Rudra was staring at the mouth of a canal when Nayan ended explaining her 'idea'.
"This is absurd to say the list," uttered Mamon. Rudra had never thought he'd agree on anything with the Benevian Prince, but he found himself nodding.
"You certainly cannot help with the rescue work when you are a big volatile lizard!" Nayan argued and then jabbed her thumb at the canal mouth, "The flood water keeps entering the low land from the canals, canals which got overflooded when you broke the dams and melted the ice of Rā," she kept talking even when Rudra continued shaking his head firmly- a universal sign of no among all species- humans and dragons alike.
"If you act as a temporary dam around the mouths of the canals, the workers can build the dams behind you faster! Once the dams are secured, it will be easier to redirect the water back into the river by using sluice gates of the dams and maybe making a few temporary ditches here and there to lead the water back into the canal network!" She looked away at the river, "The winter is still here. If the water doesn't return back to the river, it's likely that the entire lowland will be frozen under ice within a few days."
She finally looked at the Prince, "Are you sure your workers can work fast enough to secure the flooded lands before that happens?"
Mamon looked uncomfortable. "Makes sense," Tish agreed, ofcourse she did. Rudra doubted Tish gave any damn about Nayan's plan. She probably just wanted to see Rudra getting humiliated in newer, more entertaining ways. "Then what are we waiting for?" She looked up at Rudra, expectant.
Rudra groaned but he didn't protest. Carefully he places his talon against the mouth of the canal. They did help a little but the water kept licking out from between his claws.
"No no not like that," Nayan said. Rudra pulled away his hand with a series of bitter gargling and growling as he tried to push his back against the mouth of the canal. "It's still licking!" Nayan protested, "Just use your snout."
"Wragh rrhaaoh ooghwrr!" Rudra complained. But then he lowered his head and thrashed his snout into the narrow cannal.
Tish coughed which suspiciously sounded something close to a laugh. But Rudra didn't dare to look away. He kept his face pressed against the cannal.
It wasn't a perfect seal, ofcourse. Water seeped around the edges through the gaps between the scales but the main flow was dramatically reduced.
"Well, atleast we don't need to make forty-fifty of my men struggle to make cofferdams in the freezing water for weeks," Mamon snorted.
"Lift your head! You're widening the canal mouth!" Tish called, finding faults in Rudra like she always did, "You are making the edges wider." She looked back at the Benevian Prince, "We need to frame the canal mouth first and then he can plug it with his snout. The workers can start re-building the dams and putting up the sluice gates as soon as possible."
But as Rudra lifted his head and listened to Tish's planning, it started sounding.....reasonable.
Mamon was nodding, "Then it's decided. The Parthan Prince will act as our glorified cofferdam until the Parthan Physician arrives. I'll have the workers set up the frames around the cannal mouth in a few hours and we can get to work."
Rudra could tell the night had arrived in the lands of Benevia but neither Tish, nor Mamon or any of the soldiers or workers looked like they wanted to take a break.
It seemed they feared the winter more than they feared exhaustion.
Once the walls of Benevia stops burning, once the sky is free from Ashes and smoke of war, winter will return to Benevia. It was an enemy far worse than any Dragon.
"I will then go back to report to the council," Tish said. She looked up at Rudra, "Don't disappoint me. Again."
"Groowhh wrroh," said Rudra turning his head away. Tish didn't reply.
_____________________________________
The Royale Court of Benevia was far more calmer than it had been for past several days. As the door-keepers opened Teresa's path to the Royale Court, she noticed the Korenis- the old ones - looked less hostile than the last time she had seen all of them together- the last time being before the day Rudra had attacked Benevia. They sat to the left, huddled together and making a clear distinct line of separations from Vedaris - the new ones - amongst whom Tish was supposed to belong to- since she was, without a noble last name, like they were. Prince Mamon also was fond of the Vedaris, like Percival was.
However, Tish couldn't help but wonder had she never been a Saintess whether the Vedaris would have cared about her at all.
Or if she would have been daughter of just a stableboy and a maid to them, someone insignificant and unimportant - as Rudra had pointed outseveral times before.
Violently, she pushed back the thought, focusing on the paired bassalt columns that ran the length of the Hall with banners of Benevia, hanging between them. The banners hung so still that they looked more like paintings and less like actual clothes.
The floor is old mosaic of the river Rā winding towards a stylized sun. The years of being stepped on by thousands, if not hundreds of boots had smoothened it.
Despite Teresa's small, quiet steps, everyone fell silent. The Vedaris. The Korenis and even- the high priests of Rāva- Tish's actual guardians on paper.
The priests wore different shades of grey-green- the lighter the colour, the higher the rank, but all of them had bracelets made of braided river grass and polished river stones around their neck and embedded in their braids- both male and female priests had long hair neatly braided.
Only one among them had red collars and cuff- the High Priest Anton Veskar. When his eyes were like chips of ice- cold and sharp. Instinctively, Tish looked down.
She focused on walking to the foot of the dias where she bowed deep to the Rān- the ruler of Benevia and Mamon's father.
"So the Daughter of Rāva returns," said Vran Kosco Rān, "Tell me. Had the poison killed the fire?"
Tish looked up, a little startled, "Rān Vran?" She asked, shocked, "Had you been the one to send poison to the kill the dragon?"
The King sat still like a mountain atop the Benevian throne. His eyes were soft, "I know a dragon cannot be killed. But he came to take the daughter of the River, so I heard he was working near the water, I figured I should atleast try to make him drown."