2/22/04
Bawn: Central Forest
The forest is dark and quiet. No, not quiet. Listening. The ancient firs rear
up all around, branches interwoven in a dense roof of dark green. Fallen
needles lie in a thick carpet on the ground, heaped up around the drifts
of undergrowth clinging to the scarce patches of light reaching the
forest floor. Every sound seems muffled, and the sharp scent of pine
hangs in the air like the clouds of midges that swarm ceaselessly beneath
the branches. Even the many deer who roam here seem to step more quietly
than usual, and the songbirds seldom sing.
The forest spreads out around you in all directions.
Atcen is stretched out on her back, staring at the night-shrouded tree-tops.
She's washed herself and her clothes in a nearby stream, but the
bloodstains remain. The cub mumbles to herself in English, going over
words, phrases.
Jacinta walks through the forest with annoyance in her stride. Were she
slightly less aware of her surroundings, she would not even have noticed
the cub. As it is, she has nearly passed Atcen before she stops and turns
to face her.
Atcen blinks, cutting off her recitation of the Litany and sits up, blinking
pale eyes at Jacinta. Sensing the other's mood, her brow furrows.
"Anger--um, angry?"
Jacinta takes a deep breath, holds it for a moment, then releases it. "Not with
you, child."
Atcen relaxes a bit. "With what?"
Jacinta offers a small chuckle. "The boy you tore apart."
Atcen blinks, then smirks a bit. "You tell him how he fight bad? What he do
wrong?"
Jacinta's head tips to the side. "Some," she says, slightly distracted. "He was
not able to hear the rest."
Atcen frowns. "But I do not hurt his _ears_," she says in slight protest.
Jacinta shakes her head, chuckling softly again. "No, though I may have. He
split himself in half, again. Thus, he was not able to listen to some of
my words and I did not waste my breath to say them."
Atcen's brow furrows. "He is wolf and man, two, again?"
Jacinta nods once with a frown. "I hope that when his body mends, his mind will
return as well."
Atcen hrmphs softly and picks absently at the scabs on her belly. "Thought he
is fixed. _Was_ fixed." Her frown deepens. "Will Scar-rhya angry at me?"
Jacinta glances up at the empty sky before she answers. "No." Her eyes turn to
Atcen and scan down over her body then back up to her face. "No. Josh's
injuries were... brought upon by his own actions." With a sigh she
continues, "His other problems have nothing to do with you. /I/ expected
more control from you. But I am your teacher. The Glass Walker is not."
Atcen chews on her lower lip and looks down at herself. Bony fingers pick at
her scabs again. "Fight better next time," she says quietly. "Fight
_smart_."
Jacinta nods. "Ii." Her eyes turn skyward once more. "The Glass Walker cubs
will leave on their Rite of Passage soon. If what Firewatcher said at the
last moot holds, you will have but one more cycle of the moon to prepare.
What do you think of that?"
Atcen's mouth thins, her brows lowering. "Need more stories," she says at last.
"Need listen more, talk more. Firewatcher-rhya says Galliards give...
_news_." She looks up. "Turtle Rite with me?"
While Atcen speaks, Jacinta smiles gently, clearly pleased with her
self-appraisal. At the question, though, she frowns. "I hope not. Not if
you are to go so soon. You are far more prepared than she. It is
possible, because she was not introduced at the last moot, that she will
have an extra month to prepare. And, it is possible, that Firewatcher's
rule will not hold beyond the cubs who have been here, training for so
long."
Atcen nods, agreeing about Holly's lack of preparedness, though looking pensive
too. "Means I Rite alone."
Jacinta nods. "Ii. Unless your rite is delayed, and Holly is prepared."
Atcen lies back down, putting her hands behind her head. "Need more stories,"
she says again, more quietly. Behind the too-pale blue eyes, the cub's
mind is working.
Jacinta takes the cub's hand. "Come with me."
Atcen blinks. She grasps the Ahroun's hand tightly and hauls herself to her
feet.
[...]
Barnyard
The lane wends its way back and around the farmhouse to here, where it widens
into a broad, grassy sward contained only by the woods which encircle it
on three sides. Buildings break up the purity of the landscape: an
open-sided structure which serves as a garage and the big barn, empty of
livestock, to the east. A good-sized vegetable and herb garden furrows
the land south of the barn, while a pyramid-like pile of rocks, of
similar consistency to the gravel of the lane, rests a few yards south of
the garage.
North of the buildings, the fields have long been fallow, hastening a
conversion from farmland to natural prairie. A sliding glass door allows
admittance to the farmhouse, the interior obscured by Levolor(tm) blinds
in a wood-grain pattern. The lane leads out around the house to the
southwest. The discerning can just barely pick out the beginnings of a
faint path into the woods towards the southeast.
Atcen wrinkles her nose a bit as they arrive at the farmhouse but makes no
protest.
Jacinta drops Atcen's hand and motions her to wait. She runs into the
farmhouse, then out, pokes her head into the barn, and then returns.
"Come," she says, and heads back to the large barn.
Big Red Barn
The barn is built in the old style, a vast three level structure that is
greater in height than a mere three stories, actually closer to five.
Great wooden posts support the weight of the upper levels and roof, sunk
into the hard-packed dirt floor of the first level like a sparse forest
of regularly spaced, naked trees. The stalls and flagstones which once
were here have been torn out to leave a rather open area where even
crinos Garou may roam freely without fear of running into anything but
the supports or the walls or the ladder at the back which allows access
to the other two levels.
The first two levels are relatively open to each other, the second being only
little wider than a catwalk going around all the walls but the front one,
which has massive, twenty foot tall doors set into it. The third level is
a true second floor except for a place cut out that allowed hay to be
tossed down to the ground floor when the farm was actually worked. Now,
it is a hayloft where Garou can sleep outside of the house.
Nodding her head, Alicia offers a smile. "Keep on punching it." She instructs.
"Try an get yourself angry inside, tap into it. Put your anger behind
your fist." She instructs, arms folding behind her back as she watches
Katrine strike. "If you don't get it tonight, don't worry."
The large barn doors rattle, then swing open slightly to admit Layne. Seeing
Alicia with a cub, the Fianna tosses a glance behind her, to Olga, then
makes for the haybales.
Katrine looks at Alicia, and nods. "'Kay." Turning back to the punching bag,
she does as the older Garou instructs, hitting it with first one fist,
then the other. Her head half-turns to the side at the sound from the
doors, but the girl refocuses upon her task, carrying on with alternating
punches as if she had never faltered.
Olga pokes her head inside the barn, looking about, after Layne has passed in.
They seize on the Cub and Fostern by the bag. "Thought they'd be here,"
she mentions to her, stepping in and closing the door behind her. Her
bag's thrust over one shoulder, and she looks a little off, tonight. "Uh,
you guys mind 'f we come in?" she calls out at the others at the far-end
of the barn, waiting by the door.
Jacinta pokes her head into the barn and comes back a moment later with her cub
in tow. "Alicia-rhya. I have a request, if you have a moment."
Glancing over at the pair of Griphun's, Alicia offers up a grin. "Um.. no,
don't mind at all. Just helping Kat out." She says, then turns her head
towards Jacinta. "Wow.. popular tonight. Um.. whats up Jacinta?" She
asks, turning back to Kat, motioning with her head to continue. "Keep
going, yer' doing good."
Atcen, the cub being towed, looks around the interior of the barn, then
focusses on the older Galliard that Jacinta addresses.
Jacinta nods toward Atcen, "Atcen, my cub, is Galliard and needs instruction,
stories and ways. I was hoping that you might have time to help me with
her instruction."
Katrine briefly glances towards Alicia, pausing in her rhythmic motion, then
nods once. The girl resumes punching at the bag, still alternating fists,
generally ignoring the activity at the other end of the barn.
Olga nods her head to Alicia politely when she answers her question, and steps
quickly out of the way when others appear behind her at the door. "Oh,
hi, Ice, 'nd, uh, Atcen," she greets them, struggling a bit for the Cub's
name. She takes a few steps back away from them, meandering after Layne,
heading towards the haybale she's sitting on.
Atcen shifts her weight and stands up straight and tall, chin up. She'd look
more impressive if she wasn't skin and bones and wasn't dressed so
shoddily. She's washed her clothes since the fight last evening, but with
water alone -- the bloodstains linger.
Layne's already settling herself on the hay, back pressed into a bale behind
her. She greets Alicia with a weary smile, saying, "Oh, hey, thanks for
gettin' a hold of--" Speak of the devil. The Philodox isn't entirely
familiar with Jacinta, but seems to recognize her, vaguely. She inclines
her chin to the Wendigo, "Did you meet Wolf-Heart earlier?" The cub at
her side is studied closely.
[Layne]
There's still a darkly brooding look to those shadowed, pale eyes, but it
isn't without the occasional flash of pearly whites in a grin that any
pixie would envy. Those who know her true nature (woof, aroo) might find
Layne's remarkably catlike and mercurial moods amusing. In passing, she
exudes something like indifference. She seems wary, untrusting, as if
beneath the usual devil-may-care attitude, a part of her has hardened on
the inside, hidden away. She seems to look her age, at twenty-two.
No mistaking her Northern European descent: pronounced, elegant features, long
limbs--at a glance, there's something of an elven quality to her
appearance. Since stripped of the unnatural dyes, long hair flows freely
around her shoulders, its coloring an ashy blonde, growing darker
underneath. When arms are exposed, one might notice a broad, spiderweb
scar, which stands out against her left bicep, whitish-pink in contrast
to the light tan.
She's wearing a black sleeveless tee, the bottom of which falls just short of
a wide, leather belt sitting low on her hips, revealing a belly-ring and,
behind, part of a tattoo: a Celtic knot in a circlet of ivy. The jeans
she wears, fit snugly over toned legs, are old and fraying around the
hems but prove reliable. She seems to favor a pair of thick-soled, black
leather biker boots, and the matching jacket when weather warrants such.
As far as jewelry goes, Layne is fond of her piercings: studs alternate
with hoops along either ear, another ring in her right eyebrow. Around
both wrists are black, spiked leather cuffs.
Alicia looks a bit surprised. "Why wouldn't Leonard teach her? He is a Galliard
as well, isn't he?" She asks, walking towards the pair of Wendigo,
glancing from Elder to cub. She offers a smile towards the younger girl,
arms still crossed behind her.
Jacinta waits for Alicia's response before she acknowledges Olga or Layne. Each
get a curt nod of greeting, but no further response while she speaks to
the Fostern Galliard. "She is mine to teach. She will succeed or fail on
her Rite of Pasage by my instruction. I am asking your assistance. You
know many stories and travel to the city as well. She will learn what
Brings the Buffalo Home will teach, but I would also have her hear your
stories - if you will consent to tell them?"
Olga sits down near Layne, dropping her bag at her side and collapsing into the
hay. She digs around inside for her blue flanel blanket, and tosses it on
top of Layne without much thought. Out comes another blanket, in the
process of being put together from discarded sweaters and tea-cozies,
which she uses for herself. She rests her head against a haybale behind
her and settles in.
Alicia nods her head slightly and furrows her brows. "I'd love to tell her
stories. I just hope they are worthy enough. I"m not the greatest of
story tellers. My talents are hidden in my song and dance." She says with
a hint of a grin on her face. "But, I know a few good ones. At least of
this Sept's current heros who have passed on."
"Do you know why the Wheel changed?" Atcen asks, hands behind her back. "When
it went..." She hesitates, glancing at Jacinta as she fishes in her mind
for the right word. "Can-yon?"
Sweat beginning to bead on her brow, her breath more labored than it had been a
moment before, Katrine pauses, hands dropping to her sides. She turns,
scanning the assorted newly-arrived people and offering a polite nod to
all of them. "Hello, Olga," she says, remembering the woman's name from
the previous night.
Layne grins widely, if fleetingly at Olga, looking incredibly grateful for the
use of the blanket. She tucks her arms underneath it, hands tugging the
flanel close to her chest. From their perch, she listens to the exchange
between the Gaian and the Wendigo pair, waiting.
Jacinta nods with a slight smile for Alicia which grows with Atcen's question.
"Quyana." Then she turns and calls over to the Fianna. "Yes. I have
spoken with the Glass Walker cub. He is... content to remain until he is
well."
Alicia nods her head slightly with a clear of her throat. "I know the story,
but I am sure I can't tell it as well as most Galliard's who have had the
honor of living through the older years of this Sept. But.." She says,
her voice growing a bit louder to capture the attention of the barn. "If
all of you wish. I can tell you of how the wheel turned, to that of the
Hidden Walk." She says with a raise of her brow, hands rubbing together.
Olga pats Layne on the shoulder, an unvoiced `you're welcome` for the other's
unvoiced `thanks`. She lifts herself to her feet, wrapping her raggedy
blanket around her shoulders like a cape, with a twirling motion. She
stands there a brief moment, and nods at the Cub by the heavy bag. "Hey,
girl Kat," she greets her right back, before sitting down again, blanket
drawn about her seated form as a poncho might be. Her eyes turn to
Alicia, as she settles down further, listening, not speaking.
Layne is satisfied with Jacinta's news, exhaling somewhat raggedly as she mulls
over the Walker cub's state, then leans in toward Olga to mutter and
explanation. After, Alicia gets her attention. "Yeah," she answers,
"please. Haven't heard that one in a long time."
Jacinta bows her head in appreciation and finds a spot in which to sit,
crosslegged, on the floor.
Atcen follows suit, hunkering down next to Jacinta, squatting on her heels.
Pacing through the center of the barn, Alicia clears her throat, eyes narrowing
in thought as she takes a few moments to gather her thoughts. "I am sure
that most of you know the Caern was founded by the Wendigo in the early
Eighteen-hundreds, re awakening it from a long slumber, and dedicating it
to the four seasons. Thus, they named it the Caern of the Wheel. Now,
while most Nativer American wheels run clockwise, it seems that for
reasons unknown to the spirits and even the Wendigo that first served
this Sept, that wheel, ran backwards. Everything ran smoothly under a
triat of Totems. Cougar, Magpie, and Buffalo, three totems of great
wisdom, glory and honor - and the Wendigo became quite renowned for
awakening such a powerful place. But, that power didn't last, for in the
ninteen fourties, the Wendigo of St. Claire's.." She trails off slowly.
"Disapeared." She clears her throat and begins once more.
Jacinta scowls briefly, but is careful not to interrupt.
Atcen listens intently, her eyes fixed on the storyteller. She frowns at
'disappeared', glances at Jacinta, then focusses once more on Alicia.
Olga listens carefully at first, and then jerks her head back to regard the Cub
by the bag. She lifts up her blanket in invitation to her, turning her
head back quickly, and shuffles over a little to make room, a quiet `come
on, sit down`. Then she turns back to Alicia.
Layne listens closely to the elder Galliard, though her eyes half-lid.
Occasionally, she glances toward the Wendigo to guage reactions.
"Nearly fifty years ticked by, and by accident, a Fury pack by the name of
Seneca Falls happened upon this slumbering Caern, searching out mysteries
and hidden secrets, as most their camp does, those who call themselves
Freebooters. Excited with such news, they sent a companion back to their
Sept, Gaia's Bones, to give the sisters the news so they can reclaim and
reawaken old territory. But.." Alicia says, pausing, stopping in her pace
and staring at the pair of Wendigo. "That companion, a Strider, never
made it. Instead, he returned swiftly to the Caern of Ptah, and told the
Garou there of 'his' find. Unfortuantly for the Furies, the pack of
Seneca Falls continued on their way, hopeful that their tribe will come
and they could continue with their journies." With a clear of her throat,
she raises her voice, allowing it to come strong, confident. "A group of
Garou was quickly dispatched to the city of St. Claire's and once more, a
Caern was awakened, for the second time, adn thus, they named it the
Wheel 'Renewed', for it was a new turn for the medicine wheel which the
lands were aptly named." She lets this sink in for a few moments, before
continuing forth. "Almost a full year turned, the seasons counting off,
and the Wendigo returned! But, unfortuantly, there wasn't a warm
reception waiting for them. They were at odds with the Garou who claimed
their lands, even worse.." She trails off, allowing her voice to grow
softer, looming. "They found the bodies of nine dead Garou at a local
archaelogicial site, a pack of Wendigo who was once called the Cougar's
Nine... and if things could not get any worse.. something awakened,
something powerful... The Ice King."
Atcen's pale eyes narrow slightly as Alicia describes the caern's rediscovery
and what followed, and she bites down on her lower lip as the Child of
Gaia goes on.
Jacinta nods silently, but her scowl deepens during the course of the story.
Olga looks more closely at Alicia as she mentions the term `Freebooter`,
screwing up her face slightly. She opens her mouth to comment, as she
always does during others' stories, but with a glance at the good example
of the silent Wendigo, she closes it, and settles once again into the
haybale, a little sullenly. She licks her lips and looks at Alicia again.
"Now, the story of the Ice King is a sad one for the brothers and sisters of
Wendigo, for many lives were taken by this great, powerful spirit of
Malfeas. The Ice King destroyed /many/ Wendigo Caerns in its long pursuit
of a certain bloodline of the Wendigo, following it from one Sept to the
next, crushing everything that dared stood up to it in his jaws. The
blood of many Wendigo, and Garou, soaked the earth from its terror. The
Wendig of the Wheel learned through powerful rituals that the King of Ice
storms was not after the Caern's, but of the Wendigo and so they left,
packing everything they had, and fled, leaving behind ten warriors, aided
by great spirit of Cougar to try and deter the spirit off its course.
Sadly.." Alicia's voice trails off as she softens her eyes. "All ten
died.. and it took the sacrafice of Cougar itself just to halt the
slaughter. When they returned later, all they found was the dead and
thus, they buried their fallen comrades and closed the Caern." She clears
her throat for a moment, tapping it, then continues on, getting herself
back on track.
Olga listens closely, leaning forward, resting her elbows on her knees and her
head in her hands, huddled in her blanket.
Jacinta takes her eyes off the Fostern for a moment to gaze at her cub.
Layne sits fairly still, keeping warm and comfortable. The fingers of one hand
peek up above the blanket, twisting at a lock of hair.
Atcen cocks her head to one side. She's still chewing her lip, and her eyes are
narrowed in thought.
"Once the Wheel Renewed gathered their strength, the Ice King was defeated with
the return of Cougar's daughter, thus resecuring the triat of totems to
the Sept. The great spirit was pushed back to the gates of Malfeas, where
its own kind destroyed it, thus freeing the Caern of its 'curse'. Thus,
ended the run of the Wheel Renewed. How the Sept became what we know of
the Hidden Walk was after the Caern, in the Spring of nintey-six, was
attacked by a weilder of magic. A mage, a powerful one by the name of
Issac." Alicia says with a frown as she sinks to her knees in the middle
of the barn, opening her eyes wider. "If it is any wonder why most Garou
do not trust these 'wizards', its because they are eager and always
hungry for the power which Gaia radiates, and this paticular one, was
starving." She lets this slowly sink in as the story takes a new twist
and change. "Issac attacked the Sept with everything he had, focusing his
powers upon the raping of our Heart, and thus serverly weakening the
spirit and binds to Gaia, destroying the wards and nearly draining the
lands dry. The Garou of the Wheel renew, aided by a local group of mages
that lived here in Claire's, some kin, some which believed in the path of
Gaia, teamed up together to finally finish him off, but not before the
damage was done. Gaia weeped in pain for the struggle she has been put
through, and thus.. we became only half as powerful as we once were."
Shaking her head, she softly says. "We were victorious, only for a short
while. Garou rejoiced, parties were thrown, and then..." She lets it
hang. "Chaos ensued once more. It seemed that there would be no peace
here for this Sept. The Garou, during the aftermath of the great battle,
came across a lost Fetish that was buried deep into the Umbra, wrestling
it away from Weaver spirits which were trying to bind it. When awakened,
the spirit inside the fetish lashed out, destroying the triat of Totems,
Magpie, Buffalo, Cougar.. and thus, leaving the Caern without a Guardian,
and the Garou that lived there saddened by such a great loss which has
represented these lands for nearly a hundred years."
"And as Buffalo died.. so did the Caern with him.." Alicia says softly after a
full minute of silence, eyes narrowing. "Confused, sad, enraged, the
Garou once more made plans to leave this hallowed spot, to search out
somewhere else to serve Gaia. But.. miracles happen, and one by one..
signs of life once more sprung forth. You see, the spirit that was bound
into that powerful fetish, was a great Wylding, raw powerful and a great
force. The Garou used which was once a foe, to recreate it as an ally and
thus... they calledit back and bound it into the land, causing a new
wheel, and a new totem. They named this one.. Aeolus... Grandfather Fog."
Alicia finishes softly. "He brought the great blanket with him, creating
invisible paths, reforging the lands in its own beautiful image and
thus.. they renamed the Wheel, to the Sept of Hidden Walk." The Child of
Gaia takes in a deep breath as she finishes. "And thus how the Wheel not
only turned once, but twice."
Atcen shifts her weight a bit, glancing at Jacinta, then back at Alicia. The
cub murmurs, politely, "Thank you, Ah-leesh-ya-rhya." Though her reaction
seems muted and her expression's still pensive, the thanks seems to be
given sincerely enough.
Layne looks detached but thoughtful as the story comes to a close, considering
this and that...remembering Fog, the fall, the reclaiming...wondering why
the sept wasn't renamed again when Fog vanished and Chimera came. She
stifles a yawn with the blanket, looking as if she could pass out at any
moment.
Alicia nods her head towards Atcen slowly, offering a quiet smile. "You are
welcome. Thank you for being patient and listening. Next time I story
tell for you, I'll make sure I got a bit of a heads up so I can put out
my best." She grins, then looks over towards Layne.
Jacinta nods to the storyteller. "Quyana for a tale well told," she says and
then turns to her cub. "Come, there is more to learn. But," and at this
she glances back, questioningly to Alicia, "You may come and ask the
Fostern for further stories as you need."
Olga looks fairly alert: she's listened patiently to the story, and now she
stands up, almost antsy. "Hey, Ali," she calls out loudly to their
story-teller, "what the hell's a Freebooter? 'At's what that tight-assed
Fury is, eh?" She adds, a moment later, "Oh, 'nd thanks for the story."
"Was cool," the Fianna says to Alicia, giving a thumbs up and grinning muzzily.
Atcen stands up, stretching, her mouth gaping wide in a yawn.
Alicia nods her head towards Jacinta, then says to Olga. "The Freebooters is a
camp of the Black Furies, those who journey to seek out new wisdom and
spread their knowledge to others who wish to learn from them. They are
like Striders in a way."
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