Porthca Landing III: Burned Bridges & Broken Chains

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Evening of the Twenty-Seventh Day | Porthca:

Relenting to the group, Catelyn allowed herself to be guided inside the store, directed by a few of the party, trying on various gowns, dresses, and skirts, until finally being led to one she too liked -- a simple flowing dress, red and white with a pleasant edging of lace around the sleeves and skirt. Finishing the purchase, a total of twenty-five gold, which the humble cleric kept attempting to apologize for the price only to keep being told it was no issue, the group eventually left the store before it closed, her new dress bundled safely in a protective box.

Those with darkvision could tell Catelyn's face was a little flushed from having so much money spent on her from this small side trip, but at hearing a bell from the temples, she looked up, "Oh -- I'll need to get ready, it's almost time for the meeting." Trying to adjust her hold on her items she turned to the group, "I ... don't know if you all would be allowed to come along? I almost feel you should, if Lord Benito is going to try and explain to the rest of the Families what all happened."
 
Smiling at the victory for fashion and ignoring Catelyn's blushing, Virra stepped out into the street with a contented sigh, finally having satisfied her craving for shopping. Amazing how she'd missed it after all the running around up and down the country to solve mysteries.

The chiming of the bell, and Cate's subsequent question, made her pause for only a moment. "Nah, wouldn't want to steal the spotlight," she said. "All we'd be doing is giving our side of the story again, right? We're not the type to get into the actual running of stuff. Let Ben say what he wants -- I bet the other nobles already know to take it with a grain of salt." She flashed a smile at the others. "Right, guys?" Let's go do something more fun, the smile said.
 
Having zoned out a little during the shopping trip, Tyrius had made sure to keep himself aware of what Catelyn was trying on so that he could give his opinion if asked for it, but his mind wandered.

He thought about the potential implications of what had happened last night. How Benito might react and how his families' clothing business might suffer if Benito decided to take out his frustrations by severing the De'Porthca's business relations with the Silverbanes.

As swiftly as the regrets came to mind, Tyrius shoved them back out of mind. 'What would Cortence have done?' Tyrius thought to himself, reasoning that the Silverbanes could always find some other export company - maybe not as good as De'Porthca Shipping but someone willing to export their goods. Tyrius realised he was pondering a hypothetical, though knowing Benito's tendency to anger Tyrius wouldn't be a bit surprised if it happened.

'Maybe I should send a letter home - give them a heads up.' thought Tyrius, 'Can always do that from outside Porthca.'

As Virra spoke up, Tyrius returned her smile with one of his own, "That's true - I'd say Benito's - reputation," said Tyrius, struggling on how to phrase Benito's hot headed tendancies politely, "would probably precede him."
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Porthca:
Evening of the Twenty-Seventh Day | Porthca:

Splitting from Catelyn and leaving her to her fate with the Council, the group did a little more shopping, eventually ending their day at the Scarlet Jester, a place some of them had been before as a treat from Lord Benito, a celebration of coincidences bringing friends together, both new and old.

This time the purpose seems to be to take a moment to enjoy the work the group has accomplished over the past few weeks and especially last night. Lestone samples anything offered to him, almost on the edge of weeping at every bite from the quality and not having eaten for so long. Eventually the night draws on, the elemental eating quite a fair amount especially, and appears quite drowsy between the meal and drinks, with Valerie paying for the group's dinner. Heading back to the Tuckered Kraken Cabin, everyone gathers into their rooms once more, though some still have things on their minds. Magnolia runs off to purchase some last minute pies for snacks, Ander takes some time in the privacy of his room to try and gain practice with his new abilities, and Valerie receives a Message in her mind. The voice is familiar as it is Master Enol, delivering on his promise: "I made good progress, however to be finished, it will take another two days. I can attempt to deliver it, or keep it here. Either way."


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Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Porthca:

Gathering once more for morning breakfast, the plan is discussed once more: to head towards Chilldrift as quickly as possible in hopes of helping Eliza's parents. The pair of Azarad students discuss the teleportation circles in place at the university, offering quick travel between the two, likely the fastest method of travel beyond Lestone's offer of wind flight.

Heading once more to an Accmour house, Master Enol is requested and the group's request explained. Though he seems to sigh a little bit, he eventually agrees, leading the group to an area where the the floor was broken up into rings, each revolving on their own. Watching some of them shift into place, the archmage explained depending on the alignment, they would match to different places, however he did not have one for Chilldrift directly for it was not a place he often traveled or had need of. All the same, Azarad was definitely one he had prepared.

Briefly explaining the spell, and the fact everyone needed to be within the circle, Enol began casting the spell, the runes lighting up as he went, slowly filling the stone flooring until suddenly everyone within the circle felt a sudden jolt in their chests, as if being punched in the gut and thrown backwards, yet not moving at the same time, feet stuck to the floor like an anchor.

Then suddenly ... everything is fine once more.

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Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad:

Rinmerrion had started her visit to Azarad in a pleasant way -- here to discuss theories and ideas with fresh minds while working on her book. Perhaps leave a few of her signature flowers hidden among the leaves, small remnants of her visit, especially with how Azarad had been tied in its own way to her life. For the most part she had been free to wander the grounds, given at most a guide to make sure she wasn't lost in the many demiplanes that held the campus together, doors leading into doors of more doors and so on.

However, only a few days ago, that had changed. Her young student guide had been swapped out, instead leaving her with a shorter young man, his brown hair had strange white tints at the ends, eyes seemed layered with lilac under the green, and his skin was an interesting tan color. Around his feet was nearly always a black cat that answered to Egnaro, and on his hip a modified pouch that housed a dark-colored egg. He didn't entirely seem pleased with his new duties as much as Rin seemed keen to wriggle out of his sight, her gnomic nature still making her bold even with centuries under her belt.

Giving his name as Niradnam, he had been rather tight-lipped about why she was being guarded so much, why it seemed everyone was on edge, and especially why she wasn't being allowed to leave, only informing her that it was for her safety.

This morning he waits outside her room, knocking gently on the door as an invisible servant carries a tray behind him -- a steaming kettle for tea, and a simple breakfast, suiting the preferences she had made clear over the past few days.

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Elsewhere in Azarad:

Everything is fine once more -- until awareness finally follows through the line of teleportation, the air practically humming with magic, almost seeming excited by the large burst of power that a teleportation circle requires. Opening their respective eyes, the group sees what looks like, to the prior students, to be professors, one of them with a chisel preparing to mark out a section of the circle you've all just transported to.

One of them finally speaks, a human woman, hair tied back into a braid and looks to be in her forties, her visible pin shines with conjuration and divination, "And just who are you all? How did you get to this circle?" She glares at the one with the chisel, "This is why I said we should have done this sooner! Who knows how many others have used these circles one way or the other?"
 
Returning to the shoddy room that she was sharing with the formerly enslaved elemental, Valerie had a smile on her face as she set down a cage with her avian friend in it, neatly groomed and talons clipped. "Home sweet home!" She smiled as she unhooked the lock on the door to the cage, and the large hawk quickly fluttered out from his cage, returning to his favored position on her bedpost. Valerie beamed at him warmly. "Wayne Junior, you look positively wonderful after your cleaning. I am glad to see that there is at least one service in this city that was far from disappointing." She pet him on his little feathery head and was about to ask Lestone to leave the room for a minute so that she could get changed into her bedclothes before she suddenly heard a voice in her head. Realizing that it was Master Enol, she listened to the message before thinking her response. "I appreciate your quick response, Master Enol. I believe that we would prefer to have the amulet as soon as it is finished. Thank you!"

Feeling the spell fade away, Valerie frowned slightly as her gaze wandered over to Lestone seated on the bed across from her. She was not fond of the way that Master Enol had responded to him with violence earlier that day, but she supposed that he had his reasons. And besides, the mage was helping them now out of the goodness of his heart, so he could not be all bad. Fidgeting with the ring on her hand, she called over to the elemental man. "If you would not mind, I would appreciate some privacy for a moment or two. Then, I believe it is time that we get some rest. Exciting day tomorrow, I know that I have never experienced teleportation such as this before." After Lestone left, she quickly changed and invited him back in, relaxing in bed for a moment before twirling her pointer finger, white crystals swirling out of the salted band she wore and floating over to the candle lighting in the room, snuffing it. She called out quietly. "Good night everyone..." And with that, she was out.

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The next morning, Valerie woke up early in high spirits. She had slept rather well, the Tempest seemingly calm and unintrusive with her slumber thanks to the freeing of her son. Yawning, she brushed away the salt crystals that had formed over her eyes and quietly crept out of bed over towards the hook where she had hung her newly purchased purse. Digging around inside of it, Valerie withdrew the gleaming silver set of scale mail armor and paused for a moment, considering her options. After thinking it through, she set it down on the bed. Apologies Torrent, but I have had my fill of the Sea for quite some time. Placing her right hand over the armor, she closed her eyes as a light dusting of salt crystal began to form over the set, its magic becoming attuned to her own.

After an hour, the process was complete and she put the armor back in her bag. The party was not going to be traveling through the wilderness after all, and it could not hurt to make a good first impression in Azarad... especially when she had been supposed to make it nearly a year ago. Valerie still felt a hint of guilt over having run out on the caravan that had been meant to take her towards the wizarding school at the behest of Grandfather's estate, but the pull of the Tempest had been too strong to ignore. Now, as she was headed back there, she had no one to rely on but her friends and her own heart.

After Lestone left to have breakfast, Valerie set out a spread of outfits on her bed, considering them each for a moment. Too flashy... Out of season... How about something a little academic? She changed into a silver pencil skirt and an emerald green blouse with matching boots and held out her hand, salt swirling and coalescing into the form of a compact mirror. She smiled in satisfaction as she looked at her outfit before frowning as she saw her plain brown hair looking back at her. Hmmm... I suppose black goes with everything... The young warlock snapped her fingers and salt swirled around her briefly before fading away, leaving her mostly unchanged save for her hair, which was now jet black. Perfect! She snapped the mirror shut and dropped it to the floor where it shattered upon impact before fading away into nothing. The young warlock began tying her hair back into an elaborate braid as she eyed the two crowns that she had set out before her. Peace or war... Well, if we are going to be traveling to Azarad, I hope that there is peace in store. She picked up the golden olive branch circlet and placed it over her head, putting the mage crown back in her bag. Swinging her purse over her shoulder, Valerie made sure that she had collected all of her belongings and opened the door. The young noble whistled and Wayne Junior abandoned his position by her bedpost, fluttering over and grasping onto the strap of her purse of holding as she took one last look at the room. Well, so long, Porthca. It has been... interesting. She closed the door with what she almost hoped to be finality before quickly making her way downstairs to join the others.

Listening to the recap of the plan, Valerie looked over to Eliza in slight concern, hoping that her friend was not too nervous about the state of her parents. Do not worry, Eliza! We are going to help them as soon as possible. And then we will set to work freeing this world from the clutches of slavery. She let out an internal sigh, although she still felt determined. It will not be easy, but I believe that we are Okesh's best chance.

Moving with the others to the Accmour house and assisting with pleading their case (while also making sure that a certain centuries old air elemental made it out of the conversation unscathed), Valerie did not know what to expect when the Archmage began casting his spell on the teleportation circle. The sudden jolt followed by a subsequent burst of magical movement was shocking and grounding at the same time, nothing like the brief sense of dizziness she had experienced previously when using short ranged teleportation. Still, as she came to her senses looking at a group of professors with one questioning them, she put on a warm smile and stepped up, giving the professor a curtsy. "Apologies Professor, I am sooooo sorry for the intrusion. My name is Valerie Rhitegast, and these are my companions Tyrius, Ander, Magnolia, Virra, Eliza, Terminus and Lestone." Her avian companion nibbled lightly at her ear, but she managed to hold herself back from giggling. "And also Wayne Junior. We were transported here by Master Enol from the city of Porthca." Looking down, she saw that the circle they were standing in appeared to be seconds away from being destroyed. "Which is apparently not a particularly often traveled to city in Azarad. Regardless, we were possibly hoping to find some way to pass through from here to Chilldrift? Once again, I am so terribly sorry for interrupting you like this."
 
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Checking into the tavern, Tyrius spent the night after the dinner gently checking over Bookwyrm's egg, making sure it was secure in its bag before he tried to pen his diary that was for Elizabeth's benefit. As it was, it took him a good few hours to pen more than a few entries. There'd been days - especially after the destruction of the wyvern nest - where Tyrius hadn't been in the right state of mind to make an entry in his diary. Then there was a copy of The Sea's contract that appeared in the middle of an entry as Tyrius hadn't finished one before writing down the contract. After a few hours, Tyrius just lay on the rented bed with Bookwyrm's egg propped up in its satchel with a pillow staring at the white washed wall trying to work out what else to put. He'd written about returning to Porthca, he'd written about what had happened at the beach - reluctantly adding in Benito's tantrum as Tyrius could imagine that any further business with De'Porthca Shipping was probably gone and his parents would want to know why.


"Do you reckon they'll understand, Bookwyrm?" said Tyrius, gently cradling the egg in his arms. He couldn't wait for the wyvern to hatch. He wasn't under any illusion that he'd be able to talk to Bookwyrm in a way that the wyvern could understand. Still, he remembered the way that his father Baldrus had talked to anything he was trying to help, be that a small rabbit that was limping because it had gotten its foot caught in a hunter’s trap once or a big bear that was sick and injured. “Wonder how you’ll be when you hatch?” thought Tyrius out loud as he set aside his writing utensils, leaving his diary to dry off. Repositioning the egg on the floor away from anything that could fall onto it and with a pillow propping it up, Tyrius went to sleep.


The next morning, Tyrius dressed quickly in his navy blue suit, Azarad pin on the lapel, making sure his tie was done in a wide knot and his red hair was brushed back. Collecting his things together, Tyrius only had two slices of toast and some coffee before he walked with the others to the Accmour House. Feeling particularly strange as the effects of the spell hit. Seeing the sudden sight of a different room, Tyrius could only assume it had worked as intended. He didn’t want to think about what might happen if the spell went wrong. With Valerie taking the lead, Tyrius stepped a little to the side, trying to get Bookwyrm’s bag behind him where it wasn’t immediately obvious and making sure there was a clear line of sight to the Azarad pin so that the professor could see it. “It’s sort of a - family emergency.” explained Tyrius, trying to summarise it as concisely as possible. “In Chilldrift. Which we couldn’t get to from Porthca but Master Enol Accmour was kind enough to send us here in the hopes we could reach Chilldrift from here.” Tyrius hoped the name drop would help to convince the professor they weren’t just random people popping up from nowhere.
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad:

The woman looked between Valerie an Tyrius, motioning for the one with the chisel to begin his work. "Porthca," she finally spoke, seeming the chew on the word, "I see. Too far away to bother keeping in the loop with news here. We're not deactivating this because of disuse, but rather for safety."

Sighing she rubbed her brow, "I am Professor Ausan Parre, my skill sets align with Conjuration and Divination, yet as a cruel prank it seems I did not see this coming. The circle to Chilldrift was deactivated twenty minutes ago, and we cannot repair any of the circles until a current ... issue is resolved. I'm sorry." Ausan gestured to Tyrius' pin, "I see at least one of you is a prior student, I suggest you lead your friends towards the Central Plaza and ..." making a quick gesture with her hand a sealed scroll appeared, "Offer this to the Gate. It will allow you out of the campus so you can find lodging until this matter is resolved. Once again, apologies, but this is best we can do at the moment."
 
Rin had started the day off like any other, pulling on a collection of mottled brown and green clothes before wrapping a blanket around her shoulders and making her way over to the desk before the sun had risen. The elderly gnome is a little under three feet tall, shorter with her slight stoop in posture that came from her age. She has long grey hair that she keeps tied up in a bun most of the time and slightly bushy grey eyebrows that frame a kindly but aged face. Around other people it is very rare to see Rin without a smile on her face and her warm eyes and happy demeanour are often the things people remember about her. However despite her age she isn't slight and there is a lot of surprising muscle under the bulk of coats and robes and blankets that she wraps herself in to stay warm. She did always walk with a staff, a gnarled piece of wood covered in delicate carvings and coming to a tip where a pink and white peach blossom was carved.

It had been a very fruitful trip so far, despite the inconveniences of her being told to stay in one place which is something she had never really done well unless her children were there. As she flicks through the book she has been working on she runs a wrinkled finger over a pressed flower, a delicate purple bloom that was so close to one of Alli's favourites as a child. She had been shocked when she first saw them and it took a lot of studying to work out the differences, still it was always amazing as to the spread of so many beautiful things in the world. Not that she should be too surprised, after all purple was a vivid colour in the vision spectrum for a lot of pollinating insects and so was one of the more commonly seen flowering colours, smiling to herself in that moment it didn't really matter the science behind it just the wonder of something so small and charming.

As the morning drew on she wrote a little about the climbing plants she had witnessed dotted around the campus, far more like wisteria than any strand of ivy she had seen but with much smaller flowering bunches. If the plant itself was non-invasive, and she would need to do a lot of testing to confirm that theory or not, then it would be interesting to incorporate it with larger trunk trees in decorative scenarios. There is a point where she stops for a few moments, tapping the quill against the parchment as she thinks. Her first drafts are always filled with those little dots and marks from her pondering one problem or another. She really needs to decide what sort of book this will become, what focus plants she will be studying the most. All that this venture had brought so far were sheets of notes on a wide variety of things.

Finally after a couple of hours she wipes the quill tip clean and tucks it inside the writing pouch before kicking her feet back and forth waiting for the inevitable knock on the door. Poor Niradnam never seemed to get the time right for breakfast, or maybe it was the cooks who simply did not get up early enough. Still she does not begrudge him the efforts he takes, he is good lad even if he worries too much. When the knock comes she drops off the chair and pulls her pack up onto her back with an unexpected ease before throwing the door open wide with a large grin. "Nirry darling, you are late again. It's okay though, it's okay. Come on, let's go. I have been waiting an age." The elderly gnome spryly steps around her guide and grabs a slice of buttered toast from the invisible servant, popping it into her mouth as she turns back.

"Well, don't just stand there gawping young man. There are things to do and places to go. You can take me out of this silly quarantine today. Ah no ifs or buts, I would like to see the city. Maybe go for some tea somewhere with a view." She takes a step back towards him and reaches up, patting him gently on the arm. "You should put on a coat, you will catch a chill and then where will you be? It will be me looking after you instead." She barks a laugh at the thought and waddles off without looking back, her staff clicking rhythmically against the floor. "Come along Nirry sweetie, no dawdling."
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad, Elsewhere:

Niradnam began to respond to the small gnome, but already she was off down the hall, the servant holding the tray trying to keep up with her, hovering just behind her. Instead with a sigh he trotted to catch up with Rin, "My name is not 'Nirry', it's Niradnam." Keeping a hand on the egg on his hip he caught up, a black cat following behind at its own pace.

Messing with a small braid between his fingers he continued, "It's ... not a quarantine, it's protection to keep you safe. The University would not like to report you were injured on their watch ..." As she patted his arm he looked down at the coat he already had on, a dark maroon fabric with an expression of, does this not count? "I'm probably more resilient than you think, you shouldn't be concerned about me -- but I'll need to at least let someone know where we're going so if they need to get ahold of us for some reason."
 
"Yes, yes of course dear of course. But Nirry is a nice name and you are a nice boy." Rin continues to move quickly down the hall, deceptively so for her gait and her age. "Of course it's a quarantine, it's just silly to think that keeping me in these walls is a way to keep me safe. Who would possibly want to hurt an old writer hm?" She smiles warmly up at Niradnam before cutting directly in front of him and wandering down a side passage. "Just some busy-bodies who want to tick as many boxes as possible. Come on lad, keep up."

Rin makes her way towards the courtyard, and eventually the exit, almost daring Niradnam to try and stop her. "There is a lovely inn in the city, it does wonderful pastries. Doesn't a pastry sound good? Of course it does. Need to get some meat on your bones anyway dearie. Far too thin. No girl is going to find you attractive looking like a rake you know." The elderly gnome gives the guide a devilish smirk as she continues to walk before stopping abruptly. "That's where we are going. Go and run along and tell who you need to tell, I'll wait here." She spots a row of bedded plants in the courtyard and leans down to study them for a moment before looking up and waving Niradnam away. "Go on lad, go on. The sooner you get back the sooner you can take an old woman for some tea."
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad, Elsewhere:

"Wouldn't it be nicer to call me by my actual name?"
Niradnam tried to reason, stuck nearly jogging behind the quick gnome and already growing frustrated. He had so many other things he'd rather be focused on than being a babysitter to someone who clearly didn't want him around ... or at least if he was to be around, then to be babied by her instead.

Nearly tripping over her sudden direction change he let out a faint yelp, keeping a hand protectively on the delicate egg at his hip. Turning slowly he narrowed his eyes at the elderly gnome, then glanced around, seeing all the other students wandering between classes ... too many were present for what he wished to do, and with another sigh he started an awkward jog attempting to keep pace. "You know -- you could make my life a lot easier by just ... slowing down? I thought those, ah, wizened in their years, were supposed to understand the joy in taking their time?"

Taking a breath as she finally stopped he gave the gnome a quick glare as she studied the plants, "I ... I think my appearance is for me to worry about, though I appreciate the concern." Egnaro trotted up, tail in the air and started digging around in the small plot of dirt, Niradnam knelt briefly to pet him. "Keep an eye on her for me Egnaro. Gods know I need the help." Standing he gave Rin one last look, "You will be here when I return, yes? This isn't another attempt to ditch me?"
 
Magnolia Underbow, resplendent in her brand new plate-mail, made the teleportation with ease. Perhaps it was her familiarity with the drink that gave her such an iron stomach, perhaps Yondalla didn't wan her to puke on the silly mage wielding a chisel. "What on earth has gotten you silly super powerful magic folks so scared? Did a terribly ugly creature come through or something?"

Most of her possessions were neatly stored in her magic hole, which currently resided in her back pocket. The pies however were neatly stacked in her backpack where they would be safe.
 
Rin looks up from the plants with a wicked glint in her eye. "Wizened in their years eh? Calling me old are you?" She chuckles to herself and goes back to looking at the plant, gently raising up a leaf with her finger. "There is a joy to be had in taking time with some things definitely, family and good food and great memories. No point wasting that time wandering slowly down corridors though young man, that's some real wisdom there. Don't waste time taking your time when it could be better served elsewhere. Now, off you pop."

The elderly gnome reaches down and scratches Egnaro lightly behind the ears, muttering a few words of praise to him in the Gnomish way before she looks back up to Niradnam. "I said I will be here and I will, if I was so desperate to leave your company then I would have just done so this morning when you were lazing around in bed." She smiles at him and there is absolutely no malice in the expression despite her needling and teasing earlier. "As much as you must find me a tiresome old bat, I do rather enjoy our days together. You are a rather agreeable guide. You could use some work on going places and getting back in a hurry though."
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad:

Ausan motioned for the group to finally step off of the circle as the other person got to work. "We are
not scared," she began, "merely trying to make sure nothing is overlooked in the current situation." Satisfied with that clarification she held out the scroll again waiting for someone to take it. "Regardless, it is our concern and not for outsiders to worry about. Soon enough it will be dealt with and that will be that."

Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad, Elsewhere:


Egnaro happily shifted his head for optimum ear scratches from the gnome as she spoke, Niradnam tapping gently on the egg he carried. "I wasn't lazing -- regardless." The invisible servant finally caught up, still carrying the tray, however most things that were on it had fallen off at some point, making Niradnam sigh. "I'll have to clean that up at some point too ... Fine. I will be back momentarily, please don't wander too far." Turning he took a moment to look at where they had actually landed then headed off towards a building further off, it looked almost like a guard's structure, but as he opened the door, the interior looked far different, visible for only a moment until he entered.

Time began to pass as it tends to do, somewhere across the grounds a bell rang, indicating the next set of classes were due to start, leaving very few students wandering in the courtyard save a few here and there that looked older, perhaps ones that didn't have lessons for this hour. Most of them pay no mind to the gnome investigating the flower beds, however there seems to be one sitting by one of the outdoor tables that is fixated on watching Rin at work.
 
Tyrius gave the professor what he hoped was a charming smile as he stepped off the circle and watched with some sadness the way the runes were being chiselled away. 'If only we'd got here sooner,' thought Tyrius, before reminding himself that there was nothing they could've done and they'd already made a move towards Eliza's parents.

"Um, Professor Parre?" started Tyrius, mentally kicking himself as he realised that starting a sentence with 'um' was not the best way to convince someone. It made him sound as if he was unsure of himself and if he wasn't sure of himself how was he supposed to make someone else feel sure of what he was going to ask. "It's been a while since I've been in the university. I've talked up the library often," that part wasn't strictly true - he hadn't once mentioned the library to anyone other than his family or, when they had been on speaking terms which Tyrius doubted they were anymore, Benito. On the flip side, Tyrius did have a lot of fond memories of spending hours in the library, occasionally looking up from his books to watch the progress of the sun across the sky while he sat at one of the small little cubicle desks with his writing implements out making notes. "Would it be possible to show my friends the library on our way to the Gate?" Tyrius knew how inquisitive his friends would be, and knew that staying in the library was probably not on their to-do list, but the ability to wander campus for a little might help them work out why the university seemed to be going into lock down.
 
With the problem of the Sea resolved and Cate prepared for her meeting with the lords, the immediate problems that had grabbed Virra's attention in Porthca were well and truly over. She threw herself into the group's last night in the city with as much energy as she could, sampling every item of food and laughing the loudest at every joke. Better that than dwelling on their next destination, or the their ultimate fate as a unit.

Whatever was to come next, the deep gnome was well prepared to face it. Her glossy new bag of extradimensional storage had given her the perfect place to stow away all of the useful, necessary tools she'd bought for the road, leaving her with an empty travelling rucksack in which to store her precious wyvern egg. At a little over a foot tall and weighing half as much as Virra herself, it made her feel faintly ridiculous to be carrying it around on her back, but a part of her liked the image of the lone, overburdened traveller she'd started to evoke. It helped when she added her magic bag, plus Glimmer and a sheaf of arrows.

Ideally, she looked like nobody a university full of wizards would suspect of being an undercover psion.

That was her hope as she followed Enol Accmour to the room full of teleportation circles and joined the others in the one linked to Azarad, whistling cheerfully to hide her nerves. The gut-blow of the teleportation itself was something of a shock, but the ride that followed... she liked it. It was nothing like when she "stepped" a few dozen feet using the noosphere as easily as she might jump a puddle. This arcane magic had weight to it, pressing down on her and keeping her feet rooted in place until it was all done, which seemed to take a little longer than when she used her talents, too. Maybe it was because of the distance involved? She'd never thought that teleportation might not be utterly instantaneous.

But still, almost instantaneously, she and all the rest found themselves in a new location altogether, suffused with so much magic it made Virra's head spin. "Woah," she breathed, taking a moment just to soak in the feeling of being in an utterly alien location before finally opening her eyes. Before the group were a couple of (worryingly) confused-looking humans who struck Virra as the kind who'd be tough to talk with. She let Valerie and Tyrius take over the initial conversation while she stretched and made sure each of her limbs was still properly attached, piping up only when the subject of transport to Chilldrift was raised. "I hope that doesn't cause too many problems, but if it does then you'll have to take it up with our very good friend Master Enol Accmour, whose family line we kinda saved," she added in as casual a tone as she could manage. Dropping the guy's name for a third time probably wouldn't hurt, she figured.

Except, of course, it didn't mean anything, as the braid-wearing woman soon revealed. The portal to Chilldrift was deactivated minutes ago, and now they were stranded in Azarad pending the resolution of a cagily described issue. Virra laughed aloud. "Twenty minutes ago? You're serious? Twenty..." That was how quickly a shortcut turned into a self-inflicted abduction, apparently. Well, she didn't have time for that. If the faculty of Azarad were set on locking down their ticket back to the wider world until their situation was "dealth with", they'd darn well find a way to deal with it more promptly -- and she was about to tell Professor Parre as much before Tyrius beat her to the punch with, she had to admit, a much better opening strategy. "Oh, yeah, could we?" she chipped in, coming forward to grip the sorcerer's wrist and beam at Ausan. "Ty's told us soooo much about this place, it'd be such a waste to leave so soon. Could we maybe just take a quick look, Professor? I really love libraries," she gushed.
 
Rin feels the student's eyes on them as they are studying and slyly takes a little look around, noting the student's slightly younger and more disheveled look. Thinking that he might be a scholarship student or someone from a struggling background she didn't confront him over the staring, instead she just kept studying the flowers for a little bit. After a little time she speaks quietly, aiming it at her watcher without looking around. She makes sure her voice is warm and welcoming. "You know, if you are interested in plants I could teach you a few things."

Turning around to see the student vanishing Rin puts her hands on her hips and tuts to herself under her breath. Poor lad must have been devilishly shy to run off like that at the first words said to him. She hopes that he is okay at least. Looking down at Egnaro she huffs a little and leans down to scratch him behind the ears if he will let her. She continues muttering to him in her way with animals, mostly just mindless chatter and praise of what a cute cat he was, as she waits for Niradnam to return.
 
Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad:

Placing her hands on her hips Ausan looked over the large group that had appeared. A halfling woman, a deep gnome girl, another human girl, an older scruffy male looking human, a small scaled person with a panther apparently, a younger male human wearing sailor clothing, a female half-orc, and finally a human male who at least had an Azarad pin. After a long moment she sighed. "If it will get you out of our way as we finish up here, fine, but don't interrupt current students and don't be too loud. The books don't like that, as I expect you know."

The professor motioned with her hands, "Now shoo, you shouldn't even be here anyway -- Master Accmour I thought would have known better than to just teleport people here without permission!"

Morning of the Twenty-Eighth Day | Azarad, Elsewhere:

Slowly the tray the Servant had been carrying started to lower, landing on the ground as the magic faded, Egnaro investigating what little remained from the run through the halls. Footsteps approached as Niradnam returned from a different building than the one he had entered, "Nice to see you did stay. I informed them we'll be at the Ancient Star tavern, over in the market district, as I believe that's the place you meant?"

Apparently bored with the tray, Egnaro walked towards his master and easily jumped onto his shoulders, wrapping around and claws digging into the leather. Niradnam glanced towards the direction the other student had been before looking down at Rin, "Did something happen?"
 
"Oh I'm sure that's where we will start our day definitely. Who knows where we will end up." Rin laughs to herself before looking back to the spot where the student had been. She mulls over the idea of keeping the student a secret from Niradnam, for nothing more than teasing purposes really but at his second question she looks at the cat for a second and nods. "Nothing big, I had a student looking at me but when I tried to talk to him he vanished. Poor lad must have been shy. Didn't recognise him from any of my talks though. If I see him again I will let you know, we can have him added to a lecture if he is interested in plants." With a nod of her head the gnome is immediately off again, almost at full speed heading towards the exit.
 
Valerie looked at Tyrius and Virra in confusion as they began to talk about going to the library. "Virra are you well, or has the teleportation gotten your thoughts jumbled? I had thought that you despised..." She trailed off as she caught on to what they were speaking about and then corrected course. "Apologies, I believe I was thinking of raspberries."

As Professor Ausan gave them permission to visit the library, the young noble smiled brightly as she stepped forward and accepted the scroll from her, slipping it into her bag. "Thank you so much, Professor, we really appreciate it. And I truly do apologize for the trouble. I will be certain to ask Master Accmour to acquire the proper permission next time he wants to teleport someone here, although we were in a bit of a rush today." Valerie gave another curtsy. "I believe we have wasted enough of your time. I look forward to you resolving whatever your problem here is." She laughed a bit at her own joke before beginning to exit the room.
 
There was a brief but tense pause as Valerie spoke up and Virra studiously avoided meeting her gaze. Fortunately, Ausan didn't seem to catch on. Being literally shooed away and told to "get out of the way" only made Virra smile wider. "Oh, we'll be quiet, Professor! Thank you, Professor!" she trilled, then all but skipped from the room alongside the others. As soon as she judged the faculty members to be out of earshot, she turned to Valerie and rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Raspberries, Val? You're killing me." Then she looked up at Tyrius expectantly. "So, where are we really going, Ty?"
 
Tyrius grinned as the group left the presence of Professor Parre. Once they were safely out of earshot of the professor and her assistant, Tyrius said, "Thanks for backing me up, Virra. Don't think I could've pulled that off on my own." As he started to lead the way through Azarad, Tyrius deliberately chose a route he knew full well would take them an hour or so to get to the library. While he did want to see the building where he'd spent the majority of his time again, he was also aware that it seemed the Professor intended they see the library then get off campus. Staying on campus gave them time to plan their next steps.

"Honestly, can't believe we were that close," said Tyrius, a slight scowl on his face. It cleared away soon enough though, as he led the group into an enclosed courtyard area, "So, what's the plan? Find some way to involve ourselves in whatever's causing the university to shut down the teleportation circles, resolve it and get them to teleport us to Chilldrift?" Glancing around, Tyrius noticed someone very familiar walking nearby. "Niradnam!" called out Tyrius, a little surprised to run into the scholar again so soon.
 
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Ander mostly just follows along for the most part. He is starting to understand what is going on with him, and he wished he had thought to put a little time into researching this lion god who he seems to have a connection to. He thoroughly did not enjoy being teleported, so when they arrived and were immediately being questioned and told of their inability to be transported anywhere else, he was too busy actively trying not to vomit to respond. He pulled himself together and followed his friends, looking down to Virra and Val as they walked. He suddenly looked forward and saw a familiar man with an even more familiar cat. "What's he doin' with that gnome?" he asked out loud to no one in particular as he began striding over to the scholar and raised his hand in a wave. "Hoy, Niradnam! What brings ya to these parts... and what's goin' on here?" He gestures to the gnome, but also all around, as he is thoroughly unsure of the entire situation he finds himself in.
 
*Niradnam was suppose to be here somewhere right?*
Mags wondered along with the rest of the group, having her normal mental conversations with herself.

*of course he is silly, do you think we should use that really loud spell to find him?*


*Probably not the grumpy professor lady seemed adamant that the books hate noise. I've never seen anyone with a greater need to freaking get laid. *

*Possibly but at she already did have a stick up her ass and seem to not enjoy it.*

Magnolia burst into an absolute fit of laughter at her own private joke, most likely startling her compatriots. In the throws of recovery she spotted the whiskers of a familiar black cat, and it bookish owner.
<"Hey Virra, isn't that your
booooooyyyyfriend."> She teased.
 
"Aw, you're welcome, Ty," Virra said cheerfully, though that optimism was tempered as the sorcerer led them on their apparently aimless journey around the University. It was a grand building, of a kind that Virra had never explored before, but she couldn't ignore the fact that it was effectively enemy territory. The wizards who ran the place would have no issue with apprehending her if they learned what she could do, and she was certain that they would have ways of finding that out despite her efforts to conceal it. Would they have sensors to detect her using telepathy? Mind-reading magic? Aside from disguising psionics as spells, she didn't know what else Niradnam did to keep himself safe.

Niradnam.

"Niradnam!" She recognised the man with the cat at the same time as the others, and took off running towards him with the intent of giving him a leaping hug around his shoulders. Seconds before committing to it, she heard Mags in her mind, and came to a graceless, stumbling halt just in front of him. She looked back to shoot shot a murderous glare at the halfling, but didn't engage with her. In fact, it was for the best that she'd interrupted; the stumble was embarrassing, but better than giving Niradnam the wrong impression.

The clueless jerk.

Virra pulled herself up and cleared her throat. "Yeah, I mean, what's going on here?" she asked, quickly turning her focus on the stranger. It was another gnome, old enough to be her great-grandmother, though her skin was fair in contrast to Virra's dark grey. She didn't look like a rock gnome, either — in fact, she reminded Virra quite strongly of the only other forest gnome she'd ever known.

"Hi," she said, for lack of anything else that came to mind to say.
 
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