024. "Everything's so new... and flammable."

[Corwin]

[19:48] <Janson> roll 1d20+11 requisite survival to track?
[19:48] * Hatbot --> "Janson rolls 1d20+11 requisite survival to track? and gets 26." [1d20=15]
[19:52] <Kotono> Janson begins leading the party along. For two hours you follow a subtle trail, leading along. At last you come to a tear in the earth. As if the ground broke open like a wound, about 15 feet wide and ten deep. A small tree has collasped to the side of it.
[19:53] <Wayland> "Well...this is interesting." says Wayland, peering into the hole.
[19:53] * Aaeru peers at the hole curiously. "Couldn't elementals move through the earth without digging through it?"
[19:53] * Janson pokes and putters around the hole, looking for any evidence of an actual tunnel system that might be partially concealed by fallen soil.
[19:53] <Kotono> OOC: Make search?
[19:54] <Janson> roll 1d20+8
[19:54] * Hatbot --> "Janson rolls 1d20+8 and gets 27." [1d20=19]
[19:54] <Aaeru> roll 1d20-1 I'll aid
[19:54] * Hatbot --> "Aaeru rolls 1d20-1 I'll aid and gets 6." [1d20=7]
[19:57] <Kotono> Janson searched about! He finds that the bottom is covered in strange scorch markings. The soil at the bottom is almost melted and generally burnt all over. OOC: Any of you can make K:N or K"A here if you care to.
[19:58] <Janson> roll 1d20+11 better at nature
[19:58] * Hatbot --> "Janson rolls 1d20+11 better at nature and gets 24." [1d20=13]
[20:02] <Kotono> OOC: Make listen, all.
[20:02] <Janson> roll 1d20+7
[20:02] * Hatbot --> "Janson rolls 1d20+7 and gets 24." [1d20=17]
[20:02] <Aaeru> roll 1d20
[20:02] * Hatbot --> "Aaeru rolls 1d20 and gets 12." [1d20=12]
[20:03] <Wayland> roll 1d20+3
[20:03] * Hatbot --> "Wayland rolls 1d20+3 and gets 23." [1d20=20]
[20:04] <Andria> roll d202
[20:04] * Hatbot --> "Andria rolls d202 and gets 77." [d202=77]
[20:04] <Andria> roll d20+2
[20:04] * Hatbot --> "Andria rolls d20+2 and gets 5." [d20=3]
[20:05] <Wayland> "There's something behind us!" Wayland whispers.
[20:05] <Janson> "Huh, looks like another vortex happened here. Fire and earth... these ley lines must be surging all over the place," Janson comments, straightening up and turning around to look at the source of the rustling.
[20:06] <Kotono> Janson can't see anything - no sign of anyone nearby.
[20:06] * Aaeru relies upon her skilled friends, peering about for any signs that they're not alone.
[20:07] <Janson> Any signs of magic? "Hello?" he calls, trusting his ability to talk to animals if it's just a wolf or something like that.
[20:09] <Kotono> No magic that Janson can see. At Janson's call she emerges from the bush. She wears nothing, her features elven. Yet her skin is that of charred wood, burnt all over. Her hair is a canopy of leaves, set fire-red and almost looking as if ablaze. She opens her hands wide, "Aaaaah, welcome to the ashpit!"
[20:09] <Aaeru> "Hi!" Aaeru responds, giving her a wave. "Did you try jumping into the vortex, too?"
[20:11] * Wayland blinks. "Err..."
[20:11] * Janson smiles respectfully at the dryad but doesn't badger her with further questions after Aaeru's one.
[20:11] <Andria> "The ashpit? Is that what this is called?" Andrea asks, blinking at the sight of the being in front of them, dryad or whatever she might be.
[20:13] <Kotono> The woman's head cocks to the side, almost falling to a straight sideways angle. She smiles right back, "Ashpit of Simmer. Where the past is buried." Fire dances in her hands as comes forward, head straightening back up. "I'm free of everything except the fire. Oh, the fire! Oh, it'll burn everything up! Burn it all! Burn it all!" She opens her arms wide, "Who wants to burn first? I'll marinade
[20:13] <Kotono> you in the ashes of the great oak!"
[20:14] <Aaeru> "Wouldn't she die if she burned her own tree?" Aaeru asks Janson quietly.
[20:15] <Janson> "Oh..." Janson frowns and looks at the tree that collapsed into the rift. "Was your tree consumed by the vortex?" he asks in sudden sympathy.
[20:15] <Wayland> "I'd rather not burn, actually." Wayland says, edging toward cover.
[20:18] <Kotono> "Oh, everything burns!" She frowns at Wayland, "You, me, trees, earth, sky! Just like that, my tree is ash! But..." She chuckles, "I'm an outcast now! I'm outside of the cycle of nature! All I can hear is the urge to burn everything!"
[20:18] <Aaeru> "Can't you... get back? Jump back into the cycle?"
[20:19] <Janson> "Don't you have any seeds?" Janson asks, approaching the poorly unhinged creature. "Any acorns that fell away or cuttings that survived, to plant your tree anew?" Seeking more of a connection to help keep her grounded, he points at himself, "I'm Janson, what's your name?"
[20:19] * Aaeru waves again. "Aaeru, here."
[20:22] <Wayland> "Wayland. Of Chillander. It's cold there, you know. No fire." Wayland says.
[20:23] <Kotono> "It's all gone," The dryad looks to them all, her knees buckling. She slumps down, falling to her knees. "All gone in smoke."
[20:23] <Andria> "And I'm Andrea!" Andrea chips in, not wanting to be left out in the introductions. "And it'll be okay! I know things look horrible right now, but things do get better. But not by burning everything, alright?"
[20:24] <Aaeru> "Can the priestesses in your village do anything here?" Aaeru turns to Janson once more.
[20:26] <Janson> "I'm sorry," Janson says, heart aching for her. "I know nothing can make up for losing your tree, but this isn't the end. Fire is an element as natural as the earth your tree's roots sank into, as the water it drank from. I know it's strange for you, even frightening, but you're not cut off from the cycle... just relocated."
[20:29] <Kotono> "You don't get it. It's gone. I'm out of the cycle." The dryad looks to Janson, starting to smile, smiling too much for her face. "I feel...outside of it all."
[20:30] * Aaeru tilts her head, glancing back at the dryad. "We, erm, we met a fire mephit before. He was in tune with fire and liked it that way. And they're natural too, aren't they? Part of the cycle?"
[20:32] * Janson kneels down opposite her. "The power of the elemental vortex flowed into you even as your tree was burnt away - it's that connection that sustains you even now instead of your tree, raw elemental fire burning in your veins. It must be completely different than what you know, but you haven't left nature entirely - you're now one with one of the primal elements, even more basic than the
[20:32] * Janson plant you were one with before."
[20:36] <Andria> "You could try converting to a religion. There are no outcasts in religion," Andrea says, before muttering under her breath 'except Sharrans...'
[20:37] <Andria> Clearing her throat she clarifies, "When I was a kid, I lost my whole world. My parents died, I was lost and had nobody...I made it through, changed, but I think I'm doing okay...I mean, I don't know that Alicia might be the right patron for you, but she'd take you in if you wished. I'm sure so would Ilmater or many others."
[20:39] <Kotono> OOC: I'm going to call for diplo here. Andrea and Aaeru, you both have ranks, yes? Don't roll yet.
[20:39] <Andria> ooc: Yeah, I have ranks.
[20:40] <Kotono> OOC: Both of you go ahead and roll seperate attempts, +2 to each of you since Janson gavea  pretty good speech to.
[20:40] <Aaeru> roll 1d20+15
[20:40] * Hatbot --> "Aaeru rolls 1d20+15 and gets 17." [1d20=2]
[20:41] <Andria> roll d20+15
[20:41] * Hatbot --> "Andria rolls d20+15 and gets 23." [d20=8]
[20:44] <Kotono> The dryad hangs her head as she listens, "Fire, I'm fire..." she mutters, "Tell me about those you mentioned. This Alicia and this Ilmater."
[20:44] * Janson draws a blank at all of this, so defers to the experts at religious indoctrination.
[20:47] <Andria> Andrea points at Aaeru and Wayland. "They can better speak of Ilmater, though I can tell you that he is known as the god of endurance, perserverance and suffering. He helps people even at great costs to himself. As for Alicia, she is also known for perserverance, though she is more tied to battle and justice," she starts to say.
[20:48] <Aaeru> "Ilmater," Aaeru says, taken off guard by this turn of events but following up on any any course of action that doesn't let the dryad die in misery, "is all about living a simple life. There is no particular need or drive for hoarding any material possessions. By helping those who surround us -- or nature, I suppose -- we benefit the world and are happy with what we can achieve. You might've heard how people feel that they reach immortality by having children and rearing them? It's a bit like that, since you become part of something greater, and your actions are never in vain, and always remembered by Ilmater and by those whose lives you've made better."
[20:49] <Andria> Andrea lets Aaeru focus on Ilmater as she tries to sum up Alicia into a few words.
[20:53] <Andria> "Alicia meanwhile, is about..." Andrea starts to say. "She's about self-improvement, protection and guidance. In my youth, when all seemed lost, they gave me (her followers, that is), a new family, a place to belong, and something to live for. Alicia is the patron of those who selflessly fight for the safety and happiness of others, those who strive to make the world a better place."
[20:56] <Kotono> As the words flow freely the dryad listens to them, "I..." she looks to them, "I don't know what I want," at last she says this, "Besides fire. Everything I know is gone, all I have is the flames."
[20:58] <Aaeru> "It's alright to take the time to decide, isn't it?" Aaeru asks her. "As long as you know that there are many who would accept you, isn't it fine to think about what suits you best?"
[20:58] <Andria> "Alicia is a protector and a teacher. She would help you find new purpose in life, if you so wished, even if it's not a path with her," Andrea offers. "We all would offer that help, if you let us give it."
[20:58] <Janson> "It's new and overwhelming," Janson can at least work with that. "But give it time, accept it into yourself and think of how it fits into nature - the fire that burns down old growth to provide fresh healthy fertiliser for new seeds to sprout, the fire that protects helpless forest creatures against the wicked - in time you can be those things."
[21:04] <Kotono> "yes, yes...I need time to think," The dryad looks up, "You'll help me, all ofyou?"
[21:04] <Aaeru> "Yes, even if Ilmater did not ask it of me!" Aaeru vows earnestly.
[21:05] <Janson> "Why don't you come with us?" Janson suggests. "We'll be travelling the forest for a while yet, and it'll surely be easier if you have friends to lean on," he smiles earnestly.
[21:05] <Wayland> Nodding, Wayland appears much calmer now that the woman doesn't appear to want to set them on fire.
[21:06] <Wayland> "We're headed for Janson's home village."
[21:06] <Andria> Andrea nods. "Yes, experience the world, and make your decision then! Even I did not leap towards Alicia's guidance in a single day! See the world through new eyes, and then make your decision," she says. "Welcome to our group!"
[21:07] <Kotono> "A-alright," The dryad slowly stands up, "My name is E...it's Simmer." She stands on slightly shaky legs.
[21:07] * Janson offers her a hand to help support her. "Well met, Simmer. We'll support you through this in any way we can," he promises.
[21:10] <Janson> "Also, we're not exactly here by coincidence," Janson admits. "Did you see any earth elementals pass this way? Would've been about four or five hours ago?"
[21:11] <Kotono> "The men of stone?" Simmer asks as she begins to walk, "...I think I saw them when it happened. Fire came crashing down and the earth split open to meet it."
[21:12] * Janson nods, not pushing her any more since she clearly would have had bigger concerns at that moment.
[21:13] <Kotono> roll 1d100
[21:13] * Hatbot --> "Kotono rolls 1d100 and gets 51." [1d100=51]
[21:13] <Kotono> roll 1d100
[21:13] * Hatbot --> "Kotono rolls 1d100 and gets 1." [1d100=1]
[21:13] <Kotono> roll 1d100
[21:13] * Hatbot --> "Kotono rolls 1d100 and gets 2." [1d100=2]
[21:13] <Kotono> roll 1d100 just to see if this is a 3.
[21:13] * Hatbot --> "Kotono rolls 1d100 just to see if this is a 3. and gets 35." [1d100=35]
[21:14] <Kotono> OOC: Three days of travel pass without incident. Restore HP and spells as approriate.
[21:18] <Kotono> Three days of travel pass. Simmer is mostly quiet, seeming to be lost in her own struggles and changes. Early in the fourth day does it happen. They step out from the forest as if they were always there. Three women, each dressed in rough, homespun, forest colored clothes. One carries a quarterstaff, one a cudgel and one a bow and arrow. The one with the quarterstaff raises the point up, "Hail
[21:18] <Kotono> and welcome trav-Janson?" she stops and looks right to him.
[21:20] <Janson> "Hail, ladies," Janson waves back with a slightly abashed grin as he looks at his little sister. "Holly. I was in the area and thought I'd stop by. These are my friends, Aaeru, Andrea, Simmer, and Wayland." Turning back to his companions, "That's Amelia, Jirella, and Holly - my sister."
[21:21] <Aaeru> "It is very nice to meet you!" Aaeru greets them along with a proper bow and smile.
[21:22] <Wayland> "Hello." Wayland waves.
[21:23] <Andria> "Hello," Andrea says with a smile before also bowing. "It's nice to meet you."
[21:27] <Kotono> Holly steps forward, her bow and arrow put away. "Janson! You're here right now? Are you and your friends safe? The elders have been talking of a great disturbance in nature."
[21:29] <Janson> "Oh, did they feel it? Yeah, the ley lines were surging all out of control a few days West of here," Janson nods emphatically. "Simmer lost her tree to an elemental vortex and became attuned to primal fire instead, and the rest of us got caught in a different vortex and gained attachments to earth and air - watch this!" he waves his hand as a massive fist of rock and soil emerges out of the
[21:29] <Janson> ground beside him to wave in the same fashion.
[21:30] <Aaeru> "And if there were two, there might've been more?" Aaeru guesses with a shrug.
[21:31] <Andria> "It was still a few days ago though, and we haven't run into any more trouble since then though," Andrea chips in.
[21:36] <Kotono> "Yes," Jirella puts her cudgel down as well, stepping forward, "Zella was caught in a unison or water and fire. She has returned to Jannath." The three bow their heads to this, "Many other near disasters have occured."
[21:38] * Aaeru blanches at how greatly she had misjudged the lethality of the vortexes.
[21:39] <Janson> "Oh! Jannath!" Janson gasps at hearing a... well, not exactly friend but certainly more than an acquaintance, has died to the same thing he and his friends so recklessly dared. "How far has it ran? We haven't seen any since, as Andrea said."
[21:39] <Janson> His hand of rock falls back into the earth, this really not being the time.
[21:39] <Kotono> "I'm not sure...if you've met them and this dryad has as well, you should go see one of the elders immediately," Holly says. "All of you come with us."
[21:40] <Aaeru> "I'm sorry for your loss," is the only thing Aaeru can offer, before nodding at the request. "Certainly."
[21:40] * Janson nods. "Lead the way," he falls into step with his sister, forgoing catching up on village gossip in light of this disaster.
[21:42] <Kotono> You are taken to Aralla. It is a village tucked into the forest. Houses are close to trees, in some cases merging into them in the elven style. A few have stories going up into the branches themselves. Coming to one seven story house, braided into a tree as it rises up like beads into hair, "This way," Holly says, the other two girls departing away.
[21:43] <Andria> Andrea keeps following, giving a silent prayer for those that have lost their lives to these vortices as they walk, as well as another set of thanks to Alicia for protecting her and her friends.
[21:43] * Janson refrains from snarking that he knows the way, since Holly's words are as much for his companions as him.
[21:44] * Wayland follows silently behind. He hadn't thought that the vortex was all that alarming, but he's not about to belittle someone else's death!
[21:47] <Kotono> You are taken upstairs to the top floor! Here branches and wood weave together to form a room. A room decorated with woodwork, furs, and nature's bounty. Sitting at a table is a woman. A gorgeous amber-haired woman, tall, busty and beautiful. She wears a short skirt and armless shirt, a scimitar attached to her belt. "Ah, Janson. Praise be to Jannath, for the oracle was truly spoken of once
[21:47] <Kotono> more."
[21:50] * Janson lowers his gaze respectfully, not able to get away with as much before an elder as he can with his own generation's daughters in public. "It's a shame my return should coincide with death and pain, elder Vanessa."
[21:53] <Kotono> "It is. The oracle spoke that you would return on the heels of disaster and turmoil." Her eye go to Andrea and then Aaeru, then the barest glance at Wayland before some attention on Simmer. "The red cord of Ilmater and the silver necklace of Alicia, paired with the wind and the flame. It is as the vision spoke."
[21:54] <Janson> The oracle makes him sound so bad! "Does anyone know what made the ley lines surge so, elder?"
[21:55] * Aaeru can't help but be dubious, since Simmer coming with them, at the very least, had to be due to their own choices and not the power of Providence. She listens respectfully for now in the presence of the elder, however.
[21:57] <Kotono> "A force has disrupted the natural flow, causing great surges of power," she explains, "The oracle has spoken that you would return with it and then depart, following the sun's morning rise to a lake of gold."
[21:58] <Janson> "Lake of gold?" Janson rubs his head, chancing to look up at Vanessa. "We were actually planning to visit the giants, but... well, if Jannath wills it, it must be important?"
[21:58] <Andria> "Eh? A lake of... gold?" Andrea interjects, having been silent before to let Janson and the elder catch up. "But we're just hunting for some trolls...do trolls live in lakes of gold, Janson?"
[21:59] <Aaeru> "We can surely take the time off for helping out Aralla," Aaeru voices. "I must ask how Jannath expects us to be of use, however. Is that force you spoke of, Elder, a malignant one and still persent? Would we encounter it at this lake?"
[22:00] <Janson> "It's probably figurative," Janson mutters under his breath to Andrea.
[22:00] <Kotono> "I believe she does," Venssa agrees after a moment's thought, "I am not certain, the oracle's vision did not extend that far. I also ask - you seek a troll?"
[22:01] <Aaeru> "There is a wizard who wishes to study the regenerative properties of one," Aaeru elaborates.
[22:01] <Janson> "Yes. I have a job!" Janson can't help but draw himself up proudly. "At Whimsical Sweets Troubleshooters and Confectioners! An alchemist wants a troll to make healing potions from its blood, so we're going to get one for him."
[22:04] <Kotono> "Following the path of Jannath is wisdom. Further," A moment to mull, "A troll can be obtained and would be a suitable reward for victorious heroes returning."
[22:04] <Janson> "Really, you'd do that?" Janson blinks. "Well, that'd be great, and save us a lot of trouble! Thank you, elder!" he bows low.
[22:05] * Aaeru brightens up at yet another display of how the world subtly rewards you for doing the right thing!
[22:06] <Wayland> "Well, that would be awfully convienient. That's very kind of you, Elder." says Wayland.
[22:17] <Kotono> "The forest giants owe us favors, and Jannath has spoken of you going east." So she explains.
[22:18] * Aaeru nods. "Go east until we see a lake, and let things work out once we're there? Works for me."
[22:19] <Janson> "Does anyone have any idea where the lake of gold is, or should we just go East and check any lakes we come across?" Janson asks.
[22:21] <Kotono> "Perhaps a lake has been changed by the magic here," Vanessa suggests. Meanwhile Simmer looks about, "So much to burn," she murmurs.
[22:22] <Janson> "No, no, nothing to burn here," Janson quickly sidles up to Simmer. "Remember what we talked about? Burn overclogged old growth or diseased plants to make way for new healthy ones. Everything's nice and healthy here," he stresses quietly.
[22:23] <Aaeru> "Jannath seems to want you to burn something near that lake, anyway," Aaeru adds, coming up to Simmer's other side. "Since it comes from a goddess it's bound to be really special, so why don't we go and see what that is?"
[22:26] <Kotono> "Urgh..." Simmer shakes her head, "That lake, if I can burn it..."
[22:27] <Kotono> At this Vanessa comes closer to Simmer, "Dryad, the elements have changed you? You look far different from your kinfolk."
[22:27] <Kotono> "I..." Simmer shakes her head back and forth, "I just feel the urge to burn everything sometimes, to listen to these new urges."
[22:27] <Aaeru> "Janson said that her tree was caught in a vortex of fire and earth," Aaeru says, glancing at him for confirmation.
[22:28] <Janson> "Her tree was consumed in a vortex of fire and earth, and an attunement with fire has replaced her tree bond," Janson confirms his understanding of the situation. "We're trying to help her adjust, but maybe one of the daughters here who specialises in fire magic could talk to her before we set off tomorrow?"
[22:31] <Andria> "We should find some way to help quell Simmer's urges, they seem to be a big part of what's going to make it hard for her to adjust..." Andrea notes.
[22:31] <Kotono> "Do so," Vanessa says. Meanwhile Simmer shakes her head back and forth, "It gets better and worse, and I'm outside of my homespace, everything's so new...and flammable."
[22:33] <Aaeru> "While you're in doubt, just try to hold it in?" Aaeru advises. "Eventually, the urges will just be easier to bear, and might even disappear entirely."
[22:34] <Janson> "There's bound to be a few things you can burn around here, just to get a feel for it - you haven't had a chance to do anything yet, and that's not fair," Janson agrees sympathetically. "If it's alright, elder, we'll go get settled for today and head off tomorrow?"