Months passed before she revisited the concern again, and she stayed mostly out of Gridania during that time unless she had something else she had to take care of. Even so, she made sure to steer well away from the Conjurers' guild, even knowing full well that her time was running short to resolve her problem.
The company she had found herself with were good folk, even if she hadn't expected to be taken into their ranks, and all naturally had their own concerns to contend with. Why would she ask any of them to put aside their problems for her sake? For something which was her business? She kept mum about the matter for another couple of months, thinking, and planning, until she knew how to present it.
She told her comrades the tale of an ill-fated pair, Astrid and Forgetmenot, and in the end revealed only that Astrid represented her own part in the story, and that one day soon, she would have to write an ending to the tale. Never until then could she speak Thierremont's name. Whether or not doing so would incur the wrath of spirits or Elementals, she never said, but it was a fine hook to keep some of her comrades curious, and the more she spoke with some of them individually about her desire to see the tale finished, the more she found their willingness to aid her. She never had to ask.
Ciel had her plan. She knew where the Berunda's remains were, who had them, and what sort of situation she and the Order would be walking into. And the closer the day came, the more restless she found herself. Solid sleep became a luxury, as every spare thought, every ilm of her dreaming, turned to that and how it could all go horribly wrong.Â
All the fear which had etched itself into her mind still had to be faced down, for better or worse, and the Order arrived at Natalan a dozen strong. A dozen lives she would be responsible for is things went as she feared they would, but a small army all present and willing to follow her into whatever Hells might await. She had never known anything like that feeling, the odd mix of confidence and pre-emptive regret which accompanies a leader.
The Ixals put up a good struggle, but several dozen were not enough resistance to keep Ciel and the others from crashing the gates and drilling their way toward the heart of the tribe's stronghold where the Huelocs inevitably awaited.
"Take everything they have on them - Any feathers, bone, hides, everything!" Ciel called out as she made ready to loose her first arrow. "We will clean this place out if we must."
"What about the crystals?" One of her comrades, a Conjurer with chestnut hair and glasses looked to the songstress curiously. "If we find and take as many crystals as we can, maybe we can delay the next summoning!"
This was a far better plan than anything Ciel, herself, had come up with. She nodded, "Good idea. And even if we can't prevent it, we can make sure Garuda's next incarnation is weak. Let us finish here, and then we can look for their supplies."
Ciel whirled about and turned loose her arrow on one of the Huelocs as the others moved in to engage. One by one, each of the Ixals known as the Four Winds were felled by the Order, but more Ixals streamed toward them the longer they remained within the stronghold. And amidst the screams of the Ixal, the sprays of blood, nothing was left behind. Everything the Ixals dropped, whether or not it was part of the Berunda's remains, was collected, and several of the tribe's stockpiles of supplies were set alight and burned as the Order cut their escape back out of Natalan. They were never able to get near the tribe's crystal stash.
They were followed far from the gates, but even the Ixal dared not set foot too close to Camp Dragonhead, and it was there that the order reconvened. With their task accomplished, most took their turn to leave the snows of Coerthas and return to the company Hall, while a handful remained behind to accompany Ciel to the observatorium, where the Berunda's remains were burned to ash as promised.
The company she had found herself with were good folk, even if she hadn't expected to be taken into their ranks, and all naturally had their own concerns to contend with. Why would she ask any of them to put aside their problems for her sake? For something which was her business? She kept mum about the matter for another couple of months, thinking, and planning, until she knew how to present it.
She told her comrades the tale of an ill-fated pair, Astrid and Forgetmenot, and in the end revealed only that Astrid represented her own part in the story, and that one day soon, she would have to write an ending to the tale. Never until then could she speak Thierremont's name. Whether or not doing so would incur the wrath of spirits or Elementals, she never said, but it was a fine hook to keep some of her comrades curious, and the more she spoke with some of them individually about her desire to see the tale finished, the more she found their willingness to aid her. She never had to ask.
Ciel had her plan. She knew where the Berunda's remains were, who had them, and what sort of situation she and the Order would be walking into. And the closer the day came, the more restless she found herself. Solid sleep became a luxury, as every spare thought, every ilm of her dreaming, turned to that and how it could all go horribly wrong.Â
All the fear which had etched itself into her mind still had to be faced down, for better or worse, and the Order arrived at Natalan a dozen strong. A dozen lives she would be responsible for is things went as she feared they would, but a small army all present and willing to follow her into whatever Hells might await. She had never known anything like that feeling, the odd mix of confidence and pre-emptive regret which accompanies a leader.
The Ixals put up a good struggle, but several dozen were not enough resistance to keep Ciel and the others from crashing the gates and drilling their way toward the heart of the tribe's stronghold where the Huelocs inevitably awaited.
"Take everything they have on them - Any feathers, bone, hides, everything!" Ciel called out as she made ready to loose her first arrow. "We will clean this place out if we must."
"What about the crystals?" One of her comrades, a Conjurer with chestnut hair and glasses looked to the songstress curiously. "If we find and take as many crystals as we can, maybe we can delay the next summoning!"
This was a far better plan than anything Ciel, herself, had come up with. She nodded, "Good idea. And even if we can't prevent it, we can make sure Garuda's next incarnation is weak. Let us finish here, and then we can look for their supplies."
Ciel whirled about and turned loose her arrow on one of the Huelocs as the others moved in to engage. One by one, each of the Ixals known as the Four Winds were felled by the Order, but more Ixals streamed toward them the longer they remained within the stronghold. And amidst the screams of the Ixal, the sprays of blood, nothing was left behind. Everything the Ixals dropped, whether or not it was part of the Berunda's remains, was collected, and several of the tribe's stockpiles of supplies were set alight and burned as the Order cut their escape back out of Natalan. They were never able to get near the tribe's crystal stash.
They were followed far from the gates, but even the Ixal dared not set foot too close to Camp Dragonhead, and it was there that the order reconvened. With their task accomplished, most took their turn to leave the snows of Coerthas and return to the company Hall, while a handful remained behind to accompany Ciel to the observatorium, where the Berunda's remains were burned to ash as promised.
