S3 Ep13

### Time to Catch Up

Rory gazes down at the severed head, dumbstruck. There is a tense exchange where Ortusa seemingly can not be convinced that Rory isn’t a threat to her. She explains that she’s fought Rory’s likeness for nearly a decade, and that Rory has cost her much. Rory hardly even knows what to say, but continues to assert that she’s not here to chase or harm Ortusa, and asks her to tell her everything she knows about the killer that wore her face. Ortusa does eventually sit down, and the mood softens as the two talk about their respective found families. Rory asks how she killed the creature that looks like her; Ortusa explains that she killed “Rory” three times, and took her head after their last encounter. She finally relents, admitting that there is something different about Rory “this time”. Ortusa encountered Rory’s likeness in the old ruins of the Ellnaran Empire, where she was scouting for… something. The killer that looked like Rory never said who they were or what they wanted. They carried no clues, made no demands, only came and attacked. From there, the conversation lightens, and the two talk about comic books, potential performances for the population of Gran Marcellia, and their journeys through Vas. Rory shows Ortusa her Faralei family crest, and Ortusa remarks that her tutor, Carinth Insenthiir, wore one in the same style. Not the same house crest, but something with a similar design, possibly a house crest from the same empire. The questions and answers begin to trickle to a stop and the two depart to rejoin the rest of the group, shakily trusting that they won’t be killing each other anytime soon. Rory asks Ortusa to consider putting on a performance for Gran Marcellia, and she says she’ll think about it.

### The Orb

Once they’ve rejoined the rest of the group, Bal asks Ortusa whether they should fear the Lord of Blades’ wrath, and she says yes, absolutely. “He’s fucking crazy.” Bal thanks Ortusa for her role in talking Salvo down from destroying the Flotilla, and notes that his behavior lines up with that of a maniac. He asks her to consider using her influence with the Lord of Blades to assist Bal in providing a real living for his people. The portal is a longshot, and the Flotilla needs somewhere to go. Ortusa says that Gran Marcellia is not hers to command, but that she certainly won’t stand in Bal’s way.

As Snibbles gets ready to fire up the portal, Val interposes himself between the gateway and Bal; however, Bal comes up next to him and says that there’s no need to protect him. They stand side by side, resolving to take whatever comes together. Snibbles places the orb into the pedestal in front of the archway, which drops into place as if guided by a magnetic force. There’s a low whirring noise as the portal begins to fire up for the first time in, potentially, centuries. The symbols on the orb, as well as on the portal, light up. Snibbles begins a very careful inspection of the pedestal, then moves on to attempting to button smash the orb. When a letter is pressed on the orb, the same letter illuminates in yellow light on the portal. Only nine letters at one time will illuminate. Impatient, Balthier casts Comprehend Languages on himself and walks up to the pedestal, spelling out Dal Pyr Sun on the orb. The portal begins to swirl, and a mirror-like door takes form.

The group ties a hammer to a rope and tosses it through, then pulls it back. There’s dirt on the hammer. At this discovery, Val and Balthier can’t contain themselves. Much to Rory’s dismay, the blond boys jump in. Fin writes a quick note to Jovita, sticks it in his hat, drops the hat on the ground, and follows close behind. The note reads, “Dear Jovita, I’m not running. I’m looking for a place we both might fly. Fin”

### The Shortest, Longest Journey

As Val and Bal walk through, they step into what feels like a spinning wind tunnel. A hissing voice pierces their ears: “I see you. I SEE YOU.”

But the voice is quickly forgotten as Bal and Val land and take in their surroundings. A golden plain, with rolling hills as far as the eye can see. Wild animals roam off in the distance. Two suns orbit in the sky. It’s about 90 degrees Fahrenheit; the air is dry and thick with the smell of dirt and wildlife. Immediately, Val shakily pulls out a sycamore seed and plants it, druidcrafting it until a small tree stands where the first two humans on Pyr landed. “This is everything,” Bal says. He dreads returning, but everyone has to see this. He also briefly mentions the voices that he heard, and Val says he heard it too. However, that’s not a concern for the moment. Bal’s head is spinning with possibilities: he needs to sit back down with the Lord of Blades and get as many of his people through the portal as possible. Now that his eyes begin to adjust, Bal turns back and sees several pillars of smoke off in the distance, which lead down to apparent homesteads. As if on queue, there’s a rhythmic shaking in the ground as a nearly 30 ft tall woman approaches. Around this moment, the portal closes, to everyone’s panic. Everyone remaining on the Gran Marcellia side start rushing around trying to open it again, while Fin, Val, and Bal turn to address the approaching giant.

She wears a robe and headdress that covers everything but her eyes; as she pulls the headdress off to address the group and her hair becomes visible, they see that the ends of her hair are blazing with fire. She addresses the group gently, introducing herself as Naytana. She welcomes them to her world and marvels at the fact such tiny creatures emerged from “The Gods Gate”. She invites them to meet her own people, the Pyrkin, and says that as long as they aren’t here to disrupt the peace, Balthier and all his people are welcome on Pyr. Though, it is a shame that they’ve visited during the “cold months”. Naytana  teaches Balthier the customary greeting of her people before departing for the moment. Balthier is ecstatic at this kind welcome and explains the interaction to the others when, as if on queue, the portal begins to whir and buzz. The team back in Gran Marcellia has gotten it open again. Bal, Val, and Fin jump back through, but not before bringing back a few clumps of dirt and grass to show off.

### We Go Together

Balthier excitedly relays his conversation and everything they saw back to the group who stayed behind, and they decide to go back through the gate all together one more time so that they can all see what he’s talking about. Ortusa joins them, and Ester stays behind to keep the portal open. It appears that the gate closes automatically after about a minute. The voice intrudes on the party again as they pass through the portal: “I see you all, and I am coming for you.” That’s quickly forgotten, though. Everyone enjoys the sun and wildlife briefly, with Snibbles in particular being deeply affected by their new environment. Ortusa shoots into the sky and flies freely, laughing with joy. She even warms to Rory a bit, picking her up at her request and flying with her through the skies. They do, from a higher vantage point, see more houses and a large lake out to the north. This is a big relief to Fin, who had quietly worried about his own survival on Pyr.

The group returns to Gran Marcellia as Ester fires the portal back up. Their next steps are clear; Val and Balthier head back to the meeting room with Ester, where the Lord of Blades is preparing to meet with the real delegation from the Flotilla. Snibbles, Fin, Rory, and Ortusa head up to the Flotilla. Ortusa has a way to get the Hands’ drakes down into the city, so she’ll help with that. Rory wants to report to Tarkhal, and Snibbles needs to get some things from their workshop.

### The Next Step

Balthier shines in the meeting with the Flotilla and Salvo. He negotiates a deal that is favorable to both parties, culminating in the Lord of Blades gaining their ships once the Flotilla’s population has passed through the portal, an increased 200 citizens allowed through the city at once, and the Flotilla retains possession of any tools or supplies they can carry. The offer also stands for Salvo to retain a trade relationship with the Flotilla once they’ve settled on Pyr, which Salvo doesn’t seem too keen on at the moment. Balthier lets the matter rest for now, but has plans to continue negotiations as time passes. Perhaps he can yet get on Salvo’s good side. Meanwhile, up top, Rory, Fin, and Snibbles report to Tarkhal. They find him sitting at a newly-restored grand piano in the White Lily, playing for the current residents of the med bay. The music is touching and foreign, striking Rory. Tarkhal greets the group, and hand Rory the amulet that he had promised her (an Amulet of Health—a pretty goddamn good reward). When he returns to the piano and resumes playing, Rory asks Fin in a panic how she’s supposed to know when she wants to kiss someone. The two give each other a pep talk, and Rory joins Tarkhal at the bench. She tells him a brief story, which he interprets musically and plays for the med bay, and then gives him a brief kiss on the cheek before fleeing in embarrassment. Fin meets her outside and lets Rory know that because life is so short, she should consider getting back in there. Fin and Rory agree to make moves on their respective love interests before parting ways; Fin goes off in search of Jovita, and Rory goes back inside to see Tarkhal again.

Fin finds Jovita in the Thunder Bucket, and she’s still mad at him at first. However, as he shows her the note he wrote for her and relays his story, she’s caught off guard. Who wouldn’t be though, with Fin pulling lines like, “I met the Great Uniter. Turns out, you’re way prettier.” He also tells her that he’s found a place where she can fly and he can swim. He hopes they can be together there. It’s not until Ortusa strides right into the Thunder Bucket past the pair that Jovita finally asks, “there’s really a place where I can fly?” before collapsing into Fin. Their scene fades to black, with Jovita boasting that she knows how to gut a fish, and how to love one too.

Tarkhal finds Rory standing right at the entrance of the med bay, and asks her to accompany him on a walk. He asks her what she sees in him, explaining that he is very old and not long for this world. In fact, as Rory watches him, he appears to have aged significantly in even just the last few minutes. Perhaps the amulet had something to do with keeping him young? Rory doesn’t care though, retorting that she’s old too and would like to enjoy his company while he still lives. He places the sweetest, lightest kiss on her lips. He then marvels at what his life has become; his name, in elven, means "Lost Wings". He shares his former name, which ABSOLUTELY STUNS EVERYONE. (For the reveal, go watch the episode ;) ) He then offers to teach Rory some old dances at the Thunder Bucket; after all, he doesn’t have much time to waste. Rory asks to know everything he has to teach, and he’s eager. “Let’s start from the beginning.”