Side A – Nia
Nia found the claim that the Stoneling gods had taken a page from the Elven gods creation scheme a challenging one to accept. If they’d truly started from the same base, the differences between the two peoples seemed extraordinarily hard to explain. Osdora and Gossma shared amused grins and chuckles at the idea though.
“Wouldn’t surprise me a bit,” Osdora said.
“Ah, it surprises me,” Gossma said. “Can’t believe the lazy louts didn’t steal the whole thing. They probably did though, right? And then they ‘tinkered’ with it? Now that would explain why I every time I wake up I feel more tired than when I went to bed.”
“I am unsure of how much the Stone Gods took from the Forest Gods. I believe some notes were shared willing, and some were almost certainly pilfered,” Ilia said. “I am surprised that their creations would believe them capable of such so easily though?”
“Maybe for other gods that would be true, but there’s an important point you need to consider,” Osdora said.
“We’ve met them,” Gossma said.
“In fact we’ve argued with them pretty much since they made us,” Osdora said. “We know the kind of idiots that made us, so, yeah, it’s not hard to believe they stole the better parts of our designs from somewhere else.”
“Does that help us though?” Nia asked, wheels within wheels turning in her brain.
“It means there’s a chance what we know will actually apply here,” Gossma said.
“Yeah, that’s the problem,” Nia said, obstacle after obstacle rising up her imagination.
“Problem how?” Osdora said.
“Ilia, did you mention any of this to Pelegar?” Kyra asked, sharing a glance with Nia to say that they were on the same wavelength.
“Yes, we had several conversations. She has quite the sharp intellect,” Ilia said, and while Nia couldn’t disagree, she was surprised the former Elf goddess and the Shatter Band leader had hit it off quite so quickly.
“Oh. Hmm. Well that sucks,” Osdora said.
“Fill your wife in,” Gossma said.
“What Nia’s saying is that knowing that there’s a similarity to this effect and the Resonance states we’re familiar with is more of a liability than anything else. Pelegar knew what she was getting into, and for as much as I love to tease her, she’s a damn good drummer. She wouldn’t have taken any unreasonable risks and would have given herself the best chance she could at avoiding get caught.” Osdora’s gaze was distant as she spoke, wheels apparently turning in her mind as well.
“She was trying to ‘sound out the periphery of the effect’, or so she said. From the outside, it didn’t look as though any time at all passed between when she started playing and when she was engulfed by it though. She barely struck a single note and she was gone.” Ilia’s tone was plain, a simple report of the events which had occurred. Nia heard an unvoiced sentiment though, a beat to Ilia words which spoke of profound frustration.
Which made sense.
The problem before them would be a lot easier to fix with the power of a god to call on. Nia, however, was very certain that was not a step she was willing to take herself.
Even if it was the only one which might be open to them.
Side B – Yasgrid
Yasgrid was not in the presence of a Stoneling god in disguise. Nor was she in the presence of another Sorceress. That left open a fairly sizeable question though.
“Gram, how do you know this is Yasgrid? And how do you know she has magic? She didn’t bring a drum with her,” Margrada asked, meeting Yasgrid’s glance with a look of astonishment.
“Well it’s not drum magic that she’s got, is it?” Karsda asked, looking directly at Yasgrid with her film covered eyes.
“It’s not,” Yasgrid said, and waited to see what other bits of insight Karsda would offer.
“I’d say it run in your family, but it’s just trouble that you Kaersbeans have got a spiritual relationship to, isn’t it?” Was Karsda teasing Yasgrid? Insulting her? Making a genuine inquiry?
“My relationship with Troubles is a unique one in my family,” Yasgrid said, enjoying the chance to be a bit cryptic herself.
“That I could believe. I’m pretty sure you’re Mom took all the usual troublemaking on herself. It’s why I voted against her being part of the Band, though, to her credit, I suppose I should admit that she’s tended to make the kind of trouble that needed to be made more often than not,” Karsda said, her expression turning wistful.
“Not going to answer my question there old lady?” Margrada asked, drawing herself up to look down, if only by a finger width, on her grandmother.
“Didn’t I answer it though?” Karsda asked, feigning innocence.
“Don’t make me wash your ears out again. You didn’t like it last time, or the time before that, and we know I’m not going to be nice about it this time either,” Margrada said.
“Do you see what I have to live with?” Karsda asked. “My own flesh and blood. She tortures me so.”
“It’s not torture you big baby. It’s the only chance you have of hearing anything I say. And you’ve admitted that, so don’t try to go back on it.” Margrada’s stare dared her grandmother to disagree.
“Fine. But I have told you. I said my eyes work just fine. I see a lot of thing. Always have,” Karsda said. “Everyone else just ignores it all.”
“Have your eyes always been like that?” Yasgrid asked, desperate to reach out with her magic to explore the secrets Karsda held, and even more desperate to not overstep what she could feel was a very dangerous boundary.
Elshira wouldn’t have hesitated, Yasgrid told herself, and that was reason enough reconsider using her power all on its own.
“Since I was born,” Karsda said. “Everyone was always worried about what I could and couldn’t do. Never gave me a problem though, so I couldn’t tell what the fuss was about.”
“And the dreams?” Yasgrid asked, calling on none of her power, but a fair bit of her intuition.
“Oh, they’ve been there all along too. Met the most interesting people in those. Like your lady friend Kyra there. Had a lot of talks with her.”