Reconvening at Fort Resolute

[Jim Roberts]

[Feb 7 PM – Fort Resolute]

The evening quiet around Fort Resolute’s recently marked out Telepad was
broken by a single syllable. “-port!” Laquendi’s voice rang out, even as
the dusky elf, standing alongside Lord Erik the Red astride his loyal
Divine Mount, appropriately named Miracle.

“Thank you, Laquendi,” the knight said gravely, nodding down to the
dusky elf. “You have saved me many hours in the saddle.”

“Let me echo my Rider’s thanks,” the Divine Mount added in perfectly
unaccented Common. “He and I have many miles of riding ahead of us, but
I am perfectly content to not start those miles quite yet.”

Minutes later, they had climbed up the bluff from the assembly area that
held the Telepad. As was proper for a knight, Erik’s first priority was
seeing to Miracle, requiring a first stop at the stables. Only then was
it time to see to the humans, and soon they were approaching the
entrance to The Manor House. Outside, as she was so often found, was
Dame Nerwen, the elven knightrix apparently waiting for them.

“Good evening, Lord Erik, and Madam Laquendi,” Dame Nerwen greeted them
graciously, giving each the exact amount of curtsey fashion and courtesy
demanded. “Welcome back. Word came to us of your early return, with a
hint of why. Sir Tregarth has gathered the two Belmakians, and all are
awaiting us in the conference room.”

Nerwen gave an elegant bow towards the entrance. “Shall we?”

Not long after that, Dame Nerwen ushered her liege Erik, as well as
Laquendi, into the conference room where so much had been discussed
earlier that day. Sitting in a somewhat oversized chair was Fort
Resolute’s seneschal, Sir Tregarth the Tall, casually talking with Abbot
Kenbi and Sister Erin.

“Given the hour,” Dame Nerwen suggested as she nodded towards the empty
seats, “I suggest we skip formality and dive straight to the point.”
Looking straight at Lord Erik, Nerwen asked, “I understand you have a
proposal for Abbot Kenobi?”

Abbot Kenobi leaned forward, and asked quietly, “Lord Erik, please, what
is your proposal?”

After summarizing the day's activities, Erik concluded, “Moving the
Upwinders will be something we need to have the tribal council agree to,
but that won’t be until midsummer. Right now, I see a couple of options.
First, Beeken and I either ride or teleport around to all 50-60 tribes,
which will take 2-3 months. The second option is to host an early
council at Fort Resolute, which will cost a lot of gold. We should talk
with both Major Dexter and, of course, Balzac. My understanding is that
the SJE situation is going to end sooner than that.”

“Aye,” Sister Erin quietly confirmed, referring to her ever present
notes. “According to what The Foreman told His Grace, we probably do not
have anything like that much time.”

“There are probably other ancillary benefits to having a council at Ft
Resolute,” Erik added. “Some political and potentially increasing trade.
Those will be harder to quantify.”

“Goodwill and standing with the locals,” the seneschal agreed, the huge
knight’s voice surprisingly gentle for a man his size. “Which is most
certainly a factor, as many of our supporters and, at need, levies, come
from this broader community,” Tregarth added for the benefit of the
non-locals.

Erik nodded. “Right now, I plan to head back north in the morning and
spend the day with Beeken and others, exploring the swamp and dealing
with any green death kobolds we come across. Barring any crazy
complications, Beeken and I would then take a trip to visit Reyga,
stopping at the tribes along the way.“

“We will keep things running smoothly here, Sir Erik,” Dame Nerwen
reassured her Boss.

“Beekin feels fairly certain the Green Death will not follow Mother, but
also thinks they will retreat in the face of obvious overwhelming
firepower,” Laquendi added. “Cleaning out their traps, deadfalls, and
mapping the region’s danger zones might take some time; My personal
feeling is the Upwinders are up to that series of tasks should the Green
Death depart the wetlands.”

Again, Sister Erin nodded her confirmation after checking her notes.
“The Foreman had even mentioned something about his people being up for
that task.”

Laquendi considered something silently before adding, “Should we liaise
with the Wild Elves on the matter as well? I do not know how they fit in
with the Forest Peoples’ tribal politics.”

“There is something to that,” Tregarth agreed mildly. “It is too easy
for us to not consider the Wild Elves, given their disdain for US. So an
outreach to them at least advising them of the up and coming Conclave
would only be polite, And I am inferring that you yourself are
volunteering.”

He raised a gentle hand to forestall a quick reply as he added, “I
personally think that is a fine notion, but I would advise sticking to
what I understand to be your existing commitment to help Beekin tomorrow
with the Green Death. There will be plenty of time to send notice to the
Wild Elves later.”

“I concur - the Wild Elves’ notification can wait, but not forever.”