Tiding 11: A Moment's Respite

## Content Warnings

NPC death, grief, injury (not graphic)

*"Little Brother: let me start with the first time that I saw them, the villagers from Ninut; the Parish; whatever name you want to give them. I watched as they spilled out of a hole in the canyon wall, carried on barely-stable boats. They appeared in drips and drabs, crawling onto the banks to wait. Each of them relieved to still be alive, each hoping to see that beloved face follow them out of the cave. They were strangers then- I didn't know their names. But over the weeks that followed, I studied them, and I learned."*

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 *Jeddah, the leader who checked on every person that made it out, one child in her arms, the other following. Even from afar, I could see her shoulders relax when her brother Shu made it ashore.
 Verask, wounds life-threatening, tended to by his parents Polav and Tyal. Tyal had already lost his father that day; he wasn't going to lose his son.
 The siblings, Kallan and Sov, crying over a lost sister, Creve, and their aunt Ri, their mother sat in silent shock on the rocks behind them.
 Bristen, from whom the caves had taken the most: a nephew, wife, a sister, an aunt. Even then, I could see the rage beneath her skin, the terrible choices she would come to make.
 Then there was Challa, unusually quiet and withdrawn, surrounded by her family. Together they mourned the loss of Yani, Challa's mother.
 There was a gap before anyone else appeared, a long time waiting. Even I was surprised to see two small boats arrive in a dazed light. On one of them sat the Parish, surrounding the re-awakened Weaver, Vilte. On the other, the warrior Bris and her nephew, and a small group of survivors from the caves.
 But my eyes were drawn to another figure, who sat in their midst. An anathema, the monster I’d come to know as Venz. From the moment I set eyes on him I knew I had to act. That if I didn’t, all of these people would be doomed.*"

―Ullun Bakkal

## Summary

Having escaped the strange remnant Corpus, the people of Ninut gather at the confluence of three territories. They rest, shocked by the dark events under the mountain, waiting to see if all of their loved ones make it out of Carn Veskl.
A small group, gathered by Jeddah and the now-awakened Vilte, are asked to make a decision about where to go next. Do they go north into Irravence’s untamed forests, or east into the grief-touched Cenja?
Venz shares news of the Sharrow’s fate, Belka puts their foot down, Bris gets emotional and Challa climbs a tree.

## Synopsis

The caravan is regrouping in the Sharrow's canyon where they emerged from the underground river in boats. Small groups have formed, each family trying to process the losses and violence of the preceding day. To the east above the canyon wall is the grassy greenness of another Territory, ivy plants, and a series of graves and tombstones. To the north and west, huge trees from a second unfamiliar Territory tower over everything, their roots drilling all the way down to the base of the canyon. Between the two Territories is the river Trill, rumoured to be the longest in the world.

Jeddah pulls Bris, Belka, Vilte and Venz aside to have a meeting. She asks about the best way to get everyone moving, and Bris suggests moving along the river as it is a source of fresh water and a sure way out of the Sharrow. Vilte asserts that as well as protecting the caravan and finding a new home for the refugees, they also still need to stop the destruction that Corpus is wreaking before it consumes everything. Jeddah lays out the options: go north into the forested Irravence and find a small town a few weeks' journey away; or go east into Cenja, a rather sombre place where monks in Eulogy might be able to help. Bris immediately votes for going north, and Belka just as firmly and fiercely votes for heading east- purely because it is not north.

Bris asks Vilte if she knows how to stop Corpus, and she says she doesn't. Bris asks how Corpus even managed to grow inside the Sharrow's territory, and Venz explains that the Sharrow has been mistakenly killed by the Jackals. The reason why the birds never returned, why Strael could take over. Bris is immediately on the warpath, intent on revenging herself on the Jackals (who killed Korrin's father as well as the Sharrow). Vilte wonders if working with the Jackals might prove useful in fighting against Corpus, and while Bris isn't interested, Vilte posits heading north to Embrace, the Jackals' stronghold, to find answers and help.

Kalyn joins the group, and nervously adds that she used to work as a botanist when she lived under Carn Veskl. She says that at one point, a group of three scientists came to study the caves and then left again. A couple of days prior to the events of the caves, Kalyn saw one of them again in the canyon, fleeing to the east. The scientist was short, with an unusual gait, and Kalyn thinks this scientist was called Axel.

The group argues for a while about what to prioritise and how to solve the problems both of the Caravan and of Corpus. Bris ends up walking out in frustration, and that tips the voting balance towards heading east (to Vilte's slight dismay).

During the meeting, Challa was leading all the children in a canyon- and tree-climbing adventure.

## Plot Notes

**Warning! There may be spoilers ahead!**

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