I'd like to state that, while it's possible that this is a trap, I don't think it's likely. I don't see what the Divine Realm would get out of an ambush, and while the Divine Realm is not actively hostile to the Empire, they don't seem like collaborators. So either this is honest, or the Empire has somehow subverted the top layers of the Divine Realm's org chart, or the Empire has a forgery good enough to convince everyone in the Divine Realm.
Case 1 is safe. Case 3 is absurdly specific. And Case 2 is something Artemis would want to know about. So the only scenario where Ryza gains more from leaving than visiting is if the Empire subverted the Divine Realm, and also stops Ryza from leaving and telling Artemis. Historically, people who try to imprison Ryza have not been very successful.
Concerns that Ryza might miss a major battle are more reasonable (it is not likely, but it is plausible), but also less serious (the consequences of missing a battle are smaller). Part of that is that the consequences from a miracle ambush could endanger Ryza's life, but part of it is that the Imperial army is not really in a position to threaten the alliance, with or without their flying mage-akete.
Unless they have assets Artemis is unaware of, of course, but the likeliest asset would be Salvador Wyrmguard and the Fell Slayer he wields. An anti-dragon sword. Kelton wouldn't like getting stabbed with that, of course, but Ryza getting some warning before facing him would probably be beneficial. (And again, if he doesn't show up the result will be more or less the same regardless of Ryza's presence.)
I mean, even if it is a trap, reading about that sounds way more engaging than reading about 'and then we went back to the frontlines for 10 more chapters of the same thing you just did'. Nothing against the frontlines, and I'm sure there would be events there to respond to, character development and relationships, and whatnot, but it can't match up to a whole new country and religion, with potential implications for Ryza's and the reader's historical understanding and political allies. And FE is all about getting the survey of the setting in part 1 and then getting the party split up for part 2, anyway.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
I'm with Barondoctor on this, we've already chosen to give up a party member, so that we could maintain our reputation as Honorable something I honestly did agree with myself.
It'd be kind of crazy to not take advantage of this opportunity, and even if it is a trap, I have a feeling we'll come out of this for the better.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
Not that it's probably going to super matter with how the vote is going, but be sure to remember to put an x between the brackets to make sure your vote is counted.
Not that it's probably going to super matter with how the vote is going, but be sure to remember to put an x between the brackets to make sure your vote is counted.
Adhoc vote count started by SoaringHawk218 on Oct 12, 2024 at 4:29 PM, finished with 48 posts and 34 votes.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[X] You promised you wouldn't be gone long. True, it hadn't been a big, official promise, but you had told Artemis that you'd be back soon so that you can help her. You have no idea how long it will be before the Empire can get another army over to threaten the Kingdoms again. You can't afford to be gone too long, not when your friends might need you at any minute! At the very least, you should check in with Artemis first, though something tells you that you may not get the chance to come back if the Empire's on the move.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
Scheduled vote count started by SoaringHawk218 on Oct 8, 2024 at 7:54 PM, finished with 52 posts and 37 votes.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
[X] You promised you wouldn't be gone long. True, it hadn't been a big, official promise, but you had told Artemis that you'd be back soon so that you can help her. You have no idea how long it will be before the Empire can get another army over to threaten the Kingdoms again. You can't afford to be gone too long, not when your friends might need you at any minute! At the very least, you should check in with Artemis first, though something tells you that you may not get the chance to come back if the Empire's on the move.
[X] Accept the invitation. Artemis has been talking about how important an alliance with the Divine Realm is, and the Realmers do seem to like you. Perhaps, if you help the Sun Father with whatever he wants done, you can convince them to come and help Artemis and the Kingdoms sooner rather than later! This will take time, though, especially since you can't justify keeping Bucephila with you, she needs to get back to her friends. You also have no idea what you're getting into…
"For a faith that's supposed to have been founded on the teachings of a poor, exiled preacher, I find it very telling that the Divine Realm flaunts its love of gold decorations so much."
-Duke Martin Wellingford of the Northlands Dutchy
You've now been to more of Artemis's meetings with the other nobles in the army than you can really count ('I can, and it's too many…' Dragon-you thinks), and there are some parts that you still don't fully understand. Intellectually, you get that it's important to make sure that there are enough food and supplies for everyone, and the careful decisions on marching paths make more sense once Phoebe had helped explain that local communities could get overwhelmed if too many armed men and women tramped through their land without long-term preparation, but those things don't truly resonate with you in the way it would for someone who'd been raised to think about those things.
One thing that you'd never needed explained, however, was the talk about having friends and allies to help in difficult times. That makes perfect sense to you, no matter how much you don't really like some of the ways people were talking about trying to "convince" the Divine Realm to enter the war. Even Artemis, who'd never approved of the more underhanded ideas, had always agreed that the Kingdoms needed help.
You… however surprised you are, no matter what worries you might have at the sudden offer put before you without any warning, you do recognize that it's an opportunity. If you can talk to this Sun-Father person, especially if you're able to help him out with something, maybe you can convince him to come and give aid to Artemis and the others. If only by sending healers to help take the strain off of Sister Selinda and her friends so that they don't feel the need to go behind your back to get another White caster!
Besides, you muse, there is a personal stake for you in this as well. The Sun-Father's letter and Missionary Jogby had both said that this was to do with you being a manakete, and you've been working to convince humans that you and they can live together in peace. Getting the chance to talk to one of the leaders of one of the big human nations would probably help with that, especially since he was already showing interest. Besides, the Divine Realm is the spiritual successor to Solariana's Union, so you might be able to find out more about what was going on there!
A part of you considers whether this is a trap. However, Bucephila did say that the Divine Realm takes its promises seriously, and the Sun-Father was pretty clear in his letter that you'd be kept safe both during the trip and on the way back. Besides, you've proven that you can take care of yourself.
"I think I'm going to go with them," you say to the Whitewing. "Would you go let Artemis know that everything's alright, that I'm trying to make some friends in the Divine Realm to help us get the help we need?"
Your friend sighs. "She's not going to be happy," she says. "But Angela needs me, and Lady Cartese needs to hear where you are from someone she can mostly trust rather than a Realmer messenger." She grimaces. "Just… don't die on me up there, okay? Nobody'd ever let me hear the end of it if you did."
Folding your arms, you give her a dry look. "I made it all the way to the Marble Hall and back to Agrithe mostly on my own," you say. "I'll be fine!"
"Most of that was spent with people who had a vested interest in making sure you didn't get hurt," Bucephila says. "Either because they were hired to protect you or… whyever that fire-riding Imp doesn't want to hurt you."
You frown. "Lacroix is a good person," you say. "He helped me out a lot when I first got to the Hall and Blitzbolt was being a pain."
Bucephila's eyes narrow for an instant. "Perhaps he's good to you," she says, a coil of ice lacing through her tone. "But he's directly or indirectly responsible for the death of four of my friends and spirits only know how many people from the Southern Kingdoms, so forgive me for feeling a little less charitable towards him."
You flinch. "What?" you ask.
The Whitewing sighs. "Right, you weren't there for that meeting," she said. "We got news from back south yesterday. It's out of date by now, but the gist of it is that the war's going okay, the Kingdoms have pushed well past the border and taken several castles and settlements. Unfortunately, the rest of my squadron took a nasty hit while raiding near Castle Tempest. Your friend and a few other lizard riders got the drop on them, and it didn't go well for us at all."
You shiver unhappily. On the one hand, you'd never met any of the other Whitewings but they were Angela and Bucephila and Alexandra's friends and so hearing that they'd died hurt. However, at the same time you can't help but understand where Lacroix was coming from. He cares so much for Callista, and even though you know there's a good reason his home is being invaded it makes sense he would defend it with everything he has… and he and Firescale are powerful. Which means that he's able to make anyone who tries to hurt his friends and loved ones pay for that, just as you've done up here. Which probably means there's a lot of Imperials that are really mad that you killed their friends.
You really hate war.
"I'm sorry," you say.
Bucephila sighs. "It's not your fault, kid," she says. "Everyone knew that wherever Archduke Cartese sent his daughter, you'd go with her. You've done good work up here, and if things work out with the Divine Realm maybe you'll do more. We Whitewings know what we're getting into when we earn our spurs." She ruffles your hair.
Leaning into her touch for a moment, you glance over at Missionary Jogby, Mother Marina and the others. They're watching with some interest, but make no move to interfere. "Any other news?" you ask.
"Apparently the monsters have been acting up more than normal, harassing scouting parties and even raiding the supply lines a little, but as of the last letter we got things haven't gotten too bad," Bucephila says. "Other than that, nothing major." She follows your gaze over to the Realmers. "Well, we probably shouldn't abuse His Hoit- the Sun-Father's patience." She smiles wryly. "Stay safe out there. I'd feel really bad if anything happened to you after I let you wander off. Besides, Angela's still hoping we can convince you to join up with us more permanently if we keep bugging you about it."
You're pretty sure she's not being serious, but you shake your head anyway. "I'm sorry, but after everything Artemis and I've been through together, I'll be sticking with her and Agrithe. At least for a couple centuries."
Your friend blinks before letting out a bark of laughter. "Spirits, it never gets any less weird when you casually mention that unless something kills you, you'll functionally live forever," she says. "But I'd better get going. See you on the other side." With that, she guides Silas back a few steps before turning him towards the gate, leaving you alone with the Divine Realmers.
Taking a deep breath, you turn and make your way back to Missionary Jogby. "I talked it over with Bucephila," you say. "And I'd be happy to accept the Sun-Father's invitation to go talk to him."
The man smiles and nods deeply again. "Praise be," he says. "We are grateful for your trust, young manakete, and we will not abuse it."
You hope not. "So, now that I've agreed to come, can you tell me what you want?" you ask. "If it's something to do with information about manakete or the Union, it would help to be able to do some reading on the way so I can answer the question better."
'And faster, so we can get back to help Artemis.'
Missionary Jogby waggles a finger, smiling slightly patronizingly. "Patience, child," he says. "While the Sun-Father has faith in all of of Sol Invictus's children, by law and tradition some secrets are not to be spoken of outside of the innermost shrines of the Divine City."
Folding your arms, you wish that you were taller. You know it's petty, but it sometimes gets irritating that people can literally look down at you, especially when they're treating you like a child in an annoying way. You could hover up to eye-level if you wanted, but that seems like it could give the wrong impression, so you choose not to. "I'm ninety-seven years old," you say. "Which means I'm pretty sure I'm older than you."
The man blinks before his smile takes on a wry edge. "Perhaps, but while I am no Revisionist and thus have not heard the full details of any messages they have sent among their numbers, those that the Sun-Father spoke to after Father Simon came to tell him of your nature indicated that you are still a child by your people's reckoning. Is that not the case?"
"Not really," you say. "I went through my Awakening, so by manakete traditions I'm an adult now." You don't mention that you're probably one of the youngest manakete to ever actually go through with an Awakening (you don't have any evidence for that, but it's something that sure feels like it should be true)!
The Missionary cocks his head slightly. "I see…" he says. You frown slightly, there was something about his tone… but before you can either puzzle it out or look at anyone else, he smiles. "I will not lie to you by pretending I understand the full significance of that statement, but it is clear that it means something important to you, and therefore congratulations are in order."
Slightly wrong-footed, you shrug. "Thank you," you say. "So, are we leaving soon?"
Missionary Jogby looks up at the sky. "This close to sundown, it seems ill-advised to set off today," he says. "Not only did you just fly here from Starhelm, but it is bad luck to travel in darkness, without Sol Invictus's guiding light." He looks to Mother Marina. "Might we impose upon your sanctuary for the night, Mother?"
She nods back. "Of course," she says, taking a step back and gesturing for you to follow her into the main building. "Those who spread Sol Invictus's truths are always welcome here, as are those who come in peace."
"Thank you," you say as you follow her.
"Indeed," Missionary Jogby adds as he and Father Simon follow as well.
As the four of you walk, you sense two shining beacons of White magic falling in behind you. Glancing over your shoulder, you realize that the two new Solar Knights in different armor are following you, one on either side of the small formation. Unlike Mother Marina, whose magic is dormant, these two women have active spells shining from the staves in their hands. Worriedly, you study the weave of their power, deciding that at the moment it seems like they have some sorts of protective wards cast on Missionary Jogby that they're maintaining, but active magic like that could mask a more aggressive spell from the fancy-looking White magic tomes hanging at their hips if you were distracted by something else…
Father Simon seems to notice your wariness. "Fear not," he says. "It is tradition that a Missionary always travels with escort, as part of the oath they take is to never cast a harmful spell against another human. Knight Flares Luxann and Glinda are here to protect him, and since the Sun-Father offered you sanctuary they will protect you as well." One of the women, a redhead with a long braid coiling out from a small hole in the back of her helmet, gives a small nod.
"Alright," you say, channeling aside your concerns to keep your dragon-self from stewing in them. You've put your trust in many people since you've woken up, and only once has it really blown up in your face, and that was only because she'd had to try and protect Sypha. Bucephila had vouched for this sanctuary thing the Sun-Father had extended, and you trust her to know what she's talking about. "So how long will it take to get to the Divine City?" you ask.
Missionary Jogby speaks up again to answer. "It will likely take four to five days to reach the Divine City," he says. "Perhaps more, depending on how crowded the Pilgrim's Path is. While we haven't reached the peak devotional season of high summer there are often pilgrims getting an early start. From there, likely a few days to speak with the Sun-Father and hel- determine where relations between the faithful and your people will stand. After that, another four or five days to see you safely back here, whatever the outcome may be."
Filing away the Missionary's minor slip of the tongue for later consideration, you frown. This errand was going to take longer than you'd thought… "I can probably fly myself back to Starhelm," you say. "Would that be acceptable?"
The man waves a hand. "I am sure it will be, if that is your wish." he says. "But let us not speak so soon of leaving before you have even reached your destination!"
"Well, I need to be back as soon as I can be," you say. "After all, my friends need me to help fight off the Empire if they decide to invade and try and take everything over again. I'm sure that whatever the Sun-Father wants to talk about is really important, but I do have to think about what comes afterwards."
Mother Marina gives a wry smile over her shoulder. "From what you told me, it's likely the Empire won't be able to make any meaningful moves against your companions for some time," she says. "However, I give my word that I'll have my scouts keep an eye on the situation, and if something radically changes, I'll send word." Missionary Jogby starts to open his mouth, but the Solar Knight meets his eye. "I understand that we cannot act without leave from the Sun-Father, but Sol Invictus calls on us to help our friends, and Ryza has proven herself as one who keeps faith even when it does not benefit herself. That marks her as a friend in my eyes, and with the Empire acting so aggressively they are not our friends."
"Perhaps, but our goddess also commands that we do not needlessly seek conflict," Missionary Jogby says warningly. "The Empire, though they have been behaving irrationally since the death of Emperor Thaddeus, have kept open lines of communication. Hierophant Wolsenly has sent several messengers, and from what I have been told the only reason he has not come personally is because he has needed to remain in Wyrmrise. We do not want to provoke escalation."
Hierophant… that was the title of one of the members of the Council. If he's being friendly with the Divine Realm, could he have been the one to warn Agrithe about the plan to kidnap the kids at the Marble Hall? You huff, you just don't know, and you can't risk asking people you're not certain you can trust completely in case news gets back to the Regent and he tries to hurt the informant. Although maybe if you ask in a roundabout way… "Thank you, Mother Marina," you say. "The Empire has been lashing out concerningly recently, after all they tried to kidnap a bunch of children from the Marble Hall, and it was only because I'd been there to convince the Archmage to stay rather than be called away that they didn't succeed."
Missionary Jogby sighs. "Yes, we heard of that from Mother Marina's sister," he says. "And we thank you for doing your part to prevent that travesty. However, the Sun-Father has decided that we wait, and unless the Empire forces our hand or Sol Invictus gives a sign that we should change our posture we cannot interfere." You force back a grimace, no sign that he knew more than he was letting on. Darn.
You notice Mother Marina's shoulders tensing, but her voice is calm as she speaks. "I will keep that under advisement, Missionary, and I will do my duty."
Thankfully, before the disagreement can continue, Father Simon clears his throat. "Let us not bring rancor into a good night," he says. "Especially not in front of a guest."
Forcing yourself to smile, you nod. "It's alright," you say. "I'm sure Artemis can keep everything calm until I get back."
If not… well, if you have to cut your meeting with the Sun-Father short in order to rescue Artemis, you'll do so in a heartbeat.
Your dragon-self shifts happily at that resolution.
The rest of the evening passes mostly uneventfully. You eat dinner back in the circular main hall, focusing mostly on smalltalk with Father Simon and Mother Marina. Melissa doesn't join you, but once dinner is over and Mother Marina has led you back to the guest room you'd used when you were here a few days ago she leaves to speak with her daughter.
"She was just trying to help," you say as the older woman starts walking away.
Mother Marina pauses, sighing. "I know," she says. "Sol as my witness, I know, and a part of me can't help but be proud at how brave and giving she is. But she does have to learn discipline, to control her urges and think about the bigger picture." She turns back to you, a wry smile on her face. "But thank you, Mistress Levinheart. Thank you for giving me something else to focus on so I could cool down before going to speak with her. It makes it easier to remember that I love her, and the telling-off I'm going to give her is because I love her."
You force yourself not to grimace. You hadn't been on the receiving end of many of those when you were growing up, but those that you do remember felt awful. "You're welcome," you say.
The next day, after a relatively restful night, you make your way back out to the courtyard to find three fancy carriages being prepared. Well, two fancy ones and a truly ornate one in the middle! You're surprised the poor horses pulling the rolling mass of gold, banners and hardwood don't collapse from exhaustion!
"When a Missionary travels, they carry the words of the divine," Missionary Jogby says as he reads your gobsmacked expression accurately. "Thus, there is a certain level of pomp and circumstance that is required."
"…I'll take your word for it…" you say.
Father Simon laughs, patting you on the shoulder. "It does get a bit much sometimes, yes," he says. "There's a reason I'm hiding out here on the border in a humble shrine rather than staying in the Divine City. But don't worry, Mistress Levinheart, for all that it might seem excessive to you, such a display will smooth the path and help you reach the Sun-Father sooner, which will in turn help you return to Lady Cartese sooner."
You suppose that's a silver lining. "Alright," you say, patting his hand. "Are you going to come with us?"
He smiles dryly. "I think I've had my fill of the Divine City for a few months at least," he says. "Plus, my place is with my flock, small as it is. But don't worry, Mathias will treat you fairly. While he has… political and theological reasons for wishing to speak to you, he is genuinely interested as well."
Looking up at the old priest, you don't sense any deception, and so you nod. "Alright," you say. "Thank you for putting in a good word for me."
"Of course," he says, stepping back. "Safe travels, and may the sun shine upon you."
"Mother watch over you," you respond automatically, getting a slight raise of the eyebrow from him. However, he doesn't say anything as you join Missionary Jogby by the carriage. "I'm ready to go," you say.
The man nods. "Excellent," he says as Knight Flare Luxann lowers a set of stairs from the carriage. "Then let us depart. Sol willing, we will see this done before you need to return to your companions."
As you settle down on one of the ridiculously padded seats, you peek out to see Mother Marina and Melissa standing at the top of the stairs. Spotting you, the younger Realmer waves, a wry grin splitting her face. You manage to wave back just before the carriage in front of you starts trundling forwards, quickly followed by your own, with the third behind you. Meanwhile, the two Solar Knights and multiple cavaliers fan out in a protective cordon. You really hope this is just more of the Divine Realm's idea of decorum rather than a sign of worry about an actual threat.
… at least this carriage seems to be smoother than Mantrae's one.
The trip to the Divine City will take several days. What do you do on the trip? (Choose 2, please vote by plan)
[] Spend time talking to Missionary Jogby, trying to get to know both him and the Divine Realm in general. After all, he apparently works closely with the Sun-Father, so it's both polite and wise to understand him better.
-[] Show him Solariana's scroll and talk to him about the Union. Not only is that possibly the reason why you were invited in the first place, surely he'll find it interesting and it could help convince the average Realmer to be more favorable to manakete.
-[] Focus on talking about the present rather than the past. What's the Divine Realm like? How does it interact with its neighbors? All those things could be useful to know.
[] The two Knight Flares both seem to be very skilled with White magic. Maybe, if you talk to them, you could get a few hints about how to get better, while at the same time making a good impression with the people who you're hoping will come help Artemis and the other Kingdoms fight off the Empire.
[] While Missionary Jogby and the Solar Knights seem to be in charge, they're not the only ones in this expedition. Spend some time talking to some of the others, maybe you'll meet someone interesting who might have more insight into what's going on.
[] You're traveling through a new area, and while you've seen maps none of them have focused on specific landmarks or towns. Spend a bit of time each day flying around (not too far, keeping in sight of the caravan and checking in with them regularly) just so you can get a solid feel for the terrain. Just in case.
[] You've started taking the next step of the Path of Awakening. Since you have time on the road, continue working on allowing your dragon-self to operate in your heart-form so she can interact with the world more directly.
[] Keep your eyes open for anything unusual or unexpected going on. Not only does this satisfy your niggling paranoia, but being in a new place is interesting!
[X] Plan Personal Insights
-[X] You're traveling through a new area, and while you've seen maps none of them have focused on specific landmarks or towns. Spend a bit of time each day flying around (not too far, keeping in sight of the caravan and checking in with them regularly) just so you can get a solid feel for the terrain. Just in case.
-[X] You've started taking the next step of the Path of Awakening. Since you have time on the road, continue working on allowing your dragon-self to operate in your heart-form so she can interact with the world more directly.
Don't really care for the missionary tbh, we're kinda getting forced away from our friends so I'd rather get stuff done in the meantime.
The only choice I actually care about is working with our Dragon-Self so I'm willing to swap to a different plan if it comes up.
[] The two Knight Flares both seem to be very skilled with White magic. Maybe, if you talk to them, you could get a few hints about how to get better, while at the same time making a good impression with the people who you're hoping will come help Artemis and the other Kingdoms fight off the Empire.
[] While Missionary Jogby and the Solar Knights seem to be in charge, they're not the only ones in this expedition. Spend some time talking to some of the others, maybe you'll meet someone interesting who might have more insight into what's going on.
I think these could be nice.
[] The two Knight Flares both seem to be very skilled with White magic. Maybe, if you talk to them, you could get a few hints about how to get better, while at the same time making a good impression with the people who you're hoping will come help Artemis and the other Kingdoms fight off the Empire.
[] While Missionary Jogby and the Solar Knights seem to be in charge, they're not the only ones in this expedition. Spend some time talking to some of the others, maybe you'll meet someone interesting who might have more insight into what's going on.
I think these could be nice.
It's out of date by now, but the gist of it is that the war's going okay: the Kingdoms have pushed well past the border and taken several castles and settlements.
depending on how crowded the Pilgrim's Path is, while we haven't reached the peak devotional season of high summer there are often pilgrims getting an early start.
This is repetitive. I recommend removing or changing one instance of "recently".
[X] Plan Call Me Paranoid
-[X] You're traveling through a new area, and while you've seen maps none of them have focused on specific landmarks or towns. Spend a bit of time each day flying around (not too far, keeping in sight of the caravan and checking in with them regularly) just so you can get a solid feel for the terrain. Just in case.
-[X] Keep your eyes open for anything unusual or unexpected going on. Not only does this satisfy your niggling paranoia, but being in a new place is interesting!
The way the Missionary was talking is giving me a baaaaad feeling about this, so I'd like to be prepared.
[X] Plan: Make New Friends.
-[X] Spend time talking to Missionary Jogby, trying to get to know both him and the Divine Realm in general. After all, he apparently works closely with the Sun-Father, so it's both polite and wise to understand him better.
manakete.
--[X] Focus on talking about the present rather than the past. What's the Divine Realm like? How does it interact with its neighbors? All those things could be useful to know.
-[X] The two Knight Flares both seem to be very skilled with White magic. Maybe, if you talk to them, you could get a few hints about how to get better, while at the same time making a good impression with the people who you're hoping will come help Artemis and the other Kingdoms fight off the Empire.
[X] Plan: Make New Friends, Revelation Edition.
-[X] Spend time talking to Missionary Jogby, trying to get to know both him and the Divine Realm in general. After all, he apparently works closely with the Sun-Father, so it's both polite and wise to understand him better.
--[X] Show him Solariana's scroll and talk to him about the Union. Not only is that possibly the reason why you were invited in the first place, surely he'll find it interesting and it could help convince the average Realmer to be more favorable to manakete.
-[X] The two Knight Flares both seem to be very skilled with White magic. Maybe, if you talk to them, you could get a few hints about how to get better, while at the same time making a good impression with the people who you're hoping will come help Artemis and the other Kingdoms fight off the Empire.
Since we chose to go on a diplomatic mission in the middle of a war, the best thing we can do is make sure we succeed
You've now been to more of Artemis's meetings with the other nobles in the army than you can really count ('I can, and it's too many…' Dragon-you thinks), and there are some parts that you still don't fully understand. Intellectually, you get that it's important to make sure that there are enough food and supplies for everyone, and the careful decisions on marching paths make more sense once Phoebe had helped explain that local communities could get overwhelmed if too many armed men and women tramped through their land without long-term preparation, but those things don't truly resonate with you in the way it would for someone who'd been raised to think about those things.
Hm.
Imagine that twenty manakete stopped by your parents' house, demanded that you let them stay there and eat your food until their boss figured out where to go next, and when they finally left they took another week of provisions with them.
I know your mom's good at fighting, Ryza, but I don't think she'd fight against 20:1 odds. Unless that was the only way to save you and your dad.
Bucephila's eyes narrow for an instant. "Perhaps he's good to you," she says, a coil of ice lacing through her tone. "But he's directly or indirectly responsible for the death of four of my personal friends and spirits only know how many people from the Southern Kingdoms, so forgive me for feeling a little less charitable towards him."
You flinch. "What?" you ask.
The Whitewing sighs. "Right, you weren't there for that meeting," she said. "We got news from back south yesterday. It's out of date by now, but the gist of it is that the war's going okay, the Kingdoms have pushed well past the border and taken several castles and settlements. Unfortunately, the rest of my squadron took a nasty hit while raiding near Castle Tempest. Your friend and a few other lizard riders got the drop on them, and it didn't go well for us at all."
Poor Ryza. She finally has to recognize that her Imperial friends want to kill her other friends. Also the other way around, in many cases.
"Apparently the monsters have been acting up more than normal, harassing scouting parties and even raiding the supply lines a little, but as of the last letter we got things haven't gotten too bad," Bucephila says.
Well, I'm sure that this is a random event rather than the start of a trend that will keep getting worse until we discover and defeat the true power behind/within the Imperial Throne.
Father Simon seems to notice your wariness. "Fear not," he says. "It is tradition that a Missionary always travels with escort, as part of the oath they take is to never cast a harmful spell against another human."
I just want to point out that Jogby is cautioning against sending a message. Marina sending a message to warn someone who helped her is dangerously conflict-seeking, because it might inconvenience the people Ryza helped her against.
I don't think this is proof that Jogby is an Imperial stooge; lots of well-meaning IRL people have equivalently stupid opinions about what counts as provocation as opposed to response. However, it is proof that we should take Jogby's opinions with at least a tablespoon of salt.
Maybe it's unfair of me to judge Jogby harshly and decide he isn't worth Ryza's time off of this one rebuke. However:
[X] Plan Personal Insights
I don't really trust these guys enough to just wander along blindly, but at the same time, we're here to be diplomatic and win an ally, so we should make some good faith efforts to learn and communicate. I don't really think this is the time and place to bust out the scroll, however. As things are, it's a little too easy to suppress the information if they feel the need to. Might want to keep that for a later date. And did we have another copy of that scroll somewhere safe?
[X] Plan: The Paranoid Diplomat
-[X] Spend time talking to Missionary Jogby, trying to get to know both him and the Divine Realm in general. After all, he apparently works closely with the Sun-Father, so it's both polite and wise to understand him better.
--[X] Focus on talking about the present rather than the past. What's the Divine Realm like? How does it interact with its neighbors? All those things could be useful to know.
-[X] Keep your eyes open for anything unusual or unexpected going on. Not only does this satisfy your niggling paranoia, but being in a new place is interesting!
