The Lunaedriac

[MacConnell]

Cycle: 497. Season: Rebirth. Day: 15
As an eagle might fly, the smallest vegetated island could not be missed if sailing a straight path from Vit Spira to Ceannbhrat Buaircineach. It is only slightly south of the direct line. Being small and covered with conifers, this island is not particularly mountainous or overly rocky, like it could be. There is also other vegetation, but it is limited to those whose tiny seeds could be carried by the wind or perhaps dropped after being eaten by a bird. The inhabitants of the island are limited to birds and insects. Animals that could not fly would not attempt to swim across the Lunaedriac. This is evidence of the rumor that a monster lives somewhere down in great depths. Adolescents, being in their immortal years, pay no heed to such superstitions, especially since no person had ever been attacked on the lake.

It takes about 14 hours to sail from Vit Spira to the island, which requires the youths to take turns sleeping and manning the boat. Even a very short distance from short, the lake is far too deep to be able to drop an anchor. Sailing is not an easy task and all sailors usually rest for a day or two at each of the villages. This has furthered the friendliness between the peoples of the lake. Though hostile peoples did exist in the mountains, these people did have boats or sail the lake. Arriving during the night, the youths secure the vessel to shore and rest near it until the morning light.

Spoiler: Character data

Ceo: full wellness
Falk: full wellness
Jei: full wellness
Jade: full wellness

OOC: Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide 2 random rolls.

 

[Eric Zephlaer]

Having deliberately sailed to this island, the four youths decide to search the island in a somewhat meticulous pattern, looking for anything interesting. Double checking their catamaran to make sure that it is secure, they follow the shoreline to the south side of the island, then spread out to begin criss-crossing through the interior to see what may be found. Jei, speaking Maldrog because it was the dominant language of the lake, due to the formal trade actions of Bergbaulager, says, “I do not have any expectations. I have no knowledge of what might be here.”

Jade responds, first. “No one back home talks about this particular island. I doubt we are the first to stop here, but we may be the only ones to explore it.”

Ceo continues her thought, also able to speak Maldrog, “at least in a very long time. Some of the Hebrians before Jei’s time have probably sailed here more than once. I know your people spend much time on the water. The Spiofthest are more interested in fishing.”

Falk, speaking Maldrog as well, adds, “Speaking of fishing, it takes too long to make a fish trap, but I bet Ceo can quickly make a fish spear. We may want to think about making a few mundane trade runs so that we can buy a fish trap so that we can provide our own food.”

Jei nods his head and points at nothing in particular with his left hand. “Good point, Falk, we should probably limit our exploration to two days, then we will need to go get food. I know my village will give us some sea rations, but we cannot expect that to last forever.”

OOC: 53, 65

 

[MacConnell]

Cycle: 497. Season: Rebirth. Day: 16

Spoiler: Explore

Ceo: 12(observe) + 53, 65(d100) = 65, 77
Falk: 12 + 53, 65 = 65, 77
Jei: 15 + 53, 65 = 68, 80
Jade: 10 + 53, 65 = 63, 75

Reaching the southern shore of the island and beginning to move inland, the party almost immediately come upon an area commandeered as an aviary by all of the local species of dancing birds. During the mating period, these birds tend to congregate together sharing the same nesting area. The largest of the birds nest highest in the trees and the smaller ones move downward. At this time of the Cycle, dancing birds are just beginning to sit their nests. The area is very noisy and stinks tremendously due to the fact that dancing birds eat fish and crustaceans, and everything is covered in their acrid droppings.

The largest species are normally found in grasslands, especially marshes. Only medium to smaller varieties are found around lakes, especially at this elevation. They are so named, dancing, because of their particularly fanciful mating rituals that look like complicated dances. Functionally, their long legs and lithe, long, snake-like necks and sharp beaks facilitate their behavior of stalking small fish and crustaceans for consumption. They will fly from danger if approached or spooked, unless nesting. Many dancing birds are all white or a bluish gray, but others are a mix of white, blue, gray, black, brown, and green. With the fanciful ritual of the mating selection, feathers litter the area and the youth finds themselves compelled to collect some.

Outside of this aviary, the remainder of the island is densely populated with a variety of songbirds, most only the size of a person’s fist, not considering wingspan. It is the nesting time for all birds, and the smallest species have finished laying and are already incubating their nests. Though not specifically concentrated like dancing birds, everyone is also able to find several songbirds feathers. These are brightly colored with yellows, reds, and orange.

In addition to these arboreal nesting birds, the party also discovers the unfamiliar ground nests of thrushes. Thrushes are so named because they till and scratch through leaf litter and debris looking for insects to eat, Unlike running birds, thrushes fly very well and will fly away if disturbed, though they are quite vociferous when their nests are approached. Most are not yet finished, but all have begun laying eggs. With the absence of terrestrial predators, the population is dense, and the insects that inhabit the island provide food but are not a threat to the nests.

In the same area of the island where the thrushes are found, the natural leaf litter and debris are a prime habitat for shellacked beetles, and most especially when a strange squeaking sound draws the party to a fallen tree and many of the small critters are feasting upon the rotting pulp.

Spoiler: Character data

Ceo: full wellness
Falk: full wellness
Jei: full wellness
Jade: full wellness

OOC: Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide 2 random rolls.

 

[Eric Zephlaer]

Ever talkative and stating the obvious, Jei exclaims, “Why did we pick up these feathers? I felt this compulsion to collect them. I wonder if there is something about them that is supposed to important to us. Could this be some subliminal thought of Wind, Water, or Earth?”

It may seem overtly obvious, but it was not, Ceo chimed in first, this time. “You have a point. This is odd. Perhaps we should try to determine why we collected them.” The other agree and continually fiddle with the feathers as they continue to explore.

Once the nesting thrushes are discovered, Falk offers a suggestion to the others. “We could collect a single egg from some of these nests to get some fresh food without having any real impact upon the birds.” The others all agreed with this suggestion, only taking a couple of eggs each, cracking and drinking them down, despite any complaints of the birds.

Jade had slightly better hearing than the others and, at the offensive squeaking sound, said, “That rotting log must be full of beetles.”

This sparked a memory for Jei. “Wait! Wait. The Rheini use the shells of these bugs to make some kind of liquid that they use to harden leather. We should shake this log and see how many we can smash. We may have discovered our first trade item all on our own!” It seems a fine suggestion to everyone else.

OOC: 56, 68

 

[MacConnell]

Cycle: 497. Season: Rebirth. Day: 16

Spoiler: Identify

Ceo: 12(alchemy) + 15(analysis) + 68(d100) = 95, success
Falk: 12 + 15 + 68 = 95, success
Jei: 15 + 14 + 68 = 97, success
Jade: 10 + 15 + 68 = 93, success

Spoiler: Physical Assault

Ceo: 10(finesse) + 12(accuracy) + 15(clarity) + 56, 68(d100) = 93, 105
Falk: 10 + 12 + 15 + 56, 68 = 93, 105
Jei: 10 + 15 + 12 + 56, 68 = 93, 105
Jade: 12 + 10 + 15 + 56, 68 = 93, 105

Everyone is able to determine the significance of his compulsion to keep the feathers. A grouping of at least three Dancing Bird feathers, when carried by anyone in the party will augment physical movement (Motility +1). A grouping of at least three Songbird feathers will augment personal interactions (Persona +1), and a grouping of at least three Thrush feathers will augment overall wellness (Health +1). Determining this information requires the exerted concentration but the knowledge is instinctual and requires no explanation.

After shaking the log a few times, everyone is able to run down and step on two beetles each. The grubs within the rotting log are ignored, for these will later become more beetles. If the party had its own fish trap, the grubs, which can be as large as a person’s forearm, make excellent fish bait.

Spoiler: Character data

Ceo: full wellness
Falk: full wellness
Jei: full wellness
Jade: full wellness

Spoiler: Collectibles

shellacked elytrum: 8 pair: 2 coins per pair

OOC: Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide 2 random rolls.

 

[Eric Zephlaer]

Ceo uses strands of her own long hair in order to attach the feathers and allow them to dangle from the ends. Jade does not have long enough hair for such and makes a bracelet for her left wrist from which the feathers dangle. Falk attaches them to the hem of his tunic, while Jei works them into the shoulder area.

After stomping on the beetles, Jade, being of a rather dominant personality, makes a suggestion to the others. “This is not really very many to make a decent offer. We can probably afford to spend another day to see if we can find some more of these.” Jei immediately nods in affirmation, and the other two also agree.

OOC: 59, 71

 

[MacConnell]

Cycle: 497. Season: Rebirth. Day: 17

Spoiler: Identify

Ceo: 12(alchemy) + 15(analysis) + 68(d100) = 95, success
Falk: 12 + 15 + 68 = 95, success
Jei: 15 + 14 + 68 = 97, success
Jade: 10 + 15 + 68 = 93, success

Spoiler: Physical Assault

Ceo: 10(finesse) + 12(accuracy) + 15(clarity) + 56, 68(d100) = 93, 105
Falk: 10 + 12 + 15 + 56, 68 = 93, 105
Jei: 10 + 15 + 12 + 56, 68 = 93, 105
Jade: 12 + 10 + 15 + 56, 68 = 93, 105

The next day, before discovering any other place that might hold such beetles, the party came upon a very unexpected find in about the center of the island, perhaps it truly was centered. There was an obelisk about the height of a person, centered on a two tiered square dais. The obelisk has four flat sides and tapers from its base to the top but does not come to a smooth point. About a span before the top the sides taper much more sharply inward to make a more blunted tip. Each side has symbols etched downward. The entire structure is made of smooth, very smooth, gray stone that looks to be all one piece. The color of the stone is very out of place when compared to the rock that makes the mountains.

Spoiler: Character data

Ceo: full wellness
Falk: full wellness
Jei: full wellness
Jade: full wellness

Spoiler: Collectibles

shellacked elytrum: 8 pair: 2 coins per pair

OOC: Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide 2 random rolls.

 

[Eric Zephlaer]

Jei first states the obvious. “This is really out of place. I do not recognize these symbols. We should look around the immediate area and see what else might be here.”

Jade ran her fingers over the etched symbols. “This looks like writing, but it is not Maldrog.”

Falk takes a closer look. “This is not Kozzog, either. I wonder if it is Orngaddrin or maybe it is Yahdram. How about that?”

Ceo merely shrugs, Spiothest did not have a written form. “Sure, let us look around to see if something else is here.”

OOC: 62, 74

 

[MacConnell]

Cycle: 497. Season: Rebirth. Day: 17

Spoiler: Search

Ceo: 13(observe) + 62, 74(d100) = 75, 87
Falk: 13 + 62, 74 = 75, 87
Jei: 17 + 62, 74 = 79, 91
Jade: 10 + 62, 74 = 72, 84

Spreading out and searching the immediate area, nothing out of place is obvious. There seems to be nothing else of interest, until Jay comes across a large flat stone, against the ground, covered by leaf litter. The stone is about an arm length square and about a hand thick. It is the same gray color as the obelisk and looks to weigh more than Falcon, though it appears to be resting atop another stone that goes down into the ground. After this first discovery, an identical stone is found at equal distance from the obelisk on each of its flat sides, four sides, four stones.

Spoiler: Character data

Ceo: full wellness
Falk: full wellness
Jei: full wellness
Jade: full wellness

Spoiler: Collectibles

shellacked elytrum: 8 pair: 2 coins per pair

OOC: Each character receives 5 DP. State nominal actions and intentions. Provide 2 random rolls.

 

[Eric Zephlaer]

Jei calls the others over to the first block. “These are evenly spaced. They also look like they are covering something; although, I do not know if we could move one.”

Falk cocks his head to one side. “Maybe if we work together. We do not need to try to lift one, perhaps we can push one aside.”

Jade thinks about it for a second. “I think you are right. We should concentrate on one corner. You and Ceo push there, Jei and I will push here. We will see if we can slide it toward the opposite corner.”

With the experience of moving the manufactured boats from where they are made to the lake, Ceo waves her hand. “Wait. Wait. Once we slide it a little, it is going to get stuck on the ground. We need something for leverage. We need a heavy stick or two would be better. Let us see what we can find and then get at it.”

OOC: 65, 77