The Fairy Diary Day 681 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Gibley left for the canyonlands on Conjil this morning. Rumble joined Dunfallon and I to bid him goodbye. The goblin had offered to accompany us on our trip, but I thanked him and released him from any obligation that he was feeling and assured him that the three of us should have no problem reaching the dwarves safely. 

Together we three had Cluyjil harnessed and prepared to go just before Merlin and Tinadell arrived. An escort of fairy troops delivered the cages with our two prisoners and tied them down into the wagon. 

The Fairy King echoed the wizard’s assurances of yesterday to me. He thinks all challenges will be laid to rest by the time of our return from Gilgorgon’s mountain. 

Merlin instructed us on how to care for and communicate with our prisoners. We are to talk with the Caretaker and not the former queen. Additional spells are weighing her down and restricting her activity and abilities. He is confident she will present no problems. 

After Dunfallon reviewed his soldier less weapons and arranged their marching order about the wagon, we set out, following behind our fairy troop escort.

We bypassed Nonin-gal-dith and took the southbound road in order to retrace the path we traveled last time. Dunfallon still believes it wise to keep the distance between the renegades and the Will’o’the Wisp. 

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The Fairy Diary Day 679 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Merlin has transferred me to the repository. I am under Tinadell’s orders to bring back the wagon and whomever and whatever I need to effect the transfer of the two prisoners to Gilgorgon’s mountain. 

The wizard then returned to the capital to be my advocate there. He explained beforehand the present circumstances to my friends here – Dunfallon, Noralei, and Gibley.  And spent some time privately encouraging me. He had long suspected that I had been human – but it is even more clear now to him that I am fully a fairy. 

I was thankful for his vote of confidence but perhaps more so for my current assigned task to keep my thoughts occupied and off that predicament. 

According to Gibley’s estimation the dragonlings are ready to assume their roles as guardians of the repository. So he asked me if he can accompany me in the wagon back to the capital and there retrieve Conjil and return to the canyonlands. I agreed but consequently had to decide to assign Noralei and Rayjil to remain in charge here for now. 

I wanted Dunfallon to join me in my assignment. So he harnessed Cluyjil to the wagon and selected a good portion of his soldier-less weapons to accompany us. 

The goblin and the pixie and I set out for the capital. 

The Fairy Diary Day 674 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Gibley invited us out of the repository to the place just outside of the gates. There he planned the fitting of igniter stones in the young dragons. The goblin had examined the pair quite minutely the night before and pronounced them both ready – their teeth are all in, and the prequisite space is available for their installation.

Merlin had the red stone for Clemjil, and for Torjil, he brought forth an exquisite purple one. A minute’s observation confirmed that each gem chose their dragon.

Gibley’s work on Clemjil was a quick and easy matter. Afterwards he assigned him to Rayjil and together the two dragons cleared some brush from around the front area. Noralei and I kept ourselves available with skins of water, just in case the burning vegetation got near the trees of the repository.

Torjil was another matter. She had watched with interest as the goblin installed the red stone into Clemjil’s jaw, but when it came her turn, she chose that moment to disappear. Both Rayjil and Clemjil scurried about trying to pin her down, but she was too quick for them.

It was the timely arrival of Dunfallon on Cluyjil that rescued us from our predicament. The frisky dragon ran into Cluyjil when (we assume) she was fleeing from the others. She reappeared as he held her fast in the coils of his tail. Dunfallon scampered to her side and whispered into her ear.

In the following lull, Gibley performed the procedure on her. We may have to keep the young dragons out in the open air tonight.

When things were settled Dunfallon told us that they had had no problem finding the remains of the High Fairy. Rumble has returned them to Nonin-gal-dith where his excellency will be memorialized tomorrow.

I shall accompany the pixie there tomorrow. The others have yet to decide if they will be going too.

The Fairy Diary Day 670 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

I was teased wherever I went today. When I passed Dunfallon on the way to the library this morning, he gave me a deep bow – and a titter. Behind him our goblin friend Gibley scraped the ground also (though for truth with his small size it was hard to discern the difference). 

I startled Rumble upon my entrance into the library. He made a hurried bow – stopped in mid movement – hesitated – then executed the lowest courtly bow I have ever witnessed. I begged my friend to desist and to never do that again, even if I were to accept the post of High Fairy. 

Afterwards I fled out of the city for a little peace of mind and paid a visit to Noralei and the dragons at the inn. There I was greeted by a sweeping bow and a wink and a smirk. She giggled, and then told me that I would make a magnificent High Fairy. Thankfully she changed the topic by pointing out her new charges. Besides Rayjil, Clemjil and Cluyjil she was now looking after Conjil and Torjil too. Gibley had  brought Torjil with him from the canyonlands. She is to be Clemjil’s consort upon his installation as guardian of the Crack of Doom at the repository. 

By evening, the jibes were past and our regular comradery resumed. Merlin shared the news out of the palace. Tomorrow the trial of her former majesty and the Caretaker will commence.

The Fairy Diary Day 669 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

The dinner given by Tinadell was small and intimate – only we three fairies and Merlin. For a reason that only became clear later, I was seated in the place of honor. 

After the meal was served and eaten, instead of talking about the obvious thing – the impending trial, Tinadell questioned each of us in turn about our recent adventures. Our king was singularly focused on asking Rumble and Noralei and Merlin about my conduct. 

It was a little embarrassing. I interjected praise for my companions at each and every opportunity to deflect from the discomfort of being in the spotlight. 

This morning I was hopeful that it would all be forgotten. And with the return of Dunfallon and Gibley, I felt reasonably certain that my notoriety of the evening before would soon be overshadowed by their fresh accomplishments. 

It was not to be. 

I was present when Tinadell received them. Again, the king turned his questions around to their estimations concerning my actions. I do believe that Merlin took much satisfaction in my discomfort. 

Before the pixie and the goblin departed to their quarters, Dunfallon presented to Tinadell the scroll of the High Fairy by which he communicated with me. The fairy king had asked the pixie to retrieve it from Emminie on the way back to the capital. 

Once Tinadell was alone with Merlin and me, the fairy king asked me point blank if I would accept the post of High Fairy. 

I was flummoxed and at a loss for words. I could only stammer out a reply that I needed time to consider his kind offer. 

Tinadell understood and granted me until after the trial to give my answer. 

The Fairy Diary Day 668 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Screeching became howling from our prisoner’s cages as we reached the last stretch to the capital. Already they were under the weight of impending judgment. I almost pitied them.

Merlin waited at the gates to the inn where the dragons and the wagon will be housed, and was first to receive us. Noralei remained behind to see to the needs of her charges. The wizard took a cage in each hand and led Rumble and me to the gates of the capital. Rumble supervised several fairy soldiers who carried the two boxes of scrolls. 

Just within the city gates, Tinadell stood to greet us. This encounter wrung another cry of despair from within the cages. Merlin handed over the prisoners to a phalanx of dungeon guards who whisked them away from our presence.

The fairy king himself ushered us up to the library where the boxes of evidence were deposited. There Tinadell extended an invitation to us to join him for dinner. Before he departed I asked him to send the same invitation down to Noralei. To this he said he would do so personally.

Merlin and I left Rumble to work on arranging the scrolls. As Dunfallon had not been on hand to meet us, I assumed the wizard had agreed with my request. He confirmed to me that the pixie had been sent to the canyonlands – not only to bring Gibley back to help with Clemjil – but also to have the goblin on hand as a possible witness in the trial.

This idea gave me pause. I said to him that that would mean all of us could be potential witnesses. The wizard only arched an eyebrow to my comment, and I knew that he definitely was being called as a witness.

The Fairy Diary Day 667 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Even though Rumble went out early to collect the last of the evidence and returned in a short time, he insisted that it be put in boxes for safe keeping before we left. And that put us behind again while Noralei and Dunfallon constructed two large crates for the scrolls, and then placed them in the wagon. That last step did not prove too difficult as they took the place of a good deal of the supplies that we no longer need to carry. 

When Dunfallon finished with his part of that task, I sent him on to the capital on Cluyjil to confer with Merlin. In particular I wanted to know if Gibley had been sent for. And if not, did the wizard think it a good idea for Dunfallon to fly to the canyonlands to ask the goblin to come and help us with Clemjil. 

I did not have to ask the pixie twice and he was off before Noralei harnessed Rayjil to the wagon. 

With fairy troops before and after and Dunfallon’s army hemming us in, we set out too. I verily believe that everyone in Nonin-gal-dith turned out to gawk as we passed. 

There was audible grumbling in a couple instances, but no overt actions were launched against us. 

All was calm once we were out in the fields. And continued thus for the remainder of the day until we reached a place in the open where an advance contingent from our guard had prepared a camp for us. 

Here we will pass the night. Our prisoners are quiet – subdued actually. 

I will be glad to reach the capital tomorrow. 

The Fairy Diary Day 642 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

We sailed our way out of the narrow straits and into the open sea.  No one minded at all leaving that string of islands behind. 

Rumble and I kept up our duties about the ship. Merlin joined one or the other of us as the need arose, and even took a watch himself. But he never climbed the rigging. He had his own way of making the sails bend to his will. 

Our dragon riders continued to take turns dropping in. When it came Gibley’s turn he asked us if we could do without his presence. He thought that he and Conjil would forgo accompanying us all the way to Corbelin since it seemed their being here was rather superfluous. As for Clemjil, the goblin decided not to take the young dragon with him. After all he had been released by his uncle to be a protector of the bell in the repository. Merlin concurred and we assembled to bid our friend a fond farewell. 

Gibley flew by Dunfallon and Noralei to say goodbye before he and Conjil left for the east and the canyonlands. 

The sun was just going down as I came up for my watch when Nora hailed me from over the ship’s side. He barely could get the words out as he excitedly reported that one of the prisoners was trying to escape. 

I leaned over the rail and saw that the Caretaker has hanging halfway out – caught in the porthole three sizes too small for him. For five wingbeats I considered leaving him there, but when Merlin checked on him, he yanked him back inside the cabin and sealed the porthole. 

I made sure the renegade queen was still under lock and spell before returning to my watch. 

The Fairy Diary Day 641 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

In his turn to drop down on the ship with his dragon, Dunfallon came over to tell me that the voice from his ring was alerting him to danger ahead. And so it proved when we arrived at the edge where the channel flows down to our world. 

It was so much more daunting looking down from this height to where we have to go than when we were coming up. Merlin gave us permission to move the harness attachment from the bow back to the stern so that Gibley and Conjil could control somewhat our rate of descent through the deluge. 

We heard the roar of the cataracts well before we reached the downspout. Noralei dropped down to report in her turn that the way was clear ahead – so we summoned Gibley down with Conjil and after harnessing her to the ship we ventured into the water course. All was fine at the start, but things soon had us shaken – for the ship began to swing side to side. With Merlin’s help we threw a rope to Dunfallon and together the pixie and the goblin on their dragons stabilized the ship. 

It was quite a ride to the bottom. Nora was the only one to thoroughly enjoy it. 

Thankfully after a brief turn at the pumps we were again on our way. 

The Fairy Diary Day 636 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Merlin assigned Clemjil for my use in liaison with the others. I took him to Noralei to fit him up with a pair of ear shields – as the wizard said he would need them. I believe the little fellow remembered me and was excited to be out stretching his wings. He definitely knew Dunfallon who stopped by to scratch behind his ears – whisper to him – and gently placed the devices on him. 

First I flew him out to the furthest away of our forces – Captain Goff and his ship. There I informed them that Merlin has seen the two dragons with one figure on each and expects we would encounter them before the day closes. And in addition to that  – a swarm of blue fairies follow behind at a great distance. 

Rumble had some information for me. His prisoner, the Caretaker, had let slip that besides the queen on one dragon, the King of the Frost Fairies would be on the other – said to be a most formidable fairy. 

Next, I took this news up to Gibley circling above on Conjil, and to prepare them for our defense. I intended to return to the tower and make one more round of my charges, but Gibley cried out that he saw two spots in the distance. 

Conjil went transparent at the goblin’s urging and my mount followed his senior’s example. Thus, instead of spots, we were mere specks. We then flew higher. 

We watched as the approaching dragons and their riders honed in on the ship and dived on it. Before I knew it, we were streaking after them. 

Before the dragons could spew fire on our ship, two things happened. Gibley ducked under a vicious backslash executed by the blue fairy king and launched himself at his attacker and in one gulp devoured him and commandeered his dragon. And at the same instant the two unshielded dragons reacted to the sounding of the Crack of Doom. I had been waiting for this, knowing that Merlin was waiting in the tower – watching via the seers stone. 

The renegade queen tumbled off of Rayjil and did not fly off under her own power. I saw her hit the water and disappear under the surge that characterizes this sea. 

I looked for her myself – unsuccessfully- before turning the task over to Captain Goff and Rumble. 

I returned to the island and joined the celebration as Cluyjil was reunited with Merlin and Rayjil with Noralei.