Isaac waits outside the council chamber, examining passers-by to see if any are the magi he has been told to assist. He's a well-kept man with a polite smile, but the scars on his hands say 'violent past' to anyone who cares to look, and none of the covenfolk have time to spare for the Gifted newcomer. An old, but undamaged, shield leans against his leg and his hands are folded behind his back. Idly, he taps out a rythym on the wall behind him and hums snatches of songs he has overheard on his long journey from the Alps to the Pyrenees.
He thinks to himself: Always the same with these old covenants. Hurry! Go here! Now wait! Now hurry! I wonder who they'll send to properly receive me... (his stomach rumbles) ...and whether I'll get fed before I have to leave again.
The journey wasn’t actually that long. It mainly consisted of hiking from your sanctum (in a chapter house of Icy North) over to the main covenant (where your mentor resides), then using the Hermes Portal there to go to Harco (Domus Magnus of Mercere, the central “hub”), and then from there, taking another portal to Andorra. Five hours or so altogether (including waiting an hour at Harco).
But still, it is past noon and it has been 6 or 7 hours since you last ate, so your stomach is indeed rumbling. One of the grogs will notice you and offer to bring you some food and drink. They are used to dealing with the gifted, but are unaccustomed to your gift. Thus, they have the natural suspicion, but you also note that they have a professional demeanor that allows them to overcome their natural apprehension.
Then you see Antonio of Flambeau, the controversial magus who is considered a hero by many and a scoundrel by many others. He is carrying a wooden box, full of odd trinkets, stones, parchments, and other items.
[color=red]Eh? Who might you be? Come with me into the council chamber. Most of the others are just waking up around now. We were up all night plotting and planning. I sent everyone to go get some rest just after the sun rose and they cast their Parma.
He sets his box on one of the tables, and the servant brings you a tray of fruit & cheese and a skin of wine. Antonio grabs a Valencia orange from the tray and starts peeling it. I presume Pietro sent a letter along with you, so he is reading it while eating the orange.
[color=red]Isaac, eh? I knew your parens, Jonathan. He was a good man. His death was tragic, much too young. But he died a hero, an inspiration to us all.
I presume you have been filled in on the details? If you have any questions, I am all ears.
Probably not enough to know until he broaches the subject. None of the drakes is thinking even remotely about, nor, I suspect, has ever considered the prospect of being combined into a 3-headed drake, so there's nothing for Sigmundo to see, neither an emotional cue or a thought.
But it's quite clear that both Maurice and Venkath believe that they can decline to accept a favor or command they believe is too disadvantageous. This would have been unthinkable a few years ago, when the obvious alternative to total compliance would be to be eaten, or worse.
It's also clear that they value their independence (well, Venkath senses its rightness, Maurice is proud of it and Simon likes chasing butterflies) and will take risks to preserve and enhance it. The possibility of eventually challenging Sigmundo has not occurred to any of them.
Ameline slowly reaches ground after the great dragon has had a chance to land and speak first. "It is a tradition among my people to allow the eldest to speak first and also last generally. She is defering to let the dragon address the drakes first. This is the first time she is meeting them outside of the tales and the tales were not necessarily explicit about personalities. More about the events that happened. She is allowing the dragon to speak out of respect, she is not allowed or disallowed by him.
She studies the three. "One of our number was taken by a Djinn of fire, the efreet, Khyron. We are going to his realm to claim her. The Palace there is surrounded by a sea of fire that we can not walk in. So we do need to call upon the alliance. I am Sister Ameline, a nun of God but also a mage of the order. I am not a full priest and do not claim such. Aid is needed and as I was not present for the agreement, I do not know the extent of the alliance or I might have come here on my own. Your elder, Sigmundo, suggested you as ones to assist as well as himself. She smiles, It looks like the elder dragon is not earning or providing favors for the mages by having the drakes help. They would help on their own so the elder provides nothing here. Still he will be getting a safe visit to Andorra.
It has been a long night and morning for Vares. Studying the remnant traces of the previous night's events he has assembled a scattering of clues which do not present him with a clear understanding. Unlike some of the other Magi, he does not 'trust' what is before him. There is some pattern to it all that he has yet to discern.
What sleep he gets comes well after dawn, and is not enough for his liking. He considers, briefly, a spell to improve his alertness but does not want to interfere with his mind further at this point. When the summons to another Council meeting comes, he is quick enough to get ready and make his way to the chamber.
Hearing that at least one has answered the request for aid, he mulls over what he has heard of the newcomer.
"You will be guests at our home. no eating anything without permission." She has this bad feeling about inviting the drakes to visit. Sigmundo she expects will behave as befits a royal visitor to a lowly village. The drakes she isn't sure about.
This should be interesting.
Let's move you along to the covenant. Ameline is exhausted (she did not have the chance to catch a nap like the others did), so she is down one long term fatigue. Sigmundo is in his human form, but the drakes are going to cause concern for the guards (not a panic, as they are very disciplined, but very on edge). How do you deal with the situation?
Oh, you need to go in and get tokens for these magical beings so they can enter the aegis. That is not an issue, but maybe you want to alert the other magi as to what is going on while you do so.
Marie is still pondering strategies when the alarm is raised on the battlements.
"Draaaagons!"
Bewildered, she registrates the plural, as she storms out to see for herself - dragons indeed, closing in on multiple attack vectors. A mighty challenge.A quote from the Analects of Tytalus floats through her mind: "...and the lesson today is how to die".
Then she sees the beasts got company - her sodales. Lesson cancelled, she sighs (disappointed? relieved?)
Vares is waiting for Isaac to be brought into the Council chambers when the alarm is sounded. Immediately, he keens his hearing to make out what is being said and calls forth a silent, outward-focused scrying to observe the situation outside, using a piece of the battlement as an Arcane Connection.
Espying Ameline in the company of the Dragons, he promptly discontinues his spell, rises from his seat, and says, "More guests..."
OOC: A borderline case. Using a scrying magic in this fashion to observe an external situation that is 'in the open' shouldn't be an issue within the Order. Vares doesn't deliberately "spy" on other Magi, but remote viewing will occasionally turn them up, and, again, this is out in the open where people should be reasonably able to assume that they might be seen by others without being seen themselves. Arguably, spells like "Eyes of the Eagle" would otherwise count in violation because it might allow a Magus to observe another from a great distance.
Advance note: Vares' Alluring to Magic should influence the drakes when they meet. He'll be heading out of the Council chambers to meet them as they approach.
Venkath fixes his gaze on her. "If you're going to be rude," he says gruffly, "this isn't going to work."
A tendril of smoke rises from Maurice's nostrils. "You may not realize it, for I have heard that many wizards are socially incapable, but you have just insulted Venkath three different ways." He pauses. "No, four. Venkath, without wrangling or trying to extract a concession from you while you are in difficulty, just agreed to put himself (and us) in harm's way, without delay. In exchange, you insult him. It's not a good beginning."
Mention of his parens disarms Isaac somewhat, and he finds refuge in formality.
Isaac: Thank you, Archmagus. I was... appraised of the details that Piestro thought necessary. All I truly needed to know was that Carmen was taken and that the being that took her can be killed.
OOC Does his magic penetrate our Parma's to let him see all of us magic resistant folks Do we get pings on our parma's. Oops, taht was a mistake Vares. A big one.
Aneline speaks softly, her eyes very much on Simon as she speaks. "Many are not socially capable. You have not been among people though and indulging appetite could be a major problem. Details of the drakes were not really mentioned other than simon and his eating an ogre in middle of nogiciations and Simon speaking about Sigmundo bringing food made that clear. IT is better to risk a minor offense than not make clear expectation. She does't fear the drakes killing someone but eating a horse or something is likely out of ignorance.
I checked on the scrying rules. The spell wasn't directed at you, it was on the area around you, and picked up the species after they already left your body. No MR issues or pings. Close one though! I was worried and couldn't find the rule I was looking for. I had to go to the forums to find the answer.
And Ameline (plant face in palm), I...
I won't interfere. Play it out
OOC: Exactly. The emanations (photons and phonons, really) had already left Ameline, and were in the immediate area targetted by Vares' spell. He wasn't targetting her at all, only scrying the area around the Covenant for sign of potential danger. Again, he wasn't breaking the Code exactly, and when he realised Ameline was present he canceled the spell. The question has come up with regard to accidentally observing Mercere Redcaps (non-Gifted), and the Order's conclusion is that use on public areas where Magi are not known to be present is not considered a deliberate breach.
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Do we get pings on our parma's. Oops, taht was a mistake Vares. A big one.