Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 28, 2014 17:00:32 GMT -5
Chaltah was the first to stir from the world of dreams and crawls out of bed to get ready for the day. She goes about her normal routine of getting ready and dresses before nudging the rock that was a dragon from his sleep. "Come on. Let's go see what the lady uncovered during the night" she was also eager to find out what it was all about and if it had been worth the price that he had unintentionally paid for it.
Stormchaser groans and opens an eye "must we go now? I'm still sore from last night" but he eventually drags himself out of the bed and the two of them head on up to Gram's room, where Chaltah knocks on the door "Hey Gram. You awake yet?" she waits for Gram or someone to answer the door so they could be let in and see for themselves just what the scroll was all about.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 28, 2014 17:37:10 GMT -5
When Gram heard the knock at the door, he immediately went to open it, inviting Chaltah and Stormchaer in. "Good morning. Come," He waved his hand, motioning them inside. "You've arrived just in time. Elizabeth is telling me about what she's learned from the scroll. Apparently, it details some sort of ritual. I'll leave it to her to tell you the specifics."
Once they'd followed him back inside, Gram politely asked Elizabeth to tell them what she'd told him. Once she was done, she began to tell them what the ritual required. "The ritual calls for a scarab beetle from an Egyptian tomb, a whole saffron crocus from Crete, an ounce of brine salt from the Dead Sea, and a piece of electrum taken from the bottom of Lake Victoria." Elizabeth paused after listing the ingredients to peruse her notes, briefly. "Once these are gathered, placing them together in a bowl and applying heat should complete the ritual."
Elizabeth brushed a strand of copper hair back from in front of her glasses as she looked at Gram. "You don't really believe in all this, do you?" She questioned, as ignorant to the truth of the world as Gram himself had been only a short while ago. Gram merely smiled and shrugged before turning to Chaltah and Stormchaser.
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 28, 2014 18:18:52 GMT -5
Chaltah hadn't be prepared to do yet more on this quest of his. She and Stormchaer had plans to explore the area but there were some items she and her companion could grab from around this area it seemed. "I have no idea where Lake Victroria is and does the scarab have to be alive? Or does it matter? I'm guessing it'll be dead if it's from a tomb but hey, it could be alive depending on what there is to eat in there" Stormchaser gives her a nudge as she had started rambling absently on the subject. She clears her throat "Easiest item on that list to grab would be the water from the dead sea I guess. Maybe we should start there and work our way back here"
"Or we could save it for last since it is the easiest thing" Stormchaser interjects as an afterthought on the matter "Why not find this electrum first since it's not so familiar an item."
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 28, 2014 18:47:48 GMT -5
"The scroll, from what I can tell, does not specify whether or not the scarab must be living. Dead should do. It was not an unusual thing for Ancient Egyptians to bury cannisters of mummified scarabs in their tombs." Elizabeth told them, in answer to Chaltah's question.
Gram thought for a moment. "If I have my geography right, then Lake Victoria is the furthest location from where we are now. We're already in Egypt, so acquiring a scarab from a tomb here would likely be fastest, and the Dead Sea is the next closest location, then Crete which is an island some distance to the north." He scratched his chin. "It would probably be best if we wrapped up the errands nearest to us before heading to the Lake so far away."
After thinking for a short while, he spoke again "Perhaps we should split up, briefly. I could fly out to Crete, which would take some three hours, maybe, there and back in my jet, while you two hunt down an Egyptian tomb scarab here, in Egypt. The flight from Alexandria to the Dead Sea would take only an hour or two, by plane. By the time you've acquired the brine salt from the Dead Sea, I should have arrived at the airport to pick the two of you up and we'll be able to head to the lake." He shrugged. "That's my suggestion, but we can stick together if the two of you would prefer that."
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 28, 2014 19:19:31 GMT -5
Chaltah frowns a bit at the distance they were having to travel to gather up all these items. After a long thinking session she turns to Gram. "If you feel you are confident to handle the potential dangers of the..." she glances to Elizabeth who didn't seem to know about supernaturals then back to Gram "enemies... on your own with your men, we can deal with the tomb and the water."
Stormchaser nods in agreement "yeah we can handle this easilly. All we have to do is find a tomb and get in. Though usually those things are lined with traps if the books are to be believed." he looks to Elizabeth for a moment "hey, are there places that sell some kind of protective devices or weapons in this city?"
Chaltah remembers that she didn't have any weapons but her swords but they weren't good if things were attacking from a distance. With her bow broken she was going to need a new one "Yes, especially if anyone sells bows in town"
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 28, 2014 20:04:49 GMT -5
"So it's decided then." Gram made a quick call to the jet where it was on standby at the airport and told them that he would be there shortly and to set a course for Crete.
When Chaltah asked Elizabeth if she knew where she could acquire some weapons, the translator just stared back at her dumbfoundedly. Gram cleared his throat. "I probably should have mentioned this earlier, but when everyone retired last night, I took the liberty of tasking my men with acquiring another bow to replace the one you lost in the warehouse, in addition to some arrows, in case you were running low." He motioned to one of his men who brought over the items.
"Now, I have a flight to catch, so I will bid you all goodbye." Gram began to leave before turning around, looking slightly embaressed. "Oh, I nearly forgot. Elizabeth, your pay." He handed a stack of currency to the translator. "And, Chaltah, Stormchaser, here is a little money, in case you find yourself in need of it, and-" Gram left another stack of currency on the table for them and he paused for a moment while one of his men handed him a pair of tickets, "here are your tickets. They will take you to an airport near the Dead Sea. I'll meet back up with you there. So long." And with that, he left.
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 28, 2014 21:12:44 GMT -5
Chaltah takes the bow and quiver full of arrows as they were offered to her, quite shocked that Gram had been so diligent on getting her a replacement bow. She ran her fingers over the wood and the string, speechless. At last she manages a "thank you" to the man before he hands Stormchaser the tickets to fly to the Dead Sea. After Gram leaves Stormchaser groans and throws the tickets on the table "Must we fly this way?" Chaltah laughs and glances sidelong to the woman that had been translating the scroll "Yes my friend. It's the quickest way to get there" and gives him another nudge "Don't worry about it."
Stormchaser looks at the woman then back to Chaltah "Alright, alright. But I still hate it" he grumbles as he picks the tickets up again and pockets them. "Let's go. Sooner we get there the soon we can get done" He and Chaltah head out to search for the tombs.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 28, 2014 23:20:36 GMT -5
On his way to his jet, Gram checked his smartphone, answering some of his emails, including one in particular informing him that his cargo had been successfully shipped back to the states and preserved, ready for him to begin researching them at his leisure. The confirmation made him smile, as thoughts of dissection usually did. Once he arrived at the jet, he and his men climbed aboard. As he sat, Gram checked the small satchel he'd placed the scroll inside, making sure it was still there. It was. The jet took off.
It would be a few hours before he arrived in Crete so, to occupy himself, Gram did a little research on the item he was headed there to obtain. It would be relatively easy to obtain what he was headed to get. There were fields of saffron crocus in Crete and he only needed to obtain one, making the difficulty of his strip relatively low. Time was the biggest issue, really, but he should have completed his task and arrived at the Dead Sea no longer than a handful of hours from now. To make the time pass more quickly, Gram fell asleep, expecting to be woken upon his arrival.
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 28, 2014 23:56:30 GMT -5
Chaltah and Stormchaser walked the streets wondering just how they were going to get into a tomb. Usually they were off limits unless there was a tour of some sorts, of which they were trying to see if there was one going in the near future. It was fortunate for them that there was one about to head out and so managed to get in. As they made their way out to one of the closer tombs she looks about, keeping an eye open on any strange activity while she used the unstrung bow for a walking stick and kept the cap over the arrow to make the carrier look like it was meant for holding cylindrical objects.
Stormchaser carried the rest of her gear in a pack he had bought in town to hold all that stuff and then some. With the tomb in sight they got ready to split off from the tour group once they were inside to start their search for any scarabs that might be around, hoping there were still things to rob in there.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 29, 2014 0:11:29 GMT -5
Drew shook Gram awake some fifteen minutes before they were supposed to land. "It's time." The man told him.
Gram climbed to his feet and stretched somewhat before sitting back down. "Have you found the nearest saffron field?" Gram asked him. He'd intrusted the details of the trip to Drew. Really, the young man had no patience for errands. They were tedious and demeaning to one of his stature. In truth, Gram was only fetching the saffron crocus from Crete himself because he wanted to be completely sure that it was done correctly, to insure that the ritual would go correctly. Also, he'd be bored waiting all the hours for the others to fetch the ingredients and bring them back to him.
"It's not too far from the airport." Drew confirmed to him.
As they exited the plane, they entered a car and the driver took them to the nearest field.
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 29, 2014 0:26:46 GMT -5
Chaltah and Stormchaser finally enter the tomb and slowly start to back away from the tour group and slip down one of the closed off halls. Stormchaser grabs a flashlight, once they were out of sight of the group and starts makinging his way down the hall with Chaltah bringing up the rear, now stringing the bow in case there might be trouble . They check every nook and cranny for anything that looked like a beetle. Not having much luck they were about to turn around and try someone else when a small jar caught Chaltah's attention. She goes over and picks it up, dusting away the cobwebs that had covered the thing from sight for so long "this might be what we're looking for" she opens the lid and Stormchaser shines the light in to find some scarabs inside. Most were broken but there looked to be a few that were still intact. She smiles and puts the container in Storm's backpack and they find their way back and out of the tomb.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 29, 2014 0:44:22 GMT -5
Once they'd arrived at the saffron field, Gram could not help himself but marvel slightly. It was really quite beautiful, but he wasn't there to take in the view. He was there for a whole saffron crocus and had to retrieve it as quickly as possible, so that he could meet up with Chaltah and Stormchaser near the Dead Sea, so they could retrieve the brine salt before heading to Lake Victoria. Once they'd retrieved the electrum, they would have all of the necessary ingredients to complete the ritual.
He exited the car and strode through the field, searching for a proper specimen. Seeing one that he liked, Gram knelt and harvested the entire saffron crocus, handing it to Drew so that it could be properly stored until they were ready to perform the ritual. Brushing the dirt off of his hands onto his pants, Gram turned to head back to the car, his business there complete.
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 29, 2014 1:22:59 GMT -5
Chaltah and Stormchaser make their way to the airport and hand over their tickets, taking their stuff on the plane. She managed to play off the bow as a walking stick and was allowed to take it on board with her as well and luckilly the jar hadn't been inspected. Once on the plane she sits in her chair and relaxes while her companion stowed the bag in the overhead and sits down next to her "Wouldn't have gotten away with this most anywhere else I think." he whispers in her ear before turning to look out the window as the plane started to take off, heading toward their next destination out by the Dead Sea "I think we should have flown ourselves there instead of risking a commuter flight" Chaltah gives him a short nudge "That's not nice" she looks at him with a look that said 'be quiet' then grabs one of her books and begins reading once they were airborn
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Oct 29, 2014 1:32:43 GMT -5
Gram and his men drove back to the airport and boarded his jet. The trip had been uneventful, thankfully. He had easily retrieved the saffron crocus and was scheduled to meet up with Chaltah and Stormchaser who had gathered the scarab beetle from an egyptian tomb that they needed. So far, they had gathered half of the ingredients for the ritual and, upon arriving at the Dead Sea, they would gather the third, brine salt from the Dead Sea, and would be nearly finished. Their adventure was rapidly drawing to a close and Gram felt... relieved.
Before becoming aware of supernaturals, Gram had never really been in a life or death situation before. Now, he'd been in several in just the past few days. He would be glad to resume his research and take a break from all the excitement.
While on his jet, Gram did some work, ate a meal, and mostly just contemplated the possibilities of what he might do once he'd completed the ritual. Really, it would depend on what came about as a result of the ritual, but the young man still hoped it might grant him the powers of supernaturals and from what had been read to him by Elizabeth that was a likely possibility.
The jet touched down and, inside the airport, Gram called Chaltah and Stormbringer. "I've arrived. Where are you two?"
Post by Chaltah Songblade on Oct 29, 2014 11:32:08 GMT -5
The plane had just touched down when the cell phone Chaltah was carrying started to ring. She pulls it out and answers it to hear Gram's voice on the other side asking them where they were "We're just getting in. Plane had to wait to land for some odd reason. Not sure what it was" she looks out the window of the plane looking at the airport as they taxied up to the terminal "We'll be off soon. Where do you want to meet up?"
Stormchaser was all too eager to get off the plane, the first one up and grabbing his gear the moment the light turned off and then ended up having to wait while everyone else was getting their things together "This metal tube needs more rows... or wider spacing anyway. That way people who are ready don't have to wait" he grumbles low so as not to come off as rude.
