they all come into the light [round 2]

[Leilan]

<link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Annie Use Your Telescope|Anaheim|Kalam' rel='stylesheet'><style>.Leilan-box-5 {width:500px;background-color:#1f2256;box-shadow:0px 0px 3px 2px #53586b;} .Leilan-name-5 {position:relative;z-index:2;font-family:'Kalam';font-size:28pt;color:#9ba1bc;margin-top:30px;margin-bottom:-30px;} .Leilan-img-5 {position:relative;border-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;} .Leilan-quote-5 {position:relative;z-index:4;top:0px;font-family:'Annie Use Your Telescope';font-size:14pt;line-height:0.8;color:#8f8694;} .Leilan-message-5 {position:relative;padding:30px 30px 50px 30px;margin-bottom:-90px;font-family:Anaheim;font-size:11pt;color:#9ba1bc;letter-spacing:3;} .Leilan-grad-5 {position:relative;width:500px;height:60px;top:68px;z-index:3;background: -ms-linear-gradient(top, rgba(31,34,86,1) 0%, rgba(31,34,86,1) 3%, rgba(31,34,86,0.95) 10%, rgba(31,34,86,0.16) 85%, rgba(31,34,86,0) 100%); -moz-linear-gradient(top, rgba(31,34,86,1) 0%, rgba(31,34,86,1) 3%, rgba(31,34,86,0.95) 10%, rgba(31,34,86,0.16) 85%, rgba(31,34,86,0) 100%); background: -webkit-linear-gradient(top, rgba(31,34,86,1) 0%,rgba(31,34,86,1) 3%,rgba(31,34,86,0.95) 10%,rgba(31,34,86,0.16) 85%,rgba(31,34,86,0) 100%); background: linear-gradient(to bottom, rgba(31,34,86,1) 0%,rgba(31,34,86,1) 3%,rgba(31,34,86,0.95) 10%,rgba(31,34,86,0.16) 85%,rgba(31,34,86,0) 100%);}</style><center><div class="Leilan-box-5"><div class="Leilan-message-5">I’m impressed by how many have come - and by how many of them are my precious Nothlings. Taigans aren’t a rare breed any more, and they’re tough - tougher than they look, for most. But however proud I am of them for coming, I’m equally afraid that it isn’t a good thing for them. It’s one of the reasons I’m here - I have little left to lose, despite what anyone may think, and I’ll hopefully last long enough against the monsters. I can be one, if I want to. I hide in plain sight, like I always have.

My greeting smile for those who have come freezes when the chestnut arrives and for a moment I’m about to tell her to go home. She’s one of those whom I was counting on to continue what we started when she crowned me King - a title I honestly never accepted, and perhaps my coming here is only proving that. The North can do without a King, I’ve always believed and proclaimed. Now I can only hope that Yanhua and Borderline, who seem to at least have stayed to defend the northern forest, can carry on even if all of us here would perish.

I swallow my comments. More arrive, some I know, some I don’t know, some I know a little of, in name. The gathering comes to a closure when the fairies arrive, and tell us of the nature of the monsters.

I’m disappointed. Not in the fairies, it is not their doing, but disappointed in the way the universe works. It’s not even a good hunt if the prey isn’t truly killed, if they come back just as fast as we drive them off. I grimace (I’ve never believed in keeping a stony face for everyone at all times), letting the words sink in. Then, we get a choice. Three choices for those who listen carefully, but I never considered giving up an option.

The rescuing group grows, but for me it’s not the path. I’ve never been able to actually die, and I’ve tried several times. The Afterlife had never let me in and while I could try again, I don’t think that much magic should be spent on me. ”I’ll distract. I hope that gives you the opportunity to get through. Give Straia and Anatomy my greetings if you find them.”

I join said group, knowing in my heart that all of us must die in some way, today, if we wish to succeed. But for the children, we will  pretend that that’s not the case.</div><div class="Leilan-grad-5"></div><div class="Leilan-quote-5">everything that drowns me makes me wanna fly</div><img src=https://imgur.com/ZfQPBDN.png></div></center>