"Is this what it's like, to see futures, and be unable to act directly?"
These are the first words you hear from Chief Rasteek when you and Uryun enter the long tent. They aren't directly at you. Or at anyone here. Instead, as you see the large Orc sitting on a large oak log, you can see him staring into a small fire.
(Perception Roll: 13)
(Religion Roll: 7)
Without even a word, you kneel before the fire. You're unsure what exactly the old chief sees, or what it means. But you've learned that when dealing with the otherworldly, he knows far more than you do.
So you and Uryun wait on bended knees, as the smoke rises through the hole in the roof. You can see green lines pour away from him in all directions, towards every member of the tribe. You quickly find the one connecting him to you. Another, right next to yours, links him to the Warmaster.
For what seems like an eternity, the crackling of flame seems to be the only noise. Then, Rasteek speaks.
"I'm sorry, Ancestor."
For a moment, you're dumbfounded. Sorry? Sorry for what? And why is he calling you Ancestor? Obviously, the confusion must be obvious on your face, for he continues. "The Yeahani showed me what happened to you. To just leave you like that…" He pauses, obviously disturbed by what was probably a vision. "As for the other matter, I think you remember Mumalik's teachings."
"Of course." You reply, reflecting back on the teachings one of your favorite elders taught you. "'And when we pass from life to death, we become ancestors to our living…." You stop, as you see where the old chief is going with this. You died, thus becoming an Ancestor. "But wait. I'm undead now!"
Rasteek shrugs. "Our teaching gives no distinction on that. You were not raised back to life, thus you are still an Ancestor. You deserve the proper reverence, if nothing else." A quick raise of a meaty hand silences your next protest. "And being committed to your new Goddess does not prevent that either. I can think of at least three ancestors who followed other gods. They still provide wisdom to the tribe even now."
"You're not going to win this, Ancestor." Uryun says with a smile. "And hey, you're an undead Ancestor! You get the best of both worlds!"
You sigh and nod your acceptance. "You're right, as always. But I swear if someone starts bowing to me, I'm going to yell at someone for it." Then the slight joviality leaves as you turn your mind back to the situation at hand. "Then you saw what happened…"
Rasteek nods. "Yes. Unfortunately, I did." With that, he stands up and heads towards one of the nearby tables. You and Uryun do likewise. "It happened just as Salki suggested might happen."
Uryun eyebrows raise up immediately at that. "Yeah, but we all knew that when we accepted the two into the tribe. Their burdens would become ours."
"And it's not like they flaunted their natures to everyone." You replied. Whenever you took Gelathaelle and Zelatora with you, they changed their shape to look like humans. Well, sometimes they took an Orc or Elven look. But almost never as their angelic or devilish selves unless they were in the privacy of their own igloo. "And nobody ever spoke a word to any outsider."
"Your orders." Uryun confirmed.
Rasteek thought for a moment, before grabbing a rolled up parchment. "True. And yet, here we are." He quickly rolls it open, revealing it to be a map of the local area. "The Yeaheni is also very offended by the intrusion by the Outer Planes." Rasteek replies, as he rolls open a map. "And she will not accept the loss of an entire tribe over petty reasons. But even with that, she cannot directly act against them on the Material Plane."
"The Bindings." Uryun replies, looking over the map. Then he looks up as surprise crosses his face. "Wait, isn't showing you possible futures breaking the Binding of the Left Wing?"
(Religion: 17)
"Don't the Bindings naturally loosen when the tribes of Atosennim are in danger?" You respond, a memory from your father coming to your forefront. One binding for each tribe. You remember being told about the last time the Bindings of Wisdom were completely unloosed, and how far the Wise Bird would go to protect the region.
Rasteek grabbed a small red token, and put it about a foot away from where you recognize the tribe's current location. "Nobody wants that. Including her. But she is, above all else, intelligent in her planning."
Another token, this time a white one, is placed a few inches behind the red one. "For example, you will not face the forces of the Outer Planes alone. Already some are preparing to join you to get what was stolen from us." Then a small smirk arises on his face, as he pokes the white token an inch eastward. "Though they don't know it yet."
Already, your mind is on overdrive on who could be joining you. There are plenty of people who know Gelathaelle and Zelatora, and would easily take up arms if you asked them. But at the same time, you can't take too many people with you. That would put the tribe at risk at the worst possible time. "And what about the rest of the tribe?"
"As soon as we're done here, I'm going to give the order to pack up camp" With that, he takes a blue token, and puts it at the edge of the map, before grabbing more red and white tokens. "We will head to Luaptnias, where the Yeaheni can protect us."
Both you and Uryan look at his chief with shock. "Luaptnias?" Uryan says first. "Chief, with all due respect, that's a pretty dangerous journey to take the entire tribe on. I can't guarantee the tribe's safety."
"I understand that." Rasteek says, quickly placing more and more tokens on the map, almost at random. "But I've been shown the other fates. If we stay, we perish in a week's time. If we call for help, we'd last longer, but we'd eventually all be overrun. She can hide us if we make it to the mountain" Before you can respond with an idea, the elderly Orc looks over to you. "And somehow, we get overwhelmed by a horde of angels if Evening Glory tries to assist us."
You don't blink. Mainly because you can't anymore. But you had just thought about asking your patron to help. "You've seen the results."
The last of the tokens are placed around the map, before making a sweeping gesture towards it. "There is one safe path for the tribe."
You and Uryun look at the map, and all the red and white tokens that litter it. Uryan gets it first. "These are where the patrols are, aren't they?"
"Where they will be." Rasteek corrects. "As long as we keep to the path, the tribe endures."
--
Within the next 24-48 hours, the Tanuti will be headed for Luaptnias, to hide under the Bound Wings of the Yeahani. You may choose any number of events that you may take part in before the Tanuti head out. The top 3 will be selected. Each of these options will provide benefits, though not all of them may make the character sheet or be immediate in their effects. Any companions you gain for your quest are completely loyal as long as you treat them well.
[] A band of warriors are heading out to where a group of survivors are supposed to be holed up. Naturally, with your current ability to kill devils dead, you offered to help…
[] You knelt inside the Unahark's igloo, your Beacon floating in front of you. You need to know more about Evening Glory. About what you are capable of doing. And how you're actually supposed to complete this task.
[] You packed up your stuff. You may not be back for quite a while, so you'd rather have all of your things prepared. Traps, cages, glue, everything a trapper needs. Plus all your general equipment. Of course, you didn't expect who would greet you there...
[] Warmaster Uryun has come to you with a request. Apparently, Salki was supposed to watch the children you saw, but was nowhere to be seen. He wants to confront her, and he's got a feeling that just won't go away…
[] You went before the Shamans of the tribe, and had an interesting conversation on your magic, how undeath fits in the nature of the world, and how to find your favorite smokeleaf.
[] One of the injured warriors has been infected by an angelic weapon. He was afraid to die after just his first taste of combat, and begged you to make him undead like you are. And so one became two… (You must have talked with Evening Glory or the Tribe Shamans to select this option)
[] A coutal appears before you, but not to fight. He was once a friend of Gelathaelle, and does not want to see her suffer in the Seorsum Arternum. He's taking an awfully big risk coming down here…
[] You did not expect to see this devil again. But the one who helped kill you and took Zelatora is currently standing before you, a smirk on his face. But he's not looking for a fight. He's already killed you once, and the laws on the Prohibited Union don't mention anything about killing you again. In fact, he's willing to cut a deal…
[] Okay, these children were really interested in you not having eyes. So you played with them for a bit so their parents could get ready. You didn't expect this to lead to what happened next.
[] Some traders came in at the last second. And apparently, they've somehow gotten wind of the tribe's plight and want to profit on it. Looks like you're back to your old habits of scaring them shitless…
[] ...aaaaaaaand it's already started. One of the more religious members of the tribe has just started bowing down and offering you gifts for your wisdom. You should probably do something about this before it spreads.
