Chapter Fifty-Nine
Captain Langmar was not one to be particularly exuberant, thus when the Ascalon Vanguard's commanding officer burst into the operations building at a full sprint, even Yue took notice.
"All officers at attention and present to the front!" The Captain bellowed. "We are being visited by royalty! Now! Now! Now!"
Yue slinked deeper into the corner she had nestled herself into, partially obscured by a support beam and thus only partially lit, as said officers formed a single line in the center of the entry hall, seven in all.
Yue had personally seen two members of the royal family, King Adelbern and Prince Rurik, having exchanged rather terse pleasantries with the latter on one occasion before she had been not no casually nudged aside by her commanding lieutenant. She figured it was another visit from one of them.
But the young man that did eventually enter the building was certainly not, and Yue in fact had to do a double take, as this fellow looked nothing like either man. He carried a much more delicate frame, his features clean shaven and not as rugged as either of the royals she had met before. Apparently, he got more of his mother's side.
"Prince Coran, I present to you the officers of the Northern Regiment of the Ascalon Vanguard." Langmar said with a slow sweep of her arm.
"I am certain my brother maintains you all well." The young man said with a respectful bow. "However, I am not needing anything specific at this time. You are all dismissed. Captain, if we may speak alone for a moment?"
Langmar bowed deeply, "Of course, your highness," then she gestured for the lieutenants to do as ordered as Coran requested for his personal guard to wait outside.
"Now then..." The prince began, "You don't need to worry about trying to impress me in the hopes that will see a better offering from the royal coffers. That's not why I am here."
Yue fought back a chuckle as her captain immediately denied such a hope, even as her eyes reflected that disappointment. "I would never dream of such an implication." Langmar said, "So then, may I be so bold as to ask the reason of this visit?"
"I am in need of the services of your finest scout." Prince Coran answered, "Preferably one with extensive knowledge of the Northlands."
Captain Langmar pondered this, "Lieutenant Janice is our highest ranking scout... she frequently is in charge of plotting Charr movements."
"I didn't say your highest ranking scout." Coran corrected, "I said your best. It has long been my observation that the two are rarely the same."
"Oh!" Langmar chirped. "Well... then... I suppose that would be..."
The captain then grew nervous, prompting Coran to ask, "What is it?"
"Well..." The captain said with a somewhat apologetic glance in Yue's direction. "She's Canthan, you see..."
"So?" Coran replied as if he didn't understand the big deal. "Is that supposed to matter to me?"
Yue found herself liking this young man, an attitude in stark contrast to Rurik, who as she had noted earlier had somewhat ruffled himself in her presence, like a man suddenly confronted with a mangy, sickly dog.
"Well, to some it does." Langmar said, "But if it is of no concern to you then I suppose all you need to do is turn around. Corporal Yue, step forward."
"Oh goodness!" The prince yelped as he turned about and finally noted the assassin's presence for the first time. "Yes, I suspect she will do quite nicely. You are dismissed, Captain."
"May I inquire about the nature of what you be having my scout doing?"
"No you may not, Captain. My business is for her ears alone." The prince replied sternly.
"Understood, your highness. With your leave." Langmar bowed deeply once more, and retreated deeper into the building.
"Now, with that out of the way..." Coran said after some moments silence, "Your first task is that we need to get out of town without being seen."
Oh yes... she was really liking this young man indeed...
* * * * *
She hadn't always felt that way over the years; in fact, she had been questioning that initial sentiment within the hour, when Coran had introduced her to a Charr Shaman named Grazz. But nonetheless, she found that her time spent with the young prince was more pleasant than not. He was the first person outside of Captain Langmar who didn't judge her based on her ancestry, and the first to seriously listen to what she had to say.
But that would change when she abruptly got summons from her captain to report to her office.
Inside, Captain Langmar was waiting, standing in front of her desk. "Greetings Corporal."
"Ma'am. Did you wish to see me?"
"As you may already know, soon to be Captain Janice is receiving a promotion to Prince Rurik's regiment of the Ascalon Vanguard. That leaves a Lieutenant's billet open within our own regiment."
"Yes..." Yue drawled warily.
"I am rather ashamed that I never had the courage to really challenge accepted customs prevalent within the Ascalon Army. I don't know how many times I've told you that I've promoted you as far as I dared." Langmar noted with a bit of a frown. "But... my courage is bolstered considerably when I have a prince in my corner."
"Captain?"
"Prince Coran has already agreed to lend his support if it comes to that, and so I am going to tell the Armsmasters just where to shove it. Stand at attention, Corporal."
The assassin did as ordered... but the cynical part of her mind kept warning her this was some sort of joke.
It kept trying to convince her of that, although that voice in her head got progressively weaker as Captain Langmar added the proper pins and rank bars to the breast pocket of her uniform. "Congratulations, Lieutenant Yue. You've deserved this for a long time."
The captain stepped back, grabbed an envelope from her desk, and shoved it into the assassin's hand. "These are your initial orders. You still have to complete an officer's orientation and test, they begin in one week at the Royal Army Barracks in Rin. I trust you will represent us well. Dismissed, Lieutenant."
Yue snapped a quick salute, and rushed back to her quarters to prepare. Once inside and the door was shut, she ripped open the envelope. The first thing that caught her attention was a letter, written in a far more elegant script than the blocky printed type of her orders.
My friend,
I am glad I was able to offer you my assistance in your long overdue and well deserved promotion. I have no doubt you will pass your trial with exceptional marks and perform your duties beyond reproach and leave the Armsmasters with no choice but to accept this rank.
I am sorry that I was not able to give you these orders in person, as was my hope, but even a second prince's duties and studies can be quite overwhelming. There is a find in the Southern Shiverpeaks that the Deldrimor Dwarves recommended I examine. I will do what I can to return in time for your commencement into the officer corps. Until then, Dwayna guide you.
~Coran
P.S. I know the Captain that will be leading you very well; she is every bit as capable as you are, and I am certain will share my opinion of your worth, Canthan or no. You can trust her implicitly.
With that in mind, Yue turned to the orders she was given.
On Day 110, within the Season of the Phoenix, of the year 1268, Lieutenant-Designate Yue is to report to the Royal Army Barracks of Rin no later than midday call. You will be assigned to Training Regiment 1, under the command of Captain-Designate Devona. Report to your Captain-Designate for specific orders throughout the remainder of the orientation program.