It was several hours before Bessara finally arrived at the tavern. Jack had sat patiently behind one of the tables they'd repositioned. Duncan and Bryant stood at attention next to him. The Rose Knights were hiding in a side room; it would be bad form if the Emperor's daughter was seen negotiating with a crime lord.
The sound of a carriage pulling up to the tavern echoed from outside. Dozens of men were probably surrounding the tavern, prepared to rush in and slaughter the Englishmen; that's what Jack would have done at least.
Jack glanced at his lieutenants and nodded. Both men straightened up and stared directly ahead as if they were trying to pass an inspection. Suppressing any nerves, Jack straightened his posture and fixed his uniform.
They had the elegant blue uniforms of the 17th Lancers and gleaming pith helmets. They had all the grace of proper gentlemen and all the style of Englishmen. They were British officers, and they were ready.
The front door burst open. A large man stepped through, flanked by two armored thugs. He presented an aura of superiority as he entered the room, yet it wasn't arrogance like Duncan had. No, this man wasn't arrogant, but rather he was someone that was used to having power. This was a man that could make a deal when needed; Jack liked that.
"You're either very brave or very stupid to stick around after killing my men," the man grunted as he sat down opposite to Jack. "Probably both."
"Well…" Jack mused. "You're right about that, but I like to leave out the stupid part when in the company of women."
"Smart." The man grinned. "I'm Bessara; I hear you've been looking to speak with me."
"Captain Jack Campbell," Jack replied. "It has come to my attention that you are keeping one of my countrymen captive, and I'm here to collect him. His name is-"
"Lord Webster Burke," Bessara finished.
"So you do have him."
"Of course I do. Did you think I'd come to speak with you if I didn't?"
Jack shrugged.
"You think too little of me," Bessara laughed.
"You are a crime lord."
Bessara rolled his eyes at the statement. "All lords are criminals; the only difference between them and I is the Emperor's blessing." He began to make wide gestures with his hands. "When I take from the poor, it's theft. When they take from the poor, it's taxes! Why is that fair?!"
"That's one way of putting it…" Jack met Bryant's gaze briefly before turning back to the crime lord. "We're getting sidetracked. I need you to bring Lord Burke to me so that he can return to his duties as the British ambassador."
"And I wish to be Emperor of Sadera! Unfortunately, these things are easier said than done." Jack had expected him to say something of that sort. Bessara's charade of politeness was finally coming to an end.
"Lord Burke is an ambassador and subject of Her Majesty The Queen. If he's not returned then I cannot ensure your safety."
Bessara looked unphased. "You brought fifty men into the city, or so my sources tell me. I have over four hundred men, so even with your so-called 'rifles' you won't be able to beat my forces."
"Lord Burke told you of our weapons?" Jack guessed.
The man nodded. "We also retrieved two from Lord Burke's escorts. While they're impressive, they are not the unstoppable force many in Sadera believe them to be."
Jack internally swore. Bessara was right; his troop couldn't take on four hundred men, not in the close confines of a city, and any reinforcements from Proptor would take too long to arrive. He'd underestimated the crime lord's position. Damn it all.
"I suppose you'll want something from me then?" Stupid idiot... I should have seen this coming. I could have prepared. If I'd just brought something valuable with me… or maybe brought more men… perhaps the Saderans at the embassy-
Bessara's voice interrupted his thoughts. "You could pay Lord Burke's ransom."
Jack sighed. "I'm afraid I don't have much money on me." His eyes flashed to the pistol on his belt. They could kill Bessara easily, but he didn't know if they would be able to fight all of Bessara's men. Six rounds. Three to kill Bessara and the men next to him. Then maybe two dozen outside-
The crime lord suddenly smiled. "Then I will have to give him to you as a gift."
Jack blinked twice, unsure he'd heard the man correctly. "As a gift? For free?"
Bessara nodded. "You seem to be an honorable man. I'm sure you'll be able to return the favor eventually."
"You're certain about this?" It seemed too good to be true.
"You're a soldier."
Jack gave a nod of affirmation.
"Soldiers, in my experience, have limited experience in politics. You know how to negotiate a treaty with a defeated enemy and how to act properly when negotiating said treaty, but when it comes to the real politicking you're clueless."
"And you know better?" Jack asked with skepticism.
Bessara shrugged and replied, "I may not engage on a national scale, but the criminal underworld has its own form of politics." He chuckled to himself. "Regardless, I understand that you and your 'British Empire' are good allies to have."
Jack frowned at his choice of words. "We are not allies."
"Not yet," Bessara remarked. "But I think your superiors will feel differently when they need spies to record what the Emperor is planning or if the senate is considering treason."
"We'll see…" Jack mumbled. This wasn't how he'd planned the meeting to go.
"Yes, we shall. But even if your superiors reject me, there's another benefit to this."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"
Bessara tilted his head towards the room the Rose Knights were hiding in. "I've just introduced myself to a princess."
An audible curse came from the room, and the door was pushed open. Princess Pina came out of the room with a slightly annoyed look on her face.
Bessara stood from his seat and bowed. "Your royal highness, I am-"
"Save the formalities," she replied with a wave of her hand.
"-pleased to meet you too," he finished.
"You will return the British ambassador to their embassy immediately. Understood?" She was blunt, to the point, and far more put together than Jack was at this point.
"Of course, your high-"
She held up her hand. "That is all. We shall be leaving now."
Jack barely understood what had just happened, but he followed her out the door regardless. He may not have been a politician but Pina certainly was.
Admiral Harrington. It's a good title. His admiral's uniform was a snug fit, and the new sword at his side provided the final touches to his air of authority. He was an admiral, and he had command over one of the finest ships in the British Navy.
HMS Devastation
Four RML 12-inch 35-ton guns mounted in two massive armored turrets provided more firepower and flexibility than he'd ever commanded. Its four steam engines provided the propulsion necessary to go anywhere he pleased, and unlike other ships, it was entirely unreliant of wind power. Mastless, turreted, and heavily armored, it was one of the most modern ships in the Royal Navy's arsenal.
And Harrington was in command of it.
As he stood on the ship's bow, he had a sudden urge to test out the guns. Harrington couldn't do that of course, he was stationed in Proptor and they'd already bombarded the city once, but he nonetheless felt a great need to unleash the ship's power on something.
Harrington shook his head at the thought. Maybe another day.
For the time being, he had very little to do. With most engagements with the Empire occuring on land now, the Royal Navy had been relegated to simply being a show of power. That meant sitting anchored outside of Proptor and meeting with local administrators every once in a while, boring work that Harrington despised.
There weren't even any smugglers or pirates to deal with because civilian trade ships still weren't authorized to enter the gate, meaning the pirates had no ships to steal from, and the smugglers were too damned scared to challenge the Royal Navy. Hopefully that would change soon. The world was well aware of the existence of this new world and it was only a matter of time before the British government caved to business interests and allowed trade ships through.
British ships would surely be the first ones to do business, but Harrington wondered how long it would be until foreign nations demanded the ability to enter Falmart. The French would surely demand it then the Germans and the Americans until eventually every major nation in the world had access to Falmart. It would be China all over again.
Britain had hegemonial power over Falmart for the time being, but for how many years would that last? Harrington had no answers. All he had were ambitions and aspirations for both himself and his country.
Lord Burke smiled as he stepped back into the British embassy. He was free at last.
The crime lord Bessara had provided him with adequate lodgings while he was a "guest" for the man, but there was something fantastic about being a free man. He felt a little bad for the Saderan slaves who were eternal captives of their masters. There wasn't any time to think about that though; now that he was back, Lord Burke had a lot of work to do.
His first problem was the narrowly avoided conflict between his embassy staff and the Emperor Molt's soldiers. It seemed that the Emperor had run out of opium and Sergeant McGuire, lacking any orders, refused to open the embassy doors to him. That had been Burke's fault, partially. He should have prepared a contingency for if he disappeared, and part of that contingency should have been orders to keep providing Molt with as much opium as he needed.
Still, the conflict didn't escalate, mostly thanks to the actions of Captain Campbell and his cavalrymen, and now Burke just needed to handle the fallout. He'd already ordered for regular opium shipments to continue to Molt and he was going to request more opium be sent from Proptor. Hopefully this would quench the Emperor's thirst for the drug.
There was a benefit from this fiasco, however. Emperor Molt's reaction to the loss of his opium supply had been servere; that meant the Emperor had developed some type of addiction. Lord Burke's control over the Emperor would be almost absolute because of this. He just needed control over Prince Zorzal and the senate now.
That brought him to his second objective, influencing the prince. Burke's plan to befriend Zorzal had been interrupted by his sudden kidnapping, and now Zorzal was almost ready to set out on his war against the so-called "Warrior Bunnies" with twelve thousand freshly gathered soldiers. The plan needed to be modified.
Lord Burke had initially intended for a regiment of British soldiers to accompany Zorzal, enough men to ensure Zorzal had victory no matter what happened, but now that seemed infeasible. The Prince was impatient, so Burke couldn't wait for a regiment to arrive from Proptor; he had to provide Zorzal with soldiers immediately.
Fortunately, Lord Burke had fifty cavalrymen at his disposal, Captain Jack Campbell's troop. Hopefully it would be enough to win Zorzal's favor. He decided to write Captain Campbell's order immediately.
You and your troopers are to join with Prince Zorzal and his two legions in their conquest of the Warrior Bunny Kingdom. This task is designed to gain the favorable opinion of said prince. You will remain with Prince Zorzal until either his campaign has finished or you receive new orders. -Lord Webster Burke, Representative of Her Majesty's Government in Sadera.
Jack read over the message three times before he fully comprehended what it was saying. They were going to fight alongside the Saderans. Why the hell are we doing that?
"Bryant!" he called the lieutenant over to him. "Read this for me."
"New orders?" Bryant questioned.
Jack nodded slowly. "Aye… read it."
Bryant's eyes scanned over the piece of paper several times. Each time, his face grew more concerned. "We're fighting with the Saderans?"
"Aye." Jack nodded.
"And we're going to fight these… 'Warrior Bunnies' on behalf of them?"
Jack inhaled sharply. "That's what our orders are."
Bryant handed back the piece of paper. "Who the fuck decided that was a good idea?"
The captain pursed his lips. "Lord Burke, the man we just rescued from Akusho."
"Well that's one hell of a way to express his gratitude…" Bryant muttered. "Are you certain we have to follow his orders?"
"I don't see any way out of it."
"Lord Burke's an ambassador, right? He's not an officer; he doesn't have the ability to give us orders." Bryant protested.
Jack shook his head. "I wish that were the case, but Major Penn put us under Burke's authority when he assigned us on this mission. If we don't listen, we'll be court martialed."
Bryant slowly exhaled. "We're royally fucked then, aren't we?"
Jack shrugged. "Not much we can do. We'll just have to hope that this 'Prince Zorzal' doesn't have it out for us."
"What do we know about Zorzal anyway? He some kind of famous general?"
Jack shrugged a second time. "All I know is that he's a prince. Princess Pina probably knows more about him." He looked over to where the Rose Knights were sitting. "I'll try and ask her."
Bryant sighed, and Jack walked to the Rose Knights. It seemed that they had elected to neglect any official duties they had in order to be with Jack's troop.
"Captain," Pina greeted. Bozes and the other knight, who he'd learned was named Panache, echoed the princess' greeting.
Jack decided to be direct. "Who is Prince Zorzal?"
The women looked at each other before Pina replied, "My brother, the crown prince. Why do you ask?"
"I've just been ordered to have my men join his army and follow him in his campaign against the Warrior Bunnies." The more Jack said it aloud, the more ridiculous the orders sounded.
Pina blinked several times before responding, "My brother can be difficult and foolhardy; I suggest you exercise caution when dealing with him."
"Is he at least competent?"
Pina shook her head. Wonderful…
"I need to prepare my men then," he muttered while turning away.
"Wait!"
Jack looked over his shoulder and saw Bozes walking after him.
"I'm coming with you," she declared.
He halted his movement and turned to face her. She had an eagerness in her eye that Jack knew meant nothing he said would dissuade her. Jack discreetly glanced at Pina for approval. She nodded in confirmation.
"Fine. We'll need a skilled warrior, and you'll be sure to liven the mood while we're on the march. Get your kit together and be ready to ride." Though he didn't let it show, Jack was excited at the prospect of having Bozes with them.
Bozes nodded. "Right, I'll get to it."
This is a bit of an in between chapter before I can get back to the action so sorry if it's a little boring. Also I surprised myself with the pace I wrote at this time, so don't expect a chapter every day.
Assistant Elite General Matteo: You have an amazing username. I don't think I renamed myself or any of my character though.
hellisonfire345: I'm glad to be back. And yeah, I understand that many people enjoyed Little Green Men, but honestly I couldn't bear to write it any longer.
Booksavior69: Thank you.
WarGlory: Thank you, I'm glad to be back. Ultimately one of the biggest things about Little Green Men I couldn't overcome was that the original plot I'd imagined for the story was kind of terrible but it's too far in to change the plot without massive rewrites.
Guest: It's alive!
MKOfficial357: Thanks! Don't worry, I don't think I have the virus. I'm just quarantined because someone I know tested positive and I don't want to risk spreading it if I do have it. Also my university went online so that made it easier.
