(chapter 12)

Red Lake City, Mayor's office

"I demand satisfaction! I don't give two damns if that commoner or that ...ugh... beastgirl... are acting on behalf of the foreign representative," ranted Duke Freidric. "They threatened me in front of my retinue, and stole my slavegirls."

"With respect, your grace," replied Mayor Wainwright. "Didn't you have a squad of infantrymen, plus a mounted escort? You could have easily fended off two young women. Maybe you could file a stolen property report with the local City Watch."

"What's this I hear?" called a voice from just outside the office doors. "Are the Freidric family being 'picked on' again?" A woman walked into the office uninvited. "Just like you were in school, aren't you Johann? Picked another losing fight again? I saw my sister sulking in the foyer."

"Good afternoon, Duchess Von Strudelheim," greeted Mayor Wainwright. "What can I do for you today?"

"I was just speaking to your sister," she replied. "I wanted to requisition her tavern. When, to my surprise, I found out the foreign representative was already staying there. Did you know about this?"

"Yes, I already knew. I only found out yesterday that some of Baron Freidric's men jumped my messenger, and stole the letter I sent you."

Duchess Von Strudelheim looked pointedly at Duke Freidric. "Still getting your brother to do your dirtywork, I see." She turned back to the Mayor. "Where is the foreign representative? I would like to speak with him before the talks."

"Unless the Duke here made her change her plans, she should be at that picnic park near the river gate," replied the mayor.

"You're always so helpful, Hans," she replied. If it wasn't for the scandal it would cause, I would have proposed to you the day I met you, she thought to herself. "By the way, Johann, I heard that your brother is being treated by the local doctor. Some young girl, dressed as a watchman broke his nose a few days ago."

She then blew a kiss to the mayor, and walked out of the office.

"The foreign representative is the guest of the Emperor of Demise," commented the mayor.

Duke Freidric looked confused.

"The Duchess is aligned to the Chaos faction," the mayor said in his 'talking to simpletons' voice. "She may be able to do something I, as a commoner, cannot."

After a few seconds, realisation dawned on the Duke's face.

Why did the Harmony faction sent an idiot, like that, as one of their representatives?

===/===

Location Unknown

A magic portal opens, inside a forest clearing, and a small girl steps out of it. She has red hair, and looks to be about 10 years old.

"WOO HOO!" she cheers. "I can make Space Bridges, like Hikari-oneesan!"

The girl looks around, as if searching for something.

++MDD013-IRISH ROSE++ Transponder verified. Good morning, Mizuchi. The local time is 12:45PM, and your mother is having a picnic 50.3km North West of your current position. Would you like me to teleport you there?

++CryoDragonPrime : Thanks for asking, but I'm fine. I wanted to test out some things.

...correction... Dragons' Homeworld, 51km South West of Red Lake City

===/===

They had been herding the young elf-girl for a while, and had tired her out near a small clearing. One of the forward scouts reported that there was another girl, picking flowers, also in the clearing. A dozen or so voices start whispering to each other, discussing the new plans, and some of the shadowy figures hidden inside the treeline break off, to surround both girls.

Mizuchi hears the voices. A few seconds later, eight goblins, mounted on wolves, slink out in front of her. The biggest one leered. "Yoo oor prizna lil girlies. We gon haf sum fun wiv yoo. Den eechuu." Evil laughter rang from all around her, and a quiet gasp came from inside a nearby log.

Something isn't right, thought one of the goblins. The elf is frozen in panic, and soiling herself, but the girl with the red hair ...and horns?... hasn't reacted, beyond putting her flowers down, and why are the wolves so twitchy?

===/===

From inside the log, the cornered elf watches in terror.

The girl speaks some weird noises, then tilts her head. "So, they don't speak Uruk'hai."

Why aren't you running? Thinks the elf.

Then the girl tries what the elf guesses is another different language. "Not that one, either."

Don't talk to them! Just run!

Then she hears a language she never thought she'd ever hear outside of magic lessons.

How does she know the 'Black Speech' of the Dark Elves?

"So one of them understands that," muttered the girl, as the group's Shaman begins to look panicky.

The girl ties another language, and the goblins just laugh.

Did she just speak to them in Goblinese?

A set of purple and blue wings unfurl from her back.

A dragon? Here?

The shaman frantically casts a fire-warding spell on the rest of his raiding party, a triumphant grin on his face.

Is it getting colder?

...quiet...

"You can come out now. The rest have run away."

The elf risked peeking out of her hiding-place. Half of the clearing looked like it was covered in snow. There are eight goblins completely encased in ice, in front of the girl. "Aww! They made me ruin Mama-Freya's flowers."

"Y-you've got an arrow stuck in you," said the elf.

"Yeah. It's poison-tipped, too," the girl said, as she pulled it out. "Mama-Erika will probably be upset. She bought me this dress, last week, for my tenth birthday."

"What happened here?"

Both girls turned towards the voice. An old man with glaring eyes looked down at them, his dark-red cloak billowing in the wind.

The Emperor of Demise? thought the elf. We're sooo dead.

The elf fainted.

===/===

Mizuchi flapped her wings, and faced the old man. "Some goblins didn't get the hint that I outnumbered them 87 to one."

The old man chuckled. "Such a confident hatchling you are."

"I'm not a hatchling. I turned ten last week."

"Ten centuries, you say? To cast ice magic that powerful, you must be quite talented."

"Centuries? I'm only ten years old."

"Where are your parents? I'm going to have to have words with them about leaving a hatchling unattended."

"Well, Mama-Erika is still in Japan. So you can't talk to her. However, Mama-Freya is just up by that town." Mizuchi pointed towards Red Lake.

===/===

Red Lake City, outside the gates

++MDD013-IRISH ROSE++ Incoming. Multiple bogeys 40km South West, and closing.

++EmeraldAngel: Identify hostiles.

++MDD013-IRISH ROSE++ Goblin raiders. Sub-category: wolf-cavalry.

"Everyone!" Freya called out in a voice that would do a drill-sergeant proud. "Head back to the city gates. Wilhelm! Tell your brother to alert the guards."

"What's going on?" asked one of the centaurs.

"Goblin raiding party. They'll be here within the next 15 to 20 minutes. Kahl'ryleh-hophiit, are you fighting, or guarding the kids?"

"I'll guard the children," she replied. "Razorfang, pick up your sister. I'll carry the harpy. We'll have to name them before Stormcloud does."

"Speaking of Stormcloud," said Freya, before turning back towards the field. "Stormcloud! Deathbolt! Some goblins, riding puppies, want to steal your kitty!"

"That's just evil," said Kahl'ryleh-hophiit. "Just be prepared to house train a bunch of direwolves, if this goes pear-shaped."

===/===

The frozen clearing

"You do know those goblins are going to take this out on the nearest town," said the old man.

"Then I'll have to stop them," replied Mizuchi. "I screwed up, so I need to fix it."

A portal opens behind and below Mizuchi, and she "falls" into it.

"She reminds me of Tohru," the old man said to himself. "I'm going to have to have words with Ambassador O'Reilly. She's keeping a few secrets."