"Move, move, move!" Sergeant Major Sinclair called to her corporals as the sounds of battle rang out all about them. The red-winged blackbird, who having had the clarity of mind to 'confiscate,' a handcart from one of the nearby abandoned market stalls, had loaded up the unconscious body of her liege lord and was currently pushing both cart and marten through the hectic streets of Donovan's haven. The bird, as she tried to find a safe place to take cover and to assess the situation, of course had no way of knowing what was going on in Donovan's mind right now. She had no clue of the events occurring deep within his own mind and soul. Rather, the only thoughts which ran through her mind, were of how she was technically now the highest ranking security official in the city. A position which gave her no small sense of pleasure. Considering that as soon as she got Donovan somewhere safe, the first thing which needed to be done was to get reinforcements to drive these dells-blasted cultists out of the city.
Now, where was a place that hadn't been captured yet...
Sinclair tossed the long red and yellow feathers which drooped out of her helmet's brim to one side and widened her eyes as she saw an opportunity, not that far up the road. "Brookebridger, Jacosta!" she called to the corporals covering her flank. "I see a shot! Cover me and stay close behind, got it!?"
"Aye sir!" both corporals called out as they continued doing a superb job of warding off any enemies who might try to strike them down amidst the chaos. The blackbird, making a note to herself to put both corporals in for not just a commendation, but a promotion as well, if any of them managed to survive this.
"Raaagh!" the female avian cried out, as she smashed her way through the rest of the alley, all the way up to the steps of the building which she'd spotted in the distance.
Sergeant Major Sinclair immediately pulled the body of Donovan out of the cart, and motioned for her retinue to follow, as she headed up the steps towards the entrance of the building. "We need to get Lord Donovan inside," she stated taciturnly. "This is the College of the Labyrinthine Way. I know, I know, if Lord Donovan were conscious, he'd probably be very disagreeable about a decision to shelter here. Especially with how it means putting all the ancient knowledge and lore recorded here at considerable risk of being damaged or destroyed. Still, I don't see another option. It's one of the most fortified buildings in the city, and was built at the same time as the palace. So, if need be, there are tunnels we can use to get to Donneystone Keep. Now hurry. Get moving before they find us, understood?"
The lioness and otter nodded in reply. "Understood," they replied to their superior as they continued to provide cover for their Superior, while following behind her as she worked to get Donovan into the massive fortified institution. A place older than any other building aside from the Keep itself, its walls were lined with rows and rows of texts and tomes collected from all corners of Mintara. Some, just fun stories which Donovan had encountered during his travels around the continent. Others, a collection of texts pertaining to a study of specific focus such a mythohistory, astronomic study, or even lost styles of combat.
It was a magnificent collection. One, which was outshined only by the awe-inspiring architecture of the college itself. The way of how from the library, you had endless halls connecting to dorms, lecture halls, gardens. A place where students could escape and study. Where they could pursue not only academia for academia's sake, but where they could feel that such a pursuit was considered sacred, encouraged, and nurtured.
Why, even looking around the library itself, one could not shake the feeling that knowledge was sacred in this place. It had cantilever stairwells which spiraled upward from one floor to another. It had vaulted ceilings that were decorated with panes of master-crafted stained glass and was an open space that, in any other situation, would have been reverently silent to respect the learning that was considered sacred in this institution. A sensation, which on any other day, then would've made this place feel just as much like a cathedral as it did a place of higher learning.
How unfortunate this was not any other day, Sinclair thought to herself, as she tried to get Donovan deeper into the building. The blackbird, as she moved the unconscious marten along, then covered both his body and her own, as a tremor occurred in response to an explosion that went off outside the college's walls.
"Get down!" she hollered to her corporals and to the students in the library. The blackbird, once everything settled, then motioned to Jocasta, the lioness, to cautiously approach. "Jocasta," she whispered. "I want you and Brookebridger to stay here with the students. I'm going to head to an infirmary, see if I can not only get our lord Donovan some attention, but also if I can find an instructor an administrator, anyone, who can help keep order. Understood?"
The lioness nodded.
"I understand, Sergeant Major," she replied giving a dutiful salute. "Corporal Brookebridger and I will keep the peace in your absence, per your instruction."
"Good."
Sergeant Major Sinclair felt a little at ease, knowing she'd assigned the right subordinates to the job. "Just keep them from panicking. I'll be back soon," she said, as she headed off deeper into the winding maze of halls that was the college's interior.
Gods. How did anyone find their way around this place? the blackbird wondered, as she again blew those pesky red and yellow feathers out of the way, which always seemed to drift over her right eye. "Let's see..." the blackbird murmured, as she paused before a set of signposts stuck to the wall. "So back that way of course, is the library...Left is the Constellatory, and the greenhouse...right is the infirmary and the admin office..."
The Sergeant Major nodded to herself, deciding assuredly which way she needed to go. It was no contest, that she needed to go right, and head straight to the admin office and the infirmary. For them to be so close together was a boon that Sergeant Major Sinclair didn't even try to rationalize or reason out. She just was grateful for small fortunes, and hurried on her way down the hall. The blackbird, while keeping an eye on her goal, did her best to also keep her footing, as she occasionally would get tripped up by those pesky tremors which were caused by the explosions outside.
Sylvia panted, as she finally managed to navigate the halls, and make it to the admin's office. "Hello?" she called pushing open the door a crack. "Hello, is anyone here? I could really use some help! Like...really could use it!"
"Sergeant Major?"
A voice with an accent similar to a scottish brogue spoke up in response to the red-winged blackbird's call for help, as a prairie dog with brown hand-stitched robes and a hand-carved staff, emerged from the corner of the room.
"Balan, Calypso and Gaiamor be' praised," the prairie dog declared. "How in the three's name, did yeh' get this far into the school, much less the city, without gettin' blown to bits? Nay, never mind that now. Ah'm just glad tah' see that not everyone in this blessed city is either dead or worse fer' wear. What is it you need, love? What in Balan's blessed name, is goin' on, do yeh' know?"
"Only that we're under attack."
"That's it?"
The blackbird shrugged. "Well, Lord Donovan could've told you more," she replied. "He seemed to know the person who was behind this. Had a confrontation with her before he was...incapacitated."
"Inca...excuse me?"
Sylvia shifted her body, so that the prairie dog could see better. "This is why I need help," she said. "Lord Donovan was knocked unconscious when I tried to save him from being hit by falling rock. Apparently, I crashed into him too hard and...I-I'm sorry...I never meant to..."
"Ey."
"Huh?"
Colin had a consoling look in his eyes. "Now what would Donovan tell you if he were conscious? He wouldn't want yeh beatin' yerself up over circumstances that were beyond yer' control. We do what we can, even in the most unconvenient of circumstances. A situation now, which fits the bill to be sure, but again, Ah' digress lass. Ah've known this lad for five years now. If Ah' know anythin', it's that he's fightin' for his own survival as well as for the survival of all that he cares about, right at this very moment. Yeh' can bank yer last Mintar on that, lass. If Donovan would have anything to say right now, it would be to keep fightin, and to put his people above all. Yeh' understand that?"
Sergeant Major Sinclair nodded. "I understand," she replied. "Don't worry about what's happened. Work to fix the problem and to protect the people of the city. Got it. So...what now?"
Colin stepped forth from the administrator's office. "Now," he replied, "we need to get Donovan to the safety of the infirmary. At least there, we'll have the medical supplies to tend to him, should he awaken."
"Okay."
Sergeant Major Sinclair allowed Colin to help her carry the unconscious Donovan to the infirmary. She sighed as the got him on a bed. She was glad the task of trying to find a safe haven for her lord was ended. Now, she needed to address another pressing issue. One she hoped Colin would also be able to help her with, as he'd done such a good job helping her so far.
"Um, Colin..." the blackbird addressed the cleric.
"Aye?" came the response from the prairie dog. His tone showing clear anticipation to be of use once more. "What is it, lass? Speak. Something is pressing on your mind."
"Huh? Oh yes...well I was just recalling something Donovan mentioned before being rendered unconscious. The person behind this attack. He spoke of her not only as if he knew her, but also as if he knew of some vague history between her people and his own."
"Oh?"
The blackbird nodded. "The person behind this," she declared, "I-I heard Donovan refer to her as Dylan Frostwood."
"Dylan!?"
"You know her as well?"
"A little more than Ah'd like to. That witch is the same vix who Ghulius Gutgore sent out to sabotage a mission which Donovan and I embarked on some five years ago. Ah thought Ah'd seen the last of her after that quest. What the dells is she doin' attackin' Donovan's capital city, five years after that whole ordeal ended?"
The blackbird shrugged. "Dunno," she replied. "All I know is, Donovan seemed to have an urge to be a part of the defense from the very beginning. The moment I saw him arrive, had some kind of instinct of who was behind it. That's why we were at the initial breach where he had a confrontation with Dylan, and where he got knocked out afterward. Because he was trying to confirm, I suppose, that it was in fact, Dylan who was behind the attack."
"Ah, see..." Colin leaned against his staff. "Of course," he murmured. "That then raises the question of who warned him to the incoming attack in the first place."
"Who do you think?" Another voice suddenly caught the attention of the blackbird and the prairie dog. Both, upon turning, were then shocked to see Valorisa headed toward them. The female marten, using her body as a means of bracing the nearly unconscious Severus who stumbled alongside her.
"Valorisa..." Colin whispered. "By the three infinite ones...How...?"
"Long story," Valorisa cut Colin off shortly as she headed with Severus to the infirmary. "To put it simply, I ran into Severus here, on the way into town. He told me the whole thing. Well bits and pieces actually, but I was able to summarize what was going on from what I was told, and from those explosions which occurred, soon after we arrived."
"And...?"
Colin nodded for Sergeant Major Sinclair to follow behind him with Donovan, as he proceeded to follow Valorisa into the infirmary. "What did the wolf tell yeh? What does he know about what's going on?"
Valorisa sighed and rolled her eyes. "Well..." she replied, as she laid Severus down on a bed, and went to get some bandages and antiseptic, "I assume from your conversation with the Sergeant Major, you already know, that Donovan came to the same conclusion I did, that Dylan was the one behind the attacks?"
"Yes."
"Well, there's more to it than that. Dylan took the crew of the Hoarfrost's Halberd to a cursed place, known as Ourobouros Island. 'Place of the dark snake,' our people call it, it's where the Ermines settled after the fall of Musteladonia. It's a place, even the sea itself fights to keep people away from. How she found a route through I don't know. But from that place, she retrieved an ancient Erminic artifact that would've been better left undisturbed, if you know what I mean."
"Caustic magic."
"Huh?"
Valorisa turned to Sergeant Major Sinclair, who spoke up after having made Donovan comfortable on a bed as well. The blackbird, realizing all eyes were on her, then cleared her throat and elucidated. "Your brother," she proclaimed. "my lord Donovan. We took him to see the sight of the initial breach, on his decree. He said something about 'caustic magic.' Something about, how the walls appearing melted through by venom or acid, was a magic which had not only been mastered by only one race in Mintara. But which since, had been forbidden for its associations with a particular deity and the effects it had on a person for using it."
"Hmm..." Valorisa nodded solemnly, as she looked to her unconscious brother. "Glad you paid attention to your lessons on Jutfaang for once, little brother," she said with a smirk, before turning back to Sergeant Major Sinclair to reply, "Yes. My brother is correct. The Ermine people were known for being more than proficient in the ways of caustic magic. Magic which involved control of venoms, acids, and of the effects, these solutions are known for. They...well, as I said, they got their power from the dark being they chose to associate with. He gifted them with knowledge of the arts and artifacts to empower them. But in return, every time they used the art, it empowered the one they revered, known as Omnos, as well. This...is my biggest concern, with Dylan using caustic magic to achieve her goal. If she has truly renewed the compacts of her ancestors and is again using their ancient magics..."
"...We might be eventually dealing with something far worse than a mad woman bent on rebuilding Musteladonia in her own mad, purist image," Sergeant Major Sinclair assessed, as another explosion caused a layer of dust to fall from the stone ceiling.
"Black feathers," the bird whispered. "We need back up, if we're to deal with this situation in even the slightest measure. The question is, how do we get word out to our allies, if we can't even get out of the city, without risk of being caught?"
"Hmm..." Colin pondered this as he stroked the braids of his beard. "Maybe..." he murmured, "there is a way. Ah' admit, it may sound eccentric and unconventional, but hear me out. Just...what if Ah' told you there is a way to get to other parts of Mintara, without the forces of Dylan noticin'? A way to hop from place to place without leaving the city walls in the conventional manner?"
"Is there?"
Colin nodded. "It's in the constellatory," he said. "Sergeant Major, you go. Valorisa and I will remain here to tend to Donovan and Severus. When you arrive, find my daughter Searciara...er...Searcey, is how she prefers to be addressed now. She'll probably be tendin' to any of the junior students. Keeping them from panickin' in this situation an' whatnot. Tell her yeh' need to use the great Astrolabe, and she'll be more than happy to operate it for yeh'. Oh, and try tah' ignore the fact that she's thirteen. She may be young, but she's one of the most brilliant minds in this college. And she knows the machine like the back of her hand. In fact, you couldn't be in safer hands, than with that young one operatin' it. Okay?"
The blackbird nodded. "Alright," she replied as she started for the door only to take pause one final time, to steal a final glance of her unconscious lord as he lay upon the infirmary bed. A smile drifting onto the bird's face, it reassured her to know that her lord was in good hands. To know he'd be well tended to, while she was off tending to the business of collecting reinforcements to defend the city.
Yes, with a purpose in her heart, Sylvia Sinclair was now off to find the constellatory as instructed to her by Colin. A part of the college, she found, actually was not that hard to locate as there were signs everywhere in this institute of higher learning. Sylvia, in her part, as she ran back the way she'd come from, needed only to follow these guideposts as they led her down the east hall, up two flights of stairs, and down a western hall to a room with some of the largest metal doors that Sergeant Major Sinclair had ever seen.
They were massive and were made of bronze. They had all kinds of stars and planetary bodies decorating their surfaces. A fitting set of doors for a constellatory, Sergeant Major Sinclair thought, as she also took note of another feature. That there was an assortment of gears and pistons and what not built into the door itself. Perhaps a locking mechanism? she thought. Or even, she thought further, a way to assist the doors with opening?
Hmm.
The bird really couldn't say. She sighed, realizing this wasn't the time to be pondering such things. That while curiosity was all well and good, and while it was something that she knew her lord Donovan would encourage in most instances, it was not something he would likely endorse at this particular moment. Not when people's lives were at stake. Not when the people he was responsible for were in danger. A responsibility which again now fell to the Sergeant Major since Donovan was incapacitated. A fact that thus left her, the most senior officer, in charge in his stead.
Sylvia sighed and shook her head at the weight of this responsibility. She raised a fist and pounded on the door. "Hey," she called to anyone inside. "This is Sergeant Major Sylvia Sinclair of the Donovan's Haven Guard! I have orders from Colin Leonard for you to let me in! I need to speak with Searcey Leonard on a matter of utmost urgency! I was told, this is where she would be!"
Sylvia heard whispers on the other side of the door. She wasn't sure what would happen next. Not until the great gears, pistons and springs which were built into the inner workings of the door, hissed to life. The blackbird, while stepping back from the doors, then watched in awe as handcrafted celestial began to cycle and dance across their surfaces. All, eventually reaching their precipice, their zenith, as the doors slowly and gracefully swung open.
"You said my father sent you?"
Sergeant Major Sinclair nodded. "Dylan is attacking the city with Anaton Covenant forces," she reported. "They're attacking from all sides. Don't ask where she got the numbers. I don't know. All I know is, they've got us fighting to defend our own entrances. We're trapped in here, with no way to get reinforcements. Well...save one means, if what your father said, is to be believed."
"And what did he say?"
"That there's some device here. Something called the 'Astrolabe,' which could transport a person halfway across Mintara and back, without the enemy even having known you left the city."
Searcey smirked. A sparkle appearing in her eyes, as she walked about and checked on her frightened colleagues. "Mmm..." she stated thoughtfully. "If my father was thinking what I think he was thinking, he not only is even more clever than I gave him credit for, but he was also right to send you to me. Aye, the Astrolabe is such a machine that it can do as he described. Normally, we use it simply so students of the astronomy can learn the positions of stars, constellations and stellar bodies. A sort of aggrandized projector, if you will. It's a useful tool for academic studies. However, I can tell you that the people who built it, did not intend it to function solely in this way."
"No?"
Searcey shook her head, her blue, purple and pink French braid which fell down across her shoulder jostling from side to side along with her free-falling locks of long brown hair that were blended with highlights of light blonde.
"No," the marmovulpine continued. "Actually, it's just as my father said. The device, which we call, 'the Astrolabe,' was I believe, originally intended to be a sort of instantaneous transport device. I mean, true. I've yet to figure out as to what kind of things it was intended to transport. Whether it was supplies or living individuals. Still, all the same. The fascinating aspect is, I think our Astrolabe has been preserved enough, and is in a complete enough state, that yes, it will serve the purpose of transporting us from one side of Mintara to another."
"Great...wait. What do you mean us?"
"I mean I'm going with you," Searcey said casually, as she led the way upstairs. "It's one thing to operate the device. All you have to do, is to enter the three constellations which can be used to triangulate a specific location. Once you have your specific location, you pull a lever and create a portal that allows you to instantaneously travel from one point to the next. Actually..." the thirteen-year-old stated as she stopped at the study hall to grab and to put on her leather aviator's jacket which she'd received from her mother on her tenth birthday, " It's really quite a simple application of a number of different theories relating to dimensional transitioning, instantaneous quasidimensional relocation, pocket dimensions, wormholes..."
Searcey paused and turned back to face Sergeant Major Sinclair. "I lost you, didn't I?" she said with a chuckle, as the bird then gave a slow nod, now starting to see what Colin had meant, when he said his daughter was at a higher level of understanding and intellect than even many of the professors who taught at this college.
"Could..you back that up in plain Mintaran for me?" Sylvia asked. Searcey, in response, nodded, glad to do so for the guard. "In a word," the young teenager explained, "the three constellations act as an anchor point, a triangulant, if you will, allowing you to teleport from one point to another, without getting totally lost or torn apart. It's like...the light of a lighthouse. It gives a guiding point, for the teleport systems to operate off of. It ensures that you arrive at your destination, and that you don't arrive in say, the middle of a swamp, or that your body doesn't get trapped in the middle of a mountain, or something."
"In the middle of a...! Well...glad you decided to clarify that possibility straight off the bat," Sergeant Major Sinclair stated more than a bit sarcastically. "And the point of you coming with me, Why's that? Why can't you just stay here and open the portal when I need to come back? Wouldn't that work just as well?"
"No."
"No?"
Searcey again shook her head. "Sorry," she apologized. "It's just, that's the strange thing. The one set of coordinates which the astrolabe won't take...are the coordinates for where it's located. I guess, from what I've researched, if you try to enter transport coordinates into an astrolabe and they are the coordinates of where the astrolabe is located, they negate."
"So...what? You can only enter return coordinates at a different astrolabe?"
"That's how I figure it," Searcey replied. "I mean, maybe the people who designed these things thought it would keep redundancies out of the system, I don't know. The point is, you'll need me to operate the astrolabes and to enter each set of coordinates. That is, unless you think otherwise, and believe that you can figure it out without me..."
Sylvia smirked.
"Oh, get off," she said, nodding for Searcey to keep moving forward. "It's not about whether I think I can do this all on my own or I don't. I just...oh, gods...Just...let's quit wasting time and have you show me this confounded device already. If it's really the only way to obtain reinforcements and to drive Dylan and her blasted pet army away from Donovan's walls, then let's be over and done with this as soon as possible, eh?"
Searcey nodded. "Agreed," replied she, after having led the blackbird a short distance more to the threshold of a great set of hand carved doors made from beautiful dark mahogany wood. "Just give me a moment to get these doors open..."
The marmovulpine grunted as she required a great deal of effort to push open even one of these massive sliding doors.
"Huff...Huff..." Searcey panted, trying to catch her breath. "Stupid door," she muttered, as she leaned against it for support. "Who...Whose idea was it, to make this thing so inanely big and heavy, I will never know! Just...come on, Sergeant Major," she declared after finally having recovered. "And welcome," she proclaimed, as she motioned with her paw for the blackbird to follow her into the next room, "to the chamber of the Astrolabe."
"I--" The Sergeant Major started to say something but found herself short of words as she entered the chamber. It was...well, how to even put it? It was not like anything she expected. Nor was it like anything which she dare could have imagined existed within the walls of the most prestigious college of Donovan's Haven.
The room was vast. Not near as vast as the main entrance hall, but still huge in its own right. It was a chamber that was cylindrical with a dome that peaked upwards, so as to create an illusion that you truly were looking out into an endless point. An endless and infinite sky recreated in small scale model within a finite space...it was a marvel to behold. Especially with the stars and celestial bodies painted on that surface, which only made the illusion seem even more real.
Sergeant Major Sinclair shook her head as she brought her gaze down from the ceiling. She focused her attention on a grand device sitting at the center of the room. A strange machine, forged from bronze arcs intricately woven together. A mechanism, with a patchwork of lenses sticking out at three different points like antennae, it was fascinating and bizarre, and everything that Colin and Searcey had described it to be.
"Dells..." Sylvia whispered as she gently tapped a feathered finger against the surface of the machine. "So... this is the astrolabe?"
"Uh-huh." Searcey smiled at the question. "Just give me a sec to get her started," she said, as she began turning several crystals, and pulling on a few chains. The machine, as it started crackling, then brought an even wider smile to Searcey's face, as she watched the arcs of the mechanism began to slide and move within and around each other, in a fluid interlaced dance.
"Oh, she's still got it!" Searcey called out, clapping her hands together. "Now all we have to do is enter the constellations I picked for our first destination! That'll be the hammer..." Searcey went to a nearby wheel which controlled one of the three lenses and turned it until that lens was focused on the hammer constellation painted on the ceiling.
She then went to the next wheel. "The maiden..." She did the same as had been done with the first lens. Focused it on the maiden constellation, before moving to the third wheel, and announcing the last one in the sequence.
"The shield!" she said, locking in the last lens. The moment after this was locked in, the movement of the arcs then came to a stop and formed a sort of arch which one could pass through. There was an explosion of energy and a bright light which blinded Sergeant Major Sinclair for a moment, before she looked back and saw a portal in the middle of that doorway.
"What the..."
"That's our door," Searcey explained, not wasting time on lengthy explanations. "Come on, it'll only stay open for so long," she urged. "You gonna stand around, or are we gonna get this done?"
"Hmph."
Sylvia snorted as the thirteen-year-old used her own words against her. "Fine," she replied as she joined the young marmovulpine where she was standing at the threshold of the portal. "Count of three, we go in together, okay? One..."
"Two..."
"Three!" shouted both young women as they jumped in simultaneously. The event that followed, they both then felt themselves be pulled down a sort of inter-spatial corridor which it could only be assumed connected from one astrolabe to another. Sight, sound, touch. It was all hyper-emphasized in this place. It was all rich and distinct, and yet was somehow blurred at the same time. Like essences that had their own characteristics and properties. Which were of their own individual designs, but which could not entirely cut their tethers and intrinsic connections to the things around them. A strange and fascinating experience which somewhat disturbed Sylvia, and which did not do anything but leave Searcey in a state of awe and wonder, as they continued along until the ride's end when a flash of light preceded their sudden ejection and egress from this corridor out into a stone hall decorated with fierce carvings and ancient runes.
"Ow!" Sylvia moaned, as she got to her feet and looked about at the sight, not having expected the trip to have ended so suddenly. "Is it going to be that sudden every time?" she asked Searcey, who also was now on her feet, and who was dusting herself off. The marmovulpine, with a faint smile replied, "Hey. Up until now, I've only studied the thing. I told you I knew the mechanics. I warned you, I still had to research on whether the device was originally used to transport supplies or living organisms. Apparently, transport for living organisms is feasible. However, something tells me, if it was used that way, it was for emergencies only. Like the situation we're in."
"I see," Sergeant Major Sinclair's voice was dry when she gave her response. "Well...I suppose at least I should be grateful it worked, and we're alive," she stated in a semi-optimistic fashion, trying hard to focus on the good in things. "Just...what now? I mean, I know we came here to recruit help. But...if you don't mind my asking...where in the blessings of the gilded feathers is, 'here?' I know you put in a set of constellation coordinates, but..."
"But where did those coordinates take us?" Searcey chuckled. "Take a look outside," she stated calmly. "We're in Bristlespine. Home to a land of bitter cold, harsh elements, and where the people who live here have learned value of finding strength in each other, to survive against the harshest tests which their spirit mother Gaiamor can throw at them."
"Gaia...so the person you want to ask help from is an Agatan Disciplist Groundhog?"
Searcey nodded. "A great warrior," she elaborated, "Who not only carries respect amongst her people as the woman who is to become their future Weemuskhan, their chief-of-chiefs; but who is known throughout Mintara, as a master of the Greataxe."
"Oh?"
"Aye," Searcey declared, as she led the way out of the small stone structure housing the Bristlespine Astrolabe. "She has mastered it, it's said, to the degree that she can actually use adaptations of techniques specifically intended for other weapons, when wielding her mighty cleaving blade."
"And you know all this..."
"Donovan told me. He and I have been close, going on about five years back now. I first met him, after my father brought him and his sister home. A chance encounter for them all aboard the same ship. He and I hit it off over the fact that we both were intellectuals. He was one of the first people to treat me like my opinion mattered. And more than that, he took opinions which everyone else thought were just the result of a child's dream, seriously. A risk which paid off. As it was my theories which helped pave the way for Donovan, my father, and the rest of the party, in finding the lost tomb and treasure of Aloysius St. Abbot."
"Really? But then why..."
"...Have you never heard that account?" Searcey said with a scoff. "Well, one thing, aside from Donovan and my father, most people don't know my role in discovering the treasure. That's the first thing you need to know," she said as she walked with the blackbird along a mountain trail. "The second...look at the two accounts. Which seems a more believable legend? The great party of heroes discover the tomb and treasure while also saving the Solmani Empire from a mad coup of cultists that involves rewriting time and reality itself? Or, one where an eight-year-old child gives help to the greatest legends of Mintara solving a mystery that centuries of explorers either dismissed or could not solve for themselves?"
Sergeant Major Sinclair pursed her lips. "I think I understand," she said with a nod, understanding how of the two, the public probably chose the more flamboyant sounding story to spread, than the account of the actual events. Especially when the former was more flattering to their hero's image.
"Anyway..." Sylvia murmured, "back to the subject at hand. You said this warrior we're looking for, that she traveled with Donovan's party? I mean...if this is true, how do we recognize her? I mean, she's never met either of us. So did Donovan mention any distinguishing marks or..."
Searcey paused.
"Sergeant Major..." she whispered, motioning the bird to stop as well. "I think I should explain something about Agatan Disciplist Groundhogs. If they want to stay hidden, they will stay hidden. Their faith. Their belief that they are born from Gaiamor. From the Earth mother and from the earth itself, this is intrinsically tied to everything they do. They are reliant and totally self-dependent on the land. They for generations have passed down secrets on how to survive in this land which gives up its secrets only to those who prove themselves the strongest, heartiest, and most enduring of individuals. Believe me when I say that you do not find a Groundhog. The Groundhogs...they find you." she muttered, nodding for Sylvia to slowly raise her hands, as it suddenly became clear, that there were bodies rising up from the bushes and the grass. Big, muscular, blonde-furred figures that were marked with brown and green natural paints to aid in their camouflage. Their armbands with grasses stuffed in them, to aid in this as well. It seemed they had been silently waiting here this whole time. Scouting for intruders into their territory. A classification which right now Searcey and Sylvia seemed to fit.
"Searcey..." Sylvia started to mutter, but was cut short by the marmovulpine with a terse, "Shhh!" As the marmovulpine clearly did not want to aggravate these scouts further. And she could already see the lead scout taking an interest. A large, muscular male with a scar running through one milky eye, and who had tattoos covering the upper body. It was a sight, which while might have been a bit off-putting to some, was to Searcey, intriguing. As she knew that for Groundhogs, tattoos were more than just body art. They were a way of immortalizing what they had done. A way of using the essence of Gaiamor herself, to immortalizing themselves in the eyes of Gaiamor the spirit earth mother. Of showing her who they were. Of how they embraced the gift of strength which she had given to her people. Searcey, in examining this tapestry of art which was painted on this Groundhog, then saw a mural of images which would indeed bring great respect to this warrior, whenever he was socializing amongst his peers. For she saw one tattoo on this Groundhog which appeared to be a very high-level clan rank. Others were the stories of his greatest victories in combat. While still more, told in detail of the great hunts in which this warrior had come out the victor. How he had been a great contributor of food during the harshest of winters, and how he had defended his hold against attacks by the fiercest of fierce beasts.
The Groundhog's voice was strong and deep as he spoke.
"You come..." he growled. "from beyond the mother. You come from beyond the grasses which are her hair and fur on this world. From beyond the stone, which is her spine, and the water which is her ever flowing tears of joy."
He sniffed both the marmovulpine and the bird. "Yes," he confirmed. "You do not smell of this land, and you certainly do not smell of the Slagcreek Tribe. What do you want here? Speak. Either tell me your piece and make it satisfying, lest I decide to have my sentries deal with you like we would any other intruder."
Searcey nodded. "U'nola," she replied. "I understand. Please, listen as I tell you it was never our intention to trespass on Slagcreek land. I am fully aware great muskhan, great warrior and hero of your tribe, that the Slagcreek are a very solitary and reserved tribe. I would never have entered your borders if I had realized how close we were. The truth is, we seek Gemma Digpath. Weemuskhan heiress and one who has mastered the Greataxe."
The scout leader pressed his lips together. "Hmm..." he mused. "To tell you that, one beyond the mother," he murmured, "I would first have to know your reason for wanting to see the Chief-of-chiefs. I would not risk her safety, if I did not first know your intent..."
"...I come in the name of Donovan, muskhan," Searcey stated boldly, the scout taking a step back not at the use of his title, but at the name which Searcey invoked. "Donovan?" he said. "Yes...the Weemuskhan has spread that name along with her adventures, all across these harsh yet blessed mountains. She speaks of him with high regard and has made clear that any favor requested by him is one she will repay without a moment's thought. Hmph. Very well, if you truly are both friends of Donovan, I can take you both to see her."
"Thank you."
Searcey sighed a breath of relief as she and Sylvia were led on down the road. Well at least they weren't dead and were being taken to see Gemma. Sure, it was under armed guard, but the fact they were still alive...that was something? Searcey shook her head. Gods. She hoped things were going better in Donovan's Haven. She just...really, really hoped so.