Part XI : Of Twinned Knights and Lonely Souls
The party headed back down the tower, Trovik taking up the rear. He felt a blade at his throat, and a voice asked for his last words. Amônhanar Naraiwë, a shrouded elven man, had been hunting Trovik on Odin's orders. To his surprise, Trovik was no longer in Valravn's service, he was now actively working to stop him and Ragnarok. After much discussion, Amônhanar was satisfied, and accompanied the group as they explored the rest of the university, grabbing what books and valuables they deemed appropriate.
They made their way back to the cave, letting the eladrin hidden their know that the task was done, the fog had been lifted, and the man responsible for it had been killed. Ri, furious with her mother, demanded to know why she had not been warned about her father's death, though her mother, too, was surprised and saddened by this. Messengers left the cave, seeking out others hidden throughout the forest and letting them know that the danger had passed. There was to be a mass funeral, a bonfire of souls, and the party was invited to take part. They each helped in their own way, preparing bodies, logs, and flammable liquid. During the preparations, dozens more eladrin made their way to the town, in total nearly two hundred. After all preparations were made, as the setting sun lit the sky in deep orange, Ri's mother asked if she would like to light the pyre. She accepted, tossing a bottle of liquid Syntharia gave her into the air and conjuring up a small bolt of fire, sending it arcing into the sky and crashing into the bottle. Dazzling sparks of flame shot out, lighting the pyre. As the bodies burned, it was not smoke that filled the air but thousands of autumn leaves.
During the celebration that ensued, Ri's mother approached her, giving her a ring that she and her father intended to give Ri when she came of age, but were never able to. She asked if Ri would be leaving again, and told her that she knew that she would do well. Brother Zael visited Syntharia as she poured over the tomes acquired within the university. He asked if the rest of her party knew how much time they had, and offered a possible solution. Ratne, who was once known as Renhet, the goddess of purity, created the elves and their home, the feywilds. She created them to be everliving and free from all disease. When Renhet was corrupted, becoming Ratne, she created the shadowfell to destroy the feywilds, and the elves sought refuge in Aeris. He believed that the secret to curing Ratne's Kiss may be hidden within the blood of elves, though he knew of only one person who could help them. Aria Bathory, the vampiress who had slaughtered the tiefling nation of Tarkesh centuries ago and built her kingdom atop its ruins. He knew it was a long shot, and a dangerous one, but it was perhaps their only option. He asked if she would return to the forest when she finished her work, to help him heal it, and told her to call him by his first name, Reshandrel.
While Flintknuckle wrestled with Ishkali and Amônhanar watched from afar, Trovik sat by himself and looked upon the crowd, seeing the spirits of the dead watching over their loved ones. He saw Syntharia's mother sitting next to her, and turned to find Hel standing beside him. He asked her if he could facilitate his friends speaking with their loved ones again, but Hel simply smiled and shook her head, raising a finger to her mouth to indicate that she couldn't speak here. Reshandrel approached Trovik, telling him that while he didn't know how much time Trovik had, he knew that Flintknuckle had less than a year. He told him of the plan he proposed to Syntharia and bid him farewell, wishing him luck on his journeys. He told Trovik that he'd be leaving the forest tonight to bring Kvothe back so that he could be near him while he worked to heal the land and its people.
In the morning, Ri said goodbye to her mother once more. The elves gave the group gifts of food and drink in thanks for their work, and the party set off towards their next destination.
The previous night, at the Crossroads Inn, dozens of corpses lay in pools of blood. Red was tied to a chair, beaten and bloody, his teeth scattered onto the floor. A tall man, dressed in a sharp black suit with a wide brimmed, black hat, cigarette hanging from his lips, thanked Red for letting him know where Yannis and his friends were headed. A gunshot sent Red toppling back in the chair, blood pooling around his head. The man left.
They made their way back to the cave, letting the eladrin hidden their know that the task was done, the fog had been lifted, and the man responsible for it had been killed. Ri, furious with her mother, demanded to know why she had not been warned about her father's death, though her mother, too, was surprised and saddened by this. Messengers left the cave, seeking out others hidden throughout the forest and letting them know that the danger had passed. There was to be a mass funeral, a bonfire of souls, and the party was invited to take part. They each helped in their own way, preparing bodies, logs, and flammable liquid. During the preparations, dozens more eladrin made their way to the town, in total nearly two hundred. After all preparations were made, as the setting sun lit the sky in deep orange, Ri's mother asked if she would like to light the pyre. She accepted, tossing a bottle of liquid Syntharia gave her into the air and conjuring up a small bolt of fire, sending it arcing into the sky and crashing into the bottle. Dazzling sparks of flame shot out, lighting the pyre. As the bodies burned, it was not smoke that filled the air but thousands of autumn leaves.
During the celebration that ensued, Ri's mother approached her, giving her a ring that she and her father intended to give Ri when she came of age, but were never able to. She asked if Ri would be leaving again, and told her that she knew that she would do well. Brother Zael visited Syntharia as she poured over the tomes acquired within the university. He asked if the rest of her party knew how much time they had, and offered a possible solution. Ratne, who was once known as Renhet, the goddess of purity, created the elves and their home, the feywilds. She created them to be everliving and free from all disease. When Renhet was corrupted, becoming Ratne, she created the shadowfell to destroy the feywilds, and the elves sought refuge in Aeris. He believed that the secret to curing Ratne's Kiss may be hidden within the blood of elves, though he knew of only one person who could help them. Aria Bathory, the vampiress who had slaughtered the tiefling nation of Tarkesh centuries ago and built her kingdom atop its ruins. He knew it was a long shot, and a dangerous one, but it was perhaps their only option. He asked if she would return to the forest when she finished her work, to help him heal it, and told her to call him by his first name, Reshandrel.
While Flintknuckle wrestled with Ishkali and Amônhanar watched from afar, Trovik sat by himself and looked upon the crowd, seeing the spirits of the dead watching over their loved ones. He saw Syntharia's mother sitting next to her, and turned to find Hel standing beside him. He asked her if he could facilitate his friends speaking with their loved ones again, but Hel simply smiled and shook her head, raising a finger to her mouth to indicate that she couldn't speak here. Reshandrel approached Trovik, telling him that while he didn't know how much time Trovik had, he knew that Flintknuckle had less than a year. He told him of the plan he proposed to Syntharia and bid him farewell, wishing him luck on his journeys. He told Trovik that he'd be leaving the forest tonight to bring Kvothe back so that he could be near him while he worked to heal the land and its people.
In the morning, Ri said goodbye to her mother once more. The elves gave the group gifts of food and drink in thanks for their work, and the party set off towards their next destination.
The previous night, at the Crossroads Inn, dozens of corpses lay in pools of blood. Red was tied to a chair, beaten and bloody, his teeth scattered onto the floor. A tall man, dressed in a sharp black suit with a wide brimmed, black hat, cigarette hanging from his lips, thanked Red for letting him know where Yannis and his friends were headed. A gunshot sent Red toppling back in the chair, blood pooling around his head. The man left.
Played on 04/24/2021
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