For breakfast Gabrial and Xanthus used the leftover goose to make a hash with potatoes and onions, which they topped off with sunny side up duck eggs.

Elrithradia took a platter up to Cimmera and let her have breakfast in bed. The little nephilim also took a much heavier platter up to Hypatia and Valen. She knocked gently on the door before bustling in, proudly carrying the platter.

Valen barely had time to roll out of the way before the door opened to permit the nephilim entrance. He had slept before the door, protecting Hypatia. He woke irritable, with scratchy eyes from a poor nights sleep. Hypatia finally realizing what he was and what he had been was a nightmare that had haunted his every dream.

Rising to his feet he watched the multicolored wings of the nephilim just about fill the room as she moved about, opening drapes and setting the platter of breakfast on a table near the bed.

Hypatia slept soundly and didn't even stir when the drapes were opened and sunlight spilled into the room.

Elrithradia turned to him and took one look before casting a musical spell. The sparkling swirl of pinpoint lights surrounded him and left him feeling refreshed and renewed when it was finished. "You shouldn't worry so much, Valen." She told him, her words like a song.

"She deserves an angel. Not a half breed fiend like myself." He spoke the raw truth to this angelic creature, expecting her to agree with him and thereby have some kind of argument with Tia. She was stubborn and she would not be reasoned with about this.

The nephilim stopped and looked at him. "She has judged you a good man, Valen. Why do you resist this? She is not the first to call you such? Did not The Seer also call you good?"

Valen jerked back. How could this creature know that?

Elrithradia took a little hop into the air, her wings working to keep her stabilized and at eye level with the tiefling who stood brooding before her. "Why must everyone be so tall?" She asked rhetorically, a smile playing about her lips Then she reached out to touch his cheek with one tiny hand, "The path you have chosen is difficult, it is true. But every time you conquer the calling of your blood, you weaken the chains that bind you to your demonic heritage."

Valen turned his back on her, then whirled around. "I'll never be fully free of it though. I'll never be human."

Hypatia stepped around one of the huge wings of the nephilim, her hair mussed from sleep and a slight ridge on her face where she'd slept on a wrinkle in the pillow. "You are human, Valen." She spoke with quiet authority. "You imagine that humans don't have to conquer their worse nature. You imagine that being fully human would somehow make it easy to be a good man. What you don't realize is that every human has an inner demon. Perhaps not of the body, as you do, but of the mind. Who we are depends daily upon the choices we make and at every turn there is what we call temptation, which you can at least ascribe to the calling of your blood. What, I wonder, is our excuse?"

Tia's words had interrupted the nephilim before she could speak and after listening, the celestial creature clapped her hands together in delight. "Yes. This." She turned to Valen. "Humans have the most wonderful dreams and at the same time the most terrible nightmares."

Valen didn't know what to say. He had expected automatic condemnation from the celestial for no other reason than what he was. Did they not understand what it meant that he was half demon? What would happen when Hypatia finally, truly understood what that meant? He didn't know if he could bear the heart break when it happened.

Elrithradia shook her head sadly, "Love her now, Valen."

Hypatia looked from Valen to the nephilim and frowned. Before she could say anything else Elrithradia cast the same spell on her that she had on Valen only minutes before. "Restoration?" Hypatia recognized the words, but just barely. She had never heard them sung in such a way, hadn't even considered that they could be sung. She did feel much better though. "Thank you."

"You are welcome!" Elrithradia danced around the room in delight. "Now eat your breakfast and then come to the kitchen. It's going to be a busy day. You have to reach the stronghold of that evil priest today or it will be too late to stop him and…" She hesitated, growing sad and perhaps a bit frightened as she spoke. "If you don't stop him, the magics he will unleash will cause this prime material plane to be forever set adrift from the rest of the planes. It may even unravel it. To save the rest of the planes the gods have already gathered to cast a great spell that will break the bonds between this prime material plane and the others."

Valen's eyes got wide. "Death would become permanent here. Even the Reaper couldn't call a soul back if there were no connection to the planes. There'd be no escape, ever."

The nephilim nodded solemnly, "If the plane survived at all. It could completely unravel and cease to exist, taking everyone within with it into oblivion." She looked up to Hypatia, for she was truly tiny and only her huge wings made her seem larger. "Even if the plane survived being cast adrift and anchorless into the endless nothing, the very rules by which everything works might change in unexpected and unrepairable ways."

Hypatia listened to them in shock. Hadn't she just saved the world and now they were talking about the end of everything? "What? What do I have to do?"

"Farquhar built a machine. It is this machine that he had built with the help of a mad mage, an alchemist and a gnome engineer that is the problem. It mixes—it mixes—oh what was the word?" Elrithradia stamped one tiny foot as she tried to remember, "M…math? Oh I don't know. Something about magic and numbers along with the anti-magic orb will be catastrophic. It's the combination that's so devastating to the…oh what did they call it? Cloth…no, that's not right, weave?"

"Farquhar said something about destroying the Weave and the Shadow Weave. He thinks this will consolidate power in his hands. He thinks he can usurp the gods." Hypatia offered.

"Right," Elrithradia nodded and smiled in relief. "But there is another Weave and it's even more foundational than the Weave and the Shadow Weave. It's this third Weave that if destroyed would cause the entire plane to unravel. And there is real fear that if such a thing was begun on a prime material plane, it could spread to other, adjacent planes. That's why the gods are readying a mighty spell to cast this plane into the void."

Hypatia nodded. "We need to move then."

"Not before you've had breakfast," Elrithradia commanded, her tone imperious. "You'll need your strength for the battle ahead.

Though impatient to get moving, Tia and Valen sat down and ate. Seeing that they were obeying her command the nephilim left them in peace.

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Upon her return to the large kitchen, Elrithradia was pleased to see that Icarus was half way through what had to be his second helping of breakfast, with extra duck eggs. Bessera, fascinated by his wings and made bold by the presence of the two paladins was edging closer to where the huge tiefling sat, curiously looking over the structure of his bat-like wings.

Xanthus had his armor on and had finished his own breakfast. He was just taking his leave when Radia entered the room. She handed him a good sized pouch of gold that she had taken from Hypatia's belongings while she'd been up there delivering breakfast. Well ok, she'd used a spell to get it but the priestess would approve and this just sped things up a bit. "Buy this farm and as many of the…oh what do you call them? Empty farms?"

"Ghost Holds?" Cimmera offered, reaching out to catch Bessera before her curiosity got the better of her.

"Ugh, that's a terrible name for an abandoned farm." Radia shuddered slightly. "But yes, buy up as many of those as you can with this gold. I'm sure Hypatia will approve and the children you raise here will need some land of their own to farm when they grow up."

Cimmera's eyebrows shot up and then she laughed. "Clever. Hypatia will approve, after some grumbling about not being asked first."

Radia grinned. Then she turned to Xanthus and with a bit of a wicked glint in her eye nonchalantly added, "Oh, and tell Agathon that Hypatia is the Judge. He's been looking for her for quite some time."

"What?" Both Xanthus and Gabriel stared at the celestial born creature.

"Agathon has been looking for the Judge for a long time," Radia told them with exaggerated patience. "But, like so many of you, he never once considered that the Judge could be a woman."

Cimmera gaped at the nephilim for one moment then threw back her head and laughed.

Radia laughed too, her eyes dancing with mischief. "Be prepared for him to swear. I hear he's pretty good at it."

"Agathon never swears," Xanthus's affronted protest only provoked more laughter from the nephilim.

"It's a vice," Gabriel agreed.

Radio just laughed more, "No one is perfect my noble friends. Just tell him—but—after you buy this farm and the others." Then she sobered and it was like a cloud covering the sun. "Cimmera, you can go with your sister. Your skills would be very useful in the coming battle or I can go but we cannot both go."

"Why…" Cimmera began to give voice to a protest.

"Because," I stood up and handed my plate to the young girl, noting the play of fascination and fear on her face. "One of you has to stay and protect the children."

"Icarus is quite right," Radia confirmed. "I have spells both arcane and divine to bring to the battle. You have your Shadow Master skills as well as divine spells."

Cimmera was so torn. The nephilim would be a powerful ally for her sister but she was ever so tired of always being left behind. She was weary of staying safe while her sister had adventure after adventure. Now that she had been freed from the temple she wanted to taste life and she wanted to be a hero too. Why should Hypatia be the one to get all the glory?

"The celestial-born's power surpasses your own, High Priestess," I observed. Who had not felt the force of her presence? "In a battle against evil, a creature of good, such as this celestial born creates a great advantage."

"That's enough, Icarus," Radia spoke gently but with undeniable command.

I subsided. I didn't want to but I was powerless against her. That rankled me and I began sharpening my sword with a stone from one of the cabinets.

Suddenly the celestial born was right there, her wings, if they didn't practically glow, would have blocked out the light from the candles and windows. "You will be needing better armor." She pulled a suit of black armor out of a pack that she seemed to pull out of nowhere.

"How could you possibly….?" I gaped at her, reluctant to accept such a rich gift. I didn't know what the payment would include and I was in no hurry to become someone, even a celestial's slave.

"Oh don't be ridiculous," She chided me and I flushed. "Hypatia needs you at your best. She'd buy this herself for you if she had the time. Your weapon is better than anything I could give you but you need decent armor. Look it's leather so you'll still be able to fly in it and it's enchanted."

Still I hesitated. Slavery is to be avoided at all costs.

She sighed and said, "Alright, if it'll make you feel better about it. I'd like to hire you to protect Hypatia."

"The pretty already paid me to be her hired sword," I snapped. I wasn't falling for this little slight of hand.

Radia laughed, "No, Icarus, After that. She's going to want to travel a bit and I'd like for you to see that she gets to where she's going safely."

I looked at the armor. It was nicer than anything I'd had before. Every spare bit of jink I'd ever earned had gone into getting a better sword. Well every bit that I hadn't spent on food, drink and creature comforts. I thought about it carefully, trying to see a mark, rune or sigle that would denote a spell to enslave the wearer.

I was new to this plane. I had no way to get back to Sigil that I knew of. After I left the pretty's employ I'd have to strike out on my own to search for a way back. It would cost me nothing to follow the pretty for a while. "How long?"

The celestial born paused for a minute then said, "Oh, about a month."

I snatched up the armor and began putting it on. It fit like it was made for me and knowing this little nephilim I wouldn't be surprised if it had been. She said she was a messenger and by the doors of Sigil she was a well informed messenger.

Hypatia and Valen entered the room, both in their armor and with their weapons freshly polished and ready just as Xanthus made ready to leave with the gold to buy the farm.

Hypatia looked at the pouch and frowned, "Where did you…?"

Xanthus froze and gave her a startled look, "Uhm…Elrithradia gave it to me."

Tia turned a faintly accusing look to the nephilim. Radia laughed, "You were going to give it to him anyway. I just saved you a bit of time." Hypatia shook her head and finally laughed.

Cimmera looked up, disappointment and determination marking her beautiful face. "I'm going to stay here and watch over the children. Elrithradia is going to go with you, Hypatia. She has spells."

Hypatia searched her beloved sister's face. "Are you certain?"

Cimmera nodded, "Yes. The battle will be fierce. You need the most powerful allies you can get."

Hypatia hugged her then spoke earnestly, "Barricade yourselves in here with enough food to last for a few days. They know we are here and I would not be surprised if some of their warriors find their way here to harry you."

She turned to Xanthus, "If you bring back any of your friends, be sure to send some reinforcements to this farm to protect my sister and these children."

Xanthus bowed at the waist, "I'll swing by the temple of Sune and tell Angelous that she needs him. He will fly here faster than any rider could get here."

Hypatia smiled, "Good thinking."

Cimmera smiled too, "I've missed him."

"Why did you leave him behind?" Tia asked gently.

"Because I wanted to have some time to myself, free of my temple duties. I've never been really free to do what I wanted before and I needed to see what it was like, what your life has been like my dear sister."

"Very wise," Hypatia gave her another hug. "Alright, is everyone ready? We need to stop Farquhar and time is of the essence."