[London January 20th 1255, 8:00 PM] [Moriel has finally decided it is time to begin his journey to Denmark to look for this Salubri.] [It is now that he begins this journey.] [Begin!] [Moriel has heard of a trade ship leaving London to go to Denmark. It is currently at the London shipyard] * Moriel has apparently decided his promise to help Eliana restore the farmhouse has been fully discharged, so not long after sunset this evening he's walking briskly along the docks heading for a ship called The Golden Swan. Once he gets there, he stops the first person he sees who doesn't look overwhelmingly busy. "Pardon me. Could you tell me who I would speak to to book a passage on this ship?" [The gentleman, who is a rough looking sailor looking over some sort of paper work furrows his brow at Moriel. "Eh? What's that yer saying? Hey! Victor! Get out here, will ya, got some high and mighty noble type here saying something!" A few minutes later a more well- dressed sailor walks off the ship and over to Moriel, saying, in French, "Can I help you, m'lord?"] * Moriel blinks, glances at the sailor, then back at Victor, and then just lets it go. "I was hoping to book a passage on this ship." [Victor shakes his head, his accent is a bit difficult to understand. "We don't take passengers. This is a trade ship. Unless you are cargo, we got no room."] Ah. I beg your pardon. Do you know of a ship bound for Denmark that does? [Victor shakes his head. "Can't say that I do. Not many passenger ships these days."] Pity. Well, thank you for your time. Good sailing to you. * Moriel tilts his head and turns to leave. [Victor thinks for a moment. "That is... unless ya weren't a passenger. If you did work on the ship, we could take you. We could use some extra hands. But it is a long journey."] * Moriel turns back, blinks. "I know nothing of sailing. But...I can do other work. Stitchery, mainly. Or anything that doesn't require much skill. If you'll have me, I'll come." [Victor nods. "Mostly we need people to move cargo and clean the ship. We have skilled workers. If you are willing to work, you can come. It will be a 25 day journey.”] * Moriel nods. "I can do that. When should I be here?" [Victor shrugs. "We're leaving in a couple hours."] * Moriel nods again. "All right. Where should I go and who should I report to now?" * Moriel adds as an afterthought, "" in that language. [Victor motions inside the boat. "Head on in, if you're ready. They are loading the cargo now."] * Moriel hefts the satchel over his shoulder. "I have everything I need with me. Thank you." He nods to Victor and the sailor he originally spoke to, and heads on in. [A tall, burly looking man approaches Moriel. His hair probably was blonde once but has lost much of its color, probably not due to age (as he looks quite young) more likely due to work at sea. He bares several scars along his arms and has an eyepatch over his left eye. He speaks in English with a slight scandanavian accent, not that Moriel probably knows that. "You there. You're the new crewman Victor was talking to there. You report to me. M'name's Boatswaine Wulfstan Falk. You can just call me Botswaine Falk. There are some beds in there." He points to the door leading below deck. "Drop your things off and get back up above deck to start loading cargo."] * Moriel nods and heads in without a word or a moment of delay. He finds a bed, drops his satchel on it, and he comes back out, looking around for where he ought to be. [There are several men dragging large barrels and crates up onto the deck from the dock. One group of sailors gets the cargo onto the ship and goes back for more while another group grabs the cargo and begins to carry it off into the hold.] * Moriel goes for the group that's putting stuff away. No time like the present to start learning his way around. [Moriel's work on the ship continues for 22 days. He only manages to sneak two meals in during that time and so he is very hungry. The voyage is scheduled to continue for 3 more days; however, on the 23rd night a catastrophic storm emerges tossing the ship about. The entire crew is awoken and Wulfstan can be heard calling below deck. "I need every man above deck NOW! We're taking on water!" Above deck several men are seen with buckets, helmets, empty barrels, anything that can hold water, trying desperately to toss the water that is above deck over the side. Off in the distance the captain is desperately trying to fight the storm, but the winds and waves are fighting against him, causing the ship to veer off course and sometimes flow sideways.] * Moriel is awake, naturally, since he volunteered for the night shift - he's already above deck and bailing with a stray bucket. He's spent the past few nights gritting his teeth and ignoring everyone around him and trying to ignore how much they all look like *food*. But right now all of that has passed completely out of his head, as he's just trying to keep from being washed overboard. [The ship rocks violently, and a giant wave washes over the deck, causing the ship to jerk even more violently starboard. Suddenly the captain yells out. "Brace for impact!" And anyone who looks can see that land is very quickly approaching, and it is not pleasant land. It is a cliff face. Several of the sailors hit the deck and grasp onto something solid.] * Moriel grabs the rail, since he was just at it throwing water over it. Fruitlessly, it seems. [The ship crashes hard into the cliff face and Moriel hears the sound of splintering and cracking wood. The mast topples over and only a few moments later, so does the ship. Moriel manages to grab tightly onto one of the sides of the ship, which keeps him afloat. The water violently shoves debris and sailors alike along the shoreline before washing them up onto a beach which is also being ravaged by the storm. The beach itself is completely empty save for it being newly occupied by half-dead sailors and Moriel.] * Moriel picks himself up and coughs water out of his lungs. Not that it really damages him, but it is inconvenient...and then he looks around and sees most of his shipmates lying around, half-conscious or half-dead. And bleeding. For a moment he startles into perfect stillness. Then he runs for the closest person. * Moriel drags the man up out of reach of the waves, then the next, and the next, as fast as he can. Once they’re all safe - as safe as they can be - he starts trying to check their injuries. Not that he knows anything about medicine, and you’re not supposed to move people with broken bones...at least he can try to bind makeshift bandages over their injuries to slow the bleeding... [Moriel manages to stop some of the bleeding, despite his lack of medical knowledge, by thinking quickly on his feet and patching up what seems most vital. There is little else he can do right now. All of the sailors that he was able to find have passed out from their injuries and blood loss.] [Moriel notices movement on the cliff above, but only for a brief moment before it's gone.] * Moriel swipes water out of his eyes and squints up at the cliff. He can't see anything now, though, and for all he knows it was just an animal. He drops down to rest as best he can on the rocky beach and wait for someone to wake up. [It is a few hours before Wulfstan manages to drag himself up, wincing some as he does so. He looks around and sighs, before spotting Moriel. "You there... Deckhand... You seem better off than the rest of us... Go get some firewood."] * Moriel nods and drags himself back to his feet. He isn't at all sure he can find anything *dry* to burn after that storm, but he can look. And maybe find some blood at the same time. * Moriel puts off hunting for firewood in favor of hunting for himself first. No way he can catch an animal bare-handed with an armload of firewood. Luckily for him, he finds a lost fawn relatively quickly, and manages to catch it since it's fast asleep. He leaps on it and drinks it dry. Then he leaves it lying where he found it, and collects some (miraculously) dry-ish wood to haul back to the beach. [Moriel returns to find a couple more of the sailors stirring awake. There is no sign of the captain; however, but Wulfstan has managed to drag himself to his feet and approaches Moriel, stumbling some as he does so. "Thanks, lad." He takes the firewood from Moriel and returns to a section of beach that he has covered in rocks, and begins to light the fire. After a few moments he has a small campfire going, and a few of the men manage to move over towards it, stripping out of their wet clothes so that they can get dry.] * Moriel starts pulling the people who can't move on their own yet towards the fire, leaving them for their crewmates to tend. Hopefully someone here knows more about it than Moriel. Once that's done, he sits down a little ways away from the fire. He keeps his clothes on, though. He's still close enough to feel the heat; they'll dry. [Wulfstan waits for people to get settled around the fire and the looks quizingly at Moriel's distance before shrugging. "I cannot find Captain Waites. It is possible we lost him in the wreck. We'll sleep here for the night and then send a search party out in the morning for survivors. Near as I can tell, we made it to Denmark, though we are considerably farther south than we intended to be."] * Moriel nods. Without another word, he lies down to try to rest, or at least pretend to. [The rest of the crew eventually also lie down around the fire to attempt to sleep.] * Moriel sits up and rubs his face as the sky starts to lighten. He glances at Wulfstan, who's beginning to stir, too. "...it'll be light soon. I...think I'm still in better shape than most of you. I'll go ahead and start searching for the captain and anyone else." [Wulfstan just sort of nods absently and lies back down.] * Moriel picks himself up and heads along the beach until he can't see the fire any more, then turns into the forest and quickly makes his way to a cave he spotted earlier. It looks deep enough to hide him from the sun, and he pushes all the way to the back of it and curls up to collapse for the day. [Somewhere in Denmark, February 13th 1255, 7:00 PM] [Moriel awakens in his cave and the storm seems to have finally calmed down. Outside the cave is remarkably calm.] * Moriel steps out and looks around, brushing himself off as best he can. Which is probably a lost cause at this point, really. He frowns for a moment, thinking, then twists shadows around himself and slips back to the beach to check on the sailors. [The wreckage is still there, as is the fire, but and sailors seem to be missing, save for one that is standing guard over the wreckage. He looks, remarkably, completely unharmed, even though he was definitely in very bad shape the night before.] * Moriel blinks, withdraws, reappears, approaches. "Ah...excuse me. Where is everyone? I've been gone all day looking and...how did you recover so quickly?" [The man looks a bit startled by Moriel's reemergence but regains his composure. "Uh... they went looking for people still. Don't know how I recovered. Everyone just woke up fully healed... like magic or somethin'. Freaked us all out." He looks both ways before leaning in and whispering. "I think it mighta been faeries..." He pauses for a moment and then speaks again "Or merfolk..."] * Moriel blinks. "...I see. That is strange. And no one else has come back yet?" [The man shrugs. "They uh just left not too long ago. Couldn't find the captain, but Boatswain Falk, he thought it would be good to take the men and go in search of a town. Figured maybe the captain washed up further downshore and so would have gone in search of civilization."] * Moriel nods. "That makes sense. I suppose I'll go back out then." He looks around. "Which way did they go?" [He points towards the forest and to the right. "South-east. Boatswain Falk figures that's the most likely place for a village."] * Moriel nods again. "Thank you." And he heads back out. Like last time, however, as soon as he's out of sight he vanishes into shadows. He circles around to the top of the cliff and looks around. Not that anyone can see him doing it. Probably. [Off in the distance to the east, Moriel can see the outline of some mountains. There are definitely a few villages below him to the east, but he will know, if he did any research, that the mountain that he is looking for is going to be on the eastern side of Denmark, and he is most certainly in the west.] * Moriel stands there for a minute or two, considering options, then he starts back down the cliff again, heading east. [Yding Skovhj, February 23rd 1255, 10:00 PM] [Moriel has finally arrived at the mountain that he went in search of. There is a small village as the base of the mountain, which he has traveled through before reaching the mountain itself. The mountain is covered in snow and ice and towers above Moriel. There is a rough path up the mountain, but it, too, is slick.] [Moriel finds it a bit difficult to keep his footing, but he manages, after a few mistakes, to make his way half way up the mountain, where he finds the statue of an angel. Her arms are raised towards the heavens, but her eyes are downcast and turned to the right. As if she is grieving something.] * Moriel just stands there looking at the angel for a few moments, looking rather sad himself. Then he starts looking around where her gaze seems to lead. [As Moriel begins to search around the area that the Angel is looking at, he finds that one of the rocks in the mountain that appeared to be part of a large outcropping is, in fact, loose. As he moves it away, it reveals a tunnel dug into the ground that seems to go on forever with no light to be seen.] * Moriel climbs inside, then does his best to pull the rock back into its place in the entrance from the inside. That done, he turns around and starts down the tunnel, trailing a hand along one wall so he doesn't get turned around in the dark. [The tunnel is large enough for Moriel to crawl into initially, and then widens after a long crawl to be wide enough for Moriel to stand up. The tunnel is completely dark, and it seems to go on forever. It does, in fact, go on for a very long time. Four days, in fact, although Moriel is not confident in that number. At times it feels like Moriel is going downhill and the at other times, he is definitely going up. It is enough to nearly break him, but right when all hope seems lost, he emerges into a wide clearing. It is night, thankfully, and in the distance, Moriel can see a large ruined keep. The right side of the keep has caved in, destroying the entryway, but creating plenty of ways to get inside.] * Moriel just stands there for a little while, trying to calm down. And then he stands there for a little while longer, trying to decide how to approach this. Finally he just starts walking slowly towards the ruined keep, looking for anything that might be a commonly-used entrance. [As Moriel approaches the keep, he notices that there is a slight shifting in the floor, as if something is being magically hidden.] * Moriel stops, looking at it. Then he walks forward again and crouches down, reaching out gingerly to try touching it. [As Moriel moves his hand over the surface, he discovers a handle where there definitely shouldn't be one.] * Moriel pulls the handle! As that is the thing to do with handles. [A trap door lifts up and reveals a set of stairs, which lead down to an open room, lit by torches. In the back of the room is a coffin. The walls are lined with bookshelves full of books and in the center of the room is a table. Scrolls and books are layed out on it and seated on the far side is a hooded figure. He looks up at Moriel and pulls back his hood to reveal a young man with a third eye in the middle of his forehead. He says nothing to Moriel, but looks back down at his books and continues to read.] * Moriel watches him for a moment, then sits down at the bottom of the stairs to wait. [The Salubri looks up again. "If you've come here to kill me, you should probably do so. If not, you should probably tell me your name, as you clearly already know mine."] * Moriel flinches at the mention of killing. "My name is Moriel." [Velasco nods. "And why have you come here, Moriel?"] Because someone told me that if I wanted to know more about Golconda, I should speak to the Salubri. [Velasco nods again. "I see. I saw you on the beach. You were very hungry, and yet you resisted feeding from the injured. That is a good start. Very well... You may stay here for a time. I don't promise to be able to teach you much. I, myself, have definitely not achieved Golconda. But I can teach you what I know. If you found me, you must have earned a great deal of trust from someone else, after all... We will begin tomorrow night. For now, you should probably get some rest. Traversing the tunnel for the first time can be very draining. There is a side room, sadly not with a coffin, but there is a bedroll.] * Moriel glances aside and a brief smile flickers across his face. He nods and gets up to go to the bedroll. He can certainly use it after that tunnel. [Yding Skovhj February 28th 1255, 8:00 PM] [Moriel has just slept for the day and awakes to find a fresh set of clothes laid out for him. They are not fancy, but clean, well made, and warm. A goatskin jerkin and a heavy cloth tunic and breeches as well as some sturdy leather boots. There is also a full-grown goat that is sleeping next to Moriel's bedroll. It seems to be resting peacefully.] * Moriel puts the clothes on gratefully, as after being shipwrecked and walking across the breadth of Denmark, his aren't in the best shape. He eyes the goat for a moment, then carefully bends to take a drink from it since for some reason it isn't running away. He doesn't take enough to seriously harm it, though, and leaves it sleeping when he goes to the next room looking for Velasco. [Velasco is there. Seated at the table, which has one chair. He looks up from a book as Moriel approaches. "I trust you slept well. You look more refreshed." He leans to the left to look into the room. "And you avoided killing Matthew. That's good."] * Moriel opens his mouth to speak, then stops. After a moment he just says, "Yes. Thank you." [Velasco nods. "You're welcome. So what is it you wish to ask me? You traveled an awfully long way. You should have some good questions."] * Moriel huffs a breath and sits down with his back to the wall beside the doorway. "I don't know much about Golconda. Technically I suppose I don't even know that it exists. I have heard wildly conflicting stories about what it is, what it does, how it is attained..." * Moriel looks up at Velasco, then down again. "I...want my soul to be my own again. I want to return to my God. Is that possible?" [Velasco waits for a long moment in thought... after what seems like forever he says. "I don't know."] [He clears his throat and continues. "We've been told Saulot got closer than anyone to Golconda..."] [He closes his book and looks up at the ceiling. "I do not know about your soul or about God. What I know is that Golconda is a goal for many and no one, to my knowledge has achieved it. But I do know Saulot's teachings and if you follow them, you should have as good of a chance as any of us."] * Moriel flicks a glance at Velasco. "I see." * Moriel pauses for a moment, then says quietly, "You said we would begin today. What...are we beginning?" [Velasco looks at Moriel and seemingly ignores his question in favor of asking another one. "What is it that you believe makes you a good person? Where does morality lie?"] * Moriel blinks and turns away, drawing up his knees to rest his chin on them. "I...don't know. I would have said...living in accordance with God's will, but..." * Moriel doesn't seem to be able to continue. He shakes his head, looking down at his knees. "...I don't know." [Velasco shakes his head. "If that were the case, your life as a kindred would have no bearing on your morality. It is not your faith, it is your humanity that makes you a good person. Many who are devout followers of religious faith kill others for what they believe is God's will. You are not God... You have little in the way knowledge of what God truly wishes you to do, but you WERE human. And if what you wish is to be returned to that state, or as close as you can be, you should start acting like it."] * Moriel flinches, tightening in on himself. Scarlet rims his eyes before he squeezes them shut. "I can't..." What it is he thinks he can't do is unclear, however. After a long moment he relaxes again, legs folding down into crosslegged position, hands falling away from his face. He looks down at them where they rest in his lap. * Moriel says softly, "Father Peter says...that love is more important than law. I suppose...that is what you mean." [Velasco nods. "Yes... Well... in a manner of speaking." He sighs... "Come with me..." Velasco stands and walks out of the room to the world above.] * Moriel rises and follows him silently. [Velasco walks out into the snow and continues to walk until he makes his way up to a cliff overlooking the village below. Now that Moriel can look around, it is obvious that he has not climbed very far up. In fact, only about thirty feet below the cliff is the entrance to the cave. Velasco points down to the village. There are several people walking about doing their evening errands. Fathers going to buy the last of the bread from market. Children bringing home firewood, mothers picking some plants from their gardens for supper. Velasco shrugs. "Why don't you kill them all? You're hungry. They are weaker than you. What is there to stop you?"] * Moriel recoils so hard he nearly falls over in the slippery snow. "Because it's *wrong*." [Velasco shrugs. "Why?"] * Moriel blinks at him. "Because..." He trails off, looking back out over the village. "Because they deserve to live. I don't have the right to take that away from them." [Velasco shakes his head. "Says who? Why is it that you can kill a deer but not a human?"] * Moriel blinks more. "...Animals don't have souls. Human beings do." He still looks puzzled, though, as if he's trying to figure something out. [Velasco raises his eyebrow. "So killing me would be okay, then? Because, according to you, Kindred also don't have souls, right?"] * Moriel flinches again. "...I would think Kindred's souls are corrupted, rather than absent..." He looks away. "Else it would not be possible to redeem them." [Velasco nods. "I see... and so why is it wrong to kill someone with a soul?"] * Moriel looks down, pensive. He says softly, "Because...it takes away chances, hope, choice...we are all fallen creatures. Some simply more than others. And we are all trying to redeem ourselves...or failing. Kill a man and you rob him of his ability to save himself." [Velasco looks confused and shakes his head. "So it's because you rob them of their ability to get into heaven?"] * Moriel frowns, frustrated. "Partly." He shifts restlessly, but pacing isn't exactly wise at the top of a snow-strewn cliff. "I do not have a *reason*. It is wrong to take people's choices from them." * Moriel shakes his head. [Velasco nods. "Would it still be wrong if God suddenly decreed it okay?"] * Moriel 's brows draw down, and he looks at Velasco with a very strange expression. "He wouldn't." [Velasco shrugs. "What if he did? If he did, would you go slaughter that village?"] * Moriel wraps his arms around himself, staring down at the village. His eyes are wide and dark with a kind of fear. He whispers, "If God decreed it were acceptable to slay whom I would..." He shivers. "...He would not be God." [Velasco nods. "Fair enough... So if God were dead would killing people be okay?"] * Moriel twists to look at Velasco again, bewildered. Then away. "If God were dead, then it wouldn't matter. I suppose I would go mad, then. Madder. But until I did...I still wouldn't kill." [Velasco shrugs. "Why not?"] * Moriel sounds surprisingly calm, now. "Because it makes me feel evil." He glances at Velasco. "You mean, if the only measure of morality we had were ourselves. If the world were empty of all but us. I value other people. I can't tell you why; I don't have a reason for it." If God were dead existence would be empty and short and meaningless. I suppose you might say people's lives would be worth less then, in such a terrible world...but they would still have worth. [Velasco nods. "Very good Moriel. That's what you must realize. People are worth something because they are people. It's your humanity that says so. Whether or not you believe it, you still have humanity. We all do. You need to hang onto that. This has been hard for you... come, let's get you something to eat." He walks back towards the keep and whistles. A goat begins to walk over to meet him. "Ah... Simon." Velasco kneels down and pets the goats head. "Shhh... this won't hurt. Thank you." He motions Moriel over to the goat.] * Moriel hesitates, glancing at Velasco and looking quite awkward. [Velasco motions again to the goat. "It's okay. I rotate them. There are twelve of them. I name them so that I remember that they are living things that deserve to live." He smiles at Moriel.] * Moriel smiles hesitantly back, then looks at Simon. "...I...prefer...not to feed in company." [Velasco nods. "Alright. I'll... leave you two alone." He walks back towards the keep. "Come and find me when you are done."] [Once he is close to the keep he calls back. "And don't kill my goat."] [Then he enters the keep.] * Moriel grits his teeth at the last comment, but once Velasco's gone he looks down at the goat. Still not running away. Hesitantly, he reaches out to stroke its head. Then he bends to drink just a little from it before turning to follow Velasco back to the keep. [Moriel enters to discover Velasco looking through his book shelves. "Moriel, tonight has been hard on you. It is difficult to retrain your mind to a new morality, but you must understand that humanity is the source of your salvation, whether that salvation comes in the form of Golconda or just being the best person you can be, given your situation." He seems to find the book he is looking for and pulls it out. It is a battered and well-used copy of the Book of Nod "Son of Adam, Son of Eve. God Almightly has forgiven your sin. / Will you accept his mercy and let me take you to your reward, no longer cursed? / And I said to the dark-winged Uriel, Not by God's mercy, but by my own, will I live. I am what I am, I did what I did, and that will never change." Velsaco puts the book down on the table. "What is wrong with what Caine said?"] * Moriel blinks. He sits down on the floor beside the stairs, in almost exactly the same place he did when he first arrived here last night. After a moment he says thoughtfully, "I suspect the answer that springs to my mind is not the one you are looking for." He thinks some more. "That he will never change?" [Velasco smiles. "Precisely right, Moriel. It is Caine's defeatism that caused him to remain cursed. You must believe that you still retain some of your humanity and you must cling to that, for it has the power to change you."] * Moriel looks down at his hands, folded in his lap. Memories play in his eyes. "...yes." [Velasco motions outside and smiles. "We will continue our lessons on humanity tomorrow night. For now, go take care of the goats. They need to be fed."] * Moriel looks up, nods, and heads back outside. After a little looking around, he finds where the goats' feed is stored. He has to make a few trips to bring enough for all of them. After he's done, he stands there for a little while, watching them and smiling faintly. Then he walks away to find a quiet spot to sit and think about his lessons. [Moriel's life continued like this for several months, Velasco would spout some lesson about humanity and the importance of it. Ask Moriel some difficult questions and then ask him to feed the goats, or clean the keep, or arrange the books. Finally, after around eight months, something different happened.] [Yding Skovhj, October 31st 1255, 10:00 PM] [When Moriel awakens and walks out into the main room of the haven, Velasco is waiting for him, as usual, but he is carrying two large jugs and there are two more on the floor. "Grab those, Moriel. It is time you had contact with some humans."] * Moriel is not in the habit of questioning Velasco, so after a brief moment of surprise he just picks up the jugs, then looks at Velasco expectantly. [Velasco walks out of the haven and towards the cliff where he first showed Moriel the human village below. He pauses there for a moment, gets a good grip on the jugs, and jumps down to the ground below, and then begins walking down the path to the village.] * Moriel eyes the jump a bit, but then he balances himself as best he can and jumps down after. He manages not to break the jugs, at least, even if his landing isn't the most graceful. [After a bit of time, Velasco and Moriel walk into town. It is quiet, and the streets are mostly empty. Velasco approaches a house and knocks lightly on the door. The door opens, revealing a young woman in her mid-twenties. She tilts her head and says something in a language Moriel does not understand. Velasco nods and hands her one of the jugs and then replies in french. "I am sorry, my friend does not speak Danish, could you perhaps speak in French, for his benefit." The woman nods and replies. "Of course. So does your friend help you tend the goats." Velasco nods. "Yes. This is Moriel. He has been staying with me for a while." The woman motions for Velasco and Moriel to follow her in and walks into her house. Velasco follows. It is a small, but cozy house. There are several seats in front of a fireplace that has a low burning fire. A wood stove, table, and a room off to the side that presumably contains a bed and such things. She sets the jug down by the stove and then brings over some rolls. "Here you are, Mister Gardi. I'm sorry I can't pay much for the milk." Velasco shakes his head. "Your bread is very good, Freydis. Best I've ever had. It and your hospitality are payment enough." Velasco takes the rolls and sits down on a chair by the fireplace. He takes a noticably deep breath before he sits down and begins to eat one of the rolls. Then picks one up and offers it to Moriel.] * Moriel stands there a little self-consciously, though he bobs a short semi-bow at the woman when he's introduced. He glances at Velasco when the other man offers him the roll, but he takes it without apparent hesitation. Then he glances again at their host. "Thank you," he says to her before starting to eat. [She nods and sits down as well. "So, Moriel, where are you from?"] * Moriel glances at Velasco and then says quietly, "Scotland, originally. I...have travelled some, since then." [She nods. "I see. And how did you meet Mister Gardi?" She motions to Velasco.] * Moriel shrugs. "Mutual acquaintance. Someone Mister Gardi helped, a few years ago." [She nods. "He's very helpful to me. I live on my own and he always brings down some goats milk for me every year." Velasco continues to eat his bread before noding. "Well, anything I can do to help. Thank you for the bread, Freydis, but we should probably be going. We have other milk to deliver after all." He smiles and stands. She stands as well. "Of course, Mister Gardi." And Velasco walks out of the house.] * Moriel nods at the woman again in farewell as he follows Velasco out. [Velasco proceeds to drop jugs of milk off at a few other houses. None of the visits are very long. He gets more bread and some cheese and fruit for his trade and then he heads up the mountain again.] * Moriel follows Velasco! And talks as little as possible. [Velasco continues to climb until he reaches the tunnel, Once there, he tears up the bread and scatters it about the forest, he does the same with the fruit and cheese and then he walks to the side of the tunnel, jumps and grips unto the cliff face and climbs back up into the clearing where his keep stands, once back to his keep he turns to Moriel. "Having contact with humans helps remind you what it is like to be one."] * Moriel nods, looking out in the direction of the village, but he still doesn't say anything. [Velasco sits down at the table and looks up at Moriel. "Is something wrong, Moriel? You seem troubled."] * Moriel looks back at Velasco, blinking. "Hm? No. I simply have not done anything like that in...a very long while." [Velasco nods. "Yes. I imagine so. Which is why we did it now. We'll continue to do it. Bring milk and cheese down to the village, deliver it and have some conversations with humans. Remind ourselves what we are trying to attain."] * Moriel nods again, and falls silent again. [Yding Skovhj, March 12th 1256, 10:00 PM] [For four more months Moriel and Velasco traveled down into the village periodically to deliver goods to the villagers and have some brief conversations. At the end of the last trip, Velasco drops off the last of his goat cheese and sighs as he says goodbye to Freydis. "I am afraid that I have to be leaving. This is my last year living on the mountain. I have asked one of my nephews to come and tend to the goats every now and then, but I do not expect I will return to live here for some time. My brother has written to me that my father is ill and I must return home to care for him." Freydis' face falls and a small tear falls down her cheek. "Oh, but I will be sorry to see you go, Mister Gardi. Do please tell your nephew he is welcome to stop by anytime." Velasco nods. "I shall, but I suspect he will not take up permanent residence here for some time. I will certainly tell him of your bread, and perhaps that will persuade him." Velasco smiles and bows again before stepping away from the door. Freydis sighs and waves. "Mister Moriel, I suppose you are also leaving?"] * Moriel nods. "Yes. But...thank you for your kindness, while I have been here." He bows, too, and follows Velasco. [Velasco heads to the outside of town and back up to the keep. "I've been visiting for too long. She will start to notice that I don't age. In around ten years I will return there and she will tell me how much I look like my uncle. In the meantime, there is another village on the other side of the mountain that I have not visited for quite some time. We will begin to deliver milk to them." Once Velasco and Moriel get to the keep, Velasco disappears into the store room and returns with something that is steaming. It appears to be tea. Velasco hands it to Moriel. "The Fianna grow this. It is very good at relaxing you. Worth manipulating your blood to drink. Garrett gave me some the last time I saw him, which was many years ago, but I believe you have earned it. Please, drink."] * Moriel blinks a moment, but he takes the cup and drinks, inhaling the steam. [It really does seem to relax him, and Velasco returns with a cup for himself, drinking it. "Tomorrow, I will begin to tell you about what I know of Saulot. I believe you are ready."] * Moriel glances at Velasco over the rim of his cup. "Thank you." [Velasco begins to read from another book and a few hours later, they both go to sleep. The next night, Moriel awakens to an empty keep. There is no sign of Velasco, outside the keep; however, Moriel can see smoke billowing up from the direction of the village.] * Moriel 's eyes widen and he jumps down the side of the mountain and runs for the village. [The village is enveloped in flames. People are running out of their homes, but they, too, are on fire. A few of the villagers are making attempts to douse the fire, but it seems to be no use. By the time that Moriel arrives at the village, the villagers have mostly given up and are running out of the village, dragging the injured with them. Moriel can see Freydis running into one of the houses that has just begun to burn. She starts to drag out an unconscious young boy, but she, herself seems unsteady on her feet and falls to the ground in front of the burning building.] * Moriel hesitates a moment, eyes filling with flames. Then he runs forward and grabs both of them, tossing Freydis over one shoulder and the child over the other. He rushes after the other villagers, putting them down once they're out of reach of the flames. [The rest of the village is gathered there, and when Moriel puts the young boy down, he starts to breath okay, being now in fresh air. Feydis, on the other hand, does not seem to be doing as well. Moriel can tell that, for whatever reason, she doesn't seem like she will recover. Not without some help, and no one around seems to know what to do.] * Moriel stares at her, frantic and growing moreso. He drops to his knees beside her and reaches out to touch her, hesitant and helpless. "Freydis..." [She does not respond. She just falls limp in his arms. She is clearly still alive, but just barely.] * Moriel freezes. If he had any blood in his face, it would have drained away. But after a long, terrible moment, he jerks out a knife and slashes open his palm. He lifts Freydis up as carefully as he can, cradling her head. Then he holds up his hand and spills vitae between her parted lips. "Drink, Freydis..." he whispers. He watches her face, eyes huge and desperate. [Everyone gasps around Moriel, and as a few drops of blood spill into Freydis' mouth, she snaps awake, coughing and then sighing with the pleasure of being able to breath clean air again. The villagers look shocked, momentarily... and then Moriel awakens, again, and finds himself on his bedroll in Velasco's keep. Velasco is standing over him in some sort of trance, staring at Moriel. He smiles a bit. "Congratulations. You have passed the test. You chose to tap into your humanity. You see, your powers as a kindred and your morality as a human are not at odds. You just need to use them appropriately. You are only a monster if you make yourself so. I believe you are ready to begin your training. I will teach you to use your blood to help people... in a less... direct way."] * Moriel sits bolt upright and *stares* at Velasco, first in confusion and then in mounting anger. "You - " He clamps his jaw shut. Then he kicks free of the bedroll and starts yanking his boots on. [Velasco shrugs. "I needed to be sure that you were prepared to do what you must if you are to go down this road. You passed. You should be glad. Now I have no reservations about sharing Saulot's teachings with you. Of course, you could leave, if you wish. I won't stop you." He takes a step back out of Moriel's way.] * Moriel stops and looks up at him. After a moment he growls, "I will come *back*. But right now I am going to leave before - " He cuts himself off again, and after a pause he just stalks out. * Moriel obfuscates himself as soon as he's out of the keep. He jumps down the side of the mountain and strides towards the village. As he approaches it and finds it intact, he slows, calming, but he still walks through and looks at every house. He pauses longer at Freydis' dwelling, looking in the window and taking deep breaths. * Moriel starts walking again, eventually, but not back to the mountain yet. He heads out, into the forest, out of sight of village and keep both. Finally he sits down at the foot of an enormous tree, drawing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. His face twists, his expression shifting from anger through agony as time goes on. Eventually, he returns to a weary calm. * Moriel wipes away the traces of bloody tears and picks himself up to start walking back. * Moriel comes back down the hidden stairwell into Velasco's study- cum-bedroom and sits down at the foot of the stairs again. He says quietly, "I apologize for my earlier outburst." [Velasco nods. He is busy packing up books into a satchel. "Quite all right, Moriel. No one expects you to be perfect..." He smiles and looks up. "You're only human after all... Come now... we are going to the next village to become doctors. I think it is time for you to learn how to read the suffering of others."] * Moriel blinks at Velasco. As is his general habit if no response is required, however, he simply nods and remains silent. [Velasco continues to pack. "That being said, Moriel. If you wish to better yourself and get closer to Golconda, you must learn to be at peace with yourself. You must be more than human. I want you to work towards controlling your anger."] * Moriel actually laughs at that, though it sounds more painful than anything else. "I am. I was...worse, before." [Velasco nods. "Well... continue to do so. If you wish, I will help." He then hands Moriel a satchel of books and begins packing some more.] * Moriel takes the satchel, looks down at it. He really doesn't want to talk about this, at all. So instead he says, "...do you need help?" [Velasco shakes his head as he packs a few more books. "No. That is all of them. Let's go." He heads out of the keep and into the snow, then he turns back around. "Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James the Second, Thaddeus, Simon, Paul?" Twelve goats march on over at the call. "I am going away, but I will be back to feed you. Take care of the place for me." At that he turns the opposite way from the village and begins to walk.] * Moriel nods and follows him quietly, carrying the satchel of books he was given. [Velasco climbs down the opposite side of the mountain and walks down through a not-quite-as-traveled path and after a few hours they both arrive at a slightly larger village than on the other side of the mountain. Velasco stops on the outskirts of the village. "We will be setting up here? This town has no doctor and I haven't visited here in fifty years. No one is likely to remember my face."] * Moriel nods again and looks around. Still quiet. Velasco will eventually explain things to him. [About a week later, Velasco had secured a building to make use of as a doctor's office and had established himself as an effective but eccentric doctor who only operates at night. He also has established Moriel as his assistant and they were ready to begin business. Their first patient was a young man who was complaining of fever and dizziness. Velasco motions for the man to follow him into the back of the office. It is a three room building with a basement. One of the rooms is a sort of waiting area for patients to sit and wait to see Velasco, then there is a bedroom and a medical room, where the actual diagnosis and prescribed remedy takes place. The basement, of course, is where Moriel and Velasco really stay, but no one knows that and Velasco keeps the bedroom looking both neat and lived in so that they can keep up the illusion. This young man follows Velasco into the medical room and has a seat on the stool, as Velasco prompts him to do. "Moriel, what do you think is the cause of this man's fever?"] * Moriel blinks. "I...don't know." * Moriel looks at the guy, but since he knows basically nothing about medicine, he can't really learn much from it. Velasco is the doctor, after all. He's just the assistant. [Velasco sits down and makes a show of checking around the man's armpits and nose and mouth before nodding. "Did you have an injury recently?" The man nodded. "Yes. I cut my leg on a nail while repairing my roof." Velasco nods and lifts up the man's pant-leg, looking at the discolored cut. "It's been infected." Velasco bends his head down so that his hood obscures his forehead from view and then he nods, he grabs a knife and creates a small additional cut on the man's leg. "Your infection has unbalanced your humors. I am going to let out some blood." Once that is done, Velasco grabs some cloth and leaves. He presses the leaves to the wound and wraps the cloth tightly around them. "Do not take this cloth off for four days. And next time you get cut, come to me sooner." The man nods, stands up, seems surprised for a moment and looks at Velasco who says "The leaves have a property that lessens pain. Do not be fooled. You are still very injured." The man nods and walks out of the house.] * Moriel glances at Velasco questioningly. [Velasco looks up at Moriel. "You are welcome to ask questions, Moriel. You can speak. I've heard you do it."] * Moriel smiles faintly. After a moment of thought he asks quietly, "Did you heal the sailors?" [Velasco stands and nods. "Yes."] And that man? [Velasco nods. "Yes."] * Moriel considers this for a little while. "How?" [Velasco shrugs. "The same way you are able to heighten your senses or read somebody's intentions... I can see what is harming somebody, both physically and mentally, and I can remove it."] That was what you meant, when you said you would teach me to use my blood to help people less directly? [Velasco nods. "Yes."] * Moriel is quiet for a little while. "Thank you." [Velasco shrugs. "You're welcome, but you aren't ready yet. You will need to observe for a while and when we are not treating patients, you will be looking over scrolls of Saulots teachings. And then, when you are ready, I will teach you to see the sick as I see them."] * Moriel shrugs. "That's why I don't ask questions. Because you'll tell me when I need to know, or when you think I'm ready." [Velasco shrugs. "But if you don't ask, how will I know what you wish to learn?"] * Moriel doesn't answer for a moment. Finally he says, "I suppose it's not quite the same as when I first came to you." [Velasco shakes his head. "It is not. Come now... it’s time for you to study." And for a little over a year, that is what Moriel did. He studied scrolls of Saulot's teachings. The scrolls taught self- sacrifice and selflessness. Saulot spoke of using kindred powers for the good of all and helping both humanity and kindredkind. He speaks of avoiding drinking from humans when possible, but being willing to break rules if the need is greater than the cost. The scrolls taught Moriel to remain at peace whenever possible, because anger will steer him from the path. Saulot's teachings did not speak of redeeming a vampire's soul, rather they spoke of becoming a more perfect being. One that is rewarded for its sacrifice and willingness to help others. Then one night Velasco entered the house dragging an unconscious man. He placed the man on the bed in the bedroom and motioned for Moriel to follow. "I found this man unconscious in the street. I want you to tell me what's wrong with him. Act as if you are trying to see or hear more clearly, except focus that energy empathetically. Try and see within him. What is damaging him?"] * Moriel tilts his head and looks at the man, eyes unfocusing. He stands there for a few seconds. Then he blinks and shakes whatever it was he saw away, frowning. He tries again. [Velasco shakes his head. "You need to touch him, Moriel. Make as strong of a connection as you can."] * Moriel glances at Velasco, then steps forward to rest his fingertips on the unconscious man's forehead. He looks down at him, frowning faintly in thought. After a moment, his face clears. He tries again. Not quite...he brushes aside an expression of frustration. Again. * Moriel 's eyes widen on the fourth try and he pulls his hand back, breaking his contact with the man in surprise. He glances at Velasco. "Too much to drink." [Velasco nods. "Very good. It will get easier with time. We'll let him sleep it off here."] * Moriel nods. [As the months went on, Moriel found reading illness to be easier. Velasco allowed Moriel to diagnose the patients first. Earlier on, Velasco would check Moriel's diagnosis, but later he began to trust Moriel's accuracy. As Moriel continued to do this, he gained a greater understanding of how injury and illness worked. He could almost see inside people. He could feel where they were injured or sick and, at times, he felt he knew how to heal them. It became almost an extension of his already heightened senses, and for two years Moriel and Velasco continued to operate as the resident doctors of the village (which was named Wulksburg). And then one night Velasco approached Moriel in the basement of their house. He sighs and sits down on one of the chairs "I believe you are ready to leave, Moriel. If you continue to stay here, I am not sure I can continue to help you further. There is some degree of suffering involved in learning to follow Saulot's teachings and use your newly found abilities. And it, at times, must be a solitary journey. As such, I am going to leave you with a task and a warning. Before you return to London, I want you to travel to France by land and then take a ship to London from there. On the way, I want you to help people on your own. You have not yet reached the level of Obeah necessary to heal others, and I understand that. It will be part of the challenge, but you can still help people as you have been. You can learn what is wrong with them and find other ways to help them." Velasco starts to pack up some scrolls into a satchel. "Here is your warning. Eventually, if you continue to hone your skill at healing, you will develop a third eye, as I have done. Others will target you, if they see this eye. They will believe you to be a Salubri or a Salubri sympathizer and we are not looked upon favorably. You must find a way to protect yourself. If you can learn to hide the eye somehow, that will be a good first step."] * Moriel nods, thinking. "I...can wrap a scarf around my head to keep my hair back, and cover my forehead with it. And...I may be able to Obfuscate it. But I'll have to learn more, first..." He trails off and actually looks at Velasco again. "Thank you for teaching me." [Velasco nods and hands Moriel the satchel. "I want you to take some of Saulot's teachings with you, but keep them hidden. Again, people will not take well to you if they find out you have them. If you ever need to find me again, I am unlikely to go far. Just come back, but be very careful not to disclose my location to anybody you do not trust completely."] * Moriel nods. "Of course. Or...anyone I do, for that matter." He smiles faintly. "I'll be careful." [Velasco nods. "Good luck."] * Moriel says again, "Thank you." And without further ceremony, he picks up the satchel and starts walking. [The Northern Coast of France, October 15th 1260, 11:00 PM] * Moriel took the better part of a year to walk from Denmark back to France, trying to help people along the way. It was rarely easy; though he could aid with mundane problems like a stuck wagon or a lost child, he still couldn’t heal. Often when he found someone injured, he could only apply a makeshift bandage and hope for the best. He had a few close calls with the sun, barely making it into shelter before dawn. But he felt surprisingly peaceful despite it all. He read from the scrolls Velasco had given him when he could, and in the meantime, he traveled ever closer to home. [Mini Finally End!]