A Faraway Victory

[Anastasia]

Latha turns as you approach, "Alicia," she greets. Lowering her hammer, "A messenger? You?"

[Ebiris]

"I gave Andrea a break," she says blandly enough. "That boy mentioned in Jessica's report, the hyper-competent one? He decided to come by and see her."

[Anastasia]

The scroll is read in the meantime, as Calley follows Andrea, the two laughing and flying around the forge.

"Calley?" Looking up and at him, "How strong is he? Wait, how did he even get here?" Latha frowns, "Did he bring himself to here?"

[Ebiris]

"He did, I sent Dawnhope to Balmuria to put his grandmother's mind at ease," Alicia confirms. "I think Jessica undersold is competence a bit."

[Anastasia]

"How much power does he have, then? That's no trivial magic, and a child with that magic is remarkable and disturbing." Hammer is put aside, Latha's attention fully on the boy now. "A mere child has power that could defend an entire nation."

[Ebiris]

Alicia switches to telepathy with an act of will - the boy has ears after all.

'Or turned into a weapon and aimed by any fool with a silver tongue. He has power but no experience or concept of what it takes to earn. There's a difference between being strong and becoming strong.'

[Anastasia]

'What reason would she give her child such power?' Latha ponders in your own mind, voice heavy. 'Foolishness or a purpose unknown to us?'

[Ebiris]

'All reports suggest Sylvie was not a good parent. I do wonder though... she's been sequestered away someplace. Perhaps she didn't so much gift him that power as lend it to him, to keep it intact until she can reclaim it? We just don't know what 21's capable of, nor what price she's had to pay for it.'

[Anastasia]

'More questions and not enough answers.' Latha agrees as the two fly around, laughing and going back and forth. 'I hate to say it, but he may be doomed to more than a simple childhood now. Power is power, it will not be left alone merely because the vessel it is in is young.'

[Ebiris]

'No it absolutely won't. Marie says there were others already looking for him when she was there, but he has capable guardians who're intent on allowing him to do as a child does... albeit a child that's rather difficult to set boundaries for,' Alicia returns.

[Anastasia]

Latha sighs gently, 'Yet people will try, and one may get lucky or be so powerful as to overwhelm them. Alicia, right or wrong, his place may not be with his family. Not any more. I know not.'

[Ebiris]

'What are you suggesting Latha? Don't beat around the bush.'

[Anastasia]

'Sylvie's power without 21 was still that of a great hero, one of Aurora's strongest.' Latha's expression is melancholy, 'It may be best if he spends his years in a realm that can guide and protect such power correctly. Be it ours or another's. The opposite - should someone like Shar claim him - is unthinkable.'

[Ebiris]

'And how would that make us any better, if we were to use him like that? And we would use him, even with the best of intentions. Nor is this a task I'd trust to any other,' Alicia says, watching Calley and Andrea. 'I'm reminded very much of Hugo and how we were expected to use him as a weapon against Pale Night.'

[Anastasia]

To this Latha sighs anew.

'I know. I do not like it, I loathe it in fact, but I worry what will happen if we do not. This is a situation that should not be, yet here we are.'