Session Five: The Alta Cadet Ceremony
General Summary
- The 22 of Alta -
Yarrow Fermata, Cyrus Danceyboi, and Alabaster Quilcy waited on stage for the ceremony to begin. Captain Serra Hyne fiddled with the magic coin in her pocket and then raised her hands to the sky.
"We are ready to begin. You have all trained hard and made a lot of progress as soldiers. In celebration of your progress we are going to have a small tournament in praise of Altus, the Enduring to mark the end of his month. Groups that make it to the end of the tournament will be on a fast track to being part of The Perch Guard and the group that comes out on top may challenge one of the captains on stage! Now let the festivities begin!" Serra Hyne lowered her arms and smiled at Yarrow and Alabaster. The group then watched out to the courtyard as the cadets began sparring.
Meanwhile
Aldous Brackshaw was making his way to the Skymall in search of Reyny Wright to confer with her about the plans.
On the way up there, in the Overhang, Aldous saw
Odwald Ebonhart talking with some Mapach in leather overalls and goggles. The two seemed to be arguing and Aldous, being curious, ventured further. Aldous tried to blend into a crowd of folk passing by.
"I don't care," said Odwald calmly, "my work here is done and I am leaving. You should have..."
Odwald trailed off and looked over at Aldous locking eyes with him. Aldous froze and the two stood staring at one another. The Mapach grew confused and frustrated and turned to look to the crowd. As he did Odwald took a step away and pulled an eyelash encased in gum arabic from a component pouch. Aldous knew what this meant and grabbed the copper coin in his coat and locked onto Odwald. As Odwald cast Invisibility Aldous cast Detect Thoughts and as Odwald disappeared from view Aldous slipped into his mind.
"Great the academy has already sent professors to get me, I'll have to leave now." Odwald thought to himself as he made his way to the bridge leading down the humble level. Aldous picked up on his movements and tracked him, trying to trip him as he went past. Odwald deftly avoided the attacked and faced Aldous.
The two researchers faced each other. One invisible and the other reading his thoughts. Aldous asked about Odwald's presence who in turn refused to give answers, spurring the Corvum to try and dig through his mind. Aldous pushed forward but Odwald was too resilient and forced Aldous out of his mind. Then, coming out of invisibility, Odwald cast Mind Spike mentally attacking Aldous in response. Aldous impressed that he was not here on behalf of the Avium and stressed that he was just curious. Odwald a bit amused told him to avoid buying items from the Mapach and that his business was official Perch Guard business and that he could say no more. The two Corvum exchanged nods and continued on their opposite ways.
Back in the barracks courtyard the cadets were still fighting. Many of the groups had tired out quickly already but a few seemed to be well trained and organized. Alabaster spent the fights playing music on stage, laying down, and casting Prestidigitation to show off and add flair to his antics. Yarrow hopped down off the stage along with Captain Uyncis Rose and the two began to help and take care of the wounded and defeated youngsters. Yarrow occasionally imitating Serra Hyne's voice with surprising accuracy. Cyrus meanwhile was standing close to Serra Hyne.
Cyrus began to talk with Serra Hyne and shared some of his backstory with her. Mainly that he needed to get stronger to save his hometown. Cyrus asked if Serra Hyne would be willing to spar with him to help him test his strength. Serra Hyne laughed and said that she may be willing if he thought he could beat the cadets first. Cyrus tentatively agreed.
The cadets widdled down into just two groups who began sparring immediately. Looking out Alabaster noticed one of the teams had a young Corvum girl who looked surprisingly like Aldous. Yarrow looking on noticed the Gallus boy from the day before who had an affinity for magic. The two watched as the cadets formed a tight squad and worked together to surround their opponents and gain advantage.
The Skymall was bustling with morning activity. Aldous rubbed his temple as he made his way to the spot where Reyny said she would be on guard today. Getting to her spot he didn't see her but Imad, the guard from the night before, and a new guard he had yet to meet. Aldous went up to Imad, thanked him for his intervention, and asked him about Reyny saying that he wanted to thank her as well. Imad shrugged and said that she had a rough night since the other guards began to pick on her a bit over something and that she had taken the day off. Aldous thanked Imad for the information and then began to walk away.
While walking Aldous could sense that someone was watching him. He quickly turned down an alley and laid in wait. Right behind him, in street clothes, was Reyny. Aldous expressed relief and asked her why she hadn't intervened before he had spoken with Imad. Reyny, coldly, asked Aldous what the plan was at this point. Aldous fumbled for a moment before saying that the old plan was cancelled and that they needed more information first.
Reyny was not pleased by this and defiantly asked why they needed anything else. Aldous persisted and after some conversation convinced her that they needed to wait and gain more information. The off duty guard would use the ceremony as a distraction and sneak into the barracks, into Serra Hyne's office. Once there she would steal important documents or information to help incriminate her. Aldous stressed that she should be careful and not to steal anything that would be noticed. The Raptor woman nodded and said that they could meet later at her friend Thilde Cresmoon's shop. Thilde is a scribe and Reyny has been trusting her to help her translate the letters so far. The stressed Corvum agreed and, worried about the ceremony at the barracks, said that he would get his own information and made his way out of the alley.
The tournament finished and standing victorious was the female Corvum, the Gallus boy, an angry Jerbeen, and a skittish Vulpin. Yarrow was still casting Mending and hopping around while Alabaster cast Prestidigitation to antagonize the poor Jerbeen boy who was already in a rage making him throw off his armor in a fit. Serra Hyne raised her hands in the air and began to shout again aided by her magic item.
"Now some of you may be unhappy with the outcome of this tournament. But we all have our places and some of you may not be made for combat. Some of you may be researchers, scribes, performers," Serra Hyne gestured to Alabaster and Cyrus on stage. She then turned her hands to Yarrow who was still on the ground level, "or even druids. People have different strengths and to demonstrate that our guests will be sparring with the winners of the tournament and whoever wins that match will face me in combat and witness the strength of the Perch Guard!"
Alabaster started casting a spell, Animal Messenger, and as he did so Captain Wolne Forradare came up behind him. The Hedge rolled his hands together and magic swirled around him as a small bird flew to his side. Alabaster told the bird to find Aldous and to tell him that they were about to fight his niece and that she's doing great! Captain Wolne smiled at this and walked away leaving the bard be. Yarrow meanwhile was still helping the cadets and imitating the yell and cheers of Serra Hyne. Serra Hyne looked over at Captain Baldwin Halfclaw who motioned her to keep talking. With a look of realization Serra Hyne raised her hands again.
"Also! After the tournament we are going to clean up the yard and then head out to the Temple of Hanera The Provider. We will help them with the preparations for the Feast of Hora that will be happening in the first week of the month of Han. All cadets will get assignments from the temple staff and be on call for the temple. Our winners of the tournament will also get their first assignment as junior members of the Perch Guard!" The cadets cheered in unison and Serra Hyne motioned towards the cadets, "Now let the match begin!
The fight started with Yarrow who, standing behind the Gallus boy, immediately cast Fermata's Guardian Bees. As bees erupted from the laughing Tola he looked at the kids fighting him intimidating the Gallus and Vulpin who began to scream. The Corvum girl tried to regain control and gave orders to the others to follow. She then introduced herself to Alabaster as Emma Brackshaw and asked him how it was to travel before making an attack against him. The Jerbeen, Ade, pulled up behind Alabaster to help Emma flank. Alabaster all the while made fun of the children and their futile attempts to hit him as he danced around them.
Cyrus hopped off the stage and showed little restraint as he danced and flourished, attacking the children with his bites and dagger. The cadets showed some prowess, getting into advantageous positions and using certain tactics well but they lacked the experience to really damage their opponents.
Aldous made his way to the fight shortly after the first round of combat. There he saw his niece right before Alabaster cast Tasha's Hideous Laughter on Emma. Yarrow cast Entangle on the rest of the cadets restraining Pleoh, the Gallus boy, and Maath, the scared Vulpin. Maath broke away and fought Cyrus who returned with a Witch Bolt. Emma quickly regained control and, while sassing her uncle Aldous, tried to organize her group. Seeing them incapacitated she called to Serra Hyne and asked if she could fight alongside the captain when they fought the travelers. Alabaster laughed and shouted for them to try it.
Serra Hyne leapt from the stage and began to make her way over to Cyrus. Yarrow quickly interjected and told her that it would be good to stop to move the cadets who were hurt out of the way so they didn't get hurt on accident. The captain begrudgingly agreed and called to the guard and cadets to come help their comrades up and patch up Emma and the travelers for the next fight.
Aldous stayed in the crowd, trying to remain unseen but being watched by both Captain Wolne and Captain Baldwin.
Soon after the second fight began. Serra Hyne opened with a roar, which Yarrow mimicked, and then charged at Alabaster going to punch the Hedge who dodged out of the way. Aldous studied Serra Hyne from the sidelines learning her tactics and apparent abilities. Yarrow then turned to Alabaster, still injured from the last fight, and sent out fireflies which touched and soothed the Hedges wounds. Then a strange magic enveloped Yarrow as he prepared Ensnaring Strike . Captain Wolne looked on a little wary of this change in Yarrow. Alabaster tried to use Tasha's Hideous Laughter, this time on Serra Hyne, which failed to take hold. The Hedge then prepared to do combat with the Cervan bouncing around. Emma ran next to Serra Hyne and tried to help attack Alabaster which failed. Cyrus focused his assault on Emma and cast Witch Bolt on the Corvum.
Magic flew and swords clashed and the crowd grew a bit more wary of the intensity of the battle. Serra Hyne devastated Alabaster with several strikes. Cyrus turned his Witch bolt towards Serra Hyne and empowered it. Yarrow struck Serra Hyne and his ensnaring strike activated. Strange energies traveled through his stone making vines and plants pull Serra Hyne down. The crowd grew a little shaken by this seeing their captain be contained in such a way. Aldous thought of making his way to sneak into the barracks but changed his mind.
The fight continued for some time until Yarrow closed his eyes and cast a spell. His energy once again becoming a little too natural and a crown of thorns and flowers burst from Serra Hyne's head. Emma looked up at her captain who had a crazed look in her eyes. Emma looked to her uncle Aldous in the crowd and remembered the spell from her studies, Crown of Madness. Emma immediately disengaged and ran from the fight, standing next to her uncle she motioned for the other cadets to form a defensive line with her. Serra Hyne roared and turned to go attack the cadets when Captain Wolne called, surprisingly loud, for the match to stop and Yarrow to drop his concentration on the spell.
Yarrow reluctantly agreed and the match ended. The thorns and flowers faded from the Cervans head and her eyes flickered with realization. Everyone watched in silence except Alabaster who heckled the captain and Cyrus who came up and antagonized her. Serra Hyne through a hard punch at the Vulpin who repeated himself. The captain walked off in a rage throwing her shield to the ground and flicking the coin to Captain Baldwin.
Captain Baldwin called to the cadets to start cleaning the field. The guard all started to get in groups and lines and began to break apart the stage and clean up the courtyard.
Captain Wolne hopped off the stage and walked to Alabaster and Cyrus. He congratulated them on a good fight and asked them why they were in town. The two foreigners merely stated that they were traveling for personal reasons and Captain Wolne nodded and said that if they were interested that he could introduce them to some people that would have work for them as adventurers. The Perch Guard can't do everything and some things require mobility and skills that the Perch Guard doesn't have. Alabaster agreed and Captain Wolne told him that he would set something up to help them out. In the meantime they were more than free to join the Perch Guard in helping the Temple of Hanera.
Yarrow hopped his way over to Serra Hyne and stopped her before she entered back into the barracks. The Cervan looked down in a rage at the Tola who handed her a cookie and a smile. Serra Hyne took a deep breath and told the Tola that she didn't like enchantment magic. Yarrow nodded and motioned to shake Serra Hyne's hand. The captain shook his hand but in a strange way. Yarrow tried to imitate it but failed and then asked her blankly what organization she was part of that had a fancy handshake. She told him that it did not matter and she was glad he did not know but that she could use his help and he should come by her office in the afternoon. Yarrow nodded and hopped off back to the courtyard.
Emma and Aldous stood next to each other both a bit awkward. Emma asked Aldous why he wasn't at the Avium. Aldous lied incredibly poorly. Emma sighed and asked why he was traveling with such people as his current companions. Aldous lied again incredibly poorly. The young Corvum grew a little frustrated and asked why he hadn't visited yet. Aldous grew silent and the two hugged for a moment. Emma looked at him and told him that he needed to visit tonight, that his brother would be happy to see him, and that he should come home. Aldous nodded and the two hugged again right before Yarrow popped up nearby and asked where they were going. Emma then joined her fellow cadets and went off to clean the courtyard.
Report Date
10 Feb 2020
Primary Location
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