ꙮ The Courtyard Sink Inn, the next morning. It’s much busier than Kesset was. The Inn, the Courtyard around you - even if you’re not from Almachadta, somewhere in you is the memory of a moment like this, waking up to the sounds of bustling streets, people going about their day, singing songs as they shake the sleep out of their eyes. There’s thick, crusty bread that’s dark and sweet, and tiny, dainty little boiled eggs, peeled and still a little bit runny on the inside, and coffee, and cloudberry jam, which if you have never had the good luck to try before this moment, is frankly too delicious for me to even attempt to accurately describe. It’s nice to wake up in the Courtyard of Almachadta. 🙧
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- Aurelius
- The Awoken
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#full cast session
#badri
#tsemdrulukh
#chapter 2: almachadta
wakes slowly, and lies in bed for a while, staring at the ceiling. Breathing. Thinking. Then he gets up, ties his hair back, dons his robes, and heads downstairs to look for food.
is, as ever, there bright at early. Not wearing the welding glasses this morning. (Or well, sort of. They’re resting upon his head, between the fox ears that are definitely there and always have been)
sits quietly upstairs for what seems like too long. It is rare they wished that they slept more. But thankfully, their new friend is there to cuddle and play with. When the sounds of morning arrive, Unua quietly plods down the stairs, and acquires a small bowl of milk, and whatever food seems most apt for baby coeurls.
ꙮ The proprietress is delighted, modulo the circumstances, about the baby coeurl situation and took you aside at some point last night to discuss Care and Feeding, yes.
also arrives somewhat early. She looks refreshed. Her hair is braided neatly into crown braids again, and she’s jauntily braided in a few sprigs of sweet alyssum. She smiles brightly at Wolf and Unua but mostly focuses on her quest for bread and cloudberry jam.
hums as he bathes, the sound echoing just enough to be audible. He joins for food in his new purple cloak, and for once, the bags under his eyes seem a little smaller.
smiles back in return–he looks like he’s bathed, and combed his hair. His robes might have gotten washed too. His hair is tied back in a neat tail–and while he hasn’t shaved, he’s definitely trimmed up the scruff. For his own part, he’s working on what seems like his “usual” breakfast–tea, bread, cheese–but this time there’s two fried eggs, too.
glitters in the light, half thanks to the light shining off of his irrica ishcata adornments on his clothes, but also because the bath was extremely refreshing and energizing; his hair practically glows with its own radiance. He secures a mug of coffee, pat of butter on toast, and a sliced, spiced couple of eggs for breakfast.
turns to Unua, once she has her full plate. “I’m sorry, friend, that I wasn’t–able, to really focus on your new companion yesterday. Have you decided on a name?”
glances at the Awoken’s plate, shakes his head, then place a second piece of toast with cloudberry jam on it.
has the kitten wave a paw at Salme. “I have not yet. I must continue to learn about my new friend first. Most of our interactions have been sleeping.”
: “Ahh, that good, Aury?” He places a bitten half-of-egg down, switching equipment to the Cloudberry Toast Jam.
: “Mm.”
glances over at the other man. “Are you alright, Aurelius? Is aught amiss?”
: “I’m fine, but thank you for asking.”
in question is truly, profoundly, persistently eepy. And the Clockwork Knight is very pleasantly warm but also, somehow, very cuddly. Purr.
looks over at Salme, lifting an eyebrow at her with a bit of a “is he…?” air.
is charmed by the kitten. She waves back, and then smiles even more widely. “You make a fairly perfect pair.” Her fingers itch to scritch the kitten’s head, but she will wait until it is awake enough she can properly ask permission.
notices Wolf’s curious glance, sees who it’s directed at, and shrugs as if she couldn’t care less.
: “Some of these eggs will do well for the next leg of the journey- either they’ll be eaten as provisions, or a slavering beast will come to claim them, and we can eat them instead.”
looks, if anything, more confused and not less; but allows himself to be distracted by the Awoken’s commentary. “Most of the beasts that would attack a large group for the sake of some eggs aren’t good eating, alas.”
ꙮ Anything’s tasty if you stew it long enough, but… yes.
: “Oh? Pity.” The last half of egg goes into his mouth, and is chased by a bite of the cloudberry toast jam. There’s a roll of his head in delight as he savors the taste.
looks amused. “All gristle. No fat. Plus all the scales, hide, bones, various organs secreting poison, acid, acidic poison…”
ꙮ Poisonous acid, too.
tilts his head slightly, suddenly struck by the idea that they haven’t seen a giant snake yet despite being in a forest. Then gives his head a shake and finishes off the rest of his food, and seemingly does not opt to stuff random breads and things into his pockets this time.
: “Ahh. They make better hammocks and galoshes than handwiches and gnocci.”
tilts his head–he can only assume that the latter pair are some kind of food, and that a “galosh” is some kind of…bedroll? Or it could just be the Awoken being himself. Hard to tell. “In essence, yes. Apex predators, all that.”
: “Yeah. Until we come bounding around.” He winks with confidence.
mentally adds another entry to the Pre-Samudra Disclosure Checklist.
chuckles. “I would very much prefer to be lucky enough not to encounter a great wyrm or, gods forfend, a behemoth.” He sighs, sopping up some egg yolk with a bit of bread. “Though where we’re headed, who knows? I would be prepared for anything.”
: “Ah, you just gotta bop ‘em on the snoot hard enough.” He looks like he was in a slight hurry getting here, and is in the process of procuring a glass of something cold and refreshing. “Good Light, all. Hope you were able to get some rest?”
: “Speaking of which, I assume we still need to report to your -”
waves, cheerfully!
has the kitten wave at Badri
nods, slightly.
perks up, even happier, at seeing Badri.
: “Morning!” He waves the last bit of cloudberry jam toast as a salutation before it disappears into his maw.
: “Fair morn, Badri,” Wolf says. “It’s hard not to rest well in such lovely surroundings. I’ve not slept so well since, well. A while.”
is momentarily, but only momentarily, distracted from whatever he was about to say next by the kitten wave, goes over to give Salme a hug, gets his glass of cold and refreshing (it’s some kind of bright red chilled tea made from flower petals). “Good to hear. I got a maddeningly-vague Papyrus in the middle of the dim.”
raises an eyebrow.
waves. “Care to share with the class?”
: “Sounds intriguing!”
leans into the hug, like a plant turning toward the sunlight. She gets up on her tiptoes and whispers something in Badri’s ear.
just comes a little more upright, ease melting into a calm alertness.
coughs, briefly. If you’re paying close attention or know him very well, his eyebrows just very much wished to escape up into his hair and perhaps stay there for some time on a nice sabbatical but he successfully abjured them from so doing. He gives Salme a slow, thoughtful nod. “Mmmm. Colleague of mine- Tsemdrulukh, mentioned them last night but things were… things. Lives about as close to the Tangle as anyone does, likes to study it and listen to what it has to say. Apparently, something tore through the undergrowth like its arse was on fire and left quite a trail to follow. Something large.”
: “Ah, that.”
tilts his head. “Absolutely none of that was vague.”
: “An easy trail, then. At least that will help us save our efforts for what comes after.”
: “Oh yeah that part wasn’t vague.” He nods. “Or, well. No, it was, but it was strongly implied, and I’ve known Tsem my entire life and I can speak ‘cryptic’ fluently.” He smiles wryly. “They’d very much like to meet all of you.”
rolls her eyes at the Wolf-worthy eyebrow calisthenics, gives him another quick squeeze, and goes over to bump her shoulder against Wolf’s
: “I imagine we’ll be in the area before too long at any rate, so that works.”
: “I think we’d also like to meet them. I at least have some questions, and I suspect some of the others will as well.”
gives her a slight smile and leans back briefly. “If I may ask, Badri. Should I know this colleague? I’m afraid my memory does not aid me like it should.”
: “Swifts’re still at the gate, if you’re looking for something to do. Short enough a journey, and it’ll give you some time to talk.” He glances at Wolf, frowns slightly. “I’m not sure, honestly. They might have met both you and Salme, before, at the very least, depending on when… anyways, I think you’ll get along.”
excuses himself politely from the table at the mention of the swifts and walks increasingly briskly towards the exit. Distantly, you hear the muffled sounds of Archie mimicing the sounds of their churring back to them, which gradually get more and more muffled.
thinks for a few blinks, and then nods. “Alright, now I gotta ask- they a Lightdrinker?”
gives Wolf’s arm a quick squeeze–an attempt at reassurance, for the not-knowing, and says, “would you like the honor of telling everyone what I mentioned, or should I save that and tell Tsem as well?” Her voice is even, but there’s–humor, probably, toward the end of the question.
briefly looks concerned as Archie rises and leaves–then hears the sounds and looks like it’s taking quite a lot of focus and effort to not put his head down on the table and laugh.
: “They’re… it’s complicated and I’d rather let them explain themself for themself, and,” -he glances levelly at Salme, “-I think that’s likely a good conversation for the journey.”
: “Yes there’s no better time to explain complex secrets then while riding a swift,” she says, though exasperation is mostly affected. Mostly.
clears his throat. “Did we still need to report back to your…” He pauses, rolling a few words over in his mind before continuing, “…King? Or was… yesterday enough?”
: “Oh ho. Now it’s a mystery.” He finishes off the coffee, and slips an egg into a wrapped cloth before standing up.
shrugs, expansively, before graciously grabbing the lifeline Aury offered to explain: “I’ll tell the King where you went. And. Hm.” He looks thoughtful for a moment and raises an eyebrow at Salme.
laughs a little at the Awoken. “I think there’s plenty of (rotating) in your near future.”
: “They’re all so interesting!” he says, with a wide, bright smile. “Almachada continues to amaze.”
makes an ambivalent gesture with her hand and shrugs one shoulder. “Use your own judgement for that one, old man.”
: “I suppose the road calls, does it not?” He gives Badri a long, measuring look–just…considering what he now knows…and then nods. “Then I should retrieve the rest of my things.” He bows to Badri, and heads off to get his pack.
looks briefly, but fondly, grumpy, and gives Salme another hug. Bows back to Wolf, elegantly and very correctly.
: “See you where the light shines, Badri!” He pushes away from the table and makes for the door, but seems reluctant to go bounding out entirely without the rest of the group (plus kitten).
gives a slight nod to Badri in acknowledgement, then goes to make sure Archie hasn’t been taken off to goddess knows where on his own.
: “I, personally, would not, for whatever it’s worth,” she adds to Badri, then frowns. “It took me forever to untangle my hair after the swifts last time. You could have warned me,” she says with … a certain amount of petulance.
then goes to follow her companions.
: “Oh no, they’d need to be untangled again.” he says, half-hidden behind a hand.
hoists their camppack high, and brings their kitten out to meet the swifts, thanking Badri and the innkeeper on their way out.
ꙮ The swifts are absolutely SURROUNDING Archie in a truly relentless cuddlepile. They are back to Inflappably Effervescent after their own nights’ rest and there is an absolutely astonishing amount of delighted churring and squeaking happening.
ꙮ One of them keeps nuzzling Archie’s forehead like, where are the antlers? Did you lose them, small child? The rest of them seem to have accepted the mystery in their midst as long as it means they get lots of scritches.
: “Swifties, get ready to riiiiiiiiiiide!” he calls to the writhing mass of speed made flesh.
: “Guess they’re always like this.”
hears the group approach and starts to squirm back to standing, straightening his cloak with a hastily-assembled veneer of seriousness.
looks at Aurelius for … probably the first time today, and then resolutely focuses on Not That Guy.
ꙮ They disentangle themselves from Archie with surprising alacrity given reluctance warring with enthusiasm at Doing Their Thing. Starseeker bounds to Wolf and nuzzles him affectionately.
doesn’t pay the look any mind and mounts up, looking as serious and focused as he has all morning.
chuckles and gives the swift the well-earned scritches and rubs, then swings up onto Starseeker’s back. He gently pets the beast while he waits for his companions to mount up in turn.
mounts her own swift with some pets but mostly efficiency. She does, apologetically, feed them the promised apples from yesterday with a quiet “sorry”
lies flat on the swift’s back, arms looped gently but firmly around its neck, thighs gently squeezing the abdomen for stability
ꙮ It’s a much shorter distance to travel, this time - basically following the Milkwhite as it roars and rambles its rivery way through the wide valley between the Courtyard and the Tangle. The Tangle itself rises in the distance, the closest thing to a proper mountain Almachadta has, at least as much an infinitely-dense knotted watten of wood and branch as it is rock and loam, and from the valley, it looks almost like the river flows -up- the mountain, into it, before disappearing into a maw of stone and roots. Badri gave you directions to Tsem’s - crystal spikes in the ground visible when you get close enough, leading to the clearing they call their home. 🙧
diligently feeds all of the swifts from the bag of swift-snacks, then secures the kitten in their coat. “You’re going to have to stay in here for right now. We’re going to go on a ride and it’s going to be very fast.”
swoops up onto his swift, giving it vigorous ear and antler scritches, locking in with his legs, and prepares for the sudden burst of energy and speed.
: “great idea Badri. Wonderfully done,” she mutters as they begin to ride, and then, projecting her voice. “Archie, Unua. There’s something I need to tell you before we arrive.”
looks over at Salme
keeps his focus on the path before them, but twitches his ears in her direction.
ꙮ The swifts are definitely not hauling ass with nearly as much reckless abandon, this time. Maybe because it’s only a short distance? Maybe because they know a Conversation needs to happen. Unua’s, Archie’s, and Salme’s cluster fairly close together as they run.
: “It’s the secret the Sword-Saint carries. I already–” here she blushes, a little embarrassed. “I already told Wolf, and the other two. I should have–well, I’m telling you now. But the Sword-Saint exists because the cancer Archie identified? The dissonance in the Song Wolf noted? It’s happened before. Hundreds of times. The world is destroyed, and after it’s destroyed it’s reborn. And the Sword-Saint’s job is, at least in part, to persist the memory between cycles.”
stays quiet, riding just a little bit ahead of Salme–listening, keeping his counsel.
‘s eyes flash with a bright white light. “This…is unexpected, but useful information. Thank you.” They appear to be very lost in thought.
shudders a little, pressing closer into his swift. “Do you have a sense of whether it can be stopped or if stopping it is even a good idea? Is it more akin to a forest fire or a calamity?”
rubs at his face.
grins extra hard and doesn’t explain why.
ꙮ The swifts, for their part, seem remarkably unaffected by the revelation.
: “I don’t know,” says Wolf, quietly. “It is the cycle. This is a world of cycles. I am…a shepherd, of the cycle. But…” He trails off, eyes ahead, and his fingers clench briefly in Starseeker’s fur.
: “It. What you said, about using burning gnosis and pellucid gnosis. A Sword-Saint tried it once before but there wasn’t enough gnosis at all. I think–if we had some way to channel massive amounts, maybe from the Beast and Samudra, it would work. As for the other question, it’s as Wolf says.” ⁂
: “but,” she adds, after a moment, “somebody, who I am not sure is wise but who I trust, counseled me to walk bravely along the untold path. And someone else, who I both trust and think is wise, told me … we can’t know, what echoes will come of our Song, but we must Sing, regardless.” A longer hesitation, and then finally, firmly, “and a third, who I think is too wise for their own good, counseled me to do what I want, and I want to try.”
🙧
ducks his head, smiles a little, at some of that.
sits, arms crossed, back straight, and he gives a full chested barking laugh, filled with joy and confidence.
ꙮ Some of the swifts get into it at the Awoken’s laugh, chirring enthusiastically.
: “Wise indeed. My struggle at home is same-and-different. But knowing the stakes here makes my answer plain. We were returned to fight against this and save our worlds. And the one that is not ours.”
: “Just because your world has always died, does not mean it must continue to do so. Not when we can help it live.”
nods. “If you’re resolved to try, then we’ll try together. There’s so much in this world worth saving. I already know that and I’m only barely not a total stranger to it all. I can only imagine how you feel as a native resident.”
: “Though, should we be successful, I apologize for putting you out of your Sainting career.”
: “I admit that I am…torn,” Wolf says, softly. “I am no stranger to death, nor am I a stranger to change. Such is life. That which lives must change, that which lives must end, to feed that which comes after. And yet. And…yet.” He sighs, and looks down at Starseeker’s neck. “And yet, I am charged, not to death, but to Life. To guard growth…to ease pain. To protect that which lives and grows well in its own way, and change only what I must for that to sustain.” ⁂
: “It is good that I have also spoken to someone far too wise.” You get the feeling that if Unua’s mouth moved from the ever present jagged opening on their face-plate, they would be grinning from ear to ear.
He looks up at Salme, looks directly at her. “If this is what must be, then I will bear it. I will light the flame myself, if needs must–and carry the ember to the new tinder, if I may. But I do not…” He frowns, and swallows, and then laughs, raggedly. “I do not want to watch these things I love die, if it can be averted without the ruin of all.”
speaks these next words, and uncrosses one arm to pat his swift right in the middle of its head, in beat with emphasizing the sentences. “Consider! Replacing one cycle! With another!”
just…blinks–stares, really–at the Awoken. “Bwuh?” It’s not his most dignified moment.
: “So simple!” He re-crosses his arms, whips his head around, to brush some hair from his face. “If cycles are what sustain the world, then change the nature of the cycle!”
: “have you finished (rotating) your eclipse idea then, Sininen?”
is not so far gone in confusion that he does not narrow his eyes at Salme and the sudden new name of the Awoken. But: “How? And to what?”
closes his eyes, lowers his head a bit. “I have plenty of ideas. If the world would be choked by kudzu, I could turn the water into Water That Turns You Into A Goat, and then everyone would be goats, and eat the kudzu, and the world would be saved.”
: “But.”
looks, perhaps, less than impressed with that idea.
: “That is a singular, selfish solution.”
: “To those who flourish of Almachadta, who’s love is etched onto their very being,”
: “I believe. I believe you can break out of what has been.”
: “If you need that spark, I will help light it. But… I think you, should write it.”
looks comforted and a little surprised. “I… agree? Which feels odd, but earned.”
looks at his strange new companions in turn–cheerful, incisive Archie; bluff Aurelius; stolid, kind Unua; wild, insightful Awoken. And he nods, and smiles. “My friend. You still don’t understand this world. We shall not write.” ⁂
: “…but we shall Sing.” 🙧
looks at the Awoken and mouths the word ‘smooth’ at him, then puts two little fingers on the palm of his other hand and makes a motion like the fingers are tripping.
ꙮ The swifts chitter amongst themselves, and bound, and scamper - and even THEY start to slow down a little, the closer you get to the Tangle. It looms above you, pillar-root sprouting out of the gnarled mass, holding up the sky. You see a crystal jutting out of the ground, cocked vaguely but tangibly in the direction of- yon, another shard, a trail leading Somewhere. Two or three of these shards in, the swifts slow to a stop, and wiggle. There is a density - a weight, almost, to the air itself. They will go no further, but it is not far from here to Tsemdrulukh.
hops down from his swift, and offers them the egg they had stashed away. (Realizing he didn’t bring enough for everyone, he holds up a finger in front of his lips, conspiritorially.)
slips off the Swift just as it comes to a stop and looks around.
slides smoothly from Starseeker’s back, pats their neck, then shoulders their pack to walk on.
ꙮ Your secret is safe with your swift because your secret is joyously nommed almost instantly. Chrr!
dutifully feeds the swifts again, and makes sure the kitten is okay.
offers her swift Another apple and scratches at the base of its antlers appreciatively. “Thank you so much.”
slides himself off his swift’s back, nuzzling it before turning to look at the Tangle.
: “Any rituals or customs we ought know about before venturing further in?”
: “I … don’t remember meeting Tsemdrulukh, but from what I’ve seen there’s … no ritual that would really be appropriate.” ⁂
ꙮ There’s a path, winding back and forth up through densely-forested foothills, always flowing with the terrain, never against it, that the crystal shards follow. It seems like it has been kept navigable, or perhaps gently and lovingly persuaded to remain navigable.
nodes in the Awoken’s direction. “If things seems awkward, just have him say something and it’ll probably all work out.” 🙧
: “I find puffing out your chest, greeting with your name, and demanding the same of them is a great equalizer!”
: “…Yeah good point.”
: “Don’t forget asking how to kill your interlocutor.”
: “Just try not to be blindingly rude,” Wolf says, dryly.
: “Hehe!” He holds up a finger and winks. “No detail is too unimportant, dear sparrow.”
rolls his head around his shoulders a few times, then takes off down the path.
ꙮ You hear humming, very very deep and low. Like the stones are singing. Something echoing, some incredibly complicated sound amplifying itself - carefully-placed crystals, echoing off stone faces, resonating and harmonising with itself. Snatches and fragments like someone’s trying to remember a melody, failing, and then improvising around the failure. ⁂
huffs a laugh, and says, “no, I think the blinding rudeness is part of the charm?” gesturing inarticulately at the Awoken.
gives Salme a very quizzical look. “You do think so, hmm?” …is it just you, or has his voice picked up some of the tones of that humming?
: “I know so,” she says, and she will Not be elaborating right now.
ꙮ The crystal path leads to a wide clearing in the forest that looks like the Tangle was asked nicely to grow that way and it agreed. It is absolutely full of… it’s hard to say what they are. They could be art, sculptures - crystals held in configurations with living wood, with root-fiber, with leaves. They could have a purpose. ⁂
ꙮ At one edge of the clearing is a figure, hunkered down, very slowly and methodically doing something or other with one of those crystal-and-wood structures. A Spoken Wood, but not like any you’ve ever seen- there’s an immense crystal grown into and around the Wood, or the Wood has grown into and around the crystal, to the point where it’s impossible to say even where one starts, and the other leaves off. ⁂
- You hear — and your Star hears — a song, echoing from the stillness: Wrédikes hen Moy Déhti
slowly, rises. Slowly, turns. They extend their branches in welcome.
: “…hmm.”
ꙮ It’s the song they were humming fragments of and improvising around.
bows, palm over fist over heart. “Greetings, Tsemdrulukh, and well met.” He even pronounces it correctly, in rhythm with the song.
folds his arms over his chest and turns his head upwards, looking at something in the sky that isn’t there while deep in thought and focusing on the music in the air.
Reaches out, a little blindly, to steady herself on whoever’s nearest.
puffs out his chest, the small charm hanging from his mantle button bouncing slightly as he does so. There’s a small lull in the song, and he boasts: “Pleased to meet you! I am the Awoken- Awoken will do!”
does not sound like any Spoken Wood or any Lightdrinker you’ve heard - the Wood warps the sound with gnosis, the Lightdrinker part shifts and changes it. They -resonate- with each other, in every word they speak. “Saint. Yeresh Wolf. You return, with companions.” And then a look of concern, towards the Saint. “Are you well?”
shakes her head. “Yes. I just. So you met us? On our way into the Tangle? Did Badri explain the situation?”
: “We did. You passed by. Briefly we spoke. We have, since, to Badri spoken.”
: “I would like to ask–I’m sure we have much to speak of, but I think, first, we should talk of when Ciet was the Sword-Saint, and you spoke to those from other worlds. Names, if you remember any, and what was said.”
stands, for a moment. The Lightdrinker part of them is flickering fitfully; there’s a sound like wind through leaves even though there’s no wind. After an awkward amount of time has passed: “Spoke we not.” Another, mercifully less-awkward pause. “We listened. We responded.” They lumber over to a crystal-and-wood apparatus. “To you, we this now show.”
ꙮ They reach out a branch, and they tap on the surface of the wood. A crystal, somewhere in the apparatus, lights up. A rhythmic pattern. After a few moments, the crystal lights up again, in response, and taps against the wood of the apparatus. Tap, taptap, tap, tap.
blinks a few times and then turns his attention back to the conversation at hand.
: “On the walls of the world we knock. An answer do we hear.” There’s a longer pause, and more of the crystal lights up, and there’s a gusty sigh. “Wow. We’re sorry. That was taking forever. We had to remember how to (rotate) air. Sorry. Okay.”
blinks once in surprise, and then snickers behind his hands.
: “Badri is used to our bullshit but that’s no excuse for being lazy around new friends. Anyways, we built a weird thing?” They gesture expansively towards the apparatus. “It lets us… hm. Don’t think we can do better than ‘tap on the walls’, honestly. Turns out the walls tap back.”
blinks, but in recognition. He does his best to turn surreptitiously towards Wolf and Salme, raising a single eyebrow as if to ask how plainly he can speak in Tsemdrulukh’s presence.
: “Holy shit are you a Kushtaka? C’mere.”
: “Holy shit, you are. Holy shit.”
: “Walls tap, rocks talk, the world is your donut with assorted furry sprinkles.”
makes a series of gestures that (probably) translates to ‘go for it, just not the stuff I told you on the swift’
his eyebrows seem to be doing that thing that Badri’s were, earlier today, and he very gracefully crosses his arms, one hand across his mouth, as he watches the ancient creature speak about Archie like an excited child on market day.
lets out a tiny, squeaky “eep!” at the sudden recognition and affection before lowering the hood of his cape and approaching, head bowed in reverence but with the swiftly scuttling footsteps you remember hearing leading out to the swifts earlier that morning.
wonders if she’s ever heard a Spoken Wood say ‘fuck.’ Maybe this Spoken Wood will say ‘fuck’? The probability seems … high.
hunkers down and it turns out that tree-crystal-people can grin. “Oh wow. Wow. Wow, okay, that -is- adorable. Sorry. We were answering a question.” A (brief) pause. “Names. We mostly speak to Tasna. That’s not the name she’s using where she is but that’s what she said her real name is so hopefully that’s helpful.”
raises an eyebrow high enough to rival Wolf.
: “That wasn’t -her- just now, that was her… like a parrot she built to take and respond to messages, but.”
tilts his head to the side not unlike a confused, curious dog.
: “Tasna’s alive? And you still speak to her?” She is not pacing. She is trying very hard to be patient. The Sword-Saint is patient. She’s not been a very good Sword-Saint of late.
: “Unless her parrot is really, really, -really- good, and we don’t think even she could build one that good.”
goes from slightly blushing at the adoration to awestruck in the blink of an eye. “Tasna… lives?” His brow furrows in thought. “No, that makes sense. Of course she lives. We live, why wouldn’t - wait, but that means - hold on, so -…? ?? ???” You can imagine the sounds of the gears turning in his head, unable to verbalize his thoughts as quickly as they race through his mind.
seems even more surprised at Archie reacting.
looks incredibly confused. “How…do you both…know…?”
: “Badri showed me–the Mask. Ciet was the the Sword-Saint before Badri, and he and Tsem and the King all were … sending messages, to these strangers. The only name Badri or the mask remembered was Tasna, but that was so long ago–”
: “Tasna….is Samudran, then? A friend of yours?”
: “…hang on we have to (rotate) this for a bell. The Sword-Saint knows about Tasna because we talked to Ciet about it and somehow every Sword-Saint knows what every other Sword-Saint also knew, we confirmed that hypothesis three centuries ago. The Kushtaka knows about Tasna because Kushtaka are from Tasna’s home.”
looks equally quizzical. “Tasna was from my world, Samudra, at least originally. She was a Naiad and one of the Primi of the Academy. She went out on a mission to explore a part of our world and went missing. I knew her more by name and reputation than personally, but everyone knows the story of what happened to her, or at least what little of it people care to repeat. Her disappearance rocked a lot of people pretty badly, in some cases literally.”
shuts up and LISTENS because this is DATA and they let out a little gust of interest. “…yeah, okay. That makes sense. She told us she found a door in a glacier.”
scrunches up his face in thought.
lets out a small, involuntary gasp. “She may have been working on what I’m working on, then. A theory about my home. I knew I couldn’t be the only one to put the pieces together.”
has been slowly peering at everyone in curiosity, and points a branch at the Clockwork Knight “And -you’re- an Endjinn, right?”
: “Yes. You have heard from The Beast, then?”
pronounces it in a way that makes it clear that the idea that it’s a stupid pun has absolutely NEVER crossed their mind. End Jinn. “Yeah. That’s where Tasna’s been.”
: “Apparently that’s what was on the other side of Tasna’s door.”
can’t not stare. “There are other world-walkers? Ones that have not been…” He clamps his mouth shut.
puts his hands behind his head. “(Boundaries between worlds are merely suggestions!)” he utters, to nobody in particular. “(Maybe everything is falling apart.)” He… grins at this.
: “You said there were stranger(s), plural?”
: “You mentioned she goes not by Tasna now. Would you tell us by what name we might find her, if we are lucky enough to also travel to the Beast?”
nods to the Wolf-Priest, vaguely. “Tasna said there were… ‘doors in the dark’. She couldn’t… get where she wanted to go. There were- okay. There were supposed to be five of them, she said. And… Ciet was… or THOUGHT they were, supposed to be one of them. And now there are three.” They droop, slightly. “…but now you all are in the picture, so… Light, we hope she picks up soon.”
: “Sadly we have no idea what name she’s been using. We’ll ask? She’s good at forgetting to check her crystals.”
: “What uh… What were the other names, out of curiosity?”
: “Tasna, Xilai, and Duškomira. And… Khejvard, but he’s been gone for decades.”
goes wide eyed and stares at Tsemdrululk for a few moments, before turning to look at the Awoken with a ‘did he really just say what i thought he said???’ expression on his face.
doesn’t seem the least bit surprised, glancing over to Aurelius, and nods a few times in assertion.
: “….Khejvard…sounds familiar.”
: “You… you’re sure? Those names exactly?” His voice raises in pitch slightly.
is watching his companions as closely as he’s watching Tsemdrulukh now–and his eyes narrow as Aurelius speaks, just…listening.
stares at Aurelius and is audibly grinning and rolls the dice a bit, “The Rites, right? The (ludonarrative resonance frequencies)? That’s how we found them!”
: “Yeah! The Rites! They were fucking real?”
starts laughing and laughing, hard enough that his ears pin themselves down to his head.
: “They wrote their story into the (resonance) so that some day someone would find it.”
: “I mean… yeah, wouldn’t they be? It couldn’t be just for flavor.”
looks down and away. “…actually no I could envision someone doing it just for fun, so…”
: “Then… Did they create the Rites? Or alter them?”
: “Ahahahahahaha…!”
looks even more confused. “I’m quite lost. Would someone care to explain?”
: “And that’s… why we think Ciet is still alive. When they did that, they gave Ciet room to tell their story too.”
: “Ah… ah… man…”
lets out a breath, quelling the laughter because his comment is not going to be funny. “I uh… Hm. How to phrase this. Do you remember super-annihilate?”
: “Sorry, Ivory Blood, I mean.”
: “Yeah, it’s weird. We asked Tasna about it once and she got real quiet.”
: “Oh you talked to her since then? Huh. That’s weird cause it implies… y’know.”
“So… like…” They look at the Wolf-Priest. “You know how the invocations within a Rite have… stories? Weight? They’re always the same?”
is clearly thinking very, very hard. “…no?” He makes a frustrated gesture with one hand. “Like, yes, there are certain techniques and they have names…”
frowns. “…then most of what we just said probably sounds insane. Right. Okay. Hm.”
: “When you’re in a Rite of the Dragon, and you feel like you’re out of options, and you draw on your last strength for a swing and your heart pumps, and you (Adrenaline Surge) and you suddenly feel like more things are possible than were… does that make sense?”
ꙮ Like when Tsem said (rotate), it’s not… the words, but you know it -means- the words, the same way you knew what their song meant, or Ember’s.
frowns deeply, one hand coming up to rub his temple. “Of…sorts. Yes. I suppose. The technique is known, the timbre of it.”
: “And one always reaches for the same…tone…hmm.”
: “Yeah. That’s… a real thing, that exists somewhere in the cosmos. You reach for it, and it’s just… there. No matter where you go.”
: “Yeah it’s not something most people really… think that hard about, since it can run on instinct just fine. I knew a guy that studied it obsessively, though, and I guess the memory sparked as we were talking.”
blinks. Rapidly. “The technique is outside the user? Not within?”
: “That’s… ‘cosmos’, that’s Tasna’s word. It means… the plural of ‘world’, in the way that matters, we guess. We… reach out, and that part is us. But we’re reaching -for- something. And then that something… expresses itself, through us, our bodies, our training, our gnosis, is… we think that’s how she’d explain it.”
is, suddenly, at that…mollified, completely. “Ah. The song and the singer.”
: “Who was the guy who studied it excessively, Aurelius?”
nods!!!
nods with as many exclamation marks as a tree that talks can be said to nod with, at any rate. “Yes! Yes, exactly.”
: “Aurum.”
: “So then…how do these people, these world-walkers, connect to the rite-tones? Surely the Rite and its intonations have existed for far longer than they.”
picks at the inside of his ear with a pinky. “Yeah, exactly. It’s a bunch of side characters in our main character story.”
: “They probably changed it, somehow.”
: “There’s (resonances) surrounding each tone, and if you’re crazier than we are, you can write your -own- stories into the resonances, and they’ll stay there waiting for anyone who… spends too much time with their ear pressed against the heart of the world. Like us.” They look wry. “And that’s what Tasna did.”
stares, and blinks, and frowns. “I understand just enough to understand that I cannot understand.”
: “But then the rite…did exist before….just not as it is now?”
: “Aurum and his good friend Argentum, hmm, Aurelius?”
: “What? No don’t be ridiculous, they hate each other.”
: “It’s really, really not important. Like maybe if they’re still around you can ask for an autograph if you meet ‘em.” There’s a pause. “And uh, it’s good if they’re still alive, yeah.”
: “…yeah, we… have. Odd interests. We think maybe people in the other worlds have gnawed at the marrow of this more, but we’re… the only person -we- know who even listened for the (resonances) or knew they were there.”
laughs at that, feeling–well, times and places for things, and then frowns. “We, then, could theoretically write our own stories into the resonances?”
has a wild grin appear on his face, like Salme just activated his sleeper phrase.
: “You’d probably have to find Tasna and ask her how.” They laugh, lightly, wind-through-leaves.
: “If SQ can do it I sure as hell don’t see why we couldn’t.”
: “Theoretically? Try practically!”
looks sharply at Salme, his eyes narrowing–abruptly, he paces away, coming to a halt some feet away, arms crossed and one hand against his temples, clearly thinking very hard.
: “Wait, the Queen…walked between, Aurelius? Or she wove herself into the Rites?”
: “She’s directly quoted in one ritual, and it’s Definitely Her But Not Attributed to a few others.”
thinks.
: “Interesting. I wonder if that’s why she never loses.”
: “Do you have a practical guide to writing oneself into the resonances, Sinitöyhtönärhi, or are you still (rotating) that too?”
: “…I am the Odds, yeah. Hah. Hah.”
: “Nah, that one’s real easy.”
actually looks kind of irritated now that he’s really thinking about it.
does not follow up with an explanation though, but does with a wink, and a, “But I think we’re getting off-topic.”
: “…in any event…”
spins on his heel and strides back, face impassive. “The Song. It can be altered. Yes? It is not unchanging.”
looks thoughtful for a minute. “The Song is ever-changing. We all are its singers. So… we would say… yes.”
frowns, biting his lower lip as he tries to figure out the words to explain his concept. “Aye. But. It could be…mm.”
: “It can be.” He balls his hands into fists. “Say it!”
: “Goddess knows I’m not hittin’ those upper register alto notes of whoever came before me and am adapting.”
nods. “I don’t think this world is unique in that respect. The thing I was working on back on Samudra, before I was whisked away, was developing a theory of a Samudra that existed in a wildly different form than how it does now. Samudra might be a little more volatile, from what I’ve seen so far, but it stands to reason that if one can change, so can the others.”
: “I’m sure with the correct incentive you could probably manage, but they’d be a bit pitchy.”
: “Ha.”
: “Anyway, so you use this device to communicate with Tasna in real time?”
rustles at Archie. “Tasna thought so, too. Still does, for that matter. That’s why she went through the door, we think. She’s never said it in those terms but we know that’s what she meant.”
: “Archie, the theory of Samudra being different–what do you mean by that?”
to Aurelius: “Not quite real time. There’s a (signal delay) and (interference) from the (???). Also, she’s bad at checking her mailbox, which is the actual problem.”
: “I see. May I?” He gestures towards the device.
: “From the what now?”
nods. “Try not to damage it. It took us quite some time to build.” And if a Spoken Wood who’s as old as anyone remembers says ‘quite some time’, they probably mean it.
nods at Tsem. “Then that all but confirms that the door she went through is what’s waiting for me at the end of my own search.” He turns to Salme. “I’ll try to do the short version, at least for now - it seems from my studies that Samudra used to have solid ground above the water line and entire cities built there, but then something catastrophic happened, the exact nature of which isn’t clear to me yet. But all signs were pointing me to ruins beneath the ice in the very same part of the world where Tasna found her door.”
: “And the door points to the Beast and only the Beast?” she’s not really sure whether she’s asking Archie or Tsem.
nods, moving closer to sit down in front of it with his legs cross. He rolls his head around his neck a few times, stretches his arms out in front of himself while also cracking his knuckles, then shakes them loose before he focuses up. And then he begins to rapidly tap at it using both of the knuckles on his hand, while infusing the message itself with a little extra Burning Gnosis.
…. . -.– / .– …. . .-. . / - …. . / ..-. ..- -.-. -.- / .- .-. . / -.– — ..- / .- -. … .– . .-. / - …. . / - . .-.. . –. .-. .- – / -.– — ..- / .–. .. . -.-. . / — ..-. / … …. .. -
: “That’s what she said. There were doors on other worlds that went there, too. Including this one.”
adds, haltingly, “the door on Almachadta also points to the Beast?”
watches Aurelius with curious interest–though he’s keeping one ear cocked towards the greater conversation, too–frowning (he’s going to get wrinkles at this rate) as he tries to figure out the rhythm of Aurelius’ drumming.
tries very hard not to listen to Aurelius, their branches waggling agitatedly. “…yes. Ciet was trying to get to Tasna and the others.”
: “but it points to the Beast? Not anywhere else?”
: “Apparently. We’ve never seen it. Ciet made us promise never, ever to go looking for it.”
nods. “Probably a good idea. For you.”
says, quietly: “Where is it? Further in?”
closes her eyes and counts some amount of numbers. She is breathing. Her breath is steady. “You said Khejvard is gone. What happened to him? Do you know?”
continues after a little bit.
- …. .. … / .. … -. - / - … . – / .. - … / .- / -… ..- -. -.-. …. / — ..-. / — - …. . .-. / .-. .- -. -.. — – / .– — .-. .-.. -.. / - .-. .- …- . .-.. .-.. . .-. … / -… - .– / .- .-.. … — / .– …. .- - … / -.– — ..- .-. / -… . .- … - / -. .- – .
: “Deep in the Tangle there’s a place that’s important to the Sword-Saints. That’s… all we know.” They look apologetically at Salme, their leaves drooping slightly. “Old age, we think. Tasna… didn’t talk about it much. Some banter about how he was starting to slow down, and then… she was gone for a really long time.”
: “but not–okay. Okay.” She finally gives in, paces. Breathes.
gently reaches out to Salme as she paces past–just a brush of fingers on her arm, a quiet look.
gives Wolf a weak smile, barely a smile, before she spins towards Tsem again. “Did Ciet ever say if someone was supposed to meet him on the other side? Was someone supposed to hold the door open?”
thinks. They go quiet for a really, really long time. Finally: “…no. No, we’d remember.”
: “You would, wouldn’t you?” she says softly, and then paces back toward Wolf. “I can get us there. We’ve–I think we’ve probably been there before.”
considers a bit, then taps out a little bit more before leaning back and resting on his hands.
.— ..- … - / … — / -.– — ..- / -.- -. — .– / .– . / .- .-. . / .- -… — ..- - / - — / –. — / - — / - …. . / … .– — .-. -.. / … .- .. -. - / … . -.-. .-. . - / -… .- … . / .- -. -.. / .–. — … … .. -… .-.. -.– / .–. — .–. / - …. . / ..-. .. -. .- .-.. / … . .- .-.. / .- -. -.. / -.. . ..-. .. -. .. - . .-.. -.– / – . … … / .– .. - …. / - …. . / -.. — — .-. / -… . - .– . . -. / .– — .-. .-.. -.. … / … — / .. / –. ..- . … … / -… . / . -..- -.-. .. - . -.. / ..-. — .-. / - …. .- - / .. ..-. / -.– — ..- / -.. — -. .—-. - / … . . / - …. . … . / – . … … .- –. . … / -… . ..-. — .-. . / .– . / .-.. . .- …- .
: “Mm. I would not be surprised.” He shakes his head. “But I’m not sure any of this is what we came for.” He sighs. “I’m not sure it’s NOT, either.” He grumbles. “My head hurts.”
: “Pulling on one thread of fate has begun to unravel the whole shawl.”
: “We can guide you at least some of the way, and the Mask… probably knows, too, we assume. But you can stay and catch your breath and-” -they frown- “-wait for a response from the device, maybe, for a little while. That… -thing- came whiffling through the Tangle and it might still be out there.”
: “It’s okay, you can re-knit it.”
: “Oh, yeah, that’s the thing we’re looking for.”
: “It’s the door. Ciet went through it. I’ve seen it.”
: “But right, the time delay! That’s a good point.”
: “Good a reason to rest up a bit and make sure we’re all focused when we go Hunting.”
smiles at Aurelius. “Seems like you got your mood back.”
tilts his head backwards, looking up at Tsemdrulukh. “…You got any lunch laying around?”
makes a very rude gesture in the Awoken’s direction, but in a friendly way.
looks faintly amused. “We have bread, cheese, rations…”
: “We’re in a non-fruiting phase so we don’t have much to offer you ourselves at the moment but Badri told us there are delightful berry bushes nearby.”
ꙮ I’m sure you can scrounge together lunch.
: “Right on.”