ꙮ Morning, at the sietch. Dyu’s away at the City - he had a letter to deliver to Ravhi, and had to help prepare for Festival being held later in the day, but said he’d be coming back to get you when he’s done setting up. There’s breakfast - it’s the same thing it’s been pretty much every morning, but it’s still nice and filling.
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- Tan'neave Snake Salme
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#chapter 5: mu
#dyu
#qarina
#full cast session
#yazhn ravhi
can’t get enough of cream of mushroom toast and spiced cricket singles.
does not look particularly well-rested for some reason, but she is also sitting, eating, enjoying her meal.
is talking with some of the cooks, but doesn’t have a bowl in front of them. They’re glad people are up and about.
still digs in heartily–monotony is better than hunger, and besides, there’s a virtue in ‘warm and filling’ all by itself.
has a portal full of other random foodstuffs, for when ‘the same thing every day every meal’ starts to get exhausting for this very reason.
: “So,” she begins. “I wanted to … talk to everyone about a couple things. I found out some information, but first … I’d like to invite Qarina and Dyu to travel with us. If everyone finds that acceptable?”
: “I have no qualms with them. The more, the merrier. And whatever we end up facing, having more allies couldn’t hurt.”
: “Mildly surprised you wanna put this weight on more people, given how much you struggle with it yourself… but I’m not really opposed to more helping hands if they’re up for it.”
slaps his hands on the table. “Marvelous idea! The more renegade minds we have striking the end of all things, the better!”
: “They would both be welcome upon the road.” He tilts his head at Salme. “Interesting, that you ask that after what I have been asked.”
: “We can share rooms in the ziggurat!” He turns to Wolf. “Oh? Gonna one up her here?” he says, expectantly.
tilts her head at Aurelius in acknowledgment, and then gives Wolf a small smile. “Perhaps you won’t be shocked to know that the request to ask came from someone who thought I might make the offer without it feeling like an obligation, were it to come from him.”
: “Not precisely.” Wolf looks amused. “But Dyu’s teaching has been given into my care for a time. By he of whom you speak.”
: “Awa, we already have an extra room in the Ziggurat anyway, considering I rarely sleep in my room if I can help it.”
and then, now that she’s had a moment to rotate it, “And Aurelius, as much as I struggle with things, I think … it would be worse if I weren’t here? And at least Dyu and Qarina can make their choices with … not full knowledge, but more knowledge than what we had.”
looks about for Dyu, and not immediately seeing them, turns back to Wolf. “Good going, big bro!!” And then he returns to Salme, but doesn’t say anything, and does wink at her. “It would ABSOLUTELY be worse if you weren’t here!”
just looks somewhere between bemused and amused. “First ‘Dad,’ now ‘Big Bro’…I suppose they’re both a kind of mentor, but really, can we stick with one?”
doesn’t blush at Awa’s wink, but does smile, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
nods, seriously. “Right, I got it. Big Daddy.”
gently presses his palm to his face. “…I deserve that.”
laughs.
: “There’s … several other things. Do you want—the strange news, or the stranger news?”
: “Is the stranger news more strange, or a stranger?”
waves a mug of orange water. “Walk the strange news, Salme! There can’t be a poor way to do it!” He drinks!
: “I’ll take either over ‘bad news’,” Wolf says.
considers for a moment. “You’ve met, so they wouldn’t be a stranger, but. They’re not precisely familiar either. So sort of both?”
: “At any rate, Jae did finally confirm that it’s the Beast—or, more precisely, the Mother of Monsters—who eats Almachadta. And, presumably, she kills everyone on the Beast on the way out. She told me the remainders of both planes, and the Mother of Monsters herself, fall into Samudra, and that’s—that’s what happens to Samudra.” She takes a slow breath. “So I thought. That would be worth knowing. I know I’ve theorized, but.”
absorbs the information solemnly, then nods quietly. “That…is good to know.”
shifts his eyes from side to side. “Is that the strange news or stranger news?”
: “That’s the strange news. I suppose it could be considered ‘bad’ but—we already knew this happened. Now we know how it happens.” She looks, briefly, for Aurelius, and smiles a bit in some sort of private amusement.
gives a little shrug.
quietly shuffles in with the rest of the group, hurriedly swallowing what can only be described as a heroically ambitious gulp of soup. He tries to maintain eye contact with Salme and express his attentiveness in the process, but you can see the strain in his face, his eyes narrowing and twitching and his mouth screwing up for the slightest moment as he wills it to go down. “There has never been agreement among the scholars of the Academy whether Samudra is truly bottomless or merely so unfathomably deep that the bottom hasn’t been discovered yet. Strange to think that, if it turned out to be the latter, we may well find the remains of other planes as they once were. I wonder if this phenomenon affects the Dream-Whales, or may help explain some of the age and memory capabilities of the nöoplankton.”
: “Oh. I hadn’t—it’s possible. I asked Jae if she … knows. How the cycles start over, because she usually lives through it if she can protect her body. She said that it’s weird. Couldn’t describe it to me. I … don’t know … I’d love to know if there’s any remnants of the planes in the depths of Samudra.” She reaches out, and gives Archie’s paw a quick squeeze. “I already told Caion this, so he could prepare in whatever way he could.”
: “That was…going to be my next question. We know how they die. We don’t know how they reset.”
: “I have…a theory, but…no evidence.”
: “Let’s hear it!”
nods.
: “The Rite of Renewal. The healing magic here seems to do something strange with time. The sun, trapped in a loop, trapped in a recurring moment.” He shrugs.
: “Sounds reasonable!” He nods sagely, taking a drink.
: “It stands to reason that if the Rite of Renewal brings the Moment back to its inception, that it could also do so for the cycling planes.”
: “Why it leaves Mu itself untouched, however…is unclear to me.” He frowns. “I have a question I will ask Ravhi when next we have time to ourselves. I am not looking forward to it, but…I think it will be necessary.”
tilts his head. “How bad could it possibly be?”
: “It is strange that the progress persists. Perhaps something to do with the gnosis-work.”
smiles faintly at Awa. “Light blasphemy.”
: “Blasphemy of the light, or low-impact blasphemy?”
: “(Or both!)”
: “Oh. That would make my instincts add up very neatly. I couldn’t figure out why the Rite would align with the plane-deaths. I think we all thought that maybe Mu was drawing from our planes to persist itself, but that doesn’t make sense, considering the death cycle has already begun. And the sun emits the irrica triad of gnosis in huge amounts. I also—this is something that feeds into my ‘stranger news,’ but the entity in the red column was able to show me and Awa what the Rite of Renewal looks like from its perspective. At some point the corpse-sun grows very, very bright, and then it dims again. I wonder if it’s a discharge of gnosis?”
: “Y’know, I was just having that thought, about a possible gnosis discharge.”
To Awa: “Hopefully the latter. It will also be deeply…personal? Invasive, possibly. I’m tilting at a windmill and I know it. But I need to know.” To Salme: “Ah. The sun gathers it, perhaps?”
nods in agreement. “I feel like the fact that the Sun here burns with the gnosis of the three worlds that we know for sure cycle isn’t a coincidence, especially now that we know the light grows brighter before the Rite of Renewal. Could it be that the destruction of those three planes affects the Angry Sun somehow? Disrupting the balance, perhaps?”
: “I’m kind of interested in how all that energy escapes the black hole, then.”
: “Also did already … very much embarrass myself in front of Rahvi, and told him … some things I think … would have been better coming from you, Wolf. So. Take heart in that.” She does look deeply chagrined.
just reaches out to pat Salme’s shoulder. “I suspect you did not embarrass yourself as much as you thought.”
: “Oh- Mu is situated within the black hole that is equidistant between The Beast and Almachadta. For the record.”
just flatly blinks at that.
makes a wobblehand gesture. “He thought I was about to start a Rite on him. And I dropped the info about the heart.”
: “(So is the annex, for that matter…)”
: “Fascinating.”
looks amused, though his eyebrows do climb a bit. “…he thought you were about to invoke a Rite?”
: “You’ve seen how intense the look on her face gets when she’s digging for information.”
looks at Archie. “If the irrica planes emit gnosis as they’re destroyed and Mu is inside a black hole that absorbs everything, that would explain how the corpse-sun here might gather the gnosis? Though. Hm. Trying to send gnosis into the black hole also didn’t work. Still. That’s a very good theory.”
: “Salme can be intense when she’s focused on it.” He raises his eyebrows twice.
: “Ah. Yeah. I did.” She looks at Aurelius. “You know the thing where I pace and talk very fast and don’t finish my sentences? I did that. I talked to him like I’d talk to one of us and I think he thought I was … upset at him and not. Thinking.” She looks a bit more chagrined, but there’s a wry humor to it.
chuckles softly. “He is…adaptable, more than he seems. I would not fret overmuch, Salme.”
nods, and then a bit softly, “I just want him to like me. Because. You know. He’s so important to you. And also I don’t … want to cause harm. At any rate he knows about the heart.”
nods.
throws an arm around Salme’s shoulders (because they’re sitting that close) and nuzzles her on the temple with his forehead.
smiles gently. “I suspect your unique qualities increase his esteem, not lower it.”
takes another breath. “And he knows about the stranger news which involves … the Elementals and the Shades. I alluded to this earlier, and I don’t know how many of you saw the strand regarding ‘ancient names’ on the Linkpearl or my folio about the Shades, which I’ve since renamed {Stoicheia}, but I had … theorized, that maybe the Elementals and Shades were once one thing, and that Stoicheia was the Ancient name for them. I’m almost positive about the name, but I am certain about the fact they were once one. We all went to the Red Column. I went back twice. Once alone and once with Awa and. The entity that is the Red Column isn’t just an Elemental. They’re also a Shade, and also, in a sense, the corpse of the Yazhn who reunited them. Their name is Algol.”
blinks at that, then his eyes narrow. “Fascinating.”
: “And that joining, itself, is altogether different than what they were before?”
: “Isn’t it? They’re … the Elemental-part of them is powerful, vast, often cruel. The Shade-part is … they are still trying to carry out their duty, I think, from long ago—their desire to help people fight against a destruction that threatens the world. They aren’t one thing the way they used to be. They’re many, existing together. And the moment when they went from being one to being separate is the same moment the Heart is trapped in.”
: “Wait… Algol?” Archie’s eyes narrow in thought.
: “Algol. Yeah.”
glances at Archie. “Familiar?”
: “And Qarina’s brother is named Suhaël, if that’s helpful. I don’t know if there is part of him that is Elemental as well or not.”
: “Hm. It puts me in mind of the words for ‘ghoul’ and ‘easygoing’, respectively. At least, from what little of the local eymologies I’ve been able to discern.”
: “…Makes sense?”
laughs. “Well. Algol certain is ghoulish in some ways. And Suhaël—I can’t talk to him. Or. I heard him once, when I cast Libra on Qarina, but he seems … kind.”
nods. “Algol’s a weirdo! It’s pretty fun.”
: “He is,” Wolf says, quietly. “Suhael, I mean. He reminds me of a…very sweet boy.”
blinks at Wolf. “You can talk to him?”
: “Is Algol the name of the specific entity in the Red Column or the name of joined Shade-Elemental beings in general?”
blinks back, then flushes. “Oh. Did I not…oh. I did not mention.” He looks chagrined. “I was…distracted, when we were first in the city.”
does not, does not, comment on Wolf’s ‘distraction’. “No. You didn’t mention.” And then, to Archie, “Algol is the name of the entity in the Red Column. That is their name, and their name alone. I think, once, all of them, the Stoicheia, when they were whole—they all had their own names, and could read them in each other. That’s how Jae identified the shades with the beings she was familiar with—the glyphs. They’re creatures made of glyphs that appear when a world is in danger and help stabilize it. She said they haven’t appeared in ages. I think they all were—sundered? Is that the right word? I think it’s because they’ve all been here.”
“That makes a certain sort of sense. Suhael was…grateful, in a way. For being joined with Qarina.” He frowns a little. “It was a…costly process.”
: “Do you know what the process entailed?” She’s focused on Wolf, then realizes she might be being aggressive, and relaxes a bit. “I—Algol had wondered, why Ravhi hadn’t done it more than once. They were kind of a brat about it.”
is silent for a long moment, then shakes his head. “It destroyed the failures. On both sides of the equation.”
: “Both the Shades and the humans were destroyed?”
: “The humans were killed. The Shades rendered mindless, broken.”
: “Does he know why Qarina worked? Were there any Elementals involved in the process? Was Suhaël different in some ways? Are—hm.”
: “I do not know.” To Salme, looking directly at her: “It was not…a telling designed to explain the process. Just the cost. For all involved.”
: “(We’re gonna have to dig deeper, huh…)”
stills, under Wolf’s gaze, and realizes what he’s saying. “I see.” She lets that acknowledgement rest between them for a moment, and then adds, “I would like to know more, but. There’s nothing to be done about that at the moment. The last thing I wanted to mention is I think Ravhi would probably like a tomestone. He had expressed some desire to be able to communicate after we leave.”
: “I would…very much like that as well. May I be the one to give it to him?”
ꙮ A very mild, cheerful commotion, at around this time, from without the shelter common-room.
tosses an extra one to Wolf. “Sure, just have him press this button here before anyone else does.”
returns to the sietch along with Qarina, in search of Clan Emberlight, the letter to Ravhi delivered, and his Festival preparations completed.
catches it, nods, tucks it away in a belt pouch. “One more thing–“ And then there’s commotion, and he shakes his head. “It can wait.”
waves at Dyu at Qarina when they come in. “Have you come to fetch us?”
finds everyone in the common room, and gives a bow in greeting. “Hello, all! Aye, that we have!”
stands, but doesn’t start moving quite yet. “Before we leave, we had something we’d like to … offer. To both of you. If you have a moment.”
smiles at Dyu, watching him intently as Salme speaks.
looks at Dyu, half confused and shrugs at him. “I mean, you don’t have to give us more than you already have. But I won’t say I’m not interested to find out.”
: “Well…” He holds his tongue.
tilts his head at Salme. “Oh? Of course, what is it?”
looks at Dyu, and then Qarina in turn as she speaks. “We will not leave Mu today, but we’ll be departing soon for Valaïs, the last plane we’ve yet to visit. We don’t know when we’ll next be able to return. We know we won’t be able to come back to Mu as easily as we are able to travel to some planes. We also don’t know what awaits us after Valaïs. The journey ahead is uncertain and it will be dangerous and it will be sorrowful.” ⁂
: “It will also be joyous, filled with wonders we’ve never seen before. And we would like to invite you both to accompany us. To undertake the Work of saving the planes, and to experience the beauty of each plane. It is not without risks. Again, we’re not certain when we might return to Mu. We also—most people who have traveled between planes seem to have lost their memories. We haven’t been able to test whether the gates will have a similar effect, so that is also a risk you are taking.” Her gaze lingers seriously, on each of them in turn, as she says that. “But we would love to have you both. Dyu, I know you’re learning from Wolf, and Qarina, I—really could use another woman in the Clan.” Here she smiles. ⁂
: “I understand you might need to think on it. We’re all here to answer any questions you might have. But the invitation is open to you both. And I would very much like it if you would consider accepting.” She ends with a somewhat stilted, formal bow, and then sits. 🙧
tries to keep a whirlwind of emotions off of her face…and mostly succeeds, and glances over to see how her best friend reacts.
takes a moment to absorb everything Salme has said, and then looks first to Wolf, then to Salme. “I know the journey you all have been on has been long, and will be longer still. I…gather, from context, you have spoken with Yazhn Ravhi about this. before making us such an offer, yes?”
stifles a giggle.
: “It would be out of character for her to ask to spirit you away for funsies, unprompted.”
: “I received his permission to ask, yes.”
To Awoken. “Well yes, but I still have to ask!”
chuckles softly. “For what it’s worth, he didn’t warn me.”
less successfully stifles the second giggle.
shrugs. “I’d spirit Qarina away for funsies I think. It might cause Dyu more distress, but I think Qarina’d have fun.”
he chuckles, and looks around at everyone. “Well, if Teacher gave his blessing for you to ask, then he must have faith that there is merit in us joining you. That there are things we may learn, and aid we may be able to give. So if he believes it to be a path worthy of walking, to continue my Work, who am I to disagree?”, he says with a smile. “I can only speak for myself, but it would be an honor to join you all.”
smiles a little and her shoulders relax a bit.
smiles gently, approvingly–and just holds out his fist for Dyu to tap his own knuckles to.
: “Oooh, bold!” He turns to Dyu and Qarina. “The journey will definitely develop a sense of Architect-may-care moxie within yourselves, too.”
smiles warmly and taps his knuckles to Wolf’s.
pauses for a moment, but then presses a bit further, “But outside of what Ravhi may want from you, would you otherwise say yes? I think that is very important.”
: “Sounds like there’s a plan then.” She clears her throat a little. “So…did you all want to come to The City for The Festival?”
: “No, there’s very much not a plan. We’re still winging this.”
: “Absolutely! Is there any particular event for it or is it a free-for-all of fun?”
perks up at the mention of a festival!
to Salme. “I would, yes. Knowing that he has given his blessing already, makes it all the easier!”
: “Enough of a plan. Remember, all my plans are is, wake up, fight things, sleep, repeat. They don’t have to be fancy.”
: “Yeah, that’s more than we got.”
nods at Dyu’s words. “Good.”
: “Dyu, you’d probably do a better job explaining everything. You know. Being a Yazhn and all.”
: “Well, Qarina does simply run on Hammer Time…” he gives a grin.
facepalms again, but he’s laughing. “Well, if we needed to know that you’re going to fit right in…”
: “Easier to keep track of than your schedule”
: “Oh, and yes. I would like to go to the Festival.” She does look at Qarina, but it’s a look that says she’ll follow up later.
is very good at dodging looks, as well as Elementals.
is very good at looking. And remembering.
ꙮ A couple people from the sietch, hearing that you’re all on your way out, swing by to wish you shade and safe travels - one of Ari’s apprentices, the cook Luĉja befriended, someone who works with Chaya, who’s currently hours into a complicated process of disarming some Ancient mechanisms in the caves to make the way safe to explore what might be a (rather distant! but functional) fifth hydroponics system, but who wishes you all well.
says their goodbyes, and shares their water with their new friends on the way out.
gives claps and handshakes and hugs to everyone!! He doesn’t know if he’ll see them again. He might! But if he doesn’t, this will be a good sendoff. He also refills his bottles with orange water.
gives a few waves and salutes on the way out. He’s well used to goodbyes, at this point.
gives plenty of waves and nods on the way out.
: “The Festival is part of our tradition; there’s food (oh, so much food), and music, and, it culminates in a ritual where a few of the People who are At Rest, selected by lot from among a group of candidates suggested by both humans and Kin in the community, get to interact with people Awake now.”
: “Fascinating. How…exactly does that work?”
’s eyebrows raise. “Now that’s an interesting interaction…”
leans forward, eyes narrowing. “Fascinating.”
to Lucja, “Teacher would be FAR better equipped to answer that than I am.”
ꙮ Luckily, that’s only a relatively short hippalectria ride away. A couple of you are already used to the journey, at this point… Archie, want to try your hand at summoning your own?
ꙮ (Dyu definitely won’t mind making enough for everybody, though.)
recalls what he noticed from observing Dyu and the others summoning hippalectria. Using pellucid gnosis to guide the radiant, he focuses on the form, the pattern, the intent, and closes his eyes in concentration.
ꙮ And it… [Take Half] is a lot easier than it looks! Or (and this is definitely true) you’re good at lifelike fiends and at catching the intricacies of what another summoner’s shown you; Archie makes a shimmering circle out of light, and a hippalectria hops out with a joyous chirp– it’s vivid blues and purples, from beak to tail!
laughs in delight at Archie’s hippalectria. “Oh, they’re beautiful.”
claps delightedly, “Well done, Archie!”
: “Hey, nice coloring!”
grins, claps as well. “Excellent!”
calms his excitement at his success and, choosing the closest of the hippalectria, gently approaches it, giving it a pet of its beak that gives into a full nuzzle against its feathered neck before hopping on. “Come on! Festival’s waiting!” He beams. “Next time I get the chance, I want to see if this trick works for other kinds of mounts on the other planes.”
follows suit and moves his hands through the air, tracing shimmering circles of light, and summons hippalectria for everyone else to ride upon, giving them all motes to snack on, to prepare for the ride.
holds out a mote of radiant gnosis for their hippalectria, and gets ready to ride.
gives a fiery little mote to his mount–encouragement to be faster, perhaps.
ꙮ Two bright blue hippalectria and Dyu’s bright gold ones for everyone else, enough for everyone to have their own, or for some people to ride together if they want, although there’s not quite a hippalectria big enough for the Awoken, Salme, and Aurelius to all ride together, just yet. Maybe Archie and Dyu can work on that one. Suited up sufficiently for the sun, you make your way swiftly across the desert to the City – the walls and the Temple rising in the distance, then closer and closer. A desert wind cuts against the worst of the Sun’s heat, and you’re there in no time flat.
cannot imagine wanting to be that close to another person on the back of a traveling mount while wearing all the Sun Protection gear, anyway. Already misses the caves.
does decide to make her body heat Aurelius’ problem because she wants to doze a bit on the ride. She was busy yesterday!
ꙮ The City is preparing for Festival - they happen often enough that not everyone feels the need to be at every single one, according to some ridiculously intricate, convolute calendar maintained by the Zvahr - but the Temple stoa is full of people, and even more full of food carts, than usual, and the Great Hall directly past the stoa is fairly full of people, including groups of people clustered together that all have the look of having been part of the same Cohort.
himself, along with five other Yazhn, is meditating at the far end of the hall, but his nictitating membranes flick open when the group of you walk in, and he immediately stands, as quickly and quietly as possible, to make his way across the Hall towards you.
bows in greeting. “I have returned with Clan Emberlight, Teacher!”
gives an almost shy smile and touches two fingertips to his forehead in salute, as Ravhi approaches.
is immediately engaging with every food cart he comes across, but as he spots Ravhi coming their way, he changes targets and hustles to meet them.
is missing a little bit of the spring in her step. Though this may be the least sad Festival for her yet. Not quite a Cohort. But close enough.
falls toward the back, taking a moment to bump Qarina’s shoulder in support. She nods Very Politely at Yazhn Ravhi as he approaches.
returns the odd salute to Wolf– the scales around his horns coloring, very slightly– and motions in welcome, with a very deliberate smile in Salme’s direction– but he goes to Qarina first.
smiles and perks right back up, “Shade and Comfort, Teacher. Are you having a good Festival?”
gives Qarina a glad, relieved look. “I am. Shade and comfort to you, Qarina. Dyu.” He straightens up, slightly. “All of you. It’s good to see you.” His eyes are still on Qarina, and they flick to Dyu, and he smiles, almost conspiratorially. “There’s someone I’d like you to meet. But not yet. Later.”
looks at Dyu, confused, as she so often has done.
looks very surprised at the look from Ravhi. “Oh??”, then gives Qarina a look that says, ‘You ask me like I know things??’.
catches the looks as well, and also frowns faintly, glancing between the three of them.
looks back “I’m not the one who’s supposed to know things!”
: “Yeah, but that doesn’t inherently imply that -I- do!”
ꙮ Towards the back of the Great Hall, there’s an elaborate ensemble of instruments being set up - collections of gongs, brass plates, metallophones, bowls, things you don’t even have words to put to.
actually grins. “You’ll see.” And then he steps over to Wolf, and– he was going to say something, Qarina and Dyu at least damn well know he was going to say something, but whatever it was he was planning to say flew directly out of his ears before it could make it to his mouth, which is not something they have experienced before in their time awake, and after an incredibly awkward– really, it’s a second or two, but it feels longer– wishes him: “Shade and comfort, Wolf.”
smiles, slow and warm. “Shade and comfort, Yazhn Ravhi.” He looks very very amused. “You have the look of a schemer about you, good sir.”
looks at Dyu again. Her face is a stone cold mask, but it is a stone cold mask nearly cracked by the laughter and happiness in her eyes.
looks at Qarina, a sly smile creeping across his face, eyes shining with happiness.
is the picture of innocence. “No scheming here, Wolf, just the joy of Festival. A day like any other day, but during which we experience– something, some part, of the God’s Day.” He stands tall, taller perhaps than you’ve seen him stand– and he has a truly preposterous aura of banked gnosis he’s holding within himself.
: “Is that a swelling of gnosis in your robes or are you just happy to see us?”
snorts and has to cover his mouth with his hand at that. “Awa!” It would sound more chiding if it didn’t sound like he was laughing.
ꙮ One of Yazhn Ravhi’s eye-ridges slowly goes up further than you thought it was possible for it to.
is just glad it isn’t her
very much has to stifle laughter at what Awoken said!
looks at Ravhi, his voice and face very controlled. “You’re getting the experience of what it’s like to have children, I’m afraid.”
snorts, very softly.
Qarina goes bright red, and then immediately ghost-white at the words ‘have children.’
glances at Wolf for a moment, before looking at Dyu and Qarina.
glances back at Aury, grinning shamelessly, with an arch of his eyebrow that’s very clearly ‘yes?’
laughs more openly at all this.
thinks to herself that if Dyu knew what she knew, he wouldn’t be laughing.
manages, with a heroic effort, to keep his response to just a simple snort. “Go! Go get some food. The others and I have Work to do. There’ll be– you’ll know when it’s time to return to the Great Hall.”
it’s less the content of the interaction he’s laughing at , but the interactions within it.
: “You had me at ‘food’.” Wolf grins at Ravhi, gives him a little narrow-eyed once-over (his eyes lingering on one of Ravhi’s pockets), and then gives another jaunty salute and wanders away.
will mercifully, not explain the terrible truths of babies to her best friend.
swore on the Rite she lost to not tease or threaten Qarina about babies or children so she keeps her mouth shut as well.
catches Wolf’s eyes staring at the same pocket she saw.
had been pretty stonefaced after his question, which was half-serious, but as he gets the okay to go get food, he gives Salme and Aurelius taps on the hips. “You heard ‘im! It’s time to feast at the fest!”
glances over at Qarina as he turns away, and gives her the same eyebrow arch he gave Aury.
: “Wow, it’s been so long since breakfast, we should really go this way and find some food, huh?”
: “Uh-huh.”
: “Uh huh.” And offers his arm to Qarina. “Shall we?”
ꙮ And food there certainly is! A wild variety of pastries made out of impossibly-thin, rolled-out dough and drizzled with honey and stuffed with nuts and flavoured with spices; there’s a cart loaded up with hand-sized date pies, there’s vegetable stews, there’s dishes of fruit and shaved ice and ice cream…
: “It’s different! Festival food doesn’t really count as a meal, until it does.”
doesn’t take it, but walks alongside Wolf for the moment. “There’s no better time to get sweets than the Festival, let’s go!”
follows everyone, always eager to enjoy food at the Festival.
loops one of her arms through the Awoken’s, and then reaches for Aurelius with the other. It’s not quite a date, but it is a festival, so.
chuckles, withdrawing his arm gracefully, but keeping companionably close.
surveys the food stalls, eyes alight (figuratively, this time). He produces a large tome and a pen from some deep pocket of his robe. He has work to do. Delicious, delicious work.
laughs and follows Archie. How fortunate they didn’t eat breakfast earlier. Not that they’re really hungry. But it is, after all, a festival.
: “Qarina. You’re the expert on sweets. What do you suggest?”
: “Well, I know last time we got gulab jamun, but I think that’s the best thing to end on. We should start with some of the sweet ice at…that stall right there. It’s smashed up all small and covered in fruit syrup. It’s GREAT.”
ꙮ Some time after you wandered to the stoa to sample the City’s delights, you hear a ringing tintinnabulation from the Great Hall, echoing through it, and out over the stoa. Not a signal to return - that won’t happen for some time - but a sound unlike any you’ve heard, all the instruments you saw being set up in the Great Hall being played by – surely, by ten or more people, but being played as one single instrument.
stops in his tracks at that, a bit of some kind of flaky, sweet pastry partway to his mouth, just…caught, by that sound.
jumps a bit, startled, and looks towards sound with very large eyes. She’s not sure she liked that.
ꙮ The way the instruments are tuned, the sound comes from the ringing beats between the notes almost as much as from the notes themselves; what would be a dissonance in any other circumstance forms a consonance of its own, a melody in the gaps and intricacies, suggested by overtones.
half-closes his eyes, listening intently, eyes flickering beneath his eyelids as he drinks it in.
stares up, following the ripples and waves of the reverberating melody, unconsiously sifting melodies apart from each other, and then back together again.
softly hums along as he goes about eating his procured delicacies.
wonders if they could bring this back to their Endjinn Cousins, back home, someday.
lets his mind swim in the space between sounds.
is working through very small portions of the various sweets, trying each carefully. She’s taken a bit of a shine to the flaky pastry with honey and nuts.
is … not trying to make sense of the sounds, but can at least appreciate it.
ꙮ Impossibly intricate, and– certain decisions about the way the stoa and the Great Hall were build suddenly snap into place as sensible, designed around the specific acoustics of this strange ensemble. At some point, a wind instrument joins in – a bright reedy sound floating above - and someone’s strumming something along with it. Joyous and strange – not the music of an Almachadtan harvest festival, or a Hunter’s celebration, or a Kushtaka shindig, but – you can imagine. You can imagine, if you close your eyes, or at least, you know the sound of joy when you hear it.
smiles softly, eyes going fully closed for a long moment, then opens them and finishes his bite of pastry. “What a wonder.”
: “It does seem … fitting, I guess, that the music here fits thematically with the concept of radiant gnosis itself, huh?” She sounds a bit amused, in a wry sort of way. “It is beautiful.”
tilts his head curiously at Salme. “Oh? I would be delighted to hear your thoughts, there.”
smiles warmly, “I always look forward to the music at the Festival, even moreso than the food.”
flushes, feeling suddenly caught out, despite the fact that she’s the one who initially said something. “Oh. Just the sound itself. Many sounds, played by many people, rendered as one tone. A team of people working together to make one cohesive whole?”
: “Sounds that can be taken on and off, like the old days…”
: “Though I guess that’s really all music, defined broadly enough. Ignore me.”
considers that for a moment, then nods, smiles. “I see what you mean. How interesting. I wonder if the music for the other worlds is likewise? Shaped by the gnosis that suffuses their world.”
despite just saying that, feels compelled to add, “Well, I mean, on the Beast there were drums, right? So many drums, defining presence and absence and the heartbeat of the world itself, which is the Deepforge. But a drum is also a method of timekeeping, right? ‘Tick-tock time-marked’ and all that? Samudra and Almachadta I’m less sure about, but I noticed the drums on the Beast.”
: “An interesting hypothesis. On Samudra, music is often used to concey ideas or get people on the same page, so it’s pellucid in purpose. But could it be pellucid sonically or instrumentally? An interesting question. I’m sure there are scholars in the ethnomusicology department who would have a stronger position than me.”
: “One also wonders what Valais’ music shall be like. It has some, I know that much.”
: “I mean, I know shit about musical analysis. We’re stopping at ‘The Beast has a lot of drums’ and ‘Mu’s music is very cooperative’ here.”
shoves too much of the flaky honey and nut pastry into her mouth to keep from talking more.
lightly laughs. “They’re good analysis!”
ꙮ Salme, there’s no such thing as too much baklawa.
snorts. “And yet, the analysis is not without merit, and has clearly sparked ideas. You do not need to be a master to appreciate the themes.”
ꙮ Well, maybe there is. It’d be fun to find out. Anyways.
blinks at you. Is that what it’s called? She works on chewing through her poorly-considered mouthful.
ꙮ The music dims, and then extinguishes. And then there’s the sound of a gong.
ꙮ People start filtering their way into the Great Hall.
is mid gulab jamun as the gong goes off. Cheeks packed with honeyed goodness, he says a muffled “Tmme frnn thn prnfrnmrncn!”
heads toward the Great Hall. This, they are quite interested to see.
ꙮ On the far end of the Great Hall - and Dyu will lead you right up to the very front, if he has to, and people will make way for him - the ensemble waits, mallets held. The Yazhn stand, in a line, each of them holding a red crystal not much bigger than one of their fists.
ushers everyone to the very front, nodding appreciatively to people as they make way for him and his guests.
will not go all the way to the front. They are far too large to be in that many people’s way.
grabs Luĉja’s arm and tugs them forward if they try to hang back. People will either cope, or someone will climb them, and it’ll be fine.
stays right on Dyu’s heels–eyes flicking across those red crystals, eyelids lowering in the way they do when he’s ‘listening’.
ꙮ There’s room off to the side where they won’t be fucking up anyone’s sight-line.
: “Thank you, Friend-Narrator.”
is staring at the crystals, eyes wide
inhales sharply, at the same time, eyes fixing on one of the crystals, narrowed intently.
settles down into the front.
(“Hey Dyu…do you…see things in the crystals?”)
begins to hum something, deep in his chest, and the other Yazhn hum with him, finding some common resonance, holding it, for a time, then dropping it, all together, in synchrony.
is watching, more politely than intently, though she is watching and not merely looking. She also, being shorter than most humans, feels no qualms about being up front.
flicks his spectacles on, watching intently.
clamps his jaw shut tightly so as to not even be tempted to hum along.
ꙮ You all feel an enormous weight of gnosis, channeled by the Yazhn, funneling into the crystals they hold, and they glow with it, refracting off all of their internal facets. ⁂
offers Wolf another portion of the baklava, just in case he needs it.
(“I do not, no.”)
ꙮ And then, light spills out of each and every crystal. Undifferentiated, at first - and then focusing and coalescing into shapes, which stand, and rise -
- You hear — and your Star hears — a song, echoing from the stillness: Festival Bells
ꙮ The ensemble begins playing, something you have to consciously stop your feet tapping along to, your body moving to - and six humans step out of the shifting mass of light. The six Yazhn holding their crystals are - arched back, frozen, not in crystal, but in a rictus of exertion. The human closest to you steps closer to Yazhn Dyu – she’s tall, with short white hair, and a kind face, and she pats herself down briefly, in wonder, and looks at Dyu. ⁂
softly, wonderingly, says: “Yazhn Ravhi?” And a pause, and then. “No. Hello, child. What is your name?”
he looks at her, eyes full of wonder. “My name is Dyu. Yazhn Dyu, Ravhi’s acolyte. Who, may I ask, are you?”
is also staring, with a mix of fascination, wonder, and confusion.
keeps glancing back and forth between the crystals and the…people that just walked out of the light.
smiles. Around her, the other humans are embracing members of their cohort, people they knew while awake, laughing, immediately trading stories. “My name is Wynn. I’m a dear friend of Ravhi’s. He’s– your Teacher, then? That’s wonderful. And these are your friends?”
he smiles brightly. “Wynn! Yes, he has spoken of you, often and fondly! Aye, he is my Teacher, and these are my friends.”
bows, slowly and carefully, his eyes never quite leaving Wynn. “A pleasure, madam.”
smiles and gives a little wave. “I’ve admired your weaving a bit.”
bows, to all six of you, then– and casts an eye over your garb, and tilts her head to the side. “My, fashions have certainly changed. I– my apologies, I’m a weaver, I can’t help noticing. You or your tailors have all done lovely work.”
blinks at Salme, and color rises to her cheeks, slightly.
smiles a bit wider. “Yazhn Ravhi has a room full of tapestries and carpets, but your work is the most beautiful there. I was raised by a weaver. I know quality.”
: “It is a pleasure to finally get to meet you, Lady Wynn.”, he says, fully realizing why Ravhi was being coy earlier.
: “Oh.” And she blushes more, and turns, and- her breath catches, when she sees that Ravhi is channeling her. “Oh.” Softer, that time, and she steps towards Dyu, and smiles. “I’m so glad I got the chance to meet you before the Day. He must care for you very much.”
he smiles up at Wynn, beaming, actually. “As much as I care for him.”
lets his eyes flicker back to Ravhi–the strain on his face, the power he’s exerting–then turns his focus back on Wynn, and Dyu.
looks up, at the rest of you all. “And you? Who are you, to Ravhi?” Or Dyu, she supposes– although they can’t all be Dyu’s cohort, that would make no sense.
: “Travellers and saviors, from very, very far away.”
: “I’m Qarina. Dyu and I are like a really small cohort.”
nods as the Awoken answers.
tries to answer and finds that he can’t–his eyes just go back to Ravhi, and his fingers drift up to brush the front of his coat, over his chest.
nods to Qarina with a warm smile.
nods at Awoken’s comment, indicating herself as well.
ꙮ Someone laughs, across the hall. Someone else cries, but not with sorrow. Yazhn Ravhi’s back arches, briefly, and he adjusts his footing on the stone, and his claws dig in to the soft flesh of his hand.
says, “Travelers. I don’t think we’ve ever gotten any of those. Well, it’s an honor to get to meet you.” And she bows, courteously, with a soft and gentle smile.
loses his focus and he can’t…he can’t help it, he hums something deep in his chest, something in harmony with the tone that Ravhi gave before, something of the yeresh mask cracking at the sight of the other’s strain.
looks up, at Wolf, and does a tremendous amount of math in her head very fast, and then she smiles.
catches the smile, his focus re-solidifying–and the tips of his ears are red.
offers Wolf the Baklava again.
looks to Wolf, smiles, and looks back to Wynn. “He is Yeresh Wolf. He is like Teacher, but from another place.”
says, then, not really even trying to whisper. “He’ll never, ever admit that he’s horribly lonely, you know. You’ll have to drag that one out of him. And you should. He needs someone to, every once in a while.” And then she turns to Dyu, sternly, and does something funny with her mouth. “And you! Don’t go following in his footsteps in that regard.”
just bows again–and this time it’s a bow of respect to an honored elder, his cheeks flushing red.
he smiles very softly, “Wolf, he…makes Teacher -happy-, and that makes -me- happy.”. He waves his hands. “I won’t, I won’t!”
does say, “Wolf,” nodding at her friend, “Is very good at reaching out to those who need it and hearing what they say. I don’t know Ravhi very well at all, but I can tell you he could not have found companionship in a better man.”
And now Wolf can’t look forward or back. He averts his eyes, breathing catching in his throat.
is grinning ear to ear.
he looks back to Wolf with a smile, “You’ve had an effect on Teacher, for the better. I’m sure you know that.”
looks satisfied, at that, and smiles, and straightens up, and tilts her head to the side. “Now, I remember the Festival songs, they haven’t changed a bit, and that means things’ll be winding down, soon. So. Take care of yourselves, and each other, for me? And Yazhn Ravhi, too. And I’ll see you again in on the break of Day.” And she addresses this to everyone, even the travelers, without any doubt in her heart.
presses his fist to his heart and bows again, deep and deeper. “May the Day come, lady. May that Day come.”
he reaches out to take Wynn’s hand, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes. “I shall do my best, this I promise. For you, for Teacher, for everyone. We shall see you again when Morning Comes.”
returns the gesture sincerely but a little absentmindedly, his eyes transfixed on the Yazhn.
: “Don’t worry. We’ll make sure he’s alright. Until the Day.”
holds Dyu’s hand, and is holding his hand when the song ends, and the line of Yazhn stagger, again, in unison- do not stumble, but stagger - and then she fades into motes of light, still smiling.
ꙮ And the light projected from the crystals ceases, and something of that which was being projected returns to where it Rested–
staggers backwards, then, but with profound care for the crystal in his hands, fingers laced around it, so that even should he fall it would come to no harm. But he does not, of course he does not.
tries to follow the return of—whatever it is—to where it rests. With her eyes. With the subtlest flick of liminal gnosis.
as the visage of Wynn fades, he has to fight back a wave of tears. Tears of both happiness, for getting to meet his Teacher’s treasured friend, and sorrow, for watching her leave, and remembering his own treasured freind.
reaches out and clasps Dyu’s shoulder–and then tugs the Kin gently against him, in the way he would someone back on Almachadta. “Not all tears are evil.” His own are shining, wet.
side hugs Dyu from the other side.
leans into the hug, allowing this wave of tears to come through.
slowly, slowly, catches his breath - tucks the crystal away in a cloth pouch hanging around his neck, close to his heart, before he does anything else, his nictitating membranes closed, gulping in air– cracking one eye open to look at Emberlight, Qarina, and Dyu, with a brief look of joy you might miss, if your eyes aren’t on his face to catch it.
cups the back of Dyu’s neck, keeps him tucked close…and meets Ravhi’s eyes, directly, so many different expressions on his face. But one above them all.
also meets Ravhi’s eyes when he looks at her, trying to convey gratitude, and the fact that she will take this gift with her to think about from here forward.
does have a gentle, very slightly amused, smile for Salme, and a bow of the head to her. She gave him a tremendous gift, one which he will not soon forget.
has some tension ease out of her body at that. She cuts her eyes to Wolf, who’s positively radiating—well, that’s not her emotion to describe.
meets Wolf’s eyes, then, finally- and his own are bright, are -joyful-, despite everything, despite what he just put himself through to invoke his old friend. Perhaps more bright and joyful, for having done so.
smiles, no less joyful for the quietness of it…looks at Dyu against him…at Emberlight…and back to Ravhi again. “Love is a miracle,” he says, softly. Maybe Ravhi hears him. Maybe he doesn’t. It doesn’t matter. Ravhi knows.