One on One - Campfire

General Summary

Myra & Sarya

It's the last night before we reach Drel'Themar, it's ungodly late or maybe early the sun has long since hidden and has not gotten up yet. Sarya, hears the creak of a floorboard in the hallway. She might have ignored it but it's been the same pattern the last two nights. The creak of a door, the sound of someone shifting in the hall, and then the close of the door a few minutes later.
Sarya silently slips to the door and peers out. Though Reach is well protected, she is still shaken by their experience in the compass, in a place that they felt safe. She finds Myra standing in the hallway halfway between the rooms, looking at Raijun's door. She's disheveled and breathing heavily as though she raced from her bed. As she hears the door open she whips around to face you, the deep bags under eyes visible. A look of deep relief flashes over her face before it's replaced by guilt, "I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you," she whispers.
“It’s okay,” Sarya says with a smile, “I only need a few hours of meditation to feel refreshed.” She pauses, taking in Myra’s appearance “Are you looking for something?”
Myra starts to shake her head but as she does, tears start to form in her eyes, "I ah- it's childish."
Sarya approaches, gently putting a hand on Myra’s shoulder “Even if it’s childish, it seems to be bothering you.”
Myra just curls into Sarya's shoulder the tears coming faster, "I wake up there covered in blood. Or I wake up in the suite in Hazelden and you all are still unconscious. And there's nothing I can do. I try everything but nothing I do impacts anything and in the background I can still hear it's stupid cackle. When I wake up I'm still not sure. Is this one real?"
Sarya puts her arms around Myra, “We’re here now,” she whispers. “He forced us to play right into his hands but we’re going to take care of him. We’ll make him regret using us.”
Myra returns the hug and just quietly cries for a minute before moving to untangle herself. She wipes her eyes, "I can't sleep. I can't go back again." She takes a breath, still shaky, "Do you want to bake something?" She laughs weakly, "That probably sounds crazy..."
“Let’s go. It’ll take our mind off it at least,” Myra notices that despite Sarya having just been asleep, she’s still wearing her armor.
As they head up the stairs and into the kitchen Myra seems to ramble, avoiding silence, "I've had nightmares since I was a child, my parents told me it was on account of my overactive imagination. I've tried loads of things to sleep but most of those ended poorly. But one night as I was wandering the house I wound up in the kitchens. And there was Orion, the pastry chef, working on croissants at three am. Well he took one look at me and knew he could either give me something to do or answer 1 million questions so he showed me how to fold and roll the dough and put me to work." She's started pulling out an assortment of items including butter, flour, eggs, sugar. She pulls cinnamon and vanilla out of a pouch. "Anyway something about the repetitive motion and not thinking about the dream seemed to do it."
“What’re we making tonight?”
"Scones. Croissants take hours and Orion would kill me if I butchered that by speeding it up with magic."
“That sounds delicious. Let me grab something really quick,” She returns a moment later with a few sprigs of what Myra can smell to be rosemary, “we can make two types.”
"I find crumbling the butter is especially satisfying when I'm stressed." Myra pulls out two bowls from her bag and hands one to Sarya before pulling out different graduated cylinders and measuring devices. She begins peeling and chopping an apple, "So your meditating in armor these days?"
Sarya shifts uncomfortably, “It’s not that uncomfortable… I just feel safer this way,” she begins working the butter and flour together.
Myra shrugs, "What ever helps you sleep." She blushes, moving on to measuring her ingredients, "I had stuffed animals I slept with at home. Whatever gets you through the night."
“I’m better than I used to be, at least I’m humanoid.”
Myra chuckles, "If I had that option I'm not sure I would be."
Sarya laughs, “Don’t encourage me unless you want a bear in the kitchen.”
Myra waves a spoon at her smiling, "No bears in the kitchen! I'm not picking out your bear hair from your scones."
“Awww a little fur never hurt anyone,” playfully dodging the spoon.
Myra smiles stowing her spoon as she dives into crumbling her own butter, "I'm gagging thinking about it. Besides none of the batter would make it into the scones!" She removes her doughy hands from the bowl gesturing them to Sarya an eyebrow raised, "Tell me that you wouldn't just get it on your paws and then eat it."
“You’re probably right, there’s a lot of surface area for it to get caught in,” Sarya ponders staring at her hands.
"Exactly and then really what choice would you have but to eat the dough," Myra smiles. "I'm gonna guess not a ton of baking out in the middle of the woods? Though who knows, I've read stories of witches in cottages made of baked goods." Myra slides a sheet into the oven and then moves to begin cleaning, turning away from Sarya, "So all this adventuring is for Reina?"
“She’s very important to me” Sarya says slowly, the sparkle fading from her eyes as she grows serious, “She brought me back after… some rough times.”
"Lucky woman. Not everyone has someone who would drop everything to find them," Myra comments trying to keep her tone neutral.
“She was more or less my only link to the outside world so when she didn’t return, I was really worried,” Sarya's brow furrows, “I had thought that it would be easy, go to the Beholden Crossing, find her, go home. It’s strange… When I try to scry for her, it’s like it’s in a holding pattern. Have you ever read of something like that?”
"Hmmm not from the scrying end. Mental magic isn't really my forte," Myra apologizes," But I've been investigating warding and from looking at the spell Adama used to hide the Slekul boxes during the parley I think you could block mental magic from a specific area. So maybe she's just in a place like that? Warded I mean. There are plenty of people in Kolis-Tane you could ask though. I'm still relatively new at all this so I'm much better when it boils down to chemistry or physics. The good news is that if you're getting any kind of feedback I believe that means she's still alive."
Myra turns her hands still wet from the dishes and sees Sarya's pensive frown, "I'm sorry I did not mean to burden you with sour thoughts. I was really just hoping to learn more about what you desire," She cups her hands together and blows through them producing butterflies of soapy water that fly to Sarya and land on her.
“They’re not sour, just worried. At least she’s likely alive, that makes me feel better." Sarya giggles as the butterflies land on her, “What do I desire? To find Reina and make sure that she’s safe. I thought that I would go back home, but now I’m less sure. Being with you all has made me think that maybe I can make a difference and make up for what I’ve done.”
Myra pulls the first batch of scones out of the oven, sniffing, "Well from the smell of these if you do need to go back to the woods maybe you can give that sweets witch a run for her money. You know really rehabilitate the witch name and just feed any children who stumble onto you ridiculous cakes." Myra gazes pensively into the fire as she loads in the second batch of scones into the oven, "As for making up for something, I can relate. But the more I listen to Raijun and Amelie the more I feel they are right. It is not enough to oppose something: guilt, a person, a plan, a deed. It might be noble or petty, good or ill, but it is not the basis for a life."
“You might just be right about that” Sarya says smiling lopsidedly, “in which case, I have some catching up to do.”

Raijun & Adama

While the ladies are baking, Raijun is in his room, and rather uncharacteristically, seems highly focused at his desk, chipping away with a small knife at what seems to be a few pieces of wood.
He twirls the blade with speedy dexterous movements, wilting and pruning until he has a "huzzah!" moment and is satisfied with his work. He tucks the three figurines into his Manly Pack at his waist, and sets out of his room.
He walks past the kitchen, invisibly as he is careful not to interrupt the cute little date Sarya and Myra seem to be on, and goes to find Adama , who seems to be deep in thought on the deck, looking out into the distance.
"Hey there friend, figured I might find you up here.
You know, i saw a lot of things up in that Nightmare, but there was one thing that stuck out to me, and I built you a little memento I thought you might like."
He pulls out of his Manly Pack, three wooden figurines. It is a younger Adama, with his child sitting on his shoulders, and one of his hands is holding the other figurine, a beautiful depiction of Adama's first wife. They look happy, the eyes seem to beam despite the flatness of the maple wood that he used, set on a base of flower material and grass that Raijun pasted together.
"I hope you like it, I just wanted to build you something to remember them by"
As Adama looks at the three figurines he smiles, which for many would seem his only true smile since the party after Nightwell. There is almost a glimmer in his eye as he graciously extends his hand to touch the figurine..
“Thank you very much, it looks wonderful, these last few days have been hell, trapped in my own memories of the past, forced to relive days that I’d sooner have been buried than see again. This means a lot Raijin, thank you so much. They had names, my daughter was Camin, my son Dae, my wife Zylan, each wonderful and pleasant, warm and caring. I have been forced to watch their deaths, and forced to feel their pain, I can imagine no greater punishment for any being than to see those they love most tortured continuously. I would have given anything to protect them, to be with them, but that wasn’t what the Gods wanted, they wanted me to suffer, I would have spent everything I had buying their freedom, but there was no devil to take that deal. “.
You see Adama cautiously hold the figurine, beaming with joy, thrilled at the prospect of having some semblance of connection with his past life which isn’t enthralled with rage. He places the figurine in front of himself and just sits and smiles at it.
“This really does mean a lot. I am sorry for any pain I may have caused you, any intentional or accidental harm. I swore decades ago to a single minded focus and I have been living this nightmare ever since.”
"I forgive you, and if you ever want to, I would be happy to hear about stories of your loved ones and share some of mine as well." Raijun passes a mead-skin to Adama with a warm smile.

Report Date

25 Apr 2022