Legend of Ransera

It had been decided that Blue Star would bring Raithen to Starfall from Kalzasi's Skyharbour but that the twins themselves would go ahead to prepare the way for their guest. Kala might have said something about wanting it more the longer he had to wait for it, and Kaus might have said something a touch coarser. But, at the least, Raithen could concentrate on mapping the slipspace from Kalzasi to Starfall rather than focus on his young friends. He could marvel at the view of snow-capped mountains, some so high they rarely lost their frozen precipitation, nor the shroud of clouds.

He could feel that first faint flicker open within him as he became aware of them again. And when the captain tapped his shoulder and pointed out the first sight of the humble village clustered around the fortress of their family, he felt another flicker within him as they acknowledged his presence.

The Dux would have to finish his mapping of that last leg of the journey later, for the pair of them hove into view long before Blue Star was set to dock, flying up to meet him. He couldn't hear their voices as they laughed and shouted, but he could feel their recognition, their joy, and their welcome as if it flowed through his veins, from his heart to his head.

Welcome and invitation, to be exact.

Fly with us! he could almost hear them say.

Neither of them were particularly bundled up against the cold, though Kala wore close-fitted trews and such rather than her more customary garb.

"We will see to your luggage, my lord," the captain told him, her eyes shining with admiration and pride at the twins, and a religious zeal as well. She hadn't been alive so long as Avaerys and Varvara, Streleon and Ugrimal, but the seeds had been planted for worship will she or nil she.

"Fly, if you wish," she bade him with a hint of longing. As an airship captain, she understood the freedom of the skies. To fly under her own power would be an invaluable blessing.

Greetings made, kisses against wind-whipped skin, laughs whipped away by the wind, they played with him, giving him a bit of an aerial tour of the area.

Starfall itself was a village clustered around an ancient fortress. It wasn't beautiful in the grand, purposeful way that Solunarium was beautiful, but perhaps in an austere way, life clinging on in harsh conditions until it could thrive. Perhaps it recalled the ancient monasteries of Sol'Valen's mountains. Its own history was obscured into legend at this point, and the Avialae leadership was truly a part of its more modern history all things told.

But they flew so high that the blue of the sky began to recede into black and the edges of Kala began to blur as if she were catching solar wind. From here, he could see Stardew Valley if only he knew to look for it. But eventually, they tumbled out of the sky.

Normally, the few guests to their ancestral home were met at the gate, but he was special and not only because of his wings. They landed upon a battlement where their lady mother awaited them, flanked by Aquilios and his wife, as well as an infant swaddled in her arms, his tiny wings invisible at the moment.

The twins bowed to their mother, which Raithen might find odd knowing Kala's power. The formality wouldn't last terribly long, but they were mountain folk and the forms must be observed. Lady Akshara acknowledged her children with a solemn nod, her beauty hardly hidden by the thin chain veil hanging from her brow. She took Raithen's measure as he was introduced.

"Mother," Kala began, "may I present His Resplendence, Gaius Val'Aværyan Raithen Dux, son of Her Serene Highness, Camilla Cithæra Princeps, and Raithys Raito."

"Dominus," Kaus continued in practiced Vastian, "may I present our lady mother, Akshara Yushis of House Leukos, the Lady of the Mountain."

"Your Resplendence," the lady said in equally practiced Vastian, her voice a low, throaty alto, "I bid you welcome to the cloud-crowned mountain. My hearth and hospitality are yours." She proceeded to introduce her son and heir, his wife and child. The littlest one had a wispy thatch of golden hair, darker than that of the twins, and yawned at the commotion, blinking at Raithen without comprehension. His mother laughed, declaring that he must be happy to meet his first foreign dignitary.

"You honor us, dominus, and your family, although you and yours are already held in high esteem. I trust my children's judgement and they were effusive." There was perhaps the slightest of pauses before and the slightest of emphases on effusive, but surely not. No rural lady would be so well-trained to courtly dialogue.

Little changed but her smile, which grew a touch warmer, and the room seemed to do so as well. All her children, including her daughter-in-law, relaxed without seeming to, releasing the formality. Raithen would likely notice how carefully she moved, and he might guess that she was a woman who lived with pain and illness. Not every woman came out of birthing Avialae unscathed.

Truth be told, she had improved of late. Her daughter's study of necromantic healing and residence in Kalzasi had brought new techniques to bear. But truly, Akshara would be the first woman she gave wings, both to honor her mother and in the hopes that the strength Avialae wings brought would finally rid her of the chronic illness the twin births had caused her.

"Your luggage is already in your rooms," she continued, "and nothing is planned save supper tonight with the family. You are free to rest or to explore the castle or the town. The twins have claimed you, but we are all of us desirous of your enjoyment."

"I hear you might enjoy sparring," Aquilios said, his voice similar to Kaus', though deeper and more resonant. His frame was more normal as far as the Avialae went—that is to say, erring toward the upper extremes of height and build. He was herculean, to say the least, and a more golden blond than his siblings, more akin to their mother's.

His smile was friendly enough, albeit not so ebullient as Kaus' nor as calmly mischievous as Kala's. If he was anywhere near as agile in the air as Kaus, he would be dangerous.

Aquilios grinned. He looked less like a sentinel statue that way and more like a Leukos. At least, more like his siblings. Even Akshara was tall for her race. The twins were, in fact, runts. For all that, the one was a goddess and the other fantastically skilled for his age.

"They tend to pair up against me," he said. "Little buggers."

With an amused smile, Akshara began her descent from the parapet. Aquilios' wife followed suit. The ladies hadn't the magical hardiness against cold and wind that their winged relatives did.

"Try to show him more than just his bedroom, Dwarf Star." With a smirk for Kaus and a nod for Raithen, he followed his mother, wife, and son.

Kaus was already flushed from the cold and the exertion, but he didn't deny his friendly lust, glancing at Raithen. Now that they were all within close proximity, Raithen could feel the coruscating emotions from the twins—lust, yes, but no more so than the many other excitements and joys present. They wanted to show him their home, their village, the secrets of Starfall, and tumble back into that innocent intimacy they had shared at an Atraxian oasis.

"I like him much more now that he is getting laid," Kala noted quietly. Kaus laughed; it was rare she was so blunt. Without witnesses, they each took one of his hands and pulled him toward the doorway, and down the stairs into the castle proper. "Might as well show you your rooms first—"

"—so you won't get lost—" Kaus continued. When they were excited like this, they sometimes seemed like one voice coming from two people.

"—or we could have a, hm, nap—"

"—a naked nap—"

"—or the village or whatever you wish, truly."

The castle was old, not built for the Leukos family, in fact. It was not palatial in the sense that Solunarian palaces were; it wasn't even as opulent as the Red Citadel. But it was kept comfortable through a subtle blend of furnaces and magic, and its more spartan interiors still boasted artifacts from the travels of its people.

The castle could contain the population of Starfall should the need arise, and that was more important than gold-plated walls, at least to them.

From Raithen's rooms, they took him out to see the village, mostly on foot. He met artisans and young mages in training. There were no nobles but the Leukos family here present. They spoke of a handful of vassals who ruled smaller settlements with minimal oversight, but while the commoners were respectful, they didn't bow and scrape, even those who asked Kala to bless a babe in arms or the like—they clearly knew what their little lady was becoming.

Most of them had a rune or two, though perhaps not developed to any sort of mastery.

They seemed interested in Raithen, though they were entirely polite—at least by their own standards: welcoming, warm. They seemed impressed, and took it as a matter of course that if the twins approved of him, they ought to.

Supper with the family was similar: welcoming, warm. They didn't stand on tradition, but spoke with Raithen on any topic that seemed to interest him. None of them were unintelligent, though they clearly had diverse interests and expertise. Aquilios' wife was the first to make noises about retiring. The child was in her arms, though, whenever she wasn't actively eating. She had help and support, but was not delegating motherhood. Aquilios, chivalrous or just being a conscientious husband and father, bid them all good night and accompanied his little family to their private chambers.

Akshara looked after them with quiet fondness, but remained for a while to speak with her twins and their friend. She saw less of them, after all. They shared stories of their time in Solunarium, allowing Raithen to insert details they might not have remembered in the original telling.

"Do get some sleep," she suggested lightly. "Aquilios doesn't get as many chances to spar as he used to and won't let it go unless you tell him you don't wish to."

Kaus was halfway out of his seat when she pushed her own back to rise, but she waved him away.

"Thank you, love," she said with that maternal affection and warmth. "Kala's concoctions have me feeling much better, even if the taste leaves something to be desired." She winked at Kala, who rose anyway to kiss her mother's cheek.

"Good night, mama."

And when she was gone, they stayed a few minutes longer with Raithen.

"They really must be helping," Kaus said with quiet contentment.