wizardseason | Wizard's House

Garrot registers the sound of ocean waves and his allies' murmurs and his eyes snap open. A moment later, he's on his feet, scowling and just as angry as he's been every other night.

"You've got some explaining to do, Wizard!" The words are casually shouted as he glances to the moon, the beach, the chair he awoke from. No sign of the Wizard, so... Garrot huffs and kicks over his recliner, sending the pajamas into the sand. He's used to colder climates, and she always reacts to him. Maybe it'll help?

"Don't make me hunt you down!" But then he glances around and shrugs lightly. It's creepy and weird that she's not here, and as much as he hates to admit it, he doesn't like it.

Gyre's eyes open when Garrot starts screaming, and he settles into glaring at the sky. Waking up three nights in a row to this big idiot shrieking about the revenge he's definitely not going to get in this dreamspace, if at all, is becoming exhausting. Especially after last night. He doesn't really want to be here with them, but he does want to know what the wizard has to say. Whenever she decides to get here.

Until then, he hasn't got anything to say. He shuts his eyes, pretending to be asleep for now.

Haizea rolls her eyes at the tantrum. Classic Garrot! She pulls her legs in and sits cross legged on the beach chair before responding to him.

"Maybe she's avoiding us tonight," Haizea muses. "Trying to dodge questions about all that time travel bullshit today, maybe?" She frowns here, thinking about what she witnessed back in the past.

"Did, uh. Did any of you guys touch those floating pillar things?"

Matilda's more than content to pout as Garrot snaps off, tugging the unbuttoned pajama top on like she's wearing some kind of absurd pj-jacket. He's getting easier and easier to block out as time goes by, even to her. "Or... maybe she got lost in time?" Matilda asks, her voice hinting with anxiety.

"If she got lost in time then... do we win?" The question is level in tone, even contemplative. She didn't respond to boisterous bluster when she always would, so something's off here.

"If that's what she wants to do to avoid explaining the kids in those weird floating rocks, then..." Garrot trails off, crossing his arms in front of his chest. No point in beating around the bush or keeping secrets from each other.

What's troubling him is that if the Wizard is running from problems she created, well, he can relate. And that makes him so uncomfortable.

Damn, why'd they have to switch to a conversation he cares about. He doesn't move much except to fold his hands together over his stomach. He doesn't even open his eyes.

"She said the kids are saved every year with her. They're still around," he murmurs grimly. He taps one finger against the top of his other hand, turning a thought over in his head. "Did it bother any of you how much the monster today looked like a child?"

"Don't remind me," she says with a shiver. "It was awful, fighting those half children monsters. Especially after the kids in the pillars earlier."

She shifts her position uncomfortably. "Did those kids talk to any of you? Because one talked to me."

Wait a minute-- okay, time to be horrified. Matilda openly gapes at her peers, falling back onto her ass onto the beach chair. "Kids in pillars! What!" ... Look, she was a little distracted during the time travel escapade, meaning she spent most of the time being a coward instead of investigating.

"I-it was a little troubling what they looked like. I'm more worried about the ones we didn't get to see." The invisible menaces pushing them around.

Honestly, Garrot just gives Matilda a very bless-your-heart kind of look as she falls into the chair. At least she's learning about them now, when it's pretty safe. But the topi. Turns somewhat to monsters, and...

"The first monster was a tiny little thing, too. Didn't we pretty much play tag with it?" And while he's talking about a childish game, Garrot's entirely serious. Two of the monsters so far have been... youth-sized? This isn't sitting well with him. One hand reaches up to stroke at his beard.

"The kid in my rock asked me if I'll choose to save them all. The kids, I guess." That's basically 'will you choose to save us,' right? The doctor doesn't like this, he's even closing his eyes and just thinking on this, meditating even.

Of course he wants to save them, but magical nonsense are these kids caught up in?!

"The tenth too. He's small. He has a lot of eyes but he looks like a child. I..." he pauses briefly, a frown darkening his expression. "I think he was trying to ask me something today, but she sent me away before he could."

His eyes open, and he turns his head to consider the three of them. He looks as frustrated as he feels as he takes in Garrot's story. He wants actual answers, and he doesn't know how to get them honestly, but this is something at least.

"The child I found. They asked me if I could find them, and when I did they were... It was like there was lightning coming out of them. They told me they weren't okay, and," he makes this frustrated sound, finally sitting up restlessly. "And then I passed out."

It's a shame that the Wizard arrives when she does, just in time to interrupt the four knights' conversation about what they'd experienced.

She arrives in the darkness, easily a good fifty feet out, lit only by a single-candle lantern. She's actually holding it, dangling up near her head. The light illuminates her face, the underside of her hat, and her shoulders. She's very clearly smirking as she approaches, though, apparently just her usual self.

But for those who are observant, there's the sounds of two sets of footprints approaching.

"Hello, knights." She finally says, coming to a stop a handful of feet away from everyone.

"Mine told me, what was it, 'remember to set me free'? And the kid was in front of the Wizard's house-" she's cut off by the Wizard's approach and raises an eyebrow.

"Speak of the devil," she mutters under her breath, before getting to her feet and calling out, "You're late tonight, Wizard! What gives?"

Matilda purses her lips, silently sitting through the conversation, an achievement earned only for a topic as serious as this. Her eyes linger on Gyre in particular, something about his tone makes her want to comfort him, and she stands like she's going to do so-- but thankfully, the Wizard's apperance saves her from any awful fate that might come of such an action.

Matilda presses her hand against her chest in surprise-- a hint of relief passing across her face. "You're okay!"

One of the perks of being meditative is that Garrot doesn't have to look at anything. Instead, he's envisioning Ten, keeping mental notes on the cryptic things these kids said, and listening. First, he figures it's the rustling of trees, but as the footsteps get closer, his eyes snap open and like always, he's glaring at the Wizard.

"You're not alone." His eyes dart to the lantern that she's holding with her own dreamspace hand. She's not using her magic and it's unnerving. "You wanna introduce us to your little friend?"

Garrot does not actually want to meet her little friend. They will probably further complicate an already complicated world-saving situation.

Everyone else perks up at the sight of the wizard, but Gyre retracts down into himself, his eyes darting down and to the side as he plucks at Haizea's words. He wishes she had continued!

Instead they're all focused on the wizard and he drifts his attention up to her once Garrot points out that she's not alone. He tilts his head slightly, trying to see who could be with her right now. He hasn't got anything to add, just waiting for her to explain everything. Hopefully explain it better then she did on the roof anyway.

Fortunately for Haizea, the Wizard has an answer for that question. Unfortunately for Garrot, she has an answer for that one too. She lowers the lantern slightly, letting the light spread out all around her for feet in every direction. If there was someone there, they're not there anymore.

Isn't that just odd?

She glances towards Matilda with a little wider of a smirk at her words, and then at Gyre despite his silence. She turns back towards Haizea as she finally answers.

"I said we were going to where it started. To get there, we need two of these." She says it a moment before she waves her hand towards the ground. A glowing circle appears on the sand. The center of the circle is filled with what looks like space and there's an unmistakable mist rising out of it.

"Follow me." She says it a moment before she steps inside.

When the knights follow, because there's nothing left for them on this barren, darkened beach, they'll feel like they're riding down a slide that's made of light. A moment later, they'll land in the center of a huge cavern. Where they land is a circular platform in the center of twenty-seven metal rings making up the floor. It'd take a lot of counting to see the 27 rings but, believe me, they're there.

Surrounding the center platform are twenty-seven raised platforms in a big circle around the center. Floating above three in a row are bright yellow blobs with one, two, and three eyes respectively. On the other side is a single platform with Web floating, seemingly unconscious, above it. Just above their body is Aqrisqi's, who also looks unconscious.

More unsettling than that sight, though, is that the four Wizard-aligned knights won't arrive together. Instead they're all here separately but experiencing the same thing. The Wizard is standing at the edge of the center platform, looking out towards the three bright yellow blobs. She speaks when she notices the knight stir.

"The other three are safe."

[ This thread will now branch out into four individual threads! ]

Of course the second presence disappeared. Ugh.

As much as Garrot wants to be petty and spiteful and just not follow the Wizard into the little space circle, he knows full well there's nothing interesting on this beach. Plus, as loathe as he is to admit it, he wants answers and he knows the Wizard will gives them... vaguely, through half-truths and infuriating bullshit. But it's better than nothing. Well, pillars with a floating Web and blobs... that's pretty not great.

"What the fuck about him?!" Garrot's angry, naturally, and his posture looks like he's about to start throwing punches as he gestures towards Web with one hand. "You can't just fuckin' cheat and steal Knights like this!"

Excuse you, Garrot, she gives only the most truthful of true statements. She's honest and open about all the necessary information.

At least as much as she's allowed to share. Fortunately, in this moment, there's plenty she can share.

"I saved them." She answers, simply, her own gaze drifting away from the three monster bodies and towards the floating body of the Rooster knight. She hasn't acknowledged Garrot's posture at all.

"No one saw it, but the third monster got a lucky hit." She pauses, before clarifying: "They are alive, but only barely."

Garrot! Grumbles!!! His fight-ready stance doesn't change, because he still doesn't trust this situation at all. In fact, he takes a step closer, glowering and looming over the Wizard.

"You're telling me you've been able to save Knights, and you've just been letting them die for forty fuckin' years?!" He knows nothing he says or does to her will matter, but this? It's so beyond personal.

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