ZEITGEIST Tizbiz Zeitgeist Campaign

[Lylandra]

Session 48
The I of the tiger

We return to Kasvarina's home with a sense of accomplishment as we really feared that High Matriarch Athryalla might be a too tough nut to crack. But before we can share our success with Kasvarina, Kieran Sentarcore and Asrabey, we spot said Dreadnought in front of the house, carelessly sharpening his daggers.

As we see that the Asrabey is very obviously still feeling the frustration of being unable to be of help or even do anything besides sitting here and waiting, we join him and ask him about his thoughts. But to our surprise he doesn't really talk about himself, but rather Kasvarina. Turns out that he still places more value in her as he claims that his major problem would be the fact that his wife would be so weak and dependent on others.

“My wife has always been a strong warrior. But 'this' Kasvarina is unable to protect anyone, lest the whole of Elfaivar.”, he growls.

“May I remind you that it was the 'old' Kasvarina who built the Colossus, joined the Obscurati and whose plans now endanger all of Elfaivar? This 'weak' Kasvarina has the potential to grow strong again once she regains her memories. And then she will remember you and everything you shared.”, Carlyle replies, urging Asrabey to be patient just a little more.

Asrabey sighs deeply and continues to sharpen his blades. So we tell him that we at least have some good news regarding the Arc of Reida, so he should really join the rest of us for planning the next steps.

Once inside, we tell Kasvarina and Sentacore about our permission to go search for the artifact. We don't tell Kas too much about Athryalla's antipathy for “old Kasvarina” and just mention that she and the past version of Kasvarina had quite the different methods of dealing with the Clergy which is why she would be so cold and uncaring.

(Really didn't wish to disturb her any more while she was in this unstable state)

We then tell the three that the Matriarch insisted that we'd look after the Arc without Kasvarina, and we'd be happy if she had someone around her who she knew well. Fortunately, Asrabey agrees that it would be best for all if he just stayed in Sentosa with Kasvarina just in case she either remembered something important or some Ob would try to sneak into the city.

When we tell the group about the location of the Arc, Kieran Sentacore's eyes widen and he unpacks several old maps and scrolls to show us his vast knowledge. We let him do his historian magic and plan our path from Sentosa to the Sanctum of Ingatan. When Sentacore realizes that our trip would lead us close to the Perpetual City, the historian gets really excited and states that seeing or even visiting the city just once would be a dream come true for him. Auryn encourages him to follow this dream as we all could visit the city together once we're done with restoring Kasvarina's memories.

Carlyle bites his tongue however and then sends her a mental message telling Auryn that he wouldn't be so sure about that possibility. After all, Sentacore is no Eladrin and a kind-of prisoner from Danor. A prisoner who was just exposed to some of the more important secrets of a major Eladrin enclave. So he'd probably not be allowed to leave Sentosa for the rest of his life.

So we pack up and leave Sentosa as soon as we're ready. Our path leads us through the jungle for a whole week where we get the impression that we're very much alone in the wilderness. Then, we spot a gigantic mountain and realize that this must be the location of the Perpetual City. We venture closer until we finally spot the trail of a wooden carriage in the soft ground. It is accompanied by hoof-prints, so we guess it might just have been an ox cart that came through this clearance. And once we're closer to the peak of the mountain, we find a wooden watchtower.

So we continue our way in stealth mode in order to avoid any ruckus and get a clearer image of the situation in the city. Once we spot a scout in typical danoran clothing, we're glad that we took the extra precautions. We make a quick mental exchange and conclude that the Danorans wouldn't be here for no reason, so we'd risk the detour to take a closer look at the city.

We sneak down the crater and find a forsaken, but still magnificent ancient eladrin city. Unlike the other ruins, this one seems to be untouched by overgrowth and we quickly realize that there might be some subtle magic which keeps the jungle at bay. But as we venture deeper, the architecture changes bit by bit until Carlyle points at some really ancient but totally characteristic crisillyiri influences among the oldest buildings. And when we come to a larger, open space, we spot an inscription which mentions a family name that is clearly Crisillyiri. Carlyle remembers that name and also the lectures he had when he was in school: That the last descendant of this family had been executed for heresy because he had falsely claimed that Eladrin and Crisillyiri might have had the same roots.

Unfortunately, these hints are all we find about the theory that humans and Eladrin might have once lived side by side. We guess that the Danorans might have found more information, so we surprise the sole scout on the watchtower and ask him about the city. But alas, he doesn't know more than we already do, so we wipe his memory of this encounter and move on. After all, we still got an Arc to find.

So we continue in the general direction of the Sanctum of Ingatan until we finally find another road. As this road leads into the right direction and allows much faster travel, we follow its path for a while. We come across several smaller settlements which appear to be of Eladrin making, but which have been abandoned not too long ago. So we guess that we've finally entered the zone of conflict Athrylalla warned us about.

We continue down the road cautiously until we hear noises coming from somewhere further down the road. So we hide in the overgrowth along the road and spot a group of humans, obviously wearing crisillyiri clothing and armaments, who are transporting several injured on their carts. As this group is moving at quite the slow pace, we easily close the gap to them and follow them for a while. We see several claw wounds on the injured and guess that these might be soldiers who fought the Were-tigers, or Bagheva, as Athryalla called them. We also listen to their conversation and find that the group's morale is at a very low point. They are desperately waiting for the relief troops and have been far longer serving on the front lines than what they had signed up for.

We follow the crisillyiri soldiers to a small encampment surrounded by wooden palisades. Carlyle also smells the biting stench of pyre smoke, so we sneak in while being invisible and look for its source. As he had guessed,we find a still smoldering pyre where both human and eladrin bodies had been burned recently. Carlyle tries to connect to one of the deceased Eladrin and is able to summon the spirit of one man who died recently.

The Eladrin is very harsh and unfriendly at first, but Carlyle assures him that he is a friend who wants to help a fellow Eladrin woman. In addition, he would consider himself an enemy of the current Clergy, so any help he can provide us will probably weaken their enemy as well. The spirit sees the truth in his words and tell us about his home, Kanta Mahala, or Bramblehome. He tells Carlyle to look behind the curtain of the waterfall and to ask for Betronga, their leader.

Carlyle thanks the spirit for his trust and bids him farewell. We're about to leave this encampment when we suddenly hear commotion from further inside. So we sneak a bit closer and see that several of the crisillyiri soldiers are pointing hastily to the sky. We look into the same general direction and spot three larger figures advancing from the north. Before the Crisillyiri can get a better image on what these creatures could possibly be, they descend and disappear below the treeline.

We continue to stay hidden and listen to the soldiers' conversation regarding the strange sight and it appears as if they are in a heated debate on whether these would be larger birds or flying demons. In a flash of insight, Carlyle uses this uncertainty as a means to strike a heavy blow to their morale.

“Large birds? Haha, you fools, if you knew... if you only knew” he tells them mentally, one by one. with a truly malicious, demon-like undertone. Of course, the soldiers panic instantly and start looking for the source of these dark words.

“Now they know the true terror of uncertainty. Let's look for Kanta Mahala, these guys will most likely take the rest of the day to search for invisible demons” he tells Auryn mentally, this time in his usual voice. Still she senses a strange satisfaction and almost joy in his words.

(Telepathy or mental messaging in general can be a terrifying power in the hands of a creative player. And Carlyle is just the right person to know what trigger points he'd need to tap in an opponent.

As an anecdote, I had to tone down the psionic version of Sending in my WotBS campaign because the designers didn't realize it could easily be abused to constantly terrorize a person over a really long distance and for an almost infinite duration. Not that my players would have intended to use it that way, but the possibility was there...)

So we leave the crisilliyri encampment behind and follow the path to Kanta Mahala that we got from the eladrin's spirit. At first, we hurry as we want to make some distance to the encampment. But then we proceed with more caution as we know from our encounter with the eladrin hermit that traps can be quite deadly in these lands.

Just before we reach the final way to the Bramblehome, we start to hear more and more animal noises. Usually, more careless wanderers would interpret these sounds as a signal that wildlife is indeed abundant in this part of the forest, but both Carlyle and Auryn know the traditional signaling of eladrin scouts. Nevertheless, we continue cautiously, looking up to the trees every now and then to signal that we're quite aware of the hidden Eladrin.

Once the noises intensify, Auryn suggests Gabriel to go hide in the bushes as the scouts would be really close now and she doesn't know how the Bagheva would react to someone who looks so much like their Crisillyiri enemy. He agrees and makes a silent leap through space and time. It doesn't take Auryn much longer on the hidden path and she's all of a sudden being approached by a young Eladrin woman in hunter's leathers.

“And what would bring someone with such pretty garments to the territory of the Bagheva?” the woman asks with a raspy, almost feral voice.

Before Auryn can answer, the eladrin continues: “Seems to be one of the matriarch's kids. Smells like one, too. Your kind usually stays away from ours.”

“I am Auryn, and yes, I am the daughter of a matriarch. But I am not from Sentosa. My mother is matriarch Galadin of Pallita, but you'd probably never heard of it. I've come to find the Sanctum of Ingatan, for it is of utmost importance for the future of all our kind that we find an old relic of the god. So I'd be really glad if you could guide me to Kanta Mahala.”

When she realizes that Auryn shown no sign of aggression, the woman comes a bit closer and sniffs at her. She then nods and introduces herself as Talios Valanar, a scout from Bramblehome. This is a true surprise to Auryn as this young warrior apparently has the same name as matriarch Athryalla. Talios smirks when she mentions the matriarch of Sentosa whom she calls a very distant relative. She doesn't know exactly how they are related though as her ancestor must have left Sentosa several generations ago.

(In my headcannon, the original Bagheva went into the sealed temple of Hewanharimau and drank from the blood of the god. Maybe it was a stupid dare of one of the matriarch's kids, maybe it was a full-blown schism. But they were most likely exiled after that)

Auryn signals her interest in Talios' story, but she also has another point she'd like to talk about. First she asks the huntress to please stay no matter what happens next. She then tells Talios that she didn't come here all alone because no sane matriarch's daughter would do something that stupid and Talios laughs from all of her heart at that remark. Auryn then explains that she brought her Sahodar Mitra with her, a man she trusts with her life. She adds that he has quite the unusual appearance for an eladrin's Sahomi, so she hopes Talios will show him the same respect she'd shown her.

Talios seems intrigued, but also wary at this prospect. She nods again and Carlyle finally leaves the undergrowth to greet her. The Bagheva was very much ready to see a disfigured Eladrin, but she clearly wasn't prepared to see a human, lest a deva. So she transforms into a weretiger on the spot and growls at Carlyle. In reaction, he shows her his bare palms.

“Please, I mean no harm. Every word Auryn said was true. These people, these humans who may look like me are my enemy as well. We came here to look for the Sanctum, but we are ready to defend the Eladrin against the foreign intruders.”

Auryn adds that we two only recently learned of the conflict between the colonists and the Bagheva, which is why we would like to speak to their chief Betronga. Talios stays in her tiger form for a little longer before she calms down and transforms back. She seems still wary, but agrees to lead us to Kanta Mahala.

 

[Lylandra]

A cornered cat

Auryn adds that we two only recently learned of the conflict between the colonists and the Bagheva, which is why we would like to speak to their chief Betronga. Talios stays in her tiger form for a little longer before she calms down and transforms back. She seems still wary, but agrees to lead us to Kanta Mahala.

After a not too long journey and several animal calls from Talios later, we finally arrive in a small village consisting mostly of tents and huts that are built near the Sanctum of Ingatan and its surrounding platforms. Talios calls to her kin and states that she got two visitors from Sentosa who would like to talk to Betronga. Of course this attracts the attention of a larger number of the Bagheva who are curious about the newcomers.

Then, suddenly, Auryn feels as if something at her side is moving on its own and she understands that this is her blade drawing itself. She immediately tries to stop the weapon and the moment she touches it, she senses that it, or more specifically the part that was added by the Arsenal of Dhebisu, considers the Bagheva to be its enemies. What makes matters worse is the fact that the Bagheva seem to understand from the tiny flashes of the weapon that this must be the weapon which once killed their god. Or ancestor. Or whatever the relationship of these people and Hewanharimau would be.

“Stop it! You asked me to fight an 'evil', but these people are clearly not evil. We have a common enemy. This is my choice, not yours. Let go.” she says sternly, keeping the hilt of her weapon in a firm grip.

Of course, the Bagheva are still wary to the point where they seem to be unsure whether to attack or to watch and wait. Several growl and draw their weapons, but they stay at a distance for now. With a deep exhale Auryn places her rapier back in its hilt and tries to appear as harmless and calm as possible.

“It is true, I carry the Arsenal of Dhebisu with me. But the Star of Dhebisu didn't choose me to fight you, it asked me to fight evil, and I believe that there might be demons, or Rakhshasas out there somewhere. But as I told the star, you are noble warriors who fight to defend their home, who have long outgrown the ancient strife of the fallen god. We share against a common enemy, these humans who try to invade your lands. So I humbly ask you to accept our assistance.”

“What is going on here?!”

The strong voice of a male Bagheva silences the occasional growl of the others, and he introduces himself as Betronga, the rajah of this clan. We are glad to finally meet Betronga in person and repeat that we came here to help the Eladrin defend their lands and also to find the ancient artifact known as the Arc of Reida. Betronga seems to be both curious about the two of us and also cautious as we are not exactly what he'd call allies at first glance. So he asks us to follow him to his hideout and wait in the company of his warriors while he finishes his talks with the noble emissaries first.

We immediately get that these emissaries would most likely be the very same winged creatures we saw in the sky earlier, so we calmly warn Betronga that these people are potentially dangerous and that their help will come at a price.

“These winged eladrin are sent by a person who calls himself 'King Vardanis', but don't be mistaken. There is nothing noble about him or his kind.” Auryn says.

“At worst, they will simply take what they desire. Just like they did with the small villages far to the north”, Carlyle adds.

“So you're augurs now? How can you know so much about them? And how shall I know that it is not you who are playing mind tricks with me?” Betronga replies, although his voice seems very unsure this time.

We explain in return that we simply encountered them in the past and know a bit about these “Mad Kings”, but we wouldn't dare deny Rajah Betronga the opportunity to get an idea of his own about these people. Betronga smirks and then asks us to wait near some ancient stone buildings. We nonetheless follow him silently until we are in hearing range of his meeting point, the inside of one of the stone buildings.

As we see that several other Bagheva are watching from the outside, we just join them and see what the chief has to talk about. While the dignitaries and Betronga are busy exchanging traditional welcomes, we see that a lot of the villagers and warriors appear to be injured in one way or the other, and we get that these wounds could stem from their conflict with the Crisillyiri. Regarding the Feladrin, the talks proceed as we thought: They merely exchange empty words and utter the prospect of support against the human invaders, but require the sworn loyalty of the Bagheva and submission to their King's rule in return.

Fortunately, the emissaries leave as quickly as they came and fly away to the north. After the talks are finished, Betronga asks to meet us in the same house. We introduce ourselves again and ask him how his meeting proceeded.

“Frustrating. Just as you foretold, augurs.” he hisses with a hefty sigh.

We return that we already guessed so from his sour tone, and comfort him with the fact that they didn't outright threaten or attack him like they did when we had the “honor” of talking to some of them. Now Betronga is all curious about our encounter with the Feladrin and we tell him all about the Covenant enclave and Sawyer, and their raid on our allies. Fortunately, we were able to save the abducted people from a cruel fate, be that either to be sacrificed to their demonic allies or to be enslaved as laborers or wives. And these allies, Auryn adds, were just what she had in mind when she let the Arsenal join her.

“Then our situation is dire indeed, it seems my choice is between poison, leash, or sword to the chest. Oh if only my father was still alive. He'd know what to do...”

Betronga then tells us about his father's death in a battle against the humans and suddenly, we understand how such a young man could have become the Rajah of the Bagheva. He says that he already sent out the arrow of war to the surrounding tribe, but they never came to help him. He then sent the same request to Sentosa as they are distant relatives, but they would be too much concerned with their own safety as they didn't bother to answer either.

We guess that maybe someone of the Crisillyiri or even the Feladrin intercepted the scouts as Matriarch Athryalla would have told us about the request once we asked her for permission to get the Arc of Reida. So we offer him to send the Matriarch another arrow of war as we're pretty sure that she'd at least let us bring supplies to the Bagheva. We also offer to heal the wounded with our magic, an offer the young Rajah gladly accepts.

So we interrupt our talk for a while and do a healing session with the Bagheva, who are truly grateful to receive the work of such skilled healers. We explain that this is the grace of Srasama, not just a skill, which inspires even more awe.

Once we return to Betronga, he appears to be impressed that we gave our help without asking anything in return first. We explain that we'd also like to make sure that the Bagheva are safe in their Kanta Mahala and that this shouldn't be too much of a problem as the Crisillyiri soldiers appeared to be worn-down as well. Still we are no savages, and we do know mercy, so we'd ask Betronga to solve this problem our way. When he asks him what “our way” would include, we just tell him that we'd like to give the humans the choice to leave peacefully and never return.

Carlyle is a bit more skeptical regarding the chances of success as he knows more than anyone else about the zeal of the Crisillyiri, especially if there is one godhand among them, but he agrees to at least try the peaceful route first. He promises Betronga that, should the humans show any sign of betrayal, he would not hesitate to fight them. Betronga is unsure whether this plan could work at all, but he is willing to try it our way as we are clearly wiser and more experienced than him.

Finally, we get to the Arc of Reida and the Sanctum of Ingatan and explain that this artifact is why we came here at the first place. Betronga doesn't care too mucha bout ancient faiths and artifacts, but he can tell us that this thing must have been secured very neatly by the old Guardians of the Sanctum as no one who dared to enter this place as able to come out alive. So his father eventually forbade his tribe to enter the inner Sanctum at all.

We both agree that the Arc can wait just a bit longer and leave Kanta Mahala to go look for the Crisillyiri encampment once more.

 

[Andrew Moreton]

My players got conflicted with this bit, some of them did not want to fight the Crisillyiri but after a long debate they realised they could not think of a way to get to the Arc without the help of the weretigers or killing them and could not think of a way to make the Crisillyiri to go away peacefully. They considered asking the God Hand they had saved from the Ob for help but realised he would be very much backing the Crisillyrir so would be of no help . In the end they decided they had to spearhead the Weretiger attack . It will be interesting to see if you managed to come up with a none violent solution

 

[RangerWickett]

In gideonpepys's group, the PC with the Humble Hook, Korrigan, basically went up to Aulus Atticus and told him, "I bear the Humble Hook. I want you to withdraw, and my presence here is a divine message. The hook thinks you should leave without fighting." And Atticus was happy to have a higher authority give him an excuse for saving the lives of his soldiers. ZEITGEIST - [ZEITGEIST] The Continuing Adventures of Korrigan & Co.

In Andrew Morton's group , the party just bombarded Vigil Longis with magic, then killed the Clergy and didn't seem particularly bothered by it. ZEITGEIST - The affirmative action racial recruitment team of the RHC

In skotothalamos's (previously roadtoad's) group (the one where Kasvarina was an amnesiac PC named Summer who regained her memories during this adventure), the party also were pretty gung ho about driving out the Clergy, which ended up with the weretigers killing all the fleeing humans. ZEITGEIST - BSI: Bosum Strand Irregulars

I don't know if any other groups posted details about this scenario.

If I'd done a bit better of a job tying threads together, I'd have had the decision here have more direct consequences in the Act Three adventures.

 

[Andrew Moreton]

They really tried to think of a way not to attack the clergy camp but after they failed to come up with one, they decided they needed to do the job properly and make sure it was not reported back to Crisillyr that the Risuri were attacking. Then they were brutally efficient in annihlating the camp and leaving a few survivors for the weretigers to hunt down. But they would have liked a peaceful solution but could not think of any way to get one both sides would agree to and then it came down to they like the Eladrin more than the clergy and needed Eladrin allies

 

[hirou]

Huh. So I guess my group is a minority. They didn't like the attitude of Clergy, but didn't want to kill them on behalf of weredrins, so they tried to sneak into the temple in the night. That plan went predictably wrong, in the end weretigers were forced to relocate to another place and Clergy triumphantly destroyed the temple.

 

[Lylandra]

our version of Vitus Sigismund would have definitely sided with the Crisillyiri, so he was completely out of the equation for us. As you'll see soon, the Humble Hook played a role in our solution for the conflict. I just wish we would have been able to use it more often.

In retrospect, I believe that "old Auryn" would have simply sided with the Bagheva and attacked the Crisillyiri, with Carlyle most likely backing her up as the Clergymen are clearly the aggressors here. This more experienced version, equipped with the Hook, would seek out a peaceful solution first. It helped that Carlyle is really good at playing mind games and finding clever ways of non-threatening intimidation.

It is really interesting to see how different groups handled the whole situation in a completely different way. But yeah, I would have loved to see Aulus Atticus again in Act 3. Finally a non-crazy Clergyman.

 

[Lylandra]

Spiritual diplomacy

This time, we agree that the deva part of our duo might have the upper hand in the talks as the soldiers might take Carlyle for being part of the reinforcements they are desperately waiting for. Still we don't really know what we're getting into, so we decide to wait till night falls and scout their encampment once more. This way, we learn that no only the morale is at a low point, but that there are also several wounded soldiers and apparently a lack of healing magic. What makes matters worse for the Crisillyiri is the fact that the reinforcements won't be coming for a long time, should they come at all. A fact that appears to be carefully hidden inside the commander's office desk.

“I knew they were cruel, but to let their own be abandoned without hope like that is yet another level of depravity”, Carlyle says mentally and we retreat for now.

The next morning, we both just walk to the gate out on the open and try to greet the Crisillyiri. Our politeness is returned with an arrow in front of our feet and a quick question whether the deva would be a soldier with a Were-Tiger prisoner. Carlyle quickly points out that Auryn is no Bagheva, or Were-Tiger as they'd call them, but rather an Eladrin emissary from another enclave who came here to negotiate. So, no prisoner, but a diplomat. Carlyle continues to ask to be able to talk to the one who's in charge here and he promises that we'll enter and leave peacefully.

The Crisillyiri tell us to wait as they'd relegate our request to a man called Aulus Atticus, a noble Godhand of the Clergy. Said Aulus Atticus appears to be a handsome and tall man who agrees to let us enter their encampment as he cannot sense any betrayal in our words. The soldiers are as confused and wary at our presence as the Bagheva were before, but Aulus seems to be untouched by their emotional instability. We thank the man for this opportunity to maybe solve this conflict with words rather than weapons, and Aulus is curious about the reason we came here.

Carlyle explains that we came here on behalf of the Bagheva, or Were-Tigers as they'd call them, who are merely trying to defend their ancient home from foreign invaders. Auryn adds that she has seen what the Crisillyiri did to her people, be they Bagheva or not. She talks about the abandoned villages, about the refugees who were driven off their land and families that got torn apart by this needless violence. Carlyle finishes the statement by explaining that many of these refugees now reside in a holy site, their last Sanctum that they are surely going to defend relentlessly until either them or the Crisillyiri are dead.

“I don't know how many wars you have fought in, noble Godhand, but I have fought the Eladrin on their home turf in the great war five hundred years ago. This is not an experience I want you to share. And the people I fought were not as cornered as the Bagheva are right now.”

He lets these words sink in for a moment before he continues.

“And I know that your soldiers are desperately waiting for reinforcements. Reinforcements, which as we both know, will never arrive. Meanwhile, the Bagheva have sent out a call to help to other clans and the nearby enclaves. And they are about to rally allies as you can clearly see by our presence.”

This news appear to deal another heavy blow to the morale of the surrounding soldiers who listened to our exchange with Aulus Atticus with great interest. Of course the Godhand realizes this as the spreading poison it could be, which is why he kindly asks us to continue our talk in his office. Carlyle smiles confidently as we agree to go inside.

Once inside, Aulus Atticus pretty directly states that he has no personal grudge against the Eladrin savages who live here, he is just following orders and doing his job. He'd also let the Bagheva live in peace should they bow to the Theocracy, renounce their heretical faith, convert to the Clergy belief and follow the divine laws of Crisillyir.

Auryn laughs softly at this proposal before she tries to appeal to the Godhand's consciousness.

“You do know that you are the ones who entered the territory of the Eladrin, forcefully, and are about to commit blasphemous acts against their faith?”

“But your lands were forsaken after the Victory. For the Theocracy, these are empty jungles and we need the resources.”

“Don't call it.. nevermind. Our people merely hid from you, they retreated to hideouts to regrow and revive our way of life. You entered our land, so it would be more appropriate for you to adapt to our customs. Leave them be and the Bagheva will cease the violence. That much I can promise.”

Carlyle adds that, should the Crisillyiri continue their attacks, they should know that they and the other aggressive colonists are just about to cause different groups of Eladrin to join forces, which is why they could easily be the best catalyst for forging a unified Elfaivar. An Elfaivar that could turn out to be an enemy of the Clergy once more, with a new conflict that could place Aulus and his men at the front.

“Do you really want to be the man who makes the Clergy an enemy of a unified Elfaivar, Aulus Atticus?” Auryn says in a tone as friendly and warm as she can bring herself to use. Which works surprisingly well, but may also be connected to the fact that this Godhand for once seems to be reasonable and not just a blind fanatic.

The Godhand takes a deep breath and then looks at Auryn for a while. His eyes eventually fall onto the small amulet hanging around her neck and he exhales a quiet gasp as his eyes widen.

“This pendant of yours, may I take a closer look?” he asks with honest curiosity and reverence.

Auryn agrees as she once again senses no ill intent from the Godhand.

“Sweet Triegenes, this is the real one, isn't it? The Humble Hook that was lost centuries ago. I can sense its holy presence. How did this happen?”

“It left its previous owner by choice, if this is what you ask. It wasn't content with his plans and morals and now wants to be with me it seems. Ever since the Hook joined me, it encouraged me to find peaceful solutions for conflicts. I know that it must be a cruel irony for a faithful of Triegenes like you that your most holy relic chose an Eladrin, but who are we to question its choice?”

“Who are we to judge the divine, indeed. Thank you, you have given me a lot to think about, emissary Auryn.”

He then serves us a bit of what little coffee he has left and stays silent for a while. When we finish our drink, Aulus Atticus asks us to give him two more days for consideration as he doesn't want to make a hasty choice. We agree since we also have to return to the Bagheva's Sanctum and bring their chief the news of our negotiations. So we leave the encampment in peace and walk down the road for a while. Of course, we stay on alert should the Crisillyiri be foolish enough to follow us to Kanta Mahala. But for once, our trust in the Godhand doesn't seem to be misplaced as we can sense no humanoid soul in a large radius.

Carlyle still wants to be extra sure and help the Bagheva by all means possible, so he asks Auryn to return on her own while he stays close to the encampment. This way he may be on alert just in case the Godhand or another Crisillyiri tries something funny.

Auryn takes a while to return to Betronga and the Bagheva, but she is warmly welcomed this time. She tells the young Rajah about her and her Sahomi's negotiations with the humans and adds that there might be an chance that they'd leave. Betronga is a bit worried about Carlyle's whereabouts though, but Auryn stresses out that Gabriel is quite capable of surviving in the jungle. She offers Betronga to personally deliver a message to the Bagheva's sister tribes as this was one of the reasons why the human leader may consider our proposal.

“Your words are more sharp than our spears then. I've never thought that talking could hold that much power.”

“You're welcome, Betronga.” Auryn says with a chuckle.

“Would you marry me?” the Rajah then asks all of a sudden.

“Pardon?”

“I mean it. Our clan needs a person like you. I'm young, but I know what I can and what cannot do. I need a mate who is wise, knowledgeable and patient, who is what I cannot be.”

Auryn smiles at Betronga, takes his hands and then declines his generous offer politely. She explains that while she has deepest sympathy for the Bagheva and will do everything she can to ensure their survival, her destiny is elsewhere. Also, she has already set her eyes on another.

(not that this would have worked in any kind of way. Betronga is basically a boy in Auryn's culture and what he desires in a partner is what she'd be looking for in her first husband as well.)

While they are waiting for Carlyle to return, Talios also shows her interest in the “enclave Eladrin”. She asks Auryn a lot of questions about her home and is quite astonished to hear that this young-looking woman is already 76 years old. She explains with some pride that the blessing of Hewanharimau had given the Bagheva the ability to grow into adulthood much quicker, and he gave them a good fertility and physical prowess on top of that. Auryn agrees that these are qualities she has seen in her mother's tiger companion as well, and that the ferocity of the Bagheva might be just what could be needed in these savage lands.

(She was being polite here. Of course she has a lot of respect for the Bagheva's fight for survival and their adaptability, but she finds their lack of knowledge and wisdom dangerous – two qualities that only come with age and experience. To her, Talios, Betronga and most of the others are a bunch of feral teens who would really be in need of guidance. But she also knew that she couldn't fill that role. And yep, she is clearly biased by her own cultural background)

Meanwhile, Carlyle is taking his time to watch the Crisillyiri encampment. After some time has passed, he spots a larger troop leaving the garrison to go on a scouting mission. He follows them for a while and understands that they are looking for a new place to settle in. The place they'd find viable would still be very close to the territory of the Bagheva though. So he uses a disguise spell to take on the look of an Eladrin scout and conjures the illusion of a small group of well-armored Eladrin warriors to accompany him. He makes sure that the Crisillyiri spot the group (who are obviously watching the soldiers) eventually to let them know that they are still being in Eladrin lands. As soon as they notice the Eladrin, the humans get all nervous, pack up and retreat to their encampment.

Once Carlyle is sure that the humans won't try anything funny too soon, he returns to Bramblehome and brings everyone up to date. Betronga is very much amused that this deva is using “the mind of the enemy as a weapon”, to which he adds that Auryn once used the image of a dragon tyrant to stop an army. The young Rajah laughs loudly at this story and thanks Carlyle for his help.

As we still have one day left until we're scheduled to hear from Aulus Atticus again, we offer Betronga to deliver the blood-stenched arrow of war to their closest sister tribe and he is again glad to have such a support on his side.

The day after, we return to the encampment to meet with the Godhand on official ground. In his usual calm, he states that he doesn't wish to endanger the lives of his men more than he already has. He still has his orders, but “his faith” appears to have sent him an unambiguous message that this is not the right place for him. He makes a small nod towards the Humble Hook and smirks. Instead, after he consulted the maps and prayed for guidance, the Godhand found a way to technically still obey his orders while also being able to leave these lands behind: To simply go southwards to a large, uninhabited valley. We both are really thankful for his wisdom and express our heartfelt relief.

(There you have it: A non-violent solution. And yes, Tinyhook was totally complicit in this solution. As players, we were both happy with the outcome as this is a very typical situation in a lot of games: Choose a faction to side with and then automatically become enemy of the opposing faction in return.

As the player who had the Hook, I was also a bit unsure about how to properly read the rules on how to gain and lose concordance. Especially in the cases where the owner or ally kills someone without trying dialogue – would that also count for self-defense or in a large battle like the War of the Pirates on Hunlow? Does one have to try dialogue with each and every opponent? What about lawful executions? Also, why is stopping combat with diplomacy on the list (this is one reason why I wanted to get my hands on Reason so desperately) but not avoiding encounters/solving conflict by diplomacy altogether? I think Tiz would have benefited from some hints in the adventures to when or how Hook-points could be gained or lost i.e. when such a thing like stopping combat with words would realistically work.

Regarding Auryn's mental state, she is actually quite happy in this Elfaivar episode. After her long talk with Gabriel before their departure from Flint, she finally realized that he would always be by her side no matter what. And when they both stood on the temple of Srasama and talked about the nature of the goddess, her path forward was suddenly very clear. She is also very glad that Gabriel was very much not like Asrabey and while she knew that Gabriel once had a very strong connection to another woman, this wasn't anywhere near the situation of Kasvarina and Pillai. Also, seeing that Athryalla actually has an interest in a good relationship to Risur gave her positive vibes that their project in Kellandia might be accepted in more enclaves – especially since Athryalla is one of the three original High Matriarchs)

 

[Lylandra]

The trial of Ingatan, or: There are four flames

We return to Betronga and the Bagheva and bring him the good news. The Rajah is very happy hearing about the humans' departure, but we all don't know for sure whether the colonists may return somewhen in the future. So we suggest we'd bring the arrow to a few more clans in the area and explain the situation to them. This way, Betronga's clan could rekindle the unity of the Children of Hewanharimau.

The Rajah joyfully accepts our offer and states that this way, the Bagheva may become Elfaivar's true surviving future. Again, we don't wish to rain on his parade, but we do remind him that not too long ago he sensed that his tribe was missing something. Something that the enclave of Sentosa may have plenty of. Auryn adds that she, too, learned a lot once she saw the different enclaves and now the Bagheva's way of life. Also, as a Risuri, she knows that there is strength in diversity, in different ideas and approaches to their people's challenges. So maybe it would be a wise idea to look to an enclave like Sentosa for inspiration as well.

“Matriarch Athryalla knows a lot about talking. She had opted for the diplomatic route even before both of us were born.”, Auryn explains.

It seems as if Betronga is at least interested in reforging the connections to Sentosa. Still, we first have to find what we came for at the first place: The crown of Reida. Betronga sees no problem in letting us enter the Sanctum after all we've done for him. He warns us though that there is a reason why this place is usually for secret-keepers only as even the cleansing ritual can be quite deadly.

Auryn laughs at this statement.

“Good that I am one of those 'secret keepers' then, eh?”

“Haha, I completely missed that, dear Aur-Ryn. Maybe this is an omen. Maybe you are meant to enter”

“Ingatan's ways are as mysterious as they are funny”

Carlyle nods, thinking about the strange but cohesive way the Temple of Ingatan in Rumah Terakir was structured. He adds that he knows a lot about the nature of time, which is why he would have a natural knack for dealing with an artifact linked to the planet of time. Betronga asks us to just take good care of ourselves, and then we enter the Sanctum.

We carefully examine the first rooms and find that the purification chamber has been trapped by those who left the Sanctum, so we avoid it. We also spot a fresco of Ingatan, carrying four flames. Auryn explains that these represent both the past and the future and guesses that the test could be linked to all four time scales.

So we decide to start this test in the correct chronological order and thus with the monochrome hall of the far past. The room switches immediately to a vision of the Coaltongue on the day we first met King Aodhan. The first person we see is Inspector Delft who tells us to go look for Duchess Ethelyn who has been suspiciously absent for a while now. All of a sudden, Delft is interrupted though as two ashen grey fire elementals appear and attack us.

“Now this is something that definitely didn't happen back then. Let us put the timeline back in order” says Carlyle and draws his kukris.

The elementals are not much of a threat, and we understand that this might still be a test after all. The moment the last of the grey creatures dissolves, the remaining embers form one small, harmless flame which we transfer to the statue of Ingatan.

We don't take much time to examine the mechanism behind this much further, but rather venture on to the next hall, this time tinted in red. As soon as we step in, the hall transforms again and we are suddenly standing in the workshop of Tinker Oddcog deep down in Gradiax' hoard.

At first, the room appears to be forsaken (which seems odd as we encountered both “Pemberton” and Oddcog back then, but then we see one transparent image of Fordren.

“Strange... you, why are you here? This is not your... this is not the time for you!” he says, but then vanishes again.

We then spot smaller flames lying all over the place and then feel that the room is getting hotter and hotter. So Auryn uses a flame warding dance before we split up to gather the flamelings one by one. Due to the protective aura, the fire doesn't harm us and we manage to unite the pieces in a timely manner. This then lets us ignite the red flame of the recent past.

(A first glimpse at the true nature of Gradiax and one thing he has in common with Carlyle: Time is his specialty)

We both agree that the next two rooms will be potentially difficult for us as they may give us insight into the future course of events. Nevertheless, we enter the hall of the near future, which is dominated by a yellow shine. The room twists as before, but this time we cannot make sense of the place we're being in. It appears to be on a large platform atop what must be a gigantic tower. The platform is walled with the occasional opening from which we can spot a city full of white houses way down below. In the middle of the platform is some sort of portal which may lead to another world as the sun is rising on that place while we're looking at a full moon on the sky above us. Right in front of the portal, we spot the body of a dead, large-framed man, but his face is veiled in shadows so thick that even Auryn's light spells cannot pierce them.

Then, all of a sudden, yellow flamelike ghosts appear in the openings and try to scorch us with flyby attacks. Carlyle retaliates immediately and dissolves one of the ghosts. Auryn does the same with the second one and then decides to go after the other two. This turns out to be a near-fatal mistake as her flight spell is being suppressed the moment she leaves the platform and she starts plummeting toward the ground. Luckily, she is able to roll around midair and catch the ledge with her arms. Which of course makes a perfect target for the remaining ghosts.

Carlyle dashes into her direction and hits one of the ghosts before it can reach Auryn. This leaves him with three parts of the yellow flame and gives Auryn enough time to crawl up the platform again. She warns Carlyle about the anti-magic field outside and hides behind the walls. The ghost stays out of the tower however, and we are being forced to think of a new strategy.

“Will you shoot it for me?”, Carlyle asks all of a sudden.

“Of course, but what will happen to the flame?”, Auryn replies.

“Don't worry. I will catch it.”

Auryn finally agrees, draws her (severely underused) bow and fires a salve of arrows at the ghost. It doesn't take too long and the elemental dissolves, leaving a flame behind that starts falling immediately. Carlyle then teleports directly to the edge of the platform and jumps after the flame. He combines the four parts midair, and all of a sudden the shadows in the dead man's face vanish and reveal that he is no one but our dear friend Andrei.

(we kind of suspected it the moment we saw the bulky frame. That was one low blow. Also, Carlyle, what a daredevil!)

The room changes back as Ingatan accepts this unusual solution to his trial and we ignite the yellow flame in his hand. Auryn, however, is shocked by what she just saw. She tells Gabriel about Andrei's death and adds that this path of the future would break Isobel's heart.

“This is exactly why we need to remove Reida from our configuration. This future, this fate, is just too cruel. And knowing that it will most likely be inevitable...”

“Don't... please. Don't you start believing that this future is inevitable.” Gabriel pleads, and then embraces her tightly.

“This is but one possible future and while I see that Ingatan can play some damaging tricks, he isn't that cruel. I'd rather believe that this is an opportunity so we may change the outcome of this event. Never forget that time is my friend. He won't die on us.”

Auryn finally agrees to trust their power, even if both know that Nicodemus would be more than a match for them.

We then move on to the last test, the trial of the far future. This room is lit with a white light and transforms into a forest-y landscape. The next person we see is Rock Rackus and this time it is Carlyle who is dismayed by this sight. We appear to be on the run with several more people coming with us, but we know none of them. They are not bothered by our sight, so we guess they must at least be brief acquaintances. Then, we see meteors falling from the sky and our pace increases. In a clearing before us, we can see the destination of our flight: A ship that appears to be an airship!

Now it is Carlyle's turn to be shocked as this scenario has always been his worst nightmare. The meteors finally split the ground and separate us from the airship. Then, we see a rival group which is also trying to reach the ship: A bunch of kyton devils wearing golden chains. What is even more shocking is the fact that these devils all of a sudden teleport onto the ship despite them wearing golden chains.

So we guess that this vision might be a future where the Obs or someone else successfully changed the planar configuration in a way that removed Urim's blocking effect. Also, these guys are definitely part of the Golden Legion, so this part of our warning was obviously correct. Despite the fact that we could both just cross the gap to the devils, Carlyle offers all of us a safe passage by creating an icy bridge over the chasm.

(Elsa Carlyle? Also yes, he does love these wall spells)

On the ship's deck, we fight the devils and finish them quickly, leaving us with the fragments of the white flame. Then, the cracks beneath the ship widen and this whole place appears to be crumbling to dust. We just hope that this wasn't our home we saw as we return to the white hall with the white flame of the distant future in our hands.

“Let's just hope that this was merely another possible version of the future as well...” Auryn says, breathing heavily after this world-shattering vision.

The test ends with the last flame in the statue's hands, and one of the walls opens up to reveal a wall of fire. This turns out to be merely an illusion (trickster god again...), which we may pass safely. All of a sudden, we find ourselves standing on the spires of Ingatan's statue where the Arc of Reida appears right in front of us. We carefully look at the artifact and are then being hailed by the Bagheva who don't understand why we would suddenly appear on top of the Sanctum.

We shout that we just finished the trial of Ingatan and got the Arc of Reida, so no worries, this is all part of the plan. Before we lay our hands on the Arc, we examine it with magic and then wrap it in a cloth as we fear it might imprint on us or something like that.

We then climb down the Sanctum again and thank Betronga for this opportunity. Still we have to return to Sentosa as quickly as possible, so we cannot stay for much longer. The Rajah understands us and then asks us to take him and Talios with us so he may speak to Matriarch Athryalla. We have given him much tot think about, he says, and so he'd like to try understand the enclave-dwellers a bit more. Carlyle agrees to teleport the four of us to the gate of Rumah Terakir. But the moment her casts the spell, he notices that something doesn't work as planned as he is slightly off-target and we all get slightly scorched.

“Sorry, I knew this could happen eventually. Nothing to be worried about.” he says, but Auryn deep down knows that Carlyle so far has never missed a target. She doesn't want to alarm the Bagheva though and so she keeps quiet. We are still close enough to the entrance so we are able to enter the enclave in a timely manner despite the mishap.

(And this is where I got major WotBS vibes. We knew we would be able to handle such an effect, but this was very obviously linked to the “burning threshold” Old Stag warned us about)

 

[Lylandra]

To shatter a Dreadnought

Faedhraven hails us at the entrance to Sentosa, and she appears to be her grumpy self again once she sees Betronga and Talios. We explain the situation to her and add that the Bagheva would rather turn to Sentosa for help than to ally with the Mad King Vardanis and she lets the four of us enter without too much struggle. She insist that they'd at least take a bath before meeting with the High Matriarch and Carlyle tries to ease the tense situation by adding that the bathhouse would only be a “cat's leap” away from here.

Then, all of a sudden, Betronga bursts into laughter.

“You... you are really funny!” he shouts, holding his stomach while the rest of the group looks at each other with surprised confusion.

“Finally someone who understands my humor. That means much to me, thank you Rajah Betronga.” Carlyle says with a roguish wink.

(Who would have thought that? We feared Betronga might take the joke as an insult, but he appears to be on the same level of bad puns as Carlyle)

The two Bagheva then leave to go to the bathhouse while we take some time to discuss the recent events and hide from Asrabey, as he'd surely insist that we'd use the Arc of Reida immediately no matter what.

Auryn appears to be still worried about the visions of the future, even though she wants to believe that the future is not set in stone yet. Still, the moment she tried to make her peace with “destiny”, her faith in their power to change their future was dealt yet another blow. Carlyle however sees their vision as a reminder that any kind of manipulation on the planar seal would be a really bad idea. He adds that he understands Auryn's stance, but states that their intertwined path would also be some sort of “destiny” and that she was actually the first one to desperately search for hints of that.

(Yeah, back after adventure 5, Auryn was looking for every little clue she could find to confirm that they were meant to be partners.)

We agree that some dash of destiny wouldn't be too bad, but that we'd still do everything we can to prevent this disastrous future we saw in the visions from happening.

We also talk a bit about Sentosa and Carlyle says that this city, beautiful as it may be, still has a lot of shadows, more than he originally anticipated. This could very much include Matriarch Athryalla whom even he finds hard to read, especially when it comes to her past relationship with Kasvarina. Auryn returns that she doesn't find it too odd that a woman of 500 years would have her secrets and know how to hide them. After all, he wouldn't be too different for a person who hardly knows him. She hopes to foster a good relationship with the Matriarch so that both her family and the connection between Risur and Elfaivar may prosper.

“You really are becoming a politician. I wouldn't have though you'd be able to brush away your feelings about the Ananta Paudha that easily.”, he replies.

Auryn sighs quietly. “I know. I am a bit surprised as well. Maybe because we have different priorities now. But I will ask her diplomatically about this institution if I get the chance.”

Then, we return the subject to the silver crown of Reida and the myriad of possible ways to use the artifact. Carlyle is a bit worried about the temptation it carries for him, as this artifact would be the greatest treasure for every Deva who tries to reconnect with his past lives. And as someone who died recently and had a lifetime of five centuries before that, this does feel tempting. But he'd also call it presumptuous to not allow himself to be a wholly different person in the next life.

“I wouldn't call it that. Not when you are involved. Your past self kept a large collection of notes about his life, and you have been eager to understand them, so this 'you' should be able to use the Arc without betraying who he is.”, Auryn says.

She adds that she would encourage him to use the Arc if he feels like it was the right choice. Also, she is very much certain that there are key characteristics that every incarnation of a deva would carry within them, even though the environment clearly leaves its mark on the new person.

“You're right. I might try it. But only if we have the time. And only if we don't risk to mess with Kasvarina's memories.”

We then move to the inn to rest for the night. The next day, we meet with Talios and Betronga and accompany them to the Seat of the Matriarchs. First, we introduce the two as representatives of their clan and mention that Talios would be a distant relative of the Matriarch. Athryalla is surprised to hear that, but she seems to welcome the opportunity to get to know more about this branch of her family. It becomes very apparent that the Bagheva and the denizens of Sentosa, especially their respective leaders differ a lot in terms of manners and character. Still they quickly agree that King Vardanis and the Crisillyiri colonists would be a potential threat to both their territories. Both sides seem to be open on a future cooperation and offer mutual support. The Matriarch is also surprised to hear that we managed to drive off the Clergy soldiers without bloodshed.

We then present the Arc of Reida and ask Matriarch Athryalla to honor her side of our agreement as we wish to give the artifact to Kasvarina. The Matriarch agrees to this as well, even though we get the impression that she is a bit nervous about that.

To our surprise, she'd like to talk more about making contact with Risur, and especially the monarch we mentioned. The Matriarch mentions the Ranamandala of old and that she knows from the times long gone that not all Kings are wicked monsters like Vardanis. Yes, she once tried the diplomatic path and failed, but this time, it might be different. Of course this is like water on Auryn's mill and she tells Athryalla about Kellandia and the progress her grandmother Kaealys and governor Roderick have made over the years. She explains that what once was a colony had become a place where Eladrin and Risuri could work in harmony and where technology was only used to protect. She adds that maybe other colonies might turn to a similar model in time, especially those founded by Berans. The others might need more political pressure though. But an ally like Risur might just turn out to be a powerful enough signal to make other nations stop founding new colonies on Eladrin lands.

Should this path of equal coexistence prove to be stable and steady, Auryn says, then maybe Elfaivar could just secure its future for the centuries to come. Athryalla seems a bit more cautious as she burned her fingers before with the Crisillyiri, but she understands where Auryn's optimism is coming from.

Before they part ways, Auryn then finally and carefully asks Athryalla about the Ananta Paudha, as this institution would be unthinkable in her home enclave.

“I understand your aversion and your troubles, my dear. But back then, we were so few Eladrin. We needed children and this way worked well. Our men have long learned to respect the tradition, and they would not dare make demands. And look at where we're now... almost back where we've been. At least as long as we stay inside Sentosa.”

Auryn nods silently as she sees that Sentosa is doing well despite what seem to be flaws in her eyes. She thanks Athryalla for her honesty and then we leave the pyramid to return to Kasvarina and Asrabey.

When we finally arrive at Kasvarina's house after the audience, we spot a very impatient Dreadnought walking up and down like a tiger in a cage. He seems very pleased when we inform him about our successful mission with the Arc.

“Honestly, I didn't expect less of you.” Asrabey says, finally at peace now. “If I'd ever had a daughter... no, you are very much like the daughter I've never had and will never have.” he adds and pats Auryn on the shoulder with a smile both proud and... almost mournful.

We all bring the good news to Kasvarina who is very eager to try out the Arc of Reida the moment we unpack the artifact. We urge her to play it easy before getting into the unknown head over heels, but she quickly places the crown on her head. She immediately feels drawn towards someplace else in Sentosa and we all follow her straight through the enclave.

Kasvarina's path leads her straight to what must have once been an inn which is now inhabited by an Eladrin family. Kasvarina seems to be in trance as she enters the place and we do our best to calm the family down and explain the situation to them. Around Kas, the room seems to shift just like in our visions in the Sanctum of Ingatan, turning it more opulent. We are pretty curious to find out where this vision may lead us, but Asrabey appears to know exactly what this is all about. And he doesn't like it at all.

“Oh no. I know tha-” he says and falls silent as if the trance is getting him as well. Then the Arc recreates Kasvarina's memory. Asrabey appears to be younger while Kasvarina stays very much the same at first glance. Then she turns to her husband and expresses her frustration about her unfruitful talks with Matriarch Athryalla. She states that the Crisillyiri will never learn and that any kind of negotiation with them will be futile, if not fatal. Then Kasvarina talks briefly about her own enclave, Ushanti, disrobes and dons her nightgown as she is about to go to sleep. She casually tells Asrabey that she'll send him to the Unseen Court and that she's unsure whether they will see each other again. Asrabey appears to be taken aback for a moment, but then regains his posture. He says he understands and will heed his Matriarch's command, but asks her to lie with him one last time.

Carlyle, of course, feels very much uncomfortable in this private situation (especially as he doesn't know what might happen next), but he doesn't say a word to not disrupt the memory. To his relief and Asrabey's dismay, she rejects him though as she has different issues on her mind and will visit her daughters' graves in Resal tomorrow.

The vision ends abruptly and the room turns back to normal. Asrabey, however, turns around and leaves the house without saying a single word.

“Asrabey, wait!” Auryn shouts and runs after him. But the moment he steps outside, Asrabey draws his Dream Staff, opens a semi-stable portal to the Dreaming and vanishes in a burst of flame. Carlyle stays with Kasvarina and helps her recover from this rush of emotions and memories. She regains her mental control and when Auryn returns, she looks utterly sad and heartbroken.

“I... don't understand. Once she felt something for him. She still did somehow. But in this moment, when she turned from him, her heart was cold as ice. Is this... was this really me? How could I have been so cruel?”

We both take her hands and do not leave Kasvarina's side until the immediate rush wears off. When she finally says that she's fine for now, Auryn offers to send a message to Asrabey as he only knows half the truth and will be just as heartbroken as Kasvarina, with the difference that he's all alone. But Carlyle closes his eyes and quickly shakes his head.

“Leave him for now. He needs his time alone. Right now, he won't understand a single word you say anyway. Contact him in a few days and he'll be ready to listen. Believe me, I've been there before.”

(Poor Asrabey. He's really getting the short end of the stick here. All in all you could say that he is very much like a character in a Shakespearean tragedy. Also, his continued loyalty to Kasvarina is so much more impressive once you get to know that they once parted like this. Carlyle still doesn't like him as he's too unstable for his taste, but he's starting to feel for him. Auryn however holds him very dear which will obviously lead to much drama in the upcoming adventures.)