Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Trip to the Churchground [closed]

Nodding to Haku's plan and order of things, Ikarus walks on while Landi takes his rest to eat and drink on the back of the cart, although Ikarus isn't a wonderful judge of time, either, and just goes until his feet start to protest all the trekking, at which point he claims his spot on the back of the cart. Yawning, that's all that Ikarus gets to as far as 'complaining', but after a good portion of the vegetable soup, Ikarus perks right back up again like a flower freshly watered. "I'm glad that Mr. Makwa ended up taking to the bakery. I was worried for a while that he'd be unhappy there. But he makes very good food, I think." Though Ikarus doesn't spend too much time on the cart, he also doesn't need to, and isn't above operating by adding time to his next break if he felt he needed to. Likely not. This was still new, and exciting, and it'd been long enough since Ikarus hadn't been on some form of island that the climate was nice. "Haku you're turn." He'd remind the native, who Ikarus felt would be just as likely to skip his turn on accident as the rest of them. "What all did we bring?" Since Ikarus knew the last time he'd asked, there hadn't been much of a list, and he's now seen Landi pass off a carrot for the horse.

Haku was tired himself, though he wouldn't admit it. Being on alert was tiring. He waited his turn, and looked carefully over to landi. "we shoudl rest here, and I'll be eating as we et up the camp or tent, or something. I'll eat, Ikarus, can.. er... Illiandi can you try and tie down the horse, undo the cart from it, and Ikarus, well.." He heard the quetion about what they had brought. hku nodded to his bags. "Clothing, and the other bag is a medical bag." If Ikarus had been to the tether at all.. He'd recognise the symbol of the golden lion on the leather. Haku made no comment on the symbol, knowing exactly where it had come from. Haku looked over to landi and then shrugged. "He brougt clothing as well, and we have our armor. a few othe things, such as the soil, and the seeds, and the spoon I believe." he glanced to Landi and then took the veggie soup and sipped at it, not minding that everyone else has their share before him. He slowly paced around the cart, looking at the ground before he felt satisfied to sit down, to finally rest. "the glow light should be fine for tonight. if we dim it enough.. I believe we'll be fine." He stifled a yawn.

It was good they had bodyguards. With all three of the men having pushed themselves and the horse for a full day and part of the night, it was likely that they would not be able to set up a very effective watch.

"The last letter we got finally had a list of things to bring, so we were able to bring the things Haku mentioned as far as medicine, seeds, and some soil and food, but also those bolts of burlap and linen," he gestures. "The horse doesn't like me, Ipo, and I'm not willing to risk it bolting. I'm sorry, but I'll need you to do that after you eat." It would be rather bad for them to lose the horse out in the middle of nowhere as they were. Landi could feel the artificial desert of the barren cropfields nearby under his feet, and the hesitance of the smaller life around them. "I will, however, set up the tent."

The sigil on the tent was his brother's; a golden hand in a gold sun with black and white rays leaping out from it. The tent was JUST big enough for two people to squish together and maybe keep a bag in there too, so Landi ends up folding down a tarp outside of it as well, to make a second sleeping platform. The glow glass, shaken, provides a dull, greenish light over the makeshift camp. He removes the shoulderpieces, the gloves and the boots, but following his brother's advice from long ago, he only loosens the chest piece and keeps the leg protection on entirely.

Wandering off a short distance for a piss, he soon returns. Evidently volunteering to be the one sleeping outside, it's the tarp he settles on with the water flask. He'd be the first one asleep and the hardest to wake if they truly were stopping.

Haku was tired, and now showed it once he sat down to eat. And surprisingly eat he did. He finished off the rest of the soup and looked over to Landi as he mentioned no horse and it was Haku's job. Haku gave a single nod. He finished up, and once landi was working on the tent, Haku got up and unhitched the horse and tookt he reigns and loosely tethered the horse to a deadened looking trying to still stya alive sapling nearby. The horse bent down to see if the grass, which was sparse was ok to eat, and Haku knew that the grass wouldn't be enough to keep teh horse fed. "We might have to stop by a town to get grains for the horse tomorrow." He mused as he headed to the tent, and spotting the shimmer of the guards still nearby, he felt a bit safer... Once Ikarus settled down and had stopped talking (probably becuase it was quiet, and nighttime and once laying down happened, the men would be out like lights... occasionally, Haku, unable to sleep would wake up and look around, and only after checking himself.. fell back to sleep, in a fitful rest. [next day]

{next day sum up}

Haku was tired as he was roused, by the nudging of a nose. The horse apparently had untied itself and wandered over to the tent and was sniffing around to see what there was for food. Haku grunted a hi head as pushed at and he opened his eyes to see horse snout. He gave a chuckle as he got up and stretched, ahead of everyone else and fed the horse what he could, and then looking around to see if there was anything to be found that he might be able to track down. There didn't seem to be anything. He hitched the horse to the cart, letting the others sleep as they will, and he donned his armor, and then nudged the others awake if they already weren't. "We have a full day's ride still, up and out." He stated as he adjusted things in the cart, knowing thatone of them would be in the back eating, most likely Landi. "I might need you to pierce yourself, Illiandi. You've been in that armor..either that or you can still sleep in the cart if Ikarus is ok with walking." he glanced to the two of them as he checked the straps and buckles and the yoke for the horse and cart. If there was any aggreance on anything, Haku started out. It was slightly muggy.. grey ky, nothing too impressive (at least to Haku) to notice. The invisible guards, one trekking up ahead, the other a few yards behind the cart, shimmered here and there. Haku was silent during the trek for part of the day.

Illiandi, having slept outside so that Ikarus and Haku could have the tent, had been naturally ignored by the horse. Setting up "breakfast" by requesting "apple" of the spoon and lowering it into their shared bowl, he takes the offered place of 'first resting' by sitting on the back of the wagon while the stricken scenery rolls by. "Looks like the soil's gone all hardpacked, like they had a flood and the flood brought in too much clay and not enough silt," he tries to guess. Not an agricultural expert, Landi had much more experience in keeping livestock. Famine, however, he's seen.

Reloading the bowl with 'apple' sludge again, he passes it over to Ikarus, knowing Haku preferred to be last with such things. He only remains in the wagon long enough to get his armor back on properly, and pauses with his earring in hand to allow Haku to puncture the soft flesh of his earlobe. Leaving the helm, as a result, OFF for now, Landi carries it as he walks. Regardless of their need for caution, Landi still sings as he travels, trying to teach another simple round. "Hey, ho, nobody home. Sleep, nor drink, nor money have I none. Yet, I will, be happy - Hey, ho, nobody home."

[An Aside; What the guys may encounter upon drawing closer to the area surrounding the Church of Divine Light.]

The Redroot Valley would mark the last leg of their hopefully not-so-perilous journey. From one end of the valley to the other was an entire days walk, and the Church for which they were venturing, lay all the way across to the other side. Where dense forest met the edge of a tall mountain, the only thing separating the rest of the valley from the vast city of Rosehall, that lay just on the other side of the steep stone obstruction.

The path that led into the valley was rocky and uneven on this end, as if they'd not been cared for in some time. Pine grew readily along the paths, as well as sagebrush, and jumping cactus. Someone unfortunate enough, or unaware enough to step off the path might find their feet covered in tiny painful spurs. The paths themselves, though not well kept after, were free of much of these plants, making traveling through less of an inconvenience.

The road was long and winding, and as it drew closer to the next city, the earth began to take on a sickly look, though still lush enough to scrape by feeding the mouths of the Town of Molinar.

The Town of Molinar itself was busy within it's walls, and the folk a mixture of friendly and guarded. If the men hung around town long enough they might hear tell of the Oracle who could find your stolen goods living at the very Church to which they were headed. They may also hear warning that traveling to the Church may be dangerous. The townsfolk under the impression that the land had been cursed.

Only one path led out of Molinar, as poorly up kept as the one before it, but winding into dense forest. From here, it was another three hour trek to the abandoned Parish of Foster's Grove, and the Church of Divine Light.

Ikarus slept fitfully during the night, tucked up in a ball of feathers and feet that stuck out every now and again when he'd roll over or back. The sound of Haku moving so close to him was what made the winged man start to wake up, and he was used to 'get up and go' for his mornings. So, helping where he could to pack up the tent and the supplies, Ikarus was in a good mood as they got going. No longer bouncing literally, he would still make a little zig-zag on the path as he walked, humming and then singing along with Landi as they got started.

Having no apparent problem with it, Ikarus chose for the moment to eat his breakfast as he walked, rather than sitting on the cart. His legs were sore from yesterday, and moving them eased up the knots in his muscles a bit. Giving the bowl over to Haku for his share as the path began to grow rougher than their previous day's journey. No longer zig-zagging out of idle boredom, Ikarus now picked his way carefully through the tougher rocks, stepping on flatter stones as they became available. He hadn't really intended to take a rest from fatigue, but a half-step too close to the edge of the path brought Ikarus into range of a wayward jumping cactus, and catching himself in his heel, Ikarus yelped after he knocked it against a rock, and realized he was stuck.

"Owowowowowowch-" In one fell swoop, Ikarus stopped practicing holding his wings still (now using them as balancing tools), and gave in to the need to sit down. He hobble-hopped over to the cart, wiggling his butt up onto the bouncing thing, spending the next hour or so playing a horrible juggling game with getting the cacti out of his foot, and then out of his hand, and then out of his other hand before it was free enough he could chuck it far off the side of the road, and work on getting out the irritating little hair-spines left behind. That was the hardest part of the whole job, it seemed. Couldn't even see the damn little things to get them out!

Now walking on one whole-foot and one toes-only foot, Ikarus was glad for picking up the stick yesterday so he could use it for a proper walking aid when he needed to, avoiding the side of the path now like a plague. Only as they started to pass through the city did Ikarus replace his wings around him, and start looking around at this strange, barrenly-full land. "How do people live out here?" Quiet, and probably only for either Haku or Landi to hear (not wanting to offend anyone else who lived here), but, well, Ikarus did wonder. Maybe it was mean, but it was no longer a surprise that the church out here was in trouble. Yeesh!

Haku wasn't one to go wandering around like Ikarus did when it came to moving around. There was a path for a reason, and haku with the mpa and the obervation skills of a tracker could see the pricklies hidden along the grasses. He ate when he felt he could, and kept the walking up at a steady pace, as he slowly and as carefully as possible, headed into the towns that were along the map. He made sure to keep whatever contact they had with anyone short and to the point. They were headed here. ometimes they got dirty looks they sometimes got mumbles and vague pointings int eh general direction. It was all that Haku needed, as he kept on going. The path was winding more as the day grew longer. Haku was sweating and by the time Ikarus stepped on a prickly, haku looked tired. "Oh for crying outloud..." he turned and looked over to the other. "You can always sit in the cart, that's what we got it for." he offered, and as they passed through the last of the towns again with them looking slightly... abandoned, haku frowned as he shook hi head. "... I don't know. I don't think they could.." he swallowed as he looked over to Landi. "... Do you think you can feel anything around?"

Illiandi, thankfully, was immune to a build-up of pain over a period of days, as he healed every night. It had its costs, naturally, such as being more fragile in the immediacy (hence the armor and frequent fatigue) and just as pain or injury didn't build up, neither did muscle or useful callouses. As fresh as he started out yesterday, he's keeping up well. The pines were of interest to him. Scraggy and separated as they were, he spends perhaps half the day noting the varieties before he wanders toward one nearer the edge of the path. Pulling a few cones off, he rejoins their troupe and has the nuts identified on his suspicions in Molinar. The people there likely harvesting pinyon pine nuts from the surrounds as well likely give him a positive on them being edible, and so the remainder of his walk, Landi takes what harvest he can. The burrs from the jumping cactus cling to the armored boots, but he pauses ever so often to struggle them off.

When it was Ikarus, however, who got stabbed by them, he can't help but laugh a bit. He'd been after Ikarus and Haku both to wear shoes. "hahha, you're going to have to soak that out, I'm sure. Haku, you be extra careful," he cautions, since he recently gave the man a special treatment to his feet. To Haku's question, however, Landi shakes his head. "Just the usually clinging sparseness. There's an extra clearing about mmwaa - about a quarter mile up?" But unless there were large and moving things about, Landi had nothing more to report. His ability to sense life signatures in distinguishing detail still needed work, and it took him a while to adjust to each new area.

It was only after around ten minutes of walking, and showing Ikarus how to release the seeds from the cones, that he answers, "Well, from what we understood from the letters, people mostly don't. Live around here, that is. It's also probably not so bad after a more hospitable flood than whatever brought the clay in. Land can change abruptly. If a beaver family - or even a person, built a damn across a stream a hundred miles from here, it could have changed what water makes it down this way. Just like the volcano from my story the other day - Across the sea but still dropping enough ash to smother the crops and grey the sky. We're fortunate to live in fecundity back home, but even then, we have to watch our own Volcano."

The path winded on between the sickly pine trees, there were other travelers on the roads coming from the other direction from the traveling men, but they kept to themselves, their heads down, their hands close to their respective belongings. It may have been clear that thievery along this path was something of a commonplace experience. So long as they kept to themselves as well, they would meet no trouble along the way.

Eventually the trees began to take on a charred look, as if fire had passed through, and yet, the rest of the pine forest remained untouched. These trees opened to Foster's Grove, the parish the Church had once serviced. It was a dead town now. The only sounds around were those of the wildlife, even then, they seemed subdoed, somehow less full of life then they'd sounded even fifteen minutes back along the path. The town itself also showed no signs of fire, that the trees may have suggested. It was instead barren and clay.

The air in the small village was unsettlingly still. The buildings empty, abandoned years before. The houses were in disrepair, straw shingles littered the streets having been blown from the roofs of the houses, the wooden walls mildewed and rotting from not having been upkept.

The Church stood on an incline over the village. At one time it must have been something to see, the proud white chapel overlooking it's adoring followers, protecting them, leading them.

It hadn't been that way in a very long time. The bell tower was crooked, and the paint faded and chipping. The orchard to the right of it, had only two or three live trees, the others having died in the clay heavy soil. To the left was a garden as lush as was possible in the conditions. The area directly encompassing the churchyard was free of the stifling deadness of the parish, the air finding proper flow again, and the birds chirping with more life.

The steps up to the Church were steep and many, eventually leading to a pair of solid Oak doors with a Large Brass Knocker. Each door had a decorative stain glass window.

Taking his 'told you so' from both Landi and Haku fairly well, Ikarus still continued to walk for now. The horse was a good horse, but Ikarus didn't know much about them, and didn't want to stress the cart from sitting on it for too long. "I'm fine, I'm fine." He assured as they continued on, and neither Haku nor Landi really thought that people could live out here. And it didn't seem like it. As they started up through the dead town, Ikarus gave up again for a bit and sat down on the cart, Pulling his foot up over his leg so he could look at his heel again, still bleeding very slightly from the pricks, and sighed.

The end of his breath stuck in his throat, though, as the air became dead and still. He'd been excited about going on a trip to anywhere, but now the haunted, sinking feeling started to settle over him, and Ikarus was quiet. His wings pulled back up under his arms, and he held on to the side of the cart with one arm as he road, looking around. Only when the trio of them would come to the church would Ikarus slip back onto the ground, taking his walking stick with him. His feathers were slightly puffed from the inkling of fear, as if ready at any moment to present himself as a super-scary-big thing to any threat.

"Woooah..." He stick-hopped up the last few stairs to just staaaare at the stained glass windows on the door. "Illiandi! Haku! Look at these! Look how many colors! Isn't this pretty...?" ADD much? Yes.

Haku smirked a bit to Ikarus as he assured he was fine. Haku looked blatantly to hi medical bag. Hello? Medical supplies? Ikarus only had to ak Haku if he had anything... but Haku liekly wouldn't get that question from the other. Haku frowned as the town they traversed through... was all but... dead. "... No stopping. The church is right up there, see?" He nodded to the.. loooong stairway that led to it. Haku thinned his lips. They couldn't bring the cart up there. "we'll be walking up those .. Ikarus?" He canted his head and then followed where Ikarus was pointing to. Haku had to admit that even run down looking the church looked .. pretty regal. He smirked a bit a he gathered up his bags from teh back of the wagon. "we'll have to walk the sstairs. the cart won't make it up there, and I will tether the horse by a stables if there is any. Give it a small break." He swallowed several times, and reached for the flask of water. Haku took a few long sips and then passed it around. "Be.. careful here... Illiandi, can you and Ikarus walk to the doors? I'll put the cart and horse away somewhere." he looked the tired horse over, with hardly any breaks. He detached the wagon fromt eh horse and gave it water. "... they weren't kidding when they said this was in .. devastation.." so far they had beenlucky not to have been jumped by anything. Once the horse had its fill, Haku turned to lead it back to where he had thought he saw a stable, and if bags were taken out of the wagon, Haku carted that along as well.

Illiandi continues to keep an eye on the road, and though he nods cordially to each of the passers, he doesn't engage them lest his own party's bodyguards come into play. While not technically demons, they were not of this plane of existence and tended to be called such for lack of a better word. Invisible, they ensured that the people sharing the road found reasons to keep to their own side.

Having understood they were coming up on a stricken town and an impoverished church, however, the desolation does not impart to him the same superstitious fear that it did their youngest member. Instead, he's making a list in his head; a town with wood to scavenge from, possible with abandoned tools; the need for a whitewash and perhaps a check for wood rot in the steeple. "I wish I'd thought to bring some of our nails from home," he says to Haku. "I only hope the Parson here has some basic set."

Accepting Haku's direction even as Ikarus runs ahead, Landi says, "All right. Be careful," to his husband. Only feeling a bit anxious when he has to split the party three and two, does he lift up the first of the gifts - just the bag of carrots and seeds for now, and leaves the heavy bolts of burlap and linen in the wagon along with the sacks of fertilized earth. His own bag, he carries as well, and tromps up slowly after Ikarus, still drawing a long to-do list in his head for the week to come.

Inside the siblings were not yet aware of the arrival of their anticpated guests, though not unprepared. Minuette had been saying since the first light that their guests would arrive today, something Toby didn't take too terribly seriously, given that it was difficult to say when one would arrive, if you were unfamiliar with where they were traveling from.

Despite his sound logic, his sister had spent the day cleaning the inside of the church as best as she could, instead of resting as Toby would have preferred. Cots were made up in the tiny guest rooms, enough to sleep five. The stew on the stove enough to feed five mouths as well. Minuette had a talent for these things, knowing things ahead of time, she did not however account for the fact that two of the five expected entities were not on this plane at all.

Toby was lighting the candles for the nightly prayer ahead of time, staying out of his sisters way while she went about doing whatever it was she felt she had to do, every once in a while urging her to sit down, only to be ignored.

Waiting already at the top of the stairs, Ikarus was sure to keep Landi in his sights as Haku took the horse off to be put up. Fingers came up to dust carefully over the stain glass, fascinated on the outside already by its colors, let alone what they might look like from the inside. Though as his friend started up the stairs, Ikarus looked down.

"Should I knock?" Still leaning on his toe rather than his whole foot, Ikarus wasn't worried about himself. Haku had medical supplies, and Landi wasn't the only one with healing abilities. Even now, the area was starting to get a little swollen and red, though it was hard to notice through the thick callous that was the bottom of his foot anyway. Not sure if they were waiting for Haku to come back or not, Ikarus lifted the brass knocker in question, violet eyes watching Landi until the man was closer, and then turning back to the stained glass.

Haku quietly led the horse to the stables, and took the bridle off, scritching at where it sat for so long. Haku spent some time with the horse, trying to find any hay or ... SOMETHING to give the horse. He didn't have the flask to feed the horse water, since he had passed that around, but he managged to find an old pail, and if there was a fountain, or a stream, or even a working pump for a sink, Haku tried those. regardless of getting water or not, Haku wasn't liking to leave the other two alone, (and he wasn't about to admit that the abandoned feeling was creeping him out. Ptsd much?) He patted the horse with an apology that he couldn't do more, as he heade from the stables to the cart, where he put the cart to the side of the stable, in sight of the chapel. He looked at teh things inside. The linen and the dirt. He shook his head, but his hands were already full with his things. he licked at his lips as he backed away from the stables and cart, and heaed toward the others.
WHen he got within speaking range, if Ikarus or Landi hadn't knocked yet, haku gave a nod. "well let's see what we are in for.. shall we?" He ssmirked as he watched the doors carefully.

Enjoying Ikarus' infatuation with the stained glass, Landi says, "You know Miss Jilliene would probably make you some of these for to hang in those giant Manor windows." He gestures to these specifically, saying, "They usually have a picture, that shows a bit of a story." His personal handicaps preventing him from seeing for himself if ~these do, he doesn't try to look for one, instead saying, "The Churches I know, you just go in, but they've installed a knocker. Best use it," he encourages of Ikarus, though he reaches over a fingerless gloved hand to lift the other, rapping it once as Haku climbs the steps. "No hay lain out for the horse? I'll have to see if I can make hay later, or see if our spoons can do dry oats instead of oatmeal. I've never tried."

As the second invisible guard slithers up behind Haku, the one that had been with Illiandi leaves to do a patrol of the grounds, freed up to do so now that the group is rejoined.

Turning to the church, however, Landi call, "Hallo Parson! Friends at the door!"

The tapping of the knocker, and the sound of a male voice, calling out greetings from the outside brought a smile to Minuette's face. Their guests had arrived! She left the stew to simmer over the coals, and headed slowly into the chapel to greet them, taking her time, because she knew that Toby would get there first no matter how hard she tried.

And indeed he did. With the youthful energy of the child he was, he scampered to the doors, and wrenched them open, but only enough to peer out suspiciously. "Who Are you, and Whaddahya wa--"

He was cut of by his sister at his side, pushing him gently to the side, so she could open the doors wide for them. She invited the men into the small warm prayer hall.

It was a sight to see, or rather at one time, it must have been very beautiful. Tall ceilings and arches, Cherry wood pews, carved with love and care into fine seats. Large windows of Stain glass biblical scenes lined the walls. Over the years the windows had been cracked and damaged in places, the pews scratched up, and falling apart, though it was clear that someone had put great time into trying to fix them, but the work that needed to be done was vast, far too big for the youths inhabiting the Church.

"Welcome friends, Might one of you be Mr. Bondsmiller? We've been expecting you."

Happily used the knocker as Landi suggested that he do so. Now that they were here, in this place that was supposed to be a haven for the traveled and the weary (or such was Ikarus's understanding of churches), the excitement was coming back into his features.

Of course, he'd hardly be alone to suddenly find himself with an open door, staring into the face of a young kid, one that reminded him vaguely of a Mr. Calbyr with the way the other was stuck somewhere between an adult and a child. Ikarus, not really someone who was good with children- or sometimes even strangers- backed up a step to the half-hostile greeting, and looked beside him to Landi. This was not what he expected, and even as the older woman stepped in, she still seemed very young to be here alone. Which, of course, was what made Ikarus assume that they were not alone, and that maybe more people lived here, Landi had said 'family' after all. Questioned, however, Ikarus automatically pointed over to Landi as the lady asked for Mr. Bondsmiller, and then stepped back again so that he could get back a pace behind his friend, and possibly behind Haku as well.

Well, he'd never tried to say that he was the best with strangers, but still. Attempting not to seem overly shocked at the turn of events, Ikarus pointed lamely at the door, "You have pretty windows..." Just, you know, establishing that they three were intelligent and knowledgeable souls. Good job, Ikarus.