For once, in a split chapter, we're not starting with Ramza's side of things. Be warned, the best word for the mood of this one is probably 'sombre' - that's how it felt as I did a final proof-read after uploading it, anyway.
When you get down to basics, there are two types of these vignettes. The usual one is people yammering on nineteen-to-the-dozen at each other (occasionally doing some other stuff, but talking is usually the important part). This is (mostly) the other sort, the rambling internal reminiscent monologue, in order for me to tell back-story. (It reverts to the more usual style, with the main party reaching Goug late into the night).
Vignette 12 – Heart-sore and Desperately Unhappy
The Cardinal's Palace, Early Evening
Agrias had never liked living in houses of religion – not that she'd exactly lived in many, just Orbonne and now here. Lords above, but they were dull – no wonder Ovelia had expressed such reluctance to be cloistered again. The Princess also kept saying how bored she was, so Agrias knew it wasn't just her own impatient nature that led her to feel like that.
Earlier in the day, the two of them had headed to the palace's library, but she'd seen nothing except religious tracts and histories that pertained to religion. She liked history, it had always been one of her interests, but when she tried to skimming through a couple of them, she found them too dry, even for her. Ovelia had wandered from bookcase to bookcase but hadn't even taken anything down from them.
With so many knights around the place, she was really almost superfluous, as protection, she reflected. There was surely no way that Ovelia could be harmed – or abducted again – with this many armoured men and women standing about the Palace. There were archers and mages stationed around the outer walls too. She was thinking about that, as she followed the Princess to the bath house that evening, after Vespers, noting the half-dozen knights they passed as they walked along the two short corridors from their rooms.
She approved of the extra protection they afforded, of course, but it left her in something of a lady's companion role, more as company and entertainment for the Princess than a true bodyguard. And she wasn't stupid; she knew that as company and entertainment, she was sorely lacking - she was a blunt soldier and not always the most sociable of people.
Of course, most companions did not dress in plate armour or carry a heavy sword and shield, nor could they call down a Cleansing Strike. As the Princess undressed for bathing, Agrias checked the room for hidden entrances, then dragged a stool that had been in the corner over to the edge of the communal bath, so that her sword would remain in easy reach while she bathed, before undressing, herself.
As she sank into the warm water, she reflected morosely that she might as well revert to being a normal woman, in a dress, if things stayed as quiet as today and yesterday...
Actually, there was something to be said for that idea. Objectively, she knew she was fairly attractive when she took pains, it might be nice to feel properly female again, just occasionally. She'd let that side of things slide after she'd been posted to Orbonne.
Of course, when she had been in overall charge of the security for Orbonne Monastery, she'd never thought like this. Her duty – the care and protection of the Princess – had been her all-in-all, though she hadn't wanted it, at first... Did she want it now?... Perhaps - she certainly wanted Ovelia safe.
She had arrived home from the war, tired and jaded, and she'd wanted to take a month or two off to spend with her family and to simply rest and regain a sense of equilibrium.
It wasn't only exhaustion that left her craving peace and quiet, though. The man who had been her closest friend since early childhood – Lavian's husband, Ivan - had died in the last weeks of the war. She'd done her best to comfort Lavian, but she'd been too grief-stricken herself to really say or do anything to help the other girl deal with her loss. Then, within days of that, the man she loved, and whom she had, stupidly, thought loved her, had told her that their nearly year-long relationship was over. So she'd returned to her father's estate, just outside the capital, heart-sore and desperately unhappy.
In her last visit home, between the final two campaign seasons of the war, when it was already obvious that the fighting would shortly be over, she'd agreed with her father that, if there was a prolonged period of peace, it would be good for her career to serve a couple of years in the Lionsguards. As he was the Lionsguards' Lieutenant Commander, it wouldn't be difficult for him to arrange that.
Unfortunately, her father had told her on the very day she got back, that he had already arranged a position for her. She hadn't been too upset when she'd heard that - being a member of the Queen's Guard would mean that she would only have to nominally stay in barracks and could instead live at home on the family estate just outside of the capital. She'd easily be able to ride the five miles to the Palace for her shifts on duty, as her father did.
She'd come into brief contact with the Queen a couple of times, visiting her father at the Palace when he was on duty, and she hadn't much liked the woman, but she'd have been able to put up with that. She would only have had to make sure that the Queen stayed safe and well, after all, not become friends with her. So, even though it sounded like she wouldn't get the period of rest she had wanted, it had seemed like a reasonable idea – and maybe being busy would be better than moping at home.
Then her father had explained that she was to be the Captain of the Princess' Guard. That would be at Orbonne, four full days' travel from home and miles from anywhere. He'd also informed her that she'd have to move into the barracks at the back of the palace grounds for a few weeks, in order to learn protocol and procedure. As the current Guard Captain was leaving Orbonne to marry, in only six weeks time, Agrias' training would have to begin almost immediately.
So three days after her return to the family seat she moved back out again. She hadn't been happy, but she'd complied, like the dutiful daughter she was, trying, as always, to please her father, who was delighted that his Holy Knight daughter was available to take up a position of such prestige. When he spoke to her about it, he'd kept adding things like 'and you barely twenty'. In hindsight, she wondered if it had ever even occurred to him that at 'barely twenty' she might not have wanted such a huge responsibility.
About a fortnight before she had left the Front for the last time, she'd written to her father, on Lavian's behalf, explaining that Ivan had died and that he had left a young widow - a skilled knight - who said she would prefer to be gainfully employed, rather than spend her days as a dependent of her own or her late husband's family. Few women, even those who had attended one of the two Royal Military Akademies, chose to remain as knights – those who didn't branch off into magic, tended to choose to specialise in martial skills that relied less on large stature and brute strength. So Agrias had been confident that Lavian would find a place in the Lionsguards.
The only concession that her father had made, to try to reconcile her to the haste and remoteness of her new position, was to arrange to have Lavian assigned with her in that dull, out-of-the-way place. She apologised to Lavian about that as soon as the other girl had arrived at the monastery, a month after Agrias.
Much as she liked the Princess herself, even before Lavian arrived, she'd already had enough time to realise that the posting to Orbonne was not one to be in if you wanted a rich and varied life. Orbonne was pleasant but incredibly dull. She'd also realised why a position of such prestige had gone, unprotested, as far as she knew, to a newcomer to the Guard who must seem far too young and inexperienced for the post. Even if she was getting the position through a mixture of nepotism and the deference accorded to someone who could use sword techniques, she should never have been the first choice.
Captain of the Princess' Guard truly was a prestigious position - in theory - of course, and especially at such a young age, but she'd never been ambitious that way. As a Holy Knight, she'd inevitably had accelerated promotion in the army too, having been promoted to Major shortly before the end of the war – her third promotion in less than four years. 'Captain' in the Lionsguards was not the same as a regular army captaincy. In fact she was now, officially, the equivalent of a Lieutenant Colonel and that was a ridiculously high rank to have been given at twenty!
Why did everyone assume that, because one had the natural gift of Holy Sword techniques, one was also a natural leader? Oh, she could lead, when she had to, and it had come to feel fairly natural, but it hadn't been what she had wanted two years ago, when she'd been sent to Orbonne; at that time she'd have been happier just taking commands, rather than giving them all.
Right up until the day that the Princess had been abducted, her responsibility had weighed upon her, though not so heavily that it usually felt like a strain. However, after that debacle, Agrias now questioned if she'd ever been at all effective in her role - after all, the kidnapping had been the serious threat to the Princess' security, that she'd had to deal with, and she'd failed miserably. She'd never considered having to deal with more than one threat at once. Especially with only a squad of four. She was actually glad that, since arriving here, while she had been consulted on the arrangements for Ovelia's safety, as a courtesy, that consultation was all it was. The Commander of the Griffin Knights was the one actually making the decisions.
The princess had been meant to have a squad of six Lionsguards assigned to her, but it had always been difficult to get the female guards to come to Orbonne. Lavian's arrival took the numbers back up to six, but three of the others had left over the next year. Alicia had joined them during that time, but after that it had never been more than four, including Agrias herself.
Agrias sighed and dunked her head, in preparation for washing her hair. It was no good dwelling on the past. Right here and now there were guards galore to ensure the princess' safety, but she had to remember that, since she couldn't be certain of their skill and commitment, she just had to keep focused on ensuring the princess' safety, herself. That meant she had to stop daydreaming and quickly get washed and back into her armour. She sighed, thinking that she half-wished she hadn't sent Lavian and Alicia away.
She suddenly realised that she had been silent and distracted for ages now and turned guiltily to the neglected Ovelia, that profound responsibility who she, nevertheless, had become extremely fond of. She found that the Princess, lathering her own hair, was looking at her quizzically, and so she apologised for ignoring her.
Goug, Night
By the time it was full-dark, Mustadio had said they were only about two hours from Goug, so with a three-quarter-full moon and a clear night, they'd had just enough light to push on and reach the city, even though Ramza had never liked the extra dangers travelling after dark exposed them to.
The five of them exhaustedly made it to a fairly large, comfortable-looking brick-built house in what, even in the dark, was clearly a pleasant, if unprepossessing, middle-class district of the city. Mustadio took them around to the back of the house and fished around in his pockets for a key, while also checking that the shutter over the large window was securely in place. He paused, key in hand, turning to the other four, he was looking uncharacteristically nervous - from what little Ramza could see with such limited light.
"I'm sorry - I know I've joked about having a bunch of aristocrats at my beck and call, but it's just occurred to me that this house must be very different to what you're all used to... I know I said I could put you all up, but the house isn't nearly as big as it looks; half of it is given over to work-rooms and the like, and it's just me and Dad and the apprentices, normally. There's just about enough beds but if... I won't be offended, if you'd rather stay at an inn; there are a couple of very decent ones in the city. I'll happily foot the bill, since..." Ramza interrupted, not liking to hear his friend belittle his own home.
"Frankly, Mustadio, the house looks very comfortable, and it's at least twice the size of my grandparents' place, where I spent practically half my childhood. Even if it weren't as comfortable as it looks, which I'm sure it is, I'm so tired, that by the time we've grabbed a bite to eat and we've discussed exactly what the plan for tomorrow is, all I'd need is a pallet on the floor in a corner somewhere." Ramza said as Mustadio unlocked the door. He glanced at the others, regretting that it was so dark, as he wanted his face to clearly show 'none of you had better contradict me on this!'
"I can, at least, do better than pallets." Mustadio said with a half-smile, holding the door open and ushering them into a large kitchen. "Just wait here. It was night as well, when I legged it, and all the shutters should be sealed, but I need to check before we start moving around the house. I don't think we want any light showing tonight. I've been gone long enough that I doubt they're bothering to watch the house, but just in case...
"You should find a couple of oil-lamps and a flint and firesteel on the mantle." He added from the doorway that led to the rest of the house. He moved into the hallway then, pulling his gun from its holster.
Rather than start with the flint and steel, Ramza had just finished intoning Fire to light one of the lamps, illuminating a large, well-appointed kitchen, when they heard a shot ring out from further into the house. All four of them raced towards the sound.
"... sake, Wilfrid, what the hell are you doing here?..." Hearing the clattering of four pairs of feet, he turned and called out "It's all right, nothing to worry about. It's just Wilfrid, my Dad's second apprentice, and I haven't hurt him, only Disabled him." He said, holstering his gun and gesturing at a boy of perhaps fifteen, who was holding a candle in a hand that still shook slightly.
"Gods, I'm really sorry for shooting you, Wil, I just didn't expect anyone to be here." Mustadio said, then suddenly looked stricken. "I'm sorry, I didn't think about your situation when I skipped town, either. I was just glad that that the three of you were at home with your families when Baert attacked. I never thought that you, at least, couldn't just stay at your Auntie's permanently, not with all those kids she already has to look after." He explained later that evening, to the others, that Wilfred was an orphan whose parents had died shortly after apprenticing him to Mustadio's father and his only living family was an Aunt and a shedload of cousins.
"Etgar and Paul at home with their families?" This enquiry about the other two apprentices only elicited a rapid nod, the boy still seeming overwhelmed at being shot, even if it had only incapacitated him. Mustadio's deep voice was very gentle and full of concern, when he next spoke.
"Being Arm Shot doesn't stop you being able to speak, you know, Wil. I really am sorry, just tell me if you're all right?"
"Y-yes." The boy eventually said.
"Do you think you'd be up to running an errand, once you've had a couple of minutes sitting down for the Arm Shot to wear off?" Mustadio asked, ushering them all back to the kitchen. That received another shaky affirmative.
After his few minutes sit-down, Mustadio had given the boy a couple of hundred gil and sent him out to a local tavern that did good food with a large basket and instructions to ask them to fill it with food and bring it back.
Ramza had built and lit a fire in the grate, while Mustadio had been giving these instructions and, as he stood up, he looked over at the machinist, a serious expression on his face.
"You tend to shoot to incapacitate first, not to kill or injure, I've noticed, when it's humans we're fighting." He held up a hand. "That's not criticism, Mustadio, just an observation. I just need to know what you'll be doing tomorrow, for tactical purposes, if we're going up against Baert's men."
"Either... both. I can't afford to be merciful, if I want to get my dad out alive." Mustadio said.
"I'm not asking you to kill; no-one here relishes that, I can assure you." Ramza said, his expression grave.
When Mustadio replied to that, his words were slow, as if he was still considering things.
"Arm and Leg Shots are tricky. If I think I can make them, I will, since taking anyone straight out of the fight, for a while, makes it that much easier for us to tackle the rest of them. If I don't think I can pull one or the other off, though, I'll shoot to kill or injure, I can guarantee that!" His face and tone were harder than any of them usually heard from him.
Author's Note:
I'm pretty sure that there is absolutely no canon back-story for Agrias, but if there is, and I've contradicted it, please do let me know and I'll do my best to adapt this. I'm not trying to suggest 'tragic back-story' or anything here. If a soldier loses her best friend to war and is then dumped by her partner, that's terrible for her, but it isn't full-on tragedy. Bereavement and relationship breakups happen, and they're awful, especially if they happen together. (And your boyfriend's a vile, shitty person if he dumps you for no obvious reason just after your best friend dies, but I still wouldn't call it tragedy in the widest sense.) It was at least as hard for Lavian, anyway, if you think about it.
Note that, just because I'm saying that Agrias is in her position primarily through nepotism and because she can use sword techniques, I'm not suggesting she isn't competent, (whatever she may have been thinking to the contrary). She's competent for any normal threat to Ovelia's security. However, with the manpower (or, rather, womanpower) and resources she had on hand, she wasn't ready for the extraordinary threats that she had to face. Put another way, she is competent, but not extraordinarily so.
If the scene in Goug seems a bit thin, I did that semi-deliberately so as not to detract from the Agrias section. I was going to do a whole bit on the Goug Machinist's Guild and where Mustadio and Besrudio fit into it. I decided, after a back-story info-dump, I'd keep the rest simple. They needed to get to Goug, it didn't have to be in a flashy way.
A Question: If I did a one-shot, tying up the loose ends that were left for the three remaining generic 'girls' from Chapter 1, would anyone care enough to read it? I have a few ideas jotted down, but I don't know if it's worth me bothering to turn it into a full-blown short story, as I deliberately didn't make the girls all that important (arguably Sam became important-ish, with her PoV in the epilogue). It would be set a few days before the opening of Chapter 3 of the game, during a time when Ramza keeps putting off leaving for Lesalia, as he doesn't really want to see Zalbaag again. The only reason I'm contemplating doing it at all is that, during Chapters 3 & 4, I may occasionally use Hildegarde, with her family's wide-ranging trade connections, as a source of information, when the group are passing through Dorter. Post a Review/PM me if you would/wouldn't like to see that one-shot.
