Cyrrane
Number of People: 19
(9 Females 10 Males)
Next visit with Ancestors:Today
"So, Jaymes, since when have you been playing the mandola?" "It's a-" Jaymes stopped in the middle of his sentence. Almtrude had said mandola? Everybody thought it was a lute!... "It is a mandola, right?" Almtrude continued. "It has eight strings, tuned in pairs." Jaymes, still baffled, nodded quickly. "Yes, yes, it's a mandola." he mumbled. Almtrude grinned. "Well, now that we've settled the fact that it is a mandola, would you like to tell me since when you have been playing? You're good at it." Jaymes looked away to hide a blush that had started creeping on his face. He wasn't used to having people say he was good at something- except for stealing and lying. "I started playing at a very young age, maybe six or so. We were all musicians in the family." Jaymes told Almtrude quietly. The dwarf, still as cheerful, nodded. "Ooh, and what instruments did the rest of your family play?" Jaymes hesitated. "Well, my mother sang and did the tambourine, my father played the bombard and the mandola but also sang, and my-" Jaymes had a catch in his voice as he said that. "And my brother played the pan flute." Almtrude nodded. She had noticed the catch, and knew that something had happened to that brother.
She didn't have time to think of it more though. She had heard voices in the forest. "Sshhh, I'm sure I heard someone!" it was a woman's voice. "I haven't been talking though. You're the one who-" "I said sshhhh!!" the other voice who had spoken was very quiet and shy. Almtrude, who had been wary at first but who had now judged that the two were no harm, spoke up. "Ye that's right, you heard voices! There's two of us but we don't mean you any harm. Do you want to come?" There was a long silence. "Did I scare them off?" Almtrude wondered quietly, as if to herself. But just after, the woman replied. "Alright..."
Soon after, two people stepped out from behind the bushes. First was a relatively short and young woman, with copper skin and equally dark hair. Next to her was an awkward looking man with shoulder-long silver hair and peanut-color skin. The young woman was defiant. "Who are you?" she asked. Almtrude tutted and shook her head calmly, which seemed to throw the girl off balance. "Now, why start off so rude? I could ask you the same thing, especially since you're the one prancing around near our village's territory. But very well, I shall be polite and introduce us. My name is Almtrude Lightfoot and this musician is Jaymes Weitzman. We are villagers of Cyrrane. Your turn now, darling!" there was a short pause, during which the girl seemed to wonder how to reply. "Umm, my name is Nayah, Nayah Aidjii. This is Alkhas Ennaer." she replied finally.
Almtrude nodded several times. "Alright. And why are you both here? You don't seem as if you're taking a honeymoon trip." both people in front of them looked thoroughly startled. "No! No, we're not. We.. Don't have a place to stay." Nayah said quickly. Almtrude grinned. "And you're looking for one. Come along, darling! Myriam will be happy to see new people." Almtrude started walking back towards the village, lighting her pipe as she walked. Upon hearing the name, Nayah was startled. "Myriam? What's her last name?" she asked quickly, hurrying after Almtrude. "Sheherezad!" Almtrude called behind her back. "You know her?" "Yes, yes I do!" Nayah was grinning now. "We used to live in the same town!" Almtrude turned, eyebrows raised. She took a long breath of her pipe, then breathed out slowly, letting out a cloud of smoke that rose into the air lazily. "Well, I expect we'll be having some happy reunion when we get back, then." she replied, smiling. Behind the two chattering women, Jaymes and Alkhas were walking silently. Both were awkward and barely looked at each other.
~~~
Myriam was smiling a little when she got back. Sure, they hadn't caught enough to feed the entire village, but it would at least be more than enough for the mothers, the children and the injured. Most people would also be able to eat- Myriam had decided she would not eat, or at least very little. She was starting to tire and feel weak (she hadn't eaten much yesterday either) but she would be ok. If the other patrols had caught more, and if Tamara had found vegetables, they would survive. Or simply: they had to. Myriam would never give up on her clan, she would rather starve herself than let others suffer. She would lead them through this and the village would be happy.
After having dragged the large bovine they had caught back to the village and made sure it would get taken care of, Myriam walked to the Healers Hut. She entered slowly and saw Pantaleon crouching on the floor next to a prone Barthelemy. As Myriam entered, Pantaleon looked up: his face was pale and his eyes wide. "Myriam, Barthelemy isn't feeling good. His body is all hot and he won't stand up.. I'm so worried for him!" Myriam, concern on her face, crouched by his side. She put her hand against Barthelemy's side: yes, it was in fact quite hot. "Have you talked to Joan about it?" Myriam asked. Panto nodded. "She went out to get some water. She said we should keep him cool, a little damp but not wet." Myriam smiled. "That sounds very reasonable to me. See, Joan will take care of him." Myriam put an arm around Pantaleon, hugging him slightly.
The young man leaned his head against her shoulder, but the door opened with a bang. Both jumped and sprang apart, standing up much quicker than they should have. Doing that, Myriam suddenly saw black in front of her eyes and she stumbled, almost falling over. There was a clang and suddenly, soft hands caught her. "Myriam, are you alright?" Joan asked, her voice full of concern. Myriam, still dizzy, grabbed onto the Healers shoulder for support. She was swaying slightly. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, I just.. Stood up too quickly." she mumbled. But Joan didn't look reassured. "Myriam, you are pale as a sheet. When was the last time you ate something?" Myriam hesitated. "I err.. I ate some berries in the forest today." Joan huffed. "Myriam, you know what I mean. When was the last time you ate something substantial?" Myriam looked to the side. "Well... Yesterday.. No, the day before yesterday, in the evening."
"Oh you cannot be serious!" Joan blurted out. She led Myriam to the bed and made her sit down. "Myriam, you run around all day, either hunting, patrolling, taking care of new people arriving, then you don't sleep because you worry too much and you take care of other village matters. And now- now you don't eat?? Do you want to kill yourself?" Joan was going around in her drawers, finding small things. She finally came back to Myriam and put down a fruit and a bit of bread in her hands. "Here, eat this. The sugar in the apple will help with the dizzyness and the bread will make you more stable. Now promise me you'll eat tonight."
Myriam stared at the food in her hands, feeling guilty of having this food here when someone else could have eaten it. She couldn't promise that to Joan.. She had to make sure everyone else ate. "Myriam," Joan's voice has a warning note. "Promise me you'll eat tonight." she repeated. Myriam looked away. She was suddenly saved from answering when someone outside called her name. "Myriam, we're back! And guess who we found!"
Immediately, Myriam stood up, put the apple and bread back on the bed, and left the Healers Hut as quickly as possible, avoiding Joan's eyes. She stepped out and looked to whoever had talked. It was Almtrude, calmly smoking her pipe. Next to her were two people Myriam was sure weren't part of the village yet. Oh gods no, please not more mouths to feed. she thought before looking at them more closely. The first she saw was a tall man, with caramel skin and silver hair. He was shy and didn't look her in the eyes. The second person Myriam saw was a young, relatively short, woman. She had dark brown hair and copper skin. She grinned when she saw Myriam. The young leader looked at her, thoughts racing through her mind. She knew her, she knew her.. But who?.. "Myriam, I'm so glad to see you!" the woman spoke, coming closer, and immediately Myriam remembered. "Nayah! How did you arrive here?" she hurried forward and hugged the girl she knew from her old village. "It's a long story..."
~
While Myriam and Nayah were talking excitedly, Bargas and his hunting patrol came back. First moving towards the leader to inform her of their prey, he noticed she was busy, so turned around- and noticed the awkward young man standing next to Almtrude. Curious, Bargas walked over. "Greetings, sir." he did a short bow. "If I may ask.. I wonder, when did you arrive? I have not seen you here before." the young man seemed startled that someone was actually speaking to him. He grinned apologetically- even if he did not have anything to apologize about- and replied in almost a whisper. "My name is Alkhas Ennaer. This young woman and I-" he gestured to Nayah. "arrived only just now. Almtrude and Jaymes found us in the forest and proposed that we join you."
Bargas nodded, smiling. "Marvelous! Then, from the bottom of my heart, I welcome you to Cyrrane!" Alkhas smiled, a blush creeping on his face. "Thank you." he said simply. "Now, may I show you around? Myriam is frighteningly busy, and she would be relieved to not have to do this additionally." Bargas proposed, waving towards the rest of the village. "That sounds great, umm..." "Oh! I forgot my manners, I am so terribly sorry. My name is Bargas Fireaxe, at your service." the Dwarf said, bowing once more. "Well, thank you for your help Bargas, and by all means, show me around." Alkhas told him, while both his smile and blush were getting more obvious.
~~~
It was just about the end of her working day. Huffing at all the dirt she had gotten on herself, Tamara looked inside her basket. Despite her best efforts to find more, she had only been able to find a few blueberries. It was quite depressing, really. She was useless. "Useless, useless, useless!" Tamara jumped. That hadn't been her! And she didn't recognise the voice from anyone else in the village either.. "These stupid shoes they gave me don't keep the water out! My feet are drenched! Ugh." it was a man's voice. The steps were coming closer and closer, while Tamara was more and more frightened. Who was that? What did he want? Was he dangerous? What would he do? She backed up against a tree.
All of a sudden, a man came into view. He wore a red plaid shirt, simple brown pants, and a loose belt was around his hips. His unblemished face was scrunched up in annoyance, and despite the damp weather, his blond hair was perfectly combed back. He looked up sharply when he noticed Tamara. "Are you one of those idiot villagers who give me secondhand clothes with holes and that stink?" he asked haughtily. Tamara, hands on hips, suddenly was no scared anymore. "How dare you! I'll let you know that I never let any of my clothes get holes, and that I wash them every day!" she spitted, face reddening. The man raised his eyebrows in mock surprise and lifted his hands, as if to ward off an incoming attack. "Hey, hey, no need to get your breeches in a bunch! I see you're a civilised person, no need to kill me." Tamara took a deep breath to calm herself- this man's attitude was fast getting on her nerves. (she didn't think that possibly, this was how she also behaved at times)
When she had calmed down, Tamara talked again. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" she asked. The man stood straight. "My name is Xzavier Findlow." he told her haughtily. "And I came here looking for a civilized village to take me in." Tamara tilted her head. "Well, not everyone in my village is civilized, but there's always the elves, and me. The dwarves and Hobbits are completely horrible, I mean, they love drinking and swearing, except for Bargas, he's a weird Dwarf. Myriam is also quite civilized." Xzavier regarded his options. It was this or leaving again for an indefinite amount of time without anyone to talk to. "Bring me to your leader then." he ordered, which made Tamara angry once more. And he hadn't even asked her name!
~~~
It was later in the evening, after dinner. The new people had been settled in (most people stayed clear of Xzavier- he wasn't the most pleasant of fellows) and it was time for the youngest members of the village to go to bed. "Rhys! Arun! Time to go to bed!" Zaos called, going after the two boys. "I don't want to!" Rhys yelled, running away from his father. Zaos, after a while, realized that the kid easily evaded him and stopped running. He took on a deep and angry voice now. "Rhys, Arun, if you don't come to sleep now, you will be forbidden from leaving your room until after lunch tomorrow!" he shouted. Rhys was now a little less cocky. "But daaaaad, its useless to sleep! I'm not tired! Why do we need to sleep?" Zaos rolled his eyes. "Because otherwise you'll be tired tomorrow and won't be able to do anything. Now come to bed." he scolded. "But I'm not tired." Rhys mumbled. But he wasn't running away now, and let his father catch up to him.
"Now, if I may interrupt... I believe Rhys has asked a question. Why do we have to sleep?" Zaos whirled around to see who had spoken. It was Almtrude, leaning on her cane and smoking pipe. "It's simple. We get tired. We sleep." Zaos growled. He didn't like Almtrude particularly, and he didn't want her to interrupt with his parenting. "Well, according to legend, there is a deeper reason to it than just this... Would you like to hear it?" Rhys and Arun nodded quickly. Zaos was about to interrupt, but a hand laid itself on his shoulder: it was Laedrya, who had left the nursery and was carrying baby Lyra in her arms. "Oh, I'm curious to hear it too." Almtrude grinned. "Then come join me by the fire, and let's hear a story." she said in her wheezy voice, and made her way to the center fire.
All villagers had gathered around. Almtrude, though she didn't show it, was beyond happy: this was what she loved doing. "A long time ago, when the dwarves and the humans had not met yet and before we slept, spirits lived alongside us. You could see them, whisps of color, in every corner, up in trees, hidden in dark caves. Any living being who came in contact with those spirits would have their heads filled with strange visions, sometimes from the future, sometimes from the past, but also senseless images only there to scare or interest us. There were many spirits, and they were everywhere all day, all night. Too many people touched them, too many people were confused and sometimes lost their minds when the visions became too much. This was threatening everyone, for no-one wanted to go down and mine anymore, no-one was ready to cut wood, for fear that a spirit would fall on their heads. The dwarves would soon run out of food... And die."
As she said that last sentence, another sound joined her voice.. A sound of mandola. Almtrude looked, and it was Jaymes, sitting on a log by the fire, who had taken his mandola out and had played to accompany her. Almtrude smiled at him, and continued her tale. "There was one young Dwarf woman, named Omilía. She was a great diplomat, and had reunited many opposing clans, even at her young age. She was worried about the spirit situation. One day, when she saw her own father become mad because of the spirits, she decided to take action. She left on a trip to find the leader of the spirits, their King. She knew it would be dangerous and no small task; but she trusted in her own skills enough to think she could do it." still accompanying her, Jaymes' mandola struck some dark chords, giving everyone a small shiver.
"After thee days of nonstop travel and asking spirits where their king was, Omilía finally arrived at the entrance of a dark and forbidding cave." the music was now hushed, with only a few deep notes. As Almtrude looked around, she saw every listener hanging at her lips. "Though scared, Omilía went inside. Here, there was no other spirit except for one very large one at the end of the cave. The spirit was black, letting no light touch it. When Omilía entered, the spirit didn't move. After a while, Omilía knew what she had to do: she stretched out her hand and touched the spirit."
Almtrude paused for effect. Then, her voice dark, she continued. "Instead of seeing senseless visions, Omilía felt a presence inside her mind. It was the spirit, and it talked to her. "Who are you?" it asked. "I an Omilía, a Dwarf from the Iron clan. I come to you because if your spirits do not stop what they do right now, my people and all other dwarves will die." at that, the spirit laughed. "What should we care if you dwarves and humans die out? We can have the world to ourselves then." Omilía shook her head. "But spirits enjoy filing through our minds and memories, don't they? If we die out, you will never be able to do this." There was a long silence when Omilía said that. Then, the spirit king growled, a growl that shook the cave and made Omilía shiver. "Alright then, dwarf. I will hear you out."
Omilía knew that she had one shot at this. If she didn't convince the king, she could well die. "My people cannot live with spirits there constantly, who confuse them during their work and drive them mad. But your spirits enjoy doing this. So I propose to split the time in half. When the sun is out and my people can see better, your spirits must retreat and leave us alone. When the sun sets and darkness falls however, my people must relax and lie down, letting the spirits in their minds as much as they want to. Your spirits must not harm them, but if my people rest, they will not become crazy." after finishing her little speech, Omilía fell silent, awaiting anxiously the spirit's answer. "This way, both sides would have what they want.. Very well, dwarf. I accept your proposition. I will withdraw my spirits when the sun beats down, but as soon as it has fallen.. Your people must let the spirits in. Otherwise.. We will come back during the day."
Omilía was extremely relieved. She nodded, promising she would keep her end of the contract. Then, she withdrew her hand and made her way back to her clan. As the spirit King had promised, there were none to be seen at the moment." the music coming from the mandola had become lighter, and the people listening seemed relieved, leaning back a little. "When she arrived back at her village, she explained the contract to everyone, and they were all happy to oblige. Their nights were populated by strange visions now, sometimes full of meaning but sometimes senseless: those are dreams. But their days were calm, and they could easily work on mining, on cutting trees and getting the food they needed. Thus ends my story."
Almtrude sat down and took a long breath of her pipe as the people around her clapped loudly. The mandola had stopped. "Thank you so much for the story, Almtrude. And you too, Jaymes!" Myriam exclaimed, looking at both. "This was a magical moment." Aaron agreed, his arm around Hilda's shoulders. "We should definitely do this more often." Rovi added. Then, the villagers settled into a comfortable silence, everyone thinking about the story they had just heard. Almtrude was smiling. Rhys and Arun were falling asleep on their fathers lap. Zaos stroked their hair absentmindedly, a small distracted smile on his face. Pantaleon, sitting next to Myriam, was feeling sleepy too. His head slowly started falling to the side, more and more- until it leaned against Myriam's shoulder. The leader, though surprised at first, smiled and let him sleep that way.
(Cyrrane was missing 3 1/2 servings this post
Cantaloupe is blooming!
Barthelemy is sick (1 more post)
Arun and Rhys are now Testers!
Rhys is testing healing with Joan
Arun is testing gathering with Tamara
Hilda is giving birth!!
Joan is helping Hilda give birth (roll for KP)
Myriam going to the ancestors shrine and requests a miner
Almtrude, Jaymes and Rovi scout
Aaron, Nayah, Zaos and Marya hunt
Pantaleon, Bargas and Alkhas hunt
Tamara and Xzavier gather)
Head Chief:
Myriam Sheherezad | 30 | Female | Human
↪ ST-D7 / HC-5 / HS-HW / EC-A6 / X
Healer:
Joan Helend | 22 | Female | Human | 3 KP
↪ ST-D11 / HC-11 / HS-HC / EC-E6 / Y
War Chief:
Zaos Faelen | 35 | Male | Elf
↪ ST-E3 / HC-1 / HS-LC / EC-A6 / X
Warriors:
Rovi Wild | 30 | Male | Human
↪ ST - C11 / HS - LC / HC - 1 / EC - H6 / X
Marya Ward | 25 | Female | Human
↪ ST - C3 / HS - LC / HC - 12 / EC - F7 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Scout Chief:
Almtrude Lightfoot | 54 | Female | Dwarf
↪ ST - C7 / HS - HC / HC - 53 / EC - A11 / Y
Scouts:
Pantaleon Brown (and Zacharius) | 30 | Male | Hobbit
↪ ST-C5 / HC-23 / HS-S / EC-H7 / X
Jaymes Weitzman | 20 | Male | Human
↪ ST - B2 / HS - S / HC - 18 / EC - C7 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Hunting Chief:
Aaron Crawford | 38 | Male | Human
↪ ST-C3 / HC-53 / HS-S / EC-D7 / X
Hunters:
Hilda Bronzemane | 34 | Female | Dwarf
↪ ST-D6 / HC-5 / HS-HW / EC-A2 / X
Bargas Fireaxe | 23 | Male | Dwarf
↪ ST - B5 / HS - HC / HC - 22 / EC - A7 / X
Alkhas Ennaer | 21 | Male | Elf
↪ ST - A5 / HS - LC / HC - 18 / EC - C10 / X
Nayah Aidjii | 18 | Female | Human
↪ ST - F8 / HS - S / HC - 40 / EC - E3 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Miners:
Name | Age | Gender | [url=link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Name | Age | Gender | [url=link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Gatherers:
Laedrya Faelen | 33 | Female | Elf
↪ ST-A11 / HC-24 / HS-LC / EC-D7 / X
Tamara Milner | 24 | Female | Human
↪ ST - F4 / HS - AC / HC - 22 / EC - G9 / X
Xzavier Findlow | 32 | Male | Human
↪ ST-G6 | HC-11 | HS-LC | EC-B11 | Y
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Apprentices:
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Testers:
Arun Faelen | 8 | Male | Elf
↪ ST - E3 / HS - HC / HC - 1 / EC - E2 / Y
Rhys Faelen | 8 | Male | Elf
↪ ST - E3 / HS - LC / HC - 26 / EC - E9 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Mothers:
Laedrya Faelen | 33 | Female | Elf
↪ ST-A11 / HC-24 / HS-LC / EC-D7 / X
Hilda Bronzemane | 34 | Female | Dwarf
↪ ST-D6 / HC-5 / HS-HW / EC-A2 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Children:
Lyra Faelen | 1 | Female | Elf
↪ ST - E3 / HS - LC / HC - 1 / EC - A6 / X
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Ancients:
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Name | Age | Gender | [url=image link]Race[/url]
↪ here
Ally Villages:
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Enemy Villages:
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Borders:
North | Forest and a river | Black Rock Weyr | Simonpet
East | Forest | Adularia | Darkhearted123
South | Forest | Village Name | Username
West | Lake | Village Name | Username
Food Storage:
(16 1/2 servings every post)
Deer | x0 | 0 servings (l)
Boar | x0 | 0 servings (m)
Hare | x4 | 4 servings (s) (used up)
Bovine | x1 | 6 servings (l) (used up)
Carrots | x0 | 0 servings (m)
Potatoes | x0 | 0 servings (m)
Mushrooms | x0 | 0 servings (s)
Apples | x0 | 0 servings (m)
Blueberries | x2 | 2 servings (s) (used up)
Cantaloupe | x0 | 0 servings (l)
+4x mice(used up)
Total: 0 servings left | 0 years
Items:
Copper x1 | not used | Not perishable
Iron Sword x1 | not used | 2 uses
Item Name | in use/ not used | When it will Perish
Pets:
Barthelemy | Housecat | 5 years | Male | Looks (has bred once)
Cunegonde | Half wild/housecat | 1 years | Female | Looks (has bred once)
Murdoch | Half wild/housecat | 0 years | Male | Looks
Gertrude | Half wild/housecat | 0 years | Female | Looks
Pet Name | Type of Animal | Age | Gender | [url=link]Looks[/url]
Testings:
All (minimum age requirement): Healing (8), Gathering (8), Scouting (9), War (10), Hunting (10), Mining (10), Leading (11)
Rhys | 0/7 | /
Arun | 0/7 | /
Child | 0/7 | what they did
Mentors:
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions |
↪ learned
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions |
↪ learned
Deceased:
Name | Cause of Death
Name | Cause of Death
Crushes:
Myriam <-> Pantaleon
Bargas <-> Alkhas
Tamara <-> Xzavier
Name ->/<-> Name
Families:
Zaos and Laedrya | Arun+Rhys (adopted)+ Lyra
Aaron and Hilda | Kids
Name and Name | Kids
![[Lynx]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Lynx_lynx_%28geypa%29-cropped.jpg){kind=link}
![[auklet]](https://live.staticflickr.com/362/19007214970_eb96158162_b.jpg){kind=link}
