[Story] Expedition I: Lake Kagamihara

[Kaigen]

Rahat - Twinspring Grove Rahat stared at Khrysa, mentally reassessing various experiences she'd had and observations she'd made in light of this new information. "That—hmm. That seems..." she was at something of a loss for appropriate words. Inconvenient? Wasteful? Lonely? Probably none of those would have gone over well. "Well. It explains a few things anyway. Grateful for an opportunity to change the subject, Rahat joined Khrysa in thanking Lhorn. "No payment is asked or required, but we gladly accept your gift." She wasn't sure how it would all fit together into a meal, but maybe the temple would offer some idea of how to proceed. As the treant withdrew, Rahat caught up to what Langtree had said. "Sheep's blood does make for a good dish," she admitted. It was also a good sacrifice to the spirits, so it only made sense that an undead would still savor it, though she would not have expected a lich to retain their palette after death. "A pity we don't have a lamb or two on hand."

[briar]

Lake Kagamihara Briarheart Hollow "The sunrise at Lake Kagamihara is pretty famous. You see, when the sun hits those glaciers just right...well, guess you should stay up and see for yourself, eh?" -- Overheard from a passerby in Tradewinds

📅 11th Day of Second month in the Summer season.Aiou, 334 After Union / After UnificationA.U. Terrain🌄 Travel & Camping Base TN is ERROR.??????? Weather🌞 Travel & Camping Modifier is ERRORHeavy Fog; 30°F Time of Day⏱ ERR:OR ?? Locale Info A quiet, out of the way lake famed for its solitude and crystal clear waters, it is overlooked by Mount Seneschal, the tallest and most iconic of the Reigncrown mountain range. Legend has it that the emblem on the Rouge flag was designed after the view of the mountain from this lake. In the Summer and Autumn, it is a common destination for hikers and campers, and features a small lodge where one can rent small boats to venture onto the lake. Environs: Lodge Area, Northern Lakeshore, Southern Lakeshore, Twinspring Grove Locale Info Background Music Khrysa 🩸 14/14 • Current Stamina💪 3/3 Rahat 🩸 21/21 • Karma for this Locale🍀 2 • Current Stamina💪 2/3

Rahat & Khrysa As the group talks amidst itself, both Khrysa and Rahat begin to feel a strange sensation creep over them. It is subtle, tender, like the lightest of taps upon the shoulder, yet as noticeable as the sound of glass shattering in a silent hallway. A breeze suddenly passes through the trees, bringing a deep chill that envelops the area. So cold that the air begins to mist, and light frost appears on the trees and foliage around them. So sudden is the change, that neither seems to notice how the forest changes around then until realization hits: they are not where they were. The trees are in different places, the sun seems to have wound back to its zenith, and the path that the group had made on their way into the forest is nowhere to be seen, blanketed by a fringe of deep fog that seems as a wall. What's more, their companions seem to have vanished, as if carried away by the mist itself, leaving only Khrysa and Rahat standing alone in what appears to be a grove of trees and tall grass that reaches nearly up to their waists. Even the great treefolk seems to have disappeared entirely, and where there was once the sound of their companions considering options for dinner, there is naught but the silence of the empty glade around them. That is, until... "Caught you... Hehehe..." The voice seems to stir from the forest around them, coming from everywhere, yet nowhere. And shortly afterward, several more voices chime in, seemingly talking to each other and jeering at the two companions. "Tresspassers!" "Who do they think they are?!!" "vaGRAnTs!" "Interlopers!!" "Who comes?! Who comes?!?!" "Can we eat them?!" "Ridiculous! Preposterous! Ludicrous!" "Maybe they came to eat us?!"

Storyteller Notes ----

[Kaigen]

Rahat - ??? At first it is just a prickling on her skin, her hair standing up. The unexpectedly cold breeze sending a shiver all the way down to Rahat's flank as she wonders if this is something the natives neglected to mention. Then suddenly it feels as though it is the dead of night even though the sun stands directly overhead. Rahat's head snaps one way and then the other, dread freezing her gut as she realizes she is almost entirely alone. She clamps on hand over Khrysa's shoulder in the hopes that it will somehow prevent her from disappearing too, while her other hand grips her ankh, white-knuckled. And then the voices start. She looks around, trying to place them by sight or by sound, but the fog is thick and she is unmoored from any sense of direction. "We come not by our own intent," she says. "We mean no trespass, no harm." Rahat looks vainly back the way they came, hoping to see some sort of portal that they have stumbled through without realizing.

[Xyza]

Khrysa

Khrysa had still been squinting at the golden acorns Lhorn had dropped. "Hmm, interesting texture...with these shells it almost seems better to preserve them by roasting rather than making a paste or stew..." she murmured to herself while collecting them into her basket.

Then, the world around began to shift. The sensation creeping over her took an immediate startling effect. The sorcerer at first felt as though some spell was being cast upon her - and perhaps one was - but it soon became clear that it was much more than that. "Whaa-" Khrysa's jaw dropped when looking up at her surroundings and how everything had changed. It was no mere illusion, but a different place entirely.

"Aahhh!" Khrysa yelped as she felt a hand atop her shoulder. She slowly turned her head in terror to catch a glimpse of what powerful monstrosity had made this happen...breathing a sigh of relief upon realizing that it was the trusty Rahat. The fact that none of her other companions seemed to be around kept her tension high, though.

Then, the voices began. Khrysa looked all around, unable to identify the source of them. As she continued to tremble at this sudden development, the chatter about intrusion and eating them did nothing to assuage her fears.

"We come not by our own intent. We mean no trespass, no harm."

Khrysa was glad that the wise centaur had been able to retain her wits, but she was struggling to say the same about herself. "Y-y-yeah! W-we don't mean any harm, we were just heading to a...uhm, potluck thing! D...do you want to join in?" she asked meekly. Khrysa's months of traveling on the road had certainly brought her out of her sheltered existence living at the inn, but it had not nearly been long or eventful enough to make her comfortable with whatever was happening now.

[briar]

Lake Kagamihara Briarheart Hollow "The sunrise at Lake Kagamihara is pretty famous. You see, when the sun hits those glaciers just right...well, guess you should stay up and see for yourself, eh?" -- Overheard from a passerby in Tradewinds

📅 11th Day of Second month in the Summer season.Aiou, 334 After Union / After UnificationA.U. Terrain🌄 Travel & Camping Base TN is ERROR.??????? Weather🌞 Travel & Camping Modifier is ERRORHeavy Fog; 30°F Time of Day⏱ ERR:OR ?? Locale Info A quiet, out of the way lake famed for its solitude and crystal clear waters, it is overlooked by Mount Seneschal, the tallest and most iconic of the Reigncrown mountain range. Legend has it that the emblem on the Rouge flag was designed after the view of the mountain from this lake. In the Summer and Autumn, it is a common destination for hikers and campers, and features a small lodge where one can rent small boats to venture onto the lake. Environs: Lodge Area, Northern Lakeshore, Southern Lakeshore, Twinspring Grove Locale Info Background Music Khrysa 🩸 14/14 • Current Stamina💪 3/3 Rahat 🩸 21/21 • Karma for this Locale🍀 2 • Current Stamina💪 2/3

Rahat & Khrysa As the two companions respond, the jeering voices fill the glad with a cacophony of laughter of varying pitches, from low, nasal snort-laughs, to high, giggly cackles. "Shivering in their boots, they are!" "Hehehe, can't see meeeeee!" "Do you think they know?" "Clearly not!" "Very rude! Very rude indeed!" "Breaking the rules! Punish!" "Scurrying about!" "Sniffing around!" The lesser voices hush, however, when the initial voice that greeted them deigns to speak again. Even still, it is decidedly louder, and has an authoritative sort of tone. "Not tresspassers? How very quaint... And did your feet not willingly carry you thus into these woods? Were you so beguiled by my radiant presence that you took leave of your senses and tread so willfully onto hallowed grounds? Perhaps I would have been of a mind to forgive had you simply strayed in and left again like a pack of little lost puppies, but to also take from my sacred stocks and release my repenting captive, all without my blessing? Why...my dear, lost, foolish little mortals... I'm afraid I can only surmise one thing..." "Thieves!" "Brigands!" "Ruffians!" "Filthy!" "Shameless! Shameless!" "Berrynappers!"

Storyteller Notes ----

[Kaigen]

Rahat - ??? Realization dawned slowly for Rahat. Earlier talk had all been in the past, assuming that the Grove's ruler was "former," either having left or passed. But of course, powerful spirits did not die easily. "Then we have rudely and carelessly intruded on your domain." She bowed her head in a show of contrition. She would need to pick her words very carefully. Imprisonment was far from the worst thing they could suffer in such circumstances. "What could anyone offer to cover over such an insult?" There was a chance that this was not, in fact, the Prickly Queen, and was instead a pretender, but it would do them no favors to challenge them.

[Xyza]

Khrysa

The voices laughing mischievously about something Khrysa and Rahat did not know was quite concerning, especially since Khrysa indeed hadn't the faintest clue what was happening. Something supernatural no doubt, but that hardly narrowed it down when the lands were filled with such. Khrysa tried to tap into her magical senses to figure out what might be afoot here.

The loudest "leader" voice provided another hint, speaking as if it ruled the lands. Khrysa had anticipated a potential encounter with the "Prickly Queen" Lhorn had spoken of, but not until they'd reached the temple. And with it presumably speaking of the kind tree-person as its prisoner...Khrysa's immediate instinct was to speak in defense of her new friend, but her customer service training kicked in enough to hold her tongue for now.

She instead tried to follow with Rahat's diplomatic approach. "Right, we didn't know we were trespassing! And of uh, the rules and such...we can un-nap the berries!"

[briar]

Lake Kagamihara Briarheart Hollow "The sunrise at Lake Kagamihara is pretty famous. You see, when the sun hits those glaciers just right...well, guess you should stay up and see for yourself, eh?" -- Overheard from a passerby in Tradewinds

📅 11th Day of Second month in the Summer season.Aiou, 334 After Union / After UnificationA.U. Terrain🌄 Travel & Camping Base TN is ERROR.??????? Weather🌞 Travel & Camping Modifier is ERRORHeavy Fog; 30°F Time of Day⏱ ERR:OR ?? Locale Info A quiet, out of the way lake famed for its solitude and crystal clear waters, it is overlooked by Mount Seneschal, the tallest and most iconic of the Reigncrown mountain range. Legend has it that the emblem on the Rouge flag was designed after the view of the mountain from this lake. In the Summer and Autumn, it is a common destination for hikers and campers, and features a small lodge where one can rent small boats to venture onto the lake. Environs: Lodge Area, Northern Lakeshore, Southern Lakeshore, Twinspring Grove Locale Info Background Music Khrysa 🩸 14/14 • Current Stamina💪 3/3 Rahat 🩸 21/21 • Karma for this Locale🍀 2 • Current Stamina💪 2/3

Rahat & Khrysa Unfortunately it seems that not only is the mysterious voice not placated with Khrysa and Rahat's explanation, it seems to be further enraged by it, and begins to speak in louder, more higher pitched tones to emphasize this fact. And of course, it is accompanied by the jeering cacophony of smaller, more incessant voices. "They don't know?!" "Impossible! Improbable! Impractical! Illogical!" "What lies!" "Ignorance does not pardon misconduct! These woods are mine, and my glorious name is celebrated from the Viridian Coast, to the Litany Isles. Why even the mere idea that you know not who owns these woods bespeaks a crime of awareness! Do you also not know that the sun is hot and the seas are wet?" "Up is up!" "Down is down!" "Inside and out!" There is a pause, and then a sigh. "But enough! I tire of this dribble, and I have grown bored of the both of you. It is nearly tea time and I--! Ah, but wait...yes, what a brilliant idea I've just had. Let's have a bit of entertainment, shall we? I do enjoy a show with my tea, and you shall be condemned to both! Your task shall be to serve me my tea; that is, of course, supposing you can find your way through the Shadow Labyrinth and concoct the recipe. Should you prove able to accomplish this task before the clock tolls thrice, I shall...consider letting you leave this place." As if to signal the game begun, the sound of a loud, dull thrum echoes through the woods, carrying with it a strong, sudden gale that dissipates immediately after.

Storyteller Notes Khrysa's Arcana Check: Without the aid of Detect Magic or similar.a spell to perceive magical auras and energies, Khrysa can only hazard a guess as to what sort of magic this is. Most likely the pair of them have been drawn into some sort of other realm, or perhaps a corridor between two realms. Though it is also possible that this is just one big illusion...

[Kaigen]

Rahat Rahat had assumed that further protestations of innocence would not do them any good, but Khrysa's attempt was still a worthy one, and the Queen's response suggested that her power was not as secure as she proclaimed, even without the benefit of their conversation with Lhorn. Rahat had only ever met one other monarch in her life, but the comparison was telling. The Sultana was secure enough in her power to be magnanimous in exercising it and had no need to remind anyone of the extent of her domain. If Rahat kept her wits about her, she might spot a crack in the Queen's apparent power. Thoughts of Lhorn brought a frown to Rahat's face. Had he had a similar experience while trapped in slumber? Were Rahat and Khrysa even now fast asleep on the forest floor? There was no way to know for sure. Lhorn hadn't spoken of anything like this, but it was possible he simply didn't remember. Rahat squeezed Khrysa's shoulder. "Your Majesty is gracious beyond what we deserve. If I may ask, how does Your Majesty take her tea?"

[Xyza]

Khrysa

"Oh, tea! Yes we can serve that, ma'am- er...Your Highness?" Khrysa did her best improvising to keep up with the mysteriously magical situation. "Tea...let's see...I should have something to brew the ingredients in and..." she murmured to herself and Rahat.

"Your Majesty is gracious beyond what we deserve. If I may ask, how does Your Majesty take her tea?" Khrysa stopped her train of thought and perked up to hear the answer. That was a good question to ask before they got too far into things. Tea could mean many different things, after all. The Silver Scale Inn had primarily served a simple and light green tea, but Khrysa had tasted a variety of different brews out on the road, including those with peculiarities such as having sugar added or causing an intense tingling sensation. She'd even heard rumors about a tea somewhere that had jelly-like bits in it. Khrysa had a suspicion that a being known as the Prickly Queen might have very persnickety tastes.

[briar]

Lake Kagamihara Briarheart Hollow "The sunrise at Lake Kagamihara is pretty famous. You see, when the sun hits those glaciers just right...well, guess you should stay up and see for yourself, eh?" -- Overheard from a passerby in Tradewinds

📅 11th Day of Second month in the Summer season.Aiou, 334 After Union / After UnificationA.U. Terrain🌄 Travel & Camping Base TN is ERROR.??????? Weather🌞 Travel & Camping Modifier is ERRORHeavy Fog; 30°F Time of Day⏱ ERR:OR ?? Locale Info A quiet, out of the way lake famed for its solitude and crystal clear waters, it is overlooked by Mount Seneschal, the tallest and most iconic of the Reigncrown mountain range. Legend has it that the emblem on the Rouge flag was designed after the view of the mountain from this lake. In the Summer and Autumn, it is a common destination for hikers and campers, and features a small lodge where one can rent small boats to venture onto the lake. Environs: Lodge Area, Northern Lakeshore, Southern Lakeshore, Twinspring Grove Locale Info Background Music Khrysa 🩸 14/14 • Current Stamina💪 3/3 Rahat 🩸 21/21 • Karma for this Locale🍀 2 • Current Stamina💪 2/3

Rahat & Khrysa "Hmph! Do not bother me with such trifles. If you do not already know, then you should seek out the assistance of my butler, Argritte. I suspect even now that they are making preparations in the Fallow Nook. Follow your nose and you will surely find it. But be you warned here and now, I expect only the finest and freshest of ingredients!" "The sweetest!" "The brightest!" "The spiciest!" "Plump and red, plump and red!" "Hehehehehehe!" "Now begone with you! You've precious little time, after all. And do not be late!" The cacophony of voices slowly fade, each one given to fits of giggling and leaving the two companions alone in the shrouded glade. How they would find their way forward in what was essentially a veritable maze of mist-laden woodlands was a clear and obvious question. After all, no matter which way one looked, it was impossible to know which direction was forward or backward, and there weren't any obvious landmarks to give them a bearing...

Storyteller Notes Before they can continue 'forward', Rahat and Khrysa will need to restore their sense of direction or otherwise figure out a way to navigate the Shadow Labyrinth. I have a few defined ways of doing so that you can get hints for by making the appropriate skill check(s), but I am also more than happy to let you come up with your own method as well, through whatever means you can conjure up. The more interesting the method, the better the result will be. Let me know, either here or on Discord, if you have any questions about it.

[Xyza]

Khrysa

Just as soon as the (probably) Prickly Queen and her followers had made their appearance, they faded away into the fog. As they departed, Khrysa pulled out her scrapbook to scribble down what little information had been given. Fallow Nook...sweet, bright, spicy...plump and red...

"Surely tomato tea isn't what she's looking for?" she blurted out upon pondering what they could have meant. "Ahem, sorry," she turned to look to the only familiar face around these parts. "So...what happened? I've never experienced anything like this before..." Though she was undoubtedly concerned about these developments, Khrysa also felt a welling sense of adventure from this mystery they had been thrust into; she did leave home to adventure after all, and though ominous, the voices didn't seem to mean immediate harm, in fact hosting a tea party instead.

"I suppose we need to find a way around here, but I have no idea how. Well..." Khrysa pulled a torch from her pack. If there were no objections from Rahat, she lit it with a tinderbox then used a subtle bit of Control Flamesmagic to amplify the light produced by it and turn it a calming light blue color. "Hopefully now we can at least see...anything," she peered around, but still struggled amidst the deep fog.

"Do you think we need to leave breadcrumbs to keep track of where we've been like in the stories?"

[Kaigen]

Rahat The Queen's response has Rahat questioning how much she actually cares about her tea, but it's not something that changes what they have to do. Even if the Queen hardly pays any attention to her tea normally, she will still likely find any fault she can to use as an excuse to punish Rahat and Khrysa. She thinks about the valleyspice lilies tucked away in her pack. Possibly useful as part of the blend, but if the voices are anything to go by, there's a particular base she has in mind. She also thinks about their supply of snoozberries. Would a touch of that make the Queen less temperamental? Could they risk it? Normally she wouldn't consider drugging a lucid patient without their knowledge, but these are dire circumstances. "Tomato tea?" Rahat has encountered tomatoes, but not any attempts to use their leaves. She looks around again. "This has never happened to me either." Rahat has encountered most in her travels, and she knows that the torch will only do so much to help them see. Without a broader view of their surroundings, they can't count on sight to find their way—the mist will have them walking in circles. "Breadcrumbs seem like a poor choice of trail marker." Rahat begins examining the trees, the mosses, and other plants around them. There may be some pattern to their growth that can help her keep her bearings as they may through the "Shadow Labyrinth." Given that they are already in trouble for trespassing, Rahat is not about to start making marks to track their way, but if she can find enough pebbles those might serve as less objectionable—though still vulnerable to mischief—means of marking their path.

OOC Rahat has a few skills that might be useful here, but I'll start with Survival, since that's the conventional navigation skill. Unfortunately, Rahat only got a 7.

[briar]

Lake Kagamihara Briarheart Hollow "The sunrise at Lake Kagamihara is pretty famous. You see, when the sun hits those glaciers just right...well, guess you should stay up and see for yourself, eh?" -- Overheard from a passerby in Tradewinds

📅 11th Day of Second month in the Summer season.Aiou, 334 After Union / After UnificationA.U. Terrain🌄 Travel & Camping Base TN is ERROR.??????? Weather🌞 Travel & Camping Modifier is ERRORHeavy Fog; 30°F Time of Day⏱ ERR:OR ?? Locale Info A quiet, out of the way lake famed for its solitude and crystal clear waters, it is overlooked by Mount Seneschal, the tallest and most iconic of the Reigncrown mountain range. Legend has it that the emblem on the Rouge flag was designed after the view of the mountain from this lake. In the Summer and Autumn, it is a common destination for hikers and campers, and features a small lodge where one can rent small boats to venture onto the lake. Environs: Lodge Area, Northern Lakeshore, Southern Lakeshore, Twinspring Grove Locale Info Background Music Khrysa 🩸 14/14 • Current Stamina💪 3/3 Rahat 🩸 21/21 • Karma for this Locale🍀 2 • Current Stamina💪 2/3

Rahat & Khrysa As Rahat surmises, Khrysa's conjured flame does certainly help with visibility within the immediate area, but beyond a certain distance, the mist pervades in too dense a fog to see through. The blue light does give the mist a strangely satisfying hue, however, and it does feel more approachable than the pale, almost ghostly white that it was before. As Khrysa peers out into the fog, she can make out only that there are paths stretching around them through the thicket in all directions, any of which they could follow but there are no road signs nor markers to suggest which might be the one that will lead them to this 'Fallow Nook' that the Queen spoke of. They all look the same--twisting roads that curve through dense, dark green foliage and tall, uncaring trees. Rahat explores the general vicinity, taking in markers from their location. Normally she would be able to tell the direction that the sun moves in according to way trees and plants grow, but everything seems to suggest that the sun does not move from its zenith directly overhead, as if frozen there in time. And without the suns movement or any stars in the night's sky, it seems she'll have to rely on some other form of determining direction.

Storyteller Notes ------

[Kaigen]

Rahat - ??? Rahat frowns as she takes in the local plant life. There's too little spread, too much uniform thickness. She puts a marker down next to a shadow as she takes a thorough look around, and returning to it seems to confirm her suspicions. The sun doesn't move here. A land fixed forever at noon was a hellish thought, and more to the point, it makes all of her usual ways of way finding unreliable. Combined with the fog making it impossible to reckon any landmarks from a distance, it makes a formidable labyrinth indeed. Which leaves her falling back on the most basic techniques she's learned for unfamiliar lands. Rahat gathers up any small stones she can find in the vicinity and combined then with a collection from her saddlebags. Then she makes a small stack alternating colors in a way that will help her know which market she's looking at if they end back up here. It's not a technique that would work well in the desert, but if things are as static here as they seem, it may well serve. Assuming nothing comes along to mess with them. Rahat gets out a piece of parchment and hangs a few drafting tools from her harness. "I don't know where we are and I don't know where we're going, but I can at least tell where we've been as we explore." She makes a mark in the center of the parchment to mark their starting point.