / 5'1 ft | Race: Ancient | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
Level: 2 - Strg: 22 - Dext: 22 - Endr: 25 - Luck: 20 - Int:
Played by: Chan Offline
Change author:
Posts: 3,025 | Total: 5,768
MP: 1897
#28
The freedom of choice he offered was perhaps even more welcome than the invitation itself, and Maea realized she had underestimated Jigano once again. For all that he was wise and accomplished himself, he rarely tried to push that wisdom onto others. Instead, he gave them the opportunity to make their own mistakes, and take responsibility for the consequences. She recognized that it was quite the priviledge to have him offer to help her sort out hers, and vowed to herself that she would not squander the goodwill lightly.

Nearly blending into the night as she sat wrapped up in her shawl, save for the near luminous hair and face, Maea perked up visibly when the guildmaster immediately took her up on the offer. It was not what she had expected, but listened eagerly all the same. "I can't say that I recall it, if I have... would you refresh my memory?"

But then, the topic swayed to the flower and Maea actually stood when she saw the flower sprout between Jigano's hands, shock written plainly on her face.
"How..!? Who cursed you? The Voice? Why would they curse you?" But there was a note of hesitation, a question in her eyes. Curse? It looked... just like magic to her. Creation, or perhaps some advanced earth-based skill.
♦ Violence, magic, thievery is permitted with Maea at all times. DM me if you have any ideas ♦


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)


RPG-D