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The Spirit of Giving

The celebration of the Winter Solstice is once again in season all across the plane of Crossroads, but for the downtrodden of Oplentis’s 13th district, it is a poor salve for their daily woes. While conditions in the district have been improving gradually ever since Captain Azurium introduced sweeping changes and reforms to the city watch under his command, there was still much work to be done.

To provide more immediate relief and in the spirit of the celebration, he collaborated with local businesses, spearheaded by a benefactor running a local alchemy shop/pharmacy. Taking inspiration from stories from other planes and cultures, his guardspeople dressed in red robes, delivering toys, food, and medicine to the children, poor, and infirm across the district, and even a few lucky sods from neighboring districts who happened to be swept up in the occasion.

It was a resounding success. Everyone in attendance had the sight of the fearsome Captain Azurium handing gifts out to young children burned into their minds, an action than humanized him and this new breed of town guard sweeping in more than words ever could.

Exactly as Volpes had hoped and planned when he made the suggestion to his second-in-command. Still, to the Captain’s young progeny, who still, at the time, held out hope that his father would one day return to him, it provided little comfort.

I could tell you this piece from LittleBadWolf back in December of 2022 was intended to both continue the story of Volpes and Azurium while hinting once more towards Edmund’s sadness. I could tell you that, but it would be an absolute lie.

Sometimes, I just want to see my hot, musclebound character in a shirtless santa outfit, and that’s all there is to it. 🙂