Chapter 16
City of Italica, night time, Nirnian War Tent
Much to their surprise, the Battlemages and Marius had been called to a late meeting by Councilor Mei.
"It won't take long," she assured them. "I just need to deliver important news about tomorrow's day. Following our interview, it has been decided that the Princess is going to travel to Nirn to see our prisoners, possibly more. I will depart with her. She needs an escort, someone who she could trust." She glanced at Cyrus. "You, Battlemage."
The rest of the room's eyes fell on him.
"I suppose that has to do with how I saved her life and the fact she seems to trust me as a result?"
The Councilor nodded. "That would be correct."
And I suppose there's another good reason, he mused. A brief glance at Caranya showed she had thought the same.
"I'm the team Restoration's expert, will you all be fine without me?"
"We should be," his Captain answered. "The inventory we did today shows we have more than enough potions and healing scrolls, plus our own basic knowledge. Short of a plague outbreak , everything should be fine."
"It's only a few days at worst, you will all be back soon enough," Mei added.
He hit his chest with his right fist. "Very well, Ma'am."
"Good," she then looked at Marius. "There is another thing I need to mention. The Princess' friend, Lady Hamilton, will take the road for their Capital. Their Emperor will finally be made aware of what happened and that we want peace. As such, some of our Breton Knights will accompany them till the Mountain Pass."
"Understood."
"Was there anything else, Ma'am?" Caranya asked her.
She waved with her hand negatively. "That will be all. You're dismissed, soldiers."
They all left the tent, save for one in particular.
Mei's brows barely twitched. "Did you need something Battlemage Jing?"
"Your permission to speak freely, Ma'am."
Mother and daughter briefly gazed at each other as the tent became silent.
"You have it. Although I am surprised you asked it now when you did your best to avoid me today." She smirked. "Yes, you weren't fooling anyone and certainly not your mother."
"I had a chat with Caranya."
"Of course… ever the voice of reason, is she?" Mei commented fondly, a smile on her lips.
"I guess she is..." the younger woman grasped her arm, gazing down for a brief instant before looking her mother directly in the eye. "You know why I'm here."
The Councilor nodded gently. "Of course, I'm your mother after all." She sighed. "Yes and no."
"Can you clarify?"
"Yes, as you guessed it I left the Imperial City to find out about your whereabouts, since I had recently learned you had been mobilized. And no, I am not here by my choice, new developments came up while I was in Ykalon and since I was the only high ranked Battlemage who was also a Councilor in the area… I was the logical choice."
Jing somewhat relaxed her position. "So, was I wrong to believe you didn't want me on the frontline?"
Mei's expression seemed neutral, to someone who didn't know her but Jing saw the brief glint in her eyes that betrayed her true emotions.
She brandished her fist while clenching her teeth. "I am a Battlemage, dammit! I earned that rank, on merit alone! Do you not trust me enough?"
Her mother remained calm, despite the outburst. She approached her slowly, a sad smile on her face. "Jing, dear…" she put her hand on her daughter's arm, squeezing gently, "since the day you chose this path, you Father and I both accepted the consequences coming with it. We knew the risks you were taking and we were prepared to face them." Her hand moved to her daughter's cheek, making Jing look directly at her. "But… having your mind broken by sadistic monsters? We… that was never part of the deal."
Nothing is ever simple, mother, the young woman thought as her eyes started watering.
"Forgive me…" the older woman said, "for my weakness. You are a grown woman and I should have put more trust in you. If you said you were ready to go back… then you were."
The young Sorceress faltered for a moment before suddenly pulling her mother into a hug, much to the latter's surprise. "I may have been angry at first, humiliated even… but I know deep down why you did it. And maybe… you were right, maybe I was ahead of myself when I claimed I could join the campaign."
They stayed like that for a moment before separating.
"I've read the reports, Jing," her mother said, "you performed as well as any Battlemage would do in your situation." She stroked the younger woman's cheek tenderly. "I was wrong. Do not ever doubt yourself."
"I won't."
Cyrus wandered a bit around the Nirnian quarters before going back to his tent. He took advantage of the streets being empty to gather his thoughts as he walked.
Lady Mei probably doesn't know, they must have kept the information secret even among most members of the Shadow Legion
He stopped near what used to be the collapsed wall of a building of some sort to lean his back on it.
They're probably going to debrief me about Boethiah
That was the best part. The young man had nothing to hide after all. The worst part was that he was to actually accompany the Princess on a diplomatic trip and act as her glorified bodyguard.
The sound of something breaking caught his attention. He carefully followed the noise, preparing to fight should he have to, before making an unusual discovery. He had finally found Rory, but in a sorry state.
She was leaning against the city's wall, a pile of bottles on her left side and a mound of broken remains not far from here. Currently, the Apostle was downing from its content one of the bottles before throwing it. The object broke when it reached the ground. Her eyes found him though it took her a moment to formally acknowledge his presence. A smile formed on her lips, not her usual smirk but an actual frank smile.
She waved at him. "Evening Cyr*Hic!*Cyrus!"
He stared at her. Did she… of course she did.
She tapped on a spot to her right to invite him to join her. He sighed before sitting next to her.
The girl handed him a bottle. "Wanna *Hic!* try?"
"You're drunk."
"No shit, I *Hic!* am!" She was still presenting him the bottle.
He shook his head. "No, thanks."
She frowned though in her current state it looked more comical than anything. "You're no fun," she retorted before opening the bottle and trying to empty it.
Cyrus took it from her hands. She tried to fight back but was too drunk to do anything and stumbled.
"Give it back!"
"You've had enough," the young man stated calmly. Considering the Apostle's ability of advanced healing, Rory was in no danger of alcohol poisoning and should recover quickly.
"Who do you think you are?" she yelled angrily.
"Someone who is trying to stop your current self-destructive behavior."
Which is kinda ironic coming from me, he admitted to himself.
She glared at him.
"I know what makes you upset. We all do."
The girl looked away from him, not wanting to meet his gaze.
"I understand if you don't want to talk about it, but this…" he motioned to the pile of bottles, "really Rory? You're gonna drink yourself to Oblivion?"
"Mind your own damn business," she replied bitterly.
"As you wish."
He gazed briefly at the stars above him when an idea came to his mind.
"Tomorrow, the Princess will be leaving for our world. I'll be coming with her," he announced
That caught her attention. "How long… will you be gone?"
He shrugged. "I have no idea. One day? Two? More maybe? It's not up to me."
An uncomfortable silence fell between them.
As Rory seemed unwilling to talk, Cyrus got up. "I'll see you in a few days. Take care and do me a favor, slow down on the drink."
He then departed for his tent, leaving the girl alone. She took advantage of this to grab the bottle he had left at this spot. She brought it to her lips only to stop before looking at it. She suddenly gritted her teeth before crushing the bottle into her hands out of anger. Tears began to fall from her eyes.
"This is all your fault, Hardy!"
She then hugged her knees and started crying quietly.
Caranya had changed her armor for more casual clothes as she sat on her cot. She was writing the reply to the letter she and Cyrus had received, it was mostly the same content as they had both agreed upon. Since her friend was going back to Tamriel tomorrow, he was going to post it upon his arrival.
She was the only person inside the tent she shared with Jing but she had an idea about her friend's current whereabouts. Maybe something good will come out of it.
As she sealed the finished letter, she glanced at another one laying on her cot. Its envelope looked somewhat more official with the number of different seals applied on it. It had already been opened. The Altmer reached for it, turning it around in her hands as she contemplated the letter. She sighed. What am I going to do? I wish I could tell him… but I can't now
Deep into her thoughts as she was, she almost jumped out when she heard a voice calling out.
"Someone in there?"
It was Cyrus.
She briefly hid the letter in her cot before answering. "Just me, you can enter."
As he stepped inside the tent, she immediately noticed he was still in armor. He glanced at the letter she had just written.
"That's the reply for tomorrow?"
She nodded. " Yeah, by the way… about tomorrow," she started, "you know why they've really chosen you as the Princess' escort, right?"
"Of course, Boethiah." The last word was pronounced more like a whisper.
"Anyway," Cyrus said before the silence became too heavy, "I'll be brief, I just saw Rory."
Her eyes widened before her lips spread into a smile. "Really? How was she?"
"Drunk"
"Wait… what?"
"I found her with a pile of bottles, drinking herself to death, if she could that is. Don't ask me where she found the bottles. I told her to stop, hopefully she'll follow my advice…"
"Where was she? Was she alright when you left her?" Caranya questioned him frenetically, looking alarmed by the news. This isn't good
"Calm down, Cara. She'll be fine."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I doubt this is the first time it happens."
She didn't answer him, considering the implications of what he just said.
She shook her head. "Poor kid."
"I wouldn't call her a 'kid' even if she looks one, but she must be severely messed up given her youth growth stasis syndrome and what else is going on that she is unwilling to tell. Which is why I wanted to ask you something."
She blinked. "What is it?"
"I need you to contact the Commander to send something through in Tamriel. If I'm right we might finally discover more about what has been happening here."
Oblivion, realm of Boethiah, later that night
Welcome back, little Cyrod. You've been quite busy, scheming and plotting for who knows what
Cyrus paid no mind to the Prince's words, being more concerned with preparing himself for what was to come. This time, he had "arrived" here with his armor and weapon directly. He looked at the Prince's male avatar, sitting on his mountain-throne.
"I am ready."
Boethiah smirked as the Khajiit warped into the arena. The two opponents saluted each other.
Begin
Faster than he could have reacted, Cyrus was sent colliding from a kick towards the arena's borders. The monk was already on him, moving at unnatural speed. The flaming aura erupting from the Battlemage stopped him in his tracks. As the Khajiit decided to strike the Nibenese with his staff while he was still downed, Cyrus threw a firerune at his own feet before detonating the explosion. His own flame aura protected him from the fire as the resulting explosion's strength projected him above the battlefield.
He was able to secure himself by rapidly casting a slowfall spell, allowing to control his fall. Meanwhile, his adversary was stuck on the ground, seemingly waiting for an occasion. As the Heartlander finally landed in his opposite direction on the other side of the Arena, the Suthay-Raht rushed him at great speed, unaware that this is what Cyrus hoped for. As he was about to reach him, the Battlemage suddenly unleashed an absorb life and stamina spell he had prepared while still in the air. The Khajiit's speed had allowed him to be close to the young man, close enough for Cyrus to grab him, if he had wanted. He was unable to dodge the spell in time.
The monk grunted in pain as the red looking spell hit him, red and green tendrils connecting him with Cyrus, healing and reinvigorating him.
As the Khajiit knelt in front of him, seemingly recovering his breath, Cyrus prepared to cast a far more powerful spell to end the fight here and now. That is until something unexpected caught him off guard.
"Well done, you finally touched this one," his opponent said.
The Battlemage froze for a mere instant, wondering if after all the being before him was more than a mere projection. That was the split second the Khajiit needed to send the Cyrod flying from an uppercut.
Italica, morning first light
An unusual sight came to greet Italica's inhabitants that day, or at least a bit more unusual than the previous days.
The entire Rose Order had assembled before the city's main gate, Hamilton and her escort being already on their mounts, ready to depart for the Capital. A group of Breton Knights (and two Spellswords) led by Dame Éléonore had been adjoined to them.
The Princess, Countess Myui, her caretaker Ms. Kaine, Grey, Bozes and the rest of the Order had come to watch them leave. The Nirnians leadership were also present.
Piña approached her friend whom she had entrusted with warning her father.
"Fear not, Princess, I should reach Sadera in two days," Hamilton said with a confident smile.
The redhead nodded at her, "Come back as soon as you can once you have the Emperor's or the Senate's support. We shall see each other in a few days. In the meantime… may the Gods be with you." She was going to leave before remembering something else. "And please, be careful. Just because the Nirnians didn't find any remaining pocket of bandits or those Daedra doesn't mean there are none."
Panache, who had been situated close to them, brandished her sword to the sky. "We shall not disappoint you, Princess!"
"Besides, if we do encounter them, we're not alone," the little brunette added in a reassuring tone while pointing to the Nirnian riders. "The Nirnians have experience dealing with them. Should we encounter those fiends, we'll show them what it will cost them!"
Piña acknowledged her friend's bravado with a smile.
The gate was finally opened for the riders to leave. On Hamilton's command, they all raised their spears, with the Nirnians briefly imitating them, to salute the Princess and her entourage, before launching themselves at full speed on the road.
Good luck, the redhead wished them as she watched their silhouettes vanishing on the horizon.
The Battlemages were conversing among themselves.
"Thanks for taking the time to post my letter, Cyrus," Black-Scales told his friend.
"No need, it was on the way," he turned his head towards Jing. "You don't have a courier that you want to be posted?"
The Easterner shook her head with a smile. "Thanks but no, I didn't write anything."
The Argonian suddenly grasped the Cyrod's shoulder. "Depending on what you have to do, try to relax, okay?" He handed him a paper.
Cyrus briefly glanced at it before looking at the Nightblade, not understanding what it was.
"Those are the names of a few bars I know in Daggerfall, the city I mean."
The Necromancer's brows twitched. "Why would I even go to Daggerfall?"
The other shrugged. "Just in case, we never know if you need to take the Princess and her friend to some nice place." He said the last part with a smirk.
"I didn't remember 'caretaker' was part of my work. I should stay here, doing… anything else."
He briefly tensed, something that Caranya, who had remained quiet as of now, immediately noticed. It was barely perceptible, especially with Cyrus, but she knew him enough to know he hated his new task. He wanted to stay on the field.
"Just clear out your mind. I'm sure they will give you more than just being an escort," she said, trying to reassure him. "They won't waste you."
"Here's hoping."
Mei went to announce to the Princess she was going to open the Portal. Piña nodded before joining Bozes.
"I'll make sure the city remains safe in your absence," the Blonde girl assured her. "You can count on me and the rest of us."
The redhead smiled. "I already know that." She then pulled her friend closer to whisper her something in the ear. "Just don't rush it with your Centurion, okay? Don't bed him… yet."
Bozes blushed in shame. "Of course not! Besides, it's none of your business!"
Piña silently answered with a knowing smirk, before walking towards Beefeater.
Her comrade didn't look very much pleased but still didn't voice her thoughts.
I need to have a private conservation with her, the Princess mused.
Taking Beefeater with her was a controversial choice but she knew the girl wouldn't embarrass herself or their country once on Nirn.
A cracking and zapping sound of some sort heralded the portal. She turned to see Councilor Mei standing before it. Cyrus, once he had put his helmet, had joined her.
The Battlemage bowed at their approach. "Greetings your Highness, Lady Beefeater. Allow me to inform you that I will be charged with accompanying you on the other side."
The Princess flashed him a smile. "Good day to you Sir Cyrus, I am glad that another familiar face will be joining us on this trip."
She was actually genuine, she wouldn't admit it but she was a bit scared at the prospect of traveling to another world. Cyrus' presence did reassure her, after all the man had proved he was trustworthy.
Mei turned towards them. "We are ready to go when you wish it, your Highness."
The redhead took a deep breath. "Then let us leave."
"Wait!" someone suddenly yelled from where a crowd of onlookers stood.
Caranya briefly smirked upon recognizing the voice.
Running at supernatural speed, Rory reached the group who was about to depart.
"Your holiness Rory…" a surprised Piña recognized. What was she doing?
"Take me with you," the Apostle pleaded, looking at Cyrus first, then Mei.
The Necromancer whispered something in the Councilor's ear which made her nod.
"Very well, the portal is open for you too, Lady Rory."
Piña and Beefeater exchanged looks before both shrugging. Apostle's business
"It's done, they've accepted your request," Caranya informed Cyrus.
"Thank you."
She flashed him a grin. "No problem!" She then crossed her arms over her chest. "Now, Cyr', I've got a question for you."
"Go on"
"Why are you doing all of this?"
He froze. Where was she getting at?
"I mean," she started as she approached him, "are you doing this solely for the intel we can gain from this, or…" she almost whispered in his ear, "is this because you actually give a shit about her?"
He glanced at her, she had a mischievous smirk on her face, meaning she had already made up her mind on the subject.
"You thought I wouldn't find about you fixing that little girl's doll?"
He didn't reply.
"Good enough"
Cyrus shook his head from his thoughts as he looked at the girl who walked towards him.
"You knew I was going to ask to come, right?" she asked him.
"You're rather predictable."
"More like you told me this yesterday to purposefully manipulate me into wanting to come, am I wrong?" she said with a smirk.
He shrugged. "You're the architect of your own choices."
"Suuure"
As the luggage of the travelers were sent through the Portal via telekinesis, she briefly muttered something under her breath. "Thank you"
"Sorry, did you say something?"
"No, nothing," she waved him out.
The Saderan ladies looked unsure at the magical gate before them. Mei noticed it.
"I will cross first, your Highness, Cyrus will follow then it will be you. Will that be okay?"
"Of course!" Piña said in a tone that wanted to be confident. "You know best after all, my Lady."
Mei stepped through the portal, Cyrus was going to follow her when the Princess called him out.
"Sir Cyrus?"
He turned around, acknowledging her with a small nod.
"Tell me… what does it feel like?"
"Passing through?"
She nodded while trying to keep a straight face.
"It's… hard to describe. Some tingling sensations generally but nothing harmful if that's what you're worried. This," he motioned to the portal, "is after all similar to the Gate where your countrymen made it through. Nothing will happen, I can assure you."
She smiled. "Thank you, let us proceed then."
Rory went last. Just before she could cross over, she felt a familiar presence reaching out to her. Emroy, she recognized.
"Rory, if you go there, you'll be beyond my power, I cannot predict what will happen."
"And neither will Hardy."
"You have no idea what you're playing with, there are other Gods out there that could destroy you."
"You betrayed me!" She accused her patron-deity. "You offered me as Hardy's meal with that date!"
"I am sorry, but she left me no choice."
"And you left me none either," she replied as she stepped closer to the portal.
"No! Do not do that…"
The voice shut as she entered the portal, cutting them out. The dimensional gate vanished soon after.
It's done, Caranya mused. Good luck Cyr'
"I will go check on the Dark Elves," she announced. "Jing, I might need you, follow me."
The other woman hit her chest with her fist. "Right away, Captain."
The Altmer turned towards her Argonian subordinate. "Black-Scales… I actually have no task for you with the inventory we did yesterday. You should go to the barracks to practice."
The Nightblade stretched his arms after watching the other Battlemages leaving for the Hospital. "This is going to be a boring day, isn't it?" He sighed. "Why do I have the feeling Cyrus is the lucky one here?"
Ykalon, Imperial War Camp
Rory felt… different. She couldn't quite explain it but she had the feeling something was amiss. It had started right as she had gone through the portal but she still couldn't her finger on what it was. Then she suddenly realized she couldn't reach out to Emroy or even feel any of his fellow Gods' influence. It was as Emroy as said. Could the local deities have had a hand in it?
Cyrus, who had noticed the girl inspecting her hands by waving them around, approached her. "Is everything alright?"
She turned her head around, she was smiling. Not that usual smirk of her or the drunken smile of the other night, an actual warm smile. She nodded at his question. "Yes, I think I've never felt that free in a long time. Thank you."
He tilted his head. "What for?"
"Bringing me here."
Piña and Beefeater gazed around them. The place did look like an army camp of some sort, with all those tents and soldiers around. They also noticed the tents were separated and divided in several groups of equal number and panel signs seemed to indicate different parts of the camp. The Princess also took note of more isolated places with small walls around them, no doubt where the Prisoners resided. All in all, it honestly looked more like a city of tents than a camp.
Their famous organisation, I take it.
She also remarked a series of walls a bit outside the camp, made of solid stone and much taller than the others she had seen. She briefly wondered what it was they were seemingly keeping around here.
She focused back to the situation at hand when she saw local soldiers realizing the "Nirnian" salute in front of them. Clearly, she had been too caught in her observations to notice them.
"Lady Councilor," one of them said, the leader probably, "some of my men will take your luggages to your quarters. The Emperor and the High Chancellor are waiting for you. Please follow me."
Piña's eyes widened before sharing a glance with Beefeater. They hadn't expected that at all, not now.
Their Emperor! Curse it! I don't have any gifts to present him as a representative from Sadera, the redhead thought in shock. What am I going to do? We're gonna look like barbarians!
Mei saw their worried look and, knowing what they were thinking, set out to calm them. "I think I know what you're thinking, your Highness. Be assured, this isn't an orthodox diplomatic meeting, a lot of the standard rules of courtesy which would normally apply will differ here."
The Saderan Princess let out the breath she had been holding. Guess I can count myself lucky… to think I will meet their Emperor so quickly
They followed the Officer through the camp's maze. The Princess immediately noticed that most of the soldiers here had their armors looking different from the ones serving under Centurion Marius. Compared to the generally darker color they bore, the legionnaires seemed to prefer a more grey-steel themed color like her Knights. She noted that detail to ask about it later.
There was another thing she had felt genuinely curious about. As far she could tell, despite the size of the camp, she was able to make out the landscape around it. It looked like an empty countryside of some sort, with no settlements as far as she could tell. Yet, there was something she definitely saw on the horizon, a lone Tower which seemed situated far away. There was definitely a story there.
She snapped back to reality as they reached a rather large tent, with soldiers guarding on each side. For the first time, she remarked that they were all of the same demihuman type, those green hulking creatures that looked like a mix between goblins and ogres but more… civilized. Their sigil was different from either the regular soldier or Battlemages like Cyrus.
The Princess held her breath as two figures suddenly stepped out from the tent. One of them was a giant of a man, he looked as if he could actually wrestle with an ogre and win. The other carried a weapon similar to a similar staff-spear Cyrus and his fellow Battlemages used. It didn't take a genius to guess the first was the Emperor and the other his Prime Minister.
The two men approached them.
"Legionnaires! Salute your Emperor!" an officer ordered.
As they did so, the soldiers (save the apparent bodyguards), Lady Mei and Cyrus all kneeled. For a moment, Piña and Beefeater were tempted to imitate them before realizing as ambassadors they were supposed to show respect, not submission.
The towering figure of their Emperor stopped before the redhead. She was at a complete loss of words, she had come here expecting to meet someone similar to her father, instead she was reminded of King Duran, if Duran was almost seven feet tall that is. The Nirnian Emperor's presence was enough to mentally crush her, as if he had some sort of supernatural aura. And I wouldn't even be surprised if he did.
The Princess kept a blank face and bowed before the two men, imitated by her friend.
"Your Imperial Majesty, may I formally introduce to you Princess Piña Co Lada and Lady Beefeater E Caty," Mei announced as she rose up.
"Please, Princess, my Lady, rise," the Emperor asked them. He smiled. "I have heard many great things about you, I am pleased to finally make your acquaintance." He made a small curtsy. "I am Ivan Mede the First, Emperor of Tamriel."
"It is me who is honored, Emperor. I hope I can make justice to these statements," Piña replied as she rose up.
The man at the Emperor's side respectfully bowed before the two Saderan ladies. "Hector Tharn, Imperial Battlemage and High Chancellor of the Elder Council. Pleased to meet you, your Highness."
The redhead acknowledged the man with a respectful nod.
She remembered her conversation with Cyrus when she had asked him about their emissary. Lady Mei was part of one of the most powerful Nibenese Houses, whose head was actually the man before her. Now that she thought about it, they didn't look very alike at all. Then again, with a House as old as the young man had told her, a lot of branches would exist, explaining why two members wouldn't exhibit similar physical characteristics.
Her thoughts were cut short as the Emperor motioned for something or rather someone to approach. "Princess, Lady Beefeater, please meet my eldest son, Crown Prince Basil."
There's a foreign Prince here too?
A man stepped out from the rest and joined the Emperor and his Chancellor. He was rather young but older than her, perhaps around Zorzal's age. Compared to his giant of a father, he was smaller height though could be still considered somewhat tall. Piña noted his complexion was much darker than his father's, a bit more darker than Cyrus in fact.
The Prince grabbed her hand to slightly kiss her knuckle. "I must say we've heard a lot of accounts about you, Princess, but they failed to mention your beauty." He flashed her a smile.
She forced herself to keep a straight face. "My Prince, you flatter me."
The Prince himself was quite handsome and charming, to say the least. No! Keep it together, Piña! You're not here to gush over foreign Princes!
Another thing from her conversation with Cyrus came back. The Nirnians did marry for alliance too… she could not help but think, could a marriage with this Prince solve all their problems?
"Oh no, I am truly sincere. May I present you to my dear wife…"
Ah well, it was too good to be true, she mused with disappointment.
"... Princess-Consort Liliah Mede of the Great House Redoran."
The redhead moved her head only to freeze. The woman who walked in her direction was… a demihuman. Of course, she knew it was different here but she would have never guessed they married between themselves, but there was something else that struck her, her appearance. She looked in some ways similar to Captain Caranya, one of the local Elves surely, but where the Captain had been tall and golden-skinned, this one was more of average height, grey, no, ash-skinned and with red burning eyes fixating her. She was actually quite beautiful and Piña felt suddenly intimidated by her gaze. Could she read her mind? She thought she saw the shadow of a smirk on the other woman's face but it had been too sudden.
The "Elf" woman bowed. "Princess Piña, Lady Beefeater…"
The Saderan ladies did the same. "Princess Liliah."
"I understand this is very sudden," Liliah said, "I hope my appearance doesn't frighten you. I imagine you mustn't have seen a Dunmer before..."
"Oh no, I assure you everything is fine!"
Princess Liliah was wearing some strange kind of armor that didn't look similar in any way to the ones sprouted by the rest of the Nirnian assembly. Piña found it strange she was campaigning alongside her husband for such a high lady, she was hardly a general's wife but then again so many conventions were different here.
"I hope you had a pleasant trip?" Emperor Ivan asked them as Liliah went back to her husband's side.
"A bit short and quite unusual I would say… but definitely not unpleasant, your Imperial Majesty," Piña answered truthfully.
"Yes, the first experience to travel by a portal can be… quite something," the Emperor reminisced.
"I must admit, your Highness, I didn't expect to meet you right away. Is it common for Emperors in Tamriel to take command of their troops directly?"
"That depends a lot in fact, from the Emperor and the matter involved."
So just like us, the redhead mused.
"I assume you would like to see the prisoners as soon as possible, am I right?"
Piña nodded. "If we could."
"Of course but before that Princess… we had some new developments that we'd like to bring to your attention. Please, follow me."
The Emperor invited both the Saderan ladies as well Councilor Mei inside the tent. Hector didn't follow them immediately, nor did the Prince and his wife. Instead they shifted their attention on the rest of the people who came through the Portal.
"You can rise, Battlemage Cyrus," the Chancellor told him. He gazed at the carefree girl near him. "And you must be Lady Rory Mercury, the Apostle of the God of Death from beyond the Rift?"
"And War, Love, Madness and a few other things but yeah…" she smirked as always, "you would be right."
"Please forgive the Emperor for not giving you proper attention, but your case was rather… peculiar," the Tharn Patriarch continued. "Which is why I will ask you something that might seem strange but, how do you feel since coming through the portal?"
"I…" she froze, looking at her hands as she moved them around. "I… don't know? Why are you asking me this?"
"The reports made by our soldiers on the field indicated your powers came from your God. But you are on Nirn now, I assume you know what this means?"
She remembered briefly about what Emroy had explained before she had entered the portal. "Kind of, I guess. But I'm fine, I assure you."
"Very well," he turned to his subordinate. "The Princess and her companion will be here for a while so in the meantime I'm assigning you to watch over Lady Rory, in case some unexpected development comes. I shouldn't need to tell you which places are off-limits for now."
Cyrus also understood what the man wasn't saying. Try to get an answer out of her about their Gods
He extended his arm to hit his chest. "As you command, Sir!"
"I will call for you later, dismissed, soldier."
Cyrus left but not before another bow before the Crown Prince and his wife. "Your Highnesses."
The couple graced him with a small nod.
Rory went after him.
"What does he mean you're assigned to watch over me? I don't need a caretaker!" she grumbled.
"You don't know the place. Come, the mess is right here, they must have some drinks."
She clapped her hands. "Oooh! You know just how to cheer me up!"
They don't serve alcohol at this hour, he almost wanted to say.
"So that was him," Liliah said as she watched the Battlemage vanish behind tents. "I don't really know what I expected."
"You imagined him being seven feet tall decked in full daedric armor and with glowing eyes?" her husband said in a mocking tone.
The Dunmer shut him up with a glare before sighing. "No, not really. I just thought he would be… special? Well, being the recipient of a vision from a God…" she shook her head. "Nevermind."
"Trying to make sense of the Aedra and Daedra's working is futile, Princess. Now if you'll excuse me," Hector slightly bowed, "I must return to the Emperor's side."
He entered the tent, leaving the couple alone.
Liliah shifted her gaze to her husband, staring at him quietly until it became too much for him.
"My love, if you have something to tell me, do it," an exasperated Basil said.
"The next time you flirt with another woman in front of me…" the Dunmer grabbed him by the collar to gently whisper in his ear, "I'll kill you."
A grin passed over her husband's face. "Noted."
Mephala! Do I love that insufferable moron of a man.
Italica, Field Hospital
Upon entering the Hospital, Caranya and Jing were greeted by the Dark Elves waking up. They seemed in good health.
"Good morning! How are you feeling today?" the Altmer asked them.
"Morn… Morning my ladies," Yao hesitantly replied. The other elves acknowledged the two women with a nod.
Caranya waved her hand. "Please, we're not ladies, no fancy titles, just call us 'Ma'am'."
"Oh, okay, Ma'am. About your other question, we're fine, thank you."
"We're indebted to you!" the other adult elf, Nayu, exclaimed as she got up from her cot. "We cannot repay you enough for what you've done."
The Captain shook her head. "I assure you this is fine, we could hardly stand by and leave you to die."
Yao stared at her feet. There were a lot of questions going inside her head. Who were these people? What kind of demihuman the elf-like golden woman was? And most importantly, how did they save them? She only remembered the creatures she had thought her Goddess had sent… Wait, her eyes widened, does that mean.
"Ms. Haa Dushi, are you alright?" Jing called out to her as she noticed something wasn't right.
The Dark Elf shook herself out of her thoughts before nodding at the Sorceress. "Yes, thank you for your concern, but there's something I need to ask you. How did you save us exactly? We weren't close at all to Italica when we were attacked."
This caught Nayu's attention as she had been wondering that as well.
Jing turned to her Captain who gave her a small nod to let her know she, as the officer, would handle the explanation.
"Of course but I suppose you have other questions as well, like for example," the Altmer motioned to herself, "what I am."
Nayu and Yao briefly glanced at each other before the latter sheepishly spoke, "if that isn't too forward, Ma'am."
"No, it isn't, you at least deserve to know." She paused a bit. "Given how isolated your community must have been, you probably didn't hear about it but a Gate to another world was opened," she motioned to her and Jing, "our world."
The rest of the room had suddenly grown silent before Yao spoke. "Our priest had actually told us about something similar our Goddess had done but we didn't know the details." Her eyes glinted in understanding before turning towards Caranya, "then, your race…"
"Yes, that's why you didn't know what I was because my people, the Altmer, don't live in this world, unlike Men it seems." No need to tell them it's not the same kind, it would only add to confusion, the Captain thought about the latter. "Altmer are actually a race of Mer… sorry, Elves, back home, not unlike Dark Elves and High Elves here I suppose."
I did think she looked a lot like some weird elf, Yao mused about the golden-skinned women before her.
"The Saderan Empire invaded us but we fought back and won. My team and I were sent on the other side on recon to evaluate the Empire's strength and to seek a way to end hostilities."
They had defeated an invading army from the Empire? Arguably Elves had never opposed them directly but they knew how powerful the Saderans were. That means their rescuers' people were even more powerful than them. Actually, how did they rescue their group from the Dragon while it was already on them?
"As for your rescue…" Caranya began as she read the question on the Dark Elf's face, "it was our commanding officer who saw your group being attacked, he intervened to save you." She shrugged. "Don't ask me how exactly."
"But what about the creatures I saw before passing out?" Yao interjected.
Nayu glanced at her friend with a questioning look. "What creatures do you mean, Yao?"
"Right, I didn't tell you. When I first came back to my senses after the attack, I saw strange creatures carrying us, they looked like horse's skeletons. I thought we were simply in the Underworld and those were the servants of Lady Hardy but…"
"Couldn't this just have been a dream?" the other woman cut her.
Caranya stepped back in the conversation before Yao could answer. "It wasn't. Those were undead creatures summoned by our Commander."
The two elven women looked at each other. They had obviously thought of the same idea. If their magic was so powerful, even going as far as to defy a Flame Dragon to steal his prey, could they kill it?
"I cannot answer that," the Altmer said after guessing what their thoughts were about. "The situation is far too complicated as it is."
"Your ... erhm," what was the word again? "Commander, yes that's it!" she exclaimed as she remembered the term, "where is now?"
"I cannot tell you more than the fact he is keeping an eye on the beast as we speak. If he sees anyone from your people who is endangered, he will send them to us."
I doubt there will be anyone left soon, Yao thoughts as she looked down her ears tilted, out of sadness.
Caranya saw this and reached to grasp her shoulder. This made the Dark Elf woman look up and meet her golden eyes.
"Look… I won't say I understand the situation you are in but we sympathize. We can't do anything for now about the Dragon but I promise I'll talk to the Commander about locating your people, alright?"
The other weakly nodded. "Thank you, Captain."
She smiled, showing her teeth. "You're welcome. By the way, you're free to roam the city as you wish for as long as you want. From what I've understood, Italica lacks widespread anti-demihuman discrimination, you should be fine but stay together. If you need anything, just ask our men on patrol."
Yao's eyes suddenly widened as she remembered something before staring straight at the Altmer, much to her surprise.
"Tell me Captain, about the High Elf girl we saw yesterday, Tuka Luna Marceau, do you know if she would happen to be related to Hodor Marceau?"
Ykalon, Camp's Mess
Cyrus and Rory were sitting together at a small table. The mess was currently almost void of life save for the servers behind the bar.
The demi-goddess grumbled. She had been refused to be served alcohol and the first reason mentioned had been that she was underage.
Cyrus had quickly defused the situation by discussing with the barman to explain her condition as well as a document from the Imperial Battlemage to prove his word. The man had then apologized to the Apostle but still explained alcohol was only served at some specific occasion, leading to her current grumpy attitude.
"Grgn, not on duty, blah blah blah. For once I'm on vacation..."
"Can you stop complaining? It makes you look more immature than anything else," her Battlemage companion pointed out. He had just come from posting the letters and had commanded a tea.
The demi-goddess sent him a glare before staring at her glass of fruit juice. "You people don't know how to have fun."
"It's a military camp, what did you expect? Drunkards and prostitutes everywhere?"
"Would that shock you if I was telling you all the military camps I've seen were what you just described?"
In hindsight, Cyrus wasn't actually surprised. It did sound like something the Saderans would do. Or regular petty Kingdoms like those of High Rock for that matter. "Here, we call that a lack of professionalism."
"Sooo… how you guys are when you're not working and want to have fun?"
"We go into town, order some drinks at a local bar and try to have fun, what more do you want me to tell you?" To be truthful, he hadn't done that since before the war. It sounded like it was centuries ago.
As he shifted his attention to Rory, he suddenly noticed the particular look she was giving him. She was leaning on the table, holding her head with both of her hands while smiling. It was that look, the pleading one.
"No"
"Come on, Cyrus, pretty please? You can't decently refuse a girl who's begging you like that?"
"I can."
When she realized he wouldn't back down, she went back to her grumpy state. "Stuck-up"
He chose to ignore her.
Someone else entered the Mess area which caught Rory's attention. It was a young green-skinned girl, how were they called again, ah right, Orcs, sitting in some sort of a chair with wheels to allow her to move followed by the strangest creature the Apostle had ever seen. It looked massive, even bigger than an Ogre, its skin was the same color as bronze and it constantly seemed to emit steam. It unnerved her, the creature didn't seem alive at all, what was it?
She focused her attention on the girl who had ordered a drink before sitting at an empty table, the creature still following her. The Apostle noted the girl's age, she was very young, actually she looked like a teenager more than a young adult. Who was she? What was she doing here and on that contraption?
"It's rude to stare at people don't you know," Cyrus told her.
"Well guess my mother didn't have time to teach me," she snapped back.
The Necromancer paused before speaking again. "I'm sorry. I never even knew my own mother."
Rory felt a pang of guilt at the confession, she had spoken without thinking, again. "I…" she took a deep breath, "I didn't want to be a jerk. Sorry for being such an asshole to you, I just…"
He motioned for her to stop. "It's fine, it never really affected me, in fact I was the one to apologize."
A silence that the Apostle found uncomfortable established between them as the Heartlander finished his tea. He suddenly got up from his seat and walked towards the Orc girl.
"Greetings Engineer Gra-Urzoga, I didn't expect to find you here."
She turned her head to meet his gaze before scanning him. "Greetings Battlemage…?" she searched for his name.
"Cyrus of Argos"
"Right! Sorry for not remembering your name while you did for mine, by the way call me just Ghorshka," she sheepishly apologized. "And I'm just an Apprentice Engineer."
"Not a problem, everyone knows you in the Shadow Legion but nobody expects you to do the same for all of us, we are too numerous for you to remember everyone. And you may be officially only an apprentice but your skills are far above that."
The Orc's skin took a darker tone at the praise, evidence of her blushing. "Thank you Sir, you're too kind."
The Cyrod pointed at the Dwemeri Centurion, "Just stating a fact, Engineer Ghorshka." He then turned back to Rory, motioning for her to come. "But let me introduce to you my companion, Lady Rory Mercury from the other side of the Rift. She couldn't help but be captivated by your work."
Ghorshka gazed at the strange girl approaching her. She seemed even younger than her and that was telling something but given she was hanging out with a Battlemage, she wondered if there was some unsaid business going on.
"Nice dress!" she couldn't help but say at Rory while smiling.
The Apostle briefly gazed at her clothing before smiling back. "Thanks! Nice chair you got there, I never saw anything like this where I live."
"Really? Well it's called a wheelchair. I use to move around since I'm paralysed from the waist down but this one is actually special, I added some functionalities when I have to walk on hilly terrain." She pushed a button on her armrest. The wheels instantly morphed into spider-like legs.
"That's so cool!" The Apostle exclaimed. She then pointed to the Centurion next to Ghorshka. "By the way, I was wondering, what is that creature who is following you?"
"That? That's my own reverse-engineered Dwemeri Centurion."
Rory gave her a deadpan look. "Heh?"
The young orcish girl facepalmed. "Sorry, it's the engineer in me talking, I forgot you aren't from this world." She motioned to her Centurion who began to move its arms. "It's basically a machine that was made by the Dwemer, a race who disappeared long ago. I basically rebuilt it so it would follow my instructions."
The demi-goddess looked back and forth between the construct and its mistress. "It's a machine? That moves and acts on its own? But how?" She turned her head to face Cyrus. "It's magical, right?"
"Yes and no," he simply stated.
"... Meaning?" she asked as sweat poured from her forehead.
"It's complicated. Let's just say Dwemer animunculi are steam-powered but they make use of magic to process information and react to the world around them," he looked at Ghorshka, "am I correct, Engineer?"
She nodded. "It's quite exact, Sir." Something shined in her eyes as she daydreamt. "The Dwemer were geniuses, their animunculi are not only incredibly sophisticated but they are also still in function millenia after their disappearance."
"What happened to them?" Rory questioned. "I can't imagine people with machines like this were rendered extinct by a rival group."
The engineer orc scratched her head while her centurion simply stopped to move. "Well, they didn't die. They, uh, went poof! And just like that, they were gone," she replied awkwardly.
"It's a complicated story, indeed, one I might tell you in detail," Cyrus added. He turned back to Ghorshka. "Before I forget, I wanted to ask you, how is that you are here now? I had understood you were to stay in the Imperial City with your Master."
"I was, but then with the new developments and them wanting to use the caches… they thought having an expert would have been better so Councilor Mei Tharn and Princess-consort Liliah Mede took me with them when they traveled here."
"I see, they couldn't have chosen better."
"Please…" the Orc said while blushing, "you're embarrassing me. I'm still an apprentice."
And soon you'll be a master, the Heartlander thought.
A small alarm suddenly rang, surprising everyone. Ghorshka checked her pocket before finally grabbing some small device and looking at it.
"That's my watch, I put an alarm on it to tell me when I need to get back to work," she explained. "Anyway, it was nice chatting with you but gotta go! See ya around!" she said before leaving, followed by her Centurion.
Rory was wide eyed as she watched the Orc disappear. "She was… cool."
"That's what I thought the first time I met her."
The Apostle threw him a dumbfounded look. "You thought something was cool, you?"
"Does it really surprise you that much?"
She tried to picture him with a different expression that his usual stoic one she had always seen him with. "Yeah, definitely."
He shrugged.
Rory's face became thoughtful. "Cyrus"
"What is it?"
"I was thinking… couldn't magic have been used to fix Ghorshka's legs?"
He didn't reply right away, instead remaining quiet for a while.
"You're asking a very good question, more than you can imagine," he finally answered. "Could magic fix her paralysis? Knowing what I know about what it can accomplish, yes it very well could."
"I sense a 'but' coming."
He nodded. "Yes, as I said the theory exists but for the application… you'll need to find a mage willing and knowledgeable enough."
Rory crossed her arms over her chest. "And what is lacking? The 'willing' part or the 'knowledgeable enough'?"
"Both perhaps, I don't know." He shrugged. "I don't even think Ghorshka ever searched herself."
"Why not?"
"It isn't just about fixing someone's legs after an accident, that would be easier. Ghorshka was born with her disability, she never knew what it's like to have working legs." The Cyrod glanced at the camp outside the mess. "In a way it took part in shaping her into the person she is today." He turned back his head. "Like you with becoming an Apostle."
The Demi-Goddess looked back at her now forgotten glass of juice, it was still half full. She still remembered vividly the day she had been chosen by Emroy to become his Apostle. She hadn't fully understood what it meant then aside her newfound powers. She had immediately made use of them to destroy a cult of Zufumut, the God of Light, who had attempted to sacrifice her friend, Belle Faun, to gain a godly artifact. Almost a millennium later she still wondered why, of all the priestess trainees, her God had picked her.
"Besides," Cyrus continued, "I have the feeling that if she wanted new legs, she would rather build them herself than asking someone to 'fix her'. She's like that."
"Mmmh, yeah, I guess but tell me," she looked straight at him, her mischievous smirk on the face, "what makes Cyrus of Argos the man he is today?"
The question was unexpected and he seemed thoughtful for an instant before answering buntly, "A lot of things."
She rolled her eyes. I should have seen that one coming
Did he try to sound mysterious or was he just blunt? Probably the second one, the girl concluded.
She finished her drink before trying to remember what she had wanted to ask him earlier. Her cheeks reddened as she found out. "So, Cyrus…" she started fidgeting her fingers nervously, "I wanted to ask…". She couldn't meet his gaze at how embarrassed she was.
The Necromancer watched in wonder as the girl slowly became a blushing mess.
"I'm listening."
Rory mustered all her courage to finally look him in the eye. "Is there a God of Love here?"
Cyrus's brow twitched. That was the question that was currently eating her?
"By 'love', you do mean the feeling, right? Not the physical…"
Her eyes widened as she frantically waved for him to stop. "No, no, no! The feeling! I meant the feeling!"
He held in chin in a thoughtful manner. "I see but why are you so embarrassed then? Nothing wrong with it…"
"Just answer the damn question!"
"Fine. Yes, we do have a deity like that. She's called Mara and she's actually quite popular among all the cultures of Tamriel."
"Could I get to meet her?"
The young man shook his head. "You don't get to meet a God, Aedra or Daedra. It's they who choose to meet you."
Wouldn't I know that? he ironically mused.
Rory looked disappointed by his reply.
Seeing this, Cyrus offered her his arm. "Come, let us go to the Chapel we set up. I know there's a priestess of Mara who officiates as a chaplain, she will tell you better than I could."
The Apostle looked unsure. "I don't know, it's kind of personal…"
"It's part of a priest's job too," he reassured her, "come."
After a brief period of hesitation that seemed to last an eternity, she took the offered arm.
As guests of the Emperor, Piña and Beefeater had been given two large, spacious and luxurious tents as their quarters (they even had a couch with cushions!). Ivan had apologized that he couldn't have provided something better but the Princess found her new temporary home nice enough. It wasn't equivalent to Italica's palace but it was understandable. It was a military camp after all.
Currently, the redhead sat at a small desk, taking notes about her recent meeting and the course of action she was going to take. Her friend had joined in her tent and was sitting on the couch, watching her.
"You know," the Princess began without raising her eyes from her work, "it's really a pity that Legatus Antonius Sartorius died, he was a good general from what I've heard." She bit her lip, "And I'm not even talking about his widow and orphans. We'll need to offer Lady Livia our support." She briefly shuddered. "I can't even begin to imagine the vultures that will come after them once the Legatus' demise became widely known."
Beefeater nodded absently. "Mmm, mmh"
Piña turned her head to glance at her subordinate. She knew her mood was still sour, maybe now was the best time. She put down her writing before going to sit next to her friend.
"I think you and I need to have a talk."
"About what?" Beefeater told her abruptly.
"I know you had disagreements with some of the latest decisions I made and I was hoping we could discuss it."
The purple haired girl waved her hands around before shrugging. "And what is there to discuss about?"
Piña briefly tightened her fists and clenched her teeth, unnerved by her subordinate's attitude. So it's going to be like that. She took a deep breath to calm herself.
"You made very clear that you disagree with my stance of collaborating with the Nirnians."
"And that surprises you?!" the other exclaimed. "They are the enemies of Sadera, our enemies! Yet by the way you're behaving with them it seems they are friends! And I'm not even talking about Bozes!"
Bringing the blonde was a low blow. Especially since she wasn't present to defend herself. The Princess remained perfectly calm, or at least she gave the illusion of such with her face not moving. She knew what she had to stay.
"In case you forgot, I would be dead if it wasn't for them."
Beefeater froze, shut down in her momentum. She couldn't counter that point.
"In fact the whole city would have been lost. You were there, you saw like everyone else what happened."
How could anyone forget? Those creatures… how were they called already? Ah yes, Daedra
"... I don't deny it," she finally admitted while lowering her gaze, "but still! We can't just surrender like that! We should fight!"
The lips of the redhead spread into a smirk while she clasped her hands together. "And pray, do tell me how we were supposed to do that? You do realize they could have all arrested us had they wished so, right?"
"The people of the city…"
"Were saved by them!" Piña cut her. "And besides, do you really see Italica's people rising up against an occupier who doesn't give them reasons to do so?"
No, she did not. Saderan patriotic sentiments were, alas, very rare outside the core territories of the Empire. And even then, the rural communities rarely cared. People cared about their villages first, not some Emperor they barely knew about.
"So, you are simply giving up the fight?"
The redhead shook her head with strength to mark her position. "I am ending a pointless and wasteful conflict." She paused for a moment. "Do you have any idea of how much this expedition might have cost the Empire? The consequences of its failure?"
As the other girl didn't reply, she continued. "From there on, we have two choices. Either we continue throwing lives until we win, which is unlikely given, as they showed us, they control the Gate and turned into a death trap..."
That was true. They had asked about the large walls they had seen, believing to be circling a settlement even though it seemed strange with how the camp was arranged. They had been informed that was where the Gate was located, meaning any army coming from the other side would end up completely trapped.
"... or we can agree to the peace treaty they presented us. We recognize each other's borders, we get our prisoners back and in exchange they agree to take something that has little value for us. Seems fair enough, right?"
Yes, it was logical enough. Yet…
"You have always believed the Empire to be invincible," Beefeater finally said, looking away from her friend while holding her arm.
"And I still do, on Falmart that is." As long we aren't dealing with Apostles or Dragons
The purple haired Knight noticed the Princess had said Falmart instead of their World. But why? She chose to not press her on the issue.
"But that was before the Gate. Before nightmarish creatures from…" she shuddered a bit as she reminisced that day, "infernal worlds came. Change is needed if we want to face them."
"Be as it may, that doesn't explain what other game you are playing!" the other girl exclaimed in an accusatory tone, getting up from the couch. "I don't think you're only collaborating with them for the good of the Empire, am I right? I know you, you're smarter than that, you are seeking something from it."
Far from being troubled, Piña remained calm. "What have we accomplished?"
"I beg your pardon?
"Since I founded the Rose Order, tell me, what have we accomplished?"
"Huh…" she hesitated, not understanding the question. She crossed her arms over her chest before pinching her chin with her right hand, deep in thoughts. "We took the goblin bandits when we were… thirteen? At least that was my age back then."
"Correct," Piña acquiesced. "That was the first success of many we had. And yet… how are we considered?"
"I…"
"We have better training, a death rate of zero! An incredible score of achievements starting from before we were proper adults…" The Princess' hands shook, from a strong emotion no doubt but Beefeater was unable to tell if it was anger or something else. "And despite all of this we are still seen by many as 'girls playing at being Knights', with a few men who didn't join the army." She dived into her subordinate's grey eyes. "I am still nothing but the child of a concubine favored by the Emperor and you are still an illegitimate child instead of Captain Beefeater E Caty of the Rose Knights. Answer me, is that fair?"
Silence fell within the tents and for a moment the only noises that could be discerned were breathing.
"Is it?"
The female Knight clenched her teeth as an answer. No, it isn't. She had always resented being reminded of her social condition, it was only among her fellow Knights that it didn't matter.
"The Nirnians are the only one that have treated us with respect and not as a joke, I intend to take advantage of it."
Something suddenly clicked into the girl's mind. "But weren't you saying two days ago some Senators were considering you as the new heir in place of Zorzal? I may be only a bastard, but you, you are clearly taken seriously."
"A pumpkin would be better than that… idiot!" Piña almost yelled in anger. "And between you and I, you know I'm not even joking." She paused to regain her breath before continuing. "The reason I am considered as a possibility for a new heir is because, as a woman, I would be more malleable than, say, Diabo." She suddenly smirked. "That is, of course, if I allow them to do so, but I would need a stronger base of supporters."
The other girl literally fell on the couch after realizing what she truly meant. "Then… it was always about that. You are using the current crisis as an excuse to aim for the Imperial Throne, having negotiated peace and a possible alliance with the Nirnians to back you up."
"Yes," the redhead finally admitted. "But don't think for a moment I only care about my own ambitions. I've been dreaming of the Empire changing for a long time and I have always worked towards that goal. I wanted to become a Knight, I created a school that would allow girls."
"You're risking civil war."
"We were risking civil war the moment I decided peace was a better outcome than war. What? You thought Zorzal would find his brain to see reason and start counting casualties?" She spat out of contempt. "Better hope to walk on the moon."
"And you really think it's the better outcome?"
"Do you want him on the Throne?"
Beefeater suddenly shuddered at the idea. Like the Princess, she had seen what depravity Zorzal was capable of sinking to, he wasn't even hiding it. And he would come after the Order if he felt like it.
"You'll have to face him."
Piña's hand went to her dress, searching for something among the fold of the clothing, before brandishing it. It was a knife with several precious jewels encrusted on its handle. The Princess' face had hardened.
"I've been preparing for that since the day I finally saw for myself what kind of monster he was, I won't back up."
She threw the knife, which planted itself in the ground, before looking at Beefeater with a determined look. "Are you with me?"
The purple haired girl gazed at the knife then back to her Princess. She extended her hand towards the knife, grabbing it and extending to her leader who grasped it firmly. "Like you said, I became something more than a simple bastard child when I joined the Order and I am forever grateful for that." She sighed before shaking her head. "I may have given you the idea that I was doubting you lately and it was true. My patriotic spirit was too strong, I guess." Her face hardened and she locked eyes with Piña. "But now that I know that you never had anything at heart but the best interests for us? Yes, I'm with you Princess, to the end."