Whitewail

by Gael

As we ventured deeper into the Winterland that was Lady Vivienne’s domain, I couldn’t help but marvel at its serene splendour. Fresh, powdery snow drifted on icy winds, blanketing the landscape in endless white. Every step we took sank into silence, every sound swallowed by frost. Towering above the veiled horizon loomed a colossal mountain of ice. And etched into its side like a shard of crystal, stood our destination Whitewail.

But the beauty did little to soothe our frayed nerves. Beneath the surface, tension crackled like. Over half of our ten-day deadline was already gone. And with still so much ground left to cover, pressure mounted by the hour. Our original plan to sail past the King’s Cleft was starting unraveling. The problem? Not one of us had the foggiest idea of how to actually acquire a ship, let alone sail one.

We considered hiring passage, but that risked alerting Vivienne’s spies. Leaving theft as the only alternative. But with our previously mentioned sailing skill, one we were tragically unqualified for. In short, we were stranded. Trapped between a rock and a hard place.

Tempers flared. And I’ll admit it: I was the first to snap.

What began as a simple disagreement quickly erupted into a full-blown shouting match. We were lashing out, not at each other, but at the crushing weight of the urgency we faced. That’s when Liliana stepped in, cool, compassionate and steady as always. After calming all of us down, she made the difficult decision to reveal a dangerous secret.

Each high-ranking Fey, she explained, was in possession of a personal portal to Nimmerhold. Allowing instant passage should they be summoned by the High King. As Vivienne’s former bodyguard of five years, she knew exactly where in Whitewail that portal was hidden.

At the time, I couldn’t fully grasp the weight of her choice. Caught between her duty to Vivienne and her loyalty to us, she chose us. Knowing that if we used the portal to meet the High King’s absurd demand, his wrath might well turn towards Vivienne herself. Yet, despite that risk, Liliana made her choice. And for that, I’ll always respect her.

The question now became: how do we reach a portal buried deep inside Lady Vivienne’s fortress?

A bold idea came to mind. Approach openly and request sanctuary for the night. If we could earn her hospitality, we might bypass the outer defences in its entirety and search from within. A risk to be sure, but not one without potential. The others, however, disagreed... strongly. Their skeptical glares not only questioning my sanity, but even my allegiances.

No, they decided. We would not be taking that gamble. Instead, we would go in the traditional way, the hidden way.

Once again, Liliana delivered. She revealed a secret escape tunnel carved into the mountainside just beyond Whitewail’s reach. It led straight to the portal chamber. It was Guarded of course, but only by a relatively modest fortress that we were confident we could surely overcome.

Our hope rekindled, we made camp one last time before the infiltration. As always, Luke meticulously arranged the protective wards that had served us so well in the past and would again that night.

During the first watch, Luke and I spotted them: two pairs of glowing, icy blue eyes prowling the treeline. Winterwolves. Seemingly tracking our scent.

Luke’s wards masked us well, but if the wolves got close enough or reported back, the whole mission could crumble in but a matter of seconds. So, as Luke woke the others, I made a call. I decided to lure them away.

Luring them away proved easy enough. But actually shaking them when we were far enough from the camp required every ounce of cunning and magic I possessed. Fortunately luck, or fate, proved to be on my side that evening. Allowing me to make it back unseen.

The next day, with Hayley’s illusions cloaking us, we slipped into Whitewail. The city was breathtaking. A frozen marvel chiselled into the mountainside. My third major city, after Keralon and Talebra Velora, and yet entirely unlike either of them. Frost-wreathed towers of living ice, snowless bridges, and a mingling of Fey kind unlike anything I’d seen before. I silently vowed and hoped that I would be able to return one day. Not as an intruder in the night, but as a welcomed guest.

Liliana guided us up the slopes to the fortress guarding the tunnel. Luke, rather eagerly, suggested fireballing it into the Plane of Fire. But despite being impressed with his enthousiasm, we instead chose to have Dadroz scout it out instead.

I wish I could have joined him, but my summer features made me about as subtle as a torch in a snowstorm. Instead Dadroz was perfect for this. Swift, silent and sharp as ever, he quickly returned with a plan.

With the assistance of a dense fog courtesy of Hayley and a small blessing by my myself to muffle our footsteps, Dadroz guided us to the fortress. Allowing us to slip past its defences and into the cave ahead like a cat through raindrops.

It wasn’t long however until we encountered our second obstacle. Two sentries, a troll and a winterwolf, barred our path. Luke flexed his fingers, already preparing to cast his beloved fireball, but Liliana stepped forward instead.

“I’ve got this,” she said, calm and resolute.

She approached the troll and claimed we were acting under Vivienne’s orders. Bearing an urgent message for the High King. When questioned about why we came from the cave and not the castle, she simple smiled and said “just following orders”.

The troll squinted, scratched his head and, miraculously, stepped aside. Liliana’s silver tongue saving us from conflict once again. Luke however, denied once more, simple scowled.

His time though came soon enough.

At the gate to the castle’s dungeon, two hulking golems stood watch. No amount of fibbing or sneaking would allow us to bypass these sentries. With a grin forming, Luke’s eyes gleamed as he stepped forward and raised his staff.

A hair quicker, I called upon the wild to silence the chamber, muting the thunderous blast of Luke’s fireball as it engulfed the golems in fiery flames. Weakened, I did not take us long to take them down for good.

Once inside, Liliana led us to an inconspicuous door, leading into the portal chamber. Wary of potential traps ,we cautiously opened it.

And were blasted back by an icy gale.

Standing between us and our goal was Lady Vivienne herself.

Though her expression was calm, if not slightly uninterested, we all knew a direct confrontation here would be suicide.

Before she could act, Hayley seized the moment and forcefully teleporting her into the cave behind us. Clearing the path.

“Run!” Dadroz barked as he bolted forward towards the gate.

We sprinted after him. Though just before crossing the threshold, I glanced over my shoulder.

There stood Luke, arms aloft as Vivienne reappeared behind us.

“Finally!” he bellowed. “You shall taste my flaming vengeance!”

Only for Hayley to yank him by the collar and drag him through the portal.

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Whitewail

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