Knight Quests: Guard [Legendseekers, MOX-994]

After the retrieval of the mysterious shards from the pool of the Selune Woods, Troia and Pantalaimon returned to Moonreach to turn them in to the royal researchers for investigation. That very day Pantalaimon panicked when Troia plunged under the water as her Sunchaser Amulet guided her down into the depths, with the fog obscuring their view of what was happening. Once she had reemerged to the surface- drenched and cold but otherwise fine- they examined the pieces, with Pantalaimon's ears and tail quivering pensively and Troia too soaked to . Neither of them had quite seen anything like what laid before them as the shards glistened underneath the moonlight. Troia thought that if she squinted hard enough, she could see something on the surface of each shard that she could not quite describe, but she felt unsure of how to express it to Pantalaimon.

While in Moonreach, they meet up with several other Knight xyns that have also uncovered shattered pieces to speculate on what they were and what could have possibly happened to them.

Pantalaimon notices that Troia seems more determined than before to discover what is happening- they sense it from the urgency of her voice, the alertness of her posture, and the intensity of her silence, lost in thought, even when she does not outwardly express it in more a obvious manner to others. The recent waves of corruption cases and the desperation of the populace are clearly affecting her…

—

Today, Troia's captain is deploying her unit of lesser Royal Knights, together with other captains rallying their own Royal Knights and Fighters, to guard the city of Wingfell from a growing horde of corrupted xyns. Before departing from Moonreach, Pantalaimon greets her to wish her well- offering her a second gift wrapped up in a small satchel. If her family won’t do the same, Pantalaimon figured, they should for her sake. Pantalaimon would have accompaned her if it wasn’t unsafe for them to fly there- they especially loved the tranquility and natural beauty of Wingfell.

Troia accepts the gift, but doesn’t open it. Instead she briefly thanks them, saying goodbye before flying off to join her unit of Royal Knights. Pantalaimon waves goodbye to her. Once she is out of sight, Pantalaimon looks away and sighs. Troia has shown herself to be an especially resilient and fearless fighter, but with the rising desperation of the populace to survive the waning of the moons, they can’t help but worry that something may go wrong… resuming their joblessness after completing their round of news reporting for the Lenlong Parade is the least of their worries now.

—

Troia safely arrives in Wingfell’s city, and one by one, her fellow Royal Knights and Fighters land together with her. Soon enough a few teams of Mender and Healer Xyns with lesser Lullay Knights, along with their respective Lullay Captains, begin to arrive as well. 

The once tranquil city is now eerily silent. Many of the resident xyns in Wingfell have hidden themselves away safely in their homes- they fear for their lives if a single Corrupted xyn comes across them. Few locals roam the streets now. Those that are currently outdoors immediately rush to the Royal Knights and their Captains to thank them for their assistance and provide them information about what is happening with the number of Corrupted xyns, before running off to their homes. 

Troia surveys- and one pale, unicorn-like xyn that has arrived with the Menders catches her eye. Her own eyes widen beneath her mask. It couldn’t be… her estranged sibling Athens was here.

Athens notices Troia, and steps forward to call out to her warmly, hopeful that she will respond- but Troia immediately turns her back to Athens, gritting her fangs. Athens had always been painful for her to see since the day that their shared father died to corruption when they were kits; no matter how warmly Athens always tried to call her to his side and comfort her. If their father died so easily to corruption, she should not become attached to Athens if the same fate ever befell him too- and what would become of Troia if she became corrupted just like them? That was what her mother and her mother’s side of family had always told her, at least…

Someone shouts an alarm call- a group of Corrupted residents of Wingfell have arrived here after prowling through the local forests for victims to siphon magic off of. Troia grits her fangs again and readies herself together with the Royal and Lullay knights to confront them. Somehow, Athens has snuck up to her side- she gives her a wink and with a brief flash of magic from her unicorn horn, enchants Troia’s body with a protection spell to ward off the effects of corruption. Troia says nothing to Athens. Seconds later, Troia’s captain cries out the command to physically subdue the first wave of corrupted xyns- and she sprints together with her Royal Knight group to fight them face to face…