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[greatbeasts]

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Here, There Be Dragons

New arrivals: The dream you wake from is an unsettling one that feels like a memory. It sits out of place and too far forward in your mind, yet feels as real and clear as any other could be. It's the shadow of a massive creature blocking out the sun, skyline, or similar entity. A roar that shakes you to the core and and a feeling of dread and loss weighing heavy on you. Whatever the feeling or vision that comes across, it brings with it a sense that your world is no more. A voice, reassuring and almost motherly in nature urges you gently to wake from your sleep. Rise from the ashes, little one, The voice calls in a whisper of wind and crackling fire, There is need of you, yet. As the voice fades and the world of the waking returns to you, you are greeted with the sounds of faint bustling and the bounce of wooden wheels on stone or the sight of Upper Nuren's winding streets and open squares. A cloud passes by slowly near one of the stone pathway ledges and the sounds of nearby Touched and Remnants at work or leisure filter through the calm, cool air. Whatever you had previously been wearing or carrying has been replaced. You might now find yourself garbed in a cloth tunic, pants or shorts, robe, dress or skirt, and sandals or boots if you wore clothing. A sash around your shoulders or a belt at your waist contains a small but weighted purse of gold coins, enough to acquire some materials, new clothing or food from the market and craftsmen in the city. Current Scions: Concern over the mild Winter has begun to spread through the city. The chill air should have come with the nearing end of the harvest, and so far the weather remains only pleasantly cool. The air barely passes the gentle cool of Autumn. Nuren's citizens are spreading rumors that mountaintop ice and snow have begun to thaw, causing mudslides in the mountains. The thaw has displaced the Ice and mountain creatures, leaving them irritable and unpredictable. The sailors mention that the Frozen Shore has also begun to melt, and the waters around the Frozen Shore and the mountain areas have grown treacherous and unseasonably cold. Throughout the city, activity springs to more vibrant life, with Scholars of the Cycle of Life and Scholars of Knowledge claiming that Benra has blessed the city again, bringing more Scions to help protect the great city. The rumors put the city's citizens into higher spirits, and music fills the cool air, spreading from Lower Nuren both up and down the mountain.

The Heart of Nuren

After waking, a pull starts from within your chest, growing stronger with each passing moment until it becomes the only focus. It tugs insistently once, then twice. A need to follow the pull curls around and through you, urging you toward a wide and torch lit staircase that leads down into the heart of the mountain. The steps are wide and sturdy, and the further down them you travel, the clearer the call becomes until you can almost hear it. At the bottom of the steps, the large cavern beneath the city is revealed. The floor beneath your feet is warm to the touch, and the magic in the air calms your mind and fills you with a strange sense of safety and peace. No magic or harm can be done within the cavern. The cavern's floor is covered in circles of runes carved into the stone that surround small depressions in varying sizes, from a coffee cup's rim to that of a small circular table. Some of the depressions contain dormant dragon eggs of various colors, shapes and sizes. The runes surrounding them glow faintly with a magical light. Only the Scion who is bonded to the dragon within the egg can pass the runes.

Upper and Lower Nuren

Once you emerge from the cavern, the strange spell that fell over you fades. The bond between you and your egg or hatchling remains but your command of your own decisions and actions return and you are now free to explore, question and move about. The streets of Upper Nuren are sparsely populated with Remnants, Touched and other scions with their eggs or dragons. Questioning any of the citizens leads to a variety of answers. You are a Scion of the Great Beasts. You were brought to the city from the ashes of time and space by the Great Phoenix known as Benra and the Great Serpent known as Mouros. Pressing for more information will reveal that there are five Great Beasts. They are Benra the Phoenix, Chelba the Stone Giant, Renzu the Griffin, Mouros the Serpent, and Lysheu the Chimera. They are said to represent Mortality, Order, Knowledge, Time and Chaos. You are in the great Mountain City known as Nuren, and its people are the last remaining vestige of civilization on this wild and dangerous planet. The Touched and the Remnants share an alliance and work together to keep the city protected and its citizens alive and fed. According to these citizens of Nuren, you are here to help them defend the city, unite the remaining races and restore balance to the elements. Soon after the first Scions awake, the city begins to buzz with the news and gossip that more scions have arrived. The curious and braver citizens make their way to Upper Nuren to get a look, and the rumors spread like wildfire through the city that Benra has come again.

Outer Nuren

Although those rumors make their way to Outer Nuren, the citizens there show far less interest in making the long trek up to Upper Nuren. The unseasonably warm winter has done wonders for the fishing in the bay, and the docks are alive with intrepid fishermen and ship crews interested in making extra gold while the fishing is still good. The taverns fill with activity and the markets are livelier than ever in the hopes of selling more of their wares and merchandise before Winter's chill catches up with the passing seasons.

Evening

When night settles on the city, the taverns, inns and squares fill with curious citizens hoping to meet the new Scions or catch a glimpse of the Scions they have already managed to glimpse a few times before. Food is offered freely, as well as blankets to guard against the cool night air. The night sky fills with beautiful displays of magic from the Fire, Light and Energy Mages, the Osaaru equivalent of fireworks, though far quieter. Several Scholars in bright and colorful robes can be found approaching the new scions and older ones alike, offering to tell them more about the city, Osaaru and the Great Beasts. Mages of similar garb guide scions to the cavern homes, and help where they can in making the scions more comfortable. Small comforts of food, pillows, decorative crafts and other small tokens are offered to visible Scions by the citizens of Nuren in hopes of earning their favor and friendship.

Notes

Please direct Introduction questions to the Plotting Post Q&A As a Reminder: Bahemait is not one of the Great Beasts openly discussed or mentioned by the Citizens of Nuren who believe the Great Dragon is little more than an old legend. We would also like to emphasize that the Spirit energy within every resurrected character is required to use all magic in Osaaru, even that which is brought from their own world. The drain of powerful or excessive use of magic will lead to exhaustion.

Comments

[fifthreplacement]

Both as foolish as each other, in my opinion.

[Humble? This guy doesn't seem the type to be. Still, he's amusing, so Sync doesn't call him on it, but the small smirk on his face probably tells enough]

One of the six God-Generals of the Oracle Knights, along with being Chief of Staff.

[theveilisin]

[Cocky little shit, too. But Luvander's smile stays every bit as complacent and friendly. Regina knows that he's dealt with "cocky" for most of his life too - honestly, it feels almost nostalgic.]

I'll admit that most of that was complete Eklesian to me, but it certainly sounded impressive.

[His voice sounds sincere and mild, and he waves his mug of warm cider a bit dismissively as he continues.]

I used to be a humble airman of the Dragon Corps at home, but I'm retired now. Oh, and my name is Luvander.

[fifthreplacement]

Not surprising, with the whole world difference thing. In simple terms, the only one higher in command than I was was the guy in charge of the whole thing.

[Civilian side of the Order not included. But they didn't count really, simpering weaklings that they were. He's curious despite himself. Maybe it's the familiarity of the military rather than the strangeness of civilians, something he's almost been missing]

Sync. Can't say I've heard of airmen either.

[theveilisin]

[He'll keep to himself what he thinks of any ruler that would let a kid this young be that far up the chain of command, no matter how clever or talented. His own previous ruler included, come to think of it. Hadn't little Lord Greylace been in charge of torturing people for Th'Esar since he was just a kid? And that had on the whole ended extremely poorly.

But he's not here to argue with a teenager.]

It basically means "dragon rider" where I'm from. Most fearsome fighting force, most admired men, so on and so forth. [He smiles a hint wryly, a little man with a fussy silk scarf and a kitten-sized dragon sleeping around his neck.] Please try not to act too impressed, it's embarrassing.

[fifthreplacement]

[Good thing Luvander doesn't know his true age. At least for all he seems a teenager, Sync's manner of speaking and understanding makes him act far older than he appears. For all he's confident in himself, there's something in how he's still aware of his surroundings despite talking to someone, and how he's aware of how the words are said, that belies someone who knows what he's doing]

Dragon rider, huh. This must almost be normal to you then. [Interesting. One of the few people who almost seemed obvious to pick for this scion thing. Sync doesn't seem impressed by it, simply accepting] You'll find I'm hard to impress by talk alone. I prefer to see what a person can do than believe everything they'll tell me.

[theveilisin]

[For someone who mainly seems intent on getting a bit less sober in a sociable manner, Luvander is taking in a fair lot more than he lets on, tallying it up for further consideration. The people taken here are clearly from some places much unlike his own home, and it would be good to have at least a tentative grasp on what that entails.

No doubt the young man is thinking the same, and doesn't mean any harm with his comment, which is why Luvander tries to quickly stifle the sour twitch in his expression by taking a swig of his drink.] Normal? [The light laugh that follows the word still has a bitter edge to it, though.]

Not really, no. No one at home would consider these creatures dragons. [His gesture takes in the young thing perched on Sync's shoulder, as well as the one sleeping around his neck. The latter twitches uneasily in its sleep, letting out a faint, high-pitched whine. Luvander tenses a bit, then lets out a tired sigh.] But I guess there's no accounting for taste.

[fifthreplacement]

[He laughs at that, amused. The bitter tone is noted, but while someone else might drop the subject, Sync doesn't. It's not like he cares how the other feels]

Not quite the same, I take it. The differences between worlds is always interesting. What are the dragons you knew like?

[It may have no relevance here, but Sync has always liked gathering information. And who knew, it may end up affecting something down the line]

[theveilisin]

[Well, he rather invited the question, didn't he? He could practically hear Adamo growling at him, That's what you get for never learning to shut up, Luvander. It's terrible, really, having to listen to your superiors when they're not even there - and when they're no longer your superior, for that matter.]

War machines. [He shrugs, careful not to jostle his dragon too much. She actually does look rather a lot like something built out of metal, rather than a flesh-and-blood lizard.] Nothing as simple as just an engine, though. There was magic in them that made them alive.

[Alive enough, at least, for their riders.]

[fifthreplacement]

Huh. Not something I've ever heard of, but interesting. Machines were always machines on Auldrant. Nothing extra to them.

[Not interesting enough for him to ask more though. Sync isn't a technological person, he doesn't care for how it worked or why. Knowing what it was is enough for him]