Egress Unveiled - The Keepers ft Ga’Morkt n Oremizume

The tunnels are darker and colder, as Oremizume and Ga'Morkt keep descending, in the depth of The Beneath.

The Vayron shivers as he walks, trying to focus on the small and scattered lights of the crystals: they have to reach the Keepers Clan, and if Ornaax was right, they should be close.

Still, it was getting quite cold.

"I still wonder why I decided to join this thing."

He grumbles, as he walks, cursing the Thedale rider that sent him there. Even the movement of Ga'Morkt crawling in the tiny tunnels sends gust of air against his short fur, making him bristle. But, he can't really growl at the bigger Tyrian and scream at him to stay still, since they kinda have to keep moving.

He is so deep in his thoughts that he nearly fails to notice some carvings in the walls. He squints, trying to read, but he doesn't have a clue on what it is saying.

"Well... I hope it's not 'Danger! Here lies a big crocodile!'." He huffs, hearing then a chuckle.

Behind them, arrived silently as a mouse, there is a small dark green Haedian, with a cape and a few scrolls in hand.

"It says 'To the left for the Keepers' head'!"

She points at a tunnel, that indeed is on the left of the carvings. She then explain that Cailu told them that "Surface Dwellers" were going to bring important knowledge, at which Oremizume frowns.

"...Ga'Morkt, did Cailu say what are we supposed to bring?"

Mort feels the same, wondering why he even chose to keep going on this journey, but keeps those thoughts to himself.  He could sense that another presence was nearby, but couldn’t place it until the voice of the smaller haedian whips his head around. He bristles at first, but swallows a growl. Could it be that he is finally learning patience?

To Oremizume’s question, the empyrian’s brows furrow. “I think ‘knowledge’ can mean anything.. Khaldor, is it?” He asks of the haedian, keeping his gaze on them. “Am I correct?”

"Khaldor is my teacher, I'm Mohk! Well, everyone's teacher I'd say! Come on, I'll show you the way!"

The small Haedian jumps and flaps around in the tunnel, guiding them to the Clan's head, Khaldor. 

The other Haedian looks way bigger, and his body has intricate golden-looking cloud pattern all over. He is sitting on a carpet, placed in a cave covered in carvings and filled with crystals.

Oremizume sighs internally: he had hoped that the Keepers were all small like Mohk, like little library mouses. 

"Ah, welcome!"

Khaldor voice booms in the cave, making Oremizume shiver. But the other doesn't seem to be annoyed or angry, only very, very interested in them. He eyes Ga'Morkt, curiously, and then Oremizume. He seems more interested in the big wings of the first, as Oremizume could nearly pass for a weird looking wingless haedian.

"Cailu told me you were coming! Now now, what could you tell me about the surface? The more, the better!"

Oremizume looks at Ga'Morkt, wondering which of the two should start, and with what.

Mort glances down to his companion, shrugging his wing shoulders before they follow the littler haedian to Khaldor’s chamber. He can smell parchment and ink and all manner of boring things here, but at least they aren’t slogging through muck or crashing into things anymore.

This Khaldor character is straight to the point, which Mort can admire. 

“Err,” he hesitates to answer. “What do you want to know?”

He glances down at Oremizume for help, figuring he can offer some details about Thedale or something first.

Mort has actually been all over Reos, sowing mischief across every territory, and yet he has little detail that really stuck in his mind. Unless, that is, this Keeper actually wants to hear about all the fights he’s started over the years.

Oremizume looks quite displeased by the fact that he is the one who needs to talk. He doesn't have many interesting details, except for sand, scorching sun, dust, poverty... Except for the sun, they probably can find the other things around there, like in The Forgotten Clan.

He huffs quietly, sitting down on the cold rocks. He wonders, sometimes, if the Haedians find his tailles behind weird.

"So... I am from Thedale. It's... A very, very warm region of the surface."

He starts, and immediately Khaldor looks at him, readying a scroll and some ink on his claws. The pinkish vayron looks a bit intimidated by all that attention, but tries anyway to be... Helpful.

"It is a varm region, with a burning sun and frequent sandstorms." He stops, wondering if the Keepers KNOW what a sandstorm is. He glances at Ga'Morkt, who is waiting for him to do the talk.

"Sandstorms form with strong winds, that pull up the sand and toss it everywhere. It gets difficult to travel in those condition, as the sand can enter your eyes and scrape them. Which is, painful. There aren't many trees, except in the Oasis. Oasis form near the small lakes or ponds in the desert, and are always filled with travelers."

Oremizume stops, looking at Khaldor, who is writing everything with amazing speed. As he finishes the last word, he return to stare at the vayron.

'...Wait. How long are we going to stay here?!'

Oremizume looks at Ga'Morkt, trying to have him say something. Maybe, if both give a little information, they'll let them pass to the next clan without keeping them for the eternity. Khaldor looks like he would do that, after all.

Mort listens to Oremizume talk, and finds himself still struggling for ideas when eyes turn on him.

He gulps a little, pushing down the annoyance at being put on the spot, then decides to just go for it. 

He begins with his birth on Vitalus, but leaves out all the details of his life aside from the views he can recall. The sun, the floating islands, the soaring crystals and their light. Then he tells of his great flights across the sea, and the wonders he saw on each of Reos’ territories. Great mountains and sprawling fields, tangled forests and the hot desert sands, and towering castles and bustling villages. 

When he is done, he glances awkwardly down at Oremizume and then over to Khaldor before falling silent. 

He hopes that this is enough to please the Keepers, so they can move on and forget this along with everything else on this cursed trip.