Peek: Yenlarn (Patreon)

Life has never been especially kind to Yenlarn.  The young merman hardly remembers his mother or his sister, though his father speaks of them often enough.  He misses them, like a piece of himself that is simply gone, with only the vaguest idea of what is actually lost.

When the Captain threw his father in the brig, he was worried he may have lost him, too.  His father had been acting strangely recently, though he'd wave it off whenever Yenlarn would try to bring it up.  He was worried his father didn't trust him enough to let him know what he was doing, but after he returned from the hunt and was thrown in the brig, he realized the truth: his father was protecting him.

He's still upset at his father, and would gladly sit in the brig alongside him, or in place of him, but he can't blame him too hard.  Besides, if they were both in the brig, who would feed Whitecap?

In fact, he was doing just that when the First Mate started bellowing.  "All dwellers to the enclave!  Now!"  He briefly considers pretending to not hear, since his head is out of the water... but the Voice's tone is something he hasn't heard before.  She's yelled before, or simply spoken louder, but this has an urgency to it he hasn't heard before.

He tosses Whitecap the last of the small fish and dives back under the waves, swimming back to the enclave as fast as his flipper can carry him.  He stops for a moment as he sees a small reef of coral starting to shrink, dumbfounded as to what could cause something like that.  He shakes his head and redoubles his speed to the enclave, worrying for the Captain, as well as for his father.

Once back, he sees the other merfolk in a tizzy, with the First Mate nowhere to be seen.  As he tries to figure out what's going on, he notices he's captured the attention of Klyrnev.  They're about the same age, and though he wouldn't cay they're friends, they get along well enough, generally.  His peer quickly swims over to Yenlarn and grabs his shoulders.

"Yenlarn!  Do you know where Yendo is!?"

The merman blinks for a moment, before replying.  "...In the brig?"

Klyrnev deflates as Yenlarn unknowingly pops his hope, and shakes his head.  "No, he's not, and that's the problem.  The First Mate says Neverrest has somehow kidnapped him.  That's why she called everyone back to the enclave, so nobody else could be taken."

Yenlarn tries to process that.  "But... how?"

Klyrnev throws up his hands in frustration.  "Nobody knows!  All we know is this is bad.  The elders are saying there's something in the currents, that it feels like the aftermath of The Tragedy."

Yenlarn's eyes widen at that.  While everyone felt the effects of The Tragedy, only a few of the enclave lost family in it, like Yenlarn and Yendo.  The image of the shrinking coral flashes through his mind, though he keeps it to himself for now, not wanting to worry anyone else.

"Is there anything we can do?"

Klyrnev nods.  "Some of us are going to raid the armory.  We won't disobey the Captain and swim out, but we can at least be a last line of defense for the core!"

Before Yenlarn can reply, a gasp rises from the gathered merfolk.  Looking around, it seems his decision to hold back the shrinking coral is moot, as the various features visible outside the enclave start shrinking.

"Don't worry, the Captain has a plan," comes the shout of the First Mate.  It staves off panic, but every merfolk gathered knows something terrible is happening.  Most head inside, but a few others swim up to Klyrnev and Yenlarn, aware of the former's plan, and seeming to wish to join it.  Klyrnev nods at them, and motions for everyone to follow.

Yenlarn isn't sure he wishes to join them... but follows anyway.  If Neverrest has somehow kidnapped his father, he can't just stand aside.  Something tells him there's more to it than that, but he doesn't have any reason to not follow his peers.

While there are guards at the armory, they don't stop the young merfolk from arming and armoring up.  Whether they agree with the plan, or just can't bring themselves to interfere, Yenlarn can't spare much thought to it.  He needs to get this armor on properly, as do the others.

None of it fits quite right, but it's surely better than nothing, right?  They swim out to float near the entrance to the enclave, forced to look out into a desolate harbor and worry.  It's a relief when they see the First Mate, but that relief is dashed as they see the others with her: a lich, an elemental... and Yendo.

The Voice speaks, and confirms their fears: The Captain has lost.  Klyrnev blames Yendo, and even tries to kill him, but is stopped by the lich.  Yenlarn can only watch as the trident is stopped with contemptible ease, the lich not even bothering to cast anything to achieve it.

While the other merfolk watch, the enemy scions continue towards where the Captain's core is.  Yenlarn is surprised when his father pulls him aside and embraces him for a moment.

"Son, You're safe!"

"What... happened?" the younger asks, utterly bewildered by everything.  "You get thrown in the brig, then kidnapped, then you come in with those other scions... did you betray the Captain?" he asks, unable to believe it, but unable to think of any other explanation.

His father shakes his head.  "I would never betray the Captain, son.  You and the other youngers have never known him from before The Tragedy, but... it broke him.  I've told you before, but it's not just something that can be said, it has to be seen.  The Captain's been broken, and nobody could help him.  I sent a message to the Dungeoneers, unable to think of anything else I could do.  He's been starving, but refusing to seek a solution.  He was going to starve himself because he thought that was all he could do."

Yenlarn wants to argue, but stays quiet.  He's seen the corals and reefs slowly fade, but he never thought it was anything unusual until he saw one diminish before his eyes.

"The Dungeoneers asked Thedeim to help, and he has been."

"Thedeim?"

Yendo nods.  "It's not Neverrest, but Thedeim.  Thedeim subsumed Neverrest, just like Whitecap said!  He's going to help the Captain, I know it!"

"But... can he?" asks Yenlarn, his eyes flicking towards the desolation beyond the walls of the enclave.  "The Captain did... something.  A lot is just gone..."

His father's eyes follows his, and he hesitates before replying.  "I... I don't know.  Thedeim's Voice didn't sound like it was irreversible, but the Captain has hurt himself so much..." he admits, looking out with his son at his side.

"Is it... is it like The Tragedy?" the younger hesitantly asks, not wanting to dredge up the pain for his father, but needing to know.

Yendo sighs.  "The Tragedy was devastation for the Captain's mind.  Now... I think his nodes and spawners reflect his suffering.  It was too easy to pretend everything was fine when all the nodes and spawners were still there, even when they were slowly withering.  But now... now people will have to accept that the Captain really does need help."

The two look out for a few minutes more, each deep in thought, before motion catches their eyes.  Both gasp as they realize what's happening, and watch in amazement as the seas seem to explode with life and motion.  As Yenlarn watches, he thinks of his father's words, about how the empty and desolate water finally reflected the Captain's state of mind.  He hopes the new life out there now will also soon reflect the Captain.