• Closed • The Fractured Earth

[Tio Silver]

Yaralon
100th Ashan, 719

"Are we lost?"

"Of course we're not lost. Have some faith in me will you. There's definitely one this way."

"It feels like we're going around in circles."

"Trust me Tasha. Trust me."

"... We passed that boulder about five breaks ago."

Tio looked over to where Tasha was pointing, only to spot a boulder that did, admittedly, look strikingly similar to one they'd passed only a little while ago. But it couldn't be the same one right? Sure he was still figuring out how to get the hang of this new attunement spark of his, but he couldn't be that bad right?

The genesis of this idea had come a few trials ago, when Tio had told Tasha about the first time he'd explored a fracture. They'd been discussing how wells could be embedded into thralls, which in turn led on to what wells were and where they came from. Of course the moment Tio had finished his story Tasha declared that she wanted to explore a fracture too, pointing out that since Yaralon was supposed to be covered in them it could be best to become familiar with them as soon as possible.

The idea was a good one, and so Tio had come up with an idea. He read the frequency of an ezymite well in his possession, then searched from matching frequencies in the surrounding area. It hadn't taken him long to find one, and so the pair made plans to journey there. A few trials later they set out, packed with all they needed to survive a short trip into the wilds beyond the city walls. Unfortunately Tio had forgotten to mention that he still hadn't quite gotten the hang of his most recent spark yet, and as a result his navigational ability wasn't exactly reliable yet. They had indeed been walking in circles for about half a trial now, since Tio couldn't quite pinpoint where exactly this fracture was. It was somewhere around here, he was sure of it! But where?

There was something off about this place, but he couldn't quite put his finger on exactly what it was. The earth here felt uneasy, restless, like it was lying on an uncomfortable bed. That was strange, since in his experience the earth was a lazy, sleeping giant that could rest easily just about anywhere. What could be causing this peculiarity. Unless...

"Ah! Ah of course, I've got it!" Tio suddenly cried out, rushing over to the boulder. As he approached he fed the defiance spark within his, asking for it's aid as he swiped his hand in a greeting motion. The boulder rolled over, revealing the mouth of a small cave.

"The fracture is underground! That's why I couldn't find it anywhere around here, it was beneath us the whole time!" He exclaimed cheerfully, kneeling down to inspect the cave mouth. It was small, just big enough for a person to crawl into single-file, but by the looks of it got wider the further down it went. No doubt the fracture's foyer would begin somewhere down there fairly soon.

"Let's take a quick break here and have a bite to eat. No telling if we'll have a chance or not while we're down there." He said, taking a seat on the boulder and pulling a few gold nel out of his domain bag to eat. Tasha took a seat next to him and began rummaging through her own backpack for some real food.

[Cervantez]

☠ Ashan 100th, 719 ☠
☠ Mood: Cautious
☠ Company: Mariatte & two others
☠ Current Thought: Looks like we arent the only ones who found it
☠ Current Theme: Bury Me Low
☠ Attire: Masterwork Armor

"Common Speech"

"Xantheon Speech"

☠ Njama trotted through the landscape as Cervantez and Mariatte rode on his back. She wanted to take her pupil on a lovely little field trip out into the wilderness and explore a fracture with him. She wasn't sure how this go around would go compared to the one in Zi'da but she was hopeful, to say the least.

The two made their journey into the wilderness, by direction of Mariatte and her attunement, and plotted the different applications on how to use them with their magic. Cervantez had never used a well before, even the abberyte well she had given him cycles prior. He was curious as to what this fracture would hold for them.

The duo finally came upon the area in which the fracture should have been, but Mariatte caught the sight of two other figures in the distance. It seems we are not the only ones yet again going fracture hunting. she whispered, which caused the necromancers to raise their guard a bit.

Once close enough, both mages dismounted and approached, Mariatte pinpointing the fracture beneath their feet. Looks like we may have to crawl our way into it though. she purred, looking to the new faces, then to the hole the fracture.

Cervantez looked to them, Njama stepping forward with a deep and reverberating growl.

"Eto Njama, eto."

he said, flicking the hound's nose with his black glove. Turning to Mariatte he looked to the hole as well.

"So its below us huh, in that hole?"

he inquired.

Mariatte nodded and turned to him with a smile, then ran over to Njama. Do you think Nja here can dig his way to it? I'm sure the big fluffy pup can do it! she asked, which made Cervantez smirk.

"Jama'a madauki tọ.{Come dig here}"

With a snap of his gloved hand, Njama went to work digging at the whole. With that underway, the two necromancers approached the two new faces and introduced themselves.

"Forgive the intrusion, I'm Cervantez Xeleno, and this is my mentor, Mariatte Lahvayeau"

he said, bowing a bit in front of them. ☠

[Tio Silver]

"Master, there are people coming."

Tio looked up from his seat to where Tasha was pointed, and spotted the small party coming towards them: A man and a woman, both dressed head to toe in black and riding on a gigantic dog. Could they be Coven mages? They certainly dressed like it, and would explain why they had come to the fracture as well. Reaching down into himself, Tio called upon his attunement spark and tried to focus in on the pair of them. He locked onto the frequency of the woman first, and raised an eyebrow curiosity as the familiar notes he could detect coming from her. The slow pulse of a dying heart, the gentle rustling of the wind through trees, and the fast paced hums of ringing bells; a necromancer, attuner, and defier with a wind kinship! She had the same sparks as he did! How fascinating! Next came the man, from him Tio heard another dying pulse the almost mirrored that of the woman's. The two must have been a master and apprentice duo as well. He didn't resonate like a human did either, but Tio didn't recognise what race he was detecting.

By the time he was done the mysterious pair had almost arrived, and Tasha looked over to him urgently; a silent question of what they should do. Tio shrugged back flippantly, an instruction to stay calm and see how this played out, then hopped off his seat and waltzed over to the strangers as they approached.

"A pleasure to meet you Mr Xeleno, Ms Lahvayeau." He replied brightly, returning Cervantez's bow with one of his own. His was very low and included a twirl with his hand, like a jester after a great performance. "My name is Tio, and this lovely young woman behind me is my prodigious apprentice Tasha." Tasha's glare sharpened, and she crossed her arms disapprovingly. It seemed she was feeling rather hostile today. "She's... um... she's normally friendlier. Sorry, I'm afraid she's not really the outdoorsy type. Too much much time spent cooped up in a lab. I assume you two are here for the fracture as well?"

He casually put his hands behind his back, subtly taking hold of the hilt of the machete concealed down the back of his trousers. His one good eye watched them closely, looking for any sign of a lie. "I hate to be blunt, but the word 'Coven' doesn't happen to mean anything to you does it?"

[Cervantez]

☠ Ashan 100th, 719 ☠
☠ Mood: Calm, Curious, Cautious
☠ Company: Mariatte, Tio Silver, and his apprentice
☠ Current Thought: Coven?
☠ Current Theme: Bury Me Low
☠ Attire: Masterwork Armor

"Common Speech"

"Xantheon Speech"

☠ Needless to say, both mages brow raised at the man's introduction, even more so, his appearance. With a shared glance between Cervantez & Mariatte to each other, to two smiled, which then broke into giggling and laughter. Just what on Idolas is that dreadful thing you are wearing, it's unsightly, and that's being nice about it. she inquired, finding his attire unpleasant to her eyes, even if she was laughing at it.

"I can see why he wears a mask, I wouldn't want the public to know what I look like either for wearing such garbs."

he chimed in. After their laughter had left them they both bowed in apology, as it was rude of them to make fun of a stranger, not the best way to meet folks.

When asked if they were here for the fracture, both nodded, and Mariatte spoke first. Yes, we find its the only way to gather wells for our......research. Can't make thralls without them ya know. I take it by you introducing her as your apprentice, you two are mages as well? though her question would have to wait as he asked a rather.....provoking question next.

Cervantez raised a brow at the inquiry and shrugged.

"Never heard of it, so I can't say that means anything to me."

he said, looking back to Njama to see how far his digging was coming along. Mariatte, however, was not all that keen on it. Her face soured rather quickly at the question.

As if I would allow myself and my pupil to be associated with that hag of a mage. she scoffed which caused Cervantez to give her a look of concern.

"Should I be aware of this Coven Mariatte?"

he asked, looking between her and the faceless masked man.

No you shouldn't, but I think our new found friend here should explain the Coven he thinks we are apart of. she answered, giving the badly dressed male a look that read "Well go on, tell him". ☠

[Tio Silver]

Tio puffed his chest out in an exaggerated show of indignation when Cervantez and Mariatte laughed at his shirt, overplaying the role of being offended in the hopes of breaking the ice somewhat and making the conversation a bit less formal. All the bowing those two were doing was starting to make his back hurt just looking at it. He knew his shirt was a source of ridicule for most people who saw it, but with all the mutations and curses he'd picked up he could honestly say that he cared very little for what others thought of him anyway. Why not let them laugh? Sure he looked like an idiot but he knew he wasn't one really, and if anyone made the mistake of underestimating him for it then they'd be the ones paying the price. He felt good wearing it, and everyone else felt good laughing at it, so it was a win-win for everyone.

"Unsightly as it may be, surely it's better that wearing a long black coat and armor in the middle of a savanna?" He replied, directing his words at Cervantez with a pointed look. "Don't get me wrong, it's cute and all that the two of you have matching dark and edgy outfits, but did you not think it might be advisable to wear something a little more airy in a country that borders the hotlands? Besides, do you see all these colours?" He ran a hand down one side of his shirt and preened. "How could anything this fabulous be dreadful? You think it looks cool don't you Tasha?"

"You look like someone melted down a peacock into a bucket and tipped it over your head." Tasha replied stonily, wearing the bitter expression of someone who'd had to put up with the offending item for far longer than anyone should have.

"Et tu Tasha? Et tu?"

The conversation rapidly changed pace however after he brought up The Coven. Tio watched them carefully as Cervantez denied knowing who they were and Mariatte showed a great manner of distaste for them. He couldn't see any signs that they were lying, nor did their frequencies suggest as such, and if they had wanted to deceive him it seemed more likely that they would have chosen the same story to stick with. It seemed that they were telling the truth then. Good, that made things a whole lot easier to deal with. Smoothly Tio let go of the hilt of his hidden knife and brought his arm back down naturally to his side, as if he hadn't been doing anything with it at all.

"Them? Ah don't worry about it too much kid, just a gang of magicians with heads that're too big and brains that're too small. They're mostly necromancers who also like to dress like everyday's a funeral, so I figured I couldn't be to careful. They recruit a lot of ambitious young mages with promises of power and arcane secrets, but all their secrets come with a lesson promoting their radical doctrine." He gave a heavy sigh and scratched the back of his head. "Honestly, what's the world coming to when the next generation of magicians have to go to a cult if they want to learn something their master can't teach them? And some of us wonder why magicians have such a bad reputation these days."

As if a switch had been flicked Tio's contemplative mood was suddenly gone in an instant, replaced again by the theatrical joker he'd been when they introduced themselves. He spun around on one foot to look at the cave entrance, which the demon-dog had done an impressive job of widening. "Buuut enough of that depressing stuff. Seems to me that we're all here with the same goal in mind, and I'll bet this fracture is big enough for the four of us. How about we party up? After all four heads must be better than two right?

"Master!" Tasha cried, shooting up from her seat with a scowl on her face. Clearly she wasn't very happy about the idea. "We've literally just met them! You can't trust people on a whim like that!"

"Ah relax. They're just here for a few wells, same as us." Tio replied flippantly. "Useful as they can be I don't think anyone here thinks it's worth getting in a fight over a handful of them. Besides fractures are weird places, and dangerous more often than not. The more eyes we can get looking out for us the better, especially since I'm not doing so hot in the eyes department myself."

He turned back to Cervantez and Mariatte and offered an outstretched hand to them. "So what do you guys say? Partners?"

[Cervantez]

☠ Ashan 100th, 719 ☠
☠ Mood: Calm, Curious, Cautious
☠ Company: Mariatte, Tio Silver, and his apprentice
☠ Current Thought: Coven?
☠ Current Theme: Bury Me Low
☠ Attire: Masterwork Armor

"Common Speech"

"Xantheon Speech"

☠ Both mages looked to each other then to Tio, and his reluctant apprentice. To say they found this pair odd would have been the understatement of the arc. But with high Cervantez's reservations where with them, Mariatte gave his arm a squeeze, as the woman couldnt reach his shoulder.

That squeeze reassured her pupil it was alright, to which he removed his hat, revealing the flaming orbs for eyes, and unsheathed his hand from the glove and wrappings. Shaking the odd man's hand he smirked, nodding in agreement in both parties exploring a fracture.

When the pleasantries were out of the way, the curious nature of the necromancer nagged in his ear. Just what did this coven have to do with him? But before he could ask that he wanted to clarify some things.

It was obvious that these two were not from around here, otherwise, they would know better than to camp out here.

"I take it from the fact you two are camping out in the wilds that you are either new to the "hospitalities" of Yaralon's wildlife or insanely confident you won't die out here."

he assumed with a chuckle. If it was the later than their run must have been a breeze and he had nothing to worry about.

However, if they were new to the area then they would be in a rude awakening at how comfortable the savannahs could be.

"Njama is digging a tunnel to the fracture, that way we don't have to crawl through the dirt and ensure your jacket stays.....beautiful?"

that was a hard word to use when thinking on that hideous piece of clothing.

"In the meantime, why don't we get acquainted. What exactly brings you two to Yaralon? I can safely assume its not for the scenery given you just so happen to be camped near a fracture of all things. I take it you two are mages then?"

though he asked out of courtesy, it didnt take much to put the pieces together.

All the clues where there, them being outside a fracture, him calling her his apprentice, and that inquiry if Cervantez belonged to the Coven. It all pointed to them being mages. He would have been fine with them not answering truthfully, as most mages just don't go around telling everyone they meet they are of the magic variety. ☠

[Tio Silver]

A spark of curiosity flashed across Tio's eye as Cervantez removed his hat and gloves, revealing a strange set of skeletal hands and flaming eyes. Wow, those were some pretty radical mutations he had there. He might have looked like some kind of villain straight out of a children's story, had the man not also had a chin so square it looked like it'd been carved from granite! He could probably chop wood with that thing!

At Cerv's first statement Tasha couldn't hold back a short chuckle, and shot a quick look over at Tio. "Oh one of us is definitely insane all right. We're more than capable of handling ourselves though."

Tio gave a flippant laugh. "Aww Blondiepop, don't be so hard in yourself. I think you're perfectly sane."

"Not me you idiot, I meant-..." Tasha gave a long suffering sigh. "Oh forget it. I don't know why I bother sometimes..."

The muscles at the side of his face curled up in what might have been a smile, but with the mask over his face it was impossible to tell if Tio was smirking or not. he looked back over to Cervantez. "We're new to Yaralon alright, but we've had plenty of time to get acquainted with the wildlife. Our ship crashed in Maiden's Refuse and we had to complete our Run from there. Wasn't pleasant, but at least we got the idea of what life around here is like pretty quickly. I'd thought the rumors about this place were exaggerated, but if anything they were too kind. Yaralon is lethal. I take it then that you two are locals? What's the general attitude of people here towards necromancers?"

At the reminded of the existence of the giant dog, Tio squirmed uncomfortable and not-so-subtly shifted to the side so that Tasha was directly between him and the dog. From her glare it was clear that Tasha knew what he was doing, but decided to tolerate it. When Cervantez asked his question they both looked back at him, and nodded in unison. "Aye, we're mages. From Scalvoris." Tio began. "We're here to research fracture sites and the effects their wild ether has on the fauna and flora. They may be dangerous, but the wells and unique alchemical reagents they produce are astounding. If they could be controlled, harnessed, then it would revolutionize the fields of alchemy and ensorcelling! I'm also opening an academy to train mercenaries as a means to get some money and form connections with the mercenary companies.

His eye flickered back and forth between Cerv and Mariatte. "What about you two? Looking to gather some wells for your thralls I imagine? Perhaps the two of you have ambitions of your own, eh? After all nobody seeks out a spark of magic unless they have something they want to achieve with it." He leaned forwards, getting perhaps just a little bit too far into their comfort zones as his eye stared into theirs teasingly. "Care to share? I'm always looking for allies, and the two of you seem like my kind of people. Maybe we could help each other out?"

[Cervantez]

☠ Cervantez Xeleno ☠
☠ Mood: Intrigued
☠ Company: Mariatte, Tio, & his apprentice
☠ Current Thought: What an interesting fellow
☠ Current Theme: Bury Me Low
☠ Attire: Masterwork Armor

"Common Speech"

"Xantheon Speech"

☠ This man was if anything, entertaining. Cervantez found his mannerisms to be akin to that of a child, but he couldnt fault the man for being confident, no matter how ridiculous his clothing was. He made the lothar chuckle and that in itself was a feat all in its own.

Both Cervantez and Mariatte listened as he explained their situation, to which both mages looked to one another, then back to the masked male. Yes my dear, This landscape is not for the weak. We Yari's have come to be accustom to the harshness. Its what has made us so sought after. she noted chuckling a bit. Cervantez nodded at the inclination that they were there to find wells for thralls.

"Yes, as one day I wish to use them to raise a dragon skeleton. The yari mountains are said to be home to a dragon graveyard."

he spoke, taking off his hat, and revealing his face and his ethereal flaming orbs. When the man asked how necromancy was viewed in Yaralon, the lothar smirked and reached for a bag tethered to his back next to his greatsword.

Emptying the contents on the floor, his ether washed over it, animating a marrow that came and sat by his side.

"Its not hated, and in actuality the people of Yaralon are rather fond of it. Most magic is tolerated, if not praised here. Mercenary companies treat mages like kings and queens, always looking to gain our favor in hopes we join their company."

he noted, petting the marrow before disconnecting his control and watching it fall to a pile of bones.

"I tend to be an independent, not like the thought of belonging to one. My father's old comapny left a bad taste in my mouth."

he added, growling a bit at the thought. It wasnt a lie as he truly disliked the idea of belonging to one.

His orbs shifted when asked what his ambitions were, noting that Mariatte had shifted her eyes to him as well. Tio was rather close for comfort too, but he held the urge to punch the weird man back and sighed. He had been giving it a lot of thought and was comfortable speaking his desires among them.

"My ambition........I've actually given it some thought. I came across this book, a journal of sorts belonging to a crazed mage supremacist name Du'umurat. He was on a warpath to make a world where mages were rulers of men, and those that didnt fall in line were erased. Its mages like that that give the rest of a bad name, that make the mundane fear us. I want to do better than that. I want to make a haven for necromancers and mages alike to study, learn and develop their abilities for the good of this world. I want to build a place where we can show the world magic is not as monstrous as its made out to be."

he explained, his flaming orbs looking to the masked male.

Mariatte hugged his arm with a gleeful smile on her face. That is a wonderful idea Cervantez, but don't think so small. Why just an academy, when you could have your own kingdom. You could become a light for mages alike, no matter their arcane discipline. You could bridge that gap between the worlds of magic and mundane. she cheered, looking to Tio with a smile. Dont you agree with me Tio? I think a country of mages would be wonderful. ☠

[Tio Silver]

It had to be said that Tio did not look particularly impressed with Cervantez's goal of reanimating a dragon. Although his face was covered the look in his eye, and the general air around him, seemed to almost say "rrriiiggghhhttt, a dragon graveyard. That's probably just to the left of the pixie hospital and behind the unicorn castle.' Tio had seen a lot of things an ordinary man would dismiss as impossible, but dragons? Really? They were definitely nothing but fairytales. If such creatures had really existed archaeologists would surely have found evidence of them by now. The information that mercenary companies greatly valued mages however was much better received. If he needed to he might be able to hire out his unique talents to companies in exchange for favours, and he wouldn't need to be so on guard about keeping his abilities hidden from the public.

When the fiery-eyed man spoke of his ambitions to build a haven for mages, and when his master encouraged him to build an entire kingdom, Tio listened intently. That did sound like a wonderful idea. During that strange gathering of mages from all across Idalos he'd been brought into he'd spoken up about how mages should use their powers to create their own paradises instead of trying to conquer or destroy ordinary people's, and now a few trials later he bumped into a man who just happened to be trying to do exactly that. Was this the hand of destiny at work again? How interesting. Cervantez's goals aligned with his quite nicely; if he created a town ruled by mages then more mages would be attracted to it, which in turn he could recruit into the Seekers. It would also be a great place to conduct his own research, since a town of magicians would inevitable develop some kind of market for alchemy reagents and wells for him to experiment on. It would be no easy feat of course: mage haters would constantly try to tear the place down, and unyielding leadership would be needed to keep all the ambitions of mages in line and their failed research from causing disaster, but it was certainly possible. In fact the more Tio thought about it, the more he began to consider just how much such a place could benefit him. If mages were as valued by mercenary companies as Cervantez had said then it could be very useful to have his planned mercenary raining academy develop ties with such a place. Those among his students who seemed like they might be promising mage initiates could be recommended to them and paired with potential masters. He'd get stronger students, and Cervantez's city would gain new recruits. It was a win-win.

"Aye, that certainly does sound like a promising ambition." Tio replied, stepping back out of Cervantez's comfort zone. "It's bound to take a lot of blood, sweat and tears to make it into a reality though. Are you prepared for that? Would you be willing to drown your hands in blood for the sake of creating this kingdom of yours?" He eyed the man curiously, searching for and telltale signs of hesitation or doubt. "I think we could help each other out after all. In fact if you'd have me I'd like to offer my services to help build this kingdom of yours. I'm a fairly handy guy to have around if I do say so myself, and I'm sure you're going to need competent people to help govern the place. You'll still be mayor, king or whatever you want to call yourself of course, but give me a seat somewhere with power and I'll help deal with the problems that pop up. What do you say your majesty? Wanna take a chance on me?"

[Cervantez]

☠ Cervantez Xeleno ☠
☠ Mood: Intrigued
☠ Company: Mariatte, Tio, & his apprentice
☠ Current Thought: You have a deal
☠ Current Theme: Bury Me Low
☠ Attire: Masterwork Armor

"Common Speech"

"Xantheon Speech"

☠ This was his answer to those questions he was given by Mariatte back in Vhalar. It had taken many ordeals and trials for him to come to this conclusion. From dealing with the Cult of Du'umurat, to that wierd place with the doors and trials. He had seen much, and knew that his kind, his mage kind, needed somewhere that they could feel safe.

As he listened to Tio speak, his mentor looked to both male mages with a glint in her eyes. The sly smile that painted her face beamed from ear to ear as she listened to the exchange of ambitions. This Tio fellow was odd, but he had the right mindset, and she wanted this partnership to take form more than they did. Grasping her pupil's hand she gave it a firm squeeze then stood and went to check on Njama who had been tunneling happily to the mouth of the Fracture.

Cervantez rubbed his chin, pondering the words Tio had spoken to him. It wasn't all to often to meet mages like himself, to meet those who were of like mind. Though it was his aligning ideals that swayed the lothar to consider the partnership. Cervantez needed as many allies as he could muster, he would not turn down help when it presented itself.

With a smile, he removed the gauntlet he had on his right forearm, revealing his demonic appendage, and shook the masked man's hand.

"I'll take a chance on you Sir Tio, I hope you wont make me regret it."

he mused with a faint chuckle.

At that time, a large shadow came trotting up behind Cervantez and he felt the wet nose of Njama brushing against his face, the hound's snout and the rest of him covered in dirt and mud. Patting his pet, he stood and went to the hole that had been dug. It was big enough for a grown Massibex to enter, so it was far easier for them to venture into the fracture, not having to crawl.

The mage stood and marveled at the colors of the fracture, a vibrant dance of pinks, greens, and yellows. The light from the fracture illuminated Cervantez as he went forward into the rip in reality. ☠