Show Your Loyalties

Roksanni read the newspaper a second time to be sure what she was seeing was right.

War…

She hadn’t really thought another would come, but here they were - and this time it was not humans driving it, but dextroluma. Her whole body felt like it itched, and everything felt sharper. She didn’t want to go to war again. She didn’t want it, she didn’t want to do it-

…but she remembered crazed black eyes fixed on her from inside a rotting corpse, full of hatred.

…she imagined thousands of them pouring into the other kingdoms, turning innocents who couldn’t flee. Taking them. Destroying families. Hadn’t Salroka said that children were often stolen by the corrupt? Just like humans had stolen her…

She threw the newspaper at the ice, glowering at it as it fell limply to the floor.

Roksanni didn’t want to go to war again.

But she would, to protect others.

Sighing, she went to her wardrobe. Nothing to pack in… There was someone in this town she had come to unwillingly run who would be able to give her one, or sell her one, she was certain of it. She turned away from the wardrobe, spying her gextro looking at her, and with another sigh, went to scoop Amour up, giving her a kiss before settling her onto her shoulder. “Come on, we need to go shopping and pack.” She didn’t really want to bring the gextro with her either, but Amour refused to eat if she was separated from Roksanni, so she would have to come.

Ugh, this was a pain - she’d need a draphibian too, if she wanted to make it to the Verdant Kingdom quickly…

She composed a list in her head of what she would need as she walked into the icy cavern that served as the town’s market hub. The various people who had come to inhabit the town gave her all kinds of greetings, and she felt some guilt at the idea she would be leaving them. It wasn’t like she wouldn’t come back, she told herself, but… still. Ugh, she’d probably have to decide someone else to be in charge, wouldn’t she?

Her magic wasn’t likely to wear off the tunnels anytime soon, at least - she’d been in them almost a century, after all. They would continue to protect pure dextro and keep the corrupt out. And her power would no longer draw the corrupt. Still…

She shook the thoughts from her mind. Best just to focus on the present, she told herself. If she didn’t get involved quickly, things could get worse - she’d heard that necrosis made some mages stronger, after all. Roksanni didn’t want to wait to find out if this was just a stupid family in-fighting thing or if the corrupt royals had aspirations to corrupt the rest of the damned species.

So she would need some saddlebags, a draphibian, a sleeping bag, tent, and a large supply of mushrooms. Maybe also a map… She’d check in at the capitol of Glacia, and see if any modern routes could get her there faster than the draphibian, but otherwise, she’d just push things as much as she could. Maybe make a call to Salroka as well - she didn’t know if the Verdant Kingdom was taking volunteers this time, or if she’d need someone to vouch for her prowess. She doubted they’d really turn her away without it, but the less fuss the better.

Roksanni did not wish to go to war again, but she would, to protect others.