Casta again! It's been a while since we caught up with him, so here he is.

The thanks; to Delphine hater, thanks for the review! Yep, that sums it up. Why am I killing everyone? To show how dangerous the King is, because it builds suspense, and because it keeps you guys guessing. I am sorry about killing Jon, but it was a necessary plot point (sadly). Anyway, I'm glad you liked it! To Blade Agent99, thanks for the review! Well, I'm trying to cut down on my POV characters, because I'm swamped in them, and besides, Joric is wandering the wilderness, so, sorry, but there won't be a Joric POV. You'll know who the King is in due time. I'm really glad you liked the chapter though! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, etc!

Here it is.

Prefect Casta Allectus

Prefect Casta Victorus Gaius Allectus pounded into the Imperial City on his horse like the devil was at his heels. That said, it isn't that far off the mark. His defeat at the hands of the Thalmor had humbled his previous outlook; Casta had recognised their power, but even so… to lose to it had been more than he could handle. The Prefect had drawn together what remained of his army, and promoted Caro to lead them as they harassed the Thalmor and delayed them from reaching the capital. Before he had left, he had placed strict orders on no direct contact with the Thalmor in battle, else he lose the rest of his men. No contact, he reflected bitterly. It left a sour taste on his tongue, and he resented this weight hanging over him. But he couldn't brood too much; now it was up to him to formulate a plan with the Emperor to counter the Dominion. Even so, it is going to be too late for the families in their path of destruction. Casta's heart tightened as he galloped through the streets, empty save the odd wanderer. It seemed the whole capital was on edge as night rapidly approached; by now they would have heard of his defeat.

Casta drew up his horse and vaulted from its back as he reached Green Emperor Way. White Gold Tower loomed above him, like an angry parent, scolding him. Allectus shot it a guilty look and quickly raced up steps, passing by the guards with a quick step. He glanced around the cold stone corridors of the tower uneasily, as if they wanted to trap him, before taking a right, so that he could take the steps to the higher levels. But he suddenly realised that in his haste, Casta had no idea where the Emperor was, so he caught a bemused looking guard by the shoulder.

'I need to see the Emperor,' he said impatiently, with trace of building anxiety for Reman's reaction when they talked.

'He is in the Elder Council chamber, in session, sir,' the guard answered.

Casta nodded and strode to the door. He opened them quietly, not wishing to draw too much attention to himself, and stood by the side of the chamber. The Emperor was listening to a chancellor who was outlining his plans for the city during a siege, which was raising a few eyebrows, Casta noticed, but upon seeing him the Emperor cut the man off and dismissed the council. They looked none too pleased about it, but he gave a quiet word to a guard behind him, and they left grumbling. Casta watched them go uncomfortably. He'll only alienate them like this, Allectus reflected, but he pushed the thought from his mind as he descended the steps lining the outside of the massive chamber, into the Emperor's presence.

On seeing him, Reman's mouth turned up a little, but his eyes betrayed his apprehension. 'Prefect Allectus,' he said before Casta could speak. 'I am well aware of the situation now. Your second, Caro, sent me a raven.'

'Of course, Talos,' the Prefect acknowledged, bowing his head. 'We need to talk.'

The Emperor regarded him coldly. 'Then talk, but be quick. I have a war to fight.'

That irked Casta, but he continued regardless. 'I need more Legions if I am to combat the Dominion.' The request sounded stupid even to his own ears.

'More Legions,' Reman mused. He was still sitting in his throne, and he leaned back, nodding. 'But what can we actually do with more, Prefect?' No doubt he meant to be threatening, but it just sounded anxious, and scared. Casta sympathised with him, even if it was not to be expected of an Emperor to be frightened.

'I fear that, well… in truth, nothing, Talos,' Allectus admitted. The truth sounded worse as it rang throughout the chamber.

'Nothing?' he demanded, panicked. 'Surely there is something we can do?'

'The Thalmor seem undefeatable on the battlefield, Talos.'

'But you've only fought one battle, Prefect,' the Emperor countered with sudden anger. 'You failed,' he pointed out, which sent a stab of pain into Casta; 'but that does not mean you cannot win. The men will fight again?'

'Aye, Talos. If they have to.'

'Then make them, Prefect.' Reman's eyes were hard. 'We cannot lose. It is not an option.'

Casta was struck by his determination, but his melancholy was too deep to shift. 'You didn't see it as I did. One second, we were winning, and then, we were running.'

The Emperor looked down at his hands for a while, before glancing up again. 'We have to win.'

'If we had more Legions, Talos, then maybe…' Casta trailed off, not daring to hope.

'I think I can help with that.' Count Marius Cairo stood by the door, and he stepped down confidently, surveying the scene. He knelt swiftly at the Emperor's feet, ignoring Casta. 'Talos Emperor, may I offer a suggestion?'

'As you will,' he allowed, glancing at Casta with an apprehensive look.

'The various Counts and Lords of Cyrodiil have already agreed to rally their men, and join them to the Legions. In addition,' he smiled sickly sweet;' the Breton's main force has arrived. I took the liberty of joining them to my men, while the Prefect here was unavailable. You don't mind, I hope, Casta?' He looked at him with a good-natured smile, but his eyes revealed a hungry pleasure.

Allectus swallowed his pride, and inclined his head. 'Of course not, Your Excellency. I am honoured by your sacrifice.'

'Don't be so gloomy,' Cairo said, slapping Casta's arm. 'We can still win this.'

'More than the Prefect thought a minute ago, isn't it?' the Emperor commented, raising an eyebrow.

'I was simply providing the most obvious outcome, Talos,' Casta replied evenly.

'The most cynical one, perhaps,' Cairo interrupted. 'We don't need that now, Prefect. The streets are rife with depression as it is.'

Allectus couldn't take this anymore. Here they were fighting a war to the death, while Cairo played politics. 'And you would know, wouldn't you, Your Excellency?' he growled, stepping forward. He was taller than the Imperial.

The Count's expression turned suddenly furious. 'Quiet, boy! What are you, but, a… a,' he struggled for the words as he looked over Casta murderously; 'an upjumped sewer rat, elevated far beyond his position. What right do you talk to me like that?'

'By right of arms! At least I earned my title.'

'Enough!' the Emperor barked. Casta had almost forgotten he was there. 'This won't do. Cool down, both of you. Cairo, see to your men. The assistance is most welcome. Allectus,' he turned his smouldering, dark eyes on Casta; 'go home. I'll call on you soon.'

Furious, the Prefect stiffly bowed and strode from the room, pushing past the Count. He ignored everything around him as he burst from the council chamber, into the night air of the capital, his rage boiling around him. He could barely contain his frustration as he played back the conversation. Fucking politics! That's all it's ever about. Casta glanced back in their direction, now covered by the main doors of the tower as he made his way down the steps, wishing looks could kill. As his anger subsided, guilt soon replaced it. He had barely done anything to help his men; yet Cairo did. Casta suspected, much to his own chagrin, that his anger had partly been a result of the fact that where he had failed his men, Cairo had succeeded. It was a sour realisation, but Casta suspected that it was truer than he would have liked.

The Prefect was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he barely noticed when he found himself in front of his door. He touched the wood fondly, pushing away all his bad memories of late, reflecting on how simple it was; in reality, it was far too austere for the Prefect of the Legions. No doubt he had been assigned a town house somewhere in the city, but for now, this would do. It didn't bode well to think of the future anyway.

Casta pushed open the door, and closed it behind him. It was dark, but it only took him a second to find a match and light a candle. The fire sent a small pool of light out into the vast, foreboding darkness, and Casta took it in his hand as he made his way up the stairs, treading carefully, as if not to disturb something he wasn't quite sure about. Something that wasn't his.

Casta entered Silva's room first, and stood by the door, watching as she breathed lightly, snuggling her head into her pillow. She was so sweet, Allectus forgot about the darkness surrounding him completely. He moved into the room, and gave her a gentle kiss, before leaving. Then, it was Maria's room.

There was light under the door, which surprised Casta for a moment. He stepped back, and that was when he heard the noises. His blood froze, his jaw tightened. His breathing quickened and he suddenly burst into the room with furious rage surrounding him. He was on top of her, the man, on top of Maria. When he noticed Casta, she let out a gasp, and fell back. The man turned, hair over his face, which quickly turned to a mixture of angry fear when he realised who the newcomer was.

'What the hell is this!' Casta demanded, his anger rolling free like dark thunderclouds. His hands balled into fists, but before he could do anything, the door downstairs crashed open. Casta ripped his eyes from Maria's cowed look and raced to the stairs. There were men down there, moving through the house with practised discipline. They were dressed in the garb of the Penitus Oculatus. Allectus moved back, into his room, fear pounding through his veins, driving away any of his previous anger. It didn't take a genius to realise why they were here.

Their cries rang out below, and he could hear Silva as she woke up. Casta slammed the door shut as they came up their stairs, and he heard commotion across the corridor. Silva cried out again, driving Casta out from any thoughts of hiding. He threw open the door, slamming it into one of the men who fell back, and tripped over the tiny balcony overlooking the main hall to its hard floor ten feet below. Casta moved across the hall screaming, and whipped out his fist into one of the Penitus with all the force he could manage, but the other man shrugged it off and returned a punch to Casta's stomach. He fell to his knees winded, and the man kicked him over onto his back. He launched another blow into Casta's ribs, and one broke, before throwing him down the stairs.

It was all a blur of colour and force as he fell, rolling to land on the ground in a blast of pain. His vision was blurred, and his ears were ringing as Casta spat out blood, and moaned, unable to pick himself up. He moved his hand, and leg, relief coursing through him as he realised he wasn't paralysed, and that his spine hadn't broken, but then the pain pushed the thought from his mind in a blast of fire. Casta let out a shallow breath as he was pulled up by strong hands, to come face to face with Cassia Derionne, the Prefect of Laws. Naturally, she would had influence over the Oculatus, Allectus thought with a resigned sigh.

'Casta. It's good to see you again.'

He had no time for bullshit, not after everything that had just happened, and his response was sharp. 'What do you want?'

Derionne never played around anyway. 'You are under arrest, Prefect, for misconduct during battle, and for trying to see a Dominion victory.' The charge left him speechless, and he just shook his head as he tried to understand what exactly was going on.

'The Emperor? What… what has he said?'

'Count Cairo thought it best if he took matters into his own hands for this one. The Emperor has been informed of a traitor months ago. We were just waiting for…' he paused, as if trying to decide on the right word; 'the right evidence.'

Humiliation, and frustration filled Casta's mind; he had taken their words and actions at face value when he had first met them all. It had been a fatal mistake. 'You were waiting for me to lose a battle,' he guessed. Cassia's nod confirmed it. 'What do you plan to do with me?'

Derionne leant in close, glancing from side to side at her waiting Oculatus. 'We all know you are Empire's best general. Cairo wouldn't approve, but to kill you would be suicide. No, we just need you out of the picture for a while.'

'Wait,' Casta said, surprised. 'What do you mea-'

And then it all went black.

The good guys just never seem to catch a break, so they. Please review, and I'll give you a hug (you know, if you want one.)