Instantly, the terror of Takamori's magic was overshadowed and consumed by the Emperor's aura. Takamori tried to resist for a moment, but was soon cowed into submission. He was then forced to kneel by the emperor's guards.
I wanted to finish the fight, but then the emperor turned his gaze on me, and I was also forced to kneel before his martial might. Every instinct from my years of fighting told me that this was a fight I couldn't win.
"Takamori." The emperor said, his voice darkening with anger. "I believe I instructed you to practice swordsmanship with my guards before the march began. Why are you fighting in the dwarf encampment, and fighting with them?"
"Well… Um… You see…" Takamori stuttered as he tried to come up with an excuse. His eyes flitted about as he tried to find someone to blame.
"Your majesty, should we not be admonishing the dwarf girl, instead of Lord Takamori?" A noble who was standing near the emperor asked. "She was about to ruthlessly attack, and possibly kill, the summoned hero that was sent to us by the gods. Besides, she is a mere demi-human, she should not have even dared to stand against him. I say we put her to death as an example to the other demi-humans in our armies."
The emperor took a break from staring at me and Takamori, to briefly glare at the noble. "Brother, just because you don't allow those from other races in your lands or armies, that doesn't mean I will allow our empire to return to the dark days of Emperor Godfrey. Takamori is no doubt at fault for their quarrel, and I will pay any restitution demanded by the dwarves."
The Emperor then called for my dad. "Thane Thredak, step forward."
Dad stepped forward and nodded, his brown beard bristling with rage, and if the emperor and his guards weren't there then he would have killed Takamori while he was down for threatening to kill his daughter. "Yes, your majesty?"
"Is that the respect you demi-humans show to the emperor of a nation?" The noble cut in. "Damned demi-humans have no notion of noble manners. You are worse than commoners."
"Archduke Grimwald!" The emperor turned his aura on the noble. Takamori tried to take advantage of the distraction to escape, but the guards held him down. After making sure the summoned hero didn't get away, the emperor took a deep breath and began again. "Archduke Grimwald. We arrived to find our summoned hero threatening to kill these dwarven volunteers. They have no reason to show us respect, and it will only be by the mercy of the gods that a hundred years of progress in earning the trust of the dwarves of Einangrad have not been destroyed by this fool. Return to your men, ensure that they do not lag behind again."
Completely shut down by the emperor, Archduke Grimwald bowed and left with his guards. The Emperor then turned back to my dad. "Thane Thedak. I do not know what our summoned hero attempted to do, but I apologize for his actions. If a grudge was incurred today, I ask that you do not attempt to strike them from your books until after the campaign. If we're lucky, he'll be killed in the battle." That last sentence was muttered into his beard, but was heard by every dwarf.
"If he survives the battle, expect every dwarf here to hold a grudge against that wazzock until he dies." My dad said in cold fury. "And next time he ventures into our camp, expect to only find a corpse when you come to recover him."
"Hey, you think you can take me, shortie?" Takamori tried standing up to attack my dad, but the guards and the emperor forced him back down.
"Takamori. Stand down." The emperor glared at the summoned hero and spoke in a tone that made everyone's blood run cold. "This is your last chance. Attempt to escape from your guards one more time, and you will spend the rest of your life in chains. And these will not be ordinary chains, no, these chains will sap your life and magic until you can barely move. There will be no escape, no hope, and most of all, no further acts of rebellion against me. Understood?"
Takamori nodded, but rebellion seeped from his every pore, causing every Elder around to grip their hammer in anger and frustration. If a dwarven youth had attempted to be this defiant after being called out for dishonorable actions, their head would be sore for weeks from the wrathful hammers of the Elders.
"Take him away." The emperor said with a wave of his hand. "Make sure that no less than a half dozen of the Imperial Guard are watching him at all times."
Once Takamori was forcibly led away, with him spitting out excuses and threats until he was out of earshot. The emperor turned to me and Jenise.
"We meet again Bekhi Mubrimssdottir, and Jenise of house Aedahl. You fought well against Takamori's magic, I'm impressed. If Lady Delimira equals you two in combat prowess, then perhaps a position in the Imperial Guard would be more amenable to her than becoming a royal ward. Would either of you consider fighting under my banner when this campaign is over?"
I felt pride well up inside me. A national leader wanted me to fight in his guards! From what I could tell, they were all highly trained fighters who got really good weapons and armor. If I joined their ranks, then I would get to spend all day fighting and training, and maybe I'd get to punch some of those snooty nobles from last night. Not that I'd intentionally punch them, it would just be in the line of duty.
"I'll consider it." I said. "But first I need to spend some time raising my daughter. If I leave her alone with Kvalinn then she'll just end up married to her forge."
"A-and I'd also consider it." Jenise said nervously. "When I'm an adult, that is."
The emperor looked perturbed for a minute, twirling his finger around his beard ."Hmm. You elves only consider yourselves adults at the age of thirty, and raising a child takes time. But as long lived demi-humans you will be able to serve for a long time afterwards. I will advise my son to reserve spots for you in the Imperial Guard so that you may join whenever you are ready."
"Thank you, your majesty." Jenise and I said with a bow. The emperor nodded, and then walked away with his guards.
"Are you going to join the Imperial Guard, Bekhi?" Jenise asked.
"... Probably? Possibly? I don't know. It all depends on what the next emperor is like." The current emperor had just defended us against his nobles, and he looked to be a good warrior to serve, but a single human generation can change a lot. Kvalinn, being the nerd of history, had told me multiple times about how the empire had shifted from working with all races equally to enslaving all non humans in less than three generations of emperors. If something like that happened again in the empire, I'd want to be near Kvalinn and Gerde to get them out of the country.
"By the way, Jenise." I said after a pause. "Thanks for firing off that magic when that wazzock had me tied up. You did good."
Jenise smiled in quiet pride. "Thank you. But it was nothing compared to how you stood up to him when he was using his magic. It took all my strength to even attempt to follow your example."
"Yes, we all fought well. Now hurry up and get packed or you'll get left behind." My dad called out with a grin as he worked to get everyone moving. "The goblins are moving fast and I don't want to find out we hauled all these weapons out here for nothing."
Jenise and I looked at each other for a moment, and with a smile of satisfaction of a fight well fought, we scrambled to break down our tent and start getting ready for the long road ahead. For an instant, I felt that taking care of Jenise for the next decade wouldn't be so bad after all.