Nymphaea Orlbereth's page

"Finally up, are you?" the old elf said with a smile. "And off just as soon I'm guessing. Wouldn't want to keep your young man waiting."

She laughed as Nimora blushed.

"Well, then all I can say is good luck, child. You've done well here. They're lucky to have you."

"Well, well. I knew there was more to her than she was letting on."

Nymphaea continued on through the organized chaos that was the army towards her granddaughter. It was possible that what she brought would not be needed. It was also possible that sharks would grow wings and fly above the water. Possible and likely were two very different things.

She nudged Nimora in the back. The girl whirled around, prepared for anything.

"It's alright. It's just me. I brought you something. Hopefully you won't need it, but I would be shocked if there weren't treachery of some sort afoot. So, just to be on the safe side."
She gladly handed the heavy shield over to Nimora. She was well aware that what seemed heavy to her would be light as a feather to the girl.
"Don't look at me like that, child. I borrowed it. It's not like it was doing any good where it was. And it's rightfully ours anyhow."

Permanent defences such as walls get in the way of expanding your business sideways when you're on the edge of town.

Plus one building material (wood) may not function so well underwater, and then there is that 'they can swim above your walls anyway' bit...
A few towers with strategic fields of view to fire ballista type weapons from might work, but I'm not sure what else by way of permanent structures would be effective underwater apart from some sort of very big dome (which naturally the nobles would complain blocks favourable currents and cuts off the best of the light...)

Good grief, have you been sitting in on council meetings all this time? I've been dealing with these arguments for centuries... ;)

Nymphaea arrived back at home after an invigorating day of arguing with idiots. If by some miracle their city survived the coming attack, she might finally see these complacent morons finally agree to fund the building of some permanent defenses. She'd been wondering for decades how it was that a group of wealthy merchants could possibly be so complacent about defending that wealth. The evacuation continued, more citizens heading upriver each day, special preference being given to the very old and the very young. Nimora was working tirelessly, but every so often she could catch a glimpse of fear in her granddaughter's eyes. They were anything but prepared to meet this threat.

Nymphaea sighed and settled in for a long ordeal as King Orca the fifth swam rapidly around the room screaming hysterically about ice cream and chocolate sauce and muffins attacking the city. Eventually she was able to interrupt his hysterics.

"Your Majesty, I agree that Sandreef is facing some very formidable threats. In fact, that is why I am here today. The Merchants Guild believes that the city will be better able to address these threats if we empower proper military authority to take command of our forces and coordinate the defenses. I have here a writ, that I hope you will sign, that details out the plans that we have made for just such an eventuality."

"They will protect the city from the chocolate sauce threat?" King Orca asked nervously from where he was cowering behind his throne.

"Yes, your majesty."

Nymphaea smiled smugly to herself as she swam away, signed writ in hand.

Nymphaea grinned. "That's my girl. Ever the optimist. Someone in this family needs to be."

"I never bother to worry about things that are beneath me," Nymphaea says with a smug smile, in response to Melusine's backhanded compliment. "It keeps away pesky things like wrinkles. You should try it some time."

"I should let you know that I am putting myself on the king's schedule first thing in the morning. You've already made enough of a mess of this, Melusine, and the troops have clear orders from their king that they are only to take orders from Nimora or our king while they are here. I intend to get her the military command of the city's forces while I'm at it. I don't care one whit about your politics. I want someone who knows what they're doing in charge if we're being threatened by rampaging nomads. I'm rather fond of my villa and I'd hate to see it razed."

"Oh, and Nerion, I declared the troops from Pearl to be official guests of the Merchants Guild until they can get official permission from the king. I expect you to supply them adequately while they're here."

"So now I need to get myself put on the king's schedule for tomorrow. Well, well. This is an interesting development," she said, her mouth twitching with amusement. "And it looks like it's about to get more interesting. Here comes my darling son and the witch he married."

In a loud voice, with an amazing ability to carry honed by many years of talking over shouting merchants, "While it will take a certain amount of time to arrange a meeting with his royal majesty, let me extend the welcome of the Merchant's Guild. We consider you our honored guest until such time as official royal permission can be granted."

"There, that ought to stir the pot a bit," she said quietly to Nimora. "Now go and talk to them. Like it or not, child, you have an audience. Use it."

She gave Nimora a small shove forwards.

Nymphaea calls for dolphins from the stable and thwaps Nimora's knuckles when the girl rolls her eyes.

"It wouldn't hurt you to actually look the part of a noble lady once in a while, you know. Especially since you've gone and gotten involved with royalty."

Nimora blushes and stammmers an apology, which Nymphaea dismisses with a wave. "Don't apologize. Just don't do it anymore."

With that the group finally sets out for the Sapphire Gate, arriving to see the military unit waiting patiently.

The other messenger arrives at the villa of Nymphaea Orlbereth. He is dragged in by the butler.
"This rude child has some important information to relay before I chuck him back onto the street," Parrik said stiffly.

"There's a whole bunch of soldiers at the Sapphire Gate. They say they're from some place called Pearl. They were asking for a Lady Nimora Orlbereth," the boy gasped out before being dragged out by the butler.

"Well," Nymphaea says, dryly. "This will surely be interesting. It is likely that this news was also delivered to your parents. I think I will come with you. At my age, there are so few things left that are truly entertaining."

Nymphaea looked thoughtful. "I am guessing that there is a great deal about this situation that you aren't telling me." She shook her head. "Although it doesn't surprise me in the slightest that that fool girl would have gone and started a war. I always said her ambition was going to get her into trouble someday. I never did understand what it was my son sees in her."

"Very well," she said abruptly. "You can stay. I will speak with your parents in the morning."

"Well, I can only presume that your being here means you've gotten yourself into some sort of trouble, Nimora. Last I heard your mother was outdoing herself with wedding arrangements. Did you run away or is there more to this disaster in the making?"

In a little-travelled corner of the Intertehreal Sea an immense forest sits in silent splendor. Oak, Ash, Beech and Pine mix with their rarer cousins Mallorn and Ironwood. Many are dozens of meters thick, their massive boles reaching to the lapis sky.

One massive tree crusted in moss and mistletoe suddenly shakes, scaring a flock of cardinals from its branches. He croaks out a few sentences in Entish that take most of the afternoon to finish.

Hurm hurm! Our busy associate the Tree Emperor has been busy my brothers! These flesh creatures and their petty squabbles ...

The ring of trees shivers and shimmys as the ancient Ents commune and ponder the latest news from the lands beyond the Great Forest.