View source for Box of Hugs

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== Log Info ==
*Title: Box of Hugs
*Emitter: Cryosanthia
*Characters: Cryosanthia, Auranar, Sabina, Kira, Faranmidahn
*Place:  A10: Temple of Althea
*Time: Saturday, June 13, 2020, 7:35 PM
*Summary: Cryo's room has been configured as a training hall for weaponless self defense and wrestling, although it also has the other typical features she enjoys such as a pool and bedroom, and a lavish spread of food. She is eagerly awaiting visitors and seems in decent spirits. Auranar is the first to arrive, followed by Sabina, Faran, then Kira, who has news. Salina has been located in the Fae Lands. Cryo says she always thought this was likely the case, a monarch would fall back to her territory, but is glad for the confirmation and wonders as to the source. Cryo explains her new tactic of calling Salina the Mistake, or any other Miss title that comes to mind besides Mistress. Auranar asks after Zeke and this provokes a strange reaction from Cryo. Kira explains a Deva visited the Temple of Eluna, confirmed Seldan's task is holy, Zeke's importance and removed the Sentinel's mark. This does not raise Cryo's spirits, she laments how Ceinara has been generally silent and any 'feelings' she's gotten in response to prayers have been more along the lines of use the pain to inspire art than actual assistance. A lot of frustration is clearly in the Sith as she attempts to break one of the wrestling dummies. Auranar and Sabina suggest she think about things, and leave, while Faran and Kira actively console her and all of them end up swinging around on top of the dummy like it is a playground ride. </div>

<pre>-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-  Appearing, in Order  =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Cryosanthia  6'9"     267 Lb     Sith-Makar        Female    A dashingly tall, elegant white-scaled lizard woman.
Auranar      4'8"     123 Lb     Wild Elf          Female    A wild elf with dark skin and a red dress
Sabina       5'4"     130 Lb     Human             Female    Tsuran woman of dark hair and green eyes
Faranmidahn  3'3"     35 Lb      Halfling          Female    Albino Lucht woman in black leather armor with a BIG spider
Kira         5'0"     120 Lb     Human             Female    Blonde woman in simple robes with an eye patch.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=</pre>

At the Temple of Althea...

In a private room with a Mikilos' Mage's Magic Mansion inside, configured to the day's whim's. Today, configured as some sort of training hall that was clearly inspired by the colosseum and the festival grounds. There's an open mat, a section with target dummies, and what appears to be a challenge area with pedestals, traps. The dummies, unusually, seem to be of the unarmed sort, and a few appear to be on strong springs and possibly could be wrestled down.

The ceiling goes up at least two floors, and the second level has a running track, with openings off it. Those seem to be private rooms, for sleeping. There's a pool somewhere, because there's a salt-water scent, and food also as its smell is predominantly fish again, even if it can't be immediately seen.

Cryo herself is hanging out just inside the door, waiting for her friends to arrive.

Auranar is suprised by the invitation by Cryosanthia, but she comes quickly just the same, offering a polite and warm smile to Cryosanthia as soon as she spots the sith-makar. "Peace on your nest Cryosanthia. Thank-you for the invitation." She subtly looks the sith over, trying to get a measure of her. "How are you?"

Sabina (and Lord Emp) arrive just a few moments after Auranar. She wears her customary mask but also her smile is in place under it for all to see. She waits her turn to greet Cryo with a Emp jostling hug. "I didn't bring the dancers! I've been running about like a crazy lady." She pauses to think. "Which may not be too far from the truth now that I think about it." She laughs softly, "Good to see you."

There isn't too much time before Faran arrives, bearing a small basket full of a familiar smelling fruit, along with several others. She smiles to the gathered with a pleasant, "Hello!" and quickly survey's the faces, "How is everyone?"

Kira may have been running about some, herself, as she arrives with not so much great speed, but a bit winded. "Cryo, where are-Oh!" She didn't expect her right at the entryway, much less others gathered together right there, either. "I'm sorry. Hello, everyone," she greets all before looking back to Cryosanthia. Kira is energized and perhaps anxious as, without waiting a full moment longer, she adds, "We found ...the mistake."

The white sith greets each with a quick hug. She seems calm, smiling, and her clothes seem to be a simple training uniform. She nods to Auranar, "This one is fine as long as she doesn't think about certain things. You are well I hope?"

To Lord Emp and Entourage, she makes a small bow and a large grin. "Running is good, and good to see you also."

Cryo smiles as her lucht sister arrives, fruit is always welcome, and she grins, "We can try the food experiment."

Then, the surprise interruption by Kira, "What? You have? Where is she?"

Auranar flushes somewhat, seeming embarassed by the question of how she is and ducks her head. "I'm fine. Just worrying about you." She steps aside as the others join them, each with their own things to say and Kira last. Who's words are confusing and then she can't help but arch her black eyebrow upwards and look from Cryosanthia and back again. "Mistake?"

Bina greets Auranar with a smile and a wave. "Been awhile. Mistake is ..the new way of talking about /her/ the ice queen." Feran gets a leaned down hug. "I've missed seeing your face, Feranmidahn." She says warmly before straighting up. Kira gets a smile and wink. "As well as other good things I think? If rumors are true."

Faranmidahn hmmm's. It's more biting than 'Sally', that's for sure. She nods, "How have you been?" she asks with a little smile as she moves to hug each of the woman in turn, leaving her basket behind. She looks to Cryo and explains, "I brought some more mangoes, fresh ones this time, and some dragonfruits." and gives her a biiig hug and she looks to Kira for the answer to the question.

Kira nods twice, though her exuberance and smile wane and firm some, respectively. "It seems she's where she is probably strongest... and had never left. I don't understand it, but... I can't deny the source." She then looks to Sabina and nods again, though her smile turns oddly sheepish considering the rumor she presumably confirms. "It is news we can act on, at the least."

"Yes, the Mistake. Miss Taker, Mystery Box, Miss Treacletoes and Tacos. Mistreatment, Misfire, Missy Malapropriate of Nothing, Missaswampy. This one is not allowed to say 'The Missed Opportunity, or 'Bina and others will poke me. It is to get her conditionning out of my mind." The whitescale sith looks curiously at Kira, peering, "It... is? So, not the Demon Duke then. How can we act on a riddle so vague?"

Auranar hugs Faran gently and smiles at the smaller woman briefly before Faran moves on to the next person. "Where she's strongest... the tower?" Auranar looks confused. "Wasn't that destroyed when you guys left it behind? How could she still be there?"

Bina mms at this news while tossing Emp off her shoulder and towards the table with food on it. "Well. The tower is a time moving thing right? It could be she's in thetower in another time or in it's remains now." She shrugs and whispers to Faran, "I'm good and I hope you are too."

Faranmidahn blinks at the explaination, then again at Cryo's list of aliases, though the poking directive she notes for later. She's been of a mind to do something to that end for some time, now, she just hadn't the foggiest how to proceed. Consider the course plotted. Meanwhile, she looks between the others and, "In the future?"

"I'm sorry," Kira follows up, having got a little ahead of herself. Or behind. She returns Faran's hug before she explains,"She's in the fae lands... and has never left them. That's the part I didn't quite understand, but..." It's not as if She hasn't already shown incredible power in addition to her other negative qualities and Kira has to give a little shrug

"It's something we can act on, though. No more waiting or trying to figure out puzzles. I'm sure there will be gatherings and plans, but we have a place to seek." She looks around to the others, hoping she explained what she knows better this time.

"Oh Silver Empress, please no! I'm already convinced she's altered the timeline at least once." Cryosanthia exhales, staring at the ceiling, then one of the practice dummies. Its time may be coming. "The Tower said it would destroy itself in five seconds. It had not after twenty five and we left before it got to thirty. The boys never got around to describing what happened in any detail. It may have exploded, it may not, we did not return to check."

She looks over at Kira, "I... guess? The Fae lands are... huge, aren't they? She would be in her own territory, the other monarchs would not let her in theirs. She would need to be with her subjects. Perhaps she had a throne before the Tower. That would be the most logical place."

"I guess this one assumed... we would be bringing her here to a trap, and not fight her in her place of strength... again?"

Auranar shuddered a little, moving herself toward the tables and huddling there a little bit. "That sounds terrible. I honestly don't want to even imagine that she's already back to..." She trails off, pale in spite of her dark complexion and looking vaguely ill. She sits down, has to sit down.

Bina looks from one woman to the next and tsks, making shooing motions with her hands. "Auranar has the right of this. Lets take a seat. Goodness. Standing around the door like a huddle of hens." She smiles and reaches into a small bag and pulls out a bottle. "Drink to ease fears and rambling thoughts? Just a touch, not all the way." She too moves to a seat. "The news is still good. She's where she is..and what else? I heard other glad tidings."

Faranmidahn frowns again and hmmm's softly as she releases her hug from Kira, then moves to gently touch CRyo's arm as she vents her dismay at the initial concept. She sighs a little bit and, "It's going to be cold, we'll want to get winter weather gear in case she decides to neutralize magic." There's a look upward to the Sith, "I'm not sure we can lure her anywhere, not without binding or outright destroying Ecky and Yucky, first." Seeing Auranar settling down in profound distress, she makes her way over to her and tries to hug her about the shoulders.

Kira moves to sit, looking to Auranar with concern. When Faran beats her to possible hugs, she relaxes some. "I know it would be better if we'd learned that she was imprisoned for all time and could no longer harm anyone, but it is something. And that is better than nothing..."

She pauses, and somewhat backtracks to try and more properly explain. "We learned this at Eluna's temple. Seldan sought to commune with Eluna for guidance... and the High Priestess, herself, came to assist. A messenger of Eluna came, and shared the answers I told you, but there is more..." her eyes move to Cryo as she continues. "Zeke is a key. Holds they key?" Her lips purse some in consternation, "I don't know if it is him, directly, or because of his ties to Seldan, but the Celestial all but named him to Seldan as vital against ..the misanthrope." Now she's making names up, too? "He also called me out, before all..."

The whitescale sith moves towards the tables, pulls out seats for the others and fetches glasses. They clink in her hands and as she sets them down before 'Bina. She produces a grape with a flick of her wrist and holds it out for Lord Emp. "She's Fae, she obeys the same rules as the other Monarchs. They will come under certain conditions... although they're allowed to change them. There would be a way to go to her realm. She would bring her minions..."

"It will... be... fine... Auranar..." She doesn't sound convincing at all. Cryo looks between Sabina and Kira, and listens. She blinks, her voice drops. "Zeke... is a key? Oh. I was a tool to undermine him. That explains a lot..."

Cryo thumps onto her chair, sitting on her tail rather than working it through the gap in the back. She takes one of the glasses and holds it towards 'Bina and stares at the bottle.

Auaranr gratefully smiles at Faran though its a wan thing. "Wine... Yes I think that might do me some good." She rubs her face with a hand and pushes her hair back behind her ears as she looks at Cryosanthia. "What do you mean, that you were a tool to undermine Zeke? Aren't you guys..." She makes a small wavy hand-gesture that's not very clear and arches an eyebrow. "Together?"

Bina tsks again, this time more loudly as Emp takes the offered grape and noms apon it without thanks. "As the head of the fun committee I hearby announce that if one is going to speak of troubling things they must take a sip of wine or this." She says raising the bottle she brought. Opening it she pours out a dolop into each glass. A thicker then normal liquid of a rich amber color. The scent of honey wafts from it. "Tsuran fire whiskey. With honey of course." She passes cups around or wine to those that wish that.

The Sentinel's recant of her encounter holds Faran's interest, and she tries to get her wheels turning on the details, though it hasn't been one of her strengths, and Cryo's notes about the rules are slid into the batter, but will need to bake for a while to rise. The Lucht smiles to Aura and nods, "It may take the edge off, anyway." she says gently, not sure how to broach the topic of Zeke. She sighs silently through her nose then drifts toward her basket to get it off the floor, though she sets it besides a chair for her to settle in, "Honey?" she wonders with eyes alight in curiosity. Uh oh.

Kira blinks at Cryosanthia and what remained of her exuberance turns to worry. "That doesn't mean you were being used by her against him, or that what you have isn't real... He may have learned something while he was ...there. Maybe he doesn't even know it? Maybe we will all need the Dragonfather's help, and he is the way to it?" She now wishes she knew more... or maybe had said less.

Cryo sits there, hunched forwards. Her wineglass sits in front of 'Bina, waiting to be filled. Her shot of fire-whiskey is poured into the wineglass, to wait for the wine. Auranar's question was heard, she looked the wild-elf's way, then simply stares. Three breaths, long slow ones. Faran's question, likely heard. No reaction.

The sith leaps to her feet, in the surprising way she does sometimes, moving far to fast for someone her size. She stalks over to the training dummies, her voice cheerie and hollow. "Kira, show me how these work. They're for wrestling. I'm told if they're twisted just right they go down easier, or one can just brute force it."

She grabs the dummy like it murdered her nestlings and tries to break it, wrenching it towards the floor.

The lack of... positive response sends Auranar into silence. The elf takes her drink, and though she has little love for such strong alcohols she downs it anyways, and readies her glass for the wine. The shot sends a pulse down her throat and she breathes out harshly, shaking her head at the harsh burn. "That... okay."

Bina watches Cryo from behind her coyote mask and stiffles a sigh. She nods with a grin at Auranar. "Ahh! See? Yes.. now give it a second. The honey should soothe quick enough." And then to Faran, "Yes, my dear. Honey to ease the kick." As she pours wine for Cryo she glances to Kira and asks, "Is it true your mark was also wiped clear from you?"

Faranmidahn glances to Aura, then to Kira, frowning as conversation's turn darkens. She jumps to her feet as Cryo suddenly springs to and stalks toward the dummy. She misses the outcome of Aura's sampling, as she's halfway to her sister by the time Sabina's question sounds out, and she trips twisting back to look that way, "What? We can clear the marks?!" she asks hopefully.

Kira startles at Cryo's abrupt move to ... wrestle a dummy? and is up on her feet to walk after. "Cryo..." she starts, but she's not sure what to say. She defaults to answering the request. "If you can tip far enough, I think their own weight will help to bring them down..." 

She hears Bina's question, and then Faran's followup, even easier. She wasn't one to bring that up, at least not as a primary topic; others are far more important than one. Given the way the mood has turned, she might not have mentioned it at all.

Kira answers the others while still stepping to and stopped with Cryo. "I was asked if I would join Seldan and others in stopping her. Of course I would, but I was worried that the mark put them at more risk than any aid I could give. The Priestess, and the celestial, with Eluna's Light... removed it. It was all so sudden, and surprising."

The wrestling dummies are built for wrestling, and stronger, if not heavier trainees than Cryosanthia with a honed raging ability and not the close approximation of out of control passions. So, she doesn't break it, but there are some cracks and creaks and the main spring post may forever have a kink. Or at least until the spell ends. With Faran's hopeful words of a way to remove the hated mark, she pauses in mid-body-struggle with the thing to look towards 'Bina and Kira. Her face is impassive, her breathing hard. She waits and listens to Kira's answers. Then she stares, frozen in position as if she's forgotten what she's doing. Finally, "Right. Let it's own weight take it down."

Auranar watches Cryosanthia silently, and then after a moment shakes her head and mumbles something to herself. She shakes her head and rises to her feet. "I think I've had enough. That shot..." She sighs and straightens. "I'm going to go find Seldan and ask him what the Celestial said exactly. And... I need to apologize. When you do something wrong... you should you know? Find out what you can do to fix it. And I... I owe someone an apology right now." She doesn't look happy about it, but she seems determined.

The lucht is silent for some time as that comes out, "Could Cryo's mark be removed?" She looks to Cryo as she seems to be of two minds at present, but, as Auranar notes her need to apologize, she weighs things and goes silent again.

"The celestial blocked Her sight, knew that I was worried of it without me voicing it," Kira looks between Cryo and Faran . "With the power of Eluna, I don't think there's much they couldn't do... but the celestial was a messenger, and is no longer there. I didn't get the chance to ask for all the others marked before he departed."

"Well, let Seldan know that will you Auranar? This one is sorry the alcohol and conversation got too strong. Thanks for coming and convincing me to stay in the city, provided that is not what you're apologizing for. You are a thoughtful friend and I care for you and about you. You've given me good advice and perspective in the past." Cryo looks the wild elf's way, holding the wrestling dummy partly bent over backwards. If it has a backwards. Bent over. She adjusts her grip, her footing, the press of her body against it, tries to push it further but it isn't budging.

She grins a Faran, her voice airy and flippant, "Perhaps this one can find Ceinara's wandering dance platform, challenge the High Priestess of Frisky Feet to a dance off with a summoning as the prize. Although the Celestial Ceinara sends would likely say the mark is cute, don't hate the swag, it looks good on you so use it as inspiration. Think of your whole life as performance art where you always have an audience."

Cryosanthia struggles some more with the wrestling dummy, growls at it. It does not respond. It does not care about her efforts. "This one is glad you're free of her Kira."

Auranar smiles at Cryosanthia, looking a bit determined and nodding. "Yea. I'll let him know. I've just... gotta take care of this. Apologizing is good for the soul so they say." She rolls her shoulders and huffs before nodding to everyone else and heading out.

Faranmidahn closes her eyes and shakes her head, "Well... at least it can be done, somehow." she says under her breath. She looks to Cryosanthia as she starts to speak, brow arching some, trying to weigh her phrasing. Then it comes to her, "Cryo..." she says uncertainly, but she isn't sure how to continue her objection to the flippancy, though a hand settles on her cheek, "I'm sure we can find someone to try." She looks to Aura as she makes to leave, "Good night, Aura, it's good to see you!" she says with a wave before her attention turns to Kira, "Could we talk to the High priestess, do you think?"

Kira isn't sure what to say to Cryo, and now seems both worried and guilty. She is a bit thankful for Auranar's departure, not to see her leave, but as a interruption to offer farewell. Then comes Faran's question "Anyone can ask to see her, I think?" Kira isn't entirely sure as she answers, as it isn't her temple. "I can ask. She knows of me, so maybe that would help."

Her attention makes it back around to Cryo and the dummy. "I would rather you were, sister... but this will let me better help free you." She looks to a neighboring dummy and adds, "You can also use your own body against an opponent as well, and don't need to be strong..."

Perhaps as an example, or possibly to vent a little energy, herself, she makes a jog towards the neighbor. Before she reaches it, she leaps to ...embrace it, though only with her legs at what would be its waist. As it bends from the impact, she rotates around it to pull instead of push, winding up on her back with the training dummy clasped betwee her knees and thighs with feet hooked over each other to lock behind it.

That gets the sith's attention and she releases her dummy and steps back. It wobbles quickly back and forth. She watches for a moment, then finally climbs the dummy and sits on it, wrapping her legs through the arms and her tail around it, and rides it like a spring see-saw all around. She doesn't get it near the floor, but it seems wild.

"I don't follow Eluna, or Daeus, and have not prayed to Ceinara in almost a century. A silver sith I ran into in Charnat was more helpful than she, and there were no gods in the Tower. I would hope they would do it out of the goodness of their goodness, but it seems I must pledge allegiance to Sir Seldan. Who draws weapons on me, who tells me to stay away from my mate. Who lambasts me for suggesting he deal with the Demon Duke because he targets his mate, even if my suggestion is stupid. Zeke explains in great detail why I must apologize, Auranar must apologize. Yes I am worthless, should I abase myself too? Now my suspicions confirmed, I wondered, Why Zeke? Why not Ezil or Durrankar, why him? To get at Sir Seldan? No. He is the key, and while I thought I was in full agency, somehow my offer to go with the Mistake was to better torture him. Weaken him. It made no sense becaue I thought I was important. This one feels fully a tool and useless."

She swings herself hard from side to side, riding the wrestling dummy.

Faran nods to Kira's words and says, "Would that be... ?" she falters there, considering the question, and the implications, when Cryo ultimately starts to bring them out. She sighs, troubled, as her own hunts have gone so poorly. The little woman shakes her head and, maybe acting out of the protocols earlier, she steps forward and gives the swinging Sith a swat, "You're NOT worthless!" she chides, frustration bringing her voice upward in volume, "You're out of your depth-all of us are, but you're not WORTHLESS! NEVER EVER WORTHLESS! That's that BITCH talking! That's not you!" and by the end, there are shimmers in the rim of her eyes.
From afar, Kira also noted backing up to the wall when the deva appeared, terrified because 'There is a big glowing celestial saying Salina's name and she's going to notice and there's going to be demons show up or something' So the deva made a point to note to everyone that She couldn't sense anything while he was present.

Kira feels a bit better with her bit of athletics, and even more when she looks to see Cryo swaying and swinging on the dummy. A grin starts and almost makes it to a laugh at the sith's antics (intended or not)... and then it dies in her throat at Cryo's words.

She releases her own target without thinking, leaving it to snap back and past, then sway descreasingly on its own as she hops to her feet. As she makes the steps to Cryo, opposite Faran, she echoes the lucht's words. "You are not, sister. We do not think you are, you shouldn't think that you are. It's Her. She sows doubt."

Kira doesn't care of the whitescale is still swaying as she reaches up for her. "You endured her for decades, Cryo... I was there ... a week? I still doubt that I didn't break my vows in that time," she admits suddenly. "You are stronger than all of us."

Cryo leans over, which makes her dummy-mount lean over as well, and she reaches down with both hands to pick up Faran. She hugs around her and rests her on her thighs. She leans over, so she can look down at Kira's eyes, making her head an odd helmet for the lucht. "Not just her words Faran, Kira. Sometimes people say things and they talk on two levels, not a double-meaning word, deeper. Sometimes it's what they don't say. Sometimes it's things you hear when no one is saying anything at all."

She swings her body from side to side, getting the wrestling dummy to creak and sway, with Faran held securely on the seat made of her laps. She twists, working her shoulders, getting a little rotational spin and it starts dipping further and further each way. "Climb up Kira and see if we can ride this to the ground. Even the gods might descend and tells me I am wrong. My instinct to stay here, out of scrying, because I so endanger the plans I have no knowledge of, was wrong. Leave, stay, do something, do nothing, all wrong. There is some narrow path I'm to walk which I can't see and no one will direct. I wonder now if my Mindshield ring even works. Ezil said his does, but perhaps mine was a lead fake. Wheee.... weeeeeeee!"

She has worked up quite the momentum, but the dummy holds...

Faranmidahn sets her hands on her hips, looking as stern as her towering Luchtness facilitates, nodding assertively as Kira starts to agree with, then expand on her points with her own perspectives. It's when she looks to the Sentinel, however, that she is neatly plucked from the mat with what can only be called a surprised chirp and quickly situated in her sister's lap anew, much of her hair, what isn't pinned between their bodies, trailing in the swinging wake. There's been too many rides on Torrent to get motion sick, but, she is, to a point, a little disoriented by the added twisting, so it takes her a couple of seconds to get enough of her bearings to say, "What's the ring supposed to do?" she asks, voice no doubt dopplering for their sway.
Kira opens her mouth, but it seems she's at a loss for words... or, more likely, just the correct words. She must assume that they exist, but none come to mind with any certainty. Her mouth closes, and she simply nods, defaulting to trying actions, instead. Exactly those suggested, that is. Maybe what Cryo needs is agreement, acceptance, and/or accompaniment, rather than advice. After watching the movement to get more synchronized with the interval of the swaying, she grabs hold to try and climb about.

The extra weight makes the wrestling dummy really sway. It tips over so far everyone is horizontal, the mat right there, where one can reach out and touch. Then it rebounds upwards, picking up speed before the weight and momentum carry it over and the mat is rushing up again. Will it break this time? No! Yet it seems so close, with the whining of the spring and the creaking of the wood form. It was not meant to be ridden this way, but it is a dummy, it does not protest. It endures the weight and the force, slinging it around.

A lesson for it's riders too? Or the fate of lesser things. Cryo is oblivious to its strains. Instead she grins widely and cries gleefully as she is thrown about in wide arcs, holding on protectively to shelter her little sister with another behind. There is a wild eagerness to her words, "I bet it will break if we push it a little more. Let's try. Be ready to roll off on dip."

She flings herself into the task.