53.3 Imperial City

General Summary

Days 1080 - 1083

The glow starts from the centre of the islands and spreads until a roiling ocean blue aura hangs over entire lake. Black Tourmaline steps forward and unleashes an incredible wave of earthen magic to drag a stone staircase from the depths to facilitate the Osyr’s return.   Leading the way are the battle-scarred soldier and painter who Ausha and I first encountered. Behind them are scores of Osyr looking fatigued and weary, as though all their magic has been expended. They keep coming and coming, well over a thousand Osyr fill the island courtyard as Liliales directs traffic. The poor Osyr seem confused to see a fae directing them, but his aura speaks on his behalf and they follow his orders after a moment of hesitation.   By the time everyone has emerged from the depths, there are 20,000 Osyr. Soldiers, wizards, civilians — many are young, and most of them are commoners. Once they are all on the surface, Black Tourmaline slumps down in exhaustion, exuding pride, relief, and the ghost of how many she couldn’t save.  

You saved a lot of people.

  Each academy island can hold roughly 2000 people, which leaves us with 10,000 still in need of shelter. Some can move into the elvish district, and Shelor will see if anyone else in the city is willing to take on guests. We can send the more reserved, calmer Osyr to stay with some of the humans. Ausha and I combine our magic to grow new residences in the lake out of coral and earth. With Oblivion’s help, we draw up a new island with coral structures atop it. Oblivion’s main contribution is a barrier around it that will ensure it remains hidden from people who are not mean to stay there; it will be a good shelter for Osyr who need some privacy, and doubles as a place for Oblivion to stay when she’s visiting. Void joins in as well to make fluted coral pipes that will play in the wind and stir memories, of both the Osyr’s history here and of Oblivion herself.   Starfield builds a bridge to connect our new island with the others, and ordain it with the power to be discovered by people who need it.   It takes us two days to raise the island just high enough that the outer courtyards will flood throughout most of the year, leaving the way open for semi-aquatic gardens and pathways. The coral remains connected to the water at its roots, and remains alive and softly glowing each night. It’s a marvel of magical engineering by all involved.   Shelor is running about helping humans get involved while the youngsters and elves cook and organize everyone who still needs places to stay. It feels both like Seeking and like orientation day at the academy for new students. Osyr are grouped and offered housing as it becomes available.   Vaneilli is telling stories, entertaining everyone as Yneir plucks out the shiniest Osyr and points them in the direction that feels right for them. Bran is out in his formal robes, which the Osyr recognize and respect easily.   The entirety of the trades district (namely dwarves) has opened their doors to the Osyr, without anyone having asked. As I go about my rounds, thanking the citizens for pitching in, I learn that Lord Rallic Waverider is responsible for so many dwarves opening their homes. Eventually I am pointed in his direction and I find a commanding man directing construction, adorned with a golden collar around his neck — a Ventarri.   He notices my approach and executes a formal bow, prostrating himself before me. When I ask him to rise, he retains his deferential attitude until I recall what I’d worked on with Torrick and manage to tone down my Imperial presence. On more equal footing, he shows me the work that he is overseeing to create townhomes which are appropriately sized for the large Osyr. Despite the fast work, there is none of the human sloppiness that goes with rapid progress. These are all homes built with master craftsmanship and apprentices being carefully monitored by journeymen. And once the fundamentals are finished, there is still artistry being added.  

The Waveriders keep the old ways and the old oaths.

  He tells me that his family remembers the time of Osyr and the relationships our people had. They learned waveriding from the Osyr themselves, though they are now largely confined to inland seas. Up close, I can see that his collar is adorned with some very old pearls embedded with Osyr magic for manipulating water and weather.   His clan is widespread, with many members still within the Domain. He set out here to investigate rumours that the waterways had opened up and the venerable ones had returned to the coast. I’m so hopeful to see a dwarf who remembers are respects Osyr that I step back, and let Ausha come forward to work with him. She and several Osyr join the construction efforts and I melt back into the background   Many younger elves take up the job of guiding Osyr around the new city, which shields the humans somewhat from the immediate shock of interacting with these enormous newcomers.   When Shelor finds me next, she comes to me with the problem of a three-way deadlock in the human council. She, personally, thinks it is time for Deldrin to ask to join the Empire — it is clear now that they cannot stand apart any longer. She has known me and my workings for long enough that it is apparent to her. And Deldrin has its pride, but hearing about the city’s history makes her feel that they are just trying to reinvent the wheel. It has always been a place for knowledge regardless of whether it is a human city or an Imperial city.   Three members of the council, led by her, are advocating for full integration into Imperial rule. Another faction is being reactionary and insists on shipping as many Osyr as possible to the Crystal Spires. And there is a diplomatic force seeking some middle ground — a partnership of some kind. She believes the reactionaries will either die out or be voted out, but she wants to convince the moderates to be bold and believe in something brighter.  

What promises are you willing to make?

  Traditionally, Imperial rule includes both inherited and appointed positions. If there were lords of Deldrin, she wonders if the role could be heritable amongst humans? She suggests one lord for each major island - arts, crafts, scholars. Maybe a human, a dwarf, an elf? She is hoping to persuade some of the moderates that they would not be giving up too much by joining the Empire. In particular, she wants their guild system to be respected some way.   I’m not opposed to this, but the human mode of training and mastery is…different from Imperial. A human grandmaster is typically not up to the standards of an Imperial grandmaster and so there cannot be an expectation of automatically being awarded status as a master craftsperson in the Empire. Our systems might coexist with respect going both ways, but I do not think they can be merged.   Shelor’s other curiosity is about oaths. I know that in Solace, Amytri had all his citizens swear Imperial oaths as a matter of policy. There were benefits for them, of course — the Empress’ gift to humans unlocks their Zephyr-granted gifts in new ways. It doesn’t replace their magic, just make it more flexible.   My impulse is to not demand oaths of anyone in Deldrin as a matter of policy. Unlike Solace, Deldrin has lived in the ominous shadow of the Empire and has actively felt threatened by the Library reawakening, the magic coming back to life and greeting me. Strategically, I worry that an expectation of oaths will imply conquering, which is not what I want. At most, I would expect governmental positions to swear oaths of service to their city with the acknowledgement that the city is part of the Empire. Then again, the oaths sworn by members of the Outlands are different, and recognize that our world here is different from back home. It is a bridge to cross once we get to it.   Either way, I’ll meet with Shelor’s faction and the three moderates in a few days to answer what questions I can.