Eskimos : Chapter 1 : BLOOD AND SNOW (Trixie+EskimoHermit)

[DSIGFUSS]

Yuralria rose suddenly from her bed and sat straight up. It was evening and late at that. The sun rose at 7 and set at noon this late into the Moon god's reign over the skies. Yuralria did not enjoy the moonlight like most women in her tribe. Anningan was cruel and Yuralria would spend as little time as she had to outside of her hut.

Everything seemed to be in its proper palce. Her masks still hung from carefully weaved twine hooks, her potions and herbs seemed undisturbed, her arrows she had been enchanting for tommorrow's hunt, still lay soaking in the ice bowl she had carved last night and filled with cariboo blood. Everything was in order.

Still the entire room and all its contents seemed to glow faintly as if someone had bathed all her possessions in sunlight and then placed them in the darkness to dry. The glow had healing properties and Yuralria knew it to be harmless. There was something vaguely familiar about the glow and Yuralria thought back on long talks she had had with her former teacher and friend before she was driven out of the village. They had spoken of visions and Yurlaria had had them before, but nothing like this.

[trixie]

Yuralria rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one hand, and yawned. Alornerk shifted suddenly at her movements and rolled over onto her elbows to look at Yuralria with tail wagging, and tongue lolling out happily. Yuralria laughed at the sight of her, as she always did when Alornerk cheered her up, and scratched her behind the ears. "Did you have a good rest?" she asked her, then stood from her bed and whistled softly to let her out of the hut. She stood by the door, watching Alornerk bounce happily through the snow, and Yuralria's watchful eyes swept over the rest of the huts, searching for any sign of movement.

The moonlight always gave her chills. She left the doorway and began to inspect her arrowheads. What was this strange glow in the room? What happened while I was sleeping?

[DSIGFUSS]

Yuralria looks outside into her village and is overwhelmed by a powerful sense of reflection.

Everything seems quiet enough for the time of night. Everyone is resting up for the big day. Tomorrow, Yuralria must perform her first hunting ceremony. She will dive down into the ocean and comb Sedna's hair. In exchange for Yuralria's kindess, the godess of eternal sorrow will grant prosperity to Yuralria's chosen hunters. Yuralria already has a few good Dorset men in mind, worthy of Sedna's blessing.

Everything seems quiet and abstract. Yuralria finds her mind wandering to other important matters as she closely inspects the true nature of her village. Aglakti , had taken Sedna's spear and there was nothing Yuralria could say to make her return it. It was, after all, a gift from Sedna, or so she said it was, so Yuralria could not blame Aglakti for keeping it. Besides that, the village seemed to be outlined in a strange light as if each hut just barely covered a glorious sun . Alornerk bounced out the doorway and back into the snow, leaving simalar eclipse like foot prints of light where he walked. Alornek looks back at Yuralria quizically and then darts into a neighbours hut.

It was so quiet, Yuralria could narely hear Alornek barking.

ooc- Roll Inuit mythos check

[trixie]

[O.C. Mythos check (60) rolled 45]


Yuralria takes a deep breath and holds it for a moment, hoping to calm the feeling that her head was swimming and nerves were on edge. Grant me peace and serenity from these feelings of iniquity...... She knows she can perform the age old ceremony. However after Aglakti left, she'd felt a certain unsureness in her own capabilities as Shaman. Aglakti was so brazen and fearless....she felt frustrated that she couldn't put on the same airs.

She stares peacefully out the door again, the moonlight casting it's glow on everything it touched, and she shivered at the thought of Anningan watching her. She looks closer at the hut that Alornerk had darted into, and whistled. She could hear her barking, but wondered what she'd found of such interest. That dog would find anything of curiousity...she'd bark at a leaf blowing if she could....but for some reason it seemed like something more than that. Yuralria looked up at the moon again, and sighed. Alornerk knew her better than anyone.....she knew she hated to leave her hut in the moonlight. But what had she found?

[DSIGFUSS]

The hollow silence dampens the sound of Alornerk's barking. The hut that Yuralria's faithful pet darted into shakes suddenly as if an earthquake had targeted the single structure. The hut shakes for a long moment and then stops. The faint glow surrounding the hut grows dark as Alornerk darts back out into the snow. Time seems to take a backseat to delusion as Alornek darts back into the snow a second time. Yurlaria recognizes the slowness and hollow quiet of the dream world... she is not truly awake but can't shake the sickening feeling that everything is very real.

ooc : spot hidden

[trixie]

[O.C. Spot hidden 25%, rolled 28 ]

Yuralria's hair feels like it is standing on end as she watches the hut rumble and shake with Alornerk inside. This was not like her to be so rambunctious...and part of her felt like running after to find out what the trouble was. She lurked in the doorway and was relieved to see Alornerk reappear from the hut.

She whistled again. "What is it Alornerk?" The quiet grogginess of the dream world caused her to sink to her knees for a moment, as it always made her feel lightheaded.

She watches everything closely, looking for the source of this strange phenomenon.

[DSIGFUSS]

When Yuralria speaks, she can hardly hear herself call her faithful pet. It sounds like she is speaking underwater from across the room and Alornerk pays her no mind.

The hut begins to shake again and continues to shake. Alornerk runs inside Yuralria's hut and hides behind her, covering her nose with her two front paws. Yuralria continues to watch as the hut shakes more and more violently. Yuralria is certain she can hear a man screaming through the thick silence. He must be screaming very loud to penetrate the the intense quiet hanging over everything like a wet blanket.

Then suddenly the furs covering the doorway part and a beautiful woman carrying a shiny water jug steps out into the snow. She has long hair the color of the sun and her skin was white as the snow. The woman looks over at Yuralria and smiles. She dumps liquid from the jug out into the snow and then slowly walks back inside the hut. Soon after, the shaking stops.

[trixie]

Yuralria stays crouched, watching the strange white woman silently. This is most distressing....why is the earth shaking? Is this a sign of misfortune to come? And this woman....she is most different from us....where did she come from?

She watches her walk away and her thoughts move quickly. Aglakti! Where has she gone?! Has she stirred up trouble for us by taking Sedna's spear? Am I doomed to try to calm Sedna after such a heinous act? Sedna will be most disturbed.....

Yuralria thinks of the man screaming, and her heart aches to find out if her fellow village dweller is alright. He may need help..... She looks out at the moonlight in fear, then steps out of her hut for a moment to start across the clearing. Alornerk stays in the hut for a moment and whines. She whistles softly, and yet still she doesn't move.

She sets out across the clearing to inspect the spot where the woman dumped the contents of the jug. Her heart beats quicker and her palms begin to sweat. The moonlight seemed to sear her very flesh.

[DSIGFUSS]

Yuralria moves quickly across the village path and reaches the snow bank where the mysterious pale faced woman emptied her jug. Yuralria could feel Anningan's touch on her as she bends over to inspect the spill. It had a pleading quality that made Yuralria very uncomfortable.

ooc Sanity check 0/1

The liquid had already hardened on the snowbank like sap. It was black yet seemed to have a reddish swirl mixed throughout it. Everything was quiet.

Alornerk takes an interest in the bizarre frozen liquid and sniffs curiously at it.

[trixie]

Yuralria takes a bowl from her cloak and puts a tiny bit in it. Strange....what is this? She sniffs it gingerly, not wanting to come too close at first, then looks at Alornerk sniffing it as well. She puts a finger in it and rubs it between two fingers, feeling the texture.

Who was this pale faced woman? And what did she pour on the ground? It was unlike blood....very thick. Finally the moonlight's pleading nature was too much for her to bear....and she looked around the clearing to see if there was any sign of the woman with long, sunshine colored hair.

Yuralria heads to the hut the woman came from, skulking under the gaps in the wooden structure, and standing just outside to listen.

[O.C. Failed the listen roll...rolled 56, listen skill is 35]

[DSIGFUSS]

OOC - Sanity 0/1 (Your previous Sanity check for the creepy Anningan vibe)

OOC - Potions check

OOC - CON check 1d20

OOC - Inuit Mythos check

OOC - Luck check

Check?

[trixie]

OOC Sanity check 29 (80)

Potions check 88 (20)

Constitution check 12 (13)

Inuit Mythos check 56 (60)

Luck check 79 (70)

First number is the roll, inside () is directly from the character sheets.

[DSIGFUSS]

Yuralria rubs the liquid between her fingers. The stink is incredible and vaguely familiar. She pushes the thought out of her mind and slowly approaches the hut. She can feel the weight of Anningan, pushing her to the snow but she resists. Pulling herself up, she stumbles to the hut and thrusts herself through the furs blocking the entrance and into the hut, escaping the moon's hate filled advances.

The scene before her is so bizarre, Yuralria can barely keep her eyes open.

The hut opens up into a large cave with ornately decorated furniture and tapestries depicting all sorts of epic sceneries. White men with glowing weapons battling giants of all shapes and sizes. Men and women wearing the most beautifully covered clothing dine and raise their glasses to a great white bearded chief sitting atop a throne as bright as the sun. Two ravens perch on either shoulder of the wise looking leader of men. Another tapestry depicts a more terrible fate for the white bearded chief. A huge black wolf feast on the chief's inards while he lies dead on the battlefield.

Flowers in intriquately designed crystal vases sit in every nook and cranny of the cave. Flower petals litter the floor. It is the most beautiful place Yuralria had ever seen. Only the twisted nature of the rooms's center piece distracted from the sheer briallance of decor and history the cave had to offer.

Chained to a stone table was a slender naked man with that same ghostly white skin. Above him, hung a snake as wide as three men, coiled around the thickest roots of a tree protruding through the celing of the cave. The snakes mouth was strapped in a peculiar looking harness, it's mouth opened as wide as possible. A bar pressed up against the snakes fangs, dripping poison slowly but continuously from his toothy maw. The white skinned woman with hair like the sun held the jug over the slender man, collecting the poison before it fell.
Yuralria was sure that the poison would land in the white man's mouth if the white skinned woman were not holding the jug with such discipline.



The white skinned woman looks over at Yuralria and in a language not her own. but perfectly clear and poised, speaks out to her in a calm and soothing voice.

I'm glad you decided to join us. Please come in.

[trixie]

Yuralria enters slowly, wide-eyed. This was by far the most outlandish spirit walk she'd ever been on. Part of her was entirely overwhelmed, the other part was hopelessly consumed by her own curiousity.

Yuralria walks into the room, eyes locked on the man under the snake. She silently watches the poison drip into the jug, eyes sweeping the room in quiet memorization. The details would be important...they may be clues in the future. Her heart beat so loudly she was sure the entire room could hear it. It was like a song....an ornate drum song to which she would have to dance one day.

Yuralria's eyes finally flicker to the pale faced woman, and she doesn't smile or change her expression in any way. Fear is too present in her eyes to change her features from it's bewildered appearance. She nods ever so slightly to the woman's words, and replies, "Yes. I am Yuralria. " She pauses for a moment, watching another drip fall, and the woman catch it, then furrows her brow in confusion. The woman's words ring in her ears, "You are strangers, yet you speak the language of my home?"

[DSIGFUSS]

All language is the same here child! We speak with our hearts, not our minds.

The pale skinned woman smiles and continues to hold the jug over the naked man's mouth. She sighs deep, obviously frustrated with her duties.

Yuralria takes in all the images of the scantily clad pale faced men and women and monsters and giants and dwarves..... She tries to remember them all ..... She made need them... Her life may................

Yuralria stumbles again. All the images continuously flash in front of her eyes. She cannot shut them out. Yuralria isn't sure if she is lying down or hanging from the ceiling of the cave. The images pile on top of each other, engraving themselves into Yuralria's memory. The images themselves have no context for Yuralria but she is saddened to her core by a great number of them. They appear in her mind's eye and her heart over and over and over again until Yuralria feels as if she might just go mad.




Until they suddenly stop. Yuralria vomits on the rocky cave floor. The pale skinned woman smiles, amused at Yuralria's inexperiece in this place.




Careful what you wish for in this place Yuralria. Such a beautiful name.... Yuralria!

[trixie]

Yuralria is on her hands and knees, head down after having vomited, the pictures still engrained in her eyes as though burned there. She tries to stand but her knees are still weak. Her elbows buckle and she falls again.

"I have seen a serpent. This same image of you with the jug, and him under the serpent. Why?" she asks, looking up at the pale faced woman with tears in her eyes. Her mind reels and her heart aches. Would these terrible images come true? The pictures were all pale faced people just like this woman and man. Terrible pictures her heart and mind couldn't process.....

[DSIGFUSS]

ooc - Sanity check 1/3 (For the images)

The pale faced woman, still holding the jug over the man's mouth, stares at the picture of the snake and frowns.



Childish pigs. They think they are so clever. They are just jealous of my Loki. They think they can hold us here for eternity. They are wrong...

The pale faced man tied tightly to the stone slab stirs. Yuralria looks closely at his bonds. They have a fleshy quality to them. Like the intestines of an animal.

Unable to move his head in the slightest, his eyes widen and he looks at Yuralria. He doesn't say a word. A tear streaks down his cheek as his eyes dart from Yuralria to the pale faced woman and then bcak to Yuralria again.

The pale faced woman gently strokes his cheek, it is obvious to Yuralria that she loves him very much.

Be at peace my love. She will not harm you.

The pale faced woman looks back at Yuralria and smiles a sad sort of smile reserved soley for widows and women with dead children thick on their minds.

Loki cannot speak so soon after drinking the venom. I'm afraid he has screamed himself hoarse.

[trixie]

[O.C. Sanity roll 24 (80) pass]

Yuralria is silent for a moment, watching Loki in his misery. Then she stammers out her reply, "You drink the venom of the great serpent? It is poison! You will not survive!"

She rises to her knees and looks at the pale faced woman in distress. "I have a ritual.....you.....you must allow me to perform this.....he will die if I do not!"

Yuralria is unsure of her own ability all of a sudden and reality as a whole for that matter. Was she awake or dreaming? Who were these people, and how could this man drink from the great serpent and live? It sounded to her as though he'd done it before...how? And why was this just accepted as a commonplace occurence?

Yuralria's head spins again, and she looks at the pale faced woman, confused. "You are prisoners here?"she asks finally.

[DSIGFUSS]

The pale faced woman smiles at Yuralria when she ask to help Loki.

Your gods have no power in this place. I can feel you reaching to them. Your mind must be strong to suspend your beliefs so far from your home. I could feel your pain as you walked in the moonlight. I can assure you, however this......

The pale faced woman concentrates on Yuralria. She pauses and closes her eyes...

Anningan....... your moon god does not know you are here. The pain was all in your mind or your heart..... I assume a woman such as yourself knows by now there is no difference.

[trixie]

Yuralria looks confused, then begins to shake her head. "Anningan.....he.....no." Yuralria looks at the floor, a look of confusion and frustration clouding her pretty features. "There is no place he can't see me, all that the moonlight touches, he sees." She looks at the woman curiously then, as though something may have occured to her. "Unless we are......" she pauses for a moment, in quiet reflection, staring deep into the pale faced woman's eyes. "I am not far from my home. You are in a hut in my village." She raises a weak hand to her mouth, trying to calm the rising nerves and turmoil causing her stomach to churn. "Unless....." she motions with one hand to the woman, in a plea for her to elaborate.