The Company travel.
The 24th of Rendur
Riding over a small rise, the Company look down into a mist-enshrouded valley in which they see a large camp of brightly painted caravans, four-wheeled and two-wheeled wagons, and many horses, mules, draft oxen, and even a dancing bear. Jeremi and Sebastian recognize the people as the Dasidia, or Wanderers.
The Company descend into the valley and to the camp of the Dasidia, where Jeremi meets Dumitra Ostol, Raunie of the Baltrany Rye of the Dasidia. He converses with Dumitra, who claims to know his mother, and also seems to have keen insight into the past of some of the members of the company including Sebastian.
She explains that the Baltrany are seers, but their power of future-sight has been blocked lately, and she knows that other seers across the world are also having trouble divining the future. She believes that the power of future-sight is blocked in some areas more than others, but does not know how to find the areas that allow access to the powers of oracle. She also explains that while her future-sight has diminished, she still has power over the past and has seen many of the members of the Company in her dreams and trances.
The members of the Company interact with members of the Baltrany Rye, who encourage the Company to join them in games of chance, be it dice or the popular game Ricci cubes. They also offer to sell some of their prized steeds to the Company. The Company refuse the hospitality of the Baltrany Rye, but the Wanderers are used to mistrust and judgment by outsiders and pay the insults no mind.
Later that evening, Dumitra honors the Company by offering to read the cards for them. The rest of the clan is astonished, for as the Raunie of the tribe, Dumitra has not read the cards for outsiders for decades. Dumitra feels that the coming of the Company was foretold to her, and she seeks to help them with their quest.
The members of the Company each cross Dumitra's palm with silver, as is the custom among the Dasidia, and then pay her to read the cards for them. Although her future-sight is greatly diminished, Dumitra carefully inspects the cards for each member of the Company and exhausts herself to see their fate. The fortunes of the Company are listed here.
After the reading, Dumitra recovers from the ordeal, and then explains to Jeremi that she knows he needs to continue his quest. Her heart tells her that their quest is an important one, and therefore, she decides to assist the Company by bestowing upon them gifts, tribal treasures from heroes of the Baltrany stretching back many generations. After the giving of the gifts, Dumitra surprises the Company yet again with her benevolence.
Calling the Company close, Dumitra explains that the Baltrany are masters of the powers of nature, but also of powers that lie in other dimensions. While most magick of the Baltrany is shaped from forces of the world itself, there are three other dimensions which affect that power: the Radiance, the Mists, and the Shadows. The Baltrany have learned to use the Mists to augment their spellcasting, and are able to accomplish powerful deeds through manipulation of the Mists. No Baltrany would be so vain as to think that she could control the Mists, for the Mists are the masters. However, by serving the Mists, the Baltrany have learned to do things which others may think impossible. Given the importance of the Company's quest, she begs the Company's indulgence to help them.
Clasping hands with four other Baltrany matrons in a circle, she enters into a ritualistic trance, swaing back and forth and speaking in a language that none of the Company understand. After serveral hours of the ritual, a misty vortex appears. The Company are speechless, as they have never encountered this level of magick before in the hands of normal humans. Dumitra, drained to the point of utter exhaustion, bids the Company good luck and farewell as she directs them into the mist.
The Company walk into the mist, and immediately lose all sense of time and direction. A few seconds later, they emerge in the bright sunlight of a foreign city teeming with people, beasts of burden, and tall, thin towers. Based on the style of dress of the locals and the architecture, Uso believes that they have just been whisked several hundreds of miles away to the land of Verundhi.
