Summer came, and still the battle of Bastion was not settled. Noble wasn't sure how things were going on that front either. News of any part of the war was becoming scarcer as the forces finally met in open conflict.
Few were willing to travel between worlds frequently, and even fewer shared any information about what was going on. Information was power, and now that no true neutral parties existed, communications were even more closely guarded.
Noble and Fort had expected some backlash from Clan Song over the government's decision to send three Saints against Mordret, but as weeks passed, nothing happened at all.
Either they had their hands too full with other issues, or they knew how much the infrastructure in Ravenheart would suffer if government agents were removed from their positions. It was also possible that they didn't really blame the government for how things had transpired, but Noble doubted that.
The most likely scenario is that some kind of secret deal or understanding had been brokered regarding the agents in the Song Domain to keep more from joining the opposing side.
Whatever the reason, Noble was glad that the oppression they had expected did not come to fruition. Hiding would have been difficult, and leaving the Song Domain would have meant throwing her husband and twins into their first Nightmares. Noble was very glad that it hadn't come to that.
That didn't mean things were easy. Saint Kai had been the one who had planned to investigate the missing merchants. With him still missing after months, the search for the people had gone nowhere, and more had gone missing since. While some still braved the wilds to bring goods between citadels, many gave up their caravans for safer work.
The commerce between the waking world and the Dream Realm was also strained. Every time the Dream Gate opened, it seemed like there were fewer and fewer supplies available for trade to support the sprawling city.
'At least the crops seem to be doing well.' Noble noted as she flew overhead.
Unlike the merchants, the farmers had been under the protection of someone they only knew as the hermit. Having caught an occasional glimpse of the reptilian Saint, most of them regarded the man with due reverence and no longer panicked when he or his adorable little echo appeared on the horizon.
Chip didn't seem to be around just now. That wasn't surprising. The man came and went as he pleased. She hadn't yet convinced him to return to life in society, and he had become even more of a nomad lately.
'It would have been good to have some company, but I'll manage.'
Seeing a shadow pass overhead, the people in the field shielded their eyes to look up at the sun. They waved at Noble.
"Out again today?" One of the friendlier men called out to her.
"What else can I do on my day off?" Child of Promise smiled. "I don't sit still well..."
'Or at all.' Noble waved again and headed on her way.
She would have loved to have spent time with Fort and her boys; however, that wasn't meant to be. Fort was busier than ever, trying to keep people fed and things moving in Saint Kai's absence. He made time to be with the family for dinner, but his days were filled with nonstop meetings to meet the needs of the citizens of the Song Domain.
Having graduated from their secondary education, Brock and Blaze had immersed themselves in the Dreamer Academy. They were growing in their skills every day.
Noble had spent part of the morning with them. She had even gotten to run a seminar at the Dreamer Academy, which did her teacher-heart a world of good. The Dreamer Academy was a bright spot in a world that was falling apart. Hopes and aspirations still seemed attainable there, and Noble drank in the positivity to soothe her aching spirit.
But all good things come to an end. After a meeting about the additional funding the school would need to be maintained and grow, Noble had headed out across the Dream Realm for the afternoon.
Coming out into the open countryside, Noble drew a deep breath and extended her emotional sense.
'It looks like I will have to go even farther than last time...'
That wasn't a problem. She had a long time before dinner.
Glancing to her left, Noble remembered the dead forest that once stood off in the distance. It was the last place Rain had been before her life was turned entirely upside down. A year ago, any merchants who disappeared would have easily been blamed on the horror that had dwelt among the ice and trees there, but now it was completely devoid of life, human or monster.
'It would be nice to find one of the missing people this time...' Noble knew better than to hope for those results. She had been out a few times after Saint Kai's extended absence, but had no additional luck finding any clues.
Once the problem became more widespread, plenty of people submitted tips to the government, but the last time that Fort had updated her on the situation, all of them led to dead ends.
There seemed to be no particular region that the missing people had all come from, nor did their loads have any obviously common traits. The randomness of it all pointed to a monster, and one without a particular nest. However, they also couldn't fully rule out human foul play.
It was both frustrating and terrifying how easily people could just vanish.
While Noble hoped to find out more about the mystery looming over the Song Domain, that wasn't why she had left Ravenheart just now.
As Noble continued to scan the landscape, she began to feel bored. She had felt it so seldom lately that she almost didn't recognize the emotion.
That didn't mean that she wanted to feel it, though.
'I wish Sarai could have joined me.'
Noble had asked her the night before if the fiery Master could accompany her on the excursion. However, Sarai was just as busy as Fort when it came to daily activities. The grain that Noble had passed over needed to be processed for human consumption, and as it was one of the few sources of steady food, someone had to continuously turn it into something edible.
And who better to turn things into bread than the most famous baker in Ravenheart?
So Sarai was churning out baked goods at an alarming rate, taking whatever she didn't sell back with her in her storage space to feed people of the waking world.
'It isn't war profiteering because Sarai is trying to get as many people fed as possible, but she will come out of all of this a very wealthy woman...'
That was fine with Noble. If anyone deserved to be rich, it was the caring woman who dove into a Nightmare just to help a friend.
Noble had a lot of credits too these days, but spending them was hard when she didn't have the time or inclination to shop for new things.
Her thoughts were derailed as something came into her emotional sphere. She had found what she was looking for.