My eyes flutter open, finding all the familiar trappings of my palace home. Not the outside, not the siege and not my tent in the field. Home, I'm home again. All wrapped up, warm and comfortable.
I am alive, and my kingdom is safe. I'm already on my back, in soft silken sheets and the finest feather pillows about me. And yet, I'm calming down even more now. It's all coming out of me like a gentle wheeze, and there's no one to fluff me back full of stress.
"Nin..." I breathe, scooting up along the mountain of pillows at my back so I can get a better view of what I am already familiar with. While it wasn't long by any means, all that worrying and stress. Sweat and muck. All of it made sleeping an uncomfortable experience. And yet, now, I'm clean. I've been washed and bathed, and I'm in a fine bed.
I remember being out there, fighting Alxxcron, and then Nin defeated him. He came to me, saving my life from the oncoming death I was readying myself for. He saved me from it. He gave me some of his magic to heal me up and some good rest has helped with the rest of it.
I'll certainly have to make a point of using my chamber at some point. Restore my magic to its proper levels if this additional grogginess really is that. But at the same time, now that Nin is sorted... I need to make sure my observatory is properly put back in order.
I have a lot to do, actually. I've got a kingdom to run, an army to dismantle if there's anyone left of it. What parts of my kingdom were lost need to be repaired, too. Who knows how many problems this Crack in the Sky has caused?
It will all fall on me, as it does with every problem, and that is my responsibility. I will not run from it. I will face it as I always do. But honestly, gods and goddesses above, this is far from what I normally have to do. Charity work is one thing, but a full-on refugee crisis is something else.
A heavy sigh blows out my nostrils, and a prior thought repeats on me, coming out as a burp of the same kind might, "Gods and goddesses above..."
Today's a busy day. In fact, it's such a busy day that I'm almost tempted to hold off on any work just to make sure my mood improves. Perhaps a party? Perhaps I should call for the city to host a victory party? The occasion is certainly there, and I will be able to certainly peel what I need from the nobles.
It gives the peasantry a moment of relaxation, too. Especially those who have lost so much since the osibindah attacked us. Whatever can be spared will be given to those on watch. Or I will rotate them out and reward them later? Oh, I have plenty of time to figure out the details.
Flicking my hands at my thoughts, I get up out of bed. My hands slip through my gown, and I tie the belt loosely enough to hold, but not so much as to clamp down on my gut. My feet walk half-way into my slippers and I shuffle on over to the lightest curtain. Pulling the embroidered cloth aside, I look out across the morning light as it shines on my city.
I don't have a view of where the Crack in the Sky is, but perhaps that is for the best. I saw enough and felt enough when it comes to Nin's power. He simply had no other choice if he wanted to stop Alxxcron. Still, if something like him comes here again and Nin is gone and Daddy is not here...
"I need to keep Nin occupied, at least for a reasonable amount of time." I mutter, knowing that my conscience will certainly enjoy him being around for a while longer. The heart is a fragile thing, as is the mind, and the less weight on the both of them the better.
I'm sure he will stay either way, who doesn't enjoy a good party of such scale as this one will be? There's places to mingle if one enjoys the company or hogs the attention. There're corners to comfortably sit if one simply wishes to enjoy the music, activities or shows. It won't be anything planned or anticipated, but there will be fun and games. As any true party should.
Still... I'm glad. I'm glad there is a kingdom left to party in. While the siege was one thing, the worries it gave were something else. I did battle against the osibindah for a bit over a week. We were winning and holding our ground. We beat back the monsters and saved who we could. Then the leader came into play, Earth Shaman Alxxcron.
Whatever he was talking about has slipped my mind, it doesn't matter now. But again, he was here for Nin. Mm. What a strange thing to be here for, and I do not know why at all.
I can't really let it slide either way, Nin might lie, he might tell the truth. Either or, he's perhaps responsible for the loss of so many lives, and I need an explanation. When the appropriate time will be, I can't entirely tell. This is a delicate situation, and at the same time, it's not. Nin's shown himself to be strong under a critiquing eye, and I have doubts about other things.
"I suppose we will see." I let out, turning towards my nearest house bell. Making the journey over, I pull on the delicate thing and smile at the comfortable sound. Someone is on their way to tend to my needs, and I don't have to do a thing! A comfort not at all afforded to me in the field and within a siege-centric war tent!
The door to my room opens quickly, and in pops the well-prepared head of a servant, a pretty girl with a pretty smile on her face.