HT Aliaver/Player Character Name Type Status/Notes Sex -- ----------------------------------------------------------------- R1.John Haight...........Arawn.............Druid .Normal/Alfar Ma --.Tobie Bonahoom........Fremea............Sidh....Normal/Faerry Fe R3.Mark Murtha...........Kell..............Trader..Normal/Human..Ma R1.David Sanders.........Kiet.Sunan........Acrobat Normal/Human Ma R4.J H Hooten............Raban.Usherwood...Bard....Normal/Human..Ma W4.Wout Broere...........Unali.............Ninja...Normal/Human Fe R1 John.Stowman..........Will..............Hunter..Normal/Human..Ma R4.Alex Koponen..........Z'leyra...........Healer..Normal/Human Fe Animals: Corona [Eagle] Z'leyra, Squirt (Ferret) Kell Game Web Site - http:/nrgcomputers.com/pbem/ Public posts/actions to pnpgm@list.powersandperils.org (mailing list) Private emails (not public actions) to pnpgm@comcast.net Game Update #17a in sequence (file #51) ---------------------------------------------------------------- Admin Notes: IBT1 Part 1. ----------------------------------------------------------------- [Recap] [None] -------------------------------------------------------------- [New Stuff] [Augado 11th - Sepes 24th, 1634TH] [Location: Marentia (Maren)] [Augado 11] Z'leyra returns to Sivas with the others after a long and grueling campaign. She takes a long moment to reflect on the past and the future. She has seen comrades - almost friends - die like Shu, Zhou and a few others. But on the other hand she has saved just as many. She looks to Arawn and realizes that with his healing mist her talents may not be as needed as in the past. But in the end direct one on one healing is her greatest talent. She reflects on the other party members who have joined since last time here. Kiet the acrobat is very talented but she doesn't know if he will last in great future battles without stepping in. This Malic person is new and almost seems to arrive just in the nick of time. She will have to watch him as the group has been infiltrated in the past like on Clima. The others seem adept in their own ways. She has noticed some changes in Ben'dar and Farseeker. A new degree of social interaction. As if both have done their share of this adventure stuff and need time to just relax now. Both have their own destiny and she wishes them well in their lives if they do not continue on with the party. Then there is Will who almost died as well as Raban who she was shocked to see could be killed - or at least almost killed. If the giant could be killed then anyone in this group could be killed in a blink of a eye. Maybe Fremea will see that and go home to avoid this danger stuff. Z'leyra remounts up on her horse and heads toward her manor. She tells the others she will get to Cholan's tavern tonight but she has a few hours to do some business. There after 3 months home she rides up to the manor. It seems to be still standing. No one has burnt it to the ground yet. But it looks empty and depressing. Maybe now that she is home she will bring life back to it. The manor's land is 1000 square feet and she notices that the weather has not been good. Patches of brown and light green not the greens of spring. Possible less rains this past summer. She dismounts and goes to the house. As she approaches one guard opens the door and enters the front porch. He places hand on sword and then Z'leyra sees another guard rounding the left corner of the house. She smiles that they are still here and working. The guard on the porch recognizes her and then steps down off the porch to take her bag. He explains the butler is at the market getting some house supplies. He tells the other guard to run to fetch the cook, maid and stableboy. All three are not there as the house has not been too active. The maid comes in twice a week and the cook every 2 days to feed the guards and butler. The stableboy only has shown up once a week to tidy things and clean if needed. But now that she is back after a few months they are good to come back. Soon the house is alive with the staff and the butler returns. For the next hour he goes over the various boring - very boring to Z'leyra - details of the last few months. Occasional visits from this and that, tax collections, business proposals and all that. Mostly the same things any land owner tends to get these days. The butler does remind her that the expenses have not been paid in 6 months since Marqi. The tax collector and other merchants are eager for payment. Z'leyra shakes her head and realizes this will cost her around 73 gold for 6 months of this place. An hour later she pays the butler and then issues 4 of her guards to go to town to deposit any funds for payment. Most will go to the staff but others like taxes will need to be paid. This leaves her only 6 gold and she realizes she will need to make things to sell for gold. The woes of land ownership. She wonders how Ben'dar can have a ranch much larger than her place. But she knows his turn around for selling horse is good. Now at least she is paid up through end of Sepes next month. For her teaching and healing the butler hires a scribe to do up ads to post around the city like markets and shops. He then hires four criers for each side of town to spread the word. The scribe does 100 parchments which will take a day to complete. Then the butler has the stableboy go around various places to post the ads if vendors are willing. Butler then hires the criers to spread the word for at least a few weeks. With the rest of the coins given to him by Z'leyra he hires some boys to help the stableboy to spread the ads. The butler does give his view on this that it would increase security issues at the manor. On days of bad weather there would be people who were strangers inside. Z'leyra could teach outside in the shade of some trees but it isn't exactly a clean place. then getting wounded to leave the city and walk a couple miles to some country estate seems unusual. But the butler does not voice his opinion fully as he is paid to do a few jobs and not an advisor. For the rest of the afternoon the butler is also sent out to find books to use for her instruction. At least a dozen books. Kaylle helps with this by suggesting a few good book stores. Then once this is done the butler goes to buy some basic supplies to teach with like bandages and herbs. Z'leyra notices that Kaylle is staring at her at times but when she looks straight at him he looks away. At one point Z'leyra also notices that in his tunic a slight glow is seen very subtle. She is not sure what the glow is but it may be just some magic item. Kaylle runs to attend to a noble looking for royal tax codes and never gets to ask the Scholar about it. Later when things settle down Z'leyra casts a few spells in her master bedroom. She casts Orient Self to enter into a trance then cast Knowledge and a cure age spell. Then once these spells are done she picks up her magical staff and goes about the manor, workshop and stables to cast Akasha to tap the past. Some might say she doesn't trust her own staff if they knew. But one might never know when a bug snuck into the master bedroom and ate some nice silk dress. She has 10 rooms in the manor and 2 in workshop and 1 for the barn for a total of 13 places to cast the triple spells. She will plan to cast the routine of 3 spells to tap the past in each area. She will switch to the next place each day in hopes to find some problem or issue. Though a good wizard or thief could just use something like invisibility to avoid detection. She first casts Divination, Purification and Akasha in each room or area. For the first area in her master bedroom the three spells work and she detects nothing of value. But in the end at least nothing major happened in the manor. Maybe some spilt food or occasional bugs but the place was quiet and boring to watch. Of course that spell only allows her to see a couple weeks and not the other 10 or so weeks before that since she has been gone. That evening Z'leyra attends the meeting at Cholan's tavern. There she watches the group dance, sing and otherwise celebrate their victory. Even she dances a bit with Farseeker, Ben'dar and the handsome Raban. Then the gifts are passed out. The Ticasi ticket is a great thing to have. Most scholars would need 30 or 40 years of scholar work and be well respected to even have such an access to the inner library. She will have to place that in her own private vault. Oddly the only one that needs healing was Raban. The others do not seem to use her services. She asks Chion to allow her to go back to the Dark Lands. She misses Corona and hopes he is safe. Z'leyra notices Kaylle seem to occasionally stare at her for some reason. But when she approaches the scholar he just turns away and starts a new conversation. That night she casts Watchful sleep though safe in Sivas and back home. [Augado 12] Z'leyra teleports back to the Dark Lands thanks to Chion with the others. She immediately goes to hunt for Corona but does not find him. Oby Wan explains he is often elsewhere in the morning but tends to come by mid afternoon. Z'leyra then gathers up any equipment she left behind before her trip to Katai. While at the Citadel tavern Z'leyra casts Watchful sleep though the citadel is very secure. [Augado 13] The next day Z'leyra meets up with Chion to return home. She is surprised to find Zhou alive and well. She realizes then that Chion had a trick up his sleeve. Back in Sivas she spends time with Corona. She shape changes into a eagle and both fly high above the city enjoying the breeze from the lake. [Augado 13] Z'leyra decides to spend a few hours in the hills to meditation. She reflects on the past and gives honor to the spirits. Sometimes Z'leyra covers many hats - wizard, artist, healer, shaman, craftsman, armorer and land owner. She knows that her shaman hat hasn't been used that much. So she spends time in nature and the open spaces that is west of the city. In order to help herself get in the mind set she casts Orient Self to get into the trance. Back at the manor she does some household duties and then settles in for the night. She casts her Divination, Purification and Akasha spell again in another area to find nothing new. She then casts watchful sleep when it is time for bed. [Augado 14] Today Z'leyra wakes up to start teaching. It takes a couple hours and then finally one young man comes. He and Will wait for others but no one else shows up. She figures it would be the first day and news has to spread. So she teaches the young man and Will the healing arts. No one needs healing so she only teaches basics for this day. After the tutoring is done she walks around the property and casts mana sensing in order to check for possible problems. She has to do this at least 15 times around the property. Out of the 15 spells 3 fail course she would not really know it failed unless she was in an area she knew magic was around. Z'leyra then goes back around to check her wards she left on the property and items. There are 8 wards in total. She casts Orient Self twice and then 8 Perception spells. One of the perception spells fail so she has to repeat it on one of the entrance wards. But in all the wards seem to be in good standing. Z'leyra then casts her Akasha spell routine in another location. Then casts watchful sleep at the end. [Augado 15] This day Z'leyra meditates on the purification spell and the various techniques. Then she casts Divination, Purification and Akasha again in another new location. She ends the day with another watchful sleep spell. [Augado 16] Z'leyra spends the morning working in her workshop to repair Unali's magical dagger. She knows it will not be as perfect as when it was brand new. No repairs are ever perfect repairs. But it will be good enough to last an adventure or two. The sorceress then goes through her personal gear and manor loot even from Climan. She tries to find any unidentified items to cast perception on them but finds nothing. Later before dinner she recasts her special shamanic purified area to improve the new effectiveness since she has grown in skill. She casts Orient Self, Divination and ensorcellment into the ground after casting Purification. The she casts perception to ensure the magic is better. Then toward the late evening she recasts another akasha set of spells (divination, purification, akasha) in another location in the manor. Then when ready to sleep casts watchful sleep again. [Augado 17] Z'leyra finishes the day up with the final repair to the magical dagger for Unali. She then gets into her shamanic trance casting Orient Self, divination and then starts to reenchant the dagger. She improves the effectiveness of the dagger's strength, hit chance and damage. The second fails but she repeats it to enchant the hit chance. She then casts perception on the item to ensure all is proper. Even though its not perfect due to the repairs the dagger is much better than most normal weapons out there. Z'leyra then recasts another set of her spells to tap the akasha record around her property. Then casts another watchful sleep. [Augado 18] Today Z'leyra finds she has 8 students besides Will. She teaches the basics of healing techniques and uses them on one man who has a few bad cuts from working hard at a furniture store. That late afternoon she and Corona go flying around the city and this time checking out the lake boats and other craft from the sky. Just before sunset she decides it is time to add another purification spot near her permanent Shamanic purified area. This one she will do it for Balance aligned spells. She casts divination, ensorcellment, purification, Orient self and then perception to test the area's properties. The purified ground is made but the Shamanic ground is far more powerful. She realizes she will have to practice her balance permanent magics better. As usual she checks her property for another location for any one who may be watching or tinkering with her place. She casts the Akasha series again. Then watchful sleep again. [Augado 19] Z'leyra wakes up early around 2:30am and decides it is too hot to sleep. She alerts the guard on duty she will be working in her workshop. For the last few days she has paid for and treated 3 large animal skins for making leather purses. Now is the day she will make 3 purses and sell at least one of them. Each will be a highly artistic bag that will be enchanted. So it will take at least 6 hours per purse to make. So it will be a complete full day's of work. The first set of leather has to be discarded and divided up as the tanning skill failed. But with the spare leather left over she finishes all three purses. For one purse she casts enchantments to make the purse tougher and place a ward pact sending spell to alert any owner about any attempts to rob the contents. The process requires Orient self, divination, enchantments and the spells placed onto the purses. Then she casts perception on the three items to ensure they were enchanted correctly. Over the next week or so she visits the markets to try to sell the purse. Since Kell is off in Ba'ru she has to do it herself. It takes four visits to get it sold. Most simply do not buy such high quality items. But one dealer sells to higher nobles. He is impressed by the magic on it and though she knows it could sell for as much as 80 gold to a very rich noble she sells it for 40 gold. She originally wanted only 28 gold for it but is pleased with the profit. Though she knows it might not happen again. She saves the other 2 pouches for later use. Z'leyra then casts her routine akasha spell and watchful sleep after a long day of work. [Augado 20] After sleeping late a bit Z'leyra wakes up to start working on her magical chainmail. She will repair any damage or blotches it needs. She had considered reenchanting the armor to make it tougher. But her recent perceptions have told her she has not reached the next degree of skill for it. She will have to do it later. That afternoon Z'leyra notices a guard and the stable boy looking north to a farm about a mile away. They are watching 3 men who seem to be fighting with a farmer. The men are using clubs to destroy the wagon and dump barrels of the wagon he riding in. Z'leyra turns to yell for another guard but the stableboy says there are others going. It looks like a set of young men probably farm hands or the farmer's family running toward the bandits. The bandits see they are slowly up against a bigger fight and mount their horses and ride off. Z'leyra rides with 2 guards to help out the farmer but he is not seriously wounded beyond some cuts and bruises. Seems the bandits were just drunk and wanted to cause havoc. The farmer does say that the area is getting worse with bandits each year. That evening she recasts her akasha group of spells and watchful sleep. [Augado 21] This is another teaching day of the healing arts by Z'leyra. Aside from Will only 4 show up today to learn. That night Z'leyra is doing her rounds and checking the property. She is in the stable inspecting her horse after he had some breathing issues earlier. The issue seems to be fixed. As she is moving back to the large barn door she feels a bit odd. Suddenly a creature leaps from one of the stalls up to the ledge and leaps at Z'leyra. It happens so fast that she can barely reach up her hand to block. The creature leaps and slams into her chest and is bounced off. When the creature falls to the ground, Z'leyra immediately recognizes it as a terrestial demon. She has seen those red eyes before and encountered them. She smiles as her necklace protected her from being possessed. But then 3 more demons leap from the ground and being to snarl and move toward her. Z'leyra bends her staff into a diagonal attack stance and readies. She could yell for her two guards who should be on patrol but they are weak and with no items like her necklace to repel possession they would be easy targets. She steps forward and targets the first demon. The staff slams into the right shoulder of the demon doing 9 points of damage. From the loft Corona fires a set of fire bolts at the middle of the 3 demons below. The magical bolt from his eyes is as good as a fire dart and does 9 points of damage to the demon. The wounded first demon leaps to his feet and claws at Z'leyra but she dodges and weaves forcing the creature to miss her. Two of the other demons charge while a 3rd tries to leap at her to possess her again but the creature is knocked backwards by the magical necklace. The other two who charge use claws and try to scratch. One fails badly but the other scratches her left arm doing 6 points of damage. She is only wearing her light leather armor and not her chainmail so finds the damage to be deep. Z'leyra swings and hits the first demon that tried to possess her and kills it with a blow to his chest. Corona seeing the demons surround Z'leyra knows he can't try his magic again so dives with talons drawn out. The quick dive causes the eagle to grab hold of the middle demon he just wounded with his magic and killing him as the talons shred demon flesh. The other 2 demons react to the sudden loss in numbers. One turns and runs toward Z'leyra's horse. The other stands his ground and tries to run around Z'leyra for a good back attack. The demon charges and leaps at Gust and disappears inside the horse. Z'leyra can not see Gust and can't warn him. The other demon tries ot leap onto Z'leyra's back but she leaps to the right and forces the demon to fly just past her in the leap. Z'leyra uses this new position to swing at the demon as it passes her shoulder but she misses. Corona is confused by the sudden loss of the other demon and tries to scan the dark barn. There is a lantern here but the shows might reveal the demon. The demon turns around and charges Z'leyra again. This time though it slips on the blood of the first demon corpse and forces his leap to go low and tackles right into the shaman's belt with no affect on his claw attack. He was trying for her neck but the fumble forced the missed opportunity. Z'leyra swings at the demon hitting him in the left ribs doing 5 points of damage. Gust begins to snort a bit and shake his head. Corona notices this but does not understand the situation. The demon claws at Z'leyra's legs but fails to hit the healer. Z'leyra then hits the demon again in the left shoulder doing 6 more points. The demon dazed turns and begins to fly toward the barn door to escape. Just as it reaches the door Corona lifts off and flies after the demon. Both leave the light of the lantern and fade from sight. Z'leyra turns to look for the other demon but does not see him. She runs to the door but as she gets there finds Corona dump the body of the demon onto the barn door by his talons. Several long moments pass and Z'leyra discovers the horse, her friend Gust has been possessed. A peasant might just kill the horse. But she has some experience in these things. Z'leyra figures the demon is just hiding from the day by taking Gust. This will help her to get him out of the horse. Z'leyra asks Corona to watch the horse in case the demon flees. Then returns to the manor to get her chainmail, helmet and great sword. Best to be prepared just in case. She then summons two guards to stand nearby but not to enter. She alerts Will and Kiet of what she intends to do and asks them stay in the manor for now. Some exorcisms can take hours and she prepares by bringing some water and other supplies. If she had Arawn she could ask him but she knows the spell though she does not know the full rites and ceremonies that a priest does. Now prepared she begins the ceremony and process. After almost ten minutes calling for the spirits to guide and help her she starts to cast the exorcism spell. She casts the spell and then the horse jerks a bit. The terrestial demon then leaps out of the horse. This is when Z'leyra lunges and tries to stab it with her great sword. She hits him in the chest doing 13 points of damage. The demon shrieks in pain and lunges for Z'leyra. But the scholar uses her own dancing skill to dodge out of the way and he misses to hit her. Z'leyra thrusts and hits the demon in the left side doing the final damage to kill the demon. Z'leyra checks out Gust to see if he is good and finds him to be healthy. A bit confused and unnerved but good for now. She tells the guards to get rid of the bodies. Normally she would do her Akasha routine in the manor house but tonight she decides to do it on the barn to see when they came in and who might have helped them. But it seems that they came in only shortly before she did and with no help.. Then the healer goes to bed after casting watchful sleep again. [Augado 22] Z'leyra spends the day repairing her dragon helm. She can do most of the metal work. Lucky for her when on Clima in the final battle with the storm dragon she took enough dragon hide to make 2-3 helmets. So she repairs the hide by taking some of that hide. During mid afternoon Z'leyra notices the butler and a guard outside looking at the road from the workshop. She exits and notices a group of 10 or 11 people walking down the road. They seem to be all in tan robes and carrying various religious items. The butler notices Z'leyra and turns around. He explains he just talked to one and seems the pilgrims are moving from one camp to another. They wish to lose their current leader and elect another. Seems they had some falling out with their current leader. The pilgrims seem harmless so Z'leyra goes back to work in the workshop. Z'leyra then casts another Knowledge spell. The first one fails so she has to recast it. She then casts her Akasha routine and watchful sleep spell at bedtime. [Augado 23] Ben'dar and Pasha has setup a visit to Sivas from Maren to do some horse trading. But both wish to have a pre-wedding dance at Cholan's. So Z'leyra rides in her good clothes to the tavern for the dance this afternoon. Once there she notices some are still missing like Kell, Arawn and Farseeker. The others are here. But she does notice Malic is gone as well. Cholan explains that he has not seen him for a week or so. Raban and Z'leyra dance the most together and as a show of their own skills. A good mid-day feast is given and enjoyed by all. Cholan does report that word has come from Farseeker and Kell that they are doing well but still in Ba'ru and near the Bhamotin border respectively. Word is that Arawn is still in the dark lands doing this and that which Alfars seem to do. Z'leyra asks the others if they could suggest ways to improve one's dexterity and agility. Raban suggests wrestling and some good hand to hand training. If only Arawn was here he could give pointers on martial arts. Unali suggests using a good old dagger to twirl and throw. Practicing back and forth with a dagger and the hands can help in both areas. Once the dance is over and Ben'dar has to leave to sell a dozen horses Z'leyra visits the market for a few items then heads back to her manor. Once back home that evening she intends to create a new purification area this time dealing with Sidh aligned magic. She casts Orient Self, Divination, Ensorcellment and purification. Then casts perception to ensure the ground is in good standing. Later that evening she recasts her Akasha routine on another location of the 13 areas and watchful sleep at bedtime. [Augado 24] Z'leyra goes back to the city and follows up on the tips and suggestions on improving her dexterity and agility. She spends a few hours with Kaylle and Fremea in the library on possible books. Kaylle recommends some martial arts and stretching exercises. Unali has returned to the palace for some event there but Unali recommends a good person who can give tips on using the dagger to hone her hands. For Raban's part he suggests talking to a bricklayer of all things. Those guys can carry bricks up ladders on their shoulders and do it with ease. So if one can learn to balance such things then it can help. For Kiet's part he shows her some acrobatic moves that can help her to balance and twist. Cholan recommends using simple rope to jump and do tricks. Sailors do it all the time on ships to stay fit and to maintain their balance on a moving ship. If they can balance and remain standing while jumping rope then they are seaworthy. All these and much more are given and Z'leyra takes notes and tries to memorize as much as she can. The last stop of the day is a martial arts studio where a master is teaching classes. The teacher of course recommends learning with the class but she does not have that extended time here. So the master loans her a set of scrolls with picture so basic movements. She should scribe them and learn them. Maybe later on she can come in for tips but the master strongly suggests not doing advanced moves because it can harm the body. Back at the manor she casts her Akasha spell routine and at bedtime watchful sleep again. [Augado 25] Z'leyra spends the day teaching more students. She knows that the rate she charges, 18 Copper per day, for learning first aid and healing may be a bit steep. For peasants for sure. For the upper class they could afford it but they would not come to some country estate to learn at erratic times. So she has noticed that only upper middle class people attend the learning. Because the charge may be a factor she has not had many students. But today she is glad to see 14 show up more than all three previous teaching days combined. Maybe she is finally getting word out. Two of the people also need to be treated with some basic first aid so Z'leyra uses this to help demonstrate what the others have learned. Z'leyra knows that even with her teaching and books it would take 20 days of teaching to learn first aid. Another 20 days to learn the advanced healing techniques. So far all seem to be able to read Marentian except Will who is using a Katai book which oddly Z'leyra does not read or write Katai. After a long day of tutoring Z'leyra casts her Akasha routine again in a new location then watchful sleep again. [Augado 26] Today the blacksmith instructor arrives at the manor. She hired him after the dance to help give some instruction. She is not a professional blacksmith yet but could use some tips. She asks him to show how to make hinges for the manor and shed doors. Z'leyra then pulls out her magical ring mail she made in the past. Her ring mail is much better so decides to enchant it a bit and sell it. She will offer the party first dibs before she sells it. She casts Orient Self and divination. She then casts 5 enchantment spells. To make the armor higher value, weight less, adjustable fitting, rust immunity and to make them comfortable. Then casts perception to test the full suit of armor's quality. She hopes to sell it for at least 80 gold but Marentia is full of such items so may be a bit hard to get in this area. Z'leyra then settles down for the night casting another set of Akasha related spells and watchful sleep at bedtime. [Augado 27] The blacksmith returns today to help make latches for the manor and shed doors. That evening Z'leyra cleans up her magical buckler so she can sell it. She re-enchants it for better sell value. She casts Orient Self, Divination, 2 Enchantments and Perception on the shield. She readjusts the shield armor value and weight to be sold with her new skill level. She hopes to sell it for 90 gold but knows that might be hard. The enchantments will reduce the shield weight and enhance the armor value. The new buckler is half the weight and twice as strong as a normal buckler. Z'leyra then casts her usual Akasha set of spells and watchful sleep at night. [Augado 28] Z'leyra does another teaching of the healing arts. Today she has only 10 students which is 4 less than last time. It is a nice day so most of the teaching is done outside. No one needs healing so it is all instructions and book learning. As Z'leyra is teaching a guard is seen watching the perimeter of the property. Kiet goes to ask about what he is looking at and he explains 6 men that have been walking around the property. This is not so unusual in the area as many farmers and peasants do it all the time. But the guard points to their clothing which is heavy leather. Kiet can then see they are obviously hiding weapons. Both look at the students and figure they could be at risk if they are bandits. Both the guard and Kiet watch the 6 men mill about as if just chatting then huddle. After another 5 minutes of this huddle the men decide to move on and move further east. The guard suspects they are bandits. Probably looking for a chance but with 5 guards, Will, Kiet and Z'leyra the bandits would be a easy match. So they if they were bandits decide to move on. Later that late afternoon around 4pm a group of 11 entertainers are walking about distracting the students. Suddenly the group turns onto the property and Z'leyra goes to get the guards to move them along. But then the butler and cook come out carrying a covered platter. As they near the entertainers sing, play instruments and dance. The butler stops Z'leyra and she turns to see the cook reveal a cake. The butler explains that they missed her birthday last month so wishes to honor her. The butler explains he hired the entertainers to come and visit and have a party. For the first time for years Z'leyra is surprised. The people who live at the manor and the ten students enjoy the party. Z'leyra also gets some ideas from a few of the entertainers. Especially the juggler. She asks him to show her how to quickly juggle and thus improve her dexterity and agility. The Juggler shows her some of the basics that she can practice. That night she recasts Akasha in the workshop and then watchful sleep at bed time. [Augado 29] With arrangements already made a carpenter shows up to teach Z'leyra some builder style carpentry. She has him show how to install the hinges and latches she made. Once installed she enchants 2 hinges and 1 latch to improve their toughness. She casts Orient Self, Divination, enchantment for toughness and Perception. The second perception does fail so she has to repeat it. Z'leyra then does her routine of Akasha spells and watchful sleep at bedtime. [Augado 30] From her belated birthday party she hires a flute player to come and give her instructions. Sadly she could not find a scroll in time to learn from so it will be him only. She enjoys showing the musician the Vong coral flute and he finds it a bit scary looking. That evening she enchants 2 more hinges and 1 more latch to improve their toughness. Doing Orient Self, Divination, Enchantment and Perception 3 times each spell. The first perception fails but it is repeated. Then she casts Akasha and watchful sleep as usual. [Augado 31] Z'leyra learns more flute playing from the entertainer. She isn't skilled yet so wants to play with others like Raban The butler returns to the manor with a cheap reversible robe with cowl. It is brown and green but she takes the robe even though the butler is curious he doesn't ask. The ways of wizards. Later Z'leyra enchants two of her pre-made hinges and 1 latch for the manor. She casts Orient Self, Divination, Enchantment to boost the toughness and perception each for each item. The first perception fails badly. In fact suddenly Z'leyra hears a voice in her head "Did you put out the fire?" It bothers Z'leyra for a bit then she realizes it is an effect for abysmal failure. In fact this voice occurs for the next 16 days. Lucky it is a voice only she hears in her head. But it does affect her spell casting for that period as well with slight lower chance of success. The voice tends to chance once a day. The next it might be "Sure don't nee dot use the outhouse?" "Why do eagles have small beaks?" "Did you know green is the best color." "They say if you can count the stars in the sky you can do anything." "Go for it - Kiet must be a good kisser." It continues like this for the next 16 days. Z'leyra knows there is little chance to get rid of the voice. She has to hope it just goes away like when Jordi had that voice that was booming for a day or two. She hopes it doesn't make her a bit crazy. That night with the voice in her head nagging her she casts her Akasha spell routine and watchful sleep. [Sepes 1] Z'leyra spends another day learning flute from the entertainer all the while hearing the voice - "I think those blowing in jugs make the best music" - distracts her. Z'leyra heads to town to get the language necklace from Cholan's tavern. She takes it out back to re-enchant it better. She casts Orient Self, Divination, Enchantment for adding boosts to will power and empathy and finally Perception to test the new necklace attributes. Later that late afternoon Z'leyra and Corona go flying around the area for a bit. Though this is a quiet time between pals - between Shaman and Tonah - Z'leyra notices a flock of other eagles flying behind. There must be 5 of them. Three females and 2 young males. At times Corona dips back to join the flock and at times the group just flies directly behind Z'leyra. In one way it seems odd not to share this time with just Corona but in another way it feels good to see more of her Tonah following her. If they are following her or just Corona. Later that night Z'leyra recasts her Akasha spell set and watchful sleep at night. [Sepes 2] Today Z'leyra does more teaching of her healing arts. She gets 13 students today not including Will. One person does come in a local farmer from a farm not far away to get treated for a nasty infection. So Z'leyra uses this as a chance to show the students how to treat infections. Later that night another set of Akasha spell procedure and watchful sleep is done at bedtime. [Sepes 3] Z'leyra spends time relaxing learning Flute playing from the entertainer. Z'leyra casts another Knowledge spell in the afternoon. Then casts Akasha and watchful sleep at night. [Sepes 4] Z'leyra spends time relaxing learning Flute playing from the entertainer. She is getting anxious to play with Raban against his pan pipe. Paranoia continues as Z'leyra casts Akasha again and Watchful sleep at bedtime. [Sepes 5] Z'leyra gets another dozen students today to teach her healing arts. But no wounded people arrive for practice. Yet another Akasha series and Watchful sleep is cast again. [Sepes 6] Today the entertainer who was teaching the Healer the flute sends another friend. He is at a gig at a tavern and can't come so his friend will continue her lessons. That night Z'leyra is checking the stable on her nightly patrol after dinner. She notices Corona on his perch on the roof to the manor house. But this time there is a large female sitting with him. She wonders if he is getting out while she is doing her duties. She is not sure if she should get into the bird's business or not. It might offend the rare eagle. The relationship is tenuous at best at times. Maybe when they are flying again she can ask him. The Anvil room of the workshop is tapped for the Akashic record finding nothing interesting except a moth that liked to sit on the anvil for a hour or two. Z'leyra casts another watchful sleep at bedtime. [Sepes 7] Suddenly Z'leyra hears, "your underwear is on fire!" Z'leyra is awaken by the voice in her head. She groans and notices it is still dark. She tries to go back to sleep but the voice keeps reminding her to check her underwear. She gets up and when sunrise comes she gets with the butler on setting up a area for a herb garden. She will use the back away slightly away from the outhouse. Z'leyra gets to work to trim the area and make plans for the spring planting. That afternoon Corona and Z'leyra in eagle form fly this time as far south as they can. If only they had time they could fly deep south to see Farseeker. That night before dinner the butler gets Z'leyra. A man is here to see her. When Z'leyra leave the manor to the front yard she notices a man in chainmail, sword in hand and a few well defined scars on his face. He introduces himself as a guard who lost his job when his patron died from a gambling fiasco. He asks if she is hiring for more guards. He is skilled as a property guard more than a personal guard. He has worked in the warehouse district for 12 years and caught 35 criminals and never had his patron's property robbed once. Z'leyra is impressed but knows the 5 guards already are sufficient. She will have to ask about the man later and see if he is worthy. She takes his info and will get back to him. The guard bows and accepts that. That night another Akasha set is cast along with the usual watchful sleep. [Sepes 8] Z'leyra spends the day in the workshop at the forge. She makes a healer's knife. But for the grip she goes to her personal stores and uses her unicorn horn. She has 7 ounces left of it. Before she destroys the very rare material she gives honor to the slain unicorn. She figures that Arawn must be rubbing off on her. But as a Shaman she knows that giving honor to such things is only beneficial. She then uses the material to make a pinkish grip for the knife. She has to add a bit of leather at the top but gets a good grip done. If anything it will be a very unique healer's knife. With her new healer's knife made she sets to make some magic placed on it. She casts Orient Self, Divination, Enchants the knife to improve her healer's skill, Ensorcells the knife to cast healing magically, places rust protection on it, Enchants it to improve fatigue, Ensorcells a cure Disease spell onto the knife and finally casts Perception to test the attributes of the knife. Then after a long day's of magic she casts her Akasha routine and watchful sleep. [Sepes 9] Z'leyra does another day of teaching with ten students. She uses her new healer's knife. Three peasants arrive for some simple first aid and a broken toe. But she tries to use her knife at least once. After a long day of teaching Z'leyra is doing her nightly patrol of the property. She moves to the stable to cast her Akasha spells. She opens the large door and enters while making the lantern brighter. The stableboy did a nice job today of cleaning. Z'leyra turns around to close the stable door when she sees a wolf standing there. At dusk many wolves may be seen. But at 10pm they must be on the prowl. Then she notices the deep red eyes. This is no ordinary wolf. She has heard of were-wolves and figures this is either one or a demon. Before she reacts the were-creature lunges. It snips at her arm but she moves just in time to jerk the arm back. She is not wearing armor and only has her magical staff. But she is not a simple peasant either. She swings and hits the wolf in the left side ribs doing 10 points of damage to him. The wolf leaps upwards toward her neck but Z'leyra ducks just in time and the wolf leaps over her. Z'leyra bashes downward hitting the wolf for another 12 points of damage on the center of his back forcing the wolf to the ground. The dazed wolf gets to his feet and charges. He clamps down onto her left leg doing 3 points of damage to her lower leg. Z'leyra bashes downward but the agile wolf slips away just in time and the shaman misses. She thinks of what Cetric would think attacking a wolf since that is his Tonah. The wolf lunges forward trying to bite her left arm but the large mouth misses entirely. Z'leyra notices a form moving outside but hits the wolf in the right side ribs doing 8 damage. The wolf falls to the ground. Then Z'leyra notices one of her guards enter the stable with sword drawn. Z'leyra raises an eyebrow and then bashes the unconscious wolf twice to ensure it is dead. She checks leg wound and finds it light. But she hopes that it will not curse her. After getting rid of the dead wolf Z'leyra casts Akasha and watchful sleep again. [Sepes 10] Z'leyra wakes up in the morning and rushes to town to get to meet Kaylle at the library to research. After two hours looking up books it seems Z'leyra is safe. Based on the evidence and the body this one likely will not curse her. But just in case she looks up the next moon phase and plans for a possible event. For that night she can get herself tied up and a priest can try to cure her. But the chances are low anything will happen. Back at the manor Z'leyra decides to go flying with Corona. She shape changes into a eagle and decides to fly toward the highest hill in the area. It was once called Tormol during a ancient battle where some side charges the defenders on the hill. As one would expect it was full of death and the vibes of the dead. Some pilgrims still visit the hill to commune with the dead and give respect. But this day none are seen in the area. After flying with Corona for almost two hours they both land. The hill is about 350 feet off the level ground below. But the mountains are far to the south so this is just a shadow of a geological event in the ancient past. The top is devoid of trees and is about 200 feet by 200 feet on mostly a flat surface. Though the hill is low the views are very nice. One can see at least 10 maybe 15 years on a clear day. Today the haze from the ocean heat and the wind only gives about 5-6 miles. Naked and back in human form Z'leyra sits on the hill and meditates. She gives honor and tries to commune with the spirits. The story is that the hill was covered before the battle by a group of 50-75 eagles. The defenders killed most of them for food and to get rid of them. The invaders up the hill also lost many horses climbing the hill. So of all the place the once home of the eagles - her tonah - gives a great place to give respect. It may that Z'leyra has been around Arawn too much and learned his Druid and Priestly ways. But she gives prayers quietly and with voice to the blowing wind. Though the temperature is in the low 70s the wind brings it down to low 60s. Yet the sun seems to keep her nude form warm. An hour into the meditation Z'leyra can see eagles in ghostly shapes moving about. She is not sure if this is a illusion in her mind - hope to see it - or something else. It can't be a Shamanic trance since she does not have her drum. The only thing that she can figure out is that this place is full of the spirit in this area as a record of the past. Soon even more of these ghost like forms seem to dance or fly or walk around her. She asks Corona if he can see them but he says no. This has to be a Shamanic thing. Then three hours later the forms seems to just stop. After waiting almost another half hour they do not come back. Both decide to fly back to the manor. Z'leyra feels honored to be in the right place at the right time. But she has no clue it would happen again. Maybe she was in the right mindset. Not worried about people hunting her down like Climan spies or worried about future adventures. The Shaman's mind was clear and ran on pure instinct. That evening Z'leyra goes to the stable to check on Gust after the horse was possessed by the demon recently. Last couple times in the barn she was attacked by the demons and the were wolf. So she opens the door with staff in hand. To find nothing. She checks on the horse and he is doing well. As Z'leyra moves back to the stable door a noise is heard in another stall. She opens the half-stall door and finds a cat leap up and off a railing. The brown cat looks to be a domesticated cat but it could be a wild cat. Looks like one of the cat's ears and leg is hurt with scratches and bruises. She smoothes the cat and picks it up. She fetches her supplies and tends to the cat even though her training is humans not animals. Raban or Ben'dar are better animal husbanders than her. The cat is very cute and would be a nice familiar but there are too many birds around. Corona brings other birds around knowing the place is safe. It would not be good to allow the male cat to chase and kill birds. She feeds the cat some and keeps him locked up in the workshop. In the morning the butler will have to go to nearby farms to see if he belongs there. Back at the manor and dressed she has dinner. Then by late evening casts her Akasha spell back in the manor house to start the location pattern over again. Then watchful sleep once more. [Sepes 11] Z'leyra rides into town to visit Kaylle's library. She checks out a bunch of books and scrolls. Then she visits a few book stores to see about buying others. Kaylle allows her to borrow the books on extended without fees. But expects them back in good shape. By late afternoon she has a dozen scrolls and some 2 dozen books. Her central topic is learning to improve dexterity and agility. Everything from exercises to juggling. Z'leyra goes to Cholan's tavern to get some dinner and watch an actor give some scenes of a famous Maren play being performed now. After dinner she exits and rides back to the manor. As she is on the main road she notices large forms in the dark shadows of one alley. She could get her amber out to see in the darkness but decides to investigate. Especially the building next to the alley is a orphanage. Hate to have some little kid killed by monsters. She dismounts and draws her staff forward. As she moves a few feet in the dark alley a noise breaks the silence - "Mooo!" Z'leyra then realizes the shapes are cows. There are 3 of them. They are tied up against a wooden pole. The poor animals look to have no food but she guesses the owners only left them for a bit. As she walks back on the second floor a kid says hello to the Shaman. The kid a boy of about 8 or 9 says the cows are usually a street over at a barn they rent but the barn is being repaired due to a storm. Satisfied that the owners are aware of the animals and at least seems to treat them well she leaves. She shakes her head and wonders if the Shaman code even covers roaches. Eagles, Horses, Cats and now Cows. If she has to help some disgusting roach or a group of rats she might just quit Shamanism. That night another set of Akasha spells are cast at the manor and then watchful sleep at bedtime. [Sepes 12] Today Z'leyra teaches more students. She learns from the butler the cat did live at a farm almost 2 miles away. The little girl who owned her was glad to get it back. Today she gets 14 students and 1 wounded man who had a bad crushed hand. There is little to the bones but she recommends that after the other parts heal he should see a wizard for magic to redo the hand. The man is too timid to take magic from Z'leyra so only takes healing by first aid. Later an hour before sunset comes a group of 8 men come to the property. They are all well armed and wearing various styles of Ring, chainmail or leather armor. The guards on duty call those who are asleep to help just in case. The butler talks to them for awhile and advises they are here to see Z'leyra. Their leader Adol has come for advice on adventures. The group is on a quest to keep a priest alive by finding a object that is tied to him. Their quest has called them to Bhamotin where the thief is believed to be. They are from Ba'ru and believe their quest to be holy. Of course Z'leyra gives advice and asks Will and Kiet to also give pointers. The youngest two adventurers seem to be no more than 16 and they seem the boldest but even Kiet can see they are a bit wary and scared. The thief has a wizard who is helping him when he stole their temple's holy relics. The experienced adventurers all know they should likely be better skilled and with more experience. But telling them to stop their quest would be futile. Kiet does suggest maybe visiting the Fortress where Farseeker is commanding and get some tips there as well. Adol and the others are appreciative. Z'leyra's asks how they know of this place and them and she is informed some trader named Kall told them. Kiet smiles that the leader gives the wrong name but how many traders with that kind of name? He doesn't correct Adol but nods. That evening Z'leyra casts Akasha and her usual Watchful sleep. At least if a dragon attacks the manor she will wake. The other staff, guards, Will and Kiet can be waken up later. [Sepes 13] Z'leyra spends most of the day working on a new sword. In late afternoon she gets one of her purses/belt pouches and enchants it so she can sell it. As with the first one back on Augado 19th she casts Orient Self twice, divination twice, Enchantment to improve hide to as touch as chainmail, ensorcells a Sending spell to warn of theft and then casts two perceptions to test the results. Z'leyra trusts the butler to sell things but he is not a good haggler. So Z'leyra keeps the purse until Sepes 18. Then that day she goes to town to sell it. She goes right to the merchant who paid 40 gold for the first one. The merchant is glad to see her and says he made a nice profit on it. But he does not give the info on how much. The merchant explains that he has one noble lady that wants one. If she is willing to sell it through him and give him a commission he'll sell it. Z'leyra knows the purse can be only 28-30 gold. The first sold well at 40. But a noble woman can spend gold like a drunk collects mugs at a bar. Since Kell is not here and she intended to give him the commission she allows it. A day later a messenger with her profit comes. She learns the noble paid 73 gold for it which is twice as much as she estimated it. She finds 61 gold in the form of a moneylender note. So the merchant earned 12 gold in selling the purse. She will send two guards later that day to fetch her gold. When Z'leyra closes up the workshop she notices the cat that she found back again. She sighs at the cat that shows his pouty ears and walks around her legs. She gets the butler to deliver the cat back to the farm now that they know the cat's home. Later that night she recasts her expected Akasha spells. She is so such predictable that she wonders if a good wizard could use this against her. But she still uses watchful sleep at bedtime. [Sepes 14] Z'leyra continues her work on the sword she is making. She spends most of the day doing this. The Healer then casts Knowledge again. Then casts Akasha and watchful sleep as normal. [Sepes 15] Day three of working on the new sword at Z'leyra's forge. The heat of the forge and anvil is intense and she is glad that the temperatures drop a bit to bring in cool air. Tired after working no the new sword her arm muscles ache. She is glad when the cook fixes his best turkey roast and his delicious apple pie. Later that evening she casts her typical Akasha spells. But at bedtime she actually forgets to cast watchful sleep tonight. [Sepes 16] Z'leyra is eager to teach today after the hard work the last few days. She gets 8 students though but at least 4 also show up for some first aid - mainly farmers and farm hands nearby. Mid afternoon the group of students notice a caravan pass by on the dirt road. Based on the clothing there must be 8 merchants and a dozen guards. A few helpers like the wagon teamster is also there. But the caravan stops and the leader asks if they could get some water as they were attacked few hours ago and lost their water and food. No one was hurt or killed but the bandits attacked them just outside the village they were coming from west of here - about 14-15 or so miles away. Z'leyra agrees and sends buckets of water to give water to the horses and people. The cook also gives them leftovers for the people as well. The cook explains that they would be thrown away regardless so Z'leyra will not lose supplies. Soon the caravan moves eastward toward Sivas. That evening the Akasha spell reveals that a rat found some carrots in the stable. Exciting. But this night Z'leyra casts watchful sleep. [Sepes 17] The fourth and last day of sword making is done and she inspects the new sword. Z'leyra then sets to enchant the sword further. She casts Orient Self, Divination, Enchantment three times to improve hit chance, weapon strength and fatigue factor. She then enchants to reduce the weight from 2 pounds to 1 pound. She then creates some rust immunity into the sword. Lastly she places Clairvoyance into the sword like she did for Unali's dagger. After this is all completed she casts perception ot ensure all is in place. Z'leyra then asks a guard to spar with her. To test the new sword. But there is little chance. The guard's own sword is 5 times less effective. Z'leyra twirls the sword in her hands and smiles. The sword she just made is twice as good as a great sword and much tougher. That night Z'leyra casts Watchful sleep but then suddenly wakes up as she forgot to do her Akasha spells so does them and then goes to bed. [Sepes 18] Today Z'leyra goofs off with Corona. For three hours they chase rabbits or foxes. They rest and eat lunch after they hunt for a elusive rabbit that has a nice brown coat. During lunch which is just some berries for Z'leyra both get to know each other better. In fact Corona finally tells her of the female eagle that has been with Corona. It is clear though they are setting a long term bond. But Corona says that Lady Varo set him to follow her. He will do so and honor that bond. But at times he will do eagle family things as well. Not wanting to be rude he simply explains that sitting on the roof all day watching her teach is less exciting than killing demons. Z'leyra understands that Corona has his own agenda and life. Corona does say that just few days earlier Will's wolf tried to bite her but he zapped his rear in with his eyes and seems to stay away now. Corona and Z'leyra find a large warehouse at the wharf and watches the ships sail by. Z'leyra uses this time to meditate and consider her options. Before bed Z'leyra casts Akasha in her private bedroom for the second time. It is good that none of the staff including the maid enters here. Z'leyra then casts her usual sleep awareness spell. [Sepes 19] Due to a bad morning hail storm only 5 students show up for Z'leyra to teach healing. No one is wounded so it is basic tutoring. Z'leyra casts Akasha in the kitchen and learns that the cook has a farmer's daughter visit that day or recently. They make out a while when she delivers some fruits. But seems to be doing nothing wrong otherwise. Z'leyra recasts watchful sleep yet again. [Sepes 20] Z'leyra wakes up and gets to the kitchen. She had ordered the cook to buy a bulk supply of various foods from meat to eggs to fruits and all in between. Enough to feed a small group of people at a feast. Most in the party know of her cooking prowess as a professional cook. But today the city and certain individuals will know. For today is cooking day. For most of the morning the morning she casts 10 foyson theft spells upon the collected food. Draining their good material into mound of flour. For the flour she makes Sidh style cookies. These travel rations she could live on for 80 days. She has plans for them. For the excess material she creates non Sidh cookies that are more bland waybread and cookies. If she sold her precious Sidh cookies she could make 32 gold. But the excess she won't get much from it. She estimates the cost of supplies and then the amount to sell or give away. She hopes to just break even. Then the cook and butler goes to town to give or sell the excess material. She packs the Sidh rations and then stores them for later. After that she does her Akasha routine and ends the night with a watchful sleep spell [Sepes 21] Z'leyra hires a tailor to meet with her on the edge of town in his shop to tutor her on the skill of tailoring. She will spend two days improving her skill. The tailor does not want to leave town as he has clients coming in all day and would lose too much money. The tailor loans her a book on clothes making, design and tailoring to help out. That evening she enchants her third purse she made recently. As with the other 2 that sold well she enchants it to improve the toughness and to prevent theft. Then as always she casts another set of Akasha spells and watchful sleep. [Sepes 22] Z'leyra spends another day at the tailor shop to improve her skill. She soon realizes this shop caters to lower middle class no nobles would be in this place. But it is help for her skill. Back at the manor Akasha reveals that a bat flew into the stable and the stableboy spent an hour trying to get rid of it. Then watchful sleep is cast on herself again. [Sepes 23] Today Z'leyra gives one of her last teaching days. But today only 2 other students aside form Will show up. Neither need healing and are regular students though. No wounded arrive for help. Mid afternoon a farmer rushes to the estate grounds and finds Z'leyra. He reports that there are 3 on the road dying or dead. Z'leyra, Will and the 2 students rush on horse to find the victims. Apparent victims of a bandit attack. By the time the group gets there though 1 is dead. The other two are treated and Z'leyra uses her healer's knife to heal one of the men. Since it is near the end of the day the 2 students help the wounded back to town and a guard sends the dead on a farmer's cart for burial in the city. That night Akasha is cast again to reveal but the usual boring aspects of the estate and watchful sleep again is cast. [Sepes 24] Today Z'leyra wakes to do a early morning rounds at the manor. She spends a bit of time with each guard and staff to see how they are doing or in terms of Kell making chit chat. Then Z'leyra calls for Corona and he lands on her arm. She pets the large almost supernatural bird. The eagle seems more interested in a rabbit half a mile away though and soon both part ways. Z'leyra then enters the private workshop to gather some supplies. She places her new magical sword in her belt sheath and places the great sword on the table. She places armor on her body and then grabs some bags and other supplies she already had prepared. She ensures the Sidh cookies will be good for awhile and then grabs gear. She dons the new cheap robe the butler got previously. With a brown cowl side out. Then she grabs her staff and places her backpack in position. She waits for the arranged time. The butler orders the guards and stableboy inside the manor for nice tea and biscuits. The butler asks Will, Kiet and even Corona to join those inside. The butler is not aware then that Z'leyra uses this time to simply leave the workshop and head west away from the manor in hopes not to be seen by even Corona. Z'leyra walks a couple miles to a small patch of woods. There she casts a spell. The spell cast she looks around. The clouds are different. The sun in a different spot. Looks like she is back in time back to Augado 11 as planned. Actions? Comments? Next Update....Next email!