“Storm. Ignore her.” Ekimu barks. He sighs, shaking his head. “So the Lord of the Core is on death’s door… and what should happen should he pass? Would the balance of elements be disturbed?”
“Some among us wish to strike at the root of the problem, to flush out evil’s seed and vanquish it. However, there is little point in doing so when we would only be swatting at air. Makuta cannot be the evil; he and his servants made their renewed bid for power three years ago, and have slumbered since. And in the absence of Makuta, who else is there? The brother fallen has haunted this island for generations uncounted. The skull spiders, the scheming Kulta, even the dreaded Umarok - all answered to the Mask Hoarder, in the end. Unless there is another - you would not know of another such terror, would you?”
The footprint would lead her away down the sidetrack, where she would quickly be swallowed by the bramble. Further signs aren’t obvious, but if she’s persistent she would notice them - a cracked twig here, some crushed leaves there, even a chip of armor at some point. Maybe a few minutes later she would see something more distinctive - something orange, off in the bushes to her left.
The Lord of the Undying Storm jolts. Before he can make any kind of half-attempted apology, Ekimu continues speaking.
He opened his mouth to respond and a slow, cold draft flowed out of his lungs as he slowly closed it.
“You would know more than me.” He mumbled. “If any unbalance were to occur, would it not already have happened, what with the others?”
He jolted again and spun his head around to face Ekimu. “She did die, didn’t she? I mean, she must have.”
Morrus curled one long finger around his chin. It was now that he desperately wanted the trees to whisper the answer to him, so he could look exceptionally smart at having ‘deduced’ it magically. But no, he’d have to use his normal incredible intellect instead. How boring.
The Betrayer…
“Only one,” He said after some time, with a contemplative air. He slowly turned towards the Elder again. “The Betrayer. He has the tenacity to pull off an action like this, but he is much too dull to think it through. No, it doesn’t seem like his hand.”
He glanced at the floor, unwrapping his chin with some difficulty. C’mon you stupid trees what do I have this element for if you don’t ever say anything?
Dax nods at at Ekimu’s words. He turns back to Blaze and looks him in the eyes. “Time is of the essence.” He grabs two stones roughly the same size both slightly larger than his fists. “For our training I will focus on endurance.”
The kick would tiny shards of obsidian glass into the abyss below. The noise behind them gets louder until an okotan, quite out of breath comes running into the room. She was an jungle okotan and looks at the looking at both Lync and Kryuna with a slight hesitation, quite possibly confusion, before grabbing a metal staff and holding in front of herself in a stance.
“I really hope you’re one of the bad ones, I don’t want that guilt on me.”
“He’s-” Melody pauses for a second re-living her memories as she helplessly watches Geet’s decapitation and the okotan who did it. She takes in a deep breath, “He’s a fire okotan, orange, he’s a known duel wielder of swords. I believe it would have been within the last week or so from the limited data I’ve gathered.”
Xol watches Melody as he sees this heavy weight over her, crushing her, and he can’t do a thing. He’s unable to carry this weight. It’s overbearing and not something he can grasp from her.
One of the guards backed up instinctively as they saw the movement. The other motions to help him and the guard nods. The guard goes over to the shadows and pulls a thin cord, a distant bell rings by the pull. Thrice, the bell was pulled.
The guard then returns to the other and helps him lift Skipper up.
Erebos lies down on the dusty hills, recuperating his strength in the short night that he has. He knows Ekimu will be after him it would be too much of a risk for Ekimu to allow him to get back his mask… but it was his mask and he must claim it once more.
Dax tosses one in the air and catches it, “It’s good for now. I want you to keep your arms outstretched and perpendicular to the ground. I do not want them to droop in any amount!”
The Lord of the Undying Storm’s head tugged in irritation towards Twenty Three’s location, but his eyes remained fixed on Ekimu, looking for some kind of solace in the other’s eyes - some hint, some slight suggestion that she was very dead and buried.
“It’s an endurance exercise. You will see what I mean in due time.”
He holds his arms outstretched in almost a t-pose fashion, “With the rocks I will be asking you to simply hold out your arms like this. The goal is never to drop the rocks.”
He hands the two rocks over to Blaze, “Now you try and yes you likely won’t feel anything at first. The key to this exercise is time. I’ll tell you when to stop.”
“Intriguing…” one of the Elders muses, watching the Lord through narrowed eyes. “This Betrayer, we have not heard of them before. What more do you have to say on the matter?”
“That is truth enough,” Ekimu says, looking into the fire. “But I am afraid I cannot be wholly certain of that answer. She fell into the waves, her mask taken and her power gone. None have tried to claim her mask, none have acted on her behalf, no sign of her has surfaced. And yet, I cannot be certain. I can never be certain.”
“Are you… threatening me?” Lync stares at the newcomer in confusion. “Do I look like a Dark Mist goon to you?”
“Hmm…” The acolyte nods in understanding, memorizing her description. “I don’t recall seeing anyone of the sort, but I hardly meet everyone who comes through here. Just one moment; I’ll ask my fellows what they know.” And with that he turns, hurrying away to speak with a nearby acolyte.
Minutes pass, and if she was patient Melody would occasionally see the same Okotan she had spoken to flitting about. Finally he returns to them.
“I have good news, but also bad news. We have seen the man you described - he visited us not long ago, just as you said. Unfortunately, we have no idea where he might have went after that. He didn’t say much to anyone in the building. I’m sorry we couldn’t be of more help.” He bows his head in resignation.
There’s a bit of a click sound, and Morrus’ eyes dart uncomfortably for half a second as he comes to the realization that he’s going to have to explain himself and couldn’t work on prior knowledge.
…Which, admittedly, he didn’t have much of.
“Ekimu never told you?” He finally forced out, trying to look surprised. “Truth be told, he hardly told me either. He stole a very powerful mask and threatened all of Okoto, but from my understanding he was quite mad. He was done in, but not sentenced to death, instead being imprisoned somewhere. I think Soil might’ve found out where at one point.”
He tapped his fingers behind his back. “Unfortunately I’ve been asleep too long to familiarize myself with any other potential threats.”
He glanced at the floor in slight disappointment, his clenched hands threatening the entire forest to give him the answer as his mind began dwelling on the existence of his siblings.
…Wait.
“Wait!” He suddenly exclaimed, throwing up his finger in probably the greatest eureka moment he had ever experienced. With a glint in his eye, he looked with bravado at the elders once again, and his entire body seemed to age in reverse.
“A fact, I am afraid, I have neglected to mention! The Lord of the Undying Storm is very much alive, and in full possession of his faculties. He attacked the City of the Mask Makers not very long ago, and was done in by Ekimu. He would orchestrate a plot such as this!”
His whole character spoke of triumphant bravado, and the leaves on his body were vibrant and green. Surely nothing could defuse this stroke of genius.
The Lord of the Undying Storm turned away, slowly, back towards the fire. His hand stole towards a rock and began crushing it as a stress relief while his tense eyes darted from flame to flame.
He shook his head repeatedly in very short, very subtle motions. “Cautious, a melody, a song of storms.” He whispered. “Today we bathe, tomorrow we boil. Water… The conductor.”
He sucked in a deep breath, unintentionally drawing the dying flame closer to him for a moment and leaning back slightly to avoid its heat. “I don’t know what to do or where to be. Is it justified to stop the hunt to attend his final moments? Should only you be present, should one of us continue the hunt and the other divert?”
He brought the powdered remains of the rock up in his palm and thought maybe he could throw them at the dog. “My heart and my conscience are at odds with each other. They never exactly got along.”
“Interesting, interesting… we will tell our Pathfinders to keep an eye out for such a being.”
“Ahhh, yes… him we’ve heard of.” The Elders share nervous glances. “He has caused much trouble over the past few years, and would indeed be the sort to hatch such a scheme… kidnapping a Protector…”
“But,” another Elder interjects. “Last we knew of, he was safely ensconced in Ekimu’s prisons. Would he be able to orchestrate such a thing from there?”
Ekimu cradles his mask in his hands. “Too many fires, never enough buckets,” he grumbles.
“I loathe to leave either matter unattended,” he says, straightening. “Yet, there is only one of me, and I cannot be in both places at once. A choice must be made.” He stares into the fire, his face hardening in resolve.
“Your brother’s death is a momentous occasion, but the movements of the Betrayer - they are perilous, to say the least. It took great effort to strike him down before, when I was in my youth and my brother loyally by my side. Should we falter in our pursuit I fear the consequences shall be dire. We pursue Erebos at dawn. We must bring a swift end to his schemes, and rush to your brother’s side thereafter.” He turns to the Storm, watching for his response.
“Likely he would have set it in motion before his capture.” Morrus replied, drawing his hand across his wooden chin. “And gentlemen, he could not have been imprisoned by Ekimu more than a few days, since the calamity of his attack was still present when I arrived in the city.”
“It’s possible,” He began to pace. “That he desired to be imprisoned to so disassociate himself with any current events. I’ve seen Ekimu’s prisons in the past; he could only be freed by an outside source… Maybe he plans to have one of his servants do just that!”
He glanced at the Elders to see if they gave a visual response to his utter brilliance. “If my brother is involved, and if he orchestrated the capture of your protector, then something much worse has been set in motion against this region. Capturing or killing the Storm would do little to halt its advance.”
The Lord of the Undying Storm continued staring contemplatively into the fire, before getting the sneaking suspicion that someone was looking at him in expectation. He turned to Ekimu with some surprise in his features.
“I do not have a choice, Ekimu.” He mumbled. “Nor the strength to make one if I did. I am here by promise, nothing more.”
He turned back towards the fire, hiding any emotion which might conflict with his statement. “You tell me when the sun is high enough to rise. I’ll be ready.”
@rainsong As Reige enters the city by blasting through its gates he looks around for the sources he gives rapid glares on the stunned populous. “Who needs to be punished here!” He says,
“I have felt mighty unbalance in this region, a balance I must restore!” He continues arrogantly.
“Give me what I seek and maybe I’ll spare some off you.” He concludes
As Skipper leaves the ground the loose mask falls to the ground with a thud, Skipper doesn’t resist the guards hold of him but he does faintly open his eyes for a short moment before closing them again.
@Axels Kryuna shot a wary glance Hiraeth before responding to the newcomer. “What business do you have with Dark Mist?” She slowly began moving her hand toward the handle of her great sword as she spoke.
The Elders are slow to react, some of them leaning over and whispering to one another, others staring fixedly at the floor. Finally, one speaks.
“We had not realized that the Storm had been freed recently. Yes, this is troubling, quite troubling indeed. The question, however, remains: how do we proceed?”
“Well,” another muses. “Even if removing the Storm wouldn’t halt his plans, confronting him could give us insight into their depths. Tell us, Lord of the Skies, where might we find your brother?”
Ekimu nods, then stands. “I am off to sleep now,” he calls to the camp. “I will not ask any of you to join my hunt, nor will I turn away any who wish to help. This is your decision and yours alone. You have the night to think on it.” He turns away, stepping away from the fire to lay out his bedroll.
@meepinater@Flux@Traykar (between you three, Ghid, and Blackbelt, I think that’s everyone at the crater right now)
The villagers shrink away from him, confused and afraid. None of them dare to answer his question, though a pair of guards approach, spears raised. He would feel the anger coming from deeper in the city, in the direction of a rather tall tree.
Reige lands and begins walking closer to the guards as he activates is magma sword his expression is emotionless and cold as he readies to swing with his blade