Ohanzee smiles as he considers More Thunderbirds to draw a winger over the eyes of. Too easy!

And as the ceremony continues his attention drifts slowly away.

I promise! declares Grundar, pride rising in his chest. I promise! I feel the call! He looks back to his friends for their approval, and sees Amara's acknowledgement and Melock's smile. As other braves step forward, he places his hand on their shoulders in turn in encouragement and then for some in welcome as they to are added to their number, and to others in consolation as they are not. Being first, he feels it is his responsibility as the one with 'experience'.

Amara felt crestfallen as some of the braves had to leave, but it was for the best. She'd prefer to have someone willing to stand at her side and Emesh-Ga was the best judge of those fitting enough to be rangers. She'd hoped to draw some more variety to their ranks than having only warriors, but it was better to have strength as their numbers grew. Soon they'd need smiths and craftsmen too.

She wondered if she went to the Orlanthi temple if she might persuade any Vinga followers to join the cause.

With the oath taking over the Eirithan holy day celebrations continue. Lay members, which include all men present, can go no further but join in with the general prayers as those below enter the god time to perform the necessary heroquests to protect the herds and tribes…

Ohanzee congratulates Grundar and indeed the new Thunderbird following initiates. Then with Amara away deeper into the tunnels he pulls Melock aside and whispers to him
This message was lightly edited by the player at 11:44, Fri 08 Feb 2019.

Melock pats Grundar on the shoulder, "Welcome brother. With three Ravens in the Rangers, we'll be unstoppable." He laughs, still grinning Melock steps to the edge of the crowd with Ohanzee, but as he listens to him a conflicted look spreads across his face, Melock glances back and forth between the Priestess and the exit, finally he bows his head.

Ohanzee looks disappointed, then smiles and this turns into a grin as he whispers back
This message was last edited by the player at 11:02, Fri 08 Feb 2019.

Melock grins at Ohanzee's comments and watches him make his way to the edge of the crowd, before shouting to him, "Ohanzee, I've saved you a space at the front with me. hurry up or you'll miss the start."

Ohanzee smiles to himself ignoring Melock, who he realises can't see him anyway given his below average height and the other braves standing between im and the front ranks being far taller than him.

He slips away...

Grundar responds joyously to the pats on the back and the congratulations. It feels great, he thinks to himself, to be a part of something again. He hadn't realised how much he'd missed his fellow-tribe members since leaving them in pursuit of his sister, but now, with that gap filled by the Rangers, he finds himself truly happy again, at least for now. Not that winning at knucklebones and fighting fish wasn't fun of course!

Mulling over these things he misses the whispered exchanges between Ohanzee and Melock, and suddenly realises he's been left standing on his own. He grins to himself for being soppy and absent minded, and wanders off to try and find them...

The initiation over, Kobal greets Grundar with a firm but friendly headbutt.  "Welcome amongst us again, brother," he smiles.

He claps some of the other new Ranger recruits on their shoulders.  "Brothers!  It's good to have more Bison braves in our group."  He looks around to make sure Ohanzee, Melock and Grundar aren't within earshot.  "Those Ravens are a handful.  Like trying to herd hyenas, haha.  The more Thunderbirds the better."  His tone turns more serious, looking each brave in the eye.  "I see that you're exiles.  But our Lord Emesh-Ga has accepted you, and welcomed you.  And you have given your solemn oaths in return.  Whatever you did in the past, our Captain has overlooked, and so do we.  So we Rangers welcome you as well."  He spreads his arm to motion towards the rest of the Wandering Rangers.  "As you can see, our group transcends the tribes and the clans, just as the Feathered Rivals transcend the tribes and clans.  Hold your heads high again!  Now you have new family.  But honour your new bonds."

He hefts the shield he bears.  "You will need to find yourself a square shield, one of the markers of our band."

"I'm sure our friend Hoskar will be pleased to talk town the price of shields if all those who need one get him to front one deal with the arms shop" Temush suggests.

As one the braves announce that they are destitute and apart from their mounts and weapons own nothing.

Kobal sighs.  "Well, we'll see what we can do.  Hopefully Hoskar or Grundar will be able to get us a good deal on a bulk buy, haha."

As the Rangers mill about congratulating the newest members, someone pushes their way through the temple crowd, his passage heralded by the barks of a familiar dog.

It's Salen...

The crowd parted, willingly or otherwise, and there indeed stepped forth Salen, and as ever Mordy was right at his heels. He looked a little wiser, or perhaps more focused, or perhaps it was simply the absence of a cloud of smoke around him that made everything about him seem a little sharper - likely a temporary state, but noteable none the less.

He took a long look around at the new faces, and then turned his gaze on the older, more familiar ones. Salen smiled.

"Wotcher. More sacrifices for the greater good, huh?"

Kobal throws back his head and laughs, then grabs Salen with hands on both shoulders, giving the brave a headbutt.

"Did you track us all the way here?  You'll have to tell us your story.  Amara is within the Earth with the Eirithans.  But later we'll celebrate to welcome our new brothers."

He introduces Salen to the new bison brave recruits, pausing, waiting for each brave to name themselves.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:15, Wed 20 Feb 2019.

Henal embraces Salen with a headbutt of greeting. "Welcome back friend, now lets show these newcomers what the Rangers are all about."

He bends down and pets Mordy with his cats looking on with expressions of annoyance before he goes back to speaking to the new recruits.

Amara returns later from the ceremonies held below ground having secured the promise of help in the upcoming raid on the Troll lands. Several axe sisters will accompany her and she has been given a satchel filled with healing salves and potions to use as she sees fit. The three followers of Babeestor Gor have appropriate magics for fighting and have sworn to not rest until Delenda is free from Zorak Zoran. Until the Rangers decide to leave they will remain at the temple.

Amara nodded to the others as she rose from the depths with the Axe Sisters. Her face beamed a smile at Salen at the moment she saw him. "We have new brothers and some new friends in our attempt to wrest Delenda from the hand of the Trolls."

Kobal greets the Axe Sisters with a solemn bow of the head.  He doesn't want to hazard being too familiar with them.

Temush favours the Axe Sisters with his usual optimistic grin, but recollects that they may have a poor impression of those who lose one of their number to a hostile heroquester and keeps his mouth shut.

In the background, Hoskar has been quietly murmuring with each new Ranger, asking names and giving greeting. To each he has imparted a secret of the shield he bears: touch the foursquare shield and give of your spirit should ye seek the gift of strength.

He grins at references to bargaining for shields, but at Salen's arrival he breaks into the broadest of beams. Wotcha he winks. It is a fair wind that blew you here.

Returning Amara's beaming smile with one of his own Salen shook his head in recognition of a familiar problem. "Always someone in trouble...

Get used to it, new blood! The work of the Wandering Rangers is never done!"

He found Hoskar, at last, and returned his wink. "Fair winds make for swift journeys for Condor, and sharpen the senses. As ever, we will have to see what is unseen."

The ceremony takes the rest of the day, with worshippers walking in and out. There's a fair few city folk and farmers too, come to pay their respects and offer sacrifices to protect their own herd beasts for the coming winter.

[ooc] We can wrap this up and head back to Bexc for the evening if you so wish or move forward a few days with each of you going off and chasing down extra help