"Alidonia has fallen."
A large crowd had gathered in the main hall of Valenntenia's Tower. Guardians, Vanguard, and civilians alike had hoarded into the sacred building at the tragic news of what had happened to their neighboring city, a peaceful place settled only one peninsula away on the Eaglehead landmass. The Absalon, Solomon Regis, stood above them, a solemn look creasing his already old and weathered face as he relayed the grim reality.
"We've all felt the effects of the recent storms. Whatever is happening in the seas and skies has cursed us as of late with unprecedented shifts in the waters and the clouds, birthing lightning and waves mighty enough to threaten even our bastion of safety." Regis paced on the raised Dias, his hands locked behind his back as he scans the crowd with weary eyes. "Unfortunately, we've learned that only a week ago, a hellish storm made landfall upon our neighbors in Alidonia. At the peak of this maelstrom, they were assailed by a tsunami. As far as we know, the city is a total loss."
The room filled with gasps and murmurs, unrest and fear fueled by the confirmation that a place so near their beloved home had been wiped out entirely. Not by war, but the wrath of nature itself. The very nature that they served and protected as their birthright. Raising a fist to his mouth, Solomon gave a powerful cough, clearing his throat and regaining the attention of those in attendance.
"I likely don't have to tell you all, but Alidonia rests directly west of us. It's entirely likely that if the Eaglehead Peninsula not there to take the storm's wrath, it would have been us instead. Alidonia fell to ruin, so that we may remain. With this in mind, the Somners and I have convened, and come to a decision."
As Solomon spoke, a young, bronze-skinned man stepped up onto the raised platform, wrapped in a violet and gold robe. The jewelry on his face and ears glimmered against the light peeking through the Tower windows as he turned to stand beside Regis, his head bowed in respect to The Absalon. Solomon raises a hand, signaling for the High Mage Rovias to be at ease.
"Our esteemed High Mage will be taking several wagons of volunteers, both civilian and Vanguard, to the Alidonia ruins. These volunteers will be beginning the process of rebuilding Alidonia, restoring it to its former glory. It will be difficult work, and you may not see your homes again for many months. You will be revered though, for your sacrifice and service. The Ancients will smile upon you."
Solomon's gaze quickly focused on the several Guardians he spotted in attendance.
"And you will not be going alone. I am sending any available Guardians to Alidonia as well. They will be aiding in the reconstruction with the power of their Runestones, but they are also being tasked with investigating the source of these increasingly violent storms. This is an official assignment, Guardians."
The first time he'd been allowed outside of the city in what felt like ages, and the sun wouldn't even peek through the clouds to kiss his skin. He'd known himself to be unlucky, but this surpassed even Rovias's expectations. Still, considering what he and the several wagons full of Valenntenians behind him were heading towards, he supposed it was rather uncouth to bemoan his own fortune. The place they now neared had fared far worse. And unlike Rovias, they'd had no chance to save themselves.
He could see it now; the jagged and broken remains of Alidonia's outer wall. Only a month prior, Rovias would have scoffed at the idea of a storm or tsunami ripping apart a stone wall, but there was nothing natural about the rage that the sky had been displaying so openly as of late. Loathe as he was to place his faith in The Guardians, even Rovais had to admit fear for Valenntenia's future should they not find a cause for this madness.
Reaching for the hollowed steer horn hanging from his horse's saddle, he brought it to his lips and blew, filling the air with a loud and booming howl. "Naptime is over, everyone! Ready up! We're at our destination in three minutes!" Rovias shouted back to the carts behind him as loud as he could, ignoring the brief shot of pain in his lungs. The trip had been exhausting, but now the real work began. The High Mage had to wonder how many of them were actually prepared for it.
As the caravan passed through what had once been the city gates and reached the top of the hill that overlooked Alidonia, Rovias felt a sickening sensation in his stomach, as though the entire contents of his chest had fallen into his gut.
"By the ancients..."
The sight was absolutely gruesome to behold; not a single building was left intact. Homes had been uprooted completely, left askew or in tattered pieces along the road. Holy sites, temples, and graveyards had been left as little more than black marks in the fields, the resting places of the departed scattered with rubbled tombstones and splintered wood. Deep puddles of stormwater now sat stagnant and still in low divots in the ground, discolored from dirt and blood, as stray bodies tossed carelessly by the winds dotted the remains of their neighboring settlement.
Clenching his teeth to bite back the disgust bubbling in his throat, he raised a hand to the caravan at his rear and called back.
"Guardians and Vanguard take the point. We move in when they've ensured safety."
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