Max Heller
Cliath
Claws-of-Fire
Gott baut Menschen, wir bauen Roboter
Posts: 274
|
Post by Max Heller on Oct 28, 2008 19:30:48 GMT 1
"I'm ready," Max said, pushing the thought of supplies and equipment out of his head once and for all. It would only slow them down. If they couldn't do this with the gifts Gaia gave them, then they probably were incompetent anyway.
|
|
Adiyah
Cliath
Eyes-of-Light
Posts: 319
|
Post by Adiyah on Nov 1, 2008 20:10:01 GMT 1
Adiyah looked up from where she had been waiting when Max approached. She had used the phone just after Yvonne, and though Klaus was worried, he knew he couldn't tell her not to go. Sometimes though, she could tell he really wanted to.
"I'm ready too."
She looked north and set her mouth in a firm determined line. "It might be faster on four feet."
|
|
|
Post by Shehrazad on Nov 1, 2008 21:38:40 GMT 1
The sun started to set as the three shifted to Lupus and started their journey, heading north along the river as Owl had instructed.
Next post here
|
|
|
Post by Corinna Cannstein on Jan 10, 2009 16:44:10 GMT 1
The Library looks different on this side of the gauntlet. It seems to be a much older version of the building on the physical side, which has been renovated and remodelled many times through the years.
The area around the building is home to many friendly spirits.
Cloud-Dancer reached the Umbra before Nina did, and she was already standing there when Nina arrived, staring at the Umbral landscape. Outside, they could look down from the hill towards the Umbral city as it stretched below them. Thousands of pattern spiders weaved their webs throughout the Umbra, spinning everything into a static white and grey. But up here, they were safe. Up here, everything was alive and colourful. Even the trees seemed to be breathing, and the moonlight seemed to be brighter.
"I can't believe this place still exists in the middle of such a corrupt city," Cloud-Dancer said under her breath. "I think I see someone, come on."
They walked towards three figures, standing in the moonlight and watching something. Two were boys, both of them younger than Nina. One had red hair and looked about sixteen. The other one looked younger and wilder. Both were quite well-built for such young teenagers. The third was a tall man, with a mane of untidy long hair and a beard. He had only one eye. But perhaps the most noticeable things were the wings, which, if Nina hadn't gotten used to seeing them on Cloud-Dancer, would have been quite breath-taking.
Cloud-Dancer seemed to know him, because she called out to him, not by his title or deed name, like Nina had seen her address elders before. Not with the respect and politeness that she reserved those of higher station, but by his other name, and with the familiarity she would reserve for an old friend.
"Danny," she said softly. All three turned around, and looked at the two newcomers.
|
|
|
Post by Danny on Jan 10, 2009 17:10:44 GMT 1
Danny turned around sharply, but smiled at the sight of his old packmate.
"Corina," he said, stepping a little closer to greet her. "You haven't changed."
He caught sight of Nina, and offered her a hand to shake. "I am Walks-with-Death, Galliard of the Silent Striders and Warder of the Library. These are my students, Torsten and Martin, both Ahroun cubs."
The boys seemed quite content with being introduced by Danny, and remained quiet. Danny continued the introductions. "This is Cloud-Dancer," he said to the boys. "Adren of the Children of Fenris."
The red-headed boy looked interested at this and smiled. "You're a Fenrir too?" he asked Corina. He looked at Nina, extending the question to her as well. The second boy remained silent.
|
|
Nina
Cliath
Posts: 22
|
Post by Nina on Jan 10, 2009 17:55:53 GMT 1
Nina decided that she loved the Umbral Caern. Her few trips into the Umbra back home in Stuttgart had made her feel uneasy, but here, she felt strangely alive inside. Everything seemed prettier in the Umbra, the trees, the fields, the sky, even the old Library itself seemed more magestic, more wise somehow.
She walked with Corina over to the three figures, and she heard something in her mentor's voice when she talked to the tall man that she hadn't heard before.
Cloud-dancer was happy to be here too, she realised.
When the red-headed boy spoke to her and Corina, she felt strangely at ease. Her nervousness forgotten, she smiled back at the boy. When Corina didn't answer, she decided it was time to introduce herself.
"I'm a Glass Walker apparently," she said, with a bit of an apologetic grin. "My name is Nina, I just arrived here from Stuttgart."
|
|
|
Post by Corinna Cannstein on Jan 10, 2009 18:10:39 GMT 1
"So I've been told," Cloud-Dancer, smiling at the boy. They both looked pretty green, but she could tell that at least this one had some noble Fenrir blood in him, and he knew it too. "Nina is my student... sort of."
Cloud-Dancer smirked at that last part. "So what are you all doing out here?" she asked curiously. "We met Micah out front, he let us in. What happened to his arm by the way? Battle scar, I assume?"
|
|
|
Post by Danny on Jan 10, 2009 18:17:48 GMT 1
"We were waiting," said Torsten, smiling back at Nina. "Cool, Max is a Glass Walker," he said, remembering the tribe. "I'm pretty new to all this, just firsted a couple of days ago. But I know I'm an Ahroun, and a Fenrir."
"Welcome to Berlin, Nina," Danny said. "Every warrior is needed, every helping hand is appreciated. This city is crying out for our help." He glanced back out into the webbed city. "So, what brings you here from Stuttgart?" he asked. "I'm sure Cloud-Dancer isn't that good a teacher that you'd follow her to the front lines of the war."
|
|
Nina
Cliath
Posts: 22
|
Post by Nina on Jan 10, 2009 18:32:22 GMT 1
Nina grinned. She loved Corina to death, but she did feel sometimes that the gaps in her education could have been avoided if her mentor had had a little more patience and flair for teaching.
Danny had asked the one question she had been asking herself since she got off the last train.
Where do I start? Do you want me to list all the reasons? We'd be here for a while.
"I want to help," she said earnestly, looking Danny straight in the eye. "I feel like I could make a difference here. Everything else seems...less important."
She would have felt like an idiot saying something like that back in the physical world. But for some reason, here, with the colours of the Umbra glowing around her, she felt like she could say anything, and that this one-eyed stranger would understand what she meant.
|
|
|
Post by Corinna Cannstein on Jan 10, 2009 20:08:46 GMT 1
"I see that my talents are once again under-appreciated," Cloud-Dancer said, sounding fakely hurt. "Nina is here to spread her wings."
Cloud-Dancer spread her own wings when she said that, and grinned. "Metaphorically speaking, of course," she said. "And I'm here because I know you'll drown without me."
She looked at Torsten. "Two days?" she said. "Bit much, isn't it? You're taking to it rather quickly, but then I'd expect it from a Child of Fenris. How many of us are in the city?"
|
|
|
Post by Danny on Jan 10, 2009 20:23:10 GMT 1
"I see you haven't managed to fall out of Owl's favour yet," Danny said. There was a hint of humour in his voice. "I'm more than a little impressed." Then he said, a little more seriously: "This city needs more New Moons to keep us all from losing our minds though. I'm glad you decided to come."
Then he turned to Nina. There would be a time for warnings and explanations, and to make sure she knew what she was getting herself into (assuming Cloud-Dancer hadn't told her already). For now he just nodded, because he understood. "This city needs us, and that, more than anything, is what keeps us here," he said. "This city has always been friendlier to the Glass Walkers. I think you and your tribe are the ones who understand it the most. We need you in this war."
"You should have seen my first day," Torsten admitted. It hadn't been pretty, and he hadn't been this strong. But now things were changing. "I met two others, Nadezhda, and Judgment-from-the-Skies. And there's another one. I haven't met her, but she's supposed to be on her rite of passage. That's sort of what we're waiting for."
The second boy spoke for the first time. He seemed to be groping for the words as he struggled to put a sentence together. "Her name is Anna," he offered.
While the cubs chattered on with Cloud-Dancer, Danny focused on talking to Nina. "Has Cloud-Dancer explained the situation to you?" he asked.
|
|
Nina
Cliath
Posts: 22
|
Post by Nina on Jan 11, 2009 2:08:40 GMT 1
Nina was trying her hardest to be a sponge, to just absorb all the information that was flitting around as the others talked. But it was hard; New Moons, Owl, names of people she had never heard before, it was all a bit of a blur inside her mind at this point. She was quite relieved when Danny talked to her.
"I know the general idea," said Nina, thinking she should probably be honest about how little she knew. Now seemed like the time to ask questions.
"I know that there is a war coming, but I don't know the details of what we will do, and how we will fight it. But I'm here to learn."
She looked towards Cloud-Dancer, who was still talking to Torsten and Martin, and then back at Danny.
"Actually," she blurted, "I was hoping you could maybe tell me what I'm supposed to do. I'm not sure how I fit into all this."
She had heard Corina point out how quickly Torsten had taken to things, and she felt a little jealous. She had been a werewolf for quite a bit longer than he had, and she still felt like a bit of an outsider to the whole situation.
|
|
|
Post by Danny on Jan 11, 2009 11:44:13 GMT 1
Danny left Cloud-Dancer distracted as Torsten told her of his first change, which had apparently only happened two nights ago.
"Well you're right about that for one," he said. "There is a war coming. The spirits know it, even the humans know it. They can feel it coming. Even though it isn't their war, they will be affected by the outcome. The wall will fall, and once it does, the servants of the Wyrm who hold the East side of the city will clash with those of us still holding the West. Then we will have to fight to defend this Caern, or watch it fall once again."
The cubs had stopped talking, and were now listening too. Even Cloud-Dancer was lending an ear. Like any good Galliard, when Danny spoke, others listened. "But I can't tell you what your part will be in all of this," he said. "Only you can tell me that."
He paused and glanced around at Cloud-Dancer. The fact that Nina was her student probably gave a little away. "What is your auspice," he asked Nina.
|
|
Nina
Cliath
Posts: 22
|
Post by Nina on Jan 11, 2009 12:19:07 GMT 1
"Ragabash," Nina answered promptly.
There were only a handful of things that she knew, but the fact that she was a Ragabash, a New Moon, was one of them. Apparently being a New Moon said some things about her; it was the Garou Auspice with the least rage for starters, and it made sense because she had never been someone to anger easily. She was also supposed to be a bit of a trickster, although she hadn't noticed anything like that in her personality yet.
Unless tricking her parents into letting her come to Berlin counted. She was supposed to be studying medicine at Charite, one of the most prestigious medical schools in Germany. Instead, she was standing in a surreal spirit world, chatting with a winged stranger about an impending war.
"Does my auspice determine what role I have to play in the war?" she asked Danny curiously.
|
|
|
Post by Danny on Jan 11, 2009 14:39:55 GMT 1
There was a slight hesitation, after which Cloud-Dancer answered with "Yes" and Danny answered with "No", and Torsten looked confusedly between the two.
"We grow into our auspice roles eventually," Danny said. "But you are still young. You will grow into whatever role you make for yourself. Not everyone is a perfect representation of their auspice moon."
"You have the makings of a good ragabash already," Cloud-Dancer said. "I know one when I see one." She paused, and then stretched her wings again, probably to show them off. "With all these full moons running around," she added. "You'll be needing more of us."
"Owl told me I would be needing you," Danny said quietly. The two cubs just looked a little confused at this.
"Will you be staying then?" asked Torsten.
|
|