Stenfors village, Valen Wilds
Second day of the Double Eclipse
Second day of the Double Eclipse
The days leading to the darkness had been much too easy, on hindsight. The first day of it had come with a crackling, loud and resembling that of thunder or the splitting of mountains, but lacking in both light and landslide. Quiet had since come, but it was deeper than ever before.
Jens, the castle marshal, had said it was like a hood had been pulled over the land. A practice reserved for the condemned before they were to face the gallows. By the time the rapids had stopped roaring, having gradually diminished to mere pitiful streams, the man’s words had really begun to sink in.
“ Your contraptions have ceased their turning. “ The water spirit stood next to him hissed, look measuring a nearby waterwheel that’d died. “ This bodes ill for you? “
“ In time it will. So much of our living here relies on them. “
“ I sympathize. “ The tone became embellished with humour, a darkness to the smile. From one whose people inhabited the mosaic of lakes and rivers in the area, it wasn’t without its sharp point.
“ It has to do with the rain. “ The spirit continued in a throaty mutter, the blue and grey patterns on their skin shifting softly with thought. Lennart hummed and gave a nod, glancing up at the cloudless sky and stars, the fine misting of a drizzle coming like from the thin air itself. To have called it curious would’ve been an understatement.
“ My suspicion is thus confirmed. “ He commented, idly shifting on heel to better regard his company. The being was large, requiring that he crane his neck to meet eyes that sat far apart on a broad head, one that brought to mind a catfish. The translucent fin running the length of their back shivered as a breath was drawn in.
“ Your face betrays questions, witch. Speak them.”
“ Has this happened before? In syzygies past or otherwise. “
“ Yes. There is a tale of an arcane sickness affecting the kin, wherein the water stilled. “
“ So it is a magical anomaly. There is a shimmer in the air— “
“ I do not deal with things of the air. But it does taste different. “
Torchlight glistening upon skin meant for underwater, the spirit flicked out a wide black tongue and worked it within their mouth therein. Something like a grimace came upon their face. Lennart squinted at the expression, visibly thinking.
“ What is to be done about it? Has been done— “
“ Even your castle hasn’t the memory for when this happened previously. Me and mine— we do as we’ve always done and wait for it to pass. “
“ For how long? “
“ Days. Weeks. Months. Years. A century? There is no telling when the water returns and is safe to live in again. “
“ You’re terribly blasé about an existential threat, Ivo. “
“ To my kin, it isn’t. The rivers and lakes become corrupted, dry and drain. We transmute to all manner of forest critters and roam the land, biding our time. “
With defeat and understanding, Lennart bobbed his head. Ivo regarded him sidelong, in the way a parent might gaze upon their idiot son when he yet again failed to see the obvious.
“ You’ve that option too, witch. “
“ Yes, but most of my kin doesn’t. Am rather positive they’d rather not leave or be turned into deer by me personally, even if it was to save them. “
Ivo’s hum was disappointed. He couldn’t help but smile at it, despite the dire state of affairs. On the bridge leaving the keep that overlooked the rest of Stenfors and a much too peaceful river below, they stood for a second in silence. The spirit broke it in a bubbly rumble, like water had come to a boil within their chest.
“ Suppose we’ll both need help, then. “
- at the village Stenfors the water has ceased flowing, stopping the operation of waterwheels upon which large parts of its infrastructure rely on
- in addition, the local host of water spirits are affected by a sickness that is suspected to be borne of corrupted water
- there is no knowing whether the surface population is vulnerable to it, but fear that it might spread has begun to rise it’s ugly head
- in addition, the local host of water spirits are affected by a sickness that is suspected to be borne of corrupted water
- there is no knowing whether the surface population is vulnerable to it, but fear that it might spread has begun to rise it’s ugly head