SEPTEMBER
CAERN/WYLD
News came around the waxing halfmoon at the beginning of the month of a forest fire that had started near Hanford that had changed its course to begin approaching St. Claire. Noticing the fire from their territories in the eastern foothills, both Leonard Little Bear and Moon Otter went and scouted the leading edge to see if anything could be done about it. Both found traces of a site that appeared to have been prepared then used in ritual work, the spoor of both homid and crinos claws, and detected an 'oily, lizard scent' about the area. Moon Otter was able to pick up six individual prints, and recognized the scent as being similar to a Fire Salamander spirit. Speculation runs rampant, but the dominant theory being put forth by Megan and her pack is that the Garou were disgruntled Black Spiral Dancers from Hanford, which had been associated with Fire Salamander when they had a Hive there many years ago which the Sept of the Wheel Renewed reclaimed and cleansed just prior to the founding of the Sept of the Last Days, recently destroyed.
- Participants: Leonard, Collin, Elan, and Moon Otter
Later in the month after the Moot and around the waning halfmoon, a group of Garou led by Nightflash went back to the ritual site to investigate. Through the devices of Rides-Fire talking to a stone, they discovered the site had been used by the six Garou previously detected to summon Salamander. They tracked the Garou northwards until they encountered the fire elemental spirit which made an appearance at Moot. Interrogating it confirmed that six Garou were involved, but little more. The pack lost the tracks just south of Wolf Woods, as they continued going northwards. Participants: Nightflash, Eamon, Collin, Rides-Fire, Tecmessa, and Leonard. Near the new moon, Megan led a small pack of Garou into Ouroboros's territory around Lake Arthur to see if anything of the Wyrm had taken up residence there, especially the Black Spiral Dancers whose tracks had been lost just south of it. With Dante and Duncan borrowed from Night's Talons to check the Umbra, Megan, Eamon, Rides-Fire, Tecmessa, Collin, and Lucca canoed to the island, where 'some force' seized their canoes and dashed them into the rocks. While swimming towards the island shore, a similar force, later identified as probably being water elementals, grabbed Megan and Tecmessa and pulled them under. After being rescued by Collin and Rides-Fire, the four along with Lucca went to the island to scout. The only trace of the Wyrm they found was a tainted materialized rock spirit, possibly an earth elemental, sitting on a high outcropping overlooking the most likely landing spot on the island. In a cave that may have once been used as shelter, a grisly rite involving more small animals, feces, and other nasty things was performed to desecrate it. A bleached out, scentless human or homid corpse was also found. Dante and Duncan found that the moonbridge to the island had been destroyed, and the Purity spirit which once inhabited the island is gone. A friendly spirit informed the packmates that six Garou, presumably the Dancers, had come onto the island around the halfmoon, while five had left during the crescent, leading to speculation that the corpse is one of the Dancers.
- Participants: Megan, Eamon, Rides-Fire, Tecmessa, Collin, Lucca, Duncan, and Dante
CITY
Just after the halfmoon this month, Megan organized an attempt to once again go to the Power Plant and run a ritual of Cleansing. Leaving from the forest this time, the group managed to safely reach the power plant in the city, and Megan, Tecmessa, and the new Glass Walker philodox, Lucca, began the ritual. It was interrupted by the descent of four corrupted electricity elementals on the ritualists. After the Garou pounded three of them into discorporation while Elan and Nightflash served as healers, and Elan ordered the fourth one to leave and never return, Megan and Tecmessa restarted and finished the rite to completion.
- Participants: Megan, Nightflash, Signe, Eamon, Collin, Tecmessa, Rides-Fire, Banecruncher, Kaz, Jay, Simon, Owen, Joey, and Luke.
Around the full moon, Nightflash led a small group of Garou back to the Power Plant, this time to take steps to keep it Cleansed. The Gaian ahroun found a suitable place in the Umbral landscape near the plant and planted an acorn retrieved by his former packmate, Chooses-Wisely, on her rite of passage. When it grows into a tree, it is supposed to help keep the area it is planted in clean of taint. Rides-Fire accompanied him on this task, as well as Elan, Megan, Tecmessa, Collin, and Lucca. Once planted, all the Garou donated some of their spiritual strength to the nascent tree, and Megan used a halfmoon gift to summon a dog spirit Elan knew of to guard the seed until a more permanent guardian could be arranged.
- Participants: Nightflash, Elan, Megan, Rides-Fire, Tecmessa, Collin, and Lucca
PEOPLE
Lucien Magister, Shadow Lord cub, has not been seen around the Sept for quite some time. Rumor has it that Moon Otter's sent him to a more Lordly Sept to get the last of his training and/or be Rited. Or maybe Otter ate him and buried the bones somewhere secluded.
Erik Singer, Metis Fianna, has once more left the Sept's territory without giving word to anyone.
A new Get of Fenris metis has been seen lurking around the Caern since just before the Moot. Kristof Fredericason introduces himself as a theurge of that tribe, seems quiet, and keeps his head down quite a bit.
There's a new Black Fury in town, and it's a guy. No surprise that he's staying at the farmhouse and not with the other Furies. Koschei, otherwise known as the Vulture, is a Ragabash of the first rank. He's also terribly, terribly polite.
PACKS
Ouroboros is still missing.
The pack Megan has been trying to form for several months now seems finally to be coalescing, with Collin and the two philodox Tecmessa and Lucca signing on. There is no word yet when they plan to quest for their totem, or what territory they will claim, but they seem active in the troubles plaguing the Sept recently, and have been making it known that they intend to try to find out what happened to Ouroboros once the fire and Black Spiral Dancers are no longer a threat to the Caern.
At the end of the month, word began filtering out that with the departures of John Defends-Wolves and Michelle Chooses-Wisely, Dreamrunners has dissolved their pack and said farewell to their pack totem spirit.
Word has spread quickly that Nightflash is trying to organize two temporary war packs of unpacked Garou to fight the menace of the Black Spiral Dancers threatening the Sept.
CUBS
Rumor is that the Fianna cubs, Luke and Layne, are expected to be doing a storytelling sometime before the next full moon, as part of their preparation for their Rite of Passage.
CHALLENGES
Brings-The-Buffalo-Home (still more well-known by his cub-name, Little Bear) recently Challenged Cutter the fostern Shadow Lord, accusing him of dishonorable actions and lying. It apparently has something to do with investigation of the fire approaching the caern. It is not known whether or not Cutter has responded to this Challenge.
Robert made brief announcements at the Moot of three rank challenges: Megan to Brian for Adren, and Kristine to Elan and Adam to Nightflash for Fostern.
MOOT
After a Calling of the Litany performed by Kaz and Dante, the Opening of the Sky was performed by Elan successfully. It summoned an unexpected visitor, though; a fire elemental, claiming to be sent by Salamander, and intimating that the forest fire and this 'attack' was prompted out of vengeance for some past act by the Sept. It exploded over the Caern in balls of fire, and most of the attendees of the Moot scattered to the forest to put out the flames. Elan, Joseph, and Kristine were the big names to remain in the Caern to Summon a titanic thunderstorm which unexpectedly inundated the forest and St. Claire, helping not only the pre-emptive Revelers but the mundane firefighting task. Others, such as Robert, Megan, Nightflash, Steven, Eamon, Collin, Rides-Fire, Tecmessa, Megaera, Leda, Little Bear, Brittany, Quick, Stephen, Luke, Layne, and Allie stayed behind to finish up the Moot and to defend the Caern as a last line of defense. The Revelers returned after a while beat-up, bloody, and burnt, but successful in their Bawn clearing.