The palace doors open at last. Elric Vane enters beneath the crystal’s pale glow, travel-worn and dust-streaked, carrying a leather packet sealed in red wax.
Elric Vane
Your Radiance, this packet came from the village investigation. It bears Captain Jorren’s orders and the testimony of those who carried them.
He places the packet beside Veyra’s arranged bundles. The palace guards tighten their hold on Maelor, chains scraping stone as the council leans toward the new evidence.
Imperial Council
Why were you delayed, Captain? The council has waited while the conspirator’s network remained unaccounted for.
Elric Vane
Jorren’s agents tried to erase the trail. We secured the village witnesses, followed the surviving orders, and brought every piece we could recover without abandoning the road to Oriflamme.
The Holy Emperor breaks the red seal. As he reads, Veyra’s testimony and Elric’s packet align: Jorren ordered the false attacks, while Maelor’s force carried them toward war.
the Holy Emperor
The evidence is sufficient. Sanbreque will sanction the petition to Rosaria and the northern route. But before we proceed, I require every witness to answer for what they know.
✓ Quest Accepted
Answer the council's questions
“Betram stands and returns to his position before the council. "I am ready to answer, your grace. Please proceed."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Betram Steelstream
I am ready to answer, Your Grace. Please proceed.
Betram rises and returns to his place before the council, standing beside Caspian with composed courtly bearing despite the long road and the chamber’s scrutiny.
the Holy Emperor
Then answer first for the testimony you have given. Did you witness Maelor’s orders, or do you rely upon what others placed before you?
The council falls silent. Maelor remains restrained between the palace guards, while Veyra keeps her gathered documents close and Elric waits beside the opened packet.
the Holy Emperor
And speak plainly of your bond with Caspian. This council must know whether your judgment was governed by duty to Sanbreque, affection, or both.
Caspian remains still at Betram’s side, offering no answer in his place. Around them, the councilors watch, and the guards keep Maelor’s chains secure.
“"I am the one who captured Maelor and recovered the orders. Vedra helped me find and infiltrate the camp, but I witnessed the orders for myself. After which a flew with haste to intercept Caspian before he walked into the ambush." He pauses and takes a deep breath. "Uncle, I will not lie to you about my feelings for Prince Caspian. But I truly believe those feelings are the only thing that created this path to peace for us. Someone is trying to push our nations into war. If I was not as attached to Caspian as I am, we would have battled and our hidden enemy would have succeeded."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Betram Steelstream
I captured Maelor and recovered the orders myself. Veyra helped me infiltrate the camp, but I witnessed the orders directly before flying to intercept Caspian and save him from the ambush.
Betram pauses, draws a careful breath, and faces the council without lowering his gaze. Maelor’s chains remain taut, while Veyra stands silent beside the gathered proof.
Betram Steelstream
Uncle, I will not lie about my feelings for Prince Caspian. Those feelings created this path to peace. Without them, we would have battled, and our hidden enemy would have succeeded.
The chamber holds its breath. Caspian remains beside Betram, still and attentive, while the councilors exchange glances and the palace guards keep Maelor restrained.
the Holy Emperor
Then your affection did not compromise your duty. It revealed the duty beneath it: preserving lives and denying war to those who engineered this crisis.
the Holy Emperor
I accept your testimony as firsthand, and I accept your bond with Caspian as part of the path that saved both kingdoms from bloodshed.
Caspian’s hand closes briefly at Betram’s side. Across the chamber, Veyra lowers her eyes, and even the council’s suspicion gives way to the weight of an acknowledged truth.
Quest Complete
Answer the council's questions
Skill Upgrade: Lore Mediocre→Fair
“Betram squeezes Caspian's hand and sighs with relief. "Your grace, the arrival of a Dominant of water on the battlefield is evidence of a a larger conspiracy between our nations. With your permission, I would interrogate the Dominant with Prince Caspian and then travel together to the Northern Territories where Leviathan hails from. We must discover who is behind the plot to drag us into war.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Betram squeezes Caspian’s hand and exhales, the relief plain in the quiet gesture. The prince returns the pressure, steady beside him before the watching council.
Betram Steelstream
Your Grace, the arrival of a Dominant of water on the battlefield is evidence of a larger conspiracy between our nations. With your permission, I would interrogate Neris with Prince Caspian, then travel together to the Northern Territories, where Leviathan hails from. We must discover who is behind this plot to drag us into war.
The council’s silence gathers around the request. Caspian stands openly at Betram’s side, while the Holy Emperor studies the young Dominant with grave attention.
the Holy Emperor
Permission is granted. You and Caspian will question Neris when he wakes, and Sanbreque will authorize your passage into the Northern Territories. You will pursue the conspiracy as allies, not as agents seeking another war.
A murmur stirs through the chamber, but the Emperor’s decision settles it. The northern petition gains royal authority, and the investigation becomes a declared pursuit rather than a private venture.
Caspian
Then we will learn why Leviathan’s Dominant stood beside Jorren, and who placed him there. I will face the truth with you, whatever our fathers make of it.
the Holy Emperor
Prepare your questions and submit the northern route to my chancellery before nightfall. When Neris wakes, the first answer will determine where you look next.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn why Neris joined Jorren
“Betram bows. "Thank you, your Grace." He turns around and leads Caspian out of the council chambers. Finally relaxing when they find an empty balcony facing the Mothercrystal where they can speak privately.”
SUCCESS (Fair Perception, rolled +1)
Betram Steelstream
Thank you, Your Grace.
Betram bows, then turns from the council. Caspian follows at his side as they pass beneath the palace doors, leaving the councilors and guards to their guarded silence.
Betram leads Caspian through a quiet gallery and out onto an empty balcony. The Mothercrystal’s pale radiance fills the open air, washing Oriflamme’s white towers in blue-white light.
The chamber’s scrutiny fades behind them. Below, the capital murmurs beneath the crystal, while the balcony offers enough distance for their voices to belong only to one another.
Caspian
You carried yourself well in there. Better than I did, perhaps. But now that we are alone, tell me what you truly think of this permission.
Caspian
The Northern Territories may hold the hand guiding Jorren and Neris. They may also hold a danger neither court has prepared us to face.
Caspian rests his hands upon the balcony’s stone rail and turns toward Betram, the crystal glowing behind him. For once, no councilor waits to judge the answer.
“Betram laughs. "I think we're in over our heads and walking into even more of a mess. But at least this time we are walking together. Fighting together. So even if the road will be hard, I'm relieved it still leads away from war."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled -1)
Betram Steelstream
I think we are in over our heads and walking into an even greater mess. But at least this time, we walk together, and fight together. However hard the road becomes, I am relieved it still leads away from war.
Caspian’s guarded expression softens. He reaches across the space between them and takes Betram’s hand, the crystal’s light shining over their joined fingers.
Caspian
Then let that be our first answer to the danger ahead. We are not walking toward it as weapons placed in opposing hands. We are choosing the road together.
Below, Oriflamme’s bells mark the changing watch, their notes drifting through the blue-white radiance. Caspian keeps hold of Betram’s hand instead of turning back toward the palace.
Caspian
I cannot promise the Northern Territories will spare us pain, nor that our fathers will welcome what we have chosen. But I can promise you this: I will not abandon the purpose we have made together.
The promise settles between them with greater weight than any royal decree. Beyond the balcony, distant towers fade into evening, and the unseen north waits beneath gathering cloud.
“Betram smiles. "And I shall promise the same. Now let us go wake and question Naris. If we're lucky, we will actually get some rest together tonight." Still holding Caspian's hand, he leads them both back into the palace and toward the dungeons.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Betram Steelstream
And I shall promise the same. Now let us go wake and question Neris. If we are lucky, we will actually get some rest together tonight.
Still holding Caspian’s hand, Betram leads him back through the palace. Their joined hands draw discreet glances, but no guard challenges their passage toward the dungeons.
Caspian
Rest sounds like a distant kingdom, but I will gladly claim whatever hours this night grants us. First, we wake Neris and learn why he came.
The dungeon guards unlock the inner chamber without protest. Neris lies on a pallet beneath a warding lamp, still unconscious, his blue-gray armor set aside nearby.
At Caspian’s direction, a guard brings water and a smelling draught. Neris stirs, coughs, and opens his eyes beneath the chamber’s cold stone arch.
Neris
Sanbreque. The pass. I remember the water breaking around me. Where is Jorren, and why am I still alive?
Caspian
You are alive because Betram and I chose restraint. Answer truthfully, Neris. Who summoned Leviathan to Jorren’s war?
“"Yes, why would you leave the Northern territories and involve yourself with Sanbreque and Veldemarke?" Betram asks. He grips his spear a little tighter but holds his stance.”
FAILURE (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled -3)
Betram Steelstream
Yes. Why would you leave the Northern Territories and involve yourself with Sanbreque and Veldemarke?
Betram’s fingers tighten around his spear, though he keeps his stance measured. Neris studies the weapon, then the prince beside it, and his guarded calm hardens.
Neris
You ask as though I crossed half the world for Jorren’s banners. I did not. I came because the northern waters began answering a call that was not mine.
Neris
When I reached the southern coast, Jorren already knew my route. He offered answers, passage, and a way to silence the summons. I accepted his direction, not his war.
The explanation lands unevenly. Neris avoids Betram’s question about choosing Sanbreque and Veldemarke, replacing motive with a warning about water answering an unseen call.
Caspian
That is not an answer. What call brought you south, and who could command Leviathan without your consent?
“"No one can command an Eikon besides The Creator. Are you seriously trying to suggest you joined him just to silence a summons from God?"”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Betram Steelstream
No one can command an Eikon besides the Creator. Are you seriously suggesting you joined Jorren just to silence a summons from God?
The accusation strips away Neris’s guarded phrasing. His face tightens, then he lowers his eyes, conceding the question’s force beneath the cold dungeon lamp.
Neris
No. Not silence. Containment. I believed the summons came from the Creator, but I could not prove it, and neither could Jorren.
Neris
The waters moved before I touched them. Leviathan answered something beneath the northern ice, something that called through every sea and promised awakening.
Caspian steps closer, his expression sharpening. Neris’s admission turns the southern attack from a rogue alliance into an attempt to control a divine warning.
Caspian
Then Jorren did not recruit you by offering answers. He offered a prison for the voice, and you helped him build it. What lies beneath the ice?
Quest Complete
Learn why Neris joined Jorren
Attribute Upgrade: Perception Fair→Good
✓ Quest Accepted
Question Neris about the Northern Ice
“Betram nods. "Naris, answer the Prince's question."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Betram Steelstream
Neris, answer the prince's question.
Neris
Beneath the northern ice lies no buried army or hidden kingdom. It is a drowned sanctum, older than the crystal faiths, where something vast sleeps in dark water.
Neris lifts his eyes to Caspian, then to Betram, weighing whether truth will earn judgment or merely sharpen the danger. The palace guards remain silent beneath the dungeon arch.
Neris
I never saw the sleeper. I felt its call through Leviathan, and every wave carried the same command: awaken, rise, return. Jorren promised a way to bind that call before it reached the world.
Caspian
You called it a command, yet you trusted Jorren to bind it. What did he possess that convinced you his chains could hold a power older than our gods?
Neris
A fragment of black crystal, drawn from the ice. It answered the summons when Jorren held it, and Leviathan recoiled from its touch. He said more fragments waited beneath the sanctum.
The admission changes the silence. Caspian’s attention fixes on Betram, while Neris lowers his voice, as though the buried sanctum might hear its name through the stone.
Quest Complete
Question Neris about the Northern Ice