Chapter 5: Pleased to Meet You

Coreene does her best to keep pace with Verrian and Eanala. There was so much pain that she wanted desperately to heal, but they had to keep moving before the Hunter could do any more damage. She shares with Verrian, @Verrian:: "That was my last elemental. I can summon other, smaller, allies, but I may need to save my magic to heal everyone." Verrian can feel the worry coming from the thought.
She keeps her eyes peeled as they run, looking for danger, or others that might join them.

The reference to the need for healing rocks Verrian's fragile emotional control, and her mind is immediately filled with the images of Coreene and Elora in the monster's grasp or being flung away... of Erannik being impaled by the claw...even images that haven't yet happened.

The hunter finding its jackpot of mages.

Finding Ember.

She's belatedly aware that she's sharing all of these images and fears with Coreene. After a telepathic throat-clearing, she responds. @Coreene: Yes, save your magic for healing. I'm afraid we're probably going to need a lot of it.

Hearing all the various things said, Yelnar decides to follow Ember and Uelten. He strives to catch up.

Coreene suppresses her own worry to send feelings of resolution and strength to Verrian. @Verrian:: "We can worry about all that later. We need to focus on taking this thing down and making sure everyone is safe."

Verrian sends an image of two people grasping each other's extended arms in solidarity, expressing her agreement. @Coreene: Please don't take unnecessary chances. We don't have many healers available.

Running alongside Giran, Verrian keeps hearing his earlier declaration that he was terrified by the Hunter. She wonders what has changed - or if anything really has.

Not wanting to expose him to embarrassment, she shares, @Giran: If you are doing this to prove something to... anyone... I want you to know that you don't have to.

Giran winces and stumbles briefly. Regaining his balance, he looks at Verrian as though really looking at her for the first time. "Sorry... I... I've never met a Naucan before... takes, um... some getting used to," he says. It's hard to tell while running down dark streets late at night, but his voice certainly gives the impression that he's not sure how to react.

"I'm angry, Talva. My father died in the war. Erannik was the closest thing I had. And it just... murdered him. For no reason," he says, emotion straining his voice. "The world shouldn't be like that. It shouldn't have... things like that. No one should... should have to watch someone be slaughtered like that," he finishes quietly.

Hearing Giran's description of his relationship with Erannik, Verrian winces. "No, they shouldn't. And things like the Hunter shouldn't exist. I'm so sorry this happened. I never meant..."

She doesn't finish. Obviously, none of this had been her intention. Just as obviously, none of it would have happened if she hadn't sought out Giran's resistance cell.

"And I'll try to limit the telepathy. I know it's disconcerting."

"No!" Giran says quickly. "No, it's fine. It's... nice. Quiet. It just surprises me. You don't need to stop."

"You didn't make it happen, Talva. It was always going to happen. My aunt -- Livia -- has been saying for years that this city's been balanced on a knife edge. Anything would've tipped it," he says. "If you want to blame anybody, blame these Crows. That's what I intend to do."

Having a plan seems to buoy Vesina's spirits, and she quickly moves through the small crowd to get everyone moving in the right direction, with help from the fellow who first suggested it. As she moves toward the front of the line, she stops and puts a hand on Wil's shoulder. She is nearly of the same height, a couple of inches taller than Wil at the most.

"Thank you. It's... heartening to have someone else that cares."

"Sounds good to me," Verrian says. She resumes focusing on running. On getting to Wil. On intercepting the Hunter before it can hurt anyone else.

Her mind is an incisive tool for getting the job done. Her focus is absolute.

@Giran: You really do like it?

Giran turns to smile at Verrian, and simply nods.

Eanala is looking about, trying to get her bearings in the dark and the chaos of the evening. The night sky is brightened by the growing inferno in front of the party, and you're close enough now that you can see the flames spiraling up above the buildings in front of you. She falls in alongside Coreene briefly. "I haven't had a chance to tell you what a relief it is to see you safe, Coreene," she says quietly. "We looked for you when the guards started setting up checkpoints a few days ago, and when no one knew where you had gone... we feared the worst. I wish you could have come home under... better circumstances."

She calls ahead to Verrian, "Just another minute or two and we should be near. Though if the fire has spread too far, there's no telling where your friend may be."

"I wish I had too. I had to leave in a hurry, but I'm afraid to say this is all coming to a head faster than I thought it would. I'm glad I did though. We would be going into this blind if i hadn't been contacted by my old mentor." she confides.

Verrian smiles back. She can feel her facial markings changing to a deep pink and hopes the disguise makeup she's wearing is concealing most of it.
Her attention snaps back to the very serious matter at hand.

"If they managed to escape whatever buildings they were in, would there be someplace they might go for safety? Somewhere they might feel they could safely hide?"

Vesina smiles -- almost a smirk. "Truer words were never spoken, Wil."

With that, she makes her way through the small crowd. A few people seem to have split away from the group; it feels a little smaller than it was. Though it's hard to tell for sure in the darkness. Vesina stops to encourage a few, prod a few into action. She seems to know most everyone. After a slow start, everyone starts moving off in the direction of the bridge. The street gets wider as it approaches the river, and as the fire continues to rage, there's enough light to see the bridge itself: a surprisingly delicate span of stone that arches over the water in a smooth curve, wide enough to carry two horse-drawn carts side by side.

In contrast to the mostly intact buildings on this side of the river, even from here you can see that maybe half of the buildings in the Dockside district are still standing. Everything else looks -- in this flickering, unreliable light -- as though it's melted or crumbled to the ground. A person near Wil mentions that much of the area burned down by mysterious means not long after the War.

---

The Rest of the Party

After flashing Coreene a quick, grateful smile, Eanala says to Verrian, "That's where your avian guide seems to be going -- away from the warehouse and toward the river."

Giran pipes up, "Do you think they're going Dockside? They'd be close, and getting across the river might protect them from the fire."

Eanala thinks a moment, then nods. "That's not a bad idea, Giran. Come on... we can cut this way and we'll be just a couple blocks away."

---

Everyone!

So many things seem to happen at once.

Wil hears a commotion behind him -- people running, and... a bird chirping? This late at night? -- and suddenly Pip comes bursting out onto the street from an alley, flapping all about Wil's head before he returns in a looping, swooping arc to Elora, continuing to chatter.

The rest of the group, Elora, Yelnar, Swan, Coreene, Verrian, Ember, and some people unfamiliar to Wil follows soon after.

There's a brief, awkward, almost comical moment of confusion and panic as the groups encounter each other. Nerves being shot by the respective events of the day, and all. And then everyone's back together.

There's just barely time to hug and clap people cheerfully on the shoulder and express relief, when something comes walking out of the fire.

"Oh my... so very many lost little lambs..."