Good, both the active distress and the calming-pattern are now less active. :Good, thank you. Now - pick a different upsetting thing, give yourself thirty seconds to dwell on it, and then I want you to - sort of reach for the mental action of calming-down, by thinking about playing with the foals, and if I did it better this time, it should feel a lot easier and like it sort of pulls you along: 

He contemplates the fact that Yeerks still exist. It is very upsetting. He tries for the calming motion.

It is a lot easier this time - it feels familiar, half-automatic, the way a fighting-technique drilled a hundred times would. It's also slightly jarring, it doesn't quite fit with the rest of his mind, but the calming motion is there. 

- huh. Well, the mind-doctor recommended it. It's sort of like wearing a splint, but - one no one can see. Like having a steel reinforcement bar inside your bone. It's wrong but much better than being crippled. <I think that it works> he says.

:Good. That's probably enough to cover for today. I want you to pay attention to that in particular for the next while, notice when it works and especially if it doesn't work, or bothers you in some way. And - here: She offers him the bag with the message-recordings. 

<Do you have anything I can play them on.>

Embarrassed look. :I, er, might be very ignorant about technology - what kind of thing do you need to play them on?: 

<An Andalite computer with a screen or projector.>

:Ah. I'm so sorry for not thinking of that - I'll arrange to get one for you: She hesitates, briefly. :Also, er, Leareth was wanting to speak with you again, about the war. If you're up for doing that tomorrow morning, I can have him bring the computer: 

<I can do that.>

:Good. Thank you, we appreciate your willingness to help even while you're still recovering. Anything else you wanted to cover today?: 

<I do not think so. Though now I am curious what you think of Velgarth's gods.>

Sigh. :The specifics are private and I can't talk about them, but...my general opinion is that They meddle in humans' lives to achieve Their mysterious goals, often the meddling hurts people a lot, and They don't seem to care at all. - I suppose this part isn't secret. Herald-Mage Vanyel is almost certainly a pawn in some god-scheme to get Leareth killed. Vanyel is about ten times more powerful than he has any right to be, the reasons for that were improbable and also highly unpleasant for him, and he immediately started getting a Foresight dream about Leareth being his destined enemy who he would die fighting. And then more coincidences piling up in his life. This would be bad enough if Leareth were just a murderous warlord who needed to be stopped, but...he's not, is he? He's - complicated - he's done a lot of awful things - but he's trying to fix the world. And I really can't get behind any gods that would use people as Their tools like that, against someone who, as far as I can tell, really genuinely wants to save everyone in the universe: 

<I don't think it matters to me if he is well-intentioned. But it does matter to me that he is allied with the Andalites against the Yeerk Empire, so if the gods are his enemy then they are mine.>

Melody isn't sure what to say to that, so she just nods. :Aside from that I don't know much about Them, sorry: 

<Maybe I will discuss it with Leareth when he stops by.>

Nod. :Anything else before I go?: 

<No.>

Melody heads out to her Gate. 

A couple of the young Companion stallions come find Alloran once it looks like he's done talking to her. Their Heralds just graduated (early, because of the war, they're both sixteen) and they're being deployed to Karse, to deal with some sort of civil war situation in the northwest. They want to know if Alloran has any advice for them, since he's an experienced warrior, albeit an alien one. 

The most noticeable thing about them is that they're so young and so...earnest, and very nervous and out of their depth but trying not to show it. 

Alloran would be happy to give them advice about this. What do they know about the situation in Karse? Who do their Heralds report to? What are their goals?

They can fill him in on what they know, which seems kind of incomplete, but broadly, there's a faction under the leadership of a priest-mage, who they think is doing fake 'miracles' to prove Vkandis supports her, and her faction is refusing to back Queen Karis, despite the reports of Vkandis manifesting personally through her to Heal all the casualties after the battle for Sunhame. (Of course, the far northwest is a long way for rumours to trickle and get mangled.) They want to convince people that Karis is the one actually backed by Vkandis - she personally has a Suncat, too, apparently - but realistically they'll have to settle for making it obvious Karis is the one winning here, and by taking away the priestess-mage's territory and possibly killing her, they suspect the resistance will fall apart without her leadership.   

They listen very attentively to whatever advice he gives. 

Leareth is available the next day to visit Alloran up north, sure, and he would enjoy sparring with him if Alloran is up for it. 

After talking to Melody, he goes to find Matirin and ask about getting a portable computer with a display screen or projector so Alloran can watch his message recordings, apparently Melody had no idea what was needed for that. 

Matirin can get him a tablet like the one he used to show Randi the conversation with Leareth, back when this all started.

(It feels like such a long time ago that all this started.) 

The next day, Leareth gets a Gate to the north area, which has a semi-permanent camp now since it's way more convenient for transport to and from Haven than his facilities north of the mountains. He sends one of his mages to collect Alloran from Haven.