This Is Why I Like Character Driven Plots, There’s Reasoning Behind Everything A Character Does That’s

This is why I like character driven plots, there’s reasoning behind everything a character does that’s tied to who they are as a person, and you can see that used to great effect in Aurora.

It really helps too that these are very clearly multifaceted individuals with their own strengths, weaknesses, similarities, differences… they are their own people and it’s really interesting to see that, not just in how they contrast each other in their responses, but in why and who they are even before we know anything about backstories for 2/4.

It’s just good writing my man.

What did Kendal tell the others? Why has Falst jumped to the conclusion that Kendal has to be broken out immediately and is being used as a hostage? Why are they so on edge if theoretically Kendal will be released once they leave?

The gist is that he's being imprisoned until they leave, don't freak out, it's fine. Pretty simple message.

Erin recognizes a power play when he sees one. Zuurith has snatched and imprisoned Kendal, and even if he's supposed to be released once they leave, it's not ideal. Erin does not have the authority to challenge Zuurith directly over this, and if he tries, he risks dragging Asera into an actual intercity conflict. This puts himself and Kendal squarely in the sights of Asera and the mage academy, something he's trying to avoid until he's got his own business more under control. He also risks drawing attention from the Paladins if he does anything too dramatic. Erin needs to trust that Zuurith will release Kendal as promised, because if the diplomatic option fails, his only other options have catastrophic collateral impact.

Falst recognizes an abuse of power when he sees one. Kendal is a lot like him in some ways. Falst knows the security a city provides is conditional and easily misused to harm people the city doesn't like. With Kendal imprisoned, no matter how diplomatic they claim the process is, Zuurith now has leverage over all of them, and is clearly using leverage over Kendal to keep him restrained. This city has made its intentions very clear, so it's time to defend themselves. Underneath, he also deeply dislikes the indication that if he was in Kendal's position, Erin wouldn't hesitate to leave him behind.

Alinua is torn. She knows that this isn't something she can fight. She's not a diplomat, she's not even halfway experienced with nuanced social situations, and Kendal specifically told her this is his problem to solve because nobody else can. All she can do in this situation is brute force and divine fiat, and brute force will cause more problems than it fixes. But she hates leaving Kendal in this situation, especially since she knows his self-sacrificing habits make him an unreliable judge of how much danger he's actually in.