Vanyel is barely tracking his surroundings at this point, but the offer still makes him feel a pulse of gratitude. He appreciates these people a lot. 

(He's glad Leareth has them. That they're going to make sure he's all right.) 

:- Probably. She went that way: He gestures, vaguely. :I - don't know what would help though. Everything I - tried to say - was just hurting her more: 

What's her favorite food? Maybe we can just bring her her favorite food. And a blanket. 

:Mmm: They're very sweet. :She likes - apples, and clover. And being brushed: 

He's shivering now. :You should - tell the Heralds that I asked you to go. So they don't blame Leareth. S'not his fault: 

Once Leareth's people pick you up I'm going to go explain things to them. I told them I'd check in shortly once I'd talked to you. I think I should wait until they pick you up, though, because you look unwell.

Whatever. It doesn't seem worth arguing with that. And it - does help, having Ignasi there, radiating that whatever-it-is calming presence. It makes it slightly easier to stay focused on how important it is that Leareth understands the constraints here, instead of on how much everything hurts and how intensely he wants to be dead. 

Less than a minute later, there's a Gate. And Leareth standing on the other side of it, looking calm and puzzled and slightly concerned. (He scried the area first, quickly, and he doesn't know what's happening but it seems very not-ideal.) 

Vanyel should probably stand up but this does not seem to be happening. 

Yfandes and Vanyel have - separated - Ignasi says - he's also somewhat confused - because of a constraint where Companions cannot contemplate defying Velgarth's gods. Vanyel can tell you more; I need to go back and talk to the other Heralds, and revisit our plans in Valdemar in light of this. 

That is very concerning! 

Leareth isn't scared, though, which he appreciates deeply. He crosses the Gate and offers Vanyel a hand - and when Vanyel doesn't move to accept it, he catches Ignasi's eye and tries to coordinate with him to support Vanyel to his feet. 

- oh, they're going somewhere, good. Well, not good, nothing is good anymore, but - the last item left on his task list. 

Vanyel can at least manage to dispel the Web-alarm before anyone in Haven panics, and then support most of his own weight while Leareth walks him across the Gate. 

:Thank you for handling this so well: Leareth tells Ignasi before he crosses. 

Take care of him, Ignasi says concernedly, and then heads back to Tantras and Keiran.

Leareth helps Vanyel cross the Gate, which on reflection he should maybe have done faster - he headed over to the dedicated Gate-room for it, since it (supposedly) wasn't an emergency and the threshold there saves some energy. It's not a true permanent Gate, those are far too costly to build casually, but a doorway used for Gates hundreds of times ends up with some attunement to the magic. 

He's not scared; he feels quietly confident that whatever's happening, he's not alone in handling it, and they'll find a way. But he could very much use some literal allies literally at his side, for this, not just Iomedae's constant reassuring presence. 

:Nayoki: he sends. :Meet me at the shrine: 

And he Mindspeaks ahead to Iomedae's remaining people there. :Can someone please come meet me at the Gate-room - here - and help me with something: 

Rovira heads over. 

Leareth adjusts Vanyel's arm over his shoulder. It helps that Vanyel is much smaller and thinner than him. 

:We have a problem: he tells Rovira. :This is Herald Vanyel. I am not sure exactly what happened because -: he gestures with his chin at Vanyel's overall current state, :- he is not very coherent. And I may need to explain some background about the Heralds of Valdemar - how much do you know about them currently?: 

...not very much. They're a Lawful Good country with a government selected by their gods, sort of like us?

Us. It's...going to take Leareth a while, to get used to being included in that. Right now it hits him afresh every time, with - awe and relief and gratitude and not being alone...

:Sort of. - One moment, help me bring him to the shrine...? The Heralds are Chosen by Companions, usually as children. The Companions are - representatives of a god or gods, but...much less directly - legend says that the first King Valdemar prayed to all of the gods whose names he knew, for a miracle to help keep his country stable and free of corruption, and then the Companions appeared, but no single god has ever tried to claim credit, and it does not seem that the Companions have a direct line of communication to their creator or creators, only more nebulous Foresight: 

He pauses in case she has questions, and because he's focused on getting Vanyel around the corner without jostling him. 

That all seems well within her apparent expectations about how countries work. She nods.

:Anyway. Valdemar is not especially religious - they officially allow all religions to be practiced, but I think the Heralds in particularly are rarely focused on worship of any gods. But it seems that the Companions may have been created with some...internal strictures, which make it impossible for them to consider defying any of the native Velgarth gods? And - since the native Velgarth gods are very much not Good and - not trying to fix everything broken in the world or promote the flourishing of all sentient beings - my guess is that Herald Vanyel ran headlong into those restrictions. Ignasi told me that he and his Companion have...separated: 

- I see. That is - very troubling. They are not permitted to oppose their gods and they didn't - know that this was prohibited?

:Apparently not! I expect it had - not really come up before. ...Though it certainly explains some things about the Heralds' reactions when I was their prisoner and they were interrogating me about my own plans: 

Huh. - should we be going to the shrine or to the infirmary, he looks very unwell.

:I am not sure. I - think he is not physically hurt or ill, it is just...very bad for Heralds, to be separated from their Companions. I think we should bring him wherever we can make him most comfortable: 

Well, Leareth presumably knows this base better than she does, so she'll just help get Vanyel wherever Leareth is going.

Leareth personally feels that the infirmary room is not exactly a pleasant or comforting place to be, and the shrine to Iomedae is, so he thinks they should just go there. He can Mindspeak one of the Healers in this base to head over and bring blankets and such so they can make Vanyel physically comfortable. 

- It occurs to him just as they're reaching the room, that plausibly Rovira could benefit from some additional context on Vanyel as a person. 

:Herald Vanyel - has lost a great deal and sacrificed a great deal in service of his country: he sends. :He - I would be worried about this for all Heralds whose Companions had left them, honestly, and if anything Vanyel is more able to press forward if he still needs to do something important, but... I think that usually Heralds who have been repudiated do not survive. - Because they kill themselves: