[K161.29] somewhen, beyond the Veil

We were heading east on the trail, with Thymelixsen flying ahead, and Cor carrying Jack, who was full of lassitude from the fruit. Thymelixsen got to the turning point in the trail first, and noticed some stones, a jumble of rocks and a pillar, that looked like ruins. He cut the corner to get to the next part of the trail, then came back and told us we should avoid the ruins, cutting the corner like he had. I wanted to stay on the path because it seemed that the ones that had interfered with Jack (as well as Thymelixsen) stayed off the path, but Thymelixsen convinced me that since he'd already checked and it wasn't far, we should cut the corner to avoid the distraction of the ruins, and get as far as possible from the not-kafke.

While we talked, Cor and May got closer to the ruins, and May saw a bluish glow by the rocks, near to the ground. Thymelixsen had convinced me by this point, and he came over to convince the others. He started arguing with Cor, who was uncertain whether the not-kafke did more to Thymelixsen than just mess with his frames. Neither was willing to concede, and an argument ensued.

Which gave May plenty of time to go over and explore.

She went into the space where there were things that looked like runes in some unknown language glowing on the ground, and once she'd entered, it seemed like it was a large, echoing room, with lots of whispery voices. When she started listening to them, they became closer and closer to language she understood, until there was a voice speaking Ovahon. Apparently, it was a place of information for travelers like us, though I don't know why it should be here. I mean, if most travelers land where we did, we'd have to make it to here, which isn't easy.

Anyway.

May told us that the kathel can't go on the path because they're doing violence, and the path is for trade. In our direction, the path goes to Wanderhold, where there are many people from many places, and lots of trade. At the other end of the trail is Fort Ashton, where people go to fight (fight what?). Off the road there are many things that might want to eat us, and the children of the kathel might do anything with us, depending on their whim (which we'd found out). This is Spiral Wood (not sure why it's spiral, though). The edge is not safe, and the edgewalkers there will try to trick us. We should avoid them. It didn't know how to get back to our root; this was purposeful so the kathel couldn't find out from this place and go to the roots. It was ruined partly by the kathel and partly by the war making it back this far, the war that has made it high up in the roots. The star is one of the seeds that the bionlear would usually use to turn into a root, but put here instead to give light to the cities. It's about two days' journey to Wanderhold, if we didn't rest. Though it wasn't sure that there would people people who'd know what we want to know in Wanderhold, it said that there are people there who know lots of things. Also, the ghosts that had been mentioned are real: they're people who've lost all their threads, who will try to take ours to rebuild themselves. We can't hurt them because there's nothing left, but somehow they're still here, in a ghostly way. The forest belongs to all, but don't eat the fruit, because it will cause the eater to get lost. After it had told May all this, mostly in answer to her questions, it asked if she felt informed, and told her to tell us.

I'm glad May investigated the ruins.

Thyemlixsen said that Jack would be in this strange lassitude for another ten hours. Then he turned towards the ruins, and flashed red. He'd tried to use the kathel's changing of his Discordant Vibrations to replication back at him by trying to get the information saved in the ruins. But it resisted powerfully.

Since we'd stopped anyway, I checked to see that everyone was still healthy, and everyone was, other than Jack's strange infestation. This time, I was able to carefully see a bit more about it. There was a frayed point inside, a hole that nothing was going in or out of, unlike the spirits I'm used to that have tendrils into the rest of a person. Jack had a rider. And even though I'd found it before, it was hard to remember where it was in his body. This time, I wrote down where it was, and dogeared the page, hoping it would help, though suspecting that it was like the research Thyemlixsen had done, eternally elusive.

We continued running. Hours passed.

At some point, Cor saw someone head of us on the road, heading towards us. The person had a small, dog-like animal that bounded around. When we got closer, I could see that his face and snout were very red, with brown all over eyes, while his hair was black and silver. He walked slightly stooped, using a walking stick, and wore patchwork sorts of clothes. He stopped while still a ways off, leaned down to the dog-like thing, and it came running over. It had lots of hair, but otherwise looked rather like a watermelon with legs. It said "hey!" to each of us, and we greeted it. Cor pet it, and picked it up. When May touched it, it seemed hot to her. Cor told it to tell its master that we're ok. It said "ok!" It went back, then they approached.

The whole time we talked, the dog/watermelon talked to us in our language, while the person talked with it in some language I couldn't even begin to describe. My impression was that he had great knowledge, but the conversation was not nuanced, since it went through the dog interpreter.

Apparently they were going home, having been in Wanderhold, where they're mean and bite and scratch, but do trade. What did he trade? He held out a handful of bits and bobs that May realized were fetishes for magic. Cor unslung Jack from his back, and asked if he could fix Jack. He sniffed Jack, then asked if he could touch him. When we agreed, he touched his head.

While he was doing this, Thymelixsen sensed magic, and was amazed to find classical magic used in wholly different ways.

The traveler found the spirit I'd sensed in Jack (again, I couldn't remember where it was until he found it...). He asked us if we could fight it. We asked how, and Thymelixsen showed him something of his stars. No, that wouldn't work. Cor pulled out his sword. That wouldn't work either. How, then? Which is when he went to one side of the path, and did some kinds of movements, then pulled out one of his threads.

Cor tried, and with the traveler showing him how to stand, how to move, telling him to relax, he was able to start to bring out a thread, but it seemed extremely hard on him. I realized that if this was a rainbow entity somehow, then using threads of individual life to counteract it made sense.

Cor brought out the bone with the threads Jack had collected, and the dog-watermelon pranced around, yellling "excitement!" The traveler warned us that there were many Ult in the city, and they would not be happy to see these Ult threads; it would be a bad trade situation. They'd try to regain the threads, likely by killing us (and taking our threads in the bargain).

Could he use the Ult threads to fix Jack? Maybe, though it would take time. He had me hold the bone, and got one free, wafting it towards Jack. He got it lined up, then a second one. Then he directed them into Jack, who just sat there, watching. He sat still differently, somehow, and the dog yelled "back, back," and we moved back from him.

Out of Jack's side came the two threads with light energy, spinning together, and a multicolored light. I looked away quickly, as did the others. The traveler didn't look at it directly, but swept it away, throwing one of his own threads across it. It became more billiant, then dimmed as it went. He pointed up, and a spot of light went up into the blue and disappeared. I wonder how much information it took with it...

We asked about getting the other hold on Jack dealt with, the control put there by the kathel baby, and he asked us what we'd trade for that. Cor offered an Ult bag, which he was pleased to accept: apparently they don't often trade them in the city. He also warned us that the Ult in the city would not like us having Ult things, either.

This time, he used two more threads from the bone, lining them up again, then used a thread of his own with them, throwing all three into Jack at once. Jack radiated, and though the effects of the fruit are still on him, I think he's free of other influences at this point. No idea whether the kathel that put this on him will know that his magic was broken; I'm not sure whether their magic works the same ways I've become a bit familiar with.

Thymelixsen looked at his threads, and asked for help in getting one of the Ult ones into him, so he could see how they differed. He did that with the traveler's help, and said that he could tell it was different. The traveler said that it would be distinguishable to the Ult in the city, too, and would be seen as something not of Thymelixsen for another two days.

The traveler told us that the threads were everything: for food, thirst, weapons, healing, the edge. everything. The edgewalkers forever are learning about the threads, knowing all, and try to take all the threads, while he knows some about the threads, nowhere near their level of knowledge. The kathel make the threads. We asked about the bionlear, and he told us that it was here, many days to the southeast of us, near the trap. We confirmed that the trees don't have threads, but it is all one, and we should not cut them.

We asked about his home, which is apparently near the path, somewhere past where we found the path, and he set off on his way again.