Juniper nodded as she listened to Sah. She could understand all too well his struggle to choose a side -- if she had been an Outlander, with no ties to her people or anyone else in Caido, she might have stood in limbo as well. "You've summed up the situation well. The Ascended attacked my people, murdered our guards, drove out our goddess -- yet I still believe that not all of them deserve to die. Not all the Ascended were involved in the attack; there are civilians among them, children. Yet it seems the only way to stop the Voice's machinations is to destroy her, and she has made her followers dependent upon her for their very lives ... and afterlives."
She sighed. "This is why I sought peace: because the consequences of victory for either side are horrific. But if last night's prophecy is to be believed, a negotiated solution is no longer and option. Maybe it never was. I ... I didn't want people like you, people who are just trying to live their lives, to get drawn into a conflict like this."
She framed it almost as an apology -- she did somehow feel that she had failed Sah, failed Caido as a whole. If she had done better, if she had acted quicker, if she had pushed harder ... Perhaps there was always going to be war, if it was the gods' will. But she would always wonder if there was something she could have done.
"She is a goddess," Juniper answered, nodding, with a note of pride in her voice. "The Ascended attacked the Greatwood, slew her guards, and burned the tree in which she resided, all to put a portal in its place. The Mathair vanished, and for many seasons we didn't know if she still existed -- but we had faith. And she lives."
She sighed. "This is why I sought peace: because the consequences of victory for either side are horrific. But if last night's prophecy is to be believed, a negotiated solution is no longer and option. Maybe it never was. I ... I didn't want people like you, people who are just trying to live their lives, to get drawn into a conflict like this."
She framed it almost as an apology -- she did somehow feel that she had failed Sah, failed Caido as a whole. If she had done better, if she had acted quicker, if she had pushed harder ... Perhaps there was always going to be war, if it was the gods' will. But she would always wonder if there was something she could have done.
"She is a goddess," Juniper answered, nodding, with a note of pride in her voice. "The Ascended attacked the Greatwood, slew her guards, and burned the tree in which she resided, all to put a portal in its place. The Mathair vanished, and for many seasons we didn't know if she still existed -- but we had faith. And she lives."
Juniper
"art nouveau winged fairy" by e³°°° is licensed with CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit here
