The Stars Yet Unclaimed [Renown][Private]
Mar 4, 2024 8:21:52 GMT -5
Post by Cyran Fenastra-Asiliari on Mar 4, 2024 8:21:52 GMT -5
”Which one is that, Papa?”
Gentle hands grabbed her own and guided her along the path etched in the sky. A triangular shape, simple enough, with a smattering trail of light behind it. “The Celestial Manta in the sky. It tells the tale of brave sea creatures who dared to sail the cosmos.”
A giggle. “Manta Gliders don’t fly, silly!”
”Who says they don’t? Look, there’s one right there!” He pointed to the sky glider once more. “Every night he watched the moon in the sky and fell a little more in love with the one who pulled the tides. So each night, he practiced leaping out of the water. And each night, he got higher, and higher, until he leapt into the sky and became one with the stars. Anything is possible, so long as you work hard at it.”
”Wow.” Marlow breathed. “One day I’ll fly up there and swim in the sky with him! I’ll build wings myself!”
And oh, she was so smart, and Cyran couldn’t help but want to watch her try. “I can’t wait to watch you accomplish it.”
She turned to him then, flashing him one of her brilliant smiles, showing off the gap between her teeth. “Watch me? I’m gonna take you with me so we can fly with him together!”
Cyran couldn’t help himself. His eyes welled with tears, and he wrapped her into a tight hug, tugging her into his lap. It would not be the first time a family stared at the Celestial Manta and made such a promise, and it likely would not be the last. And yet, the moment felt permanent… as if as long as the Glider swam, Cyran would be able to meet Marlow there.
“The Glider is gone.”
The ex-assassin stood in the middle of Stargazer’s field, neck craned upwards to the sky. A notebook and quill were held aloft in his hands, open to a small star map. Cyran paused to note the absence on the parchment with a frown. Ever since Ziev’s absence had shifted the sky, celestial bodies had begun rapidly expanding - as if the world had tilted on its axis. Hell, Cyran and Del themselves had witnessed the sky falling firsthand.
With the gains had come losses. What was once ancient history had become unknowable and strange. He shifted his weight from foot to foot. Even the early spring nighttime wind felt ominous, rather than comforting and cool.
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose before turning to Del.
“It is… strange. Normally the stars in the sky kind of act like a disk, where our viewpoint slowly shifts with the disk’s spinning. Normally, given the time of year, and the hour of day, the Glider should be about… there.” He pointed to the space in the sky where he’d once guided Marlow. And yet, the shape inhabiting the space looked more like an hourglass than a triangle. Certainly no constellation Cyran recognized at all.
“It’s like…” He paused. “Someone put a second disk over the first, and now the two are overlapping. Some of them are the same, but there’s… more, and the new ones have been overwritten. It’s disconcerting. The crown has put out missives to map this out, but it took centuries to create the first maps. It will surely take centuries more to understand the changes.”
Cyran heaved a heavy sigh and sat back down in the grass. They’d set up a small picnic to enjoy the task, and yet, the sheer unfamiliarity of the horizon only served to make the elf nervous. His life had been in upheaval so constantly in such a short span of time that creature comforts ought to have been welcome. And yet, they just felt hollow.
Well. At least the view was nice. All these changes, and the sky’s beauty remained immutable. That, and the woman who’d agreed to go on this venture with him. The reminder that such gentleness was now a constant in his own life, barely a star’a blink in eternity but no less important for the time it was here, made all this worth it.
Quest Name: Study the Stars
Gentle hands grabbed her own and guided her along the path etched in the sky. A triangular shape, simple enough, with a smattering trail of light behind it. “The Celestial Manta in the sky. It tells the tale of brave sea creatures who dared to sail the cosmos.”
A giggle. “Manta Gliders don’t fly, silly!”
”Who says they don’t? Look, there’s one right there!” He pointed to the sky glider once more. “Every night he watched the moon in the sky and fell a little more in love with the one who pulled the tides. So each night, he practiced leaping out of the water. And each night, he got higher, and higher, until he leapt into the sky and became one with the stars. Anything is possible, so long as you work hard at it.”
”Wow.” Marlow breathed. “One day I’ll fly up there and swim in the sky with him! I’ll build wings myself!”
And oh, she was so smart, and Cyran couldn’t help but want to watch her try. “I can’t wait to watch you accomplish it.”
She turned to him then, flashing him one of her brilliant smiles, showing off the gap between her teeth. “Watch me? I’m gonna take you with me so we can fly with him together!”
Cyran couldn’t help himself. His eyes welled with tears, and he wrapped her into a tight hug, tugging her into his lap. It would not be the first time a family stared at the Celestial Manta and made such a promise, and it likely would not be the last. And yet, the moment felt permanent… as if as long as the Glider swam, Cyran would be able to meet Marlow there.
“The Glider is gone.”
The ex-assassin stood in the middle of Stargazer’s field, neck craned upwards to the sky. A notebook and quill were held aloft in his hands, open to a small star map. Cyran paused to note the absence on the parchment with a frown. Ever since Ziev’s absence had shifted the sky, celestial bodies had begun rapidly expanding - as if the world had tilted on its axis. Hell, Cyran and Del themselves had witnessed the sky falling firsthand.
With the gains had come losses. What was once ancient history had become unknowable and strange. He shifted his weight from foot to foot. Even the early spring nighttime wind felt ominous, rather than comforting and cool.
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose before turning to Del.
“It is… strange. Normally the stars in the sky kind of act like a disk, where our viewpoint slowly shifts with the disk’s spinning. Normally, given the time of year, and the hour of day, the Glider should be about… there.” He pointed to the space in the sky where he’d once guided Marlow. And yet, the shape inhabiting the space looked more like an hourglass than a triangle. Certainly no constellation Cyran recognized at all.
“It’s like…” He paused. “Someone put a second disk over the first, and now the two are overlapping. Some of them are the same, but there’s… more, and the new ones have been overwritten. It’s disconcerting. The crown has put out missives to map this out, but it took centuries to create the first maps. It will surely take centuries more to understand the changes.”
Cyran heaved a heavy sigh and sat back down in the grass. They’d set up a small picnic to enjoy the task, and yet, the sheer unfamiliarity of the horizon only served to make the elf nervous. His life had been in upheaval so constantly in such a short span of time that creature comforts ought to have been welcome. And yet, they just felt hollow.
Well. At least the view was nice. All these changes, and the sky’s beauty remained immutable. That, and the woman who’d agreed to go on this venture with him. The reminder that such gentleness was now a constant in his own life, barely a star’a blink in eternity but no less important for the time it was here, made all this worth it.
Quest Name: Study the Stars
Participants: Two or more
Location: Moonglade
Post Requirements: 4 posts per person, 200 words per post
Reward: +1 Renown
Description: Charon has been struggling the last year with many, many changes to its world view, the most jarring being the changes to weather, the environment and the star patterns above which were used for navigation. With the veil of the Sol Stone dropped, new stars, constellations and cosmic markers have been popping up, revealing that not only is the world bigger than once thought, but so is the sky. The crown is asking people to help record and study these new heavenly objects, to help better understand our location in the cosmos. Spend an evening studying and watching the stars, recording what you see.
Location: Moonglade
Post Requirements: 4 posts per person, 200 words per post
Reward: +1 Renown
Description: Charon has been struggling the last year with many, many changes to its world view, the most jarring being the changes to weather, the environment and the star patterns above which were used for navigation. With the veil of the Sol Stone dropped, new stars, constellations and cosmic markers have been popping up, revealing that not only is the world bigger than once thought, but so is the sky. The crown is asking people to help record and study these new heavenly objects, to help better understand our location in the cosmos. Spend an evening studying and watching the stars, recording what you see.