Night Silver smiled, the elders relaxed and began wondering how such a process would work. Ultimately deciding to ignore the particulars of it for the moment due to a loud rumbling sound coming from everyone, and an especially loud one coming from the little girl wrapped up in Night Silver's embrace.
"Pfft, perhaps we should wait to discuss the particulars until after eating… Hmm, it might be better to wait until after I've reclaimed the homeland of your people… It won't take long, and this will give you some more time to practice flying with these beautiful wings of yours." Night Silver giggled.
So the feast was on. To Night Silver this was a familiar scene as she had seen it before with the other races she had helped in the past. The children weren't warry in how much they took for themselves, a sight that led some parents to tear up. The adults were a bit more reserved in how much they took, likely still in the mindset of wondering if there would be enough food to go around.
"Everyone, do not fret about how much food you take. Eat and fill your bellies. If we need to make more, we can always make more. My magic isn't so limited that I can't supply my people with sustenance." Night Silver announced making sure that no one was reserved. "I won't let you go hungry in my presence. Even if I have to feed you myself." She added in a more relaxed tone. I know exactly what it's like to not have enough… Probably more than anyone else here. Those damned nutrient paste tubes weren't satisfying, always making you want something to chew on instead. Not to mention they tasted like fart and smelled like rotten eggs. In this new world, I refuse to let it devolve into the same state. So long as I live… Immortal… So too shall this world be, an immortal beauty of nature.
With cheers of joy and gratefulness everyone began digging in without reserve. That is, aside from a few individuals among the adults, though in their case it seemed like they were mostly just enjoying the flavor of the roast and other assortments of dishes ready for them. In the end it ended up being a great success, as everyone got along over a nice and warm, hearty feast.
~ The Next Day ~
Night Silver was nowhere to be found in the winged human village. This almost caused a panic for the people, until the elders ran up to ask the elven representative what happened.
"Sir, the goddess, where is she? I can't find her anywhere." One of the elders asked in a low and nervous tone.
"Oh, Mother? Mother went to pay that dragon a beating. She left early so you wouldn't be distracted by sending an escort with her." The elven leader responded with a calm attitude.
"That's right. She left us with these berries to use in the event everyone gets hungry while she's gone. And while we wait, we are meant to pick everything up, and prepare for us to take leave of this barren mountain top." The Dwarven Leader explained lugging around a large sack of berries. "By the mid afternoon, Mother Goddess will return victorious to take everyone to your homeland. There, we will help repair your home." He continued.
"So… Goddess left so we may focus on moving. She's truly a selfless Goddess. Our tribe will never stop worshiping her." The elders cried.
"Mother is indeed, a benevolent & bountiful goddess. Seeing you believe in her as much as I, makes us as close as family." The elven leader said with a smooth tone.
"Ah, enough of that now, we've got work to do. Packing up and doing whatever else to get ready to depart from this place." The Dwarven leader chimed in, blushing at the mushy gushy stuff. "I'll leave enough berries for you to distribute for your people, our friends." He continued.
"How about this, we set up a table where everyone can come and get their own berry? And have it staffed by one member of all three of our tribes." One of the Winged-Human elders suggested, thinking about the amount of effort that would soon be coming their way.
"That sounds like an excellent idea…" The elven leader agreed, while the dwarven leader simply nodded in approval. "Then that is what we shall do, but let's make it two people from each of our tribes instead. This way there can be more variety of conversation topics to be had while they are waiting. And we will have a couple of girls who learned the Create Water spell to accompany this table." He added.
Once the matter was settled, the de facto leaders responsible for making the plans and delegating to the right people, did just that. Sparking a flurry of movement so intense even the previous day's feast prep.
Far away, Night Silver smirked as she used a spell to peek in on the situation. It's great how quickly different races can work together like this. Even if I don't find my old friends, I won't be alone when the new ones pass on… Well, Shurshana should manage to stay with me forever… "Enough, focus. Almost there." She said, hyping herself up.
~ The Winged-Humans' Homeland ~
The mountain peak was rather peculiar looking. Certainly not the usual example of a mountain. It was more like a massive plateau than a mountain. Though, it was in the mountain range so it did sort of make sense to call it a mountain, being that it was tall enough to be considered as such.
On closer inspection though, it was more nefarious. The peak looked as if it had been carved down to suit the needs of some group. Rivers winded and flowed from the many dotted lakes and melting snow caps, through the rubble of buildings that had been there…
"This is a rather sad sight. I didn't realize just how many of them had been slaughtered. But thinking about it more… To have anyone escape from a Dragon Lord, it would likely cost 10 lives to save 1 and that's an optimistic view." Night Silver whispered, sensing that the Dragon was nearby.
"You're almost right, but you forgot a zero." A dragon's voice growled low from the direction of a large pile of stone rubble… The Goddess Statue.