middaeg | event log: a summons

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event log: a summons

Event Log: July, By Invitation Only

You're Invited

Some Coven Investigation Results

The Shared Dreams

• They seem to only affect the mirrorbound. While sharing a dream isn't technically unheard of, it isn't in the same capacity that the ones experienced each month by the mirrorbound (and, last month, by the city as as whole). While she isn't sure if this pattern will continue, or if the city will share the same experience again - or if that was an effect of Litha - it's something they're going to keep a close eye on, especially as continuous dreamwalking can prove fatal.
• The few, true dreamwalkers that Aefenglom's Coven are in possession of are present; however, they're in and out of consciousness in their seats, and don't have much to offer in regards to the situation, staring with unseeing eyes as they speak of the dreams that they've been walking through. They're evidence that caution is advised regarding this situation, but their handlers and those that study their exploits and the concept of dreams make their best attempt to offer their insight.
• However, they nor the Coven's diviners have discovered the source of the dreams. If the mirrorbound arrivals perhaps have any theories, they would appreciate hearing more, and are prepared to compile all of the information everyone has to share. Offers of learning under the diviners are open, as well.

Dewaint Forest

• Information about the long lost Dewaint Forest has begun to be uncovered, along with theories about it and the goings on that many mirrorbound have dreamt of. The majority of Parliament is less inclined to believe the tales, and their doubt and skepticism is fairly evident, but there are still those that ask for more - more knowledge, more theories, more investigation.
• A possibility of Dewaint Forest falling on the node of a leyline - and a powerful one at that - has been brought up. Leylines run throughout the entire world of Talam, and Aefenglom was settled atop a node, as well, due to the magical power that they carry. The Coven (and the Parliament, to a small degree) want to see just how true this theory is.
• The possibility that civilization still exists in Dewaint is something that they'd like to know, as well, considering the fact that within its depths was once the heart of the Fae civilization. But it now rests as the heart of the Wilde, and subsequently... the heart of the Cwyld. Was it the source? Is it safe from the blight that affects them? It's knowledge that they need, especially if there's a way to fight the Cwyld within the forest depths.

The Meeting of the Fae

• Some old folklore states that the Fae courts only come together in times of impending crisis; this lines up with the spread of the Cwyld seen by those who had this dream experience. The mention of the High Queen is particularly important though, as she is said to reside solely in the heart of Faeryland, slumbering in order to keep her youthful appearance. For her to have awaken and attended a meeting... Well, it doesn't spell the best of news.
• There are a few Fae in the city, and after speaking with them, it's been deduced that - despite their long life - none of them remember something like this, so it's likely this particular meeting was much further in the past than anyone might imagine. This implies that it's possible that this isn't the first time the Cwyld has broken out, but she isn't entirely sure of that - it'd be best to take the idea with a grain of salt.
• Regarding the Courts: it would seem the Fae used to divide themselves into two of them, though Fae nowadays hold no allegiance or importance to anything of the sort. Information about these specifically are sparse however, as the Fae were notoriously secretive about where their loyalties ultimately laid.

The Looking-Glass House

• There isn't much to report here - all records state the house has been around for quite some time now. What has been noticed is that inductees into The Coven cannot spell a mirror that is connected to one of the mirrorbound. This isn't too much of a problem, given the house's ever-expanding inside, but it's something to note.
• Nessie's written to the heads at other branches of The Coven and found that none of them have an outside housing area for their mirrors - the rest of them have them inside their building proper, in rooms or hallways. Curious, but just another thing that makes Aefenglom's branch stand out from the rest.
• If anyone has found out anything additional about the mirrors or the house itself - more likely the mirrors, Nessie thinks, since she feels as if they must have a special meaning to be bound so tightly to those who have come through them - then they're welcome to share it, be it fact or theory.

Welcome to your meeting log! No question thread this time, and no making your own logs either - as this is a one day affair with a very specific location, for the purpose of sharing information and the like. Feel free to make your own top levels presenting information, tag or threadhop into relevant threads as necessary, and so on!

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[Well if creeping him out is what he's going for, then he'll succeed. Elliot will yelp as he pulls his hand away from that touch like it was a hot stove]

Eek!

N-No thank you!

[Scooting away from this guy!]

[ Caster doesn't comment on Beasthood claim. They'd need to know first can Witches turn into Monsters, and so far it does not seem to the case. It might be an interesting topic to file for later though, even if it is quite literally kicking a hornet nest.

But the Dream itself, that is a fascinating concept. With the revelation that not only it is dangerous in consequences but also something that normally isn't forced upon— it means someone or something is inviting them in. ]

I'd wager a guess that if a Dream dweller is native to this world, pooling our knowledge can only shed as much light on it. But it is worth a try.

[ Who is to tell how differently it works in all those different Worlds out there? Who is to tell it doesn't work exactly the same in one of them. It's a gamble, and they muddy the waters, but the more information is out there— He's got no stake in returning or staying, but he also has no reasons to keep secrets anymore. ]

I'm familiar with the dream-sharing concept— it's related to what I am. [ Was ] To put it briefly: were I to form a contract with a magus, he or she could see glimpses of my past in their Dreams. [ And vice versa too, but there is a lot of specific bullshit not relevant to the current situation he is sparing. It's just about the mechanic ] Not on purpose, it's a side effect of sharing a deep mental connection.

[ Which brings him to— ]

They said that one would require immense power to bring us here, so it would make sense for us to retain some connection to our summoner, no? If the Dreams we see are indeed memories, we should look for someone [ —something— ] incredibly old and powerful...

If the dreams we see are what is happening in the now, well, we'd need to find what they have in common.

[ It is pretty easy to jump into the assumption that they all have Cwyld infection as a common theme. Not saying that there is a possibility of them all being soullinked to some Cwyld Cthulhu but... yeah, kind of saying exactly that ]

Why would I — No, I don't have any bodies.

[ That comes incredibly quickly, complete with a side-eye and an ounce of defensiveness. Touchiness over her status as a vampire — seen as a stigma, to some of these people — hasn't faded at all upon learning of her changes, and it's easy to leap to the conclusion that he believes she's potentially slaughtered someone because of it. ]

The undead don't exist here. [ She doesn't sound entirely certain of that, but she'd like to believe the morality and legality of it are being upheld, despite ... the entire sketchiness of this conversation. ] What would you even need from them?

First, we would like to sincerely apologize about the delay in getting you an answer to this- real-life managed to take out all of the mods at the same time.

To properly address your questions, the mods were only offering a short summary of things that had been discovered and shared overall to the Coven during the investigations. There's nothing stopping Steven from furthering that information or jumping in to supplement what the Witches may have missed, or been misinformed on.

The intention is to share the info with the game at large and we apologize if you felt as though Steven was cut out of the act of sharing this info. Of course, Steven being a first-hand account is more complete than inferring second hand from the Coven. The Coven, of course, would have additionally been looking into the information provided by personal character investigations, however, the information is as we mentioned, largely inferred from Steven's first-hand experiences.

[She hums quietly.]

That...would be welcome. I've missed playing music. If you know a place with a piano we can use...

[She made a soft noise.]

Do you prefer payment in services or coin? I could do either, depending on your needs.

"That reasoning might hold water... if the dream I was described didn't cast me as the lake monster trying to deceive the man I'm looking for," he counters.

Sorry for the delay on this! Real life has been quite hard on all of us, but here's your answer:

They'd say that one may lose their sense of self due to the mind's attachment of memories not their own, essentially putting them in a constant dream-like state as their body continuously sorts through what is and isn't theirs, eventually leading to self-starvation. Some cases have fallen too into sleep and haven't yet awoken, and some have refused to sleep entirely and perished for it. Extremes that lead to fatal consequences, basically.

Particularly if it's something we cannot help. I… recall little that might have prompted our experience last month.

no prob bob 👌

what of those who have done this before (sorted through memories that are and aren’t there’s)? would they be less affected? eren’s spent a good four years trying to straighten himself out between himself and other memories and IT TOOK A WHILE but it sort of worked (sort of).

Y-Yeah, no kidding...

Then again, I'm not very good at Divination class. So maybe there's a chance I just missed a sign somewhere...

Oh, well...

[He makes a thoughtful noise. It's tempting to try to make a profit, but he's too honest a guy to do such a thing]

If you're just playing and I'm not teaching you anything, it wouldn't feel right to charge you. It's not like it's my piano.

Just let me know what time you'd be practicing so I know not to schedule a lesson then.

[ "Dreamwalking can be fatal" that's definitely new. Granted neither of them (from what Caster had heard of) has been granted this talent in full. No one he knows hops from a Dream to a Dream. It's the opposite, they are all pulled in during one night of a month— ]

Is there any relation between that Dream we share and the Moons, I wonder? There is a correlation in dates, and the magic is, in theory, the strongest during Full Moon, is it not?

[ Not for him, and not for other Mirrobounds from what he had seen. But he is not sure how well known this particular aspect is. As always, he is a bit reluctant to share what could be exploited as a weakness. ]

Speaking of which... The stories tell that mirrors in Looking-Glass House were a gift from the Sisters. Yes, the Moons themselves. They're an aspect, if not literal bodies, of pair of primordial goddesses. Their names long forgotten, but they still watch over the surface.

[ It's a story people tell in taverns at night. Someone might have made a song about it but everything is lost in so many layers of metaphors that without knowing the legend itself, one would never know it's about the Coven ]

Or do they? [ And then there is that ]

Back where I am from, even in different mythos the role of the primordial gods is very often similar. They create the world, they populate it, but then the next generation comes and dethrones them. Or— they are simply just tossed aside as those no longer needed.

[ Who needs a mother when all of the creation has been already made and is now self-sufficient? ]

One goddess was mourning in such pain that she was ready to destroy all her children that had abandoned her. I heard a similar story here, for some people believe, the Sisters created Cwyld as a punishment.

[ Those are "just" stories though. But there are always grains of truth in legends. Maybe some powerful beings created these gifts then left, later remembered as the gods? Still, he chuckles, and a joking lilt enters his tone. A storyteller told his part ]

That's it if you choose to entertain a possibility that gods exist and can affect this world. [ Or that a concept of their existence is a force strong enough to affect the world. But really, this world is full of magic, they have been brought here by an unknown force that eludes the investigation of the local population... Assuming that gods might exist and might even be partially related to everything here isn't that far fetched.

But Caster himself is a man of myth— divinity isn't a concept he is hard to be sold on ]

I couldn't find names of the gods in local pantheon although I've collected some aspects they govern over. [ Which on itself is curious. The erasure of names. ] But as I've been studying the runes, I found that the current alphabet has been in use for only around three centuries. That means a lot of knowledge is to be found in scripts older than that.

[ Admittedly, he did have a headstart due to the similarity to Ogham runes ]

If someone with similar interest wants to exchange notes I am always open for that. Should an expedition deeper into the Wilde happen, whatever traces of the past we might find will probably use the older script.

[ Would be useful if they had few people capable of reading them, yes? ]

Edited 2019-07-23 21:30 (UTC)

I suppose there's no reason those things need be mutually exclusive. You can see what you can see from the skies and report back, but if you think there is a way you can see further, we can fashion the glasses. [A win/win situation, overall.]

Okay, thank you! That makes sense. I think it first glance it seemed like there was more complete overlap in the investigations than there is.

Steven will step up to mention something, in relation to the mirrors.

"When I first came here, I tried taking a picture of my mirror with my phone from home, to see if it would show what I was seeing. And it seemed like from the picture, you could almost see the special pattern? And other people could see a bit of it, too. But it was really hazy and pixelated looking."

He lifts his shoulders helplessly.

"My phone battery is dead now, but if anyone could help my recharge it... the pictures are still there."

[Steven listens intently to all of that, the stuff about the mirrors being from the Sister being completely new to him. Some of it ends up sounding familiar.]

Oh - yeah! When I was trying to find information about the Fae, most of the books about them were so old the language wasn't readable to most people anymore. None of the Fae now have any connection to the culture they had before, even if they've heard the stories.

One of them was even saying how they thought the Fae might have come from somewhere else originally.

That's all but a small army. Perhaps that is why they've never mounted an expedition. Maybe it would be better if we found a small group of people relatively good at most of that, if not all. [She's used to taking small teams into dangerous areas, though, because that's how the Hunters worked. Small groups, or alone. You really get good at certain things if you have no real alternative.]

Though, now they have us, they should be able to mount larger expeditions, if they so deem in necessary. I say 'us' - those of us from the mirrors that are willing to embark on such dangerous expeditions.

A small team is ideal, really. [ Harry nods, thinking, waving a hand. ]

You seem to have this sort of idea set down in your head. Maybe you should lead it.

[ Harry grins as he suyrveys the woman talking. ]

If there are dream walkers, perhaps they've touched a hidden depth to the dreams. [Though, even she can figure if you go too deep into it, you can get sucked in entirely and never be able to come out, and those that might have touched upon some kind of eldritch truth wouldn't be present anymore to talk about it. It is fascinating, though, to think about. Especially now that she knows there are those that specifically do walk in dreams around here.]

Though I'm not sure they're entirely mutually exclusive. We could be summoned here by something to show us the truth of the present. Or, as you said, of course, they can be of the past. Whatever is concerned about the present state, then... might be that connecting thread. This is all assuming there is a being, or beings - whatever it may be - that summoned us here, and it was not some sort of fluke. [She motions around.] But it's happened twice, to too many people, for me to believe in that coincidence.

[Steven has been watching Bendy take notes because it's kind of an interesting spectacle, but the toon manages to point out something that Steven's mind had just kind of glossed over.]

I don't know what that means, either.

[He looks at Bendy, to clarify.]

Is that just like how witches can enchant most things, or does the Coven do something special with those mirrors?

[The Coven already started with some information about the Fae, but Steven has some more that he's found, and will take that as an invitation to share it.]

I spoke to some of the Fae around the Coven, too, and they didn't know anything about the Fae meeting we saw in the dreams, either. But... I found some stuff in the library about how some people think that the Fae came from the moons, or from a different world, and that the Fae that live here are kind of like a hybrid between those Fae and humans! They've been around for ages - and if the books are right, probably before humans or witches.

Some of the books about Fae were so old - the witches in the library said that they were in the language that witches use for runes and spellcasting now.

Their Queen is supposed to look like an Atlas Moth - with with the fuzzy antenna and orange kind of wings? So if you see anything like that, it could be about her!

Oh, um, also one of the Fae told me not to give out my full name to anyone, especially other Fae. So you might want to keep that in mind.

[He really is too nice.]

Maybe not, but I'd be thankful for some tips.

I'll need to learn when there's a piano open but-I'll text you via the Watches, if that's all right.

[And...really...]

If you'd like, I could mend something of yours before or after, if you've the need. Consider it a small thanks for your time.

Gods do exist. [ Soren speaks with conviction — not one of a believer, but a witness. ] I wouldn't doubt they do here in Talam, too. In my experience, the myths and legends told by mortals are like mere reflections upon a lake, the image of the truth skewed and distorted by the ever-shifting surface of the living population. Unless we were to meet with these goddesses and hear their tales directly, we can only gather so much from songs and stories.

[ Still, he's certainly onto something here. ]

It's hard to imagine anything more powerful than the divine. However, there is a limit to even what the gods can do. Sometimes, they might even find it necessary to beseech mortals to champion their causes. Do you think the Sisters might have something to do with our... 'summoning'? [ to use his phrasing from an earlier conversation he'd overheard. ]

It's a possibility. But then again- often these signs don't quite make sense until they're on us. [Red skies… ah.]. Still- do they teach anything of identifying those?

"It took a few days between the Dream and finding myself here, so it's safe to assume they're still where they should be. The Dream alone isn't what brings us here."

It's something Archer considers quite obvious. On the other hand he's so used to the idea of being summoned somewhere he tends to forget others may not have such knowledge.

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event log: a summons

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