Celestial Saga

-Within the town of Weriand, a harsh wind blows

Althaea— ” So this is the place..Weriand”

Faila Rein- ” It looks so cozy!!”

Myriam- “It seems almost derelict, if not for the lanterns within the buildings.”

Z.ora—

” Well, what would you expect?”

” Some form of wintry curse befell this entire region some time ago.”

“Its considered a miracle that anyone still remains alive within an area like this.”

Althaea— ” It was said that Weriand originally served as a place where people seeking a new lease on life far from the national conflicts of the rest of the mainland would venture.”

Z.ora—

” The correspondence said that we’re to make contact with the town-speaker, right?”

Althaea— ” Yes, but, the message itself seemed odd.”

Faila Rein-

” In what way?”

Myriam—

” We were sent out here because the letter seemed to have a coded message within, requesting help for the township itself.”

Z.ora— ” A bit strange.”

“Typically, one wouldn’t encode a message like that unless they’re afraid of certain parties intercepting it.”

“Or…perhaps its even closer to home.”

Faila Rein— “Hm…..closer to home…”

Myriam— ” In other words, the threat must be working close to the town-speaker.”

“A possible hostage?”

Z.ora— “That’s the theory for now.”

“But we should feign ignorance for now, just in case.”

———————————————-

The group arrive up to the town’s looming castle, where two guards stand at attention

Althaea—

” Excuse me , but we are here answering a summons given to our order by your town-speaker”

Guard— “Town speaker Kardath is not available.”

Althaea—

” Why is that? for a detachment of knights from our chapter to be dispatched, surely we can be at least granted an audience with the sender.”

Guard— “Kardath is bed-ridden, and will be so until an a doctor from a neighboring town is sent over.”

Faila Rein— ” He’s ill? I could totally fix that!!”

-The guard halts Faila with a hand

Guard- ” Kardath will only be seen by the appointed doctor.”

Faila Rein-

Z.ora—

” How long will it take for this doctor to come treat Kardath?”

Guard— ” Due to harsh wintry weather, it could be anywhere from a week or more.”

Z.ora— ” Great…”

Althaea— ” If possible, could we simply come visit him after he’s been treated?”

Guard— ” …Very well. Find yourselves lodging at the town inn and we’ll be sure to send someone for you when the time arrives”

—————————————————-

-The group walk the streets, with Z.ora slightly comforting Faila

Faila Rein— ” I could’ve helped the town-speaker, I’m sure of it!!

Z.ora— ” Dont let it get to you. Something’s up with that anyway.”

Myriam— ” For them to be so adamant in keeping us away from Kardath suggests…something.”

” Althaea, where are you taking us?”

Althaea- ” I’d like to check out the town’s bar, to see if there’s any rumors we could possibly gather.”

—————————————————

-After some time passes, the group exit the bar, with Z.ora leaning against the building’s wall

Z.ora— ” I told you it was a waste of time.”

“Even if someone does have any info, they’re not going to be caught dead talking to a group of holy knights.”

Althaea- ” True. I wouldn’t say it was all a waste though..”

Z.ora— ?

” Elaborate”

Althaea— “For starters, we now have a good image of who all is a regular out and about civilian of this place.”

“The town’s population doesn’t seem terribly big, so we can already narrow down alot of guesswork when it comes to deiciding if someone looks suspicious or not.”

Z.ora— ” Yea, I follow.”

Faila Rein—

” The wind is really picking up, can we get our room for the night!?”

————————————————————–

-After arranging for their room with several personal beds, Faila lays on her bedding as Myriam places her halberd in an easy-access spot

Myriam— ” This weather is going to force us to be mindful of our field times out here.”

“The frigid quality of the air saps strength from a man at a high rate”

Althaea- ” Well, I don’t see us needing to go anywhere outside of this town, save for whenever we finally depart.”

-There is a knock at the door

Faila Rein- “I’ll get it!”

“Hey! You’re the guard from earlier today!”

Guard— ” Town-speaker Kardath’s health has improved enough that he willing to take an audience of your group”

Faila Rein— ” Really!?”

Guard— ” However, he will only see two of your number.” “I am here to escort whichever two you wish to see Kardath”

Althaea— “I will go.”

Myriam- ” I as well.”

Z.ora- “…

” Are you serious..?”

-Z.ora’s voice magically rings into Althaea’s mind.

Z.ora— ” There’s no way you don’t have a bad feeling about this.”

Althaea—

“Faila, you should be on standby just incase the town-speaker changes his mind and wishes to see you and Z.ora, okay?”

Faila Rein- ” Okay!!”

-Through Althaea’s vocal response, the true message is clear to Z.ora      “Stay alert on your end.”

Z.ora— “..Yea, we’ll be waiting”

————————————————————

-Althaea and Myriam are led through the night towards the castle, its main gate opened

Althaea- ” Well that’s a surprise, we’re actually being let in”

Myriam— ” Now I’m more worried..”

-Reaching a room at the end of a hallway, the two are let inside

Guard— “We’ve brought the paladins, my lord”

Kardath-

“..Thank you.”

Althaea- ” This is Kardath?”

Kardath—

” I apologize for my guards sending your group away so abruptly”

Myriam— ” They said that you’d fallen ill.”

Kardath- ” ..Yes. That is the truth”

“I’ve found myself in well enough condition that I can address why I’ve requested your presence in this region.”

————————————————————-

Kardath—

” The winter curse that looms over Weriand…For several years it has worn down the hearts of the people who seek sanctuary here.”

“It was surmised that we had incurred the wrath of some higher power. Following this speculation, I dove into the matter personally with a dive into historical records within our library.”

Althaea— ” As he speaks, he seem so frail..”

Myriam— ” He truly is still recovering from a worsened condition.”

-Kardath picks up a book on his chamber’s desk, it’s cover a faded blue

Kardath- ” I began uncovering remnants, threads of prophetical accounts from centuries past.”

” They recount that one day, Weriand would find itself under a a surge of ice, snow, and no longer be familiar with the sun “

“However, there is also a passage that I’ve found that follows this information.”

” From the ten, one shall bring the thawing of the heart.” “From the thawing of the heart, brings a return to order”

Althaea— ” Thawing of the heart..”

Kardath— “Not long after this, I was beset by…a sort of affliction.”

” From here I will be fully honest about the nature of my ailment.”

Myriam- ” Get to the point. We’ve been strung along all day by people!”

Kardath— “….My apologies, I will be frank then.”

” I was contacted by a goddess “

Althaea-

Myriam- ” What?”

Kardath-

” The instruction was clearly given to me.”

“I am to venture to ruins of Fort Calber, and there, I will find the cure to the winter curse over the land.”

Althaea- ” Fort Calber…that exists deep within the northern extremes if not mistaken.”

Myriam- ” So you’re wanting us as security detail for your expedition.”

Kardath- ” A group of paladins would ensure survival against any entity.”

“There is also the matter of other complications.”

Althaea- “Other complications?”

———————————————————

– Faila lays about in the room while a pensive Z.ora stands near the door,

there is a knock

Z.ora- “…

“Yes?”

-” My boss said you’re to follow me to meet him.”

Z.ora-” We’re not really in a position to go visit anyone right now. Maybe when our other members come back.”

– “Yea, we saw the saw other paladins on their way to Kardath’s estate.”

“Provided the talk goes as planned, you’ll meet up with your comrades soon enough”

Faila Rein- “Hm? That doesn’t sound bad at all!”

Z.ora- ” ..I’d rather wait for the others to come back.”

– “Tch”

“Seems like you’re going to be hassle.”

Z.ora- ” Excuse me?”

—” It means, I wasn’t asking for you to come with.”

” Now’s your final offer to-“

–

-The man realizes Z.ora is mid draw of her blade, as someone intervenes between the strike

– “…

Z.ora- “Someone else!!”

-She finds not only is her attack deflected, but this new assailant is able to begin an entire attack, using just his hands. Z.ora can feel a lethal potential incoming

Z.ora- “Shield!!”

-A barrier erects between her, giving the man a millisecond of pause

– “Kaiten“

-Forming the shape of a “V’ spear into the barrier, a glow emits from the man’s hands,

Z.ora- “He’s getting through!?”

-Z.ora avoids his emergent attack at the last second, realizing after the fact,

Z.ora— !?

“This searing pain, he managed to tag me, but it feels like something way worse than just a physical attack…!”

Faila Rein— ” Z.ora!!!”

-A warmth begins to resonate within Z.ora as the initial man closes in with his own attack, a three-peat of slashes,

-“Wait, what!? That should’ve taken her out!”

Z.ora-

“I thought humans were into the moniker “ladies first”?”

“..Heh, guess it doesn’t matter. ”

“That was your only chance to take us away for whatever you had planned.”

” Thank you, for the Shield of faith spell, Faila.”

” And now,”

–

” What’s this humming noise in the air…?”

“Wait, don’t tell me this broad is a..!”

Z.ora- ” Bladesong“

– ” A bladesinger”

Z.ora-

” They won’t land another hit on me.”

-To be continued

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