Session Nineteen: The Heart of the Grove

General Summary

- 8 of Solas -

The party felt the earth shake and as the ash settled around them they saw a fast approaching cloud coming their way. Alabaster yelled at the others that they needed to fly. Both Cyrus and Aldous had the capabilities but were limited to only casting on themselves as they needed to concentrate on the spells. Yarrow began to cast, drawing magic from the wilds through his body. Focusing he cast Conjure Animals and in a shimmering white light two Giant Eagles appeared before them. Alabaster pulled Maneba into his bag of holding, hopped in himself, and handed the bag over to Cyrus. Cyrus and Yarrow got on one of the eagles and Aldous mounted the other. The birds took flight quickly and Cyrus looked back as the mound of ash stopped where they were on the ground and seemed to be searching for them.

Yarrow could concentrate on the eagles for an hour at most then they would disappear. The group took the time to rest a little as they were transported closer to the heart of the grove. Yarrow, still able to speak with beasts, tilted down and started to ask the eagles where they were from. They were from the Feywilds and they were curious why Yarrow was not there with them. This place seemed dangerous and dull. He should join them in the wilds where he belonged. Yarrow turned back to his compatriots and told them that the spell would end soon.

---

As they landed on the ground they saw fires in the distance. This area was riddled with tall petrified trees and active fire. Once on the ground the eagles shimmered and disappeared out of sight. The party felt hard earth beneath them. The ground was solid here, blackened, and warm. The heat was almost unbearable.

As they continued North they came across two fires of strange shape. The fires, both large, seemed to feature multiple birdfolk surrounded by shapeless flames. Aldous moved to go towards them, intrigued by the fires. Yarrow pulled him back not wanting the Corvum to upset the fires. Aldous tapped his staff and said that he'd be fine and for good measure Cyrus would cast Invisibility upon him so he could investigate a little closer.

Up close the fires were clearly playing through some sort of scene or memory. On the left were a group of what looked to be Tenders. Many were standing around while one was picking up something and then placing it somewhere. The Gallus in the fire seemed to be saying something but nothing could be heard but the crackling of the fires. Once the Gallus had gone through the motions fully the fire brushed back onto itself and the scene started over. On the right were many Tenders standing together. Many looked to be resting while one younger Tender was standing and talking to a senior Tender. Again Aldous couldn't hear anything but the pops and whistles of the fires themselves. Growing curious Aldous cast Detect Thoughts on the fire ending his invisibility.

"We need to find the artefact, we can't leave yet."

Aldous listened, these thoughts were in a deep husky voice and in a Primordial tongue. Looking at the scene the voice matched up with what the senior Tender was saying. Still curious Aldous grabbed a small rock and gently tossed it into the flames. The rock passed through the scene became disturbed for a moment but quickly reformed. The Corvum thought for a moment resting his head on Gifu's staff. He considered and then cast Command on the flames, telling them to stop.

The specters in the fire began to lose shape as the flames coalesced into a ball of heat. The fires raged up and took the form of a large beast made of fire the heat emanating off of it. The creature stood in place for a few seconds before starting to move. It started moving psuedopods in place of arms and began to speak in Primordial.

"We need to find the artefact, we can't leave yet."

The creature repeated over and over mimicking the actions of the senior Tender from the images. Aldous turned, fascinated by the act, and cast command on the other scene. Again the flames reformed into a creature. This one mimicking the movements of the Tender picking something up and placing it somewhere else.

"Dustclaw is to blame for this."

The creature repeated over and over in Primordial. Aldous thought for a moment. The Great Calamity occurred in the Hora 525. That means these spirits are from over 100 years ago. Alabaster turned to Maneba and asked them what they knew of this but Maneba was ignorant to all these events. Yarrow, Cyrus, and Alabaster looked to each other and moved forward to join Aldous.

The group took some time seeing what could be done to or with these fire creatures. Control Flames didn't seem to affect them and Prestidigitation did little to nothing. They just kept repeating their scenes over and over ignoring the party around them. The group decided to continue on into the forest. They passed a few more fires like the ones from before. These were playing the scenes of animals fleeing.

After a little walking they noticed a ring of trees ahead. A large ring of open ground surrounded a circle of trees that were surrounding a large roaring fire. The heat pulsed here and the flames carried up to be about the size of a building. Aldous moved to get closer but was kept back by Yarrow. The Tola and the Corvum began to argue about what to do with this fire. As they argued Cyrus moved forward curious about how the fire would behave after seeing the flames from before. As he moved he steps on large glowing crevasses in the ground. At a good distance away from the fire Cyrus picked up a rock and threw it at the heart of the Scorched Grove.

The rock flew to the fire and instantly burned up in the flames. The fires roared into the sky and a swirling maelstrom of fire shot up quickly taking the form of a large beast. The creature raised its arms into the air and fire shot from the crevasses under Cyrus and around the area. Creatures made of flame pulled themselves out of the ground and small spindly creatures took shape around the beast in the middle.

Cyrus screamed and cast Slow hitting many of the creatures at once and ran back towards the group. Yarrow quickly started to cast Conjure Animals again in order to escape. Some of the creatures moved up, obviously hindered by Cyrus's magics, but still able to make it to the party. Aldous stood in the middle of the party and began to cast a spell of his own before Alabaster yelled at him to get in the bag. Aldous wanted to detect their thoughts and see what he could learn but Alabaster insisted that the only way to live was to run. Aldous agreed begrudgingly and got into Alabaster's bag of holding.

Maneba used wild shape to take up less room and with Cyrus ran to Alabaster to get in themselves. Yarrow cast his spell and the eagles from before appeared. Yarrow mounted one and reached out to Alabaster. The Hedge took a swing from the creatures around him but dodged the blows and the two took to the skies letting the other eagle trail behind as a wall to take fire if it should be lobbed at them.

The party got out of range of the fires and Aldous pulled himself out of the bag.

"Get back in the bag!" Alabaster yelled at the Corvum.
"No. I don't like it." Aldous replied in a cool tone. Cyrus poked his muzzle out of the bag, obviously stressed out, "What was that?! I didn't expect that to happen!... I just wanted to watch a rock go PFFFFT!"
"It's fine we escaped and at this rate we'll be at the temple in no time." Alabaster said inbetween breaths. Cyrus pulled more out of the bag. "Maybe it's a good idea to stay away forever... we shouldn't go back let's just leave."
"What? No! We'll be fine!" Alabaster yelled. Yarrow began to ignore the two arguing and tilted his head down to speak to the eagle again.
"Hello again, Thank you for your help." Yarrow said to the eagle who nodded.
"You should really come to the Wilds back with us. This place is awful." The eagle said with a delicate gruffness. "Maybe later." Yarrow replied coldly.
"The Wilds are lovely. It's a nice temperature, there's always food, and sometimes the Prince of Fools shows up and there's song and dance." The eagle seemed vested in getting Yarrow to come. "Maybe later." The Tola replied again.
"You can even bring your mortal friends. Mortals do fine in the wilds, well some do, the ones that live become like us." The eagle said imploring Yarrow's consideration. "Maybe later."
"WE'RE NOT PREPARED!" Cyrus cried, "WE'RE NEVER PREPARED!" Alabaster cried back. "It's fine. We'll go to the temple and if it's too much we'll leave and make our way somewhere else. If we can find this artefact though it might help us to the point that we can take on anything." Alabaster cut Cyrus off who slipped back into the bag and tried to deal with the situation at hand.

The hour passed uneventfully. The group could see fires and creatures down below but none in reach of them. As the spell started to end and the eagles began to descend Alabaster noticed that the ground here was again covered in a thick layer of ash. He implored Yarrow to try and land in a tree but the Tola wasn't keen on taking that risk and landed on the ground. The eagles once again shimmered out of existence, the one staring at Yarrow as it disappeared.

The group continued on foot treading lightly as to not make noise. Soon it was dusk and the group needed to find a place to camp. As the light began to fade the party started to be on edge. Yarrow perked up his ears and heard the tiniest of squeaks. Looking above him he saw the shadows of the trees in the dark sky. Staring he saw movement at the tops of the trees. Meanwhile Cyrus saw small white blossoms on the trees ahead, many of which looked like they had been partially eaten.

Yarrow warned his party of the dangers and then called up to the creatures above them. A couple of the creatures stirred and flew down closer to the party. As they opened their black wings the area started to glow as their chests radiated with fire. Once down on one of the lower branches they began to speak and question the strange creature that could talk to them.

Yarrow asked them about the area and if it was safe for them to travel. An older bat flew down and asked if he and his brood would leave their food alone. Yarrow nodded and the creatures agreed to let them pass. The Tola also asked if there was a safe place to sleep for the night. The flying creatures said that many things came across the ground at night and it was best to sleep in the trees. The bats brought them to a larger tree that the party could rest in but also told them to be careful climbing the tree as to not upset predators.

Cyrus used Levitate on Yarrow and Alabaster and then walked up using his slippers. Aldous turned into smoke and floated up while Maneba changed shape to be a squirrel. The bats looked on curiously as the party got themselves together and aloft. Alabaster and Maneba would spend the night in the bag of holding. Cyrus would hang from one of the branches. Yarrow made a small nest for himself. The group then decided on watches for the night. Cyrus and Alabaster would take first watch, Aldous and Maneba would take second watch, and Yarrow would take third watch.

During the first watch Alabaster was sidetracked in his own head. Making some decisions Alabaster cast Sending and directed a message to Bonda of the Summer Path.

,picture, "What is this?! The fire takes form? Be careful. I will find what information I can about this. If you can send to the Avium."

Alabaster thought on this. Who could send to at the Avium. Bertram Highfeather

Cyrus, having darkvision, was keeping a keen eye on the surroundings. He saw two of the same large bipedal bird creatures as the ones from this morning. They appeared to be poking around the ash and it didn't look like they had any intentions of looking up. After a few minutes they both perked there heads up suddenly and looked to the East. They then both ran full speed away to the West. Cyrus stayed on edge and looked to the East for the rest of the watch but did not see or hear anything.

During the second watch Maneba got ready as Aldous began to tie himself to the tree. Confused they bothered him about his actions and he told them not to worry. Maneba stayed on watch while Aldous reached into his bag and pulled out some of the Dream Flakes he had gotten in Brackenmill. Aldous took a hit of the Dream Flakes and began to drift off. His talons became numb, then his beak, soon his vision faded to black and white and then to just grey.

Aldous felt himself floating into a large space. Opening his eyes he could see a large expanse. Ahead of him was a deep blue space with coloured lights far far in the distance. Purple, Orange, Green, Red, Blue, A swirling malevolent darkness, and behind him a grey. Looking at the lights he could feel them pulse as if they were alive though they be so far away. He could also feel a presence in this space. Something that knew he was here. The purple light was the closest to Aldous besides the swirling darkness so he began to move towards it. Behind him he could feel something following but when he turned to look there was nothing there but darkness.

Aldous abandoned the purple light and began to float out into the expanse. "I've been looking for you" He could feel a darkness surround him, tendrils of shadow forming nearby. "̴̛͙̙̝̮̭͘İ̶̢̡̜̳́̈'̵̟̘͂͑͝v̴̨͚̮͎̌̊̂͆e̵̺̟̥̩̅̍̏͘ ̶̪̔̆͆̀͘b̸̗̽̓̕͠e̷͎̮͖͖͖̽͘ĕ̸̱̾̿̚n̶͓̍̐͋̇̆ ̴͚̭̮̭̖͑l̷̽͆͌̓͂͆͜o̸̱͎̥͖͛̊̆͠o̴̠̿̀̋͜k̷̢̼͍͕͖͂͝ḭ̴̣̙̜̣̭̀̈n̷̳̫̱̣͛̌͋g̸̰̫̖͕̙͒̓́͒͝ͅ ̵̢̩̫̬͈̪̋̈́̎́͠f̵̟̖̉̂o̸̻͓͙̺͌̅͜r̵̨͓̻͖̅͒̉́̽ ̴̧̯̹͈̪̟͗̓̀y̷͖̅̉́o̵͎̞̮̝̗̠͋͘ṵ̷̢̡̜̭̱̌̓̑̈́"̶̛̩̏͊̈͘͝ The voice echoed all around in a broken cacophony.
"Why would you choose Flandal!" Aldous screamed suddenly enraged. "̷̮̜͉́͠ͅÝ̸̲̣̹̞̯͆͛̍̅͝ơ̸̲̦̱̘̐̉̽͘͝u̸̡̗̪̩̤̓̓ ̵̡͎͈̻̼̪̌̂͋͆́̕h̸͙̬̃a̶̧̪͑̈̚v̷̪́̐̇̓̎͝é̴̹̻̺͍̰́ ̸̨̙̜̍͜n̵̲̬̩̖̂̍͗̌͝o̷͔̺̟͎̙̔̈̿̈́t̷͉̹͙̂̅̈́̇̂̚ ̶̝̫͒͊͂ẹ̵͎̗̐͐͋̽́͝ͅs̸̫̝͈͉̜̿̈̈͝͝ç̶̠͈̬̲͆̐̎̐ạ̸͒̅͛͂̚ṗ̴̘̓̅̋̒ē̸̥͂̂̿d̶̗̦̳̻̩̆͋̈̀̏̏ ̵̼͚̿͒͆̓y̶͚̤̝̒͊̉o̷̳̱͍͋̇̌̽͋͘ͅu̷̦̥̲̇ṟ̶̳͋̑͐̐͘ ̷̞̥̯̮̼̉̔̀̊̏f̶̡̿͗ȃ̵̖͙t̵͉̋̕̕͝͝e̴̼͚̔̃͐̇.̵̺͛ ̴̨̢̧̦̱̏̽Į̴̛̉̓͠͝ ̶̢̩̺̒ẇ̸̡͈̘͓̰͍͆̏i̴̝̰̓̀̎͂̉l̷̹͕͍͑̓̒̋͠l̵̘̦̬̹͗̚̚̚ ̷̩̼̠̥̈́̂̈́̈́c̸̯͗͘ò̷̫͉͖̍̅͑͒n̶̘̼͉̠̗͋͑͛͋̕ṣ̶̘̩͙̳̩͒ū̶̙̍̆̾m̴̜̆́ȅ̶̜̐̄̈̚ ̴͕̦̿̽̆̚ǎ̴̙̦̰͇̣̲̿̀͝l̶̳̫̣̳̗̜̔̉͐͂͝͝l̷̲̲͐͊ ̵̻͖̘̓̆̾͆͑̐o̴̡͚̯̩̺͇̊̍f̸̢̩̙̱͈͆̈͜ ̸̥̠̳͘ÿ̴͙o̶͖̽̒̕u̶͇̰̲̩̼̜͆͝.̶̖͑̔"̵̰̗̝̉̆

The second watch ended with Maneba waking Yarrow. The night was uneventful and they seemed genuinely safe in the trees. Maneba also showed Yarrow Aldous and said that he took something and then hasn't woken up since but seems to be mumbling. Yarrow reassured them that it was okay and let them sleep. He kept a sharp eye and ear out for danger but also took time to talk with one of the bats that was just finishing up its nightly routine.

The bat was one of the younger ones that talked to Yarrow earlier and was interested in the party and their capabilities. Yarrow explained that they had magic and could do many things. The young bat seemed interested in this magic and wished to do it themselves. Yarrow explained what magic was to the creature as best he could but trailed off here and there. Seeing the confusion on the creatures brow Yarrow asked it a few questions about the grove.

The bats here stayed above the ground and ate many things but the white flowers that grow. They just need them for sustenance they don't really have a preference for them. They have tried to leave the grove in the past but it is very cold outside the grove and isn't very comfortable. If you make too much noise there are large snakes that live in the ash and will eat you. Also to the North the trees move on their own and will attack you if you land on them. Yarrow stopped for a moment and asked the creature about the Darkbringer. Confused once more the bat asked Yarrow what that was. Yarrow merely patted him and started to make breakfast.

Aldous thought for a moment and looked out to the darkness. "Before I am consumed can I know all that you know?" The darkness before him seemed halted for a moment the tendrils drifting in space.

...Yes...
"̶.̷.̵.̷.̵.̸.̶Y̷e̵s̵.̸.̵.̵.̷.̶.̸O̵f̴ ̷C̵o̸u̸r̸s̷e̴.̸.̸.̷.̸.̸.̴"̵
Of Course...





"Tell me your desires. Favor me above your other servants. I'll bring you what you hunger for." [color:#000000]Aldous said wringing his talons together.





[/color] End theGlow of the Other Aspects

"̷̨̛̛̮͍̗̪̬̖̙͈̹̯̘͚͓̘̬͉͕̩̐̀́̾̈́̏͗̅̀͛͌̃̃͆͂̈́̐͂̃̍͆̏͛̾́̊́̐̿́̃͌̀̌́̚̕͜͠͠Ę̶̨̢̧̛̭̦̗̩͈͕͛̅̓͗̈́̌̈́̒̄̃͒̅͛́́̂̈̊͐̆͛͋͋̇̓̓͒̔͗̾̈̄̽̌͆̈́̌͋̽̈̊͂̃̏̕͝͝͠n̴̢̡̡̫͍͇͈̰̠̖͇͚̗͇̪͚͈̪͔͉̯̗͚̩̥͖̖͎̘͖̦̪̟̣̥̰͆͑̌͌̑͂̐̈́́̔̈́̄̕͜͝͝d̴̡̡̧̡̨̧̡̢̟̙̗͉̹̲͓̜̤̖̺͓͖̺͎̤̣̘͚̩̤̘̲̠͇͔̖͙̪͓̳̬͈̣͇̤̦̞̀͑̂̄͛̀͐̿̽̉̎̏̈́̓̊̓̃̉̃͌̾̂͐̆͛͒̈́̐̏͊̊́̊̂̀̔̿̿̔̀́͜ͅ ̵̧̧̨̢̡̛̫͙̺͚͈͕̙̗͕͓͈͇̭̥̺̟̩̙̲̳̺͕̭̐̂̐̔͜ͅţ̷̫̤̣̼̹̺͙͖̖̫͖̭͍̯̯̼̜̳̍̀̈́͒͛̈́͊̔̀̀̉͋̿̌͒̀͑͜͜͝h̷̢̧̡̢̛͓̣̥͔̘̰̪̤͙̣͔̠̹̞̲̮̗̥̔͜e̵̡͚͓͙͇͎̤͎̼̙̭̠͈̳͒̽̉͗ ̸̢̧̢̡̛͙͙̩̗̂̾̑̔̃̓̾̆̓͊͒̓̉̾̆͌̉͗̋͐̎̈́͑̓̐͒́̂̾̈́̍̍̀͐͑̄́̑͋̂̇̽̀̅͌͛̔̄͋̈́̕͘͠͝͝ģ̷̧̡̢̛̻̯͉̦̪̮̫͍̫̭͈̠̱̺̙̞̮͖̺͚̘̯̟̲̳̥̝̣͚̳̻̟͚̥̹͕̤͍̻̮̜̳͈͖͇̰̝̝̲́͊̂̏̀̓͆̌̃̄͂͛̂̓̏͗͗̀̓̾̊̑͆̿̄̒̓͐̂̊̾͛̚͜͜͝͝͝l̴̨̛̘̪̣̦̥̫͕̞̰͇͙̙̬͔̣̯̞̽̈́̍̌̄̏͐̊́̾͆͂͐̇̊͑͂̆̂̊͆o̶̢̧̡͚̹̩̻̲̥̝̮̫̟̠̪̝̙̙̦̝̺̱̣̫͙̼̦̻̯̬̯̠͚̼͕̺̪̭̱̺̫̥͕̰̲̗͈͉̩̮̖̬̘̲̹̟͙̥͑̈́̄̎́́̄̌͒̆̾̌̀̀͑̀̌͊̌͘̕͠ͅͅw̸̛̛͉̭̦̭̲̘̹̙̥̣͎̭̹͔̲̜̠͓̤͗͌̐̈́̍̔͐̆̉͌̑͌̆͋͆̉̆́̽̍͂̀̈̆͛̇̈́̈́͌̕̚͜͝͝ ̸̢̢̛̗͉̣̠̪̱̩̜̞̘̜̲͚͖̜̘̦̥̗̤̳͇͚͓͔̘̠̥̥̬̙̮͆̂͐̓̽̔͊̈́͂̓͗̾͊͒̕͜͝͝͝ǫ̷̛͈̬̳̠̯̺͂͋̀̒̄̀̔̊̏̎̂̏̌̍͆͊̑͊̈̚̚f̵̨̡̣͎͕̰̙̫̩̝͎̠̰̟̯̝̯̻̭̤̲̥̼̤̲̩͔͚͓̲͔̱̘͍̳̤̗̼̳̊̓͊́̓̈́̈́̎̂̏͌̉̽̔̒̊̉̀̐͛̈́̚͘͠͝͝ ̶̧̨̛̖̣̤̭̮͎͚̯̮̣͓̳̥̗̳̪͆̈́͑̍͐̈̌̈͋͗̑͑́͒͊͒̾̈́̊͒͗̄̚͘̚͘̕͘͜͝͝͝͝ͅţ̵̢̡̢̨͈̳̲̗̪͈͇͖͖͓̘͇̳̭̗̥̞̘̣̙̤͔̼̱͓͎̤̹͕͔͉̙̬͖͓̾̿͋͛̍̀́̀̑͊̅̎̃͐͌͋̑̀̎̒̂̌̌͋̓́̓̽̚͘̕̕̚͝͠ͅḧ̷̡̛̪̝̳̠̞̼̮̳̭͉̰͉̝͕͖̰̘͖̗̼̲́͂͛̅̇͑̿́̾̂͑̿̒͂́̈͜͝ḙ̴̢̡̧̧͉̲̰̬̱̞͉̗̙̜̰̟̘̖̤̼̦̼͈̠͍̜̪͕̬̼̝͍̺̰͍͎̞̙̼̦̬͇̭̙̩̳̣̮̭̫͙̽͆͑͆͆̎̏̓͌͗̒̈́̚̕͝ͅͅ ̵̢̨̢̛̛̛͙͙̼͖̰͈̩̝͙̹͓͙̼̲̙͈̬̱̭̹̼̯̠͔̫̥̭̼̻̲͚̞̘̳̖̰̗͍̣̗̞͈̠̯̻͇̬̭̙͙̫̽̓̃̿̔͐̅̿͂̀̒̔̇̏̾͆́̽̓̐̄̽͐̏́̑̓͋́̌̐̈́͂̌̑͆̉́͑̇̆̌̉͊̓̉̊́̆͘͘͘̚͜͝͠͠͝ͅͅờ̷̡̛͉̗̙̯͕̫͕̅͒́̽̊̿͆̀̽͐̀̇͌͂̑̀̀̈́̌̾̃̌̀̐̒̒̈́̒̀̊͂́̍͂͋̀̒̂̊̄̈̕͝͠͝͝͝͠t̷̨̧̨̧̡̛̛̛̝̫̲̹̪̩͔̩͈̙͇͉̤̭̯̫̖̞͇̝͎̜̤̖̘̻̩͛̂̄̏͐̌̀̒̌͌̏̒̍̃̆̃̄̂̓͌̔̓͑̎̉͊̽̈̀̌͂̀̾͆̓̑́̕͘̚̚͘͘͠͠͠͠͠ḣ̸̛͍̬̜͇̗̗̹͎̗͙̘̦̹́̇̑͐̂̀̽̒́̎̀̍̅͆͐̄̈̆̚͠͝ͅͅȩ̸̧̛̛̰̥̭̝̺̣͚̪̦͍͈̻̫͚́̿̒̈́̉̃̒̄̍͋͌̒̒̏̎̾͊̊̓̽͋́̈́̚̕̕͠r̷̨̨̧̨̡̡̢͎͓̹̜̘͚̦͇̯̺̝͎̘̯̻̠͎͎͚̬͉̖͇͖̞̠͖͙̲̟͕̹̣̩̳̪͈̼̖͑̐̒̓̾͐͂͒͛̈́̔̌̄̈́́̋͊̚͘͜͜͜͜͠ͅͅ ̶̨̧͕̱̤̗̫̳̤̝̞̼͖̺͍̹̩̜͓̇̐͑̍̉͐́͋̕͜ͅą̸̡̢̢̢̨̭̟̝̲̰͎͙̩̹͖̘̮̞̳̪̟̝̘̖̹͎̙̩͎͎̟̪̰̘̗̼͍͖̣͖̠̭̳̠͚̘̺̣̩̯͙̩̝̠͈̿͌̀͊̄̑́̈́̄͋̇̓̀̌̈́͋̀̀̈́̐̒͘̕͜͜͠͝͝͝ͅs̵̢̛͓̰̳̥̘̗̹͈̯̱̲̜͛̿̄̈́͆̒͑͗́́̿͋͑̍̍͑̓̈́͊̉̌̀̈̋̎͆̉̕̚͘̚͝͝͝͝͝ͅͅp̶̢̡̤̜̬͍̺̤͉̩̥͓̼̹͐̈́͋̇̐͑̏̉̌͊̈́̒̉͒̈́͂̾̒̋̃̓̔̀͛͑̆̐̓̾͗̕̚̚͜͝ȩ̷̛̜͕̯͍̪̱͔̬̣̩̲͎̰͈͎̦̩̻͍̯̙̯̮͈̰̙̤̼̬̼̭̥͖͓̄̈́̈́͗̇͆̀͆̇̈́̽͂͂̿̍͋̓́̓͊̋̍̑̃͐͋̋̔͂̊̈́̍̏̊͘̚͘̕͜͝c̴̢̡̫̯̤̫͖̟̩̦̬͔̯͙͇̙̬̘̖̎̽͛̍̓͒̾̍̒̍̈́̄̉̐̅̿̔͐̿́͐͋͊́̋̓͘̕̚͝ͅͅţ̴̨̡̡̡̨̣̰͔̬̖̤̯͚͙̗̬̘͚̼̫͚̺͙̜̯̻͈̱̲͖̙͇̠̗͉̥̦̣̣̲̞̻͍͍̣͉̼̟̤̝̖̪̞̠͉̮̌̓͋̿̏̇̾̊̂͛̌̄͒͒̆͘͜͜͜s̴̡̢̭͍̘̝̰̗̩̪̺͚͕̲͚̩͚̲̗̠̼̥̭̟̜̩̰̬̬͖̤̱̫͍̈́̿͑̓͋͗ͅ ̸̧̛̫͈̬̙̬̹̬̱͈̞̱͍͎͚͎͍̼̣̼̮̠̯̣̩̯͕̹̻̭̰̫͐͊̄͋́̏̏͒̀̋̇̂́͑͛͊̇̏͑̌́̋̾͛̀̅̐̈̅̈́̈͋̀̏̎̐͒̊̒͘͘̕̚͜͠͠ͅa̴̛̺̋̽͆͊͘̚n̶̨̡̢̨͇̖̫̝̭̟̺͎̳̪̘̥̦͍̤̙͖͈͚̯̼̠͓̺̩̮̜͙͙̯͌͗̏̓̈̊̋̀̋̈́̊̂̓̇̎̒̄͛̒̋̾͂̋̐̈́̆͋̂̃̕͘͘͘͘͘͠͠d̷̡̟̤̞̙̎̒̎̈́̽̾̇̉̓̌́̆͆͑̐̈̈́͋̕̕̚͠͝͝͝ ̷̢̨̡̧̨̛̹͓̤̬͎͍̩͕̰͔͕̪̹̼̒͌̈́͋̈͆̒̀̍͒͒̈́́̀̑́̾͒̇̋͗̏̽̓͑́͐͌́̽̋̔͑͂͊́͆̽͊̚͘̚̚͜͝͝Ị̶̡̧̡͚̹̻̙̟͚̱̭̙̞͉̫̺̥̺̫̯̟̳͂̅͆͑́ ̸̭͔̤̹̿͑͒̓̈́̍̊͋͆͂́͒̌̈́̓͒̈̾̿̂̑̃͑̅͌̾́̽̀͆̀̽̎͊̄̉̀̚͘͝͝͠ṡ̸̡̡̢̨͙̥͚̙̘̞̭̙͓̟̰̥̟̜̀̏͆̈́̍̽̀̐̅̍̿́͛̈́̒̇̓͛͘̚h̴̨̭̘̤̟̗̥̝̞̜̼̻͈͚͇͈̭͉̘͓̓̃̈́̊̑̏̈́̆͋͂̏͜͜ǎ̴̧̛̻͕͔̏͊̉̊̐͛̓̄͗͂̅͌͋͋̎̂̎̓̇̍̚͘͠ĺ̶̡̨̼̻̟̗̱̭̬̘͓̟̗̥͙̬͖̞̗̫͓̥͙̍̔̋͌̾͒͐̾̔͊̾̈̓̔̐͂͋̊̏̈́̅͗͌͌̀̈́̄̍̒͆̐͌̔̓̃͊͌̇͌̊̄̾͛͘͘̕̚͘̚͘̚̚͠͠͠͠ͅl̵̡̡̢̢̧̺͖̳͕̦̦̣̜̣͈̯͉̻͔͔̼͚̻͓̙̜̠̾̈́̏̋͑ ̷̡̨̨̛̰̥̼͙̳̭̠͓̺̥̱̣͍̗͓̜͈̈́̋̿̒̑̎̃̈́̒͆͌̄̂͐́̀̊̈̈́̀̓͆̏̅̑̿̆̾̽̽̈́̓̓͒͊̕̕͠m̷̡̡̢̗̩̪̰͖̖̞̠͕̩̯͚̘̖̮͚̺̪̣̬̠͇̜̳͕̳̺̘̼͒̌͐͆̂͋͋͗̉̆̑̀̃̈͆̐̈́̈́̂͊̓̐́͒͆̄̄̏͂̈̊͒̑͊̕̕͠͠͝a̶̧̨͕̙̝̹̺̣̯̬͇̦͇̳̼͎̻̫͍̬̯̼͙̯͖͉̮̥̜̰̲̬͈͖̾̂̊͊͜k̴̡̺͖͙̘̟̪̝̫͈̱͙̗͍̟̙̳͓͙̳̭̤̳͉̯̳̖̪̬̩̪̝̰͔̳̟͕͖̳̺͑͑͋ḛ̶̢̥̲̪̯͓̺̣̥̠̜̼̱̖̮̝̝̪̤͚͙̖̄͆̄̑̿̇̉͋̓͒͂͐͋̑̐̆́̃̌̐̂͋͌̕͝͠͝ͅͅ ̸̧̖̲̳͖̘̰͎̥̦͙̜̬̣̻̬̱̬̭̹͍̫͖͈̱̺̯̼̻̖͙̬̹̖̌͛͛̆̂̎̓̈́̋̈͑̐̋̑́͌͆͂́͜͜͜͜͜͜͜͝ͅy̵̧̛͇̲̱͇̦̲̮̪̿́͛̎̀͛͑̎̾̌͐̿̓͒̃͛̐̇̆͌̀̀̍́͌̎̐͋̿́̑̕͜͝͝͝ợ̴̧̢͉̘̹̹͉̪̪͍̰̠͇̹̼̘̱̹̳͇͕̹̖̲̩̝̤̩͕̠͎͍̎̉͂̋̾͒̂͐̀́͒̂͂̓̄̈͊̄͗͒͑̾͌͊́̇̎͋̿̓̄̓̂̎̈̌̄̈́͂̐̐̇̓͑͂̎̾͘̕͜͝ͅư̵̮̍̄͌̈̀͆̑̓͐͑͒͆́͒̋͆͑͐̿̃͂̒̎̾̊̾̀̄̈́̌̎̋̋͊͌͂̌͗͋͑̿̌̕͘͘͝͠͝͝͝͠͝͝͝ ̸̡̢̤̥̦͉̭̻̝̻̤͔̲͍͉̺͔̘̺̳̞̦̺̗͑̓̈̄͒͆̒̀̋͊͋̈́̾́̈́̆͂͌̆͊͛̓̽́̌̌̄̀̅́͊͛͌̃̅͌͆̉͒̾́͑͆́̏̊̏̽̕̚͘͘͝͠ͅm̵̡̧̡̛̟͎̤̮̭͍̻̭̟̗̘̼̟͉̗̗̠̮̞̮͗̎͗̓̓̆͐̐̅̌̾̄̽̋̒͌̉̀͊̉̋̆̀͑̀̉͐̾̂̈́̊͋̾̔͗̀̾̕͠͝͝į̵̢̛̤̮̼̣̬̺̩͍͍͔̟͙̝̭̋͛̏̊̔̋̆́̊̑͒͂̉͑̃͑͊̏́̅̍̈̈́̀̌̏͐̒͋̔͘̚͘͝n̷͚̫̳̤͖̤̬̎̈́͛́́̏͊̈́̒͊̐͌͋̂̆̿͐̊̈́̋̾̐̀͑́̈́̀̌͗͗͋̎̈̈́̈́͒̾̇́͂̽̌͒́̓̈͊̋̐̕̚͘͜͝͝ę̶̨̮̣̼̠̩̬͔̳̭̀́͌̇͂̉̃̂̕͝.̷̨̡̨̢̢̡̳͇͙̲̮͙̻̰̠̟̟̪̲͓̺̹͔͔̟̩͔̙̥̫͙̜̻̤͔̯͇̩̞̙̜̤͍̦̼̭̲̱̖̲͒̈̊̄̀͐̀̍̕͜͠ͅ"̵̛̛̩̲̜̞͎͔̞̗̄͛̓̾͆̅̅͑̒͆͊̏́͛̉̈́̕

And I shall make you mine



A dark psuedopod reached out for Aldous's claw. The Corvum eagerly reached out and the darkness began to encase him. As it flowed over him it slicked onto him like a liquid, getting under his feathers and beneath his skin. As he became encased in it his head flashed with knowledge. Knowledge beyond his years and study. Knowledge lost to many. Forbidden Knowledge.

Aldous woke up last, his head pounding with a vicious headache. He looked down and he was still tied to the tree. Looking at his knot a flash came to him and he understood how he tied this knot and how to do it better. His talons seemed more attuned to his thoughts and untying himself was simple. He felt as if he knew lifetimes worth of things now. As he tried to raise himself he also noted that he was much more fragile. Things took much more effort to do.

"Fascinating."

Report Date

18 May 2020