Following a very illuminating Town Hall meeting, Gethen has elected to pay a visit to Charlie's office directly - after giving him some time to unwind, that is. He'd made sure to announce as much at the tail end of that gathering so that his arrival wouldn't be completely unanticipated, but he had neglected to offer a specific time. The Wayfinder doesn't exactly have the patience to make appointments.
He doesn't ring the bell right away; provided the front of the office is unmanned, he would take a moment to quietly poke around first, skim a book or two if there are any to be examined that he thinks may offer some historical insights, get a feel for the layout of the room. Gethen may not wholly distrust Charlie at the moment, but he is still a stranger in a strange land, at the mercy of someone he barely knows beyond a name. A bit of early recon is a force of habit in circumstances like these after so many ambushes and less savory encounters.
After a few short moments, though, he does indeed give the bell a single tap, perhaps a little harder than it's built for.
The bell rings, and a loud thump can be heard followed by some soft and tame expletives before Charlie emerges with an armful of scrolls that he no doubt just haphazardly picked up from the floor.
"Oh! Gethen!" He smiles warmly, shuffling to set the scrolls aside and exit from behind the little desk area.
"Please, come in, take a seat and make yourself comfortable." He's already moving to put a kettle on the stove. It must be funny to see a being that claims to be a god do everything manually, but Charlie takes comfort in the familiar routine of doing things as he feels he was meant to lest he lose touch with the common man.
"Tell me- what kind of tea can I make for you? No doubt you have business, but business is best over tea."
That's...quite the entrance. It's enough for the Wayfinder to lift a hand half-heartedly, as if he might somehow help from several feet away with Charlie's unruly haul. Gethen is not, however, possessed of any telekinetic or otherwise far-reaching abilities that would be of any such use, so he lowers that hand soon enough and somewhat awkwardly clears his throat with a shallow bow.
He's not really sure why he went for a bow, a gesture commonly used in both the High Legions and Cantha, but there it is.
"Uh...green. Any green tea's fine, if you've got it, but you...thanks." Gethen does as he's told and eases into the nearest available seat, keeping his eyes fixed on his host in some baffled mix of wonder and concern. The remarkably mundane approach to this welcome isn't exactly surprising after the apprehensions he's observed during their few past encounters, but it's a bit more potent in this moment of relative privacy. A little nostalgic, even.
That wistful twinge delays the inevitable question just barely, but it comes all the same. Gethen expects deflection, but if his suspicions hold, he also knows the importance of the ritual. "Do you, uh...need any help with that? ...Those?"
Charlie's hands move delicately, fetching a small scuffed tin from the collection of many. The green tea leaves crisp between his fingers as he prepares a diffuser with a generous amount. A few slices of dried fruit are added to the pot to add a hint of their flavor as he pours the hot water into it, bringing it to the table. Once it's prepared, he pours a cup for each of them, setting a small pot of honey out in case it needs some sweetness. Half of that pot is poured into his own cup. A copious amount, but he seems intentional and satisfied with it.
"No, no. It's fine." Is the automatic response to the question. Something said without any real consideration if he does need help or not.
"Now, first and foremost, how do you fare? Are you comfortable here? If there is anything I can do, please let me know."
The tea-making process is a comfort, one he hadn't quite realized he'd come to miss in the past year. He's content to quietly wait and watch, his own thoughts mirroring Charlie's steps as he recounts his own process out of habit.
The questions prompt an amused snort and a wry quirk of his lips, products of a lowered guard. "I'm here to discuss helping you," Gethen gently corrects, "but I've been alright. This is the warmest welcome I've gotten in....mm. A few years, at least."
Maybe that says more about Gethen's hardships than Charlie's hospitality, but he's genuinely impressed regardless. He picks up his cup - he'll pass on the honey, having had more than enough in his recent stay with the ursine Kodan - and studiously swirls its contents with a practiced hand.
"I'm thinking about trying some rituals. We seem to have a good number of casters around, different kinds, myself included. If we could round up the right components and the right information, we might have some serious power on our hands. We should be using it." He pauses for a placid sip and a moment to think. "The question is how."
A smile stretches across Charlie's tired face, and he sits back in his seat as he listens.
"Well, I would be a fool to dismiss an earnest offer to help. But how indeed."
He heaves in a breath, worrying at the edge of his cup with his finger. There is the deepest sense of helping, in simply bonding to the natural world.
"The best thing I think, would be to perform these rituals to an end of helping either residents of this town or the land on a whole. The further reaching the effort, the better." Placing his cup down, he moves to the shelves that line the back wall. Rifling through the bound tomes, he selects a generous stack.
"The most relevant practical uses of magic from this world can perhaps be woven into your own. Are you familiar with the basic schools of magic? Here are some that may be of interest to you." He starts placing the books, side by side on the able, listing them off.
"First, 'A Comprehensive Overview on Abjuration'. Protection magic, shielding, and repelling of threats. 'Divination Basics', fairly straightforward, communing and connecting with divine entities and wielding their power or blessings. 'Conjuration: An In-Depth Dive'. Conjuration involves the summoning of just about anything and anyone. 'An Introduction to Evocation'. The dealing of drawing on the raw magical energies available to you. There are of course, Enchantment, Illusion, Transmutation and Necromancy... but I find it hard to imagine those as immediately useful to your interests. Or simply too dangerous or unethical to promote, in the case of Necromancy."
He takes a long sip of his tea, collecting his thoughts.
"I would suggest beginning with a way to connect with the land. Improve the growth and yield of crops. Perhaps setting up some additional wards around Town. I have placed some myself, but you can never be too careful..."
The charr listens attentively as he gives each tome a cursory inspection. There's a moment of pause on the ethics of necromancy, but only subtly so and quickly discarded. Different experiences, he expects, and different worlds to boot. What is more apparent is the quiet enthusiasm that takes Gethen at the subject of bonding with the land. It's not a surprise after what he heard at Town Hall, but he's glad to be gutting to the chase.
"Connecting with the land is one of my specialties. Before I ended up here, I'd been in training with-" He pauses upon glimpsing a familiar term in one of the books, not a central topic, but one the author saw fit to mention. "Druids. There are druids here?"
Charlie does perk up at the mention of druids, recognition clear in his face.
"Oh yes! There's a whole druidic guild in Vorrun. Would that we could be granted entry, but I could like as not send for some literature if you'd like." He runs a finger along the edge of his tea cup. "Naturally, other druids exist around, but that is your best bet as to contacting a great many. That said, it is likely your magicks may well overlap with this world. I would try putting your own practices into play and see how things come out. I would be curious to see the results myself."
His smile is just as warm as the tea, clearly the subject is something that interests him personally.
"I could use some experience myself, given my role." There's a pause, and then he sits up straight, eyes wide, his hands clap together lightly. "Of course! That's it! My blood!"
This first revelation leaves him a bit breathless - a great many? To Gethen's understanding, such a case is deeply at odds with an ailing world, but it's also cause for hope...if these druids are at all like those he's met before.
He quickly reins that excitement in; hope is powerful, but dangerous. He'll have to learn more before jumping to any conclusions.
It's only when Charlie claps that the Wayfinder realizes with a subdued start that he's gotten lost in thought. "Your blood?"
"Yes! You see, my blood brings life. In quite the literal sense. You see, my kind nourish the landscape. Hold on, let me show you."
He rises, getting one of the potted plants off the bookshelf.
Setting it on the table, he produces a dagger from his belt. A small, ornate thing with ivory and gold design. Grasping the blade with his hand, he pulls it away in a quick motion and a wince.
Carefully, he squeezes the wounded hand, producing a few drops of blood, which he lets dribble into the soil of the pot. Not only does the plant itself begin to rapidly grow and blossom, the vining leaves popping with tiny pink flowers, other plants begin to grow as well. Some small ferns, moss, and little weeds begin to unfurl.
Satisfied, he presses his hands together, a small line of light showing between them, before he lays them back on the table. The cut he had made is completely gone, and he prestidigitates the blade of his dagger clean before sheathing it again.
"If I gave you a small vial to use in your attunement rituals, I can guarantee it will give you a stronger bond. Besides that, it has healing properties in an emergency.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ophiuchusrising) wrote2024-10-15 04:07 pm
Walk-in!
He doesn't ring the bell right away; provided the front of the office is unmanned, he would take a moment to quietly poke around first, skim a book or two if there are any to be examined that he thinks may offer some historical insights, get a feel for the layout of the room. Gethen may not wholly distrust Charlie at the moment, but he is still a stranger in a strange land, at the mercy of someone he barely knows beyond a name. A bit of early recon is a force of habit in circumstances like these after so many ambushes and less savory encounters.
After a few short moments, though, he does indeed give the bell a single tap, perhaps a little harder than it's built for.
Re: Walk-in!
"Oh! Gethen!" He smiles warmly, shuffling to set the scrolls aside and exit from behind the little desk area.
"Please, come in, take a seat and make yourself comfortable." He's already moving to put a kettle on the stove. It must be funny to see a being that claims to be a god do everything manually, but Charlie takes comfort in the familiar routine of doing things as he feels he was meant to lest he lose touch with the common man.
"Tell me- what kind of tea can I make for you? No doubt you have business, but business is best over tea."
no subject
He's not really sure why he went for a bow, a gesture commonly used in both the High Legions and Cantha, but there it is.
"Uh...green. Any green tea's fine, if you've got it, but you...thanks." Gethen does as he's told and eases into the nearest available seat, keeping his eyes fixed on his host in some baffled mix of wonder and concern. The remarkably mundane approach to this welcome isn't exactly surprising after the apprehensions he's observed during their few past encounters, but it's a bit more potent in this moment of relative privacy. A little nostalgic, even.
That wistful twinge delays the inevitable question just barely, but it comes all the same. Gethen expects deflection, but if his suspicions hold, he also knows the importance of the ritual. "Do you, uh...need any help with that? ...Those?"
no subject
"No, no. It's fine." Is the automatic response to the question. Something said without any real consideration if he does need help or not.
"Now, first and foremost, how do you fare? Are you comfortable here? If there is anything I can do, please let me know."
no subject
The questions prompt an amused snort and a wry quirk of his lips, products of a lowered guard. "I'm here to discuss helping you," Gethen gently corrects, "but I've been alright. This is the warmest welcome I've gotten in....mm. A few years, at least."
Maybe that says more about Gethen's hardships than Charlie's hospitality, but he's genuinely impressed regardless. He picks up his cup - he'll pass on the honey, having had more than enough in his recent stay with the ursine Kodan - and studiously swirls its contents with a practiced hand.
"I'm thinking about trying some rituals. We seem to have a good number of casters around, different kinds, myself included. If we could round up the right components and the right information, we might have some serious power on our hands. We should be using it." He pauses for a placid sip and a moment to think. "The question is how."
no subject
"Well, I would be a fool to dismiss an earnest offer to help. But how indeed."
He heaves in a breath, worrying at the edge of his cup with his finger. There is the deepest sense of helping, in simply bonding to the natural world.
"The best thing I think, would be to perform these rituals to an end of helping either residents of this town or the land on a whole. The further reaching the effort, the better." Placing his cup down, he moves to the shelves that line the back wall. Rifling through the bound tomes, he selects a generous stack.
"The most relevant practical uses of magic from this world can perhaps be woven into your own. Are you familiar with the basic schools of magic? Here are some that may be of interest to you." He starts placing the books, side by side on the able, listing them off.
"First, 'A Comprehensive Overview on Abjuration'. Protection magic, shielding, and repelling of threats. 'Divination Basics', fairly straightforward, communing and connecting with divine entities and wielding their power or blessings. 'Conjuration: An In-Depth Dive'. Conjuration involves the summoning of just about anything and anyone. 'An Introduction to Evocation'. The dealing of drawing on the raw magical energies available to you. There are of course, Enchantment, Illusion, Transmutation and Necromancy... but I find it hard to imagine those as immediately useful to your interests. Or simply too dangerous or unethical to promote, in the case of Necromancy."
He takes a long sip of his tea, collecting his thoughts.
"I would suggest beginning with a way to connect with the land. Improve the growth and yield of crops. Perhaps setting up some additional wards around Town. I have placed some myself, but you can never be too careful..."
no subject
"Connecting with the land is one of my specialties. Before I ended up here, I'd been in training with-" He pauses upon glimpsing a familiar term in one of the books, not a central topic, but one the author saw fit to mention. "Druids. There are druids here?"
no subject
"Oh yes! There's a whole druidic guild in Vorrun. Would that we could be granted entry, but I could like as not send for some literature if you'd like." He runs a finger along the edge of his tea cup. "Naturally, other druids exist around, but that is your best bet as to contacting a great many. That said, it is likely your magicks may well overlap with this world. I would try putting your own practices into play and see how things come out. I would be curious to see the results myself."
His smile is just as warm as the tea, clearly the subject is something that interests him personally.
"I could use some experience myself, given my role." There's a pause, and then he sits up straight, eyes wide, his hands clap together lightly. "Of course! That's it! My blood!"
no subject
He quickly reins that excitement in; hope is powerful, but dangerous. He'll have to learn more before jumping to any conclusions.
It's only when Charlie claps that the Wayfinder realizes with a subdued start that he's gotten lost in thought. "Your blood?"
Wasn't he just scorning necromacy?
cw: mild self harm????
He rises, getting one of the potted plants off the bookshelf.
Setting it on the table, he produces a dagger from his belt. A small, ornate thing with ivory and gold design. Grasping the blade with his hand, he pulls it away in a quick motion and a wince.
Carefully, he squeezes the wounded hand, producing a few drops of blood, which he lets dribble into the soil of the pot. Not only does the plant itself begin to rapidly grow and blossom, the vining leaves popping with tiny pink flowers, other plants begin to grow as well. Some small ferns, moss, and little weeds begin to unfurl.
Satisfied, he presses his hands together, a small line of light showing between them, before he lays them back on the table. The cut he had made is completely gone, and he prestidigitates the blade of his dagger clean before sheathing it again.
"If I gave you a small vial to use in your attunement rituals, I can guarantee it will give you a stronger bond. Besides that, it has healing properties in an emergency.