Tome

To: Ink and Paige
Oakrest
Pillar of the World
Dragonhome

From: Tome
Island of Prufrock
The Observatory
Starfall Isles

The 24th Day of the Shadowbinder's Month

Dear Mothers,

I am sorry it has been so long since I last wrote to you – much has happened here in the Starfall Isles, but from what I've gathered based on Calamity's foreboding mutterings and what little Rosa has told us, it sounds like far more tragic events have befallen Oakrest. I can only hope that this letter finds both of you alive and well. Though we cannot come ourselves, we at least wanted to send aid to our homeland, so we took up a collection of food, medicine, and bandages. I hope it will be of some help.

My elder siblings, Bound and Verso, were greatly torn when they heard of the troubles in Oakrest. They wanted to return home to offer what assistance they could, but they could not lightly abandon their duties here, nor would they leave their fellow exorcist, the coatl Visk. Many threats would break through the veil and attack the clan without their constant vigilance and protective efforts.

I likewise could not bring myself to return – not only because my leg would make me more of a liability than a boon, but also because I have started a family of my own. When I came to the island of Prufrock to work on my bestiary, I never expected to be the first of my siblings here to find a mate, much less find a mate at all, but Johnna...well. She's a beautiful and talented coatl, one I never imagined would pay attention to me, but she made me an excellent walking stick (she's a carpenter), so I get around far better than I used to. We have two eggs that ought to hatch soon – I've been watching over the nest anxiously. I haven't been able to concentrate on my research, and I'm sure this letter is a lot of nonsense due to my distracted state...is it like this every time with a nest? Am I even ready to be a father? I'm sure your grandchildren will do you proud, when they hatch. Have you ever seen an arcane egg? They look so delicate, far more so than the earth eggs from which we hatched, and they hang in the air, rotating. I've been assured that the magical protections surrounding the spherical orbs make the shells just as tough as any other egg, though it's hard not to worry with breakable objects just...floating there in midair. Jo's father, Etsu, has often joined me in keeping watch - he's a genealogist, and he seems very invested in his only daughter's offspring.

Verso and Bound are as yet unattached (though myself and a few others theorize that one or both of them might be nursing a secret attraction to their fellow exorcist Visk, who seems oblivious to any romantic overtures; we haven't been able to confirm or deny this, though, as none of us are quite brave – or stupid – enough to ask them or play matchmaker). Shadow, however, has recently found himself a mate. And I mean literally, he found him. In the tunnels. Under the island. Don't worry, we were all very hesitant to allow him to get close to a strange dragon he picked up underground, and said dragon – a coatl named Vespers – was examined and exorcised and who knows what else to make sure he was really safe (well, as safe as any powerful arcane mage can be, anyway). Apparently he was the leader of a settlement who was on this island a very long time ago and was sealed away by a jealous (and crazy) former mate. At the very least, Vespers seems to have a lot of experience, and he appears to be treating Shadow well, so we're happy that Shadow is happy (though we're still keeping a close eye on Vespers, just in case).

I don't know if there are still any dragons left in the vicinity of Oakrest who remember the merchant Vernon and the hostel owner Hestia, much less that odd couple Riad and Adva, but their offspring seem to be doing well; Calamity also reached the island safely and has reunited with her father Malu and her daughter Sentis. Verso and Bound told me how worried they were when Sift came to the clan, given the preponderance of spirits here and his propensity to be possessed by them, but so long as he remains in the company of the pearlcatcher Blain, who has an odd innate ability that repels spirits, he is fine. My elder siblings tried for ages to convince Jinx he wasn't cursed due to his dull wings, but he never believed them, so they were annoyed when a flashy pearlcatcher painted his wings and made Jinx realize he was just fine – why painting his wings did the trick when logic didn't, they just can't fathom. Jinx's sister Yvette is still working as a library page, and she's still with Yew, one of Brightwork and Shula's children.

We were all greatly saddened to hear of Shula's passing and Brightwork's departure from Oakrest, though naturally it affected Yew and Ember the most. They and their fellow coworkers in their apparel shop, the Stitchery, made a tapestry to memorialize their mother. It seems they are determined to live up to their parents' legacy, and their apparel shop has grown and flourished in Lantern Port, even more so since Rosa has joined their ranks. (She is reading this over my shoulder and dictated that last part. She also says to please tell her parents Javor and Tala hello and that she is doing quite splendidly and that she has the most beautiful girlfriend of all of the Oakrest-born dragons in Prufrock. I, naturally, contest this, as my mate Jo is, in my opinion, far more lovely. Yew would probably contest this as well if he were here given his fondness for Yvette, especially as he and Rosa are prone to arguing anyway.) Eugene (who asked to pass along his greetings to his parents, Glinda and Flax) and Ember are likewise assisting in the apparel shop, though Ember's arthritis continues to hamper his movements. The clan recently acquired a new physician, a skydancer named Cindermoon, and he has come up with some medicines that have helped alleviate a little of both Ember's and my chronic pain. My leg still bothers me, but between the stick Jo made me and the new medication, I am hobbling along much better.

I'm not sure if anyone remembers Indil, who came to Prufrock around the same time as Shadow – he says he was born near Oakrest, though Indil's parents and siblings were killed by bandits – but he is skilled with a blade and has been assisting my elder siblings with the clan's defense. He is also tutoring a young guardian in the art of the sword, and their sparring practices are quite a sight given their vast differences in size and talent.

The island has changed in many ways since I first arrived. There are still many spirits – arguably far more than is healthy, given the still fragile state of the veil that divides our realm from the spirit realm – but after the Barrier Breach, when the clan suffered a devastating attack as malevolent spirits poured through a tear in the veil, many have departed in order to help stabilize the situation. Verso and Bound did warn others in the clan that something like the breach was a strong possibility, but alas, no one took their warnings seriously. The population of this island in the land of dreamers is largely optimistic and perhaps not as pragmatic as it ought to be. It was fortunate that, when the fighting started, most of the civilians were able to either barricade themselves in the heavily-warded library or else flee to the mainland, but there were still several deaths and many injuries, both physical hurts and damage to the clan's collective psyche. I was in the library conducting research when the attack began. I regret that, due to my condition, I couldn't help to repel the spirits, but I did my best to fortify the library and hopefully helped to save a few lives.

There was quite a lot of reconstruction in the aftermath of the attack, and fewer dragons to assist – a large number left the island, deciding to relocate somewhere safer. Our ranks have filled out a bit since then, however. Much to the approval of several of us, the clan's leader, the coatl Eztli, hired some wildclaw mercenaries able to both see and fight spirits to help defend the clan in the event of another breach, and Verso happened across a skydancer skilled in the making of magical crystals and convinced him to construct an elaborate warding system across the island. Though Eztli continues to lead us, he has stepped down from being pretty much the entirety of the clan's government, and he now shares a leadership role with Shadow's mate Vespers and another coatl, Shadowstar, with the assistance of a council made up of representatives of the clan's various populations and enterprises. I confess myself ambivalent to politics, but I hope that our leaders do all they can to keep peace with the spirits and defend us against them if negotiations fail.

I very much hope that the defense of Oakrest has not failed and that it still stands, and most of all that you will one day get to see your grandchildren. I'd best end this letter – Sift stands ready to take it and the supplies we've gathered to a ship heading north (he's bartered with the captain to deliver them in Dragonhome), and I think a crack just appeared on one of the eggs.

Love always, your son –
Tome