23 Hivvem 4385: Planning
Planning
During the rest of 21 Hivvem, the crefian told Mirhandrax and Outcast everything they knew about Armenswall. Armenswall is the leader of a village of thunglaze and furomi. The thunglaze are generally in charge and use the furomi for muscle and brute force while the thunglaze come up with the plans and provide magical backup. The thunglaze (those are the tiny ones) are good with Herbador, Corpador, and Spirador and know all the Verbs, while the furomi (those are the giant ones) aren't much good with magic. There's a lot more furomi than thunglaze, too. So if it comes to a confrontation Mirhandrax figures it'll be mainly straight-up melee but we should be prepared for support spells like Thorn Walls and Pepper Strike, and healing spells for their side, and maybe Painted Eyes That See spying on us. The crefian had more information that that but I wasn't paying that close attention. Flitlegs and Redspots were bored and wanted me to play with them while we were still in the village and also PLANNING = NOT MY JOB so I played Chase the Feather and quarter-catch with them and some of the little crefian caterkids.
If planning were my job every plan would be "you distract them and I'll teleport in, grab it, and teleport out."
Before sunout Refia made up little nests for us (well in Mirhandrax's case a BIG nest) to sleep in. Crefian nests are a lot more comfortable than that sounds! They make them out of wrapped leaves stuffed with moss and you crawl into it sort of like a sleeping bag or a tiny tent. Then the crefian closes it over you to keep the rain out. Very cozy!
Glory Blaze and Intoxicating Sky didn't come to see Armenswall's village with us because they did not come along for Adventure. Neither did I or Summer Sun for that matter but we're going along anyway because we're stupid that way Summer Sun is curious about adventuring and I thought Mirhandrax could use more backup than just Outcast and one young ulgrane who might change his mind any time.
So 22 Hivvem was another long boring flight and then an even longer and boringer reconnaissance because recon is Mirhandrax's FAVORITE THING EVER.
Yet More Planning
We spent most of 23 Hivvem on reconnaissance but that was ALL because FOUR DAYS LEFT until winter and we still have to fly home afterwards.
The thunglaze and furomi village is on a series of giant fungal shelves growing out of the side of the world-branch. The thunglaze (those are the tiny ones) lived in these doll-house-like palaces carved out of wood and set among teeny yards and gardens on the mushroom-shelves. Some of the teeny thunglaze palaces are amazing! One of them was even gilded in real gold with stained-glass-style windows made of glirries and jewels. The big shaggy furomi lived in shabby huts that were backed against the branch, usually two or three to a shelf, with one thunglaze dollhouse in front of it. The furomi lived in families of several individuals, but every thunglaze seemed to get its own dollhouse. Except for a few extra-tiny thunglaze who lived with furomi for some reason.
The babyberry bush is being cultivated on a shelf in the middle of the village. It's inside a small invisible enclosure of thick wood -- thick to deter the crefians from stealing it back, we assume, and invisible so it can get sunlight. They're keeping it harvested: Mirhandrax spotted some underripe berries but no ripe ones. It's entrapped with bound spells: if anyone who isn't a thunglaze or a furomi enters the enclosure, it'll fill with wickedly thorny vines. They didn't have any one specifically guarding the bush, but it was in the middle of the village. They're crepuscular -- most of their activity is around dawn and twilight -- but have lookouts posted at all hours around their village, to watch for angry monsters and hostile nonprimes generally. Because the Verticals are not especially safe places for anyone, not even the nonprimes who live there.
There's dozens of them, probably over a hundred. We're not sure how many would be willing to put up a fight over the bush, but flying in and taking it by force would not work if even a fraction of them resisted.
"I think we'd better take the whole bush," Outcast said, while we were talking over what we'd learned scouting. We were skulking in a little cleft in the Verticals about half a mile from the nonprime village.
Mirhandrax wrinkled his broad brown muzzle, thinking. "Getting a few berries would be easier."
"Depends how we're going to do this. Taking some berries means timing the task for when they're ripe enough but not yet picked by the thunglaze, which may be tricky. Take the whole bush, and we can go whenever suits us best. Also, getting the whole bush requires much less precision than picking berries." Outcast turned to give me a speculative look. "Delight, does your trick with Change Places work on inanimate objects?"
"Yep," I said.
Mirhandrax raised a whiskery eyebrow. "You have something in mind to disarm the trap before you send her in?"
Outcast grinned. "Don't need to. Change Places is faster than it is." Teleport spells are instantaneous -- you cast them and they take effect immediately. The thorny-vine trap, like most spells designed to inflict harm, needs a few seconds to build after being triggered.
"You're still counting on her being able to cast before the trap finishes building."
"No, he doesn't have to," I said, catching the idea. "I can make a bound spelll that triggers as soon as I enter the enclosure. It'll go off automatically."
"Ah, true. Still, the spell doesn't have much range and the bound version even less. We'll need a way to get you in close without getting you or the bush re-captured," Mirhandrax said.
"Right. I'd say you and I create a distraction, while Summer Sun flies Delight in close enough that she can teleport the babyberry bush out to him (and herself back to him). They make their escape, we make ours, and rendezvous for the return to Veshrame."
"So I'm just ferrying one Orren and a plant?" Summer Sun said. "I can do that."
Mirhandrax and Outcast talked about the details of the distraction some more before we were ready to go in, but we're basically doing the same plan I would have gone with before we knew anything. Sometimes I really don't know why we have to bother with all the research and reconnaissance stuff.
Anyway, they decided to go in the middle of the night for reduced visibility -- the lookouts probably have Sleeth Eyes cast on them, but at least the rest of the village won't. So I'm going to get some sleep now. I'll let you know tomorrow how it went!
During the rest of 21 Hivvem, the crefian told Mirhandrax and Outcast everything they knew about Armenswall. Armenswall is the leader of a village of thunglaze and furomi. The thunglaze are generally in charge and use the furomi for muscle and brute force while the thunglaze come up with the plans and provide magical backup. The thunglaze (those are the tiny ones) are good with Herbador, Corpador, and Spirador and know all the Verbs, while the furomi (those are the giant ones) aren't much good with magic. There's a lot more furomi than thunglaze, too. So if it comes to a confrontation Mirhandrax figures it'll be mainly straight-up melee but we should be prepared for support spells like Thorn Walls and Pepper Strike, and healing spells for their side, and maybe Painted Eyes That See spying on us. The crefian had more information that that but I wasn't paying that close attention. Flitlegs and Redspots were bored and wanted me to play with them while we were still in the village and also PLANNING = NOT MY JOB so I played Chase the Feather and quarter-catch with them and some of the little crefian caterkids.
If planning were my job every plan would be "you distract them and I'll teleport in, grab it, and teleport out."
Before sunout Refia made up little nests for us (well in Mirhandrax's case a BIG nest) to sleep in. Crefian nests are a lot more comfortable than that sounds! They make them out of wrapped leaves stuffed with moss and you crawl into it sort of like a sleeping bag or a tiny tent. Then the crefian closes it over you to keep the rain out. Very cozy!
Glory Blaze and Intoxicating Sky didn't come to see Armenswall's village with us because they did not come along for Adventure. Neither did I or Summer Sun for that matter but we're going along anyway because we're stupid that way Summer Sun is curious about adventuring and I thought Mirhandrax could use more backup than just Outcast and one young ulgrane who might change his mind any time.
So 22 Hivvem was another long boring flight and then an even longer and boringer reconnaissance because recon is Mirhandrax's FAVORITE THING EVER.
Yet More Planning
We spent most of 23 Hivvem on reconnaissance but that was ALL because FOUR DAYS LEFT until winter and we still have to fly home afterwards.
The thunglaze and furomi village is on a series of giant fungal shelves growing out of the side of the world-branch. The thunglaze (those are the tiny ones) lived in these doll-house-like palaces carved out of wood and set among teeny yards and gardens on the mushroom-shelves. Some of the teeny thunglaze palaces are amazing! One of them was even gilded in real gold with stained-glass-style windows made of glirries and jewels. The big shaggy furomi lived in shabby huts that were backed against the branch, usually two or three to a shelf, with one thunglaze dollhouse in front of it. The furomi lived in families of several individuals, but every thunglaze seemed to get its own dollhouse. Except for a few extra-tiny thunglaze who lived with furomi for some reason.
The babyberry bush is being cultivated on a shelf in the middle of the village. It's inside a small invisible enclosure of thick wood -- thick to deter the crefians from stealing it back, we assume, and invisible so it can get sunlight. They're keeping it harvested: Mirhandrax spotted some underripe berries but no ripe ones. It's entrapped with bound spells: if anyone who isn't a thunglaze or a furomi enters the enclosure, it'll fill with wickedly thorny vines. They didn't have any one specifically guarding the bush, but it was in the middle of the village. They're crepuscular -- most of their activity is around dawn and twilight -- but have lookouts posted at all hours around their village, to watch for angry monsters and hostile nonprimes generally. Because the Verticals are not especially safe places for anyone, not even the nonprimes who live there.
There's dozens of them, probably over a hundred. We're not sure how many would be willing to put up a fight over the bush, but flying in and taking it by force would not work if even a fraction of them resisted.
"I think we'd better take the whole bush," Outcast said, while we were talking over what we'd learned scouting. We were skulking in a little cleft in the Verticals about half a mile from the nonprime village.
Mirhandrax wrinkled his broad brown muzzle, thinking. "Getting a few berries would be easier."
"Depends how we're going to do this. Taking some berries means timing the task for when they're ripe enough but not yet picked by the thunglaze, which may be tricky. Take the whole bush, and we can go whenever suits us best. Also, getting the whole bush requires much less precision than picking berries." Outcast turned to give me a speculative look. "Delight, does your trick with Change Places work on inanimate objects?"
"Yep," I said.
Mirhandrax raised a whiskery eyebrow. "You have something in mind to disarm the trap before you send her in?"
Outcast grinned. "Don't need to. Change Places is faster than it is." Teleport spells are instantaneous -- you cast them and they take effect immediately. The thorny-vine trap, like most spells designed to inflict harm, needs a few seconds to build after being triggered.
"You're still counting on her being able to cast before the trap finishes building."
"No, he doesn't have to," I said, catching the idea. "I can make a bound spelll that triggers as soon as I enter the enclosure. It'll go off automatically."
"Ah, true. Still, the spell doesn't have much range and the bound version even less. We'll need a way to get you in close without getting you or the bush re-captured," Mirhandrax said.
"Right. I'd say you and I create a distraction, while Summer Sun flies Delight in close enough that she can teleport the babyberry bush out to him (and herself back to him). They make their escape, we make ours, and rendezvous for the return to Veshrame."
"So I'm just ferrying one Orren and a plant?" Summer Sun said. "I can do that."
Mirhandrax and Outcast talked about the details of the distraction some more before we were ready to go in, but we're basically doing the same plan I would have gone with before we knew anything. Sometimes I really don't know why we have to bother with all the research and reconnaissance stuff.
Anyway, they decided to go in the middle of the night for reduced visibility -- the lookouts probably have Sleeth Eyes cast on them, but at least the rest of the village won't. So I'm going to get some sleep now. I'll let you know tomorrow how it went!