Merrinyn had planned to spend the day at the library even before all the chaos and confusion erupted. She had not seen the sails of the invaders herself, not even a shadow of their fleet, but heard about the dreadful surprise in the waters from her landlady’s friend, a fisherman who had a vile reputation for being overly involved with the sweet and tragic nectar of the taverns. After a brief argument, one in which Merrinyn expressed her desire to sink the ships with her magic trident, a feat that was foolhardy and irresponsible to say the least, the older woman managed to convince the triton to seek shelter with her at the Institute, a win-win situation for the both of them, all things considered.
It had not dawned on the curious triton the gravity of the situation at hand until she was already in the streets with the old woman. Wherever they passed, the stink of panic and desperation ran rife, fear throughout, born from the possible results of this inevitable calamity. Merrinyn lamented the curse of the smallfolk, the unwilling casualties of wars they directly do not even take part in, wish for. It was the kings, the queens, the emperors, and the rulers who orchestrate such widespread thirst for blood and power, yet it was always those smaller in influence and control that suffered the most.
Merrinyn was not new to the Institute. Although she was not officially a part of it in anyway, she has visited the place for all his academic and research needs. Of course, she wouldn’t have been able to, if it had not been for the help of her elderly landlady whose social circles include scholars from this place. She watched, instinctively holding her first friend on the surface close, as others, refugees not unlike them, rushed to fill the library, one of Merrinyn’s favored havens for study.
Spotting the strange-looking gnome ushering people inside, the triton whispered to the elderly woman to follow the others and assured her she would be with them after a while. She needed, wanted, to do something first. Approaching the gnome, she took her place right behind her, careful not to obstruct anyone’s path.
“Will these walls hold? Is there a plan to fight back should we need to? Are soldiers coming to help us?” She had so many questions still, but she reined the others to prioritize three. Should push come to shove, Merrinyn was going to shove back. She would have to.
Arthenni got a couple more people through the door before she heard the questions being directed towards her. She glanced over to whoever was asking them. She was familiar. Arthenni had certainly seen her around the library before, though she didn’t know about her beyond that.
“Oh, uhm, well...I think they will. They’re stronger than other places in the city.” Not the most reassuring of answers, but the most honest one. They seemed strong and sturdy. But who knows what those ships were bringing. “I’m sure the capital will bring in soldiers. The plan here is to get below the university and wait it out.” The school had underground areas that could be defended and safer than being above ground for the skirmish. With the food and supplies that had been stocked in such an event of this occuring once the war had started, and with rationing, they could hold up for a good while. Hopefully it wouldn’t last too long. With this being such an important port to the kingdom, surely it wouldn’t last too long.