If you are interested in what Shrett “got up to” whilst he was with the Sottogh, most of this is information that Shrett will have disclosed/discussed with his friends.
Groad had been pushing him hard, Shrett could feel that, but the maneuvers and style of the cautious fighting Girenois style were starting to feel second nature to him. The formation fighting that Fraud had once taught him was fading from his muscle memory, and a good thing too. That was a style more suited to fighting in lines of combat, as part of an army, and did not fit either what he had been, nor what he was becoming. He had shown Groad the style when they started, but it would soon be little more than tactical knowledge and memory, no longer a part of how he fought or who he was.
The blade twisted as it rotated around his defences and the flat of Groad's blade slapped against the back of his thigh, breaking his train of thought. Focusing once again on the fight, and only on the fight, Shrett timed Groad's movements and as Groad stepped out of his range, Shrett took two quick steps backwards, allowing him to open the distance sufficiently to withdraw from the combat.
Groad grinned, “You still think too much, but you timed it well.”
Shrett paused at the grove of old twisted trees concealing the deep hole within which the trees' roots descended into the dark, muddy, rocky depths. When last he had entered here, he had quite literally been a different man, and it gave him a brief pause as the horror and torture he had suffered in the Psychetheca Everlasting resurfaced in his mind.
Firmly pushing those memories aside, Shrett focused on what was before him. Groad, Gertrude, Tusynta, and all three of the Sottogh elders would be waiting below. He had to come to them alone. This was to be his commitment, to step off one path and onto a different path, a path upon which he would share the challenges that the Sottogh would face, not only as a friend, but as one of them. He climbed down to the swampy mud below and walked down the flooded tunnel to the deep shadowed cave at the end. Before the central pool and rune-carved stone plinth upon which sat the Elder Head of Sottogh, stood those awaiting him.
“I come before the Elders of the Sottogh to make a gifting and a sacrifice. To avow my commitment to the clan, for I have but recently been born to the Sottogh.” Those before him watched in impassive silence as Shrett turned to Groad, “This is a weapon of the sky from the realm of the Gods. I gift this to you.” and Shrett gives Groad the Skybow. Shrett turns to Ilk and offering her a slender black mushroom, says, “I know only what boon it grants, not what possible side effects it might cause and I would entrust it to the wisdom of the Elders” Still standing before Ilk, Shrett motions for Gertrude to step forth as he passes a small sack over to both Ilk and Gertrude, “This is rice seed from the realm of the gods. I hope that it might help the Sottogh. It is a new thing that should be tempered by wisdom. I entrust it to you both” Ilk and Gertrude look at each other with a certain amount of wariness and tension, but they take the sack and step back. Finally Shrett looks around and then kneels in the mud to the side, “Tusynta, You birthed me into the Sottogh. I cannot repay that, and so I make this paltry offering” and Shrett carefully draws his dagger blade across his hand, and as the blood drips into the mud, he focuses his mind and allows a portion of his power to merge with the blood. The mud quivered and swirled and Tusynta's grinning face formed as the blood and power swirled and disappeared (Gift of 10 magic points)
Standing once again Shrett looks towards Elder Starg, and then to the Runed Head of Sottogh and he kneels in respect “I am Girenois. I am recently born to the Sottogh. Yet there are things that tie me to what I was.” Shrett takes his Grimoire out of the sack, “I have no taste for books anymore” and he sets it down on the ground and begins to build a small fire around it. It takes a minute or two, whilst the others watch, and then, without pause or remorse, Shrett sets it alight and moves back a step to watch it burn. The flames lick through the pages and a tiny breeze fans the flames into a small blaze as the Grimoire is fully consumed.
Shrett seems less burdened now, prepared to embrace a different way of life, as he awaits the Elders.
Elder Ilk is the first to step forward, “I have suffered under the evil children of Doyang Likite. You too have suffered. This is good.” Elder Starg steps forward next, “You give to the clan. You give to the Girenois. You give to Granno. This is good.” Finally, the Head of Sottogh speaks, “You sacrifice that which we hold anathema. You give up your ties to the evil sorcery of the lands of the evil king who wears the serpent crown. You might have a chance to learn of Tanosh, Ever-Youthful Lord of the Red River, but there is much else that you must learn first. You are a child of the Sottogh. Groad seeks to make you a warrior. I will watch you” The glowing eyes of the Head of Sottogh look uncomfortably long at Shrett.
After giving up his Grimoire, Shrett spent 3 days in contemplation and prayer, becoming re-invigorated by the power of the Blue moon. Rising from his prayer, he returns to speak with Groad, “You have been as a father to me, since my rebirth from Tusynta's mud.” “I have something that I must do, and I wish to ask for your help, but I do not know if you may give it.” “I have made a promise to find he who was my father before my rebirth or to discover what has happened to him.” “Granno's path follows Law, and I would follow Granno, and so I will, I must keep this promise and endure the consequences.” “I will not ask for your help in this, but I would need advice.” Shrett falls silent and awaits Groad's response. Groad sits impassive, then rises to his feet, picks up his bow says “Wait” before leaving the hut.
Time passes before Groad returns. He looks at Shrett and finally responds “There is but one family that can embrace you. Tusynta reminds me that your old father is a Penjang, hated by Granno's family. Tanosh rid the land of their kind. The advice is to make a choice. You may leave the Sottogh, cutting your fresh bonds with us and becoming adrift as a clanless Giranois, making what choices you wish from then onwards. Or you may leave your old father and any others to the past, cutting those old bonds. What happened to that one is no matter to you now. Or, if you seek to truly follow the way of Tanosh, you would hunt your old father and rid the land of him. There is no way back once a choice has been made; this is the Law of Granno.” He stares at you with intense seriousness. Shrett sits in shock as the Secret unfolds in his mind. As his memories return, memories of the revelations of the hunt revealing that his father was a Penjang and the consequential trip to visit elder Useless; memories of the slaughter and the beast within his father; and finally his memories of Rinda, the young girl who was mauled to within an inch of her life, the girl whose life he was only barely able to save. Conflict rose within him, feelings fighting with each other as his mind fell into turmoil. Out of the turmoil, a core of resolve grew within him, what happened to Rinda was wrong, what could happen to Micaela should his father live was too horrid to contemplate. It was a hard choice, the hardest he had ever had to make, and yet it was no choice at all.
Shrett sighed, “The beetles of the Dark women hid that secret from me. It was needful to know it now.” Resolve steels itself within his expression, “It is harsh, but this is a harsh land and demands much of its people. I must follow Tanosh's path. I must Hunt.” Groad sits down and taking out a stone he starts sharpening is blade. A couple of minutes pass in silence. Groad seems slightly uncomfortable as he says, “I will be leading a hunting/scouting party to the south, leaving tomorrow morning.” Shrett, realising that this is an offer of help, as least as far as Groad can offer, asks “May I accompany you whilst our paths happen to run together” Groad nods without looking up, “You might speak to Tusynta.”
Shrett nods to himself, and leaves the hut to seek out Tusynta. It does not take long and Shrett sits down next to the muddy earth. Tusynta's grinning toothy face speaks “Hello my lovely. You seek me. What is it that you need?” Shrett heart is heavy but his resolve is adamant as he replies “I have a thing that I must do, and I would ask for your advice. I must find he who was my father before my rebirth. You bought me into the Sottogh with the little that remained of what I was. Are you able to trace that link back to locate he who was once my father should he still be on Giraine.” Tusynta's voice carries grim motherly concern as she replies, “No child, that is beyond me”, she pauses and is quiet for a few moments before she musses “However, there might be something”, and a small mud-brown toad climbs out of her mud and into Shrett's lap, “This is a mud toad, and with it I can be with you in a limited way, and should you get close enough to the one you seek, it can direct you. It will need a drop of your blood and your sorb every day to maintain it.” Tusynta continues “We ask much of you. I too require something of you. I require your Word, your promise, that you will aid the land, that you will protect Quicksister in her conflict with Umbrodriith” There is an odd inflection in her voice as she says the word protect, it obviously carries more meaning with it. Shrett considers her request carefully, more aware of the weight of promises after his experiences in the underworld, before he nods “I can do that. I give you my Word, my promise, that I will aid the land, that I will protect Quicksister in her conflict with Umbrodriith.” Tusynta's form moves up and engulfs Shrett's arm, before he feels teeth sinking into his arm, drawing blood, and something slides into his mind before she withdraws. “I have heard your Word given. You will need my gift sooner than you think.” and with that Tusynta sinks into the dark earth. Shrett tries to figure out what just happened and comes to realise that Tusynta has left something is his mind, a gift, the simple magic of 'Understand Toads'. The tiny mud toad in his lap grins with sharp pointy teeth.
Over a period of several days, Shrett had noticed one of the Sottogh working with the shell of some beetle, shaping it into a shield. Today he walked over to the craftsman, and crouched before them, “I'm Shrett”. The craftsman nodded briefly and the silence stretched out, before they responded “I'm Nird” Shrett nodded and then pulled out a Giant ant stinger and placed it before Nird. “This could be something useful. I do not have the skill to make it so. You do.” And then Shrett stands and walks away.
In due time, an up-and-coming Sottogh warrior named Lurt wields this stinger on his spear tip, and gives you a slightly prolonged nod of vague appreciation the first time you then cross paths. (Maybe you've made a friend or ally?)
Shrett's mind was deeply troubled. He had made the decision that he had had to make, but it was hard, and the reasons and consequences swirled through his head as he went over every step of the logic and reasoning. He found no flaw in what he had reasoned, leaving the unavoidable consequence, that the best way for him to protect his sister was to let her go. Even the thought of it hurt, but there was no other choice, no other path before him, not if he wanted to remain true to himself, true to that adamant core within him. Shrett cried silently for an indeterminate time, suffering quietly, as was needful and RIGHT.
Later, attempting to settle his mind with familiar craftswork, Shrett crafted a suit of lamellar armor inspired and modelled on his old sharkskin armor. Looking over it, he determined it to be good work, though far from the work of a master, he still had a while to go before his skills would be sufficient for that.
They had left on the scouting trip a few days ago. Last night as they made camp Shrett had made use of Tusynta's gift of understanding and had spoken with the mud toad. The little mud toad had given a croaking whisper, “The old father of the dead man has been troubling the lands of wall-men. Baron Raduard has called in the Fabulous Hunting Troupe to deal with him. Know them by their bull on wheels.” The next day they continued scouting towards the West, heading uphill towards the cliffs bordering the Fosnoir, the ruins of the Evracian monastery to the south. Shrett spoke with the other hunters asking about the situation around the border of the occupying forces and the area to the south, but obtained little else other than vague details of enemy forces gathered around the line of occupation. That evening, Shrett again spoke with his tiny toad, “Tusynta, if you can hear me, are you able to pass a message to our Friends. Last I know, they were headed to the area to the northern part of Good Toad Food. Let them know that I need their help and that it also involves striking a blow against Baron Raduard.”
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