The Chief took the tube from Kendalanu, twisted off the end and tipped it so that the contents would fall out. Careena had been expecting a scroll or somesuch to come out, but the fact that Chief did not put here hand under the open end made her doubt that.
Even so, Careena was surprised when a cloud of silver dust, emptied from the tube and then coalesced to spiral around the Chief's body before disappearing into her eyes and mouth ...
Kendalanu moved not an inch, so Careena remained stationary as well, awaiting a reaction from the Chief. Nothing happened to start with - the Chief remained stationary, doing nothing. Careena believed that eyes were closed as well, but the light was all wrong for her to be sure - not that it mattered in the slightest. Then the Chief whirled upon her heel and strode to the rope ladder that still dangled from above.
It seemed that Kendalanu had expected this for she turned to Careena and without missing a beat said, "Our Chief thanks you for your efforts. Would you be gracious enough to wait and see if there is a reply please? Whether there is or no, I will escort you to the limits of our territory, whichever way you wish to leave. Also, our Chief has named you Guest-Friend of the Tribe. You may stay with us in the trees or here on the ground as you desire and may freely visit our Tribe in the future."
I'm going to use this opportunity to add a bond with the Elven village - really need to name it too ..."Thank-you Kendalanu, that is most kind of you. If it does not offend though, I will remain here. Heights are no friend to me, and I would not inflict my Iron upon your people," replied Careena bowing to the Elf as she spoke.
Forge a Bond: 4 +2 vs 8,7; miss BURN mom (reset to 2) -> strong hit, choose +2mom -> now 4
"It is a wise person that knows their limits, and a kind one that puts others before themselves," she said, "But here now, you a friend of the village of Thornfall, home of the Thornbinders - for that is the name of our Tribe, which you may now know - and you may call me Kenda."
Careena had learned to recognise the smile in Kenda's voice and smile broadly back at her
"But I must attend upon my Chief. I will return as soon as I may," and with that she scrambled up the ladder.
I'm not sure how I want the obviously difficult? strained? relationship between Gamana and the Chief - whether it's her sister Utamara or not - to develop, so I'm going to Ask the Oracle whether there is a reply, giving it a likely chance. Actually, first I'm going to Ask the Oracle - is Utamara the Chief? I think that is likely as well ... for likely a roll of 26 or more is a YesCareena didn't expect to see the Chief or Kendalanu again until morning as it was now late in the day, so she prepared her camp for the night.
Ask the Oracle - is Utamara the Chief? d100 = 60; Yes Utamara is the Chief
That's settled then; let's ask the other question ...
Ask the Oracle - does the Chief reply to Gamana's message? d100 =38; Yes, she does.
But what does she reply? Well "Let's play to find out" ...
As she has a bond with the tribe now, Careean will nut use Make Camp, instead she will ...Her camp prepared, but not yet tired, Careena pulled out her sling from herr pack. She hadn't practiced with it for too long, and this seemed like a fine opportunity. Unfortunately, her sling seemed much the worse for neglect and the pebble bag had a hole - she'd lost most of those that she had collected ...
Sojourn: 1 +2 [heart] +1 [bond w. Tribe] vs 3,3; choose Plan, +2 mom, now -> 6
Wow! that bond turned a miss into a strong hit with a positive twist!
Undaunted, Careena started to practice, but it seemed that the tear in the sling's pocket was ruining her casts. She was at the point of giving up when she heard someone climbing down the ladder. On of the tribe had climbed down and came over to Careena. After some farcical hand gestures and miming, Careena eventually learnt that her new friend couldn't speak her language - they worked that out quickly! - and he was offering to swap his sling and pouch of stones for Careena's, which he would repair.
Mechanically, this kind gesture is for the positive twist and gives Careena +1 supply -> now 5, and also an 'in' for the Slinger asset should I want to buy it at some point as I am considering doing.Very grateful, Careena swapped slings, bowing frequently to convey her thanks to her benefactor. As he climbed the ladder, Careena took a few practice casts with the sling. It was much better than her old one and the pouch contained a lot of evenly matched stones, all worn smooth by a river or stream.
Extremely pleased, Careena settled down for the night.
When she awoke, it was to find Kendalanu - "Kenda now," she corrected herself - again crouched on her haunches watching. "Good morning," Careena said, rolling out of her blankets and beginning to pack her things.
"It is," replied Kenda. "The Chief will come when you have eaten," she finished in her sparse way.
So Careena, quickly ate her breakfast, packed her kit and began to wait for the Elven Chief.
In next to no time, the Chief descended the ladder and stood in front of Careena with Kenda at her side.
She removed the same silver tube from under her cloak and handed it to Kenda, who passed it to Careena.
Holding the tube in both hands, Careena bowed over it to the Chief, and said, "Chief of the Thornbinders, I swear upon the Iron in my soul that I will deliver this message to Gamana for you."
Swear an Iron Vow: I will deliver the Chief's reply to Gamana (dangerous): 3 +2 [heart] +1 [bond w. Tribe] vs 5,4; strong hit, +2 mom -> now 8Seemingly pleased, the Chief nodded to Careena, turned to the ladder and swiftly climbed up. Once she reached the top, it was pulled up after her.
Her tenure in the Elven village at an end, Careena put her backpack in place, retrieved her walking axe and strode off toward the south-east, where Gamana had said her new home would be.
As they walked, Careena questioned Kenda about the terrain she should expect upon her journey and any landmarks that she should look out for
Secure an Advantage: 6 +3 [wits] vs 6,2; strong hit, choose Take Control for +1 on next move<Kenda was full of helpful information, and when they parted in the mid-afternoon, having reached the end of the Thornbinders' lands, Careena began to jog with confidence.
Undertake a Journey: Travel to Gamana's new home (dangerous) 0/10; 5 +3 [wits] +1 [SaA above] vs 7,6; strong hit, prog 2/10Having made good progress and reached the 'Cave of Cold' that Kenda had described as Careena had hoped she might, she decided to camp for the night
Make Camp: 6 +5 [supply] vs 6,2; strong hit, choose Focus (+1 mom -> now 9) & Prepare (+1 to UaJ when break camp)With no Rhuddli to slow her down, Careena rose before the sun. As it had been several days since Careena had last performed the rtitual, she decided to conduct the Keen ritual upon her axe.
As she prepared her materials and her mind, Careena carefully considered that now there would be those that she had killed to keen for. Every time that she had conducted the ritual before, the slain had been those that her father or his father had slain ... Careena considered adding a new verse for the Varou and removing one that referred to her grandfather's deeds.
This seemed to be a right thing to do to Careena, but she meditated upon it for a while and confirmed her decision. Her song amended, Careena conducted the ritual.
Ritual - Keen; 1 +2 [heart] vs 8,7; miss BURN = strong hit, mom reset -> now 2; ritual successfully completedCareena felt enormous pride at having successfully changed the ritual on her own, and so she set continued her journey with a broad smile upon her face ...
I really wanted to Careena to make that roll, hence burning momentum because as this is the first time that she has amended a ritual - successfully (thanks to the burn), I'm making it a milestone.
Reach a Milestone: I will become a Ritualist, now 5/10
A good place to pause. More soon!