"Now that's how you kill bugs," Val says with a grin. She coaxes her horse forward to get in better range then sends a pair of daggers flying straight in to the nearest swarm . Despite the usual ineffectiveness of blade weapons, her daggers seem to curve and cleave through far more of the insects than should be possible with a single throw.
Valaria's daggers fly overhead, straight into the heart of the swarm. The tiny creatures are still hard to hit, however, her first dagger doesn't manage to kill but a few locusts... but her second shot, enchanted with the magic of the golden clasp around her throat, cuts savagely through the swarm, leaving only a few hundred buzzing creatures remaining.
Round 2
Xanderghul is up!
Xanderghul shrugs. Decisionmaking had truly never been this easy. He only casually waves a hand, and a burst of the now-familiar holy energy washes over the swarms of bugs.
The holy blast ripples through the two swarms, killing the majority of them - less than a thousand remain.
Ehren is up!
After getting into a position with a clear line of sight, Ehren takes out his last vial of holy water and sends it hurtling through the air.
Ehren's toss fails to hit the swarm dead center, but the toss is enough nonetheless to destroy the remainder of the swarm. The ground is coated with the corpses of thousands of locusts - nothing remains of the crusaders who died, not even their clothing: it was devoured utterly.
Combat ends!
Meridrand Pallisard emerges from the crowd, offering rations and water to the Condemned, which they accept eagerly. Chaleb seems to be in a daze, staring at the bloodied snow with a distant look on his face.
Xanderghul's horse trots forward and in a circle around the piles of locust corpses. He looks carefully to see whether any still live before turning on the five remaining Condemned. "I wonder whether 'they shoved locust eggs down our throats' was maybe something that you should have told us.... or did they get in there without any of you noticing anything?"
He scoffs. "Could have gotten all of us killed."
"That... was vaguely disgusting," Val says. She hops down from her horse for a moment and retrieves her knives, kicking the dead locusts aside with a grimace, before remounting. "Well, we might have a little bit of a problem. Is anyone else going to explode into a cloud of demonic bugs? Because I would like to be able to put a good twenty feet between me and you before that happens."
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Unlike her companions, Hinagiku does not speak of what took place seconds ago. She sympathized with the trauma they had just undergone, so she made her way to their side, softly speaking soothing words to them. Once calm, they might be more likely to answer further questions.
"We can start looking for somewhere to have you rest, but I think Commander Bishop has questions first... we have some food... warm blankets..." she says, giving gentle taps to each of the survivors.
"What do you think, Markus? Are rest of them uninfested?" Ehren asks, well aware that the necromancer's second opinion had spared them from a nasty surprise.
Meridrand Pallisard smiles at Hinagiku, happy to accept her help in distributing food, water, and warm clothing to the five remaining Condemned.
Markus follows along behind, murmuring, "Light, if you would, Sister Vola," he says, as Vola enchants a wand at her side to luminesce and hands it to him. He examines the insides of their mouths and noses with the light.
"These five seem healthy enough to me. Mildly frostbitten," he says, holding up Chaleb's hand, showing hard white and yellow patches along his fingers. "More than a little dehydrated, see how dry the insides of their mouths are? Barely any saliva."
"Ser Ilivan, Ayavah, a moment after we've finished aiding these men as best we can?" Ary asks as she retains her attention on the Condemned.
Ary follows along, watching the inspections, before flagging them to follow. "You're free to stick with us, or travel to the nearest civilization. I'm not going to commandeer you, but I would suggest sticking with the larger group. I believe we're about a day and a half away from the nearest allies - discounting Bataari as a possible ally." she says thoughtfully as she moves towards the medical workers. "Just as likely as gross negligence is the possibility he's working alongside another traitor... and regardless, his men are likely to suffer." she pauses for a moment.
"Icerift seems to be completely out of our way, and while it may prove to be a thorn in our side later, for now it holds little benefit. Do any of you know of any reason we should stop there?"
Ayavah hops off of Callus and follows Ary after giving Valaria one questioning look.
Chaleb frowns, looking positively puzzled at his treatment. "You're not going to put us in manacles? Just like that? We're free to go? Whaddya think about that, Olen? Jezzick?"
Olen, a young man going prematurely bald - his head is encased in a wreath of thin, auburn hair, shrugs. "I'm sure as hell not hoofing it for a day and a half out into the cold, what with demons and cultists and all kinds of other bullshit about."
Jezzick, an overweight man with oily, long greyed hair and beady eyes nods in agreement.
Ser Ilivan thinks for a moment. "Icerift, to our knowledge, is completely abandoned, so the force they are sending to take it is likely small. However, once fortified, the siege will be difficult... but their presence will be enough to threaten all of the hamlets that exist north of Portolmaeus, and, since the only ford into the Worldwound this far north is fairly close to it, will make it difficult for us to receive any reinforcements or supplies once we take Drezen. But our current supplies are also an issue, as well, Commander. It is a difficult decision."
Ayavah stares blankly during the discussion. "I really don't know if I'm the right person to contribute to any of this. Have I mentioned I'm a sculptor? Yeah."
"For what it's worth, I think it's worthwhile to at least scout out the opposing force. Drezen is an important target, but don't forget the goal of the Crusades - to protect our people," adds Chevalier Tirablade. Anevia nods, agreeing with her wife.
"We don't necessarily need to fight their army, just find out what they're up to, and then I can perform a sending to pass on the information to someone in Nerosyan," adds Sosiel.
Nurah shakes her head. "I don't know, I disagree. We don't have the supplies to siege two castles, and we have a clear target: Drezen. We're not helping anyone if we go and get ourselves killed. Taking Drezen is already a daunting task, do we really need to march in weakened after taking Ser Jorsal's forces?"
"It seems unlikely that we'd be able to scout their forces without being noticed," adds Wenduag. "Perhaps we should give them a wide berth."
Ary's Captains appear split as well - Captain Cobelen reiterates that he wishes to march on Drezen, while Captain Streigher, whose men have families from Valas' Gift to Kenabres, wishes to deal with the new threat headed for Icerift. Captain Halse abstains, saying simply, "I am but your lance, Commander. Point me in the direction of your choosing."
"I know the feeling," Val says at Ayavah's comment. "I'm best working on my own, or in a small group. This moving armies stuff is way over my head. I know I don't like the idea of leaving Icerift behind us without knowing what the demons are doing, but the logistics of actually doing something about it are someone else's specialty."
"We are looking at a force of possibly hundreds moving up to Icerift. If we move there first and the force left behind flanks us, we will be in dire straits. I believe we should ford first and dispatch those they left behind. If we ford a bit away from the bridge we might even catch them offguard." Isilme responds. "Afterwards we might be able to approach close enough to have Ehren scout Icerift from the air before deciding what to do, should we so choose."
Xanderghul walks over to the group discussing whether or not to go to Icerift. "We have a small force already, based off of the idea that Drezen will be less fortified because Aponavicius' army will be leaving it. If we go to Icerift, we don't know what to expect. We'll be fighting an army of true demons - brimoraks - rather than an army primarily composed of cultists."
"We'll be compromising our mission, and all of our lives, if we divert from our course," he continues. "I think that we can use a sending much sooner than scouting it out. The knowledge that demons are moving to take it really should be all our commanders need. Then, they can assign somebody more appropriately prepared to take it back."
Ehren sighs, deciding to assert his position one last time. There was no simple solution as far as he was concerned, but there was a right one.
"This brimorak army is an issue that will only get worse the longer it is left unchecked. And with Aponavicius's forces in the south, there is no guarantee that someone else will be able to deal with it in our stead. I understand that we have a mission, but I fear that this may be too dire of a threat to ignore. Both to us, and to the people.
"Regardless of what course of action we take, I can at least scout it out as Isilme suggests. If we are forced to resort to a sending, then we had best give as much information as possible."
Sosiel nods at Ehren, then turns to Ary. "Commander, would you like for me to prepare sending in the morning? I can prepare up to two castings."
Annabelle hops off of Blossom, tightening her hood around her face to keep the snow out from her eyes.
"I think Isilme's right about the guys camped out at the Ahari Bridge. Last thing we want is stuck in an actually successful pincer attack," she says.
"But those guys following Jorsal have a headstart on you... I mean us," Chaleb reminds the other cavalier. "We'd have to really bust ass to catch up if we don't head north now."
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A few weeks ago, Hinagiku would have been silent, her understanding being limited. However, after her death, she was slightly more cautious, and would not allow her companions to overlook anything.
"If we cross the river, and engage the forces guarding the bridge within the city, won't all of Drezen be alerted to our presence? I mean... the bridge is right next to fort Drezen... and then, won't we be forced to take the city?" she says, half stating, half asking because she is truly uncertain. "What will we do then? Leave Drezen again to take Icerift? Let the forces within it destroy our supply line?" she pauses, having difficulty making her ideas clear even to herself, and gently shaking her head " It feels like we should coordinate our decision with the rest of the crusade and then plan for these contingencies." she grabs the medallion hanging from her neck. "According to the Master of master, many course of actions can achieve victory. However, they must be mastered, well planned." she ends, still calm.
Nurah shakes her head. "It will be approximately a three day march to Drezen from wherever we cross, whether we make a ford at Ahari, or if we cross further north at Vilareth. Keeper's Canyon will prevent us from proceeding in a straight line across the Wounded Lands."
"Can a sending be intercepted in some way?" Ary asks, as she thinks about the options they're being given.
Ehren thinks on Ary's question before answering. Though he could not use the spell himself, he was familiar with its workings. Were it not for its limitations, he might have been able to contact his clan as far back as Kenabres.
"If I'm not mistaken... The message itself must be spoken aloud. So it could be overheard through conventional means, or if someone happened to be scrying on the messenger. But once the message is sent, only the spell's recipient can hear it. Needless to say, our mission is already in jeopardy if the enemy knows to spy on us."
Isilme looks at Chaleb warily when he slips up on 'you' vs 'us'.
"I... don't know." Ary says after a few moments of her own silence. "My heart says that we can't let the demons set up fortifications and harm the locals. But my head says that the city is more important. That taking Drezen gives us a foothold to take care of all of this. To ease the suffering in the long term, rather than just the short." She chews on her lip, as she starts to pace.
"By forcing the men to face forces that could be avoided, we risk losing before we've even reached the enemy. But Drezen is just a battle, we're talking about a war. Drezen is an important battle, but how much do we lose by allowing these things to happen..?" She pauses once more, before swallowing.
"To follow after Ser Jorsal is a fool's errand. They're days ahead. The only hope we have is that Icerift is not only abandoned, but defunct, allowing us to fight them before they take a foothold. Worse, fighting an army consisting of Brimoraks is a deadly proposition at this stage, with our numbers..."
"We have to avoid any unnecessary confrontations. The host has limitless supplies. Even if we clear out Ice Rift with no casualties, clear the bridge with no casualties, there isn't anything we can do to stop other forces from simply refilling it. The only long term change we can effect, while still performing our mission, is to finish our march on Drezen, hopefully giving any demons a wide berth until we get there." she says, finally. "We can alert the main forces and those we asked to escort the villagers of our decision tomorrow. I would like for you to prepare those spells for me, Sosiel." she adds, not seeming pleased with her decision - but given what choices she had, she likely wouldn't have been pleased with any.
She then beckons Ayavah, Ilivan, and Valaria to follow after her, once more, "With me." she says, as she makes some distance between herself and any who would overhear.
"This is Ayavah," she shares with Ilivan, "She is a friend of Valaria who decided to come along with us. She's also something of an expert on demon cultists." she says, dryly. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind listening to what she has to say in order to better verify what she's able to share. I'm afraid that the Cult of the Redeemer Queen isn't something I've studied, or really heard much about, and was hoping to learn from both of your expertise on the issue."
Xanderghul rolls his eyes. "Finally, a voice of reason among the crowd. Of course we can't go take on two extra armies when we already have the minimum possible troop-count in order to be extra stealthy maneuvering into Drezen."
He does seem overeager, though whether it is because he wishes to suck up to his new leaders, or whether it is because of dastardly ulterior motives, is impossible to determine from just this one interaction.
Sosiel nods and salutes as Ary takes her leave. "Yes, Chevalier," he says before heading deeper into the rank and file.
Ayavah grows visibly more and more nervous as Ary ushers her and Valaria away from the bulk of the army to speak with Ser Ilivan. She ducks behind Valaria once more, clenching her sleeve tightly. Her right hand has one more finger than her left.
"I-I'm not an expert on cultists," she protests. "I'm a sculptor, I work primarily with marble...." She coughs and goes red when she outs her as a cultist.
"Y-yes, I'm a member of the Cult of the Redeemer Queen... we're a cult devoted to the worship of Nocticula as a goddess of outcasts, and honor her through erotic art, and by extolling the pleasures of the flesh."
Ser Ilivan's face darkens - he paces around her a few times, sizing her up. "Commander Bishop, I'm an expert on tracking the spawn of the Abyss, the idiotic mortals who choose to waste their time worshipping them are of a far lesser concern to me. I've never cared much for contemplating why they'd throw their lot in with psychopathic killing machines, just how to best track them down and bring them to the Inheritor's justice."
His hand snakes around his longsword.
"You want my advice? Not as your soldier, but as a friend who has watched you grow from an overgrown whelp from the River Kingdoms into the knight you are today - this is a problem that needs to be dealt with immediately. She needs to, at the very least, be kept in manacles, though remember your vows. 'To annihilate their execrable race and any who serve them'."
"She's a cultist. We're crusaders. This should be a simple decision."
Val puts one arm in front of Ayavah protectively. "A funny idea of justice you crusaders have," she says. "Tell me, did Iomedae become a goddess of slaughter while I wasn't looking. Or perhaps the definition of justice has changed and I wasn't informed. Tell me, when did slaughter of anyone who is part of a religion you oppose become justice?"
Her free hand goes to her enchanted starknife. "Yes, please draw your blade. I will entertain me to see you trying to fight at Drezen after I cut off your sword hand."
Her gaze shifts to Ary, her golden eyes hard and faintly glowing. "I thought that I could trust you to keep this in our own circle of friends. Apparently that's not the case. Does Iomedae forbid discretion somewhere in her teachings? Then again, you are a bit too honest for your own good all on your own."
Ary sighs, as once again tempers flare.
"I wanted you here to better corroborate her story. I do not believe she is going to be any trouble, else she would be in manacles. As the person who taught me about the majority of all these things, I thought there would be no one better to ask." She frowns as she catches sight of Valaria's eyes, and hears her tone when she speaks of honesty.
"It is important to me that I have an outside viewpoint that isn't distorted by the trust that I have in you. This... is the reaction that could be expected from nearly any Crusader. I believe, strongly, that Ayavah will be a boon, not a threat."
She pauses for a moment, "Now, hands off of your swords, that is a friendly request, not an order."
If everyone complies, she continues. "Why are you in the Worldwound, and why are you here in particular?
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Isilme takes a deep breath as she realizes what is happening. She collects herself, focusing on controlling her speech and posture as she begins to speak. "Please calm down everyone, there clearly has been some miscommunication, listen to Ary and take your hands off your swords." Isilme says, quickly moving between Ser Ilivan and the others. As she does she makes eye contact with Ayavah and Valaria first, then Ary as she turns around to face Ilivan.
"Please for the love of Desna, listen and play along."
"I suppose there is no sense in holding this back any further. Ayavah here has been working with Aravashnial and the Rift wardens to infiltrate various demon cults. She returned to report to us directly, catching up with us here on the march because she brought an item of great import along with her. What I am about to show you cannot be spoken of outside this group." Isilme digs out a book from her bag, revealing the Grimoire of the Beast to Ser Ilivan. "She managed to retrieve this, it is a tome which will allow us to catch traitors who are members of the Templars of the Ivory Labyrinth." Isilme takes a moment to hold the book up, letting him get a clear look at it.
"Ary wanted to get your feedback on the tome, and so she wanted Ayavah to explain the situation, hence her questions about why she is here and so forth. This tome presents one of the most significant advantages against the cultists we've yet had, hence Ary's desire to get your opinion on the subject." Isilme looks at Ary again, making direct eye contact and nodding slowly at her. "Is that not the case, Ary?"
Ayavah stares at Isilme with confusion for a moment, but she quickly catches on and starts to play along. She wrings her hands.
"Yes, exactly. Perhaps there could even be Templars among the soldiers stationed under her command - that's why it has to be kept secret."
Ser Ilivan raises an eyebrow, his hand moving slowly away from his sword. "Is this so, Commander?"
While Ary goes away to speak with Ayavah, Hinagiku continues taking care of the Condemned with Meridrand, whom she finally salutes.
"Thanks mr. Pallisard. Since they decided to we should find them a place to rest, and eat while sleeping one of the caravans carrying supplies. Humm, and maybe get one of the medics to come and look at their frostbites." she says, showing them toward the back of the army.
As they walk together, she continues speaking to the surviving Condemned.
"My name is Hinagiku, I am pleased to see you again Mr. Chaleb, and meet the rest of you." she says with a small bow. "You might not remember me, but we met a few weeks ago at Fort Portolmaeus. I changed a bit since." she finishes, waving her vulpine tail in the air.
Once they arrive at one of the caravans, Hinagiku helps to make place for them to finally sit and rest. She joins them. However, instead of eating, she just sits there with them, waiting for them to be more comfortable.
"So, were you all foot soldiers within the army or did you have some specialties? It would help to direct you to the right unit within our forces."
"Perhaps." Ary says, frown deepening and brow scrunching. "I wouldn't know, as I spend very little time with the wardens."
She gives Isilme and Valaria another mostly unreadable look - her face having changed so much. But what could be read was plainly disappointment. "Regardless. I have other matters to attend to. Thank you for your time, Ser Ilivan.
And with that, Ary turns on her heels ND returns to her men.
Val doesn't release her grip on her knife until the knight does, but she does back down once he seems to calm down. "Isn't this a lovely lesson in jumping to conclusions," Val says dryly. "Now perhaps we can move on without trying to kill each other."
As she guides her horse back to the rest of the army, she looks at Ary. "We need to talk later. Preferably once we're camped for the night and can have some privacy," she informs the captain.
Ser Ilivan gives Ary a long last look, before nodding. "Right. Well, I'll be sure to keep this between us." He turns to salute Valaria and Isilme before leaving, his gaze lingering on Ayavah for a little bit longer before heading back into the march.
As soon as he is out of earshot, Ayavah's shoulders slump with relief. She buries her face in Valaria's scarf. "Oh, gods. Thank you, Isilme." She smiles at the aasimar, then turns to Valaria. "What was she thinking?" she whispers, then hushes up as she joins Valaria on Callus.
Meanwhile, Chaleb and the Condemned follow Hinagiku to one of the supply wagons, where she and Meridrand help clear room for them to sit. Ledsa sits in the back of the wagon, still very pregnant. She does not smile nor greet them, seeming preoccupied in her own thoughts.
Chaleb stares at Hinagiku for a moment before his face lights up in recognition. "Oh, right. The preachy one." He scratches his head. "So you're some kinda.... shapeshifter? I think I've heard stories of people like you, from the East."
"I am a cavalier," he continues, answering her question. "But my horse died in the fight." He groans. "Becoming a running problem, this season. My horses."
"Jezzick, Altel, and me are foot soldiers, yeah," says Olen. "Exalph here is an archer." He points at the man with the long face, and long hair tied back in a ponytail.
Sosiel approaches Ary, leading her horse along by the reins. "Your horse, Commander. Are we ready to resume the march?"
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Xanderghul just watches and waits as the confrontation between his allies goes down. He had always known that Ayavah was going to be a problem, and this particular confrontation really showed him why. When all of it was said and done, and Ary stalked away, he approaches Valaria and Ayavah.
"Can I speak to you for a moment?" he asks Ayavah. "I promise I'm not going to say anything offensive on purpose, and I promise that I'm only here to help."
Whether he gets her to step away from Valaria for a moment or not, he launches into a short tirade. He speaks softly, so that the subject of his conversation is not obvious. "Okay. I understand that it must be difficult for you when we judge you based off of your veneration of Nocticula. If anybody does, it's me. I might as well be a demon for everything that my past is."
He continues, as serious as perhaps he ever gets, looking her directly in the eyes unblinkingly. "When you're here in the Worldwound, though, it isn't fair to claim mundanity. You can call us out on judging you for what you are rather than who, and you can call us racists. You might even be right about some of it. You are a sculptor. I believe that you're not evil, and I believe that you mean us no harm."
"But you can't convince us that you're here for a good reason, and convince us that you're just a sculptor." he says, gesturing like a karate chop. "You're here in the Worldwound because of your goddess. Your goddess, who is a demon lord. You're among people whose sole goal in life is to slay demons. You have to spend some of the effort involved with reconciling that. At first glance, there's a huge problem with your presence, even if everybody knows that there doesn't have to be."
He cocks his head to the side and blinks. "Does that make sense? Our goals can and do align. That's for certain. I am prepared to be your ally and to help you realize your goal, because the redemption of a creature born in the Abyss is important to be. It's important that you meet us halfway. And if you do, we can protect you from those who won't."
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Again, Ehren raises no further arguments, despite not quite agreeing with the outcome. He could not shake the feeling that he was in the right, but then, he was speaking to people with far more military experience than him. Perhaps he had inadvertently tried to appeal to emotion rather than logic? Still, he appreciated that Ary at least heard him out, considered their situation in its entirety, and came to a decision.
Of course, far from being petty, he still had every intention of at least scouting out the opposition. He frowns when Ary walks off with Ayavah, but does not follow. Instead he wanders off a bit, not too far from the rest of the army, and quietly reflects on their situation.
Plenty of life still thrives in northern Mendev, or, as your people used to call it Ein Tiriâ - roughly translated to "our frigid land" in Taldane.
An apt bird for scouting would be the gyrfalcon, with its sharp eyes, or the snowy owl, which would be well suited for camouflage in the snow.
Other birds include larks, pipits, snow buntings, wheatears, sparrows, ravens, and finches. There are also a number of water fowl, like geese, ducks, and swan.
However, in the Worldwound, there are few animals or plants. The only animals you recall from your last visits were insects, but it is fitting that only vermin would survive in a wasteland crafted by Deskari.
Ayavah frowns, still clearly on edge from her very recent encounter with Ser Ilivan. "Yeah," she murmurs back. "I'm starting to see that. And you're right, I'm not just a sculptor. I'm also a person who thinks that people can rise above whatever shitty circumstances of birth the gods put them in. That's what my faith is about. And I'm here to hopefully affirm that."
"What happened back there, to those soldiers, and to those villagers back in Valas' Gift, was wrong. Of course I'm opposed to that. I guess it's just hard for me to see what my Lady of Shadow has to do with that."
She fidgets. "So, what do you think I should I do? Should I walk from tent to tent preaching the gospel of Nocticula?" she cracks a smile, which vanishes. "Okay. Bad joke."
"Right." Ary responds, not looking to Valaria at all, but turning to nod to Sosiel as he brings Libi II forth. "Thank you very much. Is there anything in particular that I need to know about and bear in mind about the Sending?" she asks, eyes slightly sunken with weariness.
After mounting up, she'd stay close and talk with Sosiel about the particulars she'd need to remember to keep in mind. Once he was finished explaining, she'd move to the forefront of the army, ready to go when her men were.
"A sending has to be short, twenty or thirty words or so... so you should write something precise for me to send. They can respond in kind, immediately," answers Sosiel. "I can only send a message to people I'm familiar with... so in Nerosyan the highest ranking officer I know of is Commander Valerys, my former superior. I did get a chance to meet Prelate Miammir in Kenabres before we left, though, if you are more familiar with her."
Xanderghul shrugs. "Nothing directly, probably. It's not like you can cast a spell that tells you which demon lord a demon worships. Not unless you worship the same one and you know detect the faithful."
"I don't know for sure what you can do. Maybe just stop trying to bullshit us. Maybe do what Isilme said - contribute to the closing of the Worldwound." he muses, a hand stroking his chin. "What is it that you're looking for exactly, anyway? You say you're looking for an affirmation that your faith isn't crazy... so, what, a non-evil demon? You're looking for a worshiper of Nocticula so that they can tell you the goddess you share is non-evil?"
Ayavah rolls her eyes. "Yeah, contribute - that's the thing - I'm not a fighter. I really have no idea what I can do. I even blew all my savings just getting here in the first place."
She chuckles. "A non-evil demon? Don't be silly. But close. I'm hoping to meet a succubus, maybe even befriend one, in the hopes of discussing Nocticula with one. The Worldwound seems like the most logical place on Golarion to find one, yeah? A big gaping hole straight into the Abyss."
She fidgets for a moment before continuing. "Well, that, and I wanted to see if the Crusades were planning on waging war with Nocticula. I mean, I get that you guys want to close the Worldwound and fight Deskari and all that. But once that's done, what's next? Wage war on all demonkind? I hoped to maybe... offer a voice of reason... to not take action against my misunderstood Queen."
"A shapeshifter? Somewhat, but I don't have many forms. This one and one of a Minkian woman"she pauses before continuing answering to Chaleb "I had hoped my preaching would help you in the days to come. But it looks like you are not too fond of it... " Hinagiku lowers her eyes for a moment, the only sign of disappointment she betrays before recentering herself. "Well, we will be sharing the road for the next few days, so if you need any support, you can come to me."
Hinagiku turns toward the others:
"Do any of you know how to speak Kellid?" she says, looking at Ledsa.
Isilme breathes a sigh of relief as Ser Ilivan walks away. She had hoped for better cooperation from Ary, but on the other hand she still played along enough to diffuse the situation. It was clear, however, that she was rather upset about the entire deal. "It could not have been handled another way," she thinks to herself. She looks at Ary walking off, but thinks it better to let her cool off before broaching the subject with her.
"You are welcome," she says to Ayavah. "Regardless of what you may think, there is not a one among us who wishes you harm. Ary included, though her actions might have had serious repercussions. I hope you understand now that we will do what we can to protect you, but that you must also help us by being open and listening to what we say. Regardless of your intent or who you are, there are many who would judge you based entirely on your beliefs."
Isilme lets Xanderghul talk for a bit with her before chiming in again. "Bear in mind that out here in the worldwound, we are unlikely to suffer a demon to live. The reaction to your presence was almost to strike you dead on sight. Were it to get out that our guest was consorting with demons, we might very well all wind up dead..."
"As far as contributing goes, what are your talents besides sculpting? Surely you must have some other things which you excel at."
Isilme drops in to check on Ledsa and Artis, hoping she managing to feel useful while awaiting her birth. "Sut ydych chi'n ei wneud Ledsa? Sut mae'r plentyn? Ac mae wedi Artis eich trin yn dda?" She asks the middle-aged kellid woman.
"Artis, thank you again for taking Ledsa. Is there anything you need?" she asks the halfling after checking in with Ledsa.
Valaria, waiting nearby as to make sure that Ayavah wasn't out of her sight, finally chimes in at the other tiefling's latest comment. "I'm starting to think that the crusades do almost as much harm as they do good," she says quietly. "Perhaps you have cause to worry about what they'll do once the Worldwound is sealed. The climate here has allowed Mendev to become a breeding ground for fanatics. Ideas of redemption, of justice, of reason, seem to have been put aside in favor of mindless destruction of everything that they perceive as a threat."
A long sigh escapes her. "I'm sorry, this isn't helping. But I'm worried about you. You say that you're not a fighter, and that you're here to try to provide a voice of moderation. I believe you, but I'm now certain that many will not. And I'm beginning to fear exactly what will come after the Worldwound closes."
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Xanderghul shrugs. "Waging war on the Abyss takes a lot that the Crusaders simply don't have easy access to. plane shift makes supply lines easily destroyed, as all you have to do is kill the cleric capable of casting it. Not only that, but it's impossible to shift anywhere accurately. Those of lawful and good bent find the Abyss uncomfortable. And if you think the Worldwound is dangerously infested with demons, the Abyss itself will put your assumptions to shame."
"I don't think there's any kind of danger of the Crusades wanting to pick extra fights once they're done with this one. I think the Crusaders are tired of war. It's been more than a whole human lifetime of this for them, after all." He continues talking, gesturing around at the soldiers around them. "I don't think it's really their fault. People get jaded. People get depressed. It's just something that happens to humans. They can't take this kind of conflict forever without it changing them in a negative way. It's part of why I think it's so important that I stick around. I know what it's like to fight for longer than you imagined possible."
"I suppose you would know, wouldn't you," Val says to Xan's response. "So let me ask you a question. What will you do when the fighting ends? When the Worldwound closes and your spells are no longer needed to slay demons and there are no more enemies here to fight, what will your purpose be?"
"Me?" says Xanderghul, his eyebrows raising with surprise. "I dunno. Something else. I've always wanted to see ancient Azlant. I've wanted to meet Fafnheir, the Father of All Linnorms. I hear Pharasma's Spire in the Boneyard is nice this time of year. It's not like I'm gonna see it any other way than just going there."
Val actually smiles for the first time in days. "You know, that sounds exactly like you. I'm sure that you'd be very happy spending an eternity as a scholar. I'm glad that you have a future in mind." Her smile dies and another sigh slips out. "But I can't help wondering how many crusaders would answer something along the lines of 'find another evil to fight'."
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Xanderghul pontificates, explaining and postulating. "Can you blame them? There's a lot of evil in the world. A lot of people die for stupid reasons. If I had a vote or an imaginary table to bet at... I'd guess Mendev has five years of peace before they wage war on Cheliax. Reclaim the old kingdom of Aroden, you know?"