1221.etc - The Ties That Bind

!! I didn't see that before.

The problem here is that Viscaria's already at L15. Elsewise, I would happily ret'con her book into one on Creo. I have not actually found a compilation of the library (I'm observant like a thing with its eyes closed).

Actually, given her Alchemy Lab Totals....if you want to claim squatter's rights, I will happily ret'con to Creo. An L20Q10 book will someday get her an Alchemy LT from 60 to 73 someday.

Tangent: Still debating on whether it's wiser to have a second Silversmith at 6, or to max out the book to L25Q10 and take a Silversmith 1.

The Covenant library is over yonder. It doesn't have any of the texts that new people brought with them, I don't think, and I know it doesn't have Fiona's Herbalism text (because she hasn't gotten around to putting it in the covenant stores yet). It's editable by anyone, if there are tomes that need to be added.

L doesn't care about Creo, but she would want to address having multiple high-level summae on the same subject, when there are so many blatant gaps in our library. Would much rather trade the Terram summa she brought for a Mentem or Imaginem summa, but hey, we'll take what we can get, right? :stuck_out_tongue: Creo it is!

During the winter (shortly after Fiona receives her letter from Atlas), while she and Jormungand are...um...unwinding after a long difficult day in the lab (I honestly expect a lot of canoodling to be going on this season), she will ask if he knows Greek.

Followed almost immediately by [color=blue]"Jormungand, what are you doing? No, get away from there! I'm serious!"

Since he doesn't (afaik) speak or read Greek, she will then start asking around the covenant. Probably starting with Helmut, since (presumably) he tends to rave about the boy.

Given the recent comments JL made, I'm actually bumping it up to a L25/Q10 Terram book. I'm not sure if or when it'll go into the main library though -- when adding Viscaria to the wiki, I remembered her backstory, which will make her quite possessive of what few things she considers "hers," even if/when she becomes a full member. She'll still want to find a decent Creo summa, as well as others, but it'll have to happen in game.

Within a week or two after arriving, Viscaria will introduce herself to these three. To the scribe, she'll request copies made of any non-magical books in the library (I don't think we actually have any) for her familiar to read.

She meets the Vintner and Percamanarius together (and hopefully this conversation will be overheard by any Herbam magi we have in the covenant).

"So, it does not look like I'll be needing to use this for the next year or so, and I thought one of you might enjoy experimenting with it. A curious device, I acquired it in trade for some work done a while ago. You see you just plant a seedling here, you can use any soil you deem wise, and when you water it...like so....and come morning, it will be a fully grown tree. I thought one of you might enjoy attempting some kind of cross breeding to....well, have fun with. Now, I'm told care must be taken to keep the Prodigious Plant Pot from breaking due to excessive root structure but....well, I'm sure you know more about that than I do. Interested?"

What a coincidence...there just happens to be a new mundane book in the library that I forgot to add to the wiki until just now.

Fiona just happened to be walking by after a long and trying day of instructing and being less-than-discretely ogled by Ulrich.

[color=blue]"Does that work on any kind of seedling? Tree, herb, flower? Does it have to already have a shoot, or does it work with just a seed?" She is totally geeking out over this.

In winter, a few days after receiving her letter from Atlas, Fiona will track down Helmut Siggismund.

[color=blue]"I understand you're good with languages," she says with a smile. [color=blue]"You don't happen to speak Greek, do you?"

Viscaria: "Oh, hello, Fiona. You know, I'm not sure. I'm pretty sure it works with seeds, but I've never tried myself. I recall the boys in the smithy using it to experiment with making different kinds of coal one summer, to develop different kinds of iron alloys.

OOC: The notion of a giant spider with Herbalism is quite entertaining. I'm picturing her laboratory-web, spun entirely out of spidersilk.

Helmut brightens up at the prospect of discussing his talent but then he sighs. "Alas no." he says in Latin. "I am sorry Maga Fiona, that is one I haven't had the chance to study yet. I speak and understand Latin, German, French and Italien. I could learn it rather quickly I feel...if I had a teacher or even a primer book. I pick up languages very quickly, I learned French over a winter when we had a visiting monk at the church."

[color=blue]"Oh...I see." Fiona looks somewhat disappointed. [color=blue]"I've received a letter that appears in Greek that I need translated. Do you know who can help me?"

Helmut shrugs. "Master Apollodorus perhaps. He is very worldly. Maybe there is a book in the library that has an alphabet? I could translate it for you I feel if I had something like that. Otherwise maybe we'd need to check with the church, I could do that for you. Master Alexei is the only Magus I know that goes to church."

((I honestly can't remember if Apollodorus is around in winter or not.))

If Apollodorus is at Mons Electi, Fiona will ask Reynault if he could spare a couple of minutes of his time to help her with something. If Apollodorus agrees, she will take the letter and a wax tablet and ask him to translate it for her.

If not, she will go talk to the priest.

[color=blue]"Thank you for your help, Helmut," she says with a smile, then turns and walks away with a little spring in her step (she's had a good season).

Reynault says, "Master Apollodorus is very busy with preparations related to his Thera expidition with Primus Andru. I'll relay the message."

Apollodorus does send you a note through Reynault inviting you to his pied-à-terre one evening for dinner. Presuming Fiona accepts, they have a lovely dinner, and when Fiona asks if he knows Greek he nods his head. Fiona hands him the letter.

"Ahh, you're corresponding with Atlas. I should've mentioned him to you. He doesn't know it, and I'd prefer you keep this between you and I, but he's my grandfilius. I'm presuiming you need some help with the translation?" He indicates the letter.

Clearing his throat and taking a sip of wine, "'Dear Fiona. Yes, I'm large. It appears that every other genration in my family, following my father's line has at least one child of giant size. In addition that child is afflicted with lycanthropy. In my case, I turn into a bear. We may correspond, and I would enjoy that. As you might notice, I don't write Latin, it's not something I've taken the time to learn, although I can read Latin just fine, so I'm not expecting an instant reply to my letter. My art specialties are Rego and Terram, with secondary aspects on Creo and Herbam. He goes on to write a bit about the interconnectedness of Herbam and Terram.'" Apollodorus pauses a bit, "He says he is large, but he is gigantic, your size, if you'll forgive me, Fiona, perhaps larger." You can't conduct any correspondence XP with Atlas until you learn Greek 4 or he learns Latin to 5.

Fiona does accept, and knowing that Apollodorus's chef takes her appetite into account when preparing the meals when she dines with him, she does not hold back at the table.

[color=blue]"His pater must have earned his own sigil, then?" she asks idly.

[color=blue]"If you have a grandfilius, I can certainly see why Proctor took such a vigorous interest in you."

As Apollodorus translates, Fiona will write the translation on the wax tablet for her to put to parchment later. [color=blue]"If it's not too much trouble, sodalis, would you be kind enough to write down what he said about Herbam and Terram when you get a chance? That sounds like something that would be of interest."

[color=blue]"Does he have Giant blood, or is his size and...lycanthropy the result of a malediction of some kind? If it does run in his family, every other generation, as he says, I would almost think it would be the latter."

When dinner has wound down, she will wipe her lips and smile at her host. [color=blue]"I thank you for your time and your help, Apollodorus. Do you know if there are any others in the covenant who read and write Greek, for when you're not available?"

About a week before Christmas, Fiona's maidservant Moire is delivered of a baby girl. The mother is fine...the girl, not so much.

This is shortly after Fiona and Jormungand start working on her Longevity Potion, so if he wants to be there in the middle of the night when this is going on, he can (because, really, when do babies ever decide to be born when it's convenient?).

If he's not, she will send Seumas to go fetch him, since he's a CrCo machine, and since his Tradition and faith is all about makin' babies, he might be able to help. And, if we have a doctor or a midwife, he would go after them, too.

I'm assuming that trying to deliver a breech birth would be a Medicine roll, so: Int 1 + Medicine 3 + die roll of 6. I'm thinking that, since the baby rolled a 2 on her birthing roll, this would be an EF 12?

Sooo...Moire and Fiona could use some help.

Well, Isen is there theorically, settling in and setting up a lab. He'd be glad to help, providing Craft Magic can prove useful on this (I do think so, but sef's parma).
And while not a CrCo machine like Jormungand, he can certainly manage himself.

"Indeed, you've met his pater, he kept mine for some time, as you'll recall." Apollodorus continues, "Proctor doesn't know all of my past, I'm curious how do you know Proctor has taken an interest in me?"

"Renault can translate this for you, although he'll miss the finer points of Magic Theory, you can retain it for when you do learn Greek, or he learns Latin. I'm quite busy preparing for my expidition with Andru."

"There is Renault, but he will be of little help with the magical aspects, although you could collect the writings for a time and review them once your Greek is sufficiently high. I know Atlas a bit, and being a resident of the Theban Tribunal, he's unlikely to learn Latin any better than he does now, unless he has a suitable enticement. If you wish tio pursue Greek, and I think it would be an outstanding idea, I have a few primers available. And you'll be able to take advantage of some of the histories I've collected in Greek."

((Translator needs to have a score of 6 in both languages to not reduce the quality by 1, just an FYI. I believe that's discussed in Art & Acadamae. Since the quality of correspondence on its own is 1, translations of correspondence suffer quite a bit, unless combined and studied as a series over the course of a season.))

[color=blue]"When I first moved here, we corresponded briefly. He asked me how old you were. When I told him I didn't know, he wanted me to ask you. I told him that how old you are is your concern and that if you wanted me to know you would tell me." Fiona pauses to take a sip of the wine, and smiles. [color=blue]"He ignored me after that. He did ask that I introduce you, but he was oddly detained every time I tried to speak with him at Tribunal."

She will do so, when she gets the opportunity.

[color=blue]"Do you know of any other like us that I can try to correspond with?"

Apollodorus nods, "I've had some other indications that members of House Guernicus have been" he pauses, as if searching for the correct word, "curious about me. This curiousity will be their undoing." He says that, and efforts to get him to elaborate are ignored, declined, or evaded.

"I'm afraid I do not. Korvin might be a better one to ask, with his House visiting much of the order. I can tell you that there aren't any in House Jerbiton, and I believe Atlas is the only one in House Tremere. I'm sorry I can't be more helpful."

Fiona nods thoughtfully, and keeps the conversation to idle chatter for the rest of the dinner