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Bright Journey How long has it been?

This is by no stretch of the imagination the first time Silk and Bright have dined together, of course. They've done so dozens, maybe hundreds of times over the course of the last several years, and not every such occasion is more than a chance to chat comfortably and speak freely. Then again, some significant events have happened lately, and some might even argue that powerful forces have begun to move. The two occupants of the Mansion, aside from the servants, haven't had a chance to sit and compare notes for what seems like forever, and now is a very welcome chance to just...relax, and be themselves.

Bright Journey is the one who just woke up this time, reversing the usual pattern and giving Silk a bit of a chance to relax more. She's still managing to look and act elegant despite being in a dressing gown, hair pulled back in a casual pony tail, as she sits down to a very nicely appointed meal.

The servants are all already used to serving any type of meal at any time of the day, of course, so it's a tantalizing steak dinner this morning, seasoned and seared perfectly. Bright is positively beaming with simple pleasure as she sits and waits for Silk's arrival.

Silk Moon Lotus Silk has returned home from another night of checking on her gambling halls and other interests throughout the city. She follows the smell of something delicious to find her friend Bright with a wonderful looking steak breakfast before her.
Silk nods to the attending servant "That smells and looks wonderful, can I have one of those as well. Along with a pitcher of fruit juice." The servant nods her head in acknowledgement and heads off towards the kitchen. 
Silk sits down across from Bright admiring the way she still looks amazing right after waking up. "Bright, it's been too long since we chatted, hasn't it?"
Bright Journey Bright offers Silk a winning smile and sets out her tall glass for one of the servants to fill.

"Oh, it's been ages, Silk. Positively ages. I think the last time we actually really sat down was..." She pauses and thinks, frowning a bit. "When? Right after helping Amethyst out with her little project, I guess. Or maybe right before then, when we defended Elderloch. Regardless, it's been far, far too long. And things have certainly been happening. I feel like I'm like to forget half of it before passing it along."

As the servant deftly pours a pair of glasses of juice, Bright offers her a smile and nod, then turns back to Silk. "But first and foremost, you look like you've been having a fantastic time! Your, er...business ventures are doing well?"

Silk Moon Lotus Silk smiles one of her genuine smiles "My business ventures are all completely legal. It isn't my fault that people have vices and the rules favor th house. Now, the startup funds for them is a little more questionable." She settles into her chair and the servants bring in another plate with a still steaming steak and a pitcher. Silk gestures that they can go for now.
She rolls her shoulders to work out some kinks "I mostly do my other work when something grabs my attention. I have enough money now that I don't really need to get it from less than legal methods." The wind whips her hair into her face for a moment before dying down again. She sighs "I put my hair up and magical winds will pull it out. I've half given up and keeping it neat." 
So, what wild adventure were you off on that took you out of town again?"
Bright Journey Bright smiles fondly as she sees Silk struggle with her hair, clearly recognizing the source. "I know I've congratulated you once before on your breakthrough, by the way," she says. "But still, now that there's not ten other people trying to get a word in edgewise? You might have to fight with your hair every now and then, but seeing your power realized makes me happy." She lifts her glass of juice, grinning. "Congratulations, sorceress!"

Bright saws a bite of steak off and delicately chews as Silk speaks, and s smiles and nods in understanding. "In truth, I'm doing reasonably well for myself as well. Less business venture, more...depending on largesse, I suppose you could say. But still, it works well in this town.

"As for wild adventure?" She sighs deeply and thinks for a moment, her expression becoming more serious. "You're not going to like some of it, I'll warn you. Partly because you'll be mad I didn't drag you along." She chuckles quietly. "But partly because it has real implications for Great Forks. I'm starting to get the feeling that the time where we could act openly in the city and not come to the attention of the powers that be might be coming to an end."

She takes a deep breath. "I was with Raullaur, Rishi, Amethyst, and someone you may not know, Tepet Makara, as we searched the Field of Endless Raitons. Yes....the shadowland. For an answer to some incessant dreams Makara was happening and Amethyst helped him unlock, which turned out to be something about his past life."

Silk Moon Lotus Silk smiles "You get color shifting eyss and I get fly away hair. I see that magic has a sense of humor. On the positive side, I can use the wind to help me in climbing and falling to a degree that I never could before." She takes a drink from her glass in salute to Bright.
"I remember living in a cave by the docks for a while, I would say that living on others good will isn't a bad way to live. I do remember meeting the Tepet. You say that his dream memories led you out into the Shadowlands? I am a little jealous, I have some training in dealing with the risen dead and spirits."
Bright Journey "It would have been helpful, believe me," Bright replies. "Things got a bit hairy for a moment. Turns out we ran into some kind of Lunar from his past...I didn't know enough to really understand what was happening between them. All I know is once we dealth with the undead around him?" She grins wickedly. "The bluster had a lot less muster." She takes a sip. "Anyway, I didn't go inside, because that fight -really- tapped me out, so I just kept a watch outside. Inside was...I'm still not sure what, but that's when they -really- could have used you."

"Anyway. It's over and here I am. I'm a bit worried whoever is in the shadowland will have noticed, frankly. And while I can -hurt- the dead damn well, if I do say so myself, we were lucky they were materialized to protect the Lunar. I don't have an easy way of touching the incorporeal."

Silk Moon Lotus "That sounds very exciting and a bit scary at the same time. I feel like I remember a trick to attacking ghosts when they have not materialized but it's one of the past life memories so I'll have to meditate on it some to find it. Maybe some mental exercises too. Did he find what he was looking for in the end?"
Silk takes a slow bite of the steak savoring it. "Good call on the steak breakfast by the way." She thinks for a moment. "Do you think a deathlord or one of those deathknights are going to come this way with an army?" 
"I can still feel the call to go west. I'm sure it's out past the Blessed Isle. I'm going to start looking for a ship to take me I think. I've got enough trusted employees that I can let the businesses manage themselves for a while."
Bright Journey Bright slowly nods as she takes another bite. "It was pretty scary, yeah," she says, forgetting the proper speech for a moment. "But things worked out in the end."

She thinks, frowning deeply, at the mention of deathlords. "...Honestly? I really don't know. We didn't attack or challenge anyone there, we were out in...basically the middle of nowhere in the shadowland, at a battlefield. But in the fight both Raul and I tapped -deep- into our reserves. We got very, very...noticeable. Didn't have much choice, there was an -army- of ghosts there. I'm mainly worried someone from there will send an emissary to the Three and demand our heads or something.

"Anyway. Yes, your trip west." She grins. "I hope you know I'm coming with you. I won't take no for an answer. But I -will- take a love of adventure and a chance to meet new people. Are you sure it's -that- far west?"

Silk Moon Lotus "Coming here and demanding the Three turn over the two solars that entered the shadowland is pretty stupid. I mean there's at least five of us in town. How does he know which two it was?" Silk smile a little wickedly.
"I wouldn't dream of leaving my friend behind if she wanted to come with. Maybe it's just wishful thinking that it's past the Blessed Isle as I don't want it to be on there. That's a death trap for us for sure." She closes her eyes and listens to the music for a moment. "Yes, beyond the Blessed Isle, to an island in the sea with tall trees with wierd leaves on them and a volcano." She opens her eyes again. "I'm sure there will be trouble along the way as well."
Bright Journey Bright chuckles quietly. "Well...I think if the Three really knew how many of us there were, not to mention the Lunars and Amethyst...they'd be a lot more inclined to recruit us than attack us, no matter what those from the shadowlands want! But...really. We probably need information to do much about this yet, and while I'm not sure what you are headed towards, I'll still be pleased to walk that path with you. Especially if we somehow manage to avoid the Blessed Isle." She laughs lightly. "Definitely a plus!"

She pauses, thinking while Silk describes the island in greater detail. "Hum. That sounds...arrestingly specific. And very useful, I hope. I...wonder, though, whose dreams do you see? Your own past's, maybe? And lest you forget, my dear, the two of us -are- trouble. Bad trouble, if neither of us figures out how to sail a ship!"

Silk Moon Lotus Silk laughs at the image of the Exalted of Great Folks banding together against a deathknight and their army. "I think you are correct that they wouldn't stand a chance against our combined might."
"I'm honestly not sure if they are my memories from another lifetime or visions seen through someone else's eyes. All I know for sure is that the sight comes to me through the music." She chuckles at the mention of learning to sail. "I've already started working on lessons down at the docks."
Bright Journey Bright slowly nods, her last few bites of steak forgotten for the moment as she considers, sipping idly on juice. "Frankly, that's good enough for me. I've a couple good reasons for wanting to seek out new peoples, as you know. And thanks to Amethyst's hard work, I'm sure I know precisely how to build another one of her gates if I need to. Or if we -want- to." She grins and looks Silk in the eye. "If we decide we have someplace we want to move back and forth from for a long time, that -is- a possibility, you know. If Amethyst or Rishi stay put, I could work with one via Infallible Messengers and coordinate. We might have to hire a local for crafting the arch itself, but that's not outside the realm of possibility, either.

She leans back and crosses one leg over the other. "Or we could do none of that if we decide otherwise. I think I kind of want to get Rishi to do that ritual for me first, though, just in case."

Bright finishes off her juice, looking surprised at Silk. "You have already? That's a good thing to hear. I might have to join in, on account of having more than one person to man the helm, or whatever it's called nowadays."

Silk Moon Lotus Silk finishes her glass of juice and pours herself while offering some to Bright as well. "You mean to tell me that those gateway thing can be linked to more than one gate at a time? I thought they had to be built in pairs and were linked with some kind of keystone or a pair of gems that used to be one gem. It depends on a few factors. I know that traveling that far so quickly would be useful but doesn't that put the city here in peril if the wrong people gain control of the far side?"
"It's probably a good idea to get Rishi to do your ritual before we leave on the trip. I'm guessing it will take some time to get there and back if needed." 
"I'll be happy to tell the captain that she has another student who is eager to learn to sail and help crew the ship if needed."
Bright Journey Bright holds out her glass gratefully, and as Silk pours, Bright replies. "I think that was the plan, at any rate. Since this whole thing is something new to all of us, I'd have to consult with Amethyst and Rishi and see what they say. Then again, we need to talk with them about this in any event, don't we?" She pauses for a moment, listening, then nods. "Yes, it -does- put the city in peril. And in a way, I kind of want the arch to be in a different place, enough that perhaps we should consider building our own elsewhere on the off chance we find the right place for its mate. As much as I love Amethyst dearly, I don't want to put her out--or be beholden to her--by hooking someplace we want into her portal. And if we decide we don't want to put the effort into it in the short run, that's fine. We have more than enough to do to get ready for a journey, after all."

Bright sips her fresh glass of juice and thinks. "Hmm. Sailing. Not really anything I thought I'd be doing, but it's kind of something fresh to try. And...well, if we both manage to live long enough, finding new things to try might be a key to happiness, you know?"

Silk Moon Lotus Silk nods her head in agreement "I think finding a safe place to build the nexus arch is a good idea. I would rather have it someplace out of the way instead of in someone's home. I do wish I knew of another manse or demanse nearby that we could use as the anchor point. The natural flow of mana would make it easier to use and possibly empower once it's built."
"I plan to have a lot of adventures over the next several centuries. Learning new things and exploring are going to be important I'm sure. 
"Do you think we could somehow shape a place out of the Wyld to be the nexus point? I know that had to be a thing we solars could do."
Bright Journey Bright frowns thoughtfully, still leaning back, and takes a long, slow draught of juice while she thinks. She chuckles a bit and remarks, "You know, my dear, it's times like these I wish I had a pipe, so as to present the right 'sage having a think' image. But it's bad enough I talk like my mum sometimes--every time I call someone a dear, you know?--that perhaps I shouldn't give up the sweet young lady me for the wise old-arse me quite yet." She laughs. "Maybe after I've had adventures over the next several centuries myself! But shaping a place out of the Wyld?"

"I'm certain it's possible. I know I don't have that sort of skill myself...well, yet, anyway. But we know the Wyld has come and gone throughout history, and more than one book in your basement talks about pockets of Creation buried deep in the Wyld. So I'm certain we could figure it out.

"The danger, of course, is in -keeping- it carved out. That's much more difficult. We can do what we like there--and I -strongly- recommend talking to Rishi on this one, because this is firmly in her wheelhouse--but we don't want to put money and effort into something we don't know we can hold onto. You knew I helped Rishi create her healing spring, right? That was actually in the Wyld a little ways, and Amethyst knows something about it as well."

Bright leans forward, looking at Silk intently. "The point of this all is, they not only know about what you're talking about, I helped Rishi DO it. I know some of her techniques, but not everything. I have a feeling Solar Wyld technique is more about beating the crazy away with a stick than living in harmony with it."

Silk Moon Lotus "I could get you a nice pipe, do you prefer wood, bone, or metal? Maybe a nice clay one to look more humble?" Silk chuckles at her gest.
"I would think that we want Rishi and Amethyst involved since they are part of the creators or the gates. Do they require some kind of key device or incantation to activate? I'm thinking of safeguards mostly. I think we should set that discussion aside for the moment so we can focus on today and soon instead of a while from now."
Bright Journey Bright looks thoughtful, then nods. "You know, we were talking about security when we put up the initial gates, right? She doesn't want far attackers in her store any more than she wants Great Forks thieves in Elderloch. But we only talked about, say, keeping it hidden or locking the room it's in. We didn't put much thought into having security for the gate itself, past having the right key. I wonder if we could include...I don't know. A spoken phrase, or a specific thought, in addition to the key? A lockdown of the gate if the phrase isn't spoken? How interesting."

Bright chuckles quietly. "Well, I don't smoke, of course. But you know, it would not be such a big deal if I started. And it -would- give some of the right...I don't know, impression, at the right times. Regardless, though, I think it's technically a sin to not finish a steak this good. We can both talk to Amethyst and Rishi when we get a chance next, I think, and get our ideas out to them!"

And with that, Bright indulges in an excellent breakfast, fine company, and the joy of well-laid plans.