The Find 9.

Autumn.

The Quick Gull. Just outside of Hilsons Point. Morning.
"What's all that about?" asks lord Farque with a nod of his full helmed head at Dorc da Orc in a midships.
"You don't want to know" dryly says Mira Reinholt the mage, who shakes his hooded head as the large ork sits down, grumbling and mumbling to himself in his own language.
The undead warlord rolls his eyes as the ork warleader hisses like at angry cat at his bitter rival, sir Percavelle Lé Dic.
The former paladin who is on the port side of the Quick Gull, scowls at his bitter rival sitting against the starboard side rail in a midships.
"You're right" says the large, heavily armoured deathlord who then adds in a dry tone of voice "I don't want to know".
Then looking at the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel who is standing next to the once powerful mage.
Lord Farque, or Draugadrottin as he's also known by to the people of his lands, asks "You get anything from that trader?".
"I did" replies Helbe the elven thief, who follows that with "A not so accurate map".
The highly talented elven magic user briefly pauses before adding "And a history book about the ancient kingdom of Gilbanath, which that trader swears has the most accurate map of that short lived kingdom in it".
"That's something i guess" mutters the lord and ruler of the lands Farque.
Who then looks at Mira Reinholt the mage, Helbe the elven thief, and Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit, and tells them "You three down in the captain's cabin".
The lord of the death realm continues with "Let's see what this book has to say".
The undead being, who has the elven name of Des'tier, which translates to, The Destroyer.
Looks forward and calls out "Tam!" followed by "Meet us down in the captain's cabin".
The young field commander who is standing in the bow with his lover Saanea the witch, nods his head and starts making his way aft.
While the lord and ruler of the lands Farque leads his three personal councilors to the nearest ladder, then below deck, to the captain's cabin of the Quick Gull.
In the aft, or captain's cabin of the small, dark, sleek looking, single masted airship, that was formerly in the air fleet of the Sultanate of Dreese.
A nation that lies all the way on the otherside of the continent, the far east coast to be exact.
Axe the undead wardog lifts his head up as his master enters the cabin, followed by three of his councilors.
The massive canine puts his head back down, yawns, and rolls on his side after Tamric Drubine the field commander enters the cabin, and closes the door behind him.
And though it looks like Axe is sleeping, the undead wardog has one eye slightly open, watching what's going on in the aft cabin of the Quick Gull.
With a pair of current maps of The City of Ruins, the surrounding towns and villages, and countryside beyond them, open on the large table in the captain's cabin.
Helbe the elven thief unrolls the map he purchased earlier this morning in the town of Hilsons Point.
Then after he takes out the old, leather bound book he also purchased.
Which he quickly flips through, and opens to the middle, and puts it down on the table next to the map, that he got from the same trader's shop.
The five of them standing around the table look at them in silence for a little while.
Then it's lord Farque who breaks the silence with "Well" followed by "Thoughts".
"Not that similar really" says Mira Reinholt the mage, who then adds "Apart from where it bisects through the northern half of the pit".
The pit, along with the hole, being the most common terms to describe The City of Ruins.
Nodding his hooded head in agreement with his fellow spellcaster the Vexilian mage in exile.
Helbe the elven thief says "I suspect that's the only likely accurate bit on the map".
Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit, who is standing on a chair, so that he can see things on the table, nods his head in agreement.
As does Tamric Drubine, the young noble originally from the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin, who is now a field commander in the armies of Farque.
The large, heavily armoured deathlord nods too, then pointing at the map that the highly talented elven magic user purchased this morning, he says "Roll that up, it's no good to us".
As to the north of The City of Ruins, it doesn't show anything in particular. And is only vague with the actual landscape in that direction.
As the young elven noble who is the grandson of the ruling prince of Laerel rolls up the map.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque says "That map in the book is another matter".
The lord of the death realm adds "What do you know about the book?". As he looks at the elven master assassin who puts the rolled up map in the open locker with a pile of other maps.
"Not that much" says the highly talented elven magic user, who continues with "Just that it was written by a church scholar from Eweteets after the war".
"Oh?" says Draugadrottin who suddenly gets interested at the mention of the war.
For though there's been hundreds, if not thousands of wars, that have happened across the Southlands over the last five thousand years or so.
There is still only one known as The War, and that's the invasion of the Southlands by the Holy Norstran Empire. Which is when lord Farque died.
"Who?" asks the undead warlord, the elven masterthief flips to the front of the book, and on the title page inside the cover, it shows the name of the tome, and the author.
"Never heard of him" says the large, heavily armoured deathlord.
"Same" says the grandson of Prince Raendril of Laerel.
"Mira?" asks the elven master archer looking at fellow spellcaster, the mage who is in exile from the city-state of Vexil.
The mage Reinholt snorts in derision, then says "As if I'd ever read anything written by a churchman".
The mage, who is also a highly skilled swordmaster, is a confirmed atheist. Though deep down, in some hidden memory he's never been able to crack. He suspects the gods of Volunell are actually real.
The elven princeling from Laerel then looks at lord Farque, and in particular the hilt of the massive sword sticking up over the undead warlord's left shoulder and head.
Des'tier as he's known in the elven language notices the look from the elven princeling, and he falls silent for a few moments.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque shakes his full helmed head no after he silently communicates with the Sword of Power, Ryn.
"Maybe Beldane has heard of him" says Tamric Drubine the field commander gesturing at the old leather bound book.
"Maybe" says prince Helbenthril Raendril, who then adds "I'll just ask him".
Mira Reinholt the mage, as well as lord Farque's eyebrows lift in surprise as they sense the spell that the highly talented elven magic user casts.
After a moment, the young elven noble who is a member of the royal family that rules the island principality of Laerel, says "He doesn't know".
In an accusatory tone, the mage Reinholt demands "How the hell did you do that?".
As what Helbe the elven thief just did, shouldn't of been possible.
For he cast what sensed like a mindspeech spell. Though for a mindspeech spell to work, the practitioner of magic casting it has to see the person they're wanting to talk to into their minds.
"It's just a variant of a regular mindspeech spell" says the elven master assassin, who then adds "No big deal".
"A variant" snorts the spellcaster, who was once the most powerful mage of his generation, to be found anywhere in the Southlands.
"No big deal he says" sourly adds the Vexilian mage in exile, who shakes his head, before adding in a rather acidic tone of voice "You just invented another spell".
The elven magic user shrugs his shoulders, and doesn't really care, as he's invented dozens of new spells over the years.
When most other spellcasters will never invent, or create a new spell during their lifetimes, at all.
"Range?" asks lord Farque who immediately sees the benefit of the new spell the highly talented elven magic user just created.
As it's very similar to the power of the mindspeech of the undead that he has.
"Not sure, that's the first time I've been successful with it" is the reply of the elven princeling who is the envoy for the armies of Farque.
"And it only works on other spellcasters" explains the elven masterthief, who follows with "I've done some experimenting on non spellcasters, and it doesn't work".
"Experimenting on who?" suspiciously asks Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit.
With a grin upon his youthful looking face, the elven masterthief tells the halfling former air sailor "You".
Then looking at field commander Drubine, prince Helbenthril Raendril adds "And you Tam".
The elven master archer continues with "And everyone else in the group who doesn't know magic".
"Dorc?" asks Mira Reinholt, which causes the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel, to say "Yeah, I'm not going to do that".
"Who knows" says the spellcaster who was the youngest ever member of the mage council of Vexil, who continues with "Not seeing him, might mean his immunity to mind spells might not work".
"I'm not falling for that" sourly says the highly talented elven magic user, which causes his fellow spellcaster the mage Reinholt to chuckle, then say "It was worth a try".
Then the lord and ruler of the lands Farque interrupts his two councilors who are masters of the arcane arts, and says to the elven masterthief "Keep experimenting with that".
The large, heavily armoured deathlord continues with "See how far you can go with it" followed by "It'll be useful you, Mira, Saanea and Beldane to keep in contact with one another over long distances".
"Will do" says the grandson of Prince Raendril of Laerel.
"Then maybe you can teach it to me" says the spellcaster from the city-state of Vexil, who is also a highly skilled swordmaster.
The elven master assassin looks at his fellow spellcaster, and says to him "In all seriousness, i don't think you can".
Helbe the elven thief continues with "I don't think you have the skill or ability to cast it" followed by "Infact i know you don't".
Then holding up a hand to forestall anything the mage Reinholt might say, the elven princeling tells him "It's got nothing to do with how much power you have or don't have".
The elven envoy then follows that with "You just don't have the subtlety or the skill" he then adds "As it is already, when you mindspeech with someone you shout, and you were even worse when you had all your powers".
Nodding his head, Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit says "I agree" followed by "Every time you do that to me Mira, i jump in fright because you're yelling in my mind".
The halfling, who isn't what he appears to be, adds "And it was even worse years back before you went missing, before you lost your powers".
The mage Reinholt winces, as he can't deny that. And knows his fellow councilors are correct.
He's never been subtle, as mages have no need to be. And though he's learnt to be patient, and be more creative since he lost the vast majority of his powers.
He'll never be skillful enough to learn some of the spells that Helbe the elven thief has created over the years.
The Vexilian mage in exile just nods in response to what prince Helbenthril Raendril and Jarjin Littlefoot just said.
Then he looks at the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who returns to the topic at hand.
The undead warlord gestures to the elven master assassin to turn back to the middle of the book, where there's a map of the ancient kingdom of Gilbanath across the center pages of the old leather bound book.
Tracing along the dotted line that bisects The City of Ruins, from northeast to southwest.
Roughly cutting the ancient city in two, with most of the northern half of the giant hole in the ground, being part of what once was the kingdom of Gilbanath.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque says "If we find them in the pit, it'll be up in that part of the ancient city".
Draugadrottin continues on with "They might not be there at the moment, but they will be by the time we find them".
The lord of the death realm briefly pauses, before saying "That's not what I'm worried about".
He gestures to the north of The City of Ruins on the map in the book, then says "It's up there that I'm worried about" followed by "They could be fucking anywhere up there".
"How far do you reckon that is?" asks Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit.
"I'd say nearly forty miles if you compare it to the new maps there" replies Helbe the elven thief.
The others all nod in agreement with the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel.
Then the exiled Vexilian mage says "They were right about it not being a particular big kingdom" followed by "It's more the size of a small city-state" he then adds "No wonder it's existence was short lived".
Nodding his full helmed head, the deathlord of Farque says "A lot of ancient kingdoms weren't that large".
Des'tier continues with "And the rise of the city-states has only been over the last one thousand years or so".
Pointing at the ancient kingdom of Gilbanath in the middle pages of the old leather bound book, the undead warlord says "So it's no surprise it was only so big".
Draugadrottin briefly pauses, before continuing with "Though it's still fucking big enough that we could spend ages wandering around trying to find them".
The others all nod in agreement to that, then Mira Reinholt the mage asks "So what do we do first?".
Gesturing at the map in the book that Helbe the elven thief purchased earlier this morning.
The spellcaster from the city-state of Vexil, who is also a highly skilled swordmaster says "Search down in northern half of the pit first?" followed by "Or up in the countryside to the north of The City of Ruins?".
"That's why you're all here" says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who after a brief pause, adds "To help me plan what we'll do" . . . . . .