The Saga Of The Forgotten Dragon Guild (working title)

[Bobbybobby99]

Same dialogue recommendations as before, plus the fact that commas are your friend. There are quite a few places where the sentences feel like 'duh duh duh duh' instead of 'duh,dud duh duh, duh duh'. Otherwise looking pretty good.
"Into a truly controlled manor" should be "In a truly controlled manor" in 22.
Foxes should know that talking softly and quietly is much more effective than whispering. It carries less.
"Brewing war" should be "War brewing" or possibly "They're brewing war".
Why would Iguana McThief say "His majesty"? Perhaps if he was sucking up, but when it's just broadcasting his thoughts it seems out of character. Gasping is also not how I (or other readers would) picture him.

[TaiLiu]

"He said, she said" also sounds boring as hell though. I like spicing things up.

Sure, but you can spice things up in a lot of other ways. Improve the dialogue, show body language, et cetera.

What do you think of the scenes so far, Tailiu?

I haven't read a lot, actually.

[Lethologica]

I'll take things slowly since there's a lot to read through.

For now: the intro does not need to be part of the story you tell. If the alien stuff doesn't come up for the rest of the story, you do not need to present it just to justify setting your story on Anthro Planet for the reader; instead, put the reader on Anthro Planet and pretend you've always been there, and the reader will buy it. If the alien stuff does come up, it's as a dramatic revelation later in the story, so you shouldn't be giving away the information here.

[Artman77]

I forgot to mention the bit about the Dobermans. I know this is an anthro story, but still, when I read that I thought you meant actual dogs. You could have said what they were wearing, or that they gripped their spears tightly or some other human like action and my brain would've auto-corrected immediately. As it was it kinda took me a minute.

Did I say I like the robo-ear and the gemstone eye? Cuz I do. They create a vivid image in my mind's eye.

I don't get why The hawk girl spent all that time getting a wizard to transform her crossbow and kill him, and then later she "shoots straight down so that the bolts would go into the earth, leaving no evidence." Does she want to frame someone, or not get caught? If she had the bolts transformed too, she wouldn't have to worry about the evidence; she wants it to be found. If she didn't get the bolts transform then the whole meeting with the wizard and the spell was a waste of time...

Read the "Meeting with god" part. Were the nine goddesses ascended from mankind, animalkind, or were they created from nothing, like the Terrible Darkness? For "gods" they seem pretty powerless. Was I supposed to be concerned for Harvis cuz the god wanted to use him as a pawn? I wasn't. There could be two people talking on the phone with a black screen during a movie, and if the bad guy on the other end was a gangster, I would be more worried for that protagonist. I would either step my game up to make them more scary, or be more ambiguous. (Cuz the unknown is scary too.)

Four weeks to be in a coma is fine for me. The guy almost died. What's not okay is how neat and tidy it is. Oh, you were dead! But the council found all the bad guys and rounded them all up, and they are all awaiting trial right now. Wolf girl says it all in one or two paragraphs like it's no big deal. I think that's why bobby99 suggested only four days? So it gave a chance for the main character (and the readers) learn a little bit at a time? It looks like another info dump to me. Take your time. Let the story breathe.

The trial was a bit barbaric. I found it ironic that humanity was judged for being evil by an alien race and then a "trial" is convened with less due process and less rules than we have now. So lets say someone almost kills you, right? They get no defense attorney? And if found guilty you can do whatever you want to them? Cut their arms/legs/balls off? Strap them to a table and torture them every day? Drown them a little every few minutes till they die? If they're a female and the victim is a male...

Anyway. The mercy thing was cool. It's a good thing to have in your back pocket til later down the road. I don't feel like Harvis had to explain himself to the jury. He was kinda monologueing there for a while and I didn't really want to read all that. If you were trying to reveal a little of the hawk's back-story I would recommend doing it later down the road. If you leave out Harris's mental detective work, it would make it seem less like he was justifying something he didn't want to do, and more like he was just a really nice guy. Plus, it would be more of a shocker to the hawk, and she would be like "wow. I wonder why he did that" Then, if they ever did meet down the line, harvis could explain to her why at that time, and both the hawk and the reader would be like; wow. Harvis is a cool dude...

[Artman77]

Is Jartpo a rabbit or what? I must've missed it. Each new character should get a tiny description when they show up, to introduce them to the reader. I find myself reading all the action and dialogue and sipping over all the background info entirely. Most of your paragraphs seem to start with Harris did this, or Fellana did, that or some other person, or person's stuff, or a house. Try starting a paragraphs with something besides a pronoun. The room. The air. The temperature, a feeling, a noise.

The background info that accompanies everything is always presented in the same format, making it repetitive and hard to keep reading. If it's not important to the story right now, leave it out. If it is, don't tell us; SHOW us...

[Lethologica]

Scene 1. You get exiled if you're not thought-provoking enough? Damn, as thesis defenses go, this one's pretty hardcore. Speaking of which, the entire history of the Sycanesti is a pretty broad topic, and there are many criers--is Hervis maybe responsible for a particular period or aspect of their history?

This chapter is absolutely loaded with setting notes. Slow down. Let the world unfold through your characters' eyes as they journey. For example, there will be endless opportunities to reveal various social attitudes towards clothing in character introductions/opinions and scene-setting description; explaining the history of clothing now is unnecessary.

The revelation of the bounty was ominous enough; but the fortune-teller's portent on top felt overwrought, and that development didn't quite get room to breathe.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Scene 1. You get exiled if you're not thought-provoking enough? Damn, as thesis defenses go, this one's pretty hardcore. Speaking of which, the entire history of the Sycanesti is a pretty broad topic, and there are many criers--is Hervis maybe responsible for a particular period or aspect of their history?

Yeah, there are over a dozen Criers, from ancient history (Hervis) to local history and a few other things. We'll never see 'em as it stands, though.

It was easier for me to do the clothing backstory immediately. I've had someone else already mention Falanna was like a kick to the face on her introduction like that. I was warring internally over "go family friendly, and have clothes, or realistic and likely none, because animals" at the time. It gets a rewording pass once I finally decide what the hell I want.

The fortune teller bits have yet to be written. They WILL be a big factor. Especially when they find out who is giving 'em...

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"That better not be who I think it is. If so, that's DAMN cliche." -- Hervis
"Shaddap." -- Me

*Stuff*

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"Iguana McThief? Is THAT what he's calling me?" -- Jartpo

And yeah, that "not sucking up" part'll be edited. Vanadei prefers no titles unless he's sitting on his throne... mostly to stay in line with the nobles...

I'll take things slowly since there's a lot to read through.

The intro is going to be 90% pared down completely. I may have it be discovered knowledge by Hervis and company later. THAT'LL piss off some of the team...

*Stuff and Things*

I figured anthro story would give it away, but sure, I can make that clearer on my next editing pass.

Chalice is good with inventions.

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What she lacked, was a good plot thread. Later she stays in the background despite all attempts to bring her out for a romance angle... and I had to get rid of her to make room for the rest of the party.

"Yeah, fatally, if you'll recall." -- Hervis
"But of course. You're the protagonist, I'm the author. Authors are *******s and I can't have you daydreaming about her when there's stuff to be done." -- Me

The wizard was on orders from the Sacred Nest. Not HER orders. She was a part of the assault team (hence the numbers when she reports back... "bird one, bird two", etc; she's Bird Eight).

The Nine Goddesses were ascended from some of the original animalkind. How, I don't know yet. They ARE powerless right now. That's kind of the point, they're not supposed to act and thus let free will continue to exist. This... may be a problem later.

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"It's Falanna, not Wolf Girl. You're talking like those damned Trei'kiya that want us all dead." -- Falanna
"Quit backtalking the pre-readers, Falanna." -- Me

Waking up after the coma was supposed to be another info dump as Hervis gets brought up to speed.

Re: The Trial -- Yeah. That's kind of the point. The irony is staggering. Hervis surprised me with his mercy move. Ta'Maxia's original fate was to be sent home to her family. That... would not have gone over well. Maybe Hervis doesn't need to explain himself to the "jury", but it impresses his mindset on Ta'Maxia. The monologuing was intentional. If you think it should be kept as a shocker, I can move that to the next scene while he talks to his friends... and Ta'Maxia can find out later and realize how good this particular rabbit is.

And Jartpo's an iguana. It says so right as he's introduced, when he's picking the lock before Hervis gives his big speech. :)

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"A rabbit? That's worse than being called Iguana McThief!" -- Jartpo
"Maybe having green scales and a reptilian lineage isn't your thing?" -- Hervis

Thanks for all the information, everyone. This is very useful to me for my next editing run before I write the next fifty or sixty thousand words. I know about the "show vs tell" part --- normally my enslaved editor dragon gives me good suggestions and comparisons but she is off writing her own thing right now (we both did NaNo last year, so she has her own manuscript to edit). I'll have s'more scenes up shortly-ish.

[Aegis J Hyena]

I'm not pleased about Scene 23, if only because it's jarring and Hervis sort of has no reason to do what he does. Especially directly to the muzzle of his King...

Spoiler: Scene 23: Hervis Makes A Mistake...

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"So those are the stories." Jartpo finished. The airship's speed had increased and Chalice had been brought back inside to both shut Hervis up and to "protect" the cargo – apparently someone was paying them a bonus for a live capture.

Thrommit squinted at the silver and green metal watch. "Reflective green metal is one of the more obscure symbols of the Tyrannical Darkness. It represents false security, the green of an open field laden with resources beckoning the unwary or foolish. You were saying something about some kind of 'different' language?"

The iguana nodded. "And the fact that his eyes turned amber. I'll never forget that color as long as I live."

Thrommit looked concerned. "Amber, both the color and the material, is one of the Tyrannical Darkness' favorite colors. Many sacrifices to it are done in amber-studded circles and altars. No doubt about it, he's entered into a pact of some sort."

"Didn't you say you spoke to the Tyrannical Darkness itself?" Chalice asked, looking at Hervis.

"You don't think I should...?" Hervis looked down at the watch. The group was gathered around in a corner of the hold. Outside there were guards stationed, but the noise of travel prevented anything from being heard through the doors. The group was relatively safe.

Vanadei shook his head. "No. Not until we can be in a securely, properly warded chamber."

"So what's the plan?" Falanna asked. "We certainly won't live long once we reach the Grand Bristlecone..."

Vanadei looked up at her. "We have two options. Option one is to return to the ship's engine room and stage an accident, or have Thrommit go full-on enraged. I've managed to turn one of the newer recruits who was excited to have Hervis on board. He seems really wrapped up in the idea of duty over everything else. He didn't sing like a bluebird, but I've gotten some... unique information from him we can use later. His name is Ti'Jan, and he's a real youngster. I'm not sure what he's doing at a posting like this. The fact they're sending Sycanesti so young to places like this worries me."

"That bluebird couldn't sing if he was professionally trained." Thrommit snorted.

"Option two is contact Lord Veron and drop the act. I learned from the recruit that he is absolutely twitchy and will flee at the first sign of trouble. He might order the ship's controls destroyed and the ship abandoned to crash, since they can just fly away. There should be some escape chambers we can find to escape with, and Ti'Jan could help us find them."

Jartpo shook his head. “I didn't see any in my sneakings about. Why build in an escape method for non-flying prisoners?”

"He wouldn't turn coat so quickly, would he? And if he could, he could turn on us just as quickly if he was that easily capable of betrayal." Falanna said, picking up the silver watch that had a connection to Lord Veron, glancing behind her. Hervis was playing with her tail to pass the time.

"He probably would if he saw everyone abandoning him. If I can get him to just doubt things a little, we should be good to go." Vanadei replied. "Now, Jartpo, what about this kidnapped diplomat you brought up?"

Now it was Jartpo's turn to look concerned as he explained about the golden eagle, the equine wearing the bracers, the horns, and the armor that likely weighed more than the golden eagle did.

"The armor has to be for show. No way would they be able to fly or fight wearing that." Vanadei said.

"I don't know. He looked way too confident. Maybe they've designed something new?" Jartpo asked.

"We need to find that diplomat then, and get him out of there." Vanadei said.

"Wait. Your Majesty. I know you said you want a clean environment for this, but..." Hervis said.

Vanadei glared at the rabbit with a snarl. "No. N. O. We are NOT contacting the Tyrannical Darkness. I won't lose you to its wiles!"

"I didn't say contact in a meaningful way, did I?" Hervis asked. "Besides, I have an idea."

Now Falanna growled, teeth exposed. "Are you CRAZY? If you strike a deal wi--"

Hervis held up his hands in a defensive gesture. "I never said that, either. Just... do you trust me?"

Everyone looked at each other.

"No, but I expect you're going to be stubborn about this and do it anyway." Groaned Chalice.

"Look." Hervis said. "All of this action against me has shown that I need to take a more active part in things. I can't just sit back and run like... like some prey animal for them to catch! I'm not going to enter into a deal with it. It didn't WANT me to make a deal with it. I'm just going to speak with it briefly."

"We all know the lies of the Tyrannical Darkness, Hervis." Jartpo said, putting a claw on his friend's shoulder. "It can be... persuasive."

"I'll ask again. Do. You. trust me." Hervis said, looking at the watch. "Just for a moment."

Vanadei shook his head. "Hervis, don't you dare."

Hervis locked eyes with his liege. This was the King of all the Sycanesti in the kingdom, one of five kingdoms that were on the brink of a destruction Hervis was sure would come about if he didn't do anything. Vanadei's eyes held the chill of a trained killer, but he made no move to keep Hervis away from the watch, preferring to let the rabbit choose his own fate.

With rabbit speed, Hervis activated the reflective silver and green watch that was laying on a cloth as they sat in a half circle in front of Chalice's cage. The watch popped open and began to smoke briefly, then the Diathrylium crystals inside began to glimmer a dull orange before becoming brighter and brighter, soon lighting the room in a harsh orange light. Then, to the surprise of everyone else...

What do you want now, servant of the shadow. The voice sounded slightly tired.

"I don't want anything. This is just a social call." Hervis said.

Well, this is... interesting. My... servant was proudly bragging about capturing you.

"Yeah, yeah. Not for much longer." Hervis replied. "What did he say?"

I cannot tell you. Asking for information could be interpreted as a desire for exchange of information... which implies a bargain.

A thin wisp of smoke issued from the central Diathrylium crystal and flattened, opening on one side as if it were an eye. It opened fully around, appearing as a small brown sphere that could see in all directions at once before switching back to two dimensions only and appearing as a bloodshot deer eye.

You have quite the menagerie, Hervis.

Chalice gasped. Jartpo was rooted to the spot. Vanadei was glaring at Hervis and looked ready to hunt him down. Thrommit and Falanna's jaws both dropped wide open.

"They're my friends. I couldn't not include them." Hervis said with a shrug. The smoke-eye floated up and regarded each of them in turn, stopping briefly on Thrommit.

Interesting. I can see your heart, ram. You... have doubts about the Nine Goddesses, and in the past you've mercilessly murdered for money in cold blood.

Thrommit gasped and looked like he was about to faint.

"Be nice. They're trying to stop the Trei'kiya, same as I am." Hervis chastised. "Their pasts or past crimes have no importance here."

A snort. Then why have you contacted Me, Hervis? My servant will realize his communication device is missing and will not be pleased when he uses My power to locate it. When he finds it here in the hold..."

Hervis just wrung his hands in anticipation. "You can see my heart too then, right?"

I see. You wanted Me to say outright I don't wish you to fail, so that the others understand and have their fears soothed.

"Somehow that doesn't assure me." Vanadei grumbled.

Fine, I don't wish you to fail... but I cannot alter reality or bend the rules in your favor, Hervis! You're already on quaking ground with King Tenquin and a few minutes more will open a chasm of no return. If you think his wrath might be bad, don't tempt Me with displaying Mine.

"Can you?" Hervis taunted. "You just said you can't alter reality in my favor. That means you can't alter it to my disadvantage either. Not without a bargain, right? Earlier at our last meeting you said you could bend the rules, remember? Which is it, Darkness?"

"Nine Goddesses shield us... Nine Goddesses protect us..." Thrommit was saying, over and over. He felt... drained, like his power and devotion was being physically drained away.

You think you can hold power over Me and demand Me to dance as your puppet? "show me your anger here, show me how to get out of this problem there"?

Chalice was quivering, appearing ready to burst out into another round of emotional sobbing while Jartpo sat down hard with a "WHAT?!" expression. Vanadei was flat out snarling under his breath, and both Falanna and Thrommit were looking at each other like their whole world was about to come down.

Are you entering into a bargain with me? My bending of the rules in exchange for your success? The Tyrannical Darkness' tone turned irritated... but also seductive.

"Yeah... no. You don't need a bargain, Darkness." Hervis growled. "Things will get bent and we both know it because it is in your best interests. The moment I stop 'helping' you, it all collapses. I'm supposed to be successful here thanks to a prophecy, so I don't have to do much, do I? That IS why they're trying to stop me, right?"

That's not how it works and you know it. Success isn't assured, Hervis!

Hervis winced. His original plan was to irritate the Tyrannical Darkness in order to make it misspeak and give them something else they could use, such as who the golden eagle in armor was, or who the diplomat was, or something about the airship that could be exploited to their advantage. Irritated himself, the rabbit lashed out. "Spare me, Darkness. Either bend the rules to make an interesting story for the threads of fate, or –"

The central crystal in the watch shattered, with the others growing dim and then fading almost to a solid black. The connection was severed and the eye dissolved into black, foul-smelling smoke.

Chalice tried to lighten the mood. "When we get home young man, you're in for such a spanking."

"Before or after I throw him in the stocks, if not the deepest pits of my castle dungeon?!" Vanadei snarled. "Hervis, what in the Tyrannical Darkness was that for?"

Hervis looked down. "I'm sorry. I got irritated and demanding. I was trying to get the--"

"Trying, nothing!" Vanadei said, grabbing Hervis by his chest fur and sticking his muzzle right into the rabbit's face. "The Tyrannical Darkness is kept OUT of this reality for a reason, and now you go poking it with a stick thinking you're all clever! Leave the clever tricks to us vulpines, lapine! I don't care what you were 'trying' to get. Let fate weave herself an interesting story on her ow--"

From above them, they heard a massive explosion.

"I think things just got a lot more interesting!" Falanna cried.

The ship rumbled, then there were a series of explosions from near the hold.

"That was the engine... room..." Jartpo said, glaring at Hervis.

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Spoiler: Scene 24: ... and Pays Dearly For It.

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"Well, I have tonight's meal..." Falanna said. "You guys coming around the fire?"

"What did you catch, another deer?" Jartpo asked.

Falanna nodded, slinging the corpse off her shoulders next to the newly-built fire that Thrommit was kneeling next to.

The ship had had its balloon shredded in some kind of explosion, and then the engine room had blown. As it turned out, Vanadei had rigged some of the wires in a short circuit, which would have given them reason to return and "repair" the problem. Then he was going to speak to Ti'Jan and recruit him to the cause. When both the balloon used to keep the airship in the sky burst into a billion pieces and the engine room exploded at the same time though, all plans went out the window.

The ship had begun to fracture into pieces in mid-air as the energy stored in the “unidentified alloy” let loose all at once the moment it was hit with an electrical surge. The Trei'kiya, terrified, took off and ran, leaving Hervis and his friends to their fate.

Thrommit had conjured another shield-bubble around those he could, but he couldn't fit in the cage and Chalice at the same time. If an object was even the slightest bit out of the shield, it would not be protected, and anything inside of an object only partially covered by the shield wouldn't be protected at all either. Falanna had tried to rip a bar off the cage to allow her to escape, but the cage held and there was nothing that could be done.

When the hold shattered, the cage had fallen away from the shield bubble, and plummeted towards the ground. Ta'Maxia had seen this and had sunk her talons into the roof of the cage, but couldn't hold on as the cage was big and very solidly made. In mid-air she switched tactics and flew alongside, trying to grip a bar with her talons, then had attempted to fly or at least try to slow the descent.

When this happened, the sudden arrest for a few seconds threw Chalice against the back of the cage and there was a snap. She had had her head twisted between the bars in an attempt squeeze out just as the hold was breaking apart and she had become stuck. When the falling cage was halted for a few brief seconds, her neck had been wrenched as she was thrown to the back and she'd died instantly as her neck snapped like a twig.

The weight of the cage won out in the end, and rather than having her talons ripped off, Ta'Maxia let go. The cage crashed to the ground and splintered into large chunks, and Chalice was introduced to the ground face first. If the snapping of her neck hadn't killed her, the fall would have.

Hervis sat quite a distance away, with his back to the campfire. The biggest wreckage of the Trei'kiya airship was laying in ruins nearby and would serve as adequate shelter for the night. The moon was beginning to set and the group would need to rest before making it back to the capital city in the morning. Jartpo sat with him, talking to him, while the other survivors were gathering around the fire.

Falanna looked over at Hervis with concern. His ears were down and his head was in his hands, crying over the freshly covered grave.

"Will he be all right?" Vanadei asked, looking down at the silver watch. The watch that was the connection to the Tyrannical Darkness had been destroyed in the crash. "I kind of lost my temper there. I kind of feel bad."

Ta'Maxia shook her head. "No, and that is what worries me. I haven't seen eyes as dark as Hervis' in a long long time. He's broken. Worse, it's not his fault."

"What do you mean?" Thrommit asked.

"I was pacing the ship, flying below and to the right of it. I saw this... this shadow appear in the sky overhead, near the ship. I looked up and saw what appeared to be a metal-coated winged lizard... thing. Imagine Jartpo, but immense, with wings, and made of metal. It was some sort of giant mechanical construct!"

Vanadei tilted his head, ears perked rigidly. "Go on."

Ta'Maxia nodded, gesturing with her wings. "The construct then slashed out the main balloon keeping the airship airborne. This normally isn't a problem because normally we have backup systems and wings that can fold out of the ship's sides. The... thing... opened its mouth and in it I could see a series of nine pipes in a circle around a center pipe. The pipes fired explosive bolts that tore into the left side of the ship like fire through paper. Then, it seemed to... dissolve into clouds, or mist, or something, and flow away and evaporate as the ship went down. I couldn't track it if I tried!"

Vanadei looked unhappy. "I've never heard of something like that, and if the Trei'kiya have something like THAT in their possession... well, I'll have to deal with that. I've looked at the stars and can judge where we went down; we were going to the northwest, towards the Grand Bristlecone. We're about one hundred miles from the capital; if we head southeast and then east, we should be able to get there in a few days."

Thrommit looked up at the sky. "Groups move at the rate of the slowest in the group... figure roughly what, two and a half miles per hour if we make good time. That's thirty miles a day if we keep up a 12 hour march, which I do not think any of us are equipped to do. We're without food, water and shelter. Falanna and you can only do so much, no offense Your Majesty."

"Please, call me Vanadei." Vanadei said. "And I agree. If we cut that in half to maintain our energy... fifteen miles a day is STILL a long distance per day. That's a week's worth of travel, maybe a little longer." He put his hand to his chin and looked down, thinking.

While Thrommit, Falanna and Vanadei talked strategy, Jartpo was with Hervis, trying to console him.

"It wasn't your fault." Jartpo said.

Hervis rubbed his bloodshot eyes. "Wasn't it? Look what I did, trying to demand or trick something of the Tyrannical Darkness in a roundabout way."

"We all make mistakes, and I know you. You wouldn't have been that stubborn unless you were truly convinced you were right. The engine explosion was Vanadei's fault, he was planning something." Jartpo said, looking down at the grave. Ta'Maxia had explained what she had seen to Hervis already, but he was having a very hard time trying to keep the events separate based on his demand to the Tyrannical Darkness of wanting things to get interesting. "We need to leave in the morning and get to the capital city, then we can plan how to take the Trei'kiya down."

"I've lost everything. Mom, dad, Chalice." Hervis said. He'd literally cut her iron breast implant out of her cold body, and had looped it on a small chain to wear as a necklace. Both gems in its middle had shattered, leaving a burnt scar over the center of it. "And for what exactly? I didn't ask for this... I didn't ask for this!" He threw up his hands in defeat.

Then they both heard a separate voice from the shadows. "Help... me..."

Jartpo and Hervis turned to see a form stumble out of the darkness. The Equanoan diplomat Jartpo had seen on the airship had survived!

"We got a live one!" Jartpo cried as the others looked up, then began to run over as quickly as possible.

"Wow! Are you okay?!" Falanna cried as they raced over.

"I've got this." Thrommit said, placing his hand-hooves on the equine's shoulders and channeling energy through his devotion. The equine slowly managed to stand as Thrommit sat down hard, drained after the spell was over.

"I know you." Vanadei said. "You're Torvanian, one of the diplomats from Racecircle Square, in the center of the southern Equanoan lands."

Torvanian let out a long sigh. "Yes, Your Majesty. I'd ask why you're out here but I don't think I want to know."

"You were on board?" Vanadei asked.

The equine lowered his head and closed his eyes. "Ambushed in my own home by a bunch of vermin who took me to this warrior. They've developed what they call "armored plate" which is enchanted with the blood of race horses to provide speed and weightlessness. Some avians can fly with a heavy suit of steel armor on, using its added weight as an advantage."

"What did they want with you?" Vanadei growled, more aimed at birds in general than the equine. He looked over at the wreckage. Equanoans were known for their luck, so it was kind of no surprise that he was still standing.

"Political trade for enemies of the crown, is my guess. I never found out the entire plan while I was being..." He shuddered. "I don't come from a racing line."

"I managed to see you in front of that golden eagle..." Jartpo said.

Torvanian shrugged. "He calls himself Sir Korviak The Bold, but I don't think that's his real name. Fancied himself a warlord because his armor was heavily enchanted, and he constantly bragged about it."

"They've got enough firepower to overthrow me." Vanadei growled, slowly getting his edge back like when he was yelling at Hervis. "Yet they haven't struck yet. They could easily overwhelm me if they wanted. Most of my troops are ground-based and I only have so many catapults and more to deal with an air threat. They can possibly control Blackness." He nervously looked up at Thrommit. "Yet, they don't. Why?"

"I think it's time we found out." Jartpo said, trying to stay out of the equine's way as they made their way to the fire. "Do you still have the watch that reaches Lord Veron?"

The fox shook his head. "It was destroyed in the crash. I consider it a good thing, it means we can keep the secret for a while longer and plan for a counter. I have a better idea, now that I think about it. Most priests know a simple spell that takes them to their sanctuary. Thrommit, do you have a spell of sanctuary available?"

"No. I favor combat spells and defensive spells. Travel and movement usually aren't part of my spell set. I'm the heavy hitter in a group should violence need to be applied. I don't need escape spells unless I'm doing it wrong." Said Thrommit. "Of course, my maul was broken into splinters in the crash. I'd need to go back to the church and get a new one consecrated if I wanted to use any magic stronger than healing or moderate shield spells, and travel spells are a fair bit harder than piecing flesh back together or putting up a shield of light."

"Yeah, sorry about that." Hervis said, ears lowering and looking away.

"Then we'll have to do this the hard way and simply walk home." Vanadei grunted with a grumble. "Eat up, everyone who can. We'll forage food for the herbivores on the way tomorrow after we take what we can from the wreckage. Get some sleep after the meal. We need rest."

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Spoiler: Scene 25: Meanwhile, Stupid Stupid Birds

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Meanwhile, in Lord Veron's Estate...

"Well, that didn't go according to plan, now did it?" Lady Tiatrana teased.

"Shut up, woman." Lord Veron growled, looking over maps. "They went down... here... which puts them several days walk to the capital city. I can delay them but not stop them... hmmm..."

"Oh, stop over-thinking it before you burn out the brain cell you have left." Lady Tiatrana said.

The raven paid his partner in crime no attention. "Now do I send a force to pick them up with overwhelming odds, or do I ambush them in the capital city, when they're exhausted from travel..."

Lady Tiatrana left the room and went down the hall, looking out of the window towards the Grand Bristlecone far in the distance. There, weapons of war were being made, mercenaries were being trained, and "Sycanesti of interest" were being tortured for secrets of all kinds. A war with the mammals was brewing and she was going to be at the forefront of it all, commanding the armies to strike down the lesser beings from the sky while they could only run around like, well, the prey that they were. That, and she was a psychopath that liked causing trouble.

Her watch clicked, then beeped. Reaching down to her waist she clicked it open. "This is Lady Tiatrana... report."

"This is Sir Korviak." Came a low-voiced reply. "The Equanoan diplomat survived the crash and is with the operative formerly known as Dust Watcher now. That rabbit you mentioned is with him, as well as a priest of House Ovisoni, an iguana I think is from the thieves' guild... a wolf who bears the ribbons of a whore... and Bird Eight."

Lady Tiatrana blinked. "Formerly?"

The watch clicked into static for a few seconds, then a response came. "It's His Majesty himself. I couldn't believe it either but his voice is unmistakable."

Lady Tiatrana's eyes snapped wide open. She could have the king killed now and no one would ever realize it!

"Excellent. Can you eliminate them once and for all?" She said, speaking quickly.

"I believe I can, yes." Sir Korviak replied. Lady Tiatrana heard the sound of a blade being slowly unsheathed. "Do you want me to bring them back alive?"

Lady Tiatrana thought for a moment. It would be a wonderful way to show up Lord Veron and make him scrape and bow to her for a while. On the other hand, these insects had been a thorn in their sides for long enough and if left alive, they might escape. "No. You may indulge yourself at your leisure, Sir Korviak. But do not underestimate them. If you fail, don't come back."

"You'll see me before three risings of the sun." Then there was a click as Sir Korviak shut his watch.

Lady Tiatrana closed her watch with an evil grin on her beak. "I'll see you dead in three days, you ignorant fool." If he succeeded, she'd have him killed for regicide and thus get prestige in the eyes of the public. If he failed, well, nothing of importance was lost... he was an excellent fighter, but too ambitious. With his special suit of armor, that made her... nervous.

Sir Korviak closed his watch and looked far in the distance down at the camp that had been made by the wreckage. Hervis had gone back to the little grave while the others were salvaging what they could and it looked like the iguana was trying to rig up a wheelbarrow or makeshift wagon that the Taur could drag behind him. He figured he wouldn't have much of a problem wiping them out; none of them wielded magic except for the priest, and his maul had been destroyed, leaving him at a disadvantage for spells.

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[Aegis J Hyena]

Spoiler: Scene 26: Another Wolven Ally

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"Hervis?" Falanna asked. "We're about ready to go."

"... Yeah." Hervis replied, smoothing the last of the grave over.

"You okay?" Falanna looked down at him.

Hervis sadly looked down at the grave. "No, but I think I will be in time, Falanna. I can't let this get to me. I just can't. My parents didn't raise a quitter.”

Falanna knew what he meant. As pack was everything to her, family was everything to a Lapandar, especially a lapine.

"I still feel it's my fault. My parents wouldn't have been taken if they hadn't been outside that night." Hervis said, picking himself up off the ground. "Chalice wouldn't have died if she hadn't gotten caught before the airship."

"If I hadn't looked for her, she would have walked right into an ambush and we never would have known." Falanna replied.

Hervis stood up. "I'll manage."

Falanna nodded. "Good, the others are waiting. Let's get a move on."

The two walked over to the rest of the group, where Jartpo had built a small cart out of salvaged wood, rope and whatever else he could find. It wasn't much, but it could hold a few baskets of supplies as they foraged along the way for food and water.

Vanadei was looking up at the sky, trying to get his bearings. "We've got a few days of walking ahead of us. Thrommit, I want you to stay in the center with the cart. I want everyone to imagine a clock with Thrommit at the center. Jartpo, I want you at the noon position, playing scout."

"Yes, sire." Jartpo replied, cracking his claws like one would crack knuckles.

"Hervis and Falanna, glad to see you joined us." Vanadei continued. "Falanna will take the '10' position, while Hervis gets the '2' position. Ta'Maxia will take the '6' position behind us, remaining in the air. I'll hang back at the '4' position and Torvanian can take the '8' position. If something follows us, it'll be following big tracks like Torvanian's and Ta'Maxia can spot anyone approaching from a distance."

Hervis nodded and leaned on a new combat staff he'd spent all night whittling away out of a huge tree branch while watching sleeplessly over Chalice's grave. The staff was longer than he was, but he was used to that, and now he didn't feel so defenseless.

"When we get back I'll mark a map for the location of Chalice's grave, so Hervis can return to it when needed." Vanadei finished. "Let's move out!"

The group began to slowly head out across the savanna away from the Grand Bristlecone. In the direction they were headed, it would slowly turn to forest before becoming plains the last day or so of travel, and they needed to get into the forest to hide from any flying patrols of Trei'kiya.

Hervis made small talk with Torvanian. "What made you become a diplomat?"

The equine shrugged. "I always had a way with words with my family." He replied, smiling a bit. "One liners, puns, things like that. I began to work on accents, then work on impressions of my friends to make them laugh. It only grew from there, and I can mimic an Atlacentia accent just as well as a Taedort'l or Five Swords accent. Going into merchantry was the next logical step."

"I can only guess you have stories then." Hervis said, looking behind him at the grave site which rapidly was disappearing in the distance as they moved. Ta'Maxia was taking long looks around everywhere.

"A few. You'd be surprised how many feel... entitled to things they're not during negotiations in the town squares over everyday goods." Torvanian said. "I had to learn how to fight in order to protect my merchant stall. I got tired of the constant arguing rather than negotiating and decided that if I was going to be stuck in disagreements, then they'd better be worth something more valuable than easily-replaceable goods. I requested a diplomatic posting first to Atlacentia, then to Shi'an-Wei. Then I wound up back here when they kicked all the diplomats out."

Hervis arched his eyebrows. Shi'an-Wei was far, far to the east, across two oceans. It was known as the Forgotten Kingdom due to its distance.

"I heard about that." Vanadei said. "Public opinion is one of serious isolationist tendencies over there, and the nobles just decided to kick out anyone not native to the area."

"You of course, know more..." Jartpo implied with a smile.

Vanadei shrugged. "Oh, it's true. The lords and kings of Shi'an-Wei have long wanted to "shut down" against the world and keep to themselves, much as Taedort'l did with the MBI."

"The MBI?" Falanna asked, taking a glance at Thrommit. The ram was muttering prayers under his breath, zoning out in what appeared to be a form of meditation as he played the role of the pack beast. The cart was lashed to his shoulders by way of a jury-rigged clumsy wooden brace that creaked and splintered a little as he moved. The ground was even and didn't slow him down one bit, so he wouldn't have many problems. Most of the larger horned Sycanesti retained their ability to get on all fours and walk normally; being a Taur Thrommit didn't have to.

Vanadei snorted. "The Massive Barrier of Impassiveness. Typical Taedort'l naming style... what we say in two clear words they say in about eight hundred and fifteen useless ones. It's a giant blizzard dozens of miles in diameter meant to keep all but the hardiest of Sycanesti travelers out."

"And we get to go there!" Hervis joked.

"Later, maybe. We need to get back to the capital city first." Vanadei said.

"Crow approaching!" Ta'Maxia cried out.

Vanadei looked up recognizing the big scar on the front of the crow's chest. "It's Ti'Jan!"

"You survived!" Ti'Jan landed next to Thrommit. "Nice cart, hoof-walker."

Thrommit snorted, ignoring him.

"I see you did as well." Vanadei said.

"Yeah, I did." Ti'Jan replied. "After the MML attacked, I hid."

"The what?" Ta'Maxia asked.

"Mist-Metal Lizard. It's what popped the airship balloon." Ti'Jan said with a grin. "I'm proud to say I contributed some design time on that thing."

Everyone exchanged looks.

"Sounds Taedort'l in origin." Vanadei said.

The crow nodded. "We've had our people there for a while. We control their nobles, same as we're going to do with the other kingdoms."

"Interesting. How do you control them?" Vanadei asked. He had no trace of the accent left from being Dust Watcher. "And why did it attack us?"

The crow shrugged, looking at the rest of the assembled group. "That, I don't know. All I know is that the upper crust in the Grand Bristlecone was crowing about performing some kind of enchantment in that kingdom centuries ago and that the enchantment recently was renewed as full control on 'those in power'."

"Heh. You're more than you let on." Vanadei replied.

The crow's expression turned serious. "As are you... Your Majesty. I knew who you were the moment I saw you in the engine room. I couldn't say anything at the time... but... could... could I ask you for asylum?"

The party paused.

"Why? What do you need protection from?" Vanadei asked.

Ti'Jan wrung his wings nervously as Ta'Maxia landed. "It's... it's going too far. I've seen some things I would rather not have. The upper crust of the Grand Bristlecone seem to have entered into numerous pacts with the Tyrannical Darkness, and...” The avian's shoulders sagged with a sigh. “I've had enough. I might like 'prey' as little as the next Trei'kiya," He glanced over at Hervis. "But what they're doing with these summonings is too far."

"What?! Summonings?!" Vanadei's eyebrows shot up. If it was one thing that pushed all his buttons at once, it was summoning things out of the dark and sending them to reap terror on his fellow Sycanesti. He'd lost a childhood friend that way, and dabbling with the Tyrannical Darkness was the reason he'd lost his temper with Hervis earlier.

"I don't know much, since my family is only 'lesser' nobility of a tiny 'sub-House', but most of the highest nobles..." Ti'Jan said. "They're... they're corrupted for sure."

"That makes sense with what I saw while aboard the ship." Jartpo said. "Lord Tiraxxian's eyes turned amber while I was watching him."

"A sure sign of corruption." Thrommit growled. "What do we do, Your Majesty?"

Hervis looked up from loading the cart with one or two small baskets of berries he had been picking along the way. "We can't just tell him no, can we?"

"I'm not about to let one of my fellow Sycanesti rot over anguish based on what he has seen." Vanadei said flatly, gritting his teeth. "The House of Trei'kiya will be dealt with, in full, once we get back to the capital city. Asylum granted. Fly above Jartpo and watch for trouble ahead of us, all right?"

"Yes and thank you, Your Majesty." Ti'Jan replied, launching himself back into the sky and keeping pace with the iguana.

"Summonings. They have gone too far." Vanadei growled as they began to continue, at a slightly slower pace. "All right. Let's watch our backs, and the rest of you stay at your clock points but shrink the circle a little. The fur on the back of my neck is raising up and I feel like we're being watched."

The group made excellent time, covering roughly ten miles the first day and a good eight the second. The savanna slowly gave way to grassland, where berries were rare but grasses were in abundance (and neither the herbivores nor carnivores of the party had any trouble hunting for edibles), and then gave way to a light forest. One thing they noticed in their travels was that while food was still plentiful, it was far less plentiful than one would have expected of unspoiled terrain.

The group stopped for the night on the edge of the forest, camping next to a hill with a small cave in it. Scattered around the hill were several large stones that had obviously been placed there in ages past, yet some were falling down and others looked cracked and weathered as if disused. Thrommit identified it as a former druid's circle, but half the stones were gone and the other half damaged by the elements. The place was abandoned, its protective magic long gone.

"This is a good spot to rest. We're here for the night." Vanadei said. "Hervis, will you and Falanna get the campfire going?"

"I'm beat. My wings feel like they're going to fall off." Ti'Jan said.

"Yours and mine both. I'm not sure how much longer we can keep up the airborne scouting, Vanadei." Ta'Maxia twittered, sounding breathless.

"We've got this." Vanadei said matter-of-factly. "Just a few more days and we'll be home, and I will treat you all like you yourself were kings and queens."

"While you were scouting the skies," Jartpo said. "I've picked up a trail."

"Where does it lead?" Thrommit asked.

Jartpo pointed past Torvanian. "There, into the cave. I came across signs this spot was approached from another direction."

"Indeed it was." Came a voice from inside the cave."

Falanna paused for a moment. "Teralius?! Is that...?!"

An enormous wolf with muscles on top of muscles emerged from the cave with a big smile on his muzzle. He towered over Falanna by a good foot or more, and had several scars both on his lower legs and upper arms. Over his shoulder was a huge scabbard with a two handed sword comfortably resting in it. Attached to one thigh was a water skin and to his arms bracers denoting himself as a warrior of the Felcan'lu.

"Teralius! What in the Nine Goddesses are you doing here!" Falanna rushed into the big wolf's arms as he knelt down for her and gave him a huge hug.

"Out exploring. I was meditating when I heard your... party approach." Teralius replied, nodding over at Hervis. "Good job Hervis, back at the Games... wait a minute, is that the hawk that...?" He looked up and over at Ta'Maxia.

"We're good." Hervis said. "She's a friend, not a foe."

Teralius looked from side to side. "Falanna... Hervis... ... and Your Majesty? What's going on here?"

"Long story." Vanadei said. "For now, we're headed home."

Teralius drew his sword. It had a handle of polished red marble and a serrated steel blade that had been tinted yellow somehow. "Then let me escort you home!"

"You know this guy?" Hervis asked Falanna.

"Remember when I said I had a big warrior I had to go see back before the Games?" Falanna asked before hooking a hand in his direction. Teralius gave Hervis a cheesy grin and adopted a macho combat pose. "That's him."

"And I quote, 'Yours is more impressive than his and his knot is bigger than your fist.'" Hervis joked. "You called him an idiot, too."

"Hey! No fair, Falanna!" Teralius mock-protested. The she-wolf just rolled her eyes and punched the big warrior good-naturedly in the shoulder.

"Well, happy reunions aside, I think it's time to prepare to bed down for the night." Vanadei said with a yawn. "We're losing the light quickly, and our avian friends need a break from kissing the sky's ass." He grinned.

"Beats licking dirt as a ground walker." Ti'Jan said, folding his wings over his chest.

"I'll take first watch." Thrommit offered.

"How big is that cave?" Vanadei asked, looking up at Teralius.

"It should be able to comfortably hold you all." Teralius replied, sheathing his blade then looking up at the sky. The sunset was beautiful and he wanted to take it in. "No campfire in there though; there's no smoke hole in the ceiling. I'll take first watch with the ram here, and between the two of us we should be able to handle anything that shows up."

"All right, everyone. Dig in for the night. A few more days and we'll be home... then my work as your liege truly begins." Vanadei finished, heading inside the cave to sniff it out. It didn't sound like he was looking forward to his castle duties.

"Yes, your majesty." Everyone said in unison.

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Spoiler: Scene 27: Thrommit's Dirty Secret

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The fire had dimmed, and Teralius was mostly dozing next to the fire though he still had one hand on his sword in case of trouble. Thrommit was up and about, pacing back and forth while remembering what the Tyrannical Darkness had said. You... have doubts about the Nine Goddesses, and in the past you've mercilessly murdered for money in cold blood.

Yes, yes he did. He had to, at the time. The murder was why he'd entered into the priesthood in the first place, so he could atone for the rest of his life. He always had had doubts that the Nine Goddesses had ever existed, because if they had why did they let such evil continue to exist into the world?

Now, with the confirmation that the Tyrannical Darkness indeed existed, that implied that the Nine Goddesses did as well. And he was scared.

"Something on your mind, Thrommit?" Teralius asked, opening one eye. "You haven't stopped moving since the beginning of the watch."

"It's... nothing." Thrommit replied. "Just musing on the past a little bit."

Teralius slowly sat up. "Pardon my curiosity then, but do you want to talk about it to pass the time? You look stressed, and stress is the last thing I want to see on a priest."

"Yeah, yeah, we're the paragons of having calm, quiet minds." Thrommit grumbled.

"I'll take it as a no..." Teralius looked slightly concerned and laid back down.

"No, I think I need to tell someone." Thrommit paused, looked behind him at Teralius, then looked down at his hand-hooves. For a moment, he could see blood on them, then everything went red.

Thrommit looked around, a little surprised. He was back in the alley, looking over the shoulder of... himself. Standing around him were several other rams, with a goat overseeing things, and a large banner on the wall depicting two crossed flaming swords with a lizard skull in between them showed that he was back in his old gang's stomping grounds.

Thrommit could see his much-younger self cleanly in his mind from all angles, even though in his flashback he was seeing things from over his own shoulder. He was sitting on the face of some strong lizard who was one of the merchants who had not paid his protection money on time for the final time. Thrommit was suffocating him and pummeling the reptile's chest with his Taur body's front legs, intent on making an example out of him.

"You haven't paid us one kul in over a year, Treccan." The goat muttered.

The lizard couldn't reply, as he was being asphyxiated by Thrommit's butt-wool.

"We can only wait so long. If we don't enforce our rules, no one will follow them." The goat said. "Your money is ours. Not yours."

The lizard struggled, Thrommit punched down hard and there was the cracking of ribs.

"Now we have to use you as an example to the others." The goat grinned, showing heavily decaying teeth and a pierced tongue. "End him."

Thrommit's younger self was handed a maul and he began beating the lizard to death, his muffled cries going unnoticed as they echoed off the bare walls of the alley in the abandoned village. By the time Thrommit's younger self was done, there wasn't a single bone in the lizard's body that hadn't been shattered.

The flashback faded, and he was back at the campfire. He looked around in surprise; Teralius was standing over him with one huge hand on his shoulder.

"You okay? You froze, then I saw your eyes glaze over." Teralius said, kneeling down.

"Just... just a flashback." Thrommit said. "Long story short, I was involved with some very bad Sycanesti. I killed on command for the promise of money. I got scared after actually killing someone and ran to the nearest church.”

"Atoning for your deed by entering the priesthood?" Teralius sat down next to him, bringing his knees up to his chest and listening.

"It was my first kill. The gang didn't last another year and I barely escaped with my life when the arrests started happening. I got scared and yes, I entered the priesthood. I made sure that if I was going to do that again it would be in the name of a higher power. I don't want to be sent to the Tyrannical Darkness when I die!" Thrommit lowered his head. "When the Nine Goddesses didn't seem to be answering prayers on the mortal realm, I started to have a few doubts. I walked from place to place, trying to help others in need. I never forgot that first rush I got from killing that lizard, though."

"That doesn't seem so bad." Teralius commented. "So what happened to get you so stressed?"

"Back on the airship we found some kind of device that allowed actual conversation with the Tyrannical Darkness itself, and it exposed the fact I killed in cold blood once. No one's bringing it up because of the other pressing matters... but..." Thrommit sighed. He wished he had a maul to hold on to, to make him feel a little stronger than he actually was. "I was starting to doubt there was really an afterlife and that magic came from another source. Now, with knowing the Tyrannical Darkness actually exists..."

"So you're afraid of the afterlife." Teralius said.

"Yes! A murder isn't something that can be taken back!" Thrommit looked up at the big warrior, worried.

Teralius folded his arms. "How is your killing different from say, mine?"

"That's different!" Thrommit protested. "You defend our way of life by destroying enemies of the crown in the arena... or go adventuring and put down monsters. The lizard I murdered hadn't done anything wrong to anybody!"

"And I think the Nine Goddesses notice things like that, like your desire to help others in order to atone. The only evil ones are those who know the difference between good and evil, and still choose evil." Teralius stood up. "I think you'll be judged fairly. Everything counts for something, no matter how trivial."

Thrommit turned around and looked at the fire. "I sure hope you're right. I don't want anyone to suffer like that lizard did, not ever again."

"Well, you're doing good work." Teralius commented, looking up at the sky... then doing a double take as he saw some of the stars dim. Something was in the sky using the darkness as cover... something big, and it was watching them. He squinted, trying to get a feel for what he was looking at, then the whatever-it-was began to dive at them.

"What do you see?" Thrommit asked.

"Get DOWN!" Teralius cried, tackling the ram to the ground as a large form dove out of the sky, arrested its dive and then flew just out of range of the campfire. Whomever it was, he was definitely avian.

"We've got company!" Teralius called inside the cave.

The group slowly rose as the unknown Sycanesti dove again, and this time the warrior and priest scattered in opposite directions.

Torvanian was the first one out. "Sir Korviak. I knew you wouldn't allow me to live."

Sir Korviak landed, katar in one wing-“hand” and electrical energy building up in the metal of his armor over his other wing. His horns began to crackle with electrical energy, and a small bolt of lightning flashed to Torvanian's hooves, causing him to step back.

"What's going on?" Falanna asked, bleary-eyed.

"That's some armor." Said Jartpo.

Hervis raised his staff. "I don't know who you are, but--"

"Spare me the talk, little prey." Sir Korviak said. "I'm surprised you survived, Torvanian."

The equine raised his hand-hooves in a defensive gesture. Even unarmed, he was a dangerous opponent. "You're outnumbered, Sir Korviak."

"'Sir'?" Vanadei spat. "More like just another lackey. Although, how in the hell is he able to fly with that armor on?"

"Wouldn't you like to know, Your Majesty?" Sir Korviak sneered.

Vanadei paled just a little bit, then folded his arms. "So your handlers know I was Dust Watcher now? How unfortunate for me."

"And how unfortunate for you, ya old buzzard!" Ti'Jan cried from above and behind Sir Korviak as he dove out of the sky, a freshly-sharpened log in both his talons. “Bombs away!”

Ti'Jan let go of the huge log that he had been carrying in his talons, aiming to drop it directly on the golden eagle. Sir Korviak looked up, and with a chirp of disdain lifted up his talon in a rather smug pose. He grabbed the log end-first, then looked up at Ti'Jan while just shaking his head.

“Pathetic little squawker.” Sir Korviak replied as he twisted on his leg, spinning in a complete circle. Using the weight of his armor to lend power to his swing, he swung the log like a baseball bat and tried to knock down the rest of the party in a single spin.

"Heads up!" Hervis yelled, and he dove down on his knees to duck the swing.

Sir Korviak was a strong Trei'kiya, and the group was still rubbing sleep from their eyes and only half-aware. Hervis had been quick, but not quick enough, and the top of his head was clipped by the log as the golden eagle swung. The rest of the party were all struck and knocked down... all except for Jartpo, who was too small to hit, and Teralius, who was too big to be moved by mid-sized logs. The lupine had stepped back to avoid the swing... but now his sword was out and he was getting angry.

Sir Korviak finished the swing by launching the spear back at Ti'Jan. Completely unused to combat, the raven could only gawk as the log was thrown back at him before he could react. The blunt back end of the spear hit him beak first and knocked his head backwards with a loud crack, then he spiraled to the ground and crashed beak-first, breaking his neck in the process.

"Unfortunate for you, perhaps. How do you inferiors like tha--" Sir Korviak began to gloat.

"NO ONE TOUCHES MY PACKMATE!" Teralius snarled. He'd meant Falanna because he didn't have a habit of having non-wolves in his immediate circle of friends, but he would still consider any friends of Falanna's to be friends of his.

"Aw, is she your 'property'? Fitting, for a whore." Sir Korviak taunted.

Falanna was the first on her feet while the others were still getting up, and Hervis was still shaking the stars from his eyes while Thrommit darted over to make sure he was all right.

Teralius charged, snarling.

"Catch me if you can, ground-dweller!" Sir Korviak cried, launching himself into the air as the wolf passed harmlessly below. Teralius swung his sword in an overhand arc aiming to clip the golden eagle's talons, but he missed as he flew above them.

"Come down here and fight like a man!" Hervis cried.

"Aw, did the little puppy miss?" Sir Korviak called, brandishing his katar. "Let me show you how a true warrior fights, you disgusting fleabag!"

Sir Korviak dove out of the sky, causing everyone to scatter as he shoulder barged the warrior and knocked him on his tail. The weight of the blow caused Teralius to sit down hard, and his sword went skittering from his grasp as the golden eagle stabbed forward with his katar... but missed when a crossbow bolt from nowhere struck the blade, knocking it off target and ending up just under his arm instead of right in his ribs. The golden eagle snarled, turning his head only to spot Ta'Maxia in the air, reloading her crossbow.

Hervis seized the moment. "Pick on someone your own size!"

Hervis charged with his new staff pointed forward Sir Korviak, and the avian was taken by surprise as the little rabbit vaulted over the two of them. Upon landing he spun on one foot, swung the staff in a golf swing, and the other end connected with surprised beak.

Sir Korviak reeled from the hit, turning his head only to see an angry lupine fist aimed right at his head from the other direction, wrapped around a sword hilt. The blow connected sending his head the other way and he faltered backward, stunned as Teralius steadied himself.

"Now, while he's down!" Thrommit cried, beginning some kind of chant to the Nine Goddesses.

Sir Korviak shot straight up into the sky to get away from the charging mammals, then whirled on Ta'Maxia. "Bird Eight, this is where it ends!"

"It only ends with the fall of the Sacred ****ing Nest and the death of Lord Veron and his sidekick slut!" Ta'Maxia spat back, charging in a lightning-fast assault, beak first.

Sir Korviak flew up and over her as she charged, but she was waiting for this and she twisted, launching her talons above her in an aerial cartwheel. Talon met armored chest with a scratching sound, then Ta'Maxia finished the move in a tumble as the laws of gravity re-asserted themselves and pulled her into a dive.

The golden eagle reversed course in mid-flight, assaulting Ta'Maxia at the end of the tumble with everything he had. He raised his talons to rake her chest before spinning backward and plunging his katar into her shoulder while just narrowly missing her wing. Ta'Maxia screeched in pain and went down, the blade stuck up to the handle in her back. The other end was visible, barely poking out just above below her shoulder.

The hawk crashed to the ground hard, unable to fly or flap one wing. Her bones were too light and the blade had managed to sever at least one nerve. She'd landed shoulder first right on the blade, and screamed as her shoulder shattered. She'd hit a stone on the rocky ground dead-on.

"And down goes Bird Eight!" Sir Korviak gloated, launching himself higher into the sky.

"Coward!" Falanna called.

"Weakling!" Jartpo taunted, making faces at him.

"Nine Goddesses, I beseech and implore, help me turn the tables on our feathered Sycanesti brethren! He who sides with evil must not go unpunished!" Thrommit called, throwing both hand-hooves to the sky. His eyes opened to reveal nothing but solid blue light, and a pair of ghostly golden eagle wings opened on his back.

Sir Korviak stalled in mid-air, watching intently before dropping the hearty attitude.

Thrommit, now a tool of the Nine Goddesses, launched himself at Sir Korviak from a standing start. All Sir Korviak saw was a blur before impact, as if the ram-taur were an arrow loosed from a divine bow. Hardened hand-hoof struck right in the center of the golden eagle's chest, and there was a metallic clang as the blow was deflected. A crack appeared in the armor; the blow would have been strong enough to shatter bone if it had struck an unarmored area.

Sir Korviak immediately backed off, squawking something under his breath. He raised his wings defensively, seeming to float in mid-air as he blocked thrown punch after thrown punch from the possessed ram. Soon his own little chant was finished and he closed his eyes as an amber aura of light surrounded his head. When he opened them again, they were solid amber.

"Two can play at this game!" Sir Korviak growled, his voice far deeper and darker.

The two seemed to float in mid-air for an eternity, bright blue aura crashing with harsh amber light. The two traded blows back and forth for several minutes, with Sir Korviak attempting to use the fact they were fighting in three dimensions to his advantage. Wing slaps and talon kicks came from every direction but the ram was having none of it and was expertly deflecting each one with his hand-hooves. He was effortlessly supporting his considerable size, and could take whatever it was that the avian was dishing out. Falanna squinted and could see that the blows by Sir Korviak were striking a field of solid blue light around the Taur.

"We've got to do something!" Falanna ran over to Ta'Maxia, who was slowly getting to her talons. "Can you move that wing?"

"I'll... manage." Ta'Maxia sighed. "He got a sharp hit in my blind spot. Can't... feel it... ... ... ugh, there." She reached around with her other wing and used the fingers on that wing to wrench free the katar.

Hervis picked up Ta'Maxia's crossbow from where it had dropped. He was completely unskilled in ranged weapons, and the fact that the crossbow was designed for avian wing-hands made it that much more difficult. He raised it to eye level after clumsily loading it with another bolt, and aimed.

"I've about had enough of you, mammal!" Sir Korviak cried, whacking Thrommit in the muzzle with an armored wing. The force of the blow knocked the ram's head back, and then there was a fizzling sound as Thrommit's spell ran out. The wings disappeared while he was still a good fifteen feet in the air and his eyes rolled back in his head; he'd expended everything he had and soon the ram was completely unconscious.

Hervis took aim and fired.

Teralius ran towards the falling ram as the golden eagle began a dive... and ran right into Hervis' clumsy shot. There was a screech as the golden eagle shot straight up; the bolt had impaled the bird's face, causing an eyeball to literally explode as the bolt firmly stuck itself through his head and into the metal horns.

The rest of them could only helplessly watch as Sir Korviak shot straight up at maximum speed with an inhuman screech, his amber aura making him have the appearance of being wreathed in unholy fire. The aura folded over on itself with a loud CRACK, and the golden eagle was gone leaving only the smoking bolt on the ground. The bird had ripped it out a split second before he vanished.

Teralius caught Thrommit in his arms, dropping to his knees in the process. "Gotcha!"

Vanadei had been watching from the cave's entrance, staying out of trouble. "Get him inside the cave. We leave at first light. This has gone on far enough."

"Ta'Maxia's hurt!" Falanna said.

"I'll... be fine." Ta'Maxia complained, dropping to one knee. "Let's just wrap it in what we can and when we get to the capital city we can prepare to eliminate him once and for all for the good of the Sycanesti. You remember what I said, Falanna?" Her eyes sparked. "We Trei'kiya hold grudges." Her molten orange eyes were almost fully bloodshot from the stress of the pain and she had a demonic grin on her beak, making it seem like she'd lost her mind.

Teralius picked up his sword, sheathing it. "How could he fly with that armor on? It must have weighed more than he did, and golden eagles are not small birds!"

"We'll figure that out when we get home, Teralius." Vanadei said. "And when we do... as Hervis would say, it will be time to go vorpal. Keep that katar close, Ta'Maxia. That's evidence against the Trei'kiya."

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Ta'Maxia replied, standing back up.

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Spoiler: Scene 28: Almost Home Sweet Home

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The next few days were quiet. Ta'Maxia's shoulder was badly injured, while Thrommit had put everything he had into that little zealot-fueled rampage and could barely walk, much less function or even speak. Most of the time, Torvanian was giving him a shoulder to lean on as they traveled in single file along the trail. Twice more they evaded scouting parties by the Trei'kiya, as even with Teralius in the group Vanadei did not want to have any more trouble. Light forest turned into heavy forest, then heavy forest made way to plains, and plains finally made way to spotting the capital city of Thynsaleth far on the horizon.

As the group crossed a ridge while the sun began to go down, Vanadei pointed out the castle's huge spires and towers in the distance.

"Home sweet home." Vanadei said.

"Says you." Torvanian said. "I live in Valchid, on the east border of the country."

Hervis felt the fur on the back of his neck stand up. They were sitting ducks out in the open while still on the ridge. "We're not home free yet." Teralius was carrying the cart in his hands instead of pulling it behind him, "to train his strength." The others were more or less still in single file crossing the ridge with Jartpo at the back covering their trail and Ta'Maxia and Thrommit in the center.

"Sensing trouble?" Vanadei asked, turning to Hervis. "Ta'Maxia? Thrommit? How are you holding up?"

“I'm about spent. I need to get to the church." Thrommit said tiredly. "I need to meditate for new divine energy, I need to cleanse myself, and I need to... eat some real food, no offense, Vanadei. I've about had my fill of roughing it for quite some time."

Torvanian agreed. "We ALL have had our fill of hiking. I hope to keep my future postings close to home after this."

The fox nodded. "You will be generously compensated for your effort, and I will personally make a one thousand kul donation to the church. I'd offer more but somehow I get the feeling I will be expending a lot of kul to stop the problems before they get any worse."

"What are you going to do?" Hervis asked.

"Lots of things." Vanadei replied, putting hand on his chin as he thought while leading the group through the ridge. "First, I have to have my scribes draft bounty posters for the Order of the Black Acorn. Then I need to draft summonses for Lord Veron and Lady Tiatrana so that they may answer for what they have done. They won't dare deny a summons. Corruption, kidnapping of diplomats, summonings of not-so-nice things straight out of the Tyrannical Darkness's tail end..."

"Trying to control the Blackness... working with the Sacred Nest, working with the Sky Over Stone cult..." Hervis added.

"That too." Vanadei smiled. "On top of that, Ti'Jan WILL get a proper memory recorded of him in the castle books. He may have been young and too eager to share information that any smart bird..."

"There are smart birds?" Falanna smirked, shooting Ta'Maxia a look.

"Very funny, fuzzy-tail." Ta'Maxia said.

Vanadei shot them both a look that told them to shut up. "... as I was saying... eager to share information that any smart soldier would not... but he worked to protect us and at least keep Sir Korviak off balance, not to kill us. That was a proper soldier of the Kingdom of The Five Swords, right there, doing his job to protect his king. His memory... and that of Chalice's... will be treated as such."

Hervis felt his ears lower.

"It'll be ok." Falanna reassured him.

"What's the plan? They're not going to give up so easily, and Hervis only drove Sir Korviak off." Torvanian asked.

Vanadei looked at him. "The smart thing is to hide you somewhere that the Trei'kiya will not go. First guess is the church. No self-respecting Sycanesti will damage the church."

Teralius snorted. "I think it's safe to say they don't give one ass about things anymore if they're dealing with the Tyrannical Darkness, and I'm not talking donkeys either."

"You're saying they should stay in the castle where it'll be the first place their spies look?" Vanadei asked.

"If anyone can sniff out spies, it'd be Jartpo, and he's small enough to move almost unseen." Falanna said. "Or me. I can smell intent a mile away, and Teralius would be too conspicuous if he were watching for trouble. They'd overlook a whore wandering the streets keeping watch outside, while warriors stick out like tails on fire."

Torvanian thought for a moment. "You can work the outside angle, I can stay in the castle and get the feeling from the upper class while I wander the halls."

"I don't know." Hervis replied, turning to Jartpo. "Jartpo, what's the likelihood of the guild turning coat and serving the Trei'kiya?"

Jartpo shrugged. "They probably already do. There's shady characters from all the kingdoms... well, except for Taedort'l... in the guild. So it's safe to say that information that's out in the open already will be known to them, plus anything Sir Korviak can bring back to them. So they will at least know they're in for trouble."

"It will be enough." Vanadei said, looking down. "That means they'll know Hervis is in either location. I suppose it doesn't matter. We prepare for an assault and hope they don't send whatever that Nine-Goddesses-awful 'Metal-Mist Lizard" creation was."

"I never did get that favor that the lore master and the record keeper both owe me, since Chalice was in a bit of trouble when I first ran into her and we ran back to her workshop when we ran into Falanna." Jartpo replied, explaining how he'd run into her getting her face almost kicked in by the felines.

"All right then. Here's what we'll do." Vanadei said as they paused at the edge of the ridge, where a road led down toward the main route home. In the distance they could see where a campsite for travelers had been set up before they hit the city proper, and it was currently in use by what appeared to be a gypsy wagon. "Everyone join Thrommit in church and protect him as he's protected us for this trip. After about a week or two of rest and decompression, we'll meet up in the castle, discuss what we know and draft an official royal decree as well as summon the Lord and Lady to be judged before we decide what to do after that."

He turned to Hervis. "I will see to it personally that you are compensated for the deaths of your parents once Lord Veron and Lady Tiatrana have been led away in irons." Then he nodded at Ta'Maxia. "And your brother. I haven't forgotten my promise. You will both live in luxury for the rest of your days in thanks for escorting me safely home, although I might cut the reward down a bit for that bit of offense back on the Trei'kiya airship. I'm afraid I'm going to have to have some punishment there for you, Hervis."

“I understand. If the laws don't apply to me, then they're not laws at all, are they.” Hervis sarcastically replying, looking sheepish.

"I ain't complaining, that's a lot of kul." Ta'Maxia said with a smile.

"Lots of work to do." Remarked Falanna, looking into the distance at the city.

Vanadei glanced at her. "Well, I am King of the Sycanesti. Comes with the job. I am not going to allow suffering to get a foothold in my kingdom. Pain and terror are not the Felcan'lu way, let alone the Sycanesti way. I'll leave violence and such to the raised ire of your fellow horned mammals, Thrommit."

Thrommit cracked his knuckles tiredly. "It's... payback time."

"Just let me be at the back of the line, Thrommit." Hervis grinned. "That way, when you're done stomping the Trei'kiya into a bloody jumble of feathers, I can finish the job."

"Who's down at the campsite?" Teralius asked, peering off into the distance.

Ta'Maxia focused her eyes. "Looks like a gypsy wagon. I see a raccoon... she's alone except for a giant raven on her shoulder. The normal kind... not a Trei'kiya."

"That'd be some balancing act." Jartpo grinned.

"Well, shall we go and join her?" Vanadei asked.

"The more the merrier." Hervis said, looking down at his feet and suddenly feeling very exhausted.

Vanadei nodded. "All right, follow me. The hill is steep here, so watch your step as we traverse these rocks. Torvanian, make sure Thrommit doesn't fall over on his hooves. We don't need a ram-o-lanche announcing our presence prematurely."

"Yes, sire." The equine said, saluting him.

“... Ram-o-lanche?” Thrommit smirked.

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Only a couple more scenes after this...

[Bobbybobby99]

That, my good friend, is what is known as an 'Idiot Ball'. Do not, ever, use the Idiot Ball. That is all for the moment.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Hmmm... strange, did it eat my post? I had the last few scenes posted...

[Aegis J Hyena]

Take two, since the forums ate it the last time...

Idiot ball? I'm not sure I follow.

Spoiler: Scene 29: Interesting Interactions

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The giant raven, with a wingspan easily as wide as Hervis was tall, began to shriek and caw as the tired travelers approached. The raccoon was cooking a pair of unidentified, skinned smaller mammals over the fire, and she turned to look at the raven jumped into the darkening sky.

As the group approached, she called up to the raven. "Zhire! Behave!"

"Got room for a few more?" Falanna asked.

The raccoon was a chubby older woman with a kink in her tail and lots of scars across her rear end that suggested she'd suffered at the hands of some torturer in the past. One of her feet was missing a couple of toes, and several deep scars across her upper left arm had been inked over in order to make them stand out. Strapped to her hip was a large leather pouch. A large backpack almost as big as she was lay nearby half opened with food rations spilling out.

"Always... you look..." The raccoon said, before Thrommit faltered and dropped to his knees.

"You okay, Thrommit?" Torvanian asked, helping him to steady himself.

"Yeah. I just need rest and some time." The ram replied.

"I'd ask if you were expecting trouble," The raccoon said. "But it looks like you ran into trouble on the way here."

"You can say that again." Ta'Maxia grumbled, looking at the sky.

"Have a seat by the fire, everyone. I'm sorry I didn't pack much more." The raccoon said, pointing to her backpack. "There should be enough to feed everyone, but that means we'll have to make a strong push for the capital city tomorrow. It's still a day or two out."

"We can do it." Vanadei said. "You heard the lady, everyone... dig in. We're doing a heavy march to the capital tomorrow. We've come too far to fail."

The raccoon's eyes widened upon recognizing that unforgettable voice. She immediately dropped to one knee in respect to her King and looked downward.

"We can ignore formalities here, miss...?" Vanadei said.

The raccoon nodded, straightening up. "Oh, all right. My name's Elaenneli, but my friends call me 'Neener'." What are you doing out here, sire?"

Vanadei glanced back at Hervis. "Court business. Had some nasty run-ins with some less than nice Sycanesti. I have a lot of work to do when I get home."

"I understand the basis of 'need to know' so I won't ask. I understand the Games are on a sort of hold? I wasn't able to attend. I had other issues to deal with." Elaenneli said as she poked the fire with a stick.

"You might say that." Vanadei said. "What are you doing out here? Just out for a bit of a hiking around?"

Elaenneli shook her head. "The spirits told me to come out here, that something big was happening and that I needed to be a big part of it. I'm a fortune teller by trade, and when the spirits speak through me, my cards and my Malaezium ball, I listen."

"A fortune teller." Ta'Maxia rubbed her injured shoulder with a wing.

The raccoon nodded. "Like my mother before me, and her mother before her, and... well, I figure you get the idea. I'm thirteenth in the line for the family 'business'. The men in my family are all farmers."

Thrommit reached up as he sat down hard, pulling one of the cooking mammals right off the stick and chomping down into it. "I've met my fair share of tence-tongued liars and showoffs who claim to see spirits and demons."

"Not all of us are liars. What's the point? We're supposed to be helpers." Elaenneli said, looking slightly sour at him.

"Greed, mostly." Thrommit said between bites. His belly rumbled and these two cooked rodents of some sort were not going to fill him at all.

"Fair enough." Elaenneli replied. "Just what is it that you do then?"

Thrommit yawned. "Priest." He held out one hoof and a very dim glow surrounded it, which was all he had remaining of his magical reserves. His physical ones were even more strained.

"Then you can..." Elaenneli began to comment, before tilting her head in confusion as if if listening to something only she could hear. "Wait a minute. The spirits tell me you're traveling with the..." She tilted her head the other way. "Huh."

"Care to elaborate?" Hervis asked. Jartpo smirked and Teralius and Falanna exchanged looks.

"You... mister Hervis... are the genesis thread." Elaenneli replied, folding her arms.

"The what now? And how did you know his name?" Jartpo pointedly asked as Hervis' ears went straight on end.

Elaenneli nodded at him. "The spirits tell me both your name and that you are the genesis thread. The thread of reality that upon which others depend on. You're a 'foundation' for reality... the thread that all others get attached to for stability. If you die, the tapestry of reality unravels."

"Sounds like something the Sky Over Stone cult might say..." Falanna said.

"You're familiar with them?" Elaenneli tilted her head again. "They're all crazy, every last one of them. Lately they've established a foothold in the capital city. They've been mostly confined to the southern parts of the kingdom in the meantime."

"That. Will. Change." Vanadei said through clenched teeth.

"I used to be a minor priest in the cult. I know they were trying to resurrect some long-ancient evils under the control of the Tyrannical Darkness, then a charismatic up-and-comer named Sungo Two-Tails got them to focus on something else. All I know is that it involved insinuating ourselves into Trei'kiya politics, to control them from within. Most times the ruses were discovered and the cultists cast out. I left of my own accord. I was tired of the politics."

Vanadei nodded as Thrommit suddenly stiffened. "Did you say Sungo Two-Tails?"

"You know him?" Torvanian asked.

The Ram-Taur paled. "He's one of my second-in-commands. He's in charge of the daily afternoon rituals. He'll be one of the first people I run into when I return to the church!" The glow around his hand-hoof was slightly stronger now.

"Don't tip your hoof just yet, Thrommit." Vanadei replied as the others returned around the fire with various types of food retrieved from Elaenneli's pack. "If they suspect their cover is blown..."

"I get it, I get it. I won't say a word." Thrommit said. He looked far more awake now than he had all trip ever since he cast his magic to deal with Sir Korviak.

"This is interesting." Elaenneli said. "Would you like me to do a reading for your little group?"

"Can't hurt, I suppose." Hervis replied.

"Why not?" Jartpo said. "My guild master is super superstitious, so seeing something like this will allow me to understand where he's coming from."

Elaenneli turned to her raven. "Zhire! Cards, ball! Fetch!"

The raven dove into the large covered wagon that Elaenneli was using to transport what worldly possessions she had. Compared to the wreck of a cart that Teralius had been carrying, it was fit for a king. A few minutes of rooting through her stuff later and the raven returned with a large Malaezium orb carried in a leather sling in his talons. In his beak was an ornate box that slid open to reveal a deck of cards that had been carved from what appeared to be slices of buffalo bone each as thick as one of Vanadei's fingers.

"Those aren't cards, those are thin tablets." Hervis said.

Thrommit snorted. "I'd of liked to know the guy who gave up his bones for divination purposes."

Elaenneli mimicked his snort. "He fell in battle against the Ruined, thank you very much. After his death I asked him if I could use his bones and the bones of some of the others that were with him. His response, and I quote, 'I'm not doing anything with them ever again now, am I.' And here we are. All right everyone, I need you to put your hands and hand-hooves on the box itself and let your combined spirits channel into the deck."

Everyone gathered around to follow her instruction.

"Feels tingly." Falanna remarked.

"Feels hot to me." Hervis said.

"I don't feel anything." Vanadei commented.

"Uh... are my claws smoking?" Jartpo asked. The tips of his claws were in fact smoking when he placed them upon the box.

"Ok, everyone take an equal number of the cards, shuffle them, and put them in the sling while I take out the orb." Elaenneli said, raising one hand. Little bolts of lightning flew from her hands to strike the orb, which was levitated out of the sling and held motionless in midair. The cards were loaded into the sling, Hervis going first while Falanna went last.

"Now then..." Elaenneli said, closing her eyes. "One... two... one... two..."

Elaenneli began to swing the sling as fast as she could, counting out the numbers one and two repeatedly. The sling got faster and faster until it was all a blur.

"Quite the buildup she's doing." Ta'Maxia remarked.

"I've never seen a ritual like this in my travels. It's very... uh... interesting." Torvanian said.

"One... two... one... two... one... two... THREE!" Elaenneli suddenly exclaimed, releasing the sling and sending the cards racing straight up as the orb flickered, then pulsed. The jumble of cards seemed to glow as they caught the fading sunlight's rays, then quickly began their descent to the ground. When the cards were in line with the orb, bolts of lightning shot out and zapped the cards. Most were knocked aside by the bolts, but those that weren't landed face up on the ground, some covering others in what appeared to be an almost-unbroken near-perfect circle.

Elaenneli counted the number of cards that had landed face-up. "Sixteen cards for seven party members. An... odd sort of number. That does not bode well right away."

"I'm counting you among us." Vanadei replied. "We're all headed home. One mind, one body, if you will."

"I can work with that." Elaenneli looked down at the cards again. "Doesn't change the meaning of most of these, though."

"So, what do we have?" Thrommit asked, sounding unconvinced.

Elaenneli gestured, and bolts of lightning flew from the orb to blast each card of the circle individually. They flew up into the air and slowly began to spin in a circle, forming a two-dimensional halo of cards around the back of the raccoon's head. She closed her eyes for a moment as the spin quickened to the point it was a blur, and when she opened her eyes again the top half of them were deep sky blue and the other half so dark they seemed to be staring back at the group.

She took a deep breath and began to speak in a commanding voice.

"The rabbit of humble, honest beginnings has been burdened.
This burden will weigh him down with the world, to shatter.
"The equine of smart wit and able tongue twists with the world's rot.
The rot will cause him to channel the dark, for the glory of the dark.
"Ram's head, beaver's tail, wings of steel and stone.
Only by dropping one's devotion will the Nine Goddesses smile.
"A brother mourned, a brother cried for, a brother stolen.
Rage will claim for darkness in water, if the quiet mind does not exist.
"Scales of cleverness and strong claws of thieving.
Not even they can hold on to the grip of life when the last die is cast.
"A warrior, strong. His blade, unbeatable. His resolve, unbroken.
His weakness lies within, and within the woman his shame.
"Masked madam spirit walker, pulled by the thread.
She is the blade that cuts the cord free."

Everyone looked at each other.

"Huh?" Hervis asked. "To shatter? Shatter what?"

"Say what?" Torvanian said, eyes wide.

Thrommit cracked his knuckles again. "I don't think so."

Ta'Maxia was paralyzed with her beak wide open while Jartpo looked at his claws.

Falanna looked up at Teralius, who looked down on her with worry and confusion in his eyes.

"Well, THAT'S a happy set of predictions." Vanadei grumbled.

"And obvious ones, too. That never happens in my readings." Elaenneli replied, looking almost as drained as Thrommit was. "I think we all know which sentences were which of your little group, King Tenquin."

"I noticed I wasn't mentioned, and that's probably for the better." Vanadei said, looking up and out over towards his castle. "Whatever is going on, I'm not going to be able to come with you on this little expedition. There are politics to deal with here, a fortune in kul and tence to be paid to afford it, and powerful, powerful Sycanesti to keep off your backs.”

"I'm coming with you, Hervis." Elaenneli said. "Someone has to deal with the spirits those who would be against you could send to cause mischief, and Thrommit is a blind devotee to the Nine Goddesses. He'd never see them coming."

"Blind?" Thrommit turned his head to stare the little chubby raccoon down in confusion.

Falanna looked up at Teralius again, sniffing his chest fur. "Is there something you haven't told us? Shame, 'in' a woman?"

"I don't get it." Hervis said.

Teralius looked down. "Not all the whores in the arena are there of their own free will. There are some that are specifically marked as those you can take advantage of with no repercussions whatsoever since they're usually either the dregs of society or in trouble for crimes against Sycanesti that forces a sentence of forfeiting their bodies. That... wasn't the case, once, and I was thoroughly drunk."

Elaenneli shook her head. "No. None of these events in my cards have happened yet."

Falanna leapt away from Teralius, shock on her muzzle. "You didn't!"

"I told you, I was drunk. I wasn't... thinking... and mistook someone for someone else." Teralius looked down. "Neither were the others."

"The other who?" Falanna demanded.

"It was a gang, me at the front. We were drunk and looking for trouble after a successful night at the arena. That's all I'm going to say. She did not deserve the things we did to her... but let's just say she did not survive afterward." Teralius turned his head away, avoiding the she-wolf's now-vicious gaze, so hot it could melt metal.

"To your knowledge." Elaenneli quietly said.

Teralius sat up bolt upright. "What?!" His eyes were bugging out of his skull.

"And so did one pup." Elaenneli replied just as quietly, turning away from him.

"You... you..." Falanna spat.

Vanadei tried to defuse the situation. "Cool it, lupines. Let's turn in. We've got a long walk ahead of us tomorrow."

Hervis stepped forward. "Falanna, Teralius... let it drop. Now. We can work out who and where she is when we're more clear-headed, because it is obvious he wants to atone for that action. I'm reminded of a little quote here... 'everything counts for something.'"

"Listening to us, were you?" Thrommit put his front knees close to his chest and smiled for the first time in a bit.

Hervis held up both hands in a defensive gesture. "We cannot let our pasts or differences ruin us worse than the Ruined before whatever is coming up happens. Look around, all of us are different species... a couple different Houses... even the House of the 'enemy.' If I can give mercy to Ta'Maxia and drop it then and there... certainly you can, Falanna?"

Falanna clenched her fists, glaring at the bigger wolf.

Teralius gave her a hurt, shamed look before turning his head away again, though his body language said he was confident and knowing. The she-wolf likely wouldn't beat him completely to a pulp if she attacked, but she'd sure lay the hurt on him before he put her down for good.

Finally after many uncomfortable seconds, Falanna relaxed with a snarl, baring all of her teeth at the wolf warrior much bigger and stronger than she was. "I'm never sleeping with you again, you... you demon. If your knot is ever within my reach again, I'm untying it by force, vein by vein, and making you eat it."

"And that is a curse I will live with every single day for the rest of my life." Teralius quietly sighed.

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Spoiler: Scene 30: The Last Scene

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The rest of the journey was done in almost complete silence.

Thrommit slowly was recovering, while Falanna and Teralius had to be kept at opposite ends of the party. The she-wolf was still red-hot over the revelation, while the big warrior wolf just wanted to give her some space. Ta'Maxia and Jartpo kept the path clear while Hervis and Torvanian made some small talk between them, mostly about the perils of the other kingdoms that Torvanian had diplomatically visited on business for King Tenquin.

“So, yeah. Taedort'l sealed their borders and doesn't want anything to do with the outside world... Rarlbo is predominantly Trei'kiya but the last time I was there I was treated well... Atlacentia out of spite wouldn't change even if commanded to by the Nine Goddesses, and Shi'an-Wei, well, best not to think about them.” Torvanian said.

“What's the difference between the two isolationist kingdoms now?” Hervis asked, glancing at Vanadei and then back at the Clydesdale.

“One might go to war with us if we ever come back.” Torvanian looked away. “They don't want their ideas getting out, or other ideas coming in.”

Vanadei nodded. “That would be Shi'an-Wei, all right. No one goes out, no one goes in. I don't even know if they use the House concept any more.”

“They did last time I was there, but that was a long, long time ago.” The equine replied, glancing over at Thrommit, who seemed to still struggle at every step. “Hey, Thrommit, what was that you pulled on Sir Korviak? You look like it almost destroyed you.”

“It almost did. I opened a direct channel to the holy power of the Nine Goddesses with that little plea and I'm going to be feeling it for weeks.” Thrommit said, yawning. “Not everyone can handle that kind of power, especially if you... have doubts about things. What they gave me in power to defeat their enemies, they will take back as life energy, which means I probably shaved a few years of my life off that little stunt.”

“You'll still live longer than the rest of us.” Vanadei remarked. “Bigger hearts and bodies equals longer lifespan.”

“Says you. I haven't had a good meal in days.” Thrommit patted his chest and looked behind him at his considerable size.

“Well, as your King I order it to be true then.” Vanadei grinned.

Ta'Maxia landed next to Hervis. “We've got another ****ing Trei'kiya group that is coming our way. It's not a patrol group overextending their borders or an exploration party looking for fresh kills or caverns to claim... it's a classic raiding and scavenging party. The strange thing is that they're also flying a flag of parley as if they want to talk to us instead of attack, and they have a sorcerer with them. This has my feathers in a bunch.”

“Yeah, I don't like it either.” Hervis said. “My fur is going all on end.”

“Yeah, they don't bring out the sorcerers unless some ****'s really gone down.” Ta'Maxia's eyes were shooting a blistering glare in the direction of the approaching group.

“Alright. If they have a sorcerer, that means they know where we are if they know I'm the King.” Vanadei said. “Bunch up the circle, everyone. Let's let them approach. If they're holding out a flag of parley, I want to hear what they have to say, even if it is just typical raider demands or a political agenda.”

“What do you think they want?” Hervis asked.

“To gloat at and threaten us, most likely.” Teralius growled. “Especially if Sir Korviak decided to come back and stick his beak in our business. We're too close to home for them to risk trouble now unless they're incredibly stupid.”

Hervis folded his arms. “If that squawking noisemaker shows his beak then I'll just shoot him again in his other eye.”

This got nervous giggles from the rest of the group as the raiding party approached, and Vanadei put his hand to his forehead to count the group. Six hawks, two falcons, a golden-breasted robin and a cardinal. Vanadei had his guesses about why the cardinal was there; they were usually the messengers of the Trei'kiya when very important messages had to be sent with all due speed. The bright red of the bird's feathers would be a warning to others not to mess with an “official Trei'kiya courier.”

The golden-breasted robin was surely the group's sorcerer, and the fox had no doubt that the bird was packed to the tail feathers with offensive spells featuring lightning, the conjuring of heavy winds, summoning hail the size of his head, and spells designed to suck the air right out of your lungs and back into your muzzle as an offensive weapon. Now was not the time for snide remarks; the golden-breasted robin could really ruin the party's day before they made it home and he wouldn't care about political borders. With their primary caster out of action until further notice, they'd have to watch what they said.

“Torvanian, you're the diplomat here.” Vanadei said. “Consider yourself drafted to talk these troublemakers off of whatever trouble they're making.” His voice took on a slightly deeper tone, as if he was making an official decree or ruling. “If they're here to threaten me directly, let me take over, though.”

The equine nodded. “Yes, Sire. I won't let you down.”

The party of avians approached Hervis' group, flying in a jagged lightning bolt shaped formation before they in unison dove out of the sky and landed in a line in front of them, cutting them off. Behind them they could just make out the huge wall surrounding the city of Thynsaleth; they were in reach of home and were not about to get stopped by a bunch of walking feather dusters.

“Hold!” Torvanian called out. “Do you approach to parley, or to fight?”

“To parley.” The golden-breasted robin said. “We have a message from Lady Zharinella, for the King's ears only.”

“I'm sorry, but as you see, I am... traveling.” The fox replied, giving the robin a very sour glare, while apologetically pushing the equine aside. “But that won't stop you since you know I'm here, so out with it. What does the Highest Feather of the Trei'kiya want?”

Each of the many Houses in the Kingdom of the Five Swords had a particular ruling triad who never under any circumstances dealt with the lesser riff-raff let alone the upper class. Each called the triad (made up of a single political, religious, and economic member) its own name; in the case of the Trei'kiya the group was called the Highest Feather. The triads met once a year to discuss kingdom-wide laws with the King. It was unheard of to send a “lesser party” to deliver messages.

“As you wish, Sire.” The cardinal replied, unrolling a scroll. “This is to advise you that the Trei'kiya are formally breaking off from the rest of the kingdom. We are officially cutting all ties to you, we are preparing to defend our borders, and we are preparing to remove all threats to the Trei'kiya lands.”

The fox folded his arms as Torvanian's eyes widened in shock. “And I suppose the next thing you're going to do is start a war?”

“Correct. You are consorti--” The cardinal began, reading from the scroll.

“Blah blah blah. Save it, feather beak. My question is, why does the entire House of Trei'kiya want Hervis dead?” The fox's grumbling turned to snarls. “And who is funding them? Don't tell me you don't know, because too much effort has expended for you not to!”

“That's not your concern, and will be the least of your concerns when we take over! If we can't have it no one will!” The golden-breasted robin exclaimed, throwing out a wing in a wide gesture as he'd had a spell prepared, ready to trigger. A shock wave of electricity flew out at waist height, aiming to go right through Vanadei's party.

“No!” Elaenneli exclaimed. “You will not slay our King!” In the instant that the avian had cast the spell, she'd sensed the magic, and threw up a spell of her own. “Zhire! SHIELD!”

With a loud squawk-shriek that sounded more like an eagle in pain than a raven in irritation, the raven stretched his wings and his eyes sparked with electrical energy. His eyes flashed once and a translucent field of pale light flared up between the two parties. The light stretched from the ground to slightly taller than Teralius, and when the shock wave hit the light, the wall of light warped as it visibly tried to dispel the effect.

“Not today, lesser being!” The golden-breasted robin taunted.

There was the sound of shattering glass as Elaenneli's spell failed, and the shock wave snapped shut on Vanadei's party like a bear trap.

The group was knocked off their feet and stunned, while Thrommit had used the last of his strength to rush the King, knocking the fox off his feet. With no route to the ground for the shock wave's electrical content, the spell's shock wave passed harmlessly through him. Thrommit on the other hand took that part of the spell meant for the King, and he was solidly blasted into unconsciousness as the bear trap of magic slammed shut. Where the others were just stunned, he'd been blasted into the air and landed with a THUD a few feet away, falling over on his side.

“RUN!” The golden-breasted robin called, and the Trei'kiya routed, not wanting to get into a spat with the King. Within sight distance of the castle's spires it was almost a given that there'd be royal watchers already viewing them from afar, and they couldn't risk anything more. The birds flew the coop, skyrocketing into the skies and taking off in several directions at once. They were certainly seen by said watchers, but it was obvious they didn't care about bounties on their heads, otherwise they would not have attacked so blatantly when they were flying under a flag of parley.

“Should I follow one of them?” Ta'Maxia asked, darting to the Taur's side once the party had shaken off the effect. Falanna's fur was frazzled, while Teralius looked unhurt. Jartpo was unconscious and bleeding. The others were shaken but alive.

“No. You'll be led right into an ambush. They have a numbers advantage.” Vanadei replied, now snarling. “They attacked me. They attacked me in broad daylight, near the castle where my watchers could just see them out in the open! Just WHAT do they hope to gain!?” He quickly turned his head toward Elaenneli. “Thank you for saving my life, Neener. We need to get Thrommit home now.”

“Oh, my head.” Elaenneli got to her knees. “That... that hurt...” Zhire flew down to her side and leaned into her, as if lending physical and emotional strength.

Torvanian nodded as Hervis helped the barely-conscious Jartpo to his feet, then decided to carry him the rest of the way in his arms. “It's a perfect agitation tactic. Once the public hears about this, and you can be sure that they will... it will make them think 'what are they capable of, and what is it they want?' And when they find out that they're attacking because Hervis exists...”

Vanadei paused. “They'll be angry that I'm protecting him and thus inviting problems...”

Everyone looked at each other.

“Ooohhhh, they're good. But they'll learn it's not wise to try and outfox a fox!” Vanadei exclaimed. “If they want a war, they've got one.”

“No, Your Majesty.” Hervis said solidly. “That's what they want. Unrest, so they can advance their other plots. You're looking one way, they strike from another.”

“Now you're beginning to sound like me... cough.” Jartpo said, his eyes opening a little bit more.

The little fox took one of Thrommit's feet in both his hands and tried to start dragging him, with an understandably comical result. “Teralius, help me out. You too please, Falanna.” He glanced at Hervis. “What am I supposed to do, then? Just sit there with my tail up my ass and let them proclaim war?”

“No, Your Majesty. I have an idea, but let's focus on getting Thrommit home. If we do this right, no more will die.” Hervis said, his determined tone giving the vulpine pause for a moment.

Torvanian glanced over at the wagon. “Can he fit in there? I think I can pull us all if we pile in.”

Elaenneli estimated. “It's a stretch, but I think we can do it. Everyone help our liege help Thrommit inside!”

“Wish we had a sanctuary spell right about now.” Jartpo muttered.

“My wagon IS my sanctuary. I wouldn't be much help.” Elaenneli replied with a helpless looking shrug.

It took a couple of hours but the group finally managed to fit the Taur inside the wagon, and both Torvanian and Teralius had lashed themselves to the front of it. It would be a clumsy run since Torvanian was bigger than the wolf by a fair bit and his stride was further, but they couldn't pull the wagon unless both were hooked up.

“Strap yourselves in, folks. It's going to be a bumpy ride.” Elaenneli said, taking up the reins.

“Glad I have wings.” Ta'Maxia said with a smirk.

“Ready when you are.” Torvanian replied as Teralius looked at him before looking at the city in the distance.

“HYAA!” Elaenneli called, snapping the reins. “Take us home!”

It took a day and a half of hard travel to finally make it to the gates of the city of Thynsaleth, and the moment they reached the gatehouse both Teralius and Torvanian dropped to the ground, spent. The equine was barely breathing, and Teralius looked like every inch of him hurt and then some. Those who had been manning the gatehouse had all sorts of questions for King Tenquin, from who the attackers were to what they wanted with Hervis. All the King had said was “All in due time.” and he had left immediately for the castle, an angry look on his muzzle as he cast off the rags and was given fresh linens and silks, topped off with a large cape.

The rest of the group had gone to the High Temple of the Nine Diamonds, which was the grandest church in the entire Kingdom, and was known for its inspiring size. Thrommit had walked there under his own power, and had brought the Clydesdale on his back with Teralius slowly following behind like he was in a drug-induced stupor. Jartpo had quietly departed for the “private” branches of the thieves guild, while Hervis, Falanna, Ta'Maxia, and Elaenneli all relaxed within the private rooms at the church.

No one had seen Sungo Two-Tails in several days, but to the group it was a welcome sign that they would not be bothered in the short term, and a rest was what they all needed.

Unfortunately, rest... is for the dead.

Spoiler: A lead in to the next 50,000 words...

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“IDIOTS!” Lord Veron yelled. “Your orders were NOT to engage!”

“Apologies, Lord Veron.” The golden-breasted robin said, now wearing a loose orange robe over his wings as a sign of station. The rest of the Trei'kiya who had been a part of the “warning party” were assembled in one of his offices in the Grand Bristlecone.

“You were to warn the King. Not attack him! Why? What were you thinking?” Lord Veron growled, his wings outstretched in an exasperated expression. “Do you realize the forces he controls?!”

“Oh, shut your beak, Lord Veron. They had... other orders to engage if they thought they could get away with it.” Lady Tiatrana said, slipping into the room like an encroaching darkness and grinning wildly. “They had other orders. My orders.”

The raven whirled on her. “Your orders? Since when do you contr--” Then, seeing the murderous look in her eyes, ducked. He knew that glare. Betrayal!

Lady Tiatrana fired a crossbow, but missed. The other Trei'kiya in the room immediately rushed Lord Veron, who began screaming for help.

“No help for you, lesser bird.” The golden-breasted robin said, beginning a spell of silence that drew all the sounds in the room upon a gust of wind and blew it straight out a window, taking Lord Veron's voice along with them. Lord Veron tried to scream, only to find he'd been silenced.

Lady Tiatrana took no time in plunging a dagger straight into his heart, twisting, then ripping the serrated blade out, spraying blood everywhere. Lord Veron stiffened and died, with the last thing he saw being a large avian figure in the doorway behind Lady Tiatrana, wearing sky blue robes, a bobcat skull around her neck, a vulpine skull on the end of a bright orange cord-belt, and a magically-enlarged mouse skull as a skullcap. A condor, he realized. Then, he was dead.

The golden-breasted robin dismissed the silence spell. “That was easier than I thought.”

“Are your forces in position, Wizard-Sage Charlin?” The figure in the doorway asked.

“At your command, Lady Zharinella.” The golden-breasted robin replied.

The condor nodded. “Good. We now wait for him to act first while we purge the rest of the... disloyal. That little vulpine will be the aggressor in our little war. We do nothing until he acts...”

“Yes, Lady Zharinella.” Everyone replied in unison, dropping to one knee in respect and deference to her.

“... and the Stone Over Sky will rule first this kingdom, then the others!” The condor finished, folding her wings wickedly as her eyes took on a deep amber glow.

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[Bobbybobby99]

It's when individuals randomly start acting crazy and/or stupid, with no build up or non-handwavy justification. It's generally considered poor writing, but is insidiously common. I'll read over the rest.

Edit: 1. Avoid the word literally when describing cutting off someone's prosthetic breast from their corpse. Perhaps maddeningly, or in a fit of madness, or enragedly.
2. Slow down a bit. It felt like you were cramming in quite a bit, without having descriptors, into a small space. It felt a bit abrupt.
3. How can a bird grin? What would that even look like?
4.

""If I hadn't looked for her, she would have walked right into an ambush and we never would have known." Falanna replied.

Hervis stood up. "I'll manage."

Same thing- too abrupt. Readers are going to get confused and lost.
5. Thrommit... Is a really odd name. It doesn't really fit. Thromit might work, but it just sounds, and looks, odd. Names don't really have Th sounds in front.
6. Increase the tension. Add adjectives.
7. Nine-goddesses awful is too long for a common phrase. Potentially shorten it to "Goddesses-Awful" or just some other phrase.
8. A gypsy fortune teller raccoon is a tad... Stereotypical, don't you think?
9. I reccomend changing the name 'genesis thread'. It sounds like science fiction. Speaking of science fiction, the more I read, the more I suggest you remove the aliens. For that matter, how does the whole "Goddess power priest" fit in with the magic metal?
10. Huh. A prophecy. I suppose that works. Feels a tad 'Percy Jackson'ish, though.
11. Wait, so the bigger wolf raped and killed her mother? Why isn't everyone banding against him? That... isn't the sort of thing you don't immediately gang up against someone for.

Otherwise good. In particular, the ending was quite satisfying.

[Lethologica]

The "nine" part of "nine goddesses" is much more convenient for swearing, Nine damn it. There's lots of fun things you can do with a number that's central to religious teachings.

[Aegis J Hyena]

It's when individuals randomly start acting crazy and/or stupid, with no build up or non-handwavy justification. It's generally considered poor writing, but is insidiously common. I'll read over the rest.

Ok, so you want me to build up to Sir Korviak? I can do that. He prefers to strike with no warning though, which is why he attacked from the air in the dead of night so he wouldn't be seen. Thrommit WAS exasperated and knew they were in trouble, but I can do a round or two of build up for when he goes all Goddesses-berserk on him.

Spoiler

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"I can grin just fine. Wanna see?" -- Ta'Maxia
"..... that's not a grin. Your beak didn't move." -- Jartpo

Yeah, I'll fix the grin.

Spoiler

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"Stereotypical/cliche or not, I'm here and not going away." -- Elaenneli
"Yeah, unfortunately. You were supposed to be a mink or ermine or weasel for the second part of the story, and NOT stay for the main plot!" -- Me
"No, YOU'RE the weasel for putting me in this situation." -- Hervis
"... you're saying 'hyena' awfully weird, rabbit." -- Me

She wouldn't say her lines unless I'd made her a raccoon.

Spoiler

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"You don't like my name? Tough. It's my name." -- Thrommit
"That's what I get for keyboard mashing." -- Me

Thrommit's name stays. I like it. It's unusual and weird. Maybe turn it into a cultural thing later.

Spoiler

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"Wha... no! It was some woman in the wrong place at the wrong time that I'd mistaken for someone 'worthless'... NOT Falanna's mother! If I did that to her mother and Falanna caught me, we'd never find all the pieces!" -- Teralius
"That's assuming there are even pieces left. Did you see what she did to that rabbit that sniped Hervis outside the burrow? I think we're still missing a few pieces." -- Jartpo
"That and I think Falanna's mother can beat you up." -- Hervis
"You know what they say... never give the DM ideas." -- Me
(The entire cast looks at the author. Falanna just runs a hand down the length of her muzzle with an "I'll be in the break room." expression.)
"Uh, nice knowing you. I'll stand over here on the other side of the planet." -- Torvanian

Thread is supposed to allude to "threads of fate" like the three fates or something. I don't think it sounds science fiction-y at all. As for the aliens vs the Nine Goddesses; the Sycanesti people's whole religion sprang into being because they believed in it enough over time. Over thousands of years, that can have a powerful impact. The minds of intelligent beings can shape their spirit world even before it exists, and this was just taken more literal. (those of you who read Gunnerkrigg kind of know what I'm talking about here)

Elaenneli's prophecy has yet to play out, though I might insert a "corrupt" element or something similar, just to mess with it.

I'm nine-tenths done with the "interlude" episodes of what happens while they wait for an audience with their King... then I'll put those up as well and that'll be the extent of what I've done. Only two left to do are for Hervis and Thrommit.

Hopefully I get feedback from Artman77 for the rest of the story as well... and anyone else readin' what I put up here.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Alright, got the interludes done, here's the first three. These haven't been edited -at all-, which is why they're not doublespaced...

Spoiler: Interlude: King Vanadei Tenquin

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The sun slowly began to rise, but it was a discomforting first light.
King Vanadei Tenquin, the King of the Sycanesti, had been up all night pacing back and forth in his royal bedchamber. While his wife Queen Dianova slept soundly, he was constantly moving around, checking the stained glass windows, adjusting clothes in the cabinet nearby, or just plain worrying about his people. Three weeks had passed since he had returned home to Thynsaleth, and he hadn't managed to unwind for a single day. Not even the expert massage skills of his wife had him breathing easier, and that worried him almost more than the current situations his kingdom was going through.
The King turned back to the window, watching the sunrise and looking out over his city and wondering why such evil had come to the House of Trei'kiya. The rays of light filtered through the glass and were refracted into countless colors, playing a rainbow over the bed and over the body of his wife. He turned with a sigh to look at her and mused that there were "interesting times" and then there were times like these, where he almost wished he could just sulk off and watch the world burn.
Burn it may, the vulpine mused. But not without a fight. I won't see my people fall.
The door to the bedroom opened, and a rough-looking canine with experience in his eyes poked his head in, the chain mail he was wearing softly clinking against the door frame.
"Yes?" King Vanadei said.
"Sire, the R.A.T.S. have returned." The guard said, nodding his head back.
"Good, please send them to the private chamber behind the throne room. I will be there in a few minutes." The King turned back to the window.
"At once, Your Majesty." The guard softly closed the door with a click.
"Nine Goddesses, how do you do it? How do you sit back and watch such great evils be born, fester, and taint the land?" The vulpine said to himself. "They're still my people, even if they've chosen treason. There must be a way to make them see the light."
After a few quiet moments spent in contemplation, he whirled on his feet and made his way to leave. He paused by the bed, looking at his young wife peacefully sleeping and completely unaware of what was going on. He hadn't shared the kingdom's new woes with her as she had just revealed to him that a pair of heirs were on the way. With a long, deep breath he turned away from her and left the room, making his way to the throne.
As he walked the gray marble halls of his castle, some decorated with Diathrylium designs that shifted as he walked, he went over some recent developments. He'd hired a small group of rodents calling themselves the Rage Against The Stupids. They were a small family that worked as a spy network for those who paid the right price. Angry at the amount of completely stupid and willfully ignorant Sycanesti in their midst, their goal was the spread of information throughout the corners of the kingdom. They were not assassins, but they weren't usually that friendly either, only trusting their own to keep the secrets they found until they returned to their employer.
He'd posted a multitude of guards at the river where sometimes shipments of more important things were brought in, trying to attract attention to the docks set up on one side of the Firetail River. His method was security through obscurity and he figured that if thieves and thugs were looking for trouble, him spreading rumors of major shipments coming in would keep attention off the fact that most of the church's private meditation rooms were now full of his new friends.
Then he'd sent out messages for the triads of the Houses to come to the kingdom for a "species-wide review." This wasn't unheard of, but for it to be done in the spring instead of the winter as was tradition was unusual. King Vanadei hoped that it wouldn't tip his hand to his new enemies. That meeting would be a nightmare, as breaking tradition would be something he would have to "answer" for. If he didn't satisfy the nobles and especially the triads, they might cause problems for him politically, and more political unrest was the last thing he needed. All but the Trei'kiya had responded, which had come as no surprise to the fox.
Finally, he'd assembled his most loyal guards, knights and sorcerers, and told them to intensify their training. Unfortunately for them, he told them, they were likely going to war and King Vanadei didn't know how he could stop it. He'd have to cut the snake off at the head to be successful, and he just didn't have resources for an assault on a thoroughly-defended Grand Bristlecone. The best thing to do was to repel the enemies at the gates when they came calling.
The two guards at the doors to the throne room opened them as he approached, bowing slightly.
"You're up early, m'lord." One of them, a strong-looking feline said, relaxing his grip around the sword at his belt. A shield was slung over one shoulder.
"My work here is never done. You know that." King Vanadei tiredly replied.
"Something's really wrong, isn't it." Said the other one, a bloodhound-Taur who was decked out in medical gear and wielding a staff with colorful crystals at the top.
"It's my weight to bear. And bear it I will so that you don't have to. Return to duty." The King lowered his head and entered the throne room, approaching the throne.
The room was spacious, lit by three large chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Two held dozens of candles, the third had a huge faceted crystal of Malaezium in its center, giving off a soft glow that seemed to amplify the other candles. Against the back wall was the throne, a huge chair originally intended for a bison. The throne was of white marble stained a bright blue, decorated here and there with lapis lazuli, turquoise, rose quartz, and amethyst. A large bean bag-like pillow served as a "seat" on the throne, wrapped in strips of leather colored to match the House Felcan'lu colors of pink, bronze and purple.
Over the throne and inset into the wall were nine huge statues, each one of them an Ascended Goddess. The Nine Goddesses were the core of their religion, and after all he had experienced, he was worried he would not have enough faith in his fellow people to stop this trouble before it began. He had become more religious as a result, going to the mid-week services and hoping for a spark of divine intervention.
As he walked up the huge pink, bronze and purple silk carpet toward the throne, he quietly mused about the Goddesses while thinking about his most unpleasant work. He still had yet to punish Hervis for what he did. Anything less than his planned sentence would anger the triads, but was ninety days in the dungeon's bottom level too much... or too little? The man had disobeyed a direct order, right to his muzzle on top of speaking with Evil itself in a half-baked plan to get information. The King'd have to dodge the pitfalls of condemning him to death on advice of the triads. If they thought they weren't being taken seriously, the kingdom would fragment and shatter like glass.
"May the Goddesses watch over us all." King Vanadei said to himself as he took a seat on the throne, motioning for one of the nearby guards. "You may send in the Rage. I am ready to hear their report. Please also send word to those staying in the church that it is time for them to make their move to the castle, so that they may get a crash course in court etiquette before next week's... events."
"At once, Your Majesty." The guard replied, saluting his king and then making a slight bow before turning around and leaving the chamber.
In the room's rafters, a large raven took off from its perch and exited an open upper window, riding the day's warming air and making his way down to the large gypsy camp at the west end of the city. The camp was beginning to stir, colorfully-dressed Sycanesti exiting the many wagons to assemble at the large cooking fire in the center of the camp. The raven landed on a windowsill of one of the wagons, then began tapping with his beak on the wooden sun-blocker over the window that served to keep out the light.

Spoiler: Interlude: Elaenneli

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Tap, tap tap...
Elaenneli blinked, opening her eyes and rolling over in her bed. Thin beams of light were poking through the cracks between the sun-blocker and the window.
Morning already? She thought as the tapping came harder. Zhire had been out late if he was just coming home...
She rolled off the cot with a thump as she shook the last of the cobwebs from her eyes and pushed the sun-blocker aside. Bright beams of light dazzled her eyes as she felt around for the latch that would open the window, then as she pushed open the window she was rewarded by the sound of flapping wings and then a brief beak-shaped nuzzle on her cheek. Blinking repeatedly she watched as the raven flew inside a large cage; the cage was big enough for a very large dog but still probably one or two sizes too small for a huge-winged raven familiar.
“The sun's out. You were out all night.” Elaennelli said with a yawn, stretching.
The raven tilted his head, cawed, then stabbed his beak into a big piece of raw meat the raccoon held out for him.
“See anything amusing?” Elaenneli asked.
Zhire just cawed at her again before using his talons to tear the meat into slivers that he could eat. Elaenneli smiled.
The raccoon stepped out into the morning air, taking a deep breath as the sunlight struck the castle's towers in the distance. In a few short days the Hervis' group was going to officially meet with the King and things were going to get very interesting indeed. She had plans to be present for when it happened, as she wanted to help the Genesis Thread succeed at whatever it was that would interfere with the plans of the Trei'kiya.
The central campfire was already ablaze when she joined her fellow fortune tellers and city bards at the morning meal. All around her, city criers were getting their morning scrolls together, ready to yell out the day's morning news. Some bards in the corner were rehersing a song and lute bongos and a flute could be heard harmonizing. A couple of pickpockets from the thieves guild were in attendance, listening to the casual chatter around them.
“Morning, Neener.” Altruio, a peacock with half of his display feathers missing, said as the raccoon walked up to the tables where the meal was being served.
“How are things, Altruio?” Elaenneli asked as she moved down the line, helping herself to the morning stew.
“Energetic.” The peacock replied. “Guild got wind of an assassination attempt, so there's a larger than normal presence in the area. The Order of the Black Acorn left a chest full of acorns on the steps of the main church, and that has the city guard all up in a frenzy. A decree came down from the Highest Feather saying they were 'withdrawing' from the kingdom, but I don't know what they meant by that. Why would House Trei'kiya want to suddenly split off from the kingdom?”
Elaenneli looked thoughtful but didn't reply.
Altruio continued his news-sharing. “You missed two big gang fights last night. One was the Black Paws versus the Stone Tails.”
“Cats vs dogs. No surprise there.” Elaenneli rolled her eyes.
“The Black Paws won, which is a surprise. They were outnumbered five to one, but lured them into an ambush.” The peacock rubbed the back of his neck. “It looks like the Black Paws are receiving help from the city guard. The guard tore the Stone Tails apart and left 'em for dead.”
“That is interesting. I wonder who's paying them to look the other way? His Majesty isn't going to be happy the guard is receiving bribes...” Elaenneli paused as she walked to another table and helped herself to a pint of cool, clear water.
“The other gang fight was small... some Order of the Black Acorn thugs against some new gang calling themselves the Dust Crystals. That went as predictably as you'd think from an upstart new group of young hot-shots.” Altruio looked down. “I don't think they found all the pieces.”
“Any injuries? Less Order is more stability.” Elaenneli joked as they began to eat.
Altruio shrugged. “Just one. It's being told as an ambush gone wrong, where they struck down one, but were out-powered by the other thirty and were surrounded when they tried to break and run.”
Elaenneli ran a hand down the length of her muzzle.
“Oh, you missed the biggest part of another thing that happened recently. Seems one of the higher-class whores got set upon by a bunch of wolverine thugs. They beat her up but good. She's been locked in the church while she recovers and sleeps off her injuries.” Altruio said.
“What does Old Man Snout want with a woman? Isn't he gay?” Elaenneli asked. There was only one Sycanesti in all of the capital city that hired nothing but wolverines.
“I don't know, but she got cornered against some road work and nearly strangled. From what I hear, another Sycanesti came in and beat up those who were assaulting her. I found this at the site of the battle among the broken bodies.” Altruio held out a long red ribbon.
Elaenneli sniffed it, wrinkling her nose a little. “Smells like wolf.” Then she froze. It not only smelled of wolf, but... sniff sniff sniff...
“Smell someone you know?” The peacock tilted his head.
Sniiiiiiiiiiiiiff...
“No, not really.” Elaenneli wrinkled her nose again and went back to eating. Falanna, what did you get yourself into? The raccoon thought to herself, making a note that the ribbon had the stink of burnt brownies and goldenrod.
“So what are you up to today?” Altruio asked.
The raccoon sighed. “The usual. Entertain the tourists in the morning with a display of my skills, then go seeing about the afternoon's actual appointments with the middle class about their future and fortune.” She didn't sound impressed, as if she was bored.
“Well, it brings in tence to the camp. We could have it worse.” The peacock shut up after that, focusing on his meal.
Elaenneli turned over the news in her head as she devoured her stew. Falanna had gotten in trouble with a man everyone called Old Man Snout, a short bobcat who hated the world and had a habit of yelling at the clouds. He had a fetish for wolverines, maybe because he felt stronger when he was standing between slabs of muscle. The man was gay and disliked women as a whole, but he wasn't violently against them unless they seriously angered him. So what had Falanna done that had pissed him off?
Several minutes passed as both Altruio and Elaenneli finished the morning meal, then Altruio excused himself to go prepare his own manner of entertainment. A juggler by trade, he had lost half his display feathers when he'd fumbled and dropped several flaming torches onto himself while performing for the crowds of tourists to the city. Adopting the “what doesn't burn you to death makes you stronger” outlook on life, he'd gotten back into the game as soon as he could walk again. He wasn't much to look at but he was skilled at what he did and was all around a friendly member of the House of Trei'kiya.
Elaenneli returned to her wagon and grabbed her cards, shuffling them quickly before laying them out in a star pattern on a specially prepared and blessed small wooden table; twenty cards, plus one in the center representing the overall situation. The appearance of the ritual didn't matter, just as long as the intent was clear. She normally did the ball-and-sling trick for the crowds, but here in private and in her “real” appointments, she kept it low-key.
She studied the cards she'd shuffled and drawn for a good five minutes before grimly standing up and throwing a waterproof cloak over her shoulders as it began to drizzle. Her friends at the church would be interested in what she had to reveal. She glanced at Zaire, who'd moved to a cage with a nest of wrinkled papers, sticks and various shiny things he'd found. He was out cold. He really had been out all night.
Elaenneli turned away from his cage and headed out the door, heading for the church. Things were about to get interesting and ugly fast, and her friends needed to know.

Falanna's is a bit more mature, but that's what she gets for being a professional... "escort"... Could be a little triggery.

Spoiler: Interlude: Falanna

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Falanna darted down the long, narrow alley as she glanced at the bloody slash in her left shoulder. The blade had been envenomed and a creeping numbness was slowly inching down her arm carrying the black leather pack, and she knew that if she dropped the pack or paused even once to catch her breath, it would be all over for her.
Behind her, four large burly wolverines wielding maces were giving chase, not happy that the whore they had hired for their lord was instead an agent of the king. She had kneed a fifth (wielding a sword, who had wounded her first) in the groin before taking off at top speed through the alleys of Rozrowan, aiming to get back to Jartpo's drop point. The pack contained all the correspondence the wolverines' lord had done with the Trei'kiya... and if such correspondence reached the king's hands, it would be all over... for their lord and them. Naturally they weren't keen on losing their jobs, if not their lives.
“Come back here, you slut!” One of the wolverines called.
“We won't hurt you...” Another called out to her.
“Much, right?” Falanna snarled under her breath.
“Yes! We wouldn't want to damage that pretty little body of yours!” Came a response.
“Tell that to the ******* who slashed my shoulder!” Falanna spat, overturning a garbage bin into the alley to delay pursuit.
No witty response came as she dodged and wove through several alleys, doubling back on one or two to try to throw them off the scent. To her annoyance, her sharp ears picked up the sounds of more feet hitting the ground; pursuit was not only picking up but it sounded like more were taking part and if she wasn't careful she would be cornered.
She wasn't terribly afraid of her pursuers. They were burly enforcers to a minor lord who had some slight sway with the inner workings of the castle. That sway was enough to cause trouble for her or her friends if the pack she was carrying failed to reach its target. Jartpo's information gathering for her had yielded results; this lord had been consorting with Trei'kiya brigands outside the castle and the brigands themselves had ties to the Order of the Black Acorn. Some of the letters in the pack had mentioned the Cult of Sky over Stone, and a potential alliance.
Falanna was sure she could beat up the wolverines, but doing so would slow her down and that would give time for their lord to finally catch up. Unlike the wolverines, the wolf was afraid of their lord, a older male bobcat with muscles to make Teralius jealous and a little bit of explosive magic to make up for his small size. She'd seen what he did to his other prisoner as a threat to “put down my pack or else” and she didn't want to be on the receiving end of his magic.
Fortunately, she was back in Rozrowan, chasing down one or two leads for Jartpo as a favor from Hervis. She knew these alleys like the back of her hands and could likely outrun the wolverines if she found a good corner to hide in. She would have gone to the guards, but they were known to look the other way if their palms were greased with enough coin... and she didn't want anyone else to know what it was the pack she was carrying was holding. Anyone who knew would be at risk for retaliation and she didn't need to add to her problems.
She turned into another alley, but ran up against a brick wall that had been built as what appeared to be an “alley remodeling” project for the city. Crude mortar and bricks lay everywhere, a couple of trowels were stuck blades first in a pile of dirt, and in one corner there was a large mattock that had been carelessly tossed aside as something that didn't belong. Cornered, she turned around to run only to see that the wolverines had caught up.
“We have you now, you filthy bitch.” One of the wolverines taunted.
“Over my dead fur, bandit-eyes.” Falanna growled. The pack seemed to be gaining weight.
“That can be arranged.” One of the wolverines picked up a brick and threw it at her, and she ducked to avoid it. The moment she ducked and turned to the side to see it impact the wall, the wolverines rushed her. She tensed then leapt, attempting to clear the much-smaller wolverines and then bolt out of the alley, but one of them got lucky and grabbed her tail on the jump, yanking her down. The wolverine twisted on his feet and swung Falanna by her tail, slamming her muzzle first into the brick wall and bringing it down around her, completely covering her in bricks.
The rest of the wolverines took no time in rushing her for the assault, kicking her in the stomach, punching her hips, and bludgeoning her legs with one or two bricks. The wolf's snarls turned into yelps of pain, then she was silenced as she was knocked senseless with a brick and went limp. The pack was pulled out of her paws and tossed aside.
“Looks like we have a prize for the night.” One of the wolverines said as Falanna tried to clear the stars from her eyes.
Another wolverine bit down on her wrist and tore, causing a very bloody wound. She yelped loudly and tried to scoot away but two other wolverines had grabbed her legs and pulled her back over the rough bricks. She'd have a lot of bruises on her back in the morning.
“Make a wish!” One of them yelled as her legs were forced open. The thin leather thong she had been wearing was ripped off and then wrapped around her throat. “Or I'll make one. I wish for your death!” He tightened and Falanna gagged, beginning to struggle. One of the wolverines grabbed her arms while the other undid his leather pants.
“Let me help myself to her first, Shargo!” One of the wolverines growled. “****ing whore will learn it's not wise to cross us before she dies!”
The wolverine called Shargo tightened the thong's string, leaning back and putting his weight into the attempted murder. Falanna's tongue hung limply out of the side of her muzzle as she choked, and she struggled weakly as the rest of the wolverines began to grope her. A wolverine fist struck her in the side of the head, causing her to see stars again.
“Aw, break her neck already.” One of the other wolverines grumbled. “I love hearing that snap.”
“No, no, I like them to panic and suffer.” Shargo replied. One of the wolverines grabbed her throat with both hands and began to squeeze as her head was slammed back against the bricks.
Just as her eyes closed she saw a dark form step up behind Shargo. She heard a surprised shout, then shouts turned to yelps as the thong's string loosened around her throat. From what she could make out as she sat up dazed, choking and coughing, whomever had stepped in behind her had routed the wolverines. Two escaped, one was laying against the wall unconscious with a wolverine-shaped indentation in the building wall behind him, and the last one who had been about to enjoy her without consent lay in a pool of his own blood, both legs and arms broken. To her surprise the man who stepped in drew a sword and plunged it into the back of the last wolverine's head.
She recognized that two handed sword.
“Are you okay?!” Teralius asked, kneeling down. “I saw you running and gave chase to the wolverines, but they had some damn snipers with them.” He looked at his shoulder and tore out the bolt that was still stuck halfway into a thick leather shoulder pad with a growl. “I was out training for a future trip into the arena, and saw the wolverines chasing something. I couldn't not investigate, especially after I heard you...”
Falanna hadn't forgotten his past transgression and admittance, and before she knew it she'd snarled a warning as a reply.
“Okay, okay.” Teralius raised his hands in defense. “I won't bite. Well, maybe them.” He turned to the wolverine laying against the wall unconscious. With a snarl he clenched his fist in frusteration and drove it right into the wolverine's muzzle, driving it all the way back into the skull and shattering both.
Falanna coughed. “I'm not ready to forgive you. Yet. You can thank Hervis I may give you a chance... someday. Take... cough... take the pack to Jartpo; he's hiding over by the red and green fountain not far from here. It's got important information for King Tenquin.”
“You got it, Falanna. I'm sorry I wasn't--”
“Save it.” Falanna slowly stood up then sat back down hard with a yelp of pain. She'd twisted her ankle when she was thrown into the bricks.
“You're hurt!” Teralius' eyes were full of concern. “We need to get you to a healer!”
“You lay one hand on me and I'll be shoving it down your throat, and your tail will follow after I rip it off.” Falanna snarled, shakily getting to her feet. “Don't even look at me when King Vanadei has our audience, either.”
Teralius took a step forward, exasperated. “Falanna, wait! You're hurt! Drop the stubbornness, please!”
The she-wolf whirled on him and lifted her good leg in a high kick, smacking him in the muzzle. With a yelp he was knocked to the ground and the belt holding his sword became undone, falling down around his legs.
“I said, no touch. Ever. Again.” Falanna turned around and began to limp away, leaving a trail of blood from her injured wrist.
Teralius looked at his sword, then the pack and then at the wolf, limping away. He knew not to anger her, and quickly grabbed the pack. Making sure the wolverines weren't hiding and waiting for him to leave, he went to the drop point and to Jartpo, who waved him down as he approached.

[Aegis J Hyena]

And another three. Last two or so tomorrow.

Spoiler: Interlude: Jartpo

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Jartpo exited the guild's library with a large stack of heavy books in his arms, though that he staggered as he walked, and almost lost balance a couple of times. He'd spent most of the week looking up everything he could about guild rivals, Trei'kiya religious offshoot groups, and the noble families of the Trei'kiya... their motivations, their wealth, their politics, and everything else that might prove useful to His Majesty. Some of the books had been marked with a red ribbon, marking them as “restricted”... but the favors he was owed by some of the Sycanesti in the guild made it easy for him to access the books and thus get the information he was curious about.
The first thing he studied was the Order of the Black Acorn. While staying at the church, their acorn calling cards had been discovered quite often, and since there weren't any acorn-producing trees in all of Thynsaleth, the iguana figured that they might run into them a few more times and he wanted to be ready for them when they showed up.
The books didn't have much useful information on them. He'd learned that the Order had branched out and accepted mercenaries of all flavors, as well as anyone with a bounty without question, which is how Rhygo had gotten into the Order. Rhygo had been a leg breaker in the thieves guild before being kicked out for being “more violent, less stealthy” and Jartpo had almost considered him a personal rival. It made him feel better that Rhygo had been dispatched; when he wanted the raccoon could have been very much the tactical genius. Rhygo was genius enough to possibly outsmart most of the others at the church, including Hervis.
The expansionist tendencies the Order was showing established the theory in Jartpo's head that some kind of major assault or takeover was brewing while the King's back was turned or focused on Hervis. Certainly not a shot at the throne, but perhaps one of the major businesses in Thynsaleth. The iguana had spent days looking at the financial records (including some private records he stole himself) looking at things and came to the conclusion that the blacksmith's guild was the target: It was rich, the nobles were elderly and likely on the last of their four legs, and the weapons and armor that could be created as a result would make them a real threat instead of a mere irritant. His Majesty had to realize this before the Order made their move.
Jartpo heard a voice from behind him. “Hey, Jartpo. Got a minute?”
The iguana turned, seeing one of his guildmates. “Fyris. What's up?”
The sheep, still a lamb in every sense of the word, beamed. He loved playing “thief” and was quite, quite good at it. The lamb had a natural talent for pickpocketing that Jartpo had not left unnoticed. When he got older he planed to teach him personally.
“Did you see the recent list of bounties active?” Fyris asked. “There's a bounty out for that avian bird that shot that rabbit at the Games! Some upper crust types want her assassinated.”
Jartpo paused. “Really?”
Fyris unrolled a scroll. “I had a copy made for me. Check it out.”
Jartpo accepted the scroll from the lamb's hand-hooves and skimmed the contents. Several Felcan'lu nobles wanted Ta'Maxia dead for ruining the games, and they didn't agree with the mercy that Hervis had shown her.
“Two thousand kul?” Jartpo asked, lowering the scroll.
“Just think what the guild could do with that money!” Fyris was so excited he was almost jumping up and down.
Jartpo smiled, if only to satisfy the lamb's ignorance at guild politics. Two thousand kul wasn't much to the guild's coffers, and Ta'Maxia was worth much more than that, easily. This was insulting to her at the very least, and he planned to visit Ta'Maxia to let her know. The hawk was in a safe house, and Jartpo was the go-between for her and Hervis.
Not that the lamb knew this, but still.
“I've got a couple friends itching to try and claim it. You want to come along?” Fyris said.
Jartpo considered. Might as well make him work a little... make him feel useful. He thought to himself. “Why? She's an avian, I'm just an iguana. I'm a burglar, not an assassin. By the Nine Goddesses, you're just a pickpocket. You're not an assassin either.”
“I can learn!” Fyris excitedly replied. “Melgrin has been teaching me how to slit throats.”
The iguana paused. Assassination was a dark path to take, and the lamb was young enough to still treat everything in life as a game. Melgrin was an old badger who was one of the guild's foremost assassins, specializing in cutting the throats of the opposition in such a messy way that the mess that was left had become his trademark. Jartpo knew Melgrin was emotionless, but to willingly lead such a young Sycanesti child down that path...
Ignorance is happiness. Jartpo thought to himself. “Well, if old Melgrin is teaching you, I guess you might be one after all. Sure, I'll come along to help out...” By scaring away or warning the target... Ta'Maxia would kill you before you knew she was there... “Do you mind if I take this with me? I need to head to one of the safe houses for one of our other clients.”
“Yeah, sure. I'll see you later then? I've got some pickpocketing to do in the meantime and we can team up for it.” Fyris was grinning ear to ear. “Then we can take down this filthy feather face and be heroes for bringing her to justice!”
“Didn't you pay attention to what happened?” Now Jartpo was scolding him. “The rabbit showed her mercy, according to word on the street. That means she's in the free and clear, right?”
The lamb scoffed. “He's an idiot. He was killed and had to be brought back. All he's doing is inviting another stab in the back when she comes for revenge. She's Trei'kiya, Jartpo... they hold grudges.” Fyris folded his arms with a knowing, smug look. “He's just asking for trouble and he'll get what is coming to him. She will take another shot. Guaranteed. We'll get to her first!”
“And how do you know that?” Jartpo asked.
The iguana's face fell as the lamb's eyes seemed to freeze, and he pulled out a small dagger, grinning and licking his lips. The lamb couldn't have been more than ten or twelve seasons of age, and already he looked like he was bloodthirsty for the sake of being bloodthirsty. On the other hand, such a young... killer... would be underestimated... and that would be an advantage for the guild. Now the iguana had doubts about Fyris “automatically” failing the attempt. If he had this kind of bloodlust and cold-bloodedness in his heart, that would mean never underestimating him again. The lamb bowed to him and walked away, leaving Jartpo with the scroll in his claws.
Jartpo waited until he was out of the building, then exited the guild through one of the secret rooftop exits. From there he jumped from roof to roof before making his way down into the part of the city that had been set aside for House Lapandar. He walked from burrow entrance to burrow entrance, nodding at those who would say hello to him. Everyone here knew him to be part of the guild, but as it was “obvious” he was “just out for a stroll and not on guild business” no one paid him any attention.
Finally, he reached a specific burrow. A tiny blotch of orange paint along one wall marked this as a guild safe house; if you didn't know to look for it, it would have been unnoticeable. The burrow was half the size of Ta'Maxia, meaning she'd have trouble moving about, but when she was a marked avian comfort had to be sacrificed in the name of safety. Jartpo moved aside a small rock and crawled into a small space leading directly inside the burrow.
He could hear Ta'Maxia moving about, and he looked down at the scroll in his claws. She would not be pleased.
“You here?” He whispered from inside the crawlspace, his voice echoing down the tunnel to bounce off a stone block at the end. The other end of the tunnel had been blocked by an ornamental statue.
The sounds of moving about stopped, and as Jartpo reached the end of the tunnel the statue was moved aside. He poked his head out with a smile on his face. “How are you holding up?”
Ta'Maxia shrugged. “As well as can be expected. Did you learn anything interesting?”
The iguana shrugged back. “Lots of things. King Vanadei is going to be very interested in what I've uncovered. Unfortunately it doesn't help Hervis much. I also learned through some of my friends in the guild that he's entertaining a temporary dungeon stay for him.”
Ta'Maxia turned to look out the window again. “The rabbit's expecting something, yeah. We just don't know what.”
“Yeah, if King Vanadei doesn't do something about that one time he talked to the Tyrannical Darkness, his authority will be ruined. Word will spread and create more potential for unrest and that doesn't do any Sycanesti any good.” Jartpo said. “I also bring news that some Felcan'lu nobles want you dead. There's a bounty out for your death.”
Ta'Maxia's eyes widened as Jartpo handed her the scroll without another word, and she opened it up and scanned the contents. She looked at the scroll and then at Jartpo, scratching the back of her neck with one wing.
“Really... two thousand kul...” Ta'Maxia muttered, putting down the scroll.
“Yeah. I hate being the bearer of bad news.” Jartpo grumbled. “Listen, I have to go; I accepted a request for a little pickpocketing with a friend before he was heading out to search for you to make good on this assassination attempt, and I can't be late. He's a kid with some severe psychopathy issues that I hadn't realized he had, and I'm going to try to turn him away from them. We don't need another potential loose cannon in the guild right now and I've got to try to turn him aside before I head back to the church and Hervis.”
The hawk shrugged while sipping a mug of strawberry flavored water with a talon, reclining in her chair. “Go do your thing. I'll do mine. But two thousand? That's embarrassing. I'm worth twice that and everyone knows it.”
“I'd say more than that, given who you're associating with, plus you've already fed His Majesty what information you could on the Sacred Nest.” Jartpo turned around to duck back down the tunnel leading outside. “I'll be back at the end of the week. That's when we're being summoned by His Majesty.”
“I'll see you later. Keep Hervis safe for me.” Ta'Maxia replied, watching the little iguana salute her and then dive off into the hole.

Spoiler: Interlude: Ta'Maxia

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“Really... two thousand kul...” Ta'Maxia muttered, putting down the scroll.
“Yeah. I hate being the bearer of bad news.” Jartpo grumbled. “Listen, I have to go; I accepted a request for a little pickpocketing with a friend before he was heading out to search for you to make good on this assassination attempt, and I can't be late. He's a kid with some severe psychopathy issues and I'm going to try to turn him away from them.”
The hawk shrugged while sipping a mug of strawberry flavored water with a talon, reclining in her chair. “Go do your thing. I'll do mine. But two thousand? That's embarrassing. I'm worth twice that and everyone knows it.”
“I'd say more than that, given who you're associating with, plus you've already fed His Majesty what information you could on the Sacred Nest.” Jartpo turned around to duck back down the tunnel leading outside. “I'll be back at the end of the week. That's when we're being summoned by His Majesty.”
“I'll see you later. Keep Hervis safe for me.” Ta'Maxia replied, watching the little iguana salute her and then dive off into the hole. She pushed the statue back into place, and looked around at the burrow she was staying in. Some of Hervis' family in Thynsaleth had offered a burrow to hide in and while she couldn't stand up because everything was rabbit sized, she was safe for the time being from those who were out to get her.
Jartpo had been her confidant and go-between between herself and Hervis, currently staying put at the church. None could be seen dealing with her directly, or they'd be targeted by both the Sacred Nest and the Order of the Black Acorn. The Order, in particular, had left a few acorns laying around the church as a warning, but the priests there had made sure that their wards and “visitors” were safe and protected.
She'd received news that her family had disowned her. The shame of having the “attempted assassin of the Crier of The Games” was too much for the family to bear and they had effectively told her to get lost. Because of the disowning, that made her brother no longer valuable, and so the Sacred Nest had been returned to the family. Instead, they had put out a bounty on her head instead, to make it seem like they were more reputable than they actually were.
Still, her brother'd been bird-napped in the first place. That still couldn't be left to stand, so she was going to remain allied to Hervis.
Her brother Ti'genis had reportedly said upon his release that he couldn't fault Ta'Maxia, but that if he publicly forgave her he'd be disowned or worse as well, so he at least in public had to pretend to “forget she existed.” The two had been exchanging letters daily since Ta'Maxia'd returned from the wilderness. Sometimes those letters were all that kept her from going crazy in the confined space.
Ta'Maxia looked out the window as the sun began to peek over the horizon, rising on a new day. In a week the group would return to His Majesty to both give testimony on the situations in front of the triads, and prepare to move on the Sacred Nest and Cult of the Sky Over Stone.
She checked her crossbow, making sure it was loaded and that she was carrying an ample supply of ammunition. Soon it would be time to take the fight all the way back to the Grand Bristlecone, and she wanted to be ready. She could understand the political agenda that the Sacred Nest had wanted to push, but now that she knew Hervis was supposed to be something more, she wanted to genuinely help. Prey be damned, he had shown her mercy when for all intents and purposes she should have been killed for failure. He'd spared her life without hesitation, so she was going to help the little “prey” right back, without hesitation.
Sir Korviak. The golden eagle had disappeared in a flash of amber fire-light after Hervis took his eye. That bird would be back for sure, and she wanted to be there when he made himself known... mostly because she wanted to shoot him in the back and let Hervis finish him off. In her opinion it wasn't right that birds could fly with such armor on and it reeked of something completely unnatural. This was not counting the fact he was now known to be in league with the Tyrannical Darkness itself on top of everything. Leather armor, maybe. Some small metal plates protecting the knees and maybe a back plate? Sure. But that full suit of “weightless” plate mail was going beyond proper.
House Trei'kiya was “progressing” too far too fast, and it needed to be reined in before they got so bold as to assault the rest of the houses in an inter-species war. Ta'Maxia might have been a mercenary, but total winner-take-all was good for nobody.
She shuddered for a moment. Am I getting as soft as the prey species? She thought to herself as she cocked the crossbow. A year ago I would have liked more war. It would have given me many contracts. She stretched out her other wing (now healed thanks to Thrommit's magic after he'd had time to rest), preening a few feathers here and there as she mused that House Trei'kiya needed to be stopped. It was not their place to attempt to usurp control over House Felcan'lu despite the prey-hatred. If a winner-take-all battle erupted, the winner could charge anything they wanted on a contract, leading to worthless contracts. No way in the Nine Goddesses am I going to allow that to happen.
A knock on the door brought her out of her thoughts and she tensed, not responding. There was a pause, then a second knock, harder this time.
Slowly the avian crept up on the door, peeking out through the eye hole. A rabbit wearing a brown tunic and wearing a headband marked with runes representing a messenger stared back.
“Who... is it?” Ta'Maxia asked.
“Ja'vael... of the Wing's Breadth.” Came a low male voice.
Ta'Maxia paused. The Wing's Breadth was a small sect of the Nine Goddesses that was tailored to better fit with the Trei'kiyan air of superiority. They wanted to rule over others as did groups like the Sacred Nest, but without killing anyone. At any cost. They weren't terribly paid attention to, mostly because their methods fell into the political, social, or economic arenas instead of force or intimidation that had become the hallmark of the Trei'kiya upper crust.
“How did you find me, and why should I let you in?” Ta'Maxia cracked her wings, looking at the trap door under the rug in the room. The escape hatch had been specifically dug for her so she could make a break for it if things got hairy or if assassins came to the door.
“Because you know we don't like violence, and because I have a message from King Tenquin that you need to hear.” Came the voice.
Ta'Maxia folded her wings up. “I'm seeing the King in a few days. He can tell me himself.”
“This needs to be done today, Ta'maxia.” The voice urged.
Ta'Maxia peered through the hole at the rabbit again. “You're not from the Wing's Breadth, only Trei'kiya are...”
The rabbit looked stressed. “Okay, okay. We're friends of theirs. They can't get the job done on their own, you know. They need people to do their other work in the other parts of the kingdom...”
“Friends.” Ta'Maxia chirped disinterestedly. She wasn't convinced.
“Yes, friends. Look. I don't have time for this. You can either let me in so I can give you these orders, or turn me away and I'll tell them I couldn't get through to you. They told me I could expect that since you do have a price on your head.” The rabbit turned to look over his shoulder as if he thought he was being followed.
“And you can't slide the 'orders' under the door because...?” Ta'Maxia asked, reaching for her crossbow.
“His Majesty was right. You are stubborn. I guess with the situation you can't afford to be too careful.” Came the voice. A thick envelope with the King's royal seal on the back was pushed under the door with some difficulty. “Here's the message and the orders. Good luck.”
Ta'Maxia watched as the rabbit hopped away, then looked down at the thick envelope with curiosity in her eyes. Whatever it was, it contained a packet of thick sheets of paper. Once the rabbit was gone she picked it up off the ground and slowly read the contents, tilting her head left and right as she read King Tenquin's flowing script.
“He wants me to do WHAT?!” Ta'Maxia exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise looking up and out the window at the castle. “Is he dumb, or just stupid?” Then she shook her head from side to side to focus. “All right, so he wants me to... hmmm. Wow, okay. He's a damned vulpine, his tricks had better be good if I'm putting myself in harm's way like this...”
She put down her crossbow and opened the front door of the burrow, looking outward at the awakening city. Stepping outside and stretching her now-healed wings she took a running start before launching herself into the air, feeling her wings creak and pop as they finally got some exercise.
“On the other hand, I've been locked in that chicken coop for too long. Time to go to work.”

Spoiler: Interlude: Teralius

Show

Teralius made sure he'd strapped on the leather pads tightly to his shoulders and knees before stepping onto the practice mat, his sword at the ready. His opponent, a tiger almost twice his size, was readying his own blade.
He was in the arena in the city of Rozrowan, where the Games would have been in full swing still if they had still been going on. It was late evening, and he was itching for some practice before he'd have to report back to King Vanadei and listen to his declarations and decrees alongside Hervis and the rest of the group, including Falanna.
“You okay, Teralius?” The tiger asked. “You look distracted.”
“Hm? Just thinking.” The wolf replied. Falanna had never been far from his thoughts, but she wasn't the type to forgive easily once you'd broken her trust. Him admitting to what he'd done had scarred their relationship, and he was constantly thinking of ways he could get through to her that it was a one-time mistake. He'd had the thought of finding the woman he'd raped with the gang and apologizing, but he wasn't sure if that would be enough. After all, the damage had already been done.
“Have you seen the list of upcoming combat?” Largos, the tiger, asked. This was Teralius's trainer, and the two had known each other for several years. There was nothing the striped feline had left to teach the wolf, but they were always up for challenging one another any time the lupine was dropping by.
“No, but I heard it's being well-funded by a popular local lord. We should have a big crowd.” Teralius replied with a smile, stepping into the center of the mat's center ring and bringing his sword up in a defensive posture, blade down and ready to block the first attack the tiger would throw at him. Big crowds meant big payoffs for the fighters. Well, the survivors, anyway.
“Come and GET IT!” Largos snarled, charging. The wolf expertly parried the first blow and spun on his heels. Largos bent backwards almost horizontally to dodge the blade and sprang back like a sapling. He leapt at Teralius, who jumped back, then the two clashed blades, leaning their prospective weights into them. The tiger used his size and strength to outmuscle the wolf, knocking him to a sitting position before sending his blade skittering from his grasp.
“You must be distracted. I haven't disarmed you in, what... months?” Largos asked, sheathing his sword and helping the wolf up.
“A little.” Teralius rubbed the back of his head. “Remember when I told you about that gang and I, when we went hunting for some garbage whore in the bowels of the arena?”
Largos tilted his head. “And you were drunk, and picked a free woman? Yeah, I remember that. That was... wow, early in your career. Thinking about it after all this time?”
Teralius looked down. “You know Falanna Quickpaws?”
“Yeah. Don't you have a crush on her?” Largos playfully punched the wolf's shoulder.
“Long story short, we've slept together on occasion. She got wind of that... event, and now she refuses to be on speaking terms with me.” Teralius replied. “I've been thinking, trying to find a way to make amends, but that bitch is stubborn as a rock when she's angry.”
“I've slept with her too. She's worth her weight in kul... so friendly, soft and warm, and smart to boot. Damn smart.” Largos sighed. “My advice? You'll stop trying and wait for her to come to you. We all know it was an accident, and she's just being emotional until the shock passes. I know you never found the woman again to apologize and make monetary arrangement as a penance...”
Teralius looked away and down. “The gang... they told me they'd killed her to shut her up after I left. No witnesses.”
“... what.” Largos paused, shocked.
“Yeah. I never mentioned that. They said she'd been killed, either strangled or beaten to death to make sure the others wouldn't get in trouble. Yes, yes I know the rest of those responsible are either all dead or in the dungeons now, but that doesn't change anything.”
“I infer from your tone that she survived?” Largos said.
“According to a fortune teller and gypsy, whom I have a lot of faith in at the moment... she not only survived, but so did one pup.” Teralius lowered his sword arm, letting the blade fall out of his hand.
Largos froze. “What? Really!?”
“I don't know what I'm going to do, Largos. I think my feelings for her are developing into something more.” The wolf looked up at his trainer. “I want to spend more time with her. I want to eventually raise a family with her and protect her. I know she enjoys the whore's life, but she could have so much better.”
Largos folded his arms, looking thoughtful. “My previous advice stands. Until she is ready to open up, and she might not ever be... and you need to keep that in mind...”
“I'm not sure I can accept that.” Teralius replied. “I can give her so much more.”
“You respect her, right?” Largos put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.
“Of course. Seeing her in pain hurts me, emotionally and physically.” The wolf picked up his sword. “You're going to say leave her be and worship her from a distance. I know you.”
“I wouldn't say it if it weren't true.” Largos replied.
“Maybe I can get Hervis to get her to open up...” Teralius said.
“Hervis? The rabbit everyone's talking about?” Largos tilted his head.
“Yeah. I ran into him out in the wilderness on my last meditative trip to the old stones. It was an interesting adventure in bringing him back.” The wolf kept his muzzle shut tight on the details, not wanting to mention who else he'd run across, such as the King himself or the rest of the party.
“You've got interesting friends.” Largos sounded impressed.
The wolf nodded. “I have to go back to Thynsaleth in a few days to see him, actually. We're... planning something.”
“Surprise me.” Largos said. “That tone tells me I don't need to know any more. Shall we continue some sparring?”
“Yeah, let's.” The wolf raised his blade. “Your lead, again. This time, I'll disarm you.”
“We'll just see about that!” The tiger grinned, crouching down then leaping at the wolf with his own sword drawn. The two clashed blades again, sparring with one another.

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=* =*=*=

His sparring over, the wolf bid his trainer a good evening and went out to enjoy the cool night air before returning to the arena barracks with the rest of the warriors. He thought long and hard about Falanna, and about what his trainer had said during their second round of sparring, and how Falanna would really need to open up on her own time. It was possible, but it might not be on a time frame he wanted.
He looked down at his now bloodied blade as he walked, it having grazed his trainer's shoulder during the sparring. He'd been fighting for a long, long time now, lusting for the roar of the crowd, the thrill of the kill and the kul that it had brought in for those who sponsored him. He hadn't kept a large sum of his cut for himself, preferring to live from battle to battle so that he'd be forced to always be on top of his game.
He was getting tired.
He looked up at the moon overhead as he slipped down an alley, lost in his thoughts as he listened to the sounds of the night. He barely paid attention to the prostitute who'd waved at him from one of the windows, and as he came to a four-way intersection of alleys where a bunch of hobos were warming themselves by a campfire in a corner, he made his decision. He would fight one more year, then put down the sword and find something else. He was still strong and in his prime, and he didn't want to subject his body to riskier and riskier bouts. If he ended up badly injured, he'd be retired... possibly forcefully or even lethally. It was better to end things while he was on a high note.
Thump.
His ears perked as he felt something hit one of his shoulders and he turned to see a crossbow bolt firmly embedded into one of the shoulder pads he was still wearing. He slowly turned his head as his eyes widened, and caught sight of a wolverine sitting on top of one of the buildings hastily trying to reload his crossbow.
A sniper? Teralius thought. He knew he was a wanted wolf, as many of the lower ranking nobility wanted him out of the arena in order to protect their own business interests. He also knew that said nobles wouldn't dare send someone to engage him in melee, as they'd lose without a doubt.
Smirking, the wolf picked up a brick and threw it as hard as he could at the wolverine while the wolverine's head was still down and focusing on reloading the crossbow. The brick hit him square in the side of the muzzle, causing him to drop the crossbow and stagger to the side. There was an uncomfortable moment frozen in time as the wolverine staggered too close to the roof's edge, then he toppled over and went headfirst straight into a trash can. Teralius slowly strode over and picked up the wolverine by his neck, staring him down.
“You've got guts. Who sent you?” Teralius snarled.
The wolverine spat in his face as a response, then attempted to squirm out of the wolf's grip.
Teralius answered his squirming by slamming him against the wall. “I said, who sent you?”
“Go to the Tyrannical Darkness, wolf!” The wolverine growled. “You're getting too close...”
“Close? To what?” Teralius effortlessly lifted the wolverine until they were eye to eye.
Then he heard the shriek.
Turning his head, he saw a thin, nimble wolf dart out of a richer-looking home clutching a large black pack in one hand. Completely nude aside from the multiple ribbons over her arms and legs, her tail was straight on end and she looked panicked. From inside the home, Teralius could hear some older man roaring at some subordinates to go and chase her.
Before Teralius could shout anything to Falanna, the she-wolf had zoomed off down into an alley, being chased by several more wolverines. For a few seconds the big wolf debated whether to beat the older man into bloodstains for mistreating his packmate, but decided that he'd better shadow the she-wolf. Even panicked, he knew that she could take care of herself, and an armed gang might be in for a world of hurt. Still, it was best to be on the safe side.
Slamming the wolverine in his hands back into the trashcan headfirst before putting the lid on as an insult, Teralius began to give chase. Falanna was fast and could easily outpace the wolverines, but he wanted to be there in case she got into some real trouble. He knew she knew the alleyways well, and if she felt truly threatened in melee she could always outrun them and hide.
As he began to shadow the wolverines, another sniper fired at him from a rooftop. This time the crossbow bolt landed inches above his head. He turned to look upward, where the wolverine was mocking him, and as he moved to climb the wall and teach him a lesson another wolverine on another rooftop threw down a bucket at Teralius. The bucket landed square on his head and obscured his vision for a few seconds, and that was all the time the wolverines needed as several of them jumped him from every direction, kicking and punching.
Sighing, the wolf slowly stood up from the attempted assault, wolverines tumbling off him in every direction. Annoyed, he started both throwing bodies around and slicing open any who decided to stay in melee range. As those wolverines who were still alive halfheartedly scrambled away from him, it occurred to the wolf that they weren't really trying. He was not the target; the snipers were just taking potshots at him while remaining focused on their true prize... Falanna.
His ears perked sharply as thoughts were interrupted. He heard Falanna yelp in pain, and he quickly barreled toward the sound.
A few minutes later he reached the scene of the battle. Falanna had gotten cornered against what appeared to be some recent construction in progress, and the wolverines had knocked her to the ground. One of them was strangling her with her own thong, while the others were getting ready to enjoy her without her permission.
“Aw, break her neck already.” One of the wolverines grumbled. “I love hearing that snap.”
“No, no, I like them to panic and suffer.” A second one replied, tightening his grip on the thong as Falanna gagged.
Not on my watch. Teralius thought to himself, stepping over the pile of collapsed bricks and proceeding to go full-out enraged on the wolverines.
The wolf charged. His first strike was a quick kick, which punted a wolverine almost straight up and onto a building's roof. The one that had wrapped Falanna's thong around her neck he picked up by the scruff of his neck and held him up in the air with both hands before slamming his back down over his knee, snapping the wolverine in half. The third he grabbed by the chest fur and threw him into the wall, leaving a wolverine-shaped indentation in the wall itself. The last one he could reach was the most unfortunate, having both arms and legs broken before kicking him down into a crumpled heap. Taking his sword, he angrily plunged it into the back of the wolverine's head.
Falanna struggled to her knees, choking and coughing as she untangled the thong from around her neck. There were visible marks where the leather had literally bit into her skin; the wolverines were strong.
“Are you okay?!” Teralius asked, kneeling down. “I saw you running and gave chase to the wolverines, but they had some damn snipers with them.” He looked at his shoulder and tore out the bolt that was still stuck halfway into a thick leather shoulder pad with a growl. “I was out training for a future trip into the arena, and saw the wolverines chasing something. I couldn't not investigate, especially after I heard you...”
Teralius was rewarded with Falanna snarling at him, and inwardly he cursed his luck. She hasn't forgiven. By the Nine Goddesses, wake UP, Falanna! I'm no threat to you! He thought.
“Okay, okay.” The big wolf raised his hands in defense. “I won't bite. Well, maybe them.” He turned to the wolverine laying against the wall unconscious. With a snarl he clenched his fist in frusteration and drove it right into the wolverine's muzzle, driving it all the way back into the skull and shattering both.
Falanna coughed. “I'm not ready to forgive you. Yet. You can thank Hervis I may give you a chance... someday. Take... cough... take the pack to Jartpo; he's hiding over by the red and green fountain not far from here. It's got important information for King Tenquin.”
“You got it, Falanna. I'm sorry I wasn't--” Teralius began to say as he picked up the pack, then took note of her bruised wrist. She'd been bitten there, and if the bite had been any deeper, she would have bled out on the spot.
“Save it.” Falanna slowly stood up then sat back down hard with a yelp of pain. Teralius saw that she'd twisted her ankle. She was in no condition to move.
“You're hurt!” Teralius' eyes were full of concern. “We need to get you to a healer!”
“You lay one hand on me and I'll be shoving it down your throat, and your tail will follow after I rip it off.” Falanna snarled, shakily getting to her feet and beginning to limp away. “Don't even look at me when King Vanadei has our audience, either.”
Teralius took a step forward, exasperated. “Falanna, wait! You're hurt! Drop the stubbornness, please!”
The she-wolf whirled on him and lifted her good leg in a high kick, smacking him in the muzzle. With a yelp he was knocked to the ground and the belt holding his sword became undone, falling down around his legs.
“I said, no touch. Ever. Again.” Falanna turned around and began to limp away, leaving a trail of blood from her injured wrist.
Teralius looked at his sword, then the pack and then at Falanna, who was rapidly disappearing into the darkness. He knew better than to anger her, and quickly grabbed the pack. Making sure the wolverines weren't hiding and waiting for him to leave, he went to the drop point and to Jartpo, who waved him down as he approached.
“You look like something interesting happened.” Jartpo said, leaning against the fountain with a smile on his face.
Teralius snorted. “Falanna got jumped, hard. I saved her life but she hasn't forgiven me for what was revealed earlier.”
Jartpo's face fell. “Is she okay? I did hear what I thought were the sounds of a scuffle.”
“wolverines. One almost strangled her, another almost raped her, and to top it all off there were some wolverines on the nearby roofs with crossbows. Snipers!”
Jartpo tilted his head. “That would mean only one man. There's a lesser lord that employs wolverines specifically for leg-breaking work and he likes to strike from the rooftops with snipers.”
Teralius held up the pack Falanna had been carrying. “Falanna told me to bring this to you.”
The iguana nodded. “She mentioned she thought she 'found something' while being hired for some snob's rich party.” He took the pack, nearly falling over. The pack was as big as he was.
“I'm going to go hunt Fa--” Teralius began to say.
“That's not a good idea.” Jartpo said. “Wait for her to cool off. You know what happens when she gets mad, and if she's as injured as you imply...”
Teralius rubbed his muzzle. Trying to calm down a berserk, half-strangled woman was just asking for trouble, even though he meant her no harm. Beating her down instead of calming her down would defeat the point, so he had to reluctantly agree. Jartpo was right.
“I'll bring this to King Vanadei. The audience with us is right around the corner.” Jartpo finished, beginning to scurry off. “I think you should go back to the church and wait for Falanna to show up. Hervis makes a great buffer and Thrommit there will keep people sensible.”
“Yeah.” Teralius rubbed the back of his head. “I'll see you at the church?”
“I'm on my way there after I drop this off and do some business with a friend. I'll see you when you get there and hopefully Falanna will have returned.” Then Jartpo was gone.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Aaaaand finally, the last three. I'm not pleased with how either Thrommit's or Torvanian's came out. They both feel a bit forced.

That's what editing is for. Heh.

Spoiler: Interlude: Torvanian

Show

Torvanian looked down at the leather bundle that the small canine child had presented to him, then he looked back at the child. “You're sure this is what I asked for?”
“Sure, mister. I made extra sure the thing looked like what you said it was supposed to look like.” The puppy couldn't have been more than six years of age.
“Good job, kid. Here's your reward.” The equine flipped him a gold kul. “You earned it. Just... promise me you'll put it to good use, and not use its power for evil?”
“An entire kul! Thanks mister! This'll feed me and my sister for weeks!” The puppy replied, dashing off into the crowd.
Torvanian smiled as he watched the child go, then looked down at the bundle again. He was surprised the kid could find what it was that he wanted, and now that he had what he wanted, he hoped he wasn't getting in over his head. The discussions he'd had with Thrommit and Hervis about the nature of the Tyrannical Darkness had left him curious. He wanted to experience what they had described for himself.
If the Tyrannical Darkness was indeed “open for casual conversation” as long as a bargain wasn't implied or reached, then the possibility existed that those who were condemned or those who had done some extreme wrong could somehow give back some good to the community. By proving such Darkness actually existed, maybe he could scare those who were “evil” into giving up their ways by showing them the Tyrannical Darkness actually existed.
That was what he hoped, anyway. Those that couldn't be scared straight could be... used in other ways... if the power of the Tyrannical Darkness was anything like Hervis had made it out to be...
Torvanian left the hustle and bustle of the marketplace and returned to the castle with the bundle carefully concealed in a leather backpack. Once back in his room he opened the bundle to find three things... a mirror made of reflective green and silver metal whose reflective surface was polished obsidian, three rings made of quartz each carved with runes depicting the Tyrannical Darkness in a different aspect (Political evil, mindless blood lust, and corruption of youth with dark secret knowledge), and a scroll of sheep skin with a magical formula written in what appeared to be goat's blood... that was still wet.
Torvanian wasn't about to curse his good fortune, despite wondering exactly how the child had found this, or gotten the materials together.
Unrolling the scroll, he briefly scanned the words before looking at the mirror and then at the rings. The rings would be used to “entice” the Tyrannical Darkness to show up, by forcing the Tyrannical Darkness' essence into them and thus drawing its attention. The mirror was where he'd view the Tyrannical Darkness itself.
“All right...” He said to himself, making sure no one was coming to unexpectedly visit him in his room. If King Vanadei found out he was experimenting with the Tyrannical Darkness he'd be sent home in several pieces after a brief visit to the gallows... if he lived that long.
The opportunity to do good by coercing evil though... it had to be a chance taken while the chance was still available. He felt his shoulders sag a little as he thought of all the potential previous lives he must have held; he was tired of the cycle of life. It was time he left it.
Unrolling the scroll, Torvanian said the words. As he did so it felt like his tongue was turning into sandpaper and a cough was beginning to tickle the back of his throat. The words on the scroll lit up with an unusual amber light before they started to smoke, then they burned away off the page leaving the scroll itself untouched. The center of the mirror began to glow a dull orange while the three rings slowly floated up to the equine's eye level.
With a sizzling sound the dull glow at the center of the mirror lashed out, and three tendrils of light slammed into the rings. All three rings began to glow brightly for several seconds before falling to the ground at the equine's hooves. Then the entirety of the reflective surface of the mirror began to glow a dull orange. Torvanian could see naught but his own reflection, but it looked slightly aged. He checked his appearance in a normal mirror, and it looked normal, un-aged.
Then, he almost dropped the mirror in shock.
Good afternoon, diplomat of the Kingdom of the Five Swords.
The voice was in his mind! It was a booming bass, and he was almost driven to his knees at its volume.
“Good... good afternoon...” Torvanian replied to thin air, hoping no one was outside his door to hear him speak.
To what do I owe the honor of a visit?
Best not to lie. The equine thought. “Curiosity. I've had some... experiences.”
And you wanted to thus experience Me for yourself?
“Yes.” Torvanian shivered. The voice's bass was vibrating through his body, ringing in his skull, and making his hand-hooves shake. He almost dropped the mirror.
Somehow I think this isn't just a social call. The voice said. You have... wants. Your heart has the colorful stains of desire. It glows like a beacon to Me.
Torvanian felt a pressure at the base of his skull, like something was trying to force itself inside. “Stay back, demon. I don't give you permission to enter my mind.”
Permission. That's a funny one. Tell Me another?
The pressure faded. “The power of the scroll binds you to your plane, Tyrannical Darkness.”
Mortal magic has no play on immortal entities, especially Me. However, your thoughts and memories are... interesting. Very interesting.
“Then you know who our mutual friend is.” Torvanian solidly said. “I don't think you want him to come to harm.”
In his mind, he heard a snort. Neither of us do. I fear harm is all that he is going to come to know in the coming months, and there isn't anything I can do any longer to assist him.
“Hervis said you bent the rules for him before.” Torvanian said.
Once in response to a mortal's request as per the rules of magic, and once because something else is going on that he needs to stop... something else which you don't need to know about yet. I returned him that second time at great risk to Myself, you know...
“Then how are we supposed to deal with an unknown threat?” Torvanian asked.
Now the voice was genuinely curious. Are you entering into a bargain with Me? I would hardly expect this would go over well with His Majesty. You want knowledge of the future in exchange for something, perhaps? Or perhaps a pact to ensure Hervis' safety on future travels?
“How... how did...?” Torvanian had been entertaining the thought of a pact... a minor, miniature pact that he didn't see any way to twist or ruin.
You forget. Your memories are completely open to Me. This includes your dreams, and desires... of which you have several. I can give them to you, sure. What are you prepared to offer Me, diplomat?
Torvanian looked out the window. The sun was only just beginning to set.
Well? Are you going to stand there all day while the spell wanes and then I disappear?
“You know my thoughts, demon.”
I've been called worse. So you want to give up a soul in exchange for Hervis' well being and that of his friends. You were planning on giving Me yours, in a noble gesture for history to record as a self-sacrifice?
Torvanian went to the window, looking straight down. The drop was over sixty feet down into a small alley where a guard appeared to be making a deal with some robed figures. Everyone had their politics, Torvanian mused. “Yes. And there are several hundreds... thousands of souls available that have truly done wrong. Instead of them returning as Ruined and giving us more grief, I am asking that they get destroyed instead.”
And what gives you the right to bargain souls with Me? Do you have rights to the condemned's eternal souls, Torvanian Duskwalker?
“No. But... no one would miss them in the physical world if they died, so no one will miss them period as they are ushered off to eternal destruction at your wicked... paws? Claws? I don't know. This could be their last 'use' to do some good.”
Then if you don't have the right...
The equine looked away into a corner, his shoulders sagging. “I'm offering you mine as an extra to balance it in your favor. I am tired of the cycle. I do not know how many past lives I have had...”
Twenty three, five as Ruined. We can't all be perfect.
Torvanian shook his head from side to side as if to clear it. “Whatever. My soul's destruction plus the destruction of one other soul that has done bad per group member that goes with Hervis to Atlacentia. Their souls' deaths in exchange for safety for Hervis and his friends. See to it that they are safe throughout their stay there, and that their return trip is just as safe. The three rings will be used to empower them with gifts for when they need them the most. Political glibness for bargaining, combat expertise for a difficult physical battle, and much-needed knowledge that mortal Sycanesti were never meant to know. That's my bargain.”
Several uncomfortable moments passed as Torvanian got the sense the Tyrannical Darkness was considering his offer. Then, pain. Pain like he'd never felt before as amber bolts of light surrounded both his wrists, ankles and penetrated into his eyes. The pain was so acute he couldn't scream and he was left paralyzed, standing stock-still. His tail had tied itself in four knots.
He opened his eyes to see the rings brightly glowing, having been transmuted to pewter and each containing an oval-cut amber inset into the top. Around his wrists and ankles were bands of amber light that somehow he knew only he could see.
This eases things for the rabbit's first leg of his great journey. I accept your deal, equine.
“Just like that?” Torvanian asked. Then he stiffened. “Wait... first... leg!?”
Oh, no. It's never that easy. If you ever breathe a word about this to anyone, your hands and legs will fall off at the wrist and the ankle. I guarantee you will be in immense pain as you die from the blood loss. I will also use you as a vessel to see to it that they ARE safe in Atlacentia, because you will be going with him. You will know when I am using you because you will be blind during any time I choose to view the mortal world.
“That doesn't sound so bad.” Torvanian asked. “I was expecting you to twist things to a knot of agony.”
I'm not finished. I have used My immortal power to view the various future potential outcomes during the next few days after King Tenquin has his little audience with the rest of the mortals. Your wording was “my soul's destruction, plus the destruction of one other soul that has done bad.” One soul per potential 'hero' that goes to Atlacentia with Hervis.
“And?” The equine tilted his head, looking into the mirror. He saw naught but his own reflection.
The only way Hervis can fully succeed at this is if he goes to Atlacentia alone.
“Wha...!?” Torvanian felt like he was going to pass out.
You never said whose souls besides yours. You inferred and expected the souls of the condemned, correct? So that they never again plague the mortal realm even as the Ruined?
“Well, of course, but...” Torvanian said.
You do realize that all of Hervis' friends have some 'bad' in their past, especially the ram, the hawk, and the iguana? There isn't one Sycanesti there without at least one dark stain on their heart from selfish, petty, evil actions that hurt a lot of other Sycanesti, including Hervis and especially Thrommit!
Torvanian gulped. He felt the Tyrannical Darkness grin, and the sharp teeth of the grin brushed his mind like a wave of sickness, like a panther breathing down the neck of its hunter.
It's not his fault his friends both have lives of their own and have... other tasks, once King Vanadei gives his orders.
“But you just said he has to go it alone! If I come along with him...!?” Torvanian yelled.
He will be safe in Atlacentia. Cause and effect are preserved in our bargain and the threads of reality, while currently warped and damaged, will remain less damaged than if you had done nothing.
“That's hardly fair! I didn't know he had to...!”
I will welcome you to My abode when the time comes, Torvanian Duskwalker. In My realm, I can make time stretch, go squish, or pass not at all. No one said a soul's destruction had to be 'instantly' done... or that I couldn't awaken you at the moment of your soul's death to revitalize you to continue the torment! Your screams will amuse Me forever as I keep you awake while I rip you apart!
Torvanian dropped to his knees, the glowing bands of amber light around his ankles and wrists physically feeling like iron weights. They now had physical form despite him knowing that only he could see them, and were tightening as amber manacles impervious to mortal magic.
And remember... not a word, diplomat. One word... or your premature death... and our contract is void. If our contract is void, can you imagine what will happen to Hervis as the balance of good and evil comes back on top of him?! All of his good deeds in his life... paid for in full by 'bad luck' of equal weight happening all at once! That... and you can imagine what I do with those who attempt to willingly void their contracts!
The mirror shattered, sending obsidian fragments falling at Torvanian's hooves.
Torvanian opened his mouth to scream as he turned to look in the room's mirror, but no sound came out. His voice was gone. His eyes were solid amber, with no pupils... and after about ten seconds they faded to expose his regular brown eyes. He felt broken, as if every inch of him had been shattered but remained intact as a vaguely Sycanesti-like shape. He felt like a man made out of sand, about to fall apart into dust at the slightest breath of wind.
Several minutes passed in which he stood still, going over the events in his head. It was only when he took a step and almost stepped in a puddle that he realized he was in a cold sweat and was sweating buckets. His fur was matted, his eyes were dulled and he moved like a drunk.
He needed to get to the church. Thrommit would know what to do.
Meanwhile, the Tyrannical Darkness brooded a little on its plane before causing some of the darkness to part and it viewed events in other lands. Ok, so he'd lied about Hervis having to go it alone to Atlacentia. But the equine didn't need to know that.

Spoiler: Interlude: Thrommit

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Thrommit closed his eyes and clenched his fists, listening to the eternal storm rage outside his little protective sphere and feeling the occasional zap as a lightning bolt struck the hollow iron sphere he was currently floating in. He opened his eyes to see images race by him at breakneck speed, and he focused inward, trying to calm himself down enough to slow the images down so he could organize them properly.
Focus, ram. Focus. Thrommit thought to himself, even though each word reverberated across the inside of the sphere.
He turned his head as a lightning bolt from outside the sphere generated a loud crack of thunder and his focus was shaken for another few seconds. Here, in the protective recesses of his mind, the storm and thunder represented the outside world and it was his job to quell that sound and fury to a dull roar so he could focus on the more important task at hand. The images racing by him were his memories, and he was trying to order them, trying to find relationships and read between the lines.
To the outside world, it looked like Thrommit was resting comfortably in a meditation chamber, his horns framed by dim candle light and fragrant incense permeating the air and seeping into every inch of the Taur's fur. Is legs were all tucked underneath him as if he were resting, but both his front paws and rear paws were turned up and out as if they were waiting for a handout. He balanced himself by planting the butt of his maul in the ground to steady himself as he swayed rhythmically back and forth. His eyes were shut tight and he had an expression of serenity on his face.
Inwardly, the sphere was floating in an eternal thunderstorm, one that threatened to smash the sphere apart at any moment. Rain and wind constantly howled like a thousand screaming souls all baying for his lifeblood. Lightning constantly struck the sphere, sending little zaps into his body as the charge was (mostly) absorbed. Thunder boomed, and the sound waves were enough to knock the sphere about like it was a air-filled balloon in the middle of an ocean, completely at the mercy of the currents.
Thrommit looked down at his hands, then turned to the images as they circled him and spun about, trying to stay out of reach. Each image was a memory, of both recent events and events from his own past. He grabbed one at random where he crushed it into a ball of multicolored light, then threw it at the sphere's inner surface. It splattered like water as it struck, then it re-formed and took on a freeze-frame quality.
Image after image slammed into the inner wall with an audible splash, loud enough to almost drown out the sounds of the storm outside. Then Thrommit's focus faltered and the entire collage of images against the wall began to run like watercolors, his self-doubt and worry about the afterlife distracting him from centering his mind.
“Not now... not now!” Thrommit grumbled to himself, mentally commanding the images to solidify and stay put.
Once he had his collage of images, he began to manipulate the images' order, trying to reason out probable future paths. He put an image of Hervis to the left of an image of Sir Korviak, and an airship or sea ship beyond that. Not liking what he saw, he superimposed an image of the King's guard getting in Sir Korviak's way, then made room between images so that Hervis had a clearer roundabout path to the ship. Still not liking what he was seeing, he forced himself to take deep breaths and reflect.
“Okay, Thrommit. What's the simple solution? The easiest point from point A, here at the castle,” He called up an image of the castle. “... to point B, Atlacentia...?” An image further away appeared of a sprawling cityscape, built on the coast at the other end of the ocean. “Hervis is going to be in trouble with the King,” He pitched an image of an open dungeon cell between the two. “And the King needs to placate both the high priests and the nobles and anyone else who shows up...” Another image, this one of a royal social gathering where the underprivileged were denied access, flared up between Hervis and an image of an unhappy King Vanadei.
Thrommit manipulated the images a bit more, positioning them in various configurations, and trying to get a clearer picture of what kinds of things might be happening. His brow furrowed and he faintly felt the sphere's interior darkening as he found his groove, and the scene his images constantly painted was not a pretty one. It was clear that there was no scenario that could please everyone, especially if some nobles refused to be pleased simply for the sake of spite. The ram stepped away from the inner surface to ponder.
“Okay.” He said to himself. “We can't please everyone. What's the next important thing, who do we have to please the most, to offset those that will not be satisfied and use them as a buffer?”
All of a sudden, an image of Ta'Maxia appeared behind the image of the nobles, leveling a crossbow from a sniper's position. Thrommit waved the image away, watching it fade out of existence. “No, the King wouldn't murder his own people.” He turned away to think, and when he turned back, the image had returned, but this time the image was of the avian leading Hervis down a tunnel after firing at the nobles. This wasn't a memory he'd had at all; where did these images come from? He willed the images to animate. Experience had taught him that when images appeared completely unannounced and making no sense, that they came from a higher power and needed to be paid attention to.
The image showed Ta'Maxia leading Hervis down an underground shaft, being chased by shrouded figures. Ta'Maxia fired, then was knocked senseless by a bolt of magical energy from the figures chasing them. Thrommit saw Hervis leap through a hole into what he could only assume to be open air, given the blue sky he was seeing through it. Then the image winked out, falling to colorless water and running off the internal wall of the sphere, only to evaporate on contact with the ground.
Was this a glimpse of the future?
Thrommit willed the images to play in reverse, and then re-play. The more times he did this the brighter and more vibrant the other images became, which to him represented a high likelihood of things happening. Normally if he played “false memories” or “fears” or paths that likely would not come to pass, it would ruin his focus and cause the images to run like wet paint, turning the images into a jumble of melted color. Here they got stronger, and he could only infer that His Majesty was going to kill some of the more difficult nobles by hiring Ta'Maxia to deal with them on the sly. Then... an escape? From the dungeons?
I suppose he's thinking that the brain of the society has a disease, and to stop the disease from spreading, he has to kill it... Thrommit thought to himself as he broke his focus, returning to the real world. The sphere dissolved as he opened his eyes; he was back in the meditation chamber. But to kill? The Trei'kiya might be self-serving but that doesn't mean they simply flat out have to die. The ram stood up stretching his legs and listening to his joints pop after hours in the same pose. They're already planning to break apart anyway. I'm going to have to suggest banishment over killing. We have no proof the triads want to...
The triads? Where did that thought come from? He had assumed the nobles in his memory images were just representative the usual high-class riff-raff that turned up their noses at anyone who was not themselves. He hadn't even thought about the triads. What would they gain? Why would they be summoned? He blinked a few times, wondering where the thought had come from.
He turned around at the stained glass windows above him. It was early morning, and he could hear the crack of a wooden staff against the training dummies outside. He looked up thoughtfully at the images of the Nine Goddesses in the glass as if silently asking them if they were putting thoughts into his head, then took a few more deep breaths and spun his maul once in his hands.
“Time to purge evil where it lives and breathes for another day.” He said to himself, the maul's head striking the ground at the end of the spin. “I hope His Majesty knows what he's doing.”

Spoiler: Interlude: Hervis

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CRACK!
Hervis wound up, then attacked the dummy again, thrusting with his staff.
CLACK!!
It was early morning, a few days before the audience with King Vanadei. The rabbit had hardly slept, pausing only for meals, nightly prayer with Thrommit, and sleep. When push came to shove against the Trei'kiya, he wanted to be at his best.
Faster and harder he attacked the dummy, envisioning it as a member of the Order of the Black Acorn, or worse yet Sir Korviak. He dodged and wove, parrying imaginary strikes before putting his lapine legs to good use and vaulting over the dummy, spinning and whacking it in the side of the head with the staff.
Jumping back to dodge another imaginary blow, he flexed his legs and planted his staff in the ground, vaulting a second time back over the dummy before whacking it twice in the head and then spinning on one foot in a whirlwind, his two-handed stance with the staff delivering extra weight into the blows. When he finished the dizzying spin, the dummy's head had been knocked from the wooden pole that was its neck and was laying in two pieces on the ground.
“Enjoying the morning?” Came a voice from behind him.
“Morning, Thrommit.” Hervis said, wiping his brow.
“You're really expecting trouble, aren't you.” Thrommit was dressed in light leathers, heavy boots covering all four of his legs.
“You saw the chest of acorns we found on our doorstep yesterday.” The rabbit rolled his eyes and shrugged. “We've got multiple enemies and the church won't be safe forever if the Trei'kiya are en route to starting a war. I want to be ready. I wasn't ready to lose my parents. I wasn't ready when Chalice was killed. I wasn't ready when...”
“Oh, enough.” Thrommit waved a hand dismissively. “You're as ready as you'll ever be. I've been seeing you out here each morning since we arrived. You can't get any more good.”
Hervis looked smug. “There's always more to learn. Always a way to get better.”
“That being said,” The ram said. “Care to take an actual living, breathing target on? I'm too big to be tripped and too strong for you to defeat.”
“Well, yeah, now that you've rested from that little sortie back out in the wilderness.” Hervis replied. Then his ears lowered. “Speaking of which, how is Falanna?”
Thrommit turned his upper waist so he could look behind him. “Healers made it to her in time and brought her back here. She's been resting comfortably, but she's going to have a few new scars when this is over.”
Hervis had debated attacking Thrommit while his back was turned like that to teach him to never turn his back on a potential enemy, but relented. “Is her voice okay?”
“I think she's going to be hoarse for a few more days, but she should come out of it otherwise. Whomever assaulted her did quite the number on her.” Thrommit said. “Teralius was lucky to be there when he was. Even my healing spells couldn't fix all the damage. She'll need to be quiet for a few days.”
“I can't imagine that was a good meeting. She was still sore over the revelation.” Hervis said, leaning on his staff and looking back at the training dummy.
Thrommit spun his new maul in his hands then dropped it to his side, letting its heavy end impact the ground with a thud. “He's still alive, which is more than I would have expected.”
“The meeting with His Majesty is going to be awkward.” Hervis said, alternating between an offensive stance and a defensive one while imagining Thrommit throwing a feint. He was still in his little focused zone.
The ram looked a little wistful. “You're not kidding. I've trained you and some of the others with what I know based on my own duties when giving a sermon at the castle, but my meditations have suggested that it gets worse... King Vanadei is summoning the triads. Now, you not only have to impress the priests with your 'testimony', but also the Triads of the houses. They've never dealt with any Sycanesti before, save the King himself. They don't know how to be social, they don't understand slang, and they don't use any such social skill we take for granted.”
“Are you saying they don't know how to be impressed?” Hervis tilted his head with one ear cocked.
“That's exactly what I'm saying. They don't know what is good from what is bad. They don't know what is normal. They only know their charts, their figures, and what their own research tells them. They were raised from birth to do this. They don't deal with society.” Thrommit raised his maul, and deflected a light-hearted blow from Hervis. “I don't know why he'd be doing this, honestly. He's putting you in harm's way by exposing you to their attitude of 'I'm right, you're wrong and that's the end of it.'”
Another voice came from the doorway, behind the ram. “He's trying to solidify his power.”
“Didn't hear you come in, Jartpo.” Thrommit said.
“How so?” Hervis asked.
“If he can satisfy the triads, especially the Highest Feather, that you're not a threat nor did you have sufficient bad intentions in your heart to invite bad luck to the Games, word will get out via the high priests. Word will spread that the Goddesses themselves are looking favorably on you because no one expects the triads to be satisfied over anything... and that will cool off any unrest and possibly make the Order of the Black Acorn scatter.” Jartpo said, unrolling a scroll. “One less threat for sure.”
“Whatcha got there?” Hervis asked.
“Shopping list.” Jartpo replied, scanning it. “General supplies for the ocean trip. Ever since we got back, His Majesty has been sending shipments from within the kingdom down the Firetail River. Some are meant to distract thieves, others are supplies of food, tents, and anything else we'd need for a trip and an extended stay in Atlacentia. I've got to go to the guild soon to pick up a few more unusual things we might need, and I was informed by the guild that we might need to be making a fast getaway.”
Both Thrommit and Hervis paused.
“He's expecting trouble?” Thrommit asked.
“His own spies have confirmed what Ti'Jan said. He thinks the Highest Feather herself is corrupted. He can't risk exposing her for fear of turning the other triads on him, because such a concept of corruption in the highest levels of society is unthinkable.” Jartpo looked behind him, rolling up the scroll and sticking it back on his belt. “That's why he sent off Ta'Maxia on some... errands. Errands to deal with the situation if you know what I mean.”
Hervis and Thrommit exchanged looks. “Are you saying he put out a hit on his own triads?”
“Need to know, and I didn't need to know enough.” Jartpo shrugged. “All he said was 'Trust me and Ta'Maxia to get you to the ship in the harbor when things are done. Be prepared to run.'”
Thrommit and Hervis exchanged another look and suddenly went at it with knowing glances to one another, maul locking with combat staff as they began to spar.

[Bobbybobby99]

Hmm. My first instinct is to ask why you actually need that many interludes. Think of a three hour play; it only has a fifteen minute intermission. You have thirty chapters, and nine 'chapters' of intermission. In a play, the intermission is a twelfth of the time of the rest, or a sixth of the time of the first part. Under that time honored guideline, you should reduce the number of interludes down to five, or less; is there really any reason that you can't combine a few of these?

[Aegis J Hyena]

I plan on linking them all together as one chapter, yes. I wanted to post them independently.

Hopefully I got the "linked" parts between the interludes cleanly flowing.

Anything you can tell me on editing them besides that? :)

[Bobbybobby99]

Hmm. Not much, really, that I haven't said before a few times. I'd say that you should trust you gut on editing those. By your gut, I mean your literal gut; in terms of the brain and nerve cells present in it that are responsible for a fair portion of our instincts. If a feeling about editing feels like it's originating form your stomach, or your heart, or anywhere lower than your brain, listen to it, because it contains the most basic and intrinsic of our operation.

That rambled a little. But just listen to yourself about them, essentially.