((Caeriadne)) Ripples in the Night Sky

"Then we need your true body back, and we need to contact those Lapis dragons and any others who know what has happened. If it is not already too late, we may yet avoid a civil war." She pursed her lips for a few seconds in thought. "I suspect that what Darilith is after is not entirely disconnected from all of this. Of all the chromatics, he would have perhaps the greatest claim to a new godhood, and he would be seeking to secure that as soon as possible. What if...he might be coming for you?"

Raziel's eyes widened for a second "I...I hadn't thought of that...It makes sense though, my true body is what contains the power of the old gods. There can only ever be three TRUE dragon gods, though some dragons have ascended to godhood they aren't true gods...If he wants to become a god he may try an use me to tap into Tiamat's old power and take her place as the deity of Chromatics."

He stood up quickly "If that's the case, he somehow knows where I am, which means if I leave, perhaps to find the other Lapis Dragons, he may follow me. It may be the best chance you have to avoid a confrontation with him."

Caeriadne straightened herself reactively. "He'll bind you until he has what he wants, and then shred you to pieces. If you leave, he would catch you." Her eyes flickered with deep, all-encompassing thought as she laid out the possible scenarios in her mind. "What the hell else would he be coming this direction for? There's nothing past us but orcs and oceans..." This last comment was muttered to herself almost in anger, as if she had been completely foolish not to realize this point sooner. "That is also why he's razing villages along the way. He's creating desperation so we act hastily, and leave him with a better opening to make his move."

"If I run and he catches me at least I led him away from here, if he comes here and his plan is to take me, we can't do anything to stop him Caeriadne. He's much to strong for either of us to fight, even if we fight together, it would only give him a moment's pause, especially if his quest is godhood."

"We need allies," she said decisively. "We're alone here with no support. And Raziel, even if you were to run and make it away from him, he knows that you have been here and he would raze the city for answers from me before he comes looking for you. If we try to split, he will simply divide and conquer us." She shook her head defiantly and then repeated, "No. We need allies."

"The other lapis dragons...If i could get a message out to them using our link I could tell them to get here, but I have no idea if they would be able to get here in time Caeriadne...Do you have any maps in this building? Maps of the area?"

"Yes, we have maps." She turned and crossed over to a bookshelf not far from the council table where they kept quick references for city planning and council meetings. "Here..." She pulled a folder of various maps out and selected one of Arlia in its entirety. It was crude and far from precise cartography, but it gave the basic shape of the land with hand-written notations of areas of note. She pointed out Brighton, marked with a star, and laid the map out across the table for him.

"Do you have any idea where they are?"

He looked it over and sighed "I can sense them but they are so far north, and some so far west...they couldn't get here before he does, they may get here at the same time. I'll still call them though, them arriving at the same time as him would probably put him off quite a bit. It sends a message that we know why he's here and aren't willing to just roll over for him. Though if we are looking for allies soon..." He pointed at a lonely mountain slightly south east of them "Thats the Tiefling enclave that Huo Long mentioned, if you go there, you may convince some of them to join us. Or, you could go here." He pointed to a small point on the map between Brighton and BriarHill "Thats called Buck Hills, it's a settlement a lot like Brighton but it's made entirely out of caravan stalls, headed up by the Buckland family. Their performers but also clerics of the luck goddess Avandra. I'm sure we could find allies there as well."

She nodded. "Call them. We need them here as soon as possible. The ones that you can still trust, at least."

After studying the map for a few moments, she nodded. "Buck Hills is of no interest to me now. It will merely be a stopping point on the way to Briar Hill, and I won't over-extend our forces by conquering them quite yet. The Tiefling enclave is of more use to me now. I'll make contact with them before I make the trip, to see how best to approach it. Request an emissary, maybe." She trailed off as she laid out the strategies in her mind. "We've allied humans and gnolls under the acceptance of Ashiara, so why not Tieflings, too." She nodded, satisfied for now. "They won't be enough, though..."

Raziel nodded "I will call them tonight when I go to rest, send out the call in a dream. And no, the tieflings won't be enough, but a dragon who has managed to unite humans, gnolls, and tieflings? That sounds a louder message than even five lapis dragons does. Showing any dragon that you're that strong of a leader will give them a sense of respect at the very least."

Sighing, Caeriadne made a few minor marks on the map for her own notes. "You go now, Raziel. We both have much to do. You stay in the town hall until further notice, where I can keep a better eye on everything. I'll have some guards posted to you, just in case. We can't take any chances with Darilith, or any of the others that could have the same motives."

Raziel nodded "Alright, I'll go and send out the call to them and see about trying to scry Darilith, and then the Tieflings to get some information. Is there anything else?"

She shook her head. "No." She looked up intently, rolling the map away and tucking it back in its place. "Just don't get yourself killed."

Raziel smiled "Oh I couldn't do that, you'd miss me too much." He chuckled and bowed deeply before turning and leaving.

She would then hear a knock on the front door of the town hall, Lancaster called it "Mi' Queen! The scouts ye sent out 'ave returned!"

Caeriadne opened the door. "Lancaster. Just who I needed to speak to. I'll explain my reasoning later, but before I hear the scouts' reports, I need you to post four solid men on a rotating twenty-four hour duty assignment to Raziel until further notice. And I want an extra few archers on lookout to the north, and some on the town hall itself. No determinable threat yet, but I have reason to believe we might need to expect some subterfuge."

She then stepped out, shutting and securing the door behind her. "Now, then. For the scouts?"

Lancaster raised an eyebrow "Well Alright Mi' Queen, it'll be done. The scouts, well...they found no survivors at any of the villages he hit. But one of them saw a message scorched into the ground, cursing the villagers for disrespect."

"What exactly did it say? Where are these scouts now?"

"They are in the tavern, I told them to wait there, they deserved a drink. They didn't remember exactly what it said, seems on the way back the journal was stolen in their sleep. BUT they very specifically heard a rumor about a dwarven hold to the north east of us, it's nearly been destroyed by marauding trolls orge and orcs."

"Wonderful. They sound like such a competent bunch. I would like them to report to me before they become completely intoxicated tonight..." Her patience was wearing thin. She paused, thinking. "A dwarven hold...how far is it?"

"For a human pretty far, but for a dragon, if what the old books say is true, it should just be a couple of hours away for you."

A determined look glittered into Caeriadne's eyes. "Darold, can you get me all the intelligence possible on this hold? Old reports, military records, statistics, anything. I need it immediately. By tonight, if possible."

He raises his eyebrows "My lady are you planning to go and help them? They would be a relatively good addition to your holdings but it would be hard fought."

She nodded grimly. "We may be at more of a risk than we thought." Offering no more explanation than that, she looked plaintively and expectantly at him, waiting for the rest of the information he had to offer.

He nodded and sighed "I will make sure to go and get any files on this hold we have. I do know that there is only one city left, and it's in constant state of defensive warfare."

"I'll be on my way to the tavern. Report to me in an hour."

With that, she left to find the scouts before they were able to drink their potentially useful memories away.