Masur of As'lin :: The Radiant Obsidian
Posted: Sat Oct 02, 2021 4:10 pm
Trouble averted at the Sarge's Apple Orchard, and new bonds forged to last lifetimes. Dalton, the Sarge's reluctant, but pragmatic, son promised to bring new life to his father's ailing business after the rather unfortunate betrayals our heroes were able to thwart. The power of the mysterious painting was a sight to behold, even for an old dragon like the Seeker and his eternal Pearl. If it had fallen to the wrong hands, as it would have without Masur's intervention, the world would be a much worst place.
"Your quick deduction skills saved us once more wife. Without you, I'd be a dog chasing his own tail." Masur sang happily to the woman perched perfectly on his broad shoulder as they strolled the rocky cliff sides of the balmy south towards new adventure. Encroaching ever so closely to that kingdom in the mountain range Odea had briefly spoken of before. Even more pressing, however, they drew closer to the Labyrinth of Radiant Obsidian, their intended goal.
"A dragon finding the same treasure." She corrected, patting his head and stroking his hair in just the way he liked. He smiled even more.
Dalton, and his new companion, the 'spirit of the painting,' shared some enlightening insight about Masur's and Odea's quest. After discovering the true nature of the mysterious painting and how to negate its distorting influence, the spirit, whose name Masur and Odea conveniently forgot to ask, revealed itself to Dalton and communed with him. Uniting them in body and soul in a way that wasn't too dissimilar from how Masur and Odea were united way back in their youth. With this, Dalton was capable of viewing the future with the aid of the spirit through the medium of the painting. Usually by painting the images in saw in his otherworldly visions, his hands guided deftly by his spirit companion.
In the lands deeper south than the orchard there was a cavern of darkness.He painted the interior, with streaks of purple light and a large crystal tablet. He couldn't make out the words for they were far more ancient than even the tongue of his spirit guide. Still, resting behind the large crystal tablet was monumental stonework obelisk. It was circular in design and lined with distinctly ornate runic carving that seemed intrinsic to it's operation. Before he could share anymore, the spirit left him and returned to the painting. No doubt to give Dalton the time he needed to rest before attempting another vision quest, such as it was.
Masur was happy with just that information. Though simple, this information was crucial to Masur, giving him more direction towards his ultimate goal than he'd had in many morning skies. Dalton didn't know, couldn't in fact, but he'd told Masur and Odea where they might be able to locate a 'Gate.' Or what Masur had taken to calling the massive stone monuments to civilizations past. He was unaware of what they were called in their respective cultures, but he knew they all function almost innately the same and assumed the knowledge of them had come from the same source.
It wouldn't be long now, Masur thought, as he vaulted over daunting valleys that would send a lesser warrior plunging to their deaths with any slight misstep or miscalculation. Masur, with Odea along on his shoulder, navigated the gaps effortlessly, touching the ground with the gracefulness of a dancer before taking off with the power of a beast of his station, and the control of an old master. One of his favored pastime, in youth, had been scaling the mountains of his homeland and attempting to clear the peaks. It became a much easier task to accomplish when he had the metaphysical gifts promised to him from his decades of training under his grandfather.
He tried not to scare his wife too much, no acrobatic tricks to be seen this time, but as her grip tightened around his head and against his arm, he slowed his pace slightly, "Don't look down, darling, it always scares you." Even in sword form, Odea couldn't handle the lofty heights that Masur's fights could escalate to, so crossing deep valleys wasn't her favorite either. Her glare was all the wordless response he needed to chuckle at her nervousness. He found it one of the most adorable things about her.
Before she knew it, Masur was landing on the most isolated cliff on this side of the valley. He placed Odea down on solid ground, a fact of which she happily appreciated, and searched around to get a quick survey of the area. If he squinted, Masur could swear that he could see where he and Jae had had their scuffle not but a Vescrutian month or so ago. They'd added a new cliff-side cavern above the murky depths of the Obsidian Abyss.
Odea stepped up to Masur side, clinging lightly to his arm as she too peeked over the edge, "The Abyss stares back," The Obsidian Abyss was a 'small' ocean nestled deep in the tropical south's scarce but no more less impressive mountain ranges. If one didn't know where they were going, they knew they'd found the secret waters once they peered into the deep, almost black waters. No light shined through the depths, leading to its moniker, and it was believed by locals, and others who'd visited, that this sea, though small, was probably the deepest of any body of water on the Queen Mother's surface.
"Your quick deduction skills saved us once more wife. Without you, I'd be a dog chasing his own tail." Masur sang happily to the woman perched perfectly on his broad shoulder as they strolled the rocky cliff sides of the balmy south towards new adventure. Encroaching ever so closely to that kingdom in the mountain range Odea had briefly spoken of before. Even more pressing, however, they drew closer to the Labyrinth of Radiant Obsidian, their intended goal.
"A dragon finding the same treasure." She corrected, patting his head and stroking his hair in just the way he liked. He smiled even more.
Dalton, and his new companion, the 'spirit of the painting,' shared some enlightening insight about Masur's and Odea's quest. After discovering the true nature of the mysterious painting and how to negate its distorting influence, the spirit, whose name Masur and Odea conveniently forgot to ask, revealed itself to Dalton and communed with him. Uniting them in body and soul in a way that wasn't too dissimilar from how Masur and Odea were united way back in their youth. With this, Dalton was capable of viewing the future with the aid of the spirit through the medium of the painting. Usually by painting the images in saw in his otherworldly visions, his hands guided deftly by his spirit companion.
In the lands deeper south than the orchard there was a cavern of darkness.He painted the interior, with streaks of purple light and a large crystal tablet. He couldn't make out the words for they were far more ancient than even the tongue of his spirit guide. Still, resting behind the large crystal tablet was monumental stonework obelisk. It was circular in design and lined with distinctly ornate runic carving that seemed intrinsic to it's operation. Before he could share anymore, the spirit left him and returned to the painting. No doubt to give Dalton the time he needed to rest before attempting another vision quest, such as it was.
Masur was happy with just that information. Though simple, this information was crucial to Masur, giving him more direction towards his ultimate goal than he'd had in many morning skies. Dalton didn't know, couldn't in fact, but he'd told Masur and Odea where they might be able to locate a 'Gate.' Or what Masur had taken to calling the massive stone monuments to civilizations past. He was unaware of what they were called in their respective cultures, but he knew they all function almost innately the same and assumed the knowledge of them had come from the same source.
It wouldn't be long now, Masur thought, as he vaulted over daunting valleys that would send a lesser warrior plunging to their deaths with any slight misstep or miscalculation. Masur, with Odea along on his shoulder, navigated the gaps effortlessly, touching the ground with the gracefulness of a dancer before taking off with the power of a beast of his station, and the control of an old master. One of his favored pastime, in youth, had been scaling the mountains of his homeland and attempting to clear the peaks. It became a much easier task to accomplish when he had the metaphysical gifts promised to him from his decades of training under his grandfather.
He tried not to scare his wife too much, no acrobatic tricks to be seen this time, but as her grip tightened around his head and against his arm, he slowed his pace slightly, "Don't look down, darling, it always scares you." Even in sword form, Odea couldn't handle the lofty heights that Masur's fights could escalate to, so crossing deep valleys wasn't her favorite either. Her glare was all the wordless response he needed to chuckle at her nervousness. He found it one of the most adorable things about her.
Before she knew it, Masur was landing on the most isolated cliff on this side of the valley. He placed Odea down on solid ground, a fact of which she happily appreciated, and searched around to get a quick survey of the area. If he squinted, Masur could swear that he could see where he and Jae had had their scuffle not but a Vescrutian month or so ago. They'd added a new cliff-side cavern above the murky depths of the Obsidian Abyss.
Odea stepped up to Masur side, clinging lightly to his arm as she too peeked over the edge, "The Abyss stares back," The Obsidian Abyss was a 'small' ocean nestled deep in the tropical south's scarce but no more less impressive mountain ranges. If one didn't know where they were going, they knew they'd found the secret waters once they peered into the deep, almost black waters. No light shined through the depths, leading to its moniker, and it was believed by locals, and others who'd visited, that this sea, though small, was probably the deepest of any body of water on the Queen Mother's surface.