Another part up already! We've finally found Tellah…There isn't a terrible amount of interaction between Tellah and Rydia in this section, mostly because I wanted to save more conversation for the scene by the "save point". I tried to keep the dialogue a bit away from what comes up later on in the cave, and kept it between Cecil and Tellah mostly. You may also notice that Tellah never actually acknowledges Rydia in this section, and not by name. Aaand, onward we go…
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The Sage, Tellah
The now party of three, continued through the vast cavern, picking their way through the slick passages, and making sure they took with them the contents of every chest they found along the way.
Among some of the chests, they had found old, but useable, tunics, protection rings with rubies embedded into them, and leather headpieces. Since Tellah's gear was the oldest and most worn out, Cecil gave him the new equipment they found, except one ring that he gave to Rydia. She adored the ring, and the way the rubies reflected the torchlight in its facets. She placed the ring on her thumb, the only finger the ring fit on, and stood a bit taller once it was on her finger. She felt she should be a bit more dignified with a ring of rubies on her finger. That was until she caught Cecil leveling quite a stare at her and clasped her hands immediately behind her back and slumped back down.
Tellah didn't say too much about himself as they walked, he only spoke about the history behind the caves, what kinds of monsters lived inside them, and what spells were most effective against which monsters…
Rydia stared at him for most of the way. Now that she knew he wasn't someone who meant them harm, she no longer feared him at all. In fact, she was intrigued by him. She had been told once by her village elder, that sages were powerful, wise, and very rare. They had devoted their lives to the pursuit and perfection of many spells, and could execute them flawlessly.
Tellah looked back at her from time to time, and every time, she shyly averted her eyes.
Finally, Tellah directed his gaze at Cecil.
"So you are a dark knight of Baron, then?"
"Yes."
"How did you end up this far north, towards Damcyan?"
Cecil answered with words that felt weighted down by grief. "I am currently at odds with the king. I was relieved of my command for questioning his recent aggressions."
"Aggressions?"
"The crystal of Mysidia. It was taken by force."
"My stars…I sensed something was wrong. I should certainly make haste to Damcyan!"
"The king thinks the nations that house the crystals know too much about their power. I fought his battles for him, never asking why…. Only to realize that he wanted the crystals for himself."
"I thought Odin was a sensible man, not one to be overcome with greed."
"This is not the king I have known all my years. He's…changed."
Tellah glanced once again to Rydia. "And the girl? Where does she fit into all of this?"
Cecil met and held Tellah's gaze. "A terrible mistake," he answered, strained. "To prove my loyalty, I was given a package that was to be delivered to Mist. A companion of mine came along, the captain of the dragoons of Baron. Once we arrived, the package opened on its own and released a horde of bombs that burned the village to the ground. She was one of the survivors. She used some power I'd never seen before, and brought the mountains down around Mist. I found her unconscious, and took her with me to Kaipo to keep her from Baron's wrath, but my companion had thought differently about the situation, not too willing to give up his loyalty to the king, and he vanished after the mountains collapsed. Never again will I follow the orders of such a king."
Tellah was pensive, his face lined with thoughtful wrinkles. "You are a brave man—I'm sorry, I never caught your name."
"My name is Cecil."
"You are a brave man, Cecil. If the bard I'm after comes out of this ordeal alive, he may just be singing songs about you someday."
Rydia walked a few steps behind them, listening to their conversation. Hearing Cecil's story, everything started to make more sense. It was the king of Baron who wanted her village destroyed, not Cecil. She also noticed how he had avoided telling Tellah what had happened to her mother. So he didn't want to think about it either…
They had started to round a corner in the cavern, and as the torchlight lost its hold on the darkness, Rydia abruptly saw something rush by out of the corner of her eye. She froze and maintained her gaze in the direction she'd last seen whatever it was. For a moment nothing moved, and then something grabbed out of the darkness and took hold of her waist.
She screamed out of fear, and Cecil and Tellah spun around to see her pulled out of sight. They rushed back around the corner and held up their torches to see a shell with dozens of small hair-like feet, razor sharp teeth, and a wickedly long tongue trying to pull Rydia in. She was struggling against the tongue that held her, yelling and shrieking in panic.
Cecil started to move forwards, but Tellah held out his hand and caught Cecil's shoulder. Cecil looked back, and Tellah shook his head.
"Make a quick move now, and you'll frighten it. You don't know what that will do to the girl."
"Then what are you going to do?" Cecil demanded.
Tellah closed his eyes and inclined his head with a knowing expression. "Just watch."
The old man raised his staff and started mumbling. Cecil couldn't understand him, but he saw the shift in the air, a faint shimmering. Finally, Tellah spoke the final words with clarity and volume, and a tremendous crack was heard and a blaze of light.
The shell that had been holding Rydia captive was burned through, its tongue hanging slack out of its ruined body.
Rydia jumped over the inanimate tongue, and ran back to Cecil and Tellah.
"Are you alright?" Cecil asked, his voice full of concern.
She looked at him with still-frightened eyes. "I think so…"
Turning to Tellah, Cecil asked, "What was that? What did you do?"
The old man waved his finger at Cecil. "The lightning spell, my friend. Useful against most things that dwell in water. Haven't you been listening to me all this time?"
Cecil shook his head in disbelief, and took Rydia by the shoulders.
"We need to keep moving before something else comes out of the dark," he said.
Agreeing, Tellah picked up his torch and continued to lead the way through the twisting passages. With Cecil at her back, Rydia vowed never again to look backwards in dark confined spaces.
