2017.10.19:LitanyLesson

Litany Lesson
A newly discovered Kinfolk gets the Litany explained to him
IC Date	October 19th, 2017
IC Time	Late Evening
Players	Branton, Dragomir, Jasen, Jake Miller, Giselle, Dusk, Yuri, Journey, Mary-Sue
Location	The caern
Prp/Tp	Welcome to the Nation
Spheres	Gaian Garou
Theme Song	Metallica - Of Wolf and Man

Branton has a roll of woodcarving tools and is sitting by the fire carving a tree branch into a figure of a woman. He's got a rapier on a sword belt and a case for a pool cue across his back.

Later on a Thursday evening, and Dragomir is coming into the Caern proper presumably to handle some chores and clean up. He isn't schedules for patrol tonight, so likely is just here for some more supplies if he can find some. The Russian moves with a calm grace, and comes to the fire and nods towards the other man. "Nice carving." in his Russian accented voice.

Branton looks up at Dragomir and nods "A replica of the collumns of the temple to Athena Nike. I'm Branton Kholer, newly discovered Black Fury kin. How's it going?"

Dragomir smiles and inclines his head lightly, walking over and taking a seat nearby before offering out his hand. "Greetings Branton Kholer, kinfolk of the Black Fury. Welcome to the Sept of the Enduring Spirit." "I am Dragomir Mihailovich, rited Eye of the Storm. Silver Fang Cliath born on two legs beneath the half moon. Alpha of the proto-pack Terminal Velocity, seeking Merlin." he watches and checks for recognition, "Do you know what all that meant, or would it help if I explained those things?"

Branton has a firm professional handshake when he accepts the offered hand "Well its probably best you break it down for me. Even the bits I think I know what they meant....some reinforcement through reppetition wouldn't hurt."

Dragomir has a pretty normal handshake, despite his strength and likely ability to turn into a frothing death machine. He settles back and sits, with a nod - putting his backpack aside and what he was doing. "Certainly. Obviously, you know the first part is my name. The second, rited.. means the name that was given to after completing my Rite of Passage. Each Garou must complete the Rite of Passage before they can be considered Cliath in rank. That we are not 'cubs' anymore, and able to contribute." "Silver Fang, is my tribe. Cliath as I said was my rank. When I say I am born on two legs.. I am telling you that my upbringing was a man like you are.. as opposed to on four legs.. which means wolf-born. Or.. there is also Metis, which the false breed.. they are in violation of Gaia's will. But we can save that for a much longer discussion on the Litany." he chuckles lightly. "Lastly.. the half moon. Each phase of the moon that Garou are born under, helps shape what their role is as a Gaian Warrior. The half moon, is neither too far in any direction, which means we are unbias. This helps to make us the Judges of the Nation. Make sense?"

Branton nods at Dragomir "Yeah, it does. The Litany...that's the rules Alecto mentioned, since you're a Judge that makes that a big part of your job then right?"

"One might argue it is one of the most important parts of my job. Though it isn't quite the same as mortal laws.. it is more like a song, in actuality. The versus of which carry many stories, legends and interpretations. In the beginning, they were handed down orally, and as Garou came to live together in Septs they were unified into context and recorded formally. In reality, there are those who dedicate their entire lives to knowing and preaching the Garou. The Fianna gather four times a year, simply to sing it out in long form and truly reflect on its many meanings and significances." Dragomir shifts slightly, and motions his hand towards the man, "You speak of Howls at the High Moon'rhya. Did she teach you the verses of the Litany by chance?" he asks in a light tone, curious.

Branton thinks for a second and then nods slowly "She probably referred to them as rules for my benefit, easiest for me to get a handle on but yeah. Before I could come here I had to be able to repeat them back to her. Even if I don't have an expert's handle we hit the high points."

"Ahh, good. It is important to understand them.. but also, to understand why they are important. If you would like to test your knowledge or discuss them, I am happy to give you my perspectives on them." Dragomir reaches for a stick, and pokes at the fire to move some of the wood and help keep it going.

Branton nods at Dragomir where they're sitting at the fire "That'd help a bunch, thanks for that. So the first one was 'Garou shall not mate with Garou'. Just going to extrapolate from what you just said that the Metis have something to do with that?"

Dragomir nods and says, "An important one.. especially in this day and age. The mortal world debates and discusses adversity and sexual inclusion and rights for gender equality and all of these things - which sometimes bleeds into our society and occasionally you get someone zealous that they would challenge such beliefs. The concept of two of Gaia's Warriors coming together and forming an off-spring in reality diminishes the reflection of Gaia in those warriors, and produces something corrupted - which is believed closer to the Wyrm. Warped and disfigured, they tend to arise suspicion and even fear." Dragomir takes in a light breath and he leans over slightly to relax languidly as he explains, "Though that isn't really the greatest problem. You see, we are at War.. The Triat is divided, and we are warriors for one of the three factions. The Wyld. A War, which we have attempted to sustain for as long as any Garou can remember, and we.. are losing." He motions his hand and says, "Our numbers dwindle faster than we can recoup them.. so the ability to reproduce is not only important, it's considered honorable and essential to our survival. Metis, are born sterile.. ending a family line, and the antithesis to pure breeding which keeps us strong." "This offense is so harsh in fact, that is results in a great lose of renown by the parents, and shunning and distrust of the Metis for life. The Silver Fangs even go so far as to brand the parents for these atrocities."

Branton is sitting at the fire with Dragomir, carving a figure of a woman out of a stick while they talk. He's got a case for a pool cue leaning up next to him on the log he's using for a bench and he has a fancy looking rapier on his hip. He nods in understanding "Which is why finding a new kinfolk seemed like a good thing. Fair enough. The next was kind of my favorite, I already call it the 'kill it with fire' rule in my head. Bet you know which one I mean."

Jasen's arrival is preceded by a stream of low, muttered curses as he limps his way down into the valley, punctuated by a rustling 'whap!' sound and a quiet, "Ahhhhgoddamnit! Fucking *tree*..." Jasen gimps himself into the open, one hand on his cane, the other jamming some toilet paper up one nostril to stop a minor nose bleed, probably from getting smacked in the face by a tree branch if the scrapes on one cheek are anything to go by. He skirts an arc around a suspect looking patch of grass and then ducks sharply to avoid a passing leaf or something on his way, starting to head towards the fire where Dragomir and Branton are, as if they were some kind of civilized beacon.

Dragomir nods and says, "Ahh yes... Combat the Wyrm Wherever It Dwells and Whenever It Breeds." He takes a moment of pause to look over towards Jasen and motions his hand to welcome him to join them. He smiles and says, "To appreciate this verse of the Litany, you have to understand what the Wyrm is, and what it represents. Gaia, our creator.. is divided into three, known as the Triat. The Wyld.. change and chaos, the Weaver.. the order and technology of man, and finally.. the Wyrm.. the corrupter and dissower. The Weaver has gone mad.. and believed to be broken, and the Wyrm is free and ever growing.. spreading much like a plague across the world." "The beauty and strength of Gaia does not actually come in singularity of any of these triats, but in the existence of all three in harmony. The Wyrm doesn't wish harmony though, they wish totality. They have grown too fast, and spread too quickly, and without the Weaver to help, the Wyld must fight hard on its front." "The most complicated thing about the Wyrm, is that they are corruptors.. I recently told the tale of the White Howlers. Great Warriors of Gaia, who once fought hard against the Wyrm.. but while they were fighting on the front line. Bane spirits of the Wyrm were corrupted their kinfolk without them knowing it."

Branton holds out his canteen to Jasen "Hey there friend, you look like you could use a drink. I've got a flask if water won't get the job done." Then to Dragomir he nods "So slime covered drooling green eyed wolf-men are firmly on the 'kill it with fire' list. Though Alecto broke its friggen neck so that was a thing that happened."

Jasen slips a pack off his shoulder and thunks it onto the ground with much clattering, and awkwardly drops himself down to the ground as well, favoring one leg a bit and leaning on his rat handled cane. "Cheers, mate." Jasen says, accepting the canteen for a drink and then dribbling some into his hand so he can wipe his face off. "Ow." he mumbles while cleaning some cheek scratches. He hands the canteen back and tells the pair, "Sorry, hope I'm not interrupting, just need to bolster courage and get my health meter filled back up before I go back into the green."

Dragomir offers, "Sometimes the Wyrm's taint can be cleansed.. purified by Gaia's will and restored to its intended form. When possible, we try to cleanse those we encounter or places we encounter. It is a matter of Wisdom in knowing when that cannot be done. Sometimes purification must take the form of fire, or grander methods." He nods his head, and then looks towards Jasen. "Welcome. I am Dragomir Mihailovich, rited Eye of the Storm. Silver Fang Cliath born on two legs beneath the half-moon. Alpha of the proto-pack known as Terminal Velocity, seeking Merlin. We are discussing the Litany. You are welcome to join us." Dragomir looks at the man's leg and asks, "If you need medical attention I can find someone for you.. or if you need an escort - I will gladly take you wherever you are headed."

Branton nods at Jasen "If you want we can head back together. I'm Branton Kholer, recently discovered kinfolk to the Black Furies. Also a Sorcerer who knows some of Hermes' shortcuts through the world so it'd be a quick trip back." Then to Dragomir he adds "If I don't have to worry about physically defending myself I can build a pretty big boom. Between Zeus, Ares and Prometheus I've got some oomph to throw down. The next law, Respect the Territory of Another. Seems like a fancy way to say mind your manners and don't be a rude fucker."

Jasen offers a dirt and grease smudged hand towards Dragomir and then Branton to make acquaintances while saying, "Sup, wolfman, wolfkin." 'Formality' is not a word in his dictionary. "Jasen, of the most ancient and noble house of Flay. Bone Gnawer Kinfolk," Oh, that explains it. "Rat wizard and worshiper, tribal mom, and Complainer About Things. Pleased to meet you." He shakes his head though and says, "Nah I'm fine, thanks though. I actually already got my leg put back together, apparently it's just.. psychological or something, at this point. I'm just here cause I ran out of some components. The rest of it's just cause I'm clumsy." he adds, gesturing to his face and the toilet paper hanging out of his nostril.

Dragomir nods and says, "In some respects it is that simple.. except in garou society, it's a good deal more strict than that. You have probably heard the howls.. they are the Howls of Introduction. It is a formality, in which newly arriving Garou must announce themselves before entering the territory of other wolves. To enter without howling, is an act of aggression and sometimes met with extreme prejudice." "My tribe is more formal than normal.. things like lineage and pure breeding are also important to be known. Unfortunately.. there are too many younger wolves these days which scoff at these traditions. Or think sending a text message is sufficient." A glance back to Jasen, and Dragomir smirks slightly at his words.

Branton nods at Dragomir "Its like when someone's coming onto a military base, gotta verify their clearances and credentials. Seems legit to me. I could spin some bullshit about how I'm a sorcerer-priest of the Olympian gods though asking if that matters to you all at all is still on my to-do list. Next one seemed kinda straight forward- Accept an Honorable Surrender. If you're at war then killing fighters who're willing to give way about something would be mighty dumb."

Dragomir nods his head and offers, "The key term there, the part that isn't so.. straight forward. Is 'Honorable'." The Russian motions his hand, canting it slightly and says, "Anyone can surrender when beaten.. that isn't what it's about. It's about accepting defeat, and learning humility. You can imagine with creatures bred for war, Warriors set on death.. that accepting defeat is a lot harder to swallow. Most would rather die than to lose." Dragomir shifts, sitting up and says, "Our society is based on strength and martial prowess in many ways.. but there is much more to it. Spritiualism, honor, respect and more. Never every argument can so easily be measured in combat. So.. sometimes a very angry and violent Garou, must accept defeat.. at for example, a chess game." He smiles. "The vice-versa for that... being that sometimes it is difficult to control one's anger. Remembering that accepting defeat is important, as opposed to the instinct to want to kill or never forgive. We don't have the luxury of not forgiving each other you see?"

Branton nods at Dragomir "Got it. 'Submission to Those of Higher Station' comes next and seems to follow on naturally. Part of what made them easy to remember, I think I'm catching on to why you called them 'verses'."

The Philodox nods and says, "They build onto each other.. and create a very important song. Station is important.. it is earned, not given. Your deeds tracked and the Ancestors watch. Those of higher station are given an honorific, 'rhya' at the end of the their name. It shows submission to the higher station. There are other forms of submission as well, showing ones throat or belly.. allowing the highest ranked to eat first.. things like that."

Branton grins and nods at Dragomir "Which is the next law. 'The First Share of the Kill for the Greatest in Station' but since you mentioned other types of victories and losses in what you said about some of the previous laws I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that 'kill' isn't always literal either."

During the discussion following introductions, Jasen has been keeping pretty quiet, just digging around in his beat up bag and eventually dragging out a thick metal thermos and a few little dishes. He cracks open the thermos and waves away a puff of frost that escapes it, tipping it to shake some of its contents out into the dishes, which he sets in front of Dragomir and Branton, the third for himself before recapping the thing and putting it away. The dishes have little clears spheres that are bloopy, liquid things with a thin gel skin containing bubbles and a single mint leaf each. They're carbonated mojitos spheres, each one about a sip in size. (https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gZch1skigBE/maxresdefault.jpg)

Dragomir smiles and nods, "Good.. very good. It is a symbollism.. in fact, most never even take it.. they give it back to the victor instead. Treasures found, food hunted, all of these things." he turns to look towards the mojito spheres and seems intrigued, "What are those?" having never seen anything like that before.

Branton picks up the dish and sniffs at it "That looks like a mint leaf, so....mohito. Molecular gastronomy? Sort of gives me an opening to ask about gift giving policy. I'm a craftsman and Enchanter and I was thinking about making something for Alecto."

"Moe HEE toooooooes." Jasen says, having fun with the pronunciation of the word. You gotta admit, it's a fun word. He nods his agreement to Branton and says, "Yup, that's the stuff. Made 'em this morning, guaranteed poison free. Which reminds me, I'm outta fresh mint, too."

Dragomir nods, looking down at the globe and asks, "What do you do with it?" He doesn't quite seem to get it. Then he looks back to Branton and says, "It ties with Respect for Those Beneath Ye - All Are of Gaia. It is the exchange, the cycle - realizing that everything is connected and cycle turns in a certain direction for a reason. For example, Ye Shall Not Eat the Flesh of Humans.. that reverses the cycle.. it corrupts the path. Cannibalism is one of the first signs of the Wyrm. There also comes the addiction for wolves to man-flesh, and leads us to the thrall of the Wyrm if we allow such temptations."

Branton pops one in his mouth to pop it and savor it for a moment before he comments to Jasen "That's really good. I've got some in my greenhouse if you want to come harvest." Then to Dragomir he nods "Then the next one after those doesn't tie in the same way but its like the bridge in a song, it still fits. 'The Veil Shall Not Be Lifted' and every supernatural type I've ever heard of has a law like that. Keep ya damn mouth shut."

"Yeah, all this is why I pretty much just stick to meat paste and potato product in a can." Jasen opines, "Sure, I can't be certain it's not tainted or something, but it seems pretty safe from cannibalism, at least." He gestures at Dragomir's dish and says, "Just pop one in your mouth and squish it with your tongue. It's got bubbles." He leaves the Litany to the Philodox and tells Branton, "That'd be great, thanks, mang."

Dragomir nods and says, "A crucial one.. not just about keeping secrecy. There was a time when Garou walked the world in war form and caused fear wherever they went and the dellerium in mortal minds and caused them to forget. Though seem they came to realize that some mortals were immune, and those that were immune began to hunt.. and quickly they realized they were out numbered and potentially.. very out numbered if a war was allowed." He motions towards you both and says, "That is actually where you two come in. Due to the strength of the rage that burns within us, interacting with mortal society is many times virtually impossible for us. So we must rely on our kinfolk to do that for us." He looks down, and shrugs. Then reaches for the globe and does as the Bone Gnawer kin just instructed.

Branton nods as he considers what Dragomir has to say "Its been a real long time since I set anyone or anything on fire that I didn't want it to be. But considering that I've got a number of investment properties and a fairly private beach house with some spare bedrooms I can see how that might be handy. Most of my mundane society problem solving skills involve either crime or throwing money at it though."

Dragomir, Branton and Jasen are sitting around the fire having a conversation. No doubt word of the Litany is being discussed or recited by the new Philodox. Dragomir is half sitting, half laying casually on the ground near the fire. He nods his head and looks towards Jasen, "That is good, thank you."

The little squishy ball of stuff bursts in the mouth in a wave of carbonated, mint infused white rum. Good stuff! "Yeah, that's pretty much what I end up doing for the most part, being the go-between. Well, that or working, which I guess is also the same thing, more or less. But I got mouths to feed! Gotta make that green and make them friends n' shit."

Branton nods and considers "Well we're almost through the whole list. The next one seems a bit of a hard sell to me though. 'Do Not Suffer Thy People to Tend Thy Sickness' what is there to say about that?"

Jake and Giselle enter with their two wolves. The young couple is holding hands and looking sooooooo in love. It's almost nauseating. They approach the fire chat area and Jake smiles at the group assembled. "Good evening all. Hope you are all doing well. Sounds like you're reviewing The Litany. Very good."

Entering the natural valley, Dusk meanders through the background, stopping to quietly speak with someone. He's met with a shake of the head and pointing while words are exchanged. Looking dismayed, Dusk tucks a thumb into his back pocket, while his right hand holds a motorcycle helmet. Giving the ground a kick, Dusk glances in the way of the campfire, and listens in.

Giselle swings her hand lightly in Jake's as they move along, just smiling and giving everyone they pass a healthy dose of diabetes from how sickeningly sweet they are together. Her attention is torn, sadly, away from her mate and to the others as she tries to focus on something other than her love. "Good evening everyone."

Dragomir nods and offers, "It is a hard sell, one of the hardest. For the Garou Nation to lose a hero is painful in many ways. The Children of Gaia often take the greatest exception to this verse. It is an unfortunate truth, that we all must expire. In the cycle that I spoke of, it must go in one direction, which means.. eventually, we must return to Gaia." Dragomir nods deeply towards the presence of those arriving before he continues. "I told you.. many Garou are very proud.. by the time they have reached that age, they have accomplished so much. It is important to them, to be remembered as the heroes they are - not the weakened shade of themselves that they become with age." He motions and offers, "The Rite of the Winter Wolf is one example of such things. I have read tales of Elder Theurges taking great journeys into the Deep Umbra as their final voyage. Ahrouns charging into Hives alone to slay as many Black Spiral Dancers as they can before they die." "In reality, we all want to die as we lived, not as we faded." He considers and offers, "My own tribe suffers for the extent we value our pure breeding.. and age often brings a weakness in our minds. Though good luck getting one of the elders of my tribe to admit that." He smiles.

Yuri walks into the caern shortly after Jake and Giselle. He smiles to them both before heading toward the fire pit to sit down. He glances toward the people he doesn't recognise but doesn't speak up.

Branton gives Giselle and Jake a wave "Evening you too. Yeah we're having a 'I'm related to a what now?' educational session. Dragomir figured that Litany review's an important part of that." Dragomir's commentary gets a nod but no additional comment from Branton. That law's a landmine he doesn't feel like stepping on just now. Clearing his throat "Then there's the two that are like a pair, about Leadership Challenges. Also I'm putting a pin in that bit about challenges in general, sounds like that's a cultural point is worth circling back to."

Jasen grimaces and looks vaguely ill on the subject of death, and instead just puts more mojito spheres into his mouth. That'll fix it! Fuck you, mortality and cursed ends! He turns to look where the others are and gives Jake and Giselle a chin up nod of greeting. Not that he's been the most talkative of gents or anything during all this, but he gets a lot quieter as the group gets larger, putting his head down and just concentrating on pulling toilet paper out of his nostril to see if his nose bleed is done with.

Jake offers a respectful bow of the head to Yuri and returns the smile. "Evening, Lord Makarov. It's good to see you." He sits also, ruffling the smaller wolf's fur and urging her to sit as well. Jake then nods to Branton. "Dragomir is correct and is a good one to go over all that."

Dragomir smiles and begins to sit-up, pulling himself to a stand and turns to nod deeply towards Jake and Giselle, "Good evening Defiant Storm'rhya, and Giselle." Then he turns to nod to Dusk, and finally he looks to Yuri and offers, "I am Dragomir Mihailovich, rited Eye of the Storm, Silver Fang Cliath born on two legs beneath the half moon. Alpha of the proto-pack, known as Terminal Velocity, seeking Merlin." Then he smiles towards Jasen and says, "We do not die Jasen, we live on the next generations. My steps walk for the spirits of many Fallen Heroes of my line now. Never mourn for a fallen Garou, instead howl and usher them forth to their next quest - for you will meet them again." He smiles, quite positive of that it seems. Then he turns and looks towards Branton and says, "Challenges as I said before, are a critical part of our society. When to have them is the question. During times of peace, they should be common and encouraged. They help us on an instinctual level to have humility and trust in those we run with. During times of conflict, there can be no question. An alpha must be able to give an order, and it be executed. To hesitate, could mean the entire pack suffers."

Giselle smiles at Yuri and gives him a tiny little wave and a polite nod of the head before she turns her attention to Branton and then each of the others in turn, mostly just trying to get the large wolf to NOT stand on her foot. Drago gets a polite, respectful nod of her head. "Good evening, Dragomir," she offers quietly. Not terribly talkative tonight, but she seems to be in a good mood

One capable of recognizing as nauseating as he and his look when they enter a room, Dusk smiles at Jake and Giselle when they give their greetings. Walking towards the campfire, Dusk uplifts his head as acknowledgement and upturns his helmet to put it down before putting a foot on it and then starts to turn the engagement ring on his finger while watching the instruction going on.

Yuri nods to the Fang, "Yuri Makarov, Defends-the-Weak, Elder of the Shadow Lords and Master of The Challenge for The Sept of the Enduring Spirit." He smiles a bit at the mention of challenges.

Journey moves in from the paths outside passing over a duffelbag to a man and walks over toward the highest concentration of people, looking around, and falls into listening, observing mostly.

"Yeah, that's all well and good for you guys." Jasen agrees with a slight shrug, but says no more on the subject of death, eyeing the lush and life filled surroundings with something slightly horrified in his expression before putting his head down again. Newp, just gonna fall back on the tried and true method of 'don't look at anything ever and your head won't explode messily'. With all this rage getting into his vicinity, Jasen decides to scoooooooot scoot scoot aside, not getting up because that takes too much cane work, and just.. inspect some nearby bushes for any of the components he might need.

Mary-Sue wanders into the Caern pausing to update Guardians before she finds a spot to curl up and watch people as they move about with her dead eyes.

Branton nods to Dragomir as he notices some unfamiliar faces amongst the new arrivals and he offers "Branton Kholer, Kholer Kustom Manufacturing. Newly discovered Black Fury kin and Sorcerer-priest of the Olympian myths." Then he adds to Dragomir "Only one left, and it seems like a no-brainer. 'Take No Action That Causes a Caern to Be Violated' though I'm sure there's points to expound on that I'm missing."

Jake looks quite pleased to see Journey and offers a nod of the head to the man. "Evening." He then goes back to petting the wolf at his side who looks excited as can be to see everyone. Her tail THUMPS happily. The Ahroun then smiles at Dusk and Mary-Sue before turning his attention back to Drago.

Mary-Sue blinks tilting her head overhearing Branton's introduction then shakes her head remaining quiet.

Journey nods back to Jake and smiles, looking back to the main conversation after taking in all those here and settling in to watch the conversation unfold. Silent Strider is Silent.

His attention moving from person to person, Dusk smirks with good humor at Jasen. Continuing to turn his engagement ring, he watches Yuri during his side of the introduction exchange without a change in facial expression. Lifting his hands and running his fingers through his long hair, he pulls the strands behind his back before tucking his hands into his back pockets to prevent himself from continuing his nervous tick, glancing Branton's way with suspend smile.

Dragomir nods his head and says, "As simple as this verse of the Litany is, it is often the most abused and unfortunately, arguably the most important." The man lifts his hand, and motions his hand around and says, "At first glance.. this is a glorified camping spot where people congregate, and it seems transient. What cannot be seen with the naked eye, is the Spirits who dwell here as well. The life of the trees, the song of the stones.. the flicker of the flames.. you cannot at first appreciate the affinity connection this place has with Bear.. or the ancestor spirits who sit on the same rocks we do, amongst us listening to tales and recantations from when they defended this same spot." Dragomir stands up and points towards the guardian pack, "The honor in the defense they provide, so that the kinfolk have somewhere safe to sleep. The patrols that walk our bawns, the food that he brought back and forth." He nods deeply towards Journey and motions to him, "The years of chiminage that has been ferried to build the relationships with these spirits and truly make this the place that it is." "This is what it is -ALL- about. This is a culmination of everything we have, everything we were, and everything we will be in the future." He takes in a light breath and says, "You see... when we lose a Caern. We lose much more than just land.. we lose part of what makes us who we are. A sting that weakens us deeply. That is why we can never become complacent, never lower our guard, never stop manning the walls or defending what is ours. It also means we cannot take advantage of what we have, or waste our resources. We cannot abuse the relationships with our spirits, or mistreat our kinfolk. To allow a violation of our Caern... even accidently, is a grievous offense. Worthy of great punishment."

Note: This is spoken with the Philodox's full conviction, as though he was quoting or something was speaking for him

Jake continues to stay quiet but does give Dragomir a silent thumbs up. He then glances towards Journey and nods.

Journey focuses his attention on Dragomir as he really pays attention to what the man is expositing about, listening carefully and when he's motioned to he simply watches, remaining a quiet observer during the lesson.

Yuri looks up and nods to Journey as he enters. He returns his gaze to the fire, watching the flames and the embers as they rise up.

Branton nods and looks around and lets the silence hang in the air for a moment as Dragomir's teaching sinks in "A bit more obvious to me because I can /see/ it all. Like you couldn't pay me money to walk down that tunnel on my own." he says with a gesture towards the catacombs.

It's somewhere at the end of the deliverance that Dusk's lip quickly down twitches with skepticism while he exhales. Pulling his hands out from his back pockets, he stups down to collect his helmet, inverts it to brush it off and then turns to head through the large cavern.

Mary-Sue nods vaguely when Dragomir gets to the point of the great punishment that goes with allowing a violation of the Caern. But she remains quiet as the Philodox is doing Philodox stuff.

Dragomir takes a moment to settle, and starts to look around. As though he was just realizing how many have come around the fire pit now or something. He lifts his hand, and brushes some of his fingers through his hair before he nods deeply. "Sorry.. I didn't mean to come across so.. preachy." He reaches for his pack, and starts to hoist it up over his shoulder lightly. A glance is given towards Branton and he offers, "At the very least Branton, Kinolk of the Black Fury... I hope that given you.. at least one version of our great song." He inclines his head deeply towards Branton, and offers a tight lipped light nod more like in contrition as he starts to slip out from the center of the circle.

Journey breaks out into an amused smile at Brantons words as he looks in the direction he's pointing, but by no means contradicts him. When Drago comes out of his roll on the Litany, his expression remains smiling. "Not at all that was very well said." He confirms and nods to the Silver Fang, simply but genuinely.

Jake seems quite pleased with what he's heard and stands. "Yes, very well said. And I have a very early patrol tomorrow so I will say good evening all. Be well and be safe." He then leads Giselle and the wolves out.

Yuri nods and watches as Jake heads out of the caern with Giselle. He smiles a bit and then stands up, looking toward the cavern and Branton, "A kin I once knew saw spirits as well... She said the caverns were quite... Active..."

Branton nods at Dragomir "Its helped a lot I think. I think I've picked up almost as much from the way you said things as from the things you said. I think I'm goint to head back to town, I left my car at the Smoke and Barley." then to Yuri he comments "Ghosts, Spirits, weird dudes with pointy ears and wings made of bone that drip blood that glitters. Prospect is weird as fuck." Then to Jasen "If you want to take the short cut with me you can."

Jasen uses his cane to lever himself up to his feet and says, "Yeah, I'd be glad to. I can't drive any more, and getting an Uber is a pain in the ass out here. Also.. hiking. Sooooo much hiking." Jasen is a terrible Gaian, he couldn't go camping to save his damned life. "Also I still need mint."

Dragomir inclines his head, and then looks back out towards the others, "Thank you Elders.. then a look towards Mary-sue before he turns back and says, "I need to be getting going." he looks towads Jasen and says, "I'll escort you back, and help you if you like."

Journey nods to Branton and Jasen, then looks to Dragomir, "Be well. I remain ready to speak with your Pack Theurge at her convenience." He says in passing.