Ninth Month of 1,265
- T’grim’s dragon says it feels like Idalia’s holding its breath.
- N’lan’s dragon asks why the ground has been rumbling all day, though it’s decreased at night. Gil says it could be natural, something to do with the waterfall.
- Early next morning, head out to pick silfium. M’din, V’dos, K’brin and I will head into town to deliberately see and be seen. Everyone else goes with Novandal to the field. The four of us, with Shindra, split off from L’nos and the rest before we get too close to Capella.
- Very ambitious architecture, courtyards with fountains. THIS is where the dragons in the vision left from. We see the familiar domes.
- Each dome has tiles around it in various dragon colors.
- Met by a ‘ground crew’ of sorts, lead by man who can hear dragons. VERY unusual in men. Our dragons are welcome to stay in the various domes, no charge to us… the government pays for it.
- We have our Talents back.
- Handed a ‘welcome packet’ of sorts for Capella and it mentions the Hypogeum, which Shindra says she’s always wanted to see a performance there. It’s a 10,000 years old structure, underground. It’s in the middle of town, in a roundish hill, everything has been built around it. She says music becomes magic and physically changes the world. Less than 100 people allowed in at a time. Performances are held once a month. She thinks we can get private tour as dragonriders.
- Very artsy area surrounding Hypogeum. Murals found on any bare surface, often suggestive of the business found within.
- Hypogeum looks very modern, entrances on all four sides. We go in and arrange a private tour before rehearsal. Head down three stories into cavern lit by blue usara stones, end up in front of old, odd shaped door framed by stone beams, wider at bottom.
- Cavern within has 2 levels, seating areas cut into stone.
- Small band of 4 people set up in the center of the floor, facing away from each other. Hear small tenor chorus start up when they begin to play… can’t see where the singing coming from. Feel tingle, slide into a half awake/half asleep state and see images in my mind of the most important and meaningful events in my life: my first dragonride, when I made Master, K’brin, impressing Selenath. Very overwhelming experience.
- Woman giving us the tour offers to show us how it’s done. Lead to a room where whatever is sung is magnified 100 fold. Only base/baritone voices have the effect of making things come alive like we experienced. What we heard was only two men, no talent necessary.
- People at Hypogeum don’t know how it works either, just that it does.
- ‘Mala contacts us to say they’re done in the fields, she leads us there on foot. Dragons not allowed on field, too conspicuous. On the way, see a Capellan bear, which Shindra says is a rare sight. They’re very friendly, she walked right up to it and whispered well wishes in its ear.
- Head back to Idalia without incident. Start processing flowers with Novandal at his house. Will take a bit of time. Work all day, head back to Inn for night. Plan on putting flowers in earthenware pottery for trip between.
- Gil reports there’s a grind mill underground that grinds down stone into a powder that’s reconstituted into other stone. This is how Idalia earns much of its money, Explains the sound our dragons heard earlier.
- Work whole second day. On third, wake up to find Idalia largely empty. Shindra says the government occasionally declares a day where they take a break from doing business with outsiders, so we won’t see many people about.
- Shindra offers to show K’brin and I something when he asks what happens on days like this, won’t explain what.
- Everyone in High Town is dressed nicely in earthen tones.
- As we leave town and head to forested backside of a hill, the psychic numbness wears off… I feel excitement coming from the children walking the same way we are.
- Shindra says she wants us to meet a friend of hers and figured now was a good time to introduce us.
- A steep, man made, cobbled staircase leads down to a courtyard. Many people gathered below, no children younger than maybe 7 Turns old.
- Double doors open and young woman in her 30’s comes out, dressed conservatively, brown hair pulled back. Shindra tells us she’s Cailora, the person she wanted us to meet. She introduces us.
- She touches her hands to ours and we can understand her. She asks if we have the ‘inside voice’. She must mean Talent. We’re warned to speak softly and measure our thoughts to keep what we’re thinking from being heard when communicating like this.
- We’re welcomed to the Shrine of Idalia (is it like Shrine of Landarfal? Or just unrelated that both use word Shrine). Told no dragonriders have been to this sacred, special place before. Cailora says we’ll speak after the meeting.
- Kameni: belief they have. Kinatori: people that follow ways, beliefs of Kameni.
- The Kinatori are having a meeting where they share concerns that affect their community
- They come to Shrine to harmonize with all that is. They believe ALL things, places, creatures have unique spiritual essence. Alesu is that which connects us all to each other.
- We sit with Shindra, who tells us that the government has outlawed the Kameni religion. She and Novandal are Kinatori, and it took some time before they trusted us enough. He said our hearts felt like theirs. They thought we should have a chance to know this truth.
- After the ceremony, meet back up with Cailora, who introduces us to her assistant, Ferelis, who is clad in colorful clothes. They want to know where we’re from and we tell them the truth.
- They tell us the spirit of a person can stretch beyond the flesh, so… a person can last beyond death in a way. The government outlawed Kameni because they “don’t want us to be equal” or responsible for others, in life and beyond. The Kinatori believe everyone is equal.
- The small ‘room’ on Great Isle where the 3 women were trapped had Kameni sayings “We do not leave our names, for they will mean nothing to you. We do not leave our wisdom, as we have no great words to offer. Instead, we leave our thanks, as thoughts of you in future days gave us comfort in the darkness”, “Beyond life, stone is as mist and there is naught but an endless sea of stars”, “Come, soft winds of death”.
- Ferelis offers to show us how it is for the Kinatori. He’s been trained to use Antiquity Stones, so he can share visions.
- See AWFUL images: Shrine, many wooden structures, patrol of 5 dragons, people screaming and running, evacuating buildings. Dragons targeting people and roofs are catching fire. Gold dragon shows up (we just *know* her name is Akuneth, ridden by Sovindra of House Lutoras), hovering over the main building and unleashes flame on it. FLAME! A gold dragon flaming…
- The person recording the memory his hiding himself with Talent, but eventually dies when he’s noticed. Never tries to flee, wanted to preserve upsetting moment.
- K’brin and I both very shaken after, and our reactions confirm to Shindra, Novandal, Cailora and Ferelis that we are NOT the same as the people and dragonriders here.
- Ferelis wants to record both of us saying words to future Kinatori using the Antiquity Stones.
- Cailora asks if we have Kameni in our hearts. I’m not sure how we can’t, given all we’ve seen. K’brin also affirms he does.
- Novandal says he now believes were not the same as the Dragonriders here. Our reaction to the vision from the Antiquity Stone seemed to show him that.
- Make way back to Idalia. Now that we’re trusted, we’re given permission to ‘join the network’, so we’re not psychically blocked.
- Novandal reveals he has a large phrenium stone, in a necklace he’s always wearing because he’s addicted. It’s fashioned as a locket, with a small painting of his late wife, Innova, concealing the stone. He uses it to do heavy mental tasks.
- He gives us a phrenium stone… it’s a blue leaf shaped brooch set in silver, a known symbol of the Kinatori, now known to the government, so can’t be used.
- Discover that Eldritch means ‘mixed blood’ in Kirengar, which is what K’brin is. They can’t get addicted to Phrenium.
- Find out that some Kirengari were dragonriders that came over to Pern, and the belief in Kameni cause dragons to lose their skiutes and ability to wage war.