Vielanika, the double-flute-playing Eeee bard, is having an unofficial 'concert' in the Park in the early evening. Unlike her last concert of note in the Park, however, her audience is not comprised mostly of Eeee, but a fairly random selection of races, and with a few other bards as well, who sing ballads either about or originating from the Himar region.

Thanks to some loose-tongued mages of the Sphere of Air at the Collegia Esoterica, and some reports from merchant ships, something has happened to Himar. The Temple refuses to give any credence to such "rumors and idle speculation" … but word gets around fast.

Envoy sits on the grass nearby her fellow bard. She likes to listen to Vielanika play, and maybe another dragon will show up, since she missed the last one.

Buran, having heard music in the air, idly walks along a meandering park path. Though she always heads toward the sound of the music, she isn't in any hurry. Presently, she happens upon the statue of the First Ship, and her attention is drawn to it. She pauses to inspect it.

Roho is seen walking down the slope from his hospital. It's dinnertime, and he still doesn't have a particularly large staff, so he's taken to locking up and having his supper in the park. Especially when there's a concert.

The statue of the First Ship that Buran inspects looks vaguely like a cross between a dart and a hammer-headed shark … except … more ship-like.

The brown bat bard finishes a somber, whispering melody, letting the last notes trail off, first one 'voice' of the flute dying out, and then the other. She sets down the flute, looking down at the grass that she sits upon.

The technopriestess brushes a minuscule bit of dust off the statue, then continues on her way down the path.

Envoy watches the Eeee closely, noting her expressions and other performance enhancers.

Roho sits down on the park's grass, and starts to spread out his dinner… bread, and a sort of curry dish one of his clients gave him as payment in lieu of shekels.

Vielanika's performance is a bit different than usual. For one thing, she doesn't have a hat set out to collect shekel donations like she normally does. And she doesn't bow or otherwise try to solicit applause.

A grizzled white Jupani, a patch over one eye, sniffles … then goes into a loud weeping fit. Two Savanite slaves vainly try to comfort him, patting him on each shoulder.

A few Jupani make lamentive howls, despite the "No howling after sunset" sign posted nearby.

The Aeolun wonders just what she's supposed to be feeling. She's never been to Himar, and doesn't know for certain what, if anything, has happened there. So she watches the Jupanis' reactions instead.

Vielanika, ears blushing at the howling, delicately extracts herself from the grassy 'stage' at the base of a gnarled tree, and works her way out so that another musician can take her place. On the way out, she spots Envoy. Rather than giving a loud, cheery greeting, she just nods and waves quietly.

Envoy smiles and waves back with her usual exuberance!

No musician yet takes Vielanika's place. An elderly Jupani, wrapped in faded robes and leaning upon a cane, looks about, across the crowd. "Has anyone else a memorial to present for the lives of those lost in the Himar?"

Envoy notes the somberness of those around her, and stifles her immediate urge to ask how many were lost. Instead, she goes over to where Roho is having his picnic dinner.

A digitigrade Jupani steps up, and marches into the center circle. "I'm no singer," the lupine begins, as the elder sits down, "but I've got something to say to you all. And I'm sure many of you are thinking the same thing."

Ears perk up, as the lupine members of the Jupani's audience listen to see just what they were supposed to be thinking.

Rather than following Envoy, Vielanika slips off, leaving the crowd behind … possibly aiming to head to the Bazaar for a more profitable performance, or some such thing. Who knows?

Buran has by now made her way to the edge of the gathering and, uncertain if she should be here, settles for listening from a distance.

The angry Jupani in the center of the ring gesticulates wildly as he growls, "Our brethren of the woodlands are no more! You have heard parts of the story, but I have heard more! The cause for this calamity is not some simple accident. It is due to the carelessness of the TEMPLE!"

Roho smiles, as he notices the familiar scent of… well… of someone who doesn't smell like any other living thing. "Hello, Envoy! How have you been?"

The angry speaker's words are not met with unanimously positive response. After all, several Jupani Guards call the Temple home. However, there are at least a few token murmurs and nods in the crowd, but most just listen for more.

Buran freezes. Perhaps she should move out of sight, and settle for listening. She goes a little way back down the path.

Envoy settles down next to Roho. "I'm alright, Roho. I did my last performance at the Opera tonight though, so I have to start singing in the Bazaar again. Do you know anything about what happened in Himar?"

"Is it mere COINCIDENCE that this device exploded over the wilderness of the Himar? Surely you don't think that the Babelites had any quarrel with the woodland-dwellers?" The angry Jupani pauses for effect, then adds, "… the woodland-dwellers who have no formal relations, that is, with Rephidim and the Temple?"

Roho shakes his head at Envoy, "Nothing but rumors from my patients. Nothing concrete, I am afraid." He takes a bite of his dinner, "Do you know anything?"

Envoy shakes her head, saying, "I haven't heard anything definite. That is, I haven't heard anything from anyone coming out of Himar. It sounds like a large meteor hit the region though, from the talk of an explosion."

Roho chews thoughtfully. He swallows, "I wonder if I'll see any casualties from there… "

Envoy says, "It's an awfully long distance to bring wounded. But I don't know if the Nordikans have sent any relief ships to Himar yet either."

"… Most of you, I see, are TRUE Jupani. You're the only ones who CARE. The rest of them just think we're savages, and good riddance… " the lone Jupani's ranting continues in the background.

There are a few growls and barks from the crowd. Many of the non-Jupani near the scene are quietly departing.

Roho nods, "I suppose it is… "

Envoy listens to the speaker with one ear, then asks Roho, "Do you give any credence to the rumor that the event was really a secret weapons test? I didn't think Sinai had the heavy metals needed to produce a fission chain reaction. Could a magic weapon cause a big explosion?"

Roho chuckles at Envoy, "You ask me? How would I know explosives? All I know is the effects small ones have on people."

Envoy says, "You know more than I do about this world though. Anyroad, I don't see how such a weapon could be created by the Temple today. And I doubt that magic could pull down a small asteroid from the Procession.""

A Jupani in garb of green and brown points at Buran. "There! A Technopriest! SHE should know about the weapon! Make her speak! Tell the truth!"

Turning at the shout, Envoy tries to spot the Technopriest.

Roho starts to say something, then closes his mouth at the new commotion…

At the far side of the gathering, some Jupani Guards are involved in a bit of a scuffle with some of the more unruly Jupanis in the crowd. It looks more like a push-and-shove contest right now.

Buran instincts kick in. Those Jupani certainly don't sound friendly. Her eyes survey the distance between herself and them. Hopefully, there's time to run … "Oh, Dagh!" she mutters.

Roho hums, "Envoy? What's going on?"

A couple of the bolder Jupanis lope over toward Buran. "Come here, I say!" growls one. The other just makes snarling noises that must be a language other than Rephidim Standard.

Envoy blinks and watches things degenerate… "I'm not sure. It appears to be a mob reaction of some sort. I've noticed that large groups can suddenly mobilize with a common purpose, especially if it is an irrational one."

Roho nods, "Great. Yes, I've seen it too." He stands quickly, and approaches Buran from the other side, not knowing she can fly safely away. He calls out, "Ma'am, do you need help?"

Envoy heads towards the main cluster of the mob, trying to distract them by calling out, "Wait! Stop!" in Jupani.

Buran is focused on the Jupani, knowing that the slightest slip could result in her being captured … or worse. She's only aware of the approaching fennec to the extent that she doesn't crash into him as she launches herself into the air. A cloud of dust swirls where she stood a moment before.

The two approaching Jupani stop, one of them watching the departing Technopriest, and shouting curses in Jupani after her. The other just growls at no one in particular, looking for someone to focus his anger on.

Envoy waves her arms in the air, shouting, "Listen! You're being irrational! It is more likely that a piece of the Procession hit the Himar than that the Temple bombed it!"

Buran circles above, well out of reach of the Jupani but continuing to observe.

The bulk of the crowd has devolved into infighting. A few Jupani Guards that had the misfortune to arrive early upon the scene are being beat upon.

However, the mob is certainly not unified in purpose. Since the bulk of those involved are wolves, it's hard to tell who's on one "side" or the other … and given that a few lupines are indiscriminately punching anyone in reach, it would seem that some simply don't care.

The elderly Jupani who called for contributions earlier rushes over to Envoy, stumbling as he tries to hobble and skip with little aid from his cane. "Envoy! Envoy, the Exile!"

Pausing in mid shout, Envoy turns to the Jupani calling her name. "Yes, I'm Envoy… "

Buran's mind calls up the fact that there was someone behind her, someone who offered help. She surveys the area from the sky, hoping that whomever it was has not been attacked by the maddened Jupani.

The elderly Jupani says, "Please … you have ties with the Temple, but you are also a bard, and with your time in prison, no one sane would accuse you of being their lackey. Can you turn them from this insanity?"

Envoy frowns in frustration, "I'm trying, but I don't know how to get their attention! What will reach through the madness to their pack instincts?"

The elderly Jupani pauses, frowning. "Short of brute force, the offer of large quantities of meat, or loud frightening noises, I haven't an idea, I'm sorry to say." He looks to the sky. "Maybe the Lancers will arrive soon."

Taking a deep, deep breath, Envoy uses her two voices to let out as loud a howl as she can.

The elderly Jupani YELPS, dropping his cane as he claps his hands over his ears, being so close to "ground zero".

Envoy prepares for a second howl as she checks to see if she has the mob's attention yet.

A few of the more sensitive-eared Jupanis whine loudly, momentarily distracted from their melee. Some are starting to look toward Envoy – if not because of pain from the noise, out of simple curiosity.

Envoy figures she has enough of an audience, and uses her voices to berate the mob. "Is this how you counter the image of savagery?! Is this how you honor your dead?! The future of your culture and tribal lines depends on YOU now! Set an example your cubs can be proud of!"

A couple of Jupanis frozen in the middle of grabbing each other and readying to knock each other senseless whimper at Envoy's scolding and reluctantly let go of each other.

At least one, though, does not let go of his anger so easily. "An example? What, by being the lackeys of the Temple? Their cannon fodder for their wars? Ha!" The Jupani in question is not wearing a Guard uniform, as it is.

Envoy calls out, "The Temple is not your enemy! Who is going to help you rebuild if not them? Who depends more on your goodwill than them? Who has helped your people rise to positions of power and respect if not them?" Staring straight at the dissenter now, Envoy asks, "And what reason would they have to attack your homeland?"

The Jupani clenches his fists, his ears flattening back. There is a relative silence, and then the best he can retort with is, "EXILE! BRAINWASHED BY THE TEMPLE! TRAITOR!" He charges the Aeolun, snarling fiercely.

Meanwhile, Buran continues her aerial survey, listening to Envoy's speech. If the Temple doesn't know of this unrest already, they certainly will want to know. She's also beginning to wonder what happened to the owner of that sympathetic voice. She hasn't caught any indication of anyone. Perhaps it was a creation of her mind, rather than anyone in the here-and-now.

Envoy stands her ground and crosses her arms. "And you are a coward who cannot bear the responsibility of recovering from disaster!"

The snarling Jupani, unfazed by Envoy's gesture of bravery in the face of attack, closes in on her, fangs bared…

Envoy has time to raise one arm up to protect her head and neck, and tries to drop down below the wild charge.

With a bestial roar, the Jupani slashes savagely at Envoy. Fortunately, her defensive posture saves her neck and face from being slashed, but she is severely wounded as she is thrown down. The elderly Jupani cries out, flailing feebly with his cane at Envoy's attacker. "Help! SOMEONE!"

Envoy cries out as she's mauled, beating her wings ineffectually at her attacker.

The grizzled white wolf, his eyepatch torn off to reveal a sunken eyelid, shouts, "Idiots! She's defenseless and being ripped to shreds! If you won't help her, then THIS old salt will!" With that, he dashes over toward Envoy, joining the old man.

Buran quickly catches sight of the brawl. She stretches her arms in front of her (and forming a single fist with her hands), then tilts into a dive, aiming at the Jupani – perhaps he'll be knocked off of Envoy long enough to let her get away.

Envoy's attacker is knocked off balance, trying to fend off the mostly ineffectual blows of the two old Jupanis, and then the unexpected attack from above. He is knocked rolling away from Envoy … just in time for a loose collection of Jupanis (many of them bashing at each other moments ago) who dogpile him.

Buran looks hastily around, hoping she won't get jumped by more Jupani, then turns her attention to Envoy. "Are you all right?"

Envoy tries to use her wings to help her stand, but her torn legs give out and she crumples back to the ground.

"I need to stop the bleeding," the battered Exile replies to the Technopriest.

The one-eyed white Jupani tears strips off of his already tattered shirt. "Here. Ah … what do I do?" He seems to have lost much of his accent that he typically has in the Bazaar…

"Wrap these around those cuts, make sure they're tight. Keep pressure on them," Buran replies as she tears the shirt into long, narrow strips of fabric. "Can't let her lose too much blood."

Roho comes running back, with two guards following, "It was in the park… I fear there may be bloodshed… "

The one-eyed Jupani fumbles along to Buran's instructions. The elder, meanwhile, starts applying his cane to some of the Jupani roughs nearby. "All right! Stop acting like puppies, the lot of you!"

Roho comes upon the scene, "Sweet merciful… " He shakes his head, "Tell me what happened later. Let's get her out of here." He points at Buran, and the elderly Jupani, "Can you help me bring her? It's not far to my place… "

The Guards pick up their pace a bit more, once the bloodshed is more immediately evident. A few Vartans descend upon the scene and start rounding up those not fast enough to flee.

The elder spares the "puppies" further application of his cane. "Ah … yes … I'll do my best here." He does this by shouting at some cowering Jupani nearby. "You heard him! HELP the poor girl! And stop licking your wounds, when she's got far more than YOU do!"

Envoy grimaces at being picked up. Pain is very distracting, and makes it hard for her to focus on what's going on around her.

Roho hisses softly between his teeth, "Gently… are there any flat boards around?"

A resourceful Jupani rips off the "No Howling After Sunset" sign, painted in such nice big broad letters. "Here," he barks, dragging it over. It's just big enough to hold Envoy.

Buran gently carries Envoy to the makeshift backboard, carefully laying her on it so that her wings won't be smashed (a painful thing.) She makes sure that the makeshift bandages are still tight, and admonishes her Jupani helper to maintain the pressure.

Makah just nods nervously, complying.

Roho helps get Envoy loaded onto the makeshift stretcher, and leads the way, "It's just up this rise… I'll go on ahead, and get things set, but you can't miss it." He runs ahead of the group, to unlock and prepare for a patient.

Inside Roho's hospital, Envoy is resting on one of the beds, surrounded by friends – and some sympathetic strangers.

Vielanika worries the wide rim of her hat. "I'm so sorry, Envoy! I didn't realize you were in danger!"

Roho works diligently on Envoy, carefully setting her ribs. He's overcome the initial shock of her stopped wounds, but has placed some powdered root in them anyways, to bind them more cleanly. He is assisted by the Technopriestess silently for the moment… the whole room seems strangely quiet, as the exile is worked on.

Envoy winces as her ribs complain, thinking of how much it will cost to replace her torn clothing. "That's okay, Vielanika. I'm sure more people would have been hurt if there was a riot. I'll be okay in a few days."

Roho shakes his head, chuckling softly as he finishes with the ribs, "You never cease to amaze me, Envoy." He turns to his impromptu assistant, "Are you the one they nearly attacked? You seem quite capable in the medical arts… "

Buran looks up from carefully adjusting a fresh, clean bandage on Envoy's arm. "I studied the art in Chronotopia," she explains. "I've used the skill more times than I'd like."

Roho chuckles softly, "I guess you're not for hire, then?" He tilts his head, "Was that you in the park?"

"It was. Did you call out? I'm sure I heard… " The Sphynx immerses another bandage in disinfectant, then clips it up on a line to dry.

Roho nods, "I did… you nearly scared the life out of me when you launched! I got the guards then, you seemed fine, I've never met a flying Jupani." He paws lightly at one particularly deep gash, "I think this one might need a little extra care. I still don't know how the bleeding stopped so fast, Envoy."

"My cells regenerate quickly," the Exile says. "They produce gibberlin proteins… uh… nevermind."

Buran passes a disinfected bandage (a dry one this time) to the fennec. "Jupani?" She tilts her head a bit. "Not quite." She smiles ruefully, then realizes the gesture will be lost and instead tries to put the smile into the tone of her voice. "I've never met a Jupani that flies, either."

Roho bandages Envoy, "Well, whatever it is, you're lucky to have it."

Envoy watches the two healers work, and thinks about an exercise schedule to rebuild her muscle tone. The new tissue she generates will be weak and unconditioned initially.

"I hope this incident does not reflect poorly on the Jupani," Envoy says into the momentary silence.

Roho sighs, and shrugs, "Not a heck of a lot else I can do… you did most of the work yourself, Envoy!" He towels off his paws, "Now… who else is bearing the scars of an exciting night?"

A timid-looking Titanian holds up a finger with a scratch on it. "I have an ouchie."

Envoy tries to stand up, depending on the bandages to help support her legs.

Roho nods, and gets his largest obsidian scalpel, "I wish I still had that alcohol, because this is sure going to hurt… "

Buran shakes her head at Envoy. "No, please. Don't get up yet. You'll only make your injuries worse."

Envoy wobbles, and then lays back down as Buran instructs.

The Sphynx spares a momentary glance toward Roho and the Titanian while checking Envoy's dressings. "Do you have any family who should know of this?" she inquires.

Envoy blinks three times at Buran. "I am an Exile, so I don't have any family. The Temple should be notified though, since they are supposed to be keeping tabs on my activities to make sure I stay out of trouble."

Buran sighs. "Trouble you've certainly found today. Do you know who is in charge of your case? Even though it's not my usual assignment, I'll make sure the proper people are informed. I would advise that you stay here for a few days." She washes disinfectant from her hands. "To make sure you heal."

Envoy nods to Buran. "Inquisitor Zeffel is the one to notify. I'll rest until I'm recovered, Buran. Thank you for your concern."

Buran inquires of Roho if there's anything more she can do here. Otherwise, she'll head back to the Temple (presumably to talk to Inquisitor Zeffel.)

Envoy closes her eyes and sleeps to preserve energy while her body heals.