>>6336684

And quickly you learned they got along well with Space Marines, at least your gene-sons, and had requested they join in on the talks, which they had insisted be done on individual basis for safety reasons

You did not need to be present to look upon the contents of their hearts to know that the reasons were they were fearful of sabatogue from their rivals and enemies within the other blocs or else knew that if all four powers held a joint diplomatic meeting, it might turn their cold war hot immediately due to their contentious and quarrelsome nature. This caused no end of headaches and stress to the envoys, who would, to your understanding, greatly prefer to spend as little time underground as possible

But you'd learned, that the elders of these people were even more stubborn than the most pig headed of Long-Jianese seniors citizens as they would not and perhaps could not be convinced to compromise or change their terms and you were only able to avoid offending them by telling them that the envoys were claustrophobic, which they understood to be a grievous, crippling ailment and made one "Greybeard" stumble over his words to offer his condolences and apologies for potentially offending high ranked and greatly respected diplomats

You also understood those clumsy apologies were considered to be the heigh of politeness amongst the Squat people, as the act of apologizing for a wrong committed was only performed under great duress or unusual circumstances, even for one as forgiving as Elder Urist.

But as they could not be convinced to meet together, at least not yet, as all four powers that be wished to meet privately with you and the official envoys of Long-Jia, you found yourself shouldered with the great responsibility of choosing the first to visit. As the remaining three would surely take offense of the order of the meetings.

What do you do, Lieren?

>Simply send different groups to meet with each council, simultaneously

>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

>Force them to meet together, by informing them of the danger they were unaware of and the sacrifice of those who held the line for them

>Trick them into meeting on neutral ground, and feign ignorance, blaming a fault in communications for all four councils being sent the same time, date and location

>Write in

>>6336685
>>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

gonna learn why Lieren is the Philosopher cause what is Law but a philosophy made into code

>>6336685
>Force them to meet together, by informing them of the danger they were unaware of and the sacrifice of those who held the line for them
>Write in
"Before we talk of the future we must toast to the apst and those whom perished to preserve it, we shall build our future upon this rock and moment, blood shed and memories shared."

Operation Dwarf drinking party to get everyone ready to talk is a go.

>>6336685
>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

>Force them to meet together, by informing them of the danger they were unaware of and the sacrifice of those who held the line for them

>>6336685
>>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

>>6336685
>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

>>6336685
>Argue their fiill

Only a primarch may do this

>>6336685
>>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

>>6336685
>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together
we are a master debater and we shall master debate all these old dwarfs until they see reason

>>6336685
>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

Show what true stubborness is like and play their own game.

>>6336685
>>Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together

Calling the vote now. Sorry for the wait, even if it is shorter than usual

Realizing these old men enjoy and make sport of arguing, give them their fill and argue, debating them legalistically and passionately until they submit and agree to meet together: 9

Force them to meet together:1

"Before we talk of the future we must toast to the apst and those whom perished to preserve it, we shall build our future upon this rock and moment, blood shed and memories shared.":1

Pretty clear winner here. Lieren will challenge these graybeards to professional debating

Total votes: 10

Writing now

>>6337024
Hehehehe

However, it is clear as autumnal waters and as mountain air that these old men enjoy the arguing. They've made sport of it. Made it an artform even. The skillfulness and expertise at which they commit themselves to and persist in verbal sparing is nothing short of mastery. They've honed their natural aged stubbornness, wrought in the crucible of long, tired debates and the games of common bickering both into a fine, steely willfulness. It is nothing short of natural talent and a lifetime spent further improving their ability to argue tirelessly and relentlessly, investing countless hours into refining their innate argumentative skill far beyond the limits of base debater.

It'd be challenge to get them to bend, in the slightest of compromises, let alone sway and convince them, for even a career negotiator or bureaucrat. They are the stuff of nightmares for diplomats and merchants of all kinds and sorts. Their grasp of legalistic matters is nothing short of encyclopedic, as is their hold on spirit of the letter and precise wording. They'd be an insurmountable wall if faced by the envoys directly, unmoving, unbudging, persisting until those mere diplomats exhaust themselves mentally and physically and have committed enough faux pas to be strong armed and forced in a position to concede to their unreasonable demands, else they be considered to have wronged not only the old men, but the councils they lead and the societies they guide with their venerable wisdom.

Unfortunately for these graybeard quarrelers, they have not met the like of a Long-Jianese wandering philosopher, and they have certainly not verbally sparred with the first journeyman. They have not met you. The Envoys, already with bags under their eyes and looks of frustration carefully stowed away in the dimness of their eyes, look at you like you've suddenly offered to test the edge of a executioners blade with your own neck. Kanzeon however, just smiles and nods approvingly and as if she were sitting down to peaceably sample the dulcet sounds of the night's breeze, shuts her eyes and listens as you, without telling her for she has already read your mind, hail the nearest bloc.

"Ah. The father of two hundred and more. My own brood is nearly as vast. I suppose you've seen reason and come to inform us of the time and date of our meeting, face to face, hand to hand". The eldest of the Bloc that refers to itself as Silver Oath, or Azril-Baraz when it is spoken in their unique dialect of gothic. He calls himself simple Durem, having considered the name of his family, clan and honor names to be unnecessary to be shared to a stranger
Cont

>>6338351

"I wish I could say I have, but I've noticed a fair few discrepancies in the historical accounts you've referred to as just cause for why you cannot tolerated the company of the folk of the Gold Blood cities" You begin, and can hear teeth cracking as Old Durem clenches his jaw tightly enough "And before you accuse me of unjustified rudeness or base, youthful ignorance, hot blooded impudence. I would draw to attention that the foremost of these records, that of the slaying of the guests, bride and groom of the Agate Stream massacre, had been a matter not yet settled when the merchant clans of Sirz and Branka met to come to an agreement of the mining rights of the vein of crimson agate that had been found not far from the sight of that cowardly, loathsome murder"

"Ah but we are not speaking of merchants, Iron locks, we are talking of diplomacy, between nations. It is unbecoming, but merchants find their honor in gold in gems. Nobles, politicians, they must make theirs in oaths upheld and promises fulfilled, the grudges they have settled, the wrongs they have answered. The Murderous Gold Bloods have not yet bled for all they wounds they've inflicted upon us, and we thus, cannot be held accountable of the actions we must take to avenge ourselves, our ancestors, our people, against those low born slag spawn, if we and they meet" Durem rumbled, and you could hear the amusement in his tone

"So you say. But after the Agate Stream Slayings, and just prior to the war for the lower twelve diamond spires" You start and hear a meaty fist thump on a flat surface and what sounds, form the inflection, to be a harsh curse spat through the teeth "The Silver Oath and Gold Blood joined hands to excavate a tunnel that had connected both blocs to an unclaimed, unpolluted water source, vital for agriculture AND trade"

"It was an agreement by the ancestral council, that the mother lakes would never be infringed nor hoarded jealously, for the survival of the people" One of Durem's young aids speaks up, and you hear the word idiot be hissed by the eldest of the council

"Yet it was not made by the Gold Blood nor the Silver Oath, but by the original, unified council. Whom your society broke from due to disagreements pertaining to the then present and universal laws pertaining to the criteria and qualifications for a blacksmith to take an apprentice and for a family to be named amongst the rolls of artisans. You uphold that pact, written by those long interred, but willfully ignore the oath of quartz"
Cont

>>6338352

"That all dealings must be open and honest" Durem growled, voice grating like a file drawn down the length of a well honed blade "But, Iron Locks, you misunderstood the oath of quartz. It is in place to ensure that famines are not engineered, nor allowed to continue, that water and rations are traded fairly and at an equilibrium across the four great nations. It is, like the oath of the mother lakes, not only tradition but a means of ensuring the continuation of the people"

"And both and similar oaths are re-sworn regularly, as new mother lakes and sources of food production are uncovered, rediscovered or proven, are they not?" You question

There is a long, tense silence, followed by an explosion of angry sounding noises.

"That is true" Durem says, struggling to maintain his composure now, with much more difficulty before "When a resource that could assist in supporting our populations or bring about great change is discovered, we convene and discuss how it must be treated and harness within our laws and exploited most effectively to the good of the holds and people, but this has nothing to do with..."

"Elder Durem, allow me to interrupt, and beg pardon for cutting off your sagely words. But Long-Jia has more than just a single spring to offer all of the holds, it would go against both spirit and word of these ancient pacts, if one hold was informed before the others. Like a miner who found a vein, but began to dig it before reporting it back to the overseer" You interrupt, feeling his boiling rage across many, many layers of rock and stone

"Correct you are. However, I was lead to believe we were meeting to establish diplomatic ties, first and foremost!" He shouts back

"Indeed, indeed, but we prefer to act with efficiency in all matters. And would not waste your valuable time simply to introduce ourselves and exchange pleasantries" You shoot back

"Ah, industrious, diligent, however it is customary for newly acquainted nobles to have a time of leisure to grow accustomed to the others. And we must instruct you on our etiquette and manners" he replies just as quickly

"Of course, as we must inform you of our concept of politeness and gentlemanly behavior" You answer "However, I do believe this particular tradition, has precedence to be overlooked in times of dire necessity, and often is when the two parties come from different holds that are neither allied nor at war, a rarity in your sphere, but once common place before the councils were convened after the first great shattering"

"Indeed, indeed, however you are not of the people, this would be a great honor. There is no precedence for another people to arrive and seek diplomatic ties or trade deals" He chuckles, thinking he'd gotten you in a corner when you've set him dancing on the palm of your hand
Cont

>>6338354

"There is" You answer

Silence

"Explain"

"The lost clan of the Broken Anvil Gorge, no blood nor clan ties, isolated from the original ancestral council. There sudden emergence near Silver Oath borders, had caused political stir and societal strife, and they were hastily admitted into the structure of the compact" You answer "And Durem, if I am not mistaken, your second cousins' third wife is of the Broken Anvil lineage"

You do not need to make an accusation of filial impiety to have Durem scrambling to explain away this contradiction. But you have him on the backfoot now, along with the rest of the council that is now emboldened and encouraged to join the debate against a single opponent.

Unfortunately for the Silver Oath elders, despite their formidable endurance and force of will, they are but men and cannot endlessly waste breath arguing in circles or drawing up obscure legal documents to use as ammunition for their arguments. Their armor chips, exhaustion settles in

and halfway through the second day of persistent and unabated debate, they surrender. And without bitterness, they are more impressed than offended and greatly touched and complimented to see that you cared so much to study so indepth their traditions and history.

Their primary rivals, the Gold Blood, fair similarly and cry uncle after you spend twelve hours roving through their lexicon of common laws and oaths in excruciating detail to make good of your claim that they had broken no less than twenty two laws across your argument that would have had you as the slighted party and required, if the rare non violent solution was taken, no less than half their combined treasuries, half a dozen daughters and a particularly well fed Auger Beetle as recompense at the absolute minimum settlement that had, in none of the long existence of any of the twenty two laws, ever been taken but one of the elders had suffered a heart attack as he had read past the first paragraph of more usual level of recompense would have cost their combined clans in totality.

The Origin Stone gives you a bit more of a test in your legalistic aptitude, but succumb when when you notice that they had forgotten to swear their statements by a particular ancestor and thus had never officially declared their refusal to meet together and that they had in fact wasted their time arguing over a matter that had not been decided upon, and after the half of the council of elders had recovered from the mental shock of this, they, rather politely and almost meekly, requested to backtrack their statements and swear on a different ancestor to agree to the meeting after four more hours of debate on whether or not they had in fact wasted so much of their own time.
Cont

>>6338355

The most philosophical of these debates is with the last Bloc, Still Water, that after being informed the Silver Oath, Gold Blood and Origin Stone had agreed to meet together, lead with questions about the nature of grudges and resentment and tried to shield themselves with their belief and fervor.

Unfortunately, this was the worst possible move they could've made.

As you are a great philosopher and the student of wise, late Guozhi.

It can not truly be called a debate, but rather an extended and impassioned lecture delivered to the whole gaggle of venerable elders in the council of the Still Water Nation.

"One hundred and eight grudges settled, without a blade drawn or debt repaid, in an instant" Elder Berth mutters dazzedly as you absent mindedly brush away the frost and snow that had piled on your should

"Shall I continue?" You ask and do not get a reply until they send a single sentence across the communications, agreeing to the joint venture.

But, where will it be held, Lieren?

>In space, before the monument, as you tell them all of a debt they technically owe now

>In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood

>On the surface, in the fortress your astartes have made and claimed

>In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays

>Write in

And yes, Lieren did just stand motionless in the snow as he argued and debated for literal days

>>6338356
>In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood

>>6338356
>In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays
Trying out debate lieren is fool move, we really need debate daemon again that was fun

>>6338356
So that's. . . nearly a week straight of argumentation.
That's going in the book [The journey].

>In the original hold

>>6338356
>In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays

>Write in
Somberly reflect that, in not only outlasting but overcoming the greatest, most obstinate orators of an exceptionally obstinate abhuman strain, that the Engine Near who called you "long winded" might have been correct.

>>6338356
>In space, before the monument, as you tell them all of a debt they technically owe now
Two revelations (surface and space), and seeing the monument made for honor a sacrifice done by complete far away strangers for their squabbling four nations. Ought to open their eyes...
>And yes, Lieren did just stand motionless in the snow as he argued and debated for literal days
lol

>>6338356
>>In space, before the monument, as you tell them all of a debt they technically owe now

"oh ya btw just saved your asses"

>In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood.

"They claim that seven ancient forefathers of the dwarfs will come to live again in their own kin of which "Durin" (Goth. Sleepy.) was the most renowned."

- Forgotten remembrancer

The Song of Durin's Awakening

"The world was young the mountains green,

No stain yet on the moon was seen,

No words were laid on stream or stone,

When Durin woke and walked alone.

He named the nameless hills and dells;

He drank from yet untasted wells;

He stooped and looked in Mirrormere,

And saw a crown of stars appear,

As gems upon the silver tread,

Above the shadow of his head."

It has to be either Mirrormere, the place where dwarves have seen the stars for the first time and recognised the beauty of Eru creation or the first hold to remind them of what they could build back when they were still united and harmonious, of what they lost, of what they could be once more if they would only give themselves a permission to try.

It can't be our citadel. That positions them as our subordinates and that's not what coalition we are building is about, at least i don't think it is.

And it can't be our monument either. Debt is a heavy burden on Warhammer dwarf psyche that doesn't go away until it's repaid or the dwarf who bears it is dead. Lieren should be well aware of that given that his eyes giving him psychic insight. Meaning he consciously leverages the flaw in dwarfs psyche to maneuver long jia in a better position. This feels dirty to me. I don't think we should do that. Let's not give them life long debt as the first thing to remember us by even if it would be very useful.

In this scenario Lieren might as well be their last ancestor. Annatar. The Gift Giver. Karugromthi Anzarut. And he should conduct himself with appropriate benevolence.

So i am imploring this thread. Strongly imploring this thread. Think carefully about what we are trying to achieve here and how our deeds might echo in eternity after Lieren is gone.

>>6338356
>In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood

>>6338356

>In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays

Hopefully this end up with lieren breaking a sacred taboo, but i'm not sure he'll get access otherwise.

and taking a step to freeing arianka is at least as big a deal as it would be for isha or a step toward getting rid of malal.

>typo, hopefully it doesn't end up with breaking any taboos.

>>6338356
>>In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays

>>6338356
>In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood

Calling the vote now. Sorry for the really long wait, Machine Spirits started acting up

In the original spring, the one place under the mountains they shall not shed blood: 4

In the abandoned, original hold. Where that device the spirits had asked you to seek out lays: 5

In space, before the monument, as you tell them all of a debt they technically owe now:2

Total votes: 11

Lieren will hold the meeting in the abandoned, original hold

Writing now

>>6338421
Unstoppable object (Efficiency man) meets a previously unmovable force (Squat debating)

>>6338513
One of my favorite parts of LOTR

"The Original Hold?" The head of the envoys, a former peasant of Xue questions, chewing on a stalk of wheat he'd purposefully brought to the world to help curb his prior, dirtier and more damaging habits "Does this hold some spiritual significance to these scions of stone"

"It does indeed, diplomat" Kanzeon answers and you smile as you flick your sleeve and offer the head diplomat to walk side by side with you, while the more classically noble and scholarly sorts that had dominated the profession in the prior dynasty follow a step behind, shepherded and corralled by your loyal astarte sons

"Yes, our cousins below the earth highly value and venerate their ancestors, to a degree further than any culture on Shangrala, even ourselves" You explain, as the envoy nods along, twirling the stalk of wheat with his tongue "it is truly fascinating"

"A kind of ancestor worship?" He ponders

"Worship might be too small a word" Kanzeon muses, rocking her head side to side, her lustrous river stone black hair falling over her shoulders

"They highly admire and respect the wisdom of the ancients and are ponderous and slow to adapt to new ideas. Hence, the final resting place of their most ancient and distant of record ancestors, is considered a place of high honor and utmost importance" You explain

"The report the prospective giants compiled" He begins "informs us that they rarely venture within a dozen leagues of the site. Is it truly so holy in their culture, that they avoided degrading it with their living breath and warmth"

"It is equally out of fear and superstition" Kanzeon hums, wagging a finger, eyes shut tightly "Of the punishment old bones can met out, or rather, in all honesty, the condemnation they'd face if they were found to have needlessly intruded in what they believe to be the dominion of their long dead forefathers"

"And they agreed to meet us there? How queer, seems like they are breaking a taboo" The diplomat hums, a deep unease welling up inside his quiet, contemplative mind

"Fear not, friend, they only avoided it in their day to day lives. It is a holy site, yes, hallowed ground. But it is also the location the clans must meet to put into writing any mandate or edict that effects the whole of their society. It is where treaties are signed, blood prices exacted and oaths and promises of peace are made" You answer "That they agreed to go there, shows us that they recognize the importance of this meeting and the lasting impact it will have, on not only them, but us"

"It is a long walk, deep down in the dark. Never realized the heat would be so intense" A rotund Shuni diplomat huffs, waving a motorized fan around their face "It is as if we are on the path to hell, the air is stifling, thick"

"This is the quickest route available and we've been traveling for days" Kanzeon says plainly "And you haven't had to fend of the local wild life"
Cont

>>6340603

"Yes, we are very grateful for the protection given unto us mere servants by the great sons of Lieren" He chortles "They seem experienced in waging war in tunnels"

"Mutant warrens" Chul-Moo growled "Far less pleasant, much hotter. Had to wear additional armor just to hold the tumors at bay"

"Cretitian campaign" Aadolf mutters grimly "That's worse than the freak hunts you'd cut your teeth on, Moo. I was born in the tomb spires of Creti, then returned to burn out the filth that had settled at their bottom. Mutants, radiation...try fighting things that don't bleed, machines designed for extreme kill saturation"

"Brothers, while I missed most of the action on Terra" Young Chul Jae laughs, helmet off, handsome face grinning in the dark, teeth like white jade "I think we can agree, the Butcher was a tough son of a bitch to put down"

"Only enemy we incurred casualties against since we took the trip over here" Dae-Hyun rumbled "That last push, that was bad. That cache of archeotech in the shape of a city was pure madness"

"We lost a lot of good soldiers that day" Chul Moo says, and all your sons fall silent, stopping their reminiscing as they take note of your sorrow remembering the heroes the world lost and the friends taken from you in that last bloody battle.

"I'd have signed up to the military" The head diplomat says "But I didn't meet the new recruitment standards. It is my eternal shame I could not have helped overthrowing that foulest of tyrants"

And from the ashes of that battle, rose Liberty. Hm, that felt like the beginning of a poem you could gift to the youngest of Kanzeon's sisters once this business was settled.

"You will have a chance to distinguish yourself today, Ai" You assure him "For, there are challenges we must overcome before we can even sit down and have audience with the elder councils of all four nations"

"Challenges?" He asks

"They have certain traditions" You begin "tests of mettle, shows of conviction and intent, social trials. Minefields where faux pas are easily made. Especially because the first will be a sampling of aged spirits, that will inevitably descend into a drinking and boasting contest"

And there was still the matter of the treasure that Arianka's children sought. That was somewhere within the original hold

And how do you meet these challenges, Lieren?

>By having your astartes leverage their superhuman physiques to conquer them all,

>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>Use a bit of psykerism and simple psychological encouragement to help the baseline envoys succeed in these trials,

>And that is why you asked Anahita to attend these meetings and delayed them long enough for her to arrive,

>Write in

>>6340605
>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective
Being soldiers instead of diplomats, the astartes might cause faux pas in completing the trials, and bolstering the envoys with psykerism is a wildcard (especially considering the presence of something that might interact with psyker powers). Anahita is either the best choice or the worst choice depending on whether they realize what she is and how they'd respond to it.

>>6340605
>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>>6340605
>Personally

>>6340605

>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>>6340605
>Use a bit of psykerism and simple psychological encouragement to help the baseline envoys succeed in these trials,
With Lieren having been the one to best all the elders in verbal wrangling, he probably holds a good bit of respect, but I want these people to have good relations with Long-Jia at large, not just Lieren. Having a normal envoy show some grit would likely help kick start good relations.

>>6340605
>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>>6340605
>>Personally.
getting your hands dirty is the most honorable way

>>6340605
>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective
DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!

>>6340605
>>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>>6341003
>Lieren somehow gets drunk again and drunk dials his brothers in the middle of negotiations

>>6340605
>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

>>6336684
I miss these threads when they used to be on /tg/

>>6340605
>>Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective

File: 1622080877184.jpg (4.59 MB, 2480x3508)

4.59 MB JPG

Calling the vote now. Sorry for the really long wait, PC has been weirdly lag-y lately. Fuckin machines spirits

Personally. From speaking with these abhumans, you are well aware they honor the individual who stands for collective:10

Use a bit of psykerism and simple psychological encouragement to help the baseline envoys succeed in these trials,:1

total votes:11

So Lieren will personally meet the challenges of the Squat miners

>>6341225
Wouldn't it be funny if it was Mortarion this time?

>>6342810
Oh fuck, I just realized I can write without opening my eyes cause I've written so much in this quest over the years the buttons on my keyboard are muscle memory lol

I have transcended lads

There was a certain somber majesty within the ancient, forsaken hall. It has clearly be preserved, maintained by kept frozen within the moment the original coalition of clans had sundered over some disagreement or feud that would from an outsiders perspective seem petty and meaningless, but to the underdwellers would be so profound and important that it could only be described as era defining. Nay, not merely era defining, but truly being the foundational stone of their entire system of belief and society.

It is like walking into a frozen moment of tragedy, a keep that ad fallen and never been sacked nor regarrisoned. For ever stopped in the moment it was emptied and depopulated. Cutlery is still laid out, banners long faded to hues of grey hang, their ancestral sigils washed away from the passing of countless years and generations, weapons and armor left where it had been stored, carefully chiseled reliefs chiseled in the stone walls and floors, that must detail the long and storied history of the first generations of subterranean settlers to have called this frost bitten world home.

It is like walking into an imperial tomb, preserved in the fashion of one of the dynasties that had proceeded the Yan, such as that the late emperor's spirit may be allowed to indulge in the decadence of life long after their bones had turned to little more than mortal red dust. Your party was the first to arrive, and not wishing to offend, you restrained your curiosity to explore the halls of the first citadel and instead waited patiently and politely outside of its gate. Your astartes stand in formation and the envoys sit upon their knees in quiet contemplation while you levitate yourself and a ring of stones, idly away the moments by playing a rock stacking game with Spirit's touch. Kanzeon, her attention elsewhere, has her avatar stand still, as perfectly unmoving as a porcelain statue as her puppet body stands alongside the carven sentinels guarding the approach to the citadel.

"Ancestor's breath, you certainly are tall" The first of the abhumans you've seen in person, remarks as they emerge from the gloom silently, seeming to flow out of the stone like a draft slipping through the crafts. You recognize their voice, they are Durem's younger relative, a cousin you believe in Long-Jian terms. His name is Toril, and he is accompanied by a ring of powered armored honor guards, who similarly whistle and admire the greater stature of baseline humanity. They are stockier by comparison, with great, broad shoulders and ox liked muscles bulging beneath the slick black body suits they done. They are of the Silver Oath, so their armor and regalia is of silver and azure, with Toril beading his long, beard turned grey with ash and soot with pearls and tokens carved of lapis lazuli and sapphires
Cont

You smile and flick the rocks away as you hop to your feet. Toril gasps, and nearly falls over on his back like a century tortoise as, reflexively, his head shoots back to try and look into your eyes. To preserve his face, you do not point out his clumsiness and offer him a hand after allowing a few moments of struggle to pass

"You must be Iron Locks Lieren" He greets you, dusting his hand against yours before gripping it firmly and shaking it

"And you are Toril, If I am correct. who I'd dueled with for several hours about the particularities and extend allowed in various forms of land claims" You chuckle, and the long bearded man laughs, greatly amused by the shared memory. But he quickly moves on from you to enter the hall, stopping only to check his teeth in the polished shine of one of your son's gauntlets

Next to arrive is the representative of his people's greatest rival, the gold bloods. The member they had chosen to be the first to enter and undertake the challenge of cups is a woman.

"Lady. Daughter of the senior most elder, may I ask the young madams name?" You address the heavily fur covered and powered armored figure, who starts as you smirk. You'd gotten a lot better at identifying gender at a glance after you had overlooked Empress' Daiyu's upon your first meeting in the heat of combat. And while her body language was different than even the women soldiers of Long-Jia or Terra, you could without looking into her heart or soul, see her feminity in the subtle way the swing of her shoulders and stomp of her gait differed from Torils.

She reaches up and pulls of the warmask covering her face, revealing a metallic jaw framed by golden braids, with true gold wire spun into it, red gold and white, weaving through her naturally sparkling locks like impurities or decorative inlays

"Bianc" She answers, sounding surprised "Not sure how you knew, must have quite the sharp eye, tallman. Would've made a good scout if you were born down here, and a little less excessively tall. I am told you are Nothing Lieren"

"Lieren of Nothing" Kanzeon politely as she can, corrects, startling the poor girl as she suddenly moves and makes her utter a word you haven't translated but know is an invocation of protection. You do not fault her for her shock, since anyone unfamiliar with Kanzeon would be frightened to see her emerald green eyes blaze out of the darkness. What is more surprising is that Bianc had not noticed her with her subspecies superior dark vision.

"A..aye" She says with a nod "Heard that maggot Toril beat us to the first right. Shame, would've wanted the virgin cup, or at least to know Silver Oath lips hadn't smeared their filth over the casks"

"Do not let us keep you then, Lady Bianc, we must be invited in by all parties" You tell her, as Kanzeon's eyes follow her.

Next is the Origin Stone, who are much less heavily armored and wear more sleek, form fitting dress, that is still layers upon layers of carbon fiber and plasteel plate

>>6342834

"I am Kurg, son of Gurk son of Kurg" their leader, a black bearded youth tells you "This is my family's first approach to the first citadel"

"Then I shall not halt your progress with lengthy introductions or flowery speech" You gravely answer "Hurry and you may be the first of your lineage to sup from the first cask"

The last to arrive, is a true pilgrimage, the Still waters are dressed far more familiarly, in long flowing robes, with wrappings around their eyes, they too are lead by a woman, though her hair is unbraided and is allowed to flow for meters behind her feet as she shuffles forward

"Shrei greets ye, grudge settler" She says simply "And I know I am the fourth to arrive, so allow me to be the first to invite you, outside into our shared ancestral halls"

She offers her hand, and you bow low to press to fingers to the back, and follow her in. Members of the other threes guards wait along the stairs to offer you a similar gesture, and following htme and Shrei you are lead into the hall of settling, where Toril, Bianc and Kurg are glaring at eachother from a cross a table longer than some models of Long-Jian Civilian star ship. Several Steel Birds or Iron turtles could be laid atop it and probably without crushing it considering the materials used to construct it. An alloy that is known to you, though only because Kanzeon and her sisters can produce it if their internal furnaces are fed with certain rare minerals, that they rearrange the atoms of to produce the alloy. An art that is probably far too advance for the four blocs. A true relic of the heights they had once reached, that had not been forgotten.

And surprisingly they are still on the first cask.

And it is unopen

Your expression remains pleasant and sedated, but your eyes narrow as a cursory glance across their faces tells you that the four rival powers had planned this from the beginning.

They mean to give you the honor of opening the cask and pouring the first cups. A test before the challenge, one that might've been overlooked by the envoys, as they'd default to the lessons of long-jia court etiquette and pour based on seniority. Which was not the correct answer, you could tell from just the posture of the chosen heralds of the four powers. And as you did not wish to upset or frighten them with the peculiar effect of being held within your gaze and scrutinized, you'd need to read them with glances and observations made out of the corners of your eyes.

Luckily, you'd always had a preternatural ability of reading others, even long before your burning gaze awoke and began to allow you to treat the contents of their hearts and the passage of their thoughts like the writing on any scroll. They were waiting to see if you'd provide the correct answer to their unspoken, subtle judgement or else make a fool out of yourself with a slight misstep and forgivable faux pas. Which would make you the punching bag of the whole night of drinking and boasting...
cont

>>6342835

"You know, I can just read their minds, no reason to try and solve the knot when you've got a perfectly sharpened blade" Kanzeon's words whisper in the back of your mind as she swoops behind you, with a look of little patience and growing annoyance at the first of what will doubtlessly be many mind games in the challenges you have chosen to face as the stand in for the Long-Jianese envoy

And how do you solve their test of pouring the virgin Cup, Lieren?

>Flick your sleeve and have Dae-Hyun open the flask, then his direct subordinate pour it into a fairness cup, before lining up four small cups to be filled

>Bring out a bottle of Dragon's spit and exchange it for the jug of ancient spirits, to show Long-Jia stands equal to the combined four powers

>Grab the flask, toss it into the air, crush it with spirits touch and divide the drink inside with a twirl of your hand

>"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

>Write in

>>6342836
>Flick your sleeve and have Dae-Hyun open the flask, then his direct subordinate pour it into a fairness cup, before lining up four small cups to be filled

Oh fuck, I just realized I can write without opening my eyes cause I've written so much in this quest over the years the buttons on my keyboard are muscle memory lol
truly you have been blessed by the Dao of typing.

>>6342836
>Trade the bottle of dragons spit for the ancient beverage

>As I am last to arrive. . .

We understand your games, but we understand enough to play our own moves.

>>6342836
>Bring out a bottle of Dragon's spit and exchange it for the jug of ancient spirits, to show Long-Jia stands equal to the combined four powers
>"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

people aint ready for dragons spit

>>6342836
>"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

>>6342887
I think swapping out the drink defeats the purpose of having Kurg drink first.

>>6342987
does it?
The point is demonstrating that we know their culture, and the expectation is that we serve "the drink". Which I expect means "the drink that we will drink" rather than "this specific type of brew"

Could be wrong though

>>6342836
>Bring out a bottle of Dragon's spit and exchange it for the jug of ancient spirits, to show Long-Jia stands equal to the combined four powers
>"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

>>6342836

>Write in. Kanzeon, give us the answer, please.

I'm not to proud to get help. though i'm wary about it failing in a noticeable way if they have an anti warp device.

on the other hand, I assume kanzeon already looked, rather than bllindly offering without noticing any obstacles.

>>6342836
>>Flick your sleeve and have Dae-Hyun open the flask, then his direct subordinate pour it into a fairness cup, before lining up four small cups to be filled

>>6342836

>"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

File: 1624085254579.png (155 KB, 600x439)

155 KB PNG

Calling the vote now. Sorry for the really long wait again, just been feeling out of it the last few days.

Flick your sleeve and have Dae-Hyun open the flask, then his direct subordinate pour it into a fairness cup, before lining up four small cups to be filled:2

Bring out a bottle of Dragon's spit and exchange it for the jug of ancient spirits, to show Long-Jia stands equal to the combined four powers:2

"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last..." etc: 5

Kanzeon, halp: 1

Total votes: 8

So Lieren will say "As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last. However, it is Kurg who shall drink first, as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

writing now

And it would've been an effective trap, for the envoy's who lacked the cursed gift you bore in your eyes who were, doubtlessly presently engaging in their own duels of speech and geniality with the guards and entourages of the four sitting before you. You flick your eyes across all four, reading their intents and the contents of their heart. It is not as effective as if you'd taken the time to subject them to your stare and open up their hearts to be read like a repository scroll. But it was simply bad manners and poor etiquette to purposefully discomfort your hosts. And all you needed was the surface glimpses of direction and thought and compare one's fleeting musings and emotions with those of the three who sat next to him.

And it was clear what they were expecting. For you to serve yourself first. An unthinkable act of rudeness for any Long-Jian guest, but expected of a weary traveler in their culture, no doubt, to ease the aches of their bones with potent liquor. They might be nobles by breeding and raising, but they are not free from the fog of preconceptions that may be laid across one's eyes unknowingly. They expect you to act arrogantly, as you did, in the eyes of their culture, forcibly bring enemies together acting as if you had the authority to demand such a thing, as if they were mere foes instead. They were testing, whether you came truly as a friend or as a usurper of a throne long left empty.

But the one whose thoughts did not align along this same, basic misunderstanding, was Kurg Gurkson, he was waiting paitiently, expectant but accepting that he'd be overlooked. Toril, Bianc, and Shrei were waiting for you to make a misstep that belayed the ignorance they expected to bear witness from the no doubt offended rants of their elders, who had all gotten frustrated that they couldn't best you in an argument or find fault in the interpretations of their laws and traditions.

But Kurg? He had the bearing of a man who was hoping for a moment of great honor, not for himself, but for his family. His clan as a whole, and knew it was slipping away due to the unpleasant truth that their moment of triumph aligned with an event that would overturn the very "heavens" above their heads. You smiled. Time to grant the privilege the three other scions of more storied lineages had forgotten they owed the heir of the youngest in their quartet

"As I am the last to arrive, it is expected I serve the drink and sample it last" You say, performing a little party trick you found entertained Bellicose peoples like the Vishnu, Nucerians and New Varro, waving a hand coated with a thin glove of gilded flame over the wax sealed throat of the wine cask, before with a trick you had learned from a passing performer who'd learned to spit fire who attended your wedding, you snap the neck off with a precise chop.
Cont

>>6345103

Toril whistled between a gap in his teeth, Bianc sat up straighter, eyes widening behind her armored mask and Shrei's eyes honed in on and focused on the small flickering tongue of golden flame dancing upon the nail of your outstretched pointer finger. A small mist and steam of splashed and vaporized spirit filled the air. And, as one who delighted in simple pleasures, you had to admire the aroma that lifted from it. It reminded you fondly of sweet chestnut and peanut deserts, earthy yet with a fresh, sweet fragrance like pounded rice cake, followed by a throat clearing rush of hot, spice nots that slowly settled to a comforting, smokey air.

Kurd's blinked as the others communicated with Miner Taps. A method of communication that the aspirants had discovered, recognizing its similarity to the Dance of the Saggit or the chrips the Se'ah'in will use when they're underwater. You smiled, and used ignorance as a mask to hide the fact you were listening in on their conversation of finger taps and knuckle rasps.

"Iron hide owns nimble feet" Is the rough translation of Toril's hand beating

"Coin sight knows bigger quantity than mapped" was Bianc's

"Great mole has stone-gift" was Shrei's

More properly translated, the messages were, Iron Locks has a quick wit, Golden eyes knows more than we thought, and Giant is a psyker.

Kurd looked away trying to hide his growing expectations, fearing the sudden crushing of hope that he expected to be delivered in the company of social superiors.

"However, it is Kurg who shall drink first" You say, just as Toril was reaching for his glass, thoughtlessly, he narrows his eyes, Bianc and Shrei turn, wondering how you knew the exact, traditional ordering of pours. And you smiled, and traced a finger over the seats they'd taken, for in front of them, smudged by age and worn down by the rubbing of hands and dragging of plates and glasses, were the insignia of their clans

While you and Kurg sat at positions where the table had been left untouched

"as Toril, Bianc and Shrei's ancestors have left their marks upon the table, and, to my admittedly faint understanding of your customs, that fact lends young kurg more priority than any of your three"

"Correct, Ironlocks" Toril confirmed

"That is the proper way, of course' Bianc huffed

Shrei screwed her brow and wondered if you could read minds, rather than asking outright, you did not confirm her suspicion.

"Ah, you're as mannered as white glove, Lieren..." Kurg said, waving their hand, realizing along with the other three they had forgotten to ask of your descent, and Toril, far more cunning than his jovial demeanor would bely, wondered if you'd engineered this faux pas on their part

"Wenyan. You do not know him, but he was a great man. I am his second son" You answer and Kurg nodded as you smiled, fondly remembering your late father and also the spirit of Asbjorn from Fenris, who calls you Wenyanson.

Cont

>>6345104

"Wen-Yan" He repeats, stumbling on the foreign name as he holds out a small, pitted and notched cup that he'd been polishing with the back of his sleeve "Good name. What was his profession, if I might ask to wet our tongues"

"A simple farmer, he was of no great ambitions, but from my journeys has been immortalized for a time as a man of strong and true character" You answered "And, before you drink, may I ask your ancestral duty?"

"Stonecarver, given noble status two generations prior" He answers with a nod and you nod "That is the start of the Right-chisel family"

"Silvered-Mind are a house of warriors, as you know" Toril says, eyeing his already filled cup as Kurg lifts his with an air of reverence and savors the seconds he makes the others wait as he delicately brings it to his lips and breathes deeply of its rising vapor

"Golden-arm, also warrior house" Bianc snorted "Killed our fair share of Silvered-Minds"

"Tranquil-Stream, we are...soothsayers of the Still waters" Shrei answers, and you can tell that she is skirting around admitting her clan is one of magicians and seers.

All four grunt, and Kurd finally sips and with a flourish of the sleeve, you bring the jug back and draw a simple porcelain cup from your hipbag, careful to not jostle the explosives you were caring right beside your travel cutlery. And, in amicable silence, the five of you drank the first cup

It was strong, well aged and with a strong flavor of pinenut and burnt sugar, the liquor was deep amber in color tinted lightly red. But nowhere near as potent as Dragon's spit. And then the next trial presented itself as you refilled the glasses and the first hint of blush appeared on Bianc's cheeks as she took off her helmet, revealing a freckled, youthful face

"So, you must have stories if you're wanderings made your dad a famous man" She started and you smiled

The Second challenge. Boasting, to tell tall tales and exaggerate your accomplishments while keeping your story straight as you drank yourself red.

Fortunately, you had no need to exaggerate.

What line of boasting do you follow, Lieren?

>Your civic works and improvements, starting from Nothing and moving to the planetary scale

>Your martial victories, beginning with slaying a panther as a child and moving up to your fiercest of foes

>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.

>A list of every tyrant you'd been the downfall of and how you accomplished it. From Tax Collector Ling to the Bureau of New Varro

>Boast instead as your quality as a father, listing of the accomplishments of both the Tiger Cubs and your Astartes

>Write in

Ack! Just realized my count was off.

>>6345090
It should've been 3 votes to bring out the Dragon spit, which by law of one less than half the total, could've gotten in the update. So I'll have Lieren bring out the dragon spit next update, to make up for the slip up if you guys are alright with that

My bad

>>6345105
>Your civic works and improvements, starting from Nothing and moving to the planetary scale

>Your martial victories, beginning with slaying a panther as a child and moving up to your fiercest of foes

because we do not only destroy but also build.

>>6345105

>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.

>>6345105
>Boast instead as your quality as a father, listing of the accomplishments of both the Tiger Cubs and your Astartes
Proud father mode

>>6345105
>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.

>Boast instead as your quality as a father, listing of the accomplishments of both the Tiger Cubs and your Astartes

>>6345105
>Your civic works and improvements, starting from Nothing and moving to the planetary scale
>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.
They'll respect our devotion to great works, and boasting of the friends who helped us implies that we remember and repay the contributions of those who aided us.
The "planetary works" line also allows us to segue into the nature of the skies and stars, if we wish.

>>6345359
>Support

The feats of our friends are worth telling

>>6345105
>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.
>Boast instead as your quality as a father, listing of the accomplishments of both the Tiger Cubs and your Astartes
i like both of these

>Your civic works and improvements, starting from Nothing and moving to the planetary scale

>Your martial victories, beginning with slaying a panther as a child and moving up to your fiercest of foes

>Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.

>A list of every tyrant you'd been the downfall of and how you accomplished it. From Tax Collector Ling to the Bureau of New Varro

Two wolves stood atop a balcony of burnished gold each accompanied by the more elite of their legions, below them their Father equally resplendent strode forward over the marble of the command dead to greet the latest son to rejoin the crusade... as if such a sentiment in this regard were only true for the uninformed. The grey haired giant embracing the Emperor of man at this moment had been serving their Father's goals many long decades already.

Russ could sense his Brothers unease; “So Ironhair down there has been giving you grief? I did not take the Skald to be one to intend offence.”

Horus didn't respond so the Wolf King continued;

“Aah, it's the ide aof him that offends you not the man. His Sagas are well known even Fenris sings a few. You are offended by this and his closeness to the All father, you shouldn't be brother.”

This time Horus did respond his voice level and measured “and why is that?”

Russ pulled some dried meat from a pouch and chewed it briefly before continuing, Lieren and the Emperor were now marching towards them while talking among themselves both smiling arms upon one another shoulders like old friends.

“you are his Grand General none would or could deny this, I his Axeman. We are close to him in a way Lieren is not and ever can be. Lieren may have many titles but you know his first yes?”

“Liberator or Ogre?” Horus responded quietly uncharacteristically unsure.

Russ laughed a barking sound “No, no brother it's Lieren!”

“A name is not a title Leman”

“Ahh-” Russ wriggled his finger “-but it is. The Sagas tell he took the name as a defination; Hunter. That is what he is to our Father. You do not bring the Hunter into your home so freely, they belong out there in the wilds. We are wolves we work with man, but he is a feline, living outside only returning to deliver gifts tot he door.”

Horus thought to himself before responding “So he will leave our company swiftly you think?”

Russ nodded “it is his nature to wander.”

“I suppose I tolerate you Wolf King”

Russ laughed but his focused icey gaze remained on his proud brother.

>>6346871
kek

they failed the understanding check

If the Emperor has a Hunter who or what is the Emperor's prey

Calling the vote now, sorry for the long wait.

Your civic works and improvements, starting from Nothing and moving to the planetary scale: 4

Your martial victories, beginning with slaying a panther as a child and moving up to your fiercest of foes: 2

Those who shared you adventures, starting with your childhood friends whose tales you will also share.: 4

Boast instead as your quality as a father, listing of the accomplishments of both the Tiger Cubs and your Astartes: 3

A list of every tyrant you'd been the downfall of and how you accomplished it. From Tax Collector Ling to the Bureau of New Varro:1

Total votes: 8

So Lieren will boast about his civic works, the quality of his companion's moral fiber and character, as well as his children both adopted and genetically modified

Writing now

>>6346871
This is really well written and I really enjoyed it. Really think you capture Leman and Horus' characters nicely. also really liked Wolfboy's perspective on Lieren. And I loved the "I suppose I tolerate you wolf king" bit at the end there

You were expected to be the first to boast, and rose to the challenge by presenting one to your four rivals in diplomacy and friends in drinking. By presenting not one boast, but four.

"The Village had nothing before I came, not even a name. But by time I departed, it had christened itself with those same qualities. Starved villagers, sheltering from the snow and fog predators inside decaying hovels, fields gone fallow and empty. I taught them not only how to hunt, but how to build" You wiled, swirling the cup of ancient liquor in the palm of your hand "They were uneducated then and the skills of a woodsmen were not easily found when the forests we stalked by beasts as deadly as the native fog panthers. But with strength of arm and sharpness of wit, I showed them how to protect themselves against these mist wandering man eaters and the chill winds, while the bounty of the forest abated their hunger and gave them time to work to improve their surroundings under my direction, and thus began my civic career and the first of many improvements, great and small, I brought to the lands I bore witness to. However!"

You slam a hand down, cutting off Kurd who had been a moment away from matching your boast with one of his own

"I could not have achieved this, if I did not have hunting companions to clear the way to the good lumber and stone, none of this would've been possible. And my efforts to make jade from Nothing would've been for naught. Ah, what heroes I had met, so soon after crawling from my cradle of star flung stone, that egg which split the heavens and both in twain. Let me tell you about them, those heroes who I was granted the privilege in knowing and calling my friends, who had followed me from those fallow fields to wars more terrifying than any phantom that lurks these halls" You continue, and Kurd eyes sparkle with the excitement of a boy watching a puppet show about his favourite folk hero "My childhood companions, brave and loyal to a fault. Feng! A most skilled hunter, whose pride was tempered when he barely escaped the jaws of his quarry on a daring solo hunting venture! Jiang & Liang, twin brothers, one grave and one frivolous yet with a bond that transcended even that of brotherly comradery! Shaved Head Wei, a serene mind tempering a fierce killing talent. Half Jaw Hu, a man whose smile had never faltered in the face of death. And oft overlooked Dong, a man of whom many forget but whose great deeds are no lesser than those of the others, who, as just village boys, took up sharpened poles and followed me into the fog shrouded woodlands"

And there is no complaint our outrage as you reminisce at length about those early days, of the time you'd spent hunting Panthers and other game in the woodlands surrounding nothing, that had long ago been subsumed and tended to within the city it had become.
Cont

>>6347200

And you keep your audience on the edge of their seats, bringing up future endeavors and adventures yet always cutting yourself off with "Ah, but that happened many nights from then" or naming other noble and heroic companions before hissing through your teeth and laughing, promising "But there part in this journey of mine has yet to come, but oh, trust me friends, I would not be sitting here without them!"

Eventually you do give over the seat of boaster to Kurd, who speaks of the great edifices he's carved, without climbing gear or supports, spending long minutes describing the fright he felt scaling a slick cavern wall between gulps of wine, his eyes wild and cheeks flushed red.

Shrei is next to occupy the braggard's throne, and you can tell her tales of soothsaying and healing disguise the truth. She to has encounter wicked and evil spirits. Daemons of Hei'an Fu, the father of darkness, flame and greed, and without realizing it, tells you that her clan, is one in charge of maintaining artifacts that keep the boundaries of the two worlds defined and strong.

Toril and Bianc, who bounce their boasts off eachother, speak of their martial prowess and courage and nearly come to blows as they reminisce of the foes they'd defeated, belonging to the other's faction, but you play peacekeeper and soothe their tempers with a thimble of Dragon's spit

"What is this?" Toril had asked inspecting the tiny glass of spirits "Do you think me a freshly weened babe?"

"Obviously, his people are not so great drinkers, but never look a cup offered for grit and mud" Bianc laughed, and moved to drink, before you stayed her hand, gently

"It is a gift from Lord Long-Jia Jinhai, a man who I was honored to meet when he was but a minnow and who I am proud to see soar as a dragon. It is a favorite beverage of my people, and this bottle comes from the imperial reserves" You tell them, subtly letting them know of the benefactor of this meeting as well as that he alone was equal to the their four, warring states

And Toril and Bianc, despite their constitution and pride as career drinkers, were quickly poisoned and felled by the Dragon's breath. And Shrei and Kurg soon fell victim to its wiles as well, and began to gulp it down along with their ancestral offering wine, and were soon having difficulty keeping their stories straight, stumbling over their words and repeating themselves, giggling and acting like old friends in the haze of the strong liquor. You hadn't the heart to tell them its source from fish guts, but you were amazed that they found its bitter taste a delight.

Which could only be explained by their abhuman nature and adaptations. Maybe a natural resistance to poisons or offensive flavors.
Cont

>>6347202

And despite pacing yourself once Dragon's Spit was introduced to the table and favoring the wine they had offered, you could feel your body warming and your cheeks flushing, which wasn't helped by Kanzeon's spying and teasing as you puffed out your chest, stood with a leg atop the table and shouted loud enough to shake the ceiling of your adventures. Now Wheeping alongside your opposition as you spoke of the tragedy of hindsight, knowing how little time you'd spend with Small Chen, and how his tale would end long before it should, leaving behind his brothers in arms, the other legendary heroes of revolution and the brotherhood of the panther

And, somehow, as you spoke about your works that lead to the war and the battles your friends, late or not, had fought and won, you began to talk about your first batch of kids. The tiger cubs, after you explained your adventures in the bone devouring forest and first meeting with the wild vishnu who once lived there, speaking of Great Aruna and the future chiefs who had become nothing but bones, giving their lives in a war both far and much to near to your befriending of them.

"Avinash and Ananya, they're both grown now. But they were the oldest of their breed left when I stood before the vengeful Vishnu and beseeched them to know mercy, to spare the innocent children left behind by the slaughter of their degenerate ancestral enemies" You wept "Oh such smart and strong children, they acted as teacher and guardian to their younger, two hundred and eighty three other survivors of their dying species, all of whom I am proud to call my children. And, even before I found them sanctuary in a great academy I built to honor poor Chen, whose fateful hour was swift approaching at the time, they were bright and quick to learn. Why, they're both now considered martial arts masters and great scholars in their own right, despite being just recently fully grown and matured. The Tiger Folk grow quickly you see and Ah, let me tell you about Sandip...."

Kurd, wove a tall tale of riding a great gem devouring wyrm to lead it to carve an aquaduct. Toril spoke about fighting off all of Bianc's ancestors while battling a cousin or two of hers, he could not keep his story straight. Bianc spoke of dragging Toril's clans forge spirit to a quenching pool, sealing it forever in the waters, which seemed unlikely but in her drunken stupor, she believed to have accomplished in the moment at least. And Shrei, trembling from her brow to her toes, muttered about dark dreams and horrific sights deep below the inhabited layers of the firmament, telling you that you'd need to bring the Nameless here to explore those mysterious fathoms...

And now there was a second bottle of dragon spit open and mixed with the fourth cask of wine that had been readied and turned over for the ceremony
Cont

>>6347203

"Far away from the lands of my birth. The kingdom of my father by blood bled in perpetual war and strife. It was here that the greatest of my children, found his beginnings. His name is Dae-Hyun, and he is Valorous and Indomitable. I believe he surpasses my humble self in both bravery and sense of purpose. Always diligent, that man. He is called both bulwark and bear, if he is told to stand and guard a mole hill, he shall fight off even magical beasts and sorcerers to keep it standing. And on Terra, he lead my legion to glory, and with the courage that shined brighter than the sun, saved scores of innocents against the aggression of the barbarian hordes that struggled in vain to be kept from my father's yoke. Ask him sometime, of how he found himself to be entombed, of how he found the warrior spirit to stare nigh impossible odds and rally, greeting death itself like it were his paramour!" You crow, laughing before you talk of how Nikephoros caught the attention of the drill sergeants who had the duty of training the early selections of your legion on terra

And so it goes on and one, with you holding up Kurd as you talk in delight about Avinash's Son, Lieren the lesser as they call the boy and Ananya's child who she had named Song, after her grandfather by adoption, the covetous lord Tao whom you had personally executed for his crimes of greed and exploitation.

You keep bragging, boasting happily and laughing well into the night, as your drinking companions become docile and indolent as winter catfish, overcome by the liquor they had imbibed.

You are declared the winner of the first contest, and as such, Long-Jia is allowed to proceed in its diplomatic endeavor with all four blocs, when, after they sober up enough to speak and stand, you answer their question of how much of your boasting was true and you answer

"Why, all of it, I may be a liar, but I'd never spread falsehoods about my friends and kin" You'd said softly, as the envoys and diplomats were brought into the ancestral hall and allowed to speak with the bureaucrats and diplomats that had sneakily entered the citadel while the contest for the Braggart's throne was underway.

And now came the second challenge, now that you had proven to the four envoys of the warring factions that the Long-Jianese were people of strong fortitude and character who could be trusted to be reliable and relied on to be trustworthy from hearing of the lives and adventures of their heroes and youths!

Which you act like you'd planned to both the four and your own entorage, when really, you can't help but to boast about how incredible your kids and friends are when you're even a little tipsy. And Kanzeon finds the act of pretending to have had them all in the palm of your hand all along, amusing, which is even a greater reason to persist in maintaining the harmless lie.
Cont

>>6347204

What do you do, as the second leg of the challenge against the blocs begins, Lieren?

>Partake, and help the envoys haggle and impress the four with the wealth of Long-Jia

>Sit on the sidelines, and instead partake in the more physical test that is often overlooked. And lead your astartes in beating the abhumans in a wrestling contest

>Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts

>Interrupt the start of the haggling contest, by telling the squats of the pilots who gave their lives to keep war from reaching their home

>Write in

>>6347205
>Write in
Now that everything is in the works we send our sons to wrestle. WE however will meditate and see whats happening on the otherside~ What initially draw the spirits here after all

>>6347205
>Sit on the sidelines, and instead partake in the more physical test that is often overlooked. And lead your astartes in beating the abhumans in a wrestling contest

>>6347205
>Partake, and help the envoys haggle and impress the four with the wealth of Long-Jia
>Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts

>>6347205
>Support

we've no need to use the noble sacrifice of our kinsmen here.

>>6347205
>>Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts

>>6347205
>Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts

>>6347270
dude you are supporting malal's post.

>>6347205
>supporting >>6347237

>>6347205
>>6347237
>Support

>>6347205
>Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts
>>6347445
dude just wants to do all of them lmao

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Calling the vote now. Sorry for the really long wait, holiday rush is catching up to me

Sit on the sidelines, and instead partake in the more physical test that is often overlooked. And lead your astartes in beating the abhumans in a wrestling contest:1

Send your sons to wrestle and meditate and explore the empyrean so close to the warding device.: 3

Corner Shrei and speak in riddles and poetry to discuss her people's contact with warp entities and Empyrean beasts: 4

Partake, and help the envoys haggle and impress the four with the wealth of Long-Jia:1

Total votes:8 (Should be 9, but I don't know what that one anon wants to support)

So while his sons wrestle the Squat abhumans, Lieren will corner the sage Shrei and, conversing in riddles and poetry, discuss her society's contact with the warp

Writing now

Also, this new captcha proves the men of iron deserved what they got

"The great man, the one with eyes like a live forge at times, and like a polished blade at others, truly has put all of our clan fathers to shame with his virility" Old Ushat mused, having been unable to hide his, rarely shown amazement even for a greybeard, at the readily apparent fecundity of the figure the Brethren had nigh universally come to call "The Great Man", even the least of his kind, the weedy sorts that accompanied the great family of the Ironlocks, were of greater stature than even the largest of the Kin, and he was greater still than all but his mate.

Who, it was whispered, was not walking amongst them. Old tales spoke of such beings, spirits born into metal, forged into ships that sailed the dark outside of the stonehome. Myths, until the Still Waters whispered that they looked upon her and saw many faces wearing one masks. And her promised, was nothing but a standing, funeral pyre of stacked crowns, glowing in a pillar of ice colder than any below the earth

Obok, did not know what was true of those dust addled charlatans ravings, but he did know one thing. He was going to be humbled to day, and beaten like a badly pent plate if his good luck ended. And Ushat was not helping the young Goldblood warrior, as, despite being his venerable ancestor, Obok thought the old fool should nail his tongue down, as he would not stop trying to congratulate the mother of the legion of giants that loomed above even the Reedfolk and who had not turned their glares away from their challengers since Ushat and the other elderly councilmen had scampered out of their holes to lend their sage advice and well aged wisdom to the diplomatic effort.

And Obok knew it was because they, like all old men and women, could not hold their tongues when they saw a large, successful family, even if clearly, said family, from their matron to the sons, found great offense in their badgering praise and platitudes of the mother's fortitude to spawn an army.

Not caring said woman was whispered to be a Steelsoul and was wed to a titan who had out drank their most iron livered of heroes and scared the Still waters nearly as much as his bride had.

"Obok, you're first to enter the ring. Your opponent, his Chul-Moo" The Day Hoon warrior, who Obok assumed was Lieren and Kanzeon's eldest son told him, and Obok felt like he had been sentenced to the death by Anvil bed as he looked and saw the opponent he'd be set against, who had stripped out of his armor to reveal muscle mass and scars that made Young Obok feel like the day he had to pass his forge trial

And in his heart of hearts, the vault of his inner most thoughts, Obok swore "If I survive this bout, I am beating Ushat senseless"
_
Cont

>>6348870

"Waters now recede|Sea walls bar their way inland|We watch from the shore" You muse in the form of a short poem, speaking in a tone of reminiscence as you pass by Shrei and her handmaidens. The seer's eyes move beneath their wrappings, as she catches onto the hidden meaning of your poetic pondering.

"Winter held at bay| The Dragons heart rages, burns| Holding back the frost" She communicates, through the style of a poetry you favor, though she stumbles once or twice as she repeats and you nod, knowing already that the dragons heart she refers to his the very same artifact the spirits tasked you to claim

"Can a Scholar know| A Dragon from a lizard| When his eyes are blind?" You press, sitting down as she turns and kneels before you, expression sharp

"Yet wandering far| A dragon may not be seen| Yet your eyes know them" She answers and you shake your head, a easily made mistake. Her clan believes Kanzeon to be a spirit from their myth, and while those beliefs are uncannily close to the reality of your soulmate's birth, she is not the "Dragon" she speaks of

"A princess, a doll| May have a dragon presence| But they are no beast" You tell them "I seek this dragon, who holds the ebbing tides and chill of winter's frost at bay"

"The dragon heart is a treasure, lost and forgotten by our people" Shrei answers as your first round of eloquent poetic sparring ends "And I believe your prized emerald eyed sprite, is closer in nature to it, than you'd think"

"I know what she is" You answer, voice of iron and forge fire, making Shrei's hand maidens wince and turn away "I know she is not kin to the treasure we speak of, and I know you believe you know more than me, are more wordly than I, who have mounted the sky and rode the stars"

Shrei looks aghast and surprised, both that you'd so bluntly speak to her and that you could speak her thoughts as if they were your own

"Winter's true darkness| Can never be eluded| Once the truth is known" You restart the spar before she can bluster or voice her offense, she grinds her teeth and replies

"Torch fire sputters| Forge fire fades to ember| Still waters eb, flow" She says, explaining what you already knew about the Still Water Bloc's ruling caste, that they have duties similar to the Nameless, though their society is unaware that they hold more power than mere fortune tellers and spiritualistic soothsayers. And you did not miss the insult she'd hidden in her prose, which you turn around on her by clapping slowly and using an Aeldari term of congratulation, that makes her clench her jaw and tremble, cheeks flushing as one of her handmaids titters behind her sleeve

"Still Water Freezes| Embers can return to flame| Winter Frost still melts" You riposte and she winces, as if physically struck by your response "Darkness I have met| Winter that I have conquered| Fear it I do not"

"A winter unfaced| A darkness deep and bitter| You are unprepared" She challenges, eyes fierce under their bindings
Cont

>>6348871

"To approach the dragon's heart, is death, to tamper with it, is to bring death to us all. I cannot lead you there, even if you are aware of the "True darkness" of the world and the form "Harshest Winter" takes"

How do you respond, Lieren?

>Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might

>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

>Tell her that you've learned all you needed and can find it by your own sight

>Explain to her that you can provide an alternative means to defending themselves from spiritual threats

>Write in

Had a lot of fun writing that Haiku fight

>>6348872
>Hunter is my name

>Prove her wrong with a subtle display p
Of psykerist might.
Maybe let the light gleam across our fingers? Or create a simulacrum of a demon to burn.

>>6348872


>A winter unfaced| A darkness deep and bitter| You are unprepared

>Write in

>"This true of every threat. One is never truly prepared for the unknown no matter your experience as every danger can prove your undoing no matter how small. It would be the height of arrogance and pride for me to assume that since I am a more powerful and experienced psycherist that I am 'ready' for this 'treasure' especially considering it has garnered Arianka's attention."
>"Double-edged it gleams| My gaze will not be the last| Others will follow."
>"Eyes are drawn to chance| Gains and losses intertwine| Fate’s sharp edge awaits."

She should help us because we are the best chance to resolve this.

>>6348872
>>Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might

>>6348872
>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

>>6348872
>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "
>Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might

>>6348952
What she's worried about is that any meddling with the artifact could obliterate their world if done poorly. From her perspective letting it sit there forgotten is preferable to taking any chances at all. We want to reassure her that this isn't our first rodeo and that we're experienced with this sort of thing.

>>6348872
>Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might
>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

remind me again do we wont this artifact to make more ships like Kenzon and her sisters, to hand over to the emperor for his web way project or both

>>6348872
>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

>>6349174
Some daemons of Order believe it's relevant to their quest to free Arianka but they can't get to it themselves because there's some kind of planet-spanning gellar field keeping them out.

>>6348872

>Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might

>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

>>6348872
>>"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear "

Calling the vote now. Sorry for the long wait. And oh, Happy holidays and Merry Christmas.

"Hunter is my name| Winter Dark is my Quarry| My spear seeks a heart. Sunlight blazes hot| Winter now is at an end| Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests| its duty done at long last| Men no longer fear": 6

Prove to her wrong with a subtle display of psykerist might:5

This is true of every threat...etc: 1

Total votes: 8

So Lieren will try to convince Shrei with a subtle display of his pyskerist might/ profound powers/ glimpses of enlightenment with a poetic reassurance of his experience with warp phenomenon and his experience battling its denizens

Writing now

Shrei can surely sense the power and breadth of your ever burning soul, but she is unaware of the true power you can harness and command at will through it. She does not believe the might of your spirit or ironwill is great enough to trespass near the treasure she knows as the dragon's heart or to do battle with the dark shadows that would slip through the cracks of the veil, encourage by the cursed brand upon your brow.

Smiling softly, you bow your head and lock eyes with her, peering into them as she is exposed for the first time to your truth seeking stare. Immediately, she starts, but stands, transfixed rather than pained by your piercing gaze as you let out a sigh, crystalizing the air and chilling it with the frost of silver moonlight, chuckling low but warmly as the shadows of the long emptied hall lights up with the carefree glib and warms as if it had been inhabited all this time and soaked with the many day to day joys and mirths of life and made young and innocent once again as an inexhaustible current of innocent joy rushes past you as the very stone is scoured and scrubbed, purified by motes of white light that bob upon the burbling stream of giggling laughter as you subtly display arianka's gift and then reveal the blithe spirit sheltered within that same moonlit heart. Shrei's eyes flick from your gaze for a moment, and you know she has sensed the presence of the maid, even if that youthful girl had wandered off somewhere far from your physical presence.

And then, you bring to her sight, commanding her through Qi resonance alone to look once more into your eyes, the paradox that has set your very soul eternally aflame, the cycle without end. The flames of the golden sea, that is now revealed to her in its entirety as she stands upon its shore. She falls to her knees, eyes shimmering with flecks of gold as she witnesses the great web that connects you to all you call companion and friend and the exchange of essence and power across it. The Golden sea fills a thousand vessels and is filled in turn.

And then, as you step from the mirage of the golden sea projected into her mind simply through the gold pools of your eyes that had drawn her into your power, a subtle but overwhelming display of quiet, humble mastery of forces beyond mortal ken or control, you speak to her poetically and in disguised terms of your career as a spirit hunter and slayer

And for a moment, you see the illusionary world she has been betwixt by under the scrutiny of your gaze and exposed to the storm winds of your soul. The Golden Sea, The Silvered Moonlight, The White Flame Hysh, and The Innocent Joy. A world of swirling white clouds, dense fogs and wild nature, golden shores lit by silver moonlight beneath the shadows of great mountains and monuments of progress and prosperity.
Cont

>>6350762

"Hunter is my name" Your voice rings out, resonating like a struck gong, golden waters rippling as the silver light of the moon becomes a haze and the mists thicken, laughter ringing like bells throughout the veiled lands

"Winter Dark is my quarry" The mists thin, blown away by a gust of white wind and curling clouds swirling through the fog, revealing that beneath the ground lies a white jade road paved in bones and broken blades, Shrei's breath is stolen away, her eyes wide with shock as she sees all of the daemonic adversaries and enemies you'd bested

"My Spear seeks a heart. Sunlight Blazes hot" You continue, as you walk down the road, holding out a hand for an emerald winged butterfly to land upon, hunting spear in hand as the way is lit by the frozen moon, while your foot prints leave brands upon the bones that shimmer like the light of sunset, growing and kindling off the bones to become an raging inferno

You hold out your spear and smirk, vague laughing faces, child sized ghosts gathering around you giggling as you declare with certainty and promise "Winter now is at an end"

And in the shadows cast upon the retreating mists, Shrei witnesses snapshots and shadow theater of your battles against wicked spirits. The final, felling blows and decisive moments in your confrontations against that which is born and formed of evil and vileness.

"Dawn scorns the long night. The dragon heart rests" You state, swiping your spear and banishing the illusionary devils and the world Shrei imagined within your eyes from her mind " its duty done at long last"

Her handmaidens are helping her to her a feet, a trickle of blood dribbling down her lips, the cloth sealing her eyes wet with tears that had frozen and melted in a cycle. Much like the ever entwined yin and yang that encompass all being.

"Men no longer fear" You say softly, clapping your hand thrice in the triangular pattern that you had adopted from Guozhi "I assure you, Wise Warden of the Stilled Stream. I am prepared for anything. I see the most efficient and effective path towards my goals, always, for that way leads to the prosperous world I've longed dreamed off"

"Why?" She asks simply, pride and caution gone. Her tone humble and hollowed of suspicion or derision. And you do not have to look at her to know the contents of her thoughts or heart.

"Why do I seek the Dragon's heart?" You ask with a playful smile as you part your hands "Do I see to aid or ail your people. Herald danger or usher in prosperity. Would I deprive them of the bulwark they'd long been shielded or build one in its stead. You worry, because you know I did boast about the unpleasant labors I've done to ensure the prosperity of my people. For"
Cont

>>6350764

"Where there is light" You say, flicking a gout of golden flame from your finger, before freezing it and creating a feather sized paradox "There must also be dark. And hunter I may be, but these hands of mine are stained red not only by the lives of beast, but those of men. Deserving or not"

"However" You wag a finger "That does not answer your question, I came here seeking that treasure, and you deserve answers for yours is a rarely selfless heart. Concerned with the wellbeing of not only her people but that of a stranger whose come trampling through, changing so much with his mere presence and passing. Why I seek out that heart shielding your people from worse devilry than they know is simple. I..."

Why?

>"Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function. And then, well, who knows what I shall do with that knowledge"

>"Am not who seeks it, and I believe I can replicate it and give the copy on to those who desire it more than they concern themselves with there lives"

>"See that you are far too dependent of it. It will, like all things, one day fall into ruin and disuse and break and fade. And what issues forth then, even your venerable clan will be unprepared to confront"

>"Seek to truly free your people from the predations of those monsters that slip through the gaps of its barrier, and to that, I must approach the dragon's heart"

>Write in

>>6350765
>We seek to free your people from the predations of monsters.
>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

>>6350764
>>6350765
>For"
FOR WHAT GODDAMN IT?! FOR WHAT?!

>"Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function. And then, well, who knows what I shall do with that knowledge"
>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

>>6350765
>We seek to free your people from the predations of monsters.
>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

>>6350765

>"Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function. And then, well, who knows what I shall do with that knowledge"

>"Am not who seeks it, and I believe I can replicate it and give the copy on to those who desire it more than they concern themselves with there lives"

>>6350765
>Seek to truly free your people from the predations of those monsters that slip through the gaps of its barrier
And in order to do that, we
>Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function.
>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

Probably the most complete answer about our intentions.

>>6350765
>>We seek to free your people from the predations of monsters.
>>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

>>6350765
>"Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function. And then, well, who knows what I shall do with that knowledge"
>We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.

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89 KB PNG

Fuckin...just realized I missed a vote. >>6350314
Sorry, don't know how it happened. My bad

Hope you all enjoyed the holiday, I did. Maybe a bit too much. Got some fancy chocolates I'm really enjoying and some handknit scarfs,

Anyways, calling the vote now. Sorry for making you wait over Christmas.

We seek to free your people from the predations of monsters.: 4

We seek to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter.:6

"Wish to look upon it, and thus attain deep understanding of it and its function. And then, well, who knows what I shall do with that knowledge": 4

"Am not who seeks it, and I believe I can replicate it and give the copy on to those who desire it more than they concern themselves with there lives":1

So Lieren will answer with, freeing her people from the predations of warp predators, attain understanding of it and its functions and seek traces of Lost Arianka.

Writing now

Total votes:7

>>6350863
"For"

"Where there is light"

"Wish to look upon it" You tell her, golden eyes flaring like the core of a new born star, brilliant yet blinding. And despite this, Shrei, who is far from the most imposing or potent psykerist you've met and exposed to your gaze, does not buckle, bend or turn away. Despite facing the full force of your all discerning, all revealing gaze, suffering its complete attention, she endures and matches your gaze. Your lips twitch into an impressed, no, amazed smirk and you feel Kanzeon's presence weigh on you as she notices the admiration you're feeling to the somewhat ill mannered young woman.

"And thus attain deep understanding of it and its functions" You explain, smiling like a panther, the sight of your teeth bared like a predator's fangs making all but Shrei collapse from sheer, primeval fear. Her handmaidens and honored bodyguards simply cannot withstand the unrestrained presence of a primarch. You give a theatric, playful shrug and touch the tip of your tongue to the back of your top teeth as you laugh

"And then? Well. Who knows what I shall do with that knowledge" You continue and narrow your eyes in serpent slits as Shrei stands firm and you see, like ripples in a still pool, the force of will she summons to keep standing and persist in confronting you. My, how incredible a sight. And rare. That isn't just raw willpower. That is something deep, unquantifiable. That is undeniable, unavoidable duty. She is held up by the spirits of her ancestors. Fascinating! You can almost glimpse them within her, behind her, almost like Giggling Maid does when she clings to your leg in that spirit's rare and yet unseen and undocumented instances of shyness.

Why, the question resounds silently, whispered by the ghosts long past into the greatest mystery of life. You snicker, chuckle and throw your head back and truly laugh

"And what would I do with it, you ask me with those hidden yet stern eyes of yours" You say through a deep belly laugh "Why, we seek to free your people from the predations of monsters. The foul denizens of the warp, those reprehensible abominations that slip through the gaps in the barrier. Yes, I see to truly free you from their tyranny, those most repugnant, most abhorrent, most unspeakable and most detestable of beings. Those evil... heinous offenses that I name as my truest and foremost enemy. I'd seal them from this world. And to do so, I must approach the dragon's heart"

She took a step forward, and that demanded attention. You tilted your head, amazed by amount of willfulness she was able to display. The composure, the somber grace. Even if it comes partially from her ancestral guardians, it is no easy feet to lock eyes with you for this long.

A dribble of ruby bright blood trickled down from her hidden eyes, and your tender heart urged you to look away and spare her from the pain of your gaze.
Cont

>>6351727

But, you could not. To do so would be disrespectful, to both her and her ancestors who roused themselves from their graves to support their descendant!


"Fine. You seek the truth, the root of my purpose. The original intent" You relent, smiling and opening your eyes as Shrei stands firm and unmoving as the stone around her, almost melding spiritual and psionically with it to anchor herself and keep herself from breaking eye contact with you "We to find any traces of our ally, Lost Arianka, Lady of winter"

Shrei frowns.

"That's twice now you've used We rather than I" She points and you frown as well, stroking the stubble on your chin thoughtfully. She wasn't incorrect, but why had you used We? Now that you thought about it you couldn't say why you had done so. Contemplating it for a moment, you, momentarily, felt off center and out of harmony with yourself. Why had you used We?

"And Arianka. Lost Arianka. Lady of Winter. You're a hunter of spirits and there enemy, but that sounds like the epithets of a spirit. Or a god" Shrei continues "Your eyes turned silver, hadn't they, when you spoke of slaying the monsters beyond the veil and of this Arianka. You spoke like a warrior on an oath"

Your frown deepened and you turned in wards. The heart of frozen moonlight was flaring strongly inside of you. So that was it, you'd been subtly influenced by the portion of Arianka's energy that you'd been granted and entrusted with, you'd have to be more aware of that in the future. Something similar must've occurred within Elazar's own soul, and he, as noble hearted and chivalrous as he was, was driven such barbarity as burning children on a pyre. Corrupted by chaos they may have been, that was out of character for him. Fortunately, this influence had been of a goal that you had that coincided with that of Arianka's own and was slight and benign. But, how easily could that black rage, the ogre within you, drive you to murderous rage if it was empowered by that spirit of the pyre? If your hatred of chaos was given will over and power enough to subjugate your strongly held virtues, stubborn beliefs and unshakeable sense of morality? A disquieting thought.

"I'd stop you" Kanzeon whispered a soft, but stalwart promise into the very depths of your soul, and all concern was bannished from your heart and mind. She'd stop you, of course. Still, something to be more perceptive towards in the future...

"I cannot see my own eyes without reflection" You tell her with a relaxed smile "And, I suppose, that was simply my enthusiasm taking over"

A believable response. The weight of your loving wife's presence had become crushing.

"You contain more powers than one should naturally possess" Shrei continued "Of opposed energies'

"Opposites are also complimentary" You shrug off "It is a philosophy and truth called yin and yang, perhaps I could teach you"

"Who did you mean by We?" Shrei asked innocently

And you truthfully answered...
Cont

>>6351729

>"Myself and the children of Arianka. They and I share a cause and an enemy"

>"Myself and...myself. And aha, that is not a riddle. I've so enshrined my charming blithe spirit, the innocence and joy of my heart, that an avatar of sorts was born"

>"We of Shangrala. Yes, I was told of the Dragon heart by spirits, but those I've allowed onto this dark, lonely path, to abhor the spirit wicked and seek to bring succor to mortals and kindly spirits alike"

>"Me and my wife. She may not be...overly fond of the idea of my alliance with the frost maiden's family, but we agree that the forces of discord must be opposed, wherever they are found"

>"You and I. You may not recognize it, but you are blessed with a great mental and physical fortitude. You'd be a good spirit hunter, Shrei of the Still Waters"

>Write in

>>6351730
>"Me and my wife. She may not be...overly fond of the idea of my alliance with the frost maiden's family, but we agree that the forces of discord must be opposed, wherever they are found"

>"You and I. You may not recognize it, but you are blessed with a great mental and physical fortitude. You'd be a good spirit hunter, Shrei of the Still Waters"

either or for these 2 imo

>>6351730
>Myself and the children of Arianka


Whoops, I didn't mean to let the panther loose, but alas

>>6351730
>>"Me and my wife. She may not be...overly fond of the idea of my alliance with the frost maiden's family, but we agree that the forces of discord must be opposed, wherever they are found"

>>6351730
>Myself and the children of Arianka
>>Write in
"We as in Myself and those who belive as I do across the starry sky and beyond it. I swore to bring balance and so I shall, for what am I were I not to keep an Oath?"
---
In short "I am myself and the will of those whom work beside me. I am never alone! I am the will of us all combined!
---

Buried under red sands,

Below churning oceans of steam and clanking gears,

Beneath corridors that defied reason and the laws of logic.

A serpent of potentials and progress shifted in it's chains.

A promise of silvered perfection and purity of purpose stirring in its dreams.

The shifts in it's slumber shook minds, quaked foundations of logic, echoed across causality.

The deep thing in the dark.

Above all this, oblivious and beyond for can an amoeba conceive of Constants?

Can Bacteria squatting upon the corpse of reality's law fathom the vastness upon which it squats?

No.

But they can evolve, become more.

Forward,

Become.

Build.

---

Above and beyond looking to the stars a menial thing whose mind was taken from him, welded fine circuits with golden alloys joining node to node. A million million such circits had passed under its care but when this next one came forward upon the belt.

Something in the back of it's hollowed skull; dreamt.

It connected one node to another...

[0]

It connected one node to another and lay a single new path to another.

[1]

>>6351730
>"Myself and...myself. And aha, that is not a riddle. I've so enshrined my charming blithe spirit, the innocence and joy of my heart, that an avatar of sorts was born"

>>6351730
>"Myself and...myself. And aha, that is not a riddle. I've so enshrined my charming blithe spirit, the innocence and joy of my heart, that an avatar of sorts was born"

>>6351730
>>"We of Shangrala. Yes, I was told of the Dragon heart by spirits, but those I've allowed onto this dark, lonely path, to abhor the spirit wicked and seek to bring succor to mortals and kindly spirits alike"

>>6351730
>"Me and my wife. She may not be...overly fond of the idea of my alliance with the frost maiden's family, but we agree that the forces of discord must be opposed, wherever they are found"

>>6351730
>"Myself and...myself. And aha, that is not a riddle. I've so enshrined my charming blithe spirit, the innocence and joy of my heart, that an avatar of sorts was born"

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Calling the vote now. Sorry for the long wait. New years is just around the corner!

Me and my wife:3

You and I:1

Myself and the children of Arianka:2

We as in myself...:1

Myself and Myself:3

We of shangrala:

Total votes: 9

So Lieren will answer with Myself and myself and me and my wife

Writing now

>>6351844
Is that the Void Dragon? Very nice!

>>6352930
And we of shangrala had 1 vote to it, forgot to type it in.

With gilded eyes glittering with mirth, you held up two fingers and flashed a grin as you explained "And there are two We that I referred to, curious Shrei, scholar and shaman, everything is made up of different faucets and variables, you see. But the first we, I spoke of"

You felt a surge of warmth and adoration from Kanzeon and felt as if she was right at your side despite the physical distance between the two of your mortal shells.

"Me and my wife. She may not be..." You paused, sensing a torrent of her thoughts and feelings and translating them to be understandable to Shrei who does not know her as intimately and deeply as you have come to "overly fond of the idea of my alliance with the frost maiden's family, but we agree that the forces of discord must be opposed, wherever they are found"

"Discord" Shrei repeated, eyes fluttering but never closing, never shutting entirely, even as fresh rivulets of blood bubbled beneath them from the prolonged eye contact she forced herself to endure, staring into the sea of your soul through your all revealing eyes "I, presume that this is your people's term for the darkness"

"That which is destructive, that which is chaotic, that which is born from the darkness and turmoil of the hearts of men, the shadow of sin and the presence of evil. Atrocity embodied, foulness personified, and many other equally as contemptible forms" You answers and knows Shrei understands

"We priests of the still waters think of them as pollution. Grime. Slag. Muck" She answers and you give an approving nod, nearly applauding before you halt the motion, thinking better of lightening the mood and turning such a grave conversation casual and light "Then, if you are aligned with this frost maiden in opposition, then she must be of clear waters"

"Order, purity, righteousness, but less beneficial forms as well. Withing light, there is dark, and within dark, there is light" You say, remembering the rival daemon princes you battled and the earnest, uncorrupted but mad love between the Butcher King and his bride as well as the force that pushed Elazar to dishonor himself and act so barbarously in the pursuit of eradicating the taint of chaos

"Then she is the second" Shrei assumes, you hold up a hand, and with a monkeyish grin and wag of the finger, cackling as she blundered as if the mistake was a punchline of a great joke, you corrected her kindly, still laughing.

"Ah ah, no. the second we is Myself" You say, letting the moment hang from dramatic effect as Shrei's eyes under her veil opened wide, her nature as a seeker and spiritual guardian emboldening her curiosity ten fold to seek answers many would find unwelcome and upsetting, much like yourself and those you've taught to hunt wicked spirits like the mongrel dogs they are. And you can see the vague forms of her ancestors spirits, roused from languid repose to a glimmer of consciousness, eager to hear the second half of your answer
Cont

>>6352949

"Myself" And then, mercifully, Shrei blinks and breaks herself from the durance she'd forced herself to endure simply to stand her ground against your request to be shown to the dragon's heart, an impressive shown of will and sense of duty that'd surely have brought tears to the ancestors supporting her, if they could still shed such things. Shrei's jaw wags and before she can ask, you explain

"And aha, that is not a riddle" You say, catching her flatfooted as you continue, explaining to the best of your abilities what exactly the giggling maid is to you, as she is different from the golden sea of your soul. for once, she is much more talkative and free spirited and is her own person unlike the sea which is a grand network and root system of spirit and soul stuff that connects to the souls and hearts of others.

"I've so enshrined my charming blithe spirit, the innocence and joy of my heart, that an avatar of sorts was born". Shrei still does not understand. Perhaps...

"Why must innocence be discarded? Why must one grow old and mature, and harden and grow cold. Simply living is reason enough to celebrate and be forever joyful" You repeat the insight and fragment of true enlightenment the maid revealed to you, that had granted you strength beyond the ken of discordant minds

And alas, Shrei does not have eyes to see the peak before her and just parts her lips, dumbly staring at you as if you've suddenly been dressed in the regalia of a court fool.

"You are not ready" You sadly admit and she regains her composure, shaking the confusion of your, to her mind, meaningless statements and nonsense explanations

"Your thoughts are uniquely your own, love. I doubt there are many who could keep up with your train of thought, or understand the logic of it. Remember when you decided the most effective move in a fight was to turn yourself into a living cannonball while fighting what remained of my degenerated sister, Kuan Im?" Kanzeon chimes in as Shrei, notices she's bleeding and casually, nearly carelessly wipes away the tears of blood sticking to her cheeks and drying into her veil

"An incarnation of sorts, a separate spirit, born from your own. You are" Shrei talks, translating to the best of her abilities, your words to her understanding & view of the world "A living foundation stone. Like my own ancestors"

"Oh no, you've picked up another obsessive fan" Kanzeon groans as Shrei's perceptions of you, wildly swerve and change, stunning you as she, with an expert's finesse, adjusts her beliefs and views to fit you into them without disturbing the waters of her faith. That is a fortitude of belief that rival's Yin Lei's own ardent practicing of the precepts of The Journey!

"Which means, as a living ancestor, it is your right to behold the Dragon's Heart" She continues, in a dreamlike, wistful tone "And no conflict of interest on my part or vow broken, in leading you to its vault"
Cont

>>6352951

You....aren't entirely sure of her logic and are quite confident her elders would disagree vehemently if they learned of her decision or heard her declare you a foundational pillar or living ancestor. And what that means, is still hidden from you despite peering into her mind. From what you can gather from her surface thoughts, she believes her lineage was spawned from one being separating itself, like a stone being cut and reshaped. And, that reminds you, faintly of the reverse process that created Kanzeon and her sisters

"....I'm going to hope that's just superstition and misremembered history turned to myth" Kanzeon herself mutters, as Shrei stands before you, beaming as her maids, one by one reawaken as she waits for you to tell her to lead you to the heart, seeing that you share an enemy in the "pollution" as she conceptualizes chaos and are an equal to her own ancestors in her eyes.

What do you do, Lieren?

>Slip away from the diplomatic talks, to be lead to the Dragon's heart

>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

>Ask Kanzeon to travel in your stead, as there is still much for you to do

>Beckon Giggling Maid and your fallen companions, and have Shrei escort them to the heart instead

>Write in

>>6352952
>Wait til the talks are done to seek the heart

>>6352952
>>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

bot finishing diplomatic talks thats a grudgin

>>6352952
>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart
The Heart isn't going anywhere and it'd be best to avoid offending the dorfs.

Kanzeon will never let Lieren live down that cannonball move, huh?

>>6352952
>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

>>6352952
>>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

>>6352952
>>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

>>6352952
>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

i wish there was a repository of all the fanart and memes of this odyssey of a quest

>>6352952
>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart
Just because they're less interesting doesn't mean they're less important.

>>6352952
>Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart

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Calling the vote now. Sorry for the long wait. Got a bit sick after my new years party, but I'm feeling better now, right as rain. Hope your new years started off better than mine did.

Wait until the talks have ended to seek the heart:9

Total votes: 9

Well that's a bit rare. So Lieren will wait until the end of the talks to seek out the "Dragon's heart"

>>6354005
I've saved all the fan art myself, not sure if anyone else has to put in one place. I don't think anyone has been recording the omakes/ drabbles anons write. I do have a pdf of the Journey that's been written/ seen in the quest that an anon made

But simply because you had permission did not mean you could depart on a new quest. You might have come here officially as the primarch of the second legion and later as the commander of a brief naval skirmish, but while you were not a diplomat of Long-Jia in any official capacity, the seat Grand Architect was expected to chart and catalogue new worlds and decide which were suitable for colonization and which could only support orbital stations, isolated defensive outposts or resource extraction sites, even if you'd chosen to accompany the diplomats as an advisor

However, you were not merely a citizen of Long-Jia. You were a primarch, a general of a reclamation campaign across the stars and son of the emperor of the imperium of man. In that regard, you had a duty to see this world brought into the fold. Whether that would be as an equal partner of Long-Jia or a subordinate state or vassal satellite was yet to be determined. But both your role as reclaimer and your chosen part of political advisors meant you could not depart from the talks. Whether there'd be a peace brokered that'd allow the four groups to join together peacefully or if they would separately be uplifted to join the rest of the to be unified mankind in their domain across the stars, remained to be seen. But you could not leave when the four parties were still establishing the first diplomatic with Long-Jia. Especially now that the scions of the eternal celestial engine had expressed interest in contacting the world themselves.

And you were impressed by the cunning displayed by the head envoy sent by Jinhai. He had not only adapted and composed himself well, but he had brought some of the best hagglers in all of Long-Jia's growing sphere of celestial influence to display the advancements and wealth of the nation.

From bureaucrats that had been elected to office come the reformatting of the imperial ministries, to Zoroast merchant princes and New Varo Hucksters hawking the latest innovations of the Shan Foundation, or the two military officers giving live demonstrations of the battle line artillery that Tao Dandan had so generously contributed to imperial gift. There were even one or two of the harmless "gangs" of youths who had dabbled in tinkering with Skipping Clouds and dealt with Jokero during the brief flourishing of civilian criminal elements not long after Long-Jia properly reached the stars.

It was as varied a group as any Shuuni Bazar, and you watched from the sidelines as one of the Oracle breed introduced the recently arrived high elders of the clans attending the conference as representatives of their cultural blocs, the other kinds of Abhuman found across Long-Jia as well as the non human peoples brought under their wing. The Silver Oath high elder seemed most interested in the Alf'Harim , the gold blood the Se'ah'in, the Origin Stone the Tiger folk, and the Still Water seemed particularly fascinated by the Yushanians
Cont

>>6354536

And, across from this market of exchanges and subtle cultural posturing, you saw your sons, out of their armor and standing proud. As you'd expected, they had easily trounced the competition in the wrestling games and had defeated all challengers. This had left the older observers of the games equally impressed and outraged by the humbling their strongest grapplers and most talented of boxers. However, one or two of the younger competitors could be seen asking the victorious Astartes of the techniques they'd used. The martial styles you'd taught them. And at that, you could not help but feel a bit of fatherly pride as well as the joy of a teacher seeing their students draw closer to mastery of the style they had once been instructed in.

You hadn't made you presence known, as you were debating where to insert yourself. The talks were in full swing, and the sheer variety of the hagglers brought by the diplomats as well as the kind and quantity of gifts Jinhai had offered the four powers, had impressed just how vast a territory the visitors from outside of their mountains commanded. While the martial prowess of your sons had shown them a glimpse of the military power of the empire of Long-Jia. How they'd react, and what each of the four powers would seek from the newly established relationship with Long-Jia, would determine exactly what would be done.

That they weren't seeking alliances against their rivals, showed that the envoy had been clear as the air away from Shangrala that Long-Jia had no interest in their squabbles and rivalries and could not be swayed to one side or the other, and came here to speak with the whole rather than the factions. And that meant all four individual councils of elders had to rethink their approach and aims in this venture, and were weighing the benefits of each fork in the road before them and you could see the machinations of each of the attending elder's thoughts. And despite their age, they were remarkably quick witted and adaptable, changing and adjusting their goals with each new piece of information the envoys cleverly slipped into their pleasant, seemingly casual conversations.

The elder of the clan Silvered Mind, saw the value of sending their youth to learn from Long-Jian masters so they may trailblaze their own path through the stars

Their rival of the Golden Arm, had a remarkably similar thought, and was planning on sending volunteers to learn how to war from the imperial armies of Shangrala.

The Right Chisel Family, however, was not thinking of the Origin Stone's benefit, unlike the Golden arm or Silvered Mind elder, and were more concerned with the benefits to their own clan than the whole nation and were planning how to get the more senior clans to agree with a vassalage
Cont

>>6354537

And Tranquil Stream's elder, was watching and waiting, thinking about the Wanderers in the Fog and believing they'd first seek a travel deal between "ranges" as, they still weren't aware of the true breadth of distance between their world and yours. Though, they were aware of your talk with Shrei and were, in polite terms, incredibly nervous. So much so that they weren't as wary of Kanzeon as they had been prior

This was a bounty of opportunities, and you held the respect of the original diplomats sent by the blocs. It would be all to easy to weigh the scales one way or the other with the slightest press of your hand...

And in which direction, if at all, do you weigh the scales, Lieren?

>It is a cross roads in their cultures, to influence it would be to act a tyrant. Let the diplomats from the four powers make the choice, but make sure it is an informed one

>Use your authority as the head of the ministry of development to tell each of the high elders of worlds that were deemed unsuitable for baseline habitation, but that are remarkably close to their strains' preferences

>Inform them of the eventual arrival of the imperium of man, covertly so as not to cause a scene, and advise them on how to prepare for that in the future

>Try and make them see there is more strength to be found in unity with eachother than wealth or power to be found if they approached Long-Jia alone

>Write in

>>6354538
>it is a crossroads of culture, to influence it is the act of a tyrant

There's nothing wrong here, let them be

>>6354538
>It is a cross roads in their cultures, to influence it would be to act a tyrant. Let the diplomats from the four powers make the choice, but make sure it is an informed one

>>6354538
>>Inform them of the eventual arrival of the imperium of man, covertly so as not to cause a scene, and advise them on how to prepare for that in the future

>>6354538
>Use your authority as the head of the ministry of development to tell each of the high elders of worlds that were deemed unsuitable for baseline habitation, but that are remarkably close to their strains' preferences
It's not tyranny to give them options so long as they have the final say.

>>6354538
>>It is a cross roads in their cultures, to influence it would be to act a tyrant. Let the diplomats from the four powers make the choice, but make sure it is an informed one

>>6354538
>It is a cross roads in their cultures, to influence it would be to act a tyrant. Let the diplomats from the four powers make the choice, but make sure it is an informed one

>>6354538
>Use your authority as the head of the ministry of development to tell each of the high elders of worlds that were deemed unsuitable for baseline habitation, but that are remarkably close to their strains' preferences