Moore catches up to Balyss in the chapel of Selune. She's locked in prayer, though Priest is nearby. "You're here to help?" he asks, keeping his voice down.
Moore nods to him, realizing they haven't really been properly introduced.
"Yes, that's correct." Moore says quietly.
"Go on," Priest says quietly, "Selune is tolerant of any of the righteous who aid Aurora. She will not impede you, as long as whom you pray to is righteous."
Moore nods and moves to take a seat. He takes a breath and decides to just see where meditating and prayer gets him for now. Considering the circumstances, someone may even try and reach out to him!
Make a Wisdom check.
[14:06] <Nephrite> roll 1d20+5
[14:06] <Kobot> Nephrite rolled 1d20+5 --> [ 1d20=1 ]{6}
A little time passes - when Moore wakes up. His attempt to meditate brought on a short nap instead, leaving him refreshed if still uninformed. Mmm, what's that? Something smells good. Blinking his eyes open, Moore finds a plate resting besides him. There's several cookies there, covered in white frosting. A small glass of milk joins them. Balyss is sitting on the ground near the altar, munching on her own cookies.
"Any luck?" she asks.
"...It would appear I was a bit more tired then I anticipated." Moore says with a smile. "Not yet. Did you, ah... learn anything we didn't already know?" Moore asks, leaning down to take a cookie and the offered milk. Huh, this seems familiar...
"Mei's safe in the Gates of the Moon," Balyss says, pausing to sip milk. "Oh, help yourself. They're moon cookies, the temple of Selune I came from makes them and gives them away to the faithful. It's a local tradition I brought over."
The cookies...not bad. Sweet like maple syrup with light icing.
Moore nods. "I'd like to try and find out what happened... with everything, you know?" He adds, looking to Balyss. "But perhaps I should ask where the others that are missing are? It might take some of the burden off of your shoulders."
"I've tried but it's fuzzy, distorted." Balyss says, "Maybe you'll have better luck than I did."
Moore nods. He finishes off the first cookie and takes a breath.
He focuses on Hanna!
With that in mind, he asks the question: "Where is Hanna of Aurora?"
Casting a spell or just hoping?
Sorry, casting actual Divination. They really should've called that spell something else... 84% chance, by the way.
All Moore gets is a dull headache and a discordant whine of meaningless noises. It's safe to say something's interdicting the spell, probably the interference Tepen mentioned or local conditions where Hanna is.
"No, nothing there either." Moore says with a frown. "I wonder if I should try something stronger... but I don't want to annoy anyone up there, you know?" Moore says with a small smile. "But I suppose if they didn't want me asking they'd probably tell me that, too."
Balyss finishes a cookie off, "I'm lucky about that. Selune's about prophecy and visions. It's more like she bothers me too much. Do you know how the Lunatics got that name?"
Moore shakes his head. "I do not."
"Selune sends her devoted visions. Those that follow them seem to be madmen to others, for they do things with seemingly no rhyme or reason, even as they follow her wisdom." Balyss smiles, "Back on my Prime Material, I was part of a group of Lunatics. I'd go around Balmuria doing things that seemed mad to everyone else, but all according to Selune's will. Yet I would see it resolve in a way that made things better and brought more to the Moonmaiden."
Moore smiles. "I think... well, Erathaol has a... different way about it. I know he doesn't like to guide people specifically, but..." Moore looks off to the side. "Have you ever heard of a place that was filled to the brim with light? A place where there was no sun or moon, just... light? Oceans of the stuff." Moore says, seemingly lost in thought for a moment.
"Sounds like Radiance," Balyss comments as she nibbles on her next cookie. "The Quasi-Elemental Plane of Radiance. It's where Air and the Positive Energy Plane meet. Or maybe Fire and Positive Energy, I forget."
"Radiance... maybe. I'll have to look that up." Moore says as he shakes his head quickly. "Sorry, to make a long story short, one day I literally woke up on Venya and didn't understand why. I haven't really been questioning it since then, but every now and again something nags at me in the back of my mind."
He takes a breath as he sips the milk. "But... while I was there, it felt right -- it felt... normal. Like I was supposed to be there. In that way, I've mostly let Erathaol just guide me on my journey without trying to divert myself from His plans. I seem to be able to control destiny a little bit... so I think that's power that's he's seen fit to give me. I just..." At this he looks down at the milk, swirling it around once or twice. "...I want to understand how I fit into all of this, you know? I mean I KNOW I do... but maybe it's not for me to concern myself with yet."
"Everyone wants to know their place, their role. For me it was easy. My father's a celestial," she pauses, her wings curled up around her armor. "It's the family business to serve Selune. Even Stille is an ordained cleric of Selune, and the clergy's dominated by women. For others, you have to listen to your heart and seek what feels right. Not what others tell you or what they expect of you. You need to find that place where you fit and stay there until you've grown enough that you don't fit anymore."
Moore smiles. "It's hard to do when you feel like you're missing part of what makes you you."
He takes a breath. "But I think... knowing that I have a role at all is enough for me for now. With that in mind... I think I'm going to try and find Hanna. I couldn't find her the old fashioned way, but I think if I'm a bit more direct I'll get an answer. At least... one that might provide us some direction." He smiles. "I don't know what kind of relationship Erathaol and Selune have, but I'd imagine they cross paths from time to time. Maybe she'll convince him to give me a hint."
"Good luck," Balyss says, "I'm going to get back to it as well. Perhaps Selune will bless me with an answer now."
"I'll see if I can find anything out for you, too." Moore says with a smile.
I'll do a Commune, but you can handle it tomorrow.
Okay. In that case, post tomorrow with setting it up and your first question, along with the total number of questions you have. Deduct the expense in loot.
Moore takes the time to move into the main area of the chapel, near where Balyss was originally sitting. Perhaps it gives a better vantage into this sort of thing? He sits cross-legged with his hands in his lap and starts to concentrate, focusing on Mount Celestia.
"Can we locate Hanna with magic?" Is his first question.
14 Total Questions
"Not now." Winds begin to blow, the cold winds of Venya dissolving the chapel around you.
13 left.
"Is that the same for the others affected with Lixer's curse?" He asks.
"Yes," Is the quick reply, as the clear, snowy slopes of Venya appear all around Moore.
12 left.
"Are they safe?" Moore asks.
"Unclear," Is the answer, the winds blowing clear and strong.
11 left.
Moore frowns. But there's really nothing to be done about it, considering the circumstances.
"Will Lixer's forces oppose us at the breach that was caused at Hopelorn?"
"Yes," Is the reply, the snow cold beneath Moore's feet.
10 left.
"Is Lixer himself going there?" Moore asks. It'll probably be unclear, but...
"Unclear," Is the answer you get back.
9 left.
Saw that one coming. He's a regular Erathaol himself!
"Has the time yet come where the one I met in the Deep Ethereal can be found?"
"No," Is the answer this time.
8 left.
"Are there new allies we may find at the battle for the rift?" Moore asks.
This time the winds are stronger, clearer. It brings a good chill to Moore's body, making him shiver and feel more alive. "Yes."
7 left.
Moore smiles. Good to know. But yet...
"Are they in need of our aid? Is that how we will find them?" Moore asks.
"No," Is the answer.
6 left.
"Will we find them by performing our duties at the rift?" Moore asks.
"Yes," Another answer comes, more questions answered.
5 left.
Moore nods, satisfied with the information.
He takes a breath, enjoying the air and reminding himself of his brief but important stay.
"Is there anything Erathaol wishes of me beyond what I am aware of?" He asks. He isn't sure he'll even get an answer on this one, truly, but...
"Victory. Victory over all tomorrow."
Then the spell expires, the energy of it used up and reality returning.
Moore nods, satisfied entirely with that knowledge. He looks over to see if Balyss is still there,
Balyss is. She's standing now, waiting for Moore. "Anything useful?" she asks, a hand on her hip.
"Yes, actually. We can't yet locate the others with magic, but it seemed to indicate that we would eventually. We probably knew this, but Lixer's forces will be there opposing us at the breach, but... we'll find allies there as well. It wasn't clear if Lixer himself would be there, but I wouldn't put it past him considering the circumstances. He surely expects us to all be going, but... well, that can be worried about later, I suppose." Moore answers.
"Either way, I think we have sufficient information to know to expect a battle tomorrow... I think Erathaol believes it to be one of even greater import than normal. I was given a very clear message that we had to win tomorrow." Moore says, looking more resolved than previous.
"Aurora travels forth," Balyss said, "Selune was more direct. We must win tomorrow. If the rift is not sealed, it will be the flash point for a war between good, evil, law and chaos over the Astral. She will not stand aside as evil sullies it, but her entry will draw others, into a cascading war that will spread all across Creation."
Moore nods. "Yes, it seems we have an even larger battle ahead of us than the one we thought would happen here."
"Hopefully the others get back. Mei might, but at worst she's safe." Balyss says, "I just don't know about the others."
"We'll find them in time. You have to have faith -- not just in your own deity but in your comrades at times like this." Moore says. "I'm sure they're fine."
"Having faith in Selune is easy," Balyss says, starting to frown. "Having faith in others is harder. I can't help but worry."
Moore just continues to smile at that. "Selune wouldn't choose to put you with allies that couldn't stand strong with you, would she?"
"No, I suppose not," Balyss murmurs, going quiet at that.
Any other things you wanted to do, Moore?
There's not much else to do that I can think of. He can go check on Rosa, I suppose.
Okay, I'll go weave you into Tryll's thread then. This one's closed.