Before continuing, Dekel took a moment to recall what he'd been saying, then resumed where he'd left off, "Eventually, the coalition arrived in the far south, at Solenn. The city itself was not unlike others in the depopulated areas, but the famous laboratory on the World's End cliff, at the end of the peninsula, was unique. As they approached, some of the mages present became agitated. They insisted that none should enter and that all mages needed to leave the vicinity immediately, but that a guard consisting of non-mages equipped with purpose-made enchanted amulets should be posted. To this day, the Solenn Guard wears those amulets and tolerates no attempts to enter or leave the facility."

He paused to let me digest what he had said. It was already clear that I needed to return urgently. None of this could be ignored. All of it was deeply, primally disturbing.

I soon broke the silence. "What made the mages agitated? Why did they need to flee?"

He shook his head. "I am sorry. If I ever knew, I cannot recall. It is simply common knowledge that mages must avoid Solenn, and especially the vicinity of the laboratory, because the enchanted amulets, like any enchanted item, work only for non-mages. No one else on the ship will know the details, either, but surely scholars would, or members of the Guard. And the Guard cannot leave, either. The amulets must be worn by someone, nearby."

After a moment, he made a suggestion. "The Guards are the martial members of our order who serve at World's End to honor the Sacrifice. They would be delighted if You visited."

I'm sure they would, and I shall need to visit for reasons more dire than a meet-and-greet anyway, as soon as I know that I am not endangered by whatever obliges the guards to wear their amulets and mages to stay clear.

Part of what Dekel had said seemed way too casual to me for how disturbing the notion was.

"What tries to leave?" I asked hesitantly.

"Ah, right, do not be troubled," he chuckled. "Rats, birds, and the like, mostly. The Guard makes no exceptions and kills on sight, without question."

My back and shoulders relaxed a bit. Finally, some good news. That was not the list of eldritch horrors that I had feared.

"And these sea monsters that attacked the ship, what makes you think they are related to Solenn?"

He turned towards me with a twinkling eye and approximated a bow, to the extent possible in our seating arrangement.

"I am intimately familiar with Your writings on Your attempts to treat the mindless, and the behavior thereof. When I saw these monsters, I saw Your words given form. They were eerily fixated on a single goal, until their minds suddenly changed as one. They made for Rokesha without acknowledging our presence, then turned to attack us as one when we were in their midst, then just as suddenly gave up the chase as we approached Your Light. Moreover, I know that the Guard constantly worries over the seaward side of the laboratory, since it is much more difficult to patrol."

He let that sit a bit before adding, "Most of all during storms."

Right. Yikes.

He took a breath and wet his mouth before finishing.

"But that is not the worst of it. They were not monsters, not exactly, in the sense that they would normally be peaceful creatures, even benevolent, unless provoked. They were storm nymphs, storm fly juveniles, a group of several hundreds. This group should have been with their parents at their age, but I did not see either. Were they also present and...in the same state, we would not have survived."

He shook off the thought. Indeed, the green magic of a single rampaging adult storm fly, millennia old and surrounded by the constantly raging winds and rain that lent the species its name, would not struggle to sink a ship of this kind. A nymph did not easily achieve the mana pool necessary to evolve into its parents' paramount form.

The Guard especially struggled to maintain patrols on the seaward side of the Solenn Laboratory during storms. Hmmm.

"Storm nymphs cast green magic, wind and water, as all know. But when these juveniles cast spells, they carried a terrible odor. As with Your writings on the mindless, I have read the accounts of Your Sister discussing the Tyrant's accursed variant of black magic. I suspect these nymphs' green magic bore the same curse. Altogether, I can come to only a single conclusion. They are somehow related to the laboratory at Solenn."

After a moment, he added, "I cannot help but worry for Rokesha. They appeared to be headed there with purpose. The juveniles could be repelled, but if the parents join..." His face was grim.

I puzzled over why the ship might have encountered the storm nymphs, but not their parents.

The nymphs might have been dispatched without their parents, but that seemed hard to justify. They could do damage, but they're no real threat to a city like Rokesha. It would be a waste of resources for dubious gain.

The adults might have been able to resist the domination process somehow, but what if they only partially resisted? Then they might be trailing behind their children, who came first.

I decided to stay optimistic, hope that the adults had been able to resist fully, and not mention my fears to Dekel.

"You did well to lead them out to sea. The city will have some time."

He perked up at that, punching his palm. "Yes, yes! There may yet be time!" He turned to look at me hopefully, and I nodded, smiling back.

"No harm can come to anyone who can see my light," I repeated. This is my role. I will embrace it.

I did not wish to spoil his newfound good spirits with another potential problem that had just occurred to me. The nymphs are headed to Rokesha, but if they came from Solenn, what might have happened to the Guard? What if that's what the parents were doing?

"How strong is the Guard at Solenn?" I asked, trying to act like it was casual curiosity.

"They are the very finest!" He went from being in better spirits, to now swelling with pride in his brethren. "It is a high honor. There are only so many amulets, and as with any enchanted item, attuning to them means that the Guards cannot use a second one simultaneously, so they can wield only unenchanted weaponry. Excellence is mandatory."

If anything, that information made me more worried. Devoted warriors would never flee, and I knew better than anyone that valor would go only so far when pitting spears and crossbows against a practical god of storms. Or two.

The world needed its 'Goddess' back badly.

I would need to stow my concerns for now. We had long since arrived at the ship. The people I could help this moment were in front of me.