Czlaplon Quest

[TarlimanJoppos]

(Alston: Astrally, you don't see much of a difference between the replacement arm and the rest of Isaac's True Pattern. There's a difference in the underlying structure, with the arm echoing the Pattern of Earth while Isaac has the Pattern of Life, but you can see Isaac's, for lack of a better term, chi running through the metal arm similarly to his other hand. There's a definite Blessing of Garlen on the arm, not necessarily enough to make it a protection, but the mark of extraordinary Healing is present.)

[Kasbak]

"Not for myself, no. But for someone else." Let's see, how best to tell this? "It's one of my childhood friends, Isair. We trained together as Archers, and he's really more like brother to me. Him and his sister are my closest friends." I'll consider going into more detail about them, but dismiss it for now since it's not important to the primary question.

"Anyway, we were working together as pirate hunters along the Northern waters of the Serpent during our early Circles. On the last mission we took together, we ran afoul of a Horror in what we had thought was a pirate cove. It was a hard battle we weren't ready for, but we did manage to kill it. We lost a good portion of the crew, the ship took heavy damage, and Isair's hand was crushed severely." I'll need to pause for a moment to keep myself collected. Though it is getting easier to speak of as I keep taking action to correct the situation.

"We took care of him as best we could, but we didn't have a healer, and with the damage we were only able to limp the ship back to port, so proper treatment was very delayed. When I left, he was stable, but we couldn't tell if his hand would ever be able to heal well enough for him to use it again. We had heard about the replacement ritual when we were traveling, so I headed out to learn more about it and to try and raise enough coin to pay for it if it would be a viable solution."

[arcomniflash]

I'll nod quietly as I listen to the story. "I think the best thing to do would be to talk to Bortar himself about it. I think it's certainly a viable solution, though they'd have to take your brother's measurements and so on. Perhaps Gudrun could send him a light sprite, I certainly couldn't afford to return to Fortesa Hebo at the moment...if he's even there. Last I heard he was headed into the Far East, across the ocean."

[TarlimanJoppos]

"Bortar," says Gudrun, putting down her spoon and directing her attention to Isaac, "is in Cathay, which is not across an ocean, but is beyond an astral barrier. Light sprites are not reliable for communication. Your friend's best option," she says to Alston, "is to journey to Fortetsa Hebo and visit the Lesarb Prosthetic Clinic. The questors there are still training in the procedure, but the intent is to have a staff of prosthetics makers and questors able to perform the necessary work. Just the effort of fitting out the maimed from the War against the Hand and the Iopan War will occupy such a clinic for months, perhaps years."

"Coin is probably not an issue," says Mekhitar. "The Children of T'Mor are well off, and can afford to be charitable. I mean, did you see the way Vannin was throwing silver around?"

[Kasbak]

"I would love to discuss specifics with Bortar, or anyone qualified for that matter. But, we do have a job to do, and that needs to be handled first." An adept's first responsibility is to duty and all that. "I'd also like to bring Isair with for that meeting, and while he was stable when I left, I think he may still need some recovery time before he's ready to make the trip." Not to mention time to recover well enough to handle the ritual.

"And there is still the chance his hand could be saved, however slim." Can't let myself give up hope for that. Still, if this clinic truly is that backed up, it would probably be a good idea to get him there as soon as possible to get on the docket. Or at least see some more advanced healers that can better assess his condition. "I suppose I can send him a light sprite myself the next time I find myself at home where I can see the current situation."

I'll brighten my expression a bit at the idea of not needing to stress about coin, but won't abandon the concern entirely. "There's still going to be cost, and someone has to pay it. If it's to help my brother-in-spirit, I'll work my wings off if I have to. Even if it's only to return a favor with a healthy donation."

[arcomniflash]

"Admirable." I'll nod and stand up, having finished my food. "I'm going to get some rest though, I suspect that tomorrow is going to be a long day." And with that, I'll give everyone present a small bow and head upstairs. Although I probably won't go to sleep right away, too many things occupy my thoughts for that, getting into the bed will certainly help. Eventually I'll drift off, hopefully waking up early tomorrow so that I can get some things done before we get underway.

[Kasbak]

Yes, we do have business tomorrow. I'll wrap up with my meal and spend just a little bit of time before bed writing in both my journal and a letter to send back home. I'll mostly be covering the information revealed tonight, though I'll also spend just a little bit of time going over the other main events since my last update and the upcoming plans I'm aware of. I can look for someone going ahead on the river to carry it for me when we're at the docks tomorrow.

[TarlimanJoppos]

The night passes quietly enough, although somewhere between midnight and dawn there's a bit of ruckus on the street, a few drunks being loud and being suppressed by the watch. Nothing unusual for an inn this close to the piers, really.

The morning dawns cool and humid, with a low fog that lingers over the water at least a candlemark after dawn. By the time most of you are up and dressed and looking for breakfast, Gudrun has already taken the RETURN crate and gone out. Mekhitar puts in a very brief appearance, just long enough to let people know that he had a very successful night, thank you, and will be going off to bathe and get some sleep before the boarding this afternoon. Probably for the best, as he smells strongly of tavern and is looking a little fatigued. Shaliko finishes his breakfast quickly, eating light this morning, then pulls out a small, beat-up leatherbound book and starts reading. Garsevan picks at his breakfast, seeming perhaps bored. Kolbeinn barely notices his food, going over a couple of lists and comparing them.

[arcomniflash]

I'll take breakfast myself, eating a small meal and finishing quickly much in the same manner as Shaliko, but my intent isn't to start reading again, but to perform a karma ritual, it feels like an age since I got through one, and just the act of doing it settles me a little. Afterwards, I'll pack what little things I have in preparation for the boarding this afternoon. The books I had brought with me, as well as any additional ones found along the way, will go in the same bag. My old clothes will go in a different sack, since I'm wearing the new ones that Mekhitar recommended. The mood seems a little somber this morning, and it seems a little strange after people - especially Mekhitar and Garsevan - were in such high spirits before.

[Kasbak]

Before coming down, I'll hang up and lay out my new outfit, giving it a chance to air out before putting it on. Since we don't seem to have much on the schedule for today until the meet and greet, I'll take my time with breakfast and take anything I can get a ahold of. Just savoring the last good food to be had before getting on a ship again. As long as I am not needed by anyone else, I'll spend the time inspecting my gear, making sure there's nothing major needed before we leave. Since I haven't been here long, I'll probably have to unpack and repack, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It'll just make sure I've got everything put away securely. I'm guessing that will take maybe a candlemark or two, so for the rest of the time I'll go back over my letter one more time and then use anything remaining to decorate a few arrows with wood carving before it's time to change and depart.