Bit of a shorter chapter, since when I can’t play LW1 myself it’s a bit less inspiring. I still recommend watching the 3.3 hour ‘movie’ on YouTube! Reading the summary on the wiki really helps bring home just how long it was spread out, though. It’s basically a year and a half before LW2 starts up.
The first part should be soundtracked with Our Shangri-La (although I think I’ve used it for another couple? I can’t remember who, though). I may have painted Southsun to be a bit more controlled than it really is… Exploring it alone as an elementalist is kind of torturous, and there isn’t actually a romantic hot-spring grotto somewhere (but there SHOULD BE). Besides, with what’s coming up, the boys need all the happiness they can get – GW2 is a very stressful and tragic game if you actually live inside it. The other soundtrack you need is Twilight of the Gods and I don’t think I need to tell you when to listen to it. XD
Contents:
– 1: Honeymoon
– 2: The Day the World Ended
– 3: Set In Motion
Part 4: The Day the World Ended
1: Honeymoon
Time passed, but hardly any of it was spent in idle contemplation. Caoilfhionn and the rest of Hope’s Legacy traveled Tyria, helping anyone who asked for it and putting down evildoers. They’d met so many new people, including Braham, Eir’s son, a passionate young Norn with a laugh almost as big as Rhyoll’s, and Rox, a kind Charr ranger; both of them had become very close with the guild, and though neither had been formally invited or inducted, they were as much Caoilfhionn’s companions as any of the others by this time. They were all pretty famous, and while not everyone was a fan of being recognized, Caoilfhionn thought it was nice.
And they’d been through fire together, in that year, encountering wickedness that rivaled the Nightmare Court’s cruelty in the Molten Alliance – and he had thought the Flame Legion and dredge were bad separately. That wasn’t even to speak of the greedy callousness of the Consortium and the chaos caused by the Secondborn Canach. But while he’d seen death and destruction to shock him to his core, he’d also seen kindness, and loyalty, and hope in fighting it.
Trahearne had been busy at Fort Trinity. With Zhaitan dead, and Orr’s undead infestation slowly diminishing after several sweeps the Pact had made of the island, Pact forces had greatly scaled down, most of them returning to their Orders until the next Elder Dragon was chosen for destruction. There really was only a token force at Fort Trinity now, and most of it was Priory and Whispers doing research, with enough Vigil to put down the occasional Risen attack – or Inquest attack, the sinister Asura were making themselves a nuisance as the undead faded.
Caoilfhionn had visited often, and even went into Orr with Trahearne to see its progress as the waters of the Source brought the cleansing ritual throughout the land. Orr seemed a lot more silent than before, without the wailing of ghosts and zombies, but it was a peaceful silence now, and seagrass and lichens were beginning to grow on the western side of the island. Trahearne was pleased with it, doting protectively over every new patch of lichen and anthill, explaining why it seemed to be taking so long even now when the corruption was gone. Though the land had once known fertile soils, much of that had been taken away by the sea – swept along by currents, or transformed into coral and seaweed. A hundred years of rain had washed the ocean’s salt out of the ground since rising, but the place was as barren as a desert; the only fertilizer it had known since it sank was corpses. Which, of course, Trahearne knew a lot about, and in fact dabbled in ‘gardening’ with, summoning minions and disposing of them in places that would benefit the young plants.
It took a lot to tempt Trahearne away from Fort Trinity, but when the Consortium began advertising their ‘perfectly safe tropical luxury resort’, Caoilfhionn suggested very strongly that he take some time away from work and see Southsun Cove with him. Not that he trusted the Consortium, but he had liked Southsun, and was willing to give them one more chance. “You remember how I described it, do you not?”
“It sounds very beautiful, but…” Trahearne fidgeted with the gold ring with the sun emblem he’d begun to wear shortly after Zhaitan’s death; Caoilfhionn had a silver ring with a moon emblem.
“Oh, come, see it for yourself! Things can take care of themselves for a little while. Elder Dragons take time to move; if an emergency occurs you can rush right back.”
Trahearne was wavering, he could tell. “And I suppose your guild could do without you for a little while.”
“Yes, definitely. Come with me, beloved – we’ve not had that much time to ourselves, all this year. I’ve been able to visit you, which I’m grateful for, but I want to be with you. Just us, without a care in the world, just for a little while.” Longer than an afternoon, anyway.
Trahearne breathed, and then nodded. “Very well. I’d like to spend time with you as well. Where doesn’t matter, but I’ll let you show me this place. I’m sure it’s hardly as safe as they claim, knowing them, but the danger doesn’t disturb me, not when I’m with you.”
“Two heroes can scarcely be afraid of a few karka,” Caoilfhionn teased. Though he hoped the karka situation really was under control; that had been what brought him to Southsun in the first place, after all, and he didn’t like to think that his efforts had been in vain.
And so that spring, Caoilfhionn and Trahearne went to Southsun for three weeks. Three weeks to explore the island together, to show him everything he’d seen before and discover new things, and just be together? Southsun might not have been the paradise the Consortium said it was, but Caoilfhionn had never been more in heaven. Each day was long and golden, the nights filled with stars beyond count, and the waves crashing constantly on the shore was the perfect music for his soul. Even the querulous Human nobles who had come from Divinity’s Reach to lounge about and be waited on hand and foot – as if that were any different for them than at home – couldn’t bother him now. Besides the sleeping and dining accommodations, they had little to do with the other residents of the island, whether tourist or Consortium.
Simple things made him happy; lying on the beach, soaking in sunlight with a straw hat over his face to protect his eyes, feeling only the warm sand beneath him, the hot sun above him, the wind across his body, and Trahearne’s hand in his. Or chasing each other through the shallows, until one of them caught up to the other and knocked them both into the cool water, splashing and laughing. Or actually putting on clothes and weapons for a little while and venturing up into the dangerous western side of the island, until they found a tiny grotto filled with hot springs where they lay naked tangled in each other’s limbs for hours, talking of everything and nothing, learning each other’s hearts and bodies. Or helping each other sluice off the salt and grime of the day before going to sleep in a tiny hut perched high above the ground, like a nest in a tree. He’d never seen Trahearne smile and laugh so much in his life, and Trahearne confessed he probably hadn’t smiled and laughed so much before. Real smiles, sincere laughter, that did not cause him to die of happiness like he had once feared, but still made all the weight of the world seem nearly non-existent in this time.
It wasn’t completely idyllic… Even when they weren’t deliberately looking for danger, danger still came for them unexpectedly. Such as the time they were temporarily defenseless and taken by surprise by karka on the beach near Kiel’s Outpost. “What’s that?” Caoilfhionn cried, pointing at a lump in the sand as they ran for their lives.
“Picnic basket,” Trahearne said, and they both made a dash for it. “Maybe there will be something you can use…”
“Ahah!” Caoilfhionn had dumped it out onto the sand and snatched at a butter knife. “Better than nothing!” He twirled it and sparks flew. Just having something to cast with made him feel much better about their chances.
Trahearne shook his head and grabbed a stick of driftwood. “It will be enough. But I think discretion is the better part of valour in this situation…” He summoned several minions, placing them between them and the charging young karka.
“I don’t disagree,” Caoilfhionn said, and summoned a couple stone elementals – he didn’t use them on a regular basis, but Wegaff was more or less satisfied with his ability to use them now, which meant he was quite good at it.
They used their summons’ distraction to make an escape, but they had not gone far when a chittering behind them warned them that the karka had overwhelmed both minions and elementals and were hot on their heels again, rolling over the sand faster than they could run. “Up there!” Caoilfhionn shouted, pointing to a rocky outcropping. Trahearne changed course with him, but Caoilfhionn paused just long enough to slam a burst of energy into the ground, sending Earth crashing into the karka that pursued them, giving them an extra second to leap to the top of the rocks.
They stood back to back, watching the dozen or so karka swarm below them. “Well this is exciting,” Trahearne commented mildly. “How long do you think before they figure out how to climb up here?”
“Not long,” Caoilfhionn said, relishing in Trahearne’s solidity behind him despite the danger. “I wonder if they make good eating? I’ve never actually tried one.”
“Probably because their shells are too tough for anything but Deldrimor steel, and there’s precious little of that around here,” Trahearne said. “However, magic is another matter entirely. Are you ready?”
“When you are!”
“Then cower and despair, you crustaceans!” Trahearne raised his driftwood, concentrating, and gestured sharply, necromantic magic flowing around him, ripping life force away from the monsters that surrounded them. Now that he’d gotten a feel for his ‘weapon’, it seemed he had no trouble channeling the immense power inside him. The karka struggled, suddenly rooted to the ground, mindlessly confused about the skeletal hands that pulled them down, about the pain that wracked them within their shells.
Caoilfhionn looked up adoringly at his husband, so strong and commanding – and just a little bit sinister, but by the Tree he was all the more beautiful for it. But he couldn’t admire for too long! He laughed and jumped down from the rock, hopping lightly across the backs of the karka while they were still confused. He tore a sparking channel through them, a leaf’s breadth away from their claws, dodging the sticky goo they launched at him, spinning and ducking as fire and death wreathed him about, guarding him. These creatures might be impervious to regular steel, but he would see if they could withstand fire and lightning!
A few minutes later, they were seated on a pile of dead karka, as Caoilfhionn tried futilely to crack open a shell to see if he’d cooked the creature within adequately. They were just a little too old and tough for him to get into, even with Earth magic, but he was amused by the attempt, and Trahearne was, apparently, amused to watch him.
“Ho there!” came a cry, and they looked up the hill to see Consortium guards hurrying towards them with drawn weapons. “We’re here to help…”
“Bit late, aren’t you?” Trahearne chided them. “Where have you been?”
“We’re very sorry, sir!” The lead guard, a Human, bowed low. “We only just got word of the attack. I am very pleased to see you’re unhurt.”
Caoilfhionn wondered if maybe it was a little bit unfair of them to cause the resort staff extra problems, but… they were Valiants, they could take responsibility for themselves. “I suppose it’s forgivable,” he said. “We were a little beyond your patrols.”
“By choice,” Trahearne said.
“Well, all’s well that ends well,” Caoilfhionn said cheerfully, getting up and tossing the butter knife behind him and walking off in the direction of the settlement. “Don’t suppose you have anything that can crack those shells? I want to try eating the one I cooked.”
Trahearne dropped his driftwood and followed him. “We should get attacked by younger ones next time.”
“But that means fighting the older ones to get at the younger ones… It sounds a bit wrong when I say it like that, doesn’t it?”
The guards followed, and he could feel their awe.
Near the end of their trip, they were once again sunning on a remote beach when they heard noises in the distance and Caoilfhionn sat up to see… Annhilda, with Rhyoll, Phiadi, and some Lionguards, running along the top of the beach, shouting. Even Trahearne opened an eye to see what all the fuss was about. Caoilfhionn stood and waved cheerfully, and Annhilda split off from them to come over. “Hello! Fancy meeting you here!”
“I know, right?” Annhilda said with a grin. She was sweating, Norn metabolism in full armour and a tropical climate. “Enjoying yourselves? Nice sandcastle.”
“Very much,” Caoilfhionn said. “Thank you. Is there trouble afoot?”
“Nothing we can’t handle,” Annhilda said. “Problems with the refugees and the Consortium… and those blasted karka, as usual.”
“Refugees?” Caoilfhionn said blankly. He really had been out of it, focused so entirely on his lover that he’d missed everything else in the world around him.
“Who were displaced by the Molten Alliance?” Annhilda said. “Anyway, it’s complicated. Don’t worry about it.”
“Do you require any assistance?” Now he felt a little guilty for being so blissful while others suffered…
She shook her head. “No, you’re not allowed to help. You’re on vacation! As second-in-command of the Pact, I order you to keep having fun. Forgive the insubordination, Marshal.”
“Forgiven,” Trahearne said laconically, and closed his eyes again. “Carry on, Commander. Rest assured we are well.”
Annhilda grinned. “Right! I’ll see you in another week, right? Have a good time and then we’ll get back to saving more bits of the world!”
“Good fortune!” Caoilfhionn wished her as she jogged away to catch up to her group. “Say hello to the others for me!”
When she had gone, he lay down again on his stomach and propped his chin on his hands.
“What troubles you?” Trahearne asked, opening his eyes again and looking over at him.
“I… feel… confused,” Caoilfhionn said. “I’m not sure how to feel.”
“About… the world going by as we lie here being idle?”
“Yes, exactly. I had honestly forgotten that it would. I feel a bit of a fool.”
Trahearne sighed affectionately and reached up to his shoulder. “It’s a blessing for you, isn’t it? To focus on what is before you above all else. That is not a failing.”
“But people need… or at least, could use my help. People right here within my reach whom I didn’t even see. I want to be here with you more than anything, and yet is it not horribly selfish of me-?”
“Caoilfhionn,” Trahearne said, and rolled over to put an arm around him. “You are a true knight, always thinking of others before yourself. You have been through as much hardship as any of those you would help. It is not selfish to take pleasure when it comes, to make space for it now and then, for hardship will always return. And believe me, I must convince myself of it too,” he muttered. “Annhilda and the others are here to help these people, so in these circumstances, we may yet guiltlessly take our ease.”
Caoilfhionn put his head on one side, still only half convinced. “I suppose…”
Trahearne poked him, tapping gentle rhythms along the sensitive peach-coloured veins in his back, making him squirm. “What good will it be if you upset yourself here? No better off than if you kept working this whole time, except you weren’t working. You cannot change the past. And the world will have need of your mettle soon enough. I haven’t forgotten what’s out there, and far better you’re – we’re called to face it well-rested and with strong hearts. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” He gave up the rest of his guilty feelings and pushed Trahearne back into the sand so he was leaning over him. “In that case, I’ll give it my all to be happy here with you.”
“Weren’t you already?” Trahearne asked before Caoilfhionn kissed him.
2: The Day the World Ended
Their time in Southsun came to an end all too quickly, and Caoilfhionn left with a heart full of beautiful memories and a burning desire to never have anything to do with the Consortium again. Not that they’d been treated poorly personally – they were paying customers, after all – but learning later what Annhilda had learned about the refugees’ abuse had been infuriating. The corporation hadn’t deserved that second chance. They’d not be getting another from him.
Still, their vacation as a vacation had not been spoiled. He’d spent as much time with his lover as would fill his heart and mind with lovely thoughts for ages, and those memories were precious to him – he wouldn’t let them be tainted by external corruption. Trahearne went back to Fort Trinity with more energy than he’d seen in him for some time, and Caoilfhionn rejoined Hope’s Legacy in Lion’s Arch, happy to see his friends again.
Though a few weeks later, he was able to call Trahearne out once more, for a day, to see Dragon Bash with him and celebrate the first anniversary of Zhaitan’s demise. They wandered the city hand-in-hand, Caoilfhionn constantly keeping himself pleasantly tipsy at the frequent beer stalls, dancing whenever there was a minstrel handy to carry a tune – he loved festivals! At least, he loved it until the effigy exploded and killed two people. Then he sobered up quickly to help, though now it was Wegaff’s turn to shine here, eagerly making himself of use as Marjory Delaqua’s assistant and pinpointing the culprit with astonishing efficiency.
After the festival, he went with Wegaff to his lab. “You were brilliant, helping Marjory track down the murderer.”
“Aye, well, it was progeny’s play once you knew how to work the box. Almost boring, really. Still, watching you take on the Aetherblade base was… I still don’t know how you do it. I can hold my own in the wild, but fighting coordinated adversaries like that…”
Caoilfhionn put his head on one side. Wegaff didn’t normally compliment him this much unless he was about to ask a question, so…
“I want you to tell me how to do it.”
Not exactly, a question, but- “I’d be happy to!”
It was not easy, having such an analytical pupil. “First of all, perhaps you should think less,” Caoilfhionn suggested.
“But…”
“You don’t think about breathing, do you? Or walking?”
“Actually breath is quite a fascinating topic…”
Caoilfhionn picked up a ball nearby, a toy for Damara’s hound, and threw it at the Asura. “Catch!”
“Gah!” Wegaff cried, barely deflecting the ball from his face. “I was still thinking about breath!”
“The Risen wouldn’t let you finish that thought either,” Caoilfhionn said. “You may be able to calculate a stability matrix in two seconds, but two seconds isn’t fast enough. So stop overthinking everything.” He breathed, and sat cross-legged on the floor. “Let’s start simple. Sit down with me, and close your eyes. Now, breathe in slowly, and deep, until your chest is filled with air. Don’t think about why. Just slowly and evenly let all that air out, until it’s all gone. Feel the air flow. And then breathe in again, just as before.”
He opened one eye to check on Wegaff, only to find his friend missing. “…Wegaff?”
“Just a moment,” came from another room. “I just had this brilliant idea on the importance of air pressure on biochemistry. Where’s pen and paper when you need it?”
This was going to take more time than he’d thought. Caoilfhionn got up and went looking.
“Okay, done!” Wegaff cried triumphantly, just as Caoilfhionn found him. “I can work this out in more detail later. So, where were we?”
“While you’re thinking about theory, I was curious about something myself,” Caoilfhionn said, giving up any sort of structured exercise for the time being. “I was wondering, do you think it would be possible to wield two elements at once? To weave them together, in a sense.”
Wegaff scoffed. “Ludicrous. The elemental pulse signatures would absolutely prevent that. The polarity interference alone would tear the spells apart before they could be cast. Not to mention I’ve never met a geokineticist who could channel their energy into two separate flux fields simultaneously. It’s one or another, and anything else is reattuning – and you can’t reattune that quickly.”
“I wonder, though,” Caoilfhionn said. “If you could separate your mind, your concentration – like a musician playing a lute, each hand doing a separate task – a couple spells might be possible.”
“Even if you could do that, it’d never work in a combat scenario,” Wegaff said. “And the logical conclusion – casting a spell with both elements at once – would be actually impossible.”
“So you don’t want to help me look into it?” Caoilfhionn asked, eyes dancing.
Wegaff raised an eye ridge at him. “I never said that. I just don’t think you should get your hopes up.”
“Understood. But let’s talk more about it later, tomorrow perhaps. Come breathe with me now?”
Nearly a year later, Caoilfhionn was walking briskly through Lion’s Arch with Damara, breathing in the sea breeze, enjoying the sunshine and the jollity of the centre of town, when a shadow crossed over the sun. A big one.
He looked up and a chill ran down his spine to see ominous crimson airships descending upon the city. “Damara!”
“By the Gods!” Damara cried. “Everyone, get down!”
At first no one moved except to look in surprise at the screaming Human.
Then the airships opened fire.
Caoilfhionn and Damara had run for cover behind a nearby fountain, and a missile exploded in the building next to them, showering them in burning splinters. Now everyone screamed, and ran, though no one seemed to know which way to go.
Neither did Caoilfhionn. “That attack is upon us… and now what do we do?” he cried, drawing his daggers, though there was nothing to strike at.
“Get everyone out of the city!” Damara shouted back. “The civilians, anyway!”
“All right. Everyone, follow me-!” Caoilfhionn began to shout, and stopped as the ground began to buckle and burn nearby. “Get back!”
The burning pavement burst and a giant flaming figure burst out – and another, and another. They said nothing, only charged, roaring. One of them fell to an arrow from Damara, and her hound sprang upon another. Caoilfhionn charged, stone surging from his heels and crashing outwards, knocking them down. Heat and hostility was all around him, and he switched to lightning, shielding himself from them as he dashed back to Damara. “We need Annhilda!”
More missiles crashed into buildings, and he couldn’t hear her answer. But she was pointing towards the gate into Gendarran Fields. “Just go!” he made out over the deafening sounds, and she loosed another arrow.
He waved at the remaining civilians who had not yet fled, and ran with them towards the gate, dodging debris and Molten Alliance, smiting any enemy who got in their way with lightning, taking the hands of those who stumbled and helping them to stand. Everything was on fire, everything was exploding, and-
A deep rumble rippled through the ground and air, and he looked over his shoulder – and then wished he hadn’t. A massive flying mechanical… thing was entering the harbour, a vast inverted cone with a huge drill on its underside. He shook his head hard, trying to stay focused, and grabbed a small Human child who had tripped, swinging her into his arms.
“Caoilfhionn!” There was Annhilda, and Rhyoll with her, holding a turret under his arm. “Keep doing what you’re doing! I’m going to rally defenses!”
“Yes!”
The Lionguard at the gate were as terrified as any of them, but he was glad to see them as he delivered his civilians to them. “Get them to safety, I’m going back in!”
Lion’s Arch was under attack! And was falling swiftly! He was still fighting shock, the urge to simply fall to his knees and watch with grief and horror – as he saw others doing. Asura, Humans, other Sylvari, he ran to anyone he saw staring and shook them, pointing them towards the gate. The Molten Alliance was running wildly through the city, killing anyone in their way who didn’t fight back, and now he saw krait and Sylvari of the Toxic Alliance swarming in too. There were still too many civilians in here! Everything was chaos. His head was spinning. His last experience with real war, back on Orr, had not prepared him for this. By the Pale Tree, the Asura Gates had been destroyed. No one was escaping that way. What was Scarlet after!? Total annihilation!?
There was some resistance – pirates, drunken and not, who absolutely would not sell their city at any price, there was the Lionguard, and those of the Vigil and Priory and Whispers. Though Scarlet’s forces ran amok, heavily armed and armoured, killing whoever they could, they had no coordination. But neither did the defenders, not yet at least. And the longer they floundered, the more people they lost.
Caoilfhionn fought his way back to the centre of town, to the fountain where Annhilda was, red hair flying, battling a krait twice her size. Rhyoll was there with her, and so were Rox, Braham, and Phiadi. They were being pressed hard, yet the more enemies bogged down at their position, the safer it was elsewhere, wasn’t it?
Caoilfhionn rode lightning to the giant krait and lashed it with Air magic until Annhilda stabbed it through the gut. “What’s happening?” he asked in the half-second of breathing room they had. “Where are the others?”
“I know Damara, Marjory, and Kasmeer are somewhere to the east. Wegaff, I don’t know.”
“By the Tree-” He checked himself. This wasn’t the time to interrupt.
“Captain Magnus and Ellen are over to the west. We’re not going to hold this position for much longer. How many civilians are left?”
“I don’t know, the destruction is too great. Still too many. I’ll keep looking.”
“No!” Annhilda stopped him. “I’ll get Braham and Rox to do it. I need you to check on Fort Marriner. You’re fast, they won’t catch you.”
“Yes, guild leader!” Caoilfhionn saluted her and dashed southwards – the bridge had been destroyed! It was not surprising but it was one more thing that hadn’t yet registered through his shock.
No time to worry, only to dive into the water from the broken edge and evade the krait, carving his way across the channel to the walls of the fortress. It had largely been left untouched so far – why assault a fortified position when the soft belly of the city was right there for the taking? The gate was even open, and he ran in. “Is there any way I can help!?”
“Caoilfhionn of Hope’s Legacy,” exclaimed the Asura captain, Shud, from the midst of a crowd of frightened citizens making their way through the Asura Gate that led to Vigil Keep. She made her way to the edge of the group to speak with him better, and pointed at the gate. “We’re taking these civilians to the Vigil Keep-”
Evon Gnashblade stomped past them with a train of dolyaks. “Get outta my way, runt. I gotta get merchandise through that gate.”
Shud glared at him. “Hurry it up, Evon. I have citizens here who need this gate.” The dolyaks were large, and slow; no civilians could make it through while he took up the space. “Evon, move your dolyaks. I need to get these people out of the city and shut down the gate.”
Evon snorted. “What? That’s your problem? Don’t worry, Shud. I got you covered.” He stepped through the gate, and before anyone else could walk into it, it flickered and ceased to glow.
Shud cried out in outrage. “That greedy…! How did he shut down the gate? Never mind. Get to the city exits!”
“I’ll go with you!” Caoilfhionn cried, though his sap was boiling over. How dare he-! How could he be so spiteful-! If any of these people died because of him-! He must have broken the gate, for the Vigil would have turned it back on as soon as they noticed… Or he’d probably fed them a lie that the enemy were right behind him. That was more likely.
If he saw Evon Gnashblade alive, he would strike him with his hand and call him an honourless coward to his face. Which probably wouldn’t work on a Charr… but killing him was probably not an option right now.
He escorted the civilians beyond the southern hills to Bloodtide Coast, then hurried back. The fortress was still intact, but it wasn’t going to be much use as a staging ground, not with the bridge down. The sky was turning black with smoke, black as night, but night never caught in his lungs like this. Annhilda and her team had withdrawn from the fountain square, the Lion Fountain fallen and smashed to bits – and that grieved him as much as the loss of life.
He tried to find civilians, but there was no one alive here now besides dredge and Charr and Sylvari and krait, and he couldn’t fight an army alone. The corpses sprawled through the streets, the gathering pools of blood, sickened him. He could hardly look, but he had to – what if he saw someone he knew? He had to find Wegaff and make sure he was safe! His steps turned in the direction of the guild hall, quickly and quietly, trying to avoid detection.
He cried out in sorrow when he saw it – it had been struck full on by a missile, and was now a heap of rubble, of twisted wooden planks and broken glass. “Wegaff! Wegaff, are you in there!?” He couldn’t help calling out, hoping, hoping…
A bit of rubble was shifting! He sprang towards it, wrenching boards away, heedless of how his hands bled, of how his shoulders protested – yes, Wegaff was under there! “I’m getting you out! Hold on!”
“Cauliflower… you silly… blueberry…” Wegaff’s voice was faint, but he could hear it. He grabbed the edge of a wall and lifted, straining his whole being. “Why are you not… using an Earth G.U.E.N., you… idiot?”
Ah, he was right! Though he didn’t want to crush Wegaff by accident. With the golem to lift the wall for him, he could reach down and gather up Wegaff in his arms. “Are you badly hurt?”
“Not as bad… as I could have been,” Wegaff whispered. “Managed to… put on stone armour. Like you… showed me.”
“All right, we’re getting out of here,” Caoilfhionn said. “Hold on, you’ll be safe soon-”
A clockwork machine dropped in front of him and he almost screamed. This was too much! No, he had to keep it together. He was a Valiant, a knight! He had to fight for those relying on him! Trahearne would do no less, even in the face of these overwhelming odds.
There was no more time to think, only to move or die. He took to Air and darted past the clockwork abomination, sprinting for the gate. The city was truly lost. Nothing friendly or peaceful yet lived within its bounds, and all else was burning, burning…
And then he inhaled, choked, and almost stumbled to his knees, coughing. What was this!? Poison? Wegaff was coughing too. He couldn’t run if he couldn’t breathe! He heard the clockwork monster clattering up behind him and staggered on, choking, eyes blinded by tears of pain, expecting any moment to get slashed in two. The gate was close, and-
A rifle shot rang out, and the clockwork monster flinched. “Caoilfhionn! Wegaff!” Annhilda was there, picking both of them up in her strong arms and taking them to the gate, past Rhyoll reloading, though she too was coughing in spite of the underwater breather mask she’d put on. “Get out, this miasma is going to poison everything.”
“And you…?” Caoilfhionn managed, as she deposited him on the bridge out of the city.
“Just a couple more minutes,” she said. “Get to camp! There are medics there!”
“Yes,” he said, though he could feel his body growing numb to his commands. But he could still walk, and walk he did northwards, in the direction of the growing camp of white tents. Everything was a daze now, a weary shambling march punctuated by shallow coughs. Wegaff was limp and heavy in his arms. He hardly knew what was happening by the time Lionguard medics swarmed him, taking Wegaff gently from him, giving him something to drink, wrapping him in a blanket and sitting him down by a fire.
He stared blankly into the fire, he didn’t know how long. Those horrific images he’d witnessed were burned into his mind, and all he could do was see them, again and again, until he heard someone large sit down near him.
“How are you doing?” he heard Braham ask. “You look terrible.”
“Everything’s gone,” he murmured dully. “Everything.”
“Not everything,” Braham said. “We’re still here.”
“Not everyone,” he said. “So many died…”
“It’s like when Cragstead got attacked… but so much worse,” Braham agreed. “How old are you again?”
In this moment, could he even remember a single-digit number? “Three summers, or near enough…”
Braham nodded in understanding. “No wonder you’re in shock.” He felt a large hand pat him on the shoulder. “Hang in there. I know it’s rough. Hi, Captain Kiel!”
“Braham, Caoilfhionn.” Ellen greeted them, squatting down by their fire to speak, but she seemed busy. “Annhilda told me you went to Fort Marriner, what was the situation there?”
“Quiet,” Caoilfhionn said. He couldn’t look up, but he could talk. “Captain Shud was helping civilians through the portal – until Evon Gnashblade shut it down.”
“He did what!?” Ellen exclaimed. “Oh, that… Hmph. So he’s at the Vigil Keep now, is he?”
“Yes, I think so. He had several dolyaks of merchandise. If I see him again it will be too soon.”
“I agree with you, but unfortunately, he’s not stupid; he’ll be around for a while yet. What did you do after that?”
“I helped escort the civilians to Bloodtide Coast, but there was still no significant pressure on the fort when I returned. I don’t know what the miasma will have done to it, though…”
“Thank you, that’s very helpful,” Ellen said. “Get some rest. I have to send someone up to the Keep…”
“What for?” Braham asked.
Ellen chuckled darkly. “Going to use some emergency powers to conscript Gnashblade into pulling his weight. He’ll have no choice but to give us his wares… or be executed.”
“Damn.” Braham sounded impressed, and Caoilfhionn was too, turning his eyes up to her in astonishment. “He deserves getting roped in.”
“He’ll whine and complain, but we’ll get what we need to fight Scarlet, and take care of everyone, and I don’t care if he hates me more than he already does.”
“You’re amazing, Ellen,” Caoilfhionn said. “I wish I could see his reaction.”
“Me too, but there’s too much to do here. All right, take care of yourselves. Rest up, because as soon as that miasma blows out to sea, we’re heading back in there. We still don’t know what that drill thing is doing, and I don’t like it.”
3: Set In Motion
It was days before the miasma blew away, but there was no time to wait idly. Each day, they sortied into the city, looking for survivors, trying to beat back the hostiles who had set up camps mostly away from the miasma themselves – though the krait didn’t seem to care. Each day, they lost so many fighters, to the enemy, to the gas. The city was in a horrific state. It was still partly burning, four days later when the air finally cleared enough for the united Lion’s Arch forces to begin their main assault. The destruction was near-absolute. But they were still going to take it back.
“Remember,” Annhilda said to those who followed her. “Scarlet doesn’t have that many forces. We won against her before, time and time again, destroying her resources and scattering her followers. She only drove us out because she took us by surprise – and because of that damned miasma. Without it, we far outnumber them, and we can outfight them, too!”
“Yeah!” a cheer went up from the crowd, determined, angry.
“So let’s get in there and remind her who she’s dealing with!” Annhilda yelled, stabbing her sword into the air, and they all roared.
Annhilda turned to Hope’s Legacy, with the addition of Ellen and some of her Lionguard, Phiadi’s Pale Reaver friend Mabbran, and a small golem for some reason. “And we’re going to fight our way to the Breachmaker, and put this troublemaker down once and for all.”
“You got it,” Braham said.
The plan had been thoroughly hammered together. The pirates, Lionguard, and Order forces would charge in from the north, and some from the south from Bloodtide, spreading through the streets like water through empty streambeds, relieving the 14th Lionguard from their desperate foothold in Trader’s Forum and sweeping all hostiles before them into the cliffs to the east and west, where they would have no room to run. The dredge might have been an issue with their burrowing abilities, but several Priory Asura assured leadership that they would not be a problem, Wegaff among them. He’d recovered enough to join a research team, though not enough to fight.
Caoilfhionn kept his eyes from wandering as they ran into the ruined city, as they crashed into enemy lines, as they broke through and fought one of Scarlet’s giant clockwork dolls. All that mattered was breaking the enemy. Anything else was a distraction. For once, he wished he could feel less, afraid that his will to fight would be overwhelmed. Even after four days, he was still not numb to it.
They made it onto the Breachmaker, somehow, and there the fight truly began. In pairs and small groups, their team fragmented; Ellen was wounded, and half the others stayed back to defend against the Aetherblade pirates trying to stop them. In the end, it was only Annhilda, Braham, Rox, Marjory, Kasmeer, and Caoilfhionn who made it down to the lowest levels of the machine, looking for their now-injured opponent. “Keep it together, pup,” Annhilda muttered to him. “We’re not done yet.”
“I’m fine,” he said. He was lying, but he’d be able to see this through.
They found her in some kind of control room, hot and dark and full of sinister blinking lights. It was all alien to Caoilfhionn, far stranger than any Asuran contraption he’d ever seen. And she’d designed this? How was it possible for any one person to think this up? But there she was, lying on the floor behind a wavering force field, holding her side in pain. Her crimson longcoat was stained brown with yellow sap, and her impish face twisted in pain.
“Just look at you,” Scarlet said, panting, raising herself to one elbow to glare at them. “All you… heroes. And here, at the centre, little ol’ me. Aren’t you even curious about why I did it? All this chaos and destruction?”
“Not particularly,” Annhilda said.
“It doesn’t matter now,” Braham said, taking a step forward. “You’re done.”
“Wrong,” Scarlet’s voice rang out. “Tyria will bow before a new master.”
“No,” Rox said. “We’ll stand together against any enemy.”
Braham thumped his fist into his palm. “Yeah! We’re Tyrians. We don’t like getting pushed around.”
Scarlet laughed, one of her insane giggles that turned into pained coughs. “So… what now? You big, strong heroes going to take me to jail?”
“Something like that,” Marjory said, and started forward, drawing her weapons.
“Jory, be careful!” Kasmeer cried.
“I’ll do something, all right,” Marjory said in a low voice. “I’ll end this for good.”
Scarlet managed a grimacing smirk. “That’s it. Come and get me… if you dare!” She pushed a button on her belt, and her shield exploded outwards, flinging back both Marjory and Braham. Caoilfhionn covered his face against the flash of light and let himself flow along with the energy, knocked back but without slamming into anything.
He was one of the lucky ones, he saw as he recovered his footing and his bearings. Braham had been flung back much farther. “Braham, your leg!” Rox cried, kneeling beside him.
But then Caoilfhionn saw a still figure in black, and gasped. Kasmeer wailed. “Jory? Jory!” She hiccoughed, her hands shaking as she shook Marjory’s shoulder.
“Don’t move her,” Annhilda rasped, staggering up, bleeding from her head.
“Oh, sweet Dwayna, help her. She’s not…” Kasmeer trailed off into hiccoughing tears, then suddenly launched herself at Scarlet, seizing her staff and raising it high as she ran. “You monster!”
Caoilfhionn ran after her, drawing his daggers, feeling her bereft rage wash over him, joined by his own wrath. Annhilda was behind him, but they were stopped by Scarlet hurling several small objects at them – grenades! He ducked, and Kasmeer threw up a shield just in time to not get scorched. But there were more, and more, and yet more – how many did she have, hidden around her person? He couldn’t get close like this.
“You’re ruining everything!” Scarlet shrieked, hurling even more grenades at them. “Why can’t you just leave me alone!?” How he hated her strident voice!
“You’re the one who chose to mess with us!” Annhilda yelled back. “Lunatic!”
“Get back!” Another wave of grenades. “This is my drill! Mine! I’ll take you all down with me if I have to.”
“You shan’t take another life!” Caoilfhionn cried, skidding forward, but he just slammed into her shield and rebounded.
“I hate you,” Scarlet growled. “Hate you. Hate you! You can’t get through my shield. I will finish what I started here. I will!”
“I’ll keep her occupied,” Kasmeer said from beside him; tears were still running down her cheeks, and her voice quavered as she gritted her teeth, but she was there, brandishing her staff. “You get in there and… do what needs to be done.” She twirled her staff, and instantly conjured multiple duplicates of herself, all surrounding Scarlet. “I’m over here!”
Scarlet coughed a snicker. “Oh, princess…es. I’ll kill every last one of you.”
“Ceara!” a different Kasmeer called, tauntingly as the first one vanished in a grenade blast with a burst of purple sparkles. “Ceara… Ceara, Ceara!”
“That’s not my name!” Scarlet hissed.
“What’s the matter, Ceara?” Another Kasmeer spun, summoning mesmeric missiles that bounced off Scarlet’s shield.
“Stop calling me that! It’s not my name!” Scarlet screamed in frustration, and flung something that detonated with an especially large blast – Caoilfhionn couldn’t see what it was before he was flung head over heels into the railing, dropping one of his daggers with the impact.
Kasmeer was sobbing with rage as she climbed back to her feet. “Make it count! End this! Now!”
“Do it, Caoilfhionn!” Annhilda cried, knocked even further back.
“If you can!” Scarlet hissed. “You’re just Trahearne’s boy-toy – you can’t do anything on your own!”
He sprinted for her. “For the honour of my people!”
She reached back to throw another grenade; her shield dropped for the barest instant as she hurled it; he lunged forward, past the grenade, tackling her. They rolled over together, but he ended up on top, raised his dagger with both hands, and plunged it into her chest, through leather, flesh, and wooden bone.
Scarlet coughed, tears coming into her eyes, but her face split in a maniacal grin. “This isn’t how it was supposed to go… You fools! You think my death… saves you? Too… late…”
On the other side of the room, to his right, a screen lit up with a blue glow – in an instant, he saw what it was depicting. The drill had struck… something. A thunderous rumble shook the entire structure and he was almost knocked sideways. There seemed to be almost a howl in it, a distant roar that made his head twinge strangely for a moment. Scarlet lay still beneath him, still grinning dementedly in death. He yanked his dagger free, gave Kasmeer a hand up, then ran to grab his other dagger before it was knocked into the bowels of the machine.
“Kas!” Rox called. “Get over here, quick!”
“Jory!” Kasmeer rushed off, with another hiccough. “Oh Gods, are you okay?” She flung herself to her knees beside her lover and pulled her carefully into her arms. Marjory blinked, just a little. Her face was swollen, scraped, and bruised, but as she turned her head to look up at Kasmeer, Kasmeer pulled her in and kissed her warmly. “Jory! Oh, Jory, I thought you were… I thought…”
Marjory smiled painfully at her. “Hush, love. I’m okay. Rox worked some battlefield magic on me. It’s okay, honey. I’m going to be okay.”
Caoilfhionn melted into a smile, the first real smile he’d had in some time. Love was so beautiful!
“Guess it’s a good thing you stayed behind, huh?” Braham said, grunting as he tried to stand, futilely – his leg was still broken, and unsplinted. But there wasn’t anything handy to splint it with, and Marjory’s life surely took precedence.
“Definitely a good thing, my friend,” Rox said, patting him on the head. “Definitely a good thing. All right, hero,” she said, turning to Kasmeer. “That’s enough cuddling for now. We’d better report this to Magnus. I bet everyone on the ground could use some good news-”
The drill had been making strange noises since it had struck its target, and alarms had been going off in the distance, but now the entire machine began to thrash, violently, like it was going to shake itself apart.
“Ah, yak spit!” Braham complained. Annhilda grabbed his arm, hauling him to his feet; Rox took his other side. He groaned in pain. “We better get out of here before the whole place comes down!”
Magic was going haywire around them, swirling around the central engine of the huge machine – when it lost control, it was going to spread itself across half the city. “I’ll clear the way!” They had to make it back to that portal that they’d come in by before it blew!
Phiadi and Damara met them next. “Did you get her?” Phiadi demanded, sitting on the back of an especially large flesh golem.
“Of course we did!” Annhilda grunted. “Any hostiles left?”
“You better believe there aren’t,” Phiadi said. “Come on – I sent Mabs and Rhyoll to the exit as soon as the Aetherblades stopped being in our way.”
They could barely keep their footing as they ran, and all about them, pieces of the machine were collapsing, tearing free from their supports and tumbling down, down, down to the bay far below. Caoilfhionn could see the water, distantly, crashing white around the drill, a blue-green glow throbbing from deep below the sea.
They made it to the portal and activated it, just as fire engulfed the entire platform.
Disoriented, they appeared on the beach – with fire and steel hurtling towards them. They ducked as a metal plate the size of Fort Marriner’s main gates came whizzing over their heads, but after a moment or two, it became apparent that no more debris was going to fall on them. They were safe.
Mabbran and Rhyoll approached them. “You took your time!” Rhyoll boomed. “Looking around much?”
“Glad you made it out, Pie,” Mabbran said to Phiadi, stressing the nickname with as much disgruntlement as he ever did. It had taken Caoilfhionn much observation, in the very small number of times he saw Mabbran, to realize that he did not like being called ‘Mab’ or ‘Mabs’, but Phiadi apparently didn’t notice that ‘Pie’ was a retaliation and not an endearment.
“We didn’t look at anything,” Kasmeer said, supporting Marjory as her lover sank to the sand in wounded exhaustion. “But we did it! We defeated Scarlet! …And I think she accomplished her goal anyway.”
“I’ll take ‘defeated Scarlet’ any day,” Rhyoll said. “We can worry about what she was up to later, after we get a chance to look at the remains of her machine, hahaha!”
“I think we all need some food, some ale, and some medics,” Annhilda said. “Let’s see what I can swing for us heroes.”
The city was still in ruins, terribly depressing ruins, even though the smoke had cleared and the sun shone full again. Everyone was working together to help start picking the place up, though it was such an immense task, Caoilfhionn had no idea where to begin. Thousands had died, and needed burial. Not one structure was left untouched, though a few on the edges of town had escaped complete destruction. And tourists were already coming to stare, and even looters – despicable people. And Evon Gnashblade was still around, strutting like a peacock and acting like he was owed something.
Only a day after it was all over, while they were in the remains of Fort Marriner – leveled by the destruction of the Breachmaker, if not the attacking forces – a small airship landed nearby, and from it emerged Laranthir of the Wild. He saluted them as he approached Annhilda. “Commander! I wasn’t surprised to hear that you had dispatched that horrid Scarlet. It seems only yesterday you led us to victory over Zhaitan.”
“Thanks, but Caoilfhionn’s the one who really ended her,” Annhilda said.
Laranthir turned to him and shook his hand firmly. “Well done, Caoilfhionn. Trahearne will be very proud. And I’ll be proud to bring the news to him.”
“Why is this Pact ship here?” Annhilda said. “Trahearne’s got few enough people at Fort Trinity as it is.”
“When I heard there was some connection between Scarlet and dragons, I went down and petitioned to bring one ship to survey the issue.”
“But there are no dragons here,” Rhyoll said.
“Exactly why it took everything I had to convince Trahearne to spare one ship. Protecting cities from deviants isn’t our mission. But there are rumours that a dragon is involved.”
“What do you mean?” Caoilfhionn asked anxiously.
“Priory scholars are saying Scarlet’s drill breached a ley line in order to rouse an Elder Dragon. If this is true…” Laranthir took a grim breath. “…then we face a possible larger threat from her meddling.”
Phiadi swore. “That’s going to accelerate our plans, isn’t it?”
“We’ll have to see,” Laranthir said. “We still hardly know which dragon was her target-”
A sobbing woman stumbled up to them. “Warmaster! Why weren’t you here? Why didn’t the Pact help save Lion’s Arch?”
“I was here, representing the Vigil,” Laranthir said gently, taking the woman’s hands. “Look around you – the Pact may not have been here in name, but the Vigil was here, the Priory, the Order of Whispers. We were with you-”
“But the Pact! The Pact is supposed to save people!”
“The Pact is supposed to fight Elder Dragons,” Annhilda said, less gently. “The Pact is there when all of Tyria must come together as one. But it’s only people. The people were here.”
Damara put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry we couldn’t save everyone. We really tried. Who is it you lost?”
“M-my son… He died to those dreadful krait. Oh…” She burst out weeping again and stumbled away, consumed by her grief.
“There are too many like her,” Damara said. “Thank Dwayna none of us died.”
“Were any in your guild injured?” Laranthir asked, looking around. “They are not all here, are they?”
“Braham and Marjory had pretty severe injuries from fighting Scarlet,” Annhilda said. “Wegaff got caught in the initial attack. Everyone has at least a few bruises.”
“Yes, Annhilda probably should be resting, herself,” Damara said, “but she’s too stubborn.”
“She won’t have a choice in a minute,” said a new voice, and they turned to see Ellen Kiel approaching them, her arm in a sling. “Hello, Warmaster Laranthir. Annhilda, I told you to get some rest!”
“I don’t need rest!” Annhilda whined. “It’s a scratch!”
“An impact head wound isn’t a scratch!” Ellen told her. “The rest of your guild is already on the road to Divinity’s Reach. I want you all to join them.”
“But-!”
“No buts! You need to rest, but you can’t do that here, we don’t have the facilities. Divinity’s Reach does. You already killed Scarlet and stopped the attack. What more do you want?”
“Why aren’t you resting?” Phiadi retorted.
“I’m on the Captain’s Council, and I didn’t get hit in the head. I can still strategize with the others. Go on. You’re all heroes. You don’t have to do anything else.”
“You really should,” Laranthir urged them. “Go spend time with your friends. They’ll be waiting for you. Leave this to us.”
Annhilda sighed. “But why all the way to Divinity’s Reach?”
“Because,” Damara said with a hand on her shoulder and her voice in a whisper, “There’s this monastery on the way, you see. With a brewery.”
Annhilda perked up. “Right! That place! That’s my kind of medicine!”
The Dead End bar was dim and cozy as always; it was open for business but there were only two or three people besides Hope’s Legacy inside. They laughed, and they drank, and celebrated survival.
Though Taimi had somehow pieced together as much as the Whispers agents in their group. “I suppose we should celebrate while we still can…”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rox said.
“Nothing!” Taimi said with a very fake innocence.
“C’mon, kid,” Braham said. “What are you talking about?”
“You know, don’t you?” Taimi pointed at Phiadi. “Scarlet wasn’t just fooling around.”
“Well of course not,” Phiadi said. “Even crazy people have purposes. Their purposes just don’t make logical sense.”
“You know something? Tell us!” Kasmeer cried.
“We’re all ears,” Rhyoll said. “Some of us more than others.”
“You do have an unfair advantage for ears, honey,” Marjory said to him.
“I think all of Tyria heard that dragon’s cry,” Phiadi said. “That was her plan all along. She was trying to wake one up, and it seems like she succeeded.”
“Which one do you think it was?” Kasmeer asked. “Primordus? Kralkatorrik? Jormag? Do you think one is sleeping beneath Lion’s Arch?”
“No, we discussed that,” Phiadi said impatiently, ignoring the fact that Kasmeer hadn’t been there when they discussed it. “She wanted to poke the ley lines where they were strongest, because they feed the dragons, no matter where they are in the world.”
“I don’t get it,” Braham said.
“The dragons consume magic,” Caoilfhionn said. “The ley lines are currents in an ocean of magic.”
“And Scarlet threw a giant rock in that pool, sending ripples out to the dragon. Spirits help us,” Annhilda said. “I expect Trahearne will start getting the band back together in short order. And I was enjoying not being Commander…”
“Speak for yourself,” Phiadi said. “I can’t wait to boss around some peons.”
“Your krewe not doing it for you?” Rox asked. “I thought you were fond of that Human who begged to join you… The ‘tall dark handsome’ one?”
“Sure, he’s smarter than he looks, and a competent krewe is fabulous, but I was born to rule more than that.”
“I’m fine either way,” Damara said easily. “Besides, we have to figure out which dragon’s waking up first.”
“Oh, by the way, I personally reported your victory over Scarlet to Logan Thackeray,” Marjory said to Damara. “He sends his regards.”
“That was kind of you,” Damara said happily. “Thank you.”
Marjory shrugged. “It was purely selfish. For the first time in my life, I actually feel sincere when I brag about the people I fight beside. But then he went on for some time about how impressed he is with your progress and how he ‘knew you when’. I thought, for a second, I’d have to hand him my handkerchief.”
Damara laughed delightedly. “For all his tough talk, he’s a big softy inside.”
Marjory snickered. “Don’t let him hear you say that. He’ll be scarred for life.”
“Dwayna preserve us,” Damara agreed.
“I bet you’re wondering why Frostbite and I are hiding out in a human bar in a human city,” Rox said to Caoilfhionn, who was blithely sipping wine next to her.
“Not really,” he said. “I’m here too?”
Rox’s gaze strayed to her pet, quietly nibbling scraps of chicken beside her. “Well, since you asked, Frostbite is afraid to report to Rytlock. Since we didn’t actually help kill Scarlet, exactly. I’ve been ignoring his summons.”
“Why are you afraid?” Caoilfhionn was confused. He vaguely remembered something about Rox being ordered to kill Scarlet, but- “Surely he’ll understand.” Rox had saved Marjory’s life. She might not have struck the killing blow, but without her, it would have been much more difficult.
Rox shifted uncomfortably. “It’s a Charr thing. Technically, he could gut me for disobeying an order.”
Caoilfhionn gasped. “What? You mean… er… court-martial, right?”
“No,” Rox said, dejected. “I mean it’s within his rights to kill me on the spot for disobeying his direct order.”
“You fought your way to Scarlet’s doorstep, to save our injured friends.”
“Yeah, I wish that counted for something. But… the truth is… when I chose to stay with Braham, I knew then that I didn’t want to be in the Stone warband.”
Caoilfhionn gasped again, with joy this time. “You don’t?”
Rox managed a little smile. “I’d much rather hang out with you guys. Braham was right. I’m giving up a big dream of mine. But I’d be giving up even more if I left you people.”
“Aww!” Caoilfhionn threw his arms around Rox and gave her a hug. “I’m so happy you’re going to stay. And if Rytlock wants to harm you, he’ll have to go through me, first.”
Rox chuckled and patted him on the back. “Even a few months ago, I might have said that would be easy for him. But you’re tougher than you look.”
Caoilfhionn grinned. “’Tis a knight’s duty to be strong as an oak, even if they look like… well, an orchid.”
“An Orchid Prince,” Damara put in. “He’s no ordinary knight – not that princes are any stronger than knights except in fairytales.”
“A toast to him anyway,” Annhilda said. “To the fancy plant-wolf-pup who slew a raving lunatic!”
“To Caoilfhionn!” the others cried, and Caoilfhionn blushed and laughed at their attentions.