Author's Note:
Only a couple of reviews this time, but hajimeyo!
56006: Worry not; since Draskir isn't the Gandalfr,(and therefore unable to master all weapons simply by touching them)he won't have any way to use the zero fighter. It will still be there though. I like the idea of tanks showing up though; if I can get creative enough, I'll see about finding a way to come up with a Halkeginian tank of sorts that crosses magic with engineering, like the ones used by the Fire Nation in Avatar:The Last Airbender.
To no one in particular; I've said before that this will generally follow the anime plotline till the end. Recently, I had an idea that kind of changed that. The story will progress generally the same up until a certain point, and then deviate entirely. Certain elements will remain the same after that point, but ultimately, the story will(hopefully)be different.
I was sitting on my hay pile bed, leaning against the wall while fiddling with my phone. I had no idea how it worked, but my phone still had a full battery. As convenient as it was, I was running out of things to do with it; playing reversi constantly was a rather dull way to pass the time.
Derflinger's been silent ever since we returned from the lakeside. Despite the blade's sentience, he's been generally quiet the whole time I've known him. It was easy to forget the sentience that rested within the blade.
Montmeroncy's antidote was ready by the time we got back to the academy. It was given to Guiche while he was still unconscious, due to the help of Montmeroncy's water magic. Guiche remained unconscious for a while longer after that, but once he was awake, he got up and left the room without a word. He's been actively avoiding Montmeroncy ever since.
Louise has been fairly quiet ever since we got back, too. It's hard to guess what's going on in her head; with the way we're distanced right now, it's unlikely to change any time soon.
"Draskir?" called Louise tentatively from the table.
Well, I got that wrong, didn't I?
"What's up?" I answered.
"I want to know more about the... Dragonborn," said Louise. Ah; I figured this was coming at some point.
"I don't know a whole lot more than what I said back at the lakeside," I explained lightly, staring off into space. "If you've got questions though, I can try to answer them. No promises, though."
"Do you think you're able to use magic now?" asked Louise. Again with the magic; her volatile inability cast is beginning to seem like a borderline obsession in her psyche, at least to me.
"I would imagine so," I mused, causing Louise to visibly twitch. "Before you get all up in a tizzy, I've been talking to one of the previous vessels of the Dragon Soul. I wasn't going to mention it until there was a definite answer, but whatever. The runes on my arm act as an anchor, binding my soul to yours; that much has been determined as fact. What isn't certain, however, is whether this connection can be exploited."
"What do you mean, exploited?" asked Louise, eyeing me suspiciously.
"How do I explain?" I muttered with a sigh. "These runes bind our souls together; my soul gives me access to powers that I wouldn't have otherwise. If my soul is exposed to yours through the runes, it stands to reason that you might either get access to my powers, or develop unique powers of your own."
Louise nearly fell out of her chair at that.
"And you didn't tell me this before, why!?" demanded Louise angrily.
"Like I just said, it's not completely for sure," I explained hastily, eager to avoid any possibility of an explosion in my face. "I wanted to be sure that we could work from it. I didn't just want to get your hopes up, only to let you down if it turns out to be wrong."
"Then why would you bother tell me right now?" argued Louise.
"It's... kind of a habit of mine," I muttered, rubbing my temples lightly. "I tend to... speak without thinking about it."
Louise opened her mouth to speak again, but a knock at the door prevented her from doing so. Ever since I tracked Foquet using the Spirit ribbons, I had been able to pick up on the spiritual pressure emitted by people around me. Thanks to that, I had an inkling of an idea as to who was on the other side of the door.
"I think it's for you," I commented to Louise, who raised one eyebrow at me as she opened the door. The moment she did, Louise was once again beset by the cloaked form of Princess Henrietta.
"P-princess!?" shrieked Louise. "W-what are you doing here?"
Henrietta separated herself from Louise and pulled down her hood with a smile.
"As much as I wish I could simply enjoy your company, I'm afraid I must be here for more... precarious matters," said Henrietta with slight hesitation as the three of us took seats at the table. "Though it is good to see you, Louise Francoise. And you, Dras...kir?"
"That's right," I said, chuckling lightly. "It's good to see you too, Henrietta." Louise stared at me in shock over my casual addressing of the princess.
"Draskir!" hissed Louise, horrified. "You should show more respect to the princess!"
"I wasn't aware I was being disrespectful," I said nonchalantly. "I like to think that addressing someone by their name is about as respectful as it gets."
"But-" started Louise, but it was Henrietta who silenced her.
"It is fine, Louise Francoise," admonished Henrietta. "I doubt he means offense behind it; I do not mind at all. In truth, I would rather speak of the reason that I have come here tonight."
"And what's that?" I asked her seriously. Henrietta took a more serious look on her face as she spoke again.
"I would like to ask the two of you to accomplish something for me," proclaimed Henrietta. "It is an assignment that I may only leave in the hands of someone I can truly trust."
Louise looked at me expectantly, as if waiting for me to answer.
"What?" I asked her as I met her gaze.
"You're the one who usually makes these decisions," Louise quipped, annoyed.
"Two times isn't enough to set a standard for 'usual'," I scoffed, "and both times, it was to help someone who had been wronged. Either way, I was going to leave this one up to you. Whatever you choose, I'll follow you."
Louise glared at me for a moment, then turned her attention back to the princess. In that moment, I picked up on multiple traces of spiritual pressure lingering nearby. I turned a portion of my attention towards them, attempting to hone in on them as the conversation with the princess continued.
"We will gladly accept this assignment," Louise said with an air of moderately annoyed enthusiasm. Henrietta smiled lightly, pleased with the decision.
"I must ask you to go into the country of Albion," Henrietta began. "Wales, the prince of Albion, is in possession of a letter that must be recovered. If this letter falls into the hands of the rebels, a scandal could be revealed which would threaten Tristain's chances of an alliance with our neighboring country of Germania. I have assigned someone to escort you on this assignment; they will meet you at the front gates in the morning." Henrietta paused for a moment, taking a ring off of her finger and handing it to Louise.
"What's this?" asked Louise, nervously accepting the ring. It had a blue gem stone in the center.
"The Water Ruby," answered Henrietta softly. "It is a precious heirloom of Tristain's royal family. You must present this to Prince Wales; once you do, he will know that it is I who sent you."
Louise stared at the Ruby in her hand, in awe of holding the royal heirloom. I, though, was a little confused.
"Are you sure it's not a sapphire?" I asked the princess, who returned my confused look with a confusion of her own.
"What do you mean?" asked Henrietta perplexedly.
"Where I come from, rubies are supposed to be red," I stated, bemused. "A blue gemstone like this is a sapphire, not a ruby. Is that different here?"
"That is... a very good question," said Henrietta. Right as she opened her mouth to speak again I homed in on one of the spiritual energies lingering in the area; right on the other side of the bedroom door. I said nothing as I grabbed Od and got up and made my way to the door.
"What's wrong?" asked Louise. I turned back and raised one finger to my lips, signalling them both to be quiet as I pulled Od from it's sheath. I tossed the sheath over my shoulder and pulled open the door, pulling the entity through and pinning them to the ground before the sheath hit the ground. I held Od against their neck and found myself face to face, once again, with Guiche.
"G-guiche!?" exclaimed Louise, shocked. A wide eyed Henrietta held one hand up to her mouth.
"Why were you eavesdropping on our conversation?" I ground out, annoyed.
"I-I'm sorry!" exclaimed a very pale Guiche. "I simply saw a cloaked figure moving about the grounds and wanted to investigate! After Foquet's attack last month, I just wanted to be sure we were safe!"
I stared Guiche in they eye, searching his fluctuating spirit energy for any possibility of a lie, but found none. I pulled Od from Guiche's throat and helped him to his feet with my free hand.
"How much of the conversation did you hear?" I asked exasperatedly.
"All of it..." mumbled Guiche sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.
"What's your call?" I asked, turning back to Henrietta. "You're the one who wanted this kept secret. What do we do about him?"
"The secrecy of the assignment must be preserved," stated Henrietta. "With this in mind, we must send this... Guiche along on the assignment as well."
"Absolutely not!" shouted Louise, jumping up from her seat. "I don't want that conniving skirt chaser coming along!"
"And why not?" I asked her. "Having an additional person along could make things easier; on top of that, it could help him become stronger as both a person and as a warrior. And frankly, I don't think Guiche is too concerned about skirt chasing these days."
"Indeed," Guiche agreed, nodding as he brandished his rose wand flamboyantly. "In addition, I would relish the chance to get away from the academy for a time." He cast his eyes away at that, lowering his wand. "After all that has transpired with Montmeroncy... It is a good idea for there to be space between us." Louise hmph'd at that and sat back down, glaring at the table as Henrietta gave a slightly concerned look.
"What happened between you and this... Montmeroncy?" Henrietta asked. Guiche looked up, surprised, and began fidgeting nervously.
"Guiche and Montmeroncy had a fight recently, and it's become very awkward for the two of them to be near each other," I explained hastily. It wasn't a lie; Guiche was very upset with Montmeroncy once he had fully recovered. Despite having ignored her initially after taking the antidote, Guiche eventually became very angry whenever Montmeroncy tried to talk to him. Soon enough, this led to a loud, nasty argument that nearly blew into a full blown fight that was only avoided because Professor Colbert and several other teachers were present at the time.
"Yeah, it's been real awkward for them," Derf piped up. "Especially after that business with the lo-" Louise and I both reached over and slammed Derf back into his sheath forcefully, causing him to shake about. The second we let go, he popped right back up. "The hell was that for!? That really hurt, ya know!?"
"I'm so sorry about that!" Louise exclaimed, jumping up and bowing to the princess.
Guiche and Henrietta both stared in shock.
Derf began ranting about the injustice of the treatment of blades.
Louise continued apologizing profusely.
I sighed. It was getting incredibly hot in the room, so I went and opened the window. The second I did, that other trace of spirit energy rushed off and vanished completely. I stared out into the darkness, trying to find any trace of the energy, but it was gone. That it would leave when the window was opened could only mean that someone was listening in on the conversation.
"Before I forget, there may be a possible danger that you must be warned of," said Henrietta, returning to a more serious tone as Derf continued his now incoherent rambling.
"And what's that?" I asked, eager to leave the nonsense behind.
"Foquet has managed to escape once again," Henrietta practically growled. My eyes narrowed instantly, as Louise and Derf both instantly shut themselves up. It was a little strange to hear the princess take that tone of voice, but with that kind of news, it was no wonder.
"And how did she manage this?" I ground out angrily.
"It appears as though she had assistance from an accomplice," Henrietta said darkly. "Foquet was being escorted by a group of guards in a carriage, en route to the capitol, where she would await judgement. However, an unknown person ambushed the carriage and freed Foquet, killing nearly all of the guards in the process. There was only one survivor."
"Go friggin figure..." I muttered as I reclaimed my seat. Not only do we have to go into another country and through a rebellion just to find a letter, there's a chance that Foquet might be coming back to bite me in the ass. How could this situation get any more annoying!?
"Oh, and I would advise you to leave relatively early in the morning," said Henrietta cheerily.
Fuck.
[Scene Break]
I hadn't really realized how far we were going initially. After all of the shenanigans were finally over with, I had asked to see a map of the land. La Rochelle, as it turns out was a whole two days travel from the academy, though if we left early enough we could make the entire journey in one day. I'd imagine that's why Henrietta suggested to leave early in the morning.
Unfortunately, I'm not a morning person at all, and can barely see where I'm going when I'm not trying to suppress a jaw popping yawn. Evidently, Louise wasn't a morning person either. Just as she was letting out a toe curling yawn of her own, she tripped and nearly fell down the stairs as we were headed down the tower. I moved up quickly and caught her before she could gain any momentum. Louise stared up at me for a moment before pushing me away and speed walking down the stairs. She stopped for only a moment when we hit the landing for the bottom floor.
"Thank you," Louise practically whispered, looking straight ahead. She started walking again before I could say anything. As we arrived in the courtyard, I spotted Tabitha reading in one of her usual spots.
"You go on ahead," I told Louise. She gave a somewhat aggrieved look, but said nothing as I left her side. Tabitha looked up from her book as I approached with the usual greeting. "Hey there."
"Hello," Tabitha returned quietly as she stood from her seat on the bench. "You're up early."
"I could say the same to you," I chuckled wryly, coaxing a small smile from Tabitha. "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that Louise, Guiche and I are gonna be away from the academy for a while." Tabitha's smile vanished instantly.
"Where are you going?" asked Tabitha, looking more concerned than curious.
"Albion," I said with a sigh. "We're about to head to La Rochelle so we can catch a ship. Beyond that, I can't say; I wish I could, but it's supposed to be a secret." Tabitha nodded once and looked away distantly, still rather concerned. I turned to make my leave, but was stopped by Tabitha, who had taken my hand.
"Please be careful," said Tabitha quietly, her emerald orbs refusing to meet my eyes.
"Uh... okay," I choked out, completely taken aback by her concern. "I promise that I'll be careful." I smiled and squeezed her hand reassuringly. Tabitha looked up at me and gave a smile of her own. I turned and made my leave, making my way to the front gates for the academy. When I got there, Louise and Guiche came into my view.
"There you are," Louise muttered loudly, her eye twitching.
"What took you so long?" questioned Guiche at the same time.
"Getting impatient?" I asked non-nonchalantly. "It only took me two minutes, so-"
"But what were you doing?" Guiche persisted impatiently.
"Just saying goodbye to someone," I said, throwing my hands up defensively.
"Yes, while you were speaking to your girlfriend," scoffed Guiche, waving one hand about flamboyantly, "Louise and I were here preparing the horses for our journey." I narrowed my eyes at Guiche.
"Okay, first off, she's not my girlfriend," I said, mildly annoyed as I held up one finger. "Secondly, I'll again highlight the part where it was only two minutes. The horses would have been almost ready when Louise got here, so there's not a whole lot that I would have been able to do anyway." Guiche glared at me for a moment, and then sighed.
"I'll concede your second point," pronounced Guiche, smirking slightly. "But are you sure that Tabitha is not your girlfriend? You two spend an awful lot of time together." Louise growled something that sounded like 'too much' under her breath, but I ignored her and focused Guiche's question.
"You just assume that it's Tabitha," I pointed out. "Though your assumption is correct in this case. But just because we spend a lot of time together, doesn't mean that we're together." I made air quotations just to emphasize my point.
It was in that moment that a powerful gust of wind kicked up. Louise and Guiche staggered slightly as I dropped into a battle ready stance, with a hand on each hilt. I looked around for the source of the wind; after a moment, I found the source to be a griffon that hovered above us. The wind died down as the griffon landed a moderate distance from us. The griffon crouched low to the ground, and I was ready to believe that it was going to pounce on us when someone dropped off of it's back.
"Who goes there?" I demanded loudly as the man came into view. He was tall, barely taller than me. His feathered hat and rugged beard and mustache reminded me strongly of a musketeer.
"V-v-viscount Wardes..." stuttered a very nervous Louise, who began fidgeting heavily. The man... Wardes, approached Louise and scooped her up in his arms, inciting a nervous squeak from the small girl. I narrowed my eyes and held one hand on Od's hilt, but made no movement or sounds otherwise.
"It is wonderful to see you, my little fiance," said Wardes happily. Fiance? My eyes widened as I inhaled sharply, causing myself to nearly start choking on my own saliva. Louise was set to be married? I stared in shock as Wardes leaned down, presumably to kiss Louise. The shock of Louise's marital status wore of at the sight, and I growled and looked away.
"Lord Wardes, please! There are people present!" protested Louise as she tried to push herself away.
"Nonsense! I merely wish to shower my beloved with affection," Wardes crooned, showing no signs of stopping in spite of Louise's continued pleas to stop.
"That's enough!"
The very air stilled completely as everyone stared at me, shocked back into reality at my outburst. I stood with Od pointed directly at Wardes, and my other hand resting on Derf's hilt. The look I wore on my face was one of cold fury.
"Put her down, right now," I ground out through gritted teeth. Wardes scowled at me as his eyes locked on to mine. After a moment, Wardes lowered Louise to the ground and took two steps away from her. His eyes never left mine. You could almost see sparks flying.
"May I ask what problem you have with my behavior towards my fiance?" growled Wardes heavily.
"Louise said no," I stated calmly as I lowered my blade. "Are you truly content to force yourself upon her? Regardless of how small or minute your actions might seem, you continued, even as she pleaded for you to stop. I'm not just going to stand by and let you have your way with her."
"But why react so harshly?" questioned Wardes. Seriously? After what I just said?
"Think back to what I just said less than a minute ago," I half groaned, half growled. "With that kind of display, is it really any wonder that I would react like that?" Wardes and I continued scowling at each other for a few moments before a wide grin broke out on the older man's face.
"Truly, the Alvaldi's dedication to his master is unparalleled," proclaimed Wardes cheerily. I narrowed my eyes slightly once more, and even Derf vibrated slightly in his sheath. I imagine he had the same thought as me. How the hell did Wardes know that name? First he pulls that crap with Louise, and then he drops this on me. I definitely need to keep my eye on him. I didn't say anything about though; I figured it would be best to save it for a better time.
"It's only natural to protect my important people," I muttered in a low voice as I sheathed Od.
"Very true!" agreed Wardes happily as he returned to his griffon's side. "Will you at least allow me the pleasure of riding with my fiance?" I didn't like that thought. Not one bit.
"Under normal circumstances, I'd leave it to her own decision," I said, attempting to relax myself a bit. "However, there were three horses prepared for this journey. It would be a waste of time and resources to not use one of them." Wardes hummed in a disapproving tone, but made no attempt to dispute as he mounted up.
"We should be off!" called Wardes from his griffon's back. "Do try to keep up!" With that, the griffon took to the air, circling above us.
"Y-you should not have a-acted against Lord Wardes in s-such a manner..." stuttered Louise timidly.
"Should I have done nothing?" I asked heavily. "Would you rather I let him force himself upon you?" I gave Louise a long, glaring look. Louise looked down, opening and closing her mouth several times, as if trying to find something to say. After a moment, she turned and began to mount up on her horse. I went to mount my own horse, passing Guiche along the way. I stopped and pressed one hand on the fop's shoulder, catching his attention.
"Hmm? What is it?" asked Guiche vibrantly. I opened my mouth to speak, but it was Derf who spoke first.
"That Wardes fella knows about the Alvaldi," said Derf darkly.
"So?" questioned Guiche.
"Everything regarding that name was kept secret," I said flatly. "Not even the princess was told. The only one who could tell Wardes was Foquet."
"But wasn't Foquet freed before reaching the capitol?" asked Guiche, his attitude growing dark.
"That's right," I mused darkly. "And it's said that she had outside help too. Hell... I'm beginning to get a very bad feeling about this Wardes guy."
[Scene Break]
If I had anything good to say about this world, it's that there's some pretty damn good scenery. We were riding near a cliff side, and the view from the top was breathtaking. Or it would be, if I weren't distracted by Louise. She was riding ahead of myself and Guiche, leaving a moderate distance between herself and us.
"I have a question, Draskir, if you'll indulge me," pronounced Guiche in a lively, but quiet manner.
"What is it?" I asked in a similarly quiet tone, turning to face Guiche from my horse.
"How do you feel about Louise?" asked Guiche seriously. "After your display this morning, I find it difficult to believe that you don't feel something. Do you love her?"
I hummed lightly at that, searching for an answer.
"I don't know," I said honestly. "I definitely feel something when I look at her, but I don't know if it's love. Something tells me though, if I ever do actually love her, it won't be a romantic love."
"Don't kid yerself, partner!" Derf piped up. "Y'know ya love 'er!"
"I never actually denied the claim, Derf," I chided the sword.
"Ya take all the fun outta it, ya know?" Derf complained, shaking lightly.
"You make it far too easy," I said, a small smile finding it's way across my lips.
At the same time, a group of spiritual pressures entered the vicinity. I homed in on them, and detected four from the left, coming from the cliff side. Another four were coming at us from the opposite side, moving towards the cliffs. More than that, there was a killing intent radiating off of all of them. A group of eight, practically out numbering us two-to-one. Wonderful; because an ambush was exactly what we needed.
"Does something trouble you?" Guiche asked worriedly.
"Incoming!" I shouted as loudly as I could, attracting the attention of Louise and Wardes. "Hostiles on the left and right sides!"
Louise's horse stopped, allowing Guiche and I to regroup with her. Wardes landed in front of Louise, dropping to the ground and drawing an odd looking sword as Guiche and I dropped off of our own mounts. All of the hostiles appeared in sight, attempting us to sandwich us between them.
"Ambushed by bandits," said Guiche reproachfully. "How slovenly. They must see the error of their ways; I believe my Valkyries are up to the task!" With a wave of his wand, Guiche summoned four of his bronze golems. A very good move; the more golems on our side, the more even the odds would be.
"Well, we may actually have a chance with that!" I exclaimed with a grin, causing Guiche to take a pose that read 'it's only natural'. What a ham. The Valkyries charged ahead to engage the four bandits on the right side. Wardes conjured a wind storm, causing all but himself to stagger slightly. Louise began chanting and attempting to launch spells, but the few that actually did anything missed horribly.
I drew my blades and tried to pick a target that I could actually stand against. The four bandits on the left side were on held off by Wardes, while the other four on the right side were busy with Guiche's golems. Suddenly, one of the golems was shattered by a bandit with an ornate great sword.
This bandit was clearly of greater stock than the rest; he wore fancier armor and wielded a bigger weapon. My guess is that this was at least the leader of the team. I charged the bandit, dragging my blades along the ground behind me. As I reached the swinging range, I swung both blades upward, catching the bandit's great sword as it tried to crush me from above. We held our blades there in a lock, both struggling against the other, both trying to push the each other back.
I let my left arm fall limp as I increased the amount of pressure in my right, knocking the bandit's massive sword aside. Keeping up with the momentum, I thrust one leg out to kick the bandit in the chest. The bandit staggered briefly and swung his blade from the side. I bowed down low, ducking under and thrusting forward with Od. My foe dodged to the side and thrusting his own weapon forward. I moved Derf to block, but was a single instant too late as the giant blade dug into my side.
Grunting, I fought against the pain and curled my arm round the weapon, dropping Derf to gain a handle on the great sword. I pulled hard, trying to close the distance enough so as to eliminate the bandit's reaction time. I swung up with Od as hard as I could, but the blade met only the steel of the bandit's gauntlet, blocking my attack. The bandit immediately followed up by kicking me hard in the chest, propelling me backwards along the blade that was still dug in to my side.
My vision whited out, and the next thing I knew, I was on my knees. Derf was several feet away, where I dropped him. I leveled my strained gaze onto my opponent, who now held Od in one hand. The bandit tucked the katana into a spot on his belt and readied his great sword for the killing blow. I was dimly aware of his comrades' spiritual pressures being snuffed out, one by one. I stood up, straining against my pained side. The bandit readied his blade for the final strike. Before he swung, however, there was a great and ferocious roar above the field of battle.
Before I could catch a glimpse of the source, a hail of icy spears rained down on my armored foe. The bandit staggered backwards, managing to only take a hit to one of his arms. Losing the strength to wield his great sword, the bandit dropped the massive blade and pulled Od back off of his belt. I staggered over to where Derf was lying on the ground, and nearly collapsed as I stooped to pick the blade up. I held myself up, however, and readied myself for the end of the fight.
I rushed my foe and swung Derf about furiously, managing to dodge and parry the enemy who wielded my own blade against me. The bandit and I hailed our storm of attacks upon each other as the weapons danced in a flurry of dancing steel. I put all of my strength behind a slash that knocked Od to the side. I redirected Derf quickly in a parallel slash that dragged directly across the bandit's chest. Finally, the fight drew to a close as I thrust Derf ahead and pierced the center of my foe's chest, snuffing the energy of his life out for good.
I used Derf as a crutch as I reclaimed Od from the now dead bandit and turned to look at the rest of the fight. Just as I did, I watched - and felt - as a ferocious Sylhpid landed on top of one of the bandits that was fighting a Valkyrie. Another bandit fell victim to Sylhpid's tail as it flailed about. Sylhpid lowered her head and latched on to the third bandit with her teeth, shaking him about violently before letting him fly through the air. His body landed near me with a thud. The final bandit was sent flying off of the cliff as Louise managed to land one of her spells, resulting in another explosion.
"Why is Sylphid here?" I wondered aloud as I returned my blades to their sheaths and returned to the group. Upon my arrival, Kirche and Tabitha came into my view. That explained why Sylhpid was here at least, but that yielded a similar question. "Kirche? Tabitha? What are you two doing here?" My voice strained slightly as the adrenaline wore off, fully exposing the pain in my side.
"We couldn't let you guys have all the fun," joked Kirche, who immediately leaned a bit closer to me. "Besides, Tabitha was worried about you." She grinned teasingly, but when face became strained, she looked down to investigate. "You're bleeding!"
"It hurts like hell, but it's not as deep as it looks," I ground out, turning to find a decent rock or boulder to sit on. "How's everyone else doing?" The rest of the group gathered around where I was sitting. Guiche had a minor cut on one arm, but otherwise unhurt. No one else had taken any damage in the fight. Tabitha stepped forward and knelt down by my side, chanting quietly. She applied some magic to her hands and laid her staff down so she could hold her magically charged hands against my wound. Whatever magic it was stung like hell at first, but the stinging gave way to a more soothing feeling after a few moments.
"How's that?" asked Tabitha quietly, looking up at me.
"That feels great," I murmured, relaxing against the rock a bit. It didn't last for long though, because Tabitha reached up and smacked me on the top of the head with her staff. "Ah-Hey! What gives?"
"I said 'be careful'," groused Tabitha almost inaudibly. My eyes widened and I looked down to see a look of worry play out on Tabitha's face.
"S-sorry..." I said sheepishly, looking away with a feeling of melancholy. I looked up at the rest of the group. Guiche wore a matter-of-fact look. Wardes was shifting his gaze from me to Tabitha and back again, with a confused look that hid the smallest hint of contempt. Louise was looking out over the cliffs with a worried, but also annoyed expression. Kirche went to her side, resting one hand on the much smaller girl's shoulder. Louise looked up at Kirche and smiled briefly. Had something happened between those two? I thought they hated each other.
A few more minutes passed, and Tabitha finished up with her healing magic. I took some bandages out of my sling pack and bandaged my mostly healed wound, just to be safe. That was definitely going to leave a scar. As the rest of the group talked about the bandit attack, I went back out to the outskirts of the battlefield and stood over the corpse of the bandit leader that I had been fighting. Looking down on him, I couldn't help but feel morose over the conclusion of the fight.
"Y'all right partner?" Derf asked, shaking slightly in his sheath.
"I'll be fine, Derf," I sighed, turning and walking to the edge of the cliff side. "That's just the first time I've ever killed someone."
"It's a tough business, I know," proclaimed Derf sagely. "I don't know that it ever gets easier."
"It doesn't need to," I murmured quietly, gazing out across the canyons and valleys that lay beyond the edge of the cliff. "As long as I can protect the people I care about." Derf had no response for that. I turned back and headed back to the group, where Guiche was searching the body of one of the dead bandits. Searching through the pockets, Guiche pulled a letter and began reading from his crouched position.
"What is it?" I asked, curious. Guiche offered the letter to me, but when I looked at it, I was reminded of an ever constant problem. "I can't read your language, Guiche."
"Ah, my apologies," said Guiche, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "The letter reads as follows:
'Marauding Widow mercenaries,
Your group is to lie in wait at the specified location. Take them by surprise. Do what you will with them, but the girl must be taken alive; she is crucial to our success.
Payment has already been forwarded to your leader. If you should fail and somehow live, your deaths will be slow.
Do not disappoint.
-Reconquista'
And that's it."
"Reconquista?" I asked, rubbing my chin lightly. "Who's that?"
"It is believed that the Reconquista is the group behind the war in Albion," said Wardes in a low voice.
"So they're the rebels..." I murmured lightly.
"Why would they wish to take Louise?" Guiche pressed. "The letter says that she is crucial to their success. But how?"
"That's a very good question, but one we'll need to ask on the road," I said, motioning to the path. "This ambush cost us some time. We'll be lucky if we get to La Rochelle by dusk. We can think on this later, when we're not sitting out in the open." Nods and murmurs of agreement went around as I mounted up. We still had a long way to go.
And somehow, I feared the kind of trouble that awaited us when we got there.
Post Note:
This chapter was originally planned to be a lot longer. I wanted to make a longer chapter(and sort of succeeded here), but I didn't want to make it too much longer. If I had written the entire chapter to fit the single outline that I wrote, this chapter would likely be upwards at four times my usual chapter size, and easily a hell of a lot longer.
All in all, this chapter is a bit longer than usual, so I feel like I did better. I still have plenty of outline left that hasn't been used, so I can begin work on the next chapter immediately; if I'm lucky, I can squeeze two chapters out of what's left.
Enjoy, and remember that reviews help! Thanks a bunch~
