Standing on the edge of the crowd, Arialla tensed as the announcement rang out. It had no visible source, but that didn't surprise her; oracles didn't always claim their work. Its prophecy didn't surprise her either. Of course war was coming. For Arialla, it had already started.
Those teeth on her neck had been the only declaration of hostilities she'd ever need.
How the attendees reacted to the announcement interested her more than the words themselves. There were Ascended in the crowd, she suspected, as well as open supporters of the Old Gods; would any of them decide to get the party -- the other party, the war kind -- started a little early?
So far, the main response seemed to be retreat. For a moment Arialla considered kicking things off herself -- seizing the spotlight and turning the evening's revels violent. But she wasn't confident in her ability to do so, wasn't sure that people would back her up. And anyway, the oracle had said eight seasons remained until war came. Only fools tried to change the path of fate -- disobedient fools, who could not obey the gods' will.
Arialla was no fool, and she was not disobedient. Taking her eagle form, she rose to circle over the gathering on the wing. She still wanted to see what might unfold after the announcement, to be on hand to support her own side if the one-time party ended in conflict, but for now she would hang back and wait.
Those teeth on her neck had been the only declaration of hostilities she'd ever need.
How the attendees reacted to the announcement interested her more than the words themselves. There were Ascended in the crowd, she suspected, as well as open supporters of the Old Gods; would any of them decide to get the party -- the other party, the war kind -- started a little early?
So far, the main response seemed to be retreat. For a moment Arialla considered kicking things off herself -- seizing the spotlight and turning the evening's revels violent. But she wasn't confident in her ability to do so, wasn't sure that people would back her up. And anyway, the oracle had said eight seasons remained until war came. Only fools tried to change the path of fate -- disobedient fools, who could not obey the gods' will.
Arialla was no fool, and she was not disobedient. Taking her eagle form, she rose to circle over the gathering on the wing. She still wanted to see what might unfold after the announcement, to be on hand to support her own side if the one-time party ended in conflict, but for now she would hang back and wait.
Arialla
Freedom. Flight. Grace. Keen-sight.
"Golden Eagle - Mongolia" by carfull...from Wyoming is licensed with CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
