<span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: Courier;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 16pt;"><strong>S T O R Y T E L L E R</strong></span></span><hr/><div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/1a/4a/45/1a4a4505137f26bf4be77e9845d13ced.jpg)</div><div class="floatright">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/1d/81/5b/1d815b4e6f54762b80c9852229ac7298.jpg)</div><strong>Dramatis Personae:</strong>Alice<br/><strong>Wearing:</strong>As Pictured<br/><br/><strong>Time:</strong><em>9&gt;10:00 AM XST</em><br/><strong>Location:</strong><em></em>Triumvirat Villa, Echeveau > Farmstead a few miles off of Mincult<br/><strong>Tagging | Mentioning:</strong>Prospective Crystelia Coven Members |<br/><strong>Notes:</strong><br/><hr/><br/>“Travel time mostly depends on your own speed. It shouldn’t take you much longer than an hour to get there.” She considers for a moment, as Sarah comes hopping in and right up onto her lap.<em>Hi!</em>The Cabbit broadcasts the greeting into the minds of each of those at the table.<br/><br/>As Alice pets the magical creature, she speaks again, this time to Melody “I do not. However, you could stop by the Adventurer’s Guild in Mincult. The local branches always have a Cartographer’s Guild representative with accurate maps. I’m sure it will be helpful.”<br/><br/>Alice’s unseeing eyes nevertheless seem to be staring into Fennu’s own; even through the blindfold she wears, with its Third Eye marking. “Yes. You should always be with your wand. For the time being, the magic powers you have are being drawn from your wand.” Sensing that further questions may arise, Alice continues, “Our magic comes from a different source; we do not use wands. Alethea, as a Shaman, has been granted powers from strong spirits–in accordance with the Pacts she signed with them. Aurelia’s alchemy is both science and magic, but that comes from an academic background and many years of practice and study. And my own powers as a Seer is a different form of Pact magic.”<br/><br/>Should any of the Wicces express further questions about magic, Alice declines to answer, saying that those questions will be answered during training.<br/><br/>With a soft grin, Alice’s attention returns to Melody. “Oh, there’s lots of things. Mincult is a fairly well developed town–though not like the capital city. You can expect to find troubadours and bards on the streets and taverns.” a pause as she thinks more. “If you like games of skill or chance, it’s not that hard to find someone in a tavern willing to play cards, throw dice or darts. Though, sometimes it can be fun to just watch the men compete with their slap games.” In a rare fit of pique, Alice sounds almost sarcastic about that last one. “A few good restaurants. There’s a scribe who usually has a few interesting tomes available. It’s inland, but we’re close to a port city, so there’s a good market for luxuries.”<br/><br/>“Echeveau has some of the nicest cobblestone roads–but we’re out in the countryside, so they’re not as well maintained. With that being said…” Alice tilts her head in Mugi’s direction. “I’m afraid I’m not sure how well your moving chair will work. I’ve never even heard of such a thing before.” At this point, Sarah hops off of Alice’s lap, and jumps clear across the table to curl up on Mugi’s chest, offering her comforting cuddles. “If you have the inclination, perhaps Alethea could take you to one of the Ossa Mundi, and you could form a Pact to heal what ails you?”<br/><br/>To Bridgette, Alice nods her head, enjoying the sensible question. “There’s always some dangers around. It’s been a while since the Adventurer’s Guild organized a proper monster hunt–but they usually don’t go near the roads. We haven’t had any bandit problems since Alethea dealt with the last self-styled ‘prince’. The local forest has a mischievous spirit named Puck, though they’re less a threat, and more a harmless nuisance. I’ve heard reports of a Chimera sighting, but not nearly enough details.”<br/><br/>With questions answered, stomachs settled, money secured, and canteens of fresh well water provided, the young women are sent out of the Villa proper. Should they wish to bring their animal companions along with them for the journey, they are more than happy to come along–prefer it, even. The cabbit, however, remains behind to assist Alice with some tasks.<br/><br/>As mentioned by Alice, the roads out here are quite well put together. However, they are cobblestones, and this makes life difficult and slow for Mugi, and any who would assist her. That also means it will take them longer than Alice’s initial estimate of an hour. However, for the most part, it’s quiet.<br/><br/>They occasionally pass by merchant caravans in horse drawn carriages or boar-drawn carts. Sometimes, a group of adventurers will cross their paths, folks of all sorts of races, whose role is easily identified. Here’s a scrawny, bespectacled wizard; there’s a muscle-bound orcish warrior with a giant freakin’ axe or sword, and so forth. But even the most menacing looking adventurers seem more inclined to just stick to their clique.<br/><hr/>As they get closer to Mincult itself, they begin to encounter large farmsteads. Although the local produce varies slightly in colors, sizes, and shapes, the women can easily identify some pretty common crops: purple, red, and orange corns; miniature eggplants; green beans, cucumbers, onions, potatoes. The list goes on, really. There’s even a vineyard with turquoise grapes. In another spot, they can spot an orchard full of red peaches and various multi-colored berry bushes.<br/><br/>It’s lovely, really, and one could easily get lost in the pastoral scenery and tranquility. However, it is short lived, for as they pass by the orchard, they can hear a woman’s screams for help coming from the house! It’s about two hundred feet to get up the walkway proper; and while there are farmers tending to their fields, they all seem to be far enough away to not hear it.<br/><br/>What will the young Wicces do?