[Rhizome]

Character Name: Rhizome
Current Level: 29
Experience Points to Next Level: Approximately 500,000
Character Update:
As slow as crabgrass creeping through the soil, Rhizome moves his gnarled and ancient yew branch behind his neck. It rests across his shoulders and supports his wrists, with fingers dangling loosely down the front. If it weren’t for his fleshy surface and somewhat raggedy clothes he’d look like some kind of shrub on the edge of a grove where some bipeds seemed to be gathering. <font size="3" />
He stands there quite naturally poised like the other things growing beyond the rim of the small clearing before him. A few more figures, elves, humans and halflings, barely leave marks in the dunes as they enter area. They become about 20 in all and slowly, quietly begin to talk amongst themselves. Collectively they create a sound that from the outside would be an anonymous murmur. As Rhizome begins to move, silence falls across the desert depression ringed by tall and twisting spine and brilliant yellow flower covered cactus. By the time the end of the branch presses against the sandy red rocks and Rhizome is leaning into it all are focused upon him. <font size="3" />
With a voice that sounds like whisper whipped up by the desert wind Rhizome begins to speak, “Thank you for coming and for your kind invitation. This is really the first time I’ve spoken publicly like this and one of my very first meetings as the Hierophant. So, please pardon me in advance if I don’t seem quite as practiced at this as you might like.” As he speaks these last few words he gazes at those gathered with an expression that signals analytical intentions. Then after a nearly uncomfortable pause he continues slowly, “It’s my understanding that at least some of you would like to know about my becoming Hierophant and about the knowledge and insight gained as a result of it.” He looks around and notices some scattered nodding. “I’ll do my best to satisfy,” and a comfortably coy smile creeps across his face. <font size="3" />
“The previous Hierophant,” he pauses to slowly draw breath in a gesture of reverence, “was in my arms as she passed.” Rhizome moves one of his arms out in a sort of hugging position. “She was ready for the passing, and I suspect had been for quite some time. She had spent much effort the last few years to prepare me to fill her position, to become her successor. We often reasoned with each other and shared our wisdom. I learned much from those encounters. She taught me how to see a more holistic order of things and a more nuanced connection between them all. I frequently sought her advice. Each time she taught me ways to think and how to trust my own wisdom rather than relying upon the understanding of others, including her own.” <font size="3" />
Swallowing hard, Rhizome reaches for a canteen which he slowly pours into his palm. He sips gingerly before looking up to the gathered. “Through our encounters I learned how to recognize what she called koya’anisqatsi, an ancient word, Tol’eflor I believe, meaning life out of balance. One specific conversation I recall is when she showed me that Eon was headed to Mistone in search of a lost Bloodpool there. The possibility that it come under his control and the destructive potential therein sent troubled waves throughout the flows of Nature which only she could perceive and clearly read. She taught me how to experience it, and now, from the position she was in, I understand it far more. I spread that warning I felt around and trust that some good came of it. I trust as well that such skills will serve us all before the end.” <font size="3" />
Rhizome looks at the space between his body and his still hugging arm and his eyes close momentarily. “She was in my arms when she passed. When she passed her will was released. It dissipated into the energy and flows of the world. I opened myself to those same flows. The whole of Nature rushed around me, through me and into me. I’ve felt similarly when merging with a forest or the previous times I meditated with the Great Oak. But this was more. It was more intense, more expansive, more holistic, more thorough, and more permanent. I had no fear of loosing myself in the flows this. My will was grounded and was my own. In some way I conducted the whole ensemble, yet really only existed in the spaces between. My will was my own, yet more than my own, for I also felt rooted in the wisdom of Hierophants past and perhaps future as I stepped into the space she left warm for me.” <font size="3" />
After looking around to measure reactions he continued on a bit more quickly now. “Yes, well, it is all very difficult to describe and explain. Perhaps a bard’d do more justice to the experience.” Then after responding in kind to a few nods he added, “I can also sense that some of you would like to return to discussing practical concerns. It’s true, as you have suspected, that from the merging of my personal consciousness into the Hierophant grew some insight and understanding. I’ll share some of that with you now. Certainly I cannot share everything. And like all living things my understanding continues to grow. Many present yet unformed thoughts I expect one day will bear fruit.” <font size="3" />
“One set of thoughts which is still forming concerns the future. I have seen several futures. In some of these futures druids will bask in Nature’s glory with positions of respect and honor. In others, druids will scramble and struggle for our very existence as individuals and as an organization. Interestingly, these latter visions don’t necessarily hinge on the defeat of Bloodstone. Even winning the war against Blood can propel us into a distressed and desperate state. That’s not so much because Nature will be mortally wounded by the final blows of the conflict. That part, sadly, seems somewhat inevitable. The Tol’eflor patriarch informed us of this when he said that a darkness will spread by the hands of the unknowing, and that some numbers of plants and animals will pass. We should realize, then, that our influence will only impact the devastation by degrees. <font size="3" />
“The deeper challenge, then, is to be ready for the devastation. For a time the world will fall to chaos. But we naturalists know that it is precisely chaos from which new order emerges. Such is the Nature of things. Such is the power of Balance. The cities, regions, and continents we know may be obliterated. But the earth will remain. And the rain will still fall. And the mists will still gather on the fields at rising of the sun. Stone walls may be razed and the fields left unplowed, but the so-called weeds will still creep. With seeds and saplings in our hands we will go to work spreading Nature, allowing a new Balance to evolve.” <font size="3" />
“As hard and cold as it may seem to think so, we must consider the confusion and destruction which follows as an opportunity, as a means to succession. But it can only be so if we are poised and flexible enough to fill the rolls which will emerge, roles whose details remain unforeseen. Thus, we need to rethink our organization. This should be no surprise as the ground for these thoughts are in many ways the similar calls I have heard over the years. It should therefore be a key objective of the druids to re-organize ourselves into a more efficient and effective organization. This is no criticism of those who have come before me. But at present we do not even know how many of us there are, who tends what or who to turn to for aid when in a particular region.” <font size="3" />
“As the Hierophant this is my privilege and responsibility. But I will not pursue it alone nor make decisions from on high. To rethink the way we work as a collective entity is, I believe, a collective endeavor. I expect many conversations to be the soil from which new understandings and new strategies will grow. Among us, can there be another way?” and he pauses to draw in a deep breath with an amusing smile. <font size="3" />
“I’ve also had a glimpse of a new philosophy and approach. Not so radically new, but significant in its subtleties. This new druid thinking has yet to come into focus, just a sprout now. All I can say is that its root is in the emphasis on Balance rather than the traditional focus on Nature. For many this will not be a change at all. But the implications for how we think and act in the world will be deep and vast. And as I said above, it will emerge in the encounter between us all. Once it does emerge and bask in the light, I believe it will not only be crucial for the health and growth of our organization, but for that of the world as well.” <font size="3" />
“There are some even more practical objectives I think we should focus upon. Linked to some thoughts spread around earlier, Nature can only thrive if the conditions are right. We may loose single plants and animals, we may even be forced to sacrifice some, but all will be lost if those conditions for life and growth are ripped away. In these times of trial it is those threats where we must direct most of our energies. In that vein, there are some places our close watch should never falter.” <font size="3" />
“As always we must defend and protect the Great Oak and now the Silver Vein Plant. The way we will do this, as always, is not for all of us to gather round it and wait for the impending attack. This will be my task and I will call you to my side when that threat mounts.” Rhizome looks off towards the horizon a moment to gather his thoughts and breathe a calming breath. “In fact, the attack is in progress as we speak, but is spread throughout the world, the same way the defense should be. The heart and the body are so thoroughly connected that when the lands of Layonara are distressed and decaying, the heart weakens. Likewise, when the lands of Layonara are vibrant and dynamic then the heart is bolstered as well. Thus, and again as always, we must do our everyday duties to ensure that life thrives. And we must always be prepared to dedicate ourselves to heal and correct those places where it does not.” <font size="3" />
“I know in my heart and have seen with my eyes that no troubled place is beyond hope. There have been many unnatural taint’s I have addressed in my years. One of the most notable was the ironic Lightbringer taint, orchestrated by Eon, Emerald the lich and the Black Sun, first avatar of Corath. If the filth from such an alliance can be swept back, I wager nearly all can. Brisbane showed this to us all most recently with her successful struggle to rejuvenate the Swamp of Reawakening on the island of Talimar. I was proud to have helped her and more proud to have witnessed my daughter lead and accomplish the task primarily through her own skills and abilities. There is much work left to be done there, of course, but the wedge of hope has already been driven deep. With Brisbane’s help Nature will spread forth and Talimar will be a thriving bastion of nature for generations to bask within.” <font size="3" />
“In a more global context, we druids will also contribute to the defeat of Bloodstone, unarguably the greatest threat to Balance and the vitality of Nature in our world. Should Sinthar prevail, indeed the conditions which guarantee Nature’s successions will be stolen from us all. Quite simply we cannot, we will not allow that to happen. Our efforts in the great struggle of our time will prove invaluable in the end. As for myself, I feel privileged to have participated in retrieving the parts for the Shadow Blade and look with great anticipation, and some personal anxiety,” he pauses awkwardly here, as if he is contemplating elaborating, but chooses to continue past. “I look with great anticipation for the day the Blade of Shadows is forged.” <font size="3" />
“That day is near. I know it is near because for many years now I have discussed with Raven and the Hierophant how we would be reconnected with the Tol’eflor near the end of our great struggle with Bloodstone. I know I have played my part in brining this fortune to fruition through my many years of service and in my everyday efforts. It was also the apex of my life to lead, in part, the heroes of our day to the reunion with our creator creatures. In that encounter the hopeful wisdom of my druid elders was echoed by the Tol’eflor patriarch who told us all that soon the soul will flow down the silver vein and touch the bone of blood. Then the struggle will be over.” <font size="3" />
“As I said earlier, we must also look to the Balance beyond Bloodstone, and prepare for a difficult yet prosperous future. There are surely many things to focus on in this regard, but one we have already been shown by our invaluable ally and friend of Katia are the dragons and the balance which must remain between them. I was honored to be asked by Ozlo to make an official trek to Voltrex with the ultimate aim of bringing the metallic dragons back into our balance. I think we must continue to nurture this balance in whatever way we can. I understand now that it is no coincidence that Ozlo’s home looks as it does and can be found where it is found. I have come to realize that it is part of my role as Hierophant to nurture this relationship with Ozlo. Through that relationship I shall try to learn the wisdom and the ways of the dragon, striving towards a world in which they can all exist and contribute to the Balance of things. Some part of me finds this task both attractive and critical, and I will engage it with careful attention.” <font size="3" />
“I also believe that we should aim to bring Voltrex into our network, if not world affairs more generally. They may choose to remain in relative isolation. Of course such decisions are their own. But we must realize, and help the elves of Voltrex realize as well, that we are all a part of the same world, the same Balance. We must all recognize that any event can subtly or dramatically, directly or indirectly, affect all other things. Even if we don’t work together, our efforts should resonate with each other. That’s why I think we should work towards some sort of understanding or alliance with the Speaker of Nature. Once previously I met him and briefly established a connection. With some attention to this connection and some effort from others, I hope it can grow into something even more productive and beneficial for us all.” <font size="3" />
“One last issue I think we should be aware of and talk about is the issue of the planes. I have visited several of them, some hideous and unsettling, others sublime and inviting. Arborea is a prime example of the latter, a vast world with vast and pristine forests. As far as I could tell, the whole plane was forested and vibrant with life. I felt Aerdin’s touch there, more palpable than anywhere on Layonara. Not long ago Shadison attempted to claim it and its energy for his own twisted purposes. We foiled his attempts but I suspect through his disciple Sauda Aphrodesia he will attempt again. I will stand with Maurelle again, if need be, to protect this world, and know that many of you will do the same. I somehow feel that the link between our world and Arborea is, and will continue to be, vital in our struggle to ensure Nature’s Balance here in Layonara.” <font size="3" />
Rhizome stops talking and looks around at the gathered faces. He gives an inviting sort of crooked smirk and takes a few steps into the gathered group. As he enters the group he reaches out and embraces those nearby. “I have spent far too long talking,” and his smile now beams as he continues, “quite unlike me.” He pauses a moment and then squeezes the shoulders of those he embraced and pulls them forward with him. “Come, tell me about yourselves. Tell me about your issues and your hopes for the future.” And with that said he blends in amongst the group, now formed into a circle from his walking embrace, and leans into his yew branch with a sort of expectant patience.