The troops watch with bated breath, wondering if this meant that the war was over, or if the nomads would continue to press their attack regardless.
The Knight-Captain meets the entourage halfway.
"What in Poseidon's name happened?! We were about to mount a rescue attempt!"
"Why? I didn't think we took that long," she says confused. She looks back at the opposing army milling around. "They haven't decided what to do yet it seems."
"Yes, Tempest is in the cocoon. She defeated Blurghoot's brother, and after he fell she removed the curse from him, but at great cost to herself. I...think the cocoon is to help her heal. But I really don't know."
divination/auguries reveal both death and life, and the power of a tempest strong enough to destroy Sandreef contained within the cocoon. calls are made to banish it to another plane, or at least get it far from here.
the Knights return, and one relates the details to the Captain
"What did you, Lady? After Tempest removed the curse? What caused the explosion?"
"She was dying. I tried to help her. The touch of a lawful aligned object...let's just say it didn't go well."
"Was it a Hunter's Orb?""She was dying. I tried to help her. The touch of a lawful aligned object...let's just say it didn't go well."the Knights return, and one relates the details to the Captain
"What did you, Lady? After Tempest removed the curse? What caused the explosion?"
She looks at him blankly. "I don't really know what it was called. But I'm pretty sure that it got an extra kicker from my shield. I was trying to use the shield's healing properties to help her. I was going through my pockets trying to find anything that might help, and well, obviously it didn't."
"More likely that shield saved your life, or worse."
"Bah...wizards' and their toys..."
"Who knows what it did to Tempest's body."
She hangs her head, trying not to let herself dwell on her mistakes.
"I was trying to use the shield to heal her. I only hope that it was able to provide her some protection from my ignorance. It's...a little out of practice."
"She was dead before you touched her. Sorry."
"By the way who put the cocoon on her? My men saw no healers."
"A sea elf with green eyes. I didn't recognize the face, but I swear I've seen him somewhere before."
word reaches them of the clerics' findings, and fears.
"A sea elf with green eyes. I didn't recognize the face, but I swear I've seen him somewhere before.""She was dead before you touched her. Sorry."
"By the way who put the cocoon on her? My men saw no healers."
He turns to the kinights closest to them. They shake their heads. He looks confused for a moment, then shrugs.
"Maybe a good spirit watches over you, Lady."
She shrugs. "Maybe. I met a lot of good spirits during my time on the surface."
"How long do you think it will be before they decide whether to go or stay?" she asks nodding towards the nomad army. She wanted to go curl up in a corner and weep, but there would be time enough for that after she was certain her people were safe.
"No! Our sister goes nowhere alone. Alive or dead."
"What is it? Why do they want to send Tempest away?"
Murmurs of excitement ripple through the Sandreef soldiers as they watch the enemy withdraw. As the confusion of battle ebbed, people began to look for friends and loved ones, many of whom had been killed in the battle.
"No! Our sister goes nowhere alone. Alive or dead.""What is it? Why do they want to send Tempest away?""They fear what is in the cocoon isn't Tempest. That it poses a danger to your people."
seeing the nomad army withdrawing, the Knight-Captain and 4 Blue Eels head to the hospital tents
Nimora follows, a stubborn set to her face making it very clear that she isn't going to be sent away easily.
The warriors enter the healers' tent. Velantium stations guards outside
"What is the meaning of this report, that you are considering sending the cocoon with Tempest's body to another plane, or far awaw?! Explain yourselves!"
Cleric in charge "General Olbereth! Examinations of the cocoon have had strange results. *I must admit, we are not well versed with druid magic.* Anyways, detect spells have shown life and death, law and chaos, but detect magic levels are off the charts. And growing. All of them. All extremes. We fear that the cocoon will break and the sudden release of the magic building within it will be catastrophic. I've never seen the like."
"We think only for the safety of our city, my lady."
"I will not have her sent to another plane. Move her to an open area away from the city. Then I want everyone to withdraw. I will stand guard over her."
"Don't even think about arguing with me," she said to Velantium, seeing the objection about to come. "If what they fear comes true, I need to be there. I have the means to protect the city. And no, it shouldn't be fatal. Uncomfortable, if the accounts are to be believed. But I can live with that. So unless you have some other brilliant suggestion that will keep my people safe, this is what we're going to do."
"The Blue Eels will stand watch with you."
with that the cocoon is moved to the kelp plains where so much blood has recently been shed
"If the cocoon looks like it's going to break, do me a favor and take a big step back," she said quietly to the Knight-Captain. "And just for your personal reference, should it be necessary, it's usually a one hour to one day ratio. Time I'll be unconscious after if I have to use the shield to its full capabilities. It doesn't cause long-term harm. Just plain old exhaustion."
on the 2nd day and image is added to the silent vigil. He stands at the head of the coccon.
Nimora spends a lot of the waiting time sending and receiving messages via carrier minnow. The relief troops arrive, too late for the battle, but they are put to work helping clean up the aftermath and set up patrols in case anyone else decides to attack the city while it's vulnerable. It's a lot of work getting things organized and slowly transferring command away from herself. Now that the immediate threat was past her father was more than capable of handling the rest of this.
on the 2nd day and image is added to the silent vigil. He stands at the head of the coccon.
Nimora nods to the image, acknowledging his presence and continues to wait with the others.
At dawn on the 3rd day an elf swims up to the assemblage. The knights don't seem to notice him. As he arrives the cocoon begins to crack.
The cocoon breaks open without the devastation the cleric had feared. Inside is a green light. The elf reaches in and pulls out a baby. Female, sea elf, but with golden scales. Wrapping the babe in a cloth he swims away.
Left inside the cocoon is Tempest's rent armor and weapons. The glow fades.
As if in a time lag, the image thrusts a dagger into the cocoon, where the babe had just laid.
It looks surprised that it had missed, and that the babe is nowhere to be seen.
A look of panic upon his face, the image fades.
Nimora breathes a sigh of relief.
"It's done then. No boom. Today."
She looks back towards the city.
"The funeral ceremony for the fallen soldiers is today. I'm glad I didn't have to miss it. I should be there, to show respect for their sacrifice."
"What troops are left here from Pearl are free to go home whenever you wish. Personally, I am hoping to return to Pearl tomorrow, but that does depend somewhat on how much family drama ensues in the meantime."
"Err...excuse me Lady?"
The Knights seem to have just come out of a stupor, and are just noticing that the cocoon has opened
"The cocoon is open. No boom. Tempest is gone. She has a chance to start over after a fashion. I think. The elf with the green eyes took her with him."
Nimora swims back towards Sandreef. She should be exhausted as she hadn't slept in three days. The shield was sustaining her for now. It troubled her that the image of Telestial had lashed out at the baby with his dagger. She had been standing right there, holding an artifact whose entire purpose was protection, and hadn't felt so much as a twinge. Even if there were things she didn't know, she should have at least noticed some uneasiness if the baby had been tainted. But she hadn't.
She headed for her grandmother's house to get cleaned up for the funeral ceremony. She should just have time to wash and to clean her armor. She hoped she wasn't going to have to speak. She was terrible at public speaking. She wondered if there had been any change in Joren's condition since the last communication. Mother was going to be a basket case if he hadn't improved.
The sudden show of civic harmony in the wake of Sandreef's first war was a pleasant change that allowed for all the myriad other things that needed to be done. It couldn't last, but hopefully by the time it faded things would truly be back to normal. The majority of the citizens who had been evacuated had returned now. And now it was time to lay to rest those who weren't going to be coming back.
Nimora swims back towards Sandreef. She should be exhausted as she hadn't slept in three days. The shield was sustaining her for now. It troubled her that the image of Telestial had lashed out at the baby with his dagger. She had been standing right there, holding an artifact whose entire purpose was protection, and hadn't felt so much as a twinge. Even if there were things she didn't know, she should have at least noticed some uneasiness if the baby had been tainted. But she hadn't.
She headed for her grandmother's house to get cleaned up for the funeral ceremony. She should just have time to wash and to clean her armor. She hoped she wasn't going to have to speak. She was terrible at public speaking. She wondered if there had been any change in Joren's condition since the last communication. Mother was going to be a basket case if he hadn't improved.
In her chambers, on her bed a bouquet of sea flowers rests. Fronds of golden kelp adorn the bouquet. The servants have no idea how it got there.
A note
Mortals are not well suited to raising something as primordial as a Fury. Your actions saved more than you will ever know.
In her chambers, on her bed a bouquet of sea flowers rests. Fronds of golden kelp adorn the bouquet. The servants have no idea how it got there.
A note ** spoiler omitted **
She admired the scent of the flowers. After she had cleaned up, she pulled a water lily out of the bouquet and pinned it in her hair. She still wasn't entirely sure who they were from, but it was someone who knew her well enough to know she bit her lip when she was worried. The answer would probably be obvious later, but her mind seemed to be moving sluggishly at present. She thought about leaving the shield behind, but changed her mind. She would make one stop on her way. She strapped the shield on and headed for the Temple of Aventurnus.
Within the Temple, it didn't take long for her to locate her brother's room. She walked in. It felt odd to see Joren just laying there like that. She unstrapped the shield and laid it on top of him.
"There. You two may not be a perfect match, but you're just going to have to adapt. You both belong here. And I have somewhere else I need to go."
She looked over at her mother. "Grandmother borrowed it out of the vault, and you know how much it doesn't like being put back there. It should heal him. And it will be good for him to have. It's the sort of symbol that can really help one consolidate political support. I'm going to the funeral for the fallen soldiers now. I'll be leaving in the morning."
Without waiting for a reply she left. She didn't have the strength for another argument with her mother just now. And they didn't seem to be able to speak to each other without fighting these days.
The funeral was long. It was depressing hearing the list of all those that died. The price of failed diplomacy. She wasn't sure she would ever stop feeling guilty for their deaths. She did have to speak of course. It's pretty well expected when you're the General, regardless of competence. She managed to get through it. It seemed to go over well. She wasn't entirely sure what she said. Something about courage. And some other stuff. And then there was the endless standing around talking to people. Alternating between those looking for political favor and trying to provide some words of comfort for the recently bereaved. She was in a complete fog by the time it ended. Her father didn't even bother to ask what she wanted, just ordered a carriage to take her back to her grandmother's house. And she was too tired to bother objecting.
She woke late the next morning. She wasn't exactly feeling energized and chipper, but she seemed to be recovering. She dressed quickly. Now that her brain didn't feel like it was tangled in seaweed, she was much more prepared to face things. And she thought she had a pretty good idea who had taken Tempest.
She sat beside the window, looking out at the city. She pulled out her comm crystal.
"Mirathan? Can you hear me? If now isn't a good time, I can talk to you later."
Having finished her conversation with Mirathan, Nimora heads out of her room in search of her grandmother. She found her, with a little help from the servants, sitting in the courtyard.
"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."
Nimora hugged her grandmother goodbye and headed towards her parent's house. Maera greeted her at the gate with a crushing hug.
"I was so afraid something would happen to you out there," her old nursemaid said, voice choked with emotion. "Oh, look at me, making a fuss. Come in. I'll bet your parents will be glad enough to see you this time."
Nimora let Maera lead her through the house to her mother's favorite sitting room.
Nerion is alone in the room, looking exhausted. He smiles tiredly at Nimora as she enters.
"Good morning. Your mother and Joren aren't here right now. They're still at the Temple. He's having 'adjustment difficulties' with the shield. It was a brilliant idea, giving it to him. I've got an array of meetings to get to myself. I'm glad that you got here before I left for the day.[/i]