7.5 Restoration

Day 75

It is late afternoon before I wake to find myself in a tangled pile with Bran, Alder, and Hella. In the softness of just-waking, Bran quietly thanks me for not giving up on him, and Hella wonders aloud at what would have happened if Kadia hadn’t been able to manifest her ice magic. She seems determined to learn that magic for herself, so that if Kadia isn’t able to protect us, she will.   When Nienne arrives to check on us, she tells us more about this fishhook ritual - someone once attempted it on her after her husband passed away, but obviously they were unable to force her to submit.   The day passes quietly before a servant informs us that Nidrae has awoken, and will be able to meet with us soon.   The harsh, bitter person we met just yesterday seems to have melted into someone more relaxed and comfortable in his body. I can only imagine the feeling of being free from the fire that must have lit him at every waking moment.   Despite my assurances that no specific debt is owed to me for destroying whatever monster was inside him, he speaks at length about how he doesn’t like to be indebted to people. When the conversation turns to how he might specifically aid in our cause, he puts forward a suggestion I hadn’t considered.   Bound up in this suggestion is the revelation that there are more elves who have been treated as he was - elves who have been forced out of the shade. They call themselves the Severed, and Nidrae tells us that he has never been able to reason with them, despite their shared plight. Many elves who have been severed from the Empress kill themselves or go mad, but around a dozen have come together under the leadership of a man named Petaran, a former soldier. Fuelled by their fury, they hunt and kill human mystics, but it seems they don’t much care who else gets caught up in the rampage.   The ritual used to do this - the one with fishhooks and candle flames, is apparently known to a fair number of high-level mystics of the Fisherman and the Candlemaker. It requires someone of each faith to perform.   While the bitterness seems to be gone from Nidrae’s physical form, it is clearly still in his heart. He asks for my blessing to declare war on any human who knows these rituals. If he kills everyone who knows it, our people will be safer, he says.   Sometimes it is interesting to see what drives people to speak up. Alder has been speaking for me for many weeks at the Keep, guiding the elves to their own conclusions without me. It’s not entirely surprising that he steps forward and answers for me. Bran, also, speaks up. Killing every mid-high level mystic of the two faiths would mean a holy war, and the human race has a history of holy wars that have destroyed entire cities. They are so strong in their conviction that by the time I have a chance to speak, there is very little for me to say! It’s nice to see Bran speaking up like this.   Nidrae’s bloodlust is certainly admirable to me, but as always I am not interested in fighting another war, holy or otherwise. Instead, I delegate to him the task of ending slavery. Simple, enough, no?   On the journey towards Brighton, I had explained to Hella how people draw invisible circles around “us” and “them”, to justify their behaviour towards others. I believe that it will be a critical part of our way forward to redefine those circles and expand them as much as possible. A circle of elves, humans, dwarves, fae, and trolls together is much stronger than a circle of elves. The same can be said of casting a circle - the larger it is, the more powerful things it can accomplish.   Some circles, like the Collective or the Ingan, have proven time and time again that they are simply incompatible with the Empire’s circle. Other circles, like the dwarves and the Carthians, have merged with some degree of compatibility and benefit. I know that humans, trolls, and fae have the potential to merge, and I would like the dwarves’ circle to truly be the same as ours, and not a pale comparison built on shackles.   Nidrae expresses surprise that I want our people to include dwarves, but Hella is ready with her observations of elves and dwarves living and working together. The road towards the Keep was evidence enough of that. She alludes to Lyssa, without knowing enough to say it explicitly.   The job of liberating and smuggling people is hopefully not so different from liberating and smuggling trade goods. I’m sure Nidrae is up to the task, with Nienne’s help. They will also begin constructing a supply chain towards the Keep to fuel our growing town as they send us liberated slaves.   Nidrae seems very pleased that the two of them will be spending more time together.   As we retire back to our bedroom, Alder stops to talk with me. I am struck at the similarity to how Rosalia used to speak with me after a harrowing experience. He is quietly amazed at my determination to continue onwards and to support so many with so little support myself. I still don’t know how to explain this, even to my family. There simply isn’t another option. If I could produce a way to save everyone without bearing the sacrifices and putting others in danger, I would. It simply doesn’t exist, or if it does, I haven’t found it.   We take a brief moment to strategize about how to handle the many fights that we will face if we are to restore the shade to a dozen Severed. Tentatively, Alder suggests that he could try pulling an elf into the shadows with him. He thinks of his extraordinary abilities with the shadow as merely practice, but it is clear to me that there is some magical element to it. He is hesitant as he asks for help in refining whatever his ability is. I’m so proud of him for being willing to step into something new.