Time to write...

Rova 24, 4712

Thaddeus crumpled up another piece of paper and tossed it towards the fire. He watched as the edges blackened and then glowed bright before vanishing. It was not the right balance he told himself. After so many attempts, it barely annoyed him anymore. Pulling out another piece of paper he began again.

With the exception of the prisoners/victims, the journey back was going quite peacefully, and it gave him more time to focus on this. Time that he had used extensively.

Queen, Fey, Wife? How did one speak to all three?

He drummed his fingers silently on the back of his shield as he searched for the perfect words. As the paper dwindled he began to think the perfect words didn't exist. So he settled on 'good'.

Finally he stared at the finished product with mixed feelings. It didn't quite feel... right. He glanced around the campsite and noticed Wynnsaren not far.

"Wynn? Could I get your opinion for a moment..." With a deep sigh, he held for the letter for her to read.

Greetings and Best Wishes from Novastasia to the Esteemed Feluanil, Queen of the Fey,

It is my wish to extend my personal thanks for the instrumental aid you and your subjects gave to my kingdom in our hour of need. Without the aid of the Fey, the death toll would have been incalculable.

I have planned a memorial monument to be placed in Akiros in honor of our people's united defense against the Red Doom, and as a reminder of all who fell in the conflict. The memorial dedication is scheduled for the evening of the winter solstice and I hope that you accept my invitation to be a part of the ceremony.

I hope that you will accept my invitation in other regards as well. The battle has been won, and I have not forgotten our agreement in the Narlmarches. I believe we have much to discuss and many plans to make for the future. The bearer of this letter is my ambassador and friend Wynnsaren. She knows my thoughts well and speaks with my interests at heart. If you have any thoughts, concerns or desires, I beg for you to make them known to her, and word will soon reach me. I wish to establish a more consistent communication between our kingdoms before they are joined.

I will do what I can to meet them.

I hope that soon we can meet in person again. You have been much on my mind as of late. I find that you are a mystery to me, and I would like to know more about my betrothed. My mind is full of questions, questions that I suspect only you have the answers too. If your subjects arrival and departure are indication, I suspect travel to my city would be of little difficulty, though if there is anything I could do to ease your travel and make your arrival an event worthy of your stature, My carriages and guards would be at your disposal.  

With gratitude,

KingThaddeus Medvyed.

Paladin of Sarenrae. Lord of Novastasia.

"Too much? Not enough," he asked with a sigh. "It's not exactly poetry, but I hope it reaches the right balance of personal and political..."

The Ambassador carefully laid a marking strip of silk between the pages of the Lirgeni astrological text she was pouring over. She moved over to sit beside the king, folding her legs beneath her upon the grass in front of the fire.

This was hardly the first night she'd watched King Thaddeus attempt the missive. He'd agonized over it before their arrival in Kirya and now that this current threat had been thwarted, he was working on it on the return trip. As much as she'd wanted to help him, Wynn felt it would be too much a personal intrusion to offer assistance at the time, but now that he was asking. . .

With a nod of genuine understanding, she took the letter in hand and began to read carefully. Once and then again.

"This is quite good," Wynnsaren smiled, clearly pleased. "I would council that you might consider using a different word than 'beg' in this sentence here," she tapped her finger at the section in question, "but other than that I believe you have struck an excellent balance!

"You pay her the respect due her station, acknowledge the great effectiveness of her armies, deal with a bit of business, chivalrously give offer to address her own needs and tactfully express a desire to know her better."

The aasimar turned her cool, vivid gaze upon the young paladin-king and handed the letter back to him. "Well done in my humble opinion, Your Majesty. . . but you do not yet seem pleased with it," she observed. After a moment's pause, Wynn adopted a more casual posture and propped herself up on one hand as she addressed him.

"If I may. . . Is it this letter which causes you such inquietude, or concern over the entirety of the situation? Have you been having troubling thoughts about your betrothed?"

"Yes... no... both?" he shrugged noncommitally.

"Nothing more then the same concerns as before. I'm almost used to it at this point... just always gnawing away at the back of my mind." He couldn't help but grin a little as he shook his head. He tapped the letter with the quill.

"This letter... just feels important! The first time I spoke with her, Tatselford was under attack, the second time, all of Novastasia was!" He was quiet for a moment as he let his thoughts take root.

"The battles are over now. This letter, this delegation, will be the first time that we have communicated without monsters breathing down our neck.

It feels... momentous. That this is going to be a foundation for everything that comes after."

With a warm smile, Wynnsaren reached out and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"This occasion is important, I will not downplay that fact. However, a proper foundation is not built in a day. I will meet with your betrothed and devote all of my energy to ensuring that Novastasia -- that you -- are properly represented in your absence and ensure that any questions or needs that she may have will be addressed post haste.

"That being said, Queen Feluanil's next meeting with you should prove far more important in the establishment of that foundation, and the next meeting, more important still. Each day with your intended. . .and then eventually your wife, will be more important than the last. A new opportunity to strengthen the foundation of your relationship. While I cannot tell you what form of connection you will begin with in your relationship, do not forget that it is only the beginning of a long and exciting journey.

"No doubt that compromise will be required along the way, Your Grace, and though I admit my own uncertainties as to her intentions, you must know that my hope lies in the knowledge that you would never compromise what is right, who you are, or the well-being of your nation for any reason, for when you became king, you took Novastasia as your first bride."

"Something that is always on my mind..." he said with a wry grin. "My main goal here... is to not appear weak, yet at the same time to not unintentionally offend. I'll remove the 'beg', I agree that may have strayed a bit from chivalrous toward weak..."

He tapped his chin in deep thought as he mulled aloud. "Father always told me that diplomacy was about talking to the person.. to tell them what they needed to hear at the time they needed to hear it. Figuring out what their needs were, and then striving to meet them as best as you're able, while getting your own concerns addressed as well.

"With humans.. it's typically about money or respect. Sometimes others, but those are the big ones. Play to those, and the meetings will go well, he would always say... With fey? There is usually one particular thing they focus or obsess on, depending on the person of course. Know that, and it makes agreements a bit easier to come to.

"Feluanil? I'm not sure where to start there... I'm afraid I'm sending you in a bit blind.

"What of the other part here," he said tapping the later section of the letter. "We've spoken on this subject a few times now. Do you have any questions for me before you go in there?

"You should be able to send silver ravens to me... but I'm not sure if I'll be able to return them. I'm not... entirely sure where you'll meet her. For that matter it may not be in this realm at all, Some of our earlier meetings were... confusing.

"Tatselford is back under construction. That would probably be the best place to return a bird, but it's not a certainty."

"Should it become necessary to receive word back from you for any reason, I will include a destination to which you might send your silver raven, whether that be to me or to Queen Feluanil directly.

"Please do not be concerned about sending me into the situation 'blind', my dear king, for I assure you I enter into nearly every situation in that state," Wynnsaren chuckled. "I have every confidence that this delegation will go without incident, provided the fey queen will see us of course," she conceded. "Barring that unfortunate possibility, we are there only to deliver to her your personal letter, provide answer to whatever questions or needs she may have and hopefully return to you with either a verbal or written reply."

The Ambassador sat up and smoothed the skirt of her soft blue riding dress over her leathers.

"Is there any other message that you would wish for me to deliver to your betrothed? Anything specifically you desire for me to know or understand? I feel that I know your heart fairly well in these matters, so there are no questions that immediately come to mind, though I suppose I have a few days yet to ponder the situation."

"Dozens of questions my friend... Dozens," he said with a laugh. He was glad she didn't take offense at the blind comments he always seemed to stumble into headfirst. "How many are appropriate for a first correspondence with an intermediary on the other hand... That is the question.

"I admit high on my list of curiosities... is exactly why she feels, or 'knows' that the wedding is necessary to my 'fate'... That may be appropriate for an intermediary to discuss... I'm not sure. You may have a unique perspective there..."

His eyebrows raised at the thought of Wynn and Feluanil sitting around talking about his fate. Something about two oracles debating what he was meant to do first.... That was disconcerting feeling.

He hoped they both saw the same fate for him... he wasn't sure how many world saving fates he could manage.

"Otherwise, I suppose we'll play it by ear."

"As you say, Your Majesty," Wynnsaren grinned and offered a deferential nod of the head.

Indeed, the fey queen's visions surrounding King Thaddeus were foremost in her own mind as well, for they could either directly interfere with Matsuro Shi's Fated ties to the Stolen Lands, or be in concert with Wynn's gods-given divinations. She prayed fervently for the latter, for gods help them all if these companions of hers were doubly fated!

After the events at Kirya it felt as if they were in the home stretch, and they only needed to continue growing, gaining strength, to be ready for that destiny which had been foretold millennia ago. The destiny which brought her here. It felt as if they were on course.

For now. . .

As Oracle, Wynnsaren feared that Queen Feluanil could be a threat, especially after what Sarala had revealed to her that night spent in the mining cave. As friend, she feared that this fey did not have King Thaddeus' best interests at heart. In both things Wynn remained hopeful and optimistic, but she was also wary, for her missions never seemed to go off without a hitch in the plan. It was as if something was working directly against the Will of the gods in these matters. She thought the Red Doom to be hitch enough, and Novastasia had survived that assault, so perhaps foolishly she hoped they were in the clear.

Time would tell if Queen Feluanil would be hitch or help, but if it had not been for her fey armies, that first hitch would have been fatal! For that alone, Wynn was terribly grateful.

"I very much look forward to meeting her for myself. She seems to be surrounded by such a cloud of mystery and invariably I find myself drawn to such things," Wynn chuckled before offering a helpless sigh and looking up into the deep blue eyes of her king. Trusting eyes. Hopeful and virtuous. It broke her heart to think that he must marry for any reason other than love, but he was king and so often it came with the territory. She prayed that this union could grow into something beautiful!

"Though I would never say this within anyone else's hearing," the aasimar qualified in a low whisper. "I hope she is worthy of you. . ."

Thaddeus laughed aloud at that.

"Well, thank you Wynn, but I'm not sure I'd go that far..." The laughter fade to a smirk and he winked at his friend and tapped the closing of the letter.

"While I wouldn't say someone isn't 'worthy' per se... I don't entirely disagree with the sentiment. I took some time to write this part... and it wasn't done on accident.

"Paladin of Sarenrae. Lord of Novastasia. In that order..." He shook his head and chuckled a bit.

"I hope she knows who she's going to be dealing with... I'm the ruler of Novastasia.. that's true. However, I'm still a Paladin at heart.

"You said I already had one bride that was my nation... I actually count two already.

"Paladins rarely marry well, because they fear to leave widows and orphans... I remember telling you that once. There are other reasons too... Paladins aren't known for easy compromise and I know that I can be quite insufferable at times.

"A good match for a Paladin is hard to find... I hope she's up to the task..."

Now it was the aasimar's turn to laugh in response. "Hmm," she offered an appraising look with a single peaked brow. "I have never known you to be insufferable, but perhaps I simply do not know you well enough for I have it on good authority that the lady Sarala would immediately concur with you on that statement!"

Enjoying the light-hearted turn the conversation had taken, Wynnsaren teased a bit further.

"And as for these multiple wives. . . I must say you surprise me, Your Majesty, for truly I thought you to be of more a monogamous bent. But two? Now committed to a third?" She blinked at him then, glowing eyes filled to overflowing with purest innocence as she needled. . . and tsk'ed gently. "I had no idea that you could be so very wicked!"

"It's good to know I can surprise people," he said though laughter. It felt good to laugh. After the uncertainty they left behind them in Kirya, and the uncertainty before them at Varnhold and the Narlmarches, he feared what would happen if he didn't find some enjoyment where he could. "Though, I hope the term wicked isn't what I become known for..."

He chuckled again as he started rewriting the letter. Beg was right out, 'Hope' had a nice ring to it...

Greetings and Best Wishes from Novastasia to the Esteemed Feluanil, Queen of the Fey,

It is my wish to extend my personal thanks for the instrumental aid you and your subjects gave to my kingdom in our hour of need. Without the aid of the Fey, the death toll would have been incalculable.

I have planned a memorial monument to be placed in Akiros in honor of our people's united defense against the Red Doom, and as a reminder of all who fell in the conflict. The memorial dedication is scheduled for the evening of the winter solstice and I hope that you accept my invitation to be a part of the ceremony.

I hope that you will accept my invitation in other regards as well. The battle has been won, and I have not forgotten our agreement in the Narlmarches. I believe we have much to discuss and many plans to make for the future. The bearer of this letter is my ambassador and friend Wynnsaren. She knows my thoughts well and speaks with my interests at heart. If you have any thoughts, concerns or desires, I hope that you will make them known to her, and word will soon reach me. I will do what I can to meet them

It is my wish to establish a more consistent communication between our kingdoms before they are joined.

I hope that soon we can meet in person again. You have been much on my mind as of late. I find that you are a mystery to me, and I would like to know more about my betrothed. My mind is full of questions, questions that I suspect only you have the answers too. If your subjects arrival and departure are indication, I suspect travel to my city would be of little difficulty, though if there is anything I could do to ease your travel and make your arrival an event worthy of your stature, My carriages and guards would be at your disposal.

With gratitude,

KingThaddeus Medvyed.

Paladin of Sarenrae. Lord of Novastasia.

"I think... that will do then, as he let the ink dry and prepared the sealing wax.

"Honestly... I sometimes think I should have become a bard. At least then I'd have some experience in trying to juggle this many daggers in the air!"

Wynnsaren watched with a quiet smile as he penned the revised letter. In spite of his verbal hesitancy regarding the matter, his hand was steady and sure; the strokes of the quill, both graceful and elegant though gripped in a large and heavily calloused hand. He had the hands of a warrior. The pads of his palms, just below the fingers, were raised due to a thickening of the skin, blisters having been formed and broken and healed cyclically hundreds of times as he trained with his blade. It must have caused him a good deal of pain. Pain that he no doubt would have simply waived off as inconsequential, for King Thaddeus was nothing if not determined. This quality did not mark him as insufferable in the oracle's mind at all, but rather. . . purposeful and intentional with an eye toward the future. It was not as if he could not be swayed by good council, but he would not be swayed by bad. Not even if it came from the queen of the fey. Not even if it came from the queen of the fey wearing nothing but her own tresses as garments.

Certainly no one could call Wynnsaren a prude -- she'd spent far too much time among the Shoanti and Varisians to be comfortable in dresses that cinched at the throat -- but she did try to draw the line at public exposure. Heavens help the conservative citizens of Novastasia if their queen decided to retain her "cultural" wardrobe choices! Who knows, maybe she would start a new trend!

This line of thought nearly caused her to snort most ungracefully through her nose, but she stifled it, forcing the chuckle down her throat without disturbing the king's writing. While it might have been more than a bit amusing to gauge his majesty's reaction to such thoughts, Wynn didn't feel it quite appropriate, even if they were having something of a playful conversation.

"Oh you have more experience than you realize," the aasimar winked in response to his bard-envy comment once he'd finished. "In my observations, those of noble blood and especially those possessed of brothers and sisters, do not make it to adulthood without learning how to juggle out of necessity. Usually I would say that such juggling is safer as a youth, but you grew up with Sarala," she paused with a playful smirk, "so it is my humble opinion that you've been juggling with daggers for many years. Just now. . .well, Your Grace, it seems you are juggling with swords!"

"Flaming swords!" He agreed with a chuckle, "Maybe even Flaming Vorpal swords. You have to be extra careful with those...." He chuckled as he glanced back at his sister in the distance. She certainly had a habit of keeping him on his toes... He was a bit surprised at her eagerness to join the coming delegation. He hoped that this didn't come back to bite him, but he stuck with his gut reaction that his sister's vastly different perspective would serve them all well there.

Finally, he lit the wax, and pressed his ring down, sealing the letter. It was a strange feeling to look at the letter and think about all it stood for. He'd been looking at this letter for days in various stages, but that seal made things... real.

With a little hesitancy he handed it over to his ambassador.

"I wish you good fortune in your journey Wynn... I know my interests are in good hands." He grinned as he leaned back and looked at the stars. So much beauty up there... and some admittedly horrible monsters... just out of sight.

"Can you teach me some of what's up there?" He mused aloud. "I don't think I'll ever hear them the way you do... but considering what's up there. I'd try to learn..."

"Of course!" Wynnsaren agreed cheerfully after carefully tucking the letter into a scroll case. "As they already know of you, it only seems proper that you be more formally introduced to them."

Gently pulling off her starry cloak, the aasimar stretched out her legs and laid it carefully over her lap. Spread out as it was, the supple black fabric held a striking representation the night sky currently overhead.

"Here is Cynosure." She pointed to a glittering point on the shoulder of the cloak before lifting that same finger -- without lifting her head -- toward that most familiar, steady pulse of the star overhead. "There.

"He is the pole star and leads the way to Desna's palace so they say. He is the constant in the night. Ever singing. Immovable. His song is unique among all others and you must find him first, for when you do, all the other constellations in the sky will fall into place. What might seem as random and disordered will suddenly all make sense. . ."

Wynn paused, momentarily lost in a muse, before continuing her tutorial. With a wistful sigh, she began telling the paladin-king the stories she'd learned. . .and some that she'd created about the constellations over her lifetime. The Hawk and The Gecko. The Owl King and The Throne. The Lantern Bearer and The Sea Wraith.

The Dance of the Heavens could never be properly shared in one evening, but with a bit of fortune, there would yet be many more evenings in which to continue.