Keepers Clan: 1

Griffith led his friends further away from the Depthstriders. The tunnels turned into something that reminded the group of a maze. The spaces were smaller and they were twisting in every direction. The trio had to make several choices at many forks in the path, and a few times they had to turn around all together because they reached a dead end. It was frustrating Oeric, but Aule and Griffith did their best to keep him calm as they went. 

During a long, nearly straight, segment Griffith was getting concerned it wasn’t the right way. He contemplated turning around several times before Aule urged him forward. Thankfully, it was only a little longer before the three noticed the tunnels opening up as the number of crystals increased. The further they traveled the larger the crystals became until finally it was clear they had reached the new clan. Spiraling shelves and runes were carved into the surfaces of the walls. The crystals weren’t left out either as many of them had more runes carved into the glowing surfaces. 

Oeric wasn’t overjoyed by this clearly intellectual clan. He still preferred the Forgotten or the Brutes, more brawn than brains in some regards. Aule and Griffith were intrigued. They wandered around the clan hearing whispers, but it wasn’t clear what the voices were discussing. As they moved deeper into the clan a massive green Haedian landed in front of them. The size of it would have set the three off if it wasn’t for the curiosity surrounding them all. 

“Topsiders,” The Haedian’s confident voice spoke, “Perhaps you can help us.”

The term topsider had been thrown around so much along the journey, that the trio wasn’t sure what to make of it. In some clans, it was derogatory, while in others there was excitement and curiosity about the term. The three empyrians looked at each other confused. The Haedian wasn’t overly welcoming, but he wasn’t exactly trying to kick them out either. 

“This clan,” The large Haedian continued when none of the three started to speak, “Holds all the information we know about our world and yours. We could use your experiences to illustrate a clearer picture of the topside of the world.”

“This is very abrupt,” Oeric tried to express what he was feeling, but he couldn’t really untangle the feeling in his gut about the whole interaction.

The Haedian paused before he nodded, “I’m Khaldor, Leader here. We were talking about what water might appear like above us.”

Aule brightened at the topic of choice, while Oeric cringed thinking about the Depthstriders. Griffith remained silent while he looked around them taking in the height of the cavern around them. Khaldor brought everyone’s attention to him when he continued to explain their experiences with water and added that they knew a little, but were unsure how accurate the information was. 

“We can easily fill in some of the blanks,” Aule said with a smile. 

Oeric groaned but moved aside to let Aule step forward taking the lead with this clan. Aule’s water and air magic might have some help with demonstrating things rather than just through words. Griffith watched his friend’s excitement grow as he prepared to talk about rain and snow. Khaldor watched all three empyrians curious about the different reactions he saw to the topic. More haedians gathered around ready to write information down or correct their current record. 

Aule began with a small explanation of his magic. He spoke about rain and let it fall around them, he turned the water in the air into something more solid. Aule’s audience gasped. He explained the forms water could take and when he got to ice, he hardened to water in the air further until snow fell around them. 

Khaldor watched as the display confirmed some information they already knew and introduced them to the concept of snow. Griffith took a moment to fill them in on what would happen when the snow would melt and where it would go. He explained briefly about rivers, lakes, and large water systems. Through the group’s journey they could tell that water here moved in a similar fashion as it did above ground, but Griffith confirmed it for the Haedians of this clan.

When the pair had finished talking about water and the way it’s observed on the surface, Khaldor noticed that Oeric hadn’t spoken. In fact, most of Khaldor’s observations of the orange empyrian led him to believe the empyrian found water irksome. 

“Is there a problem with their information?” Khaldor asked the silent Oeric. 

“Oh, no,” Oeric quickly replied, “I have an affinity to fire, so water makes me tired.”

“Interesting,” Khaldor perked at the idea of learning something new, “Care to elaborate?”

Oeric looked at his two friends and they gave him a look of encouragement. Oeric began to explain his magic and the way it worked. It was difficult to explain because most reoseans he encountered simply accepted his power as it was, but these Haedians wanted to know the reasons behind it. Oeric explained how it was tied to his emotions and attached like an aura of fire. If he got angry enough the things within range would burn. 

The three empyrians watched as the clan eagerly wrote notes and some drew diagrams based on what was said. The empyrians couldn’t understand the language some of the Haedians were writing in, but they didn’t pry. 

[906]