Warnings: Depiction of what's essentially an animal death.
Chapter 14: The City that Tempted Fate Part 2: Niall of the Forest
The following morning
"How are you feeling this morning, Nella?" Evan asked.
"Better thank you, Evan. I'm surprised by how much better I feel actually. As if some of the weight has been lifted from my shoulders."
"Well ye don't be cryin' te solve yer problems, Aranella. Ye cry te let'em out. That's why ye be feelin' better," Batu told her sagely.
"Well said, mun."
"Higgle!"
"Yes," she replied, taken off guard by his wisdom. "I… suppose you're right."
"I be'avin' some good news this mornin'. Ye'll all be pleased te'ear that the winds'ave changed from yesterday and now be blowin' in a more favourable direction."
"Higgledy pig!" The two higgledies cheered.
"Thank the Gods for that."
"Hopefully it'll be with us all day," said Tani.
"We'd better eat quickly in case it isn't," said Roland.
"I be thinkin' the same," Batu agreed. "So I started on makin' breakfast fer us all. It should be about ready te eat." So they shovelled breakfast down their gullets and disassembled and packed away the camp as fast as they could before the winds changed again, and ended up breezing all the way down to the Forest of Niall, arriving just before noon.
The trees of the Forest of Niall were truly gigantic, easily both the tallest and widest trees Roland, and indeed the rest of the party had ever seen. They were so massive their roots protruded from the ground in waves, rippling out from their epicentres, creating arches and bridges – some over the many tributaries splitting off from the river emerging from the forest, and their leaves and branches created a canopy so thick there was no hope of setting down inside. Batu gave the signal to land and Tani and Chingis followed his lead as he angled his skimmer into a downward spiral, touching down before the only obvious entrance to the forest; A hole in the base of one of the trees that appeared to be the beginning of a tunnel that led underneath it. Had it been grown that way or carved, it was hard to tell. It was also illuminated by glowing mushrooms – were they mushrooms? - hanging down from the mouth of the tunnel. "It looks like this be our only way in." He turned to Chingis. "We'll leave the skimmers'ere an'ead in on foot."
"Aye, aye, Chief. I'll be keepin'em safe till yer return."
They headed inside. More lowing mushrooms of a different colour served as the tunnel's interior lighting and again Roland wondered if they were growing there naturally or if they'd been cultivated, as the tunnel would've been very dark – and very difficult to navigate – without them or another light source. The tunnel opened out into the forest's interior. Strange… things that Roland could neither identify as plant nor animal drifted languidly through the air. They had the appearance of a heart shaped cage and shone with a soft, pink, aetherial glow. The trees appeared even taller from the ground than they did from the sky and the dense canopy overhead blocked out most of the sunlight, casting the forest in an eternal gloom. It was so prominent that anything that did come filtering down through the leaves was clearly visible as rays of light scintillating through the shade, and breaks in the foliage overhead created the appearance of stars in the night sky. There were strange patterns on the bark. Were they natural or had they been carved?
"Gosh I see what you mean about better wood for building, Roland," Evan remarked. "Just one of these trees could make enough building material for an entire nation."
Before Roland could reply to this, a familiar voice interrupted. "Why King Evan, is that you?" Approaching them was the grimalkin merchant they had encountered at the entrance to Cloudcoil Canyon.
"Old Tom! It's good to see you safe and sound."
He inclined his head. "Likewise, Your Majesty."
"Did you come here looking for Niall as well?"
"In a manner of speaking. I came here with the intention of seeking refuge with the greenlings who make this forest their home."
"The greenlings?" Roland repeated.
"Yes, that's right. According to the stories, the greenlings are a race of people appearing much like humanfolk, except smaller in stature, green of skin and with pointed ears. Niall is the name of their current leader, but as you can see," he gestured to the forest. "There appears to be no sign of them, or indeed of anyone living in the forest."
"Perhaps they're deeper in?"
"Perhaps so," he conceded. "But if that is true, it is further than I dare to venture. There is… something else within this forest. And I do not care to find out what it is."
"You could come to my kingdom if you'd like," Evan offered.
"Your kingdom? Good heavens! Do you mean to say…?"
"I do! This is my Kingmaker, Lofty."
"Howdy do," Lofty replied cheerfully.
"Well he's very… ah… compact, for a Kingmaker."
"Oi, you! None of that!"
"Ah but I'm sure he will grow as big and as strong as Oakenhart in time."
Lofty stiffened at the mention of Oakenhart's name before scoffing. "Pah. I'll get even bigger than him, mun. Just you watch."
"Where is this new kingdom of yours?"
"We're building it in the Heartlands," Evan replied. "But it's been hidden behind a small forest to make it harder to find."
"That was a very clever idea."
"It was Nella's."
"Indeed. Well, I believe I know the forest you are referring to and shall depart immediately. Should I encounter anyone on the way I shall spread the word-"
"No!" Roland cut in. He cleared his throat and continued in a calmer tone. "It would be better if you didn't. The point of hiding it away was for secrecy. If you go around spreading the word to anyone you meet, you defeat the purpose of that secrecy entirely."
"That is true," said Evan.
"Yes," Aranella agreed. "So perhaps it would be best if you left the spreading of the word to our discretion."
"Yes, I see," Old Tom conceded. "Once again you speak true. Very well. I will make my way to your- no. Our new kingdom and I will be certain to tell no one of its location."
"Thank you, Old Tom," said Evan. "But are you sure you're going to be all right?"
"You need not fear for my safety, Your Majesty, I assure you I will be fine. I made it all the way down here after all."
"That's true… Well… If you're sure."
"I am." He inclined his head. "King Evan. Master Roland. Miss Aranella. His Majesty is most fortunate to have you as his advisors."
Roland and Aranella exchanged looks. "Thanks," he replied.
"We'll see you back at the kingdom, Old Tom," Evan added. "But if you get back before us, ask for a man named Qadan. Tell him that I sent you, and that we made it to the Forest of Niall."
"It will be done, Your Majesty." He inclined his head before leading his llapaca away and out of the forest.
"What do you think he meant by something else being here?" Tani asked.
Roland folded his arms. "Not sure. But I guess we'll find out."
They headed deeper into the forest and kept their eyes peeled for any sign of habitation. The monsters in this area were large mushrooms with faces that liked to spew a debilitating shower of fungal spores, sylph-like beings that had wings that looked like petals and more whamsters, except they had pointed ears and a tuft on the end of their tails. A howl from deep within the forest stopped them in their tracks.
"What in the Gods was that?" Aranella asked. "Was… was that a hedgehound?"
"It be soundin' like one but…"
"But a lot bigger," Tani finished.
"Sounds like we found the 'something else' Old Tom was talking about," Roland commented.
"Aye. But let's be hopin' we don't actually be findin' it."
"It sounded like it was pretty far away. We should keep moving."
The further they progressed into the depths of the Forest of Niall, the more the party became increasingly aware of being watched. And if that wasn't enough, so too did the sound of whispering.
"Do anyone else be'earin' that?" Batu asked, his voice low.
"I hear it too," Tani replied.
"Yeah, it's not just you," Roland added. He looked around and then up, scrutinising their surroundings for any sign of what was making the noise. "It sounds like it's coming from all around us but I can't see anything that looks like it could be making it."
"Nor can I, mun," said Lofty. "But I'm sensing a lot of magic above us. I'm pretty sure it's a cloaking spell."
"Then all this whispering must be the greenlings," said Aranella. "And they're using a cloaking spell to shield themselves from sight."
"They must be throwing their voices too," said Roland. "Because it doesn't sound like the whispering is coming from any one direction."
"Do you think they're trying to get us to leave?" Evan asked.
"I'm sure they are."
"So… should I say something?"
"Go on, mun," Lofty replied. "Get their attention, like. We know they're there."
"All right." He cleared his throat first before raising his voice. "Um, hello up there. I'm King Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum and I come from a new kingdom in the Heartlands. I wish to speak with your leader, Niall about taking some of his trees to use in building my kingdom." The whispering had stopped, instead being replaced by a deathly silence that had fallen on the forest. "Please," he continued. "We mean you no harm."
The silence stretched out for what seemed like a long time before they received a response. "If ye mean us no harm, then prove it," a thickly accented voice replied. "There's a tainted monster runnin' around in mah forest. Kill it fer me, and then we'll talk."
"Um. Are you Niall by any chance?"
"Have ye killed the monster yet?"
"Well of course we haven't," Tani replied, her tone suggesting she was slightly irked. "You just asked us to go do that like a second ago."
"Then why are ye still here? Kill the monster, or goh away."
"Well he's a character," Aranella remarked in a low voice. "Whoever he is."
"Where is the monster?" Roland asked.
"Go east of here," the voice replied. "It's a great galumphing brute, ye cannae miss it."
"Well. It looks like we have our orders," he quipped.
Batu sulked. "I don't be thinkin' he wants us te prove we're friendly. I be thinkin' he wants us te take care o'is problems for'im."
"Be that as it may," Aranella replied. "It looks like he's not going to listen to a word we have to say unless we do as he asks."
"Right," Tani agreed. "So what do you want us to do, Evan?"
"Um. I think if he needs help, we should help him."
She grinned. "I thought you'd say that. Let's go clobber that monster then, shall we?"
"But we'll need to be careful," Aranella warned. She turned to Batu. "You did say tainted monsters are more dangerous than usual, didn't you?"
"That I did," he confirmed. "So if we're te be takin' this monster on, then we'll be needin' te make sure we're ready."
"Don't forget, mun," Lofty chimed in. "Youe've got me on your side this time."
"That be true. But still."
"Well whatever we decide to do, we're not going to be able to do anything about it until we find it," said Roland. "But it doesn't mean we have to engage it right away, we could just take a look first."
"Yes, all right," Aranella conceded. "That much won't hurt."
"Let's go then." They headed east as instructed and eventually came upon the tainted monster that Niall wanted them to take care of, as well as the 'something else' that had spooked Old Tom – and themselves – earlier. It was as they had guessed, a hedgehound, but a truly gargantuan one at that; Roland estimated that it had grown to about the size of a minibus. Purple flames licked its body, just as Batu had described and its eyes were a solid purple.
"Flippin' Nora!" Lofty exclaimed. "Look at the size of it, mun!"
"Gods above what's happened to it?" Aranella asked, horror colouring her tone.
"That be a tainted monster all right," Batu said. "It be'avin' that dark aura, just like I said."
"You didn't mention the change in size."
"Ah… So I didn't… But the size is not bein' the only thing what be changin' about'em."
"Those eyes…"
"Aye. That be the look o'the tainted as I be'earin' it all right."
"Warlord Waryks had eyes just like that…"
Batu's bushy eyebrows nearly disappeared into his headscarf. "Did'e now? Are ye sayin'e were tainted then?"
"Well… I'm not sure…"
"He wasn't exhibiting the aura constantly like this hedgehound is," said Roland. "And for all we know that was his natural eye colour." Aranella hummed.
Tani looked around. "Hedgehounds come in packs don't they. So where's the rest of its pack?"
"Maybe it killed them?" Roland suggested. "Or… maybe they fled?"
"You mean… it's all alone?" Evan asked.
"Yeah. I guess so."
Evan and Tani exchanged looks at that before looking back at the tainted hedgehound. It pawed at the trees leaving giant gouges in the bark, sniffed around a little, then sat down on its haunches and howled. It pricked up its ears and twisted them this way and that, listening for a response. But none came. "Do we have to kill it?" Evan asked.
"What do you suggest we do instead?" Roland asked gently as Aranella and Batu both sighed.
"Isn't there anyway to cure it?"
"We don't be knowin'ow or why they come to be tainted in the first place, let alone be knowin' a way to cure it."
"Lofty? Do you… do you know a way?"
"Sorry, Evan. What youe're talking about is finding a way to remove the taint, or pull out the darkness, like. That's not something I can do, mun, as a Faery or a Kingmaker."
"Runcible? Wiff-waff?"
They both shook their heads with an apologetic, "Higgle."
"Sometimes its better to put an animal out of its misery rather than continue to let it suffer," Aranella counselled.
"At this point it doesn't look like there's anything else we can do for this one," Roland added. "But we could always put researching the taint on our to do list, so we can look into a way to cure them in future."
"But…"
"Evan. Sometimes you have to make a compromise between what you want to do, and what you can do. If you want to cure this monster, then that means going back home and not returning to Niall until we do find a way. And that means stalling our kingdom's progress and making everyone live in tents until we can deal with this one monster to your satisfaction. Is that what you would call the mark of a good leader?"
Evan hung his head and his ears drooped. "… No…"
"So what are we going to do, Evan? What are your orders."
He raised his head and swallowed. "We're… we're going to fight the monster. And we're… we're going to end its suffering." Tani squeezed his hand.
"All right then." He turned his attention back to the hedgehound. "Let's see. We have some experience with fighting hedgehounds, so I don't imagine it would be too much different to a regular sized one. But, it's bigger. So that means it will hit harder. But it'll also mean it won't be as agile as its normal sized counterparts, and we're fighting it in a forest, so it doesn't have much space to manoeuvre anyway."
"So… ye be thinkin' we can win?" Batu asked.
"I think it will be difficult, but not impossible. Or at least, not any worse than fighting Waryks."
"And ye won that battle with less."
"It was a close call," he corrected. "But we more or less know what we're getting into this time."
"Aye."
"All right." He called forth his cutlass. "Are we all ready to do this?" They summoned their weapons – all except Lofty who readied his tiny fists – and nodded. "On your mark then, Evan."
Evan took a steadying breath. "All right. Everyone! Forward!"
They charged forward with a battle cry. The hedgehound started and whipped around to face them, baring its teeth in a snarl. It leapt forward. Tani and Batu broke left, as Roland, Evan and Aranella dodged right. It lunged after Roland, its jaws opened wide for a savage bite. Roland blocked the attack with his cutlass, but the weight behind it sent him sprawling on his back and it pinned him there until Batu brought his mallet down on its head. The hedgehound recoiled with a wounded yelp and stumbled around in a daze before vigorously shaking its head as Aranella and Evan helped Roland to his feet.
"I've got this, mun!" A golden aura washed over them and Tani let out a whoop as she was suddenly filled with enough unbridled energy to take on ten tainted hedgehounds. But the aura washed over the hedgehound too and it let out a howl as it lunged at Batu in retaliation.
"Lofty!" Roland shouted.
"Oops, I see it!" The golden aura faded away. "Sorry, mun."
Batu dug in his heels, holding off the hedgehound's teeth with the shaft of his mallet. The others took the opportunity to rake the monster with their weapons – or Tani's case jab at it with her spear – and it leapt back once more with another yelp of pain. It crouched in preparation for a charging attack.
"Watch out!" Roland warned, moments before it surged forward. They jumped out of the way and as its momentum carried it past them, they switched to their ranged weapons and opened fire, peppering its hide with bullets and arrows. The hedgehound yelped and snapped at the arrows buried in its back with its teeth. "How's everyone holding up?" He asked in the momentary reprieve.
"I don't be thinkin' we can be keepin' this up forever," Batu replied.
"Right," he agreed. "The only way we're going to do any real damage to it is if we can pin its movement."
"Roland, those spines on its back," said Aranella. "If we can get it on its back-"
"It won't be able to get up again!" Tani cut in excitedly.
"Higgledy piggle! Higgle pig pig!"
"Runcible says to throw them on its head," Lofty translated. "Just like you did last time."
They all exchanged looks. "It can't hurt," said Aranella.
"We'll give it a try," Roland agreed. "Batu. I'll throw Runcible, you throw Wiff-waff."
"Will do!" They seized their respective higgledies and threw them as hard as they could. The two higgledies sailed through the air to land on the hedgehound's back. It started and thrashed around, trying to buck them off but they clung resolutely to the spines on its back.
"Well that's helpful," Tani snarked. Before anyone could do or say anything, the hedgehound suddenly let out a howl and there was an explosion of dark energy that sent the higgledies flying.
"Runcible! Wiff-waff!" Evan yelped.
It crouched again, only this time its spines bristled before beginning to quiver. "Duck!" Roland shouted. They all hit the dirt moments before the spines exploded from its back in all different directions, burying themselves in the nearby tree trunks. The spines regrew now a deep purple, and it followed up the attack with a charge. Everyone was sent rolling with Tani and Aranella gaining their feet quickly. It lunged after Tani, its jaws snapping shut inches from her face as she danced away. Aranella drew her blunderbuster and shot it, so it stopped going after Tani and went after her instead.
"Okay. New plan," Roland grunted as he got to his feet. "Evan, when it crouches again, hit it with a fireball."
"Got it."
"Batu, you're going to knock it back onto its back legs."
"Aye, aye."
"Aranella, we're going to attack its back legs to topple it."
"Understood."
"Tani, the finishing move will be all yours."
"Right!"
"Higgle pig!"
"Runcible wants to know what they're doing," Lofty translated. "And what about me, mun?"
"You guys hang back. We've got this."
The little Kingmaker sulked. "If you say so."
The hedgehound crouched. "Evan!" Roland shouted.
"I see it!" He hurled a fireball at the hedgehound just as it began its charge. The fireball exploded on impact, stunning it.
"Batu!"
"Aye!" With a great sweep of his mallet that slammed into the creature's lower jaw, Batu sent the hedgehound reeling onto its back legs.
"Aranella!" They surged forward together and slashed at the hedgehound's back legs. Down it went, sprawling on its back, still in a daze from the blow Batu had applied to its chin. "Tani!"
"I know!" She ran forward, leapt and brought her spear down with all the force she could muster, jamming it through the hedgehound's skull in order to end the battle – and its suffering – quickly. Evan crouched beside it and gently stroked its snout as it spasmed and breathed its last.
"It's done," said Roland.
"Rest in peace, ye poor devil," Batu added.
"You all right, Evan?" Tani asked.
He swallowed but stood. "I'm… I'm all right. I'm just sad that there wasn't anything else we could do for it."
"You're such a big softie, Evan, but…" She smiled. "I think that's a good thing."
He returned the smile though weakly. "Thanks."
"We should return to Niall," said Aranella.
"Right. Let's go."
"Well? Did ye kill the monster?"
"Yes, Niall," Evan replied. "The tainted hedgehound has been laid to rest." They watched in amazement as the cloaking spell fell away, revealing the home of the greenlings. It was a city in the trees! Multiple stories of countless houses were built onto the sides of the tree trunks, or amongst the branches, and walkways made of ropes and wooden planks spanned from tree to tree, joining them all together. One of these walkways descended to a low platform that was connected to another, lower platform by a folding bridge. This lower platform was decorated with an elaborate structure carved out of wood resembling a welcome gate, denoting this as the entrance to the greenling city. The folding bridge had been drawn back so as to prevent anyone from freely entering the city but was now being extended by two greenlings operating a crank system. They were dressed in grey robes and wore wooden masks that hid their faces. Only their hands and feet were exposed, as well as their hair, and all seemed… off. Their hands looked more like gnarled branches, their feet like roots and their hair appeared to have the texture of plant fibre.
Once the bridge was in place, a third greenling – presumably Niall – stepped across it. Unlike his compatriots, his face was not obscured by a wooden mask. And just as Old Tom had described, he would've been able to pass as humanfolk – albeit a vertically challenged one – if not for his pale green skin and long, pointed ears. He also had long, bushy, straw coloured hair, eyebrows and goatee and wore a grey, brown and green tunic that had been stitched to resemble an owl, a pair of brown, leather sandals, and a hat that had been woven out of twigs. He seemed far more human in appearance than his compatriots but there was a strange uncanniness to his movements that suggested this appearance was actually a spell. Roland wondered if anyone else had noticed but decided not to comment.
"Thank ye, laddie," the greenling said. "It was a terrible thing tae see the poor beastie suffer."
"Weren't there nothin' ye could do fer the monster yerself?" Batu asked with folded arms.
"We greenlings are no'fighters. Or why else do ye reckon we hide ourselves away?" Batu grumbled in response to this. "Now then. Ye wanted tae talk aboot chopping down some of mah trees?"
"That's right," Evan replied. "We need lots of wood to build my kingdom, so we came to ask if we could please have some of yours. You are Niall, aren't you?"
"Tha's me." Niall folded his arms. "And yer King Evan Pettiwhisker Tildrum, aye? Who're yer friends?"
"I'm his Kingmaker, Lofty." Niall frowned at him but said nothing.
"And this is Roland, Aranella, Tani and Batu."
"Wha'aboot yer higgledy companions? Do they not count as friends?"
"You can see them?"
"Ah can. So introduce me."
"Um, all right. This is Runcible the Righteous and Wiff-waff the Wafty."
"A pleasure."
"Higgle!"
"How do you know what a higgledy is?" Tani asked.
"Higgledies've bin around since the world began, but they weren't always called that."
"What were they called?" Aranella asked.
"Och, what does it matter? Higgledies're what they're known as now. But never mind that. Ah'm no'in the market of givin' away mah trees tae just anyone who comes askin'. What's in it fer me?"
"Oi!" Tani objected. "We killed that tainted monster for you, didn't we?"
"Ye killed that monster tae show ye were friendly. Now we're talkin'." She folded her arms and scowled at him.
"I'm afraid as we're a still fledging kingdom, there isn't much we have to offer at the present time," Aranella explained.
"Unless there was something else we can do for you, say, another monster that needs taking care of for example?" Roland added. "Otherwise all we have to offer at the moment is an I Owe You."
"Don't forget, mun," Lofty chimed in. "This is King Evan youe're talking to. And I'm his Kingmaker."
Niall stared at him some more before recognition finally seemed to click in his head. "Bless mah wee beard. Are yoo a faery?"
"I am!"
"And that thing around yer neck, laddie, if Ah'm not mistaken, is that a locket?"
"Oh yes. It is. It was given to me by Lofty."
"That's right, mun. A commemoration of our meeting, like. Unfortunately I don't have the spells that go with it."
"Ah see." Niall assumed a thoughtful posture.
"Is that important or something?" Tani asked.
"Perhaps there's somethin' ye can do fer me after all."
The party exchanged looks. "And what be that?" Batu asked.
"Ah'm close friends with the Grand High Roller of Goldpaw, Master Pugnacious. Me an'auld Puggy go way back, before he were even the Grand High Roller. So Ah know when he's actin' out o'sorts. An'e's definitely been actin' out o'sorts o'late. Unfortunately Ah'm no'a faery, so Ah dinnae know exactly why. But if what Ah suspect is true, then Ah have the spells ye'll need." There was pause before he continued. "O'course I dinnae have them on me. So if ye'll wait a tick, Ah'll be right back." He disappeared back into the greenling city, affording the party a moment to confer.
"So what do we all think?" Roland asked once he was well out of earshot.
"It be one thing after another with'im," Batu grumbled.
"Yeah," Tani agreed. "After we go see what's wrong with his friend – if there's anything wrong with him at all, what if he decides there's something else he wants us to do? We could be doing this all day."
"But if he means what he says, and there really is something wrong with his friend, then shouldn't we help him?" Evan offered.
"I suppose you're right," she conceded.
"Unfortunately we're not exactly in a position to barter or negotiate," said Aranella. "It seems we'll either have to do as he asks, or return home empty handed."
Roland hummed in agreement. "He didn't exactly jump at the opportunity to have a favour owed to him by the king of an upcoming nation. Can't exactly say I'm all that surprised… or that I blame him."
"Youe're the King, mun," said Lofty. "What do you want us to do?"
"Um… Well… I think we should go to Goldpaw," Evan replied. "It won't hurt to at least take a look, right?"
"All right," said Roland. "Then that's what we'll do."
"Here you are," said Niall upon his return. "Ah have the spells ye'll need." He handed over two pages detailing the name, casting rune and description of two spells, one called Take Heart, the other Give Heart. "Now, yer country dinnae have a name yet does it?"
"Um. Not yet."
"But ye can at least prove yer royal status, right?"
"Yes, Lofty and I swore a pact over this wand." He produced the wand which glowed with a golden light.
"It's hard tae say if that'll be enough, so if you doo run intae some problems while yer investigatin', ye can jus'drop mah name. Ah'm well known in Goldpaw, so it'll carry some weight. But jus'in case even tha's no'enough here's somethin' tae prove we've met." He produced another item that to Roland had the appearance of a badge of office, but one made from wood. It was about hand-sized and carved into the shape of a shield, and the face was embossed with an emblem that resembled a sprouting seed. Presumably this was the emblem representing the greenling nation.
"Is this… important?" Roland asked.
Niall was momentarily puzzled by the question until he grasped the meaning behind it. "Och, no. At least not tae me, it's just a token. An'it's yours tae keep in fact, if ye want. But at the very least, it proves that ye were here in mah forest."
"Thank you, Niall," Evan said as he took the token. "We will take our leave now. It was nice meeting you."
"Likewise, laddie. Take care now, and give auld Puggy mah regards."
"We will!"
"Success?" Chingis asked when they reappeared.
"Not exactly," Tani replied.
"What'appened?"
"Niall has requested that we travel to Goldpaw in order to check on his friend," Aranella explained.
Chingis raised an eyebrow. "And why can't'e be doin' that'imself?"
"It seems to have something to do with Lofty, and the locket he gave Evan," Roland replied.
"Oh?" He turned to Lofty. "Perhaps ye should be explainin' te us what be so important about this'ere locket."
"Aye," Batu agreed with folded arms.
"Gladly! On its own the locket is just a locket like, but with the spells Niall just gave us, the locket can now be used to store away pieces of heart."
"Right, you mentioned that earlier, but what are they?" Roland asked.
"Every heart is made up of eight pieces, or virtues, see. If one of those virtues is particularly strong, a portion of that virtue can be safely removed and stored in that locket."
"And why would you need to do that?"
"Because it's the cure for a broken heart, mun!"
Everyone with the exception of Roland – who just looked puzzled – was startled by those words. "A broken heart?" Aranella repeated. "Are you talking about broken heartedness?"
"What else would I be talking about?"
"But I thought that just be a myth!" Batu objected.
"It's no myth, pal, let me assure you of that."
"If that's true, then does this mean that Niall thinks Pugnacious is broken hearted?" Tani asked.
"That'd be my guess."
"That's troubling," said Aranella.
"Who be this Pugnacious fella?" Chingis asked.
"And what's broken heartedness?" Roland added.
The pirates all stared at him. "Seriously?" Tani asked.
"Uh, yeah," he replied awkwardly. "It's not something I've heard of in Broadleaf. Or while I was in Ding Dong Dell."
"Remember what I said about the pieces of heart," Lofty said. "Broken heartedness is what happens when one of those virtues is stolen, or breaks on its own – though such a thing is very rare. It disrupts the balance within a person's heart, so you just aren't youerself anymore. But how the broken heartedness affects you depends on the piece that's gone missing, see."
"I see."
"As for who this Pugnacious is," said Aranella in answer to Chingis. "He's the Grand High Roller of Goldpaw."
"The Grand'igh Roller?" Chingis repeated. "'E ounds important."
"Yes, he does. I would assume he's Goldpaw's equivalent to a king or queen."
"Aye, and if that be true, would'e not be'avin' a Kingmaker o'is own?"
"I would imagine so."
"So wouldn't'is Kingmaker notice if'e were broken hearted?"
"As if," Lofty scoffed. "Kingmakers have become so out of touch with the world that they wouldn't even recognise a broken heart if it was their own heart that was broken."
"But you can?"
"That's right. I'm a faery see, and we faeries are well versed in matters of the heart."
"I see. An'this Niall fella. 'E be expectin' us to te just walk right inte Goldpaw, all the way up te their leader with no'assle?"
"Niall is well known in Goldpaw, apparently," Aranella replied. "It seems we'll be able to drop his name and gain an audience with Master Pugnacious. Furthermore if that is not enough, he has provided us with proof of our meeting."
"I see." He turned to Evan. "So what be yer orders, Yer Majesty? Where do we be'eaded next?"
"We will be journeying to Goldpaw, Chingis, but um… I think it best if we ate something first."
"I'm glad you said that, Evan," said Tani. "Because I'm starting to feel hungry."
"Well it is lunchtime," Aranella observed.
"Right," said Roland. "We should eat our lunch before we move on. If I recall correctly, it's just as far from the Forest to Goldpaw as it was from our kingdom to the Forest. Perhaps slightly further."
"Aye," Batu added. "An'it be lookin' like the winds'ave died down fer now. So while they not be slowin' us down, they not be easin' our journey neither. I don't be reckonin' on us arrivin' at Goldpaw till tomorrow."
They ate their lunch, climbed onto the sky skimmers and flew on into dinner time. After they'd made camp for the night and ate their dinner, night fell revealing the bright glow of many lights on the horizon; The lights of a great nation. Goldpaw was within sight.
A/N: Okay so there's actually quite a lot going on in this one chapter.
Made adjustments to Niall's character so that he no longer has that weird gambling addiction that is the very antithesis of what's supposed to be his defining character trait.
This also changes the whole reason Niall sends them down to Goldpaw. That now being that he is concerned for his friend's wellbeing, you know, like a friend would be.
The other reason has to do with the nature of the corruption as well as Lofty being a faery. Like, they made Lofty a faery and then did nothing with it.
Made the greenlings into a proper nation as well as a city in their own right instead of… whatever was going on in canon.
This was also the perfect place to formerly introduce tainted monsters. They were mentioned in chapter six but now they actually get to meet one. I'm sure they're thrilled. C: