Null's Game

[Kelne]

"To be honest, it hadn't really occurred to me," Triya said, "Partia's very... self-contained. I can't see us deliberately stirring up trouble beyond our borders."

"Oh, it's happened," Sana put in, "It all depends on the Cause. Involved or not though, Partia might well be in the loop, if only to keep us from stepping on anyone's toes."

Triya nodded slowly. Thinking of her country as complicit in whatever was going on wasn't exactly comfortable, but she was going to have to live with the possibility. "In hindsight, it's interesting that Sana and I were the only Partian representatives at Cantiga. I wonder if the government was looking to limit their involvement in the Null hunt?"

[Oleai]

Oleai stepped forward just slightly, leaning to whisper toward Kyrie.

"We shouldn't even discuss this here.. or with her. Right?"

[Idran1701]

"I suppose it's possible...I feel a bit silly for not having asked before, but why were you selected as representatives for Partia? I was sent as clan representative for Lucky Paw, and Oleai, as I understand you came along at the start out of pure curiosity?" She glances back briefly to check with her, before looking back to Sana and Triya. "But I've never asked why the two of you were dispatched. Perhaps the answer can be found there."

At Oleai's whisper, Kyrie looks back towards Autumn with a slight laugh at her own foolishness, her tail half-curled in abashment. "Ah...you're right, Oleai. And after all that talk of the need for surprise too. Autumn, no offense meant to you, but I think we ought to part ways before speaking much more on this. Null seems to have ears most everywhere, and the fewer that know of our plans, the better. So...I suppose we ought to collect ourselves, and not speak further until we can be more confident we won't be overheard."

She hesitates noticeably before continuing on, looking down towards Stray. "And...I suppose that makes now the best time to part ways with you too, Stray? Autumn's offer of protection and all...with everything that's happened this last hour, I suppose it's only made it more obvious how dangerous it might be around us..." Trailing off, she rests a hand on Stray's shoulder, reluctant to step away.

[Shinigori V2]

Stray nods slightly, before turning and hugging Kyrie tightly. Hugged by a Revenant. Ugh.

"The High Houses aren't allowed to accept gifts from the lower Houses, right?" She says, pulling away. She digs into one of the pockets of her outfit, and pulls out...A pair of pristine leather Nekana gloves, oddly enough sized just right for Kyrie. "I'm going to give these to you...But you'll be honor bound to return them, right? So if I give these to you, it's not goodbye, because you have to give them back someday."

[Idran1701]

She returns the hug just as tightly, and as they split, she's obviously taken off guard by the gift. Turning the gloves over in her hands, Kyrie keeps quiet for a long stretch before nodding to Stray. "It's bending the rules, but I think I can allow it this once. And I swear to keep them in excellent condition for their return."

With ears tilted back, bent so low as to be nearly invisible against her hair, she looks towards Autumn. "I'm sure you'd agree that no lesser oath would do for stewardship of something as precious, mm?"

[Shinigori V2]

"Of course." Autumn says, bowing gracefully. "The Green shall burn before a hair on her head is harmed."

Stray nods to Kyrie, then gives Oleai a hug, as well, before slipping over to Autumn, taking her hand. Autumn looks over the group again, nodding to Red. "Keep in mind...You're not the Warbringer yet. See to it that you can all return to us in the Green in three weeks time, and then we'll talk."

Autumn smiles down a Stray, opening the door and guiding the Revenant child out, both disappearing into the light of the setting sun.

(STRAY HAS LEFT THE ACTIVE PARTY, KYRIE RECEIVES 1x STEALY GLOVES)

[AlwaysAPrice]

"Yeah, yeah, I'll keep them alive, I guess." Red cups her hands around her mouth to yell a "Seeya, Stray!" after Autumn and the kit. From somewhere above them comes a sad squawk, followed by a wet splorch on the ground outside the door.

[Idran1701]

Kyrie doesn't say or do much as the two leave, keeping still and watching until they head out of sight. Once gone, she quietly sighs to herself, a light smile as she pulls the gifted gloves on.

After a short bit, she glances to Red with a look of mild amusement. "You're our guardian for the rest of this trip, then? You might want to reconsider; the Alchemists are a mild threat compared to the last trouble we got ourselves into."

[Visavis]

"I don't wanna go to Partia," muttered Rasmus with his arms folded across his chest and nary a glance toward Stray as she departs. "an', she said it'd be 'all but impossible' to catch 'em. After crossing the desert. Is that the best we can do?"

[Idran1701]

"I don't know if it's the best or not; all I know is we need to get to Pendulum to speak with this Zero Imbroglio person, who seems to be our best chance at getting a better handle on what exactly is going on. And our best way of getting to Pendulum is through Calamity. But I'm more than open to other options right now; if you have an alternative in mind, Rasmus, I'd be happy to support it - in all honesty, I'm not especially eager to go trudging through the desert either, but I can't think of a better plan at the moment myself." Kyrie smiles just a slight bit, glad for his commentary to provide her some distraction from recent events.

[Kelne]

"We'll need to do a bit better than trudging to cover the distance," Triya admitted, "So... I wish we had some transportation."

"Done," Sana said, snapping her fingers, "You'll find it waiting just outside the city gates." She looked decidedly amused, so it was anybody's guess what form the transportation would take, but transport it would be.

[Shinigori V2]

With time being of the essence and the Alchemists likely coming to the crater city of Kokoniel in force, it's pretty much agreed: Calamity is their best chance at getting into Pendulum, and thus getting closer to the former Null agent Zero Nadira (With the fringe benefit of Red being able to find out more about the Clockwork Nekana thief that jacked her pistols). With that in mind, catching up to the Invincible becomes paramount, and time becomes a commodity the group no longer has. Thankfully, Sana has taken the liberty of restocking the group with her Djinni powers, supplying everything the group will need.

Also supplied is transportation, in two steps. The first is either insane or ingenious (ingenieus?), depending on everyone's outlook: Kokoniel is a city, situated atop a mountain. A steep mountain with the scars of war and mindless Revenants peppering the peak. With the paths back down to more easily traversed lands being made up of straight paths, sanctified to ward off the Revenants and cleared of debris, Sana provides an optimal solution:

Traversing down the mountain in a fraction of the time with a series of slides leading from one landing to another along the path, all leading down to a very heavy duty, sturdy wooden cart, attached to a half dozen horses. But the cart is not just any ordinary cart- It's long. Long enough for everyone to have a legroom and room to lie down for a rest. And even a little segment specifically for Spitter! With a trough! Hopefully for Spitter's food to come from, rather than end up in. But what sort of horses could possibly move a cart this robust with any sort of speed?

A half dozen large, metallic horses, looking very much like a Clockwork stripped of their sealing suit and cloaks/panchos/table clothes/what have you. They lack the livelyhood of a Clockwork, likely existing solely to pull the cart and supplies faster and longer than any normal horse could hope. But for now, it's the best they've got, and as soon as they're situated, the group follows suit to Stray; riding off into the sunset.

Frozen Tears of Angels: End (FINALLY)

[Shinigori V2]

Chapter 4: Standing Still

Just outside Nekana's southern border- 221 PS- Thursday, 2:21 PM.

It's a blustery, cold late Winter afternoon, as the Iron Horses continue to do their job, speeding the group across the ENTIRE CONTINENT. The horses work admirably, but are starting to run hot- They'll need a bit of a 'rest' to cool down before their components begin breaking down. Sana may need a bit of a rest herself; with a half dozen horses feeding more or less directly off her magical power, the trip so far hasn't been extremely easy on her. But there's still some juice left in them, as they stamp through the thin blanket of snow as the mountains of Garpaath and Nekana give way to grasslands. It'll still be a day or two before reaching the first Oasis town of D'jani in the Zoda desert.

Supplies are starting to look a little tight, and water is running low. While Sana could in theory magic some up...Well, food created of a Djinn's willpower doesn't have quite the right...taste. Or consistency in some cases. It might be a good idea to stop soon, both so Sana doesn't evaporate under the strain, and to gather some real food and water.

[Idran1701]

Kyrie's kept quiet for much of the journey, watching the land shoot past outside at speeds she's never even come close to on the ground (or possibly even in the air, she's not sure). Though it was a nerve-wracking experience at first, the lack of a fiery crash in the first hour or so of travel helped to calm her nerves, and for now she simply enjoys the terrain passing by. It was surprisingly soon that she began to see familiar landmarks as the vehicle passed near to her homeland, and while she did speak about bits and pieces as they went by Nekana's borders now and then, even this hasn't brought much word from her.

As supplies thin and the clockwork horses begin to overheat, though, she speaks up, eyes still locked on the grasslands outside. "There's farming villages around here. We could stop for food and supplies at one of them, it wouldn't take long. We could rest a bit too if you need it, Sana."

[Kelne]

Triya had initially been thrilled by the quicksilver pace at which they'd rolled across the landscape. But, as time went by, it had become apparent that the journey was taking its toll on Sana. She wasn't sure how long the djinn would keep going out of sheer stubborn pride, but it was definitely time for a break.

"I think we could all use a bit of a break," she said, "A chance to stretch our legs, as well as restock. While we're at it, did anyone want anything special in the way of supplies? We did leave in a bit of a hurry after all."

There was still the desert to cross, and it wouldn't do to face that unprepared, special conveyance or no. Triya had heard enough stories of people who really ought to have known better coming to grief, after all.

[Shinigori V2]

The cart begins to slow, as Red volunteers to head up with Spitter and locate a good place for a rest. Everyone else...more or less goes about their business as the Iron Horses continue to lose steam, eventually slowing the cart to maybe a quarter of it's original speed, and leaving Sana obviously in need of a recharge herself.

However...The horses have guided them to something. Maybe not a great area for a rest, as patches of snow dot the area and a chilly wind still blusters occasionally. What they've found, however, is an oddity- Standing out against the blue-green grass of an early Nekana winter...Is a small, perfectly round patch of emerald green, summery grass, as well as wildflowers big enough to be seen from a distance. Standing just outside of this odd patch is a cloaked figure with a massive, green crystalline sword strapped to their back. The non-Elves of the group may remember having seen it fairly recently, though the cloaked person continues kneeling by a rock at the edge of the patch, not noticing them at all.

Optional- Remembering:

Spoiler:

The massive green crystal sword, with it's silvery-white metal core and golden grip are none other than Oansenlig, sword of Lady Varina Maké Faen Elvenblade of Wells.

[Idran1701]

As useless as it is from inside the clockwork carriage, Kyrie falls quiet as she spots the out-of-place woman standing in the midst of the snow; though at least paying half attention to the others before noticing her, the sight now entirely takes her notice as she realizes who it is she's seeing and thinks on why she might be here. Of course, one main answer comes to mind - she can't imagine it doesn't involve Null in some fashion - but she can't yet figure if it's mere coincidence that brings her near to their path or not.

Once she's shaken off the surprise, she looks again to her fellow travelers, ears flat. "It looks like we're not the only investigator in the area. Did any of you notice who's decided to visit the country as well?" With a short nod towards the window, she looks back, trying to spot a sign of what she's doing out there and what has her own attention so thoroughly.

[Oleai]

Oleai spent most of the trip.. restless. The iron horses made her uncomfortable, but the speed of travel was such that any alternative wasn't realistic so she kept quiet about it.

As they slowed, and the stranger came into view, Oleai peeked her head over the edge (Her ears of course giving her away long before the top of her head).

"No.. who is that, Kyrie?" Oleai hadn't arrived until after this lady made her exit.

[Idran1701]

She glances back to Oleai for a moment before turning back to the window, still keeping a close eye on the White Templar. "Lady Varina Elvenblade, she's one of Wells' most renown knights. She might be here herself, or she might've been sent by Wells; with our current situation, though, I'm assuming the latter."

[Kelne]

"We may as well ask," Triya remarked, stepping down from the cart, "It's not as if we're going to slip past unnoticed, and I'd like to hear what she has to say about what's going on."

She was under no illusions about Elvenblade's formidability, but there would be no avoiding it if she wanted a fight, and there was knowledge to be gained if she was feeling cooperative.

[Shinigori V2]

As the oversize carriage rolls to a stop and Triya steps down off of it, Elvenblade turns to face her, pulling away the hood of her cloak. She looks confused for a moment, before asking. "You...You're the Djinn master from Wells. What are you doing here?"

She seems...more confused and curious than hostile.

[AlwaysAPrice]

Spitter was none too thrilled with the mode of transportation and took vigorously to the skies as soon as they came to a stop, only swooping down to pick up Red after she'd had a good stretch. Red looked instantly relieved as well, having shared in Spitter's cooped up and jostled discomfort the whole way. The others were probably grateful to be rid of her constant cursing of the "djinn-damned devil donkeys" when she and Spitter flew ahead, to seek a suitable and defensible campground and something large enough to feed the entire group. Though she figured she should try to find some berries or lettuce or something for Oleai, having no idea whether Plainsrunners ate meat, her priority was to find something big and antlery to sate the growling in Spitter's gut that was twisting up her own.

[Visavis]

"One of Wells' knights, huh? What makes her so great?" asked Rasmus, while giving the knight's sword an unimpressed look. It was the first thing Rasmus had said in a while. After the initial complaints of how they were going to have to go super far and have to deal with everything being super hot he had quieted down and spent most of his time checking his blade, looking wistfully back in the direction they had come from, and staring at the sky.

[Idran1701]

Keeping at the window, Kyrie doesn't break her eyes from the exchange between Elvenblade and Triya as she responds to the question. "She's among the best swordsmen in the world, if not the best herself. She'd spent years on her own before taking charge of Wells' army. And she's a tactical genius; you must have heard about Glacier Tongue? She led that engagement personally. Wells wouldn't send her out unless they needed the best they had...but it sounds like she didn't know we were even in the area? Then why..." Trailing off, she frowns, seeming nearly as confused as Elvenblade at this point.

[Kelne]

"We're just passing through," Triya said, "On our way to follow up a lead." She took Elvenblade's confusion at their presence as a positive sign. If nothing else, it didn't look as if she was here to pick a fight, or anybody had passed along word of their altercation with the alchemists. Not that this necessarily meant Elvenblade wasn't in on whatever plot had been dreamed up, but there was at least an even chance they'd get a few answers rather than see her close ranks against them. First though....

"But what brings you here?" she asked, walking over to get a better look at the circle of grass, "Something to do with this?" The summer grass was incongruous, to say the least, and would have been worth investigating even without Elvenblade's presence to indicate its importance.

[Shinigori V2]

Elvenblade nods, looking back over her shoulder at the odd patch of grass...Which now that Triya is closer, she can see much more clearly. It's not an odd patch of grass; it's an odd bubble in space. Within the bubble, the grass is summer green and a few patched of wildflowers are in bloom. The light is a bit brighter within the bubble, and a series of stones line the outside, just out of the bubble's perimeter.

The most notable thing is the fauna within the bubble. Within, a small rabbit is frozen in mid-hop. Insects sit on flowers and hover completely still in the air, frozen in place, even with nothing to hold them up. A pair of bluebirds are stuck mid-flight, frozen perfectly in place during whatever sort of chase bluebirds participate in. Everything within the bubble is completely frozen in time and in place, even with nothing to support it.

"I come here to think sometimes." Elvenblade says. "It's peaceful and surprisingly few people even know that this is here."

[Idran1701]

Now nearly as confident as Triya that her presence here isn't a sign of Wells keeping an eye on them, Kyrie slips out of the carriage herself, keeping near the door for now on the off chance something happens. Looking over the apparent bubble of frozen time from where she stands, she finds herself unavoidably curious about the phenomenon, if a little discomforted at the sight. There's something intriguing about seeing total motionlessness for certain, but there's something undeniably wrong about it as well.

"I've been here quite a few times, and I know I've never noticed it. What is it, exactly?"

[Shinigori V2]

"To know what this is, you have to have a basic understanding of the workings of our world." Elvenblade says, turning back to the bubble. "You're aware of the Elementals, yes? Living pieces of the world around us, given agency to shape the world around us. They help the world run smoothly on the smallest level, simply making sure that the weather and environment is right. There's another set above the elementals; the Primals. They have dominion over things that occur without the aid of the elements. Light and darkness, matter and energy, space and time. I've heard that sound is a primal, but I can't say for sure."

She shifts her weight, considering the bubble again. "But above them are the Universals. Immensely powerful, representing things that are present no matter what. Life and Death. Good and Evil. Some would say Taxes." She laughs lightly at the joke, before continuing. "Change. Everything changes."

She walks around the perimeter, making notes of marker stones placed alongside. "As the story goes, the Universal of Change came to this world, and stopped here for a rest. For just a moment, he put down his burden." She indicates the bubble. "This is what happened. All change ceased. Everything became stuck as it was in that exact moment. What's interesting is that this site, for a time, was holy, I believe. If you look at these markers, the Prayer of Eternity is transcribed on them...if you even know what that is."

[Idran1701]

Kyrie frowns, approaching the strange bubble, but careful not to get too close. "I lived in Nekana all my life, and I've never heard any stories like that, or of this place. Nor have I ever heard of a 'prayer of eternity'. Is this Elven legend, or something else?" She paces around it, watching the unchanging scene within, rapt but unnerved by the utter stillness of it. Picking up a bit of snow, she carefully sprinkles some onto it, watching to see what happens as it crosses the surface of the bubble; if it even does, or if it simply sloughs off.

[Shinigori V2]

"Older." Elvenblade says. "From whatever came before them. Possibly whatever came before that. The interesting thing is that part of it is in Common; the very last part of it, in fact. At least judging by the apparent age of the stones. I'm not surprised you haven't heard of this place though; roads specifically bend around here to avoid notice, since the Nekana regard it as little more than an eyesore."

Kyrie's snow falls into the bubble, melting immediately from the summer heat within and sprinkling itself onto a blade of grass, beading atop of it before rolling down, puddling on the ground.

------

Red/Spitter:

There is a Nekana Ichistag, it's single horn grown just enough to indicate full maturity. It looks as juicy and delicious as a stag could--And should.

[Idran1701]

The sight intrigues her, and she can't help but want to try more with this. Still, she doesn't want to put herself at risk needlessly. She speaks up again with eyes still locked onto the pocket of summer. "...is it safe to feel within? Or would I end up frozen along with the rest?"

[Shinigori V2]

"Anything entering now is fine. I just prefer to remain outside; the cold never bothered me anyway."

[Idran1701]

Once reassured, Kyrie kneels next to the bubble, reaching in and feeling along the grass, unsure even if she should expect it to give under her touch as normal, or stand firm and razor-stiff. She's astounded both that something like this was so close to her homeland, and that people have gone out of their way to avoid it; how could anyone, especially Nekana, not want to learn all they can from something like this?

[Visavis]

"What would happen if-- ya know what, nevermind." Rasmus sheathed his blade, then hopped down from the cart and strolled over to the spot frozen in time with a look which seemed to say that eternally unchanging spots with potentially deific origins were a perfectly ordinary occurrence. He stopped at the edge, stared at it for a moment, then stepped inside and looked around.

"..Huh."

[Idran1701]

Looking away just for a moment, Kyrie watches Rasmus as he steps within, breath held briefly in suspense as she wonders just how such a direct and significant interaction will come out for Rasmus.

And just in case it proves necessary, she begins thinking of ways to ready a rope to haul him back out.

[Oleai]

Oleai had spent most of this conversation marveling at the frozen bit of summer. Hopping (literally) out of the carriage to stand just on the periphery of the sphere, awestruck by it (of course, on the side opposite of the famous knight). All the other voices becoming a blurred white din as she focused entirely on the supernatural spot.

This did have connections to the elements, and that meant the party's Plainsrunner was attempting to read it. To feel for what kind of forces of nature could keep this specific spot frozen in time - and why.

Reading the wind and the land was part of her family's duty, sure. But foreseeing the weather was nothing like this. The opportunity and curiosity was just too great. Her focus thrown off once Rasmus stepped into the Summer.

"W-w-what are you doing?!"

[AlwaysAPrice]

A big dead ichistag drops out of the sky and thuds onto the grass in the middle of the bubble, its sides raked by talons and its head flopped at an unnatural angle. Spitter circles back and skids to a landing close-by, and Red swings off of her, stopping to ruffle the feathers around the razorbeak's neck. Spitter hops from foot to foot, eager to go tear into their meal but also reluctant to remove herself from scritches. "Hey nerds, I got us some grub! Get a fire going and we can dig in after Spitter has hers. Looks like there's a farm up ahead, some sorta Nekana commune, might have proper beds if you guuuuuys. Uh."

Red interrupts herself at the sight of Lady Elvenblade, or more accurately her crazy big and super recognizable sword. For some reason, the sight of Wells' most renowned military commander is a mite unnerving to the Red Rider, a woman who's spent most of the last several years providing for herself as a highwaywoman specializing in raiding Wells' wealthy merchant caravans and travelling lesser nobility a few times a year. Meanwhile, Spitter has startled to wobble towards her catch, only to squawk in irritation and spit at the ground when she comes to the edge of the bubble, which she quickly backs away from and turns the larger of her bulging eyes towards in suspicion.

[Shinigori V2]

Rasmus steps into the bubble just as Kyrie is about to test the grass. For someone else, the sudden change of temperature from winter to mid summer may be refreshing, but Rasmus finds himself to be a little hot in here. However, despite the 'frozen in time' property of the grass, it still gives under his weight, only to spring right back into place immediately as he steps off. He spots something near the center of the bubble; two small tracts of grass, tamped down flat. Between them, atop the springy grass is a book, old and leatherbound. Given that it sits atop the grass, it's been left here by someone else after time stopped.

..And then a big dead ichistag dropped out of the sky and landed on it.

From outside the bubble, Rasmus doesn't seem to be affected at all. Time still marches on for him. And the big dead ichistag.

"It's perfectly safe inside. This used to be considered a holy place by the people who lived here before the Nekana." Elvenblade says, kneeling by one of the large boulders marking the parameter.

As for Oleai's reading, she finds...Well, the bubble does indeed feel 'natural'. There's no arcane forces at work here, and the wind simply shifts itself around the bubble, rather than battering against it. But no direct natural force could do this...But something higher up in the food chain, maybe...

[Idran1701]

She takes a step towards the book once seeing that Rasmus is fine, but at the sudden plummeting deer, Kyrie jumps back, gaping at Red. Once she gathers herself, she laughs, keeping her distance from Spitter as she steps into the bubble herself. She gives the recently-dead beast on the ground an eye before kneeling down, trying to roll the body off the book (and towards Spitter, for her sake).

[Shinigori V2]

It takes every inch of Kyrie's strength, but she manages to roll the dead stag off the book...and thankfully, the book itself seems completely fine, other than a splotch of Ichistag blood. Maybe Spitter would want to lick it off.