When they said that Roho would be traveling the latter part of the journey by "carriage", it turns out that they didn't mean some wheeled buggy pulled along by Drokars or Dromodons. No, it's a covered carriage lined from floor to seat to walls to ceiling in plush cushions, borne by a team of oversized birds of prey known as rakhtors. Some sort of complicated cage of springs and pulleys serves to cushion the ride, but the occasional push and pull of the lines running from the carriage to the separate rakhtors causes the carriage to bob and sway ever so slightly … especially when the rakhtors beat their wings to gain altitude.

Fresh air coming in through the window grills carries scents of tree sap and stagnant pools and muddy streams and wild plants and wilder animals … along with the occasional chirp of a bird or the cry of a chibix. All in all, it sounds and smells like Roho is being ferried over the lowland wilderness, having long since left Babel and the mountains. By the presence of the bat-like (and quite nocturnal) chibix as well as the morning songs of the birds, it must be just on the verge of dawn.

Roho has had the carriage all to himself, and the freedom to lounge about as he pleases. The carriage interior seems to be fairly cleverly designed, as the cushioned panels can be popped open to reveal storage cubbyholes where Roho can store personal items … while others reveal fold-out tables and supplies of food and other comforts. The carriage has made several stops along the way at settlements, for Roho to get a chance to stretch his legs and take care of other concerns that can't be dealt with in the air, and just in case there's a problem, there's a pull-chain that somehow serves to alert Roho's flying escort that he needs to land. And, if worse comes to worst, there's even a compartment that conceals an emergency parasail.

There were even a few books included … at first thought, hardly of any use to the fennec, but upon examination, they proved to have been written in large letters in a thick ink that dries in such a way as to make the letters rise noticeably from the page. There were some dry medical texts, a book on local flora and herbal remedies (knowledge that Roho was already well aware of), a rather sordid "poetry" book of Psalms to the Goddess Inala, and some works of fiction in which it seems nearly impossible to determine just who the "good guy" (or gal) might possibly be, what with all the double-crossing and back-stabbing going on.

Roho slowly runs a finger over one of the medical texts, having given up on the others a while back. It's slow going, as it's harder to read than one of the alphabets made specifically for the blind. He leans back against the cushions, relaxing, unused to such luxury, but not about to complain!

The carriage jostles a little. It's hard to tell for certain, but it feels like it usually does when the craft is about to land for a break. It's early in the morning, which isn't usually when one of the stops is scheduled.

Roho stretches, putting the book down carefully to avoid creasing the pages. He stands up, sniffing the air as he feels his back pop loudly. "Rrf!"

The carriage wobbles a bit more … and the wing-beats of the rakhtors make it jostle even more, as the carriage slowly comes to a landing on solid ground. It then stops wiggling, and the giant birds can be heard touching down outside.

Roho waits until the movement stops, and then tries the door. He could use a little walking.

The door pops open. Outdoorsy sounds and scents reach the fennec. Most certainly, the carriage has not touched down in a city this time.

Roho's nose picks up the faint smell of smoke. It brings back memories … of the scent of the woods just outside Master Zahirinee's cottage, and the placid pool nearby.

Roho smiles as he scents the air. He hopes he's not mistaken, and that his journey's over. Old bones tire quickly. He stretches again, and hops down to the ground. He calls out, "Hello? Anyone here?"

An Eeee lands nearby, and Roho can hear some panels popping open on the carriage, as his things are set out. "Master Roho, will you be needing anything else before we depart?"

Roho shakes his head, making sure he has his staff and the medical supplies he brought. "That should be everything, thank you."

Jingling bells ring, dangling from a top of a walking staff, as someone else approaches the carriage. A surprisingly deep, yet distinctively Eeee, voice calls out, "Doctor Roho! Welcome back."

Roho smiles, "Master Zahirinee! It has been a while. It is good to hear you again." He carefully makes his way in the direction of the voice.

"Ah! Careful. Watch your step. There's a bed of flowers there. Here … I'll come over to you, and walk with you." The voice moves as the seer speaks, until he's next to Roho. "I foresaw that I would have an early visitor, but not the reason for your visit. Is it connected to the upcoming ritual?"

Roho nods, staying still until he's able to be escorted by the elder bat. "Yes, it's for the ritual. Mage Scarlet has had some misfortune of late, and Prince Boghaz thought it prudent to assign a healer to watch over her, should the unexpected arise."

"She will be coming as well? I am quite surprised, considering what I have heard of her travails. And I did not foresee her arrival." The seer pauses, then starts walking toward the cottage, his jingling staff making an easy audio mark to follow. "But then, perhaps there is some secrecy involved."

Roho nods. "I fear there may be. That is not my concern, though, for which I am grateful… They just use me as a healer. They leave the politics to the politicians!" He smiles. "And I suspect you have little use for politics, as well, Master Zahirinee."

"Quite so," agrees Master Zahirinee, "though I'm afraid that I seem to be at the center of it. There was a bit of a 'fuss', you might say, after the incident that disrupted the use of my scrying pool. The College Esoterica of Babel was quick to point the finger of blame not only at Mage Windcaller, but at the entire School of Air in the College Esoterica of Rephidim."

"In turn, the College Esoterica of Rephidim insisted that they would solve the problem … and simply wouldn't hear of any Babelites helping out. It wouldn't be fair to impose on them, after all. And it just went downhill from there, with posturing left and right." Zahirinee lets out a weary sigh.

Roho sighs, "As if the blame is important. Probably if they'd left it behind them, the pool would be fixed by now." He grins. "Perhaps we older ones just don't have thetime for the posturing and back-stabbing anymore."

Master Zahirinee laughs weakly. "Yes. I've noticed just how long it has taken for these plans to finally be worked out. And I wonder just what sort of maneuvering was done to convince them to have Mage Scarlet take part in this. Last I heard, she was bouncing back and forth between the realm of the dead and the living. I would think that a rest would be in order before taking on a ritual of this magnitude. But… " He pauses, no doubt making some sort of gesture. "Far be it from me to question the wisdom of the powers that be."

Roho nods his head. He changes topic slightly. "When do you expect the others? I wasn't certain whether they would be arriving before or after me."

"You are the first to arrive, as you might guess from the quiet. That won't last terribly long. The others should be arriving throughout the day." A door pops open. "Would you care to come inside for a bit? I can have Skiree see to putting away your things. I won't be able to play host to the entire host of mages that will be visiting, but I would be most honored to make your stay comfortable while you wait." He sighs, then remarks, "I hope that there won't be any Earth Mages showing off by trying to reshape the local rock into houses for the mages, or something extravagant like that."

Roho chuckles softly, "From the mages I met, it may indeed be a worry… They seemed rather proud of their prowess." He smiles, entering as he is invited. "Thank you, I will accept your hospitality with gratitude. I hope the others don't arrive too quickly, I am curious as to what has happened out here since I left."

The seer stops. "Skiree. Please put those back. (ahem) Now then … Doctor Roho has come visiting, and – "

"ROHO!" squeaks a little bat. A buffeting breeze reaches the fennec before a little bat does, hugging his leg. "Doctor Roho! It's been SO long!"

Roho yowps! as the bat gloms on to his leg. He grins, and makes a mock-shaking motion with the leg. "I seem to have been attacked! How will I ever get this off?" He reaches down to pat the batling, "It has been a while, little Skiree… How is your training coming?"

Skiree giggles eagerly at the play-along, then squeaks, "Oh! Just fine! Oh! I have a new spell to show you. Okay … hold still… "

"Skiree… " begins the seer, but he quiets, as Skiree starts chanting.

Roho turns to Zahirinee. "This won't cause any permanent damage, will it?" He winks, and then turns his attention back to the little bat holding still.

Zahirinee says, "Most assuredly not. Right, Skiree?"

Skiree finishes her chant with "Bloo!" Then she giggles. "Tada! I just turned you blue!"

Roho hmms. "Well, it's a change I wouldn't notice, though I'm sure others will appreciate the change! They always tell me I should dress more colorfully. I just have to take their word on it."

"Made you loo – Uhm… " Skiree sounds uncertain.

Roho ruffles Skiree's hair. "You did, trust me, I believed you!"

Zahirinee says, "Very impressive, Skiree. Now then, please see to anything left out where the sky carriage landed? Doctor Roho is going to be our guest."

Skiree squeaks happily, gives Roho's leg another hug. "Glad to see you again! I mean … yeah, I can see you! So, glad to see you. Be right back!" She zips off.

Roho chuckles, shaking his head. "Some things sure don't change."

"No, actually, they do. She hasn't hit anyone with her blowgun for quite some time, and she's coming along rather well in her studies," comments the seer. "I have high hopes for her. She may even have enough potential to tackle a double-sphere someday."

Roho ohs? "Sounds like she has quite a lot of potential. And she has a refreshingly innocent attitude… Many mages in training are haughty at that age."

"And it hampers their development. Yes. She has a very open view of the world. I envy her at times, really." Zahirinee's staff stops, and he taps on a low cushion-chair. "Care for a seat? Although I imagine you've been sitting for most of your trip as it is."

Roho smiles. "Well, yes I have, but somehow there's something different about sitting in a home from sitting in a vehicle." He takes a seat on the low cushion.

Zahirinee sits down as well. "Ah. I do not travel much, but I can certainly agree with that sentiment. So … what have you done with yourself, all this time? I'm afraid I haven't much to say about my life. It's rather slow … calm around here. With the exception of Skiree's training, of course."

Roho chuckles softly. "Um. Well, I've been a little busy. Been banished from Babel, helped discover a new land, started a hospital, and been re-welcomed to Babel. It's been a strange year."

Zahirinee laughs lightly. "You ran through that summary so quickly. Surely there's a little more to the story than just that? You might as well have told me, 'Oh, nothing. I discovered how to bring the dead to life, I married a Queen of an alternate dimension, and then I fought a couple of wars.'"

Roho laughs. "That may have been less stressful. I don't like to bore with long tales. But if you would like more detail, I would be happy to give it."

"Please! Unless it's anything personal and painful, that is," amends the seer.

Roho smiles. "No, it isn't." He sits back in the cushion, "Well, shortly after I left you, as you saw in your pool, I went to the Sabaoth as a healer. My remedies helped him quite a lot, but I got embroiled in some politics around Prince Boghaz and his chosen wife. I saved the young Prince's life, at the price of banishment on pain of death."

"Ah yes. I caught that part. Even out here, and that didn't require magic to learn of. You're quite well known in these parts now, you know," comments Zahirinee.

Roho continues, "From there, I was taken to Rephidim with the exiled prince. I was offered to join an expedition, to a paquebot that had been deserted. There, we met a new species of undersea life."

Roho pauses in his story, "Oh? I'm not sure if I want to know, but… well known in a good way or a bad way? I'm sure there are many who would hate me either for what I did for the Sabaoth, or for Prince Boghaz."

"Oh, in a good way. Of course, you're still a bit controversial, but you have a reputation for being trustworthy, honest, not having any ulterior motives … quite alien to Babelite culture, really, but it's an asset all the same," remarks the seer.

Roho chuckles. "I would say it's common to Zerda culture, but my race is so small it's really hard to say." He smiles. "It's good to know that at least I probably won't risk being waylaid for a personal vendetta on the road."

Roho continues, "Anyways, after the paquebot, I joined another expedition. The details of this one are somewhat secret, so I won't say much, but I came back from it with some new herbal medicines, and a healthy sum of money. With those funds, I started a hospital in Rephidim's Darkside, for treating the less-fortunate."

"Oh no," says Zahirinee. "The worst that might happen is that someone might kidnap you and hold you for ransom, or perhaps try to coerce you into taking advantage of someone's trust in order to get close to strike a killing blow – or the equivalent – from where it would be least expected. I can't imagine anyone simply wanting to harm you for vengeance's sake."

"Oh, really? That sounds fairly bold," remarks Zahirinee. "I understand that Darkside can be rather dangerous."

Roho chuckles. "Well, for ransom I would guess I'm not worth enough to any one person to be a profitable target, and I wouldn't take advantage of a patient's trust." He nods. "It can be. We've been left alone, aside from the isolated incident, though. I suspect it may be partially because we treat a lot of the poor living there for very little money. Even criminals generally know better than to bite the hand that feeds them. Or cures them. And we're naturally very careful with security."

Roho rasps, "It was around this time that Prince Boghaz began regaining some measure of power. At first, he just supported my hospital with money and equipment, which have been immeasurably valuable. Then, when the political climate would accept it, he invited me back to Babel." He spreads his fingers in a there-you-are gesture. "And that brings me to here."

"Really. Well, it sounds like you've gone through the depths and come to the heights, then. Quite an adventure," suggests the seer. "And, I imagine, things should get fairly interesting with so many mages converging on this spot. Despite the austere images they present to the public … having this many mages of rival Spheres together in one place is almost certain to tempt them to use a little more showmanship than is necessary while they're waiting around for the 'big event'. Best keep on your toes."

Roho nods, frowning slightly, "I was afraid of that. I mean no offense, but I don't particularly like magic … and the amount of it being tossed around seems to grow much faster than the number of mages getting involved. I will be careful."

"Your caution is well understood. Magic is not to be taken lightly … but it often is, even by those who should know better." Zahirinee sighs.

The front door bursts open. "I'm back!" squeaks Skiree.

Roho nods. "It is used to show one's prowess." He smiles to Skiree. "Welcome back! Why, we were just talking about you!" He grins at Zahirinee.

Skiree pauses. "Oh? I'm not in trouble, am I?"

Roho smiles. "No, no, we were just discussing the guests who will be arriving later."

"No, no … just … put those in the extra room, would you, Skiree? Doctor Roho is about to meet more mages than he probably has ever cared to, and I'd like to see that he has a chance to recover from his journey before they start arriving," Zahirinee instructs.

"All right!" squeaks Skiree. "Be right back!" And she rushes off yet again.

Roho listens to the squeaky flappy departure. "Where does she get the energy?"

Outside, Roho catches the sound of rakhtor cries. Another sky carriage, no doubt, since rakhtors don't typically hunt in flocks.

Zahirinee laughs. "That, my friend, is a mystery that even my mystical arts cannot solve."

Roho laughs. "Well, if your pool ever tells you the answer, please let me know, so I can find some." His radar-ears quirk at the door, as he hears the beginning of the onslaught of mages.

Zahirinee, being an Eeee, picks it up as well. "Ah. Guests. Well … I shall go out and pay my respects. You're welcome to hide in here for as long as you like. It shall be some time before they all converge for the ritual, I'm sure. The Chaos Mages are almost always late."

Zahirinee laughs at himself. "That is, my experience with them is that they are rarely punctual. I assure you, I haven't entertained a gathering like this before, out here."

Roho chuckles and nods. "Well, I believe I may indeed remain in here for the moment, at least until Mage Scarlet arrives."

Zahirinee gets up and heads out the door, his staff ringing with each step. "Feel free to help yourself … and if you need anything … Skiree will see to it. Right, Skiree?"

"RIGHT, MASTER ZAHIRINEE!" calls out the young bat from one of the back rooms.

Roho chuckles softly. This is going to be a very interesting day, if nothing else.