War of the Races Ch. 36

"Parley?" Aalyn scoffed, "Retreat? Surely you jest? This army has been commissioned with the duty to raze the Valelands and take everything within its border as spoils of war!"

Forelain nodded. She knew as much, she also knew that never had an army this large had never been commissioned, nor a domain as large as the Valelands ever been targeted by their annual raids upon the surface.

"Surely, you know as well as I do that never in our history has Idavollr launched a campaign as large as this one," Forelain signed as she looked around for a chair to sit in. Fjallindae found one and motioned for Ra'Shaal to carry it over to Forelain.

"Yes," Aalyn said, "That is why this campaign has the potential of being the most lucrative in our history."

"True," Forelain agreed, "But then it also has the possibility of being the most costly. Let me share with you what the Oracles of Seline and Gaia told me."

There was a brief pause where Aalyn nodded as she said, "Proceed."

Forelain nodded and then began wiggling her fingers, waving her hands, and using larger gestures as she signed, "What caught my attention most about the Oracles and the Champion, aside from their astounding power, was their message. Through vision, the Oracle of the Moon has been commissioned with stopping our advance on the Valelands. She has also been commissioned to investigate the Temple of Arachne and search for her Oracle."

"Arachne? Oracle?" Aalyn said in confusion, "I haven't heard of an Oracle being anointed by the Spider Goddess."

"Neither have I, though, granted I have been locked away in a room for eleven years," Forelain replied before gesturing for Fjallindae and Ra'Shaal to testify.

When Thurdain and Illglan saw Ra'Shaal they stepped forward though it was Thurdain that interrupted as she signed, "You're Prodaenoff, aren't you? One of our Initiates that disappeared?"

"This is Prodaenoff's body," Ra'Shaal answered.

"Prodaenoff was the assassin sent after mother," Sinaan interjected, "Or, rather, it was her body. Sulabha Faline, the necromancer who ripped Elwin, Prodaenoff, and Ophimaev's soul wells from their bodies, replaced them with assassins. The assassin in Prodaenoff's body killed Ra'Shaal and she was unable to be resurrected, so Sulabha raised Ra'Shaal up as a grimasalas, a shadowy undead. Once we defeated the assassin, to make reparation for Ra'Shaal's death, Sulabha put Ra'Shaal in Prodaenoff's body."

"By the goddess," Illglan gestured as she shook her head and sat down looking shaken.

"To do these things," Thurdain signed, "This Sulabha must be very powerful."

"She is," Ra'Shaal agreed.

"However," Fjallindae said as she stepped forward, "To bring the discussion back on track, I can say definitively that I have not heard of our goddess, Arachne, having appointed an Oracle."

"Likewise," Ra'Shaal added.

"What does this mean?" Aalyn asked as she brought up her hand and cradled her chin as she thought over the implications.

"Just this," Forelain signed, "Either the Oracles of Seline and Gaia are lying to us to save their lands and people, or they are being truthful and that means that our own church and government are lying to us."

"Why would they lie," Aalyn asked, sounding doubtful but curious.

"Control," Sinaan replied, "It is always about control, greed, and power."

"The Oracles have made an offer to you for this army's retirement from this campaign," Forelain announced by way of hand gestures.

"What is it?" Aalyn replied, her tone stony now that they had come to the point.

"Meet with them," Forelain answered, "Sign a nonaggression treaty on behalf of Idavollr and the Valelands. Then, they will come with us as our guests and investigate the disappearance of the Oracle of the Spider."

"Investigating a government and religious cover-up," Aalyn mused openly, "It would be safer to kill these people and raze the Valelands."

"Their numbers are few," Forelain signed, "But just between the two Oracles, they seemed quite capable of destroying my rogue army, and the priestesses that taught challenged them very easily. Two against a thousand, and the champion only stood there watching."

"I heard stories as she traveled with them," Sinaan added, "They told of a story where the Champion took on a host of enemies. Hundreds. Maybe thousands. By himself. Undead creatures raised up by some dark god that he was also able to repel and send back to the void that spawned it."

"I heard the same stories," Fjallindae said while Ra'Shaal nodded in agreement.

Aalyn spent several seconds looking at the group before finally responding, "So, what your saying is, we either face certain death with them or just possible death if we return to Idavollr empty-handed and start an investigation into the government and church."

Forelain didn't reply. She only smiled as she and Aalyn shared a long, considering look.