Echoes of the Past: Astrasis » Places

         

Zephyr Maelstrom

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Marina Fontaine

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Marina's father after the meeting immediately had pulled her into a bear hug that could bend metal. She was expecting him to be furious, but was rather met with tears and relief over her safety. She was met by similar displays from the rest of her family. Even her mother and older sister were choked up from the prospect of her departure. This made packing very difficult because the twins were firmly attached to her legs and her older brother had his arms wrapped around her shoulders. Fortunately, her mother had already done all of her packing, and with dawn approaching on the horizon, she was handed a pack with standard traveling gear and a fully stocked medical kit equipped with even surgical supplies. With one last tear filled goodbye, she headed off to the village gate.

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Zephyr had dragged his feet as much as possible when heading back to his home even to the point of hesitantly waiting outside the front door of his house. He really didn't want to do this. Maybe he could sneak into his room and get out before-

"Stop delaying the inevitable and just get in here Zephyr." came the tired sigh of his father. Zephyr flinched and sheepishly opened the door. Inside the main living room sat Granny, Gramps, and his dad. All had quiet solemn expressions on their faces, but Granny looked a bit more disgruntled like she had just lost an argument. Zephyr stood and stopped before them and shifted from foot to foot before breaking the unbearable silence.

"Uh, hate to cut this family reunion short, but I gotta go pack so..."

"Already done. Your bag is by the door including the artifacts you picked up. I put in some money, a change of clothes, some traveling rations, flint, water, and a bottle of Maelstrom sake. I also threw in your current tome you were reading as well as a journal if you wanted to write in it. You'll notice a brand new short sword and a set of fresh leather armor as well as a new cloak. That was your Guardian present that we had intended to give to you before... this." His father stated. Zephyr was speechless.

"Dad... I...-"

"What you did was extremely stupid. You will be remembered as the biggest idiot our village has ever known. But... at the same time we feel this was destined to be your path from the beginning. So go. Go and make us proud Zeph. Become the master Aeromancer that saves the world." For the first in what felt like years, Tehrest smiled at his son. A wave of emotion tore through Zephyr and he clenched his teeth in order to bite back the tears. With goodbyes from his grandparents, and an extra knock upside the head from Granny, he left his family and headed to the gate. He found the others waiting with their own bags and weapons. With a nod, he led the way though the gate into the awaiting Shrouded Forest.

The group traveled quietly for several hours before the trees began to thin and they came out into the rolling foothills at the base of the mountains. Zephyr stopped for a moment taking in the scenery of the plains around him not having seen anything except sheer cliffs and tall trees.

"Well, this is different. Why don't we take a break and eat lunch yeah? Anyone pack anything tasty? I got sake!"

         

Leon Dalmascer

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When the door open Leon simply shrugged off the sounds that emerged from the temple which made him curious growing up wild he knew about quite afew creatures but none made the sounds that came from this place. "Guess we're not going to be alone down there." he said ignoring what Marina had said while fighting back the urge to move ahead of every one else. Instead he moved up to the door and began sniffing the air 'damp earth various fungi nothing special on the surface but it seems things will change when we go farther in.' he thought looking around.

Met with crystals lighting the entrance of the temple Leon could see far enough to notice that the walls seem to have been naturally carved out with some damp moss lining the cracks and the crystals lighting up most of the tunnel making it easy to see probably better then what the torches would have provided. "Looks like no one's even opened this place in a century, maybe even longer." he stated before moving through the door doing his best not to disturb what ever ecosystem has been developing over the years while still keeping up with the rest of the group.

Hearing Zephyr in his mind Leon looked back after passing him shortly when he stopped. "Since we have no clue what's waiting for us in here might I suggest a scouting party. Which should consist of myself, air head, metal man, and fire pit." He said pointing at Zephyr, Pyrrha, and Anton individually. "Every one else should follow after but keep a good distance back." he added before adding onto his train of thought. "These three have a better chance of not getting caught then every one else here. Although air head here is pushing that line." he stated adding sarcasm to the last sentence while tapping Zephyr on the forehead with the knuckle of his left hands index finger.

"As much as I respect you rain drop I honestly don't think you could keep up, Fire breath there doesn't exactly look ready to be sneaking around, Stone face makes too much noise with the armor he carries with him at all times, and we need the mad scientist here to make sure you guys get the message that it's safe to move." He stated picking up a small stone and juggling it in his palm afew times before putting it in his back pocket. "I'm just throwing that out there, I may not be one for parties and such, but I know a thing or two about survival." He said moving farther into darkness before his form vanished. "But if that's too much to ask I can go on ahead and scout the place out myself." Leon continued waiting to see who would pick up that he just made himself invisible. "All you'd have to do is follow the markings I leave behind."

         

Zephyr Maelstrom

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Marina Fontaine

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Although Zephyr instigated the "take it easy on the booze" rule, he was not following his own advice very well as the party went on. He even went as far as to down two glasses of Maelstrom sake to enter the boat race. Of course, he was handling it a whole lot better than a regular person, but to say Zeph was tipsy was an understatement.

Marina, in the mean time, was sipping on a light fruity concoction and enjoying the copious amounts of food.

"Isn't this fun Pyrrha?" she asked with a giggle. She had found Pyrrha not too long after arriving, and decided to spend time with her. The other girl did not seem nearly as enthusiastic. Marina had spotted earlier Leon throwing a fit and knocking out a gentleman she believed was the general store owner, and sighed. As much progress as he had made in adapting to civilized life, he still hadn't let go of that wildness. She had also spotted Mei and Roland being equally as unsocial. She sighed inwardly at her friends. She munched on a marinated chicken wing and observed as many people were already losing their bearings and stumbling around drunk. She noticed a few of the council members sitting at Granny's counter, including her own father, even grinning and laughing the night away. An unusual sight indeed.

"It's almost time. I bet Zeph will be giving the signal soon-" she was abruptly cut off by a loud familiar shout coming from the Boat Pool.

"Allrigh! Who wants ta see me race?" he slurred. Zephyr was shakily standing up in his gondola ready to race across the large pool set up in the Spoon. Several cheers resounded from the crowd. Zephyr grinned struggling to maintain his balance in the boat. He suddenly frowned as if something was severely wrong. Within the blink of an eye, Zephyr had pulled off his shirt and tossed it toward the surrounding crowd. Marina ran over to the pool as quickly as she could as soon as she had seen him enter only to have a shirt land on her face. The females squealed in delight at the sight of Zephyr's lean muscled torso; his clan tattoo clearly visible between his shoulder blades. Marina balled Zephyr's shirt between her fists as she fumed.

"He said go easy on the booze! Ugh!" she screamed inwardly. Of course he'd get drunk. Why was she not surprised... Although, the good news was that she could use her Aquamancy to purge the alcohol from his system and clear his head, but that would have to be after the race...

"Ah, much bedder.." he stated stretching his now bare arms. For the umpteenth time, Zeph stumbled in the boat, but this time had lost his grip on his Manara causing the boat to spin in circles. While he struggled to regain control over his vessel, a large gong was banged initiating the race. Cursing, Zephyr propelled the boat forward, or at least attempted to push it forward, but was using too much force causing it to zigzag. Despite his lack of control and navigation, Zephyr was still fairing far better than many of the other drunks. He was halfway across when a boat soared past him. He was too dazed to tell who it was, but, not wanting to lose, propelled himself forward. Close to the finish line, Zephyr knocked his gondola hard into his competitor's to waddle back and forth and drive them off course. It was a long enough distraction for Zephyr to pull ahead and win the race. Part of the crowd cheered wildly while others groaned and yelled in defeat over their lost bets.

"Ah yeah! I am so good!" he stumbled back onto solid ground and was handed a medal for his victory. His celebrating and boasting was quickly cut short by an enraged Marina latching on to his ear and dragging him back to the table she occupied with Pyrrha.

"You imbecile! Did you forget that we were supposed to stay sober?" she whisper-screamed into his ear. Marina quickly got to work discreetly placing her hands on his back to purge the haze from his mind.

"No, I didn forget.. I can handle it.. I'm fine..." Even sitting down he was wobbling back and forth. Marina snorted and instead of draining the alcohol slowly, she did it fast with a lot of force causing it to sting quite a bit.

"Ow! What was that for? Is that really necessary?" Zephyr blinked a few times realizing he could think straight and sit still with out losing his balance. He grinned at Marina.

"Thanks, babe. What would I do without you?"

"You would be dead or in a jail cell." she deadpanned. "So, is it time yet?" Zephyr glanced around and noticed that many people were laughing loudly obviously not thinking clearly while others were passed out. Zeph even spotted his Granny giggling like a school girl latched onto the arm of his grandpa.

"Oh it is definitely time." Zephyr sent out a light four note whistle into the minds of his friends being careful not to send anything that would incriminate them, but still act as a clear signal.

"Let's get moving." Marina nodded in response her previous anger dissolving into excitement. She was still horrifically nervous about the whole ordeal, but the idea of getting to explore something no one else has even seen before had her giddy. Marina and Zephyr discreetly slipped out the back careful to not draw any attention to themselves, and made their way over to the staircase. She picked up her medical bag and secured the strap tightly across her chest while they waited for the others to show up and grab their own gear. When everyone seemed ready, Zephyr gave a quick pep talk.

"Alright everyone let's go! Onward!" He led the way to the back gate out of Caelfall. There weren't any guards posted there right now, so the group was able to slip out unnoticed. Having never traveled down to Onryx, Zephyr didn't realize how steep the trail truly was. The path was only wide enough for one person to walk through having thick trees and shrubbery on either side forcing the group to walk single file. There was even one point where everyone had to shuffle along the edge with their back against a cliff lest they fall hundreds of feet below into the Eye of Cael. Finally after an hour, they reached the end of the trail and the tunnel leading down to Onryx's entrance could be seen.

"Alright! There it is! Let's go everyone- Damn it!" he cut himself off with a string of curses as he spotted a guard at the gate.

         

Anton Wulfram

"That'll do, I suppose. I can make a rock cover that no one should notice once its dark," Anton nodded, looking over at Mei as he arrived. "Mei, if there's anything you think we'll need, try to grab it before we meet up at the party. I'll head out, and grab my set of things. I'll see the rest of you at the party!"

With that, Anton left Pyrrha and Mei to their own further planning, and he raced down the stairs themselves - passing by Mari on the way. Considering that he and Roland had helped build the stairs themselves, it was only natural that Anton knew precisely the fastest way down. There was a certain rhythm to it; by skipping certain steps, you'd have just the right momentum to make a turn.

From the base of the cliffs, it didn't take long for Anton to get back home, but changing into his coat and packing the right set of supplies meant that he'd only get there just after sundown. Judging by the fact that no one was home when he returned, and how the forge was still radiating heat, his parents and Mikhail had probably left for the Spoon - most likely no less than half an hour ago. That left him with all of the space required to work quickly. The most time consuming task would probably be filling up the waterskins, as the main supplies they'd need - namely, rope, some flint and steel, a set of pitons, a shovel and the set of waterskins themselves - were kept in the supply shed by the forge.

It didn't take Anton long to place everything in his haversack, with the shovel and the hilt of his sword sticking out from one end. However, as expected, grabbing a fresh bucket of water from the well behind the forge, and filling it was taking some time. Anton watched as the last speck of sunlight dipped below the forest canopy; in about half an hour, sun would set. Once he was done, Anton strapped the waterskins to his pack and made his way back to the stairs, where Mari's pack was already sitting against the stairs.

The torches weren't here yet, so Anton didn't cover up the backpacks with a cover of earth. Still, leaving Forgesong out here was kind of a risk. Anton pulled his sheathed sword out from the pack and affixed it to his belt, before pushing the two bags out of sight. He'd need an excuse for bringing a sword to a party, but...

Well, he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. Besides, Zephyr and the others seemed to make up excuses all the time. How hard could it be?

With his side of the preparations complete, Anton made his way to the Spoon. The sun had already set by the time he arrived, and he could hear the cacophony of celebration begin. No doubt, plenty of the townsfolk were getting plastered as he made his way in...