A Journey in Griffonstone

by RangerOfRhudaur

Silverstream I

Sometimes, she dreamt about what it would be like to fly. Launching herself from the Tower of the Sea, she'd race the gulls, scrape the waves, and touch the clouds, soaring as fast and high as her heart wanted.

The view would be incredible; the Tower of the Sea, the Royal Palace, the Harmonizing Heights, the hills and valleys of Aris, all of them would change if she could fly. She'd see them, understand them, in a new way, a way she'd never have even thought of before, a way no one would have ever thought of before.

But for now, that was just a dream, and she simply leaned on the railing of the Tower, leaning out into the wind, the waves, and the sky. She leaned, and looked, and dreamed.

---

Her brother found her there a few minutes later, chest heaving beneath his armor. "Silver," he panted. "the others are waiting for you at the docks."

"Ohmygosh!" she squeaked in embarrassment, whipping around. "I haven't kept them waiting, have I?"

"Don't worry," he replied, waving his hand in comfort. "You've still got time. But you need to start getting over there now; they leave in less than half an hour, and the city's starting to wake up."

She nodded rapidly, then raced down the staircase past him, feet almost skipping down the well-worn sandstone steps. The world outside raced past the windows, eventually coming to a halt as she bolted out of the tower gate and entered it.

She skidded on sand for a moment before finding her footing, grabbing onto one of the walls of the Sea Cleft to stabilize herself. Once she managed to, she began briskly walking again, quickly passing through the sandy crevice and onto the lush grass of the cliffs of Aris. She followed the rolling landscape down, away from the palace on the peak and towards the docks on the beaches, racing the rising Sun down the slopes. They were treacherous, rising and dipping almost every step of the way, but she was wise to their ways; she'd grown up on these hills, she knew them like the back of her hand. Even the edge of Snarling Cove, wet with spray even a safe five strides away from the cliff itself, was no trouble for her now. A wave even kissed her good luck as she passed it by.

Soon, she reached the tree-crowned hill that she knew marked the two-thirds way down the mountain, and slacked her pace. She could afford to slow down now, and she didn't want to miss anything interesting. The world had too many people who ignored it, who didn't pay attention to its wonders, she didn't want to make that number any bigger.

A gentle breeze sifted through her hair, bearing the smell of the sea. She could almost taste the salt in the air. Faintly, the Harmonizing Heights and the Bars sang her the song of the sea. The sea, the sea, the Sea!

The Sea was everything to Mount Aris; cradle, heart, shield. Thousands, or maybe even tens of thousands, of years ago, the first Briezin saw the peak of Aris rise above the waves, and the wide array of natural harbors that lay among its foothills made sure that they and those who followed them would see it do so again and again.

The beating of the waves became the beating of Mount Aris' heart; the Sea gave them food, shelter, and their livelihood, ships as numerous as the sands on the beach coming to the harbors to trade. Mount Aris, home of a thousand wonders, became host to a million; Abyssinian jade, Oddon bronze, Cadmun iron, Labradoror woods, Groverian wheat, even treasures from Zebrica and the lands beyond all came to the mountain to trade hands.

Of course, some ships came not to trade but to raid, and those the Sea helped Aris send to its bottom. The Cadmuns had dragonfire, and the Labrodorors their engineering, but nobody knew the sea like an Arisian. Their ally had only failed them once in history, when the King of Blizzards rose up from the south and icebergs scraped the Straits, and even then it had tried to help, protecting them from above as they sheltered in the tunnels beneath the mountain.

Skystar had taken her to see the tunnels, once, and it was an experience she'd never forget; she'd felt the weight of the world above as they descended, the solid silence of the mountain giving way to the faint murmur of the Sea as the tunnels passed beneath the waves. Nobody knew where they ended, or if they did; the abyss where Skystar had had them turn back still yawned in her dreams, daring and inviting her to explore it, a call only her cousin and family had stopped her from answering.

She was near the foot of the mountain now, Sandsong distantly approaching on the beach. She peered at the docks, the wooden veins of the city, and frowned; there wasn't much blood that she could see, only a handful of fishing boats and the ship she'd soon be boarding. Granted, she was a good distance away, but her eyes were keen, and by now she would've expected to see at least one foreign flag fluttering in the sea wind. Warily now, she continued her approach.

The sand beneath her feet began to turn to wood as she reached the edge of the village, though thankfully no voices overtook the song of the sea; Auntie Novo wanted them to leave quietly, start their mission 'with as much discretion as they could,' and a crowd wouldn't make that easy. They wouldn't have to worry much, by the look of things; the streets were almost deserted, along with the harbor.

The steady cadence of an Anchor Watch patrol creaked to her left, and she almost giggled at the memories the sound conjured up. Her brother looked so proud in the picture Mom took of him joining, chest puffed up under his black-and-silver uniform so much he almost looked like a bird. Mom hadn't wanted him to join at first, not wanting to risk her precious boy getting hurt, but eventually he won her over. It hadn't been any easier to convince the recruiters to take him, but eventually he won them, too, and after a few months of hard training he won his uniform. She never saw him take it off; he was proud of his position, of his dream, and he wanted the whole world to know. And the world did know; anyone who knew about the Mount Aris Anchor Watch knew the name of Terramar, a name so honored that at least two ships had been given it after him.

But it wasn't the H.R.H. Terramar she was boarding today; no, the ship she and her family were taking was Allegiance. No Her Royal Highness'; Allegiance, like her captain, was a free player, servant of none. Auntie Novo had rescued her captain, helping lift her and her crew out of the poverty that had driven them to piracy, and in return she'd given Auntie Novo, and by extension Mount Aris, her allegiance, sometimes literally; whenever they needed a favor done, one that either the official government couldn't do, (or couldn't be seen to do,) Allegiance would fire up her engines. She helped Oddo, too, but her allegiance was first and foremost to Mount Aris, to Auntie Novo.

And to those who spoke with Auntie Novo's voice, like the ribbon she knew her mom was nervously rubbing under her cloak said she did.

She waved to them, and they gently waved back, waiting for her to cross the last strand of dock before speaking to her. She began walking over, but almost slipped as an unseasonably cold wind whipped past her. She felt herself begin to fall, but rebalanced herself in a moment, her years of practice saving her from a taste of the deep.

"Are you alright?" her mother, suddenly at her side and holding her tight, asked.

"I'm fine, Mom," she reassured her. "Just got a little taken by surprise."

"Are you sure?" her mother asked, face stern, eyes searching. "You're not just lying to make me feel better?"

"I'm sure," she giggled. "The only way I'm trying to make you feel better is by telling you the truth."

Her mom continued her search, eyes darting around like a hawk's, before eventually she closed them and sighed, "Alright. Just try to be more careful in future."

"Don't worry," she smiled back, gently grabbing and squeezing her mother's hand. "I will."

"Calm down, sweetie," her father murmured to his mate as he wandered over. "Silverstream isn't in any danger here, you don't have to worry."

"Maybe not here," Mom muttered back. "but what about on Allegiance, or in Griffonstone? Maybe it would be best if-if she stayed here."

Before she could protest, her dad took the initiative, saying, "The preparations have all been made, sweetie, we can't change them now. Besides, I thought you were the one who wanted her to come with us."

"Well," Mom stammered. "yes, but..." She trailed off, then leaned into her husband and whimpered, almost too quietly for Silverstream to hear, "I'm scared, Sky Beak."

"I know, sweetie," he replied, just at the edge of Silverstream's hearing. "I'm scared, too. But we can't let that stop us; she needs to live, not spend her whole life in a cave. We love her, it's only natural for us to be scared that something bad might happen to her, but we can't let that stop us from letting her do something if something good might happen to her."

She pretended not to see the tears as her mother cried and Dad just held her, softly humming that song he'd written for her back when they were dating. She wiped away a few tears of her own, then closed her eyes and listened, to the sound of her first memory.

Eventually, the song ended, and Dad let Mom go with one last squeeze and a kiss on the top of her head. Running his hand over his face, he softly smiled at Silverstream and asked, "Ready to go, Silver?"

Squealing in excitement, she nodded, and followed her parents down the docks towards their ship. At least, towards the ship that would take them to their real one; Allegiance would've been too noticeable in the harbor, so Auntie Novo had ordered her to wait out in the bay until a transport ship, smaller and less suspicious, could ferry them over.

So much secrecy, she wondered as Dad led them up the gangplank, and for what? What does Auntie Novo want us to keep quiet?

A memory of a glance bubbled up in her brain, a split-second look she'd gotten at Novo's orders to her parents. One word, scratched in capitals and rough ink; ATHANG. It looked like a Cadmun word, though not one she'd ever heard, not even in any of her stories. What did it mean? Why had Auntie Novo seemed so scared of it? And what did it have to do with Griffonstone?

As the gangplank lifted up and the transport's engines sparked to life, she whispered a prayer to the Sea, asking it to help Aris once more, to help all its Celestial-bordering children with... whatever it was that was giving them trouble.

Again, the unseasonable wind chilled her, while the Sea stayed silent.

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

The synopsis confuses me... When does this story take place?

[RangerOfRhudaur]

11085291
Around the same time as Search for the Truth.

Edit: I was wrong, in order for it to make anywhere near logical sense, it's happening about a week before that, so around the same time as Domesticity; by Homestrian reckoning, 8/15/532.

[FanOfMostEverything]

Soon, she reached the tree-crowned hill that she knew marked the two-thirds way down the hill

Topographically interesting hill here...

I have a few questions about the King of Blizzards, especially what stopped him in this world. But for now, I'm looking forward to seeing an aspect of this world few ever consider.

[RangerOfRhudaur]

11085660
Ooh, thanks for catching that.

Also, yeah, I'm definitely looking forward to exploring Mount Aris and Griffonstone with Silverstream. Homestria doesn't have a monopoly on interesting locales or places worthy of song; the sea-scraped cliffs of Aris, the fiery mountains of the Dragon Lands, the stony oak looming over Griffonstone, all of these are reminders that greatness and wonder are the rights of all places and all peoples, not only those we usually focus on.

[Eroraf86]

Who's this King of Blizzards? This world's version of the Windigos, or a sorcerer of some kind?

[RangerOfRhudaur]

11085942
A legend of Aris' past. When the Deep Winter descended on the world, the King of Blizzards rose up out of the south and besieged Mount Aris with his minions, fleeing when the Joyous Spring overwhelmed the cold and death. As for what he was... well, the jury's still out on that; the legends describe him as a monster, while the anthropological community mainly views him as a warlord, using the winter as cover to launch an attack against the weakened Arisians. There is no hard evidence saying that he actually existed, though, and there are some who say that he was only ever a myth.

In terms of narrative function, though, I can confirm that we won't be meeting him in the present day; his main uses were to emphasize the global nature of the Deep Winter (which I really should have named before now...) (Edit: I did, the Cold Age. This is what happens when you spread your background information out, people, you try to provide information you already did elsewhere) and to give the Arisians a reason to find the tunnels beneath the mountain.