Second Darkness: Children of the Void [IC]

[meemaas]

Visto waves almost cheerfully at the group as they leave. "Visto hopes that new Friends get home safely."

[lostsole31]

As the remains of Goldhammer's expedition boards the Flying Cloud, Sol says, "I recommend him here tomorrow evening ... his earliest. Hopefully, we can get a lay of the land by then to have a better estimate."

[Farmerbink]

Maggie peers thoughtfully into the distance, trying to take in the broad woods, the abandoned storefronts, distant peaks, the whole thing. After a time, she turns back to face her companions, smiling. "Who knows? Could be a week, could be a year! Smells like we're supposed to be here, though."

She begins whistling, a simple nameless tune, and wandering in the directions of the buildings. "First thing's first. We need to find someplace where we're not likely to be eaten in our sleep!"

[lostsole31]

The party gathers along behind and with Maggie as she moves forward to check out the harbor area (area A). Meanwhile, the rest of Goldhammer's Expedition boards the Flying Cloud and they set sail.

The party searches around these buildings. When Yaris Neraken first attempted to settle Devil’s Elbow, the three piers and houses here were the first structures he built, since they would serve as the gateway between Witchlight and the rest of the world. Situated in the only safe harbor on the island’s shore, the buildings here once served as warehouses and homes for guards and laborers, but they are now long abandoned and partially collapsed due to the falling star; little remains of the buildings but heaps of rubble and a few leaning walls. Likewise, the piers themselves are falling into disrepair, with many planks missing from their lengths, especially at the ends where only a few leaning pilings protrude from the surf. There’s nothing unusual or particularly interesting in the ruined buildings, with the exception of several bright red, foot-long centipedes that scurry for cover as soon as anyone approaches.

Now what?

[meemaas]

Visto invests some of his energy into his wings, and takes takes off into the air to get a better view. He doesn't go too high up, so as to not lose sight of the others. "Visto missed this. Why doesn't Visto fly more often?"

Spoiler

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Visto goes about 50 ft up, high enough to be able to see a bit more of an aerial layout, but low enough that he can return to his allies quickly.

[lostsole31]

Visto doesn't notice anything immediately interesting that sticks out.

[Farmerbink]

"Gosh, those are big-ol' buggies!" Maggie chirps. After a heartbeat, her expression grows pensive. "Sure could be a problem if we ran into bigger ones- or a whole gigantic mess of 'em."

Her eyes track to Scruff, freely roaming within about 15' of herself. "Stay close, big guy. No running off, now!"

She turns back to her companions. "We better find someplace to camp. These walls... well, they might be better than nothing, but they're not gonna suffice all by themselves. We've only got a few minutes before things get more complicated."

She begins trying to identify a promising nook- a building with sturdier-looking bones, or at least a big enough pile of rubble to serve as a windbreak.

[lostsole31]

You did get here early evening, and with everything before this point, the sun is setting now.

The party will be able to scope out something that is vaguely defensible that will provide succor from the elements.

Do you do anything else or just bed down now?

[rypt]

Tsyra does not soon forget Goldhammer's accusation nor the captain's rebuke. And whether it is anger or embarrassment that lingers into the night, she speaks to the others as little as possible and keeps to the periphery of the party as they explore the ruined structures near the pier, her expression plainly discouraging any small talk or banter.

Once they've selected a suitable location to spend the night, she will use her geokinesis to whatever extent she can to shore up the surrounding structure, prioritizing the filling or blocking of holes and gaps that are low to the ground. If she will be sleeping on the ground, she will likewise use her geokinesis to first level the surface.

[AggressiveBread]

After removing his gear and storing away in a neat pile. Santiago will gather anyone in the party who cares to listen, an begins sharing stories from when he was last in Riddleport.
”You should have seen the look on that merchant’s face when he came back to find his whole cart missing!” He laughs, wiping a mirthful tear from his eyes. He calms down looking wistful.”Gods that was a long time ago, I bet Abadar would have my head in the stocks if I did anything like that these days.”

[Kvard51]

Lev settles in with the others but sits where he can see Tsyra. Her hard demeanor but clear vulnerability after the dwarf's rebuke mark her as a potential liability for the moment, in his mind. He looks for ways to connect, making eye contact whenever she looks his way.

[Farmerbink]

Maggie finds herself reclining, laying on Scruff's slowly rising-and-falling flank. As the pair doze happily, she gazes skyward, peering at the stars and celestial bodies with surprising focus. Where some might mistake her attention as idle or fleeting, nonetheless she carefully ponders their courses and gentle gleams.

"Tomorrow will be dangerous," she suddenly blurts. "But I suppose we all knew that, right?" She chuckles quietly to herself, letting her eyelids fall closed.

"Wake me for the second watch. I love seeing the stars."

[rypt]

Tsyra's elven senses are far too keen not to notice Lev's persistent gaze, and though she ignores it for a time, there comes a point where she sets down her sketchbook and meets the bard's gray-blue eyes. "If there is something you wish to say, let it be said, else put it rest beneath the stars."

[lostsole31]

It is a very dark night, but the party is able to make a fire from readily available materials without to much light escaping. Otherwise, it is a warm spring night (low of 65). In the middle of night, a rain is heard moderately pattering on the ground outside.

---

Toilday, 5 Desnus 4708 AR (New Moon)
Weather: 80 / 65 F. Moderate rain (up to 3/4"). Winds W 5 mph. Low humidity.

The next morning is gray and lightly raining off and on. The party has good shelter, but otherwise cramped accommodations. At least its not very cold, though the rain cools things a little. Now is time for everyone to begin their morning preparations.

Spoiler: OOC

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This will be the first time that each of you will be "in the open" when doing so please describe your morning routine for others to get a sense of, and let me know if you change anything in your dailies.

[AggressiveBread]

First thing in the morning Santiago is quietly tending to his armor, polishing the platemail to a mirror sheen. Under his breath he whispers prayers to Abadar, shifting between Taldane and abyssal. After he suits up he will offer to lead the party in light workouts and drills. Even wearing 40 pounds of armor, he is a very enthusiastic trainer.

[Farmerbink]

Maggy wakes in a cheery mood, eager to begin the day. After scooping a sizable helping of acorns and dried berries out of her pack, she fills her iron pot with conjured water and sits to watch Scruff eat, apparently thoroughly enjoying the simplest pleasure of provision and companionship.

After a short time, she drifts into a meditative stance, perhaps picking up where her stargazing left off the night before. Maggie is still sitting cross-legged, with her sickle held loosely in one hand when Scruff finishes his morning meal and plods around to sit behind her, staring placidly over her head (without having to exert any effort to see over).

When she opens her eyes and looks around, Maggie is frowning. "This won't be a good day. It never is when the spirit of fire comes over me." She rises, a previously unnoticed extra zing in her step. She scampers a few paces away- far enough to find natural greenery, even if only a small patch of grass or tenacious weeds.

She frowns deeply at the greenery, and paces around it several times, stopping such that the grand, foreboding forests loom overhead. She glances back and forth between the peaceful little scrub and the trees that apparently harbor cruel deaths for many who dare trespass. Gently, she cups a few blades of grass and buds of dandelions, almost apologetically.

A few minutes later, she returns to the group, unusually somber. She tries (and fails) to master the scowl on her face as she witnesses her companion's final preparations. She eyes Santiago's training warily. In stark contrast to the previous two day's admiration, she seems totally uninterested in his efforts. "Are we ready to start looking?" she asks, curtly. "Burnin' daylight out here."

Spoiler: OOC

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Maggie will take the spirit of flame today, Gaze of Flames as her hex. Burning hands (1st) and resist energy (2nd) replace her previous spirit guide spells

Instead of Summon Nature’s Ally II on the druid side, she will prepare flaming sphere

No other changes for her daily preparation.

[lostsole31]

"Sorry, folks," Sol warns. "If you want me tip-top, I'm gonna' need an extra hour."

Sol spends a half-hour with mixing several substancess in vials from a satchel that he wears. He then spends another half-hour doing minor exercises and light calisthenics, mainly breathing and finger-and-hand stretches. He then leaves behind his backpack with bedroll, light mace, light crossbow and four cases of bolts; but from his backpack he puts in his belt a sunrod and a glass flask. He covers his left-behinds in simple leaves, but doesn't think too much about it.

Then, he spends a full hour in addition to that first hour carefully mixing, measuring, and distilling some special brew. (Full Time: 2 hours)

[rypt]

Tsyra begins her morning by neatly folding her blanket, rolling up her bedroll, and storing both in a sack which she pulls from a comparatively small pouch on her belt. She then forms a recess in the earth where she slept and sets the sack in the recess such that the end of the sack barely protrudes from the leveled surface.

Next, she spends 30 minutes in silent meditation, focusing her mind on the akashic energies necessary to maintain her veils. She then takes her holy symbol in hand and spends about 15 minutes offering her prayers to Findeladlara. What few portions are spoken aloud are spoken in Elven. The same time again is then spent on stretches and calisthenics.

When Sol informs the group of the time he'll need to prepare, Tsyra approaches Maggy, waiting for the gnome to finish her curious communion with a patch of grass before addressing her. "Twice now you have cautioned us of dangers of the day yet to come. Is this warning born of mere instinct, some subtle omen, or true foresight?"

[meemaas]

Visto finds something to perch on, closing his eyes and focusing on his Essence, drawing it out and circulating it through the air, as though a small storm has formed with him at the center. After a while, his meditation draws the Essence back in, his body glowing with its light while he circulates it through his body.

Once his meditation is finished, he opens his eyes and draws out some Essence to reinforce his allies, Santiago and Ozlech. Then while waiting for the others to finish their preparations, he goes for a bit of a flight, keeping close to camp in order to stretch his wings.

Spoiler

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First, Stormbound, then Radiant, then some exercise while waiting on the rest of the party (Since Sol clearly needs more time than the rest of us.)

[Farmerbink]

Maggie blinks in surprise at Sol's declaration. "What?" She stammers, visibly agitated. "Your gods or spirits need to wake up! Or you need to get up earlier! " Clearly, this is not quite the same pleasant and talkative Gnome that made the trip across the ocean the day before.

She stews irritably, actually pacing as Sol continues his preparations, unconcerned for her complaints. She takes several paces away (while Scruff placidly snorts along behind), murmuring and complaining as he tinkers at his "stupid trinkets and baubles..."

She almost visibly jumps at Tsyra's question, and she turns an irritated gaze on the Elf, only to come up short, a playful (if not entirely friendly) look on her face. "Well that's kind of a silly question, isn't it? You were here the whole time, too. The skies never opened up; no grand gesture of spirit nor god came upon us."

The suddenly capricious Gnome spreads her hands to gesture all around. "Yet there are Dwarf Men too scared to venture into the forests, and vermin the size of my leg skittering about! Something is very wrong here, but you'll have to ask me later whether or not it's foresight, or just plain old sight." At the last, the veneer finally breaks, and a genuinely mirthful giggle bubbles forth. Maggie, cheerful as ever, winks at Tsyra, before glancing past the woman at Sol's continued preparations. She scowls fiercely as she turns away, gazing wistfully at the distant shore.

[rypt]

Their demeanors as different as their statures, Tsyra's stoic expression remains unmoved until a heartbeat after Maggie turns around. "It was not a silly question," she declares with a hint of frown that the gnome cannot see, but can perhaps hear, before stepping away.

[lostsole31]

The white-haired Ekujae spends a half-hour in prayer and reflection of the natural world around him (obviously preparing outside). He then spends a half hour, getting a sense of the shift of the sand and dirt, the girth of the stalks of grass, and the shadows under the sun in this part of the world. Finally, he spends a half-hour practicing his archery and various other combat calisthenics.

You may not have noticed it before on the ship, but now you can't help it. Kwava's bodily proportions are significantly different than the rest of you, but most notably Tsyra. His legs are a few inches shorter than extra but making up for his 6'7" height with an exceptionally long, lean torso. Too, his arms are almost albatross-like, being far longer than expected, practically coming to his knees. When he walks, he does so in a sort of bandy-legged gait that his about as fast as the almost-similarly proportioned Visto, the small Maggie, and the armored Ago.

After having spent his 90 minutes on preparation he simply says to Maggie. "If you are alive during our extra time, then every breath you take under the sun is a gift. If our extra preparations benefit our lives and then yours, it was an investment. If we neglect our disciplines and tragedy befalls, that is senseless death. Breathe well, gnome, for unless misadventure visits you, your years will be far longer than Sol's."

[Kvard51]

Lev rises with the sun, takes a big gulp of water, grabs his lute and heads outside. He sits, back against the wall of a nearby ruin and runs through some finger exercises and scales. After a few minutes, he sets the lute aside and begins humming and finally, singing in a rich, clear baritone. Once his song is finished, he begins to speak, as if to another person, of all the things he saw the day before that sparked desire in him, and his hopes for the day. Some of this oration is a bit colorful, possibly embarrassing to anyone hearing it.

When he stops, he exchanges his lute for his sword, and works up a light sweat working through forms.

[lostsole31]

Lev, it is time now to release the old day's pent up energy, and weave the new during your morning commune with your daeva.

Spoiler: Lev's Daily Veil Discovery

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The aigrette and earrings are the first to go.

Now, a strange half-circle of bronzed akasha forms itself snugly around your wrist, its surface now shifting and swirling with your thoughts. You have unlocked the penannular of prestidigitation.

Then, you build upon "nerd chic" as you create a pair of small spectacles of bronzed and crystalline akasha, allowing you to see magical auras. You have unlocked eyeglasses of magic sight.

These two are not tremendous since you already know both spell versions, but careful knowledge of the limitations of these minor veils will show some minor differences that increase with any allotted essentia.

Recognizing that you ... and your friends ... are in dangerous territory, AND it seems that if there was one beleaguered expedition, there might be more, Naysin guides your mind and heart to your well of compassion for when a caress means more than something sensual, but possesses its own healing power. A shimmering golden glow encompasses your hands as your kind nature manifests as positive energy. Now, you can heal with a touch, and the bound nature of your hands chakra means that even more of your nurturing spirit may be given to those who deserve your ministrations. You have unlocked immaculate touch, which is currently a passion veil. This particular frequency of positive energy (PE) is such that if you heal someone fatigued, you can wash away their weariness. [Fatigued is the current mercy applied.]

Naysin then shows you how you can take that caressing compassion and give others a strong ... ahem, "ardor" ... for you! Your very blood is infused with the Naysin's power now to bring any creature to their knees just by blowing a kiss. You have unlocked heartsblood caress, which is your second passion veil.

Finally, a passion veil that is instead developed in a non-passion slot is a sumptuous cloak that can help protect you. You have unlocked courtesan's cloak. It is in your shoulders slot, but you learn you could form it just as easily in your neck slot as well at a later date.

DISCLAIMER: As always note that while these are the shapes these veils take, only if you put E(ssentia) into them are they readily visible to the world at large.

---

Kwava says, "I and Ganmeed will stay here and guard the camp, though I will be in hiding. That way, if there are other refugees seeking safety, this is the natural place they would come, and I will come them and let them know a ship will be here to help."

With that, what does the group want to do?

[AggressiveBread]

Once everyone is gathered together, Santiago will put forward his plan. ”I think the most promising place to look would be the huge crater we saw on the way in. I’m hoping we might run into the other teams, if they still live.” He adds on the last part almost as an afterthought, with a touch of sadness in his voice.

[lostsole31]

Sol nods in agreement at this plan, looking at the others.

[bcool999]

Ozlech

Ozzy wakes up and greets the rest of the group before falling into meditation much like Visto does. He waves his hands waggles his fingers and otherwise looks like he is shaping things with his hands. As Ozzy cycles his essence to check his constructs they briefly flare into sight before he pulls his essence back and moves onto the next one. By the end of his meditation only his ring remains invested and visible to others.

Standing from his meditation, Ozzy begins performing Martial Kata. Practicing footwork and reinforcing the form of his moves with slow deliberate motions. For some of it Ginny seems to join in, performing aerial versions of Ozzy’s land bound techniques, but the stances are practiced by Ozzy alone.

Spoiler: OOC

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No changes to daily prep. Leaving 2 Essence in the Ring of the Abjurer.

[Kvard51]

Lev nods as Santiago lays out his idea, "I agree. The obvious site of impact seems the most likely place to find what we seek."

[rypt]

When Sol looks to Tsyra, Tsyra looks back. "I have no objection to this course of action."

[Farmerbink]

Maggie nods eagerly. "Yes! Let's! Anything to be done standing around!" She does, however, master her impatience enough to let a more capable scout take point.