Prose log with Kaiden
Who: trueltning_fury and hero_of_fire
When: today
Where: by the lake
What: plotting to seal the Sun Rune
Geddoe had been mulling things over in the days since talking to Roy, and following one of his thoughts, was looking for Kaiden. It took a bit of searching beyond his usual rounds, but at last, as he came down the steps by the dojo, he spotted a familiar red coat by the lakeshore.
The warmer weather provided by the second sun had lured the former Flame Champion outdoors. Finally over his illness completely, the heat was a welcome deviation from the bitter cold of the last few months. Despite this, however, that sun couldn't stay. It would only take a few days before things would begin to worsen, if Rahal's words were anything to go off of. So down by the now thawed lake he stood, staring out across the water, deep in thought.
Geddoe approached his old friend casually, not wanting to jump all over him with business right away, even though he had a clear purpose in mind. "Did you hear the booming earlier this morning, as the ice further out cracked?" he wondered as he came alongside Kaiden.
Geddoe's familiar footsteps alerted him to his presence before the he spoke, and Kaiden continued staring out across the lake. He nodded in affirmation before turning to look at his friend. "I was ready for a thaw, but this isn't right."
"It's not," Geddoe agrreed. "It's unnatural. Any of us who've been touched by the elements can sense it." He squinted briefly in the direction of the litle rune-sun and scowled. "I don't know how to stop it. This goes beyond any of my rune-lore."
"And there's no getting through to that queen, either." He frowned, remembering Rahal's words and his own encounter with Arshtat. "There are ways to seal runes, as you know. But for someone who doesn't want to get rid of it..." He trailed off. 'It would be significantly more difficult' was what he didn't say, but he knew Geddoe would pick up on it.
Stepping a little closer, Geddoe lowered his voice so they could speak in confidence. No one needed to overhear this. "I wanted to ask you about that. The castle lacks a rune sage right now, and I don't know where to find one. Except for you. You have first-hand experience sealing a True Rune."
"I was willing to seal it, though. Good luck getting her to hold still for that ritual." Kaiden pointed out, letting out a frustrated sigh. "Are there no rune sages in the surrounding cities? There has to be one somewhere." He said more to himself than Geddoe.
Geddoe shook his head. "Shamans in Alma Kinan, but you know as well as I do that they don't always deal in runes." He looked out at the lake for a moment. "I never asked you how you sealed True Fire, because I didn't want to know. To some extent, I still don't. I don't want to be tempted to use the method myself. But...assuming we can subdue the Queen somehow. Can it be done?"
Cracking a grin, Kaiden chuckled at his private joke. "Can you knock her out?" He asked with an amused tone, but his expression quickly returned to one of stoic seriousness. "If she's not willing, she'd have to be restrained. It can be done, but it's painful."
A pained looked crossed Geddoe's face briefly, as he (and True Lightning) remembered a similar unwilling theft. "I don't want to put anyone through that. If it means trying to knock her out...that's all I can do." He turned his gaze back to Kaiden. "The first time I told one of her knights that I had a True Rune, they were astonished that it didn't make me insane. I believe the Sun Rune isn't just using her as a vessel...it's taking her over. Little by little."
"That's the only method I know of without a rune sage." He said solemnly. "If you don't want to put her through that, we'll need to find one." It sounded simple enough, but considering Geddoe's words, finding one might be more difficult than it sounded.
"But if we had her willing cooperation?" Geddoe's eye narrowed, he was trying to think ahead to all possibilities. "The knight in question, Kyle, has become a close friend of mine. I know he wants to try to seal the Rune into a statue such as they have in Falena. But he can't do it without someone who can actually do the sealing. He may be able to work out the other half of the equation."
"It'll still be painful. It was painful for me." Kaiden pointed out. "If you want me to try to seal it, I will, but the method I used isn't the safest."
That got Geddoe's attention. "It was?" he asked quietly.
He nodded at the memory, which was still fairly fresh in his mind. "Like having a piece of your soul ripped out."
Geddoe couldn't help unconsciously rubbing at his gloved right hand. "So it doesn't matter whether it's taken against your will, or given up freely. The feeling is the same."
"True Runes don't like giving up their vessels. That's why I think a rune sage would be better for the task. There are probably ways of removing a True Rune without the pain, but I'm no sage by any means." He looked back out across the water at the last pieces of rapidly-melting ice. They didn't have much time to solve this problem.
Geddoe followed his gaze, sighing. It had been six years, but that pain was still fairly fresh as well. "The rune sage who tended me after I lost mine said that the way it was done left a wound that couldn't be healed. And those who did it were powerful sorcerors already. I don't know if there's anyone who can do it without some suffering." His voice deepened to a growl. "Short of killing the vessel and letting the Rune go free."
"But that's not an option, is it?" He didn't want to kill anymore, and he knew that there were few people here who would be willing to go that route either. "I know you don't want to, but if it's the only option, we may have to put her through that pain."
"Given the choice between pain and death...pain will have to do." Geddoe turned fully toward Kaiden. "We don't have the time to look for a rune sage with the kind of power to do it kindly, if such a sage exists. If I puzzle out how best to incapacitate her, your method will work? That's all I need to know."
Kaiden nodded, though he really wished he wouldn't have to do that ritual again. "It will. And make sure the statue is nearby to transfer the rune to it. If not given a vessel immediately, it might just find someone else to attach to."
"Well, I'm safe," Geddoe remarked dryly. "Yeah. That part of the plan is already in the works, between Kyle and others. But something tells me that's going to be the easy part."
"With someone unwilling to give up the rune? Yeah, that's the easy part alright." Kaiden's voice sounded tired, and he looked back up the hill toward the castle, shading his eyes from the second sun's brightness. "This can't last much longer. It'll have to be done within the next few days. Can we get everything together that soon?"
Geddoe huffed a sigh. "Doubtful. It'll be at least a week just to get an appropriate statue. Watari is working on another possible solution as well, and I don't know how long until he gets back." He rubbed the back of his neck - it was warm enough that he was sweating in all that black. "I think I'm going to make myself rather unpopular with what I have to do."
Smirking, Kaiden clapped his friend on the shoulder. "Come on, you should be used to that by now, Geddoe." He joked in an attempt to lighten the mood, but his grin didn't last. "A week, huh? And I don't suppose Ms. Sun will allow for an evacuation. Well, until we have a concrete solution, all we can do is try to stay on her good side."
Geddoe gave him a flat look back. "Funny." His shoulders heaved in a long sigh. "No, you're right about that - we can't set her off. The Falenans have told me that the last time a town pissed her off, she incinerated it. I hate to say it, but that..." He nodded toward the little sun. "...is a gift by comparison. I don't want to see this ground seared and people dying of thirst and plague."
"Right." He agreed, and turned to make the short hike back up to the castle. "If there's nothing else you to discuss, I'm going to go get a drink." He said as he loosened his collar. The heat was still tolerable, but warmer than his clothes were designed for.
"I think I'll join you," Geddoe grumbled, trudging right behind him. "I need a break before I go back to thinking."
When: today
Where: by the lake
What: plotting to seal the Sun Rune
Geddoe had been mulling things over in the days since talking to Roy, and following one of his thoughts, was looking for Kaiden. It took a bit of searching beyond his usual rounds, but at last, as he came down the steps by the dojo, he spotted a familiar red coat by the lakeshore.
The warmer weather provided by the second sun had lured the former Flame Champion outdoors. Finally over his illness completely, the heat was a welcome deviation from the bitter cold of the last few months. Despite this, however, that sun couldn't stay. It would only take a few days before things would begin to worsen, if Rahal's words were anything to go off of. So down by the now thawed lake he stood, staring out across the water, deep in thought.
Geddoe approached his old friend casually, not wanting to jump all over him with business right away, even though he had a clear purpose in mind. "Did you hear the booming earlier this morning, as the ice further out cracked?" he wondered as he came alongside Kaiden.
Geddoe's familiar footsteps alerted him to his presence before the he spoke, and Kaiden continued staring out across the lake. He nodded in affirmation before turning to look at his friend. "I was ready for a thaw, but this isn't right."
"It's not," Geddoe agrreed. "It's unnatural. Any of us who've been touched by the elements can sense it." He squinted briefly in the direction of the litle rune-sun and scowled. "I don't know how to stop it. This goes beyond any of my rune-lore."
"And there's no getting through to that queen, either." He frowned, remembering Rahal's words and his own encounter with Arshtat. "There are ways to seal runes, as you know. But for someone who doesn't want to get rid of it..." He trailed off. 'It would be significantly more difficult' was what he didn't say, but he knew Geddoe would pick up on it.
Stepping a little closer, Geddoe lowered his voice so they could speak in confidence. No one needed to overhear this. "I wanted to ask you about that. The castle lacks a rune sage right now, and I don't know where to find one. Except for you. You have first-hand experience sealing a True Rune."
"I was willing to seal it, though. Good luck getting her to hold still for that ritual." Kaiden pointed out, letting out a frustrated sigh. "Are there no rune sages in the surrounding cities? There has to be one somewhere." He said more to himself than Geddoe.
Geddoe shook his head. "Shamans in Alma Kinan, but you know as well as I do that they don't always deal in runes." He looked out at the lake for a moment. "I never asked you how you sealed True Fire, because I didn't want to know. To some extent, I still don't. I don't want to be tempted to use the method myself. But...assuming we can subdue the Queen somehow. Can it be done?"
Cracking a grin, Kaiden chuckled at his private joke. "Can you knock her out?" He asked with an amused tone, but his expression quickly returned to one of stoic seriousness. "If she's not willing, she'd have to be restrained. It can be done, but it's painful."
A pained looked crossed Geddoe's face briefly, as he (and True Lightning) remembered a similar unwilling theft. "I don't want to put anyone through that. If it means trying to knock her out...that's all I can do." He turned his gaze back to Kaiden. "The first time I told one of her knights that I had a True Rune, they were astonished that it didn't make me insane. I believe the Sun Rune isn't just using her as a vessel...it's taking her over. Little by little."
"That's the only method I know of without a rune sage." He said solemnly. "If you don't want to put her through that, we'll need to find one." It sounded simple enough, but considering Geddoe's words, finding one might be more difficult than it sounded.
"But if we had her willing cooperation?" Geddoe's eye narrowed, he was trying to think ahead to all possibilities. "The knight in question, Kyle, has become a close friend of mine. I know he wants to try to seal the Rune into a statue such as they have in Falena. But he can't do it without someone who can actually do the sealing. He may be able to work out the other half of the equation."
"It'll still be painful. It was painful for me." Kaiden pointed out. "If you want me to try to seal it, I will, but the method I used isn't the safest."
That got Geddoe's attention. "It was?" he asked quietly.
He nodded at the memory, which was still fairly fresh in his mind. "Like having a piece of your soul ripped out."
Geddoe couldn't help unconsciously rubbing at his gloved right hand. "So it doesn't matter whether it's taken against your will, or given up freely. The feeling is the same."
"True Runes don't like giving up their vessels. That's why I think a rune sage would be better for the task. There are probably ways of removing a True Rune without the pain, but I'm no sage by any means." He looked back out across the water at the last pieces of rapidly-melting ice. They didn't have much time to solve this problem.
Geddoe followed his gaze, sighing. It had been six years, but that pain was still fairly fresh as well. "The rune sage who tended me after I lost mine said that the way it was done left a wound that couldn't be healed. And those who did it were powerful sorcerors already. I don't know if there's anyone who can do it without some suffering." His voice deepened to a growl. "Short of killing the vessel and letting the Rune go free."
"But that's not an option, is it?" He didn't want to kill anymore, and he knew that there were few people here who would be willing to go that route either. "I know you don't want to, but if it's the only option, we may have to put her through that pain."
"Given the choice between pain and death...pain will have to do." Geddoe turned fully toward Kaiden. "We don't have the time to look for a rune sage with the kind of power to do it kindly, if such a sage exists. If I puzzle out how best to incapacitate her, your method will work? That's all I need to know."
Kaiden nodded, though he really wished he wouldn't have to do that ritual again. "It will. And make sure the statue is nearby to transfer the rune to it. If not given a vessel immediately, it might just find someone else to attach to."
"Well, I'm safe," Geddoe remarked dryly. "Yeah. That part of the plan is already in the works, between Kyle and others. But something tells me that's going to be the easy part."
"With someone unwilling to give up the rune? Yeah, that's the easy part alright." Kaiden's voice sounded tired, and he looked back up the hill toward the castle, shading his eyes from the second sun's brightness. "This can't last much longer. It'll have to be done within the next few days. Can we get everything together that soon?"
Geddoe huffed a sigh. "Doubtful. It'll be at least a week just to get an appropriate statue. Watari is working on another possible solution as well, and I don't know how long until he gets back." He rubbed the back of his neck - it was warm enough that he was sweating in all that black. "I think I'm going to make myself rather unpopular with what I have to do."
Smirking, Kaiden clapped his friend on the shoulder. "Come on, you should be used to that by now, Geddoe." He joked in an attempt to lighten the mood, but his grin didn't last. "A week, huh? And I don't suppose Ms. Sun will allow for an evacuation. Well, until we have a concrete solution, all we can do is try to stay on her good side."
Geddoe gave him a flat look back. "Funny." His shoulders heaved in a long sigh. "No, you're right about that - we can't set her off. The Falenans have told me that the last time a town pissed her off, she incinerated it. I hate to say it, but that..." He nodded toward the little sun. "...is a gift by comparison. I don't want to see this ground seared and people dying of thirst and plague."
"Right." He agreed, and turned to make the short hike back up to the castle. "If there's nothing else you to discuss, I'm going to go get a drink." He said as he loosened his collar. The heat was still tolerable, but warmer than his clothes were designed for.
"I think I'll join you," Geddoe grumbled, trudging right behind him. "I need a break before I go back to thinking."