Marissa

  As what remained of the party stood huddled together and Evan laughed off the attack thanks to the [Final Vigil] skill, [Scathach] seemed to relax. The swirling vortex of shadows that had been surrounding her dissipated, and her [Armor of Shadows] slowly melted off of her body and sunk back into the ground.

  “Well fought. And survived!” [Scathach] said, as she walked over to the party, who was huddled off to the side of the pasture they had fought in. Evie was already mid-cast to get Nyx and Mellody back up, now that the battle was no longer a concern. They hadn’t left the instance yet, though, so more combat was a small possibility. Marissa thought it was unlikely though, and was just for story purposes.

  “Now then,” [Scathach] said, and motioned over to her daughter to join them on the field. “[Uathach], you were right that these folk are stronger than most of the other warriors we have at our disposal. Thank you for bringing them to me.”

  “Yes, mother!” [Uathach] said, saluting the traditional [Tuatha dé] salute, crossing her left arm across her body and making a small bow from the waist.

  “When you suggested we make use of them, what did you have in mind, [Uathach]?”

  [Uathach] suddenly seemed less a cunning and dangerous general, and more like a young woman worried about saying the wrong thing to her mother - and superior. “I don’t know. They fought brilliantly under my command, and while I would love to have them stay with me, it feels as though they would be better utilized elsewhere.”

  [Scathach] snorted. Marissa couldn’t tell through the screen whether it was meant to be dismissive or caring, but [Scathach] said, “And here I thought you had brought it up to suggest they be the ones to talk with the [Dagda].”

  [Uathach] seemed taken aback and scrambled to say, “No, I wouldn’t suggest -”

  “It’s fine, daughter,” [Scathach] said, her voice softening some before she turned toward the party. “I believe I will have them accompany me for the time being. They were last minute arrivals to the defense of the city, and therefore aren’t accounted for in our defense plans. If we’re about to send some people to get us permission, then they will do nicely, I think.”

  “Yes, mother.” [Uathach] said, once again saluting. “Would you like me to accompany you for your visit?”

  “No, that’s alright.” [Scathach] said, waving back toward the rest of the cavalry unit. “Go see to your men and your horse. I’m sure that he would like a break before you’re sent out again.”

  “Understood.” [Uathach] said with a final salute before she trotted down the path to regroup with her unit.

  [Scathach] watched her go and nodded before spinning on a heel. “Follow me. We’ll go meet with the [Dagda] before we make any more decisions.” The woman waved to [Cu], who had been waiting in the wings for the fight to finish. As he jogged over, [Scathach] began the trek up a dirt road to the higher center portion of the city.

  The party chatted easily as they followed the NPCs through the upper portion of the city. While [Gorias] wasn’t in a particularly bad state despite being under siege, it had clearly seen better days. Some of the buildings were in need of repairs, and the road, which had probably been cobblestone at one point, was missing stones here and there, giving it the impression of an unkempt dirt road that hadn’t been cleaned.

  When they started approaching the actual center of the city, however, things became much less haphazard. The buildings were well maintained, and the road was no longer cobblestone, but fully paved with some kind of unbroken material. And in the dead center of it all was a looming building that looked akin to a castle, though not sprawling like many were.

  It was well contained, consisting mostly of three towers, connected by various stone walkways that looked almost unnatural. But the base that each of the towers sprung from was still impressive, despite being not much larger than a two or three story house.

  “The [Dagda’s] home.” [Scathach] said, as she led their group to the door. There was a magical seal covering the entryway, that she simply walked through before waving everyone else in. “The outside is maybe not as impressive as you may expect for the ruler of the [Tuatha Dé Danann], but he’s never been much for showing off.”

  “This is where the leader of the gods lives?” Nyx asked, sounding disappointed.

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  “I guess so,” Kieran said. “To be fair, while the Dagda is usually considered the leader of the gods, he’s not exactly the…exorbitant type? If anything, this might even be too grand for how I believe he is generally portrayed.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Yeah,” Kieran said, “Typically, the Dagda has more of an ancient druid type vibe. Old man, big beard, hooded cloak, the whole deal.”

  When [Scathach] traversed the full first room and opened a door that led into the heart of the small castle, everyone had to readjust their feelings on the space.

  It suddenly made sense why the place was a few stories high from the outside, but not ridiculously big. It simply didn’t need to be. The inner room of the castle was larger than the outside of it, resembling a druidic circle. The whole interior was flush with plants and vibrant with life. The room was beautiful, covered in plants of so many colors - both natural and unnatural - that Marissa was suddenly jealous that she couldn’t simply spend all her time idling in the space. And she desperately wanted to take some pictures of Hibiscus in that room.

  [Scathach] laughed. “Gorgeous, isn’t it? This place is truly something special.” She motioned to either side of them as they followed her down a small footpath. “Many of the plants here come from all over the world, but there are also plenty that are from the [Other World] as well. The [Dagda’s] magic and connection to the [Other World] keeps them alive.”

  “Can I just live here?” Marissa said aloud. “Maybe there’s a Fae Circle location here somewhere so I can come back.”

  Kieran and Firo both laughed, while Nyx said, “I doubt it.”

  “I dunno,” Jazz said, “There is a Fae Circle location in the Great Library.”

  “True. And I still don’t think we’re ever going to need to go back there,” Ash said. “I guess maybe it’s possible.”

  “[Scathach]. [Cu]. I see you have brought guests. How fares the battle?” A booming voice cut off the conversation, as it seemed to come from every direction thanks to Marissa’s headphones.

  “Damn, dude sounds bad ass.”

  “Old though.”

  “[Dagda].” [Scathach] and [Cu] both said and saluted, while performing a deeper bow than was traditional for the salute. For fun, Marissa typed out a quick “/salute”, prompting Hibiscus to follow the motion. She grinned when she heard her friends chuckle, but many followed the motion as well.

  “Ah, I see your new companions are well mannered.” the [Dagda] said. “Come, what is it you need to discuss with me?”

  As the party joked about how cool it was that the NPC had probably just noticed they all saluted, the [Dagda] appeared from behind a curtain of plants nearby. Kieran had been pretty spot on with his description, so the game devs must have not changed too much design-wise.

  The [Dagda] was a tall man. Despite wearing a hooded cloak that looked to be made of a soft velvet, his build was clearly muscular and dangerous. He was older, yes, but the wrinkles on his visible face and the large beard covering it didn’t take away from his intimidation factor.

  He walked with a staff, although it didn’t appear that he used it as a walking aid of any kind. And while the staff looked like it was made of gnarled wood, the top and bottom both had a knot of wood that glowed with internal light. The bottom portion of the staff had a green glow to it, and every time the staff touched the ground, grass and small flowers sprouted around it.

  The top of the staff glowed with a more sinister looking purple color. While Marissa was considering what it symbolized, she watched it brush past some hanging plants, which immediately began to shrivel and fall from their vines.

  “A staff that carries the power of both life and death.” Kieran said, as if repeating a bit from a textbook. “That’s still pretty classic for him.”

  [Cu] bowed again, and stepped back to allow [Scathach] to lead their side of the conversation.

  “[Dagda], the Fomorians seem to be preparing to raid us with wyvern.” She said, producing the papers that [Uathach] had retrieved in a puff of black smoke. “We’re going to need to be able to fight in the skies if we have any hope of holding the city.”

  “I see.” the [Dagda] said, leaning comfortably on his staff while he reached to take the papers. “You are correct, at least, that we don’t currently have any reliable way to hold off an attack from the air.”

  “We could conceivably line the walls with more ballistae, but I’m not confident that we’d be able to hold off the number of wyvern that their plans seem to indicate. And while the barrier around the city will no doubt hold against the assault for a while, without a way to remove the threat, it will eventually be torn through.”

  “And your plan, then?” the [Dagda] asked, sounding as if he already suspected the answer.

  “My first thought was to contact [áine] regarding the current restriction on flight.” [Scathach] said. “I know that the restriction has been something that has been in place for nearly a millennium now, but with the Fomorian threat looming so close that they are actively sieging one of our cities…perhaps it’s time to approach [áine] and see if she is willing to cooperate with us again.”

  The [Dagda] chuckled. “You know as well as I do why [áine] has locked away the ability of flight. And we of the [Aes Sídhe] agreed to the demand as recompense. Do you really believe that [áine] would simply break such an agreement?”

  “I can’t say with any certainty, no.” [Scathach] said hesitantly. “Still, it seems worth a try. When the [Aes Sídhe] agreed to binding themselves, the Fomorians weren’t a significant threat. They are now. And if we fall, the [Seelie Court] would be next.”

  “So you think the potential danger to the [Court] would be enough for [áine] to drop her restrictions.”

  “It seems…reasonable.” [Scathach] said, sounding somewhat petulant.

  The [Dagda] considered the idea for moment, then nodded. “Very well. I can send some envoys to the [Other World]. If they travel from here, they will arrive in the [Seelie Court], and face minimal danger. Hopefully.” He faced [Scathach] again with a warm smile. “I’ve been in contact with [áine] for a long time now. Maybe she’s come around some. Or perhaps she will find a new way forward.” He chuckled to himself. “Wouldn’t that be nice.”

  Then the [Dagda’s] attention turned to the party. “And I imagine this is why you brought this group with you?”

  “I believe they will be sufficient to convince [áine] that our need is dire, yes.” [Scathach] said. “They proved themselves to me through battle as well. I believe if [áine] chooses to test them, they will pass. Unless she chooses to be deliberately unfair.”

  “We all know that the [Queen of the Seelie Court] will play tricks if she wishes.” the [Dagda] said. “If you believe this is the best course of action, however, I will back you. Perhaps this could be the beginning of a new alliance with the [Seelie Court].”

  “We can hope.” [Scathach] said.

  The [Dagda] nodded motioning to the room with a hand. “Take a moment to rest here. Explain the situation as you know it to the envoys, so they know at least some of what they are agreeing to before we send them. Make sure they understand what they are choosing to do before they step through my portal.”

  “I understand.” [Scathach] said, and then she saluted, once again with a deeper than normal bow. “We will take our leave for the moment then.”

  “Come find me when you are ready.” The [Dagda] intoned, before turning to walk back into the mess of plants.

  [Scathach] waited a moment longer before turning to the party. “There you have it. Let us take a break for the moment, and I will answer any questions you have. I imagine a lot of our conversation just now meant very little to you.”

  [Cu] walked up then, and joked, “Most people these days don’t know anything about the [Flight Pact], let alone [áine] and the [Seelie Court]. For that matter, even the Fae among the [Aes Sídhe] are mostly too young to know most of their own history.”

  [Scathach] visibly sighed, rolling not just her eyes, but her entire head to make her exasperation known through the screen. “Yes, [Cu], thank you for that. That’s why we’re going to go have a chat about it.”

  “Good.” He said, suddenly more serious. “Don’t send anyone into the [Other World] unprepared for what’s there. I don’t care how talented or strong they may be - they need to know what’s over there, waiting for them.”

  “I’m aware.” [Scathach] said flatly, then turned to lead the party back down the small foot path.

  Marissa heard several people remove their mute and deafen status in the chat, although she missed everyone turning them on in the first place.

  “Yo. What the fuck is happening?” Jazz asked.

  “I’m not sure.” Evie said. “I paid attention to most of the story up until now, but this is the first time I’ve seen most of those terms. I’ve seen mention of the Seelie Court in other series though.”

  “Yeah,” Kieran said, “I don’t know anything about the agreement they were talking about, but I assume that’s actual Mag Mell stuff. The Seelie Court and its queen though - that’s pretty standard faerie stuff.”

  “So…the ‘other world’ is-”

  “The realm of the Fae, probably, yeah.” Kieran said.

  “Great, I’m sure that’s going to be safe.” Evan said.

  “You think they’ll do anything crazy like try to trick us in dialogue to give away our names and shit?” Nyx asked.

  “I have no idea.” Marissa said, following as [Scathach] led them off onto a different path than the one they followed in. A short ways down it, there was a small grove that looked like it had been designed to be a relaxing campsite, almost. There were downed logs and stumps perfect for sitting on, and even a fire pit in the middle.

  [Scathach] walked into the grove, and motioned for the party to sit down. “Okay. We will relax here for the time being while I explain exactly what’s going on. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me.”

  And then Marissa was greeted with a dialogue menu with several options, each inquiring about a different part of the lore drop they had just been handed.

  “Did everyone get the prompts?” Ash asked.

  “Yep.”

  “So we’re each in charge of our own explanation scene. That’s cool.” Evan said.

  “Alright, everybody. Going dark until we’re done here.” Kieran said.

  “Same. See y’all on the other side.” Marissa said, and deafened the chat before locking into the cutscene. The game’s story was finally drawing her in - especially when it felt like the ability to fly that she had been looking for from the beginning a year ago was so close.