Fathomless Sunset - Letramenia

Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eternal Staircase

Iatairris' crystal rolled forward approximately two metres, before rolling off the top platform of the tree trunk room, and down five wooden steps which were spaced at equal intervals along the wall, slowly spiraling downwards; the crystal making a small noise upon striking each step. Eventually though, the crystal rolled off of the end of the bottom step, before falling noiselessly down the shaft. Not long after, the crystal could be heard striking what sounded like a combination of leaves and wood at what had to be ground level. An increased drain on Iatairris' strength followed next, compared to what had previously been a trickle of energy, causing Gemina to shout a warning. "Iatairris, destroy your crystal. Distance increases energy loss, and I don't want to see you die of energy exhaustion."

Wallace's attempt at gauging the size of the tree trunk was met with particular success. For those watching, the fireball revealed the trunk to have a diameter of nigh on ten feet - this measurement remaining the same the entire way to the bottom. The absence of the remainder of the wooden staircase would stay a mystery for the present. Whisper's suggestion of a method pleased Gemina, causing the chestnut-haired woman to smile happily at the intelligence of Whisper's plan.


Tretana Village

Tempa smiled back at Akana, who gave a apparently random response, before Kaiden explained that it meant 'thank you', also noting that the woman didn't know much common. The young boy paused to think, before continuing to talk to the woman, "Where do you come from Red?" The boy's mother smiled at him, ruffling his hair, before receiving a bowl of stew from Katrina. Hadrir listened closely to the responses of the duo, before speaking again, "You say that you have a friend with you Kaiden... Where is he now? Being alone in the village at this time of night is...dangerous, especially with the hooded figure around... We don't understand him. He seems to have a tendency to spy on everything us villagers do... A group of us men went to cut a tree down in the forest only last week, and he followed us. He's starting to creep us all out." The man ended with a deep sigh. There was a brief lull in the conversation around the table as Katrina handed both Kaiden and Akana a bowl of stew each, before sitting down starting to devour her own food. The other families gathered around the room were engrossed in their own conversations, so none of them would have noticed the two new faces...
 

DeletedUser31931

Jokir decided that the others would probably end up in the same location, so he went into the the hall and spotted them sitting there eating. He moved up to Kaiden and sat next to him before leaning over. "Did they mention a hooded figure at all when you were talking to them? I saw him outside and I don't like it." Jokir sat there and awaited a response from the hunter.
 

Deleted User - 819397

Iatairris' plan revealed that there were indeed steps on the way down, though the fireball that followed directly after from Wallace rendered her attempt at helping useless. She suddenly staggered, energy increasing at a much more rapid rate than it had previously. Gemina noticed this and quickly told her to allow the crystal to vanish, that distance affected energy output. "Ohhhh, ok!" she exclaimed, doing as the older woman instructed. Whisper then had an idea to create a vine, or rather two vines weaved together. "You can make enough vine to cover the whole distance? Wow!" the young girl exclaimed. "Sure, I'll help!"
 

DeletedUser28032

"I did, but he's a big boy I am sure he can look after himself" Kaiden replied to the enquiry with a casualness that bordered on uncaring though it was at this point that Jokir made his entrance "ah there he is now" Kaiden spoke raising his hand so as to attract the other mans attention as he proceeded to then quietly enquire as to whether the others had mentioned the hooded man "They have and he may be a problem that we'll need to deal with" he replied in the same hushed tone before turning to speak with the rest of the family "Apologies it would seem Jokir here has had a run in with your unwanted guest...perhaps the three of us could have a little word with him if you wish" if the man was just a creep then a few stern words would probably be enough to send him on his way, if he wasn't then the three immortals should be more than capable of dealing with him.
 

DeletedUser

Gemina’s smile, and Iatairris’ offer to help was all that Whisper needed for encouragement. She reached for her seed pouch, and pulled out a couple of kudzu seeds, and put one in each hand. Whisper also knew that the long runners of the kudzu vine were excellent basket weaving material. Sometimes, she used the material green, and other times, used it after splitting it in half, allowing it to dry, and then re-hydrating it using hot water. Each method made for totally different texture, color, and design. Her wood staff appeared in her arms, but rested on the inside of her elbow, as her hands were full.

With seeds in each hand, Whisper concentrated on germinating them. She preferred using soil for germination, as it used less energy, but of course it was not required. After a couple of moments, the seeds started to sprout, and produce a shoot. Within a couple of minutes, each hand held a vine a foot in length. Whisper said to Iatairris “Please take the ends and put them together. As it continues to grow, it will appear to grow as one. Oh and look, a runner is starting, gently grab it, and let it wrap around itself.” As Whisper was talking, the vine had already doubled in length. “Ok…in another minute, it will be long enough to pass to Wallace. She said to Wallace “Wallace, when Iatairris passes it to you, measure it as you drop it down the hole. It looks like your arm span is about five feet, so thirty measures of your arm span should be enough.” Whisper grinned, and said “I think this is going to work!”
 

DeletedUser13682

As Katrina passed out stew (smelled good, but could use a bit more oenoliquamen [a fermented sauce Akana had grown fond of in her earlier life]), the boy asked where she had come from. Of course that bakagasúr had to ask where she came from. To tell the truth may label her as crazy or reveal that they were immortal. That is, if Ni Dair had faded into the annals of time, only to be remembered by her and possibly any descendants of that place. But she didn’t really know many villages in the area. However, it was very likely that those gathered at the table didn’t know much about the lands far away, so maybe she could get away with it. But then again… As this thought circuit spun around in Akana’s head, there was talk about stealthy knife man, and where he had gone off to. Finally Akana decided where she came from. “I have in Stadt Urschwannflügel lived. I wander now.”

As the stew was handed to Akana, and a few statements made about the stranger (perhaps they should attend to the creeper after dinner), Akana made preparations to eat. As she bowed her head in prayer, she didn’t notice that Kaiden had found Jokir and beckoned him over. As Akana lifted her head from prayer, she noticed Jokir, whispering something to Kaiden. Hopefully it didn’t involve her, but Akana would have been alright if it did, as long as she got to finish this meal. Though she forgot about food often, when she did remember, she didn’t want to be interrupted. As Kaiden spoke about wanting to talk with the creepy stranger, Akana paused her eating to speak her piece. “We can after dinner with this man to talk. I would like first this flavour stew to eat.” Turning down to her bowl again, Akana resumed eating, hoping she wouldn’t be talked to during her consumption of the stew (which was pretty good, though it didn’t have oenoliquamen).
 

Deleted User - 819397

Iatairris did as she was instructed to, working to get the two vines to work themselves into one larger one. As the process went on, she couldn't help but marvel at the strength Whisper had to have to get these things to grow as rapidly as they did…she couldn't fathom how she did it. Crystals were one thing, but this was something living…how could she do that? She did wish she could help more, but it was best to keep quiet and do what Whisper told her to. She was starting to believe that these people, looking like her age, were much older…she wasn't sure it wasn't a trick, but as she watched the other girl manipulate the life energy of the vines…she couldn't be sure anymore…
 

Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eternal Staircase

Whisper's vine continued to grow, and, after passing through Wallace's grasp, began to grow long enough to reach down the hole. This kept on for some time, the small trickle of energy required by Whisper to grow the vine to its full length, only a trifling amount, considering that she was growing it outwards from herself, and that the energy required to maintain the growth of the vine was a trifling amount, compared to the energy that was needed to maintain the glow that Iatairris' crystal had produced. Part of the reason behind this was that Whisper had grown stronger in her abilities as the years has passed by, whereas Iatairris was yet young and inexperienced. Keeping these thoughts in mind, Gemina stepped forward to peer over the edge, waiting for the vine to reach the ground level.

It was only a matter of a few minutes before this eventually happened. Once the bottom had been reached, Gemina grinned at the three initiates. "You've done well, all three of you. Your communication and teamwork has been admirable. Now though, you needs must reach the bottom of the tree. I advise that you proceed with caution. Remember, things are not always as easy as they might seem... Always keep an open mind to the things that are unseen to the eye, unheard by the ear, and insensitive to touch." With her short lecture concluded, Gemina jumped forward rapidly into the air, and disappeared from sight, leaving the space of the tree trunk eerily quiet...


Tretana Village

The group gathered around the table continued to eat their separate meals for a short while, in which time they stayed in silence. Once he had finished his own bowl though, Hadrir continued to question Kaiden, inclining his head to Jokir before he spoke, "I do believe that the village would more than appreciate to be rid of the man. Perhaps a word or two would do the trick, though I implore you not to resort to more drastic measures... I can see that you are no 'soft' man, but please, we do not wish to see blood shed in this region..." The man appeared worried, though his face muscles relaxed slightly when Elena placed her arm around him from her place beside him at the table. Speaking in a soft, lilting voice, she joked, "I'm sure that no harm will come to the man, nor any of our guests tonight my dear." She gave a bright smile, although there also seemed to be a twitch of unease in the depths of that smile. With the majority of the group having finished their meals, Tempa jumped up excitedly, before running outside. A few moments passed, with his parents giving each other looks of bewilderment. Soon enough, the boy returned, though this time with a sweet williams flower in his hand. Running around to Akana's place, he presented it to her, before giving her one of the widest smiles that the woman would have seen. "Aka ono." He spoke in a foreign tongue, apparently one that was used rarely in the village. His piece said, the boy returned to his seat, before giving his mother a quick glance. The boy was quite plainly embarrassed by what he had just done.

With the meal concluded, Frerir stirred, before pushing himself up from the table, and facing Kaiden and Jokir. "It has been good to have shared your company here tonight my friends. Should you ever happen to pass by this way again, please remember to pay us a visit. Tretana would be glad to welcome your faces in again. The man extended his hand to Kaiden, the purpose being to shake it.
 
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DeletedUser13682

Thankfully, the dinner was eaten in near silence; the stew must have been too tasty to warrant much talk. That is, until the patriarch Hadrir talked again. Luckily, it was to Kaiden and Jokir, and Akana was allowed to finish her stew in peace, thinking all the while that while very good, could be improved with that favoured sauce. It was about that other mystery man, the shadowy creeper, as Akana called him, until such a time that a correct name for him could be found. As they discussed how to solve the problem (Hadrir hoped to solve it with words, a boring solution to the situation), Akana finished her food. However, since she was not involved in conversation, Akana’s attention faded, to reassert itself on how to get more food.

Akana’s thought was interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming toward her. She looked up to see the boy Tempa carrying a bundle of imbali binichroma. Handing the flowers to her, with a very large smile (how was the human body capable of that large a smile?), the boy said aka ono. Though not identical to her name, Akana recognized it as her language, given the predominant red of the flowers. She hadn’t heard that word in a long time, maybe a hundred years or so, aside from herself saying it. Akana left the table with a whispered “Hoşgörm khony.” Though disturbed (perhaps irrationally), Akana tried to remain visibly calm, while walking outside to contemplate the meaning of the boy’s use of her language, corrupted as it was.
 

Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eldaríl Hall

Mezonas frowned as Arkadi agreed to travel with the group on their trip, although the salt-man referred to it as a 'crusade'. The ancient man's face held a stoic look as he paced backwards and forwards in deep thought. Suddenly though, Mezonas turned, giving Arkadi an expression that suggested that he was slightly upset by the man's attitude towards the quest. The inner workings of the man's mind remaining secret for the time being, he eventually responded to Arkadi. "Your comments and the air of proud importance that I can feel emanating from your very being upset me, but that can be worked on as time progresses..." Giving a half smile, Mezonas turned his back to the younger man, before saying in his lilting voice. "Idle threats accomplish nothing my friend. Our lives are but mere shadows of what has been, and of what is to come. For us to addle with threats is to leave the waters of this world darkened." His part said, Mezonas motioned for the young man to follow him, before leading him around the tree trunk, and past the location of the hidden door that the remainder of the group had entered, and over to the end of the circular room, where another door was set in the wood, although this time it was made of a golden-coloured substance, and the door knob seemed to be made of a very unnatural, greyish element itself. Opening the door, Mezonas stepped aside, revealing an extravagant scene of the forests extending to the northern reaches of Letramenia. "Throughout my life, I have striven to discover beauty in its most unique form, and here, at the top of this perch, I found it. The tree itself lies taller than much of the surrounding forests, but is still small enough to go unnoticed by anyone who's eyes should decide to pierce the canopy..." Turning back to face Arkadi, he continued with a question, "What do you think? Secrecy and natural beauty combined make for an elegant match, do they not?"
 
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DeletedUser

Mezonas frowned at Arkadi, and paced around for a while, before replying with a proclamation of his 'arrogance' and a bunch of meaningless words about shadows and things to come. Arkadi sighed, great, he was being berated and lectured with vague prophecies and statements. Such statements were only ever used by people who wanted to make themselves look clever.
Following Mezonas' gestures, Arkadi followed him around the tree trunk and to a strange greyish door set in a gold-ish frame. The door led to a picturesque vision of Letramenian forests. To Arkadi, it was all just trees.
Mezonas went on to speak about how he had dedicated his life to find true beauty, and how the tree they were in was hidden from sight, before turning and asking the mercenary a question.
"What do you think? Secrecy and natural beauty combined make for an elegant match, do they not?"
"Whatever you say, O wise and mighty prophet." Arkadi replied staunchly. Didn't this idiot understand him at all?
 

DeletedUser28032

"If bloodshed can be avoided it will be, I have no desire to kill the man" Kaiden spoke hoping to remove whatever fears they had though from the reactions he was seeing it seemed like they were worried about more than a mans death "You know when we started this journey we heard all kinds of crazy rumours about this part of the world; Wolves, giants even an invading army" he said laughing at the apparent jest whilst all the while keeping an eye on the reactions he received.
It wasn't much longer after this comment that the young boy Tempa returned to present Red with a handful of flowers he'd obviously just picked; a smile coming to hunters face upon witnessing the scene looks like somebody has an admirer he silently thought to himself. However something about the boys innocent gesture seemed to unsettle his friend as she hurriedly rose and left speaking something in a strange tongue as she went by "I'd better go and check on her..." Kaiden said rather awkwardly to the assembled family members as he got up from his own chair before adding "...she's been feeling rather homesick as of late" not really believing the lie himself but finding himself unable to think of anything better "Jokir would you be so kind as to help our hosts with the dishes whilst I go and find her" he asks the assassin hoping that he would be able glean some more information from them as he did so.
Stepping out of the hall and into the street outside he walks up to the girl asking "Are you ok Red? you seemed a little...flustered back there"
 
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DeletedUser13682

Akana was sitting under a tree near the edge of the village. How had this child known about her town? Judging from the looks of the parents, it wasn’t a word they had known or used. Then how did he know? He was too young to travel on his own, and her town was gone, must be gone, for a least a few decades. That was how it worked. As maintainers, you were soldiers against the coming of the eternal darkness that fell upon every human dwelling. Ṗráp̄sáryn Vanna had disturbingly calculated that her village, despite the maintainers’s efforts, would slowly fade away, until the remaining population dispersed to join other villages, or was destroyed by an invisible army called plague. He gave it 137 years, based on then current birth and death rates. 1.04 births per death, and declining. Birth and death was the one thing a maintainer couldn’t fix. So then, how did the boy know her language?

As Akana sat, thinking about these things, and other memories from her home, Kaiden walked over to her, startling Akana from her river of thoughts. He showed genuine concern for her, but he didn’t seem to know just how deeply this had affected her. “I know if I am not to feel good. The boy knows about my language. He knows my original name. How knows he? My village is dead. Ṗráp̄sáryn Vanna stated 10 aeknamser for the life of my village. It is now greater 16 aeknamser. My language is also to be dead. The boy knows in my language my name. How knows he?”
 

DeletedUser28032

Sitting beneath the bows of the tree Kaiden listen's patiently as Red talked of death or to be more precise the death of her hometown using some kind of...sigils?...to pin point the time of its passing, the boys words seemingly having brought about this chain of thought. This kind of thinking wasn't new to Kaiden, how many times had he heard this from other members of the undying? Or even thought them himself? "It is the curse of undeath to outlive everything you've ever known...however I do not believe the child meant anything by it, after all does language not change?" he asks of the woman knowing the statement to be true; the language the borderlanders spoke was nothing like that of Red's ancestors which in turn was different to that of Jokir's no doubt and dwelling on the past would lead them to nothing but despair "We should go back in, though you may need to apologise to the boy as you may have upset him" he continued, turning to direct his gaze back at the hall from where they'd came "Something is happening here, and I don't think its just this hooded mans doing either though I'd very much like to speak with him"
 

DeletedUser31931

As Kaiden got up to go get Red from outside he left Jokir to help clear away after the meal. Jokir nodded his head and got up gruffly. "It was a very nice meal, I thank you for it." He said politely to the woman of the table, assuming she was the cook. "What needs doing now?" he asked the man who Kaiden had been talking to.
 

DeletedUser13682

Kaiden had listened patiently to Akana describing her village’s predicted downfall, and had thought a few minutes about her wanting to know about how the boy knew her name in her language. Eventually, he answered with a postulation that the languages were really different, and that the homophone was a coincidence. He then suggested Akana apologize to the boy, in case her actions had saddened him. She agreed to that, and got up, clearing her eyes of any moisture that had accumulated there. Kaiden, looking toward the hall, felt as if there was something strange happening in the village, not entirely connected to the creepy stranger, but not entirely separated from him. “I would like the stranger also to talk with,” Akana said, as she walked back to the dining hall.
 
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DeletedUser

As Gemina peered over the edge, and saw that Whisper’s vine was long enough, she said "You've done well, all three of you. Your communication and teamwork has been admirable. Now though, you needs must reach the bottom of the tree. I advise that you proceed with caution. Remember, things are not always as easy as they might seem... Always keep an open mind to the things that are unseen to the eye, unheard by the ear, and insensitive to touch." And, then…she was gone! Whisper wondered what all that was going to mean to them as they descended. Whisper was not one to be afraid of unknown noises. In the forest, there were always odd sounds, and they almost always had an explanation. But, to keep an open mind….ok, she could do that. But Whisper thought that perhaps Gemina was trying to scare them, and Whisper was having none of that. Even though this was just training, Whisper suspected that Gemina would allow them to deplete a lot of their energy if they erred, but doubted that any real harm would come to them. But.... it might mean that the way out was not as obvious as it appeared.
Ok, it was time. Whisper had stopped the vines growth as soon as Gemina said it was long enough. Now, she handed the two ends to Wallace. “Wallace, please secure these vines, and one by one, we will descend. Make sure that it will be braced enough to hold your weight as well.” Whisper paused, and then said “ Iatairris, I think you should go first, then me, then Wallace. When you get to the bottom, Iatairris, give a tug on the vine, and then I will begin.” We will secure it at the bottom before Wallace begins his turn, for extra security.
 

Deleted User - 819397

The vine was completed, and Gemina told them they'd done well, but warned them to be careful on their descent. She then jumped forward and vanished, something that the young girl thought was really impressive. Whisper gave the next step of the plan, which involved her going down first. "Sounds great to me!" she grinned enthusiastically. She wasn't worried about the descent…she trusted Whisper, Wallace, and Gemina. "Ok, here I go!" She grabbed the vine and jumped off the edge, descending rapidly as if she was on a fireman pole, laughing gleefully as she moved downwards. This training was fun!
 

DeletedUser

Wallace helped the Whisper and Iatairris weave the vine into a rope and listened to Whisper's plan of their decent order. "That's fine with me but you should watch out when you reach the bottom, this is a test you might not be alone down there." He says pulling a metal spike out of his armor and embedding it into the wall with his hammer. With the spike embedded he ties the rope to it and reforms it to better hold the rope in place. Having done that he then sits on the ledge and watches as the other two make their way down the rope.
 
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Apelatia

Well-Known Member
Eternal Staircase

Gemina's sudden disappearance had caused a slight stir in the initiates, but they still continued with their task, unperturbed. From her hidden vantage point, Gemina smiled. Her new students were performing better than she could ever have hoped for them to, but this proved that their fortitude would need to be tested further, hence her spontaneous jump into the air... This would be...interesting, though it would further the goal of her being able to garnish what the varying levels of strength that the three contained were. As much as she despised the idea of hurting a student, it was necessary to continue their training.

As Iatairris began to descend, her progress was suddenly halted by an unknown force, leaving her clinging onto the vine, unable to continue descending. As the young girl waited for what seemed like a full minute, but was in fact merely a few seconds, a ghost-like figure appeared in front of her; a perfect imitation of Gemina, albeit her entire form had a strange silvery shine to it, and the scythe that was being held outwards to the left of the figure from Iatairris' viewpoint was a deathly white. Face expressionless, the figure stayed motionless for a few seconds, before dashing forwards suddenly, and knocking Iatairris off of the vine with the scythe and into midair, though no injury lay upon the girl. The vine lay undisturbed, only now, no Iatairris was holding on to it, rather she was falling, though at an unnaturally slow speed. The girl had only made a short distance down the vine, meaning that there still lay a mighty distance to fall below her. Something was quite plainly amiss, and the initiates would know by now that Gemina was testing them...


Tretana Village

The hooded man watched impassively from behind a nearby hut as two of the intruders conversed outside of the village's main meeting hall, though their conversation held no interest to him. These strangers looked dangerous, and he was intending to end their lives as soon as was possible. He's withheld from hurting any of the villagers as of yet, but he had overheard their plans to come and tell him to leave, and he wasn't going to stand for that sort of behaviour... Cursing under his breath, as he contemplated what he was about to attempt. Pulling a sharp, curved dagger from his belt he stepped cautiously around the edge of the hut before throwing his dagger at the girl, only to miss and collide with a post. Seeing that his opportunity had been missed, he took flight towards the south, though the duo would have spotted him...

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Katrina tilted her head at Jokir's praise of her culinary skills. "You are most welcome my dear. I'd be grateful to have one as polite as yourself for a meal any time." The old woman gave Jokir a weary smile, before continuing, "There is no need for you to extend your services to us further Jokir. You did us good by dining with us. Now go, before the wind catches your tail." The hall was beginning to empty; the families having finished their evening meals were now returning towards their separate huts with their plates and cutlery. The night was a cool night, with no rain, but the sky was overcast, the twilight sun hidden behind the clouds.


Eldaríl Hall

Again, Mezonas frowned at Arkadi's dismissive attitude, though this time, he kept his face turned in the opposite direction. Closing the doors to the picturesque landscape that lay beyond, the man turned and walked back across the Room of Eternal Light, before entering the main hall, leaving the door open for the salt-man to follow. Once done, Mezonas ran across the hall to the door by which the group had entered the hall originally, and bounded down the staircase, before stopping in the forest glade to allow for Arkadi to reach him. Once the younger man had reached him, he would continue talking...
 
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