Her mission done.....

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 5173

Astra 1 smiles a tired smile as she rereads the terms of negotiation for trade and mutual help she had brokered. It had indeed been difficult, but well worth it.

She never knew that she had the gift of persuasion and influence that she had, despite being a princess. She had put more faith in her strength of arm in combat, mental and physical strength. It had been quiet a different battle with the Aqualarian ambassador sent to negotiate with her, as well as helping win the trust of the local townspeople.

Thank the gods that the Manimal crew had gone out of their way to help the locales rebuild and fix the town. There had been mistrust and fear, initially, when her ship had pulled into the harbor (and it became apparent that it was manned totally-with the exception of her-by humanoid animals). Her presence had been more than enough to halt the incipient violence in the works for the most part. She was the splitting image of her sister of this world (albeit with shorter hair).

Apparently, the locals had gotten used to the idea of doubles of certain people. That is due in large part to the fact that like a few other select places, the population had doubled (by way of analogs).

The kindness of the Manimals, still, had made her assignment much easier all the same. It was a shame that only a few of them could communicate with the ordinary folks of the island, however. The Manimals could understand what the townfolk said, but the townfolk only heard animal noises when the beastmen spoke. She was still raspy from all the translating she had done between the two groups.

Despite the fear and confusion with townfolk and beastmen, the negotiations between her and the ambassador had been even more taxing.

If she ever got the chance, she'd make sure to ask just WHY her sister had sent Ambassador Tilbert. The man had nearly made her draw her sword and beam him with it in anger a few times, but she'd held herself in check, for fear of the damage to her blade.

"We did it, Lynx," Astra sighed. "We were able to negotiate a trade agreement/mutual support pact between the Manimal Nation and the State of Aqualria, despite Tilbert. Good penmanship, by the way."

"Thank you, Ambassador." the liom-man said, bowing slightly. "It was indeed a pleasure being of service."

Astra smiled up at the young mancat and then looked over at the pile of books that rested at his small study. Her eye widened a bit when something dawned upon her.

"You're done with those already?" Astra asked, surprised.

Lynx 's furry head turns a bit, ears twitching through the thick main, and he turns back.

"Oh no," he laughs, a bit of the rumble of a lion within the merriment. "Those are just a few books I had picked up in town for light reading!"

Astra eyes some of the titles, thick and forbidding looking. Most concerned "heavy" philosophy and other esoteric topics who's title's alone made them sound like they had been written by people who had been born with a scowl on the face and a pen in their hand at birth.

"Knock yourself out," Astra smiles, shaking her head. It still amazed her what a ravenously avid book reader Lynx was. The young scribe had been born into his form and had, because of the magical block against reading and writing, had been without a letter to his name. That had changed for him the night Fred had shown, with the death of the vile Dragoness Moreau, the blocks had been lifted. The magical side effect of the sudden removal was astounding. Now, with the exception of the newest Pack member-Ralph-every Pack member had the mystical ability to be able to read ANY written language not intentionally enciphered. (Ralph was different in that he could SPEAK any spoken language). Lynx had, in record time, learned the art of writing, and had gone on to become the Pack's designated Scribe. He was just typical of the Pack, who's mind seemed to have been changed into a sponge that hungered for more and more literature ever since the famine imposed upon it by the magic of Moreau had been lifted.

At least Lynx and the others were getting their addiction under control. The book seller in town, however, had been nearly mobbed in the early days of the Manimals arrival......


".....and then Tilbert looked like he'd sucked upon a bitter lemon, and signed the Pact." Astra 1 said to Frederigo D'Honaire, leader of the Pack, through her magic mirror.

"Hmm, it seems that our good Ambassador from Aqualaria didn't get the message when Queen Astra sent him to 'negotiate.'" Fred mutters', ear's twitching in thought.

"I know," chuckles Astra. "I believe that the good Ambassador had took it upon himself to do it HIS way, instead of what the Queen had ordered him to do. I think he resented being just a token in this process, and wanted to feel....oh....important."

"But I see from the Pact you showed me that every important detail I had sent you out to formally get ratified had been accomplished," the manfox smiles his foxy smile. "Good work."

"Thank you," Astra says. "I think I surprised him with my determination.."

"Indeed," Fred smiled, eyes shining. Astra nods, seeing the fox within Fred coming to the fore. Frederigo's inner nature had been brought to the surface and had influenced his transformation into a manfox. Before, Fred had kept his inner nature of pranks and mirth tightly under leash, because it had been expected that a knight of Allaria be disciplined and controlled. The lycanthropy that had warped Fred's body had keyed in on that, and had twisted Fred's body into an animal that most resembled his inner nature. Also, the transformation had put his lighter, more prankish nature nearer the surface (which made things interesting at times).

"How's the Pack and the Others doing?" Astra quickly said, hoping to stop a series of puns that she could almost see upon Fred's elongated tongue. "How's Alicia doing? Are the kits in there doing well?"

Fred blinked as the stream of good natured jokes he'd have used with good friends and family dies upon his tongue. He then smiles a fond smile and tells Astra about how well his children are coming along inside Astra, and how much he's looking forward to seeing them in a few months.

Astra holds back a slight twinge at the mention of children, remembering the children that she had birthed through a series of events beyond her control. She'd given them over to Fred 1, and had basically not looked back since.

She'd asked for and received a position down in Pallaris under the employment of the Manimals out of the hopes that it would keep her away from Aqualaria. She had known that the human D'Honaires would settle down in that relatively intact nation. Queen Astra had hinted strongly that she could use them in her troubled nation. She knew that she still craved adventure. She gloried in the heat of battle. In vanquishing the enemy.

Being in Aqualaria would have been too confining, and too near issues she didn't want to face with Fred 1.

Astra had thought to get a job as.....explorer or something else just as adventurous (and free of responsibility). The very idea of the responsibilities of eventually assuming the mantle of leadership of her Aqualaria had always secretly frightened her, and perhaps that.....had been the core reason why she'd gone off in her Rite of Passage to kill a dragon instead of the regular bear or lion.

Ironically, she'd been handed a job that was filled with responsibilities and obligations, much to her dismay. Then, muich to her surprise, she found she ENJOYED her job. It brought a sense of immense accomplishment and well being when she had negotiated successfully with the dullard Tilbert.

Astra's eyebrows rose towards her flame haired hairline as the news of recent events were told to her.

"MORE analogs, eh?" sighed Astra. "And the last Astra followed a similar course like I did, up until the first night out with Rifts?" She shakes her head and sighs. She felt a stirring of pity for her newest sisters. Their story (along with their companions) were the worst hard case stories to DATE!

It just went to prove that things could have gone worse for her back home.....

At least they and she had faired better than Zular. Astra 1 had privileges and honors afforded her as being an Ambassador. It was on par with the Titles of her homeland. The new Zular was apparently like the Zular of this world, and as such was untrustworthy (at least according to the accounts of Fred 1, Duke Dredrick, and Fred 2).

The issues of Zular aside, about him NOT being granted a dukedom and his subsequent escape due to him being reduced to a commoner, was pushed to the side in Astra's mind. With the mission accomplished, she now had time presently to attend to a more personal matter.....

  1. "Fred, I was wondering if Manbear Synizn could get his fellow mages to.....," Astra begins.

Go Back

View Forward Story Tree
View Back Story Tree


MSG (SORRY FOR THE TYPOES AND SUCH...PROBLEMS WITH COMPUTER).

10/26/1999 6:29:02 AM

The Never Ending Quest Home

Extend-A-Story Home

21381237 episodes viewed since 9/30/2002 1:22:06 PM.

Do not click me.