The call goes out on wings and scales–apparently there is a use to pupils after all–spreading the word of an expedition. A party of kin that will leave the swamp and see a world unknown to them. The message talks of the Obelisk and beams of light that lead beyond what they know. It stirs curiosity and fear and hope and the need to follow.
Eventually, Lull in Sunlight stands in the midst of kin gathering in wonder. She narrows her eyes at the lot of them, sizing them up until she is satisfied that a few of them won't die on the journey. She knows they, too, are sizing her up; the Ache weighs heavy on the mind of all kin who reside in the swamp and to hear, what to them must be rumors, about a traveling party that will journey out of the swamp...
She respects the thread of caution and fear that some of them present, even as she resents the thought of being slowed down. The knowledge she seeks is so close and yet so far. Going alone, however, is not an option. She needs them as much as they need her. This is something they must do together.
Above, her half-visible gryphon form lets out a shrill shriek then vanishes as she grins as the silence that falls over the group. Antsy hooves and chattering mouths still as attention focuses on her. Good; they can learn and listen. Both will be important for their survival. While she would not weep should any of them collapse, she has no wish for any of them to die. The more of them that remain alive, the better. "This journey is not for the faint of heart," she reminds the group that has responded to the call and assembled before her. "Stay close and the Ache will not trouble you. Do not straggle or else you will lose all the protection my presence promises you."
With a nod towards the back, she turns and looks at the landscape before them. They have a long ways to go and no time to lose. And she knows for many of them that the first step will be the hardest. She may as well be asking them to step off a cliff.
At the back, Bitter Heartbeat stands. From his mentor's nod, he begins to beat out a steady rhythm that becomes louder. It leaks out from him like a gushing breeze and every kin will feel the bloom of courage erupt within them. This feeling is just enough valor to overcome any fear or anxiety, granting them the power to follow the mare on the journey they have all been drawn to; it won't last long and he will follow along in case terror should seize anyone once it wears off.
It's now or never. Before them lies the edges of the swamp that few have traversed. It will be arduous and difficult, for them all. At the end, she knows it will be worth it for they are following the will of the Great Crane.
Lull in Sunlight begins to walk forward; it's time for the swamp born to see the plains of their cousins.
Posted: Sat Jul 23, 2016 8:25 pm
It wasn't long before Evolve heard about the expedition. Well, of course, her mother was a Legendary and Rise & Shine was always a hive of information.
The family spoke about it at dinner, everyone in attendance and with Once Forgotten fussing around them, happiest when they were all together. At first she’d only half-listened as her father was talking with a mix of wistfulness and horror, about the journey he’d endured to get to the Swamp. Of how he had left the plains behind with his brothers and sisters, on a foolish journey to find their father. He’d even started to get slightly teary-eyed when he described the plains, of the endless grass and rolling clouds. She’d scoffed but an idea had formed, a thought that niggled and wouldn’t let go.
That was how Evolve found herself in the chattering group. She kept to herself, silent and watchful, hooves planted firmly in the earth, as if ready for anything. If she was nervous, it didn’t show. She hardly reacted to the gryphon screech, just let out a breath through her nose and listened. I am not faint of heart, she would have declared but it was unnecessary. It was written in the lines of every muscle.
Her heart beat with the rhythm, filled her body with fire as she turned to follow Lull In Sunlight.
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Posted: Sun Jul 24, 2016 4:05 pm
Word of the expedition came from the Zikwa, the slender winkled skinned kin collected gossip like water and poured it into Conquest's ears. She in turned called in the group and called for an volunteer to take on the expedition and to return to her with information.
Scrape wasn't sure now why she had stepped forward, so eager and sure that she should go. Her nerves had ate at her as Howlback had quietly led her away, following the blue doe through the swamp to the meeting place.
Spring Forth was a firm and relaxed form at her side and if he wasn't worried, perhaps she could do this.
Scrape shifted, moving slightly at Lull in Sunlight spoke, slightly spooked but willing. It was unknown, it was something she had never seen. Oooh... the music started and it swelled through her. Thick and heavy, beating in a time she couldn't place. She could do this. They could do this. Just had to take the first step.
Posted: Sun Jul 24, 2016 7:41 pm
Little Lady had heard the gossip, though if one asked she wouldn't be able to explain where. She didn't remember, and, honestly, she didn't think it mattered. When news reached her ears the curious creature had immediately said goodbye to her neighbors, running off to where she was told everything would begin.
The Ache had not been quite noticeable to Little Lady at first. She lived a life where she had been content within the swamp. When she dared, once, to try and leave she learned immediately why others had warned. That had sealed the questions floating within her head. The outside become a nagging thought in her head, lurking and nipping each time her brain wandered. Finally, when the gossip hit her she ran, avoiding telling her family. When she arrived she had been surprised to see others around, meeting her ambition with their own.
The ascended that spoke had caught her off-guard, her eyes lost on their form before tailing to the mouth that spoke fierce words. The time was now, and she had made a decision. Whatever was out there she was going to reach, whether it was safe or not.
This was big, and it was time she did something significant.
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Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2016 11:24 am
The mare turned, careful in her forward motion, to see that she was indeed being followed. Among the mass of bodies moving behind her, she took notice of a kiokote--the green streaks made her vibrant in the swamp's muddy, desaturated colors. Behind there were also a pink doe, muzzle paled, with markings reminiscent of blood spatter from a hunt or fight, as well as a dark haired doe. They were not the only ones that made up the expedition, of course, but for now they stood out to her.
A tingle began in her chest as the borrowed courage--she'd not needed it but she respected the stag's foresight in granted it to their party--began to fade away. No different than slumber dissipating from limbs, it was a bit sharp, and her footfalls became more pronounced until the sensation vanished. The time to dawdled was gone, if it had ever been, and she hoped the group would not fracture as fear began to scratch against their skulls.
"The plains," she began, knowing within her that they needed reassurance, "are beautiful. Imagine it, grass the color of growth, or striking gold to white blindness, rising to your knees as the wind blows through bending their stalks like a rippling wave." She didn't turn, continued on, but her voice carries back, "Have you heard stories of it?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2016 11:36 am
Streams of Silver wouldn't miss this for the world. She hadn't been able to make it to the site of the original Obelisk, not with the original party, and she had always regretted the lost opportunity. The steps that had allegedly been followed had yielded nothing as impressive as the stories had promised... and beyond that, this offered an opportunity to tread lands beyond the reach of the swamp without succumbing to the vagaries of the Ache.
The tiny doe stayed at the edge of the group, listening intently to Lull's speech, then pawing out the rhythm set by Bitter Heartbeat. When they began their march, she marched along, forging along a steady pace– she didn't need to be at the front– just not to lag behind.
"I have," the doe responded. And, after a moment of hesitation, "I've dreamt of them, too," she recounted, a little more quietly.
Minstrel arrives just as the Stag's hoof beats stop. Moonflower and him had argued for long days and nights over who should join this journey. She refused to go, saying as tribe leader she shouldn't leave the swamp. He had insisted as a Kiokote she had a duty to see her mother's lands and record what information she could. Finally Acorn had stepped in, siding with her daughter. He couldn't be mad, as much as Minstrel thought Moonflower should see her ancestral homelands, he too wanted to see them, to experience first hand the things Acorn had described.
Only a little worry gnawed at him as he watched Lull in Sunlight step toward the plains. Surely the MotherFather's chosen would not lead such a risky trip if they could not provide for the kin following. No, his worry was about what they'd find out on the plains. He hadn't actually seen the obelisk, but they'd all heard of it. He hoped it was not an omen of doom, but there was always that little voice in his head saying 'What if?' Especially since he had searched and questioned and looked, but jot so much as a hint of a story had ever been told of the obelisk before now. And what he's heard about it suggests it's too big a thing to just jot see.
His mind running in circles over all that's been happening, Minstrel picks his way through the crowed. Not to he in the very front, with the Ache and being left behind behind a very real risk being at the edges could prove dangerous, but somewhere not quite in the center. Close enough to the rest to feel safe, close enough to the edge to see whatever there is to see.
Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 8:59 am
This was an opportunity Willow simply couldn't pass up. Whispers of the Obelisk had reached her far and wide in her travels; it seemed every corner of the swamp was abuzz with stories. It was a shame she'd missed the first expedition, but this time Willow was ready. Fueled by word of a second trip, she answered the call, her crane scouts at her side as they usually were when not off surveying the landscape.
Learning the swamp, mentally mapping its terrain, its landmarks, the things that made it special in that ordinary sort of way... this had been a goal of Willow's since her youth. Curiosity of the world around them was what drove her onward, just as it did now, to see the land beyond their home. How could she say no to such a monumental chance?
Willow stayed towards the edge of the group, eager for a good view of the sights they'd see, with Waving Vine close enough to reach out and touch. Sunset, on the other hand, was a crane as adventurous as her handler. Mingling among the kin, she came close enough to some that they'd feel the brush of her feathers against their flanks. As long as she wasn't causing trouble, Willow let her be. Lull in Sunlight's words were a far more attractive distraction.
"Do we know how far we must travel to see these sights?" Of course, Willow traveled daily and so had no issue with long or difficult journeys. She was simply too excited to contain the question.
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Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 4:12 pm
"I have heard stories," Scrape replied softly as she walked with the group. "There are Kiokote in the group I am with, and a few of them are from the plains and remember." Birch had lost her memories. Airglow and Good and Done were from there.
"It sounds beautiful." She had not dreamed of it, but some, like Still Flower and Reborn had woke and spoken faintly of a place they had never been.
Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 6:17 pm
The mare's ears swiveled as the voices behind her began. She'd wondered if the journey would be made in silence, hoped that it wouldn't be. It'd make the time pass easily if they were talkative and lively. And perhaps it'd allow them to forget just how long they had to travel.
"The edge of the plains," she started, "we'll reached in a few days time." It sounded firm, knowledgeable. The truth was, it was a guess. Flight was different from walking, especially with a flock in her wake, but if they made good time, it was doable.
She paused, briefly, looking over her shoulder at those who had spoken of the plains, "Share your dreams, your stories. We have a long ways to travel and the wind, birdsong, crickets, we've all heard those before." With that, she continued on. She was to lead; they'd have to entertain, enthuse, encourage themselves.
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Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 6:43 pm
Streams of Silver was the first to reply to Lull's prompt, once again. "Seas of grasses, as endless as the ocean, winking with glints of colour instead of reflections of light. Think of the biggest meadow you've seen, in late summer, after the flowers have faded... and stretch it on forever, hill after valley after hill, with only occasional boulders or short cliffs or trees to offer shelter." She said it with a rhythm to it, head swaying slightly with the pace that had been set, eyes half-lidding as she recalled the vivid imagery of the dream that had sparked her life.
"And the flowers– don't try eat anything other than the grasses, unless we've had it confirmed to be safe. You may think you recognize it, but if it lives in such a different place... it likely isn't."
Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 8:04 pm
"Wonderful!" she chirped, eager for those days to pass, but just as eager to see what they could even before reaching the plains their cousins hailed from. It wasn't as if Willow had never spoken to a kiokote before, she'd heard stories, she always asked, but seeing it all in person would be something else entirely. "I look forward to the journey as much as the outcome." She turned her head. "Sunset, don't wander too far." With a ruffle of her feathers, the crane fell back towards the kimeti. She'd been getting ahead of herself with her own excitement and wonder.
"I've heard stories, as well. Crossed paths with many a kiokote in my time, though only a few who've mentioned a wish to return." She nodded along with Scrape even as an ear flickered in Streams of Silver's direction. "It sounds delightful... I can almost imagine how refreshing an undisturbed breeze rolling over the plains would feel." With a short sigh, Willow closed her eyes, though only long enough to appease her imagination before opening them again.
Minstrel listens to those speaking, catching the rhythm the words flow to. "I've heard of Kiokote clans, family groups so large even the largest tribes here would be swallowed up." Acorn never had been able to give an accurate count of her clan, so Minstrel isn't sure if he's exaggerating a bit. But from the stories she'd told, the clan was huge, filled with many generations of Kiokote.
"Did we adopt Kiokote clans as tribes?" Minstrel asks, not directing the question at anyone in particular. The Kiokote first appeared long before he was born, and while it's possible Kimeti had the idea for tribe's before their cousins arrival, he had not heard of it. Not that he'd done extensive research, his area of expertise was stories and songs. Wouldn't they be mentioned there, though?
Minstrel pulls his mind back to the here and now, the journey had only just started, it wouldn't do at all to get left behind because he couldn't keep his mind on the task. Any ponderings can wait until they return, until then he'll simply put everything to memory.
Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 9:32 pm
He'd heard from Resistance, who'd heard from who knew where. Honestly, knowing her, it could've been a prank. But it wasn't, apparently. There she was: a live legendary. Uh, two of them. He hadn't really believed it until he'd seen the gryphon shriek and vanish. "Stay close, buddy," he said to Grumble, who was stumbling about behind him. It was pretty crowded, after all, and - well, he didn't know whether the Ache affected bears, but it was better safe than sorry. If he could stay near this mare they'd both be safe. Assuming she was telling the truth.
Well, if she wasn't it'd just mean turning back again. First to Strike was no stranger to that. The rhythmical pounding of the stag's hoofbeats - would his presence grant safety, too? - thrummed through his chest, and he grinned. He was really doing this. Home. He hadn't thought about it in several season-cycles. Would everything be the same? Was the herd he'd run with still making its rounds? Well - they might not even travel by them. The plains were big, and it wasn't like he knew where the fabled points of light had been pointing. They could be headed anywhere. More important was Never Misses, who he'd invited along mostly because his children didn't want to come. Had she actually shown up? It was a bit difficult to see, in the crowd...
He pushed his way through the crowd, bumping his shoulder against some kimeti's hard scale when he was somewhere in the middle of the pack.
"Hey," he called to the doe who he'd just jostled. "Have you seen a green and brown kiokote lady in this crowd? Lotta hair, face like this." He furrowed his brows into a comically harsh glare and pointed his nose up in the air. Never Misses didn't really make faces quite like that, of course, which might have made her a bit more difficult to pinpoint for Little Lady.
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Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2016 12:58 am
Evolve walked at an easy pace close to Lull In Sunlight, her head occasionally turning to inspect the rest of the following Kin, gaze quick as she catalogued each in turn. She assessed their strengths and weaknesses, noticing a slight hitch in one's gait or a penchant for inattention, until she was satisfied and would look back to the front, focused on the task at hand. A few days. A part of her wanted to gallop, charge forward and eat up ground. But the pace needed to be steady and they needed to stay together, even if it did feel like she was shackled to weaker kin.
"My father came from the plains," she offered eventually, not caring who listened but wanting to contribute something. "He travelled here with his siblings, halfbreeds seeking their Kimeti father. He told me he hated the Swamp at first. It was too hot, too wet, too sticky. Too claustrophobic. He missed the wide spaces and the swaying grass."
Her smile was there only briefly but it was fond. "But when he heard about this expedition, he only laughed and said he could never go back. His heart is here now."
The call goes out on wings and scales–apparently there is a use to pupils after all–spreading the word of an expedition. A party of kin that will leave the swamp and see a world unknown to them. The message talks of the Obelisk and beams of light that lead beyond what they know. It stirs curiosity and fear and hope and the need to follow.
