The Homecoming 122.

Flight...

"Slow going without much in the way of wind" says the ship's sorcerer, who looks aft before adding "Though a bit of a breeze is picking up now".
Beside him, the dark druid Palvarc nods his head, then he says "Excuse me". And makes his way forward through a midships, where he rejoins the first mate. His contact aboard the frigate that's part of the personal fleet of the lord high constable, within the kingdom of Druvic's aircorp.
The dark druid who caused quite a stir when he showed up onboard, out of thin air a little while ago.
Quietly asks the officer who is part of the cadre within the kingdom who is trying to spread the old ways, specifically the ways of the dark druids "Will the captain and the officers do what we want?".
"They will" quietly replies the first mate, who continues with "They've been told by the lord high constable that a rebellion is forming in the Lé Dic fief. And that we're to quell it, as the baron is already doing on behalf of the kingdom".
The spellcaster who is the advisor of baron Harkonin, nods his head in satisfaction as they stand next to the starboard rail, then he quietly says "I hear from the crew that two other ships are heading this way too?".
The officer nods his head and quietly says "A pair of battlecruisers" he continues with "We left as soon as word got to the lord high constable from the baron's men you sent through to the capital" the first mate follows that with "The two battlecruisers were to leave yesterday afternoon. There's more of our, ah kind on them than on the frigate here".
The dark druid is about to nod in satisfaction again, when he frowns as the first mate quietly tells him "Those knights in the order of Saint Mar-che heard about that sir Percavelle being back at his family's home. Some of them, or at least one of the important one's talked the lord high constable, onto letting him catch a ride on one of the battlecruisers".
Palvarc who doesn't like the sound of that. For the very idea, that he and his cadre of dark druids and their supporters. Mainly from the east of the kingdom. Have a completely different worldview to the knights of Saint Mar-che.
And that any other time. They would be enemies. If it wasn't for the fact, they have a common enemy at the moment. Sir Percavelle Lé Dic.
The advisor to baron Harkonin looks around, then quietly asks the second officer of the airship "There aren't any of them onboard is there?".
"No" is the answer from the first mate, who continues with "We left too quickly for any of them to join us".
"Well at least that's something" quietly says the dark druid as he stands there holding his staff. Palvarc changes the subject as he senses the ship's sorcerer approaching them from aft.
And he asks the first mate in a normal tone of voice "How long till we get to castle Lé Dic you think?".
"Sometime this afternoon" replies the officer, as he spots the ship's sorcerer, who ranks as an officer, making his way towards them from the stern.
"Hopefully a little sooner if this bit of breeze picks up" adds the first mate, who then continues with "I grew up in the Harkonin fief, that's how we know one another" in response to the ship's spellcaster, who asks them "You two know one another?" when he joins them at the starboard rail in a midships.
The advisor to baron Harkonin is just about to excuse himself. As he doesn't particularly want to be around the sorcerer. Looks up the main mast, then forward to the bow. When the lookouts up the mast, and at the bowsprit, all call out something within a few moments of one another.
"Might as well see what it is" says the first mate, who darts a quick glance at the dark druid. Who gets the message, and says "Lead on" and he follows the two officers forward across the top deck of the frigate that's part of the lord high constable's personal fleet, within the aircorp of the kingdom of Druvic.
When they get to the bow, and after the first mate orders some of the crew, who have come forward to gawk, back to their duties. He asks one of the two lookouts "Where?".
"There sir" says the younger of the two lookouts, who points to a hill the warship is approaching.
The second officer, as well as the dark druid, and the ship's officer all look to the hill that's dotted with a few trees on top of it. That the frigate will soon pass over.
"He's just standing there sir" says the younger lookout, while the more senior air sailor who has lookout duties here in the bow, who is looking through one of the brass, cylindrical eyepieces onboard, adds "There he goes again" followed by "Spinning that staff he's got" the older lookout shakes his head as he continues to look through the eyepiece he's got, and he murmurs "That's the strangest looking hat he's wearing, I've ever seen".
The dark druid Palvarc frowns as he looks at figure on the hill they're approaching. A hill that's at the southern end of the range of hills, from the northwest of the Lé Dic fief, which is in the lands of the Range Lord, Sir Parvin Dé Gorveré. Who died earlier this morning, when he killed sir Dontast, the knight in the order of Althilgah.
Their deaths is what started the battle for castle Lé Dic this morning. And what sent Palvarc further west into the Lé Dic fief. When he sensed, or more precisely, his staff, sensed the warship that he was expecting sooner or later, to show up in the fief ruled by the nobleborn Lé Dic family.
Baron Harkonin's advisor murmurs "There's something about" as he looks at the figure on the hilltop the warship is nearing.
When suddenly he looks sharply at his staff, as he feels the warning that it gives him.
"Ware spellcraft!"  quickly says the dark druid to the ship's sorcerer, who hasn't put up any barrier or protection spells around any part of the frigate, for the simple reason that they're not in battle.
Just then, a loud cracking thud comes from the bottom of the twin masted warship. That shakes the entire vessel, the ship's sorcerer yells out in alarm "The keel!".
After casting a shatter spell upon the magical keel of the frigate. Helbe the elven thief, who is standing upside down on the underside of the airship he's just crippled, and more than likely destroyed. Drops down off it, and falls through the air.
The blurred and shielded elven magic user shifts away. Just before he does so, he glances in the direction of the hill that Shur Kee the monk is on, and he grins at what he sees.
Looking quickly over the port side of the frigate, that violently shudders before it starts to slowly drop in altitude.
The dark druid Palvarc mutters "Where?" as he holds his staff up. And lets it point to where, whoever it is, that's just attacked the warship he's on.
He can't sense anyone, but his staff can. As it moves suddenly in his hands, and points away to a patch of sky to the northeast. Then quickly to the east. As whoever it is, is moving a hell of a lot quicker than any spellcaster, that the dark druid has sensed and seen, teleport.
Which he's just about to do, when the first mate behind him, quickly says "What the hell is that?" while from the stern of the ship, the captain starts giving the order to abandon ship, as he instantly realised that the frigate is going to drop out of the sky, with it's magical keel shattered.
"I don't know" murmurs the ship's sorcerer, who backs up as Palvarc turns around and looks at them. The spellcaster, who is one of the officers onboard, looks quickly at the dark druid, and with a fearful look upon his face, he says, almost in a shout "I can't sense it!".
Frowning, the advisor to baron Harkonin looks ahead, to where the first mate is pointing. And he blinks in surprise at what he sees.
What the hell is that thing? Palvarc thinks to himself in surprise as he looks at the what seems to be a white ball of energy, probably about eight or nine feet in width.
That's coming up from the hilltop that the lone figure is standing on. Coming up towards the crippled airship, that's losing altitude as it nears the hill.
The dark druid looks sharply at his staff, but it gives him no warning when he points it at the white ball of what looks like energy, heading up to the descending frigate,
Palvarc just knows that it isn't magical. Which might put other spellcasters at ease.
But the way in which the warship was attacked and crippled so quickly. He's not too keen to find out if the ball of energy, which isn't magical in anyway. Is dangerous or not.
He suspects it is dangerous, and as he grabs the first mate, who has just said "Where the hell are you going?" to the ship's sorcerer, who after quickly backing away. Has turned and run back along the deck, and is now climbing over the port rail.
He and the second officer of the frigate disappear as he teleports the two of them away from the doomed frigate.
The dark druid and the first mate reappear on the ground, next to a track that goes along some fields on a farm.
After the ship's officer mutters "Shit" as he realises what's just happened. He looks up to his airship that's slowly dropping out of the clear, spring sky, when baron Harkonin's advisor quickly asks him "How many of the others are in the crew?".
"Seven plus me" is the reply of the first mate, who then nods as the dark druid tells him "Maybe they'll get on one of the boats" as they see the two ship's boats have been put overboard, and some of the crew are on them.
Then the first mate murmurs "Huh?" and looks at baron Harkonin's advisor, who mutters "By the old ways" as the ball of white energy hits the crippled airship, and nothing happens.
"Er?" says the second officer of the frigate, who then asks "An illusion of some kind?".
"No" says Palvarc the dark druid, who then looks to the hill away to their left. And though they can't see the person who is at the top of it. He suspects that person is still there.
The spellcaster looks around in a circle, holding his staff up as he does so. And though he senses the ship's sorcerer away to the south. He as well as his staff, don't sense any other practitioner of magic in the vicinity.
The dark druid sourly smiles, for though his staff can sense magical things, such as airships. And magical places, such as disused druid's circles. From a fairly long way away.
It can't do so for hidden spellcasters. A side effect from the way it was created. Or more precisely, the thing that helped the original owner and creator of it. Did to what's within the gnarled, fist sized knot on the top of the staff.
Baron Harkonin's advisor narrows his eyelids as he looks back to the nearby hill. Then casting a sideways glance at the first mate of the airship that's getting closer and closer to the ground.
He tells him "Come" followed by "Let's see what that fellow is all about" as he turns towards the hill that's to the east of them, just a few hundred yards away.
The dark druid, who is infused with power as is his staff, after the quick sacrificing ceremony he did earlier this morning, in an underground druid's circle near a village further to the north, here in the west of the Lé Dic fief.
Says to the ship's officer "Be prepared for anything" as the first mate of the crippled frigate draws his shortsword, baron Harkonin's advisor mutters "Who knows what the hell we'll face".
They set off at a walk, and the dark druid tells the officer in the kingdom's aircorp "I'll teleport us up the side of it, since i can't see the top at the moment" as he gestures ahead to the hill.
Palvarc takes hold of the first mate's left arm, and the two of them disappear. A few moments later they reappear up the west side of the hill, about thirty yards from the top.
The two of them look quickly to their right, and though the dark druid is silent, the first mate mutters "Shit" and winces as the two of them watch the warship they were just on.
Approach the ground a hell of a lot quicker than it was when it was higher up in the sky. Then it plows into the ground at the base of the hill.
It hits with a fair bit of impact, with the bow totally demolished. And the hull cracking apart in places.
The main mast, though slanted forward. Remains, more or less upright. Not so the smaller aft mast. Which snaps, and smashes across the port rail, wrecking the already damaged deck.
The vessel which is part of the lord high constable's personal fleet within the kingdom of Druvic's aircorp. Plows about fifty feet across the ground, breaking apart in places. Before it finally comes to a stop. With the front of it, which is just before where the bow decking would normally start. Pointing slightly up the hill, it's crashed at the base of.
"Damn" mutters the first mate who sees that there was a number of crew still on the warship when it crashed into the ground.
He shakes his head in disappointment, and though he spots the two ship's boats up in the sky, heading down this way. He knows that at least more than half of the crew were still onboard when the frigate hit the ground. And that most of them are probably dead.
The ship's officer looks over at the dark druid, who quietly tells him "Remember, be ready for anything".
Then the advisor to baron Harkonin, the dark druid Palvarc, leads the way up the hill. As he does, Palvarc holds his staff out infront of him, waiting to see if it gives him any warning.
Though the spellcaster from the Harkonin fief knows that it will only give him warnings of magical threats.
Now let's see what you're all about then, Palvarc thinks to himself, as he nears the top of the hill, and he finally spots the lone figure standing there by themselves, out in the open, looking down towards the crashed frigate . . . . . .