**Far-East Shore of the Southern Riftlands; Stronghold City of Tehlemul Giel**

?̷͕̚ȩ̵̛?̸̙̈ ̶͍̕?̶̧̈́r̵̭͝?̴̈́͜ ̸̖̈?̷͓͌r̵̠͝ ̸̧̍?̵̼̃ǒ̷͖?̶͚̀?̶̬̒ř̴͈?̷̢̈́

Strong coastal winds whipped through the streets of Tehlemul, and Estelle raised an arm to brace herself against the familiar pressure. It howled between the carved stone structures which defined the narrow streets, causing the mighty banners hoisted far above to billow and furl. The ocean spray kissed the surface of the city with a layer of salt and rust, painting the great iron masts upon which the flags of the four powers soared with a mix of blackened sea grime and browning oxidation.

The distinctive Bladewolf of Tenebris emblazoned fiercely upon an azure standard, garnering respect no matter how far from Orodae it strayed.

The religious iconography of the Imperial Capital, a clean white and gold, upholding the zeal of the Sceptre of Light.

The seal of the Great Houses– a central crest surrounded at five points by the unique insignia of each of the five ruling families– a rich tapestry of colours representing the wealth of the merchant cities.

And the ancient sigil of the Elven Conclave, the pride of a bygone era given life amidst elegant purples with trim like silver starlight.

Estelle took a moment to watch the banners fly, the four represented together and maintained always at equal height, symbolic of the defensive pact they shared concerning these distant lands. The fortress city carried the scent of the ocean upon every breath one took within its walls, nestled against the furthest coast of the northern sea. A focal point for the civilized world’s last line of defense against the horrors of chaos and corruption. Every soul here was an ally to the cause, from the mightiest warrior to the youngest deckhand. If you set foot in Tehlemul, you had earned your place amongst a very small circle of company.

The {Crusader} navigated the city streets with well-practiced exactness, seeking out a wide marble structure with a domed copper roof, the ridges of its spire stained green by the ocean mist. Lowering her mantle from where she had tugged it upwards to shield her face from windburn, she entered the structure without knocking, pushing the wrought iron door aside with ease. A tall man seated behind an intricate desk arrayed with equally intricate tools looked up as she entered.

“There you are! I was almost beginning to worry.”

“Good to see you too, Karel.”

“Yes, well.. Pleasantries be damned– Not that it isn't good to see you safe- But Gods above and beneath, Estelle, do you know how hard it is to send you places?”

Karel griped as he shot an exasperated look acrost his workshop at the rather disheveled looking {Crusader}. Rising from his desk and slapping shut the book he had been reading, he breathed a heavy sigh while looking her up and down.

“You literally anchor reality around you, you remember that right? Do you know how badly that interferes with portals? This had better be important.”

“You know it is, Karel, or I wouldn’t be here. I’d be at the docks.”

Estelle countered, squashing the {Portalist}’s not-so-subtle attempt at fishing for details.

“Besides, my.. Lack of affinity for teleportation, should we say, is why I am friends with the best spatial arts user beyond the walls of Fusang.”

“Bah! Don’t sweet talk me, you fallen-from-grace zealot.”

The label would have been incredibly insulting coming from anyone else, but Estelle smiled grimly at Karel’s pseudo insult. He knew her well enough and long enough for there to be a sort of sad irony in the words, making them neither venomous nor untrue.

“That aside, Soto wrote that you needed transport to Orodae? You do realize that’s an entire ocean I'm going to have to throw you across. Are you certain you wouldn't rather I send you to Shal'talis? It would cut the distance down, and even you would be easier to transport once clear of the Rifts.”

“Do I look as though I have the coin for an association {Portalist}? Besides, I believe in my divine intervention… And in your abilities.”

Estelle added the last bit as though it were an afterthought, earning a huff from the older man.

“No, you don't. You look like–”

“--Like i’ve been traveling at a forced march acrost the deadliest wastes in this entire sphere of reality?”

The {Crusader} finished Karel’s thought dryly, before he could say something with less tact. The old {Portalist} restrained a heavy sigh.

“Go on and get yourself cleaned up. I’ve managed to keep the crystals for the tub up and running, so there’s even hot water."

He instructed his guest, moving to the side of his study to open a rustic door which led further inwards, revealing a sparsely furnished but comfortable looking living room beyond the threshold. He ushered her into his home like a mother coralling a mud-covered child returned from playing after a rainstorm, shutting the door behind her. Remaining in the outer portion of the workshop, he set about pushing around furniture and adjusting a complex set of engraved runestones situated in a circle covering the entire floor. Muttering under his breath in a language that was neither the common nor cardinal tongue.

It was not long before Estelle returned, dressed in a fresh set of clothes and smelling markedly less like sand, sweat, and monster blood. Karel gave her an approving look as she tied the blonde tangle of her hair back with a leather knot.

“Planning on growing that out again?” He questioned offhandedly, clearly making small talk as he continued fiddling with his runes.

“Likely not.” The {Crusader} responded matter of factly.

“I’ll take a dagger to it by the time it becomes annoying.”

“A pity. Your old style was something to behold.”

“Those days are long gone I'm afraid. If you’ve not noticed, the colour is different altogether.”

“Aye, what a boring blonde you have now.” Karel sighed. Estelle almost looked offended.

“You’re nothing like you once were… Except on the inside. Inside you’re precisely the same self-righteous do-gooder I've always known.”

Silence hung on the air for a brief interim, before both parties good-naturedly laughed together. Estelle clapped the older man on the back, moving to gather up her belongings and strap them extra securely into a large traveler’s bag. Karel watched with level apprehension as she then proceeded to fix the pack around her shoulders and waist with heavy belts.

“...Make sure you can get that thing off, in case you come out short and have to swim.”

“This again? I already said I trust you to get it right.”

“Well I don’t! Estelle, I can send a normal person anywhere around this entire reality. Any city, any continent, whoosh! I can shoot them right off to wherever I want them to be with a margin of error so slight I could place them on a stool if I had the right information to do it. But you–”

“--Anchor reality around me, yes, I remember.”

“You anchor reality around you! Yes! And that makes transporting you the difference between firing a masterwork crossbow into a target and trying to throw a cursed boomerang into a bucket!”

Karel threw his arms up into the air, making an insane squiggling motion with his hands.

“And I don’t just mean a regular old, accursedly stupid boomerang, I mean a legitimately cursed one.”

The {Crusader} looked like she was barely listening, adjusting the way her pack settled on her shoulders and checking over her straps as Karel paced around the workshop during his tirade. Unfortunately for her, bags of holding or other individual pocket dimensions would only make the teleportation interference worse.

“You’re being dramatic.”

“I am not! I am trying to save you from hurtling to your death into the frigid depths of the northern sea!” Karel huffed desperately, giving the woman in his workspace a pleading look.

She grinned at him, and he froze on the spot. He knew exactly what that look meant. It was uncharacteristic of the stern woman, and entirely specific.

“Estelle.”

She walked directly into the center of the teleportation circle, tapping her foot against the stone a few times before turning to face Karel. The grin still plastered on her face.

“Estelle, don’t–”

“--Ski–”

“--Don’t you say it!”

“Skill issue.” The {Crusader} breathed, each word exaggerated. There was laughter hidden behind her eyes.

Karel let out a frustrated yell as he turned a circle inside his own workshop, pacing back and forth before giving his age old companion an offensive hand gesture, glaring daggers at her. There was a rush of power as he channeled every ounce of world energy he could muster, focusing the threads around her, then into the circle, fighting for every inch of influence against an invisible force surrounding the woman. Envisioning the destination, he marked the coordinates in his mind and assigned the values, forcing more and more energy through the associated runes.

“If you die, it’s not on me!”

He shouted over the intense pressure which had filled the workshop, a sort of arcane buzz that could be felt in the soul as well as the skin. Like a raw current of life, time, and being, with Estelle bundled up in the middle as neatly as possible. Stray leaflets of paper flew about the space like errant feathers on a seaside breeze. Gathering the last of his power, Karel gave the bundle one final push.

“Light be with you, Karel!”

Estelle’s parting words faded with the rush of force. The workshop settled, returning to normal instantaneously as Karel stared into the void where his friend had been.

“Aye.. And with you.”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

*****

**Southern Orodae; Eve’lln Forest**

27th Day of Corals

Estelle held her eyes shut as she endured all the familiar sensations of teleporting, none of which she particularly liked or disliked. It was freeing, yet also daunting, and the vertigo was nothing to blanche at. She felt as though she had spun head over heels a dozen or more times despite standing perfectly upright and still. Forces inside and outside herself warred against each other fiercely in the struggle to move her through space, and when the ground materialized beneath her feet it was enough to upset the delicate balance, causing her to stumble forward half a step before quickly catching herself.

She breathed deep, opening her eyes and finding the midday sun high above in a sky blocked by trees. Wherever she was, it was certainly not eastern Orodae, and absolutely not Tenebris. No, if she had to guess, this was somewhere near the edges of the Emerald Spine. Had Karel overshot her? Or had he simply gotten nervous and attempted to push her further inland to lessen the chances she’d fall into the sea?

“Ah... The air is so much softer here…”

The {Crusader} sighed, a new breadth of life entering her voice as she allowed herself a brief moment of contentment. This was the first time in a long time she had set foot outside the Rifts– Since she had been somewhere stable, somewhere real. She had almost forgotten what it felt like. There was a part deep inside her which relaxed, released from the burden of holding her down. The burden of holding everything around her in place. It was indescribably liberating. Like a piece of her soul had been given colour.

Looking around the gentle slopes of the forest, she observed the leaves and foliage, estimating that it had to be towards the end of the Month of Corals. Funny how well she remembered things like that– seasons and months– things which hadn’t applied whatsoever in the Rifts. It all came flooding back to her now as though she had consumed a book's worth of knowledge via some strange osmosis, and a name fluttered just off the tip of her tongue.

“Eve’lln Forest, it has to be.” Estelle voiced her revelation, moving through the trees until she found a simple but well-worn dirt path. It felt familiar somehow, a warm glimmer of recollection pulling at the edges of her mind. Images of a small settlement with freshly developing orchards.

“That’s right, there was a gate to the Endless Horizon in a town nearby.”

That surely must have been what Karel was aiming for. Perhaps there was some benefit in aiming for one of Alura’s specialized gates, some element which made it easier to target his [Aetherial Portal]? Otherwise he may as well have dropped her right over Tenebris. This place was much further beyond, if her burgeoning memories were to be believed.

Releasing the overstuffed pack from her body, Estelle took a few moments to stretch and appreciate the wondrous blessing of feeling unthreatened. There was still a sense of urgency looming over her, but that was it. No maelstrom of energies thrashing about, no risk of a supernatural entity stepping from the fabric between space and time to do battle. The calmness of the forest surrounding her seemed almost surreal... But inside herself the {Crusader} held close the reasons which had called her here, back to the mainlands. The danger may not have been surrounding her in this forest, but a very real, very significant threat was looming somewhere beyond... Lurking in the ever present shadows of the past. Still, there was a pleasant lightness to her movements as she unpacked her armour and equipment, donning the combat leathers and strapping on her sword and shield before heading down the dirt pathway.

The sun rested at its evening peak by the time she reached the town… Or what was left of it. Had there been a fire or some other disaster? Many of the houses were undergoing reconstruction, whilst others had been entirely abandoned. The people looked tired and mournful, as though their grief were still recent and unresolved, and Estelle felt the gaze of angry, untrusting eyes boring into her back as she walked past.

Ignoring all of that, she moved towards the center of town, eyes searching for a familiar stone. Her heart sank when she found it. There in town square, surrounded by an unkempt garden patch, was the runestone she was looking for– and it was broken in twain. A young girl sat atop the toppled upper half as though it were a bench, humming to herself while reading a book. The tune was wistful and melancholy, a perfect fit for the bleakness of the town.

“Excuse me–”

Estelle started, pausing as the girl flinched despite the deliberately gentle tone she had used. Now that the {Crusader} was close, she saw the girl had to be young. No older than fifteen or sixteen. There was still an unmistakable innocence in her honey coloured eyes despite the sadness which also resided there, covered only slightly by the bangs of her bright chestnut hair.

“I’m sorry to startle you.”

“That's alright.. I should have noticed.”

“I won’t bother you long, I simply wanted to ask; What happened to the runestones here?”

The girl closed her book and stood up, looking back at the stones in question as she bit her lip.

“It.. Uhm..” She paused, looking around nervously.

“It broke.”

Estelle pursed her lips slightly, but fought to maintain a patient smile. Before she could offer a response to the girl’s enlightening revelation, a voice called out towards them from the side of town.

“Julie? Who’s that you’ve got with you?”

The {Crusader} straightened up, turning to face the new voice. Its owner was strikingly similar to the girl who had been sitting upon the shattered stones, slightly taller, and with rich hazel eyes. The two of them were obviously sisters.

“My name is Estelle. I’ve traveled from the north, hoping to use the town’s gate, but..” Estelle’s eyes swept towards the object in question for obvious effect.

“Ah, that’s.. I’m sorry to hear that. As you can see, it no longer works.”

Yet again, the words used to describe the runestone’s condition were vague and blameless, but the now worn cracks and impact fractures scarring the stone told a different story. It hadn’t overloaded or fallen into natural disrepair. Someone, or several someones more likely than not, had taken to it with tools. Hammers and picks, shovels even. It hadn’t broke, it had been broken.

“I did notice that, yes.”

Estelle replied curtly as the smaller girl identified as Julie moved to stand near her sister, fidgeting from side to side. Estelle was having a hard time placing the mix of emotions which seemed to be at work beneath the girl’s shy facade. Her older sister was carrying a basket of herbs and mushrooms, the sort that looked relevant to medicine work.

“Was there some sort of incident here? I can’t help but notice that much of the town seems.. Broken.. Not merely the runestone.”

The two girls looked at each other, clearly uncomfortable. If that’s how it was then Estelle was not about to bully information out of a pair of children, she was a fully grown adult and would speak to another of the same. Tapping a finger rhythmically against her hip she scoured her memories for a face and a name.

“Do you know where I could find Larina?” She finally asked, envisioning a slender woman with soft green hair. The sisters looked even more puzzled.

“I don’t.. I don’t believe anyone by that name lives here, miss.”

“No? Are you certain?” Her memories suggested that it was highly unlikely the woman in question would have moved away from this particular town, or more pertinently, the forest surrounding it.

“Larina Shaiye? I believe she had a son.. What was his name..? Lauteo.”

The older girl suddenly recoiled as though she had been struck, and Julie’s eyes went wide. That had certainly not been the reaction Estelle was looking for, nor did it seem like a good one. Before she could say anything further however, the older girl was approaching her, Julie quickly checking up and down the streets to see if anyone had overheard.

“Please don’t say anything more. My name is Eophi, and this is my sister Julie... Come and join us for tea?” She hesitated, adding in a lower voice;

“This would be better discussed behind closed doors.”

Estelle frowned, but Eophi had already turned and started down one of the roads leading out from the town center. Julie looked at the {Crusader} and nodded, motioning for her to follow. They walked in silence until they arrived at the edge of a modest apothecary’s cottage. Eophi held the door for the other two to enter, pulling it tightly shut once everyone was inside.

“I’m sorry about that.” Eophi started, moving along the wall to shutter the windows.

“Townsfolk here are not fans of outsiders given the current situation.. Particularly not outsiders that go around asking after teleportation stones, or the man who destroyed our village.”

Estelle blinked at the development. She hadn’t been asking about a man, though.. Unless.. Gods above, Lauteo? Had that little boy really grown up and done all this? Where had his mother been?

“... I’m sorry, who?” She edged for clarification.

“Lauteo, or as we knew him, just ‘Teo’.”

The {Crusader} sat down in the chair Julie offered her, becoming stone faced as she absorbed the information. Not that she had any reason to distrust the two girls who had invited her in, but Gods, had it really been that long? In her mind Lauteo was nothing more than a teenage menace, obsessed with earth magicks and constantly overgrowing the yard.

“When?”

“A mere month and some time past.” Eophi replied. “The wounds are still very fresh.”

“But why destroy the gate? Given the circumstances, would it not have served better to transport materials and supplies to ease the town’s recovery?"

Julie looked at her with surprise, and Estelle assumed she was wondering how she knew the runestones had been broken… But her words soon proved that was not the part which had puzzled her.

“It could be used to do that?” She asked in confusion, looking from her sister to Estelle.

“Miss.. Estelle, was it? I believe I understand what you are suggesting, but no one in town has used the gate for anything like that for as long as I've had memories. In truth, it was little more than a decoration in the square until…”

Eophi trailed off, looking at Julie with a frown. In turn, Julie frowned and looked at Estelle. Estelle simply frowned.

"Until..?"

“Right." Eophi sighed, heading into the kitchen.

"Let me make that tea.”

~~~~~

"That's quite the ordeal." The {Crusader} responded after a lengthy pause.

Eophi and her sister had spent the last hour or so explaining all the details they knew surrounding the near destruction of their village. Their tale rode upon the border of being both improbable and outlandish, but for the duration of their conversation neither [Scan Alignment] nor [Truthseeker] gave Estelle any reason for doubt. There was no malicious attempt at concealing or altering the information, it seemed, though the girls may have lacked crucial pieces due to their limited perception and involvement.

Lauteo's subterfuge within the forest had undoubtedly been the core of Thrylld's suffering- initiating a blood pact with a deepfae hag was not an act which could be written off as well intentioned no matter how hard you twisted the narrative- but the timing seemed off. Or perhaps more pointedly, it seemed overly convenient. Specifically the arrival of several students from the Academy; Students who had undertaken a contract which should not have existed due to Lauteo's underhanded communications embargo. Students who had somehow obtained the unique runecodes for the gate, venturing out into the woods at precisely the right time to cull the infestation. Students who had successfully located and purged a deepfae's lair before facing down her bloodlink and an entire town's worth of dominated thralls... Only to be ultimately condemned by the very people they had fought to save.

"Could you give me the names of the adventuring party again?"

"I'm not sure they were an adventuring party, persay, they weren't together at first. They seemed to be working in pairs until Lauteo made his move."

"The Alchemist's name was Argent! And the rude boy was named Gauge, I think." Julie chimed in, and her sister nodded.

"I believe the swordsman's name was.. Iza? And I can't recall the girl ever being introduced. Those two were particularly aloof."

Estelle nodded lightly, tucking the information away for another time. Ironic that students beneath the charge of the very man who had summoned her would responsible for her inability to respond to said summons in a timely manner-- though the true fault rested upon the villagers. She did not agree with the blame the survivors of Thrylld hoisted upon the shoulders of the four academy students, and then upon all adventurers vicariously through them. The goodness in her could not condemn them for it, but Estelle was frustrated by their actions; and not only because closing the town off from the outside world inconvenienced her currently. Breaking something as precious as the gate was both shortsighted, and frankly, uneducated.

"I presume there are some among you who are still nursing wounds?" She questioned softly, changing the topic as she stood from her seat.

The {Crusader} may have been disappointed with the townsfolk, but that did not mean she would not help them. If they would accept it, of course.

"Tell any in need of healing or consecration that I will wait in the square for the next hour, and I will turn none away."