A change of tactics

By the time you get back, most everyone has scattered to rest, find supplies, or simply wander a bit. You do find Alex having a quiet conversation with Addie, and the glances and giggles you get when you walk in are both worrying and intriguing. You also see Melora sitting and looking out a window, sipping on a drink.

You sit down with her, and she smiles. Ferra joins you, and Melora smiles at her as well. “That didn’t take very long. Find out anything interesting?”

You shrug. “About what I expected, really. But my conversations got me thinking that maybe we need a different strategy.”

You explain your thoughts to Melora, and she listens intently. Finally, she nods. “I agree with all of that, but how do we fix it? Anything we do is stymied for the reasons you mentioned. Even our success at raiding by sea led to your capture.”

You sigh. “It’s tough, but there has to be a way. There have to be nobles sympathetic to the people, right? Hell, even among the council we know that Kaeli is somewhat on our side. I imagine that without the corruption, Victoria would turn as well.”

Ferra speaks up. “It seems like that’s the heart of the problem. As long as the corruption exists, fear and power will keep people in line.”

Melora nods. “I agree. Remove the corruption and the other problems begin to resolve. But you’re asking the impossible with that.”

You shake your head. “I don’t think so. Sarah is immune. I have reason to believe that I am as well. It’s magical, a curse of some kind, there has to be a way to end it.”

Melora raises an eyebrow. “The Great One couldn’t. He sent his children away to avoid it, and now it’s rotted his mind. If it’s powerful enough to do that, what chance do we have?”

You sigh. “I don’t know. But there’s always a way. We’re not going to solve this right now, but I want to look into it. Which leads me to my next point.”

Melora looks at you curiously as you continue. “We need to come out of hiding. At least somewhat.”

She shakes her head. “That’s insane! Staying hidden is all that keeps the Order off of us.”

You nod. “It’s also a slow ****. They’ll find us eventually. I’m not saying we should stand on the street and shout ‘Here we are!’, I’m saying we need to get back closer to civilization.”

Ferra interjects. “Out in the wilderness we’re safe, but we accomplish little.”

You continue. “We have to start making progress, and finding information on the origin of the corruption is important. There HAS to be a record somewhere. So we need to get closer to the heart of things.”

Melora is quiet for a moment, then smiles. “You might be a little bit crazy yourself, you know that? But you’re making some sense, too. You know this could go horribly, right?”

You chuckle. “If I wanted a quiet life, I never would have gotten on the boat and come here. And I never would have met you girls.”

You reach out and take her hand, smiling.