-╪ Tuatha De Dannan ╪- [ Medieval Fantasy / Steampunk ]

[Talise Anora]

Small, nimble fingers were preoccupied with rolling up scrolls and sliding them into their cases when the sudden BOOM of the door knocker startled Nae from her happy chore. She jumps with a squeak, the scroll falling from her hands to bounce on the floor as both of her palms come up to press against her heart, now beating like mad.

"Goodness," she breathes, taking a moment to calm her racing heart. A wave of embarrassment flushes over her features. How silly to be so affected by something as simple as a knock on the door!

Quickly she bends down to retrieve the errant scroll. As she slides it into the safety of the case she receives the whispered message from her teacher with instructions regarding their visitors. Nodding to no one in particular, she sets the case in a pile with the others and hurries from the library towards the main entry way.

Crossing over the massive nautical star imprinted in stone in the main foyer, she releases the magical wards keeping lock on the door and activates the rune that will part the doors. She steps back out of the way as the enormous doors slowly swing open and looks out to see who their visitors might possibly be. Her eyebrows raise in surprise at the weary and unruly seeming bunch standing before her... well, except for the little one in the front... she is more drooping...

"Welcome to the Tower of the Kae'dryn" she greets them as soon as she remembers her voice. "How can I ... um.. help you?"

I am a leaf on the wind...

 

[Urban Thorne]

As the various magical wards on the other side of the door began to unweave themselves, Asmyrra couldn't help but shift back one or two steps... It had been far too long since she had been home to feel such powerful Weavings, and even then such things had been uncommon. Only the most obnoxiously showy of the Kael'dorei magi had bothered with such intricate works.

As such, her movement was probably a precursor to the doors themselves actually parting, and revealing... a girl? Those slanted violet eyes widened faintly in surprise as Asmyrra studied the very young woman standing within the shadows cast by the high arch of the doorway, her mind whirring in contemplation. This was certainly not the Kae'Dryn.

But even with her weariness, the curse of her memory managed to sift out a tidbit to answer the surprise in Asmyrra... Of course. This was one of the whispered apprentices that had somehow managed to catch the Kae'Dryn's attention. She had heard of such folks when she was very young, but her parents had been quite capable of of teaching her the Weave on their own. But... Talise's story nagged faintly at her mind, reminding her that appearances could be deceiving...

As such, she cleared her throat softly, her mind carefully shaping and entwining the threads of the Weave to enact a simple detection of magical energies... After all, calling upon sight shown truly would probably be discernible by one as accomplished as the Kae'Dryn was said to be. When nothing about the girl showed itself to be unusually magical, she absently smoothed tattooed hands over her traveling robes as she stepped forward, offering a polite bow as she marshaled her voice.

"My name is Asmyrra te'Taeryunn, magi of the city of Caledryss. My companions and I," she said in that purring soprano, one thin-boned hand gesturing to her compatriots, "have come from the distant south to beseech the Kae'Dryn. A terrible beast has begun to emerge from some kind of magical portal, and it devastates whatever it appears near... We can only hope she has some idea of what this creature is, and how we can turn the tides against it..."  

[Urban Thorne]

Minai chan

"I'll take a look at them with you, I guess," her response slightly distracted. "But I really shouldn't meet them myself. After all, I'm supposed to be a myth. Besides with their loyalty to Johannes so strong, I'm certain both Ky and Asmyrra would feel the need to share my existence with him."

The ancient magi offered her compatriot a faintly reassuring smile as she made her way towards the balcony encircling the hollow center of the tower, those slanted golden eyes already beginning to lose focus as she settled her long-nailed hands on the railing. As her reluctant companion settled in beside her, one of those hands absently drifted out, unwinding a silken rope from one of the many hooks affixed to the railing, presumably for managing some of the heavy curtains that appeared to be able to be lowered for privacy draped from the roof. Canting her head to a thoughtful degree, those crystalline tones emerged, a hint of teasing amusement flickering in their depths.

"Oh, I would probably guess you could remain undetected by those at the door from these heights," she stated quietly. "However... it would depend on you being mindful and behaving," the ancient Spellweaver concluded, those golden eyes flickering in Ash's general direction. Leaning forward, the slender magi listened to the sounds below her, the natural acoustics and careful application of the Weave making the various voices below quiet, but clearly understandable, still idly playing with that rope between her thin fingers.

"...You say that Johannes sent these people north, to seek me out? Quite the odd collection... a Kael'dorei mage, some kind of knight, the last of the ancient Rosso line, and a Gypsy... None of those seem particularly diplomatic. Or was Johannes hoping to appeal to my renown sense of compassion and justice," those soft alto tones quipped, a hint of flippancy entering the syllables towards the end, indicating the silliness of such a concept...  

[Cheshiyre]

Urban Thorne

"...You say that Johannes sent these people north, to seek me out? Quite the odd collection... a Kael'dorei mage, some kind of knight, the last of the ancient Rosso line, and a Gypsy... None of those seem particularly diplomatic. Or was Johannes hoping to appeal to my renown sense of compassion and justice," those soft alto tones quipped, a hint of flippancy entering the syllables towards the end, indicating the silliness of such a concept...

Settling beside the smaller magi at the railing, Ash smirks faintly at the implication of Relm's query.

"Seeing how I came to see you and I do not want to meet them," she quips back playfully, "it would reason that Johannes is not responsible for them being here, don't you think?"

Her brow furrows as she considers the arrival of their visitors. "No, Asmyrra and Ky were sent out to follow leads provided by their gypsy escort. She just showed up at camp one day, out of the blue. Originally Ky would have led the party and Asmyrra would have stayed with the rest of the troop. Unfortunately that recent attack on Azzy forced Johannes's hand. Sending her with Ky's group seemed the best way to get her out of immediate danger. With, of course, the added bonus that if a gypsy is leading them they'd probably be constantly on the move." She shrugs softly. "Might help keep Uriel away from her if she's harder to find."

"I'm not sure what the gypsy's game is, but I'd bet she is the reason they are here. She is Elven. Surely she has many stories featuring the fabeled Kae'dryn." The angel's voice shifts lower, reflecting in sadness. "I've heard the Beast has hit the caravans pretty hard."
 

[Urban Thorne]

Unfocused golden eyes narrowed faintly at Ash's words, the mind behind them going through various ideas and replies... Eventually, a sigh and a shake of her head emerged, the ancient magi straightening from where she was leaning, "watching" the people in the entryway of her tower. When that soft alto voice emerged once more, it was tinged with a shade of irritation.

"Uriel... Speak of one whom the War should have claimed. That man was always more dangerous with his tongue than his blades... Why do I not find myself surprised that he is behind the attempts on your pet Weaveshaper," she queried quietly as she straightened. Shaking her head again, those pale features firmed into a distinct frown as those chime-like tones continued. "And it does speak of something of the distance your Weaveshaper has had with her homelands... The biggest difference between the humans and Gypsies, and the cities up here, is that the Kael'dorei have better ways of fleeing the Beast..."

That frown remained in place for a few moments longer, golden eyes downcast as the Kae'Dryn considered her next course of action. Up until this point, she had remained more or less neutral in the events surrounding this Beast, but... Perhaps it was time for the game to be shifted to a more even playing field. Nodding faintly to herself, one long-nailed hand offered the silken rope it was toying with to Ash, a hint of an impish smile appearing. "Hold this for me, dear? I will deal with securing it correctly once our 'guests' are attended to..."  

[Talise Anora]

Curious chocolate eyes blink a few times, accentuating the silence as Nae attempts to process this very official sounding speech. She traces a cursory glance over the militaristic appearing magi addressing her, then she sends her gaze to examine the other members of this sparse party. The droopy one and the man look to be human, the other two are eleven. What a strange group of friends!

"You mean you came all this way to.." she lets the words die off before the sentence is finished. Troubled, she bites her lower lip and chews on it thoughtfully as she considers what to do with them. The Kae'dryn isn't in the habit of helping random off-beat travelers, no matter how noble sounding their quest. Still.. she'd feel horribly guilty if she just turned them away without even trying to sway her eccentric mistress.

With a resigned sigh she steps away from the door and moves back a little, granting them admittance into the large circular entry way.

"Oh, come in. I cannot promise she will see you, but I will try." Motioning with a small hand to the lovely carving of the nautical star adorning the center of the entrance. "Please wait there while I summon the Kae'dryn."

I am a leaf on the wind...

 

[Rikki Tikki Travi]

Ky breathed a half hearted sigh of relief. While pleased that he still had his being intact, he was still quite anxious to meet the Kae'drynn. At least there was a chance this young elf could sway her mistress toward hearing their plea.

He smiled politely and bowed his head to the young lady. "We appreciate this opportunity more than words could possibly express."

Ky followed his commander and the haggard Domoni into the entryway with Talise still on his arm. Azure eyes took in the surroundings with great interest. He gasped lightly yet audibly, "By the heavens. I had read about such architectural feats in stories. To see such splendor with my own eyes is truly breathtaking."

He looked to his compatriots, eager to see if they shared his moment of awe.  

[Cheshiyre]

Urban Thorne

That frown remained in place for a few moments longer, golden eyes downcast as the Kae'Dryn considered her next course of action. Up until this point, she had remained more or less neutral in the events surrounding this Beast, but... Perhaps it was time for the game to be shifted to a more even playing field. Nodding faintly to herself, one long-nailed hand offered the silken rope it was toying with to Ash, a hint of an impish smile appearing. "Hold this for me, dear? I will deal with securing it correctly once our 'guests' are attended to..."

Azure eyes traced over Relm's thoughtful features as the magi considered her next course of action. In spite of her deep affection and trust of the small woman standing before her, Ash could not help but feel trepidation concerning the upcoming meeting between her friend and these travelers. Memories of the last great war were lurking there, somewhere in the back of her mind, releasing soft warning bells in her head. Relm was not in the habit of getting involved in the trials and perils of the younger races. It took the near extinction of the dragons to push her into the last great war, and the consequences were disastrous. There were no winners in that war. Everyone lost.

Ash nods in quiet acquiescence to the arcanist's request, idly stealing the silken rope away. She pays little heed to the explanation of the purpose of the crimson threads now wrapped around her palm. The troubled angel's thoughts are far too focused on the upcoming introduction to really care what the rope is for.
 

[Talise Anora]

A beautiful roaring scream, of joy and sorrow so extreme...

Talise cannot help but to smirk in amusement at Ky's gallantry to their young elven hostess, nor his exclamation over the tower decor.

And here I thought he was just a flirt. Maybe he is just a knight in shining armor at heart! she thinks with amusement. Eying their hostess again, her eyes sparkle with mischievous delight. Perhaps he'll catch himself a pretty little elven maid as reward for his chivalry.

She inwardly grins and squeezes his arm in support.

"Indeed, it is quite magnificent!" she offers enthusiastically, attempting to match the sophistication of her tone to his (in slight teasing). "But I suppose we should expect nothing less from a magi of legend."

With a grin and a wink to Ky, cluing him in on the teasing, she directs her gaze to the little elven lass. "Tell me, is your mistress within today?"

There is a love in me raging. A joyous, magical feeling...

 

[Urban Thorne]

Making her way down the stairs, those sharp ears listened to the words being offered by the newest guests of her tower. The ancient magi tracked the entrance of these four strangers through the soft vibrations of the wards below, her unfocused eyes half-closed in concentration. Passing one of the doors, her steps paused, a faint smile playing across her lips as she felt a familiar energy hiding in the shadows... Indeed, she allowed the nails of one hand to begin playing against the surface of the wall as she continued her descent, something that her shadowy observer knew was entirely unnecessary for her safe passage.

Listening to the ramble of the gypsy and the knight, the Kae'Dryn had vague difficulty tracking the exact location of the other Weaveshaper, beyond the faint energy aura she radiated. Indeed, the soft shuffle of boots across the floor actually made the last member of the ill-fated Rosso family much easier to place. Only a few more steps...

There.

Naelonni had followed her directions exactly... All four of the intruders were standing within the hollow center of her tower. A single flicker of one of those long-nailed hands slashed the restraining threads on several of the wards. Surrounding the four companions, a faintly opaque wall seemed to snap, almost audibly, into being, cutting off their access to the doors and steps, indeed, any sort of exit except for directly up. It served nicely to place a barrier between Naelonni and these miscreants, as well as hold them in place.

As the already subtle lighting began to dim around the four folks below, that chime-like alto voice emerged, easily amplified by another shaping of the Weave.

"Indeed, the mistress of the tower is within today. And indeed, the mistress of the tower is quite curious why four unwelcomed strangers have brought themselves so far from their homes, at such late hours, to force their presence upon a person who usually makes a habit of turning such intrusions into a rather sharp example to others...," the softly menacing voice echoed ominously from the shadow-enshrouded upper floors of the tower...  

[Urban Thorne]

Night had fallen over the forests, the sounds of the evening animals had begun to emerge. The light of one of the two moons had begun to filter through the heavy pine boughs that made up the canopy of the Clansmen's lands, the soft bite of the cool air almost seeming to sharpen the pinpricks of light that marked each of the stars glittering overhead. It almost seemed as though it was a peaceful night...

Almost.

Instead, beneath those inky shadows cast by the rising moon, huge, hulking figures noisily ambled between the trunks of the trees, their small (comparatively) eyes peering greedily at the small flickering lights of the village down in the valley below. These creatures were no stranger to such raids... Indeed, they enjoyed the rampant destruction they managed to inflict on the tiny human inhabitants of these lands even more than the torture of their other forest-dwelling kin. Amid the thuds and crashes of footfalls, the occasional rumbling chuckle or crude word muttered between the giants could be heard as they moved forward.

Finally, the "signal" came; In each small group of the mountain giants, there was one who had been vigorously working a crude firebow, coaxing a flame to life between their hands. As those small fires began to burn, a rough guffaw of triumph emerged as equally rough torches coated in some aweful-smelling grease was applied to the flickering flames. The grease did its work well; The torch burst into sudden flame in the hands of some dozen of the five-meter tall men, illuminating the two or three companions they had. Companions who offered forth their own torches to ignite.

The growing amount of smoky firelight illuminated the forest in a cacophony of shadows and blinding flashes, clearly showing the thirty or so giants moving towards the sleeping village. But it also illuminated another force... Between the giants and the village stood men and women, all armed and armoured to varying degrees, ready to protect their homes, or the homes of their kin. The Clansmen had been prepared for this push... Winter was the time that the giants were most insistent on expanding their borders into Clansmen lands...

The sight of the fighters caused those hulking figures to pause for a moment, almost as though their simple brains were trying to figure out what to make of it. But the moment passed with unfortunate swiftness, as a crude shout of rage and eagerness exploded from one of the hulking figures. Torches were hurled towards the arrayed groups of humans, and the hulking giants charged forward...

 

[BeaMichelle]

The flames coming from the torches danced on emerald eyes. Eyes that only moments ago were kind and lovely. Now they were calous and burning with warrior spirit. Those eyes tracked the movement of the torches as they made their deadly arc toward the perimeter that had set up hours ago.

Kari Liulfr's gaze strayed only for a moment to see where the other torches had landed. She was pleased to see that no one was injured by such a barbaric attempt at a first strike. She could feel her blood begin to burn, her limbs and muscles tightening. It was time.

The Liulfr clan began to beat their weapons against their shields at a rhytmic pace. The beat was slow at first, but wasted no time in quickening it's tempo. Kari let out a sharp exhale with each impact. For a moment she swore she could feel the Clansmen become one spirit. She was aware of all, and knew what would be lost should they fall. But there was no question of if. They would not fall. Her clan's shields would defend to the last infant.

All at once the beating stopped, and Kari cried out in burning defiance along with her kin. The warriors charged to meet their hulking adversaries, each contingent accompanied by one of her kin. She rushed behind her assigned party, ready to raise her family crest in their defense.  

[Urban Thorne]

Battle waged against the mountain giants was always a delicate matter for the Clansmen. It was known that the hulking creatures were ridiculously tough, their thick, dirty skin shrugging off all but the most direct of blows, their flesh not bruising or cutting easily. It was also known that the massive creatures, usually between twelve and fifteen feet tall, were insanely strong... Failing to avoid one of their crude strikes, or block it correctly, usually ended with fatal results...

But the Clansmen had been forced to learn to fight these creatures, both harshly and quickly. Armour was of no real use to the men and women standing against the brutes, so it was often not worn. Instead, those men and women were often armed with either two-handed weapons, standing at range and trying to infuriate them with bows, or were the truly brave (many said crazy) who approached to very close range, wielding either dual one-handed weapons or a pairing of shield and axe or sword.

As the two lines of combatants met, the long, pike-like weapons of the Clansmen forced the hulking giants to slow their mad charge somewhat, allowing the brutal slugging match to begin between the two forces. Crude, heavy clubs studded with whatever sharp and pointy objects could be embedded into them were wielded with more strength than skill by the giants, shattering pike hafts and bodies wherever they met. Clansmen countered by keeping their groupings loose, allowing the warriors to dodge unhindered, marked by the occasional brave soul who tried to deflect the clubs up and away from them, redirecting the force of the blows rather than absorbing or stopping it.

The group Kari was with found itself quickly matched against a quartet of the giants. Several of the men harried the brutes, their warbling cries and taunts attempting to distract the simple creatures while the truly "dangerous" fighters waited for openings, their heavy greatswords and axes known to be the most likely tools for bringing the hulking figures to a more manageable height. Indeed, the swift sprint forward accompanied by the heavy slash or chop of those weapons showed swift deployment against the knees and hamstrings of the giants, bringing them crashing down when a strong enough blow was dealt.

But such a blow did not often happen the first try, sadly... And even as simple a mind as those giants possessed could quickly process the sharp pain and weakness that emerged every time one of those heavy blades scored home. The reaction was swift; The crude club humming through the air, attempting to turn those irritations to a bloody paste. The Clansmen were very familiar with this inevitability, and many of them managed to dodge or deflect the swings.

Never did an encounter go perfectly, however... As was amply demonstrated when the wind whistling around the crude studs of one such club brutally terminated against a man near Kari who almost managed to dodge to the side... His body almost knocking Kari to the ground as he was sent tumbling through the air to crash against a nearby tree with an agonized scream, pursued by the earth-shaking stomping steps of one of the giants...

 

[Talise Anora]

A beautiful roaring scream, of joy and sorrow so extreme...

Moving to stand where the young eleven girl motioned, the little mocha skinned gypsy cannot help that her eyes flicker down to the floor beneath her feet. The large mural of the nautical star was beautifully painted and she found it highly artistic in an arcane sort of way. Like everything else here. Old but attractive., she muses to herself, glancing up to look around the circular entrance hall they have stopped in.

Her nonchalant demeanor quickly changes when without warning opaque walls snap up along the perimeter of the nautical star. Inwardly she curses herself for being so stupid as to underestimate the defenses of the Kae'dryn. Her grip on Ky's arm tightens as her gaze follows the opaque wall around, around, around.. no way out there.. blue-grey eyes shift up the magical barrier, faintly surprised to see that the wall does not have some type of confining roof. Stretching her neck back, she raises her gaze to the ceiling just above their heads.

Dangling from the impossibly high ceiling of the tower and perfectly situated above them hangs a massive chandelier. The black wrought iron base ornamented with curled spirals and.. of course.. long, diamond shaped spikes, which just so happen to point in a direction conducive to skewering anything that might be so unlucky as to be in its path should it come crashing down, say.. upon their heads.

This cannot be good.

There is a love in me raging. A joyous, magical feeling...

 

[Talise Anora]

Stepping away from the new group of guests, the pretty elven apprentice then moves towards the stairs to alert her mistress that everything has been done as she asked. The sound of the barrier erecting causes her to pause momentarily, her curiosity piqued. But it is the intimidating alto voice resounding against the stone walls that causes her to jump faintly and twirl around to face the newcommers once more. The poor young mage gasps at the sight of the opaque walls surrounding the helpless group. Small hands come up to press against her cheeks, her eyes as big as saucers.

"Oh no!" she whispers almost too quietly to hear.

She cannot let her mistress eat them! What does she do?? Filled with dread, her gaze shifts upward to find the pale magi descending the stairs.

Please, please just be trying to scare them! The silent plea never escaping her quivering lips.

I am a leaf on the wind...