With promises from Cecile and a fragile friendship with the dwarves, Jarvis invites King Gilras and his most skilled warriors to a feast. While the settlement enjoys the dwarven ale and waits for the meal, Jarvis pulls the king aside for a candid conversation rooted in the logs from the previous human expedition. As the line between survival and discovery grows dangerously thin, the shadows of a forgotten enemy stir, thanks to the digital pages from Tarian’s writings. The uneasy alliance between humans and dwarves will soon be tested, not by open battle, but by the haunting vespers of history threatening to repeat itself.
In a land shaped by magic, strange creatures, and uncertain futures, even the most calculated plans can be undone in a heartbeat. Now, with scarce resources, an old foe appears to be emerging. The leaders must navigate the fine line between caution and courage before their choice is stripped away altogether. Will cooperation prevail? Or will their fragile bond fracture beneath the weight of this unknown enemy?
“There’s some information about my father in here,” Gilras said, sliding the tablet across the table. As Jarvis collected it, the king leaned back, grabbing his drink. “While most of those stories don’t concern me or my father, I found it all extremely interesting.”
Jarvis tossed the device onto the desk. Leaning against his chair, he asked, “Have your people ever encountered the shifters from Tarian’s logs?”
With a hearty laugh, Gilras lifted his goblet and peered inside. His eyes sank as his lips turned into a frown. He laid the cup down and jerked his thumb towards the door. “Can we move this conversation back to the banquet hall?”
A curse slipped through Jarvis’s mouth as he buried his face in a palm. He grabbed his tankard and poured the amber liquid into Gilras’s empty mug. The moment he finished, he thumped his now empty mug on the desk and retrieved the tablet. “We have things to discuss before we return to the festivities.”
“The shapeshifters from Tarian’s logs?”
Jarvis nodded, sliding the tablet to the edge of the table. “You’d think with creatures like those descried in here, this planet couldn’t surprise me anymore. But they still do.”
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