"Hang on," Evan brought his hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose in thought a moment. If he was going to do this - and involve two other men, no less - he'd have to justify it to Mizu at some point. She'd probably be pissed regardless of how he proceeded with this, but he could at least make sure he felt confident in whatever justifications he could give her.
"Summoning and binding a god certainly sounds like the sort of thing that could go real fuckin wrong. I don't know you, I don't even know for sure if your motives are genuine, let alone if you could actually pull this off."
The captain sighed frustratedly and returned his gaze to the woman to study her expression. He wanted to trust that their motives were indeed aligned and that she'd be able to do as she said. He also recognized it'd likely be difficult if not impossible for her to provide Evan with the sort of assurances he wanted at the moment.
"At least tell me, straight-up... if we do this, what sort of danger would I be putting my men in? Both those I bring with me, and the rest back at camp?"
Part 1 (Start Reading Here)
Moderator: On Dreams And Desire
Re: Part 1
"Your men back at camp will be in no more danger than they already are, if that's any consolation at all," the crone began. As for the men you bring with you, the only risk is their own foolishness. If they try to break the circle during the ritual, I cannot promise their safety. It's been years since I have done this, but no one has ever fallen during it for anything other than their own recklessness." The crone realized that this was probably still not enough for Evan, so she looked to the sky and then back into the forest canopy briefly before saying, "I'm nearly as eager as the goddess to have revenge on the king, but I fear she is being foolish in her methods. The Shel'ti will not listen to me, and more men continue to fall. I tire of this existence, but I should like to see the land in peace again before I leave it."
Re: Part 1
Evan continued studying the crone's face, vigilant for any sign of malice or deception, but he couldn't find any. He knew that what he had to go on wouldn't be enough to convince Mizu, but... if they'd only ever done what Mizu could be convinced of, they wouldn't even have made it this far. His intuition said this was a move worth taking, and that'd have to be enough. It certainly wouldn't be the first time he'd taken action he knew she'd disapprove of.
"All right then," he said after a moment, "We'll do your ritual. One more question, though..." the captain trailed off, hesitating. He needed to ask it, but felt strangely awkward about it. He supposed he didn't like voicing this particular doubt out loud, after Xavier had worked so hard, but...
"One of the men who was attacked last night pulled through this morning. He was wearing a charm, supposed to ward off bad dreams; the other man who was attacked and didn't pull through, was not. We're going with the story that the charms are effective to help morale around camp, but..." Evan paused for a beat as he reached up to rub at his hair, "The man who pulled through still had the dream, and was still possessed for a time."
A part of Evan wanted to just leave it there, but he recognized there wasn't actually a question in there yet, at least not explicitly.
"Anyway, I guess I'm asking... would it hurt any, to bring the charms? Whether or not they do anything as far as the goddess is concerned, I think they'd at least do something for the men. Or... would it be better for them to come and face her on their own?"
"All right then," he said after a moment, "We'll do your ritual. One more question, though..." the captain trailed off, hesitating. He needed to ask it, but felt strangely awkward about it. He supposed he didn't like voicing this particular doubt out loud, after Xavier had worked so hard, but...
"One of the men who was attacked last night pulled through this morning. He was wearing a charm, supposed to ward off bad dreams; the other man who was attacked and didn't pull through, was not. We're going with the story that the charms are effective to help morale around camp, but..." Evan paused for a beat as he reached up to rub at his hair, "The man who pulled through still had the dream, and was still possessed for a time."
A part of Evan wanted to just leave it there, but he recognized there wasn't actually a question in there yet, at least not explicitly.
"Anyway, I guess I'm asking... would it hurt any, to bring the charms? Whether or not they do anything as far as the goddess is concerned, I think they'd at least do something for the men. Or... would it be better for them to come and face her on their own?"
Re: Part 1
The crone frowned deeply. "Possessions? What do you mean by possessions? Do you have one of these charms on you?" The crone asked. "I'd like to see it."
Re: Part 1
"Mm," Evan fished into his pocket where he'd hastily tucked the charm on his way out of his tent last night. He held it out to the crone in his palm.
"The way I've been talking with her," he spoke up to answer the woman's other question, "She's used the bodies of men she's attacked."
"The way I've been talking with her," he spoke up to answer the woman's other question, "She's used the bodies of men she's attacked."
Re: Part 1
The crone took the charm from Evan's hand and rolled it over several times. She held it between her palms and brought it to her lips, her eyes closing as she did so. She murmured something unintelligible to the charm. If the chant was anything more than nonsense, it was in another language. Finished, she looked at the charm closely, studying the symbol on it.
"The Shel'ti men have only ever gone into that fitful slumber. None have been possessed in the way you describe. When you said you had spoken to her, I had assumed she had granted you dreams. That may explain the increased attack frequency.
"This symbol here on the charm, it is a sign of mental protection, but it leaves the body more vulnerable to invaders." The crone frowned again, her eyes still fixated on the charm. "If your men wear these during the ritual, it would be like offering their bodies as vessels to her, which would please her greatly but would not be safe. No, tell your men to take them off before they depart for my cabin. I cannot guarantee their safety if they are wearing them."
"The Shel'ti men have only ever gone into that fitful slumber. None have been possessed in the way you describe. When you said you had spoken to her, I had assumed she had granted you dreams. That may explain the increased attack frequency.
"This symbol here on the charm, it is a sign of mental protection, but it leaves the body more vulnerable to invaders." The crone frowned again, her eyes still fixated on the charm. "If your men wear these during the ritual, it would be like offering their bodies as vessels to her, which would please her greatly but would not be safe. No, tell your men to take them off before they depart for my cabin. I cannot guarantee their safety if they are wearing them."
Re: Part 1
"I see," Evan nodded, and held his hand out for his charm back. Even if he wouldn't be bringing it with him later, he'd still like to keep it. He'd ruminate more on what the crone's words meant he should encourage men at the camp to do later. Seth's experience was certainly preferable to that of the rest of the men who had been attacked, so on the whole it might still be worth the trade-off, if the charm had contributed to his pulling through. But for the ritual, Evan would certainly heed the woman's advice.
"I'll go find the men for the job, then. Anything else I should know first?"
"I'll go find the men for the job, then. Anything else I should know first?"
Re: Part 1
"You might want to bring rope," the crone said with a half-hearted laugh, "some men find it difficult to stay away from her once she's set her mind on them." It was not clear whether or not she was joking. "I'll be ready when you arrive." With that, she turned away from him and retreated down the path back into the forest, her straight body graceful and poised in the moments, clear and set with purpose.
Re: Part 1
Admittedly, Evan was relieved the crone turned and walked away shortly after those comments, as the captain wasn't entirely sure he'd managed to keep fluster completely off of his face. His head swam a bit, partly just finding it kind of batshit that he was seriously agreeing to do this, partly feeling... deja vu?
A sudden chill ran down Evan's spine as he wondered whether he might in fact be in the most danger here, of the men he was considering bringing. Just, given, y'know, certain parts of his brain. He was certainly glad he'd let himself relieve some tension yesterday, as he could imagine he might've been a hot goddamn mess right now if he hadn't. Heh, he briefly contemplated whether it'd be a good idea to go ahead and do that again, even, but he wasn't really that worked up at the moment, and if he was really gonna do this thing, he'd just as soon get it done and not dally.
So, to that end, he went ahead and set out in search of Xavier. If there was anyone's nerves Evan trusted right now, it was that kid's. It might be kind of wild getting him onboard, depending on how he responded to certain things, but it seemed like his best shot.
His other thought was Seth, if the soldier wasn't too shaken. Evan was hoping that by the time he'd finished talking to Xavier, Seth would've had enough time to shake things off a bit. Fingers crossed.
Evan paused when he caught sight of Xavier diligently creating more charms. A part of him didn't want to interrupt. He did wait while Xavier passed off a charm, and gave a moment for the other soldier to be on his way before Evan finished approaching.
"Lieutenant," Evan's voice was light, and his expression was relaxed, but his using Xavier's rank rather than name did seem notable. "Can you hand off the rest to someone who helped you yesterday? I'd like to talk to you about something."
((OOC: And, like, there might be a tad bit of 'Seth and Xavier are the only named soldiers who remotely fit the bill', but it doesn't feel inappropriate. That said, if you aren't sure you want those two be the two who go, I can certainly recruit another one of my folks to be a soldier that Evan would go to about this. All of which is to say, definitely let Evan's conversations with Xavier and Seth go however feels appropriate, up to and including declining to participate.))
A sudden chill ran down Evan's spine as he wondered whether he might in fact be in the most danger here, of the men he was considering bringing. Just, given, y'know, certain parts of his brain. He was certainly glad he'd let himself relieve some tension yesterday, as he could imagine he might've been a hot goddamn mess right now if he hadn't. Heh, he briefly contemplated whether it'd be a good idea to go ahead and do that again, even, but he wasn't really that worked up at the moment, and if he was really gonna do this thing, he'd just as soon get it done and not dally.
So, to that end, he went ahead and set out in search of Xavier. If there was anyone's nerves Evan trusted right now, it was that kid's. It might be kind of wild getting him onboard, depending on how he responded to certain things, but it seemed like his best shot.
His other thought was Seth, if the soldier wasn't too shaken. Evan was hoping that by the time he'd finished talking to Xavier, Seth would've had enough time to shake things off a bit. Fingers crossed.
Evan paused when he caught sight of Xavier diligently creating more charms. A part of him didn't want to interrupt. He did wait while Xavier passed off a charm, and gave a moment for the other soldier to be on his way before Evan finished approaching.
"Lieutenant," Evan's voice was light, and his expression was relaxed, but his using Xavier's rank rather than name did seem notable. "Can you hand off the rest to someone who helped you yesterday? I'd like to talk to you about something."
((OOC: And, like, there might be a tad bit of 'Seth and Xavier are the only named soldiers who remotely fit the bill', but it doesn't feel inappropriate. That said, if you aren't sure you want those two be the two who go, I can certainly recruit another one of my folks to be a soldier that Evan would go to about this. All of which is to say, definitely let Evan's conversations with Xavier and Seth go however feels appropriate, up to and including declining to participate.))
Re: Part 1
Xavier started a little at hearing his rank but was relieved to see it was Evan, not only because that meant that Xavier had no reason to be as worried as he had been about the incident in the tent. His mood brightened considerably as he looked up at Evan from where he was sitting.
"Absolutely," Xavier said, motioning to one of the cadets near him to take his place. "We are just about to wrap it up here anyway."
Xavier was prepared to follow Evan wherever it was he wanted to talk.
"Absolutely," Xavier said, motioning to one of the cadets near him to take his place. "We are just about to wrap it up here anyway."
Xavier was prepared to follow Evan wherever it was he wanted to talk.