Plotlogs
To Find The Salmon Snake Sr Selina 241017
In a daring and treacherous mission beneath Finland's Mount Halti, in the mystic Dragon Caves known as the Lohikaarma Luolaseura, adventurers Elias and Elora, guided by Ingrid and her team of House researchers, embark on a quest to confront the salmon snake—a fearsome sea dragon entwined in the vile plots of the dragon Gonthorian. Their journey begins with cautious optimism, largely shadowed by the grim prophecies and threats that loom over their task. Elias's confidence as a stormcaller and Elora's subtle mastery of illusion prepare them for the daunting challenges ahead.
Upon reaching Gogland Island, their fishing expedition quickly turns perilous as their boat is ensnared by a vortex, pulling them into the dragon’s underwater lair. After a tense encounter with the formidable sea dragon, the adventurers learn of the beast’s reluctance to aid them, stemming from a dire threat by Gonthorian and a curse binding its will.
Elias eloquently appeals to the sea dragon's sense of pride and survival, arguing against the futility of aligning with Gonthorian and emphasizing the innate supremacy of water over fire. Elora, in a moment of vulnerability, offers her assistance to heal the dragon, revealing the sincerity of their intentions. Their words, laced with conviction and an understanding of the dragon's plight, gradually warm its icy demeanor.
Moved by their fervor and perhaps recognizing a glimpse of hope in their plea, the sea dragon consents to a pact. With combined efforts, Elias and Elora conduct a ritual, extracting the malicious iron from the dragon's heart, liberating it from Gonthorian's curse. In gratitude, the dragon bestows upon them one of its horns, a powerful artifact capable of summoning cold waters, symbolizing their newfound alliance and a pivotal victory in their ongoing war against Gonthorian.
Their return to the surface is marked not just by physical triumph over the treacherous undertows of their mission but by a significant turning point in their quest. The liberation of the sea dragon signifies a blow against Gonthorian's reign of terror and rekindles hope in the fight against darkness. As Elias and Elora prepare for the next chapter of their adventure, they carry with them not just the horn of the sea dragon but a deeper resolve, fortified by the bonds forged in the heart of the ocean’s abyss.
(To Find the Salmon Snake(SRSelina):SRSelina)
[Wed Oct 16 2024]
In the Lohikaarma Luolaseura (Dragon Caves) beneath Mount Halti
Mount Halti, Finland's highest point at 1,324 meters, rises from the arctic wilderness, marking the border with Norway. Its rugged slopes and windswept tundra stretch over vast valleys, glacial lakes, and snow-covered plateaus. During summer, bursts of wildflowers color the stark landscape, adding beauty to the otherwise barren surroundings.
Within the mountain lies the mysterious Lohikaarma Luolaseura, or Dragon Caves, a network of hidden caverns largely unexplored. These expansive chambers, carved deep into the granite, are cool and damp, with impressive formations of stalactites and stalagmites. Their isolated location and vast size evoke a sense of ancient legend.
Perfect for a mythical dragon's lair, the caves offer seclusion and shelter, with narrow crevices leading to the outside world. Should dragons ever return, these caves would make an ideal sanctuary--remote, majestic, and untouched by time.
It is about 60F(15C) degrees.
The party arrives through whatever method of conveyance they prefer (usually pathing or dream walking, but one can never rule out jet skis, right?) just outside the the Lohikaarma Luolaseura (Dragon Caves) at the base of Mount Halti. The current temperature is just below freezing, and the wind makes it feel that much cooler. Thankfully, the shelter of the caves nearby affords an easy way to get out of the freezing gusts and utilize some of earth's natural warmth to combat the chill. It also helps that electric heaters have been setup. A pair of Covenant/Knight guards stop the party briefly, then after a short exchange, lead the team down through a series of tunnels into what can only be described as the council cavern. A long, thick wooden table is setup as the main feature with dozens of chairs around it. For the moment, only a few other people are present in the room, one younger woman and three older men. They are conversing in a language that is obviously not English, though they do look over when the team and escort arrives. "Velkommen," the woman greets with a nod. She is about thirty, blonde, blue eyes, dressed in Finnish military fatigues, with a Scalebound Covenant patch and a Knights of the Silver Dragon patch on both of her shoulders, with combat boots, of course. The men are all three gray-haired and dark eyed, dressed in hiking clothes. "Here to go fishing?" she asks the team with a grin.
[OOC: Welcome to To Find the Salmon Snake. If you have any questions, feel free to use STalk or replies via Tells. Please make use of the Think, Internal, Feel, Recall, and Attempt commands on this adventure. These will greatly enhance your experience and immersion, while also speeding things up for others. I try to do one post per person rotations, but if you want to do short bursts of rapid banter in appropriate situations, feel free. Text that is all colored in this color will be private, for you to act upon ICly. Buckle up, and we will begin shortly. Thank you for letting me be your SR for this evening's festivities.]
Stepping out of the pathways through the dark forest, Elias finds himself in the frigid climate dressed in a casual business suit. The man doesn't even flinch or shiver as the cold icy blasts blow past him without even the faintest glimmer of discomfort. He starts making his way towards those that are waiting for presumably Elora and his presence, "Indeed. I do believe it is a beautiful day for a fishing trip." He offers with a small smile appearing on his expression.
Elora arrived by Pathing and the cold didn't suit her well at all. She was shivering in green tunic and leather trousers by the time she made it down the pathway. The warmth of the electric heaters and of the caverns to shield the wind were more than welcome to her, things she hurried to along the way. Arms partially wrapped around herself to ward lingering chill by the time she meets Velk, Elora responds. "I suppose one could it fishing."
Elora shifts the weight of one of the packs she carries causing a tinkling to sound as chainmail links clatter against each other.
"Well, hopefully we have something useful for you to follow," the woman says, gesturing at the scattered papers strewn all over the table. "I'm Ingrid. These are the House researchers, on loan to help us stop Gonthorian. Kristoff, Jorgan, and Ragnar," she says, indicating each of the three men in turn. Kristoff is eating a large sandwich. Jorgen has leaned to one side for a bit of a power nap in his chair.
Ragnar slams a fist down on the table and jars Jorgen awake. "These two will find the salmon snake? I'll shave my beard if they even come back alive from the encounter," Ragnar declares before crossing his arms and glaring off toward the other end of the room.
"As you can see, their manners are still lacking," Ingrid says in a way to try to cover up the outburst at least. She gets one of the papers out of the stack though and moves it closer to the pair. "Over here is Gogland, and island in the Baltic Sea. Just off the western coast, if you fish with the right bait, you may be able to land a salmon snake," she explains, given all the text on the paper is definitely not in English. "And the sort of bait is ice formed by magical means," she explains, though how one can fish with ice is already just a weirdness the team will need to figure out later. "We prepped a boat out there for you," she adds, moving a picture over to help with pathing to the place. Simple, straight forward meeting, but the action is happening elsewhere. Very typical of these European excursions these days.
Elora is a small woman and has a nervous manner to her as she glances to Ragnar at his comment. Then her eyes narrow. "I'm going to hold you to that. If we come back? You shave your beard." Hers a lilting voice, rising and falling with a musicality to it. "And whether I don't or do - you can call me Myst." It isn't her name. She doesn't like giving her out name. She has many little oddities and that is but one of them. "Especially if I don't come back, I would hope to be missed."
She listens to Ingrid in her explanation of the magical means by which they hope to attract the salmon snake. Then she moves closer to study the picture that will be used to help with the Pathing.
The dark haired man stands in the presumed cold with compete comfort as he watches the conversation between Ragnar and Ingrid, "Researchers, hrmm? Well, I am Elias Hansen. I am a stormcaller. This is my element." Elias explains as he tilts his head slightly to the side, "I would be willing to take a wager whom would endure the elements longer, but I am afraid I do have other business and don't have the hours it would take for someone to succumb to this blizzard with so many layers on." With a smirk appearing on his face before glancing over to Elora, "Besides, I hear Elora is the greatest fisherwoman on this side of the world. I suspect we won't have much problem at all."
Elora winces as her name is given out.
Elora steps a bit closer to Elias.
Elora beams at Elias and nods.
Ragnar does not seem pacified by the boasting comments, but he does grunt and upnod toward Elora. "Make headway against this awful dragon, and it will be worth fleshforming my beard back later," he declares in a growl.
Jorgen speaks up next and says, "You're not shaving your beard. You've made that bet a thousand times." Kristoff merely nods his agreement with Jorgen and continues to chow down on his sandwich.
Ingrid rolls her eyes and hands some translated text pages to whichever of the team wishes to take them. "I'll personally pluck each hair out one at a time if he should choose not to accept his fate," she assures Elias and Elora. As if to prove her point, her shadow climbs up onto the table and stretches across to grip one individual strand of hair from Ragnar's beard to painfully pluck out of its follicle, roots still intact. The shadow releases the hair to let it slowly drift down onto the table like a feather. "Do you need anything else from us before heading off on this leg of the grand adventure?" she asks, just to make sure she has not missed anything in the exchange, despite the whispering back and forth between the pair. She politely pretends it is not happening. Her shadow however gives Elora and Elias what can only be described as a dubious look (without eyes) and a slow shake of its head as if it is very disappointed in them.
"So, what should we know about this fish? I mean, assuming it was so easy to catch, I doubt you would call outside help in for it. So, what should we expect with this thing?" Elias asks as he glances between the collection of people before him before his eyes settle back on Ingrid.
Elora nods agreement with Elias's astute question.
"Salmon snake is a weird translation thing. It's a sea dragon. You're going fishing for a sea dragon. The only warnings I found about it were do not look into either of its eyes," Ingrid explains to Elias, happy to focus on the matter at hand and give what information she can regarding the potential battle ahead of the team of two. None of the researchers seem interested in going with. Ingrid might if asked, but she also seems to have her hands full keeping the trio of Norse Disney-Dwarf-Themed men (Hungry, Sleepy, and Grumpy) wrangled and focused on their tasks.
"Expect a fight. Expect to die. Then you go to Valhalla," Kristoff finally speaks aloud, lifting his tankard up in a toasting gesture before drinking heavily from it.
Jorgen and Ragnar both shout, "Kippis!" then lift their own tankards to drink heavily with Kristoff. Kristoff finishes first by virtue of starting ahead of the other two, but soon all three have slammed empty mugs down on the table and then beat their hands down on the table in almost unison.
After the bit of celebration goes by, Ingrid sighs and tells Elias, "We do not know much more than that. Magic ice to get its attention, don't look into its eyes, and deal with a dragon. I wish I had more to give."
"So, an ice attuned sea dragon...." Elias says as he holds his hand at waist level with open palm upward. Swirling mist starts to form into his palm, pieces of it starting crystallize into ice. The dark haired man frowns a little before looking back to Elora, "Myst, do you have any hidden dragon slaying ability that I am unaware of, I am hoping that is a firm yes, because underground lake fighting an ice attuned sea dragon literally is probably the biggest weakness I could imagine."
Elora looks to Elias. "I shall have to disappoint you. Not only do I not have a firm yes for you, but on the contrary I have a rather firm no. I suspect we ought to prepare a shadow walk to escape should the worst happen. It seems prudent to me have the goal of surviving and learning more rather than actually hoping to defeat a dragon within its preferred domain. She reaches up a hand to brush away some stray locks of neon and turquoise. "What I have to offer is illusion rather than force. I'm a subtle person." "
Elora looks to Elias. "I shall have to disappoint you. Not only do I not have a firm yes for you, but on the contrary I have a rather firm no. I suspect we ought to prepare a shadow walk to escape should the worst happen. It seems prudent to me have the goal of surviving and learning more rather than actually hoping to defeat a dragon within its preferred domain." She reaches up a hand to brush away some stray locks of neon and turquoise. "What I have to offer is illusion rather than force. I'm a subtle person." (fixed)
"Hrmm... Illusions you say. I wonder. Maybe we can lure it outside. With this storm we have outside, I think that is something I could work with, but honestly, I doubt we would be able to get it all the way outside." Elias says as he rubs his chin thoughtfully before looking over to the 'research' team, "Did you have any kind of plan devised beyond just sending us down as bait with bait?"
"Not underground. You're going to an island, then out to sea for your fishing excursion," Ragnar says when it seems Elias misunderstood a small part of the mission. "Just the dragon, you two, and the boat," he adds with a grin as he strokes his beard, suspecting perhaps that he will not need to shave it after all.
Ingrid is at least a little more optimistic, despite her obviously dark powers. "I am sure it will be fine. Not all dragons are roar eat everything. And besides, you'll be giving him a meal with the magic ice," she explains before gesturing to the picture she has handed someone at some point. "Step one is get to the boat though," she says, looking between the pair. "I doubt you'll need help building a bridge there," she observes before giving the pair a wink. She turns back to the old Norse researchers and says, "They'll be fine. Unless we missed something major." She eyes each of the old men down as if challenging them to come up with more information or admit to neglecting to give up useful information sooner.
None of them take the challenge. Kristoff goes back to his sandwich. Jorgen shakes his head and pulls up a blanket to cover him as he starts preparing to drift off on another nap. Ragnar just scowls at Ingrid, Elias, and Elora in pretty much equal measure.
And with that, the team has all of the information they need to head off to Gogland Island and catch a boat out to meet their destiny with the salmon snake.
"Ah. Well you know what, that is very doable then. Does this dragon need to be alive?" Elias asks Ingrid before glancing back to Elora as if to question her if she has anything else to ask as well before returning to Ingrid.
"Is there any special reason we ought to leave right now?" Elora asks. "I'd like to be able to shadow walk away if things go poorly. I'm looking to help, not die." Elora glances to Ragan.
Elora says "It would only take me about an hour to prepare it?"
Elora blushes.
"Or you can stick close to me and I will prepare it and you just cling on to me if things go bad and I will bring us back here. How does that sound?" Elias asks Elora with a small smile, "I know it isn't glorious, but it will be glorious."
Elora nods to Elias. "If you think you can get it done faster, then that would be preferable."
Elora smiles at Elias.
"Pretty sure it is already dead. Or it is at least a spirit already. Most of the dragons the Covenant and Knights have encountered have been minor Eidolons of their own right, but not physical manifestations," Ignrid explains to Elias, since dragons do not really exist on earth. Yet. Even with Shemra's ascension, physical dragons, outside of shapeshifting, are still not a thing. One day, perhaps. But not today. "I'm sure you can handle a spirit, right?" Ingrid asks with a small smirk.
[For purposes of moving the story forward, we do not need to play out every single contengiency. If Elora already has a shadowwalking point made, the ritual is unnecessary. She can shadowwalk back to it at any time (if she has not done so in the last 20 hours). So... Pathing forward...]
After some pathing goodness, the pair arrives on Gogland Island, which is actually far warmer than where they were. The landing point is a decent-sized dock with a moderate-sized fishing boat. A captain is on board already, waving at the pair to come on. He does not speak a lick of English, but he rattles almost nonstop at the pair in Finnish. Once on board and under way, he cranks the engine up to head out to sea, leaving the team to strategize and consider their options for how to proceed. It is fairly dark, though the sky is clear and gives plenty of line from the full moon and stars. Those celestial lights glimmer off the inky waves like colored glitter floating within the water. There is a large fishing rig attached to the back of the boat, obviously ready for the team to use. And so, the real adventure begins...
Once the team departs on the boat, Elias ready for the great hunt for the white whale or whatever the sea dragon equivalent of it is. Sitting down, the man idly reaches towards the sky, clenching his fist as he slowly pulls it towards his chest, he does this several times which cause clouds to start to form overhead.
Elora is a skittish, paranoid, and rather fretful person. Now underway, she dons her armor as if readying for war. She tries to keep out of sight of the captain jabbering in a language she doens't understand. She tries to make her presence a soft presence and a quiet presence. And if it seems that donning armor at all attracts attention she would simply make it look like she had not.
Clouds roll in and cover the sky, blocking out the light from above over the course of the next twenty minutes or so. That leaves the team on a boat in a middle of a vast empty blackness, lurching up and down as the boat rolls forward. The winds pick up and start to howl a bit, causing the waves to swell higher. The island is long out of sight behind them. No other land marks any horizon, and still the captain keeps the boat moving foward, like he has an idea of the destination in mind. He probably told them that, in Finnish, but since no one around besides him speaks it, he just presumes they know. Once he has finished the initial bits of conversation, he starts singing. He is about six foot tall, brown hair, blue eyes. Beer gut, definitely dad bod, but not the sexy kind. He is wearing water-proofed boating gear, with hefty boots and multiple layers. It is warmer, but still not tropical around this area, especially with the wind picking up.
Eventually, the captain cuts the motor and the terrible singing and gestures to the fishing rig at the back of the ship, giving Elora and Elias permission to do as they like with it. He grabs a bottle of booze, twists off the cap, then starts drinking. Heavily. Hopefully, he has a shadowwalk ability to get away too. Otherwise, he might die tonight...
Pushing himself to his feet, Elias pulls off his blazer, setting it down on the deck of the ship. He reaches up to rub his shoulder lightly to give a good roll before looks to the others, giving them a nod probably indicating he is ready.
Once he believes that everyone is ready, but with out actually asking them, Elias holds both hands out from his sides. In both hands, the mists start to form as he brings his hands closer and closer together, it starts to form into large ice crystal about the size of baseball. As he does this, the air temperature begins to rapidly drop around the freezing point. Once the crystal is formed, Elias seizes it in his hand and casually just tosses it over the side of the boat, a good ten to fifteen feet away, giving them a little breathing room, "Well, hopefully that is enough to get its attention."
looks around the sea from her place on the ship. She isn't really dressed for the sea. She is dressed for the forest, her armor lightly greened, her hair neon. She peers at the waters as if they might give up their mystery to her teal eyes roving. "Or... we let it find us, yeah." Elora worries at her lip with white teeth.
wonders, "Maybe we pull it back up and I attach it to an arrow with a rope on it? That way we can shoot it farther away from the ship rather than just off the side? Or we could sail a bit away from it?" Elora muses to Elias.
Baseball sized blocks of ice floating in the Baltic Sea are not entirely uncommon, so there is the glunk noise as the ice hits the water and sinks beneath the surface. Nothing immediately happens. The boat sways back and forth and up and down on the steadily growing waves. After a good five minutes or so of nothing happening, a glow from way down beneath the water becomes visible. Gentle, radiating cyan light just barely breaks through the watery barrier to make its way above the waves to be seen at all. Attention has been gained, but lots of things could make the water glow, right? The team has a little bit of time to see if they may want to do anything further at this point to try to lure whatever that is to the surface.
Elora looks around the glowing waters and tries to peer over the side to confirm the location. "Is that our..." She hesitates. "'Fish'?" They had claimed it was a spirit. That it wasn't alive. She tries to figure out if that is what is going on with the thing lurking in the depths.
Once he notices the cyan light start to shine up from under the water, Elias lets his gaze drift skyward, checking the pattern of the clouds as if scrying what is to come. The man reaches his hands skyward to bring forth something more angry from the night sky, something more vengeful, something worthy of a stormcaller.
bramble choker glows faintly as Elora attempt to cast an illusion upon whatever mind is down there in the depths. She glances toward the ocean to the side of the ship as power is channeled out into the world.
[This is a good spot for a quick 10-15 minute break. Go ahead and tend to your meals, drinks, bio breaks, and what not, then be back here by 2020 to continue.]
About the time that the team starts to see the glow and really start trying to look out for the source, the ship's wheel starts to spin, super fast, in one direction. The captain starts shouting and rushes over to try to correct the wheel, but it is too late. The vortex beneath the ship has started to form, and with the engines cut, the captain probably cannot get it started fast enough to get out of the pull. The ship is definitely going down. And the team probably with it. But they still don't know if it is the sea dragon that is the cause.
Elora grips the railing as she holds herself to the spinning ship not wanting to be thrown by the sudden jerking. She keeps her eyes out for subtle dangers like rigging thrown awry and potentially hurtling toward her. Her eyes seek out Elias and they have a question on them. She's definitely not the girl to look to for bravery; the first sign of danger and her gaze seems to suggest: we're'done, right? Peace?
"Get the ship moving or we are all going in the drink!" Elias calls out to the crew as he heads towards the back of the ship and grabs onto something. He calls upon the storm he has been calling, reaching his hand out to bring forth a powerful wind to try to give the ship a little help forward in an effort to avoid whatever is going to happen, to happen.
Chaos erupts around the ship, as the whirlpool drags the boat down below sea level, well below. Then further still. Elias's attempts to right the ship are just a little too late. The sky, darkened with clouds, offers no light and resembles the end of a cyan-lit tunnel. But the boat is moving away from that salvation.
The captain screams and dives off the boat and into the water to try to get away. He may never be seen again. Meanwhile, the ship twirls and bucks and spins listing one direction as centrifugal motion slings everything that direction before slamming back in the other way a moment later. Those with motion sickness would probably have already emptied the contents of their stomach.
And then, the spinning stops. And the hole in the water above collapses down, threatening to drown the pair beneath the sea.
Everything goes dark. No light exists down here.
It is impossible to breath...
Your heart pounds in your ears, demanding oxygen.
And slowly...
Slowly...
Both Elias and Elora pass out from oxygen deprivation.
An untold amount of time later, the pair awaken, spitting and sputtering, on their stomachs on damp land. Not dry. Very damp. As they appraise their surroundings, it seems like one might expect from a mermaid kingdom, except air, not water. There is a bubble a good ways above the pair, and beyond that shimmering surface, the blackness of the sea seems to extend forever. The boat is gone. The captain is gone. And ahead of them is what looks like a massive undersea cave. A draconic roar emanates from within, and then a serpentine form slither/swims out into the air, coiling like a snake in mid-air. It turns its salmon-like head toward the pair of waterlogged interlopers at its doorstep, staring at them with empty, void-filled eyes...
Sputtering, Elias pushes himself to his feet, dripping with cold ocean water. The dark haired man looks over to Elora, "I hope you are ready, because the easy part is done and now it is time to where the blood and sweat comes in." Taking a moment, the man once more opens his mouth, but this time he doesn't say a word. Very similar icy mists start rolling out of his mouth flowing out like a heavy fog. The mists start taking shape into what appears to be like a fox. Whirling up more of this magic into his hand, he readies himself for the creature to come.
Elora sputters and spits and gets her hands and knees beneath her. As she takens in the good fortune, the sheer luck, of being alive despite drowning - and her own stupidity in not having shadow walked away as she had intended to do - she mutters, "We're so lucky I'm here." As if to take credit for the good fortune and luck that had them surviving such a perilous plunge. The coming, slithering and swimming dragon has her doing the sensible thing - Hiding herself beneath glamour and whatever actual hiding places might be around. She's good at hiding - well, good at hiding from Forest Creatures and the average people around town. But then, well, Elias seems to be thinking the thing to do is to attack the dragon...
Elora or maybe she is saying she is ready! Who knows-
"Gonthorian said you would come," the coiled draconic spirit remarks to the pair getting ready for a fight. "He already threatened me if I help you, so you came for nothing. Get out," the fish-headed spirit tells the pair, shaking his head and several feet worth of neck in the process. Nevermind that the trip down into this place seems to be one-way. There is plenty of area around the team down here, though it is all damp soil with random seashells and the like strewn about.
"I want nothing to do with you adventurous types," he continues, keeping his eyes fixed on both of the people before him. The way the leviathan is speaking, he might actually be afraid. Just not of Elias or Elora. The genuine fear of death has been pressed into him with just one visit from Gonthorian. Nevermind how the red dragon got down here. Likely he still has agents that are able to get down here like the current guests did.
The fishy dragon turns its head from one side to the other, looking at Elias then Elora, specifically with one eye, then the other, a slow, hypnotic movement, as if he is trying to pull their attention to one of them.
Mildly annoyed when he pats his pocket down, realizing he forgot something. Elias intentionally going out of his way to look around and not make eye contact with the creature, the dark haired man explains, "Why would such a noble creature as yourself align with a filthy fire lizard? If he gets his way, the realms will be wiped from existence. For an immortal like yourself, why would you Kowtow to that lizard to only live like what? Another ten to twelve years? He isn't as strong as he was. He has suffered many defeats recently, are you sure his strength is more than just a bluff?"
Elora is careful to avoid looking at the eyes of the fish spirit though the weight of its attention on her is heavy. She might not have the same context as everyone else regarding all the events with Gonothorian and so remains silent allowing Elias to take the lead on the diplomatic front.
"Nothing. You know nothing. You've not seen what he does," the leviathan says to Elias, still shaking his head back and forth. "Fire won't reach me here. You're on your own. I don't need your assistance or safety," he declares a little more confidently. The sea dragon spirit turns his eyes upward and says, "I did not need to bring you down here, but I also do not have to agree to help you." He unleashes a stream of steamy water from his nostrils up in the air toward the bubble keeping air in the place for the moment. "And I can drown you with a thought, so why are you still here?" the spirit asks mostly of Elias, but occasionally glancing toward Elora to let her know she is not entirely out of his eye line.
"I am a stormcaller." Elias echoes what he spoke earlier, but he does say that with some pride, "I have faced him before. That is why I am here now. I will pluck that last glowing ember from his chest and crush it in my bare hands. I will cover this world in darkness and ice if I need too." As he speaks these words, cold energies flow about him with small gusts of wind, whirling them around him, even though it is far from as powerful as it is under the open skies, "His fate has already been foretold. You sense his weakness growing. You are just afraid. What you need though, is allies." He points over to Elora, "The Knights, they have dragons of their own. It is a growing army against a single fire lizard. Even his cult folded and crumbled. He could not even save them."
Elora with the attention on her fidgets slightly and lets the cloaking illusions fade; it wasn't as if they were helping anyway. She had actually been planning to shadow walk away - death in a thought was quite intimidating. It somehow feels wrong after Elias's words, to abandon him. "He wouldn't have threatened you if he didn't think you were dangerous. Sometimes when someone is afraid they may speak out in a way that tries to intimidate in order to dissuade aggression. "
"Cults rise and fall on whims of people. Others can come, he still has more. You think him weakened, but you do not realize how strong he is," the leviathan tells Elias, surging forward until his face is roughly head level with the man, turned slightly to one side so his eye is focused on Elias. "His power is not flame. His power is fire. The spark. Anger. Passion. Fear. He burns in the darkest corners of even the strongest of the world," he emphasizes for Elias's benefit, slowly wiggling down the rest of his body as he swim-floats there. "You think the Hand wants rid of him?" the sea dragon asks before gurgling out what has to be some form of hilarious laughter at the joke. "He is a distraction they are using to keep your precious, pretty princess busy, keeping her out of the real affairs," the leviathan points out with a bit of alliteration regarding the leader of the Knights, or the guild mistress depending on what angle brought someone into this adventure. "Of course I can harm him. I control water. The vast waters of the sea. Fire and water, which one wins?" he asks as if the answer is quite obvious.
"Fire always wins in the end. Water turns flame to ash and smoke. Just wisps on the wind, soot into the water to be washed away." Elias says to the sea dragon, locking his gaze towards the ceiling not to fall in the trap of catching her gaze, "In the end, I understand the strength of water. Why do you think it is I come to you? Instead of groveling to that lizard? I know what side will come out on top. The Hand? I am not here as them. I am not even here as the Forged. I am here as a wielder of the Tempest Winds, the channeler Endless Blizzard. I think it is you that should rise supreme over the dragons."
Elora doesn't look at the sea dragon's eyes. "Shouldn't water also be in hearts? Fluid and shifting adaptable to its situation? Often water puts out a weakening fire."
"In thirteen years, it won't even matter," the leviathan replies indifferently. "If you're asking for my help out of the kindness of my heart, you won't get very far," the dragon spirit tells the pair before rising up. It shows a spot on its chest. Possibly where its heart would be. A ring of blackened, barbed spiritual iron digs into the ethereal flesh beneath it. "The warning he left," the dragon spirit tells them. It turns and starts to swim back toward the large cave at the other end of the underwater shelter.
The leviathan is difficult to sway, but something in the way he is acting suggests something started to get through, find its way under his anxiety. Removing the iron might help, but more words would likely need to accompany it too. He is close. Just needs a little tip over...
"What a dirty trick of that lizard. Striking like that." Elias says to the leviathan that is slinking away, but doesn't make any real effort to watch it trail off just in case, "If he was not lingering in the shadows as he does, he would have never held a chance against you. A desperate move indeed. My friend her, she is a healer of the highest caliber." And Elias glances over to Elora with a small grin touching his lips, "You will likely feel better in short order."
"I can try to help..." Elora offers, sounding very hesitant. "But there are even more talented people than I who could aid you and who oppose Gonnotharian. So in aiding us it would not be merely out of the kindness of your heart, but also as a kindness to your heart."
Cheesy. Not entirely accurate. But effective? Perhaps. The departing leviathan turns and points one one void-empty eye at Elora. It lets out a low growl toward the pair for a long moment, contemplating what they have said. "Very well," he says, and swims back toward them through the air.
[For the sake of simplicity and ending on time, we will say that the pair managed to wrench the iron out of the leviathan's heart via a simple ritual between the two of them. And as a reward, he granted them one of his horns, capable of producing vast, vast quantities of incredibly cold water, if used correctly. Which will bring us to the end of this chapter in the Gonthorian chronicles. Apologies for going a little long there. If you need any Awards or anything, feel free to let me know. Otherwise, some quick administrative things, and then I can get you all back onto the grid.]
Upon reaching Gogland Island, their fishing expedition quickly turns perilous as their boat is ensnared by a vortex, pulling them into the dragon’s underwater lair. After a tense encounter with the formidable sea dragon, the adventurers learn of the beast’s reluctance to aid them, stemming from a dire threat by Gonthorian and a curse binding its will.
Elias eloquently appeals to the sea dragon's sense of pride and survival, arguing against the futility of aligning with Gonthorian and emphasizing the innate supremacy of water over fire. Elora, in a moment of vulnerability, offers her assistance to heal the dragon, revealing the sincerity of their intentions. Their words, laced with conviction and an understanding of the dragon's plight, gradually warm its icy demeanor.
Moved by their fervor and perhaps recognizing a glimpse of hope in their plea, the sea dragon consents to a pact. With combined efforts, Elias and Elora conduct a ritual, extracting the malicious iron from the dragon's heart, liberating it from Gonthorian's curse. In gratitude, the dragon bestows upon them one of its horns, a powerful artifact capable of summoning cold waters, symbolizing their newfound alliance and a pivotal victory in their ongoing war against Gonthorian.
Their return to the surface is marked not just by physical triumph over the treacherous undertows of their mission but by a significant turning point in their quest. The liberation of the sea dragon signifies a blow against Gonthorian's reign of terror and rekindles hope in the fight against darkness. As Elias and Elora prepare for the next chapter of their adventure, they carry with them not just the horn of the sea dragon but a deeper resolve, fortified by the bonds forged in the heart of the ocean’s abyss.
(To Find the Salmon Snake(SRSelina):SRSelina)
[Wed Oct 16 2024]
In the Lohikaarma Luolaseura (Dragon Caves) beneath Mount Halti
Mount Halti, Finland's highest point at 1,324 meters, rises from the arctic wilderness, marking the border with Norway. Its rugged slopes and windswept tundra stretch over vast valleys, glacial lakes, and snow-covered plateaus. During summer, bursts of wildflowers color the stark landscape, adding beauty to the otherwise barren surroundings.
Within the mountain lies the mysterious Lohikaarma Luolaseura, or Dragon Caves, a network of hidden caverns largely unexplored. These expansive chambers, carved deep into the granite, are cool and damp, with impressive formations of stalactites and stalagmites. Their isolated location and vast size evoke a sense of ancient legend.
Perfect for a mythical dragon's lair, the caves offer seclusion and shelter, with narrow crevices leading to the outside world. Should dragons ever return, these caves would make an ideal sanctuary--remote, majestic, and untouched by time.
It is about 60F(15C) degrees.
The party arrives through whatever method of conveyance they prefer (usually pathing or dream walking, but one can never rule out jet skis, right?) just outside the the Lohikaarma Luolaseura (Dragon Caves) at the base of Mount Halti. The current temperature is just below freezing, and the wind makes it feel that much cooler. Thankfully, the shelter of the caves nearby affords an easy way to get out of the freezing gusts and utilize some of earth's natural warmth to combat the chill. It also helps that electric heaters have been setup. A pair of Covenant/Knight guards stop the party briefly, then after a short exchange, lead the team down through a series of tunnels into what can only be described as the council cavern. A long, thick wooden table is setup as the main feature with dozens of chairs around it. For the moment, only a few other people are present in the room, one younger woman and three older men. They are conversing in a language that is obviously not English, though they do look over when the team and escort arrives. "Velkommen," the woman greets with a nod. She is about thirty, blonde, blue eyes, dressed in Finnish military fatigues, with a Scalebound Covenant patch and a Knights of the Silver Dragon patch on both of her shoulders, with combat boots, of course. The men are all three gray-haired and dark eyed, dressed in hiking clothes. "Here to go fishing?" she asks the team with a grin.
[OOC: Welcome to To Find the Salmon Snake. If you have any questions, feel free to use STalk or replies via Tells. Please make use of the Think, Internal, Feel, Recall, and Attempt commands on this adventure. These will greatly enhance your experience and immersion, while also speeding things up for others. I try to do one post per person rotations, but if you want to do short bursts of rapid banter in appropriate situations, feel free. Text that is all colored in this color will be private, for you to act upon ICly. Buckle up, and we will begin shortly. Thank you for letting me be your SR for this evening's festivities.]
Stepping out of the pathways through the dark forest, Elias finds himself in the frigid climate dressed in a casual business suit. The man doesn't even flinch or shiver as the cold icy blasts blow past him without even the faintest glimmer of discomfort. He starts making his way towards those that are waiting for presumably Elora and his presence, "Indeed. I do believe it is a beautiful day for a fishing trip." He offers with a small smile appearing on his expression.
Elora arrived by Pathing and the cold didn't suit her well at all. She was shivering in green tunic and leather trousers by the time she made it down the pathway. The warmth of the electric heaters and of the caverns to shield the wind were more than welcome to her, things she hurried to along the way. Arms partially wrapped around herself to ward lingering chill by the time she meets Velk, Elora responds. "I suppose one could it fishing."
Elora shifts the weight of one of the packs she carries causing a tinkling to sound as chainmail links clatter against each other.
"Well, hopefully we have something useful for you to follow," the woman says, gesturing at the scattered papers strewn all over the table. "I'm Ingrid. These are the House researchers, on loan to help us stop Gonthorian. Kristoff, Jorgan, and Ragnar," she says, indicating each of the three men in turn. Kristoff is eating a large sandwich. Jorgen has leaned to one side for a bit of a power nap in his chair.
Ragnar slams a fist down on the table and jars Jorgen awake. "These two will find the salmon snake? I'll shave my beard if they even come back alive from the encounter," Ragnar declares before crossing his arms and glaring off toward the other end of the room.
"As you can see, their manners are still lacking," Ingrid says in a way to try to cover up the outburst at least. She gets one of the papers out of the stack though and moves it closer to the pair. "Over here is Gogland, and island in the Baltic Sea. Just off the western coast, if you fish with the right bait, you may be able to land a salmon snake," she explains, given all the text on the paper is definitely not in English. "And the sort of bait is ice formed by magical means," she explains, though how one can fish with ice is already just a weirdness the team will need to figure out later. "We prepped a boat out there for you," she adds, moving a picture over to help with pathing to the place. Simple, straight forward meeting, but the action is happening elsewhere. Very typical of these European excursions these days.
Elora is a small woman and has a nervous manner to her as she glances to Ragnar at his comment. Then her eyes narrow. "I'm going to hold you to that. If we come back? You shave your beard." Hers a lilting voice, rising and falling with a musicality to it. "And whether I don't or do - you can call me Myst." It isn't her name. She doesn't like giving her out name. She has many little oddities and that is but one of them. "Especially if I don't come back, I would hope to be missed."
She listens to Ingrid in her explanation of the magical means by which they hope to attract the salmon snake. Then she moves closer to study the picture that will be used to help with the Pathing.
The dark haired man stands in the presumed cold with compete comfort as he watches the conversation between Ragnar and Ingrid, "Researchers, hrmm? Well, I am Elias Hansen. I am a stormcaller. This is my element." Elias explains as he tilts his head slightly to the side, "I would be willing to take a wager whom would endure the elements longer, but I am afraid I do have other business and don't have the hours it would take for someone to succumb to this blizzard with so many layers on." With a smirk appearing on his face before glancing over to Elora, "Besides, I hear Elora is the greatest fisherwoman on this side of the world. I suspect we won't have much problem at all."
Elora winces as her name is given out.
Elora steps a bit closer to Elias.
Elora beams at Elias and nods.
Ragnar does not seem pacified by the boasting comments, but he does grunt and upnod toward Elora. "Make headway against this awful dragon, and it will be worth fleshforming my beard back later," he declares in a growl.
Jorgen speaks up next and says, "You're not shaving your beard. You've made that bet a thousand times." Kristoff merely nods his agreement with Jorgen and continues to chow down on his sandwich.
Ingrid rolls her eyes and hands some translated text pages to whichever of the team wishes to take them. "I'll personally pluck each hair out one at a time if he should choose not to accept his fate," she assures Elias and Elora. As if to prove her point, her shadow climbs up onto the table and stretches across to grip one individual strand of hair from Ragnar's beard to painfully pluck out of its follicle, roots still intact. The shadow releases the hair to let it slowly drift down onto the table like a feather. "Do you need anything else from us before heading off on this leg of the grand adventure?" she asks, just to make sure she has not missed anything in the exchange, despite the whispering back and forth between the pair. She politely pretends it is not happening. Her shadow however gives Elora and Elias what can only be described as a dubious look (without eyes) and a slow shake of its head as if it is very disappointed in them.
"So, what should we know about this fish? I mean, assuming it was so easy to catch, I doubt you would call outside help in for it. So, what should we expect with this thing?" Elias asks as he glances between the collection of people before him before his eyes settle back on Ingrid.
Elora nods agreement with Elias's astute question.
"Salmon snake is a weird translation thing. It's a sea dragon. You're going fishing for a sea dragon. The only warnings I found about it were do not look into either of its eyes," Ingrid explains to Elias, happy to focus on the matter at hand and give what information she can regarding the potential battle ahead of the team of two. None of the researchers seem interested in going with. Ingrid might if asked, but she also seems to have her hands full keeping the trio of Norse Disney-Dwarf-Themed men (Hungry, Sleepy, and Grumpy) wrangled and focused on their tasks.
"Expect a fight. Expect to die. Then you go to Valhalla," Kristoff finally speaks aloud, lifting his tankard up in a toasting gesture before drinking heavily from it.
Jorgen and Ragnar both shout, "Kippis!" then lift their own tankards to drink heavily with Kristoff. Kristoff finishes first by virtue of starting ahead of the other two, but soon all three have slammed empty mugs down on the table and then beat their hands down on the table in almost unison.
After the bit of celebration goes by, Ingrid sighs and tells Elias, "We do not know much more than that. Magic ice to get its attention, don't look into its eyes, and deal with a dragon. I wish I had more to give."
"So, an ice attuned sea dragon...." Elias says as he holds his hand at waist level with open palm upward. Swirling mist starts to form into his palm, pieces of it starting crystallize into ice. The dark haired man frowns a little before looking back to Elora, "Myst, do you have any hidden dragon slaying ability that I am unaware of, I am hoping that is a firm yes, because underground lake fighting an ice attuned sea dragon literally is probably the biggest weakness I could imagine."
Elora looks to Elias. "I shall have to disappoint you. Not only do I not have a firm yes for you, but on the contrary I have a rather firm no. I suspect we ought to prepare a shadow walk to escape should the worst happen. It seems prudent to me have the goal of surviving and learning more rather than actually hoping to defeat a dragon within its preferred domain. She reaches up a hand to brush away some stray locks of neon and turquoise. "What I have to offer is illusion rather than force. I'm a subtle person." "
Elora looks to Elias. "I shall have to disappoint you. Not only do I not have a firm yes for you, but on the contrary I have a rather firm no. I suspect we ought to prepare a shadow walk to escape should the worst happen. It seems prudent to me have the goal of surviving and learning more rather than actually hoping to defeat a dragon within its preferred domain." She reaches up a hand to brush away some stray locks of neon and turquoise. "What I have to offer is illusion rather than force. I'm a subtle person." (fixed)
"Hrmm... Illusions you say. I wonder. Maybe we can lure it outside. With this storm we have outside, I think that is something I could work with, but honestly, I doubt we would be able to get it all the way outside." Elias says as he rubs his chin thoughtfully before looking over to the 'research' team, "Did you have any kind of plan devised beyond just sending us down as bait with bait?"
"Not underground. You're going to an island, then out to sea for your fishing excursion," Ragnar says when it seems Elias misunderstood a small part of the mission. "Just the dragon, you two, and the boat," he adds with a grin as he strokes his beard, suspecting perhaps that he will not need to shave it after all.
Ingrid is at least a little more optimistic, despite her obviously dark powers. "I am sure it will be fine. Not all dragons are roar eat everything. And besides, you'll be giving him a meal with the magic ice," she explains before gesturing to the picture she has handed someone at some point. "Step one is get to the boat though," she says, looking between the pair. "I doubt you'll need help building a bridge there," she observes before giving the pair a wink. She turns back to the old Norse researchers and says, "They'll be fine. Unless we missed something major." She eyes each of the old men down as if challenging them to come up with more information or admit to neglecting to give up useful information sooner.
None of them take the challenge. Kristoff goes back to his sandwich. Jorgen shakes his head and pulls up a blanket to cover him as he starts preparing to drift off on another nap. Ragnar just scowls at Ingrid, Elias, and Elora in pretty much equal measure.
And with that, the team has all of the information they need to head off to Gogland Island and catch a boat out to meet their destiny with the salmon snake.
"Ah. Well you know what, that is very doable then. Does this dragon need to be alive?" Elias asks Ingrid before glancing back to Elora as if to question her if she has anything else to ask as well before returning to Ingrid.
"Is there any special reason we ought to leave right now?" Elora asks. "I'd like to be able to shadow walk away if things go poorly. I'm looking to help, not die." Elora glances to Ragan.
Elora says "It would only take me about an hour to prepare it?"
Elora blushes.
"Or you can stick close to me and I will prepare it and you just cling on to me if things go bad and I will bring us back here. How does that sound?" Elias asks Elora with a small smile, "I know it isn't glorious, but it will be glorious."
Elora nods to Elias. "If you think you can get it done faster, then that would be preferable."
Elora smiles at Elias.
"Pretty sure it is already dead. Or it is at least a spirit already. Most of the dragons the Covenant and Knights have encountered have been minor Eidolons of their own right, but not physical manifestations," Ignrid explains to Elias, since dragons do not really exist on earth. Yet. Even with Shemra's ascension, physical dragons, outside of shapeshifting, are still not a thing. One day, perhaps. But not today. "I'm sure you can handle a spirit, right?" Ingrid asks with a small smirk.
[For purposes of moving the story forward, we do not need to play out every single contengiency. If Elora already has a shadowwalking point made, the ritual is unnecessary. She can shadowwalk back to it at any time (if she has not done so in the last 20 hours). So... Pathing forward...]
After some pathing goodness, the pair arrives on Gogland Island, which is actually far warmer than where they were. The landing point is a decent-sized dock with a moderate-sized fishing boat. A captain is on board already, waving at the pair to come on. He does not speak a lick of English, but he rattles almost nonstop at the pair in Finnish. Once on board and under way, he cranks the engine up to head out to sea, leaving the team to strategize and consider their options for how to proceed. It is fairly dark, though the sky is clear and gives plenty of line from the full moon and stars. Those celestial lights glimmer off the inky waves like colored glitter floating within the water. There is a large fishing rig attached to the back of the boat, obviously ready for the team to use. And so, the real adventure begins...
Once the team departs on the boat, Elias ready for the great hunt for the white whale or whatever the sea dragon equivalent of it is. Sitting down, the man idly reaches towards the sky, clenching his fist as he slowly pulls it towards his chest, he does this several times which cause clouds to start to form overhead.
Elora is a skittish, paranoid, and rather fretful person. Now underway, she dons her armor as if readying for war. She tries to keep out of sight of the captain jabbering in a language she doens't understand. She tries to make her presence a soft presence and a quiet presence. And if it seems that donning armor at all attracts attention she would simply make it look like she had not.
Clouds roll in and cover the sky, blocking out the light from above over the course of the next twenty minutes or so. That leaves the team on a boat in a middle of a vast empty blackness, lurching up and down as the boat rolls forward. The winds pick up and start to howl a bit, causing the waves to swell higher. The island is long out of sight behind them. No other land marks any horizon, and still the captain keeps the boat moving foward, like he has an idea of the destination in mind. He probably told them that, in Finnish, but since no one around besides him speaks it, he just presumes they know. Once he has finished the initial bits of conversation, he starts singing. He is about six foot tall, brown hair, blue eyes. Beer gut, definitely dad bod, but not the sexy kind. He is wearing water-proofed boating gear, with hefty boots and multiple layers. It is warmer, but still not tropical around this area, especially with the wind picking up.
Eventually, the captain cuts the motor and the terrible singing and gestures to the fishing rig at the back of the ship, giving Elora and Elias permission to do as they like with it. He grabs a bottle of booze, twists off the cap, then starts drinking. Heavily. Hopefully, he has a shadowwalk ability to get away too. Otherwise, he might die tonight...
Pushing himself to his feet, Elias pulls off his blazer, setting it down on the deck of the ship. He reaches up to rub his shoulder lightly to give a good roll before looks to the others, giving them a nod probably indicating he is ready.
Once he believes that everyone is ready, but with out actually asking them, Elias holds both hands out from his sides. In both hands, the mists start to form as he brings his hands closer and closer together, it starts to form into large ice crystal about the size of baseball. As he does this, the air temperature begins to rapidly drop around the freezing point. Once the crystal is formed, Elias seizes it in his hand and casually just tosses it over the side of the boat, a good ten to fifteen feet away, giving them a little breathing room, "Well, hopefully that is enough to get its attention."
looks around the sea from her place on the ship. She isn't really dressed for the sea. She is dressed for the forest, her armor lightly greened, her hair neon. She peers at the waters as if they might give up their mystery to her teal eyes roving. "Or... we let it find us, yeah." Elora worries at her lip with white teeth.
wonders, "Maybe we pull it back up and I attach it to an arrow with a rope on it? That way we can shoot it farther away from the ship rather than just off the side? Or we could sail a bit away from it?" Elora muses to Elias.
Baseball sized blocks of ice floating in the Baltic Sea are not entirely uncommon, so there is the glunk noise as the ice hits the water and sinks beneath the surface. Nothing immediately happens. The boat sways back and forth and up and down on the steadily growing waves. After a good five minutes or so of nothing happening, a glow from way down beneath the water becomes visible. Gentle, radiating cyan light just barely breaks through the watery barrier to make its way above the waves to be seen at all. Attention has been gained, but lots of things could make the water glow, right? The team has a little bit of time to see if they may want to do anything further at this point to try to lure whatever that is to the surface.
Elora looks around the glowing waters and tries to peer over the side to confirm the location. "Is that our..." She hesitates. "'Fish'?" They had claimed it was a spirit. That it wasn't alive. She tries to figure out if that is what is going on with the thing lurking in the depths.
Once he notices the cyan light start to shine up from under the water, Elias lets his gaze drift skyward, checking the pattern of the clouds as if scrying what is to come. The man reaches his hands skyward to bring forth something more angry from the night sky, something more vengeful, something worthy of a stormcaller.
bramble choker glows faintly as Elora attempt to cast an illusion upon whatever mind is down there in the depths. She glances toward the ocean to the side of the ship as power is channeled out into the world.
[This is a good spot for a quick 10-15 minute break. Go ahead and tend to your meals, drinks, bio breaks, and what not, then be back here by 2020 to continue.]
About the time that the team starts to see the glow and really start trying to look out for the source, the ship's wheel starts to spin, super fast, in one direction. The captain starts shouting and rushes over to try to correct the wheel, but it is too late. The vortex beneath the ship has started to form, and with the engines cut, the captain probably cannot get it started fast enough to get out of the pull. The ship is definitely going down. And the team probably with it. But they still don't know if it is the sea dragon that is the cause.
Elora grips the railing as she holds herself to the spinning ship not wanting to be thrown by the sudden jerking. She keeps her eyes out for subtle dangers like rigging thrown awry and potentially hurtling toward her. Her eyes seek out Elias and they have a question on them. She's definitely not the girl to look to for bravery; the first sign of danger and her gaze seems to suggest: we're'done, right? Peace?
"Get the ship moving or we are all going in the drink!" Elias calls out to the crew as he heads towards the back of the ship and grabs onto something. He calls upon the storm he has been calling, reaching his hand out to bring forth a powerful wind to try to give the ship a little help forward in an effort to avoid whatever is going to happen, to happen.
Chaos erupts around the ship, as the whirlpool drags the boat down below sea level, well below. Then further still. Elias's attempts to right the ship are just a little too late. The sky, darkened with clouds, offers no light and resembles the end of a cyan-lit tunnel. But the boat is moving away from that salvation.
The captain screams and dives off the boat and into the water to try to get away. He may never be seen again. Meanwhile, the ship twirls and bucks and spins listing one direction as centrifugal motion slings everything that direction before slamming back in the other way a moment later. Those with motion sickness would probably have already emptied the contents of their stomach.
And then, the spinning stops. And the hole in the water above collapses down, threatening to drown the pair beneath the sea.
Everything goes dark. No light exists down here.
It is impossible to breath...
Your heart pounds in your ears, demanding oxygen.
And slowly...
Slowly...
Both Elias and Elora pass out from oxygen deprivation.
An untold amount of time later, the pair awaken, spitting and sputtering, on their stomachs on damp land. Not dry. Very damp. As they appraise their surroundings, it seems like one might expect from a mermaid kingdom, except air, not water. There is a bubble a good ways above the pair, and beyond that shimmering surface, the blackness of the sea seems to extend forever. The boat is gone. The captain is gone. And ahead of them is what looks like a massive undersea cave. A draconic roar emanates from within, and then a serpentine form slither/swims out into the air, coiling like a snake in mid-air. It turns its salmon-like head toward the pair of waterlogged interlopers at its doorstep, staring at them with empty, void-filled eyes...
Sputtering, Elias pushes himself to his feet, dripping with cold ocean water. The dark haired man looks over to Elora, "I hope you are ready, because the easy part is done and now it is time to where the blood and sweat comes in." Taking a moment, the man once more opens his mouth, but this time he doesn't say a word. Very similar icy mists start rolling out of his mouth flowing out like a heavy fog. The mists start taking shape into what appears to be like a fox. Whirling up more of this magic into his hand, he readies himself for the creature to come.
Elora sputters and spits and gets her hands and knees beneath her. As she takens in the good fortune, the sheer luck, of being alive despite drowning - and her own stupidity in not having shadow walked away as she had intended to do - she mutters, "We're so lucky I'm here." As if to take credit for the good fortune and luck that had them surviving such a perilous plunge. The coming, slithering and swimming dragon has her doing the sensible thing - Hiding herself beneath glamour and whatever actual hiding places might be around. She's good at hiding - well, good at hiding from Forest Creatures and the average people around town. But then, well, Elias seems to be thinking the thing to do is to attack the dragon...
Elora or maybe she is saying she is ready! Who knows-
"Gonthorian said you would come," the coiled draconic spirit remarks to the pair getting ready for a fight. "He already threatened me if I help you, so you came for nothing. Get out," the fish-headed spirit tells the pair, shaking his head and several feet worth of neck in the process. Nevermind that the trip down into this place seems to be one-way. There is plenty of area around the team down here, though it is all damp soil with random seashells and the like strewn about.
"I want nothing to do with you adventurous types," he continues, keeping his eyes fixed on both of the people before him. The way the leviathan is speaking, he might actually be afraid. Just not of Elias or Elora. The genuine fear of death has been pressed into him with just one visit from Gonthorian. Nevermind how the red dragon got down here. Likely he still has agents that are able to get down here like the current guests did.
The fishy dragon turns its head from one side to the other, looking at Elias then Elora, specifically with one eye, then the other, a slow, hypnotic movement, as if he is trying to pull their attention to one of them.
Mildly annoyed when he pats his pocket down, realizing he forgot something. Elias intentionally going out of his way to look around and not make eye contact with the creature, the dark haired man explains, "Why would such a noble creature as yourself align with a filthy fire lizard? If he gets his way, the realms will be wiped from existence. For an immortal like yourself, why would you Kowtow to that lizard to only live like what? Another ten to twelve years? He isn't as strong as he was. He has suffered many defeats recently, are you sure his strength is more than just a bluff?"
Elora is careful to avoid looking at the eyes of the fish spirit though the weight of its attention on her is heavy. She might not have the same context as everyone else regarding all the events with Gonothorian and so remains silent allowing Elias to take the lead on the diplomatic front.
"Nothing. You know nothing. You've not seen what he does," the leviathan says to Elias, still shaking his head back and forth. "Fire won't reach me here. You're on your own. I don't need your assistance or safety," he declares a little more confidently. The sea dragon spirit turns his eyes upward and says, "I did not need to bring you down here, but I also do not have to agree to help you." He unleashes a stream of steamy water from his nostrils up in the air toward the bubble keeping air in the place for the moment. "And I can drown you with a thought, so why are you still here?" the spirit asks mostly of Elias, but occasionally glancing toward Elora to let her know she is not entirely out of his eye line.
"I am a stormcaller." Elias echoes what he spoke earlier, but he does say that with some pride, "I have faced him before. That is why I am here now. I will pluck that last glowing ember from his chest and crush it in my bare hands. I will cover this world in darkness and ice if I need too." As he speaks these words, cold energies flow about him with small gusts of wind, whirling them around him, even though it is far from as powerful as it is under the open skies, "His fate has already been foretold. You sense his weakness growing. You are just afraid. What you need though, is allies." He points over to Elora, "The Knights, they have dragons of their own. It is a growing army against a single fire lizard. Even his cult folded and crumbled. He could not even save them."
Elora with the attention on her fidgets slightly and lets the cloaking illusions fade; it wasn't as if they were helping anyway. She had actually been planning to shadow walk away - death in a thought was quite intimidating. It somehow feels wrong after Elias's words, to abandon him. "He wouldn't have threatened you if he didn't think you were dangerous. Sometimes when someone is afraid they may speak out in a way that tries to intimidate in order to dissuade aggression. "
"Cults rise and fall on whims of people. Others can come, he still has more. You think him weakened, but you do not realize how strong he is," the leviathan tells Elias, surging forward until his face is roughly head level with the man, turned slightly to one side so his eye is focused on Elias. "His power is not flame. His power is fire. The spark. Anger. Passion. Fear. He burns in the darkest corners of even the strongest of the world," he emphasizes for Elias's benefit, slowly wiggling down the rest of his body as he swim-floats there. "You think the Hand wants rid of him?" the sea dragon asks before gurgling out what has to be some form of hilarious laughter at the joke. "He is a distraction they are using to keep your precious, pretty princess busy, keeping her out of the real affairs," the leviathan points out with a bit of alliteration regarding the leader of the Knights, or the guild mistress depending on what angle brought someone into this adventure. "Of course I can harm him. I control water. The vast waters of the sea. Fire and water, which one wins?" he asks as if the answer is quite obvious.
"Fire always wins in the end. Water turns flame to ash and smoke. Just wisps on the wind, soot into the water to be washed away." Elias says to the sea dragon, locking his gaze towards the ceiling not to fall in the trap of catching her gaze, "In the end, I understand the strength of water. Why do you think it is I come to you? Instead of groveling to that lizard? I know what side will come out on top. The Hand? I am not here as them. I am not even here as the Forged. I am here as a wielder of the Tempest Winds, the channeler Endless Blizzard. I think it is you that should rise supreme over the dragons."
Elora doesn't look at the sea dragon's eyes. "Shouldn't water also be in hearts? Fluid and shifting adaptable to its situation? Often water puts out a weakening fire."
"In thirteen years, it won't even matter," the leviathan replies indifferently. "If you're asking for my help out of the kindness of my heart, you won't get very far," the dragon spirit tells the pair before rising up. It shows a spot on its chest. Possibly where its heart would be. A ring of blackened, barbed spiritual iron digs into the ethereal flesh beneath it. "The warning he left," the dragon spirit tells them. It turns and starts to swim back toward the large cave at the other end of the underwater shelter.
The leviathan is difficult to sway, but something in the way he is acting suggests something started to get through, find its way under his anxiety. Removing the iron might help, but more words would likely need to accompany it too. He is close. Just needs a little tip over...
"What a dirty trick of that lizard. Striking like that." Elias says to the leviathan that is slinking away, but doesn't make any real effort to watch it trail off just in case, "If he was not lingering in the shadows as he does, he would have never held a chance against you. A desperate move indeed. My friend her, she is a healer of the highest caliber." And Elias glances over to Elora with a small grin touching his lips, "You will likely feel better in short order."
"I can try to help..." Elora offers, sounding very hesitant. "But there are even more talented people than I who could aid you and who oppose Gonnotharian. So in aiding us it would not be merely out of the kindness of your heart, but also as a kindness to your heart."
Cheesy. Not entirely accurate. But effective? Perhaps. The departing leviathan turns and points one one void-empty eye at Elora. It lets out a low growl toward the pair for a long moment, contemplating what they have said. "Very well," he says, and swims back toward them through the air.
[For the sake of simplicity and ending on time, we will say that the pair managed to wrench the iron out of the leviathan's heart via a simple ritual between the two of them. And as a reward, he granted them one of his horns, capable of producing vast, vast quantities of incredibly cold water, if used correctly. Which will bring us to the end of this chapter in the Gonthorian chronicles. Apologies for going a little long there. If you need any Awards or anything, feel free to let me know. Otherwise, some quick administrative things, and then I can get you all back onto the grid.]