The Savant

𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕠𝕟: ℝ𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕣𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖

Please allow 5-7 business days for this user to read the GM's IC post.

@Xandrya

Take all the time you need. Haha!

Introduction

Welcome Ashwini!

𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕠𝕟: ℝ𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕣𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖

Everyone might have noticed I included rolls into my post with Pilka. After playing around with dice, I find the simplest fashion of using dice as a mechanic is to use a 1d20 in simple terms. This does not have to be used unless a disagreement happens, a character is fighting a named NPC/important NPC, or if you purely want to use it for writing for more randomization and naturalness.

Players cannot die unless the writer gives approval.

Mechanics

1 - 9 = failure/not successful in an attack
10 = a very superficial attack (a scratch or even just cutting through fabric and not skin)
11 - 15 = An attack that draws blood (probably needs stitches but not fatal or severe)
16 + = severe or fatal wounds (wounds that will need to heal for awhile and need medical intervention and medicine to help heal).

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I'm finding of doing an extra step for player versus player character fight but I do not know if that would be excessive or not (a blocking roll for the defendant).

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People looking into the dice rolls might have noticed that Pilka naturally has a + 2 bonus. This is from years of experience.

Other characters that would have bonuses on attacks/use of weapons/etc... currently would be:

Jonathan would have a bonus of + 2 when using his aerosol spray to attack or defend.

Selene would have a +2 bonus when it comes to her enhancements to traverse or move quickly. If Qia chose to roll for agility/movement in a fight (This would definitely come in handy if the block feature comes into play. She would have a natural +2 to block).

𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕠𝕟: ℝ𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕣𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖

The toing and froing of Pilka

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THE DAY PILKA AND KARA MET AND WENT SEPARATE WAYS

Watching Kara go into the city, the man waited until she was encased by the light, and he waited until he couldn’t see her silhouette anymore before leaving. The woman was back in the city where it was safe so he didn’t have to worry — he headed home — but before he could enter the main area he stayed, abundant chirping and chattering could be heard coming closer. A large creature swooped down from the ceiling and hooked onto his clothing with ease and continued to make so many different noises in an attempt to communicate. “Gava du trak-ta-ka?” the man chirped with pleasantries towards the pink-ish white flying mammal while gently scratching its head and neck. This creature was about three feet long from tip of nose to tip of tail and is roughly seven pounds in weight.

Where have you been?

She continued to chirp and squeak happily, her smaller head and larger ears rubbing up against his silver hair and rough gray skin. “Nu traksh ul denas vi sevet. Ra velsha, ul nu drel-ka ra vek nu zul. Du kethal vren-ka nu traka-zan?” he explained while opening up the entrance of his house, entering, and shutting the door behind him before locking it so no one could intrude. He had a few things that he needed to do though his first thing would be making something for Kara so she knew he was okay before taking the long trek to Sevet ul Krav.

I met someone from the city today. They were nice and I promised to make sure they knew I was okay. Do you have any idea what I should do to communicate that?

The man didn’t do anything for awhile except feed himself and Talunel which his friend loved the gave fruit and bugs the most. After eating chunks of fruit and vegetables, she went around the area to find wandering bugs to eat while Pilka took a nap.

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ALMOST A WEEK LATER

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After a handful of days working on the piece that he was going to give to Kara to communicate that he was okay, he realized that it was such an excessive gift, and probably a waste of his time but he honestly loved soldering so much that he found the whole thing relaxing. Once he made a handful of the items, he soldered them together, and created a cute metal holder that’s foundation circled and spiraled. Currently, the metal flowers were in a state where they looked like they have not bloomed. He moved the vase around and looked around the area of his home until he found something that was suitable and turned it on. That thing started creating heat without issue and he placed the unique vase of flowers beside the heat source and the petals unraveled and bloomed. He used a heat reactive metal to make these and felt like that was as good as he was going to get such a project.

Deciding for a last step, he wrote a note, and put it into the unique vase so it could stick out. The note read:

I hope your black eye and any pain that was caused has been healing. As I promised, I am fine, and this is how I am showing you that. Put these by a heat source or under any type of light source.

At the end of the small note, his name was signed in a very mystically pretty way, and showed that he had gone through education — not the best — but one of the main things that the orphanage education enforced into him and other children was beautiful and very eligible cursive.

Going into Dominion during a later time when it was not as busy and barely anyone was wandering in the streets, he found where Kara’s address was, and it was definitely not because he had stalked her throughout the week to figure out where she lived. Placing the item at the foot of her door, it had a bag over it to make it look like it wasn’t anything special, and he knocked a few times though he didn’t wait around for an answer.

Pilka wandered off into the darkness and waited around out of sight and out of mind for a while to see if the item would be grabbed or not. After a while of nothing, he left, and he hoped that no one would steal it but he doubted anyone would. She seemed to live in a slightly nicer area and guards seemed to patrol in this area more than they did in Khia or lesser areas of Dominion.

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A DAY LATER

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Talunel was bothering him nonstop and with enthusiasm as they moved through the caverns and made it to a certain chut a good distance away from the outside of Dominion. It took him a few hours from his house to get here though it was worth it because he wanted to check on Opa and Oce and the locals of this chut like Sabira. “Oce! Opa!” he let out while he was entering the chut and saw the children with Sabira and three other locals.

The little boy, Oce, quickly jumped off the bench and made his way over to him. He had gills on his neck, a fishy appearance to his face with slightly blue-ish skin, and big black eyes, “You said you would be here DAYS AGO!!!” Oce pointed a finger at Pilka with such an accusation in his tone as if the older man had betrayed him by lying.

Pilka couldn’t help but chuckle while putting up his hands in defeat, “I know, I know…” before he waved his hand to encourage the little boy to lower his voice and Oce gasped while covering his mouth and what sounded like a muffled apology.

“Did you bring me something good?” Oce seemed curious and leaned to the side to check out the overly stuffed backpack that Pilka had on. The young boy was speaking cavern-ish, it sounded the same as the common language to Pilka, but he had been speaking it for years at this point.

Pilka began to take off the backpack and he looked over to Oce with such a look that made the boy come closer to him with so much interest in his young eyes and posture. The older man set the bag down and began to rummage in it, Oce barely reacted, and Pilka continued to rummage. Once this felt like it went on for too long, Oce let out his emotions, “That bag isn’ that big!” he almost shouted again though it was more controlled this time while he took a step forward while huffing a breath. Possibly an indication that he was beginning to believe that Pilka forgot about him completely.

“Here you go,” Pilka chuckled while taking out two items — a candy bar from Dominion and a small toy of one of the creatures of the caverns — and he let the boy take them with excitement and a sparkle in his eyes.

Oce bowed to Pilka, “Thank you, Elder Pilka,” then he ran away to go show the other kids the presents that he got. The little boy was generous and built on community and he would most definitely share the candy bar with his friends.

The older man was honestly baffled by what he just had heard and he turned to look at Sabira, “Have you been telling them I am old?” he laughingly accused the woman of doing such a thing. Sabira was a younger woman in her late twenties and a hybrid between a regular human and a burrower that had a lot of quirks — she had insect-like eyes, a bug-like face, and she was very petite, frail, and lengthy in posture but she wasn’t ugly. She was unique and intrinsic with beauty.

She gasped with such an accusation as she placed her hand on her chest, “Me!? Oh, no! I would never disrespect one of my peers in such a way, especially you, elder Pilka,” she teased him with a smile. This behavior and teasing brought a playful smile to his face, an even more playful roll of his eyes, and a shake to his head. He then pulled out a doll and handed it to Opa, she seemed surprised to receive something, and began to curiously check the doll out before playing with it.

Standing up, Pilka looked over to Sabira when she approached him, she had a reassuring smile, “You know you are one of the older ones, Pilka. Most people do not live towards your age because of the beasts, illness, or plenty of other reasons but that isn’t my point. Take it as a compliment that others are willing to use such a title and bow to you. It means they respect you and you are seen as a knower,” she had a seriousness in her voice as she patted his cheek and walked away after he gave her a bunch of items for the community.

Opa was sitting on the ground, only old enough to talk in simple terms, and babble vocally while moving around the doll and trying to figure out what it was. He crouched back down to the little girl, “How are you doing?” he let his hand slide over her forehead before petting her hair in one motion. She didn’t feel like she was having a fever anymore but she still looked clammy.

“Hurt,” Opa responded while pointing at her neck.

Pilka sighed, “Your neck still hurts?” he gently used both of his hands to feel her neck. Surely enough, she had inflamed lymph nodes, and he was glad that he went back into Dominion when he delivered that gift to Kara — he picked up medicine from a reliable source — and he brought it to give to Opa. When he saved her and her older brother Oce from the Cult of Darkness, they were sickly, but Oce seemed to get over it once he was in a stable environment. His immune system was stronger though Opa was struggling. She worsened. A stuffy nose, swollen lymph nodes, a tender throat, and she continuously cried because of the discomfort. He couldn't imagine how exhausted Sabira was from it all.

“I have something that you can take,” he picked up the little girl and his backpack so he could carry her into one of the living areas, specifically Sabira’s area, and set her down somewhere comfortable. “Can you put on a kettle?” he called out while opening up the medicine. Soon enough the hot water was brought to him and he poured the contents into a cup before stirring it together. Everything dissolved pretty quickly and the water turned from translucent to an orange-ish color. He let it cool before giving it to Opa and when she was able to drink it, she didn’t like the smell or taste, so he had to sit there and force her to take it all. Reminding her it was going to help her feel better.

It was after dinner time while Pilka sat around and did a few things that Sabira needed done before she approached him, “You need to take them to Sevet ul Krav,” she broke the silence that had infected the house for the past three hours. It started when the kids needed to go to bed but he found himself silently thinking about her words.

“I know,” he didn’t seem enthusiastic about it.

“Pilka, I am being serious. Opa will die down here. We do not have the proper medicine or protection for her. Plus, the cult is still searching. They are angry that you saved kids from their awful doings, Heli and Filk ran into them yesterday, and we should be glad they were not hurt because of it or worse.” Sabira felt like she had to convince him though he had already made up his mind before he came here.

Pilka stopped when he was doing and looked at her, “Sabira, I know. I will make sure Opa and Oce get to Sevet ul Krav but you have to understand. I am old. That trip takes about twelve hours when I do it alone. You have to climb up a straight drop off with little-to-no cliffs to rest on and I’m going to have two kids strapped to me when I do it this time,” he held eye contact with Sabira, the room fell heavily silent, and he went back to doing what Sabira needed done. “I’ll make sure they get there. Just let me rest for tonight and I’ll leave the first thing at wake,” Pilka explained.

“Thank you,” Sabira wanted to console him but she knew better. Pilka could be difficult and he had already made up his mind before they talked. What else was there to say other than appreciation? She knew that climb was rough on anyone which is why barely anyone did it. One slip or mess up and you were dead. There was no easy way to get to Sevet ul Krav.

At first wake, like he said, Pilka made sure he had the resources in his bag that he needed to make the trip. Opa was wrapped to his chest while Oce stood beside him. Oce having his own little bag with a make-shift clip in the front and a body harness attached to it. A rope led from Pilka to him — Pilka had a harness on as well. They were secured to each other by ten feet of rope. They all said their farewells and allowed Sabira to pray over them before they began their journey.

Oce talked the whole way and Pilka swore that the little boy didn’t even take a breath when speaking and they finally arrived at the area to climb which was roughly an hour and half walk from where the chut was. “I can’t see the top,” Oce stated.

Pilka looked over to him and chuckled, “We won’t’ see it for awhile,” he stated which caused a groan from Oce. He did not sound enthused about not being able to see the top for hours and he gave Pilka such a dirty look — not one of judgement but one that asked if he was truly serious. “I am not pulling your rope, Oce,” he jokingly tugged the rope that connected them.

“How much do we have to climb?” Oce asked with defeat.

Glancing down to check on Opa, she was completely out of it. He crouched down, carefully, and looked at Oce, “This is for your little sister, Oce. She is sick and she is going to need you. I would tell you that you could stay down here but it is not safe to do so and your sister would be terribly sad. Do you think you can be strong enough to climb and make it? I will help you.”

Oce seemed to have to think about it, he looked up into the darkness, and how steep and bare the wall was. He then looked at Pilka as if he was determining if he could trust him or not before nodding his head in agreement. “I’ll do my best.” he said as confidently as he possibly could for a boy his age.

Pilka ruffled his dark hair, “Good. Let’s get to it then,” They went up to the wall and Pilka helped Oce up and gave the young boy a head start before he started climbing after him.

It was a long time and longer than Pilka thought before Oce started vocalizing his exhaustion. Tears were rolling down the young boy's face and the older man would be lying if he said he didn’t notice them half an hour ago. It was better to ignore it in such situations until it couldn’t be ignored. An almost dreadful breath of air was taken by the little boy as his breathing started to shake with emotion, “Elder Pilka, I am tired,” he began to whine and sniffle.

Pilka stopped climbing and looked down at him. “What do you want me to do?” He wasn’t going to give Oce easy answers or solutions because he wanted the boy to think. What if he wasn’t with them and he had to do this himself?

“I…” Oce’s face twisted as he began and he looked at the stone in front of him and slightly down as if he needed to find the right words because there had to be a correct answer. “I would find somewhere to rest.” Was his honest area.

“Then look around. What do you see?” he asked the young boy.

Oce looked around to see the bare wall since they were nowhere near a cliff that they could rest on. This caused the young boy to look utterly defeated and overwhelmed. Then he began to climb again. Pilka watched him for a few seconds before sighing, “Come here,” he gestured.

The young boy stopped and glanced at him. “Why?”

“You can most likely fit in between me and the backpack so you can hang on and rest. Come one,” Pilka encouraged. This seemed to be such a relief to Oce, he hurried up, and listened to what Pilka ordered him to do. After getting Oce situated, Pilka climbed for a few more hours before getting to a cliff and feeling exhausted.

Getting Opa and Oce off from him, he made a bed with the wrap and backpack for the both of them, and created a fire. The children might have woken up for a few seconds but they quickly fell asleep in the nest of fabric and items without an issue. Pilka laid there for a while before falling asleep himself, making sure he was in between the cliff and the kids.

Plenty of tears, conversation, and exhaustion later. Pilka found himself pulling up the rope to help Oce get to the top of the cliff they had been climbing for the past day. When approaching Sevet ul Krav, it was a beautiful limestone city with golden accents, and he wandered the outskirts of the city until he got to Ta’nini’s house. She was coming out onto the steps as he approached, she was excited, “You brought children this time!?” she seemed so excited. Her whole presence beamed brightly as she approached.

Pilka gently stroked his fingers along Opa’s head and hair as she slept against his chest, “I have, this little one strapped to me is Opa, and this is her older brother Oce. I brought them here because they are being hunted by the Cult and Opa is sick,” he explained.

Ta’nini gestured for him to hand over Opa which he did after unwrapping her from him. She took the little girl and sniffed her, specifically her nose, “She smells like she has an infection,” she went over to the little boy who seemed nervous, she grabbed his chin, and sniffed his nose too. “You do not smell as strongly as her. You should be fine but I will keep an eye on both of you,” she explained with a smile. “I am Ta’nini,” She introduced herself.

Oce seemed to flush a bit and was uncertain of how he should interact. He looked to Pilka, Pilka raised his brows a little, and Oce looked back at Ta’nini. “I’m Oce, brother of Opa, and son of Jun and Epa,” he introduced himself formally and he got a validating nod from Pilka which seemed to cheer the little boy up.

“Are you sick too?” Ta’nini came over and grabbed Pilka’s chin before he could do anything about it and sniffed his face. “No, you just smell dirty,” she waved him off before gesturing for Oce to follow. “Come. I’ll show you to your new home,” she held out a hand so she and Oce could hold hands on their way.

Pilka followed. After the children were bathed and fed — Opa was put to sleep and Oce was introduced to a group of kids in the community. Ta’nini came back around, “They are safe now. Go rest or take a bath,” her words were teasing but caring. The people of Sevet ul Krav could bathe daily because of the natural springs that ran through the city. They had bath houses that were made of limestone and other types of stone that were kept in pristine condition.

The older man did just that, he enjoyed the luxuries of Sevet ul Krav, and spent a few hours in the steaming hot waters of the natural springs. Washing up and relaxing. And he would end up spending about two weeks in Sevet ul Krav before departing because he knew he needed to go back down. Packing his bag and making sure he had everything. He told everyone farewell, he encouraged Oce to stay strong and look after his little sister, and he wished Opa to recover before leaving.

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BACK IN DROVAL UL VASH

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The burrowers all called the level and area where Dominion sat as ‘Droval ul vash’ which translated to ‘depths of darkness’ and some even referred to it as ‘ul’shal droval ul vash’ which meant ‘within the sacred depths of darkness,’ and he found himself about a day later landing on the floor and being greeted by darkness and silence. That was until he took a few steps and stopped because he heard something in the distance. This caused his breathing to quiet and his senses to feel heightened as he carefully listened and looked around. That was when he stopped individuals. “Who is there!?” his voice demanded for whoever to show themselves. Sadly, he had an idea who was hiding in front of him.

That was when their cloaks began to appear as they got closer. There were five of them. “I’ve been waiting for you to return, Pilka. I almost thought you weren’t going to,” her voice cheekily came out as she readied her weapon — she was angry.

Pilka sighed, “I’m not fighting you, Mother Teresa,” his voice was level along with disinterest.

“It’s sister Tallullah! You plague,” she snapped at him.

He put up his hands, “I’m sorry. I’m old. I forget myself and forget people that don’t matter to me,” Pilka had a tone that made this sound more like a game though it was serious. The Cult of Darkness members were angry that he swooped Oce and Opa away from them. One of the angriest cult members was Sister Tallullah because he was constantly stopping her and her group from taking children.

She growled in annoyance, “I am here to inform you, by the mother and the father, you are considered a plague to our community and cause and you will suffer!” This was when she began to charge him. By this time, Pilka didn’t notice, but the four other members had lit torches so they could see better. It wasn’t a bother because he wasn’t very close to it when it lit up so he stepped back when they began to try making a ring of light around them.

The items that Pilka had on him was the grappling hook like weapon, two twin swords that he actually got from a Cult of Darkness member that he killed, and a hunting knife. Tallullah was charging him with a sword that was similar to the ones he had on his back, under his backpack, and he grabbed both of them.

Tallullah’s Attack = 4 (Failure)

Pilka quickly blocked her sword from hitting him and he almost felt bad because there was no force with her swing. “You might want to practice your swordsmanship, Sister Tallullah,” his words sounded encouraging and in a different situation, they would be, but at the moment they were an insult. Then one of the men came around behind him with a torch. He did no hesitation to take one of the swords and swing it at the cult member while pushing Tallullah backwards.

Pilka’s attack = 14 (Success)

The cult member stumbled backwards as his white and black robes began to fill with a red coloring. His breathing instantly became shaky from the adrenaline and Pilka stepped forward, towards Tallullah, and swung one of the swords at her almost teasingly.

Tallullah jumped back to block it, “Attacking members of darkness will put a bigger bounty on your head! I hope mother Feul or father Linin deal with you!” she hissed out those words before lunging at him again.

Tallullah’s attack = 2 (Failure)

Once again, Pilka blocked her and her face flushed, “You really do need to work on your swordsmanship. I thought the cult put all of their people through extensive training but you are father Kepelin’s daughter, so you got a pass didn’t you?” He continued to rub salt into the wound and Tallullah’s face flushed with fire.

“I was not given a pass! I had to work ten times harder than the rest of the children of Adam and Eve to become a sister! You are an abomination that has plagued us for decades and you shall not speak to me or others like that!” Sister Tallullah demanded respect.

Two more individuals were approaching him and the other one went to help the comrade that he cut, stepping back from Tallullah, he swung at the two individuals.

Sword 1 = 3 (Failure)

Sword 2 = 7 (Failure)

Pilka failed to hit them though it was hard because they both had long torches. He didn’t want to get burned with fire.

Torch attack by cult member = 4 (Failure)

One of them swung a torch at him, the ashes, flames, and embers going everywhere with the attempted strike and Pilka was able to move away and stay out of range of all three members who were ganging up on him. “This fight is appearing more unfair by the second,” he joked. “At least three of you against an older man like me. Didn’t your parents ever teach you manners? Respect your elders?” It was ironic that he joked about this but he knew the answer — cult members only respected each other.

Tallullah lunged after him again with her sword in both hands.

Tallullah attacking Pilka = 7 (Failure)

Once again he was able to out maneuver the attack and he swirled his weapons in his hands before locking them in a grab and preparing to fight with them. Pilka wasn’t planning on killing Tallullah because he wanted her to run back to the others and cry about what happened just like when he cut down three of the members to get Oce and Opa. Tallullah let out a grunt of frustration and she swung again in a sloppy manner that showed she was emotional.

Disadvantage attack = 6 (Failure)

Pilka blocked that one before pushing Tallullah over onto the ground with ease. He walked away from her and he went to attack one of the guys who swung a torch at him. Taking both swords and attempting to cut him down. The sword whistled when he slashed at the cult member.

Pilka sword 1 = 20 (success)

His second swing was a miss because of the first attack, blood splattered everywhere in between him and the cult member, and he could feel the wetness on his clothes and exposed parts of his body. The cult member fell with a thud against the ground and while he was just turning to check on the other cult members and Tallullah. The other man wielding a torch was coming at him.

Cult member attack with torch = 18
Yet it was too late for Pilka to jump away and he could feel the burning sensation on his shoulder, upper arm, and left side of his chest. The man jabbed him with the head of the torch while embers and ashes fell to the ground before the torch's light became extremely dim. Pilka let out a scream before clenching his teeth and stepping to separate himself from the torch and attacking the man.

Sword 1 = 6 (Failure)

Sword 2 = 5 (Failure)

Swinging did nothing except send electrocuting pain through his body from the left side and Pilka backed up quickly away from the cult member, making sure the other one with the hurt man was distracted, and Tallullah was away from him. His body was shaking from the rush of adrenaline and the mixture of pain he was feeling. The cult member that just got him with the torch was trying to reignite it.

Tallullah was getting up and death glaring at him with her brown eyes, she was furious, and for good reason. Pilka was making a fool out of her once again. Then she charged him again and swung.

Tallullah’s attack = 11 (success)

It wasn’t a powerful hit but she sliced open the arm that was just burned, getting some of the seared flesh with her cut, and smiling proudly that she finally got him. Pilka reached around to touch the slash but he stopped himself as he backed up a few feet. His brows furrowed as he was trying to manage the pain and focus on the two attacking him.

The man was distracted with the torch and was trying to reignite it when he looked up to see a sword coming down at him.

Pilka sword 1 = 21 (Success)

Pilka sword 2 = 6 (Failure)

A thud of a body echoed out into the cavity they were in and a head rolled away. Using his left arm was proving to be painful and exhausting. Every time he moved, it hurt, but when he moved that part of his body it hurt even worse. Tallullah gasped in horror, “You are a monster! You kill without hesitation!” she almost screamed these words in agony while tears rolled down her face.

“Do not refer to me as the monster or attempt to guilt trip me. You and your people lure children to their deaths and others that don’t know any better!” Pilka was angry and there was an underlying pain in his voice. Exhaustion was well from climbing down from Sevet ul Krav.

That was when their feud died. A laughter rang out in the darkness of the cavern and Pilka tensed up – Duskhounds… — the thought caused him to lock eyes into the darkness to try and see them.

“See, they are coming for you! They will give justice to what happened here today and what has happened in the past because of you!” Tallullah began to run away and disappeared into the darkness. She left the wounded cult member and the other that was trying to help.

Pilka let out a shaky breath as he could hear the echoing laughter of the creature getting closer. “Please. I don’t want to die!” The unhurt cult member begged while trying to stop the bleeding of the other, his hands and arms were dreadfully soaked, and Pilka knew there was no saving the man that was bleeding out.

He glanced over to the cult member, “Why should I?” his words were plainly asked since he didn’t see any reason to help the member at all.

“I had no choice in joining the cult! It was either being sacrificed to a demogorgon or becoming a son of Adam. Please! I’ll do anything if you help me,” The person continued to beg. Pilka didn’t know if he should trust the words of the man begging for help but he wanted to.

An irritated noise could be heard from Pilka as he thought and argued internally about it, “I never want to see you associating with the cult again. If I do, I will not hesitate to kill you. Do you understand?” he continued to back up and get closer to the man that finally realized there was no saving his friend.

“I do. I promise, I will never help or associate with them again,” he cried out, not because he was scared of dying, but clearly he liked the guy that Pilka cut down.

That was when a single Duskhound appeared, cackling, and trying to sense the movements and electromagnetic pulses of the things he was hunting — Pilka and a soon-to-be-ex-cult-member. This one was smaller and looked to possibly be freshly pushed out of the familia pack — a natural occurrence to encourage young male Duskhounds to find their own breeding partner and start a familia group.

Pilka got in between the Duskhound and the man who was emotionally distraught. Putting his swords away, he saw no use, since if a Duskhound got that close to him. It was going to be a tragedy. This was when he brought out his grappling hook weapon and prepared it. “Do not move quickly or make too much sound,” Pilka whispered and even that whisper got the Duskhound turning its head to show that it heard him.

Then it seemed to know exactly where Pilka and the other man were and lunged at them.

---

Arriving at the chut a while later, the man was helping Pilka walk, and apologizing profusely for not being of any help with the Duskhound. The older man was somewhat annoyed about the constant chatter that this ex-member had pent up but he didn’t tell him to shut up or stop talking. The man must have needed to get it out. However, Pilka was relieved to see Sabira coming out hastily with worried eyes. Two others came out as well with worry. They began to ask a ton of questions about what had happened to him.

Pilka explained everything and the man that was with him awkwardly waved and tried to explain that he was no longer a part of the cult but he was wearing the cloaks and symbols of a fresh cult member — one of the lowest rank. A child of Adam and Eve.

Sabira took Pilka to the medicine hut to check out all the wounds and things. The massive burn that was welting, blistering, and skin was folded like wrinkled clothes caused her face to twist with disgust. The slash would need stitches. Then he had a nasty bite on his thigh from fighting the duskhound.

Lying there on the bed, he was only in boxers while Sabira stared at his wounds with disgust, “Didn’t you listen to anything I said before you left? You are old! You can’t be fighting like some young buck, Pilka!” Once she had her thoughts together, she was berating him like an angry and disappointed mother. The healer of this chut, an older man and about fifteen years Pilka’s senior, was making pastes and different things to help decrease the chances of infection and increase the ability to heal. “Yelling at a man that is as stubborn as Pilka will do nothing, Sabira. We have our ways. He has his. Now if you are going to continue to yell, you can leave, a patient doesn’t need more stress while they are in this condition,” the raspy voice of the older man echoed out in the hut while he walked over to Pilka and began to work on the burn mark, the slash, and the bite mark to make sure they were disinfected before he did anything else.

Sabira gasped to hold her breath at such words and she nodded before letting that breath out, “Yes, I am sorry Elder Guin. I will not yell at him anymore,” but she let her eyes glare at Pilka instead which said everything as well.

Pilka was focusing on what elder Guin was doing and his face kept twisting and turning each time he showed something into his wounds. “You know… that hurts right?” After a bit, Pilka couldn’t help it.

Elder Guin looked at him with hooded eyes that were wrinkled to show his age, “Do you enjoy pain or do you enjoy not having limbs?” he asked casually as he did a few more things before preparing the needle and thread to stitch up Pilka’s arm.

“I rather have my limbs,” Pilka huffed out in relief because of the small break with no sudden jabs of pain from Elder Guin’s fingers.

“Then I don’t know why you are complaining,” Elder Guin spoke softly before he handed Pilka a rolled up wad of cloth around a stick. “Keep that in your mouth so you don’t bite your tongue,” he commanded and he started working on the stitches before Pilka could even get the thing into his mouth and Pilka quickly put it in between his teeth with a growl from the needle stabbing his flesh.

---

After a few days of staying in the chut and keeping an eye on the ex-cult member, he was satisfied, and he made his way back to his home. That was where he slept for probably a few days with waking up in between to check on the wounds, put the pastes and take the medicine that elder Guin gave him, and to make sure the stitches were fine. Everything seemed to check out so he was happy for the most part.

Then he grabbed a few weapons and his bag to set out for Dominion. He snuck into the city during a late time and placed a bag on Kara’s door handle. It had that fruit he let her try but this time there was a different variation. There was the regular purple-black with the red flesh inside but there was also orange-yellow with green insides.

Going into Esille, he spotted a handful of people. There were too many people at that busy market, and he was trying to get a few things but he couldn’t encourage himself enough to go into a crowded place with so many wounds. There was a girl with purple in her hair walking somewhere like she was on a mission. She probably was and he stayed up in the higher parts of the stone and watched. She was soon out of sight.

Then a man, quite a bit later, was walking through with someone that appeared to be a dweller - then he recognized them. It was Gator and Kit. A part of him wanted to say hi but he knew that Kit was probably on the way to work. Pilka laid there on the edge for a while out of exhaustion. The man didn’t even realize he was falling asleep before he woke up to screaming. Someone yelled the words he hated to hear, “DUSK HOUNDS!!!”

---

Mentions @Xandrya Kara - @Expendable Kit & Gator - @Qia Selene
Interactions
- Sabira
- Oce and Opa
- Ta'nini
- Elder Guin
- Sister Tallullah
- Various cult members
- Various individuals

A little nervous….

Welcome to the hobby, Babycakes! I bet you can find something or someone interesting here. There is a ton of lovely individuals and a ton more of people who write amazingly as well. Plus, there is always something for someone if you look or advertise! I do hope you find what you are looking for.

𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕠𝕟: ℝ𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕣𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖

Oh, I would recommend that people interact. If that doesn't seem plausible. I'm always up to creating more NPC/environmental/fauna/flora-situations for everyone. Just let me know your plans or jump into DMs to discuss with me.

Currently, I am collabing a flashback scene with Evil and I am writing Pilka's post that will probably reference/mention all of your characters.

Dominion: Rediscover the surface

Bump

𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕠𝕟: ℝ𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕔𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕦𝕣𝕗𝕒𝕔𝕖

About 3 weeks

---

TWO DAYS LATER

A city-wide emergency broadcast informed everyone that a massive earthquake would be happening earlier in the morning. This earthquake was so powerful that it took down two older and lesser buildings in Khia causing 3 individuals to be missing, 47 individuals to be injured, and 11 fatalities. During this time, one of the mines to gather resources like coal collapsed, luckily no one was working at the time, and x-ray technology was used to make sure there was no one in the mining tunnels.

The city-district of Slia was affected by these earthquakes too. Gigantic boulders from the roof of the cavern that the city sits in fell into the water supply and destroyed a treatment plant building and destroyed a home with a family inside. This incident caused an emergency meeting with the safety officers and scientists of Dominion.

---

ONE DAY AFTER THE MAJOR EARTHQUAKE

Individuals from Khia and less wealthy parts of Qona and Esille were being negatively affected by the water supply. A stomach bug started to be going around very rampant and a drinking water alert broadcasted throughout the city. Liora Vex. She announced that the water supply was tainted by boulders falling into it during the major earthquake not even a day ago. She informed the citizens of Dominion that they would be receiving a packet of 8 oz tablets that were dry, turquoise in color, and to put one tablet per 5-7 gallons of water to make sure the water is purified and safe to drink.

---

FOUR DAYS LATER

Alerts and warnings were still very rampant about the water supply, being careful about tunnels and mines in Khia, and that there is wildlife activity closer to the Dominion walls than usual. People may be seeing creatures that they have never seen in person before or possibly at all.

Midday was a shocking event for everyone when a familia trio of Duskhound entered the city and was causing a mass panic throughout the city districts of Dominion. A lockdown warning happened which meant no one was allowed out on the streets unless they were safety officers or other ranked individuals. This lockdown lasted for roughly four hours before the Duskhound [Canis vraculosus] were driven out of the city and the lockdown was lifted.

---

COUNCIL MEETING

None of the members of the council were happy to meet by emergency and force, however, with all of the issues that were arising there were certain topics that needed to be brought up. One of the many topics were losing access to two smaller caverns that allowed Dominion to harvest Burrowbulb [Scalursus rotundus] which literally means scale-bear that is round or rolls up. This creature can get up to 500 pounds and is a great farming animal because they can have up to 12 pups a litter. Without access to one of the main meat supplies, council members along with regular individuals were worried, so here they sat with grim looks before anyone could start the conversation.

Finally, someone broke the silence, and Thorne’s gruff voice rang out as he played with his beard that was speckled grey, his voice sounded like stone scraping against stone though he wasn’t known to smoke at all. “Twelve months of breeding lost…” he began while looking around the table. “That’s hundreds of Burrowbulbs we’ll never see. Two tunnels gone mean two nurseries buried, and with them, our next three harvests,” he leaned in towards the table and let his elbows rest on the hard surface. His face stern and strict, peering at his peers like they should be even more worried than what he was letting on. “Slia does not have direct access to harvesting, my city's storage is limited, and we import from Khia and Esille to keep the upper class fed. What do you think happens when there’s no meat on the tables by a fortnight? They’ll riot in silk!” he gestured out as if this should be the most concerning thing.

“My people are the ones who raise them, Thorne,” Council Member Aureline of Khia sounded somewhat disgusted as her cool and sharp gaze focused on the man. Who digs those tunnels?” she asked the question but gave no time for anyone to respond to her. “We lost more than creatures — we lost workers and citizens of Dominion. People of families. You’re worried about extravagant feasts?” Again, she gave no time for anyone to answer and when Thorne was trying to, she spoke over him, “Khia’s children are already chewing on leftover bones and sipping bone broth, we cannot afford to rebuild the pens this quarter, and what happens if another earthquake kicks in?” This time, she didn’t say anything before looking at all the other members of the council.

Vei began with a shaky but strong voice, she was a redhead with a pixie cut and big green eyes, “Both of you need to listen to me, this is not just about workers and wealth — this is about survival. Survival of our people. Our citizens. The Burrowbulbs are the main protein source of Dominion and with that source being dwindled because two of five tunnels collapsed, we need to start thinking about rations, combining all food sources together, and trying to extend the food as long as we can which will give us more time to think up of solutions,” she looked at all the other members. Thorne seemed unimpressed by her little speech while Tarin gave her a reassuring smile.

Train Geode raised his hand as if to ask for permission to speak, “Like Vei is saying, we do need to prioritize, and I believe we need to try our best to restore one of the tunnels as well. Maybe the tunnel was the only thing that collapsed and the caverns where the Burrowbulbs are didn’t. And they are a main source of protein for everyone that goes to the university in Qona, students rely on Burrowbulb soup, and other dishes that use the meat and bones. We might see individuals dropping out or decreasing their focus on academics with such a shortage in food which could lead to long term disasters. I agree with Vei, we need a joint initiative — each district will combine our food storage and give out measured and precise amounts to the people of Dominion,” his tone was calm and deliberate in his response, he was hoping the more hot headed individuals would understand that the people of Dominion — all of the people — are going to face hardship.
The council member from Esille, Elira perked up and waved her hand as if to disregard the others, “If we’re discussing numbers, let’s be honest, Esille regulates distribution, and we have records that show nearly forty-percent of Burrowbulb to informal black — market trade — mostly from Khia and Qona. We will need more than aid and cooperation, Tarin, we will need oversight.” she glanced over at Tarin before looking at the others. A quick pause to let herself think, “I’ll support a relief fund — but only if that includes tracking, quotas, and fair-market rationing protocols. If this is being done. I want it done right,” she extended her hand and tapped the top of the table with a single finger to emphasize her seriousness.

Thorne could not help himself and he snorted with a laugh that showed he didn’t actually find it funny but ridiculous, “You want to count ribs while people starve? There won’t be a market left to regulate if the tunnels stay buried. Those tunnels need to be x-rayed and restored.”

Aureline leaned forward, facing Thorne, and her gaze was challenging, “Don’t you dare judge us for doing what we must to survive. You sit in your glass pools and judge those who dig in the dark to support your lifestyle,” she was absolutely disgusted by him.

The man’s dark eyes narrowed, jaw clenching beneath the silver in his beard, he began with a slow and measured tone, “Oh, spare me the tunnel tears, Aureline. You talk like Khia’s the only district that’s ever bled for Dominion. We all pull weight. But you — you hoard sympathy like it’s currency and spend it cheap. Don’t forget; it was Slia’s engineers who built the irrigation shafts that keep your upper mines from flooding almost a year ago. It was our silver deposit access that allowed more Burrowbulb tunnels to be built and the burrow disease to not spread to all of the herds.”

Standing up and leaning more forward, his voice was laced with venom while he was fully focused on Aureline, “You want to talk about survival? Then admit it — Khia’s not above cutting corners and skimming meat off the top before it hits quotas. You’ve bled, huh — but you’ve bled others too. Let’s not pretend your hands are clean just because they are calloused.”

Both Vei and Elira looked shocked by Thorne’s words, however, Elira gasped with one hand rising to cover her mouth, with eyes wide in genuine shock. She glanced between Thorne and Aureline, momentarily speechless — a rare occurrence because she usually could talk for hours and hours without taking a breath. Anyone could feel how the energy shifted in the council chamber and how the air was thick with tension, “By the veil…” she murmured under her breath.

This tension between the two council members caused Geode to stand up from his chair, unfolding like an old mountain given motion, and his voice carried without anger, but an unshakeable command forged from decades of leadership, “Enough. Both of you.” It was similar to a disappointed father while siblings fought over toys or two cups of juice that were the same.

“I have watched generations fall and rise in this chamber, I have buried friends that have sat where you sit now, and if they could hear you bickering — this finger-pointing over death and scarcity — they’d weep for what we’ve become.” His voice did not raise with emotion, yet it silenced the chamber like a hammer to a bell. Everyone was focused on him.

He turned his gaze to Thorne first, without accusation, “Thorne, your anger is earned. But do not spit silver in a miner’s face and call it generosity.”

Then to Aureline, he was equally firm, “And Aureline, pride is no shield when your people go hungry. You need help. We all need help. So take it with grace.”

“Now both of you sit down before you go on and tear down the little bit of unity that we have left. The people of Dominion will face hardship because of this and we are the only ones with enough breath in our lungs to do something about it so we need to work together and do something about it. Not sit here and argue.”

Tarin Geode sighed, “Let’s talk about a few other things before we go to think and we will meet at a later day,” the conversations continued as they spoke mildly to each other and the tension slowly faded into the background, for now.

---

A WEEK LATER

Two more major incidents had happened after the first major incident that was reported about burrowers and dwellers being violent. Something needed to be changed. It was almost a bitter day when the council gathered for another serious meeting in the late morning. Back at the round table. Councilor Aureline gestured her hand to start off the meeting, speaking in a somewhat stretched tone, “That has been three major incidents reported within a month. With these earthquakes, we lost access to the farming tunnels, wild beasts seem to be moving around and in the city more than every, and now those humanoids are causing issues in Dominion,” the annoyance was apparent and heavy in her voice.

There had barely been attacks from wildlife, burrowers, or dwellers inside of the walls of Dominion and in recent times that has doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled compared to the historical occurrences of violence. “The people cannot bear the burden of dwellers with all of the things that are happening to Dominion, they cannot keep coming to ration queues,” she huffed out in emphasis before leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms.

Thorne roughly began, “Burrowers are barely a problem when they are outlawed. We can put a kill on sight initiative if everyone is so worried about them. It’s like killing rats,” he was casual with his words as if it was barely a thought about should or not but when. Gesturing to the table, “Dwellers and scavengers are a major issue within the walls of Dominion, putting their grubby hands in the waterways instead of using a faucet, they are uncivilized,” he explained a point of how these individuals were filthy in his eyes and others — problems themselves.

“They all look like Burrowers more and more every season. And some are against the city! Slia officials have arrested twenty-five individuals that snuck in through the cracks of the city walls to taint our water supply and our humanity.”

Elira watched her peers silently while they came forward with their problems and she was having problems of her own when it came to the business district, “The law is clear: Burrowers are criminalized by birthright, branded and marked — but — Dwellers... exist in a gap. Mixed bloodline, no oath, no anchor — They are in an area of grey legal presence. PErhaps it’s time to clarify and update the laws,” she suggested, which received approving looks from Aureline and Thorne almost too quickly.

This caused Council Member Geode to shake his head in disagreement, disappointment, and his voice deeply and slowly began, “In Qona, we archive what others forget. Dominion was not always so rigid, the first stones were laid by many hands — some not even from our line — if we name dwellers criminals like we have burrowers, we do so not out of justice… We do it out of fear. And fear never helps anything,” he looked to the others to find the majority had disapproving looks and possibly a mixture of disgust. Thorne had the biggest look of disgust on his face as if Geode was suggesting that they commit immoral acts.

Vei looked around with defiant eyes and sharply interjected, “When survival becomes questionable, people become fearful, but we need to focus on how we can stop the fear and panic of our people. Most children of Dominion eat Tokut milk and root scraps. Dwellers are a big part of our society — intermarried, born here, and raised in all areas of Dominion — and most of you are referring to them like they are dogs and could simply adjust to living outside of the walls if they were criminalized. They have never lived anywhere else. Dominion has privilege when it comes to life outside compared to people living outside of the walls. We share walls, we share beds, homes, and even blood with our brothers and sisters,” Vei was young and her emotions were not as controlled as the older counterparts of the council. She had tears welling in her angry eyes and emotion cracking her words.

This caused a huff out dismissiveness to come from Aureline and she flatly responded as if she was speaking to a young child that didn’t know any better, “They live within the walls and barley contribute, they are not registered citizens, and they are not bound by the regulations like our own citizens. They do not answer when called to labor like our citizens are,” she explained while glaring at Vei. A good argument from the woman that oversees the working district — dwellers were not fully registered citizens but they were allowed to work and be in society with no question, at least in the lower rankings of society — and the Khia district always has had more dwellers be trouble markers than the regular citizen.

Thorne grumbled, “Then this should be easy for all of us, let’s restrict them, make boundaries, and take away access to rations. If they do not want to register as citizens and be productive citizens of society, they can find a home or fate out beyond the walls, and if they have a record of criminality – even if it’s lesser issues — we should continue by kicking them out of the city,” Thorne spoke of this so casually that one might think he was talking about rats instead of humans.

Elira nodded, fully agreeing with a pleased smile, “If we define them, we control them, and if they resist the regulations, then we have cause to do what is needed. Law must act before people react. Dwellers have been undocumented long enough. They need to start contributing to society and that might come with the hard decision of them leaving it for the better good.”

Rubbing his brow, Geode seemed to not believe what he was hearing from his peers, and how quickly this meeting was going against burrowers, dwellers, and scavengers, it was hard to digest, “And when Dominion stood in its founding? Weren’t the first families not called Dwellers too? Before they earned names and foundations in a blossoming society. Who gets to decide when someone stops belonging?” he gestured for some hope as if this would give the others a different perspective. “All of us worked to build Dominion and continue to improve it and keep it moving forward. We should have never exiled burrowers. Let’s not make a second grave mistake by outlawing dwellers.”

The young red headed woman stood up, her voice rising slightly with pained emotions, “So we cage them? Strip them of their rights? And what happens when that cage breaks? I will not be the voice that pretends to represent the people while watching another Reaping unfold. I wasn’t born when Burrowers were exiled from Dominion though I am in a position now where I will not stand here and agree to exile Dwellers,” her cheeks were becoming flushed and her face felt hot with anger.

A scoff came out of Thorne, “What a childish and dreamful stance, Vei, be ready to pick a side when the time comes,” his voice was as cold as ice and threatening without a veil. Vei was about to respond though she was luckily cut off by Aureline speaking up — Vei would have said something she might regret out of emotions.

“We need a motion. We cannot have people and society in limbo any longer. Dominion is crumbling at this rate with the food shortage and the threats of wildlife and earthquakes, so we need to do something,” he voice sounded so logical that most people, if not thinking deeply of her words would have agreed, and people that would think — they might possibly agree out of fear of society failing and collapsing.

Elira looked around, landing her eyes on Vei until the younger woman sat back down, and Geode seemed to whisper something to the youngest member of the council — possibly trying to settle her down and make her feel better. “Then let it be brought forward. We vote on the next convergence. Let it be known: the Dwellers will be named,” she looked around the room again before smiling a little. “And possibly scavengers because of all the crimes they commit daily,” she added.

The room was silent for what felt like a painful eternity before Geode broke the silence, “Stone remembers. So will the people,” his tone sounded defeated and he somewhat was. This caused Vei to get up and leave the room and all the other council members watched her go. “We already have punishments and laws that encourage people to be productive citizens. Not everyone has the capacity or ability to because of financial means or mental health problems. We need to be careful about what we do,” he explained while looking at the disapproving looks of his peers.

“And we allow too much slack which is why our society is failing, we are being careful, councilor Geode, and I believe this is the right thing to do for the people that deserve to be in the walls of Dominion,” Thorne did not miss a beat when challenging Geode’s views or dismissing them. This caused Geode to stand, dip his head out of respect, and leave the room without another word. The rest of the council members stayed and spoke about what this new law should entail.

---

THREE DAYS AFTER THE COUNCIL MEETING
DOMINION PUBLIC FEED — 5 PM — NIGHT TIME NEWS

The Dominion City Sigil flickered on the T.V. with a countdown of 10 seconds to notify when the broadcasting was going to start, all T.V. 's that were on would see Liora Vex behind a podium without the usual bright and energetic smile and look in her eyes. She seemed to have a seriousness to her face with a sharp silver collar shirt and her hands resting on each side of the podium with the camera adjusted on her. “Good evening, Citizens of Dominion,” she spoke with a soft and measured tone. This was a contrast from her usual happy, energetic, almost light hearted self.

“People of Dominion, you might have heard whispers and rumors about the last council meeting and I come before you to clarify what I can,” she sighed heavily with closed eyes before opening her eyes to look directly at the camera. Her fingers fidgeted with the podium.

“There are... discussions underway in the Council — deliberations regarding the safety and sustainability of our great civilization. This topic is a very difficult topic to speak about and it might cause a lot of emotions in all of you and know that you are not alone in these emotions,” Liora seemed honestly upset as she thought about how she was supposed to go about this. She had papers in front of her to help guide her conversations and what topics not to bring up.

“Dominion has weathered through hardships before and have faced darkness that include cave-ins, famine cycles, coldflow blight, and plenty of more things throughout the decades. We have endured by standing together, soul to soul.

But now… now there is a discussion happening that cuts the people of Dominion deeper and comparable to one instance in our history. A conversation about identity, about who is counted, who is considered one of us, and who is a part of society.

There are people who are in our walls — plenty born here, married, and decades of invested emotions — and the government is discussing what should be done with these groups of people. The groups in consideration are dwellers, scavengers, and other people that do not appear to me the - quote on quote - requirements that certain people in power demand of the citizens in Dominion. Many of you might know people in these categories and we urge you to spend as much time with them as possible.

Certain council members are encouraging another Reaping of these groups of people like leaders did decades ago to Burrowers. At the moment, the discussions are happening but nothing is set in stone, and Councilor Geode and Councilor Vei are doing everything in their power to ensure compassion is not lost for policy. They have stood firm in their opinions and stand with these groups. They have spoken from mercy, for history, and for unity of Dominion. Their voices remain and allow your voices to be heard.

We are asking for your compassion, your patience, and above all — your humanity — and I will try my best to keep you, the people of Dominion, updated about the conversations that go around this, and I hope you continue to cherish your loved ones with each update. I hope you have a pleasant night and we will see what follows,” The screen fades to the sigil of Dominion, pulsing slowly and dimly, and the return of regular shows continues. The air, for many, felt thicker and heavier before the news came on.

---

After the sigil of Dominion, if one was on the proper network for the broadcasting, a message appears on the screen:

Water consumption alert — From the previous earthquakes that caused rocks to fall from the ceiling, there were unknown bacteria, and unknown materials in those boulders. The water is UNSAFE to consume. Please do not get tap water in your eyes, ears, nose, or mouth. If you run out of tablets and need water, please go to one of the poverty banks, and if you do not have access to a poverty bank. Please boil the water that will be consumed for half an hour before straining it through a mesh, cloth, or filter of some kind.

Citizens will continue receiving tablets that will purify 5 - 7 gallons of water. Please use these tablets to the best of your ability. Putting a tablet into 3 gallons of water or less can cause diarrhea, headaches, nausea, vomiting, and other unfavorable symptoms. If this occurs, please go to the local medical facilities.

Thank you for your patience. The Public Affairs Office, Safety Commissioner, grad-students from GoD, and Slia’s water purification scientists are working on figuring out a solution.

---

THE NEXT DAY AND ONE MORE EARTHQUAKE

Earthquakes were seeming to be more active than they used to be. Some people began to speak about “tunnelers” and other creatures or reasons for the earthquakes than them being a natural phenomenon. Plenty of people were beginning to ask questions or press for answers from the government as well. Everything seemed to have a well throughout answer that truly meant nothing at the end of the day.

With another earthquake, this one was small, and everyone was thankful for that. The last earthquake was massive and it killed plenty of people along with destroying infrastructure. Around noon, people were beginning to stampede out of Khia with screams of terror — Duskhounds were back — and chaos broke out. It was pure panic and fear for one's life — the type of panic that caused your blood to run cold because you know how severe the danger was by the guttural sounds in people’s voices.

The earthquakes were definitely causing wildlife to move including Burrowers and Dwellers that lived outside of the wall. However, the true problems were when beasts were being driven into the city's walls and peace officers and other authorities could spend hours upon hours trying to get one back out of the city.

Usually they were known to travel in small packs and were semi-territorial creatures, several different groups or alone Duskhounds were bolting through the city district of Khia and Slia. Some of them were heading deeper towards Esille and Qona.

Duskhounds were not creatures to try and find by oneself or at all — they were large, standing about 4.5’ at the shoulder and weighing up to 180 pounds. These are not known for their sight though they have fantastic evolutionary traits that help them detect prey. They have whiskers on their face that help them feel the electromagnetic pulses which is why they can partially see in infrared, they have an amazing sense of smell, and it is believed that with how their ears are structured that they can determine where the smallest of sounds are coming from. These creatures are known to be very dangerous with a terrifying laugh and the laugh works as a system to get creatures or people to move so they can detect them.

Two of these creatures were able to find their way into Esille surprisingly fast and this caused an uproar of panic and stress to break through the shopping and business district. People were running in all directions, screaming, and shutting themselves into buildings in hope to avoid the beasts.

---

GM POST

The Cost of Vengeance (rough idea)

@ErosSense I can commit even if my time is squished because of the semester and everything else. I'm thinking of creating a ex-convict-morally gray character.

The Cost of Vengeance (rough idea)

I'll keep an eye on this and think about a character.