[audio] @kingofwei HERE WE GO

[pure_havoc]

[he sounds tired. They probably all do, after all of that.]

My friends...

I'm sure I don't need to state the obvious, but we are just now seeing the full extent of this disaster. If you have not yet looked to see the bluff where the lighthouse used to be, take a moment and behold. This is hardly the first time the ferry hasn't come, but everything else....well. It is a tragedy on all sides.

First, I would like those who can to check in. Who is still here, and are you all alright? Now that we have a moment to breathe, report in if you can. We must take stock of who is genuinely missing, versus those who are just too busy to use the Grandmaster's alert system.

Second, can we have reports on what is destroyed and what still stands? I have spent my energy moving torches and redirecting water around the Bonfire. It is mostly safe, as far as I can tell, but Master Rastus is missing entirely. What of the village and the downtown on the other sides of the river? How do they fare? Has anyone been able to reach the Keeper, Dr. Solis, or anyone else with the network?

[a pause, a deep breath. Rosinante, buddy, this is on you]

Now is the time we need leadership, more than any other. We can discuss and debate the options later but for the moment, I would like for all of you to trust me and allow me to take charge. Temporarily, if nothing else. I have led my kingdom through war and disaster on a similar level before, I will do everything in my power to lead us out of this and to recovery and reorder, swiftly and carefully. I have been asked by some to step up, and so I shall. If you will let me. If there are no objections, simply ask me for a direction and I will point you toward a need that your skills can meet. What we need first is to take stock of what we have and what is missing: people, supplies, and shelter. From there, we will move forward one step at a time.

If you will not have me, then feel free to say so and I will not waste my time. Meanwhile, I will be moving torches back to the Bonfire Square until I drop from fatigue.

Comments

@Grandmaster | Audio

[paletteswap]

I would vouch for your leadership, though I fear my word holds little weight.

[Someone is spiraling into self-loathing about not being able to save everyone single handedly.]

I had hoped that the church would be overflowing with those who are returning to us, but that was too hopeful even for me. I've not seen many of the residents, nor any sign of Robin or Rastus. Have many checked in with you? Do you know which bridges have been rebuilt? I can start working on any of them.

[He has a feather to follow afterall.]

[pure_havoc]

Yet your presence fills me with pride and relief, Grandmaster. Thank you.

My ongoing tally is far short of what I was hoping. Commander Rosinante found someone unconscious, so it may be that others are incapacitated rather than dead. Like everything else, this seems to be a task that will take more than a couple of days to complete.

The bridges are not yet seen to. If you can lend an effort, I would focus on where the river is most narrow. Your powers can span it, even if only briefly, no?

[paletteswap]

Where it narrows yes. The current of the river is swift enough that I cannot lay ice down directly on it but I can safely get myself to the other side. I'll take a look and see if the structures of any remain, the closest one that I thought to check had been carried away completely, but certainly some might have persisted. We'll need the remnants, even if they're debris, to rebuild anyway.

As for everyone else... While the thought that they might be incapacitated and not dead is promising, that leaves the possibility they're in the woods unable to find their way back.

[This search and rescue just got a whole lot more complicated.]

[pure_havoc]

Precisely. Do what you can, then. I would concentrate efforts on finding people without having to send great numbers of us over the rivers, first, but if we exhaust the square and downtown, then crossing to the village and the woodland beyond will become necessary.

[paletteswap]

Certainly. And I hope those in the village are trying to cross over to us as well. Presuming there are any left.

No one has heard from Robin correct? She might be able to see who's alive and dead at a glance, she was the one publishing the obituaries so that information filtered to her somehow.

[pure_havoc]

No, not at all as far as I've heard. Given the state of the lighthouse it looks dire on that front, but she may be made of tougher stuff than many. Who is to say?

I am more concerned that Dr. Solis isn't responding to messages either.

[paletteswap]

How responsive was she before? I never tried to contact her other than when she directly communicated with us.

[pure_havoc]

It would not take her two days, I will say that much. There is still a chance she is simply unable to for some logical and not terrible reason, but...

[paletteswap]

There's still hope, though it fades as the days progress. Maybe what powers the tablets has been disrupted. If they function off of any sort of power grid it may have been taken offline in certain areas. Or the range impacted.

[pure_havoc]

That is beyond my understanding, so I will take your word for it. But yes, as days pass, our easy fallbacks will vanish one by one. I would prefer to prepare for the worst now and have to discard contingency plans than to not be prepared at all.

[paletteswap]

A wise plan. I'm at your call should you need me.

[pure_havoc]

Thank you, Grandmaster.