What We Seek

Vorgith returned to his chambers, knowing further interrogation of the prisoner was futile until she had some time to contemplate her situation. Arriving quickly he stripped off the formal wear of the seekers, instead donning a simple black robe of silk in preparation for sleep. Having a brief meal he returned the plates to the Food unit, and then went over to his meditation circle, a raised plinth of stone facing the tall windows.
Taking up his kneeling position he looked over the black landscape before he began imbuing its serenity in him before starting the physical steps, loosening the muscles in his body, allowing himself to assume a relaxed posture. He then began the breathing exercises, deep breaths in and out, gradually becoming slower as he entered a mutative state, each breath ringing in his ears, gradually becoming quieter.
Now the seeker turned his mind inwards, delving into the memories of the day in an effort to suppress the emotions that burned so brightly in his mind. Despite his outward calm, great waves of feeling raged across the interior of Vorgith’s mind, and every second was a battle of will. “Control it or it will control you.” His father had said, usually whilst beating the young boy for some offence, either real or imagined.
This was his chance to examine that emotion, associated with the memories of the day, and strip them away until only the cold logical facts burned in his mind. It was a lengthy process, unpicking the tangled weave of emotion, but he persevered, pulling all the hatred, fear, irritation, happiness and joy out of the memories. He then examined each one in detail, seeing how a situation invoked an emotion, and maybe combating it in the future.
Today, however, the emotions clung more keenly to the memories of the interrogation. Regardless of what he thought of the Reacher they had dragged to his interrogation cell, she had true grit in her bones, resisting with each breath against an obviously superior force. He was impressed, and such an emotion was hard to remove from a memory. He struggled at first, then recalled the teachings he had learned decades ago from tutors during his Realization, “Emotion shackles all of us in the context of a memory. Remove all contexts, and you remove the strength from the emotion, like iron left in the rain. Then it will fall away, leaving only the truth.”
And he did so, allowing himself to see only the interrogation chamber, only the chair, only the woman. Then it all came together. All emotional contexts was stripped from the memory, leaving the cold fact in its place, that she was a scared savage that relied on personal belief to sustain her. Which he knew would not last her long in the confined chamber now.
Completing his meditation Vorgith stood and opened his eyes, seeing the dark landscape again. Removing his robe he proceeded to his bed, turning the lights out and allowing himself to drift off into a dreamless sleep.

He woke again, as if moments had past. However, light now stole through the windows, and his com panel was being in a truly irritating way. Hiding a shallow yawn Vorgith stood, replacing his robe as he answered the Comm, “Yes? What is it?”
“Sorry to wake you seeker, but the Cell medic wants to meet with you, as soon as possible if you can.”, A voice on other end said, only slightly weary from waking the Seeker.
“Confirmed, tell him I’ll be there.” He said, ending the link before the operator could reply, then finding his formal clothes again. Today was going to be a long day.

OOC: My former response to this was deleted or failed to upload, so this is a reconstruction, I hope it makes sense.

Vorgith made good time down to the interrogation cells, several levels beneath the Seekers chambers. However, rather than proceeding through the impressive door made from solid granite the seeker veered off, moving to a small wooden door set in an alcove and going inside.

The style here was completely different to the outside passages. Gone was the cold stone and stark lighting supplemented by views of the city. Instead the walls were panelled white, almost seamless between the walls and floors, giving the place a rounded look. The overhead light globes were bright and the centre of the room was dominated by a large operating suite. There lay the Prisoner, asleep and surrounded by medical monitors.
The seeker was irritated by the sight and turned to the on duty medic, Identifiable through her blue and white robes of a Light elemental. “Why was the prisoner removed from her cell? She is still under the doctrine of interrogation.” He said, his tone allowing a hint of the irritation ti seep through. The white simply shook her head.

“We have been monitoring her life signs all night. 3 hours after midnight she developed erratic cardiac rhythm due to massive stress and was in danger of dying. We had her moved here to keep her alive.” The White replied simply.

“That was my interview, which now has been set back by your interference. It was my call.” Vorgith said with irritation clear now.

“You were asleep under instruction not to be disturbed. Had we waited she would have died, and who would have taken the blame for letting it happen.” The medic replied, giving as good as she got.” It was an inevitable conflict between the seekers and the Medicate Corps. They had very different roles, but the seekers would never be able to do their job without them.
Staring for a moment longer Vorgith just turned away from the doctors eyes to look at the prisoner, who seemed to be sleeping soundly. “When will she be ready for another round of interrogation.” He asked.

The doctor paused before replying. “She needs at least 5 hours solid rest at the moment; she had quite a severe panic reaction to the confined space you left her in.” Her voice was neutral, but Vorgith was sure he heard a touch of disapproval in there somewhere. She saw Vorgith go to object and held up her hand to stop him, “I must insist sir, and she will be useless to you if she has a heart attack the moment I bring her round.”

Vorgith glowered at her a moment, but knew that she had priority where medical matters were concerned. Rather than try and overrule her again he looked her in the eye, “Have her back in the cell in 5 hours or there will be hell to pay.” He said, then left, striding off to prep room. They day was not over, not by a long shot, Because today he had a class to teach.

[TruthSayer]

The fastest path to Loftas had been marked out by Aisling’s Reach ancestors a millennium before. The route curved through underbrush, around outcroppings of rocks, up sheer cliff faces, and down into valleys so deep the sun only reached valley’s floor when it was at its zenith, a mere one hour of the day. It was a difficult trek, one full of pitfalls and an easy death if one was so unlucky as to lose their footing, but one that Gerrick and Duto would have been more than willing to risk. Were it not for the Searchers’ party with them, they would have already been half way to Loftas by now.

As it was they were three days into the journey with another nine stretching out with ominous foreboding before them; it was very likely Hana would be dead by the time they reached her, but the Searchers were adamant that a more circumspect route would be a safer one for the rescue operation as a whole, their main concern being the retrieval of the eight other members of Hana’s Craft.

Stopped for the night, the embers of the fire pit around which they set were carefully kept without flame to prevent prying eyes from locating it by warm glow alone, but gave off enough heat to moderately chase the deep chill of the night from the traveler’s bones; it would be winter soon, the first snow of the short season creeping closer every day. Sitting upon thin bedrolls and wrapped in thick blankets of coarse wool, the eleven Brigitites spoke little, each lost to their own thoughts on what entering Loftas would mean.

The attempted rescue would be no easy thing, and they all knew it. Loftas was heavily patrolled by watchmen, both on the parapets stretching along the high wall guarding the city, and Seekers carefully hidden along swaths of undergrowth that grew untamed for miles around its perimeter. The maze of sewers and waterways winding in labyrinthine patterns beneath the streets of the city, normally the Brigitites key of entry into Loftas, were now off limits to the rescuers given what the message received from the narrowly escaped Reachers held; Loftas would place careful watch on the waterways from then on, meaning that not only was the rescue mission already in perilous danger of failing less they find some other way to enter into the city, but also that further attempts at subterfuge and liberation of slaves would have to be carefully redrawn.

Gerrick chewed slowly on the bit of dried meat between his teeth, shoving it around his mouth with his tongue.

If he had his way, he would call to arms every Searchers Craft available and declare all out war, besiege the damned city, and burn to a crisp anyone who remotely smelled like a Baddie; he knew he was the only one who felt that way, however. The Searchers were far too well trained and levelheaded, and Duto was far too much of a logical thinker to back Gerrick in his plan, no matter how much the boy wanted Hana safely returned.

Gerrick cast a glance at his adopted son from the corner of his eye. The Craft leaders and the Senate had outright refused to allow Duto to participate in this venture; Duto was, after all, only seventeen and still in Clarification. Gerrick had been forced to leave him behind.

It had been a minor miracle and a massive argument when Duto had shown up on the trail suddenly that morning, grinning a shit-eating grin and having the audacity to ask them what took them so long, and if they were feeling too old and decrepit to venture forth on the rescue mission, Duto was happy to carry it out alone.

Little shit.

The Searchers had argued that the best thing, and the safest thing for all involved, would be to turn around and deliver Duto back to the Reach; Gerrick had snarled in rage at the thought that these nine men and women would risk another four days travel and possibly lose Hana’s life in the process. Duto, compassion written into every line on his face, had coaxed every one of the Searchers with words of unrepentant pleading to allow him to stay. The Searchers were angry with the boy, of course, especially for his refusing to tell them how he had managed to leave the Reach without anyone knowing, and refused for the most part to speak to him, but allowed him to follow. They gave him no quarter when the trail became steep and nearly unmanageable, and offered him none of the foodstuff they had packed for the journey. Gerrick nearly snorted aloud at that; Duto had been raised in the Wilds, therefore having no problems foraging for his own meals, and was young enough to outstrip Gerrick and the Searchers by several miles, often leaving the pack to scout the path ahead, waiting for the group to catch up every four or so miles, each time with another of those shit-eating grins.

“Aren’t you worried that’ll attract a predator?” Demail asked gruffly, eying the large thirty pound wood rat Duto had cooking on the embers; the smell that rose into the air was intoxicating. The human in the Searchers Craft, Demail was a massive boar of a man with no neck and arms so heavily muscled that if Gerrick attempted to encircle the biceps on one arm with both hands, his fingers would not meet.

“Nope,” Duto answered, reaching out to poke the rodent with a stick; the embers beneath it popped and sizzled as juices flowed down upon them, sending a flurry of red hot ash into the air. “There’s not a beast here that’ll risk tangling with you, Demail.”

Demail snorted. “Damn brat.”

“I will bow to that, sir,” Duto said, grinning as he touched his index finger to his brow in a mock salute.

Demail, not knowing how to respond, spat onto the ground in front of him, and tore off another piece of jerky with his teeth.

OOC: This thing was three pages long in Microsoft Word; amazing how things seem to shrink on a website.

There’s room for Tam’s character to enter into this, as well as the group meeting a Seeker or two, if you’re interest, Madd.

Vorgith left the seekers Palace and entered the city of Loftas proper, travelling in his hunters garb and away from the main highways. Even confident in his powers, he could not risk being seen among the general populace, too many Reach Sympathisers these days, despite their damming declamation by the Supremacy.
The city was like a maze and crossing a lesser used walkway from the high cliff palace to one of the central spires was an easy task to avoid being seen. He made his way through the city like a ghost, passing the traders and sedan chairs carrying high class family members, livery slaves weaving between the peoples as they made their way. Lesser elementals walked the sidewalks, whilst the slaves were consigned to the roadway, dodging foot traffic and other hazards as they made their way through the city.
As he went lower, passing from the spires and into the main city travelling became more convoluted, the always becoming like a labyrinth, unseen by many and older than most other parts of the city. Here grime had been allowed to build where few elementals sought to tread, deep in the shadows and far from the sun. There was also danger abounding in these backstreets, as Vorgith knew too well.
His tutors had brought him down here in his first year, leaving him in the deepest and grimiest section of the old city, leaving him to make his way back to the palace and prove his worthiness to remain a seeker. “We do this not for you, but for the city you must protect. Prove yourself worthy.”
It had taken him days to get out, but he had [prevailed in the end. Now the Half-breed thugs and slave gangs posed little threat to the fully fledged Seeker, but every sound that echoed here raised the hairs on his neck.

After what seemed an age Vorgith made it through the alleyways, emerging into the light close to one of the trade gates leading out to the smaller settlements and the wilds beyond that. It was not particularly busy, the mornings rush having dispersed and the afternoon far away. Waving some false papers at the guards he finally made it beyond the Bastion wall, making his way down the main road and avoiding the glances from wagon drivers. He was a good mile from the city before he turned from the road, slipping into a nearby forest.
The peace here was enthralling to Vorgith. He loved his city, but as an earth elemental he always found a quiet wood more relaxing then an hour’s meditation. Letting the loam scented air fill his nostrils for a moment he set off again, This time at a run, the dense undergrowth not stopping him as he pelted on.
Time passed slowly as the seeker ran, and he had reached his destination in no time, despite feeling like he had run for hours. He could hear the voices ahead of him, slowing to catch words from his students before he arrived.

TBC

[TruthSayer]

Claudia de Olviv leaned against the wide trunk of a tree, arms crossed carefully over her chest, head bowed, one foot raised to prop against it. Beside her, her cousin, Gladyn de Olviv, talked boasting to the gaggle of his friends that he had managed to track his Air Elemental father from their home to the spires without the man catching on; an impressive feat were it true, but Claudia sincerely doubted it. She did not like her cousin, nor did she appreciate many of the others in her class; they were boastful, too reliant on their eyes, less in tune with the earthen power that lay as solid as the ground beneath them than they should be at this point in their training.

They hadn’t even noticed that Elder Vorgith had arrived; then again, his movements were so masked by the sheer power within him that were it not for the change in the bird’s chatter high above, she would not have noticed, either.

“Stupid Elder,” Gladyn scoffed, crossing his arms indignantly; Claudia noticed from the corner of her eye that her cousin looked rather like a swelled buffoon when he did that. “I could out seek him blindfolded.”

“No, you couldn’t,” said one of Gladyn’s friends, shaking his head. “Elder Vorgith would pound you into the ground. Wouldn’t he, Claudia?”

Claudia raised her head slightly, looking at the man with a disdainfully raised eyebrow, her mother’s cold little smirk dancing on her lips. “He would, yes,” she agreed.

“Don’t listen to her,” Gladyn sniffed. “She would bed Vorgith if he would allow it.”

“I respect his capabilities and hope to rise to them,” Claudia said coldly, the smirk falling from her lips as her arms tightened against her breast; beneath her feet, she felt the ground harden as the power within her stirred in her anger, “but if you dare speak something so disrespectful again, I will flay you alive.”

“Kitten’s got her claws out, Gladyn,” Idrea de Fau laughed, the only other woman in the class. “She’ll cut your pretty eyes out.”

“Not only that,” said Iro de Vant, somber brown eyes locked on the tree line where Claudia was certain Vorgith would appear, “But Elder Vorgith, as well.”

~*~


Duto stopped, head cocked to one side as he listened carefully, trying to catch the sound again. The forest around him was silent aside from the slight rustle of animals through the dense undergrowth, the day clear and cold. Above, the sky was a perfect blue, cut into uneven swaths by the canopy of thick leaves shooting out from one-hundred foot trees, casting rays of pure gold to highlight the forest floor.

The sound came again from the north, as high-pitched and desperate as the scream of a dying animal, though Duto could not recall an animal ever sounding so terrified.

“What is that?” he muttered to himself, caught between waiting for those that followed him and investigating it himself. A moment’s hesitation, and he left the trail he had been scouting to head into the undergrowth, picking his way around snarling vines and heavy roots, caution keeping his steps quiet while curiosity fueled his speed.

The sound grew louder, faded, and then erupted with the accompaniment of a thousand beasts, awe inspiring in its intensity, frightening in its synchronicity, causing Duto to move faster. Belatedly, he realized he caught his leg on the thorn of a creeping vine, and wondered if the hint of blood in the air would attract predators.

The sound stopped abruptly, plunging the forest into an eerie silence Duto was sure it had never experienced before outside of creation. Duto halted, swallowed, and continued more slowly, eyes flicking from side to side, left palm outstretched as a sphere of water called forth from the air hovered above it in a cautionary measure, fracturing the light outward in pinprick shafts of rainbow light.

Twenty more feet and he stumbled upon a scene that was straight out of a nightmare; the ball of water in his hand dissipated.

Baddies littered the ground, some with their necks twisted half-way around, others with the flesh on their faces, arms, and necks bloodied from the trenches scratched into them; one man’s fingernail had ripped off at the cuticle and stuck out grotesquely from an empty eye socket. Scorch marks from Fire, rents torn into the trunks of trees from Earth, blast circles from Electric… It was a warzone, and in the middle of it was a girl, perhaps Duto’s age, perhaps one or two years older, who sat huddled over the unmoving of another.

A Realization, Duto thought, suddenly breathless as dread worked its way through his veins. Carefully, he backed away, praying gods long dead that he did not disturb her, that she hadn’t noticed him, and that Gerrick and the Searchers were not far away.

Shit.. A Realization…

OOC: Heh, took me long enough. Though, you have to admit, I was very busy, lol.

Raijean can now come in!

I've also written in to the lore that teachers of Loftas are called 'Elders'. I just can't see Vorgith being called 'Mr.' or 'Professor'

All thoughts of time, days, nights, alive or dead were gone as far as Raijean was concerned. It was comfortable here, the cold didn't bother her at all and the black liquid flowing around her was calming. Am I dead? She felt the weight of something in her lap, but the veil of darkness shifted like a thick liquid, only allowing living things to have shape and everything else blended together slightly out of focus.

Pim was here. No. Pim was gone. Raij could feel the soft hair on her arm but she could barely see it. She wanted to see Pim again, for her sister to be alive. Just like that the liquid shifted and Pim's face was bold and visible again, soft and beautiful like she was only sleeping. All this happened within seconds but Raijean had yet to move from her position.

"You can wake up now Pim." Her voice was a hoarse whisper.

The darkness was telling her to wake her up, that Pim was only sleeping. Reason told her that the broken body was lifeless but the thick liquid caressed her sisters face almost speaking to her telling her to call her sisters name. Raijean was unaware that her Realization had occurred, had been building since the first flash of blackness across her eyes. The darkness spoke to her in soft sighs and emotion not actual words. The power was within her to awaken Pim, but something deep within her core that felt similar to her fathers logical reason, begged her not to do it. She tilted her head at that moment and again her eyes were veiled and Pim's face faded into obscurity like the other non living things around her. The blackness shifted yet again guiding her head to lift up completely at her surroundings, drawing her attention to the brush directly in front of her.

The outline of a retreating person became visible and the darkness convinced her this intruder was trying to take Pim. Seeing without seeing she let the darkness control her sending the blackness only she could see out towards the this new foe in silky waves. Again, her father spoke in her heart but she had difficultly controlling herself. Strong emotions had merged within her powers and she screamed out in grief, pain and confusion. Pim's body slid from her lap as she threw herself backwards thrashing on the ground with her hands clamped on either side of her head.

[TruthSayer]

"Oh, fuck!"

Duto threw his arms out before him, swirling patterns with his fingers in the air as every drop of moisture from every living thing within a fifty foot radius was called forth, plants hissing and popping as though on fire as the water rushed out of them to form a protective dome around the Water Elemental. The dome shivered, repulsed, as tendrils of almost liquid black slithered over it, poking and prodding with animal like claws that threatened to bring the whole thing down.

The girl's eyes had been pitch black, no rims of white to show the humanity within her, only the power of long ago gods thriving unheeded through her veins. Duto was no fool; he had been in Clarification long enough to know how each element's Realization appeared - had witnessed some, been taught about others - and new he was facing Dark, but was yet to the point in his training where he knew how to deal with a Dark Realization specifically. His teachers had always warned their students that it was dangerous for an entire Craft to confront one in the midst of Realization, not to mention how completely suicidal it would be for just one untried student.

The tendrils grew and twisted, snapping like whips against his dome, weakening it; Duto took a deep breath, held it, and called water from the ground beneath him, tunneling it from the lake nearby to strengthen the dome, though it did little against the power lashing forth from the girl, and Duto, panting, sweating under the strain of keeping the dome in place, watched in abject horror as the water surrounding him rippled, and crashed in a magnificent waterfall uselessly to the ground.

The tendrils shot toward him, a hundred different spikes aimed straight for the heart that beat wildly with fear in his chest-

And splintered off into a hundred different directions just inches from him as though they had ran straight into an invisible barrier.

Gasping, Duto lowered his arms from his face, surprised to find that he had even raised them, and watched as Gerrick and the nine members of the Searchers Craft exploded from within the trees.

"Damn brat!" Demail shouted, face thunderous as he came running forward, much faster than one would think him capable from his bulk, and threw his arms upward, encasing the girl writhing on the ground in a dome of hard rock.

Then came Illisa, water spewing upward from the ground in a magnificent arch to swirl in twelve different spheres around the girl; next was Pysal, sending a dark cloud around the girl that hovered as lovingly as a warm blanket. There was a crackle of electricity, the flash of a blinding white light, the metallic shink of metal, and the sudden burst of heat from two Fires, each power surrounding the girl in a protective circle, keeping her power trapped within.

Duto's wide eyes shot to the left, falling on Ariana, Air Elemental, as she dropped the sheet of diamond-hard air that had coalesced in front of him, turned with a sad little smile, and projected her own power around the girl.

"You okay, kid?" Gerrick asked, sweat a fine sheen on his face as he concentrated on keeping his power around the girl, stumbling back a step as the power within the spheres shuddered outward against its cage, causing even the rock base to ripple.

"F-fine," Duto whispered, watching in awe as a sliver appeared in the spheres and Pysal walked calmly into it, hands raised before her as her shadows that were interwoven into the dome detached from it and rushed inside. Duto could not see what was happening, but felt the ground beneath him quiver.

OOC: Considering this doesn't include Vorgith at this time, I don't think Madd will mind me going forth with it ^^

I'm so excited! So I hope this makes sense, lol.

Meanwhile…
Vorgith had been watching the class whilst they talked, testing them even now. Despite his quiet approaches, he was glad to see that the two other earth elementals in the class, incidentally the only two females, had sensed his approach. The others were all air and dark elementals; far more at home in the city then the wilds, still stood and talked, with some bosting whilst others egged them on.
However, daylight was passing, and the lessons needed to begin. With a breath he drew on his power, sending out tendrils of power to the surrounding wildlife. Threading his power through the plants, he funnelled his commands and wishes into the living matter, and with the barest of pauses the plants began to move at the own volition, vines and roots stealthily threading their way towards the students.

Before him the students still nattered, some looking board whilst others spoke amongst themselves. The De Olviv boy still boasted his skills to all who listened, and Vorgith could tell many of his lackeys believed in his skill.
“We will see.” The Seeker said to himself, pulling on his white seekers mask as he did so. The students did know his face, but procedure dictated such measures during joint operations in cases of public exposure, and that was the last thing they needed here in the wilds.
In the clearing both Claudia and Idrea both sensed the power at the same time, its subtle tendrils flowing through the shaded plants. “Look out!” Cried Claudia, diving towards the group to shove away the vines that were coiling behind them, but it was too late. They shot out, grasping the students around their necks, whilst roots simultaneously burst from the ground, locking the students feet into the soil as the vines tightened around their throats starching them all straight in an effort not to choke. Claudia, time wasted on a warning, tried to thrust the vines away with her power. They writhed for a moment, fighting against both forces of control, but Vorgith’s strength was far above that of a student, and they finally closed around here before she had gone half a dozen steps.
Idrea had not wasted time. Rather than warn the others she had sent out a rush of power through the earth, through her bare feet (A common style for Earths) to release a shockwave towards Vorgith, who was just stepping into the clearing. The Elder was pleased by the move, but nimbly sidestepped the blast, moving round it as you would a passing animal.
The Young Earth Girl then tried to run, reach the cover of the treeline out of Vorgith’s view to avoid the vine attack. However as she turned there was a thunderous crash, and suddenly the trees ahead had crashed together, walling off her escape and forcing her to turn back. Realising she was trapped she stooped, not missing a step, and gathered up some sandy soil in her hand, running towards the Elder whilst forming her power as she went. The sand became jagged as she held it, like small needles of rock, a good bit imitative that Vorgith noticed with a smile.
The girl leapt, ready to deliver the jagged sand into the Elder’s eyes. A mistake. In an instant Vorgith dropped to the ground, placing his hand on the damp earth and closing his eyes.
A nanosecond passed a strange scene. Students bound, Idrea Moving through the air, arm out thrust to deliver her improvised weapon, Vorgith on one knee with his hand on the ground, eyes closed as if in prayer .
Then a ten foot wall of solid rock appeared before the kneeling Seeker, exploding out of the ground with enough force to send a crack through the air.
There was a thud, as startled squeak and a sudden outrushing of air. Vorgith smiled under his mask and stood, releasing his power on the earthen wall, which now crumbled to dust under its own weight. Its collapse revealed Idrea on her back, arms at her sides and a large red welt appearing between her crossed eyes.
Stepping past her Vorgith sent a ripple of power out to the vines. There was a creak and a rustle, and the student’s bound forms began to move, guided like marionettes into a line before him, still standing as straight as possible to prevent choking. His mask was impassive as he began to speak. “You are all immensely lucky. Today you have been attacked, taken unawares mere miles from the cities walls, bond and disabled with almost no resistance, and you are not dead.” He said, striding forward. “The ease at which you have been apprehended is pitiful. You are training to be seekers, not being pampered in your estates. If I had been an enemy I could have given those vines thorns, slicing your throats without pause. I could have made the trees fall on you, crushing you to the ground. I could have had the earth rise up with spines and skewer you were you stood, or even have it open up and swallow you whole, leaving no trace.” He let that hang for a moment.
“What is our first order, written in the very makeup of every seeker who has passed their trials?” Vorgith asked, turning away from the students.
“Vigilance!” They all replied some faster than others, struggling to speak around the vines that pressed under their jaws.
“Vigilance.” Vorgith repeated. “It is what has kept us alive in the ages since our founding, It is what separated a Seeker from his brethren, always alert for danger, always ready for attack, always looking for the clues that could make the difference between life and death, for you and Loftas both.”
He turned to point at Idrea “Only one among you today was vigilant, one for all those assembled here. One who reacted, who allowed their instincts to guide them and try to protect themselves,” he glanced at the still stunned Student, “no matter how ineffective it was.”

There was a mutter from the De Olviv boy again, and Vorgith rounded on him in an instant. “What was that? I don’t think we all heard you child!” He said loudly.
Gladyn went pale for a second, but then stared at the Seeker, “-only because she’s had an advantage.”
“An advantage?” Vorgith said in reply, sounding slightly surprised. “As an air elemental, how is it you failed to sense the movement of the vines through the air, and how is it was it that the Darks failed to see the vines as they slithered through the shadows!” He sent out a wave of power, and the vines tightened around the boy’s neck, closing his windpipe and causing him to splutter. “The only advantage she had,” the seeker continued, “Was her Vigilance, a lesson that you seem unable to grasp!”
He walked closer, perhaps I should push all the way, pop your head off like a cork form a bottle, and free us all from your stupidity.” His voice was now menacing, and many of the students looked shocked, expecting the Elder to carry through his threat.
The Boy had now gone red, and was rapidly heading towards purple when Vorgith relented, releasing all the vines with a wave of the hand, dropping the students to their knees. Gladyn dropped like a sack, wheezing for air as his lackeys came over, helping him sit up and drink from a water bottle.
“Now you have had a taste of the theory, you must now face the fact. Today you will be hunting an earth seeker through these woods using the theory you have learnt in the last year. If you find him, you will pass to the advanced class, if not you will remain in the basics for another lunar cycle.” He walked over to a patch of earth, and with a wave of his hand an image appeared of the surrounding woodland as seen from above. The students, whilst still dazed, came over and stared at the living map created by a wave of the seekers hand. “This is the wood we are in.” Vorgith said. “It ranges for here to the Mithgrin River a mile to the south, and has pasture to the east, north and west. This is the exercise zone, leave this area and you will automatically fail the test. We will meet back here at this time tomorrow. Anyone not here will be left behind. Clear?” The students looked shocked by the sudden turn of events. “Clear?!” Repeat the Seeker, to a chorus of yes’ and nods from the students. “Then go.” He shouted.

The students ran, diving off into the undergrowth, already splitting into teams. Vorgith Helped the stunned Inreas up, pulling her to her feet and handing her to a friend before they left the clearing.
Vorgith waited a few moments before letting out a breath. Despite appearances this was all fairly new to him, and he never knew how the students would react, despite all his training. He made his way towards the treeline himself, heading off and away from the others. It wouldn’t take them long to realise that it was him they had to hunt, and he needed some distance between himself and them before they cottoned on.

[TruthSayer]

“Can you feel him, Idrea?” Iro asked, voice quiet and monotone.

“Why does it have to be a ‘him’?” Gladyn muttered, mischief in his words. “It could be a woman.”

“And you could try to keep in your pants for once,” Tristan, Dark Elemental, shot back.

Gladyn sniffed, but silenced himself, waiting for Idrea’s report, still irked over Vorgith’s rebuke and the humiliation he had suffered at the Elder’s hands, longing to prove to the Elder and his peers that Vorgith could eat his words.

Their small group, comprised of Gladyn, Tristan, and Iro, stood around Idrea, unmoving so as not to disturb her concentration as she knelt with her fingers buried in the soft soil of the forest floor. Her eyes closed, Idrea set forth tendrils of her power in each direction, searching for a vibration different than that of the animals around them, but felt nothing out of the ordinary.

“Nothing. We’re too far away from him for me to sense whether or not he’s using Silent Step ,” she said, frowning as she stood and dusted her hands. “Gladyn?”

The Air Elemental bowed his head, eyes closed, and delved his concentration deep within the air around him, memorizing the outline of air currents in the world around him. The way the breeze flowed around plants, met the solid resistance of animals, and filtered past rock formations. The feelings of Gladyn’s natural element seeped into his being, cataloging each variation, searching for that one anomaly that would signal he had located their prize.

~*~


Truvan blinked, his mind returning to him after minimal effort, and shook his head. “I can’t see him, but the animals in that direction are spooked.”

Hackor’s and Claudia’s eyes locked on the direction Truvan pointed out, contemplating.

“I doubt an Earth Elemental would move fast enough to spook animals,” Hackor said.

Claudia nodded. “Nor would an Earth Elemental allow their presence to be known by the animals around them. Still…”

“Still,” Truvan cut in, “it’s possible that the quarry we seek is giving us clues as to his whereabouts.”

“Or leading us straight into a trap,” Hackor muttered, rubbing the dark stubble on his chin. “I say we check it out, either way. Claudia?”

Claudia stood silent for a moment, her bare toes fisting in the dirt as she sent tendrils of her power outward, searching a clue, and was surprised when she felt the immediate resistance of unnaturally frozen earth. “Someone is using Silent Step in the area you pointed out, Truvan.”

Hackor and Truvan’s eyes narrowed, grins stretching their faces as the three of them moved, quick and silent, to the west.

~*~


Hana groaned, her fingers twitching as her eyes slowly opened, blinking in the bright light that shown down on her from globes hovering near the ceiling. Her body hurt, but she no longer felt the terror ringing loud and immobilizing through her being as what felt like mere moments before, and noted with relief that the close walls and the thorns skewering her body were gone.

Where…?

OOC: Thought it was time to get back to Hana! And this looked a bit longer in Microsoft Word... O.o

[Tammika]

Raijean's convulsions slowed as layer after layer of alternating sensations washed over her adding to the blackness. A more structured and stable framework surrounded the chaos. For a brief moment she felt smothered the dark energies of her own making lashed in long tendrils against the protective shield. She thrashed against it, but like a loving, patient mother it would not release her. Surrendering the fight her body collapsed to the forest floor still and naked. The burst of power left her clothing a pile of shreds beneath her and scattered around. With sand clinging to the sheen of sweat on her bronze skin and leaves tangled in her brown coils, Raijean lay on her side, curled into a ball breathing deeply. Worn to exhaustion by the incredible amount of force the Realization had pulsed through her body she remained in that position.

Seconds passed like hours. Her body rested but the darkness in her soul waited. As soon as her breathing was close to regular one thin tendril stretched out before her testing its cage. Her heighten senses felt a presence. Similar to her own, but stronger and wise. Raijean opened her eyes. Still black but filled with more despair than rage and teetering on the verge of a depression just as deadly.

"Who are you?" She could not prevent the sadness from rolling forward on her words. Something that would drive the defenseless and unskilled to tears.

"Why did you kill Pim? What do you want from me?" Her voice cracked as she fought a rising strain of hysterical confusion swell within her. Raijean's body was a boiling cauldron of raw emotion that was ready to overflow again at any moment. She slid her body into an upright position and repeated the phrase staring at the female in front of her.

"What do you want from me?"

((OOC: painfully short compared to the rest of this rp but hey. Not much action for her at this point.^^))

[TruthSayer]

Pysal very carefully opened her eyes, her Dark vision much different now than it had been outside the containment field. Colors drained of vibrancy rushed and collided with each other, mating, before throwing out offspring that held shades no one who was not Dark would believe existed. They rebounded off the walls and shattered on the ground, throwing up streaks of shadowed light that spilled across every surface, Pysal's darkness reacting violently with the girl's before her, one skilled and powerful force combating an uncontrollable one that resonated a deep and profound pain; it slammed into Pysal, asking her with barbed tongue to succumb to it.

"Hush, child," Pysal whispered, pushing the girl's rebounding pain away from her as the darkness within her hold pulsating gently with her worlds, rushing to encircle the girl before her, full of calm. "I did not harm Pim; her life was gone from us when I arrived to help."

OOC: Heh, talk about short ^^

[Tammika]

Raijean had little understanding of the dangerous amounts of sheer power floating around her, from her and boiling within her. All her negative emotions floated around her giving life to the dark liquid. Lack of control and hearing the cold hard fact of Pim's death made her panic. The rage washed around her lashing against her prison. She didn't want to hurt the woman but she had no choice. All her control was gone.

"Papi, help me!" In her confused state she cried out childishly for her father. He was always her voice of reason, and her anchor. Reclaiming her self control took a great deal of effort but she managed to gain ground slowly, not realizing whether or not the other woman was helping her in some way. Once she obtained the tiniest bit of clarity she, in turn, lost her grip on consciousness. Her body, unable to handle the stress, forced itself into a dark coma, sealed within a self protecting armor or pure elemental power. There she rested. On the outside she appeared as if she was only sleeping, but it would take a significant amount of power to rouse her before she was rested.

[TruthSayer]

Pysal breathed steadily for a moment, allowing the Dark beneath her control to swirl through the enclosure, seeking out and absorbing the stray power the girl had left behind before she placed a pale hand on the inner rock of the dome, and pushed gently; the dome began to shake, not disturbing the ground on which she stood, as it began to collapse, first the outer powers, then the solid interior itself as it melted into the rock form which it came. In seconds, the only power left thrumming in the wood was Pysal’s own, a dark shade that obscured the girl’s nude form from view.

“Crya,” Pysal said, eyes closed to the bright sunlight, eyes always tender to such things, “the girl needs clothing.”

Crya, the human among their Craft, came forward from where she had been standing safely away, and rummaged around in the pack she carried around her middle, pulling from it a simple green jerkin and pants before she disappeared into the shroud. Following her, Pysal also walked behind the shadow, pulling a copper necklace from her pocket.

“Is- Will she be all right?” Duto asked, eyes wide as he watched Demail lift the girl’s dead sister into his arms, the giant as gentle with her corpse as though he were lifting his own child, and shift the earth into a grave.

“YOU FUCKING IDIOT!”

Gabriel was suddenly so close to Duto’s face that Duto everything but his father’s furious eyes was nothing more than a blur. “Dad, I-“

“You what?!” Gabriel snarled, twisting his hands into the cloak around Duto’s shoulders, shoving the fabric up into Duto’s neck. “You what?! Do have any idea what could have happened to you? You NEVER approach a Realizing Elemental without backup!”

“I didn’t know she was Realizing!”

“You didn’t know what the fuck was going on either way, you stupid little shit!” Gabriel spat, turning to point a shaking finger at the girl obscured behind the shadow. “Girls like that don’t travel alone, kid! Girls like that have family here that could have taken care of her just fine! But did you think about that?! NO! Did you think about the hours- DAYS! carrying her around with us, worrying about when she’ll wake up and whether or not she’ll be right in the head when she does is going to cost us?!”

“I didn’t mean-“

“You never ‘mean’, do you, Duto? Well, let me tell you that I mean what I say when I tell you that if Hana is dead when we reach Loftas, I’m holding you responsible.”

Duto’s pale face flushed white, his mouth groping for words that would not come in his shock.

“You shut your fucking mouth,” Gabriel snarled, lifting a shaking hand to press a hot palm over Duto’s mouth. “You think you’re some big shot. You think you know it all because you’re going to be a Searcher one day. You don’t know shit. You ain’t nothing but some damn fool brat with big dreams that ain’t gonna run to shit.

“Your fault, Duto. Think about that the next time you decide to run off playing hero.”

Duto watched his adopted father stalk off into the woods, heading in the rough direction of the trail they had been following, tears of anger, humiliation, and disbelief burning the edges of his vision. Taking deep breaths that whistled through his clenched teeth, Duto attempted to calm to the storm of emotions within him, first as backlash from the girl, then Gabriel’s outburst, that upset the calm waters within him to turbulent waves.

“That was harsh,” Lev, Light Elemental, said softly, coming up to Duto and lifting a hand to rest lightly on the boy’s shoulder. “Hana’s death would not be your fault. But it was very stupid to wander so far from us, especially without telling us where you were going first.”

“I didn’t mean-“

“I know you didn’t,” Lev said, looking at Duto with a sober gaze. “Perhaps it was just as foolish of us to allow you to wander away from us in the first place. From now on, you stay with the Craft. Understood?”

Duto bit the inside of his cheek so hard he could taste blood.

“Understood, Duto?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Now, it’s time we get back on track.”

Duto watched as Lev took the path Gabriel had marked through the wood, followed by his Craft mates until only Demail and the unconscious girl remained. At the man’s feet, the ground had been softened in a long oval, beneath which Duto knew lay the girl’s sister.


“Will she be all right, Demail?” Duto asked.

“Dunno,” Demail said, bending to lift the girl into his arms as gently as he had handled her sister. “A lot of Darks go strange when they Realize. Can’t know for sure ‘til she wakes. C'mon. Let's go."

Duto stood silent for a moment, lost in the quiet of the wood and his own thoughts, then turned to follow Demail.

[Tammika]

Raijean had a series of dreams. Some terrifying and horrid, others confusing and disorienting, but each had a similar element. Every one had something to do with releasing her self from dark cords or a dark liquid or some sort of semblance of darkness trying to restrain her, each time she freed herself it got easier and easier.

The last dream was different. She swayed gently in a boat of some kind. The wind blew gently pushing her curly hair into her face. She had been on the water once in her short life and that was when she was very young. She remembered being in her fathers arms as he and her mother stood watching a city or something in the distance. In this dream an outline of a person standing on the water took shape revealing Pim's worn form. Dirty and gaunt as she was just before her death, but with a smile on her face. Tears came to her eyes and she reached out for her. A large hand pulled her arm up and forced her to wave rather than reach out for Pim. Pim smiled and waved back wildly, even laughing as the water splashed around her. Raij turned and looked up at her father and then shifted her eyes over to her mother. "It's alright Jeje. Let her go." Both her parents had tears in their eyes, but smiles on their faces. When she turned back, Pim was gone.

"Papi, mama? ... Pim?" She awoke still feeling the strong arms around her but she knew it was not her father. Briefly she panicked, painfully choking down the black power that threatened to pour from her mouth. She was nineteen years old and despite her worn condition, despite the danger she knew she was was still in out in the wild, Raijean blushed a deep red from the shame of being carried by a total stranger. Something told her he was not an enemy, though she was not sure how she knew this. All she knew was that someone was inconvenienced by carrying her through the forest and she was ashamed. Her thoughts came in an odd order as she tried to say something to him. The force of the pure dark power that had erupted from her had stolen parts of her memory and displaced her sanity to a place slightly out of reach. A common effect of Realization that improved in time for most darks.

She intended to say I'm sorry but the wrong words fell out of her mouth, in a soft horse whisper. "You smell nice." Yes, she was thinking that too. His smell was a very strong mix of forest scents and the typical sweaty maleness, but she didn't ever intend on saying it. "I mean. I'm sorry you have to carry me." For some strange reason she began to giggle but held it in, still aware of danger.

[TruthSayer]

Gabriel had yet to break the silence that grew thick between him and his adopted son. Not one glance passed Duto’s way, and Gabriel radiated such frustration that Duto was hesitant to approach him. In truth, Duto had only seen his father in such a mood one before, and that was just before he’d lost his temper and scorched an entire section of the Valoryan Hills; there was no way Duto would break the standoff.

In truth, Duto knew that what he had done had been reckless. The closer they drew to Loftas and its surrounding settlements, the more they disturbed the undergrowth and wildlife, the greater their chances of discovery. Under normal circumstances, from what his teachers and other Searchers had said, it was dangerous to break into Loftas when the patrols and guards were under normal alert, but when they were expecting something, to approach the city was downright suicidal. Seekers out in mass, patrols from every settlement watching the main roads and game trails surrounding them for ten miles in every direction… It had been why the Craft had decided to take the less travelled path, bypassing the settlements to enter Loftas from behind.

But it would all be for nothing if they were discovered prematurely. And it was possible, after the noise the girl’s Realization had caused, to have an entire contingent of Seekers closing in on them from all sides. Duto could see it in the way the Craft moved. They walked close to each other in a circle that enclosed Demail, Duto, and the girl in the middle. Small fluctuations in power, picked up by the sensitive element flowing through Duto’s soul, surrounded them in a halo as each Craft member did what they could to detect danger approaching. Every hour or so, Pysal and Demail would call the group to a halt, close their eyes, and send their powers out through the undergrowth, and thrice now had to investigate suspicious findings that, thankfully, led to nothing more dangerous than a couple of lone Anvi; at night, the normal one-man watches had expanded to include teams, including even Duto.

Tempers were thin, and Gabriel’s dark cloud did nothing to alleviate the tension. Three days to go, and Duto wondered if they would make it in time.

“How’s tha cut in your leg?”

“Huh?” Duto blinked, raising his eyes from the tangled non-path before him, and looked at Demail.

“I said,” the man rumbled, readjusting the burden in his arms; they’d stumbled across her two days ago, and she had yet to stir, “How’s tha cut in your leg?”

“Oh. Fine. A little angry, but it’s healing well, I think,” Duto answered, shrugging as he turned his eyes back to the vines crisscrossing through the undergrowth; something squealed and crunched beneath his boot, and with a cringe, Duto wondered what he had stepped on.

“You shoulda had Havi look at tha. May be able to do somethin about it.“

Duto shrugged again. “It’s not bothering me much.”

“Suit yourself, th-“ Demail stopped, a light frown pulling down the corners of thin lips as he glanced down at the girl in his arms, head tilted to one side as though trying to catch a whisper. Duto looked at the girl’s face, surprised, relieved, and a little terrified to see it scrunched in confusion as though she tried to muddle through thoughts that no longer made sense.

“You smell nice,” she whispered, voice scratched from screaming, throat probably parched from two days of slumber, then looked confused at what she said, and amended, “I mean, I’m sorry you have to carry me.”

“Naw, little faun,” Demail said, voice far more gentle than Duto could ever remember hearing it as the hard look in his eyes softened and a rarely used smile played around the corners of his mouth, although his ruddy cheeks colored a bit at her first words. “You don’t weigh no more than a feather.”

“Are you thirsty?” Duto asked, words just as quiet, as he called the moisture from the air around them and formed a small sphere that hovered over the palm of his hand, and tipped it to the girl’s lips.

Around them, the rest of the Craft and Gabriel had stopped and watched, all but Pysal, who had her eyes closed and was most likely Casting their surroundings for danger.

OOC: Faun- Havoth young, and an endearment that is used on young girls.

[Tammika]

There was something solid and comforting about Demail that made Raijean settle close and listened to his deep voice echo in his chest. She practically purred as he spoke, but the spell was broken as the water was thrust in her face.

There were very few water kind in her small group and pure water was scarce. She was accustomed to using the purifier, so she was surprised, even though Duto was gentle, when this perfect globe of liquid formed before her eyes above his hand. She hesitated and shrunk back from him at first, looking to Demail for assurance.

Finally, she leaned into the water and let it trickle down her throat, drinking every drop. She licked her dry lips and smiled at him, watching him closely for a moment. The moment stretched out over a full minute or so before she final spoke again.

"Thank you." It was getting easier to be able to control her words, but it still didn't help with the weird things she had already let slip.

[TruthSayer]

"D'you want some more?" Duto asked, waving a hand, calling forth another sphere.

"No time for that," Pysal said, eyes sliding open. For a moment, they were pure black, her mind absorbed in her power as she called it back to her; shadows around them shivered, expanding like a balloon before deflating to their original forms, and Pysal's eyes were their normal brown once again. "We should make camp."

"Make camp?!" Gabriel asked, incredulous. "It's not even noon! We could easily make another fifteen miles before nightfall!"

"Perhaps," Pysal said, eying Gabriel with displeasure, "But traveling with this girl until I determine her state of mind is too dangerous to attempt. She could kill us all in a blink."

"Then leave her behind," Gabriel snarled, earning himself glares from every member of their party.

Heard, but ignored, Gabriel watched in frustration as the group separated, some gathering supplies for the night, others clearing the small patch of undergrowth that would serve as their camp. Demail settled onto a rock, the girl still held against his chest, smiling at her as if she were his own long lost child. Duto sat with them, talking softly to the girl, holding up spheres of water for her to drink, not in the least bit concerned about his own mother. Gabriel cursed at the sight of it and spat on the ground before turning on his heel and walking into the undergrowth.

"At least he didn' burn nothing down this time," Demail said, watching the spot where Gabriel disappeared.

"He's worried," Duto said, a small, forced smile on his lips for the benefit of the girl alone.

"All right, Demail," Pysail said, sitting cross-legged in front of the man after pushing Duto gently out of the way. "She needs to sit up. You may still hold her if she wishes."

"Up now, little faun," Demail said, "You heard the woman."

Vorgith had been following the party of Reachers for several minutes when they stopped to make camp.
He had been following from a distance behind, using their footfalls and the eyes of some small insects to track them as they made their way to the old forest trail. He also realised that the girl they were carrying was going through her Realization. If she had been a Reacher then they never would have let her come so close to Loftas during this critical time. She had to be a wilder, and where there was one there would be more.
He had senses the girls power through the very earth, so strong was her outburst, and the Seeker had raced away from his desired hiding place to reach the source of the disturbance. He had almost missed the presence of the others, but felt them just before he raced into the clearing, keeping him from exposing himself like a first year of the Academy at the last moment.

He had scaled a tree instead, using muscles as opposed to power to hide himself as he got a better perspective of the scene.
What he saw was carnage. There were five dead, four being seekers, one of the Hunter squads if Vorgith knew his uniforms. The fifth was an unknown, a child of some kind that had died differently to the seekers, maybe exsanguination, maybe something else.
Whatever had happened, Vorgith very nearly lost his temper right there. However, he managed to control himself, practicing his breathing exercises as he watched the group. After they left he quickly made his way down to the ground, and examined the bodies the Reachers had ignored. They were all certainly dead, obviously the girl had done this by the way they had died. He searched the Seekers for the few pieces of equipment he knew they would have secreted away, then set off after the group.
As he followed them he heard snippets of their conversation on the wind, enough to know they had not noticed his presence yet.

Now he was waiting for them to settle down. He was going to get the girl, and return her to the Palace for ‘processing’ after what she did to the hunter squad. However, he would need to round up the students, as if they stumbled across this lot there would be more than a few dead seekers to worry about, let alone the fact that the enemy were less than half a day’s walk from the walls of Loftas
He pulled from his belt several small tubes, about half an inch long each. He held them to his face and whispered “find the students and bring them to me, tell them to be silent.”
There was a pause, the suddenly the tubes let out a low hum, then took to the air, growing a small gossamer wings and shot off, sniffing out their targets to deliver the message.
Vorgith settled in, putting his hands to the earth and feeling the presence of the Reachers and their captive wilder. He just hoped he didn’t have to wait too long.

[Tammika]

Raijean flinched at the sound of Gabriel's voice shooting him a look mixed with fear and anger. His voice pierced her already muddled thoughts making her grab the sides of her head. A black hand armed with torturous nightmares shifted within her longing to lash out and silence his yelling, but she suppressed it. Through all this she breathed heavy, her chest heaving and gutteral grunts escaping with each exhale. The conversation that took place after it went unheard... until Demail spoke again, his voice calming her, soothing her.

"Up now, little faun." She sighed, casting a lazy smile at him. After a few deep breaths she sat up, again she reacquainted herself with her surroundings. Each moment, not spent fighting her surging emotions she was becoming more and more lucid. For the first time she noticed the other people around her. She stared back at them wide eyed and a little embarrassed.

[TruthSayer]

Around Pysal, Demail, and the girl, Craft members finished gathering supplies and clearing the campsite, a fire roaring into immediate existence at the center and bedrolls were rolled out beside its warmth. All was ready for the night to come, but not one Craft member bedded down for rest. Centering was dangerous in the open, especially for Dark Elementals whose primary job it was to locate approaching threats. It required focusing entirely on a single person, blocking out all else while entering that person's psyche to subdue and teach control over wayward emotions that could mean the easy destruction of everything within a mile-radius of the newly Realized should they get out of hand. In the safety of Aisling's Reach, such a process could take weeks between a newly Realized and their assigned Regulators, but time was short and their situation more and more dangerous the closer they came to Loftas; there was no time for gentle prodding in the right direction, no time to properly orient the girl to her new found abilities as would happen inside the walls of Absolution. What must be done had to be done quickly, lest they chance discovery and the centering be forced to end too soon; such a thing was potentially detrimental to the newly Realized, but to travel into a potential firefight with one who had little to no control over their powers was suicidal.

All members of the Craft knew this, and so spread out in a circular pattern around those in the middle, sending tendrils of their individual powers out into the undergrowth in full alert for danger.

"I am Pysal," Pysal said with a kind smile, voice purposefully gentle as she took the girl's hand in her own. "Your Realization has come upon you and because of that, you are very dangerous to us now. There is a way to help with that, but it would require me to touch your mind, something I will not do without your permission. Touching your mind will allow me to help piece your mind back together and alleviate the confusion you feel. Do I have permission to touch your mind?"

~*~


Gladyn stopped so suddenly Iro had to rise on tiptoes to keep from running into his back.

"Will you stop doing that?" Iro grunted, irritated.

"Shut up!" Gladyn snapped, head tilted to one side as though listening to something very far off. The flesh on his arms tingled as disturbances in the air brushed against him, barely felt within the caress of the soft breeze. Something was coming toward them at high speeds, and at the moment, Gladyn was unsure exactly what it was; in the Wilds, it could be anything from an gnat to a shadow sphinx. "Something's coming."

~*~


"What does it say?" Hackor asked, as he and Truvan stood around Claudia.

"Vorgith summons us," Claudia said, eyes closed as she concentrated on the tube cupped in her hands.

"Does the byrd tell you why?" Truvan asked, frowning in confusion.

"No, just to be quick and silent," Claudia answered, releasing the byrd and watching it flit around them for a moment more before flying off the way it came, pausing just within eyesight to wait for them.