Woops, We Misplaced the City! (Pre-Unveiling & GF'd)

[Lyr Tlansson]

Last Cycle of Kalendryas, Season of Winter, Era XIV Post Fractum

ooc: if the timestamp doesn't work, it can be changed. Just wanted to get the ball rolling here...

Relatives were a big pain in the behind. Lyr had begun to realize this from his encounters with his nanny's, Kenkuroi's, nearest and dearest - he'd only met them once, really, but that had been enough. It made him sort of glad that he'd never had any extended family, nor, for that matter, any close - and still living - family either. Lyr had never known his father; his mother he barely remembered, and even then he couldn't remember her name... only the image of a wan face with tearing blue eyes. That was about it.

All this didn't make him exactly happy that the pair, with Rose, had had to go off tearing through Arakmat on a wild-goose chase for a city which had, ostensibly, disappeared.

Cities don't disappear. If Lyr knew anything, he knew that. Cities didn't move, they didn't walk on either four or two legs, and hence it was sheer folly to believe that they could suddenly up and... away. It didn't make sense, and it was more than Lyr could understand that Kenkuroi had insisted they return to Silrosia, a place filled with elves and trees and family.

Though Val was nice.

But one pretty elf didn't a sound scheme make.

"Where the feth are we?" Lyr complained for the thousandth time, glancing about at the large trees - he disliked large trees, they all looked so much alike to his city-bred eye - and pounded away at the snow and old folliage crunching beneath his old boots. He'd left most of his newer clothing at home, and had only brought for himself what he had on him at the moment: namely, his brown linen shirt, a pair of his leather trousers, his boots, and his old black wool coat. His sword swung uselessly by his side, and a pack with Rose's things and several brightenings' worth of rations was slung across his shoulder.

"I knew this wasn't a good idea when we left Secyclion."

It was a bad idea. Lyr could feel it in his very bones - in the way the trees moved and the branches chuckled at him with every wintry breeze.

[Anne]

Bal’deron had been following Lyr for sometime; staying out of sight but following just the same. He was aware of the human’s dislike of the forest and was amused by his complaints.

Bal’deron glanced around at the other trees of the forest. For the most part they were sleeping away the cold of winter, their branches devoid of leaves. Not so Bal’deron he was on a mission!

”Why silly human you are in the forest…going around in circles for some reason.” He replied to Lyr’s one thousandth complaint.

”I suppose you are looking for something you’ve lost…?’ he said with a hint of amusement knowing full well the human had no idea where the voice was coming from or to whom it belonged.

[Kenkuroi Mithania]

News about the seclusion of Syl'rosya by some sudden mysterious mist had reached the shores of Secyclion a tad bit late (thanks to the fact there aren't any form of telecommunication in the Aelyrian Empire.... yet), but reached nevertheless it did, by words of Nexian and Imperian sailors aboard merchant ships looking to trade with the Eunesian Isles.

At first, Kenkuroi disregard the news as some wild, exaggerated stories of drunken sailors desperate for attention. But as more and more people from the mainland kept bringing news of the veil over and making it a hot discussion in the taverns, the young half Syl'rosyan elf decided perhaps it was time to return home and check things out with his father's family. So back towards Syl'rosya they went, with Ken dragging Lyr along, and of course also little baby Rose.

It was obvious he was not particularly that eager to return home so soon, but as they reached the port of Nexus and news of the veil become more evident, Ken became increasingly more distressed to get back as fast as possible. Despite his claims of hating Mithania, hating his father and fellow clansmen, it seems the youth was genuinely worried about his family, something that became more apparent on the boy's elvish looking face as they neared the forest city, stronghold of the Syl'rosyans - or what was once the location of the city.

"It should be easy to spot Moonwillow. Just look for the biggest tree! There's only one in Syl and the tree is so massive, its impossible to miss!" Ken exclaimed as they neared the area Ken insisted was the Tawnleaf - or what was once the area known as Tawnleaf.

As emphasis to what he just said, Ken stopped and looked up towards the towering trees, trying to search for the tallest and biggest tree of all, that should signify it as Moonwillow, while Lyr went on with his whining, something Ken didn't pay attention to as worried as he was.

Lyr was the 'noisy baby' now. Little Rose, strapped to her nanny's back in her makeshift baby carrier was as silent as a dead Vysstichi, in contrast from her usual self. And it wasn't because she was exhausted too, but there was something in the mist. Something..... that only she could sense, like all babies and little children could while grown-ups couldn't.

Meanwhile, in a distance several steps ahead, Ken heard someone or something talking, and that voice definitely wasn't Lyr's!

"Lyr? Who is that?" Ken called out, squinting through the thick fog as he tried to pick up the pace with his human companion.

[Anne]

There was nothing for it he had to make his presence known to those who traveled the forests in search of Sil’rosia.

”The voice I do believe belongs to me!” he stated in his slow deep voice all traces of amusement now gone.

”what brings you to these forests Elf and human kind? What is it you seek to find?’ he demanded of them.

Many travelers found themselves lost in the thick mists. Some of those who were less intrepid than their friends were often seen to be departing the area with considerable speed.

Whispers could be heard everywhere… in the winter winds, the rains that fell from the sky; all talked of the heart of the forest reclaiming its birthright. The mists had covered the Blackbarch and Restwood Forests in the north through to the Tawnleaf and Fernsong in the south.

The travelers quest had just begun and everything would depend on their answers and responses if they wanted to be shown the way back to what had once been.

[Lyr Tlansson]

The biggest tree... the biggest tree... feth, they were all big trees!

Just as Lyr was about to say the statement aloud, he opened his mouth and heard a voice that was distinctly not his. The Vagaran did actually jump, fear and surprise momentarily distorting his features and leaving behind obvious traces as Lyr swung his head from this side to that and then turned himself entirely in a circle, looking every which way he could for the person who had just spoken. The voice had sounded as if it came from very close by - which only shook the youth more, since he'd thought they were alone.

But no. Alone they definitely weren't.

"I don't know!" He answered Ken's question, right hand drifting over to the hilt of his bastardsword as he moved over, closer to the half-elf and the precious bundle on his back. Lyr was a bit paranoid, but those who knew just how many times baby Rose had been threatened - and used to threaten him - in the past few months would have considered the paranoia well founded.

The voice spoke again, and this time Lyr really did draw his sword, even though he couldn't for the life of him figure out where the sound was coming from.

"That's very helpful..." He growled under his breath in response to the voice's "clarification", "Since I don't know who 'me' is..."

He hoped, however, that the voice wouldn't take offence, and paused before spitting out the string of curses which threatened to follow. After all, if the voice was so close and couldn't be seen, presumably it could have already done innumerable bad things to the trio had it wanted to. Lyr didn't like feeling helpless, but while backing away and running in the other direction was an option he considered - briefly - it wasn't an option that he liked very much. He didn't want to play the coward in front of others, and presumably the voice could just as soon do him harm if he started running than if he stayed in the same spot. Still, Lyr didn't like the situation. He didn't like the situation one bit. Even the trees seemed to be laughing at him, rustling their leaves and whispering things the Jaedaxian couldn't understand.

"Merde." He whispered himself, totally unsure what to do. He ended up doing, however, the obvious: answering the question posed, and glancing around warily for any sign of the being emitting the voice. "We're looking for Silrosia. Kenkuroi... the half-elf here..." he nodded in Ken's direction, "..is from Moonwillow. Mithania. Tawnleaf." Lyr spat out as many names as he could, really quite confused essentially about the many names these elven places bore - elves liked names and naming things, he thought, rather too much. The thought brought on another one, and Lyr glanced at Kenkuroi questioningly and whispered: "Maybe you should try talking to it in elvish?.."

[Kenkuroi Mithania]

Kenkuroi hurriedly moved through the forest, following the direction of Lyr's voice until he bumped into the man himself, whom by the time had already drawn his bastard sword.

"Woah careful there!" the young half elf hissed as he too warily looked all around and about for the source of that mysterious voice, seemingly toying with them.

At the same time, he took some measures of precaution himself. Rose was shifted from a piggy-back position, to be straddled againts the boy's chest, logically a more 'secure' place compared to the exposure of the back. Rose didn't protest the move, and the only sound she made was some inaudible babbling of baby-talk as she stared at a certain location. Did she so happen to know the location of the voice? Ken looked at the spot as he rested a hand on the handle of his katana, ready to unsheath it should the need arise.

"The human is right," Ken spoke out loud, his deep, harsh voice feeling out of place with the unsettling of the mysterious forest there were in now. "I'm a half elf! I'm half better then these elves as I'm half better then myself!"

Ken paused awhile as he pondered his last statement.

Hmm... that didn't sound right.... but whatever....

"I'm Kenk...Morendil Mithania," Ken decided to use his 'elvish name' which was better known in Syl'rosya. "And I've returned to visit my family at Moonwillow.

"Maybe you should try talking to it in elvish?.." Lyr had mentioned.

At which the half elf paused again as he pondered Lyr's logic as well as what to say (since his elvish basically... sucks...)

"Uh... Vedui?" Ken added at last, the elvish greeting equivalent to 'serale', but sounding very awkward and looking very awkward as he lifted his free hand in greeting.

[Anne]

”Why I am Bal’deron!” he stated very clearly when Lyr accused him of not being helpful. He thought he was being very helpful; the leaves on his branches rustled as if he were shrugging his shoulders.

Moving with the characteristic slowness of Treants Bal’deron stepped out into the clearing. He was no more than six feet tall and had the appearance of a silver birch. His facial features blended into the black markings on his silvery trunk so that the elf and human had to really look to find his face at all.

”Haven’t you heard that the Guardians have hidden Silrosia. Alll the elves have been turned out into the forest?” he said with a rustle of his leaves.

”Have to prove themselves worthy protectors of the ancient forests as their ancestors were.”

[Kenkuroi Mithania]

As the source of the voice, Bal'deron, stepped out to reveal himself, Kenkuroi's eyes went wide in surprise, his mouth partly opened in an awkward gawking manner as he hastily took a few steps away from the tree - a moving, talking tree!

"You're.... you're a tree!" he stammered. "You're talking...... and walking! Look Lyr! It's a talking, walking tree!" Ken turned towards his human companion, his expression all curious and thrilled as he tugged the human's sleeve repeatedly while pointing at Bal'deron.

This was the first time the half elf has seen a treant indeed. Though he had heard of them. He recalled the bards of Moonwillow having a song. One that sang something about Yalthorn, a treant who lost his 'Sap-mate', killed in the forest-wars of old, and so grieved was he that when he went into slumber, he never awoke again. Or so was the translation given to him since the song was in elvish, and Ken couldn't master the language.

And now, standing in front of him, was a treant indeed! Wait until his tell his fellow clansmen about this!

"Are you.... are you really a treant? A real treant?" he asked excitedly.

Even Rose seemed excited as she squealed happily while pointing at the tree.

[Lyr Tlansson]

"Borthanas! The trees are alive!" It was like Lyr's worst nightmare come alive - he glanced at Kenkuroi with an I told you so look, seeing as he'd been complaining about the trees in Sil and the creeps they gave him since the first time they'd ever entered the forest.

He'd never heard of treants, however, and so didn't know what the heck Kenkuroi was talking about - except that he figured he meant the talking tree with the funny name.

Bal's story didn't make much sense to Lyr, either. How could someone have turned the elves out of their own city? Who were the Guardians? Why did the elves have to prove themselves?

And last, but not least, why did this concern them - a half-elf and a Vagaran and a Vagaran baby? Ok, maybe it concerned Ken a bit; but Lyr'd give his arm up to the Devourer before he'd allow Kenkuroi to drag him into more misadventures.

It was worth a try, though. "We're not elves." Lyr stated the simple facts of the matter, as odd as it was to be arguing with a tree. "Kenkuroi is only a half-elf, anyway, and he smokes, so really he's the least elvish half-elf that I know of. We don't need to prove anything to get to Silrosia." Though if the elves were all gone... going to Sil itself would ba moot point, wouldn't it.

[Anne]

If he had been given to laughter then perhaps Bal'deron would have laughed at the elf and his traveling companion as they conveyed their surprise at his being able to talk not to mention their disbelief over his being a Treant.

I am a Treant! Tree's don't talk silly elfling don't you know anything? It's not a wonder the Guardians of the forest have cast the veil over Silrosia if all are like you. he responded.

For your education the Guardians are the ones who created the forests! The elves were given the charge of caring for the forest

Turning his full attention to Kenkuroi ...so elfling what do you know of your heritage?" he asked. He was going to ask Lyr the same question when he was satisfied with Kenkuroi's answer.

[Kenkuroi Mithania]

"For the last time! I am NOT an elf....ling....thing.....," the young half elf retorted, stowing away his excitement as the conversation steered towards the more serious topic of where was Silrosia, how to get to Silrosia, and what exactly did the treant meant.

"I am a half elf and yes there IS a difference! An elf is an arrogant pansy, whose only interest is being superior then everyone else, and I'm saying EVERYONE including their own kin. Hence they create so called Houses that benefits noone but their own self proclaimed noble asses while in the midst of discreetly backstabbing each other just to prove they are the most superior of all. Just like their dark cousins but they won't admit that of course, when the truth is, light elf or dark elf, they're still ELVES for Phedos's sake!"

"A half elf is urm.... half of that..... though I assure you and as this human say me being least elvish, I'm not arrogant, I'm not a pansy and I have no interest in being superior then everyone else," Ken sighed, as he casually lit his smoking pipe. All this rambling was making his mouth parch, as in, it needed the taste of tobacco. Was smoking going to offend the treant? Well, perhaps they will find out.... meanwhile, Ken wasn't done rambling yet, partly in responce to the treant's question.

"And half of..... hmmm.... I dunno, half of whatever their other half is!" he shrugged his shoulders as he thought of his heritage. "I'm half human, a Kemite to be precise. I never got to hang around my mother's people so I donno exactly what to say of them. But as me ma tells me, and from my observance of her, they're as equally a proud race like the elves, but with more honor, more respect, more..... tenacity, they're not pansies! They're Aslan's children after all, while the elves are Phedos's children no offence to Phedos!" Ken finished, looking a little fearful as he looked up at the sky, somewhat expecting some god's wrath to fall down on his head.

[Lyr Tlansson]

The Guardians? Who were the Guardians? The tree-beast wasn't making much sense, in Lyr's books, but at least he didn't seem about to jump on them either. Lyr kept his sword out, though, just in case... clearly, one never knew what was going to happen to one when surrounded by sentient trees! Maybe there was a whole army of them around here.

The thought made him glance around the forest again, just to see if he could catch any of the other trees walking or otherwise doing untreelike things, as Kenkuroi got himself into a dither and began explaining loudly to the treant who he was and why he wasn't an elf. Kenkuroi had too much pent up rage - Lyr would have thought some of that, at least, would have dissipated after their trip to the Scarlet Baths... but apparently the half-elf was wound tight again. Lyr critically considered taking him back to the Baths once they'd returned to Secycleon... if they returned to Secycleon! If only Ken would keep his temper.

"I'm Vagaran," Lyr pointed out to the Treant when Ken finished and the tree-beast had turned to ask him the same question. Really, trees were quite the conversationalists! "So I don't know anything about elven blood in me - though I suppose there could be, since I knew my mother not very well at all, and my father less than that... don't even know their names." Lyr shrugged, making no bones about his lonely childhood. Heck, it hadn't been lonely - really, in company with all the other orphan children on Jaedaxia's streets, he hadn't felt himself to be in any way odd or missing or anything.. and then, of course, there had been Khűlan, too. "Though I was raised by a Nimâlni elf, and I know a bit of their language... but I'm no Nimâlni, either." Really, Lyr remembered the old butcher with fondness - but the old man had treated him more like a well-liked assistant and errand boy than trying to make Lyr into his own son. He'd known better: the Nimâlni way of life was not for any but the grey elves.

"So I guess I know very little at all; I'm no berserker, if that's what you're after." Lyr concluded. Really, he and Kenkuroi made quite the pair.

[Anne]

Bal'deron looked at the elf and raised his eyes ever so slightly.

"You have pointed ears like an elfling! You must be an elfling!' he stated to Kenkuroi as if it was given that all to legged folk with pointed ears just had to be an elf.

That thing in your mouth... are you on fire? Perhaps the Guardians should send rain to put you out?"Bal'deron's voice indicated his concern at the thought of fire.

No sooner had he spoken that a small rain cloud appeared over Kenkuroi's head and proceeded to douse him quite thoroughly with water that more than succeeded in putting out his smoking stick.

Turning to look more closely at Lyr as if to make sure there was no elf in him, Bal'deron nodded his head in agreement.

"You don't look like an elfling!" he stated.

"Your friend is right! The elves are all the things they should not be and they have forgotten their roots and just who they are." he said speaking again to Lyr.

"What is a Vagran? Who are they? What is their purpose?" he asked Lyr and ignoring Kenkuroi for the moment. The elfling would have his chance to answer his questions in due course.