Day 40-53 (S30)

Day 40
The next morning, Alice and Rina were awoken by Mayoay, “Good morning, you two. I have… something for you. It’s from Kin.”
She handed Alice the letter and left.
“I’m too hungover to read it,” said Alice, “you read it.”

“To the Bound,
I have been called to a mission that you cannot help me with. Oara calls and I must answer. I have left the key and party fund along with a chunk of my own funds. I get the sense that where I am headed gold will not be helpful. Also, I have left the sending stone that has Valentine on the other side, as well as the orb used for Scrying, and a revivify stone with one charge. I would say ‘stay safe’ but that is not in our wheelhouse, is it? I will just say ‘farewell for now’. 
Kin”

“Kin LEFT us?!” Alice exclaimed.
“Yeah… I guess so,” Rina responded.
The two of them exited the tent to see Mayoay on the other side with the party fund chest and the other items.
“He wanted to sneak away in private, and not wake you to leave these things,” she explained.
“I’ll just scry on him!” said Rina, “Or maybe I’ll use a sending or message or-”
“Rina… he wishes to go alone,” Mayoay explained, “His wish was to leave The Bound to help his goddess, and he does not wish to be followed.”
“Well then… what do we do?” asked Alice.
“I guess we just go home for now,” Rina said, “I’m sure Neely is worried about us, we kind of just left her at the entrance of Matilda’s shop.”
“Oh no! Poor Neely!” said Alice, “Let’s get home, then. We do have other missions… you have your-”
“Shhh,” Rina cut her off, “I don’t like talking about that…”
Mayoay raised an eyebrow, “Well, then I will let you go on your way. Be safe, The Bound.”
"Ate two people still an Adventuring Party?" Rina asked Alice, who could not answer.

Matilda then teleported them safely back home to Castle Frey and they went straight home.
“Oh! You’re safe!” Neely exclaimed as they walked in the door. “We thought you were kidnapped, we’ve been making missing posters!” Rina hugged Neely tightly.
They looked at the posters with crude drawings of Alice, Rina, and Kin on them.
“Are my ears really that big?” Rina asked.
Alice looked her dead in the eyes, “Yes.”
They all laughed, and Daria and Tomas began making lunch.
"We have about 2 weeks until Lloyd's Competition," Rina said, "What do we want to do between now and then? I think I want to take a woodworking class or something - I need to be more creative."
“I think the first thing we should do is go get my golem in Greenwarf,” said Alice, “We kind of just left it in front of Darwin’s house.”
“Oh shit… Darwin. I want to check on him, I imagine he’s not doing well,” said Rina.
“Where is Kin?” Neely asked.
Rina just handed Neely the note for her to read, “So… he’s not coming back? Ever?” Neely asked.
“I don’t think so, kid,” Rina answered, “according to Mayoay he wanted to leave alone, and not be a member of The Bound. At least for the time being.”
“Maybe that stir up with the Church of Luminus in Greenwarf scared him off…” Neely mentioned.
“Yeah, he didn’t like being recognized… and I’m sure some people died in those magical explosions we saw,” said Alice. 
“We should look that over when we go to Greenwarf, also…” Rina suggested. 
“Well, then let’s head there after lunch and stay there overnight,” Alice suggested, “We can check some things out and get the Golem.”
“And help out those orphan kids again,” said Rina. 
“Guys… is it cool if I sit this one out?” Neely asked, “I… I really love you guys, and I have learned a lot. But I really could use a little break.”
“Of course, kid. Whatever you need,” Rina said. “Also, Neely… I don’t want you to feel like you have to be my employee anymore.”
“What?! Are you firing me?!”
“No, no… more like the opposite. You’ve proven you can hold your own, you have fought with us and done amazingly well. You earned your portion of the gold in Greenwarf. I am, of course, happy to continue paying you the 3-5 gold a week plus commissions, but… You don’t really need me. I see you as an equal in this now.”
Neely began to tear up, “You… you really feel that way? Thank you. You’ve always had faith in me, Rina. I won’t let you down!”
“Haha, ok - let me know how you want our new arrangement to be. We could still really use a secretary, so I’m still happy to pay you for that.”

After lunch, Rina and Alice used a Treestride to get to their tree just outside of Greenwarf. A few of the orphan boys were there, as usual. This time with their pointed broomsticks. 
“The goddesses are here!” one of them yelled as Rina and Alice came through.
“Hey boys!” Rina said, “I hope you’re doing well! Have any of you learned to read or write yet?”
One of the boys ran up with his quill pen and the paper she’d left, “I am learning! I’m getting better all the time!”
“Maybe one day you will write a whole book!” she said.
She and Alice both gave the kids a little money, then headed into town.

As they moved through town they got waves from many people - most were people they didn’t know.
“Look it’s The Bound! They saved us!”
“They’re the ones who fed the whole city with that giant Electric Catfish!”
“They solved the Missing Fish Mystery!”
They waved back and smiled, but didn’t stop.
They first stopped by Darwin and Guppo’s home to find the Golem covered in notices from the city to move it. Alice ripped off all the notices, some of them even included fines, and threw them on the ground. 
A nearby guard called her out, “Hey, if that’s yours, you owe the city.”
She glared at him and set the papers on fire, “What notices? I don’t see any, do you?”
He was sufficiently afraid of her, so he just walked away like he didn’t see anything.
Rina went into the house to find it empty. All of the papers with Darwin’s scribbles, the barrels of fish, the fish tanks… everything was gone. All that was left of a patch of blood on the floor where Caspian had fallen, and footprints through the blood from when he left. Alice’s Golem could sit without her, but it could not act without her - it could not stop him from leaving.

They walked by the church on their way back to the tree on the edge of town and did not see anything amiss.
“You would think there would be some evidence of all those explosions,” Alice said.
“The church is probably pretty practiced in cleaning up their messes,” said Rina.
They got up to the tree by nightfall, all of the orphans were there with them.
Alice slept in the arms of her Golem, and Rina slept in the large tree - it reminded her of where she was exactly 200 years ago: sleeping in a large tree, awaiting the day she could leave her parents and the forest she grew up in.

Day 41
The next morning they used treestride to get home again, along with the golem, and thought about what they should do.
"I think we should go to Vorovni this week," Alice said, "I need to have those guys who owe me a build job renovate part of the house for the Golem to live in."
"You want that giant rock to live in our house?" Rina exclaimed.
"It'll fit easier once they renovate," Alice responded.
"You mean the guys you blackmailed?" Rina retorted.
"Yes, them," Alice said proudly, "Did you see how Drake's men worked? They were very safe and none of them got hurt. They even wouldn't let us in while they fixed the roof!"
"That begs the question: why do you want bad builder to do a build job for you?"
Alice didn't respond, but they both smiled.
"You know, I kind of like our antagonistic friendship," said Rina, "I'm never bored, at the very least."
"Agreed," said Alice, "You do need to lighten up though... and try some different foods! Liver is smelly!"
"I love almost all food," Rina said, "liver is just hard to get sometimes, so I have it when I can."
"I couldn't eat the same thing all the time," Alice said, "I like consistency, but I also need variety."
"I like variety, but sometimes need consistency," Rina replied.
"You know," Rina continued, "I think one of my goals in life is to experience everything I can... you know, within reason. It helps me remember things. As an elf I find it hard to remember a lot of my life, and that will only get worse as I get older. Long-lived beings tend to have poor memory. But if I do new things, different things, then it's easier to remember."
"Well, then let's dedicate ourselves to experience," said Alice as she lifted her glass.
Rina lifted her glass to that, and they had an uneventful evening afterward.

Day 42
The next morning they used treestride to get to Vorovni. Alice immediately found the builders and asked to cash in her favor.
"We can take you there tomorrow," she said, "so clear your schedules, because you are coming with me."
Rina tried to ask around for anyone who may know more about Roscoe Baldwin, the Finger of Luminus who was found Dead in his Chambers. No one really knew much more than she had already learned, however she discovered that the Church of Luminus would likely have said that no matter what happened to him.
"Even if he decided to just leave, you think they'd tell us?" a random man asked her, "The church lies all the time, but don't tell em I said that."
The girls stayed in Vorovni that night, having Withersalt bagels again.

Day 43
Upon arriving in Castle Frey with the builders in tow, Alice began instructing them on what she wanted.
"We have this narrow bridge here, I need it bigger and stronger. We also have a big patio, I want it covered."
Rina still could not believe Alice wanted the Golem to live in the house with them, but she had a tiny Dragon, so she couldn't say much.
"You all can sleep in Aurelius and Kin's old rooms," Rina said to the builders, "They're pretty nice and they're empty - you might as well use them while you are here."
Rina then brought out both magical familiars, Volvagia and Khoshekh to have them meet for the first time. Volvagia was mostly friendly, though much more of a terror than Khoshekh. Khoshekh was very unamused by the new pet sharing space with him, and voluntarily disappeared for the time being.
Rina summoned him again, and he appeared again. Once again, he saw the little dragon and left.
"So Khoshekh will only stay if he's the only one getting attention? Sounds like a typical cat," Rina said as Volvagia knocked a cup of water off of a table.
"You know, you're a little too much like a cat sometimes, too." Rina smiled, then the smile quickly faded as she remembered the werecats she loved. Sebastian was dead, and Darrian seemed out of reach. Still, she would stop at nothing to see him again.

Day 44
Rina and Alice convened in their home library to decide what they should do next.
"We still have over a week before we need to take Lloyd to Everhelm," said Rina.
"We could try to find your guy - Roscoe," Alice suggested, "we each have the ability to scry - we might as well."
Both attempted to scry, and both failed. However, they did get a sense that Roscoe was on the same plane as them.
"We can try another day," said Rina, "Enoch can't be mad now since I did at least try. That reminds me, it's about time for him to show up again... He's been oddly quiet lately. It almost seems like his magic is... distant somehow. Like, I can still access it just fine, but it feels like he is distant."
"Maybe he's in trouble," Alice said, "I know he was being watched all the time. Maybe he got caught or something."
"That worries me, but I have to trust that he's doing everything he can as well as he can..."
Rina then changed the subject, "I think I'm going to go talk to Drake tomorrow. I want to learn how to carve wood into something meaningful so I can do something nice with that piece of the Taste Tree Stump I have."
"Yeah right," said Alice, "you're just going there to flirt with him again."
Rina blushed, "Listen... maybe a little."
They laughed and went to bed for the evening - after the builders were finished for the day, that is.

Day 45
In the morning, Rina left for the ShapeSmithing school.
Upon arriving, Rina could see that Drake was teaching a class on different kinds of metal and how to manipulate them with different tools.
He saw her immediately this time, then waved for her to stand at the front of the class with him and his teaching assistant.
"Now, you will see that different metals need different tools to make them work for you," he said as he passed around a bar of Iron, a bar of copper, and a bar of gold. "Everyone be sure you get a feel for each of these. The iron is the hardest to manipulate, the gold is the easiest."

After his lecture was over, he gestured for Rina to follow him to his office.
"What can I do for you today, Rina?"
"Well, I was actually hoping to take a class on woodworking."
"What brought this on?" he asked.
"Well, I got this piece of wood from the Evertree stump from the Taste Tree Forest - the one Rosa died on" she said as she pulled the block of wood from her bag, "I really want to make it into something meaningful, but I need a lot of practice before I start cutting into it. It's the last piece of that tree that exists now... that's not a part of Sullivan Frey's ship, anyway."
"What would you make it into?"
"I think I'd like to make it into a necklace, maybe," she said, "Though, it's a little big for just one. Maybe I'll make it into two matching ones, and you can have one."
Drake paused a moment. "So, you want to learn... for sentimental purposes? Most people want to learn so they can make weapons or armor. But not you... why?"
She stared at the piece of old wood for a moment, then answered, "I was born in a forest of these trees 300 years ago... I was supposed to raise my own family in one of these trees. It just seems very fitting to me that the place I've finally chosen as a home was built to be this great by its influence. In a way, I still live under the shade of an Evertree... 300 years later."
"Why did you choose Pennislovica? Why Castle Frey?"
"I traveled on my own for over 120 years... I have traveled nearly the whole world," she said, "I have seen more countries than I have seen years in my life. This place is possibly the happiest country I've ever been to. The people care for their leaders, and the leaders care for their people - which is a sign of really great leadership. It also brings me peace because of its longevity... the ancient-ness of it all is comforting."
"Yes, Sullivan has done a great job leading on his own these 70 years or so," he answered.
"I know it's not just Sullivan," she said as she smiled at him, "I know you helped rule the country up until recently."
"Yes. I decided to pour myself into my work here. Godfrey has his tavern in Youngru, Sullivan now has Francis and his dragon quest in the north... This is all I have now."
"You said you had kids before, though? A family?"
"That was... many years ago. Many more than you have lived - you are young."
"I may be young to you, but I'm still older than everyone around me," she said.
He chuckled, “I know how that feels.”
"Truth is... I'd really like to get to know you more, Drake," she said to him, "I'd love to hear about your past... your family, people you've loved."
He paused before speaking, a little sadness entered his eyes, "I had a brother... Marcov. He was to rule with us once we won the great war. But he... died...shortly before the end of the war. Sometimes... seeing Sullivan and Godfrey bothers me inside. It reminds me of what I could have had."
Rina nodded solemnly, "I'm sorry to hear about your brother. Even 1000 years later, it still hurts you - that means you're an incredibly caring person. It's hard for some long-lived beings to keep that."
"You mean elves?" he joked.
"Yeah... I mean elves," she laughed a little, "I remember you saying you had children, too... were you also married?"
"Yes... we married before the war. She... did not want to take the eternal gift. So..." he got quiet, "I had to watch her grow old... then die."
Rina nodded in understanding, "I had to bury my husband 2 years ago. So... I know how you feel."
They both looked at each other with sorrow in their eyes.
"He was my best friend," she continued, starting to cry a little, "Nothing's quite the same after you lose your best friend, you know?"
He nodded slowly, and after a bit of silence he stood up and walked to a shelf behind him.
He grabbed his schedule book and opened it up on his desk - his handwriting was small and neat, just like she expected from someone with his attention to detail.
“I will have some extra time in 2 days” he said.
“Then so will I,” she replied with a smile.
He then erased a meeting he had scheduled, and just wrote “Rina” in its place in larger letters.

"So? How'd it go?" Alice asked when Rina got home.
She smiled, "I think it went well. Actually, it went... perfectly."
"Well, good for you," Alice said, "So what now?"
"Right now? Nothing. The day after tomorrow I have a private woodworking lesson at 6pm."
"How long has it been since you talked to Enoch? Isn't he late?"
Rina sighed, "Yeah, he's late again. I don't usually freak out if he's only a couple of days late... but this time it feels weird. If I don't hear from him by tomorrow night, I'll try to contact him."
They then ate dinner and retired for the day, with Volvagia sleeping in Aurelius' old room and terrorizing the builders from Vorovni all night.

Day 46
The next day, the builders had completed their work and Alice decided to Treestride them home.
"You wanna come with? I'll have to stay the night there to get the spell slot back before coming home."
"I think I'll hang out here today, if that's ok," Rina answered, "I want to read up on the woodworking books that Rosa's husband left here before I go to Drake's tomorrow."
"The... 'wood working' books?"
"No! The actual books on wood carving that Edik left, remember?"
"Sure, Rina," Alice said, "Ok, Neely you want to come with?"
"Oh, um, yes! Yes I'll go!"
"Good, we will see you tomorrow then, Rina."
Alice left with Neely and Rina prepped for her lesson the next day.

She then remembered she had not heard at all from Agronoch since she met him in the afterlife to speak with him, it had been 9 days now. She pulled out a piece of paper and wrote: “Be safe, Agronoch… Please, just be safe.”
She then burned it with her blue flame, and put it into the fireplace to start a fire.
This letter was more of a plea to the universe than a request directly to him.
She knew that he may not get it, but it was worth trying.
She still had mixed feelings about him, personally. "I don't necessarily love that he owns my soul," she said to herself, "but I know there are worse Devils out there... the last thing I want right now is to be stolen by someone else."
As she laid in bed that night, she thought about why she made this deal in the first place: Enoch said they were both in it to help the Therianthropes, which includes Rina’s son Darrian - her main priority.

Day 47
The next day, Rina went to the ShapeSmithing school right on time.
Drake grabbed a chunk of wood and some chisels off of a shelf and handed them to her, "Let's see what you've got."
"I have been reading the woodworking books that Edik left in the house," she said, "Let's hope some of it translates to reality."
She put the wood on the smithing table and began trying to carve. First she chose the wrong chisel, Drake handed her the correct one. Then she almost cut off her finger by holding the wood incorrectly.
“You aren’t as good at this as I’d hoped you would be," he said.
“I told you I needed help” she laughed, “I like to write, but beyond that I’m not too creative.”
“You have to be more gentle," he said as he stood behind her put his hand over hers, "and go at the correct angle.”
They gently carved into the wood together, making a small curled shaving. His hands were rough from the constant work, but his grasp was gentler than she expected.
"Do you usually help your students this... closely?"
"Never..."
The carving lesson was successful, though slow-going - Rina could now more easily carve simple wood, and he gave her an old set of chisels to practice with. 
Though, it seems that - for both of them - the carving itself was barely the purpose for their meeting.

Day 48
The Bound began packing for their trip, not knowing exactly how long it would take.
"You can treestride us from Vorovni to Greenwarf, right?" Rina asked, "Then we could just take a boat to Everhelm."
"Yeah, I think it's a good plan to take a boat up the River Nives over the next couple of days, then treestride from there," Alice answered.
Rina did not hear from Agronoch, and his presence seemed more distant every day.
Alice spent time with her Golem and visited all the pubs in town as her main goal.
Neely spent some time hunting creatures in the nearby woods with Daria, and gained some experience in being a Rogue.

Day 49
First thing in the morning, Rina went to visit Drake - early enough that classes had not yet started. He was working on something at the furnaces, focusing hard on taking great care of the item.
When he saw her, her put the object down to greet her, "Good morning, Rina. What brings you in this early?"
"Well I've just come to say 'goodbye' for now. We are leaving for Vorovni to take someone to Everhelm. I'm not sure when we'll be back, so I wanted to let you know."
Students then began to pour in for the first class of the day, so Drake was more distant than he had been the other day.
"Goodbye, then. It was nice to see you," he said with a small smile.
She smiled back, then left quickly so as to not alert the students.

50-53
Alice, Neely, and Rina all traveled by boat to Vorovni to meet with Mayor Highwater of Vorovni and his son, Lloyd.
"Woah! I've never been boating on the river before!" said Neely.
"Oh, that's right, you were teleported between here and there each time, weren't you?" said Rina.
"Yes! This is amazing!"
"Hey, Neely," Alice started, "I wanted to give this to you... it's a Harp of thorns. It will probably hurt to play, but I think it would be good for you to learn an instrument! Maybe do some Bard stuff as well!"
Neely took the harp and tried to play it, getting hurt every time she plucked a string.
"It's - ow! It's lovely Alice - Ow! Thank you. I'll practice and maybe it wont - OW - hurt so much..."
Neely spent the trip trying to play the harp, while Alice and Rina spent time enjoying the view of the countryside they'd passed once before.
"Remember that place?" Rina said as they passed Duskford.
"Not really... I remember you almost went into that brothel, though."
Rina laughed, "Yeah... times are so different now. It hasn't even been that much time, but we've already lost two people..."

Next: Day 54 (S30-33)