The appearance of a god, a true manifestation of at least a sliver of the divine - as much as his mortal mind could comprehend of it, at least - would never cease to be a miracle to the Oracle. He spread his wings, bobbing his head in a deep bow to the goddess of the stars as her arrival sent a teasing zephyr through his feathers, bringing the scents of spring and renewal to soothe his worries for a moment.
When he raised his head again, cocking it to either side to drink in Safrin's beauty, he chirred a welcome to the goddess. For her and her kin he did not mind being in so small a body and looking up. There was a rightness to it that suited him, even as her words reassured him that all that he had been was not entirely unknown here.
But though he opened his beak as if to speak, he closed it again almost immediately, feeling a trace of shame at the mortal pettiness of his original prayer. He had told Deimos that he would ask the old gods for guidance in protecting themselves from dark magics, but now that one stood before him he wondered if the power plays of mortals really mattered that much, in the grand scheme of things. There was, however, something else he was just as responsible for, a promise that all the books in the Atheneum had been unable to answer.
I... am sorry, Safrin, he apologized, feathers ruffled as he ducked his head in embarrassment. There is a great deal happening, and danger both within and without these days. I do not know which should be of greater priority but... I have seen the sickness in the Greatwood, he said at last, looking up at her cautiously from a bright blue eye. And that threatens more than just my human friends. It threatens the Fae as well, and from what I have learned from the Lady Arduinna, it began shortly after the barrier fell. The Lady of the Wood could not heal it magically, and it is spreading. I fear the blight is our fault for letting the barrier fall... either her doing, or that of something else we unwittingly released, he admitted. I know the Fae do not care for our feet in their forest, but if we could help them heal the woods, perhaps it will undo some of the damage we have caused.
Technically he didn't need to breathe while speaking mind to mind, but he paused to do so anyways, trying to gather his thoughts into a more coherent answer for what he needed. I have looked through the books in the Atheneum, and found no mention of such a magical Blight. The oldest Fae I know of did not recognize it either. So I now turn to you for guidance, Lady of the Stars... do you know what the cause of the sickness is, and how to heal it?
When he raised his head again, cocking it to either side to drink in Safrin's beauty, he chirred a welcome to the goddess. For her and her kin he did not mind being in so small a body and looking up. There was a rightness to it that suited him, even as her words reassured him that all that he had been was not entirely unknown here.
But though he opened his beak as if to speak, he closed it again almost immediately, feeling a trace of shame at the mortal pettiness of his original prayer. He had told Deimos that he would ask the old gods for guidance in protecting themselves from dark magics, but now that one stood before him he wondered if the power plays of mortals really mattered that much, in the grand scheme of things. There was, however, something else he was just as responsible for, a promise that all the books in the Atheneum had been unable to answer.
I... am sorry, Safrin, he apologized, feathers ruffled as he ducked his head in embarrassment. There is a great deal happening, and danger both within and without these days. I do not know which should be of greater priority but... I have seen the sickness in the Greatwood, he said at last, looking up at her cautiously from a bright blue eye. And that threatens more than just my human friends. It threatens the Fae as well, and from what I have learned from the Lady Arduinna, it began shortly after the barrier fell. The Lady of the Wood could not heal it magically, and it is spreading. I fear the blight is our fault for letting the barrier fall... either her doing, or that of something else we unwittingly released, he admitted. I know the Fae do not care for our feet in their forest, but if we could help them heal the woods, perhaps it will undo some of the damage we have caused.
Technically he didn't need to breathe while speaking mind to mind, but he paused to do so anyways, trying to gather his thoughts into a more coherent answer for what he needed. I have looked through the books in the Atheneum, and found no mention of such a magical Blight. The oldest Fae I know of did not recognize it either. So I now turn to you for guidance, Lady of the Stars... do you know what the cause of the sickness is, and how to heal it?
