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River Tunes [p]; For Fira. <3
Topic Started: Tue Apr 2, 2013 1:45 am (1,126 Views)
Ylkarya
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((The song Erin’s playing is here, though Firaliel would be coming in at point 2:55 of the song.))

The journey had not been a short one. There had been little water until the river beyond the desert, and Erin had been as astonished by the changing landscape as she had been to move from a world of water into a world without water. It seemed that Imythess was diverse in its climate and its terrain. The caravan had asked for a healer, and Erin possessed a great innate ability to heal - or so her aunt often told her. She personally felt that her sister was far better at it, and her aunt was a miracle worker, but she wasn’t opposed to compliments. She had been offered gold, which meant nothing to her; yet she had accepted the task and the promised payment. She was given ten gold pieces at the end of each day, and she would be given an additional ten at the end of each day that her healing was required. Her mere presence, blind though she was, seemed to bolster the men and women of the caravan. There were only three wagons and a couple of oxen, along with some horses and cages full of chickens, but it was more than enough to keep an eye on - so to speak.

Nonetheless, the caravan had reached the village of Kellen in the Debon Plains without much issue and with no need for her healing. It had taken six days to leave the desert, and it had taken another ten to reach the village; she had thus been well-paid, and she had used that gold to purchase a few things. She had a bag now, and she had a dagger; she had a wide-brim hat with a flat top to keep the sun off of her delicate features; she had a waterskin; but most importantly, she now had a violin of her own. Artemis had taught her how to play, and she had taken to the instrument beautifully, but she had not possessed a violin of her own until now. She was told exactly how to get down to the river from where she was, and she followed her instructions precisely. It wasn’t long before she could hear the rushing water and feel the cool breeze that came off of the river. She sat down at the base of a hill and listened to the wind rustling the leaves of the trees on the opposite bank. She pulled off her fancy black boots, inlaid with intricate silver designs, and slipped her toes into the water. She smiled. It felt good to be in the water again, if only partially.

Finally, she took out her new violin and tuned it a bit. Then, she set to playing.

The music flowed slowly at first, a soft and mournful tune that led into brighter notes. It was a noble song, one that spoke of great heroes from humble origins and long journeys filled with peace and love and adventure and home. It spoke of life flourishing and great battles in which death was vanquished. It was a truly wondrous melody, one that had been composed for the sole purpose of inspiring people on long, hard journeys. Erin had never been this far from the oasis before, nor this distant from the elemental plane that had birthed her. For her, it was as personal as it was passionate. It was her song, and yet, it was not one that she had created. She was merely the artist, a tool for the goddess to wield as she let loose the strokes of a masterpiece.

Erin had come to love music almost as much as life itself in the short time that it had been a part of her. Indeed, when she played, it was as though she were pouring out the magic of her own soul for everyone to experience and enjoy. She became like one possessed when she played, enthralled with her music and flooded with images of beauty and passion and many other things. So intent was she on her music that she often missed things that she would have ordinarily noticed - little sounds or smells that gave away the goings-on of her environment. It was as though she became the music, an enchanted and simultaneously enchanting thing that could not be held in one’s hand. She was like the wind, floating upon the surface of the lake at the desert oasis but never truly touching it; she was impossible to catch, and she was filled with more joy and ecstasy than she could explain with any words - and those emotions came out through her music.

Thus, she did not notice the soft footsteps of a stranger following her melody. She did not hear the subtle breaths of a lovely woman, the shift of clothing, nor did she pick up on the scent of a woman near her - an aroma completely alien to the natural perfume of the riverbank.
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Firaliel
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Firaliel had been wandering Norwood, following a river. When the river left the forest, Fira decided that rather than turn back, she would follow this river to see where it would lead. She wasn't all that surprised that it led out of the forest and into the plains. Fira knew these plains to be home to several villages, but she did not know whether any of them were near this river, though she wouldn't be surprised to find one. After all, villages tended to form near rivers because of the easy access to water this allowed.

Firaliel didn't, however, come across any villages as she ran along the river's bank. She didn't see much of anything for a while as she ran along the riverbank, alone. She did see, though, that she was starting to get into a dryer area. Fira wasn't all that concerned because she was running along a riverbank and was able to drink out of the river when necessary. If it came to that, she also had a magical waterskin that would never run out of water.

As she was running, she decided to get a drink of water. She went down to the river and drank her fill. She was about to get back up the riverbank when she heard something. It sounded like someone playing a violin. The sound was coming from the direction Fira was headed in anyways, so she decided to head toward it.

A few minutes later, Fira reached the source of the music. It was a young-looking woman playing a violin at the riverbank. She apparently hadn't noticed Firaliel, and she didn't notice Fira as she approached, apparently too focused on her music. Fira was making almost no noise as she ran, but she was not keeping herself hidden. What surprised Fira was that she didn't notice anything even when Fira sat down on a rock maybe ten feet away and pulled out a small wooden flute that was hidden within her armor.

When the woman finished her song, Firaliel smiled at the woman and said softly, "That sounded good. Do you play violin a lot?"

Firaliel then said, "I'm probably not as good as you are, but I can play a few things. If you want, I'll play something, but before I do I should introduce myself. I'm Firaliel. What's your name?"

Not realizing that the woman was blind, Fira didn't tell her what kind of instrument she would play. She was figuring that it would be easy enough for her to just look over and see that Fira was holding and therefore would play a flute.
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Ylkarya
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As the final note came, it seemed to dwell upon the air for the longest moment. Finally, as all things must, it left completely. In the wake of the music was only silence, yet there was something…ah, a person. She had not noticed the woman before. She was off to the left somewhere, and she seemed to be fiddling with something on her person. The woman identified herself as Firaliel, a musician as well. What sort of musician she was, only time would tell. It seemed that she wished to play with Erin, however, and that meant more music - which was never a bad thing. It was just that she had never played with anyone else before. Perhaps she would lead, then, and Firaliel would follow? Or perhaps Firaliel would lead and she would follow. Either way, it was only proper to get a name out of the way before anything else was done. It was impolite to do otherwise.

Erin smiled, her eyes staring out at nothing in particular as she answered.

“I am Erin Wintersong, and no…not often. But I could not resist this place. The sound of the river, the light breeze that plays with my hair, the serenity of the moment…it’s perfect for a bit of music.”

Wiggling her toes a bit, Erin touched on a note or two but didn’t do anything very seriously. She loved the sweet music of a violin. It wasn’t just that her former lover had taught her to play; there was just something about it that prevented any escape from its aural beauty and majesty. For a woman who could not see, sound was all she had - well, that and smell. But smell was not the same. Smell was…it just wasn’t the same. But music! There was nothing like it! In a way, the echolocation of the elemental plane of water was like music. It was undoubtedly melodic in nature, yet that was not its purpose. Echolocation was for navigation, and telepathy was for communication. But here, talking and singing and writing and music were all forms of communication in place of telepathy, and music was absolute ecstasy. So she played when she could, and now she had a violin with which to do so.

“What about you, Firaliel?” Erin asked the woman. “Do you play often?”

It was a fair enough question. The woman’s voice was sweet and melodic, as though she were so used to playing music that it came through in her speech. She sounded kind. She must have been very kind indeed if she was a player of music.
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Firaliel
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As usual, Fira looked at the woman as she spoke and introduced herself as Erin Wintersong. Fira noticed that Erin was not looking back at her. Initially, Fira thought that she was just looking at the river and the nearby area. She then realized that this woman appeared to just be staring off into space. From what Fira had seen of her so far, she didn't seem the type to do that, though she could very well be wrong. But, what if she was blind? That did make sense to Fira, though it was rather unusual.

She told Fira that she did not play often, but that she just enjoyed this particular location. Her description referred to what could be felt and heard here, and nothing about what was visible. Fira was enjoying the view from here of the river and its banks, which were somewhat lush because of their proximity to water. Fira decided that although she's pretty much figured it out, she was going to make no mention of blindness, as well as no mention of what she could see.

Fira replied, "Honestly, I hardly play at all. I'm usually doing other things, so I don't think about it."

To be precise, Fira had used her instrument only a few times since leaving her home. She'd been taught some basics by another monk, but even then, she didn't stick with practicing all that much. Fira did also sing occasionally, but usually only when alone. She had no idea that her elven heritage had given her a good singing voice.
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Ylkarya
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Erin nodded at Firaliel’s words. Indeed, some people rarely found the time to relax and enjoy life. Mimir, a friend of Erin’s aunt, was always rushing off to wage his own personal war against rival genasi; her aunt was always busy with one artistic project or another, and her sister was constantly involved with organizing weddings or other inter-cabal events. They rarely had time to relax, although her aunt at least had a good reason. Art was a difficult thing to master, for it was born of the soul rather than of one’s talents or the events that filled one’s life. In Erin’s own case, she had been given much freedom. It was why she had managed to get into so much mischief as a child, and it was why she had found the portal into Imythess. That, of course, had led to her meeting Artemis. Unfortunately, that was a sad tale that she would rather not share.

But sad tales would only ruin the mood of the day anyway. She was not here for sad tales, nor memories of a lover lost. She was here to enjoy the sweet, beautiful sound of music and experience the majesty of nature. She might not be able to see the latter but she could feel it. That was more important to her than being able to describe the color of the grass or the amusing movements of a squirrel foraging for nuts. She thought instead of what song she wished to play next. She thought of the tale she wished to tell and the message that she wished to share. She settled upon a slow tune that became only a little swifter after the first few notes; it told the story of an old land and the pride its people held in it. She had been taught the music of a number of different stories by Artemis, each one designed to test her on what he called “the basics of violining”.

As she began her tune, the river seemed to flow in time with it. The wind ruffled her hair, making it seem as though even nature was appreciating her music. While she was adept at playing, she was no master violinist - not yet, anyway. But she at least knew enough to be able to play the song fairly enough. She, personally, did not believe that she did it justice - but when she heard the notes of a flute backing her own resonant chords, she smiled. It seemed that this was a song that Firaliel knew as well. Artemis had said that it was a very old song, and that several elves that he had known had fancied the song. However, he had said that it was mostly a song played by humans. In any event, it was a beautiful song. While she wasn’t butchering it, neither was Erin playing it as beautifully as someone who had been drawing a bow for many years. At least she was in tune, and the tune did sound rather pretty.

The song went on for only a short time but it enthralled her nonetheless. It was as though the song was a part of her, yet separate. It was an interesting feeling, and it was a feeling that she wished she could put words to. Regardless, she enjoyed playing in harmony with Firaliel and had no intention of stopping any time soon. The point of being here was, after all, to enjoy the music in the peace and comfort of nature.
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Firaliel
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Erin did not reply to Firaliel's statement. She didn't even say anything at all, though Fira could see from her face that she'd heard what she'd said. Rather than respond, Erin prepared to start playing again. Apparently she wanted to play music right now and leave the talking until later.

It wasn't long before Erin started playing her violin again. As Fira had noticed earlier, she knew how to play, but she was no master. This time around, however, it was a song that Fira recognized. It had been a few years, but it was one she'd played before. Fira decided to pick up her flute and start playing along. It took her a bit to get the hang of it; she a few missed notes initially, but after that, she was able to keep up without much trouble. It still took a lot of focus for her to get the notes right, but she was able to do it.

Once they finished the song, Fira decided to play something she remembered from a while back. It was slightly easier to play than the previous song, and it was something that Fira had enjoyed playing. She started playing, and Erin, apparently knowing this song, was quick to join in[1].

It had been so long since Fira had played an instrument that she'd forgotten how much she enjoyed it. She was enjoying this time at the river bank, playing music and taking in the sights, sounds, and smells present near the river.
[1] I hope you don't mind me mentioning that Erin joined in.
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Ylkarya
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Indeed, this was a song that Erin recognized. It was a relatively simple song that Artemis had taught her, one of the first he had taught her in fact, and she had little trouble keeping up with the notes. She did miss one note but it was nothing major. For the most part, she played the song very well. As the song wore on, she forgot her surroundings completely. She felt rather than heard the river, sensed the dancing of the flowers rather than smelled their sweet aroma, and played rather than merely heard the rustling of the leaves as the wind lightly touched upon each one. She knew only the music and the music of nature, and nature knew her in turn. All was in harmony as the sweet notes rose to a crescendo and then swiftly dropped, only to slowly rise again. It was as though the pair was climbing a hill only to slide to the bottom on the other side repeatedly. But that was the point of the song; it was about a journey through the Hills of Mist, one of a pair that was meant to represent the romance and tragedy of ancient lore. They were both simple songs but pleasant enough.

Yet as all things must, the song eventually came to an end. Thinking on what to play next, Erin gazed into the sparkling water of the river. When she had her tune, she smiled. It was a little bit dark, yet it was meant more as a mockery than anything else. It was a tune from home, one that poked fun at the epic failure of a merman who had wanted so badly to be a hero that he left everything behind and drove himself mad. It was actually a tragedy, although the specifics of the tale made it more of a comedy of errors. The strange tune started out pleasantly enough and turned dark, only to then become pleasant again. It went back and forth like this for some time before the end, which was a bold and proud finish.

That finish, too, was a mockery. In the end, he had returned and claimed success despite everyone knowing his failures; yet he had been allowed to play out his fantasy and believe that he had convinced everyone of his victory. Sad though it was, it made a point: we can’t all be heroes. Sometimes, we just have to be who we are. Erin, for example, was a blind girl. However, she was also a young maiden who had lost her love, and she was a girl entranced by the strange - almost mystic - power of music. Self-discovery was, more often than not, a long and difficult journey. Fortunately, she had discovered something that could help her through it all. Even with her minimal skills, she played beautifully; even better, her violin was perfectly complemented by Firaliel’s flute.

It was definitely a sweet and lovely afternoon.
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Firaliel did notice that Erin had played a note incorrectly, but Fira wasn't one to judge her for that. Even if she was, she couldn't say anything because she'd made her share of mistakes when jumping into the previous song. It just made it more apparent to Fira that this woman did not play because she was good at it, but because she enjoyed the music. Fira also knew that if she played enough, this woman would become quite skilled with her instrument.

Once the song was finished, Fira looked at Erin and could see from her face that she was selecting another tune to play. Fira could tell by her smile shortly afterward that she'd picked something. For the first few notes, Fira was unsure whether she'd heard the song, but then she realized that knew the notes and started playing along. She couldn't place how she knew it, but what mattered right now was that she could play it.

Firaliel closed her eyes, focusing on the music and enjoying the way it blended with the background sounds, especially the river. She used her sense of hearing and her Darkness Detection ability that she had as a Shadowdancer to keep track of her surroundings. By closing her eyes, Fira had a better idea of what life was like for Erin, though she knew that Erin probably didn't have the ability to sense the shadows.

Once the current song was finished, Fira took a moment to choose a song. She hadn't played this one before, but she'd heard if a few times and could replay it in her head. She decided to take the chance and start playing it, even though she wasn't completely confident in her knowledge or ability. She didn't miss any notes, though she was uncertain enough on the first few notes that Erin probably noticed. Once she got through those first few notes, Fira became more confident.
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Ylkarya
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Erin, unfortunately, did know the song that Firaliel had chosen. She was able to follow along a bit after the first chorus but it wasn’t a song that she had heard or learned to play. It was an interesting tune but she could not say that it was one of her favorites. Nevertheless, it was music and it was pleasant enough. Indeed, Erin smiled as she played the chorus. It was nice to have someone to play with. Whether her violin complemented Firaliel’s flute or Firaliel’s flute joined Erin’s violin in a composition, the music was the frosting upon the delicious cake that was a delightful afternoon of simple companionship. There were no words between them but there needed to be none.

Unfortunately, as all things must, their music eventually came to an end. At some point in the song that Firaliel had chosen, something came floating down the river. Because of the water, Erin could not smell it. She obviously could not see it. But it was there, and it attached itself to a log jutting out from beneath the river, half-buried in the muddy river wall. Had it not been for the river, it would have smelled of unwashed and badly wounded flesh. But as their song came to an end, the thing made itself apparent. There was splashing in the river, and Erin suddenly heard what sounded so quiet as to be a distant voice crying out.

”Help me,” it cried, the man’s tone harsh and raspy.

Erin could not see the blood pouring from the man’s mouth as he spoke, nor could she see the three arrows in his back. She could not see the numerous blade wounds upon his arms and torso. Her brows furrowed as she heard that seemingly distant voice, however, and a final gasp that - unbeknownst to Erin - was the last breath that man would ever take.

“Firaliel?” Erin asked hesitantly. “Did you hear something?”
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Fira could tell that she'd picked a song that Erin had never heard before by the fact that she didn't start playing it right away. However, she was quite quick to pick up the chorus and start playing along during portions of the song. Fira realized that although the two of them had barely said anything to each other, she was seeing this woman as a friend. There was something about playing music together that Fira could not describe, but it was definitely there.

While Fira finished the song, she noticed something, or more specifically, the shadow of something floating down the river. She didn't know what it was, and she didn't worry about it until she heard a voice that seemed to be asking for help. At that moment, Fira opened her eyes, which immediately locked onto the body of a man floating in the river, obviously injured.

Fira stood up and after gathering and channeling the necessary energy, she teleported to a couple feet away from the man, her feet on the surface of the water. She didn't try to walk on air but let herself drop into the river with an audible splash. When her feet hit the bottom, the water was up to her waist. Fira picked up the man and waded to the shore, where she set him down a few feet from the river. She then channeled healing energy to her fingertips and released it into his body. Some of the wounds near the place Fira touched him healed up, but it was almost as if the energy needed something to work better. Fira then checked the man's pulse and realized that he was dead. That would explain the healing spell not working properly.

Fira decided to make an attempt at a resurrection. She'd never attempted such a thing before, and she'd never learned a spell by trying to use it yet, the spells she knew having been learned spontaneously. Despite this, she decided that the consequences of failure would be minimal compared to not trying at all, and that a success, however unlikely, would make the attempt worthwhile. Fira's magical energy responded to her command, gathering and organizing into the shape of a spell. The spell had somewhat of a dark feel to it and was unlike anything she'd attempted to cast before. She released the energy, her right hand on the man's body and her left a couple feet above it, palm upward. As the spell took effect, nothing happened to the man, but a gem that was blacker than night appeared in her left hand. She looked at the gem closely and could sense its nature well enough to realize that the man's soul was trapped inside[1]. She couldn't explain it, but she'd just captured a man's soul. She'd heard of necromancers doing things like that, but she hadn't even dreamed of being capable of such a thing. Fira was surprised enough that she did not say anything to Erin.
[1] Spell Cast: Soul Bind
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Ylkarya
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“Firaliel?”

Erin had heard the splash, yet her friend had said nothing. She quickly put her violin and bow away, wondering what was going on. Then something was being dragged to shore. She could hear something being done - some kind of magic, perhaps - but still, Firaliel had said nothing. She felt around and felt a body lying there. She was almost afraid to ask what was going on.


Unbeknownst to either of the musicians, eyes were watching the pair. Three sets of them were human eyes concealed by bushes. The fourth pair of eyes gazed up at them from just beneath the surface of the water. They were aquatic eyes belonging to an aquatic creature, one that had come here to bring a message to a certain water genasi. But the cat-like water creature would wait until the moment was right to approach her. He did not want to be discovered by the wrong people. He had carried the message for many miles, traveling from the desert oasis as his target had; seeking shelter aboard a wagon that had a barrel of drinking water aboard it just like she had, although he had likely spoiled it for drinking by sleeping in it; and crossing the plains to the low hills near this river. He was not going to be deterred simply because someone saw him and decided that he would make a nice pet…or soup…or item for sale…
Edited by Ylkarya, Thu May 2, 2013 4:10 pm.
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Firaliel
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Firaliel was looking at the black crystal when she heard Erin call her name. Fira could tell from the tone of her voice that she was wondering what had just happened. Since she was blind, it was quite understandable that she would wonder what had just happened. Fira could see that she'd found the body, but that obviously didn't tell the entire story.

Fira said, "Someone was floating down the river. I was sure that he was still alive, but the healing spell I cast failed because he was dead. He was obviously attacked by someone, but I don't know who. We should see if we can find the person or people responsible for this."

Fira decided not to mention the second spell that she'd cast, the results of her failed attempt at resurrection. She realized that she was still holding the man's soul gem. She touched a magical broach on her chest that was disguised to look like part of her armor. When she touched it, the item gave off a hum that was faint enough that Fira had not noticed it before. Fira then brought the black gem to the broach, and the instant the gem touched it, the humming stopped and the gem vanished, hidden within the magical item.
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Ylkarya
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Erin blinked hard at that. She felt the arrows in his back and ran her fingers along the shafts. They were fletched of wood but it did not feel like ordinary wood. It felt almost like polished rock. Erin asked Firaliel what they were made out of, unable to see that they had been made from the trunk of a petrified redwood. The smooth surfaces of the shafts were deceptive to one whose eyes did not function. As she felt around the man, she found an empty coin purse upon his belt. There was also a scabbard, probably for a dagger by its length, that was empty; actually, there were two scabbards side-by-side. A slight indent in the man’s fingers indicated that there had once been rings on at least two of them, yet no rings rested there now.

“This man was robbed,” she stated plainly, feeling around for any other signs of who might have done this.

She found none.
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Firaliel
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Firaliel was a bit surprised when Erin asked her what the arrows were made of. From where Fira was standing, they looked like arrows made of ordinary wood, which on closer inspection looked like a type of redwood. She was still kneeling next to the corpse, so she pulled one of the arrows from it to give it a more complete inspection. Once she was able to feel the arrow's shaft, she understood why Erin had asked the question. It wasn't made out of ordinary wood, but it was petrified wood, which was not all that common. Fira didn't know much about archery, but it seemed that using petrified wood for an arrow was a waste.

Fira said, "These arrows look like wood, but they feel like stone, which means they're made from petrified wood. Not sure why someone would use that for an arrow, though."

After Erin mentioned that the man had been robbed, Fira said, "I was thinking the same thing. Robbed and murdered. I think we should go look for whoever did this to him."
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Ylkarya
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Erin nodded. Petrified wood…how did one petrify wood? And indeed, Firaliel’s question was quite a logical one as well. Why would someone use petrified wood to make arrows? Unfortunately, petrified wood was one of the many things of which Erin had no knowledge. She was curious about the process. Sap was said to be very hard but also very sticky; these arrows did not feel sticky. Perhaps it was not sap, then, that was used to petrify wood. Whatever had been done to it, or whatever the wood was exactly, Erin was not sure why it was an odd thing to use for an arrow.

“I do not understand. Is petrified wood odd?”

To Erin, it was simply something she had not encountered before. There were many such things in this surface world. Back home, on the elemental plane of water, wood was almost unheard of. Coral was the equivalent, and it was typically the mark of wealth for someone to carry it. Coral was used for weaponry; it was used for armor; it was used for carriages; it was used for jewelry; it was even grown to form buildings in which people lived. It was quite an amazing thing, coral, and there were so many kinds that nobody knew what all there was. The most common one that Erin had heard of was fire coral, which was used for weaponry; black coral, which was used for armor and other things; and stone coral, which was used for buildings.
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