Cyril appeared out of nowhere and took the gap between Randol and Priscilla. They weren't sitting shoulder to shoulder, but she did fill the small gap quite well. Somehow, she seemed more beautiful today. Her snowy hair glistened in the morning sun as it began to climb higher into the cloud spotted sky. Her lips were pursed as she took Randol's mug from his hand and took a gulp.
She cringed at the taste, but only stuck our a small pink tongue in disgust. She had already swallowed the ale. It was not to her tastes.
"Now what in the hell is that?" She handed the mug to Randol. He probably would have laughed if not for suddenly feeling ashamed for talking about her.
"Ale." Desmond spoke up. "It's not great, but it's definitely a local brew."
"You guys really drink this stuff besides water?" Cyril asked.
"No," Desmond responded. "We drink water too, but beast folk love their beers and ales. They have it throughout the day. Mai here doesn't actually hold true to her race's customs, but she does enjoy it at least once a day. Often for breakfast."
"Ah." Cyril smiled. "That's nice to know. So what was did you want to ask?
" A lot of things, actually," Mai spoke up. "First off, about last night."
"Sorry," Cyril said. "Classified."
"Wait!" Mai's eyes furrowed. "What does that mean?"
"Officially a secret and open to those on a need to know basis." She repeated the words from a movie Jax had shown her before.
"Well, I need to know." Mai said." You were cr--"
Cyril shot her a warning glare. That was something very personal, and if she could have stopped it, she would have. Her sudden breakdown after she used that artifact last night was not something she intended. It was a lessoned learned though. Take the flavor texts seriously. Mind's Lullaby was a shop item that was used to break illusion curses. When used, it was supposed to show the bearer a happy memory, one that would overpower a curse with goodness.
Unfortunately, Cyril's good memories were far few between. Despite her demeanor, since she had been here, she actually thought about the past a lot. What she would do, how would she live... Why would she live... Among other things people often thought about when they questioned their existence in the universe. It was just after a few experiences within the last year, she just more...
"The black monster with those massive tentacles," Desmond said. "It went on a rampage in the city below your mountain."
"So a Kraken appeared in the city?" Cyril's eyebrow rose in visible disbelief. "Out of water."
"No!" Desmond paused. "Krakens exist?!"
"Of course they do." Cyril rolled her eyes. "Okay, just once exists."
"The number isn't the point!" Desmond said as he leaned in. "A massive monster squid as large as wagon! The danger in the sea!"
"As a wagon?!" Cyril laughed. "Don't be stupid! The Kraken is bigger than that keep back north!"
"W-What?!" Everyone gasped.
"Those squids the size of wagons are its children," Cyril said. "Only one Kraken can exist at once. Think of it as a beehive, just less hivemind like and sprawled out across thousands of miles. One queen, and when that one dies, another should take its place in a few hundred years."
Or so the lore stated. Silence fell upon the table and the few merchants at the surrounding tables.
"Madam." One spoke up. "Do you speak the truth?"
"Mhm." Cyril turned in her seat to face the tavern owner who had just seat down another customer's plate.
"Then how would they be able to sail the seas with such a monster about?" The owner asked the question everyone else had.
"Have you guys gone to the bottom of the sea?" Cyril asked.
"No one at the moment has ever been that deep." Desmond finally spoke up.
"Then, of course, you won't have to deal with it." Cyril rolled her eyes again as if this was common knowledge. "By rite of ancient laws, until transgressed by the souls who swim upon the dry land, will the Queen of the Murk stay within her palace. When those who defile her kingdom become known, only then will she rise to torment those above."
Cyril recited a piece of lore by heart. It was easy when it was only a small passage about a raid level boss. If you asked her about small fries, it was a hit or miss.
"If the seas aren't being torn up by a giant ass squid, then no one has broken those laws of the sea again." Cyril shrugged.
"What do you mean 'again'?" Randol asked.
"Yeah, we entered her kingdom and she found out," Cyril shrugged. "Then she tore about the eastern seaboard. Tens of cities were torn down."
Well, she was the one who created the monster and the storyline for that particular event. She grew tired of those cities and wanted to change their layouts. Jax had argued with her for half a day saying she "Couldn't just replace tens of player cities" on a whim. So, in spite of him, she created the Kraken and the Kingdom of the Deep Sea before she had said monster destroy all those seaside cities. While Jax had been shocked by her antics, the event itself had been widely received since she had talked to the programmers about an underwater raid.
It had been quite a refreshing raid compared to Jax's obsession with nordic stuff and moldy dungeon crawls.
The original question that they had wanted to ask her about was long forgotten as Desmond was quick to dive headfirst into this new discovery of a kingdom under the sea. While Cyril had created the whole event, she had only dabbled with the major points and none of the small things, unless it was something she wanted a detail modified or completely removed. Eventually, Cyril had to cut the Q&A session off because she was annoyed by just how knowledge thirsty the prince was. Mai had to explain that he got this way about new things.
They paid for their meal and mounted their horses, brought to the front by the stableboy. They purchased a few supplies for the journey ahead as Randol said only a few hamlets along the road to the next city would have anything to spare. He had no desire to just take what he needed from those who could spare nothing. It was fine with everyone else, and everyone had a saddle pouch full of their own supplies. Cyril still had her own supplies, something everyone had forgotten about, but she seemed to enjoy following their lead to their surprise.