Council of Dragons

[Avis]

This meeting was not held in the Sanctuary, for it was not meant for casual lounging about pews or for a table to be mounted on the altar stand. No, for this meeting, a room in the basement had been cleared and prepared, a table and four chairs placed, a candelabra sitting in the table's center and waiting to be lit. Coolers of drinks sat nearby, along with another table that held crock pots and covered warming trays with food.

Typically, Avis wouldn't have dreamt of holding a meeting of the Talons with a damn buffet in the room, but this was no typical meeting. Their planning for the Adamant Trials would be taxing in its own way, and it would run long, so she wouldn't begrudge anyone with nourishment. Their task, their challenge, already lay before them.

[Fisher]

Fisher wondered around the Circle of Creation for a bit looking for the right spot and soon something caught her nose. After the smells had thoroughly defeated her resolve and left her stomach whimpering and begging she followed her nose to the source. For a moment she thought that this could be a clever and devious trap, and one that would totally work on her too, but it wasn't long before she stopped caring.

"Oh my god! Food!" she said walking through the door. "I love you, your like the best boss and stuff."

The thyrsus made her way over to the table to checkout the bubbling cauldrons of blissful enjoyment. She slowly moved from foot to foot which meant she either had to use the restroom, or she really was interested in all that food but wasn't certain if she needed to wait. Then she looked up at Avis and focused on her.

"Oh hi, by the way," she said with a grin. "Did need help finishing this off...or with setting anything up...or with finishing this off?"

[Wayland]

Wayland walked through the building casually, one arm outstretched with his fingers running along the walls as he walked. Just... drinking in the coarse feel of the stones, the grains of the woods. He loved this place, with its majesty of form, lines and angles.

Heading down the stairs he felt safe surrounded by stone and steel, dust and gritt, for he was nothing if not a man tied to the physical Mysteries. Walking into the basement room and found Avis and Fisher already here. Fisher was already hovering over the table of food and drink but Avis appeared not to be, and that gave him pause. Last time he and Avis were in the Circle with food she had suggested throwing a bowl of hot soup at his face. Shit yo. That's a lot of food. Is she like, just linin' up the food to throw cause she's like, mega pissed?

"Hey, hope im not late. How's everyone doin?" Keep your distance from the food bro, in case it comes flyin'.

[Cayce]

Runner

[Avis]

A small smile that mostly resembled a smirk appeared in response to Fisher's enthusiastic fixation upon the food. Only someone who's known hunger got that excited on the first official day their Order gathered.

They had that in common, at least.

And then came Wayland, who's love of stone was near totemic. Like marble, or granite, Wayland was being eroded, yet it was only flaws being worn away. Eventually, something not unlike the Cathedral would emerge if he continued to walk the Adamant Way.

Lastly, there came Runner. Unknown. In part. He was handsome, in a boyish sort of way. An impression that didn't lesson with how deferential he seemed. She was curious what laid beneath that veneer.

Thankfully, tonight would be a perfect opportunity to find out.

"Welcome, Talons," she began, the words feeling strange on her tongue. For, though she'd been First Talon for months, this was her first actual moment of authority. Of position. At least, within her Order.

"Now that we've all arrived, I want to start by saying, feel free to feed yourself. It's there to help sustain you, because tonight we are going to plan for the Adamant Trials. A ritual we're extending to the Consilium. To teach them, both of what our Order means, and the areas where they are weak. The areas where they need us most.

"Now, I know you two already know that" she continued, nodding to Wayland and Fisher, "so this is mainly for Runner's sake. Still, bear with me."

An image came to mind, along with the echo of crinkling paper. She rubbed her finger tips with her thumbs, then began again.

"These trials will be like a guantlet. A tournament. A series of linked challenges that will test the participants as they go through them. Probably as a group, though each participant is being judged on their own. Each challenge will reflect on one of the Phalanxes, though as we all know, they are not independant of the others, ao the challenges might include more than one.

"It's our job tonight to create those challenges. And, when that is done, we'll judge each other based on the wisdom that we've shown."

I can't hit the like button on my phone, but consider all of your posts to have likes

[Fisher]

Fisher was a thoroughbred horse straining at the starting line, anticipating what was coming. Then when Avis gave the go ahead, the thyrsus set about the important task of filling her plate with gusto. As her plate began to fill up a soft chuckling of pure enjoyment drifted from her toward the others. Finally, her task complete she made her way to one of the seats and sat down ready to get to business, and also discuss the gauntlet construction as well.

"This gauntlet thing is going to kick some serious booty, I just know it!" Fisher said between mouthfuls of food. "So we are splitting up the job by phalanx for each person or we doing the group thing?"

[Wayland]

Wow. That girl can eat yo. Still, he was hungry himself, and to not eat would be insulting to Avis and the effort she'd pu into providing all that food. Walking over to the table, he set about setting a plat for himself with basic foods. It wasn't that he didnt have a good pallete but more that he was a simple man, PB&J kinda guy.

"I dunno, but i'd say we work to build the trials first, then we can totally work out who's gonna run them ya know? Depending on how they get structured will probably determine if its a one person gig or requires like, the whole crew."

[Avis]

"Well, why don't we lay out what Truths we all have access to. That will tell us what we'll be able to affect. What tools we'll have to construct the Trials. To give you an example, I'm an Intervallutrix, and an Adept Pyschonaut. So, as a master of Space, I can construct Labyrinths of folded Space, I can make networks of portals, I can appear in multiple places at once, or I can layer objects upon one another. As an adept of Mind, I can read memories, craft hallucinations, influence emotions, and the like. Now, what about you three? What are you able to do that you think would help us craft difficult trials? And feel free to try and combine what you can do with what others can do. I mean, there is something to be said for simplicity," Avis pondered, "but this is an opportunity to go beyond the usual challenges. This is a ritual, after all. We shouldn't allow ourselves to be limited by the Lie."