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“I see Dragonhorn’s gates! Hopefully, it’s not too late for them to call a town meeting!” Nicolas screamed from Hugo’s backside.

After regaining her strength, Maevis had hopped off of the bird’s back, and was leisurely keeping pace with him as she thought. As soon as she’d heard Nic’s voice, she’d cleared her head, and focused on the task at hand..

“I see it! Why don’t we split up with Hugo, and have him search the orchard for Jonathan and Cu?! That way we’re not wasting extra time flying around!”

Nicolas looked down at his comfortable ride, then nodded with a reluctant expression. After he quickly explained where to go and what to do, Hugo took off with a slow flap of his wings. He was quite tired and didn’t really want to help, but understood how dire the situation was, so he did as his partner asked.

“I really do owe that damn bird a whole bushel of berries after all of this. Flying through the night alone earned him that,” Nicolas commented as his dear friend flew away.

Maevis sighed before patting his shoulder; “Aye, ya do. Now let’s move our arses! It’ll take longer than a day to evacuate the town, but we’ll have less than that if we can’t even convince them to gather to discuss it tonight.”

Nicolas nodded, then the two pixies flew straight down to the town. As they entered, the streetlights illuminated the various people walking about, completing last minute shopping and the like. The warm and relaxed atmosphere made the two feel even worse about the hell that was about to befall them.

Maevis swiveled her head several times in search of Jonathan McKurdy, but to no avail. The only person that she recognized was Dr. Martin, a human that Skye had described to her on several occasions. She didn’t actually know him, but the fact that he was a friend of Skye’s was enough for her, under the circumstances.

.....

After calling out to him, the two fairies had attracted a decent crowd of onlookers. A few had caught bits about why they were there, and the speculation and rumors began. But before they could get out of control, Nicolas took a deep breath, and addressed the growing crowds’ concerns..

“We are Nicolas and Maevis, Representatives of the Fae Nation! Under the supervision of Queen Celestia herself! Before anyone misunderstands anything, we ask that as many of you as possible gather in the town square, in half an hour! If you do, we will explain everything to everyone ourselves!”

“Why?! Why can’t ya just tell us here?!” a random man called out.

Nicolas looked directly at the man as he replied loudly, and clearly; “Because this affects the entire town! And the entire town deserves to hear the full details before making and decisions! Also, I want everyone to have ALL of the information! Not just bits and pieces through gossip! Please!”

The pained expression that crossed Nicolas’ face made Maevis’ heart twist as he added; “Please! For your family’s sakes! Come to the meeting in Half an Hour! ...Also, does anyone know where Jonathan McKurdy is?! We wish for him and Cu Sith to be present as well!”

The entire mood of the crowd was instantly swayed upon learning that their favorite guardian mascot was going to be in attendance. Due to their ever-growing popularity, John and Cu rarely made trips into town during peak tourist times. With Yuletide so close, the holiday crowds had been making their usual greetings too much of a hassle, so they’d all but stopped during the day.

The respectful love and attention from the townspeople was overshadowed by the harassment and assault of the tourists. So they mainly stuck to their own hangout spots at night, which most of the townspeople were aware of. Tonight in particular, the townsfolk knew exactly where he’d be..

A friend of John and Cu’s was celebrating his third child’s birth. They were quickly found in a conveniently located tavern at the edge of town, in case they needed to run away from a group of tourists. Maevis and Nicolas were grateful that he was found so fast, and quickly pulled him aside with Dr. Martin’s help.

They gave him the cliff notes of what was happening in the capital, which made Jonathan groan in discomfort before saying; “By the gods, I’m gonna be sick.. So the king is dead? Why haven’t the bells tolled? Or messengers been sent out?”

Nicolas shook his head; “Because Marco has to keep Tidas and Skye in the dark as long as possible. Otherwise, they’ll come running home before Marco’s ready.”

Ready for what?” Dr. Martin asked hesitantly.

Maevis and Nicolas shared a look before Maevis answered; “To either imprison, or kill Prince Tidas and Princess Skye..”

Jonathan’s eyes went wide; “What?! There’s no way-”

“He has both the general infantry, as well as two of his personal guards on their way here Right Now, to ‘evacuate’ Dragonhorn one way, or The Other.. To be blunt, if the people stay here: they’ll die,” Maevis stated in a stern tone.

Jonathan flashed a semi-nervous grin; “Come on, that’s impossible.. First off, why come here? And there’s no way that the new King is gonna start his rule with a bloodbath. That’s just-”

“Insane? Aye, we know,” Maevis interjected; “But tis the truth, John. We wouldn’t lie about this.”

Nicolas nodded in agreement before speaking up; “I don’t know why they’re coming here. I didn’t get to hear that part. All I know is that there’s something here that the new King wants, and trust us when we tell you that he Will kill EVERYONE to get it.”

“But you don’t even know what ‘it’ is! Maybe it’s something we can give-”

Maevis scoffed loudly, interrupting John again; “If it was Anything that simple, do you think that he would’ve sent Alcon’s Army to retrieve it?! Hell, he’s even got General Zas on a leash, and leading the bloody raid!”

John’s face had begun to fill with worry, until Maevis had mentioned Zas; “Oh! Well, if the General’s the one leading them, then there’s nothin’ ta worry fer. He lives here, fer cryin’ out loud! Why would he, of all people, let’em wreck our home?”

Maevis was at a loss for words, but Nicolas had already put two and two together..

“And have you seen his family at all? They should’ve returned by now, but you haven’t, have you?”

In that moment, a grim expression had covered John’s face. He had noticed the lack of Zas’ great-granddaughter’s visits to see Cu Sith, but hadn’t thought much of it. Not until he had noticed that the tavern was still closed the other day..

“It’s because they’re still in the capital,” Nic continued once he saw understanding taking root on John’s face; “Mary would insist on getting back to work, and you know it. The fact that she, or any other members haven’t shown back up can only mean one thing..”

“The new King is most likely holding the General’s family as hostages, to guarantee his cooperation. If that’s the case, and Marco gives him an ultimatum: who do you Honestly think he’ll pick? His family, or this town?”

Jonathan stared at the two Fae with a mixture of anger, fear, confusion, and more fear reflected in his features. This was something he never, in a trillion years, would’ve ever expected to happen.. ‘What the hell could Possibly be here that’s valuable enough to wipe out the town?!”

“Please, John: we have to warn people,” Maevis pleaded with sincerity; “They Need to leave as soon as possible, and they won’t leave if it’s just us asking. Dr. Martin has already agreed to help as well, but more will listen if you’re with us. Please, please help us? Call a town meeting.”

“I don’t have the authority to do that,” he replied nervously.

Dr. Martin spoke up; “It’s not about authority now, John. It’s about the fact that people will listen to you. I believe them, so I’m asking as well: please help us.”

Jonathan looked between the four affixed faces staring at him with a deep sigh. Even Cu Sith was giving him the ‘come on, man!’ look, which pushed him over the edge..

“Aye, I’ll help. But on one condition..”

As the four stared at him expectantly, Jonathan added; “If I need to puke, it’s gonna be ON the four of you, and I’ll not hear one, single complaint about it!”

The three nodded in relieved understanding as Cu Sith trotted behind her surly friend. Jonathan wasted no time in calling everyone and their mother for an emergency meeting. The crowds promptly began to file out of the surrounding buildings, and towards the center of town.

Several people tried to bombard Jonathan with questions, but Dr. Martin was an excellent deterrent. He was so polite and soft-worded that no one argued once he asked them to join everyone else in waiting patiently. It took nearly forty minutes for the doctor and John to determine that around eighty percent of the townspeople were gathered, which was a majority.

Everyone else was either unable to join, or specifically chose not to. It was nearly eight o’clock at night, and many that worked early had retired already. Knowing that the people present were more than enough to make an evacuation agreement, John introduced the two elder Fae, then had them explain it all in the least alarming way possible, yet still emphasizing the danger of staying.

Many residents of Dragonhorn asked and commented the same things that Jonathan had, but were all similarly shot down. A few were obviously angry about being asked to leave their homes, especially since the two Fae had no idea when, if ever; they could return. Someone even accused them of trying to take Dragonhorn out from under them after they had evacuated.

Maevis had become instantly infuriated by the insinuation that the Fae were just trying to steal their land. But several residents started to yell that he was just a bitter racist for having such a thought. Especially after how much Cu Sith and Zas had helped them.

When the fact that General Zas was the one leading the army was revealed, the conversation took a turn for the worst. Many became automatically dismissive of the idea that something bad could happen with him in charge, and others even became hostile over the two Fae saying that he would ‘stand by his orders’.

The arguing had lasted for several hours. By the time they’d reached the end of the discussion, they had already lost around fifteen percent of the gathered townsfolk from their denial alone. Most left without so much as a word, but a one had flat-out said that ‘anyone who listened to such vile words about the General were traitors’, as he left.

By the time everyone left for their homes, only about thirty percent had decided to ‘play it safe’, and leave at first light. Maevis and Nicolas had convinced them to travel straight to the Highlands, and swore that they would be safe, and cared for while there. To make sure of it, Nicolas had given one of the humans a ring with his insignia on it.

The man who had been celebrating his child’s birth had agreed to be the one to speak with the Highlanders upon arrival. He commented that the ring was so small that they’d be crazy not to believe him, then he tucked it away for safe keeping.

After the crowds had dissipated, Nicolas and Maevis shared worried expressions. Thirty percent was only a few thousand people, leaving behind almost seven thousand to fend for themselves against trained soldiers. It was far from the number of people that they were hoping to save, but..

“It’s still better than none,” Maevis commented with a heavy sigh; “We can only provide information. What they do with it is up to them.”

Nicolas glanced downward; “I know, I know.. but it doesn’t change the fact that tomorrow is going to be a bloodbath..”