Chapter 15: Progress Report
The walk through the palace occurred in silence, but that didn't stop Blake from stealing glances every which way as they and Duke Xavier were escorted by the guards. Luxmouth Palace's interior was just as beautiful as its exterior, more ornately decorated than he even thought possible; the tapestries, paintings, and statues adorning the marble-white halls were awe-inspiring. This was a place rich in lore and history, and he suspected he could spend a lifetime learning about it and still not knowing everything.
"My friends and I always talked about exploring far-off lands like this… can't believe I'm really here, though. If there weren't an invasion to worry about, I'd call this whole trip an adventure."
There was the reality check he needed. No more sightseeing for him, at least not until whatever official business he had here was done. Blake fought down his curiosity and stared straight ahead as they walked.
Felix, he noticed, appeared to have no problem with doing the same. His lack of enthusiasm didn't seem to be due to familiarity- rather, he looked more like he'd already accepted a sentence to several months in a cell for helping Celia escape. Walking at the front, just behind her father, the Countess herself could only stare at the floor. Occasionally she would lift her head as if working up the nerve to say something, but no words ever came.
"I would like to speak with them privately," the Duke said to the guards when they finally reached the throne room.
The doors were opened to the chamber. Blake squinted at the sunlight streaming through the orange, yellow, and white stained-glass window in the ceiling, a design portraying the sun-and-river emblem of Luxmouth. On either side of the room, water gently flowed from fountains in the walls into small pools. And at the center, raised by a dias of carved quartz, two oaken thrones stood side-by-side.
But they didn't move very far into the room. No sooner had the doors shut behind the four of them before Duke Xavier rounded on Celia and pulled her into a hug. Though Felix tried to stifle it, Blake heard him let out a breath he'd sucked in just before entering.
"When you disappeared, I thought… we all thought…"
"I'm so sorry, Father!" Celia replied, her voice shaky as she clung to him. "I'm sorry I worried you!"
"What happened? Where have you been?"
"There's so much I want to tell you…"
The pair finally separated, with Celia gesturing to him and Felix. "But before that, you should know I wouldn't be here if it weren't for their help."
Duke Xavier's eyes landed on Felix first.
"Your family claims you went missing at the same time. Did you leave with her?"
"I did, your grace. We snuck out of the city together."
"It was my idea," Celia added abruptly, "and taking the Genesis Core tracker was also my fault. I'll accept any consequences."
Somewhere inside Blake, the respect he'd been building for her raised by another tick.
The Duke didn't say anything, though Blake suspected he'd have more to say about the theft to her later. For the time being, he himself was now under scrutiny.
"And you are?"
He stood rigid, hoping he could appear to be at attention. "Uh… I'm Blake, Sir. I ran into your dau- the Countess and Felix while the Usurpation were after me, Sir. We all worked together to escape them, Sir- My Lord-"
Duke Xavier's expression was unreadable, while Celia and Felix were both trying not to grin. His face heated up; how was he supposed to address someone so important?
"Seems you've all had quite the adventure. Please, tell me what happened."
As Celia began to recount her side of their travels, a worry crossed Blake's mind.
"The minute the Usurpation realizes there are three Genesis Cores here now… Luxmouth will be irresistible."
Several guards were already waiting at the shore's edge by the time Crimson Squad's carrier made its approach. Ray, leaning against the rail, made a halfhearted wave at them which got no reaction. He could feel Tara's gaze burning against the back of his head- she'd alerted their compatriots of their return once they had come into range of her communicator's enchantment, no doubt including a warning for them not to expect any other members of Lime Squad.
"At least we're back in friendly territory…"
Orion Outpost was situated very far southeast from the village they'd escaped, on a larger island which had been cleared of its forest. Named for the Usurpation Marshal overseeing it, the encampment served as a temporary scouting base for the Expansion Division, of which Marshal Orion himself was an officer. Tara and Crimson Squad, as fellow members of the Expansion Division, operated directly under his command in addition to Ruby Squad, led by a knight named Merric. Ray didn't know the man well; he and Lime Squad had only just arrived before being assigned to track down the dark Bonemeal Core.
"I'm not seeing any Expansion troopers here," he thought as he surveyed the Usurpers observing their approach. "Wherever Sir Merric is, I hope he's having better luck than us."
The smattering of guards were identifiable as agents from the Industrial Division by their masks, much like his own. More specifically, they were members of Jade Squad, the team he'd been assigned to the outpost with. Its leader, Dame Esme, was among those watching their carrier trundle to a halt.
"Here we go…"
Tara and her three surviving troopers disembarked first, keeping a brisk pace toward the Marshal's tent without so much as a word to anyone else. Though Ray was behind her, he got the distinct impression that even in failure Tara was looking down her nose at the others.
"What happened?"
Esme's voice was gentle- a far cry from the icy silence he'd endured on the ride back. Ray coughed, trying to find his voice again after not speaking for the past day as they walked between gray tents and chests of supplies. Tara's troopers separated from her at some point, dismissed by a brusque wave of the hand, and joined several Jade Squad agents around a campfire.
"We messed up, Esme. I messed up. The operation was a failure."
"And Lime Squad…" Her mask covered most of her face, but he could see worry through the lenses of her goggles.
"Gone. Because of me."
Ray watched Tara pause in front of Orion's tent, shooting him a stony-faced look before disappearing inside.
"I'm sure it wasn't all your fault," Esme said, an edge in her voice as she looked back at Tara.
Though he doubted it, he sighed and nodded. "Thanks. Where's Sir Merric?"
She flinched. "Ruby Squad is missing. We would've left the camp behind soon if none of you had returned."
More wonderful news. Ray followed Tara into the tent, hoping to just get chewed out, suffer a demotion, and be done with it.
Marshal Orion was a tall man, nearly half a head more so than Ray. His complexion was darker than most Usurpers, but certainly nothing akin to the average Inlander. Like much of the Expansion Division, he wore a patchy black robe over his red plate armor. Disheveled as his garb was, his head and face were cleanly shaven. Ray stood at attention beside Tara while Orion stepped away from the desk and map he'd been hunched over. He looked at them with a frown.
"Welcome back. Your vibrant expressions fill me with confidence."
Ray winced. "We could not obtain the Bonemeal Core, Sir," Tara began. "Most of our forces… were lost in the process. A trio of wretched Inlanders-"
"Stop." Orion was rubbing his forehead in exasperation. "Not so dramatic, Dame Tara. Just tell me everything."
"If I may, I think it would be better if I started first," Ray said. "I encountered the, ah, trio of Inlanders before Dame Tara did."
The Marshal raised a brow. "Is that right? Very well, then. Proceed."
Resigned to whatever his fate would be, Ray began to explain.
Celia handled most of the story, not that Blake minded- he still wasn't quite sure how not to sound like an idiot in front of her father. Felix only chimed in to elaborate on how they'd escaped Luxmouth unnoticed. It was apparently quite simple: Celia had tunneled through the floor beneath her bed in the dead of night and dug a narrow trench under the palace before surfacing in the storeroom where the Genesis Core tracker was held. She'd stolen it and went back to digging, this time below the streets, until she arrived at the city's western shore, having arranged to meet with Felix there. He had boats and some supplies for the journey prepared by the time she arrived, and just like that they'd set off together.
"Is that why you'd spent the day prior slowly roaming about the halls?" the Duke asked, a ghost of a smile on his face. "You were planning out how far you'd have to dig?"
Celia hung her head. "Oh… I was hoping you wouldn't notice that."
"I wouldn't be much of a leader if I didn't take notice of what the people around me were doing. Or, in your case, much of a father."
He didn't look pleased to learn how she'd snuck out, but Blake couldn't hear any kind of anger in the Duke's voice. His gaze shifted to Felix.
"Though, I am not without error to that end. My daughter left behind a note stating her intentions," Xavier remarked, "but I'll admit I didn't seriously consider it. With the disappearance of the map, I figured the Usurpation had infiltrated the city, and you'd both been kidnapped- for ransom, or for information. You can't imagine how worried we all were."
Blake's companions cringed in unison. The Duke continued. "You covered your tracks quite well, though. When I established the search parties, the most we could find other than Celia's letter was a pile of stray dirt and sand blocks on the beach. Although this was a grievous breach of security, I'd say you both pulled it off impressively, and you taught me how we can better fortify Luxmouth."
"Thank… you, your grace...?" Felix replied.
"I must ask, though. How did you know to travel westward? Surely the map couldn't track a Genesis Core from that far. And why did you not ask for an escort if you were so determined?"
This time, as Celia answered, her cheeks grew redder by the second.
"...do you remember when the Usurpation squad we captured was brought before you? The leader offhandedly mentioned they were planning to head further west after stealing our Bonemeal Core- she said she knew another one was out that way."
Blake resisted the urge to facepalm. That was the basis of her search?
"Between fighting off mobs and Illagers, and aiding our neighbors against the Usurpation," she continued, "our militia is spread thin already. I knew we couldn't afford to divert a large force to search for a Genesis Core on a whim, so I decided to look for it personally. I brought Felix with me because he was the most reliable person I could think of."
Xavier nodded.
"Technically, the both of you should be in serious trouble for your little excursion. But given the trying times of late, and your apparent success, I'm willing to look the other way just this once. Now… I suppose that brings us to you, young man- Blake, was it? What part have you played in all this?"
His explanation was shorter and simpler. He recounted how he'd found the purple Bonemeal Core and escaped the two squads alongside Celia and Felix, his lack of decorum of seemingly little importance to the Duke- perhaps the story was all he cared about at the moment.
"I see," he hummed once Blake was done. "Well, on behalf of all of Luxmouth, thank you for helping the Countess and Felix return home safely."
"We had to work together. I couldn't have gotten past the Usurpation without them."
"So it would seem. Now, as… interesting as your story has been, I believe there are more pressing matters at hand. Do you still have the two Genesis Cores you found?"
Blake nodded, pointing at his chest. "That's right. It's, uh, inside me. Cel- the Countess has the one which makes fire."
"Is there a way to safely remove them?" Celia asked.
Xavier stood from his throne and strode for the door. "There is. Please wait here a moment, I will return shortly."
He exited, leaving the three of them alone again. They looked at each other with mixed relief and confusion.
"I… guess it all turned out okay," Felix said. "He's even letting us both off the hook for sneaking out."
Celia gave a huff of laughter. "I suppose so. Good work, team!"
Blake rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but grin.
"Team…"
He liked the sound of that.
By the time Ray finished explaining their disastrous mission, he noted Orion didn't look nearly as disappointed or angered as he'd anticipated. "Do the two of you at least still have your Cores?"
"Yes, sir," said Tara. "The Inlanders escaped with the dark Bonemeal Core, but we haven't lost ours."
Orion nodded.
"The loss of so many Usurpers is unfortunate. You both have my condolences."
Ray could only murmur a "thank you."
"But," Orion continued, "their deaths don't need to have been in vain. I'm very curious about this 'raid' you described. You say it consisted of the large-nosed Inlanders, but with ashy complexions?"
"That's right," Ray confirmed. "One of them said they'd tracked me down after I killed their patrol."
"How interesting. Follow me."
The Marshal stepped out of the tent. Ray glanced at Tara, but she didn't bother making eye contact with him before heading out. Wondering what was to come, he trailed behind the two.
"Just yesterday, we caught five Inlanders of a similar description prowling near our camp. Only one managed to be brought in alive: their leader, by the looks of it."
Orion led them to another tent where two Jade Squad agents stood guard over a bound prisoner. Sure enough, it was a creature identical to the crossbow-wielding raiders they'd faced. A banner like that held by the scout Ray had killed was resting at his feet.
"My friends here say your kind ambushed them recently," the Marshal said to him. "They tell me you Inlanders are able to track people."
"Inlander this, Inlander that," the raider chortled. "We're called Illagers, you know. What kind of podunk hole did you drag yourselves out of, if you don't even know that?"
Tara frowned. "You all call yourselves Illagers?"
"Just 'my kind,' as you put it. The pacifist fools who place their trust in you humans are called villagers." He giggled again. "And as long as I'm at it, we who use crossbows specifically are pillagers. Fun, isn't it?"
"Very cute," Orion deadpanned.
"You are humans, aren't you?" the Illager asked, peering at them. "We haven't seen people like you before. So, which of you unlucky saps found himself on the wrong end of a bad omen?"
Ray put up a hand. "That'd be me. A group of your kind tried to attack me, and I wiped them out. A few days afterwards, a much larger force arrived. Will this keep happening?"
The Illager giggled to himself again. "Sadly, no. Bad omens are only good for one raid whenever you kill one of our patrol captains. And the raids don't show up at random- once you enter a town where those peaceful slackers live, that's when we strike.
Orion gasped, to Ray's alarm. "You mean… if we kill you, can't visit any villages without a raid appearing? We won't get to enter without sparking an invasion?"
His voice was laden with despair, to Ray's further surprise. Was he hoping to return to one of the conquered Inlander towns, instead of the new Usurpation cities being established in their wake? What did he care?
The Illager, meanwhile, couldn't get enough of his anguish. His stifled cackling erupted into a full-on roar, eyes squeezed shut and even tearing up a bit. "Yep! Now you get it! No trading, no mingling with the townsfolk, NOTHING! Unless you suckers want to put yourselves in voluntary exile, you'd better just let me go! Aha! Ahahahaha! HAHAHA-"
Then his eyes were as wide open as could be, shakily looking down at the open wound in his chest. Orion, now very calm and quiet, wiped off his blade on the banner.
"Thank you for cooperating, Inlander," he said while sheathing his sword. "You've been very helpful."
He exited the tent, Tara close behind. Ray spared a glance at the dying Illager before following them.
"Marshal?" Esme approached, a sense of urgency in her step.
"Trooper Ruby-13 just arrived at camp. He is injured, but alive. My agents are tending to him now."
"What of Sir Merric?"
There was a pause. "He says… Sir Merric and the rest of Ruby Squad have fallen. He won't stop rambling about a place filled with fire and enormous man-pigs, wearing golden armor."
Ray blinked. What did any of that even mean?
Despite the grave news, Orion didn't lose the newfound focus in his visage. "I will speak to him later, once he's made a full recovery. In the meantime, I am not to be disturbed."
"Marshal… what are you thinking of?" Tara asked, looking for a split second like she was at a loss for words. Her impassive mask returned when she noticed Ray watching her.
He paused en-route to his tent, his eyes passing over the three Usurper Knights. "Get some rest, Dame Tara. You and Sir Ray have been through much recently. I have some planning to do right now… because I've just had an idea which Commandant Red might appreciate. Dismissed."
With that, Orion continued on his way, leaving Ray and his fellow officers with nothing but questions.
"I don't know what's on his mind," he thought, "but if he thinks one of the three Commandants should hear about it, it must be something big. Some new plan to turn the tables…"
He liked the sound of that.