A Pixie Tale Day 356 #TFDbyRWOz2

Dunfallon writes:

Meribabell made me write down my story in his journal. I much better prefer telling it to writing it – especially as I can not include the music I played on my harp to accompany the tale. (Besides I find it annoying that Rumble stands over me correcting my pictagrams). 

But here goes. 

It all began back at the time Artoxon’s dwarves were reclaiming their city. 

It seems rewards were flowing to everyone. And I admit I was a bit sad that nothing was coming my way. Not that I was expecting anything. I am sure no one was. But once the dwarves started handing out rewards I could not help but think – where is mine? I did not say so outloud – but Fliget could tell something was off just by looking at me. 

It was after I helped him by handing out all those sacks of gold to the Dromadil pixies, he came up to me and with a flourish presented this marvelous harp to me. I was embarrassed for the attention – and perhaps for what I did next. I asked to speak to Fliget alone and then and there I asked boldly if I might have a sack of gold too – (after explaining the debt I owed to some humans for the loss of some livestock). 

He surprised me and gave me two. 

Then and there I knew I needed to make good on my debt as soon as possible. And I felt one bag would cover it. 

So when I left from the stronghold on my eagle to fly to Merlin’s castle, I took my instructions to heart and extended my search for Willie all the way up to Nimrood’s kingdom – then just a bit farther to Cawthrup’s homestead and there paid the debt for my part in the loss of his lambs. 

And I did not see Willie anywhere thereabouts – so I think we can rule out the human kingdom. 

But while with Cawthrup, one of his goats came over to greet me. It was MY mountain goat!!

Cawthrup bought him off of an itinerant herdsman some time ago. 

I immediately gave him my other bag of gold – firstly, to reimburse him and secondly, to hire one of his sons to transport my goat to Gilgorgon’s mountain. I am not willing to trust the fairies of the pasture near Nonin-gal-dith again. 

Satisfied with their promises that they would fulfill my wishes, I was about to depart, but Cawthrup tried to dissuade me on account of dragon sightings in the area at that time of day. 

I should have listened. 

No sooner had we taken off than a dragon came snaking after us in the sky. My eagle dropped like a stone and I held on for dear life. Before I knew it the dragon was making another attempt on us. But I had sufficiently gained enough control to put my eagle into a corkscrew spin. And in the dragon’s haste to follow us it tied its neck into a knot and broke off its pursuit to disentangle itself. 

I know this all sounds fantastic but it is all absolutely true. 

And just wait until I tell about my recent encounter with Willie.

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The Fairy Diary Day 191 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

I was wakened out of a sound sleep in the middle of the night. A voice was telling me to arise and depart. I looked around but no one was there. 

I got up just to be sure and walked around. Still nothing to see. Dunfallon was on watch, but  took one look my way, shrugged his shoulders and turned back to his oversight. 

I never did get back to sleep, but at least the voices stopped. 

Then this morning – a curious thing – both Rumble and Noralei reported dreams in which something was telling them to get out. To Rumble it appeared to be a snake hissing; to Noralei a dragon whispering. In neither case was it enough to wake them, but they did remember what they thought had happened. They did not feel threatened but rather warned. 

Before setting out I checked my scroll. There was a message waiting there for me from the High Fairy. 

He has returned to Nonin-gal-dith. And has just finished weeding out whole fields of the suspicious plants. And at the foot of his note he related a rumor that dragons have been spotted in the lands beyond Nimrood’s kingdom. 

Not the type of news we wanted to hear on the heels of our night of voices and dreams.

The Fairy Diary Day 182 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

The High Fairy kept vigil with Merlin the night through while they consulted his seer’s stone. Together they came to the conclusion that the same force allowing the adversary access to the wizard’s castle was also blocking all views of that speck on the horizon. 

They are most alarmed. 

The High Fairy uncovered the same phenomenon back in Nonin-gal-dith. Yet he never located any agent responsible. 

Rumble and Dunfallon remain deep in the library with as of yet nothing of substance to report. 

Noralei and I lent a hand wherever we could. We feel quite useless otherwise. 

I caught the High Fairy later in the evening and asked after Nimrood and his kingdom. He told me that the situation was settling – with most of the refugees now returned to their farms and villages. Yet there are those few who have not. 

However he added that concerns were growing in the capital of the Faerie Kingdom. The queen has asked him to send our group to her. 

We agreed that we face a dilemma as to which will be the best course of action. 

The Fairy Diary Day 175 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Before settling in last night I wrote out a new message to the High Fairy, asking his advice in this situation. I felt so uneasy about those who will not return to their farms. Yet who am I to oppose them? Nimrood had not included a command to do so in his proclamation. Just a notice that all was now safe to return. 

I must resolve this soon for as Merlin has been so clear our presence is required elsewhere. 

I was so glad and relieved to receive an answer from his excellency this morning. 

He stated that since we are not their rulers we are safe to allow them to choose their course. Yet he cryptically added that I must warn them that there will be consequences in the near future and they will be forced to return. 

I was on my way to relay this message to Cawthrup when an uproar broke out among the humans. 

As their agitation died down I was able to learn that someone or something had rounded up all their livestock and took them away. 

I felt thwarted all over again as I felt I could not give them the other message in this instance. Instead I offered to help them recover their animals.

The Fairy Diary Day 174 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Noralei knew all the passwords, signs and countersigns employed by Caywyn’s clan. And that secured the audience we needed in which we presented Nimrood’s proclamation. 

Cawthrup is the leader’s name and he accepted us readily, or so we thought. 

He put a call out around to his people and invited us to stay in the nearby woodlands while they gathered, reasoning that we would be more at home in their confines. 

Rumble and Dunfallon accepted the offer without a second thought. But Noralei and I were uneasy with that arrangement. She did wring from him a promise to keep all iron weapons, and even iron farm implements far away from us. (And she took the added precaution of erecting the protective barrier around us for the night).

Thus we passed it peacefully and thankfully our reception with the humans this morning went smoothly.  Most of them were glad for the news that they may return to their farms. But there were a few others, including Cawthrup who desire to stay on their new lands. 

What does that mean for our mission?

The Fairy Diary Day 173 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

Rumble was the first to notice the change in the landscape ahead and drew our attention to the patches of brown earth that dotted the far side of the plain. 

We had found some refugees. 

Now how best to inform them of the change back in their homeland. 

We had the proclamation from Nimrood but would they accept it from us? Would they even let us come close? None may ever have encountered fairies or pixies before. And they might be armed with iron weapons. 

We pressed onwards and set our sights on the closest and smallest cleared field. It seemed the safest course. 

As we neared we made out a family busy outside. A flag flew atop of their simple hovel. 

Taking one look at it Noralei became excited. 

“I know that flag,” she said. “And now I know why the High Fairy insisted that I come with you.”

The flag was that of Caywyn’s family and clan and Noralei knew exactly how to approach them. 

That is what she did and how we met the leader of the refugees.

The Fairy Diary Day 155 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

We bid adieu to Caywyn this morning. He was anxious to get back to his post and to find out if his men there were experiencing any problems due to the enemy’s retreat. Noralei asked permission to join him. To this we reluctantly agreed, but only because the rest of us thought we would soon follow.  

While waiting for instructions from the High Fairy as to our next actions we took our ease. Nimrood wanted to stage another celebration but we prevailed upon him to wait for things to return to normal first. 

Encouraged by Noralei‘s example, Dunfallon put in a request to accompany Geog and Grimace back to their home. I was not keen on him leaving us too until I heard that many of the farmers in the area had fled into that territory. Then, I knew what I had to do – I put it to the king that we would be glad to carry the tidings to his people up there that it was safe to return to their farmsteads.

No need to ask the High Fairy. It was the right thing to do. 

The Fairy Diary Day 153 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

This has been the longest battle I’ve ever experienced – stretching from yesterday through the night – and ending only this afternoon. 

According to Caywyn the tactics employed by the trolls have never been seen before. 

First, they launched wolves over the walls to raise havoc within. A none too smart tactic as sometimes the wolves were seriously injured. Consequently Nimrood’s forces led by Caywyn easily dispatched the survivors of the first wave. 

And all praise to Rumble the second and successive waves were thwarted by his surprise reappearance leading a band of local fairies. They filled the air above the wall creating a protective spell that propelled the flying wolves back whence they came. 

Then during the night the trolls substituted fireballs for the wolves and pressed their attack in that fashion. Our aerial enchanted net held with the powerful aid of the High Fairy who arrived unannounced to lead Rumble and his troops. Thankfully his excellency was on hand to heal those fairies whose wings were singed. 

And Noralei and I met the last assault aimed against the gates themselves. A handful of trolls penetrated the outer defenses and hacked away at the gates. She and I dispatched one and just when I thought the others were going to overwhelm us Dunfallon astride his eagle seemingly attacked from all sides at once and Geog and Gimace pounded the survivors. 

Within moments a great cry arose from the troll camps as a great ring of Fire consumed them. 

Something caught my eye on the next battlement over. I turned and saw Merlin standing there with arms upraised. 

The Fairy Diary Day 151 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

After our long discussion last night Nimrood agreed to my proposal of laying the whole matter before the High Fairy. I vouched for the close relationship that his excellency has with the wizard. If anyone, he would know what needs to be done to save our kingdoms. 

And I convinced the king that our pixie and our trolls might just be where they need to be for the outcome we desire. I put that question to the High Fairy also. 

So now we wait, a hard thing for Nimrood to do. The king took Caywyn with him to inspect the fortifications. Noralei asked to go along – for which I gave the go ahead. I am confident she can give them valuable advice. 

Rumble and I were shown to a room where we will await the High Fairy’s reply. The room is that of a human child’s, given to us in respect for our small size. It has had a strange effect on my companion. It has made Rumble homesick for Nonin-gal-dith. 

My thoughts were filled up with how we can help to protect the two kingdoms.

The Fairy Diary Day 150 #TFDbyRWOz2

Meribabell writes:

This morning was a serious contrast to last night as the king enumerated the dire circumstances confronting his kingdom. Chief of which was the crisis created by the surrounding farm lands being laid waste by the troll army. He has food enough for only one month. 

Nimrood is hoping that our presence will prove the decisive factor to turn the tide against the invaders. 

Months ago he had been told by Merlin himself about the arrival of our party. Then he fixed us with that one eye and asked what had happened to our pixie. 

He is convinced that our entire group must be intact for the prophesy to come to pass. 

Caywyn helped me explain the situation regarding Dunfallon and the troll brothers.