Scify
It always starts with a lighthouse.
Cheshire cats are known to be readily blown about by the wind...
Itinerant: A Pilgrim Quest
6.3 Hospitality Is Only For The Deserving
Gargulec
impact!
- Location
- a garden
Late update, stop. Agree, stop. Short update, apology, apology, apology! It will get better. I hope. In any case, the ragged and sporadic quality of the updates as of late is a consequence of university work piling up. Well, I'll power through. On to the update!
Finding no fault in the doctrine preached by the two wise peasants, you agreed with them eagerly. And with that, some of the dread that afflicted you was lifted, although not entirely; in spite of being surrounded by peace and good company, you could not feel entirely at ease, nor cease wondering what happened in those times that you could not remember. However, seeing that you were still glum, they attempted to cheer you up further with drinks and merry stories, at which they excelled, and the rest of the day passed away quickly.
You arrived at the monastery before the ninth hour, and were received by the gatekeeper, who took the tribute from the farmers, and then offered them a place to rest for night. There were many travellers who sought to find that monastery, in spite of its great remoteness, as it was very famous for the many relics that were held within it, and therefore the hospice in it was always prepared to host many guests. However, they declined, claiming that they are not worthy of sleeping under such a saintly roof, and that instead they will take the comfort of their cart, under the sky that was made peaceful by the good grace of the Saints. The gatekeeper blessed them, and turned to you, inquiring about your purpose, and you explained to him that you were a pilgrim travelling to the holy city of Step.
However, upon noticing that you carry with yourself a shield and a weapon, and also that a scar marred your face, the gatekeeper barred you from entering the walls of the monastery, saying that to him, you appear a brigand, or perhaps a worse creature, for you are a woman at arms, bearing marks of battle, and yet professing herself to be a pilgrim, in spite of laws being enacted by various holy councils that forbade it to females to make pilgrimages such as yours.
Finally, he took note of the sign that was on your shield, and called it very ill-boding, and perhaps an indication that you were in fact a servant to the Malefactors, for a lynx is not a saintly beast; it lives in the deep woods and is very ferocious, and unlike the wolf, it cannot be made to serve, and it does not provide any goods, but is rather a danger to the hunters and a pest on the shepherds.
With all that considered, he declared that as it was his duty to receive guests, he would not open the gates for you, as he was confident you were in truth a danger, and perhaps worse yet, a temptress. And for saying that, he should not be blamed; it was well known among those learned that the Malefactors preferred the guise of the female, and there were also many devils who took such forms, all the better to deceive the men of good religion, and lead them astray from the saintly law.
[Rebel] However, his words and actions stirred your rebellious nature, and before he could shut the gates before you, you made an argument in your favour, to show him that he was in the wrong, and treated you both unfairly and in a manner that was not pleasing to the Saints. The gatekeeper balked at your words, but recognizing that you would not be as easily rebuked pledged to carry the news of your arrival to the abbot himself, so that he could judge by himself whether to allow you in; and he bade you wait by the gates until such a time that he could be consulted.
Before he left to do as he declared, you…
[ ] …asked him to tell the abbot that…
[ ] …pledged that you will not leave the gate until you are admitted.
[ ] …asked that instead of being admitted, you could make do with some supplies and directions, if they did not want to receive you.
6.3 Hospitality Is Only For The Deserving
Finding no fault in the doctrine preached by the two wise peasants, you agreed with them eagerly. And with that, some of the dread that afflicted you was lifted, although not entirely; in spite of being surrounded by peace and good company, you could not feel entirely at ease, nor cease wondering what happened in those times that you could not remember. However, seeing that you were still glum, they attempted to cheer you up further with drinks and merry stories, at which they excelled, and the rest of the day passed away quickly.
You arrived at the monastery before the ninth hour, and were received by the gatekeeper, who took the tribute from the farmers, and then offered them a place to rest for night. There were many travellers who sought to find that monastery, in spite of its great remoteness, as it was very famous for the many relics that were held within it, and therefore the hospice in it was always prepared to host many guests. However, they declined, claiming that they are not worthy of sleeping under such a saintly roof, and that instead they will take the comfort of their cart, under the sky that was made peaceful by the good grace of the Saints. The gatekeeper blessed them, and turned to you, inquiring about your purpose, and you explained to him that you were a pilgrim travelling to the holy city of Step.
However, upon noticing that you carry with yourself a shield and a weapon, and also that a scar marred your face, the gatekeeper barred you from entering the walls of the monastery, saying that to him, you appear a brigand, or perhaps a worse creature, for you are a woman at arms, bearing marks of battle, and yet professing herself to be a pilgrim, in spite of laws being enacted by various holy councils that forbade it to females to make pilgrimages such as yours.
Finally, he took note of the sign that was on your shield, and called it very ill-boding, and perhaps an indication that you were in fact a servant to the Malefactors, for a lynx is not a saintly beast; it lives in the deep woods and is very ferocious, and unlike the wolf, it cannot be made to serve, and it does not provide any goods, but is rather a danger to the hunters and a pest on the shepherds.
With all that considered, he declared that as it was his duty to receive guests, he would not open the gates for you, as he was confident you were in truth a danger, and perhaps worse yet, a temptress. And for saying that, he should not be blamed; it was well known among those learned that the Malefactors preferred the guise of the female, and there were also many devils who took such forms, all the better to deceive the men of good religion, and lead them astray from the saintly law.
[Rebel] However, his words and actions stirred your rebellious nature, and before he could shut the gates before you, you made an argument in your favour, to show him that he was in the wrong, and treated you both unfairly and in a manner that was not pleasing to the Saints. The gatekeeper balked at your words, but recognizing that you would not be as easily rebuked pledged to carry the news of your arrival to the abbot himself, so that he could judge by himself whether to allow you in; and he bade you wait by the gates until such a time that he could be consulted.
Before he left to do as he declared, you…
[ ] …asked him to tell the abbot that…
[ ] …to deny hospitality to a stranger is to deny a Saint in disguise.
[ ] …that was the Saints put in motion may no mortal hand stop.
[ ] …that you were blessed by Gresius, the bishop of the city of Grace.
[ ] …said nothing, leaving the judgment to the good graces of the abbot and the protection of the Saints.[ ] …that was the Saints put in motion may no mortal hand stop.
[ ] …that you were blessed by Gresius, the bishop of the city of Grace.
[ ] …pledged that you will not leave the gate until you are admitted.
[ ] …asked that instead of being admitted, you could make do with some supplies and directions, if they did not want to receive you.
- Location
- Upon the back of the Great A'Tuin
Could we ask him to remember the teachings of Saint Nebridius?
From the feast:
Edit: [X] Remind him of the teachings of Saint Nebridius
From the feast:
Edit: [X] Remind him of the teachings of Saint Nebridius
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- Location
- scrabbling
[X] Remind him of the teachings of Saint Nebridius
- Location
- St. Petersburg
ORLY? Lynx fur is one of the most luxurious goods, on par with that of a sable. Also, lynx meat is very soft and comparable to veal in its qualities. Some places served it as a delicacy.
Though I admit, as a cat lover, I find the thought of killing such a magnificent - and affectionate - animal quite infuriating. Neither I find myself very eager to press the point, seeing how we took the name after it.
Good catch, Mr Apollo!
[X] Remind him of the teachings of Saint Nebridius
Hmm, the monastery is famous for its relics, huh? Might be worth taking a look - maybe they have something from our patron as well.
I also wonder why the peasants declined their hospitality. Find it hard to believe someone who isn't a total ascetic would prefer a cart over a place under a roof.
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Gargulec
impact!
- Location
- a garden
Don't forget that they piss gems.
Isidorus said:
Yes, that is from a period source.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
...they don't have a lot of lynxes over there, do they?
I mean, it's the kind of legend one would have about some rare and elusive beast - a unicorn or something - not about animals that you routinely hunt. No one tells those tales about hares or squirrels... or do they?
There are superstitions about miraculous properties of meat and bodyparts of animals (like, say, tigers), but anyone seeking to turn a profit off lynx excrements would be in for a disappointment. The legend would have been disproven rather shortly if the lynxes were plentiful.
I mean, it's the kind of legend one would have about some rare and elusive beast - a unicorn or something - not about animals that you routinely hunt. No one tells those tales about hares or squirrels... or do they?
There are superstitions about miraculous properties of meat and bodyparts of animals (like, say, tigers), but anyone seeking to turn a profit off lynx excrements would be in for a disappointment.
The legend would have been disproven rather shortly if the lynxes were plentiful.
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Gargulec
impact!
- Location
- a garden
Yet another PSA: Due to an influx of university work, and also a side order of various personal stresses, I will be again taking a few days off from updating the quest. Service should restart as usual on Wednesday. I will be using this time to regenerate, plot ahead, and catch up with other obligations, which are, alas, more important than running the quest. I apologize immensely for that, and hope you will bear with me through another break.
Individual people don't tend to travel very far, even if they have lynxes in their country odds are the typical person never got close enough to see them pee....they don't have a lot of lynxes over there, do they?
I mean, it's the kind of legend one would have about some rare and elusive beast - a unicorn or something - not about animals that you routinely hunt. No one tells those tales about hares or squirrels... or do they?
There are superstitions about miraculous properties of meat and bodyparts of animals (like, say, tigers), but anyone seeking to turn a profit off lynx excrements would be in for a disappointment.
6.4 The Abbot, the Pilgrim, the Monster
Gargulec
impact!
- Location
- a garden
We back in it! I apologize for the delay being longer than planned, there were several reasons behind that, from solid ones, to ones called "ohmygodtyrannyfinallycameout". Let's not speak about it. Although I must say that the daily schedule is something I want to maintain, but I will not be doing it religiously - I have a fair bit of university and out of university work piled up, which sadly will end up eating a lot of my quest-writing time. Also, I kind of wrote myself into a corner a few updated ago, and struggled to recover. But hey. Water under the bridge. Let's go.
Unto the obstinate gatekeeper, who would refuse you the hospitality that was due to all who ward the holy sites, you spoke about the teachings of Saint Nebridius, once explained to you at lengths by a certain holy man that you had met on your way, but whose name you could not find in the vault of your memory.
Shamed by his actions, the gatekeeper did as he promised, but already knowing that the abbot would lend ear rather to the words of the Saint than to the decrees of sinful men, he did not bar you from entrance any longer, and allowed you into the abbey without delay, while he himself went on to inform the abbot of your presence.
Although from the outside, the walls that surrounded the monastery appeared very might and hard-hewn, you had presently noticed that within, there were multiple signs of disrepair and decay. Chief of them was as follows: there was a shrine across the common entrance, and it had been once risen strong and high-vaulted, from white stone which came from the quarries of the southern land; however the white stone had become stained, and vines grew upwards on it, and some of the stones had come loose from where they had been first placed by the mason's hand, and fell to the ground. Thus you had observed the second sign, that is that no servant nor monk endavoured to clear the fallen stone, and it piled by the entrance to the main shrine.
This had all seemed very strange to you; the land displayed no signs of desolation, rather, you were informed that great fecundity graced it, and so it seemed strange that a place of such nobility (if what was said about the wealth of relics contained within the grounds of the abbey was to be trusted) had fallen into such a state.
However, before you could give this more consideration, the gatekeeper returned, to inform you that upon hearing of your arrival, and being relayed the story of how you were greeted, and how you responded to insult with saintly word, he requested that in line of an apology, he would see you in person, inside the shrine. Having relayed that, the gatekeeper also apologized profusely, falling to your knees and weeping for his repulsive actions, asking to be forgiven.
You…
[ ] …accepted his apology.
[ ] …reprimanded him and accepted the apology.
[ ] …did not accept his apology.
Afterwards, you were led into the shrine, which you found, again to your surprise, dark and empty; only a handful of candles were alight above the altar slab, and you could see that there were only few monks gathered inside, and their hymns and prayers scarcely reached the high vaults above. This too was quite troubling, because the hour of vespers was approaching, and so you would expect monks to be gathered in number, to sing the praise of the Saints as was proper.
In truth, there was an element to that which you found profoundly disconcerting; the silence stirred with prayers like whispers, and light almost entirely extinguished, in a shrine that had hard suffered at the ineffable passage of time.
But before you could succumb to this gloom, you were greeted by the abbot, who was a stout man, who had nonetheless bowed before the weight of his duty, and appeared rather elder. He blessed you in the name of Saint Corvo the Exile, to whom the monastery had been dedicated in times long passed.
He apologized to you at lengths for the actions of the gatekeeper, and the poor state of the abbey, and explained to you that it was all due to a predation of some wicked force, no doubt due to lack of piety from the monks. For, as he said, each night, a beast of darkest nature would emerge from the woods, and vaulting easily over the walls of the abbey, would then proceed to slay monks and guests alike, slaughtering without mercy. And however many were the relics guarding the monastery, they offered no reprieve nor protection from this monster, which was named Elver.
Thus, he said, the monks were now spending their days in fear, and neglecting their duties even further, no doubt delaying the staying of the punishing hand of the Saints; yet, they were not without hope, and now that he saw you, he thought that perhaps the Saints had sent you to aid them – for you carried with yourself fine weapons, beast-slaying, and you spoke about saintly things and exhibited virtue.
Therefore, with hope in his voice, he asked you if you were sent by the Saints to help the monastery stop the monster named Elver, and you replied…
[ ] …yes.
[ ] …no, and that you just wanted to spend a night in peace and ask for directions.
6.4 The Abbot, the Pilgrim, the Monster
Unto the obstinate gatekeeper, who would refuse you the hospitality that was due to all who ward the holy sites, you spoke about the teachings of Saint Nebridius, once explained to you at lengths by a certain holy man that you had met on your way, but whose name you could not find in the vault of your memory.
Shamed by his actions, the gatekeeper did as he promised, but already knowing that the abbot would lend ear rather to the words of the Saint than to the decrees of sinful men, he did not bar you from entrance any longer, and allowed you into the abbey without delay, while he himself went on to inform the abbot of your presence.
Although from the outside, the walls that surrounded the monastery appeared very might and hard-hewn, you had presently noticed that within, there were multiple signs of disrepair and decay. Chief of them was as follows: there was a shrine across the common entrance, and it had been once risen strong and high-vaulted, from white stone which came from the quarries of the southern land; however the white stone had become stained, and vines grew upwards on it, and some of the stones had come loose from where they had been first placed by the mason's hand, and fell to the ground. Thus you had observed the second sign, that is that no servant nor monk endavoured to clear the fallen stone, and it piled by the entrance to the main shrine.
This had all seemed very strange to you; the land displayed no signs of desolation, rather, you were informed that great fecundity graced it, and so it seemed strange that a place of such nobility (if what was said about the wealth of relics contained within the grounds of the abbey was to be trusted) had fallen into such a state.
However, before you could give this more consideration, the gatekeeper returned, to inform you that upon hearing of your arrival, and being relayed the story of how you were greeted, and how you responded to insult with saintly word, he requested that in line of an apology, he would see you in person, inside the shrine. Having relayed that, the gatekeeper also apologized profusely, falling to your knees and weeping for his repulsive actions, asking to be forgiven.
You…
[ ] …accepted his apology.
[ ] …reprimanded him and accepted the apology.
[ ] …did not accept his apology.
Afterwards, you were led into the shrine, which you found, again to your surprise, dark and empty; only a handful of candles were alight above the altar slab, and you could see that there were only few monks gathered inside, and their hymns and prayers scarcely reached the high vaults above. This too was quite troubling, because the hour of vespers was approaching, and so you would expect monks to be gathered in number, to sing the praise of the Saints as was proper.
In truth, there was an element to that which you found profoundly disconcerting; the silence stirred with prayers like whispers, and light almost entirely extinguished, in a shrine that had hard suffered at the ineffable passage of time.
But before you could succumb to this gloom, you were greeted by the abbot, who was a stout man, who had nonetheless bowed before the weight of his duty, and appeared rather elder. He blessed you in the name of Saint Corvo the Exile, to whom the monastery had been dedicated in times long passed.
He apologized to you at lengths for the actions of the gatekeeper, and the poor state of the abbey, and explained to you that it was all due to a predation of some wicked force, no doubt due to lack of piety from the monks. For, as he said, each night, a beast of darkest nature would emerge from the woods, and vaulting easily over the walls of the abbey, would then proceed to slay monks and guests alike, slaughtering without mercy. And however many were the relics guarding the monastery, they offered no reprieve nor protection from this monster, which was named Elver.
Thus, he said, the monks were now spending their days in fear, and neglecting their duties even further, no doubt delaying the staying of the punishing hand of the Saints; yet, they were not without hope, and now that he saw you, he thought that perhaps the Saints had sent you to aid them – for you carried with yourself fine weapons, beast-slaying, and you spoke about saintly things and exhibited virtue.
Therefore, with hope in his voice, he asked you if you were sent by the Saints to help the monastery stop the monster named Elver, and you replied…
[ ] …yes.
[ ] …no, and that you just wanted to spend a night in peace and ask for directions.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
Is it
Oh. This is where I begin to suspect that we may have truly died, and were returned to life... different than before. It is very strange that we remember Ulla, but not Galen.
The desolation, the beast... all of this sounds very ominous. Still, we have chosen a bright candle as ours. Here we are, spear in hand and shield in the other, and here are the pious people in need of salvation who can't help themselves.
[X] …accepted his apology.
[X] …yes.
Just reading about the state of the shrine made me want to do something to restore it to proper glory. I don't suppose we can ignore this.
Gargulec
impact!
- Location
- a garden
I take offence to the implication that PoE wasn't good. In fact, we now must fight. Also, Tyranny is substantially different from PoE, to the point where I can't really say whether it is better or worse, despite being pretty much the same engine and very similar system. Still trying to decide.
- Location
- scrabbling
[X] …reprimanded him and accepted the apology.
Maybe there is something to be said for letting his self-mortification be his punishment...but excess leniency is as dangerous as excess harshness!
As to Elver...the pilgrim's not exactly Beowulf. She's ferocious, not strong.
[X] …no, and that you just wanted to spend a night in peace and ask for directions.
I also worry about claiming to be sent by the Saints. Though they may have helped the pilgrim survive, if they sent her, then they will speak for themselves.
Maybe there is something to be said for letting his self-mortification be his punishment...but excess leniency is as dangerous as excess harshness!
As to Elver...the pilgrim's not exactly Beowulf. She's ferocious, not strong.
[X] …no, and that you just wanted to spend a night in peace and ask for directions.
I also worry about claiming to be sent by the Saints. Though they may have helped the pilgrim survive, if they sent her, then they will speak for themselves.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
I considered it, but came to the conclusion that it's just a figure of speech.
- Location
- scrabbling
I think it's important to be clear about this sort of thing, though.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
The question he asks is a simple 'will you help?', with 'yes' and 'no' as answers.
I have no clue if we can help and what can we possibly do against something potentially supernatural, but I want to at least investigate it.
Perhaps a 'maybe, I'll see what I can do' could be better at expressing our stance.
I have no clue if we can help and what can we possibly do against something potentially supernatural, but I want to at least investigate it.
Perhaps a 'maybe, I'll see what I can do' could be better at expressing our stance.
- Location
- United States
[X] …accepted his apology.
[X] …yes.
It would be rude to chastise him further. He's already sorry and genuinely apologizing, and as a guard during a time of monster attacks he's most likely not having the best time of things.
We wound up in this land after a mysterious vision of the Saints. This must be their work.
[X] …yes.
It would be rude to chastise him further. He's already sorry and genuinely apologizing, and as a guard during a time of monster attacks he's most likely not having the best time of things.
We wound up in this land after a mysterious vision of the Saints. This must be their work.