Nodding I jumped up onto the horse only to realize had have no idea how to ride.
Looking at Shion pleadingly she walked over and jumped in infront of me gently placing her hands on my own and leading them.
The legs and power used to tell the horse to move and at what speed were all her though, she's trying to help me save face huh.
I see.
"You know, your very beautiful even covered in blood as you are." I whispered warmly into her ear getting an elbow to the liver in response forcing me to double down smiling with barely contained pain.
"I love you too." Shion turned her head giving me a kiss on the cheek as I tried not to move too much in my pain.
All it took was one fiercesome battle and she's already grown so much...!
A chuckle escaped my lips as I dropped a kiss on her cheek running down to her neck and.....
"Stop it people are looking." Shion chopping the top of my head with a slightly redder shade of color on her face visible even through the blood splatter.
"There she is...." I grinned holding her happily, so what if people know I can't ride a horse? I'm giving my lady a hug right now.
They can fight me if they want me to stop.
"...." Shion's face reddened further and my grin got a little deeper.
I can't wait to get married.
Soon we arrived up by the palace, atop the ramparts a large amount of blood splatter had called the bricks home.
"What happened there?" I asked Nova curiously.
"An interrogation, Lord Durlivan." An unfamiliar voice replied, "I am Sir Clegane, the leader of the crowns inquisitors in the Dra Earldom situated in Otol."
"I see, you have been a great help in this extermination, without you we would not have been able to end things so nicely." I got off the horse bowing slightly in gratitude before helping Shion get off though she didn't need it but her eyes said I would have hell to pay if I didn't.
"You should have told us of your plan, that way we could have helped better." He said with a crude smile and the eyes of a viper.
"I simply planned to try and keep them contained, I had no idea of anything else." i replied with a shifty smile, "The Earl told me of your contributions on the way here, but to think you were all so efficient, it does your names as crown's inquisitors no justice."
A friendly probing compliment.
"So, this wasn't all apart of a plan? At the very least the luck of the 'Scarlet Demon' is not false I can see that as you stand here in all your glory." Sir Clegane replied with equal verbal tenacity.
"Let us enter the Palace, there is much to discuss, after all Sir Clegane extracted much information from the controller before he passed away." Nova interjected causing both myself and Clegane to turn serious.
"Then please, follow me." Alias' voice sprouted from ahead of us.
In his butler uniform he lead us forward.
Where has he been?
Glancing at the prince the look in his eye said that we would talk about it later.
Past the throne room we arrived at a seperate large side conference room, couches and snacks already laid out along with Nova's favorite tea.
"Be safe." Alias bowed leaving the room.
He's changed somewhat.
"Sit anywhere." Nova said as he sat at the head of the table.
Nodding I laid back on one of the chairs letting free a big puff of air.
Now that I think about it where did Shion disappear to?
Dratan had hide inside the pendant long ago when we first got on the horse, Yu is with Seramia.
"Sir Clegane, what did the captive say before he died?" Nova questioned curiously taking a sip of his tea.
Sir Clegane stared at me as he spoke, "He told me that he had troops surrounding the capital last night and that they would ravage the farming families and everything in the surroundings, but that didn't happen due to Lord Durlivan's 'luck', he also said that within Dra he was the last one of Laminas' followers, and that the rest of the marked were being stored and taken care of by willing helpers around the territory on standby at certain locations but he would not divulge where those places were only saying that if anyone without his permission came close they would die without question."
Certain locations.....?
"Ah!" I half yelled, "The map!"
"Map?" Nova said strangely suddenly widening his eyes, "The map!"
"What map?" Sir Clegane asked weirdly never taking his eyes off me.
"This map! I got it off of Matel, an elite of the Loijon family when she ambushed me at the pass near Durlivan's second exit." I had carried it with me all this time in case it ever became useful, and now it has!
Laying it out on the table I grinned, "We can save them, from what intelligence I've gathered they can only move with the assistance of orders from their controller, should their controller die they too will burn, however, if the controller dies out of range then it will take a longer amount of time for the signal to self destruct reaches them over the much weaker connection, with how far these places are, the signal might not even reach them if they can be cut off in time....."
Dratan! He can rend souls!
"Dratan, go and cut off these connections, I leave it to you." I muttered with my hand over my mouth.
This whole time Sir Clegane never even looked at the map solely staring at me until this moment when he smiled.
"So that's it." He muttered relaxing back in his chair.
"What?" I asked curiously leaning forward with a cold look in my eye.
"No need to get so defensive, it may be rare here in Dra but in Carrien I have seen many Fairy Masters and Battle Masters, though to see a person with double potential is rare, it is not unheard of." Sir Clegane said releasing his own cold easily combating me.
Immediately I gave in, there is no winning a battle like that.
"I see, for reference, how strong are you?" I asked grinning lightly.
Sir Clegane thought for a second before replying, "Even if there were a hundred of you, you would still lose."
"I see, so what other information have you gathered?" I asked, it's clear he's not bluffing, one can't bluff confidence to that degree especially not on the spot.
"What remains of the Loijon family and syndicate are some young children blessed by Laminas being taken care of at abandoned churches around the Earldom, my inquisitors are currently enroute to those locations and will be taking charge of them." He said evenly, "Besides that it appears that the one killed was the head of the Loijon family, Lerrial Loijon, he was passing through here on business when he heard about the death of his little sister and chose to stay in the capital for revenge hiding as a butler in the palace intending to turn the capital into a pool of blood in honor of his dead sister."
"Then, with this it should be over, now all that's left is for the inspection squad to arrive and confirm the identity of Durlivan's deity, Veru." I said easily lying back on the chair.
"Indeed, though you likely won't be there to do so, as I'm sure your next move is to go and free the marked ones lying in wait on this map correct?" Sir Clegane replied leaning forward slightly, "Let me come with you to these spots, I wish to see what the Acolytes and Scarlet Demon of the Veru religion are capable of, I did not get a good chance to see it during the battle."
"In exchange, you must help to train me during that time in combat." I replied leaning forward a little further, "Deal?"
"Deal." Sir Clegane said with a sadistic smile, why does it feel like i've made a horrible mistake?
"I will handle the clean up and allocation of resources human and otherwise across the territory then." Nova chipped in lightly.
This entire time he was just silently watching over our conversation, only speaking during crucial times and allowing us to make decisions for the most part.
That is what a prince is, isn't it?
Calm in difficult situations and difficult in calm situations, he doesn't give off even a hint of his intentions until he moves leaving others without any ability to refute nor argue.
Just like this the meeting ended with Nova taking charge of the biggest burden while Sir Clegane and I prepared to head out.
Seramia recovered in the barracks under heavy guard.
Once I arrived back at the barracks Shion and Alias stood side by side with serious looks in their eyes.
Nodding we walked forward, Yu cast a stealth spell and we went to a hidden corner of the barracks to speak.
"Where have you been? And where did you disappear to?" I said to Alias and Shion respectively.
"Alias brought me aside to speak with me." Shion said seriously.
Now focusing on Alias I noticed the unease in each of his actions.
"Agashi.... war is on the horizon." Alias said nervously, "The prince sent me out along with several of his own agents to scout the sewers when I heard some of the helpers talking about Lerrial, the head of the Loijon family, and the business he had with Duke Sercan, they spoke of how Lerrial was acting as a middle man between people in Kendogan and the fifth princes faction in Carrien, then information came in that Duke Sercan had closed his borders with us blocking us off from the main land of Carrien..."
He didn't need to continue.
I understand what's happening.
We are now well and truly on our own.
The underworld elites of Carrien have abandoned us not even trying to protect us from outside forces, the nobles of Carrien are too busy with one another to bother with us and will certainly not help us if only because of Nova's relationship with royalty, being one himself it could be seen as taking his side in the ongoing succession dispute.
We're boned.
"How long do we have?" I said quietly as my brain threw up and shattered strategy after strategy mercilessly.
"They say the emperor is already on his death bed." Alias' voice shrank smaller and smaller as he spoke.
I see.
I. see. we. are. boned.
"We are leaving this instant for the locations on this map, Yu, gather your corps and bring them towards these locations gather as many fairies as you can, spread word of what happened here all across the Earldom to the fairies and people alike." I quickly ordered heading towards the camp.
"Hardvar, you are to lead the intelligence agency into the immediate area around the no mans land between us and the two empires, I need a precise map of the area down to the very last detail, Dratan, I must ask you to help him with this as you should know the area the best since you once roamed it." I called out to the darkness, it's no longer a matter of whether he's there or not, it's simply a matter of whoever is there giving my orders to him.
"Shion, you need to go back to Durlivan immediately and begin constructing forts high up in the mountains with large bonfires in the middle, they are however only to be lit if an enemy force is seen coming, make them large and hard to attack, also tell Nefamiti that he is to speed up the training of the new recruits." I said evenly, "Have Warren and Trigo return to their own territories and do the same, tell them to begin a recruitment drive and build forts for a defensive line, I will pay for everything."
"Leyalt, I will need you to go around those who are awakening from the marked sleep and recruit as many as you can, if any of them are craftsmen make sure that you get them not matter the cost, also send out agents to the west towards the Gulf Kingdoms, we will need a steady stream of information from them in the event that Kendogan attempts a long trail invasion getting Lancard or Tensent to betray us."
"....." As I approached Seramia's tent I fired off another long barrage of orders, the entire camp was thrown into chaos as people scrambled to get things done.
"Send a messenger to Sir Clegane and tell him that the plans have changed and we are leaving immediately," I said.
One of the agents in the shadows should be on their way now.
I can't sense them when they aren't moving, but I can tell when one leaves.
"March!" Immediately after the men were ready to move and Seramia was put on a horse behind me we began moving.
Shion and Alias disappeared after I gave out my orders, I also did not see Hardvar or Leyalt.
Anept and Baroli were sent back to Durlivan to help with the planning of the defensive forts on the plains and in the mountains, as a knight Anept would be useful in training the greenhorns with Nefamiti as well, while Baroli was a baron's son who had made major achievements to arrive at the rank of baron in a war half a century ago, a man who excelled in defensive strategy and who hopefully lent his knowledge down to his son Baroli.
Sir Clegane caught up to us as we were leaving the city gate riding a pitch-black corsair.
"What has you in such a rush?" Sir Clegane said amusedly.
"....I do not like to leave things half done." I replied evenly galloping at a fast gait.
Though I don't know well how to handle a horse, I picked up the basics after riding behind Shion earlier.
I should have given her a hug goodbye, but time is something I don't have right now.
We need to be prepared yesterday.
I didn't think that this would happen so soon!