eachdraidh | [video / both courts / backdated to january 7th]

[Well. Looks like Tzilan was right about the Seelie going on the offensive. It's one of those odd occasions where Saralegui wishes the vampire wasn't always right, but nothing to do about it now besides damage control. If that happens to be good for his image, then that's just bonus points.]

I'm sure everyone is aware of the upcoming fighting by now. And I'm sure there are those who, like myself, have no skill whatsoever in that area or just no interest in it.

[Just look at him. He's a twig, and that hair is absolutely not at all practical for fighting. The self-aware, slightly self-deprecating little smile he wears is only further evidence of that. And better, of course, to play up that helplessness. He prefers to be underestimated, and the knife the Brucolac had given him is very easy to keep hidden.]

So I'd like to offer up Redgate as a safe haven away from the fighting. Others have made this offer, I know, and I hate to be redundant. But I would hate myself more if I didn't make it at all, and I can at least offer a place well out of the line of fire. It's very defensible, and kinder to shardbearers than most places have been lately -- the result of having been founded by a shardbearer, I assume. The distance might seem great, but for shardbearers it isn't really that bad -- only a few days from the nearest fairy ring in Daonna.

Truthfully, I am Unseelie myself, but I make this offer to anyone who wants it, from whichever court. The politics of this world mean little to me. I only want to see those who can't defend themselves kept safe.

[Saber had asked him as the Unseelie General to take Unseelie-aligned individuals into Redgate's care, but she hadn't technically asked to only take those from their own court. If she has a problem with how he does things, then she can bring it up with him personally.]

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Redgate, huh... [ Isn't that the place Waver is always trying to send her to for safekeeping? ]

It isn't redundant to offer many places, but this sort of approach... I do hope you have the defenses after making such a bold offer.

[ It's tempting to head there instead of Mair, but after this? Oh well, she can expect a call from Waver insisting on her presence either way. ]

Unless one court or the other is planning on taking a fairly massive detour, there should be no reason why the fighting would come anywhere near here. Redgate is a literal fortress, built into the side of mountains, and the stone it's carved out of suppresses magic.

[Safe enough for you?]

You act as if a mountain can't be knocked down. There are people here who could commit such acts on their own.

[ Idly commenting on that. ] I've heard of that ore. It could make a great defensive weapon if there's plenty to spare, you know.

Anything can be knocked down, if you're thinking like that, which makes nowhere truly safe. But a mountain is a bit harder to manage, at least, especially if one can't use any magical aid to destroy it with. If a person can tear down this mountain with their natural strength alone, then what makes any other place any safer against them?

[Please let him know if you have better ideas. If there's an even greater fortress out there, then he'd like to have it.]

On a... not-much-less-heavy note, I can't say there's any blood granite to spare here. It isn't exactly common or easy to work with to begin with, and Redgate's mines have been inoperable for a while now.

What makes them inoperable? [ See how she doesn't care to talk much of fortresses or mountains. She's seen the raw destructive power of a Servant without magic bolstering their strength.

Since it seems the matter is of no importance to him, she jumps right into the next one. ]

I'm no miner, but I know how to work with gemstones, ores, minerals--that sort of thing.

A dragon long asleep inside the mountain was rather carelessly woken. It did a great deal of damage to the mines and the city when it forced its way out.

[A statement delivered flatly, with a look of great exasperation. Redgate wasn't even his when that shit went down, but here he is still dealing with the aftermath.]

I don't doubt your skills, but the point is rather moot when there's nothing to experiment with.

[ Recalling the incident as one she's heard in passing, she didn't pay it much attention. Dragons and the like were beyond her area of expertise. The damage must have been bigger than anyone else has let on however if the mines were still inaccessible. With the defenses already crippled in a way, isn't it odd he's offering sanctuary?

Maybe to recruit anyone who is desperate enough to go for the work effort of digging out the mines. Note to self, don't visit Redgate until they've made some progress on the mines. Additionally it does rule out something in her own research so she mentally crosses that off the list. ]

You're right that it is. I was just curious since Redgate is terribly out of the way and Lord El-Melloi II is always insisting I should stop by for a visit.

[The city has been comparatively easier to repair, and much of that was well underway long before he was named Lord of Redgate. But the mines are a much more difficult matter. Everything needs to go slowly and cautiously to avoid further cave-ins in the unstable shafts, and there isn't much actual mining to be done in the sections that have already been cleared near the shaft entrances. It means the city is a bit more strapped for funds than it typically is, but it's hardly incapable of handling visitors.]

I should hope it's just because he's a friend, both to me and to the city. Perhaps he just thought you'd like it here? It is a lovely spot, in my opinion, but I might be biased.

I believe some event of importance happened there that has him eager to show it off, yes. [ Whether she knows of these events or not, well. Saying things like that out loud is a betrayal of trust. ] You must have been involved then if he considers himself a friend of yours.

[ Ugh... which means she needs to try to be his friend. Politics were far from her specialty, but kissing ass was something she could do. It's something she struggles with here, trying to make nice with Waver's friends, and with her memory spotty as of late... ]

... I'm caught up in something right now, but if the opportunity is presented in the future, I would come by for a visit. I have a project in mind and that location, being so far out, is one of interest.

[Truthfully, Saralegui doesn't really do friends. They get along well enough, but Waver's more of a contact than a friend. Very few actually earn that title, and if any of your friends are at all close to it, then Saber's the one you really need to be playing nice for.]

I can't imagine what that is. He helped manage communications during the incident with Reynard in November, I suppose...

[He looks distracted by that train of thought for a moment, but appears to shake himself out of it quickly enough and offers a shrug and a smile.]

Things are rough all around right now, but I'd be happy to have you whenever you like.

Then I hope sometime in the future to accept your gracious invitation. [ For now she can't, but maybe it'll be open in the future.

Rin can hope at least. What are the chances she'll piss this guy off between now and then? ~~Pretty high considering she's who she is.~~ ]

If the routes within the mines are recovered sooner than later, I would appreciate a heads up.

[~~Considering who he is? At least it'd probably be mutual.~~]

When the mines are fully recovered, you can expect an announcement will be made, as well as enough celebrating that you'll likely be able to hear it from the Barrel.

Excellent. Then I'll take that as my invitation.

[ She just wants to raid his mine. What a lovely girl. ]

[video / both courts / backdated to january 7th]

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