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Post by Circe on Jan 14, 2021 17:34:54 GMT -6
As the world's yearly reel around the sun began to draw to a close, many looked forwards to the large communal workings that would become possible with the veil at its thinnest. Preparations were underway for many in the unseen, hoping that their efforts at midnight of the longest night of the year would not be in vain. Hopeful as always that this next new year would bring health, peace, posperity, and most importantly safety for the unseen. Now that the secret was out, there was little they could do to defend themselves against the increasing violence and stigma that they'd been forced to suffer at the hands of the mundane. It was a precarious position, one that none of the community took lightly. To fight back would mean that they were confirming the mundane's worst and most biased fears.
But while the majority of the unseen struggled to come to terms with this new reality, there where those who had much larger problems to attend to.
Catherine was not keen to suffer another solstice outside the safety of the fae lands, a place that could withstand the pressures of the potential veil storm and the distruptions it brought. She was also not interested in relying on Xiaolian for assistance getting there either. In her opinion, the other woman had done more than enough and deserved to at least not have her plate so full.
However, Tyrus had been insistent that he would find a spell that would resolve the issue of the solstice that both of them would experience.
"I hope you found something... because I'm not going to spend my solstice underneath another tree out of my bloody mind." She said to Tyrus. She had waited for him to produce something, anything really that would negate the need for using the gate or traveling. It was always a risk to use the gate this close to the solstice, as the planar shifts due to the inherent thinness of the veil tended to throw things off course. But so far there had been nothing.
She had had hell just getting Grigore off their trail, and it had been in everyone's best interest to throw him off, Xiaolian's included. They couldn't risk another incident, especially where Grigore could catch wind of it. As far as he knew the two were not anything beyond what the line had produced in the past, they had just been clever enough to survive.
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Post by demikara on Jan 14, 2021 22:03:34 GMT -6
"Nothing that would withstand the full force that I was able to estimate we put off." He admitted. "I'm close, but trying to contain that much power isn't easy. I considered shunting it, but that would still end up with both of us out of it." Their bodies weren't meant to contain that much magic. "I have a partial solution right now. It's the amount of magic that's the issue." The spell had worked for smaller amount of magic just fine. He had even managed to work with it through a decent chunk of his own magic. But it would break under the onslaught of the solstice. That much he was certain of. "It could hold me on a normal day. But it's not ready for the solstice."
The fact that he had made a spell that would specifically negate someone of his own power made him uneasy truth told. It could be turned against him too easily. The spell itself was kept under lock and key for just that reason. He looked her over curiously. "It could probably hold you on a normal day. But you're stronger than I am, so I'm less sure of that." It was a powerful spell. He sighed and tugged on his braid. "I hope you have another plan. Because otherwise, we're going to have to rely on Boyuan and her brother again." And that had been very uncomfortable for him and he wasn't eager to deal with it again. He'd owe the asian woman even more than he already did, and it was an uneasy debt he owed as it was.
He didn't like owing debts to anyone at all. But Boyuan had kept them from discovery and helped keep secret the dangers of the day had on them from Grigore. Tyrus had no doubt that Grigore would find some way to turn their problem into his advantage. He didn't want to think of what the vampire could do with the knowledge that twice a year both of his heirs were out of it and weak to attack. He sure as hell didn't trust Grigore, and didn't trust his own shielding to keep Grigore out. Not when the other was a much stronger and more experienced telepath that Tyrus, who hesitated to use his new magic at the best of times.
It felt too much like an intrusion. He usually only used it when needing to speak privately with Catherine, or when Grigore insisted on it at the court. When Grigore decided to speak telepathically to him, he had learned very quickly, he was meant to reply with his mind and not his voice. Grigore was just as terrifying as his own parents had been with the added bonus of Tyrus being able to take more damage, and his grandsire all too happy to deal out the extra damage. Tyrus didn't even dare think of anything negative about his 'grandfather' until he was well away from the court itself.
But right now, he had bigger things to worry about. How the hell were they going to hide from the solstice this time around? If they spent time at the ranch again, they had a real chance of shifting the ley lines, or having one branch off. The magical hot spots were damn near enough to be ley pools as it was, and it didn't seem to matter how many power stones he used to pull magic from the area. Nothing seemed to make a dent in it. If they used the same spots this time around again, he had no doubt that he'd very quickly have a ley line running through his ranch, which invited the sort of attention he definitely did not want. There would certainly be questions as to what he had done to manage that as soon as any other magic user noticed.
And he wasn't going to bet on another magic user not noticing. They were lucky that the wards Xiaolian had cast were so damn strong as it was. He still wasn't quite sure how she and her friends had been able to manage such strong wards over such a large property but she had managed it. He tried not to think of how powerful she and the others who came with her were to do so. Xiaolian scared the piss out of him and had since the solstice. Dwelling on thoughts of her was sure to give him anxiety.
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Post by Circe on Jan 15, 2021 19:44:49 GMT -6
"No... I doubt that." Catherine hesitated, that didn't seem right. For her to be stronger than him made no sense, sure she was more practiced with the gifts their particular line so eagerly bestowed upon its members, but stronger shouldn't have been the case. "And why are you looking at me like that?" It made her uncomfortable to be examined like some curiosity to be studied, and Catherine suspected that was what was going through the mage's mind. Nothing seemed to capture his attention more than some new bit of magic or a spell he hadn't learned; and this had been the advantage in teaching him how to manage his new station in life.
"And there is a plan.. that doesn't involve the Lieutenant or her brother or friends." Catherine added, having been surprised to find out just how involved and connected with her community Xiaolian had been. The woman had always been a private type, and shared little of her private life. But at the same time, she had demonstrated she was knowledgable, and had bonded with her new team after a time. "As much as their help was appreciated, I think relying on them isn't fair to them or us."
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Post by demikara on Jan 15, 2021 19:59:19 GMT -6
"You were born pre-veil weren't you? Your connection is stronger than mine. It makes sense for you to have more access than I do." He was guessing on her age, but it wasn't much of a guess. She would have either had to be pre-veil and functionally immortal to be attached to the veil, or had the same ritual done to her. And if Grigore knew about the ritual, he would have done it to Scotty too. The young dhampir was basically useless when it came to the Unseen, a reluctant community member at best. She didn't have the same access to the veil that they did at least. At least Grigore didn't know the details about why he was so strong in magic. That would have been a disaster. Just because he had destroyed one copy of the ritual didn't mean that another copy didn't exist out there, somewhere.
He hoped one didn't though.
"I agree though. Plus the solstice is a busy day for MCU. It's probably for the best not to tangle up MCU officers more than strictly necessary. So what's the plan?" At least she had one. He hadn't been sure what they were going to do.
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Post by Circe on Jan 15, 2021 20:29:06 GMT -6
"Yes the second and last lifting so I've been told... but," Catherine answered with a rather beleaguered sigh. There was still so much that Tyrus had yet to comprehend or understand about things. They were never as cut or dry as they were in the books, and things were often left out because the author simply didn't know. It had been a golden age for magic, and the world had been different than it was now. More magical and perhaps in some ways intense. But no one had ever expected anyone to forget basic knowledge about the veil and the magic as time wore on. Having been adopted by Sir William and raised in the fae courts, Catherine had had a different experience with magic, and thought little of its importance in a world that lived and breathed it.
"We... or rather I don't know when exactly. It's all an educated guess, more guess than education." No one had thought much to record it, and the original family she had been born to had been of a middling to poor sort. More than likely, the family had been one bad crop away from disaster like many at the time and a extensive education wasn't something they were terribly interested in. Combined with the magic and supersition of the day, it had been a heady mix ripe for chaos. But either way she looked at it, she was older than she had any right to be by both fae and unseen standards.
"But yes, solstice is a busy day. One I don't work for a good reason." She couldn't risk the lapse in control, not publicly or at all. There was entirely too much at stake, with Grigore, the Council, and everything. "Most.. fae who are here have a key. It opens the gate between this world and ours." Catherine explained as she fished a small golden key set with emeralds and diamonds. Just the key alone wouldn't do anything, but combined with the right words akin to open sesame, it would. But this close to the solstice there was a lot of uncertainty if the spell would work right.
"Grigore didn't know what it was, so he didn't think to take it or my father's ring from me." For that she was grateful. He had regarded them as little more than pretty baubles, and not understood their significance to Catherine. If he had, she would have likely been even more trapped than she already felt she was.
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Post by demikara on Jan 15, 2021 20:36:28 GMT -6
"I won't breathe a word of either." He knew the value of sentimental objects. And an escape path, which she seemed to have. That was lucky for her. He could do with one himself that wouldn't end up with him owing Molly more than he was strictly speaking comfortable with. If she'd even take him to the fae realm to live, if he was pushed that far at the court. "And I don't tend to expect exact dates for people who are old enough to have lost count. Ra knows I didn't grow up knowing anyone's age at all." Milo had been the youngest of his older brothers, and even he had been several hundred years old. His parents had been ancient, enough to have lived through the dominant calendar changing.
"So the fae realm. Not that farm again, I hope." It would only be for a day, but Tyrus, despite owning a ranch, didn't know how to handle living on a farm or dealing with farm animals at all. Plus, sharing a room with Pwyll had made for tight quarters and an early rising so the other could go tend to the sheep.
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Post by Circe on Jan 15, 2021 20:49:50 GMT -6
"I would certainly hope not, but... by the same token I would understand if you had." She meanwhile knew that such objects could be used as leverage, and had experienced it first hand before. It wouldn't have been unexpected either, given that Tyrus could have likely used that leverage to get Grigore off his back. Any of them would have given anything to be rid of the vampire, but couldn't yet risk the power struggle necessary to do so.
"No. My father's estate." Catherine said bluntly. It wasn't exactly fortified against magic, but being that close to the veil alone would aleviate some of the symptoms. "It's... rural.. but its safe." Rural was an understatement, it was at least a good days journey down from the northern reaches of the land into the capital where the palace was.
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Post by demikara on Jan 15, 2021 20:56:41 GMT -6
"Rural is probably a good thing. And the fae realm should be able to handle the magic bleed off better than the ranch does." It would be interesting seeing her father's estate. Though he supposed it was hers now. He would certainly have to be very discrete about the fact that he had even seen it. Catherine was an intensely private person after all. "Alright. I suppose I'm as ready as I'm going to be." He'd at least dressed more comfortably this time around, ready to be knocked senseless once more and end up asleep on the ground somewhere, or insensate at least. It wasn't ideal, but until he could finesse the spell so it would completely effective, it was what it was.
He was putting a lot of trust in her for this. He hoped it wasn't misplaced. But they were in the same boat, when it came to this, at least, and she seemed understanding about it at least. Or at least not furious with him, which he would take.
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Post by Circe on Jan 15, 2021 22:09:15 GMT -6
"When the veil came into play, for lack of better words.. the fae were appointed the guardians of it." Catherine explained as she unclasped the long, thin, gold chain that the key was on. "That much magic will likely do very little damage is my guess. But... I should mention that this close to the solstice, it's uncertain how reliable this will be." They were at least a day out, if not two or three before things had the potential to get bad. But it was still too close to tell for certain if it wouldn't just decide to do as it pleased.
The key would at least bring them to right realm, even if it was potentially a bit far. Even then, they could always find the nearest village and ask around for transportation.
"But if you're ready.. then I guess its now or never." Catherine said before turning her attention to the key and its associated spell. Borrowing or rather stealing power from a god was risky, and that was what the key did. It allowed those who were never meant to travel the tree at least move between the two realms. She didn't use it lightly or for frivolous means, knowing full well the cost of the magic. Granted she had used it at Mezar during the fire, but it had been in dire circumstances and it had left her exhausted beyond belief. That had likely been what had enabled Grigore to find her, overpower her and her wards, and force his will on her normally strong one.
Taking a deep breath and a moment to center herself, Catherine began the first passage in the ancient fae words with the key resting on her palm, "Oh guardian of the gates, I call thy name and beseech thee oh Chronus, son of Gaia!" Words were power to the fae, and to the gods. She knew she had to be careful, one slip of the tongue could land them in more trouble than they already were in. "Hear me and open the gate! I call upon thee in my need, almighty Chronus! Reach through the veil and guide me, lead me!"
With each passage recited carefully from memory, the key began to glow and rise slowly. They had agreed to meet at the center between the two groves, the massive wells of magic easily hid them and any spellwork, including the gate.
Soon the wind began to pick up, blowing dead leaves and dust furiously through the grove and grabbing at their clothes and hair. It didn't take long before Catherine's own hair escaped the confines of it's own restraints to blow about wildly. This wasn't something quick, easy, and cute. Instead this was an ancient, raw, and powerful force with semi-sentience barely being controlled.
"Thverr manin un atra eka unin! Manin! Wyrda! Hugin! Manin! Wyrda! Hugin!" By now the wind was at its strongest as the key strained against its chain, with the magic hanging close and oppressive in the air. This was the full extent of Catherine's magic laid bare without the solstice to interfere. Few fae could even open the gates without working in concert with others, and even fewer could control them long enough to send more than an object through. Most nobles who had them didn't even know what they were for, muchless how to use them; instead they were objects to show the favor of the queen and little else.
Catherine however knew what they were and how to use them, not that she would have ever told anyone. She knew this was risky magic, never mind this was a large working that could have potentially exposed their position, if they hadn't used the groves to hide them. As she strained to finish the spell and maintain the control necessary to not kill either one of them or fling them across the tree's void, she could feel the magic begin to yeild.
The key soon exploded in a shower of blindingly bright gold and green sparks that drifted down to the ground revealing an ornate mirror with a shimmering silver surface.
Catherine motioned for Tyrus to step through it, never cognizant of the fact that the gate could possibly pull others thanks to the artifical ley well that had been constructed earlier in the year.
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Post by demikara on Jan 16, 2021 9:01:26 GMT -6
He had known the fae were the guardians of the veil. That much everyone knew. Or everyone ought to at least. Three days out from the solstice though and he wasn't looking forward to being in another realm. When she called upon the gods for the spell, he paled. That was rare and meant it was entirely too powerful of a spell for most to cast. It was also dangerous, calling on the Gods. And the fact that she had so confidently called on Chronus was more than a little terrifying. He worked hard to avoid having to call on the gods in his spells. He had only done so a handful of times and each time had tried to find another way to get the effect he wanted first.
It was a good thing they were under powerful wards that were designed to hide magic. And he could definitely see the wisdom in meeting between the two groves now, just in case something leaked through. And now they were going to spend a handful of days in the fae realm during the solstice and recovering from it. That was going to be interesting. He looked the mirror over briefly, then reminded himself that he trusted Catherine. He had to trust she knew what she was doing. Hopefully this deposited them exactly where they meant to go though.
He swallowed, not wanting to do this, then stepped through the mirror. It was just another mirror to travel through, and he had traveled via mirror since he could remember. This was just a very different mirror than most. It was a longer trip, it seemed in his mind at least, before he was on the other side. Back in the fae realm, but this time not on a sheep farm.
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Post by Circe on Jan 16, 2021 14:44:10 GMT -6
Catherine stepped through after him, after one last check of their surroundings. Safety was paramount with things like the gate.
With the spell to close it behind them already forming in her mind, Catherine tried to concentrate on getting through in the meantime. It wasn't that she had been terribly confident in her spellwork, just that she knew it had to at least work partially in order to get them to the other side. Closing the gate would be a repeat of the same spell, just in reverse, at least that's as much as she remembered. Everytime she'd ever used it, it had rendered her near collapsing due to the magical drain it put on her system. Once the gate spell ran out of power, normally the gate simply vanished and waited to be called up again. This time however, it had been summoned in between two artifical ley pools, and there was no telling what would happen.
Stumbling out not long after Tyrus, she turned her attention to closing the gate before anything else could come through or be pulled through. It wasn't the simple work of a thought to close it, unlike other magics. Instead Catherine had to gradually and carefully slow the flow of magic from her to the gate, this was a big enough working that simply stopping it wasn't a reality.
Once the gate had vanished though, she took a moment to take in their surroundings and try to get her bearings. She admittedly didn't know much outside of her family's estate lands and those surrounding the palace. Like most fae children, she had been kept protected and safely sheltered. While she had been cherished and loved, there were still harsh realities that she hadn't been exposed to on this side of the veil. Joining MCU had been her opportunity to escape the confines of the court's expected roles of women. While Sir William had supported her, many of the nobility had viewed her as a curiosity and assumed that she would return home after she grew bored.
Taking in the moss covered trees, with their twisting trunks, Catherine tried to remember where they could have possibly landed. It looked nothing like the forests close to home, and even less like some of land a bit further to the east of it. There was no visible path through grass and weeds that managed to grow up beneath the dense canopy of trees, and that worried her.
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Post by demikara on Jan 16, 2021 19:54:25 GMT -6
Tyrus took in the moss covered trees and the forest. "Not an exact landing." He remarked. These didn't look much like well managed forests either and the lack of path worried him. "Do you have an idea fo where we are?" He didn't think she'd know exactly. They were in the woods after all. It was probably a good thing they had a few days then. It could take time to travel here. She looked tired through and that worried him. The spell must have taken a lot out of her.
That made sense though, given she had called on Chronus to get them here. The mage examined a nearby tree. He didn't recognize the species, but that wasn't surprising. It wasn't like he knew much about trees.
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Post by Circe on Jan 16, 2021 20:55:47 GMT -6
Catherine was still slightly disoriented and confused from the trip across the veil. The gate had provided a safe passage, but it was still an adjustment going from a world with barely any magic to one dripping with the stuff. "No, it wasn't." She agreed, unsure what had gone wrong with the spell. It had worked perfectly the last time she'd used it, but it hadn't been this close to solstice.
"I'm not sure where we are truth told." Nothing was adding up yet to give her any hint of where they might be. "If... if I had to guess, I would say we're in one of the more wild sections of Shrewspar forest."
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Post by demikara on Jan 16, 2021 21:00:38 GMT -6
Shrewspar forest. That meant nothing to him, but at least they had landed safely. "Alright. I can cast a spell to direct us to the nearest people." He searched his pockets and finally decided on his keys, taking off one that he no longer remembered what it went to and holding it in the palm of his hand. With a few murmured words, the key floated just above his hand and pointed the way. "People probably means a village, after all." Hopefully it meant a village, or at least someone to tell them where they were. The mage smiled to her carefully. all his smiles were careful since he had been turned. He didn't want to accidentally show fangs after all.
"This way, I suppose." They'd have to navigate through the underbrush and around trees, but hopefully they weren't too far from civilization.
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Post by Circe on Jan 16, 2021 21:08:39 GMT -6
"True.. lets just hope we're on the right side of the border." Catherine commented. They couldn't have missed things by that much, could they? She was absolutely certain that she had done everything right, but larger and singular workings were not something she'd had much experience with. But, at least they hadn't ended up crashing one of Maab's daughter's dinner parties, strange and gruesome things that they were. Catherine shuddered to think what would have happened to them, especially once they found out who it was that had unintentionally crashed it.
"This ended up marginally better than last time I suppose."
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