The Door to Everywhere

[Ialari Pythone]

5th Day of Spring, 517 AV

It was morning when Ialari set out for the place she’d claimed for herself as one of the benefits for having chosen to become a settler in Syka. She left Kajun’tar to his own meanderings around the settlement. When he asked where she was going, she told him that she had to pick up a few things at the Mercantile before heading off into the jungle to collect some materials; that it could take much of the day and maybe into the next. While what she said was true, it depended on one’s point of view. Wanting his own alone time to compare his notes on what the area had once been to what it was currently, Kajun’tar simply nodded before setting to his own work. He’d learned rather quickly not to push too much when it came to figuring out Ialari.

Ialari prepped for her expedition with the basic survival gear, flint and steel and waterskin along with her sea-monster tooth dagger and Stormslinger; the storm-fueled weapon that unleashed blasts of crackling energy. She also packed her first aid kit just in case something came up as well as the special waterproof poncho with chameleon like abilities Kultra have given her. She dressed sparingly as she didn’t plan on traveling too far into the jungle; her black silk loincloth, belt and belt pouch. The rest of what she would be taking would have to be acquired at the Mercantile.

Leaving Kajun’tar to his studies, Ialari made the short walk from her rented ranchero to the Mercantile. There she procured a few items that were essential for the task at hand. She bought a small bag of flour, and handful of eggs and a small bag of salt. In addition, she picked up a small wood bowl, a wooden spoon and a bit of cloth. Before leaving, she carefully wrapped the eggs in the cloth, placed them in the bowl and packed the bowl into her backpack along with the rest of the items she’d purchased all wrapped in the waterproof poncho. When everything was tucked neatly away in her pack, Ialari walked to the beach.

When she reached the beach, she followed it to the west. As was the case before, the beautiful sandy beach, ripe with the scents, sounds and sights that came with it, eventually wrapped around and revealed the great, Stair Step Falls. The awe-inspiring sight was just as impacting as it was the other times she’d seen it. The river cascaded down the stone steps, crashing about in a great streaming shower of beauty. The sounds were near deafening as she got closer. Unlike the first time she’d discovered them, Ialari’s gaze went to the small trail that started at the base of the falls and extended upward toward the top. Following the trail, she made her way to the top where the river extended back further into the jungle. Her destination lay further in.

[Ialari Pythone]

Following the river along the eastern bank for several yards, she came to a small feeder stream. Turning to follow that, she stepped and climbed over the varying level of stone, ducking low tree branches and eventually arrived at the large, hour-glass-shaped cave. With vines hanging near the entrance, she marveled at the sight. Having discovered it shortly after arriving in Syka the previous Winter, it was no less exciting. Carefully she approached the entrance. The footing was a bit slick from the water and moss that formed around the entrance. As she stood in the center of the opening, she prepared for what would be a small swim.

Just inside the cave, a small yet deep pool greeted her. Crystal clear in the filtered light that made its way inside, Ialari could see the countless tiny fish that made the pool their home. The stream itself was fed by underwater currents that forced the water out of the cave, down the stream and fed into the larger river beyond. Checking her pack, and its contents, to make sure that it was as protected as possible, she took a breath and took a step forward. Sinking immediately into the pool, Ialari began the short yet no less daunting swim further inside.

The water was cool although not cold. The filtered sunlight helped to provide some amount of warmth to the water thus keeping it from being as chilled as it may otherwise be due to its pseudo-subterranean nature. As she swam further inside, the water became cooler although gradually grew shallower. The cave, gradually became larger, eventually opening up into a large cavern. The ceiling, nearly 100 feet high, bore a hole in the center where a collection of vines hung all the way down to a small island. As Ialari approached the island, she marveled at the cavern itself. Nearly as big around as it was high, the cavern held a slim shelf the extended out from the stone wall. The shelf was several feet wide and offered a mix of sand and rock footing. It was on a specific spot of the cavern wall that she’d chosen for her next step.

Wading through the shallow water of the cavern, she made her way to the relatively flat spot on the wall that would serve her purpose. It faced the entrance of the cave almost directly and was the flattest part of an otherwise uneven, contoured stone wall. It is there that she would establish the door.

[Ialari Pythone]

Standing before the flattened spot, she unslung her backpack and proceeded to empty and arrange its contents on the ground. Checking to ensure the cloth-wrapped eggs were intact, she was relieved to find that they were. The waterproof poncho had also kept the flour and salt dry which was her biggest concern. When she’d unpacked, she began mixing the various ingredients in the wooden bowl. She cracked the eggs, mixed the flour and salt with them and added a little water as needed to thin the mixture out. With the wooden spoon she stirred and mixed until a white, thin paste was created. She used some more water to thin it out further until it was closer to the consistency of a paint. The ingredients were enough to form rudimentary paint that, while not very useful for large projects, would serve her smaller needs quite well.

When she’d gotten the paint to a serviceable form, there was one more thing Ialari would need to do to complete the mixture. With her dagger, she drew the blade across the flesh of her right hand, just above her mark to Dira and just below where her fingers met her palm. Squeezing her hand into a fist, she let the blood from the wound drip into the paint which she mixed in until the paint was more of a pink color.

With the paint complete, Ialari stood, bowl in hand and looked at the stone wall. A tingle of anticipation tickled her. She didn’t tend to her wounded hand as the cut wasn’t terribly deep. She would also need more blood for the final step of what she was about to do.

Dipping her fingers into the paint, Ialari began carefully drawing a line from the bottom of the stone wall upward. She was careful to keep the line width and thickness consistent as she drew upward to the start of an arch. Slowly and delicately, she continued to dip her fingers into the paint and spread it on the wall as the line came to the top of the arch and then back down. Important was the attention to detail. The line of the archway would need to be well drawn considering the strength of the place that it would lead to. In the past, simple doorways, roughly drawn would have worked. Now, with a more established space, a more well-crafted door was required.

With the archway complete, Ialari drew the final line across the bottom of the doorway. When she’d finished, she set down the bowl, took a step back and observed her work. The pinkish colored archway was simple in form yet the detail was sufficient. Only one thing remained. Ialari looked at her bloodied hand and then back at the wall. The wound she’d created wasn’t deep enough for what was needed so, with gritted teeth, she used her dagger to cut the wound deeper. Stifling a cry of pain, she told herself that the sacrifice was necessary. Her hand bloody, she placed it upon the surface of the stone in the center of the doorway.

With her bloody palm on the stone, Ialari spoke a few words in the ancient tongue; a language extinct. Roughly translated, she said “With my blood, I claim this door, a door to Everywhere!”

[Ialari Pythone]

As the words were spoken, the stone inside the painted archway began to tremble. The paint in turn ignited in a soft crimson glow; the archway quickly engraved into the stone. The bloody handprint in the center also became engraved as the stone rippled, shimmered and vanished. In its place stood a doorway to another world, Ialari’s Dominion. Peering through the doorway, Ialari smiled as she took a step through it; home awaited.

Stepping through the doorway, Ialari entered her Dominion. Immediately she was flooded with familiar yet no less intense sensations. It was as if her Dominion was welcoming her back. The cool air, ripe with the flavors of fresh grass and flowers, the sounds of insects and frogs all within the great cavern that housed her own space within the great expanse that was the Ukalas. After a few moments spent embracing the feeling of extreme comfort, Ialari knelt down. Arith and Reth, the two snakes whom Ialari had “given birth” to through the strange power of her blood, slithered their way to her. When they reached her, Ialari reached her arms out to them. They proceeded to climb and wrap themselves around her arms as she brought them closer to her. Their flicking tongues tasted the air as she nuzzled them with her face. “I missed you too.” She said lovingly.

Ialari walked around her Dominion with Arith and Reth comfortably wrapped around her. Their black scales and silver patterns were evidence of the blood they shared with her. She still didn’t understand where the strange power in her blood came from that allowed for the creation of such creatures. It happened during her time in Riverfall; discovered by accident when her blood came into contact with a blacksmithing tool. Following that, a broom handle; both inanimate objects quickly transforming into living, breathing snakes.

As she reacquainted herself with her Dominion, Ialari realized just how small her space was. At first, her claimed piece of the Ukalas had seemed massive even though it was no larger than a small, one room building. After some time and experience with bonding and shaping the Dominion, Ialari had expanded it; growing it by a couple thousand square feet. This had allowed her to finally access the dominating feature of her otherworldly home, the Tree of Death. The tree still loomed above, a few dozen dead bodies hanging, stapled and otherwise attached to the gnarled branches; all baring Ialari’s tortured visage. She hadn’t mustered the bravery to approach the tree but, when she was ready, apparently so was it.

[Ialari Pythone]

Regardless, Ialari felt confined yet she wasn’t sure if it was her that felt that way or if it was the Dominion. The two had become so bonded and with her return, there was a yearning for growth. “I don’t know...it feels like we need to…open up.” What she was feeling was almost like being burned, the need for the flesh to split open and release something. It wasn’t a painful, physical feeling but more of a spiritual need for release.

“Nothing says welcome back like a bit of magic…” Ialari could feel a growing anticipation at the idea of expanding her Dominion to coincide with her own personal growth. Stopping at the statue of the coiled snake that dominated the center of her Dominion, Ialari released Arith and Reth. She then took her place at the statue’s base. She vouched for the last expansion with her marks of Izurdin and would keep that oath intact. This new expansion would rely solely on her increased knowledge, skill and bond; all empowering the magic to literally break down and rebuild the walls of her Dominion.

Standing in the center of her Dominion, Ialari allowed her Dominion to once again flood her senses. She embraced all of the sights, sounds, tastes, smells and feelings that surrounded her. As her Dominion enveloped her, she could feel the bond she shared with it. Through the bond, she formed her intent and shared it through sheer force of will. Such was the methods revealed through the Dominion Scrolls; a gift from Izurdin Himself. Ialari had poured over the scrolls for years, memorizing every word, every phrase. They were written in the ancient tongue, a long dead language often used to contain magical knowledge and power. While the scrolls allowed themselves to be understood by the chosen reader, Ialari had made great effort to learn as much of the language as possible. Of course, even with years spent in off and on study, she was only able to translate and understand a relatively small amount. The words she had learned however held great power, power tied to the Ukalas, Djed and the link between all things.

The most important words, the ones that established her Dominion in the first place,

"Up and down are the same,
space is the greatest lie,
I make and am made anew,
reborn in my Dominion!"

She spoke these same ancient words once more to emphasize her intent. With each point of evolution of a Dominion, one was essentially reborn. The scrolls stated that claiming space within the Ukalas was only the first step. Next came the sharing of one’s self with the Dominion in order to establish the bond. Through the bond, shaping, molding and growing of the Dominion was possible. Ialari had come to understand this as a form of created life. The Ukalas was a place of infinite possibilities all existing at once without contradiction, as told to Ialari by Dira years ago. The Ukalas was a beast in pain that could lash out with unexpected consequences. Ialari had taken that concept and expanded on it within her Dominion. She treated it as if it were a living creature, ever growing, learning and becoming something greater. It was that concept that caused her to create a new verse to the chant of establishment.

"My Dominion and I are one,
as one grows so does the other,
Connected in life and in death,
my Dominion and I are remade!"

With the final word spoken, the invisible walls of Ialari’s Dominion became visible in the form of an intricate weave of varied colored lines, points, angles and patterns. She could see the geometric design in all its elaborate detail. She followed the original lines established when she first claimed her Dominion nearly nine years prior. She saw where the lines had been bent, folded and twisted in the first expansion. She could feel the power of the djed focused at the various vertices which extended out in all directions. The djed not only formed the confines of the Dominion but it was tied to everything contained within. It was what allowed Ialari to see what her Dominion saw, to feel what it felt and to know, to some limited extent, what it knew.

[Ialari Pythone]

As she stood there, marveling at the foundation of her Dominion, Ialari raised her arms and began pointing to certain points in the weave of energy. At each point, she moved her finger outward while willing a new line to form. She did this again and again at different points. As she established new lines, she connected them at specific points, expanding the energy weave further outward. In the same way that the reality of Dominion space was extremely flexible, Ialari’s drawing of three-dimensional lines caused the space around her to stretch. As the lines were drawn, she envisioned the existing space unfolding to fill the new space created. It was like a giant, three-dimensional folded piece of paper, piece by piece, unfolding to reveal something new.

As the Dominion grew, Ialari could feel the creation of new space through her bond. It was like being trapped in a box with the sides feeling impossibly close only to suddenly have those sides grow farther and farther away, the feeling of confinement fading quickly away.

When she’d drawn all the lines that she felt were needed and had connected them to all the necessary points, Ialari lowered her arms. Slowly, she allowed her hold on her connection to her Dominion to shift into the background. As she did, the weave of magic faded and vanished. It was still there but hidden from view. The trance that Ialari had fallen into also ended and she was left somewhat drained although satisfied.

Although she couldn’t see the new walls that she’d created, she could feel the increased space within her Dominion. As she watched, the elements that previously resided within her smaller Dominion began to slowly expand. As if answering her desire, the grass slowly began to break through the cracks in the stone floor of the great cavern that surrounded her; creating a new, thin yet expanding carpet of greenery in the newly claimed space.

Ialari closed her eyes and willed a drizzly rain to fall on the new grass while directing pillars of sunlight to shine down over it at that the same time. Her newly expanded space would take but a short time to integrate with the previous one thanks to Ialari’s enhanced connection with the Dominion. She could feel the size of the Dominion had increased exponentially; the Tree of Death no longer being on the edge. If she could be anywhere at that moment, be Everywhere, she would be there, in her Dominion.

[Ialari Pythone]

Thread Grade

Skills:
Arcanology 3
Dominion 5
Philtering 1 (Mixing and creating paint)
Swimming 1
Wilderness Survival 1

Lore:
Wilderness Survival: Navigating river banks
Wilderness Survival: Navigating a cave
Dominion: Expanding the confines of a claimed space
Dominion: Continued creation of dominion doorways