Chapter 36: Quickly … Quickly!
The next morning while Maltran was supposedly trying to convince one of Alisha's half-sisters to grant Rose permission to the Shrine Church, (when in all honesty she'll be talking to Alisha's nieces and nephews) Rose and party went out looking for the shooting range in which they got lost until a soldier told them it was a bit aways from the Knight's Tower in Pendrago's northern district. They found a heavily guarded tower in front of the palace which the knights there pointed them in the general direction of the shooting range. Which was nearly directly behind the palace. There Shane waited standing in the middle of an abandoned lot that had straw targets on one end falling over and starting to rot due to the lack of recent maintenance and the rain. She was in the same uniform she wore during the battle which is a version of the standard uniform for soldiers that really need to rely on their own mobility.
"Morning." Said Rose.
"Good morning Shepherd." Said Shane. "You wanted to know how guns work right?"
"Yeah." Said Rose.
"But also any additional information like where did you get them." Said Sorey pulling it out of his jacket. "Since well all our sources say that they're exclusive to Flamestone."
"To be honest I don't know where these came from." Said Shane. "All I know is that a woman in a black cloak one day talked to some of the higher ups and gave them the guns then left and I was given this because I was a good shot. Anyway let's save that for later. Fork it over!" Sorey gave her the gun. "Oh how I've missed you." She said to the gun. She then turned to Rose and Sorey. "So for it to be of any use, you need two things bullets and gunpowder. Since I just gave you the gun it is useless unless you want to club someone over the head with it. In that case it's a waste of a perfectly good long range weapon, plus we don't know how to fix it in the event that you do break it on someone's skull."
"Yeah especially since she tied a blade at the end of her's." Commented Edna.
"If that's the case why did you tie a blade at the end of your gun?" Rose asked.
"For when my enemy runs up to me and tries to kill me." She said. "Since it has more of a reach than your average sword it would give me a chance to defend myself without needing to resort to breaking the gun."
"So why the urgency?" Sorey asked. Shane gave him a look that said 'are you serious?' She then gave a sigh.
"It takes a while to reload a gun. And it takes a while to aim. Which was why the riflemen were basically on the outskirts of the battlefield to stall for reloading time while Hylandian Soldiers that caught on would get killed by some other facet of the army. If you're good at reloading you could get it under a minute … maybe, but since we weren't exactly masters at it took us about two minutes per round. And these things are actually pretty delicate as you proved on the battle field Shepherd and the fact that the original sights on this rifle broke off." Shane explained. "Now to load this you need to pull the hammer back, open this up," She flipped two switch looking things on the top of the rifle then took out a white packet and tore it open with her teeth and spat out the paper. "Now you pour a bit in here and close it. Then you dump the rest in the barrel." She slowly demonstrated as she talked. "Now you take your bullet," She took out a steel ball that looked slightly smaller than the barrel of the gun, "Then put it in the muzzle, take your ramming rod and shove it down the barrel and twist it as you go." She then shoved the bullet down the barrel taking a good while to pack in the bullet and gun powder. "Then you take aim and … fire." She pulled the trigger and the hammer sprung forward hitting another small thing on the top creating a small spark then nearly immediately after there was a cacophonous bang as there was a flash from the front of the barrel and whatever came out hit the slumped over target scattering it nearly a second later.
"Wow …" Said Sorey.
"That power can cause great destruction if left uncheck and in the wrong hands." Said Edna. "Those are the reasons why the creator kept them in Flamestone, so he could regulate them and make sure that it doesn't cause destruction, that he can keep them in check and take a look at the people that are interested in using the gun so that it doesn't go to anyone with ill intent or will take them out of Flamestone."
"Edna … did you know the inventor?" Mikleo asked.
"That doesn't matter." Said Zenrus. "What matters now is to stop the Lord of Calamity and any accomplices he has from spreading more of these before they help create more malevolence."
"Hey Shane, are there any risks to using a gun, like what if it just so happen to malfunction?" Sorey asked, Rose looked over to him a bit surprised.
"Good thinking Sorey." Said Zenrus.
"Hm … I would imagine that it might explode on you injuring you and possibly kill you." Said Shane. "I wouldn't know since we didn't suffer from any problems with them."
"The woman who gave them to you, did you see anything about her?" Sorey asked.
"Did you even see her in the first place?" Rose asked.
"Hm … I think I caught a glimpse of her around the time we got the guns leaving Pendrago while I was heading back home. I couldn't see any particular features on her as the hood she had on completely obscured her face. That's all I got." Said Shane.
"Thank you Shane." Said Rose. "This was a very educational if not terrifying experience."
"Hey, no problem." Said Shane.
"Shane! Rose!" They heard Alisha call. They turned to see her out of her armor and in a white and red dress with her hair down holding an umbrella with one hand while the other hand was being used to support the child hanging on her back with an older child trailing behind her.
"Alisha? I thought you would be with Maltran." Said Rose as Alisha let the little girl on her back down.
"Well I was but we told my sister that you were in town and my nieces over heard and wanted to meet you immediately." Said Alisha. Rose crouched down to the girls' eye levels.
"And who might you two be?" Rose asked. The younger of the two squeaked and hid behind Alisha while the older gasped happily.
"My name's Valerie!" She said.
"And who's the shy one?" Rose asked looking over Valerie to the younger girl who scooted farther behind Alisha. "Oh hey c'mon, I don't bite."
"This is Rosa." Said Alisha. "She doesn't talk much."
"Rosa?" Said Rose. "Hey! That's almost like my name!" Rosa peeked out from behind her aunt. "I'm Rose."
"Um … Miss Rose …" Said Valerie. "Can you really talk to spirits and slay dragons?"
"Yes and that's a work in progress." Rose answered.
"How come dragon slaying is a work in progress?" Valerie asked. "Vox Machina could do it!"
"Really?" Rose whispered to Sorey.
"I don't know ask Vax and Keyleth when we leave the city." Sorey whispered back.
"Why are you two questioning this? Of course they did! You heard the conversation from that night didn't you?" Said Mikleo rather bitterly "I believe he said 'Trying to find another way to save a dragon is downright suicidal.'"
"Well it could've been that they tried to purify a dragon but it failed causing them to retreat." Dezel suggested.
"Well … Even they didn't start out slaying dragons." Said Rose to Valerie. "They were at it for longer than me."
"How long have you been the Shepherd?" Valerie asked.
"Around a month." Said Rose.
"Wow! You covered a lot!" Exclaimed Valerie.
"Is that what you call it?" Said Edna. "Cuz I'm more familiar with the term 'dicking off.'"
"Yes, because saving at least four seraphim from their hellionization, stopping a plague, releasing a bunch of prisoners, taking part in a war, meeting the Lord of the Calamity, snagging a gun, and getting two squires, one of which ended up leaving definitely amounts to dicking off." Said Dezel.
"Oh not really." Said Rose.
"Do you think I can become the Shepherd?" Valerie asked.
"Well … maybe one day." Said Rose.
"No she can't." Said Zenrus. "You need high resonance to be able to become a Shepherd, and unless you ship her to Elysia right now she can't be a Shepherd." Nonetheless Valerie gasped happily at Rose's little lie.
"She's just a child. She'll probably forget about it by the time she turns into a teenager." Said Edna.
"Did you hear that Auntie Alisha? I might be Shepherd one day!" The girl cheered running up to Alisha.
"Oh yes I heard." Said Alisha.
"You think that'll make me as cool as you?" The little girl asked.
"Hm … I don't know" Said Alisha "Maybe not quite as cool" Valerie looked distraught for a moment "You'll be even cooler." Valerie squealed.
"Me too?" Rosa piped up.
"Yes you too." Said Alisha. Rosa hugged Alisha's leg. Just then Maltran walked up to them, like Shane still in her full uniform.
"Captain Maltran." Acknowledged Shane. Maltran nodded.
"Hey, what's up?" Rose asked.
"We'll talk in the Knight's tower, let's get these two home." Said Maltran.
"Aaaw!" Valerie wined.
"She's right, any longer and you two will catch a cold." Said Alisha.
"Five more minutes Auntie?" Begged Valerie.
"No, I'm sure your mother is worried by now and she would be mad if you got sick." Said Alisha.
"… Okay …" muttered Valerie.
"You know where the Knight's tower is right?" Shane asked Rose as Maltran and Alisha left.
"Yeah we passed by it on the way here." Said Rose. Shane then started leaving in a different direction in what Rose assumes to be either actually doing her job or seeing her wife. Rose and Sorey entered the Knight's tower into what they assume to be a common room to see many knights either eating, drinking, or just hanging out with one particular pair making out in a corner. The knights stopped to look at Rose and Sorey when they entered. Many went back to their business, while some gave a nod in respect to Rose before going back to their business, while there was a third group that just stared at the two either dumbfounded or suspicious. Rose tried to speak up but Sorey eyed her signaling that they probably should just keep their mouths shut. They started wandering around the common room until they came across a portrait of the man that they've, minus Sorey and Zenrus, seen in the Iris gems. Rose looked at the inscription underneath as it read: "First Captain of the Platinum Knights, Georg Heldalf."
"Shit!" Rose muttered under her breath.
"What?" Sorey whispered.
"This guy's last name is Heldalf as in the Lord of Calamity Heldalf." Rose whispered back.
"Oh no." Sorey whispered.
"Hey look at the dates." Rose whispered.
"Yeah looks like he served up until around twenty years ago." Sorey whispered back.
"Well it figures that he would show up in the Earthen Historia." Said Edna, "He's a figure of the past, especially within the last thirty years when you know, the S.H.I.T.S. were prevalent. Where many of our Iris gems seem to fit in this whole thing." They then looked at a different wall with a familiar looking woman and man in upper class wedding attire with the woman in a white dress while the man in a suit.
"Wait … this is …" Said Sorey under his breath.
"Hey." Rose whispered to a nearby soldier. "Who's this?"
"That's a portrait of one of Heldalf's daughters with her husband on their wedding day." Said the knight. "I think we bought that around the time he disappeared."
"Huh. I wonder how that happened." Said Edna with a lot of sarcasm. Sorey's face went from a quizzical look to abject horror.
"Any reason why?" Rose asked. "…Why y'all have the painting here."
"I think it was to be a nice sentiment to the late General." Said the knight, "That or Maltran wanted to put it up to show off to her girlfriend."
"Girlfriend?" Rose questioned.
"Muse." Sorey reminded.
"Okay yeah but I'm not sure I would call it that." Said Rose. "I mean from our perspective it's a lot more fucked up than your typical romantic relationship." Shortly after Maltran and Alisha ran in from the rain. She and Maltran made eye contact and Maltran nodded to the stairs then started walking that way. Rose and Sorey followed the two, the four walked up the stairs into a corridor with some sort of color over various doors. They walk into a door with a white symbol above it.
"So did you get anywhere?" Rose asked. "Are we able to get in the church?"
"Lillian was reluctant but she did manage to give us the permissions." Said Maltran. "However I'm afraid we will be under scrutiny."
"Because of the conflict that Gilmore warned us about?" Said Sorey.
"Well that and the fight we … got arrested for." Said Alisha.
"They heard about that?" Said Rose.
"Yes." Said Alisha bluntly.
"Well … there goes any chance of not making a terrible impression." Said Edna.
"This shouldn't be much of a problem, we got nothing to hide and if we don't make a big scene we should be fine." Said Sorey.
"And hey, I'm the Shepherd they shouldn't stay too mad at me for long. Let's go." Said Rose.
"Thank you." Said Maltran.
"Hey it's no problem, besides if anything bad happens I can sick my resident history nerds on them to question them to death." Said Rose.
"I'm not that bad." Sorey grumbled.
"Hey!" Mikleo snapped. Alisha giggled at Sorey's reaction.
"By the way I should mention that it is for tomorrow." Said Maltran. There was a collective groan among the party minus Zenrus.
"Patience." Said Zenrus.
"However I do believe you all have lodgings so it's not like you'll sleep out in the rain." Said Maltran.
When it was nearing dusk, or at the very least some time when it was getting darker, they went back to Shane and Emily's inn. Inside Andy's band was setting up to perform for that night and they sat down at a table with six chairs. The seraphim came out and also sat down. Emily came over with the inn's dinner menu.
"Again? You two are seriously gonna sit alone at a table for six again?" She asked.
"Hey, we have seraphim here." Said Rose. "You saw the levitating forks this morning didn't you?"
"No. I was busy getting looking for someone to repair that damn window." Said Emily.
"… That's fair." Rose looked over the menu. "By the way, what's this?"
"Oh it's a dish made where I'm from." She said. "It's not a staple but it's what I know I can make with ingredients common to Glenwood so I don't have to smuggle imports in from Flamestone."
"I'll have that." Said Rose.
"I just want to see if they have a 100 point Drago stew." Said Edna.
"I'll have what you're having Rose." Said Dezel.
"Actually can you make that two and a Drago stew?" Rose asked. Emily looked at her with a rather disturbed look. "Don't worry we can manage."
"Hey can you tell me about your home?" Sorey asked.
After ordering and eating with Rose getting scolded for letting out a huge burp, during that time Andy and their band performed about four songs, Shane came back and took Emily's place in running the inn so she went to Sorey and talked to him about where she came from and the history of her hometown.
"Really? That happened over a thousand years ago?" Sorey exclaimed.
"Yep. Because of that my people were over joyed when Glenwood closed its boarders so the 'Age of Exploitation' was over." Said Emily with a hardy laugh.
"So how did they feel when Northfell became its own kingdom and from what everyone hears starts doing stuff?" Sorey asked just as Andy started singing a song about the absolutely stupidest ways to die in the background.
"Well the story goes that around 200 years ago some Flamestone ships came in and we were dreading that it was going to be like before." Said Emily. "However we haven't gotten colonized simply because Northfell just isn't interested in that and more interested in trading goods and advancing technology. Which by the way is actually pretty advanced."
"You've been there before?" Sorey asked.
"Of course! I lived there for a couple of years before migrating to Glennwood." Said Emily.
"I see." Said Sorey, then he started at something for a brief moment. "I'm sorry can you excuse me for a moment I need to use the bathroom." He got up and left.
"Bathroom my ass." Said Dezel as soon as Sorey was gone. "Right now he's in a secluded area of the inn forgetting to close the door climbing out of a window."
"Okay that is scary." Said Rose.
"What?" Said Emily.
"Sorry, not you." Said Rose.
"Do you think he got a job?" Mikleo asked.
"Regardless we need to check in on him to make sure he doesn't do anything reckless." Said Zenrus.
"Oh it's so stuffy in here! I need to get some air." Said Rose getting up then leaving the inn. She then went into a sprint looking for Sorey until she found him talking to a Scattered Bones member who gave him something before leaving.
"Rose … Gramps … guys … what are you all doing here?" Sorey asked.
"We were suspecting that you were going to assassinate someone." Said Rose.
"No, not yet." Said Sorey. "I am gathering information on a few things that we got. One of them is an order to kill the late Price Leon's right hand man, Utugash, from an unknown source. And another one from the father of someone who died in the war with the request: 'Kill the one who started the war.'"
"So you're going to investigate your targets then inform the rest of the Scattered Bones on what you have?" Mikleo asked.
"Either that or take matters into my own hands." Said Sorey.
"Don't." Said Zenrus. "Your job within the Scattered Bones is to be an informant and scout. You shouldn't over extend beyond your job unless you want something like five years ago to happen again." Sorey clenched his teeth and looked away from the group.
"So about the jobs." Said Dezel quickly picking up a drastic change in mood.
"Well I couldn't really find anything on the Utugash job but the other one, I was seeing someone on that and what they found was that the request for war was given to the Emperor about a year ago under the name "Pope Masedra."" Said Sorey.
"Wait. Are you saying that the Pope started the war?" Rose asked.
"I don't know. I'm just getting the information." Said Sorey.
"But wait didn't the Pope disappear around a year ago?" Mikleo asked.
"Yes, and the timelines seem to line up a little too perfectly. But again, this information is inconclusive and I need to investigate further." Said Sorey.
"So you're not gonna go stabby stabby unless you have a better grasp on the situation. And from the sounds of it you're not even allowed to go stabby stabby from, for one, something from five years ago, and two, you're merely an informant." Said Rose.
"Something like that." Said Sorey. "However if it comes down to it I would have to kill the Pope or anyone that end up doing more harm than help."
"You know there's something in your voice that tells me you don't fully believe that." Dezel points out.
"Don't get me wrong, I'd much rather give people the benefit of the doubt. But a job's a job." Said Sorey.
"You know Sorey I think I understand more what you're in for." Said Rose. "Though I still don't get why you don't have malevolence."
"Huh?" Said Sorey.
"Actually, she does have a point." Said Mikleo. "Muse has sheer determination and love keeping her from producing malevolence, the rest of the Scattered Bones have strong convictions. You on the other hand tend to waver and you don't seem to really believe in the cause. Yet you're here with no sign of malevolence."
"He was always like that." Said Zenrus. "He wasn't able to get corrupted as a baby and growing up malevolence just seems to have a hard time forming in him.
"Huh." Said Rose.
"Well in any case I'm going back to the inn to get some sleep." Said Sorey walking back.
The next day they headed to the Shrine Church while discussing whether or not it's valid to think that the Pope would start a war. However the conclusion they came up with was that it's possible due to the fact that he's more or less the leader of Rolance. The group just walked in with no one to bother them into the church area where almost all the pews were completely empty a priest was talking with a group of children.
"Small crowd today huh." Said Rose.
"Well not really." Said Sorey. "I think there's actually a class in session."
"Really? A church can do that?" Said Rose.
"Uh … yeah. Outside of home schooling it's the most common way to get an education." Said Sorey. They walked up to the class.
"Now let's review." Said the priest. "Who are the five great seraphim and what do they do?"
"Oh oh!" Cried one child. "Musiphe, Amenoch, Eumacia, Hyanoa, and Maotelus!"
"They … They govern the world and make sure that everything is in balance to protect us from abnormalities." Said another child.
"That's correct." Said the priest. "Now can you tell me which seraph is worshipped here?"
"Maotelus!" Said a child.
"That's right. Class dismissed." Said the priest. The children got up and exited through the main entrence of the Shrine Church. The priest turned to them. "My apologies for making you wait Shepherd." He then said.
"It's fine." Said Rose.
"Regardless welcome to the Shrine Church please folloe me." Said the priest as he led them to the back of the church.
"Oh wow …" Said Sorey under his breath looking at the architecture. "This is more magnificent than I imagined."
"First time here?" Said Rose.
"Well yeah." Said Sorey. "Most trips to Pendrago are strictly business and those don't leave time to see it."
"Yeah it is really impressive." Said Mikleo. "The architecture here looks like it dates to the height of the Era of Asgard."
"Glad you're impressed but don't go nerding out now." Said Edna. They walked up to a large stone tablet.
"This tablet tells of the Shepherd's trial and the spiritual powers they gain from it." Said the priest.
"Oh! That's it!" Exclaimed Sorey.
"What?" Asked Rose.
"The map in the ruins." Said Sorey. "We were right to suspect that they were sacred places but this gives us a solid definition on what those symbols are!"
"So … are you saying that the locations on the map are supposed to be places where Rose is supposed to go to so she could be rewarded with some vague spirit thing?" Dezel asked.
"Yeah though it might not be vague but it could help her against the Lord of Calamity." Said Sorey.
"But the tablet is written in complete nonsense meaning that it is supposed to be a code." Said Mikleo.
"Yeah that will take some time to decipher." Said Sorey.
"Hey what does the big rock thing say?" Rose asked.
"I'm afraid I don't know." Said the priest. "All I know is that there is a cypher involved and it's a secret passed down from pope to pope."
"Do you think that Maotelus would know what it says? Since he's the seraph worshipped here and all." Rose asked.
"I'm afraid I don't know that."
"Well that would be possible if he were here." Said Zenrus.
"Hm?" Said Rose.
"Do you feel something off?" Zenrus asked.
"Now that you mention it …" Said Dezel. "There's no sense of blessing here. With everywhere else we were able to feel one even if the seraph wasn't in the sanctuary."
"So with no Maotelus and no one here able to read the tablet we need the pope." Said Mikleo. Then a surge of malevolence came through the room and seraphim faded and the priest in front of them froze as if he had turned to stone.
"What? A domain?" Exclaimed Sorey.
"Let's get out of here!" Cried Rose. Sorey started heading towards the door while Rose went towards a window and took one of her sheathed knives. Sorey stopped and turned.
"Rose! What are you-?!" Sorey shouted but she threw her knife at a stained glass window smashing it. "Rose!"
"Yell at me later come on!" Rose shouted climbing up the wall and out the window.
"Aaaagh!" Sorey screamed before going after Rose. They wind up outside of the church then ran around the outside with the domain still hanging over them. "Well Rose what do we do now?"
"I don't know!" Rose shouted. "Um … Let's go to the knight's tower!" The two then ran over there and burst in having all the other knights turn their heads. "…Hi."
"Rose? What are you doing here?" Alisha asked, back in her usual soldier attire.
"Oh you know we were at the Shrine Church, were introduced to a really important tablet then things started going south very fast. So we booked it out of there." Said Rose.
"Did you get any information about the Pope or what the Cardinal's doing?" She asked.
"We ran as soon as things went to shit." Said Rose. "What do you think?"
"All right all right." Said Alisha. "I'll tell this to Maltran … as soon as she comes down."
"Where is she anyway?" Rose asked.
"She's in her quarters with her girlfriend." Said Alisha in a pretty upbeat tone.
"Oh …" Said Sorey.
"So she's completely unaware of the nature of their relationship." They heard Edna say. The two stiffened and looked around.
"What is it?" Alisha asked.
"It's just … never mind." Said Sorey. "When do you think they'll be done?"
"I'm not sure." Said Alisha.
"Wait … do you think they heard us just now?" Rose and Sorey heard Dezel asked.
"Uh … maybe?" They heard Edna say.
"Are you two okay? You two seem a bit jumpy." Said Alisha.
"Thought there was …" Said Sorey. "Never mind."
"They heard us they totally heard us!" Dezel shouted. "Keep doing the thing Mikleo."
"How about you come in and switch with me?" Mikleo snapped. "I'm not sure how long I can keep doing this."
"You've done enough Mikleo." Said Zenrus.
"Um … all right …" Said Alisha. "Are you sure you're-?" Just as she was trying to ask there was a flash of light that caught everyone's attention. However to Rose and Sorey the seraphim appeared Sorey smiled and gasped happily then quickly went back to a neutral face. "What was that?" Alisha asked.
"Oh uh …" Sorey started.
"I think the gun's busted." Lied Rose.
"Y-yeah must be." Said Sorey playing along. "We totally weren't even touching it and it went off and … stuff … yeah … that was weird."
"Think you can fix it?" Rose asked.
"Well I don't know how to help you with that." Said Alisha. "We only know how to shoot them. That woman didn't give us any hints on how to fix them."
"Well that's a bummer." Rose whispered.
"Thanks for covering up." Said Zenrus.
"Hey Mikleo are you all right?" Dezel asked hearing some heavy breathing from the water seraph as everyone noticed Mikleo looking a bit pale.
"Fine. Just need some rest." Said Mikleo. Just then Muse and Maltran walked in.
"What's going on here?" Maltran asked. Rose then explained everything she just told Alisha.
"Oh that just reminds me." Said Muse. "Sorey can you check out Gododdin for me?"
"Gododdin? Why?" Sorey asked.
"Well back in Lastonbell, Gilmore and I were talking and he's been thinking of trying to expand into the area and I need your help to check out what competition he has there." She explained. Everyone but Sorey and Zenrus looked at her confused, with Rose trying to keep her confusion from showing and just quirked an eyebrow.
"That's code for: 'I found a suspicious trail of money going there can you take a look?'" Said Zenrus. With all the other seraphim giving an understanding "oh."
"Wait does Gilmore know about the Light Sparks actually being the Scattered Bones?" Mikleo asked.
"No he doesn't." Said Zenrus. "He just so happens to make for an easy code word relating to 'odd money trail.'"
"You know when you put it like that I can't help but feel sorry for him." Said Mikleo.
"You're not alone on this." Said Zenrus.
"Yes mam. I'll take a look." Sorey replied to Muse.
"Oh thank you Sorey I knew I could count on you." Said Muse. "And make sure my daughter stays safe okay?"
"… Okay …" Said Sorey.
"Great, after this I'll be heading back to Lastonbell so tell me what you've found there." Said Muse. She then turned to Maltran. "And I hope to see you in time." She gave her a quick peck then left the Knight's tower.
"Can you also report what you find to me?" Maltran asked. "In case there's something the military should be involved in.
"I don't see why not." Said Rose. "As soon as we get back to Pendrago we'll tell you what we've found."
"Very well." Said Maltran. "Then I wish you luck as you journey through Biroclef Ridge, as lately there have been dangerous rockslides in the area."
"All right. Thanks." Said Rose.
Okay I mean to post this chapter earlier but I came down with a bad cold. It might be a while before I update this again as I'll be trying to work on the more Critical Role centric prequel to this for NaNoWriMo. But we'll see.
As for the stuff with Heldalf ... I perceived him as older than he probably actually is and well I ended up writing and publishing chapter 9 around July or August of last year a bit before the chapter came out where we all found out about a certain thing. By then it was a bit late to change my decision as I had an original plan that was started out in chapter 9 and I intend to go through with this original plan.
In a review for chapter 9 the user pheiral does guess correctly that the woman in the Iris gem is indeed Selene and the man not described is Sorey's not Heldalf father. So I would like to congratulate them for guessing right.