2021.05.09: Corax Mind Tricks & Hijinks

Corax Mind Tricks & Hijinks
Royan sets out to reclaim a powerful Fetish from a former ally.
IC Date	May 9th, 2021
IC Time	When the sun still shines!
Players	Royan, Iris being the StoryTeller. Thanks Iris!
Location	Somewhere near the Mountains. We're not in California anymore Bob!
Spheres	Gaian
Theme Song	EQUILIBRIUM - Born To Be Epic

Foreword:

Mid 2019, Royan allies himself to the Get of Fenris pack called Frostbite, then lead by the Get of Fenris Ahroun Ironsides (Aldric). During these times, the Pack did a few joint ventures with The Devil's Own Pack. One of these ventures was a trip to Mars Realm, where the two Packs fought some hardfought battles. When they left Mars, they left with several Fetishes. One of these was an Ice Klaive given to Aldric Ironsides.
Since then, several things happened. Aldric alienated himself with the Frostbite Pack and left. He took leadership of the Tribe, but then eventually left Prospect entirely. When he did that, he took the Fetish with him. By then, the Frostbite pack had also been disbanded, leaving Royan alone.
Royan still has nostalgic feelings for his time with the Frostbite. And he holds a simmering resentment towards Aldric for deeds committed. When Aldric left the area, taking the Fetish with him, the Corax decided that enough was enough. The Ice Klaive belongs to Frostbite. Since Sten Stormhowler failed to get it, its up to him to get it. So he decides he will track down Aldric and Take Back The Fetish (steal!).

It comes to him as a flash in the the morning hours. When Helios first rays of light hits his little roost and wakes him up, he wakes up with a start. The idea is there, in his mind. Was it a dream? A vision from Raven? Or just a personal need to fill a nostalgic need? Who knows, and he does not care. Swift Wing upon the High Winds (Royan) is going to take back the Ice Klaive. Giving the Kinfolk who run Ravenscar the word he will be gone for a bit, the raven takes flight. He goes north a bit, then stops and lands. He acquires the items needed, performing then the Rite of the Questing Stone. He knows Ironsides by name. He knows him by face and by deeds. He will track him.

Royan's ritual works out well, and after a moment he's given the direction he needs to travel. The distance is wide, Aldric's managed to cover quite a lot of ground between his leaving and now, and while it's not super far as the raven flies, it's still quite a good clip away. But, that's just time to think and prepare for what's to come. Being a bird who, like his name, is swift of wing, the chances of real danger on the actual trip are fairly low, or at least the forecast makes it look that way. The real trouble will come when he actually finds Aldric and needs to do the deed for real. If he's caught, thaaaaaaat might pose a serious problem.

It matters not to the Raven how far he has to fly to find Aldric. Once they are in the air, the Corax are a patient lot. Few things can match their mastery of the skies. And Swift Wing upon the High Wind? He's a Volucris, fourth in rank of his kind. Soon, he might even become a Corvus. He will not be denied his prize!
Flying far and wide, he uses the Ritual to track his quarry. Zeroing in on the general area where the Ahroun would be. Once the Ritual stops being of help to him, that's when he begins to rely upon his eyes. He knows Aldric. He knows his wolf form. He knows his human form. He knows his Warform. Those sights will never leave his minds eye.

The questing stone brings Royan north, a sometimes straight, sometimes zig zaggy path towards huge tracts of virgin forest. The guy isn't traveling without a plan, Royan's managed to mark several layovers that Aldric has made at this or that sept, this or that tribal holding. When the lead finally dies off and leaves the bird to his own senses to finish the tracking, he finds a small smattering of cabins deep within a forest of pines and cedars. It smells great here! Although Royan might not be aware of that in bird form.
It's currently daylight, mid afternoon when he spies some smoke rising from a few rough chimneys in this little settlement, and there is evidence of life in the area: a few people tromping around, a wolf or two, indistinct chatter carried through the trees on the wind, that sort of thing. It's definitely not some abandoned colonial village, is what I'm getting at.

Few creatures would know that he is a Corax. A raven, sure. In fact, he might even be the male of a mated pair in the area. Who knows! Eitherway, he does not provide much reason to be noticed. At least not yet. He comes in for a landing, in the highest tree he can find overlooking the area with the cabins. He then settles in to wait, to watch. Seeing if he can spot his quarry. If he can spot the man he is looking for. He has yet to summon his spider friend, Bob, waiting to get him out here until he knows the Ahroun is here.

Stakeouts are boring and time consuming things, but at least Royan doesn't have to sit in the back of a carpet cleaning van trying not to look entirely conspicuous during the whole thing. Fresh air and branches for bird boy! He needs to move from tree to tree to see everything, sometimes the only view requires getting into some lower branches, but he seems pretty safe.
It's a garou pack's territory he's found himself in - if the glyphs he's spotted and the words he hears are accurate, a Get of Fenris pack of course, and one that's not doing too bad for itself either. The cabins show weathering as of structures that have been in place for a good long time, the paths between them beaten down by years of treading them into hard packed dirt with weedy boarders. Various battle trophies are tacked to the fronts of the cabins among traditional carvings, showing off the legacy of the pack members that live in each of them. There's a total of five pack members, an equal number of homid kinfolk, and the same again in lupus kinfolk (so roughly 15 souls), though they tend to spend most of their time on the fringes. Sure, they're all family, but that doesn't mean wolves like all the smells and signs just because their human-type bros are garou. There are no roads in or out of this little place, it's just a little refuge of badasses in the middle of nowhere.
Aldric is spotted after a while, leaving what seems like some sort of communal cabin where feasting and togetherness can happen. Or, in this case, where a rare guest can be hosted. During the time that Royan's keeping his beady little eyes out, Aldric helps someone with chopping some firewood into shape, and carrying it to its storage lean-to. It's some surprisingly mundane activity down there, but probably not all that different than what Frostbite once engaged in. That punk has the Ice Klaive on his belt the whole time, it's great portable clout that the Get don't have a problem with.

And that, indeed, was the easy part. Swift Wing upon the High Wind really had no doubt he WOULD find Aldric. But in the scope of things, finding him was the easy part. Now? Now comes the difficult part. To actually nab the bloody thing. He has a few ideas, but the first idea? Create something. He flies off a bit, now that he knows where the Ahroun is. Putting some distance between himself and the Packs general area, he lands high in a tree where he finally summons Bob. Bob, his beloved little Spider Familiar. His Wyld Touched Spirit friend. With the creature popping into the Realm of the Material, taking form again, the Corax extends his wing and sort of drapes it over the spider, ~Bob, my friend. I have need of your skills. Your many eyes. You have seen through my eyes, what I have seen. You have seen the one carrying the item we seek. I need you to stay here, stay hidden. Keep your eyes on him. If he leaves, you alert me. I will come back. I will not be gone long.~ He has to try to make that Fetish, the Counterfeit. It will greatly up his chances of success. Betting that perhaps, if lucky, the Pack will be dormant a few days.

Bob will do surveillance! Little spider giggles and some babble and he's off to do the deed, and hopefully not get distracted by anything in the meantime. Fortunately, Aldric seems to be staying the night here, although there's no telling if he'll be leaving at dawn or next week, or what his plans are. He's helping and socializing in that sort of 'pay my rent for the night's hospitality' sort of way.
Meanwhile! Royan finds himself a nice tree or what have you in which to create his counterfit, that most hilariously devious of Corax creations. If this works out, Aldric is going to be SO pissed when he goes to use his Ice Klaive and impress people but it turns out to be not that at all!

To anyone who ever met Swift Wing upon the High Wind, they would know that he absolutely loves his Spirit Familiar. Actual love, as that for a very beloved family member. Close sibling. Favourite aunt. Along those lines. So strong is the bond between them, that he almost does not want to leave the little Spider alone. But, he also trusts his buddy. And Bob? Well, he is -fast-.
So, the Corax takes flight, takes off. He goes fast, high and fast. Taking him far away from the Packs territory as to not cause them alarm or risk being detected. It is then that he finally goes to do the deed. Trying to create the Counterfeit.
Years ago, when Swift Wing upon the High Wind came to Prospect the first time, he sought out an ally to help him make a number of items that he had planned to turn into Counterfeits. Ordinary clay tablets, painted white, imprinted with the ravens sigil. All these years, the Corax has kept this items handy and on this particular occasion, he brought one of them with him. Bringing it all the way up here, Dedicated to his body. And now? Now, finally, to be made into a Counterfeit. To be sacrificed for, what the Corax believes, is to be a good cause.
Finding a good spot to do this at, far from the Packlands he encountered, he sought out specifically a small stream he can use for clean water. Landing, the large raven begins to prepar for the Rite of Cleansing. For a Raven to perform such a Ritual, is not easy. Especially one that refuses at the firmest to ever take human form. If he can avoid it, he will. So, there is a lot of flying back and forth, getting all the ingredients and stacking them up next to him. But once done? He prepares. The Circle of Cleansin is drawn as it should be, surrounding the Tablet. He then begins to walk / hope around the circle, counter-clock wise whilst holding a branch in his beak. The time? Dawn. It took a while to gather all the supplies. And he did stop off for a snack. But then, he just waited for the right time. It is a quick affair, really. Ten minutes of moving around in a circle, using one branch smoldering, and then another to flick droplets of water from the clean stream at the tablet. And he does not howl. Ravens do not howl. No, instead, he lets out a loud KRAAAAAA which seems to draw out for a long time. But the deed is done. He can feel its success, the natural order of things taking over. The tablet? Whatever taint was on it, is now gone.
Once done, the Raven moves up to the Tablet and puts his claw on it. It is still dedicated to him, still his. He lets out a chittering little sound before he lets his mind activate the Gauntlet Runner gift. It melts away the Gauntlet enough for him to step sideways without issues. The Spirit World shimmers into existence. He lets out another kraaa, starting to move around the tablet once more. Drawing yet another circle. This? This is the long haul. This is the hard one, in terms of endurance. He has summoned spirits before, of course. Mostly, though, he goes chasing after them, but he does not want to spend too much time. It could take hours to find the right one.
Summoning one will take hours, as well, but he is dedicated to it. He settles down by the circle, letting his wings spread out a bit as he lowers his body. He then begins to kraaa and chitter, stackatto sounds and chirps that seem to hold to it a certain rhythm. Again and again, over and over, he repeats the same chant, whilst calling upon the Gnostic powers within him, making the call into the Umbral reamls. Calling for a bird. Calling for a cuckoo spirit. They are known for taking the places of other birds in their nests for their young. This will work great for a Counterfeit. But he does not let such thoughts distract him. Only the call for the Cuckoo. One hour passes. Then two hours.. he can feel his call is strong now. It is potent. One is sure to come. As a final call, the call is released.
A second later, the Cuckoo appears in the circle, right above the Tablet.
The Corax thanks his lucky Sun that he swiped that Spirit Speech gift from the Garou a while back. Employing it, he then begins to do that which the Corax do best. He starts to talk. And talk. And talk. Talking to the Cuckoo, filling its ears with a constant noise of attempts to persuade it to be part of this Fetish.
Not the best strategy. A spirit of this kind does not have the capacity to hear all the talking, so the first long sentences are forgotten. The last words, though? 'Will you accept to live within this Fetish?'. It is accepted.
So the time comes, then, to bind the Spirit to the Tablet. There is nothing specifically needed for this ritual, this much the Corax knows. He has seen it done, but he has never performed it before. But he knows he has to contend with is will against the Spirits and the Items. He settles down, much like he did before, with his wings spread out and his head lowered a bit. He begins to chant again, focusing in on his ritualistic ability and then wrapping his mind around the item and the Cuckoo. A great excertion of will is expended, and it pays off. As the Ritual goes on, the spirit begin to sink towards the Clay Tablet. Bit by bit, the spirit starts to fade out, turning into little ephemeral swirls that start to wrap around the item. In the end, the spirit disappears, the tablet glows for a few moments to then just return to being a .. clay tablet. Painted white. A ravens sigil imprinted on the one side. The Counterfeit is created.

During the time that Royan was doing his rituals, their preparation and aftermath, Bob would doubtlessly keep him quietly updated on the goings on at the packlands. Nothing very exciting to report, really, just a lot of typical day to day sort of things all revolving around maintaining a simple yet rustic life in the middle of nowhere. There's NEVER a shortage of chores in such a lifestyle and people that seek hospitality from such are expected to pull their own damned weight. As for planned events, Bob reports talk of a hunt before Aldric sets out again the next day.
By the time Royan's got his strength back and his own needs settled, Aldric has gone off to do that hunting thing with the Garou and most of the lupus kin as a large pack of wolves in the deep forest. Yes, Aldric has the Klaive with him, likely just in case. I mean if Prospect teaches you anything, it's that random encounters happen frequently, you go out to take a piss and suddenly BSDs jump out of the woodwork, you know? Now, that's inconvenient, sure, but on the other hand, it leaves the place rather empty aside from the five homid kinfolk.
Darkness drapes over the place like a cloak that's beaten back only through a few windows and a single communal outdoor fire where a couple kinfolk are chillaxing. Bob's whereabouts are entirely up to you, either trailing Aldric on the hunt to keep tabs, or having stayed back to watch the homestead, either one is fine since you've got a total link. The houses are about as unguarded as possible at the time, there ARE still a couple lupus kin that didn't go with the rest... somewhere in the woods nearby. Lastly, Royan would know through Bob that Aldric's staying in their little grand-hall, and that his stuff is stashed in there as well. OPTIONS ABOUND!
Royan could figure out a way into the hall to stake out Aldric's spot for theft while he sleeps. He could trail the pack to steal it out there, he could pounce on Aldric and take it while he's leaving the packlands in the morning!

That Aldric is staying in the grand hall presents a problem, for sure. Too many eyes in there, too many ears. Swift Wing upon the High Wind keeps Bob in the area, though. He instructs his little buddy to remain within the packs territory. He then sets out to track down the pack as they head off to the hunt. If he can find an opportunity to steal from them, then and there? He will. Or, rather, steal from Aldric. So, he sets out in the direction that the Pack went out, keeping his eyes open for a pack of wolves traveling. Or a pack of rough humans.

Alright, so Bob stays put and keeps an eye on things in the camp. Let's just call it a camp, it's easier. There's some nice little spots where a Spider can go get his web art on, stay warm and dry, keep an eye on things and what not. He should be fine, so long as no one looks up and spots a fucknormous giggle spider, and no one ever bothers to look up.
Out in the forest, Royan shouldn't have too much trouble finding the pack, he's got great eyes and they're loud fuckers when they communicate, what with all the howling and such, it's not even worth a roll as long as the bird's patient while on the wing. Soon enough, those howls ring out as the pack puts stealth aside to chase down their prey, intimidating and panicking it while they give chase, the better to send it into fits of bad decisions and control its flight from the rear. They really are very good hunters, it's hard to speak for Aldric on his own but the rest of the Get are, at least, a very cohesive group that's done this many many times.
I think it's safe to say that Royan isn't going to butt in during any of this, they're all in Lupus and the bird cant steal a fetish melded within the flesh, so he's forced to wait whether he likes it or not. On the bright side, Royan ends up with some extra raven company while tracking these wolves: a handful of other ravens from the forest have heard the howls, they're keen on what's causing them, and they know full well there's going to be meat at the end of all this. Delicious! Raven's are big on hanging out with feeding wolves, so not only will Royan have some company that gets him, but he'll blend in nicely.
The Get take down a fat stag with a fairly sizable rack, all in all a proper kill this evening, avoiding a prime stag claiming too many does during his latter years and possibly failing to make fawns, and so on. There IS a little feasting just as wolves, but eventually they shift to homid for proper carcass cleaning.
Someone lights a small fire for light and warmth, two just rest on their laurels with Aldric near that fire, and the last two do the work of skinning and carving. The lupus kinfolk aren't keen on the fire, so a bit of stag is sacrificed to them so they can gnosh on that a little ways away.
Now that everyone's in homid, there it is, attached to Aldric's hip and glinting softly in the fire light, pushed back a bit for sitting and just hanging out in a belt sheath, taunting the bird like 'hey, here I am!' Some of them local ravens are yelling about wanting their share from the trees, croaking and quarking, and making various hair brained scheams about how to get the meat for themselves. One particularly brave one is dead set on getting up there WITH the Get that's skinning the thing to try and snatch bites, but he keeps getting brushed away. Not that it stops the bird trying.

In a way, he feels almost guilty for what he is about to subject the Get of Fenris pack to. But only for a moment. That moment, though? It passes. The Corax is after all a Corax and, in the end, his mission is beyond that of the Garou. And besides, it is not as if they will be harmed by this. Just incredibly annoyed. The raven made sure to remove any of his most noticable markings earlier. The little tag he wore around his ankle, that was shiny? He removed it. His Sliver of Helios Fetish, which made a stark white shard imprint under his right wing? Removed that s well. Can't have those be seen. He can't be recognised.
So now, out here, with the other ravens? Well, lets just say he decides to take charge of them. He begins to lead them down. Be brave! Lure the humans! Take food! Practice your hopping and flying away! In this manner, he moves in closer to the Pack, although he himself zeroes in on Aldric. Making sure to land behind him.
And if all is normal? If the diversions worked? Sitting on the ground, his right claw manifests the Bird Stone Fetish from its spiritual Dedication just as he activates it.

The ravens, emboldened by their unknown Corax bro, take the bait easily enough, and they get quite annoying. Hilarious, but yes, annoying. Those two Get trying to clean the deer get the brunt of it, ravens start working together on those two. One will peck at a Get's pants and distract him while another gets in there to steal as much meat as it can rip off and fit in its beak before getting swatted at. There's quite a lot of GOD DAMN IT!'s from that crew, and their packmates helpfully laugh at them. Oh shucks, it's just some ravens being ravens, no big deal to these guys, right?
That is, until some meet is passed off to the others for a little snack while they wait. One guy goes to stab a bit onto a stick, and an owl swoops out of nowhere and just takes it. Well, shit. Try again. Another owl does the same thing. And then another. Two more just swoop down and join the Ravens in flat out stealing from the cleaners. That's when the pack notices that they are... surrounded. Dozens of nocturnal birds crowd the branches over their heads, silent and staring like little feathered monsters. What REALLY sets them on edge is the sound of a bird saying what sounds distinctly like 'Whip poor Will! Whip poor Will!' Maybe it's just a random whipporwill here, OR maybe they're being stalked by Spirals! AAAHHHH! Needless to say, the Get are very confused, very put upon, the carcass has been forgotten for a moment as a few gifts are used to try and smell out the taint near them or listen for stalking bad guys. Which they of course find no evidence of.

Success. Great success. The Bird Stone does its thing. Swift Wing upon the High Wind keeps a hold on the birdstone as he calls out to his friends, the ravens. He lures them in. The creature he is by has lots of treats! Come get! Distract him! Distract! He gets three of them to join him, two going for his pants where they begin to peck and pull as the third flies up a bit to be a general nuisance, trying to find the treats.
It is in this moment that Swift Wing upon the High Wind goes for it. He just.. goes for it. He lets out a sudden KRAA as he beats his wings hard, shooting upwards along Aldrics frame. He airbreaks just above his face, at which time he activates his Sky's Beneficence Gift. A large payload of digested food leaves his body. It lands square in the Get of Fenris face, right between his eyes. Making an ice SPLAT to obstruct his vision and just really, really confuse him.
His wings then fold up and he drops back down, aiming for the entire Ice Klaive sheathe; at the same time letting his Birdstone Fetish melt back into his body which most likely ends the Fetish effects and leaves the birds there very confused. Sheer bloody determination fills the large raven as he just extends his wings and PUSHES OFF, hard. His claws are STRONG as are his wings, for a bird. The sheathe clasps snap, rip and off it comes. Just as he takes it, the raven focuses all of his intent into the Taking the Forgotten. Ice Klaive? He had no Ice Klaive. He ever had one? He ever even use one?
That little bit he comes away from Aldric with the Ice Klaive and Sheathe in his claws, the Corax does a quick aerial maneuver to aim himself upwards and between the trees.
3
2
1
LIFT OFF! Rage fills the Corax body. It flows into his extremities. His wings infuse with it. It fills his entire body and as he beats his wings hard, he just vanishes. His leaving kicks up a lot of dust and leaves and things as he just goes from 0 to something akin to 70+ mph. He's just gone. With the Klaive.

The feeding frenzy gets into full swing as the Corax gets to his target, and by this time the wild ravens have completely lost their minds and any sense of restraint, some going for the stag and the other three going for Aldric while owls and other night birds reign terror down on the garou, stealing the absolute shit out of their food. That's all it is, really, just a very dedicated flash mob out for a free meal, none of the garou or lupus kin get hurt aside from maybe a scratch or two from some ill aimed talons or beaks. The lupus kin are fine mainly because they GTFO when things start getting weird and hectic. The hell with THAT noise.
It's getting poop face that really tips Aldric. The rest was all annoyance and hey what the hell, but poop face? The Ahroun hulks the fuck out, snarling menacingly as he erupts into his war form. Ravens shriek and flee as soon as the big guns come out, as do most of the night birds around them, the raging pretty well in time with the bird stone turning off. The only ones that remain near the pack are the two daring ravens from earlier, hiding behind the stag's corpse. And eating it, but mostly hiding. And eating. Quietly. ....

On his way. ON HIS WAY! Swift Wing upon the High Wind calls out to Bob through is mindlink with the spirit, ~Bob! Go west! Fast. Go go go.. I will find you. I will pick you up! Go go go.~ And with that, the raven sets his sights on where he will meet up with Bob. The bird does not slow down, only momentarily to swoop down and let his best buddy ever hop on. He then gets back to it. Heading west, still carrying the Ice Klaive, the large Raven just goes for it. Fast fast, west west. Finding forests and mountains and anything he can to put distance between him and Aldric. WEST! FAST! For a full day and night, he flies.
It is only once he has done this, that he finally finds a secure spot to land. High up on a rock, finding a ledge to settle on. He puts the Ice Klaive down, placing his claws on it. He then lets his mind press into the Fetish, letting his Spirit link with the Spirit of the Fetish.
And it goes fast. It goes smoothly. The Spirit in the Fetish easily yields to him. Now? It is his.
He takes a light nap, just letting his mind rest a bit along with his body.
When he wakes, he pulls on Bobs powers once more. This time, he uses the Familiars ability to open a Moonbridge. Weaving a bridge across time and space, through the Umbra. Once it ie open, he flies into it. Several hundred miles in an instant, almost. So much closer to home.

Those poor get bastards, they have NO idea what just happened or what just hit them OR what was just stolen. Aside from their dinner, that is. They're very aware that birds are assholes about dinners, if they weren't before. Aldric's going to be so mad all night, and leave in the morning with that nagging feeling, like he might have left the oven on, but he'll never figure out what he lost as he leaves to go elsewhere and the other Get stay paranoid as hell for the next month thinking Spirals are everywhere. Or just rabid birds.