The bright full moon was about the only bright thing that night. Overlooking Tristan without a speck of cloud, the serene environment it created made a sharp contrast from the emotions running wild in each of the people who took the time to look at it.
Watching her from afar, Barda couldn't help feeling dejected as he saw just how miserable Lady Ellen looked. Since he had met her, this had got to be the worst she had even appeared. The look of grief and brokenness was too much for anyone to bear. The only silver lining was that everyone else was too distracted with their woes.
Lady Ellen held Phoenix's hand without letting go. It had been a tough fight, and a blade had found its way to Phoenix's body, tearing an inch-deep wound in her torso. By the graces, she had been rescued and they had been brought out after the dragons descended, but that did not save her from the infection that was creeping in her body.
Barda looked over to the ridge on the right. It had tight security. All the soldiers were stationed there at the base, protecting it. Barda knew she was up there, and he knew he should go up and check on her, but the one thing that had always spooked Barda was handling emotional tasks such as notifying the next of kin about the death of a comrade.
This was back when he had functional human emotions, how much more now that he had near-robotic emotions and thought process. At this point, Barda couldn't figure out where the AI ended and he began. It seemed he had been amalgamated into one with the machine.
Not dwelling on the matter, Barda cast his eyes to the left. He saw another lost face, but this had none of the grief and loss. He was sad, but since the whole situation was saddening, it was wholly understandable.
Barda turned and walked towards Batoo and his group. In this one regard, they shared something in common in that despite the loss, they had not personally lost much. He was among the other members of the Logistics division, those that had been able to escape the curfew that was currently in place over Tristan and the subsequent lockdown.
"Follow me, all of you," Barda said to Batoo's as he led him into the forest.
"You once told me you know your way around the kitchen, didn't you?" Barda asked Batoo as they walked in the forest.
"Yes, I worked in an inn for most of my childhood so yeah, I know a thing or two," Batoo replied proudly. Despite it not being of much value to the adventurer team, since it was not related to combat, Batoo had a skill he had horned. For many days, he had dreamed of running from home to become a cook somewhere, but he never did. Fate did not draw him that direction either.
Mrs. Freda did not like slackers, which explained Batoo's extreme work ethics. Batoo was a lot of things, but lazy was not one of them. However, despite his hard work, he had very mediocre talents in almost anything he tried in his new life. He didn't understand why Barda was calling him.
Once in the forest, Barda showed them a specific plant in the wild. He then walked over and showed them another plant. Barda walked around for a while, showing Batoo and the others the kind of plants he needed. He then tasked them with collecting the plants he had indicated as he ran another errand.
By now, Barda had become prolific at sneaking past heavy fortifications, and this was no different. With movements as agile as a cheetah, Barda snuck his way past the tight guards and made it into the city.
He had 2 tasks to accomplish in the infiltration. The first being the most obvious one. He needed to do reconnaissance. They had been defeated, but the enemy had yet to dig in completely. They also had the rightful ruler on their side.
Truthfully, Barda didn't put much stock in who was the right leader or not. Politics, especially monarchial politics, if there was something like that, did not interest him one bit. He did not believe there was a person who was fated to rule over others, and that such an important figure should be determined by something as simple as birth.
However, he did know this. He had backed Lady Maara as the princess and now as the Queen of Tristan. She was the leader he chose for Tristan, and he would fight for her and her people. It was a simple matter of choice, and that Lord Branton, he's got to go! However, before anything could be done he needed to collect information.
The second reason was more practical. Part of the information Barda had collected had a lot to do with alchemy and apothecary. While Barda was not a chemistry genius, it was safe to say he was the leading authority on all things chemicals in all of Tristan. He figured that since he couldn't do much to protect her city, at least Barda could make drugs for her people. The only problem was, he did not have the supplies to make the proper medication.
Make no mistake, sneaking past the guards in such a time was extremely difficult. They had just come from a war, and they expected a retaliation, which meant they were at their most alert, fuelled mostly by fear. However, Barda had an AI that could scan the defenses and come up with the most appropriate mode of approach.
Sneaking past wall to wall, Barda was discovered twice. However, those that saw him did not live long enough to raise an alarm, much less regret having seen him. He was an invisible phantom that only got more deadly upon discovery. Finally, Barda found his way to the Adventurers' Association where he would find the supplies he needed.
"See my friends, I delivered as promised," a proud Lord Bromia proclaimed.
"Pah! Delivered my foot! Weren't you the one who invited those problematic Dark Flames Adventurers?" A voice retorted.
"How could I have known that psycho was so damn useful," Lord Bromia protested. "Back then all I saw were just cannon fodders to be used up before the war reached the climax."
"I heard he was the one who took down the four dragons," a new voice said as he made his way to the group.
"Of course he was," Lord Otto said, "who else do you expect to have done the deed, the princess?"
"It matters not! We won as planned," Lord Bromia said, sensing his part in the conspiracy was in jeopardy. He bowed to the man who had yet to speak a word but was seated at the helm of the table. "The city of Tristan is securely under your command, your highness."
The statement made Lord Branton squirm uncomfortably inside, but did not dare show any emotion on the surface. By now, he understood his role as well, he was nothing more than a puppet, a tool to be used.
"Where is the princess now," The prince of Gumina asked, "and this Barda character?"
"Sire, they are deep in the forest licking their wounds after such a defeat," Another adventurer answered. "She wouldn't be trying anything any time soon after such a beating."
"She still claims the title of the rightful leader of Tristan," the prince's remark made everyone in the room understand where he was getting at. He eyed each person in the room before resting his eyes on the newly minted King.
"Arrangements shall be made immediately," Lord Branton said, understanding the subtle command. He either handled it, or they found someone who could.
As the discussions were going on, none realized that there was an uninvited guest listening in on their conversation. In their minds, this discussion was too sensitive to be held in the palace grounds especially since they had not solidified their hold over the city. They had decided to hold this meeting where all the participants in this conspiracy had been present.
Barda had not intended to spy on them, neither had he known they were meeting. Unfortunately, they just happened to be in the same building as Barda, and given his keen senses, he didn't even need to be on the same floor to eavesdrop on them.
Part of the reason for the secrecy was that certain members of the conspiracy could not be named, or who's part in the matter had to remain a secret. One was Lord Bromia since he was an adventurer, and so was another person he recognized. There was only one person Barda did not recognize in the entire gathering.
Now he knew why the city had been lost so fast. They stood no chance from the very beginning. The enemies had been among them the whole time. Barda wondered just how deep the conspiracy went. He couldn't help feeling that what he saw was just the tip of the iceberg. At least he had a thread to pull, and he would make sure he had demolished anyone involved.