Bonding

Lydiatha

I'm not sorry for the amount of angst in this post. > .>



Within a warm library in a wooden nook.
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A bloodroot plant is growing here. Some irid moss gives off dim light. Her large wings folded close
to her back, Inesse gazes at her surroundings, her eyes blazing beneath her mane. A black board has
been hung against the wall, ready to be written upon. In a perfect circle, a broad meeting table
stands here on a massive trunk. A sigil in the shape of a small, rectangular monolith is on the
ground. Hackles raised, an adult grey wolf sniffs the air for enemies. A small sign indicates that LIBRARY CATALOG will list the materials in this library.
You see a single exit leading east.

Angwe arrives from the east.
He is followed by a grey wolf.
Inesse gives Angwe a feral grin as he enters.

Angwe bares his teeth at Inesse in a feral grin.

"Did you note the new requirements?" Angwe asks as he strides in, his hooves sounding out loudly
against the wooden floor.

You shake your head.

You ask, "New requirements?"

"Aye," Angwe says with a nod. "Just one, for Trackers such as yourself."

Angwe tugs at the spine of a book with his claw. "The Pylon Project," he announces, moving to show
the cover to you. "Written by our very own Kite."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "You'll be expected to have read and understood it's contents before
you take your oath before Griana."

With a slight nod, you demonstrate your understanding.

You say, "I'll add it to my list then."

You say, "Did the Prideleader tell you what I suggested my task be for Honouring the Rhythm?"

"He dinnae mention it," Angwe says, tossing a simple book entitled, "A copy of The Pylon Project"
over to you.

You have emoted: Lydiatha catches the book before carefully slipping it into her backpack. "I'm
writing hunting guides for the weaker areas, for our Scouts."

You say, "Azdun needs to be taken off that list. I still die when I go there."

"Mmm!" Angwe utters, his eyes flaring with light as he raises his eyebrows. "Now THAT is an idea,
Waveborn. Good thinking!"

You have emoted: Lydiatha offers a slight smile. "I thought of it because I wish they had been
written while I was making use of those areas."

Inesse raises her head, her furry mane bristling. She flaps her wings sending a cascade of seemingly
harmless sparks through the room.

A shallow rumble echoes through the air around you and a small piece of soil falls from above to the
ground.

"Azdun has changed from when I was a Tracker," Angwe relates. "Back then, the worst you had to deal
with were some goblins. No longer!"

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "Llazuth made sure of that."

You say, "Aye. Our Scouts and Trackers don't need to go there until they're a good deal stronger."

Angwe nods his head in agreement.

You have emoted: A grey wolf opens his mouth in a yawn before settling down next to Lydiatha and
pressing its large furred body against her thigh. She reaches over to idly run her fingers through
the fur of his ears. "Has anything interesting happened while I was gone?"

Angwe leans against one of the shelves, sucking on his teeth. "Well, you should remember the war
that was being waged, aye?" he asks. "My Order, those who follow Lord Haern against the order of the
Goddess of Corruption, Lady Chakrasul."

You have emoted: Pulling her legs up to sit cross-legged on the ground, Lydiatha nods. "Aye. That
was when I became a Tracker."

Angwe nods. "Right. Well, we made our final push into Her dark spire. Tina Cardinalis did her feeble
best to fight us off, but they were already crushed. With the destruction of Corruption's master
shrine, the war was finished."

With a slight nod, you demonstrate your understanding.

You say, "So I basically missed the war."

A shallow rumble echoes through the air around you and a small piece of soil falls from above to the
ground.

Angwe grins and nods.

You suck thoughtfully on your teeth.

You say, "I think I'm alright with that."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "You couldn't have helped anyway. Holy Wars are fought between the
Orders of the respective Divines and their congregations. Anyone else butting in is committing a
crime."

His voice gaining a level of gravity, Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "A crime against Divine Decree."

Angwe takes a cigarette case depicting a dryad's kiss from a leather herb pouch.

Angwe opens a cigarette case depicting a dryad's kiss.

Angwe closes a cigarette case depicting a dryad's kiss.

Angwe puts a cigarette case depicting a dryad's kiss into a leather herb pouch.

You have emoted: Lydiatha rolls her shoulders in a helpless shrug. "I don't think I would be
interested in the wars of the Divine. My own Gods are not to be found in these lands."

With a slight nod, Angwe demonstrates his understanding.

You have emoted: Rubbing her wolf's ear between her fingers, Lydiatha glanced up at Angwe briefly
before seeming to become very interested in her wolf's ears. "I went back," she said after a moment.

Angwe's mouth drops open. "...Back?" he asks. "Up north?"

You have emoted: Lydiatha gave a brief nod. "To my village." There was a long pause before she
looked up at Angwe again. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't know if you would try to talk me
out of it."

Angwe lowers himself into a crouch, balancing on his hooves next to you. Turning his head sideways,
he searches your face.

Sternly, Scout Master Angwe Arcan furrows his brow and says, "That was... extremely dangerous."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says to you, "I'm a bit shocked you made it back. Hell, I'm shocked you
made it -there-."

You have emoted: Lydiatha furrows her brows at Angwe in a slight frown. "Do you think I would become
a Sentinel if I shied away from danger?"

Angwe makes a quiet hissing sound as he inhales through his teeth. "No," he says carefully. "But the
risks we take must be -measured- risks. How could you have guessed where you were going? What if you
were blown helplessly off course? Did you even -have- a course?"

You have emoted: Lydiatha returns her attention to her wolf's ears, her voice seeming to thicken. "I
was homesick. I wander these lands a stranger and see others with their families..." The wolf at her
side whined, lifting its head to press against her thigh. "North was all I knew." She shrugged,
running her fingers through the thick fur.

Angwe lapses into a tense silence, his arms rested on his knees and his chin rested upon them. He
watches you, seemingly at a loss for words.

At length, Scout Master Angwe Arcan asks, "What did you find there?"

You have emoted: "The raiders left little to return to. Just the burnt husks of our houses,"
Lydiatha replied, her jaw clenching momentarily. "The men had been hung from the Eldar trees as
sacrifice of the Allfather. "The women were probably sold as I was."

Angwe sighs, eyes flaring as he closes them. "I'm sorry you had to see that," he says quietly.

You have emoted: "'Vi skal ikke sorge, men glede for de som har dodd stralende dod.'" Lydiatha
intoned quietly. "That is what we say in my land, when our loved ones die, but..." The girl seems to
slump forward, her feathers rustling softly behind her. "I'm finding it hard to follow."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "What does it mean/?"

You say, "'we shall not mourn, but rejoice for those that have died the glorious death.'"

"I never knew my family," Angwe says. "Well, I s'pose I DID. But I have no memory of them." Setting
down beside you, he runs claws through his mass of moss-like hair.

Angwe sits down.

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "I have no memory of my life before I... ended up here...
the woman you saw in the tavern with me that one time? She stole my memories. Stole me as a child, I
think."

Angwe pauses, pursing his lips for a moment before continuing. "What few images I have aren't
promising. Fire. Blood. Darkness in the desert. I searched for a long time, but a few months ago I
realized the futility of it. There's nothing to find."

You have emoted: Lydiatha clears her throat as she ran the heel of her hand across her face. It took
her a moment, but she turned her head to look at Angwe. "I had wondered why that woman made you so
angry."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "Called her out a few months ago looking for answers. She showed me...
 things."

Angwe shudders violently.

You have emoted: Pulling her wolf's head into her lap, Lydiatha ran her fingers through the thick
fur of its neck absently. "I can't imagine a woman like that one showing anything pleasant."

"I saw some of the things I'd forgotten," Angwe says, his voice small. "Her 'raising' me. Teaching me letters. Performing her... experiments." Heedless of
the location, the faun spits on the wooden ground, illiciting a quiet click from Inesse.

You have emoted: Lydiatha blinked, her expression clearly shocked. "Why did a vampire need a child?"

Angwe shakes his head fiercely. "Dun know," he says, his tone flat and dull, as though he were
commenting on the weather. "Sometimes they take people to feed on. Sometimes as slaves. I dun know
what his purpose was, aside from torture."


Angwe sticks his finger inside one of his ocular cavities, brushing something out with a grunt.

You have emoted: Lydiatha seems to hesitate for a moment before reaching out to lightly touch his
arm. "I'm sorry."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "The point is... whatever your past was, it dun really matter.
Important thing is to move on. I remember Damonicus - the Prideleader when I was recovered - told me
that. It dun matter what you were, what matters is what you wanna become."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "And so, I gained a new family. Here, in the valley. My tribe, my
Pride. My sister Emelle and my brother, Konnorn. My friends."

Scout Master Angwe Arcan smiles and says, "I've become something else."

You have emoted: Lydiatha runs her tongue across her lips to wet them, letting his words settle
before she nods. "Aye. That's why I came back. There's nothing left for me in my country." She
offered Angwe a roguish grin. "And your lands are a fair bit warmer than mine."

The ghost of a smile passes fleetingly across the lips of Angwe as he glances at you.

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says to you, "I ought to let you get back to your work."

You say, "Aye. -Reading-."

You snort arrogantly.

Angwe pats you in a friendly manner.

Angwe stands up and stretches his arms out wide.

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "The reading will teach you things in minutes that it'd take years
for you to learn."

Angwe taps his nose knowingly.

Scout Master Angwe Arcan says, "Learn well, Waveborn."

Angwe clenches his right fist and pounds his chest thrice in rapid succession, symbolizing the
vibrant heart that beats within.

You turn to face Angwe clenching your right fist and pounding your chest thrice in rapid succession,
symbolizing the vibrant heart that beats within.

Moirean

Aww this makes me miss forestal life. Very nice little glimpse into both the Sentinel life and into the individual stories of each character. Keep an eye on your tenses, though - you switch between present and past tense a few times, and that can be disorienting to others.

Bummer there are no hunting scrolls. I swear there used to be some back in the day! Good task to have someone work on, though!

Lydiatha

I'll make sure I pay more attention to my tenses. Thank you for the heads up, I didn't even know I was doing it!

Emelle

Nice log! I also noticed the issue with tenses. Text-based games can be a strange medium for that because they're written like a novel (past-tense convention) but in real time (present-tense convention). I see present tense done more and it's my personal preference, but I've also known people who strongly feel past tense should be used -- in the end, I think the most important thing is that you choose one and be consistent.

Teani

Oi, another Scandinavian!

Very nice read. Well done!