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Forgotten Lore (Updated M-W-F)
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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 7462564" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>I'm back!</p><p></p><p>* * * </p><p></p><p>Chapter 179</p><p></p><p>Under different circumstances, Glori thought that she might have enjoyed the journey from Tal Nadesh to the border of the Reserve.</p><p></p><p>On seeing the conveyance provided by the elves, her first thought had been, <em>Nice carriage… but where are the horses?</em></p><p></p><p>The elves had begun boarding the vehicle before anyone had thought to explain to her that the carriage was magical. The driver sat in a seat in the front, where he had an array of control mechanisms set out in front of him. Glori might have liked to investigate further, but Shreskra was impatiently directing her into the passenger compartment. She and her Rangers clambered up onto the exterior, where they settled into precarious-looking seats.</p><p></p><p>Glori would have preferred riding with them, despite the obvious lack of safety features, if it would have gotten her out of riding with Majerion. Her mentor had quickly boarded the carriage with Kosk and Embrae, leaving her little choice but to follow. The compartment held two padded benches, forcing the four of them to squeeze in together to fit. She’d barely settled into the seat before Shreskra barked a command and the driver started the carriage forward.</p><p></p><p>The vehicle moved swiftly, and Glori was grateful of the seat’s padding before too long. The road was of better quality than most in Arresh, but at the speed they were traveling every little bump was amplified. At that point she was <em>definitely</em> glad that she wasn’t riding up top. Every time the vehicle encountered a particularly hard jolt she had to resist the urge to look out the windows to see if one of the Rangers had been knocked clear.</p><p></p><p>Her ire was only bolstered by the fact that Majerion was a perfect traveling companion. He played his lyre, the rough road giving him no difficulty whatsoever. He recounted elaborate stories and told jokes that even had Kosk smiling a few times. It was typical for her companions to get annoyed with each other whenever they spent a long day traveling. But Majerion’s performance—and Glori recognized it as such—did not become tedious or repetitive even as the day stretched on. He was keeping them distracted from the hazards of their high-speed journey and the dangers of the mission ahead of them. Glori might have even appreciated it if she wasn’t still so pissed at him.</p><p></p><p>They stopped only once, at a small rest station where robed elves provided food and drink and access to restrooms. They were back on the road within half an hour, with Shreskra prodding them back into the carriage. Majerion organized a word game that kept them occupied as the landscape continued to pass them by. Glori participated, but with ill grace.</p><p></p><p><em>You won’t turn my friends against me,</em> she thought.</p><p></p><p>They did not reach their destination until late afternoon. The road had been growing steadily worse, and the driver slowed the carriage of necessity until they were traveling at roughly the pace that a real horse-drawn vehicle would have taken them. Glori could no longer find a position that was comfortable, as the repeated jolts had left her backside universally sore.</p><p></p><p>The carriage finally rolled to a stop. Glori could hear the Rangers jumping down from above, then the door swung open to let a ray of brilliant late-afternoon sunshine into the passenger cabin.</p><p></p><p>“Welcome to Easthaven,” came Shreskra’s voice, but before any of them could respond the Ranger leader was already moving away.</p><p></p><p>Blinking against the intense light, Glori stepped out into the day. Easthaven was a small community of wooden houses that had clearly been built with fortification in mind. They all stood atop thick posts that suspended them about ten feet off the ground. The architecture was otherwise not that dissimilar from that of Tal Nadesh, although the windows were narrower and the doors sturdier.</p><p></p><p>Turning away from the settlement, Glori took her first look at the Reserve.</p><p>The forest didn’t look any different from much of the countryside they’d spent the day passing through. There was no obvious boundary, no wall or other barrier to set it apart, but Glori could feel something, a <em>tension</em> that felt almost tangible. For a moment she experienced an uncomfortable tickling sensation along her spine and thought she could feel unseen eyes watching her…</p><p></p><p>“Looks like we’ve got a welcoming committee.”</p><p></p><p>Glori jumped slightly at Kosk’s words, and quickly turned to see an elf approaching from one of the raised houses. He was clad in simple working kit, a leather vest over a plain long-sleeved shirt and breeches of rugged corduroy. He lacked the ageless look common to the elves of Tal Nadesh; his face was as rugged as the landscape around them, his features weathered by a lifetime spent outdoors. His hair was thin and white, covering his scalp like a tuft of cloud. As he approached them he ran a hand through it in an absent gesture and she noticed that he was missing one of his fingers.</p><p></p><p>“Tender Brightbriar,” Shreskra said in greeting.</p><p></p><p>The Tender stopped and gave the group an evaluative stare. “So… these are the ones who want to visit the Reserve,” he said. He did not seem to be enthusiastic about the prospect.</p><p></p><p>Before the Ranger leader could respond, Glori stepped forward. “We already got the routine from Ranger Shreskra here, so maybe we could just get to business,” she said.</p><p></p><p>The old elf gave her a second look. “Fair enough,” he said. “We’ll enter in the morning.”</p><p></p><p>“Is there anything unusual happening in the forest?” Embrae asked.</p><p></p><p>The Tender peered at her, then looked over his shoulder at the Reserve. “It’s always like that,” he said. For a moment he looked as though he wanted to say something more, but finally he waved a hand in a gesture of dismissal. “Come on. I’ll show you where you will sleep tonight. There’s food in the common hall, nothing special, but more than you’ll get in there, so enjoy it.”</p><p></p><p>As he led them off Kosk turned to Glori. “Are you all right?”</p><p></p><p>She looked around for Majerion, but he had disappeared again. “I’m fine,” she said. With a final look back at the Reserve, she followed after the others.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 7462564, member: 143"] I'm back! * * * Chapter 179 Under different circumstances, Glori thought that she might have enjoyed the journey from Tal Nadesh to the border of the Reserve. On seeing the conveyance provided by the elves, her first thought had been, [i]Nice carriage… but where are the horses?[/i] The elves had begun boarding the vehicle before anyone had thought to explain to her that the carriage was magical. The driver sat in a seat in the front, where he had an array of control mechanisms set out in front of him. Glori might have liked to investigate further, but Shreskra was impatiently directing her into the passenger compartment. She and her Rangers clambered up onto the exterior, where they settled into precarious-looking seats. Glori would have preferred riding with them, despite the obvious lack of safety features, if it would have gotten her out of riding with Majerion. Her mentor had quickly boarded the carriage with Kosk and Embrae, leaving her little choice but to follow. The compartment held two padded benches, forcing the four of them to squeeze in together to fit. She’d barely settled into the seat before Shreskra barked a command and the driver started the carriage forward. The vehicle moved swiftly, and Glori was grateful of the seat’s padding before too long. The road was of better quality than most in Arresh, but at the speed they were traveling every little bump was amplified. At that point she was [i]definitely[/i] glad that she wasn’t riding up top. Every time the vehicle encountered a particularly hard jolt she had to resist the urge to look out the windows to see if one of the Rangers had been knocked clear. Her ire was only bolstered by the fact that Majerion was a perfect traveling companion. He played his lyre, the rough road giving him no difficulty whatsoever. He recounted elaborate stories and told jokes that even had Kosk smiling a few times. It was typical for her companions to get annoyed with each other whenever they spent a long day traveling. But Majerion’s performance—and Glori recognized it as such—did not become tedious or repetitive even as the day stretched on. He was keeping them distracted from the hazards of their high-speed journey and the dangers of the mission ahead of them. Glori might have even appreciated it if she wasn’t still so pissed at him. They stopped only once, at a small rest station where robed elves provided food and drink and access to restrooms. They were back on the road within half an hour, with Shreskra prodding them back into the carriage. Majerion organized a word game that kept them occupied as the landscape continued to pass them by. Glori participated, but with ill grace. [i]You won’t turn my friends against me,[/i] she thought. They did not reach their destination until late afternoon. The road had been growing steadily worse, and the driver slowed the carriage of necessity until they were traveling at roughly the pace that a real horse-drawn vehicle would have taken them. Glori could no longer find a position that was comfortable, as the repeated jolts had left her backside universally sore. The carriage finally rolled to a stop. Glori could hear the Rangers jumping down from above, then the door swung open to let a ray of brilliant late-afternoon sunshine into the passenger cabin. “Welcome to Easthaven,” came Shreskra’s voice, but before any of them could respond the Ranger leader was already moving away. Blinking against the intense light, Glori stepped out into the day. Easthaven was a small community of wooden houses that had clearly been built with fortification in mind. They all stood atop thick posts that suspended them about ten feet off the ground. The architecture was otherwise not that dissimilar from that of Tal Nadesh, although the windows were narrower and the doors sturdier. Turning away from the settlement, Glori took her first look at the Reserve. The forest didn’t look any different from much of the countryside they’d spent the day passing through. There was no obvious boundary, no wall or other barrier to set it apart, but Glori could feel something, a [i]tension[/i] that felt almost tangible. For a moment she experienced an uncomfortable tickling sensation along her spine and thought she could feel unseen eyes watching her… “Looks like we’ve got a welcoming committee.” Glori jumped slightly at Kosk’s words, and quickly turned to see an elf approaching from one of the raised houses. He was clad in simple working kit, a leather vest over a plain long-sleeved shirt and breeches of rugged corduroy. He lacked the ageless look common to the elves of Tal Nadesh; his face was as rugged as the landscape around them, his features weathered by a lifetime spent outdoors. His hair was thin and white, covering his scalp like a tuft of cloud. As he approached them he ran a hand through it in an absent gesture and she noticed that he was missing one of his fingers. “Tender Brightbriar,” Shreskra said in greeting. The Tender stopped and gave the group an evaluative stare. “So… these are the ones who want to visit the Reserve,” he said. He did not seem to be enthusiastic about the prospect. Before the Ranger leader could respond, Glori stepped forward. “We already got the routine from Ranger Shreskra here, so maybe we could just get to business,” she said. The old elf gave her a second look. “Fair enough,” he said. “We’ll enter in the morning.” “Is there anything unusual happening in the forest?” Embrae asked. The Tender peered at her, then looked over his shoulder at the Reserve. “It’s always like that,” he said. For a moment he looked as though he wanted to say something more, but finally he waved a hand in a gesture of dismissal. “Come on. I’ll show you where you will sleep tonight. There’s food in the common hall, nothing special, but more than you’ll get in there, so enjoy it.” As he led them off Kosk turned to Glori. “Are you all right?” She looked around for Majerion, but he had disappeared again. “I’m fine,” she said. With a final look back at the Reserve, she followed after the others. [/QUOTE]
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