Things were beginning to move now that Deepfrost had ended, and hastily made plans were coming to fruition – perhaps a bit faster than was wise, but sometimes boldness was more important than caution. With the arrival of Flowerbirth the attack on the spire was imminent, and while Jigano had heard from those who were confident in its success as well as those resigned to its failure, he hadn’t heard much of what people thought beyond the day of the attempt. For some, change seemed impossible and he didn’t blame them for focusing on the day-to-day scramble for survival within the barrier. Fields would still need tilling, crops would need planting, and there was a festival to plan, no matter what else happened.
But there would always be something to do, some entirely plausible and important excuse to avoid thinking beyond the next week, the next season, the next harvest. For many of the naturals it was understandable, but for some of them, and for most of the outlanders who still hadn’t found their niches, there was a sense of yearning, a quiet desperation for this assault to succeed and free them from their spacious but withering prison.
It was time to look beyond the barrier, to acknowledge the possibility of defeat, but to plan for success – and for what would come after. So it was that the Provost of the Loreseekers had called a meeting not only of fellow guildmembers, but of anyone else who was ready to plan ahead. It was early evening, and the rain outside made for a cloudy day but the lanterns had been lit and the white-haired bard looked out over those who were assembling, smiling welcome to those he knew and nodding courteously to those he didn’t.
Once the appointed time came and it looked like most of the people who were coming had arrived, Jigano nodded and stepped forward, his trained voice reaching easily to the back of the room without apparent effort – though it had taken years of practice to make it look easy. ”Loreseekers, naturals, outlanders, welcome. As many of you know by now, we will soon be sending our finest warriors to defeat the Spire’s Guardian. We now know that the barrier was put in place to keep secrets in, not to keep dangerous things out, so we need not fear what happens when it comes down… at least, not immediately.” He paused to look out over the gathering, his expression turning grave. ”But we should begin to think about what comes after. I know there are many here who are adventurous and will be looking to strike out immediately. Some will do so with the intention of never returning, and to them I wish the best of luck. But others will have ties here, and reasons to return to visit friends and family, or simply to resupply. Among those, I’d like to propose we form semi-structured plans for individuals or groups to strike out in different directions, so we can learn as much about the lands around the bubble as possible. We should also think about what we should do if we contact other people – people who may welcome us as new trading partners, who may revile us as cursed by the gods, or who may want to invade us to increase their own territory.” His eyes were grim at the last, but he looked around, especially to his Loreseekers who he hoped were taking notes or memorizing what was said.
”We won’t make these decisions in a day, but I’d like us to start thinking about them, and to start brainstorming ideas for how to proceed when the barrier falls, and what situations we may encounter. We can’t plan for everything, but if we have at least tentative plans in mind for most possibilities we’ll be better able to respond. So I ask now – what ideas and suggestions do you have?”
But there would always be something to do, some entirely plausible and important excuse to avoid thinking beyond the next week, the next season, the next harvest. For many of the naturals it was understandable, but for some of them, and for most of the outlanders who still hadn’t found their niches, there was a sense of yearning, a quiet desperation for this assault to succeed and free them from their spacious but withering prison.
It was time to look beyond the barrier, to acknowledge the possibility of defeat, but to plan for success – and for what would come after. So it was that the Provost of the Loreseekers had called a meeting not only of fellow guildmembers, but of anyone else who was ready to plan ahead. It was early evening, and the rain outside made for a cloudy day but the lanterns had been lit and the white-haired bard looked out over those who were assembling, smiling welcome to those he knew and nodding courteously to those he didn’t.
Once the appointed time came and it looked like most of the people who were coming had arrived, Jigano nodded and stepped forward, his trained voice reaching easily to the back of the room without apparent effort – though it had taken years of practice to make it look easy. ”Loreseekers, naturals, outlanders, welcome. As many of you know by now, we will soon be sending our finest warriors to defeat the Spire’s Guardian. We now know that the barrier was put in place to keep secrets in, not to keep dangerous things out, so we need not fear what happens when it comes down… at least, not immediately.” He paused to look out over the gathering, his expression turning grave. ”But we should begin to think about what comes after. I know there are many here who are adventurous and will be looking to strike out immediately. Some will do so with the intention of never returning, and to them I wish the best of luck. But others will have ties here, and reasons to return to visit friends and family, or simply to resupply. Among those, I’d like to propose we form semi-structured plans for individuals or groups to strike out in different directions, so we can learn as much about the lands around the bubble as possible. We should also think about what we should do if we contact other people – people who may welcome us as new trading partners, who may revile us as cursed by the gods, or who may want to invade us to increase their own territory.” His eyes were grim at the last, but he looked around, especially to his Loreseekers who he hoped were taking notes or memorizing what was said.
”We won’t make these decisions in a day, but I’d like us to start thinking about them, and to start brainstorming ideas for how to proceed when the barrier falls, and what situations we may encounter. We can’t plan for everything, but if we have at least tentative plans in mind for most possibilities we’ll be better able to respond. So I ask now – what ideas and suggestions do you have?”
