Cruinog

  A week is neither a long time nor a short time. On Cruinog, after the last of the Eartborne went to Emphyralis, silence had descended over the valley. Amadeus and Lazarus had been left in charge as the ranking Knights. They regularly arranged patrols around the Bienskurr Mountains and their surroundings.

  On the first day, Amadeus returned from settling the Cruinog humans but there was nothing else. The dying lands had been silent. By the second day, a contingent of nearly a thousand little people arrived in the valley. They were in the shapes of Forest Elves, but the tallest of them was only thirteen inches tall. They were dressed in things obviously scavenged from humans, with many slightly oversized accessories, but their clothes were well made and in the popular style. Because they can scavenge from human discards, they could get their tiny hands on expensive fabrics.

  "Eh? Are they Brownies?" Alistair wondered. Brownies were a type of miniature Elf, also called Baduun, and they looked almost identical to these little people, with only their coloring being dissimilar. Most of these little folk had light skin and hair, whereas Brownies were mostly brunette and tanned skin, with only a few having red or even blonde hair.

  The representative was a gray haired little man who walked with a cane made of a repurposed knitting needle with a sapphire tipped hair pin stuck into it. "What brownies? Who's brown? You're brown! We're the Light Foot! The Wailings Ones said we could get to safety if we came here!" he said indignantly.

  Amadeus and Lazarus looked at each other then addressed the tiny Light Foot. "Is this all of you? You said the Banshees informed you. Are there others coming?" he asked.

  The little man being drooped. "I, Finvar, the King of the Light Foot, have failed to protect my people. Had not the message from the Wailing Ones reached us, no one knows when we would have perished. Others have likely heard the message by now. The smart ones will come," he answered.

  Amadeus listened and nodded. "Very well. We'll send you to safety, but you have to stay together and you can't argue with the arrangements made for you when you get there. You have to follow our rules and laws," he informed the little King.

  The Light Foot straightened their shoulders and patted their chests, vowing on their tiny lives that they would agree.

  Amadeus and Lazarus discussed their options and decided to send Delia and Spencer with the Brownies. They would summon help making arrangements for the new refugees and stay on Emphyralis to oversee it. They chose Spencer and Delia because they didn't want to rob Alistair and Wallace the chance to witness the prayer to the Sisters of the Moons. Delia and Spencer had no objections. They, too, would be disappointed if they had the chance to witness a blessing from Urune or Ulmaris and were deprived of it.

  They escorted the thousand strong group to the ancestral hall of the Earthborne. Delaney followed to send them on the way. She didn't have much of a connection to the Dragon Gods, but she wanted to know more and wanted to witness what would happen if the prayer was "successful".

  All the Light Foot managed to crowd on the array, with Delia and Spencer also having quite a number of the dextrous little folk handing off of them. Needless to say, their arrival caused quite a stir on the other side, but Raven was still in New Bienskurr and quickly understood what was happening. She used her authority as the second highest mage in the land to curtail any dissatisfaction or objection from the Earthborne. Somewhat to her surprise, King Corven backed her up.

  After the first group came, more fae or magical creatures began to arrive in the valley. On the third day, the group was shocked when a dozen small, shaggy maned ponies galloped into the valley with half-dead seals on their backs. Learning that the ponies were Kelpies and the seals were Selkies and they both needed water.

  Kelpies traditionally lived in the rivers and lakes, but now the water outside of the range of power plants was nearly uninhabitable. Selkies came from the sea, which was also now filled with the numerous rotting corpses of dead fish, far too much for the remaining living scavengers to clean up.

  Both creatures were shapeshifters, but neither had the energy anymore. The Kelpies discovered the plight of Selkies when the latter tried to find relief by moving into the inland waters. The two groups did their best to live near the power plants, but it was difficult. When they heard the wails of the Banshees, they mustered their courage and set out.

  The leading Selkie and Kelpie transformed into women. They appeared aged and dried out, like crones, but there was a hint of how they may appear at full power. After reminding them about following the rules and laws of Emphyralis, they were through the Bridge.

  As time crept forward, a few groups staggered into the valley, but many fae races had been devastated by the ecological disaster caused by the xenomaterium that many once flourishing creatures had dwindled to less than ten. After Wallace, the Empath, checked them for malice or killing intent, they were sent through to be vetted on the other side.

  The types of creatures were varied. Some had never been seen before, but some were similar to other groups on Emphyralis. Huldra, who came from the north, were bark-covered fae who seemed to be a variant of a Dryad. Pookas from the Isle of Eyre were goat shaped shapeshifting creatures that had never been seen before, but had an influence on nature, a unique creature, to be sure. Even more surprising were a group of gray skinned fae calling themselves Gancanagh, which were actually a group of Huaese'un that they were familiar with.

  Hearing that they had kin on Emphyralis invigorated the Gancanagh, whose sparse population had dwindled to less than a dozen. They eagerly crossed the bridge.

  It seemed that the creatures from the Isle of Eyre all banded together to travel. Along with the Pookas and the Gancanagh, and small clusters of dim light called will-o'-wisps, they were also accompanied by dwarf-like creatures calling themselves Leprechauns. Actually, they were a type of dwarf who dwelled in above land rather than below. Each much stronger than they looked with bushy red hair and beards, they carried big sacks full of gold. They refused to part with their treasures. They were likewise pleased to learn about their mountain-dwelling kin.

  By the fifth day of the prayer, something happened within the cave that was tangible. The air became heavy, and an electric pressure surrounded the three figures. Wallace and Alistair became ecstatic. Delaney, having never felt such a thing before, was confused.

  "The Sisters have heard their prayers are preparing to bless them with songs," Alistair said excitedly.

  Lazarus nodded. "This is the feeling of our Gods breaking the barrier of dimensions to communicate or interact with us directly," he explained to her.

  Delaney was shocked. "They can do that?" The denizens of the Upper Realm never communicated directly with anyone from the Lower Realm. They just answered prayers when they could. When her Grandfather broke into the Mortal Realm, even when he was hunted down and punished, it was by proxy, and his godly powers had been sealed to even attempt to break in.

  "It isn't easy," Amadeus said. "We usually only directly feel this during funerals when Utraeus reclaims our bodies. It must be because we're far away from Emphyralis," he posited.

  Delaney realized she still had much to learn about Emphyralis.

  Even after the pressure descended, the prayer continued for another three days.

  On the fifth day, a messenger brought an urgent report.

  --

  Emphyralis

  Time on Emphyralis passed by, but not without incident. In Thale, while the public was fascinated by the case of the corrupt politicians, the six generals in Thale had been gathering their forces and making plans.

  Varmur had no direct control of Underreef, the underwater city on the ocean floor near the Naias Reef in the Tharros Ocea, the southern ocean between Varmur and Thale. However, in the process of governance and taxation, it was in Varmur's jurisdiction. Therefore, many of the water born races that lived there served in the Sentinel Corps including Mermaids, Naiads, and even Aquamarine Dragons. These races had unique abilities, especially suited for operating underwater. As scouts, they scoured the deep waters, gathering vital intelligence, providing critical reconnaissance for the generals.

  To guard against the cold water that even water attributed races would be affected by, a timely boon was gifted to Thale. A wealthy magistrate of one of Thale's agricultural domes managed to "push production to the limit" and donated a lot of weather-proof fabric. Thale's Guard Corps often struggled to procure much of this fabric from Sleetfall which made this donation even more significant. This sudden boon left both Morganna and Marius consternated. Magistrate Sleetfall, however, remained humble, stating, “This is what I should do.”

  Yet, it wasn't long for this lowkey and humble donation was being talked about everywhere alongside the political scandal. People saw it as a good sign about the eventual breaking of the Siege. Some loudly proclaimed that they wished Lady Britiana and the other Mages would return from off-world so that the other Bridges could be built.

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  These particular thoughts were both spontaneous and directed. The more the mastermind relaxed his guard, the better for Thale and the Generals. Kylian Pugocks, the Second Mage of Icestorme, returned. His weren't a secret. He had a friendly relationship with a wealthy family and they hired him to establish a dome on the private island they'd recently bought. Onika and Oberon verified his presence on the island, confirming his movements after finding him there. However, they couldn’t provide much information about his activities before his arrival.

  Zane, ever cautious, double-checked for messages from Dahlia afterwards, only to be met with a verification of his whereabouts, but she was still investigating as per Zane's commission. It seemed to point away from the man being the mastermind, but it was better to be thorough.

  Thale was quite lively at this time with pre-trial hearings, and barristers arguing in court with prosecutors. All the while, no one else knew about the movements of joint-military operation eying the hostile races involved in the Siege. Due to their unique abilities, Onika and Oberon were taken away from watching Pugoks and began to surveil the Wyrm nests that Marius knew about, as well as checking for any they missed.

  The generals agreed on one thing. The Wyrms were the first target. They'd either exterminate them or drive them away. There were plenty of uninhabited peaks of the Eternal Mountains above the water in the Isolated Expanse they could inhabit. However, due to their active participation in the Siege, extermination was decided upon. Once they had the information from the Starsong siblings, they could begin the operation.

  Zane wanted to make sure that Kylian Pugoks was in the clear. Once they acted, the mastermind would realize they had been deceived and would go deeper into hiding, but information came to them that the Wyrms seemed to be getting ready to act. The underwater scouts also reported sightings of the hostile races near the coasts. They may not be able to wait.

  When they were preparing, Ysandar suddenly received troubling news from Silvermoon and had to return to handle the situation.

  Unlike the roiling tides and subtle undercurrents in Thale, Silvermoon had been relatively more peaceful. Relatively. It didn't take very long for news about more refugees coming from Cruinog. Especially when Amadeus brought a group of humans to Crowley House.

  When he explained the situation to Amalthea, she readily took in the group, settled them in and helped register them. She took on the role as guide as she was a "fellow traveler" as it were. She assured Amadeus they would welcome other humans who made it at Crowley House. Professor Snyderman acted as their representative and was so grateful for the hospitality. Once Amadeus made sure they were settled, he returned to Cruinog.

  The humans were just the start. Soon other races began to come over. Registrars from the Keep were sent to direct the flow and settlement of the refugees and in cases of similar races, contacting representatives to help them acclimate more easily.

  The movements weren't small, but Chrystianna had had no intention of bowing to discordant voices to begin with. Before she left, she'd actually appointed Xolani D'a'kar as acting Chancellor, giving her the authority to oversee Silvermoon in her absence. Xolani D'a'Kar oversaw everything with her usual silent efficiently.

  However, on the fourth day, things soured when a protest took place in front of the Keep. The slogan "Emphyralis for Emphyralians" was beginning to gain traction and groups of different races, but mostly Elves, were chanting it while holding up signs. After consulting with Maia Dawnweaver, the High Justice, and the acting Second Knight, the Knight Brigadier, Xolani had them driven away for not having a permit, or detained if they caused trouble.

  Some of the group saw this as a provocation and a small scale riot broke out. Finally, the guards of the Keep came out in full force and seized everyone. Everyone worked over time that day. Xolani D'a'kar went home that night and never came back to work.

  When the acting Second Knight heard the report from the people in the Grand Duchess' office report, he went to her home and found her house vandalized. The guards who were in charge of her safety had been mysteriously neutralized. The popular slogan was now magically hanging over her house. Neighbors nearby were actively reporting it to the military for fear that something bad had happened.

  Upon entering, the entire was torn up and destroyed with graffiti covering the walls. Her house wasn't large and she was easy to find. She was sprawled in her own foyer, dressed in a night robe that spilled around her, stained with the fluorescent green blood that spread from the crown of her head. Her black eyes turned gray.

  Xolani D'aKar was dead.

  --

  In the absence of the Grand Duchess or the Chancellor, the Second Knight had to step in as Xolani didn't have a Vice-Chancellor because even she was only an acting Chancellor. Therefore, he had the highest authority at the moment to send a messenger to Ysandar Thorindale and to the Grand Duchess in Thale.

  The Knight Brigadier was even more of a tool man than Ysandar. He was basically a long serving military man who worked his way up the ranks by his own merit, discipline, and sheer stubborn loyalty, but he was also a simple man. He was a dwarf and he was not a political animal by any stretch of the imagination. He was sweating bullets as he preserved the crime scene and had the Healers come for the body.

  As soon as the messenger arrived in Cruinog, Lazarus had Amadeus go back. They couldn't interrupt the three Silver Dragons. Not even for the death of the Grand Duchess' most trusted aide.

  Amadeus made it back to Silvermoon long before Ysandar. Although he didn't have the rank, as he was only an eighth level Knight, he had authority given to by Darius. Even though he technically was not a part of the military or government, he was still the son of the Grand Duchess. He couldn't outrank Durik Jarnulf, the acting Second Knight, but the man was happy to hand the matter over to this young Knight who followed the young lord.

  He still had to go feild the pressures from the ministers of Parliament who would undoubtedly want to meddle in the chancellor position now that the Grand Duchess was out of touch. His old beard stood on end just thinking about it. By the Moons, how he hated politics.

  He hoped Ysandar returned soon. The unshakeable old Elf was much better at this kind of thing than he was. He decided to turn to Maia Dawnweaver as an ally in the meantime. The Prime Minister of Upper Parliament was also trustworthy. It was just those sharks and hyenas in Lower Parliament that would foaming at the mouth.

  He quickly retreated from the crime scene, leaving Amadeus with one phrase, "If you need anything, just say!" and beat a hasty retreat. He wasn't squeamish, by any means. He'd killed as many if not more Hunters than many Dragons, but this was a person he'd seen only a few hours before, perfectly fine. It was different. She was a civil servant, not a soldier. This wasn’t a battlefield death. This wasn’t even a training ground accident. This should not have happened to her.

  Amadeus sent the Second Knight off with a salute. Then he entered the house. "Record everything. After everything is logged, analyze the magic signatures in the graffiti. Check for trace markers, residues, anything that can identify the caster or maker," he gave the orders to the other guards on the scene. Most were higher ranked than he was, but with the authority granted to him by Darius, they had to listen to him.

  He approached the Healer who was crouched beside at Xolani's lifeless form. He was careful not to disturb anything at the scene. "Have you figured out what she was hit with?" he asked. He scanned the scene carefully. There was no sign of anything near the body. There was only blood and graffiti on the walls.

  Emphyralis for Emphyralians. What a crock. The only true Emphyralians were the Dragons and the Elementals. He narrowed his eyes grimly.

  The Healer shook his head. "There's nothing on the scene. I'll have to do a post mortem examination to determine in more detail," he said grimly. Though some parts of Emphyralis were still wild and untamed, within cities heavily guarded and patrolled, murder was highly uncommon.

  Amadeus nodded. "What about the guards? Were any of them injured?" he asked.

  A junior Healer stepped forward. "I examined each of them when we arrived. They weren't injured but we need to do more tests to discover the cause of their unconsciousness," she answered.

  Amadeus stacked his hands behind his back as he looked at the graffiti on the walls. Was this a simple breakin gone wrong? Looking at the surface, they were supposed to believe that protestors incapacitated the guards in order to vandalize the house. They were supposed to believe that Xolani heard the noise and came downstairs. They were supposed to believe that the vandalizers were startled and killed her in their panic before fleeing.

  Was it really that simple?

  Some might argue "What's so simple about that? You still have to find the culprits!" But he really felt it would be too easy. The vandals were able to incapacitate well trained guards in the Knight Corps but not an unarmed defenseless woman?

  Adona welcome his soul to the Abyss if he believed that.

  "Did the acting Chancellor not have attendants?" he asked a guard.

  "We're still talking to the neighbors. It looks like she lived a quiet life. She had a cleaner come twice a week, but no permanent attendants," a guard answered after checking her notes.

  After staying on the scene for an hour, he was informed that the acting First Knight had returned. "Keep the scene secure until say otherwise. Cordon off the entire street. Forget the acting Chancellor, even as the Grand Duchess' personal assistant, Xolani D'a'Kar was a high value target. Verify neighbors and anyone trying to enter or exit the neighborhood," Amadeus before he went to the Keep to report to Ysandar Thorindale.

  "Aye, sir!" the guards agreed and saluted him as he left.

  He knew the acting First Knight had many things to take care of at the moment, but he still needed to discuss something about this matter with him. The first thing he needed was the authority to access the list of Chancellor candidates and investigate their backgrounds and ties.

  If this wasn't just vandals and was a disguised political assassination, then these people had the most to gain. Especially those who were front runners for the position.

  And there was one thing he was sure of.

  It wasn't vandals.

  --