Aris leaned back in his chair and regarded the group assembled before him. Aflia, Little Bird, Talae, Mul and Lady Ussi all looked back at him, along with Lord Wavethunder. He had some decisions to make, and it seemed best to make them now before everyone scattered to their various roosts.

"Alright, think I can safely assume that all of you have some inclination of why we are all gathered here?" A row of nodding heads was his only response. "Ok, I'll hit the highlights, then we can go about our own preparations or future meetings as needed. Lord Wavethunder, I am sorry to report that the Old Temple is not a suitable place for Lady Ussi's people to live. You probably guessed this already, and you have our report on what we found there. You have our own duty to Queen and Country, and I'm not going to stand in your way. I'm here to lend what help you want me to, or to just stay out of the way. All I ask is that you let me know anything that will impact Trebor or my people as a whole. And yes, that includes Lady Ussi's village. Silithind, elf, human, whatever. If it lives inside Trebor, obeys the laws, and otherwise suffers the burdens of citizenship, then it is one of my people and I will protect it as such."

Lord Wavethunder offers a sage nod, "agreed. I would expect nothing less from the last Son of Ironbark."

Aris nodded gratefully in response, "thank you Lord Wavethunder. As for you Lady Ussi, I'm having the goods and tools assembled to start building the new village. I'm planning on having you in charge of it, but you'll probably want to appoint an executive officer to handle day-to-day business. A deputy mayor, I think is the appropriate civilian title. Where you chose to put it down is up to you, so long as it falls within the borders of Trebor. For now, focus on getting everyone housed, fed, and comfortable; growth and trade will come with time."

Lady Ussi flicked her forked tongue, "but what of the temple? Are we abandoning it?"

Aris shook his head, "Gods no, that would be criminally irresponsible of us. I do think it is larger than the six of us that entered it first can handle, and it has implications for the Kingdom of Althiem as a whole, which is why Lord Wavethunder is looking into it. We both have responsibilities that we can't avoid for too long anyway. And that does bring up the Convent, in a roundabout way. Little Bird, could you consult with Lady Ussi, the Temple of Kuko, and any other temples you deem necessary to consecrate and dedicate the Convent? I would hope for a place where more than one faith can worship, as the convent will probably be the central holy place for the entire island of Cencin."

Little Bird flexed her wings in thought, already preening slightly over the position you are offering her, "I can do that, though I would like to bring Talae with me in her role as my Acolyte as well. She did prove helpful in... expanding my understanding of Kuko and the Light in general."

Aris nodded, "I can find no fault with your reasoning, so you have my blessing if Talae has no objections."

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Talae snorted, "I certainly don't object! And such a task would also benefit me in more ways than one."

Airs saw the flicker of darkness at the back of Talae's golden eyes and chose not to push the issue. "Very well, that only leaves one thing on the agenda for this meeting. Aflia, you mentioned needing to study a complete copy of Days of Falling Skies, and the closest one is probably with Lady Ilelahne herself in her tower outside Sapphire. I'd go with you myself if I wasn't tied down here, So the best I can do is send along a letter of introduction and an escort that she would be familiar with. By name and description if not in person: Shaman Mul."

Mul's eyes grew huge, "you would send me to that place of knowledge? Really? Oh so many books to learn from!"

Aris laughed, "I'll take that as a yes. We all have preparations to make, and discussions to go through, so I think we're done for the day, unless there are any questions?"

"Mew?" Forgetting something Aris?

Aris sighed, "no Noxxy, I didn't forget. Lord Wavethunder knows the details already, and Aflia, Little Bird, and Talae all have heard the short version of how I died and didn't stay dead. We do have time for the full version, if anyone wants to hear it now."

Mul and Lady Ussi both indicated that they wanted to hear the details.

Aris sat back, gathered his thoughts, and told the events out, starting from the march to Chedal, and ending with arriving in the town. "Since then, I have only seen Black Cloak once that I can recall: the night of the attack on the Convent."

Talae's eyes went large, "so that's why you got us up and moving in the middle of a freaking thunderstorm at night."

Aris nodded, "yeah, Black Cloak's exact words were 'Discord on the air, black threads severed in the dawn, time runs short.' Obtuse as ever, while still getting to the point. But that's a problem for a later day. We all have preparations to make and / or work to do. In my case, I need to figure out how I want to invest in Ikin here, so let's be about it."

----------------------------------------

Status Report:

Treasury: 215

Income: +105 gold per day

Amount & Source:

+5 Semi-retired Agent of Altheim

+100 Food sold from Ikin

Equipment: In good condition.

Estates:

* Ikin: Village: Fishing Docks, New Improvement Under Construction

* Trebor Convent: Under Construction

* Colubrinus: Village: Under Construction

* Three Empty Holdings (may be improved later)

* One Old Temple (occupied by undead, traps, and animated statues)

The Ring: obsidian band with one carbuncle gem and two empty settings

Total Deaths: 1