What Raleigh really wants is some time alone, in private, with just the four of them, so they can TALK ABOUT THIS. But if he can't have that, he can at least eat some pie and then alternate his power-boosting spells for Shannon and Rebecca's healing. 

...before Rebecca gets deep into singing she pulls the terrible bread out of Shannon's hand and replaces it with a slice of pie. THEN singing to people.

Shannon blinks stupidly at the pie for thirty seconds before she manages to process what just happened and that it's for eating. 

It's great not having to worry about 'wasting' mana that she might need for graduation. Shannon doesn't hesitate to cast the most expensive and powerful healing spells she can. She goes back to Orion for a mana top-up when she's out. 

Orion is happy to do this.

And in fact, by the time Shannon and Rebecca have gotten to all of the most seriously wounded casualties, someone has arrived to talk to them!

(It wasn't easy, on short notice, to find a priest of Vkandis who was also a Mindspeaker, given the current personnel issues, but they managed it even if it took a frantic and moderately ill-advised Gate. The soldier with Foresight isn't sure why these teenaged mage-students are so important - the vision was vague and nonspecific, as long-range Foresight tends to be - but he's very sure that they ARE important.) 

The woman takes a step forward to greet them. :Thank you so much for your help. I am Priestess Alrida. Do you need anything else before we talk - food, water, rest...? I have a feeling it's going to be a long conversation: 

The food here kind of sucks, and not even in the same way as Scholomance food so they aren't used to it! "I could use a refill on the water! Uh, priestess of what religion?"

The priestess murmurs and gestures for someone to bring more water, and then ushers the four of them out of the infirmary area, to a hallway, and then to a much quieter, tidier meeting-room with upholstered chairs and way too many cabinets and nooks and crannies where things could hide. 

:The temple of Vkandis. You are in Karse, now. ...I hear your homeland is very, very far from here?: 

"Uh, I guess so! Do you have Christianity at all." That is a lot of nooks and crannies. Rebecca nudges Orion in first.

Orion checks nooks and crannies.

All clear! To Raleigh's relief, though probably to Orion's disappointment. (Shannon is still too lost in haze to care, especially.) 

:It does not sound familiar: the priestess admits. :Though - possibly that god is known here under a different name?: 

"Jesus Christ?" tries Rebecca. "- this probably isn't really important to what you were going to tell us though."

...Ugh. Raleigh always feels so incredibly awkward when religion comes up! Mostly it's a habit from three years of being stuck in the middle between Rebecca's earnest heartfelt religion and Vanya's moderately bitter atheism. Rebecca always seemed to handle that surprisingly gracefully, but it was still really painful to sit through. 

The priestess points out seats for them, and then accepts a jug of water and tray of cups from the person bringing them. 

:I do think it's a fairly high priority to learn about where you're from! So that we can figure out where that is. But, probably we should explain what's going on around these parts first?: 

Raleigh starts to glance over at Orion, and stops himself. He's not sure why he keeps being so tempted to look to Orion for leadership??? Orion is clearly terrible at this???? 

...He hates the fact that there aren't any seniors or adults to consult. Although supposedly he's an adult now? Apparently? 

"Yeah, probably," Rebecca agrees.

:Right. So - what do you know so far? We aren't sure if you spoke to the Valdemaran side first, when you arrived: 

"We, uh, talked to some people who were wearing white?" Raleigh glances uncertainly at Rebecca and Orion. He wasn't exactly thinking at his most clearly, at the time, and honestly he was paying more attention to mal-lookout than to the people. "It - was incredibly confusing - they seemed to think we were attacking them, I think? And then this kid was screaming like he was being murdered, but nothing was obviously wrong, and then he sang at us - like he was attacking us with a spell, almost, it didn't make much sense....." 

"He was a really good singer but I couldn't tell what it was supposed to do, since I don't have the language at all. - you guys are the other side?"

:I - think it's a lot more complicated than 'the other side'. But...unfortunately, right now, that's not wrong. I might need to explain a lot more background for any of it to make sense, just - the current King of Valdemar is very young, just seventeen. And we suspect he's been compromised by our enemy, and all of Valdemar's leadership along with him: 

"Okay...?" Wow, seventeen is younger than her. Correct age for being a Disney prince, not a king.

:Right. So - some historical context here, is that Valdemar and Karse were at war about a decade ago. ...This was under a different king, for Karse, and - the political situation was bad - the leaders were no longer speaking for Vkandis Sunlord. And then Herald Vanyel - one of Valdemar's war heroes, a very powerful mage - was instrumental to helping Queen Karis take back her rightful throne: 

....Is he supposed to make appropriate facial expressions about this story? Raleigh honestly can't tell if she thinks the 'Herald Vanyel' stuff is supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing? He - can try to make a listening sort of face that's ambiguous between whether he thinks the story is happy or sad?? 

"Does, uh, this have anything to do with us."

:...Not yet, probably? I just wasn't sure if the Valdemarans you spoke with would have mentioned Vanyel. He's - pretty important to their country. And - to all of the recent trouble: 

"...I don't think so?"