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nocte-argentea · 5 years ago

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Stargazing

This is my contribution to @tyrias-library‘s Valentine’s event! The topic was a memorable date, so Altair took Vesper on a date to cheer her up after she had a really bad day! Cross-posted on Ao3.

Altair knew from the moment she walked in that Vesper had not had a great day.

It was late afternoon when she entered the guild’s tavern. He could see the bruises and dried blood on his girlfriend the second she came in. Was she limping as well? Concern immediately welled in his heart as he almost leaped off of his chair to go to her. A tired smile made its way to her lips as she saw him approach.

“Sorry it took me so long, darlin’. The job was...a little more taxing than I thought it’d be.” She said wearily as he took her into his arms, looking over her to make sure there were no serious injuries.

“I can see that. What happened, dear heart?” The sylvari vaguely remembered her talking about the job she took; something about bandits, he thought.

“Remember how I said bandits were the suspects of the attacks on the caravans?” Altair nodded. “Well, turns out it was bandits and centaurs and unchained.”

“Oh my.” Vesper cracked another smile at his simple joke. “They didn’t hurt you too badly, did they?”

“Nah, I’m tougher than I look. But with that being said…” she turned her head towards the direction of the infirmary. “I’m going to go get patched up and then head up to our room. I’ll see you in a little bit, alright?” Altair nodded as she leaned up to kiss his cheek, and then she was on her way. He watched her go with worry in his eyes. He knew her better than that. There was something else wrong.

“...You can tell too, huh?” Altair jumped a bit at the voice beside him. He turned to see Nocte leaning against the bar. When did she get there? “Before you ask, I stealthed my way here. Didn’t want to interrupt your moment. But more importantly, something is bugging her.”

“You’ve got that right. I wonder what’s up? I wonder if I could ease her mind…” The sylvari drifted into thought. “Maybe I could take her somewhere? We could get food or something…”

“Not sure if she’d be up for that, especially since she seems so tired. She probably doesn’t want to be around people, save you of course.” Altair couldn’t help but blush a bit. Vesper had said multiple times that he didn’t count as people. “Maybe you could take her somewhere secluded and you could get some alone time. And no, I don’t mean that in a lewd way.”

“I figured, it’s highly doubtful that’d make her feel better right now. Let’s see…” He took another moment to think, then snapped his fingers. “I think I’ve got just the place! It’s a bit of a trek, but I know it’s a place she loves.”

“Sounds good. I’ll leave you to it.” Nocte turned to the bartender to order a drink before looking over her shoulder at Altair. “Just make sure you two get back before dawn.”

“No guarantees, but I’ll try.” He shot her a friendly wink before heading out of the tavern in the direction of their room. As he got closer, he hoped dearly that she’d go with him. He wanted to help her, but he wouldn’t force her if she didn’t want to leave. He finally made it into the room to find Vesper laying on their bed, dressed in clean clothes and reading a book. She turned to him as he entered, growing a smile.

“Not going to party with the others tonight?” She placed a bookmark in her book and put it to the side as Altair sat on the edge of the bed.

“It’s no fun without you there, love. And actually, I wanted to ask you if you’d join me on a little adventure. Or a date, rather.”

“A little adventure date? I don’t know, mate, I’m still tired…”

“I’m aware. You don’t have to go, but I know something is bothering you.” She broke eye contact at that. That confirms it, at least. “I want to take you somewhere where you can take a bit to relax. Just you and me.”

“Hm...I like the idea, but I am still tired. Where are we going?”

“That’s a surprise. It is a bit of a trip, but we’ll be riding a jackal for most of it. I’ll even carry you if you don’t want to walk.” He winked at her and felt a small surge of pride as she blushed.

“Well, alright.” Altair had to stop himself from making some gesture of victory. “I won’t have to grab anything other than the usual, right?”

“Right. I would like you to wear a blindfold, though.” Vesper gave him a weird look. “...To keep it a surprise, Vess. You know me better than that.” Her face instantly melted into a look of mirth.

“Aye, I do. I was messing with you. Give me a moment to get my dagger and pistol.” Once she was ready to go, Altair grabbed her scarf and tied it around her eyes. He made sure that she couldn’t see, then held her close as he brought out his portal stone.

“You know, we could’ve just used my two eyepatches instead of my scarf.”

“I am not letting you go out wearing two eyepatches. We have standards, Vess. Besides, at this time of day, it’s going to be chilly where we’re going.” He selected the proper waypoint, and in an instant, the two were in the Desert Highlands. Vesper shivered a bit at the cool air, as night had fallen at this point.

“You weren’t kidding. Where are we? Ascalon? Shiverpeaks?”

“If we were going to the Shiverpeaks, I’d’ve made you wear something warmer.”

“Fair enough.”

Altair summoned his jackal and helped Vesper onto it. Once she was settled, he climbed up and sat behind her and then the three were off to the western portion of the highlands. As the jackal ran, Altair figured now would probably be the best time to find out what was bothering her, so she wouldn’t be thinking about it while they were trying to relax.

“So, want to tell me what’s bothering you?” He heard her sigh in front of him.

“Not really, but…” Vesper went quiet for a moment before leaning back into his chest, something she did often when she was upset. “I found where the majority of the attacks were coming from, and I was able to dispatch most of the culprits, but I...I was too late to rescue another caravan. It was a gruesome scene. So many bodies...”

“By the Pale Mother. I’m sorry, Vess.” He looped an arm around her waist and drew her closer. “It wasn’t your fault. You know that.”

“You’re right, I know you are. It just...doesn’t make it easier to forget a scene like that.” She placed her hand over the one on her stomach. “I may have been through a lot, but it doesn’t really get easier.”

“I know, sweetheart. I know.” Altair pressed a gentle kiss to her neck. Thankfully, they’d reached the sand portal to get to the place they were going. “We’re almost there. It won’t be long now.”

He had to brace himself for the next part. The sand portal took the three of them upon the sand paths high in the sky, and Altair was not a fan of heights. He was determined to go through with this, however. For Vesper.

“I feel like we’re getting higher up. It’s colder, too...you promise we aren’t in the Shiverpeaks?”

“I believe part of them is nearby, but no, where we’re going isn’t connected to them.”

Finally, they’d reached the platform high above the highlands, where the night sky shone brilliantly and the ghostly structures of a civilization passed were visible. Vesper loved it up here, so Altair dearly hoped this would lift her spirits at least a little. It also seemed like the ghosts that were usually up here weren’t present tonight, so they could get some alone time. He hopped off of the jackal and helped Vesper down.

“This feels like stone masonry. I thought this was just going to be you and me? That’s kinda hard to do in a town…”

“You’ll see, love.” He guided her towards the ghostly city, keeping her far enough away from the edge for him to feel they were safe from falling. He untied her scarf from around her eyes, letting it fall back around her neck. He moved beside her as she opened her eyes and gasped.

“Altair! You brought me all the way here!? No wonder it’s chilly, we’re so high up. But, you hate heights! Why-” Her mind seemed to be running a mile a minute, so he interrupted.

“Because I know you love it here. And I figured this would be the best way to help you relax.” He slung his arm around her back and pulled her into his chest. “I can deal with heights if it makes you happy. As long as I can’t see just how high up we are…” He glanced towards the edge and shivered. He’d endure it, but there was no way he was getting close to where the platform ended.

“Altair…” Vesper snuggled into his chest, which made his heart flutter. “You didn’t have to bring us all the way here just for me. But I’m glad you did. It means more to me than you’ll ever know.” She pulled away briefly to look him in the eye. “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too.” Altair put his other hand on the back of her neck to bring her face to his, capturing her lips in a sweet kiss. When they broke apart, he pulled her over to one of the pillars and sat against it. Vesper sat down and he pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her once again. “We can stay as long as you like. I’m alright with taking a night off to stargaze together.”

“I’d like that.” She kissed his cheek and snuggled into him, and the two watched the stars for hours. Unfortunately, Nocte wasn’t kidding about being back before dawn and gave the two a dressing down when they returned to the guildhall. This didn’t stop them from going out to stargaze several more times, however.

#gw2 #guild wars 2 #tyria's library #tyria's library event #my writing #altair stormrender #vesper aequorea

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canid-slashclaw · 5 years ago

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Wintersday with the Grimwalds

Daniel Grimwald tugged the reins on one of his pack dolyaks as the two cumbersome beasts slogged through thick drifts of snow. A fierce winter storm had blown through Queensdale the day before leaving all roads covered in a thick layer of the powdery substance. He returned to the homestead after arriving from the town of Claypool during a supply run. The packages in the back of his wagon jostled about as the carriage wheels traversed across the uneven surface.

Arriving at the Grimwald homestead, he was greeted by his wife and youngest daughter, Katie. She waved jubilantly to her father before running out to greet him.

"Presents. Yayyy!"

Her mom called out, "wait till your father makes a complete stop before running out there young lady."

Katie stopped in her tracks. Daniel laughed as he stopped the dolyaks with a quick tug to the reigns.

"Easy now, darlin'. Old Gurty here is partially blind in her left eye. Any sudden moves might spook the old girl," the elder Grimwald said as he beckoned for his daughter to step around to the right of the wagon.

"Dear. I hope those gifts are wrapped. We wouldn't want to spoil the surprises, now would we?" Shirley called out.

"Don't you worry, ma. Everything's fine."

With the grace of an antelope, Katie leaped into the passenger seat as she turned around to look at the wagon bed of wrapped gifts. Her curious eyes were especially drawn to one particular oblong package.

Daniel looked at his youngest daughter then said with a smile, "Katie - how about bein' a good girl and help your ma take these gifts inside while I hitch up the dolyaks."

After the gifts were unloaded, the Grimwald trio headed inside to prepare for the upcoming Wintersday dinner. Shirley busied herself in making the finishing touches to the stuffed roasted moa while Daniel hoisted Katie above his shoulders so she could place a crystal star atop a decorated pine tree.

"This star makes the tree look so pretty," Katie said as father Grimwald set her down on the floor.

"Indeed it does. But even it ain't as perdy as who I'm lookn' at now," Daniel said with a smile as he kissed his daughter on the forehead. Katie's rosey cheeks lit up as she giggled.

"Rachel - dinner's almost ready. Time to come down." Shirley called out hoping her older daughter would hear the announcement.

"I'm already down here," came the terse reply of an adolescent voice from the living room.

"Oh there you are. I thought you were just going to say holed up in your room all day," her mother said with a noticeable sigh.

"Chin up Rach," Daniel said. "This is the first year we'll be having Wintersday dinner with Kaleb and his new... wife."

"Now, Dan. I know it's been a trying year. But we should be grateful for all they've done for us, especially considering what happened a couple of months ago." Shirley said from the kitchen as she began slicing up some pickled beets.

"I am grateful, Shirley. It's just, so much has happened since he got married to her."

Shirley looked at her husband and commented, "trust in Dwanya, dear. Pray for her guidance and she will protect us like she's always done."

Daniel sighed. "Yes, ma. I suppose yer right."

"Why of course I'm right. The Six have always watched over the Grimwald household."

Rachel overheard the remark then chimed in. "Yeah, right. I'm sure that's about change..."

"Young lady - just because Kaleb's wife is..." Shirley said with a degree of hesitation in her voice.

"...a charr?" Rachel finished the sentence.

"I was about to say, not human. Anyway, let's make this a happy occasion, shall we?"

Daniel looked at his older daughter who was sitting on the bay window couch staring outside and said, "your ma is right, Rach. Our family has many good things to look forward to this coming year."

"I'm looking right now, dad," Rachel said as she stared out of the bay window.

"And what do you see? I see our family business expanding. I see you going off to that asuran college and making something of yourself."

"I see pretty lights and presents!" Katie chimed in excitedly.

Shirley finished cutting up the beets as she began preparing the last of the entrees. "I see a couple of girls who have nothing to do at the moment. Come help me set the dishes out."

Rachel smirked. "Well, I see a big-assed charr taking a piss on our front lamp post."

Rachel! was all her parents could say.

***

"Easy, sir. I've gotcha. Ama - you have his other arm?" Kaleb asked as he allowed Ludrick's massive paw to lean on his shoulder.

Amalthia shook her head as she laid down the enormous stack of gifts she was carrying. "Give me a sec. Some of this stuff is fragile, yanno."

"Gah! This is so embarrassing. I can't even take a leak without two people helping me," the massive charr said with a growl.

"It's okay, sire. Piss away to your heart's content. All of that booze has gotta go somewhere. Might as well be here," Amalthia said nonchalantly as she turned to help steady her father.

Kaleb screwed up his face. "Here? Of all places? Ama, your dad is pissing in my parent's front yard, for all the neighborhood to see."

"Um. Kal. Your parents live in the boonies. There isn't a neighbor to be seen for miles. Besides, what would you have my sire do? Hold it? Or better yet.. use your peoples' toilets?" Amalthia retorted sarcastically.

"Well, that is what they are designed for. Perhaps I can teach you and your dad how to use one sometime."

Ludrick had finished his business. Doing his best to steady his balance, he waved to Kaleb. "Ahh. That felt good. Gimme my cane. This cold makes my bladder shrink and my bones ache."

Amalthia picked up half of the gifts as she began handing some of them off to her husband. After the gifts were situated, the trio headed towards the Grimwald homestead. Kaleb knocked on the door when they arrived, but Amalthia was suddenly overcome with an urge of her own.

"Ohhh shit. I think the cold shrunk my bladder too. Sire, mind holding these for a moment while I flush the ole' beet?"

Kaleb facepalmed. "Ama! Hold it for just two more seconds. I mean surely..."

"Surely, nothing! Kal. I'm gonna bust any second," his wife said as she lifted up her plush winter dress then began spraying the rose bushes that were planted next to the door with her pungent aroma.

Suddenly, the door swung open and Kaleb was standing with gifts in hand standing face-to-face with his parents while his wife was performing her bodily functions. Ludrick just looked away pretending he wasn't there.

"Mom, dad... so nice to see you all." Kaleb said with a shit-eating grin on his face as he stood in front of his wife hoping to hide what she was doing.

"Kaleb. So nice to see you. Ludrick? Am I right? I think we met briefly at your daughter's wedding." Shirley opened the door up wider for them to enter. Amalthia silently waved with a huge fangy grin on her face.

Daniel held out his hands offering to take the gifts. "Here son. Let me have those and we'll put them under the tree." After claiming the items, his father stepped back as Rachel poked her head though the door. To her chagrin, she immediately noticed what Amalthia was doing.

"Like, ewww," was her only comment.

"Sis. I love you too." Kaleb replied hoping to provide some sort of distraction.

"Amalthia. It's nice to see you again. Is there something I can help you with?" Shirley said in a noticeably strained voice hoping to steer the greeting in a positive direction as she invited them to enter.

The female charr put her clawed finger to her muzzle as she looked at Kaleb's mom with a guilty smile. "Hi miss, G. Sorry about my sire pissing on your lamp post. He was all tanked up. I'm all tanked up too if you haven't already noticed. If it's any consolation, I'm pretty sure my golden showers won't kill your roses off too much."

Everyone was facepalming this time around.

Katie saw Amalthia and immediately squealed with delight as she ran over to greet the tiger-striped charr. "Ammeyyy!!"

"Kaaatieeee!!" Amaltha stooped down with her long arms agape. The two hugged as she swooped Katie up then began nuzzling the youngest Grimwald profusely.

Ludrick looked around the room trying to find a comfortable place to rest his sore foot. Daniel waved for the enormous charr to have a seat on a nearby sofa.

"Care for a refreshment? I've got cold brews in the cooler if ya like."

Ludrick shook his head. "No thanks, Dan. I'll just take water."

Shirley beckoned her son over to the kitchen. After he had hugged his little sister and give his wife a kiss, Kaleb walked over to greet his mom.

"Spiced pumpkin pie? That stuff is to kill for!" Kaleb said with a smile a he kissed his mom on the forehead.

"Roll up your sleeves, son. Just because you are married off on your own, doesn't absolve you of being the Grimwald sous chef. There's a batch of broth over there to make the giblet gravy. Only you know how to make it proper." She looked up and smiled.

"Darn right! No one knows how to make it but me. Well, that is, except Ama of course."

His mother stood back with her hands on her hips. "Sharing secret family recipes? In our family, that's a hanging offense."

Kaleb laughed. "Family recipe? Ma. That's my recipe. Besides, in case you've forgotten, she's family too."

His mother sighed. "Yes. I suppose she is."

"Where's Rach? I didn't even get a chance to give her a hug," Kaleb said with a frown.

Shirley shook her head as she began putting away some of the cooking utensils. "She disappeared to her den of seclusion as soon as you all stepped in. That child never leaves her room unless it's either for school or when her asura boyfriend comes to visit."

Katie led Amalthia on over to the kitchen area. While perusing over the array of freshly-baked goods, Katie handed her charr sister-in-law a slice of peach cobbler.

"Ma and I made this together. I made this especially for you."

Amalthia sampled the dessert. "Oh my. You really outdid yourself. Now I know the truth. You were the one who taught my husband how to cook."

Everyone in the room laughed.

"Egos already run big in the Grimwald household. Best not encourage her," Daniel said with a wry smile.

"Nonsense, sire Grimwald. I know a good pie when I taste it." Amalthia smiled as she opened her maw then downed the rest of the pie in a single bite.

"Interesting. I didn't know your people were into eating sweets." Kaleb's mother said with a somewhat scrying tone.

"Oh. Our people love pies. Especially ones that have ground up bits of human babies inside. They really enhances the flavor," Amalthia said with a sarcastic retort.

"Ama!" Kaleb snapped back. He knew where this was going and he didn't want an otherwise peaceful family get-together to turn into a war of words.

"It's okay, Kal. I'm just trying to educate your people on some of the things that my people enjoy when it comes to eating." Amalthia said with a mild snarl, her ears flattening.

Kaleb stood in front of his mother hoping that doing so would diffuse the rising tensions. "Ma. Please, listen. There are certain words, phrases if you will, that are major triggers. Amaltha... she's..."

"...drunk, son. No need to tell me the sky is blue."

"Very drunk, Miss G. As a matter of fact, I'm completely drunk off my ass. Mmm. Is that eggnog I smell?" Amalthia wandered off to find where the delicious odor was emanating from.

Daniel stood up then offered Ludrick his cane. "Are you up for a short jaunt? There's something I wanna show you and Katie. Darling, come join daddy and the big charr. We've got something you'll really like."

Katie immediately ran over to her dad then looked up at Ludrick. "Woah. You are so big! How does that walking stick hold you up?"

Ludrick chuckled then knelt down so he could be at the little girl's level. "It's held me up for many years. Your father and I have something special we've been wanting to show you."

The elder Grimwald, his daughter and Amalthia's father left the room shutting the back door behind them. By this time, his wife had found the bowl of eggnog and was happily pouring and gulping it down in a forty ounce stein.

"I want this to be a peaceful holiday. I'm also glad that Katie doesn't have to hear all this. After all we've been through, I just want us to all get along."

His mother looked at Amalthia then back at him. "Son. Listen. I don't dislike your wife. That is not the issue."

Amalthia shrugged as she dangled the stein on her right paw before taking another swig. "You could have had me fooled."

Shirley turned to the charr and said, "Amalthia. It is not what you are that I have a problem with. I've made peace with that, with you, after what happened with the Fairweathers."

"So what is it then?" Kaleb asked.

"I may not know the physiology of your people, but I do know a chronic drinker when I see one. Trust me when I say this."

The charr's golden eyes fluttered for a moment upon hearing the words. She let out a deep sigh before taking another drought.

"Yes. I wouldn't deny that I go a little overboard when it comes to the booze. Before I met your son, it was the only thing that kept me sane. The loss of my warband mate, being raped by my commanding officer and dealing with that condescending bitch-of-a dam, e.g. my mother, kinda drove me to soak in a few suds."

Kaleb held his mother's hand and Amalthia's paw in each of his hands and said, "I love both of ya. Mom. Ama's been through a lot and it's gonna take a lifetime for some of those wounds to heal."

Mother Gimwald clasped her son's hand in reassurance. "I know it will take time, son. Just remember, both of you, to be there for each other when times get rough and you feel like all hope is lost. Your love for each other can overcome anything if you believe in it strongly enough."

Amalthia gazed into the bottom of her empty mug then turned her glassy-eyed stare towards Kaleb. "I'm beginning to understand just what a sentimental and sappy culture you humans actually are. Nothing against you, love. This touchy-feely stuff is all just so weird to me if you get my drift."

"I'm sorry, mom. She's really over the edge. Perhaps we can come back at a later time; when she's sober."

"No. I want you to stay... both of you." Shirley stood up then walked over to Amalthia.

"The feeling is mutual, Mrs. Grimwald-Steelblade. I too am beginning to understand you a great deal more." The petite, red-haired matron gave the tiger-striped charr a brief hug then returned to making the finishing touches for the upcoming feast. "Dinner will be ready at the top of the hour. Now would either of you mind fetching Katie and the boys?"

"Okaayy. That was random." Amalthia commented right after she was hugged.

Kaleb chuckled as he helped his inebriated wife stand on her wobbly feet. "You made an impression on her, Ama; a good one. I don't know how or why, but you did."

"Go me... I guess." She said with a shrug.

Kaleb looked into her golden eyes then kissed her on the snout. "Trust me. You did!"

***

Katie tagged along as the elder Gimwald led her and Ludrick to the barn that was located a few yards from the main house. Turning to his daughter, he put his finger to his lips then told her to tread softly.

"Step on though. Just don't make any sudden noises."

Ludrick sniffed the air while trying to shift the weight off of his injured right foot. He could smell the aroma of what Daniel was about to show them. Being careful to balance himself, he surged forward using his cane to steady his enormous bulk.

"So you really did it, Dan." The charr said in a low gruff.

As he approached one of the stalls, Daniel turned towards Katie then beckoned for her to approach. He carefully hoisted her up to his waist so she could get a better look.

"Do you see her?" Daniel pointed to a curled up shape in the corner. The form was slightly smaller than a dolyak and a whole lot skinnier. It was also covered in scales instead of fur.

"Ohhh is that a lizard?" Katie asked.

"It's a raptor to be exact." Ludrick chimed in.

Daniel laughed as he pointed towards the scaly creature. "It's an Elonian raptor, sweetheart. Amalthia's dad knew someone who knew someone who was sellin' them."

The creature opened its eyes for a moment. Its inner eyelids slid back and forth over dark-slitted pupils, before it rested its crested head upon the pile of hay. Katie could hear the creature's rhythmic breathing as her eyes studied its contours.

"Is this mine?"

Her father shook his head. "This one is a bit big for ya. But be patient, I do have a surprise in store."

Ludrick craned his long neck over the stall, his cat-like eyes scanning the raptor's every detail. "Are you sure about this, Dan? I know you are taking a big risk on this type of investment."

"I'm sure of it, Lud. That gal can cover distances four times as fast as any human... and it's twice as fast as even your peoples' top speed. Yep. I think it's a solid investment for sure."

Daniel set Katie on the ground then beckoned for her and Ludrick to follow.

"I reckon dinner's gonna be ready here shortly. Best we not disappoint the ladies."

Katie handed Ludrick his cane as he knelt down to thank her. She wrapped her small arms around his thick neck as he gently placed one of his massive paws atop her golden blond head.

"Thank you, little one. Your sire, I mean father, and I have a gift that I know you'll appreciate."

"Is it a raptor?"

Ludrick chuckled as he stood up. Katie smiled with glee while holding the charr's paw as the trio left the barn then headed back towards the house.

***

The clatter of silverware and dishes could be heard throughout the Grimwald abode as Shirley, her son and Amalthia helped arrange the dinner table. Daniel, Ludrick and Katie arrived shortly thereafter.

"Get cleaned up. We are about ready to serve," Shirley said while pouring some drinks.

Amalthia began carving up the roasted moa, being careful to separate the meat according to the cuts.

"Sorry for being such an ass earlier, Miss G. When I'm stressed, I get toasted. And when I'm toasted I get mouthy. Am I right, Kal?"

Kaleb nodded as he laughed. "That's, pretty much, like... all the time?"

"Bullshit! I'm sweet as pie, most of the time."

"Well. You are when you're not drunk."

"So what you're saying is, I'm a complete asshole ninety percent of the time. Hmm?"

Amalthia cupped her paw to her left ears as she lovingly glared as her husband. "I'm not hearing a response, Kal."

Kaleb had just finished whisking up the batch of giblet gravy as he picked up the bowl then walked it over towards the table. He gave his wife a brief wink and smirk before setting the gravy mix alongside the roasted moa.

"Don't expect me to incriminate myself by responding, m'dear!"

Shirley looked towards the staircase and shouted, "Rachel. Dinner's ready. Get down here before the food gets cold."

Within a few minutes, one of the upstairs doors opened and Rachel came ambling out at a leisurely stride. As she began walking down the steps, she made her footfalls as loud as possible, hoping that in doing so, other people would recognize her disdain for being disturbed.

"We are about to perform a blessing on the meal. Rachel - did you wash your hands?" her mother asked.

"I wiped but didn't wash. How's that?"

"I'll lick them for you, if you like," Amathia said with a toothy grin.

"Ewww. That's gross!"

"And so is pawing the food without washing," Kaleb said with a smile as he brushed his hair back with his hand.

Rachel huffed. "I'm kidding! Jeez!"

Shirley arranged seating assignments as everyone tried to make themselves comfortable. Once everyone had found their proper seats, Daniel began the ritual of blessing the food. Amalthia and her sire looked at each other, trying to comprehend the purpose of the bizarre ritual.

"So let me get this straight. You were all saying 'may the Six watch over us'. Yet, isn't there a person out there who is trying to off one of your gods thereby making them the Five?" Amalthia commented as she began passing a plate of sliced leg-of-moa.

"Cub. It may not be my place, but from what I've learned of human rituals, it's generally not good etiquette to bring religion up during public conversations." Ludrick commented.

"This isn't a public place." Rachel chimed in. "The god of war needs to die!"

"Rachel!" Shirley chided.

Hoping to turn the conversation towards less controversial topics, the elder Grimwald spoke up. "Moa's mighty tender. My compliments to the chef."

Kaleb began drizzling his slab of moa and freshly mashed potatoes with layers of his very own giblet gravy. "Ma gets the credit for that one. Ama provided the spices, I gave her some prep tips, but she was the one who executed the final result."

"Grass-fed and free-range. It's the only kind I will sell in my market. That chef in Amnoon was willing to pay top coin for some of my birds," Ludrick said with satisfaction as huge portions of the savory meat disappeared down his cavernous maw.

Katie decided it was her turn to join in on the conversation. "Father's got a huge raptor in the barn. She's so cool to look at."

Her father shook his head as he passed his youngest daughter a heaping plate of green beans. "She's not lyin'. Ludrick here, hooked me up with a fella in Amnoon who was sellin' some raptors for fair price."

Shirley looked at her husband skeptically. "By Komir's grace, I still don't understand what motivated you to ever want to invest in one of those things."

"Simple. Mounted travel is going to be the new thing in Tyria. If our homestead is to thrive, we gotta adapt to changin' times." Daniel replied as he finished off the last of the pickled beets.

Ludrick forked out some turnip greens onto his plate before passing the remainder to Kaleb. "Dan is right. My contact in Amnoon has clientele across the length and breadth of the Crystal Desert. From the northernmost Highlands all the way down to the Domain of Vabbi."

"I didn't know charr ate vegetables." Rachel commented.

The old charr just chuckled as he winked to Kaleb. "Turnips make a great side dish. It's a little thing your brother taught me."

"Yanno something? Our first wedding anniversary is just around the corner. Ama and I've talked about taking a holiday trip to Elona. I heard the casinos out there are cash cows." Kaleb said while dribbling the remaining greens over his leg-of-moa.

Amalthia jabbed her husband in the ribs with her clawed index finger. "If we do take a trip there, I'm not letting you within a mile of those places. Remember the last time we were in Hoelbrak? That norn not only drank you under the table, he also cleaned out over a month's worth of our earnings."

"Hey. It was a double or nothing bet. I had to roll the dice to recoup my previous losses. Had I won, I would have made bank that day."

"Wow, Kal. You are the paradigm of wise fiscal management. I so want to grow up to be just like you." Rachel chimed in with a sassy tone.

"I love you too, Rach. But I can't say any other guy would feel the same way about ya." Kaleb said with a wink. His sister merely groaned at the response.

"Yuck! Peeaass!" Everyone heard Katie scream as her mother dumped a spoon full of the green orbs onto her plate.

"Peas are gross." Amalthia said as she reached over using a spoon to scoop up some of the peas off of the little girl's plate. "But that doesn't mean they don't have their uses."

Pouring another stein of eggnog, Amalthia lifted up her dress then pulled out a small metal flask that was attached to her thigh garter. She uncapped the container, dumped some of the amber liquid into the mug before taking another long swig.

"Ahh. Nothing like rum and eggnog. Oh yeah. Peas. Watch this..."

To everyone's chagrin, Amalthia took one of the goobery green orbs then shoved it into her right nostril. She stared at Rachel for a few seconds before launching it from her nose. The mucus-covered green goober landed straight into the middle Grimwald child's glass as it made a characteristic plunking sound.

"Bullseye!" Amalthia bellowed.

"Ewwww! That's so groooss!" Rachel threw down her utensils then stormed away from the dinner table as she stomped back up the stairs before shutting the door to her room.

Everyone at the table just stared at Amalthia blankly for a few seconds before laughter erupted. The only ones not laughing were Shirley and Daniel.

"Well. So much for not being an a-hole," came Mother Grimwald's surprise comment.

Amalthia tried to make light of the situation. "Oh lighten up, Miss G. I thought it was funny. Look at how much Katie is laughing."

"Hold on. Time for me to rescue the despondent sibling from an emotional breakdown. Be right back everyone." Kaleb headed up the stairs in an attempt to console his sister.

"Fine. I'm a jerk. I guess I'll skulk off in a corner somewhere and drown myself with the rest of this," Amalthia said while waving the flask in her pawed hand. "Anyway, for what it's worth, Rachel's package is the biggest one we brought. It's leaned up against the fireplace hearth."

Moments later, Kaleb came down the stairs along with his sister.

"I seriously think it's time we opened presents," Daniel said as he began clearing the table.

"Agreed. Let's not let a few bumps with our new daughter-in-law come in the way of enjoying the holiday." Shirley said with a smile as she started passing out the gifts.

Rachel stood in front of her much taller brother, her face averted from everyone's gaze, as tears began rolling down her pale cheeks. Kaleb gently combed her auburn hair with his hand in an attempt to reassure her.

"Sis says that she doesn't hate everyone. She's upset, but I promised her that I'll have a straight talk to my wife about this."

Moments later, Amalthia stepped forward. "Kal, Rachel. I'm sorry for being an ass, again. I was only trying to make Katie laugh, but I guess it backfired."

The middle sister only swiveled in silence, looking down at her oversized shoes. Taking the initiative, Amalthia held out her paw in a gesture of reconciliation.

"I can teach you to be an asshole too. Whadda say?"

Rachel couldn't help but crack a smile at the offhand comment. Amalthia inched closer as she took Kaleb's sister by the hand then led her towards the large Wintersday tree located next to the fireplace.

"My sire got you something special and so did Kaleb and I. But you get first dibs on what present to open first."

She pointed to the gift that was marked to 'Rachel from Kal and Ama'. Amalthia handed her the small gift. When Rachel opened it, her eyes suddenly lit up.

"Oh my gods... Front row tickets to a Metal Legion concert? Wow! How did you guys..?"

"...pull it off?" Kaleb stepped in. "Well, lets just say we know some people."

Amalthia nodded with a smile, her gleaming fangs showing prominently as her fluffy tail fluttered back and forth in contentment. "You'd better look on the reverse side."

Rachel did as instructed. "No... way... Backstage passes? But how??"

Kaleb shrugged. "Like I said, we know people."

Ludrick grabbed hold of the tall present leaning by the hearth then passed it off to Kaleb. "My cub told me how much you like that sort of music. I hope you like it."

As soon as the elongated object was in her hands, Rachel began peeling away the wrapping paper. When she stripped away the last layer, what she held in her hands was none other than a six-string steam-powered guitar.

"Oh my gods! This is the same kind Zoilus Fiendseeker plays."

"Correction, played," Amalthia chuckled. "And it is not the same kind, it is the only kind. Flip it over."

When Rachel turned the instrument over, she could see the signatures from all of the band members. "I'm seriously gonna piss my pants over this!"

"There are a set of rose bushes out front that could use a little extra watering," Kaleb said with a laugh.

Ludrick folded his bulky furry arms and grimaced. "I'm glad you like it Rachel. A cub from one of my old warband mates is close friends with the lead singer."

"What about meee?" Katie squealed looking a bit despondent.

"We haven't forgot about you. How could we?" Amalthia said as she reached around her husband then handed her a small package. The little girl immediately began shredding away at the wrapped gift.

"Ohhh. It looks like a harness thingy. My dad has some bigger ones for his yaks." Katie commented as she held the leather straps up high as she carefully examined them.

Kaleb beckoned for everyone to follow him. "C'mon Kate. Dad's got something to show ya."

He led them through the back door, across the backyard then into the barn. Once everyone was inside, a lantern was lit revealing Daniel's face.

"This way, darlin'." Her father pointed towards a stall at the far end.

Kaleb and Amaltha took each of Katie's hands then led her to the stall her father was standing in front of. Together, they hoisted the little girl up to show her what was on the other side of the gate.

"A little raptor!!" Katie observed the small sauropod looking up curiously at her as it made a series of high-pitched chirps.

"You remember that big raptor over there? Well, this is her baby. He's almost ready for ridin'." Daniel said as he took the harness from Kaleb who was holding onto it for safe keeping.

Shirley walked through the door moments later as she kicked away some snow in order to make sure that Ludrick, who was following close behind, did not trip over anything.

"The both of you really outdid yourselves. But we have a couple of surprises of our own," mother Grimwald said as she handed Kaleb and Amalthia two small packages.

"Thank you Misses Grimwald. I mean, umm. mom?" Amalthia smiled awkwardly as she began slicing opening the gift with her long claws.

Shirley laughed as she stood next to her husband of forty years, who was laughing along with her.

"You've got to be kidding? Kal. Can you believe this?"

Kaleb held up what looked to be a traveling ticket. "I'm seein' it, but not believin' it. Guys - this way too much. Two all-expense paid tickets to Elonia? This was wayy too much."

"Nonsense!" Daniel said as he gave his son a pat on the shoulder. "When the two of you got married, we never gave y'all a proper wedding present."

Rachel stepped though the barn door carrying a large oblong object. She, then, walked over to her younger sister and handed her little sister the mysterious package.

"Sorry for showing up late. I was writing a letter to my boyfriend, telling about all the cool gifts. Anyway, Happy Wintersday, sis!"

Katie opened the package revealing what appeared to be an over-sized egg. "Oooo. Neat! Is that a raptor egg?"

Daniel nodded. "Why yes it is. Your sister and I have been building an incubation chamber for it."

"Okay, pardon my ignorance, but what about this raptor?" Kaleb pointed towards the stall.

His father shook his head and smiled. "Somethin' about raising raptors. They do best when raised right from the egg. This one back here is just to see how well Katie takes to one, which I think she'll do fine. The next step is for her to learn how to raise one from a hatchling."

Mother Grimwald chimed in. "Oh. Speaking of your boyfriend, Rachel. Your father and I have come to the conclusion that writing him is no longer an option."

She pulled out a small package that was tucked in her winter coat then handed it to her older daughter. Rachel promptly opened the gift.

"A comm device? This is so cool! Thanks! I love you guys!" For the first time in a long while, Rachel hugged both her parents.

"I can now see Rachel talking all sorts of dirty things to her asuran boyfriend," Amalthia said with devious chuckle.

"Shut up, furface!" Rachel retorted half-jokingly.

"For once, I agree with my daughter-in-law. You'd better not use that for any immoral conversations. Remember, Dwanya is watching," her mom admonished.

After the remaining gifts had been exchanged and the cleanup detail had been completed throughout the household, Kaleb and Amalthia packed up their gifts as they said their goodbyes and well-wishes to the Grimwald clan.

"I hope our ride isn't going to expect to pick us up at the same place they dropped us off," Amalthia mused.

Kaleb shook his head. "Nah. I think that carriage rider was just freaked out over the notion of giving two charr a ride through Claypool."

"Well, that damn kid ought to get here pronto. My knee is killin' me!" Ludrick snarled as he tried balancing his weight on his cane.

"Speaking of the demon spawn... our ride is approaching now. Finally!" Amalthia shouted as she waved to the taxi carriage.

***

Once Ludrick had been dropped off at his butcher shop, the couple headed on home to enjoy some private time together. They arrived just before dusk then promptly began offloading their stash of Wintersday goodies.

"Yanno something, Ms. Steelblade?"

"Do tell, Mr. Grimwald."

Kaleb looked at his wife as he beckoned her to follow him though the sliding doors of their newly furnished home.

"How do you like it?"

He pointed towards a steaming hot tub that was sunken into an opal-colored marble floor. "I figured you'd like the color. Oh. And the water is infused with bath salts, courtesy of the Shiverpeaks."

"Oh Kal. I love it! By the way - you ought to check out the back patio. Let's just say you'll really get things cooking if you would have a look." She gave him a fangy smile as she began to disrobe.

"Oh. I'll have a look alright. And you can bet your bottom doubloon I'll be cookin' with plenty of intensity. As a matter of fact, why don't we turn up the heat so we can do a little cookin' of our own?" Kaleb smiled as he began to remove his clothing as well.

Amalthia looked at her human husband coyly as she gently clasp hold of his hand with her paw then lead him towards the hot tub.

"Oooo. I thought you'd never ask, Mister Grimwald."

Happy Wintersday!

From Kaleb and Amalthia Grimwald-Steelblade

#gw2 fanfic tyrias-library #wintersday #guild wars 2 human #gw2 writing #kaleb and amalthia #human and charr #tyriaslibrary event #gw2 fanfiction

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pyreo · 4 years ago

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Loreposting about Abaddon

Abaddon doesn’t get a lot of attention. As a deposed god he doesn’t seem relevant to the Guild Wars timeline after Nightfall. But I keep thinking about him because Abaddon is probably the most influential character Tyria ever had.

Let’s just go over where he appears in-game if you start off in GW2. Everyone knows the six human gods. They’re in statues, temples, personal shrines everywhere. The base game story makes you detour through a sunken temple dedicated to Abaddon, while the Orrian temples to the other five gods are still intact on the surface. This is not by chance. It’s also nudging you to notice that there are no Orrian temples to Kormir, because she replaced Abaddon only two centuries ago. This is reflected again later on in Siren’s Landing on the other side of Orr, where the Five, and Abaddon, each have a personal reliquary, and Abaddon’s is central, connected to all the others, and still intact.

Building on that refresher on human divinity, in Path of Fire you visit the actual place Abaddon was defeated by the other Five gods and pushed into a side dimension to keep him out of the world.

And when you visit the archives of the Durmand Priory, they have an imposing Abaddon statue towering over the stairs. Other than being reflected in three major environments, he doesn’t have a role in the plot. BUT.

As Kormir explains to you, the weakness of the human gods is that their excess of power keeps fucking up the world. The Desolation, a map that covers only a part of the sulfur desert, is completely uninhabitable because Abaddon was destroyed there. This happened because Abaddon, who was actually the most powerful of the Six and the leader of the group, wanted humans to share in the gift of magic. He was the god of knowledge, after all. This proved disastrous and the other gods reduced and compartmentalised the magic, and Abaddon went on a whole attempt to overthrow them and become one, single god of all.

The destruction of Abaddon’s temples and relics was intentional. He was wiped from memory. The pantheon was called The Five until Nightfall, wherein the existence of Abaddon was revealed as he tried to drag himself back into the mortal plane. As a god his spheres of power were water and knowledge. Erasing knowledge of him was what made him powerless. (Interestingly, the Priory’s special collections contains the Scroll of the Five True Gods, an ancient record of what the human gods knew about the Elder Dragons, but one dragon is missing - the water dragon, who like Abaddon, has a damaged and erased history. The six Elder Dragons and six human gods have many respective connections.)

When he lived, Abaddon’s followers were the Margonites, who believed him the only real god and worshipped him exclusively, unlike other humans who revere all the Six together. They were rewarded with transformation into etheral beings with an extremely long lifespan, and were imprisoned in Abaddon’s Realm, the Realm of Torment, when he was forced out of Tyria. As the god of knowledge he had a realm to himself, and when fallen, his sphere inversed. Knowledge became madness, the theme his realm embodies. Temples were sunk, records destroyed, because to remove all knowledge of the god of knowledge made him powerless.

I can’t remember where, but it’s implied that by Nightfall comes around a thousand years after his banishment, Abaddon is finally able to claw his way back into Tyria because people are starting to remember him. There’s one side quest that sticks out in my memory called The Search for Enlightenment about a scholar stealing scriptures from an Elonian library which leads to a massive raid by Margonites. The scholar was ‘babbling’ about a forgotten god. Proximity to knowledge about Abaddon seems to bestow insanity, the connection between Abaddon in his inverted realm and his hold over anyone who knows he exists. Though the Five Gods tried, they didn’t erase everything (hell, Trahearne and Sayeh al' Rajihd give you a guided tour of an Abaddon temple). Over a thousand years, relics popped up and people began to remember The Five was once The Six. As they did his influence returned until he was able to attempt to merge the Realm of Torment with Tyria and become a single, all powerful god in the absence of the others.

But wait how does that make a forgotten god the most influential character in both games?

Well.

Guild Wars lore is nothing if not completely linked together. Every single thing has cause and effect, every event is a domino. The story is consistent from Prophecies to this day. So let’s start with the first GW1 chapter, Prophecies.

It all starts at the Citadel of Flame.

It was built into the volcano Hrangmer. The charr had been displaced, pushed out of Ascalon by the successful expansion of humankind. 450 years before GW2 the Flame Legion found this volcano and, inside, Titans. You know how Mordremoth’s minions are Mordrem, Zhaitan’s minions are Risen, etc? Titans are Abaddon minions, left behind and hidden after his defeat. They change their appearance to suit their environment. In a jungle they’re vegetative, in mountains they’re made of ice, in the Realm of Torment they’re twisted constructs of flesh, in a volcano, they’re fire. The Flame Legion brings the Titans back to the charr, charr worship them, and in exchange, get immense fire powers. Flame Legion completely takes over charr society and makes it a theistic, misogynist nightmare with the Shamans at the top.

Abaddon has just restructured charr society.

Using their overpowered fire magic indirectly from a human god, charr, ironically, rally against the humans and nuke Ascalon to pieces. The few survivors escape to Kryta. Charr are now pretty much unstoppable and invade all the way to Orr. Vizier Khilbron used a powerful stolen scroll to repel the charr with magic, and it completely destroys Orr, collapsing the island into the ocean.

Abaddon has just wiped out two nations of the humans who used to worship him, with Orr as the final goal - to tear down the resplendent city of the Gods who betrayed him. This is referenced, if you know what you’re looking for, in GW2. You can scale the Vizier’s Tower, where he read the scroll that sank all of Orr, and on the wall...

A mural to the lost god, a testament to power that, a thousand years later, one who was expunged from history had a faithful likeness depicted.

Ascalon’s a burning hole and Orr is underwater. Now what? Those Ascalonian survivors in Kryta find the place is controlled by White Mantle. The White Mantle are committing mass murder via bloodstone sacrifice (bloodstones being the power curb the gods introduced after imbuing humans with magic) in order to halt the prophecy of a Chosen One opening the Door of Komalie. Vizier Khilbron turns up, shaking out some mysteriously wet boots don’t worry about that, and leads you against these genocidal cultists. Which, whoops, does lead to the Door of Komalie being opened - and it’s a doorway into Abbadon’s Realm of Torment, out of which Titans power through. This was the apocalypse planned for Kryta. Unlike the first two, this one is thwarted by the player. Kryta lives on. Vizier Khilbron is the final boss and turns out to have been a lich.

That’s 3 of the 5 human nations. What about Cantha and Elona?

GW: Factions is the Canthan chapter in which Shiro Tagachi, the emperor’s bodyguard, continually visits a fortune teller until she inflicts such paranoia on his mindset that he believes he needs to kill the emperor in self-defense. His defeat causes the Jade Wind that creates the Jade Sea. As a spirit, Shiro then engulfs Cantha in a plague that warps people into tumorous mutants. The fortune teller turns out to be an Abaddon minion whose task was the eventual destruction of Cantha. This one also is foiled by the player.

GW: Nightfall is the culmination chapter. Abaddon is now powerful enough, well known enough, to breach Tyria and try to come back. His agent is Varesh Ossa, who slowly transforms into a Margonite over the course of the game. The player confronts the breach between planes and finally enters the Realm of Torment, meeting the shades of Abaddon’s servants that came before, the lich form of Vizier Khilbron, and the spirit of Shiro Tagachi, before facing Abaddon himself.

And that’s the end of it. In Guild Wars magic cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred, so another god ascends in Abaddon’s place. They are once again The Six.

It’s Abaddon that ruined half the Elonian desert, Abaddon whose sinking of Orr gave Zhaitan the perfect mass grave to necromance, Abaddon who froze the Cantha sea into solid jade, and Abaddon whose final death and eruption of magic started waking Primordus, leading to the norn, dwarf and asuran alliance to stop it in 1078 AE-- introducing the norn and asura to the rest of Tyria, and making the dwarves extinct, cutting their entire race’s existence short. If it wasn’t for Abaddon, the charr wouldn’t have been taken over by their magic-toting shaman caste, only to come to their senses and rebel and ostracize the Flame Legion afterward. Hell, the current Flame Legion Imperators STILL style their horns in an homage to Abaddon, and probably don’t even remember why! To a human god, gone for over a thousand years, who used their race as pawns in a revenge attempt at wiping out every nation the humans had built!

And even after being thoroughly and completely destroyed, his magic STILL haunts Tyria enough for his statues to punish you for not showing the proper respect.

#gw2 #guild wars 2 #long post #LONG fucking post (apologetic)#abaddon #guild wars 1 #had to get this out me brain there we go

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eye-of-the-silver-dragon · 3 years ago

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🍍 🍍🍍🍍🤣

Sorry for the delay! But you asked and shall receive... Dymetra, my second Star Wars OC! XD

Dymetra is a Pantoran Jedi Padawan.

She doesn't actually have an official last name? Not sure why I never gave her one. She has a hastily made up one for when I made her in the Sims (it's Viorel I think?) XD

She has blue skin, with whitish purple hair and gold markings (essentially pretty typical for Pantorans). She has charcoal grey eyes that have little flecks of gold in them, and teensy gold freckles on her face.

She's from the SW:TOR (Star Wars: The Old Republic) era, so lots of years before the events of the prequel trilogy.

She's a Guardian class character, meaning she's much more melee oriented than my other character, Tyria. She can go up and smack things, and take a decent beating if need be.

She knows how to heal allies at a fairly basic level. Stabilize them if they're dying, and maybe give them a few extra HP.

She's a huge bookworm. Loves spending time in the library. Super introverted and quiet though, and very soft spoken. Prefers to train and spend time by herself whenever possible.

Adheres very closely to the Jedi Code. No wiggle room whatsoever. The Code is law and she will abide by it to the letter.

Her lightsaber blades are yellow, and she alternates between single and duel wielding.

She gives mom advice. You ask her about if something is a good idea or not, and if it's remotely dangerous, she'll freak out just a little and probably scold you. She's very encouraging, though, if it's not a dangerous idea, but just a little outside of your comfort zone.

And, a picture of my babygirl:

If you have any more questions about her, or any other OCs, let me know, and feel free to slap another pineapple in for another character! :)

#clara answers asks #chaotic siblings :)#clara's ocs #dymetra

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tyrias-library · 4 years ago

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Can you believe a whole year has gone by since tyriaslibrary opened? It’s been a year full of amazing writing and creativity thanks to the many talented, supportive fans of gw2.

To celebrate the library is holding a fic writing event from August 30 - September 6. Join in by writing and tagging your posts with #tyriaslibrary event, and don’t worry if you post late, anything tagged for the event will be reblogged here! There will also be an in-game meet up, and a screenshot challenge!

Schedule

August 30-31: Visiting the library. Write about your characters visiting the library and enjoying some books!

September 1-2: Tyrian book excerpts. Write what you think you’d find inside a book from Tyria! Someone’s got to compete with Snargle Goldclaw, right?

September 3-4: Anniversaries. With the game’s anniversary happening too, celebrate by writing about any type of anniversary.

September 5-6: Relaxation. You don’t need to curl up with a good book to relax, but it does help! Write about what your characters do when they get that well deserved break.

Meet Up: Saturday September 5th at 3pm pst on NA servers. Meet on the second floor of the Minister Wii’s Mansion poi in Divinity's Reach and look for or whisper Librarian Ink! If there’s interest I can do an EU meetup as well.

Screenshot Challenge: Throughout the week I’ll post screenshots in an area with books. Find that spot and post a screenshot of your own and tag it with #tyrian book hunt

#gw2 #gw2 fanfic #tyriaslibrary event #screenshot challenge very heavily inspired by the one going on in crow because its so fuin

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cousinslavellan-archive · 4 years ago

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Snowballs

[My fill for the 2nd day of @tyrias-librarys Wintersday Event, Winter Activities! This time with the Salad Fam because c’mon, I gotta give them some love this time of year! Plus there will eventually be art to go with this fic hehe. Sorrel isn’t yet around for this fic - so it’s just Terra, Braham, & Cassia. Enjoy ♥ ]

There’s almost a lull over the Eye as Wintersday draws closer - they’ve a tentative sort of truce with the Ice Dragon, and people are happy for the break to spend time with their families.

Terra tries not to think about it as she finishes pulling her mantle and gloves on, stepping into her boots. It’s a rare day off, and she’d promised to spend it with her family - doing whatever they wanted.

Cassia’s wish had been to go outside, the Sprout dearly sick of being cooped up within the Eye.

Terra can’t blame her - and really, neither she or Braham can say no to their daughter. Especially not with a moment of peace, right before the Sprouts first Wintersday.

Properly outfitted against the cold, Terra heads out of the room and down the hall, passing through the private portal tucked away at the end of their private areas of the Eye - stepping out into the brisk air of the North, sucking in a sharp breath and automatically straightening her posture.

Familiar laughter from nearby makes her relax, striding quickly towards the source - catching sight of her husband and daughter up ahead, snowballs flying between them.

Cassia is giggling openly, horns catching the light of the sun above as she spins to toss another snowball - squealing in delight when one catches her in the shoulder.

Braham is kneeling, one arm filled with an arsenal of pre-rolled snowballs, face open and smile wide - it feels like it’s been years since Terra’s seen him so relaxed, and it makes her even more thankful for the Sprout.

Quietly, she sneaks up behind him, gathering a large bundle of snow in her hands as she goes - eyes meeting Cassia’s for a moment before she lets it go directly over the Norn’s head, making him shout in surprise.

“Hey!” Braham sputters for a moment, trying and failing to look angry, “Spirits, Ter, that’s cold!”

“Says the Norn who once did the same thing to me!” she huffs back, shrieking a little when his hand shoots out to tug her down, “Arg, Braham!”

“Snow angel time!” he announces with a wide smirk, and Terra’s annoyance shifts into confusion.

“Yay!” Cassia bounds over, dropping to her knees in the snow beside her parents and grinning in excitement, “Ready, Mum?”

“Were you waiting for me to make snow angels?” at the Sprout’s nod, Terra frowns a little, reaching out to ruffle the girls hair, “You didn’t have to wait!”

“I wanted to! It’s not as fun without you both here.” Cassia grins even wider, her eyes bright, “I know you’re really, really busy… but I love spending time with you, Mum! Dad says the break is good for you, too!”

“It is.” Braham mumbles, likely sure she’s going to argue.

And normally, maybe she would have. But right now, Terra’s just too overwhelmed with emotion to argue.

She reaches forwards to pull the Sprout into her arms, grip tightening when Cassia burrows happily against her chest.

“I love spending time with you too, hun. I’m sorry I’m always so busy. I promise, I’ll have more time with you soon.” Terra shoots Braham a look, meeting his grin, “There’s some things we need to figure out, but… we can talk about that later.”

“For now, let’s make some snow angels.”

#GW2 #braham/terra #braham eirsson #sylvari sprouts #wintersday #tyriaslibrary event #oc: commander terra #oc: cassia #have some more fluff

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resonatingfern · 4 years ago

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It’s still September and I’m getting together ideas for a Halloween event on @tyrias-library but!! Thinking ahead to the winter holidays — would anyone be interested in a secret gift exchange event? I’d run it on a separate blog just for the event, and it would be art, writing, whatever. I’ve been in quite a few in other fandoms and always loved it.

I’d want to start getting it set up soon though so people have plenty of time. So! Any interest?

#gw2 #guild wars 2

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dasozelotvonnebenan · 4 years ago

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The Demicentaur

For @tyrias-library‘s Halloween event, unter the Cryptids prompt.

“Why exactly are we here boss? I know you like secrecy, but usually I know at least the basic reason for our travels” Lugard nervously scratched his wrist, the scraping of metal on metal only adding a shiver to the phantom pain.

Gekk, wearing peacemaker armor as usually, looked up at him. “Makin’ you uneasy, eh? Not knowin’ what the deal is?” Lugard knew Gekk well enough to suspect a grin under the helmet.

“Enough to make my hands hurt.” Lugard looked awkwardly at the metal prosthetics. “I did do some digging. The next speaker, a certain Frigg, he’s named as a Cryptozoologist, whatever that means, you’re paying him a respectable amount of money to fund his research.”

“See, you have all you need to know. Sometimes you are as dumbwitted as your nickname suggests Skrittlike. And now shush, his talk begins!” The Asura shifted his view to the stage.

The last few stragglers returned from their break to reclaim their seats as Lugard brooded in silence. Why had Gekk left Lion's Arch, during the Mad King’s Reign of all times!, to visit a convention of crackheads talking about creatures from children's books?

The host of the event, an asura whose most prominent feature was a concerning lack of any defining features, waddled up once again to announce the next talk. Seven Truths about the Demicentaur, by Frigg.

The Asura that now took the stage fit the descriptor Cryptozoologist quite well. Clad in ragged, earthy brown leather, decorated with what looked like roots from afar, or maybe some animal tails, he could’ve appeared as the cryptid in any of the other talks. Additionally he had brought at least the beginning of zoo with him, as there was a devourer following at his heel.

“The Demicentaur-,” Frigg started, then interrupted himself almost immediately, “Good evening everyone of course. The Demicentaur, or Horse, as it is colloquially known, is one of my favourite cryptids. For one it is a very old one for one of non-Asuran origin, I will get back to that in a bit, and it is intricately connected to my favourite extratyrestrial lifeform. Humans.”

A few chuckles echoed through the hall. Lugard was grateful for his mask as he felt Gekks gaze judging his reaction. To be fair it had taken him a few moments to remember that the Six had brought humans with them to Tyria. It’s not something that comes up in everyday life.

“Now there is a widely used joke about us Cryptologists that says there is only one thing we can agree on, and that is that we can’t agree on anything.” Many heads nodded. “That is why I have spent the last six months with chasing the few solid truths I could find. Now I’ve had the great luck to have a sponsor that allowed me to divert more of my time towards this topic, but as many of you know me, I could and would have done this research alongside my usual work, and there is nothing stopping anyone here from going out and double checking my findings.”

Again a large part of the audience nodded in approval. Lugard leaned over to Gekk, “So you are paying for this guys hobby so he can tell you something about horses?”

“Shh!” Gekk rudely answered, “Just listen”

“Now for the facts: To begin with, first mentions of Demicentaurs in the Grand Archives are from around 1100 AE, where they are mentioned as mighty warbeasts of past ages. The quality of the translations has been subject of many debates. Of note however is that horses appear in human literature from that time, however not in that of the charr.”

Lugard again leaned over to Gekk. “The Grand Archive? Is he talking about the Durmand Priory?”

“‘Course not. Too many bookahs had their hands on those books,” Gekk chuckled, “ But chances are they’d have the books he’s referencing. Just ain’t proper etiquette to cite from outside sources.”

“So it’s a formality thing? Non Asuran sources aren’t scientifically sound so you have to cite only Asura?” Lugard inquired.

“Aye.” Gekk answered nonchalantly.

“Next Truth,” Frigg had begun to walk up and down the stage, “The contemporary depiction of horses by humans, often as so called jousting knights, a carnival attraction, is similar to Cavalry employed by desert dwelling civilisations of today’s tyria. Both humans in Elona as well as hylek tribes in and around the maguuma wastes have mounted troops armed with long spears.”

“Factoid number four: And I know some of you,” Frigg pointed at a person in the front row, “Some of you will be quite disappointed in me for including oral sources. And to you I say: GET LOST!”

Frigg took a short pause, then continued like he never got loud, “Centaurs tell stories of a monster, the name gets mangled in translation, but the closest I could come up with is dread mount. It is a story about a centaur who makes a pact with a mysterious foreigner, or sometimes a demon, described with very human characteristics. The specifics vary widely, however in the end the centaur is a slave of the foreigner, deprived of their humanity and turned into nothing more than an animal.”

“The centaurs themself claim that the story is ancient, mostly citing names of characters that sound different for those they use. In one particular telling I heard the elder later explained that the mentioned centaur tribe had fled Elona.”

Two new Asura appeared on the stage, pulling several metal frames holding painted animal skins. Frigg turned towards it, “Next truth: We have graphic depictions of the dread mount. These look similar in stature to the jousting knights, and don’t appear to possess any signs that they would be a predatory animal. No claws like the elonian raptor mounts or chitin platin like hylek warbeetles. From my, albeit limited, understanding they are almost useless in combat, apart from their ability to carry a rider.”

“That was the amount of knowledge we had until very recently. The ability to travel to and from Elona, as well as the defeat of Palawa Joko, however lead to a great many discoveries. Including further information on horses, indicating that they were brought to elona with settlers from Cantha.”

“This is revolutionary!” Frigg gesticulated widely, “The fossil record clearly shows that centaurs originate from the tyrian continent. If horses did indeed come from Cantha to Elona it eliminates the possibility of them being descendants from one another. Convergent evolution seems to be the only remaining explanation for their similarities.”

“Finally, as we now know that horses came to Elona from Cantha, we have a rough time frame when they disappeared, with the human settlement of Elona around 200 years before their gods’ exodus, and the conquest of Ascalon around 100 years later. It is of course unsure whether horses disappeared entirely in this time, or were simply not brought to Ascalon for whatever reason.”

“My personal theory, and with this we depart from the hard truths,” “is that horses came through the mists, brought along by humans from wherever they and their gods originate from.”

“This concludes my talk,” Frigg finished, though almost unhearable through the noise that filled the hall now. In an effort to still be heard, he shouted; “I will not be taking questions right now, I thank you for lending me your ears.”

Lugard looked again to Gekk, who had now removed his helmet, a risk he rarely took. The Asura was smiling most contently while his ears were raised up like sails, twitching every time someone new shouted into the now loudly discussing mass of listeners.

Lugard too had to raise his voice quite a bit when he asked Gekk: “You like seeing them argue over trivial things, right? Your sponsorship is the breadcrumb thrown into the henhouse.”

“Finally you figured it out! Though I did find this talk at least somewhat interesting.” Gekk patted Lugard’s shoulder, then put his helmet back on. “Go and get our package from councillor Dann while I have some fun, will you?”

Lugard nodded silently and left the lecture hall, dodging two brawling Asura. In the background he heard a familiar, though somewhat muffled, voice. “And what about the Hippianic Bone Shift?!”

#horse time #tyriaslibrary #tyriaslibrary event #cryptids #I told y'all I have hc (horse canon)

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purple-saladleaves · 3 years ago

Note

5, 7, and 11 from the commander asks! :) -kerra-and-company

thanks for the ask!! :) ooh boy these ones were difficult to answer. HoT spoilers under the cut for anyone seeing this who hasn't finished it yet

5. Which death caused your commander the most grief?

I honestly can't decide between Trahearne and Efalynn's sister Rhiannwen for this one.

with Trahearne, his death was the terrible cherry on the top of the emotionally harrowing cake of awful that was Maguuma. (does that metaphor even make sense lmao). he was clearly suffering, and the fact that Efalynn had to do it herself made it even worse. Trahearne was a mentor to her, and eventually an older brother. she misses him a lot. she doesn't regret doing it, she knows it was the right choice, but she regrets that it was ever necessary.

with Rhiannwen, it was a lot more personal. Trahearne may have become an older brother, but Rhiannwen was her twin. they shared their Dream, and being without her was like losing half of herself. Rhi was really young too, they were both only a few months old when she died. on top of that, Rhiannwen's death was the first that Efalynn truly blamed herself for; Rhi took the place of Apatia (during the Blue Orb questline at lv70), and Efy is convinced she could have saved her from the krait somehow. but at the same time, Rhiannwen,,,,,,,didn't technically die. she's not the same person she used to be (in body or personality), but there's hope yet. except that doesn't change the fact that Rhi did actually physically die, that Efy saw her body, and that Efalynn had to grieve her for a long time.

both of their deaths caused her a lot of pain, and I don't think it would be fair to rank one over the other when the circumstances were so different

6. How does your commander feel towards their position of power?

I talked a little about how Efalynn feels about it here (q16). by the end of PoF, she's exhausted, struggling with memory loss alongside everything else, and just generally resentful of the job. and she's trapped in it, for reasons I explained in the linked post above. she desperately wants to rest, but she just Can't.

Efy is still an optimist at heart though, and she tries really hard to see the silver linings in her job. for one, it really makes her happy that she gets to help people. even on a smaller level, like with the renown hearts or events, being able to see the positive impact she makes on the world can sometimes make all the struggle and loss feel worth it. plus, Efalynn gets to travel to parts of Tyria that she might have never seen otherwise, and though she'll always be more at home in a library than out in the field, she does enjoy visiting new places she can show off to Ffoirre. and speaking of him, where else would Efalynn have met her best friend? there's also Dragon's Watch, even if her relationship with them is regrettably tense at the moment. while she wishes she could have become friends with these people in better times without the weight of the world on their shoulders, Efalynn is very grateful that she knows them, and all of them mean a lot to her.

11. What is the proudest moment your commander has experienced?

I think probably the walk back into Fort Trinity after killing Zhaitan. this is partly on a personal level as well as a character level, because that was the first time I ever finished the personal story. yeah the final battle may have been a little underwhelming, but honestly I really enjoyed it! I think it conveyed that we were fighting against a whole army really well, and tbh I'm not sure how we were supposed to physically take down an entire dragon like that thing was Ridiculously Huge. but yeah, doing a slow walk through Fort Trinity with my friends after that final fight while everyone cheers and applauds? that felt awesome. and if I wasn't hooked on the game already, that moment completely got me.

for Efalynn, it was the biggest success that she was properly able to enjoy. yes, there were more threats on the horizon, but compare the endings of the personal story and HoT. they couldn't feel more different. (side note: recently I played those one after the other and yeah oof that is emotional whiplash right there). everything after that was,,,,, bittersweet at best.

#gw2 #guild wars 2 #efalynn

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fardell24b · 4 years ago

Text

Changes in Time and Space - Chapter 3 - Part 2 - P6Y-362

Part II – P6Y-362

Three hours after the Doctor had talked to General Landry, SG1 and the Doctor’s companions were ready to go on their mission.

“Remember, you have to follow my orders,” Mitchell said to the companions.

“I remember,” Tamsin snarked.

The other two nodded.

“Chevron Six encoded.”

“Watch this,” Mitchell directed.

Tamsin, Kiara and Felicia watched as the seventh chevron locked

“Chevron Seven, Locked!”

The wormhole formed within the Stargate with a kawoosh.

“Wow!” Felicia gasped.

“That’s putting it mildly!” Tamsin said.

“That’s nothing compared to the experience of going through the ‘gate,” Mitchell said. “Let’s go,”

SG1 and their assistants walked up to the gate. Mitchell walked through first, followed by Teal’c.

“After you,” Carter suggested to Tamsin.

“OK,” Tamsin said. She stepped forwards, through the event horizon...

P6Y-362

Tamsin emerged on the planet designated by the SGC as P6Y-362. “That was incredible,” she enthused.

“I told you,” Mitchell said as the remainder of SG1 and their accompanying ‘specialists’ emerged from the ‘Gate.

“Wow, it looks just like a Canadian forest,” Felicia said.

“Research suggests that the Ancients and the Goa’uld both preferred this type of biome,” Carter said.

“You mean that the Stargate is usually placed in a forest like this?” Felicia asked. ‘It is definitely a beautiful view,’ she thought.

“Statistically speaking, both here and in the Pegasus Galaxy, yes,” Jackson said.

“That’s interesting,” Tamsin said.

“You have been in Canada?” Mitchell asked.

“A few times with the Doctor,” Tamsin said.

“We had to stop Ice Warriors from taking over the Yukon Territory,” Kiara said.

“Tell us more,” Carter said.

Tamsin began to tell of the adventure in the Yukon...

They started walking away from the Stargate towards the nearby settlement.

“So, we’re here to see if the Priors have been espousing Origin here?” Tamsin asked.

“Indeed,” Teal’c said.

“You read the mission brief, that’s right,” Mitchell said.

Tamsin muttered.

“She’d like more background information,” Kiara said.

Carter looked at Dr. Jackson.

“The people on this planet were brought here by the Goa’uld thousands of years ago,” Daniel said.

“Yes, but what about the ‘Gate in Antarctica? Couldn’t the Goa’uld have brought them through there?” Tamsin asked.

“How did you find out about that?” Colonel Mitchell asked, surprised. That was ‘need to know’ information.

“She pestered the records officer,” Kiara said.

“After the Doctor’s psychic paper didn’t help,” Felicia said.

“Psychic paper?” Carter asked.

“I don’t want to know,” Daniel said, referring to Tamsin’s pestering of the records officer.

“I wasn’t that bad,” Tamsin said to Daniel.

“The Doctor has a piece of paper that he uses to get past problems with officials in various places,” Kiara said.

“How does it work?” Carter asked.

“I don’t know. It probably has something to do with the Doctor’s telepathic abilities,” Kiara said.

“Anyhow, Dr. Jackson, continue,” Tamsin said.

“A System Lord ruled from here for some time prior to abandoning the planet a thousand years ago. The Goa’uld continued to raid the planet for another five hundred years before leaving it alone. After that the locals advanced to a level similar to that of medieval Europe.”

“Cool,” Tamsin said.

“They have recently developed intricate clockwork,” Daniel began.

Tamsin hung on his every word.

While Tamsin was listening to Daniel, Sam asked Felicia; “Why did the Doctor stay behind again?”

“He wanted to do further investigation of the SGC...”

The SGC

Harriman called Landry to the control room. “What is this issue, Airman?” he asked.

“There is a slight power drain in the ‘Gate,” Harriman said, he called up a computer graphic showing it.

“Do you have any idea what is causing it?” he asked.

“None.”

“Investigate.”

“Yes, sir.”

P6Y-362

SG1 and companions entered the town closest to the Stargate.

“Looks deserted,” Cameron said as they started walking up the street from the main entrance.

“Impossible. This is a major trading town for this region of the continent,” Daniel said.

“So, SG1 has been here before?” Felicia asked.

“Yes, a few years ago,” Daniel said.

“We opened relations between this nation and the US,” Carter said.

“That’s good,” Felicia said.

“The contact has inspired cultural change similar to that in the Renaissance,” Daniel said.

“So the culture resembled that of medieval Europe?” Tamsin asked.

“It was similar, but only in the broad strokes, their pantheon was and is still inspired by the influence of the Goa’uld,” Daniel said.

“Swell,” Cameron said.

“It is similar all over the galaxy, CameronMitchell,” Teal’c said.

“Don’t have to like it,” Cameron said.

“Indeed,” Teal’c said.

“Of course,” Tamsin said, annoyed at the influence of the System Lords on the Milky Way.

“We’re almost at the central square, sir. We should be walking through crowds,” Carter said.

“I haven’t noticed anyone looking out of the windows,” Kiara said.

“You sure?” Tamsin asked.

Kiara nodded.

“Neither have I,” Cameron said.

“What would cause this?” Felicia asked.

“No idea,” Carter said.

“Not a plague, we would be seeing the corpses,” Daniel said.

Tamsin nodded.

“So where did they go?” Felicia asked.

“The nearest settlements are less than a day’s journey away, but they are just villages,” Daniel said.

“Do they use the Stargate?” Kiara asked.

“Not often. It hadn’t been used for centuries when we arrived the first time,” Carter said.

“We may have to go to one of those villages. Do you know where they are?” Colonel Mitchell asked.

“Not exactly,” Daniel said.

“There’s a library on the other side of the square,” Sam said.

“A good place to start,” Kiara said.

“There may be clues as to why this happened,” Tamsin said.

Fifteen minutes later, later the team entered the town’s library. The place showed much evidence of a hasty departure, with loads of papers strewn around the many reading tables.

“This is going to take some time,” Daniel said.

“I’ll help you. I’ve had some field experience,” Tamsin said.

“Thanks,” Daniel said.

“You’re welcome.”

Five hours later the sun set and the planet’s two moons bathed the town in coloured light.

“Quite strange. A red moon,” Kiara said.

“It has a similar composition to Mars,” Sam said.

“The fourth planet in Earth’s solar system. I have been there with the Doctor. Needed a suit outside the TARDIS and the colonial habitats,” Kiara said.

“That’s the same as our Mars, except for that last part,” Mitchell said.

“Colonial habitats?” Carter asked.

“We visited in the late 23rd century,” Tamsin said.

“Quite beautiful, but barren,” Kiara said.

“I agree,” Sam said.

Daniel soon returned with Tamsin in tow.

“Have you found anything?” Felicia asked.

“Yes, there are multiple references to a Prior being here saying their usual Origin espousing spiel,” Daniel said.

“Then the Prior left, travelling back through the ‘gate,” Tamsin said.

“So what happened here?” Carter asked.

“They had heard about the Ori from their contacts through the gate. Apparently the nation had been sporadically exploring through the gate. It’s possible that the Goa’uld had left behind a co-ordinate archive like the one that was on Abydos,” Daniel said.

“The first planet you discovered, go on,” Felicia said.

“Right. After the Prior had left; they set up guards near the gate in case the Prior came back,” Daniel said.

“So the Prior came back?” Cameron asked.

“Yes. The guards saw the Prior emerge from the gate in the distance and immediately ran to the town. That’s when they evacuated the town,” Daniel said.

“But wouldn’t the Prior be here?” Carter asked.

“We think that he may have gone to one of the other villages,” Tamsin said.

“Where some of the towns’ people may have gone?” Vala asked.

“Yes,” Daniel said.

“We stay here tonight, and then set out for the closest of those villages. I assume that the library has a map of the region?” Cameron asked.

“It does. However, I must say that that village is the most likely destination for the Prior after this town,” Daniel said.

“Noted, We’ll set out at first light,” Cameron said.

“Right, sir,” Carter said.

“The sun seems to be setting faster than on Earth,” Tamsin said.

“This planet has a rotational period of just less than 19 hours,” Carter explained.

SG1 then prepared for the short night ahead.

Second day on P6Y-362

They left the deserted town, early in the morning, whilst it was still shrouded in fog.

“How are we supposed to find our way to that village?” Felicia asked. She could barely see 100 metres ahead of her.

“I’ve brought a map from the library. It clearly shows all the landmarks we need to follow,” Daniel said.

“It’s not that thick,” Tamsin pointed out.

“Not compared to fogs in the Silverpeak Mountains on Tyria,” Kiara said.

“Sounds dangerous,” Felicia said.

“No more dangerous than what we usually run into with the Doctor,” Kiara contributed.

“I suppose so,” Felicia said, as they left the town out of the gate that they had entered through the previous day.

Three hours later they neared the next nearest settlement to the Stargate and the abandoned town. As they approached they could see that this settlement was not abandoned.

“Does that map show any public meeting places, Daniel?” Cameron asked as they approached.

“There are a few meeting places around the central square.”

“Lead the way,” Cameron said.

As they walked down the main road into the village, SG1 could see that many of the people were looking at them.

In the central square SG1 approached the nearest of the meeting places. Cameron, Daniel and Teal’c walked inside. “Does anyone have any news regarding the abandonment of the Trading town near here?” Daniel asked.

There was silence in the room.

“We would like to have an answer,” Teal’c said.

There was murmuring amongst the patrons of the establishment before a young lady slipped away from a group and approached the trio. “We don’t like talking about the situation,” she said.

“Indeed?” Teal’c asked.

“I’ll say more elsewhere,” she said.

“Let’s go,” Cameron said, as he noticed most of the other people in the room getting restless.

“Follow me.”

Sam and the companions saw the rest of SG1 come out of the tavern. “Any information, sir?”

“There was none. Apparently this lady is willing to divulge the information in the face of tremendous social pressure,” Daniel said.

“It’s not that bad,” the lady said.

“We haven’t been introduced,” Cameron said.

“I’m Aa’lsvaiii’ Ye, local leader of the Record Keeping Guild. Come to the Records Hall and I will fill you in on the situation,” she said.

They soon approached the Records Hall, a building which resembled the library that they had seen in the other town.

Aa’lsvaiii’ lead SG1 to a side entrance and opened the door. “We’re going into the restricted area of the Records Hall. Don’t touch the records without permission,” she said.

‘Of course, the Records Hall is a library,’ Kiara thought. ‘But that would mean that Aa’lsvaiii’ is a librarian.’

They passed through the non-public area, which on Earth would be called the ‘Stacks,’ to a large room on the other side of the structure. “This is the Recordkeeper Guild’s meeting room, but the other members are busy at the moment,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

They sat on various chairs as Aa’lsvaiii’ laid out some glasses of water.

“We heard from our contacts on various worlds of the Priors and this ‘Origin’ that they are espousing. We knew that it wouldn’t take long before they would get here,” Aa’lsvaiii’ began.

“And so a Prior came,” Cameron said.

“Yes, the people of Re’iav Lleag were frightened, but they sent messengers with the message that a Prior had come. So plans were put in place in case a Prior should come back. I have also heard that teams have gone through the gate in search of uninhabited worlds,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

“Impressive,” Sam said.

“Indeed,” Teal’c said.

“So the town was abandoned. But when we arrived there, there wasn’t any Prior,” Cameron said.

“If he found the town deserted he may have gone back to the gate,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

“No doubt that is what you’re counting on, but he may just journey to another settlement,” Daniel said.

“Then that settlement would be abandoned, too. We will not let them dictate to us, or enslave us as our ancestors were enslaved!” Aa’lsvaiii’ said. She grabbed a tome off a bookshelf. “I’m sure you are familiar with the subject matter,” she opened the tome and placed it in front of Daniel.

He read a paragraph from the tome before realising that it depicted the planet’s revolution against the Goa’uld. “But the Ori are worse than the Goa’uld! They will not give up as easily as the System Lords did,” Daniel said.

“We shall see,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said as she took a sip of her water.

Tamsin was about to interject when there was a knock on the door and another young woman, dressed similarly to Aa’lsvaiii’, came in.

“Sorry to interrupt, ma’am, but there is an urgent message,” she said.

“Let her in,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

“Yes, ma’am.”

The messenger paused upon seeing the team in the room with Aa’lsvaiii’. “Who are they?”

“They are Tau’ri. They can hear the message,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

“You sure?”The messenger asked. Aa’lsvaiii’ nodded. The messenger began delivering the message to her and the others.

“...And so the Prior is on his way here,” the messenger concluded.

“That’s not good news. Go and find the rest of the Guild,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said.

“Yes, Ma’am,” the messenger said, she hurried out.

Cameron then appeared to be in thought.

“What are your plans?” Aa’lsvaiii’ asked.

“We are going to intercept the Prior,” he said.

“We are?” Daniel asked.

“We are not going to let another village full of people leave their homes behind because of some idealistic plan,” Cameron said.

“We are leaving this village as soon as we can organise,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said. “In the meantime, you are welcome to look in the Records Hall,” she continued.

“Right,” Daniel said.

“Thanks,” Tamsin said.

Daniel and Tamsin were looking at various books in the Records Hall as Cameron and Aa’lsvaiii’ began to argue.

“I’m certain that this village will be abandoned,” Tamsin said.

“I agree,” Daniel said.

“But they are just going to leave all their stuff here?” Tamsin asked.

“Somehow I think they have that planned too. Send periodic expeditions to retrieve the artefacts that they had left behind,” Daniel said.

“Makes sense,” Tamsin said.

“Another question. How are you understanding the writings here?” Daniel asked.

“The TARDIS,” Tamsin said.

“The TARDIS, what?” Daniel asked.

“It’s translating the writing for me; same with speech in most places we go,” Tamsin said.

“Interesting, but how could that work over interstellar distances?” Daniel asked.

“I don’t know. It could be using the Stargate Network as a relay for all I know,” Tamsin said.

“I think the SGC would notice that,” Daniel said.

“Probably,” Tamsin said.

The SGC

General Landry entered the control room.

“Sir, I have determined the source of the power drain in the Stargate,” Harriman said.

“And?” the General asked.

“It’s that TARDIS. It’s somehow tapped into the ‘Gate’s control circuitry.”

Landry decided to deal with the situation right away. “Call the Doctor to the control room, now!”

“Yes, sir.”

N’b, Ao Plaaileala, Tiloana (P6Y-362)

“I’ve also noticed that everyone is understanding the villagers, not just you,” Tamsin said.

“Yes, on most worlds, there is a translation matrix hidden in the platforms beneath the gate. It works in a radius of 100 kilometres,” Daniel said.

“Interesting,” Tamsin said.

Then Aa’lsvaiii’ entered the Records Hall from outside. “Preparations to leave the village are well underway. Colonel Mitchell is also asking for you,” she said.

“Right, let’s go,” Daniel said. Tamsin followed him out into a scene of frenzy. Villagers were running about trying to organise their departure. They quickly found the rest of SG1 close to the Records Hall.

“This is Lana Halaia. She will accompany you on your interception of the Prior,” Aa’lsvaiii’ said, indicating a nearby Record Keeper.

“That isn’t really necessary,” Cameron said.

“I insist, besides, she can hold her own in a fight,” Aa’lniii said.

“Right,” Cameron said, doubtfully.

Lana whirled her staff in the air and stopped a few centimetres short of driving it into Cameron’s face.

Seeing the tough expression on Lana’s face, Cameron pushed the staff down. “I see your point. Are all Record Keepers like this?”

“Not all, Tau’ri. Only after training in the Guild for more than three years,” Lana said.

“Good to know,” Cameron said.

Fifteen minutes later, SG1 left the rapidly emptying village in the direction of the Prior’s advance.

“We should intercept the Ori forces in less than an hour, Colonel,” Lana said.

“Remember, follow my directions, and don’t just charge into the formation,” Cameron said.

“I’m not stupid, Colonel!” Lana retorted.

Cameron sighed.

The SGC

The Doctor couldn’t been found anywhere in the SGC and hadn’t been noticed leaving. So there was only one place he could be; in the TARDIS. General Landry knocked on the TARDIS door. The Doctor opened it.

“Hi, I know what this is about. And answer is no,” he said.

“How did you know?” Landry asked.

“There is no other reason I can think of,” the Doctor said.

“What is the purpose of the power tap into the gate?” Landry said.

“Come inside and I’ll explain it to you,” the Doctor said.

“Fine,” Landry said. He stepped into the TARDIS. ‘The descriptions don’t do it justice,’ he thought.

The Doctor sat near the console. “I’m not drawing power from the gate, the TARDIS is sending and receiving signals via the gate to and from the planet.”

“For what purpose?”

“It translates the foreign languages into a language that my travelling companions can understand,” the Doctor said.

“Really?” Landry asked.

“Yes,” the Doctor said.

“But it doesn’t need to use the gate for that,” Landry said. He was about to explain that the gate already had a translation method, but the Doctor interrupted.

“No, it doesn’t. But it’s easier than projecting the signal at interstellar distances. Do you even know where the planet is?”

“P6Y-362 is over six thousand light years away,” Landry said.

“The signal will continue to use the gate. It won’t interfere with its normal operations,” the Doctor said. He pressed a control on the console. “There, the TARDIS is providing the power, rather than your facility.”

“Doctor, the gate already provides a translation method,” Landry explained.

“I’m sure it does, but whatever method that is probably doesn’t do text. It will continue until SG1 gets back.”

“Fine,” Landry said. He turned and then left the TARDIS.

Ao Plaailealan countryside, Tiloana

SG1 and their companions were moving wearily through a forest. “Are you certain this is the direction they are approaching from?” Cameron asked.

“Yes,” Lana said.

“She seems quite insistent,” Vala said.

“Right...” Daniel said, warily. They continued moving forwards.

They soon came to a clearing. Teal’c raised his staff weapon. “They are very close,” he said.

Lana gripped her staff with two hands. “I agree, Jaffa,” she said. She stood defensively by his side.

Kiara came up and stood at the ready to the other side of Teal’c, who activated his staff weapon.

The group was not prepared for who they would see next...

Two Priors emerged from the trees. “Hallowed are the Ori,” one of them said.

“Hallowed, my butt!” Lana called out.

“That is not necessary, Ms. Halaia,” Teal’c said.

Lana glanced at the Jaffa. “I will not be letting my energy be sucked out in worship!”

“How do you know that?” Daniel asked behind her.

“Alteran Lies!” the other Prior said.

“The Tau’ri are not the only ones whom have come into contact with the Ancients, Dr. Jackson!” Lana said.

“I guess not,” Daniel murmered.

A large group of Ori troops emerged from the forest and surrounded SG1 and their companions. Leading them was Adria!

“So, we meet again,” she said.

#cameron mitchell #daniel jackson #doctor who #fan fiction #hank landry #sam carter #sg1 #stargate.#teal' c #twelfth doctor

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curuniel · 4 years ago

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As another part of their anniversary event, @tyrias-library set a trek-style challenge to find some locations in Tyria. This is one of my favourite kinds of challenges. And I’m mortified that I haven’t been able to get 100%! Most of them I knew on sight, but locations #4 and #5 are completely stumping me despite a couple of exploration sessions.

Location #1:

Location #2

Location #3

Location #4 and #5 ..? MYSTERIES.

Location #6

Location #7

And while I’m at it, here are some bonus libraries I discovered while trying and failing to find those last two...

#tyrian book hunt #I can't believe I haven't been able to complete this I feel a great shame #Guild Wars 2

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axe-trio-commanders · 4 years ago

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Griffons

Spoiler warning for PoF, a bit of HoT, and LWS4. This one actually doesn’t take place in my commanders’ cannon- it’s based on... one of several AU’s I’ve put them in, as will all but one of the stories I’m doing for the Tyrias library halloween prompts. This one in particular is from one dubbed the ‘TC’ au- which stands for ‘technically cannon’, as it... was that, until it uh. Wasn’t. Might have used it as an excuse for griffon plants. Anyways, enjoy some cryptids! (Oh also a small tw for severe burn wound descriptions and being held hostage at dagger-point)

The fire griffon of Elona.

It wouldn't be the first time Zafirah had encountered the thing, if she saw it here- entire form covered in fire, feral growls echoing from its throat... it’d only been in passing, and she’d been assured Balthazar had it ‘under control’, but she’d seen the charred remains of both sides of combat littering the desert. Nothing survived contact with it.

It had arrived near the same time Balthazar had, and rumors of where it’d come from abounded- some claimed it was simply a new pet of the god’s, others that it was some corrupted form of a third hound- still others that it was some poor fool who’d unknowingly desecrated his name.

Everyone had assumed it’d run rampant upon Balthazar’s death at the hands of the… ‘commander’, but sightings of it simply... vanished, after the event. It hadn’t seemed under control before, to Zafira’s knowledge, but perhaps it was simply consumed by the crystal dragon. And yet...

And yet, her god’s death seemed to bring about something... else. She’d heard it referred to as the griffon’s ghost, but she- nor anyone else she’d managed to talk to- had ever gotten a clear glimpse of the thing. She’d hoped, herself, to find it and get answers to what had happened to Balthazar, but... the best she’d got were vague descriptions- a small, planty form, (like one of those ‘sylvari’, some claimed,) large ghostly wings, a cold, gripping magic that shifted sands into demons- some had even claimed it to glow violet in the darkness...

The deadeye breathed a long sigh, gaze travelling across the horizon from across her tower. Her final stand, arena below filled with gas that’d already claimed the lives of a few... ‘pact members'. Not as many as she’d like. She supposed, as her last stand, it was... maybe a little silly to be thinking about such legends now- it wasn’t as if she’d see either of them tonight. It wasn’t as if she’d get any answers tonight.

She paused, tightening her hold on her rifle as she caught movement at the far end of the arena. A few glimpses, and she could make out the basics. Charr, medium armor, close-range weapons, hooded face. Maybe they thought it would help with the gas...? Either way, she’d steady her aim, focusing on it as it made its way closer. Just like so many others...

And then, she felt a chill at her back, turning to see-

Zafirah’s eyes widened at the sight before her. Large, ghostly wings, reminiscent of the now rarely seen sunspear griffon, spread wide as if they’d just landed. The blue glow of the somewhat translucent wings mixed with bright violet on the stone below- eyes like a feline’s staring back at her, long, feathered ears tilted forwards, bright lines marking out what might have been a human-like face, were it not so dark red in hue, and-

The creature smiled, lifting Balthazar’s sword from the ground. “Apologies, but we’re going to need this.”

...Legend or not, she needed that sword. She needed it until the... commander showed their face, and they certainly hadn’t yet. She’d heard no hints that they’d be this subtle- a charr wouldn’t be bashful after killing a god.

Zafirah narrowed her eyes, shoving her rifle into it’s hold as she brought out her paired daggers, lunging for the creature. As ghostly as their wings looked, the rest of them seemed solid- and though they were nimble, they seemed noticeably slowed by the weight of the sword they were carrying, only barely dodging her attacks, unable to offer any of her own with her hands full.

“I think I need it more,” Zafirah growled, lunging again.

“I really doubt that.” The other’s tone grew darker, leaping over her with a beat of those ghostly wings. “We need it to track an elder dragon who’s been cavorting about the mists, tearing through reality.”

“So, what Balthazar was doing before he was murdered?”

“Yes, but with less loss of innocent lives or general world-imploding.”

They’d continue their dance on the rooftop- Zafirah getting closer with each strike, the other’s eyes cold, calculating- was that a hint of nervousness she saw?

“You really think you can kill a dragon better than a god?”

“I’d say I’m obligated to try.” The other paused, standing up a little straighter near the edge of the roof. “Or- well, we are.”

...The sword was gone. Zafirah wasn’t sure when the other had... lost it, but- ...the charr. She must have thrown it to-

No, not now, she hadn’t lost yet. Wouldn’t lose yet.

Her opponent was too cocky, grin too confident- an easy target. Not thinking further, the deadeye lunged, knocking her back and against the low wall of the tower roof- then placing a knee against her chest to hold her there, placing a dagger to her throat. Zafirah saw her wings start to curl around the both of them, felt clawed hands pushing at her arm- saw the first clear hint of fear in her eyes. Still mortal, then.

“Bring me back the sword, and I let her live,” Zafirah called, letting her voice echo around the arena.

The creature’s eyes narrowed. “It’s fine, just take the sword and go! She’s bluffing,” She retorted.

Zafirah leaned more weight into her hold, seeing the other wince. “Legend or not, I really wouldn’t mind killing you.”

The other paused, then smirked. “And what’s to say I don’t just come back again?”

...She was bluffing. Zafirah had seen the fear in her eyes- she feared death just as much as anyone else.

And then... they both turned their gaze towards movement in the corner of their vision- seeing that same charr make her way up the steps towards them, ears pinned flat against her head, tail whipping back and forth in agitation- and Zafirah saw her god’s sword held in both of their clawed hands. The charr certainly believed it.

“...Let her go. Please.”

The charr’s voice was... softer, than she’d expected it to be- somewhat hoarse, but lacking the raw aggression their race had been famed for.

“If you want her, you’ll give me the sword,” she replied evenly.

“I- I know. And I will, but- I want you to think about this first. She wasn’t lying to you, we... we really do need it- innocent people are dying because we have no idea where Kralkatorrik will strike. The land is being corrupted- even breaking reality itself in places. Tyria- Elona is dying.” She took a step forward, lowering her head. “You can help us. You can help us finish what Balthazar started, in a way that will actually save everyone.”

A… tempting offer. A soft, strained voice, with honeyed words... she narrowed her eyes. “You can have the sword when the commander is dead.”

The charr paused, and she caught her and the creature exchanging glances. Did they... know the commander? If they did, she might have to keep this hostage a little-

“I think your god kinda beat you to that,” the creature chirped, earning a sharp glare from the charr. “Problem is, I’ve kinda got this habit of not staying dead.”

Zafirah looked down at her, gaze clearly disbelieving. No... no, this couldn’t be the commander. This tiny thing couldn’t have the power to kill a god- not hers, not anyone’s god, let alone elder dragons... but the ability to come back from the dead, only in the faintest of rumors-

“...No, I’m not letting you do this,” the charr muttered- and Zafirah glanced back to her, saw her fur standing on end, saw her posture straighten. “She might have been involved, but if it’s the commander you’re after, it’s more likely you’ve been looking for me.” She paused. “...I know I’m not what you expected. I’m not... really what anyone expected, let alone myself. But I... don’t want to lie to you. I’d really rather not fight you. Just let her go. Please.”

...Hm. It’d be so easy for either of them to lie, wouldn’t it? Should she believe either of them? Maybe she should just take the lives of both of them and be done with it. But if either of them were telling the truth, and she’d never know...?

“Prove it to me, then. Give me some reason to believe you’ve fought a god.”

“Well, if you’d like me to give you a tour of the mists-”

The creature’s words were cut short as the charr slipped off her hood, then pulled down the mask covering her muzzle- looking towards Zafirah with a pleading gaze. It was...

...it was almost... horrific, the scars that laced her muzzle. Burns, most of them- she could only see patches of what bright orange fur should have covered it, but the rest was either charred black or covered in dark red scars, one of her two long front teeth seeming to have recently acquired a metal brace. It was the marks of a battle-worn charr, and it was easy to imagine the sort of deistic fire that may have caused them- but the look in her eyes, the pleading in her voice, seemed so... out of place...

“...I took something important from you. I might not understand what that was, not completely- charr aren’t known for their, uh... belief. But I hope you understand me when I say that I can’t lose her again.”

...No. No, she couldn’t understand. Zafirah would have to make her understand.

She’d only start to push in the dagger when she felt, saw and heard the roar of flames, the charr an abrupt blur of motion as the deadeye felt herself thrown across the roof, skidding across stone. She heard snarls, only slightly above the fire, and looked up to see that same scarred face- now unrecognizable beneath the yellow-orange glow of flames, wings splayed threateningly from their back, tail whipping back and forth as they slowly stalked towards her on all fours to-

“...Zori?”

...The smaller one’s words were enough to give the predator pause- pause enough for the small, equally griffon-esque figure to push themself up, bounding in front of the fiery cat- putting a shaking hand through the fire to hold the side of their face. “Zori, it’s okay, it’s over. I’m okay. I’m alive, Balthazar’s gone, Joko’s gone, Mordremoth’s been dead for months- we’re gonna get the sword, we’re gonna deal with Kralkatorrik, and then we’ll get to rest, okay?”

The flames slowly, surely began to die down again, wings soon wisping away into the air, and... again, Zafirah was left with only a charr- an exhausted one, by how hard she was breathing, and how her entire form... collapsed, when the final flame died, apparently needing a moment to recover before pulling the smaller into a tight embrace.

“...I- Seremnis, are you-?” “I’m just fine, Zori. You didn’t hurt me. You didn’t hurt anyone.”

“But I almost-”

“But you came back, and I’m still here.”

"I'm... I'm sorry..."

Zafirah stood, shakily, stepping back from the both of them. Her gaze wandered to the sword she’d been so adamantly protecting, seeing it... alight, burning with a new fire- then back towards the pair, now sitting in a companionable silence. She noticed the smaller give a fearful glance towards the sword, heard her breathing hitch for a moment before she buried her face in the charr’s fur.

Zafirah wasn’t convinced of their motives, not yet- ...but she’d just... follow them, for now. Let them have the sword. See what they said they’d do with it once they thought she was out of earshot. After all...

...There was... another legend. Maybe less of a legend, more of a warning- though it’d been plenty long enough since the other race had been spotted in Elona that it was more a parable than a true warning for most.

She turned, putting her daggers back in their hold as she walked down from the roof, shadowstepping through the fog.

You could fight the charr in war all you wanted, but only a fool would ever hurt their cubs.

#tyriaslibrary #tyriaslibrary event #cryptids #i know this is an au but both commanders are cryptids in /every/ au #they're just... more cryptid-ey in this one #anyways you ever die to a god of war and fire and make your cat-mom cry #and then get yourself mildly posessed by an angry griffon in order to come back to life #to kick a god in the teeth #for making your cat mom cry #and also hurting your large crystal child #and also hurting your cat-mom #zori sunblade #seremnis #axe trio TC AU #there we go that's it's tag now #charr #zafirah #she's here and she's great! this is just. not her greatest moment #also demmi's re-alive in this au she just doesn't feature in this part of it #some day i'll finish drawing griffon-possessed seremnis #someday...#sylvari #sunspear griffon #said griffon and aria have a... tense relationship #gw2 writing

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tabletoptrinketsbyjj · 5 years ago

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Trinkets, Books, 7: An eclectic library of dusty tomes, fictional textbooks, pocketbooks, paperbacks, hardcovers, booklets, leaflets and magical manuals. Paper leaves and the binding surrounding them can help define a character, kick off a subplot, fuel a fetch quest or simply serve as a generic macguffin. Commonly seen in video games such as Baldur’s Gate, Neverwinter Nights, World of Warcraft and Skyrim, book items are a way to subtly world build while still handing out sellable loot. A wizard has a spellbook, a cleric has a holy text and now you have a trinket list.

Book of Letters: A portfolio containing examples of official letters along with proper forms of address, etiquette, and turns of phrase. Though this typically would be used by bureaucrats, diplomats, and clerks, it’s also useful for counterfeiting official correspondence.

Libra Daemonicus: A general exploration of daemons, their desires, and their various castes by an ancient mage. The book is kept in a beautifully decorated ceramic traveling case that can be fastened to the bearer’s breastplate or hung from a chain around the neck. While many of the text’s rituals are suspect (Possibly to ensure the death of any would-be rivals who might steal and use it), its lengthy discussion of appropriate sacrifices and a listing of true names for many lesser demons remain invaluable for those in possession of a copy. The text contains no more and no less than 666 words.

A heavily weighted book entitled “Dost Thou Even Hoist, My Brother? A Treatise on the Matter of Lifting Purses”. The author is listed simply as “Longfingers”.

Memoirs of a War Mage: A plain-looking and rather unimpressive cloth-bound book, the pages of this text follow an unnamed elven wizard as he recounts his first-hand experiences during the two years he fought in the Cormanthor War. A somber, and at times gut-wrenching read that details the highs and lows of the wizard's struggles for victory and survival against a brutal and ruthless enemy. The author provides a wealth of sage-advice regarding casting spells under pressure, making tactical decisions under stress, and how to best maintain focus and clarity of mind in the face of abject terror and darkness.

Handbook of Recursion: A strange tome describes a dice-based game in which the players describe their actions and roll dice to determine the outcome. It sounds like many an adventure could be had with this curious hobby.

The Flameseeker Prophecies: A gilded tome containing a collection of proclamations foreseen by the dragon Glint in during a series of ancient battles known as the Guild Wars. They are a collection of predictions concerning the future of the forgotten land of Tyria and the survival of humans in the face of great and terrible events that would engulf their world.

A Role Most Critical: An epic tale of seven people and their quest to save the world. In addition to written words, the book reads the text aloud with a unique rich voice for each of the main character’s as well as the narrator.

Woddeley's Occult Primer: A textbook that is almost certainly the very first to be read by any student wizard at the start of his first year at Unseen University. Unlike many of the more potent tomes at the University, this book is not magical in and of itself leaves its reader unscathed, and totally untroubled by any of the things that might beset a non-wizard who tries to read from a really potent grimoire. Woddeley's is counted as the ideal primer for fledgling wizards as one can read the book cover to cover without having their brain liquefied and trickle out of their ears or having their eyes melt out of their sockets. When placed on its worn spine, this particularly dog-eared copy naturally opens to Chapter 15: Elementary Necromancy, whose first line read “First, you need a spade…”

Of God and Man: A tome written by a cleric from long ago who wished to witness the birth of a divine being. But through his travels he found the secret way to end a God’s life. This book contains the incantations to strip a God of their power, how to trap a deity, and lastly how to kill one. It is important to note that the cleric seems to be a devoutly religious man and that the incantations have never been actually tested, causing a suspicious reader to wonder why he ever wrote something like this down.

Knowing Your Lycanthrope: A dog-eared guidebook for those wishing to keep werewolf slaves for hunting dogs. The instructional text of supernatural canine husbandry is bound in thick animal hide trimmed in course black fur.

—Keep reading for 90 more trinkets.

—Click Here for additional Book Descriptions to give these objects even more personality.

—Note: The previous 10 items are repeated for easier rolling on a d100.

A heavily weighted book entitled “Dost Thou Even Hoist, My Brother? A Treatise on the Matter of Lifting Purses”. The author is listed simply as “Longfingers”.

A field book and reference guide for elven rangers, forest wardens and woodsmen entitled “Forestry For Beginners, How To Spend Your First Thousand Years Caring For Your Forest”. The book is in remarkable good shape considering how old it probably is.

Journeys of the Celestial Spheres: A paperback book of middling quality. The copy is a single edition of a regularly published series with multiple authors on the subject of astrology. It has a special focus on the movements and orbits or planets, moon and comets.

Advanced Goblin Breeding: A wood bound text which is the third volume of a ten book series on goblin husbandry. This text has a specific focus on breeding goblins over a period of several centuries to a millennium in order to create a new sub race with specific desirable traits such as gills, additional arms or improved endurance.

A thick historical tome entitled “Hedge Mazes And Thorn Walls, The Art And Science Of Defensive Gardening”. The text provides a wealth of information on the subject covering any question or possible variation of defensive structure or type of plant, ranging from common bramble hedges around a simple fort, to surrounding a major metropolis with fields of magical poppies to treant and animated plant husbandry.

A historical text of dubious validity entitled “Human Origins”, constructed of cheap pulp materials. The contents have a heavy anti-human agenda and claims that the first humans were made when apes and giant interbreeded in lustful perversion. The book logically concludes that humans are not part of the true natural order and should be exterminated entirely.

A large atlas entitled “The Shattered World” that contains records of all of the great cataclysms of history that shaped and wrecked the world. The book’s opposing pages have historical and modern maps, allowing the reading to easily compare the changes in borders, cities and natural resources.

Doppelgangers, Changelings, Mimics, and Other Disguised Creatures: How to Tell Myth from Reality: A purple, cloth-bound tome that is one of the best sources for researching the nature of creatures which can shift their appearance. Going at great lengths to provide many sources to evidence their claims, the author outlines with great detail the differences and similarities between the myriad shape-changing creatures of the world.

Eating Well off Northern Soil: A description collection of the edible flora and fauna findable in the kingdom and surrounding states. Peatchokes, rabbits, moss, giant grouse eggs, bark, and odd chard are all included and listed with their favored methods of preparation, usually involving copious measures of salt and butter.

Forsworn: A compendium of oathbreakers; this book details short stories of seemingly honorable, efficacious and well liked figures who, for compelling personal reasons, seemed to renounce their ardent rites and responsibilities. The book almost seems to be more like case studies of how to convince others to break their vows, ethics and faith rather than warning the reader to avoid falling into similar pitfalls.

The Ode of Salutiene: A winding yarn of an epic poem, barely readable by common folk, either in translations or in its original script. Up until the very culmination of its meandering plot, which involves a fictional sea commander from the last century, the work makes little sense, stabbing with vague purpose at intangible points regarding life and the nature of the world. Only at its end does the Ode come together in a revelatory and epic conclusion.

A sturdy, dirt stained tome entitled “The Floor is Lava - A Guide to Digging Deeper and how to Avoid Going too Deep.”.

Atlas of the Weak: A wide book containing a number of maps showing locations of tribes, towns, or other groupings that the author deems weak. There are creepy notes within the margins that detail certain individuals and how easy they could be to manipulate.

The Well of Catosene: An epistolary report by a fictional co-leader on a venture to the eponymous Well of Catosene. Despite its pretenses at being fiction, it is rumored that the work is actually fact, and the details within, all horrible, trapped, and gilded, make up a very real account of a typical ancient ruin.

The Grand Schools of Magic Conspiracy: A long, bound master's thesis that claims that all schools of magic are in a grand conspiracy to limit arcane knowledge. By convincing people there are only eight schools or classes of magic, the order of wizards that secrete rule the world squash any ideas of new and unique magic powers. The author claims that the concept of the eight schools of magic is a conspiracy spread by the archwizards to limit unknown threats to their arcane might.

Golden Slumbers: A fictional tale of Silliam Tare, the most renowned thief of the kingdom’s sprawling capital city. A night-breaker and a burglar known for robbing the sleeping rich. Best known for his final, climactic escape from police by boat through the canals of the city's largest borough. He is rumored to have left a trail of golden lucre all the way, seeding the deep canals with slumbering gold coins.

Pictures from the Rock of Lorn: A collection of writings by an artist attached to a cartographical party under the employ of the bank of Tiber and Fellowes. Namely: His journey to scout the Rock of Lorn, a siren rookery off the Gate of Sloe. It contains many apt descriptions of sirens and their behavior, including how their presence and song affect mankind.

Dlrdow Yensid: A lengthy tome recounting the travels of a bard who accidentally stumbled into another plane of existence where he helped a mouse build a magical kingdom in a swamp.

The Adventurer's Anthology. A hide bound book that tells the tale of whatever person reads it. The last line is always, “and then they opened the book.

This Much was True: A nonfiction account of the story of noted letter-forger Whilhemina Alslindova de Since, a dangerous woman of high skill and uncertain national origin. What became quite certain, after her eventual arrest, was her incredible skill at recreating both the handwriting and quality of speech of any given writer. During her trial, Alslindova recounted the creation of over 500 letters in the style of some 105 people, many of whom were high officials. For all, she was paid generously by anonymous buyers, who dictated the falsehoods to be written within. The forger's art is discussed in usable detail in said trail proceedings.

The Last Alive: A chilling tale of adventure and betrayal written in first person. As the adventurers found a powerful magic ring that allows for control over a powerful monster, they argued over who should keep it. Over the course of several months they whittled down their own numbers until there were two left. The author currently has the ring according to the last chapter. Their location is unknown because the last page has been torn out.

A leather bound journal. Anything the bearer writes in this journal will appear to them as a language they cannot comprehend. If they show what they have written to someone else, the reader will see a lie they have told. Showing two readers the same writing will show each a lie of their own, not a lie the other has told.

Three Deaths at Lastimorny House: A fictional thriller concerning detective Leeligan Cyrl, of Kempt, called to great Lastimorny House to investigate three deaths during a long and debaucherous soirée. Her investigation features amusing, shocking interviews with numerous characters scandalously based on real aristocrats suspected of holding special fancies or odd desires. The culprit, in the end, it revealed to be a covert member of the Holy Inquisition, sent to put an end to a glut of perceived sin. All three murders were carried out using some manner of poison, the author's descriptions of which are strangely accurate.

Time Lies: A posthumous memoir of horologist Jaccob Jarrows, of Leant, a maker of clocks. A professional shrouded in the superstition and mystique of his art. Folk all over the kingdom believed him and practitioners like him, those with power over time, to be mighty indeed. Jarrows, a man who held no ounce of personal spirituality nor superstition, recounts in this memoir stories of others' belief in his supposed power. At the start, he tells of how he disregarded their belief, their requests for magical aid. He resisted the mystique for years, kept to the simple, honest art of clockwork. By the end, though, he describes how he humored them, gifted oddly-functional placebos in the form of altered watches and illusions of twisted time. Lies, but magic all the same.

Cornelia’s Diary: A leather back book filled with poems and stories from a woman who spent five years in the Nine Hells.

The Agora Apocalyptica: A book that describes the end of the world in great detail. The name and a vague description of the most compassionate and self-sacrificing PC is mentioned several times, too often and to specific to be a coincidence...

Twenty to a Hundred Boots: A telling of one of the most hideously-catastrophic military debacles of the last three centuries. A tale of a scout gone lost in the dry, brown hills of a southern kingdom, then inhabited by bands of rebels against that peninsular power. A mission was mounted to save him. A second scout was sent to reconnoiter it and came back reporting the enemies holding the first numbered twenty to a hundred boots. Simply put, this was a verbal miscommunication and terrible understatement. The actions based on this bad intelligence began scattered fighting and confused routs all the countryside over. The original scout was never found.

A pocket field guide that details the small dragon-like lizards of the Underdark in terms of their habits and ecology.

The History of This: A weathered tome that records its own histories. Inside it covers a large ballad of epic wars and duels between kings, mages, liches, dragons, angels, demons and even one goblin. The last 200 pages just mentioned people idly taking it off a bookshelf and putting it back in an almost saddened tone.

Cooking With Friends; The Culinary Art of Cannibalism by Gher Dirtgrinder: The only known book ever written by a gnoll. Bound with patchwork skins, the calligraphy is surprisingly elegant and even includes images and butchering lines.

Hag Reproduction; A Theory: A dissertation penned by a detail oriented wizard describing the process of how hags reproduce by devouring children. The second half of the dissertation describes a theory of how hags could potentially reproduce in a more 'traditional' manner. The proposed process involves a long series of incantations and wards, a special elixir distilled from the reproductive organs of both a succubus and an incubus, and an odd emphasis on candles and 'mood appropriate' music.

Chronicles of the Last 500 Years: A red-leather bound book that details events that happened with the Duergar these years, and especially focus on grudges they keep against the Drow.

Evocations of Lasting Fire: A scorched red leather book, with a black titanite clasp. The book details the nature of fire evocative spells. The book can serve as a spellcasting or ritual focus for casting fire type spells.

Fieldbook of Dark Medicina: A book on battlefield injuries, and how to treat them. It also details the use of different blood-related rituals on those who cannot be saved, and the optimal way of collecting and storing blood.

Languages of Primordial: A large leather bound tome, magically enchanted to endure passage of time and locked with a silver clasp as well as lock. Inside are details on the spoken languages of elementals, and how those languages are all based on a prime language known as Primordial. The subtext does not teach the language but can be used to better understand runes and scripture from that language.

U is for Ustilagor: A Light-Hearted children’s book about Ustilagor, the prepubescent form of Intellect Devourers. Despite their rather horrifying origins, the book is surprisingly gore-free; a strange detail when considering the book was “written” by an Elder Brain.

Midnight: A pulp romance novel by Stephanie Mayors about a young necromancer named Stella, who finds herself torn between a skeleton and a zombie. Should she choose the new mysterious skeleton whose crystallized bones glisten, and he never stops staring. Or should she go for the ever quiet, loyal zombie who has always been there for her and still has those muscles. The choice should be a... no-brainer.

A bound stack of research notes, covered in sketches of mutated human anatomy that looks very, very wrong.

The Evils of the Fey: A guide to hunting and exterminating a large number of different Fey creatures. The tome is bound in cold iron and has a flat silver blade incorporated into the design on the front. The small dagger is easily removable and the words “Good hunting” are written in the space behind it.

An aged book that is one of the few remaining original copies of Sewryd of Swrdlby’s “True And Proper Guide To The Work Of The Husbandman, And Treatise On The Three Field Crop Rotation”.

An ancient, leather-bound volume written in an archaic script describes the composition and arrangement of the Outer Planes. The tome lacks both a title and an author. Strangely, a rather substantial section of text (Consisting of an entire chapter if the reader is translating the numbering correctly) has been torn out of the book. Despite this fact, you can detect no obvious gaps in the volume’s coverage of its subject matter.

A volume of text that appears to be the original, handwritten manuscript of the Saga of the Warrior Prince Augustin, a classic ballad composed by the legendary bard Dathorn, famous for its lyrical quality and epic subject matter. A careful perusal of the text, however, reveals strange differences from the version of Augustin known to the bards of today...

An adventurer's journal written by a racist tiefling. The secret thoughts of his traveling companions are less than complimentary to say the least but it seems like his views were slowly changing over the course of his journeys. The book ends abruptly with the last entry about how the area was suspiciously quiet and that he had a bad feeling that he was being watched.

The Quiet Deaths of the Brotherhood of Assassins: A holy text of an extinct religion that was wiped out long ago. This tome chronicles the origins of a murderous and wild sect that broke off from a popular, but now dead, religion. It gives notes on famous individuals this sect claims to have killed, their method in doing so and gives small insight into where more information about this sect may be.

Book of Torn: A spellbook of mystical origins. It contains spells and rituals used by witches that fought against an order of mages in ancient times. Although the mages eventually wiped out their numbers, this book of their works still exists.

Tome of Epics: A hefty book bound in oilskin and decorated with scenes of glorious combat between ancient heroes and ferocious monsters. It contains several tales of valor, defeat, and victory, all with brightly colored illustrations.

Traveler’s Dictionary: A book referencing a specific language (At random of chosen by the DM) and has two sections. The first presents a wide variety of useful phrases and words in Common (Arranged by category) followed by a phonetic representation of the same in the language that the book deals with. The second section provides an alphabetical (By phonetic spelling) collection of words and phrases in the second language and their approximate Common translation.

The Manual of Misdirection: A book whose binding seems to change color depending on the angle of which it is viewed, while each of the runes on this book’s cover are made using prisms to reflect the light to dazzling effect. The book is a compendium of illusionary magic, with a specific focus on the research and development of creating new spells. This specific volume is part of a regularly published series with multiple authors.

Grave Journal: A long-lost tome that contains the detailed accounts of the mysterious and terrible things found when exploring a haunted burial ground generations ago.

Blue Book: A handbook detailing the seedier entertainment establishments in the closest major city. It contains the names of brothels, burlesque houses, and gambling halls in that city, as well as how to gain entrance to them.

Downriver: An instructional guide on raft building and water travel covering a variety of types of materials, weather conditions and natural hazards.

Prognostication Manual: A large, thick book that contains information on specific forms of folk divination, including cartomancy, cheiromancy, crystallomancy, and horoscopy. The book describes how to properly perform the divination rituals the materials needed and how to interpret the results. The manual is especially useful for cheiromancy (palm reading), horoscopy, and other methods that don't require special equipment.

A large thick book containing various blueprints and architectural sketches of Mogu temples with a special focus on the decorative gargoyles and support pillars

Regarding Prohibited Magics: A large tome containing a painfully long and detailed list of spells and branches of arcane research forbidden to members of an order of mages known as the Kirin Tor.

Tome of Chaos: A thick volume of demonic incantations, filled with grotesque illustrations, expertly bound in maiden skin.

Phoenix Spellbook: A huge tome covered in the skin from some now-featherless avian creature. The leather is deeply tooled to look like feathers, dyed in reds, oranges, blues, and purples, the edges highlighted with gold. A fierce bird face stares from the cover, and its real raptor beak protrudes. Embedded feet with sharp hooked talons form the two clasps that hold this book closed. The pages are fine paper with straight gilded edges. Its many pages are blank but Knowledgeable PC’s are aware that its pages can safely hold magical writing of any sort, such as written spells, arcane runes, sigils, glyphs or curses.

A compact travel journal covered in red leather with the emblem of a black raven quill on the cover. It's fine paper is blank and untouched.

Treatise of Abyssal Lore: A large book is made entirely from the skin of hundreds of humanoid hides from across the multiverse. The words are penned in sanguine ink that constantly shifts and swirls, making it extremely difficult to comprehend. Only Intelligent PC’s can't decipher its cryptic language and clever readers who spent time deciphering the book can use it to gather insight on specific types of demons.

Werewolves in the Mist, by Dossia Fyne: A hide bound book with a symbol of a large full moon on the front cover. The author devoted her life to studying the habits of werewolves and other lycanthropes, particularly those who have chosen feral lives far from civilization in the deep forests of the world. Her book is an early voice in the argument against the clearing and logging of those forests.

Bold Alehouse Favorites: A sturdy leather-bound book that is a must-have for the cook in any lonesome wayside inn, bustling city tavern, or adventuring party who's sick of rations. Within the pages of the book are new twists on recipes for salted pork and beans, beef and barley stew, roasted duck with apples, honey-glazed carrots and parsnips, stuffed trout fillets and many more, along with suggested ale and mead pairings.

101 Ways to Eat Rations: A sturdy leather bound handbook detailing (As one might imagine) 101 different ways to prepare and eat standard travel rations in order to bring out different flavors, textures and tastes. This book was obviously written by a seasoned adventurer sick of the standard travel fare as each different way has an accompanying humorous anecdote or reference to an adventure involving how the author learned how to eat rations in that fashion. Sometimes the recipes will require other materials, ingredients or cooking implements, however they are all quite common, easily preserved and transported or easily foraged while traveling.

A book with pages made of skin, each page has an elven woman's name and description of how she was killed. Careful inspection of the book will reveal that each page came from a separate elf skin. Knowledgeable PC’s will have heard rumors of a possible serial killer who targeted elven woman that had been recently active in the local kingdom.

A mage's tome bound in hawthorn plates inlaid with gold. It is written in undercommon, the language of those who dwell below the surface world.

Fiber and Mud; A Day in the Life of Trees: A book made from rough papyrus and bound with plant fibers between thin planks of wood. The author, an eccentric druid, details the various likes and dislikes of numerous plants, but mainly trees and bushes. Such topics include what types of soils each plant prefers, how too much water can be more bothersome to some plants than too little, and how sunlight's flavor-profile changes throughout the year and at various latitudes. Studying the book gives valuable insight into the natural world.

Amazingly Deadly Elements: First-Person Advice On Inner Interplanar Travel: A sturdy grey tome of unknown origin written by 'The Traveler', this text presents the reader with five chapters: Ethereal, Air, Earth, Water and Fire, ending with the promise of a soon to be published sequel on the Outer Planes. Each chapter is a collection of entries, written in the style of a diary, describing various daily happenings and dealings with creatures on the corresponding plane of existence. It makes for an unengaging read as the narrator often focuses on topics of very little interest, such as the type of soil they stand on or how clean the teeth of a creature are, and the descriptions evolve into rants that go on for many pages. However, the book presents genuinely good advice, with tips on how to deal with the extreme conditions of each plane and its inhabitants... If one is able to stomach the awful pacing, that is.

Riv Stecke's Guide to Fey Crossings: A book that aids its reader in finding the nearest fey crossing to make their way into the Feywild. Most of the fey crossings listed have ceased to function due to being over-run with travelers since the publication of this book. However, a few of them still work.

The History of Screaming: A truly dull sounding book that is an in-depth history of screaming as researched by little-known half-orc linguist Grimf Thurd. It is a truly dry read and takes 40 hours to complete regardless of the reader’s intelligence level.

A pocket notebook with cryptic phrases scrawled haphazardly on most of the pages.

A wizard’s instructional primer entitled “It's Familiar, But Not Too Familiar; A guide on how to take care of your newly acquired arcane companion.” Even readers not capable of casting the spells needed to summon and bind a familiar can learn about the magical bindings and arcane agreements behind the concept of a wizard’s familiar.

Fireside Singalongs: A simple songbook for bored travelers, with optional sheet music for instrumental accompaniment.

Gobbo and Me: A children's picture book about the dangers of befriending Goblins. The eponymous character Gobbo the goblin is filthy, has bad manners and is constantly tricking small human children into stealing pies, skipping out on doing their chores and disobeying their parents which always gets the poor humans in trouble. In the last chapter Gobbo manages to lure some children back to his cave and convince them to have a nice relaxing bath in his hot tub (A caldron) and is close to cooking the children alive when a noble knight bursts into the den and kills Gobbo and sets the children free with a stern warning never to trust goblins.

An ink stained textbook filled with notes written by various different student’s handwritings in the margins, entitled “Who Moved My Cheese?” The primer serves as a step by step guide to Mage Hand and basic telekinesis for first year wizards.

The Skull: A heavy book filled with a long stream-of-consciousness narrative describing a single humanoid skull in careful detail. The narrator seems completely focused on the skull, never describing its origins, its surroundings, or themselves. While chilling and lacking in any semblance of plot whatsoever, the prose is strangely compelling.

A Treatise On The Non-Existence Of This Treatise: A small pamphlet that attempts to convince the reader that the pamphlet does not exist, and that it is in fact a figment of the reader's imagination. Despite being written in a very academic and generally formal tone, the arguments within are mostly circular or otherwise fallacious.

Necromancy for Imbeciles: An introductory guide to the basics of necromancy. The volume has been hollowed out to allow for storage, though it appears normal from the outside. The book contains the skeleton of a large rodent.

Coppers For Your Thoughts: A small book of random musings, quotes, and anecdotes. None are attributed to any authors.

An Anatomical Study of Magical Creatures: A lonely book that is the fourth in a six volume series on the interior structure of magical, extra-planar beings.

A Herbalist's Guide to Surviving: A diary details the accounts a famous halfling smuggler, who was best known for smuggling his home made rum into kingdoms throughout the world during the great alcohol depression. With proper study the reader can reproduce the famous Sweetfoot Rum recipe from the different mentions, hints and references scattered across the pages of this book.

1011 Prayers for the Dead: A large, black covered book describing the funerary rituals of almost every culture in the known world.

On "The Aleum": A book that is a modern copy of the very ancient commentary on an epic poem named The Aleum, which was already very ancient when On "The Aleum" was written. No original copy of The Aleum has been located, therefore On "The Aleum" has fascinated historians.

The Brotherhood Of The Bracelet: An adventure novel about two gnomes who find a bracelet of power, and they have to take it to the Burning Steppes and cast it into the Cauldron. They form the Brotherhood of the Bracelet. Along the way they're trailed by a murloc named Gottom, who's obsessed with the bracelet, and nine bracelet bogeymen. The end of the novel leaves off on a relative cliff-hanger and it mentions that the adventure continues in the book’s two sequels, “A Couple Of Towers” and “Hey, The King’s Back!” which encompass all three chapters of the Ruler Of The Bracelet Trilogy.

Faster than the Eye: A Thief's Guide to Sleight of Hand: A plain, black book with a dummy title on the spine. It’s not until the book is opened that the true title is revealed, though the name of the author is notably absent. The book is full of a smooth script accompanied by shoddy diagrams depicting movements of hands and coins and people’s attention. Every time this book’s cover is opened, a single copper piece mysteriously goes missing from the reader’s belongings.

Swimming and You: A blue leather bound volume whose pages are so water damaged that only the title can easily be understood. Perceptive PC’s can parse that this might have once been an instructional swimming book. Exceptionally perceptive PC’s realize that there might be something special about the ink that will reveal itself when submerged in water. When submerged in water, the text becomes a plainly legible instructional book about several basic swimming forms, as well as instructions on how to hold one’s breath for minutes at a time while free diving.

A bark bound journal that is the result of years of careful study. Inside are countless charts and diagrams detailing the weather.

The Book of Bewitchment: A deep purple book that emits scents of flowery petals and rich spices. The book is a compendium of enchantment and charm magic, with a specific focus on the research and development of creating new spells. This specific volume is part of a regularly published series with multiple authors.

Wish It, Want It, Screw It: A series of anecdotal accounts of wizards and wanderers and their experiences with genius, artifacts and spells that granted wishes that all backfired horribly.

AAARRGGHH! - A Barbarian’s Guide to Clobbering Your Enemies: A hefty brass bound book whose writing is messy and misspelled, and some of the letters are backwards. What’s more, the cover is splattered with blood on the bottom right corner, like someone was violently clobbered by the book.

Word of the Prophetess: A sacred text of the Goddess of prophecy bound in white cloth, its edges trimmed in both gold and silver. In the center of the book lays a flat diamond that reflects the light of runes made of platinum, always shining dim light. Once in their lifetime a creature may concentrate and look deeply into the diamond for a glimpse of their future (DM’s discretion). Within its pages the book speaks on the nature and metaphysical significance of prophecy, divination and fate.

Eat, Summon, Love: A novel about a married woman who realizes how unhappy her marriage really is, and that her life needs to go in a different direction. After a painful divorce, she joins a cult of necromancers to ‘find herself’. Based on a true story.

Deck of Limiting Things: A collection of possibly true tales about people who have used The Deck Of Many Things and the chaos that followed.

A battered looking traveler’s journal. The book originally details the day to day routine of an unfulfilled third son of a minor merchant. The writer (Who never gives his own name) is approached on day by believers of the “True Faith of the Primal God” who fill him with stories of miracles on earth and the glories of the faithful. The journal details his interest in the new faith and a bright promising future through the religion. He meets higher ranking members of the faith who’ve been granted “Gifts” which ranged from magical and supernatural powers to mutations such as extra eyes, limbs or dramatically increased senses or strengths. As the writer becomes indoctrinated he notices that the higher ranked the other members are the more aloof and neurotic they seem to become… His handwriting begins to noticeably degrade as he progresses quickly up the ranks and recruits more followers himself. His devotion to the Primal God is rewarded with powers of his own. The writer only vaguely refers to his powers explaining that he doesn’t want to describe them in detail in case: “They area reading this, and try using it against me…” in his own words. The writer becomes more paranoid and erratic and occasionally shifts into various simple codes and ciphers. Near the end of the writing, the author has apparently become one of the high priests in the cult and hears the voice of the Primal God in his head on a near constant basis. The voice fills his waking hours with warnings of danger and threats to his life originating from the people around him, especially the other cult members. The journal losses any sense of coherency and becomes a jumbled mess of paranoia, violence and strange magic… As far as the reader can tell, the writer kills a majority of the other cultists before retreating while mortally wounded to write the last few pages. The author last pages are fairly lucid and he details in a shaking hand how the others are all just as paranoid as he was and he thinks that the “Primal God” is really just a God of Chaos and Destruction in disguise. The last line of the journal takes up two entire pages, written in what you assume to be the writer’s own blood. It reads "The Gifts are different for each of us, but the Curse is the same." The writing is large firm and bold, similar to the writing from the beginning of the journal. Perhaps in his last moments he remembered who he used to be...

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