[IC] Princess-Champions of Hyperborea

[Raz_Fox]

PRINCESS-CHAMPIONS OF HYPERBOREA
EPISODE 1: Peril in the Jungles of Askaia!

https://blades.delaware.gov/files/2014/10/tiara-drawing-502x317-2.jpg

Winter’s Eye, the Kingdom of Ilumina

Princess Morgina Fang, the Scourge of Ilumina, Azora’s Hound, is reading a book. The book is Princess Elsya Learns About Riptides: for Beginning Readers! She is engrossed.

She finishes a page, (“and so Elsya stopped trying to swim right back to shore!”) and takes it carefully by the top. The waterproofed page tears easily under her hands, and it flutters down to join the other pages Morgina has finished. There is a collection of empty spines by her bed.

Elsewhere, there is wicked laughter. The dark amethyst on Morgina’s collar glimmers, and she perks up. Silently, she sets the book down and pads away.

Azora Howl has work for her.

***

The Lucky Number Seven, the Kingdom of Askaia

Under normal circumstances, visiting the island of Askaia would be a dream trip - literally. Askaia is wreathed in sacred incense, derived from the local varieties of catswort, which has a mild and pleasant hallucinogenic effect; in Askaia it is easy to lose yourself in waking daydreams, and for a time think them real. Also, they have fantastic spas.

That was, naturally, before the Riders arrived.

Before you is a storm, a blizzard of mist and ice, which promises in its howling to be miserable going. It has enveloped Askaia completely. To fly into the storm would be to risk becoming lost, or worse, crashing into one of the lovely glass towers that soar above the tropical treeline. (They’re quite picturesque rising out of the mist, usually.) Luckily, you princesses assembled on the deck of the barge Lucky Number Seven have a plan. Here is what I think that plan is:

Firstly, you will land on the far side of the island, where you are least at risk of running aground upon an ice floe.

Then, with the help of your guide, Princess Rita von Catabas of Askaia, you will brave the ice-limned jungles of Askaia, you will not lose yourself in reverie (not that it will be difficult when pelted by ice and scoured by wind), and you will make your way to Askaia City.

Once there, you will defeat Kaja Ironpelt and her “army of eight thousand, four hundred and thirty seven ghosts”*. You will stop them from looting the sacred treasures of the Askaians, not least of which is their incense, and you will win the aid of the Askaians in your fight against Oberon.

Rita herself- well. The young catgirl princess resembles, right now, nothing more than an overstuffed pillow. She is wearing multiple jackets, goggles, snowshoes, even a tail warmer, and hardly a hint of her fur can be seen. The poor gal isn’t used to temperatures like these in sunny, balmy Askaia.

“Ready to go?” She asks, through the fluffy scarf over her face.

*: I do not think ghosts are proven fact in Hyperborea. I also think that while it is likely that this is one of Azora Howl’s illusions or spells, it is not entirely unbelievable she could have found some way to bring the dead back to this world? If anyone could do it, she could.

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila is on edge. Nobody present has ever seen her off edge. She paces until she knocks a hole in the guard rail during a too-sudden turn, then she sits and fidgets and tries desperately to avoid sneezing, and then she stands up and stares at the clouded sky with the sense of almost-momentum like she's about to take her running jump into the air before painstakingly deciding otherwise. Sometimes she tries to lurk but she can't fit below deck and seeing a dragon try to take cover on the open deck of a barge is comical.

She's been like this since you met her.

In some things she is jaded - she knows the habits and customs of every kingdom and every people, and knows how to address cats and demons with all the proper courtesies. In other things she could not be more naïve. This is the first time she has ever travelled beyond the Bazaar at all, not to mention the first time to travel by boat. One mast is snapped like a twig and the guard rail is as much hole as safety feature. It's hard to forget. Every time the Dragon Princess looks at something she broke there's a brief pang of guilt that broadcasts out to the entire crew - and it's hard to find a direction she can look where she hasn't broken something. At least she doesn't get seasick.

She has made no concessions to the cold. She is, in fact, the warmest thing on the ocean right now - a fact that has not been overlooked by nearby cats or cat-princesses. Her robes hang heavy with nesting cats, and she's become embarrassingly close to Princess Rita due to her tendency to do the same. Her attempts at stealth are further undermined by the constant low, buzzing purr that emanates from her at all times.

+I am ready!+ broadcast Princess Adila, raising one talon into a fist in an impression of the earnest human gesture. +The criminals who did this to your home will be brought to justice, I swear it!+

[PhoeKun]

She's just over there at the bow of the ship, very carefully standing next to that hole in the guardrail and looking out at the storm. If you're looking for her, that is. Though I suppose it's somewhat difficult to overlook the Princess Alina Cascade.

It's hard (some would say impossible) to just sort of stand there gracefully, but she's found a way. Her silk sleeves are billowing in the wind and her hair bounces as if the biting ocean air were actually a fan aimed at her head trying to stage a picture of her doing the exact thing she's already in the middle of. She hasn't changed out of her normal clothes. Of course, she'd want to be recognized. She definitely hadn't made the mistake of thinking Askaia would still be warm, that would be silly. As silly as her thinking she might do with a scarf right now. Absolutely not! It's a scant half a leap from a scarf to a veil, and the last thing in the world she needs right now is to step off this barge and have somebody think she's here from Jedad, thank you very much. Actually, the reason she's not freezing her princessly behind off is that she's summoned a cloak made entirely of soft, orange light. It flutters in perfect sync with her hair even though it's not a physical thing. It's also very warm, and there's a cat curled up under her feet right now. Thanks, Adila.

She shivers anyway. Her fingers idly trace a spot above her left breast, brushing just barely across the chestpiece of her armor. Her shiver turns into a (very beautiful) wince. And she turns to look behind her and smiles over he shoulder at Princess Rita. It doesn't suit her. There's kindness there, but no light.

"Don't worry," she says, "I'm not going to let this happen. Not again."

[Anarion]

Kazelia stands at the bow of the ship, facing towards the greatest brunt of the storm. She's an odd point of calm in the storm. Not warm, nobody else would want to be near her, but this frigid gale doesn't impact her and instead blends with her, creating a stillness where she stands. Before they had reached the storm, she had simply picked a corner of the Lucky Seven near the front and away from the crew and stayed there. Even through gloves and boots, her hands and feet frosted the rails and made the deck slippery, so it was best if she didn't move around much. But in the storm, that established point didn't seem to change and so she became an island of calm. Shiva remained below decks in the animal pens and would be similarly calm in such weather, the howling winds did not faze her in the slightest, even if flying was difficult here.

Kazelia was not looking to provide the crew with solace though, and instead her face was towards their destination trying to make out any detail of what they might face at landfall. One hand rests on her spear in anticipation. "Yes, I am ready." Then she does turn and look towards Rita, all bundled up in her coats, obviously out of her element entirely, and her face softens. "We will protect your kingdom, Rita. I won't let my father and his servants tear down another part of this beautiful land."

[Raz_Fox]

The Mist and the Jungles, the Kingdom of Askaia

The crew of the Lucky Number Seven sees you off with, on the whole, relief. On the one hand, the cat-sailors will certainly miss Adila and the heat she radiates, and they are concerned to see their princess go off into danger.

On the other hand, there is no further risk of Adila breaking the other mast or sitting on someone, nobody needs to smile awkwardly when Alina is having a Moment, and everyone is grateful to no longer have a Rider on board.

They will linger by the coast for three days. If a certain signal is sent up, they will return to the coast to pick you up, should you need to retreat; should you give another, they will sail into the harbor of Askaia City with great cheerful caterwauling to celebrate your victory; if no signal is seen, they will sorrowfully go and tell the story of how you have all doubtless been frozen and turned into garden ornaments for the Riders to laugh at.

***

“Stick close to me,” Princess Rita von Catabas says in the Princess Huddle, the most practical way to share last comments before the trek inland. “I know the mists better than you all do. They’ll show you your hearts, but stick by me and-“ She sneezes, her snowshoes both leaving the ground. “Ack. Stay by me and don’t think about Riders.”

On cue, far away and distant, there comes the laughter like silver bells on a glass bridle.

“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” she says, with obviously feigned confidence, before turning to trudge into the stiff, frozen foliage.

***

Of course you have something to worry about. These mists have become somewhat Riderly. They will show you your heart and your daydreams and make it hard to distinguish what is real from what is not, but they will show you what hurts you, most of all.

It will come to a terrible crescendo in two hours. Tell us about the first two hours- what the mists show you, make you think you hear, almost make you dart off before Rita tugs on your sleeve. It is very personal, but with telepathic bleed from Adila, it is possible, I think, that you may see or hear what is in someone else’s heart, for but a moment. It is not too overwhelming to be Overcome...

Not yet.

[Thanqol]

“Stick close to me,” Princess Rita von Catabas says in the Princess Huddle, the most practical way to share last comments before the trek inland. “I know the mists better than you all do. They’ll show you your hearts, but stick by me and-“ She sneezes, her snowshoes both leaving the ground. “Ack. Stay by me and don’t think about Riders.”

On cue, far away and distant, there comes the laughter like silver bells on a glass bridle.

“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” she says, with obviously feigned confidence, before turning to trudge into the stiff, frozen foliage.

***

Of course you have something to worry about. These mists have become somewhat Riderly. They will show you your heart and your daydreams and make it hard to distinguish what is real from what is not, but they will show you what hurts you, most of all.

It will come to a terrible crescendo in two hours. Tell us about the first two hours- what the mists show you, make you think you hear, almost make you dart off before Rita tugs on your sleeve. It is very personal, but with telepathic bleed from Adila, it is possible, I think, that you may see or hear what is in someone else’s heart, for but a moment. It is not too overwhelming to be Overcome...

Not yet.

The mists are nothing to Princess Adila. Her eyes glow like coals and carve terrible swathes through the fog. No illusion, darkness or cloudy glaze can keep the truth from a dragon's eyes; the island seems to her as clear and bright as a summer's day. If any Riders lurk about they will be unpleasantly surprised.

So when the daydreams come she attributes them to the normal processes of her often absent mind.

She daydreams of taking a human form. It is within her power - cats can become princesses, and a dragon will not be outdone by a cat. She imagines her shape - a beautiful dress like a shadow'd wedding cake, tigers-eye gemstones, earthen skin, strong muscles and decorative scales but with grace stolen from Alina... or perhaps a form in between the two, where she could still show off her neck and blazing dragon eyes and full and brilliant darkness while dancing with grace and readiness.

She has imagined this many times, and just as swiftly as she imagines it comes the memory of why she shall not act on those images. If it is hard enough to control a dragon's strength in the body of a dragon that she has spent her entire life within, controlling that same strength from within a body less than half her size is impossible. Simple steps would drive her feet through wooden floorboards. Picking up a fork produces only shrapnel. And from a place of such little control to dream of dancing? She had been lucky no one had died.

She could shrink her form but not her strength - nor could she do away with her flame, her eyes, her hungers. In a dragon's body at least all know the destruction you could visit if you chose.

[Anarion]

Kazelia walks through the mist and thinks of home. She hears the hoofbeats of the Riders, but they are just illusions of mist that melt away. Why should she be scared of such things, she thinks to herself, when she is more than a match for any of her sisters? The little cat takes her by the hand, hesitantly, but not pulling away at the chill through her mitten and helps guide her. That feels nice and she tries to stay on the path, even as she wonders how she can deceive the sisters who might appear here. Kaja is always so direct, strong of course, but easily manipulated and led astray. A few shapes of mist try to assault her out of the air and she swats them away with her sword. She wanders, following the tug of the little cat from time to time as the mist stretches on. Why should she not fly? None would dare challenge her in the air. More riders, pathetic low-level troops try to harry her, and her shadow blade and her unmatched magic easily push them away as they fade into mist.

The little cat tugs her by the hand again, and for a moment she sees her own hand and it is like the world fractures. Her hand is thicker. That feels wrong. She draws her sword again. Her sword. That feels wrong, it should not be a sword! But of course it's a sword. Her mind feels twisted, and she suddenly pulls at the loose snow and ice to conjure for herself a mirror. A frigid mirror to look at herself, her other hand still holding her blade, thick and strong. Of course, she is Azora Howl, the firstborn and most capable daughter of her father Oberon. Oh god, she is Azora Howl?! The world cracks and the mist spins. This is wrong, this is wrong, this is wrong! She isn't Azora, she isn't the first, this is a lie, her name is Kazelia. Kazelia Swiftlance, but the mist feels thick and cloying around her and it swirls around her arms and makes them look wrong and around her spear and makes it look both less and more.

The cat, Rita, her name is Rita, Kazelia knows that she's Rita! Rita tugs on her arm and she looks around herself and walks where she's guided, feeling dazed, the mirror disintegrating into fine crystal powder showering the ground in a soft sigh behind her. And the mist swirls ever thicker.

[PhoeKun]

Alina carries most of her hopes and hurts with her wherever she goes. This means the mists have much to show her. This means she's seen it all before. She sees a rainbow shimmering through the fog and her heart leaps to know that it's guiding her where she needs to go, but her feet never try to carry her toward it. She sees a little girl with matted blond hair and torn silks clutching something red screaming at her through tears to go away, go away, you ruined everything. But when she flinches and turns her gaze to the other side, the voice fades before she's even had a chance to turn and run. The one that almost gets her is when she sees her mother. It's a scene right out of her childhood: her smile more beautiful than diamonds, the same lavender hair but worn in an elaborate plait, and she's there down on one knee with her arms held wide and beckoning a younger Alina into a hug.

She feels the pull on her sleeve, and the spell is broken. She sighs and sort of shrugs at Rita; that's the same daydream that got her lost the last time she came to visit Askaia. Which come to think of it was an advantage she should really be sharing with everyone else. She holds up a hand and wiggles her fingers in a delicate wave motion, and the green, blue, and violet crystals float off of her crown and hover over each other princess' head in turn. Her expression brightens, and it's probably the first time you've seen her with any real warmth in her face.

"Here. If you feel like it's getting hard or confusing, you can just look for these lights. That way we'll always be able to find each other."

This was her mistake.

Her lights are hers to share. Her trust is hers to give. But both are His to take. She's not sure when it happens, but she can't see her lights anymore. And she can't see the other princesses anymore. She can't see anything but the mists. But she can hear him laughing at her, and she knows that condescending chuckle is real because she's heard it before. It's so dark. It's so cold. She clutches at her chest and she's crying because it's hopeless, she's let him do it again, he's got almost all of them now and she's weak.

"You poor dear," taunts Oberon Greymane from somewhere she can't see, "You really have no idea what these silly things are for, do you?"

She's on the ground. She's sitting on her knees with her legs splayed out to either side, her hands heavy on the ground. She's alone. She's helpless. And so, so very cold.

The spell breaks. Also, she's wet. Which one of you was smart enough to try throwing water on her?

[Thanqol]

The spell breaks. Also, she's wet. Which one of you was smart enough to try throwing water on her?

Princess Adila hadn't thrown water on you - she's not mean. But her attempt at a comforting hug had melted a lot of the snow that was building up on Alina's shoulders. It's a nice warm, the warmth of a civilized shower, but when she sees you move and pulls back the cold s-n-a-p-s back in with all the ferocity that comes with stepping out of a warm shower into the cold frozen trudge to work.

+Oh! Are you okay? Are you sick?+ she thought rapidly. +Oh, I knew you looked cold but I didn't want to say anything, I should have listened to the Operations Manual...+ Alina suddenly has a dragon-sized blanket dropped on her. +Don't worry! I'll get you somewhere warm and finish off the Riders myself! Just focus on getting better!+

[Raz_Fox]

The Mist and the Jungles, the Kingdom of Askaia


The spell breaks. Also, she's wet. Which one of you was smart enough to try throwing water on her?

My money's on Kazelia. Adila would have punctured a hole in a bucket if she tried to get some water from some ice-choked jungle stream, and Rita's not about to get her outer layer of mittens wet. Kazelia has just the right blend of means and motive, not to mention brainpower, to mercilessly dump water on Alina's head. But, hey, at least she probably won't go "I thought you liked water," or something like that.

(Oh, it turns out I am wrong! This happens sometimes; not even I know everything about this story, after all. Well done, Adila.)

***

You are in the heart of the jungle when it happens. Rita is carefully, painstakingly trying to navigate her way down a root-choked incline without having her snowshoes slip out from under her, and for a moment the mists relent, yield, peel back and you can see the world as it is. The frost choking the leaves is almost beautiful, if you look at it the right sort of way. In the distance, the keen eyes of Adila can see (and it is as if you all see through her eyes) the soaring spires of the Royal Clocktower. You are close! And not a Rider in sight. Your plan is fantastic, and all your scars thus far have been emotional, which means nobody ever has to know about them.

It is then that the mists strike you hardest of all, with a great cacophony and a howl of the wind, sending great gusts of snow swirling all about you; somewhere, Rita loses her footing and goes bouncing down to the bottom of the hill. Don't worry, it's like rolling a marshmallow, she'll be fine. It's you who should be worried, because you can hear it.

***

Adila!

There are many legends about Princess Adila. The first one, that is. Stories about where she went, in the end; what exactly happened to her to make her fade into the mists of history. But that's all academic right now, because you can see her. For the first time, you can see her, and she's not a statue or an illustration. Her copper curls flare out about her as she spins like a dervish, her sabers flashing as she fights a dozen Riders single-handedly.

You know it's her. How could it not be her? This is your chance! You can charge in, knock her opponents aside, and then she will tell you that she has heard all about you and thinks that you are exactly the right size for the sort of person you are, and yes, she would love to answer some of your questions, you beautiful young dragon, you-

But you have the eyes that burn holes through falsehood, and I think it will be easier for you not to go charging off into the mist than it will for the others. Roll to Overcome this assault on your maiden's dreaming heart, please.

***

Kazelia!

There is something about a scream of terror that makes the heart leap and exult, is there not? Even if you don't want it to, there is that moment of adrenaline, of wanting to bare your fangs and give them something to really scream about, to make them know that you are the strongest. That's what it means to be a Rider. That's what it means to be one of Oberon's children.

And speaking of Oberon Greymane-

There he is. He is strolling, casually, after a snot-sobbing catgirl princess, one of Rita's siblings or cousins, Pearlion curling menacingly about his outstretched hand. The princess is on her hands and knees, a hysterical mess, and your father is doubtless chiding her for being so childish. For not facing him properly. For being so weak. This is the sort of thing he does, when he comes in glory and power into a kingdom.

And you! You have the Dolorous Song in your possession, and you have your terrible Swiftlance, and this is your chance to teach your father that he is the weak and childish baby, not this poor princess! Defend them all, make this world yours, carve summer out of his blood-

This, I think, is the temptation that you are offered, and if you do not steel yourself against it, you will find yourself leaping into the mist in the aspect of a warrior. Roll to Overcome this challenge to your winter-kissed heart.

***

Alina!

Oh, you doubtless felt so grown-up when you didn't go haring off into your mother's arms, didn't you? So jaded, so used to the ways of these mists already! As if that was the most painful thing they could do to you, to offer you solace and then take it away! Even after your daydreams of losing your light, that must still be a center- I have seen my mother, what else can this place do to me?

When it comes- no child ever wishes to hear their mother scream. In pain and terror, intermingled; the sound of her before Oberon. You selfish child! You abandoned her to save your own skin! You left her before the enemy of the world who knows nothing but to take what others love!

Run to save her, or run in shame, whichever is closest and truest to your heart when you know, you know that your mother is hurt and it's all your fault. It's your fault! Run or run! You must, you cannot stay and shut your ears to this-

Unless you can, for you must. Roll to Overcome this, the cruelest thorn of all.

[PhoeKun]

Well, there was a sputtered 'thank you'. A chattering of perfect teeth, and a slightly undignified 'mrph' from underneath an oversized blanket. These things do happen. Thank goodness for Adila and her warmth and her consideration. It's just that it's difficult to linger on the moment in the face of... this.

She knows it's fake. She knows these mists well, at least by the standards of foreigners. So yes, she knows her mother can't possibly be here any more than she was an hour ago. Can't possibly be in trouble or in pain. It's just a nasty trick. Except... that is... what if it wasn't? If this were real and happening? Then she'd have abandoned her mother to that monster twice. What is she supposed to say to that? Should she harden her heart? Ignore the horrible screams that call for "Lina, my Lina, my little light"? Her heart's already water: to harden it she'd have to turn it to ice. And then she would truly be lost. She doesn't stop to think about her companions. She doesn't think about how cold she is. She doesn't even stop to think about how much Oberon Greymane terrifies her. Right now, those screams scare her more. And the only way she knows how to stop them is to fling herself right at their owner and hold her tight, whatever else may come of it.

You must give Alina this: she runs better than almost anyone. She looks like a figure skater more than anything as she tears out into the unknown and frozen jungle, and her boots are so light she doesn't even leave impressions on the snow. There's her moment of wide-eyed panic, a yelp that sounds like "No!" and she vanishes from sight, a picture of perfect elegance all the way over. She snaps her fingers as she goes, and her lights come with her. She has need of them all.

Mother! Mommy, I'm coming!

[Alina rolls a 5! Hooray!]

[Anarion]

Perhaps it was that Princess Rita had deigned to touch her and not looked afraid. Or perhaps it was simply that recovering that she was, in fact, Kazelia Swiftlance made any temptation aimed at Kazelia Swiftlance pale by comparison. But for whatever reason, the image held no sway. The goal was to stay together, to get the group through the mists and Kazelia Swiftlance would protect her friends, no matter what. She would not go haring off after her father and abandon them. That would...that would just be like him, to seize on the object of her desires and ignore everything else. She would not do that. And obviously this wasn't him, she'd just been Azora Howl herself, really, these forests were too much.

The spear that had leapt to her hand is once again on her back, Shiva is safe beside her and so Kazelia instead conjures her own light, a pale will-o-wisp of winter, but more than enough to see by and begins looking around for her friends to gather them back together and fetch Rita from the base of the hill.

[6+6+0=12 to Overcome]

[Thanqol]

[Overcome: 14]

Princess Adila's lip twitches. Really?

The images melted before her gaze as the snow melts around her claws. It still hurt a little - not because for a second she believed such an absurd trick, but that someone had wanted to be that mean to her. What had she done to them? Equally: What had she done to make them think they had even the slightest chance against her? Didn't the Riders tell each other stories of the dangers of dragons?

And besides, if they wanted to tempt her they should do it with something that actually has a chance of happening one day.

She claps her wings like a thunderbolt. Up she goes, and in her wake the mist becomes steam and the snowfall becomes a sudden squall of rain. She sails swiftly after the fleeing Alina. She spends a long, careful moment assessing the exact amount of strength she has to apply before she can snatch up the fleeing sunbeam without hurting her.

[Raz_Fox]

The Mists and the Jungle, the Kingdom of Askaia

Adila!

If it helps, this isn’t really the Riders. There’s no planning here, no careful forethought- this is just what happens when magic, wonderful incense-mist that shows you your heart’s desire gets tainted. Gets cruel. Gets wrong.

It’ll be easy enough to catch Alina, but first-

Alina!

Before Adila can catch you, can sweep you up and bring you back-

I think the illusion is going to change. To become raw and terrible. It will show you your mother, bleeding just above her left breast; or else a frozen statue in a state of weeping or terror; or else crumpled in the snow, as Oberon says: too late, girl. Too late. You can’t come back and fix this.

Pay a Price.

Kazelia

Rita comes up sputtering with snow in her mouth and tears on what’s visible of her cheeks. “This is wrong,” she says, clinging to you, almost painfully. “The stupid Riders did this. Why can’t they just leave us alone?”

If you are vulnerable for a moment, if you try to make a connection here-

You will make a Bond with Princess Rita von Catabas. I’ll make it official and everything.

[PhoeKun]

You couldn't save her. You can't save her. There is no way to save her. You won't go home. You can't go home. You have no home. You couldn't save her. You can't save her. There is no way to save her. You won't go home. You can't go home. You have no home. You...

Alina doesn't move. Her thoughts loop endlessly, uselessly, as her eyes continue to stare without focus at the spot where she saw her mother, her most precious missing treasure, bleed out into the snow through the exact same wound she herself had suffered. And had the lack of grace to survive. Princess Adila passes overhead, and the rains come with her. They're warm, just like home. But she has no home. The light that's been holding the shape of her cloak sputters and goes out. All of her crystals return meekly to her crown and lock in place. The pulse with soft light as if crying for their missing sisters.

Princess Alina Cascade is the picture of Illuminan beauty. Her hair falls flat over her face and her eyes in an endlessly enchanting wave. Her sleeves and pant legs cling to her, eager to show her bare skin underneath. She's about to freeze like nobody's business, but in the moment she's snatched up by a dragon's talons, she's the kind of treasure anybody would want to steal.

And her thoughts loop on. You couldn't save her. You can't save her...

[Alina's light is damaged and will only act as a lantern for the rest of the scene]

[Anarion]

How strange. That was Kazelia’s first thought. Rider princesses do not hug one another, indeed, physical displays of affection in public among any riders are nearly unheard of! But the little layered up cat was obviously far too small to throw her and far too upset to be planning some sort of harm. And with all those layers, already covered with snow to boot, she seemed uniquely unperturbed holding tightly to Kazelia. Perhaps you would not notice in the storm, but for a moment Kazelia’s eyes water and perfect little crystalline tears run down each cheek as she holds on to the little cat princess.

“Because...” Kazelia’s voice catches and she starts again. “Because they don’t see you. They don’t see...you. My sisters, they just see a game. Lands to win and people to crush so they can make everything like this...like us, like father.” Kazelia just stays in the embrace. “...you’re the first person to ever come this close to me and not recoil. Thank you.”

[Thanqol]

Princess Alina should have worn warmer clothing. Being cold is bad. Being cold and wet is, uh, extra bad. Wearing translucent Illuminian clothing when cold and wet is... not proscribed by the Operations Manual. Commanding officers must maintain discipline to ensure troops do not discard winter gear during summer campaigns. It's not like it's kidnapping a princess, it's emergency medical recovery for an allied high value asset. Focus. She's obviously sad. Oh! Whoever did this didn't even have the courage to show themselves...!

She took a deep breath, and then another, in slowly out rapidly. Like billows stoking the fire at her heart she began to gather heat, melting a crater through the smoke and ice - a strange patch of Summer within a strange patch of winter. She's lost her light-coat-thing. Lacking other options, Princess Adila wrapped Alina head-to-toe in her blanket and pinned it into place with her badge so if she took to the snow again she'd at least carry it with her.

Finally, nervously, she focused her thoughts down. +Hold on. I've got some cactus honey in my medical bag, the Operations Manual says you're supposed to suck on it if you're feeling sick. And it also says it's important to drink lots of fluid and quarantine the inf - I don't think that step is necessary she's the only human on this island - and soup! Um, what's your spice tolerance like?+

[PhoeKun]

It's a bit jarring at the best of times to get carried off by a dragon. It's unnerving to be wrapped and pinned inside dragon blankets, to say nothing of being bombarded by psychic worries from the dragon princess who's been airlifting you away from your inner horrors. All of which is to say that Princess Adila is a hero twice over today. She saved a princess, and more importantly she broke that awful, looping thought.

Princess Alina seems startled. She trusted her heart, and the mists tried to cut it out. She trusted her heart, and her mother disappeared. She trusted her heart, and a wicked man ran it through. But if she turned her heart to ice, then she would truly be lost. She stares at Adila for a long moment and seems more perplexed than anything before giving her best and bravest attempt at a smile and fighting her way through infinite amounts of dragon-blanket to give said dragon a very awkward (by her standards) hug. It's steamy. Literally, there is steam coming off the pair of them, as Adila's heat starts drying Alina's body a little bit. Already the curls in her hair are popping back into their normal splendor.

"I'm not sick," she says three times in a row with increasing insistence. Princesses don't get sick, "I'm... I think I'm the last one. After me, there won't be another Princess of Illumina. There's no Illumina left to have a princess. I... did you know? When I was a little girl my mother used to take me here all the time. She'd invent business in Askaia just so that I could come and play in the hot springs. I don't want this to happen here. I don't want Princess Rita to be a last, like I am. I want to save it. But I can't save anything. I don't have all my lights, five isn't enough. I can't do anything on my own. So I'm counting on you, ok? I need you to be my Red. Is that all right?"

And she smiles, with the faint air of a person trying to remember how to do it right.

[Thanqol]

Red-black is to be issued only to political security delegations. The Muster Rolls state that -

The dragon shook the thought out of her head and very gently leaned into the hug. Thoughts jumbled together somewhat. Hot springs? How hot are we talking? Have I ever had a hug like this before? This must be really hard for her, I wish I could do something more. Is there subtext here? I still think she should take the honey just to be sure. Should I cut down my blanket to fit better? I wonder if Princess Swiftlance would be able to sew it back together...

+We're going to get Illumina back as well.+ The thought cut through all the others far more firmly. For a moment her mind was still and focused after that; no doubts or followups or plans - a rare quiet from the dragon's constant chatter.

[Raz_Fox]

The Mists and the Jungle, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

“I can’t recoil,” Rita says to you, still holding you tight. This is a moment worthy of thawing any Rider’s heart. Then...

“My scarf is hooked on your belt,” she adds. Oh. Well then. But she doesn’t make a move to extricate herself (with mittens, even- she probably requires your help in the end) for a moment. Just holding the Princess who has promised to help her.

Take +1 Bond: “Rita von Catabas held me close by choice.”

Adila and Alina!

You may, if you choose, take one further Bond on each other at this time; or mark one Bond as strong enough to be damaged twice.

***

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

In Askaia City, the mists have retreated. In their place snow hisses down like rain, and a cold sea-wind howls through the abandoned streets.

“It’s been simply awful since you’ve been gone, your highness,” the Siamese seamstress says as she leads you through tight alleyways under the shadow of high glass towers. (If the sun were shining in the sky, rather than snow and storm clouds, the effect would be resplendent shadows cast across the sleepy townhouses and cafes and spas of Askaia City.) “All of our warriors were... well, you’ll see. The Riders have been taking anyone larger than a kitten and making them empty out the temples onto their black boats.” The seamstress hisses, before coming up quietly to a door and knocking thrice.

You are ushered inside- with, admittedly, some pulling and squeezing to get Adila in- and before you, in what used to be a coffee shop, lie the warrior cats of Askaia, groaning piteously, each on a straw bed and blankets.

In each are lodged phantasmal arrows, almost solid enough to touch. Almost. Their eyes are dilated, and dart from side to side, seeing everything except what is truly there. If the Petrichor Princess still had her light ready, something might be done for them, but... it is as it is.

Rita makes a horrible sound, a strangled sob half-buried in her layers. There, strapped down onto a pallet, his chest sprouting no less than six arrows, writhing in dark and depthless mania, lies her father, the king of Askaia, who (you gather from the solemn faces of the cat-nurses) flung himself at Kaja’s face to allow his wife time to retreat.

Rita is crying full-on sobby tears, big and snot-choked and uncomfortable. This would be a good moment to prepare, to have words with those cats who have stayed in the city, and to look upon the grim handiwork of Kaja’s ghost army.

[Anarion]

Kazelia comes in first, ducking through the door behind Princess Rita and begins looking around. She glances back as Alina comes in and then all the cats slowly prod and push at Adila. Despite the gravity of the situation, she can't help but grin at all the cats bustling around the dragon jumping up and down and working around the doorframe. This reveals Kazelia's sharp teeth and perhaps it is good that at least they are with cats and such a predatory grin is not so out of place as might be amongst the farmers or the mushrooms.

When she sees Alina gazing about the room and the lights upon her brow do not start to move even as the cats start to tell them of the situation, she steps over to her. "When you're ready, you can come help." And then she presses on Alina's shoulder, briefly, just enough that she might jump at the chill touch but understand the reassurance as Kazelia steps away to the cat king.

"Princess, I ask...for your trust for a moment. I am not like my sisters and I...I think I can help. Not everyone, I'm not strong enough, but, I can help your father. It may look somewhat odd though, as I try." Alina bends down to the king and inspects each of the six arrows. This is not the power of ice that she needs, but a deeper and darker power, from beyond Ouroboros. Ghosts and phantasms are just shadows and the Riders know the power of shadow and do not fear the frigid touch of shades. Kazelia's eyes darken, and the stars within fade into the tiniest of pinpricks, as the shadow lengthens and flows down to her hands. It is a terrifying sight for those unfamiliar with it, the bloodline of the beyond manifest in this world, shadows darker than black eating up the light in the room and swirling hungrily about her hands. But it is with these hands that she takes the first arrow within the king and firmly removes it, laying it safely to rest on the stone floor beside him. She places her hands upon the wound and a little of her shadow flows into him and knits through it. And again for the next arrow. And the next. And the next. Until there are six phantom arrows shimmering on the floor in a neat little pile and most of her shadow has flooded into the king to knit closed his wounds. Then, she leans down and breathes into his ear, and this is a breath of chill morning mist that says quietly "King Catabas, your people need you. Your daughter needs you. Wake up, little king." And for a cat, maybe it is refreshing and maybe it is enough that his fur would stand on end and the fine water would make him jump, but either way it will bring the life within him back to the surface.

[I am spending a use of my magical bloodline for healing on King Catabas.]

[PhoeKun]

Alina simply leans against Adila. Her touch is soft and intimate.

"Thank you." she whispers

(+1 bond: Princess Adila promised to win back Illumina)

***

It's not that she doesn't want to help. Of course she does! Who could see this and not want to help? It's that every time she tries to call on her light, that image of her mother bleeding and broken and crying flashes into her mind. There's no separating the two: her mother's love is the same thing as her light. So right now, she has no faith in it. Or maybe it has no faith in her. But either way, she's not out there among them, shaping her magic to pluck out the arrows that plague these poor cats or bathing them in the light of her Green to warm their bodies and their souls back up. She wants to. And she can feel Princess Rita's eyes on the back of her head, as the person in this room she's sure knows the extent to which she could help, and isn't.

But Princess Alina isn't idle. She glides around the coffee shop, still dragging the ends of Adila's blanket behind her, soothing what she can with a touch instead of light. She whispers songs of sunlight into the ears of the fallen soldiers in the hope that little ray of happiness will seep into their dark dreams. And she goes to Princess Rita and she hugs her close, to if nothing else give her something to cry into. She spares no thought to worrying about her silks, and simply runs her fingers through the other girl's hair while Kazelia does... something.

"It's all right, it's all right. We can fix this. If we beat back this blizzard, everything will return to how it was."

And in between soft strokes and quiet shhing noises, she asks questions from the cats around who can still answer her. About what happened, about where the enemy was now, about what these poor people needed from the princesses who had come to help them.

[Speak Softly: 2d6+2 = 9. Questions are "What can they tell us about Kaja Ironpelt?" "What do they want, and how could we help them get it?" and "What would they have us do next?" one of these questions will be refused, or else have an unpleasant answer]

[Raz_Fox]

A Coffee-House of Healing, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

Each terrible, ghostly shaft comes out, one after the other, and your shadow flows into the punctured parts of his soul. With each one removed, the king's violent thrashing subsides, and the violent rolling of his eyes becomes less, and less still. His breathing becomes more even, as Rita (and several of the attendant nurses) look on in awe. Finally, the last arrow falls to the ground, and you call him back to his senses.

His eyes focus on you. He blinks, once, slowly. Then he yowls like he's on fire and thrashes furiously against the straps holding him down onto the bed. "KAJA! You vile wench! Release me at once from this infernal prison-"

"Dad no dad it's me-"

"How dare you bring my daughter into this hideous dungeon you constipated scoundrel-"

"dad no it's okay dad"

Rita starts giving her father tummy rubs, which calms him enough for the nurses to crowd around and take his temperature, loosen the straps, and get him properly up on his feet. How much fighting spirit is inside this unassuming cat! It's suddenly quite plausible that it took six of those deplorable arrows to get him to stop trying to claw Kaja's face up.

Rita catches your eye and mouths "thank you," her cheeks still red and her eyes puffy. It's a sweet moment! Now, if only the nurses weren't looking at you like they expected you to do that for all the other warrior cats of Askaia, lost in arrow-dreams all around the room. But that took a lot out of you- are you sure you want to try to take the time to help all of them?

I mean, you could. It'd be tough. But if you squeezed out every last bit of your shadow, and committed yourself to doing it while your companions prepared, you might just be able to pull it off. Or you could wait until after you've freed Askaia, when you have time to do it slowly and carefully, without draining yourself - and probably with Alina's help, to boot.

Alina!

"Don't tell young Rita," a Persian matron whispers to you as she changes the blankets on a brave young warrior cat with a ghostly arrow sticking out from his ribs, "but that Rider leading the ghost army... she thinks all of us her pets. She's got the queen in a cage on her black ship, and she carries little Natasha around everywhere, petting her head and letting her gnaw on her fingers. No, don't tell her!" One white paw is placed on your hand. "If I know the princess, she'll run off and do something foolish, and she needs the three of you to stand a chance against that evil Rider! If the ghosts don't get her, that wicked giant will catch her with one hand and carry her away laughing!"

"And you are going to help her, aren't you?" The Siamese seamstress who led you here rubs up against your side. "Don't let her get hurt." Is that a touch of sternness in her voice? A suggestion that you are, perhaps, not very good at making sure other people don't get hurt? "Don't let the Riders sail away with our sacred treasures and our queen, banish their ghostly army, and if you wouldn't mind, some good weather would be nice. If you're not too busy."

Then, as the other side of the room erupts into confusion, and King Catabas starts yelling furiously at Kazelia, a wee little tortoiseshell bounds into the room through the kitchen door in the back. "Riders," he huffs and puffs with his adorable wee little lungs, "leaving! Boats!" Tuckered out, he slumps onto the floor, his message of warning delivered: the Riders are finished with their looting and ravaging, and are setting off- the cats of Askaia expect you heroic princesses to go and stop them now. I mean, unless you want to try to have a thrilling naval battle without Adila accidentally setting all the ships on fire or smashing them into pieces, which would mean the loss of all those sacred treasures.

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila is relaxed for the first time since she set out for adventure.

Not because she's confident, or because the situation is in claw, or any such thing - no, she's just happy she's back in a city. A place with narrow streets and tall towers where even a dragon might hide herself if the situation called for it. She listens to the reassuring click-click of her claws against the road and the murmur of civilized life all about her - even a wounded and pained city was still far more natural than the isolation of the boat. The buzz of thoughts all around her was comforting and she no longer felt as pressed to maintain her constant chattering thoughts.

This sense of comfort lasts until she reaches the makeshift hospital. No pulling or squeezing is necessary to get her through - she simply misjudges the space and now the door is properly dragon-sized. Cheek scales rippling in the draconic version of a blush she backs away and lurks by the door in her characteristically un-stealthy way. She is then immediately once again covered in cats looking for a warm place to nap.

Then, the messenger arrives - there is no time at all! +I'll scout ahead!+ thought Princess Adila and climbed the tower as swiftly as a gecko. From the top she cast her golden eyes over the port and wondered what the best approach might be.

[Look Closely: 9

What is going on here? What do my senses tell me?
Is something hidden or out of place? If so, what looks suspicious?
What will happen if I pick the boats up out of the water and carry them onto the land to prevent their escape?]

[Anarion]

I look at the remaining cats with downcast eyes as the shadow fades. "I'm sorry. My power is limited and so I ministered to the King. The others will have to wait until there is more time..." And then the little cat bursts through the door and collapses with his message and the hornet's nest is stirred.

"We should go!" Kazelia looks prepared to jump out the door instantly and mount her Pegasus. "If we're quick, maybe we can free some of the prisoners with the element of surprise and stop their departure!" You'd be hard-pressed to call it a real plan, but unless you all tell her to hold her horses, she's clearly ready to ride off at once.

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Adila!

Forgive me, noble watchman, but allow me to name a particular nearby spire: the Josune Temple spires, arched like the back of a frightened cat. From there you cast your brilliant, burning eyes across the city, your vision cutting through the storm effortlessly.

So. What is going on here? There, a flash of white. Kaja Ironpelt, a pale Iluminan lion-pelt slung over her shoulder as a cloak, strides powerfully through what’s left of a major marketplace, headed towards the docks with a retinue of Riders in tow. She is carrying a small, bedraggled black kitten in one hand and patting its head with the other.

Even from here, you get the sense of power and poise that radiates off her. She stands head and shoulders over the other Riders, her dark armor gleams like the carapace of a beetle, her hair falls in perfect cascades down her shoulders, and she might as well be a statue of some heavenly warrior maiden come to life. But even from here, you can also hear - filtering out the sounds of the storm - her ridiculous and blissfully unselfconscious snortgiggle as one of her companions makes a joke about blowout sales: everything must go. And though she could doubtless squish the kitten like a bug, her grip is merely firm.

Riposte

Whenever you damage Kaja Ironpelt’s stats, she will damage you back as a Hard Cut.

This will probably take the form of suplexing you or throwing something very big at you. Even if it’s emotional damage! Catch Kaja suplexing you into the chocolate fountain at the Crystal Gala after you damaged her with a catty comment about her dress.

This doesn’t trigger if you manage to Finish Her, but if you’ve managed to get an Advantage on her you’ve earned that reprieve.

Invincible Sword Princess

You have to damage this stat twice before you can damage her other stats.

She is very good at fighting. Did I mention that? She is scary good. She doesn’t even draw her sword unless the enemy “deserves it,” because nine times out of ten she can Rider-style WWE them into submission.

Hapless*

When you present Kaja Ironpelt with an outrageous situation, you may treat it as a 10+ roll on Speak Softly. Damage this stat when you betray her trust in you.

Kaja isn’t stupid! She’s just prone to getting swept up in what’s happening, or otherwise short-circuiting because she doesn’t have the emotional bandwidth to deal with what’s going on.

So if a pretty princess** threw herself into Kaja’s arms and flirted shamelessly with her, she’d overheat and run her mouth while her brain overloaded. But if, say, Kazelia “revealed” she’d been a double agent this whole time and she’d brought a dragon on a leash as a gift for Dad while laughing evilly, that would bypass Kaja’s common sense directly. And if Adila came into the scene balancing on a rubber ball while playing a trombone and juggling fish, Kaja would take a seat and applaud and make small talk during intermission.

(Though this doesn’t stop any other Threat on-screen from making Cuts, so maybe wait on signing up for those trombone classes, Adila.)

This works up until she realizes that you’re taking advantage of her. Punching her in the face, handcuffing her to Adila’s tail, or letting one of her sisters butt in with proof you’ve been unraveling their plans throughout this entire conversation all count as betraying her trust.

*: the original title for this stat was “Useless Lesbian,” but a) that was back when it was solely flirting-oriented and b) rather mean, if you’re not familiar with that particular Tumblr meme.
**: draconic or otherwise.

By the docks, cats are miserably securing tarps down and closing up holds, under the watchful eyes and crackling laser whips of several more Riders. If you were to seize them up and deposit them on the docks-

Well, that would stop them from sailing off! The problem is that Kaja Ironpelt would then suplex you into the sea and then push them back in. If you want a permanent solution to stopping them from going, you need to neutralize Kaja. Or you could blow them up! That would work too, for given values of “work.”

Right. Kaja and retinue, ships and cats, and the ghost arrows.

Oh, right. The ghost arrows.

Three, fanned out slightly to find you no matter how you start. The snow passes through them with a small hiss, and they waver in the air as if not truly there. But they are there, and they are hurtling towards you.

Follow the disruption- the snow disturbed, the air expanding outwards from the source, like a trail of breadcrumbs, even as you tense up-

And there she is, already nocking another arrow to her tri-speed longbow (with a sniper sight) up on the Askaia Clocktower. Her white hair is cut close to the scalp on one side, grown long with neon streaks of lavender on the other. Her Riders’ eyes are hidden behind goblin-made goggles, and her armor is the muted grey of shadows.

Eska Glinteye, the Wolf’s Right Eye, is here. And suddenly everything about the ghost army makes sense.

Then the world is black, and orange, and violently disorienting; you are alienated from yourself. When you move it pounds your brain inside your skull, and ice pricks at your thoughts. The arrow has lodged itself deep inside your soul right where your left wing meets your body.

Damage your Sense.

Wolf’s Right Eye

Eska introduces herself in the scene with a Hard Cut at extreme range.

Probably a sniper shot. Might be pulling a goblin detonator out of her jacket and setting off the crystal mines she planted beforehand. Might be revealing that she’s had you under surveillance this whole time. Any way you cut it, you’re not catching up to her without some good Grace rolls.

Just As Planned

Damage this stat to turn a Finish Them attempt into a 6-, then take the spotlight.

It doesn’t have to be aimed at her, and she doesn’t even have to have line-of-sight: as long as she knows it’s happening and she’s in the scene, she can mess up your day.

You princesses are so predictable. It’s adorable!

Friendship is Tragic!

Will flee from expressions of kindness or hospitality. Damage this stat permanently if you ever show her unearned mercy or grace.

People don’t do nice things for each other unless there’s something in it for them. That means “niceness” is always a trap. Cupcakes, doubly so. Best to disengage and buy yourself time to figure out what their game is.

[PhoeKun]

A princess must be beautiful. If she were someone else she might try to sneak on board the ships and wait for a vulnerable moment. Or she might wisely hold her forces to muster them for a proper attack, rightly judging that the safety of the Askaian people in the long run was worth more than sparing them immediate pain or saving their treasures. She might have sent someone to be a distraction and give her a freer hand to work and steal back everything they took. But she is Alina Cascade of Illumina, and people have asked for her help. Red was the color of physical might. Yellow was the color of magical potency. She had to believe that wasn't a coincidence.

Her heart's pounding in her chest, but she ignores it and tosses aside the dragon-blanket with a motion so fluid they're writing poems about it right now. She leaps into the cold, plants her foot onto a barrel on the street, jumps and grabs a frozen shutter on a window the next building over, and flips and pushes off of her fingers to reach the roof. And then she's off toward the docks on that deer-like gait, as fast as any horse, leaping from rooftop to rooftop with a cartwheel or a front flip or a dive that turns into a tumble that turns into a fouette. She's a beacon in five colors. She's unignorable. And she's untouchable. Ghost arrows turn the rooftops into porcupines where her feet or her hands had been a moment before. She's a princess, and a princess must be beautiful.

She passes over the marketplace. She spies Kaja Ironpelt. Well, sure. Better here than on a boat, she supposes. Much easier for someone to come and rescue her that way. She swallows, and she jumps with a gymnast's vault, adding three spins and two full flips to her arc before landing perfectly on the balls of her feet in front of the marauding warrior-princess from beyond time and space. Oh jeez, try not to think about it like that. Her posture's perfect. Her silks flutter in the wind. Ok jeez, try not to think about that either. When she turns to face them, her hair does a perfect flip around her neck. Somewhere, a swan is jealous without quite understanding why.

"Oh!" she says with her best attempt at nonchalance, "That's a very pretty pelt you've got on. Did you pick it out yourself?"

[If this isn't what Get Away is for I don't want to play this game. 2d6+ 2 = 8, and Alina arrives quickly and unharmed]

[Thanqol]

Ah - ow! Ow ow! Ow - oh - there's a moment where a dragon tries very hard not to even think any bad words. That's - ow! Right between the scales. That's so mean! Ow! Princess Adila isn't used to getting hurt - she knows what it's like, but the vast majority of physical encounters in her life she could just lean on the fact that she was a dragon to avoid any meaningful consequences. Darn - bows! They shouldn't be allowed!

She resolved to keep her mouth firmly shut throughout this fight. Getting an arrow in the mouth was like the splinter from hell. No big dramatic roaring. She was just an archer, right? She could take one measly archer.

She detaches herself from the tower and snaps her wings fully open - ow - and flew directly at Eska Glinteye.

[Get Away: 6-1 = 5.]

[Anarion]

Kazelia pulls Shiva up into the sky and takes in the situation as the Pegagus flaps her crystal wings. Alina is running below her, the image of perfect grace, and Adila is watching from the tower and then...no, no! That's Eska. And she has a clear line of sight to Adila from a distance. No! She won't let her friends be harmed. This is her purpose, to protect her friends no matter what.

Kazelia gives Shiva a gentle nudge, and it's all the Pegasus needs. She's off like a flash, speeding through the storm with practiced ease. Eska may be a crack shot, but she still has only two eyes and one place where she can focus her attention. Paying attention to Adila in a space where her sister is used to flight means she's lot looking in a lot of other places. And Shiva is there in a flash [Burning Shiva's Flight to safely and quickly close the distance and create an advantage over Eska]. Then the Swiftspear flashes through the hail and Shiva is neighing and I am upon her! I will cleave her ghostly bow in twainl shatter her armor in a few blows and drive her from the tower.

[Rolling to finish her with Courage. 6+5+2=13. It would do the trick right here and now if not for her one ever so tricky stat. But we'll at least get that right out of the way.]

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

We have to start with you. Eska launches a few more arrows, lit from within by a sickly pale green glow, off into the dark. Really, that’s quite incautious of her; if she suspects she’s marked at all, she would usually be cutting her losses and heading for a new position. So maybe you have the drop on her, for once.

Then she kicks a counterweight sitting next to her foot, and as she ducks to one side, the window she was standing at swings shut without so much as a whisper. While you are moving at, if not quite terminal velocity, unwise speeds, directly towards said window.

CRASH.

As you come through the window, jerking your arms up to shield your face from the glass, Eska clotheslines you with her bow, and you go tumbling backwards with a horrible lurch in your stomach, and you have just enough time to think about how unfair it is you can’t see the stars in the dark clouds above you-

Eska hooks your boot with her bow, and you come crashing into the side of the clocktower hard enough to addle you a moment. Everything is upside-down snow and swirling winds, and whatever telepathic sendings you’re getting from Adila over the sound of the roaring wind.

“Hey, Kazelia.” Oh, boy. Here it comes. The gloating. “Long time no see. You gonna be a good girl and drop that lance, or am I going to have to drop you first?”

She’s probably bluffing. Probably. You’re family, after all. But while she’s not, shudder, Morgina... she might just drop you, jump off the tower herself, and pin you to the tower by your cloak with a few arrows in freefall. Then it’s just hanging there until she comes to drag you back to daddy.

If you see some way to do so, feel free to try to Overcome this- to regain your footing again. Or you can take this time to have a sisterly chat.

On the other hand, you have damaged her Just as Planned stat, so well done.

***

Adila!

Not opening your mouth was a good idea! Because whatever was in those arrows gets all over you when they explode right above you. It gets on your wings and your snout and starts hardening rapidly on contact with the air. Which, spoiler, makes it hard to keep aloft.

You come crashing down into a bed-and-breakfast and wipe out the front dining room. Luckily(?) the owners are currently at the docks loading up the last of their biscuits onto a Rider ship, so nobody’s hurt.

You can try to Overcome the goop all over you somehow, or else you’ll lose your flight for now. Even if you get it off, you’ll need to make a second approach to help out Kazelia or Alina, and Eska Glinteye still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve.

***

Alina!

Several of Kaja’s companions draw her swords, but the woman herself (she is very big, wow, and built like a tank that wins marathons and powerlifting competitions on the same day) just gives you a stony stare for a long moment...

And then she smiles. Like, it’s still a scary smile, but it’s not a “ohoho look at this foolish princess” smile, if you get me. It’s just that she has resting terror face.

“You’re right, I did,” she says brightly. “I went on this meditative training exercise up in the Iluminan mountains and when I came back I said to Azora, like, it’s this or the storm bird plumage, and she said, well, if you wear the plumage you might upset the Gwythaint and if I break its wing Dad will be all, you know, right? So, yeah, picked it out myself, really brings out my hair, in my opinion, and- wait.” The smile erodes, replaced with gears turning in her head. “Hang on. I know you. I know I know you.”

“Yes, your highness-“ The Rider at her elbow doesn’t get very far before Kaja holds up one black-gauntleted hand.

“Hold on, Timon, I’ve totally got it. Tip of my tongue. Never forget a face. But quick hint, um, have I terrorized you before? Sorry, weird question, I know, but you do it enough and it’s like, blah, you know? So many different people!”

Behind her, there is a gleam of soft reds and oranges. Princess Rita von Catabas has arrived, wearing a long feather in her cap and a pretty troubadour’s outfit. She’s got a long staff in one hand, and her father riding on her shoulder, because that’s not a weird thing for me to say at all. And, even better, nobody’s noticed her. She can help you out - or you can try to send her a cleverly coded message to help someone else.

Askaian Troubadour!

Musical magic, charms, and fancy tricks with Askaian incense (she’s got a little burning in a special pocket on her sleeve).

All the Powers of Cat and Girl!

Can turn into a cat or a girl, whichever fits her needs the best. Her outfit magically resizes herself along with her. She is dangerously cute, either way!

+1 Bond with Kazelia.

Speaking of which, also behind her is a dragon a few blocks away who just wipes out on a bed-and-breakfast place with a distant sound of shattering timbers. You know, if you needed inspiration or something.

[Thanqol]

Adila!

Not opening your mouth was a good idea! Because whatever was in those arrows gets all over you when they explode right above you. It gets on your wings and your snout and starts hardening rapidly on contact with the air. Which, spoiler, makes it hard to keep aloft.

You come crashing down into a bed-and-breakfast and wipe out the front dining room. Luckily(?) the owners are currently at the docks loading up the last of their biscuits onto a Rider ship, so nobody’s hurt.

You can try to Overcome the goop all over you somehow, or else you’ll lose your flight for now. Even if you get it off, you’ll need to make a second approach to help out Kazelia or Alina, and Eska Glinteye still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve.

***

It's in my nose! It's in my nose!

Princess Adila does not otherwise notice the sticky effects of the goo - she rips through it so easily it doesn't even register that it was meant to stop her. She scratches rapidly at it, getting the gunk all over her claws but not pulling it away quickly enough -

The sneeze comes. A pillar of fire lights up the sky. Luckily she has been disciplined from birth to always sneeze directly up.

Unnnh... so weird. So gross. What was that? Princess Adila had been hit with two awful arrows now and she had no desire to get a third. She couldn't see the other Princesses and assumed they were keeping the Riders busy, so she slunk over towards the harbour to go ahead with her plan to steal the boat before anyone noticed.

[Overcome the goop: 12]

[Anarion]

“Hey, Kazelia.” Oh, boy. Here it comes. The gloating. “Long time no see. You gonna be a good girl and drop that lance, or am I going to have to drop you first?”


Kazelia's eyes darken and begin to bleed shadow from their corners. She would show her stupid gloating sister! she'd crush her! she would...her mind flashes to the forest, her thoughts running like her sister Azora, her hands changing before her eyes. She was not her sister, she was NOT her father. The shadows fade and she drops her lance, letting it fall to the city below. In the interest of not murdering a random cat, she concentrates and an icy hand reaches out from the roof below and catches it, letting it nestle in place.

Then she turns to her sister and tries to give her the most friendly smile she can given the sharp teeth they share. It looks sort of like a grimace, but it's not something Eska would see normally. "Okay, there, no lance. Care to pull me up now, sister? Maybe we can talk instead of trying to murder each other? What are you doing in Askaia city, and with Kaja anyway?"

[PhoeKun]

Alina's mouth falls open. She stomps her foot in indignation and scrunches her face into the world's most graceful pout. Somewhere in the middle of this she also tries to catch Rita's eye from the shadows.

"A hint? You need a hint? How's this for a hint?" And she jabs a finger up at her crown expectantly. It pulses in violet light and she shakes her head, "No? Nothing? Argh!"

She flips her hair and puts her hands firmly on her hips while she stands there literally sparkling in the streets. This is it. This is what she's got right now. Rita, please act accordingly.

"I can't believe this! Oh sure, you'll rob Askaia blind, but when I show up it's 'who are you?' I thought our relationship meant something to you! I am the Princess of Illumina! I am Alina Cascade! They fought a war over me once, do you know that? I've never been so insulted in all of my life! You set that kitten and those treasures down right now, young lady, and you kidnap me this instant or so help me I will never be your friend again!"

[I have no idea what I'm triggering, but it seems a bit Talk Sense? If it is, it's an 8]

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia

There is a fountain of flame that rockets up into the night, turning snow to frigid rain. Eska is quiet for a moment, then mutters, “Need the Axonia samples for the next batch.”

Then she turns her attention to you. “I figured it out,” she says. Just like her to meander around the point for a while. And also to not pull you up onto the ledge. “Why you left. Kaja’s heartbroken, you know. Thinks it’s personal. Oh, boo hoo, Eska, was it something I said? Like, does she hate me now? But I know better.”

“This is all because Dad put Azora in charge instead of you.” Wow. Classic Eska. “Face it, Kazzy, she’s better than you. And older. But better’s more important.” She grins, and swings you a little from side to side. “But you really are useful, sometimes. So tell you what. You let me and Kaja bring you home, we’ll tell Dad that you were on a spying mission we thought up, and you’ll owe me. How’s that sound?”

The terrible thing is that this is Eska at her most intimate. Sure, she’s couching it in benefit to her, and she intends to milk that favor for all it’s worth, but she does want you back. Missing you is distracting and uncomfortable for weird reasons and if you make this sappy she will drop you.

***

Alina!

“Yeah,” Kaja says, “like I said, tip of my tongue. How could I forget Alina Cascade? Everybody knows about you and- oh, right, you’re the princess who dumped water on Dad’s head. Like, who even does that?”

Timon the Rider takes your wrists and cuffs them behind your back while Kaja attends to a much more important and heartfelt matter. She gets down on one knee, and holds Natasha up.

“Sootball,” she says, “the days we spent together have been some of the best days of my life. But you’re really squirmy, and I can’t kidnap Princess Alina Cascade and be sure I’m not going to drop you. But I promise I’m going to come back for you, okay? You’ll love it in Ilumina, it’s all nice and crisp and we really cut down on the noise pollution from all that running water. I want you to love it, so you’d better start practicing right now, you understand?” She... well, drops Natasha, who manages to land on her feet and zooms off towards a bright red feather just visible behind Kaja.

“Okay!” Kaja picks you up with one hand and hoists you up over her shoulder like you weigh absolutely nothing. Said shoulder is clad in cold black armor and absolutely knocks the wind out of you when she slams you onto it. “You know, I really like how you princesses do things here. This is much more personally fulfilling than tearing you limb from limb. Plus we’ll get to talk on the way back- well, I mean, I’ll get to talk, at you, and you can nod your head when I say something interesting, which is like, all the time, you know? And then, oooh, yikes, Dad’s probably going to want to put you up in the north garden over Cassian’s frost flowers to keep the birds away, but maybe you’ll get lucky and he’ll just make you the court jester or- ooooh, Timon, do you think if we hit Jedad next we can get her dancing lessons? Then he’d have to keep her around and not frozen!”

Behind you, Rita darts from shadow to shadow, grimly determined. She signals that she’s waiting on a signal from you. That’s... probably what that hand signal means, anyway. It’s either that or “you look like a sack of impossibly graceful potatoes right now.”

It’s also worth noting that by the ancient laws of Princessdom, you now owe Kaja Ironpelt a favor in kind. It’s inconvenient, but noblesse oblige.

***

Adila!

So, here’s the thing. There are enough Rider sailors over here (you know they’re sailors because they have those white bandanas over their white hair and have interesting black tattoos all over their bared arms) looking over the final preparations that anything you do to bring the ships up will alert the Rider Princesses. I mean, that I can think of. Maybe you have a plan that won’t be really loud and obvious.

Such as, say, getting in the water. Now that I think about it, if you got in the (frigid, ice-shoal-choked, probably shark-infested) water, you would be in a perfect position to stop them from leaving, and you wouldn’t alert the Riders to your presence.

I don’t think these ships have anchors, per se, but there’s probably something neat you can do down there while you’re at it. Maybe even shoving them up onto the shore from below.

[Thanqol]

Adila!

So, here’s the thing. There are enough Rider sailors over here (you know they’re sailors because they have those white bandanas over their white hair and have interesting black tattoos all over their bared arms) looking over the final preparations that anything you do to bring the ships up will alert the Rider Princesses. I mean, that I can think of. Maybe you have a plan that won’t be really loud and obvious.

Such as, say, getting in the water. Now that I think about it, if you got in the (frigid, ice-shoal-choked, probably shark-infested) water, you would be in a perfect position to stop them from leaving, and you wouldn’t alert the Riders to your presence.

I don’t think these ships have anchors, per se, but there’s probably something neat you can do down there while you’re at it. Maybe even shoving them up onto the shore from below.

The water had always been the plan.

She'd actually really enjoyed Harbour Patrol, until they had to take her off it due to the accidents mounting up. Swimming silently and stealthily through the oceans, thinking ominous music at the people on board, until she burst up from the waters lifting an entire ship above her head? And then carrying them to a customs post where their smuggled cargo was impounded? It was the stealthiest she ever got to be, and she'd always loved the cool water against her scales.

She even liked the sharks. They were so cute when she spooked them.

So. The plan. She'd wait for the strong Rider to come aboard and then take the entire ship at a gallop away from the city. That'd let her ditch the archery Rider so she could focus on her target properly. She could then use the boat itself as leverage to get something - the strong Rider needed it to get home so she wouldn't want to risk damaging it by getting into a fight while she was holding it. Then, something. Arrange a duel? She'd figure it out.

[Anarion]

This was tough. Play it too hard and Eska would drop her or fly off. Play it too nice and she'd think something was up and also drop her.

"Wow, Eska, you are not playing the long game here at all." Kazelia's voice drips with derision, most of it entirely sincere. "Azora's just Father's little pet dog. And I mean one of those little toy dogs that the princesses in Rowan have, not like Morgina."

Kazelia swings herself around a little so she can look up at her sister. "Listen, Eska, why are you here, really? You're carting around Axonian ingredients, but you're not there doing experiments. You're creating legends of the 'terrifying ghost army' among the locals and shooting random cats full of arrows on Kaja's behalf? Do you really want to be running errands for Father and Azora all your life while you let them hurl you around the kingdoms wherever they think they need you, or would you rather be doing something else?"

Then Kazelia just hangs there, letting her words sink in and waiting for Eska to answer.

[Snake eyes. That's a 3 on speak softly. My questions are "What can she tell me about Azora's plans" "What was she doing and what will she do next" and "what does she want and how could we help her get it?" One answer will be false.]

[PhoeKun]

"For the last time," stomps Alina as she's handcuffed, knowing very well it would not be for the last time, "I did it to be polite! He looked sad so I shared my kingdom's blessings with him! What do they do where you're from, stab people in the whooaaa~"

There aren't a great many experts on the topic, but they all agree that Alina's frightened squeal and the subsequent 'oof' of air leaving her body as her stomach met Kaja's shoulder was the most melodic example of this combination of sounds in recorded Hyperborean history. Sometimes it's difficult being so pretty. You know what would make it easier? If she were properly strong, like her companions. Or like she used to be, for that matter. But all things considered for where she's at right now, things are going really -- huff! -- well! If she could just --urk!-- get a signal to Rita then things would be --gah!-- perfect.

Her lights pulse Green, Blue, Violet on a loop, which if you'll recall are the three colors she shared with her fellow princesses while everyone was stuck in that dratted Askaian incense mist. More time to talk, maybe a heart's desire or two, that's what Alina needs right now.

"You know, I always liked you the best out of all your s-i-i-i-sters~," she starts while flailing on a bouncing shoulder with absolute grace. She squirms so that she's less draped over a shoulder and more curled around a neck. Her armor's all fitted pieces, it's more comfortable than you'd think. If this is supposed to keep her from being jostled, then good luck sister. But it's very, very flirty, even without the demure whispers in Kajas ears. With tickling breath that's warm and smells like a spring rain.

"You have the best sense for which things are beautiful, and you're the --eep!-- gentlest with your treasures of all the Riders. Which is saying nothing about how pretty you've gotten. I could get used to this view, you know. You even understaaand Princess culture, which I bet your dad doesn't care for very much. But I think it's great! You'd make a wonder --aah!-- ful princess! I could help you do that, you know. It's within my power. I could help make you a proper Hyperborean Princess, and you'd have much more chances for --oof a second time!-- all that personal satisfaction stuff. You'd even get to keep the prizes you took. Prizes like me, for example. So there'd be no need to go to... did you say Jedad? Yes, in fact, no need to go there at all, and you could fill my ears with your --now you're doing it on purrrpoooosssse-- interesting thoughts and never need to worry that your father would make me into a statue!

It sounds nice, doesn't it? It does, doesn't it? Why not stop a moment and tell me what wish is in the heart of Kaja Ironpelt."

[gonna go ahead and take that 10+ on Speak Softly right now. My questions are "What should I be wary of when dealing with her?" and "What was she doing, and what is she going to do next?" and "What does she want, and how can I help her get it?"]

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

“Oh, man.” Eska’s voice is dripping with schadenfreude. “I always forget how out of the loop you are. Azora is gambling everything on stealing the Djinn-Binding Ring from Jedad. And I know she’s going to fail, because I’ve got my own irons in the fire. So, uh, yeah. I think robbing these cats blind and showing how responsible and competent I am is going to be a good career move, actually. You can see it, right?”

Her tone turns a little dreamy as she gazes off into the distance. “Once I’m in charge, I’ll aim at the very heart of this world. You and Azora can keep your magic; I’ll outbuild you and outthink you every time. Impregnable, huh? You haven’t met Eska Glinteye yet.”

Impregnable, huh? You’ve heard the other princesses make reference to Hobling Keep, the heart of goblinkind in Hyperborea. Of course Eska would be interested in that place.

“I could always work around not having you available,” she adds, “but I’d much prefer to use Plan A. So, again, what’s it going to be? Come back with me and Kaja, or see if you can sprout wings like Shiva on your way down? Because I’ve got things to do, people to see, and-“ She stops herself, and then chuckles. “Well. I can tell you all about what I plan to do with the dragon and the crybaby after it’s done. No sense spoiling it beforehand.”

”What is Azora doing?” = False.
“What do you want, and how could I help you get it?” = True.
“What do you plan to do right now?” = Not answered.

***

Alina!

Actually, when she gets into it, Kaja’s stroll is usually smooth as silk. Barely any jar or judder at all. Which means that, yes, she absolutely is doing this on purpose. It’s funny, listening to you grunt and squeak! Maybe she’ll gag and juggle you later just to elicit more of those.

But those wonderful suggestions! She stops, and her blush is practically neon. “Well, I mean, I’m totally a Princess, right? I’ve got the looks, the fighting-ness, the royal castle all covered in ice... and yet everybody I meet is too scared to kiss properly and too wimpy to fight properly,” she says, radiating steam. “The next pretty princess I see, I’m going to kiss then throw to the moon!”

Oh. Yikes. Okay, that was hot but a really scary hot. You wanted to know what to be wary of? She’s larger than life, wildly passionate, and possesses a truly irresponsible amount of strength. She probably couldn’t throw you to the moon - she’s not a devil, after all - but she could probably yeet Adila over the clocktower with the right footing.

(Maybe stay out of her line of sight for a little bit. She might be able to get you halfway up to the moon. Also Rider kisses steal your soul and turn you to ice.)

Also, well... I mean, there’s one easy way to fulfill that kiss. Though see above re: Rider kisses.

“But you’re right! I should keep more of my prizes. Maybe Dad doesn’t need to know that I caught you. You could be my handmaiden! Help me with girl troubles, braid my hair, buff out my armor, that sort of thing. In fact, Timon, forget we met her. Don’t say a thing to Eska. Alina Cascade is my new handmaiden, you got that? He can have the incense, the sword and mirror combo thing, the shrine decorations, and the queen of Askaia, but I think it’s only fair I get to have Alina, seeing as I found her first. And if he finds out about her I’ll have to give her to him, probably, and she’s my favorite now.”

Note that she doesn’t even really consider going up against her dad. That’s so ridiculous that she doesn’t even need to form an argument against it! She’d have to hand you over because that’s just the way things are.

“Princess Kaja!” That came from behind you, and good thing, too- the ships were in sight. “Your highness, Princess Eska managed to bring down the dragon! She wants you to go suplex the dragon and make sure it’s ready for transport!”

“How did she know my heart’s desire,” Kaja breathes. Okay, so she has two heart’s desires: kiss a pretty princess who isn’t scared of her, suplex a dragon. (Incidentally, one might notice that the Rider calling this out is a little fuzzy around the edges, as if they were, in fact, Rita von Catabas wreathed in incense and thinking “I’m a Rider” very loudly indeed.)

So now you are headed back into the city to find Princess Adila and suplex her. Ah, the merry life of a princess.

***

Adila!

So here’s the thing. This whole time, you’ve been dealing with the disorienting, nasty sensation of having a ghost arrow stuck in you. Everything is shades of black and orange, shaking and trembling, and it’s easy sometimes to forget that your body is attached to you.

I say this because sliding into the sea is soothing. There aren’t all those buildings coming in and out of focus all around you, for example. It’s not enough to restore your Sense, but it’s refreshing.

Then something breaches the water with a flood of air bubbles and movement, just beside one of the ships. And then it happens again. And again. It takes you only a moment to puzzle through what’s happening: the Riders at the docks, for whatever reason- they’re terrifying a cat in a cage by lowering them into the water repeatedly. Everyone knows cats don’t like water. It’s cruel, is what it is, terrifying a cat like that.

That’s the sort of thing that makes the Riders worth fighting. What is your reaction, Adila?

[Anarion]

“I could always work around not having you available,” she adds, “but I’d much prefer to use Plan A. So, again, what’s it going to be? Come back with me and Kaja, or see if you can sprout wings like Shiva on your way down? Because I’ve got things to do, people to see, and-“ She stops herself, and then chuckles. “Well. I can tell you all about what I plan to do with the dragon and the crybaby after it’s done. No sense spoiling it beforehand.”



"Okay. Whatever it is you're planning, leave my friends alone and I'll come back with you." Kazelia means it, this isn't a trick or a trap. She's not sure that Eska will believe that she's being honest, in fact she's pretty sure she won't, but she'd still rather show her sister how people are supposed to behave. "I mean it, pull me up, promise to leave my friends alone, and I'll come with you, no fight."

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

“I don’t know what sort of void-spawned blackmail they have over you,” Eska sneers, “but as long as it means you’ll come back and do what I want? Fine. I won’t lay a finger on the dragon or the crybaby. We’ll leave them here to play with the kitties and have tea parties and all that nonsense.”

Once she hoists you up and takes you firmly by the hand, you can see that she managed to trap Shiva inside a portable Pegasus-sized cage. Don’t worry, though! She opens the cage and reunites Rider and steed, before jumping on Shiva’s back. “Well, come on. Let’s go meet with Kaja and get out of here already.”

[Thanqol]

Adila!

So here’s the thing. This whole time, you’ve been dealing with the disorienting, nasty sensation of having a ghost arrow stuck in you. Everything is shades of black and orange, shaking and trembling, and it’s easy sometimes to forget that your body is attached to you.

I say this because sliding into the sea is soothing. There aren’t all those buildings coming in and out of focus all around you, for example. It’s not enough to restore your Sense, but it’s refreshing.

Then something breaches the water with a flood of air bubbles and movement, just beside one of the ships. And then it happens again. And again. It takes you only a moment to puzzle through what’s happening: the Riders at the docks, for whatever reason- they’re terrifying a cat in a cage by lowering them into the water repeatedly. Everyone knows cats don’t like water. It’s cruel, is what it is, terrifying a cat like that.

That’s the sort of thing that makes the Riders worth fighting. What is your reaction, Adila?

+Shouldn't we do something?+

Even back then she knew the answer, and the thought came out of her like lead. The chaos-pipes of Devilhome blared in the background, music morphing like serpents to wrap around the tunes of alchemic explosions. Still the Watch remained, silent, unmoving.

"We should," said the Captain.
+But we won't?+ the little dragon thought mournfully.
"No, we won't," said the Captain.
+Even though I could totally fight them?+
"Even though you could totally kick their asses."
The hatchling snorted her laughter, then laid her head down on the stone. +I hate that they fight all the time.+
"Mm," said the Captain.
+Why can't they work together, like we do?+
"Tried that once," said the Captain. "Didn't work."

Sleepy signed from down the street. The entire alley came alive with movement, a hundred dark robes susurrusing into motion, a flowing river of fabric.

"Do you remember the Illumian Princess?" asked the Captain. The little dragon nodded eagerly.
+Yes! She was so pretty! She had all those gemstones and she did the double backflip like this+ The dragon tried the double backflip. It was hard to tell if it was cheating given that she was flexible enough to bend her neck backwards to bite firmly onto her own tail like Ouroboros and then roll herself like a hoop. +and it was like that time there was a rainbow, remember? Remember the rainbow?+
"Yeah," said the Captain. "And you remember how we beat her?"
+She beat up like... a thousand guys though! It was really cool! And a bit scary.+
"Yeah," said the Captain. "But we beat her."
The dragon's ears drooped a little.
"See, they're the best, the rainbow princesses," said the Captain. "They've been the best forever. And they're used to it, see? They can win by fighting fair so they've forgotten how to fight dirty."

The Captain lowered her hood, knelt down to look the little dragon in the eye. "And now you're here, little Princess. First Princess we've had since we settled. And maybe you're right; maybe you could go toe-to-toe with them and fight them all and win. Fair and square." She glanced down the street. Sleepy had signaled again, bringing the Watch to a halt.

+Then why not?+ Princess Adila almost begged for the answer.
"Because if we scumbags can beat the best Princess by fighting dirty, what'll happen when you become the best Princess and also know how to fight dirty?" The Captain scratched the hatchling behind the ears. "All the stories are the same; a single dragon is an army without even trying. But a dragon that knows how to think, plan, be patient, resist temptation, be part of a team? That kind of dragon could save the world."
+So I'll be able to protect everyone one day?+ thought the dragon. +If I work really hard and learn everything and am patient like you said?+
"Don't see why not," said the Captain.

Sleepy made the gesture for assault. The time for talk was over.

The Watch closed in.

*

Two dragons fought in that cold water.

The first dragon said: Think. Plan. Patient. Discipline. Fight dirty and fight smart. It's what makes you a person, a Watcher, not an animal. Stay with the water. Apply overwhelming force. Win.

The second dragon knew that it was right but... maybe she didn't need to fight smart all the time. She was bigger now. Powerful! She could do this!

You have a poisoned arrow in your shoulder already. You got shot out of the sky once before. It's stupid. Stay down.

But they're hurting her!

It's - you know this is how it works. Concentrate your forces. Don't take risks. The cat will be fine. Everything will be -

It's not right. I can stop this. The Watch has to be smart because they're outmatched but... I can do this. I'm ready. I'm ready. I can do this. I'm ready.

She burst out of the water, flames and teeth and roaring.

It would be the Riders that went into the ocean today.

[Anarion]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

“I don’t know what sort of void-spawned blackmail they have over you,” Eska sneers, “but as long as it means you’ll come back and do what I want? Fine. I won’t lay a finger on the dragon or the crybaby. We’ll leave them here to play with the kitties and have tea parties and all that nonsense.”

Once she hoists you up and takes you firmly by the hand, you can see that she managed to trap Shiva inside a portable Pegasus-sized cage. Don’t worry, though! She opens the cage and reunites Rider and steed, before jumping on Shiva’s back. “Well, come on. Let’s go meet with Kaja and get out of here already.”

"Sure thing, let me just get my lance." Kazelia puts out a hand and the lance, caught far below, shoots upwards carried on a winter wind, flies in through the window, and stops in her hand. She slings it on her back without comment to Eska, though unspoken is the fact that yes, she could have done that the entire time. She gives Shiva a reassuring pat and mounts up with her sister, flying towards the docks. While they're on Shiva's back, she says "Oh, I should tell my friends too, I'll do it quickly." Then she concentrates on the winter wind and mouths silently into it. I surrendered to my sister Eska in exchange for her promise to leave my friends alone. I'll ask them to release the cats when we get to the docs, we're flying there now. And then she blows her message into the wind and asks it to fly to Adila and Alina to let them know. It's a secret message carried on the frigid winter wind so it doesn't have the most nuance, but you get the sense that Kazelia sounds a little proud of herself for what she's accomplished here.

[This post has both wizardry to push/grab something as if I were somewhere else I can see to get the lance and deliver a message through mysterious means to Adila and Alina.]

[PhoeKun]

Once upon a time, the Kingdom of Rowan was in crisis. The Rowani Queen had paid grave insult to a woods-witch and denied her hospitality, for the witch had ridden into the castle on a mule instead of a horse and had even been so brazen as to ask they stable the sad creature with their own proud steeds. Now of course as we all know that mule was actually a most beautiful pegasus in disguise, but these were simpler times and Queens and Princesses both were less trained in the art of dealing with witches. And so the witch gathered all her sisters and cast a great blight upon Rowan, so that all the clouds in the sky would pack their things and leave for other kingdoms.

The rivers ran dry. The grass withered. And with no food to eat, the horses grew weak. Something had to be done. But even in crisis, Rowan was proud and would not ask for help. They'd get what they needed themselves, even if it meant they had to take it from someone else. So as was the way of Hyperborea they sent their Princess-Knight Ansila into Illumina on her great black mare to take the water they so desperately needed from the people who had too much of it. And her horse trampled across the fields and with sword and spear and lance she carved great gashes in the earth and did her very Princessy best to drain the whole kingdom dry, for Rowan's need was greater.

This of course could not go unanswered. Princess Marina Prism, freshly returned from Jedad (where she had absolutely been sharing the secrets of silk with the people there and not at all getting punched in the face, I don't know where you heard that), came arrayed with her glass armor and her seven lights and stole the water straight back. But the people of Rowan were desperate, and when Princess Marina came and coaxed her waters back home she found every able fighter in the kingdom perched atop a hill, waiting for her with lances in hand and Princess Ansila at their head. They charged, and Princess Marina met them head on.

She did not use her lights. She could have, certainly, but when she saw what they had been prepared to do, her heart cried out to help them. So she ran, and as she came her footfalls were so light that even these wilted blades of grass did not bend to carry her weight. And she leaped, and when she leaped she was so beautiful that the Rowani knights pulled their charges short just to look at her. All but Ansila, who could not be fazed. And Marina landed atop the great black mare's neck, and she smiled and looked deep into Princess Ansila's eyes. Then she kissed her, full on the lips. And there was no duel that day. There was a wedding seven months later, under the first waters of the great glass aqueduct that would ever after carry Illumina's gift to those who needed it most.

***

Alina is quiet for a moment, and trembling despite herself. Of all the times to remember that story! Everyone knows what happens when you give a Rider what they want most. Everyone knows. Her own palace is filled, they say, with the proof of that. And yet. Kazelia was scary, but didn't it seem like she had a heart? And if she did, wouldn't her sisters? And if Kaja Ironpelt has a heart, wouldn't it be scared and lonely? If she turns to ice, then she is lost.

"Do you know why you haven't been kissed before? Nobody thinks of you as a person," she says while she wraps her fingers around Kaja's chin, "They see a monster. They see a storm, and they're hiding and hoping you'll pass by into nothing. But I see you. You are real. You belong. And I'll teach you all the things you need to know."

It's cold. Her lips are so cold. Alina can feel the heat draining from her body the longer she's here. But a princess must be beautiful. So she keeps her lips pressed firmly against Kaja's, and she keeps her eyes open to look at her face while she does it. And when they finally break apart, she smiles, though she's shivering.

[I went and checked ahead with our dear Overlord that yes, I do have Advantage if I apply it in this way. Finishing Kaja by showing her the error of her ways: 2d6+2 = 13]

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Alina!

Let’s start with the good news.

The good news is that Kaja’s retinue breaks into laughter and cheering, seeing this, thinking it a princess seduced - and they are right, but in the wrong direction. The good news is that though it is cold- so cold- you are certain you feel the smallest bit of warmth come to Kaja’s lips.

And the very good news is that Kaja is so overwhelmed that she does not throw you at the moon, like she boasted she would.

The bad news is that she just flings you into the sky with incredible force without looking for a target, out of absolutely relatable lesbian panic.

***

Kazelia!

For the second time this evening, light shoots violently up into the sky. The only problem is that this is not Adila’s brilliant, powerful flame, but the Petrichor Princess who finds herself airborne. This is a problem, seeing as her hands are cuffed behind her and her lights are feebly doing their best to form a proper grappling hook to save her, even as she reaches the zenith of her arc and starts hurtling down towards the ground.

Lucky for her she’s friends with a Rider.

With a spur of Shiva’s flanks, Alina lands right in your arms as neatly as you please.

“This isn’t on me,” Eska says, looking over your shoulder. “Not a finger, I said. But, hey, since we have the crybaby, why don’t we take her back to Ilumina with us? I’m sure she...” She trails off as she sees the chaos on the docks, and realizes that things are not exactly going as planned today.

***

Adila!

The docks are in absolute bedlam. I mean, put yourself in the Riders’ shoes for a moment! There you are, waiting for your boss to get back, passing the time by waterboarding a cat, and then suddenly a sea monster lurches up out of the water, eyes wide and rolling, and breathes fire at you, setting your wicked black cloaks alight and threatening to set the ships on fire.

Everyone has their own set of priorities now! For some of them, it’s become “jump into the water to stop being on fire.” For others, it’s become “get on the ship and leave, right the void now.” Unfortunately for you, when surprised and trapped, some people lash out, instead.

So those laser whips begin cracking against your sides, and one even curls around your throat! I think even for you it’s painful, though you’re a big dragon, you can take it. The real threat is that they might be able to pin you down, take you prisoner- though I think it would take a stroke of luck on their part, and they would have to take a moment to figure out what exactly to do next!

And while that’s happening-

That’s when you get Kazelia’s message. Whoops!

[Thanqol]

Adila!

The docks are in absolute bedlam. I mean, put yourself in the Riders’ shoes for a moment! There you are, waiting for your boss to get back, passing the time by waterboarding a cat, and then suddenly a sea monster lurches up out of the water, eyes wide and rolling, and breathes fire at you, setting your wicked black cloaks alight and threatening to set the ships on fire.

Everyone has their own set of priorities now! For some of them, it’s become “jump into the water to stop being on fire.” For others, it’s become “get on the ship and leave, right the void now.” Unfortunately for you, when surprised and trapped, some people lash out, instead.

So those laser whips begin cracking against your sides, and one even curls around your throat! I think even for you it’s painful, though you’re a big dragon, you can take it. The real threat is that they might be able to pin you down, take you prisoner- though I think it would take a stroke of luck on their part, and they would have to take a moment to figure out what exactly to do next!

And while that’s happening-

That’s when you get Kazelia’s message. Whoops!

Princess Adila looked at the laser whips wrapped around her, and then she looked at the Riders straining to pull her to the ground. Then her thoughts bubbled over with sympathy. Oh, poor dears! You have no idea what you're up against, do you?

She reared up and clapped her wings like a hurricane and the whole lot of them were sent tumbling into the ocean.

Looming over the edge she thought at them firmly: +Cruelty is against the Law of Ourania. Consider this a warning.+



And then - what? Kazelia had been defeated already? And she's - she's coming here with the archer. Where I would have been able to ambush her at point blank range if I'd just waited - oh! Stupid! The dragon princess irritably rapped her skull with her talons. Okay, backup plan. All the things were still [I]sort of in place.

She jumped up onto the bow of the Rider's ship and looked around to take stock of how many boats there were in the harbour. Then she focused in on Eska. +You are under arrest,+ she thought firmly.

[PhoeKun]

Alina's smile turns into a squeak. And her squeak becomes full-on screaming. Up, up, up, up, up, up, up! Then she's floating suspended at the arc of her flight --oh hey, she's still got her soul! Unbidden, she thinks about the look on Kaja's face right before she got tossed up here, and she smiles through this single moment of peace-- and then she starts plummeting back into the city like a rainbow meteor. And now she's really screaming. She has the good sense at least to not start flailing, but other than that she's useless, useless, useless, and definitely about to die unless some Riders were right underneath her stealing a cart full of feather pillows.

Or! She could just land in Princess Kazelia's arms. Oh thank light. She flashes a dazzling and extremely grateful smile, though her teeth are chattering.

"E-E-E-Eska Glinteye? I'm h-h-here to inform you," she shivers, "Your sister Kaja Ironpelt has been defeated. More or less. Out of respect for your nicer siblings I'm here to offer you the hand of friendship, if you'll surrender yourself to my custody."

She notices the pandemonium at the docks. And for the first time in a long time, she dares to hope she might actually be able to do this... then she sneezes. Gracefully, of course.

[Raz_Fox]

“Nope,” Eska says. “Nope, nope, nope. We’re not doing this. Kazelia, deal with her.” So saying, she stands up - let me reiterate that, she stands up on the rump of a Pegasus in flight - and kicks off gracefully into a backflip. Before anyone can worry about her chances of landing, she pulls out - a grappling hook?? Wait, how is it fair that she gets a grappling hook?

[Anarion]

“Alina!” Kazelia gives her a big hug, even though she’s totally freezing. “You’re safe, I was really worried after Adila got shot. But she seems okay.”

She turns to Eska to tell her that she understands that Eska kept her word, but then there she is backflipping off a Pegasus with a grappling hook. “Eska, wait!” And there she goes falling down below. “Sister, that looks very dangerous!” Kazelia grins just slightly, and when she sees the grappling hook land, a little pillar of ice suddenly crackles and pokes out from the spot where it’s attached. The ice scrapes on the metal and then just like that, it pushes it right off from where it’s attached, leaving Eska to fall whatever fate takes her.

[Finishing her with Doom. 2+4+2=8, so it deals damage and the advantage is lost.]

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

Alina and Kazelia!

Eska ends up crashing into several laundry lines woven across an alleyway, which slows her down enough that when she splats into the refuse pile, it’s only very embarrassing and beneath her dignity.

Then she’s gone, parkoured away into the night like a cat. She... probably has decided to go find Kaja and leave on her own terms. Probably. Let’s hope.

[Friendship is Tragic! has been damaged, and unless someone botches a roll and it’s the super right Cut, she’s probably gone. Which means there’s only one bit of trouble left!]

[Thanqol]

There was a rock in the Bazaar's Harbour that they used to call the Spear. Sudden, sharp, jagged, lancing up towards the sun.

The Captain had told her to use it as the practice target for her fire breath. Now they called it the Slag. The creation of the Slag had coincidentally resulted in a lot less people decide to go for thrilling chase scenes in the harbour of the Bazaar.

Princess Adila, from the air, found a similarly convenient pile of rocks near the harbour entrance and made a very pointed demonstration of what could be done with dragonflame when she didn't have to worry about burning down the surrounding city. Then she perched menacingly on the harbour shore to give the Riders a chance to reconsider their plan to make a daring escape by sea.

[Raz_Fox]

A Forsaken Beach Resort, the Kingdom of Askaia

"I threw her, Eska!"

Princess Eska Glinteye rolled her eyes behind the telescopic lenses of her goggles. Yes, Kaja. This is only the... oh, eleventh time you've said that. Oh, good, you're standing up. Again. So you can keep pacing and waving your arms around. And then you'll slump down and put your head in your hands and keep moaning while I try to get this clockwork beetle archer ready.

"Once Kazelia gets here, we'll be able to make our counter-attack," Eska said, hoping to stave off more useless moaning about how Alina Cascade smelled like lavender and that weird smell right after it rains and how even her lips were weirdly warm and she looked her right in the eyes while kissing, she looked and didn't look away, like it isn't obvious that it was a distraction to let that dragon get to the ships.

The wind began to pick up, howling about them, running the mists through its fingers. Eska huddled her shoulders in closer and worked on gear realignment. Stupid Kazelia. Stupid Kaja. Stupid everyone. She was wasted here! She should be dealing with Azora's upcoming humiliation in the desert, not stuck babysitting her corruption of the drug-laced weather patterns of an island of cats. Not that it hadn't been fun. Oh, had it ever been fun. But someone has to look at the bigger picture here.

"But I'm not sure I'll even be able to counter-attack!" Kaja threw her arms up. "I'll just be thinking about Alina and I don't know whether I want to kiss her again or, like, throw her in jail forever. Illegal! Illegal kiss crimes!"

One moment, there was the wind, a thundering gale- and then, the next, silence and stillness, broken only by the soft crunch of sand underneath Oberon's boots. He was smiling, gently, even as Eska threw the beetle right into a tree on reflex and Kaja clapped both her hands over her mouth, her eyes full of falling stars like tears. How much had he heard?

"And here I was expecting to see my little Ironpelt at sea." He stepped closer, even as Kaja stood stock-still, like a deer before the hunter. When he touched his hand to the back of hers, she did not dare brush it aside. "What happened to our ships, dearest?"

"Dragon," Eska said, her mouth dry. Focus. Not really your fault. "Arrived in the city with the Iluminan princess and..."

"Kazelia," Kaja breathed, against her own palm.

"Ah." Oberon shook his head, still smiling. "Kazelia. She is... misguided. An old enemy of mine has put her under a terrible spell. It's not her fault, really. Don't hate her for it." He lowered his hand, running it along a spur of Kaja's armor. "So here is what you are going to do. When the princesses come for the Wound, you are to seize them fast. I know that you will get them all, but if the dragon happens to get away, well... I will not count it against you." Is he not generous? Is he not kind? Is he not the finest king to ever rule? "But you will bring me Kazelia and the Iluminan girl, alive and helpless, and ensure that this quaint little place becomes the new Slaugh. Do you understand?"

"By ourselves?" Eska tried very hard to sound skeptical-yet-intrigued. The voice crack did not help. Both Oberon and Kaja looked at her at once, and Kaja shook her head no no no as Oberon took a step towards Eska.

"No," he said, and not smiling anymore. "Asteria and Cassian are, at this moment, at sea with their soldiers. To ensure that you have the support you clearly require for this task, I will reroute them from their current objectives. When she arrives, you will both defer to Asteria. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly, father," Eska said, stock-still, like a frozen statue in their castle's gardens. Oberon reached for her. He ruffled her hair, and behind him, Kaja started breathing again.

"That's a good girl. Give your dad a kiss." Despite herself, despite the way all affection is a lie, Eska stood and kissed his cheek. It was smooth. He pointed to the beetle, its limbs weakly treading air, and nodded expectantly. She was allowed to go and fetch it.

"Oh, and Kaja?" He half-turned, his starry eyes dark and unfathomable, his brow furrowed in concern. "Don't go committing any more 'illegal kiss crimes.' Okay? You know that the last thing I would ever want to do is break your heart." For a moment, his fingers lingered on his belt, and the abhorrent wonder-knife that sat there: Yearning, which is named Echidna. Then he was a huge black moth, darting into the night, and was gone.

Eska sat down, carefully dislodging the sand from the beetle's gears and joins bit by bit, not looking up at her sister's silently heaving shoulders. Sisters should give each other that much privacy, at least.

***

The Josune Temple, the Kingdom of Askaia

The good thing about the looting of the Josune Temple means that you've got a dragon-sized place to have your council of war.

Presiding: Queen Felicia von Catabas, in her true form of a broad-shouldered, deep-furred Forest Cat, the bejeweled hat of Askaia on her head. (The Askaians being more casual and relaxed than most kingdoms, even their crown looked more like a velvet beach hat with amber bangles hung along the brim.) Beside her, her husband, wearing lacquered cat armor and looking into every corner like he's scared a Rider will jump out and steal away his wife again.

In attendance: various priests, stewards, and police-cats, all heaped on top of Adila, as well as Princess Rita von Catabas, still in her catgirl form.

"When the Riders came," Felicia says, her voice deep and resonant, echoing strange against the wood-slat walls, "they brought with them Azora Howl, and she brought with her a terrible thing. This she has hidden somewhere on Askaia, and it sickens our holy mist, makes it cruel and hungry. Our champions are seeking out those lost in the mist, lost in dark dreams, and fortifying against possible Rider counterattack, now that we have defeated their own champions. But I do not know what sort of spells Azora Howl has placed upon her terrible thing. I do not know even what it looks like, but can feel it eating away at our magic, fouling the ley lines and growing in strength. If we cannot remove it, there will be no safe place on Askaia within the week, and we will have to leave our home."

There is wailing at this, a caterwaul of despair and anger.

"Rita, my beloved daughter. I wish I did not have to place this burden upon you, but I must ask you to go into the wild and remove this thorn in the island's hide. It will be dangerous, and I cannot give you aid- not without risking the safety of our people." She sounds tired now. So very tired. Perhaps it is true that the Queen of Askaia possesses a mystic bond with the incense-mist that covers the island. "Will you accept this quest?"

"I will, mother," Rita says, sinking down to one knee and pressing one hand against her breast. For, perhaps, the first time since you met her, she is showing the proper dignity and grace expected of a princess.

You are not asked to accompany her. It would be shameful, to ask such a thing of you; they cannot request your aid, merely accept it if it is offered. But it cuts both ways: I do not think any of you could look another princess in the eye again if you let Rita march into the mists alone. So it is up to you to offer your aid, that she may accept it.

[Anarion]

Kazelia looks to the other two princesses and and steps forward, bowing to the queen and king next to Rita, trying to ignore the little curls of ice that form on the stones where her white hair grazes them. "I will go as well. The corruption here is my sister's doing and I will see it undone. And I would...enjoy spending more time with Rita." Kazelia remains in place, hoping that she has not been too brash in committing, but that her friends will join her as well.

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila had busied herself organizing the prisoners. She loved prisoner duty.

As a dragon she had inherent advantages when managing prisoners - strength, speed, eyesight and telepathy all worked together to make it extremely easy to keep track of them. That meant that she now had a few dozen people on hand who all had to do whatever she said. The obvious thing to do was what it had always been - to organize a game of Brightball.

She couldn't play normal games, of course. How she'd wanted to! Ever since she'd seen the Illumianators defeat the Steel Hobs as a hatchling she'd been hooked. But it turns out there was a rule saying dragons couldn't play Brightball and none of the Watch wanted to play against her no matter how many limbs she promised not to use. So there was only one source of people in all the world she could live out her dreams with: prisoners. Warden shifts meant she got to organize all the prisoners and force them to play against her - teams weren't necessary, all of them verses her was fine. She could toss the ball across the pitch, fly over to it, and spike it down into the ground before it landed. Yeah! Point for Princess Adila! Take that!

Some of the prisoners - most of them, really - had no inclination to play her game so they just stood around, hands sullenly in pockets. But some of them got into it. One of the Rider sea captains especially decided to go all out against the dragon princess and brought his entire crew with him. They set up a cunning pattern where they were passing the ball to the furthest team-mate whenever she got close - but Princess Adila had seen this trick before and one snap of her wings knocked the ball far back court where she was able to rush out, snatch it up, and score again. +Yeah!!+ Even when playing against people who weren't even slightly on her level Princess Adila still had a great time. It was as close as she was going to get to her dream of being a star athlete, but more than that, she honestly loved the game.



She only reluctantly turned over control of the prisoners to the grizzled old tabbycat who served as Askaia's chief constable - but there was a meeting on and she'd run them all ragged by that point anyway. She showed up a few minutes late and was instantly covered in grumpy cats who let her know their annoyance of being made to wait in the cold with a chorus of meowing. Another few minutes and the cats she was carrying were once again purring as her warmth soaked through them.

She tries to focus on the meeting but isn't able to fully keep her thoughts about that sick chaos dunk she did at the end from seeping out of her. Focus, Adila! This is important! +She shall not go alone, Your Highness! As Princess of the Watch it is my duty to restore your Kingdom!+

[PhoeKun]

Princess Alina Cascade keeps herself occupied while Askaia pulls itself back together and counts up all its missing people and treasures. She shapes her light into tongs and gently plucks ghost arrows out of cat soldiers, then she bathes them in warm light until they come out of their nightmares. She's out on the docks wearing her cloak again and overseeing the dredging of some artifacts that fell in during Princess Adila's... um... daring rescue of the prisoners. Yes, let's go with that. Every now and again Alina whips out a beam of light from her wrist and pulls up a crate or similar herself. She perches someplace high and watches Adilla play Brightball with their prisoners. This makes her smile despite herself. She does not, of course, join in.

Nobody really seems to appreciate anything she does. When she heals someone she's met with a stare that asks her without words why she left these poor kitties to suffer and didn't do this for them as soon as she got here. The dockworkers grumble about her being a bossy showoff. There's a bit of gossip about how unbecoming it is for a princess to sit like that and watch a game when there's still so much to do. But nobody ever says this to her face, nor are they so rude as to ask her for her help. She gives it anyway even if it's bothering her. It's either this, or thinking about what happened.

And oh goodness, there it is! She kissed her! She kissed Kaja Ironpelt right on the lips! Why would she do that? Well of course because she'd looked so sad and lonely. But still! She kissed her! The usurper, the kingdom stealer! Daughter of that... that... monster! But it was nice! Really cold, but nice! Rains take me, what does that mean?? Every time she thinks about it she turns as rosy as the dawn and disappears in a flash of multicolored light.

One more time, she decides. Just one more time. To... to make sure. Yeah.

***

The Queen's words are a cold slap of reality. Alina hasn't been brave enough to sneak back into Illumina and see it for herself, but she doesn't need to. Her glass towers aren't so different from Askaia's. And here they are, coating in rime as everything on this island paradise slowly turns twisted. She can see it just fine. She's been stupid; there's only one thing for her to do. So she bows with a deep and very Illuminan flourish so that her hair flips forward and brushes just barely against the ground.

"My final promise to your people was for better weather. Leave it to me, Your Grace! And then remember that the true Illumina is still shining somewhere, and is still your friend."

She hides a wince under another hair toss. Her mother was a lot better at the big speech part of this job. On her head, each of her lights pulses soothingly in turn.

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City, the Kingdom of Askaia

The room is filled with satisfied purrs from those honoraries in attendance. Tradition has been satisfied, and their princess shall not march off into that dark alone. And how can she fail? She will have with her a dragon, a renegade Rider, and lovely little Alina, doesn't it just seem like yesterday she was five years old and running around the city with a sticky mouth and, somehow, absolutely perfect poise? She gave the best headpats, too.

"I thank you, noble Princesses," the Queen says, and bows her head in respect. "Yet, my daughter tells me that you suffered grievously in forging through the mist once already, and I would not, upon my life, ask you to go forth a second time without giving you what protection I can."

An old black shrine priestess comes forward, bearing a tray of crushed pigments around her neck. Rita gasps in delight, and then turns into a calico. (It's very shimmery, her transformation.) The shrine priestess dabs her paw in pigments, and then marks a lovely pattern on Rita's kitty face. Then she asks, "Rita, darling. Please pick me up so I don't have to ask them all to lie down."

Shimmer shimmer! Rita becomes a catgirl again, now with bold strokes on her face in purple and green and sea blue, and hoists up the shrine priestess, holding her up first to Alina's face, then Kazelia, then Adila, letting her pap pap pap those little cat paws on your faces. "Now be careful," the shrine priestess says as she works the pigments into Adila's scales. "This won't come off the minute you young things start sweating, but if you wash it off or get it smudged, it won't help you anymore out there. Do your best not to fall in a river or scratch your nose."

***

A Forsaken Beach Resort, the Kingdom of Askaia

Throughout Hyperborean history, the general maxim of political science has been: it is better to be loved than to be feared. If your people love you, they will do anything for you; if they merely fear you, they will seek at every turn to overthrow you.

Hyperborean political science had never dealt with Princess Asteria Spite.

She stood at the bow of the longboat looming out of the mist, each pull of the oars in time to the war-drums that announced her presence (along with the trademark subtlety of the crystal spotlights illuminating her), her tall boots gleaming and her tight bob of white hair unruffled by the sea winds. Behind her, Iluminan conscripts in matching ice-blue uniforms and matching crew cuts labored at the oars, as Riders in their black cloaks stood watching over them. As the longship neared the shore, Asteria raised her gloved fingers to her lips and whistled, sharply. Then, with poise any princess would envy, she hoisted herself up by the figurehead and stepped out.

Her boot found a chitinous black shell beneath it, as the vile sea-beasts known as Garthim surged out to obey her unspoken wish. With viciously timed clicks of her heel, she descended the ladder of rolling, surging bodies down to the sands, never once letting her head bob or sway. She then smiled at her sisters, in the sense that she pulled her lips back from her teeth.

"Eska! Kaja! Report!"

Eska held up a warning finger to stop Kaja from blurting out apologies, and simply asked, "Where's Cassian?"

"Cassian is in time-out! He will be joining us once he has learned to obey orders promptly and without delay! But we will not require his services! Unlike others of my family, I do not lead a ragtag group of undisciplined sailors and 'raiding buddies,' Kaja, I lead an army! An army which, under my command, will bring order to this barbaric island! Following my orders, the two of you will succeed where, working alone, you failed miserably!"

She snapped her fingers, and Garthim began to lumber up from the shore, splitting into a sharp V to avoid Asteria and her sisters. Eska curled a lip in disgust as the reeking, brutish crustaceans passed her by. You couldn't do subtle with one of those crabs if you were fighting the Blind, Deaf Princess of Castle Oblivious. Or against Kaja, even.

"...so did you want the report?" Kaja asked, meekly. Asteria leaned in, still baring her teeth, looking up at her statuesque sister.

"I will be very interested in hearing whether it differs from what Father told me," she said with murderous quiet, as behind her, the Illuminan soldiers began to disembark.

***

The Mists and the Jungle, the Kingdom of Askaia

"-I'm happy as can be! Let's go walking you and me! Ready, set, come on, let's go! Over the hill, across the field, through the tunnel we'll go..."

It's morning now. You spent a lovely evening as the guests of the Queen, most likely covered in cats who wanted to snuggle with you all night long. The storm's ferocity has abated, and now even the oh-so-sensitive Rita has pulled down her scarf and is singing a traditional Askaian walking song as she trudges through the slushy snow. All around you, the mists peel back, and though there are ominous shadows and sounds within, they seem powerless to hurt you as vividly as they did before.

Then Rita stops. Her ear twitches. (Does she have four ears, as a catgirl? Have any of you checked?) She frowns. "Did you all hear that?" She glances from side to side, into the foliage all around you. "There it is again. Didn't you hear that? Kind of a clicking noise?"

[PhoeKun]

Oh, what a difference the morning light makes! Everything here had been terror and pain, and now she's here humming along to a walking song she never quite learned the words to when she was small. Princess Alina has her lights again and she shapes them as she pleases, here brushing clean the path and there lifting the leaves of a plant of some description or another out of Adila's face to keep the little colored cat paws and streaks fresh on her face. In fact, she's almost sure she recognizes this path, despite the slushy snow that really has no business here. It's close, surely, to the place she used to play when some part of her still knew how to be sticky and no part of her knew how to worry. If lifts her heart to imagine it.

She stops swiftly just a step or two behind Rita. She sees those fuzzy ears twitch (and to be sure, she's always been so caught up staring at catgirls' ears to know for sure if there are normal ones there to, but she'd be quite shocked to hear there were), and strains her own to match. She tilts her head, perplexed. Then she lifts her Orange higher above everyone's heads, to maybe spook the mystery sound into being louder. Or at least let her see something she was missing.

"Oh!" she says after a moment. Then she tilts her head to the other side and her lips purse as her face sets itself into an extremely composed but also puzzled expression. "Maybe?"

To be sure, Illuminan grace has never once stood up against Askaian senses when it comes down to a Noticing Things Contest. But our little light, she tries her best.

[Look Closely: 2d6+1 = 10. "What is going on here? What do my senses tell me?", "Is something hidden or out of place? If so, what looks suspicious?", "What will happen if I fire a warning laser into the morning mists?"]

[Raz_Fox]

The Mists and the Jungle, the Kingdom of Askaia

The crunch of frozen leaves under many pincer-tipped legs. The sudden stench of something rotten from the bottom of the ocean. The chittering of maxillipeds. Hulking, black-shelled Garthim are coming for you. They’re not here yet, being incredibly unsubtle, but they have your... scent? Motion? Sound? Who knows how these creatures hunt.

Claws That Catch. Anyone damaged by the Garthim becomes grabbed. They can grab up to four at a time, and only let go if this stat is damaged.

Foul, nasty black pincers that smell like rotting seaweed and stale sushi, waving at the ends of four different forelimbs. Amazingly, the muscles of the arm are similar to a crocodile’s jaw: incredible closing force, but very weak trying to open again.

Armored Shell. The Garthim can only take damage from attacks with the Piercing tag.

The natural predator of the Garthim is probably the kraken. Or something with a great big beak, anyway. Even Adila’s fire would roll right off their backs.

Group. The Garthim can act against two people at once. When this stat is damaged, the enemy is Taken Out, or this is the only stat remaining, replace this group with two normal enemies.

I personally think they’re all over the island looking for you, but here? There’s eight or so.

As for out-of-place... well, yes. These things are scavengers and parasites, crustaceans which primarily feed off ley lines which cut through the sea, though they are known to dwell in lagoons that are black enough for them. Something stirred them up, is directing their wills as one. If you interrupted that magician, the Garthim would likely mill about looking for magical things to eat and dank bogs to mate in.

(Isn’t nature wonderful?)

As for what would happen if you fired a warning laser into the mists... you’d probably tickle them, alert them to your position, and maybe expose yourself to whoever directs the Garthim. On the other hand, if you wanted to lead them on a merry chase away from the dragon, the catgirl and the Rider, I’d be hard-pressed to think of a better way to get their attention.

[Thanqol]

It was a short step from joy to misery, and for Princess Adila it came at the city gates. As soon as she was surrounded by trees instead of buildings and nature instead of people the disappointment settled on her like the snow. She was tense, twitchy, nervous, and her internal chatter started to pick up the pace to fill the empty space left by thousands of people no longer being in proximity. Some part of her looks at this frozen landscape and wishes it was paved over or on fire, possibly both.

+What's going on?+ she thinks, awkwardly getting her legs under her to slow down from her forwards momentum. +Trouble?+

[PhoeKun]

Alina's first move is not to grab the crab's attention and lead them away from her friends on a merry chase at great personal risk. Oh my gosh are you kidding me? Who even put that idea in your head? No, the first thing she does is squeak, jump several feet into the air, and cling to the back of Adila's neck.

"Oh gosh, oh no, I've heard of these! This is bad, this is very super bad, my mo-- er, Mother told me they're born princess catchers. And if they're here in a place like this you just know they're in thrall to some gross sea hag or a perverted old wizard. Oh gross, gross, gross, there's so many of them. Let's go before they grab us up and toss us in a pit full of silk dissolving slime!"

N-not that she's speaking from experience or anything! But even if her concerns are oddly specific, is a deft hand at classical princess adventuring. It's really best to trust her experience in moments like these. She asks Kazelia to bait the place where they're standing now with some simple spell, and sets a series of multicolored tiles leading off the main path for everyone to follow. She clumps a bunch of them together so that Princess Adila's dragon-sized feet don't have any trouble stepping on them, and in this way turns even the heaviest footfalls into a tiny click click click like a horseshoe trotting on a stone street several blocks away. She pulls them up, up, up, not quite to the treeline, where no crab would think to look for them but low enough where they won't pop up in front of any nasty flying things (always assume there are nasty flying things, when the Kidnap Crabs come prowling). She stops once to wrap her Violet around Rita's waist and pull her up to the front of the line so she can point the best way forward, and one more time to ask Adila to push a really big rock out of the way (and then back into the way).

Yes, teamwork is the real magic. Alina guides them all back down to the ground in a clearing some ways away, in a spot she's quite certain she remembers but more important she's even more certain is for the moment free of Garthim prowling about.

"There's some things you just don't mess with," she says with a sigh of relief, "It's usually a lot easier if you just find the evil witch and beat her up instead. But who would bring something like them here?"

[Alina rolls Get Away with Hope on behalf of the Fellowship: 3d6(best 2)+2= 3, 4, 4 = 8+2 = 10. The Fellowship arrives quickly, suffering no harm, and quietly, drawing no attention]

[Anarion]

Yes, teamwork is the real magic. Alina guides them all back down to the ground in a clearing some ways away, in a spot she's quite certain she remembers but more important she's even more certain is for the moment free of Garthim prowling about.

"There's some things you just don't mess with," she says with a sigh of relief, "It's usually a lot easier if you just find the evil witch and beat her up instead. But who would bring something like them here?"


Perhaps it was her fondness for the cat princess, perhaps the success they'd had in stopping the Rider fleet and saving the queen, or the way the cats had all looked at them with relief when they'd promised but to help. But whatever it was, before the Garthim had arrived, Kazelia had let Rita's infectious laughter reach her and was, for one of the few times in her life, actually enjoying herself. While she still felt oddly happy, her moment of being unguarded ended as soon as Rita caught the clicking noise and Alina started scouting. She drew her spear and was prepared to act as her mind started whirring, going through the calculus of which of her dad's minions could pull off a feat like this one. She counted her lucky stars that Alina was leading them with such skill: the multicolored tiles meant that Kazelia left no icy footprints and the clear path meant she didn't have to cut her way through anything and leave an obvious trail of freshly sliced leaves and branches.

"If it's my sisters, I think it would have to be a new arrival. Kaja doesn't do this kind of magic and Eska's never made a device that would be able to control garthim like this. Azora could do it, and we're in real trouble if she's here. Asteria could do it too, she's not as bad, but still really tough. Cassian...could maybe do it, he doesn't get many chances to show off, honestly, everyone always made fun of him. Or it could be a group of Father's witches. I don't think any of them are as strong as the princesses, but a small coven together could definitely work a spell like this. The witches don't like to travel to new places first though, they'd usually show up after one of us princesses had already secured a base. I remember a few years ago, I had to freeze an entire woodland around the Rowan border before the witches would set up and cast spells to help us track the Rowani cavalry. Er...them, the Riders I mean...I'm sorry."

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil, the Kingdom of Askaia

Alina, let's start with you. Your polychromatic cobblestones lead you down onto the head of the Big Hill. That's what you called it, back then, when you were on vacation here: the Big Hill. You could see Summerveil from the top of the Big Hill, and it was the perfect steepness to let you cartwheel and then roll all tumbly down the hill, with your feline playmates rushing after you. Then you could run back through the blackberry bushes and the tall-crowned trees, over the pretty stone bridge that your mother told you not to lean over (for the white-churning river below was a ways down, dearest) and onto the front porch, where your mother would be waiting for you.

Thinking back, isn't it like thinking on a lovely dream? It's easy to remember colors, and laughter, and moments without time. The light streaming through the stained-glass windows in the big barn out back. Sitting on windowsills watching the setting sun turn colors through the mist, which was almost like a pretty Jedadi veil draped over the world. Eating pickled plums on rice, and chicken that Rita's father grilled for you out back, and running from building to building, getting lost in the garden, watching butterflies alight on flowers, and falling asleep right on the grass, only half-awaking when your mother picked you up to carry you inside.

Though there's a little problem, now. The mists aren't that lovely, gauzy veil over the world anymore; they're heavy, and churning, and dark. The top of Big Hill is high up enough that you're not in the worst of it, but down there, even if the shrine-paint stops you from having your heart broken again, I think you'll be lucky to see a Rider before you bump into them! But you can still hear things:

Water falling onto water, water tumbling over rocks, water dripping from leaves, water tossed up in sprays, water churning in pools. Unreal cicadas from those lost summers, singing from every tree, asking you to be their cicada princess, asking if you remember when one landed on your shoulder and slowly, over the course of hours, stepped right out of his skin and left it on you. Somewhere, drums. Elsewhere, whistles.

***

Adila, let's turn to you. You have eyes that can see through anything. But looking down into the mists is like putting your huge and lovely golden eyes up to a kaleidoscope. (Of course you've looked through kaleidoscopes; they're a very popular toy in Jedad.) You have to focus to avoid seeing double, seeing things in colors that they're not, or seeing, for a moment, a person you think you recognize, but really it's just a tree, or a stump, or a shed.

Here is what you can see, then, when you squint. There is a path that leads down from the hill, and it leads you right into a fortified camp. Trees have been cut back and bushes cleared, stakes sharpened and set up, and tents arrayed around the path. There are quite a few groups of similar-looking people down there, and most of the groups look like this: there are five or so people in blue uniforms that look a little like the Watch's uniforms, carrying glass spears, quietly freaking out at the mist all around them, and then two Riders with them, one with armor and those pale swords and one in leathers with a bow. One of the persons in blue has a little glass whistle that they blow every couple of minutes, and the Rider in leathers seems to be following a line or path that only they can see. These groups are making a nice patrol net on this side of the river-gorge, probably looking for princesses.

On the other side of the gorge that the river has carved into the earth is a clearing set against a cliff-face. In that clearing is what used to be a very large and beautiful estate, I think, all glass and quaint woodcarvings and bungalows for guests and a little smithy by the lake; only, now, it's all swampy mire and black ice and there's rot eating away at the wood. I wouldn't like to go into such a place! I'd look at it from a distance, for fear that if I went inside one of the buildings, the roof would fall down on me, or I'd step on a rusty nail, or someone would come and yell at me for being where I'm not supposed to be, and I'd especially not want to go inside if I was as big as a dragon, because then I'd be rubbing up against those uncomfortably wet walls and ducking my head low every time I passed into a different room and trying to keep my tail from knocking into some loose and pointy slats, assuming that I, like you, had a tail.

For a moment there's a flash of black and blue in one of the upper-story windows of the big villa in the middle of the estate- but it's gone before you can be sure that it wasn't just the kaleidoscope playing tricks on you.

***

Kazelia, as for you-

This has Asteria written all over it. She is so bossy and self-assured that it's like her superpower. People tend to do what she wants them to do, even if she doesn't say it, and if you don't do what she wants you to do, she'll be nasty and awful and probably use her laser whip until you learn to do what she wants you to do. If she wanted, she could probably make a play for Azora's job, but Azora is smarter than her, and gave her the sort of job she likes more: running the Iluminan Volunteer Corps. Terrorizing a bunch of Iluminans trying to make sure their kids are looked after back at home, or who got in trouble for seditious activities, or who got press-ganged into service, is so fun for her that she's much too busy doing that than jockeying for Azora's job.

If anyone could get those Iluminans to turn on Asteria, it would be Alina, but even then, I don't think it's guaranteed to work! They might be too scared of Asteria, or they might think that Asteria would ease up on them if they handed Alina over to her, or even just are scared that if they turn traitor their families back home will be punished for it.

If you get in a fight with her, she'll try to make you do what she says; she'll tie you up and tie you down; she'll snap her fingers and get her soldiers to beat you up. And once she has you in her clutches, she will be very mean. Like making Alina serve drinks at dinner and clean her boots, or using Adila as her new horse, or locking Rita up in a dog kennel, and she would make you watch.

On the other hand, giving her an opportunity to be mean- that distracts her, every time. If she was focused on making you feel pathetic and weak, a traitor who couldn't even get betrayal right, she wouldn't even notice Adila sneaking past her.

(And it is possible- the haze of memory suggests- that she was not always so; that she was dependable, organized, would be mean if her partners asked her oh-so-nicely, and always rubbed their shoulders after- but are you not all your father’s children?)

Mist-haunted. Attempts to Look Closely are rolled with Despair, here. Yes, even yours, Adila, though you still have the right to Look Closely from afar.

Rider Patrols. There is always a patrol within earshot, here, and they will be here in a moment if they hear you, and blowing their whistle, too.

Slavemaster. When Asteria would be damaged while an ally is around, they take the damage instead.

People tend to suddenly step in the way of attacks meant for Asteria; that is, if she doesn’t pull them in front of her herself, or take it out on them to vent her frustrations.

Pathetic! When something goes wrong, damage this stat to make a Hard Cut immediately. If she still has Slavemaster, she can damage an ally instead of damaging this stat.

Asteria is always at her most dangerous when she has other people around to order about- but even alone, she’s no pushover, especially when you won’t stop defying her.

Sadistic. When things are going her way, Asteria will always pause to gloat, monologue, and rub it in.

She just so happens to have a pretty frilly maid outfit that would fit you perfectly in her wardrobe and she’s not afraid to use it.

[Thanqol]

There was one advantage to being out in the countryside. Princess Adila took a breath. She let her perceptions of the fort and house flow through to the others.

There was one advantage to be out in the wilderness surrounded by enemies: it meant that collateral damage was bonus damage. She could see through the mists, she could fly faster than the people on the ground could react. A quick pass and a breath of flame and then all would be chaos. The idea made her heart beat faster - it would be exciting to cut loose like that, but the idea was scary too. She should consider it carefully.

[Look Closely with Despair: 1, 4, 5 +2 = 7.

- What will happen if I burn down the fort?
- Is something hidden or out of place? If so what looks suspicious?
- Tell me about the manor house. How could it help me? How could it hurt me?

I find one of these out the hard way]

[Anarion]

So, Overlord. Let's go through what we know. Kazelia recognizes the pieces in play, Kaja and Eska on the island stealing, now Asteria organizing patrols and setting up camp here. I'm assuming that's all the pieces in play now, since you're bound to say when the minions of the overlord approach and you've done such a good job of doing that. And we know that they're poisoning the mist and freezing the island, twisting what was once so wholesome and it's our job as princesses to stop them and free Askaia from their control. So...do tell, and be honest. What is one way I could stop this?

[PhoeKun]

Alina's just standing there with a tear welling in one eye. Her senses are all over the place. She hears the water, rushing, roaring, tumbling down and pouring into pools, splashing over stone, all around, all around. She sees the mist, and through the choking thickness of it she can just make out the vague shapes and colors that tells her where she is. Not that she needs those. She's on Big Hill! That's the only name she's ever had for it. Does it have a real one? It doesn't matter. It's her Big Hill, and that means she's at Summerveil! And that means...

She can feel the grass on her bare feet as she runs and tumbles down the hill. She can feel her soaked clothes and the hair clinging to her back because she was just too excited and had to go swimming right now, mommy! She can see the light shining through the window, the way it turns the sunlight into soft reds and blues and even lavender like her hair. She can taste the berries, smell the fish, hear Rita giggling next to her. And she can feel the soft boots on her feet where she's too scared to leave Big Hill and see her special place right now. She can see the mist and nothing else. And she can see Adila's thoughts, so it's like looking after all and there are the tents that shouldn't be there, and the broken shards of glass nobody cleaned up and the rot... oh no the rotting of her beautiful summers like a horrible nightmare she has to carry around inside of her forever now. There is nothing, nothing that can't be taken. She hears her mother calling for her, singing softly.

Wash away, wash away,
Fall down and wash away
Let all your fears and troubles
Wash away, wash away,
Fall down and wash away

There's the stirrings of another verse, but it's cut off by the sight of nervous people dressed in blue and armed with her glass spears. She doesn't need to guess what this means. Her mind seizes. It bounces without reason from past to present, both shrouded and clear, as happy as she can ever remember being and so sad she doesn't have a word for it. There's a breeze that stirs her hair and catches her in this moment. It's cruel. It's too cruel.

She doesn't break this time. She doesn't go dashing off the hill like a deer, into blindness all by herself. Her lights don't shrink from her, her magic keeps flowing. Nice and strong, our Alina Cascade. But I think we must thank the Askaian priestess for this, because here in Summerveil? Where the mists are so thick and choking and so very very evil, and her memories are so very, very strong there might be no price she's strong enough to pay that could keep her in her right mind without the little cat paw paint she wear so prettily upon her cheeks. She's here, and you may use her if you guide her. Shouldn't a princess get some small praise for that?

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil, the Kingdom of Askaia

Adila!

Let’s take those one at a time, Adila. The fort is the sort of slapdash thing you throw together when you’re low on time, visibility, and are hoping a dragon will just blunder into the stakes because they’re exactly as sight-impaired as you are. Everybody inside seems to be groping their way along clearly laid-out paths with stakes and string guardrails.

If you set that camp ablaze, you’ll neutralize a lot of the threat the Riders down there pose. You’ll certainly distract Asteria! Like, a lot. And that might be worth doing if it buys your companions time.

But.

People will get hurt. And not all of them will be Riders, and not all of them are here by choice. Fire is a dangerous friend, and moreso when there is no clear line-of-sight to escape it.

Now if you identify which one is Asteria’s tent, and set that one on fire... well, there’s still the risk of it getting out of control, but at least that would be less dangerous. More surgical. I’m sure you’re great at that.

As for Summerveil itself, it’s a shoe-in for “mystic artifact storage.” It’s sitting on a ley line for sure, it’s probably got crystals worked into the foundations and support beams, looks like it’s been smote by the fist of an angry swamp spirit. If what you’re here to collect isn’t in there, you’ve got opposable thumbs and floofy lavender hair.

Flipside: whatever’s in there is leaking. Proper procedure here would be to quarantine the area and get specialists to safely remove whatever’s in there, then to get a cleaning detail of witches to scrub this place’s aura down thoroughly. Last time you saw something this bad, the specialist got beat up by the shadow of her own heart while inside and spent a week in the infirmary afterwards with sage and candles burning around her 24/7.

But you don’t have specialists. You’ve got yourself, a Rider witch (possible harmony or immunity to whatever’s going on? possible risk of turning evil if exposed? not enough data), Alina Cascade (pure of heart, but also tiny and sad and vulnerable), and Rita von Catabas (experience w/ mists, probably won’t turn evil??). If you go inside, best to go as group; one-by-one is a dumb plan. Don’t be a hero, stick with your buddies.

But.

There’s the rub. The house looks like it’s about ready to collapse already. Your entry might expedite that process considerably. Houses: built to facilitate going from room to room, artifact likely out in open somewhere. Piles of rubble: dangerous, heavy, artifact likely buried and still leaking. Face it, Adila: like always, you’re just too big.

As for what’s hidden here? One of the cicadas singing their constant drone rises from the hill, and it takes a second look for you to realize that its coloration is richer and more uniform than an insect really should be. It’s made of brass and clockwork, and it’s winging quick and steady off towards Summerveil itself.

You’ve been bugged.

***

Kazelia!

Take what Azora has left here. Shatter it, destroy it, unmake it; pure water will be required, or a maiden’s tears, and that alone will not suffice. Else this place will become the Slaugh, a nightmare swamp, a Source of Power that Oberon can seize all for himself- and before you ask, allowing it to become the Slaugh deliberately would mean sacrificing Askaia on the gamble of harnessing its blasphemous power against your father. Then run, run like anything, and do not let your sisters catch you.

***

Alina!

Rita takes your hand in hers. (She’s wearing thick mittens- it’s still too cold for her- but it’s a reassuring sensation all the same, I think.) She squeezes tightly, trying to ground herself as much as she’s trying to ground you, because the alternative is being lost in those memories alongside you. Because this is a special place for her, too, and what has happened here- it is threatening to eat everything. The places she loves, her favorite sushi bars, the beach resorts, the glass towers, the winding streets and back alleys, her mother and her father. Your pain, in this moment, rhymes- and that may be a comfort. It may be another burden.

(And yes. You are strong, Alina. You must be, to not shatter.)

[Anarion]

Adila’s eyes are a blessing here, even if the sights are all dire. She even has the vision to pick out Eska’s handiwork and that’s enough for Kazelia to act, she thought. She snaps up a hand and makes a grabbing motion, and a hand of frigid mist coalesces and mirrors her, trying to snap the clockwork cicada out of the air. It’s already gone though, Adila’s image had only been for an instant and it must have turned or sped up. Blast, they’d need to work on that.

“Father always taught us to act quickly, to never lose an opportunity when it appears,” she whispers, running back in her mind to another time. Asteria drilling troops. Kazelia had always been more of a forward fighter, the sort of unit a military fielded to smash a hole in a location and break a line. Asteria had always brought up the rear, and was lecturing. “Remember Kaze” (that’s pronounced “ka-zay” by the by) “a good army functions when everything has a place and meets it. If you go in when you’re not meant to, you’ll divert resources, you’ll give away valuable information, and that would be very bad. You don’t want to be a bad girl, do you?”

Back in the present, Kazelia looks at the others. “We need to break up what they’re doing somehow. Not just cause chaos, but pull a piece of their army away from the rest. We can’t take everything as Asteria presents it. She counts on that.”

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila would love to spend some time on this. She'd love to draw maps and force organization charts and have meetings and spend hours creeping around. But they've been rustled. The time is now.

She had this though. It was clear as daylight.

+We've been made. I am going to destroy the camp,+ she thought, cast iron, no hint of hesitation or doubt. +The two of you must go through to the house over that way; it is the source of the curse. I can't follow you inside but I can buy you time. Do not waste it.+

She took a deep breath. Time to be a hero.

She spread her wings and took off without a second thought. She kept her eyes on the tiny bug even as she gained altitude. It was going to go to the person in charge and then she was going to burn that person's tent into a smouldering crater.

Her heart pounded louder. Should she hold back? She didn't know if her best would be too much or not enough. She didn't know what side to err on.

[PhoeKun]

Delicate fingers entwine around a soft mitten. A squeeze for a squeeze. This is a burden, yes, and a hurt. But it's one she can share, and that's... it helps.

Alina stands there stoically at the top of her Big Hill linked hand in hand with Rita, even as the dragon-princess snaps out her wings and bravely flies off with the command left hanging in the... well, not the air, but everyone's thoughts, to not waste this heroism. She stands and she watches, and her hair and clothes flutter in the sudden gust while Summerveil again becomes a thing of mist, mystery, and memory. She squeezes that mittened hand again.

"Kazelia, you're so strong and brave. I know you said you wanted to help, but if you rode down there and confronted your sisters, that's where you would do the most good. For us, for you... and for them, too. We're all victims of your father, every one of us here. So fight bravely, but remember that. And while you do, Rita and I will slip into Summerveil, find the source of all this... and destroy it. This our special place. She and I know it better than anyone, and we should be the ones to save it."

She swallows. She could do this, she is strong. Strong, and not alone.

[Alina Reveals The Way to Kazelia, with the advice of 'confront your sisters directly instead of seeking this source of power. She can take this advice at face value, or refuse it and do something to spite her]

[Anarion]

Kazelia watches Adila fly off with some dismay. Act quickly, yes, but she meant they should have baited a trap and lured away the soldiers, not fly headlong into Asteria’s clutches. Still, still, Adila was gone and Alina was speaking. “Go and fight.” Yes, that was what she was best at, and the way Alina said it filled Kazelia with hope. She was willing to trust, really trust her friends, not like her sisters. So, she sighed, drew her spear and mounted Shiva with quiet grace.

Then she turns to Alina. “You’ll need pure water or a maiden’s tears to destroy the source of the corruption that Azora created. And something else, I’m not sure what maybe a source of magical power as a catalyst. If you see Asteria, do something unexpected. Be well, and if you need me, call and I will come.”

With that, she mounts up and takes wing. She’s looking for the sisters that Adila flushes out, and she’ll follow Alina’s advice as soon as she has a target.

[this is simply waiting to see Adila’s results to pick a target, I don’t intend any moves yet.]

[Raz_Fox]

A Makeshift Fort, the Kingdom of Askaia

Salute! Asteria!

When the Princess comes forth from her tent, which is decorated in sea-blue velvets, you are meant to stop and salute, unless you are on a Mission Critical role, in which case, you will be punished for saluting. To make it easier for everyone to know where she is, her Iluminan bodyguard (Tam Patterley, since you asked) whistles as she exits the tent. In the mist, there is a sound like everyone in earshot hurriedly guessing where Asteria is and saluting as hard as they can.

"Good," she says to herself, reveling in the feeling. "We'll show Eska a thing or two about proper warfare."

Then her tent explodes.

Tam Patterley dives onto Asteria, knocking her down onto the muddy ground, while cutlery sets and very uncomfortable-looking clamps go flying out of the tent into the mist, the entire tent sagging into briliant flame. "Dragon!" The hue and cry goes up, and there is a moment of chaos. Absolute chaos!

Then Asteria Spite gets up, mud dripping from her lapels and her chin, and cracks her laser whip. The sound brings a chill to the spines of every woman there. And as the wingbeats of a dragon make huge eddies in the mists above-

She shoots the whip upwards, and it curls around the throat of the dragon princess above. (One of the many advantages of a laser whip, as opposed to the more leathery version!) Stepping onto Tam Patterley in order to have the proper footing and leverage, she jerks the whip down, one hand directly on the crackling whip itself, bringing Adila of the Watch crashing down out of the sky.

"What are you waiting for!" Asteria Spite screams, even as she pulls the whip tight, trying to keep Adila off-balance. "Muzzle her! Bind her! I will have her begging for treats by the time we go home! If she is not secured in the next minute there will be demerits!"

There is a mad scramble for Adila from everybody. After all, the consequences are demerits. And behind the Iluminans, with their glass spears, there are Riders drawing their blades and making a tight formation around their Princess, and Tam Patterley, doing her very best not to complain about the bootprints on her shoulders.

Shieldbearers. Enemies must damage this stat before they can damage your allies. THIS STAT HAS BEEN DAMAGED!

If there's one thing an elite Iluminan soldier is good at, it's suffering so that other people don't have to. Buy as much time for your princess as possible, no matter what.

For Ilumina, Anything. A Sentinel fighting someone cannot be ignored, and while fighting them, you are in Despair when trying to do anything but deal with them.

I can do this all day.

Expendable. Damage this stat to prevent damage to someone else.

"We have the utmost respect for our brave Iluminan Volunteer Corps. Why else would we allow them to be first into the fray?"

Graceful. Damage this stat to be somewhere that's very bad for your enemies, right now.

Like Princess, like subjects!

Gang This enemy can act against everyone at once. When this enemy is Taken Out, this stat is damaged, or this is their only stat left, replace the Gang with two Groups of the enemy. This stat can only be damaged by Dangerous or Area attacks.

Sighing Blades. When you Keep a Valkyrie Busy in melee combat, take one damage.

Like many things about them, the blades of the Riders are beautiful and cruel.

Inescapable. When you try to Get Away from a Valkyrie, they'll end up one step ahead of you.

Perfect for hunting down Princesses.

Group This enemy can act against two people at once. When this enemy is Taken Out, this stat is damaged, or this is their only stat left, replace the Group with two normal enemies.

***

Summerveil, the Kingdom of Askaia

A brass cicada alights on the shoulder of Eska Glinteye, who is sitting in the lee of a gable, her boots braced against the tiles, watching the mists eddy all around her. It chirps and chitters, and a slow smile spreads across Eska's face.

"You don't say? Well. Let's let them wander right into the trap, then-"

Across the river, Asteria's tent explodes, and Eska pinches the bridge of her nose.

"Or that. Yes. Have fun, Asteria." If she's lucky, that's just the dragon! And her sister (who clearly has been brainwashed by Iluminan rainbows) and the crybaby, they're still coming.

Well, let them come. Walk right into the House of Nightmares, princesses. You'll be hopping back out at swordpoint.

The cicada lifts off, instructed now to follow Kazelia Swiftlance and keep Eska notified on her whereabouts at all times, and Eska settles in to her sniper's perch, waiting for the trap to be sprung.

***

Alina!

There is a shimmer of light, and then a comforting weight about your shoulders. Rita is with you, in her stealthiest mode, warming your neck and purring with determination. You've got this. She'll be with you until the end.

[You may, at this time, take +1 Bond with Rita.]

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila was used to being outnumbered.

When the Watch did training it tended to be everyone-verses-her. They needed to figure out how to use their superior numbers to take down a firebreathing dragon and she needed to figure out how to not be drowned by sheer numbers. She was out of breath after that gout of fire. Right now she needed to create a bottleneck.

She walked backwards into the burning tent. The fire would shield her - and if she was lucky she would pull Princess Asteria into the flames with her.

[Anarion]

Kazelia flies up, up and towards the fire as Alina urged her. And then she sees Adila go down and struggle backward away from the whip and she is filled with a hard rage, cold and silent. Twice here, her sisters have attacked her friend, and she will protect her.

And this, this is what a Pegasus knight was made for. This was Kazelia’s battlefield role with that Riders. A shocking assault, straight for the heart of the foe. She sets her lance with one hand. With the other, she conjures an icy gale, strong and powerful. It gathers the mist with the force of the arctic wind. As she sets Shiva to the descent, she releases the gale first, shoving the foolish Illuminan with a shield backward and away. [Rolling to keep him busy and separate him Tam from Asteria. 2, 1, 4 +2=8.]

The gale shrieks as it’s released and plows into him, though it’s clear he’ll be able to get back up when the effect subsides. Then, all her focus is on the lance, the charge, and Asteria.

The wind howls past as Shiva picks up speed on the charge and Kazelia adjusts the lance with a practiced hand [Using mounted combat to generate an advantage] and goes straight for Asteria, hoping to strike a decisive blow and drive her sister from the field entirely. [5+2+2=9. I’ll damage Slavemaster]

[PhoeKun]

Thank goodness for friends. Alina is determined not to waste this opportunity, and she takes off running down the hill, sure footed and swift... and down into the mist. She doesn't let her eyes guide her through this, but instead follows the memories of her feet and the warm courage purring around her neck, until she finds the cobblestone bridge and hears the water rushing underneath it. And for the first time, just this one time, she disobeys her mother and she jumps in.

Immediately, she sees her mistake. Alina Cascade is, of course, a very strong swimmer. What possible Princess of Illumina could show her face if she was not? But she hadn't counted on the current being so malicious, and she hadn't counted on how hard she'd have to fight to keep Rita above the waterline. Certainly she loses count of how many rocks she bounces off of before she's finally forced to conjure a glowing orange pole to clamber up onto the opposite sure.

Immediately, she sees her mistake. Even in the heat of all this terrible fighting, and even in the midst she's glowing like a tiny sun, and anybody who's watching in the moment has marked her as surely as the river water drip drip dripping off her clothes up to her chest. She turns her head. Her worried green eyes meet fierce cat's eyes. And she knows without needing telepathy that the plan is to split apart and confuse the guards, so that at least one of them would reach Summerveil. And she knows just as surely that Princess Rita von Catabas intends for it to be Alina. So she shakes her head.

"Together."

Her crown flares briefly, but instead of emitting light, it sucks it in. The world around all around her shifts from mist soaked and hard to see, to pitch black and impossible to see. She crawls forward on the ground, not daring to make a sound. And she trusts to her memories. Somewhere in the inky dark air, the barest shimmer of indigo whips out onto the stone steps of what was once the most beautiful summer home any princess could ask for. And a moment later, Rita and Alina are inside.

Together.

[Get Away: 2d6+2 = 9. Alina chooses to bring Princess Rita with her, forsaking both smart options, and marks her Shadow spell to help cover their way in]

[Raz_Fox]

A Makeshift Fort, the Kingdom of Askaia

Kazelia!

You come down like a sudden summer storm. (How fitting.) The power of your wings sends poor Tam flying back from her charge, and the Riders (with their keening, pale blades) step back for a moment.

Play and counterplay. You set your lance firm, aimed at her side; you’re not about to kill your sister, but you can frighten her enough to drive her away.

She lashes out, trying to entangle your lance. Too naïve! You are Kazelia Swiftlance, finest of the King’s pegasus knights, and you will not be stopped by this. You allow her to seize your lance, and then with a flourish you channel all of your love, all of your hope, and all of your cold anger at what your sisters are willing participants in enabling, and that whip?

That whip bursts asunder. With a hoarse cry, Asteria flings the hiltpiece away from her into the mud, where it lies, smoking; you have shattered the crystals within, burst them into pieces with your gallant ardor. She holds her hand close to her chest, unable to hide her injury. For a moment, she is merely your sister, undone.

There is a shining moment where everyone sees you, a glorious Princess of Hyperborea, defender of the defenseless, mounted upon a Pegasus whose wings shine with two dozen colors, your noble lance held at the ready. There is a moment where it is possible that your sister shall lay down her arms and surrender, if only to stay your awesome wrath.

But the rub is that Tam Patterley, as Alina could tell you were she here, is an Iluminan knight of the highest caliber, and she does not allow her charges to be harmed, whether they be laughing children at play or cruel Riders who terrorize their charges. The duty is the same.

So she tackles you right off Shiva’s back with a flying leap from behind, bringing both of you down into the mud, and then punches you right in the kidneys to knock the wind out of you. You can hear the telltale moan of Riders’ blades all about you now.

Now, here we get a chance to see the difference between Azora and Asteria. Azora Howl would leave her troops to deal with you while she saw personally to Adila, and have you both safely in her clutches. But Asteria can’t help herself, and so instead of organizing the Iluminans working to collapse the tent around Adila, she chucks you under the chin with the toe of her boot.

“I almost thought you were trying to kill me, Kaze,” she says, with cloying, saccharine sweetness. “Whatever happened to our bonds of sororal love? I’ll have to teach you all over again how to be a good sister. It will be tough fitting your etiquette lessons in, given that I’ll have to break in my new mount at the same time, but I will do it. For you! Because you’re worth it.”

***

Adila!

Okay, so, everything in here is on fire. That’s good! Fire’s cool with you. All that comfortable sizzling and popping and wow that’s a lot of throw pillows that are now burning away.

In this circumstance, the right play would be to use the tent against you. They’re going to collapse the tent and try to get you tangled up in the fabric long enough for everyone else to focus on you.

And to make sure they- ow- don’t- yikes- have time and space to do that, they’re- REALLY?- going to poke you with their glass spears through the flaps of the tent and rents in the fabric, and while you are armored both above and below, that last spear thrust got you right in the hindquarters.

But because Asteria is a total meanie-pants who’s gloating over Kazelia, that means you’ve got a moment to figure out what you’re going to do about that before the tent collapses on top of you.

***

Summerveil, the Kingdom of Askaia

Alina!

Chaos! Your light cuts through the mist like a knife through butter, and you make out, as you clamber up onto the lake’s shore, several Rider-shaped shadows in the mist who can see you, and there are probably more who you can’t. It’s enough to make any princess squeak and drop into cover.

Which is good, because several arrows immediately zip over your head in the dark. They probably would have sucked out all your strength where they hit you, or wrapped you up in shadows all tight and helpless. And that would have been an ignoble end to your brave expedition, wouldn’t it?

Together, you and Rita crawl along the... icky, muddy, dank ground. A far cry from the smell of fresh-cut grass and strawberries. It reminds one, uncomfortably, of the Princess-catching Garthim. Rita’s tail is looped around your wrist, keeping the two or you close together no matter what.

Then you’re working your way up the front porch, praying that the wood won’t creak underneath you, that you won’t run right into Eska Glinteye’s shins, that nobody picks you up and that’s it, you’ve lost-

And then you’re inside and you’ve got the door closed behind you and Rita’s wedging a chair underneath the handle, because you’re definitely not getting out that way, and buying a little time to find the bad thing might be the difference between saving Askaia and losing another kingdom.

The lights come back, faintly, illuminating a house that looks like it’s been flooded. Repeatedly. Pools of stagnant, reeking water are everywhere; paint is peeling off the walls, and the wood is warped and bloated; nothing is in the place where it should be. Propped up on the bottom stair is Mr Stormy, the plush storm bird who you left here all those years ago. His button eyes are gone, his seams have torn, and he is looking at you. Right at you! Even without his buttons!

There is the sound of great wings upstairs, and thunder, and rain. Black water drips down from the ceiling. Rita gags, and pulls her warm scarf back up over her face to try to block out some of the smell of rot and dead water, which is everywhere. Mr Stormy is watching you. Somewhere there is the creak of boots on wood, a call for someone to check the next room; you are not alone in this horrible house.

This isn’t right.

This isn’t right!

Ignore the properties of being outside. You’re not outside anymore. You’re in here.

Black Water and Old, Forgotten Things. In a place like this- you may Pay a Price to do something, and it will take from you. If you do not, you must make the roll with Despair.

This move triggers every time you roll. Perhaps it is better, then, to accept what the Slaugh shows you.

Rot. Whenever a Move is failed in here, or something reckless is done-

A route becomes closed. A stair collapses, a door wedges shut. A hole opens in the floor, and the hole is full of black water to unknown depth.

Princess Rita von Catabas
You have one Bond with Rita. She has the stats Askaian Troubadour and All the Powers of Cat and Girl!

***

Melakh slams her shoulder against the door again, but it doesn’t give. She’s starting to sweat a little now. Riders aren’t supposed to sweat, but Riders also aren’t supposed to lose a target and be unable to pursue and subdue them. If Princess Asteria hears about this, she’ll get so many demerits, and then she’ll have... detention. She jiggles the handle, not in a frantic way, totally not in a frantic way, and slams herself against the door again.

“Don’t bother.” Melakh spins around, crisply salutes. It’s Princess Eska, hanging by one arm off the roof. Her expression: inscrutable. “I’m in no rush to go in there. You shouldn’t be either, idiot. Just wait out here and be ready to take the Iluminan crybaby into custody.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Melakh says. She marches briskly off the porch, but not so briskly that she misses the last thing Eska says, not to her but to herself:

“Besides. She’s Kaja’s problem now.”

[Thanqol]

Adila!

Okay, so, everything in here is on fire. That’s good! Fire’s cool with you. All that comfortable sizzling and popping and wow that’s a lot of throw pillows that are now burning away.

In this circumstance, the right play would be to use the tent against you. They’re going to collapse the tent and try to get you tangled up in the fabric long enough for everyone else to focus on you.

And to make sure they- ow- don’t- yikes- have time and space to do that, they’re- REALLY?- going to poke you with their glass spears through the flaps of the tent and rents in the fabric, and while you are armored both above and below, that last spear thrust got you right in the hindquarters.

But because Asteria is a total meanie-pants who’s gloating over Kazelia, that means you’ve got a moment to figure out what you’re going to do about that before the tent collapses on top of you.

You say 'we shall collapse a tent on Princess Adila'. I say 'I have just acquired a protective cloak of flames'. An impartial observer, from a distance says 'that dragon is running around in a blind panic like a dog with a towel thrown over its head'. An impartial observer, from close range says 'oh my god there is a giant wall of fire coming right at me'.

Princess Adila's own thoughts are more simple, more direct, and a bit more anguished: +Why does this keep happening to me?+

She blunders into another tent. She bops her nose and flails backwards. The fire spreads.

[Looking to Finish the Illuminian Conscripts by being a big scary out of control burning dragon: 13. Let me know if I don't have an Advantage, I could just be keeping them busy instead]

[PhoeKun]

Alina Cascade is soaked, and covered in mud and bits of sickly grass. Her silks are stained, her armor is smudged and not glittering. It's a testament to the absolute wrongness of this place that not even she can wear this well. She needs a good, hot bath, a hug... and for Mr Stormy to please stop staring at her. How is he doing that? He doesn't have eyes, but everywhere she sneaks, his gaze is following her from that stupid step.

But he's a stuffed animal. And she's a princess! Not just as a term of her mother's affection, but a grown up, proper princess who met with the River King and rode on his back and everything! S-so why is this so scary? There's a rumble of thunder, and she flinches. She weaves a scarf out of light, fashion concerns be darned, and wraps it around her face in an imitation of Rita. It helps a little to not be breathing in this horrible air. But not enough. She can't help it. She sneaks over to the stairs on soft feet, careful to avoid the pools of water, hoping not to hit too many creaking floorboards, and she reaches out to Mr Stormy with one hand wrapped up in her light scarf, and she turns him so he's facing the other direction. She shudders.

Now if she can just get over the rest of this cloying wrongness, she still knows this house. She knows where the light used to shine, she knows where the glass was and where the crystal columns held things up, and she knows which rooms her tiny lights used to shine the brightest. Which means she knows, or she should be able to guess, where she at least would choose to hide a powerful magical... thing. She won't give in to this. She won't give it anything. She'll find it and she'll break it, whatever she has to do.

[I'm not clear what sort of roll I should be making so here's a Look Closely, rolled with despair: 5, 3, 3 = 6+1 = 7. My questions are: "Is something hidden or out of place (I mean...)? What looks suspicious(ly like a source of ick)?" "Tell me about the water here. How could it hurt me? How could it help me?" and "What will happen if I go upstairs?" One of these things I learn the hard way]

[Anarion]

“I almost thought you were trying to kill me, Kaze,” she says, with cloying, saccharine sweetness. “Whatever happened to our bonds of sororal love? I’ll have to teach you all over again how to be a good sister. It will be tough fitting your etiquette lessons in, given that I’ll have to break in my new mount at the same time, but I will do it. For you! Because you’re worth it.”


Kazelia struggles up, spitting dirt from the knight that tackled her. Damn, she'd need to compliment Alina later, that was very strong, why hadn't Ilumina been defended by knights like that the first time?

"Wow, Asteria, really? Did Daddy take away all your horses or something? Eska was just sitting on a cage for Shiva yesterday too and now you want to break her in." Kazelia glances at the majestic pegasus and moves her eyes to say fly, encouraging Shiva to take off. No need for her to be at risk here, and with that whip broken, she had a pretty good chance of getting somewhere safe as long as everyone was still focused on the princesses on the ground. "I think you'll just have to be stuck with me though. So, where are my sisters anyway? Did you send them off the island for being bad girls yesterday and not capturing all the foreign princesses like they were supposed to?"

Kazelia makes no attempt to stand up, not yet at least. She's happy with Asteria and the knight focused on her right now and not on the rampaging dragon barreling around. Though she does speak relatively loudly over the crackle of the flames.

[Edit: not sure if wisdom roll for those answers or just conversation. Your call, Raz.]

[Raz_Fox]

A Makeshift Fort, the Kingdom of Askaia

Adila!

Running around blind and in panic and also on fire, that's a great way to disrupt and dismay a bunch of Iluminan conscripts who really didn't want to deal with anything like this today. But that's not such a great way to be able to tactically provide support to your friends, or even, really, keep an eye on where you're going. Especially when you don't just have to worry about bumping into tents but also bumping into spears! After all, there's a difference between a wimpy little person poking you with a glass spear and you flinging yourself headlong onto one!

So what happens is that, well, you manage to blunder right out of the camp. Or, rather, some enterprising, brave, and under-appreciated Iluminans manage to herd you to one of the gaps in the fence, over by the drop down into a rocky slope, and watch with apprehension as you disappear over the lip of the slope and then vanish out of sight with a great cacophony, punctuated with one final and terrible crash at the bottom of the slope.

So let's cut to where you are now, surrounded by trees which are now leaning at crazy angles and also on fire, a hop and a skip away from the river-gorge which runs between you and the house, and let's take a moment to think. Well, that... that kinda went terribly, didn't it? You told Kazelia that you were going to buy her time, and instead she comes zooming in and gets herself captured! When, clearly, that was your job! Well, okay, not that you wanted to get captured, but if anyone was going to, it should have been you!

Let's take stock: Kazelia? Captured. Your enemy? Alarmed, likely taking better anti-dragon precautions right now as we speak, if not scouring the woods looking for you. Alina and Rita? Nowhere to be found, hopefully in the house. You're alone, with no one to scheme with, enemies on every side, and everything's falling to pieces. So what do you do, in a situation like this?

***

Kazelia!

Now you know what the viper's fang of betrayal feels like, my dear. Shiva has trotted willingly into the arms of the soldiers, who have such blandishments as sugar cubes to feed her and brushies for her mane. There are bucket chains trying to put out the flames, and generally, the camp around you is abuzz with activity. But you, oh, you're the focus of Asteria's attention right now, and doesn't it feel just wonderful?

"You should know me better by now, Kaze," Asteria says, lightly tapping your chin with her boot. "Every soldier has their place on the battlefield! Mine is here, waiting for you to blunder right into my arms! Theirs is to secure our secondary objective! But if you ask me, Father will be even more pleased that I've brought back his wayward daughter and the simpering Iluminan princess! The Slaugh is such a filthy, nasty, nightmarish place and I can't imagine why he wants it to blot out this hideously kitsch kitty colony!"

Then she lifts that muddy boot and pushes your head down into the mud, grinding the pad into your hair, not giving you a chance to breathe as she barks orders. "I want the perimeter secured! Someone bring me a new whip! Erect my backup tent! Go and bring me that dragon! If we do not have all three princesses as prisoners here by dusk I shall have dinner dumped into the river!" Finally, she lifts her boot, and snaps her fingers; Tam Patterley pulls you up and twists your arms painfully behind your back, forcing you to march after Asteria as the backup command tent is hastily erected.

"Now, Kaze," she says, all poisoned sweetness once more, "let's have a chat about your princess friends. Let's start with a question: where is Alina Cascade?"

***

The Slaugh

Alina!

Let's start with the certainty that pools in the bottom of your stomach: if you go upstairs, you will face your fear, you will be wounded, you will be undone. I promise you these things. Because upstairs, that's where your room is, and that's where mommy's room is, and if someone put a magical thing here of course it would be in mommy's room. It just feels right. It could be in the wine cellar, or the kitchen, or in the room with the ping-pong table, but you know that it's not, really. Because this is the sort of place that has to make you afraid to open your mother's door, because she won't be on the other side, but something awful will be. There is the beating of terrible wings, and the tramp of heavy boots, and black water which seeps down from the warped and sagging ceiling.

What's hidden here? Well, if I was Asteria Spite, and I was trying to decide who to assign to be the guard inside the nightmare swamp house, I'd pick Kaja Ironpelt, because if a nightmare jumped out at her she'd just punch it, and she's strong enough to handle being in there for ages, and because I'm really mean and I know that Kaja would be just miserable in there. So she's definitely here, and she's definitely been ordered to not let you take the whatever-it-is. But, hey, you can probably just kiss her and walk past, right? Nothing to worry about at all. Beyond that- well, if you stay in here, you're a minute or so away from a couple of freaked-out Riders walking in from the kitchen and seeing you. At that point, you'd be the suspicious ones!

(Out in the garden, there's a loud barking, the kind that comes from dogs with froth on their jaws. Rita reaches out for your hand, humming the lullaby her mother used to purr to her at night, trying not to cry from just how awful all of this is.)

The water here is not your friend. It's all topsy-turvy! Water should be your special friend, you're Alina Cascade, for crying out loud! But this water is just ruining everything! Can you imagine if it spread all over the island? All those beautiful glass towers would sag and fall over, and mold would grow all over the houses of the cats! This black water wants to warp and rot and ruin the things that you love most.

As you look around, you find a terrible, terrible example.

Do you remember? The picture that you drew? Your mommy wore a crown of strawberries and olive leaves and sat in the garden posing for you with Queen Felicia in her lap, and they talked about all sorts of grown-up things while you sat with your ink brushes and tried to get everything just right- the light on her face, the garden all around them, the sense that your mommy was the wisest and most loving person in the whole wide world. You even signed it like a real painter, and when she saw it, your mommy had it framed and hung up on the wall and said that it was her favorite portrait she'd ever sat for. With your ink brushes, you made sure that summer afternoon was forever, and that anybody who looked at it could see your mommy through your eyes, loving and loved.

The frame is smashed on the floor, deliberately. Glass and splinters bob in the water. The picture is soaked through, and the ink is nothing more than smudges. Your mother's face is gone. Everything you put on the paper, gone. If you try to pick it up, it will rip and tear and fall apart in your fingers. You can't see the strawberries, you can't see the smile, and- maybe it is this place- but you can't even remember. When you try to think back to that day, your mother's face is a wet smudge dripping with black water.

Take Damage. You do not have to tell Rita, if you don't want to.

(As for how it could help you? Uuuuhhh if you got a great big bucket of it and dumped it over Asteria's head it would ruin her uniform and she'd be super upset! She'd deserve it, too.)

[Thanqol]

A Makeshift Fort, the Kingdom of Askaia

Adila!

Running around blind and in panic and also on fire, that's a great way to disrupt and dismay a bunch of Iluminan conscripts who really didn't want to deal with anything like this today. But that's not such a great way to be able to tactically provide support to your friends, or even, really, keep an eye on where you're going. Especially when you don't just have to worry about bumping into tents but also bumping into spears! After all, there's a difference between a wimpy little person poking you with a glass spear and you flinging yourself headlong onto one!

So what happens is that, well, you manage to blunder right out of the camp. Or, rather, some enterprising, brave, and under-appreciated Iluminans manage to herd you to one of the gaps in the fence, over by the drop down into a rocky slope, and watch with apprehension as you disappear over the lip of the slope and then vanish out of sight with a great cacophony, punctuated with one final and terrible crash at the bottom of the slope.

So let's cut to where you are now, surrounded by trees which are now leaning at crazy angles and also on fire, a hop and a skip away from the river-gorge which runs between you and the house, and let's take a moment to think. Well, that... that kinda went terribly, didn't it? You told Kazelia that you were going to buy her time, and instead she comes zooming in and gets herself captured! When, clearly, that was your job! Well, okay, not that you wanted to get captured, but if anyone was going to, it should have been you!

Let's take stock: Kazelia? Captured. Your enemy? Alarmed, likely taking better anti-dragon precautions right now as we speak, if not scouring the woods looking for you. Alina and Rita? Nowhere to be found, hopefully in the house. You're alone, with no one to scheme with, enemies on every side, and everything's falling to pieces. So what do you do, in a situation like this?

For a moment Adila takes a moment to just plain old grouse to herself.

This was the second time in as many days Kazelia flew up and surrendered to the Riders! What was she thinking? Her plan hadn't been great, sure, but Kazelia's plans seemed less like plans and more like self destruction. It almost felt worse than just fighting this war on her own - at least that way she wouldn't have to worry about hostages.

She just lay on her back in a pile of burning debris for a moment while she thought. Okay. Focus, Adila! You've had terrible partners before. You were partnered with Jobjori The Corrupt. You can handle this! Step one: Do not fly directly back into the camp. They'll be on alert, have ballistas, maybe wizards - that would be a dumb idea for a dragon, let alone an officer of the Watch. You can't afford to be brave right now. Everything depends on you so failure is not an option.

She finally rolled over and started pacing. Think! What would Detective Brill say? What would he do? "Scales and fire breath aren't nothing compared to a good crossbow at your side, kid," - okay, not helpful. “That’s life. Whichever way you turn, fate sticks out a foot to trip you.” Yes I know that now. "Look, kid, just because you're a dragon don't mean you have to think like a dragon. Sometimes you can think like a scumbag too."

Oh. Ohhh? Actually...?

She stood up, perked her ears a bit, bits of burning debris scattering off her. What would a scumbag do? Someone like Princess Valissa? Well she'd infiltrate the camp in disguise and stage a daring rescue from within, clearly. The only thing stopping her from doing that... she paused to let out a deep, frustrated sigh ... was herself and her own clumsiness. But Kazelia was in trouble and she didn't have the luxury of not showing everyone how clumsy she was.

She took a deep breath. She focused as hard as she could. And she slowly shapeshifted into her human form.

She could take human shape but she was not a shapeshifter like Greymane. She could only take the one shape (or one of the intermediate partial steps along the way), it took a while to accomplish, and her human shape bore more than a passing resemblance to her draconic self. She was tall, dark skinned, armoured in black and orange, regal yet shy. She rolled her jaw - oh damnit, this was the part she hated the most. People actually talked with these things!? "RepoTING bAhKh Ko-man-der," she croaked, and winced. "RePort-ing bahhk Command-er," she coughed. She'd need to practice while she walked.

First things first. Find one of those scattered and fleeing conscripts - there were a lot of them and she imagined they'd be keen to throw down their uniforms given the circumstances. Then, so dressed, she'd join one of the patrols and let them walk her into the camp while hoping nobody raised an eyebrow at the giant dark Illumian in poorly fitting armour.

Good enough. Let's do it.

[Anarion]

"You know, you don't have to listen to her" Kazelia says to the lovely knight, ignoring Asteria's question entirely. The knight is the one holding her, the Illuminans here are at least equal to the Riders, and Kazelia is more than enough tipping point. Shiva's horrific betrayal is sad, but expected for sugar cubes and brushies, and it really hadn't gotten much of a rise from Asteria anyway. Time to get to the point instead.

"You know, you and the Illuminans could definitely take Asteria and those Riders, especially with me helping, and you'd have a lot fewer fiery dragons running through your camp. Alina's on the Askaian island, just listen to how worried Asteria is trying to find her! I bet it would feel a lot better to help protect your princess and all the people who live here instead of praying every day that my dear sister doesn't hurt you on a passing whim. And she seems to have lost her whip right now, hasn't she? What do you think?"

[I'm not sure if I have the advantage for a wisdom finish, but it's either that or talk sense with Wisdom so the roll is the same regardless. 6+5+1=12 Per discussion with Raz, they are not willing to listen, so this is a keep them busy roll in which the ensuing conversation acts as a distraction. Adila should be able to act with advantage when she gets into camp.]

[PhoeKun]

You can hurt a person and take from them, and every time you do you push them into the dirt just that little bit more. You can make a Princess not feel like a princess, or a person not feel like a person. You can tell that at its heart this is Oberon's magic and his will, because The Slaugh must take pleasure in hurting everything beautiful and pure as it does. It must, or it could never do so with such intricacy. But sometimes when you hurt a person too deeply, they don't fall down. And when this happens, you've made a mistake. The Slaugh might not know it yet, maybe it can't even think like this at all, but it's sealed its fate here and now.

"No." It's such a tiny whisper, even Rita might not have caught it.

But she won't miss Alina pulling her light scarf free and tossing it over into the water. She won't miss the picture lifting out of the water or the way the light carefully, so very carefully, wraps around it and dries it off. And she definitely doesn't miss the tears in Alina's eyes or her arm as it wraps around her childhood friend's shoulder and holds her close.

It's not so much a bridge as a column made of rainbow light that rises under their feat and lifts the pair of princesses up to the second story and over the banister by the side of the steps. There are patches missing from it where a want of reds and yellows show through, and the very moment it's done it's job the column snaps and falls in glittering fragments straight into that horrible, twisted water. Fine. Take it. Memories carry Alina into her old room, and into fresh ruin. The window's been torn open and cold air whips through the room, bringing rain and moldering all of the blankets. She wants to cry even more, seeing it, but there is important work to do. She unfolds a large umbrella crafted from violet light over the pair of them. She gingerly sets the painting down onto a fresh blanket she's drawn from some impossible space in the pendant around her neck. Then she pulls an ink brush and paint from that same space, and she sets to work taking back what was stolen from her.

Alina's heart is light, and it is love. There are many things you can take from her, this is not one of them. She can't remember her mommy's face on that day, but there are others. Alina paints the day again, and she does it with so much skill that nobody could look at this piece of paper and ever doubt again that Queen Halcyon was the world's most loving mother, or indeed the most loved. You can call it a pointless waste of time if you want to. She will not.

"I know where to go," she says with a slight sniffle, "Let's end this. Let's take it all back."

[Overcome (with despair!): 6 5, 3 = 8. Alina pays the price of her Bridge spell to defeat the Slaugh's wicked magic, and is making her way to her mother's room, come what may]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Liza!

Your name is Liza Rippley and this is one of the worst days of your life. Unfortunately, that’s a category with some stiff competition these days! What with “the day that Oberon Greymane took over the Kingdom” and “the day you signed up with the Iluminan Volunteer Corps because your little sister Kay got press-ganged and you weren’t going to let her face that alone” and “the day that you tried to confess to Beau Lakley but it turned out he was already going out with Barb Finley and you had to navigate your way out of that conversation before you started crying and you failed at that so he had to awkwardly pat you on the shoulder while you furiously willed yourself to stop crying but that just made things worse” up there as very, very bad days, too.

But “a dragon sets your horrible awful commander’s tent on fire, then drops out of the sky, nearly runs over you, flings herself out of the camp and now you have to go follow her and somehow capture her despite being armed with a glass spear, a little bit of water magic, and some moxie” is also a very, very bad day.

So there you are, with Kay on your left side and Moggy Lily on your right, lightly stepping through the creepy mist which likes to manifest really mean and cutting images just when you’re not expecting them, when you duck under a branch into a clearing and there’s this great big woman with imposing black armor and golden eyes there and you recognize her immediately, because how couldn’t you?

How couldn’t you, when you regularly wrote fan fiction about Taing the River Daughter becoming a tall, pretty woman and kissing you a lot when you were a teenager? Except Taing looks much less kissable and more like she’s going to drag you into the river and eat you up, in person.

There’s a moment where you think you might be able to back up and get away clean and never tell anybody about this, but then Kay steps on a twig and Taing the River Daughter looks up at you and you and Moggy Lily grab each other and you can feel the scream bubbling its way out of you because she’s going to eat you!

***

Kazelia!

“Ma’am,” Tam Patterley says with quiet sorrow, “the situation on the ground is a sight more complicated than that. We’ve people back home we’re worried about-“

Asteria whirls about, and for a moment one might be afraid she’s just heard your sedition, but she’s grabbing you by the cheeks furiously for a different reason: someone’s not doing as she’s told.

“Kazelia,” she says, all poisoned sweetness, “I know you’ve been wasting your time frolicking among undisciplined Hyperboreans, but in my camp, when I ask a question, it is answered. Where is Alina Cascade?”

Her lip curls in disdain. (One of her camp staff has been cleaning the mud off her face as you’ve walked.) “If you don’t want to talk, we can always move forward with your etiquette training. Immediately.”

***

The Slaugh

Alina!

You and Rita wait with feverish patience by the door until you hear the firm, steady tread of Kaja Ironpelt’s boots recede down the corridor and around the corner. That’s your window to scamper across the hall (because of course your mother’s room is across the hall from yours, just in case). The door does not want to give, has warped tight and close into the frame, but you and Rita both turn the handle and put your backs into it, and even as you hear Kaja coming back, humming a Rider lullaby to herself to keep from being scared, the door groans violently and suddenly gives way.

There is no way Kaja will not be on your heels in a moment!

But here, hanging gravid in the space where your mother should be, is the Wound. The Wound’s edges ripple, the peeling edges of the world, a torn rent in what Is. From it seeps the black water, which laps against your shins as you wade forward, as Rita valiantly tries to wedge the door shut behind you. Within the Wound is endless night and falling stars, like a Rider’s eyes, coalesced around-

A dark crystal hangs there, and from it pours forth ceaselessly the black water, which stains the night.

If Kazelia were here, she could probably tell you more, but here is a feeble attempt at an explanation, regardless: that this crystal is the terrible thing that Azora brought here. (The windows burst open at the sound of the Roc’s heavy wingbeat; the glass sinks soundlessly into the black sea.) That Azora has set the endless night beyond Ouroboros as the last and most terrible guardian. (Rita is flung backwards as the door gives way; and Kaja is here, but the turning-point of the world is you.) That to end this-

You must declare that you reach in to take it.

You must bid your lights not to follow you, not to lose themselves in that night, no matter what follows.

You must draw it forth, even if in the very next moment Kaja has you fast, if you want to have even a chance of ending this.

It will be terrible.

But perhaps you were always meant to be here, to do this thing. Who else could?

[Thanqol]

Summerveil

Liza!

Your name is Liza Rippley and this is one of the worst days of your life. Unfortunately, that’s a category with some stiff competition these days! What with “the day that Oberon Greymane took over the Kingdom” and “the day you signed up with the Iluminan Volunteer Corps because your little sister Kay got press-ganged and you weren’t going to let her face that alone” and “the day that you tried to confess to Beau Lakley but it turned out he was already going out with Barb Finley and you had to navigate your way out of that conversation before you started crying and you failed at that so he had to awkwardly pat you on the shoulder while you furiously willed yourself to stop crying but that just made things worse” up there as very, very bad days, too.

But “a dragon sets your horrible awful commander’s tent on fire, then drops out of the sky, nearly runs over you, flings herself out of the camp and now you have to go follow her and somehow capture her despite being armed with a glass spear, a little bit of water magic, and some moxie” is also a very, very bad day.

So there you are, with Kay on your left side and Moggy Lily on your right, lightly stepping through the creepy mist which likes to manifest really mean and cutting images just when you’re not expecting them, when you duck under a branch into a clearing and there’s this great big woman with imposing black armor and golden eyes there and you recognize her immediately, because how couldn’t you?

How couldn’t you, when you regularly wrote fan fiction about Taing the River Daughter becoming a tall, pretty woman and kissing you a lot when you were a teenager? Except Taing looks much less kissable and more like she’s going to drag you into the river and eat you up, in person.

There’s a moment where you think you might be able to back up and get away clean and never tell anybody about this, but then Kay steps on a twig and Taing the River Daughter looks up at you and you and Moggy Lily grab each other and you can feel the scream bubbling its way out of you because she’s going to eat you!

"How do you DO, fellow soldiERs," said Taing the River Daughter, revealing her teeth and waving the limb that her talons were attached to. "I Am Julia Wetsparkly. Your fRiend and countRylady! It is good that we have met up foR I was -" she coughed loudly and there were sparks and flickers of fire. She somehow kept talking despite this: +Argh, gosh darn it! Stupid mouth!+

She finished, then resumed her mechanical upwards-facing mouth expression. "I was lost when the dRagon attacked! But now you aRe here I am say'ved! Let us retuRn to the camp so that we can be safe togetheR!"

She reached down to pick up the crystal spear by her side. It snapped like a twig when she so much as touched it. She looked it at for a moment and then bent the metal of the shaft like it was string and tied it into a knot. She held it up delicately between two fingers like it was proof of just what a normal soldier she was.

[Talking Sense with Grace: 4.]

[Anarion]

Kazelia!

“Ma’am,” Tam Patterley says with quiet sorrow, “the situation on the ground is a sight more complicated than that. We’ve people back home we’re worried about-“

Asteria whirls about, and for a moment one might be afraid she’s just heard your sedition, but she’s grabbing you by the cheeks furiously for a different reason: someone’s not doing as she’s told.

“Kazelia,” she says, all poisoned sweetness, “I know you’ve been wasting your time frolicking among undisciplined Hyperboreans, but in my camp, when I ask a question, it is answered. Where is Alina Cascade?”

Her lip curls in disdain. (One of her camp staff has been cleaning the mud off her face as you’ve walked.) “If you don’t want to talk, we can always move forward with your etiquette training. Immediately.”


Kazelia does look sad when she hears Tam start to talk, and continues looking at Tam and not at Asteria. "That is sad, and it's just like my sister, who for some reason couldn't hear me earlier when I said that Princess Alina Cascade is right here in Askaia."

Kazelia gives Tam as much of an apologetic shrug as she can and keeps talking. There's a game to this of course. Asteria loves being the center of attention, but she's also getting her questions answered (she's also being terribly imprecise and given her level of careful military organization and micromanagement, she really has no one but herself to blame for asking a vague question). Asteria had always been like this though. Kazelia had memories of themselves as children. Images out of time and place somehow, little icicles forming on the window of a house and the sound of a slow rain clinging to them and drip, drip, dripping down somewhere, but a pink interior, warm, with a small child-sized table and dresses with lace on the neck and sleeves. Old images, where the figures weren't clear, but she knew she was with Asteria, playing the same game. No Tam of course, no knights, but a small army of stuffed animals. Kazelia was talking to Mrs. Penguin and Billy Buffalo, her little ward instead of to Asteria, but saying just enough to them to let Asteria know that her question about the quality of the muffins had definitely been heard. Even if the muffins were much worse than last week's and didn't Mrs. Penguin quite agree with that? Asteria, of course, became more and more desperate for attention because she wasn't getting it, and went to greater and greater heights of theatrics as a result. An old game, familiar, and happening now with a somewhat more interactive audience. Indeed, the audience here was entirely necessary because Tam was the one holding Kazelia in place for Asteria. No Tam, no restraints, nothing stopping her from grabbing her nearby lance lying against the side of the tent and finishing the job started earlier.

So, Kazelia keeps talking. "It's hard, having someone you want to protect. That's why I came in here, the dragon is a good friend of mine and I couldn't leave her alone to fight everyone, so I came to protect her. But you all, you've got a family to protect, and a land, and a princess, and a culture. So many things. It must be so hard, deciding what's the right thing to do. I'm sorry to put you in this spot. I promised I'd help save you all, I promised I'd make up for what I'd done and what my sisters are doing." Kazelia leans back into Tam's arms and listens as she waits for Asteria to cut in, as of course she will. Even here, even amidst the mist and corruption, she can still hear the singers and she begins to hum the tune she's hearing (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIFI8DVyP4Y). Perhaps Asteria hears it too? Of course, it's doubtful she'll be pleased, but that's just how Asteria works.

[PhoeKun]

It's important that you understand how much this scares her. It's important that you understand the trembling of her heart and her hands. It's important that you understand how hard she's crying. She can hardly see through her tears, in fact. It's the kind of hard sob that comes with a runny nose, that kind that unfailingly ruins your complexion no matter who you are or how perfect your face is. She hasn't cried this hard since that night here in this house when she came bursting into this very room to seek her mommy's arms to shield her from the Roc. Not even when she begged Oberon for her life. Not even the day her kingdom fell.

And it's important that you understand all this, because in the old stories the Princesses are all pure, crystal-hearted heroines who never flinched or hesitated. When she was smaller and braver, Alina Cascade used to dream she'd be in a moment not unlike this, and the ways she'd be just like them. But she's standing here, staring down the endless night (through which the Roc has come at last. It's come for her, alone) standing shin deep in nightmare water and she can barely move for the trembling in her legs. She can't convince herself that she's grown up and strong. No light could ever survive in there, what is she to do? She holds her painting tight against her chest.

And she turns, and as she turns her lights become five shields. They spin around her, then fly across the room to guard Rita in her stead. Her crown sits dark upon her head. She fights her way through the water into the night and the storm and the judgment of that great sovereign of the skies. She isn't moving as fast as Kaja. It doesn't matter: she reaches into the Endless Night and clutches the Wound tightly, come whatever may.

"And then? And then?" asks a little princess in the unseen future who just will not go to bed, "What happened next?"

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Adila!

Shockingly, this flawless disguise seems to terrify the Iluminan soldiers who have stumbled upon you; both of them are clinging to each other and screeching like harpies, begging you not to drag them into the lake and eat them. When clearly you are a normal, everyday sort of solider who would never drown somebody like that! Perish the thought.

Both of- wait. Both of them? Weren’t there three a minute ago?

You have just about enough time for that thought to run through your head before the smallest one tackles you from behind, wrapping her legs around your rock-hard human torso and digging her nails into any soft spot she can reach like a tiny berserker whose hour has finally come. Like, she’s obviously been wanting to do this for years, you don’t go from zero to sixty like this normally.

Why do humans have to be so soft, squishy, and vulnerable to- ow- biting??

[Damaging the Graceful stat to deposit an Iluminan exactly where you don’t need her.]

***

Kazelia

A Rider striding dutifully and portentously through the camp has to suddenly duck to avoid the ottoman that is hurled furiously out of the commander’s new tent.

Asteria Spite is in a rage.

“Why are you always like this, Kazelia? So contrary! So selfish!” The irony of one of your sisters calling you selfish is utterly lost on her. “You were already first among Father’s lancers! One of our best witches! A hammer to crush the enemy upon my anvils! And even if I couldn’t tame that impudent tongue, at least I knew you would aim your lance in the right direction!”

Whoops, there goes a riding crop, spinning head over butt into the mists. “And instead of taking your rightful place among us as rulers of this world, taking what is ours by right, you betray us! Us, Kaze! Your family! All of us! Was it my fault? Was I too lenient with you? Did I not give you enough attention? Is this because of the tea party because we promised never to bring it up again!

She grabs you by your front and shakes you like a doll, furious and petulant. “Why, on this world of all worlds, would you fight against your family? We’re the only people who will ever understand you, Kaze! The things we did! The worlds we ravaged! All of it!” She sounds desperate now, as if trying to convince the both of you. “Why? Why now?”

***

The Slaugh

Alina!

When you sink your arm down to the elbow within the Wound-

I must explain in simile.

It is as if you are standing in a dark room, and there is a table there, and two chairs; and on the other side of the table there stands yourself, with the starry eyes of a Rider, wearing a sensible dress; and when you see yourself you smile and say, well, you may as well sit down; and when you are both seated you say to yourself that you are very pretty for someone who does not exist.

And when you protest, quizzically, that you do exist, you laugh at yourself and your teeth are the fangs of a predator; you do not exist, you cry again, and you seize yourself with hands that are knives; there is nothing inside you that is you!

This your hair, it is not you, it is your mother's curls and color! This your light, it is not you, it has passed from princess to princess! This your eyes, it is not you, it is your grandmother's sad green! This your grace, it is not you, it is the sum total of every motion that your muscles have learned to make! This your heart, it is not you, it is the expectation of everyone in Ilumina who you failed! This your memories, it is not you, for how can you forget yourself? This your wound, it is not you, it is the emptiness of Oberon Greymane!

So it goes; and you sift through yourself, painlessly, dreamily, plucking the parts of yourself from yourself, letting them evaporate into the dark with each polite and thoughtful explanation of how it is not you, could never be you, how there is no you inside all of them; and finally there is one small shining little thing left on the table, and those fingers which are knives pick it up and you laugh and say, see, this...

You stop. You give a little huff of breath through your teeth which are the fangs of a predator. You turn it from side to side, trying to get a better view of it, so that the explanation may come to you. You set it down, and stare at it for a time. Your fingers which are knives drum on the table.

You concede that you exist, you say to the dark. And so it is that you coalesce once more on the other side of the table from yourself, hair and light and eyes and grace and heart and all again, like a pearl around adamant, so do you accrete about You, the inviolable and indivisible and inexplicable You.

You say to yourself, I concede, and you open with your fingers which are knives a box, and inside that box is a dark jewel of infinite night, and it is wet to the touch when you take it, and it is always wet to the touch, and if you do not undo it, it will drip drip drip away at you like water against stone, and you are from Ilumina, and you know how that battle always ends, and it is not in favor of the stone.

You say to yourself, well, now I know that there is a very pretty person named Alina Cascade, and that they provably exist. How wonderful and unfathomable everything is, the whole lot of it!

And it is as if you say to yourself, as you are on the cusp of not being in this place any more, as you have one foot in a place that is and one foot in a place that is not, do let Oberon know that I am looking forward to his next visit!

This is the end of the simile. You have the stone in your hand, the stone that is wet in your palm, the stone that is the heart of the Wound. You have made it come loose. You have dealt it damage of a sort, yet two more times must you do so, and the once with pure water, or the tears of a maiden. The Wound itself is closing, unraveling, fading away, and no more does the black water drip from it; it drips freely from your hand, instead.

Take one Damage yourself, from what was as if you were taken apart and then put right back together again, and then tell us what was at the bottom of your self that was inviolable, indivisible, inexplicable; tell us what inside you was undeniably You.

Also, Kaja is hammering the shields that surround Rita, and Rita is putting up a good fight, and if you turned around you would doubtless find the whole thing to be thrilling and shocking and desperate, but I think it would be better to take a moment for yourself, inventory, pat yourself down and remind yourself that you exist; that you are vital; that you have what you came here for.

[PhoeKun]

Alina Who Was A Rider smiled through jagged teeth at Alina Who Was Nothing. And she held up this single piece of herself which was all that was left, and she opened her mouth to deny it too and finally be by herself after so, so long. But no matter how she twisted it in her knife hands and no matter how she squinted or turned her head, the argument would not come. She supposes she should have seen this coming, because this shimmering, tiny thing smells like fresh rain and ink paints, and there's only one name she could give it: Love. Not her heart or her desires or her memories, these are things she stole from the world, they could not belong to anybody who could call herself Alina. But this thing was something Alina had given to the world. If there was no Alina, then how could Queen Halcyon smile like that? How could Rita von Catabas have laughed with so much joy? How did a dragon and a traitor Rider, of all things, become so trusted? She had no power to deny these things were true, and so she could not deny Alina Cascade. So she reached out into the darkness and she plucked the pieces she'd stolen, the hair and the heart and the eyes and the grace and everything else, and she put the girl back together who must exist, because of all these people she'd touched said she must.

Drip. Drip. Drip. Alina's hand feels fragile and painful already. But it feels! And that means it's real. She gasps, and air fills her lungs. She's soaked. She's cold. She's caked in mud. But she's here, in her mother's bedroom in Summerveil and not anywhere else, with her hand clenched tight around a jewel as dark as nothing. Her eyes aren't working right. When they look around, what they see is still indistinct and shadowy. There's a want of darkness and emptiness. She pats her chest with her free hand and feels the glass armor protecting her heart. She runs her fingers through her half soaked hair. She listens to herself gasping for air. All of it is so wonderfully, incredibly real. She's so wonderfully, incredibly solid! She did it. She did it! She wants to laugh, though the sickness of the room makes it sound choked.

Dimly, she can hear the sounds of fighting. Ugh, moving makes her feel sick. She needs to get out of here. She'd feel better if she could just get out of here. But Rita's fighting Kaja with her lights and... why does her brain feel so slow? She's real, right? Yes, she is. She has to be. She touches her face again, just to make sure.

[Alina's Sense has been damaged by her unmaking; she's still partway caught in unreality, and this place isn't doing her any favors]

[Anarion]

She grabs you by your front and shakes you like a doll, furious and petulant. “Why, on this world of all worlds, would you fight against your family? We’re the only people who will ever understand you, Kaze! The things we did! The worlds we ravaged! All of it!” She sounds desperate now, as if trying to convince the both of you. “Why? Why now?”


Kazelia lets Asteria shake her calmly and finally looks at her sister. Within her, her eyes blaze. "Because here, I saw fire."

[Thanqol]

Summerveil

Adila!

Shockingly, this flawless disguise seems to terrify the Iluminan soldiers who have stumbled upon you; both of them are clinging to each other and screeching like harpies, begging you not to drag them into the lake and eat them. When clearly you are a normal, everyday sort of solider who would never drown somebody like that! Perish the thought.

Both of- wait. Both of them? Weren’t there three a minute ago?

You have just about enough time for that thought to run through your head before the smallest one tackles you from behind, wrapping her legs around your rock-hard human torso and digging her nails into any soft spot she can reach like a tiny berserker whose hour has finally come. Like, she’s obviously been wanting to do this for years, you don’t go from zero to sixty like this normally.

Why do humans have to be so soft, squishy, and vulnerable to- ow- biting??

[Damaging the Graceful stat to deposit an Iluminan exactly where you don’t need her.]

Princess Adila hated lying. Hated it! Lying with her mouth was the worst thing of all. She had to think backwards thoughts while making sounds (and not fire) with her mouth and smiling at the same time. And she couldn't even emote because her wings and tail and neck were gone and they were responsible for 90% of body language! Everything was so much easier when she was a dragon because at least she knew how scary she was being.

She hated it when people screamed. People weren't supposed to scream when the Watch came. For a moment she just soaked in melancholy.

And then someone was on her back - ow, what the? What? Why hadn't she stabbed her? Had she dropped her spear to do this? Ow! Okay, the fact that she was hurting Adila made this whole thing even more tricky - it brought into clear focus just how gentle she would need to be to not hurt her in exchange. Princess Adila gingerly reached out to take one of the boots wrapped around her chest and with agonizing slowness peeled the Illuminan off her back - taking punches and bites all the way, but being careful not to accidentally break any bones. Finally when she had a solid grip she picked up the Illuminian by the scruff of the neck facing away from her, held at arms length with the sort of gingerness she normally reserved for criminals who were also cats.

+Stop it! What's wrong with you!+ she thought. +Please stop screaming everyone. Please? I promise I won't hurt you. Please stop. Please.+

[Overcoming at a 9. This is a temporary solution]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Liza!

Oh by Ourania’s light Taing has Kay and is threatening to hurt her (because that’s what “I promise I won’t hurt you” always means when someone really scary says it while they hold someone you love hostage). Think quick. You need to think quick.

You clap one hand over Moggy Lily’s mouth to stop her from screaming and try to gather your wits yourself. Wow, your mouth is so wet right now. And you’re sweating so much. “Taing. Ma’am. River highness? Please don’t hurt my sister. Please. You can eat me instead if you want.”

“It’s fine, Liza!” Kay says in a huff, hooking one leg around Taing’s arm behind her and trying vainly to break free using a Goblin Tunnel Snake Hold. “I’ve got her exactly where I want her!”

“Stop it, Kay,” you yell, your voice cracking a little bit. “I promised Mom I’d bring you home!” You look Taing right in her weird golden eyes and try to ignore your knees trying to buckle. “If you’re going to eat anyone, eat- OW,” you yell, as Moggy Lily punches you right in the side, mad that you’re trying to do the heroic sacrifice here. “Ourania’s bedhead, Moggy, quit it! Stop! Ow!”

***

Adila!

Kay takes this opportunity to start vainly gnawing on your gauntlet. Man, she just does not give up. Imagine throwing her at Asteria’s face, right? That’s a mental image for the ages.

***

Kazelia!

When you invoke the High Queen- not even by name, but in your heart- for a moment there is a breath of summer air, faint enough that one might almost believe it an idle daydream. If you had time with it, I think you would smell on that breeze fresh cherries, and sea-spray, and fresh-cut grass.

It is as if you are told: I see you, and I believe in you.

Asteria, on the other hand, is impervious in her disbelieving outrage. “Fire?? Of course! How could I be so blind??” She clutches at her collarbone dramatically, eyes wide, voice hitting octaves Rider was not meant to reach. “Quick, someone go tell Kaja that chocolate-and-soft-sweet-in-a-biscuit night is canceled, it’s a threat to our national security!!!”

Several more things are thrown dramatically around the tent as Asteria dissolves into incoherent ranting. Tam Patterley thoughtfully makes sure to pick you up and lift you out of the way of the armor rack Asteria flings at your face.

Then the storm subsides. Asteria covers her face in her hands and mutters to herself, dangerously still. You know you’re about to get it.

“For what it’s worth,” Tam whispers in your ear, in that stolen moment, “I understand. That’d do it.”

Then Asteria peeks out from behind her hands, and that wicked, evil, you’re-in-so-much-trouble smile spreads across her face. “Oh, Kazzy,” she purrs. “How could I stay mad at my ickle baby sister? Your head’s all confused, isn’t it? Don’t worry. I’ll take you back to Daddy so he can put you to bed. But first, let’s get you out of that nasty-wasty armor and into something a little more suitable for my cutesy widdle baby sister, hmmmm~?”

That’s right.

It’s time for the makeover montage.

May Ourania have mercy on your soul.

***

The Slaugh

Alina!

Rita comes flying over your head and hits her own head hard on the foot of the bed on her way down. It’s enough to worry anyone for a moment, especially the way she lands face-down in the water. Will you need to dredge her up, provide first aid and CPR?

But she manages to push herself up on her elbows. She can’t get all the way up, which is Concerning, but at least she’s conscious. “I’m okay,” she pants, unconvincingly. “Tote okay. Finepants!”

A shadow looms over you. You don’t even have to look up.

“I don’t want to have to hurt you,” Kaja says, her voice betraying that she’s already the hurt one. But, like, emotionally. “Just give me the thingy and surrender, Alina Cascade.” Awww, she remembered your name!

[Thanqol]

Summerveil

Liza!

Oh by Ourania’s light Taing has Kay and is threatening to hurt her (because that’s what “I promise I won’t hurt you” always means when someone really scary says it while they hold someone you love hostage). Think quick. You need to think quick.

You clap one hand over Moggy Lily’s mouth to stop her from screaming and try to gather your wits yourself. Wow, your mouth is so wet right now. And you’re sweating so much. “Taing. Ma’am. River highness? Please don’t hurt my sister. Please. You can eat me instead if you want.”

“It’s fine, Liza!” Kay says in a huff, hooking one leg around Taing’s arm behind her and trying vainly to break free using a Goblin Tunnel Snake Hold. “I’ve got her exactly where I want her!”

“Stop it, Kay,” you yell, your voice cracking a little bit. “I promised Mom I’d bring you home!” You look Taing right in her weird golden eyes and try to ignore your knees trying to buckle. “If you’re going to eat anyone, eat- OW,” you yell, as Moggy Lily punches you right in the side, mad that you’re trying to do the heroic sacrifice here. “Ourania’s bedhead, Moggy, quit it! Stop! Ow!”

***

Adila!

Kay takes this opportunity to start vainly gnawing on your gauntlet. Man, she just does not give up. Imagine throwing her at Asteria’s face, right? That’s a mental image for the ages.

***

Okay. Deep breath. They're all falling over each other to sacrifice themselves for each other - this is normal, typical Illuminan behaviour and it means you've got time. You just need to channel that into the proper self sacrifice. You've got exactly one more chance at this. Don't mess it up!

+Okay! Okay, look. I don't want to eat any of you, okay?+ thought Princess Adila. +That is... that is my least favourite thing to do.+

She looked at three disbelieving faces. She gave up.

+I only want to eat Riders,+ she thought despondently. +They are delicious. Listen. If you can sneak me into the camp so I can kidnap Princess Spite I promise I'll let all the Illuminians all go free.+

[Talking Sense with Sense this time around: 12.]

[PhoeKun]

"I don't want to hurt you either, Kaja."

Alina summons her lights back to her and does her best to help Rita back onto her feet. She keeps her arm around the cat-princess' waist. It helps reassure her that things are real, which is nice. She takes tiny steps backwards, looking for a way out. Something, anything! But it's so hard, so hard to even see where she's going.

"But I can't give this up. I can't. I have to destroy it, don't you see? This place should be..."

Drip. Drip. Drip. Her fist is cold and numb around the jewel. For one chilling moment, it feels like she doesn't have a hand at all. She squeezes it tightly. There's no time. She makes a tile out of green light and floats her precious painting to Kaja. That's all she can say.

"I'm sorry. If you catch me, I promise I'll surrender."

And, clutching Rita, she steps backwards and falls out of a rotting window.

[Get Away, Slaugh Edition: 1, 5, 3 = 4+2 = 6. These things happen...]

[Anarion]

It’s time for the makeover montage.

May Ourania have mercy on your soul.


Kazelia sighs. The feel of the wind from Ourania and the song in her head made her feel calm, even as Asteria became progressively more shrill. She was getting very worked up though, Kazelia wasn’t sure she’d ever seen Asteria this hysterical before, which was both a compliment and utterly terrifying. She gives Tam just the briefest of nods and settles in to wait. The advantage of all of this was that Asteria was spending all this time with Kazelia, as was the best Illuminan knight here, and Eska and Kaja were elsewhere, so she had every confidence that Adila would come along to help soon.

That said, Asteria settling on a theme was bad news. Kazelia remembered Illuminans dressed as cats and dogs running around the castle just a year prior, and before that she’d had everyone so done up in ruffles and lace they could barely walk. Which was why when she saw Asteria pull out a very thick pink dress along with a pair of matching mittens and booties from her new wooden dresser and put them on the equally new divan she’d added to the tent (where were these things coming from?) Kazelia was very concerned.

Several minutes later, Kazelia was, with Tam’s guidance, being walked around the tent to pose, wearing her near bright pink dress with puff shoulders, lace all around the sleeves and neck, and short poofy skirts that ended at the knees. In matching pink were a pair of woolen mittens that Asteria had tied onto her hands so she couldn’t hold anything (including the lance she was being marched past as it leaned against a tent flap) and a pair of rounded woolen booties that, with the whole getup, made it very difficult to walk straight. Kazelia blushed a shade of indigo that Riders turned when they were embarrassed and did her best to suffer the indignity in silence.

Asteria chuckled at that. “Aaah, is ickle Kazelia embawwased? She shouldn’t be, she’s too tiny!” She squealed with delight and Kazelia did her best not to look at her sister directly. This was incredibly demeaning and she would not justify it with any further acknowledgment, even if she was allowing her sister to have her way. Asteria just sighed at that “I guess someone is feeling cranky, but don’t worry, Daddy will make you all better once we get you to him!” Asteria still seems unsatisfied though. “Something’s missing,” she says to herself then slaps her forehead with a muttered “of course.” She dives back into the drawer, pulling out all sorts of fabric and lace before finding just the right thing. A giant matching pink hairbow to go with the outfit. With glee, she does Kazelia’s bright white hair up in a big ponytail, tying the bow through it so it displays prominently on her head, ever so slightly off-center to the right.

“There, perfect!” Asteria declares. “Now, no pouting or your face will stick that way. Let’s have a big smile now that you’re all ready to be shipped to Daddy and go show all the soldiers. How does that sound?”

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Liza!

The light dawns. You blush furiously as you realize the truth. “Oh,” you say, through the utterly cringeworthy embarrassment, “you’re the dragon, aren’t you? The one we’re supposed to capture?”

“Are you kidding me,” Moggy Lily says, after taking a deep breath. “We can’t just go back and say, hey, sorry, we didn’t capture the dragon like ordered! That’s at least fifty demerits, and if I miss dinner again I am going to eat grass, Liza!”

Of course not. You can’t go back without a captured dragon. Naturally. Everything locks into place, one step at a time.

“But we did, Moggy,” you say, taking your treasured seashell necklace off from where you hid it under your uniform. “Turns out she was a shapeshifting princess who used her magic necklace to turn into a dragon. You and Kay and, uh, Julia Wetsparkley here managed to catch me while I was trying to disguise myself as an Iluminan, and you managed to grab my magic necklace before I could put it on.”

You start wriggling out of your uniform. The fit is going to be atrocious, but as long as the princess doesn’t make any sudden moves it probably won’t tear? “Kay, figure out how to bleach her hair; you have five minutes and whatever herbs you can find here. Your highness, just don’t say anything with your thought words or your mouth, let Moggy do the talking.”

“I can’t do the talking, Liza,” Moggy says as she helps you out of your soon-to-suffer boots.

“You have to. Because it’s either you or Kay, and Kay really shouldn’t.” You know what you have to do. It’s the right moment. You touch Moggy Lily’s cheek and then lean in for the kiss. It’s perfect. Worthy of the fanfictions.

Your lips come apart, reluctantly, and you say, quietly, “I believe in you.” And like that, a look comes into Moggy’s eye, and you know she’d climb the Ridgeback Mountains for you if you asked.

This has to work. Don’t think about the punishment that’s going to come down on your heads if this fails. It’ll work.

Behind you, Kay uses her mandated Spite Survival Knife to give Julia Wetsparkley a very quick and hacky haircut, because the only way she’s getting in is with a blonde crew cut.

***

Kazelia

Two words: crystal. spotlights. For dramatic purposes only, because of course they are.

Now would be a fantastic time for a certain dragon to show up, wouldn’t it?

Speaking of Adila- what are your thoughts on her, right now? If you’d let her just dive in and gone with Alina, you wouldn’t be in this utterly humiliating situation, now, would you? And it’s not like she’s come charging back to save you- tell us all what’s on your mind re: Adila.

***

The Slaugh

Alina!

You plunge dramatically through the window! As you do so, the roof collapses in, burying the room behind you in rubble. It won’t stop Kaja Ironpelt, but at least it stops her from making the same mistake that you two just did.

Because you fall through an endless stormy sky, the storm that made you hide under your blankets as a little girl raging all around you, and the storm clouds are the wings of the Roc. It can see you! Its eyes are burning cinders in the sky, and it beats its vast and terrible wings once, and once only.

The might of that wingbeat hits you like a physical blow. Rita’s hand is torn from yours. She goes flying away from you, screaming your name, unable to check her fall.

And you fall, and there is nowhere to catch yourself, and you know that this is a dream, but will you wake up when you hit the bottom?

***

This is the lake shore. The mist moves strange over the face of the waters. There is only the sound of the cicadas; no frog or heron has dared to remain here, where the world is twisting cruel.

A princess hurtles down out of the sky and splats into the mud, making a small and mucky crater. There is a moment of silence and stillness as she lies there, face-down, and then a grappling hook made of light lands on her back in a neat little coil.

You’ve done it, Alina. You escaped with the heart of the Slaugh. But Rita? I think she’s still out there, falling; and she will not land, not as things stand now.

[Rita von Catabas has become unavailable for use as a Companion.]

***

A sharp whistle assembles the various Riders that Asteria has placed under Eska’s command, on the porch of the house. Beside her stands Kaja Ironpelt, covered in what suspiciously appears to be black-rotted timber and rubble.

“Our targets are two princesses, carrying war material from the vaults of our King. One may be a cat right now. Team Alpha, you’re cutting off the bridge. Team Beta, I want the estate scoured in case they’re trying to wait us out. Team Gamma, dredge the river. They must not be allowed to rejoin their team. Kaja-“

“I’m on it,” she says, her voice dangerous, and even Eska takes a step back. She takes three long loping steps and then- whoosh. The ground buckles where she was.

You don’t need to be able to fly if you are very, very good at jumping.

[Anarion]

Kazelia

Two words: crystal. spotlights. For dramatic purposes only, because of course they are.

Now would be a fantastic time for a certain dragon to show up, wouldn’t it?

Speaking of Adila- what are your thoughts on her, right now? If you’d let her just dive in and gone with Alina, you wouldn’t be in this utterly humiliating situation, now, would you? And it’s not like she’s come charging back to save you- tell us all what’s on your mind re: Adila.


Kazelia right now is mostly trying not to be too mortified at all of this. She tries to lean into the act, curtsy with the dress, though it's incredibly difficult with her inability to be steady on her feet or really grasp anything through the thick mittens. But she's putting on a show and her hope is that Adila is doing something valuable with this time. Saving her would be great, she would be very happy if Adila finished whatever her plans are and showed up to save Kazelia. But if she's helping Alina or something, that's fine too. She trusts her to come up with a plan, which is why she's not just whispering messages on the wind constantly shouting for a rescue. Her job is staying here, and in doing so, holding up Asteria, Tam, and a bunch of the patrols who are all enjoying their fashion show for as long as possible.

[Thanqol]

Summerveil

Liza!

The light dawns. You blush furiously as you realize the truth. “Oh,” you say, through the utterly cringeworthy embarrassment, “you’re the dragon, aren’t you? The one we’re supposed to capture?”

“Are you kidding me,” Moggy Lily says, after taking a deep breath. “We can’t just go back and say, hey, sorry, we didn’t capture the dragon like ordered! That’s at least fifty demerits, and if I miss dinner again I am going to eat grass, Liza!”

Of course not. You can’t go back without a captured dragon. Naturally. Everything locks into place, one step at a time.

“But we did, Moggy,” you say, taking your treasured seashell necklace off from where you hid it under your uniform. “Turns out she was a shapeshifting princess who used her magic necklace to turn into a dragon. You and Kay and, uh, Julia Wetsparkley here managed to catch me while I was trying to disguise myself as an Iluminan, and you managed to grab my magic necklace before I could put it on.”

You start wriggling out of your uniform. The fit is going to be atrocious, but as long as the princess doesn’t make any sudden moves it probably won’t tear? “Kay, figure out how to bleach her hair; you have five minutes and whatever herbs you can find here. Your highness, just don’t say anything with your thought words or your mouth, let Moggy do the talking.”

“I can’t do the talking, Liza,” Moggy says as she helps you out of your soon-to-suffer boots.

“You have to. Because it’s either you or Kay, and Kay really shouldn’t.” You know what you have to do. It’s the right moment. You touch Moggy Lily’s cheek and then lean in for the kiss. It’s perfect. Worthy of the fanfictions.

Your lips come apart, reluctantly, and you say, quietly, “I believe in you.” And like that, a look comes into Moggy’s eye, and you know she’d climb the Ridgeback Mountains for you if you asked.

This has to work. Don’t think about the punishment that’s going to come down on your heads if this fails. It’ll work.

Behind you, Kay uses her mandated Spite Survival Knife to give Julia Wetsparkley a very quick and hacky haircut, because the only way she’s getting in is with a blonde crew cut.

Princess Adila has a certain stereotype of Illumians in her head and these conscripts have somehow hit every possible note of that simultaneously. They can go from kissing to crying to kung-fu aerobatics to transcendent heroism and then to absurd levels of fashion knowledge while you stand there waiting to take their statements. She knows of no nation in the world that trains the average soldier to bleach hair from wild herbs and berries, and their idea of 'quick and hacky haircut' still somehow involves an intricate curved lining pattern and subtle red and orange highlights. These are Princess Alina's people to the bones.

Even the uniform she has to cram herself into is Illumian to the stitches. The boots are light and steady, for balancing on the soft sand at the bottom of rivers, not the hobnailed clunkers that are designed for mile-eating walks along cobblestone streets. The fabric feels like she'll tear the entire uniform with one solid flex. The cloak feels genuinely psychotic, someone trying to combine the ideals of 'warm winter clothing' and 'beautiful and graceful' and somehow achieving neither while over-engineering each stitch and seam in a desperate bid to hit both notes.

She appreciates it, of course! And throughout she radiates that appreciation and her renewed determination to save their kingdom from Greymane. But goodness do they live up to their reputations.

It's honestly bothersome because now she likes them to the point where she has to save them as well as Kazelia somehow.

[PhoeKun]

Her body hurts. Her eyes still don't want to work right. Her thoughts are tearing her into pieces. One screams that she's fading, she's fading and this time she won't come back! Another's heaving with sobs for Rita who's all alone up there in that terrible storm she can't get back to because it's half a dream. Another's terrified she'll be seen. Another's terrified she never will be again. Drip. Drip. Drip. Every second makes it harder. Every second brings her closer to ruin. She looks at her hand and it's like it's made of glass. She swears she can see the night jewel through her clenched fingers.

That's it. That's the only thing she can think of. There shouldn't be a dream to fall through. There shouldn't be a storm or a Roc or anything to hurt Rita anywhere near here. There should be strawberries and fresh grass and the sun shining over the misty waterfall. It's all this horrible thing's, the Slaugh's fault! If she can... if she can... how does she? Her ears pick up the sound of water. She doesn't trust her legs to carry her right now, so she scrambles, sobbing, on hands and knees toward it. Was this still pure? Does it count? She isn't sure. It doesn't matter; she's got tears enough to make up for it. She wants to dip the heart into the water, but she doesn't trust her fingers to keep hold of it. She wants to stick her whole hand in there, but she doesn't trust it not to disappear or shatter, or turn all black and try to hurt her. So she does the only thing that makes any sense, and with one final desperate heave she throws herself into the lake.

[Finish with Wisdom: 2d6+2 = 7]

And she sinks. Drip. Drip. Drip. Even in here she can feel this different water, so poisonous and wrong, running over her fingers and wearing her down into whatever shape it wanted, from a beautiful crystal down into some broken stunted thing. But she can also feel it crack. Despite the coldness of the water, despite her lungs screaming at her for more air, she feels a little bit warmer. Oh. This won't be so bad. She hurt it, at least. With some luck, Kazelia or Adila will find it before the others, and they'll know what to do. She'll just... go ahead and fade away now. That won't be so bad. She'd stop hurting, and she wouldn't need to worry anymore. Maybe when enough of her crumbles away she'd be light enough to float back up into the storm so she can push Rita back out here where she belongs. And then... and then... maybe she'd hear mommy's voice one more time. That house is so full of her, so... so...

Her eyes flutter open. Her mother! Summerveil had drunk up all of her memories, and given them to the Slaugh. Everything was hers from the beginning, why didn't she see it sooner? Who helped her set the trap for Mr Stormy? Who guarded her from the storm and the awful revenge of the Roc? Who made everything better, when things were there worst and scariest? Whose face did the Slaugh try to erase forever? Alina's lights grow brighter. They spark and swirl around her until she's wrapped up in a warm, shimmering bubble of light flashing in all sorts of shades and colors that's shining like a tiny sun. It lifts her out of the water and she lights up the whole lake and even the waterfall in her swirling myriad of almost-rainbow magic. So what if it's not complete? It's still her mother's gift, and that means more here than anything.

The sphere sets Alina gently down on the shore again and starts to flicker. When it finally melts away, her crown is locked again, and shines with the very softest of glows. She coughs up some water and, with difficulty, turns her head to look up at the sky. Her hand is warm and whole.

[Alina damages her light to regain Advantage. Finish with Grace: 2d6+2 = 11]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Liza

"How dare you! Don't touch me! I will set you all on fire! I hate you beautiful Iluminans almost as much as I hate Riders, who are delicious!"

Okay. Listen. Look. Listen. Out of the four of you, you are the best actor, and that is a sad and terrible thing. One of your first memories is being one of the flower maids at your aunt's wedding, looking out at everyone, and then bursting into mortified tears. You are one of the worst people available for acting.

But our options here include:
- Julia Wetsparkley, who literally cannot act to save her life, as we have just discovered
- Kay Rippley, who is still riding high on the fact that she just attacked a dragon and is almost vibrating out of her uniform out of delight, and also you cannot bear the thought of putting her in this much danger
- And Moggy Lily, who needs to do all the talking for the previous two

So if someone has to be the heroic dragon princess captured by the Riders, well, it's up to you, isn't it? Oh, Ourania's bedhead, it's up to you.

"My fatal mistake was thinking that I could sway the loyal soldiers of the King!" Ugh. That sounds wrong coming out of your mouth. "When, clearly, all of us know that you are loyal only to-"

Gulp. Oh, boy. There she is. Asteria Spite herself. Showing off the latest victim of her cruel and perverse whims. At least this one's a Rider. "Curse you all," you say, your enthusiasm flagging as Asteria Spite turns her gaze to you, and you start imagining all the terribly inventive ways she might be able to make you regret doing this for the dragon princess. "I... my revenge! I'll have it! On you!"

"Shut up," Moggy growls, before saluting properly. "Your highness, the princess has been captured as ordered. The enemy was relying upon magical shapechanging capabilities to become a dragon, knowing our aversion to them." She is nailing it! "Here. This was the magical talisman she was using."

...oh wait Asteria's a witch isn't she she's going to know that's not magic. Well. This was a good plan right up until it wasn't, and your mouth has gone very, very dry all of a sudden.

And then the wind begins to blow.

***

Kazelia!

Well, uh. That sure is Adila, but regular person-sized, trying not to explode out of one of the Iluminan military uniforms while some poor girl she roped into being her stooge goes white-faced in the presence of Asteria Spite. This entire situation has gone pear-shaped in the blink of an eye, and here you are, stuck in some void-cursed mittens.

On the plus side, you've managed to keep her on the back foot for long enough that, if Adila strikes now, she might be able to capture your sister in one fell stroke. I mean, if the growing crowd around you doesn't complicate things. (Spoilers: they will almost certainly complicate things.)

And then the wind begins to blow. And the mists soften, fade, and the air seems- calmer, now. Wounded, still, but less dangerous.

Less dangerous, save for the rotting smell of something from the bottom of the sea, and the sound of scuttling limbs. The Garthim return to their mistress.

***

Alina!

It would be nice, I think, to have a sudden spiritual burst of rejuvenation. To have flowers spring into bloom all around you, for the waters of the lake to run clear and swift and wash the Riders away, for the mists to roll back and for the sun to shine on your face. For Summerveil to pull off its mask and say, I was only trying to spook you a little, Alina, come back inside and sit down on the comfortable seats.

This does not happen. I think the house will have to be torn down, and maybe they will build a little shrine here instead, or maybe they will build a better house. I think that it will take time, and care, and dedication to make this place beautiful.

But because of what you have done, because of what you have dared- maybe, just maybe, one day you will bring your daughter here by the side of the lake and encourage her to go run up the side of Big Hill with the cats, and know that it is not the Summerveil you remember, but that it is not worse than that Summerveil, either. That your daughter will be free to fall in love with the sun falling low and casting strange shadows through the mist.

I mean, if Oberon doesn’t take over the world anyway. Still, it’s a nice-

SPLASH.

That’s the sound of a twisting, yowling cat hitting the lake at high speeds. Are you up for one more dive, Alina? I hope, for Rita’s sake, that you are.

Twisting Mists. Your dreams and hopes are close by. Whenever you Speak Softly or Look Closely, you may always ask: “what is in your heart, and how do I see it?”

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila knew that she didn't have to do anything other than be quiet and not laugh. Not even think about laughter.

It was her greatest challenge yet.

It was like if she had armed Detective Brill - himself not known for his appreciation for the subtle art of combat dressmaking - to draw a profile sketch of the Princess of Feloria using only a box of crayons. It was like what Old Tovy would come up with while breathing too deep of the hallucination fear mist. It was like the little model the Captain used in wargame planning to denote 'unknown Princess'. She had never seen Princess Kazelia as anything other than sleek, sharp, deadly. Now it was all crashing down around her. Liza's acting, Kazelia's outfit, that little nutter who'd tried to jump her, the Illuminans in general, her own costume - everything added up and it was all too much.

She started leaking laughter-thoughts. She couldn't help it. She had been scared out of her wits, oh Ourania! She'd been terrified she was going to show up here and Kazelia would be being whipped or tortured or something. All that tension! All that hyperactive planning! And instead - instead -

Oh. Oh no. This was totally blowing her cover. She could see Princess Spite look around angrily, trying to figure out who was laughing at her. Oh no. Um. Plan. She had a plan? Oh no do something do something quick

Princess Adila picked up Princess Spite like a doll and threw her. Over the wall. Out of the camp. Down the hill. Into the ocean. Skipped her twice. She ripped her ill-fitting uniform to bits doing that, of course, torso now covered by scraps of cloth and cloth bindings around her chest.

She hoped she learned how to lie between now and having to explain this to the Captain.

[Finishing Her with a 12]

[PhoeKun]

Does she have one more dive in her? Truthfully, no. Her muscles ache. Her mind's half caught in a wonderful dream, and all she really wants to do is lie here and think about what it might be like to bring a little girl of her own here someday when everything is healed and whole so that she can run and laugh and play and take her paints and try to capture a perfect day. There's a voice in her head that's telling her she's done enough. She's got the right to just lie here on the shore and think of pleasant things for a change, doesn't she?

But she's on her feet anyway, almost before the splash is even finished. She dives into the lake again and barely makes a ripple on her way in. And she does it because her pretty dream isn't worth a thing if she doesn't have Rita to share it with. Luckily, she's Alina Cascade and water is her special friend. She hardly swims so much as cuts through the water with a grace that would make a dolphin blush. It would be hard to see down here, but her light shines softly and rushes just ahead of her to guide her way. She scoops Rita up in her arms and kicks her way to the surface. From here she floats on her back to keep Rita above the surface while she makes her back to the shore. Hopefully she'd cough up her lake on the way.

...She doesn't. Alina's kiss of life is met with a nose full of water. She gags and makes a face in spite of everything. Then she makes a sound halfway between a laugh and a sob and she's holding her friend so tightly, for warmth and for love, and lies there on the shore.

"It's ok, it's ok," she chokes out, "We did it. It's done. Everything's going to be ok..."

[Not sure if a roll is even needed here, but a Get Away anyway: 2d6+2 = 11. Alina arrives safe and undamaged, and plus one kitty princess]

[Anarion]

Ah, there was everyone’s favorite dragon princess. Kazelia cheers and pumps her mittened fists. This had been nostalgic, in a way, but Asteria was causing a lot of problems and hurting a lot of people.

Then, she turns to Tam, who had shown both loyalty and compassion through this whole escapade and speaks to her with quiet conviction. “Asteria is gone. I know you have people to protect at home, and I promise to help you protect them. Princess Alina is here, and the dragon is princess Adila, and we will all help free them and keep them safe. Help us protect this world and show my sisters that what they’re doing is wrong. Now, we haven’t been properly introduced.” She holds out a pink mitten. “I’m Kazelia Swiftlance, the traitor daughter. You are?”

[Rolling to finish Tam with wisdom: 3+4+1=8. I think this damaged her last stat and forges a bond.

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Adila!

"What is the meaning of thiiiiIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-"

The comparison is apt. Limbs flopping around limply like a doll, the fearsome Princess Asteria Spite goes hurtling off into the sky, taking out a bird along the way with an explosion of feathers, but such is the force of the mighty thews of Princess Adila of the Watch that not even clotheslining a majestic Askaian Mist Sparrow will arrest Asteria's arc. While not even the incredible eyes of a dragon will be able to see where she lands, I will tell you that she is going to land on a shark, and that she is going to browbeat it into submission. Such is the villainy of Asteria Spite that not even the humble shark is proof against her.

But, also, it will take at least another five minutes for her to land on that shark, and then quite some time for her to train it to swim her back to shore, and so I do not think we need to worry about her any more.

No, what we need to worry about is-

Well, keep reading!

***

Kazelia!

Tam laughs. She does! It's a little tired, true, but she does laugh and grasp your mitten firmly in one calloused hand. "Tam Patterley. Knight of the Order of the Lily, your highness. I'm afraid I have to go to the aid of your sister, but, well..." She offers you a wry little smile. "I think it might take me a while."

That's when chaos breaks out. That's right, a real three-way melee right here in the camp! Wait, you might ask, three? What's going on?

Well, let's count them. Side number one: the Riders in the camp, who aren't going to drop their weapons and roll over just because their commander was hurled into the sky at high speeds. Not while her sisters are still around. Eska might be sarcastic at them. Alongside them are about, oh, maybe a dozen Iluminans too scared to try to defect. If you don't handle them, and quickly-

Well, not that you have any way to know this right now, but I'll tell you anyway, to properly highlight the stakes: reinforcements are on their way from the manor. You had the advantage here because Asteria split her forces in half, but if they coalesce around you- and Kaja takes you all on, properly- you might still lose this one.

Side number two: the Iluminans led by Moggy Lily, who are closing ranks and poking anyone around them with glass spears. They won't poke you on purpose, but in the chaos- well, you do look like a Rider, if a Rider dressed for a playdate with your stuffed animals. They intend to fight their way out and- well, they'll probably raid Askaia City a little bit to get supplies for their escape, if they do manage to fight their way out of here. Not out of malice, but just the panicked assumption that the cats wouldn't give supplies and boats to the people who just invaded them. That said, if you could calm them down and get them to listen to you, they'd be easy to pacify.

Side number three: the Garthim. You know, the magic-eating deep sea crustaceans? The ones that Asteria was controlling by means of witchcraft? But now that she's nearing the apex of her arc, screaming bloody murder off in the beautiful blue sky, she's lost control of the spell binding them to her will. Which means they're just blundering about snapping their claws and looking for magical things to eat.

Uh, remind me, Kazelia- you're magical, right?

Tam vaults over a Garthim and is gone. Said Garthim starts towards you, all clicking and clattering limbs, and you've still got those blasted mittens on!

Side #1 is composed of a Group of Rider Valkyries - very dangerous in close combat - and a Group of Iluminan Conscripts.

Side #2 is a Group of Iluminan Conscripts with a damaged Graceful tag.

Side #3 is a Group of Garthim.

***

Alina!

Rita coughs, sputters, and gracefully, er, expels the water from her body. Let's imagine there are sparkles. Then her cat ears twitch, and she looks up at you with a weak little smile. "Hey, Alina. I had a really messed-up dream." But it's over! You did it. You saved your childhood friend from falling forever in an endless nightmare storm, and she saved you from being carted off by Kaja Ironpelt and not being able to stop the evil here, and in that moment- well, if you kiss her, I promise not to tell. Really! It can be your secret.

And here, I would like to say that the two of you limp back to Asteria's camp, where you find Kazelia and Adila having tea with Liza Rippley and her Illuminan company, with a bunch of nasty puddles from discorporated Garthim being cleaned up by their Rider prisoners. You could laugh at Kazelia's silly outfit! You could giggle at Adila's haircut. You could give your princessy blessing to the Iluminans and they could tell you that they don't blame you for dumping water on Oberon's head. All of you could head back to Askaia City, and you could take a bath- three baths- you could make sure that all of that nightmare place has been scrubbed away, and gird yourself to go stop the schemes of Azora Howl in the kingdom that has a price on your adorable head but that's okay because with your friends by your side you can do anything.

I would like to say that.

But the mists are thinning, and Eska Glinteye is the finest archer of all her father's hosts, and a black dart strikes you and knocks you away from Rita, hitting you in the chest hard enough to leave a bruise. But it is worse than that. This is one of the shadow-arrows of the Riders, and when it strikes you it breaks apart into writhing, squirming shadow-ropes, so that when you hit the ground you can't reach out to break your fall because your arms are already stuck fast to your sides.

Rita screams your name again, and bounds over to your side in a moment, trying to use her claws to cut through the shadows, screaming in frustration as they part and reform nigh-instantly. "Alina, I won't leave you," she says, desperately, even as another shadow-arrow comes within a hair's breadth of striking her in the shoulders.

But-

But if she tries to pick you up and carry you off, Eska will have two princesses, and that's the truth. She'll only be able to get away if she turns back into a cat and rushes off, right now.

And signal-whistles are keening all about the shoreline, and here come the Riders you managed to evade on your way in. Rita can evade them, too, but only if she leaves you. Only if she abandons you. Only if you beg her to go and find your friends.

What will it be, Alina? I wish you didn't have to choose, but that's the way it is.

[PhoeKun]

A princess never kisses and tells, so let us keep what happens between the lips of Alina Cascade and Rita von Catabas between the pair of them. But the flush of their cheeks and the coy smiles on their faces in this moment of happiness is for everyone to hear about someday.

And then the arrow, cruel. And the ropes, crueler. And the choice, cruelest of all. If she does not tell Rita to save herself then she is the very worst of friends. But if she screams for her to run and tears them both apart again, won't that cut just as deep? It's so very cruel to ask her to choose. Hasn't she given up enough today? Does she really have to steel herself to do this, too?

"Rita, please..."

But whether she means to finish that though 'save yourself' or 'stay with me' or even 'don't forget I love you', we'll never know. Eska does the thing proper: the shadow coils weave around her mouth and choke off the rest. Alina lays helpless on the ground, and all she can do is look at Rita with green, watery eyes and try to wriggle her way closer. So here is what she really chooses: to trust her friend to know what's best. To trust she read things wrong. To trust that, if she should be carried off, it will mean that two princesses escape. Is this greedy? Of course it is. But if she was allowed to take comfort in the hurts they shared on Big Hill, then she is also allowed the tiny shred of solace that whatever happens now, it will happen to them together.

[Anarion]

“Tam Patterley. Pleasure to meet you. I hope we meet again soon.” With that Kazelia gives her a mittened salute and then leaps into the tent as fast as possible. Because yes, Kazelia is very magic, but also unfortunately is very poor at the type of magic that would let her control or ally with beasts and monsters like these. And while she makes a mental note to practice that, it’s not going to be relevant if a pack of Garthim carry her off to who knows where.

She finds the spear still leaning on the tent flap and carefully starts sawing at the wool, trying to avoid cutting herself but needing to get through multiple cords. The low clack and clatter of the garthim approaches and Kazelia looks up at the side of the tent nervously, then goes back to sawing at the strands of wool faster and faster. At last, she tears a major rip and pulls a hand out, grabbing the other mitten off as well and then holding her spear with joy in her heart. She didn’t have time for any further wardrobe changes, so instead she whispers a message to Adila and sends it floating to her ears on the winter wind. “I’ll take care of the Garthim and draw them from the camp, protect the Illuminans!”

And with that, she slices her way out of the back side of the tent (this slice may happen to be directly through Asteria’s wardrobe, which you should be assured is purely coincidental). The Garthim are almost upon her and she charges the first one to appear with her swift spear, hoping to skewer it decisively and drive the Garthim back before the whole pack can converge.

[Unsure if “spear that can cut through anything” is advantage enough to finish some Garthim here, or just keep them busy. But either way, the roll is a 14]

[Thanqol]

This is still a rescue mission.

Princess Adila is not here to fight an entire camp of riders single-handed. It's to get Kazelia and the Illuminans who risked so much to get her in here to safety. Without Princess Spite the Riders will be leaderless. However much time they brought for Princess Alina will have to be enough. And while her first move was foolish and impulsive her second one will not be.

Wings erupt from her back. She's beginning the process to transform back into a dragon but it's slow and she needs to go through every intermediate stage before she gets there. She's vulnerable in the transition. That's fine - Kazelia is buying them time, and tossing people into the horizon has not stopped being the solution to her problems.

She grabs the biting one first. Hurls her into the sky with similar force to Princess Spite. Liza is next, then Moggy Lily - all hurled into the sky before they have the opportunity to think about it. Then she takes a running leap, spreads her wings, and soars after them. All that Brightball practice was for this, she thinks, as she erupts into serpentine glory and obsidian scales. Catching three people on a long arc and carrying them to safety? Child's play for Princess Adila, star athlete!

She hopes Kazelia can take care of herself now that her sister is gone. If she has to make a third trip back her so help her

[I rolled a 7 on Get Away, and am choosing to take the Illumian conscripts with me. I may take harm or draw attention as I do - which is relevant because the Rider Valkyries have Inescapable should they wish to pursue me.]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Eska Glinteye!

The second shot misses by a hair, and you curse your own impatience. It's just that you are teetering on the edge of disaster here. Kaja failing, incredibly, to stop these two princesses from just waltzing off with the void stone or whatever Azora put here - that's put you all in danger of failing your father. Then again, maybe that was your fault, too, for assuming that Kaja could avoid being tricked or outsmarted. It's not like there's anything going on upstairs in that big beautiful head of hers, just eyeliner tricks and exercise tips. ("Eska, you should really, you know, go jogging with me for a few miles!" uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh)

Arrow number three. You can't miss. You have to hit this one, dead on, or the stupid little princess is going to bound away as a cat and try to hide out in the reeds and you are not leaving anything to chance here. No more opportunities for princesses to be clever and sneaky and ruin everything. You aim at the princess's heart, and fire.

Bullseye.

She goes flying off the crybaby, skidding nearly two yards away, landing face-down. Ooooh, that's gotta hurt. The shadows do their work, constricting the cat-princess. Don't try turning into a cat now, you'll just end up unable to change back, stupid. Okay. Okay. Everything's going to be okay.

And, on cue, Kaja drops out of the sky in a three-point pose. Yeah, Kaja, nice going. Look who put them on a silver platter for you. Your sister goes over to Princess Crybaby and starts frisking her, but apparently comes up empty. Vindication. That's why you took down the cat princess, too. She's obviously got the crystal. Some precious little Iluminan thought she could get the better of Eska Glinteye by giving the crystal to the less important princess? Ha! Nice try.

...

Hold up. Why's Kaja panicking.

Hold up.

Oh, duh. She's just too thick to figure out where it is. It's up to Eska, as per usual, so that Princess Powerhouse over here can keep having her blissfully thought-free weightlifting days or whatever. You don't need to panic. You're running over because you don't want to waste time. That's it. That's all. That's the only reason. They couldn't have broken it or demagicked it or anything like that, not in the time they had alone. They're not smart enough for that.

"Eska, they-"

You don't listen to Kaja. You grab the crybaby and start frisking her down thoroughly. Where do you have it? Come on, come on. You yank the gag down and force her mouth open, taking a look in there, your goggles magnifying- oh, wow, those are some quality teeth. But she's not hiding the crystal in there. We're not panicking. We're not panicking. Everything is fine. Everything is under control, you say to yourself, as the shadows slither back into place and shut her pathetic little pleas for mercy back up again.

Okay, so it was the kitty princess. Right? Where is it? You've got three void-scourged jackets on, you little brat, they've got to be somewhere in there, you think to yourself, using your fletching knife to slash them open and tear the stuffing out, ignoring the frightened mewling noises the kitty's making.

"Where where where," you mumble to yourself, "did you throw it in the lake, did you try to hide it in the mud, where is it," and it strikes you that there is one surefire way to figure it out. Because they didn't break it. Everything's under control. We're cool. Everything is fine and you will not have to go to Dad and explain that the Slaugh's not actually going to be happening.

"Kaja, carry them," you say, in your calm reasonable everything-is-under-control voice that absolutely does not sound like you are one more unpleasant surprise from a breakdown. "Asteria will get them to tell us where the crystal is. And besides," you add, and maybe you snarl it a little bit, because this is a stressful day and you're allowed to be tetchy about it, "it'll be fun to watch her work them over."

Kaja hesitates, and you do lose it a little. "Now, Kaja, before I die of old age!!" She hefts one up under each arm, and together you lead your nine-Rider team of professionals back to the bridge and Asteria's camp, where hopefully she's got the dragon under control. Everything is going to be fine. You are Eska Glinteye, and you are going to be Father's second-in-command once you show him how reliable you are, and a crybaby and a cat are not going to ruin this for you.

***

Kazelia!

Hail to you, first among the king's lancers, nimble and swift of foot! Your pretty pink skirt poofs and swirls around you as you dance from crustacean to crustacean, leading them on a merry chase. That spear of yours is like a glowing beacon to them, and they lunge for it even as you poke hole after hole in their shells, making them leak black and putrid water.

(Don't worry! They're partially magical creatures, and they'll just collapse into water and seaweed if you manage to "kill" one of them. No gruesome death scenes here!)

But it's taking all of your concentration to continue this whirling, vicious, adorable dance of death. If you make one wrong step, or linger a moment too long to twist your spear's grim and terrible head within their seaweed-guts, you'll be grabbed and they will converge on you, fighting each other for the right to suck your spear dry of its magic.

If you had time, time and energy and a clear field, you could fight them all day in a death of ten thousand cuts. They would come apart, one by one, until you stood alone and victorious. The trick is not surrendering to exhaustion; or stumbling in the mist, slipping on a puddle, or tripping on a discarded glass spear; or having your allies be overwhelmed while you work.

Decisive action by an ally would be needed to clear room for you to breathe. But fire will lick off their shells like water off a duck's back, so how is Adila to defeat these creatures, whose bodies only yield to your spear's fearsome head? And- if Alina were to arrive in a glorious charge of light- how could she try to defeat them? No, it has to be you, no matter how long it takes.

(Or, hypothetically, if a group of Iluminan lancers interposed themselves and cleared space for you to work, letting the crustaceans run themselves headlong onto glass spears... that would be breath enough for you to disincorporate them, one by one. But it sounds like the Iluminans are busy, too.)

***

Adila!

So here's the thing. Here's the thing. Your transformation is a little, uh. Slow. Which means that you're trying to defend the three Iluminans who teamed up with you while also dealing with balance changes and sudden additions to your anatomy every minute. There are Iluminans poking you with their glass spears, but, oddly, not so many of the Riders trying to stop you from launching them off into the sky.

Take Damage to your Blood! You end up pretty dramatically beaten up, a bit scuffed and scarred and limping a little, by the time that you take that running start and launch yourself a bit unevenly into the sky-

And then a Rider bravo jumps right onto your back. After all, Riders are just a little bit better than the average person, and leaping from a stake onto your back while you're in flight? That's Rider aesthetic pretty clear-cut right there. Her keening sword lashes against your back as you try to dislodge her, but she's tenacious and has a surprising amount of thigh strength for sitting herself right on your back-

And then you see several other Riders, with their pale swords and their pale hair, spurring their pegasi after you. The time you took to fully transform gave them, in turn, time to get their flying steeds ready, saddled, and up in the air. One way or another, they're going to make sure you regret bringing a fight to them.

The good news is that down below, Kazelia just has to deal with keeping a bunch of grabby deep sea crustaceans from tackling her, as well as the pro-Rider faction of Iluminans (or, maybe, pro-cowardice) who now have, like, one person and a bunch of crabs to deal with, and might end up making the fight more awkward for both Kazelia and the crabs. Whoops!

We're fine, though. We're cool. You've got pegasus knights trying to force you to land while you get your friends to land on your back, but also, now they're trying to deal with the Rider on your back, and the back of a dragon is not the right place for four different people to try to have a swordfight, except really it's three people because Kay Rippley is hanging on one of your horns and throwing your balance off.

But, hey, at least you haven't caused any property damage lately! That's gotta be a big plus.

[Anarion]

Kazelia is...content. She can’t gain a decisive advantage, at least not yet, but she’s holding down the group of Garthim and Adila is free to deal with the riders, which is just what she wanted. Granted, she hadn’t had time to do more than get the mittens off, but even in constraining clothing she knew how to leap, and step, maintaining her balance as she swept this way and that with her spear. So she was a pink and blue blur of poofing dress and lace swirling about with a flashing spear. Truth be told, these clothes weren’t all that bad. Maybe with a little tailoring, a bit more freedom of movement, she’d be okay keeping them.

As she settled into the pattern, she saw the Illuminans comingg as well. Unexpected, she had thought they would have focused on Adila. But maybe this was good. They could help, she just needed them to distract a few Garthim for a minute. “Hey! Help me!” Kazelia calls out to them. They probably seem uncertain, this is the pro-cowardice faction, after all. But they’re also Illuminan and they still have that nation’s sensibilities, so she keeps talking as she twirls between blows. “Asteria’s gone, these ugly crabs are going nuts. They’ll drain all your magic when they’re done with me!” And there is she is blocking a Garthim from barreling into the Illuminan lines. She’s trying to appeal to their pure sense of self-preservation and panic here. Lance princess good, giant enemy crabs bad, and support your princess above all else!

[I think this is talk sense to get them to help against the Garthim. Kazelia is the only princess here and this is in their self-interest regardless of the long-term family issues, so they should be willing to listen. 4+5+1=10]

[PhoeKun]

They can look all they want, Alina does not have a stone to give them. It's gone, she broke it, she'd tell them that if they'd let her. Instead, she's gagged and getting frisked by Kaja. Which is weirdly... gentle. And thorough. Alina shivers but, again, can't give up what she doesn't have. She's got a moment to watch the giant girl panic and to somehow feel awful for her all over again when suddenly here's Eska in her face all swearing and paler than usual and looking like she's forgotten how to breathe.

And then Alina's being frisked again. She 'mrphs' in surprise and then in protest because no one has ever handled her this roughly, and then again in surprise because she's gagless and there are fingers in her mouth. In the light cast by her crown, her teeth sparkle.

"Please, please, don't hurmph~"

'Hurt Rita, it's me you want' goes the rest, but do you think Oberon teaches his children to understand the muffled speech of shadow-gagged princesses? Of course not, who has time? Though he brought them a lovely book on the subject, so you can hardly blame him if they can't follow along. In any case, Alina is on the ground panting and shrieking as the knife comes out.

And you know something? What happens next really isn't her fault. She did not ask to jump into a lake twice in one day. She didn't plan to have her clothes turn sheer or for her hair to do that thing where it tantalizingly clung to her neck and shoulders. She was just trying to get loose! It's not her fault Kaja chose to pick her up by the waist and holder under one arm. She didn't mean for her wriggling to get her twisted around and press her warm stomach against Kaja's hip. She was struggling with all the tools available to her, and it's really not her fault that effort whimpers sound embarrassingly similar to... um... you know, that. And when she finally managed to work that stupid shadow out of her mouth again she was out of breath, so she didn't mean for her voice to sound quite so husky, either.

...She may have meant the flutter of her eyelashes, and the look up with deep, liquid eyes. But she swears it's mostly out of pity.

"I still see you," she breathes, and don't her lips just look so kissable? "It doesn't have to be like this..."

[This is a Speak Softly roll at 10+, brought to you by the power of F/F shipping. The questions are "What can she tell us about what's going to happen, now that this invasion is doomed to fail?" "What would she have me do next?" and of course, "What is in her heart, and how can I see it?"]

[Thanqol]

She cuts low, soaring over the river in the valley so close her claws could touch the water.

Then she folds her wings and hits the water like a torpedo. The sudden burst of chill water washes the Illumians off her back. And then, through the pain that's still running through her body, Princess Adila finally relaxes. Everyone is gone. Everyone is safe. Thank goodness. She did it.

She breaks from the surface of the water. Riders shadow her in every direction. There's nowhere in the skies or snow she can hide from them; this is their winter, their home brought with them. They've made this place theirs. The only way out is to make it hers.

She soars over the rooftops of Summerveil. Fire pours from her mouth. In a flash all the buildings are ablaze, the compound a raging inferno, stone melting in the heat of a dragon's heart. She loops back around and crashes through the front door into the grand entrance hall, coming to a final halt in the midst of the new inferno. She was aware - always, painfully aware - that the houses and buildings humans built for themselves were tinderboxes.

She had to take a moment to catch her breath - she still felt the ache where the spears had struck her, where the swords of ice had cut her, where the lances had pierced her scales. She wasn't used to battle. She hated it, didn't want any part of it ever again.

She turned, sat, raised her head proudly. This wasn't a battle any more, though. This wasn't their home either. It was hers, and good luck to them trying to take it from her.

[Overcome with despair: 6, 1 6: 9. Damaging my courage as the price to get the 10+ result.]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Kazelia!

There's a moment of milling about and uncertainty and "no way those things look really scary," but then- well, you're right. These are Alina's people, after all, and they know that they're supposed to support the princess. A blue-uniformed recruit interposes herself between you and one of the Garthim, poking it in the face with her spear with grim determination. Another follows her, shoulder-to-shoulder, fending off another with reckless jabs. And once they've started, it's hard for the Iluminans to stop joining the fight in twos and threes, forming a circle around you, a bristling spear-circle of defense. You're clear.

Which means that now, you have the space and time to take them down one by one. You open up holes in their ribs and crack open their skulls, and one by one they collapse into reeking black puddles, and with each one the Iluminans cheer and keep jabbing. Soon enough there's only two left, and those two go scuttling off. Maybe they'll come back if you linger, or maybe they'll just try to add themselves to the unique Askaian ecosystem. Who's to say?

Huzzah!

Unfortunately, this is also when Eska yells from the other side of the camp, "What in the name of thaw and melt is happening here?"

The Iluminans reverse their spears and now you're standing in a ring of glass spear-tips all pointed at you! Ah, the fickle winds of fortune.

One Iluminan turns around and salutes, then cups her hands and yells, "Your highness! There, uh, there was a crab infestation, and also a dragon threw the commander into the sky!"

And behind Eska there is a mushroom cloud of flame as Summerveil goes up.

***

Alina!

Kaja Ironpelt is very red-faced and trying very hard not to look at you. It's like- it's a little like you made one of the glass statues outside the castle embarrassed, really. Steadfastly not looking at you! Nope, not looking at the squirming, suggestively-grunting, very-suggestively-dressed princess wriggling around under her iron-firm grip. Not thinking about Illegal Kiss Crimes.

But she does think about such things- and it is the nature of this place that it makes your heart visible to you. And maybe because you are being held by her, or maybe because you are two hearts and you have two hands, you can see her heart, too. And her heart is her father, the Robber King, walking beside her.

“You’re not thinking about kissing her, are you?” Maybe seeing him causes panic to rise in you. Even though this is Oberon as Kaja sees him- more regal, more paternal, less a terrifying figure in shabby, torn black standing with a sword over your throat. "My instructions were very clear. Bring the Iluminan and Kazelia back to me." He looks up at her- looks up, even! But Kaja looks like a little girl trying not to look at her scolding parent. "I know she is beautiful and not frightened of you and you want to commit many illegal kiss crimes with her. But that is wrong. What is the right thing to do?"

"To be a good daughter," Kaja mumbles to herself. Rita quirks an eyebrow and looks at you from the other side of her pillaresque torso like, whaaaaat?

"That's right. I trust you to do the right thing."

Kaja's face twists, and she blurts out, low and fast, "But what if she joins us? You know, like her sister? Then you wouldn't have to punish her and I could keep an eye on her and it'd be okay. I don't, you know, want to see her..."

On the other side of you, another you, with raggedy hair and chains and a look of terror on her face, goes, "Kaja, please, I-" Then you're frozen mid-scream, and drop away into the mist.

"That's for me to decide. Your place is to obey." And he, too, melts away into the mist, slowly, and his eyes are the last to go; his eyes, fixed on Kaja, making her sweat.

Then-

Cheering. Applause. Riders coming up, asking for her autograph; cats coming up, bearing sushi platters and pretty earrings; Jedadi dancing-girls (and one of them with suggestively curled lavender hair, oh my); Eska looming out of the mist and giving her a grin and a thumbs-up and "I never really thought you were stupid, Kaja." The treasures that will be laid before her, if she is victorious. If she is a good daughter. If she is a good soldier.

Then there really is looming out of the mist- and you can see Kazelia, surrounded by- oh, no! Iluminans in Rider uniforms, pointing spears at her, and oh my stars and little lights what is she wearing? And from the yelling that Eska is doing, it's actually happening, not another mist-phantom.

***

Adila!

Well, the Riders are not dumb enough to follow you into the inferno- not all the way in, at least. They swoop down at you, trying to catch you with their swords, but the flames lick at their boots and they can't seem to get a good vantage point against you. All around you is the terrible smell of this rotting place going up like a candle.

I think, here-

That you can tempt them in. That you can leave yourself exposed just enough to lure them in, knock them from their horses, and make this a fairer fight. Enough so that it will count as an Advantage to Finish Them off with your dangerous, house-shattering attacks. But it will mean leaving yourself open, and letting them get several more shots in, before you have them exactly where you want them.

Or you can just stay in here in the oh-so-comfortably warm fires, and they won't be able to touch you at all! I mean, that doesn't seem like a good idea, but you've overcome their assault, and it's your prerogative now whether or not you want to be vulnerable any more.

[Anarion]

Kazelia let herself catch her breath as the Garthim retreated. That had been something. Perhaps with the Illuminans, she could go get her armor and her horse, and go find Alina. Or...perhaps Alina could find her, with two of her sisters, and the Illuminans back to their routine of serving the Riders to protect their families.

And then Kazelia really saw Alina. And Rita. She saw the bonds from the shadow arrows and how badly off they both looked. Her heart ached. When she had left, it had not been about betrayal and revenge. It had been about the beauty she saw in this world of Hyperborea. She had sworn to protect that, to keep her friends safe no matter what. But today, Eska Glinteye had attacked all of them, one after another. And Kazelia was through with this sister.

The stars recede from her eyes, and the shadows lengthen and leak from their corners, flaring outwards like wisps of black flame. Perhaps this is an odd sight, Kazelia in her pretty pink dress with lace and poofy skirts, but looking for all the world like an abomination of the darkest void as her eyes blaze with dark power. Her shadow elongates, and dark, sharp blades of night begin to swirl around her, faster and faster. They rise into the air and coalesce into a spear of blackest midnight, and in an instant, the swift lance surges forward with all Kazelia’s power and pierces Eska. The full force of the shadows is too fast to merely inflict a wound and instead rushes behind the spearpoint like a torrent, consuming her in the darkness.

[Kazelia is using not to be Trifled with, damaging her Doom, Grace, and Sense to deal three damage to Eska.]

[Thanqol]

Adila!

Well, the Riders are not dumb enough to follow you into the inferno- not all the way in, at least. They swoop down at you, trying to catch you with their swords, but the flames lick at their boots and they can't seem to get a good vantage point against you. All around you is the terrible smell of this rotting place going up like a candle.

I think, here-

That you can tempt them in. That you can leave yourself exposed just enough to lure them in, knock them from their horses, and make this a fairer fight. Enough so that it will count as an Advantage to Finish Them off with your dangerous, house-shattering attacks. But it will mean leaving yourself open, and letting them get several more shots in, before you have them exactly where you want them.

Or you can just stay in here in the oh-so-comfortably warm fires, and they won't be able to touch you at all! I mean, that doesn't seem like a good idea, but you've overcome their assault, and it's your prerogative now whether or not you want to be vulnerable any more.

It seemed so necessary, that pain. She swallows as she considers it - it's so close it seems inevitable, too. Just tough it out for a little longer. One more round of battle. All that she needed to do was leave this comfortable fire and hurt just a bit more.

She shivered. She really didn't want to do this. She'd never had a fight like this before. With no friends here to help her, with no plan? Just an ugly, brutal knock-down fight where the winner was the one who could take more pain than the other? She didn't want to go out there. She wasn't even sure she'd win. They were so quick...

But she was also the only one keeping them from her friends. She had to. She had to!

Princess Adila took a deep breath. She was scared. But she needed to be brave - no, not brave, brave was what had got her into this mess! She needed to be smart. Remember the mission. Mission... aha? Wasn't the whole mission here to...

+You can wait out there all you want,+ she projected out at the waiting Riders, +But your magical altar is in here, isn't it? The thing Princess Howl is using to pollute the mists, the thing that Princess Spite came her to protect? I wonder what they'll say when they hear you let it burn down.+

The mission. This is their problem. They can come into her ambush now, or she can take her time going door to door and burning out any hint of corruption.

[PhoeKun]

"You will learn respect, little girl."

All it takes is seeing him. Even though he's a mist form. Even though he's someone else's vision. All it takes is seeing him, and she's right back there on that day. Her chest burns from the cold of it, and this time she can't even hold the wound to reassure herself. The effect on her is terrifying: Alina turns pale and her sobs jump straight past hyperventilating into dry heaving. She writhes in agony through Kaja's entire self absorbed muttering fit, and she still hasn't quite pulled herself together by the time they finish walking through the mists' justification for all this. She just hangs there limply in Kaja's arm, trying to process some amount of useful information. When they arrive at camp, she doesn't even take in the scene around her. Not Kazelia's outfit or her horrifying shadow magic or her poor, aggrieved people dressed up in Rider garb. If she lets herself see any of it she'll fall completely to pieces, and right now she needs to do that princess thing and show her enemy compassion so she might eventually stop being an enemy. Ugh, bath and vacation please.

Panting, sweating, desperately in need of a hug. Scared out of her mind. Still oddly kissable. That's the face she presents to Kaja Ironpelt.

"All the... all the things you dream of won't happen if you keep going like this. I know you're, you're scared but I need you to trust me just a little bit. You're a good girl, Kaja, your," and here she almost falters, "Your father will know you did everything you could. This isn't your fault. So if you want kisses and praise and... and... Jedadi dancing lessons, the first step to getting there is to be brave enough to put me and Rita down, and walk away from this. There's an Illumina for both of us. There's a happy ending. I promise, when I see you again I'll help you find it."

And she means it, which is the sad and scary part.

[Talk Sense: 2d6+2 = 9]

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Kazelia!

Eska scrambles like a madwoman trying to get out of your way, the second you start channeling that spell. She's got a grappling hook, and is willing to jump on Kaja's shoulders to get away. Up she goes, hook secured on a tree branch, and is away-

And that's when the shadows get her.

The shadows swirl around her, contracting furiously, and Eska shrieks like a madwoman as the disc of shadows surrounding her, hiding her from view completely, shrinks down to the size of a dinner plate. Then it winks out of existence entirely, and leaves no trace of Eska behind. And if you are looking closely, as Alina is in a position to do, you can see, for a moment, stars falling forever into endless night.

I do not think that Eska will be unmade completely, there. I think that she will be welcomed back, in a sense, and she will spend an aeon beyond what is, afraid and a thing of fear, and then she will find her way back to the broad golden back of Ouroboros, oh, sometime next week. Perhaps it will be Oberon's need of her that will serve as a lighthouse for her in a far and sunless night, and perhaps it will be the cornerstone of her being, that she is the most clever and cunning Princess of the Riders. But, oh, Alina can tell you later-

This is a cruel and terrible thing you have done to her, and I do not think one can understand what you have just done to her and not tremble at the thought.

But to do this thing, you have torn your shadow to shreds. And you are disassociated from yourself. You see yourself as if you are standing a few steps away from yourself, and the impulses of your body are not always firing correctly, but rather are doing their best to understand your own desires of your self as you try not to walk right into a glass spear. If this is difficult to understand, I think that you are difficult to understand, right now, with a weak and wavering shadow behind you.

I wish you the best of luck attempting to escape this situation.

***

Adila!

Finally. This is more like it, daughter of the Watch. When the Riders come inside, duck between the buildings, they lose track of you; and that is what gives you the opportunity to burst through a wall at them, or be underneath the stairs they frantically race up, dragging them down into the crawl space as they wail and lay about them with their swords.

And they do. They do lay about, actually. Turns out that taking down a handful of well-trained Riders is difficult, even moreso than you’d think, and leaves one with a few gleaming scars, some buckled scales, and a throbbing headache, by the time you throw the last one sprawling out of the house. (Most of them are bobbing in the lake, or swimming for shore.)

Damage your Sense, but hold your aching head up high with pride. You did it. And also the entire place is collapsing down to the foundations, and it doesn’t look like you accidentally burned down Alina or anything, so that’s a plus.

...hold up, though. That thing you said? That was true. Their dark altar thing was here, so why aren’t Eska and Kaja throwing down with you? Maybe they weren’t actually here in the first place, and Asteria was your only opponent? Or maybe they’re somewhere else.

If I were you, I’d go figure out where Alina is. Right? No Watchman left behind.

[And just for you, I’ve let you damage their Inescapable stat, if you want to make a speedy getaway.]

***

Alina!

Oh, Alina, when Kaja looks down at you-

I think she sees your heart. Your fear, your sincerity, your hope that one day she will be safe, and happy, and not afraid. Maybe she sees the Princess she could be, in Iluminan glass and silk, as you yourself perhaps see her. Her lips tremble and the stars streak by in her eyes, seeing that!

“I can’t,” she says, quietly, hoarsely. “I don’t know how.”

And just like that, you know what you have to do. What you have to offer her. What you give her to be a light in the dark for her, because her family is so terribly dark.

Then-

Then she hoists you up and grabs you both by the ropes, and yanks you straight out of them. Just one powerful jerk, and both you and Rita drop to the wet grass below; the shadow-ropes writhe, grabbing at her, and with terrifying casualness she crushes them into nothing. (Oh sweet and running water in retrospect she was carrying you so gently. The thought of what she could have done if she were angry at you might be almost as scary as seeing her dad.) “Leave them,” she commands her Riders. “Bring me Kazelia. We’re taking her home.”

And she lingers a moment longer- for you to press your heart into her perfect hands- and then marches on, stalwart, and does not allow herself to look back.

Master Trappers. Damage this stat to reveal a new Barrier in the scene.

Shadow-Binding Arrows. Damage this stat to pin someone down with ropes of shadow and night and put them on the spot.

Group Yadda yadda you know the drill.

[Thanqol]

Adila!

Finally. This is more like it, daughter of the Watch. When the Riders come inside, duck between the buildings, they lose track of you; and that is what gives you the opportunity to burst through a wall at them, or be underneath the stairs they frantically race up, dragging them down into the crawl space as they wail and lay about them with their swords.

And they do. They do lay about, actually. Turns out that taking down a handful of well-trained Riders is difficult, even moreso than you’d think, and leaves one with a few gleaming scars, some buckled scales, and a throbbing headache, by the time you throw the last one sprawling out of the house. (Most of them are bobbing in the lake, or swimming for shore.)

Damage your Sense, but hold your aching head up high with pride. You did it. And also the entire place is collapsing down to the foundations, and it doesn’t look like you accidentally burned down Alina or anything, so that’s a plus.

...hold up, though. That thing you said? That was true. Their dark altar thing was here, so why aren’t Eska and Kaja throwing down with you? Maybe they weren’t actually here in the first place, and Asteria was your only opponent? Or maybe they’re somewhere else.

If I were you, I’d go figure out where Alina is. Right? No Watchman left behind.

[And just for you, I’ve let you damage their Inescapable stat, if you want to make a speedy getaway.]

For a moment Princess Adila just puts her head down and waits for her panic attack to lessen. She's never been hurt this badly in her life. She doesn't know where anyone is and even when she's winning she's just getting more and more worn down and now she can't even think clearly. What if everyone else is captured already? Again? And there were more Rider princesses out there somewhere? How was she supposed to deal with all of this? Where was she even supposed to go now? Rescue everyone again? Her breath was coming out in short little gasps. She was so scared.

But she was still the only one she could count on.

She let out a deeper breath. She'd thought when she'd started this she could rely on the others. Working together with real princesses, it had been like a dream! But then she'd seen Kazelia... playing dress up while she'd been risking her life to save her, what? Had that even been real? And Alina might be many things but she wasn't any sort of warrior and she was probably sick, the poor dear. So it was her job. She was just... just going to have to learn to enjoy doing this. Because she was the only one who could.

One more time. And then as many times after that as she needed to. And then forever! They needed her and she was not going to let them down!

[Getting away on a 4.]

[PhoeKun]

"You can," Alina whispers back, "I'll teach you."

Suddenly she's on her butt, wide eyed but oddly unafraid. Because she knows in her heart that Kaja's terrifying strength doesn't matter half as much as her gentleness in spite of it. For once, she doesn't hesitate and simply reaches a hand under the armor piece on her chest and pulls free a necklace she hasn't taken off in four years. It's a tiny thing, her crown in miniature shaped from glass that's the same soft purple as her hair. Or more accurately her mother's, because it's strands from her very head that the color was drawn from. She pulls the chain off from around her neck and presses it into Kaja's palm. Then she folds those powerful fingers closed around it with both of her hands.

"This is for you. Just for you," she says, and tries to find her mother's warm tones when she says it, "It will keep you safe. When you're sad or scared or lonely, let this remind you that you're not alone. Because I am always here with you."

Then she kisses the fingers closed around that necklace and steps away. Just one (or maybe two) more things to take care of and then it's bath time. For six whole hours. She shares a long glance at Rita and says "Find the Ribbon", because that's the sort of thing you can say that only your best friend from when you were kids would know what you were trying to tell her. Even as a little girl, Alina was expected to be practicing all sorts of things. Reading and writing, singing and dancing, sewing and shaping. And princess dueling, naturally. But sometimes, little Alina just wanted to play. And on those times when Rita would turn up in Summerveil with her little hat and her incense, Alina would grin and she'd turn and say 'Sorry mommy, but I lost my ribbon'. And her mother would sigh dramatically and tell her, 'Well you'd better go and find it then'. Being that Alina was all of five and not terribly clever, she had exactly one hiding spot for this ribbon: inside of a bush full of her favorite berries that grew very close to the base of the Big Hill. But even if it was always the same ending, every time was a new adventure. This adventure's been a lot less fun, but where else could they end it?

She's careful to run in the wrong direction, just in case Kaja's looking. Then there's a burst of light so bright it could swallow the sun itself, and suddenly nobody here is looking at much of anything. Alina leaps lightly from foot to foot across the camp. Her hands brush against the shoulders of the Illuminan soldiers fencing Kazelia into a circle and she pushes them gently aside. "It's ok," she says, "I forgive you. Keep them safe, I promise I'll get our home back."

Aaaaaand, um. Well! This is. Er. That is to say... hm. Alina has to fight the urge to giggle, which is a fight she loses when she takes Kazelia's hand only for her to trip over nothing and flop onto the ground with her frilly skirt poofing just behind her. She shakes her head and scoops the tall, invincible Rider Princess up onto her back with... some difficulty. Why is everybody so big these days? It's not fair. Then she's off and running again, back through the space in the circle she opened, giving the mighty Kazelia Swiftlance a piggyback ride straight out of danger. Goodness, she's become more like her mother than she realized. By the time the light's faded and their eyesight's come back, those Riders will have nothing to see at but air and a half burned campsite, and she'll be off riding a winged horse to safety. But where was Adila? Rivers and waterfalls, if she has to save the dragon too then so help her...

"It's over, Kazelia. We did it. So hang on and let's get you out of here and then we'll... talk about what just happened."

[Alina expends one use of her Precious jewels to reforge her bond with Kaja Ironpelt: "I am the light for her in the darkness". She also marks her Flash Spell and rolls to Get Away: 2d6+2 = 11. She draws no attention and takes Kazelia with her]

[Anarion]

Kazelia stirs groggily. Shadow magic took a lot out of her. More than it should, Azora didn’t get so drained when she did it. Kazelia tries to shake her head to clear it and her body responds slowly like a marionette. And then before anything can happen everything is light and she hears Alina calling as if from far away, and she feels her friend’s hand. Her body stumbles, and Kazelia blushes as her skirts fly up and little Alina picks her up bodily and carries her out on a piggyback ride.

It’s easier when they reach the stable. Shiva feels cool and calm to get Rider’s hand, and the Pegasus is ready to go (is her mane completely braided now?!). She carries the both of them out of there, up and away with a warmer misty wind blowing in their faces.

“Wh-where’s Adila?” Kazelia asks as they fly away. “I c-can send her a m-message on wind. Where are we g-going?” Then belatedly. “Th-thank you.”

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Adila!

“Don’t leave me.”

The words are weak. Trembling. Breathless. Wicked, in the sense that they are spoken despite the speaker. For a moment, the thought crosses your mind, that you made a horrible mistake, that Alina was still here and you brought the house down around her ears. That out of everything, a huge rampaging out-of-control Dragon was what ended up hurting her.

But it’s not Alina. (Thank you, Adila I, wherever you are.) It’s one of the Riders. You- replay the last few minutes- you knocked her through a wall with a flick of your tail, right into a shelf which collapsed on top of her. Her sword lies discarded on the floor, its pale blade marred with dark dragon blood: your blood. Her legs are pinned beneath the debris, and the fires lick around her. Her words are slurred: a mild concussion.

She looks up at you, as best she can from where she lies, with those eyes of night and falling stars. “Please.” The audacity! She stabs you and then begs you for mercy? And the look on her face suggests that she knows it, that she is mortified to even ask, that her honor should compel her to burn in silence.

But I do not think that such honor is worth that price; and, evidently, neither does she.

She strains. The black wood does not shift. Such things are terrible heavy, especially when you do not have the proper leverage against them. Her voice cracks in helpless fear. ”Please.”

You don’t have to, you know. If you walk away, her friends will find her, will dig her out, almost certainly. Riders don’t leave each other behind. Besides, catching on fire would teach her a lesson as regards stabbing other people.

What is the well-being of one Rider when weighed against that of you and your friends? And what guarantee do you have that she will not, like a scorpion, sting you in recompense? If you were somehow magically swapped into each other’s bodies, it’s not like she would lift a claw to help you.

But also-

She is a creature of winter and star-lit night and viciousness, but she is also afraid, and failing to hide her fear, and fighting desperately against her own instincts to reach out to you. (Metaphorically speaking.) Maybe, just maybe, she’s cruel because she’s never been shown kindness.

Or maybe that’s sappy garbage and you never give an enemy combatant the opportunity to stab you again, Adila. Because then they will. Fight smarter, not harder, constable.

Up to you, really.

***

Alina and Kazelia!

You’ll need to get up in the air and do a bit of a circle up there to get to that berry-bush and pick up Rita without attracting attention, keeping an eye out for Adila on the way. Don’t worry, we’re nearly done.

What this means, practically, as the cool air works some sense back into the groggy Rider princess, is that you have a moment to talk, if you like. Or to worry, if you prefer. A moment with Shiva’s beautiful glass wings beating the air, and the two of you safe and free.

If only Adila was here to congratulate you two on how well you did things!

[Thanqol]

It was not lost on Princess Adila that this was exactly the situation that had caused the downfall of Princess Alina and Illumina.

She clatters when she turns her head. The lances, swords and arrows still stuck into her back rattle against each other with each movement, ash running off her scales in streams. Every thought goes through her head. None of them stop her.

Serves her right! is one of them. Asking for help of someone while your sword was still stuck in their back? Other thoughts tumbled over each other soon after. She was so tired. She had to do this alone, she couldn't afford any more risks. She's just going to betray you. If you do this then they'll know what kind of person you are and they'll be able to use it against you. You'll lose your opportunity to escape. Her mind raced about trying to find the combination of words and ideas that would talk her out of this, out of accepting further pain. She hurt so much already.

Sadly it wasn't her head making the decision.

She turned around. Limped back to the Rider. Began lifting burned debris off her. If she couldn't walk then Adila would carry her to safety. Her heart demanded no less - she still had strength and while she did she would try to save everyone she could.

The Captain had said she'd grow out of it.

[Raz_Fox]

Summerveil

Adila!

So, the thing is, the Rider absolutely does turn on you while you help her limp out of the burning building. The good news is that it’s actually kinda pathetic and reflexive? She reaches over and twists the shaft of one of the arrows stuck in your scales, but half-heartedly, like she’s not even really paying attention to it. It hurts, but it hurts like carrying an injured animal and having it gnaw on you while you do so.

“...you’re a fool,” she says, before coughing, nearly doubling over; you have to stop and support her. “All you princesses are.”

Then you’re out in the grass between burning buildings and she crumples down onto her knees, palms flat in the black mud, hacking and sobbing and generally glad to not be on fire.

She mumbles something that she’s too proud to speak up and say clearly, but the general feeling is unmistakable; and when you spread your wings and soar away, she does not scream for her companions to come and hunt you down, but just remains there, supporting her own weight like it’s the weight of all Hyperborea.

[Thanqol]

+I know I'm a fool,+ thought Princess Adila wearily. +But you should be glad the world still has fools in it.+

She spread her wings. One last run, leap, soaring glide. Her wings were unsteady, her head still ringing and her vision still blurred. She limped through the sky and soon enough spotted the Pegasus on the breeze. She flew towards it shakily, head drifting down as though she was on the brink of falling asleep in flight. Her scales still held an arsenal of weapons but she was too exhausted to complain.

Princess Alina was not hurt. That was good. That was... that meant it was worth it.

[PhoeKun]

This is not a bath. This is not a bath at all. This is Alina flying around high up in the sky on a pegasus who probably stole its wings from her house, still soaking wet and chilled to the bone and worrying about all her friends. Did Rita make it to the ribbon place ok? Did Kazelia rip herself in half or something? Is she going to be able to pull back together? After what she just did, is she sure she wants her to? What in Ourania's name is she wearing? And where's Adila? Is it a good or a bad thing that everything down there looks like it's on fire? Does it have to be so cold up here? Is she just going to think about Kaja every time she's in the air? Is this her life now? Adila's ok, right? She has to be, right?

"So," she cuts awkwardly across her own jumbled thoughts. Or, well. Awkwardly for her. To Kazelia she probably sounds like the Hyberborean Semi-Annual Poise Champion right now, "I did warn you. About the Garthim, I mean. I told you, oh just down there by the way, that's where I told Rita to meet us. I told you that anybody controlling them would turn out to be an evil pervert. Next time maybe listen? Were there slimes there too? Oh, I just bet there were. It's a good thing everything's on fire there now. I'm going to miss it, but..."

She's spared further comment when she spots the telltale signs of dragon flying in the misty distance. Oh thank goodness! If she was ok, then everything was worth it.

[Anarion]

“There...weren’t slimes.” Kazelia says slowly. She’s recovering up here in the air. She’s still hurt, but less exhausted, her breath and her shadow returning, even if she still feels like she’s floating a few inches from herself. “There were Illuminans, a lot of them, one knight, her name was Tam. And they all served Asteria.”

Kazelia sighs, slowly rubs her hands along her skirts, trying to smooth them down and offer her some decency while she sat astride a Pegasus. “Asteria likes attention, control over people. After I saw her pull Adila out of the sky and I flew in I thought, I don’t know, I thought if she had me, she wouldn’t be able to resist toying with me if I pressed her buttons. I wanted to buy you time and let Adila get away. But...instead she came back and you were dragged into camp by Kaja and Eska. Was it...was it all for nothing?”

[Thanqol]

As Princess Adila came into range she clamped down as hard as possible on her thoughts. Ordinarily she was a constant scattery buzz of telepathic noise but now she was very firmly quiet. She didn't need the others to hear her thinking about just how much this hurt. Instead she started mentally reciting the Operations Manual in the back of her head.

She needed to be strong for them. For everyone.

[PhoeKun]

"All for nothing?"

Alina tilts her head, genuinely puzzled. She starts to speak, but her thoughts are interrupted by snippets of an operations manual. Her face falls when she sees Adila flying in, and moreover all the nasty awful weapons sticking out of her body. Oh no, oh no! The poor thing, that must hurt so much! Alina's only ever had one sword actually run her through and even if dragons must be made of tougher stuff than she was, that must hurt so, so much. Her hands fly to her face to cover her gasp. But she shakes her head and continues in a louder voice so that everybody could hear, as they all circle down toward the ground and the berries that meant adventure time in Summerveil was over for the day.

"Of course it wasn't for nothing! How could it be for nothing? We destroyed the crystal at the heart of that horrible magic. Because of us, this place can be beautiful. Because of us, all the cats of Askaia will still have a place to call home. And we're all... we made it back to each other. That matters too. I know it cost a lot. I know it cost too much. But we won, ok? We won! Askaia will heal and someday a little girl is going to run laughing all the way down that hill and it will be the best day of her life. So don't call that nothing. It's everything."

[Thanqol]

Adila's recitation was knocked off course by the huge wave of relief that came crashing through her. She hadn't wanted to ask - she'd been terrified to ask if they'd actually succeeded or not. Too much slipped out along with that - pain, panic, despair, gratitude, just a huge rush of emotion that came with being told she could stop.

She missed the landing as a result and crashed into the soft earth of the hill. Every part of her just relaxed simultaneously against her will. That had been the worst day of her entire life and she'd had no idea it was going to be like this when she set out and - once again she forced those thoughts aggressively back. She got back up onto her feet, claws leaving deep divots in the earth. +We have accomplished our mission,+ she thought robotically. +We should return to the city as swiftly as possible for debriefing and second phase planning.+

[Anarion]

Kazelia let out a breath she hadn’t known she had been holding. “You destroyed it. That’s...that’s incredible! How...” Then her mind catches up to what she’s seeing, Adila all covered with weapons, wounded, clearly beaten up. “Adila I...I tried to protect you, I...when I saw Asteria pull you down, I tried. I’m so sorry.”

[Thanqol]

Kazelia let out a breath she hadn’t known she had been holding. “You destroyed it. That’s...that’s incredible! How...” Then her mind catches up to what she’s seeing, Adila all covered with weapons, wounded, clearly beaten up. “Adila I...I tried to protect you, I...when I saw Asteria pull you down, I tried. I’m so sorry.”

Princess Adila stared at Kazelia in her ridiculous dress. So she hadn't imagined that.

+Debriefing should occur from a position of safety after a period of reflection and contemplation,+ Adilia thought rigidly. +Let us return to the city.+

Again her thoughts set into that unnatural repetitive droning, like sealed flood-gates.

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City

Princesses!

Hail the victorious heroines.

Your accommodations end up being in one of the comfiest beds-and-breakfasts in the city. (Except for Adila, who gets a local park and a tent, with cats moving in and out as they please - and that only after being gone over by cat doctors who remove the weapons of the Riders from you, and after them, perversely, cat acupuncturists who do their best work on you.) You are thoroughly rewarded with hot baths, and catgirl-sized dresses which are rather practical save for the hole for the tail, and heavy quilts, and mattresses you can sink into, and cats draping themselves over you all night long, and-

Well. If Rita were not here with a good head on her shoulders and a lifelong tolerance of the mists, you’d probably lose a whole week here, in naps and noodle dinners and sunbathing. But Rita knows that you’re on a time limit, and so you end up in an oddly familiar coffee shop no more than a day or two later, surrounded by the smell of roasted coffee beans and hot buttered toast.

“I don’t think you’ll need to worry about us,” she says to you, brightly. “My mother’s got our shrine maidens working on ways to purify Summerveil and keep the Riders away. We bloodied their noses, and they won’t be back without a plan.” She sounds cheerful, but unspoken is: and if Oberon comes to punish us, what are we going to do about it anyway?

“Now- wherever you’re going next, I’m coming too. Me and the Lucky Number Seven. So where are we bound?” She looks to you expectantly, tail wagging, as a handsome young tomcat brings your drinks to your table.

[Anarion]

+Debriefing should occur from a position of safety after a period of reflection and contemplation,+




“Now- wherever you’re going next, I’m coming too. Me and the Lucky Number Seven. So where are we bound?” She looks to you expectantly, tail wagging, as a handsome young tomcat brings your drinks to your table.

[Starting note, Kazelia is rested and no longer out of body and she has also had a meal and healed her Sense, spending her last food. Her Grace and Doom remain damaged]

Kazelia is dressed in new clothes. They're brighter, not the blacks and dark steel of her old armor, but instead some light browns of new leathers (though she's not sure exactly which sorts of animals the cats keep and she'd rather not know) with white fur highlights to match her hair. The outfit is a fairly form-fitting shirt with buttons up the front and short-sleeved with fur around the edges of the sleeves and the collar for ease of movement. Matching leather pants, not too tight even with the tail hole sewn up, ending at the ankles. Simple, easy to move around in. She has her spear tied with a sling across her back, and her bags over one shoulder. Not that any of you would ever violate Kazelia's privacy this way, but if you were to search her bag, you'd find the pink dress, tailored for a better fit by one of the artisan kitty tailors, stuffed in the bottom of one of those bags. For...reasons. Kazelia still looks somber though. Even with their success, you can get the sense from her face that she has been preoccupied thinking about how everything went and it's weighing on her.

She answer Rita first though, with a genuine smile. "I'm so glad you'll be coming with us, Rita. It will be great to have you along. I hope you can teach me some new songs, all the Rider ones are very old. As for where to go, well, when I had the chance to talk with Eska in the city, she told me that Azora's next target was Jedad. I think we should go there and try to stop her before she has time to create something like the corruption that was here in Askaia. She's pretty tough though, she's a better witch than I am, but all we have to do is disrupt what she's working on, which is a lot easier than breaking up something that's already finished." Kazelia gives Alina a look at that and nods in gratitude.

Then she orders a hot black coffee and turns and looks at Adila. "You also said that we should debrief formally, and this is as good a place as any, right?" Kazelia stops while her coffee is filled and takes a long sip of it without adding anything to it. Her sharp teeth gleam white as she licks her lips, and it looks like she has something she's been thinking about saying. "Adila I...when I left the Riders, I promised myself that it wasn't just about being angry at my family. That I wouldn't just throw everything away to get revenge. I wanted to protect this world and all its beautiful things, and that means protecting my friends. I charged in after you got hurt both in the city and at the camp to help protect you. I stayed with Eska to keep her distracted and I stayed with Asteria for the same reason, even letting her humiliate me to buy time for all the rest of you. And it...worked, Alina destroyed the Slaugh. But you got hurt anyway. Eska shot you, you got stabbed and cut by the soldiers and the valkyries and...and I failed you. I failed you Adila and I'm so, so sorry. Please, at least let me offer you my healing and I...I swear I'll do better in the future."

[Thanqol]

Then she orders a hot black coffee and turns and looks at Adila. "You also said that we should debrief formally, and this is as good a place as any, right?" Kazelia stops while her coffee is filled and takes a long sip of it without adding anything to it. Her sharp teeth gleam white as she licks her lips, and it looks like she has something she's been thinking about saying. "Adila I...when I left the Riders, I promised myself that it wasn't just about being angry at my family. That I wouldn't just throw everything away to get revenge. I wanted to protect this world and all its beautiful things, and that means protecting my friends. I charged in after you got hurt both in the city and at the camp to help protect you. I stayed with Eska to keep her distracted and I stayed with Asteria for the same reason, even letting her humiliate me to buy time for all the rest of you. And it...worked, Alina destroyed the Slaugh. But you got hurt anyway. Eska shot you, you got stabbed and cut by the soldiers and the valkyries and...and I failed you. I failed you Adila and I'm so, so sorry. Please, at least let me offer you my healing and I...I swear I'll do better in the future."

Princess Adila looked down at Kazelia.

She was covered in bandages and her thoughts had been shallow and twitchy for some time. But the fear had lessened its grip on her heart and, with distance and the familiar, comforting buzz of urban life around her, she'd reached a point of calm. Her golden gaze was steady, her thoughts coming slow and rolling and considered.

+Are you okay?+ she thought.

+I didn't consider how hard this must be for you before, but I should have. You've decided to go up against your family. I can't even imagine turning against the Watch and they're a professional organisation. I never once considered how hard this must be for you. How complicated this whole thing must be for you emotionally.+

She lowered her head a little. +I understand if you need to take time to think things through. Even if you need to stay here and catch up with us later. You're carrying a terrible burden and it's okay if you're not ready.+

[PhoeKun]

Nobody should ever run through something like the Slaugh. Illuminan silks are made to love the water, but by the time she got back to Askaia City, Alina was wearing tatters. So it is that she's sitting in this coffee shop dressed in something Rita gave her instead. Her hair's pulled back into a loose, wavy ponytail with bangs that bounce across her forehead, and her glass armor is worn in its usual pieces overtop a fitted, deep green cloth dress with petal sleeves and a skirt ending just past her knees. She wears it well, and her shin guards are a surprisingly nice accent to the sandals. With her crown still perched stubbornly on top of her head, she looks like... well, like Alina Cascade, but disguised as someone else's idea of her.

And very, deeply relaxed. Goodness, as soon as she'd seen Adila being properly cared for, the only thing that could drag her out of those baths was her bed. She'd missed it! She'd forgotten how good it was! She was riding the high of decent food, good drinks, warm water, and a city full of people who, for once, weren't looking at her like the world's most attractive screw up. Nothing could bring her down from this. Nothing at a--

"Um. Yes, I agree with Princess Adila. I know that I'd fall to pieces if I had to fight my sisters. I'm sorry for not considering how much more toll this must take on you, please take the time you need to get back on your feet, and in the meantime we'll go... somewhere. Like not Jedad! I know Feloria is getting close to a harvest festival and I'm sure a couple of extra princesses would really move that along! Or, um... we could go to Hobling Keep and see if they could make a replacement for Pearlion. I've heard some rumors about the islands near here, too! Or... or... Rowan? Rowan's lovely this time of year. There's so many places we could be! So we'll just... you know, go there, and you can rest, and we'll all have a wonderful time not being in Jedad. Which I'm sure is completely fine. Right?"

[Anarion]

This wasn't what Kazelia had wanted. She wanted to make peace with Adila, she thought the dragon was mad at her for failing. She wanted to apologize, to do better. Now she looked panicked. Anything but this. Anything but being left behind doing nothing.

"No! I, no! I want to help." Calm breath, if she started freaking out, they'd just think even more that something was wrong with her. Just be calm. Do not, under any circumstances start crying

"I want to make amends for what my family has done. I couldn't bear to just watch while my father tries to destroy everything beautiful in this world. I couldn't bear it!" Kazelia, do not start crying, Riders do not cry, this is completely unacceptable. But her traitorous body was not listening to the little voice in her head at all, so instead she looked away from everyone and put an arm over her eyes and tried to pretend that everything was fine even as she sobbed and her arm grew wet.

After a moment, it was clear to her that trying to wait for the crying to stop didn't work at all, so she spoke through those tears instead, quietly, but urgently, words spilling out of her as she tried to say everything she wanted to say all at once even as lines streaked her face from her dark and starry eyes. "Please, my sisters are all under his spell, they can't hear the Singers anymore. I need to help them and show the whole world that father is nothing but a lying old man. I have to, I'm the only one that can hear them, can really hear the old songs because of what Father has done. I need your help. I need...I need to be someone that can help you, I need to learn how to do that! Because if I sit by and watch father destroy anything else now...now when I finally know what he really is I...I couldn't it would tear me apart."

She can't bear to meet the eyes of the others, what she hopes are her friends. She can't bear the thought that they wouldn't let her come with them now. Instead, she takes out the little wooden box she carries, places it on the table and opens it. It has no gears or springs, no metal hinges, just wood and a small slip of paper within. But from it, a song drifts gently outward (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lIHtHwRWiU&feature=youtu.be), the dolorous song, the song that set Kazelia free, that she knew in her heart even her father could not withstand. And she listens and waits and hopes.

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila took a moment to lament her no-hugging policy. The Captain had been clear: the emotional reassurance was not worth the additional strain on the infirmary. One of the many little gestures she'd outgrown.

She focused. She'd been trained for this.

+Look,+ she thought. +You're tangled up between multiple different things. You love your sisters and want to save them. You hate Greymane and want to topple him. You love this world and want to protect it. You feel guilty because of what you've done. You want to protect us because we're your friends. You've been raised to fight independently and bravely. These are all important and terrible things and you're having to carry them all at once. But they're all asking you to be a slightly different kind of Princess.+

Moving physically closer was a complicated multi stage operation. She had to check behind her in either direction to make sure there would be no cats underfoot, stand up, sweep her tail out behind her gently to scoop up anyone she'd missed, back up a few steps, lay down on all fours again checking for cats, and then bring her head in closer. The attention she had to pay to it slightly undercut the moment but she felt like the gesture was important enough for it.

+We're not saying that we want you to leave. We're not throwing you out or calling you useless or saying you need to do nothing. We're saying that you've got the hardest job of all of us. We're fighting to restore Illumina - it's clear for us, even if it's difficult. I'm not sure what your happy ending looks like. Does it involve banishing your sisters, putting them in jail, talking them around to our way of thinking? When I see Princess Spite I see a criminal I need to defeat, distract, and avoid. You see your sister and every moment you've ever shared together. It means we're fighting different battles, and the Operations Manual indicates that -+ her thoughts tumble over each other abruptly as she panickedly remembers that not everyone considers the Operations Manual to be a holy text. +If - if we're not on the same page t-then we might get hurt.+

She gracelessly tries to recover. +That's what I'm saying. I just want you to know where your heart lies.+

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City

Rita jumps onto the table on all fours. As a cat, mind you, she doesn't just go feral and vault onto the furniture for no reason, though if you spent some time reminiscing with Alina about childhood vacations in Askaia you'd learn that this is indeed a very necessary qualifier. Once again, she gets right up in your personal space, and this time she doesn't even have the excuse of getting her scarf caught on you. She presses herself against you and begins to purr, a sonorous and pleasant drone from the very depths of her.

And what happens is-

Well, it is very good that Adila takes the time to sweep and check in all directions for cats, because every time you turn around, there's another cat. The half-blind cook, settling herself down by your thigh. The tomcat busing the tables, who drapes himself lazily across your lap. The door is open; cats go in and out as they please, and today, there is reason for them to come in. They come in all their shapes and sizes, from the tall ginger ladies to the stub-tailed young toms, until there is an Askaian concert all about you. It is a way of saying: you are loved. You are welcome. We witness your tears, and do not judge them; but we will make a great noise to shake heaven until even those tears pass away and you have lost yourself in the mist again. There is no such thing as a sorrow that lasts forever, no matter how deep it yawns beneath you. We are the cats of Askaia! And we are here so that you will not be alone.

Let your companions say as they will! Words are good, and you understand them well; but we are the cats of Askaia, and we know that there is nothing in the world so marvelous as we, and so we will be humble and let them explain your way out of these tears, even as we make for you the rope and the hook, and invite you to begin the ascent.

[PhoeKun]

At first, Alina doesn't move from her seat, though she's quick to make a handkerchief out of soft green light and float it to Kazelia. It's somehow warm and cool at the same time, and more soothing than it has any right to be. She watches from her seat with a soft smile on her face, fingers tracing back and forth across her neck where the chain for a certain necklace should be. It's only after the room has settled into a quiet purr that she opens her mouth to add something of her own.

"I spent a year wandering around Hyperborea asking for help to take Illumina back. I got a lot of promises, but the only princesses were you guys here. And at first, I didn't know what to make of that. I thought it might be providence, that Ourania sent you to me to take the place of the colors Oberon stole from me and that together we'd make a prism. And maybe you are a gift, but you're not here to be one of my lights. You're here because you know the hurt that Oberon can cause. You're here and risking everything you've ever known because you don't want to see that hurt in anyone else's eyes. That's a precious gift, and I would never push it away."

There's a moment where she hesitates, thinking about what happened to Eska. She saw it, and worse than that she understood it. But in the end it doesn't matter. Kazelia is just the same as Kaja: it's not the terrifying things she's capable of that makes a difference, it's her ability to cry and care in spite of them. She fills that pause with a hug, delicately wreathing her arms through cats and not letting go no matter how cold it gets.

"I know how this ends," she says softly, "We're going to rescue every one of your sisters from the viper's nest they're trapped in. And we'll all stand against your father together. I don't know what that's going to take yet. But I've seen it, Kazelia. I've seen it. They've got the same spark that you do, and we're going to draw it out. That's why I wanted to make sure you were rested. I don't want you to stay behind, I want you well. I'm asking you to help me walk the hardest path there is, because we're going to have to fight, and when we do we'll need each other to remember why we're doing it."

She lets go, and she takes a step back to stand a little closer to Adila. Her mind is full of thoughts of Summerveil now, flooding with memories of what it was, what He made it into, and what she hopes it will become. Not the same, but not worse either. And she swallows, because she realizes that if she opens her mouth again she's going to shut the door on her life the way she knew it. Possibly forever. She wipes a pair of sparkling tears from the edges of her eyes.

"You'll help me, right? Let's make a new Illumina..."

[Anarion]

Kazelia lets the cats come near her, holds onto Alina’s hug for all she’s worth, and puts a hand on Adila as she’s come near. It is the warmest that Kazelia has ever felt. Perhaps the warmest any Rider has ever felt. Perhaps...had they always been such a cold people? Something distant flashed in her mind, grass and sunlight from a place very, very far away. There was singing in the distance, not the dolorous song, but something happier.

Some moments later, Kazelia reaches out and closes the music box. “Yes, I’ll help you build that new Illumina Alina. I’ll believe in that ending and in my sisters and...” here she looks at Adila “in the meantime if we need to stop them and arrest them so they can’t do harm, I think that’s the right thing to do.” She wipes her cheeks with the glowing green handkerchief and looks up at Alina, and something about that handkerchief made of light just strikes her as utterly hilarious and she giggles and can’t stop herself.

It’s only when that too has passed that she lets out a breath. “I need to learn to work better with all of you” a nod to Adila, and what she had said about fighting alone. “And I need to teach you what I know about my sisters and my father. And we need to get going because as good as it would be to spend a week recovering, Azora works quickly and efficiently. We don’t have the time to give her.” An apologetic look at Alina. “I think it has to be Jedad. Eska told me she herself had plans for Hobbling Keep as well, but, um, we have a long time before we need to worry about that. So Jedad is where we should go. I promise to rest on the way. Travel here is...much easier than the kind of travel the Riders used to do, it’s very relaxing.”

[PhoeKun]

In a perfect world, Alina would have flashed her most dazzling smile and a room full of cats and princesses would have all turned to her and called her wise and beautiful because she'd done the right thing despite it being hard and been there for a friend in a time of crisis. She'd been supportive and graceful and just committed herself to a vision of the world where she cleared a space in her home for the people who had invaded it and kicked her out and turned her into a mockery. So really, shouldn't she be allowed to have a moment to bask in that feeling? You couldn't have let the moment go, Princess The-World-Is-Six-Seconds-Away-From-Ending, We-Have-No-Time-To-Waste? She flinches, and turns her head to hide the flush in her cheeks.

"Ok," she begins in a smooth and measured tone, "But have you considered the possibility that Eska was lying to you? And that Jedad is dry and awful, which is surely a potent natural defense against Rider invasions? Or maybe you heard wrong! It's probably not necessary to go to Jedad after all, I would really, deeply hate to waste everyone's time with this, they probably don't even want anything from a bunch of silk thieves and belly dancers. Right? There's just no reason for anyone to go there! And again, Rowan is right on the border of Illumina so if we just popped on over there and secured an alliance that would give us a perfect vantage point to keep apace with Oberon's plans and movements, wouldn't it? Actually, let's put this to a vote: if you want to waste everybody's time and go to Jedad just raise your hand."

Left unspoken: The Queen of Jedad has seven (7) different bounties on the head of Alina Cascade (to be delivered alive, of course. Nobody's that barbaric). Because she is awful and petty. And also that is how many times Alina stole the sacred jewels of the royal family.

[Thanqol]

+...+

Gears turned in Princess Adila's head.

She'd left Jedad in the first place for the sole purpose of finding and arresting Princess Alina. She'd been tracking her down when she'd run into Greymane and the Riders, and then Alina had told her all about how Illumina was in trouble and she just had to help her, and of course she had agreed because that was the noble thing to do and Alina was very pretty and convincing. So she'd soon enough forgotten all about her original mission and they'd wound up here... but now it was all creeping back into her head. Was... was this just like one of the old stories? Where there'll be a tale written about how the cunning Princess Alina tricked the mighty dragon into saving her kingdom?

Had she just done that same thing with Princess Kazelia?

Her eyes narrowed. What would Princess Valissa do?

She raised her hand. +I think we should go,+ she thought. +After all, we were both on our way there before this started and it would be very rude of us to leave our hosts waiting for longer than we have.+

[Anarion]

Kazelia looked chagrined. She didn’t know all the background, but Alina obviously didn’t want to go to Jedad and she had just been so nice to Kazelia so pushing this seemed like a really not nice thing to do. But then Adila did want to go, and she said they had been heading there already? That was kind of confusing but it seemed rude to ask. So Kazelia slowly raised her hand. “Eska could be lying, but it’s all we have to go on...”

[Raz_Fox]

Askaia City

Here’s the thing, Alina. You’ve been friends with Rita for basically ever. Just the two of you, one with cat ears and sharp little cat teeth, since you were a kid and she was a kitten. Heck, she was your partner in crime in at least two of those heists. She knows exactly how risky it is for the two of you to go back! Also, you are currently in a quantum state of maybe being smooch friends, which is a powerful bond.

But she is also a cat. And in every cat is a little streak of perversity and daring and mischief. So she turns around on Kazelia’s lap, looks you right in the eyes, and with all the powerful energy of a cat knocking a cup off a table while maintaining direct eye contact, raises her paw.

So, uh. Outvoted. Don’t worry, you’ll be able to hide in Jedad! I heard they invented this amazing piece of clothing that lets you hide your face. And don’t you worry, Rita’s got your back until the end of the line.

[PhoeKun]

The look on Alina's face is one half horror, one half pout, and one half complete and utter betrayal. And she stands there stuck like that for a full moment and a half, just staring at that accursed, adorable little paw hanging in the air, and it's worse because she knows she can't stay mad. So she hangs her head and slowly, ever so slowly, raises her own hand.

"Fine then. But you're all going to feel really silly when we get there and nothing's wrong. Also please don't tell anybody that I'm coming. Or... or say my name at all for any reason while we're there. That'll really help smooth over this investigation."

Ok, step one: find a distraction along the way and get these princesses separated from each other. That'll give her time to win them over to the right side of this argument. Anything will do, just some reasonably plausible mini-stop to delay the inevitable. Step two: just in case that doesn't work: maybe think a little bit about route into and out of the palace? You know, see if you can go eight for eight. For old times' sake! She glances at Rita and giggles in spite of herself.

[Raz_Fox]

The Ridgeback Mountains

Something is missing. That was the thought that spurred Stheno to wakefulness from dreams of gold and sapphire. Something that is mine is missing. A dish? No. A goblet. Goblins made that goblet, and then it belonged to a princess of Rowan, and then it belonged to me, she said to herself. Also it had unicorns painted all over the sides and nothing is as sleek and beautiful in all the world as a unicorn - except for me. The fires roared inside her. Who would dare come into her home and take something from her? Oh, you heard about it, everyone knew a friend of a friend whose hoard had been stolen, but you never thought it would actually happen to you! Wrath! Fire and ruin! She would go and burn tree and field and home until someone brought it back, one way or another- that was their problem to deal with now! This is how conflict resolution works!

She slithered furiously through her antechamber and out into the cold air of the mountain's side. The sun was setting: doubtless the thief thought they could get away by night! Ha! The eyes of a dragon cut through night and snow and storm alike! She gathered her strength and prepared to vault from the spur of rock before her front porch, and that is when the goblet rolled over the stones to bump against her foreleg.

"My apologies," the thief said, leaning against the mountainside, his face set to the darkening horizon. "It seemed the easiest way of waking you up."

"Easiest?" Stheno let out a bellow of fury that shook loose rocks and scree all about. "How dare you, you impudent little monkey! Do you know who you are talking to? I should set you on fire and push you off the cliff to see if the fire goes out before you hit the bottom!" Her tail slammed against the floor, leaving a spiderweb of cracks right in her front porch. Clearly his fault for getting her all riled up!

"Stheno. Of the Gold, which I thought rather on-the-nose until I had the chance to see you. You're magnificent, you know. All that power and strength coiled underneath those scales... it's been some time since I was a dragon. Maybe I'll indulge myself again."

Stheno squinted at this idiot. Okay, now she actually felt a little relieved she hadn't tossed him over the side. It would have been bad karma to kill someone who was obviously mentally challenged. Like a pathetic little monkey like him could ever have been a dragon. Then he turned on his heel, flashed her a smile, and- wait. What was wrong with his eyes?

"But not yet. That wouldn't be sporting. Where's the challenge in breaking in a dragon as a bigger, stronger, more potent dragon?" He chuckled, and a chill ran all the way down Stheno's spine. Unfortunately, she hardly felt it, because the fires of rage were blazing out of control. When she snorted, it licked at her nostrils and tickled the back of her tongue. Maybe she'd risk that bad karma.

"All right. Enough foreplay," the doomed fool said, drawing his little knife. What an idiot! Bringing a knife to a dragon fight? No, she was definitely doing the world a favor- she was going to save it from ever seeing children as stupid as he was!

(And if Stheno had been an older dragon, or a smarter dragon, she would have stopped and thought to herself: maybe there is a reason he is not afraid. But it is the nature of Oberon Greymane to punish stupid little girls, even ones who can breathe fire and can crush a tree without trying.)

***

At Sea

Kaja had a cabin all to herself on the way back, though all of Eska's gadgets and scrap was heaped up on the other bed in the cabin, which meant that Kaja had some precious time all to herself tonight. And to make sure she had it, she was sitting with her back up against the door, making sure nobody would be able to open it while she looked at her contraband, her new necklace now on the outside of her shirt.

The queen's face was a lot nicer in the picture. But what Dad did to her wouldn't generally flatter anybody, you know? There was something about it that made Kaja feel... soft. Kinda warm, really. She traced the shape of the queen's jaw with one finger. Yeah. That's where Alina Cascade got her face. Both faces were really nice. I mean, she didn't really want to kiss Alina's mom, but she was objectively, you know, definitely kissable, and if Dad weren't really insisting he wanted to marry the High Queen he could do a lot worse than marrying Alina's mom. But wait nope actually that's a terrible idea because then Alina would be her sister and it'd be super gross for them to kiss again and they'd have to live together and eventually they'd end up holding hands and then she'd just have to commit doubly illegal kiss crimes.

...oh. Right, she said to herself. This? This is the face of the enemy. And when her daughter comes home- when one of Kaja's sisters brings her home- Father will... he'll do very bad things to her. She'll be lucky if she gets to be frozen out in the gardens. Which means that it's stupid to spend time thinking about her, because Father wants her punished, and Kaja has her orders, and Kaja is a good daughter. The paper trembles in her hands. Even keeping this is bad. It's useless and compromising and what if Father finds it and realizes she disobeyed him on purpose? No! She is a good daughter! She is a good soldier! She took the paper firmly by the top and, without giving herself the chance to think about it, tore it in half with a sharp, violent pull.

The sound- the sound was too much. She stopped, looked at the two ragged pieces she held in her hands, and then, in rising panic, tried to put them back together. "No," she breathed. "No, no, no, stupid, stupid, stupid, you're so stupid, Kaja," she said, in rising panic, as she looked at the picture she had just ruined. Even if she sewed it back together it'd be so obvious it had been damaged, and that'd be risking tearing new holes in it, and she'd just ruined the picture that Alina Cascade had given her like a big stupid clumsy idiot, because that's what she was, and the next time they met Alina Cascade would ask her "hey what'd you do with that picture of my mom I gave you, can I see it again, because I really miss her" and she'd have to say "no, I tore it up," and then Alina Cascade would never talk to her for the rest of her life and she'd live a really long time while frozen out in the gardens and every time Kaja walked past she'd remember that even if Alina Cascade weren't frozen she still wouldn't talk to her.

And because it hurt and there wasn't anything else she was holding she crumpled up the two stupid awful pieces of paper into tight little balls and threw them across the cabin as hard as she could, so hard that they made a louder noise than paper should be able to make at all, and then hid her face in her hands for a while and hoped that nobody walking past the cabin could hear her. Somewhere in there, she ended up holding the little crown against herself, wishing- well. It's not my place to say.

Then she got up, solidly, wiped at her running makeup, picked up the crushed-up pieces of paper, and started slowly, carefully, flattening the creases out. Because just because something was broken didn't mean it couldn't be fixed later.

***

The Soffkin Hill Country

There was something about the two women that gave Jacen the willies something fierce. It wasn’t just the star eyes, though folks over across the way in Feloria had been telling stories about really mean princesses which had them, and it wasn’t just the way the temperature dropped standing nearby them, and it wasn't the way that his sheep had taken one look at the two of them and then decided that the grass was much more interesting on the other side of the hill, which happened to be as safely out of their line of sight as possible. It was the way they were standing, like they were very busy, but also like they might decide they were upset with him at the drop of a hat. Plus, the one wearing all the smoky ribbons was really looking at him, and you couldn’t tell if they were blinking or not, what with the star night eyes, but you really got the sense that even if she had regular person eyes she still wouldn’t blink.

“Boy.” That one was the one with the practical bob of white hair and the feathery cloak, the one who might as well have had Hello! I Am The Oldest Child embroidered on her dark corset, given Jacen's experiences with his oldest sister, who was exactly this kind of bossy, too. “We require you to solve a... difference of opinion the two of us have. Now, the Deep Hollow is north of here and easily found by following the road, correct?”

“North?” Jacen fidgeted nervously. You had to let a gal like this down easy. “Well, not exactly, ma’am. My lady. Miss. To get to Deep Hollow you’ll want to cut across the woods here heading north-west and then squeak squeak squeak.”

Azora Howl took a long, calming breath as the mouse formerly known as Jacen scurried off into the long grass, and did not look at her sister’s oh-so-very-smug-and-hexable face.

“He probably says that to all the foreign princesses, you know,” she said in her best, most even tone. “Keeps them lost.” She folded the map evenly, let it vanish with a snap of her fingers, and then turned north-west with a flourish of her cloak.

Morgina stayed, watching the long grass and licking her lips, until her sister called for her; and it was a long time before the mouse dared to snap off a stalk and start writing HELP HELP ITS ME JACEN in the dirt.

***

Endless Night, Beyond the Rim of Ouroboros

Hello, Eska Glinteye said to herself, sitting by the campfire. All around her, the black roiled and swam; above her, the smoke endlessly became nothing once more. Welcome back, she said to herself, my beautiful girl. I just had the most interesting conversation with a pretty young princess named Alina Cascade, and I'll tell you all about it. Come and sit with me a while, dearest.






End of EPISODE 1: Peril in the Jungles of Askaia!
Tune in next week for EPISODE 2: Veils and Masks!
And don't miss the bonus web-exclusive short connecting the two: Let's Training!

[Raz_Fox]

PRINCESS-CHAMPIONS OF HYPERBOREA
WEBISODE 1: Let's Training!



A Nameless Island

Adila and Alina!

It is a law in Hyperborea that all must be fruitful. For this reason, this is not a blasted place of grays and browns; the mouldering dock is overgrown with hanging ivy, with broad leaves trailing in the water. So, too, the slate-grey, chalky earth yields up dark but hearty trees, purple and blue flowers in thick bushes, and there flit butterflies across the path, even here, even in a forgotten place, a spur of rock given up by the sea.

All the same, words must be spoken with intent in a place like this; they struggle for birth against a smothering quiet. Above the treeline, uphill, can be seen the sacred gate of a shrine; its heavy white ropes hung in honor about it are threadbare and ragged. The stone steps are similarly overgrown with moss and grass, to the point where it is only the regularity of the slope that reveals them, at times.

Within- once you pass under the sacred gate- there is a flowering root, the size of a tree in its own right, made from stone. Here is where one of the many roots that hold the world entire together emerges from the seabed, curls up towards the light of the sun and moon, and breaks its rough crust to reveal veins of living amethyst and quartz, delicate petals fluttering in the breeze with a sound like old and dusty bells.

The petals lie upon the cobblestones, in the gutters, heaped up in piles thick enough to use as a bed, though each one is as thin as Iluminan gossamer. They emit a sweet and heady smell: the strange and marvelous decay of gems as they lose the light in their heart, the life they have drunk deep from ageless Argossa. All around, there are abandoned cobwebs; outbuildings made from that same dark wood, holes poked through the papered-over windows; paper tags and ribbons in a state of decay and rot; mushrooms, mold, and grass poking up through the cobblestones; petals, heaped up in a place where you did not expect them to be.

It is similarly a law of Hyperborea that these root-trees must be respected. Not worshiped or praised or sacrificed to, but simply respected, the way that one would respect a revered elder. To leave the shrine as it is would be offering disrespect. I do not think this needs to be spoken out loud, or telepathically announced; it is known. This is the way that things are.

And you can spare a day, and catch up to the Lucky Number Seven after you're done.

Spooky: damage this when you overreact to something that turns out to be harmless.
Neglected: damage this when you tell us about the ritual chores of the shrine, then carry them out.
Mysterious: damage this when you find art of some sort, tell the Overlord what its composition is, and learn what it reveals about your people. This stat must be damaged twice.
Cheerless: damage this when night falls, the crickets begin to sing, and you light lanterns.

When all these stats are damaged, the scene will end.

***

The Lucky Number Seven

Kazelia!

"I know how Adila does it." That's what Rita says to you, while you sit together with her on the side of the barge, your legs dangling over the edge, kissed with sea-spray and sunlight. Let me take a minute, though, to digress here about Rita von Catabas.

She's slim and boyish, perhaps a year or two younger than Alina, with messy brown hair, the sort that will never straighten out or lay flat. Her skin is deeply sun-tanned, the same color as her fur, and when she grins, she has teeth that aren't quite as scary as yours, but still are undeniably feline. She dresses in reds and oranges, her trousers end below the knee, she bares her shoulders and disdains shoes, and she indulges in a feather motif whenever possible. Also, she has a bandana tied about her brow, in a sailor's fashion, and altogether looks much more comfortable like this than she did in coats and snowshoes.

"Her voice, I mean." She presses her fingers to her temple and opens her green eyes wide. "HAS ANYONE SEEN A CRIMINAL? I LIKE RULEBOOKS. WHY ARE ALL THESE CATS ON ME I LIKE THEM THEY ARE WARM AND FUZZY AND CUTE. WHOOPS DID I SIT ON THAT SORRY." She drops the act and laughs freely, affectionately. "It's because she has a very big heart. All dragons do."

The conversation meanders here a little; I think that Rita sees a shark and gleefully waves to it, and teases you that your smile might have more teeth in it than the shark do, and it takes you a little bit to get back to the topic at hand.

"It's her heart speaking," Rita says, not looking at you, but just because the sunlight's sparkling on the waves just so, and you don't really need to look at her either. You can watch, and imagine that Ourania's dancing on the waves, each step leaving light in her wake. "We cats know all about hearts. Ours are the wisest and calmest and humblest anywhere ever," she says, with what is possibly mock seriousness.

There is a moment where the two of you just watch a seagull go by. Then, she adds, casually, "I think I heard yours when I was in your lap. It sounds like a whole bunch of people singing, really far away, forever and ever. I think if you really tried, if you listened to your heart and wished really hard, amazingly hard... I think you could let people hear your song."

That's that; that's all; unless you intend to press the issue. Being Kazelia Swiftlance, I am almost certain that you will- that what she has said is the sort of thing you would seize on immediately, awestruck and shocked-

But you don't have to!

Not while the barge bobs along the waves and cats rush by in their adorably tiny bandanas and belts. This is the sort of moment where you don't have to if you don't want to, is all. You know what I mean. The sun is warm on you and Shiva is doing loops a mile off and the Singers are humming so low and soft that everything else is encompassed in them, if you understand me. Savor the moment as long as you would like.

[Thanqol]

This is the most beautiful place Princess Adila has ever seen.

She's seen the city, the desert, the ocean, and the frozen lands of Greymane. She'd never seen anywhere like this. Quiet and green and woven through with stone and shadow. There were the shapes of buildings; the implications of towers. Earth too straight and sharp to have been carved by the wind and weather, foundations now crowned with stacks of old bricks tossed apart by stubborn trees. The quiet was unfathomable. Every old, smooth stone she looked at challenged everything she knew. If all the people were to leave the Bazaar and let the wind and sand take back the city, would it one day look like this?

This was the first time in all her life she'd been somewhere with just a single other person. It was the first time in her life she'd ever been anywhere so silent. She'd never flown far from the city, even though she could - the silence had always deterred her, as real and physical a barrier as the desert. When she'd first traveled she'd kept close to Brill and the various guides she insisted on hiring to lead them through the wilderness. With each new heart she'd collected on her travels she'd felt a bit more connected to that thriving, all-encompassing hum of a city. A ship was a small thing but it still had the familiar patterns of industry, community, conversation and laughter. A ship was a house and a hearth and a family. It wasn't home, but it was in the same category of things as home.

And this place was...

She could see the patterns of the place as clear as daylight. Every twist and turn of those ruined foundations was laid out in painstaking diagrams in the Operations Manual. This is the outer picket wall. Fallback lines. Countercharge dugouts. Duelling field. Main wall. Keep. Barracks compounds. A raised space... that wasn't in the manual? Other signs. The muster yard was off grid, re-aligned to face a huge and ancient tree stump that must have towered above the entire island before it was chopped for wood and so the Captain would have a place to stand and address her troops. She'd spent her whole life in a place just like this one, set out to the same standards. She could navigate the ghost fort with her eyes closed but for the hundreds of years of trees and flowers.

This had been a place of war. A place of industry, discipline, community, fire, ambition, love. It had been a home for her and people like her. Now it was faded to earthen memories, tumbled stones, blossoming trees and unimaginable silence. Long ago, a Princess Adila had stood on this same earth and looked upon not a shrine but a military compound, and the soldiers there had not called themselves the Watch. Now a Princess Adila looked out at the ruins of a place that might have been her home and felt very small and mortal.

...

She was embarrassed to be having these thoughts - to having thoughts at all. Ordinarily her scattered ideas and chatter blended in with the crowds of those around her, people hearing bits and pieces but not putting it all together. She shared her ideas with them while still being blended in with so many different senses and pressures that it didn't feel like they were expected to pay attention. But with only one other person present, and such silence all about, there wasn't anything to stop every thought in her mind from being read in full sequence and with perfect clarity as easily as one might read a letter. There was no line between thoughts she had, thoughts she shared, and thoughts she deliberately projected. She felt exposed to Alina, inside and out.

There was no one to save here. There was no one to be suspicious of here. There was no one to judge here, or to help cross the road, or to salute, or to show off to. No duties or shift rotation or Brightball matches or the sounds of bells from the Clock or the smells of spice. No one trying to dance for you or pick your pocket or throw up on your armour. No one to sneak up on and pounce, or to tell you off for being too big to keep pouncing people. There was only one person and she had somehow become everything despite being none of those things, while also seeming just like another part of the island. One person and the big blue sky, scattered across with checkered clouds like a patchwork quilt.

It didn't feel like being alone.

It took her a while to come around to that thought, and it surprised her. When she'd fought the Riders in Askatia she'd felt alone, even when there were technically people all around her and trying to stab her. On her first night on the road she'd cried until she couldn't take it any more, then flown back to the Bazaar and slept there in secret before flying back to catch up with Brill and pretend that she'd never left. Here she felt... like she was just in a place where people weren't. Not that there were no people. It's just that they weren't here. There was... something else here? Perhaps the place itself was here. This wasn't a nowhere-place, an in-between place. It was a place with its own presence that didn't need people in order to be what it was.

She knew this place would snap her like a twig if she'd been here alone. If all her thoughts could do was tumble inwards on themselves then she'd be trapped by them. She'd need to bottle them up and fly back home and pour them all out on the first person she saw, or maybe write them all into a diary in the same way. She wouldn't be able to be present here if that's what she was doing; she'd be piling up moments without knowing why. Princess Alina changed all that. She stopped and looked at things that wouldn't have broken her own relentless walking motion, causing her to look deeper at strange whorls of moss or colourful insects she wouldn't have noticed in her constant vigil for criminal activity. Alina's presence changed the composition of scenes; another ordinary bend in the path and view of the sea became a portrait of sadness, or a study in thoughtful reflection, or a thunderbolt of a smile as she passed through it. The lights she gave off changed the character of the stones and trees - not just brightening, but saturating. An ordinary grey rock was revealed to be a whirlpool of violet and glittering star-drops as it caught the light from her lantern just right. The dew on a wild strawberry broke into a tiny rainbow as it caught a stray beam from the second sun. An old, dead tree, heavy with the weight of living ivy and silk rope wrappings, seemed to steam in the morning light as the dew evaporated between two stars.

Century-moss scraped away under her claws as she walked. She felt bad for it; its peaceful life disrupted by this strange, brutal interloper - but she also cursed it because the devilish stuff was slippery and her claws were blunt from a lifetime of clattering across stone. Alina, of course, could climb a ladder of falling cherry blossoms and didn't face the same trials as the gingerly delicate and occasionally stumbling dragon. But there were a lot of stairs, wrapping all around the island, and she tired long before Adila did. It was all right when she did, though. She didn't feel compelled to offer to carry her or try and skip to the top. She was content just to sit and look at the place and the person within that place and let it be for as long as it took for the rainbow princess to catch her breath and take another crack at the stairs. Also because the exercise was good for Alina. Pump those legs, rookie!

There was no hurry here. Everything was going to take as long as it was going to take. Adila had no idea what that meant or how to deal with that, but the place seemed to have its own ideas of how things were done and it didn't seem to need her understanding in order to be as it was.

[PhoeKun]

The hills are alive with the sound of dragon. Princess Adila is everywhere on this island all at once. She is the claw marks she leaves on the mossy steps. She is the sound of breathing, so powerful and steady that it seems to Alina to be the stirring of the air itself. She is the thoughts that wash over everything, that pour themselves endlessly into Alina and fill her to bursting with new sights and sounds and feelings. To be vigilant. To be wary. To be watchful. To be shown the way this tiny island comes alive, not with people but with life. To see the patterns of the moss and know it is the first time. To see the way the light touches everything, and wonder in amazement. To hear the gentle patter of a tiny creek as it splashes itself over a worn down rock and across the steps that carry them up, up, up. To feel the cool water on her toes. To dance. To laugh, and to hear what it sounds like for the very first time. To be a child again. To step forward through a fold in time and be a mother. To miss her sisters terribly. To not feel lonely at all.

The clack of dull claws against stone. The rustling of some unseen thing slithering away through the undergrowth. The fluttering of a lark's wings. The chirp and a buzz of a dozen crickets suddenly leaping off of the path. The rumble of the ground that follows every carefully measured footfall. Alina is a passing spirit on the breeze, but the entire island marks the presence of Princess Adila of the Watch. Such power! Such presence! Here, the stones say, is a creature that could crack the earth if she chose. And see how she doesn't! Child, you are but the passing of a summer drizzle and soon to be forgotten by stone and root, but this I shall remember. You are lucky to keep the company of someone so magnificent.

The stairs curve sharply back and forth in a switchback pattern. Tiny little things, and so many. Trouble in its own way for each climber. Alina pauses near a break in the trees and watches the sun sparkle on the surface of the choppy ocean waters. The deepest, startling blue glistens like sapphire tinged with flecks of white that dance in and out of her sight. Wave after wave after wave. She feels like such a tiny, fragile thing after all.

...She hasn't said a word all morning. And she hasn't needed to.

Alina Cascade aches. It's a good ache, like her heart ran the River Race without telling her, and it must have won because she is filled to bursting with light and a desperate need to share herself with the world. There's some thought carrying her body forward, but she can't see the shape of it. Her fingers trace the black scales of Adila's neck. Her tiny arm rests against the solid plates of her back, so powerful and so warm. Her cheek rests against one huge wing, and as she moves herself along the length of her fellow princess' body the softness of her curls tickles across the scales.

Her heart is lighter than her feet. Both carry her several paces up until she's standing above Adila with both arms spread wide. And she shines! Her light spreads up the steps, across the rocks, and down the trees, so bright that even the sun might stop in the sky for a moment to stare down and smile at the sight. Everywhere they look comes alive with color that draws in and closer, drawing brighter until it is a cloak made just for Adila. Bright, deep and shifting colors that sink into her blacks and golds. At this moment, she could be going to a ball. At this moment, she looks more beautiful than Alina would ever hope to. At this moment, she is a work of art in seven shining, brilliant colors. And when she finally notices the rainbow that's come to stretch itself across her friend's wings Alina cries. She is the soft summer drizzle come to wash away the dust, and afterwards comes peace.

And also more stairs. Just so, so many stairs. But she doesn't mind, as the moss turns to silken petals and she passes at last under the great shrine gate above the trees. There's work to be done here, and she doesn't feel tired at all. To see the magic for the first time all over again. To feel the song inside a special heart. To feel connected. To feel strong. To feel...

Elsewhere, in a cabin on the Lucky Number Seven, an ink brush rolls out of a bag onto a table. It knows that today something is happening that will have to be painted. A new memory to be preserved, so that anyone who looks will know how special is the heart of Princess Adila of the Watch.

[Anarion]

Kazelia let out a sigh, the air whistling through her sharp teeth and joining with the wind blowing past the lucky number seven. “My heart, hmm. I think you hear it right, Rita. It’s like, coming here, it came alive for the first time.”

Kazelia watches the light across the water. The sun sparkles across the shimmering waves, turning them into rising and falling crests of molten gold. She saw Ourania in that, the firelight dancing across the sea. In that moment, she thought perhaps her heart could reach anything, could stretch out along Ourania’s sunbeams and share the song she always heard.

Kazelia looked up at a gull, its screech echoing above the sound of the water sloshing against the boat’s hull as it dove away from Shiva’s midair antics. She held out her arm, palm down and beckoned the gull to land. And it did, looking at her quizzically. She stared back, cocked her head, and after a moment asked it, “hello, any news?”

[Raz_Fox]

The Lucky Number Seven

Kazelia!

The seagull looks at you with those beady black eyes. It considers you, and it's almost as if- as if it is considering you, and preparing to give you the news of the day, to open that beak and squawk out everything it's seen today-

But it doesn't. But, to its credit, it doesn't get in your face and be an annoying bird and make you look like an idiot. It just hops up onto a railing, oddly unconcerned with all the cats nearby. Then it starts preening. What an unhelpful bird!

Detective Brill laughs, leaning on the railing. Not the railing next to the seagull, the railing on your other side. "Kid, I have no idea if that hocus pocus about the heart speaking to people is true," he says, which is an oddly skeptical stance to take in a magical world of princesses and talking cats, "but it takes a special kind of stupid to have a cat princess tell you to try speaking like Adila and then use your mouth words." He grins. His mustache is newly waxed, and his jacket is covered in cat hairs.

"Don't be rude," Rita says, and then sticks her tongue out at Brill. "Kazelia's doing her best. I'm sure the seagull's about to tell her about everything that's happened to it today!"

"Sea. Clouds. Sea. Fish. Sorry for spoiling it for you, Princess."

The seagull squawks, and both Brill and Rita look at it, then look at you, like they're expecting you to say, aha! That did it. But it really was just a normal squawk.

[Thanqol]

The shrine itself was a tumbled-down ruin. It had once been grand! A sweeping temple that had covered this entire clifftop, with meditation rooms and chambers to chant and contemplate and manufacture cheese. A great pile of freshly cut brick and stone, in other words. The Operations Manual remembered that places like that were the first places to come down when a fort needed to be constructed. Soldiers had walked these steps for days, carrying rocks down the hill like ants harvesting a lost apple. What remained was much a memory of a shrine as the scattered ruins below were a memory of a war.

It has begun to take shape again. Travellers and pilgrims have taken the time to collect piles of stone from the tumbled down fort and carry them back up the hill, leaving them in neat piles by the outline of the shrine. It is the duty of Princesses who visit to make those final steps and put the rocks back into the walls, reconstructing the shrine fragment by fragment. One stone or a hundred doesn't matter. There is no rush. If it takes ten thousand princesses ten thousand years for the shrine to rebuild itself then that is the time it shall take. When it is done every stone will tell a story. This is a place where the stones roll uphill with the same gentle inevitability as the tide that washes at the cliff walls.

To Princess Adila it's a place that's ancient and recent and timeless all at once. What other building could express its own past, present and future in the same way? It... spooks her. Both the past and the future are strange countries with dark promises of fire and strength. There are Princess Adilas in either direction and she does not know if she'll recognize either.

Creakily, she breaks her silence with deliberately focused thoughts, chasing away the scattered cobwebs of contemplation and place before they bury her. An attempt to profane the moment by asking questions that don't need to be asked. +So... have you been here before?+ she thought. +What are our duties? Are you all right after that climb, do you want to have lunch, did you drink enough water?+

[Anarion]

Kazelia gives the gull a bemused expression. “Just a normal squawk, I’m afraid. Though I’m sure Sir Brill has the right of it. I suppose it would t be quite that easy to open my heart. But then again, talking is talking, and it works just fine when I call my words into the winter wind and it carries them where I will it. That’s probably more natural for Riders.” She looks at the icy patch on the ship railing where she’s been leaning, obvious evidence of the Rider preference. It doesn’t seem to really bother her this time though. It’s too nice on the ship, the warm sun and cool breeze mixing just right. “So, both of you two have been to Jedad, right? What should I expect there? I’ve only been to Illumina and the areas around it as my dad expanded the borders.”

[PhoeKun]

Alina dances across the fallen petals and, sweeping a large space clean with a broom she shapes out of blue light, sits herself down just in front of the great flowering root. She pats the ground in front of her where there's plenty of open space and conjures a pair of lemon cakes from... wherever it is she keeps stuff like this.

"We're going to be here a while," she says with a curious look on her face, "We may as well take our time. Do you... eat things like this?"

She takes a cup of water in her hands and lifts it over her head. Then with a soft sigh, she closes her eyes and pours part of it out over her face. Without thinking about it, she reaches out to repeat it with Adila. But then she flinches at the last second, and meekly puts the cup back on the ground. She mutters the prayer that goes with these gestures, but it's swallowed up by the air around her. It's another long second before she finally starts eating, and while she chews she turns her head to look around for something.

"My mother came here when she was my age. She was in the middle of a competition with her best friend to see which of them could foster the most goodwill and magic across the world, so of course they kept showing up to the same shrines and towns and mostly people thought they'd started dating. My mother told me this was where they wound up getting into a huge fight. Things got really heated and they wound up knocking over... oh, there it is, over there. See that wall where the spaces in between the stones are shimmering? That's the one my mother got thrown through: she said it took them three whole days to put it back together..."

And sure enough, on the other side the clearing where Alina's finger is pointing there's a wall where a rough hundred stones or so are inexpertly mortared together with what looks like melted glass that sparkle as the light passes through them. The remnants of a mural are still visible on the wall depicting two women embracing on either side of a horse and a column of rainbow light. Time, the wind, the rains, and ivy have obliterated a lot of the finer details, but the overall impression one gets from looking at it is that, if this whole thing took three days to do, then two days and twenty three hours of it were spent on that mural.

"She said that of all the places they went together, this was her favorite. There's a lot about that story I don't understand. I was really hoping to see it for myself..."

[Thanqol]

Lemon cakes were a contentious issue in Jedad, because of course they were.

On the one hand no one was going to give up lemon cakes just because the Illuminans had invented them, that would be like giving up silk: unthinkable. Instead there was a huge amount of haughty elitism about the improved Jedad-style lemon cakes, which have pear slices on top instead of grated lemon, which was a totally original innovation which made Jedad lemon cakes an entirely different and better thing than Illuminan lemon cakes and while it would be unreasonable to call you treasonous for preferring Illuminan lemon cakes to Jedad lemon cakes it wouldn't be uncommon to think it.

Princess Adila performs her customary check underneath her, cautiously sat down, and then gingerly picked up the Illumian lemon cake. She glanced around as if expecting to see Detective Brill frowning and looming and making a throat-cutting gesture from the shadows - and then she hurriedly ate it and enjoyed it immensely. Then again she glanced around to see if anyone had seen her.

+I hope that whatever we find, it doesn't involve you throwing me through a wall,+ thought Princess Adila earnestly enough to conceal for a moment that she was joking.

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

“Just the best kingdom in all of Hyperborea,” Brill says humbly. “The things they do with metal and gems! The perfumes! The ladies!”

“If you like wearing a square foot of gauzy silk and two tea spoons,” Rita snarks, “it’s the place for you.” Then she blushes a little bit, glances out to sea. “The girls are pretty, though.”

“Don’t tell Alina,” Brill adds, “but Shazari - the heir apparent - is the richest and most beautiful princess in all Hyperborea.”

“Like anyone can tell under all the veils,” Rita says. Her tail is wagging just a little bit at the tip, though. (Does Alina have competition on the quantum kiss buddies front? Stay tuned!)

“When we reach the Bazaar, I’ll be happy to show you all around. I’ve heard Rider Ice is the new fashion, but I do know some very good frozen yogurt stalls.”

“...Rider Ice?”

“Imported from Ilumina, the first real treasure that it’s ever provided the world,” Brill says, after checking over his shoulder just in case Alina was back.

“Huh.” Rita kicks her legs out into an upsurging wave. “Speaking of Jedad, though, don’t carry valuables with you. Lots of theft. Lots of pickpocketing.”

“Now that’s a rumor without any basis in fact,” Brill says defensively. Not that he regularly splits wallets with thieves he catches, no.

“I know it is, because I was a certain someone’s partner in crime,” Rita says with a grin. “Had to run around in all sorts of criminal circles.”

Far off, a gull calls. The seagull settles on your shoulder.

“Also,” Rita adds, “it’s about to be Carnival. Do you like veils or masks?”

“Wearing a veil suggests sympathies with Jedad,” Brill explains, “whereas wearing a mask suggests a devilish nature.”

“Maybe not the best idea to go with a mask,” Rita muses. “What with already being a Rider.”

Alina!

A reminder that your people’s fortunes have, historically, been intertwined with the Rowani. It might be depicting Ansila and Marina, or simply another great Iluminan-Rowani romance, but it’s a solid reminder that you should really be going to Rowan and making another attempt to gain the aid of their princess, Helya Laynasdottir, who was almost certainly your role model growing up (being a few years her junior and a family friend). The last time you tried, well, she was too busy cleaning up after the terrible winter storms and helping her own people out.

That’s the thing about Helya, the thing that probably broke your heart as you got older. She’s thoughtful and quiet, even while being big and strong enough to wrestle horses down to the ground; she’s polite and has a beautiful, understated little smile; she’s the kind of person who’s good at literally everything she does, and even if you spent the next three years mastering Devil Hyperchess she’d wipe the board with you, blink a few times, and apologetically smile and offer to make dinner for you, because of course she’s also a world-class chef.

But she’s cold, too- and I don’t know if you know the first place to start, to thaw a person like that, a person who is both so solidly responsible and yet so distant that she could look a childhood friend in her watering eyes and say that, no, her people needed her more.

...I’m sorry for bringing it up. Try thinking about something else, instead.

[Anarion]

“Also,” Rita adds, “it’s about to be Carnival. Do you like veils or masks?”

“Wearing a veil suggests sympathies with Jedad,” Brill explains, “whereas wearing a mask suggests a devilish nature.”

“Maybe not the best idea to go with a mask,” Rita muses. “What with already being a Rider.”


Kazelia tries to take that all in. Jedad was clearly a very strange place, and it made a lot of people very emotional about it, but in different ways. It made Kazelia content to take it all in as it came, for the most part, though she did look forward to seeing it and perhaps seeing what there might catch her fancy. She gazes over the railing, lets the sound of the sea and the calling of the gulls echo around them for a moment before she answers.

"Hmm, well, it sounds like wearing a veil would be the easier route, people would think that I fit into the kingdom, and it sounds like a lot of other people wear veils there too, unless for some reason the Jedadi themselves don't have sympathies with Jedad." Kazelia rubs her chin, trying to imagine what that might be like, but it really just eludes her. "Then again, I am a Rider already. Perhaps if I wore a mask, my other features would just be considered part of the costume and I would be given compliments on how skillfully I was portraying the new menace to Hyperborea. And perhaps having a devilish nature might help me meet interesting people in Jedad, no?"

Kazelia seems inclined to make up her mind, but before she makes any final decisions, she looks at the gull perched on her shoulder rather quizzically, and gives a squawk, mimicking the call of the other gull, but with a different lilt to it. She's trying to ask it: "What do you think, Ms. Gull? Mask or veil to hide my face?" Maybe it will have an opinion!

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

The gull squawks loudly and decisively, and both Brill and Rita stop to look at it. The seagull knows you're talking to it! But there's still a barrier there, something not quite right.

"Huh," Brill says, a bit dumbfounded.

"You're getting closer," Rita says, with a giggle. "But it's not about words. Just words, that is. You have to open up your heart!"

"How do you open up a heart, anyway? That's nonsense," Brill grumbles. "You sound like a witch."

"You are vulnerable. You have to want it more than anything else, and part of wanting it is to accept that you're going to be seen. You have to want the seagull to understand you. And then you..." She pushes her fingers up against her forehead again. "SEAGULL. SHARE YOUR WISDOM, SEAGULL."

"What sort of wisdom does a seagull have, anyhow?"

"ONLY THE MOST EGGCELLENT SORT."

"...you're under arrest."

"YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALI- Kazelia save me."

Rita dives into your lap, which is making your next attempt to speak seagull a little more difficult. Brill's attempt to seize this adorable fugitive from justice has been foiled by the fact that Rita is now two steps out of reach. Once again, Kazelia, you have saved someone from this beautiful and beloved world from certain doom. I am so proud of you.

[PhoeKun]

There's that word again, creeping into her thoughts. Cold is a Rider word. It's an Oberon word. It shouldn't be a Helya word. It's not! She's strong, and loyal, and brave, and dutiful. And... and... tall, and beautiful with just the dreamiest eyes, so sharp and hard they're like cut gemstones. She shouldn't use a word like 'cold' to describe someone like that. Nobody, from Hecatia to Devilhome on down offered her any help. Helya at least was... sisterly about it. She had advice to give, and offered a horse to carry her as far as the border so she wouldn't have to walk again. She even rode with her the whole way! That's not cold, it's not. She isn't being fair.

But those eyes. Those beautiful eyes stared straight at her, and her lips parted, and it wasn't to kiss her or to say she was sorry. She said, "No, Alina." And she turned and rode away at a trot, without even having the decency to look upset about it.

Alina squeezes her eyes shut tight so she doesn't have to look at the stupid mural anymore. She pulls her legs tight against her chest and sits there ignoring half a lemon cake while she sits there in silence, trying to ignore the rush of disconnected memories pouring out of her brain and into the shrine. Riding lessons. Wrestling. A campfire. Baking a pie. Those sharp, green eyes. The only person Alina could look at like a big sister, because all of the people she loved were younger, and looked at her like that instead. She's not going to cry this time, she's not. She swears she's not. And Helya Laynasdottir is not cold.

"Right!" she says with entirely too much cheer in her voice to be quite right, "That's enough of that! I mean, no, I'm not throwing you through a wall, what? No! What I meant was, you and me, we're together here, so let's... let's get cleaning. And then we'll... hey, Adila? You were originally trying to bring me to Jedad, right? Well, now that we're going, that is, when we get there... what do you plan on doing after?"

She takes her light broom and starts clearing petals into neat little piles. She's not sure she wants any brilliant eyes looking into hers for what's coming next.

[Anarion]

“I’m sorry detective, but this cat is under my protEGGtion” she says, giving Rita a light pet with one hand and exchanging a wink with her. And then Kazelia laughs. Not like the giggles from earlier, but a full broad sound from her belly. Kaja could laugh like this, when she wasn’t fretting or being picked on.

And just like that, she had it. She looked up at the gull on her shoulder and it was laughing too, she knew it. And when they both calmed down, she took a few crumbs from her bag, slightly chill in her fingers and offered them to the gull, and she asked it out loud “tell me what you’ve seen in the land we’re apprising, my friend” and it was the same as her words before, but it wasn’t because her heart was laughing in time with the gull’s and within that rhythm was a gentle song. The gull already knew that song. They all did. They always had.

[Thanqol]

"Right!" she says with entirely too much cheer in her voice to be quite right, "That's enough of that! I mean, no, I'm not throwing you through a wall, what? No! What I meant was, you and me, we're together here, so let's... let's get cleaning. And then we'll... hey, Adila? You were originally trying to bring me to Jedad, right? Well, now that we're going, that is, when we get there... what do you plan on doing after?"

She takes her light broom and starts clearing petals into neat little piles. She's not sure she wants any brilliant eyes looking into hers for what's coming next.

She'd wanted to joke again, she'd even rehearsed a couple just in case she was asked that question, but Princess Alina didn't seem in the mood. Maybe she'd told it badly? She looked over at the mural. No, more likely that had made her sad somehow. Wheels turned in her dectective's mind. She'd met Princess Helya and honestly hadn't liked her. She was very formal and serious; the Watch had its discipline but that wasn't the same thing. It had always been a bit of a mystery why she wasn't the first to be traveling with Alina...

She put away her strange and confused thoughts and communicated instead in the unflinching seriousness of an Officer of the Watch.

+You have been sentenced to seventy two hours of community service for your disturbances of the peace,+ thought Princess Adila, completely deadpan. +Since the Queen of Jedad has refused to press charges with the Watch for your burglaries in favour of her own justice system those will not be held against you, but you still created an enormous disturbance during your escape and that must be accounted for.+

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

Even as the seagull snaps up the crumbs, its heart joins in the song, and this is what is understood:

I have seen this place you imagine.
I have flown over the waves which break on the shore.
I have eaten their food which burns amid crowds.
I have seen their buildings of blue and green.
I offer these memories to you, who have understanding of them.
I will let you see the veils and the masks, which I have no names for:
The shimmering veils, cast over noses and mouths and chins;
The paper masks, colorful, though many white-and-black in the devil style;
The jewels, the laughter, the sandaled feet going by;
The black of the Watch like shadows;
The beggars and the thieves in the alleyways;
The shuffle of the shells in the never-ending hunt for the Queen;
The gleam of sunlight on glass spears and bright scimitars;
Chests overturned, gold and precious jewels spilling forth;
The heavy tramp of elephants laden with palanquins;
From above, the Bazaar, a pearl in the beautiful golden dunes;
From above, the desert, brown and gold and amber;
Great swirls of different spices crashing against each other;
The waves breaking upon the shore.

I don't know how long you sit there in communion, absorbing this. It might be ten minutes, with Rita poking your cheeks and playing with your hair. It might be mere seconds, leaving you reeling with the flood of memories to sift through and reinterpret. Either way, the seagull removes itself from you; you are a cold perch, after all, even in the bright and sunlit day.

[PhoeKun]

"...That's a joke, right? You're telling some sort of dragon joke right now? Or a... Watch joke, I guess? The other times I've dealt with your companions it's always been a fine. Or that one time when I was 11 your... Captain, I think? Asked me to 'lose' a shipment of spyglasses somewhere she could find it. And nobody said anything about a three strike rule on the way out! Does that mean those were bribes? Have I been bribing the Watch this whole time?"

Sweep, sweep, sweep. For as busy as she's making herself, Alina really isn't making very much progress on this whole 'clean the shrine' thing so far. She hesitates for a moment, then spins and faces Princess Adila after all. Still, she's careful not to look her in the eyes.

"Anyway that's not what I meant. This is mission over for you, right? The end of your journey? What are you going to do?"

[Thanqol]

"...That's a joke, right? You're telling some sort of dragon joke right now? Or a... Watch joke, I guess? The other times I've dealt with your companions it's always been a fine. Or that one time when I was 11 your... Captain, I think? Asked me to 'lose' a shipment of spyglasses somewhere she could find it. And nobody said anything about a three strike rule on the way out! Does that mean those were bribes? Have I been bribing the Watch this whole time?"

Sweep, sweep, sweep. For as busy as she's making herself, Alina really isn't making very much progress on this whole 'clean the shrine' thing so far. She hesitates for a moment, then spins and faces Princess Adila after all. Still, she's careful not to look her in the eyes.

"Anyway that's not what I meant. This is mission over for you, right? The end of your journey? What are you going to do?"

+If you were involved in the bribery of Watch officers that is an additional charge, albeit one that can be annulled if you co-operate with the subsequent investigation,+ thought Princess Adila uncomfortably. She knew corruption happened, of course - it happened all the time and dealing with it was the major duty of the senior staff. She was reasonably certain Brill was corrupt and he'd been her partner for two years and they were friends. But damn it, it still wasn't right.

She got even more uncomfortable when Alina started asking about the future. +I promised I would restore Illumina, and that is what I'm going to do,+ she thought, and then abruptly stood up. She was trying hard not to think about why she was doing that or what would come after doing that and that vast ominous thing called the future more generally. Instead she started picking up heavy stones and hauling them into place with drilled efficiency. The Watch still did field construction and demolition drills as per the Operations Manual, the modern utility thereof was mostly in establishing fire breaks and reconstruction...

[PhoeKun]

"I don't understand."

It's taken her a while to get to this point. But she takes her giant pile of petals and lifts it up high into the air on a series of light tiles until a good breeze catches them. She turns her head to watch them float away and toward the ocean like a school of skyfish. It's beautiful like few things can be. But then that moment ends and it's back to work, and she busies herself with digging more of the sweet smelling things out of the gutters, where she can be a little closer to Adila while they both work. She doesn't want to be shouting right now.

"I can think of a lot of reasons why you should hate me. Or dislike me, at least. I've seen the way your detective friend looks at me when he thinks I'm not paying attention. And you're... not like that. You're the one who left her home to arrest me, and yet you were the first of anyone to tell me they'd help me get my home back. You're the only one to promise that sight unseen. Not even Rita promised that, and she and I are..." Alina pauses awkwardly, and sighs.

"All I keep thinking about is you in the sky, after we destroyed the Slaugh. With all those awful wounds, I... I'm so sorry Adila. I was so insensitive. I go on and on about my missing lights, but if this is how I treat my friends, then I don't deserve them. So I just, I wanted to ask you why you said what you did. If there's something that you want, I want to help you get it. And if there's nothing, then I don't know what to do. I can't put you through that again. Not you. You're as warm and caring and bright as any of my sisters. I'm sorry if it's uncomfortable, I promise I won't make you talk for the entire rest of the day. But what will you do? What do you want?"

[Thanqol]

What do you want?"

+I want to be a hero. I want to be a princess. I want to be a person,+ thought Princess Adila. +I want to be the kind of person who, when approached by a stranger who needs my help, can and will solve their problem, whatever it is. I want to be a Brightball star and a friend and a wife and a mom. I want to have a job that helps others, and live with other people, and have lots of friends. And instead I'm going to grow up into a big ugly dragon and go to sleep forever on a pile of gold and not be able to come outside my cave without destroying everything.+

She stared off into the far away horizon.

+I want to be human.+

She closed her eyes.

+I don't care how many times I get hurt. I'm already so big that I can't live safely in a city any more and so useless that the best thing that can be done with me is going out to track down a foreign princess for minor public disturbance violations. I was happy when you told me that I had a chance to help save a kingdom. It might be the last chance I get to be the person I really want to be - a person who saves kingdoms and doesn't ask for anything in return. This is my dream, Alina.+

[PhoeKun]

Blink and you'll miss it. There's a sudden scattering of petals, a flash of light, and the soft 'flumph' of some rotting mushrooms as they snap off of their stems and shrivel up in the sudden rush of heat. And then Princess Alina Cascade is there, on the little staircase of lights she's built for herself so she can stand face to face with Princess Adila. Soft and watery green eyes stare straight into shining pools of gold. She takes her hands and places them on each of Adila's cheeks and for a moment, no words come to her. She stares, and she feels the warmth flowing into her fingers. She lowers her head so that her forehead touches Adila's nose.

"You're not useless." she whispers.

Her light carries her apart again, and she steps gracefully back onto the ground. She has to look up now to maintain eye contact, but she's careful to do it anyway. Even when you're scared, there's some things you can't say to somebody's feet.

"Please don't ever say that again. And don't tell me it doesn't matter if you get hurt. Do you understand how beautiful your dream is? It's so amazing I feel like I can barely hold it in my heart. How can there be an Illumina worth living in if I have to sacrifice your or your dream to get it? Someday..." she shuts her eyes, and lets the image sweep over her, "Someday, we'll both be wives and mothers. Our children will play together, and I'll teach them to swim in the rivers. You can teach them to play Brightball. Don't throw that away. Don't throw any part of that away. Do you understand?"

[Anarion]

Kazelia leaned back and took it all in, absently petting Rita (with just enough presence of mind to move her hand widely so that Rita had a refreshing cool sensation across her back and not a single icy patch on her fur). The gull came across as speaking rapidly, faster than a person would talk, but not so fast that it left her dazed. And when it was done, she waved goodbye with contentment.

“The buildings in the capital are all really blue and green like that?” she asked the detective and Rita. “I knew Hyperborea was rich, but I was still imagining it would all look like desert and the town would blend into that. “And what is this hunt for the queen they all seem to be on? Even the gull knew about it.”

She looks at Brill with a satisfied grin. She’s moved right to asking the specific questions and skipped right past the part where she managed to open her heart up, cynics notwithstanding.

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

Rita and Brill go straight from shock and amazement to laughter. They can’t help it! Astonishment makes one vulnerable to laughing.

“I call showing her,” Brill says.

***

“Here she is,” Brill says, holding up a card. On the card, glossy and colorful, is a silhouette of a veiled queen on her throne, before a fan of peacock feathers. “Now, all you have to do is find her. She’s yearning for a kiss from such a beautiful princess!”

He sets the queen face down, and reveals two more cards: silhouettes of curvaceous dancers. “Don’t be fooled by her handmaidens,” he says, before setting them both face-down. He flips over the queen again. “Remember, this is the queen. Use your wishing heart to call out to her, because here we go.”

The cards blur under his fingers; for a moment, you’re sure you have it, but then somewhere in there you lose track of which of the three she was, exactly. Rita, in the form of a cat, purrs contentedly in your lap.

“Now, your highness,” Brill says, setting the cards down with a flourish, “Where’s the queen?” With a gleam in his eye, he adds, “It’s traditional to let you play for a kiss the first time, but seeing as everyone knows about the dangers of Rider kisses, allow me to suggest playing for some of your ice?” He sets down a golden Jedadi coin, and gestures for you to pick.

[Thanqol]

Blink and you'll miss it. There's a sudden scattering of petals, a flash of light, and the soft 'flumph' of some rotting mushrooms as they snap off of their stems and shrivel up in the sudden rush of heat. And then Princess Alina Cascade is there, on the little staircase of lights she's built for herself so she can stand face to face with Princess Adila. Soft and watery green eyes stare straight into shining pools of gold. She takes her hands and places them on each of Adila's cheeks and for a moment, no words come to her. She stares, and she feels the warmth flowing into her fingers. She lowers her head so that her forehead touches Adila's nose.

"You're not useless." she whispers.

Her light carries her apart again, and she steps gracefully back onto the ground. She has to look up now to maintain eye contact, but she's careful to do it anyway. Even when you're scared, there's some things you can't say to somebody's feet.

"Please don't ever say that again. And don't tell me it doesn't matter if you get hurt. Do you understand how beautiful your dream is? It's so amazing I feel like I can barely hold it in my heart. How can there be an Illumina worth living in if I have to sacrifice you or your dream to get it? Someday..." she shuts her eyes, and lets the image sweep over her, "Someday, we'll both be wives and mothers. Our children will play together, and I'll teach them to swim in the rivers. You can teach them to play Brightball. Don't throw that away. Don't throw any part of that away. Do you understand?"

She appreciates the gesture. She does! She feels fulfilled in her heart, happy that someone would care for her that much. She's always wanted a friend like this.

But she has to put that image of the future aside gingerly because it hurts to think about. How was she going to be in a relationship where an affectionate hug risked breaking bones? How was she going to even have children around when a sneeze could destroy a building, let alone teach them Brightball? She doubted that anyone would find her attractive to begin with. Her strength had already exiled her from her home and the life she wanted and thinking about a future where that that somehow wasn't true was something she already tried very hard not to do too much.

+I hope you're right,+ was the part of her thought that was directed; it cut through the fog of sadness, bright and sincere, but not without picking up some of that melancholy along the way. +Come on. We still have work to do.+

[Anarion]

Kazelia looked at the shells, hesitated, pointed at one but then pulled her hand back, pointed at another instead, shook her head, but committed. It was hardly surprising then that she got the handmaiden and not the queen. “Some Rider ice then, that was the bet?” She looked chagrined. This game was very hard. But the bet was eminently manageable. She leaned down and put a hand on the deck next to where Brill had set up the shell game and simply concentrated for a moment. The frost that she always left collected and solidified at her command, and pressed her hand upwards, creating a little cube of ice right there on the ship deck, perhaps 6” square. It would be slippery, but one could pry it up easily enough, or sit on it to keep cool if you happened to be the size of a cat.

“I hope that satisfies the bet. Why do people play this game in Jedad though?”

[PhoeKun]

"I am," Alina insists, "I promise."

There's a part of her that wants to keep pressing the point, but quite apart from knowing when she'd run out of words, one look at the state the shrine was still in robs her of the ability to think about much else. Petals still lay in massive clumps, possibly burying walls or altars or who knew what else and flooded half of the walkways. Rot and tangled overgrowth that needed to be cleared away. Cobwebs just... everywhere. More rocks that needed moving to rebuild walls, ribbons that needed replacing (thank goodness she'd come prepared for that), all of which is to say nothing about the hour or so she needed to spend just quietly contemplating the root so that it would feel properly respected for its own sake. Oh sweet rushing waters, how was there still so much? The very worst and most dismaying part of this, of course, was that these sorts of jobs were all very delicate and required a very careful and intimate approach. This was hours of work in front of them. Thank goodness she had a friend. And that she liked camping.

Alina looks up at the sky and can't help but pout when she sees the sun is already more than halfway across the sky. And any princess knows you don't try to catch a ship on the open see by the light of the moon. That's just asking to get lost and probably kidnapped by mermaids. Or worse. She sighs, and takes her broom back to the battle.

"I can't believe it's this bad. Normally there are way more princesses on journeys that can tend to places like this. How many years has it been since anyone even left home?"

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila has the opposite problem to Alina. She was worried she was doing too much work! Within a matter of hours she had exhausted the piles of stone and created a set of lumpen and functional walls that resembled nothing so much as the walls of the ruined fort. It was like packing up her blocks, back from when she was small enough to play with blocks. Claws and tail and sometimes mouth moved together in an efficient rhythm, leaving her mind to wander back to a state of compressed emptiness as she looked out over the sea.

+I'm more surprised pirates haven't moved in,+ thought Princess Adila. +This is an excellent strategic position. The fort is still defensible with a little work and from up here I can see passing merchant traffic.+

She pointed at a gauzy horizon with absolutely no distinguishing features or sign of merchant ships.

[PhoeKun]

Alina stops her cleaning to stare. Not at the horizon; a casual glance is enough to show that's a lost cause. She stares at Adila, and she blinks. She blinks again. And then, she can't help it, she bursts into a fit of giggles that hit her so hard her hair starts bouncing in little lavender waves. Even her lights start twinkling in time with the sounds of pure mirth.

"Goodness, they do tell fun stories in Jedad. That's the kind of adventure I dreamed of when I was a little girl! But just... look around you for a moment. Do you feel that? This is a special place, gripped by Argossa. It's a place kissed by crystal petals, where they say you can hear the heart of Queen Ourania herself if you stand here on a clear night with a pure mind. Pirates wouldn't dare come to a place like this, even if it has been deserted. Well... Princess Esmeralda Blackscarf might, but she wouldn't dare build a fort. Stars and lights, could you imagine a fort being here? Just thinking about it I get so, so..."

And she broke into another torrent of giggles.

[Thanqol]

Alina stops her cleaning to stare. Not at the horizon; a casual glance is enough to show that's a lost cause. She stares at Adila, and she blinks. She blinks again. And then, she can't help it, she bursts into a fit of giggles that hit her so hard her hair starts bouncing in little lavender waves. Even her lights start twinkling in time with the sounds of pure mirth.

"Goodness, they do tell fun stories in Jedad. That's the kind of adventure I dreamed of when I was a little girl! But just... look around you for a moment. Do you feel that? This is a special place, gripped by Argossa. It's a place kissed by crystal petals, where they say you can hear the heart of Queen Ourania herself if you stand here on a clear night with a pure mind. Pirates wouldn't dare come to a place like this, even if it has been deserted. Well... Princess Esmeralda Blackscarf might, but she wouldn't dare build a fort. Stars and lights, could you imagine a fort being here? Just thinking about it I get so, so..."

And she broke into another torrent of giggles.

There was a faint increased pressure on Alina's mind as Adila tried to figure out if she was being made fun of. She knew Illuminans could be ditzy but... and sure this place was more vibrant and alive than any place she'd ever seen, even the Queen's gardens! And she'd never seen a tree that grew crystal flowers, and a place where the root of the world emerged above the ocean was miraculous and worthy of respect. And, sure, maybe if she stood here at night and wished this might be the kind of place where you could hear the heartbeat of the world... She rattled her head. Her brain was filled with rainbows and sparkles. Okay. She was being sincere.

+Do you really not see it?+ thought Princess Adila. +This entire place used to be a Watch fortress! The foundations and ruins are everywhere. You see there?+ She pointed out what honestly looked like an ordinary flat piece of ground. +That's a foundation for a sentry tower. And you see how those trees are shorter than the ones over there?+ Again, ordinary trees of ordinary height. +They were clear-cut to make space for the muster hall. This entire shrine was knocked down in the first place to use the stone for the outer walls! Do you really not see it?+

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

Brill snaps up the ice without a moment’s hesitation. “It’s not hard, really,” he says with an airy wave of his hand. “Look, I’ll slow it down this time, give you plenty of time to pick, for the same wager?”

“It’s rigged,” Rita purrs wickedly. “The first rule of Find the Queen is that the player never gets to find the Queen.”

“That’s hardly true,” Brill huffed defensively. “It’s just that-“

“That it’s a contest to see who can cheat more outrageously.” Rita gets up, kneads your lap with her adorable little toe beans, and then curls back up. “Who can palm the card fastest, who can give a fake tell, who can bump the table, who can swap out the handmaidens for Queens while the dealer isn’t looking...”

“It’s true that it is a game of both cunning and skill. And both are necessary to survive in Jedad. Why, if you do not have the wits to win a simple game of Find the Queen, you’ll end up the unwitting dupe of one of the Cats of Jedad.”

“No relation. Though I am one, technically,” Rita says. “On account of being an accomplice for a Grand Theft.”

“Or kidnapped for your magical ice production powers. Or in so much debt that you have to become a dancing-girl in the Princess’s harem. Or... taken in by second-hand Iluminan silks!”

“The trick,” Rita adds, airily, “is getting you to play by the dealer’s rules at all. The most cunning dealers palm the queen and put down three handmaidens. No matter which you choose, it’s always going to be a loss.”

“Which I did not do,” Brill says. “Which means there’s a chance you could win, if you try again!”

“There isn’t,” Rita says agreeably. “And if I know anything about Jedadi dealers he’ll walk away in an hour with your ice, your purse, and a pair of something frilly in his pocket, and that after giving you one more chance to win it all back.”

Brill goes absolutely speechless in aghast, possibly overacted horror, and Rita does that wicked little kitty smile.

The seagull snaps up one of the cards and tries to fly off; Brill goes chasing after it. Rita chuckles to herself, then asks, more seriously:

“What was it like where you’re from? I’ve heard you came from beyond Ouroboros... is that true? Or are you from an island near her scales, like the foxes?”

[PhoeKun]

"I..." Alina's face is impressively, perfectly blank, "Really, really don't."

She skips down a ways to get a closer look. She's trying very hard to give Adila the benefit of the doubt right now. Maybe this was a dragon-sight thing? But however she looks at it, that's a patch of ground. Those are trees. Not even differently sized trees, with stories to tell about what was and what's grown again. Just... trees. She'd asked the trees for their opinion if she could, but Illumina doesn't raise that kind of princess.

A breeze wafts by to flutter her hair and ruffle her dress, and she fidgets a bit. Yeah this is pointless. She pivots on the balls of her feet and stands there staring at the dragon with one hand on her hip.

"Are you sure you're not imagining things? I'm not even sure what I'm sure what I'm supposed to be looking at. How about you come down here and show me all of these... whatever yards?"

It's probably not helping her that she's standing on the wrong patch of ground.

[Thanqol]

Ooh! How did she not see it? Didn't they have military camps in Illumina? - oh, of course they didn't. They probably all lived in beautiful curved castles with internal waterfalls and their soldiers probably trained while balancing on one foot on stones in the middle of rushing rivers. Wouldn't know a real military compound if it used the sacred stones of their ancient temple for material...

Princess Adila found the impression of the outer curtain wall and traced its passage. She perfectly predicted each dip and spike in the trace. She could not, however, establish that this was anything other than a particularly steep hill, especially as it was torn and hollowed out by tree roots.

Next she took Alina to the old keep ruins and its crumbled stone walls perfectly aligning to her mental grid. She was very certain that this room was the unit barracks and that room belonged to the regimental blacksmith, look at this strange pond - that totally used to be a pit for a blast furnace! She had significantly more difficulty proving that these were military buildings and not just old extensions of the temple. Would it have killed the Watch to leave some statues or carved graffiti or something!?

Then she had a brilliant idea - she went to what seemed like just another totally ordinary patch of forest and started digging. After about ten minutes she triumphantly held up an ancient little shard of rust and announced that this was the practice field and by finding an old arrowhead she had conclusively proved that this used to be a military base. She then immediately broke it in her claws while trying to hand it over to Alina for closer examination and despite her best efforts to put it back together... it didn't really look like an arrowhead.

Finally Princess Adila gave up. She could see the lines as clear as daylight but she had no idea how to prove any of it. She could see the wild natural beauty, but she could also see grim walls and patrol patterns as clear as if she were looking at a postcard of home. She sat down heavily on a flat bit of land and ancient timbers creaked slightly under her weight.

+Maybe I am imagining things,+ she concluded. +Maybe I'm just homesick.+

[PhoeKun]

It was exciting, to start! Another moment in what was becoming a string of them on this island where Alina got to feel like a kid again. Where hills were mysteries to be conquered and 'adventure' meant only seeing new things, and shadows or deadly consequences didn't hang over her head or her every action. She wanted badly to see the fort walls and imagine a big scary army crawling over this place. There might even be treasure, which would make a nice story to tell Rita when they got back...

But where Adila walked her along the lines of a wall, all Alina could find was a hill and the signs of the trees and grasses that had made it their home. It was beautiful, and wonderful... but it wasn't a fortress.

And where she stepped through the half present walls Adila called a keep, Alina found the remnants of a shrine. Here's where they might have stored incense, and there is where they once kept holy texts, and that pond could just as easily have been a well where water was drawn for travelling princesses to purify themselves by soaking in it before they presented themselves to the priests and the root of Argossa. And she did not see a fortress.

The best moment was the digging. Now she couldn't help but think of pirates and all the times she caught stories about Princess Blackscarf, who always seemed to be one step ahead of everything that tried to get in her way. But when Adila found the arrowhead (and why was it that children hunting for treasure always seemed to find arrowheads everywhere?), it shattered before Alina could touch it. And whether she played with the pieces or turned her head, it really could have been anything. She giggled again as she tossed the bits aside. Not to be mean, but because the hunting had been fun.

But whether there was a fortress or pirates here or not, there was value in the seeking, and trying one more time to look through someone else's eyes. Growing up had not conquered her little girl dreams, nor had anything made this place less than the most beautiful land she'd seen since leaving home. So she looked at Adila, watched her sit down, and she smiled as brightly as the lights on her head.

"That may be true," she says, "But it's never a bad thing to see home wherever you are. I think that... if there was a place like that here, they must have deeply loved the root and flowers here and wanted to keep them safe and see them respected. Which is why... if they were here, they gave it all back."

[Thanqol]

"That may be true," she says, "But it's never a bad thing to see home wherever you are. I think that... if there was a place like that here, they must have deeply loved the root and flowers here and wanted to keep them safe and see them respected. Which is why... if they were here, they gave it all back."

+Hehe, yeah...+ Princess Adila relaxed a bit. She had been soaking in the excitement from Alina and it was hard not to feel like the search had been worth it even if she'd found nothing. It was a happy afternoon.

+I do wonder, though,+ she thought. +You wouldn't know but the Watch is so... mysterious! The Annalist never talks about what we did before we came to the city, or the Captain. Sometimes I overhear the Grogs talk when they're drunk, and it all sounds so exciting and important, but even then it's only bits. And nobody outside the Watch seems to know anything at all! I don't know if they're making it up, or if the world just agreed to forget...+

She strummed her claws, thoughtfully. The soft moss absorbed most of the sound but one pierced through to clack on wood. +I don't even know if you've even heard of the original Princess Adila, the one I was named after. The way the old folks tell it she was the greatest princess of all time! She lead a great army, and she besieged every city in Hyperborea, and she seduced every princess, and she could arm-wrestle a devil-mother, and so on. I wonder, what if they were pirates, like Princess Blackscarf? Or something else? Maybe she came from outside the world like Greymane? But I don't even know what her army was called before it was the Watch.+

Princess Adila wasn't lamenting her lack of knowledge, she wasn't even transmitting the slightest resentment to the world for keeping this secret. She was just curious, the raw mental energy of someone trying to solve a difficult puzzle with only scraps of information.

As she shifted her weight, the wooden boards underneath her began to creak - and that is when you learn something about Princess Adila. While she might seem very perceptive at times she is extremely good at filtering out noises and sounds. She can sleep happily next to an active construction site and that same talent is being put to use disregarding that ominous creaking coming from below her.

[PhoeKun]

"That's a weirdly comforting thought," says Alina, "That the first Princess Adila came from outside Hyperborea, I mean. That'd be proof somebody could do it and then just... settle. I wonder if--"

Now, Alina is not possessed of super senses, but one thing she does have is a keen sense for when a noise means trouble. So if Adila was putting her prodigious talents to use ignoring the increasingly loud sounds of groaning wood, Alina was soon unable to focus on anything else. That's a bad sound. A danger sound.

"Um, Adila?"

Yup, very very bad sound. More like a snap this time. And a snap like that is not far from turning into a crack. Who even knows what a crack could turn into! She hops backwards, princessly instincts guiding her feet away from the greatest sort of danger there is.

"M-maybe you should move..."

[Thanqol]

+But there's no evidence that she settled, just that her army did!+ Princess Adila's mind churned away blithely. +She wasn't with the army by the time it reached the Bazaar, at that point a Devilhome Princess was leading the remnants...+

There was a snap loud enough for even Adila to hear. There's a moment when the information reaches her mind and you've got a perfect window into her thoughts as she looks down at the mossy carpet she's sitting on: +That's weird. Plants don't grow on wood.+

And then the entire thing gives way underneath her and the dragon goes tumbling down.

It's a complicated fall. There are a lot of limbs flailing about in different directions and sub-optimal interactions with stairs. At first there's shock and instinct, claws scrabbling and gouging out chunks of stonework as she tries to find something to grip on to arrest her fall. Then discipline asserts itself like a kick to the throat - the worst thing a falling dragon can do is flail around wildly. Someone might get hurt! She snaps her wings to her sides, curls her tail, tucks in her claws... and continues to bounce awkwardly and destructively off and down a spiral staircase hoping that she doesn't hit anyone on the way down.

She tumbles tooth over tail, building up momentum. She reaches the bottom of the stairs but that doesn't stop her. She careens forwards into a stone door, shattering it.

And then she's in a room with a gigantic golden eye with a clock in its pupil staring right at her.

Princess Adila goes out of her way to keep her mouth firmly closed at all times. A couple of reasons for this - there's always risk of fire and sparks, her teeth are kind of threatening, and we all know what she's like when using her mouth words. But in addition to all that she can also be very loud.

So when she screams out loud it's got some force behind it.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila!

I will not tell you specifics; what this room was once used for, who came here by night, or why it is buried so far beneath the earth. I will tell you what may be seen.

The statue of the Time Dragon, Firstborn and Self-created, was once splendid. Onyx his scales, gold his eyes, lifelike the form, and his pupils, though rusted and dingy, still tick onwards, inexorable.

To look upon him, to be a dragon and look upon him, is to know awe. He is to you as you are to Alina; impossibly vast and grand.

Around him, time and neglect have not been kind to the murals that once decorated the walls, particularly in the patron’s niche, where hung a depiction of the person who paid for the statue, or else was in some way important to this place.

Their face is effaced by mold and rot, but still your sharp eyes can make out that they wore black on black, the colors distinguishable to the trained eye, and their hand rests upon a vast bronze shield, its rim set against the ground.

This place is old. I would say impossibly old, but that’s likely just the feeling one gets around a statue of the Time Dragon: like you are breathing in the air that knew the first sun and the first moon.

One wall is shaped around the root of the shrine above; no tool dared deface it. Down here, the feeling of being close to something sacred is so thick that it can drown you. The scream is eaten by the walls, leaving no echo, no reverberation.

If you were an amazing archeologist princess, you could probably unearth shocking secrets here! Admittedly, they’d mostly be shocking secrets about art composition and magical statue carving and architectural styles, but they’d be really shocking, if you were an amazing archeologist princess.

But you’re you, which means- I think it means you just very much want that person in the damaged mural to be Adila.

[PhoeKun]

"...Adila? Adila!"

The hole is so deep and so dark that Alina's lights don't reach the bottom. She peeks as closely as she dares, but all there is to go on is the sounds of a scream and a dragon falling down a long flight of stairs. She swallows. There could be anything down there! A light-devouring shadowcat, or a pit full of spikes built over top a pit full of oozes built over top a pit full of pits, or even (in this part of the world!) a nest of Jedadi Rope Vipers, the only snake in the world that was also a rope. Just thinking about the possibilities makes her shiver. But that's a friend down there, and if awful things like that really are lurking just beyond her sight then so much the worse if she leaves her to fend them off herself.

She takes the steps. Cautiously at first, but then faster and faster as she gets lower until she is flying past three at a time. She hops lightly over broken stones and goes sailing into the room where she lands perfectly right next to Adila. She finds none of her terrors down here waiting for her. She bathes the room in lights and colors, and once again by existing changes the composition of the scene. Instinctively, she offers her hand to Adila without knowing whether or not it will help. Her mouth hangs agape.

"What is this place?" she breathes

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila had taken cover behind the ruined doorway, shivering in fright. Then Alina skipped down as cool as you please and filled the entire dark and scary room with bright light. It clicked that the dragon was a statue, and then it clicked that the statue wasn't coming to get her, and then it clicked that things weren't quite so scary when they were covered in rainbows, and oh also you haven't had a proper breath for a couple of minutes now so maybe you should get on that.

How was Alina so brave?

That thought got her up more quickly than anything else did. +Are you okay?+ she thought, absolutely zero percent of her brain considering the fact that she was the one who took a tumble down the stairs. She hadn't seen what had happened to Alina - she hadn't hit her by accident when she fell, had she? There is a significant amount of totally unnecessary dragon-fussing before Adila could focus on anything else in the room, which was conveniently what she needed to slow her heart rate down to a point where she could look at that giant statue without freaking out again.

+I have no idea what this is,+ she concluded eventually.

[Anarion]

The seagull snaps up one of the cards and tries to fly off; Brill goes chasing after it. Rita chuckles to herself, then asks, more seriously:

“What was it like where you’re from? I’ve heard you came from beyond Ouroboros... is that true? Or are you from an island near her scales, like the foxes?”

"It was cold." Kazelia looks far away, the stars in her eyes glisten. The card is forgotten. "It's so cold beyond Ouroboros. It's so cold that when you first feel it, it pierces you. It goes inside you, like thousands of little needles until you can't feel anything anymore. You're so cold that you stop feeling cold and you forget what it was like to feel anything at all."

Kazelia draws a deep breath and lets it out, and it glistens with ice even in the heat of the Jedadi sun. "The Riders came from far beyond Ouroboros, so far that I can't remember where we started..."

***There is a moment, like a flash going off inside Kazelia's head. There's an image of a tree sitting alone near the top of a grassy hill. It's just off center, perched so that someone who sat at the very top of the hill could lean against it and be shaded by its branches. It's an old tree, thick and gray and gnarled, but its branches are still strong and full of green. They've formed two canopies, one broad and leafy crown and one little plateau as the lower branches stretched and strained to find their own light. Kazelia is there, but she's not. She can't see herself, but she knows she's there. The night sky is spread out above the tree. There's no moon, but if you saw it, you'd see thousands of stars, so many that you couldn't even begin to pick out constellations, so many that it seemed the whole universe was pressing in above, leaving no room to move about. But you are not there, Kazelia is there. Kazelia sees a blank sky, full of blackness, shrouded in a velvet curtain. But strangely, if you look very closely in the starlight that you can see and she cannot, Kazelia leaves no trace of frost on the blades of grass. They are still, there is no wind, and they do not begrudge her her seat. Shooting stars that she cannot see cascade through the sky above the tree. And then, ever so faintly, there is a pinprick of light that Kazelia can see, at the very edge of the horizon, and she sits up to look at it and...***

Not even a second passes. Kazelia simply looks like she's struggling with the memory of the cold. "Like I said, I can't remember where we started, but we went to many places, Oberon leading us through the blackness. I think it's his home, I don't think he came from the same place as the Riders themselves, even though we're his daughters. He started calling us that, I think anyone who served him long and well enough could be a daughter of his, at least anyone he keeps and favors. The blackness out there is his home, and he moves through it with a fury that is impossible. We went to so many places, far from here, most small and quickly frozen. Oberon took whatever fascinated him, strange artifacts and weapons mostly, the occasional person or animal, which became like us. The rest was left in ice when we were done."

[PhoeKun]

Truthfully, Alina never thought she'd meet a dragon in her life. Or that if she did, said dragon would be carrying her off into the sky to hide her in a cave or a tower and keep her for a treasure. That was just the way of things: they were solitary and singularly greedy creatures, the stories all agreed. So she really was not prepared to have a dragon friend, or to have her be the most compassionate person she could remember meeting. Adila fell down a long flight of stairs and crashed through a wall! How was she the first to ask anyone if they were ok?! Her cheeks flush, which is a perfectly lovely sight in a room lit only by rainbows, but she turns her head to hide it just the same.

"No sense wasting a perfectly good mystery," she says still half in awe, "Wanna take a closer look?"

Now, Alina is no princess of history and archaeology either. No matter where she walks or what colors she puts up on the walls, she is not about to gain great insight into the history of the people who dwelt here or who it was that wore these rich blacks, or even be entirely sure which great old dragon they thought was important enough to enshrine here. Alina liked stories about brave and clever princesses, and especially ones filled with romance and happily ever afters. She had comparatively little space in her head for the dusty histories of homelands not her own. But a place like this? It must have treasures far greater than things which may have once been arrowheads. She is curious to know what might be kept here. She is curious to know if it is something she could bear to take from this place.

[Thanqol]

Once she'd finally assured herself that nobody else was hurt, Princess Adila finally allowed herself to acknowledge owwwwwwwww. She wasn't injured, none of her scales were broken, but she still needed to take a moment. Owch ow ow. How embarrassing! This is why she always checked what she sat on! And it wasn't fair! What kind of plants grew on wood!? That didn't make sense, plants grew in dirt! Oh gosh and she'd freaked out and used her voice, what if she'd melted the statue by mistake?!

But honestly, the staircase had gotten the worse end of that exchange overall, and Princess Adila had only minor scrapes that quickly got pushed to the back of her mind when it really started to sink in where she was. She brushed herself off and started to follow Alina who was already off and exploring and how was she so brave!? She hurried to keep up, still scanning the corners of the room - and keeping a wary eye on the statue as if still not entirely trusting it not to come to life and attack her.

+I know that shield,+ said Princess Adila, indicating the painting. +It's in the Captain's shield. She only carries it when swearing in new recruits, the last time she actually used it in battle was when I was still an egg...+ she wasn't able to keep the mixture of curiosity and hope from saturating her thoughts as she started to look around further with gradually increasing confidence.

[PhoeKun]

"So much for Plan A!"

"How was this Plan A?! We burned through six plans just getting in here! We're gonna run out of letters, Alina! We're gonna run out!"

"Less complaining, more running!"

Alina flashed a smile at her best friend as her scrawny legs carried them as fast as they could away from the oncoming boulder, narrowly avoiding each of the trapped sandstone bricks laid out on her path. At least that part of her information was still good! Of course, one giant boulder later and those traps started triggering anyway. Somewhere between the darts shooting at her ankles and the flame spitting snake heads that suddenly opened up and singed the silks right off of her elbows, she was forced to conclude that Rita had a point. She was running out of ideas faster than she was running out of dangers, chief among them being that for some reason she was having trouble remembering which letter came after 'q'.

Behind her she heard the click of another trap tile. In front of her she saw the floor pull back into the walls. She jumped. Underneath, the rope vipers coiled angrily and hissed with their frayed little tongues flicking out after. Unluckily, her legs were not long or strong enough to make a leap across a pit like that all in one go. Luckily, she'd just spotted a notch on the ceiling. With a band of yellow light wrapped around her left arm and a young catgirl wrapped around her right, Alina Cascade hung in the air and watched as the deadly, deadly boulder rolled harmlessly beneath her into the pit. She watched the dust settle, and the rope vipers wrap themselves around the hateful rock and tied themselves in a big angry bow around it. Which was honestly a relief, because she didn't want to hurt an animal like that.

"I feel like it was a mistake to try and rob The Temple of the Mind."

"But I have a perfect record, Rita! I've never been to Jedad and NOT stolen these jewels!"

"Ok, but I think they might have seen you coming this time. Don't they normally keep them in the palace?"

"Well, yes but--"

"Plus, there was that note on the door."

Said note: 'Dear Illuminan pain in my neck princess,
Thank you very much for agreeing to test our newest traps! I'll sleep more soundly at night knowing our sacred treasures have a safe place to rest, and even more soundly knowing that even if you escape from my dungeons, you'll be safely locked up in your mother's once she hears what you've been up to. I hope this teaches you that nobody steals the royal jewels of Jedad 5 times and gets away with it.
Yours Sincerely,
Queen Shulamis of Jedad
PS, please thank your mother for the scarf. I found the perfect place to put it!

Ooh, it burned her! Stupid queen, being so smart. Stupid Jedad, being so prepared! She kicked her legs forward to start building momentum for a swing. She'd sooner hug Mr. Stormy again than give them the satisfaction of knowing they'd beaten her here! She swung on her Yellow once. Twice. Three times.

"Lina no, Lina we're not going to make iiiiiiiit~!"

They made it. If an awkward landing where you only get your toes to the ground and your best friend has to tug frantically on your arm while the other one windmills trying not to fall backwards into a pit full of incredibly angry rope vipers counts as making it. Which it did.

"There, see? And we're only on Plan... what now?"

"Pretty sure it's R."

And in their fit of survivor's giggles, they very nearly missed the somehow soft but also stomping footfalls of the mighty sphinx, who was wearing a wry smile and the most dazzling silk scarf...

****

"Oh really? Tell me more! It must be a very special shield if its history stretches this far back..."

Alina watches Princess Adila with a queer smile on her face, forgetting for a moment thoughts of treasure and prizes. It wasn't quite the same, this adventure. But in its own quiet way, it might actually be better.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila, Alina!

When the world was young and patchwork and feckless, magic pooled. That’s what it did! It pooled in people, and in places, and in things, and made them so heavy and sodden with power that they risked ripping right through the world like a paper bag! That’s why the Grandmothers of Devilhome are so scary, I think: they haven’t so much bathed in power as fermented in it.

But Argossa, the mountain-tree, its veins living crystal and its bark of stone, it is both the reinforced floor that stops things from sinking through and the fan which keeps all of that magic in circulation, like the water in the cities of Ilumina. (Well. Like they were before they froze over; laughing and swift were they all.) Its heartbeat is the heartbeat of Hyperborea. And its power is incredible.

Up above, that power was diffuse: a sense of beauty, the rich scent of dying crystal petals, the coursing winds far above. Down here, the flow of magic is amplified, and builds upon itself.

The first thing that goes a little strange is Alina’s lights. They get brighter, bit by bit, slowly but surely, until each of them is a blazing little star, hard and pale and furious. In Adila’s chest, the fires are stoked, waves of heat releasing from her scales, and the room starts becoming terribly warm.

And as if in answer-

As if called to this purpose-

Called by your hearts, your care of the shrine above, and your care for each other-

The stone splits on one side of the room. On the side of the room where the wall is all root. For a moment, crystal is revealed, white and pink and throbbing with light. And from it, slowly, tentatively, is extruded a bud. Its bulb is hard, dark, yet clear enough to show something burning bright and terrible within.

I think that it is a gift.

Possibly.

Or maybe it’s about to explode and get rock pollen and lasers all over you. Hard to say!

[PhoeKun]

Alina bravely shrieks in surprise and hides behind the statue of the Time Dragon. Her heart beats bravely in her chest, faster and faster and faster to show just how full of courage it is. Her arms and legs (and other parts, one supposes) tremble like the most valiant of jellies. And see how she manages to peak her head out from behind cover not once, but twice to see what had made that noise and caused that glow that wasn't her?

Except that, when she does see it properly, her breath catches in her chest. Her heart refuses to slow down, her body refuses to stop shaking, but she steps toward the wall all the same. Really, she'd rather not. She doesn't want to be brave, not in somebody else's mind and not in reality. She doesn't have the slightest idea what this really is or what it might do. It terrifies her. But she's pulled toward it like a magnet just the same. Because it is beautiful, and Illuminans trust beautiful things almost implicitly. Because it's coming from the root of Argossa, and that means it's come from the great mountain-tree. Because it might be from Ourania, and the thing Alina whispers to herself at night to help her fall asleep is that the High Queen is watching, and she cares. Because Adila is here and watching, and for some reason that makes her feel better.

"Oh," she squeaks, "My goodness..."

So she walks forward, step by tiny step. Slow at first, but faster as she closes in, until her last three paces seem to all happen at once. It's gotten so warm; Alina's hair is damp with sweat. She reaches out and caresses the bulb with trembling fingers. It's somehow soft and firm all at once, warm as the sun and cool as a a gentle rain. She closes her hand around it and, bolder than she feels, plucks it from the wall. The feeling is indescribable. But the closest word you and I have to understand it is 'full'. Alina overflows with all manner of feelings and magics and light and other things she can't quite name, and when she turns it's like looking at some magical spirit that must have been born in a rainbow rather than under one. Her lips curl upwards.

"Hey Adila, I..."

She wobbles. She drops to her knees. Her eyes slide shut and, still smiling, she falls face first onto the ground and spills prismatic starlight into the room.

[Thanqol]

The Operations Manual had nothing to say about rainbow overdoses.

Oh no! Oh no! Alina had fallen over and she hadn't been fast enough and maybe that was good because she was increasing in temperature and what if she burned to touch and there was so much light in the air and she'd never felt quite like such a dragon. Okay, deep breath - no stop that's a terrible idea, you can feel how much that stokes the furnace of your heart. New plan: No breathing. Much better.

Be sensible.

She picked her blanket out of her bag and once again wrapped it around Alina carefully - not to keep her warm, but like an oven mitt she could use to pick her up without burning. She did so quickly and then carefully lifted her up onto her back. Then she started walking slowly and carefully away from the glowing root and up the stairs, carrying the little princess with her.

[PhoeKun]

Alina is floating face up in a pool of water. It's warm and soothing and nice, and she's more than happy to let herself drift for a while. The sun feels pleasant on her face, and under the surface gentle undercurrents tease her hair back and forth like the tides. It's nice. It's so very nice.

But wait. Is that right? Thinking is so difficult. Why is she lying down? No, of course, because she'd just fallen over. But that doesn't feel right either, because didn't she fall forwards? She doesn't remember rolling over. And wasn't she in a room with a stone floor and no warm pools at all? And wasn't she with someone? She snaps bolt upright.

"Adila!"

"Nope! Guess again, silly~"

There's that sense of disorientation again. Alina rubs her eyes and looks around. It's beautiful, wherever she is. The sky is the most brilliant blue, dotted with the friendliest, puffiest, whitest clouds she's ever laid eyes on. The water she's sitting in is a perfect mirror reflecting the sky. Even where she's sitting is perfectly undisturbed and free of ripples. And actually now that she notices, it's quite shallow too. She's sitting up, and the surface doesn't quite reach up to her belly button. She blinks, and turns her head. Everywhere she looks there's this weird sense of... infinity. The the north(?) and the east(?) and the west(?) there's the impression of something massive and wonderful just past the edges of the horizon, but however much she strains her eyes she can't quite make it out. It's very much like being back in the void they'd kept the heart of the Slaugh inside of, only very much the opposite.

She turns south, or in the direction she hasn't looked at the least, and confirms there is no table and no chair waiting for her. Though... she blinks. She tilts her head, and blinks again. The figure across from her mirrors each of her motions in turn. But it can't be her reflection, because this figure is standing. She's dressed in Illuminan silks, in all their soft pastel colored glory. Sleeves of orange, pant legs blue, her shirt a pinkish red. Familiar lavender curls, but wilder, as if they'd been deliberately mussed up after too much careful grooming. Legs a little long for her body, hips that haven't quite figured out how to be wider than her waist. She's gangly and awkward, but in a way that anybody who looks at her can't help but think she's half a growth spurt away from being a beauty. A seven pointed crown on her head shining in quiet rainbow light. The figure flashes her a smile full of perfect teeth, save for one near the front that's still missing.

"Hey there, Lina! Nice to finally meet me!"

"Wait. You're... me?"

"Well of course you silly fish! Did you really think I was your dragon friend?"

Alina blinks again. She stares down into the mirror pool and sees her face as she's come to know it in the years since. Her body's as shapely as ever, her crown has five points and two empty spaces where other lights should be. She stands up, and... huh. She's only a head or so taller. But still. She rubs a hand against her cheek.

"What is this place? Am I dead?"

"I dunno! But you don't look very dead to me. Do you feel very dead?"

"Not really..." Alina shakes her head.

"Then you must be alive! Hooray! I wouldn't want me to be dead." the younger Alina laughs and kicks at the water just to see the splashes. The pool is still a perfect mirror.

"Well, um... can you tell me what we're doing here?"

"What, already? You adults are always so serious! How can you see an amazing place like this and not just want to play?"

Alina raises a quizzical eyebrow. "Well, I mean... I do. Honestly, I do! Everything here is so beautiful, it's just. Well, you know. My friend is probably worried about me, I should get back to her if I can."

"Oh she is, she super is," young Alina nods with her best (and thoroughly unconvincing) Serious Face, "Though actually I'm a lot more worried about her! I was lookin' at her heart a bit ago and Rivers! Isn't it just the saddest thing?"

The girl touches her fingertips to the water, which for the first time ripples to show something other than the sky. It's disorienting for Alina to see herself like this. Unconscious, wrapped up in a huge blanket, and being carried back up the long flight of steps to the outside world and cooler air. She strains a little harder and sees Adila in full with her great golden eyes equal parts panicked and determined. It's impressive, really. Alina's body is barely bouncing around up there at all. But for some reason looking at this makes her heartsick. The smaller her folds her arms across her chest and nods extremely seriously.

"Mhm, mhm! You see, you see? That's how come you're here! 'Cause you touched Magic, Lina! Not like fireworks on a summer's night or lemon cakes when you're super hungry or even quite like the lights on your head. This is the really for real stuff, the kind you have to open your heart all the way just to see. And that's why I'm here: 'cause you've got a real important adult decision to make, and I've gotta make sure you make it right."

That made no sense, and Alina says as much. Surely as a very wise and entirely grown up princess she shouldn't need advice to make important adult decisions. And certainly not the advice of a silly kid version of herself. She was entrusted with saving the entire world, for goodness sake! No burden could be heavier! The smaller Alina shrugged, and looked very sad.

"There's magic in your hand right now, Lina. And what if I told you it could make your Red and Yellow come back?"

Alina's mouth hangs agape. Well that's no choice at all! Unless it was a choice between the two colors, but even then! Any step closer to putting herself back together is something she has to take! She has to! How could she live with herself if she gave something like that up? She flares up in scary colors, and her eyes gleam darkly. Around her in the water there are little rings of frost and, though she doesn't notice, when she opens her mouth her teeth are sharper than they should be.

"You stupid kid, what do you even know?! Just look at your crown with all its seven lights, you can't know, you can't possibly know how much it hurts to feel those holes sitting on top of your head. Inside your heart! Go knock another tooth out, you dumb brat! Go fall in a well, just disappear, just leave me alone! You want to stop me from feeling whole again, and I won't let you! I won't! I have to put myself together again! It's... it's..."

"It's too scary, falling apart," finishes the younger one, taking a step back and looking just horribly sad about it, "I wish you could see how much ugly stuff that jerk left inside you. I'm really sorry, Lina. It's not a thing anyone should hafta ask you. It's not a hurt you were supposed to have."

Alina's eyes are full of tears. She hisses and fires dangerous beams of light in random directions, not caring what happens or looking what they're aimed it. She cries, and they tear through the air in unison with her sobs. It's some time before she notices she's hugging herself.

"I promise, Lina, it's your choice to make. I'm not gonna stop you either way. You've just gotta understand, ok? There's another heart you know that's full of aches and scary stuff same as yours. And you can fix that! But if you do, you can't have your colors back. And I dunno if you're gonna get another chance like this... not for either thing."

"But... I..." she's softening again, warming. The pool around her is just a pool. Her teeth are just her teeth. Her tears are still fresh on her cheeks, unchanging. The mirror pool reflects two truths. To her left is warmth and friendship, but just above it there's a shadow and a horrible laugh that makes her heart frost over, and in that laugh there is an evil promise that without her true lights she will never stop what he is planning. To her right, Oberon is broken before her, and she is a mighty and shining in radiant white light so bright it hurts to look at her, but just behind that where her all-white eyes refuse to look there is the shadow of a tail slinking into a cave to sleep and be left alone forever, and this makes her heart feel as though it had been stabbed with a fire needle.

"How am I supposed to choose one of those?" she asks

"I dunno," little Alina shrugs, "I'm just a kid. But didn't you tell somebody recently that Alina Cascade was something other than her lights?"

****

Outside, the air's a little cooler. Alina shifts on top of the dragon's back, but she doesn't stir.

"Adila" she murmurs, and then another words it's not quite possible to catch. In her clenched hand, a crystal flower blooms.

[Thanqol]

The sunset was mediocre.

That was one of the most surprising facts about leaving home: mediocre sunsets. In Jedad, each sunset was spectacular: the entire sky blazed crimson and violet, the clouds trailed off in columns of shining gold and purple, and there were touches of infinitely refined blue run through with so many spears of sunlight that it came to seem turquoise. This sun just disappeared behind a bank of clouds and snuck out of the sky like a nobleman from a mediocre stageplay and, ho! Suddenly it was twilight!

But the island made itself known through an eruption of noise.

Birds chorused in overlapping layers. The ground swelled with the creaking of crickets. Layers of frog-song formed a solid wall of noise. The noise fused into one coherent sound; one unbroken swell of music with no space between the beats. She lowered her head to the ground to a cricket that continued to chirp fearlessly despite her claws being inches away. She made eye contact with a vivid blue frog that felt sufficiently confident in its poison and poisonous coloration that it didn't need to bat an eyelid at her. She walked into a swell of birds who erupted out in all directions in a choir of panicked peeping sounds, wings batting a dovish melody as they flew. Strange crystal growths and bioluminescent fungi came to light the way, fireflies and will-o-the-wisps that saturated the air with impossible new forms of light. And light was everywhere. The wild quails and peacocks demonstrated the shining colours at the end of their feathers. Evening flowers opened dropping glowing pollen down upon the path. Even the moss bloomed with little yellow flowers, each with a miniature sun at its heart.

She'd thought the island would be quiet and dead at night but the opposite was true. This was a celebration. Every creature had a light. Every creature had a song. Every creature had drunk deeply of magic and beauty and had only held itself at bay for fear of being out-competed by the shining sun. She'd imagined the woods as dark, scary places but this was almost more vibrant than a city.

She walked slowly through the strange night, taking in the colours as she continued to carry Princess Alina.

[PhoeKun]

Alina sits down on the surface of the glassy water and hugs her legs close to her chest. Wisps of cloud float on forever above her head, perfect and unchanging. The sky is the same piercing blue, never changing or betraying any sense of time. She stares blankly at her own reflection, and it stares back with an equally tired expression. A minute passes. Or maybe it's a thousand years? The subtle drip drip dripping of a water clock as it counts each second through an eon, then turns over and counts those same seconds over again. The princess sighs.

"This is hard." she says

She turns her head, maybe looking for her younger self, but the girl has already faded away back into whatever place or moment she sprang out of. It's just her, and a question that she's ashamed of. Slowly, she uncurls and just sits with her legs splayed rather indelicately in front of her, leaning back on her arms while her nick tilts up toward the sky. She flops over on one side, swirling the surface of the water with a fingertip while it plays with her hair in turn. She stands up, stretches, and swings her arms aimlessly from side to side. She takes off running and her feather tread doesn't so much as ripple the water beneath her. She is Alina Cascade, the Petrichor Princess who the songs compare to the Illuminan Water Deer, those translucent creatures whose bodies soak up light and colors in the form of the lilies they eat and whose gait is more akin to a dance than anything meant to carry a creature from one place to another. And no matter how far she runs or how graceful and perfect she is, nothing ever gets any closer.

It's all there, everywhere she looks. The all-consuming sense that unspeakable beauty and everything her heart and mind could ever dare to hold are just. Over. There. But they retreat in equal measure with her footfalls forward, and by the end even though she runs herself short of breath too many times to count and tries too many directions to name she finds she may as well still be standing in the exact center of this strange universe. She kicks at the water in frustration.

The droplets splash about in huge, foaming waves that vastly overstate the strength in her legs, almost like a storm swallowed up the water just beneath her and is bent all on turning the placid mirror pool into a raging ocean. And from those waves emerge two new figures, and she knows before the even finish shaping themselves out of flecks of foam that they are both herself. The first Alina is very much her twin, down to the last curl, but no crown sits upon her head, and she is heavily bundled in Rider blues that wrap and obscure her frame like any other Illuminan conscript. She offers the tired, Askaian-dressed version of herself a terrifyingly sad smile.

"Hello, Alina Cascade. I am called Sacrifice. Do you still need help? You called for me, when you could just leave."

The other Alina is barely recognizable. She is taller than Kaja and so bright it hurts to look at her. Wrapped around her body is a dress of dark silks. No armor fouls her form, no sleeves cover her radiant arms. Her silks trail behind her in a seemingly endless train that ripple with power so that she seems like a river all to herself. Her hair is long and flowing and comes to rest (or rather, it dances violently) all the way down at her knees. On her head is a crown, but it's not one that Alina recognizes: electrum wire mesh wrapped in great spiraling loops around a pair of hard pointed stars that glow without any of her colors. One shines in pure white, the other answers all in black.

"GLORY/I AM. I AM TRUTH/APOTHEOSIS. THE REASON I AM HERE/is to prove my friendship. the reason i am here/IS THE INSTRUCTION OF ALINA CASCADE. KNOW IT. i know it! answer! THE ANSWER!"

"A-are you my future?" Alina asks the both of them, astonished.

Sacrifice shrugs and shakes her head. Glory folds her arms across her chest.

"never are/never to be. fragments. POSSIBILITIES/PERSPECTIVE. an understanding?"

Alina shakes like a leaf and can't nod either answer.

"There are many hearts that depend on your kindness, Alina."

"YOUR POWER/SALVATION. growth --> necessity."

"Oberon Greymane will never be defeated unless your heart is made whole. There is only one path to healing, Alina."

"THE WAY/IS LIGHT. TEMPTATION. the world freezes. light thaws. HOPE/I AM. HOPE/YOU ARE. obvious."

Sacrifice thrusts her hand into her chest and pulls out her crystal heart. Glory wraps herself in twin columns of light. Alina shields her eyes. The world around her returns to its normal placid self, and where two women had been standing there is now only a disappointingly plain and boring door. Alina blinks, and puts her hand on the knob.

"Weren't you two supposed to argue?"

"You already knew the answer," says Sacrifice's voice.

"strength/seeking. strength/all that's needed. A PUSH. stop wasting time. stop. STOP!"

"Do the right thing, Alina Cascade."
***

The sun has already set. The island has already risen. Alina's eyes flutter open, and she stirs and flops unceremoniously off of Adila's back. Because she is herself, somehow it manages to look intentional and graceful. She tries to pop up onto her feet but she's tangled up in dragon blankets again for some reason and just goes tumbling right back over. She huffs.

"What is going on?! Adila? Adila! Where are you? Where am I?"

[Thanqol]

+You are sick, just like I said you were,+ thought Princess Adila, picking up the blanket-bundled princess with her mouth and carrying her over to the shrine. +Honestly, I don't know what you were thinking wearing a sunbeam into a frozen wasteland. When we get to the Bazaar I am going to buy you so many sweaters, but until then,+ she carefully set Alina down on the stone steps, +you are going to take it easy, you are going to drink lots of water, and you are going to stay in that blanket. I am going to start cooking some soup.+

[PhoeKun]

"For the last time, I am not sick! I touched a magic tree blossom, that makes it perfectly normal to pass out and have really weird dreams! Probably!" Alina huffs again with all the princessly dignity she can muster. Which, by the standards of somebody wrapped up in an over-large blanket and placed on a step like a child, is a lot! But given that she is that thing exactly, it's also next to none. She sighs.

"...I will permit you to make soup this one time. As a precaution. A diplomatic measure. For the sake of our friendship." she nods, "But for the record I object to the way you're worrying about me while I am extremely busy being worried about you! Make sure you note it! I want this read back to me when we go over the minutes at the next princess conference!"

It's easier not to fight it, she decides. The evening air is too pleasant and the shrine too beautiful. She sits there wrapped up in Adila's warmth and watches the dragon with the gentlest of smiles on her face. Her fingers work some unseen object over and over again in her hands, and when she closes her eyes for a moment she smiles, because she knows exactly how to do what has to be done.

"Also, my light is very warm, thank you very much! You come back here and say it's not!"

[Thanqol]

+Your light went out after we hit the first cold breeze in Askatia,+ said Princess Adila, dumping her pack on the ground and starting to sort through it for pots and spoons. She started peeling a small pumpkin with one claw. +Sweaters may not be pretty but neither is a runny nose and temperature. You're just going to have to accept that Princess Kazelia is going to be prettier than you when it's cold outside.+

[PhoeKun]

"Excuse you? Excuse you? Just who do you think you're talking to?!"

That did it. That really did it. Alina's out of the blanket and on her feet before the first bit of pumpkin peel can hit the ground. She rises to her full height and glares at Adila with eyes like the fury of a storm. She opens her mouth to say something, pauses, and stomps up several more steps so that she's actually standing higher than a certain scaly jerk of a princess, then poses there with her hands on her hips. The lights on her crown sparkle angrily, and the island conjures a special breeze just to flutter her dress dramatically.

"Doooooon't you even start with me, missy! Ourania herself couldn't knit a sweater unflattering enough to make Kazelia outshine me! I could wear a dozen sweaters at once and people would still fight duels just to kiss my hand! Why do you think Queen Shulamis really wants me delivered to her personal justice?! I'm the princess of Illumina! I'm Alina Cascade: the first and last word on fashion anywhere you ask around! Don't you talk to me like I'm one of your Jedadi hussies who needs to walk around with her belly all exposed just to turn a glance!"

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila completely broke down into psychic giggling. Head into the stonework, whole body shaking in silent and yet intensely noisy laughter. She'd hoped her teasing would get a reaction but she hadn't imagined the utterly sincere condemnation she was now receiving. It was like watching a thunderstorm in a teapot and she absolutely could not keep it together even one little bit.

+I concede the point, Your Highness,+ Princess Adila managed to focus out. +And I am glad to hear that you have no objections to sweater-wearing.+

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

Rita is quiet for a while. There is sound, of course: the creaking of the rigging, the sighing of the waves, the low hum of feline sea shanties. Brill, trying to get his card back from the seagull. The world is quiet, here.

“Do you like the cold?” It’s a soft question, when it finally comes. “It can be a bigger question if you like, but let’s start with you.” She kneads at your robes, gingerly. “Do you like it when it’s cold and all those needles are inside you? I won’t judge you if you do.”

And there are bigger questions wrapped up inside that question, too. Do your people like the cold, or do they live with it, not knowing any other way? If you hate the cold, do you want warm coats and cats sleeping on top of you at night? Are you cold right now?

Are you all right, Kazelia?

[Anarion]

Kazelia!

Rita is quiet for a while. There is sound, of course: the creaking of the rigging, the sighing of the waves, the low hum of feline sea shanties. Brill, trying to get his card back from the seagull. The world is quiet, here.

“Do you like the cold?” It’s a soft question, when it finally comes. “It can be a bigger question if you like, but let’s start with you.” She kneads at your robes, gingerly. “Do you like it when it’s cold and all those needles are inside you? I won’t judge you if you do.”

And there are bigger questions wrapped up inside that question, too. Do your people like the cold, or do they live with it, not knowing any other way? If you hate the cold, do you want warm coats and cats sleeping on top of you at night? Are you cold right now?

Are you all right, Kazelia?

"I thought I did." Kazelia doesn't look distant. She looks at Rita. Glances at Brill and the gull, grins briefly, looks back and meets her eyes. This conversation has been a bit overwhelming, but this question, this is the one she knows the answer to, the one that's burning inside her.

"Before we came here, I thought I liked it. Oberon did that to my people, made them all a little bit like he is, cruel and sharp, like the knives inside us. But two things changed for me and that's why I'm here now. The first one's that when we got here, I got to see Ourania." Kazelia laughs with the warm memory, this one a quiet laugh that settles through her like the gull feather presently settling onto Brill's head.

"I got to see her crush my father and cast him down. I wasn't with them, he thought he took only his best witch, but I rode ahead of the others, I've always been like that, and so I pulled up near the end of their fight, still above the world, above the great serpent, and I watched her flash with fire and cast him down. I've never seen Oberon bested like that." Kazelia does look distant for a moment, but it's clearly because she's fangirling about the fight. You can see her picturing the play by play and those moments when Ourania really got the upper hand before she tunes back into the conversation.

"I'd love to meet her someday. But, the second thing is that my people, whoever we were, we can't remember it right. We all hear a distant song, but Oberon drowns it out. Except not me. Maybe because I saw that moment with Ourania? Maybe I'm just the first and more will start hearing the song. There's a part of us that Oberon never took with him, that he couldn't defeat either that's still out there. When I heard that song, the same song I carry with me, that I played before we left when I was so worried, it felt like Oberon's power over me just evaporated. And I could see clearly for the first time, including the fact that he lied to all of us about what we'd get coming here to Hypreborea and that we were ruining everything. So I left, I flew out and I found the princess that Oberon had overthrown and I pledged to get her kingdom back. Because no, now that I thought about it, I don't like the cold at all." She gives Rita a smile and then taps her chin pensively as if to say, give me a second, let me think about one more thing.

"As for my people. That I think is a bigger question. They're under Oberon's sway, he's making them feel like there's nothing they can be except what they are. But, if that went away, I think some would like it. The witches, some of the craftsmen maybe, they might like themselves as they are now. But I think most wouldn't. We were all something different before, something that wasn't like this" shows off her teeth and pats her skin "and if we remembered it, I think we could change."

Now, as for the unspoken question, the jury is still out on that one! Is Kazelia okay not remembering all these important things? Is she okay being something that she'd rather not be? She seems like she's okay with the path she's on to confront those problems at least. But she probably wouldn't turn down a warm cat that didn't mind a little frosty fur.

[PhoeKun]

"I'll wear whatever I want to." Alina sniffs.

She stands there looking haughty and imperious. Twinkling furiously while her friend psychically laughs herself to death like she's never seen a proper Illuminan Storm before. Which she probably hasn't. The moment passes. Alina quietly descends the steps again and sits back down on the blanket. Her fingers go back to work. She does have something important to do, you know. She can't get caught up in something like this forever.

"I wish you could see my lights the way they're supposed to be. They were so strong. They were so beautiful..."

[Thanqol]

"I'll wear whatever I want to." Alina sniffs.

She stands there looking haughty and imperious. Twinkling furiously while her friend psychically laughs herself to death like she's never seen a proper Illuminan Storm before. Which she probably hasn't. The moment passes. Alina quietly descends the steps again and sits back down on the blanket. Her fingers go back to work. She does have something important to do, you know. She can't get caught up in something like this forever.

"I wish you could see my lights the way they're supposed to be. They were so strong. They were so beautiful..."

Princess Adila finally caught her breath. Despite how funny she'd found Alina, some part of her had wondered if she was about to be executed by a barrage of rainbow lasers. There had definitely been an edge to that glare that had made it only ninety-five percent adorable.

She gathered herself, thoughts flowing back up to her mind like sweeping sand. +If you told me that before tonight I wouldn't have known what you meant,+ thought Adila, looking out at the glowing forest. +I'd have thought, light is light, isn't it? But now...+ the idea trailed off into contemplation for a moment.

+What were they like?+

[PhoeKun]

"Oh, they were..." Alina pauses, a little lost for words. Her lights twinkle with encouragement on her head. She smiles, "They were brave, and fierce, and loyal. A rainbow is so much stronger when it's complete, like seven little sisters supporting each other through everything. With Red's to lead them they were stronger than a whole flock of storm birds. They could punch holes in steel or crystal as easily as paper or stand in a fight with the strongest monsters and warriors you could imagine. Nobody could break them! Even if I poured as much magic into them as I could, the kind that would overwhelm them now, they'd shine on as strong as ever. I could heal sicks or hurts without needing a rest. I could have walked into the coldest cavern in Hyperborea and they'd have kept me warm forever without ever needing a break."

She breaks out into laughter as a memory surfaces: "One time when I was younger I was trying to teach Rita to swim and we almost got pounced on by a lion! You know, the big ones Askaia gets sometimes? The ones that get so big they can scare away a waterfall with their roar? One of those. And it came at us all 'roar, I am going to eat you little girls!' and when it tried to grab me, my Red wrapped around its paw and threw it straight into the river! And while it was doing that, Yellow rallied Violet and Orange to blast it all up and down its body so that when it finally climbed out of the water its mane was cut all down to nothing, and when it saw its own reflection it ran off mewling into the jungle."

Alina closes her eyes and sighs into the pleasant night air. But there's a smile on her face that the universe would have to try much, much harder if it wanted to be rid of. Five lights sparkle and wrap Alina Cascade in thin, colored sheets. Like a hug from her oldest and most special friend.

"I came so close to fixing them today," she says, "But I let the chance slip away from me."

[Thanqol]

+You don't sound like you regret it,+ Princess Adila thought. When Princess Alina regretted something it flowed from her mind in cascades; things she could have done, things she should have done, people who could have done it better, sadness, heartache... a flow of emotions she wished wasn't so common. But when she said that she had given up an opportunity to repair her lights she was smiling and shining.

She also couldn't shake, in the context of Princess Alina's recent staredown and her subsequent story, the thought that if she had her red light just then she might have thrown her through that wall after all.

[PhoeKun]

"I know, I'm surprised too! For the longest time I thought I wanted that more than anything. But then I realized if I did that... I couldn't do this."

Princess Alina hops back onto her feet and walks lightly toward Adila. And from behind her back, she produces a rough-cut crystal, rather roughly attached to what had been a pair of old necklaces she'd linked together. She has to hop a couple of times to actually get it good and around Adila's neck, but she's determined not to let any of this detract from the magic of the moment. She needs to do this part herself, or there's no point. She finally gets it clasped and pumps a fist in an extremely dignified manner before touching two fingers to the surface of the crystal. Each of the five sheets of light that had been wrapped around Alina attach themselves to Princess Adila instead. It's a strange sensation: tingly and cool, but also warm at the same time. Even though it's only light, there's a faint sense of pressure like a hand on her scales. A gentle pat, maybe, or perhaps a hug.

The crystal necklace pulses with its first faint traces of light. Alina smiles brightly at it.

"We'll get you a proper chain for this, I promise. But how does it feel?"

[Thanqol]

+...+

The air thickened with psychic energy, tense and heavy, like the air before a thunderstorm.

+OH MY GOSH!+ Princess Adila squealed. +It's beautiful! Oh my gosh! It's - it's! Thank you! It's gorgeous - when did you?+

Suddenly she froze. You can feel the calendar turning inside her head as she tried to remember which holy day it was. +I didn't get you anything,+ she thought meekly.

[PhoeKun]

"Who said I need anything in return?" Alina says with a giggle.

She reaches out and taps the crystal with her fingers again, then pats Adila's neck.

"We're connected now, ok? So don't ever forget it. That there's someone here who doesn't think you're a big dumb ugly dragon. That's all I ever need from you, I promise."

[Thanqol]

"Who said I need anything in return?" Alina says with a giggle.

She reaches out and taps the crystal with her fingers again, then pats Adila's neck.

"We're connected now, ok? So don't ever forget it. That there's someone here who doesn't think you're a big dumb ugly dragon. That's all I ever need from you, I promise."

That was all Adila needed as well.

If there is magic in the hearts of princesses, Adila's has enough to conjure new stars in the sky. She doesn't know how to speak; it's a moment, it's been a day, when all her wishes had come true. She can't think clearly enough to form words, she just radiates warmth and happiness like a lantern, driving away the chill of night.

[PhoeKun]

This wasn't what she'd come here to do. It wasn't what she'd planned on, and it wasn't something she'd even known was possible. Frankly, she wasn't all that sure it's what all of the different aspects of her conscience or whatever that was were actually yelling at her to do. But it felt good. And it felt right. And there's no need for words or gifts or anything just now.

Princess Alina leans against her friend and feels the warmth wash over her. She smiles, and lights up like a beacon. And together, they push back the night.

[Thanqol]

Princess Adila glowed in happy unison.

It took her while to realize it was literal.

Her scales were shimmering with silver light, slowly but firmly intensifying into a radiant white on the sharpest edges. It melded into the darkness and rainbow light without overwhelming either; it pooled in the shadows like liquid and floated amidst the rainbow spectrum like beads of oil. It was light without fire, warmth without danger - her heart blooming out into the world, freed from the constraints of her body.

She stared in wonder, and the light followed her gaze. It swirled and pooled where she focused her mind, the same skill that allowed her to project her thoughts allowing her to project something... deeper instead. She hesitantly touched the world with her heart and it responded. As gently as a breeze she lifted a mouse from the underbrush on a cloud of shining silver and held the tiny thing up to her face, where it sniffed at her nose fearlessly. That's when it all finally came together and she channeled all of those positive feelings directly towards Alina - the silver light descended like a storm into a soft, fluffy and warm hug.

[PhoeKun]

"I had a feeling you'd be a natural..."

You probably expected it, but Alina Cascade is an amazing hugger. Even when her target is a dragon, she knows how to really get her arms around someone and wrap them up so that they'll feel loved. She's soft and, maybe because she also seems to delicate, isn't afraid to squeeze as hard as she can. She's smiling so much that it's actually kind of starting to hurt. The muscles in her face are tired so there's little spurts where her face resets to neutral, but she can't help it and it creeps right back up on her all over again. This was definitely the right decision. Only an idiot would think it wasn't.

"A white one though, huh? I'm surprised! I thought for sure you'd be a Red, or maybe even a Black! Whites are supposed to be very rare, you know. I wonder what sort of temperament it has?"

[Thanqol]

+Black light?+ Adila thought, still staring at the flowing shapes in wonder. +What would that even look like? How is that less rare than white? Do you mean temperament like it's a person?+ Her mind overflowed with questions but she didn't even care about the answers, she just wanted to know that this moment was real and not a dream and every little pointless specific she could get helped her believe that more.

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

Sparkle sparkle oooof. You’ve got a full-sized catgirl reclining languorously across your lap now, and the look she gives you is kind, and full of understanding, and wow it suddenly makes a lot of sense that she and Alina are old childhood friends.

“If there’s any way to help you and your people change to something that would make you more joyful,” she says, her words careful and lazy and deliberate, “I’ll be there, ready and willing.”

That’s a promise!

And a careful one, too. Imagine being stuck with a promise to help you change and then finding a way to turn you all into slimy monsters! That’d be the worst! She’d be crying as she aligned the cursed Slime Crystals and pointed them at your chest! Or she’d just break her promise and feel, like, super bad about it.

But having a promise like that in your heart...

Doesn’t that make you feel like it’s just a little more possible, just a little more achievable, now that Rita’s made that promise?

[PhoeKun]

"Weren't you listening to my story? The light's a living thing, of course it has feelings! Take my Green, for instance, she's gentle and kind. And that's why I'm good at healing magic. Much better than Kazelia, I don't need any of that weird drainy shadow drippy stuff. Can you imagine? Or, Orange is finicky, see? And she doesn't like taking the same shape twice in a row, but that makes the lot of them more versatile..."

On and on and on she goes, talking about the properties of her colors, about how Illuminans think of rainbows, about the way black lights shine as brightly as anything else you could care to name, only the overwhelming impression you get from looking at them is a sense of opacity or fullness ("Just imagine the night sky, right? But instead of the stars shining, it's everything else. Like when it's day and bright and blue, but black instead!"), about the princesses of myth who were known to have found black lights and how they seemed more prone to being tamed than white ones, and any number of other things you could care to ask or wonder about light lore, and very probably several things you'd never think to know. It's a favorite topic, right up there with swimming and adventuring and kissing, and she was a very good girl when she was small and attentively read all of her books and sang all of her songs and listened to all of the stories thank you very much, so now she knows them all. So long as you don't ask her about spoon etiquette or the 37 proper apologies that go with accidentally saying a bad thing about mushrooms when you're in Deep Hollow, or other stuff that's like that. Those are the ones she slept or doodled her way through.

And while she talks, she produces a pair of paper lanterns. Maybe not needed, so far as light goes, but ancient shrines have ancient shrine tastes, don't you know, and this sort of thing is important. She sets one down in front of Adila and another in front of herself. She moves to light her own.

"Come, come, we'll run out of night if we don't hurry up..."

[Thanqol]

Once upon a time, before there were dragons, there was dragonfire. It was the grandest, hottest and most beautiful of fire! Lesser fire flocked around it like ducks around a swan, and wherever it traveled it heard the chorus of flames as they snuggled against it for warmth. But the dragonfire heard stories about the beautiful lands of Hyperborea, lands it couldn't see through its adoring fans, treasures it couldn't own without melting them away. So it wrapped itself in an egg of stone and wished for a body strong enough to contain it, that it might witness the world about it without causing its destruction.

Dragonfire burns hot in Princess Adila's chest as she leans down to breath sparks into the lanterns. It is thick with magic after drinking from the root, energetic and awake and curious, and it immediately sees for itself a far more handsome wick than a lantern candle. Fire leaps from Adila's lips, coursing and twisting through the air, balling itself up and settling firmly into the empty place upon Alina's crown. This place, thought the dragonfire, is the place where I will sit. A beautiful crown to rest in, a beautiful princess to carry me, and beautiful lights to keep me company - this is the life I wished for.

It is a very proud little flame! It would have to be, to dream up the shape of a dragon. So too is it imaginative, creative, curious, independent - a difficult light to teach and discipline if only because it is too clever to think you know better.

[PhoeKun]

The crown Alina wears has had an empty space in it for years. Her lights have done their best to make her strong and beautiful, but it's been hard and desperately lonely work. Whether she meant to do it or not, Adila could not have picked a more perfect gift for them if she tried. Lights that had been tired and slowly dimming flared all at once back to life and sparkled with a happy sort of intensity and determination that Alina hadn't felt from them since Oberon threw her down and broke them. They sparkle and preen for the little flame, welcoming it to her crown and thanking it for choosing their very favorite princess. In the language of lights, they ask the dragon fire to teach them what it knows. They offer to teach it how to shine like they do.

The crown on her head is warm. The heart in her chest is warm, too. Her body doesn't have enough space in it for all these feelings, and they come tumbling out of her in waves that are as obvious and easy to read as if she spoke to the world through heart song, too. Alina stops talk and just leans against Adila, watching the lanterns rise into the night through watery eyes that don't know how else to express themselves. In this single moment, everything is perfect.

[Raz_Fox]

Princesses!

The lanterns drift up into the sky. We follow them as they go, letting them drift over the luminous isle below, full to bursting with the power of Argossa’s root; then the sea, rich and moon-speckled below them, vivid black and silver, and for a moment we can almost hear the songs of the mermaids at their revels in the coral cities below; they drift over the Lucky Number Seven, where two princesses have fallen asleep with their legs dangling over the side. (Don’t you worry, they’ll blearily wake up and go below soon enough; and besides, Rita is keeping her friend as warm as she can, cuddled up with that pale Rider’s hand in her own.)

An updraft spins the lanterns aloft, higher, towards the vault of heaven. Behind them, if you peer carefully, you can see the silhouette of Argossa against the night sky. They hang there, burning bright, sparkling against the lush blacks of the sky.

Then there is a strong gust of wind which knocks them about, tears the paper sides, extinguishes the flame within. A huge, black-winged shape glides by, beating its wings slowly, indistinct against the lanterns falling from the sky, already choked with frost.




End of Let’s Training!
Coming up next: EPISODE 2: Veils and Masks!

[Raz_Fox]

PRINCESS-CHAMPIONS OF HYPERBOREA
EPISODE 2: Veils and Masks!

https://blades.delaware.gov/files/2014/10/tiara-drawing-502x317-2.jpg

The Shrine of the Heart, the Kingdom of Jedad

The thief jumped out through the narrow window, colorful glass shattering all around her. She set her face against the wind, her limbs held tight against her as she dived down the sheer-carved side of the dormant volcano. Speed was of the essence here. Behind her, there was already the terrible rumbling of the shrine’s sacred guardian, awakened. Good.

She counted her heartbeats as the courtyard far below yawned wide and hungry beneath her.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four.

Then she pulled from her back the glider, and let the wind take her, sending her sailing over the outer walls of the temple complex. An enterprising sentry lobbed her spear at the thief, but the thief nimbly twisted out of the way, impossibly stabilizing the glider with one hand- then, see, she lifted herself back up with one hand, brought the other handhold back into reach, her body under perfect control.

A whistle, and her horse was already galloping across the sands to meet her. The thief landed perfectly upon the horse's back, and dug in her spurs as she folded the glider back down. Now the real race would begin. But she knew no fear; she never lost.

Behind her, the cliffside erupted. The guardian's heads, hissing and furious, emerged from a cloud of smoke and debris. All four gigantic ruby eyes began to burn furiously, and then the lasers fired, screaming across the sky towards the thief. The thief urged her horse into a mad leap, and the sand beneath them burnt into wild glass shapes, which shattered crazily upon their landing. The stone serpent released a deafening bellow, and dove down after her, coil after coil of massive stone unwinding down the face of the volcano. The enterprising sentry was forced to dive from the gate as the guardian carelessly obliterated her post on its way out after the thief.

Behind them, the volcano awoke, erupting into brilliant smoke-choked fire. The thief laughed gaily and urged her horse onwards. They had many long and dangerous miles between them and the Bazaar, after all.

***

A War Camp, the Kingdom of Jedad

The sun was receding over the mountains now, and the camp was already abuzz with activity. No blue uniforms here! No, here there were pale silks and gleaming glass breastplates, hidden under cloaks covered in careful camouflage-embroidery. And, here, there stalked the figure of the witch, her eyes hidden behind a gauzy scarf, her violet hair hanging in heavy curls; and where she walked, soldiers parted fearfully before her. She came before the black tent, and passed the knights who guard it without a word. They knew better than to arrest her passage.

"My lady," the witch said, cajolingly. The Black Princess knelt there, her eyes empty, her gleaming glass-headed naginata laid upon her lap, her ribbon-bedecked armor dark as night. The witch brushed a stray lock of pale lavender hair out of the princess's face, and took a comb, began to run it through the princess’s hair. "The Heart of Jedad is stolen. Our day of triumph has come at last."

The Black Princess said nothing. Her eyes did not flicker. Her lips did not twitch. She was devoid of the fire of life.

The witch finished combing her lady's hair. "In the name of Our King," she whispered into her lady's ear, and kissed her cold cheek.

The Black Princess stood, and her lips, for a moment, parted. But her eyes remained distant, and there was no breath within her for to scream. Her fingers were tight around her weapon's haft, her hands white-knuckled. The witch carefully lowered the gleaming platinum crown upon the princess’s brow, that all would know her as the vengeance of Ilumina.

So girded, so commanded, the Black Princess marched forth to wage her war anew.

***

Watch House Three, the Bazaar

The staring match had begun. Were an unsuspecting fly to flit between Juniper Blue and Major Brookley, here and now, it would burst into flame and go down smoking and out of control. The stakes were deadly high.

Brookley brought the spoon to her lips without breaking her gaze. She licked the curry, once, as daintily as an Askaian cat. “Too spicy,” she said, with the air of a queen pronouncing sentence upon a depraved criminal.

“Try it with the lemon cake,” Juniper Blue said through gritted teeth. She slid the lemon-cake across the table towards Brookley, and only barely stopped herself from flipping over the table as Brookley removed the sliced pear from atop the cake. “You have to try it with the pear,” she hissed. “It brings out the tartness.”

“A true lemon cake,” Brookley said, her brow furrowed in affronted pride, “needs only lemon. That’s the proper way to serve a lemon cake, and has been since Ourania blessed us with the art!”

“Yeah, well,” Juniper Blue hissed, “I’m sure you remember it like it was yesterday.” Oh, snap. Brookley blinked, and in the sudden silence, you could hear a pin drop. Behind Brookley, the Old Bastards closed ranks, and behind Juniper Blue, the Watch’s magicians closed ranks in turn. Simple silk blacks stood arrayed against gauzy Jedadi onyx-studded blacks, and in the corner, Corporal Zippy completely missed that her refill of the tea kettle was spilling out all over the drinks table.

“Four. Out. Of. Ten,” Brookley said, finally, destroying the chances that “Juniper’s Garden” would win the curry cookoff.

***

The Bay of Ilos, the Kingdom of Jedad

There are, perhaps, three ships in all the world that could run through the Jedadi blockade about the Bazaar’s docks without being seized upon at once. (Of course, I do not count the Stupendous Sinking Submersible of the Goblin Queen in that tally. That fine vessel would slip under them without so much as a ripple.)

The Lucky Number Seven, however, is hysterically outclassed here. If you want to reach the Bazaar, you will have to heave to and subject yourself to their inspection. (Or you could risk trying to fly in, but those dhows are definitely carpet-equipped.)

Or you could try to bypass the Bazaar entirely; to land further up the coast and trek heedless and unprovisioned into the deserts of Jedad, grinding sand-spice each night over your Askaian bento boxes, hoping to stumble into Azora’s plans through sheer fortune.

But then you would miss the pre-Carnival food carts. The candied nuts, the stuffed peppers, the yogurts and the curries, the mulled wine and the roast sausages. You would miss out on the shopping sprees, the latest fashions, the chance to ask people from all around the world what news they’ve heard of the Riders! When put like that, can you really afford not to go?

So, then. The trick is getting in.

***

Alina!

Well, here we are. Jedad. Hot, sultry, and rude. The kingdom where you cut your teeth as a daring, heart-breaking, dauntless swashbuckler. No one could outfight you and your ribbons, no one could outsmart you and your schemes, and no one could make a vault secure enough to deter you. Sometimes you just had to bat your eyes at the stewardess, and sometimes you had to leave the captain of the guard tied up in her closet, and the best combination of both those approaches were when you dated Tashanna in a whirlwind, head-over-heels romance, but either way, you went seven for seven.

Why don’t you spin us a tale of one of those thefts! Tell us how you humiliated Princess Shazari and pilfered her mother’s treasures, how you made the warriors of Jedad look clumsy and foolish as you disarmed them and knocked them down and left them tied up all over the palace, and what role Rita played in that escapade.

Now you’re back, and I would wager that it feels scarier now. The stakes of blending in are higher. Now it’s not just your pride and your mother’s treasury you need to worry about if you’re caught; you can’t very well fight Oberon if you end up as as Shazari’s special prisoner, being thoroughly humiliated and forced to wear tawdry Jedadi silk. By the time you were released, if that ever rolled about, he’d have crushed kingdoms like Askaia who have no one else to fight for them. You can’t let that happen!

So go ahead and tell us, too, all about your amazing plan for blending in, despite being one of the most wanted Princesses in all Jedad. How do you intend to evade suspicion, get past this blockade, and not get ambushed by bounty hunters inside the Bazaar itself? Come on, I’m sure you have a fantastic plan.

***

Adila!

Well, this is weird. Not completely unexpected, but weird and unhelpful. Sure, “Jedad makes a power play” was the sort of thing you had to be ready for, growing up, but this is some really unfortunate timing. If you had an afternoon to spare to observe their movements, you’d be able to figure out what they’re playing at- who they let through, who they detain, who they attack.

But, at a glance: they’ve set up checkpoints on the major roads out of the city, have used djinn labor to erect a simple wall, and have a small fleet contingent guarding the docks. They don’t want anyone leaving, you’d guess.

You’re big enough that you’ve been spotted from shore, and you can see Mimsley Trotter waving semaphore at you from the dockside: “Situation controlled, officers advised to return to their duties.“

Which is only because the semaphore book doesn’t have a code for “WHY ARE YOU COMING BACK, DIDN’T WE JUST FINISH REPAIRING THE VICTORY ARCH, FOR THE LOVE OF ADILA’S LEFT SHOE, ADILA.”

Still, she isn’t signaling for you to set the ships on fire or anything, so hopefully you can just get pulled over, have your cargo inspected, try very hard not to think anything rude at them, and be on your way.

...aw, purple elephants!

***

Kazelia!

Looking upon the spires and tents of the fabled Bazaar, you feel a sense of malaise in the pit of your stomach. Your family has their hand in this city, undoubtedly, but it will be difficult to pick out exactly where they are. After all- you’re the one approaching them.

But this is, I think, the first time you have ever seen this city; your father approved some limited reconnaissance, but - as of your departure - had made no move to seize this marvelous and wonderful city.

What strikes your senses most strongly, as you approach the pearl of the desert? (An apt name; a pearl is made of brilliant, gaudy bone wrapped round and round an irritant, something that cannot be swallowed for fear of being choked. And Adila’s foster family is the heart of that pearl, if you have heard her stories right.)

[Anarion]

Kazelia!

Looking upon the spires and tents of the fabled Bazaar, you feel a sense of malaise in the pit of your stomach. Your family has their hand in this city, undoubtedly, but it will be difficult to pick out exactly where they are. After all- you’re the one approaching them.

But this is, I think, the first time you have ever seen this city; your father approved some limited reconnaissance, but - as of your departure - had made no move to seize this marvelous and wonderful city.

What strikes your senses most strongly, as you approach the pearl of the desert? (An apt name; a pearl is made of brilliant, gaudy bone wrapped round and round an irritant, something that cannot be swallowed for fear of being choked. And Adila’s foster family is the heart of that pearl, if you have heard her stories right.)

Kazelia is most struck by how overwhelming it all is! The harbor is full of ships, some kind of blockade, certainly, but also loading and unloading, dockworkers scurrying about like mice, crates rumbling up and down wooden gangplanks, ropes creaking and people talking and shouting loud enough to carry into the harbor. And then beyond that, beyond that an explosion of color! Blues and greens and teal and turquoise all swirled together amid the desert sands and the azure sky. Roofs on different levels, gardens and fountains and decks and so much! And everywhere within it people moving and bustling like lines of colorful ants going to and fro. No, not like ants, ants go in straight lines, Jedad is more like the swirls of warm caramel running down an ice cream sunday, flowing along whatever path they take, curling and pooling and dripping off the edges. And within those swirls there is a rainbow of silk: pinks and teals brightest of all, but blues and reds, oranges, a few yellows and greens, even some black and white all mixed together like a three year old decided to try every single crayon in the box all at once!

Kazelia lets out a slow breath as she tries to take it all in and fails. You have to understand, Illumina might once have been as full of life as this, but even then Alina had always described it with a quality of serenity, full of meditation and laughter in equal measure. And now, now Illumina was cold and still. Riders, you should know, are not normally loud or bustling people. They move deliberately and make more personal space for themselves than most of the Hyperborean populations. Truth be told, Alina always got way too close when she was speaking, but Kazelia just never said anything because it would be rude. As for any comparison to Askaia, well Askaia had been lovely and cat aesthetics were very cool, but it was so much smaller than this. Jedad was vibrant, riotous, full of life in a way that made Kazelia's heart race within her and her dark, star-studded eyes gleam a little brighter than normal. "You never said it was so big!" she manages to get out to her gathered friends on the ship, forgetting, for a moment, the need to deal with their current problems in lieu of taking in as much as her eyes and ears could hold.

[Thanqol]

The most important skill an officer of the Watch can cultivate is focus.

The Bazaar is distraction incarnate. Silk and spice and scent and song! Veils and masks and teasing smiles! If it had its way it'd have you blindly bounce between every stall and merchant, filling your mouth and nose and eyes with taste and your pockets with debt. Never once has a visitor returned from their first trip to the Bazaar richer than they went in. And that's just what they do for money! When it comes to avoiding the Watch, the citizens of the Bazaar really step up their game. She's fallen for every trick in her time. She's had beautiful people fall into her arms and whisper promises while picking her pocket. She's taken deep breaths of incense that turned out to be hallucinogenic. She's allowed finding the Queen to be a matter of pride - the worst mistake one can make in that game. She's been robbed and fooled and distracted again and again; so has everyone in the Watch. And so she's built up her immune system. Her mind focuses into a narrow point, blocking out the chaos and the distraction and the press of people. She watches faces and not clothes. She watches purses and not perfume. She refuses to think more than one thought at a time, lest some enterprising cutpurse find the empty space between the two.

So she went ahead and focused her full attention on the Jedadi military - just as founded on elaborate distraction as any other aspect of the Bazaar. A lot of Watchmen muttered darkly about the Royal Guard being 'overfed, overpaid, overequipped and over here' but Adila had always liked them. She'd once liaised with Sonja Solmarra on an operation to recover the royal jewels from a shady black market dealer. She'd been spoiled rotten, unbelievably lazy, and lowkey furious at having to leave the palace and walk the streets like a commoner; all things Princess Adila has found equally hilarious and charming. She had spent the entire operation being as stereotypically diligent, eager and by-the-book as she could be in an attempt to see how far she could drive Solmarra up the wall. She'd even been sending her Bell Day cards every year since like clockwork.

She had liked Solmarra despite her sloth and extreme indifference to military work because she had the most focus of anyone she'd ever met, even veterans of the Watch. She hated being outside so much that she blew through scams and distractions before Adila had even fully processed them - she was so laser focused on her personal mission to finish quickly and go home that there was nothing that could get between her and her work. She'd do the bare minimum, and in the Bazaar that was almost a super-power. She delightedly wondered how she was handling having to conduct something as horribly open-ended as a blockade. Princess Adila could imagine the frustrated groan and her silver light twinkled in delight.

She stood at attention as the ship approached the Jedadi officials. She was looking forwards to this.

[PhoeKun]

It was a lot easier, in those days. The stakes were a lot lower, which was nice for making a girl feel brave. But more importantly, the ports were much less paranoid and it was very possible for a small ship to make the docks without any fanfare. Which was good, because her plan would never have worked otherwise.

She was out to prove a point this time. The temple incident was still burning in the back of her mind, with all of its death traps and sphinx riddles and humiliating rope scenarios. The flirting she'd had to do with Tashanna just to get out of there! True, she'd escaped in the end with prize in hand (and honestly, Mom had barely punished her), but it was close. Much too close. This time it wouldn't be. This time the powers of cat and girl combined with a full six months of planning, and there wouldn't be any room left for doubt as to who was the bestest, cleverest, prettiest princess around. Eat your heart out, Shazari.

First, as was tradition, she formally announced her intentions to plunder Jedad of all its riches. Without that, she'd be no more than a common criminal! Second, she slipped into the port at the Bazaar with Rita at her side, and a contingent of 12 of the most skilled guards in Illumina. Then she (and they) disappeared into the desert for three weeks. When they re-emerged, it was as Elsaria the Dread and her band of unusually graceful thieves. They built a reputation in the local underground; knocking off 'rival' crime syndicates or working with them to plunder jewels and spices from everyone they could find. Alina went all out on the disguise. She died her hair a dreadful blonde, worked some absolutely gorgeous scars into her face using makeup and some of her favorite berries, and ditched her silks for loose robes and dark cloaks. She even found an eyepatch! She'd never felt so mysterious or intimidating. And had no idea why Rita broke into terrible giggles every time they were in the same room together.

Meanwhile, some mist, a wig and an outfit change later, Rita took the role of Alina for herself. Her job was to be seen (and to escape) all over the city, to set the rumor fires blazing that Alina Cascade was teaming up with Elsaria. The idea of the oldest thorn in Jedad's side partnering with the latest and fiercest created a citywide panic. The royal guard was out in force, mixing and clashing with the Watch and generally contributing to an air of tension people frequently and very loudly compared to an Illuminan party. And in the midst of that, they attacked the heart of the patrols in full force. And here was the really clever part: they wore double disguises. Alina fought as herself overtop of her Elsaria disguise, and Rita joined in the opposite. Of course, not even best friends who might later go on to become smooch buddies can overcome that much raw manpower, but that was rather the point. And when they were finally locked up by the royal guard of Jedad, there was a whole bunch of confusion as to what was actually happening. Who was who? How much of this was a trick? How many layers did it go?

So when they threw the pair of them in a prison, they didn't inform Queen Shulamis. I mean, can you imagine how mad she'd have been, if they'd said 'Hey, we caught Alina Cascade!' and then the mask came off and it was really... anybody else? No no no, much better to make sure. And while they were so busy making sure, they kind of forgot to take away her crown. They were out in seconds, and danced a dance of humiliation across the palace. Guard after guard, ambushed and caught up in ribbons then tied up in provocative poses for their friends to find later. On and on down a line to the treasury. Rita went off to meet up with Alina's guards and secure a wagon full of choice spices and other luxuries to escape in. Alina made directly for the royal jewels. These were her favorite target, not because they were especially special, but that unlike the Heart of Jedad or the queen's djinn controlling ring, they were something she could make off with, again and again, and never harm more than pride. That's what nobody quite seemed to understand: it was really all just a game.

It would have been a clean break, if it hadn't been for Princess Shazari. There she was, right place and very wrong time, wearing a smirk that would shame a cat. No number of disguises would be enough to fool her, who is rightly considered one of the cleverest princesses of her generation. She'd simply parked herself here and waited, knowing that when two princesses meet with a treasure on the line, the only thing for it is a duel. So ribbon met saber, and then when ribbon tore saber met its much nastier cousin Light Spear instead. And despite Alina's reputation in princess duels dwarfing Shazari's, they fought so evenly you'd think they'd practiced it that way. Around and around, Shazari put all her efforts into avoiding knockout blows rather than attempting them, knowing all she really needed to do was wait for someone to hear, and then to see, and then to raise the alarm and bring overwhelming force. A draw meant she won. Luckily for Alina, it turned out the eyes that happened upon them belonged to Tashanna.

Now, it's impolite to kiss and tell about it so let's not pry too deeply into this story, but things were done and said and hearts may or may not have been pledged in ways which, let me tell you, were very steamy indeed. And the end result of all of this is that Princess Shazari learned too much about ribbon bondage and watched her arch-rival make off with her favorite jewels (again) because her sister apparently had a fetish for waterlogged minxes.

The escape I'm told was pure chaos. Many a cart was tipped over and even more drinks were spilled in surprise, which meant it was an exciting and quite thoroughly memorable day for all involved. And thanks to constant suspicion, no fewer than ten girls were arrested that day for the crime of having lavender hair. Not a one of them turned out to be Princess Alina Cascade. All in all, it was perfect. When she hugged Rita goodbye so they could make their separate ways home (honestly, they'd been away quite long enough and missed their families terribly), they were in the highest spirits anyone had ever seen them in. Which was saying something. If only both of them had gotten home without incident...

***

Alina fidgets on the deck of the ship, trying very extremely hard not to blush herself to death. Which is a real thing, thank you very much! And not made any easier by the wandering eyes or creepy grin of one Detective Brill, no sir not at all. Of all the ways she could have possibly chosen to enter Jedad, this was at the absolute bottom of the list. She'd planned, she'd wanted to try donning the blacks of the Watch and blend in that way, but a certain SOMEONE and had the gall to tell her that was illegal for some reason, and didn't even stop flashing her silver light around when she said it. Since when did it matter if -- ooh! See how many sacred shrines you have life changing experiences in you... you... traitor! She fidgets again. She stares at her extremely exposed stomach. She picks at the gauzy blue silks on her arms and legs. She makes sure the... urk... veil is still in place, as her hair bounces in a very un-Alinaish ponytail behind her.

See now, here's the thing, ok? The brilliance of this plan is that never once, not in all the times she's been here, has Alina ever dressed like an actual Jedadi girl. Let alone a barmaid. They'll never suspect it, even if they suspect her. It's killing her. She touches the necklace where she's stored her lights, and they gleam moodily at her. You tell 'em, girls. But it would be worth it, it really really would, if it meant she got out of here still able to do the job she knew was left in front of her after this. But just... darned if she wasn't going to make sure every person in Jedad knew how much they owed her for this. Calling off the bounties won't even scratch the surface!

[Raz_Fox]

Sonja Solmarra!

This is the worst week of your life.

You got into this job because it came with a badge and a nice pension, and also because once you cleared out your paperwork nobody cared about you reading steamy romance novels at your desk. (The Goblin ones are especially well-plotted, and always have a villainous monologue that’s a treat to read.)

Then the Princess shows up and it’s action, ceaseless vigilance, and everything. Ugh. You were in the middle of the Stormkiss Archive and not being able to finish it is literally the worst thing to ever happen. And there isn’t anything you can do to speed up business as usual except catching whoever the Princess is looking for.

Your gilded dhow docks alongside the Lucky Number Seven, an Askaian barge. Doubly worth investigating, then. With a few waves of your hand, your guards start looking through the ship thoroughly. Hopefully they’ll be quick about it so you can go back to napping and hoping somebody finds the Heart of Jedad already.

“Until further notice,” you read listlessly off the piece of paper which says this thing, “entrance to the Bazaar is permitted but exit is strictly prohibited until Princess Shazari declares the state of national emergency concluded. If you so desire you may immediately turn this ship around and go elsewhere without hinderance.” Blah blah this is so dry your eyes are watering and threatening your very expensive eyeliner.

Thank goodness that Princess Mechanical Rule-following Construct here happens to be on board, right? She’ll do all the formalities and then be on her way. Weird she’s back, though. You’d heard something about her getting kicked out of the Watch or something? But she did still send the Bell Day card, so, like, who even knows anymore.

Oh, right. This bit, too. “Oh, and are you aiding, abetting, harboring, or otherwise serving the Iluminan Princess?” You look up at the big, painfully honest dragon, waiting for her to say no so you can get on with your life.

***

Rhyza Sussari!

Let everybody else worry about frisking cats and opening up boxes in the cargo hold and banging around for hidden compartments. You’ve already found the hidden treasure on this ship: a delicate little lapis-lazuli flower, self-conscious and nervous, seeing all these strong women about.

You come up behind the little barmaid and give her a reassuring squeeze on her shoulder. “Hello,” you say, voice as sultry as a lava flow, cupping her chin playfully. “First time visiting the Bazaar, little deer? You’ll have to allow me the honor of letting me be your humble servant and guide. I insist.”

Though, of course, the honor is really hers. Anyone would be lucky to be wooed by a flame-haired dervish of the south, whose bones are tough as the serpent’s tears, whose armor is adorned with golden honors. And you can arrange for some time off tonight, pull in a few owed favors. It’ll be worth it for this little jewel.

***

Kazelia!

So Adila’s having the most listless interrogation ever, Alina’s being hit on by a slender Jedadi swordswoman (likely a mercenary) with her crimson hair flopping down over one eye, and the Jedadi are rummaging through the ship’s hold and checking cats to a sketch of Rita von Catabas. Rita has been cleverly disguised as a regular cat, and probably won’t be caught... probably.

But you’ve been left alone! Given a wide berth! Which means you have the ability to intervene where and how you see fit.

[Thanqol]

Sonja Solmarra!

This is the worst week of your life.

You got into this job because it came with a badge and a nice pension, and also because once you cleared out your paperwork nobody cared about you reading steamy romance novels at your desk. (The Goblin ones are especially well-plotted, and always have a villainous monologue that’s a treat to read.)

Then the Princess shows up and it’s action, ceaseless vigilance, and everything. Ugh. You were in the middle of the Stormkiss Archive and not being able to finish it is literally the worst thing to ever happen. And there isn’t anything you can do to speed up business as usual except catching whoever the Princess is looking for.

Your gilded dhow docks alongside the Lucky Number Seven, an Askaian barge. Doubly worth investigating, then. With a few waves of your hand, your guards start looking through the ship thoroughly. Hopefully they’ll be quick about it so you can go back to napping and hoping somebody finds the Heart of Jedad already.

“Until further notice,” you read listlessly off the piece of paper which says this thing, “entrance to the Bazaar is permitted but exit is strictly prohibited until Princess Shazari declares the state of national emergency concluded. If you so desire you may immediately turn this ship around and go elsewhere without hinderance.” Blah blah this is so dry your eyes are watering and threatening your very expensive eyeliner.

Thank goodness that Princess Mechanical Rule-following Construct here happens to be on board, right? She’ll do all the formalities and then be on her way. Weird she’s back, though. You’d heard something about her getting kicked out of the Watch or something? But she did still send the Bell Day card, so, like, who even knows anymore.

Oh, right. This bit, too. “Oh, and are you aiding, abetting, harboring, or otherwise serving the Iluminan Princess?” You look up at the big, painfully honest dragon, waiting for her to say no so you can get on with your life.

+Hello Lady Solmarra!+ Princess Adila thought brightly and happily, a horrid little ray of sunshine in your already miserable day. She does that salute where she has to lower her neck so her claws can reach her brow. She opens up one of her sidebags and delicately lifts out multiple large scrolls and rolled them out onto the ground - one of which was a warrant for Alina's arrest. +Are you referring to this Illuminan Princess? Princess Alina? I have been commissioned by the Captain to bring her to justice in accordance with the Law. I encountered her in several places, including on the shrine-island to the worldroot here+ she fumbled for a map and hovered a claw above an insignificant speck of green. +Whereupon I informed her of the charges that were levelled against her and that I would bring her back to Jedad to face the justice of the Watch! And I swear to you,+ she clenched her claws into a fist to show how determined she was +I will not stop until Princess Alina is punished for her crimes against the people of the Bazaar! Now, I must ask you: Have you seen or heard word of the Illuminan Princess operating within the boundaries of the city?+

She was playing jurisdictional games and she didn't think Solmarra would miss it - it was an old dance between the Watch and Jedad. She was going to be as polite, helpful and obedient as possible in the interests of buying time. She would never lie to a fellow law enforcement professional, though!

Besides, this was an opportunity to catch up with an old friend. She adored Solmarra's eyeliner and couldn't wait to ask her where she got it!

[Anarion]

Kazelia's first impulse when she sees the guard press on Alina's shoulder is to go and do something about it. But...but that was what had happened with Adila. She had seen someone come at one of her friends and she had lost herself in rage and raced headfirst to protect them. But that had ended up hurting her friend. Adila had asked her not to do that. And here...this was just a stop, it was just a regular search anyway, Alina could handle herself, even if she looked very small next to that tall, red-haired guard. She could, and this was going to be Kazelia's first step to being better. She'd just, she'd just send one little chilly breeze over that way to give the mercenary some pause, that was it. She made a little hand gesture and sent the Arctic wind gently blowing that direction and then she pointedly looked the other way and walked over to where Adila was standing and conversing with the guard captain wearing heavy makeup.

Riders didn't really do eyeliner of course, so that was something interesting for Kazelia. She herself was garbed in silks of a deep red to contrast with her skin tone (this was, obviously, a very well-made Rider costume) and wearing a mask for the festival with a twin face of black and red split down the center. It was very properly intimidating and she hoped that everyone would be very impressed with her and treat her like a normal festival-attendee. But she was curious about all the things happening, so rather than just stand around and be quiet, she had gone to join Adila.

"Um, hey" she said nonchalantly. She thought it was nochalantly at any rate, it might have been a little more pointed than strictly necessary. "What's um, what's with all of this? This is my first time visiting Jedad and none of my friends mentioned anything about port searches. There's supposed to be a big festival and I'm really excited to get in and enjoy it and maybe learn my way around!" Kazelia sort of trails off for a moment. The questions that first come to her mind are things like seen any really dangerous servants of Oberon Greymane around these parts, like a terrifying Rider witch? and possibly What kind of military strength do you have and can it hold off a terrifying Rider witch? but she can't ask those questions. So instead after a few seconds of silence she goes for "Um, yeah, so when can we get going?" quickly followed realizing that's maybe too rude with "and uh, what would you recommend I see while I'm here?" There, totally nailed it Kazelia.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila!

Behind her dark blue veil (attached to her helmet) Solmarra makes a grimace of “oh by the Clocks she’s still exactly like this all the time.” Luckily, she’s not the sort of person who would press the issue. While you’re trying to go in, at least. Circumstances would likely be different if you were trying to leave.

“I meant the Black Princess of Ilumina, but it’s good to know that you’re still on Alina’s trail. Shazari thinks— I mean, we believe that she has escalated her wanton disrespect for Jedad by stealing the Heart of Jedad on behalf of the Black Princess. So best of luck.”

The sooner you go and catch her, the sooner I can go back to reading my thrilling novel, she does not say, very loudly.

(And before you insist that Alina couldn’t possibly have been in two places at once, consider: one of her most famous thefts revolved entirely around being in two places at once. A bit of an uphill battle there, as far as alibis go. Even if you blow Rita’s cover, too, who’s to say she didn’t have a third accomplice to fool you this time?)

***

Kazelia

The makeup isn’t— well, okay, maybe by Rider standards it’s heavy. But the Jedadi seem to like eye-oriented cosmetics. Might be because the veils make blush and lipstick harder to accentuate.

(Jedadi lipstick culture is actually very salacious and full of “color codes” and subtle variations. If you obscure the lips as a matter of fashion, you just make them more exciting when uncovered. But who here would possibly have any experience with that, anyhow?)

Anyhow! You catch her wearily offering Adila good luck. How fortunate! Seems like she’s friendly!

“The House of Hospitality has an award-winning menu and authentic Jedadi cuisine at fair prices,” she rattles off without even looking at you. Wow. Rude. Okay, maybe not friendly. “Don’t miss your fortune, written in the stars at the Guild of Astrologers.”

She does not answer the question about leaving. Oh, dear. Isn’t that frustrating?

[Thanqol]

Once again, Princess Adila let her admiration for Solmarra rise to the surface. She had been gearing up for an elaborate timewasting stonewall and Solmarra had instantly seen through it, cut to the quick, and instantly dumped her problem in Adila's lap. It was the same star-studded adoration she felt towards Brightball athletes; she could write an essay on the sheer clarity of purpose Sonja brought to everything she did! She determined to write the details of this encounter down for later review; it was like getting beaten by a chess grandmaster.

+Princess Kazelia, this is Lady Sonja Solmarra of the Royal Guard,+ thought Princess Adila, her bubbly positive feelings towards Sonja standing in total contrast with Sonja's dead-eyed monotone. +Lady Solmarra, thank you so much for your valuable time. Before we are on our way could I dare to trouble you for the secret of your eyeliner?+

[PhoeKun]

"Eeep!" Alina eeps as an unexpected blast of icy wind chills her to her soul.

"Eeeeep!" she eeps even harder when it tangles up their feet and somehow perfectly knocks her right into the waiting arms of this incredibly brazen swordswoman.

She tries to shoot Kazelia a dirty look but of course the secret double traitor isn't even looking this way. Well f-fine then! She'll do it herself, and don't you dare come crying to her when things took a bad turn here. She'd warned you and warned you and warned you, don't trust the beauty of the city, that's how they get you! But nooo, the second a Royal Guard shows up you're off to hang out with dragons and ask for directions! Fine then. Fine! Have a lovely time, and enjoy being robbed!

...Ok. Ok, right. Step one is absolutely not to look into this woman's eyes. If she blew her cover now she'd be in huge trouble, and that's the only weak point in her disguise she can really think of. So just... keep a cool head here, Alina, act shyly disinterested and politely disentangle yourself so you'll be free to tackle the Bazaar. That's when she feels the fingers around her chin lifting her gaze up, up, up and-- Oh. Oh waterfalls. Underneath her veil, she blushes despite all her instincts screaming at her not to. Her knees get weak on her and suddenly she's leaning into the flame haired mercenary a lot more than is strictly necessary. Oh dear. Right. Um. Plan...

Goodness, that grip is strong. Also, that face. They really do build them nice in Jedad, don't they? Let's set aside the fashion choices for a moment and just... um, what's happening? Apparently she took too long. Those nice, strong fingers are still cupped under her chin. They squeeze closed, just enough to tease. And then they gently tug her head down again. Then back up, and down again until she's nodding on her own without realizing it.

"Oh. Well, um. I-if you're sure you don't mind..."

[Anarion]

Kazelia looks back and forth between Adila and the woman she now knows is Lady Solmarra. This is a very confusing situation. The sense of awe she's getting from Adila is entirely out of keeping with her impression of the captain, who seems uninterested and rude. She's also really confused that Adila just introduced her by her title and real name! She wasn't wanted like Alina or anything, but she was a Rider princess and she wasn't sure if she was supposed to be advertising that around or not. But if Adila was doing it, that meant it was probably fine, right? The two of them clearly knew each other.

"Lady Solmarra, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance" Kazelia says formally. "Um, thank you for the recommendations, I'll be sure to try the cuisine here, I imagine it's delicious." She looks at both the Guard captain and Adila. "So, uh, you two know each other? How did you two meet? I got the impression from Adila that the Watch had their own base, more or less and didn't necessarily work with the regular Jedadi forces very often." There, that's a nice reasonable question that doesn't sound like an evil Rider spy or someone panicked and trying to find her sister.

[Raz_Fox]

Rhyza Sussari!

Oh, what a perfect little doe, all trembling-kneed and soft-voiced, like the birds that sing just before dawn breaks over the dunes! Yes, there is no way that your honor, not to mention your heart, will allow this flower in blue petals to languish unappreciated among cats any longer.

You take her up in your arms, lifting her gently but easily, as if she was another one of the cats. You bring her in so close that your veils brush against each other. “Then it’s a date,” you growl, warmly.

Hup, hup, up! You swing her up onto your shoulder, gently, carefully, one hand cupping her perfect little rump, and how are you to resist giving it an appreciative squeeze? That is too much to ask of any woman.

So! Just take her past the captain and bring her aboard your ship, and then take paid leave as soon as possible. Maybe hide her in a sack or a barrel so the rest of your colleagues don’t get any ideas! Or perhaps you should spend the ride back into the city working the maid’s veil down and marking your territory with lipstick. Oooh, there’s a thought.

Kazelia, Adila!

“Likewise, your highness,” Sonja says with a curtesy that is exactly as deep as protocol demands and no deeper. “So, you know, Princess Alina sent Queen Shulamis a coded letter saying where the Royal Jewels were, and for some reason they sent me to go find them, and Adila’s good at puzzles or whatever.” As an aside: “Black Sea Foaming, but then you blend with a pushmi-pullyu-hair brush, ta-da.”

A mercenary walks past with a salute and a familiar little barmaid slung over her shoulder. Sonja gives her a Look. A “what do you think you’re doing” Look.

“Bringing my date for the evening on board, Captain!” The mercenary purrs. Wow. She’s smoldering.

And also, you know her, Adila! That’s Rhyza Sussari. She’s been best friends with Juniper Blue since CASEFILE: Juniper Blue and the Monkey’s Paw. Half the Watch thinks she’s huge trouble and the other half has a crush. She is unpredictable, brave, and such a top.

“It’s whatever, as long as she’s fine with it,” Sonja says with a shrug. But because she’s not a jerk, she does stop to make sure she is indeed fine with it. Which means...

Alina!

Well, you know what you have to do. In front of Adila, Kazelia, Rita, and presumably Ourania herself. The greatest challenge of your long acting career in Jedad.

You need to pretend to be a giggly, ditzy, lovestruck Jedadi barmaid thrilled to be (gently, adoringly) belly-down on her shoulder, with a very possessive hand on your cutie patootie which may make your job harder. Or easier, probably, actually.

[PhoeKun]

Ohhh goodness, she's strong! Not Kaja-strong, but who is? Very, very teasingly close to Helya-strong, which in terms of Alina's more romantically inclined dreams is... a-actually, better not to think about this. Wait. Wait wait wait, where is that hand going!

Princess Alina squeaks, and she squirms for everything she is worth. Because she is herself, this manages to be graceful and alluring, unless you're Rita (in which case you are struggling at the moment to maintain resting cat face). This in spite of how much warm skin is in contact with other warm skin, and with a hand constantly squeezing her butt like it's a favorite pillow. The blush at least is very natural, and it only deepens when she realizes literally everybody is staring at her while this random guard waits around for her permission to get carried on board an enemy ship and pinched to death. Thank goodness she has this v-- Alina Cascade if you finish that thought you are grounded.

She swallows, which is difficult because her throat has become very painfully dry. Ok. Ok! She can do this. She's pulled off so many cons in this country she's caught them writing plays about it. She's a brave and powerful princess, and this is the only way, she swears, to save Jedad and then later the rest of the world from the clutches of Oberon Greymane. Maybe half an eye blink before things get too awkward, she manages a giggle. To sell it harder she snuggles herself nice and close against Rhyza's neck and shoulders. Kaja would be a mess right now, shame it's not h-- Alina!

"Oh, I'm..." she hides her face for a moment and tries to stifle another bout of giggles, "I'm exactly where I want to be! M-m-mhm~"

...Ourania, blessed be thy name. Just get her through this moment right here and she swears by rain and rainbow she will never ask another favor again.

[Anarion]

"Oh, that's interesting." Kazelia tries not to look at Alina. She's got it handled, she wouldn't be giggling and laughing like that if she didn't. One clenched fist, just for a moment is all Kazelia shows at the way it makes her feel when someone is taking a friend away from her. Just a moment of a tight ball, on the side towards Adila but not so visible to the guards because she's in control of this, even if she is digging her nails into her skin enough to leave deep purple bruise marks. Okay, so just stay focused on the guards. "But that meant you knew Adila already? Or she had a...reputation for puzzle solving? Adila, you never told me you liked solving puzzles. Where did you learn that?"

[Thanqol]

“It’s whatever, as long as she’s fine with it,” Sonja says with a shrug. But because she’s not a jerk, she does stop to make sure she is indeed fine with it. Which means...


"Oh, I'm..." she hides her face for a moment and tries to stifle another bout of giggles, "I'm exactly where I want to be! M-m-mhm~"

...Ourania, blessed be thy name. Just get her through this moment right here and she swears by rain and rainbow she will never ask another favor again.

Princess Adila was no good at dishonesty, and keeping a straight thought while this was crossing her field of vision was a talent beyond her. She froze as soon as she realized she'd thought it out loud and a fiery glow ignited under the scales of her face in the dragon equivalent of a blush.

+I wish I could do that+

She didn't ruin the mission - she'd been focused very hard on not thinking thoughts that would ruin the mission - but in some ways this was worse. She had been thinking about her own disastrous infiltration attempt and was just admiring how Alina had so skillfully disguised herself in comparison, honest!


"Oh, that's interesting." Kazelia tries not to look at Alina. She's got it handled, she wouldn't be giggling and laughing like that if she didn't. One clenched fist, just for a moment is all Kazelia shows at the way it makes her feel when someone is taking a friend away from her. Just a moment of a tight ball, on the side towards Adila but not so visible to the guards because she's in control of this, even if she is digging her nails into her skin enough to leave deep purple bruise marks. Okay, so just stay focused on the guards. "But that meant you knew Adila already? Or she had a...reputation for puzzle solving? Adila, you never told me you liked solving puzzles. Where did you learn that?"

+I LOVE PUZZLES+ thought Princess Adila. +LETS GO FIND SOME PUZZLES+

[Raz_Fox]

Everybody Together!

There’s a moment where folks just give Adila a look. Then Rhyza grins like a wolf.

“Don’t we all?” Squeeze, pat pat, squeak provocation. “If you feel brave, copper... well, you know where to find me.”

Kazelia, Adila!

Well, here you are, at the docks of the Bazaar, minus one Iluminan. We zoomed out for a moment, watched the ships break apart, and then the many sails of the overcrowded docks coming into view.

And here, on cue, is Mimsley Trotter, sweating and red-faced, a little unsure how to handle “oh, hey, Adila’s back from the mission we sent her on.”

She salutes her princess, on general principle, and then salutes Kazelia just to be on the safe side.

“W-welcome back,” she stammers. “Are you here to catch Alina and save the Bazaar, Addy? Adila? Ma’am?”

Help her out, Adila, will ya?

Kazelia, meanwhile— the energy here is full of life! Lots of dock hands, lots of mercenaries watching over ships that can’t leave, a Watch patrol a few streets down, Jedadi dancers making sales pitches for various shops, and lots of signs, signposts, banners, and advertisements pointing you further in. What’s the most interesting sight?

Alina!

So this is how you sneak into the Bazaar: as contraband, stolen in by Shazari’s own mercenaries. (Feel free to tell us, if you like, how exactly Rhyza keeps you out of the covetous eyes of her peers while she finishes her shift. I’m sure it’s very worthy of your dignity.)

But here you stand, now, on the dockside, beside a lithe redhead who has her eye on you. You’re about to get an unnecessary tour of the Bazaar, but this time, not as a bold brigand or a visiting Princess but as a humble barmaid. One, even, that’s getting lots of admiring looks; you just can’t help being graceful and lovely, after all. (And your outfit is very flattering, to boot!)

As a cunning and clever Princess, I’m sure that squeezing information surreptitiously out of Rhyza will be easy for you. Go ahead and provoke her to spill all sorts of secrets.

[Anarion]

Kazelia, meanwhile— the energy here is full of life! Lots of dock hands, lots of mercenaries watching over ships that can’t leave, a Watch patrol a few streets down, Jedadi dancers making sales pitches for various shops, and lots of signs, signposts, banners, and advertisements pointing you further in. What’s the most interesting sight?


Kazelia distractedly returns Mimsey's salute. Adila had practically shouted at her mentally about puzzles, and well, that was something. She had thought about asking Adila where they could find something to do since Adila was the local and Kazelia was the new arrival. But she didn't want to add any further to that sense she'd had from earlier of Adila caring for her, so instead she tried to look around and spot puzzles for herself. This, of course, just made everything more interesting, so it's impossible to pick which one is the most!

There are all the dock hands rolling around cargo and unloading ships. Are they moving in pattern? Perhaps engaging in some sort of subtle coordination that would indicate the kind of criminal enterprise that Adila might be on the lookout for? Worth scrutinizing closely.

Then there are the mercenaries, wearing all sorts of colors and styles of silk. Was that a trick, what if the mercenaries were actually using the many colors as signals for the riders, indicating which landing sites were the safest locations? Kazelia tried to look over their locations, see if there was something in common between different colors that matched in different locations, though it was surely dizzying.

There's the house of hospitality, and a sign pointing to the astrologers guild further into the heart of the city, which must be that tall roof with the golden telescope. Poor fools, they wouldn't know what to do with Kazelia when they found out that she was hidden from all the stars. If they even believed her. That made her wonder though. Adila had felt so much respect for Solmarra, perhaps her suggestion was more than just a passing tourist routine and actually cut to the heart of the matter. Could she ask the astrologers to help them find people, even her own sisters? That was seriously worth considering.

And of the course, the shops. So many shops, so many people shouting, so many wares. Was that a puzzle itself? Perhaps part of the very fabric of Jedad was learning the nature of the different shouts and piece together what was really worth pursuing, or what was hidden amidst all the action. Kazelia tried to listen closely, to pick out different sounds among them, even going so far as to subtly cast her eyes and ears up and down the street while Adila responded Mimsley, so that Kazelia could get a more thorough view of the area.

[Rolling to look closely. 5+5=10.
-What is going on here, what do my senses tell me?
-Is something hidden or out of place? If so, what looks suspicious?
-Tell me about the Astrologers? How could they hurt me? How could they help me?]

[PhoeKun]

The last time Princess Alina was here time spent in hiding meant lounging on a downy bed with cool, satin sheets while girls dressed much the way she is right now fanned her and alternated between feeding her grapes and offering sweet, delicious drinks. Ah, the life of a bandit queen. One does feel nostalgic. Especially right now, because that's... not how she's waiting out Rhyza's shift. Not hardly. Instead, she's stuffed (rather delicately, one must admit) in a barrel that until extremely recently was full of the most pungent pickles she's ever seen. Or smelled. Oh, stars.

"Don't want anybody running off with you, now do we? Be a good girl and stay put. On my honor it'll be more than worth your while, my little jewel."

Alina did not think that the honor of a Jedadi sellsword was worth especially much, but it was very hard to say so with that husky voice purring in her ear, to say nothing of the hand still softly caressing her backside. She felt a little shiver run up her spine and she, Alina Cascade, the Princess-Promised of Illumina, quite placidly let herself be lifted up and shut inside this very smelly cask. Some two hours later she was very much beginning to regret it. The nerve of that woman! Couldn't she at least have found some place comfortable? Do they not give soldiers their own chambers in Jedad? Barbarism, that's what it was! What a backwards country.

St-still though... how long has it been since somebody's actually tried to seduce her? It's not like her life's been short of kisses lately, it's just that they've also all involved being thrown into the clouds or coughing up water all over her face afterwards. Nobody's made the effort to make her feel good. And that feels bad, you know? It's such a shame she has to cut and run before getting to the good part. Right? She does, right? Of course she does. There's no time to get carried off to some secret space and snuggle herself up against that lithe body and trace the muscles with her fingertips and--

Oh hey, the barrel's opening! And Alina's never blushed harder in her life. Ok now, remember: ditzy, lovestruck barmaid. Also remember: actually a very powerful princess on a mission to save the world. Easy, right? Easy!

...This is really hard. Every time Rhyza points something out she has to swallow a comment about some extra detail she knows but shouldn't. Oh yeah, and that stall over there has never had the slightest idea what saffron is wor-- bad Alina, bad! At least with everything gearing up for Carnival there's an energy to everything she's not used to. It actually looks... really fun? Not as fun as Illumina's Equinox Ball, but... y'know, still. Plus, who knew there were so many places tucked around the corners that were so perfect for romantic young couples? She'd never really thought to look before. A-and why would she? What were the odds she'd find a datable girl in Jedad? And her mother would never have approved.

Alina is a perfectly sweet date, herself. She laughs at all the jokes, she listens attentively, and she shyly hides her face after compliments, but not so much that she crosses the invisible line between playing hard to get and being hard to get. Every now and again after a comment she'll work in a pout and a reply that goes something like, "Princess Shazari is working you too hard. What's so important to her that you can't have more time for fun?" or, if she could get the conversation to be about work, "Th-the Black Princess your captain lady person mentioned on the ship sounds scary! Who is she?" and, "Is it really true that the Heart of Jedad got stolen? How could that have happened?"

The day wears on. There are a lot of eyes on Alina. Normally she's used to it and just lets those sorts of looks wash over her, but normally she's a princess, or at least dressed as somebody very important, so the looks don't get followed up with whistles or clapping or flustery little compliments. Wh-why does this outfit feel so revealing? Her heart is fluttering out of control. The more it flutters, the more her hips keep brushing up against this desert flame's legs. Before long, her cheek starts resting against that lovely arm. One hand wraps possessively around the mercenary's. Then the other hand joins it. It's no good. She can't think straight anymore. She can't think of which questions she even should be asking. Th-things look ok here, right? There's no Rider troops or rampaging snake monsters or horrible, unceasing winters anywhere in sight! Her hand's not dripping itself away into non-existence. She's a powerful (lovestruck) princess, darn it!

"I still feel sticky, and everything smells like dill and salt," Alina whines, "Don't you know any place we... um. I-I-I-I mean I can take a bath?"

[Speak Softly result was a 5. Questions are all "what can you tell me about ___?" Feel free to be as unhelpful as suits your needs, Alina has other priorities apparently]

[Thanqol]

Kazelia, Adila!

Well, here you are, at the docks of the Bazaar, minus one Iluminan. We zoomed out for a moment, watched the ships break apart, and then the many sails of the overcrowded docks coming into view.

And here, on cue, is Mimsley Trotter, sweating and red-faced, a little unsure how to handle “oh, hey, Adila’s back from the mission we sent her on.”

She salutes her princess, on general principle, and then salutes Kazelia just to be on the safe side.

“W-welcome back,” she stammers. “Are you here to catch Alina and save the Bazaar, Addy? Adila? Ma’am?”

Help her out, Adila, will ya?

F-focus. Focus is a virtue. She is a princess dragon who loves puzzles. That is too many things! She'll never get through the Bazaar like that! She needs to be a Princess! Focus on being a perfect Princess, Adila!

The Watch had a lot of traditions about what being a Princess meant and how to treat one - and at the same time, they hadn't had one of their own for over a hundred years. During that period their interactions with Hyperborea's princesses has been almost uniformly antagonistic and that seeped into the role that had been carved out for Adila. It wasn't that they didn't like Adila - on the contrary she was generally well regarded - but rather, they had the common understanding of 'Princess' meaning 'Elite secret agent with spooky magic and cunning tricks'. The Captain had decided to call her a Princess for reasons she never communicated, but to understand how the Watch as a whole thinks of Princesses look no further than the fact that they all thought that it made perfect sense to give a firebreathing dragon the title.

In practical terms, that meant that she got all the weird assignments. If there was ever something spooky or dangerous or beyond the ordinary capabilities of the Watch, Adila got the shift - and often without any particular thought as to what her capabilities actually were. Received a mysterious coded letter that lead to a creepy abandoned Igniter temple? That sounds like Princess work. A member of the Darksparkle crime family is transformed into a flying shark and takes refuge in the clocktower? The Princess will figure it out. And she usually did, eventually!

+Good morning, officer,+ thought Princess Adila, saluting back sharply. +Call me 'princess' or 'officer' while we're on duty, Adila is fine when we're off the clock. I have already apprehended Princess Alina and have been travelling with her for the past few weeks, I can confirm she is not directly responsible for the current troubles within the Bazaar. I have currently let her out of my sight on bail as part of a scheme to ensure that she is not intercepted by Jedad officials between here and her community service but my mission has overall been a success. This is Princess Kazelia of the Riders, I do not believe she poses an immediate danger to the Bazaar, but she is new to the city so the reverse may be true. I intend to travel with her as I report to the Captain. Is there anything I should know about the city before I proceed?+

Princess Adila was being extremely by the book here*, but that was because she was on a mission. The Watch drew a sharp line between on mission and off mission; if you were just hanging out on patrol then you could let your hair down and no one would bat an eye, but if things got serious so did the Watch. When she was off duty she could be as casual as any of them.


* She's overall straight-laced enough to get teased about it, but not so much that it makes people uncomfortable.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila!

“Oh, she’s tricky, princess officer,” Mimsley says, doing her best to reconcile her briefing this morning with what you just said. “Must have been another one of her identity-switching schemes. Um. Well, Jedad’s placed us under royal protection, um, if we don’t find the Heart of Jedad the Bazaar’s in trouble, and there’s a princess quarantine at the House of Hospitality, officer princess.”

Oh. A princess quarantine. That means all the princesses visiting the city are holed up in the old HH, doing their best to sneak out and in without the Watch noticing. It’s the sort of thing the Watch only dares to try and enforce when things are really bad and having princesses running around would make things exponentially worse. Ten to one says the Captain puts you in charge of it.

But that seems counterproductive. The usual play here would be to recruit the princesses to help out. That suggests that there’s an additional variable in play that you haven’t seen yet.

Also tricky: Kazelia will likely be asked to abide by the quarantine, unless you make a case for pressganging her into temporary Private status, but that’s what really should have been done with the other princesses, and unknown variables! It’s hard to put together a puzzle when you’re missing the edge pieces.

“I, um. May I lead you to the Captain?” Mimsley is frantically planning a route in her head that minimizes property damage. No arches, no glass-makers, no stairs, no delicate murals...

Kazelia!

Let’s start with the Astrologers, shall we? They watch the stars studded across the vault of heaven, using the cryptic dance of the stars to make predictions on what the future will bring. Of course, they have a blind spot, in that the stars only know about things happening in Hyperborea. Famously, the last prediction they sent to Queen Halcyon was about how the next silk harvest would be unusually prosperous, with nary a hint of “by the way, you’re going to be conquered next week, sorry about that!”

So they might struggle to predict your future. But if they made a prediction, and it was correct... well, that’d be a good sign, right? A sign that you’re becoming a part of Hyperborea for real. But if they made a prediction and it didn’t come true, or they couldn’t make one at all... wouldn’t that be alienating? A reminder that you’re not from here, you’re not part of this world at all? That not even the stars here can see you at all, even through the ripples you leave in the world?

I mean, unless I’m wrong. You’re the expert on how the Riders interact with the stars, after all.

Now. What’s going on?

There is an underlying tension on the dockside. Any city under blockade would be, but... the Watch patrol a few streets down look jumpy, like they’re going to be ambushed at any moment. There’s a sense of animosity slowly boiling between people wearing veils and people wearing masks. Which makes sense— Jedad’s disrupting one of the busiest parts of the year, right before Carnival, and making it impossible to leave. Wearing the veil seems to be a defiant statement at the moment, with an unusual number of masks in sight. (That said, those Jedadi who do wear the veil seem very proud of it.)

And the Watch... they’re looking for the Heart of Jedad. This looks like one tendril of a larger search party, one which would be going faster if they weren’t jumping at shadows.

Which they definitely should be, because there’s a veiled young woman in a baggy shawl walking nonchalantly towards them, moving a little too straight towards them to be innocent, and with her hands in her pockets. That’s part of a puzzle, all right: the puzzle of the ambush on the Watch. She’s doubtless got something nasty hiding in those pockets!

Rhyza!

What a curious little flower you have clinging to you. She’s just full of questions, isn’t she? But her voice is lovely to listen to, like a river dancing over the stones of a river bed. It’s entirely possible that the girl is from Ilumina, looking to make her fortune here. Really, she’s lucky she fell in with you rather than being reduced to waiting tables at an Iluminan Restaurant in a sheer dress and high heels.

Not that you don’t have your own plans for her wardrobe. But there is a distinct difference between serving one mistress and being an ornament for a dozen different tables.

As you stop by a display of miniature Garthim (which make a fine soup if prepared right, or bloodhounds to hunt magicians) the delightful little thing rubs your arm and asks you why Shazari’s working you so hard.

“If we close our eyes for a second,” you say, slipping your hand over her eyes to make your rhetorical point, which provokes quite a delightfully flustered response, “the thief will slip away. Vanish, into the desert! Scurry off with the Heart of Jedad. The Black Princess thinks she can hold the Bazaar ransom, but no one would dare remain here carrying its doom. So we wait, and search, and when the coward bolts—“ You lean in and surprise her with a kiss on her pretty blonde head. “We will have her.” And, oh, the breathy little sigh she makes is so satisfying it makes you want to drag her into a back alley to make her sing a symphony. Patience, Rhyza. Patience.

As you stop to watch a sword juggler, you shoo away a pickpocket looking to give your little lady a frisking, then hear her ask about the Black Princess. You shudder. That’s a dangerous question and no mistake.

“You don’t want to hear about her,” you say, your voice low and warning. “She is of Ilumina. She wages war against us. She is cold, and wicked, and holds the Bazaar to ransom. That is enough.” Then you tug her onwards, hoping to distract her.

Ah, now, as you offer her a sweet water-plum from a stall in the lower city, and she takes a bite of that soothing fruit, she asks: what of the theft? And you are not about to let something like “not knowing the answer” stop you from entertaining your lovely little jewel.

“Alina Cascade entered the temple disguised as a holy priestess, having kidnapped one as she went to draw water from the well. She waited for days for the proper moment, carrying out the simple chores of the temple with such grace you would never expect her to be the wicked little imp in the flesh. Then, when the moment was right, she summoned her ribbons and bound fast the priestesses, then took the Heart of Jedad from its holy seat. Then, bounding upon one of the flying horses newly found in her country, she outraced our husband and landed at the clock tower in time for the Black Princess to announce the theft.” You take a bow, expecting her to applaud your storytelling ability.

Finally, ah, there’s an excellent question. Baths. It’s possible, you could go and enjoy yourselves... but you can’t resist the thought of making her blush more. You hoist her up and let her sit on your arm held in front of you, her head by yours, and whisper: “well, I know a few places, if you will allow me to provide the sponge and the water, my princess.” Boom. There it is. What girl doesn’t want to be called a princess? And what blushing cattail, draping herself helplessly all over you, could resist the invitation? You even reach up and rub her silk-veiled leg, letting her guess at what you mean by a sponge.

(You are the sponge. It’s you.)

[Anarion]

Let's start with the immediate. Kazelia has been doing her doe-eyed look around taking in the sights while Adila talks, when suddenly she takes a step towards Adila and grasps her foreleg. "There's something off, over by the docks where the Watch is, don't turn to look too quickly. There's one woman there, she isn't moving right, not like the rest of the Jedadi. It's like she's headed right towards them, I think something is going to happen."

While we see how the dragon princess and the Watch guard respond to that, let me tell you about the stars. Oberon, as you may recall, promised Kazelia that she would be able to see the Stars in Hyperborea, and she can't. None of the Riders can see them. That was the lie that pierced her heart. But you might wonder, why is such convincing needed? Isn't Oberon the unquestioned king of the Riders? Indeed, he is that, especially here in this world with its structures of power and after all of them had journeyed so long through the void at his guidance. But he was not always that thing, nor did he always want Riders who obeyed only because of his power. He sought willing daughters, eager to join him, and so many of them have something they want. These requests are not shared, Kazelia does not know what Eska wants, or Kaja (though perhaps Alina Cascade knows that answer), nor Asteria, Azora, Morgina or any of them. They never told her and she never told them. Telling Asteria that she had seen fire was as close as she had come, and that had not been the stars. In her heart, Kazelia loves beauty and the knowledge that there is some grand tapestry that is beyond her gnaws at her soul, though I do not think she could say those words herself. She simply knows that she wants something that even Hyperborea cannot seem to give her.

But that is only half the question, the other is whether the stars can see her. And to that, I would say no and further that her absence is too small to be noted, especially in a place like Jedad. Unless she were to do something particularly important, like steal the Heart of Jedad and ride through the desert with a Snake Husband in chase, the void that she leaves in the sight of the stars would not be notable enough amidst all the masses of Jedad. Azora, perhaps, leaves a large enough imprint as she moves through the world that the stars can chase her presence by the void in their sight. Like seeing one of those floating black spots in your vision after you sneeze, though as to whether a star can sneeze or not, I leave that the reader's imagination.

[PhoeKun]

You're a princess, Alina. A princess! She just called you her-- no no no, not that! You are actually a princess! Your mother was a queen and everything! You're the scourge of Jedad! Even now, even after years without so much as a peep from you they're still invoking your name to delight and terrify innocent young barm-- no, Alina, bad, bad!! Ahem. Princess. You're a princess. You're the older sister, you're the dominant one! Again, with the stories! Remember, the ones they tell in Rowan? The people who asked you when you were going to marry Helya? You're that girl! You're that princess! Ok fine you have a thing for tall women, but still! Are you just going to let her pick you up like this again? You're going to let her treat you like you're some little conquest? That's your j-- er... no that's... that is... just... have some digni mmmmmph!

So here's a fun fact for you: on every girl that's ever walked the surface of Hyperborea, there's a spot where, if you know the right way to touch it, they'll go tumbling into a land of sweetest bliss. It's different for everyone! You might find it on the back of their neck, on an earlobe, the top of their head. Alina once knew a crime boss right here in Jedad who was as fierce and scary as you could ask for. But it turned out if you blew gently on the back of her knee she'd curl up into a ball and do anything you asked her to. Which incidentally is how Elsaria the Dread wound up in charge of that particular syndicate during her brief reign of terror! And it turns out, Alina herself is vulnerable to a soft stroke up (not down! That's key) her right thigh. And there's been ever so much teasing and kissing and closeness already that it's really, really, really really not her fault if she forgets for a minute that she's highborn. It's completely fine if she, blushing cattail that she is, drapes herself across Rhyza's arm and lifts her veil juuust enough to plant a gentle kiss on that long neck.

"Th-the water too? Oh gosh..." And her little river voice is accompanied by more nodding than is necessary.

Does our fair Alina have a plan? She might! Put the little ones to bed, then tune in to find out. Maybe she's just very deep into her role right now and is having trouble pulling herself back out of it. Or she might be angling to wind her way a little deeper into this mercenary's life, just in case she needs some local muscle. Or maybe... maybe she's scared. Because she's seen more than her fair share other Alinas lately, and not all of them have been helpful. If there's really another her out here... well, that's impossible. But what if it wasn't? So if there's another Alina out here, stealing things she'd never dare to take for a mystery princess she's never heard of... well, she could use a sponge right now, ok?

[Thanqol]

Adila!

“Oh, she’s tricky, princess officer,” Mimsley says, doing her best to reconcile her briefing this morning with what you just said. “Must have been another one of her identity-switching schemes. Um. Well, Jedad’s placed us under royal protection, um, if we don’t find the Heart of Jedad the Bazaar’s in trouble, and there’s a princess quarantine at the House of Hospitality, officer princess.”

Oh. A princess quarantine. That means all the princesses visiting the city are holed up in the old HH, doing their best to sneak out and in without the Watch noticing. It’s the sort of thing the Watch only dares to try and enforce when things are really bad and having princesses running around would make things exponentially worse. Ten to one says the Captain puts you in charge of it.

But that seems counterproductive. The usual play here would be to recruit the princesses to help out. That suggests that there’s an additional variable in play that you haven’t seen yet.

Also tricky: Kazelia will likely be asked to abide by the quarantine, unless you make a case for pressganging her into temporary Private status, but that’s what really should have been done with the other princesses, and unknown variables! It’s hard to put together a puzzle when you’re missing the edge pieces.

“I, um. May I lead you to the Captain?” Mimsley is frantically planning a route in her head that minimizes property damage. No arches, no glass-makers, no stairs, no delicate murals...

Princess Adila bristled a little bit. She lived here, you know! She was entirely capable of planning a route that didn't involve property destruction by herself - and that had only happened a few times! It wasn't like every time she went out for a sandwich she left a trail of destruction in her wake! She's already giving Officer Mimsley an inadvertent piece of mind and is just starting to focus on making it explicit when Kazelia interrupts.


Let's start with the immediate. Kazelia has been doing her doe-eyed look around taking in the sights while Adila talks, when suddenly she takes a step towards Adila and grasps her foreleg. "There's something off, over by the docks where the Watch is, don't turn to look too quickly. There's one woman there, she isn't moving right, not like the rest of the Jedadi. It's like she's headed right towards them, I think something is going to happen."

Princess Adila nods quickly and firmly, turning around and moving briskly through the crowd with that the momentum of a dragon on a mission that sent everyone else scurrying out of the way. Within moments she was looming over the suspicious individual. +Can I assist you, citizen?+ she focused down, angling so that she'd be between the stranger and the watch post.

Princess Adila knew that she could be scary. Long term residents were used to her, and everyone knew stories about the Dragon of the Watch, but very few people were prepared to actually see her in motion - and everyone freaked out if she opened her mouth and they saw fire and teeth. And it was never just one person she was spooking - there was always a crowd of bystanders whose opinions would be permanently altered if they saw her acting rashly. There was nothing in the world she wanted less than seeing a crowd of people looking at her with fear.

So she followed protocol rigidly. It gave people a handle for dealing with her; let the people trick themselves into thinking they were dealing with an unusually shaped law enforcement professional. It meant that she got far more sass from criminal elements than seemed reasonable but she appreciated that too. There was something wonderfully human about a criminal feeling so confident that you weren't going to hurt them that they could smack talk you even as you were arresting them.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila!

“Hey there, Adila!” Scampering Jeni waves at you with the hand that’s not in her pocket. Criminal record: minor acts of larceny, criminal mischief, and being an accessory to a crime. She’s usually up on the rooftops with the Scarabs, one of the minor gangs. “Didn’t know you were coming back to town, but don’t worry! Brought you a welcome back present.”

Then she chucks the vial down at the ground by your feet, where it shatters, and an absolutely irate sea-djinn explodes out, all tentacles and yelling and wanting to leave one-star reviews of their previous place of residence. Which, uh. You are marginally better-equipped to handle than the average Watch squad, but not by much.

Tentacles! While engaged with the Sea-Djinn, you cannot Get Away.

Flailing! The Sea-Djinn is Dangerous and will not distinguish between friend and foe until they calm down.

Kazelia!

Well, that’s one way to start a panic. People are screaming, mercenaries are closing ranks in case this is a distraction to raid the ships they guard, Brill’s yelling something behind you, and the gal you saw is legging it like there’s no tomorrow.

If you let the rascal get away, you won’t know why they just did that! But there’s an angry sea-djinn whose lower body is all smoky stormy tentacles trying to beat up Adila, and we all know that hurting your friends is a good way to get in trouble. But is it really the sea-djinn’s fault? You’ve got a choice to make here, and no mistake.

Alina!

“Come on. Who’s your queen? Be a good girl and tell me.”

Alina, you have found yourself in a discreet little back alley, surrounded by the noises of haggling and advertising, loud enough that you shouldn’t get caught in the middle of some very compromising kisses. Unless you’re a naughty little thing who needs to be made to hush with her own veil, but disappointingly, I don’t think we’re quite there yet.

Because, even as Rhyza toys with you, pins you to the wall with your feet dangling off the ground, threatens to remove your veil, to make this Jedadi evening very hot indeed for you, there’s the distinctive snap-crack of someone using lightning magic, and then someone comes crashing down through the slats and ropes that hang above you, strung from roof to roof to facilitate dramatic rooftop duels. She hits the ground hard, her black coat still smoking, and all the wind goes out of her. Still, she props herself valiantly up on one elbow, wheezing, then glances up at you.

Rhyza gasps and drops you, letting you hit the ground right on that well-admired rump of yours. (You’d usually be able to use your hands to catch yourself, but somebody cinched a scarf around your wrists to keep them over your head.) “Jun—“

That’s all she manages to get out before someone comes hurtling down through the hole and makes a perfect one-point landing with their left foot hitting right between Juniper Blue’s shoulderblades. One-hit KO.

“Sorry about that,” the intruder says with an expressive shake of his head, his beaded braids jingling. And both you and Rhyza are silent a moment, her out of fury, you because you recognize him.

Years Ago...

It’s a dingy little bar, which is to say, there are stains on the marble tiles and the lapis lazuli barely has any gold streaks running through it. The upper room is full of Askaian incense, and the King of the Bazaar breathes in deeply before turning his glistening amber eyes to the two of you. All around you, there is the sound of dice and coin, and a sense of being surrounded. He’s a strong dreamer.

“Well,” he says, languidly. “What brings you to my city, Elsie?” When he stretches his fingers, lightning licks around the fine, gem-studded electrum mesh worked into the back of his gloves. An implicit threat. The kind that people like Elsaria the Dread peddle in.

“To bring tribute to the King of the Bazaar,” you reply. You remove the gleaming diamond from its pouch with a flourish and set it down before him. He picks it up, inspects it, looks up at you with amusement playing in his eyes.

“This was mine already,” he says. “I was wondering where it had gotten to.” You slap your forehead in mock chastisement of your self. Message sent: I am skilled enough to be worth your time to deal with.

“Oh, of course. Sometimes it’s hard to remember what used to belong to who. I hope these weren’t also yours.”

That’s the signal for your flunky. She steps forward and upends her pouch on the table, letting gems spill out: garnets and amethysts and pearls, all shining with inner light in the incense. The King picks up a dark, lustrous pearl and rolls it between his fingers with a grin that says: I like you, sister. You got spunk.

“Just don’t cause too much trouble,” he says, tongue in cheek. “Heard the princess of Ilumina was back in town, and she’s always bad for business.” And the way he says it— it’s impossible to tell—

But if he recognizes you, he doesn’t say so. Instead, with a friendly grin, he tosses you the pearl and waves you out.

Right Now!

The King’s knights drop down from every side, in their own motley scarves and jewelry, with knives and saps and chains. They’re well-equipped to deal with meddling princesses, and Rhyza’s not even a princess! But the King waves them off. Close by, Watch whistles are getting closer.

“Sorry to startle you, sister,” he says. He’s much like you remember him— perhaps he’s grown since your mutual youth— but he’s wearing a bifurcated black-and-white laughing mask and a thick purple scarf about his neck. “I’ll be out of your lovely hair in a moment.”

“You mongrel.” Rhyza draws her blade with a deadly flourish. Her voice is steady and shivers-down-the-spine scary. “Let Juniper go, right now. Or I’ll destroy you.” That’s a promise right there.

“Too bad,” the King says, rolling his shoulders and doing a dramatic little finger wiggle by his sides, lightning crackling at his command. “This’ll be quick, I promise.”

They’re getting ready to duel, and there is one (1) person in this entire alley who can stop them long enough for the Watch to show up and make things even messier. Spoiler: she’s sitting on her butt with her hands tied over her head looking like she was just used as a lipstick test dummy. So, uh. Good luck.

[Thanqol]

Adila!

“Hey there, Adila!” Scampering Jeni waves at you with the hand that’s not in her pocket. Criminal record: minor acts of larceny, criminal mischief, and being an accessory to a crime. She’s usually up on the rooftops with the Scarabs, one of the minor gangs. “Didn’t know you were coming back to town, but don’t worry! Brought you a welcome back present.”

Then she chucks the vial down at the ground by your feet, where it shatters, and an absolutely irate sea-djinn explodes out, all tentacles and yelling and wanting to leave one-star reviews of their previous place of residence. Which, uh. You are marginally better-equipped to handle than the average Watch squad, but not by much.

Tentacles! While engaged with the Sea-Djinn, you cannot Get Away.

Flailing! The Sea-Djinn is Dangerous and will not distinguish between friend and foe until they calm down.

Oh clock why

Princess Adila moved incredibly decisively. Part of being hyperaware of your size and weight and the threat of accidentally breaking things meant that the moment things actually began to break she was on a hair trigger to react. She immediately snapped her wings out and wrapped them around the Sea-Djinn in a full body envelopment. Then she shifted her body weight to wrestle the creature to the ground and pin it while thinking soothing thoughts at it to help calm it down.

It was an extremely practiced and precise takedown, and it should be - Djinn bombs had been infuriatingly common ever since the Goblin Princess had visited the city and started the trend, and no prizes for guessing if rampaging Djinn counted as a 'princess problem' or not.

[Overcome: 10]

So let's think about soothing thoughts.

Soothing to Princess Adila is sitting in a quiet room, shoulder to shoulder with fellow Watchers in the Palatine Cobbler amphitheatre, listening to the clockmasters argue. Each of them has come prepared with stacks of books and piles of evidence, but they are experienced hands at this and don't need them. They stalk and circle each other around the stage, following the secret language of debate - drawing closer when they agree, and moving farther apart when they dissent. They talk about the flight paths of birds and the thefts of jewels and the ringing of bells - declaring that these things are causally linked and those things are merely coincidence. They dispute sources and condemn lazy scholarship and demand citations. Each week is a combination of old arguments and new, and how new evidence re-opens matters once considered settled. It's science, it's theatre, it's a sermon with two preachers in harmonious opposition. And then afterwards, as the faithful leave the hall, she argues in turn with her friends about which of the masters they found more convincing on that day.

She thinks about days off work, when the only purse she has to guard is her own. It's an eminently freeing release from responsibilities, only made possible because the Watch made it a crime for an off-duty officer to do police work. Knowing that she is literally barred from having to solve everybody else's problems means that she can spend the day unwinding from a long and stressful week without guilt. She can spend the afternoon lounging in the sun on the top of the Brightball Colosseum and watching the flowing moves of play. She can dip under the water of the bay and dredge the harbour-bed for treasures - and people are always dumping things overboard to avoid inspections so there are always treasures to be found. She can curl up in one of the many gardens with books of adventure and romance. She can spend the afternoon in productive argument, using all the techniques she learned from the clockmasters to engage in a four-hour bout of haggling that winds up with her buying something she wanted for almost nothing on the condition that she also buys a bunch of other things that she didn't need and would need to trade on somehow during her next negotiation. She can meet up with her colleagues and friends and go drinking in the park where there's nothing around for an inebriated dragon to crash into and sleep it off under summer stars.

There were so many wonderful ways to spend an afternoon in the Bazaar. Did you really want to spend it in a jail cell instead?

[Anarion]

Kazelia!

Well, that’s one way to start a panic. People are screaming, mercenaries are closing ranks in case this is a distraction to raid the ships they guard, Brill’s yelling something behind you, and the gal you saw is legging it like there’s no tomorrow.

If you let the rascal get away, you won’t know why they just did that! But there’s an angry sea-djinn whose lower body is all smoky stormy tentacles trying to beat up Adila, and we all know that hurting your friends is a good way to get in trouble. But is it really the sea-djinn’s fault? You’ve got a choice to make here, and no mistake.


Obviously she's going to catch the girl and help Adila. All Kazelia needs is her...Oh void damn it, where was her horse? She remembered them unloading Shiva, but the girl was nowhere to be found, and didn't seem to be flying anywhere. Ugh, with all those sparkly crystal wings, they must have assumed she was Illuminan and taken her to the house of hospitality. Great, just great. Kazelia furrowed her brow in what was clearly the most extreme annoyance, had it not been hidden behind her black and red demon mask.

Adila was already bounding off though, and she had been told in no uncertain terms that the best way to protect her friend was to not get in her way. So, she would catch the girl and show her dragon guard friend that she could help with an interrogation and, well, it would be too much to imagine Kazelia having a mental image of her and Adila skipping through a field of restored Illuminan flowers together, for many reasons, but let it be understood that Kazelia vaguely thought Adila would like her better in some indeterminate way if she caught the escaping girl. Also, Adila would get all the healing magic after this, for sure.

But anyway, escaping girl! Unlike in the fog bank, Kazelia can see now! And that means she's going to start sprinting after the girl and she's also going to throw an icy hand in the girl's way. She's a bit bigger than an Eska brand scarab, but all Kazelia needs is to slow her down with a solid push against the direction she's trying to run, maybe trip her up and get in her way and that will do the trick.

[I'm not sure whether this is overcome or keep her busy. But I rolled an unmodified 7, so it only matters as to whether there's a price now or consequences later. You tell me.]

[PhoeKun]

"It's you, it's you, it's you," huffs a very good girl without the slightest hint of irony in her voice, "You're my queen~"

River, rivers, rivers, yes! Kiss her, kiss her anywhere, find a spot, she's not picky! There and there and there and there! Alina's breathing hard. She squeaks as she's lifted into the air. She's gasping, squirming, her lips are pursing. This is the moment. This is where it gets good. This is where the stress of the Slaugh finally washes away. This is where she starts making the kinds of noises that will get her scolded. This is where she'll smile impishly and say without saying she's doing it on purpose. This is where she takes her legs and wraps them around that perfect waist. Squeeze her tight, pull her close, kiss her kiss her kiss her, kiss her until silks start coming loose, until she comes up for air to say something clever and carry her off to a room and a bed and--

This is where she's interrupted. Stopping hurts more than the impact of landing in a pile on the floor. Her ponytail is half fallen out. She's completely out of breath. There's lipstick in places she has no good explanation for, if someone were rude enough to ask about it. And her hands are tied behind her with a scarf. Not... how she'd choose to meet the King of the Bazaar again. Wait, that jerk! What's he even--

"Are you kidding me?!" Alina shrieks with a voice full of Royal Fury.

She rolls forward onto her feet and stomps up into the middle of the forming duel and glares at the King and his stupid, stupid mask with so much anger it's a wonder he doesn't catch fire on the spot. Speaking of flames, hers is making an appearance wrapped around a jewel across her neck. There's little bits of flickering red light around her arms. She's seconds away from Kaja-ing one of his knights and nuts to the consequences.

"Do you have any idea how long it's been since someone's held me like that? Do you know what you just did?! You ruined it! You ruined the perfect evening! I had everything planned out, and now... a-a-and now! Just how, pray tell, are you planning on paying for this?"

[Raz_Fox]

Kazelia!

You go diving into the streets of the Bazaar after the fleet-footed saboteur. She would like nothing better than to get up and away into the maze of ropes and bridges slung between buildings, which gets thicker the deeper into the Bazaar you go. Once up there, she’d be able to vanish like a shadow at noon. It is for this reason that you do not let her.

Handholds freeze over. Ropes snap as she clambers up on them. Ghostly ice-hands grab at her and tug her off balance. Once, she manages to get up atop a roof, working as hard as she can, and a silvery lasso of magic and jewelry flies up around her shoulders and yanks her right off; but even then, she pulls it out of your hands with a sprightly little twist of her body, and tosses it into the crowd, where it comes apart and vanishes into various purses and pockets quick as a wink. She is very, very good at scampering.

And there are consequences. Not from her, bless her, she’s all scamper and no bite, but you are showing off your power heedless of who sees you; and you are seen. Heads turn. Some are close enough to see through the eye-holes of your mask and see nothing within but endless night. I think— it is known that you are here, now, or at the very least that there is a Rider witch on the streets. Which may be dangerous, later.

But for now, the lass turns a corner, ducks and rolls, and pops up gasping and glowing and... right back where she started, in front of Adila.

Like the master huntress you are, you hounded your quarry into the waiting jaws of a trap.

***

Adila!

“I think they like you,” Brill says, patting one inky tentacle wrapped around your flank. It’s like getting the biggest, slimiest hug ever. The sea-djinn has nestled their face somewhere around where your left wing meets your body, and is very, very calm. And, naturally, has reacted to this calm by spreading their tentacles aaaaaaall over. I think one’s trying to get in your nose, even. In a friendly sort of way.

But you have saved everybody! Congratulations! The Watch patrol has made a cordon around you, and Brill and Mimsley are right by your side. “Wow,” Mimsley breathes, glowing, “you’re amazing, officer princess.”

And right on cue, Scampering Jeni comes rocketing back into the square where you started, and then backpedal right into Kazelia’s waiting arms. She gulps.

“H-hiya, copper. You seen my twin sister Janna anywhere about? She’s probably up to mischief or the like.”

***

Alina!

Well! That’s one way to stop a duel. The King actually takes a reflexive step back, raising his hands.

“Sisters,” he says, imploringly, “I’ll be out of your hair. Just got to take this one back home, is all.”

“Touch her and I will remove that hand,” Rhyza says, scary calm.

“We very much do not have time for this. Please go back to the kissing. Promise I won’t tell anyone.” The King picks up Juniper Blue and starts bounding up, and as promised, Rhyza goes after him scary fast, one jump behind him the whole way.

The knights start trying to impede her, but she is a one-woman army right now, and there goes the woman you really would like to spend the rest of the evening with, and you can follow along into a running battle along the rooftops or you can sit here and cry about it until a very bemused Watch shows up, but—

If I know anything about Alina Cascade, it’s that it’s not even really a choice at all.

[Thanqol]

Adila!

“I think they like you,” Brill says, patting one inky tentacle wrapped around your flank. It’s like getting the biggest, slimiest hug ever. The sea-djinn has nestled their face somewhere around where your left wing meets your body, and is very, very calm. And, naturally, has reacted to this calm by spreading their tentacles aaaaaaall over. I think one’s trying to get in your nose, even. In a friendly sort of way.

But you have saved everybody! Congratulations! The Watch patrol has made a cordon around you, and Brill and Mimsley are right by your side. “Wow,” Mimsley breathes, glowing, “you’re amazing, officer princess.”

And right on cue, Scampering Jeni comes rocketing back into the square where you started, and then backpedal right into Kazelia’s waiting arms. She gulps.

“H-hiya, copper. You seen my twin sister Janna anywhere about? She’s probably up to mischief or the like.”

Princess Adila was determined to keep things friendly with the djinn, so she extracted herself from the pin before it turned awkward. She was fairly certain the last time she had been in the Bazaar she hadn't broadcast embarrassing thoughts, embraced a tentacle monster and wound up covered in slime before noon. Princess Alina must be rubbing off on her - oh gosh that wasn't the way to phrase that. Focus! You're still on duty, officer!

+Thank you, officer Mimsley. I suggest taking the djinn here on a walk and talk her through some of the more common tricks people use to capture them,+ thought Princess Adila, awkwardly buffing the wetness from the front of her scales with her blanket. That would probably work out just fine.

Then she lowered her head down to face Scampering Jeni directly. Her dragon eyes glowed bright and gold and there was a bit more severity behind her thoughts this time. +Well then, Jeni, I hear that your twin sister is in serious trouble. Someone put her up to an attack on the Watch would you believe? We need to find that terrible person and lock them up before they get any more girls in serious trouble.+

[PhoeKun]

You're darned right it's not a choice! Her date's fighting a crazy rooftop battle with an old friendquaintence! She's hooked her way up to the rooftop and is following along behind the bedlam before you've even finished working out whether or not that's a word. Call her a crybaby, call her weak or stupid, insist she has a cold and force feed her soup for an entire boat ride. She's Princess Alina Cascade, and there's never been a high octane rooftop battle chase that was too fast for her.

A shy, clingy barmaid swings her way across the side of several buildings on very sneaky strands of orange, then green and then blue light. She swings up, kicks her legs together and comes sailing from an impossible angle to fly over the top of her extremely fearsome date. Her dragonfire gem is unmistakably burning on her neck now. You can't miss the ribbons of red light twisting up and down her arms now. Especially not as she lands hands-first on the shoulders of the Knight who's come closest to landing a blow on Rhyza. She grabs him by the shirt, and yanks for all she's worth while she finishes her flip, and... whoops! She watches the poor guy turn into a sparkle on the horizon. Well, at least the harbor's over that way? Be a little more careful this time!

She twirls back into the melee and grabs another knight by the wrist. Her feet are light and dancing with her new partner in circles. Round and round, round and round, until she's got a second one by the elbow and her spin's suddenly got more heft than it should, and then suddenly it's really less of a rooftop fight and more of a straight up race against the King of the Bazaar. She smiles at him from underneath her veil and has to resist the urge to ask him whether or not those were his. That would give away the game a little too much.

He stops. She stops. And no amount of dragon fire is enough to let Alina loom over anybody, nor is she particularly the looming type. So in fact, no looming or leering of any kind takes place. But she's got him beat and she's feeling really good about it, so she does take the time to turn and give Rhyza a cute and timid little wave. Soon, "queen". Soon. And that's exactly the moment when she feels the electricity shoot up her back and gracefully flops over into the King's waiting arm.

"I did ask you to go back to your kissing, sister." he chides with a shake of his head.

"Mmph." agrees Alina.

[The classic roll a 4 on Get Away but do cool looking things anyway so long as you neither arrive at your destination unharmed, unseen, or with a person of your choosing]

[Anarion]

Kazelia pulls up behind Jeni, or Janna, whatever he name was. The scamp had given her a thorough chase, she was faster than most Riders and obviously knew these streets like the back of her hand, and it had taken a lot of ice magic to maneuver her around into a circle without her realizing it. Adila seemed to have a good idea what to do here though, so Kazelia mostly stood to the side, acting as a blocker if little Jeni tried to bolt again or anything, making it clear that talking to Adila was the quickest way for her to get out of this situation. Though, she couldn't entirely suppress her laugh when she saw the big dragon covered with slime and extracting herself from the djinn's tentacles. "I didn't realize Jedad had such slippery fashion trends" she says before she can stop herself, then looks very chagrined. That hadn't been nice, and Adila was busy thinking at the girl right now, so she takes a step back to create some more room.

She glances over at detective Brill instead, who hadn't gone far (he certainly wasn't as fast a runner as Kazelia was, even on his best day) and then at the alleys behind them, full of shops and stalls, and colorful buildings with those big swirly windows that people can easily look out from, now also iced over and wet in a few spots as the ice melted in the heat. "Think I went a little too far?" she asks him, to make conversation and cover up her nervousness. She really should have thought this through better, this was probably just a random prank on the Watch with a little too much edge to it and here she had gone and broadcast herself all over Jedad, not to mention to every one of her siblings within miles, and with no idea what she had gotten herself. But darn it, she just wanted to be useful, and she had caught the criminal. She tried to lean back in to hear what Jeni was saying to Adila.

[Raz_Fox]

Adila!

“O-oh,” Scampering Jeni says. “I’ll be sure to let her know. When I catch up to her. That she should just lay low and stay out of it.”

“The problem,” Mimsley says, catching up to you, “is kinda that we know who. We just don’t know where, because go-betweens, and we sure as heck don’t know why.”

“Oh, because you’re gonna doom the Bazaar,” Scampering Jeni says with a shrug. “Everybody knows. At least that’s what Janna told me. She’s all into that dangerous rooftop life, not like me, a very law-abiding person who’s not in trouble.”

The nerve of this gal!

Anyhow. I think what comes next is that you go looking for answers, yeah? Right up at the top, from the one person who’s guaranteed to have them.

What’s the HQ like? Where is it? And when you show up, where’s the Captain going to meet you for a briefing?

***

Kazelia!

Brill blinks for dramatic effect, right at your face. “Uh, yeah. A little bit. Whatever’s going on, Jenni here’s small fry. She doesn’t even have enough money to pay fines.” The way he says it suggests that the fines levied never end up back in the Watch’s treasury. “But, you know, it’s whatever. I’m sure you don’t need all the magic you just splashed around or anything.”

Underneath his careful devil-may-care nonchalance, you can tell that Brill seems a little rattled. This isn’t at all what he expected, coming back to the Bazaar.

“But, hey. Switch out your mask, put on something with a little less stomach, and you’ll be invisible again. That’s the nice thing about Carnival, you know? You can vanish, just like everybody else.”

That’s something I don’t think you’d considered yet. If Adila ends up having to look for someone, it might prove very difficult, especially as you get closer to Carnival.

Though, if the city’s in danger... why are they still gearing up for Carnival? Wouldn’t it be more practical to cancel it, or postpone it at the very least?

(The answer to that, of course, being “the Bazaar doesn’t choose when Carnival happens.”)

***

Rhyza!

Let’s take this slow.

The King of the Bazaar twists in midair, Juniper Blue’s pale hair flowing behind him like a cape. He’s bringing his hand up, lightning arcing between his fingers, but he’s also trying to back up in midair, because you’ve got him.

Your saber glints in the setting sun; it’s almost cutting the air itself as the edge shears through one of the King’s coat buttons, string by string. Your wrath burns furious in your eyes, almost leaving an afterimage in your wake.

How dare he? If anyone is going to be a thorn in Juniper’s side, it’s going to be you, dammit! You have best friend privileges!

The bolt goes off, roaring past your ear, a stray arc incinerating three hairs off your forehead. It narrowly misses the glowing barmaid streaking past you, and a little part of you is freaking out and stamping her feet going WHAAAAAAAT?

You just kissed a princess. Like an actual honest-to-goodness princess. Was she into— okay unless she is the best actor in all Hyperborea she was into it. A lot. Which means. A princess. Was into you.

...

Darn straight she was! You are the best. Of course! Haha! This is the only way to process this information without becoming absolutely useless! Of course you are the best and of course you are going to win this and save your BFF.

Your saber reaches the end of its swing. Already, you’re using the momentum to bring it into the next angle of attack. Before you, the King reaches out with his other hand and his fingers grasp for the rope that he knows will be there.

Let’s speed up.

Now, your attacks are a furious blur, as you continually adjust your position on the rooftops in order to have the footing to follow and to avoid the lightning bolts shooting from your adversary’s hands. Again and again you clash in mid-air in a frenzy, and then fall apart to different platforms and bridges, always in motion, always running, leaping, engaging, disengaging.

Then he leaps atop a clock-shrine’s tiled roof, where the princess already is; she flashes you the cutest little wave and your heart leaps into your throat because you can see him reach out to touch the small of her exposed back.

She crumples, and you come to a halt, blade held out in front of you, three impossible steps away from ending him. Because he needs Juniper Blue, for whatever reason... but he doesn’t need that little princess. And he saw you kiss her. And if you attack him, kick him to the ground and stab him and teach him never to mess with Juniper again... he’ll hurt her first.

And you would never. ever. by your honor. allow such a thing to happen.

With a disgusted grunt, you toss aside your sword. His minions are on you in the space of a moment, trussing your wrists tight behind you, asking him if they should leave you dangling upside down from the roofs.

“Nah,” he says, running a shaking, sweaty hand through his hair. “I respect game. And besides, I want to know their deal, now.”

The last thing you see before one of his pathetic little rooftop rats pulls a sack over your head is your little barmaid princess, feebly trembling in the bastard’s arms, beside your helpless BFF.

Which, if we’re being honest, sucks.

Alina!

So! Here’s a question for you to consider, princess!

Where’s the lair of the King of the Bazaar tonight? And when Juniper Blue comes to, ready to be interrogated, in what condition does she find you and Rhyza, like two peas in a pod?

[Anarion]

"It's not, um, it's not something that runs out. I just have ice powers, I can't really make them stronger either, but they just are what they are. I just wish I'd made a scene for something more useful, if you all already knew about this, I didn't need to waste my outfit." Still, there was something she wanted to ask the girl. "So, uh, if everybody knows that the watch is going to doom the bazaar, where did they find out?" It's a simple enough question, they weren't crying it from the street corners and it wasn't like somebody had put up posters saying "the Watch will doom the Bazaar, come to our tea shop and order two sets of Oolong to learn more!" So where did Jeni and everyone else find out about this from?

Once that's done, she goes back to take Brill's advice. Kazelia is wearing a mask, so her face doesn't show much of anything, but behind the mask she huffs, and you'd get the impression that she really likes the outfit that she decided on wearing. She'll take Brill's advice though, find a nearby stall, doesn't really matter if it saw her or not, and pick out a simple mask, just black and white in a four square alternating checker pattern, along with a basic, single-color Jedadi silk in a teal that matches the buildings. It's still highly translucent, but it's close enough to her skin color that it won't stand out, people will just think they're seeing her through a darker the silk, not that she's naturally blue. She uses the back of the stall to change and moves on, flowing back into the Bazaar towards her friends.

Adila: are you willing to take Kazelia with you on this investigation? Or does she need to find something else to do?

[Thanqol]

Adila!

“O-oh,” Scampering Jeni says. “I’ll be sure to let her know. When I catch up to her. That she should just lay low and stay out of it.”

“The problem,” Mimsley says, catching up to you, “is kinda that we know who. We just don’t know where, because go-betweens, and we sure as heck don’t know why.”

“Oh, because you’re gonna doom the Bazaar,” Scampering Jeni says with a shrug. “Everybody knows. At least that’s what Janna told me. She’s all into that dangerous rooftop life, not like me, a very law-abiding person who’s not in trouble.”

The nerve of this gal!

Anyhow. I think what comes next is that you go looking for answers, yeah? Right up at the top, from the one person who’s guaranteed to have them.

That's when it actually sank in for Princess Adila. She'd always prided herself on knowing the rhythm of the streets - on being able to smell trouble on the horizon and get a sense for what was about to happen as good as any set of boots on the force. But now she was out of sync. She'd lost track of the city's motions and now she was actually a little bit of a stranger here.

For a moment it hurt.

She shook her head to clear it, using the motion of cleaning more slime off her scales to hide a little sniff. Then she focused in again. She just needed to be briefed and then she'd be back up to speed. A quick report to the Captain and then she'd be home again. +Fine. In that case, Jeni, I know just the way to keep you out of trouble. You'll take this djinn that your sister unfairly tricked and take it on that walk around the Bazaar I was talking about. You'll teach it all the ways that people like to trick djinns, and since I know that you are very clever you'll teach it better than anyone - and if it winds up captured again I'll hold your training responsible. And you will also make sure your sister apologizes to it for the trouble. Am I clear?+


Adila: are you willing to take Kazelia with you on this investigation? Or does she need to find something else to do?

She then looked over at Kazelia and a couple of thoughts rippled through her head. She'd noted the twitchy look she had thrown when Alina was being carried off earlier. She'd also noted her decision not to act on it - mostly. She'd just gone after a crook on her own, something the Watch normally disapproved of, and thrown around a lot of magic while so doing - but she'd been restrained and just directed Jeni back here. She tapped a foreclaw thoughtfully. This was serious Watch business and it was already going to be a part time job just keeping a newbie to the Bazaar from getting robbed blind. But...

Above all, she thought, Kazelia was really trying. She could see an edge of vulnerability there and it'd be outright mean to rip that away from her. She resolved herself. If the Captain overruled her, so be it, but until that meeting the decision was in her claws and she wouldn't turn the Rider Princess away.

+Princess Kazelia of the Riders, I hereby deputize you under my authority as an auxiliary member of the Watch,+ thought Princess Adila, producing a little emergency emerald pin from her bag. +Do you swear to uphold the Praiseworthy Articles of War and Peace? Do you swear to act in unison with the Watch and follow the commands of its full members? Do you swear to protect the people and property of the Bazaar? If you swear to these things then my standing is your standing, my honour is your honour, and my authority is your authority until you are released from service.+

This was the formal version. The informal version - which was explicitly authorized in the Operations Manual for emergencies - went more like 'You bastards have been drafted and I'll thump you if complain'. That version was generally more popular.


What’s the HQ like? Where is it? And when you show up, where’s the Captain going to meet you for a briefing?

The Watch originally moved into the half-completed Pyramid of the Eternal Blades after they took the city. It was a regal structure that any other army would have been proud to have conquered, but the Watch are traditionalists. They deconstructed the pyramid with the same relentless efficiency that they knocked down shrines and impractically beautiful castles during their campaigns and rebuilt it into a standard-issue Watch Fortress.

A Watch Fortress is designed to go from zero to defensible in two days work, and continue expanding and becoming more and more defensible indefinitely. One day every week each Watch officer is put on garrison duty which entails construction, cleaning, maintenance and training. Over a hundred years of constant work and effort from some of Hyperborea's foremost military minds - paired with easy access to vast wealth and cheap djinn labour - well...

They might have overdone it just a tad.

Only a few armies have ever had the gumption to besiege Hobling Keep, and the Watch evidently was impressed enough by what they saw there to copy many of the Goblin Queen's defensive arrangements. The structure can open up or close down like a puzzle box and in its full defensive splendor it towers over the Bazaar in a way that residents describe as 'kinda evil looking'. The interior is filled with localized strongpoints, sally ports, hidden passages, strategic demolitions points, eathern ramparts, retreat lines. The only things that keep it from being a true peer to Hobling Keep is the Watch's distaste (as opposed to maniacal enthusiasm) for nasty traps and not having a direct line to the most ingenious Princess-tinkerers in Hyperborea.

The defensive preparations are more for theory, tradition and practice (and telling the Queen of Jedad not to get any ideas) than any real expectation that the Fortress will come under siege. Most of the Watch clusters in the outer keep around the main gate where concessions are made to friendliness, liveability and practicality. This involves a short wall that mostly exists to deflect cannon/laser fire from the main structure, an open field with lots of sudden sharp drops that has mostly been given over to vegetable patches and a small grove of apricot trees, comfortable and well lived in barracks, offices, drunk tanks, even a couple of on base vendor stalls. It's a warm and inviting place, like a cozy little village outside an uninhabited and haunted castle.

Meeting the Captain often means going into the fortifications proper. Not because she's an isolated crank - on the contrary, she comes down and spends time with the rank and file regularly. But the library, the treasury, the courthouse, the serious prisoners and monster containment, the strategy room and the Watch's old armoury are all in the central keep and these are the places that demand the most of her attention. If she meets you outside in the village then that's one kind of conversation, and usually a regular and mundane one - regular praise or reprimands, requests for leave, so on. If she calls you into the inner keep then things are serious - a trial, an anti-Princess operation, sounding people out for promotions and so on.

Princess Adila fully expects that given the current atmosphere she's going to be called into the inner keep. She's not particularly thrilled about it. Every time that's happened it's been the start of something scary - planning a takedown on a dangerous princess, an assault on a crime family... or most recently, a polite exile.

But the one upside is that everything in the inner keep is large enough for her to move around in comfortably. And it was built that way before she was even hatched.