Early morning. The entire city was sound asleep.
With no signs of any living creature, the city was still. However, in the large meeting hall, gathered the ones who are in charge of the city. They sat in their usual seats, all looking at the man who stood at the end of the table, their leader, Fishy.
Although they were happy to see his full return, along with Clara, they weren't happy to be woken up this early.
"Sorry for waking you all up at this time, especially you, Elder."
"Don't be sorry. We are glad you are back safely." The elder smiled as his hands trembled. The night was cold and the room was just as bad. The only bits of warmth coming from dimly flickering candles that barely illuminated the room.
"I'll make this quick. We have allied with the Rynad kingdom. They are to help us with trade in exchange for our protection."
"Is that why you asked me to send some men over?" Ziu lent forward and asked.
"Yup, I showed them that we can stand by our promises. It was the best way to get them to agree."
"That and he threatened them," Clara added.
"You gotta do what you can to succeed."
"I understand we have a lot of problems." Said Fishy. "But things will change from now on. We are going to do things differently."
Fishy stood at the end of the room watching him closely.
"We are to work double-time, possibly even triple. We are to focus more on military strength whilst also building a land filled with wonder, just like the old Tanban Empire."
"That's what they told us." Ziu said, "A place that was filled with powerful warriors and wonder."
"Exactly. We don't know when a war will start. We have to be prepared for the worst."
The others all looked at Fishy, confused at what they were hearing. They looked around at each other with worried eyes, as if he was hiding something from them.
"What do you mean?" They all asked.
"In Va, there was a man. He was far powerful than anything I've ever known. Far stronger than Beauty, I wish to take him down."
"You wish for us to build an army for one man?" Ziu, who was in charge of the military, asked.
"Yes, that's how big of a threat this man is. I don't know who he is, or what is going on in this world behind the scenes, but I do know that we are weak. We are unable to protect those we care about. I thought we were strong but clearly, I was mistaken. Right now, we would all be killed before we even knew it."
"So, what do we do?"
"We train. We train harder than before. We learn about the man. Learn about his weaknesses and learn who he is and what his goal is."
"But what about the city?"
"We make allies." Fishy said, "Rynad is only the start. Allies will help us with both war and rising. We are going to become known to this world. We will become a place that people will talk about. We will be known. We will become a superpower."
The other's were shocked at Fishy's change. They expected it from before, but after hearing it, they felt initially discouraged, however, after looking at Fishy's reassuring and confident smile, they were filled with determination.
"I agree." Ziu stood up. "We are weak. We can't do anything. We possess no real power, physical or political. We need to grow."
"I agree as well." Clara was next to stand. "I failed this city once, and I want to be someone who can stand beside you all and protect it. I will fix my mistake."
"I think it's a good idea." The Elder said, unable to stand. "I don't know how much I'll see but I do believe you are the right choice."
The room turned sour at the Elder's words. No one wanted to think about it. They knew it was true, the upcoming winter was to be harsh on all of them, especially the Elder.
"We have to go through the long night first," Tin spoke.
"What's the long night?" Asked Fishy.
"It happens every few years, you can tell by how slowly it gets dark around winter. It's a period of three weeks. There is no sun. No daylight. No warmth. Three weeks of hell."
"What causes it?" Fishy asked.
"We don't know, it's just some sort of natural thing."
"I see, so three long weeks of no natural heat, or sunlight. Crops will die out. How long till it starts."
"Two weeks."
"Shit, that's not long." Fishy sat back in his seat, thinking about his plan. "Alright, we need food that lasts. We need animals. We can create heat with magic, but the problem is feeding people. Three weeks is a long time. There is no guarantee everyone survives."
They all looked at the Elder whose smile reeked of sadness but acceptance.
"I know it won't be easy. But please, don't worry about me." He said.
"We will do what we can to protect you during the three weeks. It won't be easy, but the old and children will be given priority of food."
The decisions were tough. Morale was low. It had been sinking lower and lower for a while.
"Ziu, get in contact with the druids, see if they can give us any food," Fishy suggested. "They might be able to help but don't force them, currently they are our greatest ally. We'd be a fool to lose them. If this will be as hard as you say, then they may also struggle."
"What about Rynad?" Ziu asked.
"Keep protecting them. Send a representative who we will keep in contact with for affairs with them. If they need food, tell them we don't have it and that we are struggling ourselves."
"Understood."
"Thank you," Fishy said as he collapsed in his chair and crashed his face into the table. "The meeting is over, you can all go back to sleep."
They all stood up, looking at their exhausted leader, and screamed:
"We stand behind you, Fishy."
"Thank you all, we will prepare to bring Fintan city into a golden age."
He was just able to raise his head to say it, but even in his deadly exhaustion, they believed him.
And, finally, once the meeting ended Fishy was able to get a few hours of sleep.