She led me to where Edryd was sitting on a bench in the setting sun's light, while Garret, Roburn, Anwill, and Nenvalur were telling their tales of the monsters they had slain the previous evening. I greeted them with a wave, and they acknowledged my presence, continuing their conversation. Ed was sitting with his hands folded together, leaning his elbows on his legs, staring off into the distance as he sat silently.
"Hullo, Edryd," I said. Edryd looked up at me in surprise. "I thought you'd be out for a lot longer," he said, but I noticed something was amiss and decided to prod him for the information. "Well, I would have rested longer, but I heard that you were out and bout, so I came to check on you," I shrugged, but his expression soured immediately.
"We won the battle, and managed to turn the fuckers on themselves, but not before the addia tore Batch's arms off in front of me," Edryd said, choking on the last few words. "It was… effortless for that addia; killing him, I mean," Edryd struggled to say as the words hit me like a troll's fist.
"Shit. I'm sorry you had to see that, Ed," I said, lowering my head and putting a hand on his shoulder sympathetically. "Batch as a good guy, but he went out the way he always said he would," I continued, but Ed's eyes filled with tears, prompting him to lower his head in a slow nod of agreement.
"I believe we all must see such things at some point. Makes us stronger for whenever it comes around again, I suppose," he said with a shrug, sniffling quietly. "I avenged him by killing the fucker that took his life, but I still wish I could have saved him," he continued, wiping away a stray tear.
"You did what you could, and I don't think anyone could have done any better under the circumstances," I said comfortingly, putting my other hand on his shoulder to look at him intently. "You don't know that," he said grimly.
"Perhaps I don't, but what I do know is that death comes for us all sooner or later. All we can do is keep that in mind, and when our times come, we should greet it as though it were an old friend; embracing the harshness of reality, since it's all we can do at the end of the day," I said with a nod, which he returned before wiping a stray tear that streamed down his face.
"I guess you're right, as usual. Thanks," he said as I patted his shoulder, and left him and Roburn to their silent thoughts. I returned to the palace and found Leona in the main hall, picking up a few of the pieces of the smashed thrones.
"I take it they have sentimental value to you," I said quietly as I approached her. "They do. As little as I had liked being the queen of an overweight madman, I still cared deeply for my subjects. I have sent messages out to where, I pray, most of them have escaped before Mourtis closed the city entirely," she sighed heavily.
"Might I ask how many you believe made it out?" I asked, though she shook her head in dejection. "I can't say for sure, but word of the Church's rebellion would have spread about the city within a few minutes, so there's no telling how many survived the attack," she explained.
"I pray that most made it out, but after seeing the state of the city, I fear less than half made it out alive. We will only know how many within a few days," she continued. I grimaced in solidarity, but handed her a shard with the queen's insignia engraved in the wood. She took it and smiled warmly at me as a token of gratitude.
"I pray that you and your brother will visit me often at the palace. After spending time with you and the others, your sense of humor… well, not only has it rubbed off on me a little, but it would be a tragedy to lose friendships like that once you depart," she said, furrowing her brow.
"I suppose we could pass by and visit from time to time. It's always nice to have an outsider to talk to about things different from sword maneuvers and spell-casting," I shrugged with a grin.
She chuckled lightly, then bowed gracefully, which I returned. "I suppose I should get back to formally addressing you, now that you're back at the palace," I said. Leona waved her hand. "Oh, nonsense. So long as there are no official members, you needn't use formal speech with me. We are friends now; something I have longed for since I first became queen of Coltend," she said, making me blush, and bowed again.
"I'd best be off to see the Master now that my jaw has healed. Let us know if you need anything from me or mybrother," I grinned. "I don't believe I will need anything for now, other than a cup of wine and a warm bed for the night," she said with a knowing smile. "I'll see if I can't have someone get you a glass of wine," I said with a wink.
I knew what that entailed, but decided against saying anything before taking my leave.
Meanwhile, Bernar had remained at the Master's side, tending to the wound in Pyle's stead. "I see Pyle has done his work on you," Taegin said, noting my newly scarred, though less swollen face. I grinned. "Indeed, he has. I really should learn how to self-heal. I've noticed a trend in me getting hurt… a lot," I said, recalling the past few weeks' adventures.
"Feels like the hands of a goddess running over you, doesn't it?" Bernar asked. "Mind is always in the gutter," I said under my breath. "What? You might have different ways of comparing things that touch you, little turd, but I prefer to compare mine to women," Bernar said with a grin. "Not all things can be compared to women, Bernar. I thought your mother would have taught you such a thing," Taegin said, immediately making me turn all my attention to him.
"Did you know her? My mother, I mean to say," I asked shyly. Taegin sighed and looked upwards. I know her well. Too well, some might say," he replied, making my eyes open widely. A wrinkle began to form in the corner of Bernar's mouth, though I couldn't determine why.