[Final backlogged post \o/]
3. A Shadowy Turn
As Kaerli headed downstairs from a brief conversation with a klyros, the hunched figure of a seated Ynnwn at one of the tables caught her eye slightly. He was known to be a practitioner of the Dark Way...but also an injured man, recuperating after a serious battle.
The conversation opened with the usual pleasantries and a brief discussion of what happened to her tablemate: "Oh, why, greetings, it's been a little while since we last spoke..." but did not take long to turn to the main focus, namely Kaerli's research. After some pondering of the question at hand, the Ynnwn began to come to a train of thought: "In theory, you would need to disrupt the...original energy flow. I'm not sure how this would be done from the receiving end, in other words, the Grendol." followed by a shake of the head "I wonder if they don't power themselves?...Why do you ask, Ranger?" to which Kaerli replied affirmatively "They very well could be self-powered, considering the quantity of unexplained Grendols that turn up in the sewers...and I ask because I have grown almost physically sick of keeping them from overrunning the sewers here! Besides, the Crystal Way's main spell to use against them, Ray of Faith, simply doesn't work as the tin states when applied to them.", her voice crescendo-ing in the middle with frustration.
More theorizing came quickly as the idea of resonance took hold in the Ynnwn mage's mind..."Resonance, indeed! I have a hypothesis, Ranger." and he beckoned her closer to whisper into her ear. A nod and a curt reply of "That seems fine and good..." later, the topic quickly changed to drinks as the man pondered his dry tongue, asking the lady to fetch something from Allelia.
A liquor and a watered wine later, the conversation resumed, with another hypothesis quick to the mage's tongue, his mind unaffected by the impairments dulling his body at the time. "Not bouncing, but flooding." drew partial agreement from Kaerli along with a finger cast in the general direction of Relliom's crew "...I wonder if it's linked to the sewer-fanatics somehow, as well?...But while it explains what could bring a 'wild' Grendol into being..." and then a pause as the ranger washed down some smoked meat from her pack with the watered wine from her goblet and the mage took notes in his grimoire. The silence downstairs then broke with a "I'm more than certain its what you feel every time you walk into the sewers. If not, then it is masked somehow." which lead to a side conversation about how to test the hypothesis short of staring at a corpse in the sewers for a long time.
After a small debate on that topic, the conversation came to a close with "I will have to speak with a few folks regarding your hypotheses, they do seem rather promising though." to which the mage replied with a tap on his cane: "I would appreciate it if I was not directly mentioned, but judging by the way you speak of your 'other sources.' I am little concerned with that."
Shortly thereafter, the conversation closed for the night with a "Take care of yourself, Ranger. There may be more than what we discussed." as Kaerli left a half-finshed goblet behind for Allelia to pick up alongside the mage's empty liquor mug as he went back to sleeping off his injuries.
Who was this Ynnwn mage she consulted? Why did it take place in a public place, yet with some conditions of...secrecy attached? Could his hypotheses be exactly what she needs, a mere false trail, or worse? Why would he warn of unmapped territory instead of discussing it? And could there be a reason for him to turn against her?
