[SE] The sky is the limit

MAEA

A lifetime's worth of free rides on a skyship was too good to pass up on. Talyson had given her the sky, and a measly compass was a trifling cost to pay. Maea gladly passed on the trinket, and before long they were away, leaving Morn to its ghosts and memories.

It may not be her first time riding a skyship, but there was a difference between the grand passenger ships and the Peregrin. Where before she was confined to the seat she had bought a ticket for, and perhaps caught a glimpse of the landscape passing by for an instance on a crowded deck, this time she became one with the horizon at the head of the prow, as the smaller vessel surged swift as an arrow over green hills and glittering lakes. Apprehension as land was traded for sea settled quickly, as they never actually touched the water. Smoother than any ocean going ship, faster than any horse or cart and free in a way she'd never experienced, Maea was thoroughly in love with the messenger ship by the time they reached the Greenwood.
Over the days it took them to get there, she pestered Tal for instructions on how to operate it. By the time they made fast at the Sidhe village she knew how to raise and trim the sails, how to tie knots that wouldn't come undone, and had even been allowed to steer. Once. Because she wouldn't stop nagging (and got Boreal on her side with a bribe).

In a thoroughly good mood, the Ancient jumped the railing to tie down the mooring with all the swagger of a newly made sailor, and dusted her hands off while she looked around. It was her first time in the Fae village. Even at the height of Longheat the air felt pleasant, with sunlight dappling the houses and winding streets through grand canopies. Fae were everywhere, of course, and it was a peculiar thing to find herself taller than the vast majority. Some looks were thrown their way, but no one approached; it appeared the people were used to both outsiders and skyships alike.

"What now?" she asked, turning towards Tal. "I should try to find someone in charge... do you want to come or should we split up?"

I'm an angel bored like hell
And you're a devil meaning well

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3

A magic item was worth a lot, and one that could help with navigation in storms or on cloudy nights was even more useful to a courier who traveled by air. With a regular compass alongside the obsidian one, Tal figured he could triangulate his position on a map even during LongNight - at least in a general sense. Enough that he might actually be able to fly the Peregrine in an emergency if he had to, even without stars or sun to guide him.

From King's End to the Sidhe Village was only two days by air, and then only because they were taking their time. He'd hugged Alys farewell before setting off, and it was a strangely giddy feeling to realize that he had someone to come home to at journey's end this time. It made him more cheerful than he usually would have been around someone he'd just met, so he willingly shared his knowledge of airmanship with his new passenger, teaching her as he had once been taught by a more experienced skyship captain. It worked as much to pass the time in the fair Longheat weather as to give equal trade for the dried meat she supplemented the boat's supplies with, and soon enough they were on solid ground again.

Or at least, solid tree branches, descending the long spiraling stairs from the treetops down towards their roots. Tal had a preoccupied expression on his face as he peered around, scowling faintly as he checked his bearings and then started to head towards a particularly ancient oak near the center of the village. "I've got some books t'deliver t'the library here. Uh. Undercrop?" He pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket and glared at before giving a sharp nod. "Yeah. Undercroft." Since she'd mentioned her own errand in the Greatwood during the flight, the courier jerked his head at her, inviting her to join him. "Figure if anyone has info on what's goin' on around here, a librarian might. Leastwise they can point y'towards someone local who would know," he suggested.

This time Boreal had stayed on the Peregrine with a full belly and a gentle snoring emanated from the roof of the small cabin. Tal had been a little worried about her size and gleeful enthusiasm for arson, given his destination today.

MAEA

Libraries exerted almost as much pull on Maea as sweet treats and skyship rides. "It's a good place to start," she agreed, easily falling in beside the man as he led the way.

With someone else along to call the shots, she was left unexpectedly free to simply enjoy the scenery. The treetop village was beyond charming, the weather fair and pleasant and her mood as sunny as the sky; it had been such a long time since she felt like this that it weirded her out. Time and again she had to surreptitiously pinch herself to make sure this was no dream or illusion - and each time the little snag of pain registered, it was all she could do not to laugh aloud. When even pain felt good, you knew things were alright.

It was almost a shame to leave the brilliant day behind for the dusty quiet of the Undercroft. Breathing in familiar scents of leather, ink and parchment, Maea followed the stacks of tomes up and around until she grew dizzy. Not even three steps beyond the entrance a beautifully tooled spine caught her eye. She pulled out the book to flip through the pages; vellum inked in exquisite detail spelled out a measure that seemed arranged like a poem, but the language was not one she recognized.

"You may have to drag me out of here," she murmured, only reluctantly playing the volume back where she'd found it. "My Loreseeker days were supposed to be over, but now I don't know..."

I'm an angel bored like hell
And you're a devil meaning well

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3

Though he'd been comfortable enough walking outside, enjoying the warm weather - mitigated by the shade of the great trees - as much as Maea was, once they stepped inside the big oak the courier gradually grew more and more tense. His expression pulled deeper into a scowl as he looked around the book-lined walls of the tree's interior and he glanced at her interest in one of the books with an awkward shrug.

"Yeah? Never heard of a loreseeker afore," he admitted, head jerking back around at a flutter of movement out of the corner of his eyes. A fae shifted their wings again as they pointedly ignored the tall interlopers and Tal gave a huff that was half-growl and started slouching reluctantly towards the staircase that spiraled down into the roots of the vast oak. "'Sides, don't y'have t'get back t'the Grounds? How fucked up did they get after Starfall, anyways?"

Though he was paying attention, his eyes kept roving around the inside of the tree and he paused for a long moment at the top of the staircase before swallowing hard and calling over his shoulder: "C'mon. Th'office is s'posed t'be down here." The office was supposedly one level above where the water had risen to when it had changed the definition of 'book' and made it much harder to borrow certain tomes without a chisel or portable aquarium.

The staircase was narrow but well-lit, and the courier glowered as he descended, listening to Maea but keeping his eyes ahead as they went down steps that were uncomfortably shallow for his longer legs. The wood of the walls had been worn smooth at a height slightly below the Ancient's shoulders, polished by the arms and wings of generations of passing Fae.

Tal's shoulders were hunched like an angry cat's ahead of Maea, and in one of his pockets his fingers tapped a swift, syncopated rhythm against his thigh.

MAEA

"It was a guild that formed in the Grounds before the fall of the barrier," Maea explained, nostalgia coloring her voice and softening it beyond the normally quiet timbre. "Much in the way of learning was forgotten or purposely hidden over the centuries, as we were never meant to leave. But when the Voice created her portals to let Outlanders cross over from other worlds, they began to look for information on where they were, and how to escape. One of them was Jigano the Sage; he founded the Loreseekers Guild and did much to uncover mysteries that us Natural born had long since given up on solving."
Following Tal down the winding path, Maea grew quiet for a bit, thinking back to the past and the man who had given her hope for the future. Out of all the things she regretted, the rift between herself and Jigano was among the hardest to bear. "He was a good man. A good friend. I don't know where he is now... but I hope he is well."

Recalling the Sage and his knack for solving riddles put a damper on her initial enthusiasm for the craft. Maea never had that kind of talent, and her attempt to revive the guild before the war didn't lead anywhere. To pick up what she had left off now seemed a hopeless endeavor; no matter how much she missed the past, it was dead and gone.

The question about the Starfall damage was honestly a welcome change in subject, as Maea realized she was dragging herself right back into the old gloom. "I do, though it's not like I'm in a hurry. We got off easy compared to Torchline or Halo. The Outer Islands got the worst of it; some bits of the meteor caused a few fires in the Inner Quarter but that's about it. Aside from the tainted critters." Vastly more adept at killing things than putting together comprehensive information, if she was needed at all back home it would be to deal with the voidlings, Maea thought derisively.

Noticing the way Tal hunched in on himself on the way down the stair, she was glad for her diminutive stature that made the building easy to traverse. Fortunately the Office wasn't far; Maea stood aside as they reached the door, and listened to the echo of the knock as it grew and traveled down to the watery levels below. A curious shimmer of reflected light made it seem as though the hallway was submerged; it was beautiful, and a comforting sight that eased the ache of her wounded spirit.

I'm an angel bored like hell
And you're a devil meaning well

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3

While Maea spoke Tal was quiet, scowling down the empty stairwell ahead of him as he was faced with the uncomfortable thought of what he would have done if he'd been stuck inside the Barrier. Back before the Voice showed up and shit got real, curiosity out on the Tundra got a man killed more often than not. It hadn't been a trait he'd been overly burdened with, outside of his narrow interests and what he needed to survive. If it'd been on his shoulders, they probably never would have found a way out of the Barrier...

"I'm, uh... I'm sure he's fine," he mumbled, before hurriedly changing the topic to one that made him feel a little less inadequate.

"Mmf. Doesn't sound any worse'n King's End," he admitted, grudgingly glad that the damage hadn't fucked over the whole continent. Halo being hit as hard as it was had been bad enough.

The stairs opened into a broad area beneath the tree's roots, with the roots themselves twisting down from the ceiling and into the floor below like thick columns intertwined with stones to provide stability for the giant above them. Shelves were built into them and along the walls, but luckily there was a door within sight of the stairwell that led into a small office. Hunched over, the back of his head still brushing the ceiling, Tal hurried over and rapped his knuckles on the doorframe.

"Delivery for Mr. Kheelan," he called through gritted teeth. His hand was already plunging into his Bag of Holding to withdraw a paper-wrapped package of two thick books bound with twine and as the elderly Fae gentleman approached, adjusting his spectacles, Tal practically pushed the tomes at the man.

Mr. Kheelan took them with a raised brow and pulled out the card beneath the twine, reading it over with a nod of approval. "Ah, yes. I've been waiting for these. Thank you, young man. Just a moment, I have something for you..." Tal blinked, surprised, and barely managed to hold in a groan as the librarian returned, pale moth wings fluttering to keep his balance as he handed over a package very similar to the one he'd just delivered. "These are for the Atheneum in the Hollowed Grounds, care of Ms. Thrushwick. And this will pay for your room and board while you're in Sidhe Village," he added, handing over a small wooden chit with an elegant script on it. Tal took it glumly and nodded.

"Sure, 'm headed that ways next. Oh, an' she's got some questions t'ask," he added, backing out of the office so he could crouch down and get the books stowed while Maea did her business.

MAEA

Pushing any thoughts of old friends from her immediate attention, Maea nodded and shrugged at the state of the Grounds. "Probably. So you see why I'm not in a hurry to get back. Maybe if it was my job to oversee the repairs it would be different, but since it's not..." Rolling her shoulders in shrugs that might seem cold or indifferent, it was an attitude learned from trying to involve herself too much in the past. While she would gladly lend a hand to anyone who asked for it, she had stopped throwing herself at every project she saw.

Besides, she had a job to do here. Following Tal on his delivery run was not only a quick way to get home or a skyboat joyride.

Turning to address mr Keelan, she offered the archivist a polite bow. "My name is Maea Valair, I am here on behalf of the Warden of Halo. He has expressed concern of the Greatwood after the Starfall event, and so I would like to ask where I might find the current leadership to get an overview of the damage... I hear Phoebe is in charge, yes? "

At a first glance nothing had seemed amiss in the village, but the region was vast and vould have been far more affected than she knew. And even without flooding or meteor impacts... there was the matter of the invasive creatures.

I'm an angel bored like hell
And you're a devil meaning well

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3

Tal nodded emphatically, not bothered at all by her indifference. "Yeah, I get it. Not like there aren't plenty o' other places that need help around th'world right now, too." And sometimes the place you were born changed so much from where you started out that even if it would always be home, it was better to spend some time away. No one knew that better than the courier.

But maybe he was willing to agree to almost anything to get out of the cramped space beneath the ancient oak and back into the open air again.

He retreated out of the cramped office so Maea could enter, and the gentle old Fae looked at her quizzically. At the mention of Halo his fluffy white brows rose in surprise and he adjusted his spectacles before taking them off to polish them. His lined face fell into a small frown and he didn't answer right away. Instead he cleared his throat while focusing on his glasses, rubbing away a few specks of dust. "Ah. I am... surprised that Halo has taken such an interest. Very kind of them, very kind." He slid the spectacles back onto his nose and blinked at Maea once more. "The demigoddess is... not available, I'm afraid. But I can try to answer your questions."

He took a deep breath, wings fluttering briefly before they stilled behind him. "The Estuary took the brunt of it, of course. Very sad. The Symphony roared that morning, and we lost many. Humans, mostly," he added after a pause, graciously including the wingless giants among the Greatwood's residents. "Those who lived on the ground lost the most. But many of our homes are built up in the branches, so it could have been far worse." His frown deepened but he raised his head proudly, looking up at Maea with a quiet dignity. "But we take care of ourselves and our own. We have held our ceremonies and are rebuilding what we can." Without the help of outsiders, who rarely came to stay anymore.

MAEA

Listening gravely and memorizing the information, a soft scowl appeared on Maea's brow upon learning that Phoebe was not to be found. Had she done one of her vanishing acts again, like Harper had told her about? As a leader of a region that felt more than just irresponsible - but then, she had no idea what kind of tasks demigods were put to by their patrons. Seemed far more hassle than it was worth in her mind.

"I am sorry for your losses, but glad to hear that the damage was not worse," she replied to the gentle old fae. "When Phoebe can be contacted again, could you ask her to reach out to the other leaders at her earliest convenience? In the meantime, if I could borrow some parchment and ink, I can relay the state of the region to the Warden." And leaving the concerns of government to those in power.

There was no shortage of paper in the Undercroft, and it didn't take Maea long to compose a message that was carried off by a young apprentice. With raven it would reach Halo within the week, give or take; and she was quite content to let that be that.

"Thank you for your help," she smiled at the librarian. "If there is anything I can do for the Greatwood and its people, don't hesitate to contact me in the Hollowed Grounds."

Turning to glance at Tal, she cocked a brow to check if he had any further business. If not, she was ready to move on.

I'm an angel bored like hell
And you're a devil meaning well

BASE INSPIRED BY ODD <3

The librarian gave Maea a sad little smile for her sympathy and bobbed his head. "Thank you, young lady. It's appreciated. And I will pass your message to the Honeysuckle when I can." Which was all that he could promise when he didn't know when Phoebe would return. Still she had made a few improvements to the Greatwood in her short time as leader, and that was appreciated in the woodland community that had been largely left to fend for itself after the War.

He offered paper, quill, and ink for Maea's message and went back to his desk to continue writing notes in his filing system while she penned her note and sent it off. At her gratitude he smiled, blinking up at her. "Very kind of you, miss Valair. Very kind. I will pass your offer along." He did not seem to think it would be acted on, but it was nonetheless a courteous offer, and he treated it as such. "Travel safely, young ones," he called out as the humans left, heading back toward the stairs.

Tal in particular moved with alacrity as soon as Maea reappeared, hustling up the stairs and out of the tree before he bothered replying. He tilted his head up to the rustling leaves high above, nose wrinkling as he failed to find even a ray of sunlight through the thick canopy. "Might as well get the meal and night in a good bed," he decided, flipping the token he held and catching it. "But we c'n head out at dawn. We'll be at the Grounds in two days if the weather holds. Less, if we catch a good tailwind."

~Fin~