"With the influx of new recruits, it would be good for everyone to at least recognize each other," he agreed, hiding his smile at considering that everyone except those who joined later because timey wimey was a senior Seeker to Quanil.
He nodded silent agreement that they should get on with the writing, but the unexpected query in return brought the sadness back to his face. It was not the recent pain of Fiat Lux and those lost to the mud and ice; it was an older and softer thing, more cherished and packed carefully in layers of guilt and regret. "Given that they are dead, I suppose I would simply say: 'I'm sorry,'" he said quietly. "My friends and I had gone out into the world to learn about something that had befallen us, to rescue my mentor and save our town's livelihood... then to reclaim the heritage of a pair of my companions, and in so doing, discovering a threat greater than we could have imagined... but as part of that, we came to the attention of some very powerful and very cruel people. They sent a warning to our town, an 'example' of what would happen to us if we didn't stop meddling in their affairs." He grew silent for a moment, but the story was not a new one, and he shook his melancholy off to finish the tale. "They didn't know it, but my parents had taken shelter in the building they destroyed. That was... hmm. Seven years ago, now." He finished with a slight shrug. "I had no siblings."
He nodded silent agreement that they should get on with the writing, but the unexpected query in return brought the sadness back to his face. It was not the recent pain of Fiat Lux and those lost to the mud and ice; it was an older and softer thing, more cherished and packed carefully in layers of guilt and regret. "Given that they are dead, I suppose I would simply say: 'I'm sorry,'" he said quietly. "My friends and I had gone out into the world to learn about something that had befallen us, to rescue my mentor and save our town's livelihood... then to reclaim the heritage of a pair of my companions, and in so doing, discovering a threat greater than we could have imagined... but as part of that, we came to the attention of some very powerful and very cruel people. They sent a warning to our town, an 'example' of what would happen to us if we didn't stop meddling in their affairs." He grew silent for a moment, but the story was not a new one, and he shook his melancholy off to finish the tale. "They didn't know it, but my parents had taken shelter in the building they destroyed. That was... hmm. Seven years ago, now." He finished with a slight shrug. "I had no siblings."
