Safe Arbor

*Halcyon City Harbor, early morning of February 13th*

Nature itself still hadn’t quite adjusted, it seemed; despite the devastation of yesterday, the wholesale destruction of whole parts of the city, and all the wounded and hurt, it was a gorgeous morning. The sun shone beautifully over the harbor, illuminating the crowds.

They’d all gathered to see the same thing: several hundred meters out, the water gave way to pale bark, an enormous tree rising out of the bay. Its fingers reached into the sky to support a chunk of land, parts of it still occasionally crumbling off and falling into the bay below.

Zodiac City, on top of its new pillar.

The low murmur of excited voices and camera flashes grew into a hubbub, then a commotion, as voices shouted out in recognition and the crowd parted before a figure that shone. The morning sun reflected off the pearlescent chestplate of her new armour, and her hand rested on the pommel of a long sword.

The newly knighted Sir Lancelot walked forward to come to a halt at the edge of the docks. Her usual smile faded off her face as she beheld the tree, replaced by something else. Concern, awe, anger… Perhaps a mix of all of the above.

They lifted a foot to set a step forward -

“Lancelle! Lancelle Ott! Could we have a moment of your time, please!”

The knight looked back. A woman in a blue suit elbowed her way through the crowd holding a microphone, followed by a man with a camera. She paused to take a breath when she arrived, before looking up at Elle.

“Lancelle -”

“Sir.”

“Excuse me?” The woman’s eyes widened.

“My name is Sir Lancelot. You may address me as Lancelle, or Elle, if you wish; but it would behoove you to use the proper title.” Despite the admonishment, her tone was warm and friendly, not adversarial.

The woman scratched her head, and started again.

“*Sir Lancelot*, Laura Teller from Channel 6 News - Have you seen the video of this tree’s creation?”

“I have, yes.”

“And?”

“It’s very impressive.”

“That’s it?”

Elle smiled. “What kind of response are you looking for, Master Teller? I am a knight from -or so the interweb tells me- a storybook. I spend my days fighting alongside aliens and sorcerers. An enormous tree sprouting through magic is magnificent, but certainly not outside the realm of possibility. Though I admit I have not seen one as large as this before, and they usually didn’t support whole cities in their canopy.”

Laura frowned and looked through her notepad, flipping a few pages before looking back up with a mischievous smile.

“Do you have any comments on the whereabouts of your cousin Rhiannon?”

The smile froze, and Elle’s fingers tightened on the pommel of her sword. “My *niece*, and friend, thank you. And no. I am about to go look for her.”

“How? The water…”

Before the woman could finish her sentence, the knight jumped off the docks towards the water below. Instead of falling into it, however, her feet made contact with the surface as if it were land, golden energy pooling beneath her soles every step.

The white bark was smooth and unmarred, still fresh and young from having been grown only yesterday. Nevertheless, the enormous branches made for an easy climb, and it certainly didn’t hurt to have magic knight powers, either.

Even then, it took them the better part of half an hour to reach the trunk. Once there they sat down to take a rest, back against the wood.

The wood was cool to the touch, even permeating through the armor somewhat. It never got too cold though, stopping at an almost soothing temperature. One might sense something else from the tree as well- a thrumming power. Life. A light breeze picked up, rustling the pale blue leaves further out on the branches.

It almost masked the sound of gently flapping wings as a single black crow landed near the seated knight. The crow might seem familiar to them, though the eyes were none of their usual hues. Rather than bright green, deep blue, or vibrant purple, the crow's eyes were a frosty almost translucent cyan. The bird peered at its guest with great interest for a few moments before there was a voice little more than a whisper on the wind.

*El…*

El held out their hand to the crow and smiled. “Which one are you? Badb? Macha? Without the eyes, it’s hard to tell.”

“Does this mean I’m close? Is she near here?”

The crow fluttered over to land on El's hand, gazing up at them. A sense of warmth and caring emanated from the bird. It didn't feel like any one of the crows, yet it somehow felt like all of them? The distant whisper picked up again.

*Here… I'm- here…*

El might recall then the myth that Rhiannon chose to name her hero persona after. In the legends, the name might refer to one individual but it could also refer to the three others as a whole. The Trinity Crows had always been an extension of Rhiannon's will and psyche, so if this crow was all of them together that would make it- this was The Morrígan. Rhiannon. Or at least some spiritual manifestation of her…

“Oh, Rhiannon…” Tears formed in Elle’s eyes as her voice broke and she scooped the bird up into her arms, armour rippling to reveal a soft sweater underneath. “What happened to you? Where is your body? I’m - I’m here to take you home.”

She leapt to her feet and turned, a long, ornate sword appearing in her hand, pointed at the tree. “I can cut you out. Just… Just point me in the right direction.”

The crow nuzzled against the sweater, a powerful surge of emotion coming from her small form in a wave. Love. So much love. It lessened in intensity, switching to a more soothing presence as it flew from Elle's arms and tried to get between the sword and the tree.

*No- Mustn't harm… Safe… Resting… Needed- a while longer… Home… soon*

An image flashed through Elle's head of the very feylike Rhiannon from the video footage. She appeared safe in the tree's embrace. Sleeping… But even her presence there seemed to be giving the tree life and stability.

As the Morrígan got a closer look at the sword, she tilted her head in bird-like confusion.

*Sword… Uncle's...? No- I have…*

Her gaze turned back to El before an eruption of joyful energy suffused the air around them.

*Knight...? Knight! Always… my Knight…*

Elle dropped the sword. Halfway to the ground, it vanished in a watery ripple before reappearing at her waist in a purple scabbard.

She breathed in, slowly and deeply. “Yes. Yes, I am a Knight. I got her - Joyeaux - yesterday, during… Well. There’s video, apparently. You can see for yourself.” She said, smiling, though there were still tears in her eyes, one rolling down a freckled cheek.

“I had hoped to tell you when I got home, but… you never appeared, and then Alex sent me a video of this, and I came as soon as I could. You had us all very worried. Me, Carol…”

Her face grew a bit stern. “How long will you be in here? Are you sure it’s safe? Is there some way we can reach you? I could set up a tent on one of these branches, make sure nobody messes with you. Can you eat?”

The Morrigan flew up to land on Elle's shoulder, nuzzling soft feathers against their face to dry the tears. That soothing aura remained, tinged with guilt and sadness.

*Sorry… so sorry… Didn't know- what else...? City- falling… Didn't know…*

More images flashed through Elle's mind, desperately trying to explain- falling through the sky above Zodiac; fighting, sneaking, planning; Rodriguez smirking; ES-17 and Mortem unconscious; the city falling.

As the memories replayed, a very distinct sense of fear and hopelessness crept into the crow's emotional aura.

*Safe…? Everyone- safe…? Rekken… Saw Rekken…*

At Elle's further questioning, the Morrigan bobbed up and down reassuringly.

*Here... safe... Time- difficult…? Speaking- hard… But here… Still here…*

*Visit…? Stay…? Company- happy… Place… For you…*

Elle sighed, and leaned into the nuzzling. “It’s not your fault, Rhiannon, and I’m not upset with you. You did what you had to do, and… It’s amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it. You saved all those people, everybody up there, and it would be selfish of me to want you home over that. But if you’ll allow me to be a bit selfish… I do.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know whether everyone is safe yet. Things are still chaotic. A lot of things were destroyed, and a lot of people went missing. Gwendolyn is okay, if slightly feline, but… Olivia is… broken. We don’t know if she can be fixed.”

She stopped pacing and sat down.

“Certainly not by me. I don’t have any sort of healing skills beyond basic field medicine, and it seems like Olivia would need an armorer, or some sort of mage.”

The Morrigan lowered her head sadly, still perched on Elle's shoulder and keeping close to their face. She seemed to want the closeness.

*Hope… safe… Hope- fix… I- help…? Maybe...*

*Home- soon… Not yet… But- visit…?*

*Place… Have place… Follow…?*

The crow flew off Elle's shoulder, landing in front of her friend and tilting her head. She hopped a few paces away before stopping and turning to look back at the seated knight again.

Curious, Elle rose to follow the crow, staying a few feet behind her. It was a relief to be able to talk to her friend - or some form, some part of her, at least - but she was still worried. What if she couldn’t return from this? Would Rhiannon just be this - this tree? Stories of sentient trees, old and wise… is this where they come from?

She hoped not, just as she hoped she would still be here if, when Rhiannon returned. After all, if she came here to become a knight, to earn her sword, then… wasn’t she done? Would she be called back any second now? Could Nimue be around the next corner, ready to drag her back to Avalon.

Wait, drag? When had she started to think of it like that? Going home - *getting* to go home was a good thing, a reward, it should feel good and just and like a relief, but… it didn’t.

It felt painful. Sweet, but painful, and terrifying.

Perhaps she’d stayed too long… She had put down roots. Rhiannon, Gwendolyn… Alex… She should regret it, but she feels no regret. Just… love.

For the first time since coming to Halcyon, she realized that it would be hard to leave.

She continued to follow.

The Morrigan led Elle along the winding branches of the tree, further and further up. The path they took somehow felt natural and intentional, as though someone had made it on purpose. But there was also a sense that nobody would find it without being first shown the way. A hundred feet or so beneath the city, they found themselves at almost- a seam in the trunk of the tree.

The crow looked up at Elle with a happy caw before flying through the crack. It was a tight squeeze for a person, but inside the tree opened up into a small alcove - cozy and cool, with a dim bluish-white glow illuminating the area and soft moss coating the floor. The light appeared to be coming from the pale white trunk itself, and that sense of pulsing life and power was even stronger. And though still not visible, there was a distinct sense that Rhiannon herself was very close here. The voice was still a whisper, though much easier to hear.

*Friends… Visit…? Anytime…*

*Tired… So tired… But- lonely…?*

The Morrigan flew up to Elle's shoulder again, the whole room filling with emotional warmth and caring.

*So proud… My Knight…*

*Protect… Protect them…? Until- home…*

*Tell… sorry… Not- worry…*

Lancelot walked forward and placed her hand on the trunk, questing for a bit before finding a spot that Rhiannon felt the closest. She closed her eyes.

“You can sleep. I’ll make sure you’re safe, and that our friends will visit. Just… I have a lot to tell you when you wake up. A lot to talk about. A lot I could use your thoughts on.”

“And honestly, dining by myself with Carol is a little awkward.”

A gentle laugh echoed on the wind, and Elle could hear it rustling the leaves just outside. A small blossom grew from the trunk near where their hand was resting.

*House- yours too… Always… Invite…*

*You are- loved… Don't… be alone… Happy…*

*Sleep- yes… See again… Next- visit… Here… I'm here…*

*Mortem… check on… Give- orange pastry… For me…? Even if- doesn't remember…*

The Morrigan nuzzled against Elle one more time, giving a little caw before swooping over to a perch branching out from the wall. Her feathers fluffed up a little as she seemed to settle herself comfortably. Then her bright icy eyes slowly closed, and everything went quiet. The blossom broke free of the trunk and slowly began to fall. A gift.

Elle opened her hands to catch the blossom, pearlescent gauntlets materializing around her fingers as she did so, as if to protect the flower from harm.

“I will.”