Song spent a few days in the company of Prince Telenka, Guildsmen and various city nobles discussing the new Temple which had rapidly grown from a simple concept into a plan for a grand complex for worship. Caelan spent time training his new cadre of followers and discovered quite how easy it was to impart important lessons in the space of a few short hours when empowered by Charms. Olvir had taken to hunting in the forests when not working in the forge.
Moonbeam’s Flight would be grounded until the blue jade was mined but Song’s new mastery of Sorcery provided an alternative: an elemental of the earth could sculpt it from the rock and help refine it and bring it to the Spire. Summoning one was a matter of putting theory into practice and so in a quiet part of the Forge she called and bound one to the task – learning the Forge had its own protections as it admitted it couldn’t move (as it would normally do) through the earth from within.
We’d been in the city attending to individual concerns one evening when echoing across the land came an impossibly loud roar... and while the citizenry of Moonspire looked around in concern we went to investigate. It had sounded from the east in dense woodland so as Caelan and Ariorn spend through the forest, Song and Olvir took to the skies. Olvir was in Strix form and arrived first, reaching the source of the roar in a clearing several miles out and shifting to ape form as he landed to give a pre-emptive gorilla-like bow. A huge jaguar-man with an obsidian dire lance stood over 7ft tall and returned Olvir’s bow, introducing himself as Claws by Moonlight, an emissary of Magnificent Jaguar, who had heard our message. Olvir recognised the name Magnificent Jaguar from the underwater temple we’d found beneath the city and recalled the message we’d left. He suggested Claws by Moonlight should speak to Song – and taking her cue, she shifted from bat form where she’d circled overhead to listen, landing beside him in beastman shape.
Her Charms had allowed her to see the stranger’s strength of Essence – equal to her own - and the martial form he held himself in, combat ready. Greeting him as Olvir performed introductions he bowed to her in turn and as Caelan watched from the treeline suggested we settle somewhere to talk. The contemptuous look when Song mentioned the city confirmed a suspicion and so, as Olvir went to reclaim the boar Teela had proudly killed earlier in the day, Song found a sheltered spot nearby in the jungle to make a fire. She introduced Caelan to Claws by Moonlight but he barely acknowledged him – it rankled with the young Solar though he tried to hide his feelings behind silence. Claws by Moonlight hadn’t come alone either – a huge panther had accompanied him who emerged from the shadows as the meat roasted. Song spoke to her - asking with the aid of the Charm she and Olvir used to speak across forms if she was also an emissary of Magnificent Jaguar? The panther wasn’t the talkative type however, but a surprised Claws by Moonlight confirmed she was indeed a child of the ancient Lunar like himself: both were from tribes of his descendants. Magnificent Jaguar had been away from them for a long time but had returned to ‘reclaim them’ some two decades past, he told us.
The emissary spoke passable Rivertongue but Old Realm seemed to be his native tongue so much of the conversation was conducted with Song translating. As the boar roasted and the huge panther gnawed on the entrails Caelan had contemptuously cast its way we learnt a little more of the mysterious Lunar who’d constructed the temple for the worship of Luna and Vanileth beneath the city. He claimed a large area of the forest to the east and a little way north with other tribes of beastmen (most of them large cats and almost all hunters) in his domain. He knew other Lunars, some of whom followed him, but we were invited to meet him without any obligation. Claws by Moonlight gave us directions as we explained we’d accept the invitation though probably not immediately.
Song asked if Caelan would also be welcome since Claws by Moonlight had barely acknowledged his presence throughout the conversation and he responded (much to Caelan’s annoyance) by agreeing that ‘her retinue’ may accompany her. She enquired if Magnificent Jaguar knew much of, or had ever encountered the Solar Exalted... curious on a number of fronts herself if not for Caelan. Claws by Moonlight had heard of them but they didn’t seem to figure highly in Magnificent Jaguar’s conclave.
He paused to ask Caelan if he were a Chosen of the Sun, or something else. Caelan waited a moment as Song translated the question before nodding and watching for Claws by Moonlight’s reaction. At the beastman’s apparent indifference he stood up with a stretch, not wanting to seem irritated and announcing more wood was needed for the fire. Not long afterwards, an entire tree crashed into the clearing and Caelan strode back, point made, wood provided, his daiklave catching the firelight momentarily before vanishing from his hand back to Elsewhere.
Song had a few more questions but much of her curiosity would have to wait for the visit to Magnificent Jaguar’s land. With the boar eaten, Claws by Moonlight departed along with his taciturn friend and we put out the fire and returned to Moonspire with only our own thoughts for company.
The next day dawned bright and warm and after attending to a few tasks we set off for North Beacon where Song hoped we might find something to help Caelan return his arm to normal. A few words with Prince Telenka and a prayer to the Eastern Censor meant Varten was permitted by all to attune to the manse and thus ensure any who needed to enter or leave wouldn’t need to wait either for our return or on Telenka to open the doorway.
North Beacon was a town on the regular circus route, named for the ages-old beacon on the hill which had, according to myth, been part of a signal system. Beacons on nearby hills had crumbled and the stone been carted away long ago, but the North Beacon still stood. It was also known for the strange features of the walls: five unusual structures roughly equidistant around the town. These Song and Olvir had seen before – a tree which looked like an oak in autumn with leaves ready to drop but never doing so, a stone tablet bearing the Laws of Creation split by a spear, a small wagon loaded with parcels ready to depart, a stone statue of a man seemingly carved to look like ice and a small pool forever shrouded in mist. Each had remained unchanging in all the years the circus had visited – and presumably had stood long enough for the town walls to be built up around them. Each had a ring of iron shards around it and apparently warded so the Raksha couldn’t touch them. The locals held them in equal parts distrust and reverence.
Selene’s Flurry had never camped within the walls. Song recalled they used to – before Selene had become the circus ringleader – but the first time they visited she’d gotten into a blazing row with the mayor of the town almost as soon as we stepped through the gates and from then on he’d made his displeasure known and they’d camped outside.
As we approached this time Song regarded the familiar shapes in North Beacon’s walls with Essence sight and realised the structures weren’t just unusual sculptures. They were beings of Essence which eclipsed our own considerably and from what she could tell, they were Raksha who’d calcified under the pressures of Creation. (Raksha undone by Creation and the light of the sun usually just fell apart and dissipated – but these ones had left something solid behind, she explained to the others. Powerful Raksha could do that). She wondered if they were dead or just frozen.
She’d curled around Caelan’s collar as a kinkajou and Olvir had eventually decided riding was preferable in hare form in Caelan’s bag – so it was simply one man whom the guards greeted and suggested the Iron Bride tavern as somewhere for a lone traveller to stay. Song quietly suggested the Lotus Bloom teahouse instead, when there was no-one to overhear – it was a little nicer, and they had a proper bath house.
Song watched the Essence flows of the town as Caelan rode in. She suspected the geomancy of the place was driven by the Beacon, the manse in the middle of the settlement – pushing the Essence into a more ordered pattern and reinforcing the solidity of the Raksha. It seemed to draw on natural Wyld energy and convert it into Earth essence which flowed out over the town.
Meanwhile Caelan found the Lotus Bloom and arranged for a room and a bath, though Olvir (in dog form) found himself chased out with a broom. The owner didn’t like the look of the scraggy animal – but Olvir didn’t like the look of the broom and bit it in half before running off to squeals of outraged horror from the tea room’s owner. Ariorn at least was easier to look after – Caelan simply pointed her in the direction of the stables and she let herself in and found fresh hay while upstairs he left the window of the room open assuming if Olvir wanted to get in he could just as easily fly. However he’d been sleeping most of the day so went off exploring while Caelan and Song went for a bath.
Jeyani, the maid at the tea house had drawn fresh hot water in readiness and provided plenty of fluffy towels for her guest. Song, still curled in kinkajou form around Caelan’s neck was quite keen for a bath as well – but Caelan, tired and not wanting to ask any awkward questions opted for the simple tactic of throwing her straight at the water. She had the presence of mind to shift into an aquatic form before glaring at him and escaping the water to shift to human form, divest herself of her clothes and enjoy the luxury of a hot scrub.
Caelan had soon scrubbed himself clean of the road too and as Song dried herself off and shifted into a kinkajou once again he piled all their clothes together, wrapped himself in a towel and called Jeyani to take the clothes for washing. That left him with only a towel to protect him until they’d be returned – which would be the following afternoon, Jeyani said. Only at that point did he get to wondering what he could wear until then. It was alright for the Lunars, he thought.
Meanwhile Olvir had been out exploring. Since he’d been shooed out of the Lotus Bloom he’d gone to check out the Raksha in the walls. After hesitantly putting a couple of paws over the iron shards of the stone ‘ice’ statue and not having anything evidently untoward happen he went up to it and sniffed. Nothing interesting. Nothing much at all. He pondered leaving his mark, dog style, but thought that might be pushing it – and since there were locals around, didn’t want a second broom incident of the day. He padded off to look at some of the others. The wagon had a scent to it – it smelled exotic, of far flung lands and mysterious promise. He pondered stealing one of the parcels but decided against it. The little pond was intriguing – the mist shrouding it never dissipated. He trotted off into cover and returned as a large crab and slipped into the water. It was fresh but there was no life in it – nothing else beside himself. He got out and dried off and having shifted form again and hunted for dinner, returned in owl form to Caelan’s room where he slid under the bed and slept as a snake.
Caelan sent him out the next morning to find some clothes. Never one to take a suggestion like that too seriously he soon returned with what were definitely women’s clothes. Caelan did his best and managed a passable impression of looking as if they were meant for him. Heading to the Manse he went looking for Song who was already there and carefully studying the inscriptions on the outside of the Beacon. It was interesting enough (to her) and confirmed some of her theories from yesterday: the manse had properties to shape the Essence into stable forms... but it didn’t offer any firm ideas or solutions to Caelan’s stony problem. It did however suggest that the magics inside the manse might have further information so she fluttered onto Caelan’s shoulder, shifted to kinkajou form and quietly whispered to him what she’d found.
He’d been speaking with one of the guards who’d suggested he speak with the mayor if he wanted to see the manse: so off they went. A young boy answered the door but Caelan talked him round pretty easily: no he didn’t have an appointment but this was important – the kid really ought to let them see the Mayor’s steward at least... and thus it was that he was taken to meet Tain Comet-Born, steward to the Mayor of North Beacon who didn’t seem particularly impressed by the scrawny kid with an unusual pet. That was until Caelan began talking and powered his words with the force of the Unconquered Sun.
His story - that he represented a powerful Scavenger Lord, Water Shapes the Land and that he wanted to take a look inside the Manse to see if there was anything of interest... and then perhaps make financial dealings with the Mayor on behalf of said Scavenger Lord - might not have convinced anyone if not fuelled by Essence, but as it was, Tain was left open mouthed and ultimately couldn’t help but be swayed by his arguments. Arrangements were made to return in two days where Caelan could review the manse’s library.
He (and Song) left to catch up with Olvir, the recent meeting on their minds...and while it wasn’t remarkable to either of them at the time, both recalled the recent encounter with remarkable clarity.