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[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

My Novice Path Experience

I did The Novice Path forever ago now but I wanted to go over it again for memory preservations sake and also just because it creates content. I had been following the Magical Readathons that G was creating before Orilium came into her mind. So to know that she had a new world for us to explore made me so excited! 

My TBR at the time consisted of the following books:

The Novice Path Entrance - read a book with  a map - Highway of Tears by Jessica McDiarmid

Ashthorn Tree - a book that keeps tempting you - Namesake by Adrienne Young

The Mist of Solitude - read a standalone - The World According to Mr. Rogers by Fred Rogers

Ruin of the Skye - read a book featuring ghosts/haunted house, or other supernatural elements - Charles Fort: the Man Who Invented the Supernatural by Jim Steinmeyer

Obsidian Falls - read a thriller or mystery book - Carrie by Stephen King

Tower of Rumination - read a five star prediction - House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

Orilium Academy - read a book with a school setting - A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

I had a relatively good experience with most of the books. My ratings were also as follows:

Highway of Tears by Jessica McDiarmid  - I loved the way the book goes through the actual people effected by this demonstration of neglect on the part of the Canadian Government. The stories were heartbreaking and the information was enlightening. The experience was a roller coaster and I learned a lot. 

Namesake by Adrienne Young - This was the second book in a series so I was very excited to read it! We got a little more insight into some of the characters I adore as well as a lot of really interesting additions. I have the third book and I promise its on my TBR but I just haven’t gotten to it yet! I will though! eventually....

The World According to Mr. Rogers by Fred Rogers - I am of the generation that could actually watch Mr. Rogers (a.k.a OLD) and I really enjoyed this book. It was short and sweet and it gave me a sense of nostalgia and calm. It wasn’t the most fantastic thing I have ever read but it was a nice intermission in the readathon. 

Charles Fort: The Man Who invented the Supernatural by Jim Steinmeyer - This book was incredibly interesting for what felt like no reason. Charles Fort is a surprisingly interesting man. He just kind of slowly goes crazy but also he was really creative and probably just suffering from mental illness. I really enjoyed this biography. 

Carrie by Stephen King - I liked this one less than some of his other books from this era. However, it wasn’t bad by any means! I prefer the book to the movies (what else is new?) and I didn’t hate the way King wrote his female protagonist so I was satisfied overall. 

House in the Cerulean Sea - One of my new favorite books of all time. I have read this book four times since The Novice Path. I am SO happy I read this book and I recommend it to so many people every time it enters my mind. Beautiful settings, wonderful characters, great morals, SO PURE but so real at the same time. One of the best books I have EVER read. READ IT.

A Deadly Education - The opposite of Cerulean Sea. I hated the characters, I hated the setting and I hated the plot. I ended the month with this book and I was genuinely disappointed to end on such a terrible note. I promised I would never pick up another book her Novik after reading this. 

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My responses to the scenarios:

B: I know not to mess with any writing I cannot decipher so I don’t approach it. But I also do not leave without quickly copying a few symbols on a piece of parchment as I pass it, to try and look up later.

D: I try to calm my breathing, minimize feedback by closing my eyes and focus on my hands and feet. I establish a connection with earth and let it guide me towards the end of the mist.

D: I activate a protection glyph to shield both myself and my group.

A: Find a herbal remedy nearby, there's always one if you know what to look for! You have might try a few but if you know your plants, you’ll find a combination before time runs out!

A: Scroll of Lore

I ended up with the guild Order of the Crescent and was incredibly happy with that result! 

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The Novice Path in general was a great experience and if this readathon ever comes to an end I can see myself repeating it with different character creation processes in the future!

HEY!

Tell me about your character? How was your journey on the novice path? what’s up dawg? 

Thanks for reading and I hope everyone has a good day/night! 

Best wishes, 

Chelsey

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

The ever buzzing Novice Path Outpost has never witnessed a silence so true. Seems like even the wind got the message, coming to a halt and leaving everyone with a weird sense of something being amiss. The only quiet sound is of unfolding parchment scrolls, hushed and heavy whispers of goodbyes dictated to the messenger crows to be carried to the loved ones, nervous tappings and pacings. Yet the loudest of all was the understanding that not everyone here will reach the end of the Path. But you know you will. You must. This is the moment you’ve been preparing for. And although your insides are made of iron and at this particular point you seem to require conscious thought for basic functioning - such as breathing,  you burn not only with fear but with want and excitement. I got this, you tell yourself. You notice an elderly elf sigh, clap his hands, and rise from his barrel-bench entirely ignoring the muffled sound of someone very unmistakably throwing up in a bush. “Oh look at you all. I’ve seen your shenanigans in the last couple of days, I find this silence of the oddest kind. You’re embarking on an adventure, for Elidor’s sake! It’s a tale in the making! Riddle me this, what’s a journey without some danger? Just a boring ass afternoon walk, that’s what. And nobody would want to hear that told. Come now, I am old and wise, and therefore I must give great advice!” a few Skaimorn exchanged a grin. “The best thing to do when you don’t know what to do at all...is dance. Remember how you got here?”. And just like that he whips out a lute from his robes as if that’s a totally normal thing to do, and starts to sing a song known to all. A song that started it all, one every child dreaming of becoming a great sorcerer hummed day and night, like a prayer to be answered, a dream manifested. At the center of it all A crater full of promise Oh it calls us, can you hear A song that rings so honest For those who listen And those who dream A time to journey’s risen A time to journey’s risen Not a river and not a maze A simple Path not simply made Come one, come all, don’t stay behind The urge will never truly fade The Novice Path awaits your mind Your pride and greed must stay behind Now walk the trials, play the part To help unearth those pure of heart And the words ring true as one by one, young and old, with the help of a crutch or a nod of the head - everyone joined in dancing, singing frenzy, stomping and laughing around a massive bonfire, ridding themselves of the anxiety and living in this weird moment. An air Earthling almost set fire to the tumbleweeds, flexing his massive wings to the melody, a little carried away.  A group of Iltirians pulling off the most ridiculous of dance moves, a few elves getting very much too drunk with the dwarves - they’ll pay for that tomorrow. Even the light dixies, summoned by a skilled human, joined in, creating such a beautiful and bizarre ambience! And everyone...well, partied! Very much in the middle of nowhere, scared out of their minds, surrounded by giant mountains with no civilization in sight yet hopeful, happy and with a huge promise on their minds. And so the most silent night became a wild one, which, from the side looks of the outpost guards was not a usual sight. You swear, as you awkwardly stumble to your tent at dawn, you hear one of them whisper “erm...what a lot this year...” Yes we are, you think with a fond smile, glancing back at your newly met friends. That, and the dwarven barrel jumping competition that occured not half an hour ago, makes the jab justified. And as thoughts go, this is not a bad one to fall asleep to. Not bad at all.

G of Book Roast “The Novice Path Journey”

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

This is sort of what I am imagining The Novice Path Outpost to look like. Maybe a little more medieval in nature? 

What do you think? Have you ever seen a fantasy outpost or one in the real world (like this one) that you can imagine it looking like?

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

The Novice Path Outpost

I could barely sleep last night which will not translate well into the journey today. But I am ready! I’m writing while Mother is busy in the other room bringing my clothes down from the air draft line. She woke up early this morning to make me a breakfast of strong squash, root strips, and homemade smashed grain bread. It sits heavy in my stomach which I know will help my nerves along the journey. But if she knew I was focusing on my journal instead of my meal she would threaten to confiscate my first crow feather quill! I use it so often I forgot to include it on my list of the items in my luggage, but as it stays on my belt and not in my bottomless suitcase I think it would have been inappropriate to include anyway. 

The Dod Quarters is bustling with activity this morning. Mother, Grandmother and Grandfather have been rushing around The Quarters since before sunrise gathering different trinkets I’ve had to decline brining. I thought I could have dodged this behavior as Mother unhauled over half the tomes I intended to bring with me, but apparently her intention was to replace that capacity with framed photos of second cousins twice-removed and illustrations I drew when I was in my pre-heritage study years. She’s shed tears exactly twice so far; once when I came into the kitchen from my room to eat breakfast, and once when I declined to bring Father’s old pair of adventure boots (they were objectively too large for me) while I tried to explain that I couldn’t risk the extra weight in case of times where flight would be the best option. She tried to argue the point that I had the extra weight of all those tomes originally in my bottomless suitcase before I conceded that I may have been a little overzealous about their use during my original packing. She relented after seeing me admit my mistake to her and we exchanged words of appreciation for one another. Both of us knowing it would be a while before we had the opportunity for such closeness again. 

As they say, speaking of the phantom in the library makes them appear... I can hear Mother’s footsteps coming down the corridor. I will update again once I have a moment to sit at The Novice Path Outpost. I imagine it will be a comfort to sit with my thoughts among the chaos of all the other travelers.

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We have finally arrived at The Outpost. Grandfather insisted he could make the journey as he did with Father many years ago but in his old age he severely overestimated the journey from Darkmeadow. Not only did he neglect to use his Strength Assistance Straps while carrying part of my luggage (resulting in a sore set of talons upon landing) but he also snapped a talon while flying because he didn’t see a wyrmling on it’s first flight coming straight for him. When they collided he nearly lost my portable apothecary! 

Despite the challenges of the journey here we made it in one piece. I think things will go much more smoothly for two reasons:

1) From this point on I only need to worry about myself which will remove a significant amount of stress from my mind. 

2) Hung up on the wall is a list of PROHIBITED ITEMS from the path!!! Things that supposedly “could endanger the entire group”

This includes any crafting items over the weight of 5 lbs individually! Luckily I brought my weightless apothecary drawers, but this means I will be limited to brewing methods that don’t produce flame lest we give away our position to unsavory inhabitants of the woods surrounding the first part of The Novice Path.

I completely understand the need for these precautions but I won’t pretend I am pleased with unpacking items and leaving me with the following from my luggage:

My cloaks for all weather conditions (though I had to persuade The Warden to let me keep my wind cloaks after educating him on the science behind their ability to keep shape in a gust.... they do NOT in fact gain weight once they are solidified)

The second set of boots

My most recently brewed healing draughts and herbal remedies

The Guide to The Novice Path (which she tried to upsell me extra pages for)

A bottomless pouch for herbs and ingredients

The set of weightless apothecary drawers

My foldable crow perch

Orb of Predicting Change

Spare scrolls, parchment, and quill tips

Protective gloves for animal handling

Useful tomes, journals, and notes gifted to me by family

Leather bookstrap crafted by Father

My ABSOLUTELY necessary enchanted nose clip for the stench of blood I’m sure will accompany the others in our party

four journals to ensure I have enough room to document all the notes and experiences I have along the way (maybe I can even compile and publish them in the future for others to take advantage of!)

The list of things forfeited include:

My portable apothecary (coming in at a whopping 7 lbs)

The brand new cauldron Grandmother purchased for me

My tome of Brewing Methods and Spells to Facilitate a Brew (which The Warden was eyeing quite covetously by the way)

An enchanted carafe for slow pouring which is made of brass

A Darkmeadow Elite tome study podium which starts as the size of your average tome and expands to the size of a full-sized podium for ages 18-25 in less than a minute (I saved three years of couriering wages to purchase this! Luckily I was able to send it home with Mother before the Warden could peel it from my cold dead hands)

And finally.... most painfully, my favorite metal bellows pedal…. You know, the ones gifted to me by my Great-Grandfather before he perished in the Darkmeadow Salt Caves Dig Site?

Yeah, in a bin with other peoples’ dingy flint creature killing knives and their mass-crafted encyclopedia tomes. I will have to write Mother upon my arrival at Orilium Academy to request she retrieve them from The Novice Path Outpost before I see my things destroyed. Poor Grandfather, I can only think of the pain he’ll suffer from that talon, and for nothing in the end.

All else is well at The Outpost. I see many potential students my age and some above. My eye was particularly drawn to a rather trim Elf with salt and pepper locks trailing down his back and half moon spectacles. I wonder if he is in fact a student as he looks as if he could easily be a professor at The Academy. It has occurred to me because of this thought that I ought to do some research on the current staff at Orilium Academy if I have time along The Path.

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We have just been notified after hours of waiting that we will not be setting out until tomorrow morning due to a particularly mischievous forest nymph that insisted on clearing the leaves from The Path before we enter. “A good host always dusts before having guests” the nymph reportedly mumbled while shifting debris from one side of The Path to the other, a devious smile on their lips no doubt!

This means that I will have some time to practice the assembly and disassembly of my sleeping setup which is an arrangement I won’t complain of. I am going to retire to these tasks for the rest of the afternoon and evening. I may update after dinner to record my thoughts before I sleep. 

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It’s very quiet... almost too quiet. I think that the feelings I was reflecting on last night have suddenly settled among the rest of the travelers. Not all of us will make it to Orilium Academy. Without the sustained energy from arriving at The Outpost the reality is slowly setting in for the others around me. As I had to come to terms with all of this already it is now their turn. I wonder if this demonstrates some kind of heightened ability to perceive on my part, I have not had much experience with other races in my time at the enclave with my peers, but I have quickly noticed the only one who seems to express feelings similar to mine is the Elf gentlemen with the halfmoon glasses. I believe he will be someone I can watch over the course of The Path for direction or even potential companionship. 

I believe the night will pass in this silence. Beings will climb into their beds without a word and drift anxiously into sleep... I may just do the same. 

Tomorrow, the challenge begins. I hope you are prepared as you believe yourself to be Future Llewellyn. 

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

Preparing for The Novice Path

I never thought this day would come. I have been patiently awaiting this moment for what has felt like the whole of my 19 years on Aeldia and now that it’s finally here it feels as if time has stopped completely. I have had all of my things packed for weeks, though Mother took the liberty of unhauling about 75 of the tomes in my bottomless suitcase. I tried to tell her that I needed those tomes if I was going to be successful on The Path but she wouldn’t budge. I think I should know what’s needed! I’ve been researching The Path for months now, reading countless journals of students who have recounted their experiences travelling, Mother has never even set foot on the path! She’s always said she was satisfied with watching the successes of Father... I wonder how she will cope with the absence of us both... me to Orilium Academy and Father to the great beyond. 

His passing has been tough on all of us. The day I set off from The Novice Path Outpost will mark three months since his sudden death. He was the first one to tell me the dangers of ancient tomes and I find it bitterly ironic that he was the first one to demonstrate the consequences of becoming too excited about the contents of a leatherbound volume before identifying the magic binding it to begin with. 

His life’s work up in flames.... I still remember the tome self-immolating as the Elder Keeper tried to pull Father away from the flames. The fire was thankfully contained by the resistance spells cast around the shelves surrounding the tome study podium. I can’t imagine how much worse Father would have felt if his was not the only tome to be destroyed by his hubris. I miss him dearly. But I know that he would want me to learn from this mistake and to take it forward with me on my journey through The Novice Path. This took some reflection to arrive at, I must have soared over Darkmeadow for hours in my crow form, trying to erase the memory of the sight inside my tiny bird brain... but it’s remained nonetheless. 

Mother is torn, of course. But these things inevitably happen to the best scholars in our enclave. Only four years ago my studymate witnessed Elder Chapman asphyxiated by vines due to a tome recovered from Irtherian ruins and was thought to have been created by some of the first Earthlings to settle there. You can never know a tomes true origin and because of this you can never assume a benevolent scribe. However, excitement can get the better of anyone, even Father. 

His service was vast as many people in Darkmeadow and many of his colleagues from The Great Underworld Library were deeply stricken by his death. As favors of their gratitude for knowing him I received a wand made of wood from a tree that reportedly stood adjacent to the fabled Ashthorn tree, a quill that once belonged to my Father when he was in his Iltirian Heritage Certification Studies, and a leather pouch containing fortified food made by the Elves of Irtheria formulated specifically to gain the favor of particularly unfriendly creatures. I imagine all of these things will come in handy on my travels and luckily Mother agreed to not unpack them from my luggage. 

The contents of my luggage (though significantly smaller than what I started with) are constituted thus:

A set of cloaks each for warm and cold weather, as well as one set to block strong winds while keeping an unintrusive shape

Another set of boots in case I get water or mud in the pair on my feet while walking

My most recently brewed healing draughts and herbal remedies (Mother tried to insist I would not need my Purging Tonic until I suggested the presence of potential poisons along The Path)

My guide to The Novice Path which includes the most recently carted map of the journey

A bottomless pouch for herbs and ingredients I may find along the way (cost me 15GP from Elder Taylor’s son.... highway robbery if you ask me)

The set of weightless apothecary drawers gifted to me by Mother for my 8th birthday

My foldable crow perch in case it becomes advantageous to remain in my crow form for prolonged periods of time

Orb of Predicting Change for coping with the new environment of Orilium Academy

Spare scrolls, parchment, and quill tips, feathers I can always shake free from the perch after use

Protective gloves for animal handling

Useful tomes, journals, and notes gifted to me by family members as tokens of confidence for the trip

Leather bookstrap crafted by Father

My ABSOLUTELY necessary enchanted nose clip for the stench of blood I’m sure will accompany the others in our party

four journals to ensure I have enough room to document all the notes and experiences I have along the way (maybe I can even compile and publish them in the future for others to take advantage of!)

All other supplies I will accumulate the day of my trip (best to have food that is as fresh as possible, clothes that are cleaned the day of departure, and tinder dried on the fire the night before). Mother said she would assist me with these things the morning of while I ate my breakfast to make sure I had as much strength to start with as possible. How I do appreciate the efforts of her pride. I want to do my part to put my best foot forward tomorrow and that comes chiefly with a good night’s sleep! 

With that, I bid you goodnight, future Llewellyn! I hope this can be reviewed in the future with fond feelings from the Guildhall of your dreams!

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

This is where I will be beginning if you are interested in learning more!

[llewellyndodiltirianmotives]

Blog Intro and Proper Credit

This first post will serve as an out-of-character explanation as to what this blog is going to be dedicated to and to make sure I give my proper credits to those who very much deserve them! ________________________________________________________________

Hi! My name is Chelsey. I am 24 years old (almost 25) and I am participating again in the Magical Readathon: Orilium Academy by G of Book Roast:

Instagram

Twitter (Magical Readathon)

YouTube

Discord (Magical Readathon)

This is a readathon I’ve done since the very beginning because I loved all of her previous creations. She’s an incredibly talented person and I look forward to these readathons every couple of months. I set time aside in April and August specifically to complete them and I also set time aside beforehand to help myself get into the zone. 

I created my current character last year and I am really enjoying bringing them to life as the readathon progresses. The purpose of this blog is to further that build by writing from the perspective of my character. The entire point is that they grew up in an environment where nothing is more important that documenting and collecting texts about history and knowledge. I think it would be absolutely key for my character to keep a journal throughout their journey and this is the manifestation of that desire. 

I have some time this year to dive headfirst into these more fun ideas for my character and that’s exactly what I intend to do!

I hope that whoever joins me on this journey is encouraged to participate in the readathon themselves if they haven’t already heard of it and that Llewellyn would be someone you would want to make a friend out of at the Academy. 

Best Wishes, 

Chelsey