Quest 03B/2 - Another Worthy Attempt
Moxon doesn't 'blaze.' No 'blazing.' He steps lightly and surely, though, through portions of the forest unfit for those not trained in caution and respect. Path not necessary. When he's reached the proper point, he pauses. "Well, this is where we, ah, wait patiently."
Ailith has followed quietly, doing her best to step where Moxon does, but - she's a sailor, at heart, and certainly no woodsman. She nods, absently picking leaves out of her hair. "There never were very many of them," she muses quietly. "At least, not very many that you would see. Important holidays, perhaps. Crownings. I think I saw one at a tournament once, but possibly he just liked the jousting."
Moxon says, "You crown with _laurels,_ not mistletoe..."
Myrddyn is nestled into a towering twisted old oak, boughs heavy with the growth of mistletoe. His peaked ears flick a the faint rustles of movement in the brush below his perch. Craning his head down at a seemingly impossible angle, the wide amber eyes fasten upon the travelers. As Moxon makes an announcement of 'waiting' he crab walks along the branch for a better view of the man's companion.
Ailith smiles. "Crownings as in crowning the local kings," she clarifies. "There was a high king, because it used to be lots and lots of little kingdoms. And thus, lots and lots of little kings. A bit like Montevalno, but much less poison. Probably not fewer wars, really, all told. But less poison, and more jousts and tourneys."
Moxon shrugs. "After a couple dozen generations of furious inbreeding, most kings can't take a punch. I heard." He winks.
Myrddyn leans out and drops, an avian shadow, whisper-gliding to a spot around the tree, momentarily out of view. After the moment passes, a man in a light brown robe emerges, striding towards the pair. As he draws closer, a cough, then "Well met by moonlight, Ranger."
Ailith blinks a few times, startled, and executes a somewhat off-kilter bow. "I'm...I'm sorry," she admits. "I've forgotten the proper form of address. You are a druid? Of Lyonesse?"
Moxon bows, smart. "Master Myrddyn."
Myrddyn 's eyebrows raise at Moxon's bow, then his gaze returns to Ailith, while a hint of a smile forms. "An odd place for ceremoniousness, Teacher and suffice, or even, Myrddyn. Unless this is a meeting of some importance?"
Ailith starts to answer, pauses. "...I am honestly not sure," she admits. "Myrddyn. I am Ailith Solaris. And I come...well, to seek your advice, if you would give it, and your blessing if you would grant it, to an endeavor my House seeks to undertake. I could not tell you how important that is - truly, I have rather avoided the topic for some time. Has much progress been made, in restoring Lyonesse?" She sounds as if she's probably not going to like the answer, and knows it.
Moxon fades back, allowing the pair some privacy. With a slight turn, he resembles the mistletoe a bit.
Myrddyn gives a low chuckle, "Progress?, more of a decline rather. What little that was raised recently was infected by terrible evil, then fought over horribly, and eventually tainted and ruined what lingering purity was within the order of the Graal. What remains is bickering and squabbling over the scraps."
Ailith closes her eyes briefly, in the sort of wince one gets when poking at old scars. "Then...perhaps this is hopeful news for you, Teacher, or perhaps only foolhardy. But Solaris wishes to reclaim the lands that it once lost. For this endeavor, I - and perhaps others yet - come to seek your advice if you would give it, and your blessing if you would grant it."
Myrddyn listens to her, rubbing his bearded chin as she speaks. "So, you understand that Taran was consumed by this path and destroyed. While Lorana was merely driven mad? Then there are the forces of evil to contend with, and the ire of the old gods..."
Ailith nods. "If it were easy, I suspect it would already have been done. Chantris is not particularly given to sentiment, but a loss of revenue is still noticed. And Solaris has much to contend with yet."
Myrddyn leans forward, peering closely at her features, "Have you the blood of Oberon within you?"
Ailith nods. "My father is Gerard, teacher. And I bear the bloodline of Chantris, and Solaris. I may be the last of my family to remember the lands before they were lost."
Myrddyn leans back, sighing and shaking his head. "This is very bad, for it only adds to the potency of your opposition. The old gods have stirred at the reversal of their curse." He turns to spy the fragment of the moon visible through the canopy. "Tell me of your works thus far. What have you done to serve others?"
"For my father, I chase pirate vessels, and arrest their captains," says Ailith, but not as if she expects this to count. "I returned to Chantris, and I teach the young ones, and those returning to the House with lost memories, about our ships and our music, and our Duty, so that when they go to the Librarians they have a clear idea what they wish to learn." She looks a bit embarrassed. "I am sorry. I have not been back in these waters very long."
Myrddyn listens, nodding, "What do you seek to gain from this, besides restored revenues. How would this help those now living?"
"My House seeks the restored revenue," Ailith notes. "For my part...to have something mended that was broken. A memory restored. I do not walk Lyonesse these days, teacher. It has lost so much. As much in its way as Kitezh, and while I plan, on the restored lands, to build again its libraries, I cannot do what I did for Kitezh, and box up all its lore and hand it back to the people. They do not want it. If our plan to raise our lost lands succeeds, that in itself is likely the best gift we can give the people. A way, a method, to raise what has been lost without a repeat of the corruption of Albion. But even that will only help the people if they want it to do so. The lands will not raise themselves."
Myrddyn turns back and looks into Ailith's eyes, as if assessing her resolve in the course. After a time he resumes shaking his head. "I don't really know you, and I suspect you haven't a clue what you are really asking for. Also, can't help but feel I am in effect, condemning you to death, or worse. However, how-eve-er. I will not stand in your way. You have my support, and my blessing, for whatever it is worth." Another sigh follows. "May the good gods smile upon you, and lead you to success."
Ailith studies Myrddyn thoughtfully. "You may well be right," she notes. "And perhaps I do. Mere chance allowed that I be on the deck of a ship when land gave way to sea. Or perhaps it was only the gods' way of saving my life for later use. What that use may be, I am sure we will discover. Thank you, for the warning."
Myrddyn nods solemnly, "I will be watching you, from near and afar, unto even your dreams. We are bound now. Whatever comes."
Ailith actually looks relieved. "Thank you, teacher. I have been a sailor much of my life. The dark waters ahead are a trial in every sense, and some I am sure I am not ready for."