Answering the call for aid from V'neef Papashan, the satrap of the Northern province of Kori, V'neef Momodi and her ward, V'neef Yuna, make their way northward. Unbeknownst to the two Dragonbloods, or to the crew of the ship bearing them North, a third Exalt stows away in their hold: the fledgling Lunar Ohm, pursuing the directive of her mentor to go see for herself how the Realm would deal with the situation in the province, and to learn and grow from the experience.

It is the final month of the Realm Year 767, and in just a few more weeks it will be the fifth anniversary of the Empress' disappearance. Finding a ship captain willing to take them to a far north port with winter so close took no small amount of persuasion -- and silver -- from Momodi, putting the Dragonblood in an uncharacteristic foul mood for most of the voyage. Rather than impose her disposition on others, Momodi sequestered herself in her cabin, leaving Yuna in nominal command, though in practice her household was a well-oiled machine and her steward, Nanamo, had things well in hand, allowing Yuna to instead focus on her studies in her own cabin.

The two Dragonbloods thus distracted, and Ohm busy being an inconspicuous moth in Yuna's cabin, none of the Exalted on board saw the tragedy coming in time to stop it.

Neither Yuna nor Ohm could see what had happened, only react as a thunderous groaning sound echoed thorough the ship, and a sharp motion tossed around everything in Yuna's cabin that wasn't firmly bolted to the hold, including the two Exalts. Indistinct shouting and a hubbub of activity could be heard across the ship even as Yuna and Ohm tried to reorient themselves, but then there was an even louder cracking sound, a flash of pain, followed immediately by darkness. Upon regaining consciousness a few moments later, the two Exalts found themselves tossed into icy water, with roaring winds disturbing the waves and a curtain of icy sleet restricting their ability to see much other than debris from the ship and flailing bodies all around them.
This message was last updated by the GM at 23:22, Thu 06 Aug 2020.

Ohm's minuscule body struck the water and was subsumed into it, the vast darkness of the ocean even greater against her tiny frame. Glittering silver motes trailed behind her as she sank, the scales of her wings marking her trail. She would have taken in a reflexive gulp of saltwater if her body had lungs (or, for that matter, a mouth). Kicking her six legs, the Lunar spun herself about in the water, righting her perspective as best she could, then released her grip on her moth-form. Silvery essence unspun around her body and then stretched outwards, expanding into her true shape. Red claws glittered dimly in the faint light of flames piercing the surface, white fur seeming almost luminous against the darkness.

Now larger, and with a body much better suited — though hardly ideal — to move through water, Ohm cast her gaze about, trying to spot anything beneath the water. She then turned upwards, paddling her limbs as she returned to the surface. A round, white-tuffed head breaking the waves, Ohm took in a deep breath of air, again scanning around herself for anything. Something or someone to grab hold of, or some hint as to the cause of the... whatever happened.

Yuna opened her eyes slowly, aching with a half-remembered flash of pain. As she gazed into the darkness of open water below and felt the freezing cold of the sea, she stiffened, abruptly realizing that, no, no, she certainly hadn't just fallen asleep in a particularly uncomfortable position at her desk.

The Dragon-Blood turned, frantic for a moment, seeking the surface before kicking herself up to break the water and take a deep breath. She looked around, seeking some sign of anyone she knew, what had happened, or some hint of shore. She almost instinctively began drawing on the essence of the world to try to call out to Momodi-- but the Dynast wouldn't be able to respond. "Momo-- My Lady! Nanamo!"

As Yuna flails her way above water and starts looking around to figure out what happened, or where the others are, she suddenly hears the voice of Momodi in her ears, as she had become used to during several of their training sessions. In a very controlled and calm voice, Momodi says:

"Yuna. Get to safety, I will take care of the crew."

The bobbing white-fluffed head vanished beneath the waves, then popped back up closer to the waterlogged brown-haired Dragon-Blood. A clawed hand reached up, tugging on Yuna's sleeve. "Hey," her fang-filled mouth opened, voice burbling as it was interrupted by the waves, "come with me."

Yuna kicked hard to keep her head above water, struggling with the tumultuous water, still trying to find anyone she recognized even as her eyes stung with seawater. Momodi's voice found her ear, carried clearly even over the howling wind. Yuna opened her mouth, making ready to reply, just as another wave washed over her, causing the young Exalt to gag and choke.

As she fought to regain her composure, something tugged at her sleeve and she turned clumsily in the water to regard a strange little feathery-haired creature. Still coughing, she nodded along, agreeing to accompany the strange being. A servitor of Momodi's? Or just some spirit that owed her a favor?

The "servitor", unaware of the assistance rendered by a distant mentor and claws hooked into the Terrestrial's waterlogged sleeve, led Yuna over to a nearby chunk of the ship. With a bit of assistive shoving, she coaxed the fresh-minted Dynast up onto the wood. With Yuna mostly out of the water — though now fully exposed to the sleet — and balanced on the cramped platform, Ohm vanished beneath the waves, only to reappear some distance away, a coil of loose rope clutched in her mouth. She paddled back over to Yuna's debris, occasionally vanishing beneath the surface with the swell of the waves. Finally she came to a stop, bobbing in the water next to Yuna. Two paws emerged from the water, each clutching one end of the rope and offering them up to Yuna. Her huge golden eyes stared upwards at the Terrestrial, waiting for her response.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:20, Fri 07 Aug 2020.

Yuna let the strange servitor lead her toward a somewhat sizeable piece of debris, though she still struggled against the push and pull of the chaotic seas. She did her best to pull herself up onto it, as directed, but the servitor ended up doing most of the work of shoving the young Dragon-Blood up onto the floating hunk of boat.

Yuna exhaled as she lay on it, shivering with the cold. The vapor from her breath was a little too dark to simply be a result of the chill-- there was a hint of smoke to it, a small show of frustration. The servitor reappeared again, offering her a bit of rope, and Yuna cast her gaze back over toward the ship and the other figures in the water. She winced. This was not her forte; for all she might be a Dragon-Blood, she was a scholar and a socialite.

She felt the stirrings of essence about her and she forced it down as best she could. Now would not be a good time to lose control. Momodi had said to focus on getting away and that she would handle the crew. Turning back to the servitor, Yuna nodded with just a hint of reluctance.

Ohm watched as the Terrestrial cast her gaze towards the other figures, dark blots on the surface of an already-inky ocean, and commiserated with her hesitation. It really was a shame, leaving so much delicious food abandoned to the sharks, but she had no way of knowing how far away they were from shore. Hauling meat the size of those sailors long-distance simply wasn't practical for her, and she doubted the weedy Exalt now perched atop flotsam would be able to off much physical assistance.

When Yuna nodded to her, Ohm turned away from the makeshift raft. Her paws splayed out, guiding the rope in a halo around her as she swam, stretching it out to its fullest extent. Thereby finding the midpoint, the Lunar took it in her mouth and, with all limbs freed, began to doggy-paddle her way Northward.

The Lunar's stroke was strong and confident, if a bit unrefined, the rope-pull giving her much easier leverage on her cargo. As the rope pulled taught, Yuna felt it almost try to leap out of her hands, the Lunar pulling her along at a steady pace. The speed was deliberate, by Ohm's standards, slow enough that she would not exhaust herself on what might be a very long swim. To Yuna, though, it probably felt like trying to hold back a very enthusiastic dog.

As Ohm swims further and further away from the ship, the sleet gradually changes into rain, then a drizzle, then finally stops. The swim is enough to maintain Ohm's body temperature even in the freezing water, but as soon as they're out of the rain Yuna finds herself splinting off a piece of the debris and setting it aflame to provide some measure of warmth. It is hard to keep track of time for either Exalt, but after what seems like hours of effort through the unchanging scenery of the sea, a black-sanded beach finally comes into view, the shore ringed with some sparse, wilted trees.

Ohm, thankful to finally have a target to swim towards less ephemeral than a conceptual pole in her mind, sped up on the last leg of her journey. She hit the sand, claws stirring the wet silt under the waves as she found her footing, then dragged herself and the flotsam up onto dry — well, dry-er — land. The sand, damp from waves and sleet, bunches up into mounds as she claws up it.

As soon as she is free of the waves — leaving Yuna's platform bobbing momentarily un-pulled — Ohm shakes off the saltwater. Limbs gripping the sand, her entire torso spins about, scattering a great shower of icy droplets about herself. Dense, fluffy fur still maintaining some amount of damp, she resumes the final, final leg of her journey as an offboard motor.

She doesn't drag the raftlike out of the ocean, only pulling until its bow dug into the shore. With her cargo not immediately seeking to float away, Ohm at long last lets the rope fall from her tired jaw. The Lunar wanders a few more steps inland before collapsing, all six limbs flopping about herself. Belly-up, the Lunar lets the cold settle into her for a moment, bare chest heaving.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 10:38, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

Yuna continued to lay on the makeshift raft for a moment after the servitor pulled it to stick somewhat unceremoniously out of the shore. She was still trying to push off the malaise of having abandoned Momodi, the Household, and the crew. Even if it had been on the other Exalt's order, even if she were all but incapable of helping... it stung at her, stoked a low flame of guilt that roiled insistently in her chest.

She pushed herself up, still holding the makeshift torch in one hand-- and still colder than she liked even with it-- and her eyes fell upon the being that had pulled her to shore, now lying panting on the shore. She wasn't quite like anything Yuna had seen or read about before, which was saying something. But did the servitor need warmth? Was she bothered by the cold?

Yuna stepped off the raft, stumbling a little, and moved toward the servitor. She planted the torch in the ground next to her and offered a brief nod before stepping away and toward a copse of trees. She was not any kind of outdoorswoman, but the trees didn't look particularly hearty and fire was, at least, well within her wheelhouse. The Dragon-Blood collected a respectable pile of branches, some broken off the trees and some collected from the ground, and returned to the servitor.

Kneeling down, Yuna did her best to arrange the branches into a semblance of what she believed a campfire should look like, leaving some of the branches aside for the moment. Holding out a hand to the firewood, she whispered a single word: "Hesiesh."

With a sudden rush of heat and light, fire burst from her fingertips, clinging to the branches and igniting a small campfire.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:31, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

Ohm's breathing subsides to a more normal rate, the Exalt remaining splayed out on her back as Yuna does her level best to attempt to gather firewood. An ear flickered when Yuna mutters something into the vaguely tent-shaped pile of kindling. Is that sorcery? A magic fire word? As the flames burst to life nearby, Ohm finally rolls back over crawling next to the first and curling up next to it. Her arms, legs, tails, and ears all fold down, the Exalt seeming to shrink into a round, soft loaf of Ohm-coloured bread. A grateful sigh wisps out of her mouth, the salt water beginning to evaporate off of her in a steady stream of steam.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:44, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

Yuna's gaze drifted back to the servitor as she crawled over to the fire and proceeded to flop back down beside it, resembling a cat of sorts and eliciting the faint hint of a smile from the Dragon-Blood. Nodding to herself and rubbing her hands together, feeling the warmth starting to work its way back into her a bit more-- though she wasn't sure if that was the fire or simply an effect of invoking Hesiesh's name-- she reoriented herself toward the sea.

Drawing lightly on the Essence of the air around them, Yuna spoke into the light breeze, though no sound was audible from her lips: "My Lady. We've made it to shore. I will meet you in Kori." She had to remind herself in that moment, for just a moment, to project confidence as the older Exalt had taught her. There was no question that she would find a way through to meet Momodi. There was no question that Momodi was alive.

Yuna sends the message to her mentor but, of course, she has no way of knowing if it has reached its recipient, unless Momodi decides to reply in kind -- a feat that might be impossible, given how in their training sessions the two Exalts had determined that this, in particular, was an area where the pupil surpassed the master, and that Yuna could send her wind-whispered words farther away than Momodi could.

Meanwhile, as Ohm finishes drying herself near the flames of the campfire, her ears draw her attention to the trees, specifically in the direction Yuna had taken the wood from. The unmistakable sound of weight on dry foliage, unexpectedly close, makes the Lunar drone out other sounds and pay attention. She can discern two sets of paw-steps, as a pair of some kind of four-legged predator, probably some kind of northern feline, make their way closer and closer to their makeshift camp.

As the pawsteps grow closer, Ohm rises out of her bun. Her fun fluffs out, hackles raising unconsciously at the approach of a predator. She doesn't quite go fully on the offensive, instead sitting up with her tails splayed out behind her, a dark silhouette against the fire. She presents the image of a fellow predator, aware of and unintimidated by their approach. Ohm waits for whatever these creatures may be to come out of the trees, or to back off of their own volition.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:38, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

A few moments after Ohm takes position, two snow leopards appear out of the trees, their body language clearly that of predators stalking prey. The two cats pause upon seeing Ohm, clearly having expected their quarry to be caught unawares; their intelligent eyes seem to take in the scene, giving the two Exalts on the beach the upper hand in taking the initiative, but the leopards do not seem inclined to leave them alone even if their ambush was foiled.

As the two leopards converge upon them, Ohm's hackles raise further. She rises into a crouch, moonsilver tattoos glinting in the firelight. Her eyes lock on the nearer of the two leopards, gold eyes flashing against gold as her intentions become clear. "I'll have your heart," she proclaims, rising to her feet. Her arms and tails spread out, making her still admittedly tiny-looking form seem larger than it is. She takes a step forward, digging a paw into the sand, daring the leopards to move first.

Yuna still watching the see, caught movement out of the corner of her eye as the servitor moved off. Frowning curiously, she turned to see what had caught the other girl's attention, only to stiffen as she laid eyes upon the two snow leopards that were approaching. She had not spent much time around wild animals, but there was a certain predatory saunter to them that she recognized from some of her old shop's higher-placed customers. ...And from Momodi, when the older Exalt was heading to the battlefield.

Quickly, Yuna scrambled to her feet, already forming a plan for how she might be able to avoid the fight. Regarding the leopards for a moment, Yuna centered herself, taking a deep, slow breath. Her eyes were steady on the creatures, gold flecks glittering with supernatural light as she gathered Essence to herself. "Leave," she said, breath exhaling with dark smoke.

The Essence in the air sparked and glimmered like embers as she focused her mind on a single name, breathed in one more time, and exhaled a roaring torrent of flame, cascading out toward the leopards but stopping short of licking their paws and singing their whiskers. There was a single, whispered word on that exhale. "Hesiesh."

The flames bathe the black sand in front of the leopards, reflecting off of their eyes and making them jump back with a hiss. Both cats seem to hesitate for a moment, but then turn tail and start skulking back into the sparse woods, apparently having decided that the two Exalts are more trouble than they are worth hunting.

As the flames erupt from the sand in front of her, Ohm tumbles backward, losing her composure at the sudden display of destructive power from her companion. She had not realised that the Dragon blooded was capable of anything so grand as that. Watching the snow leopards flee back into the forest, Ohm let them go, abandoning the sacred hunt within her mind. She remained sat on her behind, contemplating what to do next as the fire died down.

First things come first. Ohm rolled back onto all sixes, turning towards her companion. "Do you know where your destination is?"

Yuna watches closely as the leopards begin backing off, then completely scatter in the face of the flames. She exhales more deeply, posture deflating slightly though a proud grin found its way to the edges of her mouth. That had actually worked. She was getting better at all this, if only a little. The Exalt leaned back and let a light sense of triumph overcome the relief that she would not be pressing her martial prowess against some likely apex predators of the region.

Startling at the unexpected sound of a voice, Yuna turned to regard her companion. "So you can talk." She turned and regarded their surroundings for a moment. "I know where I was going, yes. But I don't know how to get there from here. ...Maybe I could try to calculate things based on estimates... But, no, I don't have enough frame of reference without a compass, a map, or any idea of how far we went in what direction... Maybe tonight, if the sky clears, I could try to figure out where we are compared to where we were and..." Yuna trailed off, tapping her finger against her forearm.

Shaking her head, the Dragon-Blood turned to regard the servitor. "Did Lady V'neef Momodi contract you to guard and guide me?" she asked.

Ohm pulls her feet in, sitting a bit like a six-limbed, exceptionally fluffy dog. "I think I said something in the ocean, though. And also to the leopards." Her voice is high, perfectly pitched, and almost songlike in its clarity. Head tilted to the side, she considers the Terrestrial's question. "Mmm. That was that other elemental woman, right?" She seems unaware of the oddity of calling a Dragon-Blooded "elemental woman". No," she replies entirely unabashedly, lifting up a foot to scratch behind her ear and dislodge a little bit of the clinging salt, "I'm here for a different reason. M'pretty good at directions, though. We're still in the northeast, say. And I'm pretty sure," she lowers a foot, raising a hand to gesture towards the ocean, "that is still the White Sea."

The Lunar rises up, still on all sixes like an animal, and starts walking towards the forest. She pauses long enough to look back at Yuna. "You can come if you want. Going to find some food and shelter. Was going to eat those cats, but I won't now." She then turns back towards the trees, trotting into the shadows.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:27, Sat 08 Aug 2020.

As Ohm turns back to the forest, and before Yuna can respond, the Lunar Exalt once more hears the sounds of approaching creatures. In fact, with the two leopards having so recently departed their company, their gait was still fresh in Ohm's memory, and she could easily pinpoint that the selfsame creatures were returning. This time, however, they were accompanied by a two-legged gait that made no attempt to hide itself.