Day 718
Seven days after departing from the floating school, Zehi drops down onto the deck of our ship with a flutter of feathers - completely unexpected.
You could have sent a letter...
I didn't know what to say!
Do you know now?
Yes. You're one of the first people who ever really cared about me, and saw me instead of the clan leader's daughter or a sword princess or anything else. And I know you've found someone who makes you very happy, which makes me happy too, but I'm not going to let that shove me out of your life. I'm not here to be your girlfriend, but you are one of my best friends and I don't want us to drift apart because your life veered in a direction and I wasn't around. So I want to meet the woman of your dreams and I want to be her friend too. I believe that if something is important to you, you fight for it. Having a friendship with you is something I'll fight for.
I laugh as I give her a hug and welcome her aboard. It's such a ridiculous situation but of course she will be coming along with us, after such a declaration. Poor Liliales is a little taken aback, but still happy to have her with us.
Magdalena, Ausha, and I share a quiet laugh over the number of youngsters we have aboard. Fortunately, we still have Lo Jia along with us - he and I spend the afternoon playing chess and sharing thoughts just like we would with any travelling scholar.
Days 719 - 720
Two more days of uneventful travel, and Zehi integrates herself very well, behaving as a proper clan princess and suitable friend to the kids. It is a remarkable contrast to Mireen.
Day 721
Three days after Zehi shows up, the river banks start to rise as we travel between the mountains. In the distance, we can see Rainbow's mountain glowing on the horizon.
Late into the evening, I'm on deck sharing companionable silence and proximity to Starfield (on the other end of the ship) when we hear wings overhead.
It's Trillium, with an incredibly clumsy landing! Her wings are small and underdeveloped, clearly she's flying with magic more than any help from these stubby little things. New scales are forming along her limbs and neck and her claws are coming in nicely. Apparently her scales may never harden...they're still soft and juvenile, like a young snake.
She shows me one of the new pieces of magic she's developing - darkening her eyes, and it's like the stars wink out around us.
Try shadow-stepping, even where there isn't a shadow!
Remarkably, I can step anywhere at all. My little elf-dragon has created something so uniquely hers.
I can hardly contain myself and spill the news about the Demon-Dragon clan making their way to Lone Mountain Keep almost immediately. Trillium, of course, is overwhelmed with emotion.
It's more than I could have hoped for...I should go visit father-in-law...maybe next summer.
Blackflame, apparently, is wicked smart and creative with magic. She tells me that when she first encountered their clan, she thought that if she could find no other ally, Blackflame would be enough to help. She couldn't decide if he would be more powerful as a tactician in a war tent or as a dragon on the battlefield, which is saying something! His strategic ability probably had a lot to do with his clan's survival in the last centuries.
At this, I finally think to introduce Starfield, who is delighted to hear that Trillium Nightshade is not going to inherit Wraith's propensity for watching tragedy unfold. Over tea, I get to hear all about Trillium's lessons and the new magic she is waking.
As we laugh over Liliales and Qishali's seemingly whirlwind romance, she reminisces about Wildfire and I have to bite my tongue to not tell her what we have all been working on. Perhaps in the coming days I can ask her to leave her ring behind for Ausha to work on.
As the night goes on, we swap stories and laugh about the last two years of adventures, and I finally get the full story of Magdalena's escape from the swamp.
It was Shrouded Petrichor who freed her. Kaide, apparently, was concerned about me and had asked Catena and Shrouded Petrichor to check up on me. After freeing Magdalena, they were dismissed since Magdalena herself called 'dibs' on interfering in my plans.
Shrouded Petrichor and Catena have crossed over several times in the intervening centuries to look for relics and lost elves.
Days 722 - 723
The next morning, we get a raucous family breakfast. Aestien and Trillium have a joyful reunion and Qishali quickly buddies up with my little shadow.
Ausha cleverly manoeuvres to examine Trillium's ring in the hopes of finding something that can help us with Wildfire's situation. It is heartbreaking hearing Trillium's voice crack as she agrees to look at it and share stories about him, so long as Ausha promises to tell her if there's anything we need to do to protect the remnant of him that remains.
Skyen, to his credit, suggests that we pull into port and find a place to celebrate. It is a relatively average town which happens to be four times the size of Deldrin, just outside the Firebird Empire. There are plenty of firebirds, but it is ruled by Crystal Blue Luons. The town is full of music, as the luons are songbirds. Because several of us have wings, we are issued altitude permits to keep us below 200 ft - apparently more important people are allowed to fly higher up.
Naturally, as a town on the outskirts of a powerful Empire - there is plenty of black market activity and we all will need to keep our guard up, particularly Qishali.
At one point, a dark-haired fellow dressed all in black approaches me and Liliales, requesting that we sing at his establishment. Skyen tells us quietly that he likely was hoping to make us a dangerous attraction - people will pay to experience fae song and try to live through it. Instead, Master Lo brings us to a friend's establishment.
The entertainment is provided by a young tortoise, and it is technically proficient but absolutely lacking in the soul that it is meant to carry. Lo Jia remarks that it has been 30 years since he last heard this student play, and that he has improved significantly in his technical mastery. As we discuss, I explain the way that fae use songs to share memories, Lo promises to introduce me to the musician (Ky Wen) after the show.
At one point, some foolhardy kidnappers try to snatch Qishali in the midst of the show. They are easily dispatched, and Liliales has to contend with the moral dilemma of letting them go at Qishali's behest. There is no point causing more of a scene than there already has been.
Afterwards, poor Ky Wen has to reckon with being introduced to me as an 'elf', which of course he doesn't recognize. His field is in recreating experiences through sound and illusion - an immersive experience so that the viewer can know what it was like to be somewhere for a thing. It makes sense, as we talk - he views himself as a rationalist and believes that passion often robs people of the ability to perceive alternatives and make effective decisions. And if he has learned any of his magic from fae, of course he has learned to sanitize his illusions - the fae here wouldn't want to infuse all of their songs with emotion because it would be so painful for the audience.
Nevertheless, I explain how the fae of day and night are different. It feels strange to explain how our cycles and songs work after all this time, but Ky Wen is wiling to listen and learn, much to his credit. Liliales and I show him what it's like to play music that includes feeling.
With the rest of our time, Lo does indeed guide us around the city to see many students, apprentices, and sights in the city. He is remarkably well connected!
One night I receive a letter from Kaide, finally. With all the information that has flown across the Barrier recently, I shouldn't be surprised at one from her. The demon attacks concern me as a sign that my desire to mend relations with Qing Chen's people is doomed to fail. Things are moving so much faster than I'm able to direct - we will probably face a war on two sides before I can put any of my hopes into action. Nevertheless, I send word to all of my city leaders to warn them of demons.
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