Waters of Aqnis, Second Story of Nypre

Chapter 17

"We've lost so much. We should consider surrendering." Jordan said solemnly. He stood alone with Melanie in the room where Tawarln lay. The night seemed to reflect his mood, bringing the feel of gloom similar to the foggy morning. The clouds were not thick enough to block the moonlight, and only dimmed it to an eerie glow.

"We can't surrender. Falkner would gain control of this territory. It isn't our territory to give." Melanie argued. Jordan just shook his head.

"They have Aqnis. In all honesty, she's probably already dead. That last attack took out a majority of our forces. We only have a quarter of the army that we had this morning, the rest are either incapacitated are dead. This includes Meni, who is recovering." Jordan made some strong points, but Melanie did not budge. "I know it's hard, having to surrender, but we must look at the bigger picture: The Night Land. In a way, by surrendering, we will be allying ourselves with Falkner. We may be able to make a compromise with him. It is the best thing to do strategically."

"There is another option. We should try to contact the elves. If we ally with them, perhaps we can team up against Falkner." Melanie suggested.

"I have thought of that. While it's an option I'd consider pursuing, it would be the more difficult less safe choice. The elves have never allied with any human territories. Furthermore, even if we were to find a way to contact them, we'd bring nothing in comparison to what they'd bring to us. We are not in the position to take risks." Jordan felt bad shutting down her idea, one he'd much rather attempt on a personal level. "There is still a chance. I will talk with Lina in the morning. If she can lead negotiations with Falkner's territory, perhaps our terms of surrender will not be so bad. I believe this war between Falkner's territory and Aqnis's territory was caused over a misunderstanding in the first place."

"I hope you're right." Melanie let out a heavy sigh. Nypre had trouble getting to sleep. He was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Despite the constant dizziness and the room shaking all around him, sleep never took over. He kept hearing a loud high pitched noise in his ears as they recovered from the sounds of the explosions. Deren didn't have similar problems, and fell asleep far easier. It was as if the battle didn't bother him at all.

Nypre kept thinking about Maryine, wondering if she was okay. After returning Meni to her home Maryine asked him to leave, wanting to be alone with her. He was worried about Maryine more so than Meni, given how she was acting. Meni had no physical wounds, and would recover. Maryine had emotional wounds, which were far worse.

When sleep finally did come for Nypre, it hit him hard. He had no dreams, and when his eyes opened once more he felt even worse than before.  He sat up, not feeling rested at all. He would meet with the others in the lobby to discuss what to do next.

Nypre, Jordan, Maryine, Deren, Melanie, Lina, and Norris sat together. Maryine still held her mother's bow, and looked as if she had even less sleep than Nypre. Out of the group, Deren was the only one who slept well that participated in the battle.

"I've met with an ambassador from Falkner's army." Melanie began the conversation. "Falkner has agreed to meet with the group in a diplomatic meaning, and he's agreed to let Lina lead the meeting."

"Are you crazy? Diplomacy will get us nowhere. Falkner is insane!" Deren shouted with his usual passion.

"Deren, listen to what we have to say." Jordan said. "Falkner is human, just like us. I believe this war is a misunderstanding. He has no motive to attack Aqnis. If we can discuss things with him, perhaps even ally with him against the Night Land, it is the right choice."